Let’s have 2007 be the year you no longer worry whether your computer/business is adequately backed up. Of course, I’ve said the same thing at the start of nearly every year since I started writing this column seven years ago. In fact, here’s my compressed summary of Things You Really Ought To Be Doing: regular automated backups; periodic restores of your backups to ensure they work; antivirus software (Norton AntiVirus 2007) and a software firewall (such as ZoneAlarm from Zone Labs) for every computer on your network; an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) for every desktop system, which can be (and has been) configured to gently power the system down when power fails; your own domain name along with a basic website and email addresses (let’s have this year, too, be the one where no one uses a personal account for their business email); dual-monitor systems and EV-DO cards where they make sense for your staff; and finally, an annual technology plan based on your business goals.
Your annual technology plan
A technology plan must be driven by what you’re trying to accomplish in your business. For example, right now I’m working for a startup company that reviews a lot of medical records. This can be a time-consuming process for a variety of reasons, the most obvious being most doctors still use paper charts that can only be reviewed in their offices. As part of my technology plan for the company’s coming year, I’m looking at various ways we can use technology, such as page scanning, to eliminate at least some of the issues.
An easy way to get started on your technology plan is to look at the biggest obstacles your business faces in achieving its goals. Increasing revenue? Reducing certain expenses? Hiring great people? Finding new customers? As always, it can help to brainstorm with clients, staff and (perhaps) someone who’s business-oriented and knowledgeable about technology. And resist the temptation to try to do everything. Instead, pick two or three initiatives that will yield the greatest results for your business, and give them enough time and resources to succeed.
One thing your technology plan should address is how to integrate new technologies into your existing infrastructure. Which brings me to my next topic: major upgrades to two commonly used Microsoft programs, Windows and Office.
Microsoft Windows Vista
2007 will be the year of Vista—Vista, of course, being the much-anticipated, often-delayed release of Microsoft Windows. It will replace Microsoft Windows XP as the standard version of Windows.
Just as Windows XP was intended to be more reliable than Windows 95/98/Me, Vista is supposed to close all the security holes that have plagued Windows XP. Jim Allchin of Microsoft was recently quoted as saying that, because of its overall security, Vista will remove the need for you to run additional anti-virus/spyware programs. I am extremely skeptical of this.
If you expect to buy any computers this year, you will be impacted by Vista. If, like many small businesses, you buy your computers at Costco or Best Buy, your choice regarding Vista will be made for you. Most computers will come with Windows Vista pre-installed by the middle of the year.
I strongly recommend avoiding an investment in Vista until the first service pack is released or six months have elapsed, whichever comes first. At the same time, if you have a large number of computers installed, you should get a test system set up with Vista to understand the issues you may be facing.
If you’re happy running Windows XP (Service Pack 2, of course), there’s no reason to upgrade your computer. By the time you buy your next computer, Vista will be the only option, but others will have borne the brunt of whatever problems will accompany its initial release. Just make sure you have automatic updates enabled so you get Microsoft’s regular XP security patches.
Microsoft Office 2007
Office 2007 is a radical reincarnation of Microsoft’s suite of office productivity tools: Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook (at least in the Standard version—other versions include more/different programs). Its tag line is “Get more done in less time.”
Accordingly, Office 2007 has a brand-new user interface, called the “Ribbon,” which is aimed at making people more productive. You can see demonstrations of this new feature online at office.microsoft.com (the website for all things Office-related). The Ribbon is Microsoft’s attempt to make a program with 1,500 commands a little easier to use.
While getting more done in less time is a laudable goal, a major change in user interface means your staff will have to invest some time and effort in learning the new, improved way of doing things to realize that goal. According to Microsoft, “Access 2007, Excel 2007, PowerPoint 2007 and Word 2007 will have the new look. Specific parts of Outlook 2007, such as email message authoring, will also use the new menus and toolbars.”
Office 2007 also introduces new file formats for Word and Excel documents, which means older versions of Word and Excel won’t be automatically able to open documents created by Office 2007. Microsoft is providing “converters” so that files can move in both directions easily, but you’ll need to add the Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats (available as a free download) to your older installations of Office. Don’t forget to factor this into your thinking.
I haven’t used Office 2007 yet (I’m too busy being Chief Information Officer for a startup), but early reviews of the Beta version make it sound like an upgrade worth having. The Standard version of Office continues to cost $399, and it’s $239 to upgrade from a prior version. Note that Office 2007 doesn’t require Windows Vista to run (it does, however, require Windows XP Service Pack 2).
So wait on Vista and move forward with Office 2007 (cautiously). Now, please go back to that list of Things You Really Ought to Be Doing at the start of this column and see what you need to add to your list of New Year’s resolutions. I wish all my readers great success in 2007!
