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This Week in Naysaying: A Break from the Tablet Lovefest

June 17, 2011 By

If you follow tech news, you know the big three trends: the cloud, tablets and consumerization of IT. It’s an exciting time in enterprise IT (depending on who you talk to, of course).

But some tech journalists aren’t sold just yet. Microsoft Office still reigns, they say. Tablets don’t match the PC’s versatility or durability, they add. Here’s a rundown from some of the naysayers. Read and make your own judgment.

He maintains that Microsoft’s biggest competitor isn’t Google Apps, but earlier versions of Office.

What Revolution?

InfoWorld’s Eric Knorr is on fire. In his recent article, “The IT Revolution that Isn’t,” he picks apart the three biggest trends bit by bit.

On the cloud: “[L]ast time I looked, Microsoft Office still had over 80 percent market share. Will there be a rush to the cloud when Office 365 launches later this year? No way: Office 365 puts Exchange, SharePoint, and Lync servers in the cloud, but Office itself is meant to stay on the desktop.”

He maintains that Microsoft’s biggest competitor isn’t Google Apps, but earlier versions of Office. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Cloud Computing, tablets, This Week in Tech News Tagged With: , , , , ,

Another Look at Consumerization of IT

June 10, 2011 By

Consumerization — it’s a big word and an even bigger phenomenon. The fact that executives can’t do without their iPads and smartphones — even our nation’s chief executive carries Apple’s tablet — has changed the work climate; increasingly, IT shops are allowing all employees to bring their devices to work.

But concerns remain, mostly about security, and also about software compatibility. Here’s a look at some of the recent news regarding consumerization of IT:

A look at some of the recent news regarding consumerization of IT.

Top Security Nightmares: Privately Owned iPhones, iPads and Other Mobile Devices (by Tim Greene, Network World)

IPhones, iPads and other employee-owned mobile gear are the most risky devices that can be connected to corporate networks, according to a new survey by ISACA, an international user group devoted to providing benchmarks and guidance for technology best practices. According to the survey, 58% of respondents saying mobile gear represent the greatest risk to the enterprise. That beats out any work-supplied devices including smartphones, laptops, notebooks, tablets and flash drives, which combined were the top fear of just 33%. Despite this fear, 49% of respondents say their companies have up-to-date mobile security policies that are well communicated to the staff. Another 32% say they have such policies but they need to be updated and the staff made aware of them. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Mobile Devices, This Week in Tech News, What We're Reading Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Microsoft Software Upgrades: When The Help Desk Needs Help

May 18, 2011 By

As featured on Forbes, May 18, 2011:

As 2011 proves to be another busy year of Microsoft version upgrades – for both Windows and Office – enterprise IT shops are trying bring the updates along as painlessly as possible. These may seem like simple upgrade projects to stay current with improved Microsoft features and capabilities, but end-users face particular difficulties adjusting to the latest releases. Specifically, three major end-user challenges associated with these upgrades threaten to place pressure on unprepared help desks.

For organizations moving from Office 2003 or prior versions, one of the biggest challenges for end-users is adjusting to the new Office fluent user interface, commonly known as “the ribbon.” The ribbon replaces the previous menu and toolbars in each Office application. With Office 2007, the ribbon was applied to most Office applications, with the notable exception of Outlook. In Office 2010, these differences carry forward and are coupled with the incorporation of the Ribbon into Outlook, impacting usability of this critical communications application used daily by virtually every corporate end-user. The Ribbon and other new aspects of the Office interface provide an opportunity for increased end-user productivity, but also represent significant changes in the look and feel of the core Office applications.

Filed Under: Office 2010 Tagged With: , , , ,

Avoiding Office 2010 Upgrade Pitfalls

January 21, 2011 By

In case you missed it, Forrester Research Group released a report in December warning of the pitfalls when upgrading to Microsoft Office 2010. And it’s what we here at PC Helps have been saying all along — as far back as Office 2007 upgrades.

We think the FAQ is a wonderful thing. But a FAQ cannot stand on its own.

As reported on recently by CIO.com’s Shane O’Neill, the Forrester report outlines four pitfalls to avoid during upgrades: underestimating compatibility issues, leaving workers to figure out the migration with no assistance, assuming workers will use the software’s new features, and neglecting to emphasize peer-to-peer learning.

Here’s what we’ve been saying: [Read more...]

Filed Under: Office 2010 Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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