P.C. Consulting was officially born the day after Labour Day, 1989 so this year marks a very special occasion for us, our 20th anniversary.

Twenty years ago Brian Mulroney was the Canadian Prime Minister and George Bush Sr. was in the White House. The Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement went into affect and the Berlin Wall was torn down in October; just months after students were gunned down by the Chinese government in Tiananmen Square.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Coming to America, Good Morning Vietnam, Die Hard and Beetlejuice were some of the year’s cinematic offerings. Salman Rushdie’s controversial book, The Satanic Verses, went on sale.

An IBM clone computer with 512 Kb of RAM (that’s kilobytes, not giga or even mega…) and two 5¼ inch floppy drives for storage cost over $2,000. (I added a 10 MB hard drive to my first computer for an extra $1,000!) Lotus 1-2-3 was the spreadsheet application of choice and you probably used WordPerfect for word processing (or, if you were a real pioneer, WordStar). Mice were still critters that you set traps for and not something you plugged into your computer (unless you were a contrarian who owned an Apple).

Although the World Wide Web was invented in 1989 (making the Internet, originally developed in the late-1950s, easier to navigate) it would be a few more years before it evolved into the ubiquitous means of information exchange it is today.

My background was not computers. I had many years of business management experience and in the mid-1980s, companies that I worked for were starting to computerize.

At that time, like many other people, I was intimidated by the computer experts who were ‘helping’ us. It seemed that we were paying a lot of money to people who were speaking in techo-babble and telling us that we’d have to change our business processes to accommodate their systems. That seemed to be the way of the world: a small number of people who were in the know; and the rest of us.

I decided to change that.

Since more and more small businesses were purchasing personal computers—often simply because they were told they should—I began to think that there must be many business people who would welcome talking to someone in plain English about how to put the technology to work for them.

My premise turned out to be correct and, as they say, the rest is history.

A lot has changed over the past 20 years but the one thing that has remained consistent is the fantastic people I’ve had the pleasure to meet and work with. On this special occasion I’d like to thank all of the customers we’ve had the opportunity to work with. Without you there wouldn’t be an anniversary to celebrate.

In addition, I’d especially like to thank the extraordinary team of co-workers that I have the pleasure to work with everyday. I sincerely believe that this terrific team of people sets us apart from everyone else.

Thank you all!

Windows 7 is scheduled to be released on October 22nd and according to Microsoft it “includes tons of little refinements… (ensuring that) everyday computing is faster, simpler, easier.”

Since most of us are still using Windows XP, which is almost eight years old, or Windows Vista, which is just annoying, the vastly improved features and slick user interface of this new operating system will be a welcomed change.

Windows 7 will replace Windows Vista, which in itself is a good thing as Vista offered more problems than improvements over XP. Early tests of the beta release and the almost-final “release candidate” version confirm that 7 uses less memory than Vista, makes it easier to manage open programs and windows, and generates fewer “User Account Control” messages.

Upgrade Process: Walk in the park or living nightmare?

Windows 7 will now provide us the opportunity to fix what’s broken, or break what’s working. Unfortunately, we probably won’t know which path we’ve taken until after it’s installed. So, the decision to upgrade to Windows 7 must involve more than just an assessment of its features and flaws.

The easiest case for upgrading applies if you bought a copy of Vista or a new computer with Vista installed since June 26th. Under Microsoft’s Windows 7 Upgrade Option, you’ll only pay, at most, shipping and handling for an upgrade edition. And any new PC should easily exceed 7’s system requirements. (To be really sure that your computer can handle 7 you should run Microsoft’s free Upgrade Advisor program to check for any potential complications.)

Although not the only method, the surest upgrade approach in terms of coming out the other side with a stable system is to use what Microsoft calls a ‘Custom Install,’ although ‘Destructive Install’ may be a more appropriate name. The Windows 7 installer clears out your files, settings and applications before installing a clean copy of 7. You can use Microsoft’s ‘Easy Transfer’ program to back up and restore your data, but there’s no guarantee that it will put all of your files back in the right place—and it won’t preserve your applications. This will have to be done manually. Microsoft suggests hiring “your local computer service provider” for this move. (Honestly, this isn’t just a plug for our services.)
So what do you get in return for this effort? A full review of Windows 7 is beyond the scope of this article but we can touch on some of the highlights.

Improved User Interface

Windows 7 has a dramatically revamped user interface. Everything from the typography and icons, to the toolbar and windows, has been refined with some extra detail, polish and shadows. Microsoft has created a clean, modern look that competes with Apple’s beautifully designed OS.

Performance and Usability

Windows 7 feels a lot faster than its predecessors. That’s because its memory management has been re-engineered. In older versions of Windows every open application takes up video memory even if the window is minimized. Not in Windows 7. The only windows and applications using video memory are those that are visible on your screen. No longer will you have to close applications to boost performance.
Usability has also been improved with the inclusion of up-to-date files that should recognize virtually any device you attach to your computer and allow it to “just work.” In the event that Windows isn’t compatible with your attached device by default it will search a database in an attempt to automatically find the right file(s) to install.

Fun Stuff

Microsoft has included new desktop backgrounds with Windows 7, in the “Characters” section, that can only be described as freaky, bizarre, fascinating, disturbing and, in some odd way, beautiful. These are based on illustrations collected from artists from around the world and have to be seen to be appreciated.

Conclusion

So, is an upgrade to Windows 7 in your future? If you’re currently using Windows Vista, the upgrade to Windows 7 is a no-brainer. And most of those currently using Windows XP should also upgrade to take advantage of Windows 7’s usability, enhanced device support and other features. Just remember the old expression, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread” and seek advice where appropriate to plan your migration for the happiest potential outcome. Or, alternatively, ask yourself: Am I feeling lucky?

Obituary: Murray Aston

Murray Aston, founder of BusinessVision Management Systems, the original publisher of BusinessVision software, passed away in July after a year-long battle with cancer. He was 55 years old.

Murray founded BusinessVision in 1987 and was recognized in 2003 and 2004 by Accounting Today as one of the “Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting.” Known for his kind heart and generous spirit, Murray touched the lives of the many people who were lucky enough to be a part of his journey.  His wit, humour and views on almost any topic will be sadly missed by those who knew him.

• Try not to be too judgmental. Remember that you’re probably the only “normal” person you know.
• Forgive a reasonable number of mistakes—you will make some also.
• Act normal in an abnormal situation. 
• When you’re at a place that doesn’t feel right, get out really, really fast!  This is not the time to question your doubts... just bail out immediately.
• Avoid discussing politics with your friends.
• If it ain’t yours, give it back.
  
  Excerpts from ‘100 Things I’ve Learned’ by Murray Aston
  

“Seradex has developed pre-packaged ERP Software Solutions
that reflect the best practices for industry.”

We are very pleased to announce our affiliation with Seradex and their ERP Manufacturing Software Solutions. Founded in Burlington, Ontario in 1991, Seradex sells its products throughout Canada and the United States.

Seradex ERP Software can support your entire business and consists of modules such as Estimating, Sales Orders, Field Service, Production, Inventory Control, Procurement, Distribution, Human Resources, Finance and Accounting. These modules can also be used with Accpac ERP and BusinessVision financial management modules.

However, where Seradex differentiates itself from other ERP manufacturing programs is its functionality for the made-to-order manufacturer; particularly with respect to product configuration, job costing and finite scheduling.

Seradex’s Product Configurator simplifies the process of creating and tracking made-to-order products in your ERP system. It allows employees to identify unique product configurations to better serve customers. In addition, you can support complex products and services with a guided selling tool to determine which products best fit your customers' needs.

Do you have thousands of product options? How about front line employees that have varying levels of product knowledge? This can lead to order entry errors, costly credit notes and unhappy customers. Are pricing rules inconsistently applied? Does engineering have to get involved in routine sales? If so, the Seradex Product Configurator can help.

The Seradex Product Configurator lets engineers, salespeople, customers and dealers recommend solutions, configure complex products and automate pricing, costing and commission calculations. You can produce detailed quotations and instantly create bills of material and routings for each order.

Seradex’s software solutions are designed for fast, effective implementations. By integrating and standardizing business processes across your entire enterprise you can focus on making, selling and supporting your products instead of wasting time and effort just trying to keep up.

Seradex ERP Software is an alternative to the expensive, difficult to install, and confusing to operate products offered to smaller businesses. Seradex’s focus is to provide practical features, ease-of-use and affordable pricing.

If you would like to know more about Seradex ERP Software, please contact Brian Wilton at brian.wilton@pcconsulting.ca, or call our office and ask about our upcoming product information seminar.

Tape drives are still one of the best backup solutions for mid–sized to enterprise level businesses. One of the reasons for their popularity is the relatively low cost and high storage capacity of the media. However, because of the construction of magnetic tape, every time it gets used its reliability is diminished slightly because a small amount of magnetic material is worn away during the reading and writing process. Although this is ever so slight with each use, you must be cautioned that a tape cassette must be retired within a reasonable time before usage and wear renders it totally unreliable.

Problems as Tapes Age

You may be provided some warning that a tape is reaching the end of its life expectancy when it begins to report read and write errors. In some cases these errors will be corrected by your backup software, but if a tape continues to report errors on a regular basis it should be replaced. Reusing tapes that are reporting errors is risky as your archived data may not be retrievable when you need it. Better to have a tape rotation schedule and scheduled retirement plan in place to reduce wear on individual tapes and to ultimately quit using them before errors start to occur.

Replace Tapes Regularly

If you employ a backup scheme that uses a different tape for each day of the week, you should retire these tapes after a year of service. However, if you also use separate month-end backup tapes, systematically switch those to ‘daily duty’ (assuming they are not showing any signs of errors) at the same time and use them for another year to reduce the cost of having to replace all of your weekly tapes at one time. If you do this at the same time every year, for instance as one of your fiscal year-end procedures, you’ll be more apt to do it consistently.

To read the rest of this article, download the whitepaper.

Jason joined us in 2004 and has become a key member of our systems support services team. With a formal education in computer programming and extensive practical experience in both programming and systems support, Jason brought a well-rounded skill set to this position.

Clients love his straight-forward, easy-going and supportive approach. As a co-worker, Jason is truly a team player; always available to lend a helping hand and keeping his eye on the bigger picture.

Jason is a ‘northern boy’. Growing up in North Bay, Jason has a love for the outdoors and spent much of his early years hunting and fishing. After high school, Jason attended Canadore College and graduated with a Computer Programmer Analyst diploma. Afterward, he spent four years with the Ministry of Public Safety and Security working with mission critical systems for the Courts Systems and Correctional Services before joining a private computer consulting firm in North Bay.

Jason met his wife Heather in North Bay. They married in 2003 and decided to move to southern Ontario in 2004 to pursue new opportunities. They were blessed with twin girls in 2008.

“I really enjoy working with our clients and helping them get the most from their technology,” says Jason.

When asked what he and Heather like to do in their spare time Jason replied, “We have one-year old twins. We don’t have any spare time.”

Jason and Heather live in Woodstock with their daughters Morgan and Grace.

Come Meet the Entire Team!

We’ve recently overhauled our website and if you haven’t visited yet, we’d really like you to. You’ll find access to online training, informative white papers and articles, and current news items. Plus, you can meet everyone on the P.C. Consulting team and find out interesting tidbits about them... like Marie’s favourite hobbies.