Trust Google with Your Money? Not So Fast.
February 26, 2012
Maybe this is a typical minor error, but it sure seems important to us. PCWorld reveals that, because of a security flaw, “Google Wallet Suspends Prepaid Credit Card Functions.” Reporter John P. Mello Jr. explains:
The security flaw was revealed last Thursday by a blogger, identified only as ‘The Smartphone Champ,’ who explained that by opening up the settings section on an Android phone and blanking all the settings for a Google Wallet, an unauthorized user could access any balances on a prepaid card previously linked to the wallet.
Oops. This is actually the second security flaw that has recently been discovered. The hack-ability revealed just the day before by the security firm Zvelo involves cracking the Wallet’s PIN. However, that one calls for more techie skills and could only be performed on phones that had been rooted. Still. . . .
Maybe Google’s fast-cycle method needs a traditional “does this work?” test when credit cards and money are involved. A common sense best practice, really.
Cynthia Murrell, February 26, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Centralized or Decentralized E-Commerce: Which Approach?
February 26, 2012
Chris Dixon examines the differences between e-commerce approaches in his blog post, “eBay vs. Amazon: Decentralized vs. Centralized E-Commerce.” The piece gives a little interesting history behind the two companies, and on e-commerce in general. It also notes that most eBay’s sales are no longer auction-based; that means structural differences are now the main distinction between the two.
The write up insists:
I’m not arguing that one approach is superior to the other. My point is simply that when you understand that the battle is between centralized and decentralized commerce, the strategic moves of the two companies make a lot more sense.
I suppose. What does not make sense is that the search function on both services is pretty lousy in our opinion. The focus is not on making the customer’s purchasing experience better; it is on moving stuff. Both companies could benefit from focusing a little more on customer needs.
Cynthia Murrell, February 26, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Technology Hires from Consulting Firms. Yikes!
February 25, 2012
It is official. When consultants chase a hot new sector, a bubble is forming. Forbes asks, “Why Are Accenture Executives All Leaving for Big Data & Cloud Startups?” Because that’s where the buzz is, of course.
If the question is, rather, why are startups grabbing executives from this particular company, the answer lies in a particular skillset. Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services, and outsourcing company. Dave Rich, recently hired by Revolution Analytics, follows co-workers Don Rippert (Basho), Mitch Hill (Opscode), and Bill Karpovitch (Zenoss) into cloud-centric ventures.
About that unique skillset, contributor John Furrier writes:
There has to be the right balance between entrepreneurialism and managing the business. Venture capitalists really need that expertise as it’s all about managing the burn. [Rich] said that’s something you learn at Accenture. . . . It’s the message that matters, Rippert said. Accenture executives are trained to help customers think through solutions. ‘You are accustomed to saying “this will save you this much – this will generate this additional revenue,” ’ Rippert said.
Yep, big, cloudy data is hot, hot, hot. Which big data company will win the search and retrieval love of the big data competitors? What will technologists schooled in scope changes do when they confront the world where bean counters monitor the technology staff?
Cynthia Murrell, February 25, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
NASA to Another Type of Cloud
February 25, 2012
Yep, cost cutting is rampant in the US government.
NASA is accelerating into the ether and it seems to us that the agency plagued with exogenous complexity is retrenching. Government Computer News reveal, “NASA Wants to Put Web Services in Agile-Like Cloud.” The agency wishes to unite content management for its disparate facilities under nasa.gov. Writer Rutrell Yasin relates:
The target environment for Web services is an ‘agile, cloud-based enterprise infrastructure’ that provides the three cloud delivery models — infrastructure as a service, software as a service and platform as a service — according to a draft statement of work NASA issued Feb. 6. The Web infrastructure will service internal and public-facing applications and sites, using an interoperable, standards-based and secure environment, the document states.
Collaboration tools are also on the wish-list, and NASA’s Office of the CIO will make sure the changes adhere to the Representational State Transfer architecture model and other best practices. (Well, that’s good.)
The agency will primarily turn to open-source solutions; we welcome that direction but must ask: is cost control now the order of the day? The answer is, “No matter what buzzwords or woolen cloth is draped over the explanation, the budget crunch is forcing changes which will embrace lower-cost options and headcount reductions. Grants in a girdle are next are in development.
Cynthia Murrell, February 25, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Quote Cache
February 25, 2012
We’ve found a useful source of quotations at Dennys Funny Quotes. The site collects quotes on subjects from cats to music videos to politics. Anything, really. The tagline reads:
“Dennys Funny Quotes: Laugh at life, politics, the universe: irreverent, satire, photos, cartoons.”
There really is a lot here, but it is better for browsing than for looking for something specific. It is a real challenge to find anything in particular, as the topic links are scattered around the site rather than presented in a comprehensive list. There is a search field in the upper left, but you’d have to know what is already there to target a search with any accuracy.
Oh, and each click produces a full-page ad you must click past. Annoying. Give it a whirl when you have a few minutes to kill. You might stumble upon the perfect quote to tuck into your pocket for your next social event.
Cynthia Murrell, February 25, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Lucid Imagination: A Look Ahead
February 24, 2012
Enterprise search can be over simplified in many people’s mind because it is so intuitive. However, while understanding the concept may be relatively simple, orchestrating it proves to be more difficult.
IT World’s Brian Proflitt recently reported on Lucid Imagination’s new enterprise search product in the article, “Enterprise Search is a Valuable, and Growing Component of Big Data.”
According to the article, enterprise search allows users to treat data as they would fields within a relational database. It is excellent for examining large sets of structured or unstructured information. Documents that are structured uniformly like weblogs do particularly well with this technology.
Many enterprise search software providers, including Lucid Imagination, use Apache Lucene and Apache Solr products.
The article states:
“Lucid is to Lucene and Solr what companies like Red Hat, SUSE, and Canonical are to Linux. Like a Linux distribution, Lucid Imagination’s LucidWorks Enterprise product pulls together the best features of Apache Lucene/Solr, adding a few more features along the way, such as search connectors to SharePoint, Web, and Active Directory data. This is not an open core company: like Red Hat, versions of LucidWorks are provided free of charge, with a support subscription required for production use.”
Lucid Imagination’s new product promises the functionality of enterprise search but is delivered from the cloud. We’re looking forward to seeing how this develops. The generator is humming at Lucid Imagination we believe.
Jasmine Ashton, February 24, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
SearchInFiles: Another Finding Tool for the Mac
February 24, 2012
Numerous scenarios could lead to you needing to search for a specific string of text inside of a document, whether you are writing code or a lengthy document.
A new Mac download, SearchInFiles, is an app available that allows users to search for specific text lines, an ability that would be useful for programmers and writers alike. The app is highlighted in LifeHacker’s article, “SearchInFiles Finds Text Strings in Any Document”
By default, Spotlight allows you to search for a line of text inside a document, but SearchInFiles supercharges the process a bit by offering more options. It shows you the exact line and context it appears in and digs through all types of text files, including, CSS, XML, TXT, and more. It’s not going to be relevant for every search you do, but the context support makes it a handy alternative to Spotlight when you just need to find a single line or two.
SearchInFiles makes work and search simpler by adding context and line numbers to search results. The app is available for only $.99 in the Mac App Store, and is a useful tool solving a common issue.
Andrea Hayden, February 24, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Developers and DuckDuckGo
February 24, 2012
More rah-rah-rah for Duck Duck Go in “Why I Use DuckDuckGo, and You Should Too” at Clif Reeder’s blog. I use the service because it doesn’t track my search terms. Apparently for developers, there is an even more compelling reason: Reeder says Duck Duck Go speeds up his work. The write up explains:
“The way that DDG does this is by trading off text directives for GUI/mouse interactions. Assuming you can type faster than move and click a cursor, this is a big difference. To me, it’s like the difference between using Vim and a GUI based text editor.”
An example follows which demonstrates the advantage; one can see how much faster the user here got what he needed. Other advantages cited by the article include inline YouTube results; the quick transfer to a Google search if needed with the command “!g”; and, my favorite, the site’s set of no- track, no-sell, no-personalization policies.
It is good to see my favorite engine getting some more press. Keep in mind that metadata search systems can be blocked from primary sources of results.
Cynthia Murrell, February 24, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Protected: The Fellowship of the SharePoint Professionals
February 24, 2012
A Preview of SolidWorks World 2012
February 24, 2012
The New Year has brought with it a whole new season of conventions and exhibitions. Thousands of people are flocking to San Diegothis February to attend SolidWorks World (SWW) 2012. Oleg Shilovitsky of Beyond PLM is one of those attendees and he took to his blog to discuss SolidWorks and PLM Story.
Exhibitors and partners at SWWare classified into four categories: Data Management, PDM, PLM, Data Interoperability. The PLMcategory is a bit thin with only two partners listed – Dassault System and Kenesto. They are also listed in the PDM category along with seven other companies, including MechWorks, SofTech, Inc. and SolidPartners, Inc.. As for the data management category, there are six exhibitors listed. Shilovitsky says:
“Separately, you need to take a look on companies providing consulting and implementation services in the manufacturing domain. At the same time, these companies are selling software they develop. In many cases, it is hard to differentiate between software and services they sell. Here is the list of companies from the list of presenters associated with PLM: Datafrond, Infotech Enterprises, Razorleaf Corporation, Zero Wait-State.”
It seems that there are a lot of strong companies at SWWthis year. Shilovitsky mentions his company, Inforbix, that has revolutionized the way companies find, share and re-use data. Though not listed as a data management exhibitor this year, we would not be surprised if they show up on the list in 2013. We also look forward to Shilovitsky review ofSWW in the upcoming weeks.
Jennifer Wensink, February 24, 2012
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