Category: Comments & opinions

At the company’s annual Build conference this week Microsoft unveiled among other things an Azure Data Lake service, which the company is pitching as a hyperscale big data repository for all kinds of data. The data lake concept is a fairly new one, the gist of it being that data of varying types and structures is created at such a high velocity and in such large volumes that it’s prompting a necessary evolution in the applications and platforms required to handle that data. It’s really about being able to store…

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We stand at the edge of a remarkable era of total connectivity. Soon, nearly every kind of object and device we have will be digitized and web-enabled – the result of the continually expanding and evolving Internet of Things (IoT). This week at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles, I’m participating in a panel discussion on IoT connectivity. This annual conference brings together some of the world’s most extraordinary people to explore solutions to today’s biggest challenges – from energy and education to financial markets and health care. How…

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Perception of the millennial generation has gone through several iterations, from general disdain to guarded optimism of their tech savvy. Here’s whyMillennials haven’t yet reached optimum potential – and where they’re headed next. Version 1.0: Millennials as Outliers As with anything disruptive to the status quo, Millennials were first regarded with a combination of fascination and scorn. It might sound overdramatic now, but just a few years ago, psychologists, bloggers, and everyone in between had something to say about Millennials – and most of it far from complimentary. Gen Y was…

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1. Google Nexus 9 One of the best tablets in Google’s list of “pure” Android devices, the Nexus 9 was the first tablet to run Android Lollipop and is likely to be first in line for updates. It is available in 16GB or 32GB capacity.  Image: Josh Miller/CNET 2. Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact The Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact is a small tablet with lots of power. The thin tablet is also waterproof and easier to carry around than its 10-inch predecessor.  Image: Andrew Hoyle/CNET 3. Dell Venue 8…

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Today, 22nd March is the World Water Day and I couldn’t have picked a better day to rant my heart out. It was reported last week that California has just one year left before it runs out of water. Bay Area has survived many bubbles from dot-com bust to post 911 instability to great recession of 2007 but not sure if it will be able to withstand the next big bubble of valley running out of water. It may sound gruesome but the drought has already arrived and here to…

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The new millennium is the era of customer experience. The digital age has revolutionized how customers and companies interact with one another, and the advent of social networking is forcing organizations to change their approach to relationships. Word of mouth can make or break a business as customer sentiments are publicized and shared with millions of people worldwide with the click of a button. As businesses grow, many find that traditional customer relationship management (CRM) is no longer enough to ensure customer loyalty and advocacy. To keep relationships strong and…

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 Mobile virtualization will change the way we use our smartphones, and add security where it’s greatly needed. … Mobile virtualization is one of the biggest new words in the IT lexicon. Essentially, this design concept brings the benefits of enterprise hardware virtualization to the portable mobile phone. But what does mobile virtualization do, really, and why are people so excited about it? With mobile virtualization, smartphone makers can allow for multiple operating systems to run on one device. Rather than forcing all design elements to interact with the “bare metal hardware” and a single,…

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Why is it that every day, new apps appear on your firm’s network? Some are downloaded onto employee desktops; others are on their mobile devices. Have you ever wondered why every day at 2 p.m. your browser windows paint the screen slowly or the network feels slow? As your employee base becomes younger and more “Web savvy,” they listen to Internet radio and stream videos; the appearance of Web Real-Time Communications and more videoconferencing on top of streaming are putting your network’s performance in peril. VoIP and UC Require Bandwidth We…

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Customers always appreciate good customer service: it makes them feel like they got more than they paid, like they’re more than a number. Salespeople should be trained to ask the right questions, provide good insight to customers, and respond to changes to improve customer support. This article covers these and other ways in which you can turn great customer support into sales. Responsive Support Customers demand timely support, and when they’re on the phone, in your store, or browsing your site, they may have questions that require immediate answers. The…

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A technical preview of the new Skype for Business communications and collaboration platform is now available to customers. At the 2015 Convergence event, which is taking place in Atlanta this week, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella encouraged companies to embrace the open exchange of information and to use intelligent, collaborative tools. In November 2014, it was announced that the next version of Microsoft Lync would become ‘Skype for Business’, and the new client, server and online service would be generally available from April 2015. With the technical preview, existing Lync customers…

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