NetworkingNexus.net

If managers aren’t engaged, do you think workers are?

Employee engagement is one of the most important key performance indicators businesses use to gauge success. But Gallup's most recent research shows that engagement's remained stagnant for the last few years. If organizations want to improve their competitive edge and attract elite talent, they have to make engagement a priority.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

How to define the evolving role of data scientist

In its recently released 25 Best Jobs in America for 2016 report, Glassdoor listed data scientist as number 1 career -- but it wasn't just top of the list for tech. It topped every industry. The report cites 1,736 openings in the field, a median base salary of $115,840 and an overall job score of 4.7 out of a total 5, which are all promising stats for this quickly growing career path. But the fast-paced growth for data science jobs has been met with a severe lack of qualified candidates. And businesses that do hire data scientists often have no idea how to effectively utilize their skills.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Researchers crack new version of CryptXXX ransomware

Researchers from Kaspersky Lab have developed a method of decrypting files affected with the latest version of CryptXXX, a malware program that combines ransomware and information-stealing capabilities.CryptXXX was first discovered in April by security researchers from Proofpoint. In addition to encrypting user files on local drives and network shares, the malware also steals saved log-in credentials from browsers, instant messaging applications, FTP clients and email clients. It then asks for a US$500 ransom to be paid in bitcoins.Researchers from Kaspersky Lab found a way to recover files affected by the original variant of CryptXXX and created a decryptor tool. However, on May 6, CryptXXX authors released a new version that rendered that tool ineffective.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Researchers crack new version of CryptXXX ransomware

Microsoft closes in on Apple as top tablet maker

Microsoft’s smartphone business may be a flop, but the company is really taking it to Apple in the area of laplets, a new category somewhere between laptops and tablets. It's for devices with a detachable screen to be used as a tablet, but with a bigger screen than your average tablet.According to new research by 1010data, laplets are making big gains this year. The numbers are being released in advance of a full report that is due this week. While the Apple iPad is still the dominant tablet at 32.5 percent market share, Microsoft has come on very strong with the Surface Book, which is in second place at 25 percent, up 9 percentage points year over year.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Washington nudges Verizon, striking unions back to bargaining table

Representing a rare hopeful sign in what is now an acrimonious month-long work stoppage, Verizon management and some 40,000 striking employees have agreed to return to the bargaining table tomorrow after the weekend intervention of U.S. Labor Secretary Thomas Perez. From a Department of Labor press release: Today, Secretary Perez met at the U.S. Labor Department with Lowell McAdam, chairman and CEO of Verizon; Chris Shelton, president of the Communications Workers of America; and Lonnie Stephenson, president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The parties had an open, frank and constructive dialogue about finding a comprehensive way forward to resolve disputed issues and get people back to work. The parties agreed to return to the bargaining table on Tuesday to continue their discussion.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Washington nudges Verizon, striking unions back to bargaining table

Tim Cook’s visit to China may help build bridges with consumers, developers, local companies

Apple CEO Tim Cook tweeted on Monday from Beijing a photograph of himself and Didi Chuxing’s President Jean Lui catching a cab, showing off the company’s spanking new relationship with China’s largest ride-hailing firm.A US$1 billion investment in Didi, announced last week, could be the harbinger of a long-term relationship that some analysts speculate could lead to the U.S. company partnering with the ride-hailing company not only in providing software and services, but also down the line in jointly developing self-driving cars.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

GUI Vs. CLI In Networking

Network devices should give engineers the ability to move beyond a graphical user interface to command line.

IDG Contributor Network: AtScale scoops up $11 million in Series B funding for its Hadoop-based BI

The Apache Hadoop ecosystem is a busy one.Cloudera, HortonWorks, MapR, IBM, Microsoft, Datastax and Pivotal are but a few of the vendors either focusing purely on Hadoop or offering a Hadoop product on the side. And why not? The open-source software framework for distributed computing and data storage has grown from strength to strength.The genesis of Hadoop came from a paper published back in 2003 by Google. A few years later, Doug Cutting, who at the time was working for Yahoo, took up the project and gave it a name (after his son's toy elephant, no less). And from that humble beginning, a massive ecosystem has grown.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Making IT A Strategic Choice

Strategic IT organizations treat compute, storage, and networking as a pool of general-purpose resources.

New products of the week 5.16.16

New products of the weekOur roundup of intriguing new products. Read how to submit an entry to Network World's products of the week slideshow.Appian Quick AppsKey features: Appian Quick Apps enables citizen developers without technical knowledge to create fully-functional business application in 15 minutes or less. Apps are automatically supported on leading devices, desktop web browsers and mobile devices. More info.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

New products of the week 5.16.16

Review: Wave 2 Wi-Fi delivers dramatic performance boost for home networks

Mention "home Wi-Fi router" and you’ll probably think of a cheap device with cruddy performance. But dramatic changes are coming, with big boosts in bandwidth, thanks to two new Wi-Fi technologies. Both beamforming and MU-MIMO (an acronym for the mouthful that is “multi-user, multiple input, multiple output”) are transformational technologies. We tested them in the new Linksys EA-7500, the company’s first small office/home office router to support the so-called Wave 2 technologies.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

The Minds Of Men

Do size and speed really matter that much? When you're in IT, they do.

What is Wi-Fi beamforming and MU-MIMO?

New home Wi-Fi routers have some impressive advanced features to help boost speed, range and capacity. Network World Lab Alliance member David Newman explains how beamforming and MU-MIMO technologies work in the latest Wi-Fi routers.

5 ways Microsoft has improved SharePoint security

"Users will always find a way to get their job done. And if security gets in their way, they will find another, likely less secure, way to get their job done."Navjot Virk made that point during the launch of the latest version of SharePoint, Microsoft’s 15-year-old content management and collaboration platform. More than 200,000 organizations use SharePoint, which today reaches more than 190 million users.Security is one of four key areas of investment in the new SharePoint, according to Jeff Teper, corporate vice president for the OneDrive and SharePoint teams (pictured with Virk). Teper presided over Microsoft’s Future of SharePoint event, held last week, and detailed enhancements to SharePoint Online in the cloud and SharePoint Server on-premises. Together, Teper and Virk gave an overview of Microsoft’s investments in security, privacy and compliance in SharePoint and the OneDrive online storage service. The common theme is tighter, more granular security controls that aim to help IT strike the desired balance between security and user productivity. Here are the specifics.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)

5 ways Microsoft has improved SharePoint security

"Users will always find a way to get their job done. And if security gets in their way, they will find another, likely less secure, way to get their job done."To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)

Let’s Focus on Realistic Design Scenarios

An engineer working for a large system integrator sent me this question:

Since you are running a detailed series on leaf-and-spine fabrics these days, could you please suggest if following design scenarios of Facebook and Linkedin Data centers are also covered?

Short answer: No.