Charles Curley's Weblog

According to Oxford University and McKinsey, "One in six big IT projects go over-budget by an average of 200%." The study also found that spending on technology was three times more likely to spiral out of control than construction or other major projects.

Apparently the problem stems from management failing to identify and plan for "black swans", negative events that hit rarely, but when they hit, they have a large impact.

Professor Flyvbjerg and his team are now looking to develop tools that help IT managers avoid out-of-control projects.

"Managers are very likely to run into black swans. They need to be able to identify them and prevent them."

Let's hope the good professor and his team don't hit any black swans.

Don't forget, Software Freedom Day 2011 is coming up on Saturday, September 17, 2011. Celebrate by contributing back to the community.

Rap superstars Jay-Z and Kanye West employed tight security and extreme tactics to ensure their album Watch The Throne did not fall victim to the curse that hits almost every other big release - the online leak.

When Watch The Throne, the hotly anticipated collaboration between the two hip-hop heavyweights, was released on iTunes last week, the music was not the only talking point.

Virtually every major artist - from Lady Gaga to U2 - has found their music being leaked. So how did Jay-Z and Kanye stop it happening to them?

Stars step up war on music leaks

What is interesting about this article is the efforts producers and others take to avoid having their product leaked. Fingerprint-protected hard drives? OK. Sleeping with the hard drives? Er, OK.

I think the most interesting statement is from John Giacobbi, founder of internet security company Web Sheriff. The company works for recording artists such as Lady Gaga, Beyonce and Adele. He believes that leaks are pretty close to inevitible. The question is, how do you deal with the leak after it has occurred. One approach is to ask the fans to help. "If you treat fans like fans, instead of treating them like criminals, it tends to work." Treating people like people instead of criminals almost always pays off. TSA, please note.