ITBusiness.ca http://www.itbusiness.ca Business Advantage Through Technology Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:41:59 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 New tool assists with compliance, data migration http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/new-tool-assists-with-compliance-data-migration/36569 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/new-tool-assists-with-compliance-data-migration/36569#comments Wed, 19 Jun 2013 15:41:59 +0000 Jeff Jedras http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36569 Data recovery, e-discovery and information management solution vendor Kroll Ontrack has launched version 7.0 of its Ontrack PowerControls offering, promising a reduction in the time and resources associated with common IT challenges.

Also included is Microsoft Exchange Server 2013 and Microsoft SharePoint Server 2013 support and new functionality for preserving and exporting Exchange/SharePoint source and metadata.

“With a migration path to the newest Exchange and SharePoint versions, coupled with complete support for collections, Ontrack PowerControls 7.0 is a comprehensive and forensically sound tool for IT and legal,” said Jim Reinert, vice-president of product development for Kroll Ontrack, in a statement. “From recovery and restoration to migration, consolidation and collection, Kroll Ontrack is committed to delivering a robust, integrated and comprehensive tool that manages IT and legal tasks in half the time when compared to traditional methods or other solutions.”

Deploying Microsoft Exchange or SharePoint 2013 requires IT to ensure certain policies, procedures and systems can support the latest platform versions, and the vendor says Ontrack PowerControls 7.0 can help ensure requirements for migration to Exchange and SharePoint 2013 are met. It can also be used to copy existing mailboxes or content to the new 2013 servers, providing a migration path that does not require an old server and new server to be online simultaneously.

It also provides a platform for IT to respond to legal requests to preserve and copy information from live and backup systems into archiving and e-discovery applications using industry standards.

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/new-tool-assists-with-compliance-data-migration/36569/feed 0 Indiegogo makes Canadian push as founder ‘excited’ about equity crowdfunding http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/indiegogo-makes-canadian-push-as-founder-excited-about-equity-crowdfunding/36545 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/indiegogo-makes-canadian-push-as-founder-excited-about-equity-crowdfunding/36545#comments Wed, 19 Jun 2013 11:00:05 +0000 Brian Jackson http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36545 Crowdfunding Web site Indiegogo is deepening its roots in the Canadian market place and closely watching as securities regulators consider allowing non-accredited investors to make small investments in startup firms in exchange for an equity stake, according to co-founder Danae Ringelmann.

Ringelmann has particularly been involved in Ontario, where she has consulted with the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) on the prospect of allowing equity-based crowdfunding. Such a change would require the OSC to revise regulations around exempt market dealing. It held a consultation round table on the topic on June 11 and several groups have been pushing for looser regulations. Advocates argue that equity-based crowdfunding could open up the market to more capital for startups by allowing them to attract investors to fundraising campaigns in the same way a an individual might raise money for a charity before running a marathon.

“We’re very excited about equity crowdfunding,” Ringelmann says. “We’re just waiting for the regulations to be finalized to make a decision about whether we can move forward on it or not.”

The OSC started its market review in December 2012 and began collecting feedback from stakeholder groups on the topic. Toronto-based legal firm Wildeboer Dellelce is the latest to publicly jump on board the equity-based crowdfunding bandwagon. Senior lawyer Eric Apps wants to see startups in the tech, clean tech, and life sciences sectors be able to raise a maximum of $1 million per year for five years without having a prospectus or relying on high net-worth investors. Instead, a term sheet would be issued and investors would be limited to a maximum $5,000 investment.

Others such as the Exempt Market Dealers Association and i-Canada’s Invest Crowdfund Canada have also pushed for reform. Other groups, such as the Foundation for Advancement of Investor Rights have poured cold water on the momentum by describing the public as too financially illiterate for the change.

Indiegogo’s interest in the subject comes at a time when the perks-based crowdfunding site is making more overtures to the Canadian market, which represents the second-largest group of users on the site after the US. Rather than shares in their company, Indiegogo campaigns promise a “perk” such as a special product or service in return for an investment. In December the site announced Canadian currency support, local search options, and French-language support. Now it’s furthering its commitment to the currency support with a change in payments provider.

Canadian campaigns will now be able to accept payments in the local currency via credit card. It previously was only possible to accept Canadian dollars via PayPal, but Indiegogo’s new payments processor Adyen has added the service. Adyen was announced as Indiegogo’s online payments processor in March for Canada and Europe.

“It’s a testament to providing a more seamless experience, more tailored to Canadians,” she says. “Our customer base has been so strong there for so long.”

Indiegogo is also planning two events in Canada, the first one slated for June 26 in Toronto. Another one will take place in Montreal on July 11.

The free events will feature Ringelmann and several successful users of the site, giving campaign tips.

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/indiegogo-makes-canadian-push-as-founder-excited-about-equity-crowdfunding/36545/feed 0 Quebec startup offers help to prepare for new anti-spam laws http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/quebec-startup-offers-help-to-prepare-for-new-anti-spam-laws/36524 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/quebec-startup-offers-help-to-prepare-for-new-anti-spam-laws/36524#comments Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:00:31 +0000 Brian Jackson http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36524 A Quebec startup says it has built a communications platform that will help businesses navigate Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL).

For the past two years, Montreal-based startup Taarga has been serving its clients with a platform that helps businesses manage their messages to customers, allowing them to send emails, texts and voice messages to customers all with one user interface. Through a user interface that looks similar to HootSuite or Tweetdeck, about 1,000 companies have been using Taarga’s system to reach out to their clients.

The system is also compliant with CASL, thanks to Taarga’s consultations with lawyers, says Fritz Nykamp, founder of Mamoth-Group. Taarga is a subsidiary of the group. With CASL coming out soon, businesses will want to know what they need to do to prevent flouting the anti-spam laws and getting hit with heavy fines – and Taarga helps them on this front, Nykamp says.

“Everyone is so extremely busy that it’s extremely easy to forget just one small detail. Or one very exuberant salesperson is trying to do his best to hit his sales quota and reached out into the phonebook and just started calling or texting people,” he says. “Just a five minute decision, and it could lead to a big lawsuit or to a big penalty or a fine.”

“And using us will … give [businesses] that peace of mind that they won’t have to go through that. Sales managers or service managers or anybody that’s responsible in marketing can be rest assured that all communication is done properly to their customer base, that it will not anger anybody and that it will be completely compliant with all the laws.”

Taarga also offers consulting services, working with companies to help them market their messages to the right consumers, Nykamp adds.

In an effort to block companies from spamming random lists of potential customers, CASL requires all businesses to clear their mailing lists and get explicit consent from the customers on those lists as to whether they can continue to send emails to them. Even if customers have signed up to be notified for services and offers, businesses must now explicitly ask if customers want to continue getting these notifications.

Businesses have a two-year window to do this from the time the law takes effect. The bill gained Royal Assent in 2010, but it has not come into force as different government agencies have opened up the floor to public consultations on it.

In the meantime, Taarga’s type of service is one that John Lawford, executive director of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, expects to see cropping up more often, with similar offerings also coming out as CASL takes effect.

For the past few years, Lawford has been following CASL closely to see how it might impact consumer interests. In April 2012, federal Industry Minister Christian Paradis said the law would be implemented by 2013, although another Industry Canada official has said the law may not come into force until July 2014. Lawford expects CASL to be rolled out in September or October 2013 at the earliest.

“[To comply with CASL], you have to make sure that each email that’s generated has the ‘unsubscribe’ information, and that when you have the unsubscribe mechanism, it has to work. You also have to have a number or physical address that people can reach if they have problems with it,” he says.

“A lot of that could be looked after by a company offering a generic service for smaller [businesses] that don’t want to spend money on IT systems.”

Not complying with these laws and regulations can land a business a fine of up to $10 million, but it’s not likely small businesses would be hit with something that hefty, Lawford adds. Instead, he expects CASL violators would get multiple warnings and be subject to a range of penalties, giving them chances to fix their messaging systems.

And while CASL may seem like a nuisance in the short term, the laws might actually improve businesses’ marketing strategies, he says.

“It will reduce scattershot marketing, where you have somewhat dubious or older lists and you just keep sending stuff, where you’re not really sure if you have any connection with the consumer really, because you haven’t established it in years,” he says.

“It’s not the end of the world. It’ll be fine and the act doesn’t stop you from using email. It just says consumers get to decide whether they want the emails or not … So longer term, I think it’ll be helpful because you’ll have clean lists of people that really want to know about your product or whatever you’re selling.”

In the meantime, businesses trying to figure out how to comply with CASL can check the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission Web site for guidance. They can also start editing their lists and setting up a mechanism to ask customers for explicit consent, whether that’s through a newsletter, when they come into a store to buy something, or when they decide to renew a contract.

There’s no real way to gauge how customers will react to requests for explicit consent, Lawford says, but at least businesses can be prepared. He says it may make a good summertime project, especially if this is a slow period for some companies.

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/quebec-startup-offers-help-to-prepare-for-new-anti-spam-laws/36524/feed 1 Privacy Commissioner concerned about Google Glass, sends letter to Google http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/privacy-commissioner-concerned-about-google-glass-sends-letter-to-google/36547 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/privacy-commissioner-concerned-about-google-glass-sends-letter-to-google/36547#comments Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:51:21 +0000 Candice So http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36547 Data privacy authorities around the world, including Canadian privacy commissioner Jennifer Stoddart, have sent an open letter to Google Inc., outlining their concerns with Google Glass.

Thirty-seven provincial and international privacy offices from Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and Israel, as well as privacy commissioners in Alberta, Quebec and British Columbia, have signed off on the letter addressed to Google CEO Larry Page.

In the letter, they listed their concerns with Google Glass, including questions about how it complies with data protection laws, what kinds of privacy protections Google has in place, what kind of data Google is collecting and why, and who the data will be shared with.

On a broader level, the letter also asked Google to share about how it will tackle issues around facial recognition, whether it will address “social and ethical issues” cropping up from individuals secretly collecting information about each other, and if Google would bring a device to any of the authorities for testing.

Chief among the data authorities’ concerns is that they haven’t been consulted, saying they feel companies need to build privacy into their products before releasing them.

“Google Glass raises significant privacy issues and it is disappointing that Google has not engaged more meaningfully with data protection authorities about this technology,” Stoddart said in a statement. “We are urging Google to take part in a real dialogue with us about Google Glass.”

In an email, the privacy commissioner’s office said the letter was the result of several discussions with the International Enforcement Cooperation Working Group, which started at a conference in Mexico City in 2011. The group has been in touch over issues that concern all of the countries involved, including Google Glass and how it may infringe on citizens’ privacy.

“This technology could become ‘always on computing’ … Our Office has reached out to Google in the recent past to try and learn more about Glass. To date however, we haven’t been provided with much more than what has been included in media reports. It was felt that raising concerns in an open letter would be an effective way to brig [sic] privacy concerns to Google’s attention,” said a spokesperson from the privacy commissioner’s office.

“While it’s disappointing that Google hasn’t engaged more meaningfully with data protection authorities about this technology, we’re hopeful that company will provide information to respond to our concerns prior to wider availability of its product.”

Google confirmed it received the letter.

“We are thinking very carefully about how we design Glass because new technology always raises new issues. Our Glass Explorer program, which reaches people from all walks of life, will ensure that our users become active participants in shaping the future of this technology,” said Google Canada spokesperson Leslie Church in an email. The Glass Explorer program is the one currently allowing a select group of developers to test the product.

Google still hasn’t officially launched Glass for the consumer market, but it is slated to be available to consumers by winter 2013.

The piece of wearable technology, presented as a pair of glasses with a camera, display, and touch screen, allows wearers to pull up data and view it right in front of their eyes. Users will be able to easily take photos and record video, access Google Maps for directions, and answer messages.

Church added that Google Glass has a display light that turns on when the device is active, and that to perform actions, the user needs to speak or do a physical gesture.

Still, this isn’t the first time Google Glass has raised the ire of those anxious to protect their privacy from scrutinizing, Glass-covered eyes.

Earlier this month, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement ordered 12 casinos in Atlantic City, N.J. to ban the device for fear of cheating.

And in May, a Seattle, W.A. bar called the 5 Point said it is also banning the glasses to protect its customers’ privacy.

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/privacy-commissioner-concerned-about-google-glass-sends-letter-to-google/36547/feed 4 School’s in for summer: AcceleratorU opens doors with ‘innovation challenge’ http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/schools-in-for-summer-acceleratoru-opens-doors-with-innovation-challenge/36539 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/schools-in-for-summer-acceleratoru-opens-doors-with-innovation-challenge/36539#comments Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:35:07 +0000 Brian Jackson http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36539 For kids, having to attend summer school is a sentence worse than prison. But for entrepreneurs looking for help getting their business launched, taking some courses at the brand new AcceleratorU might seem like a great idea.

At least that’s what this new online-only accelerator program hopes as it makes its public launch with the Summer of Innovation Challenge. Co-founders Simon Brightman and Cindy Gordon are challenging entrepreneurs to commit to their business idea by registering for online courses at their new program.

“We challenge everyone to be able to boost 100 company ideas over the course of the summer,” Brightman says in a telephone interview. “We offer online courses that teach you everything you need to know to go from idea through to validation.”

Canada has seen several high-profile accelerators launch in the last couple of years. Programs are emerging that emulate the model of startup mentoring hubs like 500 Startups and TechStars. Typically, the programs offer startup businesses a physical location to work in, a scheduled curriculum designed to rapidly develop their business model, mentorship and networking opportunities, and even some investment funding. Accelerators launching since 2011 include Extreme Startups, MaRS’ Jolt, Incubes, and Communitech’s Hypderive.

AcceleratorU is designed to fill the gap left by the model those programs follow, Brightman says. By offering online courses that are open to anyone globally, the program doesn’t uproot part-time entrepreneurs trying to hold down a day job or require anyone to move to participate in the program. There are a lot of great startups in Canada that aren’t getting picked up by accelerator programs, Brightman says.

“We’re looking at the folks that didn’t get in,” he says. “If you’ve been doing this on your own and you’re stuck, this is what we’d like you to consider.”

AcceleratorU offers an “Online Venture Program” that can be completed in seven weeks designed to help entrepreneurs take ideas and turn them into products. The live program includes 28 hours of “classroom training” and includes support from experienced entrepreneurs. The discounted cost is $297 and an interview chat is required for the admissions process.

There are also on-demand courses currently available in an a la carte style. A six module course on product validation costs $24.97, and a free module is currently available about “The 5 Things We Look For In A Great Product.”

AcceleratorU plans to announce a major technology vendor as a sponsor this week, Brightman says. It will host an executive luncheon series at that time to make the announcement.

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/schools-in-for-summer-acceleratoru-opens-doors-with-innovation-challenge/36539/feed 0 Finally, an Apples-to-Apples comparison http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/finally-an-apples-to-apples-comparison/36516 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/finally-an-apples-to-apples-comparison/36516#comments Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:03:17 +0000 Dave Webb http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36516 MacBook Air

Android tablet or iPad? Windows 8 ultrabook or MacBook Air? Both comparisons are irrelevant to the true Apple believer. But Forbes contributor Larry Magid has written a comparative product review that will resonate with the most died-in-the-wool Apple fanatic. Which is best for the road warrior: The MacBook Air or the iPad?

Related Link : Top 10 ultrabooks for business

One of the major differentiators from a traveller’s point of view was once battery life; with an estimated 10 hours per charge, the iPad was the hands-down winner for those looking to avoid plugging in. But the newest MacBooks rival or even outperform the tablet. Then there’s the weight issue. The 13-inch MacBook Air may weigh nearly double what the iPad does, but that’s a difference of less than a pound-and-a-half.

iPad

So, really, it comes down three objective factors and an intangible.

Objectively, it’s keyboard versus slate, operating system and price. Those who do a lot of typing, editing and content creation will likely prefer the Air to tapping on glass or carrying a separate Bluetooth keyboard. (That’s actually a pretty good argument for the Dell XPS 12, but we promised to keep this an Apples-to-Apples comparison.) With respect to the operating system, there’s more power under the MacBook hood and more powerful applications, but it doesn’t run iOS apps (not really a dealbreaker, IMHO). The MacBooks are also considerably more expensive.

The intangible: What are you most comfortable with? As a sweeping generalization, tablets are better for consuming content, ultrabooks for creating it, but many don’t fit firmly into one camp or the other. We’ll have a whole generation on our hands shortly that was raised on tablets and doesn’t have the same keyboard bias that those of us of a certain age harbour.

Read Magid’s take on the subject here.

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/finally-an-apples-to-apples-comparison/36516/feed 1 Chromebooks at Wal-Mart: A bad idea http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/chromebooks-at-wal-mart-a-bad-idea/36537 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/chromebooks-at-wal-mart-a-bad-idea/36537#comments Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:02:42 +0000 Dave Webb http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36537 The announcement that Google will expand the retail footprint of its hardware partners’ Chromebook netbooks is one that threatens to come back to bite the search giant — or, more likely, the hardware makers.

A couple of months ago, I was on a business trip in Milpitas, Calif. A colleague, eager to get the newest Chromebook without waiting for it to go on sale in Canada, had located online the Best Buy store nearest to our hotel and pre-ordered one for pickup, a testament to his likeable geekiness. With a little downtime, we strolled over to the store. He went to the pickup desk for his order. One staffer handed it over; a second, with a look of horror on his face, literally snatched the box out of his hands.

“This isn’t what you think it is,” the staffer said. He explained that it wasn’t a real computer in that it only really worked when connected to the Internet. Apparently, he’d had enough training to recognize that a techno novice might be seduced by the low price, but expect regular computer performance, resident applications, etc. He wouldn’t hand over the netbook without interrogating my colleague until he was satisfied he really wanted the Chromebook.

chromebook pixel
The Chromebook Pixel

I’ve heard similar stories from others. And while it’s irksome at the time, it’s also understandable and even a little noble. Don’t sell the customer what he or she doesn’t want. It’s annoying, you’re going to have to deal with complaints and returns, and it can damage the reputation of the store and the product.

The store can ameliorate that reputation damage with good return service. The reputation of the hardware brand, though, is always going to be tainted in that customer’s eyes.

So while there’s merit in extending sales to, say, Staples — where there’s likely to be some office-oriented experience and training — there’s not so much in extending them to a department store like Wal-Mart. The likelihood of appropriate staff training is small, and given the wide range of products department stores sell, a good return experience isn’t likely, either. And the black mark stays with the hardware brand.

Read more about Google’s retail expansion plans here.

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/chromebooks-at-wal-mart-a-bad-idea/36537/feed 1 Canadians embracing design crowdsourcing http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/canadians-embracing-design-crowdsourcing/36521 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/canadians-embracing-design-crowdsourcing/36521#comments Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:42:20 +0000 Jeff Jedras http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36521 Australian design crowdsourcing design firm DesignCrowd is marking one year in the Canadian market this month, and the company said Canada is strongly embracing the crowdsourcing model.

The crowdsourcing graphic design firm launched in Canada last June as part of a global expansion backed by a $3 million investment from Austalian venture capital firm Starfish Ventures in late 2011. Its service applies the crowdsourcing model to graphic design; businesses can hold contests with a cash reward to solicit designs – say, for a new logo – with the winner selected receiving a cash prize. DesignCrowd provides the marketplace for these contests to be held, and for companies and designers to come together.

According to the company, it has grown its Canadian business significantly since launching its Canadian operation and opening the community to companies with a dot-ca address. Crowdsourcing job sales from Canadian businesses have grown by 145 per cent over the past 12 months, and design projects on DesignCrowd have grown from $4 million to over $9 million.

The DesignCrowd Canadian design community has grown by 133 per cent, and the company’s global design community has grown from 75,000 to 122,000 Overall, the company said traffic has increased by 65 per cent in the 12 months since the launch of DesignCrowd.ca.

It’s good enough to make Canada the fourth largest global market for DesignCrowd, and one of its fastest growing. It also hosted what it claims was Canada’s largest crowdsourced logo design contest, garnering 5,852 submissions for a contest with a $10,000 prize.

 

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/canadians-embracing-design-crowdsourcing/36521/feed 1 MacBook Air review roundup http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/macbook-air-review-roundup/36495 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/macbook-air-review-roundup/36495#comments Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:50:11 +0000 Wolston Lobo http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36495 Love it or hate it, Apple has a way of winning lots of attention with its new product announcements. The new Macbook Air is no exception.

This new device has a few things going for it like price and an above average battery life.  Lack of efforts in improving the design seems to be the only major drawback here. Let us take a look at what the reviewers have to say.

 The Body:
While no one is complaining about the popular design which sturdy and smart, it seems to be dated. The new edition looks almost the same as its predecessor.

Mark Spoonauer from Laptop Mag.com says:

“At this point, the MacBook Air is a modern classic. We still love the sturdy aluminum uni-body chassis, the swooping curves and the generously sized front lip for opening the lid. However, the overall look is almost too familiar now. Those hoping for a different color, different materials or an even more compact and lighter chassis will have to wait for at least another generation of Air.”

Larry Magid from Forbes explains the design in detail:
“At first glance, there is no visible difference between the 2012 and 2013 MacBook Air.  They look the same, weigh the same and have the same screens, keyboard, track pad and ports.  But there are a lot of differences that you can’t see, but can experience. Both are slim and light. The 11-inch model weighs 2.38 pounds and the 13-inch model I’m testing weighs 2.96 pounds.”

The Display

MacBook Air Display
MacBook Air Display

The resolution of the MacBook Air remains the same as the previous device. Spoonauer from Laptop Mag.com comments:
“Perhaps to save battery life or keep the cost down, the 13-inch MacBook Air continues to feature a 1440 x 900-pixel resolution display. Meanwhile, other ultraportables sport full HD (1920 x 1080-pixel) screens or even higher resolutions, such as the $1,599 Toshiba Kirabook (2560 x 1440 pixels). Apple has its own Retina 13-incher in the MacBook Pro (2560 x 1600), but it starts at $1,499.

Despite this resolution gap, we continue to enjoy the Air’s screen because it delivers superior contrast, wide viewing angles and vibrant colors. When watching the “Man of Steel” trailer, Russell Crowe’s skin tone looked warm, and we could easily make out the folds in his ornate jacket. And, unlike other Ultrabooks we’ve tested, details didn’t get lost in darker scenes.”

Stevens from Engadget confirms the lack of retina display but is satisfied with what the MacBook has to offer:
“It’s no Retina, a fact that can be confirmed with a quick glance. Still, this remains a great-looking LCD, making the most of its 1,440 x 900 resolution. Viewing angles are as good as ever and brightness does not disappoint. Color reproduction is spot-on and the LED backlighting is both good for your battery and the environment.”

Audio Sound

The sound quality may not be the best but it is loud and does the job.

“The Air’s built-in speakers are capable of getting impressively (and uncomfortably) loud if cranked all the way, so hearing a concall from across a room won’t be an issue. Still, it’s hardly an ideal machine for music playback, with flat, bass-free renditions of all your favorite music. It’ll certainly do in a pinch, but you’ll want to make use of that 3.5mm jack (or, indeed, a Bluetooth connection) to enable something with a bit more acoustic range.” Says Tim Stevens from Engadget

Spoonauer from Laptop Mag.com listened to a couple of songs and also watched a trailer to test the sound. Here is what he has to say:

“Just like the previous version, the MacBook Air’s speakers reside underneath the keyboard, producing rich and loud audio. The somber piano in the “Man of Steel” trailer was piercing. We also played Rihanna’s “Stay,” and her breathy vocals resonated even across our hotel room. The driving guitar in Bad Religion’s “Social Suicide” balanced well with Greg Graffin’s gravelly voice, though the drums got a bit lost.”

Longest running Battery

Macbook air battery life
Macbook air battery life

Most reviewers are highly impressed by the battery of the new MacBook Air. It helps that Apple has incorporated the latest Intel’s new Haswell architecture into this device.

Spoonauer from Laptop Mag.com praises the battery life and compares it to other devices:
“One of the chief benefits of Intel’s new Haswell architecture is longer battery life, and Apple squeezes every last drop out of this chip.When we ran the Laptop Battery Test (Web surfing via Wi-Fi) on our home Wi-Fi connection, the Air lasted 10 hours and 53 minutes. In our office, where we typically test notebooks, the Air lasted even longer, 11 hours and 40 minutes. That’s just 20 minutes shy of Apple’s claim, and more than double the ultraportable average of 5:56.

Other lightweight 13-inch notebooks don’t even come close to the Air’s endurance. For instance, the XPS 13, ATIV Book 9 and Acer Aspire S7 all last less than 6 hours. You need to add an awkward slice battery to the Acer to get 9:17. The VAIO Pro 13′s standard battery (7:20) also falls behind the Air, but its sheet battery bumps the runtime to 14:38.”

Temperature

Spoonauer from Laptop Mag.com played war of witchcraft and found that the device shot up to an uncomfortable temperature:
“After streaming a Hulu video at full screen for 15 minutes, the Air’s touchpad measured 77 degrees Fahrenheit, the G and H keys were 85 degrees, and the middle of the underside was 86 degrees. All are well below 95 degrees, which is what we consider uncomfortable.

We then flew around the Dethecus realm in “World of Warcraft” for 15 minutes, and retested the temperature. The touchpad stayed the same, at 77 degrees, but the G and H keys rose to 90 degrees, and the middle of the underside was 94 degrees. That’s not bad, but the area on the bottom near the power plug rose to 100 degrees.”

Performance

Even though the new MacBook is good on battery, it does not compromise performance atleast when compared to the 2012 model.
“The new MacBook seems at least as peppy as the 2012 model despite its more energy efficient Haswell processor. The new processor actually has a slower “clock speed,” but there is no hit in system performance.  One reason is because the new Mac’s solid state drive has faster flash memory and a faster PCIe connection between the memory and the rest of the system. This not only means faster disk access but has an impact on overall performance including speedier memory caching if the system runs low on standard random access memory and needs to offload to the disk. That process can be painfully slow on standard disk drives but extremely quick on the new MacBook’s Air’s solid state drive.” says Magid from Forbes.

Spoonauer from Laptop Mag.com spells out the details for you:
“Apple packed the latest MacBook Air with a 1.3-GHz Intel Haswell ULT processor, 4GB of RAM and new flash storage (based on PCI Express). Although the clock speed is ostensibly slower versus its predecessor (1.8 GHz), Haswell can get more work done per clock cycle. Plus, the new Air promises 45 percent faster flash memory and 40 percent greater graphics performance via the new Intel HD 5000 GPU.

The new Air makes a good first impression by booting into OS X Mountain Lion in just 10 seconds, or a couple seconds faster than the older Air. The latest Air also wakes from sleep about 2 seconds faster, which means you can get back to work immediately upon lifting the lid.

More impressive, the new flash storage breezed through our file copy test, duplicating 4.9GB worth of multimedia files in just 21 seconds. That equals a transfer rate of 242.4 MBps, compared with 159 Mbps for the last Air. The new also Air beats the Samsung ATIV Book 9 (154 MBps) and Kirabook (221 MBps). However, the Acer Aspire S7′s dual SSDs (318 MBps) and the VAIO Pro 13′s own PCIe flash memory (392 MBps) trump this Air.”

Rounding up

Though the battery life is above average, the new device does not bring many new things to the lap of the consumer. Stevens from Engadget sums it up well.
“So, is this a case of a great thing getting even greater, or an aged product getting the bare-minimum upgrade required to keep it relevant? The truth lies somewhere in between, but it goes without saying that the MacBook Air isn’t quite the straightforward “buy” that it has been in the past. While I/O performance and battery life definitely set it ahead of the crowd, and its overall design and keyboard / trackpad combo are as good as ever, that middling display resolution is evolving from an excusable omission to a proper handicap.

Still, it’s hard to knock the Air for what it is: a very thin laptop with incredible battery life and good performance for a minimum price that puts it ahead of its competition. If you want a portable Mac with a real focus on portability and can live without a Retina display then we’d say this is still the machine to get. But, if you’re not tied to the platform or are a stickler for pixel density, it might just be time to look elsewhere.”

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/macbook-air-review-roundup/36495/feed 0 Canada’s meeting of the minds: ideacity coverage from ITBusiness.ca http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/win-a-free-ticket-to-ideacity-from-itbusiness-ca/36110 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/win-a-free-ticket-to-ideacity-from-itbusiness-ca/36110#comments Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:35:23 +0000 Brian Jackson http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36110 A woman who works 90 hours a week and used a 72-step checklist to find a husband through online dating. A man who was obsessed with the formation of celestial bodies and discovered two new moons around Pluto. A humanoid robot that can hold a conversation with people. What do these three things have in common?

ideacity Canada’s premier meeting of the minds

They will all be featured speakers at Moses Znaimer’s ideacity conference in Toronto next week – June 19, 20 and 21 at Koerner Hall.  The conference is known as “Canada’s premier meeting of the minds” and gathers 50 of the planet’s brightest minds to come to Toronto each June and speak to a highly engaged audience of 600 – and you could be in that audience! ITBusiness.ca is happy to be a media partner of ideacity. Our Community Bloggers have been busy doing speaker interviews ahead of the conference and will also be on site to blog about the conference this week. Read their posts below:

 

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/win-a-free-ticket-to-ideacity-from-itbusiness-ca/36110/feed 0 Microsoft Office Mobile now available for iPhone http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/microsoft-office-mobile-now-available-for-iphone/36465 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/microsoft-office-mobile-now-available-for-iphone/36465#comments Mon, 17 Jun 2013 14:27:47 +0000 Brian Jackson http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36465
Apple iPhone users got their first taste of the first iOS native app for Microsoft Office over the weekend, with the release of Office Mobile on Friday. But only Office 365 subscribers can access the app and there isn’t an iPad or Android version planned for release just yet.

The app is free to download so long as you have an Office 365 subscription, Microsoft’s cloud-delivery option for its new line of Office software. The app will still work when no Internet connection is available, according to Microsoft. Recent documents will still be available to view and edit, and the changes made will by synced up once a connection is restored via cellular or WiFi.

Many have been waiting for a native Office app for a long time, but most people dependent on Microsoft’s productivity suite have since moved on to the many alternatives available on iOS. Apps like CloudOn, or even Microsoft’s own SkyDrive, have offered read and edit functionality on Office document formats for some time on iOS and Android devices alike.

Microsoft promises that formatting and layout will be preserved whether you view a document via Office 365 on a PC, tablet, or iPhone. That includes support for charts, animations, SmartArt graphics, and other visuals. While layout is maintained, the Office apps have been optimized for mobile display to make it easier to read and edit them with less screen real estate.

iPhone users will be able to access documents stored on SkyDrive and SharePoint. The recent documents view will include the documents you’ve recently edited on your own PC.

The app has already been rated 540 times over its first weekend of availability, receiving an average of 2.5 stars. Several reviewers giving one-star reviews bemoaned the requirement of the subscription for the app.

“Very disappointing. I waited years for this? Minimal editing options, no ability to insert images or create charts…heck you can’t even adjust items in an existing file! No undo/redo. It’s just really a lightweight app,” writes Jmd0116 in an App Store review. “On top of that it is only accessible if you have Office 365 subscription. I have Office 2013 Profession boxed – so despite paying a premium I am told to buy another subscription for $99?”

 

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/microsoft-office-mobile-now-available-for-iphone/36465/feed 0 Ex-Facebook employees launch data visualization startup Polychart http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/ex-facebook-employees-launch-data-visualization-startup-polychart/36398 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/ex-facebook-employees-launch-data-visualization-startup-polychart/36398#comments Fri, 14 Jun 2013 18:16:09 +0000 Candice So http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36398 Startup name: Polychart
Co-founders: Lisa Zhang, CEO; Samson Hu, vice-president of business development; Fravic Fernando, vice-president of user experience
Funding: Raised $135,000 in seed funding

Startup premise:

Back in 2010, higher-ups in the U.S. military had a problem – complaints abounded about all of the charts and graphs appearing on Microsoft PowerPoint slides and lurking in boardrooms and offices everywhere.

According to The New York Times, military officials could barely understand the information being conveyed to them in a parade of pie charts, line graphs and bar visualizations. One famous slide, meant to depict American military strategy in Afghanistan, was so difficult to read that the Times dubbed it a “bowl of spaghetti.”

Three years later, for those looking to avoid creating either pasta-like data charts or yawn-inducing graphs, Waterloo-based startup Polychart believes it has a solution.

Gone are the days of dry data columns and overly complex charts, said CEO and co-founder Lisa Zhang. On Thursday, she went on stage to tell a room full of entrepreneurs, investors and mentors about her company, which was part of the cohort in the third round of Extreme Startups Demo Day.

With the rise of big data as an industry buzzword and the rush of companies looking to map out their numbers, what sets Polychart apart from the visualization crowd is their focus on design and keeping things simple for users. The startup’s specialty is serving up lightweight business intelligence, Zhang said.

“We started off as a data visualization tool … which is really at the heart of it. Charts and graphs are a common language that we all understand and it doesn’t scare people,” she said.

Zhang and one of her co-founders, Fravic Fernando, are both University of Waterloo graduates, but they only met when they were working at Facebook Inc. in the data analysis department.

While Zhang had already founded one startup, she realized she had zero passion for the idea and wanted to try something else. She, Fernando and another friend, Samson Hu, decided to build Polychart together.

(Image: Polychart - screenshot)
(Image: Polychart – screenshot)

“Back in 2010, before data science was something everyone was talking about, we saw how big data and democratization of data could change an organization. And we saw how [change] happened at Facebook, and that really inspired us to bring that change to organizations who might not have that resource,” she said.

“[For SMBs], it’s really hard to get good data scientists, but we’re at a point now where everyone has tons of data. It’s so easy to collect data that it’s not really about data collection anymore, but OK. We have the data. What can we do with it? How can it help us with our business?”

Counting MySQL Inc. and Salesforce Inc. as among its clients, Polychart allows non-technical people to make charts via a simple user interface. The service involves dragging and dropping components into a web browser, so no coding experience is necessary. It also allows for quick analysis, and charts and graphs can be deployed via the cloud, on a business’ premises, or be embedded through an original equipment manufacturer (OEM). Plus, whatever can be done on the web browser can also be modified using mobile devices.

So far, Polychart has generated some interest, Zhang added. The service has attracted about 1,000 requests to try it, with about 15 companies actually using it in closed beta.

Three companies are currently using it, including Fieldglass Inc. and TribeHR, leading Polychart to double its revenue since it began the accelerator program at Extreme Startups 12 weeks ago, Zhang added.

“The biggest way Extreme Startups helped us is through connections. Pretty much anyone in the community would be able to provide an introduction,” she said. “That really helped us in terms of really understanding our core customers, really understanding the process and some of the pinpoints.”

Leveraging the expertise of these connections also helped Polychart make its product more user-friendly, Fernando said. The team plans to spend the next couple of months fine-tuning its service.

At this point, Polychart has raised about $135,000 in seed funding. It will be seeking a second round of funding at the end of the summer.

Polychart created this video to explain how its service works:

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/ex-facebook-employees-launch-data-visualization-startup-polychart/36398/feed 0 One size security doesn’t fit all for SMBs: Kaspersky http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/one-size-security-doesnt-fit-all-for-smbs-kaspersky/36358 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/one-size-security-doesnt-fit-all-for-smbs-kaspersky/36358#comments Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:45:03 +0000 Jeff Jedras http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36358 SAN FRANCISCO – Many small businesses view IT security as either a daunting undertaking or an unnecessary expense, but some form of security is necessary for any small business, and it’s not a case of one-size fits all.

In an interview at Kaspersky Lab’s annual security reviewers summit, Tiffany Rad, a security researcher with the Russian vendor’s global research and analysis team, told ITBusiness.ca that while a certain level of protection is necessary for any small business, the level of protection needed will vary based on their threat level and risk tolerance.

“To understand what your threat is, you need an understanding of what your assets are and what your risks are,” said Rad. “Those are the factors that need to be weighed to determine what you need, and whether putting in an enterprise-level security suite and physical security is necessary or practical.”

For example, a business with an e-commerce storefront or that handles credit card information will want to keep that information secure with a higher level of protection. Also, many small businesses are part of a larger supply chain, handling components of projects for larger contractors. A small business could be viewed as a weak point to access that sensitive information.

“You need to recognize who your clients are, what types of products or services they’re offering, and if it might be of interest to malicious actors,” said Rad.

Smaller companies and “mom and pop” operations have also been a growing target of financial malware, said Rad, due to the perception that they’re less secure and less aware of security issues than larger companies.

“(They think) it may be easier to hit a bunch of smaller companies, as opposed to one very large company with strong security in place,” said Rad.

At a minimum, Rad said any business that uses e-mail needs to at-least have anti-virus protection. A growing risk for SMBs though is mobile threats, with smartphones being targeted and often containing as much sensitive corporate data as a laptop. Too often laptops aren’t protected either though, said Rad. Many SMBs will pick up a laptop at Best Buy, use the pre-loaded software for the free three months, and then never renew it after expiry.

“It’s better to have something than nothing, and there are ways to get protection on a limited budget,” said Rad. “I recognize cost concerns, but there are alternatives.”

When it launches its 2014 consumer suite in mid-August, Kaspersky will be taking a multi-device approach with a new offering, Kaspersky Internet Security Multi-Device. It will include licenses for all of Kaspersky’s platform offerings – Kaspersky Internet Security for PC, Kaspersky Internet for Mac and Kaspersky Internet Security for Android (merging formerly separate solutions for smartphones and tablets) so a household can protect all their assorted devices with one purchase.

“We’re changing it so the consumer gets the understanding of what they need for their different devices, and all will have the Internet Security nomenclature,” said Elliot Zatsky, senior director of consumer partner services for Kaspersky Lab. “Increasingly people are doing the same thing on different devices. It’s the same Internet, and they need to be protected.”

For PCs, Kaspersky will also continue to offer Kaspersky Pure Total Security and Kaspersky Anti-Virus.

A unified management console will follow in September, called Kaspersky Protection Center. It’s an online web portal that will provide one place where users can manage all their devices, see their license status, get real-time status of their protection and, with Android devices, remotely manage their settings and access anti-theft tools.

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/one-size-security-doesnt-fit-all-for-smbs-kaspersky/36358/feed 1 Sciencescape cataloguing research papers everywhere, one essay at a time http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/sciencescape-cataloguing-research-papers-everywhere-one-essay-at-a-time/36336 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/sciencescape-cataloguing-research-papers-everywhere-one-essay-at-a-time/36336#comments Thu, 13 Jun 2013 22:06:16 +0000 Candice So http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36336 Startup name: Sciencescape
Presenter: Sam Molyneux, CEO and co-founder
Funding: Closed seed funding of $1.1 million

Startup premise:

Sam Molyneux has always been involved in research. In a past life, before becoming a startup entrepreneur and founding Sciencescape, Molyneux studied cancer genomics. So early on, he saw a need for a way of cataloguing the high volume of life sciences research out there.

In giving his pitch at Extreme Startups Demo Day, Molyneux noted there are more than 22 million papers out there, and thousands of digital journals when there were only hundreds of print journals before the Internet existed. This is what he calls a “publication overload.”

“You always have to check [databases] to stay current,” he said. “There are millions of researchers scooping each other and wasting time … Today, we lack the essential plumbing to organize research.”

Enter Sciencescape, which aims to track peer-reviewed research in the life sciences field and allow researchers to see what’s being published elsewhere in the world. The network is currently divided into categories like genes, diseases, genetic disorders, well-known people and other fields of research common to the life sciences.

(Image: Sciencescape screenshot)
(Image: Sciencescape screenshot)

Users will be able to add articles to their own libraries and broadcast what they’re reading, pushing it to their research team members’ feeds so that everyone’s aware of other research taking place.

The current model also allows users to see research about any given topic, mapped out into a graph or chart to show the peaks on that topic, or most important discoveries over time.

“Researchers have never seen their world of research this way,” he said.

Eventually, Molyneux and the team at Sciencescape hope to expand the service to chemistry, physics, the social sciences and other areas that involve academia.

And with all the data out there for anyone interested in sifting through it and analyzing it, this goal is becoming an increasingly important one, said Chris O’Neill, managing director of Google Canada. O’Neill is a mentor to Sciencescape.

“Sciencescape will … allow people to connect the dots, to make better hypotheses and ultimately lead to transformation of [government and health] services,” he said. “[Sciencescape] will become a de facto research dissemination platform.”

“I know [the Sciencescape team is] going to make a dent in the universe,” he said.

Sciencescape has currently closed a seed funding round of about $1.1 million.

Sciencescape created the video below to explain their research platform:

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/sciencescape-cataloguing-research-papers-everywhere-one-essay-at-a-time/36336/feed 0 Extreme Startups wraps third cohort demo day, announces new managing director http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/extreme-startups-wraps-third-cohort-demo-day-announces-new-managing-director/36321 http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/extreme-startups-wraps-third-cohort-demo-day-announces-new-managing-director/36321#comments Thu, 13 Jun 2013 21:45:00 +0000 Brian Jackson http://www.itbusiness.ca/news//36321 Toronto-based startup accelerator Extreme Startups launched its latest cohort of five startups yesterday at a demo day event in Toronto, following its latest 12-week program of business mentorship, investment, and product refinement.

Extreme Startups also announced its new managing director is Marcus Daniels, who has been a mentor with the accelerator since July 24, 2012. Daniels is also the chief operating officer of TrendHunter a lifestyle Web site that sees about 117,000 idea hunters posting articles about new ideas daily, and advertises monthly views of more than 40 million. Additionally, he is the founder and executive chairman of MeshSquared Ventures, a venture capital firm that invests in digital product firms.

Startups in the accelerator receive $50,000 of upfront funding and an additional $150,000 upon completion of the program. Extreme Startups invites technology-oriented companies with a focus on Web or mobile software to apply for its program. But they want to see an experienced, technical team and a product idea with an audience waiting to snap it up. The demo days are designed to showcase the startups to investors and industry partners.

The five startups delivering pitches at the latest demo day include Brika, Instaradio, Køge, Polychart, and Sciencescape. Click through for the companies’ profiles below:

]]> http://www.itbusiness.ca/news/extreme-startups-wraps-third-cohort-demo-day-announces-new-managing-director/36321/feed 1