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Saturday, February 27, 2010

Personal Health, Tech Geek Style

     Today's Product Pick is something I haven't personally tried, but gets my mark for ingenuity.  Personal health is of great importance to anyone, and especially for those that suffer from diabetes.  And one of the oldest hopes for technology has always been to help mankind live longer, healthier lives.
     So, in steps Bayer's Contour USB® Glucose Meter.  This blood meter isn't much bigger than a thumb drive, and connects to your computer just as easily.  Once you insert your test strip and plug it in to your computer, the meter transmits all of the information it can glean to an application installed on your system, which translates the information into graphs and charts that you can then review yourself, or share with your doctor.  The ability to track trends and shifts in your blood sugar, with out having to calculate it out on your own or manually enter it into a computer sounds to me like a live-saver(or at least a time-saver).
     Also, with an interactive screen on the unit itself, this looks to me to be a huge step forward not just in medical science, but in the realm of augmented reality as well.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Didn't Buy? Don't click

     Well, my post today is to help people with a constantly recurring problem with today's internet sites.  Server infection and illegitimate anti viruses.  This problem has been getting worse and worse over the last couple of years, and has even earned itself a new title; Scareware.  These fake anti-viruses install themselves onto your computer, then throw up fake warnings saying that your computer is infected with several hundred viruses and that you need to "click here to have us remove them".  And if you don't click, the real fun starts, your computer's functions slowly get shut down one by one until you can't use anything, all you can do is click on the fake warning signs being thrown up.  Then you are asked to authorize a credit card payment of such-and-such amount before you can have your computer cleaned, and who knows if they will stop with just the one payment, they may just keep charging your account for as long as they can.  These have to be some of the worst viruses yet.
     So, there are a couple of things that you can do to stop these.  First, protect yourself before the problem starts.  Run your browser in a sandbox if you know how, Kaspersky Internet Security even has a built-in sandbox, which automatically runs IE inside it.
     Second, once you know that you are infected, turn off your computer!  These are time sensitive viruses, and will be much more difficult to remove if you continually ignore them an click the X button to make them go away.  Even if you have clicked the X, these programs are still running, and are continuing to shut down your computers functions.  If you keep your computer off until you can remove the hard-drive yourself and run it on a clean computer as a secondary drive, or until you can get it to your local tech geek, the amount of infection and damage will be minimized, making it easier for everybody to handle.
     Third, as I have already stated, if this bug is too, much for you to handle on your own, get it to tech support, I guarantee they've seen it all before.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Product Pick Delayed

     Well, it has been a few days since I've done a product pick, but now I'm here again and ready to get to the nitty-gritty.
     Today's product pick will be the start of a small off-shoot product pick category, Video Games. So, on that note, we will start with the first of our video-game related products listing; The Nintendo Wii® .
     The funny thing is that what makes this system top of the line is not the fact that it is different from its competitors, which have all come out with motion controllers, and even have better graphics than the Wii, but the fact that the Wii®  has less to work with and still seems to come up with more enjoyable games and mechanics. I've been more impressed with what this little system has put out since it was released than the Xbox® or the Playstation 3® . Its just seems to work better in my opinion.
     Also, as I mentioned before, there seems to be a larger amount of fresh ideas floating around on the Wii® , which is certainly helping the world market for video games.
     But all philosophy aside, the Wii® has an amazing motion system, which has recently been enhanced even more.  Also, with the ability to use multiple controler types and motion styles, the system has such a wide range of gameplay that no one will be disappointed.  The one that I was most shocked about was how well First Person Shooter style games went.  Most game connoisseurs feel that a FPS should be played on the PC, and have proven many times over that it is the fastest method to play these games.  But on the Wii I was shocked with how well many of the FPSs I tried played fluidly, and the controls just seemed to work.  This one is definitely my pick for a game system.

Monday, February 22, 2010

Alternative Operating Systems

In my constant search for the best of computing, and the best computer experience, today I have been searching through alternative operating systems to Windows, just to see what's out there. Its an impressive venture, and I'm awed by the array of choices out there. So far I have copies of at least five versions of Linux to try out, OpenSolaris 10, and a windows compatibility project called ReactOS. All of these alternate systems are free, and most of them have a live CD image that you can use to test-run the operating system without actually installing it. This makes choosing one easier, because there is a lot less risk of damaging your system if you don't actually install.
My favorites so far are Ubuntu 9.04(which is now up to 9.10, but I haven't installed that one yet), and OpenSolaris 10. These two operating systems are designed on the Unix platform, and for the most part are compatible with each other and with Mac systems(at least in theory, I'm not having so much luck with that). OpenSolaris seems to run better, but Ubuntu has a larger assortment of programs designed for it.
But for most of the other systems I've been trying to test, I have met with disastrous results. Most of these other alternate systems have little compatibility with my hardware, and they seem to have major problems with graphics modes. ReactOS seemed to work fine on my Compaq, but because I have a KVM(Keyboard Video Mouse) Switch on, the mouse and keyboard weren't detected. So I'll just have to re-try this one on another system.
Expect more updates as I have more fun and frustration with alternative operating systems, and we'll find out if any of these will hold a candle to Windows in terms of casual computing use.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Thank You!

     I've just been looking at some site stats, and I have found that a large portion of you viewing this blog are using Linux.  That's wonderful!!  Digital Fruit, being mainly a support company, is thrilled in the interest people have in a community driven operating system.  We support Linux as well as Windows and Mac operating systems, though most of our support focuses on Red Hat and Ubuntu, as these are more commercially supported and we have the ability to get more professional levels of information on their operation.  We are also looking to start supporting OpenSolaris, and Digital Fruit is looking to have our certification in OpenOffice and several other Solaris products.
    If you are looking for some helpful guides to OpenOffice, since we are on the subject, here is a link to amazon for a book from APress, one of my favorite open source publishers.  Also there is a lot of knowledge on the actually OpenOffice website.  This is the office suite that Top Foods has recently switched over to for use on their computers, and I also know that C & C marketing uses OpenOffice for their office productivity needs.  It's beginning to grow as a less expensive alternative to Microsoft Office®, and has a wide user-base already.  Digital Fruit is even planning to put in some time helping to develop better graph and presentation code for Writer and Calc.  So look out for news on that on the horizon.

Trying again this morning

     Sorry about missing a product pick yesterday, but there was just too much to do.  Today's product pick is covering the SanDisk Sansa Fuze 8gb media player.  This has got to be one of the best mp3 and video media players that I have seen yet.  Its got great audio quality, amazing video for such a tiny screen, and plenty of room for all of your audio, video and picture files. 
     Small, it fits in you pocket just fine, and it comes with a suede sleeve so that you can keep the screen from getting scratched.  It connects to your computer via USB cable, and charges when connected to your computer, similar to the iPod® .  Also, a feature I have yet to see on any other mp3 player is that the Sansa Fuze can expand its storage space by adding in a MicroSD card, making it even easier to get all of your music onto one player.  The Sansa media converter will help you to convert any of your pictures or videos that aren't the right size, and music, in most formats, is able to be dragged and dropped right onto the Fuze itself.  I've found it much easier to use than the iPod, which seems to be riddled with problems when it comes to putting new music and video on it.
     All in all, the Sansa Fuze has been a happy exception for me in the often confusing and disappointing world of modern music players.  Try it out, and find out what I mean.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Outreach of the web

     Today there will not be a product pick due to time constraints.  That out of the way, today I'm shocked by the far reaching affect the web has on humanity, in both good ways and bad.  I'm surprised by the level of information freely available here on the internet.  I just logged into my Google Ananlytics account, and found out that people from as far away as Kanab, Utah have viewed this site. (Admittedly, I do know who this was, but I did not expect it, so thank you to them.)  Also, people from Orting, Seattle, and Puyallup Washington have all viewed this blog.  This kind of information in the hands of a small business give it real power, and greatly improve it's ability to connect with its customer base and viewership.  And this is why we love the web.
     But I'm also shocked, and dismayed, by the level of education that is centered around all this information.  That level is almost zero.  So many people out in the world, using the internet, are constantly placing their whole lives on display, for anyone to see.  A great example I have is one that worked out well, but shows a possibility for disaster.  I once did some work for a co-work on some video cassettes she wanted converted to DVD.  I completed the work, and went to contact her.  By privacy policy, our mutual employer could not even give her phone number to me, as a safety precaution.  This is wonderful, because it means weirdos can't just call your work and find out your number.  But all I had to do to actually get her number was to go onto a site like www.YellowPages.com and enter a few small bits of personal information about her that I knew from working with her, and I was not only able to get her phone number, but her address as well.  This kind of power is scary.  And worse, at times, we are completely unable to keep it from happening.  So please, use the web responsibly, it can be dangerous.
     On this note, I'm setting up a section of the future Digital Fruit website that will be devoted to helping customers and consumers in general to educate and fight back against people misusing the information placed out on the web.  We will be posting a list of known fraudulent companies, telemarketing phone numbers, and product scams that we have found out on the net.  We will also be posting articles about how to keep yourself safe, and also linking to content on the subject of information safety for you to do further research yourself.  As I have always believed, information is the best defense.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Where have all the Good Techs Gone?

     I had a discussion with one of my customers about tech work, and how he was dissatisfied with the way he had been treated before.  He said he felt that customer service had ended the moment he walked out the door with his new computer.  He said he felt that they didn't care about him or his computer.
     I thought about it to my self later, and wondered about where the good techs have gone.  Where are the people who eat, breathe, and sleep computers?  Where are the ones that love to take things apart and put them back together, just so they can learn how they work?  What happened to the days when a tech was happy to work on a computer, not just because he or she was getting paid, but because they genuinely like to fix those problems that might come up, that get the thrill from the next challenging problem?
     I'm not sure that I'm all those things above, or that I'm even the better tech when it comes to a computer, but I do know that I have that fire to learn things, and I will not settle for less than the best.  I will find my answer, and by doing so, yours.  There is always an explanation.  And Digital Fruit does care about their customers, because that's all we have.

Pick your Friends, Pick your Nose, Pick your Product

    Disregard the title please, we are only picking products today.  Today's pick is the Cannon CanoScan LiDE 200.  Now, I know that the popularity of all-in-one printer/scanner/fax/copy are all the rage, but in my personal experience, they always lack the quality that stand-alone units can provide.  That's why when my last scanner crapped out, I went out and chose a scanner that ran all on its own. 
     With Cannon's LiDE200, I wasn't disappointed.  It takes beautiful scans with an amazingly high dpi(dots-per-inch).  But the feature that really one me over on this one, is that even with out the software that came with it, you can set the scanner's dpi by single dots an inch.  This is nice when you have picture or a piece of work that must be a certain size on screen, and it isn't that size on paper.  You can play around with it until you have the proper sizing.  Its wonderful.
     Also, another nice feature is that it doesn't have a power cord.  The scanner uses so little energy, that it runs itself off of the USB power connection in the USB cord.  It truly is a nice scanner, and has all the features I've ever needed.  So this one definitely wins 4½ stars.  Why only 4½ stars? Because it may be too good.  I've had problems when using another companies scanning software, the scanner scans so well that with some printed pages, it will actually begin to separate out the different colors used by the printer to make the colors on the page.  When using the bundled software, though, I don't see this problem at all.

Monday, February 15, 2010

Time, something I'm always short on

     I have to make this one quick this morning because I have to get to bed soon, I'm supposed to be up early tomorrow.  The only update I have for today is that business is booming, and I'm up to my ears in work it feels like.  I seem to no time to even breath, which is wonderful, because it means that this is working.
     On a helpful tech note, if any of you are having problems with Asus brand laptops or desktops, and are getting Blue Screens of Death in your Windows 7® operating system, you might be suffering from corrupted drivers, and not a virus.  This is good because driver re-installation is usually much easier than removing a stubborn virus, so it is not as long a process, and it is not as expensive (note I said usually, there are always some times when these things break the mold).
     So, this is time for me to log out, so good night for now.

Product Pick

     Well, here we are again with another product pick for today.  This time we are going back to data storage, only much large.  This time we are covering the Western Digital My Passport series of portable hard drives.  These drives are small, very portable, and large; three very important things for the aspiring tech on the go.  They hold up well, and keep your date as safe as possible.  From my experience, they also have a very low failure rate, which leaves you confident that your data will be there when you need it.  Also, for those who are a little more fashion savvy, you can usually find them in an array of colors.
     Another important factor is their ease of use, and honestly, it doesn't come easier.  You just plug it in, it pops up as a drive on your computer, and then you can copy files and folders to anywhere you want on the drive.  Also, with the newer editions, they come preloaded with backup software for safely copying the contents of your computer with out have to hassle with moving everything yourself.  You just set it up and let it run. (Though I will honestly admit I have not had much experience with this feature, as I do not use it, so I don't know how easy it is to use.  I'll have to look into it.)
     All in all, I've been impressed with both of the Western Digital My Passports I've used, and I'm very glad they are as convenient as they are, because it has made having the space and files I need on the go some thing that is a realistic vision, and has made my job as a mobile tech much easier.

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Maybe-a-Little-Too Ambitious Project

     So as I sit here typing away at this blog in the wee hours of the morning, I'm drawing.  This is amazing because it is something I haven't really done spontaneously for quite a few years.  And what I'm drawing suprises me even more.  Story-boards.  As in I think I'm on the verge of making a short, hand-animated feature using a logo character I drew up in two minutes to appease a college professor in a web-programming class when I was still in school.  Really strange the places our minds take us when we are tired.
     I've just about finished the first two pages worth of story boards, and I'm thinking that I will use this as the very first attempt at Digital Fruit producing digital video.  Maybe I'll put it up on You-Tube or something, you know, let the whole world see my first amateur steps towards film making.  Join the rest of humanity that way I guess.  But I will scan these in here in a few seconds and post them on my Picasa account in the hopes that they will appear on the blog tomorrow.  I'll try and keep the world up to date on the progress of this slightly ambitious project, and maybe I'll even go so far as to write a little music and put some audio into this thing, really do it right.  So, this is the end of tonight's midnight ramblings.  Later

Today's Product Pick

    Well, we discussed thumb drives yesterday, and that lead me to flash memory, which oddly enough led me to think of digital hand-held camcorders.  So today's Product Pick is the  Sony Webbie HD.  This one has to be one of my favorite finds.  I got it for my wife while I still worked Staples®, and we have not been disappointed since.  We got it so that we could record our wedding ceremony, and then the honeymoon trip to Disneyland®.  It can shoot video in full HD, standard HD, and regular television size videos, and to add to that wonderful ability, it can also take still frame pictures in up to 5 mega-pixels(this being one of the major reasons we picked it above the other camcorders that were out at the time).
     About the only negative thing that we have heard about it is that it can only take up to thirty minutes of footage before a built in stop mechanism shuts off the video.  This has never posed a problem though, and has lead me to find that I almost never take more than half-an-hours worth of footage for any reason.  We usually take short clips, with the intention of splicing them together on my computer later.
     With the inclusion of five-times optical zoom, this camcorder is almost as good as a lot of the still cameras on the market for still frames, and beats most of the camcorders I've been able to compare it to.  So, with an award of 4¾ stars, the Sony Webbie HD takes the cake as far as my opinion stands on camcorders.

Friday, February 12, 2010

So, just a quick trial. We're trying mobile blogging.

Product of the day

     So, I haven't really been thinking to much today about the product of the day, but one came to mind as soon as I sat down to write this post.  I had a customer today ask me if I could scan his 'nerd stick' to see if it had a virus.  After a couple of awkward moments of staring, I realized the nerd stick was a flash drive, or thumb drive, or 'that thing' as my mom likes to call them.
    I'm sure then that you can guess that the product of the day is a flash drive, and my personal favorite is:  well, today we have a tie.  I'm a big fan of SanDisk's Cruzer and Cruzer Micro series, but I've also been dually impressed by Sony's MicroVault.  Though much more expensive, and at the time of this posting, possibly discontinued(I'm going to have to do some more research on this and get back to it on a later post.), I find that the MicroVault are a little more stream-lined, and sometimes less awkward than the design of the Cruzers.  But if its a mix of value and performance you're looking for,  I will suggest the Cruzers in a heart beat.  So then, that's all for today's Product pick from Digital Fruit.  Until tomorrow then.

Product In

     Well, yesterday was interesting.  All morning my door was being knocked, and I think that every major package carrier, with the exception of DHL, showed up on my doorstep.  And one of these packages just so happened to contain the first of two shipments of Digital Fruits first retail sales item.  We have a limited supply of Kaspersky Internet Security 2010 now for sale, and I'm stoked.  I love the idea that we will have something to put up on the shelves once we find facilities, and that its a product I feel that I can stand behind.  I always hated that I had to pitch products when I worked as a tech for Staples that I didn't believe were best for the customer, just because corporate had sign some agreement with the company for thousands or millions of dollars.  I believe that a company should be able to stand behind the products that they sell, and that they should feel good about the fact that their friends and associates are in good hands.

Post length

     I'm coming to the slow realization that I make my posts a tad bit too long some times, and that I need to learn to separate my thoughts into more defined blog posts, no more running multiple posts together into one.  And this post here is my first step in the right direction.  So here is to fewer gargantuan posts.

Finally! Success!

     For almost a week now I've been trying to get this blog indexed by Google, so that it would at least show up in the listings.  Its rankings are terrible, but as of today, the Digital Fruit Blog is officially indexed by Google!  I dare you to try and find it.  So, now that the first leap is taken, tell your mom, tell your neighbor, tell the random stranger on the street corner at lunch,  link to this blog!  The more that people link to a website, the better that it does in its respective rankings on Google, or any other search engine for that matter.  A few quick lessons in websites that I have learned over this journey. 
     First, you can see how many links that Google has recorded to your site by simply typing, without spaces, link:www.{yoursite}.com, where yoursite is the name of your website. (Warning, if your site does not have a www., then don't put one here, it will make this fail).
     Second lesson, always put your websites link on sites, forums and blog comments that pertain to your blog, or else the search engines will not properly classify your website!  Personal links from family and friends will not effect this part much, but will help your rankings, so they are most certainly welcome, but even here, the link must say something about what your blog is about, or it will still fall flat on its face.
     And Finaly Third lesson, be persistent.  I've read things on SEO, search engine optimization, and from what I've been able to get out of the most intelligent sources, SEO is a myth.  Yes, making your website search-engine-friendly is important, but it is not a instant link to success.  The only way that any of the successful bloggers I've read about have been able to get their blogs to where they are now is through diligently posting to their blogs, diligently posting their links of forums, and by patiently waiting for the readers to increase.  There is no way for instant success on a blog, just like in the rest of reality.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Guru Talk

     I've been reading some stuff on how to advertise without spending money.  One of the papers I've been reading is very web-oriented in its advice, and there are some very interesting suggestions.  I also find it funny that one of the things that the gentleman discusses is the benefits of doing free services for other people and businesses.  He discusses a concept he calls reciprocity, which, in a nut shell, is that if you do good things for someone else, they feel psychologically bound to help you out in return.  I had to chuckle to myself, because the thing that came to mind when I read that was all the times my mother told me that I should do unto others as I would have done unto me.  My mother is amazingly smart, and the older I get, the more I realize how much of it I really will use in my life and my business.  Thanks mom!
     But another thing that this gentleman discusses in his paper is that a blog should help and educate people, not sell product to them.  I'm still going to do my pic of the day, but its because I do believe that it will help people.  I'm not getting paid by these companies to support their products, I genuinely seek out what I feel to be the best of the products that are out there in the tech world, and I put in my two cents in their behalf.  When I used to work tech support at Staples, the biggest question I would get from people was "What do you think of it?"  Customers would expect an honest answer from someone they thought to be a professional, and I do these reviews with that intent.
     Lastly, I'm going to cover what the plan and design of Digital Fruit is here in the blog.  Its something that I've realized I have not discussed, nor have I discussed what Digital Fruit is.  So here I go.
     Digital Fruit is a digital electronic services company, but beyond that, we are an all around digital devices company.  They are what we are all about.  Digital Fruit strives to bring a fun and useful experience to our customers computing experience, and to provide them with all the tools they need to be happy and successful in today's digital world.  I like to say that we are helping to grow that digital world, hence the imagery of fruit, the sign of successful labor and hard work.
     How we do this is by providing several key services to our customers. 
     First: Tech Support.  Out in the world there are a large number of digital devices already in use, and many of our customers are overwhelmed by a world which demands mastery of all these digital devices.  So we are here to help.  We will always strive to provide our customers with the best knowledge and expertise in the field of digital electronics, be it a cell phone or a beowulf-class super computer.  We will give you our best.
     Second:  Product Retail and Understanding.  The second level of Digital Fruits plan is to provide customers with products they need to get by in the digital era.  We will always work to provide our customers with the products for whatever digital project they may have.   Be it the designing of a digital sound studio, or just the recording of a loved ones first dance recital, myself and future staff will provide you with what we feel is the best product for your needs, and we will work to have the knowledge to help you use your new product.
     Third: Research and Development.  This happens to be the largest category, because it in itself is two-fold.  Digital Fruit will always strive to be a self-sufficient company, and with that goal, we will constantly be looking for ways to expand and support ourselves.  Digital Fruit is looking into the production of environmentally clean sources of energy, that we will produce for ourselves and someday our customers.  We are also working to provide the best products for our customers, and so we are researching into the production of our own software and hardware(though we will always be willing to help with products that are not our own).
     Fourth and Final:  Service.  Digital Fruit is a company that has lofty aspirations.  We want to become a great company that will help our fellow people to enjoy there life through the benefits that computers can provide.  And to that end, it is the person that is most important, not the customer.  To that effect, Digital Fruit provides resources to people and institutions that may not be able to afford our services, free of charge.  We volunteer our time to non-profit efforts, and donate time and resources to help with worth efforts from all walks of life.  One tenth of the time that Digital Fruit will employ in labor for research and development will go towards efforts not for our profit, but the profit of others.  Projects like those in open-source software movement, medical research, and religious and philanthropic efforts to help our fellow man.
    Wow, that's quite long, but I felt that I needed to get those goals down somewhere, not just in my head.  So there it is, the goal and mission statement of Digital Fruit.  And I'm spent for now.  Later

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Joy

     It's wonderful to be typing this again so soon, but today I'm working on more computers for customers.  Isn't wonderful to hear?  So, I'm setting to work setting things right.  I love this work, it keeps me so enthralled with all the possibilities of the things I'll have to do. It's great!
     I'm also working on a website, www.split-shot.com, for a fishing charter company out of BC Canada.  Its some really sophisticated work.  We're trying to boost the sites rating in Google, and I'm learning a lot about how to further my own websites and the company as a whole from this project. Its stands to help us along a great deal in the future.
    I'm trying to make a habit of this, so here is my item of the day again.  Today's item gets a lot of flack in the tech world, but that's because its looked at as a full scale computer.  That's right, its the acer aspire one.  This mini-notebook is on my personal wish list.  Not because I aspire (no pun intended) to make movies or edit world-class photographs with it, but because it would be really darn convenient to be able to have something to tote around with me that wasn't huge and bulky, that I could use to check my e-mail, update the blog, or just write some code, which, by-the-way, does not require a massive, uber processor, because it is just plan text.  With all of these things, the little Aspire one has a great record for reliability, and can cover all these needs easily.
     Past the product of the day, I've also got great news on the power front.  As pathetic as it may sound, we are almost at 9 volts of power, and at peak sun can generate a good 13 watts of power.  Also, I've been studying my pants off, and have nearly managed to create a regulator for making sure that the electricity is stable and clean.  There will be more updates on this later.

Monday, February 8, 2010

Not Quite, But Getting There

So, I set up a temporary site today that will function as a small storefront for the immediate future.  I still need to resolve issues with getting the web-domain of www.digitalfruit.com, and in the mean time I would like to be able to sell at least some of the product that I'll be getting.  It would also be nice to have some place to sell my software.  Digital distribution is the most effective means for me to distribute anything right now, but that requires presence on the internet, which until tonight was something that I did not have.  Here's the link for all interested parties Digital Fruit Store Front. its not completed yet, but I should have things up soon.
     But, on the note of software, here is tonight's software pick on Amazon.com:  Kaspersky internet security 2010.  This is the product that I use as part of virus removal, along with several other tools that I have in my handy little tech bag, and I just found out yesterday that Amazon has an amazing price for it right now.  The 3-user edition is only $34.99, which is almost $40.00 off the regular price.  So, if you want to know what product I'll be backing, its this one.
     And as a final note today, I have finally gotten some pictures up from the development of Digital Fruits first video game, Epic, up on my Picasa albums, they should be on the side-bar of the main blog, so go ahead and take a look if you like.  They're not much, but I figure having something to show is better than nothing.  I'm trying to get a demo up and running as soon as I can, but it seems to keep getting caught up in production problems.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Cash or Check, Both okay!

     In ever increasing baby steps, Digital Fruit is moving on its way towards something big.  I spent most of the afternoon with a very nice, very friendly bank teller, opening a business account so that we can process checks written out to Digital Fruit now.  The computer she was entering the information into was not agreeing with anyone, and it kept trying to eat the information, making the whole process take a little longer than it should have, but as I said before, the teller was really nice.
     So now the process is finished.  We can take cash or check, and in the near future, hopefully debit and credit.  But before those to come into the picture, I think work facilities would do nicely.  The are kind of essential to the workings of a good business.  So that will probably be our next goal.
    Or maybe gaining a small amount of inventory and re-applying for a business license that has retail sales licensing on it, so that we could start selling things like printer ink and ram, along with repair parts for computers I'll be fixing.  That might be a good second goal instead.
     Well, which ever one I decide we need to do first, I'm sure it will work out fine.  It really is difficult to figure out which is to come first, the chicken or the egg.
     Duty calls though, and I have to be up really early tomorrow, so I'm signing off now, good-night.

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Oops, things getting away from me

     Well, its amazing how things get so out of hand in life that you just lose track of everything that goes on around you.  I'm facing major changes in my personal life, which don't really have a place spilling over into professional work.  And so far it hasn't, except to keep me a little too preoccupied to enter in something on this blog.  But there is good news, we've had another customer today.  So, more income, good thing.
     Also, I've been able to post more fliers and to get more business cards out into the hands of the public.  Also, I've posted a listing on YellowPages.com, so there is more public exposure.  The more people see the name and the logo, the higher the chance that we'll accrue customers.  Its hard, because I'm seeking to find a balance between price and value.  If I don't have high enough price, I can't afford to give my customers the best care, but if I price too high, I can't draw away business from my leading competitors, which is my major goal at the moment.  If I don't carve our mark now, it will be much harder for Digital Fruit later.
     Also, on the power production front, I'm studying up on AC to DC conversion and basic electronic circuits, so that Digital Fruit can really gain ground in its research and development sector.  I'm planning on incorporating some of this work into the things Digital Fruit is providing for its customers, though that is probably a very long way off.  Circuits are something fickle, and I wouldn't risk my customers electronics if I wasn't sure I knew what I was doing.  All things in good conscience is the way I like to work.
    On that note, customer service is key for me.  I guess I'm old fashion like that, but I feel that a happy customer is the most important thing, not just the bottom line.  Yes, money is the idea behind running your own business, but I think it is more important to me for people to be happy with my work and to feel good about my work as well.  That's even more important to me than the money.