There is good news on the horizon for recent and prospective computer science majors. According to a 2013 report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be two jobs available per every graduate with a computer science degree over the next ten years. While these statistics may be pleasing to the ears of young job seekers in the Information Technology fields, employers fear that there will be a shortage of workers with a Bachelor’s in Computer Science to fill their demand of skilled workers. (more…)

August 3rd, 2012 wasn’t a particularly stellar day for Matt Honan, senior writer with Wired Magazine. It was the day that all of his personal accounts (Google, Twitter, Apple, etc.) were hacked by a group hell bent on wreaking havoc with his digital life. Just for fun. Like many other tech-savvy users, his password was complex enough to withstand any brute force attack (it wasn’t 1234, his wife’s name, or his favorite member of House Lannister). His account fell due to two major problems: the daisy-chaining of his digital accounts and major gaps in account authentication.

The first problem is in the hands of the user but the second may lead businesses to put the old password (single-factor) authentication system out to pasture and replace it with a more secure two-factor authentication system. (more…)

Since the 1960s software engineers, lawyers, and academics have been arguing over the pros and cons of software patents, and to this day no resolution has been reached as to how to legally secure intellectual property rights of formulated lines of code. With the inception of mobile applications utilized by smart phone and tablets – made by software giants like Apple, Microsoft, and Motorola – patent-eligibility once again finds itself center stage in nationwide and international debate. (more…)

Everyone’s familiar with the old computer nerd stereotype: the code monkey with his eyes glued to the screen, tapping away at his keyboard, and awkwardly avoiding interaction with anyone else in the office.

But as the IT field becomes evermore ubiquitous in every workplace, this stereotype has become grossly outdated. And while even the best IT folks may geek out over the hottest new tech releases, the truth is that the emotional intelligence – the capacity to both identify and regulate emotions in yourself and others – is an increasingly important trait for those in Information Technology. (more…)

Digital technology is ubiquitous – it’s in our homes, our offices, and everywhere we go – but to some that just isn’t enough. Mobile phones & tablets broaden our social experience, but the feeling that we are dealing with pixels on a static, plastic slab is ultimately there. We may have adjusted but our five senses definitely aren’t fooled. There is still a defined line where we end & technology begins. Now, as augmented reality tech like Google Glass transitions from the drawing board to the production line, the line is being blurred. (more…)

Looking for an incredible, high-tech job? Look no further than these 5 cutting edge IT careers!

The huge amounts of data that dominate the working world create a multitude of career opportunities for someone with an information technology degree. Data must be managed, mined, disseminated and protected, and business sectors around the world (both public and private) are part of the game. While there are many routine IT jobs that are necessary and worthy occupations, the chance to do something unusual and original can be very appealing. (more…)

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There are many investments a company must make to stay operational. Your employees, the building blocks and foundation of any organization, are generally the biggest of those investments. When trying to decrease overhead and spending, a business owner may turn to internal finance as a means of reserving resources. Generally personnel compensation is not something that can by trimmed down. However, their insurance costs are a whole other story! Employers can lessen their overhead, by encouraging healthy lifestyles, while not compromising employee medical benefits or compensation!

Health insurance is another area where, like employee salaries, companies cannot skimp. To keep competitive benefits while saving money, many companies are moving toward Employee Wellness Programs to earn insurance incentives. Employees are able to participate in everything from on-site exercise facilities and in office Pilates, to weight loss and smoking cessation classes which in turn puts health insurance premiums on the steady decline.

Encouraging a healthy workplace is not necessarily a new idea. Rather, it has been an ongoing struggle for employers to prove statistically to insurers that the implementation of wellness programs will actually save them money. More recently, it seems, the insurance companies are starting to come around, admitting that wellness programs do have merit, and are even starting to create programs of their own. At this stage in the development of Employee Wellness Incentive Programs, insurers are more apt to lower premiums when employees participate in programs that they sponsor, rather than programs created by their clients. For instance, Blue Shield of California offers “Healthy Lifestyle Rewards” to its client’s employees. The program offers cash and prize incentives to participants who fill out health questionnaires and display a healthy behavior.

Even if your medical insurance provider does not offer an incentive plan, there is still money to be saved by encouraging healthier lifestyles. Several studies have shown that companies save about three dollars for every one dollar spent on health and wellness programs. It is also common knowledge that daily exercise and a healthy diet, create a more active, energetic and focused person. Offering fruit in the break rooms, free fitness programs and in-office incentives for healthier behavior will improve over all employee performance and morale. Healthy employees will get sick less often, which means less absenteeism and more productivity for your company! Increased employee morale will generate a lower turn-over rate and higher employee retention, which will cut valuable resources spent searching for replacement personnel!

There is no arguing that wellness programs are a good investment. Whether your intentions lie in attaining lower insurance premiums, increasing employee retention or simply encouraging healthy behaviors, the benefits of a Well Workplace are limitless!

-By Megan Oldag

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In the technological community, the value of IT Certifications has long been a topic of debate. In an effort to resolve the question of whether certifications play an integral role in career advancement or if they are of limited value, the job search website Dice, which services only the IT field, conducted a survey. (more…)

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With a constant steam of technology trends weaving their way into people’s lives and business, it’s easy to wonder which ones will stick around and which will fizzle out, even if you work in the throes of IT itself. Yet, ask a handful of any given tech experts which trend has the most staying power, and without a doubt, the majority will tell you Cloud computing. (more…)

We’re talking about far future. Like 25 years from now. Considering that 25 years ago, no one knew what the Internet was, it’s safe to say that few people can make any realistic predictions about what technology and the IT industry will look like more than two decades from today.

But we can dream. And we can take a look at the generation who will be in their prime 25 years from now; namely, those clumsy, runny-nosed, giggling kids who currently happen to be somewhere in the K-12 education process.

Technology in Schools

Teachers across the nation and globe are reinventing their classrooms to better reflect the 21st Century. It’s a challenging and slow paradigm shift, necessitated by the overwhelming impact that the current technological revolution is having on society.

What do these changes look like? You name it. Laptops, notebooks, tablets, iPods, eReaders, specialized education software, blogs, social media, video chat, apps, and more.

Organizations like the Texas Computer Education Association are highly focused on integrating technology into classrooms, and are working with administrators and teachers to do so.

Executive Director of TCEA, Lori Gracey, says, “we have recently seen an explosive growth in the ability of young children to manipulate intelligent devices, including smartphones and tablet computers.” Children can run applications and programs at a much younger age than anyone ever expected, Gracey adds.

After Graduation

Even the youngest of leaders in the tech scene right now were not born into technology like today’s youngsters. Instead, they discovered the Internet at the same time as their parents, at ages 5, 10, or 15. But for today’s 5, 10, and 15 year olds, the Internet is as natural as breathing.

So how will this affect the future of IT? As IT Manager Patrick Mitchell, from Best Essay Help, comments, the answer is “easy and straightforward: as more and more people deal with technology from early childhood, there’s a bigger chance of innovation to popup.”

And that’s putting it lightly.

Growing Up

The past two decades have brought many technological innovations, changing the way we function in everyday life. And while new tech innovation will likely continue at an impressive rate, it’s also a safe bet that there will be a greater focus on user interface.

It’s a typical process: first there is an invention, and only after that is the invention reworked to better fit into our lives. You can look at any technology for easy examples of this, be it cars, phones, music and more.

We’ve seen the beginning of this in recent years, a great example being the smartphone, integrating technology into more and more of our lives. But it’s probable that the next 25 years will bring this kind of integration and intense user interface and design to an extreme.

Project Manager Brian Gier agrees, saying, “Networks will become self-healing fabric stitched together by self-powered devices all communicating, updating, and notifying each other and ourselves… interfaces as we know them will cease to exist when the device become part of us.”

A recent article from UX Magazine, by Scott Jensen, states that the smart devices of today are just the beginning; “key chains, credit cards, headsets, head-mounted displays, smart jewelry…even smart blenders and knife sharpeners are not far behind.”

Jensen goes on to say that the process of choosing a computer and then buying hoards of software and applications on top of that will soon be obsolete, replaced by a model “in which people work with multiple devices on the same data, usually through the cloud.”

Certainly, the concept of the cloud has a lot of potential and will likely take directions we could never even imagine. And once again, this is sure to be just the beginning. Can you imagine what technology will look like in 25 years?

From Tots to Techies

With their tiny hands digging into technology from day one, today’s children will definitely rearrange the world into a future we cannot possibly predict.

Heidi Siwak, a 6th grade teacher who has created a website dedicated to her 21st century classroom, puts it perfectly: these children are building “digital footprint[s]” and the consequences of that will be great.

What do you think? How will today’s children use technology to change our future?

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-By Clare Saumell