PictoColor upgrades iCorrect

Burnsville-based PictoColor Corp. released iCorrect EditLab Pro 5.0, a new version of its highly acclaimed color correction and color editing software. The new version features advanced automatic black and white conversion and automatic sepia tone for sophisticated artistic effects.

In addition, iCorrect EditLab Pro 5.0 now includes sharpening and noise removal technology for enhanced image quality and productivity.

Evolving installs storage center for med company

Minneapolis-based Evolving Solutions installed an IBM BladeCenter storage consolidation solution at 7 Medical Systems, a storage service provider serving the healthcare industry.

BladeCenter storage consolidation solution integrates 7 Medical Systems' current computing resources into a centralized high-density chassis.

Evolving Solutions provides data on demand and storage virtualization services.

Ontrack releases online tool

Minneapolis-based Ontrack Data Recovery released Ontrack Online, an online information tool that provides customers with continuous, real-time progress updates on their data recovery service. Accessible 24/7, Ontrack Online tracks progress from the beginning of the recovery process all the way through completion.

Through a secure login, Ontrack customers can access Ontrack Online to track their job from the initial evaluation all the way through the completion of the recovery service. Customers also benefit from the ability to utilize this interactive resource to streamline communication by allowing quick access to the recovery representatives and engineers dedicated to their data recovery job.

IT worker optimism plummets

The Hudson Employment Index for IT workers dropped more than six points to 109.0 in January. Decreased optimism in personal finances and job satisfaction sparked the decline. Just half (51 percent), of sector workers rated their finances favorably in January, down from 57 percent in December. In contrast, the national index remained steady this month, sliding just .8 points to 102.6.

Nationally, managers were less confident about their firms' hiring plans in January than the previous month. Only 29 percent anticipated more hiring in the coming months, compared to 33 percent in December. They were also slightly less optimistic than workers overall, 30 percent of whom anticipated a boost in headcount (unchanged from December).

Phenomenal installs VoIP for ISD 287

Edina-based Phenomenal Networks completed the installation of a Voice-over IP system under a contract awarded by the ISD 287 school district. The system provides secure communication systems to improve communications with the district service center and the schools that ISD 287 serves. To date, two schools and the district service center have been fully equipped with Cisco IP telephones and switching infrastructure replacing the PBX system.

The system is based on two Cisco VOIP PABX systems each based on a pair of redundant Cisco 7825 Media Convergence Servers with Cisco's Call Manager software which provides and controls all the phone features.

Wireless spending outstrips lines

For the first time, in 2006 U.S. businesses of all sizes will spend more on wireless voice services than on wireline, reports In-Stat (www.in-stat.com). And wireless data services will make significant gains as well over the next several years, the high-tech market research firm says. Expenditures by enterprise firms (1,000 or more employees) on wireless data will grow an average of 18 percent per year through 2009.

Recent reports by In-Stat found the following:

* Mid-sized firms accounted for 12.4 percent, or $24 billion, of total U.S. business telecom spending in 2005; these numbers will reach $33 billion and 13 percent of the total U.S. business market by 2009.

* Small business spending on Internet access will grow to $8.2 billion by 2009, up from $4.4 billion in 2005, largely due to adoption of DSL and higher bandwidth services.

* Spending on wireless data services will outpace all other categories in the SOHO segment, growing to nearly $2.2 billion in 2009, up from $0.47 billion in 2005.

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