Editor’s note: This is a guest post by Kyle Lagunas of Software Advice .

Recent activity – including the acquisitions of SuccessFactors by SAP and Rypple by Salesforce – is pumping new energy into web-based  HR software in the HCM market. Things are clearly heating up in this sector, and investors have taken note. In the last two weeks, VC funds have been flowing into the human resources software market, with large investments in SmartRecruiters and iCIMS. As such, 2012 shows much promise for the continued expansion of HR solutions into the Cloud, as well as further integration of social media functionality into HR applications.

The increasingly diverse needs of organizations big and small demand myriad options in human resources and talent management software solutions. As they continue to fight for the biggest piece of the pie, I believe more large software companies will make strategic acquisitions. I’ve taken an in-depth look at what SAP and Salesforce stand to gain from their HR acquisitions, how it will impact this dynamic software market, and where other contenders in this space might make moves of their own.

The Opportunity for SAP in HR: It’s All About the Data

Over the years, SuccessFactors added analytics and reporting capabilities to their product, in part through the acquisition of Inform Business Impact (previously InfoHRM) in early 2010. “The ability to create some telling analytics will set one vendor ahead, because that’s what it’s going to take to give HR a seat at the table,” says independent HR technology consultant Tiffani Murray. With SAP’s vast resources and experience delivering hard data in the ERP space, there’s a great opportunity here to further develop an HR analytics tool the market craves. If SAP is successful, we might expect to see more acquisitions at the intersection of HR and analytics in 2012.

Why HR Makes Sense for Salesforce’s Social Enterprise

Social tools have seen the most widespread adoption in these two markets, as CRM and HR have historically been the first business sectors to adopt new communications tools. With the evangelist support of Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and John Wookey (previously of Oracle and SAP) heading their HCM unit, Salesforce is in a strong position to help HR departments extend social media functionality across their various applications. “This new blood drives innovation, which energizes the market,” says Murray. “It will drive the market in a new direction.”

Three HR Software Areas to Watch in 2012

As vendors great and small continue developing Cloud-based solutions, I believe there are three HR applications that offer the greatest opportunity for strategic growth through acquisition in 2012: talent management software, applicant tracking and recruiting software, and analytics and reporting applications. And in these areas, there are a few vendors who are ahead of the pack.

1. Because business leaders increasingly see the value in a system for developing their workforce, Talent Management Software continues to experience rapid growth in the Cloud. This sector has also seen some movement, as large vendors acquire best-of-breeds, particularly in learning management and performance management. Many analysts are have their eyes on Taleo – a leading talent management suite, and serious competitor in this space. I expect they’ll begin flexing some muscles in the marketplace, taking advantage of the opportunity to position themselves as SuccessFactors’s biggest competition.

2. Many of the core functions of Applicant Tracking and Recruiting Software thrive in the social media arena, and it makes sense that you’ll see more social capabilities evolving in this area first. Bullhorn – a leader in recruiting software – is also breaking into social with their new product, Bullhorn Reach. Currently in its infancy, I see a lot of potential in this product.

3. Your ability to identify and track trends in your retention rates, boosts in productivity, and benchmark performance will set your HR department apart from your competitors. And though HR has never had a problem with gathering data, HR software is recently making great strides in delivering technology that allows them to use that data. Analytics and Reporting Tools like eThority’s Workforce Analytics 5.0 (acquired by Equifax and integrated into their TALX business unit last October) will continue to drive innovation in HR software.

As legacy vendors continue their age-old ERP battle, and as innovative companies like Salesforce continue to dazzle, the moves made by these (rather different) business management providers have certainly set the stage for an exciting 2012. Customers and analysts alike would be wise to pay attention to continued movement in the market in the coming months.

For further reading, check out the full analysis and forecast on my HR blog at: http://blog.softwareadvice.com/articles/hr/the-hr-software-round-up-setting-the-stage-for-2012-1011912/. Have your own thoughts? Join the discussion, and leave a comment.

Related articles

• More HR Tech: SuccessFactors, Jobs2Web & SAP (zdnet.com)
• With Rypple Salesforce becomes a bigger social provider (gautamblogs.com)
• Salesforce makes an HR splash, buys Rypple (zdnet.com)
• Should SAP + SuccessFactors Worry Salesforce.com? (informationweek.com)
• Salesforce.com Acquires Rypple for Push Into Cloud HR Software (pcworld.com)
• Why Enterprise Software Will Never Be the Same (pcworld.com)
• The “Big Five” IT trends of the next half decade: Mobile, social, cloud, consumerization, and big data (bobgourley.com)

The technology writer Langdon Winner wrote an interesting book 30 years ago that has a lot of relevance to technologists today–especially when thinking about enterprise security. His core idea is one of technological autonomy. As the good folks at Cyborgology define it:

Technological autonomy is a shorthand way of expressing the idea that our technologies and technological systems have become so ubiquitous, so intertwined, and so powerful that they are no longer in our control. This autonomy is due to the accumulated force of the technologies themselves and also to our utter dependence on them.  …Advanced technologies require vast networks of supportive technologies in order to properly function. Our cars wouldn’t go far without roads, gasoline, traffic control systems, and the like. Electricity needs power lines, generators, distributors, light bulbs, and lamps, together with production, distribution, and administrative systems to put all those elements (profitably) into place. A “chain of reciprocal dependency” is established, Winner says, that requires “not only the means but also the entire set of means to the means.”

Winner is not necessarily arguing that technology is autonomous in the sense of Skynet and Terminator. He is, however, pointing out that technology is not simply a tool animated by human will. Each successive layer of technology, in turn, creates a complex dependence through the supporting networks necessary to underpin it. Thus we cannot evaluate technology in isolation. Rather, we ought to think of techno-assemblages, mutually reinforcing systems of systems.

The experience of the modern user is by definition one of trust in incredibly complex systems that he or she cannot hope to completely master or have control over. Instead, we accept a limited understanding of expert systems and trust in the ability of the collected wisdom of experts (and when I say collective, I mean a combination since expertise is specialized in nature) that the systems we use will work as planned. The philosopher Anthony Giddens writes of this, for example, when talking about cars:

Everyone knows that driving a car is a dangerous activity, entailing the risk of accident. In choosing to go out in the car, I accept that risk, but rely upon the aforesaid expertise to guarantee that it is minimised as possible. […] When I park the car at the airport and board a plane, I enter other expert systems, of which my own technical knowledge is at best rudimentary.

I would argue that one of the major problems with enterprise security–and to some extent information security as a whole–lies precisely in the factors that both Giddens and Winner discuss. Information technology and the systems that underpin it are, in a sense, autonomous in the way Winner suggests. Cyber is ultimately an inescapable aspect of everyday life, making cybersecurity less of an exotic thing than it was when books like Black Ice were written. As more and more appliances become networked, we start entering into the world where the information user not only can’t trust their toaster, but also becomes paranoid about people hacking into their cars. Moreover, the knowledge necessary to understand the sum of these techno-assemblages becomes not simply a problem for individual technologists, but a larger social issue that requires a diversity of expertise.

I think that as a company CrucialPoint itself is actually a very good response to this sort of new reality. My background is in political science and international politics, Dillon Behr is a former soldier, Matt Devost, and Bob Gourley have experience in the cyber security, national security and intelligence communities. Chris Barnes is a former federal CIO. I’m often amazed at the technical skills demonstrated on a consistent basis by Bryan Halfpap and Ryan Kamauff. Some of us have advanced degrees, others have many years of practical experience. Together, we have a mutually reinforcing basis of expertise for thinking about technology in a holistic fashion.

Winner and Giddens’ ideas have great relevance for enterprise security. We aren’t going to stop people from using various techno-assemblages or individual technologies. Mobile device security and the “death of the PC” are merely symptoms of this larger problem. And the implications associated with these technologies are policy matters for an manager with appropriate authority and perspective to set, not merely a technical domain for individual specialists. They are too complex and encompass way too many dimensions for a narrow perspective.

Related articles

• 2011 in Cybersecurity (ctolabs.com)
• Fixmo Announces Advisory Board, Adds to Board of Directors (ctovision.com)
• Virtualization: Security Issues and Savings (ctolabs.com)

Image via CrunchBase

Liquid Robotics, a company led by CEO Bill Vass, is making huge inroads in sensor deployments in some of the most difficult to monitor parts of our planet.  That is, the vast, open ocean.  Liquid Robotics has developed a maritime robot that can travel thousands of miles, carry different payloads, energize itself from ocean wave movement, and transmit large amounts of data in real time to its users.  This surfboard looking robot is called Wave Glider, and is bound to change the way data is collected from the oceans.  Liquid Robotics is also a leader in big data management, as outlined in an earlier post by Bob Gourley.

Wave Glider has a multitude of operational applications ranging from Government/Defense uses to Scientific/Environmental uses to Commercial/Industrial uses.  It can benefit resource detection, fishery management,  information gathering, military and law enforcement related missions, sea life tracking and tsunami warning, or pollution testing and resource discovery.  Wave Glider has recently completed several hallmark trips through the ocean, including a circumnavigation of the island of Hawaii, a voyage from Hawaii to California (2500 miles), and a loitering mission of more than 1 year.

The next step for Liquid Robotics and their wave glider is in partnership with Google Earth and Virgin Oceanic, the PacX. On November 17 Liquid Robotics launched 4 Wave Gliders that will travel across the Pacific Ocean.  This will be a Guinness Record for longest distance traveled by an Unmanned Maritime Vehicle (UMV).  The four Wave Gliders are expected to collect approximately 2.25 million discrete data points, and take more than 300 days to complete their voyage. During their voyage, they will transmit valuable ocean data on salinity, water temperature, waves, weather, fluorescence, and dissolved oxygen.  Throughout their journey, the Wave Gliders will build an enormous data set, provided free of charge and in real-time, to the world’s scientists, educators, students, and the general public. Liquid Robotics is making this data available to anyone who registers.

Another amazing aspect of the PacX is Virgin Oceanic’s submarine, which will accompany the voyage an subsequently do a dive to the depths of the Mariana Trench.  The Mariana Trench is the deepest part of our ocean, and has never been explored by humans.  Virgin has designed and built a submarine made of 8000 lbs of titanium and composite material that is up to the challenge.  Virgin CEO Richard Brosnan will be co pilot of the vessel as it undertakes this 5 hour dive to new depths for humanity.  As someone who loves to SCUBA dive and admires the oceans for its size, power, and mystery, I am excited to see what Liquid Robotics has in store for the future and I will surely be checking in occasionally on the status of PacX.

Related articles

• The World’s 7 Most Powerful Data Scientists (ctolabs.com)
• Naval Research Picks new Funding Projects (fedcyber.com)
• One Trillion Reasons: One Year Later (ctolabs.com)

Hopefully these predictions will turn out better than Nic Cage's cinematic masterpiece (Knowing in the US)

Editor’s note: We have asked each of our researchers to pull together considerations meant to help in your planning for 2012. We solicit your feedback on all these predictive posts. bg 

In 2011, we had some really great technology advances – many were mobile-centric, but did not end there. The mobile world continued to explode in 2011 – with exponential smartphone, app and tablet growth. However, this world continues to fracture as every provider tries to carve out their piece of the ecosystem. Cloud computing has become part of our daily lives, as well the IT force multiplier du jour for enterprises. Social capabilities are omnipresent, and continue to grow in importance.

The next year will likely be filled with even more technological leaps and bounds, and here are some of my predictions on them.

My 2012 Technology Predictions:

Mobile

• Android increases market share of mobile smartphone OS’s – especially in budget arena, there are over 700k Android activations each day, a number which shows no sign of slowing down.
• A vast divide opens up between the Android “haves” and “have nots” – that is, the devices that have Android 4.0 and those stuck in Android 2.X
• 720p becomes the de facto standard for all smartphones – 720p looks good on smartphones, and soon Apple will have to adapt/adopt the idea of HD in your hand
• iPhone 5 update brings LTE radio + multiple handset sizes to iOS – iOS/Apple is getting hurt due to the fact that they offer primarily 1 phone, in 1 form factor. While you can get the 3GS for free on contract, that phone is no longer competitive against today’s budget Android devices.
• Apple releases 7″ iPad – while Steve Jobs thought this space held nothing of value, the Kindle Fire and Nook Color have proved him wrong. Apple needs a device that is more reading friendly than the larger iPad, and will roll something out to avoid missing this market share.
• iPad maintains 55+% share of tablet space – despite tablets made by everyone out there, the iPad will maintain the lion’s share of the tablet market – at least for 2012.
• Sprint or T-Mobile releases “family data plans” – in which every device you own shares pool of data. T-Mobile tried to remain viable by selling out to AT&T, Sprint gambled on WiMax (and lost). Both of these networks need SOMETHING to keep them viable in the mobile business.
• RIM is out, and Microsoft will do anything to be more than an afterthought – BlackBerry is hemorrhaging mobile share, they offer no differentiators for consumers and are starting to lose corporate accounts as well. Microsoft tore through the videogame world with the Xbox/Xbox360 through a commitment to development and massive use of cash. However, lack of quality devices and carrier commitment have left Windows Phone lagging far behind Android/iOS.

Consumer Technology:

• Apple releases iTVs (to compete with Google TV) – These will have Apple TVs built into real monitors – will most likely run iOS 5/6 (depending on release) and will likely integrate DVD (maybe even Blu-Ray)
• Google TV reaches ICS – the Google TV platform is really neat – and offers some cool things to do with your TV. However, it is like 3D – not quite enough content to be ready to roll, but the integration of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Hulu Plus make it viable
• 3D TV remains on the fringes – Rolling out a new standard is all about content. 3D in the home is not ready, because there is not enough content.
• Streaming to the living room becomes a bigger deal – as “cable cutters” proliferate, devices like Roku, Boxee, Apple TV and Google TV become more widespread. It used to be that cable was a necessity, and internet a luxury, it is now becoming quite the opposite.

Enterprise Technology

• As the Bring Your Own Device (or Bring Your Device To Work) phenomenon continues, IT administrators scramble to provide virtualized environments on devices to employees – these efforts will be supported by  security professionals – but the proliferation of personal devices on enterprise networks will lead to a few major security issues – yet will result in stronger security capabilities for distributed devices.
• Enterprises will be making concerted efforts to outsource (to the cloud!) – Outsourcing desktops, infrastructures and platforms to the cloud will provide great flexibility and agility to IT administrators. This outsourcing will bring down the costs of IT labor and divisions as a whole. There are many concerns associated with cloud – but these will be swept under the rug as monetary savings and business process benefits take the spot light.
• As the Federal Government moves to cloud based services, there will be growing pains – enormous growing pains. NIST is working hard to create frameworks and standards for governmental cloud capabilities. This will change the way IT services are rolled out and offered to both govvies and citizens.

Social Media

• The big 3 of 2011 were Facebook, Stumbleupon and Twitter - they defined the way we interact with friends, find and curate content, and share.
• Facebook will continue to define our online social interactions - as much as everyone complains about Facebook/Chat/Timeline, they are on it, and on it to stay.
• Stumbleupon will continue to outperform Reddit/Pinterest/etc - it has the best mobile experience, and great sharing options, if you don’t use it, get on it now, and follow me (Kamauff).
• Twitter is the news sources of choice, as well the disseminator of links - we all use Twitter, it’s likely you found this site on Twitter, and that won’t go away. People will keep using Twitter for snarky comments, news and sharing links – but the character limit will create issues in the future.

So what did I miss? I welcome all comments/thoughts/complaints disagreements!

Related articles

• Alex’s 2012 Tech Predictions (ctovision.com)
• Which Technology Team Will You Be On? (ctolabs.com)
• A look at the Google Ecosystem (bobgourley.com)

Come explore the future with me, but be warned, the future is a big place, and 2012 is a small slice of time. It’s hard to be sure what the future holds, or how quickly the tech world will change. While I see all of the bellow predictions coming to pass sooner rather than later, I can’t promise we won’t be too busy playing with Siri in the coming year to enact all of these changes. That said, here is what I see on the horizon for 2012:

We will finally talk about cybersecurity in the present tense: Calling 2011 “The Year of the Hack” may have been a bit overblown. LulzSec and Anonymous conducted some very high-profile attacks, but they were only revolutionary or critical in the amount of media coverage they gave “hacktivists.” And after all was said and done, the biggest change that came out of the massive WikiLeaks insider threat was to USB policy rather than foreign policy, though once again, information security made it to the headlines.  The hacks that really matter were, as expected, too shadowy to say much about. Stuxnet and Duqu are well over a year old, credit card theft is difficult to track, and while costly intrusions are a growing concern in industry, it’s hard to say whether that’s due to an increased threat or awareness.  We also hear talk of increasingly bold intrusions by China, and Iran has recently claimed to have taken down our favorite weapons system through cyber.

Cyber crime and espionage may not have changed dramatically over the past year, but the attention that they receive has. It’s no longer an issue of hitting the snooze button after each cyber wake up call as cyber is a leading concern for government, industry, the public, and the international community. 2012 shows that despite all the cuts to security budgets, spending on cyber is expected to remain the same or increase slightly across government.  While in the past CIOs, CTOs, and CISOs struggled to justify cyber spending, an investment in network security will become the default in the coming year, especially if high-profile breaches and leaks continue. And, as the debunked Illinois water plant SCADA attacks show, rather than ignoring the seriousness of cyber, we are ready to jump to that conclusion, and countries like Iran are using alleged cyber attacks to garner international prestige. Though it may take more time to formulate a rational response, in 2012 we will no longer be talking about the threat of cyber in the future tense and “what ifs”". 2012 will be the year that the mainstream accepts the importance on cybersecurity for today’s government and enterprise.

From the PC to the device to...  Desktops and laptops won’t go obsolete in 2012, if ever, but their dominance as computing platform of choice will continue to decline, especially in certain fields like entertainment. To start, smartphones will likely become the most common type of mobile phone this year, as they already had an almost 40% share of the mobile market in November. Tablets are also becoming more and more mainstream, and will continue growing more common as they are now diversifying across the cost, performance, and size spectrum. At the same time, these devices are becoming increasingly powerful and applications are adding to their capabilities. And, it looks like more and more workplaces, including the government, are embracing mobile and the consumerization of IT. Soon, most Americans will be walking around with fairly sophisticated computers on them at all times, connected via 3G (or 4G, eventually) and WiFi.

This will have several major consequences. Clever apps will become revolutionary, as they will be accessible by almost anyone from almost anywhere. Expect to see more work in augmented reality, for example, and a greater reliance on cloud services. Mobile security will also take center stage as the prevalence of mobile devices outpaces defense and enterprises are faced with a much broader attack surface.

But tablets and smartphones are only a halfway point in the trend towards greater mobility.  Even the best smartphone has a tiny screen, meaning that you need to bring your tablet if you intend to do serious reading or jot down notes, but to really compose and create rather than consume, you still need to go home to your PC or lug around your laptop. This is less a limitation of the device’s capabilities, as my smartphone has a notepad and the phones of tomorrow should be able to handle fairly advanced word processing, let alone the tablets, than of devices themselves. In 2012, I expect more decoupling of devices, software, and applications through cloud computing, software-as-a-service, and thin clients. It will remain a fringe technology trend, but I expect that in the coming year, we’ll move closer to the vision of accessing your “computer” from any screen and interface available to you.

Cloud goes from “if” to “when” and “how”: This year, industry and federal agencies still debated whether they would switch embrace public or private clouds, dealing with concerns over service, availability, and most of all security. But as IT budgets continue to shrink or stagnate  in the public and private sector and cloud computing technology matures, we’re already seeing a shift in the debate.  For example, the NDAA will require cloud computing solutions as a cost saving measure for government agencies. That doesn’t mean old concerns will disappear, however. Organizations will still need to determine whether a private cloud, public cloud, or some combination of the two is right for them, and what they want to migrate into it. At the same time, a growing reliance in cloud computing will encourage more solutions for security problems and new approaches. In 2012, expect to see both cloud computing and cloud solutions rise sharply.

Related articles

• The Cybersecurity “Wake Up Call” and the Snooze Button (ctovision.com)
• The PC is Changing Before Our Eyes (bobgourley.com)
• Adam’s 2012 Tech Predictions (ctovision.com)

Please +1 this article...I'll be your very best Google+ friend!!!

Recently, Dillon Behr (@dbehr24) wrote a great piece about how the consumer technology ecosystem has almost completely fractured – breaking into walled gardens. Those of Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft and the rest are all creating ecosystems with low barriers to entry, but even higher barriers to exit. This post is the first in a series where we will examine each ecosystem in depth.

What does Google Have?

Google is one of the largest email providers out there. They have been growing immensely, and now are the de facto provider for the 17-25 age group. They offer cloud storage (of sorts) and obviously own the search market (just “google it”). YouTube is the only true distributor of online video content (and it’s own verb as well). Along with Facebook, they have the most used chat function (Talk). They have started in on Google Voice (which is great, so long as your cell provider supports it). Google offers their Apps domain, which offers desktop publishing (and collaboration), in the cloud. Google offers its own browser, Chrome, not to mention an operating system, Chrome OS. Google has recently launched their Music offering, enabling cloud storage of your tunes (no questions as to where you found them), and purchase in the Google Market. There is Google+, which appears to be a strange mix of Twitter and Facebook (but has recently picked up a HUGE amount of traction). As well Google Maps is undeniably the best map solution (desktop and mobile). Google has GoogleTV, which I’m still not sure what it really does, but they have it. Last, but not least, there is Android, the most common smartphone operating system in the world.

These are just a few of the Google Offerings

What does Google’s Ecosystem look like?

Google’s ecosystem is (in my mind) the most open of all that we will examine. They openly publish APIs so you can use their services without ever visiting their sites. Google has applications for most of their services on iOS and other operating systems. While Google has their own OS, it really still seems like a toy (and has yet to be proven anything else). Google’s ecosystem is open, yet defined, and accessible as long as you are connected. That is part of the hit on Google – you must be connected to access their services. While this was (and still is true) in part, they are moving to support both online and offline services.

Strengths of Google’s Ecosystem

Everyone's favorite robot headlines some of Google's offerings

As previously mentioned, Google’s smartphone operating system is number one in the world. Over 600,000 devices are activated DAILY. They are the low-cost OS of choice, with flexibility across a range of devices and specifications. Google also possesses the number search engine in the US. It is so popular as to become a verb. Additionally, their Apps capability is starting to gain traction in the Federal Government, and as it is free to Non-Profit agencies, it is doing well there. Google offers low barriers to entry, and maintains few barriers to exit. Anything created in their Apps domain is exportable to Microsoft Office formats and PDF. Google has their hands in a bit of everything, and does most of them well. I don’t think that their Chrome OS will ever take off, primarily because Android/iOS own much more attractive stories. Google’s key strength is their willingness to try new things, to debut products that might not have a market (or be 100% polished) but that could grow into something new.

Weaknesses of Google’s Ecosystem

Due to their openness, Google is one of the ecosystems of choice for smartphones. However, the user experience has often been decried. Thus, hardware manufacturers have been “skinning” the Android experience, and in the process, creating a tougher atmosphere for patching and updates. This has led to Android being fractured. By fractured I mean that there are hundreds of Android devices out there, and they are not all on the same version of the operating system. This fractured ecosystem means that not all users get the latest and greatest Google additions, and even if they do get them, they definitely do not get timely updates. This has led to some security issues (which our very own @Crypt0s wrote about here).  Additionally, the reliance on network connectivity (which brings all the Google goodness) will have to move to some more client based computing or capabilities.

Summary of Google’s Position

Google occupies an unique position in the market. They are the biggest name in search, in Mobile OS, yet they do not sell physical products. Most of their income is from services, which differentiates them from others in the market. At the end of the day, Google’s Android is taking over in the Mobile arena, and will be the defining operating system for the next few years. The true test will be how well Google can continue to leverage their free services to make money, and provide these services to users.

Related articles

• Android Devices now number 190M Worldwide (ctolabs.com)
• Will the Amazon Kindle Fire further fracture Android? Or do just the opposite? (bobgourley.com)
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Prediction is a messy game. Especially in a field that is often characterized by a state of punctuated equilibrium—long periods of stasis and then rapid disruptions. However, I will toss my hat into the ring. 

The geopolitics of cybersecurity will take center stage. Certain visitors from the Land of the Pandas have been stealing a lot of our things. We’ve known they are stealing our things for a while. So what’s going to change? The increasingly aggressive nature of cyber-reconaissance and cyber-theft by geopolitical competitors is coming at a time of growing tension in the non-tech world. DOD’s concern over cyberwarfare is propelled by its larger anxiety over the anti-acccess/maritime denial challenge and a shift in the dynamics of the power game in the Pacific. Expect cyber to become more of a diplomatic and strategic issue, seen largely through the lens of Pacific geopolitics.

Mark Zuckerbeg will continue to build a user-populated total information awareness engine, and users will complain vigorously–but let him do it anyway. With every Facebook upgrade, the company moves closer towards the Platonic ideal of a complete database of one’s personal life. But no reasonable alternative exists–and users will complain without actually taking any steps to seriously deter the company from continuing to erode privacy. Expect more invasive platform changes.

A high-profile mobile device security breach will occur. Given the panoply of security problems with the introduction of networked mobile devices into the workplace, an truly embarrassing security breach may be one of the unavoidable growing pains. Within the federal or defense industry world such a breach may temporarily retard the growth of the mobile federal ecosystem.

Single-author blogs will continue their slide into the abyss. Unless you are a recognized figure in a certain community of practice or have a corporate sponsor (such as a magazine or think-tank), you are unlikely to generate much value out of your blog. Multiple-author blogs generate high page views and provide an interplay that keeps unique visitors coming back for more. The professionalization of blogging and the rise of sponsored content further hurts single-author blogs. Of course, there is a “long tail” effect that some can exploit.

Swarms will continue to grow as important as networks. The dominant metaphor for the information age is the network. But swarming will increasingly be enabled by technologies that allow one human to control masses of autonomous machines. As John  notes, this is true of both drones and botnets.

Related articles

• Tech of #OccupyWallStreet (ctolabs.com)
• Tech Review for November 2011 (ctolabs.com)
• DOD must redesign its network defenses, cyber chief says (bobgourley.com)

For the second post in the CTOVision summary of the McKinsey report on Big Data, we take a look at the impact of Big Data on production, supply, and logistics. When we discuss Big Data, there’s often an implicit assumption that it has to do entirely with IT functions. However, Big Data actually will have a large impact on manufacturing value chains.

While the manufacturing sector has historically been a driver of GDP and employment for many developed economies, globalization has made it a global activity with extended supply chains made possible by advances in information and communications technology as well as reduced transportation and market entry costs. This has resulted in incredibly complex and fragmented webs of globe-spanning chains, and increasing country specialization in specific changes of the production process. Manufacturers, in turn, have assembled global production and supply chain networks for cost advantage.

I don't think anyone outside of the flash memory world had heard of Anobit before this week

Recently, Apple announced their purchase of Israeli flash memory producer, Anobit. The proposed purchase would be $500M (just a drop in the bucket of their $81B cash reserves). However, this purchase has long-reaching implications on not only their mobile/tablet portfolio, but also their computing capabilities.

Mobile/Tablet Implications

Apple has long insisted that removeable media was unnecessary, and have kept it out of their products. However, it is only recently that I believe this is possible. The promulgation of cloud services, as well the final roll out of LTE networks have made local storage almost a thing of the past. Of course, LTE networks are not omnipresent (nor are 3G even). I imagine this will lessen the cost of iPhones and iDevices to Apple (certainly not for the consumer) and may produce some performance gains (if Apple pours R&D funds into Anobit).

Apple uses lack of removeable media as a reason to upsell iDevices

Computing Implications

Apple was the first mainstream computer manufacturer to put SSDs in their computers (the MacBook Air). Since then they have made SSDs a key addition to their architecting, boosting the performance capabilities of their computers. An investment in flash memory production leads me to believe that Apple will be putting flash storage into all of their computers. Quick-boot capabilities have been used extensively on netbooks and high-power motherboards, but only the super geeky use them for every day computing. I think it entirely possible that Apple is trying to create fastboot capabilities for all of their computer offerings.

The Macbook Air is a great example of the benefits of SSD technology

Overall thoughts on the purchase

I think Apple is working hard to take control over their supply chain. As well, they are responding to the myriad of pressures that emanate from Asian sourcing. Apple has received a couple shiners in the media regarding the Foxconn situation. The chance to own part of their supply chain, as well as increase their corporate image should not be passed up. Lastly, Apple is sitting on a huge amount of cash reserves, and I foresee similar purchases in the near future.

Related articles

• Is it time to buy a new iPhone 4S without LTE? (ctovision.com)
• US DoD Consults Former Hacker Charlie Miller on Cyber Security (ctolabs.com)
• Which Technology Team Will You Be On? (bobgourley.com)

Created by a 16 year old, Summly is pretty amazing.

Check out this blog post over on GIGAOM (here).

The topic, Nick D’Aloisio, has created Summly, an iPhone app, which does this;

“Summari[z]es content into a digestible format that can be easily consumed to allow for a relevant and productive web browsing experience.”

Unlike Google Currents (post here), which re-formats news feeds and sites into better organized and easily readable content, Summly uses “ontological detection and machine learning techniques.” These techniques allow them to instantly summarize any Webpage or Article – integrated into Mobile Safari (or other apps via their API).

While the article is mostly a summary of Nick’s life (and how he got there), I think Summly, the app, is a great discussion topic. Unlike many apps which don’t integrate well with others, nor do they offer their API out there for consumption, Summly is open to allowing others to use their capabilities. This will (hopefully) provide some quality apps.

Summly puts big pages (with lots of words) into little words on your little screen.

Nick insists he will remain CEO for a while yet, because he is intent on aligning the application to his vision. This will be key to seeing the firm grow – and Summly will be an firm to keep an eye on. Summly has seen success in a variety of languages, including: English, French, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, German, Swedish, Mandarin, Russian, Japanese and Finnish.

Of course, the only thing I want to know is if Summly will be  coming out for Android.

Check out Summly the company, here.

The application, here.