Nicholas's Confirmation 4/14/16

Congratulations Nicholas, may God continue to bless your precious life! 

Tip of the Week: Turn Your Favorite Email Client into Gmail on Your Android Device

Even though Google would prefer it if everyone switched over to Gmail as their primary email client, this simply isn’t going to happen. Many businesses are set in their ways, and would prefer to use Microsoft Outlook. Other users might still be in the days of Yahoo Mail for their personal email account. It’s to the users of other email clients that Gmailify is targeted.

With Gmailify, you can add Gmail features to your non-Gmail account, so long as you’re using Outlook or Yahoo on the Android Gmail app. Doing so lets you take advantage of the features of Gmail, without making a Gmail account. Currently, Gmailifying your inbox is only available for Android devices, but you might find it useful to view your work-based Outlook email system within a Gmail-like inbox.

According to Google, you can reap the following benefits:

• Gmail's spam protection
• Automatically sorting email based on type (Social, Updates, Promotions)
• Faster search, with advanced search operators
• Travel and hotel reservations appearing automatically in Google Now
• All your mail in one place.
• Better mail notifications on mobile

Before you can use the Gmail app for your non-Gmail accounts, you’ll need to link the accounts to the Gmail application. To do so, open the menu in the top-left corner and tap Settings. Next, tap the non-Gmail account that you want to add. Now all you have to do is select Link Account, and you’ll be able to see your email inbox in the Gmail app for Android.

For those interested in Gmailifying their inbox, you might be interested to know that your emails will also appear in the web-based version of Gmail. This helps you view your emails in a Gmail-like interface with all of its benefits, without actually using Gmail.

Of course, Gmail wouldn’t be offering these services if they didn’t have some sort of reason to do so. According toITProPortal, Google has an ulterior motive for providing Gmail features to non-Gmail users:

This way [Google] gets to scan your messages and get its hands on your data which, understandably, you may not be too keen on. If you prefer the look of your existing email app, then you probably won’t be in a rush to start using the Gmail app either.

Gmailify might have its quirks, but there’s a reason why it’s loved by so many people. It’s a way to take advantage of Gmail’s benefits without sacrificing too much in the process. Still, other businesses might see this as a cause for concern, so it’s best to check with your IT provider before changing the way you view your email inbox. So… are you interested in trying out Gmailify? Leave your thoughts about it in the comments section below.

Dusting off the winter cobwebs.

70 degrees on Sunday! Time for a new battery, and oil for the season.

How Going With These 3 Technologies Now, Will Save You Money Later

When it comes to procuring technology for your business, you’re often presented with two choices: save money by going with technology that’s been around for a while, or spend a little more to get the latest and greatest on the market. It’s tempting to go with the cheaper option, but, in the long run, it generally pays to go with the latest solutions, thanks to an IT concept know as “future proofing.”

Essentially, future proofing is when you’re deliberately pursuing upgrading your network with the latest technology in order to prolong the period of time before you have to upgrade again. To help you future proof your IT network, here are three of the latest IT technologies you should consider (today, not five or ten years from now).

Windows 10 Pro
One simple way to stay on top of upgrading is to use the latest operating system. Yet, this is easier said than done for businesses that have multiple workstations and don’t wish to spend the money it takes to upgrade every piece of hardware in one fell swoop. Additionally, you may want to hold off on upgrading until all of your mission-critical applications have first been tested on the new system. At the same time, it would be beneficial to take advantage of the latest OS for some of your workstations, even if you can’t upgrade every unit.

To make such a transition easier for organizations, Microsoft offers Windows 10 Pro licenses. The future-proof advantage of Windows 10 Pro is that it allows you to downgrade to a previous supported version, like Windows 7 or 8.1. Meanwhile, you’ll have easy access to Windows 10, should you be in a place where you’re ready to upgrade to it in the near future.

As a bonus, Windows 10 Pro will prepare you for when Microsoft ends support for Windows 7 and 8.1 on July 17, 2017, and January 10, 2023 respectively. Ed Bott of Tech Pro Research explains:

For 6th Generation [Intel] Core CPUs (Skylake), support for Windows 7 and 8.1 ends on July 17, 2017. Microsoft will support only Windows 10 on processor models that succeed Skylake. If you plan to continue using Windows 7 past that date, your best bet is to take advantage of bargains in the 4th and 5th Generation (Haswell and Broadwell) Intel processor families. Microsoft says PCs built using those CPUs will be fully supported for the entire 10-year lifecycle of all Windows versions.

HDMI 2.0
HDMI is today’s standard for displaying high definition video, and to ensure that your high definition video needs are covered for years to come, we recommend going with HDMI 2.0 when buying new hardware.

HDMI 2.0 supports 4K resolution at 60Hz, along with a full range of audio formats. What differentiates HDMI 2.0 from the original version is its ability to display 4K. While 4K may seem a bit unnecessary in today’s business environment, keep in mind that high definition displays like 4K eventually will become the norm, and if you go with HDMI 2.0 now, then you won’t have to upgrade your cables to 4K in the future.

USB Type-C
USB technology has been around long enough to have seen many upgrades and different versions. The latest in USB technology is USB Type-C. Ed Bott explains the advantages of this latest USB innovation:

• The first wave of devices containing USB Type-C connectors have already arrived, in the form of phones like Google's Nexus 6P and Microsoft's Lumia 950 XL, as well as laptops like the Dell XPS 15.
• USB 3.1 support allows you to transfer at speeds up to 10 Gb/sec, which is double the transfer rate of USB 3.0.
• USB Power Delivery supports device chargers of up to 100W, making it possible to charge phones and even power-hungry laptops from the same USB Type-C power source.
• Alternate modes allow the use of DisplayPort, Mobile High-Definition Link (MHL), and Thunderbolt 3 display connectors at full resolution.

Just like a 4K display, one day, USB Type-C will be the norm and you’ll have to upgrade to it. Therefore, if you’re making plans now to refresh your company’s technology, then you might as well go with USB Type-C so you won’t have to perform a special upgrade to it in the not-too-distant future.

Of course, these are just three technologies that allow you to future-proof your IT network. When it comes down to it, almost every component has a latest version that will set you up nicely for your company’s future.

Domino’s Ushers in New Robotic Age of Pizza Delivery

Robotics is a technology that’s influencing many different types of industries. Robots help surgeons with surgery, work in manufacturing environments, and so much more. Now, the application of robotics has given birth to one of the most important technological advances to the modern world: pizza-delivering robots.

Major pizza chain Domino’s has announced that it will soon be taking advantage of a pizza delivery robot that can autonomously deliver pizza directly to your home. The Domino Robotic Unit, or DRU, will debut in Domino’s Australian sector. While it sounds like a crazy marketing effort on Domino’s part, the robot has been confirmed to be real; not unlike KFC Canada’s bluetooth printer bucket that was advertised as a limited-time offer. The DRU has been tested in Queensland, Australia, and is reportedly only the first step forward in changing the way that Domino’s handles the pizza-ordering process. Check out this short video to see the DRU in action.

Supposedly, Domino’s claims that the DRU can perform the following tasks:

• Follow a map to a destination.
• Navigate sidewalks.
• Avoid obstacles.
• Keep your pizza hot while it delivers it to the specified location.
• Keeps your drinks cold.

Domino’s has been working closely with an Australian defense robotics firm, Marathon Robotics, to design the DRU. Marathon Robotics has been known to produce moving targets for law enforcement, state defense, and so on, to use during training exercises. In other words, you can count on the DRU to be able to take a beating, which is good; you don’t want some random passerby stealing your pizza.

Robotic delivery services aren’t completely unheard of. Amazon stated that it wanted to experiment with drone delivery services, but nothing really came of it. In a way, the Domino’s delivery robot is the first of its kind, and could pave the way for future pizza delivery apparatus. It’s just one way that the most unlikely of industries are taking advantage of modern technology to innovate and push toward greater heights.

What are your thoughts on using technology to autonomously deliver goods or services? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to our blog for more tech news, tips, and tricks.

A few memories from Ft. Lauderdale 2016.

Thanks Erin and Charlie for a great weekend!

Ft. Lauderdale 2016 

Tip of the Week: Find Out When Microsoft Will End Support for Your Operating System

As time goes on, operating systems grow old and eventually reach their end-of-support date that’s designated by Microsoft. When this fated day comes, patches and security updates are no longer applied to the expired operating system. To help you better plan for the future, we've compiled a list of various expiration dates for many Windows operating systems.

Before we get into the details, we feel the need to explain exactly why you need to ensure your infrastructure is being supported. If you’re not receiving crucial patches and security updates, your organization will be vulnerable to potential hacking attacks. This presents an unnecessary risk that is relatively easy to resolve if you catch the problem ahead of time. Therefore, in order to maximize the security of your infrastructure, you need to keep your operating systems up to date and compliant with the current best practices.

How Support Works
Here’s a basic idea for how Windows operating system support works. Microsoft will provide mainstream support for an operating system for five years following its release. Following the mainstream support period is a five-year period of extended support. The specifics for the two can be seen below:

• Mainstream support: When mainstream support ends, Microsoft stops issuing non-security related fixes unless you have a previously established extended support agreement. Warranty claims also end, and Microsoft stops accepting requests for new features or design alterations.
• Extended support: When extended support ends, Microsoft will no longer issue critical patches and security updates. When this happens, your systems will be exposed to vulnerabilities that won’t be fixed. The only solution is upgrading to a more recent OS, or biting the bullet and purchasing exorbitantly expensive custom support from Microsoft.

Windows Operating Systems

• Windows 10: Mainstream support ends October 13, 2020, while extended support ends October 14, 2025.
• Windows 8.1: Windows 8.1’s mainstream support ends January 9, 2018, and its extended support ends January 10, 2023.
• Windows 8: Windows 8 is no longer supported by Microsoft. To continue receiving patches and security updates, upgrade to Windows 8.1 or Windows 10.
• Windows 7: Windows 7’s mainstream support ended on January 13, 2015, and its extended support ends on January 14, 2020.
• Windows Vista: Windows Vista’s mainstream support ended on April 10, 2012, and extended support ends on April 11, 2017.