458 Topics
PCWorld announces new blog: [URL="http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/160445/welcome_to_linuxlink.html"]LinuxLink[/URL]. Wow, it's only taken PCWorld a mere 10 years to come up with this fantastic brainchild. I'm impressed. There's nothing quite like being on the leading edge of technological advances like Linux. I hope their rapid move in this obtuse new direction doesn't singe their …
Do my eyes deceive me or did [URL="http://www.redhat.com"]Red Hat[/URL] just deliver its own smackdown on the virtualization community today? I was wondering when they were going to offer a solution that combined their new acquistion, Qumranet and the KVM product. I don't have to wait any longer. The products, including …
You read that title correctly; XenServer is free. Free as in advice--since I've never seen any of this free beer of which the Open Source Community speaks so freely. And, yes, this [B]is[/B] breaking news. [URL="http://www.citrix.com"]Citrix[/URL] made XenServer free as of Feb 23, 2009 12:01am EST. This exciting announcement is …
This is what we're going to see for the next year or two: Strategic Partnerships. A couple of days ago, Red Hat signed one of these partnership deals with Microsoft in what I call "A deal with the devil." Microsoft and Red Hat have slung mud, insults and accusations at …
Do you need 10 reasons to use Linux-based virtualization? Linux is the chosen virtualization platform for Cloud vendors, virtualization software companies and the largest IT companies in the world. What do they know that you don't? Here's the list of 10 reasons in reverse order (Actually there's no particular order …
What's more stable than a rock, faster than a spinning disk, more powerful than a Windows system twice its size, and able to leap platforms like no other operating system? Surprise! It's Linux. It's also recession proof. Can that be true? Yes, and here are the 5 reasons why: [B]1. …
There's only one company that doesn't use Linux for its server virtualization platform. Can you guess which one it is? If you guessed [URL="http://www.microsoft.com"]Microsoft[/URL], you're correct. [URL="http://www.microsoft.com/virtualization"]Microsoft[/URL] is a newbie in the virtualization space but wants in and may make significant dents in the already well-established market that is significantly …
Linux will continue its soaring success in 2009. Yes, Linux is free and free is good but what about its other advantages over commercial Unix flavors and Windows? Here are the top seven reasons why Linux will continue to smash the competition in the face of the economy, the Cloud, …
Everyone wants to know what's going to happen in the new year as if anyone can accurately predict these things. However, one can deduce, with reasonable accuracy, that there will be innovations that are designed to get our attention. This is my list of Linux-oriented predictions for 2009. [B]The keyword …
Welcome to the new series, Seven Ways From Sunday, that replaces the Crystal Ball Sunday Series. This new series focuses on a single aspect of IT management from an "in the trenches" point-of-view. Being in list format, it will help you, the busy professional, quickly absorb and assess necessary information. …
An new [URL="http://www.deloitte.com/dtt/press_release/0,1014,sid%253D2834%2526cid%253D237066,00.html"]study[/URL] by London-based Deloitte and the Cranfield School of Management validates what CIOs have known all along: "You're out of the loop, and when we want your opinion we'll tell you what it is." CIOs are caught in a tough situation right now. Technology is emerging at a …
Fedora releases usually generate more yawns than a Ben Affleck movie for me but this time, they've gone the extra mile. I placed Fedora at number 7 in my [URL="http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry3322.html"]10 Best Linux Distributions[/URL] post but now that I've seen Fedora 10, I may have to reorder the list and place …
John Tu is the President and Co-founder of Kingston Technology which just happens to be one of the biggest providers of memory products on the planet, so when he talks about trends and developments in the memory market a lot of people start listening. Especially when he does so against …
Has your IT budget just taken a big hit for 2009? Many have. These desperate times call for desperate measures but don't worry these measures aren't nearly so desperate and they just might help you fix that ailing IT budget. All you need is a little creative thinking and some …
Barrons has a great article today on how tech industry chief information officers and chief financial officers can't keep up with the free-fall in consumer spending. That's why we're seeing so many downward adjustments in industry revenue estimates that, right now, seem to be spread way out into 2009. The …
There's plenty of speculation that the current state of the economy will [URL="http://ostatic.com/158388-blog/recession-a-boon-for-open-sourcess"]greatly benefit open source technology[/URL], and you know an idea is taking root when mainstream IT conferences include presentations about implementing FOSS solutions in enterprise. Desmond Atkinson, with UK-based capacity planning firm [URL="http://www.metron.co.uk/"]Metron Technology Limited[/URL], plans to lead …
Mainframes (MF) in the news again? Can it be or did I just wake up in 1980 all over again? It's true (the Mainframe part not 1980) that we are now looking backward for our future in virtualization and Cloud Computing using Linux as the delivery system. Mainframes have a …
Which hypervisor performs better, [url=http://www.xen.org/]Xen[/url] or VMware's [url=http://www.vmware.com/products/vi/esx/]ESX[/url]? That apparently depends on which organization you ask. But for a team that's tasked with choosing a virtualization platform, some impartial data would sure be helpful. "That's where we come in," said Michael Salsburg, director of the [url=http://www.cmg.org]Computer Measurement Group[/url], a non-profit …
I guess no one ever asked before--maybe no one cares--or maybe it just isn't discussed. While at VMWorld, I asked a major virtualization vendor representative if they had implemented VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) in their Enterprise. The answer I got is shocking to me. Maybe someone should have asked before. …
VMWorld's third day came complete with discussions of the pros and cons of VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure), Virtual Appliances, and the biggest party I've ever seen at the Las Vegas Speedway. VDI is this year's hot topic at VMWorld but I suspect that it's embers will die before VMWorld 2009. …
As promised, here's the big news hot off the pressroom floor. [URL="http://www.cisco.com"]Cisco[/URL] and [URL="http://www.vmware.com"]VMware[/URL] announced at [URL="http://www.vmworld.com"]VMWorld[/URL] 2008, in Las Vegas that they are entering into a partnership that highlights three main areas: ** The Cisco Nexus 1000V Product will be available as an add-on module for VMware ESX. ** …
VMware yesterday unveiled a [url=http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry3170.html]series of solutions[/url] yesterday--its Virtual Datacenter OS and related products--that I personally believe are a gigantic advance not just for IT administrators, but for software developers and testers too. And that's just the beginning. The company also introduced a new way of packaging applications with the …
Here is the big announcement I promised you from VMWorld. [URL="http://www.mokafive.com"]MokaFive[/URL], a Desktop Virtualization company, originally created Desktop VMs (Virtual Machines) that reside on a USB flash drive. Now, MokaFive takes Desktop virtualization to the next level: Your Desktop on your phone. [INDENT][COLOR="Green"]MokaFive specializes in mobile desktop virtualization – meaning, …
Making what now seems like the next logical step for operating system evolution, VMware today told the world about [url=http://www.vmware.com/technology/virtual-datacenter-os/]Virtual Datacenter OS[/url], which it positions as a way to "pool all types of hardware resources--servers, storage and network--into an aggregated on-premise cloud." The solution gives enterprise administrators flexibility and options …
Next week, September 15-18, brings us the biggest Virtualization event in North America and your Linux guy will be there with bells on. I'll be there in my new freelance reporter capacity as [URL="http://www.linux-mag.com"]Linux Magazine's[/URL] Virtualization Columnist/Editor. You can expect blog posts and possibly some breaking news from the conference …
Desktop virtualization got a boost last week when [URL="http://www.redhat.com"]Red Hat, Inc.[/URL] purchased [URL="http://www.qumranet.com"]Qumranet[/URL], an Israeli Open Source company that specializes in virtualization solutions. Its product offerings include KVM (Kernel Virtual Machine), Solid ICE, and SPICE. This acquisition brings Red Hat into head-on competition with such virtualization vendors as VMware and …
There were quite a few interesting stories to come out of the recent [URL="https://www.blackhat.com/"]Black Hat[/URL] security conference in Las Vegas. If all you remember hearing about were the [URL="http://www.periscopeit.co.uk/news/article/web-monitoring-gets-hack-hackers-into-trouble/255"]ejected reporters[/URL] and [URL="http://www.cio.com.au/index.php/id;424905265"]DNS cache poisoning[/URL], then you missed a lot. Network and infrastructure security, the conference's focus, is a vitally important …
The [URL="http://www.linuxfoundation.org"]Linux Foundation [/URL]announced today that [URL="http://www.canonical.com"]Canonical, Inc.[/URL], commercial sponsor of Ubuntu Linux, joined its fold to become the latest supporter of the expansion of Linux into the business sector. Recently, many big commercial software companies have joined the Linux Foundation including [URL="http://www.adobe.com"]Adobe[/URL] and [URL="http://www.vmware.com"]VMware[/URL]. [INDENT][COLOR="Green"]“Canonical is an important new …
Major players in the laptop computer market go virtual with Linux. [URL="http://www.hp.com"]HP[/URL], [URL="http://www.lenovo.com"]Lenovo[/URL], and now [URL="http://www.dell.com"]Dell[/URL] offer laptops that have a Linux Mode. Linux Mode in the Dell Latitude line offers the user a minimal environment where one can surf the web, check email, and perform a few other tasks. …
Virtualization tools company Xenocode today is set to begin shipping an update to Postbuild 2008 for .NET, which enables developers to deploy .NET applications to systems that do not have the .NET framework installed or have a mismatched version. The update adds support for .NET 3.0 and 3.5, Visual Studio …
Welcome to Crystal Ball Sunday #8! Today's discussion focuses on Virtual Appliances which are small virtual machines designed for a very specific purpose. There are Virtual Appliance Email servers, VPN servers, Firewalls, Routers, Dial-in servers, DNS servers, CMS application servers, and the list goes on and on. I had this …
It wasn't due for another six weeks or so, but today Microsoft surprised many folk by starting to sell its new Hyper-V server virtualisation software. Microsoft had repeatedly told anyone who asked, and anyone who was listening, that it would be released in August. However, Microsoft customers were alerted to …
Red Hat announced a new bare-metal [I]hypervisor[/I] technology last week at the Red Hat Summit in Boston. It is based on KVM (Kernel-Based Virtual Machine) technology and actually has been included in Linux kernel version 2.6.20 and up. This announcement has some Red Hat and virtualization proponents wondering why Red …
Welcome to Crystal Ball Sunday #6. This week I'm exploring the possibility of Linux becoming the operating system of choice for virtualization--specifically Desktop Virtualization. Regardless of which operating system or desktop type one uses, Linux will be the underlying operating system that gets you there. Way back in 2002, I …
Last month I [URL=http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry2473.html]wrote about Xenocode[/URL]’s Virtual Application Studio, which lets you package and launch apps in a portable runtime regardless of what’s installed underneath. But if doing business with an unknown company leaves you feeling faklempt, you might kvell over news this week from VMware. The company best known …
Where do you want to go in a few months? Windows 7? You'd be better off converting to Vista before holding your breath for that one. The Linux world keeps releasing new versions of its vendor-customized Operating System while the Windows world keeps waiting for more and more promises. While …
Virtualization of operating systems is all the rage these days; the benefits to software developers and testers are clear. What if you could virtualize applications? According to [URL=http://www.xenocode.com/]Xenocode[/URL], you can. The company today released [URL=http://www.xenocode.com/Products/Studio/]Virtual Application Studio[/URL], a US$40-per-seat environment that turns an application into a self-contained executable, able to …
The highly-anticipated release of Fedora 9 is here! It has the new KDE4 desktop that I [URL="http://www.linuxplanet.com/linuxplanet/reviews/6464/"]reviewed[/URL] on LinuxPlanet which makes some big improvements in user experience and speed. It also includes the hot new [URL="http://www.linuxplanet.com/linuxplanet/reviews/6467/"]FireFox 3[/URL] web browser with some new security features that are sure to impress even …
This is the first post in my new series called Crystal Ball Sunday. These Sunday posts are where I take out my Linux, and related technology, crystal ball and give you my predictions for the coming months. This week I am focusing on corporate conversion to Linux. I foresee companies …
There is a recent trend amongst those who’ve implemented virtualization solutions: Complaints about the costs. Why, they wonder, have they spent more on virtualization when it's supposed to be cheaper? Virtualization is greener in terms of power consumption, space, and cooling but don’t look for a lot of green to …
When he took the reins almost two years ago, new Novell President and CEO Ronald Hovsepian, was going to lead the charge in driving the Linux acceptance and conversion. Recently he said that the Desktop Linux market, in the next 3 to 5 years, is mainly enterprise-related and that the …
Businesses are snapping their wallets shut, at least when it comes to software spending - usually a good leading indicator of economic growth. One key benchmark, the ChangeWave corporate software spending survey, has seen a shift into negative territory for the first time in years. In its January, 2008 survey …
While there is no doubting that virtualization is not only a technology to watch, but one that will move into the mainstream real soon now, there remains a question of just how soon that will actually be. A new survey by [URL="http://www.emedia.co.uk"]emedia[/URL] suggests that the timescale for making that move, …
Add SuSE to the list of operating systems going to be offered by Dell as they ally with Novell and Microsoft to sell their server software. Planning on selling both SuSE SLES (SuSE Linux Enterprise Server) and Microsoft's Windows Server, Dell broadens their offering of solutions, hoping to increase their …
IBM has today announced the availability of an [URL="http://ibm.com/systems/p/Linux/systempave.html"]open beta version[/URL] of its virtual Linux environment to enable x86 Linux applications to run without modification on POWER processor-based IBM System p servers. Designed to reduce power, cooling and space by consolidating x86 Linux workloads on System p servers, it will …
Red Hat's been the king of Linux for a while -- but as of lately, it's been quite some time since they released an update to their enterprise edition of their distribution, RHEL. 2 years in fact. Now, Red Hat has finally released a new version of RHEL: REHL 5. …
VMWare has finally jumped on the Intel Mac virtualization bandwagon by releasing [URL="http://www.vmware.com/whatsnew/macsignupform.html"]VMWare Fusion[/URL], a program that competes with Parallels' previously released [URL="http://www.parallels.com/en/products/desktop/"]Parallels Workstation for Mac[/URL]. VMWare has previously had virtulization products available for Linux and Windows, but this is the first time that they've released the workstation product for …
About five years ago the BBC carried a news story about a chap in Australia who had taken advantage of a new law which meant that patent applications only needed to innovation rather than invention. He registered a patent application for something known as a ‘circular transportation facilitation device’ or …
So lately the Apple Fanboys have been talking about this software called Parallels which can emulate Windows inside of Mac OS X. However is this really good or bad for Apple? In the short term I would say yes, but in terms of long term success Microsoft will be hands …
VMware has bashed Microsofts partnership with XenSource and upcoming opensource virtualization software company. They are saying that is a "one way street" and that they are betraying their opensource roots. The deal allows better intergration for para-virtualization of Windows on the Xen software. I find this odd seeing as how …
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