Family vacations and technology have a dubious relationship for many business professionals. We lug everything, everywhere in preparation for unwelcomed interruptions and to retain a basic level of accessibility.
No more. Advances in technology, software and cloud computing make it easier than ever to shed pounds of expensive gear. Cloud computing is the modern paradigm for cutting people free from personal computers. It challenges us to store the data we need on servers that can be accessed from any computer anywhere.
With some advanced planning and preparation, it can work for ANYONE. Use these guidelines to prepare for your next vacation or business trip and see how traveling ligher can make you more nimble in business.
Lose the High-End Laptop
The first step, losing the laptop, is the hardest and most courageous step for business professionals. We’ve got a lot of good, expensive gear for business and we love to use it. However, there are many good reasons for leaving our best gear home:
- Laptops get lost or stolen
According to a 2008 article in Fast Company, a laptop is stolen every 53 seconds and only three percent of stolen laptops are ever returned. More than 12,000 laptops disappear each week from U.S. airports alone. - Laptops get damaged
If you travel with your laptop frequently, you WILL drop it. Doing so will probably damage it. I’ve dropped EVERY laptop I’ve owned. Most of the mishaps have been minor, leaving only cosmetic damage. However, I have lost sound and screen pixels, broken a hinge and lost use of a USB port on various laptops during the last 10 years.
A lot of important data is being stored on laptops today. The best way to protect your laptop when you travel ? Leave it home. Travel without a laptop.
If that’s not possible, pick up an inexpensive netbook. I use a 9-inch, $299 Dell mini. It’s a cheap, portable web client. It lacks processing power, but it’s nearly weightless and battery lasts forever. I don’t install ANY commercial software on it. I don’t store ANY work data on it.
As a side benefit, since it charges iPods and offloads digital pictures, its unintimidating size is welcomed on family vacations without suspicion.
Use Web-based Office Software
You don’t need Microsoft Office to open text files, spreadsheets, and presentations. Free web-based alternatives such as ThinkFree, Google Documents and Zoho make it possible to create, edit and store these documents using a web browser. David DeJean, of Computerworld, did an in-depth comparison of these tools in 2008 that may help you determine which is best for you. I’m currently using ThinkFree.
While these applications, they have one thing in common: strong features and good usability. They are capable of doing real, useful work. All three of these Web-based suites are free, and an account includes storage for your documents.
Store Your Files Online
Lose the USB drive when it comes to transporting company data or business files, before you lose your USB drive – or the data contained therein. USB drives are easily misplaced, left behind, or otherwise lost. And, like ALL flash memory devices, flash drives can sustain only a limited number of write and erase cycles before they fail.
Flash drives CAN be ok for transporting and storing SOME PERSONAL files such as documents, pictures and videos. Don’t use them for company data, though — or, for personal data that is irreplaceable or sensitive.
Believe it or not, your data is safer online. Free file hosting services from Box.net, DropBox, mediafire and others do a better job of providing the advanced storage capacity, security, synchronization, backup, and sharing features that cloud dwellers demand.
For business travelers, another short-term alternative is to store files in their business email account as email attachments. This allows them to access, download, revise and upload them as needed without depending on file storage solutions outside the company.
Keep Your Calendar and Contacts Mobile
When it comes to calendars and contacts, a mobile device works better than the Internet. Use a cell phone or smart phone to view/update contacts and calendars. Ideally, you’ll want to synchronize ALL of your personal /business contacts and calendars together so you have a complete picture of your availability and a complete list of contacts.
Web-based solutions such as Google Calendar are ideal for this purpose. I use Google calendar to synchronize my outlook calendar at work with the iCal calendars used by my wife and daughters. An iPhone application called SaiSuke displays all of the calendars together on my iPhone.
Accessibility is Key
The real trick of cloud computing is managing ongoing accessibility to the web. Sometimes, when you’re traveling to destinations where you know computers are readily available (hotels with business centers, friends, family, etc.) it might be possible to travel without a computer altogether – but don’t depend on it. It’s easier to find a hotspot when you need them, than it is to find a hotspot that have PCs available too.
Internet hotpoints are springing up around the country. Many hotels, cafes, fast food restaurants, coffee shops and public locations offer wireless internet access. But, as common as they are, they don’t mean much if you’re not equipped.
My advice? Travel light with cloud coverage. That’s the main reason I picked up a netbook and USB cell modem (which works with any USB PC).
Credits: Illustration by Hugh MacLeod at GapingVoid.com.
Cloud Computing in Plain English
What do you get when you combine virtualization, utility computing and software as a service? Cloud computing! Learn more in this humorous animated video.
About Troy Janisch