Home Working
Employers are increasingly getting some staff to work from home – at least for part of the time if not full-time, and in some jobs, people have been doing extra work at home anyway for a long time!
Looking to the future, what equipment and software will make working from home more effective?
The kit
What basic equipment is needed? A fixed computer or a portable device? iPad or tablet? Could just a smartphone do what’s required and replace either?
What sort of printer would you recommend? Inkjet or Laser? Assume colour is required.
Operating system?
Employers are increasingly getting some staff to work from home – at least for part of the time if not full-time, and in some jobs, people have been doing extra work at home anyway for a long time!
Looking to the future, what equipment and software will make working from home more effective?
The kit
What basic equipment is needed? A fixed computer or a portable device? iPad or tablet? Could just a smartphone do what’s required and replace either?
What sort of printer would you recommend? Inkjet or Laser? Assume colour is required.
Operating system?
Microsoft or Apple or Linux? Which version?
Internet connection
Wireless or wired? Is speed important? Packages available?
Communications
Instead of a simple landline, what alternatives can people use to communicate? Skype, Google Hang‑Outs, Video Conferencing, MS Live, Yahoo, Facebook, Twitter
Office software
Microsoft Office Starter 2010 is free. So are Open Office, Libre Office and maybe others. Or should they have the top of the range Microsoft Ultimate?
Storage
How would you recommend files are stored? Local drives, on-line? Typical hard drive sizes and options for using the ‘cloud’
Other devices
Camera, web cam, microphone are likely to be needed from time to time. A smartphone will have these already, and a portable device like a laptop may well have a web cam and microphone. If needed, what products would you recommend for occasional basic quality use. (Obviously a professional photographer or recording artist would want all sorts of features but this is just for the day-to-day use by a ‘normal’ person!
And, to help the day go by, personal use items such as music players, download sites, internet stations, does it have to be iTunes?
Summarise your suggestions.
Internet connection
Wireless or wired? Is speed important? Packages available?
Communications
Instead of a simple landline, what alternatives can people use to communicate? Skype, Google Hang‑Outs, Video Conferencing, MS Live, Yahoo, Facebook, Twitter
Office software
Microsoft Office Starter 2010 is free. So are Open Office, Libre Office and maybe others. Or should they have the top of the range Microsoft Ultimate?
Storage
How would you recommend files are stored? Local drives, on-line? Typical hard drive sizes and options for using the ‘cloud’
Other devices
Camera, web cam, microphone are likely to be needed from time to time. A smartphone will have these already, and a portable device like a laptop may well have a web cam and microphone. If needed, what products would you recommend for occasional basic quality use. (Obviously a professional photographer or recording artist would want all sorts of features but this is just for the day-to-day use by a ‘normal’ person!
And, to help the day go by, personal use items such as music players, download sites, internet stations, does it have to be iTunes?
Summarise your suggestions.
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