By: Venderei Tikotzinski

Archiving files is an important task that most users do at some point. Some people do it on a daily basis while others rarely do. More users need to open archive files than to create them.

So how can you create archives without paying for software like WinZip?

There are many archive file types. The two most popular ones are Zip and RAR. If you receive a file with a Zip extension it means that it is a Zip archive file type. Windows supports some basic built in functionality for opening Zip files and extracting files from them. But if you need some better handling of Zip archives or if you need to create Zip files Windows built-in Zip support is not enough.

So what are your options when it comes to handling archive files? Fortunately there are many options on the market. Some of the options are commercial products that cost money. Some are free to use at home but if used at work or for commercial use you will need to pay for them. And some are completely free for any use.

The most famous compression software is called WinZip. As the name suggests the software focuses on providing Zip archives support on the Windows operating system environment. WinZip has developed over the years and it now supports much more than just Zip files. It can open and create files in many other formats too.

WinZip has two main disadvantages. One is its feature rich user interface which can be confusing for the less technology savvy users. The other one which is really the biggest problem is its cost. WinZip is not free for any use. You can install WinZip for a short evaluation period of 45 days. After that period of time you will need to either pay for it by purchasing it online or remove it from your computer.

If you are not willing to pay for using an archive software you are not alone. Fortunately enough there are many options for using archive software that is free. An example of such software is 7Zip. 7Zip is not just free software it is also open source software which means that you can not only use the software for free but you can also download its source code make any make any changes to it that you need that is if you are a very skilled technology savvy user.

7Zip supports many more file types than just 7Zip. With 7-Zip you can open and extract files from many archive types like RAR and GZip. But the core of the 7Zip software is its own unique file archive type known as 7Z. 7Z archive files are efficient in terms of speed and compression ratio. They are better than Zip in many cases although they are not as popular as Zip. Since 7Zip and other free archive utilities are free the best thing you can do is to play with some of them and decide which one you like the best. There are other free alternatives to WinZip. AlZip is such free software and so are TUGZip and Zipeg.

Author Resource:-> Visit 7Zip for more information about this and other topics. Venderei Tikotzinski writes the digital world and business. Venderei Tikotzinski is a business and Internet writer. This article can be reprinted and used as long as the resource box including the backlink is included.

Article From Articlebliss

by Clay C. Scroggin

In December of 2008, I was emailed by a writer with HR Magazine and asked for my opinion on open source HR software. Truthfully, I didn’t know much about the subject or the products when I first received the email. I set up a meeting for the next week and then began doing some research.

The concept of “Open Source Software” has been most successfully implemented with the Linux operating system. IT people were looking for something other than Microsoft and created the project and code. The way an open source application works is that the source code is free and available for modification. As programmers make modifications and additions to the code, others using the system receive the benefit. From a user’s perspective, it’s very attractive because it can be modified by the user; as opposed to a “boxed” system where the source code can’t be modified.

The question is will the concept of “Open Source” work in the HR software industry?

Linux was successful because there were needs not being met by Microsoft or anyone else. Many IT professionals tend to be almost defiant toward Microsoft. I am sure the search for anything but Microsoft fueled the motivation for the work that went into Linux. The elements that made Linux successful aren’t factors in the HR software industry. There is an awful lot of extremely well written software packages designed to fill practically any need. There is no monopoly within the HR software market. Customers have a large number of options. The sometimes defiant attitude that exists between IT and Microsoft does not exist within the HR profession toward any particular HR solution.

Pros of Open Source HR systems

Yes, there is a market for an open source HR system but, in my opinion, it is very small. The companies that might adopt an open source HR product are going to be those who want to either create their own system or have the source code to modify a system to match their exact needs which can’t be met by any other product on the market. Over the last fifteen years, I have encountered very few, if any, companies who would be in the market for an open source HR system.

A very low cost HR system will attract business. However, I am not sure how successful these companies will be with maintaining a system that requires greater work and IT involvement than do other systems.

U.S. and Canadian HR departments tend, on the whole, to be understaffed. Are these personnel going to have the time necessary to self implement the system, maintain it, and deal with the constant upgrades that are required with an open source HR system?

Additional concerns:

• What type of support is available?
• If you don’t have the internal programming resources, what type of fees will be associated with modifying the system?
• How adequate is the documentation for a product that is constantly being updated by a large number of programmers?
• How bug free is an open source HR system?
• Are new programming changes adequately tested?
• Without adequate support or documentation, how will the product be implemented?

After my interview, I did speak with a prospect was looking to replace an open source HR system. The concerns I laid out above were directly confirmed by the prospect. He said they were looking for a new HRIS system because the open source HR product did not have adequate support and that it did not contain any type of functionality toward U.S. government compliance for EEO, OSHA, COBRA, or anything else. He contacted the company about adding these elements and the cost to add these options was as much as he was going to pay for a system that already had this functionality. So he was again in the market for an HRIS system that would do everything out of the box. I assured him there are many alternatives.

If you are the type of HR professional that drives a kit car you created in your garage, open source HR software might be an option for you. If not, you might want to continue to look at the completed HRIS systems on the market.

Clay C. Scroggin has over fifteen years of experience in the human resource software industry. Clay is currently the President and owner of CompareHRIS.com, a web site dedicated to assisting HR professionals with their search, selection, implementation and use of HR Software. CompareHRIS.com offers an extremely comprehensive HRIS selection tool to assist you with your HRIS, HRMS or HR software selection process. Make sure to download CompareHRIS.com’s free HR and Payroll Software Buyer’s Guide.

Article Source: Open Source “Free” HRIS Software

In keeping with the current theme of free software and Value Added Resellers, I dug up the following article to share for those who may be itnerested, work in a doctors’ office or clinic.

Free Demo or Cheap Limited Version Medical Billing Software for Easy and Fast Billing Service

Author: Gen Wright

There are many providers of cheap, free, easy and fast medical billing software out there and their only aim is to get your business. Many companies that deal in billing software will let you download the free demo version of their software after you succeed to meet certain conditions in expectation that you will ultimately opt for a paid version. On the other hand, some medical billing software companies will offer to send CDs for the demo version of their software and training material by mail. Many of these companies also offer additional features like affordable software upgrades, free or low cost data backups, disk space for storing your data and high speed servers to send and receive data. All these extra features help in eliminating the costs, mainly associated with disk space and maintaining servers and providing technical support.

The most important advantage of installing free demo version of medical billing software that is easy to use and fast to ensure flawless exchange of data is that the company providing it will assist you in determining the exact features you require in the software in order to improve and increase your business in future. Searching and scrutinizing such companies could be a venture that is well worthy of your time as there are so many new software providers that are coming up almost daily with new services both locally and over the Internet. The competition is so intense that you are bound to get a deal either free or cheap limited version software that suits your needs.

Medical billing services are plentiful. However, most of these companies that offer free demo or low cost limited version of medical billing software do not extend support when it comes to customizing certain features of their complimentary software. You may be required to put together few services that are provided by several other companies in order to customize the software and make it easy to work with. Though sounds daunting, it is not as difficult as you assume. All you require to do is to download certain additional software packages that make the process of tracking claims, billing, scheduling and insurance easy and quite fast.

The other important thing you need to keep in mind when choosing free demo or cheap limited version of medical billing software is to make sure that it adheres to HIPPA norms and comes with all the features listed by HIPPA in order to guarantee its full compliance with HIPPA principals. The rules laid down by HIPPA govern the electronic storage of protected health related date and the electronic transfer and submission of the same. Furthermore, you need to carefully evaluate how the software you obtain and/or put together will work in order to create a flawless system at your workplace in which all the things from electronically recording medical statistics to insurance forms and claims are incorporated. You can easily and quickly configure the medical billing software by yourself; all you need to do is to read the accompanying manual and implement the set up process.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/computer-forensics-articles/free-demo-or-cheap-limited-version-medical-billing-software-for-easy-and-fast-billing-service-1067294.html

About the Author:

Harry Selent is passionate about helping single and small practice doctors successfully implement medical billing software in their medical offices. For more information on medical billing software, please visit our website at www.medicalbillingsoftware.com or call 888-691-8058 or 941-743-6666

A value-added reseller (VAR) is an organization that adds attribute(s) or its own ‘value’ to an existing product(s) before reselling it to end – users or other businesses as a complete package. This is very common nowadays in the IT industry when new software applications are added to existing hardware.

For example, a value added reseller might take any operating system like IBM’s OS/390 with Unix services and add its own proprietary UNIX application for medical researchers and then resell the complete package to medical research firm. Another example of a value added reseller could be that he may source a printer, chip, monitor, memory card, hard drive and software from different vendors and assemble them to sell as one product.

Lately, VAR has also found its place in the services field and offers various components like system design, strategic planning, system implementation, asset tracking, database development, web development, consulting, research and technical support.

There are various advantages for buying from value added resellers. Resellers have pre-negotiated pricing on products and services from authorized distributors that enable them to get higher discounts as compared to what a customer would get if going direct. This is because a reseller has higher tiered discounting due to previous engagements for other clients, and the strategic partnership between the source vendor and value added reseller which brings in bulk business.

The value added reseller can also collaborate with other vendors which help the client in deciding the best solution for them. This would work out better for clients as otherwise the client would have to individually speak to all vendors and trust their word. In the case of buying from a value added reseller, the client would only have to confront one single company for the defects of its product or service. Thus, the client’s business would benefit from cost savings as well as time savings.

If you have a business or know someone who does, then have them search for a value added reseller in their area.

I found this website sometime ago and dug it up from my bookmarks and favorites while looking for something to share this week.

http://www.smashingapps.com/2009/04/03/13-most-useful-free-scripts-that-you-should-know.html

I have used a some of these scripts and contrary to some of the comments on the website, I was pleased. That said, I have not used any of them in sometime and may be re-installing a couple, like OSTicket and PHP Web Stat, again in the near future.

If you own a website, plan to own one, or know someone who does, then these scripts can and will be useful for them. They cost nothing and seem to work just as well as expensive versions of the same type software.

Try them out and leave some comments here with your feedback.