"We are seeing a lot more Apple than we have ever seen before," Cieslak, a partner with reseller Arxis Technology, said in making his presentation at the recent CCH Connections user conference. "It seems to work at the office and just fine too."

The cloud has helped change the profile of computers in use at firms. "It becomes less and less relevant what computer you are using if you are connecting through a browser," Cieslak said. He also pointed to the impact of younger workers coming into offices. "It's [Apple devices) what the next general is using," he commented.

Cieslak said the trend involves not just iPhones and iPhones but also the MacBook computers.

Among other trends, he noted the likelihood that payment via mobile devices—instead of credit cards—will spread. "I think once we get a little more adoption on the part of retailer, we are going to see a surge; this will start to take off," he said.

Bob Scott

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Bob Scott has provided information to the tax and accounting community since 1991, first as technology editor of Accounting Today, and from 1997 through 2009 as editor of its sister publication, Accounting Technology. He is known throughout the industry for his depth of knowledge and for his high journalistic standards.  Scott has made frequent appearances as a speaker, moderator and panelist and events serving tax and accounting professionals. He  has a strong background in computer journalism as an editor with two former trade publications, Computer+Software News and MIS Week and spent several years with weekly and daily newspapers in Morris County New Jersey prior to that.  A graduate of Indiana University with a degree in journalism, Bob is a native of Madison, Ind