The Tulsa Forum by TulsaNow

Looking at some of the other threads where people are recommending other members of Tulsa Now to each other, I thought we might start a thread to showcase what each of us do, so that we might be able to do business together.  We can keep it anonymous for those who like to hide behind trees.  You can simply PM the member if their offering appeals to you.

Use this format:

Type of business:

Product or service:

Average customer size:

Perfect customer:

Years in business:

Corporate office city:

I'll start.

Type of business:  Business consulting, software and systems engineering.

Product or service: My company provides consulting, software, and systems to manufacturing and distribution companies, as well as service and retail.  We configure and implement ERP (fancy term for business software) systems that help businesses reduce costs, labor, and increase profits.  The systems we offer are modular and include everything from accounting and inventory management, to process and service management.  They include moble access apps for owners, sales people, and technicians in the field, and can be configured to a wide range of business models.

Average customer size: $5 million to $500 million.

Perfect customer:  Any company that maintains control on inventory, and is looking for a system to replace aging technology, or a single system to replace multiple platforms.

Years in business: Over 20 years.

Corporate office City: Tulsa

Type of business: Environmental non-profit

Product or service: Recycling

Average customer size: 5' 10" 180 pounds

Perfect customer: drinks lot of beverages in aluminum cans and brings them to our centers

Years in business: 26

Corporate office city: Tulsa

Type of business: Satellite Television and High Speed internet.

Product or service: DirecTV, Dish Network, Exede and HughesNet.

Average customer size: All.

Perfect customer: Rural and Cable TV customers.

Years in business: Since 1982.

Corporate office city: Tulsa / Oklahoma City.

Ooh, I'm Michael's perfect customer! I feel special indeed!  ;D

Almost, I prefer my beverages in glass.  I do recycle them though.

Type of business:

Artist


Product or service:

   Specializing in Trompe L'oeil Murals for the home and business.   Also occasionally do portraits and painted furniture and have now started a collection of Art Deco style paintings and prints. 

Average customer size:

Typically a family of 3-4 persons.

Perfect customer:

Richer than God  (but am happy to do work for people having just about any budget) 

Years in business:

20+

Corporate office city:

Tulsa

This is what I do in my spare time...when I'm not being a private eye, that is.


Type of business: Freelance writer

Product or service: Primarily technical writing on electronic-related subjects, but includes bicycling, photography, history, humor, and more. Specialization is for insects.

Average customer size: One.

Perfect customer: A perfect client states his requirements clearly and concisely, doesn't change them after copy is submitted, and doesn't demand countless re-writes.

Years in business: Three (for profit.)  Twenty five (for publication.)

Corporate office city:  Wherever I happen to be sitting!

I've been told that writing is much like prostitution.  First, we do it for fun, then for a few close friends.  Finally, we do it for the money.

I am favorably impressed. Congratulations on being able to do what you do successfully for that many years.
I am serious, congratulations.

Man could I use someone with those skills to get this damned internet router to put out enough signal for all corners of my house. Also, looking for the right guy to track down my architect and give a good talkin to about the location of my office.

/rant

Just use two APs (or however many are necessary to get the coverage you require). If you don't have network between the two locations, use your cable TV lines with a pair of MoCA bridges. You can use a range extender, but that cuts the wifi speed in halfish. You could also get a more sensitive router/AP, but then you just end up with annoying dead spots. It shouldn't cost more than a couple hundred in parts.

Personally, I'd probably buy two Actiontec MI424WR routers for $25 each on eBay to use as bridges (their wireless radios are old and crappy, but they're cheaper than purpose-built MoCA adapters) and a couple of dual band wireless routers that can be configured to work in AP-only mode. If I had $600 to spend on APs at the time, it would be a couple of Unifi Pro APs. If not, probably whatever Linksys or D-Link was on sale at Amazon or wherever.

Mine works in every corner of the house and outside. You buy some piece of crap like Linksys?

Type of business: IT Systems Support

Product or service: Server, Desktop/Laptop, Infrastructure installation and support. Some web/application support such as Wordpress, CSS, etc.

Average customer size: 8-5 I support an environment with 22,000 internal users and several million external users, but also do home and small office work.

Perfect customer: All of them

Years in business: 17ish

Corporate office city: Columbus, OH

Well get your rear over here and fix mine then. And a lol over linksys...

Are we going to get into one of those "my router is bigger than your router" competitions?

The old blue brick 54G with third party firmware worked well.  Too bad when Cisco bought them out they essentially ignored the consumer network division and ever since their routers have sucked.

I got an Asus RTN16 last year and installed third party firmware on that and works as good as any of the old Linksys routers I've ever had.

What the hell did you just say? Should I be insulted? Can someone translate nerd please? :)

Get a translator.  Better yet, ask Grizz.  He's fluent in it.   ;D

It's just a better brand of router with some aftermarket stuff on it that helps wireless range.  The new Linksys routers suck.

Nope, not an insult.  Just techno-geek for "you get to buy a new toy for your computer".



Or maybe just an EA4500??  Seems like there would be less 'hands-on' for guido...??

Yep, but the reviews are mixed.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833124459

Beware - if you are going to buy products made for and endorsed by 'geeks' expect 'geeky' responses.  I've spent nearly 20 years in networking and other computer science related fields.  Maybe that's why I can make about 300 percent profit on someone when they ask me to build a PC to spec for them when they don't want to deal with Dell or Gateway.  During my 18 month underemployment in the early 2000s, that's what I did to stay afloat.  I almost opened a business for it but there was already far too much competition.

I have a 54G running 3rd party firmware on a shelf. Running Linksys firmware I had to reboot it almost daily. I put a newer one in it's place and I only have to reboot it monthly. I used to be a netgear devotee but they were mostly crap, just in different ways.

Unfortunately that profit margin has shrunk greatly in the last 5 years thanks to Dell and HP buying lower quality components to push $200-300 PC's out the door. I can buy some pretty cranking server hardware for not much more than I spent on a PC back in the day.

Correct.  A lot of the bulk manufacturers and distributors found out that it wasn't all that difficult to build your own desktops for many.  I've never owned a desktop that I bought from a store.  Mine have always been home built.  They always lasted a LOT longer (IMO) because I knew what I put in them and worked with the individual part companies for the warranties.

Yeah... seems like most of the gripes are about the 'cloud' feature.  I have no clue what that means, but it can be disabled.  Probably not something I would use in that case.


Am planning to upgrade computer, and it looks like a 19" rack blade would not be much more than I spent for my original IBM PC.  Almost looks viable.

Type of business: Information Technology Solutions for small and medium sized businesses

Product or service: Computer Maintance, Web Design/Development, Marketing

Average customer size: All sizes

Perfect customer: Those who need help making their technology work better for them. Those that want to be more productive.

Years in business: Since 2002

Corporate office city: Tulsa, Oklahoma

Peon, I got the ASUS Black Diamond RT-N56U earlier this year. All your networks will now bow down.

If anyone needs a boiler, thermal oil heater, any sort of commercial combustion equipment, antique Harley-Davidson parts, commercial and personal line insurance, or green chile stew that will knock your socks off that’s Mrs. C and I.

No third party firmware support that I have seen for the 56U.  FAIL.

The 66U however does support some third party firmware.  WIN.

My 16 supports Tomato firmware AND dd-wrt.  I use tomato.  It works well.  WIN.

The 16 has 32mb flash and 128mb RAM.  The 56?  It has 8mb flash memory and 128mb RAM.  Likely why most third party firmwares won't work on it.  Another FAIL.

The 56U cost?  $105 at Newegg.  The 16?  $85.  WIN for both really, because they are good routers at good prices.  The difference is that the 56 does dual band (2.4 and 5 ghz).  Mine doesn't, but 5ghz is limited anyway.

 ;)

I have talked from time to time about getting a school bus and converting it to motorhome - does she have insurance for that, if I go through with it?  (There are some pretty good looking school buses out there pretty cheap now...)

Should be no different than a motorhome.  I’m pretty sure she can write it.

Should be, but I get lots of lame excuses.  One of my favorites is Progressive who says that the wheels are closer together, so they won't do it because it would be too top heavy.  Like 75 kids at 100 lbs each is not gonna add 7,500 lbs above the floor level?  (I've even gone so far as to measure the wheel widths - no difference on a small sample of 4.)

Maybe you could forward this to her, or does she read all these posts?  I've talked to several, and the main ones that come to mind who brag about all the coverage they do - don't.  (Progressive, GMAC, Geico, Travelers, Foremost, Allstate, AAA.)

I have several friends who ride with Team Crude.  They’ve got a diesel pusher bus they converted to a motor home and I’m pretty certain they carry insurance, I’ll see what I can find out from them.

Heir, I've got a couple other companies besides the ones you listed.  I will check with them and see what I can find out for you.  Thanks for asking!

And......on a more professional note:


Type of business: Insurance  Personal, Commercial, and Health

Product or service:  Insurance

Average customer size: Doesn't matter, we'll insure everyone.;)

Perfect customer:  All my customers are perfect.

Years in business:  12 years

Corporate office city:  Tulsa

OH, NO...not a more professional note!!!

You are gonna ruin the reputation of this place and the denizens therein....


I am interested.  Also, have been accumulating a group of like minded people who are also interested.  Typically don't have wrecks or any violations, but many certainly could be considered 'lunatic fringe' - at least by mainstream America.  (Think Golden Earring...?)

"...another radar lover gone!"

Same group, different song...

Quick! Someone mention Marshalls!

Finally got the homestead wired up for max internet strength everywhere. Now, back to your regularly scheduled posts. Has anyone gotten any bites?

Oh yeah. "I been drivin' all night, my hands wet on the wheel..."

they sound pretty close to the same song.

We use a netgear router and have great success

https://www.tulsasecuritytaskforce.com/tulsa-security-guards-reviews (https://www.tulsasecuritytaskforce.com/tulsa-security-guards-reviews)