VMWare Forum 2011

VMware is taking its show on the road between May and July, hitting eight cities (including Anaheim on May 19; city schedule here) and doing one online presentation. The firm’s VMware Forum 2011 is a free, day-long event where you will learn how “accelerated” IT lets you respond quickly to market conditions, competitor moves and customer needs. You will find that virtualization of the desktop, amazing as it is, is just the beginning. VMware vSphere – “the most widely deployed foundation for cloud computing” – can help you reduce capital and operating expenses, tighten up security and even “go green” (CRE supports that strongly).

VMware claims its products can meet your company’s precise business needs, even as you lower costs, with custom-tailored IT service based in “the cloud.” Whether or not it works for your unique situation is something you must look into. With a full range of computer rentals capable of running any OS you need, CRE is ready to support VMware’s goal of a “cohesive, secure and compliant cloud strategy in three core areas: infrastructure, applications and end-user computing.” We can install VMware Fusion on Mac Pro rentals (even Mac laptops) to introduce you to desktop virtualization, but to get the corporate-wide “view from the cloud” you should attend this free event.

No crowd in the cloud

At Forum 2011, you will discover a proven method for providing safe, secure access to applications and data – to and from any device, wherever and whenever users need them. You will see how the power and potential of VMware vSphere can help your company make a swift, secure transition to the cloud.

We know all about virtualization here at CRE, and our expert Account Executives are ready to respond right away to your call or e-mail. Whether you want to test a new virtual server with your customer service reps or set up a new branch office with same-day office equipment rentals, we’re here with the expertise (plus the hardware and software) to help you pull it off. As always, if you know what you need you can skip right to the Quick Rental Quote form. Whatever you need, call CRE Rentals!

Return of the peacemaker

That war was still raging when Steve Jobs returned to Apple in the late 1990s. Without him, CRE would have no iMac rentals in its inventory, as the iMac was among his first projects. In the early 2000s, the Mac’s PowerPC chips fell behind in the clock speed race, so in June 2005, Jobs surprised everyone – and outraged Mac True Believers – by announcing that PowerPC chips were being replaced with Intel chips. Those first models debuted in January 2006.

Happily, the Mac-PC wars are pretty much over. Both systems are capable and powerful now, and digital workflows can easily incorporate both systems. Start a PowerPoint project on a Mac Pro rental, save it to a USB thumb drive or the cloud, then take it home and finish it on your PC – or the other way around. Most of today’s major software packages – from MS Office to the Adobe Creative Suite – are available in both Mac and PC versions, as are a variety of specialized applications.

The foundation of collaboration

Not only do the hardware and software components of a mixed Mac-and-PC operation work together, a range of text, audio, video and image formats are accessible to both systems, too. Whether you’re working on a Mac, a touchscreen Sony VAIO L or a potent HP 8600, you can use the same files. For text, there are txt, rtf and rtfd files; the universal audio formats are wav, ogg and mp3; video formats include avi, wmv and mpg/mpeg; and cross-platform image formats include gif, jpg/jpeg, tif/tiff, eps and png.

There are more, but you get the idea – whatever you need to do, you can do it on a Mac or a PC, accessing the same “raw materials” with either system. If you work in a mixed computer environment and need computers, monitors or printers, simply call or e-mail an Account Executive. If you know what you need, use our handy Quick Rental Quote form. We know the technology across platforms -  and inside out, too.

You may be better off thinking of computer technology the same way you think about renting equipment for conventions. How so? Unless your company is a  Fortune 500 company, you’ll probably rent what you need for that upcoming trade show. Why pay for equipment that won’t be used most of the time? This is analogous to the tech question you need to ponder, “Why pay for computer power that won’t be used most of the time?” Why, indeed?

Overselling as an art form

PC and peripherals manufacturers suggest that you need the latest, greatest, most powerful hardware (and software) at every employee’s desk. Not so. Basic, entry-level computers can handle all the normal “office productivity” tasks you need done – word processing, spreadsheets and charts, even presentations – so you do not need leading-edge tech for the bulk of your employees’ work. You really need to match the equipment to the job at hand, ensuring that each employee has enough power for their work. Having too much power means you are spending too much money.

Once you look at what you really need to run your business, you may find that you can save a good deal of money on hardware. Crunch the numbers and you may discover that half a dozen iMac rentals makes more sense than continuing to buy them on a regular basis. Likewise, if you have production bottlenecks a few times each year (pilot season, FY end, etc.), your bottom line may respond better to some short-term render farm rentals than to purchase orders for the same equipment.

Customize technology…consider rentals

Any plan to save money on technology implementation requires a good deal of study. Customer service reps typically don’t need $6,000 gaming PCs, just as iPad rentals are most cost-effective for your field personnel than rubberized laptops. Many employees will do just fine with entry-level devices. You may even find that certain models in CRE’s wide range of computer rentals are more cost-effective (and more powerful) than the plain vanilla solutions that you will have to replace down the line. Still, your situation is unique – so YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary).

Our expert Account Executives can help you figure it all out if you give them a call or send an e-mail. Know what you need? Then fill out the Quick Rental Quote form and we’ll take care of everything. We are always ready to help. It’s what we do!

The history of open-source

Linux is based on AT&T’s Unix, created in 1969, and got its name from Linus Torvalds in 1991. The main tools and “user space” libraries came from Richard Stallman’s GNU Project, and the Free Software Foundation still refers to the package as GNU/Linux. In the early ’90s, there was a great deal of confusion involving drivers, those little bits of code that help your computer connect to monitors, peripherals, modems, and networks. Today’s Linux OS computers can be used with everything from CRE’s LCD monitor rentals to standard office equipment like printers, scanners, and external storage devices.

The major packages of this open-source OS are Ubuntu, Red Hat, Slackware, and openSUSE, which differ mostly in the number of custom utilities added to the mix. Historically, installing Linux has been a bit technical, and it hasn’t been a particularly user-friendly OS, unlike the elegant Mac OS X on CRE’s MacBook Pro rentals. A new product named EasyPeasy aims to change all that with a drop-dead simple installation targeted at a specific kind of user, the netbook surfer. To that end, it is easy to install on any netbook, connects to the Internet out of the box, uses Web apps, and is built for the cloud.

Linux done right

Should you dump everything you have and move to a Linux platform? Probably not, and that’s overkill anyway. If you want to run Linux – to take advantage of open-source apps, learn the OS, whatever – you can install it on a PC or a Mac alongside your other OS (or alone). In fact, if you want to supercharge the already potent iMac rentals, you could install all three major systems on them – Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. If you need this kind of broad capability in a dozen top-of-the-line Mac Pro rentals for a TV/film project or training session, you just let us know. CRE Rentals can install the OS you need!

At CRE, we do “everything tech” to support your workflow, convention presence, and presentation needs. Need the right solution for your unique situation? Simply complete a Quick Rental Quote and one of our expert Account Executives will follow-up to make sure you get what you need, when you need it.

5. Stable and crash-resistant

Reliability is nearly as important to users as security, since downtime costs money. Microsoft Online Services’ Service Level Agreement (SLA) targets 99.9 percent uptime. To make it happen, Microsoft has SAS 70 and ISO 27001 certified data centers around the world hosting “redundant network architecture,” so an outage at one means instant backup from another with minimal service interruption.

6. Compliant

Microsoft’s attention to detail is evident in the careful transition plan it lays out for users upgrading to Office 365 from its Business Productivity Online Suite. Complying with numerous laws, standards and regulations around the globe requires this same focus. For the U.S. market, Microsoft has even added features to help users comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

7. Compatible

With a sluggish economy keeping companies from upgrading hardware and software, Office 365 seems a no-brainer. It works everywhere, on everything, supporting not only Windows 7 and Vista but the SP3, Home and Media Center editions of XP, too. Users of CRE’s Mac Pro rentals can use the Office 365 applications as long as OS X 10.5 (Leopard) or 10.6 (Snow Leopard) is installed. The online administration portal works with the latest versions of IE, Firefox and Apple’s Safari, while the Outlook Web Apps can be accessed with all those browsers plus Google’s Chrome.

8. Up-to-date on the server side, too

Office 365 provides companies and their users all the functionality of Microsoft’s latest server products. The services run on Exchange 2010 SP1, SharePoint 2010 and Lync. Client software is Microsoft Lync 2010 for Windows and Communicator for Mac, while the enterprise edition includes Office 2010 Professional Plus.

9. Single sign-on

If your network runs Server 2008 Active Directory, you can configure a single sign-on so that users can be automatically authenticated to use Office 365.

10. Office Web Apps

These Web Apps are not meant to replace the full-sized Office applications. For comprehensive document creation, you need a powerful, local application, but when you’re away from your “Office” and need to do a quick edit, that’s where Web Apps shine. They are “special duty” tools offered in the increasingly popular Software as a Service (SaaS) model. No matter where you are, or whose computer you’re using, you can create or edit content with the same familiar interface as Office applications.

At CRE, we continue to make special, high-end tools available to media content creators – Xserve RAID rentals, Final Cut Pro workstations, etc. – while also staying abreast of productivity advances on the Web. Wherever your business is taking you, we can help you get there. Call or e-mail an expert Account Executive, or fill out the Quick Rental Quote form – now!

On staff or on call?

Companies may be targeted by competitors or even their own employees, who will try to hack into secured networks, spread damaging viruses or install various kinds of spyware. The removal of these “invaders” requires state-of-the-art knowledge of the threat as well as up-to-date software tools. If you do not have a security expert on staff, or a good IT generalist that can get (and stay) up to speed, you can always contract with a good networking tech firm that will possess both the know-how and the right toolkit.

There are also lots of companies offering Software as a Service (SaaS) that can handle any one-time, à la carte jobs such as spyware removal. You should consider, however, what an ongoing relationship with a networking company can offer. Some are leading the way to the world of the virtual office, and the cost savings for your business can be substantial when you entrust the entire network to the care of experts. The firm’s tech pros can keep your network running, handle all day-to-day operations, ensure critical uptime, perform all backups and take all the headaches from you. Essentially, you are hiring a freelance IT department.

Put money into growth

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. Along with spyware removal and threat mitigation, an IT pro (independent contractor or company) can secure your data and show you the way to leaner, more focused company operations.

This is the same rationale that makes CRE Rentals a smart move. You can stop “keeping up with the Joneses” (or Jobses) and always have state-of-the-art computing power like the potent Mac Pro rentals at the office, and the interactive kiosk rentals and other things that make your conference booth and/or breakout session(s) a hit. Let us help you stay current on technology, save money on hardware and hit your deadlines — fill out the Quick Rental Quote form today.

Integrating personal and corporate assets

The average corporate PC is almost five years old. However, corporate workers have been buying all kinds of smart phones (with exciting 4G models), e-book readers, wireless doohickeys and potent little laptops for themselves, at constantly falling prices. As we head toward 2011, IT departments will feel increasing pressure from both managers and workers to tie personal tech into corporate workflows. CRE’s iPad rentals show that these devices can be true productivity enhancers, too.

Facebook fatigue

Facebook is going to level off at some point, as users are already reporting that cybertedium is setting in. Twitter takes time to use well, and LinkedIn works to the extent that you leverage the revamped Answers feature and position yourself as an expert. These social sites are in the process of evolving into corporate tools.

Staffing stalls (investment, too)

During times like 2010 (and likely into 2011) when hiring is flat and funds are scarce, managers continue to look for ways to get just as much, often more, from the same size staff and the same set of tools. CRE computer rentals are a proven way to increase productivity without investing precious capital in new equipment, with bang for the buck that continues to grow with ongoing technological advances.

The big loser of 2010

Amazon passes eBay: Amazon.com’s stock is higher than it was even during the dot-com stock bubble of 1999-2001. Because its vendor agreements require greater transparency than eBay’s, Amazon.com is a more secure buying experience. Just like CRE’s reputation for having the latest, greatest iMac rentals whether you need two or 20, Amazon.com’s reputation puts people at ease, too.

Big winners of 2011?

IT pros who live and breathe social networking: Social networking sites grew incredibly fast over the last several years, but individual users may be tiring of them a bit (see “Facebook fatigue” above). Corporate use, however, is on the rise, as witness by first-rank advertisers promoting their Facebook pages instead of their corporate sites in TV and print campaigns. IT workers who can combine their tech expertise with insights into social media marketing will become even more valuable over the next year. If you want to test those waters at your firm, CRE’s Mac Pro rentals pair up nicely with our Xserve rentals to create a workstation with which you can run all those ideas up the virtual flagpole.

No matter what the trends are, we are on top of them and know how to help you leverage them for your greatest benefit. Call or e-mail one of our seasoned Account Executives, or fill out the Quick Rental Quote form, and we’ll deliver the solutions you need, fast!

TechRepublic is a great Web site, full of real experts that dispense a bounty of wisdom. In September 2007, the site ran an article on the IDF conference entitled “Tech Sanity Check,” which noted “four important trends that IT professionals should keep an eye on over the next two years.” Since we all engage in a bit of prognosticating now and then, we look back (in a 2-part blog) on the 2007 predictions to remind us not only how difficult it is, but how creatively unpredictable human beings (and progress) can be.

1. Cleaner and greener

An entire section of IDF’s 2007 Technology Showcase was devoted to planet-friendly technologies, from “energy-sipping CPU chips [to] technology recycling programs.” Improvements in power management are already on board in many of CRE’s LCD Monitor Rentals , and display technology is leading the way in energy saving and green design. Among the other trends mentioned were small, disposable and recyclable fuel cells. We’d carry around small power packs for our phones and digital gear, perhaps even enjoying wireless charging.

Some progress has actually been made in these areas, but fuel cells are still in the future somewhere. Still, there is momentum building. Producers of “green events” and managers of green convention centers use tons less paper now, and recycle with near-religious zeal, while PCs and other devices use less and less power to do more and more things. Battery technology is another bright spot, and Apple has joined the ranks of firms with enviro-friendly policies and manufacturing techniques.

2. The pocket PC

At the 2007 IDF, pundits ventured that laptops would surpass desktops in revenue in 2009. This prediction came true – and a whole year earlier than predicted. TechRepublic concluded that the glory days of “the big, ultra-powerful tower are definitely over, unless you are a gamer or a graphics professional” (like the entertainment industry pros that use CRE’s “ultra-powerful” Mac Pro rentals). If not wholly realized yet, this is a trend that the IDF got right. The market is awash in teeny PCs, along with small wireless pads and tablets. Sylvania is set to debut a “commodity netbook” at a ridiculously low $99, with Windows CE, built-in Wi-Fi, a rechargeable battery, high-contrast color display, browser and productivity apps. In this category, predictions aren’t being made fast enough to keep up with reality.

Predictions #3 and #4 will appear in Part 2 to post Thursday, October 7th.

In the meantime, if your business isn’t keeping up with reality, CRE will help you get up to speed. Whether you need interactive kiosk rentals for a conference, or a full array of audiovisual rentals for your breakout session or company meeting, we’ve got you covered. Fill out the Quick Rental Quote form, and we’ll help you make your “prediction” a reality!

Wireless isn’t brand new. Wi-Fi has been around for a number of years now, so routers were the first wireless devices in the average office, followed by inkjet printers. Then Apple led the way forward with another technology, Bluetooth. Macintosh OS X has supported it since version 10.2, and all new Macs, like CRE’s powerful iMac Rentals, come with it built in.

Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Wireless USB

We won’t get “overtechnical” here, but it is important to understand the differences among these three types of wireless devices, and the uses to which they are best put:

• Wi-Fi is a short-range, high-bandwidth connection, which simply means it won’t cover more than a few thousand square feet, but will carry a lot of information. Computers, smart phones, iPads and iPods, netbooks and other devices use Wi-Fi.
• Bluetooth is a short-range, low-bandwidth connection. Its signal is good for most offices, but it doesn’t carry much data, so it is found primarily in cell phones, computers, keyboards (low cost and designer gear), various input devices (mouse, drawing tablet) and other simple peripherals.
• Wireless USB is another short-range, high-bandwidth connection scheme whose signal drops precipitously after the first 10 feet or so (from full USB 2.0 speed of 420Mbps to about a quarter of that at 30+ feet). It debuted less than a year ago for use primarily with wireless storage, a market also served by Wi-Fi.

That @$%#! tangle of cords

None of these connections needs line of sight from your PC to the device, so you have greater flexibility for  placement and office logistics. While the technology is still sorting itself out, CRE can advise you about strategies when you are putting together office equipment rentals with wireless capability for a temporary office or setting up a production company.

Your stacks of paper may not be getting any smaller, but you can now outfit an office without a serpentine tangle of connecting cables. Is it a “wireless office”? Almost – you still need power cords, but now you will have about half as many wires. You won’t even need those as soon as those R&D departments have perfected wireless power. It’s coming. Really!

CRE is in business to solve your problems. Need a few Mac Pro rentals to finish that Comedy Central cartoon? Want a wireless handset using Audience Response System rentals for your next focus group or breakout session? Fill out the online Quick Rental Quote form – do it today, and have a solution in place tomorrow.

Don’t forget to bookmark our blog, too. We cover all the high-tech happenings, and explain what new advances mean to your business, with new blogs posted every Tuesday and Thursday.

Light (if you prefer, “lite”) versions of Word, Excel and Powerpoint will now be available in your Web browser. You don’t even have to use Internet Explorer, Microsoft having apparently learned its lesson about locking out competitors. These Office Web Apps can also be used offline, as they are placed on your hard drive in the default installation setup. Another feature coming in Office for Mac 2011 will be the “broadcast slideshow” feature, a recent upgrade to PowerPoint 2010 for Windows, that lets users show their PowerPoint presentations to others through their Web browsers. If you’re setting up a breakout session with CRE’s convention rentals, don’t forget this great alternative presentation method as a fail-safe back-up if something goes awry with your big-screen slideshow.

Collaboration nation

A very exciting new feature is co-authoring for document editing and sharing, which will allow multiple users to change and update Word, Excel and Powerpoint documents. (It is not yet clear whether these features work with the Office Web Apps.) To work with users outside your default computer network, businesses may need to be running SharePoint Foundation 2010, while individuals can use their Windows Live ID. This is one of the areas that needs some clarification in the next set of “product dribbles” from Microsoft HQ.

One interesting observation from a longtime MS-watcher is that Gates & Co.’s ads certainly feature a lot of Mac laptops. CRE’s MacBook Pro rentals were already popular, but it seems that Microsoft is emphasizing portability and wireless workflows in its Office for Mac 2011 campaign. It makes perfect sense when you think about it – it’s about ultraconnectivity, one of Bill Gates’ big unfulfilled dreams.

Concerning connectivity, using Office Web Apps will require SharePoint, but it is still not known whether SharePoint is required for the co-authoring to work on the Mac platform. Sadly, one of the most popular tools in Office for Windows 2010, the OneNote scrapbook that holds text, charts, images, audio and video, will not be in Office for Mac 2011. Also gone, but not to be missed, is Entourage, the former (underwhelming) e-mail program on the Mac side.  It is being replaced with Outlook for Mac in Office for Mac 2011. A new scheduling assistant feature in Outlook lets you view your calendar(s) right in-line with your mail, a very handy-dandy thing.

CRE is the solution provider when you need the best Macs, PCs and peripherals for your digital work flow. From Xserve RAID rentals to Final Cut Pro-equipped Mac Pro rentals, we’ve got what you need to cut that mountain of digital assets down to size and push those pixels into place. For any work needing the most precise and potent tools, CRE is your best, most knowledgeable source. Fill out the Quick Rental Quote form, and we’ll get you outfitted to conquer that digital mountain in no time.