Perhaps the most famous, tech-savvy mobile worker of all time was James Bond.  Equipped with incredible gadgets for security and communications by his IT manager, “Q,” Bond was a typical remote employee in the sense that he thrived on autonomy and independence.

Managing Bond was no picnic for the head of the Secret Service, “M,” who tried to enforce strict control and to communicate clear objectives, but Bond always got the job done—his way.  And he managed to stay employed through dozens of novels and movies (not to mention seven actors).

While today’s manager may not be willing to grant a mobile worker a license to kill, she still needs to clarify objectives, maintain channels of clear communications, and evaluate whether tasks were completed and deliverables obtained—holding  the worker accountable for the results. READ MORE

There are a variety of tools available to test Linux as a guest operating system on top of Windows, giving enterprises an opportunity to try Linux before committing to it. Here’s what you need to know before you deploy. READ MORE

Enterprise technology managers looking to improve the management and functionality of their corporate websites ought to take a closer look at WordPress. With the WordPress 3.0 release in June, the blogging tool has completed its metamorphosis into a more flexible content management system – and done it without compromising its core virtue of simplicity.
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In just seven questions you can narrow down the candidates for that network administrator job to those with true talent and passion.

Interviewing candidates for network administrators is a bit like opening up the door to a herd of Chihuahuas. Sit them down and start talking and all you hear is Yip! Novell? Yip! VPN services? Yip! MCSE? Yip! CCNA? Yip! Yip!

IT managers need to bring on the best talent to run their networks; the company’s infrastructure relies on productive, capable staff. How do you cut through all the Yipping? What questions do you ask to find that stately Shepherd amidst the dog pack?

Whether you are a technical hands-on manager or a business-centric CIO doing that final “check for a fit with the company” job interview, the questions you ask a network admin candidate should check on seven aspects of what makes a good employee: Knowledge, Tinkering, Honesty, Ethics, Community, Discretion, and the all important Sanity Check. We asked network specialists to share their favorite questions (and best answers) to help you eliminate those annoying Yippies.
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HyperThreading has become a key differentiator between Intel and AMD. It could be a determining factor in the CPUs you deploy.

Intel and AMD have done their best to differentiate the x86 architecture as much as possible while retaining compatibility between the two CPUs, but the differences between the two are growing. One key differentiator is hyperthreading; Intel does it, AMD does not. READ MORE

Does the “sandbox” that HTML5 defines belong in your company’s Web applications? Long-time Web developer and IT manager Cameron Laird explains when and how a sandbox can improve the HTML your software developers use in creating the organization’s applications.

The HTML5 standard promises “to ease the authoring of Web-based applications,” according to the specification current in summer 2010. Improvements in security are a vital part of that “ease,” especially the iframe “sandbox.” Let’s look at sandbox’s costs and benefits – not how to code with sandbox, but how to decide where to use it, and what the implications will be for your software development team. Before your in-house programmers baffle you by giving you more techie detail than you need to know, here’s what you should understand about the choices inherent in a migration to HTML5.
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As Twitter, Facebook, and other social media get more popular with companies and employees, it’s critical for companies to develop policies controlling their use. Firm and well-understood corporate policies encourage people already exploring social media, rein in those teetering on the edge without a net, and ensures your company is protected by rules that support overall business goals.

Despite the benefits, companies aren’t moving quickly to establish social media policies. A June 2010 report from Forrester Research, the “CIO’s Guide to Creating a Social Media Policy,” found that 43% of respondents’ organizations did not have a social media policy, and 11% were unsure if a policy existed.

The data indicates that many employees access social media without a policy to guide their efforts. At the same time Forrester found that when a policy is in place, employees do read it.
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More than a dozen organizations are working to bring consistency to cloud computing. Some are creating standards, while some are promoting best practices. This list can help you understand what these organizations are doing and the impact they’ll have on the industry.

Even though cloud computing has seen setbacks, generating distrust and concern over security and stability, corporations and governments are actively moving data into the cloud. Just last month, InformationWeek reported that recent surveys show two of the most conservative industries—financial and healthcare—are adopting cloud solutions. READ MORE

The Internet is running out of network addresses, which will force the switch from IPv4 to IPv6. But IPv6 has other advantages as well, such as improving network performance and making network administrators more productive (and cheerful).

It isn’t a pretty thought to consider migrating an enterprise to a new Internet addressing scheme. Any change to the network can be time consuming and expensive to deploy. But in addition to the technical forces making the move a necessity there are good technical reasons for making the switch. READ MORE

Like it, or lump it, we’re going to have use both IPv6 and IPv4 on our corporate networks and the Internet for years to come. Here’s how we can do it.

It would have been so easy if the early Internet and TCP/IP network designers had made IPv6 backward compatible with IPv4. They didn’t. And, while  Leslie Daigle, Chief Internet Technology Officer for the Internet Society, admitted at a June 2009 meeting that IPv6′s “lack of real backwards compatibility for IPv4 was [its] single critical failure,” crying over spilt standards isn’t going to help us now. No, instead we have to make the best of using IPv6 in an IPv4 world. READ MORE