Computing articles from March 2009

Computing archives from March 2009

Threatened from all sides.(economic downturn affects information security)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Linda More Threatened from all sides The economic downturn is making business data more susceptible to attack from both internal and external sources. So how should IT leaders go about building a good all-round defence? ...

Five principles underpinning robust security strategies.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Khalid Kark Five principles underpinning robust security strategies Security is not a standalone discipline any more, and security professionals today need to understand the broader business context if they want to succeed in...

Technologyi?1/2s role in managing risk.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Gareth Morgan Technology's role in managing risk In the latest Computing web seminar, the panel explored how a well thought out technology plan can underpin and boost effective risk management strategies ...

Silence fuels unease over IT offshoring.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Mrk Koyabashi-Hillary Silence fuels unease over IT offshoring Key issues affecting Indian outsourcing were off the agenda at the country's big trade show (Every February, the great and good of the Indian technology...

Businesses neglect risk management at their peril.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Alan Calder Businesses neglect risk management at their peril Skimping on IT security is a false economy at the best of times, but is suicidal in a slump, writes Alan Calder In an economic downturn, firms need to increase...

Putting storage on a diet.(thin provisioning)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Martin Courtney Putting storage on a diet To its supporters, thin provisioning is a highly cost-effective way of allocating storage capacity, but others dismiss it as a technical solution looking for problem. Martin Courtney...

Earning the right to start complaining.(wage cuts as a way to reduce company costs)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Gareth Morgan Earning the right to start complaining Wages are a notoriously prickly subject and managers who tinker with their staff's pay packets do so at their peril, even in these tough times (Several years ago, there...

Whati?1/2s holding up IPv6?
March 5, 2009... Byline: Martin Courtney What's holding up IPv6? The EU, among others, is adamant that organisations can ill afford to delay migration to IPv6, yet the rate of uptake remains achingly slow. Martin Courtney examines why IT departments...

Hot Seat.(Joerg Heinen)(Interview)
March 5, 2009... Byline: Computing Joerg Heinen is UK IT director at manufacturer Henkel. He is responsible for IT operations and services in the UK and Ireland What was your first job and how did you get into IT? In my first year at the...

MoD calls up small firms to reinforce military innovation.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Tom Young MoD calls up small firms to reinforce military innovation In a break with tradition, the MoD is looking to the UK's smaller high-tech companies to help meet the military challenges of the future, writes Tom Young ...

The man with the plan for Windows 7.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Gareth Morgan The man with the plan for Windows 7 Bill Veghte, Microsoft's senior vice president for Windows, tells Gareth Morgan that the economic downturn will heighten interest in Vista's successor (Ever since the...

Can Windows hold on to its supremacy?
March 5, 2009... Byline: Computing Can Windows hold on to its supremacy? (There is a certain irony in Microsoft putting the man that runs its Windows business up for interview with Computing in the same week that the government announced a new...

Dominoi?1/2s uses IT to grab bigger slice of market.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Angelica Mari Domino's uses IT to grab bigger slice of market The pizza chain's IT chief tells Angelica Mari about the roles new online, in-store and mobile technologies will play in the company's expansion plans ( Ten...

Supercomputer to boost forecasting at Met Office.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Gareth Morgan Supercomputer to boost forecasting at Met Office Gareth Morgan The Met Office is preparing to migrate the supercomputer that underpins its ability to model global weather systems, with a new IBM Power6-based...

Schools continue to lean towards proprietary code.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Tom Young Schools continue to lean towards proprietary code Tom Young The head of the [pounds sterling]45bn Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme has admitted that it is "unusual" for schools to avoid being tied...

Betfair hopes to hit IT skills jackpot.
March 5, 2009... Betfair hopes to hit IT skills jackpot Angelica Mari Online gambling firm Betfair hopes to take advantage of the redundancies affecting UK IT departments to recruit experienced workers to support its international expansion and new...

Resilient systems keep Dominoi?1/2s in the game Dominoi?1/2s Pizza claims to be the worldi?1/2s first pizza delivery company to offer nationwide internet and interactive TV ordering. With the help of technology, its average delivery time was reduced from 17 minutes.
March 5, 2009... Resilient systems keep Domino's in the game Domino's Pizza claims to be the world's first pizza delivery company to offer nationwide internet and interactive TV ordering. With the help of technology, its average delivery time was reduced...

Security thati?1/2s fit for business.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Lisa Kelly Security that's fit for business Lisa Kelly reports on how IT leaders are changing the way they think about information security (Duncan Scott, chief information officer at global property services firm DTZ...

Adopting a frugal approach to the web.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Tim Walters Adopting a frugal approach to the web Companies can still reap big rewards via their web sites despite the declining economy (In the era of the consumer-centric web, people expect rich, engaging and satisfying...

Co-operation is key to winning security battle.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Martyn Croft Co-operation is key to winning security battle Charities must work together to fight those who would steal funds and ruin reputations, writes Martyn Croft Next week, the Charity Finance Directors' Group devotes...

World wide web turns 20.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Martin Courtney World wide web turns 20 In March 1989, Cern staffer Tim Berners-Lee proposed a revolutionary new system for sharing information, and unwittingly changed the world forever. Martin Courtney looks back ...

On a mission to heal business.(interview with president and cheif executive of SAP AG, Jose Duarte)(Interview)
March 12, 2009... Byline: Rosalie Marshall On a mission to heal business Jose Duarte, president and chief executive of SAP in Europe, talks to Rosalie Marshall about job reductions, price hikes and his determination to relieve customers' pain ...

Employers mark down IT education.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Tom Young Employers mark down IT education As the number of students taking IT courses continues to dwindle, doubts among employers over the value of qualifications are growing, as Tom Young reports (Employers are...

ISPs must comply with snooping law from Sunday.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Tom Young ISPs must comply with snooping law from Sunday Tom Young UK ISPs will be required to hand over records of customers' internet surfing habits, including IP addresses and times of use, to police and intelligence...

2012 CIO hits the ground running.(Gerry Pennell)
March 12, 2009... Byline: Angelica Mari 2012 CIO hits the ground running In his first interview since his appointment, London 2012 CIO Gerry Pennell tells Angelica Mari how his past experience and an emphasis on proven technology will help to...

Change perceptions to keep IT thriving.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Computing Change perceptions to keep IT thriving (Does it actually matter whether or not children study IT-related subjects at school? Despite years of attention and investment, not only are fewer students taking...

Investment advisers follow best practice.(Baillie Gifford and Co.)
March 12, 2009... Investment advisers follow best practice Since 2001, investment advisory group Baillie Gifford has increased the number of dedicated IT security professionals it employs from two to 12. "Security has always been very important to us,...

College seeks to balance security and freedom to innovate.
March 12, 2009... As IT leaders are starting to realise, the new generation of tech-savvy users coming into the organisation brings a whole heap of security challenges, forcing many to rethink their approach. At Halesowen College, technical resources director...

A route out of the darkness.(government's investment in technology)
March 19, 2009... Byline: John Higgins A route out of the darkness The surest way the government can spend its way out of recession is to invest in technology (Not a day goes by without our embattled economy taking another hit from the...

Capitalise on e-commerce during the downturn.
March 19, 2009... Byline: Craig Sullivan Capitalise on e-commerce during the downturn There has never been a better time to review the online strategy of your business, says Craig Sullivan Over the past decade, e-commerce has changed the...

Age is withering the mainframei?1/2s support.
March 19, 2009... Byline: Dave Bailey Age is withering the mainframe's support To the surprise of many, mainframes are still going strong. But can the same be said for that breed of IT worker who specialises in supporting them? (Earlier this...

Hot Seat.
March 19, 2009... Byline: Computing Pete Bayley is the director of qualifications at the British Computer Society, having previously worked as a lecturer in computer science What was your first job and how did you get into IT? I did a course at...

Boldly going beyond the perimeter.(Barnardo's information technology infrastructure management)
March 19, 2009... Byline: Martin Courtney Boldly going beyond the perimeter Securing corporate systems has moved beyond putting up barriers to protecting data assets. Martin Courtney investigates the key technologies needed for perimeter-less...

Foiling a thoroughly modern bank heist.
March 19, 2009... Byline: Tom Young Foiling a thoroughly modern bank heist Tom Young reveals the amazing story behind the investigation into the [pounds sterling]229m attempted fraud at Sumitomo Mitsui bank, and how the gang were caught by the very...

Tesco takes on the world.
March 19, 2009... Byline: Angelica Mari Tesco takes on the world Tesco IT chief Nick Folkes tells Angelica Mari how lessons learned delivering technology-led improvements in the UK will be applied to the firm's operations around the globe (Tesco's...

Change is coming to public-sector IT.
March 19, 2009... Change is coming to public-sector IT (IT professionals across the public sector will be waiting for this year's Budget announcement next month with extra anticipation. While most eyes will be on any further measures chancellor Alistair...

The key players in the scam.
March 19, 2009... The key players in the scam "Lord" Hugh Rodley The "chief executive" of the operation, he owed money around the British crime world. Rodley had a criminal history dating back 30 years and lived in a [pounds sterling]2m mansion...

Retailer sticks with own-brand datacentre.
March 19, 2009... Retailer sticks with own-brand datacentre While many businesses increasingly treat datacentres as a commodity, Tesco sees its servers as a key part of its operation and outsourcing was never considered as an option to reduce costs,...

Threats and how to counter them.
March 26, 2009... Byline: Jon Collins Threats and how to counter them Despite hundreds of millions being invested in IT security, data theft and misuse remain a thorny problem. It is high time IT leaders took a smarter approach, writes Jon Collins ...

Crime and retribution.(e-crime)
March 26, 2009... Byline: Jon Fell Crime and retribution Even the best security can be compromised if a hacker is determined enough. So what should IT chiefs do in the event of a breach and how can they help to apprehend the culprit? Jon Fell offers...

Appealing to the public.
March 26, 2009... Byline: Richard Steel Appealing to the public The public sector offers IT professionals an unparalleled opportunity to engage in a broad spectrum of laudable projects, writes Richard Steel (I came to the public sector after...

Police, camera, action i?1/2 life imitates art.
March 26, 2009... Byline: Tom Young Police, camera, action -- life imitates art The investigation into the UK's largest high-tech bank heist had all the hallmarks of the much-acclaimed US TV show The Wire (Anyone familiar with the HBO...

Now is not the time to lose faith in R&D.
March 26, 2009... Byline: James Woodhuysen Now is not the time to lose faith in R&D If regulators get the better of innovators, it will only serve to prolong the recession (Just a few years ago, Sun Microsystems sold a gadget that would make...

The risk-averse CIOi?1/2s guide to outsourcing.
March 26, 2009... Byline: Alex Sandercock The risk-averse CIO's guide to outsourcing By following some key management principles, IT chiefs can outsource with confidence, writes Alex Sandercock Although outsourcing has become an established way for...

Cisco enters the datacentre fray.
March 26, 2009... Byline: Dave Bailey Cisco enters the datacentre fray The vendor claims its Unified Computing System will enable datacentre operators to reduce cost and complexity. Dave Bailey reports (Network equipment giant Cisco says it wants to...

Police to take softly-softly approach to integration.
March 26, 2009... Byline: Tom Young Police to take softly-softly approach to integration Tom Young Proposals to mandate police forces to buy compatible IT systems will only be used as a last resort, according to the new head of a scheme to...

Data sharing plans face further scrutiny.
March 26, 2009... Byline: Tom Young Data sharing plans face further scrutiny Resistance to legal moves to ease data sharing across the public sector is increasing both inside and outside parliament, but the government is refusing to back down, as Tom...

Working together for the good of all.
March 26, 2009... Byline: Computing Working together for the good of all (Seamless integration has long been a Holy Grail for IT managers. Anybody who has been in the industry for more than 10 years will be able to reel off a long list of failed...

Some of the benefits of public sector data sharing.
March 26, 2009... Some of the benefits of public sector data sharing In law enforcement, the cross-matching of databases has helped to uncover some significant crimes, and there are further opportunities to do so to help protect vulnerable groups. For...

What Cisco's partners had to say about UCS.
March 26, 2009... What Cisco's partners had to say about UCS Cisco said UCS would be an open system allowing Microsoft, VMware and other virtualisation packages to run on top of the hardware. VMware chief executive Paul Maritz said his customers were...