IT Executive news

• Study finds companies are failing to modernize IT

  24-12-2015 21:25
  
  A recent study of frontline IT leaders conducted by BPI Network found that while IT modernization is crucial for a successful business, most companies don’t measure up. The results show businesses are lagging behind in five crucial aspects to creating an agile and modern IT department and business. And this inability to adapt has created a significant gap between those leading in the digital age and those falling behind.It isn’t as though executives are unaware of the problems around
  
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• One in 10 U.S. homes may have a robot by 2020

  24-12-2015 19:06
  
  Don't have a robot working in your home? In a few years, you just might.
  At least one in 10 U.S. homes will have a consumer robot by 2020, according to a study from Juniper Research. That number is up considerably from the one robot in 25 homes this year.
  We're not quite ready to have a Rosie the robot, like the one on The Jetsons, working in homes as maids and cooks, but the first robots to enter our homes likely will be task oriented, doing basic household chores like mowing the lawn or vacuu
  
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• Oracle asked to help low-income residents evicted for its new cloud campus

  24-12-2015 19:05
  
  Earlier this week Oracle announced that it's planning to build a brand-new cloud-computing campus in Austin, Texas, but since then a darker backstory has come to light.Roughly 100 low-income families were hastily evicted this summer from an apartment complex on the land in order to make it available for the sale to Oracle, according to reports, and they're now seeking restitution.Though some of the former tenants of Lakeview Apartments had leases through the end of the year, they were reportedly
  
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• 4 reasons you just can't seem to quit Facebook

  24-12-2015 18:31
  
  You know all those times you've vowed to never waste another minute on Facebook?
  You're tired of seeing your friends' photos of their kids or their cats. You're tired of the endless parade of selfies. You're definitely tired of the political rants.
  That's it. No more. You're done.
  But then again, you want to see what people are saying about the big game or you want to post your own selfie from that great night out or the office Christmas party.
  Then your resolve dissolves and you're back.
  What'
  
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• Not dead yet: Firefox OS may still be destined for routers, tablets, and keyboards

  24-12-2015 18:23
  Although Mozilla is walking away from Firefox OS on smartphones, the browser-based platform isn’t dead yet. Citing leaked internal documents, a report by Hipertextual (via SlashGear) claims that Firefox OS is headed to tablets, routers, HDMI sticks, and keyboard-based all-in-one PCs.
  Arguably the most interesting of these plans is the “Firefox Pi,” a keyboard with a Raspberry Pi mini-PC inside, running Firefox for web access. The alleged documents note that the keyboard could
  
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• CIO Quick Takes: 8 IT leaders look back at 2015

  24-12-2015 18:16
  
  The only thing evolving faster than the technology IT departments must understand, deploy and support is perhaps the CIO role itself. In 2015, CIOs faced a dizzying array of products, services and methodologies – clouds (public, private and hybrid) are everywhere; the Internet of Things is spreading everywhere from hospital rooms to manufacturing floors to football fields; everything's getting leaner and more agile; IT is bi-modal and multi-speed; disruption and transformation awaits aroun
  
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• How to get Windows 10 to stop asking you for feedback

  24-12-2015 18:00
  
  Microsoft’s Windows 10 is a great operating system, but it’s far from perfect. In fact, it has a few outright annoying features—the list of which varies by user. Lately, we’ve been hearing that one of those annoyances has been rearing its ugly head far too often: Windows Feedback.
  It’s great that Microsoft wants to hear directly from its users, but the operating system's begging prompts pop-up far too often. Besides, if you’ve really got something to say
  
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• Groundbreaking light-based photonic processor could lead to ultra-fast data transfers

  24-12-2015 17:28
  
  University researchers are claiming a bandwidth breakthrough with the first light-based microprocessor that communicates with conventional electronic circuitry.
  While optical computing is hardly a new concept, researchers at University of Colorado-Boulder, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and University of California, Berkeley claim to have made it work on a more practical level. The photonic transmissions are built onto a single chip that also integrates traditional electronics, so it co
  
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• Holiday stress may be hiding bigger organizational issues

  24-12-2015 14:53
  
  The holiday season isn't all merry and bright. For many workers, it's the least wonderful time of the year. Mandatory parties, half-hearted gift exchanges and forced cheer only add to the stress and headaches that come with end-of-the-calendar-year deadlines and everyday responsibilities. They can also exacerbate cultural problems that already exist in your organization's culture around three major issues: time, money and relationships."The holidays are supposed to be a happy time, but when your
  
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• 5 reasons to thank special employees and vendors

  24-12-2015 13:44
  
  As we approach the end of the year we are rushing to get our Christmas shopping done, our books closed and our desks ready for the inevitable year-end security sweep (you knew about that right?). But there are a few things we sometimes forget that we really should think about doing just to make sure we leave the year with our social debts paid.Here is my list of things to do before the end of the year.Personally thank that person who came through for you and didn’t have to
  We all likely ha
  
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• IT outsourcing year in review: Grading our 2015 predictions

  24-12-2015 13:33
  
  Earlier this year, CIO.com and its outsourcing experts made several bold (and a few slightly less daring) predictions for IT services in 2015. We suggested that this year, companies would get serious about managing their IT supplier risk. (Not exactly.) We said that renegotiation and multi-sourcing would dominate contracting activity. (They did.) And we envisaged the arrival of outcome-based sourcing and the departure of the RFP. (Neither, alas, came to pass.)We revisited all of our prognosticat
  
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• The best Android Wear apps of 2015

  24-12-2015 13:00
  
  Android Wear grew up this yearImage by Ryan WhitwamThere were some big updates to Android Wear in 2015, and new watches finally started showing up after a long dry spell. Even if you have a fancy new watch with its spiffy new Android Wear OS, you're still not taking full advantage of having a tiny computer on your wrist.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: Patently Apple attacks Apple for protecting its customers privacy with end to end encryption

  24-12-2015 13:00
  You might have noticed a flurry of recent news stories about Apple being attacked for its commitment to protect the privacy of its customers by using end-to-end encryption. Various law enforcement officials and politicians have criticized Apple for making it clear that user privacy trumps fears over terrorism and other issues, and some in the media have stupidly jumped on the anti-Apple bandwagon.Patently Apple is a blog that focuses on Apple's patents. It's quite an interesting site, and can so
  
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• Tech luminaries we lost in 2015

  24-12-2015 12:30
  
  In MemoriamImage byIEEE History Center, Reuters/Ralph Orlowski, NASAThe past year, like all years, saw the passing of many notable technologists whose innovations, visions and hard work forever changed our world. Some made their marks quietly, with little fanfare. Others garnered headlines and worldwide attention. And although each left his or her own unique legacy, they all shared a pioneering spirit that brought them to the forefront of their respective disciplines and industries. So as the ca
  
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• Weird science: 10 strange tech stories from 2015

  24-12-2015 12:00
  
  Weird science: 10 strange tech stories from 2015Image by ThinkstockThe weird news story represents a genre into itself in the media world. These are the light and fizzy reports of dumb criminals and animal hijinks that regularly pop up on news sites, broadcasts, and social media. Interestingly, many straight-up articles about science and technology research end up in the weird news section. Because the world of high tech moves so fast, these items surface for a couple of days, raise a few eyebro
  
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• How to track Santa Claus on Christmas Eve from any device

  24-12-2015 11:00
  
  The presents are wrapped, the tree is up, and the stockings will soon be hung by the chimney with care. There’s only one thing left to do: track Santa’s annual voyage around the world from your PC, smartphone, or tablet.
  Santa officially began his annual trek around 10 a.m. UTC on December 24, which is 5 a.m. Eastern/2 a.m. Pacific, which means you can already track Ol’ Saint Nick across the Earth’s skies. Here’s how to keep tabs on Santa’s 2015 journey.Norad
  
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• Salesforce.com buys developer of quoting and billing apps for SMEs

  24-12-2015 10:52
  
  If you can't beat them, buy them: Salesforce.com is snapping up SteelBrick, a startup that builds quoting and billing functions for SMEs on the Salesforce cloud platform.Apps built natively on the platform allow Salesforce.com customers to add functionality to their CRM systems with fewer integration hassles than they might face with software hosted elsewhere.SteelBrick makes configure-price-quote and subscription-billing apps for small and medium-size enterprises, and recently added subscriptio
  
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• Hyatt Hotels says payment-processing systems hit by malware

  24-12-2015 02:57
  Hyatt Hotels has asked customers to review their payment card account statements closely, after it detected malware on the computers that run its payment-processing systems at locations it manages.
  The hotel chain did not provide more details on the breach, including the number of customers that might have been affected, but it appears from the alert to customers that hackers may have obtained critical credit card information.
  Hyatt is the latest in a number of companies in the hospitality indu
  
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• 2015's best memes and viral videos, from Left Shark to cats with cucumbers

  24-12-2015 00:30
  
  Give yourself a hearty round of applause, folks. 2015 was quite a year for the Internet. It became clear we were in for a doozy of a year early on, when a dancing shark, a color-shifting dress, and runaway llamas took the Internet by storm. Add in a fierce Presidential election run-up in the United States, the ongoing online reign of our feline overlords, and everyday online goings-on, and bam! The tweets practically wrote themselves this year.Here are ten of the biggest memes and
  
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