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  • Data Storage Vs. Information Management

    April 01, 2011 04:44 PM | By Kurt Marko

    A recent reader response to my State of Storage 2011 report got me thinking about the difference between data and information, or, more generally between technology itself and the ways we creatively use it to solve problems. State of Storage, as these annual reviews are wont to do, focused on trends in storage technology. My correspondent, however, called me for not discussing information management-one way we apply tech to improve how we do business. "I was underwhelmed with the article in that it only focused on the technology platform components of storage and was silent on how we should organize the data we store," he wrote. "In an old-world analogy, it would be like the Library of Congress worrying about the number of shelves they build and the type of wood to build the shelves."

  • Codebook, King of iOS Encrypted Note Apps

    March 13, 2011 10:17 PM | By Jonathan Feldman

    There's nothing that makes an aging ex-security geek's heart go pitter-pat like the idea of a securely encrypted notepad. It's not just about passwords - sometimes, client information, config files, and so on, have information that you do not want on your mobile device without very strong protection. But amazingly, the iPhone, iPad, and iPod have very few options. Here's how they stack up.

  • iPad2: A Reflection Of Jobsian Philosophy

    March 03, 2011 08:06 PM | By Kurt Marko

    It's hard not to love a week in which we are graced with two holidays. On Tuesday we had National Pancake Day, an unabashed marketing creation by the likes of IHOP to rekindle America's love affair with flapjacks. On Wednesday we celebrated National iPod Day, an equally-scripted spectacle by those maestros of tech marketing at Apple to fan the flames of tablet lust. The iPad 2 has been covered like a blanket this week, so by now most technophiles already know the essential new features and how it compares both with last year's model and this year's competition, but the key to Apple's success in this market can be found in the closing remarks of Jobs' keynote (see the stream here). Under his leadership, Apple has evolved a very different way of looking at technology; a viewpoint that sees tablets as a wholly new category, with uses and users distinctly unlike those of the PC. Truly, the rest of the technology industry is from Mars, while Apple is from Venus.

  • Apple App Store Finally Gets Subscriptions

    February 15, 2011 08:49 PM | By Kurt Marko

    Those of you who, like me, have been wondering when you'll finally be able to ditch dead tree magazine and newspaper subscriptions in favor of your iPhone, iPad or Touch; well our days in the wilderness are about over. Apple finally announced their new App Store subscription service today, opening to all publishers a feature introduced for News Corp's The Daily a couple weeks ago. Oh, sure, you've been able to browse Web sites since Day One, but we all know these weren't designed for handhelds, seldom make efficient use of tablet real estate and often use iOS-unfriendly Flash. The Daily's site gives a good illustration of what's possible. Much as the iBook and Kindle apps have done for books, Apple's subscription service could finally be the key to making the iPad an all-purpose replacement for periodicals.

  • Will Apple Rock The Phone World Again?

    February 10, 2011 07:26 PM | By Kurt Marko

    Apple, which long ago ditched the 'computer' in their name, is known more as a phone cum mobile device maker and digital content distributor; and rightly so, their last earnings report showed these non-computer segments accounting for three-fourths of their revenue, with most of that coming from the iPhone. Having defined the smartphone feature set with a high bar all others must match, and with the Verizon model flying off the shelves, one wonders what Apple will do next? How about utterly changing the wireless business model by decoupling the device from the carrier.

  • Can BlackBerry Survive?

    February 04, 2011 06:59 PM | By Kurt Marko

    The recent euphoria over Verizon finally prying the iPhone from AT&T's exclusive grasp, along with the almost weekly announcement of new Android products, has probably left smartphone pioneer RIM feeling awfully neglected. While the BlackBerry is merely the latest in a long line of technology products that can lay claim to the honorary Mark Twain "Reports of My Death Are Greatly Exaggerated" award, if not outright dying, the BlackBerry may be slowly creeping to irrelevance.

  • Codec Wars: What About Mobile Devices And Content Sites

    January 26, 2011 07:53 PM | By Kurt Marko

    Last week I commented about Google's decision to eliminate support for the H.264 video codec standard from Chrome and while I initially focused on the implications for PC users, given the growing use of mobile browsers, I wondered if the ramifications could be even more significant for them. Well, on further reflection, I'm not too worried, at least yet.

  • Control Over End User Devices: Irrelevant?

    January 23, 2011 09:15 PM | By Jonathan Feldman

    I spent some time today preparing to update our "end user device" analytics report. But it could be that what enterprises choose for their end user devices is becoming more and more irrelevant.

  • Google's Video Announcement Creates More Heat Than Light

    January 18, 2011 06:54 PM | By Kurt Marko

    Google created quite the Internet buzz last week with their announcement dropping support for the H.264 video codec standard as the default HTML5 video player in Chrome, opting instead to use technology from the open source WebM project. Although H.264 is an ITU standard for high definition video and is already widely used on Blu-ray discs, apparently it's not open enough, or perhaps as easily manipulable, for Google's liking. Since their original announcement was woefully short on specifics, using vague arguments like "the open and community-driven development model is a key factor in [the Web's] rapid evolution and ubiquitous adoption" -- something presumably missing from an ITU standard -- it opened the door to widespread speculation on ulterior motives.

  • Ditch The IT Buffet Line In 2011

    January 09, 2011 11:27 AM | By Jonathan Feldman

    "All you can eat" buffets are costed out predicated on averages of what most folks can eat. It's always more expensive than a la carte. If all you want is a peanut butter sandwich for lunch, you'd be foolish to shell out $14.95 for the all-you-care-to-shove-down-your-throat buffet. And if family finances were a bit rocky, paying for more than you need might be the furthest thing from your mind. The same holds true with your organization's IT spending: cash-strapped organizations are realizing that buffet-style IT budgeting may not be an idea that should continue.

  • The Wi-Fi Tech Conference Challenge

    December 29, 2010 07:29 PM | By Kurt Marko

    For those of us who see wireless LANs rapidly displacing wired Ethernet as the client access protocol of choice, there was a rather disturbing article in the NYT highlighting the high-profile Wi-Fi meltdowns at various tech conferences over the past year. Most of us are familiar with some of those embarrassing moments, such as the one depicted in the article of a frustrated Steve Jobs trying to demo a new iPhone, where a large gathering of tech geeks overloads a conference room's WLAN leaving the poor speaker frantically typing and swiping trying to show off their latest Internet-dependent product.
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