How to get an extra 15 GB of OneDrive storage for free
There is plenty of competition in the cloud storage space, but, unfortunately, for the most part any massive changes are limited to paid plans. They get bigger, they get cheaper, but the free tier, which most users get first, remains largely as limiting as it has always been. Sure, we get a couple of extra gigs for free here and there, but it's all smoke after all, meant to lead us right to the money grabbers. (And who could blame providers for trying to make money?)
Now, Microsoft is doing something rather interesting, as it gives OneDrive users nearly twice as much storage in the free plan, bumping the limit from a so-so 15 GB to a respectable 30 GB. The reason? Well, it's a damn clever one -- the extra freebie is meant to help Apple users who are having trouble with iOS 8 upgrades due to low available storage. Because this is an oft-discussed issue, it is bound to generate some free advertising for Microsoft and OneDrive.
Panic over! Twitpic is given a stay of execution after a buyer is found
Twitpic will no longer close on 25 September as the photo sharing service has found a buyer. There's not yet any word on who is behind the acquisition, but the takeaway news is that photos should be safe as Twitpic will live to fight another day.
Just a couple of weeks ago, founder Noah Everett posted the news that Twitpic was to close following something of a legal tussle with Twitter. But things have taken a turn for the better. After users scrabbled to download their images to ensure they were safe, it now transpires that the service is not going anywhere.
Datastickies and the rebirth of the cassette -- the future of data storage
Remember when floppy disks really were floppy? Or the joys of loading programs on a home computer from a C15 cassette? In just over 40 years storage technology has gone from these crude devices to cloud servers that put terrabytes of space in reach of anyone.
But where does the future lie? Hardware supplier Ebuyer has produced an infographic looking at the direction storage may take in the future.
PaaSLane 2.5 release adds new capabilities for cloud developers
The PaaSLane tool for assessing the cloud-readiness of applications has been available for two years and has helped many organizations transition their software smoothly. It's able to detect outdated architecture, weak security, platform issues and more.
Now Cloud Technology Partners has brought out a new release to allow Java and .Net developers to assess and optimize their source code for the cloud more quickly and efficiently.
Data center market will show massive change over the next two years
Four major factors will bring about dramatic change in the data center market by the end of 2016, according to a new report released by Gartner.
The factors are: highly disruptive competition, big cloud provider dominance, economic warfare, and nationalism. All of these will occur with different intensities over different time frames but will have a significant impact on the market.
Fewer than half of European businesses are ready for the cloud
Given the hype surrounding it, it’s easy to believe that the cloud is increasingly the first choice when it comes to business systems.
Yet a new survey by IDC reveals that a majority of European IT departments have yet to fully embrace its benefits. When asked about their readiness to move to a cloud-based strategy levels of confidence were low.
Shippable wants to help developer teams innovate faster
In a fast-changing world there's demand for new applications to be delivered quickly and traditional development processes often can't keep pace.
Seattle-based startup Shippable has announced a new version of its platform that helps developers to innovate and deliver more quickly using open source Docker containers. Docker -- in case you didn't know -- isolates resources of the Linux kernel to allow independent software containers to run on one Linux platform without the need to launch virtual machines. Docker containers can be run on any Linux machine whether on site or in the cloud.
Dyreza trojan may pose a risk for Salesforce users
A warning has gone out to customers of Salesforce.com that the Dyreza trojan, previously targeted at banking sites, may be a risk to users of the CRM solution.
The malware uses social engineering techniques to get the victim to infect the system via email. Once installed it uses "browser hooking" to allow Dyreza to intercept content entered by the user into the web browser before that content is transmitted over the network to a web site. Critically this allows the interception to occur before the data is encrypted.
IBM and Intel offer new security features to improve confidence in the cloud
IBM has announced that SoftLayer will be the first cloud platform to offer customers bare metal service that provides monitoring and security down to the microchip level.
Working in combination with Intel's Trusted Execution Technology (TXT), the security platform will help businesses determine if a workload from a known location on SoftLayer infrastructure is running on trusted hardware.
What's next for cloud storage?
The cloud infrastructure industry is in a bit of a price war that will ultimately benefit consumers. However, while some organizations may see this as an opportunity to move to the cloud, cost is not the only consideration, nor is it the most important. First and foremost, when it comes to data management, measures need to be taken to ensure the information is secure and accessible whether it’s stored on premises or in the cloud. The allure of low prices will certainly attract more customers and open up new markets for the cloud services industry. Yet, if end-user data is not managed holistically -- with a single view of data regardless of location -- ensuring that only the appropriate data is in the cloud in the first place, the cost and complexity in the future will negate any bargain entry costs.
It’s time to focus on what an investment in cloud storage can bring back to a business, from the ability to wipe data from a mobile device to end-to-end access, we are entering a time where it’s no longer what you can give to the cloud, but what the cloud can give to you.
On Sept. 9th, Apple's Tim Cook era begins
I must disagree with colleague Mark Wilson, who last week asserted: "There is no reason for anyone to care about the iPhone 6", which as I write has 124 comments. I'm a big fan of provocative posts, because they engage the readership. But my feelings differ about commentaries that bluster without substance. Mark is absolutely wrong. There is every reason for everyone to care about the next iPhone.
Mark asserts that iPhone "used to be aspirational and high-end. Now the world and his dog has an Apple handset and it's turned from something special into a poor substitute for one of the countless alternatives...The iPhone is run-of-the-mill. It is predictable. It's just plain boring". In many ways, I agree, but his boring assessment is every reason to "care about the iPhone 6".
Employees opt to stick with consumer file sharing tools at work
Most of us prefer to stay with familiar consumer file syncing and sharing tools at work rather than use the alternatives provided by the IT department.
This is the finding of new research by global analyst company Ovum. The survey of 5,187 full-time employees shows that 89 percent are using consumer products and only nine percent are happy with the commercial tools on offer from their companies.
Apple confirms that celebrity accounts were compromised in targeted attack
Since a cache of nude photos of celebrities appeared online, Apple has remained fairly tight-lipped about what may or may not have happened. Right from the start rumors were flying around that Apple's iCloud service may have been comprised or that Find My iPhone may have been to blame. The company said that it was "actively investigating" the suggestions but then things went quiet again. The FBI became involved, but it has been a frustrating 48 hours for anyone trying to find out what happened. Now Apple has issued a statement making it clear that a security attack did indeed take place.
Entitled Update to Celebrity Photo Investigation the statement reads:
Cloudfinder for Box free for business users until January 2015
As the market for storing and sharing files in the cloud has grown, Box has become one of the most popular solutions. As a result lots of other add-on products have grown up around it offering added security, compliance and more.
The latest to join the Box ecosystem is backup specialist eFolder with its Cloudfinder product, a multi-platform cloud-to-cloud backup service.
Zetta.net integrates cloud backup with ConnectWise to help MSPs add value
The ConnectWise system management platform is popular with managed services providers, with more than half of MSPs worldwide using it to enhance efficiency and control for their clients.
Now cloud backup company Zetta.net has announced that it's integrated its enterprise-grade cloud backup and disaster recovery platform with ConnectWise to allow MSPs to offer an extra layer of service.
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