mrc's Cup of Joe Blog

Join us in exploring the world of modern development, evolving technologies, and the art of future-proof software

Month: December 2013

Weekly Recap: Why so many IT projects fail, PCs on the decline, and more…

By

EducationEvery week, I share the most interesting and useful tech articles that I’ve found over the past week. This week’s top articles focus on why so many IT projects fails, the decline of the PC, and more. I hope you find them useful:

IT pros share blame for Shadow IT problem
While Shadow IT is a growing problem among business units, the IT department isn’t innocent. A recent survey finds that IT professionals use unauthorized SaaS apps for business…just like the business users. How can IT leaders and CIOs curtail this issue? It all starts with a simple question: Why are users opting for third-party solutions in the first place?
…

Weekly Recap: Why so many IT projects fail, PCs on the decline, and more…Read More »

5 ways to rejuvenate your legacy applications

By /

EducationMany companies face the same problem: They’re stuck to their legacy enterprise applications and systems. Sure, they’d love to upgrade their outdated system, or replace those legacy applications, but…they can’t.

Why not? Maybe their business relies too heavily on their legacy applications. Maybe past customizations have virtually locked them into their legacy apps. Maybe it’s too risky or expensive. Maybe management doesn’t see the need for modern applications. Whatever the cause, the problem is the same: They’re tied to their legacy applications.

What problems does this cause? Quite a few. While I could explain how it keeps the company from modern features and capabilities and makes them look outdated, those issues are small potatoes compared to the larger business problems caused by legacy applications. For instance, legacy applications:

1. Tie up IT budget: Since legacy applications are more difficult to maintain, they require a good portion of the IT budget. How much? I’ve seen estimations ranging from 70-80%. Think about that. If you’re spending 80% of your budget maintaining the status quo, how can you ever afford modern technology?

2. Keeps IT from innovation: Since legacy applications are more difficult to maintain, they also require much of the IT department’s attention. Of course, if the IT department spends a good chunk of its time maintaining applications, they have little left to spend on business innovation–which, as we explained in this article, is becoming more and more important.

So, what can you do? If you’re stuck with legacy applications that you can’t replace, what are your options?

In this article, let’s explore a few ways to breathe new life into your old applications. If you can’t replace your systems or applications entirely, how can you bring modern features and capabilities to your legacy apps? To help you answer those questions, I’ve outlined some methods to do just that, and touched on the pros and cons of each. Without further ado, here are 5 ways to breathe new life into your applications.
…

5 ways to rejuvenate your legacy applicationsRead More »