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Virtual Insider April 15, 2004 Issue 5 by JERPAT
Patty Benton,
Editor © 2005 JERPAT All statements made in this newsletter are not legal advisement or endorsement of a product. All information provided in this newsletter is strictly opinions and suggestions of the Virtual Insider writers. JERPAT Virtual Assistants and the writers for Virtual Insider cannot be held liable.
Missed one of our past issue? Click here
to view our archive.
by Patty Benton jerpatvas@comcast.net Dear Readers, I hope everyone had a blessed Easter, I know I did! I don’t know about you, but March just flew by. I blinked, and here it is, time for another edition of the Virtual Insider. This issue is going to be a bit different than our normal issues. Instead of having our columnists write articles for you, I have given them the month of! I have instead asked you, our valued readers, to give us your reviews on products you use around the home over office. We have received many valuable reviews that I hope will help you as much as they have helped me to make decisions when purchasing products. I would like to put in a disclaimer at this point that the opinions submitted by our readers are their personal opinion, and the Virtual Insider and JERPAT Virtual Assistants in no way agrees or disagrees with their opinions. Furthermore, we are not endorsing any product, but just sharing with you the personal experiences of those who have bought and used the product themselves. We have not been paid for any advertisement of these products. That said, I hope that you enjoy the reviews that follow, and next month we will be back to our regular format, and will continue our discussion on marketing. Now that you have created your marketing plan, let’s work on some ways to put it into action. Please remember that we always value your thoughts and opinion, and will try to share them with the rest of our readers, so if you would like make a comment, suggestion, or question, feel free to send it to newsletter@jerpat.org. God bless, Patty Benton
Please send newsletter questions, comments and ideas by sending an email to newsletter@jerpat.org.
Spotlight Feature Voxwire MeetingRoom by Rebecca Jaspin-Noles Technology is a Virtual Assistant’s friend. Our industry as a whole, utilizes the latest technology available. It’s what puts us a notch above the rest. But is there an economical tool available for our business that gives us the ability of voice and text chat but yet allows for integration of presentations and a follow-me browser? Yes, the Voxwire MeetingRoom (http://Voxwire.com). The Voxwire MeetingRoom is an unlimited computer-to-computer web conferencing application that allows people to talk to each other, send text-messages, and see the same website or other presentation on their screens - from anywhere in the world. There are no special licenses for each user to purchase; everything is handled conveniently, using your own website. The only extra equipment needed are a microphone and speakers. If the guest user does not have a microphone set-up, the text chat and the follow-me tool is still available. However, one of the best features of Voxwire is that you can speak with clients on the other side of the globe, at no extra charge. While all products can have a down side, I have only found two with this product. 1) The Voxwire MeetingRoom works best with a cable or DSL Internet connection. The sound quality is slightly distorted when using dial-up and the voice chat is delayed. 2) The Voxwire MeetingRoom is not available for MAC, Linux, WebTV or the Unix platform and plans are not in the works to create a compatible product for these operating systems. Businesses of all sizes as well as Virtual Assistants utilize the Voxwire MeetingRoom system. Among those are Virtual Assistance U, The 24 Hour Secretary, IAVOA, Solano College, the US Women’s Chamber of Commerce and many more. The value combined with the outstanding customer service, makes the Voxwire MeetingRoom an awesome find. System requirements: Pentium III or compatible, 64 MB of RAM, Microsoft Windows 98 or higher version, 800 x 600, Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher, 56.6 Kbps Dial-Up Internet Connection. For more information visit http://www.Voxwire.com.
Product Reviews
Printers Brother Multi Function Center 3420c Submitted by Andrea Cannavina, MVA & Certified EthicsChecked VA Legaltypist Brother MFC 3420c - and it's an all in one ink jet unit. It's a black and white printer, color printer, scanner, copier and fax machine. Of course, laser would be better, but since they are so expensive, ink jet will have to do! ;) This machine comes with separate ink cartridges so you don't have to replace an all in one unit because you're out of black. I like the fact that it has a 20 page automatic feeder which can work for the copier, fax or scanner and that it can perform different functions at one time (i.e., you can still print if you are faxing). Other modes come with a 50 page ADF. It has all the bells and whistles for faxing and you can even use it as the fax application directly from the print menu once you have installed the software. The scanning software that comes with it is decent as well. I picked it up for under $150 on sale, so I think it was certainly a steal.
HP2175xi Printer Submitted by Roxanne Herman, Virtual Assistant Professional Office Services All-in-one printer, copier and scanner - purchased in 2004 at CompUsa for approximately $199. I originally purchased this mainly for its scanning & copies capabilities; however, I now use it as my main printer since it is faster than my HP960 printer and has very good quality. If you’re looking for a solid basic machine, I think it is a very good bargain for the price. The only additional feature I wish it had was the ability to fax.
Brother MFC 3100c Printer Submitted by Beryl Powell Beryl Powell Virtual Assistance http://www.completely-virtual.com Full product name (including year, model number, etc.): Purchased May 2004
Brother MFC 3100c
(5 in 1 printer, fax, pc fax, color printer, color copier, color scanner)
What you use the
product for: I used the printer to print my marketing collateral, pictures,
school notes Plus the ink cartridge can not be refilled and the only way to get a clear readable text print is high ink output. At $19.99 plus tax for 1 cartridge and only 100 – 200 pages at high ink output
Would you recommend
or not: I would not recommend anyone purchasing this printer. Postage Products Pitney Bowes Postage by Phone, postage meter and electronic scale Submitted by Karen L. Reddick V-&-E -Services
*Full product name (including
year, model number, etc.) Pitney Bowes Postage by Phone, postage meter and
electronic scale. *Ways to Order: Call 1-800-PBMAIL-1 (726-2451), Online at www.PBMAIL1.com, pick up a brochure at your local post office.
Software QuickBooks Pro 2004 by Intuit Submitted by Ingrid Gonzalez AdminXpress Accounting software made for non-accountants. This user-friendly program let’s you perform everyday bookkeeping tasks easily. The EasyStep Interview walks you through all the information needed to better organize your business financial records. After all your information has been entered, you’ll be able to perform a series of reports and profit & loss statements to measure your business progress. If you have a small to medium sized business, are self-employed or have a home-based business, this program is definitely for you. I would highly recommend this product if you are do-it-yourself type of person as it can easily be learned either on your own or by taking a quick course. You can obtain a copy of QuickBooks directly from www.quickbooks.com or visit an office superstore such as Staples. There’s a $100 rebate for previous QuickBooks Pro owners when the newer version is purchased. If you would like to learn QuickBooks, contact me at ecourse@adminxpress.com for further details or visit www.my-ecourse.com. I hope this review will help you choose the right accounting software for your business.
BizArt software by Hemera Submitted by Roxanne Herman, Virtual Assistant Professional Office Services BizArt software by Hemera – stock photos, photo-objects images and vector clip art – purchased 2004 at CompUsa for $29.99. This software is my new favorite! There are over 56,000 business-oriented images that are all royalty-free. The images are perfect to use in PhotoShop, Word, Dreamweaver, FrontPage, Publisher and more. I use it for desktop publishing and web design. There is a very good search structure for images and it came with a bonus DVD, so you don’t need to load all the images on your machine and use up as much space. I highly recommend it and I think you will love it as much as I do.
Pop Up Stopper Free Edition, version 3.1.1010
Submitted by Jackie
Aurand, Virtual Assistant I downloaded it at www.panicware.com. It's free, although there is an enhanced version available for a fee. The free version works very well at blocking pop ups. When a pop up tries to get through, a red circle with a diagonal line through it comes up instead. If you wish to see the pop up (sometimes when you click on something you want to see, it opens a pop up instead of another window), just hold down the "Ctrl" key while you click on it.
Spam Arrest Submitted by Lynda Nurenberg AVirtualPartner.com
I started
using this organization to control my Spam and found
Free Version of ACT
Submitted by Jackie
Aurand, Virtual Assistant Go to www.act.com, you can download a free 30 day trial. It's a great contact management program! You can manage your schedule; create and send personalized letters, emails and faxes; create reports; track emails sent; synchronize your Outlook calendar with ACT!, and many other things. I urge everyone to download the free 30 day trial.
Computers Dell Inspirion 1100 (Laptop) Submitted by Patty Benton JERPAT Virtual Assistants www.jerpat.org/va/VirtualAssistant.html In January, 2004 I made the exciting purchase of my laptop. I bought it so that no matter where my daughter needed to go, I could take my work with me. I take it to the park, out in the back yard, in the living room, etc. It is hooked up to our wireless network, so basically anywhere in my house or yard, I can still receive internet. I also use it as my hard drive, and when I am in the house (on the main level) I have it hooked to a 17 inch monitor on a rolling cart. Though I love the freedom my laptop gives me to work anywhere I want, I would not recommend this product to anyone. My problems started when I told the gentleman that I would load my own Professional XP Office operating system on it, so not to upgrade. He failed to tell me that Dell makes their computers so that you can only use their operating system (unethical in my opinion). When we loaded the software, my computer would freeze up every ½ hour. So after a month of conversing with Dell, they decided to rewrite my system, installing XP Professional (after send me XP Home twice, which was what was initially installed). This worked for a little while, but then it started acting up again. This time, I refused to speak to anyone but a manager. He walked me through some tests, and decided now it was not a software problem, but a hardware problem. So, I had to send my computer back to them, so they could reinstall new parts. To their credit, they paid for the shipping, and my computer was only gone for a total of 4 days (2 of which was the weekend). I am now having problems with receiving double emails and sometimes sending double emails. Needless to say, I would not recommend this product to anyone. I paid a little over a $1000 (which is a lot for someone starting out) to have it act up on me continuously. I have used Hewlett Packard products in the past, without any problems, so I will probably make my next laptop a Hewlett Packard!
Home Products Romba Robot Vacuum
Submitted by Cathy
Shuster We bought a romba robot vacuum at Christmas and took it back 2 weeks later. It worked great on its own, but had to be cleaned after every use. To clean you needed a screwdriver and it took 20 minutes to take a part, clean and put back together. I do not recommend it, but they will probably perfect it somewhere in the near future. When we took it back, someone said 5 had been returned that day. We got it at Brookstone and it was about $199.00 Newsletter Ad Swap Subscribe to the VANF Forum Newsletter http://www.vanetworking.com, if you are a Virtual Assistant, a wannabe Virtual Assistant or are just looking to hire a Virtual Assistant! Over 250 members in the VANF Forum contribute to make this newsletter a wealth of information for running a home based business. Remember, no question is ever stupid, stupidity comes from not asking when you have the opportunity (Virtual Assistant Network Forum) to do so. Take a peek at our most recent issue at http://www.vanetworking.com
All newsletters featured here have been reviewed and approved as beneficial to subscribers by the editor. If you would like to swap Newsletter Ads please send a request to jerpatvas@comcast.net including a link to your most current issue.
Patience IS A Virtue Kathy
In this
age of immediacy, quick this, and fast that, being patient may
require a mental shift.
When I began my own journey to discovering my
life/work passion. My
patience was in short supply. In past endeavors, I'd
always seen quick results
from my efforts. This time, once I started doing
what I loved, the desired
end result wasn't realized as soon as I'd hoped it
would be.
If you have a passage, poem, or story that you think will inspire and/or humor our readers send in your “words for the soul”! If I select yours for an issue you will have your name and web link included in the Words for the Soul column. Please send your entries to jerpatvas@comcast.net with Words for the Soul in the subject line. What’s Coming Next Month In the next issue of Virtual Insider we will be addressing the all important issue of marketing. Please be sure to send your questions and ideas on this topic to newsletter@jerpat.org.
Additional Newsletter Information If you would like to subscribe to our newsletter, please visit us at www.moretime4u.org/home.html.
All statements made in this newsletter are not legal advisement or endorsement of a product. All information provided in this newsletter is strictly opinions and suggestions of the Virtual Insider writers. JERPAT Virtual Assistants and the writers for Virtual Insider cannot be held liable.
JERPAT Virtual Assistants always welcomes article suggestions from our readers, although we cannot promise to print everything submitted. Because of our publishing schedule, we are not able to announce time-sensitive events; however, if there is an upcoming conference or newsworthy event please be sure to submit it, and we will do our best to validate and publish the event WHEN POSSIBLE. While we often mention commercial products, publications, and web sites, JERPAT Virtual Assistants and affiliates does not accept or reprint unsolicited advertising copy. Send your article suggestions to the editor at jerpatvas@comcast.net.
Contact: Patty Benton 303.766.3051 9 am-5 pm MST Monday-Friday
© 2005 JERPAT No part of this newsletter may be reproduced unless specified in the authors byline. Please respect all guidelines provided by our writers. If there are no guidelines provided for a section of this newsletter you would like to reproduce, please send print request to jerpatvas@comcast.net.
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