In Depth

In Depth

Enterprise software

• Cloud bursting: What is it, what workloads, what technologies?

  We look at cloud bursting, its benefits and how to deploy it, as well as the limitations in terms of suitable workloads, the technologies needed and the skills to make it happen  Continue Reading

• Forrester: How to expand your API strategy

  Digital bonding is a mechanism for bridging enterprise boundaries by using application programming interfaces  Continue Reading

• Clickwork and labour exploitation in the digital economy

  Often ignored or assumed to be work conducted by machines rather than people, Computer Weekly explores the hidden human impact of the ‘clickwork’ that underpins the global digital economy  Continue Reading

• Air gaps for backup and how they help against ransomware

  The air gap is a basic of backups and storage. We look at what’s meant by an air gap, the rise of the logical air gap, and its place in the fight against ransomware  Continue Reading

• Hybrid working: Preventing damage to company culture

  The hybrid working model is still a work in progress, and most employers are at an early stage in learning and finding their way towards achieving its benefits  Continue Reading

• How to design a data architecture for business success

  To gain business value from data, enterprises need to get their data architecture right – and the right business leadership and culture is critical to that  Continue Reading

• Key ingredients for a successful API recipe

  We look at how application programming interfaces can provide connectivity to drive internal and external business processes  Continue Reading

• Putting artificial intelligence and machine learning workloads in the cloud

  We look at the pros and cons of putting artificial intelligence and machine learning applications in the cloud  Continue Reading

• AI Sweden connects the dots to keep the country competitive

  How and why a centre dedicated to accelerating the adoption of artificial intelligence technology has been created in Sweden  Continue Reading

• RPA’s day has come – the intelligent evolution of a productivity bot

  By trying to emulate humans for tasks such as data entry, robotic process automation has found a niche home in many an enterprise back office  Continue Reading

• Cloud bursting: What it is and what it’s good for

  We look at cloud bursting, which allows organisations to meet demand by bursting compute and storage to the cloud  Continue Reading

• Unstructured vs semi-structured data: Order from chaos

  We look at alternatives to relational databases that have emerged to help bring some structure to unstructured data and gain valuable insight by making it semi-structured  Continue Reading

• Cloud storage TCO: Key pitfalls and how to avoid them

  Cloud’s flexibility is part of the attraction, but it can also lead to costs that spiral. We look at key elements in cloud TCO and how to intelligently make use of the cloud  Continue Reading

• Bfloat16: What it is and how it impacts storage

  Bfloat16 is an emerging way to handle very large numbers, developed by Google for its machine and neural learning and prediction. We look at what it means for IT and storage  Continue Reading

• APAC organisations warm to cloud networking

  Organisations in Asia-Pacific are getting up to speed with cloud networking services, even as they grapple with the challenges of managing a hybrid cloud environment  Continue Reading

• Mapping out the rise in checkout-free shopping

  There has been a boom in the number of checkout-free stores globally, but will that growth continue and which retailers are interested?  Continue Reading

• Unstructured data storage – on-prem vs cloud vs hybrid

  We look at storage for unstructured data on-premise, in the cloud and across multiple locations. There are advantages to a hybrid approach, but there can be hidden costs, too  Continue Reading

• Employee experience joins CX for total enterprise view

  Total experience is emerging to join up employee and customer experience for organisations intent on being holistic and progressive  Continue Reading

• Holding the line in the world of hybrid work

  The role of line managers is evolving and changing as the shift towards hybrid working increases, and it would appear the secret to success in a hybrid context is to treat all staff members as if they were working remotely, even if they are based in...  Continue Reading

• Embedded analytics emerges to offer new level of business intelligence

  Analytics suppliers are increasingly offering embedded analytics – based inside applications, often real-time, and driven by APIs – as a way to get to the next level of business intelligence  Continue Reading

• Accountability in algorithmic injustice

  Computer Weekly looks at the growing number of injustices involving algorithms and automated decision-making, and what can be done to hold governments and companies accountable for the failures of computer systems they deploy  Continue Reading

• How IoT and digital twins could help CIOs meet ESG pledges

  Many local authorities have set ambitious net-zero targets. Can IoT technology, allied to digital twinning, help CIOs hit them?  Continue Reading

• File, block and object: Storage fundamentals in the cloud era

  We look at the three basic ways that storage accesses data – via file, block and object – as well as the ways in which the rise of the cloud and distributed systems have brought changes to them  Continue Reading

• Tech sector efforts to root out forced labour are failing

  Digitally mapping supply chains to identify forced labour and slavery is no longer a technology problem for the IT sector, but a lack of government enforcement and corporate inaction are major barriers to effective change  Continue Reading

• Legislation and certification of XR applications: challenges to adoption and diffusion

  Virtual and augmented reality may be changing the game, but such cutting-edge applications run ahead of many regulatory issues. How can the metaverse avoid uncertainties that could slow the adoption of XR and related enabling technologies?  Continue Reading

• Composability set to be next big thing for digital experience platforms

  Digital experience platforms are the latest word in increasing customer loyalty by engaging across all channels. Gaining real-time views of customers while managing data compliantly is critical  Continue Reading

• How to track greenhouse gas emissions

  Companies from a range of sectors, as well as public authorities, are using software and data analytics to track greenhouse gas emissions, partly to meet new regulatory demands  Continue Reading

• Secure everything, not just the weakest link

  The rise in cyber attacks on supply chains has expanded the role of IT security chiefs and the complexity of keeping organisations secure  Continue Reading

• Global file systems: Hybrid cloud and follow-the-sun access

  We look at global distributed file systems that put enterprise data under a single file access namespace so that enterprises and branch offices can get to data from anywhere  Continue Reading

• Challenges of securing a software supply chain

  The US president has issued an executive order to improve cyber security, which has ramifications across the software development supply chain  Continue Reading

• Data gravity: What is it and how to manage it

  Data gravity can attract increasing amounts of data, and brings with it onerous management overheads. We look at how to mitigate data gravity in datacentre and cloud  Continue Reading

• Cloud-to-cloud backup: When native cloud protection is not enough

  There is a certain amount of protection built into cloud services, but it has its limits and full data protection requires that cloud data is secured with cloud-to-cloud backup  Continue Reading

• Swedish entrepreneurs capture the world’s attention with eye-tracking technology

  A growing number of killer apps are driving the uptake of eye-tracking systems – and Sweden is positioned to play a leading role  Continue Reading

• A new design for the new world of work

  Widespread forecasts at the height of the pandemic about the death of the office have largely failed to come to pass, but its role is definitely changing as part of a wider, but as yet still mainly experimental, shift to hybrid working  Continue Reading

• Kubernetes backup products and 10 key players

  We look at 10 key players in Kubernetes backup, why they are needed, what they offer and why you need to watch out for duplication between application teams and the IT department  Continue Reading

• Four obstacles to hybrid cloud storage – and possible solutions

  We look at obstacles to hybrid cloud storage, such as complexity, a need for object storage, application suitability, and cost, with potential ways to mitigate the problems  Continue Reading

• The state of Australia’s national broadband network

  Australia’s national broadband network promises to improve broadband connectivity across the country but has been plagued by pricing issues. Here’s a look at where it is today and what lies ahead  Continue Reading

• Macs in the enterprise – what you need to know

  A guide to managing Apple Mac hardware and operating systems in the enterprise  Continue Reading

• Evolution of unified comms services

  Post-pandemic ways of working are forcing organisations to rethink their comms – we look at the growth in cloud-based services to support hybrid working  Continue Reading

• CPaaS – a technology for the future

  There is a received wisdom that as businesses flock towards the cloud, they are looking for a single platform on which to manage all their communication needs, leading to boom times ahead for communications platform as a service  Continue Reading

• Next generation of collaboration and communication services

  Future comms systems may look and feel rather different from what exists today – we look at the journey for communications services  Continue Reading

• Positive benefits in the new experience economy

  While creating a positive employee experience (EX) has been on the agenda of companies for years, the concept – and that of the experience economy in general – has come of age in the Covid-defined working arena  Continue Reading

• How algorithmic automation could manage workers ethically

  Managing workers by algorithm and automated process has generated ethical problems aplenty. Can such means be pressed into the service for a more ethical mode of worker management? We find out  Continue Reading

• Using technology to reinvent stores

  Technology is becoming an important part of the shopping experience at home, in stores and in-between, so how are retailers using technology to advance the store experience?  Continue Reading

• Enterprises shore up supply chain resilience with data

  Using data to gain better visibility over their supply chains and forge closer connections between disparate links is helping organisations respond to disruptions faster  Continue Reading

• The role of infrastructure as code in edge datacentre computing

  As datacentre computing is pushed to the edge of the organisation’s network, IT has to address the overheads associated with remote server management  Continue Reading

• Storage requirements for AI, ML and analytics in 2022

  We look at what is needed for artificial intelligence and machine learning, and the pros and cons of block, file and object storage to store and access very large amounts of often unstructured data  Continue Reading

• Industry clouds are all the rage, but are they driven by marketing or customer need?

  Industry clouds – cloud applications designed for specific sectors – are fashionable staples of supplier marketing, but are they what corporate IT is demanding?  Continue Reading

• Cloud ERP: Rise of the industry cloud

  There is a new variable in the build or buy debate, and it’s all about the way cloud-based services connect internal and external business processes  Continue Reading

• Dynamic workforce planning gains ground in more turbulent economy

  Some organisations are developing dynamic workforce planning approaches to cope with increasing economic turbulence and change – the South Central Ambulance Service is one  Continue Reading

• How data analytics drives wind turbine power generation

  Data analytics and related software lies behind the burgeoning wind turbine industry, with predictive maintenance to the fore. We find out how  Continue Reading

• Ratcheting down the tension in the hybrid world

  Employers who reject the trend towards adopting more flexible, hybrid ways of working may struggle with staff retention - and CIOs have more to win or lose than most in a hybrid world  Continue Reading

• Best-of-breed cloud ERP applications proffer a modern strategy

  How organisations are using best-of-breed SaaS products to fill gaps in their enterprise application strategy and deliver a modern approach to ERP  Continue Reading

• Five key points on file locking vs object locking

  We look at file vs object storage locking mechanisms, how different forms of storage ensure data consistency, and especially how object storage is tackling the challenge  Continue Reading

• Why some data-driven decisions are not to be trusted

  Companies often express the desire to be data-driven – but what if the data isn’t right? Data democratisation could be part of the solution  Continue Reading

• Why post-pandemic reskilling must focus on mainframes

  A major contributing factor to UK-wide skills shortages is the significant number of people who have left the workforce since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic  Continue Reading

• English Channel surveillance used ‘to deter and punish migrants’

  Instead of opening safe and legal routes to the UK, the country’s border control ecosystem is deploying surveillance technologies in the English Channel to deter migrant crossings, it is claimed  Continue Reading

• Retailers get business-critical IT and data management in order

  Decathlon and Toolstation are among the retailers investing in new technology to support business-critical applications and better data management  Continue Reading

• Cloud storage cost challenges and how to tackle them

  We look at cloud capacity procurement pitfalls, forecasting challenges, the danger of over-buying, supplier lock-in, deciphering billing and resizing capacity when projects finish  Continue Reading

• Christal Bemont, Talend CEO: Show up as yourself

  Christal Bemont, CEO of data management firm Talend, reflects on coming through difficult times in solidarity with co-workers, and how data quality assumes a heightened significance in the digital era  Continue Reading

• Storage and 5G: Big impacts likely as wide-area topologies evolve

  Enterprise 5G will boost the need for storage generally. It will also push capacity needs closer to the edge and create new locations for processing and storage  Continue Reading

• Evolving a data integration strategy

  Linking IT systems together is never going away, but the approach CIOs adopt is key to ensuring relevant data feeds the decision-making process  Continue Reading

• Retail’s staff engagement and happiness problem – can tech help?

  Keeping staff engaged, motivated, connected and content is no easy task for retailers, but the industry is exploring new tools and techniques to improve the workplace  Continue Reading

• Hybrid working in the metaverse  

  Few topics have attracted more headlines over the past year than hybrid work and the metaverse. How can these realities fit together and become productive in the new normal of work?  Continue Reading

• Cloud-era disaster recovery planning: Staff training, incident and media management

  In the third in a series on cloud-era disaster recovery, we set out the key components of DR staff awareness and training programmes, as well as incident management and dealing with the media  Continue Reading

• How open source is shaping data storage management

  Open source data storage offers a great deal of flexibility, but unlocking its benefits will require strong technical resources to meet requirements such as stability, high availability and security  Continue Reading

• Four emerging data integration trends to assess

  To accelerate their performance in data integration, companies are evaluating and adopting a range of contributing technologies  Continue Reading

• Finland brings cryostats and other cool things to quantum computing

  Not only is Finland the clear leader in refrigeration technology for quantum computers, but it also leads in fundamental research into the underlying quantum information theory  Continue Reading

• Data integration dogged by complexity and vital to business

  Integrating data is one of the thorniest challenges in business intelligence and analytics – achieving it is technically and organisationally complex, while it is gaining in importance all the time  Continue Reading

• How Forensic Architecture uses tech to protect human rights

  Forensic Architecture speaks to Computer Weekly about how it uses various digital technologies to investigate human rights abuses around the globe, including the pushback of migrants over the Greek border and the killing of Mark Duggan by London ...  Continue Reading

• Finland moves to industrialise quantum computing

  For the Finnish government, now is the time to start preparing for the day when quantum computers will have practical value  Continue Reading

• What does 2022 have in store for hybrid working?

  The Omicron coronavirus variant has brought a return of working restrictions. Can we be optimistic about the resilience of organisations as they try to get the best out of their workforce?  Continue Reading

• Dispelling the top five myths of modern infrastructure

  Modern infrastructure is agile, flexible and scalable. It is at the forefront of every CIO’s digital strategy – and it's everywhere. But with the multitude of choices comes complexity  Continue Reading

• A legal minefield called the metaverse

  Will the metaverse create a $1tn revenue market? Who knows? How long will it take to reach this lofty potential? Who can tell? Will people invest across this emerging landscape of speculative riches? You bet  Continue Reading

• How to make AI greener and more efficient

  Artificial intelligence promises both to combat the ill effects of climate change and to make the emergency worse with excessive energy use. How can AI be made greener?  Continue Reading

• How to create a sustainable continuous learning culture

  How can organisations create a continuous learning culture that will militate against the so-called great resignation? We explore, using Vodafone and Deutsche Bank as cases in point  Continue Reading

• University of Edinburgh extends IoT data science to south-east Scottish pupils

  The University of Edinburgh is part of a 15-year mission to educate the data scientists of tomorrow among school pupils in its south-east Scotland sphere  Continue Reading

• New supercomputer opens doors for researchers in Sweden

  More than twice as powerful as its predecessor, a new supercomputer ushers in new opportunities for researchers who rely on artificial intelligence and machine learning  Continue Reading

• Fuzzy logic: The challenge of building data science teams

  In the face of a dearth of data science talent, and a crippling lack of diversity in the pool as it is, what are companies doing to build, manage and keep data science teams together? We find out  Continue Reading

• Avoiding the two-tier workforce in the third workplace

  The new world of hybrid working is sometimes referred to as the third workplace. Yet just as firms are having to deal with the ‘great resignation’, they are in danger of unwittingly creating a two-tier workforce  Continue Reading

• SMEs step up e-commerce ventures under shadow of Covid

  A raft of smaller retailers have stepped up their e-commerce businesses during the pandemic, ranging from books to candles, rugs to togs  Continue Reading

• The developing metaverse: Commercial realities of extended realities

  The metaverse is almost certain to become a highly competitive commercial playground, if not battlefield. It will likely not only establish highly profitable markets but also lead to high-profile failures  Continue Reading

• The emerging role of software in business development

  Business leaders generally recognise the importance of software as a business enabler – but some see technology driving business growth  Continue Reading

• How enterprise 5G is playing out in Australia

  5G adoption is taking place in the industrial arena and other sectors, but telcos will need to transform themselves and overcome cost challenges to drive wider adoption  Continue Reading

• Retailers as tech firms: Next, The Very Group and others see power in the platform

  Gap and Reiss are set to utilise Next’s end-to-end e-commerce service, Total Platform, in 2022, as more retailers carve out a future as part tech company  Continue Reading

• Swedish researchers are patiently developing a useful quantum computer

  By 2028, the Wallenberg Centre for Quantum Technology in Sweden expects to have a useful quantum computer  Continue Reading

• Ensuring hybrid work works in the new normal

  The hybrid business is becoming a reality, but how can firms ensure a positive employee experience and learn how to identify and manage risks?  Continue Reading

• Cloud repatriation: Five reasons to repatriate data from cloud

  We look at key drivers of cloud repatriation, including cost, compliance, issues around latency and data gravity, reversing poorly planned moves to the cloud, and supplier failure  Continue Reading

• Arkwright’s till, Tesco GetGo and retail tech’s non-linear innovation journey

  The checkout-free Tesco GetGo store shows that retail technology has come a long way since the faulty till draws in Open All Hours, but some of today’s innovation goes back to the future  Continue Reading

• APAC expert guide to cloud migration

  In this expert guide on cloud migration in Asia-Pacific, we highlight the key considerations and strategies that enterprises can take when moving their workloads to public cloud  Continue Reading

• What Norwegians are learning as they pioneer autonomous ships

  Norway is leading the world in developing autonomous ship technology – and the world should pay attention to its latest developments  Continue Reading

• Mining for intelligence: Why business process intelligence makes for agility

  Business process improvement is a never-ending quest for betterment that can be lit up by a new generation of process mining software. We take a deep dive  Continue Reading

• How in-store technology is supporting retail’s sustainability agenda

  Boots, Costa Coffee and the major grocers’ in-store technology focus is switching towards systems supporting sustainability goals  Continue Reading

• IT’s role in sustainability for a resilient supply chain

  A circular economy is among the long-term measures needed to combat climate change. This requires data transparency across supply chains  Continue Reading

• How software can help clean up emission-intensive industries

  The potential to reduce emissions by making heavy industries and commercial buildings more efficient using software is immense. We explore the field  Continue Reading

• How companies are rethinking digital customer experience in wake of pandemic

  The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed much digital rhetoric as hollow, as companies are now rethinking the digital customer experience, leveraging instant messaging and other tools  Continue Reading

• Developing an integrated customer and employee experience strategy

  We explore what customer experience and employee experience have in common – and the benefits of combining them  Continue Reading

• What lies beyond the data warehouse?

  Has the traditional data warehouse finally reached the end of its life? If so, what will follow it? Will it be a hybrid? We find out  Continue Reading

• A post-pandemic recipe for developing customer experience

  Covid-19 has led to many people reassessing their priorities so customer experience needs to adapt to meet new expectations  Continue Reading

• Ultimate questions require ultimate understanding in the quantum era

  In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Deep Thought calculates the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything as ‘42’. But what of quantum computing?  Continue Reading