Daily Tech Digest by Kannan Subbiah

March 05, 2013

Citrix Nails Its Enterprise Mobility Strategy
Many customers and colleagues have asked me why Citrix acquired an MDM provider -- what are the value-adds and isn't the world moving towards MAM anyway? To answer, we have to make a clear distinction between the use cases. I agree and concur that for BYOD initiatives, MAM is a better, cleaner way of doing this things and that MDM is not the ideal solution.

Review: Better performance with FancyCache
Romex Software states that FancyCache uses state-of-the-art read and write cache algorithms that predict what data should hit the memory reserve for optimum performance gains. If you want to tweak the caching method yourself, the settings area provides a wealth of options to tweak and mess around with to your satisfaction.

Apple blacklists old Flash Player in Safari after recent attacks
Days after Adobe released a patch for flaws being exploited in Flash Player, Apple has begun blocking older versions of the software in an effort to encourage users to update their systems. "To help protect users from a recent vulnerability, Apple has updated the web plug-in-blocking mechanism to disable older versions of the web plug-in: Adobe Flash Player," Apple said in a new support document.

One-on-one with Randy Bias: Cloud standards and the battle for control
In this one-on-one interview, Randy Bias, co-founder and chief technology officer of open source cloud infrastructure provider Cloudscaling, talks about the lack of cloud standards among providers and how today's cloud computing service provider patchwork will ultimately give way to a more uniform cloud universe.

HTML5 Web Storage loophole can be abused to fill hard disks with junk data
A security researcher has found a loophole in how the HTML5 Web Storage standard is implemented in the Google Chrome, Internet Explorer and Apple Safari browsers that could allow malicious websites to fill visitors' hard disk drives with large amounts of junk data. ... The localStorage attribute of the Web Storage API allows websites to store between 2.5MB and 10MB of data per origin -- domain name -- depending on the browser used.

jQuery DataTables in asp.net with CRUD
Here is a very nice article on using jQuery data tables in ASP.NET. Though the article dates back to January 2011, it is still very relevant and valid. Thanks to my friend Mr. Kamaraj Palsamy for referring this article to me.

Disruptive? That Depends
"Disruptive" can be defined as a threat to order, or as an interruption to whatever it is we're doing now. When it comes to technology, the word has been misued, sometimes just to attract attention. In the same way coincidence has been confused with irony, disruptive has become a different way of saying "new and popular."

How CIOs Can Help Manage Disruptive Technology
Quite a few people think that entrepreneurship in large companies is an oxymoron. In March of 2009, The Economist published a very good special report on entrepreneurship. Its lead article defined the term as: “somebody who offers an innovative solution to a (frequently unrecognised) problem. The defining characteristic of entrepreneurship, then, is not the size of the company but the act of innovation.”

IT Department Reorgs Are on the Horizon
Given the opportunity, more than one-fourth (27 percent) of IT and business leaders would rebuild their IT departments from scratch, according to an IDG Enterprise survey of 696 senior IT and business executives. That approach may be more radical than most, but the "Future State of the IT Organization" study shows that IT departments are headed for profound changes as CIOs try to refocus their staffs on business results such as revenue, customer service and product innovation

Cyberinsurance is latest small business safety net

While cyber policies reimburse a business for the damages it must pay its customers, they do much more. A victim of a cyber loss must first investigate the cause, often with the use of IT forensic examiners. The company must then comply with required notices to potentially affected customers. ... Cyber insurance can cover the costs of paying regulatory fines and penalties.

Quote for the day:

"A problem is a chance for you to do your best." -- Duke Ellington

March 04, 2013

A Cloud-Based Testing Tool for the Budget-Minded
The testing tool is aimed at small and growing QA teams looking to escape the heavy lifting and expense required from enterprise-focused systems such as HP Quality Center. Its vendor claims qTest is on par with large enterprise systems, yet unlike those heavyweights the platform's SaaS subscription model makes it a low-risk proposition to pilot and adopt.

Touchless touch screen gives you control without contact (video)
One of the more jaw-dropping tech demos on view at this year's Mobile World Congress, new touch-screen technology from chipmaker STMicroelectronics lets you control your smartphone or tablet without actually touching the display. Using it, you can swipe, drag, and prod at your touch-screen device, replacing the fear of fingerprints with the feeling of controlling a spaceship's navigation system.

Hackers take Sabah conflict to cyberspace
According to GMA News Online on Sunday, one Philippine Web site and several Malaysian ones were hacked and defaced with messages sympathizing with either side of the armed conflict. The territorial dispute started on February 11, 2013 when followers of Sulu sultan Jamalul Kiram III asserted his claim over eastern parts of Sabah. The claims take root from the North Borneo dispute, when Sabah state was known as North Borneo prior to the formation of the Malaysian federation in 1963.

Yahoo bans telecommuting – Will it WORK?
"So it was perplexing to see Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer tell employees who work remotely to relocate to company facilities. This seems a backwards step in an age when remote working is easier and more effective than ever. If you provide the right technology to keep in touch, maintain regular communication and get the right balance between remote and office working, people will be motivated to work responsibly, quickly and with high quality.

Dyson on patents and intellectual property
Sitting down with CNET Australia, Sir James Dyson shares his strongly held views on the importance of patents and intellectual property rights. From the ease with which Asian manufacturers can copy his designs, to the lenience of penalties, Sir James Dyson suggests that there is real damage to innovation when others get away with copying the hard work of companies like Dyson.

Tips for Enterprise Application Integration
A very common problem for large companies (particularly in the financial sector) is the existence of several independent IT departments with different goals and poor interaction. Companies receive a set of “automation islands” that cannot easily communicate inside or outside the organization. Let’s look at the widespread ways that companies use to integrate applications and their potential problems.

Local, vertical laws critical in SaaS adoption
Danni Xu, Asia-Pacific research analyst for data center and cloud computing of ICT practice at Frost & Sullivan, said local regulation on data has seen increasing significance across the region with several governments taking "meaningful steps" to adopt the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA). Coverage and enforcement, though, vary from country to country, she said. For example, Xu noted that Singapore passed the personal data protection bill in October last year with enforcement slated to begin mid-2014.

Microsoft Starts Sending Cutoff Notices to Office 365 Preview Users
At the time, Microsoft said that the previews would expire about 60 days after the release of the final plans in each market. Microsoft launched Office 365 Home Premium in the U.S. on Jan. 29, 2013, and followed with the business-oriented plans on Feb. 27. The March 16 cut-off noted in Microsoft's email would be 47 days after the Jan. 29 launch of Home Premium, or about two weeks shy of the 60 days Microsoft previously cited.

With Business Foundations Shaking, Good Enterprise Architects Are Hard to Find
Business leaders are scrambling to take their organizations deeper into the cloud, leverage the growing amount of data about their customers, and protect their companies from new security threats. Enterprise architects are usually their first call when it comes to bringing order to IT business process chaos, but EAs are also having to adapt to the very same trends impacting corporations.

What is a PC now?
The question "What is a PC?" has been bemusing analysts and industry observers since long before the introduction of the iPad -- but especially since. The answer is not so simple. In some ways, it's a question of mere rhetoric. But when it comes to analyzing markets and companies, it becomes a lot more than that. Tablets and smartphones have been cutting into PC sales for years. That's because for many people, the newer gadgets do everything they had previously counted on PCs -- including laptops -- for: email, Web browsing, watching video.

Quotes for the day:

"The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up." -- Mark Twain

March 03, 2013

IT security managers too focused on compliance, experts say
Experts say that meeting such standards is important, but they should be used as baseline controls in a broader IT security strategy. "The audit industry has become a monster," said Anup Ghosh, founder of security firm Invincea. "Keeping those guys at bay" has become a full-time job in many IT security organizations, he said. "A lot of compliance regimens have been all about checking boxes and following processes."

'Copyright Alert System' rolls out to catch illegal downloaders
While the CAS seems like something that would raise the hackles of privacy and civil liberty groups, the plan isn't to arrest, sue, or fine people downloading illegal movies, games, or music. Instead, the group managing the program -- the Center for Copyright Information -- says its objective is to "educate" such downloaders that they are infringing on protected intellectual copyrights.

1183RA Week of Activity Underscores Challenge of Valuing Data
The consensus of Saugatuck’s discussions this week with provider and user enterprise executives is that the majority of provider activity consists of positioning themselves for future, expected opportunities; and the majority of user enterprise activity consists of interest, searches for knowledge, trials and PoCs. The most interest expressed is in the concept of data analytics, especially Big Data, rather than in the details of how it will work or benefit the enterprise customer.

Are you on the right cloud computing career path?
There is an explosion in both the use of cloud computing and the demand for people to assist in the mass migration to cloud. Indeed, there are about 50 to 70 jobs chasing truly qualified candidates at this point in time, according to technical recruiters. And there are two categories of cloud computing careers that seem to be emerging in the space: positions seeking IT pros with specific cloud skills and positions looking for IT admins with cloud architecture know-how.

Secret Weapon: How to Strengthen the Most Valuable Job Skill

An extensive analysis led at Virginia Commonwealth University, “The Relation Between Emotional Intelligence and Job Performance: A Meta-Analysis,” showed that individuals with high EI made better workers. For managers or senior executives, high EI usually corresponds with a good job performance. For employees, it often leads to better decision-making abilities, job satisfaction and completion of goals. Managers who lack a good EI usually find great difficulty in social interactions and the nurturing of professional relationships.

Pets now welcome in many workplaces
It’s a growing office trend, as both employer and employees acknowledge the advantages and enjoy the benefits of allowing pets in the workplace. And now there’s research to support what people like 26-year-old Ann Marie DeLa Rosa have known for years. “Reduces stress,” said DeLa Rosa, 26, who works at software design company Inverse-Square under Baird and appreciates the pet-friendly policy. “When I’m stressed, I usually call Zoe (a chocolate Labrador retriever) over and rub her ear. That’s my therapy.”

Entity Framework 6 Alpha 3 with Code First Stored Procedures and Connection Resiliency
Microsoft has announced the availability of Entity Framework 6 Alpha 3 with support for code first mapping to insert, update, delete stored procedures with the help of fluent API, connection resiliency, pull request from iceclow, UnaiZorrilla and new DbContext API scenarios that enables you to manage your own transactions.

Refactoring Legacy Applications: A Case Study
Legacy code is stinky. Every decent developer would like to refactor it, and in order to refactor it, one ideally should have a suite of unit test cases to prevent regressions. However, writing unit tests for legacy code is not easy; the legacy code is usually a big mess. To write effective unit tests against the legacy code, you probably need to refactor it first; and to refactor it, you need unit tests to ensure you are not breaking anything. So it is a chicken and egg situation. This article describes a methodology to safely refactor legacy code by sharing a real case I once worked on.

Here’s a Quick Way to Fire Up Your Motivation
Surely all the benefit of a backup plan accrues when the main plan goes wrong and there's something to fall back on? While coming up with a 'plan b' might be necessary, I always thought of it more as a chore. (Ho-hum now I've made my main plan, instead of getting started, I've got to spend more time thinking about an alternative plan). But when you start to think about it, backup plans don't just make sense as, well, backup plans, but also as a means of driving you forward at the precarious early stages of a project.

Evernote note-sharing service says hackers stole some user data
Evernote spokeswoman Ronda Scott said via email on Saturday that the attack "follows a similar pattern" to other cyber attacks on Internet-based companies in recent weeks, but she did not elaborate. "In our security investigation, we have found no evidence that any of the content you store in Evernote was accessed, changed or lost," the company said on its website. "We also have no evidence that any payment information for Evernote Premium or Evernote Business customers was accessed."

Quote for the day:

"Pay no attention to what the critics say; there has never been set up a statue in honor of a critic." -- Jean Sibelius

March 02, 2013

The Open Group panel explores how the big data era now challenges the IT status quo
Big data means doing things differently — not just to manage the velocity and the volume and the variety of the data, but to really think about data fundamentally and differently.We also need to think about security, risk, and governance. If it's a "boundaryless organization" when it comes your data, either as a product or service or a resource, that control and management of which data should be exposed, which should be opened, and which should be very closely guarded all needs to be factored, determined, and implemented.

Office 365 confuses and bemuses

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) seems to enjoy confusing the world by adding more and more 'differentiated' options for its Office 365 suite. The additional editions bring the number offered for business to nine, not to mention all the other ones for education, government, and consumers. In IT Blogwatch, bloggers lose the will to live. Your humble blogwatcher curated these bloggy bits for your entertainment.

Developing Well-Architected .NET Applications
Webinar: CodeFluent Entities is a unique product, integrated to Visual Studio 2008/2010/2012 which allows developers to generate components such as scripts, code, web services and UIs. The code generation process is model-first and continuous: from your declarative model, a meta-model will be inferred which code generators will then translate into code. Over 20 code generators (a.k.a. ‘producers’) are provided ‘out of the box’ and that can be combined to obtain your own application following your desired architecture, using your desired technologies.

IT Skills Shortage: The Other Critical Cliff Facing Enterprises
The shortage of IT talent is real and likely to accelerate in the near term, according to Miano. "It is not a cost issue but a demand issue," he said. Although discussions about skills gaps can become political—as some are inclined to dispute the existence of a shortage—others agree with Miano. An IBM study released late last year found that the most acute need for IT skills is in the areas of mobile computing, cloud computing, social networking and analytics.

F5 tries to stay ahead of the curve with moves into security and beyond
The idea is to combine the two companies' divergent expertise in security into one product - F5's hardware firewall and access controls alongside Websense's malware protection and content inspection. While the only immediate result of the announcement was new interoperability for BIG-IP and V-Series appliances, the main goal is to offer the option of Websense services running on F5 hardware.

Private cloud-based services to see rapid growth
Among private cloud services, IDC expects that virtual private-cloud services will dominate dedicated private cloud for companies seeking to take advantage of their speed and lower costs. Virtual private cloud also is expected to benefit from the similarity to private cloud services, especially public infrastructure as a service, which many IT users already are using as a cost-saving alternative as they replace aging IT infrastructure.

Do You Remember to Ask Why?
The more you ask why, the better your answers become. The side benefit of this is that you not only make a better decision but you leave yourself better equipped to communicate the decision to those who have to execute it. This helps all of your stakeholders get excited about what you intend to do.

The second most important BYOD security defense: user awareness
It might sound trivial at first to say that user awareness is important to security but it might be the most important non-hardware, non-software solution available. An informed user is a user who behaves more responsibly and takes fewer risks with valuable company data, including email. Not only does user education make the user aware of all the potential dangers of mobile computing, it also places a lot of the responsibility for corporate security onto the user. And that's a good thing.

Why Innovation By Brainstorming Doesn't Work
Part of what we know about the brain makes it clear why the best new ideas don’t emerge from formal brainstorming. First, the brain doesn’t make connections in a rigid atmosphere. There is too much pressure and too much influence from others in the group. The “free association” done in brainstorming sessions is often shackled by peer pressure and as a result generates obvious responses. In fact, psychologists have documented the predictability of free association.

The Progress Principle: Sparking Employee Engagement and Performance
This webcast unravels the secrets of inner work life—the usually hidden emotions, perceptions, and motivations that arise as people react to events in their work day. You’ll discover how what you say and do every day can drive positive inner work life throughout your organization and fuel great performance for the long term. In addition, you find out ways to avoid the traps that can undermine inner work life and performance.

Quote for the day:

"If you don't drive your business, you will be driven out of business." -- B. C. Forbes

March 01, 2013

A Practical Glossary and Discussion of Relevant Terms, Concepts, Models, and Measures
An important aspect of ERM is the strong linkage between measures of risk and measures of overall organizational performance. Thus, this glossary begins with a description of some key corporate performance measures, after which successive elements of the ERM process (risk assessment, measurement, modeling, management applications, monitoring, and oversight) are described.

OLTP Performance of Exadata vs SSDs vs Violin Memory Flash Array
Ashminder Ubhi writes about his experience of running some performance tests against Exadata, SSDs and Violin Memory. The approach was to test the storage performance of the three configurations so he used the great SLOB OLTP type benchmarking tool developed by Kevin Closson. SLOB is very easy to setup and each test run is always consistent unlike some of the other available tools.

Being more agile with Acceptance Test-Driven Development (ATDD)
ATDD seems to offset the increase in development efforts since it allows the whole team to collaboratively discusses acceptance criteria, with examples, and then distills them into a set of concrete acceptance tests before development begins. This ensures that everyone has the same shared understanding of what is actually being built. It may also facilitate a better shared understanding and definition of what it means to be Done.

Five smartphone and tablet trends from Mobile World Congress
This year's MWC may have been lacking in high-end smartphone launches, but the "W" stands for "world" and lower-cost models shown this week are needed to open up the mobile-phone market to more people globally. Here are some of the trends that indicate where the smartphone market is headed.

What's wrong with the Gartner Hype Cycle for Cloud Computing, 2012?
There is a big difference between the description of phases of the cycle on the curve, such as "Trough of Disillusionment," and the report's table of contents, which labels sections by describing the transition between phases. The curve shows Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) on the upslope of the trough, yet Gartner places it in a section titled "Sliding in to the Trough." This creates two very different perceptions.

An introduction to Firefox OS for mobile developers: Q&A with Andreas Gal, Mozilla
With the first device manufacturers expected to launch Firefox OS devices at Mobile World Congress this month and with major network operators inline to release them to consumers in early 2013, Mozilla’s new operating system (OS) is starting to make waves. Firefox OS is open-source, Linux-based and Web-friendly. mobiForge gets the low-down from Mozilla’s vice president of mobile

Applying big data approaches to information security a challenge
Unlike conventional security approaches that are focused largely on blocking attacks, the new approaches emphasize breach detection and response almost as much as breach prevention. The goal is to help companies block the threats they can while helping them detect and respond to the ones they miss. Instead of deploying point products and perimeter defenses, companies need to adopt a security model that is based on actual threats and threat intelligence, Coviello said.

New Hadoop distributions proliferate
Just in time for the O'Reilly Strata conference, three companies in the tech world have announced new distributions of Apache Hadoop, the open-source, MapReduce-based, distributed data analysis and processing engine. Hortonworks Data Platform (HDP) 1.1 for Windows,EMC/Greenplum Pivotal HD, and the Intel Distribution for Apache Hadoop have all premiered this week on the big data stage.

Asian users go DIY with BYOD
Companies in Asia are not rendering enough IT support to help employees use personal devices for work as part of the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) movement. This is pushing workers to find their own ways to access corporate networks or data via their gadgets, and inadvertently risks creating security holes for potential company data loss or theft.

Microsoft Strikes Back At Amazon With Windows Azure Community Portal
Microsoft unveiled the Windows Azure Community portal, which provides dozens of popular open source applications and language runtimes contributed by partners. Even more recently, Microsoft took this a step further and made the images from the portal available directly in the Azure console, so they can be easily deployed onto Azure infrastructure. By making it easier to deploy third-party apps on its cloud, Microsoft is helping to grow its own ecosystem while increasing the utilization of its infrastructure.

Quote for the day:

"The meeting of preparation with opportunity generates the offspring we call luck." -- Anthony Robbins

February 28, 2013

In-Memory Technology: Keeping Pace with Your Data
In-memory technology presents two major advantages over traditional disk-based technologies. The first is speed. By storing all relevant data in its main memory, rather than on disk, new calculations can be performed on the fly, ... The second advantage is flexibility. Because a specifically structured data layer no longer needs to be built for a given query – which has long been a key part of most BI deployments – in-memory provides greater scope for analytics freedom, widening the range of what executives can query.

Forrester: 70% of "private clouds" aren't really clouds at all
Staten says if you call a highly virtualized environment a cloud, but it doesn't have one or more of the key characteristics of a private cloud, then the IT department is setting an unrealistic expectation for users. If users are disappointed when they find out the environment doesn't have self-provisioning, or an elastic resources pool, they can get discouraged. The next time they need a VM on the fly, where will they turn? The pseudo-private cloud IT has set up, or Amazon Web Services, which IT could have no control over.

Mobile devices will get next-gen Wi-Fi in early second half, Qualcomm says
The new Wi-Fi standard in Snapdragon will increase peak data transfer rates, but at the same time enable tablets and smartphones to retain battery life similar to mobile devices with 802.11 b/g/n technology, Renduchintala said. The theoretical data transfer rates for 802.11ac is expected to be three to four times faster than that of 802.11n, which are in mobile devices, PCs and routers today.

Despite the gloom, there is cause for optimism in IT security, says Microsoft
“There are significant advances the IT security industry has made, so my optimism is not delusional, but based in fact,” he told attendees of RSA Conference 2013 in San Francisco. The hardware security has seen the introduction of UEFI, the Unified Extensible Firmware Interface specification designed to provide a more secure alternative to BIOS. This has enabled the introduction of secure boot and measured boot in software such as Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system. “These are positive developments in security that the industry can build on,” said Charney.

The unfulfilled promises of health information technology
Realizing that the cost savings and improvements in healthcare delivery are nowhere near what was optimistically predicted in 2005, RAND recently commissioned a new study to take a fresh new look at the state of health information technology. The new study paints a very different picture and received broad coverage by mainstream news outlets, including “In Second Look, Few Savings From Digital Health Records” by the New York Times in January.

Bringing BI Back to the Executive
From the executive’s perspective, the most important piece of this is realizing that the executive is not an endpoint consumer of BI; the executive is a driver and collaborator within the organization from the start. So what is the starting point, and what is the ending point? And what about the steps in between? Let’s look at the flow of processes that should be followed, what each of those phases is and what they will provide.

The Lost Art of Eye Contact
When is the last time you consciously looked into someone’s eyes and had a meaningful conversation? When nearly every personal and business interaction uses a screen as an intermediary, it’s difficult to develop and maintain meaningful relationships with employees, customers and partners. But such relationships are the cornerstone of building a long-term business. So put down that smart phone, walk away from the computer, and think about these five things

Paypal Accepts Coins and Paper Currency At Coinstar Kiosks
The rollout is part of PayPal's bid to play a role in brick-and-mortar retail in addition to its significant presence in online payments. The payments processor said it had lined up 23 national retailers last year that would accept payments using PayPal in their stores. Customers can make payments using a PayPal payment card that is accepted at participating stores, or by using their mobile number and a PIN (personal identification number).

Union Budget 2013 gives lucid reaction to IT Inc concerns
While giving a target fiscal deficit number of 5.2% of GDP, Finance Minister P Chidambaram's Union Budget 2013-14 did not do much about crucial concerns of IT industry. Will all these minimal measures rescue the economy from the possibility of a sovereign rating downgrade? And how much can $100 bn IT industry of the country can gain from these subtle measures?

Aveksa's Approach to Identity & Access Management
Good identity and access management can make sure your people have the access they need to do their jobs. It will ensure that information is secure, and your company meets its regulatory needs. But can it do more? Can it be a business enabler? To find out, Adam Burns spoke with Deepak Taneja, CTO and founder of Aveksa… the discussion started with the big challenges of today’s workplace – information security in the context of cloud, mobile and big data

Quote for the day:

"If you don't understand that you work for your mislabeled "subordinates",then you know nothing of leadership.You know only tyranny." -- Dee Hock

February 27, 2013

What's the Real Truth About IT Process Automation?
One thing to keep in mind is you get what you pay for. Although ancient advice, it still makes sense, especially in today's confusing world of enterprise software applications and IT process automation. As you approach your "crawl, walk, run" to ITPA, consider selecting a platform that scales. Plan for success so when you start "running," your gear can carry you the distance.

Application-specific passwords weaken Google's two-factor authentication, researchers say

The problem is, "ASPs are -- in terms of enforcement -- not actually application-specific at all!" the Duo Security researchers said Monday in a blog post. "If you create an ASP for use in (for example) an XMPP chat client, that same ASP can also be used to read your email over IMAP, or grab your calendar events with CalDAV."

Knowledge | Part 4: Influencing Right Action with the Right Insight
This video examines the drivers and emerging best practices of having the right knowledge for: Voice of the Customer Feedback: Knowing how to move satisfied customers to long-term loyal and committed partners; Internal Team Feedback: Measuring the impact of your customer facing resources; Relationship Data Points: Measuring the alignment between your organization and the Customer; Strategic Account Plans: Developing an ongoing internal/external account review strategy; and Joint and Balanced Scorecards: Closing the loop with metrics on collaborative customer/supplier performance

Are Cyber Attacks on the Rise?
It's clear that the sophistication and determination of cyber attackers continues to rise dramatically. A months-long investigation by The Times last week alleges the origin of a spate of attacks coming from the Chinese military, a charge its government vehemently denies despite a deep trove of evidence pointing its way including a 76-page report from the cyber security consultancy Mandiant, based on extensive research.

How To Embrace Change In Today’s Organizations
When it comes to successfully leading today’s organizations, one skill that’s been growing in importance and need is the ability to manage change. While many of us have read about various organizations to understand how they’ve dealt with change, Tanveer Naseer shares an experiment done with crows to highlight some key lessons we can glean from this research on how to embrace change.

The role of software-defined networks in cloud computing
SDN is increasingly accepted as the path to "cloud networking," meaning the transformation of networks and services to support the use of cloud computing on a massive scale. Navigating the various missions and technology models of SDNs is critical to properly position cloud services and realize advantages of cloud computing.

Samsung Knox – An IT Perspective
Samsung KNOX is a tremendous step forward and is something both Jamie and her IT counterpart should be excited about. For Jamie it means IT does not fuss with her personal stuff, but she gets access to the information she needs from the hot new smartphone or tablet she actually wants to carry. For IT KNOX means a more secure version of Android with secure boot, government-grade encryption of data at rest and in transit, and the ability to completely isolate business content from personal content in a secure container.

Intel Releases Hadoop Software Primed for its Own Chips
The Intel Distribution for Apache Hadoop includes core pieces of the data analysis platform that Intel is releasing as open-source software, as well as deployment and tuning tools that Intel developed itself and which are not open source. Organizations will be more willing to expand their investments in Hadoop if they know there's a consistent distribution backed by a big, stable vendor like Intel, said Boyd Davis

The Culture of Comaking with Jeff Patton
Jeff Patton helps teams build better products by helping them understand their users in a more thoughtful manner. By using the principles of comaking, teams begin to take more responsibility for their projects and their outcomes, thereby creating a more streamlined process of meeting their users' needs and having fun while doing it.

U.K., India Sign Cybersecurity Pact
What's particularly interesting is that the agreement-- framed as designed to improve "the protection of personal data and sensitive commercial and government information" -- may herald much greater use of offshoring and outsourcing of U.K. state information and communications technology (ICT) work to India. "Other countries securing their data is effectively helping us secure our data," Cameron said during his visit to India. "The threat in terms of cybersecurity comes from all sorts of different places and organizations -- a lot of it is criminal.

Quote for the day:

"Luck is a dividend of sweat. The more you sweat, the luckier you get." -- Ray Kroc

February 26, 2013

Researcher unearths two new Java zero-day bugs
"We had yet another look into Oracle's Java SE 7 software that was released by the company on Feb. 19," said Adam Gowdiak, in an email reply to questions today. "As a result, we have discovered two new security issues, which when combined together, can be successfully used to gain a complete Java security sandbox bypass in the environment of Java SE 7 Update 15 (1.7.0_15-b03)."

Intel demos perceptual computing software toolkit
With a special depth-perception camera clipped to the top of his laptop lid and connected over USB to the computer, Solomon was able to show how the SDK software rendered his facial expressions and hand gestures on the computer screen, accompanied by an overlay of lines and dots to show the precise position of his eyes and fingers.

The Future of Internet Lies in HTML5!
With no support for Flash on future versions of Android and iOS, it seems that most web administrators will have to change their websites over to HTML5 to cater to the exploding consumption of mobile media consumption. Once HTML5 gets ratified by the W3C, Adobe hopes it will provide the best cross-platform experience.

The Mandate for Social Collaboration in Business
58 percent of organizations now allow open social collaboration across the enterprise, while on the other hand 39 percent explicitly deny people the opportunity to interact using this technology. ... The largest number of new hires in organizations over the next five years will come from a younger generation of workers called Millennials, who are used to engaging in collaboration and are unresponsive to electronic mail. Organizations will need to look at a spectrum of methods to fully engage their attention and realize their potential.

Mozilla previews Firefox OS with four phone makers and 18 operators onboard
Considerable operator support underlines the desire for an HTML5-based alternative to iOS and Android, but the depth of commitment is unclear, according to CCS Insight. Success hinges on apps, attractive devices and operator subsidies, it said. The real acid test for Firefox OS and its long-term prospects is the quality of the software itself and the user and developer experiences that it fosters, according to Ovum. However, it will be difficult to say whether it meets those needs sufficiently until we have seen retail devices.

HTML5 versus Flash – What’s the Story?
The big problem for Flash is the backlash it received from Apple with many of the world’s largest company’s products such as the iPad and iPhone no longer offering built-in Flash support (although there are add-ons that will allow it to work). Another big player in YouTube also serves up only limited Flash support with the video browser preferring HTML5 for new features such as video playback.

Sudoku using MS Solver Foundation
The following is an example of how Microsoft Solver Foundation can be used to solve a constraint satisfaction problem(CSP) like generating a typical Sudoku problem. In this article the author does not attempt to explain everything there is to know about constraint satisfaction problems, but he goes over the concepts, in the hope that even if you have never heard of CSP, you will still get the idea.

CIOs may be usurped by CDOs and CTOs: Gartner
"It could be," Laney said. "Most CIOs are so much consumed with technology that they have forgotten their title has 'information' in it. They are very much fixated on the technology side of things." Laney isn't the only analyst that has expressed doubt about the future of CIOs. IBRS analyst Sue Johnston considered the role of the CIO to be bloated with too many responsibilities.

Ex-Yahoos Confess: Marissa Mayer Is Right To Ban Working From Home
Here is why: "A lot of people hid. There were all these employees [working remotely] and nobody knew they were still at Yahoo."; These people aren't just Yahoo customer support reps. They're in all divisions, from marketing to engineering; Mayer saw another side-benefit to making this move. She knows that some remote workers won't want to start coming into the office and so they will quit. That helps Yahoo, which needs to cut costs. It's a layoff that's not a layoff. Bigger picture:

RSA 2013:Weatherford outlines 'cyber 9-1-1' plan
"Currently, there is a lot of confusion when it comes to who organizations should call should they suffer a breach, or find themselves under significant attack pressure," he said. "We want to make DHS the cyber-91-1. Currently, people don't know why they should call, and we want to change that," Weatherford said. Toward that aim, Weatherford's goals include expanding government and private industry attack-data sharing. "The president has given us a mandate to up the ante on data sharing. When I was in the private sector, that was a big challenge. If the government had threat information, I wanted to know about it," he said.

Quote for the day:

"The noblest pleasure is the joy of understanding" -- Leonardo Da Vinci

February 25, 2013

Here is how cloud computing, big data, and some innovation can reinvent healthcare
The rise of big data as a set of new technologies provides new options for both the storage and analysis of information. This leads to better patient care and cost reductions. The use of cloud computing provides the elastic capacity requirements at costs that almost all healthcare provider organizations can afford. When combined, you have something that is clearly a game changer.

The One Question to Ask in an Exit Interview
Generally, HR pros open an exit interview by asking “Why are you leaving?” While useful to a point, HR could be asking a far more revealing question: “What made you start looking for another job in the first place?” says Sharlyn Lauby, who blogs at www.hrbartender.com and is president of HR consulting firm ITM Group, Inc.

Driving Innovation with Total Rewards

You don't have to resort to providing wacky toys or jeopardizing the bottom line with monster R&D labs. Believe it or not, your compensation mix, recognition and rewards programs, and development opportunities can go a long way in creating that next great idea. Here are three ways you can drive innovation with your total rewards strategy:

BYOD Boosts Macs vs. PCs
"When we were having BYOD discussions employees said they wanted a choice. At the time, we wanted to be a single-platform shop so we could get scale pricing. But with the Mac, we could buy a whole bunch or just a few, so that didn't matter. We had two PC vendors and Apple ticked up in part because the form factor was attractive even to PC users," he says.

Setting Up A Sound Risk Management Framework
The main driver of a positive risk culture lies in individual accountability. If a risk or set of risks is assigned to a group, its management will be hazily diluted amongst its members without a clear understanding and accountability. Individual accountability maintains individual awareness at every level of an organisation. A risk or set of risks should fall into one's duties, and individuals' performance should be assessed according to their effectiveness in managing them.

Serve stored data on the cloud to mobile apps using visual search engines
Visual search engines have created a new paradigm of mobile applications. However, to use this technology effectively, a large, publicly accessible data set must be established and maintained. Cloud-based storage is a great solution to use when deploying an app with a visual search engine. Learn how an organization can use a visual search engine and cloud-based storage to automate business processes.

WebOS lives! LG to resurrect it for smart TVs
LG said today it was acquiring WebOS from Hewlett-Packard, with the intention to use the operating system not for its mobile phones, but in its smart televisions. With the deal, LG obtains the source code for WebOS, related documtreentation, engineering talent, and related WebOS Web sites. LG also gets HP licenses for use with its WebOS products, and patents HP obtained from Palm. The financial terms of the deal weren't disclosed.

MasterCard launches MasterPass: Will this digital wallet fly?
MasterPass will launch at the end of March in Australia and Canada followed by the U.S. and U.K. MasterCard also said that MasterPass will roll out in Belgium, Brazil, China, France, Italy, Netherlands, Singapore, Spain and Sweden in 2013. ... The big question remains whether MasterPass will manage to gain traction among shoppers, who know of digital wallets but aren't exactly clamoring for them.

Microsoft's own code should prevent an Azure SSL fail: So what went wrong?
That leaves me with two remaining possibilities. The first: Microsoft isn't using its own rather excellent technology to handle these certs. I'm not fully sure of the underpinnings of Azure; does it run on Server 2012? Bing.com does. Even if Azure isn't using off-the-shelf Windows Server, there would be a delicious irony to Microsoft – enthusiastic player of the constant, cacophonous drumbeat of "upgrade for your own good" – had failed to take advantage of technology they themselves invented to solve this exact problem.

Are SIs Meeting CIO Expectations?
Increasing business complexities and adaption of newer technologies along with forever-rising employee demands, the CIO's challenges are only increasing day by day. Hence they have started looking beyond IT when engaging systems integrators (SIs) with the objective of driving business results through innovative business solutions. But, are these SIs delivering on their promise? A Forrester survey of over 30 CIOs yielded some grim findings

Quote for the day:

"It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit." -- Harry S Truman

February 24, 2013

Keeping Up With the Future: Risk Management for Rapid Technology Adoption
That rumbling you hear? It's the pace of change quickening for organizations thanks to advances in technology. That pace is having an impact on risk profiles; companies no longer have the luxury of time to adapt to new paradigms or threats. Fortunately there are ways to mitigate the changes so that organizations don't have to feel like they're being steamrolled by the future.

How to Create a Company Culture That People Will Be Excited to Join

It takes a certain type of person to join a startup. The ideal candidates can demonstrate risk tolerance and flexibility, as their roles are bound to evolve with the changing needs of the business. Those that combine talent with the ability to roll up their sleeves to get the job done, even if it isn't technically theirs, are the ones you’ll want with you in the trenches. These people are out there, but it can be a challenge to not only find them but also make the case for them to join your business instead of another one.

Why Are There No True Cross-platform Filesystems?
Yulian Kuncheff has this valid question: Over the last few months I have made it so that my PC desktop runs Windows 8, Linux Mint 14, and OSX Mountain Lion. ... everything works nicely and I have the development environments I need on all 3 platforms ... So that no matter which platform I am on, I just work as normal. But there is one massive thorn in my entire setup. Filesystems. After so many years of multiple OSes, I am surprised that there isn’t a single filesystem that is truely cross-platform and modern.

The Three Pillars of High Performance Teams
“The more decisions a leader makes, the further he or she is from leading a high-performance team. … Make too many command decisions, and you’ll doom yourself and your team to mediocrity,” Mark Miller in, “The Secret of Teams.” Everyone serious about success is serious about teams. Great teams lift organizations. Lousy teams drain everyone. Mark Miller explains three pillars of successful teams.

The 9 most popular arguments for targets deconstructed
Hundreds of researchers, academics, bloggers, psychologists, managers, more bloggers, statisticians authors have written about the damage caused by targets. It isn’t an abstract problem, targets can kill. But politicians, civil servants, managers, HR people, consultants and pundits all over the world think they know better. People continue to argue targets have their place. What are their arguments?

Google Fixes 22 Flaws in Chrome, Slams Silent Add-ons
Google yesterday released Chrome 25, patching 22 vulnerabilities and debuting a new security feature that blocks silent installations of add-ons. The latter is Chrome 25's most noticeable change to users. It automatically disables third-party add-ons that are installed on the sly by other software. Add-ons -- Google calls them "extensions" -- that were previously installed by third-party software will also be barred from running.

Modern.ie Helps Developers Test Code for Browsers
modern.ie, developed by Microsoft consists of free tools and resources used for testing code and sites using various versions of Internet Explorer. It includes a code detection wizard which addresses common coding problems that result from supporting older versions of IE. The engine scans the requested website for HTML5 compatibility problems and also provides the hints and tips to enable your site to work properly across various browsers and mobile devices.

Google's Chromebook Pixel: An even worse idea than Windows 8
Windows 8 may have gotten poor reviews for its tablet-based interface forced onto traditional PCs and laptops, but Google's Chromebook Pixel makes that look like a design of genius. Who would want to spend top-dollar for a laptop that lacks serious storage, runs Web-based apps rather than client apps, and isn't much use when not connected to the Web?

Can Microsoft bring BI to the masses if the Excel 2013 masses can't get BI?
Excel has become a cornerstone of Microsoft's business-intelligence strategy. With Excel 2010, Microsoft made PowerPivot -- one of its prime data-analytics technologies -- available for use by anyone with any edition of Excel 2010 by installing the PowerPivot for Excel add-in. But with Excel 2013, the latest version of Microsoft's spreadsheet program, only those with the Office Professional Plus version of the new Office will have full access to Excel 2013's BI capabilities.

Engage or die: Five lessons from a CIO innovation workshop

Despite the complexity of achieving CIO value, relevance, and influence IT is a service function and success demands that we adopt a spirit of genuine humility and helpfulness toward users. In the innovation report mentioned earlier, Erich Matola, now CIO of Colorado State University at Pueblo, summarizes this perspective: "we also have to be a service organization and … really humble in a sense that everybody, all your customers are important… I instill that in my staff…"

Quote for the day:

"Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it. " -- Lou Holtz