Info-Tech Advisor Newsletter articles from October 1999

Info-Tech Advisor Newsletter archives from October 1999

Microsoft DNA 2000: Getting Ready for the Explosion.
October 5, 1999... (PCWeek Online, Interactive Week Online, and InfoWorld Articles) Microsoft officials say they are positioning the Windows 2000 OS for an "explosion" of Web based services which will be similar in scope to "the explosion of applications...

A New Standard Makes PCI Notebook-Ready.
October 5, 1999... (A Network World Fusion Article and the PCI Special Interest Group Web Site) PCI (peripheral component interconnect) is a peripheral bus that provides a processor-independent path between the CPU and high-speed peripherals. PCI is well...

Non-IT Workers: Unexplored Resource for Filling IT Positions.
October 5, 1999... (A Computerworld Article and an International Data Corporation Press Release) The shortage of skilled IT workers is a well-known fact, and it's not getting any better. International Data Corporation (IDC) expects the gap between supply and...

Security Flaws Make Regular Updating Essential.
October 5, 1999... (Microsoft Web Site and a Network World Fusion Article) There's yet another Internet Explorer security flaw. By using an IE 5 feature called "download behavior," any ill-intentioned Web site operator can get read access to files on your...

Check by Internet: So Easy, It's Scary.
October 5, 1999... (A Byte.com Article) Taking payments over the Web by check is easy and cheap, so easy in fact that the potential for fraud and abuse is alarming. Still, accepting checks for payment over the Internet is just too straightforward to not...

Taiwan Quake: How a Far Off Natural Disaster Can Shake Up your Purchasing Plans.
October 5, 1999... (TechWeb and ZDNN Tech News Articles) An immediate and sharp increase in memory chip prices is only the first impact the recent earthquake in Taiwan will have on hardware prices. Don't be surprised to see quake-related cost increases for...

Managing your Non-IT Boss: A Crash Course.
October 5, 1999... (A Computerworld Article) As you climb the corporate ladder, your chance of having a boss that's not from IT will only grow. When you and your boss come from different fields, there are special challenges the two of you must face to...

Does Your Company's Web Site Say Too Much?
October 5, 1999... (A Computerworld Article) Sometimes competitors do not have to penetrate firewalls to access confidential information - many companies publish enough data publicly on their own Web sites. Timothy Powell, managing director of T.W. Powell...

Don't Be a Source of "Industry Spam"!
October 5, 1999... (An InformationWeek Online Article) An ineffective mailing list or a poorly formatted message can turn your well-meaning attempt to get the word out into something recipients may perceive as only so much industry spam. Spam is junk...

Mastering Metrics.
October 5, 1999... (A CIO.com Article and Rubin Systems Inc. Article) Comparing the different stages and outcomes of a project to benchmark numbers is incredibly important to measuring overall success. Yet deciding on the right numbers and factors for...

A Warehouse of Data Warehousing!
October 5, 1999... (Sybase, Techguide.com, DM Review, and The Data Warehousing Institute Web Sites) Most data warehousing projects fail to meet their objectives, and those are just the ones that get going in the first place. This is because so many IT...

An Introduction to Exit Surveys.
October 5, 1999... (The Exit Interview and Survey Homepage) Exit interviews and surveys are a useful tool for gathering intelligence about your own organization. The departing employee can offer a unique perspective on benefits, working conditions, competing...

Free Resources for Your Free Operating System.
October 5, 1999... (FreeOS.com Web Site) The FreeOS.com web site is definitely what you need if you are studying up on or already using a free operating system. Based in Mumbai, India, this site offers a vast collection of resources for the following 11...

How Does your Customer Data Measure Up?
October 5, 1999... (An InformationWeek Resource) InformationWeek, in conjunction with Innovative Systems Inc., have created the CDQ Toolkit. This compact benchmarking resource lets you measure your customer data quality against other companies to help you...

SOFTWARE : BuyWiz Debuts Universal Shopping Cart.
October 5, 1999... A. BuyWiz Debuts Universal Shopping Cart (BuyWiz) New York's BuyWiz wants to give the world a single shopping cart for all online purchases. Recently BuyWiz rolled out the beta version of its new PC based shopping cart software which...

SECURITY : IBM Beefs Up Security on New Commercial PCs.
October 5, 1999... A. IBM Beefs Up Security on New Commercial PCs (IBM Corp.) IBM says it now has the world's most secure commercial PCs. The new IBM Client Security Solutions are available on new models of the IBM PC 300PL commercial systems. IBM Client...

INTERNET/INTRANET : Netscape Communicator 4.7 Is Available for Download.
October 5, 1999... A. Netscape Communicator 4.7 Is Available for Download (Netscape) The latest version of Netscape Communicator has arrived. Available for Windows, Mac, and Linux users, the newest version of the suite includes: * The Navigator...

INTERNET/INTRANET : Telecom Heavy Hitter Taps Streaming Media Market.
October 5, 1999... B. Telecom Heavy Hitter Taps Streaming Media Market (MCI Worldcom) MCI Worldcom has just made delivering streaming media to remote desktops easier for businesses. Leveraging the trusted UUNet backbone, Advanced Communications Services...

SERVICES : Novell Plays the Free E-mail Game.
October 5, 1999... A. Novell Plays the Free E-mail Game (Novell Inc.) Novell has entered the free e-mail fray with a MyRealBox, a service based on Novell Directory Services and Internet Messaging System. Now there's a high profile alternative to...

SERVICES : Online Tech Support -- The Next Wave.
October 5, 1999... B. Online Tech Support: The Next Wave (Motive Communications) Help is on the way to your overloaded tech support desk. Major brand name PCs and servers will soon be able either to fix themselves, or to connect you with the...

LEISURE : Y2K Disaster Better Odds Than Alien Invasion.
October 5, 1999... The online bookies are saying that the odds of bank failures due to the Y2K bug are 1000 to 1. That compares favorably with the 20 to 1 odds of a major utility crashing, but far shy of the 100,000 to 1 odds of aliens from outer space conquering...

Windows 2000 Migration: Planning Steps you Should Take Now!
October 19, 1999... (NeworkMagazine.com, Computerworld, and Tech Republic Articles) November? December? January? The actual release date for Windows 2000 has been a moving target. Does it really matter? You don't need to upgrade to Windows 2000 tomorrow. In...

Intrusion Detection Systems: What you Should Know.
October 19, 1999... (ICSA Inc. White Paper and Robert Graham Web Site) "Those reporting their Internet connection as a frequent point of attack rose for the third straight year; from 37% of respondents in 1996 to 57% in 1999." - from the 1999 CSI/FBI Computer...

Balanced Scorecards: Prove the Value of your Department.
October 19, 1999... (A CIO Article and EJISE, Renaissance, and Compass White Papers) Showing how investment in IT has been put to productive and profitable use is one of the biggest challenges faced by the IT manager. Research on IT investment refers to the...

Vortex: Improve your Supply Chain Purchasing.
October 19, 1999... (Business 2.0, CNET, and TechWeb Articles) Business-to-consumer e-commerce gets most of the media hype, but it's in the business-to-business (B2B) end of the game where the big money is changing hands. A recent report from Forrester...

High Speed Access in Hotels: Head Off this Security Risk.
October 19, 1999... (A Gartner Group Research Note) Gartner Group claims that, "By year-end 2002, 80 percent of business-class hotel rooms in major hotel chains in the United States will be equipped with high-speed Internet access." But these convenient...

Post Y2K: Will you Still Need your Year 2000 Gurus?
October 19, 1999... (Computerworld and PC Online Articles) Y2K brought to life a new breed of IT worker - the Y2K specialist. Will they face new career challenges in early 2000? The answer is most probably "no." First of all, it would be wrong to assume that...

Wireless Application Protocol 101.
October 19, 1999... (WAP Forum, Nokia Corporation, and Phone.com/APiON Ltd. Web Sites) Mobile terminals have less powerful CPUs, less ROM and RAM, restricted power supplies and smaller displays. They were designed for operating with one hand and, therefore,...

The IT Audit: Are you Ready for the Scrutiny?
October 19, 1999... (A Tech Republic Article) With IT becoming a pervasive part of every aspect of an organization, it stands to reason that the next audit spotlight may fall on you. The traditional view of a departmental audit is that the focus will be...

Surviving a New CEO.
October 19, 1999... (Ragan's The Manager's Intelligence Report) Be it through a new appointment or a company takeover, a new CEO could descend on you at any time with the number one priority of making a visible difference, fast. As a result, staff members are...

The Bottom Line on Open Source.
October 19, 1999... (A TechRepublic White Paper) Sun is opening up Solaris. IBM has granted its support to Linux. With big names like these climbing on the open source bandwagon, this once underground "hobbyist" movement has officially graduated to a fully...

Top Techno-MBA Programs.
October 19, 1999... (A Computerworld survey) Formal business education may become a necessity to move you one step higher in your career. Choosing the best MBA program is a complex task, and a mistake can be costly. Moreover, traditionally highly ranked MBA...

The Spreadsheet Page: A Resource for Everyone.
October 19, 1999... (JWalk & Associates) Spreadsheets are critical applications in almost any business environment, and yet few people really know how to get the most out of them. If you're working with Excel, 1-2-3, Quattro Pro, or even some of the...

How Secure Is Your Net Connection? Let this Web Site Tell You.
October 19, 1999... (Shields Up! Web Site) Having your computer probed for security holes from somewhere out there on the Internet is not something you want to happen. Yet it doesn't hurt to see your data security from the thief's perspective. Shields Up!,...

Master Printer Purchasing.
October 19, 1999... (A PC Magazine Article) Everyone needs printers, but which one will best meet your needs? PC Magazine recently put 55 ink jets, laser printers, and multifunction devices through their paces. Who came away with Editor's Choice? In the ink...

SOFTWARE : Lotus Organizer 6 Has Improved Web Functions.
October 19, 1999... A. Lotus Organizer 6 Has Improved Web Functions (Lotus Development Corporation) The latest upgrade of Lotus's venerable personal information manager (PIM) includes features to better integrate the Web into everyday work. * New Web...

INTERNET/INTRANET -- Voice Browser: The Latest Cool Tool from Nuance.
October 19, 1999... A. Voice Browser: The Latest Cool Tool from Nuance (Nuance Communications) Surfing the Web has entered a new realm -- voice. With Nuance's Voyager, users can flip between placing calls, accessing Web content, and executing secure...

INTERNET/INTRANET : Linkbot Ready for the Enterprise.
October 19, 1999... B. Linkbot Ready for the Enterprise (Tetranet Software Inc.) If your Web site is an important part of your company's strategic plan, maintaining its quality should be at the top of your priority list. Linkbot, the award-winning Web site...

INTERNET/INTRANET : Enonymous Announces New Privacy Tool for Consumers.
October 19, 1999... C. Enonymous Announces New Privacy Tool for Consumers (Enonymous Corp.) * The consumer has two information folders that are kept completely separate: one with Contact data such as name, address and credit card information that's stored...

INTERNET/INTRANET : Novell Launches Digitalme and Instantme.
October 19, 1999... D. Novell Launches Digitalme and Instantme (Novell Inc.) At the recent Internet World conference in New York City Novell rolled out new products that the company says will leverage the Novell Directory Services (NDS) technology for a...

SERVERS : Turn an Inexpensive PC into a Linux Server in 15 Minutes.
October 19, 1999... A. Turn an Inexpensive PC into a Linux Server in 15 Minutes (Cybernet Systems Corp.) The NetMax suite of network utilities from Cybernet Systems Corp. promises exactly that. If you're considering deploying a cheap basic server for a...

MULTIMEDIA : Multimedia Business Cards.
October 19, 1999... A. Multimedia Business Cards (Keys Marketing International Inc.) If you want to impress your potential business partners with something more than a plain old paper business card, this could be the product that you're looking for....

LEISURE.
October 19, 1999... If you design user interface elements, make sure you have quality control procedures in place, or your creation may end up in the Isys Information Architects Inc.'s Interface Hall of Shame. If you are really annoyed by any particular software...