Howdy do, Turnkey Lovers?

How are you feeling this week? I’m only asking because I’m not sure how to begin this topic. Let’s see, not too long ago, one of my co-workers mentioned that some of our competitors were writing blog entries on what it’s like to be an “IT Professional”. This has actually been something that I’m curious about myself.

What makes an IT Professional? I mean, IT (Information Technology) is such a large umbrella. So I did what I always do when I need to know something: Google. You would be surprised—well, you might not be—about the number of articles out there that deal with this very topic. Hundreds of “IT Professionals” all list their own explanations of what an IT Professional does.

Rather than bore you with yet another article on what an IT Professional does in general, I would prefer to take you into the world of a “TurnKey Professional”. These are probably one in the same, as a common denominator through all of the articles on IT professionals was this idea of wearing multiple hats; metaphorical hats, in this case. This could be anything from fixing a certain type of software, to providing customer service to a local client. If you’re really lucky, you may even get to work with a businessman or salesman.

In no place did I see this idea chiseled deeper into stone then at TurnKey Internet. On some days, I’m just your friendly, neighborhood slayer of tickets. This extends from any support issue as small as resetting a password on a locked out cPanel account, to deploying a major upgrade to new technology. On other days, I might be working on LiveChat, attempting to sell one of our many services—everything from dedicated servers, to colocation, to domain registration.

A TurnKey Professional is a jack of all trades, if you will. We each have skills that we must call on in a moment’s notice, to best service the needs of our customers. Isn’t that what an IT Professional is supposed to do? I’m not 100% on that, but I know here at TurnKey Internet, that’s what we do.

Having team members who each possess different skills, leads to a diverse, all-encompassing set of solutions to common issues that any IT Professional may run into. You know, that’s why I love working here. There are always multiple ways to solve an issue, and here at TurnKey, we usually end up employing many of them—if not all of them—to solve our clients’ needs. It’s quite refreshing.

Well, that’s just another little bit of information I wanted to share with you. It’s another way to show you Turnkey-lovers that I love what I do; another piece of information to share and bond over.

Until next time…

The weather outside is frightful, and the weather inside TurnKey Internet has been brain-stormy with a chance of super-fun end of the year contest! Starting today, and running through December 31st, we invite you to join us in the Year End Tell-a-Friend Contest! You can win 6 months of free service, so you don’t want to miss this.

Here’s how it works:

• –  The object is to recruit as many people as you possibly can to sign up with TurnKey Internet
• –  It doesn’t matter which service they sign up for
• –  Each new sign-up earns you a point, but make sure they know to give your name (if we don’t know you sent them, we can’t give you credit!)
• –  As an incentive for your friends joining TurnKey, they can contact our Sales Department via Live Sales Chat and receive their 4th month ABSOLUTELY FREE
• –  On December 31, 2012, we will tally the points, and whoever has the most points, wins!
• –  If the winner is already a customer, he or she will win 6 months of free service. If the winner is not already a customer, he or she will win a $200 credit towards their purchase.
• –  Extra points for hanging out with us! After you earn your first point by recruiting a friend, you can rack up unlimited additional points by doing any/all of the following:

• *   1 extra point for liking us on Facebook, if you haven’t already
• *   1 extra point for following us on Twitter, if you haven’t already
• *   1 extra point for following us on our BRAND NEW INSTAGRAM (!!!)
• *   1 extra point for anyone you recruit to like our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter, or follow us on Instagram – No limit for extra points here, people. But again, MAKE SURE THEY TELL US! We can’t give credit where we don’t know it’s due.

This may seem like a lot (because it is), so if you have any questions at all, feel free to leave a comment below, on Facebook or Instagram, or send us a Tweet.

Good luck, everyone!

I am a huge advocate for Instagram. I think it’s a brilliant concept, on the part of its developers. I know that it has caused a lot of eye-rolling among many professional photographers, but I think it’s fun, okay? I like that relatively poor-quality, often blurry mobile uploads can look a little bit prettier, and I don’t see anything wrong with that. As an Android user, I was thrilled when the app opened to us. I no longer had to watch enviously as my not-even-close-to-artsy Apple friends tweeted and posted all of these artsy-looking pictures, and could join in uploading filtered food photos with the best of them.

I generally try to maintain a less personal, company-encompassing narrative in my TurnKey articles, but the topic that I want to discuss with you today has incited a reaction from me on a personal level, and I feel as though I should discuss it as such. I have an issue with Instagram’s amended Terms of Service.

Basically, Facebook (they own Instagram now, if you weren’t aware) is now asserting their right to sell your photos at absolutely no profit to you whatsoever, and it doesn’t stop there! They also declare a right to employ your image and personal information as they see fit. This is not okay with me at all. I understand that the app is free and Facebook wants to generate revenue and all that good stuff, but there are ways around this. Also—I have to say it—are you really losing that much money over Instagram, Facebook? You invested a billion dollars in a company that you are now this desperate to keep afloat?

Here’s an excerpt:

“Some or all of the Service may be supported by advertising revenue. To help us deliver interesting paid or sponsored content or promotions, you agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your username, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you.”

Improper usage of photographic material is not a new thing at all, and maybe I’m being hyper-sensitive about this due to a background in photography. However, my pictures are mine, and if Facebook wants to use them, they need to ask me first. Regardless, it is not okay—and shouldn’t be okay—for them to use my personal material and information in a way that exploits me.

Usually, I tend to be rather neutral in regards to topics like this. I think they are largely sensationalized by the media, and that people fly into an uproar when it’s not completely necessary. For instance, Dave wrote a really insightful article about the Google vs. EU issue not too long ago, and I found myself agreeing wholeheartedly with his stance. If you’re interested or need a refresher, you can read the article here.

Anyway, now we’re faced with a choice: do we just divert our gaze and allow them to do this, or do we wash our hands of Instagram? Do we log out of our accounts and set off into the great unknown, desperately seeking to fill the void in our once-filtered mobile existence? That may be a little dramatic, considering Twitter just rolled out replacement filters after the pull on syncing photos, but that’s another article entirely. Luckily, we have until January 16, 2013 to decide which road we want to take, as that is when the new terms go into effect.

Wouldn’t you know it? This all rolls out almost exactly at the same time that I set up TurnKey’s Instagram account, and I almost want to close it to protest! I won’t though, mainly because I’m border-line obsessed with this picture of a lollipop bouquet.

What do you think? Am I over-blowing this? Do you think this is fair and understandable or invasive and downright wrong? I’d love to hear what you have to say.

December has arrived, and with it, the holiday season. We love any excuse to celebrate here at TurnKey, so we are kicking off this festive time of year with a sale, of course, but also a fun, interactive game for you to play. Introducing: our Holiday Gift Grab!

First and foremost, with the coupon code GIFTGRAB50, enjoy 50% off* of your purchase, and get locked-in at that price. We are offering this discount on nearly all of our products — dedicated servers, virtual private servers, reseller hosting, SEO hosting, and more! That is our 2012 Holiday Sale, plain and simple. But that is not all, of course. You have participated in grab bag games before, correct? We hope so; they’re fun! Regardless, we are sure you will love our rendition of the age-old holiday tradition. Here is how it works:  With your purchase, we are offering three free gifts* from a pool of 12, and leaving the choice of which you’d like to “grab” completely up to you. These gifts include (but are not limited to) a cPanel license, 1 free month, doubled disk or an additional 250 GB, VoxWire 10-person room, doubled bandwidth… The list goes on! Normally, in holiday grab-bags, your gift is a surprise. However, we are making sure you get the highest-possible value out of your gifts from us this holiday season. If you see it listed, and you want it, it’s yours; completely free, for life. Just grab it! Head over to our Holiday Gift Grab page and check it out.

Seasons greetings, happy holidays, and enjoy!

What are your plans for the holidays this year? Which holiday do you celebrate? We would love to hear about it. Leave a comment below!

*The coupon GIFTGRAB50 and the corresponding offer of 50% off and three free gifts is limited to the selection of an annual payment plan. Please visit the Holiday Gift Grab page for alternate plans and the offers/codes that apply.