Stories by Lee Copeland Gladwin

ATG adopts application-centric strategy

Struggling Art Technology Group Inc. (ATG) this week detailed plans to port its suite of e-commerce applications to competing platforms, a strategy analysts characterized as a necessary but risky move.

Microsoft touts .Net to wary developers

Developers can grab the latest Web development tools from Microsoft Corp. at the TechEd 2001 conference this week, but the new software may quickly become shelfware as companies defer their moves to Web services.

Sun touts Java for Web services

Sun Microsystems on Monday kicked off its sixth annual JavaOne conference here, beating the drum for Java as the development tool for building Web-based applications that run on PCs as well as on other devices.

JavaOne expected to focus on Web services

Web-based computing services are expected to be featured prominently at Sun Microsystems Inc.'s JavaOne conference in San Francisco next week, following the launch earlier this year of the company's strategy for supporting applications that can share functionality via the Internet.

Microsoft boosts tool set for .Net

Microsoft last week released two beta versions of its Visual Studio.Net tools aimed at easing the task of designing and creating applications that support Web services.

IBM artist ordered to perform community service

A Chicago man accused of spray-painting Linux graffiti ads on Chicago sidewalks for IBM Corp. was ordered to perform 30 days of community service in recompense for criminal property damage resulting from his role in an ad campaign that went awry.

As online returns grow, process grows more complicated

Starting this week, online merchants are moving leftover Mother's Day gifts to the virtual markdown shelf and dealing with returns. Done right, a return system is built upon linked back-end systems and contains myriad return scenarios written into the business rules.

Online automakers look for boost from merger

Model E Corp. a dot-com that tried unsuccessfully to sell build-to-order cars via the Internet, took a second shot at success this month and merged with a Santa Monica, Calif.-based start-up that devised outsourced vehicle production plans.

User response slow to new B-to-B directory

IBM Corp. and Microsoft Corp. haven't drummed up much end user interest in the Yellow Pages-style directory they launched this week, and that's critical to the success of both vendors' technology road map.

Dot-com bust a mixed bag for IT staffing

Traditional companies are having an easier time filling long-empty IT staffing positions as former dot-com employees return to the corporate fold. But corporate IT managers report that not all of those returning are the cream of the crop.

Sun jump-starts peer-to-peer

Sun Microsystems is spearheading an open-source initiative to develop peer-to-peer protocols, giving a welcome boost to a new technology that promises to harness idle computing power, better utilise bandwidth and ease file sharing. The company last week unveiled JXTA open source code, which was designed to provide a framework for building peer-to-peer applications.

Java top choice of wireless developers

Developing applications for wireless devices is rife with challenges, including proprietary device operating systems, insufficient standards and usability issues. Nonetheless, such development is on the rise, and Java is the language of choice, according to a new report.

Web driving demand for integrated apps

The growing corporate demand for Web services is accelerating IT's shift to component-based software. But the process is complex and time-consuming, and the software architects needed to design these applications are in short supply.

Rival Web auto brokers merge in stock swap

Online car broker Autobytel.com Inc. earlier this month drove home a bargain when it acquired rival Autoweb.com Inc. in a US$15.6 million stock-swap deal aimed at pumping new life into the dot-coms, both of which have recently taken big hits on Wall Street.

IT enterprises stress flexible software architecture

The growing corporate demand for Web services is accelerating IT's shift to component-based software, a complex and time-consuming process that comes at a time when the software architects needed to design applications are in short supply.