Ann Bednarz

Mobile devices are multiplying and -- sanctioned or unsanctioned -- finding their way onto corporate networks. For IT pros, the influx of personal mobile devices to the corporate network is raising security concerns, creating management challenges, and swamping the help desk with support calls.

In a survey of 400 IT pros jointly conducted by Network World and SolarWinds, respondents shared a wide range of tactics for handling the mobile device management challenge.

When Mexico takes on Colombia in a soccer match tomorrow at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, operations staff at the stadium will be able to tap into metrics such as visitor traffic patterns and concession stand spending to keep the event running smoothly. The soccer match will be the first live test of a new analytics platform deployed by the Miami Dolphins, whose home field is this stadium

The Dolphins teamed with IBM to deploy the cloud-based software, which taps into existing information sources and crunches the data to make it easier for stadium staff to be proactive about potentially disruptive events, such as parking bottlenecks, concession stand inventory shortages, and inclement weather.

To some U.S. workers, telecommuting is a higher priority than many of life's perks, including raises, vacation time, shopping and social media.

Among 2,630 workers surveyed, a significant percentage said they'd be willing to make certain sacrifices in order to be able to work from home. Among the amenities they're willing to do without are: social media (cited by 34%), texting (30%), chocolate (29%), smartphones (25%), shopping (20%), a salary increase (17%), half of vacation days (15%) and daily showers (12%). A small number (5%) said they'd even be willing to give up their spouse in order to telecommute.

IBM retained its patent crown for 2011, topping the list of patent winners for the 19th year in a row. The only other U.S. company to make the top 10, Microsoft fell from third place to sixth place, according to data from IFI Claims Patent Services.

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If an online shopper is using an iPad to browse retail sites, that shopper is likely to make more purchases and spend more money than someone using an Android device or a PC to shop online.

"The iPad user is converting -- meaning they're buying something -- almost twice as frequently as other mobile users," says John Squire, chief strategy officer at IBM Coremetrics. "Not only do they buy more frequently than other mobile users (iPhone and Android users) when they're in an online store, but they also buy more than the average PC shopper or average mobile shopper."

All eyes are on Google's Chrome browser as it battles Mozilla's Firefox in a tight fight for the No. 2 position behind Microsoft's Internet Explorer, which is holding onto its market-leading share of the desktop browser market.

"In September 2009, Chrome was at 2.35% for worldwide usage. As of September 2011, it's now at 23.61%. There's been a massive increase for Chrome," says Aodhan Cullen, CEO of StatCounter, a web analytics firm in Ireland.

The pull of social media is proving hard to resist. Even some of the most buttoned-down institutions are rethinking bans and relaxing access to social networks and social media sites.

The highly regulated financial services industry, for instance, has been slower than most industries to adopt social media, but the potential to tap new prospects via social networking has firms moving past the "wait and see" stage. When Socialware surveyed 144 financial advisers this year, 84% said they use social networks for business purposes, up from 60% in 2010. Another 10% said they plan to use social media in the future.

Seasoned networking pros are in an enviable position, according to Robert Half Technology. The tech staffing firm includes systems and networking engineers among the top five tech professionals that companies are currently looking to hire.

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CEO Steve BallmerMicrosoft CEO Steve Ballmer received compensation valued at $1.38 million this year, according to documents filed this week with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. His total package is up roughly 2% compared to 2010, when he received compensation valued at $1.35 million.

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