Small Business Computing Staff

by Mike Langberg Medium-voltage electric power lines might be a new way to bring high-speed Internet access to businesses and homes. Cisco Systems is backing a start-up named Amperion that is developing technology for carrying Net data through the medium-voltage lines linking power substations to neighborhood transformers — a distinctly different approach than low-voltage networking […]

by William C. Gillis IT’S NOT 1984, but in the workplace most businesses now play Big Brother. A recent study by the American Management Association (AMA) found that more than 77 percent of major American firms monitor employees’ e-mail, Internet, or telephone use, up from 35 percent in 1997. Why are businesses monitoring? Lost productivity […]

by Tom Dinome Maybe Mom and Dad did know what they were talking about when they kept hounding us to turn off the lights. Cutting costs is always sound business, and these days it pays to keep an eye on energy consumption. Experts have tried to explain the energy crisis in states like California and […]

by Michael Grebb Adrive through the rolling hills of wine country in Northern California has its perks: the picturesque mountains, the uncongested roadways, and the quaint villages and towns scattered throughout. As you cruise through Napa Valley on the way to Calistoga, each side of the road becomes an endless canvas of geometric beauty — […]

by David G Propson New York Governor George Pataki made headlines this summer by signing into a law a bill that banned the use of cell phones while driving. A number of states are considering similar laws, and several municipalities have already acted. This has caused much confusion and debate among technolophiles who fear having […]

by Robert J Wagman IT’S AN AGE-OLD question: what is spam? Judging from recent attempts to draft federal anti-spam legislation, it appears Americans have radically different concepts of what constitutes spam. The anti-spam bill that has received the most attention is H.R. 718, the “Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail Act of 2001,” sponsored by Rep. Heather […]

by Dave Haskin (with Eileen Bien Calabro) Once a luxury, wireless phone service has become a necessity for busy professionals. There is no better way to keep track of clients or help customers find you than to have a cell phone handy. For those of you who are still reluctant to pass out cell phones […]

by Doublas Gantenbein Like a growing number of people, Palo Alto, Calif.-based marketing consultant Bill Bucy has gone totally wireless. His Nokia 6162 cell phone comes with him to the corporate office, and is the main means of contacting him on the road. “Responsiveness is important to my key constituencies: Clients and the news media,” […]

by Jennifer Doran We’ve evaluated a number of “lightweight” notebooks that weigh more than a newborn baby, but the Acer 610 lives up to its title. Enclosed in a sleek silver and black case, the Acer 610 offers a speedy Pentium 3 processor, dual hard drives, and is Bluetooth ready. The SmartCard feature is the […]

by Stacey J Miller McAfee Utilities 4.0 offers a few goodies that make it a strong contender in the Windows utilities market. The most innovative feature in this new release is Active Tune. Like all utilities packages, McAfee Utilities 4.0 enables you to defrag and optimize your hard disk. Active Tune goes a step further […]

by David Propson Some technophiles believe that the PDAs, cell phones, digital cameras, and other small devices we now find ourselves burdened with will eventually merge into a single device. Handspring already builds an attachment port, a Springboard cartridge that can turn their handheld into a phone. The Visorphone module retails for $249 when purchased […]

by Liz Levy Why would anyone want a tablet PC? Try holding your laptop with one hand and typing with another. Not too easy, is it? This is one very good reason to buy the Fujitsu’s Stylistic 3500. Weighing just over 3 pounds and measuring 11 inches by 8.5 inches by 1.1 inches, the tablet […]