Guess What? You Already Know How to Use Office 365, (and You Probably Already Love it Too!)

guess what you already know how to use office 365 and you probably already love it too
how to use office 365

Because Office 365 is new to some people, they picture:

  • A program that’s hard to set up,
  • A program that’s only for Mac computers,
  • Some new app that’s only for mobile devices, or
  • Some confusing, new-fangled version of Microsoft products geared toward people who think the old platforms are useless or outdated.

However, Office 365 is essentially the best of the traditional Microsoft Office platform, combined with the simplest and most convenient upgrades that modern cloud computing has to offer. Though many products can easily lose their initial fan base when they upgrade or make changes to keep up with the times, by the time people most comfortable with Microsoft products understand what Office 365 actually is, everyone will realize it’s a genuinely perfect fit for most smb’s.

Why?

With 365, Microsoft gives users subscription-based access to its suite of office products. If you buy it for yourself, it’s less than $10 a month. However, many companies choose to buy it for their staff for several reasons:

Everyone in the office can collaborate on one secure system with ease.

It doesn’t matter if you’re in the office, or in another country; once you’ve connected your devices through the platform, you can quickly share documents and data through One Drive as if you were in the same office. This enables you to complete projects faster. In addition, since 365 is also integrated with Skype Lync, you can easily conduct business conferences and make free/cheap VoIP calls as well, without paying a separate company and without downloading special software.

Microsoft gives users 1 terabyte of cloud storage for each user, and each user is able to use the software on one laptop/desktop, one tablet and one phone.

Users also get full downloads of every standard Microsoft program including Outlook, Word, Excel, Sharepoint, Lync, Exchange, Power Point, One Note, Access and Publisher.

Lastly, let’s face it. The Microsoft product suite has always been notoriously expensive.

365 is basically the cheapest way anyone’s ever got a suite of Microsoft products directly from the manufacturer.

How to Use Office 365

Using Office 365 is as easy as using a website like Facebook or a software program like Skype.

  1. You simply log into your account at portal.office.com, with the information in the email you received after you signed up.
  2. Next, you change your password.
  3. Then, when you’re ready to download your software, you download and install your software suite just like any other program. You just go through all the standard install prompts and options.
  4. Once you’ve downloaded the software and your online access is up and running, you’re good to go. If you’ve ever used Microsoft Office before, you already know how to use Office 365.

However, if you have any questions or need any guidance at all — or find a program that’s new to you, because you’re mainly used to the standard programs; just contact us.

As your Managed Services Provider, 4 Corner IT offers you and your staff full installation and support for Office 365!

What is the Best Ad Sense Banner Size?

what is the best ad sense banner size

Using Google Ad Sense on your website can be a great way to generate extra revenue. 

It’s easy to set up an Ad Sense account with Google, and once you place the ads on your blog or web page, you don’t need to do anything outside the usual.  Continue to optimize your website and fill it with substantive content; your traffic will increase, and ideally, more people will click on the ads, increasing your earnings.

While the basic process of setting up ads on your site is straightforward, you have to make some considerations about what they’ll look like.  For this post, let’s focus on one dimension: size. 

What are the most popular Adsense banner sizes?

What sizes would be most effective for you?

Here are some points to consider:

  • According to Google, wider ads tend to do better than taller ones.  This isn’t a hard and fast rule, but a tendency based on the fact that readers generally have an easier time scanning a wider ad and taking in its meaning at a glance.
  • Among the ads Google names as effective, there’s the ‘medium rectangle’ (300 x 250), ‘large rectangle’ (336 x 280), and the ‘leaderboard’ (728 x 90); they also mention the ‘wide skyscraper,’ which is a tall ad (160 x 600) but has more width than the regular skyscraper (120 x 600) and also appears to outperform it.
  • In general, bigger ads will get more clicks, because of their greater visibility to readers.  However, a huge ad isn’t always feasible given the layout of your blog, and it may not be desirable depending on the tone you want to set with your site.  Relatively small square ads are often selected by site owners who may want to fill in small areas of space on their page or who want their ads to be unobtrusive.  Sometimes they do look good at that size, but keep in mind that they may not give you much revenue.  If you’re determined to use these smaller ads, you’ll need to try and place them in a position where they’re most visible, so that you can get the most out of them.
  • Although the horizontal banner-type ads (e.g. the 728 x 90 ‘leaderboard’ and the 468 x 60 ‘full banner’) are popular, they sometimes blend in too well with the site, looking like a page header or another site fixture that readers won’t click.  In general, while size plays a role, take care with where you place your ads and how well they stand out.  You don’t want them to be so jarring that they distract from the site’s content, but neither do you want them to be unnoticeable.
  • Take care not to clutter your page too much.  For instance, layering your sidebar with many small ads may make your site look spammy.

Ultimately, the ad sizes that look best will be the ones that suit the layout of your site.  But keep in mind that some ads do perform better, on average, than others; be mindful of this when you choose the size and shape of the ad and its position on the page.

Network Support in Miami Explains No-Cost Ways to Keep Company Data Safe

network support in miami explains no cost ways to keep company data safe

Like any other small or medium business owner, you rely on such data as customer addresses, commercial transaction records, and supplier contracts, to keep your company humming.

You’ve no doubt implemented several software solutions to protect your network from hackers and malware. Such measures proved costly and time-consuming to implement. If you want to increase protection for your company information, follow these tips, which cost you nothing.

Turn Your Displays Away from Public View

If your monitors face windows, then passersby on the sidewalk outside, or spies using binoculars in the next building can observe you entering data. Displays visible from office corridors also suffer from the same visibility. To avoid this issue, position your screens so only the users can view them.

Avoid Logging In with Free WiFi Services

One way you save money and still remain connected to work is to use the free WiFi services available in coffee shops or public transportation, among other locations. Unfortunately, any hacker can use the unsecured airwaves to observe the data on your screen. To avoid this, do not use any websites that require logins, such as your personal email or company database.

Lock Up Unused Equipment

When you upgrade your mobile machines, such as smartphones, tablets, or laptops, what happens to the old devices?

You may just put them in an unlocked desk drawer or on your desktop, ready to be taken by thieves. Unused equipment must go inside locked drawers or locked cabinets, preferably inside a locked room where you and just a few trusted employees have the key.

Wipe the memories of such devices regularly to prevent hackers from taking the device just to access the hard drive.

If you want to know more about how to keep your company data safe, please contact us, your network support in Miami.