Making a Sound Technology Decision

by Scott Kantner, May 11th, 2012 in Apps, CTO, Hosting, Software

Some times clarity appears when you least expect it. Just this past week it revealed itself again as I was being asked how I thought particular business application systems should be hosted. In each case the choices were:

  1. DIY – The traditional Do-It-Yourself option of using your own hardware and support staff. Everything is in-house and 100% under your control at all times. You are impervious to fires in tunnels and squirrels electrocuting themselves. You bear 100% of the cost of the hardware and the technical staff needed to support the whole affair. Read more »

The New iPad’s Achilles Heel

by Scott Kantner, April 27th, 2012 in Apps, CTO, Industry trends, Mobile

I was in junior high school when I first heard about someone rupturing an Achilles tendon. After I learned what it meant I remembering saying to myself “Boy, that is absolutely the last thing I ever want to have happen to me.” Little did I know that thought was a portent of the future.

In June of 2006 I went down like a ton of bricks on a basketball court with an Achilles tear of epic proportions. “Spaghetti” was the term used by my doctor.  It is a 6-month ordeal experience one does not forget, and I now often observe analogies to it in other things, most recently “The New iPad.” Read more »

Why Perspective is Key

by Scott Kantner, April 13th, 2012 in Corporate, CTO

I love railroads.I especially love studying the history of the Reading Railroad, a “fallen flag” that was merged into Conrail in 1976. Growing up along the Reading’s Mainline subdivision and spending many hours watching trains rumble through, I never gave a thought to the spacing of the rails – 4 ft, 8 1/2 inches to be exact, the standard gauge for all US railroads.

Where on earth did that number come from? Read more »

Should You Worry About Having an Android App?

by Scott Kantner, April 5th, 2012 in Apps, Corporate, CTO, Mobile

I’ve been trying hard to sell you on the need to have a mobile software strategy for your business. If I’ve managed to convince you thus far, you may be wondering where to begin. You do of course need a good idea to start with, but very soon you’ll need to decide not only who your ideal customer is, but what kind of device she carries. Targeting Apple’s iOS devices is a must-do, slam-dunk, no-brainer, but less obvious is what to do about the Android platform.

Before jumping into the Android pool, it would be good to take an eyes-wide-open approach to the current factors causing developer malaise in the Android world. Read more »

You Can Achieve Inbox Zero

by Scott Kantner, March 29th, 2012 in Corporate, CTO

Earlier this week I listened to Michael Hyatt’s podcast on “How to Take Control of Your E-mail Inbox”.  What he talks about is often referred to as Inbox Zero, which is code for how to keep email from controlling your life. If you’ve got the time, and you have 100+ emails in your inbox, I’d recommend grabbing the podcast – it’s concise, very well done, and very effective. If you’d rather read then listen, my own approach is closely based on the one Michael described several years ago, and I’ll lay it out for you here.

The ultimate goal of Inbox Zero is pretty simple – empty your inbox every day. Sounds impossible. Read more »

Fire and Motion Revisited

by Scott Kantner, March 15th, 2012 in CTO, Mobile, Software

As I’ve been encouraging you to give serious consideration to a mobile software strategy for your business, I realized I may have unintentionally overwhelmed you. Taking on a new challenge outside of your core strengths may be the last thing you either need or want to do just now, but I recently ran across something that may help put things in perspective.

Ten years ago, well-known software business owner Joel Splosky wrote a great piece about productivity in his work life called “Fire and Motion“.   Read more »

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