November 2007 - Posts
Plenty of people find User Account Control (UAC) a bit annoying - Like Paul at Accendo for example. However, I think it is worth living with. Yes, it is slightly annoying, but generally I'm anticipating the prompt when it does happen, either because I clicked on a button displaying the Shield icon or I just launched a program install. In other words, I know what action led to the UAC prompt being displayed. In my mind there is a clear cause-and-effect. If I ever see that prompt and I wasn't expecting it, then alarm bells are ringing in my head and I'm very reluctant to click OK - so it does work.
However, there is a greater benefit to the IT professional and the normal business user. UAC can be used to enforce change control. End users no longer need to run with Admin permissions, nor do they need to be a member of the Power Users group, which is almost as bad. Where I have deployed Windows Vista PCs, I generally leave the users as exactly that - standard users. Now, whereas before the computers I supported were festooned with toolbars, screensavers and other funky add-ons, the Vista PCs I deployed in March/April are still squeaky clean and their reliability index is about 9.9. Have you looked at the reliability monitor from your end-users PCs? If they are running with admin rights, I'll bet you the reliability index is nowhere near 9. The reason for this is simply UAC. My end users are made to understand that whenever they see the UAC prompt, they are about to do something potentially damaging and they must enter administrator credentials to proceed. In other words, they have to keep me in the loop. I tell them that they can have whatever software they need but UAC is there to protect them and they have to call me to approve the installation. I keep a disabled account in Active Directory that is a member of Domain Admins. When someone calls me I remote into the server and enable the account for just long enough for the person to respond to the UAC prompt. This relatively painless procedure really makes end users think twice about installing frivolous software that they don't really need and it keeps the computers clean, lean and mean.
So I am a firm advocate of keeping UAC turned on - for home and business users alike. For IT Pros and home users, it is really not that much trouble and it could well save your bacon one day. For business use, it is a great disincentive for end users installing software willy nilly and helps to keep the network problem free.
Here's a great tip I picked up at the Microsoft Roadshow 2007 a few days ago. For new users of Office 2007 there is an add-in you can download that adds a new Getting Started tab to the ribbon. The new ribbon contains links to all sorts of online training and demos plus the interactive guides that help transition from the old menu-and-toolbar style user interface. Add-ins are available for Word 2007, PowerPoint 2007 and Excel 2007.
After what seems like forever (I've been beta testing since May 2006), Microsoft Office Accounting 2008 is finally available in the UK, along with the Microsoft Professional Accountants’ Network (MPAN). The basic (yet capable) edition is free to download and use while the professional edition costs £149.99. You can see a review here.
I believe that this will be an important product release that is going to really shake up the accounting industry. It will be interesting to see how the likes of Sage and Quickbooks respond to a competitor whose product is free.
If you use LinkedIn, and you are a Small Business Specialist then join the SBSC group and display the Small Business Specialist logo on your LinkedIn profile.
It costs nothing, generates no spam and will display your SBSC affiliation to your LinkedIn network of contacts.
Join here
Richard Tubb (blog | website) has kindly volunteered to help me manage the group, so new membership requests should be processed in double-quick time now.
If you don't yet use LinkedIn, then you might want to give it a try. Again, it is free, generates no spam and might help your business. Definitely download the Outlook toolbar which is a really nice piece of software. Go ahead and invite me to your network.
The Windows Live 2008 suite has been released with its new integrated installer. My earlier fears that Microsoft might be neglecting 64-bit systems have turned out to be unfounded and this latest release has installed flawlessly on my Windows Vista Ultimate x64 system. Nice one, Microsoft.
I couldn't possibly do a better job than Richard Evans in describing the impact that Robbie Upcroft has had on the UK Small Business Specialist Community. Richard mentions meeting Robbie for the first time at the inaugural meeting of SBS Midlands, here is a photo taken at that auspicious occasion (click for full size image). Robbie is the handsome fellow at the far right, I am two to the left in a maroon shirt with my wife Grace; Richard Evans is behind the camera taking the photo. My lasting impression of Robbie will be following him through the west end of London with his umbrella held aloft, leading an unruly pack of SBS Group Leaders like something out of Mary Poppins. It has been a little quieter and slightly less interesting in SBS land ever since Robbie moved on to a new role.
I learned this evening that tomorrow is The Bob's last day at Microsoft UK and that he'll be returning to his homeland of Australia. Before you go Robbie, I just would like to say thanks for everything you did for us Small Business Specialists. Especially, thanks for not taking life too seriously - it was fun knowing you. You changed the world, now you're going home.
Never mind, its a small planet. I hope to see you around it somewhere, but we'll always be together, forever in electric dreams.