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The article presents nine ideas to help information technology (IT) managers negotiate with software vendors in the U.S. IT managers need to know their existing contracts, give back shelfware and understand the terms of pricing before signing a contract. They must ask vendors for concessions, determine the software contracts in place and how efficiently software was being used and ensure software maintenance. IT managers must negotiate a software deal toward the end of a vendor's financial quarter. INSET: DRIVE AHARD BARGAIN.

The article focuses on the condition of information technology (IT) professionals in the U.S. It discusses the issue concerning the wages given to the professionals, citing the salary received by Verizon Business solutions architect Walter Scott who had given several contributions to the business. It indicates the results of a survey conducted by "Computerworld" magazine on the salary of IT workers, revealing that the total compensation increased an average of just 3.5% in 2008, compared to 3.7% in 2007. It also cites the increase of the bonuses for the professionals by only 0.2%, compared with 3.4% in 2007. Several charts depicting the results of the survey on salary are also presented.

The article reports on the launching of the Version 3 of the information technology (IT) Infrastructure Library (ITIL). It is recalled that ITIL was created in the late 1980s by an agency of the British government to describe a systematic approach to the provisioning and management of IT services. The ITIL version 3 made the version 2's theories into specifics by including business-case examples and templates for capturing information. Moreover, one advantage of version 3 is that it expands the concept of IT service delivery from day-to-day operations to five life-cycle phases.

The article reports on the growth of facilities rebuilding their data centers in the U.S. It states that the move aims to save operating costs as well as enhance efficiency and effectiveness in carrying out information technology (IT) operations. Chief information officers (CIOs) and IT executives points out the significance of redesigning their data centers which will help them reduce real estate, infrastructure, cooling and electric costs. Among the facilities that plan to upgrade their data centers, include Christus Health, OhioHealth, and Newbridge Bank. INSET: Armchair Data Center Management.

The article provides predictions of executives on the future of information technology (IT) and the computer software industry. According to Proofpoint Inc.'s chief executive officer, Gary Steele, the blogosphere will become the richest source of material news leaks in the history of the stock market. Furthermore, Carl Weddle, Director of IT at Quality Trailer Products, said that the consolidation of hardware, software, and telecommunication is nearing both practical and legal maxima. In addition, customers of IT will demand Internet-quality search in the enterprise, as forecasted by Accenture Ltd.'s chief information officer.

Presents a list of software companies who won the contest of the "Computerworld" journal for providing cost-effective technology products or services in the U.S. AmberPoint Inc.; BladeLogic Inc.; EasyAsk Inc.; BlueArc Corp.

This article provides information on the 2004 Computerworld Honors finalists. Finalists were selected by a panel of distinguished judges based on benefit to society, importance of IT, originality, success and difficulty. George Perretti had received a lot of praise for the business continuity and disaster recovery infrastructure he helped build six years ago for The Depository Trust & Clearing Corp., which is responsible for clearing $23 trillion worth of securities annually. DTCC, a New York-based firm, provides the primary infrastructure for the clearing and settlement of the majority of the equity, corporate debt and bond transactions in the U.S. DTCC chose EMC Corporation's Symmetrix arrays and its Symmetrix Remote Data Facility multihop data-mirroring software. The remote data centers can provide disaster recovery within three hours of disruption and a period of data loss ranging from zero to 30 minutes. ForumPass 2.0 is an effort by Herndon, Virginia-based Exostar LLC to develop an external collaboration environment. Then, it became an industry-altering secure collaboration platform. The first version, developed in 2001, was based on Parametric Technology's ProjectLink software and designed to facilitate collaboration among companies involved in joint development projects. The key to success was enabling users from different companies to control the data they owned, regardless of where it was stored. Bill Johnson, reliability manager at Lyondell-Citgo Refining is using IntelaTrac handheld devices to move the refinery from paper-based systems to computerized workflow management.

Enumerates the winners of Computerworld Smithsonian Awards for information technology which includes LC Technologies Incorporated, Purdue University, Frito-Lay Incorporated and Stanford Medical School.

Explains why several information technology businesses fail. Examples of companies who made major mistakes; Sears Roebuck and Co.; Disk drive companies; Emergence of minicomputers; Customers' negative attitude towards too much technology.

Presents the insights on information technology of some computer industry pioneers in the United States. Jay Forrester; Gordon Bell; Robert Metcalfe; Gordon Moore; Seymour Cray.

The article discusses the potential of cloud computing to be the next big thing in the information technology (IT) world in the U.S. According to the managing editor of the United States Golf Association (USGA), Jessica Carroll, the e-mail continuity component feature of cloud computing appears to be very useful. The New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance is also counting on cloud to help with its 30% jump in services demand.

The article offers information on various questions that computer industry watchers and information technology (IT) groups must ask before launching a storage virtualization project. It includes the determination of what level of storage to be employed for the optimization of computer storage devices to virtualize software. Another is the assessment on what type of virtualization the IT groups may use that will best suit one's primary storage in a storage-area network (SAN) environment. Specifying the level of complexity for virtualizing network is also mentioned.

The article reports on the introduction of Microsoft Office 2007 to information technology (IT) industry from Microsoft Corp. IT professionals are facing a great challenge towards their approach on weighing the benefits and features of the new user interface. According to the survey conducted, 46 percent of respondents expressed no change in productivity with the use of the application while 24 percent indicated the benefits offered by the new software. The Office provides new resources which include Office Migration Planning Manager, the IT Resource Kit, and various electronic learning features available for users. However, training should be provided to users to gain knowledge on the features offered by the application. INSET: THE LOWDOWN on Office 2007.

The article provides reasons why business engaging in computers need to deploy virtual servers despite the growth of technology based on a recent survey among information technology (IT) managers polled in the U.S. IT managers said that they have no plans to use server virtualization. The poll's result showed the obstacles and they include the need to train administrators, cost, the lack of vendor competition and concerns about the availability and quality of management tools. They also indicate that companies citing consolidation made them adopt server virtualization.

The article offers information on the certified outsourcing professional (COP). According to experts of the computer industry, information technology (IT) outsourcing professionals require to have expertise in technology, law, negotiation, project, change, and performance management. The new COP designation is a kind of option that differentiates knowledgeable professionals working in outsourcing. According to Godfrey Pinto, director of offshore outsourcing in an IT company, the COP designation means a professional has got a certain level of expertise and his skills are transferable. Some of the universities and colleges in the U.S. offer outsourcing management programs and training for client corporations. INSET: Which Side Are You On?.

The article reports that re-engineering programs to work on multicore chips is expected to get even harder as the processors in the U.S. continues to multiply. Chip multiprocessors (CMP) offer the opportunity to significantly boost performance of applications that are able to share them. However, new skills, techniques and tools for designing, coding and debugging are need to reap the benefits of CMP. Fortunately, both hardware and software vendors in the U.S. are already developing tools and methods to make the job easier.

Presents charts depicting the 2005 Salary Survey of information technology professionals in the U.S. Wages for senior management and middle management positions; Compensation for staff and entry-level positions; Sampling of other job titles.

This article presents the findings of the nineteenth Annual Salary Survey of the journal "Computerworld," which studied the compensation and bonuses of 14,253 information technology (IT) workers in the U.S. IT raises still lagged behind the average for all U.S. workers as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While the majority of respondents said that their 2004 base salary increased from one year ago, 31 percent experienced either no change in salary or had their pay cut. Bonuses increased 2.8 percent in 2005, compared with one percent in 2004. INSET: CHIEF SECURITY OFFICERS: BIGGER RAISES, BUT NOT ALWAYS HIGH PAY.

This article describes wide-area file services (WAFS). WAFS are appliances or software that allow centralization of file services by optimizing connectivity to remote-office clients over a wide-area network (WAN). WAFS systems overcome bandwidth and latency limitations through a combination of caching, protocol optimization, compression, and other techniques. With the use of WAFS, branch-office file servers can be consolidated into the data center, where servers and data can be managed and protected more effectively. However, the convergence of WAFS and WAN acceleration technologies, and the entry of large players such as Cisco Systems Inc. are changing the market rapidly. INSET: How WAFS Vendors Cache In.

This article discusses some issues concerning information technology (IT) governance. Project management is one of the several IT management fields that have come together under the broad umbrella of IT governance. Governance includes not only project management but also change management, application life-cycle management, asset and resource management, portfolio management, and often, security management. It is essentially the comprehensive management of every component of IT operations that entails cataloging, tracking and orchestrating IT projects, processes and assets. INSET: The IT Report Card.

Discusses how improper disposal of obsolete information technology (IT) equipment is becoming a liability for corporations. Factors contributing to the pressure to recycle IT products; Legal and technical issues surrounding improper disposal of IT equipment; Ways IT organizations deal with disposal of old computers.

Looks at the power held by the Gartner Group over the computer industry and its influence over information technology trends. Background information on the company; Key competitive strengths of the company; Decline in quality and buyer confusion as a result of the rapid proliferation of its service. INSETS: Advice & conceit.;Living in fear..

The article presents information on the 2012 Salary Survey. The 2012 Salary Survey found that the skills related to emerging technologies experienced increases in demand among information technology (IT) managers. According to 93% of the 4,337 respondents in the survey, they have concerns about their careers despite the improving economy.

The article reports on issues related to the move of companies to migrate business applications to Linux platforms in the U.S. It tackles the opposition of some companies which concluded that changing their operating system to Linux was a dubious business proposition. It cites the issue that some businesses are not satisfied with the quality of the administrative tools available for the Linux environment and that the system does not work for every application. The perspectives of executives related to the issue are presented.

The article provides information on how to achieve budgetary efficiency, which is an important part of every information technology (IT) leader's job. According to Mike Gorsage, a partner and regional technology practice leader at Tatum LLC, giving to constant demands can send the budget spiraling out of control. In order to avoid the common monetary mistakes, IT professionals should plan and spend locally, they should bank on big savings from overseas outsourcing, and they should not plan for business intelligence or reporting.

The article reports on the relevance of the Web 2.0 application process to the corporate information technology. It is stated that the application development 2.0 could significantly cut development costs and improve software quality if managers and developers are willing to make some hard changes. The corporate IT managers can benefit financially from Web 2.0 techniques to develop applications for employees. However, William Gribbons, director of the graduate program in human factors at Bentley College in Massachusetts, suggests that corporate development team should focus on close interaction with internal users to gather requirements and to create users interacting with prototypes.

The article provides information on why there are more than half of the women in science, engineering and information technology leave the field at mid-career. Research shows that women are actually excelling in science, engineering and technology, despite the fact that the schools are not very good at encouraging them. Research also found out that 63% of women in science, engineering and technology have experienced sexual harassment. They have also discussed the action taken by chief information officers to keep women from leaving.

The article presents the strategies that need to be considered by information technology (IT) companies in moving data centers to a new location in the U.S. It states that the development of networks and utilizing technologies will help in transferring information to data centers which prevents the development of technical problems. The author states that relocating data centers also provides an opportunity for companies to carry out improvements in cabling systems. In addition, it reveals that professionals who have enough skills and knowledge in handling electronic equipment should be employed.

The article reports on the strategies that need to be considered by information technology (IT) companies in the establishment of data centers in the U.S. It states that data centers should feature design that helps companies minimize cooling and electric costs as well as promote effectiveness and efficiency in carrying out IT operations. These include the installation of equipment that works well with servers with effective cooling and heat flow to achieve power efficiency, the utilization of renewable power sources, and using green technologies.

The article offers information about the history and functions of computer algorithms. It states that the word algorithm was derived from the name Al-Khwarizmi, a 9th century Persian mathematician and author of "The Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing." However, in the present times the word algorithm was applied to a step-by-step procedure for solving a problem with a computer. There are methods that was developed by programmers for assessing the efficiency and general goodness of algorithms including Bubblesort which involved reading through the file to be sorted. INSET: The Quicksort Algorithm.

The article provides information on how "Computerworld" identified the top 12 green information technology (IT) companies in the U.S. According to the article, green IT companies are those that are implementing smart, efficient strategies to achieve green IT. The measures taken by the publication include developing a set of criteria to identify the companies with the help of green-IT experts and creating a checklist-style survey and weighing scheme based on the input provided by the experts. It further notes that only those companies that filed verification letters were considered.

The article reports on developments in the touch interface technology in the computer industry. According to computer science Professor Robert Jacob, touch technology is one aspect in computer research that is gaining a lot of attention, particularly in the development of a reality-based interaction. Moreover, Microsoft Corp. and Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratories have partnered in developing LucidTouch, a mobile device that recognizes commands form the user's fingers. Further, one aspect in computer touch technology that the industry is trying to address is the problem on what is being referred to as fat fingers, particularly on small devices.

The article focuses on the proposal of best practices guidelines for information technology (IT) purchasing by General Motors Corp. (GM) and the Department of Defense in the U.S. Accordingly, the technology buying guidelines helps organizations reduce the risks and costs of projects. The guidelines are spelled out in intimidating document and like with the other Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) process standards, it will also take several years for users to master. The CCMI for Acquisition (CCMI-ACQ) first public released is called Version 1.2 that are based on a draft that GM submitted to the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) in Pennsylvania. Moreover, the CMMI-ACQ document provides a broad overview of process methodologies and details about of IT purchasing procedures.

The article offers information on the best places to work in information technology (IT) in the U.S. The first mentioned is at Cummins Inc., that outsourced many of its lower level and more IT jobs which include programming, help desk and computer operations. Another at General Mills Inc., wherein the firm develop marketing information system for activities like the Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest. State Farm Insurance Cos. also qualified for the best places to work in IT, in which the company has huge quantity of data that maintains on IBM z/OS mainframes.

The article reports on the factors that need to be considered inn achieving successful management of storage virtualization technology. It states that storage virtualization does not only perform data migration but is a significant tool in carrying out capacity management, load-balancing as well as information management which works in inexpensive storage devices. The author stresses that evaluating the performance of virtual machine (VM) and eliminating those virtual servers that are not in use can help save costs. Furthermore, measuring and testing hardware for VM as well as understanding the server running in virtual machines should also be considered.

The article reports that Corporate Express Inc. is planning to enable 1,000 of its largest customers to run reports and analyze purchasing patterns using information stored in its internal data warehouse in the U.S. Information technology has commented that such projects can improve customer service, streamline supply chains and let off-site employees access internal business intelligence applications. According to Matt Schwartz, director of business analysis, the company moved quickly early to select a technology that could give its top customers access to purchasing data.

The article focuses on Keri Donahue, a web site and usability specialist in the U.S. Donahue spent her first five years of her career as a human resource manager at Commonwealth Financial Network. After departing Commonwealth, Donahue was offered a full-time position as a web site specialist at the Waltham, Massachusetts-based broker/dealer. Donahue did not have any prior technical experience other than having taken a few information technology (IT) courses at Bentley College during her undergraduate studies.

The article discusses how Corning Inc., a company that provides career development, has helped Jill Baker become a better information technology (IT) professional in the U.S. As a 25-year IT professional, Corning Inc.'s Baker has attended many training programs. However the most profound leadership instruction she has received was from a two-day supervisory effectiveness course she took at the manufacturer's Corning in New York in 2005. Right after she took the course, later that same year, she received an award for effectively nurturing the growth and development of her fellow IT workers.

The article reports on the effects of the increasing demand for information technology (IT) workers on filling up job vacancies in U.S. IT companies. According to Timothy Ramsay, assistant vice president of computer and network services at the University of Miami in Florida, hiring of employees was so difficult because of increased IT hiring activity, specifically in areas of security, database administration and project management. Aside from that, salaries have also become a big issue, where housing prices have increased. Moreover, it has been reported that IT job market is improving in the nation, though ot appears that it is harder for employers to recruit people to fill the job openings they have.

The article focuses on the role of chief information officers (CIO) in information technology (IT) companies in the U.S. When Jean Holley joined the communication equipment provider Tellabs Inc. as CIO, she reported to the executive vice president of corporate services. She was not part of the company's executive committee, but sometimes she would be asked to attend meetings if there was a specific topic where her input might be required. Moreover, the CIO role has brought IT executives opportunities for bigger challenges. CIO are also under pressure to ensure that business units can handle the changes associated with new systems.

The article reports on the C rating received by the federal government based on the 2006 annual information technology (IT) security report provided by U.S. Representative Tom Davis. The rating has showed better performance concerning the government's compliance to security measures as compared to the D grade it received in 2005. However, it reveals that other sectors still got the failing grade of D and F, which did not present any improvement on their security practices. The Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA) has recorded a growth in non-compliance to security standards from among agencies. It was inferred that observing software and hardware configuration standards can help agencies comply to the security measures established by FISMA.

Several charts are presented that display a survey of computer storage devices used by information technology executives in the U.S.

The article reflects on the status of information technology industry in the United States. It mentions the challenges facing U.S. business sector such as the ongoing threat of terrorism, high energy and health care costs and the fear of accelerated global warming. It comments on the effects of these problems to IT business and organizations.

The article focuses on the difference between the compensation of the female and male employees in the computer industry in the U.S. Reportedly, the compensation gap between men and women have reached by about $10,000 with the title of vice president and chief information officer of information technology (IT). Average compensation rate for men had reached by $91,464 and $80,781 for women. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics stresses that in 2005, the usual median weekly earnings of the women were about 81% of men. Analyst Diane Morello of Gartner Inc. stresses that IT departments must look beyond gender to the uniqueness and vital characteristics that the women employees that brought high-performance team.

The author reflects on the idea that information technology (IT) is not worth a conventional business. He comments that IT professionals are conservative in a way that they do not talk to their business colleagues about package upgrading of much less but cheaper innovation because they are afraid to face rejection. He stresses that IT vendors should deliver real innovation and not to make a profit-making business out of it.

The article reports several issues related to the information technology industry in the U.S. Microsoft Corp. has released 12 security updates for Windows and Office software products. 3Com Corp. CEO and president Scott Murray has resigned after seven months on the job. On the other hand, Cisco Systems Inc. reported an increase in year-to-year jump in revenue.

The article reports on the management and maintenance of voice-over-IP (VoIP) systems installed by various companies in the U.S. The Skanska USA Building Inc.'s maintenance and support of VoIP system relies on combined services offered by Cisco Systems Inc.'s Remote Operations Services unit and Alliant Technologies LLC. In addition, the telecommunications manager at the Museum of Modern Art in New York Bill Moore asserted that providing proper quality-of-service levels for voice calls is complicated, and therefore he realized why companies would outsource quality-of-service work.

The article reflects on the author's perspective about leadership in the information technology industry. According to him, great leadership is rare nowadays especially in the industry. Certain questions were asked to first-level IT executives by the IT Leadership Academy in order to continue the mapping of the leadership landscape. The author says that they were surprised with the responses of the executives because 20 percent said that they were never well led, 5 percent said that they were well led for more than half of their career, 65 percent said that they were well led less than 20 percent of their career. He stresses that based on the results, IT leadership has to be inspirational and has to be bigger than life.

The article focuses on the risk management strategies of companies in ensuring a balanced portfolios in their projects. The author contended that part of the problem in most information technology and business staffs are inexperienced at reviewing risks. On the other hand, most companies assesses risk on a project-by-project basis as part of project planning. Portfolio risk management is also a high priority in other companies. Finally, after the overall risk portfolio has been agreed upon, the company has a couple of ways to monitor risk within its information technology-business projects.

The article presents the author's narrative on assembling a four-man agility team to provide systems for a new operating unit acquired by the company. He presented a situation intended for a week long preparation in an orderly manner. He cited the need for four information technology experts who are supposed to be knowledgeable in the core techniques including joint application design and process mapping, data modeling and system prototyping. The agility team is more competent in a week in comparison to a group of analysts who could manage to get it done in three months, according to the author.