Understanding Your Hosts File – and Using It

Technical Insight From The PEiR Group
By Dan Davis

The PlanWell Job Tracker provides a direct link to files which have been uploaded by your customers using EWO.

By clicking on the folder icon for the EWO order, the Job Tracker will open your FTP folder where you can access the zipped order files, and distribute them to production.

When you click on the file it will look in the database to find the address for your FTP server, and log you in automatically. If this does not work for you, it may mean that you need to add an entry into your Hosts file.

The Internet allows every computer to have its own unique address. These addresses are generally an IP number, but can also be in the form of a name like ftp.reproshop.com. This is what is known as a Domain name. Domain names are leased from various companies, and registered with Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). When you register a domain name, Domain Name Servers throughout the world will add your domain name to their lists, so that Internet requests for ftp.reproshop.com will be forwarded to your correct IP address.

In general, this addressing scheme will then allow anybody but you to connect to your FTP. However, your network might be set up in such a way those external addresses, like your FTP may not be reachable from inside your firewall. But you can make this work! All you need to do is find out the internal address for your FTP server, and set up an entry in your Hosts file.

The Hosts file is a text file which resides in one of the following locations on your computer:

Windows Vista - C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC
Windows XP - C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC
Windows 2K - C:\WINNT\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ETC
Win 98/ME - C:\WINDOWS
It will have no extension, and can be opened using notepad.

Once you have located the file, scroll down to the bottom and add the following:

xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx ftp.reproshop.com

Replace the x’s in the sample with the internal IP address for your FTP server.
Now each time that you try to browse for ftp.reproshop.com , your computer will first check the hosts file to see if you have a special address for it, and if it finds one, it will use it, instead of the address which are given out by the DNS server.

Once you understand how the Hosts file works, you may wish to take more advantage of it by adding shortcuts to frequently visited sites, or by pointing ad-based web sites to your localhost to speed up your internet browsing.

Samples:
72.10.44.177 peir - This will allow you to just enter peir in your browser to get to the peir web site!
127.0.0.1 ad.doubleclick.net - will block all files supplied by that Double Click Server to the web page you are viewing, which will make many pages load much faster!

Several organizations publish Hosts files that will greatly eliminate annoying ads and other time wasting promotions, and update them frequently. If you would like to learn more, please visit one of the following sites:

http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm

http://someonewhocares.org/hosts/

http://hostsfile.mine.nu/

"Shaun's Corner" - On The Road Again...

By Shaun Meany

I’ve really been racking up those “frequent flier” miles lately. And my travels have been eye-opening.

Over the last month I have met with scores of reprographers both in North America and abroad and have learned a lot about the issues they are facing in their businesses today. No matter where I am there seems to be one common challenge (I prefer to see it as an opportunity) that comes up more often than any other.

It’s “training.” Short and sweet, it’s what I hear most often, and it doesn’t matter if I’m in Wales or West Virginia.

What I hear is: “there is no time for training… we cannot afford to send our people off to get trained… if we sent them to training then we’re short-staffed…” or “we don’t have access to good training material.”

I understand, believe me. But in today’s highly competitive business environment it is essential to differentiate your company from your competition. And one of the most effective ways to differentiate your company from others is by demonstrating the knowledge and the skills of your most valuable asset, your staff!

Reprographers tell me they can easily make the decision to buy a new piece of equipment without much hesitation, but when it comes to investing in their people it’s another story.

Here’s a simple truth: in today’s business climate your sales, customer service and production personnel require up to date skills in order to do their jobs. Some method of training is necessary for employees to develop and grow. The behavior of sales and customer service personnel play an ever increasing role in influencing your clients and prospects in choosing your reprographics business over your competition.

There you have it. Production personnel need to be trained on production workflow and best practices and they need to understand the needs of the customers they serve. Your financial and bookkeeping staff need to have the best tools available for managing cash flow and helping to identify trends and potential problems before they get out of control.

All employees need to understand the industries that your reprographics company serves. They need to know the vocabulary and terms used by your clients; they need to understand the key services and benefits these services provide. Period.

So, if you agree your staff is in need of more training, how do you go about providing it? This is where the PEiR Group would like to help. Since its inception, The PEiR Group has been developing training programs covering a wide array of topics – all of them focused on the needs of today’s reprographer.

The PEiR Group hosts a variety of conferences each year where members come to learn and exchange ideas and discuss best practices. We have offered online training on PlanWell Technology for sales and production personnel. Most recently, we introduced CD-ROM training for PlanWell to meet the needs of employees who needed training but were unable to make the online sessions. Last year we expanded our online training to include topics like Selling 3D Printing, Bid Communications and some Vendor Specific Webinars like the Océ Web Store. Many more are planned for the future.

All of these training materials have been archived on our Intranet. It’s a valuable resource, chalk full of training and best practices you can download and repurpose for your company’s specific needs.

Here’s a list of current training and education content available to members on the PEiR Intranet. Many of these subjects are categorized under specific conferences but will soon be organized by functional area, as well.

o FM Sales Training
o Selling Digital Services
o Listening and Asking Questions
o Handling Objections
o Compensation Programs Designed to Motivate and Meet Company Goals
o Branding and Why it is Important to Your Business
o Sales Prospecting
o PlanWell Specific Training for Sales and Customer Service
o PlanWell Certification Training and Hands-on Assignments
o Understanding the AEC Marketplace
o AEC Project Life Cycle and Document Management
o Bid Communications
o Variable Information Printing
o Display Graphics Trends and Applications
o Charging for Digital Services
o Disaster Preparedness and the Importance to your Business
o Financial Worksheets for Managing for Profit
o Managing Cash Flow
o Safety Programs
o Top HR Issues in Business Today
o Trends in Reprographics 2008

To continue improving PEiR’s training and educational offerings, I initiated a members’ Educational Advisory Group (EAG) to help gather ideas and input. This group meets about twice a year to discuss topics and locations for future conferences. Another extremely well received educational initiative we started this year is our Local Road Show Educational Tour (see a list of upcoming cities on the tour later in this issue).

Finally, in order to continue meeting the needs of our members, an electronic survey will be sent out shortly to gather input from all members as to their specific educational and training needs. It is very important that you tell us your thoughts and let us know how we can help improve the skills and knowledge of all employees in your organizations.

Password Security: More Important Than Ever

By Dan Davis

If you visit an e-commerce or informational web site today it’s more than likely that they’ll ask you to register before you gain access.

Sometimes, this can be a good thing. For example, if you do business with a company on an ongoing basis, filling out a registration can save you time when you revisit the site to make your next purchase.

The problem that I have with a lot of these sites is that they feel they understand your security needs better than you do. An example of this is when you fill out the registration, and the site gives you back an error that says “Password must be between 5 – 8 characters,” or “Passwords must contain at least 1 special character and 1 number.”

There are several problems with this approach as I see it. The first is, when you define rules for a password, you minimize the number of possibilities for the password and thus, make it less secure. If I were to write a program to hack the first example, I would eliminate all guesses that contained 1-4 or 9 -1000 characters! This would really save me a lot of guesses! The larger problem is, with so many sites dictating so many rules, it becomes impossible for someone to remember what they put down the next time they visit the site.

In my view, security is best left to the user. In this way, they can determine the appropriate strength for their password, and one which they will be able to remember.

Some registrations on PlanWell and EWO provide access to private project information or the ability to charge to a company’s account. For this reason, customers should be encouraged to choose a fairly strong password.

Longer is Better
With each successive character, your password becomes more than 100 times more secure.

Keep it Random
Keep a book handy next to your computer. For each strong password you need, choose a number. Go to that page in the book, and use the first letter from each of the first 15 sentences as a password. Don’t lose the book!

Include Numbers and Characters
Many people will replace letters with similar looking numbers like “5umm3rt1m3” for “Summertime” or “pa55w0rd” for password.

Change it Every now and Then!
In some work environments it is possible for people to come to know your password. Computers get left logged in, or you give it an assistant when you are on the road. Changing your password could defeat this.

Share these tips with your customers, and let them decide how strong their passwords need to be. But keep in mind: the worst password is the one you forget!


Dan’s Tech Tip
Did you know: On Windows XP, a blank password is more secure than a weak password. XP accounts with a blank password may not be accessed across a network or the Internet. However, this would only make sense if computer were kept in a secure room, or if others in your company needed access to files on the computer.

"Shaun's Corner" - Lessons From Arizona

For this edition of “POV,” I thought I’d share a few of my observations of our time in Arizona – along with the comments of a few of those in attendance.

The architectural influences of Frank Lloyd Wright was not lost on attendees, it seems, as a number of guests remarked on the beauty of the Biltmore itself. It was both a beautiful and relaxing venue, the perfect location for time spent learning and networking with colleagues and peers.

In keeping with our “Strategic Moves in Reprographics” theme this year, we made sure to keep the conference’s educational content packed full of ideas and strategies. Our goal was to help our members expand their revenues in new areas and – at the same time – effectively and efficiently manage their businesses by controlling costs and resources during an economic slowdown.

It was great to be able to re-connect with old friends and make some new ones. I kept pretty busy but managed to scribble down a few quotes from people I ran into:

“I was surprised at how much I got from the H.R. discussion. I was expecting the outside presenters to be the highlight but the HR discussion was by far the most useful.” – Ken Karbeling

“The Xerox guy (Bobby Baker) was amazing! He had very useful information!” – Kristy Selleck

“Overall this was a great conference. I learned a lot of valuable information from the presentations and the other PEiR Members” – Michael Hess

“(It is) great to get to know others and see what other shops are doing” – Neil Larkin

“This conference is better than Vegas last year!” – Peter Bouchier



Many sessions were presented over the course of our two days together but I would like to highlight a few of them in this newsletter. Members rated our two sessions on expanding printing revenues as among the most informative of the conference.

They singled out the session on Variable Informational Printing, presented by Xerox’s Bobby Baker, as both entertaining and thought provoking. Bobby explained what “1 to 1” marketing was all about and the significant opportunities that reprographers have in pursuing this area of on-demand digital printing. According to Bobby, small format color printing will grow by 581% between 2005 and 2010. Variable Color printing will increase by 587% over this same period.

Reprographers need to understand and prepare their companies to move now if they are to take full advantage of this trend in the printing business.

The Art of Bid Communications

Bid Day - GC Presentation Objective:
Our objective was to bring in a local project manager from a General Contractor and get an idea of what the bid day looks like from a General Contractor’s perspective and what a reprographer can do to earn or lose his business. What we received were discussions of several key concepts:

Loyalty - Does it Exist?
PEiR Learning: If saving a GC a lot of money still does not generate loyalty what will? While nothing may guarantee loyalty here are some things that may help:
• Stay in touch with your General Contractors on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. No news is not always good news.
• Communicate often that you value the GC’s business while allowing the GC to identify how much value they receive from your service.
• Become that trusted advisor by knowing their business and interacting with their clients.

Fees and Services – It should be free!
PEiR Learning: Time and again our General Contractors still only see us as providers of paper. The next time your General Contractor says it should be free, ask them to build another 10,000 square feet onto your shop for free. While this may not be a good idea, it underscores a reality that we should bring into the discussions of the following concepts:
• We provide more value than paper prints.
• We must help them understand this critical point as the digital age is upon us.
• The amount of money spent on paper according to our GC may be less than 1% of job costs yet we are the most critical aspect of the bid process. There is value in what we offer.

Efficiency – “One Stop Shop”
PEiR Learning: Without a doubt Sub-Hub, Bidcaster and Planwell provide this very functionality for General Contractors. If we are not offering this to all of our A/E/C prospects and clients someone else will and then we will be forced to compete on cost per square foot on paper. This will reduce our efforts to being little more than a Vendor as opposed to leveraging the relationship and resources you have invested and worked so hard to achieve.
• Ask your General Contractors about their current bid process and where the feel it needs improvement.
• Identify (in actual dollars) the impact inefficiency has on their process. At that point you have already built your case for additional service fees such as document management fees and digital download fees.
• Talk to the solutions Bidcaster/Planwell offers to the entire process from planning to project closeout. You will always identify areas that will highlight how valuable you are to the process.

Confusion – “We know what we need”
PEiR Learning: PEiR members helped our visitor identify the fact that the process he feels is one stop shop actually isn’t, and from a higher level is less efficient process than he already has with a BidCaster/Planwell offering. How we can help with confusion:

• Identify if the process they are using leads them to the goal they are trying to achieve.
• Is the GC solving a problem and creating another?
• As the process changes you will need to help the GC identify potential changes to the process.

Conclusion – Be Prepared

Obviously, we can never know in a live scenario where our General Contractors will lead us. The best thing we can do is be prepared with as much information as possible and keep trying to identify what the General Contractor really needs. THIS IS WHAT MAKES BEING A PEiR MEMBER SO IMPORTANT! Our group has the best minds in the business and sharing the best practices and hearing what is good and not so good in our processes and systems will continue to drive our success. We look forward to your participation in our next meeting and upcoming road shows.