DatabaseID=[[DatabaseID]]|ContactID=[[ContactID]]|Friday, May 09, 2008

THE SNOWBALL EFFECT...(Apr. E-News from 2SS.Com)

 

[[Contact:26]]

[[Company:25]]

 

Dear [[Salutation:40]],

 

‘     [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]     ‘

‘     E – N E W S from    ‘

‘     2SS.Com     ‘

‘     Compiled and Edited by      ‘

‘                                                   [email protected]     ‘

‘     Mailed on: 04/01/20019:22 PM                   Number 30   ‘

‘     Int’l Standard Serial No. - ISSN: 1523-3537‘    

‘     [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]     ‘

 

‘     Find E-News promoted at Excite, MSN,    ‘

‘     Yahoo, Ziff-Davis University and more.      ‘

‘     Please share E-News with others who might be     ‘

‘     interested.  It’s your FREE first-of-the-month, fast     ‘

‘     read, update on technology that aims to make a      ‘

‘     difference for your organization.     ‘

 

‘     In this issue (4 Items):     ‘

‘     ================     ‘

‘     1--THE SNOWBALL EFFECT     ‘

‘     2--QUESTIONS?      ‘

‘     3--PRODUCT WATCH - Tactex    ‘

‘     4--STRATEGIC-USEFUL-INTERESTING LINKS     ‘

‘     5--WHY SUBSCRIBE?, 2SS.Com & YOUR    ‘

‘         SUBSCRIPTION.     ‘

 

‘     [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]     ‘

‘     --------------------------Item One----------------------     ‘

‘                    ‘THE SNOWBALL EFFECT’    ‘

‘     -------------------------------------------------------------     ‘

‘     In MILWAUKEE this last February, a civil     ‘

‘     servant clutched a pistol-grip joystick while     ‘

‘     monitoring global positioning systems,     ‘

‘     temperature sensors and a computer.  It could    ‘

‘     have been a scene from NASA, or a high tech     ‘

‘     military operation or even one of many high-tech      ‘

‘     monitoring centers for a variety of businesses.       ‘

 

‘     It was SNOW REMOVAL. For five states,     ‘

‘     pushing snow has become a high-tech business     ‘

‘     as they “soup up” their plows to clear roads faster,    ‘

‘     better and more safely.  (for more on this see      ‘

‘    (www.msnbc.com/news/528692.asp?0na=2226231-)’

 

‘     The SNOWBALL EFFECT in the title of this issue    ‘

‘     isn’t really about snow or even moving snow.    ‘

‘     It’s about the SNOWBALL EFFECT of      ‘

‘     technology in our lives.    ‘

 

‘     In April of 2001 it’s true that every staff member    ‘

‘     at the Volunteer Center of Sacramento has a PC     ‘

‘     at their desktop and dedicated high-speed     ‘

‘     access to surf and/or E-mail on the Internet.    ‘

‘     It’s an accepted part of doing their job of    ‘

‘     managing and placing volunteers.    ‘

 

‘     Even our church (probably yours, too) is lamenting   ‘

‘     its evolution.  It’s moving from an era of     ‘

‘     ‘volunteer support, toward realizing that its     ‘

‘     dependence on technology is becoming too     ‘

‘     great to allow folks who aren’t available     ‘

‘     ‘on-demand’ to do the work of keeping the     ‘

‘     church’s technology and www pages running.      

 

‘     The message of the SNOWBALL EFFECT we     ‘

‘     refer to here is clear.  You know it already.      ‘

‘     Information and its effective use is becoming a     ‘

‘     strategic tool for doing everything from moving    ‘

‘     snow to saving souls.     ‘

 

‘     Does the way your business works reflect     ‘

‘     what you know?  Or are you waiting for the     ‘

‘     snowballs?     ‘

 

 

‘     [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]     ‘

‘     --------------------------Item Two-----------------------      ‘

‘                               QUESTIONS?     ‘

‘     -------------------------------------------------------------     ‘

‘     WHAT HAPPENED TO E-NEWS?    ‘

‘     In January we had an issue on “E-BRANDING?”     ‘

‘     that may not have reached you due to an odd     ‘

‘     E-Mail error that left us believing outbound     ‘

‘     E-Mail was sent OK when in fact it was NOT!     ‘

 

‘     Then in Feb. & Mar. we started preparing issues     ‘

‘     including:     ‘

‘     *  2SS.Com client requirements (we put out 4     ‘

‘         new systems and overhauled 3 more),    ‘

‘     *  Our new enterprise (some of you know the     ‘

‘         details) began to blossom as www pages,      ‘

‘         back-room operations and database      ‘

‘         development began to converge, and     ‘

‘     *  Business 2001 detail planning (where your     ‘

‘         editor was the Sacramento Metro Chamber    

‘         volunteer chair)     ‘

‘     Needless to say, these above items competed…..’

‘     with the time a ‘good’ issue would require…..’

’     So, it’s no ‘April fool’ that we’re    ‘

‘     back, and we expect consistently, because     ‘

‘     there’s a lot to share with you!     ‘

 

‘     WHERE CAN I LEARN HOW TO REALLY USE    ‘

‘     THE INTERNET?    ‘

‘     After recently being asked that question at     ‘

‘     2SS.Com, we were at a loss and said so.  Our     ‘

‘     less-than-satisfactory recommendation was to     ‘

‘     consider getting a book on the topic at a     ‘

‘     computer store.     ‘

 

‘     Fortunately, 2SS.Com client, Celeste Greeley,     ‘

‘     didn’t take that advice.  Instead she found and  

‘     now recommends The Learning Exchange’s     ‘

‘     “HOW TO FIND ANYTHING ON THE      ‘

‘     INTERNET” with instructor Will Ellerby.  In her  

‘     words., “He teaches a strategic approach to     ‘

‘     researching a topic with multiple search     ‘

‘     avenues.  [before the class] I spent an hour    ‘

‘     trying to locate comprehensive information…     ‘

‘     [to meet a specific requirement]. After the     ‘

‘     class [I] found exactly what was needed in      ‘

‘     less than 5 minutes!!!  The instructor really      ‘

‘     knows his stuff.  He communicates well. It was     ‘

‘     EXCELLENT I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT!”     ‘

 

 

‘     WHERE CAN I GET HELP NOW!!!?     ‘

‘     2SS.Com has established a referral partnership    ‘

‘     with www.ExpertCity.Com (just click on it) where    ‘

‘     you can have technology experts bid on and     ‘

‘     then generally guide you to a solution.  Special     ‘

‘     Expert City software (try it yourself at     ‘

‘     www.GoToMyPC.Com where its about to be     ‘

‘     released as a separate product offering) permits     ‘

‘     your expert to directly see and if you wish take      ‘

‘     control of your PC over the Internet.     ‘

 

 

‘     WOULD YOU LIKE TO READ BUT HAVE NO     ‘

‘     TIME to BUY, READ & DIGEST?    ‘

 ‘    Take advantage of downloadable summaries     ‘

‘     by some of the latest and greatest authors that   ‘

‘     capture their thoughts on business-related     ‘

‘     topics.  Office.com is offering a free trial to     ‘

‘     ‘The Business Source’ (A book summary service    ‘

‘     that normally sells for $90).  If you'd like to try    ‘

‘     it go to…    ‘

‘     http://www.thebusinesssource.com/odcrffriend.htm   ‘

 

 

‘     [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]     ‘

‘     ---------------------Item Three-------------------------      ‘

‘                        PRODUCT WATCH     ‘

‘     -------------------------------------------------------------     ‘

‘     MTC EXPRESS     ‘

‘     ----------------------     ‘

‘     The MTC Express is a mouse-pad sized      ‘

‘     multi-touch controller which is compatible with    ‘

‘     Mac and PC platforms. It ships with an API     ‘

‘     (application programming interface) which     ‘

‘     allows developers to easily compose     ‘

‘     applications that take advantage of raw      ‘

‘     pressure data from the pad, or multiple     ‘

‘     pressure sensitive pointers.    ‘

 

‘     One early user is Arcadia, California-based      ‘

‘     Midiman where they have a series of musical     ‘

‘     products in development using the same     ‘

‘     technology present in the MTC Express device.    ‘

 

 

‘     TACTEX    ‘

‘     ------------   ‘

‘     The Tactex touch pad $495 (available at     ‘

‘      http://www.tactex.com/products.html ) was the     ‘

‘     ‘Most Innovative Product of the Year’ award winner  ‘

‘     at the National Association of Music Merchants.    ‘

‘     The device’s sound-based applications peaked      ‘

‘     the interest of some big name bands and music     ‘

‘     engineers.  Already, Tactex has sold several      ‘

‘     hundred units of their leather touch pad via the      ‘

‘     company’s WWW site.  By year’s end it hopes     ‘

‘     to be shipping tens of thousands!        ‘

 

‘     Tactex president Rob Inkster anticipated that the    ‘

‘     music community would be among the first    ‘

‘     industries to utilize the technology.  “Musicians     ‘

‘     are tactile people, and this allows them to control      ‘

‘     musical effects with their fingers, just like they     ‘

‘     were playing a guitar.   The next logical step will     ‘

‘     be videogames in which the player can tell      ‘

‘     characters to run, jump or fight …with more       ‘

‘     intuitive, natural gestures than a joystick.”     ‘

 

‘     Tactex envisions a future with couches that     ‘

‘     allow you to write the number 7 on the arm to     ‘

‘     change TV channels.  Already the firm is dealing    ‘

‘     with a major cell phone company to use their      ‘

‘     smart fabric on the backs of phones.   And, not      ‘

‘     too surprisingly, Dreamworks Entertainment is      ‘

‘     interested in the possibility of enabling graphic     ‘

‘     artists to draw more subtle changes in their     ‘

‘     animated characters by utilizing more delicate      ‘

‘     finger controls      ‘

 

‘     MICROSOFT OFFICE XP    ‘

‘     -----------------------------------    ‘

‘     Microsoft’s newest edition of ‘Office’ includes      ‘

‘     *  Word 2002   ‘

‘     *  Excel 2002     ‘

‘     *  PowerPoint 2002    ‘

‘     *  Access 2002     ‘

‘     *  Outlook 2002     ‘

‘     *  FrontPage 2002     ‘

 

‘     There will also be other versions that add     ‘

‘     Publisher 2002 and SharePoint Team    ‘

‘     Services, a Web-based collaboration tool.      ‘

 

‘     New features in Office XP include a pastel-    ‘

‘     colored interface, right-hand side windows for    ‘

‘     (1) task-window-panes in applications and      ‘

‘     (2) recently-used file lists.  Enhanced Internet     ‘

‘     integration includes disk and Web-based     ‘

‘     searches and translation services.  A new ‘Smart    ‘

‘     Tag’ icon offers help and options when you     ‘

‘     perform more complicated tasks. Just click the     ‘

‘     tag (or press Shift-Alt-F10) to choose possible    ‘

‘     actions for the affected text or graphic, or to turn-     ‘

‘     off www-based automated changes.      ‘

 

‘     Finally, Office XP includes early versions of      ‘

‘     new features, like handwriting and speech     ‘

‘     recognition (Early reviews report that they work      ‘

‘     satisfactorily, but not quite like 2001’s HAL).      ‘

‘     These features are targeted toward users who     ‘

‘     can’t use keyboards.  Also, new in this install is a      ‘

‘     requirement to validate your installation over     ‘

‘     the web, unless you are a corporate buyer.       ‘

‘     Those who avoid validating will be warned that     ‘

‘     their software will stop functioning after 50 uses.     

 

 

‘     [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]     ‘

‘     ----------------------Item Four--------------------------      ‘

‘     STRATEGIC-USEFUL-INTERESTING LINKS     ‘

‘     -------------------------------------------------------------     ‘

‘     HOW ABOUT SOME $ FOR YOUR THOUGHTS?    ‘

‘     1. www.SurveySavvy.Com  As members of     ‘

‘         SurveySavvy.com, 2SS.Com routinely    ‘

‘         participates in online surveys, which we are paid    ‘

‘         for, whenever we can qualify and complete     ‘

‘         them within their desired specifications.  You    

‘         can join, and can get paid when you participate     ‘

‘         too!  Begin by using the following link      ‘

‘         www.SurveySavvy.Com and click on 'Join     ‘

‘         SurveySavvy'. If this link  doesn’t work     ‘

‘         for you, just go to the SurveySavvy web site    

‘         and register.  I’d be pleased if you’d also note   

’         that you were referred by [email protected].    ‘


 

‘     2. www.CEOExpress.Com (another find from     ‘

‘         2SS.Com client, Celeste Greeley-see above)   ‘

‘         is a site of, by and for busy CEO’s.   Go there    ‘

‘         to find a wide array of well organized business    ;

‘         information.     ‘

 

‘     3. http://www.geocities.com/~acunu/ is the site    ‘

‘         of the UN’s Global Futures Studies &     ‘

‘         Research and MILLENNIUM PROJECT.  It’s     ‘

‘         almost as interesting as Mr. Jerry Glen who   ‘

‘         was recently in town to speak at Sac State.     ‘

‘         His topics included the project’s vast and    ‘

‘         highly complex objectives and progress.     ‘

 

‘      4. www.GanttHead.Com In their own words,     ‘

‘          “GanttHead.Com will help you find everything    ‘

‘          you need for managing your project.       ‘

‘          Developed BY project managers FOR project     ‘

‘          managers.”     ‘

 

‘       5. www.QuickBase.Com by Intuit (makers of     ‘

‘          Quicken and QuickBooks) have been getting    ‘

‘          great reviews for this Internet-based data    ‘

‘          management tool.  It includes many samples    ‘

‘          and templates to address a variety of needs.     ‘

‘          You can follow one of the links below and,     ‘

‘          best of all, get started with up to 2GB of storage   

’          for NO cost. Just click on a sample below:     ‘

‘          *Small Business Samples*     ‘

‘          Contact Manager          Asset Tracker    ‘

‘          Purchase Requests      More...    ‘

‘          *Corporate Workgroup Samples*     ‘

‘          Issues List                     Project Manager    ‘

‘          Personnel Data             More...    ‘

‘          *Nonprofits & Clubs Samples*     ‘

‘          Fundraiser Manager     Event Planner     ‘

‘          Team League Schedule and Standings    ‘

‘          More...     ‘

 

 

‘     [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]     ‘

‘     -------------------------Item Five-----------------------      ‘

‘                         WHY SUBSCRIBE?    ‘

‘            2SS.Com & YOUR SUBSCRIPTION    

‘     -------------------------------------------------------------     ‘

‘     We intend to make the E-News from 2SS.Com     ‘

‘     “come to life” by soliciting your comments,     ‘

‘     suggestions and interests to direct the informa-     ‘

‘     tion we choose to share. Already on our      ‘

‘     ‘watch-list’ are:    ‘

‘     *  Artificial Intelligence     ‘

‘     *  Speech Recognition     ‘

‘     *  Small network Internet connectivity     ‘

‘     *  Computer Telephony Integration.      ‘

 

‘     Maybe the best reason to subscribe is     ‘

‘     the ‘E-News Strategic Technology     ‘

‘     Advisory Panel’, a growing list of     ‘

‘     professionals in a variety of disciplines   ‘

‘     who have agreed to:     ‘

‘     1--Review each month’s issue in      ‘

‘         advance of its release.     ‘

‘     2--Contribute year-round from their      ‘

‘         respective areas of specialization.    ‘

‘     3--Accept your strategic systems      ‘

‘         technology questions.  (This is a free    ‘

‘         EXTRAORDINARILY CONVENIENT,     ‘

‘         multi-discipline resource available to you.)     ‘

 

‘     [email protected]     ‘

‘     Computer Hardware and Software     ‘

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‘     Ron Ellis of 2SS.Com.    ‘

 

‘     [email protected]     ‘

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‘     ding Audit, Tax and General Business      ‘

‘     Consulting by David Ljung, Principal at      ‘

‘     Gilbert Accountancy Corporation.  Visit      ‘

‘     them at www.GilbertCPA.com.     ‘

 

‘     [email protected]     ‘

‘     Perspectives from a long-tenured, technically      ‘

‘     savvy and top-notch MIS Director Morris     ‘

‘     Slocum of Emergency Physician Billing     ‘

‘     located in Oklahoma City, OK.    ‘

 

‘     [email protected]     ‘

‘     Human Resources expertise, including     ‘

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‘     and customized training by B.J. Flora of .    ‘

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‘     [email protected]      ‘

‘     Computer network design, implementation,    ‘

‘     maintenance and support by Ron Ellis,      ‘

‘     Managing Director of 2SS.Com.    ‘

 

‘     [email protected]      ‘

‘     Computer and printer rentals of all     ‘

‘     types by Rick Randall, President of     ‘

‘     RenTech Computers.  Visit them at      ‘

‘      www.RenTechComputers.Com.    ‘

 

‘     [email protected]       ‘

‘     Corporate and professional skill training    ‘

‘     by Ann McCandless, Owner and founder      ‘

‘     of Computer Assistance. Visit them at     ‘

‘     www.CA-Training.Com      ‘

 

‘     [email protected]     ‘

‘     Strategic Planning, turnarounds, marketing   ‘

‘     analysis, and litigation support by Peter H.   ‘

‘     Michael, President of The Michael Consulting    ‘

‘     Group.  Visit them at www.mcgmcg.com.    ‘

 

‘      [email protected]     ‘

‘     Internet WWW authoring, database     ‘

‘     development and connectivity by    ‘

‘     Michael Nelson, President of SacWeb..      ‘

‘     Visit them at www.SacWeb.Com.     ‘

 

‘     It’s FREE to SUBSCRIBE / UN-SUBSCRIBE?     ‘

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‘     you with timely and interesting ideas     ‘

‘     that help you identify and implement      ‘

‘     strategic systems.  You can SUBSCRIBE FREE      ‘

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‘     Our commitment to subscribers is to      ‘

‘     not waste your time.  If you have     ‘

‘     questions, comments, or suggestions     ‘

‘     for technologies that interest you, please    ‘

‘     send a message to [email protected] .       ‘

‘     (A sample issue is available by fax or by mail     ‘

‘     upon request. Please fax requests to      ‘

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‘     addressed envelope to 2SS.Com at P.O. Box      ‘

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‘     Please advise us of any changes to our     ‘

‘     current contact data for you.  It is:     ‘

‘     Contact: [[Contact:26]]     ‘

‘     Company: [[Company:25]]     ‘

‘     Title: [[Title:46]]     ‘

‘     Address: [[Address 1:27]] [[Address 2:28]]     ‘

‘     City: [[City:30]], State: [[State:31]]  Zip: [[Zip:32]]     ‘

‘     Phone: [[Phone:35]]  Fax: [[Fax:36]]    ‘