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  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 How cybersecurity has changed since the coronavirus outbreak began, and what it means for businesses 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 Even though US tech sector postings scaled back in July, information technology roles have grown by more than 203,000 positions since the COVID-19 outbreak, according to a new report. Image: iStock US employment declines were recorded in July, but despite the losses, net IT employment remains up by more than 203,000 positions since the outbreak of the coronavirus, according to analysis from the nonprofit COMPTIA, an association for the global technology industry. The unemployment rate for IT jobs is 4.4%, which is less than half of the national employment rate of 10.2%, even though 17,000 positions in tech were scaled back, according to COMPTIA using data gathered from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics latest Employment Situation report. For the last five years, an annual average of six months marked monthly job gains and the remaining six months, monthly job losses, according to the organization. YTD in 2020, there have been five months of job gains and two months of job losses. SEE: Return to work: What the new normal will look like post-pandemic (free PDF) (TechRepublic) "After several months of tech job gains exceeding expectations in a very difficult economic environment, a pause in tech hiring was not unexpected," said Tim Herbert, executive vice president for research and market intelligence at CompTIA, in a press release. Image: COMPTIA US technology job postings totaled more than 235,000 in July (up from 220,000 in May)—while that number seems substantial, it represents a decline from the top US tech jobs posted during the pandemic (admittedly at the very start) in March, when figures were more than 350,000. Charts featured here are listed starting with the highest in the category. Top of the charts The top five job openings in the technology sector in July: Software and application developers (70,600 job postings) IT support specialists (21,400) Systems engineers and architects (19,100) Systems analysts (15,600) IT project managers (13,300) July's top employers for IT job postings: Amazon Humana Anthem Blue Cross Stanley Black & Decker Applied Materials IBM Raytheon Leidos Guidehouse General Dynamics Top IT positions in July for remote job postings: Software developers, applications IT support specialists Systems engineers and architects Web developers Systems analysts Cybersecurity analysts Database administrators IT project managers Network and systems administrators Business intelligence analysts Image: COMPTIA States with the highest number of IT job postings for July: California Texas Virginia New York North Carolina In the chart for top states for remote IT jobs the list is the same as above, with the exception of the No. 5 position: Virginia instead of North Carolina. And, while down from June, these metropolitan areas led the July list for the most IT job postings: New York Washington Dallas San Francisco Los Angeles Among specific industries, the highest numbers of US job openings for IT positions Professional, scientific and technical services (39,956) Finance and insurance (18,756) Manufacturing (17,473) Information (11,095) Retail trade (7,042) Image: COMPTIA Despite modest gains, these states had the highest month-over-month increase in job postings: Louisiana Mississippi West Virginia Maine North Dakota The analysis included charts for the top states and top metro areas for both IT and remote IT job postings comparing June and July, as well as the top industries for IT job postings. Lastly, the report includes a historical unemployment rate trending for the decade, for IT occupation. See chart below. Image: COMPTIA Developer Essentials Newsletter From the hottest programming languages to the jobs with the highest salaries, get the developer news and tips you need to know. Weekly Sign up today Also see 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 Keeping your team engaged and interested while remote can be a challenge. Here are three ideas for remote team building that you can quickly and easily try. Image: AnnaStills, Getty Images/iStockPhoto I now have a few projects under my belt that have been 100% remote, including one with an entirely new team that I'd never met before physically. One of the challenges of this environment is recreating the casual bond that's usually present on high-performing teams. Certainly much of that is forged over hard work, but there's also a significant component that comes from simple physical activities like a team lunch, or strolling down the hall for coffee or tea with a colleague and finding out a bit more about them. In my industry of consulting, most teams are usually from out of town, so there's an additional component of shared dinners and hours of shared time outside the office. SEE: TechRepublic Premium editorial calendar: IT policies, checklists, toolkits, and research for download (TechRepublic Premium) Replicating some of the non-work team building that comes so naturally in the physical world has been a bit of a challenge in a remote working environment. Here are three ideas that I've tried with varying degrees of success that may help your remote teams. Turn on the camera Perhaps the biggest enabler to remote work is creating a culture of turning on the camera. Yes, it can be initially stressful and frankly mentally exhausting to stare at a grid of faces all day, but it creates significantly more dynamic and effective discussions when you can actually see the other people in the virtual room, and read their expressions. A blank box with someone's name does nothing to tell you whether that person has a look of confusion on his or her face that might indicate some additional time should be spent on a topic, or a look of boredom or exhaustion that indicates it's time to wrap up the meeting. SEE: New Zoom features: Tweak your appearance and stop background noise with these additions (TechRepublic) As a leader, set the example, and give your team implicit permission to show up in whatever attire is comfortable, and without fear that they'll look unprofessional when dogs, children, or housemates make a guest appearance. Simply having your camera on at the beginning of a meeting and saying "Tim, it would be great if we could see you" sets the tone and builds a culture that's trusting and engaged. Try some remote fun It can seem awkward at first, but injecting some fun into your remote teams is fairly easy, and a variety of options are available. At my company, I've heard of everything from virtual cocktail parties to game and trivia nights. Some of these longer activities can seem like mandatory fun to your team, so if you're going to experiment in this area be sure to communicate that these activities are optional and consider holding them during business hours so you're not creating an implied obligation. SEE: 7 best Zoom games for some virtual face time during the coronavirus pandemic (TechRepublic) I've been successful injecting simple things like sharing a dad joke or pun during team meetings, or having a team member who is a part-time yoga instructor share some chair yoga. Most of the remote meeting tools like Zoom and Teams have a drawing function that can be used for some lighthearted fun, or even used to annotate a PowerPoint version of a simple game like Tic-Tac-Toe. Have a remote career coaching session I used to be active in Rotary, and one of the interesting tools that organization included was having a member share, "How I got where I'm at," during meetings. This was a 10- to 15-minute speech about their career trajectory, followed by audience questions. I've held these types of sessions with my teams, sharing a five-minute version of my career story, and then letting them ask anything they want, from questions about the inner workings of our company, to how and why I made certain career transitions. SEE: Virtual meeting 101: Body language tips for Zoom, Teams, and life (TechRepublic) This helps connect the team, and hopefully provides them some insight into how they can advance within the organization or in their careers as a whole. It also allows for some deeper relationship building than a remote game of Pictionary, with a lot fewer logistical challenges. Trying is the first step I've heard many leaders lament the difficulty of fostering and maintaining connections with their teams in a remote working environment. However, when asked how they're addressing these challenges they'll shrug and throw up their hands. While you can't replicate acts that were once taken for granted like having lunch with a colleague, you can easily experiment with different variations of the above to find what works for you and helps build effective and trusting teams in a remote environment. Executive Briefing Newsletter Discover the secrets to IT leadership success with these tips on project management, budgets, and dealing with day-to-day challenges. Delivered Tuesdays and Thursdays Sign up today Also see 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 Installing or upgrading to macOS Big Sur later this fall will be a quick, painless project by leveraging these simple commands for all your macOS-based devices. Image: Screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET Whether you plan to be an early adopter and migrate to Big Sur on day one or slowly make the transition over time, most enterprises won't be skipping the upgrade to macOS Big Sur. Businesses should not sit this one out given the new security features, redesigning of the underlying OS, and the benefits it could bring to users and IT. SEE: macOS Big Sur: A cheat sheet (free PDF) (TechRepublic) Regardless of the timeline for your transition to macOS 11, one thing is certain: The deployment plan offers several choices that depend on your environment's infrastructure and—in the age of remote working—where the devices are located and the resources they're using. These, perhaps more than anything else, will define how the upgrade path will proceed. One such path leverages the Content Cache service built-in to macOS to download and cache a copy of the installer file, in turn deploying it to all devices that are on the same logical network as the clients themselves. This is great to cut down on bandwidth utilization and speed up mass deployments but relies almost exclusively on devices being in-house, making it a no-go for devices off-site, such as employees working from home or abroad. Mobile Device Management (MDM), or some form of remote management software, seems like the biggest advantage here for IT departments looking to ensure devices are working as intended and remediating it with policies while also keeping resource utilization to a minimum, regardless of whether devices are on- or off-site. SEE: How to create a bootable USB installer for macOS Big Sur (TechRepublic) With either strategy, the process is a relatively simple one, but may still trip up users with little experience managing their Macs. Or perhaps device policies in place prevent users from making system-level changes. Either way, the commands baked into the installer app will ensure that the upgrade or full installation occurs without issue and without requiring end-user interaction. Requirements: macOS client computer(s) supported by macOS Big Sur macOS Big Sur installer saved to local storage Internet access (optional; but highly recommended) MDM or remote management software client macOS Big Sur: Upgrade installation (in-place) Whether creating an MDM policy or running the command remotely on the client device(s), the command below will perform the upgrade to macOS Big Sur silently, accepting the EULA and forcefully quitting any open apps but otherwise leaving data intact, including user accounts and home directories: sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Big\ Sur.app/Contents/Resources/startosinstall --agreetolicense --forcequitapps --nointeraction macOS Big Sur: Full installation (wipe/reinstall) Similarly, the command below will work as a policy enforced by MDM or when run remotely and will install macOS Big Sur silently just like the upgrade command above, but with a significant addition: The full installation command will perform a wipe, or erase, the HDD/SSD prior to installing macOS 11 from scratch. This command requires APFS as the file system and will delete all data from the drive, including accounts, home directories, and installed applications then create a new volume named Macintosh HD: sudo /Applications/Install\ macOS\ Big\ Sur.app/Contents/Resources/startosinstall --eraseinstall --newvolumename "Macintosh HD" --agreetolicense –forcequitapps --nointeraction If the existing APFS volume has other containers that need to be protected from erasure, appending the following syntax to the command will prevent other containers from being deleted when using the eraseinstall argument: --preservecontainer Lastly, the startosinstall command allows for chaining installations after the OS is updated/reinstalled. This is great for custom app deployments and for client-based packages that re-enroll devices to MDM servers if Apple's DEP service is not being used to manage MDM hand-off during the setup phase: --installpackage "/path/to/app1.pkg" The --installpackage argument may be specified multiple times in the command to include multiple applications in the chain. Also important to note is that applications referenced by this argument must be copied locally to the device's storage for the command to run successfully. Apple Weekly Newsletter Whether you want iPhone and Mac tips or the latest enterprise-specific Apple news, we've got you covered. Delivered Tuesdays Sign up today Also see 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 Video: How to add a drop down list to a cell in Microsoft Excel 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 The program, which has received federal recognition, is available in 11 states with more to follow, the company said. Image: Prostock-Studio, Getty Images/iStockphoto In an effort to address the widening technology skills gap and put Americans to work, Woz Enterprise–a division of Woz U–and the University of Phoenix have partnered to launch a US Department of Labor Registered Apprenticeship Program. The program trains community college graduates in STEM fields with day-one skills and places them in entry-level apprenticeship jobs, while setting them on a path to earn a bachelor's degree in an in-demand field, Woz Enterprise said. SEE: The most in demand jobs and skills as a result of COVID-19 (TechRepublic) The program offers seven tracks with key skills taught: Software development – Java12 or .net core JavaScript, Angular SQL Server, Scrum/agile End user computing – incident response, operating systems networks, VPN troubleshooting Cybersecurity – monitoring/logging network appliances, penetration testing, network defense Software testing – testing automation selenium, continuous integration, scripting Application infrastructure – cloud hosting, AWS, Azure development, logging, monitoring Network administration – network configuration, network monitoring, network diagram scripting Application support – incident response logging, monitoring, querying, scripting, troubleshooting The tech, education and government sectors needed to come together to make this happen, Woz Enterprise said. "We have all heard about the tech talent gap. Hundreds of companies have been trying to address it, yet here we are in 2020, and the gap remains," said Chris Coleman, president of Woz Enterprise, in a statement. "Truly offering relief to this talent-starved industry, at scale, requires collaboration from the private, education, and government sectors. This apprenticeship model is the game changer we have all been looking for." Through this program, apprentices learn while receiving a salary and gaining valuable work experience, according to Woz Enterprise, which builds and delivers the customized technology curricula that can result in credits toward a University of Phoenix Bachelor of Science in Information Technology (BSIT). "This unique program comes at a critical time as companies today are looking for solutions to adapt the skills of their workforce to match the velocity of change of their businesses," said Raghu Krishnaiah, chief operating officer at the University of Phoenix. He said the partnership provides "an unprecedented education pathway that includes validated learning outcomes for community college graduates." The apprenticeship model launched this spring in 11 states in partnership with Infosys, a provider of digital, IT, and consulting services. Selected candidates completed an intensive, eight-week training program in one of the seven technology tracks to gain essential day-one skills to start a career with one of Woz Enterprise's recruiting business partners. Then they become full-time junior associates, and the individuals participate in a structured online learning program for 12 months, Woz Enterprise said. During this time, they continue working and earning a salary, which increases as they gain key competencies. Training hours can be applied for college credit at University of Phoenix, potentially shortening the time to obtain the BSIT. "We believe it is a great value proposition for all involved, allowing us to supply quality training to meet the staffing needs of the technology industry in America while providing income and great, flexible higher education opportunities to individuals," Coleman said. "We are embracing new perspectives and forming dynamic alliances to inject creativity and ingenuity in the technology sector." The company said it will build on this initial alliance with the University of Phoenix and Infosys to expand and broaden the scope of the apprenticeship program. Tech News You Can Use Newsletter We deliver the top business tech news stories about the companies, the people, and the products revolutionizing the planet. Delivered Daily Sign up today Also see 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 Compared to the same time in 2019, console sales are up by 36.54%. After all, what else are we going to do when stuck at home? Image: iStockphoto/gorodenkoff Video game consoles sales numbers from the first half of 2020 are up 36.54% over the same period in 2019, providing a window into people's chosen form of entertainment during the COVID-19 lockdown. The massive surge in console sales (the region was not specified) ramped up in March as lockdowns were announced, peaked in April, and have since dropped. Monthly sales are still far above where they usually are this time of year, however: In July 2019, 1,908,708 consoles were sold, but July 2020 saw over three million console sales. SEE: COVID-19 workplace policy (TechRepublic Premium) The consoles included in the sales data the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Switch, and sales of each correlated directly with the issuance of coronavirus stay-at-home orders, said Justinas Baltrusaitis of the UK-based Safe Betting Sites, which issued the report. The massive rise in game console sales is unsurprising, especially when looking at the World Health Organization's recommendation that more people play video games and other reports from early in the lockdown, like one from TechRepublic sister site CNET that said both anecdotal evidence and analysts saw massive rises in game sales and online gaming. "Hordes of folks are playing online battle games like "Fortnite: Battle Royale" and "Call of Duty: Warzone." They're buying games like Nintendo's new "Animal Crossing: New Horizons" at record rates. They're spending more when they download titles on their phones. And they're also whiling away an aggregated 10 million more hours each day watching other gamers play online through the streaming site Twitch.tv.," said CNET's Ian Sherr. Video game consoles and software sales have made the entertainment side of the tech industry resilient during the pandemic, but early signs of resiliency elsewhere in the industry may be crumbling as we enter into the second half of 2020. In May, it was reported that many areas of the tech industry were booming due to increases in remote work, a turn to e-commerce, and planning for a new normal in the education world. By late July, consumer technology sales and hiring numbers had both dropped. As TechRepublic reported, tech job postings in late July were actually doing generally worse than non-tech postings in tech hubs, and were facing the same imbalance in 89% of non-tech centered cities. SEE: Return to work: What the new normal will look like post-pandemic (free PDF) (TechRepublic) It's a good thing, experts told the LA Times, that the video gaming industry is booming during the pandemic. That means more people are staying home, which could reduce the spread of the virus. Whether or not benefits to gamers expand to job seekers in the video game industry is harder to nail down: Analytics firm IBISWorld said that the gaming industry in the US is likely to remain resilient throughout the pandemic, but trends elsewhere in the tech sector, as reflected in recent reports linked above, indicate uncertainty remains as the pandemic continues. Best of the Week Newsletter Our editors highlight the TechRepublic articles, downloads, and galleries that you cannot miss to stay current on the latest IT news, innovations, and tips. Fridays Sign up today Also see 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 Microsoft 365 provides the productivity tools required by enterprises. This guide covers key details about Microsoft 365, including available Office applications, system requirements, and pricing. Image: Microsoft For just about any enterprise of any size, the productivity of its workforce revolves around the basic office suite of email, calendar, word processor, and spreadsheet. But as the enterprise workforce has become more mobile, the basic productivity toolset has had to adapt and change to match new requirements. This is why Microsoft updated Office 365 to be a mobile collaborative platform ready to get work done wherever and whenever it happens. As of April 21, 2020, Microsoft has officially changed the name of its productivity suite from Office 365 to Microsoft 365. From that date forward, billing, marketing, and alerts will reflect the Microsoft 365 branding. The new naming convention will not affect the current subscription pricing levels for current customers, nor will it change the level of current service. Applications included in the various versions of the productivity suite will also remain the same. SEE: Microsoft 365: A cheat sheet (free PDF) (TechRepublic) Microsoft 365 is the de facto productivity suite for many enterprises, and it is the suite all the other competitors are measured against. So as an IT leader, it's in your best interest to know everything about Microsoft 365. To help you achieve that goal, TechRepublic compiled the most important details and related resources on Microsoft 365 into this guide, which we'll periodically update as new information becomes available. Executive summary What is Microsoft 365? Microsoft 365 provides users with the basic productivity applications necessary to get work done in the modern enterprise. It includes applications like Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, OneNote, and OneDrive, just to name a few. Why does Microsoft 365 matter? As the standard for productivity suites, competing products are generally measured against applications from the Office 365 suite. Who does Microsoft 365 affect? In the modern mobile-centric enterprise, Microsoft 365 provides the tools used to get work done. This makes Microsoft 365 important to just about every working individual. When is Microsoft 365 available? The latest version of Microsoft 365 is available right now. The current subscription includes Office 2019 applications. How do you get Microsoft 365? Enterprises can purchase a subscription to Microsoft 365 via the Microsoft website. Subscriptions range from $8/user/month to $35/user/month. SEE: Check out all of TechRepublic's cheat sheets and smart person's guides What is Microsoft 365? Microsoft 365 is a subscription service that provides users with the basic productivity applications necessary to get work done in the modern enterprise. Productivity applications include, but are not limited to, a word processor, a spreadsheet, an email client, a calendar, and a presentation application. In fact, because of Microsoft 365's cloud-based structure, the suite of productivity applications is constantly being updated and improved. Image: Microsoft As an example, a Business Premium subscription to Microsoft 365 ($12.50 per person per month) includes these applications: Word: This app sets the standard for word processors and is available with Microsoft 365 for both Business and Premium. If users in your enterprise need to create documents, this is the tool they will use. Excel: The spreadsheet has been the workhorse for basic data analysis since its invention back in the previous century. Excel is the current standard-bearer and comes with Microsoft 365 for Business and Premium. Outlook: Microsoft 365's solution for managing email and an appointment calendar is called Outlook. The app has been around for many years and its busy interface tends to be either loved or hated by users. It's available with both the Business and Premium subscriptions. PowerPoint: Communicating information to a group of individuals at a meeting often involves a presentation. Microsoft 365's PowerPoint allows users to create, display, and disseminate information in formats ranging from the basic slide to animation to video. Publisher: Sometimes communicating information to a broader audience requires something more permanent and more formal than a presentation at a meeting. The Publisher app in Microsoft 365 provides users with the tools they need to publish professional-looking newsletters, brochures, and booklets. OneNote: As the workforce has become more mobile, the need to capture information on the go has become increasingly important. Applications like OneNote allow users to take notes on any device and then retrieve those notes from any other device. It's your basic productivity cloud app. OneDrive: The other basic and fundamental cloud-based application is storage. With each Microsoft 365 Business subscription, Microsoft provides users with up to 1 TB of cloud storage in the form of an application called OneDrive for Business. SharePoint: A subscription to Microsoft 365 Business Premium also provides an enterprise with a few applications for backend infrastructure management. SharePoint, for example, can be used to host intranet websites for the enterprise. It also can be used to host smaller sites designed for smaller teams or divisions. The permissions for these sites can be designated by the users themselves or by appointed administrators. Exchange: Each Microsoft 365 for Business subscription includes an Exchange Server, which handles all the email management duties. By default, each user is granted 50 GB of storage for email. Maintenance of the Exchange Server is generally handled at the administrator level. Microsoft Teams: Younger members of the modern enterprise workforce are very familiar and comfortable with chat applications. To satisfy the needs of those employees, Microsoft 365 now includes Microsoft Teams, a chat-based workspace that integrates people, content, and tools into a single platform. License scope: One licensed subscription to Microsoft 365 covers five phones, five tablets, and five PCs or Macs per user. Support: Each Microsoft 365 subscription includes full 24/7 web and phone support. Collaboration tools: Along with the typical productivity applications, Microsoft 365 includes many collaboration tools like Delve, Yammer, and Sway. These tools allow users to communicate, brainstorm ideas, share documents, and have video meetings while on the go. Power BI: One of the most powerful tools any enterprise can have, regardless of size, is reliable business intelligence (BI) gathering applications. Microsoft 365 for Business, through its Power BI application, provides enterprises with a set of tools for collecting, sorting, and presenting business intelligence data. Infrastructure: All Microsoft 365 subscriptions include a reliability guarantee of 99.9% uptime. In addition, permissions for internal access control are handled by administrators designated by the enterprise using tools supplied by Active Directory. Each Microsoft 365 subscription includes five layers of security and proactive monitoring to help safeguard your data. Kaizala: Mobile communications is vital to many organizations, and Kaizala adds a secure mobile messaging and workflow app that can be deployed both internally and externally. Employees, customers, and vendors can all communicate and coordinate with each other in a secure environment. Flow: Managing workflow in a dynamic business and across various applications can consume precious time and resources. Flow provides a simple system to manage notifications within Microsoft 365 across all of the applications you use. To-Do: An update to Microsoft 365 has added the To-Do app to the productivity suite. No longer an afterthought piggybacking on the Calendar app, To-Do is now a feature-rich standalone application that integrates with the rest of Microsoft 365. PowerApps: For those situations when your organization needs a specific app to do a specific job, there is PowerApps. Using simplified development techniques, businesses can create sophisticated applications using features, procedures, and processes found in Microsoft 365. SEE: How to build a successful career as a cloud engineer (free PDF) (TechRepublic) System requirements for Microsoft 365 CPU: 1GHz or faster Memory: 2 GB RAM Hard drive: 3 GB of available space (6 GB for Mac) Display: 1280 X 800 screen resolution Operating system: PC-Windows 7, 8, or 10. Mac-Mac OS X 10.10 Connectivity: Internet connection Additional resources Why does Microsoft 365 matter? Collaboration and communication are the key components of productivity in the modern enterprise, and productivity is the lifeblood of the enterprise. Microsoft 365 provides the tools necessary to bring collaboration and communication--and by extension, productivity--to each individual in an enterprise. For many companies, Microsoft 365 is the de facto standard for productivity software. The performance of all competing products is generally measured against applications from the Office 365 suite. Additional resources How does Microsoft 365 compare to G Suite? The primary competition for Microsoft 365 comes from Google's G Suite, which is a set of productivity and collaboration apps, formerly referred to as Google Apps. The G Suite features the typical set of productivity applications (word processor, spreadsheet, email, calendar), as well as several tools designed to enable and enhance collaboration in a modern mobile workforce. Pricing for G Suite starts with a subscription of $5 per user per month. Other web-based and online productivity suites from other vendors are available--some are even offered without a monthly subscription, but those suites often lack a full set of collaboration tools and are not suitable for business enterprises. Additional resources Who should use Microsoft 365? Just about every knowledge worker in every enterprise is required to have an email account and a calendar application. Beyond that, most individuals in an enterprise will need to use, at least once in a while, a word processor. And a significant number of individuals in an enterprise will also find themselves needing to use presentation software or a spreadsheet at some point in their career. These are the productivity tools of any enterprise. These are the tools used to get work done. That means Microsoft 365 is important to just about every working individual. Additional resources When is Microsoft 365 available? Microsoft 365 is available right now. The current subscription includes applications updated to the Office 2019 version. The key to the subscription model is that each user will always be using the most current and most secure version of each application because each application is continuously updated. As of October 13, 2020, Microsoft will no longer support Office 2010 for the PC and Office 2016 for the Mac. Microsoft will no longer provide technical support, bug fixes, or security updates for those products. Continuing to use those applications after the support date could result in reliability and security issues. Additional resources How do I get Microsoft 365? Enterprises with fewer than 300 users can purchase a subscription to Microsoft 365 and download the appropriate applications via the Microsoft website. The Standard version costs $12.50 per user per month ($150/year), while Microsoft 365 Premium costs $20 per user per month. There are also versions of Office 365 available for individuals ($69.99/year) and households ($99.99/year). Image: Microsoft For large enterprises, unlimited user versions of Office 365 are available, ranging from $12 per person per month to $35 per person per month. Each subscription caters to a particular type of enterprise. More expensive enterprise versions of Office 365 add features like voicemail, compliance auditing, rights management, encryption, and Advanced Threat Protection. Image: Microsoft Additional resources How do I use Microsoft 365? Here are some tips and tricks published on TechRepublic. Microsoft Weekly Newsletter Be your company's Microsoft insider by reading these Windows and Office tips, tricks, and cheat sheets. Delivered Mondays and Wednesdays Sign up today Editor's note: This article was updated in April 2020. 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 Microsoft will no longer provide technical support, bug fixes, or security updates for Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac after Oct. 13, 2020. Image: Artur, Getty Images/iStockPhoto In a reissued statement, Microsoft has reiterated its intention to end support for both Office 2010 for the PC and Office 2016 for the Mac as of Oct. 13, 2020. While both productivity suites will continue to operate after that date, Microsoft will no longer provide technical support, bug fixes, or security updates for those applications. Businesses and organizations, especially those subject to privacy compliance regulations, should immediately take steps to update or migrate to a more current version of productivity suite. The risk to personal users is not as acute as it is to businesses, but it is still serious and should be addressed as soon as possible. SEE: TechRepublic Premium editorial calendar: IT policies, checklists, toolkits, and research for download (TechRepublic Premium) Continuing to operate using non-supported versions of Microsoft Office would be reckless and irresponsible, particularly with viable and relatively inexpensive alternatives available. No support for Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac After Oct. 13, 2020, Microsoft will no longer support Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac. This seems like a firm date and is not likely to be extended by Microsoft because of customer complaints. While users may continue to use applications found in those productivity suites, over time bugs and vulnerabilities are likely to result in reliability, compliance, and security issues—issues you will have to deal with on your own. No support also means that Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac users connecting to Office 365 online services like OneDrive and SharePoint may, over time, see those services become unreliable and eventually unavailable. Users of those older applications will not be actively disconnected, but no effort will be made to accommodate access after Oct.13. SEE: How to collaborate in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides: 4 tips (TechRepublic) Microsoft recommends Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac users update their applications with a subscription to one of the available Microsoft 365 plans. Alternatively, users may opt to purchase a one-time license to Office 2019. Figure A shows the pricing structure for each product. Figure A In general, you get more services with one of the Microsoft 365 subscriptions. This is particularly true if your business embraces cloud computing solutions. Alternatives to Microsoft 365 If you are looking to update from Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac and migrate away from Microsoft products, there are several alternatives available. G Suite from Google offers web-based basic productivity suite applications like email, word processing, and spreadsheets for as little as $6 per user per month. SaaS vendors like Zoho offer a multitude of applications ranging from basic office productivity to CRM to databases to bookkeeping. You can subscribe to the most basic office-style service for as little as $3 per user per month. SEE: Microsoft says more than 25 percent of Office 365 licenses now sold through Microsoft 365 (ZDNet) For personal use, you may consider open source software like LibreOffice, it offers a complete suite of productivity applications for free. However, the free version does not include any technical support, so you will have to rely on the community for help. The risk of no support for Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac After Oct. 13, 2020, the lack of support for Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac means that using those applications in your business or organization could be construed by courts and regulatory agencies as negligence—possibly criminal negligence. The kind of negligence that leads to fines, penalties, incarceration, and bankruptcy. Continuing to use Office 2010 and Office 2016 for Mac after the cut-off date is just not a viable option. You must update or migrate to a more current productivity suite or risk dire consequences. You have a couple of months to make the change, but time is quickly running out. Microsoft Weekly Newsletter Be your company's Microsoft insider by reading these Windows and Office tips, tricks, and cheat sheets. Delivered Mondays and Wednesdays Sign up today Also see 

  Published Date: 2020-08-12 

 Eighty percent of the modern workforce operates on the front line or in the field, and digital transformation has ignored their needs. Image: primipil, Getty Images/iStockPhoto The digital transformation that has given us software for easy remote work and virtual collaboration is only designed for 20% of the workforce. The other 80%, a study finds, is being largely ignored by new digital tools. Software company Skedulo performed its study by polling CIOs from companies across industries, and it found that deskless workers—field technicians, retail workers, healthcare professionals, construction workers, and other front-line professionals—are being overlooked and are suffering for it. SEE: IT job and salary guide: Highest tech salaries, top-paying cities, and compensation-boosting tips (TechRepublic Premium) "Many companies anticipate deskless work will increase in prevalence given the remote working economy, it is becoming increasingly clear that deskless workers are facing one major challenge that desk workers do not: The availability of software built specifically with their deskless needs in mind," the report said. Sixty-two percent respondents said they expect the number of deskless or mobile workers at their companies to increase in the next two years. Currently, 57% said their organization is composed of 11-25% deskless workers, with 19% saying they employ 26% or more. Deskless workers need software tools that allow them to do their jobs well, Skedulo said. The tools those workers need include scheduling, time tracking, job details and job site navigation, client files, service reporting, and communication. Eighty-six percent said their companies would benefit from a dedicated platform with those functions that was designed with deskless workers in mind, which makes perfect sense in light of another surprising statistic from the study: 100% of respondents said their deskless workers are challenged by "the complexity and capabilities of tools they're expected to use in their daily work." SEE: Return to work: What the new normal will look like post-pandemic (free PDF) (TechRepublic) The software that deskless workers are using isn't only complex: Because it's generally not designed with their needs in mind it typically doesn't function well in the field. Sixty-three percent of respondents said their deskless workers only have access to their full suite of productivity tools when they have access to a computer. For a mobile technician, healthcare worker doing their rounds, or a retail worker on the floor of a store, having to pause to find a computer can be a major interruption to their workflow, and is likely behind the 86% of respondents who said their deskless workers have their productivity hindered by their software tools. As with many reports of this kind, Skedulo is a company that provides the software that would address many of the concerns highlighted by its survey respondents. Whether or not your organization chooses to address the concerns of deskless workers with Skedulo software is up to you, but the numbers in this report, if accurate, reflect a concern that organizations shouldn't ignore. Deskless workers often make up the frontline, and nearly half of them (43%) are being forced to juggle three or more software tools to do their jobs. Lost productivity caused by problems like that leads to a snowball effect for organizations where deskless workers make up a large portion of the workforce, and some sort of better tool is needed for businesses to re-capture that lost time. 5G and Mobile Enterprise Newsletter 5G networks and devices, mobile security, remote support, and the latest about phones, tablets, and apps are some of the topics we'll cover. Delivered Tuesdays and Fridays Sign up today Also see