21 May 2013

IT & Telecommunications

Cloaks without daggers?

Minister of State Security Siyabonga Cwele says that a solid case is being built against South Africans suspected of having links with terrorist groups such as Al-Shabaab; arrests can be expected soon. In passing, however, he also mentioned that the government wants to recruit more spies. That begs the question for some: what for? It also makes some people wonder... given the fact that we have an air force that cannot fly many of its aircraft, and an army that ... well ... hasn't fared too well recently, and a navy that has its subs up on blocks, will our budding 007s be properly trained and equipped to do the job? Or will it be a case of cloaks without daggers.

Durban says, "Yes, we iCANN!" and the city's exclusive internet namespace .durban is on its way after passing its first ICANN hurdle.

One wedding and a whitewash? Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Jeff Radebe has said that the probe into the Waterkloof incident is to continue. However, a number of commentators believe that the so-called "probe" is little more than a whitewash to protect Jacob Zuma and an assortment of cabinet ministers, with officials taking the heat in their stead.

There's nothing like trying to get the message across... the WWF and TRAFFIC are targeting rhino horn consumers, particularly in Vietnam, as part of their global campaign against illegal wildlife trade. The bodies have developed a series of advertisements to discourage Vietnamese citizens from buying or consuming rhino horn.

Well, good luck and we hope it works, but in the meantime, efforts to stop the poaching must be stepped up, the kingpins be arrested and sentenced to rot in jail, and perhaps local communities around our game reserves be involved in some sort of system that rewards them for reporting suspect activities and people in their areas.

Rod Baker, Content Director

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Moving the contact centre to the cloud
[Paul Fick] Cloud services and hosted services have been talked about for many years, but only recently, since bandwidth has become more available and affordable, have they become a viable option in South Africa. Read more >>

Mediatech Africa joins PLASA
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Dell, Intel, Lenovo, SYSPRO, Samsung to showcase at Tech Demo Africa 2013
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Five tips when considering managed security services
[Andrew Kirkland] Recent reports suggest that the managed security services (MSS) space, which increased by 12% to US$13 billion in 2012, will continue to grow rapidly. For businesses looking to partner with a MSS provider (MSSP), this article will provide tips which may assist in properly assessing your IT security environment before engaging a MSSP for outsourced services.
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Hardware
Can mobile enterprise apps keep up with the tablets?
The unprecedented adoption of tablet PCs means that the fully mobile enterprise is now possible, but true enterprise mobility also requires access to full ERP functionality on the road. With tablets, smartphones and phablets moving to surpass PC shipments, mobile computing is the way of the future. Read more >>

Dell's profits crash by 79%
NEW YORK, USA: US computer company Dell said last week its quarterly profits plunged 79% from a year ago, as a shift away from personal computers hammered the company's bottom line. Read more >>


Internet
dotDurban passes first ICANN hurdle
The exclusive internet namespace .durban is on its way after passing the first Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) hurdle. Read more >>


Network
Competition intensifying for Vodacom
[Thabiso Mochiko] Vodacom aims to deliver low single digit service revenue growth and "mid to high single digit" growth in earnings before interest‚ tax‚ depreciation and amortisation in the next three years‚ the company said on Monday (20 May)‚ when releasing its annual results for the year to March. Read more >>

City of Joburg's broadband network to go live on 1 July
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Solidarity, Telkom head for CCMA
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Services
ICASA review in the pipeline
[Amukelani Chauke] Cabinet has approved a proposal to review some of the Independent Communications Authority of SA's functions to make it more transparent and accountable. Read more >>


Software
Gijima to showcase capabilities at Microsoft roadshow
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Avoid disaster, backup your data - Blaeser
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International
Atex announces new advertising software release
MELBOURNE (FLORIDA), US: Atex has announced the release of its latest OneView Advertising platform, which includes more than 30 new browser-based features that enable media companies to more effectively manage and monetize the end-to-end lifecycle for all digital, mobile, broadcast, radio and print ads. Read more >>

Google branded as 'evil' by lawmaker
LONDON - A senior British lawmaker on Thursday (16 May) described Google as "evil" and accused the US internet company of unethically avoiding paying vast amounts of tax in Britain. Read more >>

MTN to bid for Myanmar licence
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Sony urged to sell entertainment unit
TOKYO, JAPAN: Sony shares rose on Wednesday (15 May) after a US hedge fund called for the partial sell-off of its entertainment unit, in a rare bid by a major foreign shareholder to penetrate Japan's staid corporate culture. Read more >>

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Jobs offered
Junior PHP Developer - Cape Town
UCT is looking for a junior PHP developer to join their web development team. Experience with web content management systems is required. Applications close 31 May 2013. Read more >>


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