A Technical Manager's Perspective

Social Media Adoption by Business - Enterprise 2.0

In a recent post, Chris Brogan does a nice job outlining Social Media and Social Media Tools and identifies strategies for Business on how to introduce and adopt within Business organizations.

There's lots of talk about social media. Tons. The echo is nearly deafening at this point. Freedom. Openness. We have powerful tools to communicate. We are the media. It's all about the conversation. We talk about this all the time. But at the same time more people are just starting to get into this, and so it's all new and exciting and fresh all over again, businesses are starting to ask, "Hey, is there something here, or is this just another billable item like when we used to pay for someone to build us brochureware?" Businesses are asking how this stuff all threads into their world, their terms. They're asking how we're going to change their bottom line, deliver something to their top line, make this all worth it.

Do you have an answer for them? Here are some thoughts that lead down the path of helping businesses understand the value proposition:

Follow this link to read Chris's post on "Social Media- Talk is Cheap for Businesses"

Technorati : Business, Enterprise 2.0, Social Media
Del.icio.us : Business, Enterprise 2.0, Social Media

Dan Farber moves to CNET

I know that this story has been out since mid February, however after seeing this Kara Swisher interview of Dan Farber, I knew that I had to comment. Dan Farber is moving from ZDNet to become the Editor and Chief of CNET's news.com. I think that this is great for Dan and will miss him on the Between the Lines Podcast. I have a lot of respect for Dan and the work that he has done at ZDNet. He has helped to bring legitimacy to both Blogging and Podcasting, and hopefully he can help CNET.

Here is Kara's interview:

Technorati : CNET ZDNET

Another Podcamp Boston Video

Another nice little video clip about Podcamp Boston.

If you work in any type of application support role, you should check out this new media space.

Here is a video by David Levesque from Word of Moble .........

Click To Play

Technorati : Blog, Podcamp Boston 2, Podcast, Video

Podcamp Boston 2

I will be at the Podcamp Boston2 which is an UnConference this weekend. I am facilitating a talk on Web2.0, Enterprise 2.0 and Beyond which will host discussions about Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0, Web 3.0 and the Semantic Web.

We will be in Room 204B and here is a link to my SlideShow called Web20Web30.

Podcamp is not restricted to folks that Produce Podcasts, it is an event for anyone looking to learn more about the New Media Space which includes Blogging, Podcasting, Videocasting and Social Networking.

Join us for this free conference at the Bayside Convention and Expo Center this weekend for a great event.

Technorati : Podcamp Boston

Continued Support for Virtualization

NetworkWorld recently did a series on the New Data Center. They touched on the products and best practices, talked about security, storage, the wan, and virtualization. What I was really looking for was an article that I read on virtualization called Into the virtualization realm, which included a great slide show that discusses 7 Ways to use Virtualization. I have been reading NetworkWorld at the office and was pleasantly surprised when I went to their site and found a vast amount of content on many technical and support topics.

Most companies and organizations that I speak with have already deployed some sort of virtualization. If you or your organization has not, then I would encourage you to start investigating virtualization. You can start by reading, listening or viewing information about virtualization on the Internet. Most virtualization tools can be installed on your desktop which is a great way to start. Here is a link to a ZDNet Whiteboard explanation about Virtualization an an article from NetworkWorld that identifies 10 free virtualization tools worth noting.

In mid 2006, I wrote about my experiences with our Server Consolidation Project and included an Update a few months later. Since that time, our use of virtualization use has doubled. In my opinion, Virtualization is a great tool that can help you to better manage your environment. Virtualization is not the data center killer application that will allow you to reduce your data center to one rack, however it is a tool that will allow you to consolidate many of you smaller and mid sized application servers into a single footprint. To be effective you need to find the right mix of applications, hardware and system resources (CPU, Memory, disk i/o) that works for you and your organization.

Every organization has different needs and different types of infrastructure, but now there are virtualization products that support many different types of platforms (Intel, Unix). VMWare, Windows Virtualization, Xen are the major players and another great place to start.

Technorati : NetworkWorld, Virtualization, Vmware, ZDnet

Weekly Content Consumption

In 2005 when I started listening to Podcasts, my focus was purely technical. Then I discovered Manager-Tools and Management Craft added Management and Leadership podcasts to my weekly rotation. In the last year I have expanded my listening choices to a bunch of non-technical podcast that focus everything from Boston events to Business events. I listen every evening on my way home from work, when I do errands on Saturdays and when I do yardwork and chores around the house. I have also started watching more Video from a variety of sources on the Internet, mostly focusing on business and technical topics.

I find that listening every week helps me to stay current with Technology and exposes me to the new trends in computing. Back in July of 2006 I outlined the Podcasts that I listened to on a regular basis and identified the podcasts that I listen to on a daily and weekly basis. That list has changed a little and I wanted to share with you what I am current listening to and encourage you to check out these podcasts and video-casts.

Daily Feeds:

• KenRadio World Tech Roundup - Ken Rutkowski and Andy Abramson talk about the MET News (Media, Entertainment and Technology)
• Buzz Out Loud - CNET's Molly Wood and Tom Merritt discuss top stories and happening in the Tech World
• Wall Street Journal Tech News Briefing - From the WSJ, a business focused review Tech Companies and Strategies

Weekly Feeds:

• Business Week Cover Stories- Great Show Every week well worth listening to
• Manager Tools - Mark Horstman and Michael Auzenne provide and excellent weekly show that will help both the experienced manager as well as the first time manager. Well worth checking out.
• This Week in Tech TWIT - Leo Laporte and others discuss the week in tech
• Management Craft - Lisa Haneberg interviews authors and others from the Management Space
• Between the Lines - ZDNET - Dan Farber, David Berlind and Larry Dignan discuss Tech news with a nice skeptical twist
• HBR Idea Cast - Harvard Business School show about business problems and solutions
• In the Trenches - George Starcher is carrying on for Kevin Devin and focuses on the System Admin and Network Admin Space
• Windows Weekly - Paul Thurrott and Leo Laporte discuss the Microsoft space
• PaulDotCom Security Weekly - Paul Asadoorian, Larry Pesce and Twitchy discuss security issues and vulnerabilities. This is a great show to listen to to get your weekly dose of security info.
• The M Show - John Wall produces a weekly 10 minutes show about business, news and Boston.
• Marketing Over Coffee - This is a new podcast featuring John Wall and Chris Penn from Podcamp fame.
• Hanselminutes - Show featuring Scott Hanselman with great content and delivery. If you like Hanselminutes you will love .NET Rocks ...
• .NET Rocks! - Carl Franklin and Others discuss development tool on the Windows Platform

Weekly Video Feeds:

• Best Damn Tech Show - Flemo, Sir Adam Plante, Rand, Smitty and almost forgot Dr Drew - Check them out
• IT Idiots - Are you a visual learner ? Is so The ITIdiots site is the place to go. You can watch as they configure a server or step thru Virtualization. Great site, with great content.
• Business Week Video - Business Week has made a nice transition to the web delivering great Web, Audio and Video content
• Revision3 - Some Tech but much more
• Scriggity - No Tech, Just Life

Technorati : Management, Podcast, Technology, Video

PodCamp Boston 2 - Boston Area Technology Professionals

Are you a Technology Professional in the Boston Area ?

Have you seen the shift in Technologies toward a Web-Centric Web-Services approach to applications where the Web has become an application delivery mechanism as opposed to a document delivery system. If so, and if you would like to learn more, then you should consider attending:

PodCamp Boston 2, October 26 - 28, 2007, at the Boston Convention and Expo Center

PodCamp Boston 2 is the new media community UnConference that helps connect people interested in blogging, podcasting, social networks, video on the net, and new media together for three days to learn, share, and grow their new media skills. Whether you're just interested in new media or an experienced veteran, PodCamp Boston 2 is for you!

I attended PodCamp Boston last year can tell you from a first hand experience that this conference is not your typical Marketing/Advertising based conference. You don't need credentials to help or speak. Anyone who is so interested may contribute. Commercial pitches are discouraged. All PodCamps obey the Law of Two Feet. If you turn a speaking opportunity into an advertisement, PodCampers will simply walk out.

This year I am hosting a discussion on "Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0 and Beyond". The discussion is open to everyone and I welcome input from other facilitators and everyone attending PodCamper Boston 2.

Technorati : Enterprise 2.0, Podcamp Boston 2, Web 2.0

Social Bookmarking

Social Bookmarking is becoming a great way to share INTERNET content with others at home and at work. It is easy and allows you to efficiently find review and retain content that can be share with others all over the world. When coupled with Tagging and Search Engines, Social Bookmarking can turn your "Search Function" into a "Find Function" by searching the content that you identified as relevant.

Here is another great video describing Social Bookmarking from the folks at CommonCraft

Click To Play

Technorati : Social Bookmarking, enterprise 2.0, web 2.0

Andrew McAfee and Tom Davenport Debate

The Enterprise 2.0 Conference will be held in Boston next week and Andrew McAfee will be giving a keynote speech on Tuesday, June 19 at 9:05.

Before the keynote, however, Andrew McAfee and Tom Davenport are going to discuss Enterprise 2.0 in an open forum and figure out whether they actually disagree about the importance and likely progression of Enterprise 2.0. Both have gone back and forth on this a couple times (Tom then Andrew last fall, then Tom then Andrew this spring), but these point-counterpoints were written, sequential, and uncoordinated. Susan Scrupski and her employer BSG had the bright idea to stage an actual debate, and to hold it in Boston during the conference when interest will naturally be high. Conference organizers Steve Wylie and CMP graciously agreed to let us hold the event at the actual conference site (The Westin Boston Waterfront), and to open it to anyone who's interested, whether or not they've registered for the conference.

So on Monday the 19th at 10 am in the Westin, Tom and Andrew are going to go podium-to-podium for 45 minutes. The debate will be moderated by ZDNET's Dan Farber and will be webcast and recorded. Watch Susan's blog and Andrew's Blog for more details.

Technorati : Enterprise 2.0

RSS for beginners

Many folks still visit web sites and blogs and out of habit they surf to the URL and read what is new. I found RSS about 2 years ago and realized it's power and flexibility. I first learned of RSS thru iTunes and podcasts, however I eventually tried a number of different readers before settling in on FeedDemon 2.1 as my RSS reader of choice. I love it and have it configured to open the blog/website in Internet Explorer when I double click on the link in FeedDemon. It's easy, it saves me time, and every night I can check on new content from 109 blogs and sites without surfing to each site. When I see a post or article that I wish to explore, I double click on the link and I am on the site.

Here is a nice little video that walks thru the basics of RSS and Subscribing to feeds. I know there are a lot of you that read my posts who are not using RSS. Please take a look at the video and consider using RSS. It's easy and it will simplify your surfing and reading habits.

Thanks to Lee and Sachi from Common Craft for the video .....

Click To Play

There are two types of Internet users, those that use RSS and those that don't. This video is for the people who could save time using RSS, but don't know where to start.

Technorati : rss