Dropbox launched a new service on Tuesday to help graduate students, college faculty and staff collaborate on files while they’re at school. Schools can now pay $50 per user, per year for Dropbox Education, a version of the cloud storage company’s premium offering for organizations that’s tailored to the cost-sensitive education market. Dropbox is trying to sell more paid services, but its offerings have been aimed primarily at businesses. Dropbox Education will cost much less than the company's business plans, which typically run from $150 to $300 per user, per month.It’s a move that could give the company a bigger foothold in the lucrative education market at a time when Dropbox is working hard to expand its business beyond a large base of free consumer users. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Remember a few years ago when everyone and his brother was scrambling to build a mobile app in a frantic gold rush to get rich quick? Well, there was plenty of real gold in them thar virtual hills, but as in most gold rushes, only few people actually struck it rich.Similarly, over time the nimble advantages of the early online prospectors have been overtaken by the giant companies that now largely own the digital world.At least, that’s my takeaway from IDC’s new Worldwide Mobile Applications Forecast, 2016-2020 study. According to the IDC research, “mobile device users installed nearly 156 billion mobile applications worldwide in 2015, generating $34.2 billion in direct (non-advertising) revenue.”To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Engineers and developers often make the best IT leaders. Not only are they forward-thinking and tech-savvy, but they've already have the trust and the loyalty of your IT team and they know the ins-and-outs of a great culture. If you're looking for good IT leadership, you should start from within your own ranks, says Kathy Harris, managing director of technology executive recruitment firm Harris Allied. Not only will this foster greater trust and engagement, it can be a powerful recruiting tool for other elite talent, Harris says."Top people always want to work with other star talent. They understand that within that environment they can learn, grow and be challenged professionally. Including engineers and developers in your IT leadership also means there's someone at the table who understands the technology, the methodology, the quirks of your organization and the culture," says Harris. Here are six traits to look for in a great IT leader.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Over the past five years, as outsourcing in the commercial sector has grown steadily but modestly, the annual contract value of outsourcing deals in the public sector has more than doubled, according to analysis by outsourcing consultancy ISG. Today, public sector outsourcing deals account for two-thirds of the annual contract value in the market overall.Much of the activity is happening in the U.S., which consists almost entirely of information technology work and driven in large part by Department of Defense spending, according to ISG. The Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Health and Human Services, contending with the changes mandated by the Affordable Care Act, are also significant users of third-party IT services.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
VANCOUVER, BC - Successful big data projects have five key requirements, says Amy Gaskins, a data scientist with more than a decade of experience designing and implementing data and intelligence projects for the private sector, government agencies and the U.S. military.In her keynote presentation at the Apache: Big Data North America conference in Vancouver on Monday, Gaskins stressed that five factors can make or break big data projects:
Buy-in. It's commonly acknowledged at this point that big data projects need buy-in from senior leadership to succeed. But Gaskins says that's not enough. You need buy-in at every level, including middle management and workers themselves. "You need to get it from senior leadership, but also the middle and bottom. Why are we doing this? Everyone needs to understand."
Urgency. "Is there an existential threat to your business or the mission if you don't do this?" Gaskins asks.
Transparency. Do people both inside and outside the organization know what we're doing and why? Can it be repeated?
Involvement of non-data science subject matter experts (SMEs). Non-data science SMEs are the ones who understand their fields inside and out. They provide the context that allows you to understand what Continue reading
Name a tech company, any tech company, and they're investing in containers. Google, of course. IBM, yes. Microsoft, check. But, just because containers are extremely popular, doesn't mean virtual machines are out of date. They're not.
Containers
Containers vs. virtual machines: How to tell which is the right choice for your enterprise
Do you need a container-specific Linux distribution?
Container wars: Interesting times ahead for Docker and its competitors
The beginner's guide to Docker
Yes, containers can enable your company to pack a lot more applications into a single physical server than a virtual machine (VM) can. Container technologies, such as Docker, beat VMs at this part of the cloud or data-center game.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Microsoft introduced Windows Store for Business (WSB) last year as an enterprise app store solution for businesses to install Windows apps across their corporate PCs. Things have been a little slow, but that's about to pick up.Effective last week, Microsoft made it easier for developers to sell their apps to IT professionals by allowing them to sell organizational licenses to companies via WSB, giving administrators the ability to acquire, manage and distribute apps faster and easier.WSB is similar to the consumer Windows Store, with some differences. For starters, it is managed according to countries and regions to handle licensing and other local issues. Also, companies can make volume purchases, an option consumers don't always have.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
First Amazon took on Netflix, but now the company is taking aim at YouTube by launching Amazon Video Direct (AVD); it’s a self-service program for video creators to make their content available to Amazon customers, including those with Prime memberships – which is nothing to scoff at since Prime was estimated to be in about half of all U.S. households ... and that was before Prime started offering $9 monthly subscriptions.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
You're in luckWe've cobbled together a slew of things for the geeky among you to do on Jan. 13 -- Friday the 13th that isth. And we suggest you do it up because you won’t get another chance until Oct. 13, 2017.Don’t miss the day!Mobile apps exist solely for the purpose of reminding you when Friday the 13th is coming up. Pocketkai’s free iOS app will remind you of the one to three Friday the 13ths coming up each year for the next 50 years. The Bogeyman’s Android app will do likewise, for the next 10 Friday the 13ths.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Back to one of my pet issues, the global cybersecurity skills shortage. According to ESG research, 46% of organizations say they have a “problematic shortage” of cybersecurity skills in 2016 (note: I am an ESG employee). By comparison, 28% of organizations claimed to have a “problematic shortage” of cybersecurity skills in 2015, so we’ve seen an 18% year-over-year increase.So there is a universal shortage of infosec talent but where are these deficiencies most acute? According to a survey of 299 IT and cybersecurity professionals:
33% of organizations say they have a shortage of cloud security specialists. This makes sense as it combines the shortage of cybersecurity skills with evolution of cloud computing. Other ESG research also indicates that large organizations are creating jobs for cloud security architects so demand is especially high. Cybersecurity professionals should think about pursuing a cloud security certification from CSA or SANS as part of their career development plan. There are more jobs than people and enterprise organizations are tripping over each other to hire talent as quickly as they can.
28% of organizations say they have a shortage of network security specialists. To me, this Continue reading
Back to one of my pet issues, the global cybersecurity skills shortage.According to ESG research, 46 percent of organizations say they have a “problematic shortage” of cybersecurity skills in 2016 (note: I am an ESG employee). By comparison, 28 percent of organizations claimed to have a “problematic shortage” of cybersecurity skills in 2015. That means we’ve seen an 18 percent year-over-year increase.So, there is a universal shortage of infused talent, but where are these deficiencies most acute? According to a survey of 299 IT and cybersecurity professionals:
33% of organizations say they have a shortage of cloud security specialists. This makes sense, as it combines the shortage of cybersecurity skills with evolution of cloud computing. Other ESG research also indicates that large organizations are creating jobs for cloud security architects, so demand is especially high. Cybersecurity professionals should think about pursuing a cloud security certification from CSA or SANS as part of their career development plan. There are more jobs than people, and enterprise organizations are tripping over each other to hire talent as quickly as they can.
28% of organizations say they have a shortage of network security specialists. To me, this really reinforces Continue reading
Wireless big shotsIt’s a wireless world, of course, and one only likely to get less dependent on physical connectivity in the future – but what that future looks like will depend a lot on the companies exerting the strongest influence on the industry. We checked in with analysts and tapped our own institutional expertise to create this list of the companies that, in our opinion, are the biggest influencers in enterprise wireless networking and beyond.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
A lawyer, an accountant and a retired CFO are among the eight women and two men who were selected Monday to decide Oracle’s huge copyright infringement case against Google.
With the 10-member jury sworn in, lawyers for each side will make their opening statements Tuesday morning, kicking off a high-profile trial that’s expected to last four weeks.
It's a technical case, and at least one of the jurors seems likely to have trouble keeping up. She’s a retired woman from Berkeley who said she struggles with technology and thought the case would not be a good one for her to hear.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
In the early days of computing, developers were often jacks of all trades, handling virtually any task needed for software to get made. As the field matured, jobs grew more specialized. Now we're seeing a similar pattern in a brand-new domain: big data.That's according to P.K. Agarwal, regional dean and CEO of Northeastern University's recently formed Silicon Valley campus, who says big-data professionals so far have commonly handled everything from data cleaning to analytics, and from Hadoop to Apache Spark.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Become a fully certified (and highly employable) Amazon Web Services professional. With this AWS Engineer Certification Bundle, currently discounted 87%, you’ll receive top-notch instruction.
The OfficeJet Pro 8620 copies, scans, prints and faxes. It averages 4.5 out of 5 stars on Amazon from over 1,100 people (read reviews). With a regular list price of $299.99, the 8620 has been reduced by 41% to just $177.87.Easily print from anywhere using your phone or tablet (Airprint on iPhone or iPad). Speedy print speeds of 21 pages/minute black and white, or 16.5 pages/minute color. Also capable of borderless and double-sided printing. Save up to 50% on Ink with HP Instant Ink: ordered by your printer and delivered to your door before you run out (optional subscription required). See the discounted OfficeJet Pro 8620 on Amazon.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission and Federal Trade Commission have opened parallel inquiries into the way smartphone security updates are issued and handled by major mobile carriers and device makers.The two agencies say they are responding to the growing amount of personal information held in smartphones and a recent rise in the attacks on the security of that information.The FCC has sent letters to AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, and U.S. Cellular asking for information on their processes for reviewing and releasing security updates for mobile devices. The FTC has asked for similar information from Apple, Blackberry, Google, HTC, LG, Microsoft, Motorola, and Samsung.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
IT and security managers in the IT Central Station online community say that the most important characteristics of security information and event management (SIEM) products is the ability to combine information from several sources and the ability to do intelligent queries on that information.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)
HPE/Aruba confirmed today that the company has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Rasa Networks, a network performance management and analytics startup, for an undisclosed amount.As Network World reported last month, HPE/Aruba had been planning the move for several weeks. An internal communique to employees stated that Rasa’s technology would become a part of the company’s Clarity wireless management software, and that Rasa workers would be integrated into Aruba’s R&D team, reporting to CTO and co-founder Keerti Melkote.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
The Federal Trade Commission today said it issued a 10-page letter to eight leading players in the mobile communications arena requiring them to tell the agency how they issue security updates to address vulnerabilities in smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices.+More on Network World: FTC: Best Practices for businesses facing Internet of Things onslaught+To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here