The most recent Analysis from Incisive Media

Top 10 holiday gadgets

David Neal — 2009-07-03T16:48:00.000Z

David Neal, V3.co.uk, Friday 3 July 2009 at 16:48:00

A wry look at the must-have beach items for any discerning tech fan

It's a heatwave out there, so we assume you'll all be packing up your bags for the annual summer holiday soon and heading off to cooler climes. So which gadgets are you going to take with you? And what can you do without?

1. Just follow these simple instructions

One of the most patronising sounding apps for the iPhone promises to help the lady in your life pack her suitcase before going on holiday. The app, which none of us wanted to download, offers a number of tips, and even suggests 12 essential items that all women should take away with them. We don't know what these essentials are, and to be honest we don't want to know either. Vacation Essentials is currently on sale at just 59p. Cheaper than a pair of Primark flip flops.

2. I'll shoot you if you don't move

Tourist Remover by futureLAB removes not just tourists from your photos but anything you want. You take a number of photos of the same scene, upload them and wait while the software blends them into one composite photograph. This means that your work trip to the niche developer conference in Las Vegas can suddenly become your holiday to Las Vegas. How you explain the vendor polo shirt and name badge is up to you.

3. But can it carry itself?

Got pockets that are both wide and deep? Well, this Swiss Army knife is looking for a home, at least it would be if it wasn't already sold out. The Giant Knife costs around £850 and is made up of 87 implements capable of performing 141 functions. But to be honest, once we'd opened a can of beans and got a stone out of a horse's shoe we ran out of ideas.

4. Under the sea

Splash-proof phones are one thing, but proper waterproof ones that you can actually use underwater are the stuff of dreams in the lost city of Atlantis. Sony Ericsson launched its so9021wp last year without much of a splash (see what we did there) and because of this we think it's worth bringing to your attention. Not only can it survive a dunking in the briny, but you can hear and speak through it while it's down there. Altogether now: "SPEAK UP. I'm in a shark."

5. I found the shoes - now where are the kids?

We haven't had enough time to assess all the different GPS devices out there. However, we do like the idea of the GPS Shoe, which could let you keep track of your kids or, given its sizing, Jeanette Krankie. The only downfall is that we took a look at the company site and couldn't work out how to buy the shoes. We could invest in the idea, though. But we'll probably wait and see how they pan out before doing that.

6. When going deep goes too far

A video camera for scuba diving makes great sense for us. At least it did until we saw a picture of it. It's dangerous enough underwater without drawing unnecessary attention to yourself, so adding two large headlamps to the side of your head is only likely to anger privacy-sensitive bottom-dwelling sea fish. We'd probably buy this one, but never unpack it. We'll leave the finding of Nemo to someone else.

7. And the tiny band played on

Some plans are doomed to fail so, while your two weeks away gets cancelled due to work commitments, why don't you celebrate another ill-fated voyage? This remote control replica of RMS Titanic could be hours of fun or just minutes of carnage. That all depends on how long it takes you to ram it into the nearest remote control iceberg.

8. Luke, I am not your father

Is there anything more suitable - or unsuitable - for taking to the beach than a Death Star-shaped beach ball? Yes, of course there is. But that doesn't mean you don't want one. You can also get an R2D2 floating drinks holder. Imagine the kind of girls you could attract with that.

9. Mummy, what is that man doing?

It's tough to leave everything about work behind, so we don't doubt that you'll need some sort of access to company systems. This means you need a small, light, economically powered and, most importantly, cheap netbook to take away with you. We strongly recommend that you get one that is book sized, and camouflage it to look like the latest Dan Brown. We know that's likely to prove embarrassing, but it's much better than the alternative. You are supposed to be on holiday.

10. Use sunscreen

Like someone else once said: "If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it." Admittedly that is not advice in itself, but 'wear sunscreen' makes a lot of sense. You might think you are ripe for tanning, but haven't you spent the majority of the year in a datacentre? Or in a meeting room? Or scurrying about underneath a desk chasing cables? This means you are ripe for burning. Take some factor 55. That should save you from being red-faced, red-shouldered, red-necked and red-backed on your first day back in the office.

Critical role for channel today

Martin Atherton — 2009-07-03T16:14:00.000Z

Martin Atherton, CRN, Friday 3 July 2009 at 16:14:00

Channel players must inspire their customers to exploit IT to its fullest potential

The channel is the route through which most IT is sold and implemented and, while major IT vendors can provide higher level guidance to the customers, they do not have direct contact with them.

Customers benefit from ‘real’ contextual guidance, face to face, with channel players. The channel is more than just a channel, or at least it should be.

From certain angles, some of the latest technical evolutions and delivery models look as though they could dis-intermediate the channel. Developments such as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and cloud computing spring to mind, if many IT evangelists are to be believed.

However, IT vendors, their channel partners and their customers know that this is untrue today, partly because of the way that technology is bought and accounted for, and partly because most business remains an activity between people engaged at a local level.

But now is not the time for sitting back and enjoying the status quo. Indeed, a major imperative for the channel is in making the opportunity for adding value count for as much as possible.

The current state of the economy only increases the importance of surrounding the products and services for sale with insight, advice, inspiration and guidance.

Business messages

Our recent research has detected a pragmatic and measured set of expectations for how the economic climate will affect IT investment.

Simple messages offered by VARs in this situation can help customers see beyond the vision of IT as merely a cost controller.

Business sentiments are naturally in constant flux. Yet people’s experience of previous downturns seems to be playing its part in helping to shape expectations; most organisations expect to undergo measured and targeted cuts as opposed to large scale reductions.

Again though, nothing is certain and one of the actions open to IT is to take

the initiative to help both sides customers and IT vendors to make the right

decisions.

This is where the channel may exploit its unique position. Indeed, acting in the role of a middle man in the technology industry holds certain advantages.

The gap between the major IT vendor and the non-enterprise customer needs a sturdy bridge.

For the IT vendor, channel partners should be a trusted set of eyes and ears on the ground, keeping manufacturers in tune with industry and regional nuances.

For the customer, the channel partner is the ‘real world’ face of the IT market,

helping put the big ideas and concepts into context and focus.

Looking to the future

As long as the channel exploits these facts, it will remain a vital part of the technology industry ecosystem, regardless of the user or sourcing models that emerge.

The current economic climate is simply the catalyst du jour. It is a wake-up call

for any channel player that has not already started making it clear to customers that they are there to help with more than just processing transactions and, as a result, ensuring that they are worth more to the big IT vendors.

Martin Atherton is a research director at Freeform Dynamics

An interview with the VAT man

Tony N Guise — 2009-07-03T16:08:00.000Z

Tony N Guise, CRN, Friday 3 July 2009 at 16:08:00

A solicitor’s viewpoint for resellers that find their tax situation under scrutiny

HM Revenue & Customs’ (HMRC’s) Public Notice 160, September 2007, is a statement of practice about the way in which it conducts investigations into indirect tax matters.

You, as a business, are obviously encouraged to co-operate.

Fully co-operating with the authority can lead to a reduction in the civil evasion penalty equivalent to 80 per cent of the tax on which penalties are chargeable.

Be warned, though, they will not pay your costs for dealing with the investigation.

Although they do helpfully point out that you can apply for a reconsideration or appeal against a decision to impose a civil evasion penalty, what they do not explain is that you must appeal within 30 days of the decision (although time may in certain circumstances be extended by the Tribunal).

If you are successful in your appeal, the Tribunal may award costs in your favour. However, that is only from the date you commenced your appeal.

New weapon

In January 2009, HMRC introduced a new weapon in its long fight against

MTIC fraud. Building on the procedures outlined above, Public Notice 161 introduces the interview with HMRC for cases of suspected Missing Trader Intra-Community (MTIC) or carousel fraud.

Carousel fraud refers to the practice of obtaining VAT registration to acquire goods such as hardware or software VAT-free from other EU nations which could then

be sold on. All transactions in the chain of supply may be investigated. It does not apply in other cases of suspected dishonesty.

It is not a legal requirement to engage in the interview process, but refusal to become involved is likely to lead to a higher civil evasion penalty if HMRC believes dishonest conduct has been involved. Discounts of up to 80 per cent may still be possible for full and prompt co-operation.

Advance notice

HMRC will send you details on the following ahead of the investigation:

*That it is not contemplating prosecution (there is a different regime

for those cases)

*The period or periods which it is investigating

*The nature of its suspicions

*The grounds for its belief that you are involved in dishonest conduct

*That false statements can lead to a criminal enquiry with a view to prosecution.

Being a new procedure, experience of this process is limited.

However, there are similar regimes in connection with investigations into the conduct of directors which may lead to disqualification: the so-called Hansard meetings used by the Special Compliance Office of HM Revenue (allegedly unpaid income tax) and interviews about breaches of solicitors’ professional rules by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

In such interviews the authorities often appear friendly. However, it is vital to remember that they are not your friends.

Keep informed

Always be accompanied by a lawyer or accountant familiar with these issues. Thorough preparation is vital, using the information provided by HMRC to

challenge its approach.

If at all possible, make no admissions as these may be used against you in subsequent

interviews or before the appeal Tribunal.

Interviews will concentrate on matters that are complex and (from next year) the matters investigated can be up to four years old.

Most people have difficulty remembering points of detail, particularly in an environment where their livelihood is at risk let alone when the detail requested is about events that happened four years ago.

Do remember to ask for more time to check your records and investigate the issue yourself. Another interview can always be arranged to deal with outstanding issues. Do not be rushed into giving an answer you may later regret.

Interviews may be digitally recorded, although you may insist on a handwritten note being taken.

An investigation can take up to two years to complete, during which time no decision will be reached but VAT may be withheld.

Remember, as a result of recent court decisions about MTIC and contra-trading, HMRC may not be entitled to withhold VAT, let alone impose any penalty. If in doubt, seek advice.

Tony N Guise is partner at specialist law firm Guise Solicitors

IT stimulus will not go to waste

Fleur Doidge — 2009-07-03T15:53:00.000Z

Fleur Doidge, CRN, Friday 3 July 2009 at 15:53:00

An IT consortium claims shared services could save public sector services and cut carbon emissions. Fleur Doidge reports

New IT partnerships will be key to the success of a proposed £1bn public sector stimulus package that sets out to slash costs and carbon emissions.

Logicalis, CA and the Society of IT Management (Socitm) have teamed up with green group Global Action Plan in a shared-services vision, aimed at cutting the cost of running a cash-starved public sector while targeting a mandated 80 per cent reduction in UK carbon emissions from 1990 levels by 2050.

They think the £1bn if spent correctly could save £2bn in three years, which could be reinvested in front-line public services and reduce carbon emissions 12 per cent. IT partners will be crucial as the greatest efficiencies can only happen through a cross-organisational, inter-departmental and multi-IT provider approach.

Speaking at a panel discussion on the proposal at Westminster, Socitm president Steve Palmer said the public sector is going to have to work much more efficiently.

“There are significant pressures on public sector finances,” said Palmer.

“Soon there won’t even be the money or resources to run the public sector services that we have now, let alone in the future. There need to be imaginative and innovative solutions. Also, capacity locally to provide investment funds is somewhat limited. What we need is some high-profile impetus.”

Andrew Miller, MP for Ellesmere Port and Neston, supported the shared vision, adding that without government support it is unlikely that much change will happen in time, if at all.

“I believe that the solution to some of the issues [in the public sector] is in improving shared services,” he said.

Deployments benefiting from such trends as virtualisation and cloud computing were key, he said, facilitating a reshaping of public sector services to remove inefficiencies, such as the unnecessary and widespread duplication of records and files. They would also slash energy bills cutting carbon emissions.

“The House of Commons has started to think about simple things such as switching off monitors, but we can go further,” said Miller.

Green efficiency

Other shared services could take advantage of technologies such as telepresence, to remove the need for officials to travel again making cost and carbon savings. Money could then be redirected to various environmentally friendly investments, such as an energy industry restructure away from fossil fuels.

Trewin Restorick, chief executive of Global Action Plan, said that bringing different organisations together to work on these types of projects could have impressive results.

“We have to reduce our carbon emissions by 80 per cent by 2050 and 30 to 40 per cent by 2020. That’s quite tight,” he said. “Yet government usually works at the speed of a sloth in snowboots walking through treacle. And there are 5,000 organisations in the UK that will be hit by carbon credit legislation.”

IT represents about 10 per cent of the UK’s electricity bill and central government spends £13bn a year on IT. A package like this could help float all boats through better IT spending, said Restorick.

David Swayne, director of information systems at Nottingham Trent University, said his institution, with its 4,000 staff and 26,000 hot-desking students, gained considerable efficiencies through restructuring its IT infrastructure to improve sharing of services.

The university went from 17th place in the green universities league table to first. A team of ‘eco-warriors’, which included students, thought up ways to improve efficiency both IT and non-IT-related and turned those ideas into action.

“We expect to see even more savings in the next 12 months,” said Swayne. “One thing was deploying software that powers machines down when they are not being used, and that monitors them to see when they are being used.”

Gains are possible

Phil Loughlin, chief technology officer at CA, said the vendor’s focus would be on helping organisations to eliminate waste.

“By eliminating waste, you help them improve productivity and so on,” he said.

“There’s a difficult question about whether it means reducing headcount, but we need to focus on getting waste out of IT. From that, you obviously generate a pound saving, and it’s what you do with that pound saving that’s important.”

Chris Gabriel, marketing and solutions director for Logicalis, said the single communications network installed for the Welsh National Assembly, although

criticised for a lack of cohesiveness, showed where gains were possible even in quite large shared-services projects.

“Clearly, we need productivity gains in government and that can improve front-line services,” said Gabriel. “Both sides have to change the IT industry has to step up and deliver innovation.”

The technology is available to make the efficiency gains but what is needed is a plan and stimulus for effective deployment.

“People need to step up [in these projects] and say, ‘how is this actually going to work?’,” Gabriel added.

Public sector holds the key

>> www.channelweb.co.uk/2241591

Red tape makes scanning a must

Fleur Doidge — 2009-07-03T15:30:00.000Z

Fleur Doidge, CRN, Friday 3 July 2009 at 15:30:00

The need to convert paper copies into digital files means great chances for VARs in the scanning market

Not so long ago, some commentators were predicting that office scanners and scanning were going to go the way of the dinosaurs -- or at least of the fax machines, relegated to a dusty corner and rarely used.

However, the massive weight of regulatory compliance now bearing down on all types and sizes of business has given a new lease of life to scanning technology, especially if networkable and integrated into document management and workflow solutions.

Tracey Fielden, head of office marketing at Canon, said the market for its standalone scanners is expanding faster than ever.

"We do everything from desktop paper scanners, which are sheet-fed, right up to application-centric ones, such as volume production scanners or cheque scanners," she said.

Canon sits below the specialist leader Fujitsu -- which has half the market -- but is seeing growing sales, particularly in the low-volume or departmental categories.

"The departmental area of growth is coming from networkable scanners, that talk to the network," said Fielden. "I think that Fujitsu has only just launched a network scanner that competes with ours."

Labour-saving technology

Scanning was often a laborious, principally manual job delegated to one person. A small work-group scanner can share one network and remove that personís workload, processing jobs from the whole work-group.

"The driver is document management, so that people have access to scanners to convert paper documents to electronic files," said Fielden.

Standalone scanners have more features than multi-function devices (MFDs) and can produce better images, often faster or in larger volumes of thousands of pages, automatically. A lot of organisations that use MFDs will buy dedicated scanners as well, said Fielden.

"There will be departmental, standalone scanners dotted around the office."

Peter Trapmore, EMEA sales director at Xerox scanners/Visioneer, agreed, adding that sales of Xerox-branded scanners from Visioneer are growing at a rate of about 30 per cent a year across Europe, including in the UK.

But the technology too has become more appealing. "What has happened is that speeds have gone up and prices have come down. And the scanners have got smaller and smaller," said Trapmore.

Smaller scanners now are document feeders rather than sporting the traditional flat-bed format -- making them easier to use.

"But until the last couple of years, with the drive for compliance, they were not going back to their records to create digital copies of everything," he said.

Hywel Thomas, sales manager at Surrey consultancy and SharePoint reseller BrightStarr, said the future of scanning is tied in with what seems to be an ever-expanding need for improved document management.

"Our customers are asking us for the ability to print and scan documents," said Thomas. "They have mountains of paper."

Growing demand

Alan McLeish, senior product marketing manager at Oki Printing Solutions, which does not sell standalone scanners, said demand was definitely growing for its range of MFDs, which all incorporate scan functions.

Most offer scan to PDF, JPEG, TIFF, FTP, email or to a Windows folder archive on the network. Some offer Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP), so users can access their company address book.

"Customers [previously] were asking for scanning functionality but did not necessarily know what they wanted to use it for," said McLeish. "It was not until we added scan-to-email functionality that it started to really take off."

Another useful product is EFI SendMe, an application that allows interfacing between the MFD and a number of different types of scanning utility, including full integration with document management systems.

"If logged on, you can scan to a folder, FTP, email, or to another printer but you can also integrate it with document management," said McLeish.

"For example, with SharePoint, you can view documents on the MFD, de-speckle, de-skew and add meter data, tell SharePoint where they have to go and so on."

Users can ask the MFD to add an OCR layer to the document and then send it to SharePoint. Other applications with which Oki machines are compatible include RightFax.

Compliance and security around document processing is becoming critical for all types of business.

"One of the things that companies like about SharePoint is that you cannot access it unless you are fully authorised," said McLeish.

"That is becoming important with the current need to make sure that the person who enters a document into a system is authorised. So we believe that the scanning functionality will be used more and more by customers."

Xerox copies channel coverage in UK regions

>> www.channelweb.co.uk/2244851

Overview: Peter Caryana rocks the boat

Verity Reynolds — 2009-07-02T18:33:00.000Z

Verity Reynolds, Accountancy Age, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 18:33:00

Prospects: will Gibraltar’s tax changes affect its reputation?

In a bid to remove Gibraltar’s ‘tax haven’ image, Peter Caruana, chief minister of Gibraltar, recently announced the introduction of a corporate tax rate of 10% for both international and domestic companies within Gibraltar. But how will the attitudes of many businesses in Gibraltar change as a result of a prospective tax hike?

What’s happened?

Caruana is aiming to remove Gibraltar from the OECD’s ‘grey list’ of countries considered unsavoury on tax matters and on to the ‘white list’ of fiscal good guys. This will be a difficult task indeed considering Gibraltar, like many other jurisdictions, has generally been held in low esteem for tax reasons by the OECD.

He hopes, however, that through his introduction of a 10% corporate tax rate he will gain the trust of those countries that doubt the credibility of those choosing to invest their money in Gibraltar.

If this were not enough, the recent agreement signed by Caruana and the USA, agreeing to the exchange of tax information, could also shed some light on those high net-worth individuals who use ‘the rock’ to house their considerable incomes.

In many ways Caruana has molded the face of Gibraltar today; the economy is no longer dominated by the British Military but by the financial services sector. The GDP has steadily risen since 2004 from around £600m to £850m, inflation has dropped and taxes on almost all areas of business are extremely low.

Despite these promising figures, Caruana’s small-yet-affluent, state is, to many, only an offshore centre for multinationals seeking to take advantage of the 0% corporate tax rate.

What will happen?

Caruana will certainly have to consider many areas that may be affected as a result of the impending change. The 10% rate, although potentially shifting Gibraltar into the ‘white list’, may result in adverse affects to the economic stability of the country.

Given the current economic climate he may find that many businesses withdraw, to place their money in other low tax jurisdictions which are available. And having your details handed over to American tax authorities is hardly an advertising campaign likely to entice new business to the territory.

But they are holding steady. Finance director James Tipping commented on the tax rule, saying ‘our philosophy is a low tax, not no tax, jurisdiction’, suggesting the government is confident that business will stay on.

Their confidence is perhaps based on the fact that, so far, no business has declared an intention to relocate.

Gibraltar may now be a leading member in the changing face of global tax as other countries consider following suit. Caruana will be hoping that 10% is enough, but not too high a price to pay.

Second Life seeks to mix the real and virtual worlds

Ian Williams — 2009-07-02T07:00:00.000Z

Ian Williams, V3.co.uk, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 07:00:00

Linden Lab unveils plans to integrate with social networks and online services

Linden Lab's Second Life virtual universe continues to prosper and grow despite the gloomy economy of the real world, and is shifting its attention to helping mix the two realities.

Second Life has just celebrated its sixth birthday, and in an interview with V3.co.uk, the company's chief product officer, Tom Hale, put to rest any concerns that interest in the online world is waning. He also laid out plans for how the site intends to continue to expand in the future.

Hale claimed that there were 656,867 active Second Life residents in May 2009, racking up over a million logins and over 43 million in-world hours. Users each logged an average of 42.65 hours a month, and generated just under $50m (£30m) worth of user-to-user transactions.

Although Second Life is not a game, it is the second most popular online world, according to Nielsen's April ratings, some way behind the hugely successful World of Warcraft, but well ahead of Lord of the Rings Online and Dark Messiah of Might and Magic.

Hale went on to detail some of the initiatives underway designed to expand the presence of Second Life, and to help aid interaction between in-world and online users via three "rings" of interaction. At the core is the full immersion within Second Life. Next is the light immersion offered through web-based interaction, while the outer ring consists of messaging and voice services both within and without the world.

"We want to make Second Life more accessible to anyone to communicate and share Second Life through the web," said Hale.

"Linden Lab recognises there's a place for lighter-weight engagement with Second Life, and further leveraging the web is a strategic choice for the company, hence the launch of the new dashboard and web site refresh."

As part of the move, the company has released a beta version of the new dashboard which provides a lightweight web interface to offer an insight into the world without having to log in. The dashboard provides access to several social networking-style tools, such as a map of Second Life, presence details of friends, upcoming events, recent activity and status updates.

This allows users to see whether anything of interest is going on in-world, or whether friends are online, before firing up the client. Similarly, it caters for a certain level of involvement in situations where the full application cannot be loaded.

"The idea is to make it even easier for residents to manage their Second Life experience, locate and jump straight to relevant places, and provide a familiar place from which to explore," added Hale.

Linden Lab also plans to introduce more services, and to integrate with other popular social networks and online services, further associating the avatar with the person's real identity.

Hale gave the example of working with other online agencies, such as dating sites, to offer another step in the meeting process by letting users create avatars that could explore the world on a 'virtual date', allowing people to get to know each other even better before meeting in person.

Another fundamental part of the transition is the growing use of Second Life's extremely popular in-world and out-world voice functionality.

Voice services were introduced into Second Life in 2007. Over half of residents use them every day, and around 16 billion minutes have already been logged. Around a billion more minutes are added every month, making Second Life one of the largest VoIP providers in the world.

Linden Lab plans to expand these voice services further, making it easier to make calls and send messages from within the world to external friends and family even if they are not Second Life residents.

Business use of Second Life continues to grow, and several large organisations use it to host meetings and presentations, both internally and with customers and clients. Linden Lab is also trying to help ease the introduction for new users to Second Life.

"With such a broad canvas of opportunity available in Second Life, it can often quickly become overwhelming for new users entering the world," explained Hale.

"We're developing ways to create that essential 'hook' that allows newcomers to find the experiences they are most interested in, and then discover more and more as they become more comfortable within the world."

To do this Second Life is introducing the concept of Pathways, which provide a "filtered experience" to guide new users in certain directions based on their preferences or initial reason for entering the online universe.

The idea is not to separate the world into disparate pieces, but rather to try and help users gradually discover various aspects of the world rather than face it as a single deluge.

Linden Lab has also opened an adult-only part of the grid, dubbed Zindara, and a filtered search which uses age verification service Aristotle to ensure that users are legally allowed to access adult themed content.

Although the hype and coverage around Second Life has declined, it is clear that the virtual world is not going to disappear any time soon. Interaction continues to grow steadily, and its economy has remained healthy despite adverse conditions in the real world.

Global standardisation delivers benefits at UPS

Angelica Mari — 2009-07-02T01:45:00.000Z

Angelica Mari, Computing, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 01:45:00

Delivery giant sees benefits of central IT solution

UPS, the world’s largest package delivery company, is perhaps one of the most IT-enabled organisations in the world.

Over 20 years, the firm’s technology has seen radical change, and one man has been there to witness it all.

Outgoing IT director Graham Nugent joined the company in 1988 and was responsible for streamlining the firm’s applications portfolio and the planning and implementation of all major system upgrades in Europe.

“My legacy is the collapse of local systems and the implementation of common enterprise solutions. I have a schematic in my role that shows the main UPS systems and their interfaces on an A3-sized piece of paper – and it’s a nice position to be in, as the alternative is chaos,” said Nugent, who retired from UPS last week.

“In an increasingly cost-competitive environment, a central solution is easier to control and contain.”

Nugent said that consolidation has been a watchword in back-office projects, where virtualisation allowed the company to downsize non-core assets at its two datacentres, which contain more than 11,000 servers.

Another key achievement was the development of a migration programme to move UPS’s Visual Basic 6 applications to .Net.

UPS now expects to spend its near-$1bn (£605m) IT budget on initiatives that include web-based systems to provide customers with better access to information and services.

During his stint at UPS, Nugent was also given responsibility for joining up the IT systems of parcel carrier firm Lynx, which UPS acquired in 2005 and completed integration last year.

UPS now has a standard integration procedure, and the company also learned a few lessons.

“When merging IT infrastructures, you need to ensure that you make the right people accountable and have standards. However, that can be difficult when some of your customers don’t share the same practices and preferred products,” said Nugent.

“But when you work for a business the size of UPS, it is just like an oil tanker you can change quickly, but it takes time and it needs a lot of focus and continuous attention,” he said.

From tracks man to tax man

Rosalie Marshall — 2009-07-02T01:30:00.000Z

Rosalie Marshall, Computing, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 01:30:00

Phil Pavitt, outgoing chief information officer for Transport for London, talks to Rosalie Marshall about the lessons he will take to his new role at HMRC

Phil Pavitt is chief information officer (CIO) at Transport for London (TfL), the organisation that runs the Tube and buses in the capital. However, in September he will take up the position of CIO for one of the largest public sector IT users, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), where he will oversee 1,400 staff and a budget of £1bn.

Computing caught up with Pavitt to hear how he will set about building an IT function that can meet the needs of one of the most demanding government organisations.

How do you explain your vision of aligning IT to business requirements?

I tend to feel my way through an organisation and get an idea of its history. In the first few months after I join, I spend my time understanding the key elements rather than creating numerous strategies. I have to get to the crux of what an organisation thinks about. When I started at TfL and the services were broken, I could have talked about strategies such as service-oriented architecture, but all the average user cares about is the time it takes to log on.

What was your understanding of TfL after being there a few weeks?

Most people were resigned to an OK IT system and a problem had to be pretty big to complain about. I told the customers this system is not great and I told my team we had to be more customer-centric.

There were lots of problems that I don’t think will surprise anyone, particularly in a public sector organisation. There was very little central process, with everyone building their own instead. In fact, the good news was that we had one of every single application in the world. The bad news was, we didn’t know this and we could not work out what to do with them all.

The problem was, they all worked independently but very well. When you have 40 datacentres, 40 networks, 11,000 applications and 41 asset management systems, you realise that no one has figured out the horizontal bit. And like quite a few organisations, all the verticals were task-objective into their own vertical. This creates problems when you try to set the priority between saving a bus application from going down and an underground application going down.

We also had an interesting support model. We were not an intelligent buyer, in fact we outsourced most of our intelligence. We were heavily dominated by third-party players, particularly those from IT consultancies and those who had a vested interest. All these people were not sure of their long-term view of us as an organisation.

Now we are in the middle of a 24-month efficiency strategy that requires vision and confidence about where we are going. Before we started the strategy, we focused on the main priority, which was the average customer just wanting the IT to work and that’s it. Once you have earned the right to strategise, because it works, then go for it.

Do you have any ideas of what your strategy will be at HMRC?

It will certainly be a big change from TfL. Managing transport company

staff is demanding because the employees are so IT-literate and technically savvy, so they hold very high expectations. For example, one challenging demand I had to deal with was making sure that their BlackBerrys would work everywhere.

HMRC will also be different because it already has a centralised IT function.

What kind of precautions did you take when centralising IT at TfL?

I don’t like the term centralisation. We build true shared services. In the past, IT departments centralised, de-centralised or federalised. Shared services are different. They are run through a central function and delivered locally.

It’s like the iPhone. About 80 per cent of our applications are common and the last 20 per cent is up to individual departments to personalise.

When I started at TfL, I found quite a few unusual applications running on critical servers but that were not treated as critical. There tended to be only one version of each application and the person who designed it had left the business, but still staff did not want to see these applications taken away. I see it as evidence that culturally, people like IT more than they realise. It just means that as an IT manager, you need to work harder and harder so people come over to your side.

Now, 65 per cent of platforms across the organisation are common and in a public sector organisation, that is close to a miracle.

What are your views on cloud computing?

We have to finish our 24-month efficiency strategy before we consider such things as cloud computing. But when buying it, there are a number of things to think about first, such as how much cheaper is it really? And how will you manage downtime?

We are not a bleeding-edge organisation so we will not be the first to adopt new technology. We have to be a follower because we have crucial applications that support crucial transport systems such as London Underground.

Habitat gets a web site makeover

Angelica Mari — 2009-07-02T01:15:00.000Z

Angelica Mari, Computing, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 01:15:00

The furniture retailer is revamping its online presence to provide a fully transactional web site. CIO Jacques Dekock explains why

For a store that made its name by being at the leading edge of design, Habitat admits it is playing catch-up online.

The furniture retailer does not have a fully transactional web site and realised it was not taking advantage of the growth in online shopping, so the company decided it was time to take action.

Planning for a revamped web site started in January, in partnership with e-commerce specialist eCommera, with BT Fresca supporting the online store’s infrastructure.

“Right now, you cannot buy products from our web site, which is not a good thing as our clients’ expectations on service are quite high. We need to provide an online operation that matches the high quality that we provide in the real world,” said Jacques Dekock, chief information officer at Habitat.

“Our new chief executive is really passionate about getting online and wants to ensure that we do not miss the business opportunities in that market and use the web to provide good customer service by making it easier for people to buy from us,” he told Computing.

Dekock believes the new web offering will help the business mitigate some challenges, such as the difficulty of displaying products in some stores due to lack of floorspace.

Habitat’s IT spend is about two per cent of the firm’s £300m turnover. Most of that is now being channelled into the web overhaul, which has become a business priority for the organisation.

“This is also about catching up. We will soon be in line with the competition on e-commerce and have a web offering that is as good or better than theirs,” said Dekock.

“Before, we were quite sceptical about selling furniture online, but we have changed our view and realised that the web offers enormous potential.”

As well as improving the logistics supporting the web site, enhancing the quality of data will be a crucial part of the revamp and Habitat will be improving its bespoke content management system, as well as the use of images and the depth of product information.

“Having less than optimum information on products and images is the single biggest stoppage for a transactional web site – there is a big piece of work going on at the moment to help us identify the gaps in that area,” said Dekock.

From late September, customers should be able to buy furniture online at Habitat’s new web site and the home accessories range will be available before Christmas.

As the majority of its IT finances are targeted at web improvement, Habitat decided not to focus investment on back-office systems such as SAP. Instead, the firm invested in new hardware to support the application and in the rollout of SAP’s reporting suite, so requirements can be met for as long as required.

An electronic point-of-sale upgrade has also received the go-ahead for 2010, aimed at gaining real-time visibility of store product information and availability.

Apart from making its web strategy a success, Habitat’s biggest challenge over the next year has to do with its people.

“The retail sector has been affected by the recession, coupled with a reduction in interesting technical projects, which makes motivating staff quite difficult,” said Dekock.

“The solution for us is to give IT people opportunities outside their existing comfort zones, such as learning some new skills around e-commerce.”

Social media in e-commerce – a cautionary tale

Habitat is one of many retailers using social media tools to increase web traffic and maximise conversion rates, but the technology must be used with caution, according to experts.

Businesses using social networking and user-generated content often report an uplift in sales as users value other people’s opinion on their experience with products or services.

“Traditionally, retailers have used features such as the top 10 best-selling products to attract customers, but it emerged that having the top 10 reviewed products works best as consumers believe in fellow shoppers,” said Andrew McClelland, business development director at e-commerce trade body IMRG.

McClelland advises retailers to get the basics right on their web sites before venturing into social media.

“Usability practices that make it easy for customers to find information, and good information and images, are crucial for any transactional web site,” he said.

But the use of social networking platforms needs to be treated carefully, McClelland added. Habitat fell foul last week when it mistakenly used keywords related to the unrest in Iran to promote its Twitter feed.

“The purpose of these tools is to spread information quickly and any mistake can become global knowledge in a matter of minutes, so such tools need to be treated very delicately,” McClelland said.

Government aims to bolster UK's cyber defences

Computing staff — 2009-07-02T01:00:00.000Z

Computing staff, Computing, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 01:00:00

Is the UK’s first national cyber security strategy up to the task of co-ordinating the country’s response to digital threats? Computing investigates

The government has launched the UK’s first national cyber security strategy, aiming to bring a “coherent approach” to the multitude of organisations tasked with tackling digital threats to businesses and the public sector.

To enhance the UK’s ability to detect and respond to attacks and make information sharing about threats more resilient, new funding will also be provided.

“Just as in the 19th century we had to secure the seas for our national safety and prosperity, and in the 20th century we had to secure the air, in the 21st century we also have to secure our position in cyber space to give people and businesses the confidence they need to operate safely there,” said prime minister Gordon Brown.

The announcement follows the lead of President Barack Obama, who launched a US national cyber security strategy in May.

The UK plan highlights the need for government, organisations across all sectors, international partners and the public to work together to meet the strategic objectives of reducing risk and exploiting opportunities by improving knowledge, capabilities and decision-making to secure the UK’s use of cyber space.

Two initiatives announced as part of the strategy stand out as being pivotal to the new plan’s success.

An Office of Cyber Security (OCS) will be set up in Whitehall to provide strategic leadership for government departments and businesses through a shared view and intelligence on threats and attacks.

And a multi-agency Cyber Security Operations Centre (CSOC) will provide co-ordinated protection of the UK’s core IT systems.

CSOC will be based at GCHQ in Cheltenham, already home to the government’s key communications monitoring service and existing agencies such as CESG, which oversees the technical aspects of information assurance and runs the Computer Emergency Response Team which provides assistance in resolving serious IT incidents for the public sector.

Perhaps the biggest challenge facing the new strategy is the need to co-ordinate the work of the large number of different organisations already involved in protecting the UK’s digital infrastructure.

The government’s Cyber Security Strategy document lists 16 existing organisations, each with different – but sometimes overlapping – responsibilities (see below).

Robert Hannigan, the prime minister’s security adviser, said the government wants to use existing skills and resources as much as possible.

“With the CSOC, we will look at using existing infrastructure – we wouldn’t want to spoil the work that has already been carried out. The OCS is all about policy-making and one of the key points for us is to develop skills to get the knowledge we need and we will work with the industry to create that,” he said.

And that co-operation extends internationally. “There is no point in developing this on a single national basis. That is why we are working closely with other countries – we are already doing a lot of work with the US, Canada and Australia in that area. There is also some work going on with EU players. We expect there will be some international legal issues there but this is going to be a long, drawn-out debate,” said Hannigan.

“We will work across the spectrum, from schools to business sectors, and work with knowledge transfer networks to make it happen. [The availability of skills in the market] is a huge opportunity for us. Recruitment is getting easier, so it is a good time to find people.”

The quality of the resources behind the strategy will be key to its success, according to Andy Kellett, senior security research analyst at Butler Group.

“It sounds as if they are pulling it all under one roof, and it looks like they are following the US lead. But I’d like to see some significant resources put behind it, and I’d like to see the substance of what they will actually be doing going forward, and how effective it is – for now it’s case of ‘wait and see’,” he said.

Kellett also called for a greater role for cyber security experts in business and the IT industry.

“Potentially, there are better ways of going about this than re-inventing the wheel in Whitehall, because surely all this already exists – the top security vendors have been doing this for years,” he said.

“Why not co-ordinate and integrate with their systems, and also co-ordinate with the top chief information security officers in business. The government is going to have to make sure the recruitment is right and the people they put in place are the best.”

Speaking at a conference on cyber crime organised by vendor Unisys last week, National Police Improvement Agency detective superintendent John Mooney highlighted the challenges thrown up by rapid advances in technological threats.

“From a policing perspective, we always seem to be playing catch-up,” said Mooney. “We need a better ability to share information. Everyone working from the same song sheet would be a good thing.”

Multiple agencies will have bearing on strategy

The Cyber Security Strategy enables the formation of two new organisations to help oversee and co-ordinate the activities of the 16 bodies already involved in tackling e-crime and cyber security. All 18 groups are listed below with their areas of responsibility:

Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) – oversees the development and direction of the police service in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Acpos in Scotland.

Attorney General’s Office & the National Fraud Strategic Authority – responsible for policy to combat online fraud and e-crime.

The National Security Secretariat – supports and advises the prime minister, and the Cabinet’s National Security Committee, on all areas of natio nal security.

Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure – provides security advice for businesses and organisations in the national infrastructure.

Cyber Security Operations Centre – set up to monitor developments in cyber space, providing collective situational awareness, analysis of trends, and to improve technical response co-ordination to cyber incidents.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills – responsible for industrial and economic policy, and regulatory policy, particularly in the telecommunications sector.

Devolved Administrations – responsible for those functions that have been devolved to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, according to their different devolution settlements.

Foreign Office – foreign policy, international relations and international laws and behaviours in cyber space.

GCHQ – responsible for operations, capability and policy support, including CESG as the National Technical Authority for Information Assurance.

Home Office – deals with issues associated with the use of cyber space for criminality. The Home Office includes the Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism for terrorist-related use of cyber space.

Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre – issues assessments of terrorist cyber intentions and capabilities.

Metropolitan Police – tackles e-crime through its Police Central e-Crime Unit.

Ministry of Defence – responsible for issues concerning the military use of

cyber space, including defence policy and doctrine.

Office of Cyber Security – initially set up in the Cabinet Office, with overall ownership of the Cyber Security Strategy, providing strategic leadership across government for cyber security issues.

Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) – deals with the collection of intelligence overseas to promote and defend the national security and economic well-being of

the UK.

Security Service (MI5) – tasked with protecting the country against covertly organised threats to national security.

Serious Organised Crime Agency – covers issues relating to organised criminal use of cyber space.

Technology Strategy Board – through its Network Security Innovation Platform, this body is tasked with developing innovative ways to improve online safety, security and resilience.

Source: Cyber Security Strategy of the UK, June 2009

The SME world awaits the 'Rosetta Stone' of accountancy

Mario Christodoulou — 2009-07-02T00:17:00.000Z

Mario Christodoulou, Accountancy Age, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 00:17:00

IASB to release the long-awaited tome which could result, in years to come, in mum and pop businesses in Cairo speaking the same financial language as anywhere else in the world

In the bowels of a white modernist office building on London’s Cannon Street sits a 300-page document with the potential to change the way 98% of companies around the world do business, forever.

Destined to sit in the offices of accountants the world over, the document contains a global accounting language aimed at helping SMEs talk to each other.

In July, the International Accounting Standards Board will release the long-awaited tome which could result, in years to come, in mum and pop businesses in Cairo speaking the same financial language as those in Tokyo, Sydney, Delhi, St Petersburg or anywhere else around the world.

The document, at least six years in the making, could act as the Rosetta Stone of global small business accounting.

With the release imminent, Deloitte’s senior technical partner Ken Wild could be forgiven for suffering from a case of déjà vu.

He remembers when international financial reporting standards for listed companies where released with the aim of providing a second accounting language to complement, rather than replace, individual national standards.

‘It was the second language for listed companies, but it took off in a way that none of us expected and became the first language,’ he said.

He remembers when the European Union decided to force its public companies to adopt IFRSs in 2005 which sparked a world wide revolution. Like falling dominoes, nations around the world adopted the new standards. Today 113 countries subscribe to the rules with more coming on board each year.

But it won’t be Europe leading the charge this time round. Only last week EU commissioner Charlie McCreevy spoke of ‘mixed’ and ‘negative reactions’, which prevented him from expressing a view on the new standards.

Similarly, peak European financial representative group, Eurochambres, was less than enthusiastic about the standards when it penned its submission on the IASB ‘s proposals in 2007.

‘There is no need for [SMEs] to make an additional financial report based on international reporting standards,’ the body said.

If SME standards do take off it will likely be driven by developing nations. Emerging economies have so far led the push eager to adopt the high-quality standards and avoid the cost of developing their own.

South Africa was so enthusiastic about the new standards it adopted the draft code in October 2007.

Also rumbling near the surface is a growing uncertainty about the IASB’s role in maintaining and revising SME standards.

Fears are quietly being expressed that the IASB board does not have the hands-on experience with SMEs to adequately review and scrutinise the standards.

For its part, the IASB said it will conduct a thorough review of the standard after two years, and address ongoing issues every three years. The organisation spoke with over 100 SMEs in 20 countries in the lead up to the new standard ‘s release.

For Wild, the success or failure of the standards will never result in the total elimination of regional differences in accounting languages or what he likes to describe as international accounting ‘accents’.

‘I don’t think you will get it 100% harmonised. You will always have different accents,’ he said.

‘The underlying principle is that people in different countries should be able to communicate. If people think it is convenient it will take off. Market forces will see to that.’

Industry backs CVA plans despite risk of 'nightmare scenario'

David Jetuah — 2009-07-02T00:14:00.000Z

David Jetuah, Accountancy Age, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 00:14:00

A new consultation on changes to the insolvency regime gets support despite fears of a nightmare scenario in which management who aren’t particularly capable are able to borrow money and spend it all

The government seems stuck between a rock and a hard place in efforts to keep companies out of administration after rolling out a new consultation on changes to the insolvency regime.

The dilemma facing business mandarins is this: they want to allow companies to get access to vital restructuring funds by giving emergency lenders ‘super priority’ status, meaning they will get paid back first.

But they must weigh this up against the threat of dodgy directors taking the cash and spending it, disadvantaging both the secured creditors and the lenders as well.

The plans include extending the small companies’ ‘moratorium’, which ring-fences companies from creditors, to medium and large businesses.

After spearheading the JJB company voluntary arrangement, giving the sports chain financial breathing space from creditors while restructuring takes place, KPMG experts are fully behind the idea of making it easier to rescue companies.

But they also warn that creditors should be protected form the ‘nightmare scenario’ of bad companies wasting their cash on unrealistic rescue plans.

Richard Heis, restructuring partner at the Big Four firm, said: ‘CVAs are absolutely the right way to go. I think we see [the government’s plans] as very positive, as the CVA’s possibilities in the past have been underused and an extension of protection to larger companies will help with that.’

But there is a balance to strike between encouraging rescue finance on the one hand, and putting off banks from lending in the first place because of fears of super-priority.

‘The nightmare scenario is management who aren’t particularly capable and whose plans are not sensible going to borrow money and spending it all,’ Heis added.

Insolvency representatives R3 backed the government’s plans but also red-flagged the super-priority funding idea.

R3’s vice-president Steven Law said: ‘Rescue funding for struggling business is vital, but it has to be done very carefully because, if you allow ‘leap-frogging’ over existing secured creditors, you undermine confidence in the entire bank lending system.

‘This may cause banks and other lenders to demand greater security or charge higher interest rates on normal business lending.’

But the government’s plans have a welcome focus on extending the role of company voluntary arrangements as a rescue tool. A CVA, unlike an administration, means the company remains under the control of its management, causing less disruption to the day-to-day operational running of the business and therefore making it a much more effective tool in achieving corporate rescues, Heis says.

‘Clearly what you need out of this is a check and balance to make sure good management get the help they need, but bad management aren’t allowed to frustrate their creditors or waste their money.

‘We’ve got to draw the line somewhere in favour of letting companies being able to restructure themselves.’

It’s not the destination, it’s the VAT

Judith Tydd — 2009-07-02T00:01:00.000Z

Judith Tydd, Accountancy Age, Thursday 2 July 2009 at 00:01:00

Home or away: the decision as where to charge VAT could floor travel agents

The impact of the recession on the travel industry is not unknown, but much to the misfortune of travel agents across the European Union, the current climate is unlikely to be improved by a package of tax reforms which has triggered a peculiar row over VAT.

Of most concern is whether UK-based travel agents will incur the VAT rate of where a business traveller is based or the country where the traveller will be staying. This is being referred to as the property vs intermediary rule.

Stephen Coleclough, VAT partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, says because corporate travel represents such a large market, the ‘grab for cash’ by EU governments in collecting their share of VAT is gathering pace under the package.

‘I’ve heard that some countries are being a bit silly… some are trying to say that if a UK travel agency organises a hotel room in France, the French VAT rate should be applied. This is one of a myriad of problems coming out of the VAT package,’ he says.

David Bennett, partner at Saffery Champness and VAT adviser to the Association of British Travel Agents, says he has grave fears for agents if the property rule is adopted, as it means UK suppliers will need to register for VAT across the other 26 member states.

He estimates this will cost an agent a minimum of £1,000 a year to maintain, not withstanding costs to alter accounting systems, additional reporting obligations and complying with VAT-law across different member states.

‘We’re very concerned about this. The intermediary rule gets rid of those problems immediately. By treating it as a property supply, it’s adding complexity and more compliance for no advantage at all,’ he says.

It is hoped an EU-wide VAT committee meeting next month will resolve the issue of whether the property or intermediary rule is to be applied.

Further exacerbating apprehension around the changes is the fact many business clients of VAT advisers are yet to be informed.

Marc Welby, VAT partner at BDO Stoy Hayward, says HM Revenue and Customs formally announced the package in the week leading to Easter and, with the Budget being held shortly thereafter, many operators directly affected remain unaware of the administrative and financial impacts that lie ahead.

‘There is always a fine balance to be struck and no matter how much a change is publicised more could’ve been done,’ he says.

Green computing should learn from traditional industry

Iain Thomson — 2009-07-01T17:31:00.000Z

Iain Thomson, V3.co.uk, Wednesday 1 July 2009 at 17:31:00

Recycling waste heat is nothing new, so why has the computer industry not kept up?

Years ago, during a tour of the old Carlsberg brewery in Copenhagen, the guide explained that homes nearby used to be highly prized. This wasn't owing to the Danes' love of the fruits of the brewery, but because the waste hot water from the plant was piped into their homes to provide free heating. It was a valuable bonus in a country where the winters are cold and hard.

I was reminded of this last week when IBM announced to great fanfare that it is building a supercomputer that will be water-cooled, and will use the waste heat to warm the building in which it will be housed. My first thought was: " What kept them?"

The system, dubbed Aquasar, will be built at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, and will use two IBM BladeCenter servers in one rack to run at about 10 teraflops.

The system is being designed to cut energy costs by 40 per cent, and reduce the carbon footprint by up to 85 per cent.

"Heat is a valuable commodity that we rely on and pay dearly for in our everyday lives. If we capture and transport the waste heat from the active components in a computer system as efficiently as possible, we can reuse it as a resource, thus saving energy and lowering carbon emissions," said Dr Bruno Michel, manager of advanced thermal packaging at IBM's Zurich Research Laboratory.

"This project is a significant step towards energy-aware, emission-free computing and datacentres."

As we have seen, recycling heat in this way is nothing new, so why has the technology industry been so slow in adopting methods that have been used for decades in more traditional industries?

Part of the reason is the relative immaturity of the high-tech industry. Cooling was a major problem in the early days of the computer industry, when room-sized cooling systems were required for computers that were about as advanced as the modern toaster.

But those problems were quickly solved as processors evolved. The issues only started to rear their ugly head again when we started using huge datacentres and graphics co-processors that you could fry bacon on.

Last year's spike in power costs may have subsided somewhat, but it provided a taste of things to come. Power prices are going to carry on rising, and the smart datacentre designer needs to be aware of this and to build more efficient systems in the future.

If companies baulk at this as an unnecessary expense, they need to be put straight. This short-sighted approach needs to be countered, not least by pointing out that it makes great PR as well as good economic sense.

As the world continues to live outside its means, we are going to have to get used to reusing everything we can, and heat is one of the easiest commodities to recycle.