Mario’s Take on the 4 Disruptive Technologies to Watch in 2013

This article is part of Mario’s series for AT&T Networking Exchange, a blog dedicated to small business. Go here to read the entire post.

blackberry q10
the future is mobile

Gartner, the well-known information technology research and advisory firm, recently released a list of its top 10 technologies and trends for 2013. The list covers a wide range of technologies that will most disrupt IT and business-as-usual over the next twelve months. Today I’m going to take a look at some of their findings and share my own insights and opinions.

1. Mobile devices

According to Gartner’s research, 2013 will be the year mobile devices completely take over the computing landscape. In 2013, mobile phones are expected to overtake PCs as the devices most commonly used to access the web worldwide and by 2015, Gartner is predicting that 80% of phones will be smartphones. These are absolutely wild findings, and, if true, mean big changes in the way we all do business.

Last year, I talked about how the world has gone mobile and how small businesses need to ensure they had a mobile-friendly website ready to go. This year, not only do you need a mobile website, but you also need to be thinking about how an app or a new, mobile-friendly business model could re-invigorate your bottom line. Whether you sell products, provide services, or are an individual looking to turn yourself into a brand, this is the year to ensure you have a strong presence on mobile devices through social media, a website, and possibly even an app, But that brings us to our next topic that tackles the platforms and technologies that may power your new mobile business.

Click here to continue reading this article at Network Exchange.

The Tablet World is Shaking Up: Microsoft Unveils Windows 8 OS with “Metro” UI for You To Touch

Big changes are coming to the Windows OS environment, as Microsoft unveiled the new Windows 8 OS at its BUILD Conference last week. While there are tons of the changes one typically expects from an OS revision—new features, the removal of some older features, etc.—the big news is that Redmond will be taking the “Metro” user-interface design, first introduced in the Windows Phone 7 mobile OS, and applying it as an across-the-board UI for its desktop, tablet, phone, and Xbox operating systems.  Despite the underwhelming sales of Windows Phone 7 devices (Ballmer himself admits that they haven’t sold as well as he’d like), the Metro UI is really slick, and it’s exciting to see that Microsoft is fully committed to re-imagining the computing experience it provides to consumers.

Sure, in many ways, this is simply Microsoft’s response to Apple’s meteoric rise of the past few years, as OSX and iOS offer fairly consistent cross-platform visual design and UI elements.  What’s exciting about the Windows 8 platform, though, is that it’s not Apple-like at all; Microsoft’s clearly put an enormous amount of resources into completely re-imagining the computing experience, and are attempting to essentially out-Apple the competition by releasing a system that’s genuinely innovative and unprecedented.  In many respects, this is probably the most significant new version of Windows since the introduction of Windows 3.1 almost twenty years ago. Read More

Create a Mobile App For Your Business with No Coding with Majoobi

With the Majoobi application platform and HTML5, “developers” can create visually appealing, functionality rich applications that run on different devices – No coding or middle man App Stores required. Since Majoobi is HTML5 based, iPhone & and Android users can visit your app’s url and bookmark your app on their device.

The Majoobi App Builder is an online tool that enables publishers to easily build and customize their applications without any coding. You can use RSS, Photos, Twitter & Facebook feeds, YouTube videos and other sources to stock your website with content in a matter of minutes (make sure the content is yours or you’re approved to use it). With the App Builder template, you can customize your app with colors, fonts, etc. to make it an original app that exemplifies your business in mobile fashion.

With Majoobi, you can create multiple apps and anyone can create an app. You can even submit to an App Store for more exposure, but it is definitely not a requirement. With Majoobi, you can develop and distribute your app on your own terms. Since there is no real download and the app uses HTML5, your visitors will need a data connection to use your app, versus a traditional app can make use of offline content to function. But hey, who uses a smartphone without coverage?

Majoobi also offers detailed analytics and statistical reports that allow you to track and analyze how people use your app. Geo-locations, visitor reports and many others are available to better measure effectiveness and optimize performance.

Majoobi is free to use, but there is a pricing schedule if you want to take your app to the next level with your own domain name for example. This an other features are available if you decide to upgrade, but with the free version, you can be up and running in no time with only minimal “sweat equity” invested.

For those who want to reach out to the “always connected” user that lives on their smartphone but are intimidated by the ideal of app development; Majoobi can get on your business on the radar of mobile users regardless of the device the are using with no coding needed.