IT Executive news

• 8 Android and iOS Apps for Hanukkah

  16-12-2014 23:41
  
  Happy Hanukkah!The Hanukkah router here at Network World has sputtered and coughed and disgorged not one, not two, but eight Android and iOS apps for Hanukkah, which begins tonight at sundown. (In case you were unaware.) Check them out, and chag sameach.Tfilon (Android)Image by Google PlayTo read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
  Read more

• 'The Vampire Diaries,' 'Once Upon A Time' And 'Pretty Little Liars' Spoilers ... - Mstarz

  16-12-2014 23:40
  
  Mstarz
  'The Vampire Diaries,' 'Once Upon A Time' And 'Pretty Little Liars' Spoilers ...
  Mstarz
  As it draws nearer to the holiday season, we're grateful for the upcoming time we get to spend with family and friends. But we aren't happy that we have to say goodbye to our TV families for a long winter hiatus as they prepare for the second half of ...
  
  Read more

• Google Cloud offers streamlined Ubuntu for Docker use

  16-12-2014 22:45
  
  Google has adopted for use in its cloud a streamlined version of the Canonical Ubuntu Linux distribution tweaked to run Docker and other containers.Ubuntu Core was designed to provide only the essential components for running Linux workloads in the cloud. An early preview edition of it, which Canonical calls “Snappy,” was released last week. The new edition jettisoned many of the libraries and programs usually found in general use Linux distributions that were unnecessary for cloud use.Th
  
  Read more

• How to Use LinkedIn’s New Profile Features

  16-12-2014 22:40
  
  LinkedIn wants you to think of your profile as a vibrant, dynamic landing page that deserves your utmost attention and interest. While other social media profiles remain static and usually offer only the smallest tidbits of information, LinkedIn profiles are being positioned as a living and breathing representation of your foremost interests and aspirations.LinkedIn says its profiles are often the first thing people see when searching for someone online, so it is releasing a series of improve
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• The 12 Gifts of Techmas

  16-12-2014 22:28
  
  Gifts that geeks will loveYes, it’s that time of year when techies go to bed dreaming of gadgets, wall warts and blinking LEDs. In this roundup I have 12 gifts that any geek worth his salted hash would not just love but cherish (your mileage may vary, batteries not included, do not show to muggles, void where prohibited). Now, on Dasher, on Dancer, on Prancer, on Comet, on Vixen, on Line …To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
  Read more

• First lawsuit filed against Sony after massive hack

  16-12-2014 22:20
  
  Two former employees of Sony Pictures have filed a lawsuit against the company alleging it didn’t do enough to safeguard their personal information and prevent its loss in a massive cyberattack in late November.The lawsuit, filed Monday in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, asks the court to award monetary damages and also class-action status, That would mean thousands of Sony employees past and present could join the suit if they wished.“Sony failed to secure its
  
  Read more

• Stanford 'High-Rise' Chip Takes on IoT and Big Data

  16-12-2014 22:12
  
  Stanford University researchers have built a multi-layered "high-rise" chip that could significantly outperform traditional computer chips, taking on the hefty workloads that will be needed for the Internet of Things and big data.
  Using nanotechnology, the new chips are built with layers of processing on top of layers of memory, greatly cutting down on the time and energy typically needed to move information from memory to processing and back.
  
  Max Shulaker, a Ph.D candidate at Stanford Uni
  
  Read more

• T-Mobile’s New Data Stash Plan Doesn’t Let Workers Share Data

  16-12-2014 22:10
  
  T-Mobile today unveiled a monthly data rollover plan for consumers and business customers called "Data Stash," but the plan still won't allow workers to share their data with others in a work group.
  Data Stash works much the same way for users who have a Simple Choice plan (or Simple Choice for Business Value Plan) and have purchased 3GB or more of LTE data per month for smartphones and 1GB or more for tablets.
  T-Mobile will give those existing customers, as well as new customers, 10GB of fr
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Google's Surprise: ODF Support Launches Ahead of Schedule

  16-12-2014 21:40
  
  Following the comments by Google's head of open source, Chris DiBona, last week in London, Google has today announced that support for ODF (OpenDocument Format) has now been added to its Google Drive suite of apps. In a post on Google+, the team announced immediate support of ODT (ODF text documents), ODS (spreadsheets) and ODP (presentations), which can now all be imported into Google Docs.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
  Read more

• Instagram exposes 5 new filters for a more subtle effect

  16-12-2014 21:05
  
  Instagram’s got five new filters that it hopes will improve people’s smartphone photos by changing them less.Instagram has not released new filters since 2012. And its original filters compensated for the lower quality of photos taken with earlier smartphones, the company said. But now we’re in the heyday of smartphone photography, right? So Instagram is offering filters that it says apply a more subtle effect, capitalizing on the higher image quality of mobile devices.The new filters�
  
  Read more

• Firefox Pleads for Cash with In-Browser Fundraiser

  16-12-2014 20:41
  
  Mozilla has been running a fundraiser from within its Firefox browser, a program that will run through the end of the year.
  When users launch Firefox they may see a PBS-style pitch for money on the browser's start screen, which normally is a minimalist display of a search field and a few tool icons.
  "Dear Firefox users: Mozilla puts the public good and user privacy before profit," the screen states. "If Firefox is useful to you, take one minute to support the non-profit behind it. If everyon
  
  Read more

• New England Security Group Shares Threat Intelligence, Strives to Bolster Region as Cybersecurity Mecca

  16-12-2014 20:38
  
  The Advanced Cyber Security Center is a three year old organization with a bold mission to “bring together industry, university, and government organizations to address the most advanced cyber threats” and drive cybersecurity R&D in the New England region. Network World editor in Chief John Dix attended their most recent meeting in Boston and later tracked down ACSC Executive Director Charlie Benway and ACSC Board Chair William Guenther (CEO and Founder of Mass Insight) for a deep di
  
  Read more

• Sony hackers turn to terror tactics, threaten movie theaters

  16-12-2014 20:35
  
  The hackers who attacked Sony Pictures have apparently moved on to a new tactic: attempting to spread fear among the general public.In a message on Tuesday, the hackers allude to attacks on movie theaters showing “The Interview.”Due to open Dec. 25, the movie is a comedy about celebrity TV interviewers sent to North Korea on a secret mission to kill leader Kim Jong Un. It has some speculating that North Korean hackers were behind the attack on Sony.“We will clearly show it to you at the
  
  Read more

• 2014: The year in quotes

  16-12-2014 19:40
  
  From rattled airline passengers who fear the coming of smartphones to jurors who don’t know a smartphone from a tablet, here are some of the colorful quotes from IT news in 2014.Give the audience a grin“The founders of Snapchat last year turned down a $3 billion offer from Facebook and a $4 billion offer from Google. It was a surprising show of integrity from the guys who invented the app that lets you look at pictures of boobs for five seconds.”- Comedian Cecily Strong giving a rundown
  
  Read more

• German FA boss wants to improve FIFA's image - Yahoo Singapore News

  16-12-2014 19:35
  
  German FA boss wants to improve FIFA's image
  Yahoo Singapore News
  Wolfgang Niersbach, the president of the German Football Association (DFB), wants to help improve the image of world football's governing body FIFA, if voted onto it's executive committee next year. The 64-year-old is hoping to be presented as Europe's ...
  
  and more »
  
  Read more

• Hackers Hint at Terror Attacks, Release More Data From Sony Pictures

  16-12-2014 19:30
  
  The group responsible for the attack on Sony Pictures, the GOP (Guardians of Peace), has moved away from their normal rhetoric, issuing a thinly veiled threat of terror attacks on Christmas Day, the date when Sony's picture The Interview is set for general release.
  The threat was attached to a note sent to media and posted publicly on Tuesday.
  The note offered download links to an OST file belonging to Michael Lynton, CEO of Sony Pictures. The group said that this release is the first of sev
  
  Read more

• Tech, telecom contribute 10 percent of Nigeria's GDP, ICT minister says

  16-12-2014 19:20
  
  The information and communications technology sector has almost doubled its contribution to Nigeria’s GDP in the last three years and is expected to be a main driver of economic growth, according to the country’s ICT minister.“The industry currently contributes 9.58 percent to GDP (Q3 2014) and is further enabling other parts of the economy,” Omobola Johnson said Monday when presenting her ministry’s scorecard on growth since 2011. “The industry is now viewed as critical, ranked w
  
  Read more

• 3 Low-Tech Threats That Lead to High-Profile Breaches

  16-12-2014 18:21
  
  In an age where data security defenses are getting more and more sophisticated, there will be increased pressure for malicious parties to glean information from within the organization's walls or public places.
  Moving forward, we can expect to see a shift from hacking networks to a focus on hacking people. The tactics used to hack people are not highly sophisticated and can encompass relatively stealth threat vectors, making them hard to trace. It seems simple, but it’s important not to
  
  Read more

• 9 Data Breaches That Cost Someone Their Job

  16-12-2014 18:17
  
  Tis’ the season for data breachesImage by ThinkstockFollowing last year’s big announcement of not just Target’s data breach but executive job loss, we lay out 9 data breaches resulting in job loss. Comparing Target alongside other breaches that have fallen under the radar.TargetImage by TargetTo read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
  Read more

• China was brutal to US tech firms in 2014

  16-12-2014 18:10
  
  Earlier this month, Amazon, Apple, and Facebook each welcomed China’s top Internet regulator to their headquarters, for visits marked by smiles and laughter.Looking at photos from the meetings, it would be easy to think the companies have a cozy relationship with the world’s most populous nation. In fact, 2014 was a lousy year for U.S. tech firms doing business in China, and next year may be no better.For the past 12 months, Beijing has clamped down on foreign technology companies operati
  
  Read more

• How Predictive Analytics Can Help Set Perfect Hotel Room Prices

  16-12-2014 18:03
  
  Somewhere between the occupancy rate, future booking trends, the weather forecast and other factors lies the perfect price for any particular hotel room. But few hotels have mastered the art of setting it.One of the primary performance metrics that hotels consider is RevPAR, or revenue per available room. Hotels divide their total guest room revenue by the room count and the number of days in the period being measured and that provides an indicator of how well the hotel is doing.Hotel revenue
  
  Read more

• Microsoft throws open doors to Sway beta

  16-12-2014 17:45
  
  The beta test of Microsoft’s newish Web-publishing app, Sway, is no longer by invitation-only: the company said today it’s open to all.Since Sway’s October debut, more than 175,000 people have requested an invitation to the trial preview, with thousands more submitting requests daily, Microsoft said in a Monday blog post. This response contributed to the decision to expand the test program. Microsoft hopes an even larger base of users will provide it with more ideas for how to improve t
  
  Read more

• Glo teams with India's One97 to revive Africa's storytelling tradition

  16-12-2014 17:05
  
  Indian mobile Internet provider One97 has taken another step into West Africa’s value added service market with a new audio storytelling portal partnership with Nigeria-based mobile operator Glo. The deal will enable Glo’s users in Benin, and later Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, listen to favorite stories via their phones on-demand.“Story portal helps a telco to create a close bond with the customers,” said One97 Senior Vice President Kiran Vasireddy. “It takes customers back
  
  Read more

• Ransomware Criminals Turn to Virus Technique to Spread Infection

  16-12-2014 16:35
  
  The criminals responsible for a recently-discovered piece of ransomware called VirRansom have raided the dirty tricks locker and pulled out a technique experts assumed was extinct - old-fashioned virus-like replication.
  Security firm Sophos doesn't say precisely when and where it discovered VirRansom, but as ransomware goes it is an unexpected experiment in old-world techniques.
  Outwardly, it works rather like any other ransomware, encrypting a wide range of data files and throwing up a warn
  
  Read more

• Is Iran is the New China? FBI Warning Suggests it's Not Far Off

  16-12-2014 16:34
  
  The FBI has sent a formal warning to US energy, defence and education organisations to be on the lookout for targeted Iranian cyberattacks, Reuters has reported.
  Flagged as confidential, probably because it goes into detail about the techniques used, the 'Flash' document offers advice on combatting yet another sophisticated state-backed cyberattack campaign to add to the suspected Chinese, Russian and North Korean ones some of the firms will already be battling.
  According to the brief detail
  
  Read more

• How to Reduce Enterprise App Clutter on Your iPad

  16-12-2014 16:34
  
  A typical business executive fires up a half-dozen iPad productivity apps -- Salesforce, Office 365, Yammer, Zendesk, Workday, among them -- to get through the day. Opening and closing apps every few minutes, though, can become tedious and annoying.The problem is only going to get worse with more apps to check daily. There are some 250 cloud service providers pitching business users today. Most recently, IBM and Apple released 10 iOS apps for the enterprise aimed at vertical industries such a
  
  Read more

• German FA boss wants to improve FIFA's image - Times of India

  16-12-2014 16:30
  
  German FA boss wants to improve FIFA's image
  Times of India
  BERLIN: Wolfgang Niersbach, the president of the German Football Association (DFB), wants to help improve the image of world football's governing body FIFA, if voted onto it's executive committee next year. The 64-year-old is hoping to be presented as ...
  
  and more »
  
  Read more

• Microsoft's Lumia Gestures App Lets You Control Your Windows Phone Without Touching The Screen

  16-12-2014 16:23
  
  Microsoft is bringing some special gestures to Lumia Phones that may be a prelude to more expansive features coming to handsets with Windows 10. The company just released a free app in the Windows Phone store called Gestures Beta that lets you answer a call, mute your mic, put someone on speaker, and silence an incoming call without ever touching your phone's display.
  The story behind the story: Many of the features Microsoft added to Gestures Beta were originally expected in an update to Wi
  
  Read more

• Dutch regulator asks Facebook to hold off on privacy update, is rebuffed

  16-12-2014 15:55
  
  Saying that Facebook’s new privacy policy could violate Dutch data protection laws, the privacy regulator in the Netherlands has asked it to postpone its introduction pending an investigation. But the social network won’t hold back the rollout of new terms and policies on Jan. 1, and was “surprised and disappointed” by the data protection authority’s move, a spokeswoman said.“We recently updated our terms and policies to make them more clear and concise, to reflect new product fea
  
  Read more

• German FA boss wants to improve FIFA's image - Business Recorder

  16-12-2014 15:54
  Business Recorder
  German FA boss wants to improve FIFA's image
  Business Recorder
  BERLIN: Wolfgang Niersbach, the president of the German Football Association (DFB), wants to help improve the image of world football's governing body FIFA, if voted onto it's executive committee next year. The 64-year-old is hoping to be presented as ...
  
  and more »
  
  Read more

• How CIOs Can Prepare for Healthcare ‘Data Tsunami’

  16-12-2014 15:34
  
  The volume of healthcare data is growing at a staggering rate, bringing with it a host of technical, compliance and governance challenges for CIOs working in that sector.
  A recent report from EMC and the research firm IDC offers a few imaginative ways at visualizing that proliferation, anticipating an overall increase in health data of 48 percent annually.
  The report pegs the volume of healthcare data at 153 exabytes in 2013. At projected growth rates, that figure will swell to 2,314 exabyte
  
  Read more

• BrandPost: What is Azure?

  16-12-2014 15:29
  Cloud Computing is all the rage today, and rightfully so. Businesses are readily adopting this innovative way to compute over the Internet. But before you get ahead of yourself, there are hundreds of questions you should ask before journeying into the Cloud. For starters, what is driving this initiative? How are you preparing? How are you going to control it? And most important, what is it?There is considerably more excitement about the Cloud than understanding. Tangible, like its namesake, t
  
  Read more

• Six technologies that will change PCs next year

  16-12-2014 15:25
  
  In an era of slick gadgets, PCs are the dinosaurs, ensnared in wire clutter, sporting tired 2D cameras and stricken with the occasional blue screen of death. Technology coming up in 2015, though, is set to make PCs more interactive, fun and perhaps nosier than you’d like them to be.Apple’s iPad changed the way people viewed computers and spurred PC innovation. Hardware makers drew ideas from mobile devices, gaming consoles and even 3D printers to rethink the PC, and the resulting new tech
  
  Read more

• The Year in Tech Industry Apologies

  16-12-2014 15:21
  
  SorryImage by Flickr/ Neil SloranceTo read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
  Read more

• From Ebola to Flappy Bird: These Are the Most Popular Google Searches of 2014

  16-12-2014 15:21
  
  Google just released its annual retrospective on what the world was searching for in 2014. The company has apparently given up on calling its year in review the Google Zeitgeist and opted for the more humble "Year in Search." The lists include everything from top trending overall searches to top trending GIFs.
  The story behind the story: Although it's stopped using the moniker, Zeitgeist was an entirely appropriate name for Google's yearly top trending search lists. As the most popular searc
  
  Read more

• This Linux grinch could put a hole in your security stocking

  16-12-2014 15:20
  
  A grinch may be snatching away some year-end holiday time, forcing Linux system administrators to fill a gaping security hole in their systems.Named after the proverbially grumpy Dr. Seuss character, the grinch vulnerability could affect all Linux systems, potentially providing attackers with unfettered root access, according to security service provider Alert Logic, which introduced grinch to the world Tuesday via a blog post.Grinch could be as severe as the Shellshock Linux shell flaw that
  
  Read more

• Holiday Survival Guide: Dos and Don'ts For Your Office Party

  16-12-2014 14:40
  
  Holiday party gloryImage by City Hall: A good place for a party. Chris Chabot/FlickrIn 1999, at the age of 25, I went to my first tech industry holiday party. It was San Francisco in the midst of the dot-com boom, and my employer pulled out all the stops, renting out the gorgeous and recently renovated City Hall (pictured). People dressed up, there was live music, and I felt so awkward I spent a lot of time talking to the valet parking guys.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, ple
  
  Read more

• How to Make Your iOS Device Feel More Like Android (and Vice Versa)

  16-12-2014 14:34
  
  Some iOS users probably wonder what life is like on the other side of the smartphone fence. The same is true for Android users — plenty of them are undoubtedly curious about the iOS life.With the right apps, both camps can get a taste of how the other half lives. Here are a few to get you started.The Android Look and Feel on iOSGoogle recently updated its Google Search iOS app. Now called simply "Google," the app features Google's new Material Design interface. Material Design builds upon
  
  Read more

• Unisys Corporation (UIS) Appoints Peter A. Altabef as CEO - StreetInsider.com (subscription)

  16-12-2014 14:32
  Unisys Corporation (UIS) Appoints Peter A. Altabef as CEO
  StreetInsider.com (subscription)
  Weaver said, "The board of directors has completed an intensive search process and we are extremely pleased to welcome Peter Altabef, a highly-regarded and experienced IT executive, to the helm of Unisys. As an industry veteran, Peter brings ...
  
  Read more

• At Microsoft, Quality Seems to Be Job None

  16-12-2014 14:16
  
  I actually had been feeling optimistic about Windows 10. No, really. You can look it up. I mean, I didn’t think Windows 10 was the greatest thing since the advent of the Internet, but it did strike me as a solid replacement for the lamentable Windows 8.
  But that was before I got a notice that if I wanted to update my Windows 10 Technical Preview by applying one of December’s security updates, I would have to uninstall Office. What the …
  Making matters even weirder, this security update
  
  Read more

• Unisys Corporation Names Peter Altabef as Its New President and CEO - Virtual-Strategy Magazine (press release)

  16-12-2014 14:14
  Unisys Corporation Names Peter Altabef as Its New President and CEO
  Virtual-Strategy Magazine (press release)
  Weaver said, "The board of directors has completed an intensive search process and we are extremely pleased to welcome Peter Altabef, a highly-regarded and experienced IT executive, to the helm of Unisys. As an industry veteran, Peter brings ...
  
  and more »
  
  Read more

• Sydney siege hostage 'calm in managing a crisis' - The Australian

  16-12-2014 14:10
  The Australian
  Sydney siege hostage 'calm in managing a crisis'
  The Australian
  WESTPAC IT executive Selina Win Pe is the sort of person who is “calm and good at managing a crisis”, according to a friend. Ms Win Pe was one of the hostages forced to hold up an Islamic banner in the window of the Lindt cafe, and she was one of the ...
  
  and more »
  
  Read more

• 'calm in managing a crisis' - The Australian

  16-12-2014 14:10
  The Australian
  'calm in managing a crisis'
  The Australian
  WESTPAC IT executive Selina Win Pe is the sort of person who is “calm and good at managing a crisis”, according to a friend. Ms Win Pe was one of the hostages forced to hold up an Islamic banner in the window of the Lindt cafe, and she was one of the ...
  
  Read more

• Unisys Corporation Names Peter Altabef as Its New President and CEO - CNNMoney

  16-12-2014 14:10
  Unisys Corporation Names Peter Altabef as Its New President and CEO
  CNNMoney
  Weaver said, "The board of directors has completed an intensive search process and we are extremely pleased to welcome Peter Altabef, a highly-regarded and experienced IT executive, to the helm of Unisys. As an industry veteran, Peter brings ...
  
  and more »
  
  Read more

• IDG Contributor Network: Tools for Project Management and Collaboration

  16-12-2014 14:07
  
  Some of you may note that between Parts Two and Three there is a big lag.No, it isn't due to a lack of time or information management. It is due to time and information management and the allocation of available bandwidth. And prioritization. And family.In short…my mom has been moved into a new place, the old home is for sale, and a couple new clients are steaming full speed ahead with some projects. All good!In the time between my last posts and now, the team at Pulse Infomatics has grown
  
  Read more

• How Colleges Are Failing Their Students

  16-12-2014 14:06
  
  Most traditional four-year colleges are great at teaching students theoretical knowledge, critical thinking, history, literature and even computer science, but where these institutions fall short in a key area: teaching graduates the skills they need to land jobs after school and manage their careers.
  
  "There's a major disconnect between what colleges believe their students need to get a job and what those students actually need. The job market and the economy have changed so drastically in t
  
  Read more

• Unisys Corporation Names Peter Altabef as Its New President and CEO - PR Newswire (press release)

  16-12-2014 14:02
  
  Unisys Corporation Names Peter Altabef as Its New President and CEO
  PR Newswire (press release)
  Weaver said, "The board of directors has completed an intensive search process and we are extremely pleased to welcome Peter Altabef, a highly-regarded and experienced IT executive, to the helm of Unisys. As an industry veteran, Peter brings ...
  
  and more »
  
  Read more

• Facebook: Don't Advertise With Us If You Don't See Clear ROI

  16-12-2014 14:00
  
  Facebook last week detailed a number of initiatives meant to help it form a more cohesive strategy for implementing its arsenal of recently acquired advertising technology.
  "It has taken us some time to figure out what we uniquely offer to the world," Brian Boland, vice president of ad tech at Facebook, said during a media briefing at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., last week.
  Boland says the company wants to "reconnect the pieces" of the ad tech it acquired and built, and
  
  Read more

• 10 Changes You Can Make to Achieve Security Serenity Now!

  16-12-2014 14:00
  
  You don’t have to look into a crystal ball to find peace of mind when it comes to security. CSO Magazine presents 10 relatively low-labor changes you can make to achieve significant improvements in enterprise security.
  #1. Help high-level decision-makers to understand.
  “Help your top-level executives to be truly aware of the nature of the security situation and to take on their risk manager responsibility in a serious way,” says Fred B. Cohen, an American computer scientist best known
  
  Read more

Follow @ITExecutiveNews on Twitter!