free, connected and in control

I’d been looking to get more mobile and was looking to combine features of the Mobile Phone and PDA in a single powerful device with broad coverage. The largest local telecommunications operator (Telstra) were releasing their CDMA Data Network so I bit the bullet and purchased an I-Mate PDS2K EVDO on the CDMA network

So here I am a week later sitting in the back of a Taxi going from A to B when I get a call from a client that they can't access the Internet. Well, I’ve got meetings for the rest of the afternoon, and everyone else is similarly committed and busy so it will be a few hours till we can get to it.

I hung up and decide to give the PDA a run for it’s money. I open a Terminal Server Session into clients Small Business Server, check the event logs and Services determine that Web proxy service has stoped, re-start the service, browse a bit from the server desktop and log out.

I phoned the client back and told them the issue is resolved and I still hadn’t reached my destination yet. - Now that's mobile computing.

Now to find ways to -not- have the clients expect me to drop everything and resolve all issues instantly. ….and of course dissuade them from their expectation that as I didn’t have to go on-site they shouldn’t have to pay…. :-)

I use a similar CDMA modem card (Siarra Card) in the laptop which frees me from both the wired networks and Wi-Fi Hot spots. I get good data speeds even in areas where GSM Phones won’t work.

I’m also free of the need to negotiate access and re-configure the laptop to log into client domains, or the myriad of –expensive- Hot Spot accounts and log-ins in Hotels, Coffee Shops, Lounges etc….

….and then of course there is the Bluetooth Earpiece. Sooo convenient for talking / collaborating with a colleague while busily typing at the keyboard, or for taking calls safely while driving from A to B.

Put these devices together with Microsoft's Small Business Server’s mobility features such as Remote Web Workplace, Remote Desktop, Remote Admin, Outlook Web Access, Outlook Mobile Access and Outlook RPC over HTTP/S, Sharepoint Websites for Intranet, Extranet and Public Websites, and the promise it held for anywhere, anytime has coming true.

Owners and managers can now take the wife and kids on holidays and stay in touch with the office as if they were there. Made a contact while away from the office? Create a Quote, download the contract forms and sign them up on the spot before the deal goes cold. Save travel time by remoteing into the office rather than having to commute in.

I’m excited about computing again and as I move about I find myself crying inside “I’m Free” while knowing that I’m still connected, contactable and in control.

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The crew was complete: it included a Boots

A maker of Bonnets and Hoods

A Barrister; brought to arrange their disputes

And a Broker, to value their goods.

Fit the First                              Lewis Carroll
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