Free Mobile Backup Solution from Microsoft by Ryan Pickel, Applications Developer

Microsoft’s new My Phone service synchronizes the content on your Windows Mobile device with the Web. This allows you to browse and search your contacts, text messages, documents, etc. from the My Phone Web site or restore them to your device. The restore feature would be very handy if you ever lost your phone, had to do a hard reset or wanted to upgrade.

The last few times I upgraded my mobile device I used Jeyo Mobile Companion, which backed up my data to an XML file instead of the cloud. I actually prefer the file saved to my desktop over having every text message stored online, but Mobile Companion costs $19.95 and requires the device to be tethered to your PC to run.

The My Phone service is free and the Web-based management console is easier to use than searching through a huge XML file. My Phone also performs scheduled wireless synchronization, which means that if your device is ever lost or stolen you have a backup of all your data through the last synch (mine runs daily.)

There are also several premium features which allow you to ring, lock, or erase your phone and view its location on a map from the My Phone portal. There is a one-time charge of $4.99 to use this functionality, but you can try it free through November 30, 2009.

Whether you use My Phone or another third party solution, use SOMETHING! Nobody wants to re-enter all of their contacts each time they upgrade phones.

How fast do you surf? By Ellen Kurr, Marketing Coordinator

Your system seems sluggish when you are surfing the web. How do you know if it’s your computer or your Internet connection? Check out the Speed Test on www.speakeasy.net. It's a free test that checks the upload and download throughput from your computer. Just click the Speed Test icon below and choose the server nearest you. Speakeasy will tell you in kilobytes per second (kbps) how fast you can upload and download data. The speed test results link answers most common questions about the test. It’s a quick and easy way to check out the speed of your Internet connection.

X = X + 1 by John Lee, Senior Applications Developer

If you’re not a coder, I defy you to make sense of that equation. In fact, if you dig back to your high school algebra books, X = X + 1 is an impossibility. There is no way that X can ever equal to X + 1.

However, if you do happen to have a coding background, you will immediately recognize X = X + 1 as being a fundamental instruction; without which, no program of any complexity could operate.

What X = X + 1 illustrates is the constant challenge of communication between coders and non-coders.

When embarking upon a new project which requires custom programming, the client and the coder eventually meet to discuss project specifications. The client will outline his grandiose designs and the coder will furiously scribble notes upon her notepad hoping to make sense of it after the meeting.

What normally happens is that, the coder will relay back to the client a process or a flowchart that describes the client’s vision. The client, who is generally a “vision” person, will either pass the specifications to someone lower-level or will nod his head incomprehensibly and assume that the coder “gets it.” After all, the pages of funny symbols and arrows must be proof that the coder understands what he’s talking about. Without a lot of luck, this lack of initial understanding between the two parties will lead to a long road of frustration.

The reason why this happens is that clients and coders often speak different languages. In contrast with the imprecise language of the client, coders have to be “perfectly precise”; understanding fully the functionality of every feature, every hyperlink on the page, and the derivation of every numerical figure.

It’s been my experience, after about 15 years in the technology marketplace, that this lack of true communication is the number one reason why some projects fail to meet the needs of the client. I’m not saying that both parties need to understand every minute detail of the project before proceeding. This could be impractical for very large and complex projects. Instead what I’m saying is that each party, the client and the coder, have specific responsibilities:

The coder must step into the world of the client and fully understand the solution that he is about to create. This includes the business-specific language, the reason why such a solution is needed, and the perceived return on investment when the project is completed. The coder must also be able to speak the language of the client. There will be times where the coder will “fill in the blanks” and put in place tiny details in order not to bog the client down with the tedious minutia. This is when understanding the business process becomes vital.

The client, on the other hand, needs to exercise ownership of the project. The success of the project is not a one-way street where the coder has all the responsibility to make it happen. Instead, the project is a partnership between the client and the coder where they share equal responsibility for success. Specifically, this means that the client must share in the problem-solving when the coder outlines his struggles with a particular feature. The client must be patient when the coder explains the necessity of certain technologies or the technical reasons why a particular feature idea won’t work.

Together, both the client and the coder need to help each other understand each other’s world and to realize that both parties rarely see the same solution to the given problem. Ultimately, it will be the client’s vision that will prevail, but both parties have the responsibility to challenge each other to create a better vision.

At AtNetPlus, we try hard to enhance communications between coder and client. At other organizations, the coders are often isolated from the client creating a gap in communications leaving the coders to create solutions without the proper context. Here, the client can call the coder directly with an idea or a problem; and the coder will be there to respond directly, along with the help of the project manager. The result is that the communication is as tight as they come and the ownership is where it needs to be. We believe that the right technical talent must come with the right communicative talent for a project to have the best outcome possible.

For coders, X = X + 1 means to increment the value of X by 1. For the rest of us, it means that you have taken one step of many in a long and fruitful process.

Windows 7 - It's a Wrap by Steve Gomberg, Business Development

We received very positive feedback from our Windows 7 event last week. So much so, that we are adding several more events to our calendar. One question that popped up was the cost of migration. So, as a wrap to our thread about Windows 7, let’s chat about the expenses involved in the migration. They come in two major groups- the actual software cost, and the time and money associated with the installation.
For companies that are currently using Vista the migration should be a simple and relatively quick process. Essentially, any computer that has the power to run Vista will run Windows 7 (W7). In fact, W7 has a slight performance advantage over Vista, and requires slightly less resources. The other big advantage is that if you are doing an upgrade to W7, Microsoft supports this move by allowing you to keep all of your applications and settings. (A couple of caveats – use the free Windows 7 Migration Advisor to identify any exceptions before you begin the migration. Also, any programs that run less than optimally in Vista will probably still have problems in W7.)
As a side note, a clean install is always better than an upgrade, but it is more costly in terms of time. This is particularly true if you are not sure where all your program disks and serial numbers are to be found. Plus you will want to make sure a current backup of all you data files is available before you start.
For those making the move from XP, your path is not as easy. Microsoft does not support the move directly from XP to W7. You can still buy the upgrade version of W7, but you will have to wipe your hard-drive, load the OS and then reload your application, data and settings. In large systems this can be a chore. It will involve much more than the forty five minutes it takes to do an upgrade migration from Vista to W7.

The real questions to ask are these:

1. Are the enhanced features worth the investment?

2. Does W7 run as well as the now mature XP?

3. Do I have everything I need to reload my applications?

4. Do I have a choice?

All of the above questions can be answered in the affirmative, except the last. The new and improved features are well worth the effort. The increased security is a real advantage. If you can answer the third question with a yes, then you should be ready to go. The fourth question is a little trickier. Microsoft has announced the end of life for XP as April 8th, 2014. After that date they will not support XP with updates and security patches or drivers for peripherals. Also keep in mind that retail sales of XP have already been halted, so as you acquire new hardware it will come with W7. Mixing OS’s is not a good thing in a multi-computer environment. It also cost more in support over time.
For these, and many other reasons, we believe you should begin to prepare for the migration. If you have any questions about the process, we suggest you ask your IT consultant.

Free Security Software from Microsoft by Ryan Pickel, Applications Developer

Last Tuesday Microsoft released the final version of its free antivirus solution, Microsoft Security Essentials. Formerly codenamed Morro, it has been in beta since June and is meant to eclipse Windows Defender and Windows Live OneCare. Microsoft maintains that it will not compete with more comprehensive subscription services such as those by Symantec and McAfee. This free solution is for consumers who are unable or unwilling to pay for security software. It will be interesting to see if Microsoft finds a way to package this software with Windows without opening themselves up to more lawsuits.

The download is small and the installation is fairly typical, though it does require a Windows Genuine Advantage check and switches Windows Update into automatic mode. The interface is clean and easy to understand, using green and red bars to indicate status. I didn’t go looking for viruses to test its real time protection, but the reviews I’ve read give Security Essentials decent marks for threat detection.

Overall it offers a base level of protection and you can't beat the price.

I Missed The Missed Call Alert By Jay Mellon, Partner

Like most people these days, my cell phone is an indispensable link to my clients and staff. In our culture of immediate gratification, everyone expects to reach you the moment they call your cell phone. Or, at the very least, they assume that you will call them back right away. One feature I always took for granted on my old Motorola cell phones was the ‘Missed Call Alert.’ If a call was not answered, this feature would make the phone chirp periodically. It was handy to reminder to check your missed calls.

Unfortunately, the feature must not have been very important to cell phone manufacturers. My last three phones haven’t had it. I didn’t realize how much I relied on it until it was gone. Well, last month I upgraded to Research In Motion’s (RIM) new BlackBerry Tour from Verizon. In addition to being a rock solid phone with a great interface for managing mail, it supports the ability to download apps to enhance the features of the device. I decided to search for the missed call alert feature, and was thrilled to find that someone had developed a BlackBerry plug-in for that very purpose. Believe it or not, they named it “Missed Call Alert.” I guess I wasn’t the only person who relied on that feature. I found it in the BlackBerry App World, and the $4.99 cost was worth every penny for me.

Now I just need to find an app that prevents me from getting sidetracked by time-wasting tangents in meetings. Maybe we could write something using speech recognition and shock therapy technologies…