Tech Watch: IP Monitor; Hybrid CD-R; PBX For SMBs

Status Update

For those who need to monitor numerous network devices, a small Israel-based company has an inexpensive tool that's worth exploring. Tsarfin Computing's IPMonitor Version 5.7 is suited for organizations of any size that distribute network-administration responsibilities. If a networked device fails, an administrator is alerted via an audible alarm, e-mail or messages on other systems-management apps. An intuitive user interface describes the status of everything, including printers, the Web, e-mail, applications and FTP servers. The company offers a free 30-day evaluation copy.

Tsarfin Computing IP Monitor 5.7, ipmonitor.tsarfin.com Price: $39.95

No Ordinary CD-R

Keeping information confidential means making sure that all the media your customers use are protected if they end up in the wrong hands. The new Ricoh EncryptEase hybrid CD-R disks from Kano Technologies automatically encrypt information. When recording data to the disk, built-in software prompts the user to set a password. Up to 20 passwords can be assigned for different file groups, and the disk can be read on any Windows PC. Each disk can save up to 600 MB of data. D&H and Ingram Micro are distributing the line.

Ricoh EncryptEase, www.kanotechnologies.com Price: $5.95

Talk Is Cheap

Feature-rich PBX phones are now available to the smallest of SMB customers. TalkSwitch's latest, the TS-600, supports two to 32 extensions per location and can be installed with VoIP capability. The company has added some high-end features to a low-cost phone that connects to the 24-CA, 48-CA and 48-CVA PBXs. The TS-600 works with a system's auto-attendant and voicemail systems, and features a 7-inch LCD with context-sensitive menus and full headset integration. The system has soft-key support for the PBX and a built-in amplifier.

TalkSwitch TS-600, www.talkswitch.com Price: $190

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