Data Management Conference Attracts Record Crowd
May 10, 2012
Siemens just completed hosting a PLM conference with an amazing attendance of over 1800 PLM users. Proof of the growing reliance on PLM software these numbers speak for themselves. The conference was covered in the Automation World article, “Siemens PLM Conference Attracts 1,800 Plus”.
Some of the highlights of the conference’s 400 sessions were explained by the article as,
“Significant trends impacting manufacturing and the product lifecycle management (PLM) market according to (Chuck) Grindstaff were Big Data, product complexity, integrated systems and computational expansion. He mentioned Siemens PLM’s commitment to open–open culture, open data, open products and open communities–something reiterated by other executives the remainder of the day.”
Siemens is not the only PLM provider dedicated to the idea of open. As more smaller and midsized companies realize the need for PLM to manage their growing data open source cloud-based solutions are beginning to emerge with more frequency. We recommend companies looking for a personalized data management solution with the best customer service to be found contact Inforbix, a company dedicated to helping clients find, share and reuse data to streamline processes and minimize waste and duplication.
Catherine Lamsfuss, May 10, 2012
Google Strategy Questioned
May 9, 2012
Blogger Dustin Curtis presents his take on Google’s business strategy in “Google’s Coherent Bouquet.” Riffing off of Google Co-Founder Sergey Brin’s line, “We’ve let a thousand flowers bloom; now we want to put together a coherent bouquet,” Curtis questions whether such flower arranging is within the company’s abilities. At issue is the importance of social media and, naturally, the threat of competition from Facebook that continually dogs the search giant. The write up asserts:
“Google has about 150 legacy core products which have slowly evolved into great tools over the past decade, but which were designed and built with the complete absence of consideration for any social interaction. Google+ is an attempt to shoe-horn Google’s legacy products into things that are compatible with a new set of social interaction paradigms.
“My point here is that ‘social’ is a point of view from which to design products and not a ‘layer’ that can be easily draped over existing, non-social products.”
Hmmm. Interesting logic. Curtis insists that a shift like the one Google needs is not going to happen without the impetus of “new and unexpected outside ideas.” Is the self-described “villain” blogger correct? Is Google too set in its ways to achieve social success?
Cynthia Murrell, May 9, 2012
Sponsored by PolySpot
Supporting Growth in the LED Ceiling Light Industry
May 9, 2012
The prevalence of ceiling-mounted lighting based on light-emitting diode (LED) technology is increasing as consumers become more energy-conscious, as the cost of such fixtures continues to drop, and as more styles of these lights are produced. However, given the level of competition present in the lighting industry, the design process involved in creating attractive fixtures, and the relatively limited market for replacement parts, manufacturers of LED ceiling lights must manage their product information efficiently in order to succeed.
The market prospects for the industry is described in a recent blog post entitled “LED Ceiling Light Market Trends”:
“… the selling point of the LED bulb [is that it] has a product life cycle cost [that] is less than … [that of] incandescent bulbs, so the market is able to expand …”
Considering this growth potential, manufacturers of LED ceiling lighting would be well-advised to implement an agile product lifecycle management (PLM) solution that would enable them to find, reuse, and share their product data effectively so that they will be able to quickly react to market trends and maintain their competitive advantage.
Tonya Weikel, May 9, 2012
Inktomi and Fast Search: Two Troubled Search Companies, One Lesson
May 8, 2012
I found the write up by Diego Basch interesting and thought provoking. I have a little experience with Inktomi. For the original FirstGov.gov system, the US government used Inktomi for the public facing index of US government unclassified information. (FirstGov.gov is now www.usa.gov)
Inktomi had in 2000 a “ready to go” index of content from Dot Gov Web sites. The firm’s business model matched the needs of the US government. There were the normal contracting and technical hurdles for a modestly sized US government project with a fairly tight timeline. No big deal. Job done. Inktomi worked.
When I read “A Relevant Tale: How Google Killed Inktomi,” I thought the write up had some useful information. However, I don’t think Google killed Inktomi or any other search system. Google did not kill Fast Search & Transfer, Excite, HotBot, or any other search system in its rise to its alleged 65 percent share of the search market. (Google share is actually much higher, based on my analyses.)
Excite’s early 1997 attempt at portalization. Can you spot the search box? Does this look like the current version of Google? Say, “No.” Now log into Google and run a query for rental car. Now do you see the similarity between the early portal craziness and the modern Google? I do.
What killed off these outfits was their business models. Let me explain using Inktomi and Fast Search as examples. I could cite other cases, but these two are okay for a free blog post for the two or three readers I have.
Inktomi, for whatever reason, concluded that people wanted to offer search, not do the heavy lifting. In the portal fever that was raging from 1998 to 2001, Web sites wanted to be the “front page” of the Internet. The result was that America Online, Excite, Lycos, and Yahoo among others jammed links on the splash page. At one time, I counted more than 60 links on the Excite home page. Once I hit 50 links, I quit counting. My eyes and patience can cope with three to five things. More than that, and I move on.
Inktomi’s analysts did the spreadsheet fever thing, making assumptions about how many Web sites would license Inktomi results, pay Inktomi’s fees, and generate revenue from the front page of the Internet craziness. The reality was that Inktomi did not have enough customers to support the cost of the spidering, bandwidth, investment in performance, research and development for precision and recall, and the other costs that are underestimated or just ignored. The result was the collapse of the company.
The Heat in SharePoint Semantics April 27 to May 3
May 8, 2012
This week SharePoint Semantics published several pieces that showed readers some interesting tips on how to incorporate social media strategies and web design techniques into SharePoint
The post, “Discussion on SharePoint and Social In Light of Harris Interactive Enterprise Social Networking Survey,” discussed the fact that social networking in enterprises is a growing field that is filled with potential.
Jared Spataro of SharePoint offers the company’s point of view on the research:
“it’s not necessarily about all the bells and whistles and new “Facebook-like” features. As it’s pointed out in the Harris Study organizations are looking for functionality like instant messaging, email, video conferencing. Likes, activity streams and microblogging are not top on the list. These are the tools, Spataro says, that people are familiar with, so bring those capabilities into the social software solution and focus on productivity.”
In the realm of SharePoint and social media, “List of Useful Microsoft SharePoint Blogs to Track on RSS,” provides a list of 25 blogs that offer helpful tips, opinions, and news on SharePoint.
When discussing the blogs that he personally refers to from the list, Ken Toth states:
“Many of the blogs on this list are ones we read regularly. SharePoint Joel – SharePoint Land, Laura Rogers @ Wonderlaura, Marc D. Anderson’s Blog – A Management Zealot Speaks Out, and Waldek Mastykarz’s Innovation Matters are four we refer to often. Some that are new to us are SharePoint Dragons, The SharePoint Guys from the UK, and harbar.net. We look forward to checking them out.”
“Make Your Public Facing SharePoint Site Look More Polished With Easy Tips,” advises on ways to make your SharePoint site look more polished and professional by changing the colors/theme and upper left image from the standard template.
Toth states:
“There are many online resources that provide copyright-free images for your use, and the article provides links to a few of them as well as directions for how to change those and the theme. Also, Neal advises that your images should have a transparent background so that it blends seamlessly into your ribbon. The article includes step-by-step directions for this as well.”
For those who are new to social media and web design and would like a more out of the box solution for your SharePoint needs, consider using Smartlogic’s semantic technology solution called the Semaphore Content Intelligence Platform.
Jasmine Ashton, May 8, 2012
Mining Industry Turns to Data Management
May 8, 2012
More and more industries are turning to PLM to save money and cut costs. One of the latest industries to embrace such data analytics is the mining industry. A recent article, “Dassault Breaks Ground in Mining Market”, on Design News, explores how one PLM provider is offering real changes for an industry suffering from a lack of data management.
The article explains of Gemcom’s adoption of Dassault PLM software as,
“The move seems to be in keeping with Dassault’s ongoing commitment to broaden its reach into industries that have been slower to embrace PLM technology than the traditional automotive and aerospace industries — for example, apparel, electronics, and ship building. Gemcom’s 3D simulation tools also fit well with Dassault’s simulation offerings as part of the SIMULIA product line.”
Finding new industries into which introduce PLM solutions is crucial in today’s economy. More than ever all industries need to find ways to eliminate waste and streamline production. For that reason we recommend all companies, regardless of size or specialty, contact the professionals at Inforbix for top of the line PLM solutions customized to the client’s needs. By implementing enterprise wide PLM procedures any company will be amazed at the results.
Catherine Lamsfuss, May 8, 2012
Half of Amazon Cloud Users Overpay
May 7, 2012
Are you an Amazon Web Services [AWS] user? Business Insider reports, “Amazon’s Cloud Is Cheap, but You’re STILL Probably Paying Too Much.” Data from NewVem indicates that about half of Amazon Cloud’s users subscribe to more computing power than they actually use, wasting money. Writer Julie Bort reports:
“[NewVem] found that 53% of light AWS users leave more than half their instances idle. That means they are spending for twice as much as much cloud capacity than they really need. Heavy users do a better job. They are wasting less than 10% of their instances.
“It only costs between 8 cents (Linux) and 11.5 cents (Windows) per hour for an instance for small users, so the wasted ones don’t really add up to a lot of money. About $138 a month apiece. But if you are a budget-conscious startup, there are better ways to spend that cash.”
Indeed. Every little bit counts for small businesses.
NewVem, the company that supplied this data, is founded on an interesting concept. This startup provides a service, now in free beta version, that analyzes cloud operational data and makes recommendations so companies can get the most from their cloudy investments.
Cynthia Murrell, May 7, 2012
Sponsored by PolySpot
Data Management Solutions for Any Size Company Demanded
May 7, 2012
Small and midsized businesses have long suffered in a word of too much data because data management solutions were not scalable for their modest needs. All that has changed, however, with cloud technology. Now any company regardless of size can benefit from product lifecycle management (PLM) solutions. A recent article, “How Arena Is Bringing PLM Implementation Back to Basics”, on Arena Solutions’ website, explains how their PLM solutions (available in three sizes) allow even the smallest companies access to data management.
The article explains the problem facing these small companies as,
“Prior to Arena and the advent of cloud, PLM was an expensive gamble. PLM solutions took a long time to implement, and implementations frequently failed. Faced with frightening odds, small and mid-size manufacturers used makeshift tools like spreadsheets to keep product data organized. And while the spreadsheets were free, the resulting miscommunications and mistakes were not.”
While we could not agree Arena’s premise that small and midsized companies have every right to utilize PLM just as their larger counterparts have been doing for years we disagree with the presentation. Instead of offering pre-packaged data management solutions we recommend small companies turn to Inforbix, a leader in PLM solutions that caters to small and midsized enterprises with customized data management solutions including a heavy dose of customer support, to guarantee that every company can find, share and reuse data as needed.
Catherine Lamsfuss, May 7, 2012
Governance Problem with Open Source Software
May 4, 2012
Open source is great, but licensees want everything to be easy. That’s our takeaway from ZDNet’s “Only 20% of Corporate OSS Users Manage Components.” The piece reports on a survey from Sonatype which surveyed about 2,500 developers at companies that use open source components. Writer Paula Rooney notes:
“Roughly 20 percent, or 500 respondents, said they were locked down and could only use corporate-approved components, compared to 13 percent in a similar but smaller survey performed a year ago.
Fewer than 50 percent — 49 percent — indicated they had a corporate policy in place and 63 percent acknowledged that corporate standards are not enforced or there are none in place. But that’s still up from last year’s survey, in which almost 90 percent said there were no corporate policies at all.”
So, most companies are still too lax with their open source policies, but that status is gradually improving. That’s a good thing, since employment of open source projects is growing apace.
Founded in 2008, the relatively young Sonatype is a software company built on a powerful open source combination—Apache‘s Maven Build System and Central Repository. They are committed to supporting the open source community.
Cynthia Murrell, May 4, 2012
Sponsored by PolySpot
Growing Need for Lifecycle Management
May 4, 2012
A recent report entitled “TechVision 2020” that was produced by business research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan defines 50 innovative and transformative solutions across nine industry sectors, including information and computer technology as well as advanced manufacturing and automation, and confirms the supply chain’s need for more technology to support evolving business strategies.
The report’s comprehensive methodology is described in an article entitled “Technological Developments Gain Traction across Supply Chain” that recently appeared on the website for Supply & Demand Chain Executive:
“TechVision 2020 showcases each selected technology, closely assessing the potential of a given technology platform to understand the true market opportunities, while evaluating the risk-reward elements. It appraises technology maturity and adoption ratings, possible year of impact and patent landscape, examines private and government funding trends, and explores future technology and application roadmaps.”
Among those technologies recognized as vital in this report are those supporting product lifestyle management (PLM) as developments in such platforms continue to gain adoption worldwide. Ahead of the curve, Inforbix has created a cloud-based, scalable, and affordable PLM solution that enables companies to efficiently find, reuse, and share product data and to effectively respond to market changes.
Tonya Weikel, May 4, 2012
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