IT Services - March 2009 Newsletter

3Points March 2009 Newletter - PDF Version 

Fixed-Prices and Unlimited Services Are NOW Available at 3 Points

You Asked, and We Delivered…

Throughout the last year, 3 Points’ clients have been asking us to normalize their IT costs.  During these conversations we heard many common themes.  We heard clients say that because money is tight, businesses only address critical IT issues, even if their non-critical IT issues are negatively impacting them.  We also heard that IT costs are tough to budget, and these costs can cause cash planning issues.  Clients also want to upgrade their technology during slow times likes these, but they are concerned about the associated costs.

What we heard in many of these conversations was that you want an IT service that offers you a plan that you can buy on a fixed monthly basis; and which includes all the services you need, all at a price you can afford.  After some extensive analysis, and a successful pilot program, 3 Points is proud to announce our new “Budget Plan for Small Business.”

The Budget Plan for Small Business is a program that provides you with all the regular IT services you need for one fixed monthly price.  That’s right!  All the IT services you need for one fixed monthly price.  The Budget Plan has several key characteristics that make it the perfect program for your IT service needs.

Program Highlights: 

• Unlimited Help Desk Services during normal hours - Included
• Regularly Scheduled Onsite Technical Support - Included
• All monthly monitoring services - Included
• After-hours / Emergency support at significantly discounted rates - Included
• Project Services at significantly discounted rates - Included

The Budget Plan represents a dramatic shift away from the uncertainties of hourly billing.  It also demonstrates our pledge of loyalty to you and to your business.  Now you can feel confident that you have the IT resources you need to survive and thrive in these turbulent times simply by moving onto the Budget Plan.  Thank you for being a 3 Points client.  We value your business, and we look forward to serving you for many years to come.

Please contact Dave Pavlovic or Will Hagarbome if you would like to learn more.

Dave Pavlovic    
708-546-4941    
dpavlovic@3points.com

William Hagarbome
708-546-4935
whagarbome@3points.com


Protecting Your Business in an Electronic World

In today's world, most communication has moved from the telephone and the fax machine to e-mail, websites and instant messaging. While this may not come as a surprise to anyone, there are several aspects of this fundamental communication shift that have changed the legal responsibilities of those who use email, websites and instant messaging methods to conduct business. In 2006, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP), which governs how parties must act during potential or realized legal actions in Federal Court, were significantly changed with respect to electronic records. These electronic records include emails, spreadsheets, word processing documents and virtually any other type of Electronically Stored Information (ESI) you can imagine. Since 2006, many states (including Illinois) have enacted similar ESI legislation making the State Courts mirror the Federal Courts in this regard. It is important that you check with your lawyers to understand how you may be affected by these rules if a lawsuit were to arise.

One major change in the FRCP Rules was that ESI is now considered “Discoverable,” and as such, must be “Preserved” in various situationsas a valid “Record.” If you are facing a legal situation, whether it's being brought against your company, or by your company, you have certain duties you are required to perform in regards to ESI as it relates to that legal matter. 

The first and most important change to the FRCP rules is that if you are a party to a legal matter, or think you may become a party to a legal matter, there are steps you must take to “Preserve” any relevant ESI records. The function of preservation is similar to taking a file drawer full of paper records that relates to a legal matter and securing it in a location until such time as it may be requested by the courts.  When it comes to ESI, this can be a daunting task, especially since ESI can be contained in many places that you may not realize, including servers, PCs, laptops, cell phones, back-up tapes and hosted websites, just to name a few.

In order to be sure you are in compliance with the FRCP rules, it is important that you know where your data is stored, and that you can map these locations out for the courts. You must also be able to produce the information once it is requested. The risks associated with ESI discovery increase when a business does not have a good idea of the location of its ESI.

You should also be aware that there are types of ESI that you may not realize exist, which can create problems for you if these records are requested, and you cannot produce them. For instance, most ESI has hidden data, which is called metadata. Metadata is data that is stored with ESI, but is not readily visible to the user. For instance, if you open a Microsoft Word document, and click the “Properties” menu item under the “File” menu, you will see a dialog box that contains the metadata that is connected to every Microsoft Word document. This information relates to the author, the date it was created and other fields that are filled in by the software program while the file is in use. This information can tell the story of how the document was passed around before it was produced for the courts, and can itself be a "Smoking Gun” if people manipulate files before producing them. Metadata has been used in courts to win cases.

There are several other important FRCP rules related to ESI that were amended, but most of these are related to how lawyers and paralegals need to conduct themselves in a proceeding,and the types of notices they should be sending the plaintiff and/or defendant in any particular legal matter. If you find yourself in a legal proceeding, be sure to discuss the impact of the FRCP on your case with your lawyer to ensure that you are taking the appropriate actions with your ESI.

Many professional service firms in accounting, finance and the legal field are required to hold certain types of ESI for prolonged periods. In many cases these are very long periods of time, such as seven to ten years. If you are not aware of your requirements, be sure to check with anattorney to determine if your company could be subject to these rules.

Finally, and most importantly, be sure you know where your data is stored, and ensure that it is retrievable should you need it. Many companies have a data map that clearly explains where data resides. The courts have already imposed heavy penalties on companies that could not produce ESI, even though they may have lost the information accidentally. Being prepared means being aware of where the ESI records are stored, having a method to preserve them once you know a legal matter is arising, and how to retrieve them from your systems once they are requested.

While the advent of email, instant messaging and website-based applications have dramatically improved the speed and efficiency of conducting business, there are risks that come along with the rewards. The legislature and the courts have recognized this electronic communication shift, and are requiring businesses that use these tools to make the information available to them. Being prepared is your best offense and defense when dealing with ESI in the courts. If you would like any further information regarding the FRCP rules, or on the types of ESI you may have in your business, please feel free to contact Steven Banke at sbanke@3points.com or directly at 708-546-4928.


The Microsoft Office 2007 Blues 

• “Where is Print?”
• “How do I Save?”
• “What are these Ribbons they keep referring to?”
• “Whatever happened to the Menu Bar?"

If these questions sound familiar, you are not alone.

The drastic rebuilding of Microsoft Office 2007 presents radically different interfaces and new file formats. The new Office 2007 looks so unlike its predecessors, that it has sparked several love-hate responses from our clients.

First-time Office 2007 users are having an easier time than veteran users. This is due to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint arranging features within a tabbed Ribbon toolbar that has replaced the drop-down menus and dialog boxes familiar in Office 2000 and 2003. To further confuse the user, the File and Edit menus have been replaced with the single, Office Logo menu – now located in the upper left corner - and functions like Dictionary and Thesaurus are now under the Review tab, not under Tools as in Office 2003.

Expert or novice, Microsoft knows that sitting a user down in front of a terminal and telling them to "go" isn't practical. We all work or have worked with someone that hates computers but is required, now more than ever, to use one every waking moment at the office. To make matters even worse (or better!), not only is Office 2007 taking over as the new standard in the workplace, but all new PC's are shipping with Microsoft Office 2007.

The consensus among Office 2007 owners is that the learning curve is steep, although once the time and effort are put into the learning process, the results are quite impressive. For the person working on five to ten documents per day, Excel data, PowerPoint presentations, and endless other projects, a thorough understanding of these programs and the use of all the new features offered with Office 2007 will definitely be to their advantage.

So don’t be discouraged with the thought of learning more information.

3 Points is here to help!

Not only will we assist with configuring any new PC's and migrating the older data, but we now offer Microsoft Office 2007 training. We have facilities in Chicago, Schaumburg, and Naperville. Class sizes range from 5 to 15 users and can focus on any of the Microsoft Office programs, including: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access. The classes are designed for a specific group of users and range from beginner to advanced.

3 Points training will immediately and quickly clear up all misconceptions and answer all questions for those learning the new data necessary for this application. This is definitely not just an update like Office 2003 – time and study are required to learn Office 2007.

Our training will assist you in producing more polished, professional documents and will improve productivity in the workplace by getting over the learning curve as quickly as possible.

To start saving time and money with Office 2007 now, just contact your Account Manager for further details on Microsoft Office 2007 Training today
.

Spam Relief – PURE and Simple

Does your company use email? Have you had your email address for longer than six months?
 
If so, you receive spam mail. Spam messages can be minimal and more of a nuisance than a problem, or multiple messages that interfere with your business productivity.
 
Check out these contributing spam factors:

• The longer your email account has been active, the greater the risk of receiving spam mail.
• If your firm uses email for marketing, or you advertise your email address in some way, your risk increases.
• General email accounts are huge targets. For example, if your address is sales@companyname.com and a copy of the email also gets sent to your personal email, you will get more spam.
• Signing up for services online should be done carefully. If an email list sign-up option is provided, make sure the site is trustworthy. Otherwise, some services can add you to spam lists.

Problem
Many of the above factors are required for your business to function efficiently. 
 
Solution
A managed spam prevention system called PURE. 3 Points offers PURE as a hosted solution so you don’t need to install or manage any software on your systems. PURE gives you: 

• Built-in Anti-Virus protection, eliminating the need to buy Anti-Virus licenses for the Exchange portion of your network.
• Mail Bagging during any power failure or Exchange server down time. Mail Bagging allows your inbound emails to be held in a queue until the connection is restored. Once restored, your emails will be delivered without the worry of losing anything important.

Are you interested in a simple, effective way of refining your email accounts and cleansing them of spam? Contact your Account Manager today and ask about getting PURE for your company.