Toni Kistner

Managing Editor, Net.Worker

 

tkistner@nww.com (207) 878-8246

Network World 1164 Washington Ave. Portland, ME 04103

Recent articles by Kistner

Shoreline makes VoIP for the home
Dec. 11, 2000
Workaholic executives and call center challenges drive market expansion.

Hand it off
Dec. 07, 2000
Telework outsource companies offer welcome connectivity, support, and consulting services.

Merrill Lynch program gets high marks
Nov. 13, 2000
In 1994, Merrill Lynch saw the future. When the federal clean air legislation mandated that companies reduce the number of cars on the roads during peek commuting hours, the company responded by launching a ...

IT strides seen as double-edged sword
Nov. 13, 2000
While advances in computing and broadband technologies are routinely credited for driving workers off congested highways and into home offices, a recent IT Forecaster report from IDC argues just the opposite: that ...

Regulating two-factor authentication
Oct. 13, 2005
The next time you get stopped for a traffic violation, here's something to distract you from thinking about how much your insurance will increase: Back in the police car, the officer will need two-factor authentication ...

Iomega and removable storage
Oct. 06, 2005
Good data backup means taking your data offsite. Most people think tape drives when this subject comes up, but Iomega wants you to think "removable hard drive" and created this market almost 25 years ago.

Telework advocates get together
Oct. 03, 2005
A congressman, former governor and CEO took part in a Web conference held last week to champion teleworking as a means to reduce fossil fuels dependencies, provide business continuity and ease the burden on our ...

Another IM-VoIP advantage
Sep. 29, 2005
Let's continue our discussion on the explosion of instant messaging and VoIP applications started with the launch of Google Talk and expanded by eBay's recent acquisition of Skype.

Get on the IM-voice bandwagon
Sep. 22, 2005
One area in which small businesses can far outshine their big dog competitors? Responsiveness to current and potential customers. For businesses that sell products or services to the public, you want to reassure ...

Online backups win converts
Sep. 15, 2005
As we painfully learned recently, offsite backups may be your only chance to still have a backup. This mantra has long been chanted by the many service providers (4,960 results in my Google search for "offsite backup ...

Computers and water don't mix
Sep. 08, 2005
I have a friend who works for a builder of $1 million custom homes in the Dallas area. Her constant complaint: "I hate water." Leaks cause her more problems than any other service call.

Another Wireless Firewall Router
Sep. 01, 2005
Security sells, and many small businesses get pushed by consultants and resellers to move up to a more "professional" router/firewall/VPN device. I've been testing the WatchGuard Firebox X Edge 50w, one of many ...

SMB global collaboration
Aug. 25, 2005
It shouldn't be hard to coordinate seven employees, should it? And a fairly limited number of suppliers?

Rethinking storage
Aug. 18, 2005
We can't get enough, can we? I'm talking about hard disk storage, of course.

Tips for formalizing a telework support strategy, Part 1 of 2
Aug. 15, 2005
IT staff should put themselves in teleworkers' shoes for a bit, analyst says

Eliminate static passwords
Aug. 11, 2005
Every small company matures in its approach to security. If lucky, you mature because you realize the value of better security as you grow. If unlucky, you jump deep into the security world because of an intrusion and ...

Barracuda boxes spam
Aug. 04, 2005
One of the common complaints I'm hearing as I host the Network World Small Business Technology Tour this summer is about spam. We've been fighting it for years, and although the tide may be turning in our favor, victory ...

WhatsUp Gold sings
Jul. 28, 2005
Hello from the road where I'm meeting SMB business people in Chicago, Seattle, New York and Houston as host of Network World's technology event, IT Strategies for Small to Mid-size Businesses. Attendees at every stop ...

Start-up takes fresh approach to backups
Jul. 21, 2005
Rejoice! You have more choices for backup today than ever before. Perhaps backups may soon become so painless that the 60% of you who don't back up regularly may actually start.

Smart, secure growth
Jul. 14, 2005
I'm on the road for the Network World "IT Strategies for Small to Mid-Sized Business" Technology Tour this week and next. The marketing department called this "A Practical Blueprint for Smart Growth," but I like a ...

Sixteen doctors and a shared workspace
Jul. 07, 2005
I'm always intrigued when I see distributed workers find new ways to organize, collaborate and produce value.  A group of doctors in the Washington, D.C. area, for example, took Intranets.com's hosted portal service and ...

With telework, it pays to be formal
Jul. 04, 2005
Businesses miss out on economic savings with informal telework programs.

Rethinking internal information portals
Jun. 30, 2005
Portals were going to save the world, but popped as loudly as any other over-hyped Internet business idea back in 2000. But a company portal can bypass the office manager black hole (Shirley, Sandra, and Margie) we ...

Finding information black holes in every small business
Jun. 23, 2005
Every small company I've seen has at least one black hole of information. In my father's photo equipment manufacturing company, where I spent three painful years, those black holes were named Shirley, Sandra and Margie. ...

New wireless kit and more USB back-up chatter
Jun. 16, 2005
I'm a sucker for tipping points, and seeing technical products packaged in clear plastic and hanging on racks screams mainstream acceptance. True, you need a hatchet to get through the plastic, but in the case of US ...