Gawkwire: Web Hosting and Internet News Resource

Can Microsoft Succeed in the Crowded Cloud?

2008-10-31T12:00:00-04:00

Looking for growth in new markets where it is increasingly being bypassed, Microsoft Relevant Products/Services plans late next year to begin offering a new "cloud" operating system that would manage the relationship between software inside the computer and on the Web, where data and services are becoming increasingly centralized.

The company needs a new kind of operating system for a new computing world populated not by a single style of desktop computer but instead by dozens of different kinds of Internet-connected appliances ranging from smartphones to mini-laptops called netbooks. ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/business/can_microsoft_succeed_in_the_crowded_cloud.html

Hackers publish attack code for last week's Windows bug

2008-10-30T09:26:00-04:00

Just a day after downplaying the vulnerability that caused it to issue an out-of-cycle patch last week, Microsoft Corp. late yesterday warned customers that exploit code had gone public and is being used in additional attacks.

"We've identified the public availability of exploit code that now shows code execution for the vulnerability addressed by MS08-067," said Mike Reavey, operations manager of Microsoft's Security Response Center, in a post to the MSRC blog Monday evening. "This exploit code has been shown to result in remote code execution on Windows Server 2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000." ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/technology/hackers_publish_attack_code_for_last_week_s_windows_bug.html

Corporate Security Policies Found Ineffective

2008-10-30T09:21:00-04:00

A security policy is as good as the employees who follow it, right? A Cisco-commissioned study on data leakage revealed that many employees fail to adhere to security policies because due to poor communications with IT professionals.

Altogether, the study, which was conducted by InsightExpress, a U.S.-based market research firm, surveyed more than 2,000 employees and IT professionals in 10 countries about the prevalence and effectiveness of corporate security policies in the workplace and the reasons employees either break or adhere to them. Specifically, the study examined corporate security policies, and found that risky security behavior and failure to comply with a company's security policy often resulted from lack of communication and awareness, and failure to align policy with employee job objectives. ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/business/corporate_security_policies_found_ineffective.html

Gmail Calendar, Documents And Gadgets, Oh My

2008-10-29T12:00:00-04:00

Looking to appease the requests of users and integrate functionality across its own portfolio, the Gmail Labs team has added support for Google Calendar and Google Documents onto the left side of the screen.

A third new functionality will allow Gmail users to add links to other sites into their Gmail page.

Writing on the Gmail Labs blog, Dan Pupius, Gmail engineer, laid out the mission statement for the latest round of additions. "We wanted to take this to the next level and let you start adding your own stuff to Gmail. Today we're launching a few Labs experiments that let you add gadgets to the left-nav, next to Chat and Labels." ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/technology/gmail_calendar_documents_and_gadgets_oh_my.html

For E-Commerce, Downsizing Is a Factor

2008-10-29T11:50:00-04:00

The day after I spoke to Rich Barton by phone last week, he laid off 25 percent of his staff at Zillow.com.

According to New York Times blogger Damon Darlin, Zillow "has been the envy of many a Web entrepreneur because it has a healthy $87 million in financing (about $540,000 per pre-layoff employee)."

The company, founded in 2006, boasts 5.4 million monthly visitors, but has yet to turn a profit. ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/business/for_e-commerce_downsizing_is_a_factor.html

Web 2.0 Tools Demand A Cautious Approach

2008-10-28T09:49:00-04:00

Bringing these tools into a corporate environment presents thorny issues, however. Chief among them is security: IT is justifiably wary of giving users privileges such as directly editing Web content or uploading files when their companies lack the technology and policies to enable safe Web 2.0 use.

But are there cost-effective collaboration tools that you don't have to just say no to? In this Rolling Review, we'll find out. To get a good look at a cross section of available apps, we invited a range of vendors, from major players like Microsoft, Novell, and Google to smaller companies such as Central Desktop, Socialtext, and CallWave. As we test these tools at our Phil Hippensteel Associates partner labs, we'll evaluate how well they address these key considerations: ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/business/web_2_0_tools_demand_a_cautious_approach.html

Antitrust case against Apple still on, says Mac clone maker

2008-10-22T09:45:00-04:00

Contrary to media and blogger reports, Apple Inc. and Mac clone maker Psystar Corp. have not suspended their legal wrestling, a lawyer for Psystar said today.

The fact that the two parties have filed documents with a federal court promising that they would take their dispute to Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), a legal process that can include mediation, is "a nonstory," said Colby Springer, an attorney at Palo Alto, Calif.-based Carr & Ferrell LLP, who is on the team representing Psystar.

According to court documents filed this month, lawyers for both Psystar and Apple have agreed to nonbinding mediation. ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/business/antitrust_case_against_apple_still_on_says_mac_clone_maker.html

Economic downturn creates rough ride for IT on spending

2008-10-23T09:43:00-04:00

With the economy struggling and financial markets in a state of chaos, this is becoming a hard time to be an IT manager.

On every here's-how-to-survive-the-recession list that Gartner Inc. analysts presented at the consulting firm's Symposium/ITxpo 2008 conference in Orlando last week, the No. 1 cost-reduction option that IT execs should prepare for involved people in the form of hiring freezes, job cuts or flattening organizations by eliminating layers of management. ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/business/economic_downturn_creates_rough_ride_for_it_on_spending.html

Two new IRS systems have major security weaknesses

2008-10-20T09:36:00-04:00

Two key systems that the Internal Revenue Service is deploying contain serious security vulnerabilities that pose a direct risk to taxpayer data, according to a report by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

The 29-page report .is dated Sept. 24 but was just publicly released on Thursday. It identifies weaknesses in several areas including access control, monitoring of system access and disaster recovery in a new Customer Account Data Engine (CADE) system that the IRS is rolling out, plus a related Account Management Services (AMS) system. ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/technology/two_new_irs_systems_have_major_security_weaknesses.html

What Does 'Cloud Computing' Mean, Exactly?

2008-10-02T09:54:00-04:00

With so much talk about "cloud computing," it's easy to feel lost in the clouds. If you either don't understand the term, or don't see a reason for it, you're in good company.

Take Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, for one. During his recent Churchill Club appearance, Ballmer dismissed the uniqueness of the concept by saying, "When people talk about cloud computing, they're talking just about taking some stuff, putting it outside the firewall, and perhaps putting it on servers that are also shared or storage systems." ... Go to source

http://www.gawkwire.com/technology/what_does_cloud_computing_mean_exactly.html