Rulers of the Cloud: Will Cloud Computing Be the Second Coming of Cisco?
Cisco is betting heavily on the network as the platform. We took a look at the role of the network in the emerging landscape of cloud computing as part one of analysis of "Will One Company be Dominant in Cloud Computing". We started with Cisco, since the cloud implies the network to float upon.
Like religion itself, Cisco is a company that evokes deep emotions. Many IT leaders believe in Cisco and bet their operations on the company. And to unbelievers, using Cisco gear is one of the deadly sins.
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Following that analogy, on the first day, there was IP. And the Internet was formed. And on the second day there was virtualization, and the virtual machine was born. On day three there was pay-as-you-go computing, and Amazon released EC2. On day four, the iPhone was released. And there was rejoicing.
We're not sure yet what will happen on days five and six - but on the seventh day, there was a globally interconnected cloud, powered by the Internet, IP, and more than likely, Cisco gear. In Cisco's prophecy, this leads to The Human Network.
Cloud Computing is the Next Version of the Internet
Cisco enjoyed massive benefits in the first phase of the Internet in the late 1990s. Its gear powered the Internet, and the market rewarded the company for its leadership. Cisco's business was built by the enterprise and their huge appetites for interconn/> [...]
Fri Feb 19, 2010 14:25 pm
Why Use Social Media For Public Relations
Recently, I presented at PubCon on the intersection of social media and PR. The session title was “experts on PR and Twitter,” however the session description went on to discuss a variety of networks. Therefore my interpretation was to speak on the intersection of social media and PR, and not just PR and Twitter.
The social web is far more than just Twitter, and if Twitter is the extent of your participation you’re missing out. Lee’s diagram of social media and channels of distribution presents a visualization of a strong approach, where the centerpiece is a blog. The centerpiece could be anything of course, not just a blog – but the essential element is that it’s a place you control and not an external network. Using Twitter or any network you don’t control as the centerpiece is a mistake, because you’re building the value of a digital asset that isn’t really yours (no analytics, no control, no SEO benefit and if that network falls out of favor all your hard work is devalued).
Additionally, while today we speak about channel-specific PR or marketing, the future will be different. Traditional and digital PR will merge and it will just be seen as PR.
A quote from William Gibson adds clarity to this:
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Mon Nov 16, 2009 07:20 am
Amazon Allows Some Publishers and Authors to Opt Out of E-Book DRM
Amazon quietly made a major change to its Digital Text Platform last week that went largely unnoticed: small publishers and individual authors who use the Digital Text Platform can now opt out of the Kindle's digital rights management (DRM) program. While this change only affects a relatively small number of publishers and authors for now, this move could hint at a larger change in Amazon's DRM policy. Right now, Amazon's DRM policy means that its customers can't transfer their books to a non-Kindle e-reader.
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For Amazon, it makes sense to experiment with this new option on the Digital Text Platform. Given that this is a self-publishing tool, the company doesn't have to explain this change to its partners in the publishing industry while allowing the company to experiment with a DRM-free solution. Most publishing houses tend to be very conservative when it comes to DRM-free e-book solutions. In the self-publishing world, however, DRM-free books are very common. Self-pulishing platform Smashwords, for example, doesn't even offer a DRM solution.
Right now, you can't take your Kindle e-books to a Sony Reader, for example. While the Kindle is a huge success for Amazon, the current DRM solution is surely /> [...]
Thu Jan 21, 2010 10:05 am
Google: Voters Want Gov't To Consider Google Apps
Polls are tricky things under the best of circumstances, and extra caution is necessary when the results of a poll appear to favor the same company that sponsored it. However, Google seems to have demonstrated that a significant majority of Americans are interested in seeing their state and local governments adopt Google Apps.
Working on behalf of Google, the Clarus Research Group conducted telephone interviews with 1,000 American voters. It found that 92 percent of those individuals believe "public agencies should make better use of new technologies to cut government spending and improve efficiency."
Then Clarus revealed in an official release, "When told the 'City of Los Angeles contracted out the hosting and management of its e-mail system to Google, and was able to improve services and save over a million dollars a year as a result,' 72% of voters said they want their state and local governments to seriously consider doing the same with their e-mail systems."
And due to a lack of vague wording, that second statistic is much harder to dismiss.
The publication of these findings represents a fairly serious push on Google's part to increase the market share of Google Apps. Polls aren't cheap, and asking voters to contact politicians (as a new post on the Official Google Enterprise Blog does) is a significant step. Microsoft and other competitors may need to watch out.
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Tue May 25, 2010 13:55 pm
