Overheard talking about the definitions for app and mobile app

Nowadays we use those terms, app and mobile app, almost synonymously. More often than not, when you’re reading or talking about an app, it’s mobile, because that’s really where all the activity is right now. — Michael Le Du

When is the last time you heard someone talking about a killer app, 1999? Am wondering if there’s a mobile app equivalent.

Overheard talking about IT showback

Showback was once considered the first step toward implementing chargeback — often hailed as one of the most valuable features of cloud storage. But organizations today are putting showback to great use on its own as a resource analysis tool, and are holding off using the more complex chargeback process. — Sonia Lelii

Today’s WhatIs.com Word of the Day is IT showback, a usage metric that can be handy for identifying business units that use resources appropriately and flagging those that don’t.  At the very least, using showback as the metric-of-choice sidesteps the very human temptation to turn a conversation about appropriate usage into a circular argument about pricing and budget.

See also: IT chargeback

Overheard talking about the Volcker Rule

“The Federal Reserve’s attempt to clarify the ‘Volcker rule’ is only creating more confusion. At issue is whether the Fed is requiring banks to start scaling back on making bets with their own money almost immediately, or whether they can continue until the ban on such activities goes into effect in two years.” –Scott Patterson

Today’s WhatIs.com Word of the Day is the Volcker Rule, a section of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that restricts U.S. banks from making speculative, high-risk investments that do not benefit customers.

From the get-go, bankers have expressed concern that the Volcker Rule would hurt the ability of U.S. businesses to be competitive in a global arena.  SearchCompliance.com has more information about how the Volcker Ruling will affect IT departments.

Overheard talking about mobile development and the role of middleware

“People are saying it costs 50 to 70% of the original project cost to port a mobile app to a second platform. Even in cases where needs for rewrites slim, testing and tweaking for different devices’ screen sizes can still run from 20 to 30% of the cost of the original project.” - Jeffrey Hammond

Today’s WhatIs.com Word of the Day is mobile middleware. Like other types of middleware, it connects disparate applications, programs and systems.  Look for the buzzword mobile middleware-as-a-service (MMaaS) coming to an app/dev meeting near you!

Overheard talking about persistent desktop management

“Persistent desktops could potentially become an administrative nightmare. The amount of disk space needed to maintain this setting will grow and datacenter storage doesn’t come cheap. Patching and upgrades are now necessary for each persistent image and this can eat up tons of man hours, which usually occur after hours.” –Greg Stuart

Today’s WhatIs.com Word of the Day is persistent desktop, a virtual desktop that retains the user’s data from session to session.

Overheard talking about parallax and 3-D imaging

“Human beings have binocular vision — each eye sees a different image, and the brain combines them into a single, unified picture. The brain uses the slight difference in angle between the two images, known as parallax, to help it perceive depth.” – Tracy V. Wilson

Today’s WhatIs.com Word of the Day is parallax — it describes the way an object’s position or direction seems to change depending on which eye you have open. In 3-D imaging, this phenomena is used to create the illusion of depth.

Overheard talking about Google Drive

“This week, both Google and Microsoft announced offerings that aim to provide more IT value than other cloud storage and file-sharing services. Unlike Dropbox, Google and Microsoft use their file-sharing services to extend applications.” — James Furbush

Today’s WhatIs.com Word of the Day is Google Drive, a cloud storage service that incorporates Google Docs, the company’s business applications suite.

Overheard talking about HTML5 clients

“It’s tempting to think that the future will be only HTML5 apps, but in reality HTML5 VDI clients will never have the performance or features of native clients.” — Brian Madden

Today’s Whatis.com Word of the Day is HTML5 client, a remote desktop client that uses JavaScript and WebSocket to provide the end user with access to a remote desktop through their web browser.

Overheard talking about Raspberry Pi

“We learn English and maths not for specific jobs but because they’re life skills. Coding is a life skill too.” — Kevin Fong

Today’s WhatIs.com Word of the Day is Raspberry Pi, a single-board $35 computer for education.

Overheard talking about cramming landline phone bills

“An investigation by Rockefeller’s Senate Commerce Science and Transportation Committee last year found that phone companies had placed $10 billion in third-party charges on customers’ landline phone bills over the last five years — and that a large percentage of those charges were unauthorized.” — Brendan Sasso

Today’s WhatIs.com Word of the Day is cramming, padding your phone bill with sneaky little charges for things you don’t want and never knew you were paying for.

U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar has convinced  Verizon, CenturyLink and AT&T to stop cramming  landline phone bills. The Senator is on the Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet — which has oversight over the FCC and the wireless industry.