Top IT skills wanted for 2012

By Toni Bowers

September 28, 2011, 4:57 AM PDT

Takeaway: A new Computerworld survey indicates the nine IT skills that will be in demand in 2012.

Nearly 29 percent of the 353 IT executives who were polled in Computerworld’s annual Forecast survey said they plan to increase IT staffing through next summer. (That’s up from 23% in the 2010 survey and 20% in the 2009 survey.)

Here are the skills that the IT executives say they will be hiring for:

1. Programming and Application Development–61% plan to hire for this skill in the next 12 months, up from 44% in the 2010 survey. This covers the gamut from website development to upgrading internal systems and meeting the needs of mobile users.
2. Project Management (but with a twist)– The twist is that they’re not going to just be looking for people who can oversee and monitor projects. They also want people who can identify users’ needs and translate them for the IT staffers-the increasingly popular business analysts.
3. Help Desk/Technical Support–Mobile operating systems have added a new dimension to help desk and tech support.
4. Networking-This demand is being fueled partially by virtualization and cloud computing projects. The survey also revealed that execs will be looking for people with VMware and Citrix experience.
5. Business Intelligence-Computerworld interprets this uptick to a focus shift in many companies,  from cost savings to investing in technology. That will be nice if it pans out that way.
6. Data Center-Virtualization and the Cloud could also be behind the increased need for IT professionals with backgrounds in data center operations and systems integration.
7. Web 2.0-Tech skills centered around social media will be in demand, with .Net, AJAX and PHP as key back-end skills, with HTML, XML, CSS, Flash and Javascript, among others, on the front end.
8. Security-Although down from 32 percent in the 2010 survey, security stays a top concern of IT executives.
9. Telecommunications-The survey indicates a demand for people with IP telephony skills, and for those familiar with Cisco IPCC call center systems.

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No iPhone 5 today, there is "only" iPhone 4s

There was a lot of fuzz going around apple last days. Predictions were clear: There will be an iPhone 5 annoucement! Nothing like that. Apple keeps on its bussiness schedule - every even year there is a new module and every odd one an upgrade is presented. Same come up with new iPhone - its an upgrade of iPhone 4 called iPhone 4s.



Why an upgrade at all? Is there anything Apple inc. can put inside a phone that will make true fans want to change their phones? Indeed there is. First of all, the A5 dual core processor, same as in iPad2. Secondly, a dual core graphic processor that allows 7 times better graphic performance that game players will benefit most of. Next advantage and improvement is in case of build-in camera, 8,1 Mpx sensor. New sensor is much faster - you can take the first photo after activation right after 1,1 seconds and the next ones during 0,5 seconds each. The sensor is also more sensitive to light.

Another bonus is a image stabilization utility for the sensor which will be largerly used in 1080p video. There were a lot of rumors about a new NFC chip, but you wont find it in the 4S. As this is only a revision of iPhone4, there are no changes in the design, size or display size or quality or build quality of the case.

Not much has changes in the production line when it comes to versions. There will be 16,32,64GB versions with prices in the US (199,299,399) USD in case of 2 year commitment. New version will be availble sooner than you think - 14th october is the date. All older models will have a price dropdown so if you couldnt afford an older model you can buy it now.

Apple also announced that the battery life is significantly improved. 8 hours for 3G calls, 14 hours for 2G calls, 9 hours for wifi web browsing, 10 hours of movie watching or 40 hours of listening to music. iPhone 4S will have a GSM and CDMA antenna which will be autoswitched.
Part of the conference were dedicated to the SIRI function which are basically voice commands to phone that respond by voice and display info also on screen. Applicable for example for navigation, weather forecasts reading text messages etc.



iOS 5 and iCloud were also mentioned - iCloud with 5GB of storage will be available for free with extra charge for extra space. For completion iCloud is a tool for simple sharing of documents, photos and apps between all your Apple devices. It will be therefore available not only for iPhone but also for iPad, iPod Touch and older iPhones. 


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Over 4 million business's benefit

Google  Apps simple and powerful communication & collaboration tools for organisations of any size are making Google the best email program choice for over 4 million businesses across the globe.

Fortix are an authorised Google Apps reseller offering a painless, simple approach to migrating to the cloud and enjoying the benefits of Google's top quality interactive tools for up to 1/10th the cost. http://www.fortix.com.au/google_apps

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Video - more than a sales message

Check out this beautiful video, brilliantly produced by Lush TV, lifting the profile of the business and effectively communicating the college's message. Visit www.perthcollege.com.au to view.


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