Why Stratosphere?

Since 2003, Stratosphere Networks has evolved to meet the growing needs of our clients in a wide variety of industries, ultimately increasing productivity and revenues. Our team of experts works with you to develop a cohesive technology support plan specifically designed for your business. The Stratosphere Networks team of certified engineers and experts offers the [...]

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Welcome to Stratosphere Networks!

Welcome to Stratosphere Networks! Stratosphere Networks is a multifaceted IT managed service provider focused on delivering comprehensive technology services and solutions to meet and exceed the always-changing, diverse business needs for all industries. Our team of experts works with you to develop a cohesive technology support plan specifically designed for your business. Our fully staffed [...]

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Get More out of Gmail

May 25th, 2012 dsparks

People and businesses regularly use Gmail these days. This makes sense, as it is easy to use, free, and Google makes good products. If you are using Gmail, you are probably not using it to its full potential. Gmail has many tools that make it easy to keep your email tidy. We have outlined a few below and if you need instructions on how to implement these tools, follow the links.

Label your messages: Applying labels to your messages visually organizes your inbox so you know what emails you have to address first. For instance, if there are a few emails that you need to deal with before the others you can mark them with a red “Important” label. Or, if you are planning a vacation, you can apply a green “Vacation” label to any confirmation emails that come in.

Free up space with archiving: Do you like to have a clean inbox but have a ton of emails that you don’t wish to delete? By archiving messages in Gmail you can move them to an “All Mail” folder to get them out of the way. You can access them anytime this way but they won’t be cluttering your inbox.

Add a signature: Adding an email signature saves a tremendous amount of time because every time you send an email you do not need to retype your name and contact information. Gmail permits you to create a signature and automatically puts it into the bottom of every email you send.

Filter your incoming messages: Filtering is a very clever feature of Gmail. It will automatically label, file, delete, or archive emails. You can select the “Filter messages like this” option from Gmail’s “More” menu and specify what an email will include to have a certain action applied to it. For example, if you are looking to hire someone you may have any email that includes the words “resume” or “job” sent to a particular folder.

Remote Work and Its Benefits

May 24th, 2012 dsparks

In today’s business world, company participation in virtualization can make the difference between being just another competitor or being the company your competitors are jealous of. Working while away from the office has multiple benefits for company and employee alike.

Virtualization allows the employee to work with confidence while they are away from the office. An employee no longer needs to worry about missing an important phone call, as calls can be sent to their cell phone regardless of where they are. Files can be shared remotely without the worry of security issues. Today’s state-of-the-art mobile devices can be turned into a mobile office, while modern technology can turn the personal computer into the work computer with a few keystrokes. Working remotely allows employees to access important information anywhere in the world..

Allowing employees to work remotely benefits the company in many ways. Most employees are happier with the freedom to work from home. An employee who doesn’t have to worry about commute times or the distractions of the common office is usually a happier employee. Employees who are happier are less stressed while they are working. Stress is a major factor in workplace turnover, and stressed employees often are not very productive. By cutting out the common stresses and allowing an employee to work from the comfort of their home, the company and employee benefit together from virtualization.

Instituting remote work in the office allows a company to expand beyond the local range. The typical business is restricted to only those potential employees who live, or are willing to relocate to, nearby. Remote working opportunities allow companies to hire better qualified workers from across the nation without worrying about the relocation process. The flexibility that remote working offers helps companies hire better workers and retain happy workers longer.

Shortcuts lead to Office 365 happiness

May 24th, 2012 Administrator

The pointing device, or mouse, is one of the integral parts of our computer platform. Without it, we would have a tough time navigating today’s complicated software. While the mouse is useful in office suites like Microsoft Office 365, there are times when it seems like it’s a waste of effort. Microsoft agrees, and as such, has implemented keyboard shortcuts to make some operations more efficient.

If you use Office 365, you probably spend a large percentage of time using Outlook. Here are some time saving Outlook keyboard shortcuts. These will work with both Windows and Mac operating systems.

Control + 1: Pressing this will switch to Mail. If you’re using a Mac, press command + 1.

Control + 2: This shortcut will switch to your Calendar. On the Mac press command +2.

Control + 3: This shortcut will open your Contacts. On the Mac press command + 3.

Control + Shift + M: This shortcut will open the compose a new message window. You can press this from anywhere in Outlook. On the Mac press command + Shift + M.

Control + Shift + A: When you press this, you’ll be able to set a new appointment. You can press this from anywhere in Outlook. On the Mac press command + Shift + A

F3: This shortcut will open the search pane. On the Mac you can press command + F3

Control + , or .: With a current message open you can press control + , (comma) to switch to the previous message in your Inbox, or press control + . (period/full stop) to switch to the next message in your Inbox. Pressing command + , or . will do the same thing on a Mac.

Control + Enter: When you have an email message open, pressing these keys will send the email. The Mac shortcut for this is command + return.

F4: If you press F4 Office 365 will close. To close the program on a Mac press command + Q

These are the most common shortcuts for Office 365. If you’d like to learn more Office 365 shortcuts or time saving tips, please contact us.

Don’t hire a function, virtualize it

May 23rd, 2012 Administrator

Do you have an assistant in your business? Someone to take care of day-to-day functions so you can take care of running the business? No? Why not? Small business owners will typically answer this question by noting that they can’t possibly afford another employee. While you may not be able to hire a full time employee, why not outsource and hire a virtual assistant?

A virtual assistant is much like any other assistant, just they don’t work in your office. They could be across town, or in another country, and work with you through the Internet. They could take care of your accounting, social media platforms or secretarial work, freeing you up to work on what you excel at. At its most basic form, it’s outsourcing.

Different types of virtual assistants
There are three different categories of virtual assistants:

  1. Generalist: responsible for rote tasks like data entry and answering calls.
  2. Technical: responsible for all your IT related tasks like website design, SEO, updating and installing programs, etc.
  3. Specialist: responsible for specialized business functions like HR, accounting, legal, etc.

Virtual assistants can be hired at nearly any cost. Some general assistants can be hired for as little as USD 100 a month. Some more specialists could cost upwards of USD 100 an hour. As an added advantage, you won’t have to pay them local benefits like health insurance, tax and bonuses.

Ways you can leverage an assistant
One of the best ways to leverage a virtual assistant is to have them take care of your technology related functions. Managed service providers (MSP) are a form of virtual assistant that’ll look after your network, technical security, backup and recovery. They’re particularly useful if you don’t have the technical expertise needed to maintain support for your business. The majority of MSPs are also a lot cheaper than employing an in-house IT staff.

Another way to leverage an assistant is for bookkeeping. It’s essential that your bookkeeping is done correctly, it’s also one of the few functions that follow strict regulations. While it’s important to have a licensed professional review your books, there’s no need to have them also do the work prior to the review process. A virtual assistant can help you get your books in order so time spent on the financials is minimized.

Having a virtual assistant can help you focus on the important tasks, running and growing your business. Properly leveraged, you could indirectly see higher profits. If you’d like more information on ways you can outsource some functions, please contact us.

VoIP: Growing in Popularity

May 23rd, 2012 dsparks

Do you know what VoIP is? VoIP is short for Voice over Internet Protocol, and it is a technology that allows people to make calls via the Internet rather then use a traditional landline. VoIP is very cost effective and can save businesses, of any size, between 30 and 50 percent on their phone expenses.

Many businesses, large and small, are still struggling and are looking to reduce costs anyway they can. So, the question is; are businesses embracing VoIP as an obvious way to save money or are they hesitant to get rid of their trusty old landline?

A Move Toward VoIP?

Heavy Reading recently did a study that shows that not as many companies as you would think are making the switch to VoIP. The same study, however, reveals that number is changing. The study shows that in 2011 approximately 31% of businesses in North America used VoIP. Heavy Reading has predicted that by 2015 this figure will rise to 66.6%.

Businesses are Switching to VoIP

The study indicates, then, that companies will do a full flip-flop by 2015. Today, after all, traditional circuit-switch phone lines make up 68 percent of business lines in North America. Are these numbers to be believed? Are businesses ready to make such a dramatic shift? Even if you’re less optimistic than the researchers at Heavy Reading, it’s hard to deny that businesses will turn more frequently to VoIP technology in the near future.

A Bright Future for VoIP and Business

VoIP technology provides voice communication that is as clear and dependable as traditional landlines. Let’s also not forget that it can be considerably cheaper. Upper management may be slow to make the move but the big plus with VoIP, is that employees will not have to get used to anything new. Phones work the same as they do with a landline. So you if think VoIP is a passing fad, think again.

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The Benefits of Online Collaboration

May 22nd, 2012 dsparks

When you run an online company with team members from various areas, online collaboration can be very useful. It may cost more for others to drive somewhere else to meet and often it is difficult to gather people to come together at a specific time or place. By using virtualization, a company can come together at almost anytime on the web.

There are a variety of tools available online to allow for online collaboration. Some of them include applications such as Goto Meeting, Goto Webinar, Goto Training, Goto Assist, Goto Manage and Sharefile. When a team is unable to meet, they can take advantage of Goto Meeting. With the use of audio devices and online chat ,a group of people can meet in their own private online chatroom. Goto Meeting also has the ability to use HD video for meetings too. Online webinars allow for a speaker to share his/her computer screen with a group of people. Goto Webinars are perfect for PowerPoint presentations and even sharing data on Excel sheets. If a group wants to share files, Shareafile makes it possible to deliver important data and information.

Having the ability to meet and share online helps cut down on many travel expenses for companies. It is also for ideal for individuals who work at home. When you are wanting to deliver or share information to others who are far away, online collaboration is one of the best ways to do it. As technology continues to develop at a rapid pace, virtualization will become a popular way for companies to share and deliver information with each other.

Breathe new life into your older iPhone

May 22nd, 2012 Administrator

Technology is advancing at such a rapid pace that the iPhone you bought two years ago is now considered horribly outdated, old-school even. With the technology updates to the OS, older iPhones are starting to appear to run slower. It may be an app takes a few seconds to load, or the general experience isn’t as smooth. If you’ve noticed this, we’re here to help.

Here are five tips on how to speed up your older iPhone:

1. Clear multitasking tray
The multi-task tray can be one of the most useful features of the iPhone, but it can also take up a lot of processing power. About once a week be sure to double click on the Home button, press and hold an app and select the minus (-) sign on all apps.

2. Delete pictures, music and apps
As the majority of iPhone users use their phone for pretty much everything, they can run out of storage space astonishingly fast. To see how much space you’ve used, press Settings, General followed by Usage. You’ll see two numbers at the top of the screen. On the left is how much space you have left, and on the right is total space used. In general, the more space used, the slower your phone will run. It’s recommended to leave 10-15% of total storage space free for operations.

To free up some space, it’s a good idea to delete old pictures, music and apps you don’t use. To delete all your music at once, go to Settings, General followed byUsage and select Music. Tap Edit followed by the red circle with white line. This will delete all associated files. Alternatively, you can open your music player and delete individual songs by pressing and holding your selection, and then selecting Delete.

To get rid of pictures, you need to open the Photos app and select the album you’d like to delete. Press the icon on the top left of the album, and select which photos you want to get rid of. When you’re finished, press the red circle with the white line. Be sure to either upload your pictures to iCloud, or your computer before you delete them.

To get rid of apps, go to your phone’s home screen, press and hold the app you’d like to get rid of and select the black “X”. A window will pop up asking if you want to delete it, confirm it and the app will be deleted.

3. Clear Safari’s cache
The cache is where your browser stores temporary files to decrease bandwidth usage and increase the loading speed of a page. To clear it, press Settings and select Safari. In the window that opens select Clear History and Clear Cookies and data. This will clear all browser related data including passwords. You’ll need to log in to services like Google again.

4. Factory reset
If your phone is still sluggish, you could try a factory reset. This will wipe the phone and reset it to the way it came out of the factory. To do this: plug your phone into your computer and open iTunes. Select your phone, click Summary followed by Restore. Follow the instructions from there. Before you do this, it’s recommended that you backup your device.

5. Bite the bullet
If a factory reset doesn’t work, it may be time to bite the bullet and upgrade. Talk to your mobile carrier to see if there are any deals or trade-in programs. Be aware that a new version of the iPhone is rumored to be released in October of this year, so if you can hold off until it’s released you’ll be better off.

A smooth running phone is important to all of us, and these tips can help extend the life your device. For more iPhone tips, please contact us.

Argument? Use Google to find the answer

May 21st, 2012 Administrator

One of the greatest things about the Internet is the incredible amount of information at our fingertips. Want to know the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow? You can easily find out by going to Google and searching for it. The trouble comes when we conduct a search and are presented with an overwhelming amount of results to sort through. However, there are more effective ways to conduct searches.

Here are seven tips to help you Google like an expert.

  • Exact phrase. If you’re looking for a specific topic, Mobile Internet for example, it’s easier to put the search into quotations i.e., “Mobile Internet”. This will tell Google to return results that match the words.
  • Exclude words. When you conduct searches for general information, you’ll often get unwanted results. Let’s say you are looking for marketing information and don’t want results that have the term “sales” in them. Type in Marketing -Sales, and Google will return marketing results without sales. Note: don’t have a space between – and the term you want to exclude.
  • Search similar. If you’re looking for a topic and would also like to search for similar words, put a ~ in your search. e.g., “~Business”. Google will return business results as well as results for synonyms.
  • Search between dates. To find results for something over a period of time put the dates separated by “..” (two periods) e.g., “1999 ..2012”
  • Wildcard search. A wildcard is used to substitute a word in your search. Google has designated * as the wild card. When you enter a wildcard, Google will essentially fill in the blank.
  • Define:. For words you don’t know the meaning of, you can have the definition comeback as the number one result by entering “define: word”.
  • Think like a website. It’s best to not ask questions when you’re searching for something. Rather, look for the results. If have back pain and enter, “My back hurts. What’s a good pain reliever?” You’ll find the result, but it may take a few pages of searching. You should instead enter: “Back pain reliever”.

With these search methods you’ll be able to find the information you want quicker. For more tips on how to use Google Search, and other Google apps, to their maximum potential please contact us.

The Growing Popularity of Music-Streaming Services

May 18th, 2012 dsparks

Many of us get our entertainment, news, and pay our bills online. So, it’s not a shock that we access our music over the Internet as well. Many individuals subscribe to on-line music-streaming services that are either free or cost money. The benefits are many. People don’t have to copy their music files onto different devices and they can listen to it anywhere they have internet access.

So we thought we would share with you some information about a few of the more common streaming services:

Pandora: Pandora has been around awhile, and it is very popular. It’s clear to see why: it is simple. After navigating to the website, type in the name of a song or artist you enjoy and Pandora will create a radio station based upon that information. It chooses songs by artists with a comparable sound. As you tune in to your station you can select the thumbs up or thumbs down symbol on the songs and Pandora will tailor your station based on this new information. In addition, you can “seed” you station with different artists to further customize it. You can tune in to Pandora without setting up an account but in order to save your stations, you need to create an account.

Grooveshark: This streaming service is much like Pandora, in that it creates a customized “radio” station based upon your musical tastes. You do not have to create an account to enjoy Grooveshark, or to build your own playlists. However, should you wish to save your information, you need to create one. One benefit of Grooveshark is that you are able to listen to whole albums instead of a station you created. One of the most exciting features of Grooveshark is that users can add their own music if the Grooveshark database doesn’t have what they’re looking for.

Rhapsody: Rhapsody’s appeal is based on its huge database of music: more the 14 million songs. Sadly, this service is not free, it is $10 a month for unlimited music.

Spotify: Spotify is one of the most widely known music-streaming services out there. After its release in 2008, it expanded rapidly. Spotify has a simple to use interface. You can enjoy entire albums, decide to create a “radio” station based on your tastes, or create playlists that you can share with other Spotify users. This is attractive to those who enjoy the nostalgia of creating mix tapes. Many people love Spotify’s integration with Facebook. By utilizing the Facebook app, Spotify creates a running list of what you are playing day by day. You can also see what your Facebook friends are listening too, in real-time.

Top 10 Reasons to Use Virtualization

May 17th, 2012 dsparks

Virtualization refers to the ability to run software designed for different operating systems on the same machine without the need to dual-boot. Instead, several operating systems can be run on a single machine using virtualization software, each having their own virtual space and allocation of system resources. Virtualization makes it easy to test software across different platforms for consistency and compatibility, but there are uses for this kind of software for any kind of business of any size. Keep reading to learn about ten of the most important benefits associated with using virtualization software.

Saving money- is considered to be the main benefit behind the software, and you will be surprised how much you can save.

Multiple operating systems- can be installed on one server, providing you with a tidy and space efficient working environment.

Reducing your hardware- Every business appreciates saving money; and virtualization allows businesses to do more with less.

Consolidating servers- will reduce your business’ server maintenance costs.

Reducing the physical space needed- will ensure your workplace is less cluttered and a better environment to work in.

Flexibility- will be provided when using the virtualization software.

Full support- is something you will receive, which frees up staff to work on more profitable tasks.

Downtime - will be reduced with virtualization software in place.

Fewer personnel- are needed with this system, allowing businesses to reduce costs without compromising on quality.

Expansion- is possible when you can focus more on other areas of your business.

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