Forgot your password?

Close
typodupeerror
Software

Adam Kolawa: How to Save Software Development->

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes "The current economic mess demands IT groups dump antiquated software development methods now, says development guru Adam Kolawa (known among other things for his book, Automated Defect Prevention.) "When the worldwide economy was booming," he writes, "the glacially slow pace of software development was taken for granted. People would say, "It is what it is, like bad weather or visiting the in-laws." Their fatalism was perhaps understandable. Until recently, the only way to hasten the pace of software development was by throwing more bodies onto the production line. Occasionally this strategy worked, but most often it just resulted in even higher levels of inefficiency, more bugs and no appreciable gains in speed. With the economy getting worse by the minute, we can no longer afford the fatalistic attitudes of the recent past. Today, 30 or 40 properly trained and well-managed people can do the work of 300 or 400 developers." Here's his take on how to automate software development production-line-style and why the time is now."
Link to Original Source
Handhelds

BlackBerry Bling: Priciest, Pimped-Out BlackBerrys->

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes "$17,000, diamond-encrusted BlackBerry, anyone? Here's a look at the most pimped-out BlackBerrys and accessories that a ridiculous amount of money can buy. Per the article: "How about a BlackBerry featuring your favorite sports team logo in crystals? And ladies, we found a fashionista in London who'll custom make a BlackBerry purse for you in gold python leather." Check out the bling you have to see to appreciate, CrackBerry addicts."
Link to Original Source
It's funny. Laugh.

10 Signs Your Geek is Just Not That Into You->

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes "Is your fiery romance on track, or headed for the rails faster than Ruby? The signals that your average Joe or Jane puts out are one thing, but some special rules apply for geeks and techies. In time for Valentine's Day, check out this "helpful guide to see whether the one you IM most is really that into you--or perhaps two-timing you with the BlackBerry admin down the hall." Hint: He or she should not use "Wii" more than "we" in conversation."
Link to Original Source
Software

10 Virtualization Vendors to Watch in 2009->

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes ""The virtualization market took a sharp turn toward the nasty, practical and cheap during 2008," notes author Kevin Fogarty. "Microsoft finally shipped a version of Windows Server with a native hypervisor, effectively giving away the ability to create multiple virtual servers from one machine. That's the cheap. The nasty: Microsoft also pulled marketing stunts like sending guerilla marketers into VMware's biggest U.S. tradeshow bearing casino chips with an anti-VMware message. Market-dominating VMware shrugged off Microsoft's bravado and rolled out its vision of an ambitious virtual data center operating system." In the trenches, virtualization users will expand beyond the test, development and evaluation installations they ran in 2008, running more production applications in VMs during 2009. Who's going to help you manage those VMs? Sure, VMware, Microsoft and Citrix all continue to make and push their own management tools. Industry stalwarts such as CA, Symantec, Cisco and Sun are in the virtualization game for real now too. But among the many other smaller, innovative vendors in the virtualization management arena, which ones deserve your attention? Here's a look at ten makers of VM management, configuration and monitoring tools who are worth watching in 2009."
Link to Original Source
Social Networks

Facebook App Developers Struggle as Rules Change->

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes "Among the more than 650,000 third-party developers who make a living in the ecosystem around Facebook, resentment is brewing. A redesign to the service several months ago has made it tougher to recruit new app users and make money. "A lot of apps were lost overnight," one source tells CIO.com's C.G. Lynch. "Many developers hate Facebook for it because they left their day jobs, and they put a significant amount of their time and money developing stuff for Facebook." And a successful developer who's gotten out of the Facebook app business has this to say: "If someone was coming to me now and saying they want to create a Facebook app, I'd tell them all the problems and how hard it is." Facebook, for its part, says third-party developers will play a big role in the future, as it pushes Facebook Connect as a type of operating system for the Web. But can the Facebook platform flourish despite the current developer dissatisfaction? Not everyone agrees."
Link to Original Source
Operating Systems

Windows Mobile Phone Runs "Virtual" BlackB->

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes "Screen shots of a Windows Mobile-powered HTC Fuze smartphone running what appears to be the BlackBerry OS have surfaced. Apparently, the device is running the new BlackBerry Application Suite--not to be confused with the BlackBerry App Center--which will replace the long-in-the-tooth BlackBerry Connect service. BlackBerry Connect lets organizations with non-BlackBerry devices connect users to either BlackBerry Internet Service (BIS) or a BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) to utilize RIM's renowned "push" technology and boost security. The BlackBerry Application Suite is running on the HTC Fuze just as a normal app would, "virtualizing" the BlackBerry OS in the process. Users of the service will also presumably be able to run BlackBerry-specific applications on non-RIM devices."
Link to Original Source
User Journal

The Trouble with Virtualization: Cranky IT Staffs-> 3

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes "A new survey on enterprises' results from virtualization to date shows that the ROI is spreading a lot of love. What's killing the party? Political squabbles among IT staffers, fighting for turf after being forced to work together in new ways. Seems some people still don't know how to play nicely with others."
Link to Original Source
Data Storage

How to Do Virtualization at Warp Speed->

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes "Can you virtualize 95 percent of your company's production servers within a year? Yes. Vincent Biddlecombe did. Here's a look at how the CTO of logistics company Transplace went from having no virtualization expertise in house to running the company's mission-critical app on a VM. And look mom: No glitches."
Link to Original Source
Security

10 Biggest Security Risks on Virtualized Servers->

Submitted by
lgmac
lgmac writes "VM Sprawl. Hypervisor holes. Rogue virtual machines. Network traffic gone bad. What are the biggest virtualization security risks now and how can you combat them?

"We're finding security is the forgotten stepchild in the virtualization build out," says Stephen Elliott, IDC's research director for enterprise systems management software. "That's scary when you think about the number of production-level VMs."

CIO.com lists 10 positive steps enterprises can take to tighten virtualization security as well as Future Threats to Virtualization Security."
Link to Original Source

Ain't no right way to do a wrong thing. -- The Mad Dogtender