I had a client ask me this afternoon (thanks John) my thoughts on if he should purchase a PC or an iPad.

I dont have a clear cut answer on this – Here is why:

Ipads are great for viewing / researching whilst on the couch in front of the TV, however I believe they are of limited use if you want to type documents or lengthy email responses.

If you want to print, you need an app for that.

If you want to connect to a remote server, you need an app for
that.

iPads are however great for games (Angry Birds for the Kids is awesome), photo viewing, Facebook updates and quick emails.  If you want to do lots of work, then a standard laptop is the go in my opinion.

We have both in our house so I get the best of both worlds (providing I can beat my wife to the iPad).   If i want something quick, I grab the iPad however for serious work, I will always use a laptop.

As a result, my personal preference is for a laptop though this may not be right for you.  My key advice is to be clear on what you are going to use if for an choose the appropriate device to match.

BTW – If you are looking for an iPad, I believe Vodafone have a $45 a
month deal which includes the iPad2 and mobile data (1GB a month).

If you need further details, email Will – William.Folley@vodafone.com.au

We managed to get the key items moved and were operational as expected for Monday.   As always, it is the little things that take time however the signage is up, phones and communications are fully operation.  Final clean out of the office old office is happening this week.  We got the guys from Recycle IT to pick up a lot of the old gear – they were awesome and collected scrap metal as well.  Well worth a phone call to them.

Our Internet service was not delivered until the last second, however it looks like we are on to move on Friday 2/9/11.  The new address is Unit 4, 19 Collingwood Street.  The first official day will be the 6th.  Welcome beers will be shortly there after

During the planning process I put together a checklist of things to consider before moving which I have posted here – http://www.domaindigital.com.au/free-stuff/moving-checklist/ Hope you find it useful.

By Charles Power
Editor-in-Chief, Employment Law Practical Handbook

A recent Fair Work Australia unfair dismissal case highlights the importance of
fairness when enforcing a drug and alcohol policy (Shannon Dawson v Railway
Transport Services Pty Ltd T/A Cartage Australia [2011] FWA 4915).

In the case, a truck driver attending work for a shift at a cartage company was
sent home when his supervisor smelt alcohol on his breath. He was dismissed
because he had certified that his blood alcohol content (BAC) was zero.

Fair Work Australia ruled that it was reasonable for the supervisor to suspect
that the employee had a BAC over zero. Therefore, the employer had a
“valid reason” for dismissal.

However, the dismissal was found to be unfair because the employee was not
given “procedural fairness”.

Procedural fairness requires that if you are considering dismissing an employee
you need to inform the employee of the allegations made against the employee
and given the employee a chance to defend himself or herself.

According to FWA, in order to have given the employee procedural fairness in
this case, the company should have:

• told the employee when he was sent home that his employment may be terminated
  for seeking to work with a BAC over zero (if this had been done the
  employee could have undertaken a BAC test done at a doctors or police
  station); and
• given
  the employee an opportunity to provide evidence that he did not have a BAC
  over zero.

As a result, the employee was awarded 7 weeks’ pay in compensation.

This case also highlights the importance of following
such policies in a reasonable manner.

In the above case, the company did not have a zero tolerance drug and alcohol
policy in that a breach of the policy did not automatically lead to dismissal.
Rather, the policy said that an employee who breached the policy may be
counselled, given a formal warning or have their employment terminated.

Commissioner Bissett stated that the fact that the policy allowed for
counselling, formal warning or dismissal should not be taken to imply that
dismissal could not take place for a single breach. An employer will, for
example, need to have regard to the specific circumstances of the breach of the
policy in order to determine what disciplinary action should be taken such that
the punishment fits the crime.

The drug and alcohol policy also provided for an investigation process
including discussing the matter with the employee, possibly requesting that the
employee undergo testing, being suspended etc. It also allowed for an
assessment of the presence of alcohol to be made ‘by observation’ where there
was no medical evidence. So in short, the policy ultimately allowed the company
to make whatever decision it felt was reasonable.

If you wish to rely on a breach of a policy as a valid reason for dismissing an
employee, the policy must be lawful and reasonable. In this case FWA noted that
a policy that prevented employees from driving a truck in circumstances where
this would be a breach of the law was lawful and reasonable. However
Commissioner Bissett criticised the provision in the policy that determined
whether an employee had alcohol in their system based on ‘observation’. The
Commissioner believed that the company should have maintained on-site breath
testing equipment, because this was more objective.

Commissioner Bissett also said that the Company needed to put a stop to the
practice of employees having a drink on-site when they finish their night
shift, particularly because the drug and alcohol policy indicated that alcohol
was not to be consumed on site except for approved ‘special occasions’.

The Commissioner said that the Company:

“should not pay lip service to its policy. If it is serious about drugs and alcohol at the
workplace it needs to take positive action to control drinking in the workplace;
and ensure that employees have access to breath testing facilities.”

Commissioner Bissett also observed that an employer who seriously applies a
drug and alcohol policy should ensure that employees are given access to breath
testing facilities, so that an employee’s blood alcohol content can be put
beyond doubt.

I was with a client this morning sending an email from their computer, when I realised I was using a little know Outlook trick which saves about 2 seconds per email and more importantly means you dont have to shift your hand from the keyboard to send an email.

So simple, yet so awesome (in my opinion).

Here it is – Drum Roll………..

to send an email from Microsoft Outlook, push “CRTL and Enter” together.

Try it now – “CTRL” with your left hand and “Enter” with your right.  You will never need to use your mouse to send an email again.

You could of course continue to take your hand off the keyboard, move the mouse to the Send button and click, however at least you now know there is a quicker and easier way to do it.  Enjoy…..

Windows 7 64bit
I want to avoid being geeky but take what you will from a business perspective – Windows 64 bit is seriously fast. I know because I have run 32 bit and 64 bit Windows 7 on the same computer and have seen a huge difference.
What is 64 bit Windows 7 you may well ask? Essentially it is a different flavour of the Windows 7 operating system. It looks the same as standard windows (32bit) but works lots faster (because of technical stuff- The terms 32-bit and 64-bit refer to the way a computer’s processor handles information. The 64-bit version of Windows handles large amounts of random access memory (RAM) more effectively than a 32-bit system).
I have been blown away with the raw speed of 64bit. It opens web pages at lightning speed – Word, Excel, PowerPoint all infinitely faster than running on a the same machine that previously ran 32 bit Windows.
It is not all good news though whilst there are some downsides, overall I believe they are well worth the advantages.

Pros
- Fast, like really fast. End of discussion…..
- The same license key for your existing copy of Windows 7 can be used for the 64 bit version of Windows so you don’t have to shell out additional dollars for new software.

Cons
- Does not play well with others. Older application can break with 64bit
- 32 bit drivers will not work with 64 bit (ie old printers will not work)
- You should have at least 4GB of RAM
- Not all programs work faster with 64 bit. Unless the programs have been written for 64 bit, they will not magically be faster.
- 64 bit is not a magic pill that will incredibly improve everything. It is on the whole pretty good.

The bottom line is that if you are considering a new computer, you should be considering Windows 7, 64 bit edition. I use it and love it, but before you rush out, discuss your environment with one of our team we will aide you to make the right decision.

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) have recently ordered Telstra to pay the legal and medical costs of an employee who injured herself after slipping down the stairs twice in two months while working from home.

Because the falls occurred away from the employee’s designated workstation, Telstra denied liability, but the AAT found the injuries she suffered were work-related.  This highlights the need for employers to be diligent with regards to safe work place practices regardless of where employees are working from. 

The following comments and checklist was prepared by Charles Power, Editor-in-Chief, Employment Law Practical Handbook.

Hope this is useful for you……. 

——————————————–

You must remember that you have a duty of care to all employees who work for you – regardless of where that work is undertaken.

If any of your employees work from home on a regular basis, you have an obligation to make sure their home office environment is safe. In other words, you will need to carry out a full health and safety check and risk assessment of any home office before you allow employees to work there.

A good first step to take in ensuring that a home office is a safe and free of risks to health is to require every employee who works from home to complete an OHS checklist.

In this checklist, you can ask the employee to check off specific things to ensure that their home office complies with OHS requirements. For example:

1. Is there a working smoke detector?
2. Is there an ergonomic chair and adequately sized work surfaces?
3. Is a fire extinguisher readily available?
4. Is a basic first aid kit easily accessible?
5. Are exits from the work area clear and unobstructed?
6. Are all electrical cords and appliances safely secured?
7. Are there any tripping hazards?
8. Are all floor coverings safe and non-slip?
9. Are there appropriate handrails on any stairs?
10. Is the lighting appropriate for the work being undertaken?
11. Is there proper ventilation and adequate heating/cooling?

Getting your employees to complete a checklist like this (and checking it yourself to make sure) is just a first step towards ensuring that a home office is a safe place to work…

10 essential tools and services for work-at-home IT pros

The following has been referenced from TechRepublic

There is very relevant to the Australian market and well worth a read regardless of your industry. 

By Justin James

June 19, 2011, 7:41 AM PDT

Takeaway: You can’t work out of your home effectively without the right setup. Justin James shares what he’s discovered about equipping the IT home office.

I have been working out of my home office for more than three years now, with job functions that cover a wide variety of IT roles, such as software developer, network engineer, and system administrator. Over this period of time, I have learned that the office equipment, software, and services needs of remote workers are different from those of someone on site in a number of ways. Today, I’m going to share what I’ve found to be 10 must-have tools and services for remote IT workers.

1: Quality Internet service

If you are working from home, it is obvious that you will need the Internet all day long to do your job. Where a lot of people go wrong on this is by getting cheap Internet service, such as a consumer grade DSL or cable modem line. The problem is, these services are aimed at providing fast downloads, sometimes with a “burst” of bandwidth for a big item. But they have slow upload speeds, no static IP address, and no guarantees of service quality.

Instead, I recommend a business class account. While it is more expensive, the benefits for a home worker are huge. Having a static IP address lets the home office feel more comfortable in opening services to you, for example, and host services yourself if needed. Business class accounts come with bandwidth and technical support response time guarantees, as opposed to the “best effort” you get with consumer accounts. And many times, the bandwidth is segregated from the residential access so your access does not get jumbled up with the mass of BitTorrent, Xbox Live, and Netflix from the house next door.

2: A real phone

Cell phones are great, but when it comes to call quality, nothing can replace a true desk phone. Even if that phone is connected to VOIP, the quality of the call is far superior. You will be on the phone a lot more than you would be if you were in the office, which makes call quality very important. I tried a good cell phone + good Bluetooth headset, and not only were the bills huge (often more than $200 a month), but the call quality was lousy. Now, I have an inexpensive phone, a Vonage account, and a Jabra GN9350 headset (cannot recommend this item enough), and it’s rare to be asked to repeat myself.

3: Company credit card

When you are on your own, you can’t wait for a central purchasing department to buy something and have it shipped to you. And as an IT professional, you will often buy things that cost more than you will feel comfortable paying for out of your own pocket and getting reimbursed for. In addition, there will be times when you’re on the road and need to pay travel costs. Have your employer furnish you with a company credit card, and life will get a lot easier for you.

4: Ergonomic office furniture and layout

I’ve written a number of articles here at TechRepublic about the ergonomic equipment I use, and there is a reason for it. If you thought you spent a lot of time at your desk in an office, just wait. You will spend even more time at the desk when working from home. It’s simple: You no longer need to get up for anything other than a bathroom break or food and drink. The days of going to the server room or a co-worker’s desk to solve a problem are over, and it is not uncommon to discover that you’ve been at your desk for eight to 10 hours without more than a five-minute break. You don’t even leave the house to get lunch most of the time. Being in a chair this long makes ergonomics even more important than they are in an office. Personally, I love the Herman Miller Embody chair and Envelop desk, the Kinesis Advantage keyboard, and Evoluent Vertical Mouse. Find what works for you.

5: Scanner and inexpensive black-and-white laser printer

Print may be dead, but you will still need to print things out from time to time. Printing is so infrequent for me that inkjet cartridges are often dried out after only a few printings, which is why I recommend a small, inexpensive black and white laser printer. You can get one for under $100 that does a perfectly good job and never dries out. The only things I find myself printing are directions and contracts to be signed. And that is where the scanner comes into play. I have found that working at home, there are about five to 10 times a year where something requires a real signature. Given that you can buy a dirt cheap flatbed scanner for under $50, it does not make sense to lose half an hour driving to the office store just to send a fax. That half hour is worth $50 or so to your employer anyway.

6: Redundancy, onsite backups, and offsite backups

When I worked at an office, there was an IT department (or I was the IT department) that took care of my data needs. If a drive or entire PC died, they would have it swapped out and fixed in a few hours. Everything was stored on the network or they had backups being done on my computer. Working at home is a different ball of wax. Given the speed of the network, I find myself storing a lot more locally and syncing when needed, instead of directly using network storage. And if the system blows up, I am responsible for getting myself back online. As a result, I count on a combination of RAID 1 (mirrored drives) to protect myself in case of drive failure, an internal disk dedicated to nightly backups in case of system meltdown, and offsite backups through an online backup provider to handle catastrophes (such as a fire).

7: Smartphone

When I worked in an office, a smartphone was a “like to have” not a “must have.” If I was away from my desk, it was rarely more than a 10-minute walk back in case something went horribly wrong. But at the same time, it was expected that it would take a real emergency to get me back into the office after hours. Working from home, there is the assumption that you are somewhat available regardless of the time or hour. Having a smartphone allows me to stay on top of what’s going on and provide that availability, while still letting me screen out the less important problems. You will especially want to make sure that your phone handles email seamlessly. I have found that the Samsung Focus (a WP7 device) fits my needs better than anything else I have used, but it is a matter of personal taste and needs.

8: Power protection

In an office, the IT department and facilities teams handled power issues for me. At home, dealing with power outages and protecting the equipment from power spikes and dips are my responsibility. Faced with a choice between being out of commission for three days to repair equipment damaged by a “power event” and spending money on a good, line conditioning UPS, the UPS is a better bet. I like the low-end Eaton/Powerware dual conversion units. They provide my small setup here with plenty of runtime in case of power outage and give me 100% assurance that a power event won’t wipe me out.

9: Laptop/notebook

Working from home, you will need to be on the road at least once in a while. For me, that is about once a year to visit the home office, and a few times a year when I go on vacation or three-day weekends. While that does not justify a great mobile machine for me (I am using a laptop that was mid-range three years ago), I still need one. Depending on your requirements, you may need a better one. I like to have a powerful desktop machine but just enough laptop power to do what I need to do on the road. You may prefer a full desktop replacement.

10: Gym membership

If it weren’t for the gym, I would probably leave my property about three times a week. Getting to the gym every day not only provides me exercise, but it also gives me a much-needed break in the workday. (Remember, you aren’t taking lunch breaks anymore.) Working from home, I have found myself even more sedentary than I was in an office, so getting to the gym is an important part of staying healthy and sane. If you don’t like the gym, take walks or go for a jog every day.