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Tech trends

The big tech trend that you can’t ignore

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EducationWhat’s the most important tech trend going into 2013? Some say mobile. Others say cloud computing. There’s also lots of buzz surrounding areas like BYOD, consumerization, shadow IT, and business analytics.

They’re all wrong. There’s one trend that’s more important than all of those trends combined, yet is widely ignored. It’s a trend that determines a company’s ability to take advantage of many of those new “hot trends” (mobile, cloud computing. etc…) that everyone is talking about.

What is that trend? This important, yet widely ignored trend is the shift towards modern application architecture. Yes, I know it sounds boring. Who wants to talk about architecture when they can talk about exciting trends like mobile apps, cloud computing, and analytics? You might…once you see what good architecture lets you accomplish.

What’s driving this trend? Companies are slowly realizing that their outdated application architecture is holding them back. They’re realizing that without modern architecture, they’re not even ready to think about the other new trends of the day.

So, the big questions are: How does outdated architecture hold you back from new trends? How does modern application architecture help your company adapt to current trends? To answer these questions, let’s take a look at the impact application architecture has on a few of the current tech trends. …

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Weekly recap: Top 10 strategic technologies for 2013, eCommerce mistakes, and more…

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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 the strategic technologies for 2013, Business Intelligence, and more. I hope you find them useful:

Business intelligence and why you need it
Business intelligence is a hot topic right now, but why is it so important? Why does your business need “business intelligence” all of a sudden. Here’s an article that will help you answer those questions. …

Weekly recap: Top 10 strategic technologies for 2013, eCommerce mistakes, and more…Read More »

Weekly recap: 10 time management tips, predictive analytics, and more…

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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 time management tips, predictive analytics, and more. I hope you find them useful:

Predictive analytics. Making little decisions with big data
As I mentioned in this article, predictive analytics is one of the next big trends in Business Intelligence. What is it, and how is it useful? This article attempts to answer those questions. …

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The huge trend that no one is talking about

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Save MoneyThe cloud may get all of the press these days, but are companies actually doing anything about it? Probably not as much as the press would have you believe. I recently spoke with an IT professional at a large company about that very subject. When asked if his company had any plans for the cloud, his response was simple and straightforward: “Our whole business runs on the mainframe, and it runs well. Why would we move to the cloud?”

While it’s just one company, and one opinion, I get the feeling that many businesses are in a similar situation. There are many, many companies that have invested so much time and money into their current systems, they couldn’t possibly justify ditching everything and moving to the cloud any time soon.

That begs the obvious question: If these companies are stuck with old systems, how can they possibly keep up with tech trends? What if they want modern features and capabilities that aren’t supported by their outdated system? …

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What is NFC, and how can it help your business?

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EducationThe topic of Near Field Communication (NFC) came up again this week with reports that the new iPhone will contain NFC chips. While I don’t care to speculate about the new iPhone, I do believe NFC is about to become very important for businesses in the next few years.

Why is NFC so important? How will it impact your business? Today, I’d like to answer those questions. In this article, we’ll take a look at the basics of NFC and how it can help your business.

What is NFC?

NFC is a technology standard that is used to transfer data between two devices at close range (usually within 4 inches of one another). For example, two NFC-equipped smartphones could transfer a data file simply by touching the devices together.

However, NFC goes far beyond transferring data from one smartphone to another. The real power of NFC comes in the form of tags. NFC tags are essentially paper-thin circuits that store data which can then be read by (or even overwritten) by an NFC-equipped device, like a smartphone. NFC tags can be placed almost anywhere, and can store all types of data. For instance, NFC tags could be placed on walls, embedded in paper, built into products, and much more.

How is this useful?

So, how is NFC useful to your business? The answer: All sorts of ways. Rather than try to explain every possible way, let me share a few examples of different ways businesses could (and probably will) use NFC in the near future: …

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Weekly recap: 10 technologies shaping IT, BYOD best practices, and more…

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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 the BYOD best practices, IT tech skills, upcoming technologies, and more. I hope you find them useful:

For BYOD best practices, secure data not devices.
The key to BYOD success lies in the data, not the device. The companies that will struggle with BYOD are those that haven’t yet figured out how to control their data. …

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6 big Business Intelligence trends of the near future

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EducationBusiness Intelligence (BI) is changing. In the past, BI was used mainly by company executives, providing them with monthly/yearly reports on various aspects of the company. Using this data, executives could formulate company plans and strategies.

While BI is still a vital piece of the planning and decision making process, this idea of “traditional BI” is quickly fading. As the workforce becomes more mobile, BI is moving outside the confines of the office. Modern business leaders demand real-time BI that’s always accessible–from anywhere at any time using any device. They demand BI that gets the right information into the right hands precisely when it’s needed.

So, what trends are driving this new approach to BI? Here are 6 key trends that I believe will dramatically alter the BI landscape in the very near future. …

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Keep your skills current and stay productive

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ProductivityAre you struggling to keep up with tech trends? Are you finding a declining demand for your aging skills? I understand the dilemma. How do you pick up a new skill or programming language and remain productive at the same time?

This story on ITJungle.com is inspiration for all those struggling to keep up with the ever-changing tech trends.

Basically, it showcases an RPG programmer with some ingenuity. He designs Java-based web app and recently created an iPhone application for his company. The best part: He doesn’t even know Java, yet is a very productive Java developer. Want to learn how? Check out the article for the whole story.