We are constantly bombarded with advertising about fast, cheap internet connections. ADSL 2 claims to offer speeds of “up to 24Mb/s” whilst BT Infinity dazzle with adverts offering speeds of “up to 40Mb/s”. I’d like to meet the person that actually gets these maximum speeds. I wonder if they live in a BT exchange as the reality that I see day to day is far different.

Consilium have embraced Cloud Computing offering services from Microsoft Office 365 to Online Server Backup through Backup Exec.Cloud and Mozy Pro Server Backup. The main barrier to adoption is often bandwidth. Today we ran some speeds test on a few of our customers ADSL connections. A few of our clients had speeds “up to 2Mb/s” or “up to 200 Kb/s” upload; a far cry from what the so called maximums are. It can hold companies back from getting the most out of their IT and it is constant source of frustration for our clients. It isn’t just ADSL that doesn’t deliver. 3G networks are meant to deliver speeds up to “7.2Mbs”. I’d suggest you would have more chance of taking a photo of Nessie. It’s hard to mobilise your workforce when the speed of your mobile device isn’t good enough even for email.

If companies are going to embrace the cloud, internet speeds need to improve and not be so dependent on your office being right next to a BT exchange. For businesses EFM circuits can offer a cheaper viable alternative to ADSL connections facilitating synchronous speeds of up to 20Mb’s at a far lower cost that a comparative leased line. Consilium now offer synchronous ADSL connections at 5:1 contention with guaranteed speeds to give our customers better options.

There is no doubt that there is an appetite for Cloud IT Services . We have recently deployed our own private cloud infrastructure in to a data centre in Glasgow. IT Support is far easier on our own hardware platform and for clients with enough bandwidth it’s a viable alternative to onsite servers. Let’s hope the telecom companies can deliver the speeds that SME businesses need to adopt these new technologies.

I finally got round to trying the consumer preview of Windows 8. There is a lot to like. It boots quickly, IT Support is easier and the Metro UI looks great. There are some problems though. Whilst I like the new metro interface, Windows 8 also maintains much of the Windows 7 front end as well. I found the marriage of old and new a jarring experience. Microsoft has always had an Achilles heel. Whilst they always strive to innovate they are constantly held back by the need to stay attached to the past. The fact that a Microsoft dos prompt is still available is a stark example of Microsoft’s ties to the past. That said, dos is still one of the handiest tools for any techie and it’s hidden away and not something that a user should ever have to interact with.

The problem with Windows 8 is that the marriage between old and new isn’t hidden at all. One minute you flying through your application tiles in a modern, tablet like, UI and then within a click you can suddenly have a Windows 7 type desktop in front of you. It just doesn’t feel right….yet. One issue is our attachment to the mouse. With a multi touch pad, touch screen or desktop kinect Windows 8 might prove to be revolutionary in the way that we interact with our personal computers, but navigating around Metro with a traditional mouse feels awkward. It might look pretty but it’s a pain to use. Maybe the mouse is Microsoft’s Achilles heel this time round. It will be interesting to see how quickly PC users abandon their mice in favour of multi touch or kinect based input.

Microsoft Windows 8 will be a multiplatform OS. It will be available on phones, tablets , PC’s and servers which will provide some compelling benefits to businesses; easing IT Support through unifying the operating system used. We recently ran a test lab on Windows 8 from our office in Glasgow. IT Support was one area where we could see some real benefits with unified remote control, remote monitoring and application deployment across a single operating system.

Windows 8 could be great. If Microsoft get PC users to abandon their mice it may become a transformational release for Microsoft making them a reel contender in a post-PC and post-mouse world.

Cloud computing has introduced a whole new set of options for businesses when they look to invest in their IT. A growing trend now is for companies to choose IT solutions packaged “as a Service”.

IaaS stands for Infrastructure as a Service. It is when a business doesn’t buy its own IT infrastructure but chooses a supplier to provide all the hardware, software & deployment services on a ‘pay as you go’ basis or via a subscription. There is no large upfront cost to the customer and systems can incorporate elements of private cloud, public cloud & on premise hardware. Consilium offer IaaS as a fully maintained solution including not only the infrastructure but also the installation, migration and ongoing IT support. Consilium also offer IaaS solutions based around VDI (Virtual Desktop) or Citrix Server providing clients with true anytime anywhere access to their applications from any device (including mobiles and tablets).

SaaS stands for Software as a Service. SaaS offers on demand software, often via a thin client; for example a web browser. Often the solutions integrate with a company’s existing servers and with existing desktop applications. Examples include Microsoft Office 365, Mozy Pro Server Backup, Backup Exec.Cloud & Online File Server. Services are usually billed on a monthly basis.

SaaS is a new name for an old concept. Many companies have had SaaS for years; whether it be an anti-spam filter, online server backup or even a simple fax to email service. The list of IT functions that SaaS can fill is growing all the time to the point where a business can even consider having no servers at all with all key services provided via Public & Private Cloud offerings.

Consilium provide a range of SaaS solutions. Please contact us about FREE trials.

Microsoft have today revealed that they are dropping the price of Office 365 enterprise packages by up to 20%, effective immediately. This change will include subscriptions for both new and existing customers. On the office 365 blog, Kirk Koenisbauer states “ I’m thrilled to announce that we’re lowering the prices of most of our Office 365 for enterprise plans by up to 20%. These changes are effective today at Office365.com for new and renewing direct customers. “


More details of the UK enterprise plans with updated prices are here

Consilium are a Microsoft Gold Partner and Microsoft Office 365 Reseller