And its Friday

So today, I received a couple of service calls.

One, a current client got a laptop back from a former employee, and it was a bit worse for the wear, virus-wise. SmitFraud, Trojans, Backdoor Loaders, and several thousand instances of spyware. Yes, had it been my call, there would have been privs preventing the ex-employee from disabling all the security.

Segundo, I received a first-ever call from an online service. They dispatch area technical help to subscribing clients. A firm called Med-Dispense calls Computer Assistant, and CA calls me. I went to St Joe's and sorted out a PC in the pharmacy.
No, there were no free samples. They were darned glad to see me, and really happy to get back to work.

Not a bad day then.

Not a lot planned for the w/e. I want to swing by the PUPS walk Saturday, which this time around terminates at the Library for its grand opening. Everyone who is anyone will be there.

Further Adventures

Wednesday, I was at a research firm in AA. They need PC assistance, I'm ready to help. They'll be getting a 'server' soon (not a proper server, mind you, but better than the nothing they're using now). I'll set up the active directory, document archiving and backup, and security there. Interestingly enough, they are running 2xXP MC, 2xXP Pro, Vista Home Premium, and Gutsy Gibbon. And of course, the security, when it was installed, was all over the map.

BTW, I strongly recommended to them to resist the temptation to upgrade to XP SP 3. Err, I just don't know what all will happen wrt the specific packages they're using. Better safe than sorry. I don't notice any differences in the PCs on which I'm using SP3, so we'll hold off recommending for now.

They do some cool work, and I'd be speaking way out of school if I told you about it.

I really need to get on the ball and follow up with people who have said, "Hey I need you to come on over!" and then never let me schedule a date. Not pushy, just get folks back on track to PC health and safety.

Its like a public service, yannow?

Windows XP SP3

I've been using the new service pack on one home and one pro install for a few weeks. No issues here (fingers crossed), but I've read that there are quite a few unhappy campers out in the Interweb:

• Article on Sliperybrick.com


• Article on PC World site


• And another on PC World

Any stories of upgrades gone well - or not so well?

Also - I just remembered my promise to occasionally recommend software. Here ya go: Over the weekend, I did a small web project that involved grabbing graphics from psd (PhotoShop) files. Well, I don't have PS, and I don't do enough web work to justify buying it. So I used Gnu Image Manipulation Program (GIMP) to split the layers and capture the graphics, and Paint .Net to resize and clean up the images. Lovely - recommended for all you economy-minded web heads.

Start a new week

A short week, so I hope for the best.

Monday, I just lolled about, mostly.

Worked on a mission statement. Laugh all you may, I know I thought it was bollocks, but it turns out that planning things and having a grand, overall vision are actually useful. Who knew? Well, everyone, but I was a bit slow on the uptake. So I have a vision statement now, and maybe I'll post a link to it when its finished.

I also joined Facebook. As unsure as I am as to how to really use LinkedIn, I'm twice as unsure as how I'll use Facebook. We'll see. So far, I've been to lunch talks and round tables, and I've had candid conversations with people, and I'm still not sold on the whole social networking idea. I mean, to make it work, you have to be really involved in it, right? You have to update, and post, and ask/answer questions, etc. Not sure I have the time....

So anyway, this week I have client appointments Tues and Wed, networking on Tues and Thurs. Township site updates scheduled for Tues and Wed; go have a look. Notice that the site looks just like it used to look. They use Zope, its hella easy for content management, not so much for aesthetics.

Looks like my Friday is open. You want to do something Friday?

Leaking into the weekend

Re comments - yeah, I thought so. Anyway...
So Friday, not too much. Phone calls, a couple of meetings about continuing business arrangements. Running errands, you know, the usual.

Nothing on tap for the long weekend. I plan to work all the way through. Web work, keep things updated, and update the things I've been ignoring.

And martinis. There will be martinis.

Commentary

Shameless on my part, but, I note that the hit counter has been gaining speed.
Who reads this? Comment - just give a quick shout out. I'm really curious.

Like Falling Drops of Mercury

The days, they slip.
So Wednesday, an impatient public demands, what of Wednesday?
Started the day with a breakfast at Weber's, with the Ann Arbor Chamber. Always a fine time, that, and I always make good connections with business leaders.
Then, back to downtown AA for a meting with a SCORE counselor. Its really good to get a fresh perspective from someone who's been in the (or any) industry for a number of years, and is not at all bashful to give one a good clear 20000 foot vision.
Then, back out on west Jackson Road to the HBA Associates meeting. A fine time was had by all - I'm really enjoying being a member. And, I think I will do some very good business there.

So then, late Wednesday I got a web site contract (I mentioned a few days ago that it would likely happen), I nearly got a short-term contract to add functionality to an existing Access-based application (project was canceled - bummer!).

Thursday, I went to WRN; a few new faces as the membership drive brought in some new blood business people. Then off to the accountants (whaddayamean I'm not on the schedule?!?! Fine, reschedule for tomorrow!), then out to a new client on Jackson Road. See a pattern? A lot of things are happening on Jackson Road, out on the west side of A2. More than Lowes and Meijer out there. Anyway, the newest client is a contract R&D house. They really, really, need help (anti-virus, malware, firewalls... just a cogent, comprehensive, uniform strategy). I'll go back next Wednesday and start the process of straightening them out.

And, lastly, a client's laptop was dying, and seeing that we must do the mature thing and let it go, we ordered him a new one last week. Well, it came today, and the old one took that opportunity to expire, peacefully. I set up the new one, but getting the files from the old one was a bit of a challenge.

Consider - its a XP Pro laptop, all the files are neatly stored in the MyDocuments folder, and the video system is totally shot. Won't even drive his external analog CRT. Well, I took it back and tried to take ownership of the folders through Server 2008.

That didn't work. Not one bit, stopped me cold. What did work... well, it drove my clunky digital LCD monitor just fine. LOL. Log in, share the folders, burn a DVD, and we're golden.

Enough already - go to bed.

Tuesday

Gave blood Monday; typically an uneventful task, but this instance was occasioned by a fellow passing out afterward. No, not me.

I'm reading 'The EMyth Revisited.' I have to say, its a bit troubling. I see a lot of the downfalls described in the first third of the book as applying directly to what I'm doing: The Technician as business owner, rather than the Entrepreneur leading the way. There's a third personality-in-charge that is discussed, the Manager. Each has its role, and each must be allowed to have its influence.

I can see that letting the big-picture Entrepreneur out in to the sun is not going to be easy. I'd rather be doing the work than selling or planning, but without the big E, the whole thing will fall apart.

So, whats a budding business man to do? Read on, McDuff, and Damned be he...

We resume normal broadcasting

Thursday was Saline Leadership day. In this first all-day installment, we discussed personal mastery; to wit, recognizing one's own personality quirks, observing those of another, and moderating one's behavior so as to enhance understanding and cooperation.

Yes, I think thats it in a nutshell - know your audience.

Friday, I had another in an all-too-common series of not having rather enough to do. A disturbing trend, and I fear a fatal one. On some level, I'm so busy running the business, that I'm not really running the business. Things are headed in a wrong direction, and I need to get back on track. I'm reading 'The eMyth Revisited', and so far its been dead-on.

This whole business thing is a lot more involved than fixing the occasional PC and filing one's taxes. I am determined to make it work, but is that enough?

The Mid Week Flash

There was today scant brilliance in which to bask. In fact, it was so lousy a day I didn't even bury that dog fence wire. I worked all day on business stuff; mostly, the up-and-coming business idea(s) of the Wife (better half, Mother Superior, SheWhoMustBeObeyed, etc).

She has some rather interesting ideas... more on that at a later time.

I'm in the process of setting up a PayPal link on the HTTP web site. In that way, I can advise a client to hit the link to pay instead of mailing a check; also it allows me to take credit cards without worrying about PCI compliance.

Cheap, too, worst case is about 3%. Daddy likes.

That will be up by, I dunno, weekend probably. I have to stop by the bank and get all set up with online banking. Yes, thank you, the 'guru' is smart enough to sort it out hisself, but when I try, their system pukes and dies, complaining feebly of some incorrect number or other. I don't have the time to fiddle with it nor the inclination to find out that my fiddling caused a lock to be set on the account. You know, for my protection.

When its up, go and test it out for me, willya?

So, what else? I got new business cards. You've seen the current design of course, well this is almost identical, with the new tag line (The help desk that speaks your language) and printing on the back. 1000 pcs, Vista Print online, $65.

Oh yeah, livin large up here.

I'm going to give it a rest and not blog (stop whimpering) from Thursday - Monday, unless something soooooo interesting happens that I can't keep it to myself. On Thursday, I'll be at the Senior Center for Leadership, then directly to the club for a member's meeting. Friday, there are sundry events, culminating in me mum coming up for the weekend. Hilarity is guaranteed to ensure. She'll go back Monday midday, and normal programming will resume.

What Monday?

Err... So, what did HTTP do to save the world Monday?

I had a seminar scheduled at the Senior Center. It was designed to be a free seminar, targeting Internet related issues. It was billed, however, as a fee-based seminar on general computer issues. One solitary person registered, and she didn't show up. I was not amused.

Spent the rest of the day with miscellaneous stuff. I tried to get the dog fence wires through the wall (I drilled the masonry, then had to run out and buy a longer bit to get through the wood frame of the foundation. Yes, I know it was obvious, but I'm not a builder.) but the hole is a tad snug. I'll have to widen it from the inside.

Anyway, lets just move right in to Tuesday, shall we.

I went to BNI and said my goodbyes. That old crew is dwindling down to naught; sad to see. I couldn't remain though, the quantity and quality of referrals had dropped off to nil. Can't have that.

Then, I went to the club and helped a client with his laptop. Crapware, updates, &c; he's all happy now. Next, I drove out to the HBA and took in a seminar on Green Building. Now there's a cash cow, I tell you what.

While there, my phone rang: A client has a laptop that died. I went over after the seminar, and performed last rites. It has a video subsystem that suffers greatly (whitewashed/streaky/barely visible display), and letting it go to its reward is the only humane thing to do. He's purchased a new one, and it should be delivered soon. He'll then schedule a time for me to come by and do the secure/optimize/migrate thing.

While there, my phone rang. A local web design firm is a bit short handed, so they called me up from the minors. A small site, a few pages based on a static template, in a fixed size client window. Can I do it? Put me in, coach.

Ah, back home now... I think I'll go drill a wall or something.
I wish that was a euphemism.

Insert Witty Title Here

Saturday I grudgingly started to lay out the in-ground pet fence we bought last autumn. It would have already installed, except that it arrived just ahead of the permafrost.
I got the perimeter mapped out, flagged, trenched, and wired; but not the wire into the trench. That was a task for Sunday, along with drilling the outside wall. Well, with the light, chilly rain we're enjoying, I shan't be drilling anything. I really don't feel like getting all fraternal with the cold mud, either, so the wire will sit there on the surface.
I think it will be dry again Tuesday. I can drill and bury then.

I lead a fun life, no?

Yawn

Spent the day working on a marketing plan.
Dreadful; but I am told that having a plan is a good thing. I'm willing to see it through.
I say again, Yawn. The sixth graders return tonight from their wild trip to Toronto. Their original return time was scheduled for 2330, now they've updated it to 0045. Lovely.

Update: The tykes returned at 0115. Seriously, two hours late? Just what can eleven year olds do to be two hours late?

Now With Added Verbosity

While its been nagging away at me for awhile now, it was made rather crystal clear to me today that I'm not really marketing effectively. I know; it came as a shock to me as well.

Consider that I belong to many associations, and I meet a lot of people. Are these people customers? No. Should they be? Yes - well, at least the ones who have a need. I'm not greedy. Anyway, if I meet one hundred people, and twenty-five of them express a need for the service, how many should I expect to actually get hired by? Well, the math gets a bit fuzzy there, as it depends on the quality of salesmanship involved.

Thats part of the problem. I've been relying a bit too heavily on word-of-mouth and referrals for work. Those avenues are a bit unpredictable, so I need to get more proactive. That means marketing.

My fear is that between networking, developing the market, pitching the services, and finding the business, I won't have time to actually do the work. Of course, if I had enough work that I could hire a couple of people, that wouldn't be so bad, either.

I'm developing a new series of flyers to promote aspects of the business to specific audiences. Maybe I'll do a mailing as well. I've got to do something, the pennies just ain't raining.

Wednesday in Revue

No actual work today, so a good day to catch up. As frightening as it is to not have billable hours on a day, it is useful to get caught up on paperwork and connections.

I think I mentioned that I joined the Home Builders Association. This evening was a new member orientation and member dinner. It was a good crowd; I was surprised to see that I already knew quite a few people. I think it will be a good association to be in as there's no competition in my field, and I'll never be without a good referral for any work that needs doing around here.

I've also begun an inventory of all the spare parts I've accumulated over the past couple of years. Its a bit more than I thought. I'm looking at average prices online - I suppose I'll put a bunch of it on ebay or something. There's no sense keeping it all. I mean come on, you should see all the RAM I have thats more than ten years out of date. Due to its rarity, some of it can fetch a surprising price.

It appears the public safety millage passed. We'll keep the three deputies we have now. I really hope thats the last we hear of it; there aren't too many of us who can keep shelling out more in property tax as the values deflate.

Tuesday

Being a Tuesday, and the first of the month, there is a breakfast thrown by the Ypsi Chamber of Commerce. What sort of insular life have I, that I didn't know they were awarding the E3 awards this morning. Shameful. The first recipient accepted her award for a lifetime of dutiful instruction of our youth, and I mean this with the deepest respect, had there been a band in attendance, they would have launched into her recessional well before halfway through her acceptance speech. Brevity is the soul of wit, madam. I, on the other hand, had other items on my plate that required my attention, and so did not see if the subsequent honorees were wittier.

I visited a client today who had a few questions about the backup utility we are using. I installed Cobian 9, and as it works quite easily here, I was a bit put out that it didn't seem to be working for him. I checked a few settings (files, destination, timing, power saving settings, etc) and it all looked fine. Ran fine when I started it up, too. Hmmm... have to keep an eye on that.

Oh, and regarding the millage, I voted for it. Yes, I was surprised as well, and I had actually convinced myself to vote against it, but there I was. I rarely see a deputy, and I have no idea if their patrols are demonstrably effective, however, I don't think we will benefit as a township by reducing what little police service we have now. The idea that the MSP will respond in any kind of meaningful time is ludicrous, so the WCSD is all we have. That said, should the millage pass, it will cost me about $150 extra to keep the minimal level of patrol coverage we get now. I can do that for now.

Where are my manners - I also spent a good portion of the evening with some buds from a former employer. Two of them are still there [we pray for them], and one has moved on to Belle Tire. In software development. Belle Tire develops software? Who Knew?

Where's Monday?

Came and went in a blur.

Briefly, HTTP, inc, was involved in only two sorties on Monday.

First, a client had a panic attack when they couldn't log in to their server. I recommended using a specific password, which they said was not correct. It seemed correct when I tried it. They also had little issues involving Quick Books and Windows Update. I think they may have been ignoring the WU, as it had > 50 updates to do.

The other detail was an update to the township site. The update deals specifically with the issue to be decided in the vote today, to wit, the increased millage to support continued sheriff's dept patrols. We'll be interested to see how that turns out.

Saturday

Will it rain today or not? Correct answer = yes.

I returned the very-slow-boot PC today. It boots up just fine, in the usual amount of time. I found that it was puking on more than one HP device-check at boot up, so I got that all sorted out.

And today I returned the PC that the Big Box Experts couldn't fix for < $400. No OS reinstall, no new devices, no major surgery.

No entry for a Sunday, unless something interesting crops up. I have to replace the brakes on the Camry. All four rotors! Joy! Oh yeah, he does auto repair, too!

Is there anything he can't do?

Finally a Friday

And so I picked up a PC this morning. The complaints are that it won't boot, it doesn't remember the user profile if it does boot, and it runs hot and shuts down. Yikes!
The diagnosis:

• It runs hot simply because the CPU cooling fan is so filthy it barely moves. A thorough cleaning, lube, and a good application of thermal grease to the heat sink, and it overheats no more.


• It forgets the user profile because it has a registry hive that is being locked by an unterminated process. Microsoft, forgive their faults, makes a utility for such an occasion, called UPHCleaner (User Profile Hive Cleaner). It installs a service that forces the profile to close.


• Boot? It boots every time. Could use some RAM though, since it has 256. I just happen to have a spare SIMM or two...

Whats really appalling here is that the client had consulted a big box IT service *cough*perro al fruego*cough* and they were dead, dead wrong in diagnosis. They recommended an OS re-install, new heat sink and fan assembly. Ummm, no, nuclear option is the last resort, not first.

Clue: Event viewer. All your answers are either there or in Win\minidump. HTH

So I'll finish this one presently, and move on to the newly-slowed one I mentioned yesterday. Hey, when I fix a thing, it stays fixed or I make it right.

Thursday

Spring is finally winning. A bit cool today, but who would argue?

Started the morning, as most Thursday, with the Washtenaw Referral Network. I do rather like this group and I look forward to getting business for them moving forward.

Then, off to WCC at midday. Today is another in the series of all-day Entrepreneurship seminars. I'm the IT guy in the ask the expert portion from noon - 2.

My contract formally starts with York Township today, so I did my first official updates. Lovely. The county (which hosts the site) uses Zope as the content management utility. Very user friendly.

A few errands to run, then to a board meeting at Tri-County. Speaking of which, I just had some brochures printed for the club by Print Tech, right here in Ann Arbor. You can get their contact information from the side bar link to the referral network.
That, plus the laptop with the new DC jack has been returned.

Booo and double boo: I was informed that a PC I optimized the other day is nearly dead - takes an hour to boot up. What?!?!?! I'll see it Saturday and make it all right, but seriously, What!?!?!?!?

Loose Ends

I should respond to a (the!) comment left earlier regarding Twitter.

I think that the idea of a constant stream of consciousness-type of social context-based, real-time blogging has its place. I'm just not real sure what that place is. I've seen other people's Twitter streams (which sounds really wrong) and I've noticed that the noise-to-signal ratio was really high. Maybe the problem is that a lot of people feel they need to fill the void; "If I'm on the stream, I don't exist unless I contribute to the stream!" But there were comments of people waiting for buses, going shopping, etc.

I can't be more clear: I don't care. Nope, not even a little. Seriously, I think this whole blogging thing is almost embarrassingly self-absorbed, being a part of a real-time narrative of the minutiae of one's life would make my head explode.

Dissenting opinion? Comment - jump right in. I am psychologically prepared to be disabused of my preconceptions.