"Disk encryption, which encrypts every bit of data on a hard drive, is a good additional level of defense. However, unless biometric or smart-card authentication is used on the device, it is simply one more password for a hacker or thief to crack."
- Greg Crowe, "After theft, NASA orders laptops encrypted, but is that enough?", GCN.com, November 16, 2012
In the recent times when we developed web properties, it has become standard for us to adhere to "Privacy and Accessibility" guidelines. In some cases, the customers have their own set of privacy and accessibility guidelines, and in other cases the customers expect the implementation agencies to follow the latest standard. In either case the core of these guidelines are laid out of by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
Let us explore the accessibility guidelines a little more, and ask, why and how it is relevant?
It is essential that the Web be accessible in order to provide equal access and equal opportunity to people with diverse abilities
"A well-executed CMS selection process takes into account the needs and desires of both marketing and IT, creating a content management environment that has been optimized for those who are responsible for publishing content as well as those who are responsible for providing technical support."
-John Fairley, Walker Sands Communications, "Don’t Let IT Hijack the CMS", CIO Update, October 3, 2012.
Our good friend Cheryl McKinnon, founder of Candy Strategies, tweeted us about the latest news from the Open Source Alliance of Canada (OSACAN). The alliance is a non-profit organization, founded to promote, foster and sustain the use of open source technology in Canadian government. Yesterday, OSACAN announced the establishment of a center of excellence to promote the use of open source technology in the Canadian public sector.
For your convenience, attached is a copy of the press release regarding this non-profit center to be used for promoting the use of open source in government.
I do not know when it exactly happened, but a number of years ago I decided to become a pacifist. I am a pacifist that is in the war of open source versus proprietary. In my opinion, the debate over licensing and software development processes is only mildly interesting as it is the quality of the end product that matters to me most. I walk the fine line of being an advocate for open source and a defender of proprietary software. Admittedly I've confused a lot of people that have chosen to take sides in this war. However, there is always room for reasonable civil discussions of any topic when new data and new perspective is given.
"Is the next device that we deploy going to be an iPad, is it going to be a Windows or an Android-based tablet?" said Merritt.
That's a question that the IT staff at United will answer in time, but the mere fact that it can investigate all three client device operating systems is a major change for corporate IT.
-Patrick Thibodeau, With Post-PC Era Comes Real OS Competition, CIO.com, October 26, 2012
This month, Google announced that it has officially moved its Apache page speed module, mod_pagespeed, out of beta. For those websites running on the open source Apache HTTP Server, this module speeds up your site and reduces page load time. On the Internet, where user demand quick page rendering, this Apache module automatically applies web performance best practices to pages, and associated assets (CSS, JavaScript, images) without requiring that you modify your existing content or workflow.
"51 percent of respondents, including a majority of Millennials, believe stormy weather can interfere with cloud computing."
Wakefield Research, "Most Americans Confused By Cloud Computing According to National Survey, News Release", Citrix Systems via ZDNet
Change can be a scary thing for employees to face. When you introduce a new Content Management System (CMS) to your employees, the steps you take before, during and after the implementation can make or break the transition. Follow these helpful tips and tricks to teach a new CMS to employees.
I spent most of the last two weeks camping and hiking in the Grand Teton National Park of northwest Wyoming. If you've never visited this national park then take my word on it that Grand Teton is one of the most beautiful places a person can visit in this world. The mountains in this place peak near 13,800 feet and rise from the valley by almost 7,000 feet. Despite the warm summer much of the United States experienced, ice glaciers can still be accessed through a number of day hikes. For anyone that loves the outdoors, this place has everything in the form of wildlife, scenery, and activities. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending from your perspective), what the Grand Teton doesn't have is good 3G or 4G cell phone coverage.