Archive for 2009

So, who is supposed to pick up the load when the Chryslers and GMs of the world are failing? Well, that is you and me. But not how the government is currently doing it. Right now we are trying to rescue the economy by rescuing the businesses that caused a lot of the current economic troubles. But there is another way….

Enter Tech Ranch in Austin, Texas. Tech Ranch is aimed at helping the economy recover by concentrating in another area: the high tech startup. Yes, we’ve already seen a huge crash in this area back in the late 90s. However, the reasons for that are well-known and also avoidable. That is what Tech Ranch does. It trains high tech entrepreneurs to not only get their business off the ground but also to make it through those rough first 5 years.

For more information check out:

Entrepreneurs optimistic about Austin’s high-tech industry

Straight from the horses mouth:

“Want a free 1-year digital subscription to Linux Journal? This is your lucky week. Watch the daily Tech Tip videos this week and collect the secret letters hosts Shawn Powers and/or Mitch Frazier announce during the videos each day. Come this Friday, unscramble the letters to reveal the secret word(s). Everyone with the correct answer who responds by 11:59:59PM U.S. Eastern Standard Time March, Friday 13th, 2009 wins a free digital subscription to Linux Journal — it’s that easy!

Follow this link for further contest details, and good luck!”

OR: Follow this link straight to the source: http://is.gd/myDy

I just read an interesting article over at AllFinancialMatters.com. The gist of the issue is this: how should the government pay for new roads and to repair existing roads? Currently this is done mostly through a tax on gas. The new plan calls for an over 50% raise in this tax. But that is not all…oh no…that is not all…

The powers that be are also looking at a “technology based” method of tracking how many miles you drive in your car and then taxing you on that. What type of device would this be? A GPS? An odometer recorder? I really don’t know, but I am against it.

Of course, with more fuel efficient cars on the road, the gas tax is a system of diminishing returns.

Here is a link to the full article:

I HATE This Idea: Taxing Drivers By the Mile.

How do you think we should pay for new roads and repairs?

2 Weeks ago Candy launched her new web-site “2 Minutes With A VA”. The questions keep pouring in! If you have a question for Candy or Tom, or just a general VA type question head over to www.2minuteswithava.com and let us hear from you!

Here is a link to the PRWeb press release:

Successful Virtual Assistant Launches Interactive Blog to Help Industry Newbies

Too lazy to run down to the IRS office? Too cheap to buy a copy of Turbo Tax? Think that the H&R; Block lady is a spy for the Commies? Then here is the IRS form for you:

“Just in time for tax season, Glenn Reeves of Burlington, Kansas has created a free Microsoft Excel-based version of the 2008 U.S. Individual Tax Return, commonly known as Form 1040. The spreadsheet includes both pages of Form 1040, as well as these supplemental schedules.”

Get the full scoop over at accountingweb.com:

Free Microsoft Excel-based 1040 form available

(this story is shared with permission)

I get some weird stuff in bookkeeping. I mean, like, really weird stuff… but today… well, today is my birthday and apparently one of my favorite clients gave me the most awesome gift ever. Laughter. I just can’t stop. And the more I think about it, the more I can’t stop laughing.

See, one of my clients is Linux Journal. A cool group of geeks that keep me on toes with some of the oddest stuff… I am a semi-geek, but mostly I’m a numbers geek that really likes my computer and gadets. So yeah, I fit right in, but sometimes… sometimes…

I get an IM from the publisher that basically said “I need to send Wil Wheaton an Atari. Can we send a paypal out for it?”.

Um. Okay. We can surely do that, of course… but no, I had to ask… I knew of Wil Wheaton, I mainly knew he played one of the kids in Stand By Me, but I knew he did something else super geeky… so of course I ask “Why are we sending the Stand By Me kid an Atari?”

Right about now, I’m thinking this conversation is getting really weird. I look up Wil on IMDB and realize he’s also a Star Trek actor. Makes a little more sense now, but still…

See, apparently Wil and Shawn Powers over at LJ are having an Atari-off at PenguinCon and Linux Journal is a sponsor.

Okay, so that makes sense, we are sending the Star Trek guy an Atari so he can play with the editor guy at a geek convention.

The best part? The receipt I got from them… it said, “Wil Wheaton’s Atari receipt. I have no idea where you’ll book this one. ”

Oy.

A few years back I heard of some people that where attempting to turn your web browser into a second operating system on your computer. Basically, all of your programs would be opened through your browser. Your files could be easily stored and line and retrieved from anywhere. Additionally, it was the perfect collaborative environment.

Google Docs is probably the best implementation of an online office suite I’ve seen (please don’t shoot me if you have your own favorite.) But there are several others out there. But I ran across something last night that gets me excited on one hand and really scared on the other.

You see, computers have come a long way over the last 3 decades. What was once the domain of high-end, specially designed PC can now be done on any PC and inside of a browser window to boot. One of the reasons for this rapid increase in computing power has nothing to do with business, and everything to do with entertainment.

Computer games are the number one force pushing for faster and more powerful computers. So, it would make sense that it would be only a short while till computer games followed the office into the browser window.

Ok, ok, you got me. Games have been available in browsers for a long time. Popcap and other casual games have long been available via the web. But when was the last time you saw a First Person Shooter aimed at the hardcore gamer in your web browser?

Id Software is bringing back one of its flagship franchises. Quake 3 was originally released at the turn of the century. It is one of the most popular “Arena Shooters” of all time. It is now available in your browers. Any browser. On any computer. For free.

This new service is called Quake Live and can be accessed at www.quakelive.com just be ready for a bit of a wait.

So why does this scare me? I tried to give it a test run last night. It was prime time, and there was a wait to get onto there servers. There was around 2500 people in from on me. I ended up just going to bed and thought I’d give it a try later.

Turns out, I left my browser window open. When I came back to the computer at 10 a.m. this morning, the browser window had timed out and I hit “Reload” thinking I’d download the files and try it later. I couldn’t believe it: There were now 35,000 people in front of me. During the work day. Either a lot of people took the day off, or they found a new office time waster.

Yet another site for the office IT guy/gal to block from the corporate network.

So when was the last time you really created something new? Yesterday? Last week? Last year? It is easy to fall into a slump and just go on with things how they are. After all, it is comfortable. Change is hard. And creativity can feel like something from the deep dark past of your childhood.

Well, Scott Ginsberg has done it again. This post at HELLO My name is BLOG! really struck me as important:

17 Ways to Out-Create Your Competition

I really is important to bring some new and fresh to the world. It keeps your current customer interested, and maybe someone that passed on your services in the past will give them a go this time around. Don’t feel comfortable with a lot of change at one time? Start small and work from there.

Now where did I put that construction paper and glue….

Over the years, and a little more of late, we have heard a few clients say “But I can get it for $3 from a VA in India.” We’ve always smiled, and explained our level of service, and then moved on to clients with more realistic expectations.

Kimberly Alderman over at Lawyer On! has done a terrific job of summing up her experience with VA’s based out of India. She also talks briefly about similar experiences with “VA’s” in the United States.

Check out the article here:

Mamtha and Me: My foray into Indian outsourcing

In the past the deadline for investors to receive their 1099-B’s was January 31. Beginning this year the deadline is now February 15. However, the 15th falls on a Sunday, and the 16th is a federal holiday. So be looking in your mailbox on Tuesday the 17th for those tax documents.

For more information check out:

For Many Investors, Year-End Forms to Arrive Later