Friday, August 31, 2012
Mysterious Wiper malware possibly connected to Stuxnet and Duqu
Oracle, Red Hat team on CAMP cloud standard
Source: http://www.infoworld.com/d/cloud-computing/oracle-red-hat-team-camp-cloud-standard-201385
Data center hub arises in central Oregon
Apple and Facebook this month each filed plans to expand data center operations in Prineville, Ore., a small community that's on its way to becoming one of the top data center locations in the U.S.
Once the latest projects are completed, the two tech firms will be running a combined 1.2 million square feet of data center space, and each company owns enough land in the city to expand well beyond that.
VMware will integrate Intel's TXT security into vSphere 5.1
The latest version of VMware's vSphere cloud platform will integrate Intel's trusted execution technology (TXT), a Xeon server feature that provides a new layer of hardware-based security.
Intel cloud infrastructure group general manager Jason Waxman said in a statement that the move will help address key cloud security threats.
North American Contact Center Survey Reveals Costs, Benefits
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/95/north-american-contact-center-survey-reveals-costs/
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2012 Best in Americas Awards Gala Rocks Orlando
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VMware seeks to virtualize the entire data center with vCloud Suite 5.1
In an aggressive bid to rule the emerging software-defined data center (SDDC), VMware unveiled at VMworld today its
Kill timer found in Shamoon malware suggests possible connection to Saudi Aramco attack
A timer found in the Shamoon cyber-sabotage malware discovered last week matches the exact time and date when a hacktivist group claims to have disabled thousands of computers from the network of Saudi Aramco, the national oil company of Saudi Arabia.
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New Lead Dialing Software Saves Businesses from FTC Fines
Apache Cassandra database upgrade due this fall
With its popularity growing, Apache's Cassandra database for high-volume, real-time data management will be fitted with technical and query language improvements in the fall.
Stay in the Game with an IVR System
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/133356/stay-in-the-game-with-an-ivr-system/
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Oft-cited cybercrime cost estimates called out as inflated
President Barack Obama said it in a major speech on cybersecurity. U.S. senators said it while promoting their Cyber Security Act of 2012. Gen. Keith Alexander, director of the National Security Agency and head of the U.S. Cyber Command, said it while warning of "the greatest transfer of wealth in history" through the theft of intellectual property. "It" was that the costs of cybercrime are $250 billion each year according to Symantec and $1 trillion each year accoridng to McAfee.
Some Oracle database users face support window's end, price hike
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Windows 8 tablet growth hinges on pricing
IBM goes big on new mainframe with fastest chip, flash memory
IBM's latest mainframe, the zEnterprise EC12, is big on data analytics and hybrid clouds.
This system, announced Tuesday, includes a new 5.5GHz, six-core processor, versus the 5.2GHz, quad-core processor that shipped with the zEnterprise 196, announced two years ago last month.
The perfect Trojan horse
Six weeks ago, I wrote about the challenges of controlling data ingress and egress on a normal business network and offered a frightening scenario based on the possibility of creating an all-but-undetectable back door in a network firewall with the use of common technologies. As if that weren't enough to worry about, it seems that evil could also be lurking in the nearest power strip.
Source: http://www.infoworld.com/d/data-center/the-perfect-trojan-horse-199242?source=rss_data_center
Letter to ContactCenterWorld from an Award Winning Contact Center Professional
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7th Annual Top Ranking Performers (Best Practices) in Europe, Middle East & Africa
Source: http://www.contactcenterworld.com/html/ev/ev_f07b0cdfb03c45ae82acf0ccf88de2a3.aspx
Eleven communications trends for 2011
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/4756/eleven-communications-trends-for-2011/
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Alpha Recovery Deploys Hosted Debt Collection Solution by Latitude Software (NASDAQ:ININ)
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/8928/alpha-recovery-deploys-hosted-debt-collection-solu/
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IT's 9 biggest security threats
Years ago the typical hacking scenario involved a lone attacker and maybe some buddies working late at night on Mountain Dew, looking for public-facing IP addresses.
Source: http://akamai.infoworld.com/d/security/its-9-biggest-security-threats-200828?source=rss_security
Why passwords are failing us -- still!
Passwords weren't the only fail in last week's widely publicized "epic hack" of tech journalist Mat Honan -- Amazon, Apple and, to a lesser extent, Google and Honan himself share the blame.
Source: http://akamai.infoworld.com/d/security/why-passwords-are-failing-us-still-200158?source=rss_security
Big data analytics today lets businesses play 'Moneyball'
Hype continues to surround big data analytics. But hype or not, data-driven decision-making is becoming central to management decisions at most enterprises. They are taking inspiration from Billy Beane, the general manager of the Oakland Athletics baseball team that turned to data analytics (known as Sabermetrics in baseball and made popular in the movie "Moneyball") to assemble a competitive baseball team despite the organization's limited financial resources.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
7th Annual Top Ranking Performers (Best Practices) in Asia Pacific
Source: http://www.contactcenterworld.com/html/ev/ev_ba2fabda85de42418377213861ccbe4d.aspx
Hosted Call Centers Benefit from PaaS
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/108417/hosted-call-centers-benefit-from-paas/
18 great IT tools for Android
Surprise! iOS and Android printing gotchas
The whole point of Apple's AirPrint is to make printing something that just works -- no driver installation, no setup, no adding printers. If they're available, they're simply there, ready to use. In fact, the AirPrint technology works just as promised, but when we reviewed various products to extend AirPrint to existing printers, we discovered that iOS apps aren't always AirPrint savvy, causing all sorts of gotchas.
The states where iPads and iPhones are at most risk
It's a fear we all have: dropping our smartphone or tablet, watching a device that costs $500 or more crack or shatter. Or perhaps spilling beer, soda, or coffee onto it, then seeing it go dead as the liquid finds its way into an open port. (Never mind the toilet drops!)
How consumerization gives business an edge
Kraft Foods, a forward-thinking giant when it comes to consumer taste, was anything but when it came to IT. Simply put, the company was mired in the old-school culture of rigid centralized information technology. Not anymore.
Kraft was one of the first major enterprises to recognize the value that consumer devices could produce for business -- and deploying the iPhone back in 2008, well before smartphones had become must-carry devices.
Unpatched Java vulnerability exploited in targeted attacks, researchers say
Attackers are exploiting a new and unpatched vulnerability that affects the latest version of Java -- Java 7 Update 6 -- in order to infect computers with malware, according to researchers from security vendor FireEye.
So far, the vulnerability has been exploited in limited targeted attacks, FireEye's senior staff scientist Atif Mushtaq said Sunday in a blog post. "Most of the recent Java run-time environments i.e., JRE 1.7x are vulnerable."
TantaComm Introduces Centralize for Call Recording and Quality Monitoring Functions
Buggy McAfee antivirus update causes problems for home and business users
A buggy update released Friday by security vendor McAfee for its consumer and enterprise antivirus products, left the computers of its customers unprotected and, in some cases, unable to access the Internet.
ERP vendors Syspro, Unit4 launch app stores
The app store model popularized by Apple is gaining further adoption in the world of ERP (enterprise-resource-planning) software, with new stores announced this week by Syspro and Unit4.
Syspro's app store, which was announced on Friday, will be available "shortly" and will eventually feature thousands of applications, the company said in a statement. Publishers can provide their offerings on the store for no charge, receive a one-time payment, "or protect intellectual property through Syspro's licensing model," it added.
Wave good-bye to VMware's unloved vSphere vRAM 'vTax'
After what may be considered a failed, year-long licensing experiment, EMC VMware is ready to tear down a virtual wall it created for itself with the institution of a new licensing model introduced with VMware vSphere 5.0 in July 2011.
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Tuesday, August 28, 2012
The 'iPad Mini': A new hook for iTunes
OK, I was wrong when I repeatedly dismissed the rumors that Apple would unveil an "iPad Mini" this year. This weekend, the Wall Street Journal, Apple's traditional venue for official leaks, reported the "iPad Mini" would be unveiled in October.
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Deploying to a public cloud? Deal with data integration first
If your organization has moved past all the excuses to use the public cloud, congratulations! But did you think through your data-integration strategy before deployment? If not, you'll find it difficult to maintain your corporate data in a public cloud.
The perfect Trojan horse
Six weeks ago, I wrote about the challenges of controlling data ingress and egress on a normal business network and offered a frightening scenario based on the possibility of creating an all-but-undetectable back door in a network firewall with the use of common technologies. As if that weren't enough to worry about, it seems that evil could also be lurking in the nearest power strip.
Source: http://www.infoworld.com/d/data-center/the-perfect-trojan-horse-199242?source=rss_data_center
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Windows 8 and the touchy future of PCs
In my post last week, I asked for two simple changes to Windows 8: Allow users to uninstall Metro, and bring back the Start menu. The bottom line is that Metro is terrible with a mouse. It's a touch interface, period.
Review: Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 shines bright
For years we've been reading about the alleged iPad killer, a mythical device that never arrives. There have been impressive Android tablets in recent months, but on the whole, it's been clear to everyone but the most ardent Android fanboy that Apple's iPad is the superior tablet in almost every way.
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Communications-in-the-Cloud Trends: Video Interview with Interactive Intelligence and Ventana Research
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/7456/communications-in-the-cloud-trends-video-interview/
Changing the Way We Talk About the Cloud - Knowledge@W.P. Carey
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/109489/changing-the-way-we-talk-about-the-cloud-knowledge/
The Call Center Selection Process
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/113118/the-call-center-selection-process/
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Calculate 'return on agility' to find the cloud's real value
Werner Vogel, the CTO of Amazon.com, wrote a thoughtful blog last week that focuses on how to determine the true value of using its technology, looking at both total cost of ownership (TCO) and the return on agility. The blog stated that customers "struggle with how to account for the return on agility, the fact that they are now able to pursue business opportunities much faster at much lower cost points than before."
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Top 3 Methods for Improving Call Center Quality
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/8993/top-3-methods-for-improving-call-center-quality/
2012 Best in Asia Pacific Announced
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West Nile Concerns Lead to Flood of Phone Calls
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Monday, August 27, 2012
Top 3 Methods for Improving Call Center Quality
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/8993/top-3-methods-for-improving-call-center-quality/
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'Shadow IT' can be the cloud's best friend
"Shadow IT" -- where users acquire and manage IT resources outside the control of corporate IT -- is the bane of many IT organizations. We've seen numerous instances of this over the years, including the use of PCs, the Web, the iPhone, and now cloud computing resources without a formal policy and support from corporate IT.
From developers to DBAs: The hottest outsourced IT jobs
Around one-third of organizations will spend more money on IT outsourcing over the next 18 months, while 48 percent plant to hire more contractors, according to IT staffing agency Bluewolf's recent report, entitled "2012-2013 State of IT Outsourcin
Review: MokaFive's VDI tailors to BYOD
VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure) is one of the hottest technologies going, and there are nearly as many ways to deploy it as there are companies providing the solutions. Some VDI solutions are server-based, running on "big iron" in a data center like their virtual server cousins.
4 Critical Questions About The Cloud
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/138710/4-critical-questions-about-the-cloud/
WOW - Award Winner Western Power Australia Celebrates!
Ben Oxford shares his experiences with members of ContactCenterWorld - Western Power Australia are proud to be winners and representing Asia Pacific in this years global contact center awards!
Letter to ContactCenterWorld from an Award Winning Contact Center Professional
Moose Hotline Launches to Prevent Collisions
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Dell offers dedicated servers to build private clouds
Dell on Thursday said it will offer dedicated servers in its data centers and off-premises application and storage services for companies looking to establish private clouds.
Dell's Cloud Dedicated program intends to reduce the stress of companies hosting servers locally by moving workloads off premises to Dell's data centers. Dell will deliver IaaS (infrastructure-as-a-service) offerings through the private cloud, which could reduce the costs involved in deploying servers and managing services locally.
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Energy Star 2.0 for servers coming in November
Source: http://www.infoworld.com/d/computer-hardware/energy-star-20-servers-coming-in-november-200942
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Will a Double-Dip Recession reverse the trend of buyers "delaying outsourcing ...
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/143687/will-a-double-dip-recession-reverse-the-trend-of-b/
Sunday, August 26, 2012
IDC: PC growth to slow down to 0.9 percent in 2012
Source: http://www.infoworld.com/d/computer-hardware/idc-pc-growth-slow-down-09-percent-in-2012-200900
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New security standard pushes for better support for digital certificates
There is no silver bullet when it comes to encryption. Even the most complex, invulnerable encryption today could be child's play in the future. The NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) is publishing new encryption standards for public review to try and keep up with the times and stay a step ahead of the bad guys.
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Top 3 Methods for Improving Call Center Quality
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/8993/top-3-methods-for-improving-call-center-quality/
South Korean court rules both Apple and Samsung infringed patents
Big data analytics today lets businesses play 'Moneyball'
Hype continues to surround big data analytics. But hype or not, data-driven decision-making is becoming central to management decisions at most enterprises. They are taking inspiration from Billy Beane, the general manager of the Oakland Athletics baseball team that turned to data analytics (known as Sabermetrics in baseball and made popular in the movie "Moneyball") to assemble a competitive baseball team despite the organization's limited financial resources.
ICS-CERT warns of SSL security flaw in RuggedCom industrial networking devices
Industrial Ethernet switches and other devices produced by industrial networking equipment manufacturer RuggedCom contain a vulnerability that could be exploited to compromise SSL-based communications between them and their users, according to a security researcher from security startup Cylance.
SAP pointing HANA in-memory database at social sentiment analysis
SAP is coupling its HANA in-memory database with software for measuring market trends and customers' moods through the analysis of unstructured social media data, the vendor announced Wednesday.
HANA, which became generally available last year, places data into RAM for processing rather than constantly reading and writing it to disks, providing a performance improvement that SAP has claimed can be nothing short of dazzling.
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Cloud Based Contact Center Software a Safe Bet
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/13897/cloud-based-contact-center-software-a-safe-bet/
small business business week starting a business entrepreneur
Review: Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 shines bright
For years we've been reading about the alleged iPad killer, a mythical device that never arrives. There have been impressive Android tablets in recent months, but on the whole, it's been clear to everyone but the most ardent Android fanboy that Apple's iPad is the superior tablet in almost every way.
HP reports $8.9B Q3 loss on writedowns, weak sales, lowers full-year forecast
Hewlett-Packard on Wednesday announced a $8.9 billion loss for its third quarter ended July 31 due to writedowns and weak hardware sales and also said full-year results would be at the low end of its previous guidance.
Earlier this month, HP said it would take an $8 billion "impairment of goodwill" writedown against its services division. "Goodwill" refers to less tangible assets, such as brand strength, that are considered when figuring out a company's total value. HP's $13.9 billion acquisition of services provider EDS has been roundly criticized as too costly.
AuthenTec brings government-grade encryption to Android
AuthenTec, which Apple said in July it would acquire for $356 million, has introduced a government-grade data encryption platform for Android smartphones and tablets.
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Most firms have no big data plans
A majority high-level IT managers and data storage professionals have no plans to deploy big data analytics, according to a new data storage survey by market research firm TheInfoPro.
Fifty-six percent of respondents indicated they will not be deploying big data analytics applications even beyond 2013, the survey of 255 IT professionals found. Half of those surveyed were data storage professionals at the analyst level; the other half comprised IT mangers, vice presidents and CIOs.
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Can't Take Your Call…
I contacted a government department by phone and the call was picked up quickly. Great I thought and the agent sounded very happy to take my call. I told her I wanted to discuss a situation and she replied “I am sorry, you will have to call back as we are too busy to take any calls as we have a backlog”. Surprised, I asked her what she meant and she told me that they can’t take any calls as they are too busy but I could e-mail them. I asked if that would be answered any quicker to which she responded, “I don’t know – you may want to call back later”.
How confusing I thought – she was talking to me telling me she couldn’t talk to me … - just when I thought some of these government departments were getting switched on to service!
Source: http://www.contactcenterworld.com/tips.aspx?id=363feb6ce1cb487aa2fc53a75c6bcb92
Changing the Channel
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/114621/changing-the-channel/
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2012 Top Ranking Performers Conference - Never Been? Read What Delegates Said!
What the software-defined data center really means
You know the story of how the Internet was created: The military wanted a redundant "network of networks" and figured out how to do it with a new protocol using existing networking equipment.
Something nearly as historic is happening now, again using existing infrastructure: the software-defined data center.
Why is Nicira worth $1.2 billion?
At a cloud conference in June, I was introduced to Martin (pronounced "martini" without the second "i") Casado, the 35-year-old CTO of network virtualization startup Nicira. In the space of about 10 minutes, Casado convinced me that we're at the dawn of the age of Software Defined Everything.
Source: http://www.infoworld.com/t/virtualization/why-nicira-worth-12-billion-199402?source=rss_data_center
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VMware leaps into software-defined networking with Nicira acquisition
VMware announced it intends to purchase networking virtualization software startup Nicira for approximately $1.26 billion, VMware's largest acquisition to date. The purchase price reflects just how serious VMware is about the evolving software-defined networking (SDN) market.
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3 rules for doing BYOD right
It's a compelling statistic: 83 percent of companies now allow employees to use their own mobile devices for work -- the quintessential definition of "bring your own device" -- according to the most recent data from Aberdeen Research. Once you factor out the very-high-security industries such as defense, you're left with, in essence, all companies.
Top 3 Methods for Improving Call Center Quality
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/8993/top-3-methods-for-improving-call-center-quality/
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IDC: Analytics software market will remain strong
The global market for business analytics software grew roughly 14 percent in 2011, fueled by pervasive hype about "big data" as well as new technological innovations, according to a report unveiled by analyst firm IDC on Wednesday.
Between now and 2016, the business analytics market will have a compound annual growth rate of 9.8 percent, reaching $50.7 billion, IDC said.
The easy, low-cost, secure plan for enabling BYOD
You'd think it was 2010 with the reports and studies raising fear of unbridled IT costs, massive loss of corporate secrets, and general Armageddon, all for supporting mobile and home users.
Friday, August 24, 2012
Startup Piston Cloud says it's built a better OpenStack installer
There's been much buzz surrounding OpenStack as cloud players including http://www.infoworld.com/t/private-cloud/startup-piston-cloud-says-its-built-better-openstack-installer-200696?source=rss_cloud_computing
4 tech trends in IT disaster recovery
As we've seen in recent years, natural disasters can lead to long-term downtime for organizations. Because earthquakes, hurricanes, snow storms, or other events can put data centers and other corporate facilities out of commission for a while, it's vital that companies have in place a comprehensive disaster recovery plan.
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4 questions to ask before starting a big data initiative
Through many surveys, executives have identified that big data initiatives rank high on the projects lists for 2012 and 2013. It's not surprising, since the promise that big data can improve and streamline presentations, gain insights to consumer purchasing habits and, in the healthcare industry, even help save lives is simply too important to ignore.
However, several key questions must be answered:
The "Uncentered" Call Center
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/95327/the-uncentered-call-center/
Salesforce Communities mixes business with social
Salesforce.com today revealed Salesforce Communities, a platform that lets companies create social networks with Facebook-esque features for employees to engage with customers, business partners, and one another.
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Mobile Voice Conference: It’s all about Talk!
Source: http://www.contactcenterworld.com/html/ev/ev_66fd77768bc348bc8f4f5eba915b3db2.aspx
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Google to pay record-setting $22.5 million fine over privacy practices
Google will pay a historic fine to settle U.S. government charges that it violated privacy laws when it tracked users of Apple's Safari browser via cookies.
The $22.5 million civil penalty is the largest ever secured by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission for a violation of one of its orders.
ICS-CERT warns of SSL security flaw in RuggedCom industrial networking devices
Industrial Ethernet switches and other devices produced by industrial networking equipment manufacturer RuggedCom contain a vulnerability that could be exploited to compromise SSL-based communications between them and their users, according to a security researcher from security startup Cylance.
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Voice Recognition: Technologies and Global Markets
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/76930/voice-recognition-technologies-and-global-markets/
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Boost the Power of the IVR System via Integration with Core Business Applications
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/110290/boost-the-power-of-the-ivr-system-via-integration-/
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Businesses fill Hadoop skills needs with partners
As enterprise adoption of Hadoop booms, the pool of IT personnel able to build and maintain deployments hasn't kept pace. In May, analyst firm IDC pegged the compound annual growth rate for the Hadoop software market at more than 60 percent, forecasting an ascent to $812.8 million in 2016 from a base of $77 million in 2011.
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VMware leaps into software-defined networking with Nicira acquisition
VMware announced it intends to purchase networking virtualization software startup Nicira for approximately $1.26 billion, VMware's largest acquisition to date. The purchase price reflects just how serious VMware is about the evolving software-defined networking (SDN) market.
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Thursday, August 23, 2012
2012 Best in Asia Pacific Announced
Study: Call Centers Employing Could-Based Solutions Can Benefit From Lowered Costs
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/118519/study-call-centers-employing-could-based-solutions/
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Review: MokaFive's VDI tailors to BYOD
VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure) is one of the hottest technologies going, and there are nearly as many ways to deploy it as there are companies providing the solutions. Some VDI solutions are server-based, running on "big iron" in a data center like their virtual server cousins.
HP aims three-part effort at network virtualization
Hewlett-Packard is readying three new software capabilities that are designed to help enterprises pool their computing and storage resources across a network.
The advances should make it easier for IT departments to link data centers spread around the world, shield multiple tenants' virtual machines from each other, and control storage from virtualized appliances.
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Knowlagent Selects High-Tech BtoB PR and Marketing Firm Arketi Group as Agency of Record
Source: http://usan.hivefire.com/articles/163230/knowlagent-selects-high-tech-btob-pr-and-marketing/