Internet Business Ideas

As more and more information is posted online, you’ll find it possible to save a great deal in travel costs by accessing the information you need for your small or home based business online on the Web, or at least confirming that the information you’re seeking is there and the trip is justified. (You could call on the phone and ask, but anymore, chances are you’ll spend considerable amounts of time wading through menus and trying to get to the person with whom you need to speak.)

Basically, information technology is about two things: (A) saving time and (B) providing secure access to data.

 

Wireless Technology

By now, there are few among us who haven’t heard of (A) the horrors of tangled masses (messes?) of chords, sitting like a great Gordian Knot underneath desks, making it nearly impossible to change peripherals or track down trouble when it occurs. No matter how neatly one attempts to arrange these cords, they inevitably turn into a writhing pile of snakes from Indiana Jones’ darkest nightmares.

Wireless technology is nothing new, and actually dates back to the 1890’s, when Guglielmo Marconi developed the first successful wireless telegraph. The idea of using radio frequencies eventually led to the broadcast of music and news over commercial sets, the “walkie-talkie” of World War II, and eventually cellular phones. In the last several years, this technology has been used in WANs (“Wide Area Networks”) and LANs (“Local Area Networks”) in order to transmit a wide range a data.

In addition to wireless Internet, there are wireless keyboards, printers, and mice. It’s possible to set up a wireless network in your own home without too much trouble, and in fact – if you live in an older existing home in which the wiring is already installed – wireless may be your only practical choice, should you want to network all the computers in your home.

The advantages of a wireless network include convenience and mobility; if you have a laptop equipped with a wireless card for example, you can pretty much work anyplace you like. It also allows you to expand your network quite easily without having to run additional cables all over the place.

Wireless technology does cost a bit more; you’ll have to update your cable or Ethernet modem to a wireless one, and install special cards in all your computers. Many say this extra cost is offset by the additional productivity that seems to occur as the result of not having to deal with extra chords.

There are however distinct disadvantages of a wireless network. Like all devices that rely on radio frequency transmission, wireless networks are subject to interference. If you have ever attempted to listen to a radio program while someone is running electric trains or using power tools nearby, you know what this is about. Additionally, there are security issues.

Wireless networks tend to use more power than their wired counterparts, and this extra power makes it easier for unwanted third parties to intercept data. There are encryption technologies available especially for wireless networks, but many of these seem to have weaknesses that are easily exploited by determined hackers – some of whom make a career out of identifying and hacking into wireless networks. Some additional information on wireless security is available in an online article located at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wireless_security.

Getting Online

Naturally, you’ll want your business to have Internet access as soon as possible – for ready access to vital information, for networking, for promotion and communication and more. Here, you have many different options as well, at a range of costs and speeds. The general rule of thumb is that higher transmission speeds mean higher subscription fees. Again however, these higher fees may be offset by the greater revenue generated by a higher rate of productivity.

Dial-Up

This is really unacceptable for anyone but the most casual occasional surfer, or someone who uses the Web primarily for e-mail communication. It is the least expensive way to access the World Wide Web, with some companies offering access for as little as $5 per month. Others charge as much as $25 per month; the average monthly subscription fee for dial-up Internet access runs approximately $12.95.

The only advantages here are wide availability and the low cost. The major disadvantages are speed and the fact that your phone is tied up whenever you are online. The maximum speed for downloads and uploads is 56 kilobytes per second.

Some companies offer additional software they claim can speed this up by as much as 400%, however this does not help when it comes to downloading graphics - and attempting to download or watch streaming video or most audio over a dial-up connection is an exercise in futility, regardless. In addition, Internet connections over a dial-up service are frequently subject to interruption.

Satellite

Although satellite Internet access offers download speeds of up to 1.5 megabytes per second (about 25 times faster than dialup) and allows you to be online and on the phone at the same time, it is less dependable than dial-up as far as interruptions and dropped connections are concerned. Costs for satellite Internet run between $55 and $70 per month.

DSL

The “Digital Subscriber Line” was discussed earlier. This is a mid-range option and typically costs between $50 and $150 per month – although we’ve heard of one company offering DSL for as little as $25 per month. Download speeds range from 144 kilobytes to 1.5 megabytes per second, and upload speeds are comparable, though generally a bit slower. A DSL connection is made through your computer’s Ethernet port. If you’ve never seen one, an Ethernet cable resembles an overgrown phone cable.

The main advantages of DSL are that it has a high degree of dependability and it does not interfere with telephone communication in any way. In fact, DSL allows you to have VoIP telephone service, which can offset some of the extra cost of DSL. The disadvantage is that if you live in a rural area, any kind of high-speed Internet access may simply be unavailable, since the major corporations who control high-speed Internet find that serving small communities doesn’t generate enough profit to make any investment worthwhile.

If you are a cable TV subscriber, your cable company may offer special rates on DSL through your existing cable. Contact your cable provider for more information.

T1 and T3

This is the “Rolls Royce” of Internet access; a T3 connection offers rock-solid reliability and blistering download/upload speeds of 45 megabytes per second. This speed and reliability comes at a price: such Internet service starts at around $350 per month, and can go as high as $1200. Unless yours is a very large corporate business with sizable headquarters and 25 or more employees who are regularly online, you really don’t need this one. T1 service is more affordable (and slower), but for most businesses, the same performance can be achieved with DSL or cable.

A Word Of Caution

Before going online, it’s necessary to set up protection against malicious hackers, viruses, spyware, cyber attacks and an entire host of enemies who are gunning for your data. There are numerous options available here as well, which are discussed in more detail at the end of this chapter.

Protecting Yourself And Your Business

You’re probably aware issues such as computer viruses, cyber attacks, spyware, adware and more. Do not access the Internet before you have a firewall and virus protection in place.

Windows XP has its own integrated firewall, but many I.T. professionals have doubts about effectiveness. In a recent article for Tech Republic, Mike Mullins points out that while Windows XP does an adequate job of monitoring incoming information, but is less effective when a program on your computer attempts to initiate an outgoing connection to any Internet address. In fact, by the time Windows alerts you, the connection has already occurred. According to Mullins:

“…a firewall mechanism that only works one way is a security feature

— not a firewall. Thanks to viruses, worms, Trojans, and a host of

other malware and spyware that arrive on your computer daily, you

need to be able to control communications from both directions.”

The bottom line: while Windows security is better than nothing at all, you’ll definitely need a “real” firewall that requires minimal monitoring from you. The Firewall Guide (http://www.firewallguide.com) has some good information on the various firewalls, virus protection, and other security tools that are available for free as well as purchase. In addition, you’ll learn about email clients and browsers that can be used as an alternative to those integrated into the Windows OS.

One free utility that is practically indispensable is Ad-Aware SE. This is not an anti-virus program, but one that allows you to monitor the ad-ware and spy-ware that is frequently deposited on your hard drive by commercial web sites. These are used to track surfers’ Internet usage. Unchecked, these little bits of code accumulate on the hard drive and can eventually wreak havoc to the point where the computer won’t even boot up. Ad-Aware is simple to use and is available free at http://www.adawareresource.com/co/adawareresource/?sid=M2AG0002cGS.

Before installing and activating any third-party firewall and virus protection, you’ll want to be sure to de-activate the Windows security system, as having more than one firewall running at the same time can cause major conflicts that can harm your system. Simply go to your control panels, select the Windows Firewall icon as shown below, and follow the instructions for de-activating the application.

- Leon Edward

Leon Edward Helps people to start, build, market and promote Internet home based businesses. Find legitimate home based internet business ideas, opportunites online, a Free Business Marketing Online Newsletter, FREE Content, Download his FREE Report  - How to Find A Solid Home Business Opportunity without Getting Scammed! - all at
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