Industry Bits

IBM's Haifa Lab Working on Platform-Agnostic Data-Masking Technology

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:05:10 -0700

I'm always interested in anything that sounds like it will make IT security easier. A recent announcement from IBM details a technology that has great potential for simplifying data security. It's called MAGEN (Masking Gateway...

Pithy Advice from Your Fellow IBM i Pros

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:28:38 -0700

If you could give someone just one tip about the IBM i system—your best advice in 100 words or less—what would it be? I posed this question to the "i" industry and received many great...

Clear-Text Passwords on Web Forms: Is there a happy medium between security and usability?

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 13:41:48 -0700

Web usability guru Jakob Nielsen's June 23 Alertbox article advocates stopping the use of masked passwords on websites: Masked passwords are when you type in a password and whatever you type is replaced by a...

Pair of Third Parties Validates IBM's App Dev Strategy

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:23:50 -0700

IBM is reporting that analyst firm Gartner has ranked IBM as the worldwide leader in the application development software space, while Evans Data Corp. found that app dev users were most pleased with IBM in...

Build Your Career, on Your Budget

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:38:33 -0700

If you have kids or remember being one, then you definitely know how kids feel about homework. "Isn't going to school work enough?" they'll whine, in less elegant terms. After a long day, you might...

IBM i Vendors Win and Place in IBM's Beacon Awards

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 11:00:16 -0700

Earlier this month, IBM announced the winners of its annual IBM Beacon Awards competition, which recognizes IBM BPs for outstanding delivery of value to clients and innovative approaches to solving business issues. The awards cross...

Rochester Newspaper Reports IBM Layoffs

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:40:14 -0700

The Post-Bulletin in Rochester, Minn., reported Wednesday that at least 68 IBM employees were laid off earlier this year from the Rochester facility where IBM i technologies originate. The newspaper quoted an official with Rochester's...

Journals: Like Wheatgrass for Your IBM i

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:39:44 -0700

If ever there was something computer related that might be called a panacea, it's journaling. Journaling can help you with security, availability, and backup/recovery. One of the best-known journal gurus in the IBM i industry...

IBM i Future Shrouded by Clouds

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 17:46:49 -0700

During the past few months, my head has been in the clouds on more than one occasion--during work hours. Please don't tell my boss! Oops, I think I just did. Beyond that indiscretion, I can't...

Cobol Celebrates 50 Years—Alone

Thu, 28 May 2009 23:11:38 -0700

Aaah, lucky us. Because we know what Cobol is, right? C'mon, you know—the COmmon Business-Oriented Language (thank you Wikipedia) created by the Department of Defense, computer manufacturers (IBM was there), and university people to further...