IT Executive news

• Power BI to add Premium service; private dashboard is free no more

  03-05-2017 23:34
  
  Microsoft on Wednesday announced a Premium enterprise service for its Power BI data visualization platform, including a Report Server that allows companies to keep all their data behind the firewall. Premium will offer "a capacity-based licensing model" based in part on whether users create content, access it frequently or just view it occasionally.The company also said that Power BI users will need a paid Pro subscription if they want to create and share dashboards privately. People who want to
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How blockchain technology applies to your company

  03-05-2017 23:15
  
  Blockchain technology is a red-hot topic in the news these days and in many C-suite discussions. It has wide applicability to many industries and most companies. Like any emerging technology, companies that aren’t first movers tend to look for proven use cases and often wait for the technology to mature. But that may not be your best strategy with blockchain. Adoption has accelerated, and new use cases occur almost daily showing blockchain’s potential for revolutionizing a business a
  
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• How Facebook plans to bring Messenger to business

  03-05-2017 23:01
  
  NEW ORLEANS -- As the head of product for Facebook Messenger, Stan Chudnovsky is responsible for one of the most popular consumer products in the world. And yet, despite Messenger’s 1.2 billion monthly active users, he’s convinced that the app can continue its growth and add more functions if users and business embrace the app as a channel for business-to-consumer communications.More than 60 million businesses have a presence on Facebook and at least 20 million are active on Messenge
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How Docker’s new CEO plans to manage the company’s growth

  03-05-2017 22:57
  
  Docker has appointed Concur founder Steve Singh as the company's new CEO. Singh succeeds Ben Golub, who has taken a position on the company's board of directors, where Singh serves as chairman. I talked to Singh to learn more about the challenges and opportunities ahead.Managing growth
  Singh sees the container technology provider facing the same challenges that any company at this stage would face — being able to manage the growth of the business.  He has set three priorities for Dock
  
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• 9 reasons why the death of the security appliance is inevitable

  03-05-2017 22:38
  
  This vendor-written tech primer has been edited by Network World to eliminate product promotion, but readers should note it will likely favor the submitter’s approach.Organizations are used to appliances being the workhorse of their protection needs. There are appliances for everything from firewalls, to Intrusion Detection Systems, Web Security Gateways, Email Security Gateways, Web Application Firewalls, and Advanced Threat Protection.But as crucial as security appliances
  
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• How YouTube plans to dominate your living room

  03-05-2017 22:12
  
  NEW ORLEANS -- YouTube this week revealed a redesign of its desktop app that strips out superfluous information and makes videos the primary feature of the viewing experience. “We’re rolling out a revamped design of our desktop application,” Neal Mohan, chief product officer at YouTube, announced at the Collision conference.The redesign, which is available for preview at youtube.com/new, will be rolled out in stages during the next few months, according to Mohan. “The des
  
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• Allo update brings chat backups, incognito mode for groups, link previews

  03-05-2017 22:11
  
  Update, 5/3/17: Google is beginning to roll out the new version of Allo, which will include chat backups, group incognito mode, and link previews.When Allo 9.0 arrived earlier this month, there wasn’t much to talk about. Aside from bug fixes and performance improvements, the update brought nary a new sticker pack to play with. But according to a tweet by Allo chief Amit Fulay, a new update rolling out to users will bring some interesting features.Backups have been a major issue with Google
  
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• China will attempt to keep IT products spy-free with security checks

  03-05-2017 21:47
  
  China will start carrying out security checks of IT suppliers in the country, with the intent of keeping out internet products vulnerable to spying and hacking.The new rules, which take effect in June, mean that foreign vendors will face more scrutiny -- including government-mandated background checks, and supply chain vetting -- when selling IT products to China’s major business sectors.On Tuesday, the country’s Cyberspace Administration of China released the new rules, which call f
  
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• Windows 10 S: It's for enterprise, too

  03-05-2017 21:17
  
  Microsoft may have stuck to its script Tuesday when it unveiled a Windows 10 spin-off aimed at the K-12 educational market, but the new operating system will be enticing to businesses as well, analysts said today."They were very focused on Windows 10 S as an education play, but no question, this will also appeal to enterprises," said Carolina Milanesi of Creative Strategies.Microsoft yesterday announced Windows 10 S -- the "S" isn't a placeholder for something specific, the company maintained --
  
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• Pay Just $4.94 for AUKEY's USB Dual Port 2.4A Wall Charger - Deal Alert

  03-05-2017 20:44
  
  With the special code AUCHARGE applied at checkout, the $13 list price, which is already discounted generously to $8.99, sinks even further to just $4.94 on Amazon right now. AUKEY's charger Intelligently adjusts power output to match the unique charging needs of all your USB powered gear, and charges 2 devices simultaneously at the fastest possible rate. The charger is available in both black and white, and currently averages 4.5 out of 5 stars from over 1,100 people on Amazon. To take adv
  
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• Intel's new data center chief, a former PC exec, will be hands-on

  03-05-2017 20:26
  
  A top executive responsible for shaping Intel's PC roadmap will now run the company's data center business.Navin Shenoy -- previously senior vice president and general manager of the company's Client Computing Group -- has been appointed the general manager of Intel's Data Center Group (DCG). He will replace the well-respected Diane Bryant, who was group president of DCG.Bryant is taking a leave of absence for six to eight months, and will be given a new position on returning, Intel said in a fi
  
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• Face it: Enterprise cyberattacks are going to happen

  03-05-2017 20:00
  
  There are now so many cyberattacks that many enterprises simply accept that hackers and bad actors will find ways to break into their systems.A strategy some large businesses have developed over the past two years has been to quickly identify and isolate these attacks, possibly by shutting down part of a system or network so the hackers won't get days or weeks to root around and grab sensitive corporate data.This enterprise focus on rapid detection and response to various attacks on networks and
  
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• Atlassian launches first data center in Europe

  03-05-2017 19:36
  
  Australian collaboration software company Atlassian has launched its first data centre in Europe as the company ramps up its plans for global expansion in the cloud market.The infrastructure in Ireland was announced at the first European Atlassian Summit in Barcelona and is available for all existing cloud customers of its team planning and project management JIRA Software and content creation and sharing platform Confluence.Atlassian currently offers European customers including Lufthansa and V
  
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• Apple's next iPhones may cut corners on memory due to price squeeze

  03-05-2017 19:29
  
  Apple could cut the capacity of DRAM in its upcoming anniversary iPhones with the rising prices of storage and memory components hitting its profit margins.Apple acknowledged the rising DRAM and NAND prices during its second-quarter earnings call Tuesday. The company expects the pricing pressure to continue in the near term.Those prices, in turn, could impact the memory capacity of the next iPhone. Trendforce, which tracks SSD and DRAM pricing, predicted the iPhone 8 will be capped at 3GB of DRA
  
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• How to size up a new cloud service like low-priced Wasabi

  03-05-2017 18:57
  
  Saving money may be a good enough reason to try a brand-new cloud storage service -- if it can deliver on its promises.That's the equation some enterprises may use when they look at Wasabi Technologies, an object storage startup that says it offers six times the performance of Amazon's S3 service at one-fifth the price. The service is available globally on Wednesday.The company, started by the co-founders of online backup provider Carbonite, says its single pool of capacity can deliver primary,
  
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• Why gifts cards are the new favorite target for fraud

  03-05-2017 18:48
  
  If you're like most Americans, you have a few gift cards in your wallet right now. I have two, one has a snowman on it. In 2015, the average holiday shopper purchased two gift cards, and the total volume of gift card value is expected to reach $160 billion by 2018, according to Gift Card Granny.Despite being great presents for many, prepaid gift cards can be a bullseye for fraud and money laundering. With tighter post-financial crisis regulation on larger amounts of money, and safer chip-enabled
  
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• Verizon sells its cloud and managed hosting services to IBM

  03-05-2017 18:24
  
  Verizon shut down its public cloud service in early 2016, and is now unloading its virtual private cloud and managed hosting offerings to IBM.The deal, announced Tuesday, allows IBM to improve its position in cloud computing, a spokesman said by email. Meanwhile, the deal allows Verizon to get out of the cloud infrastructure market dominated by Amazon, Google, and Microsoft, allowing it to focus on its managed network, security, and communications services.The companies did not disclose the term
  
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• How Adobe’s CIO blends IT and marketing

  03-05-2017 17:57
  
  Adobe CIO Cynthia Stoddard doesn’t think about marketing and IT as separate functions. “We don’t have an artificial wall between these organizations,” she tells CIO.com. IT and marketing have distinct priorities within the business, but aligning their respective responsibilities around company goals leads to greater outcomes, according to Stoddard.[ Related: CMOs will outspend CIOs on technology in 2017 ]“We tend to place ourselves in the other person’s role a
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: Hulu humiliates Apple with Live TV app

  03-05-2017 17:52
  
  When it comes to video subscription services, Apple is like the gang that couldn’t shoot straight. The company has consistently failed to achieve anything significant in the video subscription market.But wait, it has the “Planet of the Apps” show so I guess it’s doing just fine. Not.Hulu, unlike Apple, has charged ahead is now offering live television as part of its subscription service. You can even download the Hulu with Live TV app right now from the iOS App Store.Here
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: 5 ways to kick-start your business automation and technology plans

  03-05-2017 17:30
  
  The first quarter has ended, yet your company has yet to get its arms around how to leverage technology to compete, remain in business and improve the customer experience. Let's explore some key recommendations that all businesses should be considering as they embark on the ever-changing business technology landscape.Here are five ways to kick-start your thinking, along with recommendations to help you automate your company operations and workforce.1. Technology planning
  Technology plans should
  
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• Google echoes Amazon's assurance on EU data protection compliance

  03-05-2017 17:25
  
  Google has joined Amazon Web Services in promising customers of its cloud services that it will be compliant with new European Union data protection rules due to take effect next year.Neither company is fully compliant yet, but both have now made public commitments to meet the requirements of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) by May 25, 2018, echoing a promise Microsoft made back in February.The GDPR replaces the 1995 Data Protection Directive. Among its biggest changes are requir
  
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• 33% off Vacu Vin Wine Saver Pump - Deal Alert

  03-05-2017 17:23
  The Wine Saver is a vacuum pump that extracts the air from an opened wine bottle and re-seals it using a rubber stopper. The airtight vacuum inhibits the oxidation process that is responsible for the deterioration of wine. The vacuum is created by placing a stopper into the neck of the opened bottle and pumping it until resistance is detectable. The pump incorporates a patented 'click' mechanism that indicates when a sufficient airtight environment has been established. It's discounted 33%
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: A face as the interface to government services

  03-05-2017 17:04
  
  The opportunity write about government, technology and Academy Award-winning talent in a blog called “Thinking Government” is rare, but that’s where the world is going. Cate Blanchett won an Academy Award for Best Actress in 2014. Mark Sagar won Academy Awards in 2010 and 2011 for work on the movies Avatar and King Kong. Now, Blanchett and Sagar are the inspiring voices and minds around an avatar being developed for a program at Australia's National Disability Insurance Agency
  
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• Report: Average ransomware demand now over $1,000

  03-05-2017 17:00
  
  The average amount of a ransomware demand has increased from $294 in 2015 to $1,077 last year, according to a report released last week by Symantec."That's a pretty dramatic increase," said Kevin Haley, director of security response at Symantec.According to other estimates, total ransomware revenues passed $1 billion last year.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• Microsoft's Surface Arc Mouse quietly launches alongside the Surface Laptop

  03-05-2017 16:34
  Microsoft is still a newcomer to the world of laptops and tablets, but it’s an old hand at peripherals—and a well regarded one at that. When the sleek new Surface Laptop starts shipping on June 15 it will do so alongside a refined version of Microsoft’s Arc Mouse carrying the Surface name.A successor to the Arc Touch Mouse, the $80 Surface Arc Mouse sheds the divided touch zones, turning the front of the peripheral into one big touch pad. You can still use the mouse to do
  
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• Micron's SolidScale system pushes SSDs out to shared storage

  03-05-2017 16:30
  
  SSDs operate the fastest when inside a computer. Micron's new SolidScale storage system uproots SSDs from servers and pushes them into discrete boxes while reducing latency.SolidScale is a top-of-the-rack storage system that will house many SSDs. It will connect to servers, memory, and other computing resources in a data center via gigabit ethernet, and will use the emerging NVMeoF (NVMe over Fabric) 1.0 protocol for data transfers.The new storage system is faster than regular storage arrays, Mi
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: CIOs seeking partners in innovation should broaden their search

  03-05-2017 16:07
  
  Remember when you were a kid and that really attractive girl/boy moved in next door? The one who became your best friend. And then your wife/husband?No? That’s because it rarely happens. The same is true in the corporate world.As a CIO you have the mandate to pre-empt and predict future requirements. It’s now a fundamental part of the day job. As is, discovering and exploring partnerships with those ventures who might help fulfil those requirements.Yet the big corporations have becom
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How to ensure your new employee has a great first day

  03-05-2017 16:00
  
  I was reading an article by Kim Harris at TSheets about the importance of effective on boarding of new hire employees. It got me thinking, why is it that something as important as welcoming a new employee can leave such a bad impression?Unfortunately, far too often in the client organizations my team and I are partnering with, we see new employee on-boarding handled poorly, or worse still, not at all. You know what I mean:The employee who one week later still hadn’t been allocated a laptop
  
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• Windows 10 S laptops won't let you switch from Edge or Bing

  03-05-2017 15:40
  
  When Microsoft revealed the details of Windows 10 S on Tuesday, it sounded awfully similar to the beleaguered Windows RT. But it looks like there’s a little Windows 8.1 with Bing in there too: Microsoft will not allow Windows 10 S device owners to change the default web browser or the default search engine, as first spotted by The Verge.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• Xen hypervisor faces third highly critical VM escape bug in 10 months

  03-05-2017 15:32
  
  The Xen Project has fixed three vulnerabilities in its widely used hypervisor that could allow operating systems running inside virtual machines to access the memory of the host systems, breaking the critical security layer among them.Two of the patched vulnerabilities can only be exploited under certain conditions, which limits their use in potential attacks, but one is a highly reliable flaw that poses a serious threat to multitenant data centers where the customers' virtualized servers share
  
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• How to protect yourself in an age of insecurity

  03-05-2017 15:28
  
  At a time where state actors have working exploits that target smart TVs and undisclosed zero-day exploits of fully patched PC and smartphone platforms, there is no question that practicing safe computing is more important than ever. While there is no silver bullet for you to protect yourself against constantly evolving security threats, there are some steps you can take to reduce your likelihood of being a victim in this age of insecurity.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, plea
  
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• CIO Career Coach: Change the culture in IT

  03-05-2017 15:24
  
  Welcome back to CIO Career Coach, a video series I created with CIO.com and IDG.tv. This season, we’re discussing the skills that top CIOs are developing and leveraging to be successful in the new era of IT. In episode one, we talked all about how to take a leadership role in your organization’s digital transformation. Today, we’ll discuss ‘Changing the Culture in IT.’ Over the last ten years, IT’s role has been to support or enable business strategy
  
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• Fidelis Cybersecurity appoints security executive Jason Clark to board of directors

  03-05-2017 15:15
  
  Fidelis Cybersecurity has appointed Jason Clark to its board of directors. Clark is a noted security executive and business transformation leader with more than 20 years of experience with top-tier organizations. The company, which provides intrusion prevention and response services, selected Clark for his security experience and business perspective.As chief strategy officer at Optiv, Inc., Clark was instrumental in reshaping Optiv from a national security reseller to a global strategic solutio
  
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• How to produce a must-see small business video

  03-05-2017 14:57
  
  When recently surveyed by Animoto, an online video company, more than half of small and midsized business owners (55 percent) responded that video marketing was a “must-have” to stay relevant. An even larger number responded that video marketing had a direct impact on their business.[ Related: 6 ways video can boost your business ]And while in the past shooting a business video could be expensive, today you can make a buzzworthy video with just a smartphone. However, if you want your
  
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• Automated mitigation on endpoint devices and networks can be tricky

  03-05-2017 14:00
  
  Many companies have automated systems in place for preventing, detecting, and investigating security incidents, but automating the incident response and mitigation process for networks and endpoint devices has been a tougher nut to crack.That includes actions such as automatically re-imaging endpoint devices, isolating devices from corporate networks, or shutting down particular network processes in order to quickly and efficiently respond to attacks."I think there's a lot of potential," said Jo
  
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• WWDC wish list: What we’d like to see from watchOS 4

  03-05-2017 13:52
  
  When AppleInsider noticed that Google Maps, Amazon, and eBay had quietly pulled Apple Watch versions of their iOS apps, the news made me scratch my head and think, “Wait, Google Maps had an Apple Watch app?” (Don’t worry, it’s coming back.)The truth is, I don’t really use Apple Watch apps. Looking at my list right now, I have exactly 50 third-party Apple Watch apps available to me. I have four installed. That’s 8 percent.To read this article in full or to leav
  
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• The Internet of messy things

  03-05-2017 13:00
  
  In the beginning, devices on the internet were fun. My favorite was the Carnegie-Mellon’s Computer Science Department Coke Machine. Starting in the 1970s, you could “ping” it to see if it had sodas ready and if they were cold yet. It was good, silly fun. Now everything except the cat* is hooked to the internet, and that’s not so funny at all.Oh, sure, some internet of things (IoT) devices are enjoyable and useful. I have an Amazon Echo in my bedroom and a Google Home in m
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How the disruptive power of Blockchain could impact the digital economy

  03-05-2017 13:00
  
  Throughout time, the single greatest creator of wealth in human history has been global trade, and market friction has been the greatest inhibitor to create wealth. Over the years, as businesses and processes have evolved and become more automated, the industry has overcome many different sources of friction.The emergence of tools, institutions and rules of trust have mitigated potential business transactions risks, as well as technology innovations helped companies to eliminate their inefficien
  
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• 8 ways Samsung still manages to annoy us with the Galaxy S8

  03-05-2017 13:00
  
  The Galaxy S8 might very well be the best phone, nay the best handheld gadget ever made. From the stunning infinity screen to the sleek curves and brilliantly compact design, Samsung’s latest flagship is truly in a class by itself and will no doubt spawn a slew of imitators.But it’s still a Samsung phone, so that means there are things that constantly bug us. And we’re not talking about Bixby's failed launch. We’re not even talking about the fact that it’s still run
  
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• False positives still cause threat alert fatigue

  03-05-2017 12:31
  
  It is commonly referred to as information overload. An infosec professional throws out a wide net in hopes of stopping malware before it gets too deep into the network, but like a motion-sensor light, sometimes the alert catches a squirrel instead of a burglar.Rob Kerr, chief technology officer at Haystax Technology, cited the 2013 breach at Target, as an example in which thieves stole some 40 million Target credit cards by accessing data on point of sale (POS) systems. Target later revised that
  
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• Making sense of cybersecurity qualifications

  03-05-2017 12:13
  
  IBM’s cybersecurity division has hired nearly 2,000 professionals to its security team since 2015. Leaders recognize that the skills needed to succeed don't always come in the form of a traditional degree, but “the sheer volume of new certifications being created does pose challenges,” says Diana Kelley, global executive security adviser.It’s a growing problem for many employers. Increasingly, hiring companies must sift through resumes that tout cybersecurity-related degr
  
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• Why online etiquette matters -- and why IT leaders should care

  03-05-2017 12:00
  
  It seems that not a week goes by without social media hitting a new high — or, as United Airlines might attest, a new low. Whatever your perspective, there’s no denying that social networks and online connections can shape how we work, think and interact to a dramatic degree.High-tech analyst and consultant Scott Steinberg offers guidance on how to get along in this digital world with his new book, Netiquette Essentials: New Rules for Minding Your Manners in a Digital World, which wa
  
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• Meet the Latitude 11 EDU, Dell's Windows 10 S answer to the Chromebook

  03-05-2017 12:00
  
  Dell’s Latitude 11 EDU 360 3189 is one of the sturdy, affordable Windows 10 S laptops joining Microsoft's campaign to nudge Chromebooks out of the classroom. You don't have to be a student or a parent to understand the software giant's desire to nurture a new generation of Windows users. When we tried it at Microsoft's education-focused event May 2 in New York, we could see how it might have a fighting chance. The $299 Latitude 11 EDU has company: Other hardware partners inc
  
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• GCC GNU compiler adds C++ 17 support

  03-05-2017 12:00
  
  With the 7.1 version of the GCC (GNU Compiler Collection), released this week, the platform gets early support for the C++ 17 standard and diagnostics enhancements.Version 7.1 has a C++ front end with experimental support for all of the the C++ 17 draft specification. The -std=c++1z and -std=gnu++1z options and the libstdc++ are supported, and the library has most C++17 draft library features implemented. The earlier GCC 6.1 release abided by the C++ 14 standard.To read this article in full or t
  
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• Groupe PSA, NuTonomy team to test fully automated Peugeot 3008s

  03-05-2017 08:40
  
  NuTonomy, a developer of software for self-driving cars, has teamed with Groupe PSA to integrate its software, along with sensors and computing platforms, into fully autonomous Peugeot 3008 sport utility vehicles that have been customized by the French car maker for the purpose.The startup, which is conducting public trials of a self-driving car service in Singapore, and is also testing its autonomous vehicles on public roads in Boston, said that on-road testing of self-driving 3008s is expected
  
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• Facebook's text understanding AI is coming to a phone near you

  03-05-2017 02:23
  
  Developers have a new tool to help mobile apps understand text, thanks to a Facebook open source project update on Tuesday. The social networking company’s AI research group released a new version of FastText, a programming library that’s designed to make it easier for developers to deploy text-focused machine learning systems.Using a technique the researchers are calling FastText.zip, developers can compact a language recognition model so that it takes up two orders of magnitude les
  
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• BrandPost: Why your IT team should ditch legacy systems for ChatOps

  03-05-2017 01:52
  As companies rely more and more on cloud-native services, parts of their infrastructure are breaking more often and causing bigger disruptions. When it comes to managing them, legacy ITSM tools simply aren't cutting it anymore. In the old world, you could get away with resolution times in days. In the world of Cloud, downtime is measured in minutes, not hours.But there's a better way – a framework that combines real-time communications with a full "alert-triage-respond-deploy" loop, so you
  
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