Floral Design Studio

Morning Glory design is the art of using plant materials and flowers, M.G. create a pleasing and balanced composition for any event .
Flowers make people smile, they add a touch of beauty, and can transform a stark setting into a magical place. M.G. goal is to make anyone happy and bring a smile on everybody face, so with an artistic eye and knowledge of flowers design team works with  clients to customize every detail, creating memorable and personalized events.
http://morningloryflowers.com/

Read More

Mobile Phoen watch with Camera Free Shipping Mq998 Quad Band Touch Screen Bluetooth Moblie Phone Watch with Camera US $48.66 - 53.66 / piece Order (1) JIAHO LIMITED Offline Shipping: $35.75 / piece via EMS Min. Order: 1 piece +Add to Wish List Aoke 09 AK09 Watch cell Mobile Phone With Bluetooth + FM + 1.3" full touch screen + Camera + Expand memory + Triband US $39.60 / piece Feedback (26) | Orders (49) Shenzhen Hao Han Ying Guang Technolo... Offline Shipping: $37.24 / piece via EMS Min. Order: 1 piece +Add to Wish List Aoke 09 AK09 Watch cell Mobile Phone With Bluetooth + FM + 1.3" full touch screen + Camera + Expand memory + Triband US $39.60 / piece Feedback (26) | Orders (49) Shenzhen Hao Han Ying Guang Technolo... Offline Shipping: $37.24 / piece via EMS Min. Order: 1 piece +Add to Wish List

• 

  Free Shipping Mq998 Quad Band Touch Screen Bluetooth Moblie Phone Watch with Camera

  US $48.66 - 53.66 / piece
  

  Order (1)

  Shipping:

  $50

Read More

After leaving Yahoo after just 5 months and a public scandal

Thompson is hired at ShopRunner,Computerworld - Scott Thompson, who was pushed out as CEO of Yahoo amid scandal this spring, has landed a new job.

ShopRunner, an online shopping network, announced Monday that it has hired Thompson as its CEO. Mike Golden, who co-founded the nearly 2-year-old company, will step down as its CEO and act as company president.

Thompson, who had been Yahoo s CEO for only five months, had been a member of ShopRunner s board of directors.

Michael and I both felt he would be the perfect long-term CEO, said Golden in a statement. We are thrilled that Scott has taken us up on our offer to lead ShopRunner s continued growth.

Yahoo hired Thompson in January. A few months later, he came under heavy criticism when it came to light that the academic credentials on his resume, as listed on Yahoo's Web site and in documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, were inaccurate.

Thompson's resume indicated that he has a degree in computer science, but he does not hold such a degree.

A special three-member committee was set up to investigate the CEO, his academic credentials and the circumstances surrounding his hiring.

Last week, Yahoo hired Google vice president Marissa Mayer ) as its new CEO.

Mayer went to Yahoo after 13 years with Google, where she started out as the company s first female engineer and ended as a top executive.

Read More

Amazon offers to pay vocational training for warehouse staff

The move seems designed to quell criticism over working conditions at its warehouses

IDG News Service - Amazon is offering to cover 95 percent of the cost of vocational training courses to help its warehouse staff pursue jobs in other careers, including many that Amazon does not offer, the company said Monday in a letter posted on its home page.

The move follows criticism that Amazon has faced about reportedly harsh conditions for workers at its fulfillment centers, where orders received online are packaged and shipped out to customers.

"Many of our fulfillment center employees will choose to build their careers at Amazon. For others, a job at Amazon might be a step towards a career in another field. We want to make it easier for employees to make that choice and pursue their aspirations," CEO Jeff Bezos wrote in the letter.

Under the training benefit program, called Career Choice, Amazon will pay up to US$2,000 a year for four years for employees to undertake vocational training for high-demand jobs that pay relatively well.

The company will pay for training in fields such as aircraft mechanics, computer-aided design, machine tool technology, medical laboratory science and nursing, it said. Amazon drew from data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to help it determine which careers to support.

Amazon's fulfillment centers drew criticism after an investigative report last September depicted workers logging long hours in sweltering heat at one location. Protestors raised the issue again at the company's annual shareholders meeting in May, and CEO Jeff Bezos promised to install air conditioning in the warehouses.

Only full-time hourly workers who have been with the company for three consecutive years are eligible for the training benefits. It wasn't immediately clear what proportion of its fulfillment center staff that would include, and Amazon declined to say.

Amazon said in November 2011 that it had more than 15,000 full-time permanent employees in its 34 U.S. warehouses. But an undisclosed number of fulfillment center workers are temporary or part time, and therefore do not appear to meet the Career Choice eligibility requirement.

During the winter holiday season, for example, Amazon brings in "many more people" to staff fulfillment centers, Bezos said in his letter. The company'sfulfillment center career hub also solicits temporary workers.

Still, Amazon's efforts appear to be softening some of its critics. Working Washington, a Seattle-based labor rights group, welcomed Monday's announcement.

"We are glad to see Amazon responding to public concerns and beginning to take steps to improve conditions for workers in their warehouses ... Amazon certainly hasn't solved every problem at their warehouses, but this is a good step," Sage Wilson, a Working Washington representative, said in an email.

Read More

Apple says Samsung doesn't know its chips

Apple asserts there is more than one way to implement an industry standard that does not violate Samsung's patent

IDG News Service - Samsung Electronics is assuming that technology in the iPad and iPhone violates its patents without knowing the actual processes in the devices' chipsets, Apple argued on Tuesday in Australian Federal Court.

The second day of Apple and Samsung's patent trial in Sydney focused on opening arguments centered around patent No. 2005202512, which deals with power regulation during 3G data transmissions.

Apple uses an industry standard for power regulation in its chipsets, but it doesn't mean that the use of the standard means that Samsung's patent has been infringed, said Stephen Burley, who is representing Apple.

Burley argued there are variable ways that the standard can be implemented in the devices' chipsets, which are provided by a third party. "We submit Samsung will not prove its case in that aspect of infringement in any event," he said.

At one time, Samsung had a "contractual provision" with chipmaker Qualcomm to not sue customers of Qualcomm's chips, according to court proceedings on Monday. But the agreement dissolved after Apple sued Samsung in April 2011 in California.

In Australia, Samsung accuses Apple of refusing to negotiate to license three 3G-related patents used in Apple products. Burley said on Tuesday that Apple has been willing to negotiate patent licenses on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms.

Samsung has received correspondence from Apple in the last few weeks, said Neil Young, an attorney representing Samsung. Young told Justice Annabelle Claire Bennett that Samsung would provide a confidential note to her regarding mediation between the two sides.

The trial, which began Monday, is first dealing with Samsung's cross claim regarding Apple's alleged infringement of the three 3G patents. Samsung filed the cross claim after Apple filed suit in July 2011.

Apple alleges Samsung's Galaxy tablet infringes on patents its holds related to touchscreen technology, which will be dealt with later in the trial, scheduled to run through October.

Read More

Intel, Google updating Android 4.1 for Atom tablets, smartphones

Intel is working with Google to complete a port of Android Jelly Bean to x86 smartphones and tablets.

IDG News Service - Intel is porting the Android 4.1 operating system, also called Jelly Bean, to work on smartphones and tablets using low-power Atom processors, the company said this week.

The company did not provide a time frame for when the Android 4.1 port would be complete, or when the OS would be deployed in products.

"Intel continues to work closely with Google to enable future versions of Android, including Jelly Bean, on our family of low power Atom processors," said Suzy Greenberg, a company spokeswoman, in an e-mail.

Smartphones running on Intel chips are currently being rolled out with Android 2.3, code-named Gingerbread, and are due to get Android 4.0, code-named Ice Cream Sandwich, as an update, though a time-frame has not been provided.

Lava International and Orange are among companies that launched Intel Inside smartphones with Gingerbread. Lenovo released an Intel Inside smartphone in China with a customized version of Android, and Motorola is due to release smartphones and tablets Intel chips with the Android OS later this year.

Intel has a minimal presence in the smartphone and tablet markets, which are dominated by ARM. The first tablet to get Android 4.1 was Google's Nexus 7, which was based on an ARM processor. Device makers that license ARM processors such as Asus and HTC are due to deliver over-the-air updates to Android 4.1 for devices in the near future.

ARM's rival MIPS, whose processor designs go into low-cost tablets, is also racing to complete a port of Jelly Bean to work on its processors.

Intel is a big backer of Android, and is mainly putting the OS on smartphones and tablets with its Atom chips code-named Medfield. Intel Inside smartphones carry Medfield chips, and a few tablets have been announced with Medfield. Vizio has announced it would use a Medfield chip in an upcoming 10-inch tablet.

Intel's next-generation Atom chip for tablets, code-named Clover Trail, is being targeted for use only in devices with Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8 OS. Intel is not porting Android for Clover Trail tablets, and hopes to expand its presence in the tablet market primarily around Windows 8 and Clover Trail. Microsoft has also announced Windows RT for ARM processors.

ARM is a step ahead of its rival with devices already carrying Android 4.1. But Intel is trying to attract developers to write applications for Android on Atom processors. It is sponsoring a contest where the company will award $29,000 in cash prizes to attract Android developers to write games for Intel-based tablets and smartphones. As part of the contest, users can test the code in an Android 4.0 emulator.

Google has also said it would release an Android Platform Development Kit (PDK) to hardware companies to customize the OS for a chipset or device ahead of release.

Read More

Dell unveil laptops running Red Hat Enterprise Linux

Dell boosts its commitment to Linux

IDG News Service - Dell is expanding the range of laptops with Linux, with its new Precision mobile workstations being offered with Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 OS as an option.

The company announced two models, the Precision M4700, which has a 15.6-inch screen, and the Precision M6700, which has a 17.3-inch screen. Dell will offer Windows 7, but is also offering Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 for specific regions. Dell did not provide information on the countries in which RHEL would be available.

The company over the last few years had scaled down its Linux offerings on laptops, saying the OS is targeted at specialist users. But Linux is staging a comeback on Dell's laptop, with the company planning to offer the XPS 13 thin-and-light laptop with Ubuntu 12.04, code-named Precise Pangolin, later this year. Dell is also pushing Linux to companies moving away from legacy Unix servers to industry standard servers.

The new Precision laptops run on Intel's latest third-generation Core i5 and i7 processors code-named Ivy Bridge. With powerful processing capabilities, multiple storage slots, and memory support for up to 32GB, the laptops are for users looking to run demanding graphics and scientific applications.

Dell claims the Precision M6700 is the industry's "lightest 17-inch mobile workstation." With a nine-cell battery, the laptop weighs 3.52 kilograms.

A special M6700 edition called Covet will be available with an optional 3D screen and glasses from graphics company Nvidia, which could be useful for programs such as CAD/CAM. The price for the laptop starts at $3,579.

The M4700 weighs roughly 2.78 kilograms with a six-cell battery and is priced starting at $1649.

The laptops have optional Nvidia Quadro or Advanced Micro Devices' FirePro graphics card to boost imaging or scientific applications. The laptops can show images at a high-definition 1920 by 1080-pixel resolution, or buyers can choose lower-resolution screens. Through VGA, HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface) and DisplayPort video ports, the laptops provide multiple monitor connection options.

The laptops offers three storage slots where users can combine a 512GB solid-state drive, a 256GB SSD and a 750GB hard drive. Standard laptops today come with 256GB SSDs, but newer high-performance laptops are being offered with 512GB SSDs, such as Apple's latest 15.4-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display.

The Precisions have USB 3.0 ports and USB 2.0/eSATA ports, and the laptops can be remotely managed and secured by system administrators through on-chip VPro management technology. The laptops can withstand high temperatures, altitude and shock, according to Dell.

Read More

Apple opens up lead on Android in enterprise mobile app dev

 Developers are rapidly losing interest in Windows Phone 7, but see potential in Windows 8

Infoworld - Apple's iOS mobile platform has amassed a substantial lead over Google's Android when it comes to which platform developers prefer for building enterprise mobile applications, according to survey results released Tuesday.

The Appcelerator/IDC second quarter mobile report, which polled 3,600 developers using Appcelerator's Titanium mobile development tools, found that 70 percent of respondents stated they are building applications for an enterprise audience. Fifty-three percent of respondents believe Apple was best positioned for the enterprise, as opposed 37 percent who believe Android has the edge. This is a significant increase from the third quarter of last year, when the two platforms were even at 44 percent.

[ Also on InfoWorld: Find out what developers like about the Android 4.1 "Jelly Bean" OS. | Learn how to work smarter, not harder with InfoWorld's roundup of all the tips and trends programmers need to know in the Developers' Survival Guide. | Stay informed on both on mobile computing and application development by subscribing to InfoWorld's Mobilize and Developer World newsletters. ]

"iOS is basically very well positioned in the enterprise, according to our developers," said Michael King, Appcelerator director of enterprise strategy. Apple has outdone Android in security and management, with Apple offering a measure of control over applications getting onto devices, King said. Apple also has courted enterprise developers, with productivity applications and complex applications built on SAP making their way onto iOS devices, he added.

The study did see stabilization for Android, with 69 percent of respondents very interested in building for the platform. The number had been dropping steadily since peaking at 88 percent several quarters ago. Sixty-seven percent were very interested in Android in last quarter's report. Overall, 63 percent of developers find developing for multiple OSes to be the biggest annoyance they face, King said.

Developers also are cautiously optimistic about the upcoming Windows 8platform, which features the Metro UI geared for tablet interfaces. Sixty-eight percent are interested in Windows 8 and find Metro compelling, the survey found, and 33 percent are interested in developing for Windows 8 tablets.

The currently available mobile OS from Microsoft, Windows Phone 7, did not fare well in the survey, which found declining interest in Windows Phone 7 devices. The number of developers "very interested" in these phones dropped to 25 percent. The number had been 37 percent in the first quarter of this year.

Also, cloud application development is catching on, with 64.2 percent of developers planning to implement mobile cloud services in their applications during the next year. Top services include push, social, user administration, photos, and status updates.

Read More

AT&T posts revenue and income gains on mobile growth

Carrier's mobile data revenue grows 18.8% over a year earlier, profit up nearly 9%

IDG News Service - More mobile customers and increasing mobile data use pushed AT&T's revenue up slightly in the second quarter of 2012 and helped drive an 8.7% increase in net income.

AT&T on Tuesday reported revenue of $31.6 billion, up 0.3% from the second quarter of 2011. Net income was $3.9 billion, compared to $3.6 billion a year ago. Mobile revenue was $16.4 billion, up 4.8% from the second quarter of 2011, and mobile data revenue was up by $1 billion or 18.78%.

Excluding the revenue for AT&T's advertising solutions unit, which it sold May 8, revenue was up 2%, the company said in a press release.

The company reported an addition of 1.3 million mobile customers, bringing the number to 105.2 million.

The company also reported the first revenue growth in its enterprise services in four years, as well as a 1.7% growth in consumer wireline revenue, the largest growth there in more than four years.

AT&T's earnings per share for the quarter were $0.66, beating analyst expectations of $0.63.

The quarterly results showed "strong execution across the board," Susan Johnson, AT&T's senior vice president of investor relations, said in a video posted on the company's website. "No matter how you cut it, we had an outstanding wireless quarter, thanks to our focus on mobile data."

AT&T sold 5.1 million smartphones during the quarter, with 3.7 million of Apple's iPhones activated, the company said in a press release. Smartphone users are "valuable customers" giving AT&T twice the revenue of other mobile customers, Johnson said. About 43 million AT&T mobile customers own smartphones, officials said.

The company's wireline revenue for the quarter was $14.9 billion, down 0.8% from a year ago. Residential wireline revenue was $5.5 billion, up 1.7%. The company's U-verse broadband and television service revenue grew 38.3% from a year ago.

U-verse TV added 155,000 subscribers to reach 4.1 million during the quarter, while U-verse broadband added 553,000 customers to reach 6.5 million. Total broadband connections, including DSL, declined by 96,000, however.

The company reported a "very strong quarterly performance," independent telecom analyst Jeff Kagan said in an email. "While the traditional wire line business may be declining, wireless, Internet and U-verse television are rising."

Read More

Yahoo's embattled former CEO gets new job

After leaving Yahoo after just 5 months and a public scandal, Thompson is hired at ShopRunner

Computerworld - Scott Thompson, who was pushed out as CEO of Yahoo amid scandal this spring, has landed a new job.

ShopRunner, an online shopping network, announced Monday that it has hired Thompson as its CEO. Mike Golden, who co-founded the nearly 2-year-old company, will step down as its CEO and act as company president.

Thompson, who had been Yahoos CEO for only five months, had been a member of ShopRunners board of directors.

Michael and I both felt he would be the perfect long-term CEO, said Golden in a statement. We are thrilled that Scott has taken us up on our offer to lead ShopRunners continued growth.

Yahoo hired Thompson in January. A few months later, he came under heavy criticism when it came to light that the academic credentials on his resume, as listed on Yahoo's Web site and in documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, were inaccurate.

Thompson's resume indicated that he has a degree in computer science, but he does not hold such a degree.

A special three-member committee was set up to investigate the CEO, his academic credentials and the circumstances surrounding his hiring.

Last week, Yahoo hired Google vice president Marissa Mayer ) as its new CEO.

Mayer went to Yahoo after 13 years with Google, where she started out as the companys first female engineer and ended as a top executive.

Read More

Enterprise IT: News, Features, Opinions, and More.

Google's enterprise push a 'future growth engine' Google is looking at its cloud-based apps for the enterprise not as a small side business, but as a major driver of future growth. Free and cheap ways to study for IT certifications Studying for and taking IT certification exams can be costly. These tips can help you find inexpensive study resources and ways to get hands-on experience with the technologies you're studying. Epicor CEO Pervez Qureshi talks company's renewal, SaaS and growth plans Following last year's merger with Activant Solutions, ERP (enterprise resource planning) vendor Epicor is closing in on US$1 billion in revenue, a figure that belies the vendor's relatively low profile compared to giants such as Oracle and SAP. How to manage IT contractors Contract IT workers may walk, talk and code like staff, but in fact they're not company employees -- something managers should keep in mind. Insider (registration required) Microsoft Office 2013 fires shot at Google's enterprise push With the upcoming release of Office 2013, Microsoft is putting a lot of focus on the cloud in a bid to compete with Google. ERP software woes ding aerospace company's profits Aerospace and energy system components manufacturer Woodward is the latest company to see its profits hurt by costs associated with an ERP software project, according to an announcement it made. Graceful exits from IT: Why CIOs decide to move on Some highly successful IT professionals decide the CIO's life isn't for them, so they move on to seek fulfillment elsewhere, perhaps as consultants or entrepreneurs. Do such departures represent a natural progression in the careers of accomplished executives, or do they say something troubling about the working environment of enterprise IT? Globalized IT operations pay off By interlocking business services, companies gain customer knowledge, efficiency and speed. The payoffs are huge, but laying the groundwork for IT standardization is no easy task. Data center fabrics promise flatter, simpler networks Early adopters say revamping a data center's switching gear is worth the time and effort required; benefits include killer bandwidth and more flexibility. Wall Street Beat: Hardware hits headwinds, software picture clears up While hardware and components makers face economic hurdles, the picture for software is getting brighter, according to earnings reports from major vendors and mid-year market research polls. Lenovo close to grabbing PC supremacy from HP If Chinese-based computer manufacturer Lenovo keeps moving at its current pace, the company will surpass Hewlett-Packard as the world's largest PC maker by the beginning of 2013, industry analysts say. Survey finds ERP software project overruns 'distressingly common' It is "distressingly common" to see ERP (enterprise-resource-planning) projects involving Oracle, SAP and Microsoft Dynamics software end up taking longer than customers anticipated, according to a new survey. Tech hotshots: The rise of the IT business analyst Business analysts, whether assigned to IT or embedded elsewhere in the organization, are in high demand. Here's how to manage the analyst relationship to your mutual advantage. BYOD: Big security, small devices Enterprises may be ready for BYOD, but most consumer devices aren't, so vendors are adding high-level security features to their new and upcoming products. Enterprises Must Collaborate and Get Social Now (or Pay Later) Jacob Morgan, author of 'The Collaborative Organization,' speaks passionately about what collaboration can do both inside and outside the enterprise. CIO.com talked to Morgan about the emerging trend and why it's important to act now. Windows 8-powered PCs, tablets to launch in late October Microsoft today said it will officially launch Windows 8 in late October when it starts selling upgrades and its hardware partners begin selling PCs, tablets and hybrid devices powered by the new operating system. Windows Server 2012 Release Preview: Compelling new features Windows Server 2012 Release Preview features a better virtual desktop experience, much easier DirectAccess deployment and a full-scale file-classification and access control system. Google Glass launches new age of personal computing If Google's latest computing plan stays on track, the definition of a computer could broaden significantly. Bye bye, corporate phone Once a status symbol and a perk, the subsidized corporate phone is being phased out as users demand their own devices -- and are willing to pay for the privilege. Five tips to keep apps from failing No business today that depends on online customers and processes to keep the lights on can afford an application meltdown. When an application critical to core business processes or revenues, such as a company's Web server, is down for even an hour it can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. ERP vendors Syspro, Unit4 launch app stores The app store model popularized by Apple is gaining further adoption in the world of ERP (enterprise-resource-planning) software, with new stores announced this week by Syspro and Unit4. Putting predictive analytics to work Predictive analytics involves both art and science, but getting started isn't for high rollers only. Here's how to ensure a successful outcome. Could cloud computing change how we communicate? At least one CIO has already done away with email and Office. Insider (registration required) Cloud-based Office tools: Right for you? When you're adopting cloud software, you need to think about features and functions, of course, as well as the costs involved. But process changes and user training can be even bigger factors. Insider (registration required) New Oracle OpenWorld details give early look at company's plans Oracle tends to keep a tight lid on the specific announcements it will make each year at the OpenWorld conference prior to show time, but a newly released session catalog provides plenty of clues and fodder for speculation as to what's in store at the event, which runs from Sept. 30 to Oct. 4 in San Francisco. Data center fabrics catching on, slowly Early adopters say the expense and time spent to revamp a data center's switching gear are well worth it; benefits include killer bandwidth and more flexibility. Survival guide: Do's and don'ts for next-gen IT Business IT is evolving behind your back. Here's how to head off extinction and assert a larger role Long live SOA in the cloud era You might not hear much about SOA anymore, but its imperative to make 'everything a service' is more relevant than ever Lowe's seeks to attract future workers with social tools At home improvement retailer Lowe's, executives aren't just focusing on their current employees. They're casting an eye toward the people they'll be hiring months or even years from now. Cisco takes social collaboration to the cloud Cisco announced that a cloud-based version of its social collaboration software will be available in North America in July Oracle profit jumps 8 percent, though hardware sales decline Profits at Oracle climbed 8 percent in the quarter just ended, though hardware sales declined and overall revenue was up only slightly. Samsung's SAFE for Galaxy S III aims to help IT embrace Android Samsung announced a new program on Monday to help enterprise IT shops feel more confident about allowing workers to use the coming Galaxy S III smartphone on the job. John Reed: Invest in your IT talent; it's the key to retention Businesses that cut training and development during the recession will be challenged to recruit IT professionals to help them grow as the economy improves. Robert Half Technology's John Reed offers tips for stepping up professional development efforts for IT staffers. Joel Capperella: Attract talent by building the IT community at large If you invest in the development of IT professionals outside your company, you help improve the level of talent in the entire IT ecosystem -- and, in turn, the quality of candidates who apply for your jobs, says Yoh's Joel Capperella. Microsoft turning to Yammer to beef up social tools, reports say  Microsoft in serious discussions to buy Yammer, an enterprise social collaboration company, according to reports. Java 7 auto-update could ding Oracle E-Business Suite installs Oracle has issued an "urgent bulletin" asking desktop administrators to immediately turn off the Java Runtime Environment auto-update option "for all Windows end-user desktops connecting to Oracle E-Business Suite Release 11i, 12.0, and 12.1" due to a critical incompatibility. Review: Up close with NetSuite's deep ERP NetSuite offers extensive ERP, CRM, and other business management functionality to organizations that recognize the value proposition associated with SaaS Image gallery: Must-have data center utilities Your peers rely on these tools to help run their shops, for everything from real-time server graphing to capacity planning and virtual machine backup. Raco, Enterprise Mobile join to aid in M2M rollouts Raco Wireless and Enterprise Mobile have joined forces to help companies that lack telecom expertise get machine-to-machine (M2M) services off the ground, and in the process increase the sector's popularity, Raco said on Tuesday. Oracle-SAP retrial delayed Oracle and SAP will have to wait a bit longer to retry their corporate-theft lawsuit, according to a filing made Friday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Busting down the info silos Savvy business leaders are starting to recognize the paybacks of helping all their business groups work from the same data. BYOD: IT execs learn to let go of 'command and control' mindset Forward-thinking tech execs are learning how to stop worrying and love the gadget, lest their business units attempt an end-run around IT. Insider (registration required) Mobile Devices Enterprise Android Use 'Severely Limited' Adoption of Android tablets and smartphones in enterprises has been 'severely limited' by the complexities of managing the wide variety of devices and versions of the operating system, research firm Gartner said in a new report. The Grill: Tracey Rothenberger wears two hats at Ricoh Americas To help lead the merger of two multibillion-dollar companies -- IKON Office Solutions and Ricoh Americas -- Tracey Rothenberger last year added chief process officer to his existing titles of senior vice president and CIO. Extreme BI More organizations are developing mature BI infrastructures and practices to analyze data to develop ideas about what will happen in the future so they can craft better strategies to cope with what's ahead. Insider (registration required) IT Skills: Jumping the Chasm The current tech talent gap is just the first sign of a coming revolution in the IT labor market. Here's how to secure your footing now and brace for what's ahead. Technology for the Greater Good Dozens of 2012 Computerworld Honors laureates are leveraging low-cost, consumer-oriented technologies to create and deploy systems and applications designed to benefit society, especially in the areas of education and healthcare. 10 SaaS delivery companies to watch Analysts and industry watchers agree that the next frontier for SaaS is setting distribution channels designed specifically for the cloud and providing mechanisms for managing multiple SaaS offerings from a single control point. These advancements will likely come from a variety of sources: established SaaS vendors, startups providing SaaS channel enabling software, and cloud service brokerage houses. Here are 10 to watch, listed in alphabetical order. Attention IT: Your interns have something to teach you IT interns brought innovation to NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab, the White House and We Energies. Here's how to inspire similar results from your summer crew. Mobile device management: Getting started Get started by focusing on the device(s) and the data plan, security issues and general policies. Global business services net big returns By interlocking business services, companies gain customer knowledge, efficiency and speed. The payoffs are huge, but laying the groundwork for IT standardization is no easy task. Google's Motorola buy seen boosting Android in workplace  With the closing of Google's $12.5 billion acquisition of Motorola Mobility this week, talk of the possibilities for Android in the enterprise has spiked. Microsoft server and tool upgrades demand CIOs' attention CIOs and IT directors tracking the barrage of major upgrades for Windows and Office also need to stay tuned to the refresh cycle for Microsoft's servers and tools, including Windows Server 2012, SQL Server 2012, System Center 2012 and Visual Studio 11. Minn. executive branch picks Microsoft to improve email, collaboration The Executive Branch of the Minnesota state government uses cloud-hosted Microsoft email and collaboration software, first as part of BPOS and later, Office 365. Security researcher urges IT to keep up with SAP patches More than 95 percent of over 600 SAP systems tested by security firm Onapsis were vulnerable to espionage, sabotage and fraud, mainly because patches had not been applied, according to a researcher. Wolfram unveils system modeling tool Expanding beyond its scientific and engineering number-crunching software, Mathematica maker Wolfram Research released a desktop application for full-scale system modeling and simulation. Google becomes hardware company with $12.5B Motorola buy Google said Tuesday morning that it has closed the deal to acquire Motorola Mobility for $12.5 billion Silver Peak bolsters virtual WAN optimization software Silver Peak upgraded the software for its WAN appliance to handle automated optimization for TCP and non-TCP traffic, 512,000 simultaneous connections for 10 gigabit-per-second (Gbps) infrastructures and support for a bunch of common hypervisors. The Cobol Brain Drain As baby boomers retire, the business processes they used to create their Cobol programs may walk out the door with them. Here's what IT organizations are doing about it. Up-and-Coming Tech Jobs Big changes in IT are spawning a new class of tech job titles. Here are a few up-and-comers -- and a rundown of the skills you need to land these positions. The Grill: TASC CIO Barbie Bigelow CIO Barbie Bigelow led the effort to build an IT organization and infrastructure from scratch when the TASC systems engineering operation was spun off from Northrop Grumman. Her team completed the cutover in just under 12 months. Managing Mobile Mania Unified communications isn't easy or cheap, but for companies that want to differentiate their customer service, it's becoming a must-have. Insider (registration required) Cisco mobility bundles target BYOD, mobile virtual desktop Cisco announced three pre-tested bundles of products and services designed to cut through the confusing complexity of enterprise mobility. VMware envisions virtualization in post-PC, BYOD era VMware wasn't just looking to save money when it launched a BYOD plan with the mandate that all of its U.S. employees use their personal mobile phones for work. It was taking a crash-course that would help shape its vision of post-PC era computing. SAP puts its HANA in-memory database in the spotlight SAP seems to be betting its future on its HANA in-memory database, spotlighting the technology once again at the Sapphire conference in Orlando Wednesday, announcing a slew of new applications, partnerships and functional enhancements for the system. Unified communications still fragmented The technology may get a big push from mobile adoption, but integration among multiple UC components is still a tough slog. NetSuite rolls out commerce-as-a-service platform NetSuite is going up against vendors such as Demandware and Venda in the market for cloud-based e-commerce platforms, announcing a new product, SuiteCommerce, during the SuiteWorld conference in San Francisco on Tuesday. SAP lays out cloud strategy post-SuccessFactors deal SAP announced a broad set of plans to become a player in cloud computing, spanning from a "loosely coupled suite" of business applications to data integration and PaaS (platform as a service) Tuesday during the Sapphire conference in Orlando. SAP certifies Business All-in-One for Amazon Web Services SAP has certified its Business All-in-One ERP application for cloud-based deployments on Amazon Web Services, the companies announced Friday. Public-sector cloud computing: The good, the bad and the ugly From California and Utah to Ohio, Massachusetts and Maine, state and local governments are using the cloud to update antiquated systems, but the hurdles are high. Epicor to move its apps to Microsoft's Azure cloud Epicor is planning to work with Microsoft to bring Epicor's ERP (enterprise resource planning) applications to the Azure cloud service, the companies announced Tuesday during Epicor's Insights conference in Las Vegas. Today, printers. Tomorrow, 'integrated peripherals'? Printers are evolving from passive devices as vendors cram more features into them and buyers find ways to better integrate them into the overall environment. No big shift to the cloud for unified communications and collaboration The 2012 IDG Enterprise Unified Communications and Collaboration survey highlights the uptick in adoption and investments. Insider (registration required) Half of all Macs will lack access to security updates by summer Unless Apple changes its security update practice, nearly half of all Mac users will be adrift without patches sometime this summer. Open-source cloud frameworks: A work in progress Here's a look at the growing list of open-source platform-as-a-service providers and how IT managers can decide where the technology fits best in their organizations. Wide-Open Search With the explosion of unstructured data, companies are looking for more options for enterprise search. Here's a look at the benefits and limitations of open-source search-enabled applications. Turning Long Demands Into a Short List IT is under pressure to get more agile in its delivery methods and pursue flexible prioritization strategies to work with, not against, the burgeoning needs of the business. Sage moves ERP apps to Microsoft's Azure cloud Following an ongoing industry trend, Sage Group is moving a number of its ERP software products to Microsoft's Azure cloud service. iPad in the Enterprise: IT Must Stay Ahead of the Curve In a wide-ranging interview, an Apple expert shares real-world experiences about iPads in the enterprise, mobile device management and BYOD. Key takeaways for IT: Don't improvise when it comes to iPad adoption and don't get bypassed by rogue users. IBM goes after enterprise mobility projects IBM took steps on Monday to help enterprises go mobile, introducing a set of software and services called Mobile Foundation. Holistic Virtualization To take full advantage of virtualization's high-level benefits, companies must view the technology's capabilities across the entire IT organization. Here's some expert advice on creating a virtualization strategy that looks at the big picture. Insider (registration required) Google Drive could be a boon -- and a headache -- for IT With the launch of Google Drive this week, IT managers can look forward to a potential new productivity tool -- and some significant headaches, analysts say SAP sees strong momentum for HANA and SuccessFactors business Business software vendor SAP expects software and software-related service revenue to increase in the range of 10 to 12 percent at constant currencies during the year, largely in line with preliminary estimates that the company released earlier this month. Most initial Oracle Fusion Applications customers going with cloud deployment Most of the 250 customers that have licensed Oracle's recently launched Fusion Applications so far have chosen a SaaS deployment model instead of running it on-premises, a senior executive said this week during the Collaborate user group conference in Las Vegas. The Upside of Shadow IT As employees bypass IT and regularly subscribe to collaboration, analytic and other cloud services with the press of a button, some of the savviest CIOs are embracing and even encouraging shadow IT. Here's why. Help for the Help Desk Whether it's a 'teaching moment' or a system that provides more efficient ticket tracking, the help desk is getting a much-needed assist in some shops. The Grill: SuperValu's Wayne Shurts on 'intensely business-focused IT' Wayne Shurts, executive vice president and CIO at SuperValu, talks about how he's working to help the IT department at the grocery retailer better support the company's overall business. Insider (registration required) E-discovery in the Cloud Companies often assume data in the cloud is inherently discoverable, but is it? Know what questions to ask your cloud vendor so you can get your data back when required. Microsoft touts corporate tools in Windows 8 Enterprise Microsoft yesterday laid out the exclusive features of Windows 8 Enterprise, one of three editions of the upcoming OS and the only one limited to corporate customers. Amazon Web Services offers one-click purchase of cloud apps from IBM, SAP, others Amazon Web Services on Thursday announced a new online marketplace that allows customers to buy software and services from a variety of vendors at hourly rates through its cloud infrastructure platform. Workday update pushes it deeper into Oracle, SAP's turf Workday is rolling out version 16 of its cloud-based ERP (enterprise resource planning) software to customers this week, an update that includes upgrades to the financials component that could help it steal away deals with large enterprises from the likes of Oracle and SAP. Time to de-Flash your site? Flash is a problem for iDevices, which makes mobile access to a website problematic. Here's what smart shops are doing about it. BYOD: 'The inmates of the asylum have control' Mobile devices are multiplying and -- sanctioned or unsanctioned -- finding their way onto corporate networks. For IT pros, the influx of personal mobile devices to the corporate network is raising security concerns, creating management challenges, and swamping the help desk with support calls. Should the CIO know how to code? With IT integral to the business, an increasing number of companies are hiring CIOs who didn't rise through the ranks. Is that a good thing? Insider (registration required) Software AG buys messaging company my-Channels Software AG said Monday that it has acquired U.K. middleware company my-Channels, which develops low-latency messaging software that will be used to extend Software AG's current offerings. SAP revenue rises 11% in first quarter, but margin shrinks SAP published preliminary figures for its first-quarter results on Friday, showing revenue up 11% year on year, but margins shrinking with operating profit up only 6%. Chevron's CIO Talks Transformation and Why IT Leaders Should Smile In the latest installment of the CIO Interview Series, Louie Ehrlich, CIO and president of Chevron Information Technology Company, talks about the most important things he's learned leading a giant, global IT team through massive change. His answers may sound simple, but they're hard-won lessons for Ehrlich, the top tech executive for the nearly $250 billion energy company, whose transformation effort has yielded the better part of a billion dollars in payback for Chevron. Insider (registration required) SAP lays out plans to become big player in databases, mobile SAP made a series of announcements on Tuesday as part of its bid to become a high-profile player in the database market alongside the likes of Oracle and IBM. Melissa P. Dodd Melissa P. Dodd, CIO of the Boston Public Schools, shares her ideas on running a large school system's IT department. Insider (registration required) Data analytics driving medical breakthroughs Big data and other technologies are poised to start saving lives and enhancing quality of life for sick patients.

Read More