Dedicated Business Designs: May 14, 2009

The ultimate small business or startup CRM

By Gerry Blackwell
July 30, 2007

We're writing this introduction to the Zoho suite of online, browser-based office productivity tools using, appropriately enough, Zoho Writer, the word processor module. Hey, it works; and quite well, actually. Zoho Writer even boasts some nifty features you don't find in more advanced word processors.

If you detect a note of surprise here, it's because ZW is offered free of charge by creator AdventNet Inc., a California-based custom software house that does its development work in India. Not only is the application free, you also get unlimited free document storage on the Zoho servers, at least for now while the product remains in beta. After that, AdventNet says it will provide only 1GB of storage per customer.

Zoho Writer gives you plenty of word processing features. It may not be Word, but then again, it won't cost you a penny. (Click for larger image).

The suite includes 12 modules, most "100 percent free," a few not. Among the other 100-percent free modules: spreadsheet, presentation creator, organizer and database manager. Whether they will always be free is not clear. One wonders how the company expects to make money from Zoho.

It does charge for some modules. The project management tool is free for one project, with prices for additional projects starting at $5. And Zoho CRM, a basic customer relationship management program, is free for up to three people, $12 per month per additional person.

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Zoho has much improved since this writing if you need setup or configuration service contact us 877-400-9321 or click here

10 Free Must-Have Windows Networking Apps By Joseph Moran

By Joseph Moran
May 8, 2009

As the famous proverb says, the best things in life are free. These 10 utilities may not change your life, but they’re all helpful with a particular aspect of networking and none of them will cost you a dime. (Unless otherwise noted, the utilities listed here are Windows-only.)

1. CrossLoop

When you want to get help with a computer problem from a friend— or help a friend with a problem—you can use the Windows Remote Assistance feature, but it doesn’t always work reliably through routers and firewalls.

CrossLoop, on the other hand, makes providing or receiving remote support a cinch. This remote desktop utility lets you view or control someone’s system (with their permission, of course) allows file transfers, and does it all over an encrypted link. CrossLoop installs quickly, works through firewalls with little to no configuration, and lets you connect to others using randomly generated 12-digit access codes.

2. Gladinet

There are plenty of places on the Web where you can store many gigabytes worth of files. Accessing such “cloud-based” storage usually involves logging onto a service via a browser and/or using a custom UI in order to transfer files, but Gladinet Starter Edition gives you a more convenient alternative.

Gladinet Starter Edition lets you access various online storage services as “virtual directories”, so you can get to your files right from My Computer on the Windows desktop. (The utility currently supports Amazon S3, ADrive, Google Docs and Picasa, and Windows Live SkyDrive).

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Small biz owners think about CRM before Quickbooks

When your company communicates with your customers the process can involve many different people within both organizations using a variety of different methods. The main tool that is used is an order that is communicated by your customer to your sales department. However this is only one of many communications that should be managed. To ensure that your company can provide the best customer service experience possible the use of customer relationship management (CRM) software should be considered.