James Gaskin's blog

Google and the Browser OS Push

James Gaskin — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 17:17:57 -0400

Google-watching, now a fine art, went into hyperdrive with their new Chrome browser (one of many stories here). Some reports say Chrome already has one percent of the browser market, an impressive rollout.

Internet Explorer 8 Privacy Mode Isn't

James Gaskin — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 21:49:59 -0400

Pity those users hoping the new “porn mode” in IE8 will cover the tracks left while looking for the uncovered. Once again, Microsoft overpromises and underdelivers in IE 8 and leaves a security hole.

Accessing Remote Data Wrapup

James Gaskin — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 10:37:36 -0400

Wrapping up, be aware that only the smallest companies with the least complicated access problems to solve will be able to put a single type of remote data access in place that works for all their needs. Almost all companies will benefit from using multiple access methods to handle multiple access scenarios.

Accessing remote data part 4

James Gaskin — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 12:19:37 -0400

Some people don't really want access to their remote data as much as they want access to a remote computer. They're on the road and they want to magically see their office computer appear on the screen of their laptop. You can do this, but I can't call this a best practice for remote data access.

Accessing remote data part 3

James Gaskin — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 12:53:11 -0400

Last time (Accessing Remote Data Part 2) we talked about setting up secure remote communications from one stationary location like a home office to another stationary location like the main office. This time, let's talk about providing remote data access to those users wandering around from place to place. After all, since your laptop is portable, you may want to start moving around with it under your arm yet still do business.

Accessing remote data part 2

James Gaskin — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 00:02:51 -0400

Let's look at the most basic type of remote access: one stationary location to another stationary location. For example, from the small business owner's home to the small business owner's office.

Accessing remote data part 1

James Gaskin — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 14:55:27 -0400

Following up on details from the last post (Every Small Business Has Two Locations), let's look at some ways to access your data whether you're in the office, home, or on the road with Internet access.

Every Small Business Has Two Locations

James Gaskin — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 12:18:08 -0400

A reseller I was speaking to about his adoption of a new product said something quite interesting: every small business has at least two locations. One is the office, store, or shop, and the second is the owner's home. I understood that intellectually, but hadn't heard it put so clearly. Kudos to Dave Sobel of Evolve Technologies in the DC area.

More Online Backup Storage for Less

James Gaskin — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 10:26:53 -0400

The two leading consumer oriented online backup leaders, Mozy.com and Carbonite.com, started out with quite similar offerings. Mozy added their MozyPro service to back up servers rather than just workstations, while Carbonite remains focused on the consumer market. When EMC bought Mozy last year, people knew a price increase loomed, and the prices did go up. But good news today, as storage prices for MozyPro have dropped by over two-thirds, from $1.75 per GB down to $.50 per GB.

SaaS Stupidity from BusinessWeek

James Gaskin — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 11:44:17 -0400

I discovered why SaaS (Software as a Service) remains a scary proposition to many small businesses: they listen to really, really bad advice. You know, scary stories full of lies, incompetent research, and self-serving bias masquerading as journalism. The most recent putrid prose comes from BusinessWeek.com in a column called “Beware the Hype for Software as a Service.”