CK Daily Updates

Happy Wednesday! We’re halfway through the week. How’s your to-do list looking? Cheers to getting more of those tasks checked off this week!

In This Issue: Preparing for Time-Off ⏰ | RCA Cable 2-Male to 2-Male | Servers Vs. Desktop PCs | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Preparing for Time-Off ⏰

Happy Wednesday!

This week I’m finally feeling like I can take a deep breath (sort of) ever since coming back from vacation. I had a wonderful time on vacation, but coming back from that, I was drowning in all the things. The to-do list really seemed like it was never-ending and it wasn’t just all work tasks!

I’m usually pretty good about keeping all my ducks in a row, but I certainly failed myself heading into vacation. That said, how do you prepare for time off or being out of the office? While most days on vacation, I didn’t let my to-do list sit in the back of my mind but some days it’s all I could think about. So, I’d appreciate any tips you have on how you set yourself up for being out – or maybe there really is no secret sauce.

Hope you have a great week!

Ashley

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Product Spotlights & Updates

These RCA cables are excellent for professional, industrial, and residential applications where sound quality and durability are important for TV, VCR, DVD, projector, and home theater applications.

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Learning Center Article – Servers Vs. Desktop PCs

If you ever shop for computer parts, you might see things for desktop PCs and servers lumped together.

This isn’t always the case, but it’s easy enough to see these different parts come up in a single search.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Morgan Stanley is pushing further into its adoption of artificial intelligence with a new assistant that is expected to take over thousands of hours of labor for the bank’s financial advisors.
• Tesla issued two new recalls for the Cybertruck, one to fix windshield wipers with faulty motor controllers and the other to fix loose trim that can rattle or fall off.
• Volkswagen plans to invest up to $5 billion in electric vehicle startup Rivian, starting with an initial investment of $1 billion. The additional $4 billion is expected to be invested following the establishment of a joint venture.
• As of today, the Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test spacecraft has no planned return date. While program managers already pushed the original return flight back, they scrapped the latest Wednesday, June 26, target. According to NASA’s most recent blog post on the flight test, the stranded astronauts can continue to stay comfortably at the International Space Station (ISS), which is orbiting 263 miles above Earth.

Happy Tuesday & Happy National Catfish Day! Did you know that catfish don’t have scales?!

In This Issue: Cleaning-Up & Cleaning-Out 🧼 | AC Power Cord | How does Cat8 Ethernet Compare to 40G Fiber Optic Solutions? | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Cleaning-Up & Cleaning-Out 🧼

Good Morning & Happy Tuesday! It feels like we are somewhat in overdrive here at CK with so many things we’re working on and trying to move forward! It’s a busy season, but also an exciting one where we’re making a lot of progress and laying some really good groundwork for the future… but sometimes I wish there were more hours in the day!

Speaking of needing more hours, I spent quite a bit of time over the weekend doing a house cleanout and trying to get organized. It’s still a work in progress, but it’s getting there! I can’t stand clutter, a messy house, and/or not knowing where to find things!

Growing up, I spent a lot of time at my Nana’s house and she kept an immaculate home! She always said, “A place for everything, and everything in its place” and that phrase has stuck with me ever since. Every time I do a cleanout like this, I’m reminded that we need to be intentional about what we choose to own, and only own things that we have a purpose and a place for.

It’s easy to accumulate a lot of stuff (junk) over time without even realizing it – and that stuff can end up causing a lot of stress! It feels good to clear the clutter. I swear it doesn’t just free up physical space, but mental space too!

Rebecca

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Product Spotlights & Updates

The C5052072 AC Power Cord adheres to rigorous safety standards, providing robust protection against electrical hazards and thereby enhancing the safety of both your equipment and workspace. Installation is a straightforward process, necessitating no specialized tools or technical proficiency.

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Learning Center Article – How does Cat8 Ethernet Compare to 40G Fiber Optic Solutions?

Enterprise networking is in an exciting place right now. Cat8 Ethernet cabling is finally becoming widely available. With that availability comes a drop in price and a viable alternative to fiber optics for 40G networking. This means that enterprise servers and networking systems have substantially widened options for all manner of applications.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” has tallied $724.4 million at the box office worldwide as of Sunday, making it the highest-grossing film of 2024.
• Paramount Global will raise the price of its flagship streaming service, Paramount+. The option with Showtime will increase by $1 a month, while the essential Paramount+ plan will rise by $2.
• Two astronauts who rode to space on Boeing’s Starliner mission remain stranded aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Read more here.
• Sonic Drive-In restaurants are celebrating summer with several refreshing new additions to drink menus. On June 24th, the company revealed six cool and “innovative” new drinks created by “Sonic Flavor experts” as part of its “Flavorista Favorites” collection are being added to menus at participating locations.

Happy Monday! We hope you had a great weekend. Did you do anything fun? We’d love to hear about it!

In This Issue: Deep-Dish Pizza 🍕 | Rackmount Screws | Mac Addresses vs IP Addresses | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Deep-Dish Pizza 🍕

Happy Monday!

Over the weekend we celebrated my father’s birthday and I brought over some deep-dish pizza from a local pizza joint called Rachetti’s Cafe & Pizzeria. They also have a location in Coal City, Illinois if you happen to be in that area. This is where I’ve found by far the best deep-dish pizza (Chicago Style) that you can find in the South.

I’ve eaten at a couple of famous deep dish places in Chicago (Giordano’s and Lou Malnati’s) and I think Rachetti’s is on par with those pizzerias. Although I’m sure native Chicagoans may disagree or have better places in mind (and if you do, definitely let me know!).

Anyway, we devoured that pizza and had a great time celebrating my father’s 68th birthday. This oppressing heat wave has kept us mostly indoors. I’m very grateful for air conditioning! How long is it until Fall?! I think I’m good with Summer, haha.

I hope you have a great day and a wonderful week!

Cris

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Product Spotlights & Updates

These are the screws that are included with the rack kit for most Cisco Catalyst switches. If you have the rack brackets for your switch but have lost your screws you can order these replacements. Some rack kits use more screws than others, order the qty that you need. This set includes 50 screws.

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Learning Center Article – Mac Addresses vs IP Addresses

When you work with a network, there are a lot of addresses that pop up. The two you’ll see more than any other are IP addresses and MAC addresses. What do these things really mean?

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Fast fashion giant Shein has confidentially filed for a public listing in London. It marks another twist in the company’s so-far long road to a public market debut. Shein confidentially filed for a U.S. initial public offering late last year as it looked to expand its global reach.
• Target has struck a deal with Shopify to discover new brands and hot items for its third-party marketplace.
• For baked goods with tremendous taste and out-of-this-world value, it truly doesn’t get any better than Costco muffins. But wait, there’s more! Along with the arrival of the summer season, Costco has added two more flavors to its already stellar lineup of packaged muffins: luscious lemon raspberry and decadent butter pecan. Have you tried either of these?
• There isn’t anything much more exciting than a new chocolate bar flavour. And luckily for Nestlé fans, the brand has announced just that for KitKat lovers. The chocolate giant has revealed the KitKat Chunky Crunchy Double Chocolate bar is joining its list of offerings.

Happy Friday & Happy Weekend! Do you have any weekend plans you’re looking forward to? Do share!

In This Issue: Buried treasure? | Meraki Dual-Band Omni Antenna Set | What is Dynamic ARP Inspection? | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Buried treasure?

Happy Friday, folks! This morning, I read a fascinating article on buried treasure. Did I catch your attention with that? 😀

This Bloomberg article discussed the need to recycle copper, a key component of electric-vehicle batters and wind turbines. As fiber optic cable is deployed and used instead of copper, an estimated 800,000 metric tons of copper is left unused. AT&T and others are developing plans to start digging up the copper.

So, have you ever searched for any treasure? What have you found?

Have a great weekend!

Chris

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Product Spotlights & Updates

The Meraki MA-ANT-20 antenna is a multi-band, omnidirectional antenna designed for use with Meraki APs that have N-type connectors. It is a versatile antenna and is suitable for a broad range of applications.

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Learning Center Article – What is Dynamic ARP Inspection?

A specific risk that shows up a lot is IP spoofing. This is where a device on a network copies the IP address of something else on the network. By masking its IP address in this way, the malicious device can overcome security measures that exist on other endpoint devices. As a result, any user on the network might be at risk.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Amazon shared that they have removed 95% of the plastic air pillows from its packaging in North America and will replace them with paper fillers made from 100% recycled content.
• SpaceX is rolling out a compact version of its satellite internet antennas called “Starlink Mini.”
• OpenAI competitor Anthropic announced Claude 3.5 Sonnet, its most powerful artificial intelligence model yet.
• Wendy’s is making its Biggie Bag deal even sweeter by adding a free Frosty for a limited time.

Happy Thursday & Happy 1st Day of Summer! Today is also known as the Summer Solstice which is the longest day of the year. Cheers to a great, hopefully not scorching hot, summer ahead!

In This Issue: What’s on Your Bucket List? | 22U LINIER Fixed Wall Mount Cabinet | What is Cisco Virtual Stacking and how does it work? | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – What’s on Your Bucket List?

Happy Thursday!

We all have those special dreams and goals we hope to achieve in our lifetime. Whether it’s traveling to a far-off destination, learning a new skill, or accomplishing a personal milestone, bucket lists are a great way to keep those aspirations alive.

We’d love to hear from you! What’s on your bucket list that you hope to accomplish? Who knows, your goal might just spark an idea for someone else!

We can’t wait to read about your bucket list dreams.

The CK Team

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Product Spotlights & Updates

The 22U LINIER Fixed Wall Mount Cabinet with a solid door is a wall-mounted equipment enclosure used for securely mounting your network equipment, servers, and cabling. The cabinet features a rack depth of 22.5 inches with space for 22 Rack units.

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Learning Center Article – What is Cisco Virtual Stacking and how does it work?

Large, fast networks have to connect powerful switches in order to function properly. It’s the best way to create fast, reliable connections, and the backbone of any significant network is wired, one way or another.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Pringles released a new flavor at the intersection of sweet-meets-spicy and fans are already declaring it their “new favorite.” Pringles Sweet Chili Sauce crisps are said to meld the crunch of potato, cayenne pepper, and sweet sauce flavor combined for a delicious take on the Thai-inspired condiment.
• In a recent announcement, 7-Eleven revealed that two, limited-time, exclusive beverages would be available this summer. The two beverages are MTN DEW Infinite Swirl and MTN DEW Freedom Fusion Slurpee Drink.
• The Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday that it’s referred its complaint against TikTok to the Department of Justice.
• GameStop’s 2024 annual shareholder meeting was disrupted as servers crashed under overwhelming interest.

Happy Wednesday! We’re halfway through the week. What do you have left on your to-do list for the week? Cheers to knocking each of those out!

In This Issue: A Goal Update! | Cisco Compatible Console Cable | Standard Ethernet RJ45 vs Keyed RJ45 Connectors | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – A Goal Update!

Happy Wednesday!

Hope you’re having a great week! As I normally do, here’s a goal update for you. As you may recall, you know I want to read 54 books by the end of the year. I got quite a slow start to the year, but I’m making strides! I think in my last update I was only at 3 books, maybe even 2. I’m up to 8!

I’ve got a bit of a ways to go, but progress is progress! Where are you in accomplishing your goals for the year?

Ashley

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Upgrade your network with our brand new 6 foot, Cisco Compatible Light Blue USB A to RJ45 Rollover Console Cable. These cables will console your IT network by helping you communicate and configure a networking device. Console cable utilizes USB 2.0 to facilitate the console function.

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Learning Center Article – Standard Ethernet RJ45 vs Keyed RJ45 Connectors

If you’ve been in the networking game for a while, or if you work with legacy systems, you may have come across keyed RJ45 at some point. This is a type of Ethernet connector from older systems, but it still works in the modern world when you come across it.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a new pact Wednesday that includes a pledge of mutual defense if either is attacked.
• Wendy’s has ended its limited-time Orange Dreamsicle Frosty and replaced with a new seasonal Frosty that has also been made available for a limited time. The Triple Berry Frosty, which combines blackberry, raspberry and strawberry flavors.
• Willie Mays, baseball legend, died Tuesday, the San Francisco Giants announced. He was 93.
• The United States was buffeted by extreme weather Wednesday, with Texas bracing for the first tropical storm of the hurricane season while the Northeast still faced a major heat wave.