Management
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Rovio releasing a game based on The Croods movie
Rovio has announced another game, and it's yet another surprising title from the Finish developer of Angry Birds. Rovio's first non-Angry Birds game was Amazing Alex (which was a rebranding of another developer's game), its second was the spinoff Bad Piggies, and now they're making: The Croods, a licensed title from the upcoming Dreamworks film. As you can see from the official gameplay trailer, it looks like a Farmville-style townbuilding title, though of course everything is styled after the movie (with some fun Rovio touches in the nonsensical language and a really elegant hand-drawn style). It looks like players will be able to catch pets, grow crops, and develop their own little Croods homestead, similar to a lot of other freemium management games. Rovio continues to make really interesting choices in its game development -- the company has definitely exploited the Angry Birds brand as far as it could go and then some, and Amazing Alex, while definitely not a failure, wasn't nearly as big a success as the birds and the pigs. Rovio's teamed up with a movie studio before (Twentieth Century Fox) in making Angry Birds Rio, so it's not uncommon for them to be talking to a movie studio like Dreamworks. It's worth noting, too, that while most of Rovio's big titles have been physics puzzlers, The Croods looks to be very different. We'll keep an eye out for the game on the App Store. It certainly seems like a strange next choice for Rovio to make, but given the vast success of Angry Birds, I think the company can afford to experiment a little more. Update: A previous version of this post stated Dreamworks had made the movie Rio, but that movie was produced by Twentieth Century Fox instead. The error's been fixed.
Discover Mac desktops in Microsoft SCCM with Parallels Management
Along with its presence here at Macworld/iWorld and MacIT this week, virtualization heavyweight Parallels has a new offering to help big businesses and other large-scale enterprises wrangle their growing (and sometimes unpredictable) Mac populations in the context of the Windows-centric management tools they already have in place. Launching today, Parallels Management is a suite of plugins and agents that allow OS X machines to be audited and managed inside Microsoft's System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) console. The Parallels plugin delivers visibility of Macs on corporate networks, while also giving administrators the controls they are accustomed to on the Windows deployments in their environments. For OS X machines with Parallels Desktop's enterprise edition installed, those virtual machines can be controlled and locked down in compliance with the organization's overall security and IT policies, just like the hardware PCs are. If your organization already has an investment and internal expertise on SCCM, an approach like the Parallels Management setup makes a lot of sense. Of course, if there's not an installed management platform and you have a heterogeneous OS profile or a BYOD plan for your users, platform-agnostic options like Absolute Manage (formerly LANrev) might be more fluid. Even if you prefer to manage the Mac deployments with a platform-specific tool like JAMF's Casper Suite, that doesn't mean that SCCM admins in corporate IT must remain forever ignorant of what's going on in Mac-land. The SCCM plugin for Casper provides real-time audit data to the SCCM database from JAMF's inventory of installed Macs on the network. Parallels Management is offered as a US$30/year/Mac subscription license, providing all the audit and management access to SCCM. The enterprise edition of Parallels Desktop, which provides single license key installs and mass deployment of VMs (and which you can deploy using JAMF's tools, if you like), is $100/year/Mac.
John Legere confirmed as new Chief Executive Officer of T-Mobile USA
Back in the heat of summer, T-Mobile USA's then CEO Philipp Humm resigned to take up the mantle at Vodafone. In the interim, former COO Jim Alling stepped up to keep the chair warm while a permanent replacement was found. Today we learn that John Legere, former CEO of Global Crossing, will relieve Alling of those duties, and fill the top spot full-time. With 32 years experience in the industry, Legere also spent time at Dell as president of European, Middle East and African operations. For now, his first task will likely be leading the firm's LTE deployment, and trying to win some of the faithful back. Head past the break for the full PR and the new CEO's first video address to employees.
TUAW and MacTech interview: Fiberlink
Fiberlink makes a range of business management tools for devices (company iPhones and Macs and the like) and documents. In this video, Neil Ticktin (Editor-in-Chief, MacTech Magazine) interviews Jatin Malik of Fiberlink at WWDC 2012. Jatin was kind enough to share his thoughts on the announcements on WWDC, and how it will affect Fiberlink's plans moving forward.
BlackBerry Mobile Fusion integrates RIM, iOS and Android device management
With iOS now offering business-friendly security features, the shift away from BlackBerry is well underway, and the transition hasn't exactly played out well for RIM. Now, the company even appears to be embracing the recently established competition, by launching BlackBerry Mobile Fusion. Beginning today, the new enterprise management tool will support not only BlackBerry devices and PlayBook tablets, but also Android and iOS tablets and smartphones, through the Universal Device Service. Business customers will be able to use Mobile Fusion to configure devices with email and calendar access, create groups, establish security policies, manage lost phones, detect rooting and jailbreaking, and even control roaming to help curb pricey fees. RIM is offering the service with a free 60-day trial, with full pricing info likely to roll out before that two-month e-taste dissolves. You'll find more details at the BlackBerry for Business Blog by clicking through to the source link below.
GDC 2012: A peek behind SWTOR's project management curtain
GDC is often described as the most cerebral of the various gaming conventions. E3 has its big reveals and booth babes, PAX has its fan-friendly hands-on sessions and general geekery. GDC, though, is mainly by developers and for developers, and last night's BioWare panel was a good case in point. The session ran for well over an hour (not counting a brief Q&A at the end), and it focused largely on the daunting management tasks inherent in a project like Star Wars: The Old Republic.
Storyboard: An event with a touch of plot
In tabletop games, the GM is sometimes referred to as the player who doesn't get to play. Running a plot-heavy event in an MMORPG is fairly similar -- you're still technically there in the form of a character, but the focus is on an adventure that you're presenting for your fellow players. That means a whole lot of extra work on your part because you suddenly lack the advantage of letting the game handle most of that pesky worldbuilding work. You probably don't need to be told that this can all go bad. No, what you really want to know is how to avoid going bad. And while some of the stuff that I've posted in the past about running in-game events is still entirely applicable, there are also some unique issues that you're going to have to deal with when your event is meant to be tightly scripted. Plan it right, and the whole thing can go off without a hitch. Plan it wrong, and... well, do I need to do another column on drama already?
GamersFirst sees a management shakeup
GamersFirst is in the minds of gamers for its successful relaunch of APB: Reloaded, which went from a lightning-fast shutdown to a successful free-to-play title. The company is also developing new games based on original IPs for future release. But there's some rumbling going on behind the scenes at the company, as the company's parent corporation, K2 Network, saw the resignation of its CEO, Joshua Hong. Bjorn Book-Larsson, former COO and CTO, has been promoted to the CEO position, with Hong's future uncertain. The official statements claim that the transition of power was amicable and pre-arranged, but it also comes on the heels of worldwide layoffs from K2 and rumors of a power struggle behind the scenes. Rahul Sandil, the company's public relations chief, claimed that there was no truth to these rumors and that the plan was to move forward from simple localizations of titles developed in foreign markets. Sandil went on to confirm that APB: Reloaded continues to be a large-scale success for the company and that further development will be centered around work that Book-Larsson had already seen during his time as CTO and COO.
Micron appoints Mark Durcan as new CEO
In the wake of last week's fatal plane crash that took the life of its CEO, Micron Technology has appointed a successor, Mark Durcan. The former CTO has been with the company since 1984, and has -- per company bylaws -- been serving as interim chief since February 3rd. Robert Switz, the company's previous Board Director, will assume the duties of Board Chairman and Mark Adams, formerly the VP of Worldwide Sales, has been named as the company's President. In a press release announcing the appointments, the new CEO wrote that the company was "deeply saddened" to learn of the death of its top executive, and that the management team would work relentlessly to "continue to move the company forward."
Netflix is looking for a new Chief Marketing Officer, if you think you can do better
Considering how 2011 progressed for Netflix, it's not entirely surprising to hear some changes are in store at the top when it comes to marketing and communications. The video rental giant announced that its Chief Marketing Officer of the last dozen years, Leslie Kilgore, will be taking a position on its board as a "non-executive director", replaced in the interim by Jessie Becker as it conducts an external search for a permanent replacement. Also shifting positions is Jonathan Friedland who will be the new Chief Communications officer, and both Becker and Friedland will report directly to CEO Reed Hastings. Netflix's relationships with its customers were definitely damaged by last year's price hike and the shocking Qwikster spinoff announcement / unannouncement that followed, with a slate of original content on the way and some changes in store for its content licensing, we'll see if it can get the magic back in 2012 -- we're not so sure that the latest round of ads featuring beavers and hamsters (one's embedded after the break) are the way.
Eventbrite to release iOS ticket management app
I don't know about you all, but I've been using Eventbrite for almost all of my ticket purchases lately. Whether it's a benefit show, a friend's play, or a full-scale concert, I find myself getting redirected over there more and more to pick up my tickets. That's why I'm glad to hear there's an iOS app on the way from the company, which will allow you to browse through recent ticket purchases and upcoming events, as well as get information for all of the shows you're registered for. Unfortunately, the news doesn't mention anything about being able to buy tickets directly inside the app -- it's possible, because of Apple's restrictions on in-app purchases and linking off to other stores, that Apple won't let Eventbrite run ticket purchases from the app at all. That would be a shame; even if Eventbrite could just open up the iOS browser and complete the ticket sale there, that would be an easier solution than having to go back out to another PC. But the app still sounds useful, especially for looking up last minute information. This new app will be more centered around ticket purchases, obviously. Eventbrite already has an app called Easy Entry designed to work at event check-in for the event's organizers. But I find myself buying tickets way more than collecting them, obviously, so this new app should be more helpful.
Samsung promotes DRAM chief to vice chairman, implements 'top-two' structure
Samsung reshuffled its managerial hierarchy yesterday, promoting Kwon Oh Hyun, head of its DRAM operations, to vice chairman. Kwon, who successfully steered Samsung through an industry-wide price slump last quarter, will continue to head up the company's chip and LCD divisions, while working alongside Jung Yeon Joo -- the former CEO of Samsung C&T Corporation who was also promoted to vice chairman. The restoration of this "top-two" structure was one of several moves the Samsung Group made on Wednesday, including the announcement of six new presidents. Kwon's advancement, however, is certainly the most noteworthy. As the Korea Times reports, the move has already garnered speculation among industry observers, some of whom believe that Kwon's new position signifies Samsung's equal commitment to both component and product divisions. In a statement, Samsung praised the executive for navigating its DRAM business through choppy economic waters, while crediting him for the "strengthening of Samsung's market leadership in memory products." Read more at the source links below.
RIM unveils BlackBerry Mobile Fusion for enterprise, extends reach to Android, iOS
In an apparent attempt to solidify its standing in the corporate world, RIM has unveiled a new platform that allows IT specialists to more tightly manage company devices -- even those from rival manufacturers like Apple and Android. With the BlackBerry Mobile Fusion software, announced this morning, companies will be able to set up rules governing employee passwords apps and other software across a variety of smartphones and tablets, including the iPhone, iPad and Android handsets. The system also allows managers to remotely wipe and lock any devices that go missing or stolen, potentially bringing enhanced security to a workplace that's become increasingly fragmented. "Our customers have been saying, 'We're moving to these different adoption models, and we'd like you on board with that,'" said Alan Panezic, vice president for enterprise product management, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. Slated to launch during the first quarter of next year, Mobile Fusion represents RIM's first foray into the multi-platform management market, and may expand even further to encompass Windows Phone devices, as well. Compatible with BlackBerry OS and BBX, Mobile Fusion will also allow users to remotely manage PlayBooks from BlackBerry handsets, though that won't happen until February, when the tablet finally receives a software update. No word yet on pricing, but Panezic says it will be "competitive" with the market.
3LM resurfaces, still wants to make Android secure enough for the IT guys
Remember when Motorola bought 3LM, a startup dedicated to offering enterprise-class device management to Android users? After eight months of silence, there's finally some news about the company and its handset-agnostic solutions. It's called, erm, 3LM and you (yes, you) can begin the scintillating process of installing it on your servers and company-issued smartphones later this week. Administrators will get the power to encrypt data and removable storage on Android devices like the Motorola ET1, remotely install / uninstall / blacklist applications, connect to the devices over VPN and behave like the killjoys we all know and love admins to be. There's no word on how much this shebang will cost, but you'll find most of the other important facts in the press release, tucked after the break.
Papers 2 and Papers for the iPad: the ultimate journal reading combination
It's that time of year again: time to head back to college, grab those books and kickstart the academic term. This year, why not cut out paper from your scientific journal research workflow with the ultimate in journal management and reading for the Mac and iPad? Management Papers 2 takes journal management to the max on your Mac. Across academia and industry, Endnote is pretty much the gold standard as far as referencing goes. Yes, there are apps like Bookends, Refworks and BibTex, as well as a plethora of others including the new cross-platform offering from Mendeley, but none of them, including Thomson Reuters' offering, come close to Papers 2 when it comes to actually managing those hundreds of PDF files, importing them, sorting them, reading them, and most importantly, searching them. Papers 2 creates a database of references, grabbing their metadata from Pubmed, Google Scholar and directly from science repositories like Science Direct, and attaching the PDF files. If you have a PDF, but no citation to import, you can just import the PDF into Papers 2 by simple drag and drop. From there Papers 2 can scan your file for a match, but if it can't find it automatically, it's just a case of manually editing the reference and hitting "Match." That'll kick you into a search form where you can just drag to select text and search for the reference with it, whether it's the title, author or journal, it'll scan the science directories for the matching reference and bind all the metadata accordingly.
AMD taps Lenovo's Rory Read to be President and CEO
AMD has finally found itself a permanent CEO. The company today named Rory P. Read to the post, also announcing that he'll serve as President and as a member of the board of directors. Read most recently served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Lenovo, and spent 23 years serving in a variety of roles at IBM prior to that. He replaces AMD CFO Thomas Seifert (now returning to his original role), who had been serving as interim CEO since the departure of Dirk Meyer -- who himself only became CEO in 2008 when Hector Ruiz stepped down. For his part, Read says that he's "very pleased to be joining AMD at this important time in its history," and that "AMD is a true innovator and is uniquely positioned to lead the industry forward, delivering the next big thing both within the PC ecosystem and beyond." The company's full press release is after the break.
Ask Massively: Stay inside edition
In sharp contrast to last week's advice, this time around, I'm advising everyone to stay inside. There's all sorts of cool stuff wherever you are right now, and it's kind of hot out today. Besides, look at how much fun Christopher Walken is having inside. Don't you want to be like Christopher Walken? Don't you want the ability to fly when your indoor cavorting requires it? In other news, please enjoy the earbug that's infected the entirety of the Massively staff on the day this was written. In other other news, it's time for this week's installment of Ask Massively, addressing significantly less weighty issues than last week's gold selling question. No, this week we're talking about old livestream videos, the reason for the non-ubiquity of authenticators, and of course, the great outdoors. If you've got a question you'd like to see answered in a future edition of the column, leave it in the comments or send it along to ask@massively.com.
Lion's iOS-like Automatic Termination not ideal for some users
Matt Neuberg over at Tidbits has noticed an interesting behavior in Lion: Occasionally, apps running without an active window on will disappear from the Command-Tab application switcher, and sometimes disappear from Activity Monitor completely. The culprit is a new "feature" in Lion called Automatic Termination, which will shut down and quit any (compatible) apps that aren't active and don't have any visible windows. Of course, most official Apple apps support Automatic Termination. As Neuberg notes, this is obviously a hat tip to iOS and its background processes, in which you "close" an app simply by navigating away from it, leaving the system to shut it down when additional memory is needed. Neuberg suggests, however, that this implementation isn't so much a feature as a problem. Obviously, a desktop computer has many more resources to run processes than a mobile device, and there several scenarios in which a user might need to access an app that's been inactive for a while. Granted, with Lion's Auto Save and Resume features, you could argue that there's no real difference to an app or a user between "inactive" and "closed," but Neuberg says that there is, and he doesn't like it. The feature is designed to keep the decision of which apps are open and closed away from the user, and while that might be a help on iOS, it's a hindrance on the Mac. I agree -- I'm perfectly capable of dealing with app management on my desktop, and it's lame of Apple to take that away from me. Of course you can't opt out of Automatic Termination, short of simply avoiding compatible apps. There are certainly good reasons on both sides for having or not having this feature running, but in this case, it seems like bringing over this certain aspect of iOS app management might not be ideal for all Lion users.
Kaz Hirai to become Sony Computer Entertainment Chairman, leave Andrew House with tough CEO gig
When you've had to deal out as many public apologies as Sony has had to perform over its protracted PSN hacking saga, the typical expectation is that someone somewhere will be getting fired or "reshuffled" into a new post. No firings at PlayStation headquarters, however our old pal Kaz Hirai is getting a new position as Sony Computer Entertainment Chairman, with Andrew House succeeding him in the CEO hot seat. Mr. House was previously Sony's PlayStation chief in Europe, so he's simply stepping up to be responsible for the company's global operations, but Kaz's new duties are less clearly defined. Both changes will go into effect on September 1st, a day after current Chairman Akira Sato retires, giving both Kaz and Andrew a little time to get accustomed to their new(ish) surroundings before tackling Sony's massively important PS Vita launch at the tail end of the year.
Ericsson to manage Clearwire's 4G network as part of cost-cutting deal
Now that Clearwire definitely isn't producing its own smartphone, the company has apparently decided to focus its efforts on maintaining its WiMAX network -- with the help of Ericsson. Yesterday, the 4G operator announced that it had struck a seven-year deal with the Swedish telecom firm, just a few months after fighting a brief trademark lawsuit filed by Sony Ericsson. Under the arrangement, Ericsson will assume all network engineering, operations, and maintenance responsibilities, allowing Clearwire to concentrate on cutting costs and increasing efficiency. Clearwire will retain ownership over its technology and will still handle all customer relations, but about 700 of its employees will be transferred to Ericsson. The Kirkland-based company says its decision was at least partially influenced by new best friend Sprint, which forged a similar partnership with Ericsson back in 2009. Financial details on the new deal remain fuzzy, though Clearwire says it expects to see a major reduction in operating costs -- which sounds like the right prescription. Full presser after the break.
