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Top 10 Common Sense Cost-Cutting StrategiesAugust 26th, 2010For any type or size of business it’s always the right time to cut costs. Mobility and Distance Costs 1. Maybe all of your sales calls don’t have to be done in person. Web-based videoconferencing and software like Microsoft Office Live Meeting allow you to make presentations online. Webcams are quite inexpensive compared to travel costs, by plane, train or car. 2. If you exhibit at trade shows and conferences, why pay for transportation or shipping when you can get all of your plasma rentals and other convention rentals from CRE? With locations in many cities, we can get what you need to any location, set it up and tear it down when the show’s over. Consider the same sort of just-in-time strategies in other operational areas of your company. Employees and Management 3. Cross-training employees saves money in several ways. Instead of paying for expensive temporary help when employees are out, the less-costly alternative is cross-training employees so staff can move into support roles when needed. This is common practice among the creative pros that use CRE’s Mac Pro rentals, who know that “the show must go on.” 4. Increased efficiency is always a money-saver. Give your employees the business and software training that makes them more effective. There are loads of free training programs on the Internet, but you can also combine one good teacher with a room full of iMac rentals and educate your employees yourself. Services and Utilities 5. Do a regular review of your core business expenses, the necessities. One example: Today’s many VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) services have reduced phone costs dramatically. Do a complete comparison of ones in your area. 6. Online faxing reduces the number of phone lines by using Web-based fax services instead of fax machines – which will also save you money on paper, ink, toner, electricity, etc. 7. Whether you’re in a home office or corporate office setting, you can work with your power company to reduce heating and cooling costs. There are a lot of options you may not know about, starting with a free energy audit. Technology 8. Every company has a Web site now. Hosting costs vary widely, and quality does not necessarily track precisely with pricing. Some so-called bargain hosts boast better offers and uptime statistics than some expensive ones. 9. Consider a “combo” communications plan. As with home service deals, business packages can offer great value. 10. Think creatively and consider every alternative to a purchase. One of the great things about CRE’s computer rentals is that you always work with the current state-of-the-art equipment, without having to tie your money up in a purchase. Do a little creative (and critical) thinking and you can make an immediate, lasting impact on your expenses. You will also help promote efficiency in general when all employees, whether two or 200, follow your lead into this new, improved mindset. CRE’s constant mindset is to be ready with the solutions you need for the obstacles you face. Contact an experienced Account Executive or fill out the online Quick Rental Quote and we’ll put our expertise to work for you. Is Software as a Service (SaaS) Right for You?August 18th, 2010Technology seems to breed acronyms like nothing else, from company names (IBM, AMD, NEC, etc.) to products and processes (MP3, DVD, VoIP and so on). There are a few newer ones floating around that are supposed to describe a new way of providing companies with high-tech tools, something like a subscription or monthly package deal. It’s got two main acronyms – TaaS (or TAAS) for Technology as a Service and SaaS (or SAAS) for Software as a Service. Check the technology service menu The idea is that you should order tech services like you order food a-la-carte – one from Column A, two from Column B and so forth – and thereby keep your IT expenses (and employee count) at a manageable level. There are many ‘technology service ‘ companies that work with their various vendors and partners to deliver affordable, tailor-made TaaS/SaaS programs to their customers - small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that lack sufficient capital and staff resources to implement and manage their own computer, communications and IT functions. Cloud Computing: Ready for Prime Time?July 27th, 2010
In the 1990s, Scott McNealy, a co-founder of Sun Microsystems, said, “The Web is the computer.” The ultimate dream of the cloud boosters is people accessing files stored “in the cloud” (”on a server somewhere”) with minimalist workstations called “thin clients” – a keyboard, a monitor and a network connection. Is this really how people would work, given the chance? Many of CRE’s creative clients doing high-end work on Mac Pro rentals would probably say, “No way,” at least for now. Local = control More and more people are becoming cloud-savvy, because that’s where their Web sites are located, of course. Many businesses also use online storage to archive materials. There is a good business rationale for this, as well as for storing many kinds of work-in-progress in the cloud, like projects that require collaboration for editing, design and/or distribution. However, the notion that all files are “virtual” – which means “unavailable” when the power goes out – scares the heck out of many designers, A/V pros and content producers. Is this really the Big Idea that McNealy and other cloud fans want to implement? For this all-cloud-all-the-time scheme to work, we need far greater network speed and much more bandwidth. Even when these and other sticking points are unstuck, human nature is still blocking the road ahead, holding up a big sign that says, “I have trust issues.” If you just hired some extra artists and put them to work on computer rentals to finish an urgent project, would you honestly trust the only copy to be out of your sight – rather, out of anyone’s sight? No local work copy? No way! Step by step towards computing in the cloud We haven’t space to cover all the security issues, but the phrase “heightened security threats” pops up a lot in cloud computing discussions. Local storage is safer than cloud storage for the simple reason that cyberspace is still a battlefield full of hackers, viruses and malware. “From the frying pan to the fire” seems an appropriate precautionary statement about moving prematurely to cloud computing – for now. So, consider Xserve RAID rentals – they are solid, tangible proof that you have your work at hand, safe and sound. You can get acclimated to the cloud by getting a free online storage account (and actually using it). With each passing day, the Internet gets faster, safer and easier to use, but it’s still got a bit of the Wild West in it. Perhaps some people will be comfortable leaving their animation files on the cloud and using Apple’s imaginary Web app, Final Cut Virtual, to work on them (perhaps with their iPhones). Others may take a bit longer to feel safe doing that. Your mileage, as they say, may vary! At CRE, one thing that never varies is the expertise and professionalism of our staff. Whether you need the fastest iMac rentals anywhere or a broad array of convention rentals, CRE is your one-stop shop. Call us, send an e-mail or fill out a Quick Rental Quote form and we’ll help you get where you need to go with the best hardware, software and services, bar none. Safety and Security with Surveillance SoftwareJuly 15th, 2010Even people who keep up on surveillance technology are amazed by the With the right equipment and setup, a business owner can watch over his 20,000 square-foot store, the warehouse in the back and every approaching street and sidewalk, too. Early on in the computer era (back with the VCRs in the Stone Age, the 1980s) one of the first ideas for surveillance systems was to split the screen and let you see two camera views at once. That is a quaint memory now that today’s software lets you view 16 or even 32 cameras in any grouping that you like, across one, two or three monitors – even a monitor wall, if you want. Total flexibility There are commercial software packages that are quite capable, even bordering on consciousness, after a fashion. Then, too, there are any number of proprietary applications that are bundled with certain manufacturers’ gear, and you can always hire a programmer to create something special for your unique needs. Most of these packages will share common capabilities, and differ on the implementation, the number of cameras supported and connectivity schemes. However, they all share a common feature set. You can record the camera feeds if you choose, and often into various formats and on various media. Gone are the days when all surveillance video feeds were recorded to VHS tapes, a costly approach and an archivist’s nightmare. Today the video can be compressed and saved to hard drives, flash memory or burnable CDs/DVDs. With the advent of Blu-ray recorders, 25 and 50GB of video can be written to single- and double-sided discs, respectively. Compressed with quality New compression schemes such as mpeg4, particularly Apple’s h.264 version, reduce video files to a fraction of their original size, while maintaining excellent quality. These compression schemes are called “lossy” since there is some loss of original information. There are also “lossless” compression schemes if it is important to save as much detail as possible while still conserving storage space. Remember, the former tools squeeze the files smaller than the latter ones. You are advised to check out a variety of compressed video types to see what you will get from your system. You need to know the quality of the archived video before you can decide how to proceed. Then you can calculate just how much media you will need to save what you are recording. It may also be, of course, that you only save segments of the video stream in which there is movement or other activity. The hardware and software available today can be motion-sensitive, light-sensitive, sound-sensitive or some combination, in order to trigger the recording only when it is necessary. CRE follows all the different high-tech trends, even for technology we don’t rent, as part of our commitment to helping you prepare for whatever comes your way. Need some PC or Mac computer rentals or Xserve RAID rentals for an important project? Simply fill out the Quick Rental Quote form and we’ll be on it right away. There’s no time to spare. The future is headed our way and it’s coming fast! Business Sustainability: A Recession LessonJune 15th, 2010After equipping Smokey Bear (”the” is not his middle name) to lead the fight against forest fires for half a century or so, the government finally learned that occasional fires are good for the environment. They clear out deadwood and stir the environmental ingredients into action again. Leave it to Southern California’s own Scott Harris – marketing agency owner, business columnist, college and seminar instructor and jovial contrarian – to bring this metaphor to life for business professionals struggling to push their way out of a lingering recession. Success breeds mediocrity
Managers of companies that survived the last two years need to critique everything, preferably in a group setting – every policy, practice, procedure and process – and be willing to jettison anything that does not work. “[If we] drift back to our previous ways,” warns Harris, “then we will have wasted a tremendous opportunity.” Harris closes his comments by assuring his readers that he does not advocate any controlled burning of businesses, but does “strongly recommend that we take a moment and learn as much as possible” from the recent recession. Only then, he insists, will American businesses, of all sizes and kinds, “be equipped to make the next few [years] as successful and as profitable as possible.” Like Apple says, “Think different” Bottom line? Think different, as Apple used to say in one of its longer-running ad campaigns. In an example from the special effects and post-production facilities that CRE rents to, management often divides into two camps with respect to the high-tech equipment they rely on – renters and buyers, with the latter historically more numerous. Many businesses learned to think differently during the recession, finding that it was actually more cost-effective to rent than own. Consider: Companies with Mac Pro rentals do not have to pay to repair a crashed hard drive. One call and a new computer shows up. Firms using interactive kiosk rentals to capture contact information at conventions turn the kiosks back in, rather than watch them collect dust until the next time they’re needed. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Every purchase, every expense, every procedure, every rule – all of it needs to be evaluated in light of new operating parameters. For want of a better word, let’s borrow one from the environmental movement and call it “Business Sustainability,” as others are already doing. Combining the strongest core elements of green thinking, flexible management, recycling, goal setting, group dynamics, creativity and strategic planning, it can help chart new routes to the future. With a commitment to enlightened management, excellence and success, there’s no telling what the next few years might hold! CRE supports your business with the best technological tools as well as the expertise to deploy them. Whatever you need to accomplish, our Account Executives are here to help. Send an e-mail, make a call or use the Quick Rental Quote form to let us know what you need. We will make your priority our priority. That’s what we do! Training Tips, Online and OffApril 29th, 2010From the start, the educational potential of the Internet was a source of tremendous excitement. There is a wealth of online training available today, in every imaginable subject, with many top universities and even elite Ivy League institutions delivering courses, counseling, certificates and degrees on the Web. It’s even better for ongoing education and professional certification, as well as for people who want to learn specific skills or knowledge without a degree program. At CRE, we support all kinds of businesses in every industry, but have a particular expertise outfitting creative people – designers, audio engineers, video pros, marketing mavens – with powerful media manipulators like our Mac Pro rentals. We know how much effort it takes staying updated on all manner of different software and hardware, with the ability to jump into one of our G5 with Kona card rentals and do your thing. Should you decide to take some online training to maintain and/or improve your professional standing and specialized skills, we would commend you for your work ethic – then share a few tips. Always check training sources
Rentals for in-house training If you are looking for training for a group of people, perhaps for professional certification of some kind, you can buy the instructional materials on DVD. CRE has the projector rentals, as well as the audience response system rentals, that can make group training simple and effective. Especially in the IT and technical fields, where widely-regarded certifications are essential for a tech firm’s employees to have, using CRE laptop rentals rounds out a cost-effective training regimen. The more people you can get trained together, of course, the lower the unit cost for the preparation. Win-win. With large enough hardware or software purchases, vendors can also customize a total solution for your firm and easily integrate online or offline training into the plan. You don’t need to tie up your workstations (which are making your company money) or budget a large hardware purchase when you use computer rentals for training. A room of iMac rentals and/or PCs, the right software, the right learning materials and the right amount of time, and you’ve got another group of experts in Excel, Exchange. Photoshop or InDesign – or Maya, C+, Logic, Pro Tools, Avid, Javascript, Ajax, Cisco, Microsoft, Novell or whatever else you can think of. CRE has its share of experts, too. Our Account Executives know exactly what solutions will fit your particular challenge, whether it’s a post-production bottleneck, convention, presentation or training session. Call or send an e-mail, or fill out the Quick Rental Quote form, and we’ll get you that personalized training solution you need. Common Sense vs. Business BuzzwordsApril 27th, 2010The old saying, “There’s nothing new under the sun,” is a good one to remember when we start hearing about the “latest and greatest, newest and truest” in any field. It is important to remember that principles are eternal, however – for example, we’ve known for a couple of millennia that communication is essential in society, it’s the means that have evolved, from stone tablets to iPads. In the realm of business management, the eternal principles are clear to anyone who devotes time to finding and studying them. Still, we seem to be experiencing a real upsurge in new buzzwords that describe them.
Who holds the buzzwords keys? Should you be concerned if you are not buying the books or paying the consultants who hold the keys to the secret meanings of these success formulas? No, you shouldn’t. In fact, there is both a lot more and a lot less to this issue than first meets the eye. The “more” comes down to “more work,” as in, you need to do more work finding out what people mean when saying all these things. You will discover that there are really no startlingly new concepts being introduced, just different methods for accomplishing the same commonsense goals that businesses have been setting for centuries – efficiency, meeting customer needs, good communication channels, quality products, good marketing, attentive customer service, straightforward accounting practices, etc. And the “less” part? There is a lot less new thinking here than the consultants would have you believe. CRE has a lot of different customers, in a lot of industries, but because of our Southern California location we are privileged to support many creative firms working in movies, TV, radio, the media and Web-related enterprises. Companies that need cutting-edge Mac Pro rentals for post-production or sleek iMac rentals for a new marketing department project are typically full of bright, forward-thinking, tech-savvy folks who are used to an acronym-heavy vocabulary (RAM, SCSI, SATA, HTTP, etc.) and may give unearned respect to the aforementioned business buzzword abbreviations. This would be a mistake. Understanding the acronyms The important thing is to look beneath the “marcomm” (marketing communications talk) and search for the actual, definable principles that are involved. You will find that BPM, Business Process Management, is pretty much just what it says – managing your business processes. Okay. If you have good managers, they are likely keeping up on the literature and using their heads as it is. Your IT people already know if CRE’s Xserve RAID rentals are what they need in a pinch, and won’t learn that from an acronym, no matter how expensive or impressive. If they think there is something worthwhile in a new BPM approach, they will use it. Trust your in-house experts to separate the wheat from the chaff – or get new experts, if you don’t think they’re up to it. You probably don’t need to buy a Software-Enhanced Interdepartmental Efficiency-Boosting Total Process Management System, or SEIEBTPMS. You just need to stay plugged in, to the leaders of the industry you’re in, to the trade magazines, to the evolving best practices of your particular field. This does not mean there is no value to the business consultants who ply their trade with an ever-changing cast of acronyms and trends. There is much good sense and solid advice to be had there, certainly. The point, though, is that there are many less expensive ways to stay abreast of those best practices, from conventions and conferences to continuing education in the appropriate disciplines. You can do it yourself, most likely, and save money in the process. CRE is in the solution business, and one of the things we help companies do is manage change – including sudden change, like getting a new production deal without having the eight workstations needed to pull it off. When you need to expand into a new project, equip a conference booth or outfit your convention team with WiFi-enabled tablet PC rentals, give our Account Executives a call, send an e-mail or fill out our Quick Rental Quote form online. We won’t bombard you with buzzwords, just straight talk that gets you the solutions you need. Net-Powered Security: Remote Viewing, ControlApril 22nd, 2010Our recent series of blogs on very important issues of security – for computers and networks, property and people – wouldn’t be complete without reporting on the incredible advances in remote camera control. Anything that provides more flexibility, better control and stable ease of use is going to find a warm welcome from business owners everywhere. This is exactly what’s happening now with various iPhone apps and other third-party tools that make it possible to configure and control security systems remotely, giving you unprecedented real-time insight into what is happening a block, a mile or half a world away. These are exciting times for all areas of technology, but among the greatest benefits are those coming to people who need to be in two places at one time, namely, security-conscious businesspeople and homeowners. It is less expensive all the time to upgrade your security technology, with the march of technology adding more features for less money as time goes on. There are some unique new capabilities now available in the DVR (Digital Video Recorder) market. Everyone’s specific security needs and budget will differ, and you will need to decide what is appropriate for your specific situation. That said, there is exciting progress in a number of areas. Long-distance power of video surveillance Remote video surveillance means you can manage, access and view live and recorded video stream from your cameras, all from a distance and over the Internet. After configuring the cameras, you would typically log in to a secure site and control them. You can access your control site from just Event tagging: Since DVRs convert the captured images into a digital format, the management, storage and retrieval of the information is greatly simplified. This is a tremendous advance over such antiquated forms of recording as VCR tapes. Now DVRs can be set up to “tag” events the moment they happen, allowing you to review a particular occurrence without having to visually scan every minute of a recording. You are also able, with the latest DVRs, to jump immediately to specific time and date ranges, or define tags for imprinting directly into the image stream at predefined intervals. Automation and alerts There are DVRs that can do automatic recording at event detection, recording only when a certain kind or level of security event is detected (by various other triggering devices, whether motion or sound detectors). This allows you a means of saving time, money and hard drive space by ignoring event-less scenes and only recording action. Beyond the common motion and sound detectors, these DVRs can also be used with various temperature, water and light sensors. This type of flexibility makes DVR security possible for any kind of business in every imaginable setting, offering protection against both humans (robbers, burglars, arsonists) and Mother Nature (tornados, floods, earthquakes). With the right computers and communications equipment, detector/DVR systems can also be configured for such automated alert features as alarm, phone or e-mail notification of events. Among the main reasons people install security systems in businesses and homes is that they want to be notified of problems as soon as they occur. Automated alerts can even have short video clips attached, offering up-to-the-minute information about what is occurring at your home or business. Whatever you need, from computer rentals to office equipment rentals, we’ve got you covered at CRE. Our Account Executives are ready to assist and support you in every possible way, so call or send an e-mail any time for a swift, effective reply. As always, our Quick Rental Quote form is handy when you know what you need to rent. For Computer Security, Keep Your Head in the SANSApril 13th, 2010As discussed in our April 8 blog (”Computer Security, Online and Off”), it wasn’t long before the computer revolution gave rise to the kind of negative, destructive activity that infects all other human endeavors. Hackers became the new anti-heroes – they destroyed research, stole credit card account information, brought down communications infrastructure and generally made a (costly) nuisance of themselves. To combat these so-called cybercriminals, new technologies and techniques were developed – and are continuously updated and improved – to provide security for both information and the systems that store it. As the technologies are in a state of constant improvement, The SANS Institute Founded in 1989 to undertake collaborative research and provide state of the art education, SANS (SysAdmin, Audit, Network and Security) Institute oversees programs that reach some 170,000 computer and network professionals worldwide every year. From auditors and system operators to network administrators and chief information officers (CIOs), increasing numbers of IT professionals are sharing insights, learning lessons and finding solutions to a never-ending stream of security challenges. SANS brings together security professionals from a diverse array of global groups – including corporations, think tanks, universities, government agencies and trade associations – to benefit everyone concerned with information security. It is among the most trusted, and without question the world’s largest, independent source for IT security training and professional certification. The group is a fabulous resource for everyone, from small TV post-production firms with CRE Mac Pro rentals to financial institutions running huge databases on IBM iSeries servers. In addition, SANS creates, maintains and distributes the most extensive set of research documents available regarding information security. Many of these valuable resources are free for the asking, including use of the Internet Storm Center (an “early warning system”), a weekly news digest called NewsBites, a weekly vulnerability report entitled @RISK and timely security alerts available by RSS or e-mail. Annual training conference In San Diego, from May 7th to 15th, the group will be holding its SANS Security West 2010 training conference. To benefit fully from over 20 top-rated course offerings presented by expert instructors, make sure your show attendees pack our convenient laptop rentals to take notes, stay in touch via Wi-Fi and download course materials. Security West 2010 is the place to be for security pros and business owners, and CRE can outfit you for attending, exhibiting or making a presentation. If you’ve reserved a spot at the Vendor Expo, we can set you up with touchscreen LCD monitor rentals, interactive kiosk rentals or anything else you need to present and promote your product or service. Diverse and comprehensive SANS veterans will recognize both classic, always-relevant offerings as well as exciting new courses in the comprehensive lineup. From SANS Security Essentials Bootcamp Style, Intrusion Detection In-Depth, Computer Forensic Essentials and Developing Exploits for Penetration Testers & Security Researchers to Comprehensive Packet Analysis, Security Architecture for Systems Administrators and Virtualization Security Fundamentals, the course offerings are both diverse and comprehensive. The conference will also feature special events, a Vendor Expo/Reception and SANS@Night talks, all absolutely free to registered attendees. There are many informal yet enriching networking opportunities at SANS training events where you can forge valuable professional relationships that can last for years. That’s the kind of relationship that CRE has with many of its valued clients and customers. Whether you’re an old friend or a new one, call or send an e-mail to our experienced Account Executives (or use the Quick Rental Quote form) for all of your computer, networking, storage, presentation and event management rental needs. Computer Security, Online and OffApril 8th, 2010Along with all the amazing labor-saving advances in computing and networking technology over the past decades have come some serious challenges. For whatever reasons, there will always be some people that want to bend and twist technology to destructive purposes. Computer users, both individuals and companies, are now faced with the task of protecting themselves with anti-virus tools and spyware removal. All of CRE’s computers, from tablet PC rentals to the latest Mac Pro rentals, are certified to be free of malware, viruses, spyware and other “rogue code.” However, we cannot control the environment into which you bring them, so to keep them safe from external threats, you need to follow some simple steps. Many of these you are already doing, most likely, while some (we hope) will be good new additions to your security regimen. Online and off, be wary of security breaches
However, not all threats come from outside. Most companies lose more from employee theft than robberies, burglaries and hacking combined. An employee who makes off with a computer is not just taking the device, but everything that’s on it, including mission-critical work. If you have one of CRE’s iMac rentals and it is stolen, insurance will take care of the physical loss, but the computer files – new product designs, important presentations, legal documents – could be gone forever. Step two is ensuring daily backups to a central server or remote drive, and regular offsite storage of backups, as well. Backing up protects you against more than just computer crashes. Security benefit of computer rentals Once again, as we continually remind our clients, there are some very compelling reasons to rent some or all of your computers. Ready or not, we are all on the way to the world of the virtual office, and the cost savings for your business can be substantial if you get ahead of the curve and stay there. Step three, then, should be a complete review of your TCO (Total Cost of Operation) for your computing assets. If you have never done such a study, you may be surprised how much it costs to stay current with, and regularly replace, high-tech equipment at the level of CRE’s powerful computer rentals. When you don’t have to keep buying new equipment, repairing it, maintaining it and replacing it every year or two, you have additional time, money and energy to do what’s really important. That means growing your business, of course. There is also a security benefit to renting, since you are assured of first-rate equipment operating in a first-rate manner. In addition, whether it’s computers or office equipment rentals, this benefit (combined with possible financial incentives) makes a good case for renting some or even all of the tools you need. CRE has Account Executives who know the hardware, the software and the safest, most effective ways of using them. Call, send an e-mail or fill out our online Quick Rental Quote form. We can help you work more efficiently, as well as more securely, which is more important with each passing day. |
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Like new growth after a forest fire, companies that have survived the recession “should now be stronger and better managed,” Harris writes in a recent San Fernando Valley Business Journal column. They should also “be smarter for the experience.” One of Harris’ famous warnings is, “Success breeds mediocrity,” by which he means that “it’s easy to be a lazy manager, business owner or employee when things are going well.” In good times, marginal employees are kept on, wasteful practices are winked at and, most dangerously, “difficult decisions” are put off. The economic turmoil that began in 2008, and is lingering still even as some 
There are scores of acronyms now being used by hard-sell business consulting firms, as if they represent breakthroughs of some kind. The trend may have begun with CRM (Customer Relationship Management) in the 1990s, but has since expanded into a long list of puffed-up phrases — Business Process Management (BPM), Enterprise Architecture Patterns (EAP), Business Process Transformation Framework (BPTF), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and the like. (Shouldn’t the Department of Redundancy Department be on there, too?)
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