A recent study reported 28 percent of all respondents would give up their significant other before giving up a smartphone. Even if that might not be a completely serious answer by some users, there is no doubt that mobile devices - smartphones and tablet computers – have become pervasive and a critical part of the modern business environment.

Each year, Dana "Rick" Richardson produces a list of technology predictions both for the near future and for the long term. This year's list, as  usual, has been presented at conferences such as the American Institute of CPA's Tech Plus  and those of some state CPA societies.

It was just only a few years ago that when a client asked me to recommend them a cloud-based accounting application I had few options to offer. And now, seemingly out of the blue, there are many. Many good ones.

Struggling with the whole social media thing? Don't know a tweet from a twit? Can't decide if your company should have a Facebook page? Trying to understand the value of Linked-in? I know a guy who's figured it all out. His name is Bill. "I'm a social media God," he told me recently.