Technology Terrors
Information technology can help you
succeed, or it can truly get in the way. Here
are some warnings - and some ideas - to "tame your technology."
A
Cautionary Cable Modem Tale
IDG Net
Last week, we offered a scary story about DSL; now we give you a tale about
cable modems. This one isn't so much about the nightmare of installation,
but of some of the mopes that sell this stuff. The author was concerned
about security, given all the talk lately of how easy it is to hack into a
computer on DSL or cable. The cable company, as well as the store where
she bought the cable modem, were clueless and assured her that everything was
fine. She worries that, while she was astute enough to realize she needed
security, what about the folks that aren't?
Furniture.com a
case study in e-tail problems
CNET
This is a very good case study on the rise and fall of Furniture.com. It
tells a story of a company caught in the midst of dot com hubris who misses the
basic business fundamentals, like customer service, order tracking, and an
understanding of the costs of shipping. It almost sounds like the people
in charge didn't have any idea of how to run a furniture store. An
engineer said, "When we started, we didn't anticipate how difficult the
shipping was going to be." Sounds like a typical dot com...lots of VC
money but nobody really has a clue. Some interesting statistics: at one
point, they estimated that 30% of their customers were unhappy. And they
had shipped a million dollars' worth of orders without bothering to bill anyone.
The article also recaps the history of their financing and their current
situation (amazingly, as of this writing, they're still alive).
PC
Repair Undercover
PC World
PC World went to 18 different PC repair shops to figure out if they were any
good. This article should scare you if you've got a hankering to take your
PC into either a chain or a local mom-and-pop store. Of 18 locations that
they tested, only 7 got it right. And in most cases the service, even at
those 7 sites, was pretty bad. Makes you want to buy the manufacturer's
extended warranty.
How
to mismanage relationships with your customers
Computerworld
In these heady days of ERP and CRM (customer relationship management), it's easy
to forget about the needs of the real, non-virtual, customer. This horror
story describes one small incident involving two thoroughly screwed customers
and one highly automated company - an airline. We have to ask ourselves
what the point of all of this technology is if we can't even get our customers
from point A to point B. Don't get blinded by talk about improving
customer relationships, and lose sight of the real world and how the systems
will solve real customer problems.
Technology
Terrors
CNET, 10/28/99
This article recaps some of the recent problems that have plagued the Internet,
as well as your PC. It covers everything from Website defacers to Amazon's
purchase circles. While some of this stuff isn't too important, there were
some interesting tidbits of information, and it is a useful read. Some
highlights:
10. Technology that will allow others to place commentary on your site.
It requires some installed software on the user's PC, so I'm not too worried.
But it means that others can offer up comments about your site that you're not
seeing.
9. The technology exists to allow people to record your cell phone
conversations, then anonymously play them back on the Internet. Even
digital phones are hackable.
8. There is a very interesting and intrusive tool designed to let
managers take snapshots of what's on your screen every few seconds. It can
be abused by hackers as well. One can only hope that the boss is ethical
enough to let you know that your machine is being monitored.
7. Software is available (and discussed in previous articles) that will
monitor incoming and outgoing email. So watch what you say. It can
be very useful for managers, but it can also be very time consuming as well.
6. Other software can be loaded on your computer to log what software
has been run. While nowhere near as intrusive as other things mentioned,
it can be a pretty effective tool to manage software utilization, and to make
sure games aren't being run on company machines.
5. Probably the most interesting product that was mentioned in the
article is "Password Recovery Kit." This utility will open up
passwords in a variety of files, from Word to WinZip, that you thought were
secure. But there is a catch, thank goodness. The system, in some
cases, uses brute force to work on the passwords, trying over a million
combinations of letters and characters. This can be overcome using longer
passwords, over 8 characters. But in other cases, it simply reaches into
the file and yanks out the password. So don't assume that your files are
secure. For a couple of hundred dollars, anyone can own this product.
I've shown their site below. By the way, it wins the Frazier award for a
simple, effective and fast Web page.
http://www.lostpassword.com/
4. This concern is for an MP3 program called Napster which grants
public access to a particular directory of your hard drive. The fear is
that opening up ANY piece of your computer runs the risk of further hacking.
3. and 2. These discuss the risks of opening up attachments, either via
ICQ or email, and the notorious Back Oriface. Bottom line...don't open
attachments. I don't, unless I'm expecting it. So don't send me any
animated Christmas greetings this year.
1. Amazon has created "purchase circles" that tell you what
people are buying in different groups, including companies. I'm not sure
this is THAT big a deal...certainly the examples that the author uses don't
strike terror into my heart. But it's worth keeping an eye on this risk.
Top
10 ways to waste time
Chicago Tribune, 10/25/99
I'm sure none of you ever waste time using your computer. But just in case
you know someone who does, here's a quick, enjoyable list of things that can
waste your time, if you're not careful. I will only list a couple that I
think are particular productivity killers. I encourage you to read the
whole article...it's not very long.
1. Updating and upgrading your PC and software
2. Surfing
3. Chatting
4. Email
5. Games
There are lots more. See if you agree, and if you can spot yourself.
Experts
Warn Rise in Solar Storms Makes Power Supplies Vulnerable
Wall Street Journal, 11/10/99
As if we didn't have enough to worry about... This topic has been under
discussion for a while (see story below which we included on the RUY2KOK? Web
site a year ago). Beginning next year, we move into the height of the 11
year solar cycle which will bring wacky "geomagnetic storms" to our
little corner of the universe. This will affect satellites (four were
knocked out in 1989 - the last bad year) and power transmission (Montreal was
darkened in 1989). This time around, we rely even more heavily on
satellites (remember the pager outage last year?), cellular phones, and other
communications technology. Plus, the fear is that our power systems have
become even more automated with less extra capacity.
Maybe buying that generator isn't such a bad idea. Not necessarily for
Y2K, but for solar craziness.
Space Storms
Could Disrupt Satellite, Comm Systems
Newsbytes, CNN 10/23/1998
The solar cycle will be peaking right around the Big Day. The article
discusses potential damages, including the blackout in the northeast in 1989.
Solar disturbances can also damage satellites, knock out navigation and
telephone systems. The damage is caused by these electro-magnetic
"space storms" stirring up the Earth's geomagnetic fields.
Veterans
of the Windows Wars Recount Their Horror Stories
Wall Street Journal, Walter Mossberg, 10/7/99
One of the best reasons to subscribe to the online edition of the Wall Street
Journal is Walter Mossberg. This column lists some of the feedback he received
from readers after he described his adventures dealing with a Windows machine
that required way-too-frequent rebooting. While there are no solutions
offered, it's nice to know that you're not alone in fighting your computer.
Of course, we all must remember that these computers are supposed to be
"productivity enhancers."
Scared
Straight
CIO Magazine, 10/1/99
This is an interesting article about how companies are dealing with internet
rumor-mongers, disgruntled employees and stock price manipulators. It
gives an overview of how these online idiots can be tracked down and dealt with.
Generally, they're not rich, but the threat of legal action is usually enough to
shut them up.
Data
replication helps prevent potential problems
Network World
Want a more reliable system? Want 24x7 uptime? Can't afford to be
down, no matter what? If so, then data replication is for you! This
technology allows you to continuously (or batch) copy data from your primary
systems to backup facilities. The article profiles one product, and offers
the case study of a bank that was able to move critical operations to another
location during a power failure. Because the data had been continuously
replicated to that facility, all they had to do was move the data to a working
directory and get the staff set up. If you can't afford to lose your
systems, you should look into this.
ERP
woes cut Grainger profits
Computerworld
As many of you now know, I love regaling you with stories of technology
failures. It's not because I dislike technology...nay, I LOVE it.
But what I focus on is the lack of an effective approach to the acquisition and
implementation of that technology. W. W. Grainger, for example, continues
to not only have problems with their ERP systems, but problems so severe that
their earnings are affected. It's getting to the point that, when deciding
on investing in a company, you should check to see if they're planning any big
technology roll-outs.
An interesting quote from an analyst, "There's such an enormous number
of things they sell, and they have an extremely complicated business model and
lots of [facilities]...It's the sort of thing that puts a lot of pressure on
anybody's ERP system, not just SAP's."
Uh, excuse me? Isn't that the whole point of putting in these gigantic
ERP systems - to handle the enormous transactional needs of these companies.
And if the systems can't handle the known needs of the company, why were they
purchased?
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