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The latest from the team
3D Piracy?
February 2, 2012
Piracy has been in the news this week, mostly thanks to Megaupload of course. But another well-known and equally shady website is now offering an interesting new download category that could open the floodgates to a new kind of property theft.
The Pirate Bay is a torrent site that I’m sure you’ve never heard of (oh no – that’s what they all say). Users upload links to BitTorrent files: some legit, most not. This week, the Pirate Bay launched a new category: files that can be used with 3D printers to print out physical objects.
The move has already wound up Games Workshop who are concerned that nerds all over the world will now set up their own 3D printing rackets and produce thousands of weird little figurines. 3D printer patterns for some Lord of the Rings designs have already appeared on the Pirate Bay website.
Is 3D piracy likely to take off? Well, right now you can only really print resin (or food, but the results we saw weren’t so pretty). So in theory, if the object you want is plastic, you could probably print it out if you had the right template. You’d need to invest a minimum of £650 in a 3D printer, and you need to assemble it yourself, or employ a willing Warhammer fan to do it in return for a few spare Orks. Once you have one, you could print your own bike frame, violin or even a hip replacement, providing you had a printer that was sophisticated enough.
Sounds great, right? Free Orks! The one drawback? The Pirate Bay have named these 3D patterns ‘Physibles’. Even if 3D printing takes off, let’s hope the name doesn’t stick.
Posted in News | Tagged Piracy, Soho IT | Comments Off
Cloud tools you’ve been using for years without realising it
February 1, 2012
What does the cloud mean to you? What does SaaS mean – full stop? To some, it still sounds like some kind of nasty flu pandemic, but don’t be alarmed, and don’t strap on that face mask just yet. The cloud is nothing to be afraid of, and it’s actually probably already part of your daily routine. Chances are you’re already using cloud applications and Saas (Software as a Service) without even noticing.
The cloud has actually been around for years: we just haven’t had a name for it. Hotmail is technically a cloud email service, and so is Gmail. When you upload photos to Picasa and Flickr, you’re uploading them to the cloud. These sites have been around for ages, but it’s only recently that they’ve been classified.
So what about SaaS? Probably the most common SaaS suite online today is Google Apps, a combination of Google’s own development and a few companies purchased by Google along the way. Docs was originally developed by a company called Writely. (Let’s face it, that was a terrible name, so they did them a favour there.)
With mobile devices becoming commonplace, you’ve probably also used cloud storage and streaming. Last year Apple launched iCloud, a system which allows any user with an Apple ID to store content and access it from multiple devices. iCloud also includes a few other clever features including data syncing and the ability to locate your stolen device – as long as the toerag who nicked it hasn’t got around to changing the SIM card. A more established player in the cloud storage market is Dropbox, the ingenious folder syncing service that finally means frustrated Dads don’t have to spend their weekends networking their kids’ PCs.
Posted in News | Tagged Cloud tools | Comments OffSaw this picture in Heathrow….
January 20, 2012
Every day we see more and more evidence that our private cloud is more reliable and expandable for less than most traditional solutions. And its quicker to deploy.
We can arrange a demo of any of our hosted solutions, and we can deploy the implementation on any continent within hours with NO set up costs.
Call us now on +44 207 993 9394
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Funny Picture
January 17, 2012Saw this and had a little giggle!
Hosted Exchange Email – More reliable, scalable and cost effective
January 13, 2012Traditionally, email has been an in-house provision. Organisations would run their own server on the premises, typically deploying Microsoft Outlook or Microsoft Office across the organisation. The server would typically run Exchange – the industry-standard provision for email in an enterprise setting, and would be administered by the on-site technical support team. Any unexpected problems or planned upgrades would also be handled in-house. And when the company out-grew their Exchange server, they would have to re-invest in new equipment to make sure they had capacity for everyone.
As network connections increase in speed and security improves, companies are choosing to move key IT services into the cloud instead. Once such a service would have been seen as a nightmare of unreliability, but nowadays, there’s no reason why cloud services can’t be used for business-critical services like email: in fact, there are considerable benefits to doing so.
With more of us using mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers, hosting email remotely is the norm. We all connect wirelessly to our inboxes anyway, so the precise location of the data doesn’t make any difference in practical terms. In fact, it makes sense to go with a hosted email solution, simply for the additional capacity and top-notch reliability. Most cloud providers will ensure that Exchange can be accessed through almost any modern mobile operating system, and on any device, including the BlackBerry, iPhone and on Android devices. That means more freedom for employees to work remotely, and more freedom for everyone to use devices they find most useful.
Security and privacy is also less of a concern now that hosted email is becoming the norm. And in the wake of high-profile outages from companies such as Amazon, failover and redundancy are being more seriously addressed, even by the smallest hosted Exchange providers
Posted in News | Tagged Hosted Email, Hosted Exchange, Hosted Services | Comments OffOutsourced IT Support – Its easier than you think
January 11, 2012The benefits of outsourcing your IT services
There a many reasons you would choose to outsource your IT services – other than saving on tea and coffee supplies, of course. By outsourcing your IT services, you could save money on your operating expenses: office space, staff costs, and the cost of cleaning up those biscuit crumbs. If you need round the clock IT support, outsourcing your IT with Soho IT can allow you to close up your office and be home in time for dinner, too.
An outsourced IT department has one incentive that an internal team lacks: they need to maximise the support time and provide the most efficient and effective service possible. An outsourced team don’t want to lose your business, so they will ensure that your Service Level Agreements are met in full! You can use this to your advantage and plan the support you need to minimise the cost and help streamline your business.
If the service you have bought and paid for does not meet your needs, or if you find you don’t use the support enough, it’s much easier to change the level of support you pay for. You don’t need to pay to train up your own IT staff every time the latest course comes along (and those courses are never particularly cheap). It’s in the interest of any good IT support company to have all the skills to cope with any new technology you want use to your advantage.
With a professional dedicated IT company comes a valuable source of knowledge and experience which you can rely on to plan for your future IT needs. A good IT company will have their finger on the pulse. They can see the trends in how IT services are bought and used. They know where the best deals are and how to get them for you. And you’ll never need to buy a packet of Hob Nobs again.
Posted in News | Tagged IT Support, London IT Support, Outsourced IT | Comments OffData Backups? … They should be a New Years resolution!
January 6, 2012It’s time to pack away the Christmas tree, glug your last glass of Baileys and put the tinsel back in its box. Did you make any new year’s resolutions? More to the point: have you stuck to them?
Here’s an idea to include in your list of resolutions this year: back up your data more often.
It’s almost guaranteed that, at some point, the worst will happen. You will lose some of your data. Files get corrupted, viruses infect your computer, laptops get dropped. Having a good backup policy makes good sense for any business, but installing a physical backup device can be time consuming and problematic, and you’re almost certain to outgrow it in time.
Not everyone does it, of course. Everyone says they back up: most forget.
Imagine returning to work after a fun-filled festive holiday to find that all of your work has been lost. Did you remember to back up your data on December 23rd? Now answer again, and tell the truth this time…
One of the biggest advantages is backing up your files anywhere that you can access the internet. You wouldn’t want to carry your back up device around (which negates the point of using it, if you think about it). An online back up service can provide a safety net for your business without having to purchase additional servers or hard drives. You could back up your whole organisation’s data, or just the most important files. You can back up incrementally to save time if you prefer.
If you are a small business, backing up your data online could save money on expensive hardware, and backing up to the cloud is the easy solution for people who forget to back up or can’t be bothered. So that’s most of us, then.
Arrange ‘set and forget’ online backups this year: one day, you’ll be really glad you did.
Posted in News | Tagged Data Backup, Data Recovery, Online Backup, Soho IT | Comments OffNew Year…. Time to Spring Clean your IT Services?
January 3, 2012You may well have grasped the whole ‘cloud’ thing by now, and you’ll probably be looking at moving some of your services into the cloud to make savings. The New Year is a great time to spring clean your IT provision and cut costs in the process.
So what can you host in the cloud? To be honest, you can host most of the services you use every day. From the desktop icons you stare at as you slurp your first coffee, through to the telephone that sits on your desk: all of this can be remotely hosted. Here’s a quick overview of what the cloud can do.
Moving business your email into the cloud is a bit of a no-brainer. In fact, you’re probably already using cloud email for personal messages. Services like Gmail are hosted email solutions: the emails you read, and the attachments you send and receive, are all stored remotely. You access them seamlessly from your mobile devices or your desktop. Business email operates in the same way, except we’d normally recommend Microsoft Exchange for business use. A cloud version is no different to an Exchange server on-site.
Desktop
Believe it or not, you can run your computer in the cloud, and it doesn’t involve hot air balloons or parachutes. A hosted desktop is a virtual installation of Windows 7 that sits on a server. You can access it from anywhere. Work, nan’s house, your iPad… it’s always available, always backed up, and always set up in exactly the way you like it. Hosted desktops are great for anyone who needs to work remotely.
Server
Server rooms: the domain of the uber-techs. Only the bravest shall enter, or those who have a thing for untangling power cables. Bringing some of your server technology into the cloud can save you a lot of time, money and space, and it can cut down hugely on your power bills. Less electricity to power those ugly server racks, less air conditioning to keep them cool.
Telephony
Forget plumbing in complicated telephone systems. Host your telephony in the cloud with VOIP. Your employees just need a broadband connection to make calls, and their number is portable: it will even work at home. (We know they’ll thank you for that). VOIP offers much more powerful features than a PABX for a fixed monthly fee, and calls can be dynamically routed and re-assigned with ease.
Posted in News | Comments OffIs Cloud the way forward?
December 21, 2011Many businesses are seeing huge cost and efficiency advantages by working in the cloud. Established companies are doing away with on-site equipment and using their network connection to receive business-critical services.
The most attractive benefit of working in the cloud is the lack of initial outlay. Cloud services are provided on a rolling contract basis: sometimes you’ll pay for a year, but often you’re only obliged to pay month-by-month. Gone are the days when you’d need to install your own server, the software to run on that server, and then employ a technical support team to install, test and deploy the equipment. There’s no need to find space for equipment, or money for insurance.
You also don’t need to invest heavily in the beginning if you’re only a small company. Soho IT Cloud services are entirely scalable, so they can grow and shrink with your workforce and your projects. For example, hosted email solutions are generally charged on a ‘per user’ or ‘per mailbox’ system. There’s no need to purchase vast amounts of hard disk space from the off: simply upgrade your plan later if you need to. Most cloud providers provide hosted solutions that are instantly recognisable to your staff without any further investment in training. For example, purchasing hosted Exchange 2010 is now very common, and to the user, the fact that it’s hosted is totally invisible.
Once you’re up and running with a cloud provider, there’s no need to be concerned about unexpected costs. The service provider tak es care of any technical problems, software upgrades and outages. And because your service is being provided via the cloud, your provider will have robust measures in place to ensure that reliability and security are of the utmost importance.
Apart from the financial benefits of working in the cloud, many businesses are pursuing cloud solutions in the effort to be greener. In fact, the two often go hand-in-hand. Less on-site equipment means lower energy bills, and sharing resources in a data centre is a far more efficient way of working than running a server 24/7 which may only be used for 40 hours per week.
Whether you’re just starting up or you’re looking to economise on your IT provision, Soho IT cloud computing could offer significant savings and new ways of working that will greatly improve your efficiency and cashflow overall.
Posted in News | Tagged Cloud Hosting, Exchange Hosting UK, Soho IT | Comments OffStay tuned
December 14, 2011Hello
So our News feed is ready to go, so stay tuned as we update our news
in the mean time why not follow us on twitter or like us on facebook
MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE SOHO IT TEAM
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