Michael S.

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I've been taking a break . . .

Michael S. posted an article on - Aug 27, 2011, 11:14 am
. . . a long, long break. With the start of the New Year I decided to take a break. I stopped blogging, stopped using Twitter, and just made a complete break from the whole social networking arena. The routine of researching and writing articles was taking a lot of time and I needed some...
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A Tale of Apple, Microsoft, Google and Others For The Holiday Season

Michael S. posted an article on - Dec 21, 2010, 9:09 am
In the spirit of the holidays and with most profound apologies to Moore and/or Livingston my gift to you this holiday season is this little poem written with extreme poetic license.  Please feel free to add a stanza of your own. 'Twas The Night Before An IT Christmas 'Tw...
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Wikileaks Positive Side Effect for IT

Michael S. posted an article on - Dec 10, 2010, 11:34 am
The disclosure of diplomatic cables by the organization Wikileaks got a tremendous amount of attention. Given that the story involves issues related to theft, sexual assault, the moral duty for civil disobedience and just plain gossip, this is not at all surprising. We shouldn't take an...
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Why E-Commerce Still Isn't Easy To Do

Michael S. posted an article on - Nov 10, 2010, 2:22 pm
Recognizing the difference of the Internet is key to online sales success Doing business over the Internet, whether B2C or B2B, is not the same as the traditional pre-Internet methods.   I’m sure the typical response to this is “well, duh!”  That simple statement is taken as a gi...
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Making IT Better For Customers

Michael S. posted an article on - Oct 27, 2010, 5:00 am
Three things to keep in mind when designing applications. IT spends a lot of time trying to improve our system and the user interface, especially when they will be used by our external customers. Most of the time, we're pretty good at delivering easy-to-use applications. However, I recent...
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"Bring Your Own Technology" Is In Your Future

Michael S. posted an article on - Oct 13, 2010, 10:00 am
IT leaders need to start thinking in terms of users making their own technology choices. Consider the concept of BYOT, or Bring Your Own Technology.  The premise is that instead of IT dictating the supported computing platforms and cellphones, users will make their own selection based on...
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SIMposium2010

Michael S. posted an article on - Oct 10, 2010, 12:46 pm
I'm not a big fan of IT conferences.  For the most part you're just paying for the privilege of attending a vendor sales pitch.  I don't like the free ones and certainly see no need to pay for one. The one thing that is nice about the conference is the opportunity to meet other practit...
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We Need Better Leadership From The U.S. CIO

Michael S. posted an article on - Sep 29, 2010, 6:00 am
After a year-and-a-half on the job, Vivek Kundra has not been strategic enough. Fulfilling a campaign promise, President Obama named Vivek Kundra as the first U.S. CIO in March 2009. This was a cause for excitement within the IT community as we saw this as an opportunity for important IT-related...
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How IT Can Give Better Presentations

Michael S. posted an article on - Sep 15, 2010, 6:00 am
Cut out jargon and focus on helping, not limiting, customers. IT has long sought to be considered a partner to the other business leaders in our companies. It's all part of our pursuit of the holy grail of "having a seat at the table." Naturally, getting there mean...
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Why IT Must Embrace Facebook, Twitter, iPhone

Michael S. posted an article on - Sep 1, 2010, 6:00 am
Consumer technologies are infiltrating the corporate world. Learn to leverage them. I like TED. TED is a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to "Ideas Worth Spreading." They have conferences where they bring together thought leaders from the world of technology, entertainment and de...
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Top Five Technology Fanboys

Michael S. posted an article on - Aug 18, 2010, 6:00 am
Apple has its lovers. Microsoft and Google have fanboys who love to hate them. A popular theme for technical writers is to compare one product or technology with another. PC vs. Mac, iPhone vs. Droid, IE vs. Firefox, etc. These debates include well-reasoned disagreement and o...
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Why Windows 7 Tablets Won't Kill iPad

Michael S. posted an article on - Aug 4, 2010, 6:00 am
Apple's tablet is for consumers. Microsoft should aim for business users. Despite previously killing a tablet PC initiative, Microsoft is reportedly feverishly working with its partners on Windows 7-powered tablets. Some think this is an attempt to catch up to Apple by creating an iPad ki...
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Lessons From Apple's 'Antennagate'

Michael S. posted an article on - Jul 21, 2010, 6:00 am
Sometimes how you handle a problem is more important than the solution. Last week Steve Jobs addressed the antenna issues of the iPhone 4, the so-called "antennagate." The "-gate" suffix is rather illustrative. The original "gate, Watergate, started out with what is commonly c...
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10 Communication Mistakes CIOs Still Make

Michael S. posted an article on - Jul 15, 2010, 8:03 pm
Meridith Levinson just published a great article on CIO.com and Networkworld.com on communication mistakes that CIOs (and I dare say many in IT) make.  There is a lot that we all can learn from these common mistakes. Levinson was kind enough to mention some blogs (including this one) t...
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Where's My Flying Car?

Michael S. posted an article on - Jul 7, 2010, 6:00 am
Unlike futurists, IT has to deliver on its possibilities. Massachusetts based Terrafugia, Inc. recently announced that it has successfully completed its flight test program for its "Flying Car." Terrafugia hopes to have the first delivery of its beta prototype in 2011. Whil...
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Ending Apple's AT&T Problem

Michael S. posted an article on - Jun 23, 2010, 6:00 am
Steve Jobs needs to get other phone carriers on board--fast. The Apple-AT&T partnership for the iPhone and iPad hasn't gone exactly as well as planned. AT&T has stumbled more than once. Most recently, there have been problems with iPhone 4 order fulfillment, including indications that cus...
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Don't Blame Google For Grabbing Your Data

Michael S. posted an article on - Jun 9, 2010, 6:00 am
Why people should secure their own Wi-Fi networks, and what the IT industry can do to help. Google was taken to task recently when it was discovered that it had captured private payload data from unsecured Wi-Fi networks while its Street View cars traveling to collect data for Google's location-...
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The Hidden Price Of Free Applications

Michael S. posted an article on - May 26, 2010, 6:00 am
Access to our personal data is the price we pay for ''free'' services on the Internet. Privacy issues, the Internet and social media in particular have been getting a lot of attention lately. Facebook has become the poster child for privacy concerns about the data we divulge onlin...
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Driving E-mail To The Cloud

Michael S. posted an article on - May 12, 2010, 6:00 am
With the right applications, e-mail in the cloud could be a productivity boon. There has been a lot of discussion about companies moving their email systems from in-house operations to a cloud application--in other words, to a hosted platform on a remote server or data center. Much of the talk ...
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Keeping Data Safe From IT Snoops

Michael S. posted an article on - Apr 21, 2010, 6:00 am
How to improve data security and privacy. A Pennsylvania school district made headlines recently with accusations that two of the district's IT employees were spying on students and took "thousands" of pictures of students in their homes without their knowledge, using the cameras in their s...
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Is Social Media a Fad?

Michael S. posted an article on - Apr 8, 2010, 10:49 am
I attended the Texas Technology Summit yesterday and one of the speakers was David Guthrie, CTO of PGi.  David gave a great presentation on "IT Innovations: What is the Future?" He included the following YouTube video in the presentation which is rather thought provoking.  With over 1.7 millio...
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Your Online Reputation Matters

Michael S. posted an article on - Apr 7, 2010, 6:00 am
A positive online reputation is important for both individuals and companies We've all heard the stories of Joe, a job candidate who was a shoo-in to get that great job until the hiring manager decided to take a look at the candidate's Facebook page. Suddenly some photos of a wild party ...
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Taking Control Of Your Technology

Michael S. posted an article on - Mar 24, 2010, 6:00 am
Why going offline for a day isn't the answer. I just returned from an extended business trip in Europe. While there, I had the opportunity to stay in some interesting hotels, including a renovated castle from the 15th century. The flashback in time gave me a jolting perspective on just how m...
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CIOs: Stop Ignoring Social Media

Michael S. posted an article on - Mar 3, 2010, 6:00 am
CIOs and IT leaders need to promote social media or risk becoming marginalized. I recently attended a panel discussion of four CIOs put on by a major IT research firm and found the exchange on social media interesting. In addition to the CIO of the research firm, there was representation by both ...
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The IT Security Balancing Act

Michael S. posted an article on - Feb 17, 2010, 9:35 am
Ultimately, IT is responsible for security breaches even if it's not at fault. Late last year, Plano, Texas-based Hillary Machinery lost $800,000 to cyber theft when attackers stole the money in a series of transfers from Hillary's PlainsCapital bank account. PlainsCapital was subs...
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Apple: Less Hype, Better Products

Michael S. posted an article on - Feb 3, 2010, 6:39 am
The company needs to focus more on solid marketing and product development. Apple's long anticipated launch of the iPad became a rather interesting twist in the Apple/Steve Jobs saga, and it may signal a shift in the future of Apple. After all the hype and hysteria of the iPhone roll-outs...
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