Ninety percent of companies in the United States qualify
as small businesses. Every day these employers have to deal with common computing problems, such as tracking electronic documents, scheduling, accounting functions, managing contact lists, and reducing spam. Many expensive software products are available to help solve these problems, but they often have features small businesses don't need (or are missing the ones they do). Open source software presents easy-to-implement solutions at a fraction of the cost. Unfortunately, these solutions are relatively unknown to
most small businesses.
Open Source Solutions for Small Business Problems explores operational problems most small businesses share. It identifies good open source software that can help businesses solve these problems, and compares them to their proprietary counterparts. The strengths and weaknesses of the open source packages are discussed, and additional information
is included on how to integrate open source with existing proprietary systems to achieve specific goals. This is the perfect reference for the tech professional looking for help choosing and understanding excellent open source software to deploy in a business setting, as well as for small business proprietors interested in streamlining their business problems using computer-based solutions.
Part I Small Business Computing Infrastructure
1. Open Source Software in Your Small Business
2. Why You Need a Server
3. Setting Up Your Office Network
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Part II Computing Your Business Operations
7. Customer Relationship Management
8. Calendar and Schedule Management
9. Document Management
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Part III Extending Your Business with Open Source
12. Sharing Information with Your Partners
13. Marketing Your Message
14. Connect from Offsite
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Part IV Keeping Your Network Secure and Intact
16. Securing Business Data
17. Network Security in a Wireless World
18. Disaster Recovery
…
Appendix A The Open Source Definition
Appendix B Basics of Networking
Appendix C Common Open Source Licenses
Appendix D About the CD-ROM