Did you know that May is National Small Business Month? Since 1963, the United States has recognized small businesses and the impact they have on American culture and economy. More than half of Americans either own or work for a small business, and they create approximately two out of every three new jobs in the U.S. each year.

When you look into the size and contributions of a "small" business you'll find they're not so small after all. The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) breaks down the size of the business based on the industry. For example, a manufacturing business is considered small if it has 500 to 1500 employees. Other industries are defined based on their sales volume. General and heavy construction companies' annual receipts may not exceed $13.5 to $17 million, depending on the type of construction. Despite the name "small business" you can see that an organization that falls within these parameters has the potential of doing some major business.

IT Resource could be defined as a small business as well, and so could a number of the customers we serve. Regardless of the size of your business, you still need technology solutions that can keep up with and exceed your competition, and give your business the edge it needs to drive growth – all without breaking your IT budget. Our experience with highly technical, large enterprise solutions, combined with our commitment to the small business marketplace allow us to offer enterprise-level results at a cost that even the smallest business can afford. We provide our customers with solutions that are necessary for business operations like unified communications, e-mail & messaging, virtualization, and backup solutions at a fraction of the cost of enterprise systems. Just because you are classified as a small or medium sized business doesn’t mean you can’t have enterprise capabilities.

We not only service a large number of small businesses, but we support them as well. We make an effort to choose local when we have services we need administered for our own business. We support the local communities through donated time and money, and by shopping local. This month let's celebrate the "small" businesses of America. Given the incredible amount they give back in terms of revenue generated, jobs created, and supply met, they truly are the backbone of our society.

For a limited time you can purchase Windows 8 Pro and Office Standard 2013 together and save up to 15%!

​On April 8, 2014, Microsoft will end support for the decade-old Windows XP as well as Office 2003. This means you will no longer receive updates, including security updates, for Windows XP from Microsoft. The Get2Modern offer, available now through June 20, 2013, gives you the opportunity to upgrade from Windows XP/Office 2003 to modern tools, including Windows 8 and the new Office. 

To obtain the savings you must purchase both items at the same time. This promotion applies to open business or open government (license or L+SA). A minimum of 5 licenses is required and a maximum of 249 can be purchased at the promotional price.

We recently reviewed the new Windows 8. You'll find features like a new and enhanced start screen, an app store, an Xbox music app, and the ability to sign in with your Microsoft account to any of your PCs running Windows 8 and immediately see your own background, display preferences, and settings.

Office Standard 2013 comes with a variety of applications including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Publisher, and Outlook. It is the ideal package for creating a multitude of projects.

If you are interested in taking advantage of this offer, contact IT Resource today and one of our sales associates will be happy to help you.

How would you like to get money back on items you currently use, or products you were already planning to purchase? IT Resource has teamed up with Microsoft once again to offer you savings through their annual Big Easy promotion - a program designed to save you money on a variety of Microsoft products.

If you've considered purchasing Office 365 or Exchange, or thought about upgrading your server, now is a great time to do so. The Big Easy allows you to choose from a variety of Microsoft products and solutions while earning money back as a subsidy on qualifying purchases. The subsidy from Microsoft can then be used towards software, hardware, or services from IT Resource. Last year we had a customer who earned nearly $3000 to put towards the services we provided for their upgrade. This year eligible products that might interest you include: Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Office, Project, Visio, Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft Lync, Microsoft SQL and Microsoft SharePoint.

To take advantage of this promotion you'll want to act soon. Purchases must be made no later than May 31, 2013. To learn more about this subsidy, feel free to contact us directly and we can walk you through it and show you the benefits.

In addition to the Big Easy, we are also working with Microsoft to offer you savings through their Cloud Easy Program.

The Cloud Easy is valid on certain Microsoft Cloud products and works the same way as the Big Easy. It has the same date of expiration, purchases must be made by May 31, 2013 in order to receive your subsidy check, so you'll want to act soon! Call our sales team to find out how much you can save!

Office 365 is a cloud based service that combines applications including SharePoint, Lync, Office, Exchange, Access, Publisher, and Visio all in one place. Here are a few reasons why Office 365 would streamline your day-to-day processes and increase your business agility.

Maintenance
Do not waste time or worry about upgrades, updates, or patches – ever again. All the upkeep is done behind the scenes by MS. In addition, MS will be issuing feature releases annually that will increase the proficiency of Office 365 at no additional charge.

Is your business operating at full efficiency and maximizing productivity, or do things seem to be moving at the same pace they always have? Oftentimes we get so wrapped up in our day-to-day operations that we overlook processes and before we know it, there is truly a better way of getting things done. That's where IT Resource can help. We provide professional knowledge and solutions for high level consulting and IT design. If your IT infrastructure is inflexible, lacks security, or has out of date software and applications, we can help. Our certified consultants can offer solutions that provide your business with big data, cloud computing, and increased mobility. 

The goal of our high level consulting is to validate that your IT aligns with your business goals. Our consultants have the experience, analytical skills, and full attention to evaluate any IT incompetence and provide objective advice, all within a detailed design proposal. This will maximize your IT opportunities in order to gain a competitive edge in your industry. We offer a more personal approach and thoroughly investigate each client’s environment until we get the details we need for the best and most successful solution.

One high-impact day. Three dynamic keynotes. Nine hard-hitting breakout sessions. See keynote speakers Dick Vitale, Rebecca Ryan, and John Jacobs, along with IT Resource’s Director of Sales, Carrie Borchers, speak at the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce Event, Energize Your Business, on May 7. It’s your chance to dress down and gear up with the latest tips, tools, and techniques for revving up your team, marketing your organization, and growing your business.

Space is limited for this exciting event, register today!

As time moves forward, technology is close behind; always advancing and changing. Computers have been around for years and we’ve seen them decrease in size but increase in power. We’ve seen new operating systems and better screens, but the one thing we haven’t seen at a consumer level is the change in hard drive technology. While early super computers used Solid-State Drives (SSD) and similar technology, the high price and larger storage options for traditional electromechanical disks made them a popular option for both enterprise and consumer-grade systems. In a traditional hard disk drive, a set of metal platters spin at anywhere from 5400 rotations per minute (rpm) to 15000 rpm providing storage capacities upwards of 4 Terabytes. In fact, you can check out what a spinning hard drive in slow motion looks like to really understand how quickly the data can be read/written. However, moving parts mean hard drives have an expiration date. Also, if a moving hard drive is dropped, there’s a good chance that drive won’t function correctly again. So, what’s the next step in hard drive technology? SSD.

Unfortunately, the time has come for Pandora, the beloved online music channel to introduce a cap on our mobile listening experience. Over the course of one month, users will only be allowed to listen to 40 hours of music before they’re prompted to pay an additional amount to continue listening. If they decide not to pay more, the user will have to wait until the next month before continuing their listening.

I believe a lot of companies are starting to realize that many people would rather stick with their gently used laptop than run out and purchase a new tablet. However, at the same time, I believe that laptops, in a sense, are disappearing due to declining popularity. When a user’s laptop dies, instead of spending $800 on a new laptop, they would rather spend the $500 on a tablet. The problem lies in the tablet companies getting their devices in the hands of users who need laptop replacements and people who would rather have a laptop instead of a tablet.

To combat this, many tablet manufacturers like Microsoft are releasing tablets that have the option for a keyboard to be attached. One of these machines is the Microsoft Surface Pro. Pictured above, the Surface Pro has laptop-like speed and capabilities along with an easily detachable keyboard/mouse to suit your needs, depending on the activity you’re currently working on. The keyboard helps when typing up an important document or working within a spreadsheet. However, removing the keyboard gives you just the screen for ease in browsing the internet or playing a touch based game. It’s not just Microsoft that has the keyboard for their tablet. Asus has an optional keyboard along with the popular Apple branded iPad.

So the overall question: do the tablets of today make a compelling argument to switch from a laptop to a tablet? Do the faster processors and detachable keyboards make them a good alternative to their heavier, more bulky counterpart? What do you think? Would you replace your current laptop with a new tablet?