Posts Tagged ‘single point’
October 23rd, 2009 | 
Author: In RAID 50 implementation, large arrays are formed by combining parity and block striping of RAID 5 with simple block striping of RAID 0. It is basically a RAID 0 array that is striped across RAID 5 elements and requires minimum of 6 drives to configure. A RAID 50 array might fail, rendering your data inaccessible. In such situations, you need to replace the array and call Data Recovery Service experts to recover lost data efficiently.
An Example
Generally, RAID 50 proves to be more fault-tolerant than its counterpart RAID 05, but it can fail. To illustrate, consider that you use three collections of RAID 5 sets, each with storage capacity of 180 GB. These sets are striped together so that to make total array of capacity 540 GB.
In the setup described above, the array will remain intact if one drive from each of the RAID 5 sets fail and will not cause any data loss. But until the failed drive is replaced, the entire array remains at single point of failure. It means that after the first drive failure, the remaining drives should not fail to prevent array failure. If any of the remaining drives fail, the array will fail.
The fault tolerance level of the array also depends on how the array is configured. If you construct three RAID 5 sets containing seven drives each, it will provide you good capacity, but provide fault-tolerance of up to three drives. On the other hand, an array with seven RAID 5 sets containing three drives each will provide lower storage capacity but high fault tolerance of up to seven drives. A reliable construction could be an array with three RAID 5 sets containing six drives each and a hot space that could provide immediate rebuilding of array on failure.
RAID 50 Recovery
RAID Recovery service provided by different reputed Data Recovery NJ companies is available for all standard and nested levels of RAID. Since data stored on these arrays is critical for an organization, Data Recovery Service experts employ high-end techniques, tools and a unique combination of recovery procedures to extract possible data in sterile Clean Rooms surroundings.
Stellar Data Recovery Inc. is market-leader in providing best, safe and comprehensive Data Recovery NJ. It caters for all RAID levels, including complex RAID 50, using proprietary recovery techniques and Class 100 Clean Rooms. Stellar also provides full-fledged recovery service for Desktop, Server, SAN, NAS and Laptop hard drives.
Shaun Pattrik has 6 Years of Experience in the Software Technology researching with Stellar Info. System Ltd which offers data recovery, data recovery service, hard drive data recovery, data recovery NJ and data recovery New Jersey.
Article Source: RAID 50 Failure and Data Recovery Service
RAID 30 or RAID 3+0 implements parity and block striping and byte striping. Also termed as striping of dedicated parity arrays, it is formed by striping the data across several RAID 3 sub-arrays i.e. it is a unique combination of RAID 3 and RAID 0. The data storage on RAID 30 proceeds by dividing data into several small blocks and then striping them to each member of RAID 3 set. It calculates the parity by using X-OR on the data blocks and then uses the last drive to write this information in each of the RAID 3 arrays. However, rest other drives in each RAID 3 array are used to store data blocks. But in some critical set of conditions, a RAID 30 array might get lost due to multiple hard drive failure. In such situations, RAID Recovery Services provides effective recovery solution to recover the lost data.
Chances of failure
RAID 30 can tolerate failure of up to 4 drives provided each of the failed disk is of different RAID 3 array. It implies if one drive from each of the RAID 3 set fails, no data will be lost. Until you replace the failed drive , the remaining drives in the RAID 3 set serve as single point of failure for the complete RAID 30 array. Thus, if any of these drives fail at any moment, the entire array will get lost and there will be no access to stored data. In conclusion, RAID 30 fails if two or more hard drives fail in same RAID 3 set.
Recovery
The RAID 30 hard drives fail because of common reasons such as read/write head failure, motor crash, wear and tear and so forth, but with a major difference that they are arranged in a standard fashion. So, recovering from such array requires expertise and use of advanced recovery tools and procedures.
RAID Data Recovery service is aimed at recovering lost data from all types of RAID levels and in all types of crashes. Technicians providing RAID Recovery Services employ high end methods to safely extract all the data from RAID arrays by opening and examining the failed hard drives in Clean Room surroundings.
we invites you to visit http://www.stellarinfo.co.in We will give you the Secure RAID Data Recovery that you need. To learn more about Data Recovery and other aspects of disaster recovery.
Article Source: RAID 30 Failure and Recovery
Excitement sees no language, perceives, neither. To work out for something real that could be inevitably change your mind, is online games. The online games must be a better option for those who wish to change their mood turn into excitement after a hectic daily life schedule. You can find numbers of web site that will be allowing you to play the games you ever wanted. The online gaming web sites developer keep in mind that games should be open for the people of all ages. The games are available for infants, kids, youth, students and working peoples.
It invites everybody to play through the web site after a simple registration or even without. If you don’t want to waste your precious time to download and install the games software, you can go for free online games and enjoy the unlimited fun and stunning moments. You will be amazed to see that all the games that were in your mind are available on many of the web sites. Simply, either you can go become member of that web sites or play directly after choosing the one you want to. The free games that can be find over the websites are racing games, kids games, puzzle games, thrilling games, multiplayer games, adventure games and many more.
Moreover, you needn’t worry about the fun you’re going to explore through these websites. They have developed all the games for you to make you completely involve thoroughly while playing. It’d be of your great interest when you start the game and find every level an ease to finish. It’ll work out tremendously for your utmost time and you will love getting every single point that you’ve been scoring throughout the marvelous play. There’re various free games are available, depends on your interest and to reflect your mind to feel good when you need it in vein.
http://www.freeonlinegamestoplay.co.uk/2009/06/28/play-online-games-and-feels-the-stunning-beauty/
Manish Mishra
Article Source: Play online games and feel the stunning beauty
Excitement sees no language, perceives, neither. To work out for something real that could be inevitably change your mind, is online games. The online games must be a better option for those who wish to change their mood turn into excitement after a hectic daily life schedule. You can find numbers of web site that will be allowing you to play the games you ever wanted. The online gaming web sites developer keep in mind that games should be open for the people of all ages. The games are available for infants, kids, youth, students and working peoples.
It invites everybody to play through the web site after a simple registration or even without. If you don’t want to waste your precious time to download and install the games software, you can go for free online games and enjoy the unlimited fun and stunning moments. You will be amazed to see that all the games that were in your mind are available on many of the web sites. Simply, either you can go become member of that web sites or play directly after choosing the one you want to. The free games that can be find over the websites are racing games, kids games, puzzle games, thrilling games, multiplayer games, adventure games and many more.
Moreover, you needn’t worry about the fun you’re going to explore through these websites. They have developed all the games for you to make you completely involve thoroughly while playing. It’d be of your great interest when you start the game and find every level an ease to finish. It’ll work out tremendously for your utmost time and you will love getting every single point that you’ve been scoring throughout the marvelous play. There’re various free games are available, depends on your interest and to reflect your mind to feel good when you need it in vein.
http://www.freeonlinegamestoplay.co.uk/2009/06/28/play-online-games-and-feels-the-stunning-beauty/
Manish Mishra
Article Source: Play online games and feel the stunning beauty
The Cligs URL shortening site was hacked during the weekend to cause 2.2 million links to redirect to the same site. When users clicked on a link that had been reduced in character count by Cligs, instead of going to the expected site, they went to a page on the Orange County Register newspaper website. The site wasn’t malicious, nor had it been compromised.
“Normally most hacking attacks we see today are all about money,” Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, told SCMagazineUS.com. “Normally, you’d see a redirect to a site that installs malware or some other money-maker. But there is no evidence of that at all.”
The motive for the redirect hack remains unclear. It could have been an attempt at a distributed denial-of-service (DDOS) attack, but little evidence exists that it was effective.
“It could have been a mistake,” Cluley said. “They could have wanted to redirect people to one place, but misspelled something and sent everyone to the wrong place.”
The method by which the hack was made is unknown as well, and Cligs has not gone into detail other than to say that there was a security hole in its functionality that enabled users to edit an old link. If a link was set up on the site and later discovered to contain a mistake, it may have been possible to go back and change it.
“The security hole may have enabled hackers to edit links that were not theirs,” Cluley explained. “What should users do to guard against possible malicious redirects? Because, by their very nature, URL shorteners obscure the real URL, Cluley suggested that it would be prudent to have a browser plug-in, script or other functionality that always expands URLs automatically.
“With that functionality, it means you will at least know where you are going before you go there,” he said.
“The lesson here is how a single vulnerability could potentially cause widespread damage on the internet.
“This is a single point of weakness where hackers were able to break in and potentially affect a large number of people,” Cluley said. “Normally, it would be a lot more complicated to influence so many links.”
Cligs is the fourth most popular URL-shortening service on Twitter.
Article Source :- http://www.technologyb2b.com
For more technology related Article visit :- http://www.technologyb2b.com
Article Source: latest internet news
Managed services are the practice of transferring daily responsibilities as a strategic method for improved effective and efficient operations.
The organization whose system has been managed is called as the offerer or customer and the organization that provides the managed service is regarded as the service provider.
In the above process, the offerer remains accountable for the functionality and performance of managed service and does not surrender the overall management responsibility to the service provider.
Common managed services
Common IT managed services include backup, storage, network management, user management, systems management; Supply Chain Information Services; Communication Services, which includes Internet and Telephone.
Managed services provider (MSP)
A MSP is typically an IT services provider, who manages and assumes responsibility for providing a defined set of services to their clients. Most MSPs bill a fixed monthly fee, which benefits their clients by providing them with predictable IT support costs.
The benefits for the Key customer are peace of mind for the customers as monitor network on 24×7x365 basis proactively, single point of contact for all network issues, single supplier instead of multiple vendors and defined service levels for service delivery. The organization knows its cost for management and fixed price contracts, which avoid costs of building own management and reporting systems, that means lower Total Cost Ownership (TCO) for the clients.
Similarly, the benefits for the Key Service Provider are extended longevity with business contracts, increased ‘stickiness’ and average revenue per user (APRU). They also have the opportunity to interact with and influence customers at a business decision making level, which protects vital carriage revenue by de-commoditizing & value adding.
Managed Services Commoditization
The managed services market is still relatively immature as a technology delivery and under-distributed in terms of providers to potential customers.
For avoiding managed services as a commodity, the MSP has to stop leading with price because managed services are about value and professionalism. Also, the providers should confirm that offerer, who always pressurizes them to reduce price in order to keep the deal alive, must confront the clients. Further, in the arena, large vendors are entering and they will bring a lot of positive attention to all the MSP community.
At present, MSPs are asking themselves; what is the best way to build a managed services practice that provide infrastructure support in a more scalable, predictive and profitable manner, and how to stay ahead of the commoditization curve and invest in services which will improve revenue and gross margins over the long term?
To build a managed services business is more than merely taking a fix business and renaming it. New solution providers, who enters the market will find themselves faced with an age old IT decision, build the capabilities or buy them from a larger service provider. As each business is unique, with different access to capital, business models, technical capabilities, vendor relationships and customers, which determine the true managed services practice.
In the current business scenario, practically every industry and market sector feels the pricing pressure. There are a number of factors that have increased the impact of commoditization in the IT services industry, including the consumerization of IT, the reduction in telecommunications costs and the associated increased opportunity for global delivery. However, commoditization in IT services is inextricably linked to commoditization in the hardware and software markets.
Conclusion
For IT services providers, operating in sectors where commoditization is evident, success is often achieved through driving the movement of the commoditization force and therefore staying ahead of competitors in terms of market pricing and taking advantage of increased addressable market.
http://www.itvoir.com/portal/
http://www.itvoir.com/portal/boxx/knowledgebase.asp?iid=1522&Cat=23
Article Source: Would Managed Services combat recession?
Much attention has been paid to the powerful benefits of public cloud and private clouds and other virtualized compute infrastructures. While the benefits of these technologies are powerful, enterprises attempting to take advantage of them are confronted with the crucial question, “What about my applications?”
The application layer represents the 80% of cloud computing that all too often gets ignored due to its inherently difficult nature. While deploying and managing a single application in the cloud may not appear challenging, the difficulties grow exponentially for enterprises looking to take entire portfolios of applications skyward.
Enterprises won’t embrace cloud computing until they are capable of handling the numerous applications they already have. To date, there has been a gap in terms of tools for managing multiple applications across a variety of cloud environments. Today’s cloud is built for single application startups. In order for enterprises to view cloud as something more than an experiment, they require an approach for migrating and managing more than one application.
Enterprises need a means of overcoming several key challenges associated with application management in order to conquer their hesitancies toward cloud adoption.
These include:
Migrating existing applications to dynamic cloud and virtualized environments
Application deployment and configuration management
Run-time multi-application and multi-cloud management
Eliminating the complexity of image management and virtual machine sprawl
Portability and avoiding lock-in
Cloud computing is in need of a much stronger and smarter regime of management tools and capabilities if it is to become a widespread enterprise information technology paradigm. As companies migrate their heterogeneous applications to cloud-based environments, they require a single point of application management across the enterprise that allows the simple drag-and-drop of resources between multiple cloud environments.
Furthermore, cloud application management solutions should allow application extensibility, portability, unified and automated management, and include open and extensible APIs. It’s only with these key attributes that enterprises will truly be able to manage their application portfolios in the cloud and gain the peace of mind needed to fully embrace cloud computing.
Looking ahead there’s little doubt that various forms of cloud computing will play an increasingly important role for enterprises seeking a competitive advantage. However, without a reliable and flexible means of managing and migrating both new and legacy applications across multiple cloud environments, the industry risks relegating cloud computing to an ideal rather than a true competitive differentiator for today and tomorrow’s enterprises.
Appistry simplifies cloud computing for the enterprise, opening the door to a more agile and scalable IT environment. For more on cloud management or to learn about cloud computing visit Appistry.
Article Source: Application Management in the Cloud: Smarter Cloud Management; Not Cloudy Management
VoIP still means a lot of things to different people. Most often it is a marketing label.
I’d first like to make the distinction between a customer premise VoIP system where there exists an IP PBX that runs VoIP over your internal network regardless of what type of phone service you have ….. and then there’s internet VoIP which people most commonly refer to as a “Vonage” type service.
Internet VoIP service in my opinion is not yet an enterprise solution since there is typically no SLA’s or quality of service offered, but the savings are there which has prompted its adoption amongst small businesses that don’t demand an “always” reliable service.
There exists dozens of open source IP PBX systems on the market many of which have varying levels of reliability, quality, and redundancy. For small systems that require non-technical administration I believe the best is Switchvox. When engineered flawlessly, the most reliable, flexible, and scalable IP PBX is plain old Asterisk.
If you have the right IP PBX internally, there really isn’t much of a downside except the fact that IP PBX systems can be expensive. IP PBX systems also do not live as long as TDM phone systems purely because of the difference in technology running behind the two. To successfully deploy VoIP internally, just make sure that you have the infrastructure to do so which includes Cat5 or greater wiring and an appropriate data network. Ideally you want to segregate your voice and data network but many companies do not because of the cost… but if you can do it.. you should.
As far as VoIP phone service goes, we’re talking about phone service which is delivered over your existing data connection. Like I said, not really a business grade product but the fact that you can use an existing data connection for voice means that the savings can be pretty enticing. The problem with internet based VoIP service is that you’re tied to a single point of failure. If data goes down, you have no voice service.
Another issue, which not all users will experience, is problems with call quality. Because your phone call is running over the internet, the company providing you with phone service usually is not the same company providing your internet connection and therefore can not control, monitor, or fix your connection …. nor can your VoIP provider control all the facets of the internet. What this means is that your VoIP provider has no ability to prevent packet loss which in turn can produce static on the line, jitter, and dropped calls. Again, not everyone experiences these problems but many do and they are an inherent risk with hosted VoIP service.
To minimize this risk, I recommend that a company purchase their Hosted VoIP service from the same company that is delivering their data connection. There are many technical and infrastructure related reasons why this is a better service which I’m not going to get into it now …. but I can guarantee that if your ISP is legit, they should offer decent hosted VoIP as well.
So all in all …. there’s quite a few things that you need to consider when looking at VoIP. Unfortunately companies who are in the business of selling VoIP systems and VoIP service manage to get away with selling half ass’d and janky solutions which can result in poor voice quality and many other “bad” things. What this means is that just because someone is in the business of selling something VoIP, it doesn’t mean it’ll be a good product. All I say is that you should make sure that the company you get your IP PBX or Hosted VoIP service from is a solid business with lots of customers and positive feedback.
Michael is the owner of FreedomFire Communications….including Business VoIP Solution and DS3 Bandwidth. Michael also authors Broadband Nation where you’re always welcome to drop in and catch up on the latest BroadBand news,
tips, insights, and ramblings for the masses.
Article Source: What Do You Like Or Dislike About VOIP?
The way a computer deals with time is totally different to the ways humans perceive it. We arrange time into seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months and years, while computers on the other hand arrange time as a single number representing the seconds that have passed from a single point in time, known as the prime epoch.
Most computers use NTP (Network Time Protocol) to deal with time and on networks many are synchronised using a dedicated NTP time server. NTP knows nothing about days, years or centuries, only the seconds from the prime epoch. This prime epoch is set (for most systems) at midnight at the turn of the century twentieth century that for a human would be recorded as something like: 00:00 – 01,01,1900.
Computers, however, count time as the number of seconds past this point. If a computer was around in 1900 its timestamp on midnight January 1 would be 0 while in 1972 at the same date the timestamp would be 2,272,060,800, which represents the number of seconds since 1900.
The timestamps restart every 136 years with the next wrap around due in 2036, this has caused uneasiness amongst some who fear a Millennium Bug type scenario, although most doubt such events would occur, however, when a wrap-around of the timestamp does happen an era integer will be added (+1), to allow computers to deal with time spans that cover more than one wrap-around. If computers and NTP need to deal with time that spans before the prime epoch a negative integer is used (for the year 1500 a -3 will be used to represent three cycles of 136 years).
Timestamps are used in virtually every transaction that modern computers are tasked to do such as sending emails, debugging and programming. Because time is linear, a computer knows that each timestamp is always greater than the previous one and therefore computers and NTP find it difficult to deal with inaccuracies in time, particularly when time suddenly appears to go backwards.
This can happen if computers are not synchronised to the same time. If an email is sent to a machine with a slower clock, it appears to the computer to have been received before it has been sent. Lack of synchronisation can serious problems and can even leave a system vulnerable to malicious attacks and even fraud.
Because of this, most computer networks are synchronised to UTC (Coordinated Universal Time). UTC is a global timescale and the same for everybody worldwide it is based on the time told by atomic clocks which are highly accurate, neither gaining nor losing a second in millions of years.
Most computer networks use a dedicated NTP time server to receive a UTC time to synchronise their computers too. UTC is available from across the Internet (although unsecured), via the GPS network (Global Positioning System), or by receiving national time and frequency broadcasts via long wave.
NTP synchronises a computer by checking the received UTC time and adding to or holding a computer’s timestamp until it perfectly matches UTC. By using a dedicated NTP time server UTC can be maintained on a network to a few milliseconds of UTC time.
Richard N Williams is a technical author and specialist in atomic clocks, telecommunications, NTP and network time synchronisation helping to develop dedicated NTP clocks. Please visit us for more information about a network time server or other NTP server solutions.
Technology Advisory Board Use of Spy Gear for Nanny Cams and Hidden Cameras
Article Source: NTP – Understanding Computer Timestamps
To accomplish a wide range of goals. These different variations allow customers to select a washing system designed for their specific needs, rather than settling for generic one style fits all models. After a thorough analysis of their manufacturing process, engineers can design a custom model that is created specifically for their individual part.
Production cleaning systems can be aqueous or solvent based. They can vary from cabinet style spray washers to flow through ultrasonic tanks. They can use rotating basket immersion systems, return to operator overhead conveyor systems, flat wire belt conveyors, fixtured indexing units with part specific spray manifolds, robotically operated high pressure deburring spray operations or auger drum systems. All have custom options available and are suitable to achieve specific goals.
The rotating table, cabinet style washer can feature a smaller footprint than other washers. It also has a single point loading and unloading area which requires only one operator to run the cell. The cabinet washer works well in a low production manufacturing plants. It handles large parts, along with baskets of parts, however this style does have its drawbacks. It runs slower than other models and requires a labor intensive setup system. The process also makes it very difficult to keep tank solution distinct from each other as they are moved through the washer, so most often this style is limited to a simple wash and blow off. Cabinet cleaners also run in a batch process, which may be inappropriate for parts that need to be individually washed.
Ultrasonic and immersion systems are able to clean parts with small holes and other complex geometries. Ultrasonic cleaners use sound waves to remove particles from contaminated parts. By manipulating these waves, the cleaner can operate in a number of different manners. The cavitation process created by ultrasonic cleaning is able to remove debris and soil from parts efficiently. Ultrasonic washers, however, can be expensive to build and maintain. Specifically, ultrasonic washers require the customer to invest in technology such as a transducer and generator in order to create the ultrasonic waves that clean the parts. These washers are efficient, but may be inappropriate for a part that does not feature the complex design they are most useful for.
Rotary and auger drum washers operate continuously or in a batch process, giving them flexibility for a customer. These washers do an excellent job cleaning parts, as they utilize both spray and immersion stages in the cleaning process. This combination makes them useful for small parts, which may need to undergo both steps in order to be effectively cleaned. They are also simple to load and unload, making them easier to implement on the floor. However, these flow through washers cannot assure the manufacturer that all parts will be processed through the system prior to introduction of the next batch of parts. This leads to fears regarding the lack of lot integrity that is unacceptable in many applications.
A belt conveyor is a highly flexible type of washing system. It is modular in design, so it can be manipulated and installed to fit the floor plan of the customer quite easily. The flexibility extends to the washing process, where the part orientation and material handling operations can be manipulated in a simple manner. That flexibility means that the belt conveyor can be modified to fit another part if necessary, with a minimum of hassle. This simple and reliable material handling process cuts down on maintenance and production slowdowns. Disadvantages of the belt conveyor include the constant motion of the part. When the part is constantly on the move, it can be difficult to ensure that the spray jets are able to direct their impingement at the most critical areas of the parts for the necessary length of time.
A fixtured, indexing wash system is another option for those with complex parts to clean. Indexing washers hold the part in a specific orientation, so they are suited well for complex part configurations which can include bores, drilled holes or blind holes. Indexers are also flexible in what type of parts they can handle. The most attractive feature of this style of system is the manner in which the part is transported through the system to enable single piece flow along with the ability to wash the critical areas of the part’s design. They also feature a reduced footprint for those concerned with space on the production floor. Unlike other washers, the indexing units cannot handle multiple styles of parts. New parts require new fixture nests and new part specific spray manifold designs
A return to operator system, as implied in the name, returns the cleaned part to the operator at the load area via an overhead conveyor. A single operator can load and unload parts. This style system is most suitable for large parts like dashboard frames or dunnage trays that must hang, rather than lay flat to allow for proper cleaning and proper draining prior to the blow off of the part.
Equipment selection should take place last in your washer customization process. After the load and unload method is determined, the manufacturing floor footprint is allotted, the part cleanliness level has been agreed to and the cleaning chemistry has been determined, the customer has all the necessary information to pick a washer that will work for them, rather than the other way around. A careful consideration of the pro and con of each washing system as it relates to the specific process of the customer will yield a machine that efficiently and effectively completes its designed task.
Technology Gems Macintosh Computers Brand by Apple Inc
Article Source: A Closer Look at Various Types of Parts Washers
1. Mergers and Acquisitions
Sales is already known as a high turnover profession, but the recent rash of mergers and acquisitions in telecom make it highly unlikely the representative who signed you to your term agreement will still be there to assist you within a year. After making it past the phase of bankruptcies following deregulation, the next phase is mergers and acquisitions. In the past couple of years, a few of the major mergers include Level3/Broadwing (Focal), XO/Allegiance, ATT/SBC/Bell South, MCI/Verizon, Paetec/US Lec, and Time Warner/Xspedius among many others. By using an Independent Telecom Agent, you can be sure that regardless of continued merger activity or bankruptcies, your Independent Telecom Agent will continue to have the same contact phone number and email address. He/She will not be laid off or fired, and will continue to supply you all of the options you need.
2. Single Point of Contact
Regardless of whether your Independent Telecom Agent recommends a single carrier solution or a multi-carrier solution, you still have a single point of contact to deal with the person who knows your account best. During the pricing and evaluation process for a new carrier, it is typical to get at least 3 bids and have at least two appointments with at least three carriers. The number of appointments you have to schedule could easily reach up to a dozen before an educated decision is made on your company’s communications. If you use a qualified Independent Telecom Agent, you can spend one appointment determining the best course of action, and just one more evaluating the best options available in your market. Having a single point of contact is a huge time saver!
3. Person who understands your company, how you make decisions, and why
Your Independent Telecom Agent acts as an assistant buyer once he/she understands your business needs and preferences. He/she gets to know your organization, your goals and long range needs, and how you make decisions and why. Why would you want to repeat that process every couple of years?
4. You get to hear the truth!
Perhaps this should be ranked #1! When you use an experienced Independent Telecom Agent, you tap into a wealth of knowledge and experience of someone who has been in the field for many years-and most likely with multiple carriers. Your agent will typically have experience dealing with multiple carriers in your market, and can tell you how they really perform. Not the rosy picture they all want to paint for you. Who has the most reliable network? Who has billing problems? Who is going bankrupt? Who can make the desired install date? When using an Independent agent, you don’t have to listen to “The Company Story” for each carrier, as they always tend to dress up their deficiencies. You get to hear the truth.
5. Unbiased opinion of multiple carriers and their product lines
Based on where your business is heading, whether that be expanding, streamlining, or contracting, your Independent Telecom Agent can put you in the right situation. Just like buying an inexpensive phone system that can’t grow with you, and can create the need for a forklift upgrade sooner than expected, getting stuck with a carrier that can’t meet your future expectations can be crippling to your operation. Since most carriers have gone to term agreements in the T-1 age of communications, it’s key to get set up with a carrier that can move with your needs. Do they have MPLS? Do they do SIP trunking? Can they offer an IP-VPN solution for your remote sites? Your Independent Telecom Agent knows the carriers’ products and limitations, and can put you in the right solution for your company.
6. Agents are invested in your success long term
This is an incredibly important concept to understand when choosing to use an Independent Telecom Agent! When you work with a direct sales representative for a telecom company, one that may be here and gone tomorrow (rep or company), they are paid only to bring in the sale. As we all know in the world of corporate sales, comp plans drive behavior, and sales reps are specifically told, “If the customer has a problem, send them to the Help Desk. Do not get involved. You are paid ONLY to bring in new business.” There is absolutely no motivation, despite the direct representative’s best intentions, for them to ever speak to you again after you sign the dotted line. It’s sad but true. On the flip side, because Independent Telecom Agents are commission only and residual based, earning a small percentage of the monthly bill, it takes them, in many cases, up to 24 months to get paid what the direct representative will get paid in month number one after the sale. The entire motivation for someone even becoming an Independent Telecom Agent is to build a book of business of happy customers that don’t have to find someone new every couple of years to deal with. This relationship only makes sense for the agent if you stay with them for over 24 months, so they have EVERY motivation to assist you in solving any service issues that you may ever have. A good Independent Telecom Agent isn’t just another business associate; they become part of your team.
7. They don’t have a quota to make
One of the biggest issues I have with local RBOC/ILEC, is that if you call in to the call center to order new service, you will only be told about what THEY want to sell you. NOT what is best for you. Everyone LOVES to sell bundles in telecom, but let me ask you this. Why do you need Centrex calling features or voice mail on your alarm or elevator lines? Do you need call transfer or remote access to call forwarding on every line in your hunt group and on your fax lines? Do you have mysterious items in the back of your bill for web hosting or other items you are afraid to disconnect in case you actually use it? When I call the ILEC/RBOC directly from the agent channel, I get offered different packages, and more attractive packages, than I get over the phone through the call center. It is very common for Independent Telecom Agents to uncover up to 10-20% of pure fluff on your bill during the auditing process. Why does this happen? Simple. The direct representatives you buy from have a quota to make and will often sell you what is good for them, not what is good for you. They are directed to sell what is profitable for the carrier they work for, and are paid accordingly based on their ability to do so. Top Independent Telecom Agents, almost without exception; do not carry quotas with any carriers. Because they do not carry quotas, you will not find them pushing you towards a solution that doesn’t feel quite right just to meet their numbers. Be frank and ask your Independent Telecom Agent if they carry quotas with the carriers proposed. If they do carry a quota, be sure to ask enough questions about the solution they are suggesting to make sure it is right for you.
8. Extra Incentives and Promotions
The Telecom Industry is moving increasingly towards the Independent Agent Channel. In fact, last year, a local ATT/SBC agent manager said the Agent channel gained more business through their agent Winback program than they did their direct Winback program. Even they were shocked! There are several reasons for this. Independent Telecom Agents are typically more knowledgeable, better trained, set proper expectations with the clients, their clients tend to remain clients longer (since they were sold the right program), and it is more cost effective for the carriers to deal with Agents. They do not pay base salaries or benefits, in addition to commissions. Strangely enough, where I have seen this benefit the customer most, is in the form of special incentives and promotions offered only through the Agent Channel. It is not uncommon for agents to compete head to head with a direct representative for one of the carriers they are presenting. It is also not uncommon for the agent channel to have promotions or incentives that the direct representative has not been given for the customer, and the agent will typically win the customer because of that fact. If the direct representatives have promotions available, they are often compensated extra if they do not use them. Independent Telecom Agents will pull out any available promotions available in an effort to gain your business for the long haul, as they are typically not incented or penalized for use of promotions.
9. Same Pricing
The exact same standard pricing is used in the Agent Channel and the direct channel. In spite of all of the additional knowledge you can tap into with Independent Agents, you can be sure you are not charged any extra for it. For large projects, special pricing is available to both Agent and direct channels at the same amounts. It’s an incredible model that helps the customer and agent win, and insures all clients are treated equally.
10. They understand Next Generation Technology
Independent Telecom Agents will typically be better versed in MPLS, IP-VPN, VOIP, hosted solutions, call center applications, and SIP technologies since they need to understand multiple carriers’ offerings and have attended their trainings. Direct representatives will often know a few tweaks to their individual limited product line a little better than agents that do not exclusively sell their product, but they will not have the overall understanding of all that is coming with new technology. No carrier can be the master of all technologies and master of all niches. It’s a business impossibility. So it follows that it is nearly impossible for a direct representative to have the same breadth and width of exposure to the applications you are facing decisions on. Business is fiercely competitive, and implementation of some of the new technologies correctly can literally save larger companies hundreds of thousands of dollars. That may be the exact edge your company needs to gain the competitive advantage in your marketplace for security, marketing, recruiting, or even retention. Likewise, implementing a bleeding edge technology that is not ready for prime time may cost you the same. Using an experienced Independent Telecom Agent who is looking out for your best interests may make all the difference.
Gadget Guides Know About Green Technology
Article Source: The Top 10 Reasons Companies Use Them
A popular misconception is that trucks and construction toys are for boys only. If you grew up with a single mother who would fix the cabinets and do the landscaping by herself, you know that building and fixing is a gender neutral territory. The producers of Bob the Builder seem to understand, hence the character of Wendy, Bob’s on-the-job colleague.
The vast majority of trucks, construction toys, toy toolboxes and so on are marketed more for boys, but the basic skills and interests that these toys encourage can certainly be put to use by both boys and girls.
We live in the 21st Century now. In the past, a girl would grow up hoping to marry young and not have to worry about how to fix the sink or change a flat tire. Things have changed, and a basic understanding of how to put a power drill to work is something everybody has a right to.
Besides, boy or girl, we can all appreciate the empowering nature of a yellow dump truck with big fat wheels!
Besides toy tools and construction vehicles, just about any kid can appreciate actual construction toys like Legoes and other building sets. The way they sell building set toys these days is with construction plans and a predetermined building or pirate ship or whatever it is printed on the box. We all know that those are just suggestions, though. It can be fun and challenging to try and match the blueprints, and certainly educational, but what has made building sets so popular for about a hundred years is that you can come up with your own ideas, and then try to figure out a way to piece it together.
Playing with Legoes is definitely an educational experience. If you just go nuts and try to build whatever crazy thing pops into your head, nine times out of ten, it’s going to fall apart with all the extra little parts hanging off the side, suspended by a single point of contact. So it’s back to the drawing board, and you try to come up with a new design for that idea, something that’ll hold together a little better. This isn’t just directly relevant to kids with a future in construction, it’s directly relevant to anyone who’s going to have to learn how to make sensible plans in life (and that includes just about all of us).
Playing as a child is important for that child’s adulthood. When you see kittens tackling each other, they’re not just having fun, they’re also learning how to hunt. Being able to build your own castle or robot or whatever it is you want to build is definitely empowering. That you have to come up with a smart way to turn your idea into a real toy helps kids to develop instincts that will be immensely helpful later in life. Put them together and it teaches a very valuable lesson: You can accomplish anything you want to accomplish in life, so long as you first figure out a sensible, practical way to make it happen.
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Article Source: Heavy duty trucks and construction toys