9 Apr 2013

IT & Telecommunications



Horn o' puke

In a bid to counter rhino poaching for their horns, the horns are being given non-lethal toxic infusions so that consumers overseas will risk becoming seriously ill. There are many people in this country who probably wish that the infusions were lethal, so that the trade dries up altogether.

Meanwhile, our president is a bit miffed over what he terms newspapers' 'selective' reporting. Well, what about giving us a complete and believable account of how 13 of our troops ended up dead in the CAR?

Have you flown SAA recently? No, nor have I - but quite a bit of my tax monies are going to the airline anyway. One who is not taking it lying down is Comair's Erik Venter, who's flying high as his court battle looms. Quite rightly, in the eyes of a great many people, he's sick of seeing our inefficiently run national carrier being bailed out by the billions. Private and state airlines in SA should compete on a level playing field - and that's not what is happening now.

Feeling like you're being taxed into poverty? Join the club - because you have contributed your bit to SARS collecting R814bn in taxes for the 2012/13 fiscal year. That's R4bn more than what Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan had projected when he delivered the National Budget in February.

Any chance firm measures - more than merely meaningless words - can be taken to ensure ALL of our hard-earned cash is used properly? You know... not stolen, not misspent, not wasted on new ministers' cars and luxury travel and luxury accommodation... and parties?

Finally, Zando.co.za, together with its partners Bizcommunity.com, Build-A-Bear Workshop, CourierIT, Dialogue and Infidels have set up a campaign to get those less fortunate school kids shoes in time for winter. Join in - do the right thing.

Rod Baker: Content Director

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Top stories

Facebook losing face with SA users
Social networking site Facebook has seen its South African user-base drop by nearly one million people in the past six months, according to a report on Monday, 7 April. Read more >>


Editorial news

IT & Telecommunications
WD appoints Sahara Computers as its official distributor
WD, a Western Digital company, has appointed Sahara Computers as its official distributor for its range of internal and external hard drives, as well as its storage solutions. Sahara has operations in all nine provinces of South Africa and a footprint that extends into the SADC region. Read more >>

The bite-sized lowdown of the big data story
[Simon Griffiths] Reading through technology news and opinion articles today, it is pretty hard to avoid the term "big data". Harvard Business Review blog, Forbes, MIT Sloan Management Review, McKinsey Quarterly have all covered it. As one analyst has commented, the hype about it is reaching "the levels of SOA in the early 2000s, cloud in the late 2000s, and social in the past few years". Read more >>

The rise of social media as a recruitment tool
[Yolandi Nortje] The rise of social media has moved beyond social interaction to providing a powerful HR tool in the recruitment process. Read more >>

Internet Society to host AfPIF 2013 in Morocco
The fourth annual African Peering and Interconnection Forum (AfPIF), organised by the Internet Society, will be held from 3-5 September 2013 in Casablanca, Morocco. A unique regional forum, AfPIF facilitates discussions on African internet infrastructure challenges. Read more >>

Teraco and Seacom work double time internet crisis
Teraco Data Environments and data networks communication provider Seacom have worked double time this past week to reconnect clients affected by a cable cut that occurred some kilometres north of the coast of Egypt in the Mediterranean Sea. Read more >>

Why South Africa needs more information security experts
[Drew van Vuuren] Skills shortages in information security disciplines critical to managing business security pose a threat to South African organisations. The result is that business and government could end up employing inadequately skilled resources that offer short-term or tactical solutions to security issues, leaving company systems vulnerable to cybercrime. Read more >>


Hardware
Reduce data centre operational expenditure
[Xolani Ndlovu] The impact on the physical infrastructure of virtualisation and cloud computing has escalated the importance of specifying the most effective and cost-efficient equipment that suits the needs of the business. Read more >>


Internet
Facebook losing face with SA users
Social networking site Facebook has seen its South African user-base drop by nearly one million people in the past six months, according to a report on Monday, 7 April. Read more >>

Be proactive in your online safety
[Carolyn Holgate] The internet is a part of our daily lives; we use it for everything - communication, reading, research, education, current events, exploring the world, entertainment, shopping, networking and business. Read more >>

The world of 542 superpower words
[Naseem Javed] There are 542 words that will start to impact the business world very soon. These are the 542 dictionary words applied for as generic top-level domain from the Internet Authority as gTLDs at an average cost of a million dollars each. Read more >>


Network
Tarkan Diraz appointed GM of 3fifteen's mobile division
Specialised Microsoft and mobile application development company 3fifteen has appointed Tarkan Diraz as the new GM of its mobile division. Diraz will be responsible for growing the company's business in this strategically important area. Read more >>

Maseko chosen to lead ailing Telkom
[Phakamisa Ndzamela] The Minister of Communications Dina Pule said on Tuesday (2 April) the appointment of Sipho Maseko as chief executive and Brian Armstrong as chief operating officer at Telkom should now put the company in a position to deliver for shareholders. Read more >>


Services
Kirsh wants to cut off FoneWork directors
[Monde Maoto] Signalling a vote of no confidence in the non-executive directors of FoneWorx, William and Issie Kirsh - who through their family trusts are majority shareholders in the telecommunications and information technology solutions provider - are rallying other shareholders to remove them from the company. Read more >>

Hospital groups invest in imaging
[Nick Hedley] Private hospital groups are the driving force behind investment in the South African medical imaging market thanks to competition in the industry‚ according to business consulting firm Frost & Sullivan. Read more >>

Gijima says it's back on track for profits
[Alistair Anderson] Technology services provider Gijima said on Tuesday (2 April) it had come through a difficult period but was hopeful that its restructuring would turn its fortunes around. Read more >>


Software
Battle erupts over MTN Traveller
An entrepreneur is accusing MTN of stealing his intellectual property after the cellphone giant invited parties to send proposals for a travel-booking product he has been working on with MTN since 2010. Read more >>


International
February 2013 US smartphone subscriber market share
RESTON, US: comScore, Inc, a leader in measuring the digital world, today released data from the comScore MobiLens service, reporting key trends in the US smartphone industry for the three month average period ending February 2013. Read more >>

comScore Subscriber Analytix offers new capabilities
RESTON, US: comScore, Inc, a leader in measuring the digital world, has announced significant enhancements to its Subscriber Analytix suite for mobile operators worldwide. Read more >>

Top 50 US web properties for February 2013
RESTON, US: comScore, Inc, a leader in measuring the digital world, has released its monthly analysis of US web activity at the top online properties for February 2013 based on data from the comScore Media Metrix service. Read more >>

Informa comments on Facebook mobile announcement
LONDON, UK: Malik Saadi, Principal Analyst at Informa Telecoms & Media, comments on Facebook's mobile announcement. Read more >>

North Koreans really hacked off now
[Rod Baker] NEWSWATCH: North Korean social media sites (yes, they do have them) have apparently been hacked, reports CNN, and closer to home, the iBurst boss might face arrest, reports TechCentral. Read more >>

People with secret bank accounts exposed
LONDON, UK: Millions of emails and leaked records from offshore tax havens have exposed the identities of thousands of holders of offshore accounts, including the family of the president of Azerbaijan and French President Francois Hollande's one-time campaign treasurer, The Guardian and Le Monde newspapers reported on Thursday (4 April). Read more >>

NYF Television & Film Awards launches e-program mobile app
NEW YORK, US: New York Festivals® International Television & Film Awards continues its commitment to innovation and technology with its e-program mobile app. Read more >>

South Africa and the rise of the VoIP industry
[Rachel Greenberg] SAN DIEGO, US/ JOHANNESBURG, SA: In the next few years, South Africa will become more interconnected than ever with newly improved wireless communication technologies throughout the country. Read more >>

No fanfare as cellphone turns 40
WASHINGTON, USA: The mobile phone turned 40 on Wednesday (3 April), with no fanfare to mark the occasion in a market which seemed focused on new smartphones like the iPhone and a possible Facebook-themed device. Read more >>

Apple apologises after China outrage
BEIJING, CHINA: Apple chief executive Tim Cook has apologised to Chinese consumers after the US technology giant was subjected to a barrage of criticism in state-run media over alleged "arrogance" and double standards. Read more >>

Android growing in popularity with users
WASHINGTON, USA: Smartphones using the Android platform boosted their US market share, extending their lead over Apple's iPhone, a new survey shows. Read more >>

'Facebook phone' may ring true tomorrow
SAN FRANCISCO, US: Facebook has fuelled fresh talk about its own mobile phone after the leading social network scheduled a press announcement for this week. Read more >>

More International...


New accounts
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