Communications of the ACM
Top Technews Stories of 2014
ACM delivers the TechNews computer science and technology newsletter to nearly 100,000 ACM members three times each week.
Credit: ACM
Three times each week, ACM provides timely coverage of established and emerging areas of computer science, the latest trends in information technology, and related science, society, and technology news to a global audience of nearly 100,000 readers, in the form of the ACM TechNews newsletter. A benefit of ACM membership, TechNews is assembled from hundreds of relevant English-language technology publications all over the world to keep ACM’s members current and informed on a wide range of technology topics.
Early in 2014, ACM gained the ability to track readers’ usage of the dozen or so links in each TechNews edition that provide access to the full texts of each of TechNews article abstract. We have used that capability to dig through the data to determine which of the approximately 1,800 article abstracts delivered during the course of the year were most popular with readers, based on the numbers of clicks each received.
The TechNews links most frequently clicked on by readers are those that provide access to the most recently updated Android, iPhone, and iPad versions of the ACM TechNews App, which allows them to access TechNews through a smart portable device.
In terms of non-app content, the most popular link provided readers by TechNews during 2014 was the one in a March 5 news abstract that directed users to a report of the ACM Education Policy Committee, "Rebooting the Pathway to Success: Preparing Students for Computing Workforce Needs in the United States." The link was in the abstract for the article "New Report Presents Recommendations and Initiatives to Address CS Education Challenges," based on an ACM press release that appeared on March 5.
The most popular TechNews article abstract clicked on last year was in the Wednesday, June 18 edition; the link took readers to the full text of the article "High-performance computing programming with ease," published by the MIT Industrial Liaison Program on June 16.
The 10 most frequently clicked-on content links in TechNews during 2014 were:
| Rank | Content | URL |
| 1 | Rebooting the Pathway to Success: Preparing Students for Computing Workforce Needs in the United States. | http://bit.ly/1ByhOV9 |
| 2 | High-performance computing programming with ease MIT Industrial Liaison Program June 16, 2014 |
http://bit.ly/1zBr6SG |
| 3 | 12 predictions for the future of programming InfoWorld Feb. 3, 2014 |
http://bit.ly/1yOp27s |
| 4 | Python bumps off Java as top learning language IDG News Service July 8, 2014 |
http://bit.ly/18vEKee |
| 5 | Computer Programming Is a Trade; Let's Act Like It The Wall Street Journal Aug. 3, 2014 |
http://on.wsj.com/15UTKkB |
| 6 | MIT debuts online Big Data course for tech pros Network World Jan. 9, 2014 |
http://bit.ly/1v615JH |
| 7 | 50 Computer Science Schools That Are Changing the World HPCwire Nov. 11, 2014 |
http://bit.ly/1y6EW9D |
| 8 | Google Introduces Kids to Coding Through Blockly Games Project eWeek Aug. 17, 2014 |
http://bit.ly/1DbpWu9 |
| 9 | Why Apple’s Swift Language Will Instantly Remake Computer Programming Wired July 14, 2014 |
http://wrd.cm/1y6FMmB |
| 10 | Major bug called ‘Heartbleed’ exposes Internet data The Washington Post April 9, 2014 |
http://wapo.st/1CNjRqf |
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