Protected: Learn about the New SharePoint 2010 Online for Office 365
November 8, 2011
The Gartner Cloud Flip Flop
November 3, 2011
Hey, if it sells, it must be right. A big flip-flop by a major IT consultant concerning public vs. private cloud services is screaming “opportunism” to me.
Gartner, a global technology research company, recently asserted that “enterprises should consider public cloud services first and turn to private clouds only if the public cloud fails to meet their needs.” This has not always been the opinion of Gartner. “Gartner Flip-Flop: Try the Public Cloud First” on InfoWorld tells us more:
At the core of this advice was the fact you should first consider your requirements and the objectives for using cloud computing before you move existing systems to the clouds or create new systems. Don’t jump right to private clouds just because they solve the problem that IT has with letting go; instead, look to the value of public cloud computing first. If it’s not a fit, then go private. But in all cases, let the business requirements drive you, not the hype.
Seems to me that Gartner is chasing revenue by flip-flop. Changing from public to private means you wouldn’t necessarily have to buy and maintain your own software, but you would have to keep up with payments more regularly. The pay-as-you-go economics of public clouds, in addition to the fact that these services are gaining popularity in areas of sales automation, customer service, accounting and expense management, is a pretty obvious explanation for the change of heart.
And search? Obviously search is better from the cloud. Toss in an app and one doesn’t have to do research to make predictions.
Andrea Hayden, November 3, 2011
Sponsored by Pandia.com
More Apple i Pain
October 20, 2011
Users Report Syncing Issues When Using Apple’s iCloudAfter much anticipation, Apple’s iCloud http://www.apple.com/icloud/, a wireless storage unit for your music, photos, and other documents, is now available to users of the company’s products and services.
Don Reislinger from Channel Insider http://www.channelinsider.com/ has come out with an informative slide show, revealing the “Ten Things You Need to Know About iCloud”.
In addition to having many other nifty qualities, Reislinger said of the iCloud:
Syncing reigns supreme. Whether it’s music, applications, iBooks, or documents, users will find that iCloud automatically syncs their content across their devices. It might seem like a simple addition, but considering how difficult (and annoying) it has been to add content to multiple devices, the service’s syncing feature is a welcome addition.
Unfortunately, according to Apple Insider, the documents and data syncing feature has proven problematic for some users, who said that their files were unexpectedly deleted.
Documents created on one device, be it in Pages or Keynote, are there for awhile, and then when you go back, you can literally see iCloud delete them in front of you.
For those who are frustrated with the iCloud’s teething issues, take a look at Polyspot’s or Blossom Software’s approach. Both firms “do” the cloud in interesting ways and avoid what appear to be Apple pits on the forest floor.
There are stable cloud platforms. We find it interesting that coincident with Apple’s earning downturn, other problems are cropping up. Will Apple’s woes drive customers to Amazon, despite the company’s flawed search system? Worth watching.
Jasmine Ashton, October 20, 2011
Freebie…Yes, believe it.
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Gain Power, Lose Control? A Search Variant
October 20, 2011
The future of technology, like always, is fascinating: personal virtual assistants, customized search results, and big changes to information appliances. However, the new future Silicon Valley giants like Apple, Google and Facebook will be creating a mix of changes that will bring both unique benefits and some bad results.
It seems that the more advanced and powerful technology becomes, the more control users lose. We learn more in Datamation’s article, “How Apple, Google and Facebook Will Take Away Your Control,” which tells us:
“The more advanced this technology becomes, the bigger the decisions we’ll rely on them to make for us. Choices we now make will be “outsourced” to an unseen algorithm. We’ll voluntarily place ourselves at the mercy of thousands of software developers, and also blind chance. We will gain convenience, power and reliability. But we will lose control.”
Personal computers will no longer need to be maintained or customized. Personal assistants, like the iPhone 4s’ Siri, will place our words in context and learn what we “want.” Search algorithms will continue to customize to user attributes and actions.
Is the gain of convenience and reliability that we get from these shiny new toys worth it? Or is the shine just a distraction from the fact that we lose all control in search and technological decision making? I am not so sure the good will be outweighing the bad in this scenario, but I fear that we may be stuck in the cycle.
Andrea Hayden, October 20, 2011
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Cloud Computing: With More Options Come More Risks and More Innovation to Combat Potential Issues
October 19, 2011
We all know two of the main concerns involving anything enterprise are security and reliability. These important issues fueled the article What to Do If Your Social Cloud Provider Pulls the Plug, posted by the IBM-sponsored site Internet Evolution.
The article discusses the importance of diversifying in order to minimize risks. Maria Korolov, the author and President of Trombly International, states:
One solution I proposed…was for corporations to set up hybrid clouds – using a private company-owned, behind-the-firewall cloud as an add-on for when you suddenly need more capacity, or as a backup for your own facilities.
Unfortunately many social networking companies don’t allow the exportation of contacts or other secure information, so backing it up via private storage is not possible. She offers some sound advice for alternative ideas.
While I was reading this article, I thought of PolySpot, a company specializing in decision-powered infrastructure and apps, which provides a solution on par with the level of circumspect the author of this article proposes is necessary.
PolySpot can interact with the cloud, create a mirror, and process your content for decisions. Basically, you get the benefit of free and public with the security of an enterprise innovator.
Megan Feil, October 18, 2011
Google Opens Cloud SQL Database for App Engine Developers
October 18, 2011
Due to popular demand by App Engine developers, Google has come out with a relational database called Google Cloud SQLfor its cloud-hosted App Engine application development and hosting platform.According to the ComputerWorld article, Google Ads Cloud-based SQL Database to App Engine, Navneet Joneja, product manager for Google Cloud SQL, said in a recent blog post:
You can now choose to power your App Engine applications with a familiar relational database in a fully-managed cloud environment. This allows you to focus on developing your applications and services, free from the chores of managing, maintaining and administering relational databases.
For now the database is available on limited preview mode and is free of charge for the select developers who have access to it. However, once the service leaves the preview stage, Google will charge developers for the management of their databases. The search giant said it will announce pricing 30 days before they begin charging, so developers shouldn’t to get too comfortable. With Microsoft getting the warm fuzzies over Hadoop, we think there will be some interesting pushing and shoving going on. If pro football coaches can do, so can Google and Microsoft.
Jasmine Ashton, October 18, 2011
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Compuware Cloud Speed Tests Declare Windows Azure the Winner
October 17, 2011
Although Compuware tries to make the tests expansive by spreading nodes throughout the world, the results are still highly affected by location. For example, both Azure and Amazon posted poor scores in their Singapore data centers (16.10 seconds for Azure and 20.96 seconds for Amazon, the worst time in the survey) but the discrepancies between North America and Asia are due in large part to limitations in the Compuware testing network. Within Asia, the performance is generally abysmal by North American standards.
Protected: Amazon Converts to SharePoint 2010
September 27, 2011
Inteltrax: Top Stories, September 19 to September 23
September 26, 2011
Inteltrax, the data fusion and business intelligence information service, captured three key stories germane to search this week, specifically, the idea of data analytics and business intelligence coming to the rescue in one way or another.
Our first story came from the article, “BI Rescues Legal World” http://inteltrax.com/?p=2392 we took a look inside how the legal billing world was saving firms money by using business intelligence.
Another rescue tale was found in the aptly titled, “Cloud Computing to Rescue Struggling Ledgers,” http://inteltrax.com/?p=2407 used Amazon as an example of how melding cloud computing and BI is putting many companies into the black.
Also, we in “Wine Gets the Big Data Treatment,” http://inteltrax.com/?p=2412 we explored how the wine industry, taking quite a hit during tough economic times, is staying afloat with big data analytic techniques.
No matter if an organization is dishing up legal briefs or chardonnay, there seems to be a need for book balancing by way of big data. We’ll keep an eye on this development as economic belt tightening continues around the world.
Follow the Inteltrax news stream by visiting www.inteltrax.com
Patrick Roland, Editor, Inteltrax. September 25, 2011
Symantec and Clearwell Technology Push Forward
September 6, 2011
Social media participation is an increasingly valuable, and inescapable, tool. With social media widgets permeating the Internet, companies can only avoid participation by eschewing the Web altogether. That’s not an option for most.
However, tapping social media comes with a price, as the Brainyard reports in “Could Social Media Flub Cost You $4.3 Million?” That article examines a survey sponsored by Symantec which details the losses most companies experience using this medium.
A key component in these losses involves government regulations on business communications. Companies must retain such exchanges to comply with open records requests, industry regulations, and eDiscovery requests, explains The Var Guy in “Symantec Enterprise Vault 10 Handles Social Media Compliance.”
As the title suggests, writer Charlene O’Hanlon points to the latest edition of Symantec’s Enterprise Vault as a solution to the compliance problem:
Helping expand Enterprise Vault beyond its former boundaries is technology Symantec gained through its recent acquisition of legal discovery solutions provider Clearwell Systems. Clearwell’s eDiscovery Platform complements Enterprise Vault’s ability to capture information, tag specific records for future litigation and quickly search those records for relevant records by enabling customers to process, analyze and review those records for internal audits, legal eDiscovery and corporate governance.
We know that Clearwell’s technology is quite good, and can recommend it. The other technology we’re not so sure about, though. Shop around, but this may be your best bet to reduce compliance costs associated with social media.
Cynthia Murrell,, September 6, 2011
Sponsored by Pandia.com, publishers of The New Landscape of Enterprise Search
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