Time Change: Non-Critical Projects on Hold

As you know new Time Zones have been issued for the United States due to a change in Daylight Saving Time. All the gruesome details were in our newsletter so I won't repeat them here but I did want to inform you that because of all of the changes we have to make to servers, workstations and applications that all non-critical projects are being placed on hold. Because an error on a single machine can prevent the new time zones from installing correctly on the whole network, the amount of troubleshooting time is so significant that there is simply not enough time to allocate to any non-critical projects.

In addition, as a fail safe, I'd recommend that when scheduling appointments using Outlook Calendar, Exchange Public Calendar, or Sharepoint (Companyweb) Calendar between March 11th and April 1st, that you add the time of the appointment to the Subject line. For Example, instead of:

Subject: Accountant Meeting

You would enter:

Subject: Accountant Meeting 10:00am

This way by comparing the appointment time on the calendar with the appointment time listed in the subject line, you'll be able to verify that your time zone is set correctly. If someone you are sending an appointment to, does not have their time zone setup correctly, they will be able to verify the correct appointment time by looking at your subject line. Hopefully people sending you appointments will do the same so you'll be able to verify the time with them as well.

Phishing for Cheap Office 2007 and Vista

Lately we've been seeing a lot of scam spam around the recently released Microsoft Office 2007 and Windows Vista. You'll recognize it by the subject line "Ready for Download". The email then does a decent job describing the new features (incorrectly but it sounds good none the less) and makes you an amazing offer.

"Upgrade from your current edition of Microsoft Windows XP or Windows 2000 (including Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home, Windows XP Media Center, Windows XP Tablet PC, Windows XP Professional x64, Windows 2000) Windows Vista Business Upgrade (DVD-ROM) Retail Price $299.00 Our Price $79.95 You save $219.05"

Wow, you can save $219.05 per copy of Vista! Everyone else must be ripping us off! The Internet is a wonderful invention! What a deal! Almost seems too good to be true! Wait, it is too good to be true. First you have to know that the margin on hardware and software is so slim that there's very little variation in price anywhere ever.

When you click on the link given in the email to purchase the software you are first taken to a website with the text of the email you just clicked. You are then asked to click another link that takes you to wwwDotpozdravloemDotcom. The website looks good.

At this point there are one of two things or maybe both happening. You can purchase and download a pirated copy of the software. They'll take your credit card information and sell it, along with your ID.

Not only do you have pirated software that may or may not work. Your credit card has been "stolen". And to make matters worse if caught with illegal software the fine is up to $150,000 per copy you've installed. This is definately not a bargain.

If it's looks too good to be true, it is. Computer software and hardware never hits the bargain racks. They will never be on sale for 70% off today only. The margin just isn't there. If they are offering you a price that is too good to be true there's a reason for it and you're the one that will get stuck holding the bag.

Sage Product Alert for Vista

Important Information regarding Sage Software Products Compatibility with Microsoft® Windows Vista™

Effective January 30th, the Vista operating system is generally available to new and existing PC users. The currently shipping versions of Sage BusinessWorks, Sage MAS 90, Sage MAS 200, Sage MAS 500 ERP systems as well as Sage MAS 200 – SQL Server Edition are not fully compatible with the Vista operating system. It is important to note that the compatibility issues with Vista are not isolated to Sage’s accounting software, but Vista also impacts many of Sage’s third-party products that they leverage to deliver a best-in-class mid-market ERP solution including Crystal Reports® from Business Objects and Microsoft FRx.

The Sage BusinessWorks and MAS Product Teams are currently evaluating their third party products and complementary Sage Software Solutions for a definitive timeline on full compatibility and certification on the Vista operating system. Sage is scheduled to release a Vista Compatibility update on March 1, 2007. This compatibility update and any other Vista related information will be passed on to you as we receive it.

FAQs:
What does Sage Software recommend I do?
We encourage all customers to wait on upgrading to Vista until we can offer full support for Vista including all our third party and complementary products later this calendar year. For any new computer purchases, we recommend that customers request Windows XP Professional.


Thank you for your commitment to Atlantic Software Alliance and to Sage Software. Should you have any questions please contact our helpdesk at 704.283.0311 Option # 3. We welcome the opportunity to serve you further.
Best Regards,