Published at Computerworld – 2/24/2012

IT departments and the duties of their staffers haven’t changed much in recent years. But the rise of mobile and cloud technologies, the bring-your-own-device trend, and a new generation of workers is already changing the very role that IT plays in business and reshaping the mix of core IT jobs and skill sets. The result is that IT professionals are facing shifts that would’ve been unimaginable a few years ago. In this extensive feature, I highlight the causes of those changes, how they are forever altering IT, and discuss what this will mean for new veteran and new IT professionals alike over the coming years.

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Published at Computerworld – 2/18/2012

OS X Mountain Lion has just been announced with even iOS-like features and much more iCloud integration than its processor. The features announced so far and available in Apple’s developer preview offer a mixed bag for enterprise environments: it adds some very useful features, but its tight integration with iCloud will likely raise some red flags for CIOs and IT.

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Published at Computerworld – 12/29/2011

Despite the death of Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs, 2011 was a banner year for the company with record breaking sales across its product lines. Several of the trends that propelled Apple forward will continue in to push the company forward in the coming year. Here’s my look at those trends (enterprise and BYOD adoption, the evolution of Siri and iCloud, new iPads and iPhones, and Apple’s role in home entertainment) and the impact that they will have for Apple and the tech industry.

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Published at Computerworld – 12/8/2011

As more mobile devices flood the workplace, IT needs to deal with an ever expanding list of consumer-oriented smartphones, tablets, and other devices regardless of whether those devices are company-provided, employee owned and supported by a bring your own device (BYOD) program, or are being used for work without IT being told about them. In this piece, I offer some guidelines for crafting and implementing an effective mobile strategy that recognizes that a one-size-fits-all approach is no longer an option.

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Published at InfoWorld – 11/29/2011

As Macs become more prevalent in businesses, so does the need to manage them securely and efficiently. Apple’s own management tools are a great starting point, but don’t often scale well in enterprise environments. These enterprise tools help IT deploy, monitor, and manage Macs and Mac software while also offering greater integration with Active Directory and other enterprise infrastructure.

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Published at InfoWorld 10/31/2011

Managing Macs can seem like an onerous challenge to IT professional used to dealing with Windows. In this article, I look at the under the hood of OS X Lion and the mechanisms and processes that Apples offers for managed deployments including Active Directory and LDAP integration, account management, initial and patch management rollouts.

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Published at Computerworld – 10/20/2011

iOS 5 and the iPhone 4S are packed with great new features that will appeal to business users and consumers alike. For IT departments, some of these new features like iCloud, Find My Friends, and Siri present some security concerns. The good news is that Apple gives IT some tools to lock down these features (though they aren’t as granular as one might like). The better news is that iOS 5 offers several enterprise-specific features that will appeal to both IT and end-users.

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Published at Computerworld – 10/6/2011

As I sat stunned by the news that Apple Chairman Steve Jobs, I couldn’t help but think about his life and career, both at Apple and during his time away at NeXT and Pixar. Steve changed the world and several industries more than once. Here are some ways we can draw inspiration from his life for our own personal and professional lives.

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Published at Computerworld – 10/5/2011

Apple’s iPhone 4S launch offers a lot of insight into the company’s vision of the future of mobile technology. The Siri virtual assistant, an emphasis on location-based features, and diversifying the iPhone lineup so that there’s an iPhone model for everyone all point to a strategy that is about personalization as much as it is about hardware.

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Published at Peachpit Press – 9/28/2011

Apple’s iCloud service replaces MobileMe and it offers some great new features, but some MobileMe staples like web hosting, online galleries, and syncing preferences across multiple Macs are getting left behind. Thankfully, there are some excellent alternatives that longtime MobileMe users should consider.

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Published at Computerworld – 8/26/2011

The impact Steve Jobs has had during his second tenure at Apple is so dramatic that it’s almost beyond words. In this retrospective, I take a look at the nearly-bankrupt company he returned to in 1997 and how he transformed it into the world’s most valuable tech company, revolutionized multiple industries, and changed the world more than once.

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Published at InfoWorld – 8/22/2011

Deploying, managing, and supporting Macs requires a different set of tools than performing the same tasks for Windows PCs. Whether your environment is all Mac, mixed, or just beginning to test the waters with a Mac pilot program, the utilities in this list can help get the job done as smoothly and efficiently as possible.

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Published at Computerworld 8/2/2011

Lion is one of the most significant upgrades to OS X since its initial release ten years ago. While most of the changes are consumer-oriented, many new features also impact how Macs are used in the workplace and present new questions and challenges for IT departments. This is my look at the opportunities and challenges for Lion in larger environments.

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Published at Computerworld – 6/24/2011

Last fall and winter, 2011 was being billed as the year of tablet competition and “iPad killers” but to date no competing tablets have seen anywhere near the success of the iPad. Many companies have actually lowered sales targets for their tablets. With the launch of HP’s TouchPad running webOS 3, will Apple finally get some real competition and does webOS bring anything truly special to the tablet or smartphone space?

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