Introduction
Out of the Closet, Into the Cloud
Holly Ross, Executive Director, NTEN  If I were a betting woman – and I am totally not; I stick to penny slots in Vegas – I'd bet that "the cloud" is right up there with "tweet" and "Instagram" when it comes to tech terms you've heard too much lately.
Like all tech fads that explode onto the scene, the cloud has suffered from a lot of unjustified criticism – as well as some undeserved hype. At NTEN, we believe that cloud solutions, when aligned with nonprofit needs, are a big win. You're not in the IT business, so you shouldn't be running an IT shop. Every moment not spent fixing a server is a moment your tech person can spend using technology to serve your clients better. Cloud adoption is high in our sector, and if you're ready to make the leap, we've got some great articles this month to help you make it successful. You can also find a lot of great information in our recent report on the "State of the Nonprofit Cloud". It's free to download the PDF! Best,
Holly FEATURED ARTICLE
5 Cloud Based Apps to Help Keep You Organized
By Jeff Ramos, Community and Content Manager, Games for Change  Even though many of us are entrenched in the intersection between our work and technology, we often struggle with finding ways to make our lives simpler.
In today's world, cloud technology allows most nonprofits with an Internet connection to access hundreds of files, manage multiple teams, and keep track of others whether they are remote or across the office. To help you keep track of files while keeping your sanity, here are 5 Cloud based tools that can help your entire organization collaborate. CONTINUE READING > FEATURED ARTICLE
The Cloud: Not As Airy As You Thought
By Geri Stengel, President, Ventureneer  The cloud is often described as a "utility based" service. Like electricity, water, or gas, you pay for what you use and can increase the amount you use as needed. Also like utilities, it's a lot cheaper to use Con Edison than it is to buy and maintain your own generator and meters.
Cloud computing is really a boon to startups -- both nonprofit and businesses -- because it significantly reduces upfront costs. Even better? You're already using it. CONTINUE READING > Partner Sponsor
 Developing a Cloud Migration Strategy  By Matthew Eshleman, Director of Professional Network Services, Community IT Innovators
While it may be tempting to move to the cloud because of your free 10 Salesforce licenses or free Google Apps account, it's critical to answer the question: Why migrate? CONTINUE READING > What is the Value of the Cloud for CSOs in the Developing World?  By Keisha Taylor, Communications Manager, TechSoup Global & GuideStar International
The Cloud is channelling the creativity of developers in the developing world despite the absence of sufficient infrastructure. CONTINUE READING > Partner Sponsor
 Google Drive: Does It Matter?  By TJ Rainsford, CTO, 501cTECH
Google Drive is still brand new and not without limitations, but its capabilities are pretty hard to ignore. CONTINUE READING > Into the Cloud: Great Books Foundation  By Chris Bernard, Editorial and Communications Director, Idealware
A technologically conservative mid-size organization takes a risk with the Cloud, saving staff time and opening the door to other technology. CONTINUE READING > Partner Sponsor
 Things We Like A monthly roundup of our favorite nonprofit tech resources and other goodies. Read more posts on our blog. - You may have noticed our little homage to Cloud City in the header. But did you know that May 25th was the 35th anniversary of the original Star Wars? Or that there are some social media lessons to be learned from Luke, Han, Chewie, and company?
- Speaking of social media lessons learned, Brazilians actually use Orkut, according to this infographic on what tools the rest of the world uses. We had wondered why that site hadn't started redirecting straight to G+.
- They probably know better than we do. But that doesn't mean they have to: check out fivesecondtest to start optimizing your own landing pages. (We've also had fun playing with Optimizely.)
- We can tell you that you should "stop measuring 'time on site' and 'pages/visit' as if they were Key Performance Indicators". Just stop it.
- When you're ready to tell the rest of your org about some real KPIs, we suggest you do it while tooling around on Honda's new "butt-streered Segway". [Ed note: if somebody were to donate one of those to NTEN, we would totally post the ensuing hilarity on Facebook.]
- Apparently, taking a break from answering email can boost your productivity. (Not this email, of course.)
- We'd suggest you check out the Kitten Cam, but that might lead you to take too long a break. Oh, oops. Sorry, productivity. Sometimes, the kittens have to win.
- Hopefully you already have an extraordinary boss, one who understands that having fun is essential to creating a more passionate work culture. Either way, thank you, Quipi, for your passion.
| 
No comments:
Post a Comment