December 23rd, 2005.

While I will not say you should never get your hardware from your software vendor, it is probably a good idea to steer clear of doing so.  In most cases they only know about how you interact with them, and have no idea about how you run your business.  It makes no sense to purchase hardware that will only run their software.  You need a firm that will evaluate your business needs and take into account all of your needs and recommend a solution that will handle them.  You can probably be sure that your software company cannot do this appropriately.  They are a software development company first, are they not?  Would you expect Travelers to be able to understand all of the nuances of one of your smaller clients?  It’s the same relationship.

You wouldn’t call a plunger manufacturer to help build and design your home plumbing would you?  No, you’d probably call someone who will find out what your needs are for your home and your lifestyle and select the appropriate fixtures and pumps for pressure.  There is no way a plunger manufacturer can do this as well as people who are in that business.

So, get your software from your software vendor, get your hardware from a hardware provider, get your phone system from a phone system provider, etc.  See a pattern?  Now how do you do all of this effectively?  Call someone like us who has relationships with all of these providers, we can manage them for you and get for you exactly what you want and need.  I’m not saying you have to call us at AIS Technology, but please call someone you are comfortable with doing this job and you will be much happier for it in the long run.

If you do not have such a person, feel free to call us at 262.437.4510

October 20, 2005, Nashville, TN

During the luncheon general session, ASCnet announced its annual award winners for both the Presidential Citations and Lifetime Achievement awards.  AIS Technology is VERY proud to announce that Jennifer Godwin and Sandy Oliver both received awards during that presentation.

For her many years of dedicated service, at many levels - including her local chapters, ASCnet committees and her EXTRAORDINARY work developing training materials and giving presentations across the nation, Jennifer Godwin was presented a Lifetime Achievement Award.  We are extremely proud of Jennifer's past accomplishments and her continued support of ASCnet.

Traveling the country doing education presentations, updating and creating handouts and documentation and her enthusiasm were a few of the things that President Robby Dunn recognized when he presented Sandy Oliver with a Presidential Citation.  We are very pleased to have Sandy's efforts of this past year being acknowledged by the ASCnet organization.

Both Sandy and Jennifer work very hard when they are volunteering for the ASCnet organization.  Their work has meant time away from their office and their families.  While we know that they truly love the work they do for ASCnet, it does mean a lot that they were honored and that their sacrifices have produced value in the organization.

One of the questions I'm often asked is, "Nick, when should I upgrade my server?"  My first reply is always to ask about the warranty status of the server in question.  If there is no warranty on the server, then it should have already been replaced.  If an adequate warranty is in place I then ask if it's not performing as they wish, or if they would like it to do more for them.  There are more things to consider, but these two are at the top of my list.  Christopher Elliott has an article on Microsoft's website titled, "8 signs you need to upgrade your server" where he covers a few more reasons you may wish to upgrade your server.  It is very important that you always upgrade/replace your equipment prior to number 8, unless you like pain.  If you think your equimpent is near the end of its useful life, then please call us @ 262.437.4510 or email us @ support@aistechnology.com and let us take care of it before you get to number 8.