BMC gets self-service portal

Business service management specialist BMC Software has unveiled a self-service portal for its Control-M workload automation system, enabling business users to monitor and control services without having to go through the IT helpdesk, states V3.co.uk.

Available now, Control-M Self-Service provides end-users with a Web-based portal that lets them see what is happening with their workload automation services, and make limited changes if necessary.

BMC says its enterprise customers have been asking for a way to allow business users to perform routine requests themselves, rather than having to submit a helpdesk ticket and wait for the IT department to fulfil the request.

Nuance Communications is providing access to the Dragon Mobile SDK for iOS and Android via a new self-service Web site as part of the Nuance Mobile Developer Program, says Trading Markets.

Now mobile developers are able to leverage the dictation and voice search capabilities at the core of the Dragon Dictation and Dragon Search apps, as well as Nuance's trusted Vocaliser text-to-speech the company says. The Dragon Mobile SDK is now available through the Nuance Mobile Developer Program for Apple iOS 4.0 and for many devices running Android 2.1 and higher.

The SDK currently supports US and UK English, European Spanish, European French, German, Italian and Japanese for dictation and search.

The CEO of NCR, Bill Nuti, says the company had record 2010 sales for self-service check out machines at retailers and expects growth of 10% or more this year in that business, reports Bloomberg.

Retailers such as Home Depot are investing in self- service equipment to trim labour costs and refocus employees on more profitable tasks such as selling more merchandise, Nuti said in an interview at Bloomberg's Atlanta bureau.

NCR, which has seen its shares rise 36% in the past year, is also increasing market share in the travel sector.