Climbing the Complexities of SharePoint
March 14, 2012
Although the fine art of rock climbing is lost of me, a good analogy is a well-known educational tool for taking a complicated concept and making it more readily applicable. Jussi on SharePoint uses the technique in, “Five reasons why SharePoint is like rock climbing.”
The author lays out the analogy:
Rock climbing differs a lot from other traditional sports I did as a teenager in that you need an equal amount of physical strength, technical skills and mental capabilities. If you possess insane core strength and sky-high stamina but lack the mental abilities, it will hinder your evolution as a climber. In more than one ways rock climbing is so similar to doing SharePoint implementations that I decided to list out five of the most evident feats they share.
The author goes on to describe similarities: planning a route is essential, and just as in climbing the quality and currency of your gear is equally valuable for SharePoint installations. The author also highlights the importance of working smarter, not harder. Regarding this last point, working smarter instead of harder, a third-party solution can greatly increase the efficiency and effectiveness of an existing SharePoint installation. We like Fabasoft Mindbreeze and its enterprise offerings.
Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise is the leading solution for fast and comprehensive access to corporate-wide knowledge. Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise searches all structured and unstructured data (e-mails, documents, contracts, contacts, notes etc.) within seconds and provides all relevant information structured, prioritized and ready for further use. Staff resources are released to concentrate on their actual task.
Check out Fabasoft Mindbreeze and its suite of smart solutions to see if your organization can begin to work smarter instead of harder.
Emily Rae Aldridge, March 14, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Attensity Election Forecasts
March 14, 2012
Is the prediction half right or half wrong? Sci-Tech Today seems to opt for optimism with “Twitter Analysis Gets Elections Half Right.” Attensity attempted to demonstrate its social analytics chops by forecasting Super Tuesday Republican Primary results using Twitter tweets. Their predictions were about 50% accurate; isn’t that about what you’d get flipping coins?
A lack of location data seems to be the reason Attensity’s predictions were less precise than hoped. Writer Scott Martin reveals:
Part of the problem lies in a lack of location-based data about Twitter users’ tweets. Such information is ‘scarce’ on Twitter, says Michael Wu, principal scientist of analytics for Lithium, a social-analytics firm. That’s because Twitter users would have to turn on the ‘location’ feature in their mobile devices. A vast pool of location-based tweets would enable analytics experts to better connect tweets to where they come from across the nation. In the case of Super Tuesday, that would mean more localized information on tweets about candidates.
Another roadblock to accurate prediction lies in identifying when multiple tweets come from the same enthusiastic tweeter, or are spam-like robo-tweets. Furthermore, there is no ready way to correlate the expression of opinions with actions, like actually voting. It seems that this analytic process has a long way to go. It also seems that half right is close enough to spin marketing horseshoes.
Serving several big-name clients, Attensity provides enterprise-class social analytics as well as industry solutions for vertical markets. They pride themselves on the accuracy and ease of use of their tools. My thought is that I will pick horses the old fashioned way.
Cynthia Murrell, March 14, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
The Risks of an E-Hoarder
March 13, 2012
Hoarding shows are popular these days, with TV giving attention to a once ignored psychological disorder, and causing the rest of us to wonder if we are hoarders of one sort or another. It turns out that hoarding may also be an IT phenomenon. Jeff Vance for NetworkWorld addresses the topic in, “Warning: You May Be an E-hoarder.”
Vance explains that cheap storage has lead to the e-hoarding phenomenon but just because the hardware is cheap does not mean the overall process of storage is also cheap:
While the cost of storing data has dropped significantly, ancillary costs haven’t, including data management costs and even costs associated with adding space in data centers and paying for escalating HVAC bills. Retrieval is another problem, since even the best search tool won’t necessarily find data buried in an arcane application. Take SharePoint, for instance. As more people within an organization collaborate through it, the number of documents within SharePoint can spiral out of control.
Gartner predicts that overall enterprise data will grow 650% in the next five years. With the majority of organizations choosing SharePoint for their enterprise needs, one can see SharePoint as both part of the problem and part of the solution. Third party solutions like Fabasoft Mindbreeze can help make enterprise search more efficient and meaningful, helping to avoid mindless e-hoarding.
Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise is the center of excellence for your company’s knowledge. Highly efficient enterprise search and specific connectors link together data sources in companies and organizations. They integrate the knowledge of different sections of a company into a uniform, linked whole. The award-winning high-tech product is your personal assistant. 24/7, 365 days a year. Regardless of which data you are looking for and with which system you are working with – Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise answers your questions with pinpoint accuracy.
So as the IT world continues to deal with changing standards in content management, third party solutions may help deal with the immediate issue. Explore the solutions offered by Fabasoft Mindbreeze to see if their solutions are a good fit for your organization.
Emily Rae Aldridge, March 13, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Inteltrax: Top Stories, March 5 to March 9
March 12, 2012
Inteltrax, the data fusion and business intelligence information service, captured three key stories germane to search this week, specifically, trends in big data.
Our biggest trend spotting article was undoubtedly “Big Predictions for 2012 Big Data” in which we laid out the upcoming months and how they will be even bigger than 2011’s massive data year.
“Safety and Security Prompt Analytic Trend” took a closer look at new trends, specifically how to keep folks safe via analytic technology.
Finally, “Consumer Thinking Becomes a Big Analytic Focus” is undoubtedly the hottest topic in big data and we toss our two cents into the hat.
Big data and analytics are an evolving being. The landscape today is nothing like it was twelve months ago. Thankfully, we are watching every blip on the radar to give readers a comprehensive feel for the past, present and future of analytics.
Follow the Inteltrax news stream by visiting www.inteltrax.com
Patrick Roland, Editor, Inteltrax.
March 12, 2012
HP, Autonomy: Baby Tigers on the Loose
March 12, 2012
To many, it may seem that $10.3 billion is a large sum to pay for a software company. However, that’s exactly what Hewlett Packard paid to acquire Autonomy late last year.
The company is now embracing a powerful new marketing metaphor to describe the costly acquisition as a baby tiger.
In “HP: ‘Baby Tiger’ Autonomy Will Drive Channel Business,” we learn about HP’s Information Management division, which includes Autonomy and Vertica, the business intelligence vendor also acquired by HP in 2011. HP will apparently be focusing on getting Autonomy incorporated into HP during the first half of this year, and expect to see financial “synergies” in the second half. The CRN article tells us more:
One thing Autonomy lacks is a services arm, but HP expects to fill the gap with its own services oriented partners. The big question, though, is when partners will actually be able to start getting into this side of the business. [HP CEO] Whitman often describes Autonomy as a “baby tiger” that is vulnerable within the giant organization that is HP, and she has made it clear that she has no intention of rushing it into the channel.
Last November, HP launched two Autonomy powered appliances. One of these archives structured data; the other makes that data available for e-discovery purposes. Sounds good, but why the strong comparison to jungle cats? Autonomy co-Founder and CEO Mike Lynch, vice president of HP’s Information Management division, says simply, “It is Autonomy’s ability to understand meaning that gives the technology such differentiation.”
Our thoughts on the marketing comparison? We’ve been close to baby tigers, and while fiercely precious, these cats are dangerous. Competitors should beware. Autonomy is said to be adding between 50 and 60 cloud customers per year.
Baby tigers have teeth.
Andrea Hayden, March 12, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
To Cloud or Not to Cloud, That is the Question
March 12, 2012
Less than a year ago Microsoft launched Office 365, allowing Cloud access to a comprehensive set of software, including SharePoint Online. And while many businesses saw migrating Exchange email services to the Cloud as a no-brainer, the same positive perception has not be given to SharePoint Online. Chris McNulty gets into the details in, “The SharePoint Decision: Do We Choose Cloud or On-Premises?”
When examining the cold hard facts about SharePoint Cloud functionality, McNulty has the following to say:
People would be blown away by the depth of functionality Microsoft made available in the cloud. I mean it – there would be wild celebrations and stampedes in the street! But that’s not the perception of Office 365-based SharePoint. Instead, there’s a lot of needless focus on what’s left out.’ (SharePoint Online does lack a few features relative to on-premises SharePoint.)
While SharePoint Online shows a lot of promise and continued improvement, it is noted that it still lags behind the full functionality of an on-site SharePoint installation. However, some third-party solutions are available that are much more agile, and therefore already display greater Cloud functionality.
Check out Fabasoft Mindbreeze and their enterprise solution, which is fully functional as an on-site installation or on the Cloud.
Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise and the Cloud fit together perfectly. The Cloud makes your business mobile; Mindbreeze finds its way in the Cloud. This intelligent search is available as a Cloud service. This means that, if you so desire, Fabasoft Mindbreeze can run without any installation whatsoever – we operate the search engine for you. All the data that you manage in the Cloud is made searchable by Fabasoft Mindbreeze.
While SharePoint gets better with each new release, third-party solutions have the advantage of being more agile and being updated more frequently. See if Fabasoft Mindbreeze can replace or supplement your current enterprise infrastructure, improving its performance in the Cloud.
Emily Rae Aldridge, March 12, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Working Smart: What If One Is Unsmart?
March 10, 2012
Short honk: I read “Work Smart, Not Hard – An Introduction To Google Analytics Dashboards.” Three times this week I have heard “work smart.” Maybe this is a meme designed to make those who can use ATM perceive themselves as power users of advanced computing systems? Here’s the passage I noted:
[Google Analytics] saves me time, helps me look like I’m 100% on top of things when a client calls, and helps me add hours back into days that were previously spent hunting and pecking for information.
The idea is that a vendor creates a system which generates reports based on data. I do not trust data from sources which do no provide me with access to the who, what, when, and how those data were managed. When I buy carrots, I check out what’s on offer. The same approach does not apply to the use of data from Google or other sources.
But the key point in the write up is this phrase:
helps me look like I’m 100% on top of things when a client calls
I think appearances are important, but the notion of helping a person appear to know something when that person may not know whereof what he/she speaks is troubling to me.
As systems put training wheels on software, systems and services which “process” data and spit out answers, why are folks so eager to “look” smart. Why are those who are supposed to be data wizards so eager to give up the “hands in the dirt” approach which puts one in touch with the raw material?
I wonder if the clients know those who advise them are “working smart” by using systems that put up an appearance of insight when the reality may be quite different. ATM users may not quality as data analysts. If those individuals had the requisite skills to make sense of unverifiable data, would there be a shortage of analytics professionals?
Stephen E Arnold, March 10, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
The Missing Skills of Young SharePoint Developers
March 9, 2012
In a lighthearted blog entry, Jussi on SharePoint addresses the often forgotten fact that for all of our complaining, IT is well optimized and performs quite well in our current day. So what’s the problem with high performance you might ask? In, “The missing skillsets of future SharePoint rock stars,” Jussi argues that this has created a younger generation of developers, specifically SharePoint developers who neglect the basic IT skills of former days.
Jussi writes:
The problem is that mostly everything you use just works. You don’t need to worry whether or not the operating system is about to crash. You’ll have enough RAM most of the time, so forget about spending any time optimizing how your applications use memory. Your laptop? It boots in <30 seconds, or resumes from sleep in less than 2 seconds. Gone are they days when we had to write memos on a piece paper as a backup, ‘because the computer might crash sooner rather than later’.
This relative ease of use leads the author to propose that SharePoint developers need to make an effort to cultivate certain forgotten skills:
Any proper SharePoint specialist worth their salt should be fairly serene doing basic stuff like configuring Active Directory, debugging network and authentication issues, reading through code and Powershell scripts and troubleshooting weird errors.
While these are not glamorous jobs, they are necessary. There may also be another option for SharePoint developers wanting to maximize their time and energy. Many third-party enterprise solutions can improve performance and user experience without a great investment in time and training. A smart solution like Fabasoft Mindbreeze can brings a suite of solutions together to make everyone happy, users and developers alike. Check into Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise and see if their offerings can increase your organization’s efficiency and performance.
Emily Rae Aldridge, March 9, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
More Allegations about Fast Search Impropriety
March 8, 2012
With legions of Microsoft Certified Resellers singing the praises of the FS4SP (formerly the Fast Search & Transfer search and retrieval system), sour notes are not easily heard. I don’t think many users of FS4SP know or care about the history of the company, its university-infused technology, or the machinations of the company’s senior management and Board of Directors. Ancient history.
I learned quite a bit in my close encounters with the Fast ESP technology. No, ESP does not mean extra sensory perception. ESP allegedly meant the enterprise search platform. Fast Search, before its purchase by Microsoft, was a platform, not a search engine. The idea was that the collection of components would be used to build applications in which search was an enabler. The idea was a good one, but search based applications required more than a PowerPoint to become a reality. The 64 bit Exalead system, developed long before Dassault acquired Exalead, was one of the first next generation, post Google systems to have a shot at delivering a viable search based application. (The race for SBAs, in my opinion, is not yet over, and there are some search vendors like PolySpot which are pushing in interesting new directions.) Fast Search was using marketing to pump up license deals. In fact, the marketing arm was more athletic than the firm’s engineering units. That, in my view, was the “issue” with Fast Search. Talk and demos were good. Implementation was a different platter of herring five ways.
Fast Search block diagram circa 2005. The system shows semantic and ontological components, asserts information on demand, and content publishing functions—all in addition to search and retrieval. Similar systems are marketed today, but hybrid content manipulation systems are often a work in progress in 2012. © Fast Search & Transfer
I once ended up with an interesting challenge resulting from a relatively large-scale, high-profile search implementation. Now you may have larger jobs than I typically get, but I was struggling with the shift from Inktomi to the AT&T Fast search system in order to index the public facing content of the US federal government.
Inktomi worked reasonably well, but the US government decided in its infinite wisdom to run a “free and open competition.” The usual suspects responded to the request for proposal and statement of work. I recall that “smarter than everyone else” Google ignored the US government’s requirements.
This image is from a presentation by Dr. Lervik about Digital Libraries, no date. The slide highlights the six key functions of the Fast Search search engine. These are extremely sophisticated functions. In 2012, only a few vendors can implement a single system with these operations running in the core platform. In fact, the wording could be used by search vendor marketers today. Fast Search knew where search was heading, but the future still has not arrived because writing about a function is different from delivering that function in a time and resource window which licensees can accommodate. © Fast Search & Transfer
Fast Search, with the guidance of savvy AT&T capture professionals, snagged the contract. That was a fateful procurement. Fast Search yielded to a team from Vivisimo and Microsoft. Then Microsoft bought Fast Search, and the US government began its shift to open source search. Another consequence is that Google, as you may know, never caught on in the US Federal government in the manner that I and others assumed the company would. I often wonder what would have happened if Google’s capture team had responded to the statement of work instead of pointing out that the requirements were not interesting.
MessageSolution for Managing SharePoint Data
March 8, 2012
We have here another attempt to tame SharePoint’s content wild ponies: “MessageSolution Showcasing SharePoint Governance and eDiscovery Platform at Microsoft SharePoint Technology Conference 2012”, reports SeattlePi. The write up declares:
By integrating award-winning enterprise archiving policy with SharePoint’s record center functions, MessageSolution has created a framework to automate eDiscovery and manage risk in SharePoint distributed farms. Now SharePoint administrators can regulate compliance, remotely offload Blobs to optimize SharePoint storage space and server performance, as well as search and restore objects instantly without the need for additional IT assistance.
For those who may not know, a Blob (also written BLOB) is a Binary Large Object. By offloading these objects from a SharePoint server using Microsoft approved EBS and RBS protocols, MessageSolution can speed up tasks in the SharePoint environment. This comes in handy when searching and restoring data for legal discovery proceedings. Furthermore, the article asserts, the tool reduces storage requirements with a high compression rate and single-instance storage.
Designed for both mid- and large-scale organizations, the product also sports a unified index; retention management; legal holds with hold notifications; a unified user interface and index; and federated search. The product’s focus on back-end design, according to the write up, means fewer hassles during installation and maintenance as well as a reduced backup time. See the article for more details.
MessageSolution’s SharePoint Management Solutions and its Enterprise eDiscovery Platform will be showcased at the 2012 SharePoint Technology Conference February 28-29 at the Union Square Hilton in San Francisco (booth #808).
Founded in 2002, MessageSolution has assembled a team of veterans from a number of other Silicon Valley enterprises. The company prides itself on providing solutions that simplify the complex processes of archiving and eDiscovery, including managing language differences, for organizations around the world.
Search Technologies stands ready to assist clients with search and content processing services for Microsoft SharePoint environments.
Iain Fletcher, Search Technologies, March 8, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
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