IT Business Special Interest Group

We are a group of SMS members who are interest in anything business. That includes building a small income with a potential to grow big in future to helping senior citizens to start an IT business from home. Enterprising young adults are also welcome. To help this group, SMS is offering members web hosting services with C-Panel, Wordpress and Email forwarding for only $70 per year including .com domain name registration.

Setting up a busines is simple. The difficult part is how to bring in the revenue and even more difficult is to make it generate passive income for your retirement.

Every business must start with an idea of which there are many. Then comes the passion to develop this idea into a business. The selection of an idea depends on your budget, your interest, the risk you are willing to take and your domain knowledge.

In my opinion, the most critical factor in setting up a business is your domain knowledge or lacking it, you can partner with someone who has it. This is because in every business, there are bound to have competitors no matter how unique is your idea. Someone else with a better domain knowledge, can compete with you at a much lower cost.

Activities

We conduct a seminar once in 2 months. We will try to make this seminar business-like. New ideas will be shared.

Our seminars may also teach people how to use certain software tools in their business. Often, such tools are also useful for home users. Business people or home users, students to retirees, are all welcome to attend our seminars. Every tool that can enhance your business can enhance your home usage too.

Past Seminars

This is not intended to provide a complete list of our past seminars but just an idea of how our seminar can benefit you.

Wordpress - We demo the capabilities of Wordpress, including adding Plug-in, changing template, editor, adding pages etc. We also showed how to integrate Google Map, language translation and Form Filling among others. 

Virtual realty - We demo the capabilities of drones and the technology behind it so as to let audience think about the business opportunities made available with the progress of this technology. In due course, we will revisit this drone technology, legal implication and opportunities.

3D Printing - We had demonstrated several 3D printing technologies such as plastic extrusion using Makerbot replicator 2X and using powder layered technology with ZPrinter 650 with full color. We will revisit this hot topic with new developments.

Laser cutter - We assembled and demonstrated a hobbyist and open source version of a laser cutter. This is a precise cutting machine and being a low end version, can cut only cardboard. We will talk on more powerful commercial cutters when suitable speakers are available.

Robotics - We had presentations on robotics where by we demo the use of robots to sweep leaves on pavements, deliver goods etc. As and when new robot technologies are available, if we have the opportunities to invite speakers or explore such technologies, we share in this talk.

Web Site Hosting - Instead of sourcing for a hosting site and learning html editing and FTP and page designing, why not settle for an easy to use web site with online editor common known as Content Management. Editing is similar to editing a Word document though with simplified functions. This extremely low cost and easy to use hosting site will quickly get you your own domain name and pages up quickly and you are in business.

Security - Computer insecurity, viruses, malware, ransomware and everything bad can happen to your computers, servers and mobile phones. Computer security is essential just like a door is necessary for your home. We regularly cover this topic once in a while.

Digital Signage - The world is slowly moving away from printer banners and replacing them with digital signages where by contents can be changed remotely and text, pictures, video and sound can be played. The usage is very wide and the technology is progressing.