Have an "Exit Plan"

Although this is sort of IT 101, build an idea of what it looks like to shut down an application that you either built or are using as a service.  This should include things like migration of your data, and how you scrub important business data from the vendor's servers.  This article by Paul Venezia of InfoWorld explains the implications of exiting and how one IT group ensures their data has been removed from a providers servers.  I don't think the author goes far enough because there are most likely backups of your data on remote servers and possibly tape.  You should already know what your provider's retention policy is and what form these backups are kept.  If you have stand-by servers in another data center, you may want to perform a wipe on those disks as well before the storage space is released to other customers.  I'll assume that the backups on tape will eventually be destroyed and if you've actually implemented with this provider, that you are OK with their security policies that control access to backup media and their disposal procedures. 

Apple Marketing Misstep and Cloud Sneak Attack

Version numbers & product names are pure marketing.  In my opinion Apple made a marketing mistake in naming the latest phone the “4S”.  Many bloggers,  Bill Houle among them, stated this as well.  

I was resisting writing my own thoughts and reviews until I saw this article from BGR which is very much in alignment with my own thoughts.  Also, after playing with Siri and other iOS goodness, I’ve come to the conclusion that the software is helping start what could be the next major revolution in tech.  The sneak attack is iCloud, Apple’s cloud computing beach head.

HP TouchPad Thoughts

What follows are my growing notes on the TouchPad.  It’s not really just about the touchpad but to help me understand why iPad is continuing to kick butt in the tablet market.  Some say that there is no tablet market, there’s an iPad market.  The vote is still being counted on that one but early polls show iPad with an unbeatable lead for the next few years.  This isn’t anything new but in review is in part my quest to understand the “why”.   Part of it may indeed be the emotional connection that Apple somehow makes with a very large segment of users.  The Gardian author of “Why do some people really hate Apple” and Donald Norman’s book “Emotional Design” get in touch with this idea.  Although not the key topic of this article I give my thoughts on the Gardian article at the end.