The world’s financial powers will assemble in Toronto, Canada when the G20 Summit takes place June 25-27^th at the downtown Metro Toronto Convention Centre.  The G20 (Group of 20) consists of the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of 19 countries worldwide with the European Union forming the twentieth member.  Along with the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, many world leaders will also be involved in the proceedings.

The 19 countries participating in the summit include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States.  The member countries account for 90% of global Gross National Product, and are also responsible for 80% of world trade.  Those numbers, coupled with the fact that two-thirds of the world’s population resides in the member countries, prove this annual event is of great international importance.

In an effort to combat the financial crises prevalent in the late 1990’s and to include important emerging-market countries within international economic discussion and governance, the G20 was formed in 1999.  Since their inception, the G20 has worked tirelessly to ensure agreements upon growth policies, while also fighting terrorist financing and helping to the globe to recover from and prevent financial crisis.

The recent global recession was felt worldwide and the G20’s importance has only been magnified in rebounding efforts from this financial disaster.  The G20 was instrumental in forming the FSB (Financial Stability Board), in addition to strengthening the IFIs (International Financial Institutions) to ensure crisis of this magnitude will not happen in the future.

Hosting a G20 Summit brings forth a flood of security issues, and the Toronto Summit is no exception.  The downtown area around the Metro Toronto Convention Centre will grind to a halt during the proceedings, and substantial delays will be common throughout the entire month of June.  A large portion of the downtown area surrounding the Convention Centre, including the CN Tower and Rogers Centre, will be closed for the weekend, however, The Air Canada Centre will remain open for a musical concert event. Various checkpoints will be set up throughout an expanded area of the downtown core, and Police are encouraging the general public to utilize public transit as much as possible.

MCR Rental Solutions will be offering laptop rentals, computer rentals, copier rentals, printer rentals, wireless broadband internet card rentals and internet kiosk rentals for the Toronto G20 Summit taking place at the MTCC on June 25-27th with photo booth rentals from ShutterBug Booth.  Request a Quick Quote from our Toronto computer rental website or contact us directly at toll free 1-800-813-9629 to speak with a friendly and knowledgeable sales representative.

Toronto G20 Summit Information is a post from: Event Technology Blog highlighting computer rentals.

Suhaag Wedding Show: Framed Plasma Displays is a post from: Event Technology Blog highlighting computer rentals.

When planning for an event that requires internet at a rented venue, it is very important to know exactly what you actually need and the rules and regulations of the venue you are entering into an agreement with. It is a step that many planners neglect and may cost thousands of dollars to correct at the last minute, if it is even possible to accomplish with the available bandwidth. The key questions needed to be asked are as follows:

1)  How much bandwidth do you require? If you are a single computer and displaying a simple web page or need access to email, any venue can get you the access you need. If you are having a video conference, using bandwidth intensive web based applications, or if you are having a training lab with 30 people, your needs are quite different.

2)  How many connections do you need? If you have 5 computers, you need to relay this information to the venue. Many offer networking solutions to assist, and also charge you for each computer using the internet. Do not assume you can order 1 connection, bring in your own router, and share it wired or wirelessly inside your booth. In some instances, you may find the venue will turn your connection off during the event until you pay for all the connections being used.

3)  How much bandwidth does the venue offer? Common types are:

1. ADSL: Many hotels offer a simple 6Mbit ADSL type connection, which offer up to 6Mbit download rate, and up to 800Kbit upload rate. This is fine for a single user, but a web training session of 30 people would make this connection act like very slow dial up!
2. ADSL2: Still rather new and offers the same speeds as ADSL, but the download rate is up to 21Mbit. This connection is good for a class of 10 – 20 who are only downloading and not publishing work to the internet.
3. T3: The common connection in large convention centers. This is by far the best connection as it offers extremely high rates of transfers, both for downloading and uploading. It can easily handle hundreds of connections.
4. 3G or EVDO: This is the internet stick offered by Telus, Rogers, Bell, etc. A fine solution for a single user but be sure your portable internet works at the location you wish to use it and that it does not violate any regulations the venue may have.

Obviously if you are renting internet at a venue, it is important to the success of the event you are planning. It is an expensive part of your event, but when you ask the right questions to both your users and the venue, you can at least be sure to pay for only what you need, and be confident that you ordered the correct connections.

Special Event Internet – Buyer Beware! is a post from: Event Technology Blog highlighting computer rentals.

Touch screen monitors allow for fast and efficient data input while using only one space saving device. Through their easy-to-use interactive displays and several hardware options, many uses for these screens are available.

Touch Screen Flexibility and Versatility

Contest stations, self registration and check-in systems, comment, survey and feedback systems, point of sale cash registers and seating arrangement and selection systems are examples of the flexibility and countless uses these versatile peripherals offer.

Electronic Voting Using Touch Screen Monitors

Touch screen monitors also provide a reliable way to process lengthy and slow moving crowd lineups. Reduce waiting times during elections and polls by offering an additional easy-to-use voting method.

PowerPoint Presentations & Lectures

Connect a touch screen monitor to a laptop or desktop computer and an LCD projector to get the ultimate cue card and navigation tool for PowerPoint presentations and lectures. No need to fumble around with a remote, mouse or keyboard any longer. Navigate to the next slide or cue location with the touch of a screen!

Monitor Hardware Add-ons

With the hardware add-on capabilities such as printers, barcode scanners, magnetic card readers and keyboards, these versatile touch screen monitors offer great potential and can be used for virtually any application.

So if you’re looking for a fast, efficient, compact and fun way for visitors to enter data, try setting up a touch screen monitor rental and see just how effective these interactive displays can be.

Data Input Devices: Using Touch Screen Monitors is a post from: Event Technology Blog highlighting computer rentals.

As companies and families alike look to cut costs in every which way, saving energy is probably one of the easiest and most efficient ways to save money, not to mention the “green” benefits it offers.

Fact: Turning off machines when they are not being used can result in enormous energy savings.

Here are some other facts, common misconceptions and simple fixes you can do to cut down on your monthly energy bills.

Saving Energy – Did You Know:

• In the average home, 75% of the electricity used to power home electronics is consumed while the products are turned off.
• Laptop computers consume 90% less energy than desktop computers.
• The transformer in the AC adapter of a laptop draws power continuously, even when the adapter is not plugged into the laptop.
• Ink-jet printers consume 90% less energy than laser printers.
• Printers with automatic “power down” features can reduce electricity use by over 65 percent.
• Turning a light back on does not use more electricity than leaving it on, but fluorescent fixture life is decreased if switching is too frequent.
• Lighting accounts for 5 percent to 10 percent of total energy use.
• Televisions and their accessories (DVRs, DVD players, cable boxes, etc.) account for nearly 15 percent of home energy use.
• OLED televisions are up to nearly 40% more energy effiecient than regular plasma and LCD displays.

Common Energy Saving Misconceptions:

• Computer equipment lasts longer if it is never turned off.

This was only true back in the day of the mainframe computer. Today’s computer equipment is built to handle regular shutdowns and power saving modes.

• Monitors use less energy when screen savers are used.

Screen savers do not cause monitors to use less energy. Using  your Power Options Properties to automatically turn off monitors  or manually turning off monitors always saves more energy.

What You Can Do To Save Energy:

• Always buy ENERGY STAR qualified products for your small business and consider models that power down after a period of inactivity. The ENERGY STAR mark indicates the most efficient appliances, computer and office equipment.
• Turn off all desktops, monitors, printers, and photocopiers every night and when not being used. If you can’t shut down the computer, turn off the monitor and printers.
• Unplug appliances or connect a power bar and use the switch on the power bar to cut all power to the appliances.
• Unplug battery chargers when the batteries are fully charged or when the chargers are not in use.
• Turn off lights or use dimmers in any room when lights are no longer needed.
• Buy printers with power management capabilities.

Start implementing these tips in your workplace and home and start enjoying the benefits of a smaller energy bill each month.

Energy Savings Tips is a post from: Event Technology Blog highlighting computer rentals.

Steps:

1. The user in need of support would visit our live remote technical support page and fill out the form under the section titled “Issue Submission”.
2. The user should click the Submit button.
3. The user should Run/Open the client software that will be downloaded.
4. The user may need to approve a security prompt by clicking Run.
5. The user’s session should appear shortly in the Support Team Queue that is associated with the Issue that the user selected on the form.

Whoever will be giving the live remote technical support should Double-Click the session in the queue to join it.

And that’s it. That’s how simple our remote computer support is!

How to Request a Live Remote Technical Support Session with MCR Bomgar Support is a post from: Event Technology Blog highlighting computer rentals.

MCR was proud to be a part of the 2009 NHL Alumni Charity Banquet hosted at Toronto’s Marriott Airport hotel. The event was part of the first ever NHL Alumni Week and counted more than 70 NHL legends of all ages were in attendance.

“Mr. Hockey”™ earns “Man of the Year”

The event honoured “Mr. Hockey”™ himself, Gordie Howe, who was presented with the NHL Alumni Association’s “Man of the Year” award. Mr. Howe received the award for his community work and ongoing involvement with a number of charitable causes. The dinner raised more than $50,000 for the “Hockey’s Greatest Family Fund” which assists former hockey players who are in need.

“7^th Man Award” goes to Scotty Morrison

Scotty Morrison also received the Keith McCreary “7^th Man Award” for all his contributions to hockey over the years. Earle Connor, a Paralympic gold medal winner, was the recipient of the “Ace Bailey Award of Courage.”

On the mike was Dave Schultz who entertained the crowd by recanting tales form his childhood, when he used to watch, in awe, “Mr Hockey”™ on the ice.

Plasmas, LCD Projectors and AV equipment provided by MCR Rental Solutions

MCR provided all of the technical equipment for the celebration, outfitting the room with plasma screens, speakers and stands, wireless mics, an LCD projector and a 9 x 11 ft. projector screen.

Seat Selection Kiosks were in action

Touch Screen kiosk rentals were set up to make seat selection that much easier and MCR’s technicians were onsite to make sure the event ran as smoothly as possible.

Highlights from the night will be available in webcast format on the company website.

The 2009 NHL Alumni Charity Banquet is a post from: Event Technology Blog highlighting computer rentals.

As is the case with any new service or product that comes out, providers are often able to charge whatever they want – initially, at least.

Such was the case when the Internet first arrived. Its ubiquity was still years away and the novelty of the World Wide Web allowed for providers to charge a user far more than is justifiable today.

Of course, the costs were much higher two decades ago. Today, there are far more cost-efficient ways to go about getting a connection. When it comes to getting hooked up at bigger events such as trade shows and conventions, however, connection charges haven’t quite adjusted.

Convention Centre show rates: $895 per computer

Some convention centres can charge up to $895 per computer for the duration of an event. For out-of-towners the convention centre rates, coupled with the exorbitant rates some hotels are still charging, can add up quickly.

Considering the other options that are out there, their offers are hardly a steal.

Renting Aircards is an alternative

Until users start to see prices drop dramatically, one alternative is renting aircards for short-term use. Aircards allow users to access the Internet through their cell phone, PDA or laptop. They get you online without having to worry about finding a hot spot or sharing wireless with all the other users in the network area.

Mac and Windows compatible

MCR offers a great solution to your possible wireless woes. The Sierra Compass 597 gives you high-speed wireless connectivity seamlessly and works for both Mac and Windows computers.

Mobile broadband internet reaches download speeds of up to 800 kbps

The standard upload speed for the Sierra Compass is 300 to 400 kbps and typical download speed is approximately 450 to 800 kbps. The Aircard installs through USB and is pre-loaded with TRU-Install so that no CD installation is necessary.

Next time you get a hefty invoice for internet use at a trade show or even your hotel stay, consider going the wireless broadband aircard rental route. Getting connected has never been so easy. No long term contracts to sign. No equipment to buy. Just rent it, use it and return it!

Internet Charges at Convention Centres is a post from: Event Technology Blog highlighting computer rentals.