text:
The Washington Post's E.J. Dionne reports that Massachusetts "may be on the verge of creating two new export commodities: an attractive central-casting conservative governor and a young passionate idealist." LINK
Dionne picks up on Deval Patrick not being able to tell whether the words read to him by a Boston Globe reporter about "hope" vs. "fear" were his own or those of former President Clinton.
Ohio Republican gubernatorial candidate Ken Blackwell told supporters that he does not question Democratic opponent Ted Strickland's sexuality but does fault him for not "standing up" as a congressman for sexually abused children, Notes the Cincinnati Enquirer's Jon Craig. LINK
Iowa's gubernatorial candidates Democrat Chet Culver and Republican Jim Nussle have amassed more than $13 million in combined donations making it the most expensive campaign for any office in the state's history, Notes the Des Moines Register's Beaumont. LINK
More from the Quad City Times. LINK
The Wall Street Journal's ed board writes that one GOP incumbent doing well in an otherwise bad year for Republicans is Gov. Bob Riley (R-AL), "in large part for the ironic reason that he failed to raise taxes."
2006: ballot measures:
ABC News' Dean Reynolds takes a closer look at the abortion battleground that is South Dakota this fall. LINK
With $107 million raised to date, the Washington Post's John Pomfret reports that Proposition 87, the California ballot measure over big oil, may be the costliest in U.S. history, eclipsing the $93 million spent on a 1998 ballot measure to legalize casinos on Indian reservations. LINK
2008: Republicans:
Michael Levenson and Scott Helman of the Boston Globe follow up on Gov. Mitt Romney's Mormon fundraising strategy down in Florida while campaigning with fellow Gov. Jeb Bush (R-FL). Romney told reporters that he would use all avenues for fundraising for as he "eyes a run at the presidency in 2008. 'Clearly, I'm going to raise money from people I know, and that includes BYU alums, people of my church, people of other churches, Harvard Business School graduates. . . '" LINK
Note Romney's explicit Globe bashing. Gov. Romney is just one of many prominent GOPers campaigning in the Sunshine State to help save Katharine Harris's congressional seat from falling into Democratic hands. LINK
The Cato Institute gave Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR) a failing grade yesterday for his budget policies, but political scientists don't seem to believe it will his presidential aspirations, Notes the Arkansas News Bureau's Aaron Sadler. LINK
2008: Democrats:
Keying off of Sen. Lieberman's experience beating back the Lamont insurgency in Connecticut, the Wall Street Journal's Daniel Henninger writes that Democrats need a "belief-based centrist, with national name recognition, to hold off McCain, Romney or Giuliani" in 2008.
The New York Post's Bishop looks at the $5 million Sen. Clinton has spent on campaign ads this fall and reports that her current ad buyer did similar work for MoveOn.org in 2004. LINK
Looking ahead to 2008, the Chicago Tribune ed board tackles Sen. Barack Obama's (D-IL) tough decision and wonders if this is his time.LINK
The Boston Herald Notes that Obama is making a Bay State campaign stop for gubernatorial candidate Deval Patrick (D-MA) today. LINK


text:
The debate is: is it child abuse?
That's fucked up.
I think it's inappropriate and who would even want to do that with their child in the same room, let alone attached to their boob?
Sara (32) DD (2)
Twin Girls born 1/2/2013
"Ooh what are you going to bake?" babbs1209
"Ooh what are you going to bake?" babbs1209
WTF??? Honestly I am ashamed to be a human being sometimes....
Brendan 12/05/07
Cayden 08/28/12
what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Click here to view Figure 1.
Hate is a powerful word. Yet, it accurately describes how IT professionals feel about cloud computing. They're not screaming it from the rooftops, or starting protests in social media, but there's a quiet level of vitriol we hear whenever we speak with IT professionals about the cloud in our daily conversations, at industry conferences, and in other settings.
Yes, cloud computing can cut costs (if done properly). Yes, cloud computing can improve economies of scale. And yes, cloud computing can streamline IT processes. Despite these and other clear-cut benefits, there are many infrastructure administrators who find enough problems with cloud computing that they end up loathing the whole concept altogether.
Why do IT pros hate the cloud? Some find it hard to believe that cloud computing is only continuing to gain popularity. Some object to the purely technical issues that pose problems for IT pros who are used to maintaining data and applications in-house. They feel the cloud creates more work for them. Oftentimes, the issue is rooted in the difficulty that IT admins are having transitioning to new roles. With cloud-based infrastructure, platforms, or software, hands-on technical skills aren't needed as much as they once were in IT. Instead, many enterprises seek professionals who can act as systems architects, bringing a high-level vision of end-to-end infrastructure.
With time, these and other pet peeves will be resolved. For now, though, cloud hatred is a serious problem. So serious, in fact, that it can distort the roadmap for many IT organizations. If the cloud is ignored, it can cost businesses time, money, and productivity. While some IT shops can get away with avoiding anything cloud-related today, this won't be an option for most of us in the future.
That's why it's so important to air these concerns and discuss them now. In all likelihood, the cloud is here to stay, so it's important that we identify what's causing the hate, so it can be addressed and we can all move forward. Once you've reviewed this airing of the grievances, let us know how you feel about the cloud. Have you found workarounds to lessen the pain caused by cloud implementations? Have we missed anything about cloud computing that you simply cannot stand? Tell us all about it in the comments section below.]]>
In case you missed it, KFC has invented a placemat that doubles as a Bluetooth keyboard for your smartphone or tablet. it's being tested in the quick-service restaurant's outlets in Germany.
The idea is that this will keep grease off your mobile device and allow you to work while you eat that finger-licking good chicken.
This leads me to a couple of questions. Why KFC Germany, first? I would assume American KFC customers are messier. Also, what happened to eating with one hand? That's what I do when I'm using my smartphone in a restaurant.
Click here to view Figure 1.
The placemats are washable and reusable, bendable and free to any customer to use in the store. Now, if they only made them out of cookies, like they do their coffee cups, we'd have it made.
[ Remember when KFC made an edible coffee cup? No? Read IT Pros: Live Long and Eat Your Coffee Cup. ]
I expect KFC is going to spark an arms race of technology-driven fast-food innovations. So I got to thinking about what I'd like even more than keyboard placemats to keep my phone nice and clean. Here's my list:
1. Napkins. Seriously people. Are we really so intent on crushing all that candy while stuffing food in our mouths that we can't just pause and wipe our fingers for a second?
2. Smart Gloves. To use while eating with your hands so you don't get your smart watch greasy.
3. Forks. Hey America (and Germany), let me introduce you to an invention. It is called the fork. Europeans have used it since the 16th century. It has been used in parts of the world since the 9th century. It is for keeping your hands clean while you eat.
4. The Cup Mouse. If the tray is the keyboard, your soda has to be the mouse right? Just move it along the table to move the cursor on your laptop.
Click here to view Figure 2.
What do you think? Would you use a KFC typing placemat? What is the best solution of the bunch? Tell me in the comments section below.]]>
Click here to view Figure 1.
Whether you're getting ready to head to the beach, put in overtime at the gym to get your behind-schedule beach body ready before the summer heatwave hits, or simply celebrate the return of long sunny days and backyard barbecues, now's a good time to take a look at the latest, snazziest gadgets available.
It doesn't have to be all about self-indulgence, however: If you've got a recent high school or college graduate in the family, this could be the perfect time to gain "preferred uncle" status by making a gift of a brand new Macbook or waterproof smartphone.
In addition, Fathers Day is right around the corner, making this an idea time to start searching for the perfect way to say thanks to Dad, perhaps with a high-tech outdoor grill. Did you know they come with LCD displays these days? You could also consider the just-dorky-enough-to-be-cool IO Hawk, an electric skateboard-style device that uses Segway-style body motion controls to bring you up to speed.
If you want to go a little crazy, price-wise, you could also spring for a DJI Phantom 3 Advanced Quadcopter drone, which features a 14-megapixel camera that is capable of shooting 1080p video. It has an app for Apple iOS or Google Android devices that lets users fully control the drone.
Although it costs about $1,000 -- batteries included, thank you -- the drone is packed with features including GPS navigation with auto takeoffs and auto landings, intelligent high power flight battery, and a built-in safety database of no fly zones, although at this point we would hope you know enough to keep it away from the White House lawn.
We've also included some perennial favorites like a compact digital camera (selfie-stick not included), an HD display to help you spruce up your aging desktop, and a Bluetooth-enabled portable speaker so you can blast your favorite summer bangers by pool or on the beach.
Take a look at this summer season's best high-tech gadgets that would be perfect as a gift or a treat to yourself, but don't blame us if you wind up buying all of them.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek Conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
The past week has been a busy one in Redmond. Microsoft has moved full speed ahead with even more updates for Windows 10 and its Office suite, following close on the heels of its Build 10080 for Windows 10 Mobile.
Early in the week, Microsoft announced the public preview of its Word, Excel, and PowerPoint apps on Android Phones. This news arrives a few months after Office was released in full on Android tablets.
The Office for Android phone apps are optimized for touchscreen and deliver a familiar Office layout that resembles Office for iOS, but is specifically formatted for Android. Design features include menu options located at the bottom of the screen for easier thumb navigation.
[What's in store for Windows 10 Mobile? Read: Windows 10 Mobile: 5 Questions We Want Answered]
Android customers can use the Office apps to open, create, edit, and save files to the cloud. They have their pick of storage platforms, which include OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, Dropbox, SharePoint, Box, and Google Drive. Microsoft noted that the current Office Mobile app for Android will continue to be available in the app store throughout the preview period.
Speaking of OneDrive, Microsoft also announced in the past week that OneDrive for Business has been updated with new data-loss-prevention capabilities for sync. The update addresses the need for businesses to ensure that users can only sync files to managed or domain-joined PCs, which prevents them from leaking data onto home and personal devices.
The new feature, targeted at OneDrive for Business Administrators, will allow IT to manage their sync function in order to limit data leakage. Administrators can build a list of domains from which they will allow sync client requests. If OneDrive for Business sync requests come from PCs that aren't domain-joined or on the list, they will be blocked.
Outlook.com got a facelift this week with an updated inbox and calendar, and also new ways to facilitate collaboration. Upcoming features include Clutter, for sorting and prioritizing email messages; new themes; updated Skype experience; easier OneDrive sharing capabilities; search suggestions; inline images for copying and pasting photos; link previews; and a new mobile Web experience.
Click here to view Figure 1.
This is the first in a series of updates that will upgrade Outlook.com to a new infrastructure based on Office 365. It's only available to a small group of customers right now, but will reach a broader audience through an opt-in program over the coming weeks.
Remember back at Ignite when we learned that Sway would eventually be available for business and education customers in Office 365? Microsoft in the past week started rolling out Sway to these groups, with added support for more languages. More updates on Sway include the ability to insert Wikipedia information on people and places, add personal and group images on Flickr, and structure Sway with a new Grid Card layout.
In what is likely the last Office update for the week, Office 365 has new eDiscovery capabilities powered with Equivio Zoom. Microsoft acquired text analytics startup Equivio back in January with the goal of improving the eDiscovery and information governance capabilities available in Office 365 at the time.
Equivio Zoom will help users analyze unstructured data, more efficiently review documents, and make decisions necessary to reduce data for eDiscovery. They can use the service for data stored within Exchange Online, OneDrive for Business, SharePoint Online, and Skype for Business. Microsoft noted in a blog post that Equivio Zoom will be available in preview starting in June, and eventually reach a larger audience before the end of 2015.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
Smartwatch aficionados looking for an option beyond current market offerings will soon be able to order the Pebble Time, a smartwatch which sports a 1.25-inch, color e-paper display with LED backlight. Pebble Technology Corp. has announced that the devices will start shipping on Wednesday to early supporters of its Kickstarter campaign.
More than 78,000 backers brought Pebble Time into being by pledging more than $20 million dollars on Kickstarter, according to the company. Those who participated in the campaign will be the first to receive the smartwatch as part of their reward package. The company is finalizing mobile apps to be available in time for the smartwatch's market debut.
"Production is now in full swing since bringing the factory online at the beginning of May," the company announced on its Kickstarter page. "With things moving along at this rate, we expect all Pebble Time Rewards to be manufactured by the end of the month."
The watch was offered at a discounted price of $159 to early backers, down from its $199 list price. Second-tier supporters will pay $179.
The Pebble Time, which can connect with a user's iPhone or Android smartphone, counts Jawbone, Evernote, RunKeeper, eBay and Pandora amongst its partners. The Pebble Steel, made with stainless steel and offering water resistance and an optical hard coating for scratch resistance, is slated to be available in July.
[ Does anybody really know what time it is? This guy does. Read NTP's Fate Hinges On Father Time. ]
The smartwatch features an array of sensors, including a 3D accelerometer, compass, ambient light sensor and microphone, with the company claiming a battery life of up to 7 days, and a USB charging cable with magnetic connector is included.
Apps are accessed via a new My Pebble screen, formerly known as the Locker. It allows users to organize what's on their Pebble by Watchfaces and Apps/Timeline.
Click here to view Figure 1.
"Our software team has been cranking non-stop to get Pebble Time's mobile apps ready for their debut next week," the company said in its Kickstarter post. "The apps will work exclusively with Pebble Time and Pebble Time Steel when they arrive on iTunes and Google Play. The current Pebble apps on iTunes and Google Play will still be around to manage the original Pebble and Pebble Steel."
The launch follows Apple's highly publicized and closely watched Apple Watch, which has met with mixed reviews even as it raises consumer awareness of smartwatches in general. LG and Samsung are among those offering Android-based smartwatches. NextMarket Insights projected in a 2013 report that the overall smartwatch market would grow from 15 million watches shipped in 2014 to 373 million by 2020.
[ Did you miss any of the InformationWeek Conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going. ]]]>
Last week, Microsoft research claimed that the human attention span has dropped 25% in just over a decade, falling from 12 seconds in 2000 to 8 seconds in 2013. The company actually takes this as positive news, since it's the result of our brains adapting to modern technology.
It's also good for Microsoft employees, who now have a company-approved distraction in the form of a Solitaire tournament. In honor of the game's 25th birthday, Microsoft is hosting a competition to determine its internal champion. You'll be able to join come June, when the tournament opens to the public.
In other Microsoft gaming news, we learned this week that seasoned game producer Casey Hudson has been appointed creative director at Microsoft Studios. He will primarily focus on developing HoloLens Experiences but also will dedicate time to Xbox and other projects.
[ 9 iOS, Android Apps to Boost Productivity ]
The Microsoft rumor mill brought us news of a new smartphone email app, called Flow, which will bring faster chat capabilities to iOS. On a publicly accessible site, Microsoft leaked details on a service that will work alongside Outlook to bring faster, more natural messaging to Apple devices.
This was a big week for discussions around Windows 10 Mobile. Microsoft last week released Insider Preview build 10080 for mobile devices, and for a brief few days the mobile version of Windows 10 stole the spotlight from its desktop counterpart.
There are still plenty of questions surrounding Windows 10 Mobile, which will be released months following the launch of Windows 10 for desktops. We want to know how businesses will embrace the mobile OS, whether or not it will drive consumer demand, and when it will be released to the public.
One of the biggest questions, though, involves how Windows 10 users will receive OS updates going forward. Earlier in the week we heard that Microsoft would directly update end-user smartphones with new Windows 10 features and fixes. This strategy reflects the process for Windows 10 desktops, which will receive security and performance updates from Microsoft as needed.
Unfortunately for consumers, the upgrade process for Windows 10 Mobile remains cloudy. A report from WinBeta notes, "Microsoft will continue to work closely with mobile operators on testing to meet and exceed quality bars," and that carriers' input will still be considered in the update process. The extent of that input has yet to be determined.
Click here to view Figure 1.
Windows 10 Mobile was overshadowed once again when Microsoft released the new Insider Preview Build 10122 for PCs. Here are a few of the changes that Insiders can expect to see when they download it, and that were shown during keynotes at this year's Build conference:
Key issues for Build 10122 include:
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
You may not have felt it but there was a seismic shift in the landscape of cloud services recently. Just as companies are gearing up plans to make use of cloud computing, a new Gartner report concluded that the number of suppliers able to meet enterprise IT's needs is shrinking, with some in headlong retreat.
HP didn't have a large enough presence among suppliers to make it into the Gartner Magic Quadrant this year. GoGrid, which retreated last year from offering general purpose infrastructure as a service in favor of high performance big data management, was acquired by Datapipe in January. It also dropped out of the listing. Even among the survivors, the Gartner report accompanying the Gartner quadrant rankings made clear that enterprises face fewer choices than they might have thought would be available as recently as a year ago.
Click here to view Figure 1.
The report's writers, led by Gartner cloud analyst Lydia Leong, said new cloud customers must "be extremely cautious" when they're selecting a provider. "Ask specific and detailed questions about the provider's roadmap…" they warned, followed by recommended contract terms "that do not permit the provider to modify substantially or to discontinue the offering without at least 12 months' notice." It's the latter requirement that suggests the true state of the market.
With Gartner's warning ringing in their ears, many IT managers are going to realize no one will ever get fired for choosing Amazon, but that might not be true for alternative suppliers they might have wished to consider.
Cloud providers are discovering that it's hard to make any money as a cloud service supplier. Amazon with its Crazy Eddy, bargain basement pricing, now matched by Google and Microsoft, has made it extremely difficult for new suppliers to gain entry. It relentlessly lowered prices at a time when Wall Street analysts were crying out that Amazon was spending too much on infrastructure and not showing enough profit. Amazon can now show them a set of assets and market share that promise profits for years to come.
[Want to see how Amazon has outstripped the competitiion? See Gartner Doubles Estimate Of Amazon Cloud Dominance.]
So there's a divide emerging that has a handful of "safe" IaaS suppliers on one side, with deep pockets and a commitment to continue investing, and on the other is a large group with a big question mark.
Leong mapped another fault line in the market, what she calls Mode 1 and Mode 2 cloud infrastructure. Mode 1 providers could serve the needs of traditional IT, usually in the form of a coordinated, on-premises-and-off hybrid cloud. Mode 2 type suppliers are oriented toward agile developer groups and IT operations that are pushing toward continuous software delivery and DevOps style operations. A large number of suppliers can meet typical IT needs in Mode 1; a much smaller number meet Mode 2 needs.
Given its proven ability to rapidly spin out new services, Amazon is in both of the select, small groups. Those who aren't clearly positioned will have to get into one or the other mode to survive. The report that accompanied the Magic Quadrant looked at each supplier from that perspective, citing what specific weaknesses it could spot.
What follows on the next page are are key vendor snapshots from the Gartner report, including AWS, Microsoft, Google, IBM, CenturyLink, and VMware.
Vendors: Safe Or Unsafe? Mode 1 Or Mode 2?
First, Amazon provides the yardstick: AWS has "a very pure vision of highly automated, cost-effective IT capabilities, delivered in a flexible, on-demand manner." It has a broad set of data centers around the world, and its style of self-service "primarily appeals to Mode 2 buyers, but is now commonly chosen for Mode 1 needs as well. Transformation efforts are best undertaken in conjunction with a systems integrator."
The report continued by saying Amazon was among the few providers capable of supporting enterprise, mission-critical applications and offered the broadest range of use cases. It's also a thought leader that continues to command mindshare in the marketplace: "it is extraordinarily innovative, exceptionally agile, and very responsive to the market. It has the richest array of IaaS features and PaaS-like capabilities," the report said. As a result it has a strong third party ecosystem growing up around it, making use of its core services.
On the weakness side, the main strike against Amazon is complexity. "AWS can be a complex vendor to manager. Customers must ensure that they receive the level of sales and solution architecture engagement they need…. AWS is a price leader, but it charges separately for optional items that are sometimes bundled with competing offerings. Use of third party cost management tools, such as RightScale Cloud Analytics and Cloudability, is highly recommended."
Gartner also warned that, while Amazon is investing in many new services, those services won't get continued investment if they don't prove popular.
Second, Microsoft's Azure measures up in many respects, though not so well in others. Microsoft is focused on shifting its software business into the cloud, which makes it quite serious about delivering cloud services. It too has well distributed cloud data centers around the world, and "appeals to both Mode 1 and Mode 2 customers, but for different reasons." Mode 1 customers like Microsoft's ability to connect their Microsoft on-premises infrastructure with Azure. Mode 2 customers like Microsoft's investment in making Azure a leading platform as a service for development with familiar Microsoft tools.
Azure has twice the capacity of its 12 largest competitors (excluding Amazon) combined and is suitable for running "general business applications and development environments for Microsoft-centric organizations, cloud-native (or designed for the cloud) applications; batch computing."
On the weaknesses side, Gartner analysts left out the "mission critical enterprise application" category on its Azure use case list. Enterprise workloads could start to be migrated today with an eye toward finishing the process over the coming 12 months, as Microsoft adds more security, availability, and networking flexibility to Azure. "Furthermore, customers express concern about the global impact of many past Azure outages, which may necessitate ensuring that critical applications on Azure have a non-Azure disaster recovery solution."
Its third party ecosystem is young and growing but lacks "extensive experience with the Azure platform." The ecosystem is "very dependent on existing Microsoft relationships." While it's possible to run Linux and heterogeneous environments on Azure, the appeal of doing so isn't strong enough to attract "non-Microsoft-centric organizations." CEO Satya Nadella's declaration that Microsoft "loves Linux" and is embracing other open source code was early recognition of the dilemma.
Google rated much better in its adoption of open source and ability to work with open source code projects than Azure. Its launch of Kubernetes Linux container cluster management got a Gartner nod of approval. Furthermore, Google is a company built on cloud-native applications and it understands how they're developed and launched. With both IaaS (Compute Engine) and PaaS (App Engine), it understands the "fluid notion of the boundaries" between them, where code developed on one is easily deployed on the other.
At the same time it has a "comprehensive vision" of how virtual machines and containers should work together on a cloud architecture, which will give customers a choice between control and automated management, with containers in particular lending themselves to the latter. It's approach to cloud services has "significant appeal to technology-centric businesses," particularly startups in the Silicon Valley.
But, Gartner cautions, Google hasn't succeeded in building up a third party ecosystem that enhances the value of the Google Cloud Platform (App and Compute Engine), and it's still "in the rudimentary stage of learning to engage" with enterprise customers. "Prospective customers report difficulties in gaining the attention of Google's sales staff and being directed toward appropriate solutions. Furthermore, Google needs to earn the trust of businesses," the report said.
Google as a Web-based business falls short when it comes to having the capability to help businesses migrate legacy systems to the cloud. Google has been improving its cloud services regularly, but it's not releasing features as fast as Gartner had expected, and the report concludes "Google is not yet taking full advantage of its potential opportunity."
In theory, much of the opposite might be expected from IBM, the firm trying to establish itself in the cloud but with deep roots in enterprise computing. Surprisingly, the Gartner report finds question marks with it as well. IBM thinks of cloud computing as both IaaS (its SoftLayer unit) and PaaS (Bluemix), along with IT operations management, database and data analysis software and middleware. It acquired SoftLayer to build out its self-service business, one with an established set of Mode 2, technology-oriented startups and small business customers. IBM is committed to rapidly expand SoftLayer's "small scale" data centers in added facilities around the globe.
But, the report cautions, unlike Amazon, SoftLayer's feature set "did not improve significantly in 2014" and IBM's build out of Bluemix capabilities "have limited benefits for SoftLayer customers because the offerings are not integrated into SoftLayer." SoftLayer in its earlier existence as an independent company came up with its own cloud technology and APIs, but that means it has a limited third party ecosystem and support.
IBM's Bluemix is on an OpenStack-based public cloud. But trying to also transition SoftLayer into an OpenStack cloud "could be disruptive for existing SoftLayer customers," the report states. Consequently, SoftLayer is best used for ecommerce hosting, general business applications and batch jobs, with the option of using a bare-metal servers when performance and regulatory requirements require them. The list did not include mission critical enterprise applications.
"We believe SoftLayer is primarily becoming an enabling data center platform for the rest of IBM's business…" In other words, it's a good platform for hosting IBM's managed services and offering off-premises, bare metal servers. SoftLayer's small business roots mean "it's missing many cloud IaaS capabilities desired by midmarket and enterprise customers… Customers report that SoftLayer services still feel like a small business experience…"
CenturyLink is the highest ranking telecommunications provider in the Magic Quadrant, and its CenturyLink Cloud is the only telecom IaaS in the visionaries quadrant. It appeals to Mode 1 customers but may meet the more agile Mode 2 requirements that "are limited to basic cloud IaaS," the report said.
Among it strengths, CenturyLink "has a compelling and distinctive vision of application-fluent infrastructure that spans network, compute and storage capabilities." Through its Tier 3 acquisition, it is updating its internal software building and delivery to reflect a more agile and continuous delivery model, which may help it to rapidly upgrade its cloud services.
It is a VMware-virtualized environment as well, giving it basic compatibility with many enterprise IT operations. While having a major base of data center outsourcing (through Savvis acquisition) business that it seeks to expand. Gartner concludes that CenturyLink "successfully blends the self-service and managed services models."
CenturyLink needs to invest heavily and is, but it is competing against deep-pocketed rivals. Its roadmap "may not be sufficiently aggressive for the pace of the market," the analysts warned.
VMware, which redubbed its vCloud Hybrid Service as vCloud Air last year, appeals mainly to the enterprises that have virtualized their traditional IT operations on premises. VMware has invited them to extend their data centers by moving the virtualized workloads into vCloud Air in a form of hybrid cloud operations.
The vCloud is good for development environments, including VMware spin-off's Cloud Foundry, disaster recovery, and running general business applications. But the "mission critical enterprise application category is again missing. The report said it appeals primarily to traditional IT shops with "existing investments in VMware technology."
VCloud Air appeals to virtualization managers in part due to the hybrid IT operations they can envision by using it. VMware promises workloads both on-premises and off will be managed from a single pane of glass, but Gartner says VMware is not there yet. VCloud Air "has limited appeal to the business managers and application development leaders who are typically the key decision makers" for moving to off-premises infrastructure use. Virtualization admins prefer internally-built systems. Gartner points out it is that type of IT manager "that the business is trying to bypass by going to the cloud" in the first place.
VMware needs to build an active ecosystem around vCloud Air and offered the vCloud Air Markerplace last year, attracting few catalog listings. Its broad community of resellers "need to learn to sell vCloud Air effectively and deliver value on top." None of its existing regional cloud implementers, built on VMware vCloud software, "have attained true scale and they were not able to maintain the level of innovation necessary in this market," the report stated. VMware itself faces many of the same business challenges as those service providers, the report says.
In each of these six descriptions, a large-scale cloud buyer finds challenges and less than ideal services in which to run enterprise applications, particularly mission-critical ones. But for enterprise purposes, the array of acceptable cloud providers represents a shrinking set of prospects, often coming down to Amazon, Microsoft or Google, with AWS standing out as one of the few safe choices.]]>
Despite the widespread popularity of security questions as an added layer of password-based security, a study by Google suggests secret questions are neither secure nor reliable enough to be used as a standalone account recovery mechanism.
The findings suggest users' answers are either somewhat secure or easy to remember, but rarely both.
With a single guess, an attacker would have a nearly 20% chance of guessing English-speaking users' answers to the question, "What is your favorite food?" That turns out to be pizza, naturally.
Click here to view Figure 1.
"Secret questions have long been a staple of authentication and account recovery online," Elie Bursztein, Google's anti-abuse research lead, and Ilan Caron, a Google software engineer, wrote on the company's Online Security blog. "But, given these findings it's important for users and site owners to think twice about these."
In addition, 40% of Google's English-speaking US users couldn't recall their secret-question answers when they needed to.
These same users, meanwhile, could recall reset codes sent to them through SMS text messages more than 80% of the time and through email nearly 75% of the time.
A user's father's middle name and the city where the user were born are among the most popular security questions on offer, which would give hackers a 6.9% and 14.6% chance to correctly guess the answers within 10 tries.
The problem is a worldwide issue: The study found, for instance, an attacker would have a 39% chance of guessing Korean-speaking users' answers to the question, "What is your city of birth?" and a 43% chance of guessing their favorite food.
Hackers would also have a pretty good chance at figuring out answers in Arabic- and Spanish-speaking countries.
Click here to view Figure 2.
The convenience of an easy-to-remember answer dilutes the effectiveness of the concept and has found little traction among users.
The report noted that some of the potentially safest questions, such as inputting a library card number or a frequent flyer number, have only 22% and 9% recall rates.
Bursztein and Caron strongly encourage Google users to make sure their Google account recovery information is current, which can be done using the company's Security Checkup feature.
"For years, we've only used security questions for account recovery as a last resort when SMS text or back-up email addresses don't work and we will never use these as stand-alone proof of account ownership," the post noted.
[Read about bots taking over the world.]
Google suggests that site owners should use other methods of authentication, such as backup codes sent through SMS text or secondary email addresses to authenticate their users and help them regain access to their accounts. These methods, it says, are safer and offer a better user experience.
Roughly a year after the discovery of the Heartbleed security bug, which affected more than 500,000 websites and dominated national news for weeks, a survey of 2,000 American adults indicated public awareness and knowledge about online privacy, security, and protection was still below the level at which it should be.
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Apple's annual Worldwide Developer Conference is just over the horizon and is already shaping up to be an exciting leap forward for iOS, iPads, and iPhones. In addition to potential new HomeKit home automation powers, Apple has some surprises in store for its iPads that will push them to the forefront when it comes to productivity.
Apple's iOS devices have never been all that good at multitasking, or effectively using two applications at the same time. iOS supports fast-app switching, which lets users jump between suspended apps, but it's not quite the same as dropping two apps next to one another on the screen.
iOS 9 may change that.
Apple is hard at work on a dual-app viewing mode for the iPad, reports 9to5Mac. Its sources say Apple originally intended to add the feature to iOS 8, but it wasn't polished enough come iOS 8's release in September 2014. The multitasking feature is now on deck for iOS 9, and Apple may reveal it at WWDC on June 8.
Samsung, Apple's foremost competitor, has offered split-screen multitasking on its handsets and tablets for years. It is an incredibly powerful tool, especially when it comes to handling documents, emails, Web browsers, and messaging apps.
Click here to view Figure 1.
On Samsung devices, the split-screen mode is dynamic. Users can adjust how big the window is for each app using a slide bar. That's not how it will work on the iPad.
Apple is preparing iOS 9 apps to function in three different view sizes: One-third screen, one-half screen, and two-thirds screen. 9to5Mac suggests users will be able to run two apps side by side in combinations of these three sizes, so allowing users to pair a one-third window with a two-thirds window or pair two one-half windows on the screen. Think about how useful it could be to view two open Safari tabs at the same time, or have your email running next to Microsoft Word, and so on.
Split-screen multitasking -- a feature users have been begging for -- could be a real game-changer for the iPad.
Apple has another highly-requested feature on deck: Support for multiple user logins.
On today's iOS devices only one account can be used per device. In a family setting this can cause problems among users who prefer different wallpapers or font sizes, or want different apps and media installed. Support for multiple logins is a long overdue feature that Apple needs to address, especially considering Android has included this ability for several years.
It wouldn't hurt Apple to add a Kid Mode, too, which could put parents' minds at ease that Junior won't accidentally email the boss instead of playing a game or watching a video.
In addition to the changes to iOS 9, Apple has new tablet hardware in the works.
Now, a larger version of the iPad has been rumored for quite some time. In March, the Wall Street Journal said the device had been pushed back to September. 9to5Mac's sources say there are two jumbo tabs awaiting production, the J98 and the J99. These are 12-inch versions of the iPad Air 2. Suspected hardware features include stereo speakers and broader support for USB input devices. The hold-up isn't the hardware, however: It's the software.
[Read about IBM, iPads, and Japan.]
Apple is adjusting iOS to take advantage of the extra screen real estate. In addition to split-screen multitasking, it is exploring redesigns of core features (think Siri and notifications) to work better on the bigger display.
None of this may come to pass. Apple may not wrap up the split-screen tool in time for iOS 9's initial debut. Apple might not be able to finalize the iPad Pro's software before the fall, and Apple may not make big-screened iPads at all.
Apple will provide at least a glimpse of these possibilities come WWDC in early June.
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Click here to view Figure 1.
The day this story goes to press, Disney will release the movie Tomorrowland starring George Clooney. Disneyland will also stay open 24 hours to celebrate its 60th anniversary (which is officially in July). Long-time readers of the Geekend know that I am obsessed fan of all things Disney, particularly Walt Disney's views of a better future through technology.
Tomorrowland the movie is, in part, a tribute to that same spirit of Walt Disney. I won't give away much, but the plot is about a jaded former inventor and a young girl brimming with scientific curiosity who discover a place called Tomorrowland which is a beautiful world of the future trapped in a pocket of "time and space."
Basically, it is Walt's dream of the future, unchanged and beautiful.
Tomorrowland, in case your parents were too mean to take you to Disneyland, has always been one of the themed sections of all the Disney parks, starting with Disneyland in 1955. It was Walt's dream that Disneyland and especially Tomorrowland always be a showcase for the future. From the very beginning technology companies have paid to present their visions of the future in Tomorrowland alongside Walt's visions and attractions.
The original Disneyland Tomorrowland in 1955 tried to imagine what the future would be like in 1986. The prominent landmark was the "moonliner" a rocket that would supposedly take people to the moon as easily as they travelled by train. I say train because, honestly, jet travel had just started. You have to remember that the first jetliner didn't enter service until 1952. Also remember that this was seven years before JFK would deliver his famous speech committing America to going to the moon. So Tomorrowland has a legacy of showing us the future.
Sometimes it's a vision so far in the future that it hasn't happened, but futurists like Richard Branson are still trying to make it a reality.
But before we get too caught up in Uncle Walt's success. Let's also remember some of these less-than-memorable attractions, including: The Aluminum Hall of Fame, The World Below Us: A Showcase of Geology, and the Monsanto Hall of Chemistry.
That's sort of the fun of predicting the future. That's why I like to do it every Friday with the Geekend, and why every time I open IT Life Radio I say it is for IT Pros, technologists, futurists, and makers.
Disney has had to change Tomorrowland over the years. 1986 came and went. Some dreams came true and others didn't. The first refurbishment was done in the late 60s, with the theme "The World on the Move." It featured, among other things, Walt's vision of a public transport, the Peoplemover.
The company refurbished again in the 1990s and continues to make over the park. At heart, no matter how the creators change the theme, is the idea of showcasing the future. Microsoft and HP, among others, still show their visions of the home of the future in Tomorrowland, just as the first "House of the Future" in Disneyland introduced America to the microwave in 1957.
There are now five Tomorrowlands in the world -- with another opening this year -- on three continents with different ideas of the future. But all are there for the same reason: To inspire another generation of dreamers, futurists, scientists, and engineers, just as Walt envisioned in 1955 when he dreamed of a place where children and adults could learn and play together.
I thought in honor of Tomorrowland the movie and the 60th anniversary of Walt Disney's dream of Tomorrowland, I'd showcase some of the successes and failures of 60 years of Tomorrowland.
Let's just look at some fun pictures of how our vision of tomorrow, through the eyes of Disney and its corporate partners, has changed. We'll take a romp through past tomorrows. And if my romp isn't enough, I suggest you head over to Yesterland.com for even more on the history of Disneyland. It is by far the best resource for Disney history on the Internet, and the team was kind enough to help me with some pictures and point me to others.
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We're outnumbered. The rise of the bots has begun, and humans fall farther behind with each passing day. And that's the good news.
The 2015 Bad Bot Landscape Report, released by Distil Networks, said that the amount of traffic generated by "bad" bots" on the networks they monitor went down slightly between 2013 and 2014. The thing is, the amount of traffic with a human origin declined dramatically in the same period.
In 2013, human beings were responsible for roughly 55% of all network traffic monitored by Distil. By 2014, that had fallen to 41%. In the same time period, traffic from "bad" bots (those that are involved in espionage, fraud, theft, or cyber-vandalism) declined slightly, from 24% to 23%. What makes up the rest? Good bots.
[ What matters more: Technology or people? Read Technology Is A Human Endeavor. ]
According to Eli May, a spokesman for Distil Networks, "good" bots are those that perform benign or essential network tasks. "Think about the web crawlers that Google uses to index pages for its search engines," he said.
In an email exchange with InformationWeek, Distil Networks' CEO Rami Essaid further explained, "A good bot provides value back to the site. For example, Googlebot and Bingbot index your site so your prospects and customers can find you on the web. Clear value for your site. Also, if a bot doesn't respect robot.txt then we consider it a bad bot. Robot.txt tells bots which areas of your site they are allowed to access, crawl or scan." Good bot traffic has increased in volume, but bad bot behavior has dramatically increased in sophistication — and in some networks the increase in volume has been in the hundreds of percentage points.
Click here to view Figure 1.
The report said that smaller companies are most at risk from the rise of bot traffic because they lack the ability to effectively block unwanted data flows. Even so, the company with the highest percentage of bot-generated traffic in its network was Amazon, with nearly 78% of all its traffic coming from machine-based sources.
Two facts from the report signal a more significant change in bot trends for coming years. The first is the rise in mobile-oriented (or originated) bad bots. According to Distil, mobile bots are now responsible for more than 8% of all web traffic. And while each of the 21 largest global wireless companies were a source of bad bot traffic, T-Mobile (USA) became one of the top 20 bad bot hosts for the first time in 2014.
The second important development is the increasing sophistication of bot behavior. Distil's report says that 41% of the bad bots they found are attempting to mimic human behavior in order to get into a web site's infrastructure. And 23% of the bad bots are so good at this mimicking that they are essentially unstoppable by technologies used by most web application firewalls in use today.
For companies running public networks the lessons are clear: They must do more to try to stop the proliferation of bad bots, or risk choking their networks with machine-generated traffic to the detriment of human users. Organizations that depend on web-facing applications to transact business or reach an audience should step up their game in application-level defense, especially as more of their traffic comes from users via mobile devices.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek Conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
Click here to view Figure 1.
Let's face it -- Apple's App Store can be overwhelming, what with the thousands and thousands of applications on the market, some just knock-offs of more popular apps, games that look promising but prove quickly tiresome, and a whole host of useless junk that only serves to reduce precious megabytes of storage space.
According to statistics specialist Statista, as of May 2015 there were 1.4 million mobile apps available on Apple's App Store.
However, if you dig deeply enough, you'll find the hidden gems that can make your travel plans infinitely easier and your commute eminently more entertaining, or even expose you to a whole new world of art and music.
With that sentiment in mind, we've rolled up our sleeves and dug deep to find the apps you never knew existed and, from now on, won't be able to live without.
Two Dots and Songza are just two examples of hidden apps that serve a dual purpose as life hacks, bringing color and joy into the once-mundane corners of your connected life. Could you ever think that connecting dots in a row would keep you occupied for hours, or that a music app could correspond to your mood throughout the day?
There are eight other apps on this list that you probably haven't heard of, and if you haven't, now is the time to dump those useless additions to your smartphone and replace them with applications that will encourage you to open them, not just swipe past them to get to Facebook Messenger (which we all despise anyway).
Best of all, most of the applications on this list are free of charge, so you can give your iPhone a makeover without breaking the bank.
Consider this a baseline for improving your app efficiency -- something we could all no doubt use. Since this list only scratches the surface, please tell us your favorite unknown iPhone apps in the comments section below.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek Conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
Later this year, PayPal will spin off as a public company separate from its mothership, eBay, which acquired the payment company in 2002. As it prepares for life without a corporate parent, PayPal faces growing competition from rival payment services.
Alibaba, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google, Square, and Stripe, alongside more than a thousand other startups, aspire to be the next PayPal. But the first PayPal plans to continuing growing beyond the $8 billion in revenue it generated in 2014.
The financial services industry is about to embark on a period of rapid change driven by technology -- the proliferation of mobile devices and the power of software to alter business models, said Dan Schulman, PayPal president and designated CEO upon independence, at a PayPal media event in San Francisco Thursday.
Citing Moore's Law and the mobile revolution, Schulman described the impact of technological change on the financial services industry as a "digital tornado."
"We're coming into the market at a time when the financial services industry is going through some really fundamental shifts," said Schulman, asserting that PayPal is "very well positioned to be a leading player in that transformation."
Click here to view Figure 1.
To reach that position, PayPal has spent the past few years modernizing its IT infrastructure. It used to take months to make changes to PayPal's platform, said Schulman. Now that PayPal has embraced service-oriented architecture and agile development, changes take hours, new feature releases come every two weeks, and each element of its platform has an associated API and software development kit (SDK).
PayPal is trying to reimagine itself as something more than a payment platform. PayPal now sees itself as a partner enabling other payment services. As one of slides at the company's presentation declared, PayPal's "Next Chapter" is as "the operating system for digital commerce."
[ Read how Elite 100 company PayPal revamped its data centers to deliver agility. ]
"We want to be more than just a button on a merchant's website," said Schulman. "We really want to provide a full suite of products and services and experiences off of our digital payments platform both to consumer and merchants."
PayPal has already gone beyond being a button on a website. It's a payment platform, a payment gateway, a payment processor, a digital wallet, a credit provider, and a source of financial data.
Thanks to its 2013 acquisition of BrainTree, a payment gateway that allows businesses to accept a variety of payment systems through the Web and apps, PayPal can still get paid if consumers prefer to pay using an app that implements Apple Pay through BrainTree's SDK, for example, instead of PayPal.
PayPal's acquisition earlier this year of Paydiant, a technology platform for retailers, also supports its broader ambition as an enabler for multiple payment mechanisms. "Operating system" may be overstating the case, but PayPal can credibly claim to be an ecosystem.
One announcement made at the event – the extension of PayPal's OneTouch for web and mobile to merchants using BigCommerce's online store technology – demonstrates how PayPal is looking beyond transaction fees. OneTouch allows shoppers at online stores built with BigCommerce technology to buy items with a single touch after their credentials have been entered once, via website or mobile device, all without the PayPal app. It's an effort to improve transactions in general rather than an effort to advance PayPal as a specific payment system.
"What we aspire to be is a true customer champion for consumers and for merchants," said Schulman.]]>
Click here to view Figure 1.
Try predicting what technology is going to look like in 20 years.
What will replace the Apple Watch or the smartphone? Whatever you say is going to be wrong. Now, try to be part of NASA, where you actually have to predict technology 20 years down the road, because a lot of what you build takes that long to invent, test, and deploy. That's what makes the 2015 draft of the NASA Technology Roadmap so interesting to look at.
NASA started this concept in 2010, and the agency published the first draft in 2012. The goal is to put out a document that projects the most important technology needs and developments of the next 20 years. The agency calls it the Strategic Technology Investment Plan (STIP). Twenty years isn't an arbitrary time. 2035 is the projected year we're going to land on -- at least orbit -- Mars.
This is the timetable President Obama set.
"By 2025 we expect new spacecraft designed for long journeys to allow us to begin the first ever crew missions beyond the Moon into deep space," Obama is quoted saying in the report. "So, we'll start by sending astronauts to an asteroid for the first time in history. By the mid-2030s, I believe we can send humans to orbit Mars and return them safely to earth, and a landing on Mars will follow."
In other words, this is the roadmap to another planet. While many, including me, have criticized NASA for what seemed like a lack of plan recently, especially when it came to doing anything besides low earth orbit (LEO), many of the smaller low-orbit missions were designed to make commercial LEO flight cheap and reliable.
That will allow for bigger steps out in the near future.
One of the most gratifying things for InformationWeek readers is that at the very center of this technology map is IT. Not only does NASA see 24 specific IT areas that are important for it to develop, including big data, exascale computing, and cyber-security, but the agency also sees how IT touches every other part of its mission.
"The topic area of Modeling, Simulation, Information Technology, and Processing spans nearly the entire NASA mission portfolio," according to the report. "Although parts of [the IT section] are discipline-specific, most of this technology area (TA) enables future disciplinary modeling and simulation technologies as found throughout the other technology roadmaps."
Because space exploration has always influenced IT and technology in general, it is important to look at areas where NASA is focusing on in IT, robotics, and a few other sectors to help see the future of IT here on Earth. I picked 14 technologies that seem likely to have a direct impact on the datacenter in the next 10 to 20 years. I only scratched the surface of a massive document, but I think it will help CIOs and IT pros look ahead to sketch out the future of their industry for the next couple of decades to come.
Check out NASA's priorities and then tell me what you think your priorities should be while we get ready to put people on Mars.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek Conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
The NSA hits just keep coming. New documents leaked by Edward Snowden show the National Security Agency wanted to intercept the connection between Android smartphones and the Google Play Store in order to install spyware.
Spies from the Five Eyes alliance, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and the US, developed a surveillance unit called the Network Tradecraft Advancement Team, according to documents published by The Intercept. The countries held workshops between November 2011 and February 2012 to explore how best to get spyware onto smartphones to improve information-gathering capabilities.
During that time they cooked up this particular scheme.
The pilot project was named "Irritant Horn." The agencies were able to discern how smartphone traffic moved across internet cables between the device itself and the servers run by Google's and Samsung's app stores. It was here the agencies planned to stage man-in-the-middle attacks in order to implant spyware onto smartphones. The figured out how to futz with the data as it passed from the Play Store to the target's smartphone while the user downloaded and installed legit apps.
Click here to view Figure 1.
Once the spyware was covertly installed on smartphones, the agencies could then use it to collect the data from the device without the owner ever being aware. Some of the data included emails, texts, Web history, call records, videos, photos, and other stored files, according to the leaked documents.
Beyond merely spying, the agencies also wanted to send "selective misinformation to the targets' handsets" in order to spread propaganda or confusion amongst adversaries.
The agencies apparently hoped to target users in select nations in Africa, such as Tunisia, Senegal, Sudan, and the Congo, where unrest was common at the time. Had the unrest unfolded in grander scale, Irritant Horn would have been more fully put to use.
The agencies were also positioned to use the methodology in France, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Russia, Cuba, and the Bahamas.
[Read about Google, Apple, and mobile data privacy.]
Snowden's documents don't specifically state that the NSA or its allies planned to use Irritant Horn in the US, but it seems a real possibility. They do, however, show that the Five Eyes countries managed to find and exploit a weakness in the UC Browser, which boasts more than half a billion users across Asia. The agencies were able to use the browser's weakness to mine user data.
Earlier this year Citizen Lab, a Toronto-based human rights research group, discovered the weakness and brought it to the attention of UC Browser's developers. The company patched the weakness with a recent update to the app.
None of the country's spy agencies offered comment on The Intercept's revelations, and neither did Google or Samsung.
Google has taken a number of hits this year on the purported lack of security in the Play Store. It bulked up app review processes in response, but has a long way to go to fully restore user confidence.
It would be nice to know that Google was able to ferret out the potential for the NSA's man-in-the-middle approach to the Play Store and resolve it.
Do you think it did? Tell us in the comments section below.
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It looks like smart homes are inching closer to reality, according to recent updates on Apple's upcoming iOS 9. A new "Home" app will reportedly let customers set up their devices that operate as part of HomeKit, writes 9to5 Mac.
HomeKit debuted last year at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference. The home automation management platform is intended to enable connected devices like smart thermostats and wireless door locks. It will also hopefully inspire businesses to build said connected devices.
The HomeKit platform will serve as the foundation for smart gadgets throughout the home, which will all be connected by iOS. If Apple's initiative goes according to plan, customers will be able to use the framework for controlling products from different manufacturers through third-party apps or Siri.
[Driverless Cars, AI, Robots: Why CIOs Should Care]
The Home app will function as a setup tool for the HomeKit system. While it's not very advanced in its capabilities, current functions include:
We haven't heard much about HomeKit over the last few months because of developmental delays, like problems with the code used to program connected accessories. However, Apple has been quietly working to address these issues, and employees are now testing early versions of Home in iOS 9.
While reports suggest the possibility that Home could be restricted to internal Apple usage, the description of the app suggests that it will eventually appear in consumer hands.
In May, an Apple spokeswoman told the Wall Street Journal, "HomeKit [hardware certification] has been available for just a few months and we already have dozens of partners who have committed to bringing HomeKit accessories to market and we're looking forward to the first ones coming next month."
Click here to view Figure 1.
Given that timeframe, there's a chance that Apple will confirm the aforementioned details on HomeKit and the Home app during its annual WWDC event on June 8.
Will manufacturers be able to coordinate alongside Apple's schedule? It doesn't look like smart devices will be appearing in stores in the near future -- at least not until Apple provides the framework. A HomeKit manufacturer noted that "our launch timing is greatly dependent on Apple's launch," and that its products do not currently have a definitive launch deadline.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
Google's impressive mapping technology allows users to find their way all around the world, but the users of the company's Map Maker have landed the search giant in hot water.
For some people using Google Maps in the Washington area, typing in a racial slur aimed at African Americans will automatically direct them to the White House, The Washington Post reported.
In addition, typing in two specific offensive terms will also direct users to the White House.
"Some inappropriate results are surfacing in Google Maps that should not be, and we apologize for any offense this may have caused," a Google spokesperson told Business Insider. "Our teams are working to fix this issue quickly."
Despite Google's claims to be working on resolving the offending search terms, a quick check on the Maps app reveals the matter has not yet been fully dealt with just yet.
Click here to view Figure 1.
The incident comes in the wake of Google's decision on May 12 to temporarily disable editing on Map Maker while the company continues to work towards making the moderation system more robust.
Google noted that users will be able to edit business listings by clicking on the "Suggest an edit" and "Add a missing place" links on the new version of Google Maps on the desktop and on the Google Maps mobile app.
"We are considering all options that will help us turn on editing as soon as possible, and we will keep you posted on the progress we make," Pavithra Kanakarajan, product manager for Google Map Maker, wrote on the company's blog. "We are working to resume editing on Map Maker as soon as possible."
While the flap has caused Google some embarrassment, there's a lesson to be learned here for IT and CIOs, namely that no matter how good your creation and your technology are, once you open something up to the wider Web, it leaves your control to some extent. It's best to be vigilant and to make sure that your company has clear guidelines when it comes to security, privacy, and how data is used.
This is the second time in as many months that Google has had to apologize for a user abusing the Map Maker tool. In April, a user on Hacker News spotted what appears to be the Android logo urinating on an Apple logo in satellite view at coordinates in Pakistan.
Another message found nearby makes a statement, in big white block letters with a frowning face, offering a pointed critique of Google's review policy.
"We're sorry for this inappropriate user-created content; we're working to remove it quickly," Google's Mara Harris apologized in statement emailed to The Washington Post following the incident. "We also learn from these issues, and we're constantly improving how we detect, prevent and handle bad edits."
Click here to view Figure 2.
On the more helpful side of things, Google also announced updates to Maps with new traffic alerts to help users avoid jams this holiday weekend.
[ Read about Google's problems in Europe.]
Now when users input a destination, they will get an explanation of upcoming traffic conditions that helps them identify the quickest route and gives them a heads up if congestion lies ahead.
Maps will also tell users how long they'll be stuck in traffic, and provide options for alternate routes. It will also explain why one is recommended -- whether because it's the fastest or because it avoids an incident.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek Conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
Fluke Networks has announced a new hosted service, TruView Live, to monitor the availability and performance of SaaS and cloud applications, including Office 365, Salesforce.com, and Google Apps.
IT departments have little control over SaaS and cloud applications, and when complaints about poor performance surface, it can be hard to pinpoint the source of the problem. TruView Live aims to make it easier for IT administrators to gather basic yet essential details about application performance.
The service includes both hardware and virtual sensors that measure key performance indicators, including application availability and the sources of delays, whether from the network, client, DNS, or server.
A dashboard provides a simple view of real-time and historical metrics. Administrators can set alerts if delays of specific applications cross predefined thresholds.
Fluke offers three kinds of sensors. The TruView Pulse is a hardware device approximately the size of a TV remote. It has a single Ethernet port and gets its power over Ethernet as well. It's designed to be deployed at branch and remote offices.
Click here to view Figure 1.
The Virtual Pulse is a software package that can be deployed on Linux and Windows machines, including servers and laptops. It can be used to help identify problems for remote users experiencing application or network issues.
The Global Pulse is also software. It's deployed in AWS and can be spun up across nine of Amazon's Availability Zones. It's designed to serve as an outside reference point used when monitoring performance of a cloud application.
Competing Views
TruView Live isn't the only option for monitoring Web application performance from a network perspective. The startup ThousandEyes offers software agents that can monitor SaaS application performance from branch offices and data centers, and provide details on latency, packet loss, and bandwidth problems.
[Want to see how Amazon is bidding for continued dominance in cloud infrastructure? See Amazon Seeks Next Generation Of Cloud Users.]
Another startup, NetBeez, offers low-cost hardware-based agents for distributed network monitoring of Web applications. The agents check DNS and HTTP, and run Ping, Traceroute, and Iperf tests to help diagnose network issues with cloud services. The agents connect to a management server that runs as a VM in a data center, and that can also be deployed in AWS or Google.
TruView Live is a hosted service, so Pulses send data back to the service. Customers access their dashboards via a portal. Hardware and software Pulses are also provisioned and managed via the portal.
Fluke offers TruView Live at four pricing tiers: Core, Pro, Business, and Enterprise. At the Business tier, a 1-year contract for 25 monitored services is $948, plus $79 per month per hardware Pulse. For Enterprise pricing, contact Fluke Networks directly. TruView Live is available now.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek Conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>
Click here to view Figure 1.
Data is being used in and across more functional aspects of today's organizations. Wringing the most business value out of the data requires a mix of roles that may include data scientists, business analysts, data analysts, IT, and line-of-business titles. As a result, more resumes and job descriptions include data-related skills.
A recent survey by technology career site Dice revealed that nine of the top 10 highest-paying IT jobs require big data skills. On the Dice site, searches and job postings including big data skills have increased 39% year-over-year, according to Dice president Shravan Goli. Some of the top-compensated skills include big data, data scientist, data architect, Hadoop, HBase, MapReduce, and Pig -- and the pay range for those skills ranges from more than $116,000 to more than $127,000, according to data Dice provided to InformationWeek.
However, the gratuitous use of such terms can cloud the main issue, which is whether the candidate and the company can turn that data into specific, favorable outcomes -- whether that's increasing the ROI of a pay-per-click advertising campaign or building a more accurate recommendation engine.
If data skills are becoming necessary for more roles in an organization, it follows that not all data-driven rock stars are data scientists. Although data scientists are considered the black belts, it is possible for other roles to distinguish themselves based on their superior understanding and application of data. Regardless of a person's title or position in an organization, there are some traits common to data-driven rock stars that have more to do with attitudes and behaviors than technologies, tools, and methods. Click through for six of them.]]>
Two powerful trends are conspiring to force files out of the data center. Relentless data growth combined with the desire for high-performance flash arrays is making IT organizations rethink their file storage strategies. Files are being driven out of the data center, and they are heading to the cloud. As a result, the data center of today is faster, more efficient, and thinner than ever.
Flash storage arrays provide an ideal foundation for the IO-hungry workloads of virtual machine hypervisors, but they don't solve the problem of files, which is one of scale and cost. A typical organization experiences 30% or more year-over-year compound growth in their file data. The problem is particularly acute in file-heavy industries such as design, engineering, media, and medical.
Todd Thomas, CIO at the Austin Radiological Association, illustrates this point when he shows their projected file growth. ARA is one of the largest medical imaging centers in the country, performing over a million exams annually. The chart below shows the file footprint just for mammography imaging alone. Today mammograms account for about 7 terabytes of storage, but that footprint is expected to double by the end of the year. Not only are there more files, but the files are getting much larger as imaging moves from 2D to 3D.
Although flash is becoming more affordable every year, it is no match for the rapid expansion in the file footprint. The widespread adoption of server virtualization drove the proliferation of SAN. This has been quickly followed by a demand for higher and higher performance from SAN. The data center wants to be all virtual. Virtualization improves the efficiency of the data center by making workloads more fluid. Electrical power can be directed to exactly where it is needed instead of having to over-spec hardware, only to find out later that even bigger hardware is required. As more server-class workloads break away from the underlying hardware through virtualization, disk IO becomes the bottleneck preventing hypervisors from handling heavier workloads.
[Want to learn more about how files are central to future storage systems? See NAS Is Sexy Again.]
Pain in the IO path has caused a slew of flash vendors to appear out of nowhere, which in just a few years have conquered the once unassailable mission-critical application workloads belonging to the Goliaths of the storage industry. Vendors like Pure Storage, SolidFire, Tegile, and Nimble Storage have pioneered the use of data de-duplication in flash in order to make the technology more affordable. At last, the all-virtual data center seems within reach. The last obstacle is files.
A successful transition to an all-virtual data center is predicated on being able to afford the premium that flash storage commands. Enlightened IT organizations are taking a two-pronged approach that consists of moving all of their server workloads to flash while pushing files to cloud-based NAS. The cloud has become such an appealing option, because it is essentially a giant data replication machine operated at a global scale by the likes of Amazon, Apple, Google, and Microsoft. As a result, the cloud makes NAS bottom-less, backup-less and much more affordable than anything built to run exclusively inside the data center.
This new way to store files uses synchronization to periodically update a master copy of not only every file, but also of the file version in these massive stable backends. Cloud NAS combines the stability and scale of the cloud into an on-premises appliance that fits neatly into the expectations for performance that exist in the modern data center.
This two-pronged approach to storage is no different from what has been happening to consumer laptops. Almost every new laptop today worth having ships with flash storage. Flash is faster, more reliable and less power hungry than a spinning hard drive, but it is also smaller and more expensive. But that's OK, because, today there are also fewer files in a laptop.
Think of all that music being streamed instead of being held hostage inside your laptop. Apple recently introduced Photos, a whole new application for storing pictures. The exciting new feature: your pictures are actually stored in the Apple cloud, not your laptop. By removing photos from laptops, Apple hopes to sell faster, thinner, and more affordable laptops. Apple will also be making it easier and less risky for anyone to dump that old laptop because there is no real data in it. The master photo library stays in the cloud.
The great file migration is underway. The combined effect of continued file data expansion with a shift towards high performance arrays has caused organizations to adopt cloud NAS as a way to handle their file capacity needs. Cloud NAS has the additional benefit of storing the files outside the data center, free from the limitations of traditional storage. This approach not only simplifies hardware refreshes, but also ensures that the files are safe no matter what happens at the data center.
The problem with files is one of scale. The cloud is practically infinite. The great file migration to the cloud is inevitable.
[Did you miss any of the InformationWeek Conference in Las Vegas last month? Don't worry: We have you covered. Check out what our speakers had to say and see tweets from the show. Let's keep the conversation going.]]]>


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Make friends with a wide variety of tame animals and experience all their young at close quarters throughout the season.
Why not make a day of it and visit our Tea Room to enjoy our homemade lunches with a delicious piece of cake.
We look forward to welcoming you to Church Farm Rare Breeds Centre (Farm Park) soon.


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40 Points
Feb 23, 2012 02:07 PM|genius person|LINK
Hi all forum,
I am working with my ajax web application that supports .net 4 and this application use a script manager in the master page and there are many updatepanels through all aspx pages inherits from this master page. few months later I found my site got too slow as I implemnted too much jquery scripts and referenced them in the script manager. My friend told me that script manager and update panels are not healthy to web sites as they consume too bandwidth and causes slow time performance with my site. he advised me to avoid script manager and update panela and use pure ajax codes and jquery server requests. I am a beinner in jquery coding any advice how to do so or any tutorials
looking for help my website is too too slow


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Robert Kratky's dream to study in America came true when he was selected to come to California as part of a 10-1/2-month student exchange program.
But the Prague youth's stay with an Oak Park host family took a tragic turn on Memorial Day, when he broke his neck diving into the waves during a group outing on Oahu.
The accident left Kratky paralyzed from the chest down and his host mom, Judie Carroll, scrambling to arrange medical treatment.
``They told us in Hawaii if any kind of movement or feelings return in the first few days after the accident, there's a good chance,'' said Carroll, a single parent with two teen-age children of her own. ``If there is movement in two weeks, there's a chance. It has now been 2-1/2 or three weeks and we have not seen anything.''
Carroll helped arrange to have the youth flown Thursday from Honolulu's Queens Medical Center to Northridge Hospital Medical Center for treatment, but the teen's insurer will pay only $25,000 for his rehabilitation, which is expected to cost $1,000 a day.
Kratky's parents in the Czech Republic raised $20,000. But the money, combined with insurance coverage, is expected to pay for only about 45 days of care, said his mother, Hana Kratky.
``We couldn't get more,'' she said in a telephone interview from Prague. Initially, the insurer wanted to send the teen back to Prague for treatment, but the family pushed for treatment in California.
``In Prague, there is no spinal-cord rehab center,'' his mother said.
Kratky is insured through the Laguna Beach-based American Scandinavian Student Exchange program, which brought him to the United States. Program officials did not return phone calls Thursday.
It is too soon to know if Kratky will ever regain full use of his body.
Officials at the Northridge hospital said it will take doctors 72 hours to do a complete evaluation of the youth. The average length of stay for patients with similar injuries is 60 days, said Toshia Johnson, a hospital representative.
Kratky can move his shoulders and thumbs, and can talk. He could move his head if it were not for a halo frame bolted to his skull, Carroll said.
Kratky was excelling academically at Oak Park High School in Ventura County, winning honors for his straight A's and for being the best student in economics.
``He's a bright young man who, if given the opportunity and equipment, can probably contribute a great deal,'' Carroll said.
Hana Kratky, who returned to Prague on Monday after flying to Hawaii to be with her son, said she is grateful to Carroll for everything she has done.
``She loves Robert,'' his mother said. ``She was his mom No. 2. I think Robert was quite lucky to be in such a family.''
In a phone interview from the hospital, Kratky said he hopes others learn from his experience, especially parents with small children.
``Watch out for your kids when jumping in the lakes,'' he said.
To help raise additional money, a special rehabilitation fund has been established at a local bank. Donations can be made out to the Robert Kratky Fund, Attention Pat Acquah, c/o California Federal Bank, 6600 Topanga Canyon Blvd., Canoga Park, CA 91304. Donations also will be accepted at any California Federal Bank branch office.
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Title IX Student Video from The Texas A&M University System on Vimeo.
West Texas A&M University is committed to providing a learning, working and living environment that promotes personal integrity, civility, and mutual respect in an environment free of sexual misconduct and discrimination. Sexual discrimination not only violates an individual's fundamental rights and personal dignity, it is also a violation of federal and state law. WTAMU considers sexual discrimination in all its forms to be a serious offense. This policy refers to all forms of sex discrimination, including but not limited to: sexual harassment, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, and sexual violence by employees, students, and third parties. This website is a resource on sexual misconduct for students, faculty, staff and visitors who are part of the West Texas A&M University community.
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits discrimination based on sex in educational programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance.
Title IX also provides for equal educational opportunities for pregnant and parenting students. It prohibits educational institutions from discriminating against students based on pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from any of these conditions. It also prohibits schools from applying any rule related to a student's parental, family or marital status that treats students differently based on their sex.
The mission of WTAMU's Title IX Compliance Program is to ensure WTAMU fulfills its commitment of creating and maintaining a community in which all persons who participate in University programs and activities can work together in an atmosphere free of all forms of harassment, exploitation, or intimidation, including sexual harassment.
Compliance with the requirements of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is the method WTAMU uses to ensure this mission is achieved. To ensure compliance with Title IX and other federal and state civil rights laws, WTAMU has developed policies and procedures that prohibit sex discrimination in all its forms.
A complainant or witness has many reporting options. An individual may simultaneously pursue a Title IX complaint and a criminal complaint. When initiating a complaint, an individual need not know whether they wish to request any particular course of action, nor how to label what happened. Choosing to make a complaint and deciding how to proceed after making the complaint can be a process that unfolds over time. An online form is also available for reporting violations.
The University recognizes that deciding among these options can be difficult. Complainants and witnesses are encouraged to seek assistance from a confidential resource, such as the Title IX Coordinator before deciding how to proceed. A non-faculty employee, student or third party entity/individual who believes that he or she has been subjected to discrimination, sexual harassment and/or related retaliation should promptly report the incident(s) to her/his supervisor, the Director of Human Resources or his/her designee.
A Faculty member who believes that he or she has been subjected to discrimination, sexual harassment and/or related retaliation should promptly report the incident(s) to her/his department head, dean, or the Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs.
A pregnant student should be granted a leave of absence for as long as it is deemed medically necessary for her to be absent. Prompt and appropriate communication by the student is necessary to ensure appropriate accommodations are provided. While retroactive requests will be considered, making arrangements in advance is preferred, and requests that are untimely may be denied on that basis. At the conclusion of her leave, she must be allowed to resume the academic and extracurricular status she held when the leave began.
For further guidance, see the U.S. Department of Education's "Supporting the Academic Success of Pregnant and Parenting Students" brochure. Although this brochure focuses on secondary schools, the legal principles apply to all recipients of federal financial assistance, including postsecondary institutions.
If you have any questions regarding your rights as a pregnant or parenting student, please contact WTAMU's Title IX Coordinator.
The following individuals have been designated to handle inquiries regarding Title IX and other non-discrimination policies:
Becky Lopez, Title IX Coordinator Office Location: Killgore Research Center Room 147 Phone: 806-651-3199, 806-676-0556 Fax: 806-651-3198 E-mail: email@example.com
Jon Davis, Asst. Vice President for Student Affairs Office Location: Classroom Center 106K Phone:806-651-2335 E-mail: email@example.com
Lindsey Eggleston, Area Coordinator Office Location: Residential Living 9 Phone: 806-651-3007 Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Chance Haugen, Director of JBK Student Center Office Location: JBK Student Center 104B Phone: 806-651-2394 E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Wendy Hearn, Staff Nurse Practitioner Office Location: Virgil Henson Activities Center 104A Phone: 806-651-3287 E-mail: email@example.com
Orvie Nix, Director of Student Counseling Service Office Location: Career Services 116 Phone: 806-651-2345 E-mail: email@example.com
Susan Nix, Associate Professor Office Location: Old Main 205C Phone: 806-651-3620 E-mail: email@example.com
Paul Sweetgall, Associate Athletic Director for Compliance & Academic Services Office Location: Virgil Henson Activity Center 214B Phone: 806-651-4437 E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com


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- Business Directory
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- Encore 05.27.15
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- Everson-Nooksack News 5.20.15
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BELLINGHAM — Western Washington University's Small Business Development Center, along with Whatcom Community College and the NW Innovation Resource Center are collaborating to offer the course "Launch ...
WECU ranked high on national list
WHATCOM — Deposit Accounts likes what it sees in Whatcom Educational Credit Union. In the evaluator's ranking of the Top 200 Healthiest Credit Unions in America, which looked at 6,600 credit unions ...
Anniversary approaches for Baker inn
MAPLE FALLS — The Mount Baker foothills area is home to a treasure known worldwide. The Inn at Mt. Baker, located off the Mt. Baker Highway just past Maple Falls, is modeled after a chalet you might ...
Semiahmoo names GM
BLAINE — Mark Andrew has been named the general manager responsible for daily operations of the Semiahmoo Resort, Golf & Spa for management firm Coastal Hotels. Andrew joins Semiahmoo with more than ...
Two to be honored by Peoples Bank
MOUNT VERNON — On Thursday, Sept. 11, from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Mount Vernon Financial Center, 1801 Riverside Dr., Peoples Bank celebrates Jim VanderMey's retirement and appointment to the bank's board ...
Good to Go brings pasties to markets
WHATCOM — When Holly Bumford opened the doors of Good to Go Meat Pies in early 2012, she aimed to bring a hearty meal option to Everson, one that families could grab on the go. More than two years later, ...
Local barbecue judge opens supply shop in Lynden at 511 Front St.
LYNDEN — Gary VanderGiessen has seen plenty of success selling barbecue supplies. So much, in fact, that he has opened Gary's Barbecue Supplies at 511 Front St. Not to be outdone, though, his wife, ...
The Woods Coffee creates single-serve cold brews
LYNDEN — The Woods Coffee now sells its cold brew coffee in new single-serve, 12-ounce to-go bottles. Previously, cold brew was available in either in-store cups or growlers to go. "People are looking ...
Skagit Bank names senior VP
SKAGIT — Skagit Bank has named Peter Cutbill as senior vice president and commercial banking manager. Cutbill will manage the bank's commercial lending efforts in Whatcom, Skagit, Snohomish and King ...
Guide Insurance and Beacon Insurance merge
LYNDEN — Guide Insurance Services Inc. and Beacon Insurance Group Inc. will merge, effective Aug. 1. The joining of the two local, independent agencies will give customers access to "the great customer ...
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Tan Yeok Nee Mansion
Clemenceau Avenue, Singapore, Singapore 239925Map
+65 6736 6622(Tourist Information)
Neighborhood: Orchard
With its ornate roofs and massive granite columns, the Tan Yeok Nee Mansion is one of the very few remaining traditional south Chinese houses in Singapore. It was built in 1885 by a wealthy Teochew pepper merchant, using granite columns imported from south China. It was restored after World War Two by the Salvation Army, then using it as its headquarters. Designated a national monument, the mansion is now home to the University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business.
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Cheap STC to Aberdeen flights
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- Network: Discovery Channel
- Series Premiere Date: Sep 11, 2013
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There are no user reviews yet - Be first to review The Presidents' Gatekeepers.
Their stories are at turns intense, emotional, angry and humorous--and will capture your attention.
The film jumps eras willy-nilly, and never settles on a narrative of how the role of chief of staff has evolved over the years.
While the project proves something of a logistical triumph, it's only fitfully interesting.


text: Top Headlines What Game of Thrones Is Getting Right This Season Yep, Scream Queens Is Going to Be Your New Obsession! 4 hours ago How Is the Wet Hot American Summer Cast so Ageless? 5 hours ago Is a Gilmore Girls Reunion Happening?! 8 hours ago The Cast for Bill Murray's Netflix Christmas Special Is Insane 8 hours ago


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WASH & GO FRESH 300ML Full description coming soon!!! ALWAYS READ THE LABEL FOR ALL MEDICINAL PRODUCTS. Consult your Doctor or Pharmacist if you are taking o...
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According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.3 km² (1.3 mi²), all land.
There were 206 households out of which 25.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.3% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.0% were non-families. 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 21.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 19.5% from 45 to 64, and 25.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 83.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.5 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $21,250, and the median income for a family was $31,250. Males had a median income of $24,750 versus $18,182 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,118. About 20.0% of families and 32.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 55.6% of those under age 18 and 29.7% of those age 65 or over.


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still looking for a no-nonsense, fit, non smoker, drug free and accomplished
waterman with blue water experience? look no further! i am looking for a full-time professional career in yachting (sail or motor). complete references and resume upon request. contact me at: email@example.com, through this website or if you can''t wait, call me at 305.296.0102
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