Week 5: Clear

Chart for presentations. Created by Jose C. Silva.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/josecamoessilva/6029395579/lightbox/

I thought the concept that was made clear this week was the effective presentation part specifically the information on duarte.com. Duarte had five key rules for making effective presentations they are treat your audience as kings, spread ideas and move people, help them see what your saying, practice design not decoration, and cultivate healthy relationships. Too often in presentations the focus is on telling the audience the information as opposed to painting a picture in the audience’s mind as to what the meaning behind your concept truly is.  Practicing design and not decoration refers to when it comes to designing your project everything that is visually a part of your presentation has to having meaning and importance to the message you are trying to convey.

Making effective presentations is very important in the business environment. No matter what field you work in, you will have to be able to convey your ideas in the a manner that better both your company and yourself. My dad who is in charge of the Southeast division of his company often listens to presentations from the Project managers that work for him. Presentations are also a good way for bosses to judge your enthusiasm for the company or to show enthusiasm for an individual idea that your think is important. A poor presentation cans signal a lack of enthusiasm and work ethic that is necessary for succeeding in the business environment.

I found an additional article online that contains more tips on effective presentations. The article contains some eighteen tips for effective presentations so I will explain some of the bigger points. The 10-20-30 rule implies that each presentation should only contain ten slides, not exceed a length of twenty minutes, and not have a font size of less than thirty. The 20-20 rule maintains that you should have twenty slides each last exactly twenty seconds. This keeps your presentation entertaining and keeps your points concise. Here is the link to the article: 

http://www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/18-tips-for-killer-presentations.html

           

Week 4: Clear

Photo by Ralf Beuker. http://www.flickr.com/photos/ralfbeuker/3459877292/lightbox/

This week I thought the concept that was clear this week was the operational effectiveness concept. Operational effectiveness is doing the same task better than rivals do it. One of the problems with implementing this strategy is the possibility of sameness. Meaning that instead of taking a risk and coming up with something new you manufacture or create the same idea as a rival company and don’t differentiate you.

            This concept is paramount in the business environment. However, I think it is only useful for getting your foot in the door in the business environment. Once you are competitive within your business industry, then you can take a chance and develop something unique from your rivals. If your new idea fails then you can go back to what made you a success. If Bill Gates and Microsoft hadn’t focused on software as opposed to hardware like Apple then Microsoft wouldn’t be as valuable as it is today.

            I found an article that explains how operational effectiveness has to be combined with the right strategy in order to be truly effective. You have to be at least as good as your competitors, or the right strategy won’t help you. However, once you rise to the level of your competitors then you can begin to implement your strategy. Here is the link to article: http://www.realisation.com.au/site1/Articles/Operational%20effectiveness.htm

Week 3: Clear

Photo courtesy of mayhem. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mayhem/2939259129/lightbox/

        This week, the concept that was made clear to me, was the lecture on server hardware. There are several different server operating systems that people use, they are Windows, Linux, and Unix. I have heard Linux mentioned quite often before and now I know why, unlike the other server operating systems Linux is free. There is also different kinds of server software you can use depending on what type of server you are running. For an email server you would use Microsoft Exchange. For a web server you can use Apache, which is an open-source web server that is free or you can pay for Microsoft IIS.  For a database server, you could use Microsoft SQL or ORACLE both of which cost money or you can go the cheap route and get MySQL for free.

           In the business environment knowing the server operating system and the server software you need is paramount to running a smooth business. Once you have your business you can make the decision whether you want to have a free operating system like Linux or pay for the services of Windows server. Then you need to decide what type or types of server software you need whether it’s database, email or a web server. Then it comes time to choose the specific server software for the type of software you chose, which is also based on your business need.

            I found an article that looks at the five best home server software on the market. This article explains the technical prowess as well as the affordability of the five server software programs. It also breaks down the strengths and weaknesses of the software programs. The software programs represented in the article are FreeNas, Ubuntu Server Edition, Apache, Debian, and Windows Home Server. Here's the link http://lifehacker.com/5162026/best-home-server-software

Week 2: Clear

This photo is courtesy of  onekell and has some rights reserved.  

This week the concept  I found that the most clear and useful concept was rom the lecture on ergonomics. Ergonomics is the study of how our body reacts to the strains brought on by our work environments. The study of Ergonomics has pointed out several ways that people can improve their health in front of the computer screen. The most helpful rule I learned was the 20/20 rule, which maintains that you should remove your eyes from the screen every twenty minutes and focus on something at least 20 feet away to avoid excessive eye strain. Another helpful tip is to keep your back straight while working at your computer this will reduce strain on your back and neck. Also be careful that when using your mouse that you move your whole are and not just your wrist to avoid pain and ailments such as carpal tunnel.

Ergonomics is very important in the  business environment because it will allow you to be productive for longer period of time. The bad habits that we develop sitting in front of our computers is preventable. Not taking the time to correct habits like slouching, excessive eye strain, and making sure your feet are on the floor is selfish. Not only are you physically hurting yourself, but the company you work for as well. Over time the ailments you suffer from these bad habits will force you to take extended absences from work for a remedy. Taking the proper precautions will allow you to perform better at your job and it will keep you physically in much better condition.

One webpage that I found helpful for improving my poor computer habits was on the OSHA (Occupational and Health Administration) website. It provides a checklist that you can use to gauge whether your work setup is ergonomically correct. The checklist ranges from your sitting posture to your computer setup. Probably the best part about this checklist is that it is from OSHA who have done research on the proper work environment. http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/computerworkstations/checklist.html.

This week I found a photo that properly illustrated ergonomics I used creative commons content from flickr. The photograph was taken by onekell. Here is the url: http://www.flickr.com/photos/onekell/2570057391/lightbox/