- Maybe MS should call it 'Dead Search'
- InfoWorld Daily Podcast
- A password nightmare
- The underbelly of SOA: vendor driven architecture
- InfoWorld Daily Podcast
- PC to Mac, no goin' back
- More on being blacklisted in an industry
- InfoWorld Daily Podcast
- Enough with 'community' already
- Apple and open source?
September 28, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Maybe MS should call it 'Dead Search'
Notes from the field: Cringe begins this geek week in review with the words "kill me now." Sorry, ladies, he's not suicidal but, instead, referring to Microsoft's Live Search, which one company exec calls a killer app. "Sure is -- and guess who's getting killed," Cringe proclaims." Next up: Security researchers are reporting that "Google is displaying more cracks than a plumbers convention." At least when it comes to Gmail. Finally, "So help me Jobs." Indeed.
Video: At DEMOfall '07 the fledgling Phreesia claims to be revolutionizing the doctor's waiting room with technology. "We're changing how you as a patient sign in, then get delivered health content, interactively, before you see the doctor," says CEO and co-founder Chaim Indig. That happens on a lightweight, wireless pad. Watch it here. Related: DEMOfall '07 Collaboration, Web 2.0 startups take the stage.
The news beat: Apple may be working on another tablet PC, at least according to rumors swirling around the 'Net; some are even whispering 'return of the Newton.' Microsoft says that OEMs and retailers can sell XP for five months more, until June 30, 2008. Google buys Zingku and its mobile social networking wares. And Huawei, along with Bain Capital, scoops up 3Com for $2.2 billion.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 28, 2007 10:58 AM
September 28, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Google buys Zingku for its mobile social networking wares, update renders unlocked iPhones unusable, rivals argue against Google-DoubleClick, and more 
LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 28, 2007 08:01 AM
September 28, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Data management: One oft-overlooked password best practice is, "never use your personal account for services or processes," reports Sean McCown. "Now with Yukon, you've got even more reasons not to do that since you can setup proxies under your account." The password nightmare. "If you don't care about this because your environment is safe and you're not in much danger of your account being used for evil, then at least consider this point and set yourself for success the next time you change your password."
Columnist's corner: When a no-name company, such as aQuantive, gets bought by Microsoft for $6 billion and becomes worth more overnight than big-time brands (think Blockbuster and Wendy's size), the financial aspects of the deal can get pretty confusing. Now, as IT pros you might not see the need to understand it all. "Bad mistake," writes David Margulius in Cut through financial BS. "I guarantee that at some point as you rise through the ranks, you'll run into some big-numbers decision that just doesn't smell right." Then what? "A skeptical, just-the-facts-ma'am, commonsense method of clearing the FUD so that you don't get snookered by some VSIP (Very Self-Important Person)," otherwise known as fundamental analysis. In other words: when you do the simple math, the picture becomes a lot clearer.
Video: DEMOfall '07 is in full swing this week. The latest is Fusion-io pitching live. The CEO and CTO open with, of all things, a joke about disk-drives -- but I'll not spoil that. "Performance is what Fusion-io is all about. Performance-based storage," says CEO Rick White. "Twenty years ago it took one hard drive to keep a server fed. Ten years ago it took 25-30 disk drives to keep a server fed. Today, 600 disk drives. This is why we're seeing this huge explosion in SAN-based technologies and companies that are aggregating these disks." Watch it here. Related: DEMOfall '07: Collaboration, Web 2.0 startups take stage.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 28, 2007 04:54 AM
September 27, 2007 | Comments: (0)
The underbelly of SOA: vendor driven architecture
SOA: Back on the topic of VDA, as in vendor-driven architecture, David Linthicum points out that, "the notion of VDA is really something most enterprise architects understand far too well these days," he writes in More thoughts on VDA. "If there is anything that bugs me about this business it's the number of enterprise architects out there that don't' focus on the core business problems, and don't learn to align technology to the business, SOA or not." Thus the question of how to fix it. Admit vendor addiction and seek help. Related Podcast: Are you doing SOA or VDA?
Sustainable IT: Supply-chain king Wal-Mart earlier this week announced that it is teaming with the Carbon Disclosure Project to track and reduce energy consumer and emissions produced by its suppliers. "This announcement is a huge one, and it should drive home the fact that it's not just tree-hugger pols and nonprofits that care about energy waste, associated carbon emissions, and other greenhouse gases," espouses Ted Samson in Wal-Mart throws its weight behind a greener supply chain. The move, Samson adds, could "prove a particularly pivotal moment in the rapidly evolving green movement, with some serious potential for a cumulative ripple effect."
The news beat: Michael Dell, meanwhile, says that his company will be carbon neutral by the end of 2008 via partnerships and programs designed to balance its emissions with activities that reduce carbon. Hewlett-Packard offers a data backup system for legal discovery, the HP Integrated Archive Platform, a bundle including hardware and software. Microsoft aims Live Search at its existing user base, it claims, rather than looking to lure new users from Google. And Cisco agrees to buy Latigent, a specialist of call center reporting tools.
Show of the week: DEMOfall '07 has certain rules for presenters. Chief among those, perhaps, is that the product you pitch must not have been previously announced. Well, mEgo either didn't know that or chose to ignore it, I don't know and won't claim that I do, but just two weeks ago the startup unveiled its wares at the TechCrunch40 conference. Because of that, mEgo was asked leave DEMO and not refunded its $18,000 entry fee, Ephraim Schwartz reports. "Don't do the crime if you can't do the time."
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 27, 2007 10:47 AM
September 27, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Dell pledges carbon neutrality by the end of 2008, IBM's Symphony downloaded 100,000 times during its first week, Nokia plans to add WiMax to its Internet tablets, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 27, 2007 07:18 AM
September 27, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Columnist's corner: This week, Tom Yager revisits an earlier episode about a friend who switched the "OS for her entire computer-using life" from, you guessed it, a PC to a Mac. "Wild horses driven by a grinning Steve Ballmer carrying $100,000 couldn't drag her back into Windows," he writes in More Mac sense and nonsense. "She knows that I'm an Apple Developer Connection Premiere member and that I have Leopard, and she thinks I'm a jerk for not letting her use it." What's more, she's eagerly anticipating Leopard so much that its October release cannot come fast enough. As for Yager himself, though, "I can't pretend that Vista doesn't exist."
Platforms: What does Halo 3, Microsoft's entertainment software, have to do with the enterprise? Plenty. "The xBox and Halo are examples for what Microsoft's strengths and weaknesses are, and reveal a lot about with Microsoft is capable of: creating an application that allows real-time collaboration in virtual world by teams of people who've never met, over a heterogeneous network -- all without so much as an ipconfig/renew," Sean Gallagher explains in Microsoft's Halo effect. True, Microsoft might not even realize it that way, particularly since it has hardware troubles with xBox. "So, maybe we're lucky that Microsoft can't provide the same end-to-end experience with Windows in the enterprise that it can with xBox in the living room."
Careers: A visionary twice-over writes into Bob Lewis wondering where to find a great second-in-command. "Having a partner is tough. Making a partnership work requires two rare circumstances," Lewis starts. "As to where you find them ... as with all recruiting, it's a matter of building your personal network and beating the bushes." No easy answers here, folks.
SOA: The notion that you can continue doing things the same way and, ultimately, address architecture at some point in the future equates to "saying there's no time or money to do things right now, but there's time to do it over and over again," asserts Dave Linthicum in this Real World SOA post. Clearly, that approach is senseless, even if it is a quick and easy fix. But, and this is an important "but," delaying actually costs more, and not just money, either. "I'm constantly surprised how much is wasted around ineffective and static architectures that are not able meet the needs of business."
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 27, 2007 04:36 AM
September 26, 2007 | Comments: (0)
More on being blacklisted in an industry
Careers: Only you can manage your reputation, and it's possible to get blacklisted in a specific industry. That "doesn't always mean being on a written list," either, Nick Corcodilos explains in Accountability. That said, everyone learns along the way -- and we all make mistakes. "I placed an engineer without getting proper confirmation of his degrees," Corcodilos shares. "Turns out he lied."
Wireless: There are 15 things Apple should fix with an iPhone 2.0. This one comes courtesy of InfoWorld sister pub Computerworld. The first and most obvious, of course, is adding 3G capabilities. Next up: GPS. Then 'turn auto-correct into auto-complete' and the list goes on. My personal favorite is third-party developer support and an iPhone SDK. "We might not even have to wait for iPhone 2.0 to see some of the items on our wish list: It's conceivable that Apple could update the current crop of iPhones via software updates. Are you listening, Apple?"
Show of the week: Presenters at DEMOfall '07 get six minutes of fame. Such contestants include Your Truman Show (Yes, like the flick), Filmaroo from Proxure, Video over UnTwisted Pair, and FixMyMovie. View the slideshow.
The news beat: Security researchers determine that AOL's AIM is vulnerable to a worm that could enable attackers to run unauthorized software on a victim's PC. Cisco says it will roll out branch office networking gear that brings security and application-performance features. MonteVista issues a new Linux-based mobile phone OS, MobilLinux 5.0, which improves security, power management and connectivity. And Oracle gets a court date in its battle with SAP over customer support materials.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 26, 2007 10:54 AM
September 26, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Sun changes Java updates process, flaw in AOL IM lets hackers ignite worm, Oracle and SAP get trial date, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 26, 2007 09:02 AM
September 26, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Enough with 'community' already
DEMOfall '07: Roaming the show, Ephraim Schwartz has run out of patience for use of the term 'community' among startups presenting this year. "As a reader of history, I'm not sure the crowd is always wise," he writes in Demo startups say it's all about community -- ugh! "This idea of the wisdom of many persists on the Internet in these collaboration sites and it appears to be growing ... if I hear of one more company that bubbles the best ideas up to the top I'll scream."
SOA: "The heavens have shifted just a tad ... within the realm of SOA, in which vendors (both open and closed source) seem to have suddenly discovered that SOA is as much about b-to-b integration as it is about modernizing and integrating systems that live inside the firewall," Brad Shimmin writes in SOA meets open b-to-b integration. Separately, BEA, Microsoft, MuleSource, and others are in the midst. The outcome is IaaS, aka Integration as a Service. "This isn't to say that IaaS is better than SaaS. I don't think that IaaS competes with SaaS in any way."
Podcasts: A look at relative newcomer Veeam's two new utilities that make VMware's platform that much better, as well as solutions from Vizioncore. Tune into Virtualization Report.
Columnist's corner: A mysterious Monday tape overload problem plagued the VAX network of an engineering firm. "Everything worked fine until one Tuesday morning when I came down to take out the Monday backup tape and replace it with Tuesday's," our Off the Record author explains. This time, the backup program called for a second tape. Problem was, the firm had only a single-tape deck. But the issue was fixed easily enough -- until the following Monday when the same thing happened. That went on for about a year. Voodoo? Nah. Sabotage? Nope. A labeling mistake, admitted upon discovery, landed our author on the defensive from a fellow employee. "But my question to him, and to you, is: Would you have figured it out sooner?"
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 26, 2007 04:48 AM
September 25, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Best of the blogs: The company's devout legion doesn't typically ask probing questions, so Zack Urlocker will. "I was wondering why it is that Apple is often thought of so well in open source circles," he writes in this Open Sources post. "Yet Apple is actually more closed than most companies. They use some open source in Safari and OS/X but as far as I can tell, they don't give that much back."
From the feature well: This week marks our Virtualization Executive Forum. Companies are forging ahead with server virtualization, such as Credit Suisse with some 20,000 servers to manage, which conceived of the environment as a shared service. Or Nationwide Insurance and its adoption of the technology for x86 boxes and mainframes alike. And lest I forget those on the road to desktops. Virtualization on the front lines.
SOA: With AJAXWorld happening this week, David Linthicum thought the time was right to revisit the links between the show's namesake and SOA. "As SOA becomes more of a standard way of looking at architecture, many are seeking new standards-oriented interfaces that are able to externalize services to user interfaces, in many instances, on the platform for the Web," he writes in the simply, but aptly, titled AJAX and SOA. "AJAX tools seem to fit the bill nicely, and many are more oriented toward SOA than others."
The news beat: Microsoft issues Release Candidate 0 of Windows Server 2008, formerly Longhorn, as a public test version to replace Beta 3. AT&T and Frontline appeal the FCC's spectrum auction rules and claim that it could shut out small bidders. Apple says that iPhone hacks will void the warranty because, the company asserts, they could irreparably damage the device's software. And Global Communications shows off Video over Untwisted Pair, or the ability to 'digitize light into six-foot diameter signals to deliver broadcast-quality content' at the DEMOfall '07 conference.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 25, 2007 10:48 AM
September 25, 2007 | Comments: (0)
AJAXWorld gets underway with moves from OpenAjax Alliance, Microsoft, NexaWeb. Also, Microsoft discusses taking stake in Facebook, and issues RC0 of Windows Server 2008, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 25, 2007 08:29 AM
September 25, 2007 | Comments: (0)
From the feature well: Another InfoWorld IQ Test is here; in this one gauge your Network Security IQ. Think you're expert? First question: What does Command & Control refer to? "When you're done, we'll tally your score and tell you whether you're a security dud or god."
Security: Later this week Microsoft will hold BlueHat, its pow-wow for security researchers and white hat hackers. Even this latest rev, dubbed BlueHat v6: The vuln behind the curtain, remains a "closed-door" affair, but Microsoft is promising to share details of the conference as it moves along, Matt Hines reports in Microsoft preps for hacker confab. "And, hey, who knows, maybe next year we'll even get an invite ... after all, [the] list of goals pretty much describes the job of anyone whose responsibility is trying to explain IT security trends to business leaders." Related: Google being used to bypass anti-spam defenses.
Careers: Looking to start a consulting business, a reader writes in to ask Bob Lewis what he thinks will be the next big trend in IT management. "It sounds like what you really want to be is an independent contractor," Lewis writes in Advice Line. "The biggest difference between the two as far as running a business is concerned is that consultants have to be better at selling, since their engagements tend to be shorter." And what to home in on? Integration of business process improvements with software requirements, and ITIL -- remembering of course that good project managers will be in short supply "until long after both you and I are ready to retire."
Gripe Line: A grand is an awful hefty price tag for a latch. But that's exactly what one reader was billed after sending a Hewlett-Packard notebook back to the company for repair. "Since the laptop was useless as it was, the reader decided to go ahead and send the CPU into HP," Ed Foster reports in HP's $1,000 latch. No one at HP was armed with the authority to even answer questions about the order's status, so the reader checked the online status page and found the ticket exploded from $300 to $1,000. Oh yes, and it contained a note saying HP was currently trying to get in contact with our reader. That had not actually happened and, in fact, HP has yet to return the CPU. "Up until this point, I was a loyal HP customer and even recommended them to friends. That will no longer be the case."
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 25, 2007 04:58 AM
September 24, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Microsoft's end game for virtualization
Best of the blogs: Referring to Microsoft's purchase of Softricity last summer, Randall Kennedy writes, "though few of us knew it at the time, this acquisition -- above all others -- could leave the most indelible mark on the Windows product roadmap." So, why and why now? That goes back at least as far as 1995, the Netscape days, and the profound effect such a rush to embrace the Web had on Microsoft, he writes in this Enterprise Desktop post. But "fast forward to today and the situation remains mostly unchanged." Only this time it's SaaS everybody is talking about. "With SoftGrid, Microsoft has the technology portfolio to enable its SaaS endgame strategy." Indeed, the first salvo has already been fired.
The news beat: The FBI says it is investigating Unisys over a hack into the U.S. government that allowed data to be sent to a Chinese-language Web site. Verizon Business expands its service-level agreement options such that customers can now invoke SLAs on the last mile. At the AJAXWorld show, NexaWeb unveils its Enterprise Web 2.0 suite, with a bent toward building mashups. And startups vie for VCs eyes as DEMOfall '07 kicks off this week.
Green IT: There is a simple, but oft-overlooked, twist in the machines that the One Laptop Per Child program is producing, notes Ted Samson in Hardware vendors can learn from OLPC notebook. They are highly power efficient, for instance. "I'm impressed and encouraged by this system. It demonstrates that organizations can -- if they put their mind to it -- build inexpensive, eco-friendly systems if they're willing to devote time and resources to them ... perhaps other vendors will be inspired to do something similar."
Notes from the field: An MIT computer science student was nabbed in Logan Airport for the shirt she wore and Play-Doh in hand. "Maybe it's time they all took a deep breath and a class in bomb recognition," Cringe suggests in Another Beantown bomb. "Can't we just admit that everybody blew this one and move on?"
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 24, 2007 10:54 AM
September 24, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Demo kicks off with startups vying for VC eyes, OLPC offers 'buy one, give one' program, tech execs top Forbes richest list, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 24, 2007 08:18 AM
September 24, 2007 | Comments: (0)
4 steps to a more secure network
Security: Every week, Roger Grimes gets asked what the best means are for protecting a network. "Malicious computer hacking has never been worse. It's more criminal in nature and more pervasive, and it's stealing more money and identities than ever before," he writes in Beware the browser within. That said, Grimes asserts, we're doing a fairly good job of securing servers. The real problem is that, "we seem unable to convince some end-users to stop clicking on things they should not be clicking on." Easier said than done, of course, but that is the first of Grimes' four-part answer. "There are many more security tasks to accomplish than these, but if administrators were better at this quartet -- consistently better -- the risk of malicious exploit would drop significantly."
Best of the blogs: Randall Kennedy has rescinded his previous blog posts suggesting that Linux should be forked. "I'm more convinced than ever that Linux needs less fragmentation, not more," he writes in Linux "unforked!" Mea culpa!
What gives? "I simply cannot bring myself to endorse a course of action that I now know will cause irreparable harm to the already fragile Linux ecosystem. If I've learned anything over the past week it's that Linux is a bit of a miracle." Related: Desktop Linux? Stick a fork in it.
Storage: It may be a frivolous lawsuit, up until now anyway, but the NetApp-Sun rivalry is heating up. "I don't think anybody truly understands what the two companies are arguing about and why," Mario Apicella writes. "Consider the odds that two well-trained engineers or engineering teams could come up with a very similar solution to the same problem independently. Those odds are darn high, if you ask me." Related: NetApp-Sun lawsuit seen as open source test case.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 24, 2007 04:58 AM
September 21, 2007 | Comments: (0)
More on battling spam -- and spamming morons
Best of the blogs: After his post on open source spam solutions, Martin Heller heard from many readers, several of whom, including commercial anti-spam vendors, have offered to help. Then again, spammers are after him now more than ever. "The Heisenberg Principle is at work. I observed my spam situation, and now it has changed: spammers are targeting my personal domain, mheller.com, at an even higher level. It looks deliberate," he reports in this Strategic Developer post. "Maybe they are trying a DDoS attack, in retaliation for the fact that I'm talking publicly about putting them out of business. They are [expletive deleted] morons. It's barely a minor annoyance. I only mention it because there has been just enough of an uptick for me to notice."
The news beat: A security researcher warns that Apple's iPhone could face security problems in the form of malware that leads users to Web pages that, in turn, can inject code into the device. JackBe unwraps Presto Wires, a mashup composer that functions with the company's mashup server. An Intel executive says that the 3D Web and virtual worlds will take so much computing power that they might be "the killer app of killer apps." And bugs in VMware highlight the security risks of running virtual computers on a single system.
Notes from the field: It's Friday and that means Cringe has a fresh geek week in review. This time, everybody must get stoned, suckers wanted, hell is for heroes, Steve Jobs vs. hackers. "Stoned dates from the era where viruses were mostly harmless -- more of an acid flashback than an OD," Cringe reports. Stoned, you see, is a 13-year old virus that a German laptop maker has been inadvertently distributing with Vista notebooks.
Open source: While mobile Linux continues to gain traction, splintering threatens that momentum, at least according to officials at MontaVista. Confusion looms about goals for the OS's future. And while there are a few consortiums at play, that may even make matters worse, some say. Also, operators don't want introduce more Linux devices into their networks at the expense of escalating the interoperability problem.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 21, 2007 10:18 AM
September 21, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Security outsourcing is on the rise, SFLC files suit to enforce an open source license, Intel details open source project to bolster power efficiency, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 21, 2007 08:08 AM
September 21, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Blacklisted for turning down a job
Careers: A reader asks if rejecting a job offer after you've accepted it can get you blacklisted in an industry. "Unless you really have developed a reputation as someone who's always changing his (or her) mind, I don't see why you'd be blacklisted," Nick Corcodilos advises in this Ask the headhunter post. But, "word might get around that you rescinded your acceptance, and if you work in a tight-knit area and the employer in question is very upset about your decision, it might affect your reputation."
From the Test Center: When last we looked at Vontu, it was version 5 of the data leak prevention solution. Now it's Vontu 7. "There's enough solidity to make it a prime choice for financial institutions, manufacturers, technology companies, and retailers," writes Mike Heck. Centralized policy management makes for easy maintenance, and the product offers reports that expose all possible data leak pathways. "With the exception of blocking at the end point, the various modules provide thorough data leak protection." Read the full review.
Best of the blogs: The hosted ERP service SAP unveiled this week has Ephraim Schwartz wondering if it has the potential to cannibalize SAP's existing enterprise business. "Because service was typically handled by someone else -- the SI -- the packaged application vendor never felt responsible for the customer's success," he explains. SAP SaaS solution is not just about the technology. "Under the new model, if the vendor doesn't deliver success, they will probably be gone in a few months or less." Related: SAP christens its hosted ERP suite Business ByDesign.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 21, 2007 05:56 AM
September 20, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Forking desktop Linux revisited
Best of the blogs: Randall Kennedy's assertion in Desktop Linux? Stick a fork in it! has sparked the ire of myriad readers with some well thought out responses and others unfit for print -- a degree of vitriol that he confesses to not being prepared for. "I'm just calling it like I see it. If and when someone provides me with a convincing rebuttal that's devoid of profanity, racial slurs and personal insults, I'll most certainly reevaluate my position." Forking Linux? Shoot the messenger.
Green IT: Despite the effort put forth by some of technology's biggest vendors, more and more research is coming out that demonstrates how companies really are struggling to get the power they need to run their business. "I'd have to say that healthy skepticism is bordering on either unhealthy denial or, with all due respect, outright ignorance," Ted Samson explains in Technology alone won't solve your power problems. "It's serious because it effectively translates to having to pull the reins on business growth until you can devise strategies and accumulate the resources to deal with those problems."
Columnist's corner: David Margulius is used to reading about "gender issues associated with hard-driving, play-to-win, boys-will-be-boys cultures in financial services, real estate or Washington D.C. politics," he writes in The end of booth-babe culture. "But IT? Aren't we more sophisticated than that?" Apparently not, as much as I might like to think so. "I do believe that we as the IT industry can do better overall on this issue, and it's not just up to the vendors. I think we're better than financial services and Washington, D.C."
The news beat: Apple CEO Steve Jobs has been subpoenaed by the U.S. SEC in a stock option backdating lawsuit against a former Apple general counsel. AT&T's chief security officer, Edward Amoroso, says that network perimeter security should be virtual. Sprint Nextel sees a place for WiMax in the enterprise and plans a national rollout of its service next year. And DRAM prices plunge to new lows, thanks to fierce competition.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 20, 2007 10:56 AM
September 20, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Sprint unveils Wimax plans for the enterprise, hardware vendors back Intel's Montevina, SAP details Business ByDesign, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 20, 2007 07:55 AM
September 20, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Careers: Every CTO, CIO, tech employee, and other corporate divisions for that matter, face the question a reader presented: How do we get budget-minded CFOs and process-oriented COOs to understand? "The one-word answer is 'salesmanship,'" Lewis advises in Persuading the C-level. "Underneath the conversations is always the need for the strong relationships that let the conversations take place. Which is to say, persuasion is much easier when it builds on pre-existing trust."
Columnist's corner: It's no surprise that Microsoft wants you and your neighbor's grandma to step up to Vista. What's a bit more revealing is that "the company seems to be willing to shoot itself in the foot to get you to make the move," Sean Gallagher explains in Microsoft's push and pull approach to Vista migration. Example: Redmond employees practicing some form of "new math" cite a study demonstrating that instituting Vista will save you hundreds of dollars a year -- a notion Gallagher writes is insane. "There's the testing of all your supported software, the upgrades to hardware that are required, and, as Donald Rumsfeld might say, the 'unknown unknowns' that might come around to bite you in the process. Upgrading operating systems costs a lot more than just the license."
Quoteworthy: IBM's announcement of Lotus Symphony gave me a wicked '80s flashback. In my mind's eye I saw the original Lotus Symphony office suite, flickering on an amber monochrome monitor, boring me to tears as a New Order dance track thumped in the background. The new Symphony comes with a different soundtrack: the drumbeat of challengers marching on Microsoft Office. -- Eric Knorr. Microsoft's secret desktop plan? Related: It's back to the future with IBM Lotus Symphony!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 20, 2007 04:43 AM
September 19, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Why open source will triumph over SaaS
Quoteworthy: Ask any -- and I mean any of the new school SaaS companies what they built their sites on and 99 percent will tell you it's all open source -- primarily LAMP. (BTW, if you built on Windows just stop now. The costs will sink you as you scale.) Ask them if they pay for support and the response is less than 20 percent by my informal research. I do think that SaaS is a great delivery model and I am glad these guys are consuming open source to build their businesses. But, it's hard to see how the majority of the companies on display at Dreamforce will build sustainable revenue outside of the Salesforce.com -- Dave Rosenberg, SaaS vs. open source: open source will win. Disagree? Think it's an unfair comparison? Talkback below or at the prior link.
Hardware: Intel is not setting AMD's agenda anymore, Tom Yager explains. "AMD has outgrown Intel. Hardware and software vendors that utilize AMD platforms are now steering AMD's strategy. AMD is all about giving OEMs and ISVs what they want, and that's precisely the approach that originally put Intel on top," he writes in AMD leads by listening. AMD "will march to the drumbeat of IBM, Microsoft, Novell, Red Hat, Sun, and the handful of others who are probably a bit shocked to see so much of what they asked for in Barcelona."
Notes from the field: The venerable Robert X. Cringely reports that TD Ameritrade has been caught with its breaches down. Some six million customer records, in fact, have been exposed. "While Ameritrade assures us 'there is no evidence' customers' birthdates and Social Security numbers were taken, this doesn't mean they weren't -- it just means Ameritrade isn't aware of it." Yet.
The news beat: Intel says a version of Centrino with WiMax will arrive in 2008, though Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Apple have yet to pledge support. SAP gives its suite of hosted ERP a name, Business ByDesign, and reveals pricing. Google tests its Gadget ads service, which enables customers to build ads with audio, video, live data feeds, Flash and JavaScript that ultimately resemble small Web pages with a Web page. And hacker David Maynor publishes the technical exploits of his Apple Wi-Fi attack.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 19, 2007 11:02 AM
September 19, 2007 | Comments: (0)
SCO shows doubt about its own survival, Intel says it will reap efficiency and performance from 32 nanometer process, iPhone to go on sale in Europe, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 19, 2007 08:17 AM
September 19, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Possible open source solutions for spam
Best of the blogs: After ranting about spam last week, Martin Heller received some interesting responses, replete with suggestions about how to kill the practice of spam itself. The three he posted, though, are in-house fixes. Heller instead is calling for open source projects that filter the bulk of messages at the receiving server. "My final solution probably is far-fetched: find all the spammers and put them out of business," he espouses in this Strategic Developer post. "I know that a few of the more notorious US-based spammers have been shut down, but spam has gone up since then. Many of the remaining spammers are out of reach of US authorities. What would it take to get to them, I wonder?"
Columnist's corner: Flash and Flex pretty much own the rich Web application fray, and Adobe owns Flash and Flex. But that dominance could change if Microsoft has its way and Silverlight gains purchase. The big question, thus, becomes whether the industry will suffer at the expense of two big wigs battling it out. "My conclusion? Maybe, sort of, and it depends," explains Ephraim Schwartz in Microsoft guns for Adobe rich Internet apps crown. It's not just about vendor lock-in, either. "The truth is that there can be no definitive answer as to the problems a competing development platform from Microsoft will bring; it depends entirely on the angle you are viewing it from."
Off the Record: When swapping in 3270 coax cards, motherboards, power supplies and, in fact, every other removable PC part fails to prevent an emulation screen from freezing, and even placing static mats on the floor, under the PC and keyboard doesn't help, there is one last place our anonymous author learned to look: a floating ground. "When I traced the outlet to the electrical panel and then from the panel to the exterior ground I could see the (formerly) long ground spike. I kicked it to unearth it," he writes in Zapped: Underground PC a shocker. "It was about 6 inches off the original ground just resting vertically on the surface. When the sun would be out for a week or so, the ground would dry out enough that the old section of the building no longer had an earth ground. The PC would lock up."
Podcasts: Add a new acronym to the SOA realm, that being VDA, as in vendor driven architecture. "The buying patterns around service-oriented architecture have a tendency to shift toward comfort technologies ... technologies and vendors that are already in the organization. In many instances the vendors you're already dealing with may not be the correct solution. If you don't expand your analysis to include technologies out of your comfort zone, you may find that you're building a service-oriented architecture that is much less efficient than it could be." Tune into SOA Report.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 19, 2007 04:55 AM
September 18, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Best of the blogs: Enterprise architects that don't really get SOA still remain. "This is going to lead to many not finding the value within IT that they need, and their management demands," David Linthicum explains in Thinking SOA? "It's really a matter of thinking more about interoperable components, not layers and layers of technology. It's really about thinking agility, and not just a technology solution instance. In other words, thinking SOA may need to leverage a different side of your brain when coming from a more traditional world."
The news beat: Microsoft is feeling the pressure as IBM says it will offer a version of the OpenOffice suite, dubbed Lotus Symphony, while Google adds a presentation application to its own suite, rechristened Google Docs. Mozilla spins off its Thunderbird e-mail client into a yet-to-be-named subsidiary it seeded with $3 million, a move closely mimicking how the Mozilla Foundation gave wing to Mozilla Corp. as the shepherd of Firefox. And Carl Icahn returns, this time he wants to sell BEA Systems, but the investor lacks enough shares and a BEA insider did not give much hope that he'd garner support from the board.
Intel Developer Forum: Another IDF is upon us, and this time around Tom Yager is posing a tough inquiry. Does Intel have the guts? As in, will the leading chipmaker have the nerve, we know it has the wherewithal, but does it have the gumption to create the strongest x86 server market yet seen? "A changed game is inevitable for Intel in 2008. What's in question is whether Intel will play a role in changing it," Yager writes. "If Intel does one-up its rival next year, it will be a welcome turn of the tables. The fire would be lit under AMD for a change, and we'd discover what AMD is capable of when tasked to the limits of its capabilities." Related: AMD tries to upstage Intel with triple-core Phenom processor.
Video: Salesforce.com co-founder Parker Harris discusses Visualforce, platform-as-a-service, the struggle for customization, exposing code, Salesforce Ideas. "[Visualforce] is the crowning jewel that completes the picture, certainly from a development perspective, to be able to create those user interfaces on our platform without any infrastructure required." InfoWorld editor-at-large Ephraim Schwartz hosts. Watch it here. Related: Is Salesforce planning to offer an online OS next?
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 18, 2007 10:47 AM
September 18, 2007 | Comments: (0)
IBM, Google ratchet up the pressure on Microsoft Office, AMD adds triple-core desktop chip to its fleet, Yahoo buys Zimbra, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 18, 2007 07:42 AM
September 18, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Feature well: We've all experienced the frustration that is a slow application. The kind that makes you wait. "By all accounts, we live in a digital Golden Age, and yet for many of us, our day-to-day computing experience is more purgatory than paradise," Neil McAllister explains. You know, slow startups, delays, crashes, annoying and time-wasting reboots all spark the questions, "Why does computing have to be painful? Where have we gone wrong?" Well, there are at least 7 answers, such as chip advances that leave developers in the dust, code bloat and trends that overburden networks. "These computing pitfalls aren't going away any time soon." Read the special report.
From the Test Center: Adaptec's little San that can. That's what Mario Apicella calls it in this exclusive look at the Snap Server 720i, "an affordable yet scalable iSCSI SAN module that doesn't skimp on performance and is easy to manage." The system brings scalability, high-availability and excellent management tools, Apicella explains, adding that "few arrays in its class can even come close."
Quoteworthy: Seriously, I am -- and likely always will be -- a total curmudgeon. I'm cynical, jaded, and basically unimpressed by anything I deem faddish or 'cool.' Virtualization? Blah! Open Source? I say 'sue the hippie bastards for IP infringement!' Multi-core CPUs? I was preaching the desktop computing parallelism message back in the 90s, for cryin’ out loud! I'm a person who firmly believes that the 'Wintel' duopoly will continue to rule the world for many years to come, and that firms like Google and VMware will eventually go the way of Borland, Novell, Netscape, and a host of other niche also-rans that were eventually absorbed into the amoeba-like entity that is Windows. -- Randall Kennedy, as quoted in Steve Fox's Editor's Letter: Open source hippies and opinionated bloggers.
Careers: One reader writes in to Bob Lewis with comments about when to fire an irreplaceable employee and when not to. The critical difference, he argues, is tools versus keys; tools being skills that no one else in the company has. "There are lots of keys," Lewis explains. "Many confer significant political power. And in politics, while a bullet to the back of the head will usually cause the victim to lose power (but read the history books about the power of martyrs), it doesn't always transfer it to the shooter."
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 18, 2007 04:38 AM
September 17, 2007 | Comments: (0)
On Windows updates and software ownership
Best of the blogs: The question of exactly who owns the software on your fleet of PCs is now the heart of an issue that arose last week thanks in large part to Windows Updates that are apparently installed without user permission. "What I find most fascinating about the incident is what it reveals about the world of EULAs and DRM in which, at least if you listen to the software industry, we all now live," Ed Foster writes in this Gripe Line post. Even users who don't want automatic updates are getting them via stealthy downloads on the part of XP and Vista. And Microsoft's argument, Foster explains, is a Microsoft-knows-what's-best-for-you approach. "It would be easy for Redmond to make this crystal clear, but I guess just coming out and saying that Microsoft has the right to disable your computer at any time would be a little too blunt."
The news beat: Microsoft loses its appeal against the EU antitrust ruling and, as a result, must reveal interoperability information to other server vendors and offer a version of Windows without Media Player. Apple starts handing out $100 iPhone credits to customers who bought the device prior to Apple lowering the price. T-Mobile buys SunCom for its wireless networks in the southeastern U.S. and Caribbean. And Nokia scoops up Enpocket, a mobile advertiser that provides cell phone marketing technology and services.
Notes from the field: It's Prince v. YouTube in Cringe's latest, a Violet Video Vendetta. "The artists are revolting, and you can take my meaning however you choose," he begins. "Prince's handlers -- presumably the ones who OK'd his name change to that unpronounceable symbol in the mid-1990s -- are touting this as yet another brilliant innovation by the Minneapolis-born artist formerly known to his parents as Rogers Nelson," Cringe adds. "I dunno." Me neither.
Quoteworthy: Ok, this strikes me as weird. After so many years of bashing Microsoft and saying how other companies were foolish to sell Windows, Sun is now planning on reselling Windows. And Linux. And Solaris. Which they open source. And also sell as closed source. I'm not saying this is a bad strategy. Interoperability between Sun and Microsoft is a good objective, but it needs to be real, not just press releases and announcements. -- Zack Urlocker. Sun reselling Windows?
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 17, 2007 11:04 AM
September 17, 2007 | Comments: (0)
On Windows updates and software ownership
Best of the blogs: The question of exactly who owns the software on your fleet of PCs is now the heart of an issue that arose last week thanks in large part to Windows Updates that are apparently installed without user permission. "What I find most fascinating about the incident is what it reveals about the world of EULAs and DRM in which, at least if you listen to the software industry, we all now live," Ed Foster writes in this Gripe Line post. Even users who don't want automatic updates are getting them via stealthy downloads on the part of XP and Vista. And Microsoft's argument, Foster explains, is a Microsoft-knows-what's-best-for-you approach. "It would be easy for Redmond to make this crystal clear, but I guess just coming out and saying that Microsoft has the right to disable your computer at any time would be a little too blunt."
The news beat: Microsoft loses its appeal against the EU antitrust ruling and, as a result, must reveal interoperability information to other server vendors and offer a version of Windows without Media Player. Apple starts handing out $100 iPhone credits to customers who bought the device prior to Apple lowering the price. T-Mobile buys SunCom for its wireless networks in the southeastern U.S. and Caribbean. And Nokia scoops up Enpocket, a mobile advertiser that provides cell phone marketing technology and services.
Notes from the field: It's Prince v. YouTube in Cringe's latest, a Violet Video Vendetta. "The artists are revolting, and you can take my meaning however you choose," he begins. "Prince's handlers -- presumably the ones who OK'd his name change to that unpronounceable symbol in the mid-1990s -- are touting this as yet another brilliant innovation by the Minneapolis-born artist formerly known to his parents as Rogers Nelson," Cringe adds. "I dunno." Me neither.
Quoteworthy: Ok, this strikes me as weird. After so many years of bashing Microsoft and saying how other companies were foolish to sell Windows, Sun is now planning on reselling Windows. And Linux. And Solaris. Which they open source. And also sell as closed source. I'm not saying this is a bad strategy. Interoperability between Sun and Microsoft is a good objective, but it needs to be real, not just press releases and announcements. -- Zack Urlocker. Sun reselling Windows?
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 17, 2007 11:04 AM
September 17, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Microsoft loses bid to appeal European antitrust ruling, SCO files bankruptcy, OLPC raises price, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 17, 2007 09:20 AM
September 17, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Another kind of identity theft
Best of the blogs: Stupid people are not the only ones who fall prey to ID thieves. And there's more than one way to have yours lifted, as Nick Corcodilos found out when a spammer copied his newsletter, added an obscene line to the 'From' field along with a sex-related ad, then blasted it out. "Many actually believe I sent it to them, and they're pretty ticked off," Corcodilos explains in this Ask the headhunter entry. "I sit here wondering, if billions of dollars worth of commerce can be transacted over a wire, why don't we have secure e-mail? Without accountability, we are all at risk all the time."
Security: Striking on a similar theme, Roger Grimes writes "it is my strong belief that without a complete overhaul of default authentication, malicious hacking is going to continue indefinitely." Trust is key to Internet security. Yes, readers complained about the obvious invasion of privacy, Grimes concedes. "An even bigger obstacle is the need to upgrade and replace nearly every involved software and hardware component." That just means his idea won't come to fruition for another 10 to 20 years. "What we need is 'rings of trust' for Internet communications," he argues, beginning at the kernel-level and extending all the way out to all participating nodes. "Why are we continuing to allow the malicious minds of the Internet to use our online world as their perpetual bank account? Why don't we care enough to demand more?"
Careers: A reader writes in with a question about choosing the "best" MBA program. "There's no right answer. If you choose a path based on current employment market conditions, you'll inevitably be disappointed at the results," Bob Lewis advises. "The question you have to answer is which you'll most enjoy doing and for which of them you have the most aptitude."
Storage: Virtualization, no doubt, is all the rage these days. "Unfortunately, the complexity of virtualized environments, if left unchecked, could very well overwhelm ... hindering the enterprise's ability to make good on the promise," explains Mario Apicella in Corralling VMware virtual machines. "Or at least that's the value proposition put forth by Embotics, a newcomer to the virtualization party by way of autonomic computing." Embotics offers V-Commander, a management solution for VMware environments. "As a new product in a relatively untapped area, V-Commander will likely take time to mature." Related: VMworld Day 1 a virtual success and VMworld day 2 -- Cisco and exhibit halls.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 17, 2007 04:59 AM
September 14, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Will patents crush open source?
Best of the blogs: Whereas the GPL v3 has become quite contentious, with the likes of Linus Torvalds and Richard Stallman taking opposing views, software patents hold more potential to kill open source, Brad Shimmin maintains. "With companies like IBM winning more than 3,000 patents per year, you might imagine an 'idea crisis' on the horizon, where our world begins running low on totally unique, patentable ideas -- that is of course unless anything can be patented," Shimmin asserts in this Open Sources post. He adds that the U.S. Patent Office allows virtually any process, description or vague idea to be patented. And even companies pledging patents to open source only "amount to a drop in the bucket comparatively."
The news beat: Google on Friday plans to call for a transnational privacy standard that it hopes countries and companies will develop to address concerns about the handling of personal data. Nokia and others get behind a new flash memory standard, Universal Flash Storage, which purports to boost data transfer speeds and storage capacity. Salesforce.com says that on Monday it will take the wraps off a new capability that is, in effect, user-interface-as-a-service. And fears of a spending slowdown spook the IT sector and make investors nervous.
Gripe Line: "Is there any legal justification for stupid e-mail confidentiality notices?" Ed Foster asks in Reader voices: Disclaimer defense. You know, those boilerplates rampant at the bottom of messages originating from within big corporations. "The majority of readers share my disdain for all the long-winded legalese to be found at the end of so many e-mail messages." They are sometimes necessary, though, and considerable confusion abounds as to exactly when that is or how literally such disclaimers ought to be treated. "Since nobody can really be sure how the courts might rule on these things, that means for the time being you and I can be the judge." Related: Confidentiality, e-mail disclosures are just dumb.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 14, 2007 10:51 AM
September 14, 2007 | Comments: (0)
A clause in Google Docs and Spreadsheets user agreements causes controversy, Microsoft sends out secret updates, Yahoo accidentally blows the lid off its new social networking service, hackers release a free unlock for the iPhone, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 14, 2007 08:50 AM
September 14, 2007 | Comments: (0)
No SOA? Might face a lawsuit from shareholders
SOA: It's a question many in IT would not see coming, at least not now, but David Linthicum asks it nonetheless. Could lack of SOA drive shareholder lawsuits? Indeed, you read that right. Seems a bit far-fetched but, "shareholders are looking at enterprise architecture efficiencies, along with accounting and reporting practices," he reports. A bit surprising, perhaps, yet it makes perfect sense. "At issue is the fact that many major public companies don't have efficient enterprise architectures, and thus the business is unable to adapt to new market opportunities, reuse key IT assets, and [ultimately] provide the maximum return to shareholders." Related: BEA app server gets SOA, Web 2.0.
Virtualization: The VMware show is going on this week, and David Marshall reports live that Cisco CEO John Chambers predicts a second wave. As in, another round of innovation since the Internet, built on top of virtualization and the power of the network, creating new services and support models that will be driven by consumers, Marshall reports.
Best of the blogs: When it comes to systems and network monitoring, even big plans tend to fall short in the execution phase. "Most IT shops have purchased big iron monitoring tools that turned out to be larger projects than the IT team could bite off," Harper Mann writes in It's all about working together. Enter open source and monitoring experts. "Add some open source to kick start that delayed big iron project. The business wins as it gets benefit from a stalled investment. You win with a flexible and expandable solution with more capability than was originally spec'ed." Related: Our blogger covers Gartner's open source conference.
Video: A three-minute primer on ILM, or information lifecycle management, the "all-embracing strategy to deal with the ballooning quantity and variety of information flooding the enterprise." ILM is based on two concepts: not all data has the same value and whatever value it has changes over time. "Enterprise are applying information lifecycle management principles one application at a time." Watch it here.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 14, 2007 04:38 AM
September 13, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Governors to Congress: Increase H-1B cap
Best of the blogs: One dozen governors sent an open letter to Congressional leaders requesting that the Senate and House raise the number of H-1B and permanent visas, Ephraim Schwartz reports in this Reality Check post. Problem is, the letter offered no stats to back up the claim that we have a talent shortage. "If someone can show these governors the statistics that there is no shortage, rather the call for more H-1B visas is motivated by the desire for cheap labor will they take back their letter and say, never mind?
Green IT: With it's new Barcelona chip, AMD "has the potential to make green-tech-conscious datacenter operator cheer, 'Ole!'" writes Ted Samson in AMD lays down a green chip in Barcelona. The stand-out stat Mr. Samson came across is that, "despite the power boost, it effectively uses the same amount of energy and produces the same amount of heat as a two-core."
Columnist's corner: If you've ever felt like succumbing to the lure of startups was at all romantic and thought about doing so, David Margulius would like to set you straight. "Forget about it, I'm going to save you the trouble. It's not glamorous like that. Maybe energizing on some level -- but boy, it certainly ain't pretty," he writes in Meetup madness: Slumming it in startup land. And he knows, having spent the last few months attending such pow-wows, sharing beer with entrepreneurial folk, exchanging ideas. "Now maybe I just haven't gone to the right ones, but I've gone to enough that I'm starting to see some recurring themes." Eight, to be exact.
The news beat: Sun sells it will start selling Windows operating systems pre-installed on its 64-bit servers within 90 days. The ongoing, mind-blowing data explosion rocks IT, driven by business systems as well as cell phones, digital cameras and other devices. EMC could face a class-action discrimination and harassment lawsuit if a judge opens an existing case to other female workers. And Sun scoops up Cluster File Systems to gain the open source Lustre File System for an undisclosed sum.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 13, 2007 10:57 AM
September 13, 2007 | Comments: (0)
MS details changes Vista SP1 will bring to desktop search and indexing, U.S. court of appeals grants stay on import ban of handsets with Qualcomm chips, EMC could face sexual harassment suit, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 13, 2007 08:25 AM
September 13, 2007 | Comments: (0)
An old Microsoft bug back to haunt
App dev: After running into installation issues with Silverlight, Martin Heller heard back from Microsoft informing him that his template directories were not set to the default and, had they been, the Silverlight JavaScript application template would have installed properly. "My non-default directories were a result of being a Visual Studio 2005 alpha and beta tester. It's not like I changed them," he explains in Installing Silverlight 1.0: follow-up. "I don't have any need to play guinea pig for Microsoft, or any other software tools vendor, more than absolutely necessary."
Notes from the field: Vista moves in mysterious ways. That's according to Cringester J.J., who last week decided to upgrade from Home Premium to Ultimate. "I was browsing while eating my sandwich and noticed all but the default system icons disappear from my desktop, when I went to the Start menu (classic) I noticed several icons here were also missing as well as icons from the QuickLaunch toolbar," he writes. Cringe shifts gears, albeit slightly, to another curiosity. "Netflickers seeking instant gratification via Netflix' Watch Now movie downloads have been thwarted by Vista's DRM scheme, which pulls the velvet rope taut across Windows Media Player 11 and says 'I'm sorry, but you're not on the guest list.'" Related: Microsoft patents watermark technology that may lock down DRM-free music.
Careers: It's a question everyone should pose to themselves. Can you make the boss's eyes pop? "I have a stock question I ask all managers after I've spent a little time with them. What would you do if someone called you on the phone and said, 'I've long been interested in your company, and I've studied where you've been and where you're going,'" and here's how I can help. One manager, tired of hearing unimpressive answers during interviews, said he'd love to have just one candidate say that.
Best of the blogs: Bob Lewis offers mathematical proof that teams are more productive. Well, not exactly. "All I've heard is assertion and anecdote," he confesses. Then again, mathematicians might call it a Q.E.D. situation. "When work processes require cooperation among employees, those who know and trust each other will be able to spend more time and energy doing the work and less questioning and challenging each other."
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 13, 2007 04:55 AM
September 12, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Stupid Verizon cellphone tricks
Wireless: Having given up on acquiring an iPhone, Martin Heller explains that, instead, he upgraded his Verizon phone to the LG-VX8300. "This isn't the most attractive phone in the world, but it does what I want and works where I am," he writes in this Strategic Developer post. "If you want access to the picture, video, and sound directories, the solution is simple. Power down your phone and remove the microSD card. Put the microSD card into its SD adapter sleeve, and put that into your computer." Related: Verizon taps the FBI's criminal division chief as its CSO.
The news beat: Microsoft and Novell unveil a joint development lab that will focus on cross-platform virtualization, as well as document format translation. Online thugs assault security help sites with denial of service attacks to knock them offline. And Vodafone launches a smartphone modeled after Palm's Treo 750v, only at a fraction of the price and targeted at consumers.
From the Test Center: The great Office Server smorgasbord continues with part four. "Architecturally, Project Server 2007 runs a middle road between Office Groove Server 2007 and Office Forms Server 2007," Brian Chee and Oliver Rist explain. "Project Server is definitely its own entity, but one that can be enhanced in combination with SharePoint." Upgrading or installing, then connecting to a MOSS farm is somewhat laborious but the product does smarten your Project Server team work sites. "As a stand-alone upgrade to Project Server 2003, it's worth the trouble. Combined with SharePoint's capabilities, it can be downright amazing in its integration of project management functionality and tracking in projects that never had these benefits before." Read the full review.
Columnist's corner: Tom Yager presents "a point-by-point contrast between AMD's latest offering and Intel's new quad-core Xeon MP 7300-series CPU," in Battle of the chip giants. If you don't care about the differences then Yager boils it down. "It really depends on your workload. If you run four or fewer processes of 8MB or less on your Xeon MP server, then you're good to go. Otherwise, Opteron will prove more scalable."
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 12, 2007 11:04 AM
September 12, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Microsoft and Novell unveil joint development lab, MS wins patent for DRM, details of Palm’s new smartphone seep out, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 12, 2007 07:37 AM
September 12, 2007 | Comments: (0)
SOA: With the freshly-minted BizTalk Server 2006 R2, the cornerstone of its SOA strategy, Microsoft is "just taking advantage of their captive market to convince them that SOA is all about the Microsoft platforms and not about architectural advantage," espouses Dave Rosenberg in this Open Sources post. Related podcast: More data points about SOA productivity and value.
Best of the blogs: Feeling uneasy about all those unholy partnerships cropping up in the tech sector these days? Then Brad Shimmin has some advice: get used to it. "As in nature, inside the Beltway, and on Survivor, a strange alliance is usually behind success," he writes. "Of course, who knows what evil lurks in the heart of any corporation? But one thing is for sure: If there are no unselfish acts, then both parties in any acquisition or partnership are in it for themselves and their respective communities."
Columnist's corner: "Outsourcing and offshoring are not just for IT services and business processes anymore," Ephraim Schwartz begins R&D sets sail for offshore. It's a small, intrepid group at this point, though the concept is hardly new, even if the software industry has been slow to adopt it. "But now, thanks in part to SOA outsourcers' ability to deliver components to ISVs, software companies are beginning to catch on to this development strategy -- one that engineering companies such as Ford, Boeing, and Nortel practice routinely."
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 12, 2007 04:36 AM
September 11, 2007 | Comments: (0)
The genius that is Apple's iPhone rebate
Best of the blogs: News that Apple sold its millionth iPhone sparked Ephraim Schwartz to wonder: Was the iPhone price cut and rebate part of an ingenious marketing plan? "They are giving back $100 on every iPhone sold that means they are losing $100 million dollars. That has to be more than chump change even for Apple," he writes in this Reality Check post. "Well, things are not always as they seem."
Columnist's corner: A look back at the best of Off The Record, our anonymous blog penned by readers -- and one of our most popular. These favorites include, among others, "The ghost in the mainframe," and "How many techs does it take to turn on a computer?" And, a call to action: Tell us your real-world IT tale or horror story and, if we publish it, we'll send a payment of $50 along with a slick new t-shirt.
The news beat: Adobe and BEA band together to inject rich Internet applications with SOA and Web 2.0 capabilities by bundling Adobe's Flex Builder 2 with BEA's Workshop Studio. A California group requests a five-year extension of Microsoft antitrust judgment, the middleware portions of the ruling specifically, because Microsoft still retains a huge lead in the OS and browser realms. With a new point release, Sun is accommodating Linux in Solaris via its Containers functionality. And Fujitsu guards corporate PCs with a new version of its Palm Secure log-in.
Careers: Bob Lewis offers Government by the numbers 3,1,3,4 in response to a reader inquiring for some advice about making the switch from private enterprise to a county organization. "What you probably need to adjust are your expectations," Lewis explains. "That isn't because you now work for a government entity. It's because you work for a different entity."
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 11, 2007 10:56 AM
September 11, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Adobe and BEA partner to inject rich Internet apps with SOA, Web 2.0. Also, patent overhaul legislation faces opposition as it heads toward U.S. Senate, Intel upgrades revenue forecast, and more LISTEN!
Posted by Tom Sullivan on September 11, 2007 08:13 AM
September 11, 2007 | Comments: (0)
Special report: Web-hosted office suites, it appears, are here for good. Some customers have benefited greatly from them already. "Thousands of organizations, large and small, are researching and implementing hosted office suites as alternatives to pricier, traditional options, like Microsoft Office, designed to live in PC hard drives," Juan Carlos Perez of the IDG Ne