Think you know Cisco’s Unified Data Center? Like to friendly compete with others ? Well , well ! It’s about time to prove it! There are at least two ways to do that: the serious and the fun.
The Serious Way: You deploy an Unified Data Center at Work - Can it be risky? -- Not really ..but check out this video anyway:
Disclosure : The numbers displayed in this video are extracted from a real case study
The Fun Way: Participate to the Unified IQ Contest!
Starting on October 1st, we give you the opportunity to test your knowledge .
A fun and easy way to play and compete with an immediate reward. During 6 weeks , we will propose every week a set of questions with multiple choices created by our genius and facetious bloggers. We will cover topics such as Unified Computing Systems, Unified Fabric, Unified Management, Desktop Virtualization, Cloud, Open Network Environment. You got the picture! The whole Cisco Unified Data Center portfolio !
Sure, it’s not like the old days when summer meant no school and running around free, but like most people, summer still makes me feel like I have more personal time and freedom. It must be the extra daylight.
Even if I can’t have the feeling of summer, it makes a huge difference to me if I can work in different ways -- from home or even handling some to do items from the car.
One of the best things about the new, free version of WebEx, is that having a host account (yes, it’s free) means you can host a WebEx on your mobile. And that means I don’t have to be tethered to your computer.
In 2007, Cisco commissioned a study: Understanding and Managing the Mobile Workforce that looked at ways to really grasp how mobility was emerging. Of course, since then, “going mobile” has really become the norm.
In that study, they found:
Successful mobile workers tend to be resilient extroverts. They are open to new experiences and highly adaptable. And, contrary to the stereotype of the harassed and disoriented road warrior, they are supremely organized and independent-minded. With the right kind of tailored support, their productivity and adaptability make them superlative operators in an era of increasing demands and constant change.
In 2007, the Cisco study cited a prediction that “within two years, one quarter of the world’s working population will be mobile workers.” Not to freak anyone out but this was BEFORE Apple’s iPad was even released!
We’re in the midst of an incredible megatrend. We know it and we’re living it. We all love our mobile devices; whether it’s our laptop (yes, I’m sitting at my kids swim class typing away for work), our mobile phone (I’m getting texts on what’s for dinner), or our tablet (where Draw Something awaits me). Apple recently stated that they have sold more than 67 million iPads in the recent 18 months. That is more than all the Mac sales in the past 27 years. There’s no denying it: we are in the midst of an incredible megatrend—a mobile megatrend.
But what does this mean to businesses?From the IT perspective, the role of the mobile devices has transformed from a luxury item used for personal communication and entertainment to an integral tool for employee productivity. Mobile devices are now the main platform for work (laptop or tablet) and the primary medium for corporate contact (mobile phone). With employees bringing an average of two mobile devices each (laptop/tablet + mobile phone), companies can reap the benefits of new business opportunities and more productive employees.
I read an interesting post on No Jitter yesterday that poses the question, “The End of the Desk Phone?” The author suggests that the era of the desk phone is coming to a close. The gist is that tablets are essentially going to take over the known universe and send desk phones the way of the Studebaker.
Like a lot of people, the author is particularly fond of Apple iPads and positions them as the ideal phone eliminator. Once upon a time a lot of people said the same thing about microwave ovens vs. regular stoves. Didn’t happen. Sure, I can make popcorn with a lot less fuss and muss, but convenient though it may be, it’s not the tool for baking a chicken – or better yet, chocolate chip cookies. Read More »
Have you noticed all those iPads around the factory? All around the production areas, the office areas and the warehouse? These mobile connected devices and applications are quickly changing business and organizational models.
They are also changing employee habits and the way we work, as more and more users depend on tablets, such as the Apple iPad, for a variety of daily personal and professional tasks.
It’s not just Apple, though they’re the most common. All those other tablets too. Some of the others are capable of a drop or two, or more onto hard concrete!
The most prevalent use case that IT departments need to solve for is the one where an employee brings their own personal device into the company and seeks to gain network access. This is happening a lot these days. Funny, but companies are finding this is one of the ways they are attracting and keeping talent, especially young talent, so listen up!
Figure 1 illustrates the Cisco solution… Read More »
I always dread summer coming to an end.
