Interoperability as a state of mind

By Sean McGrath

In my line of work I regularly have to deal with issues related to the interoperability of file formats. Information in format A needs to be converted to format B because application A is being replaced by application B ... That sort of thing.

In such scenarios, the first question invariably relates to file format A. Is it open or closed? Is it binary or textual? Is there an API? What coverage is provided by the API? That sort of thing. In earlier years, I used to read too much into the existence of file format documentation and the existence of plain text formats. It got me into trouble sometimes.

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Smaller, Cooler Blades

By James Gaskin

I drove to Houston a couple of weeks ago to see HP, and take a tour of their factory where servers are stuffed into racks and cabinets. Let me start by talking about their new blade servers, and next week I'll tell you about my Factory Express tour.

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Managed printer services can help make your customer a customer for life

By Joel Shore

For those of us old enough to remember, the big switch from DOS to Windows computing brought with it an enormous increase in the amount of paper we wasted (er, consumed). As the old adage went, "if you want to look good, use Windows. If you want it today, use DOS."

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The inevitability of cruft

By Sean McGrath

The word 'cruft' is a truly excellent word. From the moment the subject of this article entered my head, I knew I wanted to use it in the title. Now I have a dangerous habit of using words because they sound right at the time, even if they are not the right words in the sense of their meaning. Needless to say this can be a problem. Call it a character flaw. I thought it expedient to hit the dictionaries on 'cruft' just to be sure.

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Ebay and fee hikes: No longer for small-time entrepreneurs?

By Dan Blacharksi

One of the things I've always liked about the Internet is that it created a venue for small-time entrepreneurs who wouldn't otherwise be able to compete. For a few bucks a month, anyone can rent a little corner of cyberspace and set up shop. Companies like eBay came onto the scene early in the online retail picture, creating an infrastructure that allowed very small micro-businesses to flourish. But while it did create a lot of micro-businesses, eBay itself grew into a very large macro-business, and like larger businesses tend to do, they forgot about the little guy that made them so big in the first place.

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IT control: From good to great

Results from the IT Controls Benchmark survey, published by the IT Process Institute, demonstrate how IT organizations can begin to move from good to great when handling IT control issues. In this interview, Gene Kim, co-founder of the independent research institute, shares the two top controls that are more universally present in high performers and virtually absent everywhere else.

Security in practice: How to steal $1.2 billion

Information security is no better than the policies, procedures, and personnel you have in place. In this interview, Fred Cohen, an early and principal inventor of computer virus defense techniques and author of the popular 'Chief Information Security Officer's Toolkit' series of books, discusses the fundamentals of information protection and where the biggest holes are.

A Webby Wedding

By Sean McGrath

As it happens, I am writing this on One Web Day. Today would be a perfect day to reflect on how the Web has changed my life and write about it. I am feeling a little contrarian so I won't do that. As it happens, I am also writing this the day before I am due to be guest at a wedding that takes place in my home town. Today would be a perfect day to plan ahead and get ready for it. I won't do that either. Instead, I will consume some minutes thinking about what a truly web-enabled wedding might look like. Perhaps not this year, but perhaps some time soon.

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Vista vacuum blowback

By James Gaskin

My Vista Budget Vacuum column got Slashdotted, so 500 plus message replies alternate between calling me an idiot and a genius. Unfortunately, the Slashdot headline made it sound like the cost estimates were for just Vista. My point is that Vista is the engine pulling a long train of other products and services some vice presidents will demand. Those are the ones that cost money.

I learned three interesting things.

To print or not to print, that is the question

By Sean McGrath

What is the first thought that enters your head when you click on a link in a web page and a PDF document opens up on front of you? My first thought generally is "do I really want to read this?" followed by "how many pages is this thing anyway?" followed by "I'll print it now and read it later." I find that I have developed a survival tactic while browsing which goes something like this.

Security basics: Why process matters

'The best technology in the world, not used properly, becomes completely worthless and works against you because it gives you a false sense of security,' says Ira Winkler, author of Spies Among Us and President of Internet Security Advisor's Group. In this interview, Winkler discusses why security is primarily a process issue.

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Remembering Ray Noorda; we all owe him an enormous debt of gratitude

By Joel Shore

It's not often that I write what amounts to an obituary. But on this day it's appropriate to take a moment to pause and reflect on the contributions that Ray Noorda made to this industry.

Raymond J. Noorda, former CEO of Novell, died on October 10, 2006 at the age of 82, following a lengthy battle with Alzheimer's disease.

Though Novell today is barely a shadow of its former self, we should not quickly lose sight of the accomplishments of Ray Noorda and what he did to advance desktop computing and Ethernet-based networking. We all owe him a debt of gratitude.

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Open Source Enterprise IM

By James Gaskin

Corporate policies notwithstanding, some users in over 90 percent of all large companies still use public Instant Message clients when they shouldn't. AIM, MSN, Yahoo, and the new GoogleTalk tempt users to ignore corporate security rules, as if they needed more encouragement. Jive Software (.com) approached this problem from an interesting angle: free Open Source software for corporate IM use.

The hundred dollar laptop and the Third World

By Dan Blacharski

While many of those hundred dollar laptops will benefit kids from poor villages, it's a pretty sure bet that at least some of them will end up for sale in markets. By all means, the project should still go forth, but with the unfortunate realization that some of the goods are going
to slip through the cracks and into the black market.

To print or not to print, that is the question

By Sean McGrath

What is the first thought that enters your head when you click on a link in a web page and a PDF document opens up on front of you? My first thought generally is "do I really want to read this?" followed by "how many pages is this thing anyway?" followed by "I'll print it now and read it later." I find that I have developed a survival tactic while browsing which goes something like this.

Blade servers: Not your typical server technology

The old days of proprietary, incompatible hardware are giving way to a new model based on blade servers, which are inexpensive, standards-based and highly scalable. In this video presentation, Peter Burris of Simpler IT and Dave Vellante of Barometrix quantify in specific terms the value blades bring to organizations both large and small.

Topics covered include:
- What blade servers are
- How they can generate business value
- How blade technology improves application delivery and service level management

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The Vista Budget Vacuum

By James Gaskin

Strange times indeed when the stock market analysts hope a new Microsoft operating system will counteract the declining housing market, but that's the hope of some for next fall. If your company plans to play the Vista game, start cooking your books now.

Interview: MySQL CEO sees 'invisible hand' at work

What's the link between eighteenth-century Scottish philosopher Adam Smith, often regarded as the father of modern economics, and the open-source software movement? According to Marten Mickos, the chief executive officer of open-source database company MySQL AB, it's Smith's concept of an "invisible hand," which guides individuals pursuing their own betterment to achieve goals that also benefit society at large. In this interview, Mickos talks about the invisible hand at work in the open-source community, the open-source business model and what lies ahead for MySQL. Continue...

Innovation thru constraint

By Sean McGrath

This morning I had a thought which was roughly speaking, fifty percent interesting and fifty percent horrifying. Actually no. That latter fifty percent should be split into twenty five percent for horror and twenty five percent for depression. Actually no, that twenty five percent for depression should be split...Maybe this would be easier if I just explained what the thought was? I think so. Then the complex mix of emotions I experienced should hopefully be self explanatory.

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Mulcahy: Innovation, services key for Xerox

Even after laying off almost one third of Xerox's workforce and pushing into services and "smart" digital document management technology, Chairman and CEO Anne Mulcahy has her work cut out, as IT investors look for top line growth before they get more excited about the company. In this interview, Mulcahy talks about smart documents, head count, and winning the innovation game.