WebOMatic

Primary role of an SMB focused IT Reseller

2009-04-14T01:02:00.000-07:00

I have recently been asked this question:

What do you think the primary role of an SMB focused IT Reseller should be?

My answer was straight forward, i answered:

"Primary:
Deliver a solution.. not a product or a service. Deliver a full solution. As a reseller you shall deliver (and/or guide) his customer all the supplementary elements towards a complete solution.

Secondary:
Guide the customer on how to fully make use of what he had purchased and/or will purchase.

By definition, SMB are either small or medium. They need to make real use of what they will purchase. They would want to get a full solution for the optimum price. You will have to search around your industry venues, pick real good partners from which products or services will integrate with yours.

When you head to customer, be in his shoes. Think what would i prefer to do with this budget i have. What would i get in return. After three years from now, what would be the value of this product. How will this service benefit me.

Thinking like so and having the above two goals achieved properly, I would ensure you a new cash cow in your stable."

Will that be enough in your opinion?

Harmonising sales and marketing - What do you think?

2009-04-07T20:01:00.000-07:00

I believe you can create harmony once the basics are founded. Marketing by nature are always ahead of sales. The marketers create the need for the service or product in the mind of the prospective customer. On the other hand, sales men tend to harvest that need and fulfill it with providing the service or products deals.

If that is totally clear from day one to each sales man and marketer, you will then realize the harmony as originally meant to be.

So, steps are:

1. Create a very detailed (as much as possible) job description. Provide job limits and constraints

2. Make a clear communication plan that covers all team members. provide a correct and fair escalation scheme.

3. Raise job requirements and duties awareness among the team (set a weekly management meeting, force a weekly similar meetings between your sub-ordinate managers and their teams, create a set of values to be addressed weekly and monthly among the team...)

4. Praise and punish

5. Harvest the results :)

What do you think?

What do you need to become an IT Consultant?

2009-04-03T00:52:00.000-07:00

I think this is very individual-based question. As an IT Consultant you shall be:

1. Well rounded person - technical wise
2. Well aware of the business nature of your customer
3. Well educated and really experienced to think out of the box merely all the time
4. Well mannered and diplomatic enough to avoid your customer's or competitor's raids
5. Well dressed. With a magnificent leather ware, watch, briefs and a pen

What do you think?

How can we activate e-commerce in the Middle East?

2009-04-03T00:49:00.000-07:00

Well, that is a really good question that i have been asked through a group bullet in. Personally, i believe we need the following:

1. Find real secured environments and platforms (including top notch system administrators and integrators) and implement them

2. Encourage huge amounts of Quality Control for all web applications produced. To provide minimal flaws to the business to business (B2B) and business to customers (B2C) day-to-day operations

3, Back the initiative with a solid cargo rules and real shipment and delivery services. May that be via encouraging higher standards companies to invest in the region

4. Utilize the credit card issuance from the several banks to conduct a more homogeneous mechanist for security, payment refunds, disputes and arbitration.

5. Finally, arrange for a solid initiative marketing plan for the enforcement of trading online and creating real fuzz and awareness among the audiences.

Would love to hear your voices...

Crack Megaupload with Alexa toolbar user agent hack

2007-01-14T07:49:00.000-08:00

Crack Megaupload with Alexa toolbar user agent hack

MegaUpload is a premium One-Click Hoster that is considerably easier
and with less restrictions for free (non-premium or non-paying) users
than RapidShare.de Webhosting + Webspace. However, MegaUpload still has
some restrictions which may be annoying at times, such as country based
download slots limitation where you can get an error message saying
"All download slots assigned to your country are in use.", slower
download speed, delay start of download with 45 seconds waiting, no
parallel downloads, no support for download accelerators and download
resumes, and the maximum file size allowed to upload and download is
250MB.

If you want to bypass and remove all download limitations
on MegaUpload, but don't want to pay a dime, there are a few
workarounds. One of them is by using proxy, or you can use the Alexa
Toolbar hack. In order to inflate the traffic ranking and reach in
Alexa, MegaUpload treats their users installed with Alexa Toolbar as is
partially premium users, and thus grant access to free users some of
the features available to premium members, including ability to
download without any country download slots limit.

The official
way to install Alexa Toolbar is to download and install the toolbar
from Alexa . However, if you're concern with the fact that some
anti-spyware utilities have labelled Alexa Toolbar as spyware, you can
use the following registry hack (for IE) and User Agent Switcher plugin
(for Firefox) without actually installing Alexa Toolbar.

Alexa Toolbar Hack In Internet Explorer 6 (IE6 and its variant such as Maxthon and Avant Browser)

Run Registry Editor by clicking on Start, then click on Run, type in RegEdit and click OK.
In Registry Editor window, navigate to the following branch:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\5.0\User Agent\Post Platform

Right click on Post Platform, then click on New, and then choose String Value.
Type in "Alexa Toolbar" in the text box.
Restart your PC, and you should have bypassed MegaUpload download limits.

Alexa Toolbar Imitation Hack In Internet Explorer 7 (IE7)

Follow exactly the same steps as above (IE6), but the Post Platform branch is located at the following tree:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings\User Agent\Post Platform

FireFox Alexa Toolbar User Agent Hack for MegaUpload

Download and install the User Agent Switcher extension for FireFox.
Restart the FireFox web browser after installation ended.
Go to Tools -> User Agent Switcher -> Options.
Then click on User Agents and then click on Add.
Key in the following information:
Description: MegaUpload
User Agent: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; SV1; Alexa Toolbar)

Exit by clicking on OK twice.
Whenever
you want to download from MegaUpload, go to Tools -> User Agent
Switcher and select MegaUpload as FireFox's temporary user agents.
After downloading the files, you may want to switch back to original user agents, by selecting Default.

How to Quickly Reduce Microsoft Word File Size

2006-11-27T08:01:00.000-08:00

How to Quickly Reduce
Microsoft Word File Size

I have faced a 85MB word file! Can you believe that? I have spent alot of time researching this issue and here is what i found on http://www.klariti.com/microsoft-word/Reduce-Microsoft-Word-File-Size2.shtml

What happens if you’re given a file that’s already bloated to massive
proportions. It’s too late to create fancy new styles at this stage. This requires
some drastic action.

Here's what to do.

1. Open the Word file in Microsoft
Word, if possible.

Tip: If this is not possible, try opening it with Internet Explorer -
sometimes this works!

2. Cut and paste every graphic from the file into an image-editing tool. Create a naming
convention, (e.g. Page1-A.gif, Page1-B.gif etc) and name each one accordingly.

WARNING: DON’T SAVE THE FILE YET!

3. Do File | Save As HTML. Name the file with an HTML extension, e.g.
ProposalTemplate.html. Exit Word completely.

4. Re-open Word. Do File | Open and select the ProposalTemplate.html file.

5. Do File | Save and save with ProposalTemplate.html with a new Word .doc extension, e.g.
ProposalTemplate2.doc.

This simple process of converting the
Microsoft Word file into HTML and back into Word, removes all the unnecessary (i.e.
corrupt) code in the file, and will significantly reduce the file size.

I’ve seen Word files larger than 20MB reduced to less than 3MB in
less than one minute by using this technique.

Might be worth a try!

These are some secrets we learnt from the tech doc frontline. What’s been your
experience?

Please drop me a line at ivan <at> klariti <dot> com and we’ll share it
online.

PS: The reason you don’t save the file at Step 2 is because this
would trigger Word into action (i.e. I WILL now save this humongous file) and, as it
struggles to save the oversized file, will probably crash the entire application.

Dub DENIM... Intuitive UI Tools

2006-11-26T06:11:00.000-08:00

Dub DENIM

DENIM is tool for web designers turns drawing input to basic interface elements and navigation.

Drawing with mouse is not as easy as drawing on a paper but, your drawing input immediately turns into reusable links, windows and checkboxes. It allows design at different refinement levels, and unifies the evels through zooming.

I won’t compare this tool with Mind Manager because it is very formal and can be used conjuction with DENIM.

The big defference from a web designer perspective is DENIM is very close to paper and pen, so human :)

Give it a try!

Copied from http://www.inanyus.com/2005/06/user-friendly-user-interface-design-tool

NEWS FLASH: INTERNET EXPLORER IS NOT THE INTERNET! (AND VICE VERSA)

2006-11-19T05:28:00.000-08:00

NEWS FLASH: INTERNET EXPLORER IS NOT THE INTERNET! (AND VICE VERSA)

by Chadd VanZanten (Iodynamics)

Fall 2004

Recently, the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT) issued an advisory on major
vulnerabilities in Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE). In addition to other known flaws,
CERT reported, IE has "significant vulnerabilities" to so-called "unstructured sites,"
sites that redirect a user from one webserver
to another.

In some ways, this is not noteworthy. Vulnerabilities pop up in IE
like, well, like the pop-ups you get when using IE. However, the advisory
is noteworthy because it suggests that we stop using IE altogether. The
effect of this announcement was less than dramatic; IE's market share fell
a mere 1 percent (from about 95 percent to about 94 percent).

Let's put this into perspective. CERT, a partnering agency with the U.S.
Department of Homeland Security, has advised us to stop using IE because it
is too vulnerable to hackers and malicious programs. Granted, Homeland
Security once advised us to stock up on duct tape and plastic wrap to
protect against terror attacks. However, if Homeland Security said that
Twinkies might be laced with anthrax, thousands of truckloads of Twinkies
would be immediately incinerated. Yet, when CERT says stop using IE, IE
users hardly blinked.

Surprised? A lot of people are. Many are asking, "Why does anyone use
IE?" Industry experts cite several reasons:

Average computer users equate the Internet
with IE; they think IE is the Internet.
Average users lack the technical ability to
replace IE with something else.
Most people think nothing bad will happen to
them.

Meanwhile, IE users are practically begging hackers to hijack their
computers or bomb them with porno pop-ups. Here's what they (and everyone
else) should know.

First, IE is not the Internet. There are three parts in an Internet
visit: 1) the Internet, 2) the user's computer, and 3) the browser,
software that displays websites. IE is but one of several browsers that can
explore the Internet. When you use IE, it's increasingly likely that there
will be 4) a malicious program or hacker ready to exploit IE and take
control of your computer.

Second, replacing IE with another browser isn't simple, but neither is
reclaiming a hijacked computer or stolen credit card. Yes, you'll have to
find and download an installation file and re-establish your bookmarks,
but this is no longer just a good idea, it's imperative.

Finally, yes, it can happen to you. The Federal Trade Commission
estimates that one in three Americans will fall victim to identity
theft in the next 10 years. Translation: you are not safely anonymous, and
IE makes you into a target. Whether you're a novice with just a foggy
notion of the Internet, or a system administrator with 50 users, this is
your chance. Unless a Russian mafia hacker is already using your computer
to send millions of child-porn spam messages, it is not too late to pay
attention to CERT.

The most viable replacement for IE is Mozilla
< http://www.mozilla.org/ >. Mozilla is a fully
functional browser with virtually all the features of IE, and some IE
doesn't have. Mozilla is free and installs easily. Will it take long to
re-establish your bookmarks? Maybe. But will your personal information and
your computer be more secure? Definitely.

A word of warning: Mozilla is not without critics.
Some say IE has more vulnerabilities only because more
people use IE, and so hackers work harder on it than
other browsers. Fair enough. Some day, when 95 percent
of Internet users use Mozilla, hackers might give up
on IE and CERT might issue an advisory to discontinue
use of Mozilla. Until then, even if Mozilla is safer
only because of its smaller market share, it's still
safer.

A second word of warning: Using Mozilla or some other
browser is not a panacea for the risks of browsing the
Internet. Hackers, viruses, and spyware have many ways
to get at your computer and data. All users, no matter
how savvy, unimportant, or anonymous, should take
these steps to protect against computer attack:

Maintain and use current virus protection.
Maintain and use current adware and spyware blocking
software.
Apply patches and security fixes when available.
Do not follow unsolicited links in pop-up ads and
browser windows.
Read and send e-mail in plain text this helps to
protect you and the people you send e-mail to by
limiting the possibility of running programs at
tached to e-mail.

It should be noted that Microsoft Internet products,
including Outlook and Windows Media Player, have
similar failings that expose users to unnecessary
security risks. However, by following a few simple
steps (including not using IE) you'll increase your
own personal homeland security.

Linked in?

2006-09-25T23:33:00.000-07:00

Are you Linked In?

Linked In is a very good idea of applying an old concept. I have found Linked In as the most professional application to the old get-your-connections-wider concept.

Why i see it as professional? check my reasons as follows:

A very detailed professional information inputs
Gives the member a facility to search for other members from a similar professional area/industry/university to his.
Gives the member the ability to export all his contacts to Outlook or even Yahoo! mail so he can then proceed contacting them.
You can even start a hiring process from the same place you are viewing members or contacts.

I just think this website is going to boom very soon.

Tired Of Meetings?

2006-06-08T08:41:00.000-07:00

Ever been to a series of meetings? Beleive me, you better not!

I have been attending some meetings to analyze and discuss a huge client/vendor conflict for the last 4 days. If there was any reason for my head to blow up, that would be it!

By nature, i do not like to talk alot, i tend to listen more. I feel i am a good listener too. While i have too much good presentation and explanation skills, I would rather listen to you first.

Attending such lumpsum of meetings meant that i had to practice my presentation skills for more than 5 hours aday. That is a headache, isnt it?

Hot, Heat, Hot Again!

2006-06-07T06:37:00.000-07:00

It is startgin to get hot in here (Cairo, Egypt) those days. I hate hot days. They really get on my nurves. I used to spend lots of good summers on the 80's era. I don't know what happened to the climate. It really changed, and towards the worse.

How do you think this can be fixed?

2006-06-07T02:13:00.000-07:00

Best Arabic Website Design?

Well, i know many good website designers in the Arab world of web design. What website do you think is the best? By that you should notice:

Layout
Color selection and choice
Type
Quality of Images

Website's language is not important in this stage. What is important is that it has been made by an Arab designer. So, again, what Arabic website do you think is the best in your opinion?