Grade School Students Explore with Dassault Platform
May 15, 2012
For a long time now the engineering community has relied on CAD/CAM friendly product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions to aid in all aspects of product design and manufacturing. Now, high school students at Notre Dame Preparatory School are getting the opportunity to get a jump start over their competition by learning and mastering Dassault Systèmes’ PLM 3D platform as explained in the article, “Notre Dame Preparatory School Adopts Dassault Systèmes 3D Experience Platform”, on the Sun-Herald.
The idea behind the adoption of the generally engineer-only platform is for students to be introduced to the fun stuff of engineering hopefully eliminating negative stereotypes that might keep talented youth from pursuing careers in the field.
As the article explains of Notre Dame’s use of the software:
“Equipped with technologies implemented by today’s leading manufacturers, students are creating products — from initial design through 3D prototype — for a variety of industries, including automotive, consumer goods, energy, aerospace and defense. The 3D Experience platform and applications serve as the backbone for Notre Dame Prep’s emerging engineering curriculum, which supports the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Education Coalition initiative focused on STEM education required in order for the U.S. to remain an economic leader in the global marketplace.”
Stories like this would not have been possible even a few years ago. Thanks to advances in cloud technology PLM platforms can be utilized just about anywhere. Data management solutions providers are realizing the value in thinking outside the box and we applaud Dassault Systèmes’ collaboration with Notre Dame Prep School for encouraging youth in such a non-traditional manner.
Catherine Lamsfuss, May 14, 2012
Ecommerce Search Race Is On
May 15, 2012
As more people begin to shop online, the e-commerce search engine race intensifies.
According to Reuters article, “EBay, Wal-Mart Search for Revved-Up Search Engines,” both EBay and Wal-Mart are developing new Web search engines to better compete against online giant Amazon. The article reveals that patience runs low with online shoppers, who will switch to a competitor’s site or a physical store if they don’t immediately find what they are looking for. New shopping search technology will focus on a customer’s history and related terms.
“‘Amazon is on version 8.0 of search,’ said Scot Wingo, chief executive of ChannelAdvisor, which helps merchants sell more online. ‘EBay is at 2.0, but they are thinking about how they make this huge leap to 3.0.’
The stakes are high because e-commerce is a huge, fast-growing market, putting billions of dollars in sales up for grabs. U.S. retail spending online grew 13 percent to $161.5 billion last year, according to comScore. Physical retail sales are much larger, but the sector is struggling to grow and losing share to online operators.”
The race will continue until someone can deliver a high-quality shopping search experience for consumers. Until then, we believe Google and Amazon will continue to reign.
Andrea Hayden, May 15, 2012
Sponsored by Ikanow
Tech Start Up Lessons Confuse: Learn from Failure or Success?
May 14, 2012
I read “Robbie Bach’s Four Startup Lessons from Xbox and Zune.” I am puzzled. The article said:
Bach compared and contrasted the Xbox and Zune businesses and shared some inside stories during a Northwest Entrepreneur Network event Seattle this morning. The topic was “intrapreneurship” — the buzzword for entrepreneurial projects inside major companies — but as Bach noted, the lessons apply to traditional startups, as well.
But the sentence preceding this paragraph was the kicker:
Former Microsoft executive Robbie Bach led the company’s entertainment division through the rise of the Xbox business, which has become a success, by many measures, after billions of dollars of investment and some major bumps in the road. He also led the division through the launch of the Zune music player, which is “probably universally viewed as less of a success,” as he puts it, charitably.
The write up then focuses on four “lessons.” These confused me because even though the Xbox is allegedly successful, there is the red ring of death meme and the need for data to show that the Xbox has paid off the investment and covers the on going customer support and repair activities.
The first lesson is to focus on a “discontinuity.” This is Peter Drucker stuff. The problem is that there are many discontinuities, so isn’t it necessary to pick the right discontinuity at the right time and execute without investing so much that pay back is tough, if not impossible.
The second lesson is marketing and branding. Okay, but Microsoft seems to be a company making and killing brands with dizzying speed. Windows Live, Windows NT, Zune—what’s the brand logic and marketing strategy behind these moves? Windows RT?
The third lesson is find “partners who want you to be successful.” Partners want to make money. If you have something that will make partners money, then you are on the right track. Partners who stop paying for expensive certifications or quietly add “off the reservation” activities are not partners. These are companies run by executives who need revenue growth. There are lots of potential partners. Which partner is the key question?
The fourth lesson is “capitalize on your competitor’s mistakes.” My view is that this has more to do with picking a discontinuity and acting in a timely manner. Much of the so-called “insight” in technology has more to do with being in the right place at the right time. When the right time shifts and the right place moves to another location, most companies end up in challenging situations. Examples range from Microsoft’s support of legacy code to the stunning work on the Windows Nokia phones.
How do these lessons explain the trajectory of Microsoft search technology. Answer: Not too well.
In short, these are “lessons” which need to be reviewed by a curriculum committee. Just my opinion.
Stephen E Arnold, May 14, 2012
Sponsored by Polyspot
SharePoint 2015 Highly Anticipated
May 14, 2012
If you are a follower of Microsoft and its products, you are used to the inherent mystery and anticipation that accompanies its often belabored and long-suffering releases of major software. Kurt Mackie updates on the latest information on upcoming releases in, “Office and SharePoint ’15′ Expected in Early 2013.”
Veteran Microsoft reporter Mary Jo Foley unearthed a few clues about Microsoft’s product roadmap for this year and the next. Last week, Foley pointed to two Microsoft charts, reportedly given to partners, that show approximately when we might see certain Microsoft on-premises products and cloud-based services emerge. The documents are a bit dated, originating from Dec. 22, 2011, and lack details about the arrival of Windows 8 and Windows Server 8. However, Microsoft did confirm to Foley that charts were given to partners and show ‘forward-looking information.’
The article goes on to predict that Exchange, Microsoft Office, and SharePoint, all in their “15” versions, are expected for general availability early 2013. We cannot help but wonder why there is so much pageantry surrounding Microsoft major releases. For a company with so much pull in the general technology world, it seems smaller more frequent updates would keep them more relevant as the competition grows stiffer.
One third-party solution keeping the competition tight for Microsoft in enterprise search is Fabasoft Mindbreeze. Mindbreeze is particularly efficient at updating their offerings without major releases that disrupt workflow. Visit the Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise page to note the changes made available in the quarterly releases over the last couple of years. Updates to the Cloud enterprise offering are even more frequent and more subtle.
It seems to us that at a certain point a ship does get too big to turn. This may be where Microsoft is heading, with software offerings so overwhelming that implementers at the local level have to plan months in advance just for an update. For a software solution that is current, intuitive, and less disruptive, consider a smart third-party solution like Fabasoft Mindbreeze.
Emily Rae Aldridge, May 14, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Complementary Enterprise Applications for Data Management
May 14, 2012
Omnify Software, a provider of product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions, will host presentations at the upcoming Consona Connect 2012 conference that will focus on the integration of PLM and enterprise resource planning (ERP) applications within organizations. Among the topics that will be covered are the elimination of manual data entry, the automation and integration of engineering and documentation processes, and product development compliance.
As described in a press release entitled “Omnify Software to Present at Consona Connect 2012” that recently appeared on the PCB 007 website, this tandem implementation of PLM and ERP technologies can provide product development and operational benefits:
“Integration between ERP and PLM systems allows direct sharing of engineering and manufacturing data through an automated process, resulting in improved data integrity across the organization.”
Manufacturers hoping to implement this integrated data management approach and harness its potential for shorter product development cycles, accelerated innovation, and increased operational profitability should seek out secure, cloud-based, scalable, intuitive, and cost-effective PLM solutions that allow the entire enterprise to find, reuse, and share product data with maximum efficiency.
Tonya Weikel, May 14, 2012
HP Politics: Alleged Inside Info about the Autonomy Deal
May 14, 2012
Ah, HP management in action. Business Insider reveals, “HP Finance Chief Tried to Stop $11.7 Billion Acquisition, but Lost.” Believing the proposed purchase of Autonomy to be too expensive, HP CFO Cathie Lesjak aired her objections privately to then-CEO Léo Apotheker. The chief was not swayed. Lesjak felt so strongly that she crossed him in a board meeting, stating her objections.
As we know, the deal went through anyway, but what does the clash say about the culture of the beleaguered business? Columnist Matt Rosoff notes:
“The conflict was just one of many examples of how Apotheker lost control over the complicated political landscape at HP, and he was ousted less than two months later.
“The thing is, the conventional wisdom in Silicon Valley says that Lesjak was probably right. One CEO of an enterprise company that does not compete with HP told us that he thought the valuation was completely insane, and grounds for firing Apotheker even without all his other slip-ups. Some HP partners have also criticized the deal, and Oracle said they passed on the deal at $6 billion because it was too expensive.”
It looks like Lesjak, who, incidentally, sat in the CEO chair for a while in 2010, may know what she’s talking about. We hope Meg Whitman heeds her words better than Apotheker did.
Cynthia Murrell, May 14, 2012
Sponsored by PolySpot
Bing Given a Facelift to Draw Search Traffic
May 11, 2012
Bing’s popularity has cooled in the shadow of Google and the company is attempting to change its image.
According to recent article, “Microsoft Gives Bing Search Engine Major Overhaul,” Bing is being revamped to increase popularity of the search site and draw traffic away from Google. The firm states the changes will get rid of “unnecessary distractions.” This includes the old navigation menu, the header, and categories for refining search. The article states:
“‘Over the past few months, we’ve run dozens of experiments to determine how you read our pages to deliver the link you’re looking for,’ Microsoft’s Bing Team noted in a recent blog post.
‘Based on that feedback, we’ve tuned the site to make the entire page easier to scan, removing unnecessary distractions, and making the overall experience more predictable and useful. This refreshed design helps you do more with search–and gives us a canvas for bringing future innovation to you.’”
The attempt from Bing to attract traffic and revenue is not lost on us. We are impressed with the boosted performance and sleek look and look forward to more provident changes from the Microsoft company.
Microsoft has also embraced the “old” Excite three column interface from the 1990s. You can read about the Facebook “column” in “Introducing the New Bing: Spend Less Time Searching, More Time Doing.”
The issue is, of course, when a person wants to search for a company with an unusual spelling–for example, Innttensity–the task becomes more difficult if the spelling is not known by the user. Research is now more social, not necessarily better in our view.
Andrea Hayden, May 11, 2012
Sponsored by Ikanow
Document Management, The Future and the Cloud
May 11, 2012
There is a lot of serious negotiating going on regarding the future of document management and the inevitable movement to the Cloud. Transitioning to the Cloud eases the burden of ownership and upkeep. Yet, there are other issues to consider such as security, compliance, and buy-in from employees. A full discussion is provided in the story, “Does the Future of Document Management Lie in the Cloud?”
The author discusses the needs of IT managers, and even conveys that IT managers are finding their users to have increasingly higher expectations:
They also want secure remote access from anywhere, and not just via computers, either: smartphones, netbooks, and tablet computers must be full participants. Corporate management has its requirements as well: reliable backup and resilient business continuity, so that a localised outage doesn’t leave information workers idle. And both groups never want to be told that storage has filled up.
So how does an organization juggle the needs of user experience, security, compliance, and storage? Many third-party solutions are emerging that do a good job of attending to all of these needs, while providing continuous updates as the technology progresses. One such third-party solution that we like is Fabasoft Mindbreeze. Their Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise solution is highly adaptable and intuitive, all while performing well against the competition in the Cloud.
In its integration with Mindbreeze Insite, Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise utilizes the power of Wikipedia and internal sources to feed public-facing websites.
Mindbreeze InSite integrates itself smoothly into Mindbreeze’s hybrid model. As before in Fabasoft Folio Cloud and Wikipedia, you can now make your own website searchable in the Cloud with InSite and make this data source instantly available to all internal users.
For users who want to move to the Cloud, but are concerned about potentially negative side effects, consider smart third-party solutions such as those offered by Fabasoft Mindbreeze.
Emily Rae Aldridge, May 11, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Technology Solutions for CAD Based Document Control
May 11, 2012
Since many of their business decisions require quick action, manufacturers must remain aware of emerging technology and should implement those solutions that allow for the most efficient access to and application of their internal operational and product information.
For example, as described in the press release entitled “Global Competitiveness in Mining Industry Depends on Technology” that recently appeared on ITWeb’s site, Kumba Iron Ore’s Sishen Mine in South Africa recognized that its SAP-based system for managing the documents associated with its production processes as well as its computer-aided design (CAD) engineering drawings required an update to reflect the operation’s need for a more functional and secure electronic document control system that allowed for version control and document digitization. A supplementary product to Sishen’s SAP system that addressed these product lifecycle management (PLM) needs was designed and implemented in partnership by NokusaEI and CIDEON Software. As described by Dolf Engels, a solution analyst with Sishen, this updated system has benefits beyond enhanced document access and security:
“Changing to the new system is also a huge improvement to the maintenance timescale. Processes were sped up, efficiencies were enhanced and value-add was received through additional compliance and risk reduction components.”
Inforbix also provides cloud-based, scalable, and affordable PLM solutions that enable enterprises to find, reuse, and share CAD drawings and other vital product and operational data.
Tonya Weikel, May 11, 2012
SharePoint Users Beware Framesniffers
May 10, 2012
Security is a topic which is getting increased attention, particularly in the SharePoint community. I want to call attention to “Microsoft SharePoint and LinkedIn Data at Risk from Framesniffing Attacks” from ITWire.com. The Safari, Chrome, and Internet Explorer Web browsers are inadvertently allowing hackers to steal information from private Microsoft SharePoint Web sites and mine data from public Web sites like Linked In.
A Framesniffing Attack occurs when a hidden HTML frame loads a target Web site in the hacker’s Web page to mine information about the content and structure of the framed pages. The hacker can then overcome browser securities and read the sensitive information.
As explained in the ITWire.com article:
“Paul Stone, senior security consultant at Context said, “Using Framesniffing, it’s possible for a malicious Web page to run search queries for potentially sensitive terms on a SharePoint server and determine how many results are found for each query. For example, with a given company name it is possible to establish who their customers or partners are; and once this information has been found, the attacker can go on to perform increasingly complex searches and uncover valuable commercial information.”
The problem deals with the X-Frame-Options header that turns off the Web browser framing feature and in SharePoint it is not turned off by default. Microsoft has stated in the next SharePoint version they will set the X-Frame options, but until then, SharePoint gurus, it is up to you to find a solution. If your organization discovers a way to keep its information from prying eyes, you will still need a way to find the data.
Search Technologies implements solutions which are secure and do not impede findability or system performance. For more information, navigate to www.searchtechnologies.com.
Iain Fletcher, May 10, 2012
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