About Darn Time!

HTML5, it makes me want to get my
hands dirty with web development.

I am working on a site redesign and I am pretty excited about the process. One of the best trends in web development is the interlocking technologies of JQuery, CSS 3, and HTML which form the group of technologies collectively known as HTML5.  In this issue, I want to speak briefly about why HTML5 is such a big deal and why you mister small business person should pay attention.

I have been working in the web business for over 15 years.  In that time, I have seen technologies come and go.  One thing that never changed was that web browsers from different manufacturers behaved differently.  Internet Explorer treated the way pages were displayed differently than Firefox.  It was and still is a mess.   But thanks to the HTML5 technologies and a strong push for standards across all web browsers things are looking better.  They will never be perfect but they are getting better.  For instance, rounded corners no longer require graphic arts wizardry and countless HTML and CSS hack to place a simple design element on a page with round corners.  

What does this mean to your business? First, the HTML5 technologies finally make it possible to build one web site and have it display differently for any type of screen resolution.  So your company web site will now look good on a smart phone, tablet, and desktop web browser.  It also means that changes to your web site can be made in a swifter manner to meet market needs.   Next, JQuery and JQuery Mobile make your web site behave more like client server applications of old.  Now, you do not have to wait for round trips to the server or database refreshes when you only want to hide an element on the page.  Finally, HTML5 is being treated as a development environment for Windows 8 applications and in other mobile environments.  I consider this progress because Apple requires iOS and visual C to do development work, while Android requires Java, and Windows 8 requires Visual Studio and C# or Visual Basic.

HTML5 is an important development and an ideal choice for a small or medium sized business and its technology choices.  Drop us a line and we will tell you more.  

I am glad that after fifteen years we are at this point of web development.  It should not have taken this long.

Until next time.

Grossly Exaggerated

Mark Twain can feel Microsoft's Pain.

Mark Twain used to joke, “Reports of my demise are grossly exaggerated.”  As I read the latest technology headlines that is how you should feel about Windows 8.  It has not been a good week for Microsoft in the press but I don’t think the end is neigh for the folks in Redmond.  In this blog, I will tell you why and how our firm fits into that scheme.

Many of these issues came to a head this week when an article appeared from Financial Times.  In it, they pointed out that Microsoft is publicly admitting failure and that they are getting ready for the release of windows blue which is the possible replacement to Windows 8.  Quickly other technology blogs and sites jumped on the bandwagon and decided to kick Redmond while it was down.  Motley Fool even blamed the poor performance of PC sales on Windows 8.  

I am a new adopter of Windows 8 and I have to confess that without the special widget Classic Start Menu 3.6, I would be lost in this operating system.  This is because it relies heavily on touch screens.  This means that your 20 inch monitor you purchased must be swapped for a $600 monitor or an $80 Logitech touch pad to be useful.  Many people will find the live tiles off putting.  Finally, Windows 8 offers apps using the live tile motif and the desktop for traditional applications.  I have been using the desktop exclusively.

What this means that unless you have a surface tablet or a Windows 8 laptop your home system is going to need a major upgrade.  During recessionary times like this it is a lot to ask.  Windows 8 is a huge leap of faith that the user community is willing to adapt and once again the user community has disappointed.

All is not lost though; I find that Windows 8 is very fast.  I can download pod casts that used to take five minutes in less than thirty seconds.  The windows explorer is clean and quick with additional means of organizing files and systems.  Internet Explorer 10 fully embraces many of the features of HTML 5 and development with Visual Studio 2012 and Web Matrix 3 is clean and slick.  If you are a software developer then Windows 8 is a natural choice.

So to me, Windows 8 isn't a failure.  It is too much too soon and too early for the general consumer.  For a techie like me it is a logical extension of the Windows operating system.  This means that at E₃ systems we will start experimenting with Windows 8 applications along with more adaptive web sites so that our systems can work across multiple systems.  Find out what we mean by dropping us a line. It also means that we are going to be more cautious with our user design so that we don’t shock people too much with the changes.

Windows 8 is great, if you are ready for it.  If not you are going to be in for a huge shock.

Until next time.

Worry about Where and Not What

It does not matter what you use it is where you use it.

If you have not been paying attention to the news, the Personal computer is dying.  In the same breath other experts are saying the Personal computer is alive and well.  This kind of schizophrenic punditry is common in the technology business.  For a person like me who has spent over fifteen years in the business, I take these contradictory signals in stride.  The breakthroughs are never as big as advertised and the setbacks are never as dramatic as they seem.  Let me try to impart a little sane and sober guidance for you.  Where you compute is more important that what you compute with.

Frequent readers of this blog know that I have been discussing two major trends in computing where we are engulfed.  The first is cloud computing.  The second is the rise of mobile computing.  These two trends together are changing the nature of technology.  So it really does not matter what you compute with but where you are doing the computing.

If you are working in an office or need significant computing power then you will be using a PC.  If you are on the go but still need a significant amount of power then a laptop may be what you need. For the casual consume of web content and information, a tablet is all you need.  Finally everyone is getting a smart phone whether they want one or not.

The reason I am giving you this simple rule of thumb is because thanks to widely available access to the web via wireless networks and the access to cloud based system what you use is irrelevant compared to where you use them.  All you need is a connection to the cloud.

So, am I endorsing one kind of operating system or technology? No, I am not.  I am one of those weird people who believes that technology people should set asides our differences and work together.  As you can see in this video by Nokia that is wishful thinking.

What we specialize at E₃ systems are cloud based systems which work on any device.  So if you are an Apple iOS person or a Microsoft person you should have a reasonable expectation that your systems should work.  These systems should work any time at any place.  Finally, these systems should be easy to use and understand so that you can run your business more efficiently.  Anything else is just a wast of your time and money.

So remember where your compute is more important than what you compute with.  Drop us a line and we will explain it to you.

Until Next time.

If it ain't broke, then what?

It is not old school to be using junk to
manage your business.

One of my colleagues as a joke posted this article on his Google+ feed.  It seems that a manufacturing plant has been using the same IBM 402 system to manage its payroll since 1948.  Let me put it this way, they have been using the same computer for 65 years to manage accounting.

At first I was dismissive of this article saying they should get a more modern system.  Then it dawned on me this is what my company is up against when I am attempting to sell my company to other businesses.  Sparkler Filters of Conroe, Texas would rather manage its accounting with punch cards and form feed paper than upgrade to a more modern system like J.D. Edwards or SAP.

The Computer History Museum in Mountain View California sent a group to ask Sparkler Filter to donate the old system for the museum.  The company politely said no claiming that everyone at the firm understood punch cards and the last sixty year of reports were formatted for the IBM 402 system. To this company, the system was not broke so they decided never to replace it with something more modern and efficient.  A PC with the standard version of Quickbooks could run circles around a device like this but because they are comfortable with punch cards they are going to keep it.

I run into this situation all the time when I am attempting to deal with companies which have thirty year old AS/400 systems.  It happened that fear and inertia are making it hard for people to upgrade their corporate systems.  This is going to get scarier as many of the people in the Transportation and Logistics industry retire and are replaced by this generation’s current supply of employee.  These are individual’s accustomed to smart phones, cloud based computing and social media so when confronted with green screens and systems they cannot access via their phone are going to enter other lines of work.

This, “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it,” mind set is holding back economic growth and technical innovation.

A trucking company today would not dare use vintage 1970’s trucks to transport products today just because today’s trucks have better gas mileage and provide direct savings to the company.  The same holds true for software and services.  Today, thanks to cloud computing a company can have the computing power of a Fortune 500 company at a fraction of the cost.  With contemporary systems you can reduce administrative costs and enhance customer service without having to hire more people.  This gives you the gift of time because you are spending it in the office tracking down paper work; instead, you are selling customers and spending time with you family.

This is why I founded E₃ systems.  We want to give you the means to make more money and save time by having technical systems which will make you swifter than your competition.

Until next time.

The Other Revolution.

You might have missed the other revolution going on this
week.

It has been a rough week.  Chechen criminals bombing the Boston Marathon and the fertilizer factory explosion in Texas have sucked all the oxygen out of the national media.  What you might have missed is the more quiet and insidious revolution taking place under your nose.

This blog has been very vocal about the revolution.  The evidence also continues to mount and if you don’t get involved you and your business will be swept aside; this is the cloud computing revolution and the continued acceptance of the smart phones by the consumer market.

Your customers are using smart phones with increasing frequency and they are using them in way which is disrupting small and big business with equal ferocity.  One of these trends is called “showrooming” where customers go to appliance, book or electronics stores and window show.  Then they scan the bar codes and price check those product in an effort to get a better deal.  This is great for consumers but it is strangling the margins of many businesses.  Showrooming is not only a threat to retail business but in diverse fields like automotive insurance and philanthropy.

Furthermore social media is being used to sell products and formulate opinion about those brands.  So now unless you devote yourself full time to staying on top of social media the good name of your business could be tarnished.  They were even joking about this trend on this Sunday’s Doonesbury strip.

Finally your business needs a web presence which not only looks good on a standard web browser but it needs to look good on a tablet computer or smart phone.  For a small business, it gets to be overwhelming.  This is why I helped found E₃ systems we help take care of the many considerations you need to make when constructing a web site which needs to look good on major web platforms including smart phones and tablets.

We also understand the growing technologies of mobile bar coding and cloud computing so that you can benefit from the same technologies used by the Fortune 500.

We would love to tell you more so feel free to contact us.

Until next time.

The Gift of Time

Stressed and need more time,
we understand.

Most business people I speak to have one wish.  They want more time.  They want to spend more time with their families. They want more time to manufacture better products.  They want more time to better service their customers and they want more time to learn new skills.  There is never enough time in the day because there is always one more call to take, one more e-mail to respond to and one more customer who you need to make a sale.  I understand that wish because I say it at least every day.  It would be great if someone could give us the gift of more time.

One of the reasons, I started E₃ Systems was to help small businesses win back a little more time.  We spend hours a day doing paperwork and chasing down calls.  We struggle with obsolete and expensive software because it is “good enough”.  Many of the tasks we do in our business lives are nothing more than a colossal time suck.  I understood that and knew that I could help write software that would help.  Today, we have online systems which help you manage your inventory without having to install expensive hardware or software.  These systems also work on mobile phones, tablet computers, and laptops.  As long as you have a connection to the web they will just work.

Now, instead of calling into the office to see if you have product in stock you can just make a few taps to your smart phone and find out instantly in real time; this should save you hours of labor.  We also understand that gathering documentation together to meet regulatory requirements is a time consuming hassle.  We understand and make it easy to generate documents and reports at a moment’s notice.  Finally, with the help of Microsoft’s Tag technology we have a way for every piece of paper to communicate with the web and your smart phone so that important documents are just a click away.

These kinds of services make it possible to save time because you are no longer riffling through paperwork and obsolete computer systems.  It also saves you payroll because you need fewer administrative professionals to manage that paperwork. That gives you a chance to free them up to meet with clients and sell to new ones.  That is what is in it for you.  More time to manage your business and less payroll for administrative staff.

I am sure it is a luxury any business person would want.  So contact us today and ask about how we can give you the gift of time.

Until Next time.

Getting Past the Rough spots

The life of an entrepreneur is filled with exhilarating ups and harrowing downs.  This was one of those weeks where I was pretty low.  Fortunately, I have the support of family and friends who believe in me.  This gets me through the rough times.  So for all of you who follow the blog and my business thank you and I look forward to more news and progress reports in the coming weeks. 

Until Next time.