CablesAndKits Blog

Happy Good Friday, CK Family! What a beautiful weekend we have ahead of us. We hope that you are able to spend some time this weekend honoring and glorifying the sacrifice that has been made for us. Have a Happy Easter!

In This Issue: Is it just another Friday/ | DisplayPort Cable | All about Aruba 2530 Switches | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Is it just another Friday?

It’s Good Friday! What does today mean to you? Is it just another Friday?

Today is the day that we remember the crucifixion of Christ, the day that He suffered on our behalf. We also know that Sunday came, and He Arose! But imagine for a moment that you were there. Sunday had not come. It was likely hard to hold onto the faith it would take to believe that he would rise. Yet, they still believed. John 3:16 comes to mind. It says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

We’re on the other side of history and know that Sunday came, and Jesus wasn’t in the tomb! So while today is a day of remembrance for the Man who gave his life for you and me, we know that Sunday is coming!

Please take a couple of minutes to listen to this video; Sunday Is Coming.

Have a great Easter!

Chris

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Product Spotlights & Updates

DisplayPort cables are used to connect your devices to a monitor. Primarily used for connecting your monitor to your PC, this cable will provide high performance based on updated signal and protocol technology.

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Learning Center Article – All about Aruba 2530 Switches

When you’re trying to find the perfect hardware for your network, you’re going to have to weigh a few things. You can get the most powerful hardware on the market, but you’ll pay a pretty penny for it.

If you want to optimize spending without skimping on performance, then you want to consider something in the range of Aruba 2530 switches. This is versatile hardware that can solve problems for many small and medium businesses, and these switches hold their own for a number of enterprise applications as well.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• The markets are closed today in honor of Good Friday.
• The Super Mario Bros. Movie was released this week, the second movie this year that is a video game adaptation for the big screen. 
• Diddy said he pays Sting $5K a day for sampling Sting’s hit song “Every Breath You Take” 26 years ago in his song “I’ll Be Missing You.”
• Apple is opening its first store in Mumbai, India. 

Happy Thursday! Today we’re conjuring up memories of fairs, sporting events, and fun snacking – it’s National Caramel Popcorn Day! It’s the perfect day to grab your favorite caramel popcorn and enjoy!

In This Issue: Easter Traditions | 1080p Webcam w/ Microphone | Do I need the latest server? | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Easter Traditions

Good Morning!

This Sunday is Easter! Usually, I am pumped for Easter. It is full of exciting traditions! I love watching the children’s program at my church, organizing and sometimes participating in Easter egg hunts (you are never too old to run around searching for eggs), and of course, the mounds of food!

Every year since before I was born, the children practiced and presented these amazing Easter speeches. I had to participate when I was younger and now that I am older I really enjoy watching the small children get up and recite their speeches. Some of the kids sing songs, and others participate in an Easter skit. It brings me so much joy to see the little ones age and mature every year! They are just so adorable!

After church, we always head over to my granny’s house to spend time with our huge family and eat some amazing food! We always have such a spread I can never taste everything. That doesn’t stop my grandma from asking me if I want some food to go. I can never refuse! I always pile up a to-go plate and sneak to put it in my car so that no one takes it.

Then, I continue to enjoy the rest of the day. The kids usually head to the backyard after dinner and start the Easter Egg Hunt. We used to use real eggs but now we just use the plastic eggs that can be stuffed with candy, money, and treats. It is entertaining to watch the kids scramble trying to find the best eggs and see them glower over the one kid that finds the egg with the most money.

Anyways, I will be missing that this year. It will be my first time away from family on Easter Sunday, but that hasn’t stopped me from making plans. We (my fiance and I) are going to meet friends for some Easter fun. Hopefully, it will take my mind off missing the fun and delicious family traditions.

Do any of you have any Easter traditions? I would love to hear!

Joi

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Product Spotlights & Updates

The perfect plug-and-play webcam! Our 1080p HD webcam provides realistic, crisp, crystal-clear video and features a built-in microphone. Specially designed and optimized for professional quality video this webcam is perfect for meetings as well as for streaming on social and entertainment websites.

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Learning Center Article – Do I need the latest server?

Data centers aren’t cheap. Just the cost of power requirements for keeping your equipment running can be staggering. Adding the cost of new servers can often feel like too much. If you have high demands and a tight budget, you need a way to get more power and performance for every dollar spent. For most applications, the easiest way to do this is to look at refurbished servers and parts.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Hartfields-Jackson Atlanta International Airport retains the title of the world’s busiest airport, with over 93 million passengers in 2022. 
• FedEx is looking to combine its Ground and Express network to save $4 billion in costs. 
• Private sector hiring slowed in March, adding just 145k jobs compared to 261k in February. 
• A tornado struck Missouri and took the lives of five people.

Pizza lovers, today is your day! It’s National Deep Dish Pizza day, the perfect day to celebrate one of America’s favorite varieties of pizza. What are your favorite toppings to put on your deep dish pizza?

In This Issue: Senior Year | Cisco Meraki MX64 Security Appliance | Understanding Ethernet Cable Gauge (AWG) | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Senior Year

Good morning CK Family!

I hope you’re having a great week. This week I’ve been taking some time away to celebrate my younger brother’s senior year and have been spending the week at Disney and Universal! So far, we’ve conquered Hollywood Studios, the rides at Epcot, and Universal/Islands of Adventure! It’s been fun-filled and exhausting, but a blast to spend time with my brother. Today we’re heading to Animal Kingdom and I think we’re all most excited about Avatar! We’ve heard great things about the rides but mainly about the structure they’ve built so we’re pumped to check it out.

I’m truly cherishing this time as it’ll be the last time I’m able to spend with him in more of a one on one setting for a while! With him soon heading off to college and many new adventures ahead of the two of us – I know our relationship will change but I know that it will continue to flourish into something even greater than it is now.

Look forward to catching you up on all the fun from the week next week!

Ashley

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Product Spotlights & Updates

The Cisco Meraki MX family of devices are multifunctional security & SD-WAN enterprise appliances that feature a wide range of capabilities to address a wide variety of use cases – from an all-in-one device. Organizations of all sizes and across all industries rely on the MX to deliver secure connectivity to hub locations or multi-cloud environments, as well as application quality of experience (QoE), through advanced analytics with machine learning.

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Learning Center Article – Understanding Ethernet Cable Gauge (AWG)

When you have to put a network together, you’re going to compare a lot of different components to try to squeak out better performance without spending obscene amounts of money. Because of that, you’re likely to consider using Ethernet for many (if not all) parts of your network.

What you might not know is that Ethernet comes in different sizes. More specifically, you can get different thicknesses in your Ethernet cables, and that thickness actually matters a lot when it comes to cable functionality.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• The UFC and WWE are combining to create a $21.4 billion sports entertainment company!
• Google has launched a price guarantee badge. If you book through Google and the price drops, you will be refunded the difference. 
• Former President Trump was indicted in New York City yesterday.
• Apple has introduced a buy now, pay later feature for Apple Pay.

Happy Tuesday & Happy Jeep 4×4 Day! Whether it’s up rocky slopes or through muddy trails, Jeeps let you take your adventures to the next level. With the uptick in the demand for Jeeps – we thought we’d see how many of you are proud Jeep owners. Share your photos!

In This Issue: The Masters | Cisco Aironet Mounting Bracket | All About Meraki 390 Switches | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – The Masters

Good Morning & Happy Tuesday! This is Spring Break week for a lot of folks around here, so it definitely feels like the pace has slowed a bit with so many people being out of town! While busy days are great, I do enjoy the “slower” times that offer a great opportunity to catch up and deeply focus without as many distractions!

I’m trying to make the start of the week as productive as possible as I’ll be out of the office Thursday and Friday. I’m super excited to be heading to Augusta to attend the Friday tournament of the Masters! I’ve never been to a professional golf tournament before so don’t fully know what to expect, but I’ve been trying to do my research to make sure I understand the way it works, the course, the etiquette, etc! One rule that seems to be unique to Augusta is that no cell phones are allowed (unless you attend a practice round). It will most certainly feel strange to not have a phone at my fingertips, but I think that rule will actually allow me to more fully enjoy the experience! Looking forward to it!

Rebecca

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Keep your access points safe and sound with our wall/ceiling mounting brackets for Cisco Aironet 1040, 1140, 1260, 3500 and 3600 series access points. Why make the investment? These access points help ensure your network provides the best possible signal. Yep, it’s really that simple.

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Learning Center Article – All About Meraki 390 Switches

In the world of enterprise networking, manufacturers are at war to produce the best tools. Cisco has been an industry leader for decades, and for good reason. Among the best switches available from Cisco is the Meraki 390 series.

They are switches built for enterprise applications, WiFi 6 integration, easy management, and rapid deployment. With a range of options, they can form the backbone of any high-speed Ethernet system.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• The Masters at Augusta National starts this Thursday.
• UConn beat San Diego State to win the NCAA Men’s National Championship. 
• NASA revealed its team for the upcoming mission around the moon. Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Hammock Koch, and Jeremy Hansen are the team. It’s been 50 years since there has been a crewed mission to go to the moon. 
• A UK watchdog has fined TikTok $15.9M over the misuse of kids’ data

Happy Monday! We hope you had a wonderful weekend spending time with friends and family and preparing for a great week ahead. If we can be praying about anything for you this week, please let us know!

In This Issue: Karate Lessons | Rack Mount Punch Down Patch Panel | All About Cisco Catalyst 3560 Switches | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Karate Lessons

Happy Monday!

Hope you had a great weekend! In the last month or so I enrolled my daughter in karate classes, and she earned her first promotion this weekend. She was so proud to show off her skills and we were proud of her as well. She’s learning a lot of cool moves in karate, but what I find even better is the discipline and respect that the instructors are instilling in her.

She is seeing other kids go through that process, too, and there’s something to be said about experiencing these lessons with her peers. I hope she sticks with it because I can definitely see the benefits and progress that she’s made. Have you had experience with kids in karate, and was it a positive one?

Hope you have a great week!

Cris

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Patch panels are a great way to organize and terminate cable runs in the wiring closet. Adding these panels to racks allows for easy identification and faster adds/changes and modifications to cabling. Simply punch down the twisted pair of cabling in the back of the device and you are ready to plug in RJ45 patch cables in the front. These universal CAT6 patch panels support both T568A and 568B wiring and 22-26AWG cables. Gold-plated terminals and UL rating assure you that these panels will be reliable for years to come.

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Learning Center Article – All About Cisco Catalyst 3560 Switches

Networking is a field that will always keep you on your toes. The optimal design for an office in a medium-sized business is completely different from what you might pick for a campus or large enterprise operation — to the point that it can feel like a completely different profession when the size of the network changes.

Because there is so much variety, you need access to the right tools for every job. When that job is supporting 250 users or fewer, then the Cisco Catalyst 3560 series is one to remember.

This is a series of networking switches that offers a balance of performance and efficiency.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• LSU beat Iowa to win the NCAA Women’s National Championship on Sunday.
• The Nasdaq index rose 18% during the first quarter, which is the largest quarterly gain in two years.
• Italy temporarily banned ChatGPT over AI concerns.
• Twitter said it will begin getting rid of verification for nonpaying users.

Happy Friday! We’re fortunate enough to have access to the most powerful computers to date, but what would you do if you lost everything on your computer? Today is World Backup Day, so it’s the perfect day to backup your computer!

In This Issue: Customer Onboarding Made Simple | AC Power Cord | Meraki MS Switches vs Cisco 9000 Switches | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Customer Onboarding Made Simple

Happy Friday, folks! We’ve noticed a few things customers ask to do regularly, so I want to share some ways we can make your life easier! It’s our goal to serve you and help you get your network and server projects done easily and on time! Check out these common questions and click the link below for access to an easy-to-use page with resources for each of these!

Does your company need a W-9 to complete a transaction?

Do you prefer to have Net Terms to be able to pay after you receive the products?

Are you a tax-exempt organization? Are you buying for Government, school, or resale?

Visit our Customer Onboarding page to have quick access to complete these tasks. And you can always email us at [email protected] to complete these as well. We want to make it simple for you!

Have a great weekend!

Chris

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Power cords are commonly used to connect a piece of equipment to a power distribution unit and for many other uses. Whether the cords are used in a basic or dense installation, these heavy-duty power cords save time and money. Heavy-duty C14 to C13 power cable for your network and data center needs, 18 AWG, 5ft. Comes with a Lifetime Warranty!

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Learning Center Article – Meraki MS Switches vs Cisco 9000 Switches

When it comes to professional networking, picking the right hardware is essential. Not only does hardware represent a significant portion of the overall networking costs, but it can implement limitations into a network that prove detrimental to business operations.

To help with that, you can compare premier networking technology to see where the pros and cons lie in order to make informed decisions. As a part of that effort, below you will find a breakdown and comparison of Meraki MS switches and the Cisco 9000 series.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Ford has resumed full production of the popular F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck. Production was halted in February after a battery in one of the just-completed EV trucks caught fire.
• Nikola said it will raise $100 million via a secondary stock offering to the public. If the public stock offering raises less than $100 million, a private investor has agreed to buy enough stock to make up the difference.
• Virgin Orbit is ceasing operations “for the foreseeable future” after failing to secure a funding lifeline.
• The Biden administration on Friday released new rules that will significantly shorten the list of electric vehicles that qualify for federal tax credits. Officials hope the change will push carmakers to move their supply chains out of China and to the United States or its allies.