Allegheny B&B – August 2011 Meeting

Our August meeting took place in Jewish Residential Services’ lovely meeting room at Rodef Shalom in Shadyside.  A big thanks to Paula and JRS staff for hosting us!  Our next meeting will take place on Wednesday, September 7 at the same location from 8:30-10 a.m.  Visit the 2011 Bagels & Bytes Meeting Calendar for more information.

We had a great turnout!  Topics and resources from the meeting include:

Webinar Software

• ReadyTalk
• GoToMeeting
• Jigsaw Meeting

Fundraising Software

• DonorPro (noted: get an actual person on phone in support calls, smooth data conversion process, integrates with Constant Contact and OpenOffice)
• Raiser’s Edge (noted: pricey, but cost can be brought down if you need a large # of licenses)
• Landslide CRM (noted: Johna L. provided contact info – Jami Strangio, Senior Sales Advisor, Landslide Technologies, jamis@landslide.com, phone 781-325-4880 x1012, cell 617-543-1550)
• Idealware.org has report on low-cost donor management software available for download

Data Record Retention

• How long to keep?
• On employees, 7 years by law
• On donors, generally kept forever
• There’s a balance to be struck between being too strict about data entered and too loose – the goal is good, but clean data.

Server Cleanup

• How to keep enough file space and backup space?
• Nose around, look at files, give notice to staff, delete.
• Keep adding space, not ideal?
• Can get external hard drives.
• Set space limits (file space and email accounts).
• Need to do more tech training/education with staff. Behavioral issue.
• Address with policy?
• Photo storage – cloud? Flickr?
• MosyPro – online backups.
• Network area storage – cloud, getting cheaper, easier to manage.

Upgrading to Windows 7

• Need to upgrade RAM first.
• Driver issues here and there, but not as many as when Win7 was first released.

Post-meeting, Michelle H. shared the following free webinar from Idealware on August 30:

“Ask the Expert: Low Cost Donor Management Tools

In partnership with Idealware, we recently published a detailed report comparing 29 different low cost donor management systems. The report provides an overview of what donor management systems do, recommendations for systems based on particular needs, comparison charts, and an index that provides summaries of all 29 systems.

This month’s Ask the Expert will offer members the chance to discuss and ask questions about selecting the right low cost donor database to the report’s authors: Andrea Berry and Jay Leslie. Moderating the Q&A discussion will be Robert Weiner, an expert on helping nonprofit organizations navigate the sea of donor databases. Join the live discussion on August 30th at 11 am PST/2 pm EST.  Register today, it’s free!”

Bagels & Bytes on a Boat 2011 – Event Photo Gallery

RiverQuest "Explorer"

Bagels & Bytes attendees deep in techie discussion

B&B is fun!

Sandy Sturgulewski of Family Resources won a door prize - free Bayer Center class!

Another door prize winner, Hanna Wilford of Ursuline Senior Services poses with her new Starbucks water bottle!

Finally, here's Randy Strothman of Randy Strothman & Associates and his door prize - a copy of "Switch" by Chip & Dan Heath!

An aerial shot of the group.

Bagels & Bytes on a Boat – June 2011

We held our third annual Bagels & Bytes on a Boat on Wednesday, June 8, 2011.  RiverQuest graciously permitted us to use their beautiful boat Explorer for our meeting.  We had a great turnout and a great time!

Here are resources from the meeting (photos will be uploaded in a separate post on this blog shortly):

• Places to buy equipment
• Best Buy Auction
• TigerDirect
• CDW
• Goodwill Store (still on South Side)
• Newegg.com
• E-cycling resources
• Construction Junction
• Goodwill Computer Recycling
• Allegheny Cleanways
• Other random topics of discussion:
• Wifi implementation
• Cisco switches tend to be more expensive, HP switches less so
• Sometimes worth it to pay more up front and have less issues later (less expensive doesn’t mean better deal necessarily)
• With Cisco, you have to install their wifi/switches if you ever plan to use a Cisco IP phone system
• Board meeting packets – electronic vs. paper
• Might use board portal software to pull this off
• Schneider Downs
• BoardEffect
• SharePoint
• Google Apps
• Perhaps issue Nooks, Kindles or iPads?
• Discuss with board to discern culture and willingness to go digital
• Listen and deal with security concerns
• Be sure to provide clear access instructions for board members

We have no B&B meeting in July, but will be back on Wednesday, August 3, at Rodef Shalom in Shadyside.  Have a great summer!

Allegheny B&B – May 2011 Meeting

This month we met for the last time this year at UCP/CLASS on Centre Avenue in Oakland.  Thank you once again to Michelle Hines and her crew for having us!

Here are notes and resources from the meeting:

Equipment Sourcing

• Techsoup
• Consistent Computer Bargains
• Miller Info Systems (local Shoretel/wiring vendor)
• IBM Lenovo Thinkpads
• Tempest laptops
• In addition, we discussed how equipment assignments are made.  Many orgs seem to have a procedure in place that is backed by policy.  Some orgs have staff sign for equipment and tech-related items, some don’t but think their org should be doing so.

Other Topics

• Aircards vs. Tethering your cellphone
• Blackberry Enterprise Server
• “The Switch” by Dan Heath
• Segmenting wi-fi
• Integrating phones and network
• Using Cisco certified vendors
• Having vendors demonstrate return on investment (ROI) in proposal process
• Strategic technology planning

On Wednesday, June 8 (8:30-10 am), we’ll have our annual “Bagels & Bytes on a Boat” meeting on RiverQuest’s docked boat Explorer!  Keep an eye on your email in the next few weeks for more information. 

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Get 2011 B&B meeting info and location/directions here.

Allegheny B&B – April 2011 Meeting

This month we met at UCP/CLASS on Centre Avenue in Oakland.  Thank you to Michelle Hines and her crew for having us!

Here are notes and resources from the meeting:

Software for human resources-related tasks

• Sage:  http://www.sagenorthamerica.com/
• Epicor:  http://www.epicor.com/
• SAP:  http://www.sap.com/
• Kronos:  http://www.kronos.com/
• Optimum Solutions:  http://www.optimum-solutions.com/
• Ultimate Software:  http://www.ultimatesoftware.com/
• PerfectSoftware:  http://www.perfectsoftware.com/
• MS Dynamics (used to be Great Plains):  http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics/default.aspx
• Millenium:  http://www.hrtechpartners.com/millennium.html

We noted that there are many commercial packages out there, but many are not suitable for nonprofits.  Johna Lingelbach from the Allegheny Conference shared a report that she obtained from http://www.business-software.com/HRM.

Other Discussion Items & Resources

• Application Xtender (for archiving):  http://www.emc.com/products/detail/software2/applicationxtender.htm
• Cloud Computing:
• Capital vs. operational budgeting/funding?
• Cost factors – # of servers, bandwidth, space needed
• End of life cycle for Access (has anyone heard?)
• What would replace it?
• SQL Management Studio Express (comes in SQL Server 2008)
• Can take a class on SQL at CCAC for $100, in their Ed-to-go courses
• SQL reporting
• Use the built-in Microsoft report writer
• Use Crystal Reports

We will meet next month at UCP/CLASS, 4638 Centre Ave., Pittsburgh,
on Wednesday, May 4, 2011.  Please join us!

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Get 2011 B&B meeting info and location/directions here.

Allegheny B&B – March 2011 Meeting

This month we met for the second and final time for this year at the Frick Art & Historical Center‘s Haller House.

Here are notes and resources from the meeting:

CRM / Databases

• Raiser’s Edge (noted as expensive, complex, and training intensive)
• DonorPro (noted as integrates w/Constant Contact, has lots of modules including silent auction and event management, and good support and training is provided)
• Aplicor CRM software (based in Florida)
• Sage ACT! CRM software

Social Media Policy

• We had a discussion on what is needed.  I located a good article post-meeting: http://www.nten.org/blog/2010/02/17/tips-writing-your-first-social-media-policy.
• There was an article in March 2011 TechNotes that touched on this topic, but primarily covered the insurance risk surrounding social media use and how to deal with that.
• In our discussion, we noted that social media use within a given organization depends on the culture from management down.  Management can often set an “unofficial” policy through example.

After the meeting, Johna Lingelbach from Allegheny Conference shared a resource for free videoconferencing/social networking called Concert-oh!.  I’ll try to get a demo of this for a near-future meeting if I can.

We will meet next month at UCP/CLASS, 4638 Centre Ave., Pittsburgh, on Wednesday, April 6, 2011.  Please join us!

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Get 2011 B&B meeting info and location/directions here.

Allegheny B&B – February 2011 Meeting Notes

This month we met for the first time at the Frick Art & Historical Center’s Haller House.  It’s quite a lovely campus, building, and meeting room!  Big thanks to Chris Chambers, Linda Buker, and the rest of the Frick staff for hosting us!

At the meeting, Bob Walker, a consultant from local tech company SynergIT, and Michelle Hines from UCP/CLASS gave us a demo of SharePoint.  They showed us UCP/CLASS’s old SharePoint site and the one that has been redeveloped (and about to launch) using SharePoint 2010.  Michelle shared some resources after the meeting:

 

• http://www.techsoup.org/learningcenter/software/page12701.cfm (Sharepoint for Nonprofits and Libraries)
• http://www.sharepointcommunity.com/default.aspx
• http://sp.meetdux.com/default.aspx
• http://blog.techsoup.org/node/1357 (SharePoint Server Learning Resources)

We will meet again at the Frick next month on Wednesday, March 2, 2011.  Please join us!

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Get 2011 B&B meeting info and location/directions here.

Allegheny B&B – November 2010 Meeting Notes

This month we met for the final time this year (holiday party notwithstanding), once again at ACHIEVA on the South Side. Thank you to Steve, Dave, and their staff for hosting us!

Here are the resources and links from the meeting:

• Tech culture discussion – what are our “ideals” for the tech culture at our nonprofits?
  • Having management and leadership that “get it,” realize the critical nature of IT, and validate that fact to other staff through their words and actions.  (We must continue to educate upper management that IT is a tool that can be used to help improve the agency.)
  • Technology is not an “afterthought” but is deliberately included in all planning endeavors.
  • Policies and procedures include IT.
  • Communication flows (how the information is transmitted to tech) are deliberate and concrete.
  • Tech staff (or accidental techies) have respect and credibility within the organization, something that is influenced partially by upper management.
  • Unhappy end users are dealt with so as to keep a positive and stable tech culture.
  • Technology management is proactive rather than reactive.
  • There is knowledge of the cost of IT, including direct and indirect costs.
• Post-meeting, Johna from Allegheny Conference shared some info on SharePoint:
  • Prequel Solutions – a Sharepoint vendor
• Dave from ACHIEVA emailed a few links:
  • WBS Builder (scroll down, last one on page) – a Visio plug-in that integrates Visio with MS Project
  • Pittsburgh Chapter of The Association of Information Technology Professionals (AITP)

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B&B HOLIDAY PARTY
Friday, December 3 from 1 – 4 p.m.

We will meet in the lobby of Dave & Buster’s in the Waterfront at 1 p.m., then take a group vote on where to have lunch, likely either at Dave & Buster’s or at the Rock Bottom Restaurant across the street.  After lunch, we’ll do a “tech” white elephant gift exchange, then go have some fun at Dave & Buster’s!  (The official invite will come out in the next week or so via email, so keep an eye out for that and remember to RSVP.)

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Get 2010 and 2011 B&B meeting info and location/directions here.

Allegheny B&B – October 2010 Meeting Notes

This month we met at ACHIEVA on the South Side. Thank you to Steve, Dave, and their staff for hosting us!

Here are the resources and links from the meeting:

• Dameware – remote desktop management software
• Emco – remote desktop management software
• What are “essential” computer skills for workers?
  • Debatable – possibly not a “general” list that could be compiled, changes per agency and per position.
  • Users must be molded and taught to use self-help first, check built-in software help or online.
  • To address training needs and gaps, could use wikis, training (which we all agreed is an H.R. issue), and professional development (also an H.R. issue).
  • A comment was made that the evolution of the technology function at nonprofit organizations seems to be following a similar path as that of the human resources function.  It took years, but for H.R. has finally been prioritized and recognized as a critical piece.  Tech is getting there, but still has a long way to go.
  • We techies must be advocates and educators about the importance of technology within our organizations.

Next month we will be meeting once again at ACHIEVA, from 8:30 – 10 a.m. on Wednesday, November 3.  Please join us!!

Get 2010 and 2011 B&B meeting info and location/directions here.

Allegheny B&B – September 2010 Meeting Notes

This was our last meeting for this year at Rodef Shalom in Shadyside.  (Off to ACHIEVA in the South Side for October through December.)

Here are the topics, resources, and links discussed during our September meeting:

• Where to have the B&B Holiday party in December?
  • The group agreed that touring the server room at one of the local casinos would be fun and interesting.  Several members are going to work some contacts and see if we can get in there.
  • Our second choice is Dave & Buster’s, but we agreed that we don’t want to eat there (will go to a restaurant nearby for lunch).

• How to dispose of older tech equipment?
  • Try to sell back to vendor or manufacturer if an option.
  • There are companies out there who will eBay equipment for you.
  • Construction Junction does electronics recycling, will even pick up for a $250 freight fee (better to have a large load for this service).
  • DBAN is good for wiping your hard drives prior to recycling.
• Hosted data centers
  • Cold Cypress
  • Unicentric
  • SynergIT (M. Hines uses this vendor and has confirmed that they host virtualized desktops.)
  • Expedient
• Bandwidth issues
  • Good bandwidth is really important if using VoIP.
  • Seems to be a general need for increasing overall organizational bandwidth as of late (more remote users, memory-heavy apps, etc.).
  • If shopping around for a different provider, a broker can sometimes get you better deals.  (M. Hines mentioned ConnecTel as an example – contact person there is Scott McKinney – can also do a telecom “audit” for your agency.)

I hope to see you all at ACHIEVA on October 6!  Don’t forget to register for TechNow 2010 if you’ve not already done so!! Oh, and the breakout sessions and presenter information are now available online:   http://technow2010.wordpress.com.