Reading Offline

I came across a great article from a reputable business who specializes in Virtual Administration. Here’s a great tip for making use of your ‘downtime’ and catching up on reading…

 

Fill Your Pocket With Good Information

As a small business owner, my mind is constantly on learning new tips, keeping up with technology, and finding new ways to better assist my clients. If you are like me, that means you will often find yourself with a … Continue reading

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Start-Up Company Free Resource

New Start-up Companies, here is a free resource for you! Let Microsoft help you grow your business with BizSpark

BizSpark

Join BizSpark for Free and gain access to:

  • 3 years free access to Azure (up to $750/mo)
  • Works with Linux, Java, PHP, etc…
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  • Your business is less than 5 years old
  • Privately held
  • and less than $1 million annual revenue

I encourage all new small businesses looking to gain an edge in the technology portion of their business to look over this offering and take advantage of this fantastic offer!

To learn more about BizSpark and how it can help you.. please visit them directly, Don’t just take my word for it 😉

Windows 10 Apps

So, I’ve run into some problems with the Groove music app built into Windows 10 (as soon as it starts, it closes). After looking through numerous posts on the issue, I came across a nice one on uninstalling some of the built-in apps on Windows 10 -through PowerShell, of course 😉

Always nice to know these things, right?

http://www.howtogeek.com/224798/how-to-uninstall-windows-10s-built-in-apps-and-how-to-reinstall-them/

 

What I love most about consulting

This is why I love working with this guy! Well put!

Kyle Green

I could write a list of 50 things that I love about Microsoft consulting, but there’s one scenario that plays itself out on the occasional project that instantly recharges my motivational batteries. Working with State and Local Government comes with its own challenges and misconceptions, some true and some over exaggerated. One of those being the notion that resources are segregated and its hard to get things done quickly… One could view those large organizations as a challenge to work with, and it can be, but it should also be viewed as a privilege because you’re very likely to work with individuals who are extremely proficient in their craft.

But going back to that “hard to get things done quickly” thing… I find that these organizations have various reasons for the lengthy project timelines. Things like change control, risk management, security audits, resource allocation, and buy-in from many different parties on…

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Microsoft Edge Tool for Clean Reading

Great new feature -makes for easier reading

Anderson Administrative Solutions

Now that most of us on PC’s have received the Windows 10 upgrade, I think it is time to start exploring some of its many new features.  One that I have found so very useful is the Reading Tool, found in the upper right hand corner of the screen when you are on a web page.  It is the button that looks like an open book.

Clean reading icon

Here’s what I love about this tool.  If you are like me, you greatly dislike having to navigate your eyes around all the ‘extras’ on a web page when you are trying to read a blog, article, news story, etc.  And let’s face it, most people do nearly all their reading on line these days.  Well this beautiful little tool solves that problem.  Clicking this button will pull the reading material away and give you a reading screen free from ads, social sharing buttons…

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Screentime Is Making Kids Moody, Crazy and Lazy

In a recent post shared, I read an article from Psychology Today written by Victoria Dunckley M.D. that confirms and explains what I’ve often thought.  Yes, I enjoy electronics and technology. In my years in the field, I’ve learned priorities and value of everything outside of technology. It is a tool; mechanisms that help in today’s society. Technology can be good in business and in personal productivity. However, I do believe there is life ‘outside the box’ and it is much more valuable.

If you have young children or teenagers or know someone who does, please take a moment and read Dr. Dunckley’s report.

Excerpt from: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mental-wealth/201508/screentime-is-making-kids-moody-crazy-and-lazy

1. Screen-time disrupts sleep and desynchronizes the body clock. Because light from screen devices mimics daytime, it suppresses melatonin, a sleep signal released by darkness. Just minutes of screen stimulation can delay melatonin release by several hours and desynchronize the body clock. Once the body clock is disrupted, all sorts of other unhealthy reactions occur, such as hormone imbalance and brain inflammation. Plus, high arousal doesn’t permit deep sleep, and deep sleep is how we heal.

2. Screen-time desensitizes the brain’s reward system.  Many children are “hooked” on electronics, and in fact gaming releases so much dopamine — the “feel-good” chemical — that on a brain scan it looks the same as cocaine use! When reward pathways are overused, they become less sensitive, and more and more stimulation is needed to experience pleasure. Meanwhile dopamine is also critical for focus and motivation. Needless to say, even small changes in dopamine sensitivity can wreak havoc on how well a child feels and functions.

3. Screen-time produces “light-at-night.”  Light-at-night from electronics has been linked to depression and even suicide risk in numerous studies. In fact, animal studies show that exposure to screen-based light before or during sleep causes depression even when the animal isn’t looking at the screen. Sometimes parents feel scared to restrict electronics use in a child’s bedroom because they worry the child will go enter a state of total despair — but in fact removing light-at-night is protective.

4. Screen-time induces stress reactions. Both acute stress (fight-or-flight) and chronic stress produce changes in brain chemistry and hormones that can increase irritability. Indeed, cortisol, the chronic stress hormone, seems to be both a cause and effect of depression – creating a vicious cycle.  Additionally, both hyperarousal and addiction pathways suppress the brain’s frontal lobe, the area where mood regulation actually takes place.

5. Screen-time overloads the sensory system, fractures attention, and depletes mental reserves.  Experts say that what’s often behind explosive and aggressive behavior is poor focus. When attention suffers, so does the ability to process one’s internal and external environment, so little demands become big ones.  By depleting mental energy with high visual and cognitive input, screen-time contributes to low reserves.  One way to temporarily “boost” depleted reserves is to become angry, so meltdowns become a coping mechanism.

6. Screen-time reduces physical activity levels and exposure to “green-time.”  Research shows these factors restore attention, lower stress, and reduce aggression. Thus, time spent with electronics reduces exposure to natural mood enhancers