SOA filling the Gaps

Picture source: Wikipedia It is an annual ritual: predictions for next year. After a year, two years or 5 years you discover that some of the predictions were right, some were wrong and nobody is sure if other predictions were right or wrong. 2015 is not an exception.  Recently I read two article  about IDC's predictions. The two articles describe the same predictions. The articles phrase differently the same predictions.  I will refer to the first article titled: I DC's top ten predictions for 2015 .   However, the first article omitted an interesting point about Internet of Things Vendors. I will refer to what was written in the second article titled: IDC: top 10 technology predictions for 2015 .  No one, including me, could be sure to which category (right, wrong, unknown) a prediction will fail. I divide IDC's predictions to three groups: 1. trivial I am not going to discuss trivial predictions such as "Wireless data growth", "Pablets wil...

When I begun posting about Vendors Survival, I had to explain why I doubt that even the strongest vendors, e.g. Microsoft , Apple , Google , will surely survive for at least 10 years. The easiest way to explain it was by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) ill fated history. The IT leaders of the 80ths were IBM , HP and DEC. However, they had to adapt to a new model inspired by Microsoft and other Software vendors. The Hardware Centric Model was changed to Software Centric Model. IBM, HP and DEC could no longer rely on Hardware sells high profit margins and Software as Hardware complementary low priced product line.  IBM and HP adapted successfully. DEC failed. DEC Strategy relied on Alpha chips based Servers . After unsuccessful quarters DEC sold product lines (e.g. System Management software to CA , Communication Hardware to Cabletron ).   Finally, DEC sold their Alpha chips patents to Intel . I immediately notified my DEC based clients that they c...

Two years ago I published a post titled: Will Apple Survive until 2021? Apple is not unique. I published other Vendors Long Term Survival posts e.g. Google , Microsoft , HP , Software AG , SUN , EMC . My conclusion was: " My answer is that the probability that it will not survive is higher than the probability that the other vendors (not including Software AG and obviously not including SUN) I discussed will not survive".  My habit is to Revisit, when a significant event occurs. Waze acquisition by Google is a significant event, which should need Anti-Trust clearance. Perhaps this event, is more significant for Apple than for Google . Apple's costly and unsuccessful Maps application is lagging behind Google Maps .  Many Web pages pointed out on two losers, who tried to acquire Waze and failed:Apple and Facebook . Perhaps, there is more than one loser, but The Loser  is not Facebook. Your guess is correct: it is Apple. Maps Business Value Proposition Smart...

On July, 2011 I wrote a post titled:  Vendors Survival: Will Apple Survive until 2021? .  Many people thought that the question I asked is irrelevant: Apple was never more successful.  Not everyone of them is so sure today.  Apple 's position was changed. The graph above derived from Yahoo! Finance page depicts the change: Apple's stock is going down in the last 6 months.  I could use a three months graph instead of a 6 months graph, which could show more dramatic change, but I thought that it is not correct to use so short term graph.  The red line compares Google 's stock to Apple's stock. No similar trend is depicted in Google's stock.   What was changed since 2011? Apple is less successful than before. It looks like the company lost Mind Share: it is not so cool and is no longer perceived as the innovative company. " Sic transit gloria mundi " is a Latin proverb saying that glory will not last for ever. One of the ...

Picture Source: Matt Yohe, orginal loaded to the English Wikipedia Picture Author:    Matt Yohe In previous post titled:  Vendors Survival: Will Apple Survive until 2021?  I  argued that "t hat the probability that it will not survive is higher than the probability that the other vendors (not including Software AG and obviously not including SUN ) I discussed will not survive." According to my post, the reasons for assigning lower probability to Apple 's existence for 10 years or more included: 1. Apple is a Mountain Train. Its history is full of ups and downs. 2. If it will not continue to innovate, it will not be a leader and even stop surviving.  3. Dependence on the late  Steve Jobs (When the post was written Jobs was still alive) 4. Binding to its Smartphone Platform, may result in Google's Android dominance.      A Bloomberg article titled:   Apple’s Patent War Seen Leading To Retaliatory Strikes ,  ...

On March 19th I participated in STKI Summit . participating in this Israeli Market analysis conference is  an habit. I aprticpated in 2011 , 2010  and 2008 . My consist particiaption indicates that, at  least in my opinion, it is a valuable event.  This year theme was IT Revolution Consumer Power . The Consumer centirc IT revolution is not totally new, it was discussed in previous year Summit Presentations, as one of the driving forces. I am attaching links to the presentations: Jimmy Schwarzkopf - IT Market in Israel 2012 Pini  Cohen - Trends in Infrastructure: Paradigm Shift Shahar Geiger Maor - Networking Trends , EndPoints Trends Einat Shimoni - Trends in Enterprise Applications, Web & Analytics Galit Fein - Office of the CIO Office of the CMO market Trends 2012 I did not find a link to the new analyst and Research Assistant  Liza Bodogin 's presentation on ECM, Talent Training and Social Applications. Probably it is included in Ein...

Apple's December 2011, quarter was described by SplatF as a Monster i.e. as a very successful quarter with high revenues growth. You can see the charts in the article Apple's Monster Quarter in Charts . Is this a positive Long Term indicator? I am not sure. A company whose revenues are based on two products: iphone 53% and ipad 20% depends on these products.  Success of competing products or a major decrease of shipments of Smartphones and Tablets could be a catastrophe for Apple, if it will not be Innovative and develop new types of products.

You can see The Top Ten 2011 Patent Leadres in Flicker. Have you succeeded to find Apple in that image? If not, you have a good reason to read my post: Vendors Survival: Will Apple Survive until 2021?

I recently read Steve Yegge 's very interesting post cited by  Rip's Rowan . According to Rip it is "The best article I've ever read about architecture and the management of IT".  It is a very interesting post which was intended to be internal memoranda and accidently was published externally. I read it in the right time: just after publishing in my blog a post titled:  Will Google Survive until 2021? Revisited - part 1  and before publishing part 2.  You can read it here . I recommend reading it from start to end although it is a long post.  As a former Amazon employee and current Google employee he discusses the limitations and strengths of the two companies (more criticism than praise) and compares them to Apple , Facebook and Microsoft .  He discusses both technological aspects, focusing on what he calls Internal SOA and  on Organizational Culture.   Few Notes The notes do not support or dispute Steve's views. They just s...

Picture source: Wikipedia The answer yes seems as an obvious answer to the question in the title of this post.    Apple , formerly Apple Computers, is very successful company. The following articles are glances about how successful it is:  Apple Is Now Worth More Than Intel And Microsoft Combined   Apple unseats Microsoft as world’s biggest tech company Apple now 4th largest phone maker worldwide Even by reading only the articles' titles you will be impressed.  It is the mindshare leader in the growing markets of Smart Phones and Tablets , as well as the Music devices market.  Anyone's ten years predictions could be totally wrong. I am not an exception.  However, I already asked similar question about companies such as Microsoft , Google , SUN , HP , Software AG and EMC  . Yes was not my answer to this question for any of the companies cited above. For some of them the answer was Probably Yes . However, ...