Daily Technology News: Today 's Update News

No clear sign of settlement in Oracle-SAP suit
January 5, 2009 at 5:37 pm

A document filed last week by SAP indicates there may be no quick settlement to its rancorous legal entanglement with rival enterprise software maker Oracle, even though SAP admits that some of Oracle's claims about its former subsidiary TomorrowNow are true.

In its lengthy response to Oracle's even more voluminous third amended complaint in the case, SAP concedes some Oracle claims but overall denies liability and demands a jury trial. A judge has already set a February 2010 date for such a proceeding.

Oracle filed suit SAP in March 2007, charging that workers at SAP's now-shuttered subsidiary TomorrowNow, a provider of support for Oracle's PeopleSoft, J.D. Edwards and Siebel applications, had illegally downloaded material from Oracle's support systems and used them to court Oracle customers.

Oracle has also claimed that with the knowledge of SAP's executive board, SAP workers "made thousands of copies of Oracle's underlying software applications on its computer systems," and that SAP used Oracle's code for training, customer service and "generally to support a business model that was illegal to its core."

SAP's alleged behavior amounted to "corporate theft on the grandest scale," Oracle has said.

Meanwhile, SAP has acknowledged that TomorrowNow staff members made some "inappropriate downloads" from Oracle's Web site and that Oracle's software remained in TomorrowNow's systems. SAP has also strongly rejected Oracle's claims of a broader pattern of wrongdoing.

SAP restated its overall position in the most recent filing. "Because Plaintiffs have publicly admitted that TN had the right, in some instances, to access Plaintiffs' computers and use the Software and Support Materials therein, this case (once parsed of Plaintiffs' rhetoric) is simply about whether [TomorrowNow] exceeded its rights to access Plaintiffs' computers, whether that harmed Plaintiffs, and, if so, by how much," one passage reads.

"Plaintiffs rely on snippets and excerpts of documents to construct a tale of intrigue, when the truth is far simpler, though less exciting -- SAP bought TN with the hope that providing [Oracle] customers a choice in maintenance might give them the time to consider alternative, and better, enterprise software," another section states.

But SAP's filing also confirms some Oracle claims.

"Defendants admit that TN, on behalf of its customers, has downloaded and stored a large quantity of Software and Support Materials, further admit that downloads occurred of materials as to which TN did not have confirmation that the customer in whose name the downloads were being conducted had rights to such materials, and further admit that TN used those materials for customer support," one passage reads.

SAP also admitted that a "business case" it had prepared prior to the purchase of TomorrowNow in 2005 predicted "likely legal action" from Oracle. But SAP denied other allegations in that particular claim, such as "the presentation made clear that TomorrowNow did not operate legally."

In another claim, Oracle alleged that SAP "wrongly predicted Oracle would not sue" and that the TomorrowNow business case stated that "Oracle's legal challenges to TomorrowNow's ability to provide derivative works/support will require Oracle to also sue its customers -- a difficult situation for Oracle."

In responding to that claim, SAP admitted that the paragraph in question "partially quotes various documents" but otherwise denied the allegations, in a pattern that continues through its filing.

SAP also admitted that before a "figurative 'firewall'" was put in place between TomorrowNow and SAP, "a TN employee provided access to a few files containing 'Oracle' materials to a few employees at SAP." But SAP added that it had "admitted that fact in their initial discovery responses in this case well over a year ago."

Both Oracle and SAP declined to comment on SAP's latest filing.

A potentially key event in the case is set to occur on Feb. 23, when the parties will meet for a settlement conference. A judge has ordered SAP and Oracle to provide proposals that include specific dollar amounts for a settlement before that date.

Observers who have been following the case said Monday said it would make sense for the parties to settle -- something they have tried and failed to do before.

"What I found telling was how many times the [SAP] answer said 'we admit or we agree with what Oracle said,'" said Eric Goldman, an associate professor of law at the Santa Clara University School of Law and director of the school's High Tech Law Institute. "They didn't do it that much, but most answers deny everything. That's very unusual to see in an answer."

At the same time, "it's good to see that they've both found something they can agree on," Goldman said.

It would be "unbelievable" if the companies weren't having settlement talks, given the likely multimillion dollar cost of the litigation, he said.

Oracle has not provided a specific damage demand but has said the figure could top $1 billion.

"That sounds like a really big number, but SAP could just decide to afford it," Goldman said. "They have the financial wherewithal to pay something like that without it devastating them." But there's also good reason for SAP to delay the settlement process and try to bring that number down, he added.

It has been speculated that Oracle is willing to keep the suit alive simply for the perceived public relations benefit.

In contrast, there is no "upside for SAP in this litigation hanging around," Goldman said. "They don't look good. They might not look bad, but they don't look good."

Jon Reed, an independent analyst who monitors SAP skills trends and runs the Web site JonERP.com, compared the suit to a "high-stakes poker game."

"Oracle has the better hand this time around. If you use the poker analogy, knowing that shouldn't you just fold your hand?" he said.

However, "the thing about this stuff is that you can't just expect logic to dictate behavior, because personalities and egos get involved," he added.

In paying out a settlement to its bitter rival, SAP executives would have to take a hit to their pride, as well as allow Oracle the "marketing juice" it would gain from such an outcome, he said.

However, "maybe they're so far away on the [settlement] numbers that sanity has to prevail on one side or another," Reed added.

IBM employees buzzing about layoff rumors
January 5, 2009 at 11:55 am

An independent Web site for IBM employees has been buzzing with rumors that the company will make significant layoffs this month.

One message states that IBM will announce 16,000 layoffs on Jan. 23, affecting workers worldwide. Similar predictions are made in other recent posts on the site, which is run by the Alliance@IBM/Communications Workers of America Local 1701, a union that is trying to organize IBM workers.

[IT workers are being pushed to the limits, and life is as harsh as it's even been in the tech trenches. Should IT form a union?]

A number of messages state that IBM's semiconductor plant in Burlington, Vermont, may be particularly hard hit.

IBM has more than 386,000 employees worldwide, according to its Web site. If the rumored 16,000 figure proves accurate, then, it would equal roughly a 4 percent reduction in headcount.

Company spokesman Fred McNeese said Monday that IBM "does not comment on rumors and speculation."

The layoff rumors are swirling as IBM prepares to release its fourth-quarter 2008 earnings, which are expected later this month.

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A round of layoffs at IBM would make the vendor only the latest of its peers to trim workers amid the weak global economy.

One Alliance@IBM representative said the group is bracing for the worst.

"We do not have anything substantial yet. But when we start getting a lot of these kinds of rumors from specific sources, generally they come through," said national coordinator Lee Conrad, a former IBM employee. "We're real concerned about that and the possibility it could be true."

The union, while still in an organizing phase and not yet recognized by IBM, has about 6,000 members, including IBM employees and retirees, according to Conrad. But because the union has not reached an employment contract with IBM, there is "not an awful lot" it can do except raise awareness of the issue, he said.

"IBM's been cutting people every couple of weeks, but they're small, silent cuts. What we're concerned about is a massive one," Conrad added.

The group has tended to see most past job reductions hit the U.S. harder than other regions, he added.

Windows market share dives again as Mac nears 10%
January 5, 2009 at 11:44 am

Windows lost nearly a full percentage point of market share for the second month in a row in December, pushing Microsoft Corp.'s operating system to a new low, an Internet measurement company reported yesterday.

Meanwhile, Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X posted a record gain that brought it close to a 10% share for the first time since Net Applications Inc. began tracking operating system use.

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In December, 88.7% of the people who browsed the Web sites that Net Applications monitors did so using machines powered by Windows, a 0.94 percentage point drop from November. The slide was Windows' largest in the four years that Net Applications has collected operating system data, and the second record-setting monthly loss in a row for Microsoft's software.

During November, Windows' market share slipped 0.84 percentage point, dropping the operating system under 90% for the first time since Net Applications has been tracking OS use.

The combined decline of November and December totaled 1.8 percentage points, Windows' biggest two-month dip ever, nearly double that of its previous record, a 0.92 percentage point fall in December 2007 and January 2008.

Microsoft's OS ended the year down 3.1 percentage points, a 3.4% drop in its share from the same time last year.

Apple's Mac OS X's market share continued to grow at Windows' expense. For the second month in a row, Mac OS X posted a record increase, growing by 0.76 of a percentage point to end the month at 9.6%. December was the first time that Net Applications had pegged Apple's operating system above the 9% mark.

And just as Windows set a record for a two-month drop, Mac OS X set a record for a two-month increase during November and December. Those months' combined gain of 1.4 percentage points was substantially larger than the earlier record, a 0.9 percentage point boost the operating system received in September-October 2006, and almost double the 0.73 percentage point increase of November-December 2007.

Mac OS X's market share was up 2.3 percentage points during 2008, an annual growth rate of 31.7%.

Net Applications again attributed some of the decline of Windows and the corresponding growth of Mac OS X to special circumstances. "The December holiday season strongly favored residential over business usage," the company said on its Web site. "This in turn increases the relative usage share of Mac...and other products that have relatively high residential usage. All December usage statistics should be read in that context."

Last month, Net Applications' executive vice president of marketing, Vince Vizzaccarro, said November's drop in Windows share was due to the higher-than-average number of weekend days and the Thanksgiving holiday in the U.S. Net Applications has consistently reported that Windows' share slips during times when browsing is conducted from non-work computers, where Microsoft's operating system dominates even more than in homes.

Even so, Windows' market share fall for November-December 2008 was more than twice that of any similar period in the preceding three years. During the same two months of 2007, for example, Windows lost 0.7 of a percentage point, while in 2006 and 2005, Microsoft's operating system dropped 0.45 of a percentage point and 0.51 of a percentage point, respectively.

As has been the case throughout most of the year, Windows XP accounted for the bulk of Microsoft's downturn. During December, the seven-year-old operating system lost 1.1 percentage points. Windows Vista's share, on the other hand, increased slightly to finish the year just above 21%.

Net Applications' operating system market share numbers can be found on the company's Web site.

Expert: Microsoft made $1.5B on 'Vista Capable' campaign
January 5, 2009 at 11:39 am

Microsoft earned more than US$1.5 billion from the sale of PCs marked as "Vista Capable" in the months leading up to the 2007 debut of Windows Vista, according to an expert's estimate.

University of Washington economist Dr. Keith Leffler pegged Microsoft's income from sales of Windows XP licenses on Vista Capable-labeled computers at $1.505 billion. Leffler has testified for the plaintiffs in the ongoing class-action lawsuit that accuses Microsoft of deceiving consumers during its Vista Capable marketing program. The company created the program to maintain PC sales momentum as the launch of Vista neared.

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In a heavily redacted document unsealed on Friday, Leffler outlined how he arrived at his estimate.

"In Microsoft's Supplemental Responses, it estimates that it received revenue of [redacted] from Windows XP licenses installed on upgradeable PCs sold in the U.S. during the April 2006 through January 2007 period," said Leffler, referring to the nine-month run of the Vista Capable campaign. "From the estimates of Windows [Vista] Capable but not Vista Premium Ready PCs compared to all upgradeable PCs as in Table 1, I estimate that [redacted] of the [redacted] from Windows XP licenses on upgradeable PCs were for XP licenses on Vista Capable but not Vista Premium Ready PCs -- those PCs purchased by the Plaintiff class.

"From these figures, I have, therefore, reached the opinion that the Microsoft revenue from the Windows XP licensing on Vista Capable but not Vista Premium Ready PCs sold to Plaintiffs was $1.505 billion," Leffler concluded.

The "Vista Premium Ready" program was a separate marketing campaign that Microsoft promoted with stickers affixed to PCs able to run all versions of Vista, including the pricier and more feature-packed Vista Home Premium and Vista Ultimate editions.

The unsealed document was not the first time that Leffler had set Microsoft's take from Vista Capable. In an exhibit attached to a Nov. 20, 2008 filing, Leffler not only estimated the XP licensing revenue at just over $1.5 billion, but also said that computer makers sold approximately 19.4 million PCs in the U.S. that met the Vista Capable criteria, but not the higher Vista Premium Ready requirements.

However, Leffler did not spell out the amount Microsoft received from computer manufacturers for each of those 19.4 million XP licenses. Microsoft jealously guards its OEM pricing, and has repeatedly demanded that documents in the case have such information redacted. But simple calculations show Leffler estimated that Microsoft received an average of $77.57 for each copy of XP it sold to computer makers during the Vista Capable program.

The lawsuit, which began in April 2007, claims that marking hardware as Vista Capable inflated the prices of PCs that were able to run only Vista Home Basic, the lowest-priced edition of the OS that lacks such features as the Aero user interface. Microsoft has denied it duped consumers, and has countered that Home Basic is a legitimate version of Vista.

In November, Microsoft asked U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman to end the class-action lawsuit, which has been the source of a treasure trove of embarrassing insider e-mails that show the company bent to pressure from Intel Corp. and infuriated longtime partner Hewlett-Packard Co.

Microsoft has rejected Leffler's estimates in past filings, including the November request for dismissal, in which it argued that the economist had not been able to come up with a model to quantify the price inflation charged by the plaintiffs.

The case is currently set to start trial in April.

Microsoft tells how it missed critical IE bug
January 5, 2009 at 11:33 am

Microsoft developers overlooked a critical bug in the Internet Explorer browser because of a lack of adequate testing tools and training, a company official acknowledged last month.

The flaw, which Microsoft patched last week with an emergency update, had gone undetected for at least nine years.

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Michael Howard, a principal security program manager who has been a proponent of the company's secure code-development process, said that Microsoft programmers had not been taught to look for the type of vulnerability that hit the data-binding function of IE.

Even Microsoft's automated "fuzzer" testing tools, which are dropped into applications to find failures, missed the bug, Howard said in a post on the company's Security Development Lifecycle blog.

This version of the story originally appeared in Computerworld 's print edition.

Analysts expect evolutionary products at Macworld
January 5, 2009 at 11:32 am

While Steve Jobs won't be giving the keynote address during next week's Macworld Conference & Expo, analysts still expect the company to introduce some products during the company's last scheduled attendance at the annual trade show.

"We won't see revolutionary products, but we very well could see evolutionary products," Michael Gartenberg, vice president of market research firm JupiterMedia and editor of the MobileDevicesToday blog, told Macworld. "Phil [Schiller] isn't going to get up onstage, say hi, and walk off."

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Ross Rubin, director of analysis at NPD Group, agrees. "Given that Apple is participating, it will certainly serve its interests to maintain some excitement around the keynote and event," he said. "Certainly they will have some substantive announcements at the keynote."

A revolutionary product would be one like the iPhone, a completely new type of iPod, or even a netbook laptop. Even without those blockbuster announcements, Apple has room to release some significant updates for the Mac community.

Macworld is a consumer-based trade show, and usually focuses on the company's software and hardware products for that segment of the market. Analysts have already said Apple's iMac is getting old and needs a refresh, so that is certainly a possibility for Expo.

Another likely topic of conversation for Apple next week is Snow Leopard, the next version of Apple's OS X operating system. Apple already announced that the upcoming Snow Leopard release will focus heavily on performance improvements and bug fixes, rather than on new features.

Having some updated information on Snow Leopard would be helpful for the many developers attending Expo, as well as the thousands of attendees.

Expectations for the keynote have gone down significantly since Apple announced in mid-December that Steve Jobs would not deliver the keynote. The company also said this would be its last Macworld Expo.

However, with the changes that Apple has undergone over the last several years, Analysts aren't necessarily concerned about the move. Apple went from being a Mac company to one that makes Macs, iPods, iPhones, and some very good consumer and pro-level software.

"As Apple has gone from being a company with a loyal fan base to a more mainstream company, the average customer doesn't care if Apple is at Macworld or not," said Gartenberg. "They care whether Apple will keep putting out cool products or not."

Amazon offers pay-per-use service for data hosted on S3
January 5, 2009 at 11:22 am

Amazon has rolled out a new option for its Simple Storage Service (S3) that lets data holders charge another entity for the cost of accessing their information.

Previously, someone with information on S3 would have to pay for the storage in addition to data transfer costs when another service uses the data, Amazon said. The new "Requester Pays" option relieves the data provider of that burden.

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Amazon said the feature could be useful when working with large data sets, such as zip code directories, reference data, geospatial information or Web crawling data, according to the company's guidance.

The feature gives those using S3 the potential for business models where the data itself could be sold for profit, Amazon said.

Using the "Requester Pays" option alone will only save a developer on bandwidth costs. To enable data to be sold for profit, the Requester Pays option must be used with Amazon's DevPay, a system for billing usage of online services hosted through Amazon.

Those offering data could charge a monthly fee, in addition to a markup on data transfer costs and a markup for "GET" requests.

When the "Requester Pays" option is invoked, the entity being billed must be authenticated, which allows Amazon to identify and bill the requester, the company said.

S3 lets developers store information, or "objects" ranging from 1 byte to 5GB in a so-called data "bucket." It can be used in combination with Amazon's EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud), a system that provides scalable computing services.

Data transfers and requests between S3 and EC2 within the same region, such as the U.S. or Europe, are free even when the "Requester Pays" option is enabled, Amazon said.

Five things Apple needs to do at Macworld
January 5, 2009 at 10:39 am

There are two important dates coming soon for Apple Inc.: Its last appearance at the Macworld Expo & Conference that begins in San Francisco Monday, and the Mac's 25th anniversary later this month.

With those two events so closely linked, it seemed that the stars would align to make this year's Macworld presentation even more exciting than in past years. Then Apple suddenly announced its withdrawal from Macworld, saying it would not take part in the Expo after 2009 -- and that CEO Steve Jobs wouldn't even be at this year's big show. As the Expo's primary draw since its inception, Apple's departure leaves a cloud over future such events, although the 2010 Expo is still scheduled to take place. It also upset Mac fans who were already looking forward to the big speech.

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But there is logic behind the move: Apple's stores are hugely successful, reaching far more people throughout the year than the Expo can in a few days. And making a big splash every January practically forced it to release products on an artificial timetable.

Even with the Mac's 25th anniversary looming, the chances that Jobs stand-in Phil Schiller -- Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing -- will unveil a major wow product isn't in the cards. (Computerworld 's Seth Weintraub will be live-blogging Schiller's keynote , which begins Tuesday at 1 p.m. EST.) Although rumors are flying about new Mac minis, updated iMac, the " iPhone Nano" and Apple apps in the cloud, this year's show probably won't feature announcements as dramatic as the original Mac or the iPhone. But there are a few simple things Apple could do to make this a memorable Macworld while bolstering confidence in company's future among investors and fans alike.

Unveil products worth hyping

Clearly, there's value in Apple's products, even those priced at the higher end of the market. If Apple wants to maintain its current pricing, then it needs to continue pushing its integration, design and technological prowess to new areas, all the while maintaining and building out currently successful technologies. While that sounds like a tall order, Apple is in a unique position to make good on that potential. With software foundations like Mac OS X, the iTunes/App store, and the MobileMe platforms to build on -- coupled with Apple's lack of fear of cutting-edge hardware design -- the possibilities are fascinating. That potential is basic reason for the hype that builds before every Macworld Expo. Along with Apple's knack for showcasing its software and hardware, the accompanying media fervor is a given. All Apple has to do is release a product that's worth the attention -- and after the iMac, iPod, MacBook Air, the unibody laptops of last fall and the iPhone, a new wow! product isn't just a pipe-dream, for fans and media it's inevitable. Schiller should continue Jobs' tradition. Cloud-centric apps, anyone?

Find a way to trim prices

No matter how well-designed, how au courant Apple's offers are, all the recent talk of global economic crisis will take a toll. If people can't afford to buy Apple products, they won't buy them. That doesn't mean they'll be picking up PCs at Wal-Mart. But they'll hang on to what they have a lot longer -- and so will companies. While early indicators are that Apple had a good holiday season, it's clear that the recession is having an affect on purchases. Since Apple has a healthy 30% average margin for its products, it might not hurt to give a couple of percentages back to the buying public in the form of lower prices or even discounts on other Apple products.

Have no doubt: Apple is a company that makes money by releasing products people find value in. Its usual tack is to add features to revamped models and leave prices unchanged. More value, same price. Go ahead: Ask anybody who has recently bought a MacBook Pro, an iMac or an iPhone if they think the money spent was well spent. They'll likely say yes. But keeping those big margins in the face of economic bad times, at a time when Apple is gaining ground, could stall the company's recent progress.

Showcase the talent

Here's the thing: There are a lot of rumors circulating about Steve Jobs' health. I don't even want to mention them, so sickened by the rumors am I, but Apple needs to address the issue openly. There are signs that Apple knows this, including the not-so-subtle hint of change coming in the form of a Jobs-less keynote. Replacing Jobs as Apple's sole voice has likely been in the works for a long time. While Jobs has always had help during specific portions of his keynotes, he's been offloading more and more of the work to others. Just look at how he handled the October announcement of new MacBooks.

This is a good move. As brilliant as Jobs has been at turning Apple around over the last 10 years, it's clear that "Apple" and "Jobs" are seen as interchangeable. They're not. Jobs the man is not Apple the company. While it's clear Apple -- and the entire computer/music/mobile industry -- wouldn't be where it is now if not for Jobs' vision, there needs to be separation between the company and the man; if only to soften the blow for investors who are easily spooked by rumors about about Jobs' health.

After all, it was Jobs himself that told Fortune magazine: "We've got really capable people at Apple. I made Tim [Cook] COO and gave him the Mac division and he's done brilliantly. I mean, some people say, 'Oh, God, if [Jobs] got run over by a bus, Apple would be in trouble.' And, you know, I think it wouldn't be a party, but there are really capable people at Apple. And the board would have some good choices about who to pick as CEO. My job is to make the whole executive team good enough to be successors, so that's what I try to do."

Plot a course for the future

Both in terms of leadership and in regard to their products, Apple has to leave the Macworld audience with the sense that it has a solid grasp on where the company is going. This doesn't mean Phil Schiller has to spend keynote time plotting out leadership hierarchies or detailed product blueprints. But by the end of the presentation, investors and watchers alike need to have a sense that Apple is prepared to deliver successful products and services regardless of Jobs' leadership. At this year's Macworld Apple should parade its leadership team to help promote their different products even more than it has for the last few shows. Since Jobs is confident in Apple's leadership, there's no reason not to showcase the talent. And those executives, whether it's Schiller or Cook or Jonathan Ive should heed Jobs' advice and retain the laser-like focus Jobs is famous for.

"Apple is a $30 billion company, yet we've got less than 30 major products," Jobs said to Fortune . "I don't know if that's ever been done before. Certainly, the great consumer electronics companies of the past had thousands of products. We tend to focus much more. People think focus means saying yes to the thing you've got to focus on. But that's not what it means at all. It means saying no to the hundred other good ideas that there are. You have to pick carefully."

One more thing....

With the Mac's 25th anniversary looming, and all that storied history on everyone's mind, Apple's final Macworld would be incomplete without "One more thing...." Schiller should cap off Apple's last Macworld keynote with a swan-song product announcement worthy of Jobs' trademark keynote ending phrase. And, assuming he's healthy, Jobs himself should deliver the line and the product. It would be an upbeat ending to the relationship Apple has had with Macworld and the Macworld-visiting fans, ending this chapter in the Expo's life on a high note.

Michael DeAgonia is a Neal Award-winning writer, computer consultant and technologist who has been using Macs and working on them professionally since 1993. His tech-support background includes tenures with Computerworld, colleges, the biopharmaceutical industry, the graphics industry, Apple and as a Mac administrator at a large media company.

New 'Wind' netbook pairs SSD with hard disk
January 5, 2009 at 10:21 am

MSI, the makers of the much vaunted U100 'Wind' netbook, have announced a new version of the machine featuring both an SSD drive and a conventional hard disk.

According to MSI, the U115 is the first netbook released to combine the two types of storage in a single machine. Users can choose to run Windows from the SSD (solid-state drive), while reserving the HDD for file storage, a configuration that the company claims maximises performance while minimising power drain.

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The company has not specified the expected battery life under real world conditions, but this 'eco on' mode will look attractive given the U115's modest 3-cell battery.

In almost every other way, the new model is much like a refresh of the old one, with the standard 1.6GHz Atom N270 chip running Windows XP, an LED-based 10 inch screen, 1GB of RAM, and 802.11n WiFi. The storage comes in two options, an 8Gb SSD paired with a 120GB 2.5 inch HDD, or a 16GB SSD and a 160GB HDD.

As curious as MSI's hybrid storage design might be, it is typical of the creativity that the whole netbook phenomenon seems to have prompted from vendors in the previously stodgy notebook market. The lesser names of the market seem particularly determined to reinvent the laptop in a new guise, one based around greater portability, better battery life, and lower cost.

For established vendors used to selling laptops costing at least US$1,000 (£700) this market shift must seem unnerving.

Pricing for the U115 has not been announced though when the machine is shown at the forthcoming Consumer electronics Show (CES) it is likely to be on par with the launch price for the original u100 Wind.

Stimulus could create thousands of IT jobs
January 5, 2009 at 10:07 am

A federal economic stimulus package expected early this year from the administration of President-elect Barack Obama should boost the job prospects of IT professionals.

Katherine McGuire, vice president of government relations at the Business Software Alliance, said Obama's "pro-tech agenda" could increase the number of technology jobs in the U.S. by 10%, adding about 300,000 high-paying IT positions, she said.

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While IT isn't the lone source of high-skills jobs, McGuire said that Obama "is right to seek incentives for innovation and growth across the entire economy, which in turn will spur growth in the IT sector."

Robert McGovern, CEO of McLean, Va.-based JobFox Inc., which runs a careers Web site, agreed that if the package provides the hundreds of millions of dollars in funding expected, hundreds of thousands of IT jobs could be created.

He suggested that IT workers should try to show employers how their skills could be used on projects likely to be aided by stimulus funds.

For example, McGovern said, construction companies and engineering firms overseeing infrastructure upgrade projects need tech workers with strong computer-aided design and telecommunications skills. And companies creating alternative energy systems or modernizing health care processes need people with expertise in bioinformatics, information security or software development.

Regulatory mandates could also lead to the creation of new jobs for tech workers who have related systems integration and Web skills, McGovern added.

"Target your job search in those directions," he suggested.

The companies will probably fill the positions quickly after the funding is approved, he added. "What employers need more than anything is confidence. They have the open positions, but they are reluctant to fill them," McGovern said.

Even without a stimulus package, the jobs outlook in IT for 2009 is better than that of many other industries, said David Foote CEO of Vero Beach, Fla.-based Foote Partners LLC, which analyzes IT wages and hiring data.

"IT jobs are relatively safe in the aftermath of the economic meltdown," he said.

The IT job market is stable, Foote said, "because a lot has happened to show businesses that IT is really our edge."

According to Foote, some of the hottest areas for jobs over the next two years will be business analysis, financial and human resources applications, program management, and application development.

This version of the story originally appeared in Computerworld 's print edition.

Got something to add? Let us know in the article comments.

States hope feds will help replace legacy systems
January 5, 2009 at 10:06 am

With President-elect Barack Obama proposing to spend billions of dollars on road and bridge projects as part of his economic stimulus plan, some state CIOs are hoping that their aging IT infrastructures might also qualify for makeovers.

There's a lot that needs to be updated. In an online survey of state CIOs conducted last summer by the National Association of State Chief Information Officers, nearly two-thirds of the 29 respondents said that between 40% and 80% of their IT setups consisted of legacy systems. And many reported that they were still running code written 20 or more years ago.

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Kyle Schafer, West Virginia's chief technology officer and co-chairman of a NASCIO working group that wrote a report based on the survey results, plans to replace 92 long-used applications with an ERP system at an estimated cost of US$40 million to $60 million.

One of the selling points was lower operating costs. Schafer said that based on benchmarking done by a consulting firm, it costs West Virginia $33 to process an invoice, while states with modern ERP systems have an average processing cost of about $8.

West Virginia has a budget surplus, but many other states are facing deficits. Schafer said he hopes that as part of any stimulus package, the Obama administration treats IT upgrades the same way as other infrastructure-renewal projects.

This version of the story originally appeared in Computerworld 's print edition.

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iPhone apps round-up: Business tools for the New Year
January 5, 2009 at 9:42 am

As people get ready to return to work after two weeks of holiday festivities, it seems fitting to turn our attention to a pair of business and productivity iPhone and iPod touch apps that have debuted in the App Store recently.

First up is Instaviz, a graph sketching program from Pixelglow Software. The US$10 application takes any rough sketches you've drawn on the screen of your iPhone or iPod touch and transforms them into neatly drawn ellipses, circles, rectangles, squares, and other shapes. If you add a line between two shapes, the app redraws your graph accordingly.

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Pixelglow bills the app as a way to turn your iPhone into a brainstorming tool.

You're able to zoom in and scroll using familiar touchscreen finger gestures. You can also export any finished graphs to box.net, MobileMe, or any WebDAV server in DOT/GV and PDF formats. Pixelglow has posted a YouTube video of Instaviz in action.

Meanwhile, iMNotes from RERLSoft promises over-the-air access to sticky notes for Microsoft Exchange users. The $4 app lets you create, edit, view, and search Outlook sticky notes in real-time. You can also create a note on your iPhone or iPod touch and watch it appear on Outlook.

The app supports standard installations of Exchange 2003 (SP1) and 2007 with Outlook Web access enabled. Note that RERLSoft requires you to test your Exchange system's compatibility by downloading the free iMContacts app , available elsewhere in the App Store.

Other apps of interest that were recently added or updated at the App Store include:

ECOcal , from Antenna Theater: The $6 app provides an interactive daily calendar of the Earth and sky along with extensive information about astronomical and terrestrial events. Watch a video of ECOcal in action.

Referee , from Jobeck Software: The $1 novelty app lets you show soccer-style yellow and red cards to friends for offenses real and imagined, and keeps track of all the cards you've issued.

iResolutions , from HWC: Just in time for the new year, this $1 app lets you record your resolutions for 2009.

Me2 , from xyster.net: The free app lets you clone contacts between iPhones using sound and the iPhone's external speaker and microphone.

WindGuru , from Perceiveit: The free weather app features wind, wave, and weather data for more than 3,000 locations around the globe.

TimeLapse , from xyster.net: The $3 app automates the iPhone's camera to create time-lapse photo sequences.

Got an app you've just released to the App Store? Drop us a line.

Jobs says he has 'hormone imbalance'
January 5, 2009 at 9:35 am

Apple CEO Steve Jobs has a hormone imbalance that is causing him to lose weight, he said in a letter posted Monday morning at the company's Web site in an attempt to squelch rumors about his health.

Questions about his health arose once again, after it was announced he would not be giving a keynote at Macworld Expo this week.

[ Keep up on the latest tech news headlines at InfoWorld News, or subscribe to the Today's Headlines newsletter. ]

Jobs underwent treatment for a rare form of pancreatic cancer in mid-2004 and rumors regarding his health have periodically captured headlines and the blogosphere ever since. Although pancreatic cancer is generally one of the more difficult types of the disease to recover from and has grim survival rates, Jobs has maintained that he had a less aggressive type of cancer and that it was successfully treated. However, over the past couple of years he has been noticeably thinner to the point of looking gaunt.

"Unfortunately, my decision to have Phil deliver the Macworld keynote has set off another flurry of rumors about my health, with some even publishing stories of me on my deathbed," reads the letter, which refers to Apple Vice President of Worldwide Product Marketing Phil Schiller, who is scheduled to give the keynote address Tuesday at Macworld Expo in San Francisco. "I've decided to share something very personal with the Apple community so that we can all relax and enjoy the show tomorrow," the letter continues.

Jobs acknowledged that he lost weight throughout last year and said that the reason "has been a mystery to me and my doctors," but that after "sophisticated blood tests" he was diagnosed with "a hormone imbalance that has been 'robbing' me of the proteins my body needs to be healthy." He has begun treatment, but because of how much weight and body mass he has lost it is expected to take until late spring before he has regained the weight he lost.

He will continue as Apple CEO during his recovery, Jobs wrote, closing the letter by saying he has said more than he wanted to about his medical condition and is not going to say anymore.

A statement from Apple's board also was posted on the company site reiterating a previous statement "if there ever comes a day when Steve wants to retire or for other reasons cannot continue to fulfill his duties as Apple's CEO, we will let you know."

The 7 Worst Tech Predictions of All Time
January 5, 2009 at 9:15 am

Predicting the future ain't easy. That's why astrologers and fortune tellers tend to keep their forecasts as vague as possible. But in the high-stakes world of high technology, the future belongs to those who see it coming well in advance.

Of course, even the most successful tech prognosticators make their share of foolish predictions, multiplying the candidates for inclusion in this article. In any case, here are a few of my favorite forward-looking flubs of the past 65 years.

[ Stay ahead of advances in technology with InfoWorld's Ahead of the Curve blog and newsletter. ]

Foolish Tech Prediction 1

"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers."

Thomas Watson, president of IBM, 1943

At the dawn of the computer industry, nobody really knew where this new technology would take us. But the explosion of desktop computing that put a PC in nearly every American home within 50 years seems to have eluded the imagination of most mid-century futurists.

After all, when IBM's Thomas Watson said "computer," he meant "vacuum-tube-powered adding machine that's as big as a house." It's fair to say that few people ever wanted one of those, regardless of the size of their desk.

(IBM did stay in the business, of course. For details, see our retrospective, " The IBM Personal Computer's 25th Anniversary.")

Foolish Tech Prediction 2

"Television won't be able to hold on to any market it captures after the first six months. People will soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night."

Darryl Zanuck, executive at 20th Century Fox, 1946

By 1946, movie executive Darryl Zanuck had already cemented his place in entertainment history as the producer of more than 100 films for the big silver screen. So who could have blamed him for underestimating the power of the small blue screen? I'm guessing that if Zanuck were alive today, he'd find himself just as mesmerized as the rest of us by the mind-crushing distortion loop that modern TV programming has become.

(But the TV sets rock!)

Foolish Tech Prediction 3

"Nuclear-powered vacuum cleaners will probably be a reality within ten years."

Alex Lewyt, president of Lewyt vacuum company, 1955

In the 1950s, the only thing more certain than the red menace was the inevitability of atomic power. So when New Jersey-based vacuum cleaner honcho Alex Lewyt heralded a tomorrow in which nuclear-powered appliances would suck up dirt in every American household, the news probably caused few eyebrows to rise. Remember, this was the era of radium-impregnated paint for glow-in-the-dark dials. Peaceful radioactivity seemed as safe as asbestos.

Of course, Lewyt's vision has yet to come true, and it likely won't until well after nuclear reactors are enlisted to power all of the terminator robots in our post-SkyNet future.

(Interested in robots? Take a look at "The Robots of 2008" for a video appreciation of the coolest and most innovative of Gort's great-great-grandchildren.)

Foolish Tech Prediction 4

"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."

Ken Olsen, founder of Digital Equipment Corporation, 1977

Digital Equipment Corporation was acquired by Compaq more than a decade ago, but in the 1970s the company was a major force in the world of computing. Apologists argue that DEC president Ken Olsen made this quip before the advent of the PC as we know it, but ready-made personal computers like the MITS Altair had hit the market a couple of years earlier. And within four years of Olsen's remark, the release of the IBM PC had enshrined this prediction in the high-tech hall of shame.

(The MITS Altair 8800 pictured above is one of "The Most Collectible PCs of All Time.")

Foolish Tech Prediction 5

"Almost all of the many predictions now being made about 1996 hinge on the Internet's continuing exponential growth. But I predict the Internet will soon go spectacularly supernova and in 1996 catastrophically collapse."

Robert Metcalfe, founder of 3Com, 1995

In addition to being a legendary tech visionary and the man widely credited with having invented Ethernet, Bob Metcalfe was also a columnist for PC World sister publication InfoWorld. And it was in that column that Metcalfe made what must have been the most regrettable comment of his career; indeed, he even promised to eat his words if his augury turned out to be wrong.

To his credit, Metcalfe made good on that promise in 1999 during his keynote speech at the International World Wide Web Conference, where he blended up a copy of his printed column with some liquid and drank it down before a crowd of onlookers.

Foolish Tech Predition 6

"Apple is already dead."

Nathan Myhrvold, former Microsoft CTO, 1997

To be fair, just about everyone in the computer business thought that Apple was in its death throes when Microsoft CTO Nathan Myhrvold made this comment back in 1997.

Who could have predicted that, a little more than a decade later, that same company would be steadily increasing its share of the PC market while utterly dominating the digital music business and rapidly overtaking the field in the smart phone market?

Foolish Tech Predition 7

"Two years from now, spam will be solved."

Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, 2004

By recent estimates, the amount of spam currently glutting up the Net is somewhere around 92 percent of all e-mail messages worldwide. (And it won't do to claim that what he really said was "Two years from now, [Hormel] Spam will be dissolved"--because the sculptable meat product remains as semisolid as ever.)

So, uh, good guess, Bill. Glad that's been taken care of.

Daily Technology News

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