Archive for August 4, 2021

Commvault Receives Highest Product Scores For Three Out Of Three Use Cases In The 2021 Gartner Critical Capabilities For Enterprise Backup & Recovery Software Solutions

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

Today Commvault a recognized global enterprise leader in Intelligent Data Services across on-premises, cloud and SaaS environments, announced that Gartner, Inc., which delivers actionable, objective insight to executives and their teams, has given it the highest Product Scores across all three use cases in the 2021 Critical Capabilities report: datacenter environments (4.13/5), cloud environments (4.02/5), and edge environments (4.01/5). ­This is the second year in a row that Commvault has achieved the highest scores in all three Critical Capabilities use cases as identified by the Gartner report. Commvault was also recently named a Leader in the 2021 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Enterprise Backup and Recovery Software Solutions.

Commvault’s proven technology doesn’t just protect the data —it also helps increase visibility, reduce data sprawl, and accelerate transformation in datacentre, cloud and edge environments. Engineered from the ground up to protect data in data centre, cloud, and edge environments, Commvault’s backup and recovery solutions, along with its Metallic SaaS solutions, ensure data is protected and recoverable wherever it lives.

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Review: My Time At Portia For iOS

Posted in Products on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

My Time at Portia has been around on Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One for a while now. But as of today, it’s now available iOS and Android. And I got the chance to try it out on iOS ahead of today’s release.

The basic plot of the game goes something like this. Humanity is rebuilding in My Time at Portia. Civilization as you knew it was destroyed, and city-states have formed. Your player arrives in Portia to follow in your father’s footsteps and become a builder. The goal of the story is to expand Portia and become the top builder in town. While that sounds simple, it’s actually a lot more complex than that. Now I don’t mean that in a bad way. What I mean is that this premise opens up a ton of tasks and missions that will allow you to experience gameplay that is far from boring and ensures that this game has value for a very long time.

As I mentioned earlier, I tried this game out on on iOS and the first thing that you notice is that the graphics are excellent. Here’s some screen captures that I took while testing the game:

All the graphics are highly detailed and the animations are fluid on my iPhone 12 Pro. I would easily put this on par with playing on a console.

You should be prepared to invest a fair amount of time into the game as it moves at a slow (by my standards, yours may vary) pace. Which isn’t a bad thing. Because My Time At Portia eventually reveals itself as the impressively in-depth life sim. One that really sucks you in and ensures that this becomes as addictive as a game like Animal Crossing. As I type this review, I’ve invested about 30 hours into the game and I have enjoyed it thus far.

Gripes? One thing that I did note right out of the gate is that while you can create your own character and customize it any way you want right down to gender, you can’t customize skin tone or ethnicity. Or at least I couldn’t find a way to do that. That I think needs to be addressed as I think that the target audience of players for this game need to be reflected in game. It is 2021 after all.

I’d recommend this game for anyone who is looking for a very detailed and immersive sim that’s aimed at someone who wants to invest their time and effort into something. My Time At Portia is an ambitious game that will easily have you spending a lot of time on your phone and leave you satisfied every time you play it. If that’s you, then I would visit the Apple App Store or Google Play to get your copy today.

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Google Canada Reveals Top Searched Travel Destinations & Travel Searches As Restrictions Loosen

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

Today, Google released new search trends around what Canadians are searching for when it comes to vacations and travel. I’ve created a two slide shows to show you these search trends. Thanks to Google for supplying me with the material. Starting with some national trends:

Followed by some provincial trends:

Domestic vs. International Travel

When it comes to travelling locally or abroad, search interest for both international and domestic travel is starting to climb, with a steady uptick starting in June. In fact, Canadian search interest in international travel hasn’t been this high since April 2004.

Staycations and Workcations

As many workplaces across the country switch to remote models, we’re also seeing a rise in a new type of travel – staycations and workcations. Over the last few months, searches in Canada for staycations and workcations have both hit all-time highs.

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Zoom To Pay Up To Make A Lawsuit Go Away

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

Zoom will have to cut a rather big cheque to the tune of $85 million to make a lawsuit related to lying about offering end-to-end encryption on its services, as well as providing user data to Facebook and Google without permission. Here’s the details:

Zoom has agreed to pay $85 million to settle claims that it lied about offering end-to-end encryption and gave user data to Facebook and Google without the consent of users. The settlement between Zoom and the filers of a class-action lawsuit also covers security problems that led to rampant “Zoombombings.”

The proposed settlement would generally give Zoom users $15 or $25 each and was filed Saturday at US District Court for the Northern District of California. It came nine months after Zoom agreed to security improvements and a “prohibition on privacy and security misrepresentations” in a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, but the FTC settlement didn’t include compensation for users.

I should note that Zoom has addressed a lot of these issues. And Zoom is making craploads of money. So does this really punish Zoom for their behavior? I don’t think so.

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Exclusive Networks Expands its X-OD Partner Platform into the U.S.

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

Exclusive Networks, a global trusted digital infrastructure specialist, announces its expansion of X-OD (Exclusive Networks On-Demand) into the U.S. X-OD is the company’s online digital platform and delivery service used for select cybersecurity and infrastructure products and services. 

Designed to simplify customers’ transitions to subscription-based consumption using OpEx, X-OD revolutionizes how cybersecurity and infrastructure solutions and services are sold, while delivering unique digital experiences and optimized success to Exclusive Networks’ customers. Initially launched in Europe in October 2020, X-OD is reaching the Americas and launching in the United States in August 2021.

According to Gartner, 80% of historical software vendors will be offering software subscription-based business models, while Forrester reports 73% of B2B buyers intend to buy through e-commerce, web-direct and online marketplaces.

There is a rise in demand for “as-a-service” subscription-based IT consumption at the enterprise level, especially for customers looking for end-to-end cybersecurity and infrastructure solutions and services to counter the rising need for secured infrastructures, while also combating deepening IT skill shortages throughout the cybersecurity landscape. In fact, the opportunities X-OD makes possible are very relevant when it comes to acquiring and deploying key technologies such as SD-WAN and market segments such as MSSP. Customers will also benefit from X-OD’s on-demand platform as it presents a simplified CapEx to OpEx transition experience thanks to Exclusive Network’s agile “pay-as-you-go” model. 

For Exclusive Networks partners, X-OD enables these vendors to buy technology in the same way they sell it, without the need to invest in their own infrastructure capabilities. Partners are even able to sell bundled packages with their own services which are then presented to customers as a single, easy to consume “everything-as-a-service” offering.

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NEON CORP. Selects Aptum to Enhance its Retail and eCommerce Platforms

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

Aptum, a global hybrid multi-cloud managed service provider, today announced it has partnered with NEON CORP., a turnkey eCommerce platform and retail solutions provider, to transition its IT infrastructure to Microsoft Azure Cloud, boosting NEON’s scalability and augmenting its IT security. 

NEON provides eCommerce platform build services including order fulfillment and management, customer service, marketing services, hosting and cybersecurity. The company wanted to shift to a managed cloud solution that would allow it to maintain its business growth and efficiently add new clients to its eCommerce platforms. 

The company turned to Aptum for support. Aptum assisted NEON in making the transition to Azurewith its Azure Design & Build, Azure Managed Services and Aptum Managed Web Application Firewall (WAF). Aptum used its Professional Services expertise to optimize NEON’s eCommerce platforms for the Azure environment and provided enhanced security through Managed Detection and Response solution. NEON also benefits by leveraging Aptum’s many security certifications, including enabling PCI DSS, helping the company meet its compliance and governance requirements.

With Aptum’s managed services, NEON CORP. was able to make a seamless switch to Azure, optimize performance and protect their eCommerce platforms. The company is now able to grow its business quickly in a highly secure environment, while improving the experience for its partners.

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SynDaver3D Announces New 3D Printers

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

SynDaver3D has announced the launch of their new line of affordable 3D printers, the LeveL and the LeveL UP.  

According to SynDaver3D, the the company is gearing up to manufacture the new fully-enclosed, raised-bed 3D printers, which are scheduled to begin shipping in September.

Tailored toward 3D-printing novices and children within early education, the LeveL 3D printeroffers an intuitive and easy-to-use interface while delivering quality and dimensionally accurate results. The entry-level version features thermally-controlled ventilation, a heated bed, a 4.3-inch LED screen and a 1-year warranty.

The LeveL’s more advanced companion, the LeveL UP, meets the needs of experienced hobbyists and 3D-printing manufacturers with additional features like a camera, WiFi, automated bed-leveling and a 3-year warranty.

The LeveL and LeveL UP 3D printers are both manufactured in the U.S. and have a list price of $495 and $995, respectively.

The LeveL and LeveL UP follows the popular SynDaver Axi 2 3D printer, which was launched earlier in 2021. 

The LeveL and LeveL UP are available for preorder at SynDaver3D.com. Those interested in being the first to own SynDaver3D’s new line of LeveL printers are encouraged to act fast, as availability is limited.

SynDaver3D is a subsidiary of SynDaver, which has garnered international fame and attention for the development of synthetic humans, animal models and task trainers that simulate the anatomy of live patients with accurate detail, including individual muscles, tendons, veins, arteries, nerves and organ systems, which are available through their sister company, SynDaver. The company’s patented synthetic tissues are made of water, fibers and salts, and each has been validated against the relevant living tissue for mechanical and physical properties.

For more information about SynDaver or the company’s products, visit www.syndaver.com. 

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Centreon Confirms Hypergrowth For The First Half Of 2021

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

Centreon, a trusted partner for information system operational excellence achieved unprecedented organic growth in the first half of 2021.

Compared with the first half of 2020:

  • New logo bookings increased by 88% year-over-year.
  • Software subscriptions bookings increased by 310% year-over-year. 
  • Total revenue growth reached 55% year-over-year.
  • Added 90 net new customers, resulting in 750 active corporate customers

Centreon is seeing a steady increase in demand for its connected monitoring solutions in all market segments.

In addition to mid-sized companies and MSPs, where Centreon’s presence is already strongly established, the group has seen a strong increase in its contribution to monitoring modernization projects in large French and international groups. In fact, a number of new Centreon projects include the replacement of existing legacy monitoring solutions, as well as supplyinga monitoring layer as part of larger IT reengineering projects aiming to improve the TCO.

In order to support this growth, Centreon has continued to expand its workforce and has recruited 15 employees in the first half of 2021. The organization now has 115 employees after exceeding the 100 mark in 2020. 

Over the same period, Centreon also added 10 new VAR and IT partners to its new Centreon’ON partner program.

Growth was also driven by clients’ increased appetite for the evaluation and acquisition of self-service monitoring solutions. In 2020, Centreon launched Centreon IT-100, a free monitoring offer for environments with fewer than 100 IT devices, which can be downloaded online. June 2021 saw the launch of the Centreon Store, which can now be used to subscribe to Centreon IT Edition 125 and 250 online to monitor up to 125 or up to 250 devices.

Centreon is a global provider of business-aware IT monitoring for always-on operations and performance excellence. The company’s AIOps-ready, business-aware IT monitoring platform is renowned for its unique ability to monitor today’s complex and converging infrastructures, from Cloud-to-Edge. Privately held, Centreon was founded in 2005 with roots in open source software. The company continues to steward a dynamic open source framework and a growing, vibrant global community of 200,000. Today, Centreon is trusted by organisations of all sizes across a wide range of public and private sectors. Its head offices are located in Paris and Toronto, with sales offices in Geneva, Luxembourg and Toulouse. For more information, visit www.centreon.com

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84% Of North American Organizations Expect To Experience A Breach Of Customer Records In The Next Year: Trend Micro

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

Trend Micro Incorporated today revealed that the risk of cyber attacks has increased in the last year. According to a new survey, 80% of global organizations report they are likely to experience a data breach that impacts customer data in the next 12 months.

The findings come from Trend Micro’s biannual Cyber Risk Index (CRI) report, which measures the gap between respondents’ cybersecurity preparedness versus their likelihood of being attacked. In the first half of 2021 the CRI surveyed more than 3,600 businesses of all sizes and industries across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America.

Read a full copy of the report, produced by the Ponemon Institute, here:https://www.trendmicro.com/cyberrisk.

The CRI is based on a numerical scale of -10 to 10, with -10 representing the highest level of risk. The current global index stands at -0.42, a slight increase on last year which indicates an “elevated” risk.

Organizations ranked the top three negative consequences of an attack as customer churn, lost IP and critical infrastructure damage/disruption.

Key findings from the report include:

  • 86% said it was somewhat to very likely that they’d suffer serious cyber-attacks in the next 12 months, compared to 83% last time
  • 24% suffered 7+ cyber attacks that infiltrated networks/systems, versus 23% in the previous report.
  • 21% had 7+ breaches of information assets, versus 19% in the previous report.
  • 20% of respondents said they’d suffered 7+ breaches of customer data over the past year, up from 17% in the last report.

Among the top two infrastructure risks was cloud computing. Global organizations gave it a  6.77, ranking it as an elevated risk on the index’s 10-point scale. Many respondents admitted they spend “considerable resources” managing third party risks like cloud providers.

The top cyber risks highlighted in the report were as follows:

  • Man-in-the-middle attacks 
  • Ransomware 
  • Phishing and social engineering
  • Fileless attack
  • Botnets

The top security risks to infrastructure remain the same as last year, and include organizational misalignment and complexity, as well as cloud computing infrastructure and providers. In addition, respondents identified customer turnover, lost intellectual property and disruption or damages to critical infrastructure as key operational risks for organizations globally.

The main challenges for cybersecurity preparedness include limitations for security leaders who lack the authority and resources to achieve a strong security posture, as well as organizations struggling to enable security technologies that are sufficient to protect their data assets and IT infrastructure.

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SquadCast Cloud Studio Powered By Dolby For PodCasters

Posted in Commentary with tags on August 4, 2021 by itnerd

SquadCast, the leading cloud recording studio (CRS) platform, today announced version 4.5, which includes Dolby.io noise cancellation, one-click audio mastering, a new category-first integration API, and new workflow features among other enhancements. SquadCast’s SaaS subscription tool can also now connect and record up to 10 people in a recording session — a dramatic increase over the previous maximum of four participants.

SquadCast is already a dominant player in podcast production, growing nearly 600% in revenue and customer acquisition in 2020. With its state-of-the-art recording capabilities, Cloud Studio can be used to record video interviews, audiobooks, and podcasts. The company expects its new, industry-first features to fuel record growth and a larger market share after an unprecedented year for online collaboration by remote creative professionals during the pandemic.

According to The State of Podcast Interviews 2020, SquadCast.fm market share in the CRS category grew 141% in 2020, making it the fastest-growing podcast interview platform. The demand for video recording in all podcasts went up 12% in 2020, with 36% of all podcasts using video.

SquadCast Cloud Studio provides the following new features for content creators:

  • Ten participants can join in a recording session — the highest number of participants in any CRS platform.
  • Real-time noise cancellation via Dolby.io integration means better quality than ever. The new noise cancellation feature adds dynamic audio leveling and sound clarity with echo reduction within an immersive sound experience. 
  • SquadCast’s new API empowers integrations with popular tools (via Zapier), such as Calendly, Dropbox, Descript, or custom solutions to bolster recorded content within the podcast and larger tech ecosystem.
  • Better workflow features for every stage of the process include: one-click audio mastering, screen recording, screen share, transparent connectivity and enhanced network resilience, a “green room” soundcheck, pronoun options, and recording-time analytics.

Standard video-conferencing tools offer low-quality production for podcasts

Well-known meeting platforms such as Zoom or Skype weren’t designed to offer high-fidelity audio or full HD video for professional content production. Typical video conferencing platforms process audio over the Internet, so recordings are vulnerable to poor connections, which can lead to issues such as audio drift or incomplete audio files. SquadCast v4.5 also offers new video display options if network access is limited.

SquadCast’s patent-pending progressive uploading prevents audio drift

SquadCast is the leading podcast recording service that offers Dolby.io integration and progressive uploading. Dolby.io noise cancellation makes everyone on a show sound like they’re in the same room together. Progressive uploading means that audio and video files are uploaded in the background, in real-time, while also being recorded locally (with isolated tracks for each participant). Customers will never lose recordings due to spotty or dropped Internet connections because those are always saved in Cloud Studio.

When a recording is done, the host can immediately download all audio and video files directly from SquadCast in a variety of formats. SquadCast’s cloud tools enable speedy post-production and easy collaboration among virtual production teams.

SquadCast’s cloud studio is used by independent, professional, and enterprise podcast creators to record remotely on Chrome, Firefox, Brave, Opera, and Edge browsers and on the Android mobile platform. SquadCast Cloud Studio version 4.5 includes high-quality recordings for all plans, which start at $20/month, with additional features available on premium plans.

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