ClearStory Is On the Move
July 1, 2015
The article on Virtual-Strategy Magazine titled ClearStory Data Appoints Dr. Timothy Howes as Chief Technology Offiver; Fromer Vice President of Yahoo, CTO of HP Software, Opsware, and Netscape discusses Howe’s reputation as an innovative thinker who helped invent LDAP. His company Rockmelt Inc. was acquired by Yahoo and he also co-founded Loudcloud, which is now known as Opsware, with the founders of VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, who are current backers of ClearStory Data. Needless to say, obtaining his services is quite a coup for ClearStory. Howe discusses his excitement to join the team in the article,
“There’s a major technology shift happening in the data market right now as businesses want to see and explore more data faster. ClearStory is at the forefront of delivering the next-generation data analysis platform that brings Spark-powered, fast-cycle analysis to the front lines of business in a beautiful, innovative user experience that companies are in dire need of today,” said Howes. “The ClearStory architectural choices made early on, coupled with the focus on an elegant, collaborative user model is impressive.”
The article also mentions that Ali Tore, formerly of Model N, has been named the new Chief Product Officer. Soumitro Tagore of the startup Clari will become the VP of Engineering and Development Operations. ClearStory Data is intent on the acceleration of the movement of data for businesses. Their Intelligent Data Harmonization platform allows data from different sources to be quickly and insightfully explored.
Chelsea Kerwin, July 1, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Loon Advances. Search Grounded.
June 29, 2015
I read “Google Talks Project Loon: 14 Different Prototypes, Leaks Solved by Using Fluffy Socks.” Loon is one of Google’s research projects. From what I can figure out, Google wants to provide Internet access to everyone, yep, categorical affirmative. Facebook has this idea too. The write up reports:
During Google I/O, he [Google wizard Astro Teller] said “We knew we had a lot to learn, but we misestimated how much we had to learn.” For example, the balloons are so large, they have to be stood on by engineers, and tests were carried out to see which socks caused fewer leaks. Fluffy ones, apparently, worked best. The research and perseverance has paid off. Project Loon’s balloons now stay in the air for six months, then steered around the world and positioned to within 500 yards of the intended target area. That’s way beyond the 100-day minimum flight time estimates, that Google says will make Project Loon a viable solution to provide Internet to the billions of people who cannot get it using traditional means.
One question: Will ads persist as long as a balloon remains aloft? Nah, longer. Search remains on the ground, with feet of clay.
Stephen E Arnold, June 29, 2015
Traditional Publishers, What Is Your Digital Media State?
June 28, 2015
I read “An Investment Bank Made This Epic Presentation on the Future of Digital Media.” “Epic” invokes memories of a required class in which we had to read The Iliad, Paradise Lost, Gilgamesh, and – my favorite – Beowulf. Go, Grendel.
This “epic” appears to tell the tale of the destruction of printed-on-paper outfits. I am not sure that the PowerPoint deck of Terence Kawaja will displace the yucks in the Divine Comedy, but who knows?
The basic idea is that digital media is entangled with marketing. Marketing means money. Money leads back to the focus of Luma. If you are interested in digital media and money, you will, of course, want to work with Luna, but that is another thread in the epic.
Several points warranted a pale blue highlight:
- Facebook and Google are the big boys
- Demand means “imbalance”
- Opportunities for M&A folks
- Five trends which require about half of the slides in the deck. Spoiler: “new” TV is a big deal
If you are into epics which thrill the MBAs, check out the deck. If you are happy to be a displaced worker, why not go fishing?
And for traditional media types? You did not make the cut.
Stephen E Arnold, June 28, 3025
Technology Takes It on the Nose
June 26, 2015
I put this passage in my quote file:
But technology is not neutral – and neither is code nor numbers. There are human, subjective judgments lurking behind the apparent objectivity offered by algorithms and the “user-friendly” operating systems. These technologies perform almost magically, while at the same time enabling all sorts of organizations to easily collect information about us, something that makes it that bit easier to usher in new forms of surveillance and control.
You can read the context for the passage in “Our Love of Technology Risks Becoming a Quiet Conspiracy against Ourselves.” I am not sure the Sillycon Valley crowd will agree completely.
Stephen E. Arnold, June 26, 2015
HP Sales Are Slow, But CEO Says Progress
June 24, 2015
According to Computer Weekly, “HP CEO Hails Business Split Progress Amid Downbeat Q2 Revenue Slumps.” HP’s Enterprise Service has the worst revenue reports for the quarter along with several more of its business units with a seven percent net loss. The Enterprise Service saw a sixteen percent loss.
Ironically, the company’s stock rose 1 percent, mostly due to HP expanding into China due to a new partnership with Tsinghua University. The joint venture will focus on developing HP’s H3C’s technology and its China-based server business, supposedly it will have huge implications on the Chinese technology market.
Another piece of news is that HP will split up:
“[CEO Meg ] Whitman also spoke in favour of the progress the company is making with its plans to separate into two publicly traded business entities: one comprised of its consumer PC and printing operations, and the other focused on enterprise hardware, software and services.
The past six months have reinforced Whitman’s conviction that this is the right path for the company to take, and the split is still on course to occur before the end of the firm’s financial year.”
The company wants to increase its revenue, but it needs to cut gross costs across the board. HP is confidant that it will work. Sales will continue to be slow for 2015, but they can still do investment banking things at HP.
Whitney Grace, June 24, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
New Analysis Tool for Hadoop Data from Oracle
June 23, 2015
Oracle offers new ways to analyze Hadoop data, we learn from the brief write-up, “Oracle Zeroes in on Hadoop Data with New Analytics Tool” at PCWorld. Use of the Hadoop open-source distributed file system continues to grow among businesses and other organizations, so it is no surprise to see enterprise software giant Oracle developing such tools. This new software is dubbed Oracle Big Data Spatial and Graph. Writer Katherine Noyes reports:
“Users of Oracle’s database have long had access to spatial and graph analytics tools, which are used to uncover relationships and analyze data sets involving location. Aiming to tackle more diverse data sets and minimize the need for data movement, Oracle created the product to be able to process data natively on Hadoop and in parallel using MapReduce or in-memory structures.
“There are two main components. One is a distributed property graph with more than 35 high-performance, parallel, in-memory analytic functions. The other is a collection of spatial-analysis functions and services to evaluate data based on how near or far something is, whether it falls within a boundary or region, or to process and visualize geospatial data and imagery.”
The write-up notes that such analysis can reveal connections for organizations to capitalize upon, like relationships between customers or assets. The software is, of course, compatible with Oracle’s own Big Data Appliance platform, but can be deployed on other Hadoop and NoSQL systems, as well.
Cynthia Murrell, June 23, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Major SharePoint Features Disclosed
June 23, 2015
SharePoint Server 2016 has caused quite a stir, with users wondering what features will come through in the final version. At Microsoft Ignite last month, rumors turned to legitimate features. Read more about separating fact from fiction in the newest SharePoint release in the CIO article, “Top 4 Revelations about SharePoint.”
The article begins:
“Some of the biggest news to come out of Microsoft Ignite last month was the introduction and the first public demonstration of SharePoint Server 2016 – a demo that quelled a lot of speculation and uneasiness in the SharePoint administrator community. Here are the biggest takeaways from the conference, with an emphasis on the on-premises product.”
The article goes on to say that users can look forward to a full on-premises version, bolstered administrative features, four roles to divide the workload, and an emphasis on hybrid functions. For users that need to stay in the loop with SharePoint updates and changes, stay tuned to ArnoldIT.com. Stephen E. Arnold is a longtime leader in search, and his Web site offers a unique SharePoint feed to keep all the latest tips, tricks, and news in one convenient location.
Emily Rae Aldridge, June 23, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
The Amazon Cloud: Complexity and a Chance for High Winds
June 22, 2015
Short honk: I read “AWS Deployment Tools: Choosing the Right Application Service.” The write up explains “three distinct services aimed at simplifying and automating project deployment and management.” The write up tackles in less than 500 words Elastic Beanstalk (not to be confused with Elastic, the search service which can be deployed on Amazon), CloudFormation (not to be confused with the other clouds or the weather oriented clouds), and OpsWork (no to be confused with government ops work). What I find interesting is that those who want to embrace Amazon’s cloud services may be surprised that the learning cost may be higher than the actual cost of Amazon’s cloud services. This is neither good nor bad. The complexity is a reminder that computing today is not necessarily easier, simpler, or more straightforward than it was in the days of the good old mainframe. IBM did provide customer support in the 1960s. You will have to determine how helpful Amazon’s technical support is when you fly to the Amazon cloud.
Stephen E Arnold, June 22, 2015
Latest Version of DataStax Enterprise Now Available
June 19, 2015
A post over at the SD Times informs us, “DataStax Enterprise 4.7 Released.” Enterprise is DataStax’s platform that helps organizations manage Apache Cassandra databases. Writer Rob Marvin tells us:
“DataStax Enterprise (DSE) 4.7 includes a production-certified version of Cassandra 2.1, and it adds enhanced enterprise search, analytics, security, in-memory, and database monitoring capabilities. These include a new certified version of Apache Solr and Live Indexing, a new DSE feature that makes data immediately available for search by leveraging Cassandra’s native ability to run across multiple data centers. …
“DSE 4.7 also adds enhancements to security and encryption through integration with the DataStax OpsCenter 5.2 visual-management and monitoring console. Using OpsCenter, developers can store encryption keys on servers outside the DSE cluster and use the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol to manage admin security.”
Four main features/ updates are listed in the write-up: extended search analytics, intelligent query routing, fault-tolerant search operations, and upgraded analytics functionality. See the article for details on each of these improvements.
Founded in 2010, DataStax is headquartered in San Mateo, California. Clients for their Cassandra-management software (and related training and professional services) range from young startups to Fortune 100 companies.
Cynthia Murrell, June 19, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
Chris McNulty at SharePoint Fest Seattle
June 18, 2015
For SharePoint managers and users, continued education and training is essential. There are lots of opportunities for virtual and face-to-face instruction. Benzinga gives some attention to one training option, the upcoming SharePoint Fest Seattle, in their recent article, “Chris McNulty to Lead 2 Sessions and a Workshop at SharePoint Fest Seattle.”
The article begins:
“Chris McNulty will preside over a full day workshop at SharePoint Fest Seattle on August 18th, 2015, as well as conduct two technical training sessions on the 19th and 20th. Both the workshops and sessions are to be held at the Washington State Convention Center in downtown Seattle.”
In addition to all of the great training opportunities at conferences and other face-to-face sessions, staying on top of the latest SharePoint news and online training opportunities is also essential. For a one-stop-shop of all the latest SharePoint news, stay tuned to Stephen E. Arnold’s Web site, ArnoldIT.com, and his dedicated SharePoint feed. He has turned his longtime career in search into a helpful Web service for those that need to stay on top of the latest SharePoint happenings.
Emily Rae Aldridge, June 18, 2015
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, publisher of the CyberOSINT monograph
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