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Ashley

CEO Daily Update – 2.15.2021

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Today’s Topics: BBQ Love | TV/Monitor Wall Mount Brackets | Best Practices for Cable Management in Data Center | News to Start Your Day

Happy Monday!

Happy Presidents’ Day! Presidents’ Day was established in 1885 to honor George Washington’s birthday, which is on the 22nd…so Happy early Birthday to George Washington! We hope you will spend some time today to celebrate, honor, and reflect on the lives of all the presidents who made this great nation what it is today!

Good morning, you guys! Hope you all are keeping warm. The storms coming through the south and Midwest look pretty impactful. How’d your weekend rank on the love meter? We are not ones to go all out for Valentine’s Day, but the kids enjoy doing little things. We’ve been given lots of “I <3 U” crafts this weekend. Craig and I enjoyed an Italian date night after the kids were in bed. Low key but perfect for us. 

Do we have any smoked meat fans here? Craig received a Traeger smoker for Christmas and made a Boston butt on it this weekend. I gave it two thumbs up. We are planning some chicken wings later this week. What’s your favorite smoked meat? 

Christin

Product Spotlights and Updates:

Happy Monday! Are you struggling with body aches from bad posture and keeping the area around you tidy? Working from home and squeezing all your equipment on the desk in front of you can be difficult. Can’t find the perfect way to prop up your monitor? 

Our TV/Monitor wall mount brackets might be able to help! These brackets are great to mount your TV or Monitor to the wall and get it off your hands! We have three types of wall mounts: Fixed, Tilted, and Full Motion. The Fixed wall mount keeps your equipment sturdy in place. The Tilted wall mount allows you to tilt your equipment 5° up and 15° down. The Full Motion wall mount allows you to tilt your equipment up to 10° and has a swivel motion of 120°.

These wall mount brackets can be used for TVs/Monitors ranging from 23”-70” and can hold up to 165lbs depending on the bracket size. And lucky for you, some of our wall mount brackets are on sale today!

Best Practices for Cable Management Data Centers – CK Learning Center

Every network administrator in the world has a horror story about cable management. In data centers, those horror stories grow into genuine nightmares. If enough people work on a system for a long enough period of time, the cables will eventually turn into some type of Ethernet vine monster. Only strict adherence to cable management practices can prevent this disaster. The following best practices assume you already know some of the basics. Instead, they’re aimed to help you avoid subtler missteps that occur frequently in modern data centers.

Plan for Growth

Everyone says this. Everyone acknowledges. It’s still common for data centers to struggle with growing pains. This is the first and most important principle in cable management and network design because it applies to everything else you do. It is easiest to see when planning space for additional cables.

The challenge is finding the sweet spot. If you leave too much space for growth, you’re hurting efficiency. If there is too little, you hit major challenges with future upgrades. The safest and most reasonable rule to follow is that of 50 percent. If your initial design and subsequent add-ons always plan around 50-percent growth, you should stay close to the golden sweet spot.

The other component of planning for growth applies to equipment selection. As you already know, everything in your data center will eventually be obsolete. The most efficient way to manage the cost and labor of upgrades is to plan around cabling. Replacing or upgrading major pathways is the most labor-intensive work in a data center. So, any time that labor is required, it should be accompanied with cable upgrades. Spend the money on the most up-to-date cables and connectors, and you’ll save a lot of pain down the road.

Plan in General

Growth is important, but you need a good plan for the center to function correctly. So much goes into network planning that covering it all here is impossible, but cable management needs to be a central focus in general planning. Modular and gridded support structures enable you to access cables at any point, and it makes replacement and management much simpler. In general, you want an initial plan or add-on to your center to follow a gridded approach. There should never be any doubt as to where any given cable can be accessed for any plausible reason.

Cable Stress

You know the basics of cable management already. Labels and color-coding help to keep track of everything and cables should not be arranged willy-nilly. And, while you already understand that stress is bad for cables, many network engineers still allow too much in their systems. The key to managing cable stress is the same as doing any job in the world: use the right tools.

Horizontal and vertical hangers are widely available. They’re an easy place to consider cutting costs, but more often than not, this is a mistake. The hangers help manage cable stress, and they almost always save money in the long run.

The other key to alleviating stress is to take your time. Yes, labor is expensive. That’s exactly why you don’t want to be re-running cables that have kinks and tears. As much as you feel pressured to get work done quickly, it’s worth a small investment of time to make sure every bend has a gentle sweep and nothing is unceremoniously stuffed into a corner of your pathway. It’s the simplest thing in the world, and it costs data centers everywhere thousands of dollars a year.

Interference Management

The last tip for today is interference. This is slowly becoming less of a problem because fiber optic cables are less prone to interference in the first place. Regardless, you still have copper lines, and they still require care. As you know, major electrical circuits are the main sources of signal interference for those copper lines. You have to put as much space and shielding between these components as possible. None of that is new.

What might help you is to remember that a few parts of your data center have surprisingly powerful currents. Major power lines aside, fluorescent lights and liquid coolers surprise many designers with how much interference they can provide. Keep that in mind.

These tips aren’t enough to make a novice into an expert network engineer, but hopefully, they can help you steer clear of a few common mistakes that plague experienced professionals. In addition to these tips, you want to spend the time to thoroughly investigate your choices on connectors, boots, and cable structures. A few small decisions can save a lot of time and effort when you’re maintaining your data center.

This article is from the CK Learning Center. 

Today’s News to Start Your Day:

  • As of this morning, in the US, there are 9,540,344 active COVID cases, 18,225,135 have recovered and there have been 497,177 deaths. 
  • India could become the world’s second-largest Covid vaccine maker, according to consulting firm Deloitte. Analysts say the country has the capacity to produce for both its own population and other developing countries. Even before Covid-19, the South Asian country produced up to about 60% of the world’s vaccines – and at a relatively low cost. 
  • GM unveiled a new Chevy Bolt Electric Utility Vehicle, or EUV, alongside its newly redesigned Chevy Bolt Electric Vehicle on Sunday evening. The 2022 Chevy Bolt EUV is designed to bring the best of the Chevy Bolt, but in a taller and longer SUV-like proportion, GM executives said. Both vehicles include GM’s Super Cruise semi-autonomous highway driver-assist system. 
  • Amazon confirmed last week it has started putting AI-equipped cameras in some delivery vans. It already requires contracted delivery workers to use an app, called, Mentor, that tracks and scores their driving behavior. Like the cameras, the app is designed to improve driver safety, but Amazon employees say the technology produces errors and, in some cases, tracks their location after they clock out from work. 
  • More than 140 million Americans in 26 states were under some sort of winter advisory heading into Monday as a major winter storm swept through the southern Plains. The storm, which has already caused power outages and a number of pileups on icy roads, was expected to travel up the Northeast through Tuesday, bringing heavy snow, ice, and freezing temperatures. Six inches to a foot of snow was forecast to stretch from the mid-Mississippi to Ohio Valleys, across the lower Great Lakes, and into northern New England, according to the service. 
  • Spotify is adapting a “Work from Anywhere” model, which will allow employees to choose whether they want to be in the office full time, be at home full time, or a combination of the two. The company will also introduce more flexibility around locations, so employees will be able to choose the country and city where they work. An increasing amount of companies are starting to consider remote work as a more permanent option due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

CEO Daily Update – 2.12.2021

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Today’s Topics: Living in Limbo | Yealink Conference Phone, CP960 | What are the 7 Money Tendencies? | News to Start Your Day

Happy Friday!

Are you a fan of plums, nutmeg, raisins, nuts, cinnamon, and dates? Well, you’re in luck! It’s National Plum Pudding day! In England, traditionally every person in the home holds on to the wooden spoon to stir the batter and makes a wish! Here’s to a wishful day full of Plum Pudding! 

The good news is that things are progressing, the bad news is that there is still a LOT of packing and moving to do.

It is awkward to completely reduce everything you own into boxes, containers, and a storage unit. I mentioned last time about simplifying and getting rid of stuff. I feel like I have done a pretty good job of this. Now, it’s just everything else that is left that has to be packed. I feel like I have been going non-stop for about 2 weeks now – packing, cleaning, moving, storing, etc. My dog is not happy at all with all of this. All he wants to do in the evenings is go for a walk and then sit in the recliner and watch TV. I can’t say I blame him, but we haven’t been able to do that much lately. His world is being rocked just as much if not more.

So, we will be moving all of the big stuff this weekend (in the rain), and then the closing happens in a little over a week, and then we move in with my parents until the new house is finished. For a person whose life revolves around and craves routine, this should be interesting…err…fun. I am very thankful for this opportunity and the way things have been working out, but living in limbo and being out of a routine for a month or so is a jolt to the system. I guess God shakes things up and moves us out of our comfort zones from time to time just to keep us in check. haha!

I have to say that when I step back and look at everything God has done and how He has worked things out in this situation in such a short time, I can’t help but have a thankful heart. It really does blow me away…even with all of the packing and disruption of routine. It will be worth it!

I hope all of you have a great weekend!

Jason

Product Spotlights and Updates:

Happy Friday! We’ve been talking a lot about Yealink phones here lately, and for good reason! These phones are absolutely incredible in how they look and how they function! Today I wanted to take a minute to tell you about an awesome Yealink conference phone, the Yealink CP960. This phone is perfect for medium to large-sized rooms and features a beautiful 5” color touch screen. It combines a sensitive, full-duplex three microphone array for a 20-foot voice pickup range!  This phone features Yealink Noise Proof Technology which intelligently eliminates background noises and automatically mutes the microphone when no human voice is detected. When it detects human speech, it automatically turns back on seamlessly! The CP960 also features an incredible user interface known as the Yealink Pentagon Meeting Room. This simple and unique interface allows users to create a meeting directly from the phone, and to add new users to the meeting instantly and without confusion, and without interrupting the call. In addition, it features Yealink Hybrid UC Meeting which is designed to bridge calls from different devices into one conference call. By pairing your cell phone or device via USB or Bluetooth with your Yealink conference phone, your calls from your device can easily be connected to the CP960!

What are the 7 Money Tendencies? – Dave Ramsey Blog

You’re probably somewhat aware of your personality type: whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert, a control freak or totally laid back. But did you know you have a money personality type too?

We each have our own tendencies that make up our money personality as a whole. You may not notice, but this plays out in real life all the time.

Think about a time when you’ve been out to dinner with a group of friends. When it comes time to pay the bill, some people in the group are great with splitting the check evenly, while others at the table cringe because they just want to pay for their order. That can get a little awkward, but it’s just because everyone is wired differently. So, let’s talk about your money tendencies.

What is a money tendency? 

Your money personality is made up of seven tendencies that identify how you handle money.

They are:

  • Spender or Saver
  • Nerd or Free Spirit
  • Experiences Person or Things Person
  • Quality Person or Quantity Person
  • Safety Person or Status Person
  • Abundance Person or Scarcity Person
  • Spontaneous Giver or Planned Giver

These tendencies are specific to how we deal with money. You likely lean toward one or the other of each tendency but don’t overthink it. It’s a spectrum, so you might be somewhere in between.

You’re wired to think and act in certain ways, and while none of the tendencies are right or wrong, they do have implications. Understanding them will help you make faster progress on your financial goals. So, let’s dig into them!

Spender or Saver

Spenders: They see so many creative possibilities when it comes to money. Whenever they have extra money, it’s burning a hole in their pocket and they can’t wait to spend it. Spenders have a healthy appreciation for spending money, and generosity might come more easily to someone with this money personality type.

Challenge for Spenders: If you’re a spender, you need to prioritize saving too.

Savers: They would rather keep their money tucked away for a rainy day. Putting money away for the future isn’t a huge sacrifice for them. It gives them a sense of security. They’re patient, responsible and willing to wait.

Challenge for Savers: If you save everything you make, you’re going to miss out on a lot of fun experiences that make life worth living.

Nerd or Free Spirit

Nerds: They have their tax return prepared for the dreaded April 15 deadline well in advance. Spreadsheets, amortization charts, and the budget make them feel in control of their money—which they love. They’re laser-focused on what they need to do to win with money, and they’re on top of the details and decisions.

Challenge for Nerds: If you live and die by the rules and the budget, you end up wearing out yourself and your family.

​Free Spirits: Tax Day is when? If this sounds more like you, you’re probably a free spirit. When it comes to money, they have a “let’s enjoy life” mentality. Just reading the word budget would make this money personality break out in hives.

Challenge for Free Spirits: If free spirits aren’t intentional about their money, they’ll look up in a few years and wonder where on earth it all went.

Experience or Things

Experience People: This part of your money personality is all about what you value in life. If you’d rather spend your money on experiences, like travel, concerts, or a day at the spa, you’re a person who values experiences. I love experiences, and I prefer to spend my money on eating dinner out or going to a movie rather than anything tangible.

Things People: If you tend to spend money on physical things, like clothes, shoes or the latest piece of technology, then you’re a person who values things. My husband, Winston, is like this, and his Christmas lists have included things like hunting gear and an adult-sized scooter.

Challenge for both: They’re both equally valid preferences. If you’re married, ask your spouse if they’d rather have an experience or a thing. After Winston and I figured this out, it helped us in our budgeting, gift-giving, and communication.

Quality or Quantity

Quality People: This money personality type wants things that are going to last longer. I find that people who value quality will research and plan their purchases beforehand. Quality spenders don’t tend to be impulse shoppers.

Challenge for Quality People: Ask yourself if it’s really necessary to spend more, or if there’s a less expensive option you would enjoy just as much.

Quantity People: They enjoy the creativity and possibility that variety offers. You like having ten options versus going back to the same thing over and over. People who lean toward quantity are often great bargain shoppers. They pride themselves on the art of a great deal.

Challenge for Quantity People: If you struggle with overdoing it on quantity, consider taking the Minimalists’ challenge to give you a different perspective.

Safety or Status

Safety People: People who value safety as part of their money personality want the security that money can bring. They want to know they can withstand job loss, a medical emergency or even just a dip in income.

Challenge for Safety People: Don’t let a safety mindset keep you living in fear. As you make money decisions, make sure you’re seeing and considering all of the possibilities, not just defaulting to the choice with the least amount of risk.

Status People: Someone with this kind of money personality is more likely to value a name-brand purse or luxury vacation. They’re also more likely to find a way to justify a larger purchase if, on some level, it makes them feel seen as successful.

Challenge for Status People: Knowing that you have that status tendency means you’ve got to keep your spending and your heart in check. The stuff you own doesn’t define you as a person.

Abundance or Scarcity 

Abundance People: People who live in an abundance mindset believe there’s always more than enough for everyone. They tend to take more risks and don’t fear the outcome of a decision. They also tend to be natural givers, believing there will always be a way to make more money!

Challenge for Abundance People: This glass-half-full mentality can interfere with making wise choices with money. If this is you, seek the advice of family and friends you trust before making a big purchase (even if it’s for someone else).

Scarcity People: People who operate under the assumption of scarcity make money decisions based on a belief that resources are finite. They hold onto possessions tightly because they “might need that someday.” And sometimes they fear losing things because they might not be able to replace them.

Challenge for Scarcity People: Don’t miss smart financial opportunities that will move you forward in life because fear is undermining your thinking. Always remember this: God will provide for you. There are no limits to his goodness and ability.

The abundance/scarcity tendency is one of the tendencies covered in my new personality quiz! Find out which tendency you lean toward here.

Spontaneous Giver or Planned Giver

Spontaneous Givers: People with this tendency in their money personality are quick to give. If they pass someone on the sidewalk asking for a donation, they jump at the chance. They love having the freedom to respond with their heart.

Challenge for Spontaneous Givers: Dropping $5 in a bucket here and there can feel good in the moment, but it may not have the impact you think it does. Emotional giving definitely isn’t wrong—just remember that if it’s the only way you give, you may miss opportunities that have a larger impact.

Planned Givers: Typically, planned givers take their resources and money very seriously. They don’t give to every good cause they hear about because they’ve already decided where they’re giving, and they’ve committed to it. They also avoid giving to individuals or nonprofits they haven’t researched.

Challenge for Planned Givers: If this is how you’re wired, try to leave room in your giving line item for the unexpected. You might find a lot of joy in blessing someone who isn’t expecting it.

It Pays to Know Your Money Tendencies

Now that you know your natural tendencies and their challenges, you can make better decisions for yourself and become more balanced. And remember: No part of your money personality is right or wrong—it just shows us how we’re wired.

For example, if you’re a spender, make sure you’re following a budget and setting aside savings too. If your spending is out of control and your savings account is empty, this is an area you need to work on.

Guys, if you’ll really work these 7 Money Tendencies, you’re going to see progress! You can get to a healthier money personality. The more you pay attention to why you spend (or don’t spend!) money the way you do, the more you can course-correct when you need to. Don’t put this off. In one year or five years or 10 years, you’re going to look back and be so, so grateful you started today.

This is from the Dave Ramsey blog. 

Today’s News to Start Your Day:

  • As of this morning, in the US, there are 9,584,731 active COVID cases, 17,932,112 have recovered and there have been 486,929 deaths. 
  • The White House secured deals for 100 million additional doses of Pfizer’s Covid vaccine and 100 million more of Moderna’s. During Thursday’s tour of the National Institutes of Health, President Joe Biden said the U.S. will have now enough supply of the two-shot vaccines to inoculate 300 million Americans by the end of July. Roughly 34.7 million out of some 331 million Americans have received at least their first dose of vaccine, according to the CDC. 
  • Disney reported strong growth in paid streaming subscribers and its first quarterly profit since early last year in its earning reports. Disney said it now has almost 95 million paid subscribers to its Disney+ streaming service as of the quarter ended Jan. 2, helping to offset losses in other segments affected by the pandemic. CEO Bob Chapek told analysts on the company earnings call that outlook for parks revenue and reopening is “really going to be determined by the rate of vaccination of the public.”
  • The CDC plans to issue new guidelines Friday on how to reopen U.S. schools as safely as possible. The pressure to reopen or expand in-person learning for students has been building across the United States in recent weeks as the impact of remote learning on education and family life has become more apparent. 
  • Defense lawyers at Trump’s impeachment trial are set to begin to make their case about why the former president should not be convicted of inciting last month’s attack on the U.S. Capitol. They’re prepared to concede that the violence was every bit as traumatic, unacceptable, and illegal as Democratic prosecutors described. But they also plan to argue that Trump had nothing to do with it. The argument is likely to appeal to the Republican senators who want to be seen as condemning the violence without convicting the former president. 
  • A group of Robinhood traders angered by recent weeks’ events are showing up at the company’s California headquarters, claiming they couldn’t otherwise get in touch with customer service. Menlo Park Police reports outline 10 incidents ranging from venting frustration to security guards, to one man throwing dog feces at the front door. Since Robinhood restricted buying of certain stocks on the app, users have filed more than two dozen lawsuits seeking damages. 

CEO Daily Update – 2.11.2021

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Today’s Topics: Lunar New Year | Get Connected with Access Point Deployment Packs | What are Shielded Ethernet Cables? | News to Start Your Day

Happy Thursday!

It’s National Inventor’s Day & National Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk Day! Maybe we can invent something to help us not spill our milk?! But actually…Here’s to a positive attitude even when things might not be going your way!

This Friday is Lunar New Year (or Chinese New Year), so I thought I would share a little about it from one of our team members, Amy. Amy works in our Managed Accounts team doing lots of work behind the scenes to make sure your orders go out on time. Her family is from Vietnam, and she shared some of their experiences with us:

“Lunar New Year, commonly known as Chinese New Year, this year will be on 2/12. It changes each year depending on the Lunar calendar. It’s usually at the end of January, early February. The Lunar calendar is the reason why some Koreans have two ages, an international age, and a lunar age! You can be born on Dec 31st but be two years old!

Lunar New Year is not celebrated in every Asian country. China, Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Singapore, and more countries celebrate it in their own special way. My family is from Vietnam so I’ll share some of our traditions with you. On the day of Lunar New Year, we hand out red envelopes called, Li Xi, filled with lucky money! Now that I’m an adult, I’ve been tasked to hand them out and see less of them haha! We also take this time to set up to pray to our ancestors. We offer them fruit, meals, and water. If you stop by [any Asian supermarket] this weekend, you can commonly find fruit such as apples or oranges in fancy boxes up to 3 to 4 times for this reason. Here are some videos of some meals we have during Tet (Lunar New Year in Vietnamese)!

There are usually lantern festivals celebrated in China towns across the US to celebrate. Dragon dances are my favorite part of the festival. If you are ever in NY during Lunar New Year, I highly recommended stopping by in NYC’s Chinatown and watching the parade they throw. It’s loud, colorful, and filled with delicious food! I recommend stopping by your local Asian Market and buying some moon cakes or a platter of Asian candy to celebrate!”

If you aren’t familiar with Chinese New Year and its traditions, I hoped you learned something today. If you do celebrate, do you do anything differently? We’d love to hear about your experiences!

Christin 

Product Spotlights and Updates:

Today’s Product Spotlight is brought to you by the Cisco AIR-CAP3702I-A-K9 Deployment Pack, which has everything you need for your office’s wireless setup. The kit includes the AIR-CAP3702I-A-K9 access point, which is a fantastic high-performance dual-band device designed for offices and similar RF environments. The radios on the AP support 802.11a through 802.11ac wireless network standards and are easy to manage. The deployment pack also comes with a standard ceiling mount as well as a recessed ceiling grid clip, a console cable, a power injector, and a power supply. It comes with everything, but the kitchen sink (as they say). Perhaps you already have all those accessories and just want the AP. You can purchase the AIR-CAP3702I-A-K9 device stand alone as well. 

Keep in mind these are controller-based access points but don’t fret, we carry Wireless LAN Controllers as well! We find that the AIR-CT2504-5-K9 would fit the bill nicely. If you don’t have WiFi at your office, I’m sorry to say, but you are living in the dark ages. Get out of the dark ages and get your WiFI on. 

What are Shielded Ethernet Cables? – CK Learning Center

What are Shielded Ethernet Cables? 

Currently, the use of high bandwidth applications has been on the rise, and network systems have started venturing into factory environments which have called for the use of shielded cables. In this new installation sector, the cable is used in areas with high electromagnetic interference (EMI). Even with improved ability to reject noise and handle gigabit Ethernet, these cables will not function properly in areas where there is high EMI if not properly shielded. A shielded cable will help in these high EMI installations ensuring safe and efficient data transfer.

STP and S/STP

These are the two basic types of shielded ethernet cables. STP cables with an overall generic shield whereas S/STP cables have a shield for each pair and an overall outer shield. The Shield of STP cables can either be a foil or a braid, but for additional strength, some cables can comprise of a foil shield and an outer braid shield.

SSTP and FTP

Cables that have an overall foil are known as FTP, whereas those with a braid are known as STP. STP is the generic name given to all shielded cables. At times, there arises confusion where FTP cables are assumed to be unshielded or that they are significantly different in terms of performance. In practice, the STP and FTP cables can be used interchangeably, and there is no apparent difference in their performance.

S/STP

The second type of cable is one that has each of the individual pair shielded and then there is an overall outer shield. This type of cable is referred to as S/STP. The purpose of having an inner shield is to ensure that there is no internal cross-talk between the pairs. This will help in ensuring that the cables meet the specifications of the Alien Cross Talk parameter which is significantly difficult to achieve with CAT6a and CAT7 systems. However, Alien Cross Talk is not a requirement when it comes to CAT6, CAT5e, and CATS systems. Additionally, it does not significantly contribute to the overall resilience of the cable when it comes to resisting external RF noise such as the one made at the mains induced spikes. The physical construction comprises of a foil on both the inner and overall outer shield. Additionally, there can be a braid which will improve the cable’s strength and also simplify the connection to the metal shields which are around the connectors.

Proper Ground Connection

It is worth noting that all the shielded Ethernet cables should have a ground connection for their shields. In case your cable has an incorrect ground connection, the chances are there will be ground loop currents and also the associated interference to the Ethernet signal. In the worst-case scenario, where the grounding is poor, the shield can end up acting like antennas; broadcasting high-frequency signals from the cable to the outer environment. This will interfere with the delicate co-located electronic equipment and also allow external detection of the Ethernet data.

What is the Drain Wire in Shielded Cables? 

Every shielded Ethernet cable should have a wire that stretches from the insulated wires to the shield. This is commonly known as the drain wire. Normally, the shield is connected to a specific pin in one end, which can even be the chassis. The connector shells are not connected anywhere and consequently, connecting the drain wire to pin 1 puts the entire cable at the potential of that pin. No current will be flowing, but the cable screening will be effective.

Bottom Line on Shielded Patch Cables

Ethernet cables should be shielded which helps increase the cable’s resilience and also makes it stronger. As such, when going for Ethernet cables, consider going for ones that are shielded to ensure safety and longevity.

This article is from the CK Learning Center

Today’s News to Start Your Day:

  • As of this morning, in the US, there are 9,586,691 active COVID cases, 17,827,323 have recovered and there have been 483,200 deaths. 
  • Mr. Peanut is joining forces with Spam. Kraft Heinz is selling its nuts business to Spam maker Hormel for $3.35 billion. The business, which includes most Planters products and the Corn Nuts brand, contributed about $1.1 billion to Kroft Heinz’s 2020 sales. Kraft Heinz CEO Miguel Patricio said the sale enables the company to focus on other snack brands, like Lunchables and P3.
  • As part of the massive redesign of Epcot that is currently underway, the Leave A Legacy blocks were removed. But because guests were promised their images would remain on display for 20 years, we knew they were being relocated to a new space outside of the park itself. Now that relocation has commenced, and it turns out Walt Disney World isn’t simply moving the same granite blocks to another location. Leave A Legacy has been completely redesigned. It’s now full of colors, and it looks gorgeous. Check it out. 
  • The effort to immunize more Americans against the coronavirus now includes major retail pharmacy chains. National drugstore chains CVS Health and Walgreens are among the more than 20 major retailers getting supplies of COVID-19 vaccines from the federal government this week. The federal program will be implemented in stages, based on available vaccine supplies, with shipments arriving as soon as Thursday, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 
  • Drivers passing through downtown Lawrenceville, Georgia may have noticed something a little different as this week began: a former city vehicle fueling station located on a triangle-shaped property by City Hall has started to disappear. The teardown is laying the groundwork for a gateway plaza and green space that will be built on the property this spring and through the remainder of the year to welcome visitors traveling north on Graying Highway into the downtown Lawrenceville area. 
  • When 31-year-old Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd takes her dating app company public Thursday, she’ll be noted not only for her youth but also as one of the few female founders to lead a firm to an IPO. Bumble, whose board is 73% women, priced its offering Wednesday evening at $43 per share, raising $2.2 billion and valuing Bumble at around $8 billion. The stock market response will act as a litmus test for companies founded by women, who account for just 7.4% of Fortune 500 CEOs. That’s an all-time high but still staggeringly low.

CEO Daily Update – 2.10.2021

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Today’s Topics: Cat Judge | Recessed Rack Adapters | 6 Inspiring Books that will help you face the future with Confidence – Success Blog | News to Start Your Day

Happy Wednesday!

It’s National Cream Cheese Brownie Day! Cream Cheese Brownies are an irresistible dessert. Don’t ya think? It’s been a long time favorite in the bakery world. Add a dollop of whipped cream, berries, or some nuts and they become a decadent dessert in their own right!!

Hey, friends. Happy Wednesday. I don’t have much to share today, but I did see this viral lawyer cat video earlier and thought you all might like it. We all need a little mid-week laugh, right? Can we all agree that every Zoom meeting needs a cat filter now? Enjoy your Hump Day! 

Christin

Product Spotlights & Updates:

Ever have a piece of equipment you racked up in your perfectly configured cabinet that prevented the door from closing? You certainly don’t want to rear mount the equipment, because the ports are in the front. So what do you do? Buy a new cabinet or reconfigure your entire setup? Well, let CablesAndKits offer you a cost-effective solution! Recessed Rack Adapters. 

These unassuming steel brackets will allow you to recess your equipment 3 inches from the face of a cabinet or rack. Door problems solved! Don’t have any door issues? No problem, these Recessed Rack Adapters are perfect for mourning shelves, patch panels, and other standard 19’’ Networking or A/V equipment. The Recessed Rack Adapters come in two sizes – a 1RU version will work for most standard-sized switches and for larger pieces of equipment we offer a 2RU size. Pick up a pair today and get your rack organized!

6 Inspiring Books that will help you Face the Future with Confidence – Success Blog

Think Again – The Power of Knowing What you Don’t Know (By Adam Grant) 

In Think Again, Adam Grant, wants readers to forget, let go and move on from ideas and knowledge that isn’t working for them. “If you can master the art of rethinking, I believe you’ll be better positioned for success at work and happiness in life,” Grant writes. “Thinking again can help you generate new solutions to old problems and revisit old solutions to new problems. It’s a path to… living with fewer regrets.

Sometimes no matter how well-thought-out or carefully laid out plans can be, they can give us tunnel vision, Grant writes. When we become open to new ideas, we begin to see faults in those plans and can identify and prevent mistakes we were likely to make.

Listen Like You Mean It – Reclaiming the Lost Art of True Connection (By Ximena Vengoechea) 

We often tend to be hypocritical when it comes to listening. We get annoyed if someone isn’t giving us their full attention, but if someone else is telling a story, it’s alright if we check our phones mid-conversation. Sometimes that’s fine, writes Ximena Vengoechea in Listen Like You Mean It. But other times, not listening can have serious consequences. 

In her book, Vengoechea doesn’t just offer tips and tricks on how to listen more intently; she goes deeper. Vengoechea also covers how to deepen conversations, how to handle them when they get tough, and how to get more out of them.

“If you’re tired of getting one-word responses from your partner, colleague, lover, or sibling, it’s time to start asking a different kind of question,” Vengoechea writes. “With connecting questions, we can go beyond the superficial and get to know our conversation partner much more deeply.”

The Way of Integrity – Finding the Path to Your True Self (By Martha Beck) 

Finding the way to integrity can help you find happiness, Martha Beck writes in her new book. That’s because when we’re not honest with ourselves, everything else suffers. 

“It’s probably because you’re internally divided,” Beck writes in The Way of Integrity. “That’s how it feels to be out of integrity. All these inner reactions affect our outer lives. Since we can’t concentrate, our work suffers. Irritability and gloominess make us bad company, weakening our relationships.” 

So how do you find the way of integrity? Beck breaks it down into three phases in her book. The first one is called “the dark wood of error,” where one feels lost, uncertain, and exhausted. Then there’s the inferno, where one discovers the things that cause our suffering. One begins to heal in “purgatory,” where one begins to create new behaviors to match their inner truth. And finally, there’s paradise, where one starts living. 

Your Brain is Always Listening – Tame the Hidden Dragons that Control Your Happiness, Habits, and Hang-Ups (By Dr. Daniel G. Amen) 

In Your Brain Is Always Listening, the prolific Daniel G. Amen, M.D. seeks to teach readers how to tame what he describes as mental dragons—how to put the bad ones in their place and how to get the good ones to work for us. To explain how these dragons can work for or against us, Amen describes four circles of health and illness: biological, psychological, social, and spiritual. 

“When any one circle is unhealthy, your brain is more likely to listen to your Dragons from the Past, from others, and from society, and then let them take control,” Amen writes.

If the dragon metaphor is too much for you, remember Amen knows what he’s talking about. The man has worked in brain health for 40 years. 

“Over 175,000 brain scans later, it’s become even more clear that the problems we treat aren’t mental health issues; they’re brain health issues that steal your mind,” he writes.

ALIEN Thinking – The Unconventional Path to Breakthrough Ideas (By Cyril Bouquet, Jean-Louis Barsoux and Michael Wade) 

Three professors from the Institute for Management Development have teamed up to write about alien thinking. No, not the way of thinking of extraterrestrials. In this case, ALIEN stands for Attention, Levitation, Imagination, Experimentation, and Navigation. The acronym offers readers a “framework… to overcome biases and mental models that can constrain creativity or doom a great idea.” 

The book is intended to help leaders manage themselves and their thinking. The authors admit that while managers were their focus when developing the plan, they believe their model of thinking can work for anyone at any organization. Their hope is that the book offers tools that will work for readers when inspiration strikes. 

“You can use the ALIEN model to catalyze original thinking and fast-track your ability to spot patterns and make the right mental connections,” the trio writes. 

Strong Like Water – How I found the Courage to Lead with Love in Business and in Life (By Laila Tarraf) 

After more than 25 years as a senior human resource executive at companies like Walmart, Peet’s Coffee and Tea, and AllBirds, Laila Taraf came to know a lot about what makes people tick and how to keep an eye on them. But when her husband died of an accidental drug overdose, and she lost her parents soon after, Tarraf was forced to look into a person she wasn’t used to managing—herself. 

In Strong Like Water, Tarraf shares her tale of healing and looking deep inside. It wasn’t easy for her.  

“I used every coping mechanism in my well-stocked arsenal to keep myself compartmentalized and separate from my fear,” Tarraf writes. “Unfortunately, there was a lot of work that needed to be done.”

Tarraf shows readers the processes she went through to find healing and courage. Strong Like Water can read like a memoir, but Tarraf’s real-life examples can be relatable for readers from all walks of life.

This article is from Success Blog.

Today’s News to Start Your Day:

  • As of this morning, in the US, there are 9,680,957 active COVID cases, 17,639,217 have recovered and there have been 479,772 deaths. 
  • Quaker Oats, a division of PepsiCo, had announced last June that it would retire the Aunt Jemima brand. Quaker Oats brought the Aunt Jemima brand in 1925 and had updated the logo over the years in an effort to remove the negative stereotypes. Quaker Oats said Tuesday that its Aunt Jemima brand pancake mix and syrup will be renamed Pearl Milling Company. 
  • General Motors on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter earnings that easily beat Wall Street expectations, but the company warned a global semiconductor chip shortage could cut its earning by up to $2 billion this year. Automakers and parts suppliers began warning of a semiconductor shortage late last year after demand for vehicles rebounded stronger than expected following a two-month shutdown of production plants due to the coronavirus pandemic. GM has already closed care and crossover plants due to the shortage. 
  • Uber will offer free rides to Walgreens stores for people who book a vaccine appointment but do not have transportation and live in an underserved community. The pilot program will start in Chicago, Atlanta, Houston, and El Paso, Texas. Walgreens will play an expanded role in the vaccine rollout this week, as it gets direct shipments of doses and administers shots in 15 states. 
  • The crushing coronavirus spike in the U.S. has been showing signs of abating, with 95,360 new cases Tuesday less than a third of the record-high new daily infections of 300,282 on January 2nd. The number of people in U.S. hospitals being treated for Covid-19 totaled 79,179 on Tuesday, the first daily count below 80,000 since November 18th.  
  • Elon Musk’s SpaceX has widened the scope of the public beta test of its Starlink satellite internet service. Prospective Starlink users can enter a service address on the company’s website, with preorders available for $99. Starlink’s website emphasizes that preorders are “fully refundable,” but notes in fine print that “placing a deposit does not guarantee service.” The service will be offered first in the United States, Canada, and the U.K.

CEO Daily Update – 2.9.2021

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Today’s Topics: Snow Camping | Premium Fiber Cables | Do I Need the Latest Server? | News to Start Your Day

Happy Tuesday!

February 9th is National Pizza Day! Whether it’s thin crust, Chicago-style, deep dish, or anything in between, pizza is an American favorite. Did you know Americans consume on average 23 pounds of pizza per person each year?!

Hey there, friends. I hope you all had a good weekend. Perhaps watched the Super Bowl on Sunday? We ended up going on our camping trip. We had lots of fun, spent time with good friends, and the kids played outside as long as the sun was out and keeping them a little warm. It was mostly cold and rainy, but we didn’t mind. The change in pace and scenery was nice. And, the cherry on top of a good trip was that it snowed! We don’t tend to get snow too often here in Georgia, and the kids are always hoping for just a little before the end of winter. It was a nice little treat for them and definitely made the trip more memorable. 

Funny how little things can make your experience memorable. If you’ve ever ordered anything from CK, you should’ve received some M&Ms in your package. A small thing that creates a memorable experience is the idea behind why we include those. We aim to make every experience with us as frictionless and memorable as possible. we can’t conjure up a snowstorm on a whim, but we can throw in extra M&Ms, make sure your package arrives on time, and even pre-configure things like phones for you. If we can ever do anything to make your experience with us better, please be sure to let us know! 

Until tomorrow,

Christin 

Product Spotlights & Updates:

Today’s product spotlight will be focused on our Premium Fiber Cables made with ultra-pure corning glass. Corning enables all types of communications to meet the demands of numerous network applications. These premium fibers are more durable and transmit light with low attenuation and low signal loss. They also have ultra-physical contact polish which gives users more reliable signals for data, digital, and telephone applications. 

The Low Smoke Zero Halogen jacket material around premium fibers also reduce the amount of corrosive and toxic gas when exposed to heat. Another great feature about premium fiber cables is their ability to easily reverse polarity. This allows optimal data transmission with fewer cables and higher speed. The premium fiber cables are available in OS2, OM3, OM4, and OM5 cable type. These premium fiber cables also come with various connector types including standard, Uniboot, and Uniboot Push-Pull Tab.

If you want to learn more about the differences between our Standard and Premium cables, please visit our learning center article!

Do I Need the Latest Server? – CK Learning Center

Data centers aren’t cheap. Just the cost of power requirements for keeping your equipment running can be staggering. Adding the cost of new servers can often feel like too much. If you have high demands and a tight budget, you need a way to get more power and performance for every dollar spent. For most applications, the easiest way to do this is to look at refurbished servers and parts. 

The Iterative Cycle of Technology

Computer hardware is an interesting market. Over time, consumers tend to get more value for each dollar spent, but used goods still drop in price like a used car. It all boils down to the iterative process of developing technology. Every year, newer and better parts are released, but they rarely provide dramatic improvements over the previous generation. Here’s an easy example. The first 3.0 GHz processor was the Pentium 4 released in 2003. Today, many servers are running 3.0 GHz processors. Even at the highest end, you’re looking at 5.0 GHz clock speeds. That’s an improvement of 67 percent in 15 years. That means on average, computer components are gaining less than five-percent performance every year. 

Now there is more to a processor than just the clock speed, but overall the rate holds true. Last year’s processor can do all of the same work as this year’s. It’s only every several years that a real breakthrough happens. 

Server Lifespan

So, buying refurbished lets you save money and have parts that are comparable to something brand new, but performance isn’t the only consideration. Servers work hard, and you need something that will last. Well, there’s good news on that front too. Most high-end servers are built to last 5 to 10 years. Despite that, elite data centers (like Google) like to rotate their equipment on a cycle of two to three years. You can buy a refurbished server with seven or more years left on its shelf life that can still hang with brand new equipment. 

Modular Technology

If you were just buying refurbished servers as is, you could save a lot of money without sacrificing performance, but the modular nature of servers gives you a lot more opportunity. Data centers have to adapt and adjust hardware on a daily basis. This has led to a server design that is easily tweaked and customized. This gives you the freedom to upgrade components instead of entire servers. That can extend the life, value, and performance of your refurbished equipment. Best of all, those modular parts can also be refurbished. 

This article is from the CK Learning Center. 

Today’s News to Start Your Day:

  • As of this morning, in the US, there are 9,711,640 active COVID cases, 17,512,584 have recovered and there have been 476,405 deaths. 
  • Facebook this week will begin showing its U.S. users information about where and when they can get Covid-19 vaccines. They will direct users to local health agency websites where they can get information about their eligibility to get vaccinated. The company will also provide $120 million in ad credits to health agencies around the world so they can run campaigns about Covid-19 vaccines. 
  • At 43, Tom Brady won his seventh Super Bowl and earned his fifth Super Bowl MVP title after his Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs. Brady credits his longevity and success to his strict health and wellness regiment, the TB12 Method. One of the key components in Brady’s plan is his sleep routine. Brady said that he sticks to a 9 p.m. bedtime and wakes up at 6 a.m. (for nine hours of sleep) Here’s what else is in Brady’s sleep routine. 
  • Liang Wannian, head of the expert Covid-19 panel at China’s National Health Commission, said ongoing research into the origins of the virus must focus on how it circulated in animals before infecting humans. Scientists have been working in the Chinese city of Wuhan for the past four weeks as part of their search for clues to the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic. The investigators visited hospitals, laboratories, and markets, including the Huanan Seafood Market, the Wuhan Insititute of Virology, and the Wuhan Center for Disease Control laboratory. 
  • CD Projekt says it’s been hacked by attackers who’ve been able to access its internal network, encrypt some devices, and collect “certain data” from the Polish video game company. The Cyberpunk 2077 developers say it will not give in to the demands or negotiate with the attacker and does not believe any personal data of players or service users has been compromised. The hackers are threatening to release the source code alongside internal legal, HR, and financial documents “if we will not come to an agreement.” In its statement, CD Projekt says that it has secured its IT infrastructure, and has begun restoring its data from intact backups. 
  • Canadian satellite operator Telesat announced that Thales Alenia Space will build its next-generation broadband satellite network called Lightspeed. Lightspeed will focus on providing high-speed fiber-like internet to Telesat’s customers around the globe. The company largely focuses on business-to-business customers and expects its Lightspeed constellation will cost $5 billion to build. 

CEO Daily Update – 2.8.2021

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Today’s Topics: Commercial Bowl 2021 | UV Light Phone Sterilizer w/Wireless Charging | Tax Season 2021 – Dave Ramsey | News to Start Your Day

Happy National Clean out Your Computer Day! Today is the perfect time to do some general housekeeping on your computer! All computers need regular organizing and cleaning up and after all this time working from home, I’m sure a lot of our computers could use some love!

So, last night was the Super Bowl game…or for most of the world, it was the 2021 Commercial Bowl. Congrats to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tom Brady. There were so many firsts and all kinds of history made last night. One of the biggest, thanks to Covid, was that Tampa Bay became the first team to win the Super Bowl in their home stadium. If you are a Bucs fan, then you have to be very happy and pleased with everything in the game last night. Brady, Gronk, and the Bucs Defense were all great last night. Love or hate Brady, you have to truly admit that he is a phenomenal player and leader.

In the year of Covid and how it has changed everything, you could see that effect on the commercials. There were several very impactful ones with great messages during this time. There were also some pretty funny and crazy ones like the Flat Matthew Doritos one, the Horses one from Sam Adams, and It Wasn’t Me by Cheetos. What were your favorite commercials from the Super Bowl last night?

On another note, a quick update on the house…God is so good! Everything with the appraisal came back great and everything is good to go for the closing. I appreciate all the thoughts and prayers for this last week. I was packing like crazy this weekend and got a ton done. It felt great to clean a ton of stuff out and have that much stuff packed up and out of the house. The new house is coming along very well, also. The plumbing and electrical are done and drywall should be going in this week. It is crazy how quickly it is coming together.

Have a great Monday and a great week!

Jason

Product Spotlights & Updates:

Happy Monday! We are still offering FREE SHIPPING on all Safety Supplies! Just use the Coupon Code: PPESHIP at checkout! Along with free shipping, our UV Light Phone Sterilizer w/Wireless Charging is now on SALE! Want to disinfect all your electronics? Tired of smudges on your phone after cleaning it with a napkin or cloth? This product might be for you! This box allows you to CHARGE AND DISINFECT your phone, Airpods, and Apple watch at the SAME TIME! You can sit back and watch as this box effortlessly sterilizes your everyday electronics! This box is also portable so you can take it with you anywhere and share with your family and friends! 

Tax Season 2021 – Dave Ramsey Blog

With over 30 million Americans working as independent workers or “solopreneurs,” not to mention the endless free social media and selling platforms, there’s never been a better time or bigger audience to launch your own side gig.

Maybe you’ve always had a knack for repainting old thrift store furniture. Or maybe you’re a gifted musician who could coach other young aspiring talent. Maybe you have a specific education, training, experience or skill that you could develop into a freelance business such as financial planning or graphic design. Whatever your “thing” may be, there are plenty of good reasons to get going.

First, you can make extra money on the side. Extra money is always a good thing! Second, you can set your own schedule. That way you can build your business around your life versus the other way around. Also a good thing! And finally, you get to utilize something you’re good at and enjoy. Also a good—and fulfilling—thing!

Regardless of where you are now, you can get started now!

But, of course, getting started is the hardest part! I coach women with side businesses through my Business Boutique events all over the country, and I know how difficult and overwhelming it can seem. So, to help, here are the first five steps you can take to jump-start your side business.

1. Find community.

Just because you’re doing it on your own doesn’t mean you have to do it alone. Find other people who can help support your dream, provide resources or connections that may help you, or give you advice when you need it.

2. Create a plan.

It doesn’t have to be fancy or 14 pages long. You can make your own or search for a template online. It doesn’t matter how you do it; it just matters that you do it.

3. Be prepared to get scared.

Fear is just a part of the journey, and if you know that going in, you can set yourself up to overcome it. Putting yourself out there can feel vulnerable and scary, but you can’t succeed unless you do it! I write on this topic frequently because I battle fear just like you do.

4. Just take the first step.

Business can be overwhelming with all that you have to do, especially when you’re starting out. But don’t focus on all that you have to do. Just focus on one thing that you have to do. When you take that one baby step, it fuels your focus and gives you the confidence and momentum to take that second baby step.

5. Do it now.

If you wait until you’re ready, until you have more experience, or until all the details are perfect before you go for it, you’ll never do anything. Go for it now, when you’re not ready, you don’t have experience, it’s not perfect, and you’re scared out of your mind. Do it anyway. Do it scared. Ready is a myth.

There you go! These are the first five things you need to do to get started. And notice not one of them was “go buy a bunch of equipment and materials” or “pay $10,000 for a professional website.” Those things aren’t a bad investment later down the line when your business revenues justify it. But when you’re starting out, the problem isn’t the design of your website; it’s your fear, doubt, and hesitation.

If you do these five things, you’ll be well on your way to joining the movement of people making money doing what they love!

This article is from the Dave Ramsey Blog.

Today’s News to Start Your Day:

  • As of this morning, in the US, there are 9,782,082 active COVID cases, 17,354,388 have recovered and there have been 474,933 deaths.
  • Did you tune in to watch the Superbowl commercials? This year’s Super Bowl brought ads from Bud Light, Cheetos, Robinhood, Chipotle, Pringles and many more. Read here for more on the ads and watch them again after they debuted on the game. Check them all out here. 
  • Apple is close to finalizing a deal with Hyundai-Kia to manufacture an Apple-branded autonomous electric vehicle, sources previously told CNBC. A so-called Apple Car would put pressure on legacy automakers to increase their self-driving vehicle technologies, much like Tesla has done with EVs. An Apple car – known as Project Titan – has reportedly been on and off for years. 
  • Senator Bernie Sanders said he opposes lowering the income cap for people to receive a full $1,400 direct payment as part of the next coronavirus relief bill. Senator Joe Manchin has raised concerns about the checks going to too many people, and President Joe Biden has said he would be flexible about eligibility to receive the money. Individuals making up to $75,000 would receive the full sum as of now, but Democrats are considering lowering the threshold to $50,000. 
  • The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved marketing of a new device that could help patients suffering from obstructive sleep apnea. The device is the first device of its kind to be intended for use during the day, most devices are intended for use during sleep. FDA assessments found that the device reduced loud snoring by more than 20% in 87 out of 115 patients.
  • Dogecoin rallied 65% in 24 hours to a record high of $0.083745 on Sunday, according to data from CoinMarketCap. Dogecoin, based on the “doge” meme, was initially started as a joke but has since gained a following. Elon Musk, Snoop Dogg and Gene Simmons have tweeted about the cryptocurrency recently.