What’s up with LinkedIn? Suddenly it’s everywhere. Last week, as I finished up teaching a dozen masters students in publishing, I told them to keep in touch. Nobody called. No one emailed. Seven of them requested to connect with me on LinkedIn.

What’s more, lately my inbox has been teeming with social notifications beyond the simple “please join my network” request. Friends and colleagues are “endorsing” me for skills I haven’t even thought up or “congratulating” me when I add a new job (“adjunct professor”) to my profile. And then there’s LinkedIn Today, a social newsreader that provides some a better-cultivated deep-read of the pertinent news in my industry than the soon-to-be-defunct Google Reader I once curated myself.

I’m not imagining things; the numbers prove it: In the past year, LinkedIn has seen a 24% grown in number of monthly visitors in the United States to 46.3 million — and that’s not counting the increasing number of folks who use the service on mobile devices. Even more interesting, the service has seen a 52% spike in time spent on the site — in March, users spent an average 1,072 minutes on LinkedIn.com. >more

IT Outsourcing

I arrived at South by Southwest this morning and effectively plunged into the height of Austin’s technology scene.

As thousands of people swarmed around me, I wondered, “Could an event like this ever happen in Houston? And how is Houston’s tech scene different from Austin’s tech scene?”

I asked this question to Dustin Wells, CEO of Headspring. Headspring, a custom software development company is based in Austin, but has plans to open its first Houston office in the spring.

Wells said that Austin has an abundance of technology employees that are young, and this evergreen population is great fodder for events like SXSW. However, in Houston, Wells believes he can find even more experienced talent to grow his company so that the Houston office could surpass the size of the Austin office.

“Houston is a great town, and it’s not an accident that we are moving there for talent,” Wells said. The majority of Headspring’s employees tend to have started families of their own and earn six figures, he explained.

In Austin, Wells said he enjoys the relatively small size of the technology community, and he hopes Houston will be the same way. >more

Percento Technologies

Dell shares surged following a report that the personal computer maker is in talks with private-equity firms over a potential buyout.

The stock jumped sharply before tripping a single-stock circuit breaker, causing its shares to be halted on the NASDAQ stock exchange. Dell’s stock has now resume trading and was last 14 percent higher.

Dell declined to comment to CNBC on what it called “rumors or speculation.” The report first emerged on Bloomberg TV.

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Canonical, Ubuntu Linux’s parent company, is hinting in big, bright letters that’s its about to release a fully touch-enabled version of Ubuntu Unity. The site’s banner headline now reads “So close, you can almost touch it.” with a clock counting down to 1 PM Eastern time, January 2nd. If this is indeed what Canonical is planning, can Ubuntu-powered tablet and smartphones be far behind?

Canonical has been planning to bring Ubuntu to tablets since it first introduced its controversial Unity interface in 2010. Then, in conversations with Mark Shuttleworth, Ubuntu’s founder, I was told that Unity was meant to be Ubuntu’s master interface for desktops, netbooks, and tablets.

At the time, while a tablet version of Ubuntu wasn’t in Canonical’s immediate plans, Jono Bacon, the Ubuntu Community Manager, told me that “all the pieces are in place to create an Ubuntu tablet.” Even then, before Unity was launched, I was shown the first baby steps to multi-touch Unity. >more

IT Services Houston

This week Hewlett-Packard offered a few good reasons to consider a Windows 8 laptop over a MacBook.

Those arguments are embodied in an upcoming 3-pound HP EliteBook Revolve business ultrabook “convertible” that was announced this week.

The MacBook Air is a fine design (I use one every day) and the new 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro is an even better design. But the Apple way isn’t the only way. Here are three features that the MacBook ain’t got.

Built-in 4G: The EliteBook Revolve offers built-in 4G LTE or HSPA+. Wi-Fi-only MacBooks are getting a bit stodgy. It’s almost 2013. 4G should at least be optional on a MacBook.

Let’s put it this way, if 4G is an option for the iPad, why not for a tiny 2.4-pound MacBook Air? And if HP is including it in an ultrabook like the Revolve, you can bet there’s a reason: some of HP’s business customers are demanding it.

And sharing plans make it feasible to share 4G data across multiple devices now.

Touch screen: I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. Touch is de rigueur for any mobile device now. And two years from now, a portable device without a touch screen will be an anachronism. Like a keyboard without a mouse.

Fact is, HP offered a touch-screen tablet long before the iPad. Unfortunately, it was saddled with Windows XP. And HP (and Microsoft) could never see beyond the stylus as an input medium.

Docking station: I used HP docking stations for years (which the Revolve includes). They were a godsend. When you need to pick up and run, it’s just a matter of popping the lappy out. No disconnecting and reconnecting cables.

And good docking stations (like those from HP) offer every port under the sun. So by plugging into the dock, you get the range of ports typically found only on desktops.

Yeah, there are plenty of third-party docking stations out there, but nothing beats a dock spec’d by the PC maker.

Why? Because the dock’s design starts on the laptop: high-speed, well-placed docking connectors must be conceived first on the laptop, then the dock design follows.

Like I said, I like my MacBook — a lot. But its limitations can feel claustrophobic on days. Especially when compared with some of the emerging Windows 8 competition.

But that’s what competition is about. Apple is only one company. The Windows 8 crowd comprises scores of companies with plenty of good ideas of their own.

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Houston IT Services

Houston IT Services

Microsoft’s newest operating system has a whole new interface and loads of new features. Of course, learning a whole new operating system always takes a little time. Here are our tips for getting up to speed quickly and getting the most out of Windows 8.

Preparing for Windows 8

Check compatibility
Is the software and hardware on your PC compatible with Windows 8? It’s easy to find out with the Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant.
Read: Check your PC for Windows 8 readiness with upgrade assistant

Get your PC ready
If you’re planning to upgrade to Microsoft’s latest OS, now might be a good time to begin preparing your PC.
Read: How to prepare your PC for Windows 8

Try it out — sort of
You’ve probably heard about the new Metro interface in Windows 8, but how to know if you’ll like it? Current Windows users can get a sneak peek into the look and feel of Metro with the free metro7 app.
Read: How to try the Windows 8 Metro interface free

Starting up and shutting down

Skip the log-in
Users who don’t need the security of a lock screen and a log-in screen can bypass both through a few simple steps.
Read: How to bypass the Windows 8 log-in screen

Get the start menu back
Three free utilities can replicate the classic Start button and menu in Windows 8.
Read: How to get the classic Start menu back in Windows 8 RTM

Going back to start
Clean and simple, Windows 8′s Desktop mode also lacks any apparent ways to get back to Metro. Here’s three tips on how to do just that.
Read: How to return to the Windows 8 Start screen

Use a picture as your password
Tablet and PC users alike can create a picture password in Windows 8 as a visual way of signing in. Here’s how.
Read: How to create a picture password in Windows 8

Shut down with a tile
Shutting down or rebooting Windows 8 can be as easy as point, then click, if you want it to be.
Read: How to create a shutdown and reboot tile in Windows 8

The basics

Keyboard shortcuts
Windows 8 has some new keyboard shortcuts that will help you get around Microsoft’s latest OS.
Read: 23 new keyboard shortcuts for Windows 8

Set default programs
Windows 8 chooses its default players to run your music and video, but what if you want different programs to open your files? Here’s how to change them.
Read: How to change default programs in Windows 8

Task Manager
The most neglected feature of Windows since it landed in 1995, Task Manager has finally received some love in Windows 8. Here’s what’s new.
Read: How to use Windows 8 Task Manager

Automatic backups
The new File History feature in Windows 8 can automatically back up your documents, music, pictures, and other personal files.
Read: How to automatically back up your personal files in Windows 8

Sync your devices
One of the best things about Windows 8 is that you can sync settings, apps, and more across multiple computers and tablets. Here’s how you do it.
Read: How to set up sync on Windows 8

Printing
Printing from a Metro app in Windows 8 works differently than printing from a Desktop app. So, how do you print from a Metro app?
Read: How to print from a Metro app in Windows 8

Advanced tips

Dual-boot with 7
Dual-booting your Windows 7 PC with Windows 8 can help you ease into using Windows 8.
Read: How to dual-boot Windows 7 with Windows 8

Make it kid-safe
Parental controls in Windows 8 are more configurable and robust than ever before. We’ll show you how to use parental controls in Windows 8 to help keep kids safe while using a PC.
Read: How to use parental controls in Windows 8

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LinkedIn’s 175 million professionals worldwide are considered a goldmine for marketers: According to the social network, its audience is one of the most educated, affluent and influentialon the Web.

But taking advantage of that audience can be challenging—and overwhelming—if you’re new to LinkedIn Marketing and its portfolio of features.

LinkedIn’s newly redesigned Company Pages is the hub for businesses, featuring a Careers section that’s updated with job postings, a Products tab with information on what’s new and upcoming, an Employee Insights page and an Overview section with updates from the company.

Company Updates, according to Alison Engel, LinkedIn’s global marketing director for Market Solutions, is one of the most important features for marketers.

“This is where you engage with your audience,” she says. “These messages that you send out show up on your company’s page and in the news streams that are front and center in a member’s user experience. It’s the pulse professionals are taking throughout the day.”

One challenge many marketers struggle with, she says, is finding enough meaningful content to post to their audiences regularly.

“I’m always asked about editorial calendars and whether they need a staff producing content for social purposes,” Engel says. “The answer is no, you don’t. Companies sometimes don’t realize how much existing content they already have at their fingertips.”

Tapped for time and resources? Here’s a look at four types of content that LinkedIn users crave. A bonus: No content creation required. >more

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