artechulate offers a variety of high tech services, including network security, database and Web site design, social media strategies and hardware and software installation, configuration and maintenance. But what sets Smith apart is her uncanny ability to use anecdotes and real life experience to help even a complete novice understand what these things actually mean for their business.
Like many of her neighbors, Smith lost power during the storm Public Service of New Hampshire came to dub Wind Storm 2010."
Our local coffee shop still had power, so my family hung out there, she recalls. I followed PSNH on Twitter ,and they were constantly sending out updates on where the repair crews were working and where they'd be next. After I shared this info with a few people they assumed I knew someone who worked for PSNH and began asking for more specific details.
Smith handled it all with good humor.
I finally had to tell them, I am not the PSNH oracle. If you can get a text message, you can have this information sent right to your cell phone'," she says.
A big part of artechulate's mission is educating businesses and nonprofits on ways to use technology to become more efficient and less wasteful, and as a result, more eco-friendly.
If you use technology wisely, you are by default green, according to Smith, who points to The Children's Museum of New Hampshire, which reduced the volume of its paper newsletter by 30 percent after Smith streamlined their mailing list.
It used to take museum staff two days to pull together the list from multiple sources, she explains. I took these and compiled them into an efficient database. Once all that information was in one place, it was easy to eliminate duplicate and outdated contact info.
We also made it easier to shift paper subscribers over to the museums e-newsletter, Smith says. Before this was a cumbersome process. Now it just takes a mouse click.
Technology has come a long way in making paper obsolete, in Smith's view.
People try to hand me paper printouts, she says. I say, Just email it to me!' The whole idea that we need that piece of paper I'd like to seesociety as a whole get away from that.
Smith's high tech career began in the Air Force back in the days of the first microcomputers. Having spent most of her adult life in the field, she understands how technology has evolved in ways that make it easy to save energy and money. Take for example, the screen saver.
On old computer monitors, the image on the screen had to change periodically or it would burn onto the screen, says Smith. Screen savers prevented this from happening. This is not the case today, new computer monitors don't need screen savers.
Most screen savers do not save energy, according to Energy Star. In fact, graphically intensive screen savers can double a computer's energy use and prevent it from entering sleep mode.
I show people how to take advantage of the energy saving features found in any computer, Smith is proud to say. Today's PCs incorporate power management and sleep functions that can save $25 to $75 annually per system.
Upgrading to newer, more efficient computer technology can often pay for itself, according to Smith.
I still run into people who have those big, old clunky computer monitors, she says. LCD monitors are more efficient and pay for themselves through energy savings in just two to three years.
This year, artechulate joined the Green Alliance, a Portsmouth-based green business union and consumer co-op. Smith is offering GA members a 10 percent off all services, making it even more affordable to go green. More than 90 other local businesses offer substantial discounts on everything from solar installations to sustainable dining through the GA.
Current Issue - May 2024