CablesAndKits Blog

There are 4-days left in the Olympic Games and the talent we’ve seen has been unreal. The U.S. has secured 19 total medals! 8 gold, 7 silver, and 4 bronze!

In This Issue: Meet Iris! | Cisco Chassis Fan | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Meet Iris!

Hello everyone! I’m Iris and I serve as a Customer Service Representative. At CablesAndKits I have many fond memories, but my favorite was the recent 20th-anniversary celebration. It was such a fun time seeing the whole team virtually and celebrating 20 years!

At work I find myself energized by the motivation and support of my co-workers. I love working with them and am inspired by them daily. I also love the day-to-day tasks that I do as they give me the opportunity to learn new things.

Each day I love interacting with our customers. I enjoy the conversations we have and love building relationships over the phone!

If you ever call in, I hope we get the chance to chat!

Iris

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Don’t let your Cisco router overheat. Cool things down with our Cisco 2821/2851 Router Replacement Chassis Fan. This fan is compatible with 2821 and 2851 routers. What makes this fan the right investment for your Cisco network? It will replace fan1 or fan2 in the chassis, so you can keep it in stock for whenever you need it most!

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Learning Center Article – Understanding the Basics of Network Switches

Networking is a big topic. In fact, it’s too big for a single conversation. In order to distill such a massive concept into manageable bites, it’s best to look at one component of a network at a time. This time around, that bite is network switches. They come in many shapes and sizes, but you can navigate through the field of options pretty easily when you break switch features into three categories. Read more here.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Remington Arms agreed to settle liability claims from the families impacted by the massacre at Sandy Hook. Remington agreed to pay the families $73 million.
• Sony has officially unveiled the open style Link Buds with Google Assistant and skin touch controls built-in.
• The Super Bowl attracted 112 million viewers across TV and Streaming this year falling just under the record of 114 million in 2015.
• Tim Hortons is focusing its next phase of U.S. expansion on snowbirds and retirees and is eyeing Texas and Florida.

Happy Monday and Happy Valentine’s Day! We hope today brings lots of love, a full pot of coffee (after a late night of the Super Bowl), and your favorite sweet treat!

In This Issue: The Game or the Commercials? | Cisco 2960 Series 24 Port PoE Switch | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – The Game or the Commercials?

Good Monday morning! And Happy Valentine’s Day! What a game last night! I’m not a huge fan of sports in general, but I do appreciate championship games, and I like to see the pinnacle of athleticism being displayed. Last night’s Super Bowl did not disappoint, I didn’t know who was going to win until the very end. I have family that live in LA so I guess I should be a Ram’s fan. I enjoyed the halftime show as well, very nostalgic, but mostly I enjoyed snacking and watching some of the commercials like the flaming hot Frito-Lay commercial and the GM Dr. Evil commercial. Anyways who did you root for in the Super Bowl? And more importantly what was your favorite commercial? Or were you like me and focused on enjoying the snacks and the commercials?

P.S. I forgot to mention that I named my plants with the help of one of our subscribers, Jen N. I’ve named the Purple Waffle – “Waffle”, The Rabbit Foot’s Fern – “Peter”, and the Nerve Plant – “Toni”! Thanks again, Jen! I will post an update later, but the plants are healthy and are still alive!

Cris

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Product Spotlights & Updates

This Cisco Catalyst 2960 series fixed-configuration switch is a leading Layer 2 switch that comes with (24) 10/100 Fast Ethernet Ports as well as 2 dual-purpose uplinks. This switch is an excellent option for enterprise, midmarket, and branch office networks to provide a lower total cost of ownership. The Layer 2 capabilities and fixed-configuration access provide improved operations, security, sustainability, and enhanced workspace experience.

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Learning Center Article – Best Way to Connect Multiple Switches

What is the purpose of connecting multiple switches? In most cases, the goal is to expand network access. When you connect switches, you get more ports that can be used, and that means more devices can utilize the network.

Depending on the configuration, connecting multiple switches can also increase the bandwidth of the network. This is important for any demanding network that is short on total bandwidth. Read more here on the best way to connect multiple switches.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• The Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 in Super Bowl LVI.
• Coinbase’s Super Bowl commercial led to massive traffic to the company’s app, causing it to go down temporarily after it aired.
• Ukraine has requested a meeting with Russia within 48 hours as U.S. intelligence officials warn that a Russian invasion could begin this week.
• The US has temporarily suspended Mexican avocado imports after a US plant safety inspector received a threatening phone call.

Super Bowl weekend is here! It’ll be the Rams vs. the Bengals. Who are you rooting for? Or will you only be watching for the halftime show?

In This Issue: Vacation Planning | Yealink UVC20 Full HD Webcam | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Vacation Planning

Happy Friday folks! Our family has started talking about vacation this summer. Pretty much every option is being tossed around right now. Our options include going to the beach, or a theme park, to doing a history tour around one of our historic cities.

That has me wondering about you. What plans have you made for vacation?

Have a great weekend!

Chris

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Level up your next remote meeting with full HD audio and video with the Yealink UVC20 webcam! The Yealink UVC20 is a full HD webcam featuring both 1080P HD video and ultra HD audio. Built with a 5 megapixel full HD glass lens, this camera delivers exceptional quality video and gives users a premium desktop video experience. This camera is perfect for those who work remotely, as well as for distance education, training, live streams, telemedicine, and more!

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Learning Center Article – Difference between DAC and AOC Cables

Datacenter networking is a different beast. Every component has to keep up with the most demanding technical specifications. It makes things expensive. If you want to find ways to keep costs under control, you need to know how to optimize every cable in the system. One step towards that optimization is understanding the differences between DAC and AOC cables.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Who’s ready to enjoy some wings on Super Bowl Sunday?! Industry experts say the Super Bowl fare should be available but will cost an arm and a leg.
• Did you catch the trades that happened in the NBA yesterday? Here’s a recap.
• Images of Venus’ “night side” show a never-before-seen look at Earth’s neighbor.
• Apple is making changes to the Apple AirTag to make it harder for someone to track you.

Have you been keeping up with the Winter Olympics? It’s such an exciting time for so many! The US has officially scored 4 gold medals, 5 silver medals, and 1 bronze medal!

In This Issue: Spring Fever | 5ft Blue CAT6 Ethernet Patch Cables | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Spring Fever

All it takes is the weather warming up just a little and the sun being out and “BOOM!” I have Spring Fever and all I want to do is get outside and play in the dirt. It is way too early for this but I am so ready for it. I am over the cold weather and over the snow (well, in Georgia, the VERY cold rain and clouds.) I am ready for warmer (not, Georgia hot) weather!

Like yesterday and then again today, we are getting up into the low to mid-60s with sunshine. That is perfect weather. On top of that, every time I walk outside or let the dog out in the backyard, all I see are the landscaping and planting projects that I want to jump into right now. Well, those and other things outside I want to start working on. Plus, it would be nice to be able to sit out on the patio and enjoy the sun and not have to wear 3 layers of clothes. Haha!

Now with all of that being said, the aspect of Spring that I don’t care for is the severe weather and the fact that some of our biggest ice storms/winter weather has historically come in March. That still is detouring my current Spring Fever and need to get outside and do stuff.

What about you? Got big plans for outdoor stuff in the Spring or have you gotten the Spring Fever bug yet?

Have a great Thursday!

Jason

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Our Cat6 Easyboot Ethernet cables make it simple for you to manage your Ethernet cabling with a tabbed boot which makes it easy to connect or disconnect the cable in hard to reach, tight, high-density situations, unlike the older style Half-moon boot cables – UTP, Pure Copper Wire, Lifetime Warranty – Backwards compatible with all Cat5e applications.

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Learning Center Article – The Difference Between Cat5e, Cat6, and Cat6a

New technology, advances in automation, and overflowing opportunities are unlocked every day. For businesses, research teams, and tech projects around the world, there is a constant balance between getting the right amount of power versus spending an exact tech budget wisely.

Cabling and other infrastructure choices are in a precarious position, with many low IT budgets or simply cheap options tempting the cost-conscious planner. Here are a few Ethernet cable options to help you understand your available choices.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Figure skater Nahan Chen has scored his first Olympic goal medal.
• Samsung’s new Ultra phone has a built-in stylus.
• Chloe Kim dominated in the halfpipe and has won her second Olympic gold medal.
• Biden administration rolled out a plan to allocate $5 billion to states to fund electric vehicle chargers.

Happy National Pizza Day! Whether it’s thin crust, Chicago-style, deep dish, or anything in between, pizza is an American favorite. What’s your favorite type of pizza?

In This Issue: Meet Avian! | Cisco 1000BASE-SX SFP Module | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – Meet Avian!

Hello! I’m Avian and I’ve been in the Customer Service industry for more than 8 years and love what I do! I guess that’s pretty obvious because I wouldn’t spend all those years in this field if I’m not enjoying it. I’ve been with CK for almost 2 years – which reminds me, my work anniversary is coming up next month! Oh, how time flies!

I have a pet dog named Kobe and spending time with him is one of my favorite things to do! He is a Siberian Husky and the rumors are true – they are escape artists! Aside from my crazy dog, I also love beach camping. My husband and I usually visit isolated/remote islands with our friends. There’s no electricity and no mobile phone coverage but we don’t mind. The campfire stories, refreshing air, virgin white sand beach, and the sound of the waves at night… that’s my definition of relaxation.

Avian

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Hot-swappable, the GLC-SX-MM is an SFP transceiver module that provides gigabit uplink capabilities for a variety of Cisco switches, routers, and firewalls.

The GLC-SX-MM is a 1000BASE-SX SFP module. SFP stands for Small Form-factor Pluggable, a common specification that provides high speeds in a compact form and reduces both the time and expense involved in upgrading and maintaining your infrastructure.

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Learning Center Article – All About 100G Transceivers and Uses in Data Centers

As networking continues to evolve, it has become apparent that data centers are going to do all of the heavy lifting, regardless of who the network serves. In fact, that’s already the case. Networking hubs handle virtually all digital traffic before requests eventually filter down to individual users. Because of this, data center networking is only going to demand more from its hardware and design.

Meeting the needs today and tomorrow will require 100G transceivers. This article was designed to help you better understand and navigate the world of these transceivers.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Apple announced a new Tap to Pay feature for the iPhone that allows people to buy goods from merchants in the U.S. by tapping their phones together.
• Edgewell expects the demand for personal care and grooming items to increase in the coming months as people begin to return to the office.
• Here’s everything in Apple’s new iOS 15.4 update.
• A massive sponge garden was discovered on the peaks of extinct underwater volcanoes in the Arctic Deep Sea.

Happy Tuesday! We hope you are having a great week. Do you have some big goals for the week? We’re cheering you on as you work to achieve them!

In This Issue: New Products | Cisco Original 2600 Series 19″ Rack Mount Kit | News to Start Your Day

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The CK Daily – New Products

Good morning and happy Tuesday! Hope everyone is off to a great start this week! I’ve mentioned before that my role at CK is in new product development, so I am constantly trying to find awesome products to add to our catalog to help you complete your projects on time!

We’ve got some really exciting stuff planned for 2022 so stay tuned for lots of updates! That said, I like to check in from time to time and ask if there are any products that you would like to see CK add to our portfolio? Any feedback is always much appreciated, so please let me know if anything is top of mind!

Rebecca

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Product Spotlights & Updates

Put your network back on track with the right rack mount kit from CablesAndKits. This Cisco 2600 Series 19″ Rack Mount Kit is compatible with a variety of models and includes two brackets and screws. Basically, we give you everything you need to store your router safely. Why choose us? Your purchase is covered by a 100% satisfaction guarantee and you can buy all your other Cisco accessories in one easy purchase.

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Learning Center Article – Meraki Network Products – Simplify Your Network

When it comes to industrial and enterprise networking, hardware solutions often create as many new problems as they solve. Networks get so complicated that scalable designs often devolve into a jumbled mess.

Cisco Meraki offers an incredible solution to this problem. Through the use of powerful automation features and a suite of devices that are designed to work well together, these products might prove to be the best way to manage many business networks. Read more here.

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Today’s News to Start Your Day:

• Regulators in Europe are currently drawing up new legislation that will dictate how EU citizens’ user data gets transferred across the Atlantic. This could result in Facebook and Instagram being shut down in Europe.
• Two of the largest paint companies, Sherwin-Williams and PPG, have said the supply chain shortages are impairing their ability to manufacture products.
• Due to the chip shortage, Telsa removed the steering racks of many vehicles. Several cars are expected to have a tweaked power steering system.
• Peloton has slashed its financial outlook for the full year after the company announced CEO John Foley will be stepping down as part of a broader restructuring of the business.