Which hardware have become indispensable to your business?

[RichmondTech]

I found a script around here I think & modified it some to do a silent install of Adobe Reader & Flash (both versions), Java, Firefox & Malwarebytes. This saves me several minutes on every pc I work on not needing to download & manually install all these programs.

ninite.com??

filler filler filler

 

[Tekguy]

Ninite looks like a useful website, but the problem is you're downloading the same programs over & over again. Not only that, but some of my customers have basic broadband with speeds around 80-90 KB/s so downloading all those programs would take too much time.

I usually update the programs on my flash drive once or twice a month depending on how often Adobe does their quarterly updates.

 

[Tony_Scarpelli]

I love Ninite. We had been carrying many of our favorite programs on a USB disc and loading them where appropriate. But Ninite is so handy if we are away from our tools. I agree to not keep using bandwidth for the same programs. I'd like to have a script similar to the ninite interface on my flast drive where I can have the speed of the flash drive and easy of ninite.

RE speeds of internet. I had to download 535 MB Quickbooks program for a client and the download was 100kbps the indicator said 2 hrs and some minutes. So I drove home a half hour each way and downloaded it with the clients Intuit user acct/password, onto my flash drive in 5 minutes at up to 55mbps trunk speeds of my cable service. Went back and finished the installation and saved 1 hr even with my additional driving.

 

[ZenMike]

SATA/IDE -> USB adapter
External DVD-RW Drive
USB HDD (for image backups) and Flash Drive (for Computer Repair Kit and Utilities)
Electric Duster (I freaking love this thing)
Spare USB mouse and keyboard
Universal laptop power adapter

These are the things I use pretty much every day and wouldn't want to be without.

 

[krutoi]

in addition to the many things mentioned already, having a USB 2 pci card as well as a PCMCIA version can be handy when confronted with older machines

the latest addition to my kit is a 1.8" ZIF to 2.5" IDE Adapter (actually ended up buying a couple different kinds to be safe)... client needed to transfer data off of a MacAIR HDD that had the ZIF connector on it. note: ZIF may stand for "zero insertion force" but it sure takes a bit of elbow grease to get the darn cable into the adapter

 

[wtigger]

I've been considering getting one of those "toaster" type adapters that you plug a hard drive into. Any suggestions?

Check geeks.com and cyberguys.com they both have them, mine is a SATA that does both 2.5" and 3.5" in the same unit... I plan on getting more someday, mine primarily does duty as the Time Machine drive for my iMac desktop and MacBook laptops, but it does move around as needed

 

[ljtechservices]

since 1992 it's been my 14" #2 phillips screwdriver from Jensen (before Stanley bought them out)

I originally bought it to work on HP LJ 3 & 4 SI's. the cavity was so deep that normal screwdrivers became knuckle busters.

I thought I lost it last year and went through withdrawal. but it was in my back seat under some paperwork.

 

[ljtechservices]

So I drove home a half hour each way and downloaded it with the clients Intuit user acct/password, onto my flash drive in 5 minutes at up to 55mbps trunk speeds of my cable service. Went back and finished the installation and saved 1 hr even with my additional driving.

Hah i'm not the only one...
I've done that before. especially in years past when people were either still on dial-up and I had DSL, or when they had DSL and I had cable.

 

[sys-eng]

I'm talking about specific devices and hardware you have bought that you can't do without in your business. Everybody has to have at least one thing they can't do without except the obvious screwdriver.

That is easy - - telephone.

 

[jbutler9]

Name of Power Supply Test

Anyone know of any power supply testers that test -5V as well as sata, P6/P8?

 

[angry_geek]

http://www.Newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=99-109-003

Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk

 

[dk564]

A flash drive and brains

 

[LedHed]

I use the following almost every day:

USB flash drive with updated utilities

3 external 2.5 inch hard drives for backing up client data

4-port KVM

Zalman ZM-VE200 write protected external enclosure with 250 gig hard drive (I loaded this drive with live anti-virus and utility iso's)