Mailbag: DNS Is Serious Business

If one is running any type of e-commerce or production system that is public-facing, you absolutely have to take DNS (and the entire infrastructure) seriously. If DNS is broken, the following can happen:

1. If DNS is not properly configured, then your customers will have an inconsistent experience when trying to access your Web site. Result: Customers will go elsewhere and you'll lose possible revenue.
2. If DNS is not working at all, then customers will not even be able to contact your site. They might assume your site doesn't exist or is no longer in service. Result: Customers will go elsewhere and possibly never return -- loss of immediate and possibly future revenue source.
3. If your DNS is hacked or spoofed so that your customers go to a fake version of your site...well, not only will you lose money, your customers might possibly lose money also, further damaging your brand and reputation.

So yes, one should take DNS very seriously.
-Tony

Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/30/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Is Your Job Recession-Proof?

Now, pushing aside the fact that we're not technically in a recession -- it just feels like one -- this is good news indeed. (And here's a little hint from the editor in chief of Redmond magazine: Our upcoming salary survey has some more good news!)

Here's the rundown: Software development and design positions are the second-most recession-proof career. Systems and network administration is No. 6, business analysis related to software implementations is No. 8, database administration is No. 14, and being a tech exec is sweet 16.

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/29/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Mailbag: Cheap Macs Not So Good

I think they tried licensing out the OS about 10 years ago. Didn't seem to work out all that well for Apple, seeing as how their bread and butter was computers back then. Granted, the company and its product line had other problems at the time, so perhaps there would be better results if they ever tried it again. I suppose if their OS got as big as Vista, er, I mean, Windows, it would be worth it to them. Otherwise, in a short time, there would be no more Apple.

As time marches on, computers will become a smaller part of their product mix. If the iPhone and whatever follows in its footsteps continues to advance, a less expensive device running OS X could well happen. Until then, a $500 Mac laptop strikes me as something one would not call "good," either in performance, durability or effects on Apple's bottom line and by extension, OS X.
-Bill

One reader shares his experience with online social networking in the corporate scene:

From what I've seen from the perspective of both legal and potential employers, these types of social networking pages (Facebook, MySpace, etc.) are very accommodating. In the legal world, our local district attorney's office uses these site for the same purpose as youths: They shows a deeper insight into the psyche. Likewise, my wife has used these sites to "weed out" prospective employees for her business by ensuring she steers clear of hiring the local "Nick Hogan" or otherwise distrustful and unsavory character. You can save a few bucks on the drug screen if their recent blog entries regal tales of how they paint the town red.

Perhaps Mark Twain did not know of the imaginable possibilities of the Internet, but his words still speak volumes: "It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt."
-Henry

Chris adds his praise for Steve Jobs, whose health came into question recently:

I agree with you about Steve. I read an article in Wired magazine about Jobs and Apple, and while it wasn't totally complimentary, it definitely showed that he is an enigma and is doing a great job.
-Chris

And another Chris responds to a recent letter advising heckled iPhone fans to take the high road:

In my opinion, if the question was insulting, the content of the question just might be hitting a little too close to home. The man in line's response to the question ("Have you ever seen a women naked?") showed that he was very uncomfortable and almost hurt by the question. If it's not true, why would anyone be so offended? He might as well have said, "Stop picking on me, you big meanie." If you want to stop the stereotype, fight fire with fire and earn respect.

Pretending like you're above someone and then making you own condescending comment behind their back ("let them continue to bang wood blocks together") is no different than the smug or belittling comments you complain about. You're in denial if you don't understand the reality of many of the stereotypes regarding technology/computer nerds. There are plenty of technology nerds (I consider myself one) who can hold their own, have a sense of humor, and can respond to a snarky question with a snarky answer. It's all in good fun. Wait, are you the guy in line?
-Chris

Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/29/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

But the Squeeze Is Still On

The group says that IT budgets overall were set to rise some 4 percent, but due to a tough economy, a lot of this money will never get spent.

It also claims that IT last year spent $7,397 for each user, but will only spend $6,667 per person this year. If IT is spending that much for each of us, where's my new dual-core laptop?

What are your budgets, salaries and hiring situations like? Let us know at [email protected].

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/29/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Microsoft Joins Apache, Why?

Seeing as how Microsoft sales reps have probably pushed IIS on you a million times, you're probably asking, "Why?" Me, too.

The answer isn't that Microsoft is putting its weight behind the open source Web server and bailing on IIS. From what I can tell, this has nothing to do with IIS. On a high level, Microsoft wants to appear friendly to the open source community. Gaining trust and cooperation can go a long way toward building interoperability.

Do you see Microsoft making positive moves to get closer to the open source world? Yeas or nays welcome at [email protected].

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/29/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Hyper-V Runs Solaris -- With a Little Help

The most interesting part of Transitive might not be its product, but one of its advisors. Dr. Mendel Rosenbaum is a technical advisor to Transitive. Virtualization buffs may recognize that as the name of VMware's co-founder and chief scientist. Is it any wonder, then, that QuickTransit also works with VMware?

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/28/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Mailbag: Trust Open Source?

I still have my old, patched, hippie pants. What I miss is being the size I was when they fit.

As for trusting open source software, or any software for that matter, my motto is "trust, but verify."
-Dave

I trust open source 100 percent. I have used Open Office for years, both on Windows and Mac; I do not use MS Office. I also use Firefox on Windows and have had no problems -- it's also much faster than IE. Nothing is 100 percent secure (I work in IT and manage Windows desktops/servers, Cisco, F5 Firepass -- they all need to be patched). But 100 percent for open source! I introduced many people to OO and Firefox and haven't heard any complaints.

Do I miss my hippie jeans (and also my tie-dyed shirts and bell bottoms)? Sure do...but I still have the long hair!
-Bob

Actually, I don't trust any computer, no matter who wrote the software. I manage to make a pretty good living working on them, but I have no delusions that they are making my life better. If you do trust them, don't cry about how your life got screwed up. You messed it up putting your faith in a stupid machine.

I will say that you can install any software in an exploitable manner. Most software can also be installed in a reasonably secure manner. If you do it right, it will work (yup, even Microsoft software); if you do it wrong, it won't work well (yup, even Microsoft software). What would be helpful would be to get past the name-calling and accusations and focus on getting a tool that does what you need.
-Anonymous

Got anything to add? Let us have it! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/28/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

DNS the New Hole?

Those folks sure were prescient as Microsoft recently had to patch its DNS implementation -- a patch that itself caused problems such as Exchange outages.

Nevertheless, Microsoft is "urgently warning" IT to patch their DNS. The vulnerability can allow spoofing attacks, although no such attacks have yet been reported.

Do you take DNS security seriously? Share your thoughts and advice by writing [email protected].

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/28/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Vista Cash Back

The bad news for HP? Kido is a blogger, and her entire story of two months worth of e-mail and telephone calls ended up on Valleywag. Kido eventually got her $200 back, and HP got far more than $200 worth of bad press.

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/28/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Mailbag: Thoughts on Jobs

Mr. Jobs IS a rather remarkable man, but every remarkable human in history has had to retire at some point.

Organizations need to plan for the same and the rest of us can count our blessings to have coincided in time with the lives of the living remarkable.
-Anonymous

I watched the iPhone 3G announcement video a while back and I was taken aback at how gaunt Jobs looked. Not being an Apple customer, I don't keep track of what happens there so I was not even aware he had been sick. After reading that investors are dumping stock simply on the rumour of his ill-health, I can't imagine what will happen if/when he passes away.

I agree with you. The industry will, eventually, lose one of the most important figures in the history of personal computing. Get well, Steve!
-Dan

One reader thinks the recent BlackBerry flaw, now patched, still isn't enough to make people turn to the iPhone:

What? No one is dropping the BlackBerry to get an iPhone. If you can find a 3G network, if Father Steve allows you to run the app you need and if you don't mind doing hard resets to restore your phone once or twice a day, you might want an iPhone. If you don't mind very short battery life unless you turn off the GPS and Wi-Fi, you might want an iPhone. If you want to restrict yourself to one carrier -- and not the best one, at that -- you might want an iPhone. If you want to send the phone in just to change the battery, you might want an iPhone.

The iphone is a toy, and not a very good one, and is not suited for business use. The BlackBerry may not be perfect but it works and it works every time you use it, something no one can say about the iPhone.
-John

Doug asked for advice recently on how to keep multiple machines in synch. Jeff thinks the answer is in Google:

Just give in to the dark side. Turn your life and your documents over to Google. No OS needed, any computer will do. If that won't work, try Mozy. Great backup program. Restores are a little slow but you can initiate them yourself. I recommend only restoring what you need to begin with; get the rest when you get your full machine up and running. If you have Google popping all your e-mail accounts, you'll always have copies of them.
-Jeff

Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/24/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Jobs OK?

The New York Times looked into the matter and reporter John Markoff writes that Jobs himself has been reassuring friends and Apple board members that he's just fine. There's apparently a problem that caused him to lose weight, and he had surgery to straighten that out (imagine that: surgery to actually gain weight!).

Still, there's pressure for Apple to disclose its succession plan in the event that Jobs steps down. If Apple ever does get a new leader, could that person please, please license the Mac OS to hardware OEMs like HP and Dell? The market needs a good $500 Mac laptop.

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/24/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments

Windows Leader Leaps to Juniper

When I first heard the news, I figured Johnson was taking the rap for the poor market performance of Vista, and the fact that Microsoft lost over a billion dollars in its online business.

I was wrong. Johnson is the new CEO of Juniper, the high-flying network gear maker. Juniper is one hot company. A nobody seven years ago, it's now arguably the only networking company that can truly challenge Cisco. Good luck, Kevin!

Posted by Doug Barney on 07/24/2008 at 1:15 PM0 comments