• Four Hundred Monitor, November 15

  November 15, 2017 Dan Burger

  IT strategic planning is an oxymoron at many organizations. Controlled chaos is often the oxymoron that better describes the situation. A fast-changing business environment combined with a constant flow of technology hype can make strategy sessions difficult. A “we don’t do things that way” status protection system can also be a strategy barrier. But some find the process of developing a strategy as valuable as the strategy itself.

  This week in Monitor we also have articles on the risks and advantages of BYOD mobile policies, integrating security in DevOps, and keeping a watchful eye on the facts and fiction regarding …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, November 8

  November 8, 2017 Dan Burger

  All things must pass. The pending sale of the IBM Rochester campus plays a sour note in the Minnesota town where it was once a landmark facility of civic pride. IBM has kept a small piece of what once was, but it’s a shadow of its former self.

  Monitor points to a couple of security-related feature articles this week. Controlling data in the cloud and measuring risk rather than vulnerabilities are two subjects worth closer examination. And under the heading of “Everyone has to Start Somewhere,” there’s the story of where it all began for Susan Gantner, one of the …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, November 1

  November 1, 2017 Dan Burger

  Most IBM i shops are comfortable being one or two releases behind the latest IBM i operating system. But for those on i 7.1, it’s time to plan your next move. If you are on something older than 7.1, you should be drinking stronger coffee. You may have your reasons for staying where you are, but in this issue of Monitor we’re pointing you to some reasons to upgrade.

  We also have an article that will get under the skin of relational database advocates, plus some Watson integration with IBM i insights, and a link to an IBM i video …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, October 25

  October 25, 2017 Dan Burger

  IBM is one of the tech industry’s leading companies when it comes to moving jobs overseas. Low salaries, not the availability of a technically superior workforce, is the reason. Certainly, IBM is not the only company with this strategic initiative. It’s a sign of the profound change sweeping across many U.S. industries. Read more about this in the Rochester Post Bulletin editorial. A link is in this week’s Monitor.

  Jobs are not only being shipped overseas, but many of them that remain here are changing considerably. CIOs are seeing and feeling the effects of disruptive technology. Jobs are being …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, October 18

  October 18, 2017 Dan Burger

  It doesn’t take a detective to find the visual and behavioral clues that connect mainframe and IBM i professionals and their IT environments. There’s an aging workforce, a skills depletion, and a deepening concern about modernization. Author Don Denoncourt has been knee-deep (perhaps deeper) in both environments and he has some advice about steps that need to be taken. See the top story in Monitor this week.

  Also in Monitor this week . . . taking a hard look at your IT deficiencies, finding IT leaders among C-level executives, and paying more attention to the future of mobile computing. Keep …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, October 11

  October 11, 2017 Dan Burger

  Prior to the latest Technology Refresh announcements, which were just released yesterday, Tim Rowe, business architect for application development and systems management for IBM i, reviewed what was added to Access Client Solutions earlier this year. He also commented on the partnership between IBM and HelpSystems that resulted in development work on several IBM products being farmed out to the IBM i software vendor.

  Inside Monitor this week, you’ll also find articles pertaining to open source database trends, what’s holding back IT hiring, Java technology on IBM i, and IBM’s leading role in Blockchain advancements. The calendar of events has …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, October 4

  October 4, 2017 Dan Burger

  Prior to the latest Technology Refresh announcements, which were just released yesterday, Tim Rowe, business architect for application development and systems management for IBM i, reviewed what was added to Access Client Solutions earlier this year. He also commented on the partnership between IBM and HelpSystems that resulted in development work on several IBM products being farmed out to the IBM i software vendor.

  Inside Monitor this week, you’ll also find articles pertaining to open source database trends, what’s holding back IT hiring, Java technology on IBM i, and IBM’s leading role in Blockchain advancements. The calendar of events has …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, September 27

  September 27, 2017 Dan Burger

  Total cost of ownership comparisons have always been an important tool for combating the high up-front cost that competitors use against the IBM i on Power system. Updated reports — one for midsize companies and one for enterprise companies —  recently hit the streets. Two weeks ago, you may have seen an IT Jungle story on these reports. This week their importance is noted in Steve Will’s blog.

  Mention IBM marketing at a gathering of IBM i users and watch the sparks fly. Now IBM has its own Watson Advertising division. This should be interesting. Find out more about Watson …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, September 20

  September 20, 2017 Dan Burger

  Last time I checked, the SAP on IBM i community was not greatly enamored with the idea of adopting HANA, the SAP in-memory database. You would get a different idea after reading the pro-HANA article in IBM’s in-house magazine. Although SAP markets HANA for business intelligence workloads, it has also repeatedly stated that its goal is to eventually replace all underlying relational databases. Some SAP on i shops are not ready for that.

  Also in Monitor this week: IBM’s CEO Ginni Rometty condemns the fear-mongering that stalks artificial intelligence; predicting the future of IT based on current spending trends; and …

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• Four Hundred Monitor, September 13

  September 13, 2017 Dan Burger

  Earlier this year, at the COMMON Annual Meeting and Expo, we started to hear what Watson could do when integrated with IBM i. People are still asking questions and more information is being made available. Cognitive computing, with its analytic capabilities, is bringing change to traditional enterprise application development. You don’t have to be smarter than Watson. You just need to be smart enough to know about Watson.

  Also in Monitor this week: IBM and MIT partner on cognitive computing research; the right and wrong of agile development; and an IBM internship program for re-entering women in their tech careers. …

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