Mission IT in the Austin American Statesman

Patrick Caldwell from the Austin American Statesman blogs: Mission IT Hires New CIO

OS change in the air? Consider giving yourself an early Christmas present.

From 2001 to 2007, I supported countless numbers of installs of Windows XP Pro for small and medium sized businesses in Austin. In 2003, I built my current home computer, which is still running the original installation of Windows XP Pro. Few businesses will see a workstation last as long as my home workstation, which is still running after 6 years of use (I backup it up frequently and I spent about twice as much as the average business spends on a workstation). Windows XP Pro has proven itself as an operating system with a long shelf life. Windows XP succeeded in simplifying the installation process, improved system stability, while offering enhanced multimedia experiences and was easily managed when deployed with Microsoft Windows Server 2000/2003.

In the summer of 2007, I purchased my first Apple computer, a white Macbook. I needed a laptop for home and I had always wanted to learn more about Apple operating systems. The deal was sealed by the fact that this new Macbook would accept an installation of Windows XP Pro. In the back of my head I thought, “Hey if this Apple OS is trash, I’ll still be able to run Windows XP Pro, what do I have to lose?” It’s funny to think that Windows XP Pro sold me on purchasing a Mac. I performed an aftermarket upgrade of the memory and hard drive on the Macbook, increasing the initial cost well above what I would have paid for a comparable Vista Laptop. I configured the laptop for dual boot, so I could run either Mac OS X or Windows XP Pro. Immediately, I found myself comfortable with the Mac OS, and to this day I rarely have to run anything in Windows for my personal life. The Mac has not been without its problems. The Macbook was more costly, it runs very hot, and I went through a motherboard replacement process with Fry’s Electronics that took over 8 weeks to complete. Fry’s sold me on their warranty over Apple’s Applecare warranty, specifically pointing out how they will provide a loaner Mac if my Macbook ever needed repairs that would take longer than 24 hours. To Fry’s credit, when my Macbook motherboard failed, they provided a less powerful loaner Macbook for the entire time, which took some of the sting away. Lesson learned, even a Macbook can fail, it’s just a laptop. When I compare how Dell repairs laptops in the field the very next day, Fry’s/Apple don’t come close to that level of warranty support.

Perhaps you’ve heard, Microsoft has released its latest OS Windows 7. I’ve been running Windows 7 Ultimate on my work laptop, a Dell Vostro 1510, which is qualified as Vista compatible since April of this year. I’ve performed multiple installs of the Windows 7 to different hardware and I run it as a VM on my Macbook. The install process is very easy, though prepare yourself for at least a 1-2 hour process. After using Windows 7 for a month, it became clear that I may not be purchasing another Mac for personal use. Windows 7 performs so well in my opinion on a laptop that I don’t see a compelling reason to buy another Apple laptop. Some of the Apple software is cool, but you can get the same function out of free software available for Windows. One thing that always bugged me about Windows XP on laptops was trying to get Windows XP to reliably hibernate or sleep. For most of my customers using Windows XP on a laptop, I would tell them, “Make sure you don’t rely on sleep or hibernate, just completely shutdown Windows XP when you are done using your laptop.” With Windows 7, I’ll hibernate my laptop daily for weeks without issue. I think the improvements to the task bar in Windows 7 are wonderful, and the overall speed is great for running Outlook, Excel, Word, Practice Management Software and three web browsers all at once. Everything I need to do for my job runs great on Windows 7, no problems with applications or drivers. After almost switching sides to Apple completely for home and office, Microsoft you’ve sold me on Windows again. So I say confidently, tis the season for Windows 7.

- by Bradley Herzing, Mission IT

Want to learn more about Windows 7? Here are two Windows 7 reviews worth reading:

http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/12/windows-7-review/

http://gizmodo.com/5330609/windows-7-review-you-can-quit-complaining-now

Samuel Yontz Joins Mission IT!

We are proud and excited to announce that Samuel Yontz, a veteran of over 10 years in the Information Technology industry, has recently joined our team as our new CIO.

Among the goals Samuel has for our technical team are: 1) Ensure that we are beating the response times established in our SLAs, 2) Standardize client documentation, 3) Better understand client expectations and to ensure we are exceeding them, 4) Research and implement service and support offerings that will help our clients grow their business.

Samuel‟s experience includes working in technologies ranging from telephony to enterprise integration. Most recently, Samuel led the technology team which helped grow a vendor/property management company from $86 million to nearly a $350 million company in less than two years. At the same time, the company grew from 196 to 570 employees. The company also experienced a profit margin growth from 22% to 33%. Prior to that, Samuel was a key player in the technology success of the Dell battery program, which was the largest electronics recall in history. This affected over 11 million computers and set records for most used website globally.

Samuel's technology accomplishments include areas, such as, server implementation, various storage technologies, telephony integration, web hosting, enterprise networking, and disaster recovery. Also, Samuel earned and holds numerous certifications which covers a wide range of technologies.

Please join us in welcoming Samuel to the Mission IT team.

Employee of the Month

Reis Gibson was again recognized by his teammates as our Employee of the Month. The award certificate recognized Reis for his role as part of the front lines of our customer support. Reis demonstrates empathy, attention to detail, and professionalism in everything he does for our valued clients. Congratulations Reis!

Mission I.T. at the 10th Annual ALA Expo!

Mission I.T. will be at the ALA Expo, Thursday, August 13th. Come by our booth to visit with Beau Edge and Shane Sharpe. Beau and Shane can tell you about our support solutions and do an "apples to apples" comparison of your current situation.

See here for more details: Welcome to the ALA Austin Chapter Website

Employee of the Month

Reis Gibson, one of our newest teammates, was named Employee of the Month at our recent company meeting. Included in the nomination was the following, "Reis has immediatley become and important part of our organization. He exhibits our Core Values on a daily basis and has demonstrated his commitment to outstanding customer service for our client."

Congratulations Reis!

Addition to our Team!

We are happy to welcome Reis Gibson to our Mission I.T. technical team. Reis began his career by serving our country in the U.S. Navy as an Electronics Technician (ET). He worked on several large systems (namely the AN-SRQ4) aboard the U.S.S. Halyburton (FFG-41) out of Mayport, FL.

He was initially interested in computers but electronic engineering intrigued him as well. After a while, Reis transitioned over to the I.T. world, where he learned the basics of Windows NT administration, Exchange 5.5, and HP-UX systems.

From there, he left the military and began teaching A+ and N+ at Fasttrain, an I.T. school based in Florida. As Reis grew there, he took on additional teaching roles of MCP, MCSA, MCSE, and CCNA. He continued growing professionally and then worked for Google as a Field Technician / Systems Administrator.

The road has brought Reis back to Austin, Texas and we are excited for our team and clients that Reis Gibson is a valuable member of our Mission I.T. team. Please join us in welcoming Reis!