Small Business Computing Staff

How do you know when it’s time to invest in a server for your small business? If you have more than five employees, it’s time to learn about the benefits a small business server network can offer. A network of computers connected by a server (or servers) is far more efficient than employees working on […]

Wired: Review – HTC Thunderbolt 4G Smartphone This is the first smartphone that can send and receive data over Verizon’s LTE 4G network. The phone is good, with some flaws. The network, reviewer Steven Leckart says, is “really, really fast.” “If I told you I test-drove a Lamborghini Aventador, what features would you most want […]

ITBusinessEdge: How Hackers Attack SMBs And How To Protect Yourself Paul Mah attended an ethical hacker university and applies what he learned to helping SMBs protect themselves against black hat (criminal) hackers who target them. “I was offered a free scholarship to attend the latest version of EC-Council’s Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) course last week, […]

PCWorld: Review: Toshiba Mini NB505-N508GN Netbook The Toshiba Mini NB505-N508GN (about $300) is just an “average” netbook, this PC World reviewer says. It scored below average on the magazine’s benchmark tests, but the reviewer liked its ergonomics, screen and styling. “Toshiba’s Mini NB505-508GN has two things that separate it from the netbook pack, albeit only […]

PCmag@Work (Small Business): Preview – QNAP Introduces Business Series Turbo NAS Products The new QNAP line of NAS products includes four-, five- and six-drive models. All run on a 1.8GHz Atom processor and are the first to support new SATRA 6GB drives. “QNAP has announced an expansion of its business class line of Turbo NAS […]

ITBusinessEdge: SMBs Embracing Tablet PCs Paul Mah says exaggerated hype around the iPad may be making some SMBs skeptical of tablet PCs for business, but recent research shows they are now starting to get on the bandwagon – and possibly with good reason. “New research by AMI-Partners has concluded that the adoption of tablets in […]

PCWorld: Review – Epson WorkForce 635 Multifunction Printer The $200 Epson WorkForce 635 multifunction color inkjet printer (fax, copy, print, scan) is ideal for small offices, PC World magazine’s reviewers say. It’s fast, print quality is good and ink is reasonably priced. “A color inkjet multifunction printer, Epson’s WorkForce 635 earns its $200 list price […]

ITBusinessEdge: Heads Up – Microsoft Window Intune Desktop Management Service Paul Mah of ITBusinessEdge analyzes news of Microsoft going live with its $11-a-seat Windows Intune desktop management service for SMBs. “Microsoft formally launched its Windows Intune service at the Microsoft Management Summit on Wednesday, after a beta period that lasted a year. Hosted by Microsoft, […]

PCWorld: Free Stuff: 11 Tremendous PC Utilities PC World magazine’s big feature series on free PC software included this listing of free Windows utilities that includes everything from desktop organizers to apps for cleanly removing unwanted programs from your system to one that automatically puts download files into folders for each type of file. Instant […]

Wired: Is Your Small Business Ready For Mobile Payments The next big change to the way your bricks-and-mortar business will process payments is almost here. Google, Mastercard and Citigroup will pioneer a system that lets customers wave their mobile phones at a POS terminal equipped with near field communications (NFC) short-range wireless capability. “Google wants […]

Social Media Today: Calculating ROI For Social Media Marketing A Must Pam Moore offers 10 reasons why you should “eat ROI for breakfast” when using social media for marketing. You need a plan and objectives, Moore says, and you need to be able to calculate return on investment (ROI). “Social media is free, right? Simply […]

ITBusinessEdge: Security For SMBs: Building Strength In All Domains Paul Mah hammers home the point raised in a recent article in a British publication that SMBs need to pay attention to security in four separate but equally important domains: server, network, endpoint and user. “I came across this article, titled ‘What every SMB needs to […]