To use Virtualization or not with Hyper-V

Certainly a technology that is being discussed across the US in most K12 Districts is virtualization of servers.  Virtualization has many benefits most are realized well after you have them up and running, since the learning curve and management up front as well as the additional hardware cost that might be required can be difficult to manager at first.  Once you have that expertise and have the systems up and running you will start to save on many fronts.

The Big questions is do you go with the Market Leader or Microsoft?  I can’t answer that, as it really depends on you and your requirements and goals down the road.  Microsoft was late to the game, but is making head way slowly. 

Reducing the cost of virtualization using Microsoft Hyper-V and System Center

This posting has some good information as well as links to some tools that might come in handle, take a read if your thinking of moving forward with virtualization.

iPad Deployment – What to look out for!

A lot of college’s are rolling out iPads and I know of several K12 Districts either doing it or thinking of doing it at some level  For certain applications this is a great product and you should learn from your peers what surprises you might encounter when doing so.

From an article that ran in CIO today! 

My iPad Enterprise Rollout: 5 Surprises

350 iPads deployed, 650 more arriving by end of year: Florida State College CIO Rob Rennie is busy learning real-world lessons from his iPad enterprise rollout. Consider these five pieces of wisdom that he shared with CIO.com.

Some other articles you might be interested in:

Will iPad Fail in School?  Brother Rice High School envisions an iPad in every student’s hands but must wait for Apple to bring enterprise-class remote monitoring to make it happen.

TIME – We all need more – Get more by using RSS Feeds

I am always surprised at how many technical people I talk to that do not utilize RSS feeds.  They wonder how I have the time to keep up to date with technology.  I am always saying I say this or read this, they just say I don’t have the time to review NEWS on the WEB.  

I review about 50 web sites and about 250 articles in about 10-15 minutes each morning.  I then spend about 30 minutes over lunch reviewing the stories that I am interested in getting the full details.  Using RSS feeds is how you get to review lots content quickly.  A lot of the FEEDS, the quick description is all you need and you move on to the next, others you might want to read the entire article.  You can use your browser RSS feed tool, Outlook or look to other options like Google Reader and many others that are available on the WEB or your smart phone.  I use Google Reader on my desktop and phone. 

Definition from From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia   

    

RSS (most commonly expanded as Really Simple Syndication) is a family of web feed formats used to publish frequently updated works—such as blog entries, news headlines, audio, and video—in a standardized format.^[2] An RSS document (which is called a “feed”, “web feed”,^[3] or “channel”) includes full or summarized text, plus metadata such as publishing dates and authorship. Web feeds benefit publishers by letting them syndicate content automatically. They benefit readers who want to subscribe to timely updates from favored websites or to aggregate feeds from many sites into one place. RSS feeds can be read using software called an “RSS reader”, “feed reader”, or “aggregator“, which can be web-based, desktop-based, or mobile-device-based. 

If you say don’t have the time and can’t seem to find the time to keep up with Technology, you might want try using RSS feeds and see just how much information is available quickly.  While drinking your coffee in the morning, over lunch and sitting waiting for things you can get educated and keep in the loop.  Most web sites have an RSS feed (Orange) button that you copy the short cut and paste into your reader or Outlook.  If you are using your browser you just click it and add it. 

SAVE TIME AND STAY IN TOUCH WITH WHAT MATTERS TO YOU! 

If you have read the following article, don’t you think you should RSS feed this Blog? 

 

Network Upgrades – CISCO Announces LINUX Switches for Small Business

Timely or what….  Just posted information on WiFi bottlenecks and Cisco announces some great product for the smaller school districts that might need to upgrade their network equipment.  They announced a new line up of managed switches and updated some VOIP phones.

I am dealing with a bunch of Districts that have mentioned that they are looking to upgrade their phone systems and or Network – these products might be something to look at.  A cool new feature of the NEW Cisco 300 is a toolbar called FindIT – this will discover switchers on your small business network.

Cisco Rolls Out New Linux Switches for Small Business Networks – Over the course of the last two years, networking vendor Cisco has been upgrading and expanding its small business networking offerings. That effort continues this week with the launch of a new lineup of managed switches and updated VoIP phones specifically gears for small business networking environments

WIFI Networks – Is your performance less then it was?

With the flood of products that use WiFi being purchased today, it’s really a matter of time before networks need to be modified or upgraded especially if you where one of those people ahead of the curve a few years ago.  With the vast number of new devices combined with the change in use of these devices the toll on most networks is being noticed with slower speeds.

From the simple act of surfing the WEB to band-width hogs of streaming music and videos, things that just a year ago was not mainstream.  This will only get worse (if your managing the WiFi network) as more a more applications come available that require a constant connection.

What are some of the simple things you can look at to hopefully get you some more time before any major upgrades are needed….

6 Ways to Improve Your WiFi Network – Can your wireless network handle the rising tide of mobile devices? Can your company survive shoddy performance? Time to shore up your WiFi by utilizing these tips from Cisco.