In the November issue of CIO Canada David Carey interviews several CIO’s on the subject of using social media in Corporations “Give them something to talk about”. Proctor & Gamble share their experiences in the article, which are relevant to all industries, but what really touched me was the story Cam Murray CIO Fidelity Investment Canada told about his son’s first used car purchase. Mr. Murray’s first response was to offer to take his son to visit a few car lots but “the response wasn’t what he expected”. “His son looked at him like he had three heads”. I had a similar experience with my daughter this past summer. She was going to need a car for University in the fall so I offered to take her to a few car lots to test drive three s, Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla and Mazda 3. We narrowed down these three choices using the internet but we did not use social media in the way that Mr. Murray’s son did to find the car.

Mr. Murray’s son went on a global social-networking site for Nissan owners (this is the type of car he decided on), where he checked out the blog posts and retrieved all sorts of information on s, years and what to look for. He then visited a site for used Cars in his area and began online chats with those sellers. Next he had narrowed his choice down to two cars and he was ready to go out with his dad and look at them. He took pictures of them with his cell phone and placed them on the Nissan Owners site when he returned home where he got several comments about how expensive it would be to repair the rust and fix other problems.

Reading this story opened my eyes as to just how far social media has gone in formulating our purchasing decisions. If you think you are using social media, you may need to take a second look as there appears to be degree’s of use. I will define them as elementary, extended and hyper-extended. When you fully use social media to create transparency between you and the seller without the seller being aware of it, that is hyper-extended use of social media..
Steve Montgue
905 399 3960

What does a qualified IT Manager, Network Engineer or Network Administrator look like?

Gregory J. Masley CNE, CNA, MCSE

17375 Brookhurst Street #18

Fountain Valley, CA 92708

719-649-7451

greg@masleyassociates.com

http://www.masleyassociates.com

http://www.masleyassociates.info

http://www.computerorangecounty.com

http://www.computerconsultantorangecounty.com

http://www.itmanagersresumeinorangecounty.com

We are asked frequently about the difference between the average high school “geek” that most computer consulting companies use and a professional IT person that Masley And Associates uses.

While it is true there are some very basic PC issues which both types of IT people could easily fix, there is a vast difference when it comes to support and more complex issues.

We only use the top Network Engineers and Network Administrators yet we offer them to our clients for the same low cost. We know how to find and retain the top IT personnel because we are the top IT personnel.

Most other computer consulting companies are owned and run by non-technical people with sales, marketing or business backgrounds while Masley And Associates is owned by a network engineer and administrator with multiple certifications and thirteen years hands-on experience in the field. Who would you rather have managing your IT Department; an experienced IT Professional or a Sales and Marketing guy?

We have twelve years of experience in IT, Management and multiple Certifications in networking including Microsoft and Novell – CNE, CNA, MCSE. We have five accredited, professional, certified computer technicians on our staff ready to serve you. Here is what a qualified IT Manager, Network Engineer, Network Administrator resume looks like. You will notice there are certifications, real world experience and wide exposure to many different technologies:

OBJECTIVE

• IT Manager – To aggressively and successfully manage Local and Wide Area Network Departments and Staff to provide maintenance, troubleshooting and support for reliability and growth in Orange County California.

HIGHLIGHTS OF QUALIFICATIONS

• Twelve years of Network Engineering experience, with a demonstrated ability to quickly learn and integrate new technology in a variety of industries.
• Proven expertise in various network technologies, detailed below.
• Certified in both Novell Netware and Microsoft Windows networks.
• Proven success in implementing management, operations, technical and interpersonal skills to increase productivity, reliability and teamwork to benefit the company.
• Team Lead for security, repair, installation, migration, and maintenance of large-scaleWindows and Novell network of over 7000 end users.
• Hands on experience in Wireless Networking, 10/100/1000 Ethernet, Optical Networking, Switching/Bridging  (VLAN, Spanning Tree), VPNs, LAN/WAN/MAN, TCP/IP Protocol, IP Addressing and Subnetting, IP Access Lists, Routing Protocols, Token Ring, ATM, Frame Relay, HP OpenView NNM, Cisco Works for Switched Internetworks, Resource Manager Essentials, Cisco Security Management Center (PIX, IDS), Microsoft Visio, WebNM, IBM compatible computers, Windows 2000/NT/XP, Remote Desktop Management, Microsoft Office 2000/XP, Norton, Remedy, Compupic Pro, Network Security, MicroStation (95/SE/J/8)
• Hands on experience with Cisco 2600/3600/4000/7200/7500 series routers, Cisco Catalyst 1900/2900/5000/5500 series switch, Cisco 3550 Multilayer Switch, Cisco PIX Firewall, Cisco IDS 515E, CAD/CAM Systems, Netopia Routers, IBM Workstations and Servers, Printers
• Hands on experience with Microsoft Windows Enterprise Server, Small Business Server and Workstation NT through 2003, Novell 3.1-5.1, UNIX, Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft Office, Word Perfect, AutoCAD, MAPICS, Rhumba Reflections, ISA Server
• Programming experience in Visual Basic, Basic, COBOL, FORTRAN, SQL, Oracle and DBASE
• MCSE, CNA, and CNE Certified
• United States Department Of Defense SECRET Security Clearance 2005

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

MASLEY AND ASSOCIATES

Orange County, CA 1994 To Present

Senior Computer Network Consultant

• 2GWLAN for Harriss and General Dynamics for Peterson Airforce Base In Colorado and Luke Airforce Base in Arizona. Designed 2 GW Wireless LAN that went into both Airforce bases and he also implemented them. Worked with Aruba Controllers, Aruba Access Points, RADIUS and TACACS Servers, used Motorola LAN Planner to do the design.
• Network Engineer responsible for system configuration, communications, and installation of hardware, operating systems, and software applications.
• Installed and maintained entire computer networks for major Southern California and Colorado companies including:
• JNIC Missile Defense Agency Schreiver Air Force Base Department Of Defense, Net Solutions, Planet Network, Analysts International, Accucode, Capitol Records, Unihealth Insurance, Fuji Bank, UNOCOL 76, Price Company, Mellon Financial, Mallinckrodt Medical, Shiley Medical, AJS Accounting Service, Online Connecting Point, Sandpiper Computer, Nadek, ARC, Farmers Insurance, Classic Homes, Horizon, Qualtek Manufacturing, Powell Manufacturing, RL Holdings, Gart Sports, The Sports Authority, COACT, St. Joseph’s Hospital, Anaheim Memorial Medical Center, Computer Support Network and Manpower Technical.
• Performed nationwide wireless network upgrade for The Sports Authority and Gart Sports on multi-tier network with over 1000 users.
• Migrated St. Joseph’s Hospital from Novell to Windows 2000 Server with Exchange 2000 on multi-site network with over 2000 users.
• Migrated Anaheim Memorial Hospital from Windows 98, NT Server, and Exchange 5.5 to Windows XP, 2000 Server, and Exchange 2000 on multi-site network with over 4000 users.
• Designed and documented data and voice networks from the ground up.
• Trained customers and managers on system capabilities and usage.
• Performed Systems Administration on Windows Servers and Clients for Local and Wide Area Networks.
• Configured and tested all necessary network platforms under extreme time constraints resulting in successful customer acceptance of required test bed network.
• Established network security measures in order to support defense agency accreditation for The Department Of Defense at Schreiver Air Force Base JNIC Missile Defense Agency.
• Recommended and implemented network wide security management solution, including Firewall policies and configuration, router access-lists, and agent based network monitoring.

MALLINCKRODT MEDICAL

Irvine, CA 1994 To 1999

Network Administrator

• Managed all aspects of several network implementations including network planning, design, testing, documentation, deployment and maintenance of Windows based system.
• Responsible for complete support, installation, maintenance and training for all network and system components.
• Developed training and support plans for 400-user network.
• Lead effort to migrate Novell based Microsoft and CCMail servers with upgraded Windows NT based Exchange Servers. Included development and implementation of plan to provide remote access to e-mail and database servers via Windows NT RAS.
• Administered Windows NT, Back Office, Exchange, RAS, AS400s, MAPICS, JD Edwards, Rhumba and Reflections.

COMPUTER SUPPORT NETWORK

Huntington Beach, CA 1993-1994

General Manager

• Responsible for hardware and software system configuration, installation, repair and maintenance on Microsoft and Novell networks, PCs and printers.
• Managed large team with diverse backgrounds to consistently provide increased customer satisfaction and system performance.
• Supervised staff of seven computer and network technicians
• Managed daily company operations and client accounts.
• Designed, configured and installed Novell Networks and PC systems.
• Provided technical and cost considerations for proposals to satisfy customers.
• Sourced vendors and provided on-site technical support on workstations and network hardware and software

EDUCATION, CERTIFICATION AND SECURITY CLEARANCE

Education:

• California State University Fullerton

Novell Certified Network Administration and

Engineering Program – Graduated in the top 10% of the JTPA Grant Class of 93

Certification:

• CNE
• CNA
• MCSE

Security Clearance:

• SECRET, United States Department Of Defense 2005

TECHNICAL SKILLS

• Networking: Wireless Networking
• 10/100/1000 Ethernet
• Optical Networking
• Switching/Bridging (VLAN, Spanning Tree)
• VPNs, LAN/WAN/MAN
• TCP/IP Protocol
• IP Addressing and Subnetting
• IP Access Lists, Routing Protocols
• Token Ring, ATM
• Frame Relay
• HP OpenView NNM
• Cisco Works for Switched Internetworks
• Resource Manager Essentials
• Cisco Security Management Center (PIX, IDS)
• Microsoft Visio
• WebNM
• IBM compatible computers
• Windows Enterprise Server, Small Business Server and Workstation 2003/2000/NT/XP/Vista
• Exchange 5.5/2000/2003
• Remote Desktop Management
• Microsoft Office 2003/2000/XP
• Windows Vista
• Norton
• Remedy
• Compupic Pro
• Network Security
• MicroStation
• (95/SE/J/8) HP Openview
• OSPF,BGP,VLAN,IPSEC, routing and bridging protocols

Hardware:

• Cisco 2600/3600/4000/7200/7500 series routers
• Cisco Catalyst 1900/2900/5000/5500 series switch
• Cisco 3550 Multilayer Switch
• Cisco PIX Firewall
• Cisco IDS 515E
• CAD/CAM Systems
• Netopia Routers
• IBM Workstations and Servers
• Printers

Software/OS:

• Microsoft Windows (all versions)
• Novell 3.1-5.1
• UNIX
• Microsoft Exchange
• Microsoft Office
• Word Perfect
• AutoCAD
• MAPICS
• Rhumba Reflections
• ISA Server RAID Storage Devices SAN Storage Devices

Programming:

• Visual Basic, Basic
• COBOL
• FORTRAN
• SQL
• Oracle and DBASE
• HTML

What this means to our clients is greater efficiency. While it would be no problem to use a high school “geek” to add memory to your home computer, most businesses would not want a high school “geek” working on their business network yet sometimes that is exactly what happens to some unfortunate businesses.

So how does an unknowing business find true IT professionals who are competent and capable of working on their systems and network?

1.   Ask exactly which ceritifications they have and make sure they are certified in the “Top Three” – Microsoft, Novell and Cisco(they take years of study and practice to obtain). Most computer consulting companies find high school “geeks” willing to work for $20 per hour or less, get them their A+ certification(a one-day, basic PC knowledge test) and charge you more than $75 per hour for them! The truth is most other computer consulting companies are only qualified to replace memory or adapter cards in a PC.

2.   Ask for references.

3.   Ask for a guarantee.

4.   Check BBB.com The Better Business Bureau for the company’s rating.

5.   Ask how long they have been working in the IT industry and a description of some of the larger, more complex projects they have worked on.

The bottom line is your network is critical to your business and belongs in the hands of the professionals in order to save you time, money and effort. We are the professionals. Think of us as your outsourced IT department. Contact us today we are always available for hire.

Contact Us

Gregory J. Masley CNE, CNA, MCSE

17375 Brookhurst Street #18

Fountain Valley, CA 92708

719-649-7451

greg@masleyassociates.com

http://www.masleyassociates.com

http://www.masleyassociates.info

http://www.computerorangecounty.com

http://www.computerconsultantorangecounty.com

http://www.itmanagersresumeinorangecounty.com

REFERENCES:

Qualified, IT Director, IT Manager, CIO, CTO, Network Administrator, Orange County, California, Resume, Reference, Example:

Gregory J. Masley CNE, CNA, MCSE

17375 Brookhurst Street #18

Fountain Valley, CA 92708

719-649-7451

greg@masleyassociates.com

http://www.masleyassociates.com

http://www.masleyassociates.info

http://www.computerorangecounty.com

http://www.computerconsultantorangecounty.com

http://www.itmanagersresumeorangecounty.com

OBJECTIVE

• IT Director, IT Manager, Network Administrator, Network Engineer – To aggressively and successfully manage Local and Wide Area Computer Network Departments and Staff to provide maintenance, troubleshooting and support for reliability and growth in Orange County, California. I have multiple IT certifications and 13 years experience in IT Management, Network Administration and Network Engineering.
• If you can use my IT skills and services in your organization please contact me directly and if not please pass my information on to your friends, associates and colleagues who may have a need for me in Orange County, California.

HIGHLIGHTS OF QUALIFICATIONS

• Twelve years of Network Engineering experience, with a demonstrated ability to quickly learn and integrate new technology in a variety of industries.
• Proven expertise in various network technologies, detailed below.
• Certified in both Novell Netware and Microsoft Windows networks.
• Proven success in implementing management, operations, technical and interpersonal skills to increase productivity, reliability and teamwork to benefit the company.
• Team Lead for security, repair, installation, migration, and maintenance of large-scaleWindows and Novell network of over 7000 end users.
• Hands on experience in Wireless Networking, 10/100/1000 Ethernet, Optical Networking, Switching/Bridging  (VLAN, Spanning Tree), VPNs, LAN/WAN/MAN, TCP/IP Protocol, IP Addressing and Subnetting, IP Access Lists, Routing Protocols, Token Ring, ATM, Frame Relay, HP OpenView NNM, Cisco Works for Switched Internetworks, Resource Manager Essentials, Cisco Security Management Center (PIX, IDS), Microsoft Visio, WebNM, IBM compatible computers, Windows 2000/NT/XP, Remote Desktop Management, Microsoft Office 2000/XP, Norton, Remedy, Compupic Pro, Network Security, MicroStation (95/SE/J/8)
• Hands on experience with Cisco 2600/3600/4000/7200/7500 series routers, Cisco Catalyst 1900/2900/5000/5500 series switch, Cisco 3550 Multilayer Switch, Cisco PIX Firewall, Cisco IDS 515E, CAD/CAM Systems, Netopia Routers, IBM Workstations and Servers, Printers
• Hands on experience with Microsoft Windows Enterprise Server, Small Business Server and Workstation NT through 2003, Novell 3.1-5.1, UNIX, Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft Office, Word Perfect, AutoCAD, MAPICS, Rhumba Reflections, ISA Server
• Programming experience in Visual Basic, Basic, COBOL, FORTRAN, SQL, Oracle and DBASE
• MCSE, CNA, and CNE Certified
• United States Department Of Defense SECRET Security Clearance 2005

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

MASLEY AND ASSOCIATES

Colorado Springs, CO 1994 To Present

Senior Computer Network Consultant

• 2GWLAN for Harris and General Dynamics for Peterson Airforce Base In Colorado and Luke Airforce Base in Arizona. Designed 2 GW Wireless LAN that went into both Airforce bases and he also implemented them. Worked with Aruba Controllers, Aruba Access Points, RADIUS and TACACS Servers, used Motorola LAN Planner to do the design.

• Network Engineer responsible for system configuration, communications, and installation of hardware, operating systems, and software applications.
• Installed and maintained entire computer networks for major Southern California and Colorado companies including:
• JNIC Missile Defense Agency Schreiver Air Force Base Department Of Defense, Net Solutions, Planet Network, Analysts International, Accucode, Capitol Records, Unihealth Insurance, Fuji Bank, UNOCOL 76, Price Company, Mellon Financial, Mallinckrodt Medical, Shiley Medical, AJS Accounting Service, Online Connecting Point, Sandpiper Computer, Nadek, ARC, Farmers Insurance, Classic Homes, Horizon, Qualtek Manufacturing, Powell Manufacturing, RL Holdings, Gart Sports, The Sports Authority, COACT, St. Joseph’s Hospital, Anaheim Memorial Medical Center, Computer Support Network and Manpower Technical.
• Performed nationwide wireless network upgrade for The Sports Authority and Gart Sports on multi-tier network with over 1000 users.
• Migrated St. Joseph’s Hospital from Novell to Windows 2000 Server with Exchange 2000 on multi-site network with over 2000 users.
• Migrated Anaheim Memorial Hospital from Windows 98, NT Server, and Exchange 5.5 to Windows XP, 2000 Server, and Exchange 2000 on multi-site network with over 4000 users.
• Designed and documented data and voice networks from the ground up.
• Trained customers and managers on system capabilities and usage.
• Performed Systems Administration on Windows Servers and Clients for Local and Wide Area Networks.
• Configured and tested all necessary network platforms under extreme time constraints resulting in successful customer acceptance of required test bed network.
• Established network security measures in order to support defense agency accreditation for The Department Of Defense at Schreiver Air Force Base JNIC Missile Defense Agency.
• Recommended and implemented network wide security management solution, including Firewall policies and configuration, router access-lists, and agent based network monitoring.
• Administered and supported Citrix network environment for Classic Homes including building new Citrix servers and load balancing

MALLINCKRODT MEDICAL

Irvine, CA 1994 To 1999

Network Administrator

• Managed all aspects of several network implementations including network planning, design, testing, documentation, deployment and maintenance of Windows based system.
• Responsible for complete support, installation, maintenance and training for all network and system components.
• Developed training and support plans for 400-user network.
• Lead effort to migrate Novell based Microsoft and CCMail servers with upgraded Windows NT based Exchange Servers. Included development and implementation of plan to provide remote access to e-mail and database servers via Windows NT RAS.
• Administered Windows NT, Back Office, Exchange, RAS, AS400s, MAPICS, JD Edwards, Rhumba and Reflections.

COMPUTER SUPPORT NETWORK

Huntington Beach, CA 1993-1994

General Manager

• Responsible for hardware and software system configuration, installation, repair and maintenance on Microsoft and Novell networks, PCs and printers.
• Managed large team with diverse backgrounds to consistently provide increased customer satisfaction and system performance.
• Supervised staff of seven computer and network technicians
• Managed daily company operations and client accounts.
• Designed, configured and installed Novell Networks and PC systems.
• Provided technical and cost considerations for proposals to satisfy customers.
• Sourced vendors and provided on-site technical support on workstations and network hardware and software

EDUCATION, CERTIFICATION AND SECURITY CLEARANCE

Education:

• California State University Fullerton

      Novell Certified Network Administration and

      Engineering Program – Graduated in the top 10% of the JTPA Grant Class of 93

Certification:

• CNE
• CNA
• MCSE

Security Clearance:

• SECRET, United States Department Of Defense 2005

Keywords:

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MasleyAssociates.com, Colorado Springs, certified, computer, network, repair, sales, service, network engineer, network administrator, sys admin, IT director, IT manager, CIO, CTO, consultant, sysadmin, Microsoft, Cisco, Novell, MCSE, CNE, CNA, computer consultant, computer, network repair, sales, service, on-site, computer repair, PC, Colorado, network engineer, network administrator, sys admin, resume, maintenance, CO, repair, computers, A+, networks, email, virus, administration, installation, networking, certified, on site, Microsoft, support, IT, IS, MIS, consultant, computer guy, network support, network repair, computer consulting, PC repair, PC support, 719, maintenance, CO, network, server, uptime, upgrade, consultant, backup, virus, spy ware, computer network, network administration, sysadmin, printer, wireless, programming, IT recruitment, IT placement, website design, website promotion, search engine optimization, database design, e-commerce, network design, network audit, internet research, sourcing, disaster recovery, planning, computer maintenance and repair, computer maintenance, project, project management, project manager, Exchange, e-mail, PC consultant, PC installation, PC sales, PC service, a+ computer repair, computer consultant, computer installation, computer maintenance and repair, computer maintenance repair, computer network repair, computer repair business, computer repair companies, computer repair company, computer repair Colorado, computer repair Colorado Springs, computer repair service, computer repair services, computer repair shop, computer repair shops, computer repair stores, computer repair technician, computer repair technicians, computer sale, computer sales, computer service, computer service and repair, computer store, computer support, mobile computer repair, network installation, on site computer repair, pc, pc computer repair, system administrator, Colorado, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Denver, Aurora, Centennial, Highlands Ranch, Lakewood, Arvada, Glenwood, Boulder, Englewood, Colorado Springs, certified, computer, repair, sales, service, network, consultants, network engineers, network administrators, onsite, 719, 970, 720, 303, http://www.masleyassociates.com

Earlier this week I was invited by TPI to participate in a small discussion group for a feature in CIO magazine. The conversation was based around recent research conducted by TPI that looked at today’s major challenges for IT service management and governance.

I am not about to reveal the details of the research or of the very interesting discussion that took place. What I am going to comment on are the remarks made by CIO Magazine editor Martin Veitch.

Martin started the meeting by outlining the ‘top of mind’ issues that he is hearing from his extensive CIO contact base. He briefly discussed the old ‘image issue’, of CIOs as techies who fail to appreciate business goals and the need for technology alignment. This he dismissed as no longer valid. CIOs are well aware of the need for business alignment – and they are increasingly focused on some of the issues that make this hard to achieve.

Among those issues are the dramatic changes going on in technology.  For example, the impacts of Cloud Computing are only now being grasped and it will raise a wide variety of strategic and governance challenges, as well as opportunities. Among the implications is the need to review existing and future contracts. Emerging technologies will revolutionize the relationships with some existing suppliers; in other cases, it will mean forming relationships with brand new suppliers. Terminating, renegotoating and new sourcing will be a major effort and fundamental in its impact – especially with regard to getting good alignment with business needs.

So the role of Procurement will be critical to the CIO’s success, but so will the way that suppliers respond and offer creative new commitments. The dependence on contracting and commercial competence goes much deeper than in the past – and many CIOs have realised that it is a core dependency for their performance (echoing the views recently expressed by Professor Leslie Willcocks of the London School of Economics).

At last, CIOs are looking at a world where the latest technologies and the methods of service delivery allow them to re-think budgets and operate with dramatically reduced up-front costs. They can begin to move IT expenditure from a capital expense to operating expense. They can ‘gain revenge’ on many of the suppliers who they feel have ‘for years, taken advantage of them’ (in particular some of the major software suppliers).

CIO thinking is that they increasingly need to multi-source and to enter into either shorter term or more readily terminable agreements. Again, this has massive implications to the resources they need at their disposal – and it will also have major impact on suppliers and their business economics, plus the way they interface with and manage customer relationships. Not in itself new news – but potentially revolutionary for the world of contracting and contract / relationship management.

At this point, many CIOs apparently despair of obtaining the right resources within the business and take the view that they must develop commercial and contract skills within the IT department. They see a need for core skills in negotiation; they know that they must raise legal and financial awareness within  their staff. They must become ‘masters of outsourcing and offshoring’, understanding the impacts of culture and business practices on their projects and deliverables. Governance is another major issue, requiring appropriate contractual protections and the ability to oversee supplier performance.

So with technology now becoming the great business enabler, contracts and commercial professionals must step up to the challenges and opportunities that are being created. This new world calls for more creative relationships, supported by commitments and performance metrics that safeguard contractual outcomes. And the message from CIOs is clear – our community on both buy-side and sell-side must either step up to the plate and deliver against business needs, or the CIO community will acquire for themselves the skills needed to safeguard their success.

Cloud Computing, also das Auslagern von IT-Dienstleistungen auf Provider und Rechenzentren, kann aus der Perspektive des Datenschutzes eine recht heikle Angelegenheit werden. Denn die rechtliche Verantwortlichkeit für die Korrektheit der Arbeit in der Cloud sowie die zum Teil sehr weitreichende persönliche Haftung der Verantwortlichen für damit einhergehende Risiken können nicht mit in die Cloud wegdelegiert werden.

Andererseits kann Cloud Computing gerade kleineren und mittelständischen Unternehmen dabei helfen, professionelle Abläufe im IT-Betrieb sowie hohe Standards bei IT-Sicherheit und Datenschutz einzukaufen anstatt sie selbst erst aufbauen zu müssen.

Zu diesem Schluss kommt eine Untersuchung der Europäischen Agentur für Netz- und Informationssicherheit (ENISA), die kürzlich veröffentlicht wurde (PDF, 2 MB). „Die Weitergabe der eigenen Daten in fremde Hände bedeutet für Unternehmen natürlich ein Risiko. Neben offensichtlichen Gefahren wie Datenschutz-Intransparenz, Datenverlust und unvollständiger Datenlöschung kann die fehlende Kompatibilität von Lösungen zu Problemen bei der Migration zu einem anderen Anbieter führen“, erläutert ENISA-Researcher Daniele Catteddu. Daher rät man den am Cloud Computing interessierten Unternehmen, sich in Frage kommende Anbieter genau anzusehen. Dafür sollte im Unternehmen eine geschäftsspezifische Risikoanalyse gemacht werden, wozu die ENISA in ihrer Untersuchung konkrete Handlungsanleitungen gibt.

Besonders attraktiv ist Cloud Computing dabei für neu gegründete Unternehmen, deren Alternative ansonsten darin bestünde, ihre IT auf der grünen Wiese komplett neu aufzubauen. Schließlich lassen sich viele Cloud-Leistungen modular buchen, kurzfristig erweitern und nutzungsabhängig abrechnen.

Auch der Netzwerksicherheitsdienstleister RSA kam zu der Erkenntnis, dass Cloud Computing das Sicherheitsniveau herkömmlicher IT-Infrastrukturen in KMU deutlich steigern kann. In der November-Ausgabe des „RSA Security Brief“ ist ein Leitfaden enthalten, worauf ein Unternehmen technisch, rechtlich und organisatorisch bei der Auswahl eines Cloud-Dienstleisters sowie der Einführung von Cloud Computing achten sollte. Und mit welchen technischen Ansätzen sich wertvolle Unternehmensdaten schützen und rechtliche Datenschutzanforderungen erfüllen lassen.

This month saw the biggest ever UK lottery win of all time, a whopping £90Million pounds. We have all had those dreamy moments where we explore all the possibilities of life without the constraints of money. Exotic holidays, lavish homes, sports cars and all the finer things in life. Well unfortunately for most, this will continue to be just a dream, but it does raise an interesting thought.

As with most things in life, we are constrained by our circumstances or surroundings, yet we still have objectives and desired states. IT is no different.

Nearly every IT department out there has a desired state, and during these financially turbulent times, most are constrained by money and a finite amount of resource.

IT directors are looking for ways of providing reliable and consistent computing power to their end users and subsequently allowing end users to work in the most effecient way with customers and suppliers. Perhaps a slightly simplistic view, but ultimately true.

So what would IT look like in a FreeWorld? In a FreeWorld, IT directors, CIO’s and CTO’s could provide best of bread, state of the art technology to all users and help drive business productivity levels up with no constraints. IT departments could deploy applications and deliver services into the hands of it’s users in minutes or hours rather than weeks or months. IT growth can be dictated by use and not by the pennies in the bank. Service levels could be consistently achieved and end users can rely on thier technology with whole hearted confidence. Applications and services could be available round the clock without failure! Users could have a choice of protocols and methods to communicate with eachother, customers and suppliers in realtime. Users have the ability to collaborate on workloads and freely exchange information.

For most, this sort of desired state seems a million miles away, for some it is in operation in some shape or form. The point is, most IT departments are striving to achieve a desired state.

November also saw Servo unviel its new Hosting concept, “FreeWorld!”. A concept by which, through our Tier 3 enterprise class data centres, high speed resilient UK network and industry leading support and management services we can help make your desired state a realisty. Industry analysts  IDC, Gartner and Forrester point to hosting as the platform of choice for businesses as it provides a platform from where customers can:

• Reduce operational costs
• Provide scalable IT services
• Deploy new applications and services
• Give users 24/7 access to critical data and services
• Reduce energy consuptions and utiltiy bills
• Improve SLA’s
• Drive productivity in the business

Servo understand that hosting is not for everyone, but we are committed to helping you realise your desired state and working with you to achieve it with the your constraints.

For more information on Freeworld and our Cloud services, you can watch a short video:

FreeWorld Video

The path to senior IT management can be reached from many different directions. The most important factors in achieving this level are the abilities to be a good leader and understand the needs of the business. Clearly an understanding of information technology is important. Having a background in various IT positions at different levels can be very useful. But when it comes to rubbing shoulders with the other C-Levels you need business intelligence. An MBA is probably one of the most useful degrees to attain in your quest for more responsibility and to be a CXO. Combining this with various experience, leadership roles and maybe even a certification or two.  I think if there is one trait that really matters its personality.  Knowing how to explain information technology concerns at any level takes a certain amount of finesse.  Going from the help desk to CXO depends greatly upon being able to communicate effectively to any audience. Whether it’s a Power Point presentation in the board room or just being articulate and having some common sense.

http://energy.ca.gov/appliances/2009_tvregs/

CEC should mandate all TVs sold from now forward remain in an off-state.  This would increase the quality of much of hollywood programming while reducing power consumption by up to 100%!!

Why stop with appliances? New buildings constructed in 2011 should be built without electrical wiring to save electricity, made without wood to save trees, not built over land so as not to displace precious evolutionarily-challenged animals, neither made with cement nor metal to deter gouging the precious planet, but have solar panels. By 2013 phase 2 will render most Californians unarmed tribes of illiterate hungry carrion “Naturalists”.   With luck California will vote less blue…. having far fewer citizens… although by then citizenship might be defined as existing within the borders of the country.

Think of the savings of not-using!  ‘They’ could use all that energy to renew the other energy.

Save the environment: stop exhaling.

Seth Wisely said: death to envirofascism

iUnion legal coup successful: apple to release source code after ice age in hell.

itards, however, cannot live without the shiny factor.  What have they won?  A larger apple cage?

“it’s our job to stop [customers from gaining full use of their hardware on the network they pay to access],” said Steve Jobs.  Liberty? Using devices in ways other than intended? Freedom to tinker? That’s no longer the American way.  Unquestioning obedience, compliance, and ingenuity seppuku is the new world order.  Silence!  iJail you!

The new google succubus, android, might ensnare a few more souls

[insert faust using verizon droid 'phone' here]

Seth Wisely said: phones ought be phones first

When did metaphysics become the domain of science?

Re-education centers for American teenagers inject metaphysics into science classrooms.  _That_ question is not within the scope of science.  Neither the currently proposed answer nor intelligent design theories belong in a science classroom.  If one then the other.. in an appropriate class.

Hopefully Kruschev victory is not upon us and there is still time to teach youth logic instead of critical “thinking”. [insert cliche Einstein quote linked to Aristotle here].  Let’s start with abandoning the Murtha counting system.

The collider is a brilliant annual salary scheme: looking for cause per se in materialism terms… ad infinitum

They will have my support when they can “go completely green” or when unicorns lower monthly electric bills.

Seth Wisely said: there is no spoon particle

Being a CIO is quite a lonely existence. When a CIO starts his/her new role, they are expected to provide an organisation with an IT vision and then have to work towards that vision. The CIO then becomes a salesman and proceeds to sell that vision to his/her own teams, at board level in an easy jargon free language but also to all the internal and external stakeholders of an organisation as well. As he/she drives the team towards that vision, he/she also has to ensure that systems are stable, reliable and maintainable to support business activities with minimal downtime. In addition, he/she has to be aware and ready for emergency situations with disaster recovery/business continuity plans. It is no wonder then that the CIO, as the ultimate IT authority within an organisation can feel isolated and alone at times.

Well, that was the legacy that we all inherited. In 2004, a group of CIOs got together and discussed whether it would be possible to have tools and resources at a CIO’s disposal that could remove this isolation and add real value for not only the CIO but for the organisation as well.

So, how did I get involved and where is the CIO Executive Council (Council hereon) heading? Well, I got involved quite accidentally, to be truthful having, bumped (cyber equivalent of) into a senior executive on a social media site. Once I saw the potential of the membership and knew how helpful the membership was for CIOs, I felt proud and privileged to assist and further the profession by welcoming CIOs within the UK to become active members.

To the CIO, there are many memberships available but there is currently no membership available that is by CIOs, for CIOs. The uniqueness of the CIO Executive Council is that it is comprised of hundreds of leading CIOs globally, who together form a reality-tested peer advisory resource. There are no vendors, consultants, analysts, or hidden agendas, just IT leaders. The common denominator is that they are all committed to helping members save time and money, avoid mistakes and make better leadership decisions.

CIOs don’t have to walk alone anymore as the Council, at the request of a member will instigate and establish a match, with, for example a CIO with “been there” experience to help mitigate risk and share a treasure trove of knowledge and insight. Humans are unique as we like to share the knowledge and experience that we have gained, for the wider good and it is indeed this quality that has allowed mankind to conquer water with dams and to reach for the stars. The CIO Executive Council recognises this and allows CIOs to learn and share knowledge directly with each other to remove the necessity of “reinventing the wheel”. This knowledge sharing is continued by providing members the opportunity to speak at global events and sourcing authoring, if they wish, in CIO magazine. Mojgan LeFebvre, CIO of Biomerieux said, “There’s nothing more reassuring than picking up the phone and calling another CIO who has faced the same challenges and the right solution. The readiness of peers to share their experiences and knowledge is incredibly valuable – more so given the global reach of the Council and access to peers all over the world.”

The Council’s Future-State CIO program was developed by a group of thought leaders from many global companies and the goal was to define the future of the CIO role and then to offer a path forward based on essential executive leadership competencies.

In the past, CIOs have spent the majority of their time managing their time for operational excellence.

Today, most CIOs are expanding their focus to include partnering with business on business transformation.

The future state CIO will spend the majority of his/her time driving business strategy and innovation for competitive advantage.

Finally, I want to take some time to discuss the IT Value Matrix. This was created by dozens of Council members joining forces on a schematic that would highlight the key characteristics and activities that optimise the value of IT to the enterprise. CIOs have used this to influence business stakeholders and explain to their staff how to focus and organise the IT function. I could list other benefits and value for the CIO, such as content/research/whitepapers, suffice to say, the CIO Executive Council membership is as valuable to the CIO, as tools are to a workman.

In summary and to finish with a quote, the CIO Executive Council works for the CIO, as it is by the CIO, for the CIO and the “secret sauce” of the Council is the extensive encrypted database of members’ needs, interests, goals and expertise. David Wright, CIO Europe, Capital One PLC said,” Council resources and peer discussions help us refine our strategies and develop key leaders.

Now, that is a powerful concoction!

I welcome UK CIOs to attend the CIO Executive Council’s next European Regional Meeting, 2 Dec 2009, in London.

Please click here to register your interest to attend (CIOs only, please)  or contact me directly, as below.

For further information and to become a member, please contact me via:

Email: ahmed@itfindit.com

Mobile: 07771 776752

Next week, I’ll be discussing either Microsoft’s Courier dual screen booklet OR How can an organisation leverage IT to create competitive advantage?

Yep, I haven’t actually decided, yet, who knows something else may catch my attention and I may decide to write about something completely different. Why not, after all, it is my blog!

The overall investment associated with implementing and maintaining a suite of enterprise software products could be significant. A 1:4 ratio between product investment and the corresponding investment over time in related services is not uncommon. In other words, an initial $2M in licensing a suite of enterprise software products might easily balloon to $10M in total life-cycle costs (initial investment in perpetual license plus the ongoing investment in associated services).

I offer the following rule-of-a-thumb guidelines to assessing whether the terms quoted by a vendor for an enterprise software suite of products are right:

1. Standard maintenance costs: Insist on a 1:1 ratio between license and standard maintenance over a 5 year period. If standard maintenance costs over this period exceed the corresponding license costs, chances are: A) the vendor is quite greedy; or, B) the vendor’s software accrued a non-negligible amount of technical debt. Ask the vendor to quantify the technical debt in monetary terms. See Technical Debt on Your Balance Sheet for an example how to conduct such quantification.
   
   
2. Premium customer support costs: Certain premium customer support services could be quite appropriate for your business parameters. However, various “premium services” could actually address deficits or defects in the enterprise software products you license. If the technical debt figure is high, the vendor you are considering might not be able to afford the software he has developed. Under such circumstances, “premium services” could simply be a vehicle the vendor uses to recoup his investment in software development.
3. Professional services costs: Something is wrong if the costs of professional services exceed licensing cost. Either the suite of products you are considering is not a good fit for your business parameters or the initiative you are aspiring to implement through the software is overly ambitious.

To summarize, the grand total of license fees, customer support fees and professional services fees over a 5 year period should not be higher than 3X license fees. Something is out of balance if you are staring at  a 4X or 5X ratio for the software you are considering.

One final point: please do not forget to add End-of-Life costs to the economic calculus. Successful enterprise software  initiatives can be very sticky.

USPS already has the system for scanning addresses.  Privacy apologetics aside USPS OCR technology could easily be applied to identify letters from other than materialistic children… the letters that would bring a grown man to tears … and turn them over to chartible organizations like churches and other philanthropists.  Surely even contratheists could agree on this Christmas plan.

“Dear Santa, mom is very sick she almost never gets out of bed and is bleeding” — that kind of heart wrenching child’s writing.

We, the keepers of Western Civilization, ought use technology (the fruits of embracing our God given freedom) in service of the highest good, love, and truth.

Seth Wisely said: God have mercy on those who fail chidren

by James Lawson

So, remember a couple of weeks ago when I wrote about it being a tough week for HIPAA violators because of the two cases that had gone to trial that week? Well apparently the fun is not over for health care systems concerned about privacy breaches. It appears that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has now increased the level of fines available for HIPAA violations up to $1.5 million dollars based on a new interim final rule.  Healthcare IT News wrote about it last week, you can read the article here.

This is significant in that it changes the prior limits of breach from $100 for each violation or $25k for all identical violations all the way up to a new maximum penalty of $1.5 million. I  have to say, this  is now a significant penalty and could adversely effect a hospital’s bottom line. In fact, if you had a hospital that was not doing a  really good job of securing patient data, it  could face many of these type of fines and possibly put that hospital out of business. This is a real game changer in my opinion. If you are a CIO, CEO or privacy officer you likely now are going to have an additional ulcer from this one; now you may have to worry about bankrupting your hospital if you are not diligent in your duty to protect patient data.

Interestingly enough I think it also bears mentioning that the same body levying these fines is funded by those fines, so I believe that there is a good chance we will these fines soon — and likely a concerted effort by that body to fine many violators.

While we have this new update to the interim final rule, what we don’t have is a facility that has seen this penalty yet. When that happens it could be an event that shakes up the healthcare community so they verify that they are protecting patient data or else suffer even more serious consequences.

A previous post in this blog defined the demarcation line between The Agile Executive and BSM Review as follows:

If software development is your primary interest, you might find my forthcoming posts in BSM Review go a little beyond the traditional scope of software methods. If, however, you are interested in software delivery in entirety, you are likely to find good synergy between the topics I will address in BSM Review and those I will continue to bring up in The Agile Executive. Either way, I trust my posts and Cote’s will be of on-going interest to you.

Since writing these words, I realized how tricky it is to adhere to this differentiation. The difficulty lies in the “cord” between development and operations. Development needs to devise algorithms that take into account operational characteristics in IT. Operations needs to comprehend the limits of such algorithms in the context of the service level agreements and operational level agreements that had been negotiated with their customers (either external or internal). The mutual need is particularly strong in the web application/web operations domain where mutual understanding, collaborative work and joint commitment often need to transcend organizational lines.

Given the inherently close ties between development and operations, here are some BSM Review articles and posts that are likely to be of interest to readers of The Agile Executive:

• The Joys of Real Hardware – what it means to do Business Service Management on a very large-scale
• The Voice of the CIO – a study on the attributes needed by today’s CIO (yes, you had better be agile and Agile…)
• The Quest for a Maturity Model in Business Service Management – while the focus is on BSM, some of the models might apply in a fairly straightforward manner to Agile
• Business Service Management, Six Sigma and your IT Compliance Program - lessons to the champion who has one foot in Agile, the other foot in Six Sigma
• A Measured Approach to Cloud Computing – what it really means to ”… make muck so you don’t have to”
• The Case for Agile Business Service Management – the fusion of modern software development methods with the prevailing preference to run IT from the perspective of the business customer

It is a little premature at this early stage to project how BSM Review will evolve. My hunch is that forthcoming articles in BSM Review on cloud computing, large-scale operations, leadership, risk mitigation and technology trends will be of particular interest to readers of this blog.

“… creating business value with information technology will soon be less about reducing costs and improving efficiency (the traditional cost-side value creation objectives) and more about supporting activities that lead to new markets, products, services, and strategies (revenue-side value creation objectives) …” - Robert Austin (Cutter Consortium)

In last ten years or so, thanks to World Wide Web, the role of IT has totally transformed. Almost all new products and services have an IT component to it. The time when a CIO could adopt industry best practice and be satisfied is gone. It has become critical to differentiate and more often than not IT has to plays a key role in that.

Here is a diagrammatic representation of this transformation:

CIOs have to realize that the world has changed – a new proactive and business centric approach is needed.

I was reading an interesting two article series at CIO– The Future of ERP, by Thomas Wailgum, which catalyzed many thoughts of the past, present, and future.

The article contains one of the best quotes I’ve seen from CIO in years, which prompted this post:

“There are many things happening here that are good for users, good for the IT profession, good for business. It’s just good, good, good,” Pierce says. “You know, what’s slowing this adoption are all the priests of the past—all the preservationists. All the interests that are built up around the edifice that is enterprise software….

–Todd Pierce, CIO of Genentech

In the context of the article, Pierce is apparently referring to the company-wide installation of Google Apps and integration of iPhones with Genentech’s ERP system, so a bit of clarification is required about the culture of Silicon Valley. Genentech headquarters is located just north up 101 a few miles from Google and Apple headquarters, all leading companies in SV, which is a culture that tends to be biased towards other local companies. So they can be considered part of a regional cartel of their own of sorts; one that unfortunately few other regions in the U.S. enjoy, and even in SV is rarely extended to start-ups these days.

If Pierce had adopted apps from companies elsewhere, it might have been viewed more credible by his peers. That said, the quote itself resonates deeply with me and speaks to Genentech’s own culture as a pioneer in Biotech, which has clearly paved a disruptive path in life science. If more large customers of enterprise software took an innovative, proactive approach, I am confident that many of the world’s greatest challenges would be overcome sooner through a higher level of work quality, crises prevention, and far more innovation. To see how, please review our paper Unleash the Innovation Within, which is now a year old but still among the most popular white papers surrounding the topic of enterprise software and communications.

The quote by Pierce was not the only sliver of interesting perspective in this series however, so I hope that you will take some time to read the articles. For example, Thomas refers to the “MISOH” cartel (Microsoft, IBM, SAP, Oracle, and HP) in an unusually frank discussion about market consolidation in an essential industry with a “systems’ turtle’s pace of innovation” (ERP). I can clearly recall moderating discussions in our GWIN network more than a decade ago and writing pieces for our Lookout! and Convergence Zone publications saying essentially the same thing; which included members who were senior reps from each of these companies and most of their large customers, so the debate is long overdue as is progress generally in enterprise software.

One of the main themes found in this article is a move towards simplicity and away from complexity, something I have been pushing for years across research and architecture to management philosophy.

Communicating preferences to an ERP sales rep with the hope that one’s concerns will be embraced in the next release does not ooze leadership or reflect the market farming responsibilities of large customers. Enterprise software architecture is far too important to the future of organizations to leave to those whose interests are often misaligned with the mission of the organization CIOs represent.

Crises prevention, innovation, differentiality, security, productivity, creativity, interoperability, simplicity, and adaptability are the topics constantly on my mind as an enterprise architect. With Kyield we’ve worked long and hard to design a platform that provides the benefits of holistic design with the adaptability of modular apps, and the cost effectiveness of interoperability and universal standards.

Our philosophy is much different than that of the status quo by design. We just need a few brave customers and partners who want to be part of the future, rather than just supporting the priests of the past….

I have often discussed the role of the CIO and the importance of decision-making. But there is one topic of being CIO that I have not touched upon and that is the affect of stress.

Stress is the body’s natural reaction to a perceived threat. The basic instinct of the “fight or flight” response. The challenge is that this survival mechanism is a primal response in a modern world. Life for CIOs can be particularly stressful because of the responsibility we feel to make IT succeed in the business; the accountability to management; managing global operations in a 24×7 environment, and the consequences of the decisions we make.

There really are two forms of stress. The good part that makes us push ourselves beyond our limits. We need this stress in order to perform last minute energy rushes to meet deadlines, the adrenaline that gives us the ability to see sharper, hear more and react quicker. On the positive side stress is a source of motivation and a necessary component in our careers. But it is this excessive or prolonged stress that inevitably takes a toll on our health.

As we respond rationally and calmly as possible to stressful situations adrenaline begins to build up. Once or twice is good. However, over a number of months, or years, this can eventually lead to headaches, ulcers, etc as well as other more serious problems – depression, sleeplessness, etc.

I speak from experience. At first I did not realize the stress I was under from work. I suffered from premature graying of my hair, migraines; body aches that eventually manifested into sleeplessness and eventually sever shoulder and back problems. By the time I realized the amount of stress I was under it was too late. The damage had been done. However, I did recognize the fact that I was stressed and took steps to do something about it.

I started by leaving my job at the office at the end of the day. Working 24×7 is not healthy for anyone. Next I focused more on hobbies that made me happy outside of work, such as golf and gardening. I made more of an effort to schedule my time to do these activities. It was my mental break. And finally I spent more time with my family. I cannot say enough about this and how it has help me deal with my stress.

Stress is all around us and there is very little we can do to escape from it. As professionals we have to recognize it and deal with it appropriately.

We have been given some exclusive coverage on the recent developments in special purpose acquisition companies and blank check companies from SPACupdate.com this morning.  Stream Global Services (AMEX: SGS), the business outsourcer brought public through SPAC Global BPO Services Co., has launched an offer to buy back its warrants from its blank check merger. As more than a dozen SPAC targets have leaped past their blank check’s IPO value, it is expected that investors will clamor to buy up warrants that offer big discounts on rising stock and that the companies affiliated with those blank checks will set out to curb dilution through buybacks.

Friday, China Holdings Acquisition Co. (AMEX: HOL) will have its deal vote to bring ceramic tile maker Jinjiang Hengda Ceramics Co., Ltd. The SPAC, earlier this week, entered into an agreement with forward contract champ Victory Park Capital Advisors to buy back 4 million shares at a small premium. The $150 million SPAC joins a long list of successful blank checks from this fall—among them, REIT-targeting vehicles Enterprise Acquisition Co. (AMEX: EST)—that used forward contracts to get their deals done.

New SPACs are headed to the market: 57th St. General Acquisition Co., using Morgan Joseph as its bookrunner, filed paperwork this week with regulators stating the intent to bring a $57 million blank check public. The SPAC, like GSME Acquisition Co., has a redemption threshold above the 80% mark. Warrant buyers should take note of the improved odds for a deal’s completion when making investment decisions, when both of these SPACs price. Both SPACs will trade OTC on the Bulletin Board.

Last week, it was revealed that Asia Special Situation Acquisition Co. (AMEX: CIO) lost not just its deal to buy an energy company, but its CEO as well, who resigned. The SPAC still has a few months to complete its deal, but the exit of its leadership and its one-time target spurning its offer to instead accept a $100 million investment elsewhere certainly does not bode well for the blank check.

Prospect Acquisition Co. (AMEX: PAX) completed its deal to buy California REIT Kennedy-Wilson Inc. last week. The SPAC’s merger was helped along, once again, by Victory Park Capital Advisors. China MediaExpress (AMEX: TMI) bought back almost $2 million in warrants, the SPAC revealed, in an effort to curb dilution. And China Fundamental Acquisition Co. (OTC: CFQCF) found a merger partner and might try to extend its deal deadline.

For more on these mergers and other deal votes, please visit www.SPACupdate.com.

There’s a lot going on at this week’s Microsoft Professional Developers Conference (PDC 09); it’s a traditional launchpad for cool new stuff. I thought I’d point out several of the government-relevant announcements and technology roll-outs.

I specifically want to spotlight something called Codename Dallas, and how NASA and others have begun using it. In the keynote this morning Microsoft’s Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie told PDC attendees (and his streaming-video audience) that a landslide of new sensors and observational systems are changing the world by recording “unimaginable volumes of data… But this data does no good unless we turn the potential into the kenetic, unless we unlock it and innovate in the realm of applications and solutions that’s wrapped around that data.”

Here’s how we’re addressing that, with a bit of step-by-step context on the overall cloud-computing platform enabling it.  The steps are: 1. Azure, 2. Pinpoint, and 3. Dallas.

Today is the big public roll-out of the Windows Azure Platform for cloud computing and a full complement of new services for it,  including a Java SDK, REST and open source support and interoperability with MySQL, Tomcat, memcached, and even PHP development with Eclipse. The Windows Azure site is here, or just check out a brief summary of today’s Azure announcement and its array of cloud services. 

As part of the Windows Azure rollout, we’re announcing the new Pinpoint, an online marketplace for Microsoft partners to market and sell their applications.  It includes an “app store,” as well as store-like shopping for experts and professional IT services. Pinpoint is open to everyone, and free to join, and is already at launch the largest directory of qualified IT providers and their software built on Microsoft technologies. The app store alone is cool, as you can try, buy, and download software through direct links to software purchase pages, demos, and trial downloads.

One of the featured sets of services available through Pinpoint is our Codename “Dallas” service, Microsoft’s Information Services business, which developers and information workers can use to find and manage Web services and datasets  – free or paid – to power their apps, on any platform. Dallas is built completely on the Windows Azure cloud platform, which includes a SQL Azure cloud database, so you get the ability to store structured and unstructured data whether from Dallas’s “data-as-a-service” or your own collections, to invoke and examine the data without having to parse it, to use REST services to manipulate and move the data, and to analyze the data using the new PowerPivot high-end analytics for Excel 2010 spreadsheets, for example.

Large-scale datasets already available through Dallas include government, financial, weather, news, corporate, international and reference sets including those from the Associated Press, Citysearch, Data.gov, ESRI, First American Corp., infoUSA.com Inc., NASA, National Geographic TOPO!, NAVTEQ, RiskMetrics Group, the United Nations, WaveMarket Inc. and Weather Central Inc. Starting today, “Dallas” is available as a limited community technology preview (CTP). 

Tech news sites are already reporting the “competitive drive” propelling Dallas, for example The Register puts it this way: 

Microsoft Dallas Muscles Google Data Crusade: Microsoft is hoping to out-Google Google by unlocking the world’s information and slapping a GUI on the front end. Today, the company unveiled Dallas, which chief software architect Ray Ozzie said would deliver “data as a service.” He described it as a “game changing” subsystem of Microsoft’s Windows Azure computing and storage service.

There’s a lot you  can do with a data platform like that. The federal government’s Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra moments ago addressed PDC 09 live via remote video and announced that the U.S. government has been busy building new capabilities using Dallas and the Azure cloud, and he showed a very neat example: the NASA “Be a Martian” site. From the detailed press release:

Now anyone with a Web browser can become a Martian explorer. That’s because NASA is launching a new citizen-science Web site, called “Be a Martian,” that gives people a chance to view hundreds of thousands of images gathered over decades of exploration on the Red Planet.

The site is also designed as a game with a twofold purpose: NASA and Microsoft hope it will spur interest in science and technology among students in the U.S. and around the world. It also is a “crowdsourcing” tool designed to tap visitors’ brains and help the space agency process volumes of Mars images.

“We really need the next generation of explorers,” says Michelle Viotti, director of Mars Public Outreach at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “And we’re also accomplishing something important for NASA. There’s so much data coming back from Mars. Having a wider crowd look at the data, classify it and help understand its meaning is very important.” [emphasis added]

So NASA and Microsoft are combining crowd-sourcing, cloud-computing, and citizen-science, all toward aligning with a web philosophy that Tim O’Reilly calls “small pieces loosely joined.”

There’s more coming this week that I believe government folks will like, including one of my favorite projects: Thursday’s unveiling of the Microsoft Semantic Engine.  My team back at my old government hangout did a lot of pathbreaking semantic-analysis research and development, and I hope that they will find this very cool stuff indeed. Not allowed to say more yet -  though I see that others in semantic-web circles are eager to hear more. Stay tuned!

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