In News: iYogi Re-Defines Technical Support – BizTech2.com

Remote managed services are gaining a lot of attraction these days. Companies are looking to outsource the maintenance and monitoring of their IT infrastructure to a third party to improve efficiency and save costs. BizTech2.com caught up with Uday Challu, founding partner and CEO, iYogi, to see what the company has to offer in this space.

As far as Enterprise and SME customers are concerned, which verticals are you focusing on?

Our focus will mostly be on small companies with around five to 100 users and also firms that have multiple small branch offices like travel agencies, retail stores etc.

What kind of support services do you provide to your customers? What is the Green PC service?

iYogi provides the next generation of remote computer support services for consumers and businesses. For consumers, our live 24/7 support extends to technologies we use everyday, including hardware, software applications, devices, peripherals and networking equipment. iYogi also offers a full range of business IT solutions including managed monitoring, managed services, set-up and installation services, and incident-based services.

Green PC Service

With the current state of the global climate and increasing dependency on the computer, iYogi helps PC users reduce their carbon footprint and save money at the same time. iYogi’s Green PC service is the first in the independent computer support industry to offer customers a way to save money, conserve energy and protect the environment by optimising their PC’s efficiency. Consumers and businesses can save up to $200 per year, per desktop, in energy costs with iYogi’s Green PC application. This green application makes the computer environmentally friendly by reducing power consumption by almost 50 percent.

Our Green PC dashboard helps customise power settings and calculate power savings in kWh (kilowatt hour). The Green PC dashboard also gives a status on the reduction of CO2 and how responsible usage will benefit the environment by saving trees. A customised service that increases the energy efficiency of computers, undertakes the below-mentioned three primary initiatives:

- Computer assessment, analysing settings and PC energy use
- Customised efficiency planning geared specifically to the individual’s usage patterns
- Implementing setting changes to maximise the computer’s energy use

What are the technologies that allow you to offer 24/7 support and ensure there is no downtime at the client site?

We have invested significantly in developing a comprehensive monitoring and management tools stack. This enables us to manage and monitor all devices in the office network as well as for branch offices and mobile users. Our tools continuously monitor the customer’s network and notify our NOC (Network Operations Centre) in case of problems. Based on the set of events, tickets are automatically generated and escalated to corresponding teams. Over and above our proactive approach, the customer always has an option to call our 24X7 support line for issues that are not identified via the monitoring tools.

Please throw some light on your proprietary iMantra technology.

iMantra is a CRM system, which is tailor-made to suit the emerging business needs at iYogi. It allows for the formation of individualised customer relationships with the aim of providing personalised services to each subscriber. This tool is built on the latest java technology with a layered architecture that makes it scalable and secure. This architecture provides a seamless workflow and independent channels for various business needs: sales, support, quality and customer service. The entire system can be exposed in the form of secure APIs and Web services, which makes it a re-usable entity.

Your business model is similar to BPOs in India providing technical support to offshore customers. What unique values do you bring to this ecosystem that would help a potential client choose you over a competitor?

iYogi’s business model is different from traditional BPOs. Some key factors that differentiate iYogi include:

- Direct-to-consumer and -small business: iYogi delivers technical support services directly to consumers and small businesses and is a global technical support brand based out of India. Unlike traditional BPOs in India, iYogi does not provide any private label support and/ or work on behalf of large OEMs or software publishers.

- Optimised Processes: iYogi has developed proprietary processes for consistently delivering on a resolution rate of 87 percent, which is among the highest published benchmarks in the support industry, where averages hover in the range of 50 percent.

- Comprehensive technology platform: iYogi’s global delivery platform, iMantra, gets smarter with every customer interaction. It documents every problem, the solution and relevant hardware and software aspects, while capturing each customer’s demographic information and creating a behavioural profile. All of this information is at the fingertips of iYogi’s Global Tech Experts. This set-up combines a knowledge base with a comprehensive set of tools and technology expertise. iYogi offers a range of tools that complement its remote support services for helping customers maintain technology at peak performance levels. iYogi’s products include iYogi Smart PC Scan, iYogi Support Dock, iYogi Green PC and iYogi PC Optimisation.

How do you plan to move up the value chain in the times to come?

The growing use and penetration of the Internet and new Web-based applications has consequently opened the door to threats and vulnerabilities, which affect the system performance and ultimately lead to degrading performance. If the threats are diagnosed early on, the impact on efficiency can be minimised considerably. Currently, a user only realizes that he needs technical support once the damage has occurred and reactive methods of support are used to recover from the loss.

At iYogi, we are developing our capabilities to not only provide support when demanded, but to also monitor, pre-empt and fix threats before they can cause any damage to the computer. This will be possible only by combining technology with processes that are capable of re-defining the way technical support is delivered today.

What is your India strategy?

Technically, we are capable of servicing any geography including India. At this stage, we are looking for the right kind of partners to find access to potential customers and provide them a consolidated, 360-degree solution and services for issues relating to hardware, software, network etc. We aim to launch our India services in the coming six to eight months. Our services will offer clients a one-stop solution for all their business needs.

Windows Internet Explorer 7 with: Mozilla is waiting for clarification

Within the Mozilla Foundation, is preferred, for now, reserve his opinion on the decision by Microsoft to remove Internet Explorer 7 Windows 8. In an internal mail, CEO, John Lilly, is clearly nonplussed by the effect of announcement of the firm of Redmond.

"It is impossible to assess what this announcement means that both Microsoft does not - completely and in detail - all the advantages and brakes for OEM Windows. Otherwise, it is not possible to know if Microsoft does not give a hand to take the other. And more, it is impossible to say whether this has an impact beyond the change in the technical process of installing the manufacturers, and if it makes it more difficult for users to migrate to Windows 7 "he says .

Media Player removed from Windows 2004 without effects

Until then, Microsoft has merely an announcement very vague. If the publisher does not Internet Explorer 8 (or only some parts?) Code in Windows that will deliver to manufacturers this summer, it does not abandon the install. In its statement, Microsoft spoke thus to assist manufacturers in the preinstallation of IE8 before the commercial distribution of computers.

In 2004, Microsoft had already been ordered to remove Windows Media Player. This condemnation by the European Commission in Europe led to the commercialization of a special edition, N, Windows. The edition was a flop, especially because back by PC manufacturers.

Brussels has launched an investigation to verify that Microsoft had not "made it less attractive commercially or operationally" Windows XP N compared to the full version. The editor believed to have played the game argument does not weigh in favor of the version without Media Player, which was sold at the same price as the version with the software.

Key manufacturers of the problem, before Microsoft

Or by removing Internet Explorer 8, Microsoft announced an edition E Windows 7 (Vista, always shipped with IE is not affected). An E, which reminds the N version of Windows XP. Moreover, given the close commercial ties between Microsoft and PC manufacturers, it will certainly difficult for publishers competing browsers to be treated fairly.

The software pre-installed on a computer generally by a commercial agreement with manufacturers. Difficult for the publishers, except perhaps Google and Apple, to negotiate contracts for multi-million dollar deal with Microsoft.

An acceptable solution for all browsers would therefore by a European Commission decision applies directly to manufacturers. It is considered one of the tracks, which would result in the obligation for manufacturers to propose, at the first connection to the Internet, choose your browser from a list of software.

Apple Releases Safari 4 for Mac, Windows

Apple on Monday released Safari 4, the next version of its Web browser for OS X and Windows users. The updated browser will also ship with Snow Leopard once the planned OS X 10.6 update arrives in September.

Safari 4 has been available as a public beta since February, when Apple unveiled the new version of the browser. The new version features the Nitro Javascript engine, which is aimed at improving Safari’s speed.

During Monday’s WWDC keynote, Bertrand Serlet, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering, touted the speed improvements to Safari, claiming the updated browser can execute JavaScript nearly eight times faster than Internet Explorer 8 and more than four times faster than Firefox 3. Safari 4 can also load eight pages three times faster than IE and Firefox, according to Apple’s figures.

Safari 4 will run as a 64-bit application in the forthcoming Snow Leopard update. That will further boost the performance of the Nitro JavaScript engine.

Also in Snow Leopard, Safari 4 will offer a a crash-resistance feature by running plugins as a separate process. he leading cause of crashes in OS X comes from browser plug-ins, Apple says; in the new version of Safari, if a plugin crashes, only that part of the page will be broken, while the browser will remain open.

Other improvements in Safari 4 include a Top Sites feature that gave users a visual preview of frequently visited pages; Full History Search for finding titles, Web address, and text of recently viewed pages; and a Cover Flow view for browsing bookmarks. Safari 4 Beta’s tabs-on-top feature, where Web page tabs were located at the very top of the window, is gone in the final release. Instead, tabs have returned to where they were in Safari 3, immediately below the bookmarks bar.

The new version of Safari includes HTML 5 support for offline technologies as well as support for advanced CSS Effects. According to Apple, Safari 4 is the first browser to pass the Web Standards Project’s Acid3 test, which looks at how well a browser adheres to CSS, JavaScript, XML, and SVG standards designed specifically for dynamic Web applications.

Safari runs on Mac OS X 10.4.11 or later and requires Security Update 2009-002. Apple says Safari 4 is available for download at its Web site.

Windows Vista Updates fail

You try to install updates in Windows Vista. However, the installation may fail, and you may receive the following error message:
"WBEM_E_CRITICAL_ERROR (0x8004100A)"

This issue occurs for one of the following reasons:

1. The PATH environment variable does not contain the following information:
%windir%\system32\wbem
2. The Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) registry subkeys have been modified. For example, if the registry subkey CLSID_WbemDefPath is missing, you receive the error message that is mentioned in the "Symptoms" section.

There are tow Method are use to resolve this issue,

Method 1

Add %windir%\system32\wbem to the PATH environment variable. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Click Start, right-click Computer, and then click Properties.
2. In the Computer name, domain, and workgroup settings area, click Change settings.

If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation, type your password, or click Continue.
3. Click the Advanced tab, and then click Environment Variables.
4. In the System variables section, click to select Path, and then click Edit.
5. Add the following at the end of the Variable value text box:
;%windir%\system32\wbem
6. Click OK three times.

Method 2

Run the WMI Diagnosis Utility. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Download the WMI Diagnosis Utility version 2.0 (WMIDiag.exe). To do this, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=d7ba3cd6-18d1-4d05-b11e-4c64192ae97d&displaylang=en (http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=d7ba3cd6-18d1-4d05-b11e-4c64192ae97d&displaylang=en)
2. Double-click the WMIDiag.exe file to extract the files that include the WMIDiag.vbs file.
3. Click Start, and then type cmd in the Start Search box.
4. Right-click cmd in the Programs list, and then click Run as administrator.

If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation, type your password, or click Continue.

5. At the command prompt, type the following commands one at a time and press ENTER after each command.

Drive:
CD Path
WMIDiag.vbs

6. If the WMI Diagnosis Utility reports that WMI is not functioning correctly, follow the steps in the WMI Diagnosis Utility report to resolve the problem.

iYogi Announces Launch of Monitoring and Performance Tool For SMBs.

iYogi – a leading provider of technical support services with horizons in the US, UK, Canada and Australia – today announced the launch of its exclusive server monitoring tools for small businesses. The new product offers integrated technology solutions to surmount the users’ unique IT support requirements thereby enabling them to derive and share information, data, enable network performance analysis, and security trends critical to plan and mana ge their set of servers – 24x7.

Uday Challu, iYogi’s CEO commented, “Holding a significant niche for itself in the computer support industry, iYogi has always known to be on the forefront of adapting breakthrough technology to exceed customer service expectations. This time we have developed a tool offering value-add functionality which will help small business customers maximize the business outcomes of IT.”

iYogi’s monitoring tool provides real time observation and monitoring solutions to ensure more robust and reliable IT support and infrastructure for small buinesses. Small Business owners also get a comprehensive assesment of their IT environment to meet technology needs with the scalability for future growth and create preventative measures based on quick analysis of network device alerts, pre-failure indicators, performance benchmark and security issues.

The new Monitoring and performance tool will provide small business with the opportunity to test all technical and non-technical aspects of their servers and help them to strengthen overall IT infrastructure. The array of services will include: Patch Management, Security Auditing, Site Inventory, Real Time Alerting Script Based Management, and Rights Management Services for all critical server issues.

“Irrespective of the business being small or large, when the consumer chooses iYogi, he leverages the potential of an elite taskforce of Microsoft Certified System Engineers and Cisco Certified Network Associates, ready to service their critical assets, using the most advanced network asset tracking and Performance monitoring”, adds Challu.

Another factor where the Company aims to distinguish itself from its competitors is product pricing. Embracing the concept of service quality, iYogi offers competitively priced technical support services at no-haggle, low prices.

As for its small business support, the Company has integrated its exclusive Monitoring and Alerting Services under one price umbrella of just $480 annually. per server i.e. $49.99 per month. The price is certainly hard to find anywhere else.

For more information on iYogi Small Business Support, visit http://www.iyogibusiness.com/

Contact Details:
Company Name: iYogi Technical Services Pvt Ltd
Address: iYogi Inc.
12 Desbrosses Street
3rd Floor
New York, NY 10013
Toll Free no:1-800-237-3901
Work Number: 1-212-229-0901
Fax Number: 1-888-867-2715

Vista Faces an Uphill Battle with Businesses

Microsoft’s Windows Vista operating system appears to be losing traction with businesses. Fears of an uncertain economy are one factor, but there’s also a more fundamental reason: Many businesses still don’t see the need.

Consumers tend to buy new operating systems when they buy new computers. For businesses, however, moving to a new operating system is a strategic decision that takes into account much more: factors such as cost, the time it takes to train employees, and whether the new operating system is compatible with the hardware and software the businesses already use.

When Microsoft released Vista last year, businesses greeted it enthusiastically. While few businesses ever install a new system during its first year on the market, a 2007 Sanford C. Bernstein survey of corporate tech leaders found that 31% anticipated installing Vista by the end of 2008; 68% anticipated installing it by the end of 2010.

But over the last year, many businesses decided to delay moving to Vista — some, indefinitely. According to a new Bernstein survey, only 8% of tech leaders now anticipate installing Vista by the end of 2008. And only 26% say they’ll install it by the end of 2010.

What happened? Businesses just don’t see the value. Vista only runs on powerful computers, so installing the operating system often also requires buying a new PC, something businesses want to put off with tightening budgets.

The situation for Delaware’s state government is fairly typical. The tech department there recently decided to delay moving to Vista and instead installed XP, an older version of Windows, on about 40 new computers. The state didn’t want to train employees how to use Vista, and some of the software the state uses may not work with Vista, says Rob Revels, a tech official there. There’s no compelling reason to upgrade, he says.

Microsoft Vice President Mike Nash says that many businesses are making their decisions based on outdated impressions of Vista. “There’s a lot of misinformation out there that we’re trying to correct,” he says. Part of the problem for Microsoft: The company focused on security and manageability when it designed Vista, which, while important, are tough to market.

Still, not everyone is wary of Vista. The U.S. Air Force, for example, intends to buy 150,000 computers over the next several months that will run Vista. Kenneth B. Heitkamp, a tech director for the Air Force, says security is a top priority for his service. Additionally, he anticipates that buying PCs with Vista already installed and some of Vista’s energy and time-saving improvements will help the Air Force save more that $25 million in energy and management costs each year.

Yet even Heitkamp understands why Vista’s benefits aren’t generating more buzz. “You’ll never hear a consumer talk about security and manageability,” he says.

source: The Wall Street Journal

June 2008 Cumulative Update for Media Center for Windows Vista

A new cumulative update package for Windows Vista Media Center has been released this week. This update is called the June 2008 Cumulative Update for Media Center for Windows Vista and is also known as KB950126. It is available for download in x86 and x64 versions. It can be installed on systems running the original version of Windows Vista Home Premium or Ultimate Editions and the SP1 version of Windows Vista Home Premium or Ultimate Editions.

The June 2008 Cumulative Update includes the following fixes:

* All of the fixes previously included in the February 2008 Cumulative Update

* Improvements to the TV recording experience on systems that use analog tuners, do not have a set-top box and do not have any digital tuners installed.

* Blank screen that can occur when you switch between full-screen mode and windowed mode while playing a video.

* Empty removable media devices may be displayed in galleries (this issue was introduced in Windows Vista SP1 and only affects those systems).

* Client ID may not be set correctly if you use the Express setup option when launching Windows Vista Media Center.

* Memory leak in extender sessions.

* Updated frequency table for China.

* Channel names in Simplified Chinese are shown as unrecognizable characters.