Info-Tech Advisor Newsletter articles from July 2003

Info-Tech Advisor Newsletter archives from July 2003

A strategy for document retention.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (CIO Magazine Article, enviroNews Article, GigaLaw.com Article, Security.ITWorld.com Article, Washington Technology Article) The documents your company creates serve as a written history of your organization, its processes, and its...

Wanna wiki?
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Cunningham & Cunningham Web Site, Ward Cunningham Book Chapter, Linux.com Article, New Architect Article, PC Magazine Article) E-mail is ubiquitous, but limited. Lotus Notes has bells and whistles, but can be pricey. Take a look...

Squashing spam spiders.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Center for Democracy and Technology Report, CNETAsia Article, TRUSTe Article) You've employed spam filters in your e-mail server and you constantly update your IP address blacklists. Yet messages soliciting all manners of...

Thin clients revisited.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (ASPnews.com Article, CIO Magazine Tech Poll, ComputerWeekly.com Article, National Semiconductor Article, Network Computing Article) Thin clients--centrally-managed workstation computers stripped of their disk drives, CD-ROMs, and...

Assess your IT skills portfolio.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Info-Tech Research Group Methodology) The success of any IT project relies on the strength of your project team. Before undertaking your next major project, take some time to assess the skill set of your department. Conducting a...

Weary of WEP? Wake up to the alternatives.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (802.11 Planet Article, Dell Computer Corporation White Paper, Electronic Design Article, InteropNet Labs Article, ZDNet Article) You're interested in deploying a wireless network, but security concerns over WEP (wired equivalent...

How to dodge the downside of leasing.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Envoy Finance Analysis, Info-Tech Research Group Collaboration) Inexperience with leasing and a lack of focus or discipline can cause leasing costs to grow to 50 percent or higher than originally expected. Avoid skyrocketing...

Beating blackout blockouts.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (CommWeb Article, Network Power Management White Paper, Server Technology White Paper) Your office building has just suffered a total blackout. Your uninterruptible power supply (UPS) will last for 10 minutes, just enough time to...

Getting the better of nasty old code.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Canadian Mind Products Guide, Fog Creek Software Discussion, JavaWorld Article, O'Reilly Network Article, The Pragmatic Programmers Article) Programmers spend a good deal of their time rummaging through old code trying to figure...

App dev central.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Info-Tech Research Group Research Center) Every IT shop engages in some sort of application development. With development windows rapidly shrinking in most companies, tools and methods that can speed processes while maintaining...

InfoWorld's 2003 salary survey.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (InfoWorld Special Report) A few short years ago, there weren't enough IT professionals to go around, and salaries were skyrocketing. Today, the IT hiring and compensation landscape looks quite a bit different. In 2003: *...

Seven tips for securing Linux.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (informIT Article) Linux is finally winning a hard-fought battle to make its way into the enterprise. Wouldn't it be a shame if all that hard work to convince senior management of Linux's enterprise-readiness was undermined by a...

Unlock your browser's secrets.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Gemal.pk Web Site) Your browser is your personal gateway to the Internet. Yet your browser settings can allow for interactions between you and the outside world that you might not be too happy about, such as transmitting...

Clean up your corporate household.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Massachusetts Institute of Technology White Papers) Data is the foundation of knowledge. Knowledge is critical for effective supply chain management, risk management, sales, and marketing, just to name a few. Building your...

Groovy gadgets from NetWorld+Interop.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (NetWorld+Interop) A whole slew of new products were released at this year's NetWorld+Interop 2003 show in Las Vegas. Now in its 17th year, the show is put on by Key3Media Group Inc., and has been the premier event for enterprise...

GPS for your PDA.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Tom Tom) Dutch software company Tom Tom has introduced a Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation device for your PDA. At less than half the cost of a similar system for your car, the Tom Tom Navigator USA (or the Tom Tom...

Track goods with smart labels.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Zebra) Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) printers/encoders offered by Zebra Technologies allow companies to create "smart labels" that track products wirelessly. A complement to traditional bar codes, RFID labels have a wide...

Foil PC thieves.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Pheonix Technologies, Softex) TheftGuard is an internal application that is designed to disable any stolen PC once it's connected to the Internet. A joint project between Phoenix Technologies and Softex, the software is also...

Mighty air mouse.
July 8, 2003... Sources: (Gyration) The new Ultra Cordless Optical Mouse from Gyration not only eliminates the need for cables, but also it eliminates the need to be at your desktop by allowing you to make mouse movements in thin air. This innovative...

Letters of agreement jump-start contracts.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Canadian Department of National Defense Guide, Society for Technical Communication Article, Wise-Women Article) You're hiring a contractor, but the job is too small or too urgent to warrant completion of a full-scale contract. In...

Counterfeits: will the real printer cartridge please stand up?
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Asay Publishing Network Article, County News Online Article, PCWorld.com Articles) Are your printer cartridges legit? Believe it or not, counterfeit ink and toner cartridges have been infiltrating the market. According to the...

Project closure: how to land the plane.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (allPM.com Tool, CIO Update Article, gantthead.com Template and Article, Tasmanian State Government Project Management Web Site) Closing a project and conducting a post mortem are key elements of the project lifecycle. Complete...

The suite sound of desktop management.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (eWeek Article, Network Computing Article, Network World Fusion Feature, PC Magazine Article) Running around your company installing software updates in person is a monumental drain on precious resources, if not downright...

Social engineering: audit your human firewall.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (CIO Update Article, Information Week Article, Network World Fusion Article, SANS Institute White Paper, ZDNet Australia Article) The easiest way for a hacker to gain access to your network is not through technicaal means, but...

Wrap your head around headsets.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (AOPA Online Article, CPSU Resource Kit, TMCnet.com Article) you're in charge of hardware purchases for your company, then likely it's up to you to buy the right kind of headsets. But you should be aware that procuring headsets isn't...

How to hire a programmer.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Artima Software Article, CIO Insight Article, DevX Article, Nu Cardboard Article, Simon Peter Article) Programmers-nearly every IT department has one. Because of their creative and independent nature, they're a tough bunch to pin...

Videoconferencing for the uninitiated.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (DealTime Web Site, Network Computing Article, Peachpit Press Articles, Video Development Initiative Guide) The business case for videoconferencing has been proposed and approved. Now what? Setting up and conducting a...

A crash diet for your overweight data stores.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (CIO Update Article, InfoStor Article, Info-Tech Research Group Analysis) With the rapidly falling price of storage, many companies have become complacent regarding their data management practices. Excessive amounts of unnecessary...

A plethora of open source info.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Info-Tech Research Group Research Center) Open source software tools have been regulars on the corporate scene for some time now, while others, like Linux, are still relative newcomers. Regardless of how well these tools get the...

An incident response primer update.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute Handbook) In April 2003, the Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute released the second edition of its "Handbook on Computer Security Incident Response Teams (CSIRTs)." This...

No-cost version control.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Dr. Pascal Molli Tutorial) If you're involved in development and have never heard of Concurrent Versions System (CVS), it's time you learned what it's all about. What's CVS? CVS is a version control system that lets you...

Your industry's biggest IT challenges ...
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Network World Fusion Special Feature) While the bulk of day-to-day problems faced by IT departments are similar from industry to industry, the IT concerns in healthcare can't always be categorized with those in manufacturing. ...

Disk-based backup: all the rage?
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Byte and Switch Article) For decades, tape has dominated the data backup scene. Now there's a new kid in town--disk. Is it right for you? Byte and Switch has put together a solid overview of the trend toward disk-based...

All-sensing pod secures server rooms.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (NetBotz) WallBotz 500 from NetBotz may be the only monitoring device you need for your server room. The WallBotz system comes with three components: a base station for network connectivity that acts as a host for your pods and...

Virtually amazing keyboard from Canesta.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Canesta) Canesta has created a virtual keyboard for PDAs and other portable devices. The technology projects an image of a full-sized keyboard onto any flat surface and uses an infrared beam to detect finger movement. The virtual...

Powered up ethernet from PowerDsine.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (PowerDsine) Winner of the Networking Industry Awards 2003, "Most Innovative Product" award, PowerDsine 6000 Midspan offers power-over-Ethernet (PoE) capabilities. The multiple channel (6 to 24) device can be placed between any...

Locate leaky signals.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (Sunrise Telecom Broadband) Sunrise Telecom Broadband offers a wireless solution for checking, locating, and measuring signal leakage and performing FCC-required leakage measurements. The LP100 Leakage Profiler works in conjunction...

Airy cables save space.
July 22, 2003... Sources: (KRONE Americas) The KRONE Group has developed new types of Category 5e and 6 network cable that save space, improve data transmission, save on installation costs, and make the workplace safer. The new AirES technology employed in...