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  • No more Adobe Dreamweaver, so how about Xara Web Designer?

    If you're doing serious Web content engineering you might well choose an all-singing, all-dancing product such as Adobe's Dreamweaver. The latest version of Dreamweaver in Adobe's Creative Suite 6 (released just over a year ago) was really impressive with new features such as an improved user interface, support for jQuery UI widgets, better cascading style sheet Version 3 support and support for PhoneGap. All in all, a very cool and comprehensive Web development platform.

    Written by Mark Gibbs • 16 May 13 22:14

  • How to Change Software Testing for New Cloud Configurations

    If DevOps means infrastructure as code,' then that code very well could have bugs. DevOps also means you may not see those bugs in a test environment because, well, there is no test environment. Here's what you can do to manage this risk.

    Written by Matthew Heusser • 07 May 13 12:50

  • Clearing Up Microsoft SkyDrive Pro Confusion

    Microsoft's SkyDrive service has gained a lot of traction over the past couple of years, given that it works well across numerous platforms (including Gmail and Xbox 360) and is easy to use. With Office 2013 and Office 365, Microsoft introduced a SkyDrive Pro service that is oriented toward businesses and enterprises.

    Written by Jonathan Hassell • 11 April 13 16:10

  • Opinion: What Cloud computing means for the future of IT organisations

    It's remarkable how the tone at Cloud Connect in Silicon Valley has changed over the years. The conference has turned from cheerleading to nuts and bolts. This means it's less fun, but it's also more grounded in the day-to-day realities of implementing change instead of envisioning utopia.

    Written by Bernard Golden • 09 April 13 20:56

  • Cloud services: Computus Interruptus

    I use Google Docs as part of my day job. On one recent morning I accessed a file and updated it but when I went back a short time later I got a "502" error page -- something had gone amok in Google land. Everything seemed to work when I tried a few hours later, but the incident was a forceful reminder of one of the important features of cloud services -- when they go down so do you.

    Written by Scott Bradner • 20 March 13 16:06
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    20 Questions for Screening a Salesforce.com Consultant

    Some parts of vendor evaluation never change. Many folks boil it down to just three words: References, references and references. In the cloud, you really need to do a more thorough screening. References are important, but they are only part of the process.

    Written by David Taber • 12 March 13 14:27

  • Is Your Cloud System a Mess? Our Self-Assessment Tool Will Tell You

    Your cloud-based system may have been in use for seven years or more. It probably needs a tune-up. Let's see what kind of shape it's in and what you need to do to make it run like new.

    Written by David Taber • 20 Feb. 13 14:32

  • Opinion: Predicting the tech future

    For my recent column of predictions for 2013 I polled a huge number of IT people to see what they are expecting, and ended up getting more than 400 responses.

    Written by Mark Gibbs • 15 Feb. 13 23:19

  • Why You Shouldn't Punish Employees Who Goof Off

    Employees who buy stuff online aren't slackers. Step back and look at the contributions they make outside normal business hours (whether at home or at their desk) before you watch them like a hawk, make them sign a timesheet and restrict their Internet habits.

    Written by Rob Enderle • 08 Feb. 13 15:23

  • CEO Letter: CIOs See Risks and Rewards in Startup Mania

    Investing in cutting-edge technologies could lead to big rewards, but it also brings incredible risk for CIOs, says Michael Friedenberg

    Written by Michael Friedenberg • 30 Jan. 13 14:37

  • Converging forces

    Change is a given in this business, but 2013 promises to be particularly interesting because of the convergence of multiple, transformative developments, none of which are new, per se, given we have been tracking them in depth for some time, but each of which is forcing us to rethink long held conventions.

    Written by John Dix • 14 Jan. 13 11:58

  • Outlook 2013 ... Even more interesting than 2012!

    Gibbs reviews his predictions from last year and surveys the more than 400 predictions that he's been sent by IT professionals

    Written by Mark Gibbs • 02 Jan. 13 17:04

  • The multifaceted budget process

    With the bulk of the IT budgets in place for 2013, it is a good time to reflect on how the budget process has morphed over the years to accommodate shifts in technology and evolving corporate demands and priorities.

    Written by John Dix • 17 Dec. 12 11:59

  • Realtime's push beats Ajax pull

    How's that there cloudy thing working out for you? Sure, you get flexible, elastic infrastructure at a pretty good price, but what about your data transfer costs? The same question applies to "traditional" hosted apps; data transfer costs can mount up quickly for large client populations.

    Written by Mark Gibbs • 16 Nov. 12 00:46

  • Microsoft's Cloud Services Mix Leaves Many Vendors in the Dust

    IBM became 'Big Blue' because it leased hardware and provided free software, but its collapse divorced the two. The growth of the cloud has caused another marriage, one that brings together software and services. Vendors such as Amazon, Google and especially Microsoft understand this, CIO.com columnist Rob Enderle says, and they are bound to leave those trying to sell a 'cloud solution' in their dust.

    Written by Rob Enderle • 09 Nov. 12 14:37
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    The challenges of competing with Cloud computing providers

    In discussions about cloud computing and in comments readers leave on my blog posts, I commonly get statements along the lines of "Yeah, this cloud computing stuff sounds great, but at the end of the day, you have to have an IT guy solving problems like they've always done." In personal interactions, I often hear this sentiment portrayed as, "Public cloud computing is fine for the SMB and startup market, but enterprises aren't ready to move to that model." The tone of much of this feedback is that anyone who advocates cloud computing is at best naive or at worst incapable of understanding the real details of IT.

    Written by Bernard Golden • 27 Aug. 11 03:32

  • Patriot Act, not products, ups Cloud risks for CIOs

    The global release of Microsoft’s Office 365 last week has raised a simple, sobering thought about dealing with US Cloud providers – they are subject to the US Patriot Act and the data they manage may be accessed by the US government regardless of where it is stored around the world. Before CIOs shun Cloud services altogether, let’s put the news in context.

    Written by Rodney Gedda • 04 July 11 11:39
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    Ubuntu's marketing kick: Is Canonical the next Apple?

    Another six months has passed and another version of Ubuntu Linux has been released, right? Wrong. Ubuntu 11.04 ‘Natty Narwhal’ arrived today and so did a new marketing direction from its parent company and principle sponsor, Canonical. And its flavour has a hint of Apple.

    Written by Rodney Gedda • 29 April 11 14:20
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    Total cost of ownership is only part of the SaaS picture

    For me TCO is only part of the picture, using this measure in isolation can lead you to make suboptimal purchasing decisions. This is written with my experience of Salesforce front of mind, however this can apply to most SaaS providers.

    Written by Andy Pattinson • 14 April 11 15:54

  • Cloud computing: A sustaining or disruptive innovation?

    If you've read this blog over the past couple of years, it should be no surprise that I am a huge advocate of the theories of Clayton Christensen, author of "The Innovator's Dilemma." Christensen and his book were brought to mind this week by the cover story in Forbes about his severe health problems, his experience with the U..S healthcare system, and his prescriptions for how to fix it.

    Written by Bernard Golden • 17 March 11 05:28
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