How to Take Your Office on Your Trips

The equipment you need to convert your computer into a portable communicator is the following: a modem, multimedia capacity, speakers or headphones, a microphone, if you desire, a video camera, outlet adapters, telephone cable extensions, and a T-adapter.

To get connected to Internet, you must open an access account with a local provider. In Guatemala there are ate least a dozen companies that offer this service, which goes from $30 to $70 a month. The method to get connected during your trips will depend on the frequency of these and on your destinations. If your trips are not so frequent, or if the places you go to vary a lot, the best thing is to work with a company that offers itinerant service.

The simplest and least expensive communication mode is electronic mail, since it does not entail any additional cost other than that of the access account. The next option is the use of Internet telephones, which are programs that let you communicate, by means of voice, with other Internet users. A step further is the Net2Phone company, which enables you to call, from your computer, any telephone number in the world. If the person you wish to contact has no electronic mail, you can also send faxes through the net. And last, you can also conduct video-conferences with your office.

These tools should be enough for your presence to be felt in your company, even when you are absent, at a low cost. If you don't travel, you will still be able to lower the cost of calls to your foreign suppliers and clients.