Tony is principal analyst with the Bradley Strategy Group, providing analysis and insight on tech trends. He is a prolific writer on a range of technology topics, has authored a number of books, and is a frequent speaker at industry events. More by Tony Bradley
Paul Henry, security and forensic analyst at Lumension, says, “It’s going to be a rough Valentine’s Day for many IT admins this month. With ongoing issues with Java and 12 bulletins from Microsoft, including 5 critical issues and many restarts, it’s going to be a very disruptive Patch Tuesday.”
Microsoft released 12 security bulletins for the February 2013 Patch TuesdayRead more »
Tony is principal analyst with the Bradley Strategy Group, providing analysis and insight on tech trends. He is a prolific writer on a range of technology topics, has authored a number of books, and is a frequent speaker at industry events. More by Tony Bradley
BlackBerry customers are at a crossroads: Either stick with BlackBerry or switch to some other smartphone platform. If you’re still using a BlackBerry, then you’ve probably grown tired of watching the smartphone world pass you by. However, the new BlackBerry 10 OS is here, and the BlackBerry Z10 is selling fairly well out of the gate.
Let me be clear; I'm not arguing whether people in the market for a new smartphone should consider a BlackBerry Z10 over, say, an iPhone 5 or Samsung Galaxy SIII. That's certainly a debate worth having, but I'm focusing specifically on whether existing BlackBerry customers should stay the course. If you're on the fence, here are arguments both in favor of and against staying loyal to BlackBerry.
Reasons to stay the course
Reasons to defect
On the other hand, maybe you've had enough of sticking with BlackBerry as it struggles to reinvent itself. The relevance of its smartphone platform has plummeted in recent years, as RIM was too arrogant to recognize the challenges posed by iOS and Android. There’s a lot to like about the new BlackBerry 10 and Z10 handset, but it’s all too little, too late. Here's why you should drop the brand:
Tony is principal analyst with the Bradley Strategy Group, providing analysis and insight on tech trends. He is a prolific writer on a range of technology topics, has authored a number of books, and is a frequent speaker at industry events. More by Tony Bradley
Dell is in the process of buying back its shares to become a privately held companyonce again. Microsoft helped facilitate Dell's $24.4 billion deal, with a $2 billion investment that makes the two tech giants partners of sorts. This is either the last gasp of desperation for PCs as we know it, or a sign that Dell and Microsoft still have innovative tricks up their proverbial sleeves.
We’ve been hearing for years about the "post-PC" era. Bill Gates originally coined the term in 1999 in an op-ed for Newsweek. Since Gates first declared the beginning of the "post-PC" era, PC sales have tripled.
Tony is principal analyst with the Bradley Strategy Group, providing analysis and insight on tech trends. He is a prolific writer on a range of technology topics, has authored a number of books, and is a frequent speaker at industry events. More by Tony Bradley
Petr Merkulov explains Kaspersky Endpoint Security for Business.
Companies have to manage security across a wide range of issues and threats. Operating systems and applications have to be patched and updated. Active monitoring needs to be in place to identify and block malware threats. Data needs to be protected to prevent exposure or compromise. Mobile devices and the BYOD (bring your own device) trend represent a new frontier of concerns.
Kaspersky intends to simplify the process for all of the above issues. Its new Endpoint Security for Business merges all of these functions into one product so that small and midsize business IT managers can see and control every aspect of security from one console.
Tony is principal analyst with the Bradley Strategy Group, providing analysis and insight on tech trends. He is a prolific writer on a range of technology topics, has authored a number of books, and is a frequent speaker at industry events. More by Tony Bradley
Rumors have been floating around for some time that Microsoft is hard at work developing Microsoft Office apps for iOS—or more specifically for the Apple iPad. Speculation about Office for iOS has grown following the launch of Office 2013 and the new Office 365, but Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer appears to have squashed that dream for the time being.
When asked about progress on Office apps for iOS, Ballmer responded, "We do have a way for people always to get to Office through the browser, which is very important." While that may be technically true, I disagree with Ballmer that it satisfies the need. I’ve been a champion of Office for iOS since the iPad first came out. Here are three reasons Microsoft needs to release native Microsoft Office apps for iOS and Android:
Use on multiple devices is part of the value of Office 365. Read more »
Tony is principal analyst with the Bradley Strategy Group, providing analysis and insight on tech trends. He is a prolific writer on a range of technology topics, has authored a number of books, and is a frequent speaker at industry events. More by Tony Bradley
Malware attacks have taken on new meaning over the last few years. Businesses and consumers are more or less used to the day-in and day-out of Trojans, phishing scams and such, but a new breed of much more complex and sophisticated threats has changed the game.
The Stuxnet and Duqu worms, as well as Flame, Gauss and Red October malware all appear to have been developed by nation states or well-organized terrorist groups. Each has had specific goals and precise targets. Unless you’re specifically in the crosshairs of one of these cyber espionage attacks, you have nothing to worry about, right? Not exactly.
Cyber espionage can have an impact beyond its intended target.Read more »
Tony is principal analyst with the Bradley Strategy Group, providing analysis and insight on tech trends. He is a prolific writer on a range of technology topics, has authored a number of books, and is a frequent speaker at industry events. More by Tony Bradley
The new Microsoft Office is here. As with the previous versions, you can get Word, Excel, PowerPoint and more as a locally installed suite of applications or as Office 365, a cloud-based subscription. However, choosing between Office 2013 desktop software and the new Office 365 is a dramatically different decision than in the past.
This time, there is virtually no decision to make. Comparing Office 2013 to Office 365 is an exercise in semantics; Microsoft has significantly stacked the deck to favor one over the other.
Microsoft has given Office 365 a clear advantage over Office 2013.Read more »
