Ads by TechWords

See your link here
Receive the latest technology news and information.
Networking
E-Business
Computerworld Daily News (First Look and Wrap-Up)
Computerworld Blogs Newsletter
The Weekly Top 10
Cloud Computing
View all newsletters




Privacy Policy
 

From Wired to Weird: Books on Fixing IT

New Economy? Pfah. These books cover how to make the tech economy really work

July 23, 2001 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld -














Legislation/Regulation

Making IT Better; Expanding Information Technology Research to Meet Society's NeedsMaking IT Better: Expanding Information Technology Research to Meet Society's Needs,


In fact, what the researchers do here is ask the right questions about IT and society, without necessarily coming up with any of the answers. This academic metastudy focuses not on IT, but on research about IT, where it's being done and by whom, and how research about IT may improve IT and society as a whole.


The report accomplishes its academic purpose but won't be terribly useful to IT managers in the trenches. If you're looking to go into research, this is the place to start. Otherwise, stick with something more down to earth. —Kevin Fogarty


by the Computer Science and Telecommunications Board of the National Research Council (National Academy Press, 272 pages, paperback, $34.95). Count on the National Science Foundation, which underwrote the research for this book, to look at the big picture about life and IT, while the rest of the publishing world is focused on how-to tech books and New Economy apologia.




The Project Surgeon, A Troubleshooter's Guide to Business Crisis ManagementWhat could be more down to earth than project management? More specifically, what could be more down to earth than The Project Surgeon: A Troubleshooter's Guide to Business Crisis Management, by Boris Hornjak (Project Management Institute, 130 pages, paperback, $34.95). The publicists pitch this one as a hands-on troubleshooting manual for operational managers—and they're not far off.


Although the book isn't specifically about IT, the guidelines that Hornjak lays down can be applied by almost any IT manager who has to regularly put out fires while simultaneously moving forward on several fronts.


Hornjak, a 17-year veteran project manager, covers business recovery in three parts—Emergency Management, Crisis Management and Crisis Prevention.


Emergencies are projects handled quickly, Hornjak writes; they have a beginning, middle and an end and can be metered, guided and analyzed, just like any other project.


Almost more valuable than the prose and the tips are the charts, checklists and examples of the analytics that not only mark a project's progress, but also show when it should be cut loose and when it's already too late to do so.


But if you're not a project manager, don't even open the book; knowing the details on how badly major projects can go wrong will only keep you up at night. —Kevin Fogarty


One of the most puzzling questions facing modern businesses, especially Web-based organizations, is how to decipher whether and when intellectual property needs to be paid for or protected. On the surface, it seems obvious, but the Napster controversy alone demonstrates that it's not.

Additional Resources

Xerox
By using solid ink technology only from Xerox, you could save up to 65% by printing color for the cost of black and white. Enter for a chance to WIN a PhaserTM 8860 network color printer!
Microsoft
Save time and mitigate security risk. Deploy it now.
Sybase
In this white paper, IDC analyzes the role of next-generation mobile enterprise platforms as organizations seek a more strategic deployment of mobile solutions.

Learn the important issues you must consider before starting your next mobility initiative. Get your mobility white paper from IDC now, compliments of Sybase.

White Papers & Webcasts

Security Convergence Equals Network Security Cost Savings
Listen to IBM Internet Security Systems' take on network security convergence.

Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
Learn how to successfully deploy a WAN optimization solution that is specifically tuned for a mobile environment!  

Faster, Cheaper and Easier to Maintain
Can you afford not to upgrade your servers to today's advanced, energy-efficient technologies?  

Effectively Implementing Datacenter Automation
Effectively select and deploy the best datacenter automation solution today!

Aligning IT to Business: The Rising Importance of Application Delivery Networks
Application Delivery Networking (ADN) will play a vital role in helping enterprises incorporate strategic technologies to achieve business initiatives.