Microsoft Vista/Office
Consultant joins Applied
Daniel Petersen to present
Choosing Windows Vista
Word Tips and Tricks
Cool Tools - AVG Anti-Virus
Employee Spotlight
 

Event Announcements

February High Tech Happy Hour
Thursday, February 22nd at the Brink Lounge Visit www.hthh.org for more information.

Daylight Savings Time Update (DST) March 11th
This year day light savings time (DST) starts three weeks earlier.  In compliance with a provision in the energy Policy Act of 2005, DST dates in the United States and Canada will start three weeks earlier, 2:00 am on the second Sunday in March (Mar 11th) and will end one week later, 2:00 am on the 1st Sunday in November (Nov 4th)

Cool Tools -
AVG Anti-Virus 

AVG Anti-Virus is now available through Windows Security Center as a Windows Vista Security Solution. AVG products utilize a low level of computer resources. This feature is now even more important as personal computers and networks today run different applications and services simultaneously, which can slow computer performance. Windows Vista-ready products include AVG Anit-virus 7.5 and AVG-Virus Free Edition. Those AVG products offer protection against a variety of computer and cyber threats like viruses, Trojans, adware, dialers, keyloggers, and worms. These products also include automatic updates and a single, user-friendly interface. For complete functionality, AVG Anti-Virus runs in the background to quickly alert users to any newly installed updates.

Click here to access this program.

 Information reprinted from www.grisoft.com

Employee Spotlight
Jim Oliva

Graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in Mathematics and a minor in Computer Science, Jim Oliva is an important part of Applied Tech. Prior to his employment with Applied Tech, he worked for Mom's Computers starting in October of 1983. Now in charge of the Stevens Point office, Jim has been working for Applied Tech since it aquired Mom's Computers in 2005. With over 23 years of experience in the field, he strives to strengthen the relationships with current clients and keep them a part of the Applied Tech Family.

When Jim is not working, he devotes his spare time to the World's Largest Trivia Contest held every year in Stevens Point. Since 1979, Jim has taken the pleasure of coordinating and writing for the event. Annual participation in the contest is about 12,000 people from throughout the United States and all over the World.

Jim can be reached at oliva@appliedtech.us.
 

Madison Office
Applied Tech Solutions, Inc.
203 South Paterson Street,
Suite 500
Madison, WI 53703
Ph: 608.257.6051
info@appliedtech.us

Stevens Point Office
Applied Tech Solutions, Inc.
1313 Second Street
Stevens Point, WI 54481
Ph: 715-344-3703
info@appliedtech.us

The Microsoft Connections event, held the morning of Thursday, February 1 at the Alliant Energy Center, was full to capacity! With the new Microsoft Windows Vista operating system and the new version of Microsoft Office 2007 just released, it was literally standing room only. What did you miss? Live interactive demonstrations of the new features available and how this could help your business. The presenter did an excellent job of keeping the benefits of Vista, Office, SharePoint Services and Small Business Accounting relevant to how Small Businesses could better use technology.

Applied Tech was there as Microsoft Gold Certified Partner in the areas of Networking Infrastructure, Advanced Networking Infrastructure, Information Worker Solutions and Business Solutions. Applied Tech is one of the only Microsoft partners certified as a Small Business Specialist, meaning we understand and specialize in your needs. The next time Connections comes to Madison, we will make a point to get the word out early, in hopes that you can all attend and get into the event.

If you weren't able to attend the Connections event, there is good news! You don't have to miss out on the demonstrations or even leave the warmth and comfort of your desk to learn more.

The week of March 19 – 23, 2007 Microsoft is having an online Small Business Summit.
They will cover a variety of different areas such as:

Read more...

Applied Tech has acquired the Microsoft Dynamics - GP (Great Plains) division of Wegner Consulting. Wegner LLP and Applied Tech share the same commitment to providing excellent, personalized service to small and medium sized businesses ensuring that current and future clients will continue to receive an outstanding level of service.

Senior Systems Consultant Pamela Close, formerly of Wegner Consulting, will be providing Microsoft Dynamics – GP accounting software support as the newest member of the Applied Tech consulting team. Pamela joins a full team of certified Microsoft Business Solutions consultants who support Client Relationship Management (CRM), Business Contact Manager (BCM), Outlook/Exchange, and Voice over IP (VoIP). The Applied Tech acquisition of a Great Plains practice was driven by the continuing integration of these business solutions products by Microsoft. This new edition will provide area businesses with a single source of support for all of their business solution requirements.

This year the 2007 SMB Summit will be held in Anaheim, California March 15 -17 with Daniel Peterson, Applied Tech Business Intelligence Analyst, as one of the highlighted speakers. SMB Summit is a three day event in which Microsoft Partners gather to gain insight and knowledge on new products and services to build on current strategic and technological knowledge in order to serve the small and medium size business population more effectively.

Daniel will be presenting on how businesses can utilize new levels of customer intelligence with Microsoft Dynamics CRM version 3.0. Microsoft CRM creates a centralized repository of customer data that gives every customer-facing employee the information they need to truly impress customers. With Microsoft CRM and its tight integration with Microsoft Office, Microsoft Office Outlook, and Windows SharePoint services you can provide transparency and efficiency to the marketing, sales, and service processes every successful business depends on.

Daniel has spent the last six years as a business intelligence analyst and project manager at Applied Tech and has been responsible for maintaining and customizing the internal Microsoft CRM implementation. Applied Tech was involved in the Microsoft CRM 3.0 TAP program and was hired by Microsoft to develop the training and e-learning materials for the CRM 3.0 Small Business Edition. Daniel was the lead for both of these projects. He has achieved his Microsoft Business Solutions Certified Professional certifications in Dynamics CRM in the Applications, Customization, and Installation and Configuration categories.

He is currently developing his skill set in Microsoft SQL 2005 and is planning to gain his Microsoft Certified Technical Specialist certification later this year.

Worried about computer viruses? Concerned about the safety of your company's data?  You're in good company.

If you run a small business, you probably don't just feel like a target. Your company probably is a target. Small businesses are frequent victims of cyberattacks, according to several recent studies. And a 2006 Yankee Group survey found that 40 percent of small business owners rank protecting their companies from outside security breaches as an important issue.

Microsoft Office Tips and Tricks
Up to Speed with Word 2007

When you open Microsoft Office Word 2007 for the first time, you'll notice that it looks very different. That's because it's been redesigned to make your work easier, faster, and more efficient. How does it do that? For starters, it introduces a new feature, the Ribbon, which brings the most popular commands to the forefront. Now you won't have to hunt in various parts of the program for things you do all the time. Another time-saving feature is the Mini toolbar, which displays formatting commands in the document, right where you want to use them. There's also the new Quick Styles, ready-made styles that give your document a professional makeover fast.

Watch this demo to get familiar with the new design, and to see for yourself that you won't have to learn Word all over again.

SEE DEMO