News

8 Questions to Ask Prospective Cloud Vendors

From security concerns and challenging migrations to hidden costs and compliance, cloud deployments are fraught with pitfalls. IT analyst Bill Claybrook shares his advice for vetting cloud vendors.

By Todd R. Weiss

Jun 22, 2011 6 mins

Cloud Computing Enterprise Applications

Forrester: No End in Sight for IE Enterprise Slide

Despite Windows dominance and a surge in Windows 7 enterprise upgrades, corporate use of Internet Explorer continues to decline due to more workplace consumerization that emphasizes choice and an increase in browser-agnostic apps.

By Shane O'Neill

Jun 22, 2011 3 mins

Browsers Internet Small and Medium Business

Men vs. Women: Who Dominates Online Professional Networking?

It's the battle of the network sexes. LinkedIn pits the women against the men to find out who's better at networking professionally online. Here's what they found.

By Kristin Burnham

Jun 22, 2011 3 mins

LinkedIn Relationship Building Social Networking Apps

What Recession? Sarbox Compliance Appears Unhurt By Pressure

The recession's many corporate pressures didn't have any impact on the Sarbanes-Oxley compliance work of finance and audit executives, according to research by the internal audit and consulting firm Protiviti.

By Roy Harris

Jun 21, 2011 4 mins

Compliance IT Leadership IT Strategy

Are Employers Warming to Workers Post-Downturn?

Results of a Workplace Benefits Report prepared by Bank of America Merrill Lynch suggest to its researchers that the positions of employers are evolving to meet the needs of workers coming out of the recession.

By Roy Harris

Jun 21, 2011 3 mins

Careers IT Leadership

7 Best Cities to Find IT Jobs in 2011

CIO.com and IT staffing firm Modis show you which urban IT job markets are hot, the industries in those cities that are hiring, and the IT skills those companies are seeking.

By Meridith Levinson

Jun 20, 2011 4 mins

Careers IT Jobs IT Skills

Has Business Intelligence Failed?

Is your business keeping up with the huge advances in predictive BI technologies that can help your company grow?n

By Todd R. Weiss

Jun 20, 2011 7 mins

Business Intelligence Data Management

Facebook Facial Recognition: Why It’s a Threat to Your Privacy

Facebook facial recognition is more than just creepy. It has enormous potential for dangerous misuse of facial recognition data, and Facebook has a long record of misusing all sorts of data.

By Bill Snyder

Jun 20, 2011 6 mins

Cybercrime Data Breach Facebook

Supporting Office 2010: Tips for Preventing Help Desk Calls

After an Office 2010 migration is complete, support issues are inevitable. Here are four Office 2010 support tips for staying ahead of user gripes and reducing service desk calls to help make the most of your Office 2010 investment.

By Shane O'Neill

Jun 17, 2011 3 mins

IT Strategy Microsoft Office Office Suites

Is Printing the CFO’s Business, Too?

This recession and post-recession season have CFOs going blind trying to eke pennies out of the bottom line. Many are likely summoning their inner Scotty from "Star Trek" and saying to the CEO, "I'm givin' her all she's

By Sandra Gittlen

Jun 16, 2011 3 mins

Budgeting IT Leadership

Ready, Set, Open Your Wallets for IT

IT spending on hardware and software is on the rise, according to a study being released today by the Maven Wave Partners consultancy. And firm partner Brian Farrar says CFOs should take this as a good sign, and loosen up the IT purse strings.

By Sandra Gittlen

Jun 15, 2011 3 mins

Budgeting Computers and Peripherals IT Strategy

15 Ways iPad Goes to Work

Apple's iconic iPad reports for work in all sorts of strange places, from archaeological digs in Pompei to movie sets in Hollywood to cockpits in the sky.

By Tom Kaneshige

Jun 15, 2011 5 mins

Careers Consumer Electronics Tablets

5 New Google Apps Features to Keep You Organized, Productive

Google rolls out a number of updates to its Apps suite every month. Here are five of the best ones you may have missed.

By Kristin Burnham

Jun 14, 2011 4 mins

Enterprise Applications Internet Productivity Software

Where The IT Jobs Are

With help from Dice.com, we break down where and for what skills demand is highest.

By IT World staff

Jun 14, 2011 2 mins

Careers IT Jobs IT Skills

Apple iCloud Draws CIO Concerns

Once again, CIOs are left in the dark. This time, the technology culprit is iCloud. Will Apple shed light on the problem before the service launches this fall?

By Tom Kaneshige

Jun 14, 2011 4 mins

Laptops Mobile Security iPhone

Corporate IT Spending Gets Boost As Companies Hire More Workers

The improving employment market in the U.S. is fueling IT investment as companies purchase hardware and software to support new employees, according to a recent IT spending study.

By Todd R. Weiss

Jun 14, 2011 3 mins

Financial Services Industry IT Strategy Technology Industry

Putting a Finger on Compliance Control

Last year, administrators in the City of Winter Park, Fla., realized they had a serious compliance risk in their police department. The FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services Division has regulations that call for tight access controls for

By Sandra Gittlen

Jun 13, 2011 3 mins

Biometrics Compliance Regulation

Four Reasons Why You Don’t Really Need a Tablet PC

Are tablet PCs the future of mobile computing? CIO.com's Al Sacco, says not to bet on it. Here are four reasons why the current popularity of tablets could prove to be a mere flash in the pan.

By Al Sacco

Jun 13, 2011 9 mins

Laptops Small and Medium Business Ultrabook

Smartphone Data Plans: 5 Ways to Keep Bandwidth Usage in Check

Unlimited data plans are a thing of the past with AT&T and are being phased out by Verizon. Yet new metered plans don't deliver great bang for your buck and you may get blindsided with a hefty bill if you're not careful. Here are five w

By Bill Snyder

Jun 13, 2011 5 mins

Carriers Small and Medium Business iPhone

How to Manage BlackBerry Application Permissions

The Web is jam packed with cool new BlackBerry applications. But some of those seemingly harmless apps could steal personal data, rack up charges on a wireless bill or damage your device. CIO.com's Al Sacco explains how to properly manage BlackB

By Al Sacco

Jun 13, 2011 6 mins

Privacy Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Security Shootout: PlayBook, iPad, Android

RIM PlayBook and Apple iPad are ready for primetime, says a mobile management vendor. What about Android tablets? Fuggetaboutit.

By Tom Kaneshige

Jun 10, 2011 4 mins

Mobile Security Smartphones Tablets

Forrester’s iPad Security Tips

When building a critical iPad app in-house, follow these four tips.

By Tom Kaneshige

Jun 10, 2011 2 mins

Consumer Electronics Mobile Security Tablets

CFOs’ Salary Rises Outpace CEOs’

Salaries increased at a slightly higher rate for CFOs than CEOs last year, but both members of the C-suite basically ran a dead heat in terms of incentive compensation, according to a report by New York-based consulting firm Compensation Advisory Par

By Ed Zwirn

Jun 9, 2011 3 mins

Careers IT Leadership Salaries

The Best 2011 Windows 7 Laptops for Work and Play

The iPad and other tablets are transforming personal computing, but most of the world still uses laptops for business and pleasure, and 90 percent of them run Windows. Here are the coolest high-end laptops released in 2011 that take advantage of Wind

By Shane O'Neill

Jun 9, 2011 4 mins

Laptops Small and Medium Business Windows

Live and Learn: 10 Unforgettable Facebook Follies

It's amazing what people do in the name of Facebook, and the first half of 2011 was no exception. Here are 10 of the most memorable failures, bad ideas and regrettable decisions that left us shaking our heads.

By Kristin Burnham

Jun 9, 2011 5 mins

Facebook Social Networking Apps

Facebook Privacy: How to Block Facial Recognition

Facebook now automatically recommends that your friends tag you in photos when it recognizes your face. Here's how to opt-out of this feature.

By Kristin Burnham

Jun 8, 2011 3 mins

Facebook Privacy Social Networking Apps

Four Ways the Red Sox are Scoring with SharePoint

The Boston Red Sox IT group had been left stranded on base by manual processes that handled ticket requests, invoices and fan mail. But now that they've built an intranet portal using SharePoint 2010 they're speeding towards home.

By Shane O'Neill

Jun 7, 2011 4 mins

ERP Systems Social Networking Apps Supply Chain Management Software

Apple Copies BlackBerry With BBM-Style iMessage App; One Key Difference

Apple has announced a brand new BlackBerry-Messenger-like IM application for iOS devices. While the two services appear at first glance to offer nearly identical functionality, CIO.com's Al Sacco highlights one key difference between the two app

By Al Sacco

Jun 7, 2011 4 mins

Small and Medium Business Smartphones iPhone

Location Etiquette Tips: 6 Foursquare “Faux Pas” to Avoid

CIO.com's mobile maestro Al Sacco explains how you can avoid six very common–and even more annoying–foursquare no-nos and offers a handful of general location-based service (LBS) etiquette tips.

By Al Sacco

Jun 6, 2011 11 mins

Mobile Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Cell phones and Cancer: 8 Precautions Worth Taking

The WHO's recent report that cell phones are possibly carcinogenic is not definitive data and has its skeptics, but Bill Snyder of CIO.com writes that we all should still take precautions on the chance that cell phones could be damaging our heal

By Bill Snyder

Jun 6, 2011 5 mins

Carriers Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Can the iPad Cure What Ails Us?

At Texas hospitals, iPads and iPhones sever the desktop computing cord allowing doctors and nurses to spend more time with their patients.

By Tom Kaneshige

Jun 3, 2011 6 mins

Healthcare Industry Twitter iPhone

10 Essential Facebook Tips and Tricks for All Users

Make your account more secure, manipulate your personal settings and more, with these ten Facebook tips and tricks that every user should know.

By Kristin Burnham

Jun 3, 2011 5 mins

Facebook Privacy Social Networking Apps

How Windows 8 Will Challenge Enterprise IT

Windows 8 will work on more devices, which will create complications for enterprises as the consumerization of IT gathers steam. The major challenges: hardware and application incompatibility and Windows upgrade fatigue.

By Shane O'Neill

Jun 3, 2011 4 mins

Desktop Virtualization Small and Medium Business Smartphones

RIM’s Free BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing App Gets Official

Research In Motion's (RIM) cool new BlackBerry Mobile Conferencing app for BlackBerry smartphones, which eases the conferencing-calling process via one-click connections and more, has exited beta testing and is now publically available to most B

By Al Sacco

Jun 3, 2011 2 mins

Mobile Small and Medium Business Smartphones

10 Great Games for Your BlackBerry PlayBook

The Angry Birds are coming soon to a BlackBerry PlayBook near you, in the meantime there are plenty of excellent games already here that truly put the "play" in PlayBook. Here are 10 of the best, and most are free.

By Al Sacco

Jun 2, 2011 5 mins

Consumer Electronics Small and Medium Business Tablets

Mobile App Security: 5 Ways to Protect Your Smartphone

Smartphones and mobile apps, particularly in the Android family, are becoming more susceptible to hackers. Bill Snyder of CIO.com highlights five easy ways to fortify your mobile apps against the bad guys.

By Bill Snyder

Jun 1, 2011 5 mins

Carriers Malware Small and Medium Business

Project Management Training Improves Success Rates

Companies that invest in project management training reap a variety business benefits, but not just any training method will suffice, according to recent survey results.

By Meridith Levinson

Jun 1, 2011 4 mins

IT Skills Project Management Tools

BlackBerry PlayBook Battery Tips: How to Make Your Tablet Last Longer

A recent BlackBerry PlayBook OS update has weakened overall tablet battery life for many RIM PlayBook owners. Here are six quick and easy PlayBook battery tips and tricks to help counteract the update's negative effects and boost your tablet&#03

By Al Sacco

May 26, 2011 9 mins

Laptops Small and Medium Business Smartphones

BlackBerry PlayBook Apps: 10 Must-Have Downloads, All Free

Quality apps for RIM's new tablet are few and far between right now, but they do exist. CIO.com's Al Sacco recommends 10 great PlayBook apps currently available and worthy of your attention.

By Al Sacco

May 24, 2011 6 mins

Consumer Electronics Small and Medium Business Tablets

Outsourcing Customers Focus on SLAs to Detriment of Business Transformation

Two-thirds of outsourcing customers and providers say they spend too much time on SLAs and not enough on business outcomes, negating their ability to exploit opportunities to achieve strategic business transformation, according to a recent Accenture

By Stephanie Overby

May 24, 2011 3 mins

Outsourcing

BlackBerry PlayBook Quick Tip: How to Type Special Characters

CIO.com's mobile maestro Al Sacco explains how to type special characters, such as letters with umlauts and accents, as well as symbols, on the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet's touch-screen keyboard.

By Al Sacco

May 24, 2011 2 mins

Mobile Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Will Skype Be Another Microsoft License Gotcha?

Skype may be a beloved consumer product, but enterprises should beware of sneaky Skype charges, and will need to keep a close eye on Microsoft enterprise agreements to ensure they're not suddenly paying for a service they're not using.

By Shane O'Neill

May 23, 2011 4 mins

Microsoft Office Office Suites Small and Medium Business

BlackBerry PlayBook: New Details on Deploying Bridge, Bluetooth Security

CIO.com's Al Sacco shares fresh advice on the process for corporate BlackBerry Bridge deployment via BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES), plus new information on BlackBerry PlayBook Bluetooth security.

By Al Sacco

May 19, 2011 4 mins

Small and Medium Business Smartphones Wi-Fi

BlackBerry PlayBook Battery Life Weakened by OS Update

A number of BlackBerry PlayBook owners are reporting decreased battery life following Research In Motion's (RIM) most recent tablet OS update, and in some cases the problems seem to vary in severity based on tablet storage capacity.

By Al Sacco

May 18, 2011 3 mins

Mobile Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Facebook Combats Spam, Clickjacking, With Four New Security Features

Facebook beefs up its security measures to ward off spammers, clickjackers and malware. Here's what you need to know about Facebook's latest efforts to protect users from malicious software.

By Kristin Burnham

May 13, 2011 4 mins

Facebook Security Social Networking Apps

Microsoft’s Frenemies: The Necessity of Partnering Up

Microsoft's partnerships with RIM, Nokia and Yahoo (and acquisition of Skype) underscore the need to form alliances against Google or Apple in certain markets.

By Shane O'Neill

May 13, 2011 4 mins

Internet Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Microsoft Office Alternatives: Many are Trying, Few are Buying

Enterprises are intrigued by Office alternatives such as Google Apps, Zoho and OpenOffice.org, but not as a replacement for Microsoft's cash cow. At least not yet, writes Forrester.

By Shane O'Neill

May 12, 2011 4 mins

Microsoft Office Office Suites Social Networking Apps

BlackBerry PlayBook Video Chat Behind the Firewall: Ports and Port Forwarding

Research In Motion (RIM) has posted information for IT admins to help ensure BlackBerry PlayBook tablet Video Chat functions properly via firewall-protected corporate networks.

By Al Sacco

May 12, 2011 2 mins

Small and Medium Business Smartphones VoIP

CFO Outlook Positive, but Energy, Inflation Worries Grow

Finance executives at U.S. corporations remain optimistic about the next 12 months, as the large gains in the profits they expect balance out their concerns about energy cost rises and inflation. That's the conclusion of the quarterly "CFO

By Roy Harris

May 11, 2011 4 mins

IT Leadership

BlackBerry PlayBook Tips for All RIM Tablet Users

Got yourself a shiny new BlackBerry PlayBook? Learn how to get more done in less time, boost tablet security, manage applications and more, using these seven easy PlayBook tips and tricks, courtesy of CIO.com's Al Sacco.

By Al Sacco

May 11, 2011 9 mins

Small and Medium Business Smartphones Wi-Fi