Smaller Is Better for Outsourcing Market

January 19th, 2012

Since the peak of the financial crisis, when companies put many projects on hold, they have apparently found smaller to be better. The past year was the busiest for outsourcing service providers, with 870 contracts awarded in 2011. Just over 75% of those contracts were between $25 million and $99 million, according to Information Services Group (ISG).

The outsourcing data and analysis firm included only deals worth at least $25 million in its latest tally, released on Wednesday. But its analysts have found that projects on an even smaller scale are getting more prevalent as well. “Small contracts worth less than $1 million have really taken off,” says John Keppel, president of research and managed services and chief marketing officer of ISG.

The trend toward smaller contracts will likely continue, particularly in the United States, where businesses have long been accustomed to using outside service providers. ISG believes the shift is a sign of a mature market, while other regions newer to outsourcing are still making larger deals. The smaller contracts have been high enough in volume to also keep the total worth of contracts relatively high. In 2011, total contract value (which covers the life of the contracts) of the overall outsourcing market was $95 billion, a 3% increase over 2010. ISG gave the industry an optimistic future, believing outsourcing activity will  increase by 5% to 7% this year.

Read More:

http://www3.cfo.com/article/2012/1/supply-chain_outsourcing-smaller-contracts-bpo

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Even Woz Thinks the Android Bests the iPhone

January 18th, 2012

Apple CEO Steve Jobs hated the Android smartphone operating system so much that he vowed he would spend his last dying breath and every penny Apple had in the bank trying to destroy it. Android, created by Google, entered the market after Apple but soon gained greater market share. A lot of Apple fans dismiss Android as a ripoff of Apple’s ideas, and a crappy one at that.

But oddly enough, Steve Wozniak, who co-founded Apple with Jobs in 1976, says he’s a big fan of Android phones. Woz says he still thinks Apple’s iPhone is the best overall smartphone, but he says there are ways in which Android has leapt ahead of Apple.

“My primary phone is the iPhone,” Woz says. “I love the beauty of it. But I wish it did all the things my Android does, I really do.”

Woz says voice commands work better on Android. Android’s built-in navigation system, where the phone acts like a GPS system, is another advantage, he says.

Android phones aren’t as simple to use as the iPhone, but they’re not that much more complicated, and “if you’re willing to do the work to understand it a little bit, well I hate to say it, but there’s more available in some ways,” Woz says.

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http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/01/14/even-woz-thinks-the-android-bests-the-iphone.html

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Windows 8 Includes Tablet Hardware Requirements

January 18th, 2012

Microsoft’s own batch of "Windows 8 Hardware Certification Requirements" documents, released last month, reveal that the company is providing minimum hardware requirements for x86, x64 and ARM-based tablets running the upcoming Windows 8 OS. Devices will need at least 10 GB of free space, a 1366 x 768 screen resolution, Bluetooth 4.0 + LTE, a 720p camera and more.

The requirements are part of a 293-page "Windows Hardware Certification Requirements" document for client and server systems, covering aspects ranging from pen- and touch-based digitizers to WiFi Direct to power management. Starting on page 72, Microsoft begins to set the foundation for tablets, defining bezel width, boot latency, required hardware buttons and required components.

According to the document, a Windows 8 tablet must feature a power button, a rotation lock, a Windows key button measuring at least 10.5-mm in diameter, volume up and volume down buttons. "The default orientation is in landscape mode and the Windows Key button must be on the front of the device facing the end user in the centre along the bottom bezel," Microsoft says. "If the system is a convertible, the buttons must be accessible in all configurations. For convertible systems, it is acceptable to have the button off centre along the bottom bezel when the convertible is in its tablet mode. "

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http://www.tomshardware.com/news/Windows-8-Microsoft-Tablet-x86-ARM,14504.html

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Microsoft Pitches Private Cloud To IT With System Center 2012

January 18th, 2012

Microsoft’s System Center 2012 is available today as a Release Candidate, the last milestone before a final release. Along with Hyper-V and Windows Server, the upgraded System Center forms the key building blocks for Microsoft’s private cloud strategy, providing management tools for desktops, mobile devices, both physical and virtual servers, and a mix of resources across private data centers and public clouds such as Windows Azure.

While Release Candidates for some pieces of System Center 2012 were already out, as of today all eight components of the suite are free for anyone to download at this link, with final versions out in the first half of 2012. The exact release date has not been specified, but Microsoft Management & Security Division Vice President Brad Anderson tells Ars Microsoft is shooting for the early side of that time frame.

While the desktop management tools are Windows-only, Microsoft is providing cross-management tools for mobile devices, with security and configuration management covering iOS, Android, and Windows Phone. This, for example, lets IT specify how often smartphone users must change their passwords. In the data center, System Center supports both Linux and Windows servers, with Anderson telling Ars that nearly 20 percent of System Center customers use the software to manage at least some Linux servers.

System Center 2012 boosts the number of supported hypervisors. The current Virtual Machine Manager in System Center supports Hyper-V and VMware, despite VMware being Microsoft’s biggest rival in virtualization and management tools. System Center 2012 broadens the cross-platform hypervisor support by adding Citrix’s XenServer to the mix.

Read More:

http://www.wired.com/cloudline/2012/01/microsoft-pitches-private-cloud-to-it-with-system-center-2012/

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Can your IT outsourcing contract coexist with the cloud?

January 13th, 2012

If your enterprise is committed to a long-term managed services or information technology outsourcing (ITO) contract, you might be looking longingly at the agility and efficiencies of cloud-based delivery models. If you’re like many enterprises that rely on managed services, you might be less than thrilled with the quality, responsiveness and flexibility you’re getting. Cloud seems like a better path, but you’re contractually obligated, potentially for several more years.

Source: http://gigaom.com/cloud/bils-it-outsourcing-contract-cloud/

Recommend Articles:

1. IT Outsourcing Companies in the USA

2. iOS Platform App Features

3. Android System Architecture

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The Rise and Fall of Programming Languages in 2011

January 13th, 2012

Last year marked many changes in programming: Mobile devices emerged as a major programming platform and, at the other end of the spectrum, clouds became an established platforms for data and applications. In between, desktops and laptops gained substantially more RAM and somewhat more processor cores. Predictably, some of these changes trickled down to the choice of languages.

The well-known Tiobe Index (an index that culls frequency of mentions of languages and language products and translates it into a percentage of overall mentions) found the greatest language growth last year to be in Objective-C. I believe few readers would be surprised by this. Between the iPhone, iPod, and iPad (and to a lesser extent Macs), the demand for Objective-C skills has clearly grown.

The effect of mobile appears as well in Java, which over the last 10 years of Tiobe data has been in a steady decline. Two years ago, it began something of a comeback — I believe driven by Android development — and this year, Java stayed essentially even with last year. My belief is that Android is filling the gap caused by JVM languages, such as Scala, Groovy, and JRuby, which are drawing Java developers away from the language on desktop and server platforms.

As mobile programming takes off, it brings developers back to a lower level of programming that’s closer to the hardware. Typically, because applications on a mobile device tend to have small code bases and require specific languages to exploit every new hardware feature, scripting languages have gained little traction in this area. (Apple’s tight controls on languages and tools has also contributed to the phenomenon.) As a result, for the first time in years, possibly ever, all the primary scripting languages — Perl, Python, Ruby and PHP — declined this year. Of these, Python and Ruby’s are the most interesting.

Source: http://drdobbs.com/mobile/232400093

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iPad Application Development: A Powerful Tool For Promotion

January 12th, 2012

iPad has emerged as one of the tools for promotion of businesses and organizations.

The properties that make it so useful are:

Its interactive nature: iPad applications can be highly attractive and interactive if properly developed. Being highly user interactive, iPad applications can be used as a great tool for marketing and promotional purposes. It can easily capture the attention of the user and help in proper delivery of the message.

Rich Graphics: iPad helps in conveying an impressive message that features sharp graphics and rich colors. Developers can create highly appealing and visually attractive iPad applications that can create a good first impression on the viewer. However, organizations should also remember that the promotional material should also be of high quality and could justify the visual effects used for it.

Powerful Messages: iPad applications can be used to deliver powerful messages that cannot be ignored by the user. Suppose you create a great application that allows users to view the weather of various different locations and put the logo of your company at the beginning when the application is loading. Now it will be really difficult for the user to ignore your logo if he wants to use your application. Moreover, it will also leave a very strong and powerful impression on their minds.

Add Fun Quotient to make it Irresistible: iPad applications can be loaded with fun and entertainment features to make it irresistible. iPad users are always looking for entertaining apps that they can download and use. Organizations can now deliver their messages in one of the most entertaining form that is liked by the user.

Source: http://2lix.com/2012/01/11/ipad-application-development-powerful-tool-for-promotion/

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2012 Cloud Computing Award Winners Announced

January 11th, 2012

The 2012 winners for the annual Cloud Awards Program have been announced today.

Cloud computing is a field of IT and computer systems where services are typically offered remotely as a service, as opposed to within the organization’s own firewall. Judged among almost 200 entries, the final winners represent "the best of the best in their fields."

The annual cloud computing awards program, open internationally across the US and EMEA regions, recognizes and celebrates industry leaders and pioneers in the field of cloud computing. Categories include B2B Customer Strategy, Best Cloud Infrastructure, Data Innovation of the Year, Developer of the Year, Most Promising Start-Up, Best Platform as a Service, Security Innovation, Best Software as a Service and Web Services Excellence.

Cloud Awards organizer Larry Johnson said: "Almost 200 organizations entered the program, which is among the first of its kind. We were swamped by entries, and the standard was remarkably high. Judging the submissions was a challenging task. But we’re happy to endorse all of the winners as among the best of the best in their respective fields.

Source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/2012-cloud-computing-award-winners-announced-2012-01-10

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Google admits profiting from illegal Olympic ticket ads

January 10th, 2012

The ads include unofficial London 2012 Olympics ticket resellers, as well as cannabis and fake ID card sellers.

These ads were promptly removed by Google after the BBC brought them to the company’s attention.

Google has also taken down links to illegal Olympic ticket resellers following requests from the police.

But the search giant told 5 live Investigates that the company keeps any money it might make from companies advertising illegal services before such adverts are removed.

Selling tickets on the open market without permission from the Olympic authorities is a criminal offence in the UK under the London Olympic and Paralympic Games Act 2006.

Promoting ticket touts

The Metropolitan Police, which is dedicated to stopping crime associated with the 2012 games through Operation Podium, said it is aware of LiveOlympicTickets and that the company is breaking the law.

However, as the company is registered overseas, it may be difficult to prosecute as it is outside the UK’s jurisdiction.

The maximum penalty fine for reselling Olympic tickets without authorisation from the Olympic authorities was raised last year from £5,000 to £20,000.

Despite this, Google has placed adverts for unofficial ticket resellers which are breaking the law by selling London 2012 tickets to customers in the UK.

In this case, LiveOlympicTickets was Google’s top sponsored link for 2012 tickets – and remained so for more than a week even after the Metropolitan Police had asked the search engine to remove the advertisement.

The company link was finally removed after 5 live Investigates contacted Google.

But research by the programme team found other sponsored Google adverts – for online cannabis sellers, fake ID cards, and fake UK passports.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-16468846

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Cloud is complex—deal with it

January 9th, 2012

Cloud as a complex system

What’s interesting is that it turns out science has a whole body of work around complex systems. A complex system, according to Wikipedia, is “a system composed of interconnected parts that as a whole exhibit one or more properties (behavior among the possible properties) not obvious from the properties of the individual parts.”

That’s certainly true of the modern interconnected IT environment. Just look at automated trading systems and the famous “flash crash” for an example—systems designed for increasing market returns reacted to each other in a way that temporarily crashed that very market. Other examples abound, and I’m sure your own IT environment often behaves in ways that no single application or other element was designed to do explicitly.

What science teaches us about complex systems is that they are made up of many individual agents, each of which effect and are affected by agents around them. The feedback loops of events created by agents affecting each other both directly and indirectly, combined with the mechanisms that choose behaviors to in response to those events, combine to create the systemic behavior that is so unpredictable.

Cloud as an adaptive system

The thing is, however, a certain class of complex systems, complex adaptive systems, have the additional trait that they can change their behavior in response to the success or failure of previous behaviors when a given event occurs—or when a certain series of events occurs. This ability to “learn” and adapt to the surrounding system environment creates amazing outcomes, including many of the most rich, enduring and powerful systems in our universe

The developer as DNA

I want to leave you with one last thought, however. One of the things about complex adaptive systems is the learning or adapting traits of the agents in the system. In the world of evolution, the main agent of learning or change is DNA. In the world of IT, the agent of learning or change is the engineer or software developer.

If something goes wrong with an application, developers are on the hook to fix it, change it or kill it. If existing hardware fails to create new opportunities to innovate, engineers find new approaches to introduce into the ecosystem to shake things up.

Source: http://gigaom.com/cloud/cloud-is-complex-deal-with-it/

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