wikis

Eee PC gets custom Ubuntu build

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 06:59:54 -0500

There are few things that Linux nerds love more than the Eee PC and Ubuntu. So why not put two good things together in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich full of open-source goodness? That's exactly what a few 'nix enthusiasts have done with eeeXubuntu: a Ubuntu 7.10 build that's customized for the Eee PC. Among the Eee-specific features are fully-integrated hardware support (including all the drivers you'll need), Ethernet support and custom low-resolution desktop settings. Why go through all the trouble of making something like this when you could just as easily install Ubuntu on your Eee and customize it yourself? I'll let the folks behind eeeXubuntu answer that one: "because life is too short to spend all day looking for help in a forum."

For more on the custom build:
- check out eeeXubuntu's wiki

Dell gets behind Ubuntu 7.10

Wed, 17 Oct 2007 06:59:58 -0400

Just yesterday, we gave you a sneak peek at Ubuntu 7.10, or "Gutsy Gibbon" as it is commonly known. Today, Dell is announcing that it plans to install the newest version of Ubuntu on desktops and laptops, once 7.10 ships tomorrow. "We will offer Ubuntu 7.10 preinstalled on our systems soon," said Anne Camden of Dell corporate communications, in an interview with eWeek. "For customers who are interested in updating their existing Ubuntu systems, we advise them to visit the Ubuntu 7.10 page on our wiki, which will go live after the official launch." Granted, this doesn't come as much of a surprise--Dell has been offering pre-installed Ubuntu systems for a while now--but its still nice to see that the Round Rock company is looking to keep things up-to-date on the Linux tip.

For more on Ubuntu on Dell:
- see this eWeek article

Today's students, tomorrow's customers

Thu, 11 Oct 2007 06:59:59 -0400

In addition to her other projects, Erin Griffin, the CIO of Loyola Marymount University, and her 65 IT employees are heavily involved with web 2.0 initiatives. She and her team are using Wikis for collaboration as well as using other document sharing and collaboration technologies. Throughout the university, social networking is important. She and her team are on Facebook and they have their own blogs. It's an area that every CIO should be investigating, she says. "I see my peers in the business world just barely waking up to the fact that these students--our customers now--are going to be their employees and their customers very soon. All of these tools and technologies are so critical to the students' existence. It feels to me that the sooner corporate CIOs get using these web 2.0 tools, the better."

To read the full interview:
- click here

It's Autumn: Let the trade shows begin

Thu, 20 Sep 2007 07:00:00 -0400

I can tell it's almost Autumn: the trade show season is in full swing. We're including information on news from several shows this week, from RFID to innovation to the InformationWeek 500 conference. InformationWeek always does a great job of tapping into where CIOs are going in the next year. Nearly 40 percent of those surveyed said that they use RFID in a limited number of deployments--though that seems a bit high to me, as RFID does not come up much in my interviews. Nonetheless, there were some pretty nifty applications coming out of RFID World this week. Unsurprisingly, web services technologies are also being implemented quickly. Some 70 percent of companies have widely adopted the technology, while 24 percent say that they are using the technologies in limited use. And Web 2.0, which we cover in the news section, is also on the rise. Fifty-five percent of those surveyed use wikis, blogs, and social networking tools for internal communications, while 27 percent do so with customers. What do you think of the numbers? Are they on track with what's happening in your organization? Let me know. -Patty

Open-source, Web 2.0, SAAS continue to disrupt

Thu, 20 Sep 2007 06:59:59 -0400

Meanwhile, Gartner analysts were also talking about innovation this week, at the Gartner Web Innovations conference in Las Vegas. Their key takeaway: consumerization and open-source will continue to produce disruptions in the high-tech market and will continue to provide new revenue opportunities for businesses. Specifically, analyst Tom Austin said that the relationship between Web 2.0, SAAS, global class, consumerization and open-source is growing more complex. When it comes to vendor management, he said that "the[se] five forces can impact the vendor balance of power, kill distribution and business models and create new ones, and create implementation alternatives."

All of this has a lot to do with competition. Traditional software vendors like Microsoft and IBM are competing with smaller and more nimble vendors in the Web 2.0 space with wikis, AJAX applications, social networks and mashups. "When there [are] tens of hundreds of thousands of vendors out there, it's no longer an issue of who's the leader," Austin said. "The best alternative will change. In the end, patterns emerge and new ways of working emerge."

For more on how new tools are reshaping the enterprise space:
- see the article in eWeek

CIOs should manage Web 2.0 expectations

Thu, 20 Sep 2007 06:59:59 -0400

CIOs curious about what their peers think about Web 2.0 should look for a new survey from Forrester Research, which confirms that CIOs do see value from Web 2.0 technologies, but continue to worry about what their employees are saying about the company online. The study, "Web 2.0 Social Computing Dresses Up for Business," found that 15 percent of CIOs say that employees use blogs, wikis and really simple syndication (RSS) for business. What's a CIO to do? Manage expectations and know what applications your employees are supporting. "It's in IT's best interest to find out what's going on and offer a sanctioned alternative," said one of the authors.

Fore more on Web 2.0 technology adoption:
- see the article in CIO

How to: Unlock your iPhone the easy way

Mon, 17 Sep 2007 06:59:52 -0400

Last week, we told you that a free iPhone unlocker was available on the Internet, though the solution was not quite "user-friendly". At the time, we advised you to wait for a GUI-based app and we sure hope you listened: the iPhone Dev Team has released AnySim, a easy-as-pie application that will get your iPhone up and running on the GSM network of your choice in no time. Head over to the Dev Team's Wiki to download the latest version (and don't forget, any time you run third-party software on your iPhone, you're doing so at your own risk). iPhone unlocking: so easy a cavema...ah, forget it.

CIOs take an old fashioned approach to Web 2.0

Wed, 13 Jun 2007 20:01:38 -0400

In December, Forrester Research surveyed 119 CIOs at companies with 500-plus employees, asking how they've adopted Web 2.0 technologies--specifically, blogs, content tagging, podcasts, Really Simple Syndication (RSS), social networking and wikis. The report, covered by CIO Insight, finds that three in four CIOs prefer to have their Web 2.0 tools rolled up into a single suite from a single vendor. Who are they likely to turn to for this innovative technology? Either IBM or Microsoft. Integration considerations are the primary reason behind the choice. CIOs don't have confidence in smaller companies' experience, finances or long-term viability.

To get more:
- read this article from CIO Insight

Vendors Jump on Web 2.0 Bandwagon

Sun, 03 Jun 2007 20:01:39 -0400

Vendors are responding to the new Web 2.0 trends of blogging, instant messaging and wikis with many new technologies and products that can track and control corporate communication. Companies are introducing passive monitoring type products, including technologies that can warn employees if they are about to violate a corporate rule by using profanity or sending confidential documents. Others block employees from saving content to portable devices like a USB thumbdrive or censor offensive pictures or videos sent via email or IM. "Passive monitoring is the place to start but not the place to end," Michael Rothschild, senior director of product marketing for Orchestria, told ComputerWorld. "It's like having border control that only tells you after the fact if a terrorist has gotten in."

For more on Web 2.0 monitoring:
- see this ComputerWorld article

Web 2.0 takes center stage at Interop

Thu, 24 May 2007 20:01:39 -0400

As the Interop show in Las Vegas comes to a close, Web 2.0 has emerged as the predominant theme. Everyone was talking about social networking, Wikis and collaboration. Even Cisco CEO John Chambers jumped on the bandwagon with his keynote. Blogs, chat, and Web video, have "been a way that people kind of communicated in spite of the IT department," inside large organizations. "Now the IT department has to lead," he said.

Catch up on all the Interop happenings:
- read this article from Network World:
- and see this coverage in CIO Update