Data Detectives

Vermont Microsystems was a comer in the software business. It made a hot add-on to a popular computer-aided design (CAD) program. But after one of its key employees left to join the maker of the CAD software, it found its fortunes sinking. Many of the performance improvements its product added to...

By John P. Mello Jr. • March 1, 1998

Shopping For A System

For the midrange accounting systems industry, 1997 was a year when larger software com-panies made their presence acutely felt. One such giant was Microsoft Corp. (a rather benign giant, for a change). As in 1996, midrange vendors were preoccupied with developing their accounting software for a M...

By John Xenakis • March 1, 1998

Explore the Trendline➔

The CFO Strategy for Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence’s impact on the office of the CFO continues to evolve, and finance chiefs must be aware of the opportunities it will create for growth. 

By CFO.com staff

Software for The Millennium

A.G. surged ahead with new features and performance capabilities, while Oracle Corp. faced a challenging transition and Hyperion Software Corp. pulled back. Many companies still bought software to fix their Year 2000 problems, but that sales bubble may be ready to burst. Vendors, seeing the marke...

By John Xenakis • Feb. 1, 1998

Web Musings

The Internet has rapidly evolved into a valuable tool for competitive intelligence, research, professional development, and electronic commerce. Certainly, there are some valuable sites that don’t cost a penny to access. But there are also many newer sites that make it worth your while to reach f...

By Joseph McCafferty • Feb. 1, 1998

Look Who’s Hacking Now

Do you think your company’s computer systems are secure? Before you answer, test yourself against Craig Nulan. Nulan is a senior manager in Ernst & Young LLP’s national information security services practice, in Kansas City, Missouri. One of his areas of expertise is penetration studies–the s...

By Edward Teach • Feb. 1, 1998

Mini Office Suites

Curing Compatibility IssuesIn the wake of the backlash against Microsoft Office 97–considered too expensive and incompatible with earlier versions of Microsoft Word–Lotus and its parent, IBM Corp., have embarked on an ambitious strategy to attract new users. Their competitive offering is eSuite, ...

By John Xenakis and Joseph McCafferty • Jan. 1, 1998

Right-of-Way

When services-outsourcer OAO Technology Solutions Corp., in Greenbelt, Maryland, reached $50 million in estimated value late last summer, management and investors agreed the time was right to go public. After all, investors at the time still hungered for small, fast-growing technology-based stock...

By Ian Springsteel • Jan. 1, 1998

Going Down to the Data Mart

Once upon a time– which in the fast-moving technology industry is only a few years ago– the data warehouse was marketed as the ultimate MIS solution. It was an appealingly simple concept: If you wanted to be able to analyze your entire business, you should have access to your entire business’s da...

By Karen Spinner • Dec. 1, 1997

Holiday Gifts

No doubt the technology lovers in your life have holiday wish lists full of gadgets and computer games. Here are some choice items that might show up on their personal rosters.Shutterbug HeavenA person with a PC and a color printer needs only a digital camera to complete a versatile desktop darkr...

By John Xenakis • Dec. 1, 1997

Upgrading Cash Flow at Dell

Category WinnerTreasury OperationsIn the here-today, gone-tomorrow business of computers, speed saves. Nobody knows that better than Tom Meredith of Dell Computer Corp. Since taking the CFO position at the Round Rock, Texas-based company in 1993–a job the former treasurer of Sun Microsystems Inc....

By Russ Banham • Dec. 1, 1997

Under Suspicion

Dealing with external auditors has never been easy. But for companies closing their books at the end of this year, the next audit cycle may be downright painful.A new standard for reporting and detecting fraud, developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), is set to...

By Lauren John • Nov. 1, 1997

Productivity Software

The three major vendors of office productivity suites–that is, integrated word processors, spreadsheets, and presentation graphics–have come up with major new 1997 versions. They are packed full–some say bloated– with hundreds of advanced features and even more sophisticated user interfaces. But ...

By John Xenakis • Nov. 1, 1997

Monitoring Web Requests

With employees’ increasing Internet use, new tools are becoming available to monitor network activity. Tropicana Dole Beverages NA uses one of the newest, Telemate.Net, from Telemate Software Inc. (770-936-3700; www.telemate.net). “This product provides the detailed reporting we need,” says Frank...

By John Xenakis • Oct. 1, 1997