Newsletter
Volume 1, Issue 6, June 2020
Tech Gifts for Father’s Day
Many of us have an annual scramble for a great Father’s Day gift – we are hoping that our newsletter can help you out. We polled the staff at BEI and here are our suggestions.
Summer Comfort and Fun
In the season of pools and boating, adding the waterproof feature to a Bluetooth speaker is pretty sweet. This Sunscreenr UV Camera will let him know where he missed or where the sunscreen has worn off! And for the Dad in your life who is battling the heat and even allergies, this Dyson Pure Cool Me might be just the ticket.
Life in the Woods
For Dads who love camping, this camping stove will also charge your phone! Or maybe this headlamp that will last for 40 hours on a charge, and can be recharged using a micro USB connection. Or, a portable Espresso machine for a caffeine jolt in the wild!
Laptop and Cable Management
For techie Dads who want to add a bit of natural design consider this laptop stand made of oak or walnut. Or this lovely cable and charger organizer. Next, if Dad wants a laptop stand but is a fan of funky design, this flexible laptop stand might be his choice. Finally, for Dads who like to work on the couch but need to keep everything charged up, this couch charging unit is easy to hide under the couch cushion!
Keeping Techie Dads in Shape
If Dad wants to exercise while working on the laptop, this under desk seated elliptical will help him keep in shape for summer! For the gym, his fingerprint sensor lock might mean he doesn’t have to remember a combination or bring a key! Finally, this jump rope displays Dad’s fitness data in mid-air as he jumps!
Microsoft 365 Licensing Audit
The plethora of Office 365 licensing options can result in some inefficiencies – paying too much or taking advantage of too little. We offer a free Microsoft 365 licensing audit to make sure you’re optimizing your spend! However, if you’re not ready for an audit feel free to review these articles on Microsoft 365 Suites and Understanding and Optimizing Microsoft 365 Licensing.
Working from Home – Technology Policies Ease the Way
Many organizations made a speedy transition to working remotely in late March. Now we are all think about coming back to the office (in most cases slowly and in small numbers). Therefore, it may be time to consider the policies and procedures that will make working remotely successful in the long-term. BEI’s IT Security Portal includes many policy and procedure documents that can be easily customized, and we offer a couple here that may be useful. Remote Work Guidelines considers staff-owned devices connecting to the corporate network and provides standards that should be followed. The BYOD policy focuses on protecting Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and sensitive company data that may be stored on employee owned devices.
Lunchtime Webinars with BEI
If you have 15-30 minutes to spare at lunchtime, we’d love to have you join our monthly lunchtime webinars. Generally speaking they are targeted toward end user (translate – not technical!) these are designed to help you conquer technical issues and save time. Upcoming are:
We record all of the webinars and have posted them for you to watch at your leisure!
Microsoft Teams – Tips and Tricks
We recently did a lunchtime webinar on Microsoft Teams, and thought we’d pass along some of our favorite tips:
Turn off Incoming Video
Having trouble with the call because your wifi is just too busy? Or is your laptop or phone low on power and there’s no charger in sight? If this is the case click on the 3 ellipses on the Teams Control Task Bar (#5 to the right) and select “Turn off Incoming Video”.
Change or Blur Your Background
Do you have a messy room or are worried about your kids/spouse/roommates wandering in and out of your meeting? Given that, you can either blur your background or substitute another background. Then use the same 3 ellipses above and select “Show Background Effects”. Ultimately we expect that Microsoft will support custom backgrounds soon, but for now you have a choice of 10 or so backgrounds.
Live Captions
This can be a useful tool for many reasons. Just use our favorite 3 ellipses referred to above and select “Turn on Live Captions.”
Make a Test Call
It is so much better to do your trouble shooting before your call! With this in mind, in the upper right corner of your screen, there is a round icon, with either your photo or initials. Frequently it is controlled by your IT department. When you click on that round icon you’ll see SETTINGS. To make a test call use (Settings > Devices > Make a Test Call).
For more tips and tricks see our Webinar or check out this site.
