PwC says recession putting IT projects on hold

MANY ORGANISATIONS have scrapped or curtailed IT projects in light of the downturn, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) survey of Irish chief information officers (CIOs).

One-third of those asked said planned or initiated projects in their organisation had been cancelled in the past year. Two-thirds also reported a reduction in the scope of other projects. Eighty per cent of respondents said this kind of cost-cutting was their biggest challenge as they tried to maintain service levels and innovate.

“There’s a few different directions that it [IT spend] is going,” said Pat Kelleher, director of PwC consulting. “There’s a cost-reduction focus in IT, but there are quite a lot of companies where it’s not been cut or has actually been increased in the downturn.”Read More

Courtesy: Irish Times

Ireland’s Government reveals its social media strategy

The Irish Government’s Information Service has built a whole new social networking-led internet platform based on WordPress, Flickr, Facebook and Twitter called MerrionStreet.ie that will see political leaders, including the Taoiseach, 'tweet' to the nation.

As first reported on Siliconrepublic, Taoiseach Brian Cowen will imminently be in a position to "tweet" to the world based on any number of issues.

A new web presence entitled ‘MerrionStreet.ie’ will go live ‘imminently’, the team behind the project told Siliconrepublic during an exclusive preview.

The team told Siliconrepublic that the project took five months to pull together.

The move will transform Government communications from the present website and press release format to a more dynamic web presence that will include photography, videos, Facebook status updates, Twitter feeds and web chat. Read More

Courtesy: Silicon Republic

Irish firms reap benefits of being social

Social networking has become a mainstream business tool in Ireland with fully 40% of businesses having successfully used social networks to win new business, reveals a new global survey commissioned by global workspace solutions provider Regus.

In Ireland, 41% of companies said they planned to devote a proportion of their marketing budget to social networking activities by the end of 2010.

48% of respondents in Ireland used social networking to keep in touch with contacts, slightly below the global average (of 58%).

48% of respondents declared that the main usefulness of social networks was the possibility of managing and connecting to customer groups (globally 51%) and 53% use social networks to find important business information. Read More

Courtesy: RTE News

Apple faces class action lawsuit over iPhone 4

A pair of dissatisfied customers have filed a class action lawsuit against Apple over reception problems in the iPhone 4 - and it is unlikely to be the only one.

Since the arrival of the latest iPhone, there have been reports of reception problems, with Apple telling users to hold the device differently to avoid disturbing the external antenna.

Maryland residents Kevin McCaffery and Linda Wrinn filed the complaint against Apple and AT&T, accusing the firms of negligence, defective design and manufacture, breach of warranty, fraud by concealment and deceptive trade practices.

'Plaintiffs were sold defective iPhone 4 units, which drops calls and data service when held in a manner consistent with normal wireless phone use,' the filing says. Read More

Courtesy: RTE News

Finland makes broadband access a legal right

Finland's Ministry of Transport and Communications has made 1Mb/s broadband Web access a legal right.

According a report from YLE, the country's national broadcasting company, every person in Finland (a little over 5 million people, according to a 2009 estimate) will have the right of access to a 1Mb/s broadband connection starting in July.

Furthermore, the Finns may ultimately gain the right to a 100Mb/s broadband connection.

Just over a year ago, Finland announced its intentions to make a 100Mb broadband connection a legal right by the end of 2015. The announcement made on Wednesday, brings the country one step closer to its goal.

A legal right to an Internet connection reinforces the government's intentions to reinforce a citizen freedom of speech and access to information. Read More

Courtesy: RTE News

Google adopts ‘new approach’ in China

Internet giant Google has announced it is adopting a “new approach” to its Chinese site, Google.cn, following complaints from Beijing that could see the company lose its government licence to provide an internet service in China.

In a blog post yesterday, Google’s chief legal officer David Drummond said that instead of redirecting Chinese Google users from Google.cn to the company’s Hong Kong search engine, the company had decided to create a new landing page on Google.cn which will link to the Hong Kong site.

Google stopped censoring its search services on its Chinese site and began redirecting Chinese users to the Google.hk site to allow uncensored search last March, two months after it discovered that hack attacks had been made on its computer systems in China by sources originating from inside the country. Read More

Courtesy: Silicon Republic

Irish firm using GPS system to transform navigation for blind

AN IRISH company is testing new technology that could revolutionise navigation for the blind. Point The Way is conducting early tests of its phone application that helps visually impaired users follow GPS directions easily.

The application uses a phone’s built-in GPS receiver and compass to gauge its location. It then vibrates when the phone is pointed in the correct direction, allowing users to follow a route by touch. “A normal GPS may say ‘go straight’, which makes sense to most people but may not to a blind person,” says Tim Walsh, director of Point The Way. “Our tool will let them put it in their breast pocket and follow it quite easily.”

The company is currently running a small trial in conjunction with the National Council for the Blind of Ireland but is hoping to expand this soon. As part of this, it is already in early stage talks with manufacturers like Motorola, which has an accessibility programme in the US. Read More

Courtesy: Irish Times

Nokia gets ready for Oxegen with festival apps

Ahead of the biggest music festival of the year here in Ireland Nokia is readying ticket holders with a selection of free apps - Apps for Oxegen - designed to be part of the festival survival kit.

Available through Nokia's app store Ovi.com these free Apps for Oxegen include three specially created apps for the big weekend: Nokia Live Link, Nokia Recommends and Nokia Video Jukebox.

Even if you're not there on the day you can follow gigs and gossip through these apps and the Live Link app give up breaking news, stage times, special guest info as well as traffic information and where the parties are happening on-site.

Live Link is created by mobile app developer Mobanode, the tech start-up behind apps including national anthem app Amhran na Bhfiann and a variety of apps for Electric Picnic. Read More

Coursey: Silicon Republic

Brown Bag Films lands Disney contract

The twice-Oscar nominated Irish animation company Brown Bag Films has landed a major contract with Disney to produce a new children’s television series.

Brown Bag will produce a 52-episode series entitled Doc McStuffins for Disney, which will be screened on the US cable TV channel Disney Junior.

Brown Bag chief executive Cathal Gaffney said the company would be taking on an additional 14 staff over the next two years to cater for the new contract.

Gaffney founded Brown Bag Films in 1994 with Darragh O'Connell, the studio's creative head. Read More

Courtesy: Silicon Republic

Demise of the desktop

AS AN increasingly rare sight on retailers’ shelves, in people’s homes and even around the office, it is clear that the desktop computer is dying. So what is driving the demise of this once ever-present machine and does it have any hope of survival?

Once expensive and unwieldy, the laptop is now the dominant player in the computer landscape.

According to both manufacturers and retailers this is because of two distinct trends which, between them, are working to squeeze out the desktop – ever-improving miniaturised technology and changing customer behaviour.

“The price points [on notebooks] have come way down and the market has caught up a lot with desktops in terms of performance,” said Aaron McKenna, country manager for online retailer Komplett.ie.

Just a few years ago, money spent on a laptop would give users far less power than the same amount spent on a desktop. However, cheaper and smaller components mean this gulf has all but disappeared at consumer levels. Read more

Courtesy: Irish Times