InformationWeek: The Business Value of Technology

Top 10 Apple Stories Of 2010
Apple makes news every year, and ever since Steve Jobs returned to the company in 1997, the news has mostly been good. But any big company will make a few missteps, and Apple is no exception. No company can escape the occasional misstep, but with Apple, the stumbles get the same kind of "generous" coverage that the successes do. Apple is hardly a shy, retiring company that prefers to hide from the spotlight -- even people who've never owned an Apple product can probably name several, whether because of the clever ads, the generous news coverage, or just word of mouth. Here's the 10 Apple moments that made big news this year.
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Top 10 SMB Stories Of 2010
Many small and midsize businesses are champing at the bit to ring in 2011, with expectations of improving economic conditions and smoother sailing ahead. But before we count down the clock just yet, it's often prudent to take a quick look back at where we've been. Therein lie the lessons learned -- and hopefully a few causes for celebration, too -- that can build the foundation for future success. Although we may have to wait until next year -- or 2014, even -- to see how all of that political activity shakes out for SMBs. So before you pop the cork for 2011, take a few minutes to ponder 2010.
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Top 10 Software Stories Of 2010
In any year, there are winners and losers, those that successfully rode--or shaped--the tide, and those smashed by the waves of change. As virtual battles raged on Xboxes, Kinects, and other platforms, software developers waged war over market share and steadily loosening budget dollars. Eagerly awaited new products and beta versions made their debuts, jockeying for position and sales. The past year was, of course, no exception. In the rapid-paced world of social media, granddaddy MySpace all-but conceded defeat, rolling over into a partnership with longtime rival Facebook. Software developers of all ilk incorporated social media capabilities into their solutions, looking to partner or integrate with Facebook, Twitter, and location-based sites. Here are 10 of the top software stories of 2010.
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Top 10 Security Stories Of 2010
As smartphones and tablets complement and battle with notebooks and PCs as routes to the connected world, as corporate users and consumers turn to both traditional Web sites and newer social networking sites to communicate, share ideas, trade business concepts, and shop, corporate IT professionals and the government organizations overseeing the nation's cybersecurity are all-too aware they must do more. And they must do it fast. Recognizing this, the federal government hopes to create a new wave of cybersecurity educational and certification programs in order to form the next, much-needed workforce. And law enforcement agencies around the world are becoming more adept at working cooperatively to combat the growing number, complexity, and sophistication of cyber criminals that pursue money and power through their creation of malware and network destruction. This teamwork already has brought down some botnet gangs in different nations.
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Top 10 Hardware Stories Of 2010
Partnerships and new technologies dominated the hardware landscape, as vendors battled for market share and dollars from customers slowly shedding budgetary shackles. Buyers -- from IT executives to home-office users and gamers -- had plenty of choices, ranging from the iPad and new competing wares, to the latest in IBM mainframes, and practically everything in between. Not surprisingly, several vendors have followed Apple's lead, quickly offering tablets designed to tap into the iPad's momentum. But so far, analysts agree that Apple has a large lead, with little signs of abatement. Everyone did not focus all their efforts on smaller, consumer-oriented products. IBM took the wraps off a new mainframe, the most notable update to this part of its extensive portfolio in five decades. For its part, HP extended its exploration of a new memory format through a partnership with a memory manufacturer that can make the esoteric world of engineering into the reality of mass production.
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Top 10 Microsoft Stories Of 2010
Odds are, almost every household in the United States bought or used at least one Microsoft-related product in 2010. From smartphones to game consoles, entertainment software to applications, cloud computing infrastructure to expanded search engine agreements, the developer increased its footprint across earth and cyberspace. This year marked one of new beginnings and some endings for Microsoft, which released its long-awaited Windows Phone 7 operating system, the software giant's answer to Apple's iPhone and Google's Android. In plenty of time for this year's healthier holiday season, Microsoft also unwrapped Kinect, a much-lauded new sensor for its already popular Xbox gaming hardware -- and saw it receive rave reviews from technophiles and, more importantly, the kids, tweens, and gamers for whom it was designed. Likewise, the developer rolled out the third leg of its Halo trilogy, a move almost guaranteed to appeal to the game's legion of followers around the world.
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Top 10 Government Stories Of 2010
In 2010, the government turned to technology as a way to cut costs and improve efficiencies, an approach that worked in some cases but backfired in others. Like their associates in the public sector, government executives and IT professionals saw some big wins -- and headaches -- over the past 12 months. In some cases, cities or agencies were able to save money and boost productivity by adopting technologies such as cloud computing, by centralizing contracts, and reducing energy consumption through consolidated data centers. In other cases, contracts-run-amok or a malfunctioning component led to headlines, hand wringing, and late night scrambling to recover data and operations.
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Top 10 Google Stories Of 2010
Google may be the company of the decade -- the previous one, if not the next one. As such, its actions are closely scrutinized, and its steps and missteps make news. What started as a search engine is now a company that's shaping our technological future, with initiatives in mobile phones, tablet and netbook computing, telephony, and TV. Unburdened by decades of legacy tech and customer expectations, it's proven more nimble at exploiting new niches than its competitors. From successful forays into mobile devices to embarrassing breaches of people's privacy, Google was in the news a lot in 2010, most often for its steps but sometimes for its missteps. Here are the ten top news stories involving Google this year.
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40 Tech Gifts For The Holiday Season
When it seems like the techie in your life already has every next-generation gadget and gizmo on earth, just the thought of finding them a good gift can make you wince with expectant agony. But no one actually has everything, and there's bound to be something out there that will tickle their tech fancy. From TVs to smartphones, green gadgets to slightly goofy gadgets, jaw-dropping sound to peaceful wake-up calls, here are 40 ideas for the holidays or any other gift-giving occasion. Prices are rounded to nearest whole dollar and are suggested retail unless otherwise noted. In some cases, there's no wiggle on the price tag; in others, it pays to shop around for the best deal.
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Google Chrome OS Promises Computing Without Pain
Before a crowd of reporters and guests, Google provided an update on its forthcoming browser-based operating system, Chrome OS, and invited attendees and select early adopters to try Chrome OS running on an unbranded netbook through a pilot program. Chrome OS aims to be speedy, simple and secure: all the things that the typical PC is not. It achieves these goals by limiting the user to Web apps, running in the Chrome browser. But Google doesn't see this as a limitation; it sees it as a way to prevent the user from mucking up the works by installing bloated or malicious software. Google sees the Web and cloud computing as a better user experience.
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Samsung Galaxy Tab Teardown
When Apple introduced the iPad, many were probably disappointed to learn that it would run the same operating system found on Apple's iPhone and iPod Touch devices. "Isn't the iPad just a big iPhone?" people wondered. Samsung has a similar problem to overcome with the Galaxy Tab. Isn't the Tab, which runs Google's Android 2.2 Froyo operating system (the same one found on nearly a dozen smartphones), really just a big Android phone? The answer is yes and no. In this slideshow, we take a look under the hood courtesy of UBM TechInsights, which provides a teardown of the Samsung Galaxy Tab, revealing all of the major components, including the processor, the camera module and more.
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Best Mobile Apps For Busy Professionals
Today's smartphones have led to the development of hundreds of thousands of mobile apps. Apple's iPhone, RIM's BlackBerry and phones based on Google's Android all have access to extensive libraries of apps that you can download and install for our increasingly mobile world. When you're always on the go, having the right smartphone app makes it easy to transition from business to pleasure and back again without skipping a beat so you can get the most out of every minute. Here we pick 17 of the best apps for pros on the go -- steering clear of the silly and the stupid -- to help you manage your mobile lifestyle.
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Cisco Umi Takes Telepresence To The Home
Cisco has spent the past four years pounding "telepresence" into the brains of business and IT professionals, and now it has introduced Umi, a full telepresence solution for the home. From Umi, you can have video chats with other Umi users (or, it supports Google Video chat), leave video messages and upload video to share with your Umi contacts.
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Best Bluetooth Headsets For Business
Bluetooth headsets eliminate clumsy wires, boost productivity and, with more states requiring hands-free devices in vehicles, have become required equipment for businesspeople on the go. Vendors offer a dizzying array of headsets, differentiated by price, battery-life, weight and clarity. Many of today's headsets are multipoint, allowing use for both desktop and mobile phones. Developers also look to separate themselves from their competition through software or hardware design elements designed to reduce ambient sound and improve sound quality. In addition, Bluetooth headsets must be somewhat rugged to withstand long hours of usage and frequent removal and replacement. We culled through the thicket of features, noise-cancelling technologies and battery-life claims to find 13 of the best models for business.
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15 Budget Busting Technology Projects
Large-scale information technology projects can balloon to inconceivable figures very quickly with endless revisions, change orders and delays pushing budgets into the stratosphere. Sometimes the cost of an IT project can be measured simply in dollars, but just as often these projects costly in other ways -- in reputation, for example. With government projects, it's easy to look at the budget and see how much it costs -- or at least how much it's supposed to cost. In the private sector, it's not as clear cut: often the people working on a specific project are employees of the company anyway, so you can't really measure the cost of the project in just dollars and cents. Many of the projects and products here the $100 million barrier; others are harder to put a figure on yet have to be considered "expensive" by any measure. Regardless of how you quantify it, these 15 projects cost their organizations a bundle.
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Top 12 PC Games Of All Time
With a click of the mouse, gamers can transport themselves into futuristic worlds, realistic battle scenes and a virtual life of organized crime. Although there they face extensive competition from console-makers such as Nintendo and Sony, PC software games continue to flourish, as each year hundreds of titles vie for consumers' attention, loyalty and dollars. Here's a dozen of the all time best.
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12 Most Disruptive Enterprise IT Vendors
These vendors, large and small, are shaking up the status quo with their new products, approaches and models.
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