TermSync uses data analytics to assist small and midsized businesses better know the way and when they’re being paid. Analytics is turning up in small corners of the sector. I talked recently with Mark Wilson, whose company, TermSync, applies analytics to — get this — receivables. That’s right, receivables — the quantity businesses are owed by their customers. Wilson, a CPA, started TermSync in 2010. Based in Madison, Wisconsin, the corporate offers a cloud-based service to enhance transaction processing for small and midsized businesses. In 2012 it all started expanding its features, offering customers data on their accounts and on how they compare to other companies. “We just sent them notes questioning why, when you have 30-day term, is your average collection time 47 days?” Wilson says. That got customers’ attention. Companies make collection calls or send reminders about overdue bills, Wilson says, but they do not formally track what they have been doing. TermSync’s software automates the gathering of that data so companies can... Read More »

The IEEE desires to establish sufficient standards for cloud users so that it will move between services. CIOs are already addressing the opportunities and challenges of cloud computing. It’s miles now time to contemplate the subsequent phase of the cloud: the Intercloud. Within the same way the web enabled interoperability between proprietary networks, the Intercloud will enable proprietary clouds to interoperate, and it’ll encourage third-party services comparable to cloud marketplaces. The IEEE is developing the IEEE P2302™ Standard for Intercloud Interoperability and Federation. Also, a recently announced complementary IEEE Intercloud Testbed initiative is under technique to make sure that the criteria work under real-world conditions. quite a lot of interesting technologies and ideas, which include the eXtensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) and the Resource Description Framework (RDF), are under evaluation as a part of a comprehensive architecture and engineering plan. However, the genuine value of the Intercloud ultimately lies within the benefits to cloud customers and the providers and vendors that service them. These... Read More »

Dropbox backs up your important files, but that’s only a start. These apps work alongside the cloud service to enhance security, streamline workflow, and more. Dropbox can do far more than simply back up files. The cloud-based storage service has greater than 200 million personal users and four million business accounts, and it functions as a multi-faceted office (or personal) assistant. However, no technology is an island; applications that work in concert with Dropbox open up interesting new options. Commercial cloud providers which include Dropbox provide convenient file storage, but one solution would not fit all sorts of knowledge. Use of the cloud isn’t an outstanding long-term storage solution for certain research data or confidential information. “Some thing many cloud users do not understand when using Dropbox is the indisputable fact that the encryption keys are stored at the server side in preference to the buyer side, leaving a user’s data prone to data breaches,” Rick Harvey, CTO at Lockbox an encryption expert, told us.... Read More »

Modern software development involves a mind-boggling variety of moving parts. HealthCare.gov proves now we have to come back to basic project management. Software development has come center stage in America due to discussions concerning the Affordable Care Act’s healthcare exchange website. It also has brought its share of drama, when Cheryl Campbell, senior vice chairman of CGI Federal, the prime IT contractor accountable for developing the web site, blamed system bottlenecks on work by another contractor.   Andrew Slavitt, executive vp of Optum/QSSI, the contractor in question, was probably more accurate when he testified to a home commerce committee that the true culprit was the complexity of the location. Lots of the critical components, which have been developed by multiple vendors, “were overwhelmed,” he said. Ignoring the politics, the key is that modern software delivery is complex: Not just is the software itself complex, but so is the way it is assembled and built. There are layers of components and frameworks built by third parties,... Read More »