Summer 2012 Grab Bag

Summer Grab Bag

Tech tidbits from Apple to Raspberry Pi, Flames to Flashbacks

It’s summer grab bag time! All kinds of tech stories have crossed my desk over the last few months so it’s time to give some attention to the noteworthy ones.

Mac OS a Security Target

The Apple community has long lived under the delusion that their systems are immune to the security threats that have long plagued Microsoft Windows: viruses, worms, rootkits and botnets.

Last year, many Macs fell victim to an extortionware attack called MacDefender, which infected machines with a fake antivirus software program that asked for money to install “protective software.” This year, a new threat called Flashback enslaved some 600,000 Mac computers into a botnet — a network of hijacked computers for spam, attacks, and the capturing of user identities.

The Mac’s malware grace period is over. Apple’s internal support systems have to play catch-up with the security fixes and patches of Microsoft. Further, Apple’s user-base will have to unlearn its bad habits, beginning with the absurd notion that their systems are immune to computer viruses.

Flame Hits Iran

Two years ago, the Iranian nuclear industry was the target of a rather devious computer worm, now known as Stuxnet, which attacked equipment control systems (made by Siemens) for the operation of industrial equipment. The equipment most affected were components used to make enriched uranium fuel for Iran’s nuclear power plants. While, technically, no one knows who developed the worm, Israel and the United States appear to have had a hand in its development.

This year, the premier antivirus lab in Europe and Russia, Kaspersky, identified a new worm called Flame that carries on the Stuxnet tradition, targeting the nuclear industry equipment of Iran. Some of those movies from the last few decades, like Wargames and Sneakers, don’t seem so far-fetched anymore.

World’s First Driver’s Licence Issued for Driver-less Car

The State of Nevada is the first jurisdiction to officially issue a driver’s licence for a driver-less car. Google received the honour for its computerized Prius. Studies show that automated cars operate more safely than their human-driven counterparts.

In fact, the only driving infraction or safety issue to ever occur with one of Google’s vehicles happened when the human test driver overruled the car. California will likely be the next state to license a Google car.

Google Drive

Speaking of driving and Google, the company just released its latest attempt to provide Cloud-based online storage, called Google Drive, which will allow users to store all kinds of data (files, pictures, music) for use across all kinds of devices (desktops, smartphones and tablets). Google Drive becomes the latest corporate offering for free online storage space. A month or so earlier, Microsoft improved its free cloud virtual storage space, SkyDrive. Their competition is an effort to unseat popular Dropbox as the darling of online storage space.

Raspberry Pi, Anyone?

In the quirky category, UK-based Raspberry Pi Foundation has launched a small, credit card-sized, no-frills circuit board that is capable of playing high definition video, web browsing and document authoring via its Linux-based operating system.  Complete with two USB ports, an HDMI port for outbound audio/video and a secure digital (SD) memory card port, the unit sells for US$35.

The Raspberry Pi was intended as an inexpensive computer to teach children how to program code but its novelty is attracting considerable attention in the U.K. So much so that the two companies making the device for the Foundation have had more demand than they can produce.

ASUS Prototypes First Windows 8 Tablet

Often a leader out of the gate, the Taiwanese electronics maker ASUS has just released specifications for a Windows 8 tablet. The tablet will come with a removable keyboard, to function as a light laptop, and will feature a 10.1 inch screen. It will run on an ARM-based processor, the chip that powers the iPad and some Android tablets, and is supposed to have “days” of battery life (obviously depending on the intensity of its use).

Because of the ARM-based processor, the tablet will sport the Windows RT operating system, a variation of Windows 8 made specifically for devices powered by ARM chips. (For more on Windows 8 and its variations, turn to “Windows 8: Microsoft’s Gamble to Stay in the Game.”)

That’s about it for the current grab bag. With Windows 8 coming out some time this fall, we’ll likely see a lot of development in the smartphone and tablet markets, just in time for the holiday shopping season.

Windows 8: Microsoft's Gamble for your Desktop and Tablet

At a time when many companies are just beginning to move from Windows XP or Vista to Windows 7, Microsoft is planning to release a new operating system this fall called Windows 8. Perhaps the biggest player in the history of computing is making a big-time bet, rolling the dice on a return to relevancy in the 21st century, before players like Apple and Google completely take over the game. 

Windows 8 is Microsoft’s bid to unify desktop and smartphone operating systems and expand into the tablet market. While it may seem that Microsoft is late to the game, neither Apple nor Android operating systems have bridged the business world’s need for seamless connection to corporate systems. They don’t offer a common access-rights system, integrated security, data encryption or, most importantly, a common interface with desktop systems, so there’s still room for a player at the table.

Microsoft is no stranger to tablet computing. But their previous attempts failed because Windows was built with desktop computers in mind. The Windows operating system has not worked well with smaller screens, the mobile experience, lack of keyboard/mouse and the need to connect to a corporate network.

Microsoft hopes to change all that with Windows 8.

The Metro Interface

Let’s start with the start screen. The single biggest change since Windows 95 rolled out, Microsoft has replaced the start button (and associated program menu tree) with a user interface called Metro, which features a whole screen of tiles.

This new start screen is the same concept Microsoft uses in the Windows Phone 7. The tiles allow users to easily select applications (such as Microsoft Office), live data (weather services, stock tickers, flight information) or resources (printers, cloud storage). The interface works well with both cursor devices and touchscreens. And you can customize the menu with your favourite applications and data sources by dragging tiles into new positions, so your most frequently tiles are the ones you see first when you open the Start screen.

If you’re still in love with the old Windows interface, however, you can access it through a tile called Desktop in the start menu.

Fond users of Windows keyboard shortcuts will be pleased to know that shortcuts are instrumental when navigating Metro. Though new shortcuts have been added to the roster of common shortcuts, the Windows key, which has played a significant role since Windows XP, has increased in importance. In Windows 8, for instance, the Windows key allows you to access search (Win-F), settings (Win-W) and special features called “charms” (Win-C), a range of options within the start screen and individual apps.

The Metro interface, however, does not allow you to work on more than one program on your screen at any given time, unless you’re in desktop mode and have a keyboard attached. Yes, you can still multitask, but you can’t resize various applications to work on at the same time.

Instead, you have to flick through all the applications you have open to get from one application to another (which might make copying and pasting a real chore) or use Snap multitasking, which allows you to view two windows at the same time, like a split-screen movie. Sweeping your finger in from the left of the screen opens a second window that shows another app. Dragging the vertical bar that separates the two changes the size of each app.

Domain Join

Domain join is just a fancy name for connecting a device to a network, but it plays an important role in business connectivity: it allows companies to centrally manage access rights and user privileges on mobile devices. Notwithstanding the critical absence of domain join in Windows RT (see sidebar), Windows 8 allows for centralized user-access control and the synchronization of data between devices.

If you don’t have a centralized access authentication server, you can log-in via an account such as Windows Live or MSN, and synchronize data via Microsoft’s cloud services.

Storage Pools

Most of us use a variety of storage devices (memory sticks, external hard drives) to store and transfer computer files. But when one device fills up (sometimes in the middle of transferring a file) you have to plug in another.

Windows 8 allows users to group multiple devices into one “pool” and assign it a drive letter. The various devices don’t have to be of the same size or type. Windows 8 will just combine all the storage space so it appears as one big hard drive. Need more space on that drive? Just plug in another device and add it to the pool. 

But what if one of these drives fails? What happens to the data on it?

Windows 8 allows you to specify the data’s “resiliency,” which means your data will be treated as mirrored drive, and you can store copies of all your data to at least two different physical storage media. Why is this important?

Because you’ll have a backup of your data in the event that you lose or damage a memory device, and because configuring two or more drives used to be an expensive protection measure, too prohibitive in cost for SMEs, which can now benefit from the storage pool option.

BranchCache 

Microsoft is betting that its credibility with business users will help Windows 8 compete with Android and Apple, but in order to do so it must enable road warriors to access their corporate networks and file libraries. The industry practice is to invoke a virtual private network connection (VPN) that extends a “bubble” of the corporate network outwards to the end-user.

But Windows 8 aims to enable access without the need for a VPN, most likely by synchronizing folders on your hard drive with folders on your corporate network once network connections are established, a system of syncing akin to popular cloud storage sites like Dropbox.

Windows-to-Go

How’d you like to carry a bootable version of Windows on a USB key that you could install in any computer anywhere? Well, that’s the concept behind a Windows 8 Enterprise feature called Windows-to-Go, which allows companies to give offsite or temporary workers all the software, data and settings they need to work, as long as they can find a device with the proper hardware. It provides users with a Windows version that can mirror the corporate desktop and launch without compromising file systems. 

XP Mode

XP Mode was a very popular and handy virtual machine, available in some versions of Windows 7, that allowed users to run a considerable portion of their older Windows software. Windows 8 does not offer XP Mode but it does provide a more powerful virtualization system called Hyper-V. Previously available only in server-based editions of Windows, Hyper-V is an especially handy tool for those who wish to run multiple operating systems on a single computer, typically for testing and development purposes. Users will have to purchase previous versions of Windows to install if they wish to use the visualization feature.

Time to Show Your Hand

Let’s put our cards on the table.

Microsoft is making a big gamble. It still wants to be the biggest player in operating systems, dominating and crushing the competition just like it used to, back in the day. But here we are in the 21st Century. Apple and Android own the smartphone and tablet market, and people keep saying that the desktop is done like dinner.

So Microsoft had a choice. It could develop two new operating systems — one for desktops and one for mobile devices — or it could develop a new system with a common interface. Some say Windows 8 will return Microsoft to relevancy. Others say it may work on mobiles but will fail on desktops. And that may cost some high-profile people their jobs.

High stakes indeed.

Microsoft has chosen to show its hand, rather than fold and go home.

SIDEBAR

Windows 8: Less is More?

For decades, customers have complained that “there are too many versions of the OS,” and finally Microsoft has listened: it has streamlined the product line considerably. As far as users in North America are concerned, only four versions will be released of Windows 8:

Windows 8

Like the old “home edition,” plain and simple Windows 8 is aimed for the home market and can be purchased from retail outlets. Rather than describe what’s in basic version, it’s easier to look at Windows 8 Pro and conclude what is not included in Windows 8.

Windows 8 Pro

 Like the old “Professional/Ultimate” versions, Pro is targeted to the computer enthusiast and to business organizations. It includes the capability of acting as a remote desktop server, file encryption at a system level, Hyper-V virtual machine engine, BitLocker encryption, and the ability to attach to a Windows Server Domain and group policy configuration. Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro are the only versions that can be purchased at a retail level.

Windows 8 Enterprise

Not available in stores, Enterprise can only be acquired if you have a Software Assurance licence purchased directly from Microsoft. Intended for the commercial group licence customer, Enterprise has all the Pro features plus tools to assist IT managers with deploying and managing machines.

Windows RT

A special version of Windows 8 for devices powered by ARM microprocessors, the chips that power iPads and some Android tablets, popular because they can run heavy applications but don’t suck up batteries. Windows RT will share the interface capabilities of Windows 8 and will come bundled with touch-optimized versions of Microsoft Office applications, but when it comes to the practice of “domain join,” Windows RT rolls snake eyes. 

Neither Apple nor Android devices feature domain join. Windows does but Windows RT won’t carry it. Microsoft had a real opportunity to call Apple’s bluff. They blew it.

A Consumer Preview of Windows 8

Microsoft’s post-PC strategy to compete with Android and Apple

In the desktop computing world, many users are just getting their first exposure to Windows 7, even though that operating system has been around for a few years now.

So it may seem strange that Microsoft is releasing a new edition of Windows this fall. I’ve been playing around with the Consumer Preview edition of Windows 8 for a few weeks now and have some initial impressions to share.

Metro: Merging Desktops & Mobiles 

The first thing you notice about Windows 8 is how radically different it looks from previous versions. Unless you’ve used a Windows-based Phone or an Xbox, this may be the first time you’ve encountered a new Windows interface: Metro.

How to describe it? Metro is a mosaic of flat, “live” tiles that vary in size and colour. What it resembles (if you haven’t used it already on a Windows Phone such as the Nokia’s Lumia 800, or the Xbox 360 dashboard) is the screen of applications you’re used to seeing on an Android or Apple mobile device.

Right from the start, there’s a tile with the current date, time, and weather next to your location. Beside it is another tile for solitaire. Next to that is a tile for checking SkyDrive files. And between these, another tile that takes me to a conventional Windows program interface, if the touch-centric tile interface isn’t working for me.

But where’s the start button? If you’re in the conventional Windows interface, it takes a moment to realise that Microsoft has ditched the start button. No orb, button or anything — the left corner of the taskbar is empty.

Why? Good question, because it leads to a broader discussion about the principal reason for the launch of Windows 8, which is to provide consumers with the same user interface on all computing devices — desktops, mobile devices and tablets — running Windows operating systems.

Microsoft has had a “come to Jesus” moment. They’ve seen  the future and it has nothing to do with your boring old desktop PC. It’s all about tablets and smartphones now, and Microsoft is about to go to war with Android and Apple.

The Post-PC World

Rumour has it that Microsoft will launch a Windows-based tablet just in time for the Q4 holiday shopping season. Its partner is Nokia, the Finnish mobile maker now run by a Canadian CEO and former Microsoft employee, Stephen Elop.

Nokia was on its last legs when Microsoft came calling with a whack of cash and an offer Nokia couldn’t refuse: forget your Symbian operating system, concentrate on developing the Windows system for mobile use, and we’ll fund the launch of a new line of smartphones and tablets.

In February 2011, Nokia launched the Lumia, which runs on the Windows Phone 7 operating system. For all its positive reviews, its buzz has been lost in the adulation poured upon the Apple iPhone. Now, just as Statements goes to press, the two companies have released the new Lumia 900 — on Easter Sunday. To say that the PC press has been sarcastic is an understatement.

The New York Times reported that “nearly all 39 AT&T stores within proximity of Times Square in Manhattan were either closed for Easter Sunday or did not answer phone calls. The few that were open did not have the handset in stock.”

What a marketing disaster, which doesn’t bode well for the release of the rumoured Nokia 10-inch tablet in Q4 2012. But maybe Microsoft doesn’t care. If the Windows 8 operating system proves successful it will be adopted by companies such as Dell and HP. And Microsoft has the cash (more than $50-billion in cash reserves, held outside the U.S.) to buy Nokia outright, with some loose change left over to buy Research in Motion.

The Battle Heats Up 

Apple’s not perfect. The New iPad (as opposed to the “iPad3” or the “iPad 2012”) features a better camera and the high-definition retina display of the iPhone 4. But the new features require a bigger battery, which means a slightly larger device (so much for all those portfolio and keyboard cases you bought) and considerably more heat.

Would Steve Jobs have released an iPad that runs hotter than its predecessors?

Which means opportunity for Windows. Microsoft is pledging millions for the development of new apps, and that may be a boon to developers, who previously sold only to Android or Apple. Meanwhile, the Lumia is humbly priced at under a hundred bucks U.S., which may draw in the vast number of people who still resist the smartphone market.

Which brings me back to “Start.” For shortcut enthusiasts like me, a single tap of the Windows button on my keyboard flips me back to the Metro interface in Windows 8, where I can find and access all my programs. But for mouse enthusiasts — especially those who won’t care that they can buy a smartphone or a tablet and see the same operating system — the loss of the classic Windows start button on their desktop could be irritating.

They need not worry. We live in a post-PC world, where app developers have already stepped in to create a start button in Windows 8 Consumer Preview.

Think of what they’ll do with the real thing.

A New Wave in Cloud-Based Accounting Software


As a general rule, I don’t review new entries into the accounting software realm.  While there are several reasons for this, the predominant one is that new start-ups need a certain critical mass of installed customers to ensure they will be around for any length of time – and I’ve been burned in the past after encouraging clients to migrate to a (literally) new system, only to have the company go bankrupt within a few years.

But web-based Wave Accounting caught my eye recently.  I’m going to hold-fast with my “no review” rule – you can check out the product for yourself at www.waveaccounting.com – but the interesting thing about this particular offering is that it’s, well, uh, FREE.  And that’s really the subject of this particular installment – The Google business model.

Back when Mozilla’s Firefox product hit the streets, users wondered how such a good and innovative web browser could be offered for free.  The answer wasn’t immediately forthcoming but, the ticket was that Google paid cash to Mozilla to be the default search engine within this browser – and paid rather handsomely at that.  Google itself uses the same model with many of its services/features – give the basic product away for free and let advertising (or data-mining of the user data) pay for the development.  Wave Accounting appears to follow that same model:  get somebody else to pay for the product, and bring in the small business masses with a deal that’s almost too good to be true.

In Wave Accounting’s case, users of the free web-based accounting product see advertising for various business services – companies such as American Express, Dell, HP, Microsoft, Symantec, RBC and others.  And recently, Wave Accounting introduced web-based Canadian Payroll as well.  The deal there isn’t quite as good:  Businesses have to cough-up C$3.00 per employee.  Not that I think many will complain – there’s very few stand-alone payroll systems that can match that fee structure.  In fact, the only one I can think of is QLab System’s non-web-based PayDirt Lite (http://www.paydirtpayroll.com/).  Oh, and Canada Revenue Agency’s free online payroll calculator but, that’s really not a full-featured payroll system by any stretch of the imagination.

That leads to the usual discussion about web-based/”cloud” services:  what about the following factors – security & privacy (access to data), availability (up-time), and reliability (ability to restore backups, continuity processes)?  The answer is the same – all of these factors need to be evaluated in context of the organization that’s using the service and their sensitivity to the risks associated.  Accounting systems often contain banking information (as in the actual accounts/transit numbers), credit card information, and with payroll, social insurance numbers, dates of birth, and other identity-theft goodies.  Back to Wave Accounting for a moment, what do they say about all of the above?  They do have proper Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption of the data to their website (via public/private keys provided by certificate authority VeriSign) and they are registered with the Truste Privacy Seal program.  And, there’s some good narrative about their data storage centre being protected by armed guards, landmines and bear traps (humour intended).  But I couldn’t find any mention of any serious service audit report that would give me any assurance as to the adequacy of their technological controls for security/access/privacy, delivery of service, change management, of disaster recovery/business continuity management processes (such as SAS70/AASE 16/SOC 2 or SOC 3 reports).  I think that for any serious web-based/cloud service that handles financial information, providing some assurance/attestation would be a good thing.  Then again, very few places do have that degree of internal controls assessment.

Web-based accounting systems aren’t new – NetSuite’s been at it for some time, as has SalesForce – but to see one appear using the “Google for Free”-type strategy, well I think Wave Accounting is the first.  Is the model sustainable?  Well, Wave Accounting celebrated its first birthday back in November 2011.  And, they’ve attracted some good talent to the company.  That’s pretty good so far for a company that’s giving away its products/services.  Guess we’ll see in another few years <gggg>.

Technology Trends of 2012

The consumer technology market is affecting the corporate world

Welcome to my annual technology trends column, where I wade through the bits and bytes of the computerized world and identify the stories that will define the coming year. A tall order, indeed, that I usually meet by pointing to the trends that will affect our corporate lives. 

But this year I’m covering the consumer angle as well. Why?  Because trends in the consumer market are affecting the corporate world.

Trend #1: Kindle Lights a Fire

One year ago I said that 2011 would be the Year of the Tablets. Not one tablet, many tablets. But especially Apple’s iPad.

Turns out I was right. You could argue that 2011 was the Year of the iPad, but the past year taught all tablet makers one important lesson: price matters.

When Hewlett-Packard held a fire sale to rid itself of the TouchPad, it sold more units than Apple’s almighty product, albeit at a deeply discounted price.

Taking note, Amazon released a new Kindle e-reader, the Kindle Fire, just in time for the holiday season, featuring Google Android, a web browser and a host of apps, all at less than the cost it takes to produce one. But unlike any tablet maker other than Apple, Amazon has its own store of books, movies and videos, plus distribution agreements with movie studios, record labels and publishing houses.

That’s why the Kindle Fire is subsidized. It goes back to the Gillette (or Crest) model. Give someone a razor (or a toothbrush) and you can sell them shaving cream (or toothpaste) for life. Amazon hopes to sell people media content for life. The result? The personal tablet market has split into two camps: the high-end Apple iPad and the low-end Kindle Fire.

So what does this mean for the business market? My prediction for 2012: iPads and Fires will start appearing in your office, with employees wanting to use them for business.

The tough part is that both devices are engineered for consumers rather than the corporate market. But as long as Apple and Amazon can subsidize their hardware via consumer-based media content, they might just corner the corporate market.

Trend #2: Content to the Clouds

Where do you store your digital music, pictures, books and movies? 10 years ago you stored them on your personal computer, right? But today you store them on a variety of gadgets — your cellphone, your tablet, your laptop, your mobile listening device.

Steve Jobs called this online repository of data a “digital hub,” and, as he explained to Walter Isaacson, his biographer, “over the next few years, the hub is going to move from your computer into the cloud.”

The fact is, consumers are getting more and more demanding. They want their content — music, pictures, books and movies — wherever and whenever they feel like it. So I predict that another major trend of 2012 will be the move of consumer content to the clouds. Because even if you’re not an Apple user, the move to the clouds is coming no matter whose hardware you use.

Apple is already marketing cloud computing to its customers (“Your content. On all your devices.”) through the iCloud, promising “automatic, effortless, and seamless” integration between mobile devices.

Surprisingly, consumers don’t seem overly concerned about their privacy or the security of their data — they just assume that their cloud provider will protect their information.

But the corporate world is different. Business does not and will not take security for granted. As consumer demand drives the proliferation of cloud storage services, companies continue to explore the benefits of data storage and the software as a service model (SaaS, sometimes called “software on demand”), while others are looking for cloud-based environments that resemble a desktop computer, and are looking at the platform as a service model (PaaS).

Others still are willing to go further and want the whole underlying connection of servers, databases and network systems  available as infrastructure as a service, or IaaS.

But there’s no doubt in my mind that, as consumers adjust to the concept of storing and managing their personal data in an environment that, strictly speaking, is not their own, our acceptance of a digital hub in the clouds will continue to drive the further adoption and enhancement of cloud computing in the corporate sector.

Trend #3: Corporate Security & Consumers

In 2011, a new type of cyberattack, Advanced Persistent Threat (APT), came to the forefront. APTs target organizations. Their perpetrators learn everything about their target and its employees in order to masquerade as them electronically and attack their defences and access controls. The end goal is to steal privileged information about customers, clients or trade secrets.

PWC just released its Global State of Information Security Survey for 2012, in which it surveyed retail and consumer industry executives for feedback on their information security practices. It found that, while executives were not confident about their security systems, a majority of respondents “revealed that

their organization’s security policy does not address APT, nor do they have the capabilities and tools to combat it.”

Welcome to 2012. The Year of Tablets, Clouds and Persistent Threats.

Technology Tidbits

From tablets to cellphones, five recent tech stories that caught our attention

It’s time for some tidbits! The world of information technology is changing so rapidly today that it’s hard to keep up with all the news — so let’s jump right in to some of the most fascinating stories from the last six months.

HP: That was Then, This is Now

Hewlett-Packard, the world’s largest maker of personal computers, is like an absurd soap opera that you just can’t stop watching. Last summer, chief executive officer Leo Apotheker announced that HP was getting out of the PC market — if it could find a buyer. Under attack from tablets and mobile phones, HP had decided it would rather sell its US$8 billion Personal Systems Group than compete against the likes of Apple and Samsung.

That was then, this is now. As we go to press, HP has just announced the firing of Apotheker and the hiring of Meg Whitman, the former CEO of eBay, as his replacement.

The failed California gubernatorial candidate and billionaire Whitman wasted no time in announcing that HP’s PC business is not for sale, making crystal clear who is running HP now. We wish her luck. HP has fired three CEOs in six years. A recent Reuters story asked “Is HP competing for ‘worst board ever’ honors?” How long will Whitman last? Place your bets now.

HP: Fire Sale on TouchPad Tablets!

Will Whitman also save the TouchPad? That’s doubtful. The TouchPad was a flop and HP has killed the webOS platform, which it acquired by buying Palm for US$1.2 billion in 2010. But in its ensuing fire sale inventory clearance, the TouchPad became the hottest selling tablet in history — even outshining sales of the iPad.  Why would anyone want such a short-lived product, with virtually no development community? 

Well, by lowering the TouchPad’s liquidation price to US$99 for some models, HP proved that price points matter to consumers, especially when direct competitors to the iPad (like the Samsung Galaxy Tablet) are priced around US$300 and more.

Of course, the explanation could also lie with consumers who want to own piece of history: the last souvenir from the days of the once dominant handheld technology of Palm. Though long-time readers will recall that I was once inseparable from my own Palm product, the T3 PDA, I’m sure nostalgia wasn’t the reason.

So was it the promotional package HP ran with online cloud storage company Box.net? Consumers were promised 50GB of free cloud storage for life if they purchased specified HP technologies — including the TouchPad. And since a Box.net account is worth about US$25 a month, their Touchpad purchase would pay for itself in less than a year. No wonder HP is so dysfunctional!

OnStar: Looking Back to the Future

OnStar, the popular technological anti-theft, navigation and emergency communication system offered in many GM vehicles, is coming soon to a car near you. GM is selling a rearview mirror retrofit called OnStar FMV (For My Vehicle), which can be installed in cars other than GM. While the retrofit has many of the same features as the GM model (automatic crash response and roadside assistance), it can’t tell your direction, whether your car has flipped, or a whole slew of diagnostics that the GM-based product would typically upload to its help centre.

NetFlix: Loses Deal, Sees Starz

A key component to the content of online video streaming service Netflix is soon to disappear. Starz Entertainment, whose library includes a treasure trove of movies from Disney Studios and Sony Entertainment, is ending its partnership with Netflix, effective February 28, 2012.

Markets don’t tolerate vacuums for long. The announcement foreshadows the emergence of other streaming-content providers or other content holders to fill the void. Either way, the news will be good for consumers, as more competition may lead to cheaper prices and more content.

Shaw: Not Hanging Up on the Cellphone

Shaw Communications has abruptly cancelled its plans to build a national wireless network. This comes as a bit of surprise because, as recently as last April, Shaw had said it was forging ahead with its plans, and most of its peers in the communications industry are expanding into and even dominating this market.

Shaw will instead focus on developing community-based WiFi networking products. But that’s just as upsetting to traditional landline providers like Bell, which is losing customers to media kings like Rogers, and wireless upstarts like Wind Mobile and Mobilicity, who are changing the rules of the wireless game.

Cloud Computing: A Reader Responds

A reader recently contacted me about my column, “Computing Clouds Gathering” (Statements, June/July 2011), with concerns that some readers might infer that it’s now completely safe to use cloud services.

On the contrary, I believe that cloud computing still has a ways to go before it’s robust enough to be a viable option to any company concerned with protecting sensitive information, but I do think the situation is improving.

Keep your comments coming. I love getting feedback from readers and especially my fellow CGAs, who know a thing or two about technology.

Marketing for the Modern Accounting Firm, 10.1 Inches at a Time . . . .

For this entire year, the tablet market has been hot.  Though dominated by Apple’s iPad, various competitors have introduced many other devices as well:  Motorola Xoom , Blackberry Playbook, Samsung Galaxy Tab, HP Touchpads, ASUS Eee Pad Transformers, among others.   Accountants will reach for them; so will their current and prospective clients.  How could an accountant use these new gadgets to market their company?

Starting first with the more obvious choices, tablets provide a very easy way for accountants to present live/dynamic information to prospective clients.  Marketing presentations stored on the tablet can be called up and displayed at a moment’s notice.  If there’s a wi-fi or cell connection nearby, the tablet can call up live information from the company’s web-site, or from news sources (stock markets, regulatory bodies, etc.).  Using a tablet this way can show prospective clients that accountants are technologically savvy and embracing new trends.

While not directly or exclusively related to tablet computers, participation in various social media endeavours represents a “must” for modern age marketing.  Social media, especially services like Twitter and LinkedIn, allow modern accountants to provide timely snippets of information to current and prospective clients.  Traditional social media echoes a user posting to ALL of their followers.  For accounting firms, this could be problematic; as most practices offer varieties of specialised consulting that may not be relevant to all clients.  In contrast, Google’s latest attempt at breaking into the FaceBook/Twitter realm – Google Plus (“Google+”) allows users to create “circles” of interest.  This innovation would allow firms to specifically target tips, bulletins, and other specific information directly to intended targets.  Google+ is in beta-test stages at the moment, and there’s a general cap upon signing up new users.  But once ready for prime-time, this tool may be very handy to accountants.

How does social media relate to the use of tablets?  In general, tablets are fantastic for presenting information to clients.  Latest bulletins can be directly referenced while in boardroom meetings, blogged articles quickly researched and incorporated into presentations, and direct commentary posted relating to current economic situations.  They’re also handy for collecting information.  While in the field, tablets can be used to provide information updates directly to clients via social media. 

Tablets – and to a lesser extent, any mobile computing device – can allow accounting firms or companies to extend their reach directly to prospective and existing clients through the use of firm-branded applications.  If one studies Apple’s iStore development, you’ll notice that most of the applications cater to consumer interests.  How do existing companies reach their consumers?  For the most part, they find some way of extending their brand into the “app ecosystem”.  For example, all of the major financial institutions in Canada have a mobile application that provides useful information such as nearest ATM, nearest branch, various services, and online account balances.

Corporate clients are consumers, too.  Therefore, accounting firms – and frankly, any company for that matter – need to package relevant information into their own branded application.  The Big Four accounting firms are well-along with their adaptation of branded applications.  A quick search of Apple’s iStore, comes up with these samples of content offerings:

-          Deloitte:  Podcasts on variety of tax and assurance topics, whitepapers on technology, business insight information.  Leadership Development resources

-          Ernst & Young:  In-house articles, topical magazine-style write-ups, whitepapers, info sheets, general business insight information.

-          KPMG:  applications delivering access to latest bulletins, brochures, whitepapers, economic forecasts, advisory briefings in all major client practice segments, and career planning information for accounting students.  General business insight information.

-          PriceWaterhouseCoopers:  Various podcast subscriptions regarding leadership, marketing, management, business news.

Looking again to the finance sector, some financial institutions are allowing account lookup, funds transfer, and other transactional activities.  Is it possible for accounting firms to move forward into similar personalized information?  Could a firm create a client portal concept?  Within that portal, have relevant corporate info streaming to them?  Things like:

-          Tax instalment reminders (with amounts )

-          Taxes owed

-          Industry/sector-specific briefing notes

-          Status of service work – ie, 2008 audit complete”, “2009 audit in progress”, “2010 audit waiting for you to drop off information”, “2010 tax returns in final review”, “2011 tax planning meeting to be scheduled.”

-          Current Key-Performance Indicators, if either real-time auditing or if the firm is engaged in controllership management services

Naturally, applications delivering this kind of content would need to address considerable security and access policies, not to mention back-end server systems that could push this content from the year-end write-up software.  But the idea of accounting firms having their own branded applications is certainly on the rise:  Per above, the Big Four have a head start, and you can expect to see the Next Three expanding into this zone as well.

If branded apps is the grail for tablet marketing, can firms do something now to start the process?

The answer:  Certainly – and it doesn’t require hiring a ton of programmers, either.  As mentioned already, tablets are great for presenting information.  So, firms need to get as much of their information assembled into portable documents as possible (ie, Adobe PDF).  Once that information is ready, upload it to the corporate web site.  From there, accountants in the field can download/display the documents within the tablet web browser system.   Besides static brochures, consider also the following, complete with your company logo, address, etc at the top:

-          Template Spreadsheets:  Having pre-programmed spreadsheets that can quickly assist with estimated calculations could impress clients.  Consider templates for common situations, such as buy/lease, salary/dividends/bonus, and spousal income-splitting.

-          Tax worksheets:  Not many tax preparation software vendors have “apps for that” (at least not yet).  Build further spreadsheets to calculate some basic tax estimates, deduction transfers, etc.

-          Loan Amortization Schedules/calculators

-          Asset Amortization Schedules

-          Payroll Deduction templates

-          Cost/Volume/Profit (Break-Even) calculator

-          Engagement letters, special purpose contracts/agreements,

-          Engagement estimation templates

DataViz’s Documents-To-Go is one time-honoured application that can work with indigenous Microsoft Office formatted documents and is available cross-platform for various tablet devices.

Tablets provide a convenient way to present information within meetings.  Firms will need to look into adopting marketing strategies with these devices.  Whether using calculation templates, canned brochures, web content or firm-branded applications to convey information, accountants can’t overlook the significance that tablets will bring to the client relationship experience.