There’s no denying that flexibility is important. While technology makes it easier than ever before to communicate and work anytime, anywhere, employees should be encouraged to use this flexibility to their advantage. Yet, it’s often quite easy to fall victim to the many pitfalls of flexibility, which is why it’s so important to invest in solutions designed to maximize productivity.

When was the last time that you ran into a problem that was easily solvable, simply by restarting your computer or unplugging a device from the wall, then plugging it back in? Often times, simple troubleshooting tactics can be enough to resolve a problem, but more often than not, there are issues that can’t be easily resolved. It’s these ones that hold businesses back, and we’re here to help.

Next time you run into a PC problem that you just can’t wrap your head around, try out these six troubleshooting tips.

• Keep things simple: You’d be surprised by how often some of the most common problems with technology can be resolved by simply restarting it. Reset the hardware or application, check to see if the machine is plugged in properly, shut the machine down, or reboot it. After all, there’s no real reason to go through in-depth troubleshooting practices if the problem can be easily resolved with a restart.
• If others tried it, try it anyway: Sometimes you’ll be passed a problem that’s been tested by other people within your organization. Thinking it will help you narrow down the problem, they’ll list off what they have or haven’t done. While this might be helpful, you should trust your own judgement - perhaps they didn’t perform a process correctly, or maybe they say that they’ve tried it, but really haven’t. Don’t leave any stone unturned.
• PEBKAC (user error): This issue, “problem exists between keyboard and chair,” is a common reason why you might be unable to diagnose what the real problem is. ZDNet estimates that about 80 percent of problems are due to user errors, which means that the one at fault might not be technology at all. In these cases, it’s important to accept that you might be wrong and work towards whatever the solution might be.
• Replicate the issue: In order to best understand a problem, sometimes it’s helpful to try to remake the issue. After all, if you know how a problem starts, you might be able to best learn how to fix it. Ask your end-users how the symptoms showed up, and what they were doing when disaster struck.
• Fix vs replace: Your IT budget needs to be considered when you’re choosing to either implement new technology, or to fix recurring issues with your old solutions. You need to understand where the fine line between fixing or replacing lies. It makes no sense to purchase new technology if there’s still life left in your current solutions. On the other hand, hardware refreshes can be considered when you’re looking for ways to improve operations and get rid of old technology that’s no longer functional or needed.
• Seek professional assistance: If you can’t resolve a problem on your own, you need to realize that it’s often more advantageous to seek out professional help, rather than waste valuable time and resources by doing it yourself. Remember, there’s no shame in asking for help when it’s needed. Businesses often do this with their IT, as it can get quite technical and challenging for those who aren’t specifically trained on its best practices. Instead, outsourcing it eliminates this responsibility so that you can focus on your business.

Britek Solutions can be your outsourced IT experts. To learn more, reach out to us at (954) 560-8145.

Windows 95 changed the way that consumers saw personal computing, and it heavily influenced future versions of Microsoft’s Windows operating system. Over twenty years later, you can expect to see significant changes and improvements, to the point where those who weren’t exposed to older technology don’t have any clue what it is. Nowhere is this more painfully true than watching how teens react to Windows 95.

By its nature, technology is always changing, evolving, and moving forward. Organizations that understand this and plan for these changes end up making the most out of their technology. Those that don’t, get left behind. Here are three ways to make sure that your company’s technology will best serve your future needs.

The world might not see legitimate artificial intelligence for quite some time, but that doesn’t mean developers aren’t taking baby steps in the right direction. A current example of this is Google and its automated vehicles. If Google is capable of successfully making a self-driving car that’s aware of its surroundings, we might see them on the roads as early as 2020.

Your business needs technology to function properly, but it can be unpredictable and challenging to manage. The slightest discrepancy, like an unexpected hardware failure or software hiccup, can throw off your business’s IT budget and potentially cause disastrous downtime. This doesn’t mean that upgrading your hardware and software has to be hard, though.

The technological landscape of the office environment has evolved significantly over the past few years, especially in terms of technology that fosters inter-office collaboration. What could only be accomplished by sitting down together in the same room, can now be done remotely through the use of video conferencing and VoIP technologies. It’s a true golden age of business technology achievement, and if your business isn’t fully leveraging your communications technology, you’ll quickly fall behind.

Remote workers are changing the way that both employees and their employers are viewing their workspace. It’s been proven that businesses can mitigate their overhead costs and increase their employee retention rate by allowing their team to work from home, but without the proper technology, they have no chance of being as productive as they can be if they were in the office.

There’s no denying that smartphones are the predominant consumer technology in the world at the moment. Over a billion smartphones were sold each of the past two years, with growth coming in at a fairly impressive 23 percent from 2013 to 2014. Growth is projected to decrease slightly in future years (around 12 percent in 2015), but it’s obvious by now, smartphone usage will be the principal manner people will access the Internet going forward.

Entertainment has grown so synonymous with smartphones and technology that it’s almost impossible to think about these innovations without considering their entertainment value. Virtual reality augmentation, while slightly different, is an emerging technology that brings elements of virtual space to the lives of everyday users. So, how does virtual reality work, and can it be used for more than just entertainment purposes?

If you use Google Chrome as your browser of choice, you know that Chrome’s extensions provide a certain level of versatility. Basically, they’re add-ons to your browser, which can perform a number of functions. They’re mostly used for enriching your browsing experience or adding new features to your browser that might not be available on other platforms. Here are four useful browser extensions to help you get the most out of Chrome.

People use and reuse old passwords time and again, and then they get two-factor authentication to augment their fifteen-character passwords. Wouldn’t it be great if your computer could recognize you just by how well you recognize others?

If you’re in the market for a new computer, then you’re going to have to make a decision: Go with a traditional hard drive (HDD), or a solid state drive (SSD). While a computer equipped with an HDD will cost you less money, an SSD promises to faster speeds and a longer lifespan. This begs the question, is SSD worth the extra money?

With Jurassic World hitting theaters, today seems fitting to talk about a new use for 3D printing that you might not have thought of: recreating fossils. Researchers in Kenya are taking advantage of this new technology to study and preserve fossils that could potentially be damaged by the intense weather conditions of the Turkana Basin.

In 1977 the first Star Wars movie premiered, entitled “A New Hope.” The science-fiction film became a hit and spawned a franchise that’s still going strong 38 years later, with the upcoming release of its much-anticipated seventh feature film, “The Force Awakens.” In fact, Star Wars is such a big deal that it has its own holiday, celebrated every May 4th (May the 4th be with you).

Remote controlled drones are one of the hottest consumer technologies on the market. Businesses are finding ways to profit from them too. You might even own a drone or you’re thinking about buying one. What drone-flying rules should you know before launching it to the heavens?

When it comes to business communications technology, you don’t want to be caught using technology that’s outdated. Thanks to the innovations afforded to your company by Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), you can have access to lots of game-changing telephone features that blow traditional phone systems out of the water. Has your business switched to the VoIP advantage?

In these times, passwords are losing their effectiveness. Hackers can now input millions of passwords every second to crack your code. Even now, professionals are working on new solutions which can jumpstart online security. While using a password is still an ideal choice, there are plenty of other options that are being discussed in the two-factor authentication field.

Tablets are definitely becoming a staple in the consumer electronics world. For the longest time, the tablet PC was an expensive, clunky device that just didn't wow consumers. Some businesses had adopted tablets back in the day, but they were difficult to use, hard to support, and they simply didn't perform for the price tag. However, like many consumer electronics, Apple reinvigorated the tablet market with the original iPad, and now it would seem tablets are here to stay. The question is, are they right for businesses?