Research house Aberdeen Group just released its list of the "
Top
100 Most Influential Technology Vendors for 2008."
I scrolled through the list, nodding my head as I read that Microsoft was No.
1 and IBM, Cisco and HP all made the top 10. I was surprised, though, that Oracle
was No. 2, two full places ahead of IBM. Huh? And Google not in the top 10?
Hey, I think Google is overrated, but come on!
After reading all 100 names, something wasn't right. There was no VMware. So
I read the list again. Still couldn't find it. I went through it two more times.
Still, it was nowhere to be found. Servigistics (they do service management)
is on the list, but not VMware?
Maybe I'll send the folks at Aberdeen a big box of napkins to wipe all the
egg off their faces.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 19, 20080 comments
XP SP3 has wreaked a fair bit of havoc on a small number of machines. Apparently,
some HP (and some other AMD) machines
can't
stop rebooting when SP3 is installed.
Looks like an ex-Microsoft employee still has a soft spot for end users and
just released
a fix that can be installed before the service pack, eliminating the incessant
boots. Our hats should all be tipped in Jesper Johansson's direction.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 19, 20080 comments
Last
week, Doug wrote about Microsoft's attempt to limit the capabilities on
low-end computers that will run XP past its official retirement. Does this leave
developing countries with third-rate technology? Here are some of your thoughts:
I think the problem of the computers being third-rate depends on how
locked-down the systems are. If they can be upgraded by the user (memory and
processor), then it will be a good way for anybody to get a cheap PC and XP
and upgrade the hardware.
-Jim
The low-end XP computer would probably provide a more "enhanced user
experience" than one of our pokey top-of-the-line Vista machines.
-Jeff
Speaking of Vista, readers took the announcement of XP's impending retirement
as a change to air their complaints about the new OS:
Microsoft still has to deal with organizations like mine that will NOT
move to Vista without a guarantee of more manageability. We have recently
bought licenses for XP and intend to install it on any new PCs that are purchased.
I work for a school district; maybe Ballmer can explain to the tax payers
in this district why we should spend perhaps millions to re-invent our very
large network to accommodate his OS.
-Alan
Let's face it. MS and the HW vendors want us to move and spend more money.
Vista does not provide any value except for MS shareholders, thus the big
push back saying don't move to Vista. Why should we, except to spend money
for whatever reason. I've read hundreds of articles and fought with Vista
for 12 months, and I can't find a single positive note.
This is a good PR position for MS (warm and fuzzy), but the fundamental problem
still exists. The MAMS created a mess with Vista and there really is no going
back for MS as it has spent too much money and time building an Edsel (remember
Ford's big new car?). Except Ford was smart enough to move on.
-Rick
Microsoft is falling apart at the seams. All the signs are there. I think
it needs to reevaluate a large number of things, and plan to gracefully level
out as a still-profitable company before it really screw things up. The Vista
thing reminds me of the "Coke Classic" thing, and I hope that Microsoft
comes to its senses soon.
-Tom
Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on May 19, 20080 comments
USB drives are clearly cool, and clearly getting cheap. My dad wears one around
his neck with all his important files. He knows the files are safe and, as long
as he can commandeer a PC, he can use them.
MokaFive is taking that concept one
step further: Put your files, yours apps and your OS on one honking thumb
drive. This way, your full environment is always with you.
If this catches on, MokaFive execs see a day when inexpensive PCs are nearly
everywhere -- your hotel room, lobbies, wherever. All you do is plug in the
drive and that plain, old, vanilla PC turns into your own personal computing
servant.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 19, 20080 comments
I've always liked Microsoft executive Jeff Raikes. Back in the '80s and early
'90s, it was nothing to have dinner, lunch or just a simple sit-down with everyone
from Gates to Ballmer to Raikes. You get to know a person over a plate or two
of Thai food, and Raikes impressed me as being a straight-shooting, overall
nice guy, and a man who could make Mensa members feel stupid.
This year, Raikes announced that he's leaving Microsoft. But he ain't going
very far: Raikes will be the new
CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
This is a perfect move. The Gates Foundation doesn't just write a bunch of
checks; it carefully researches how the money could do the most good. It takes
a smart man to spend Bill's money, and Raikes is just the guy for the job.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 15, 20080 comments
Microsoft has plans to
retire
XP in favor of Vista in the relatively near future, but it will ship XP
for years to come on
low-cost
PCs aimed at developing countries.
Apparently, though, Microsoft wants to make sure these PCs don't cut into Vista
PC sales. It's requiring
OEMs to make these XP machines with no more than a gig of RAM, an 80GB hard
drive or less, and a processor that pokes along at 1GHz or less.
I can understand this rationale, but it means that when it comes to PCs, the
Third World will also be third-rate -- and that's not too fair. Agree? Disagree?
Shoot me your thoughts at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on May 15, 20080 comments
Microsoft just can't seem to lose. If Vista doesn't catch on, sell XP instead.
If the Mac market picks up, make money on Office!
Microsoft says Office 2008 for the Mac is its best-selling
Mac suite ever. No wonder Microsoft remains committed to this product line.
In fact, Microsoft has given Office for the Mac some
serious tweaks, in the form of better integration with Exchange (Redmond
magazine artists and managing editors will be happy with this!) and improved
overall printing. Microsoft also promises to bring back Visual Basic for Applications
(VBA), the souped-up macro language.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 15, 20080 comments
HP is aiming to
scoop
up EDS for a cool $14 billion or so. HP is already cleaning up in servers,
and has a sweet PC and laptop business. And no one can touch it in printers.
But today's complex market requires services -- lots of services.
IBM's service business is the biggest and most influential by far. It can help
companies take a top-to-bottom look at its infrastructure and redo the datacenter
with a more flexible and power-saving architecture. HP can do the exact same
thing, but lacks the sheer muscle of the IBM group.
EDS could change all that in a heartbeat. My only concern is in blending the
cultures which, given Ross Perot's legacy -- he may have sold EDS to GM in 1984,
but his influence lingers on -- are very different.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 14, 20080 comments
Critics love to beat up on Microsoft for its security. But in its defense, Redmond
is clearly the biggest and most fun hacker target. It also has a ton of products.
So it makes sense that holes will be found and attacks mounted.
Microsoft, at least once a month, discloses (and closes) these holes in
a very public way. Meanwhile, the Web has no Patch Tuesday, and consequently
its holes can stay open for a long, long time.
In fact, according to security concern Cenzic, some 70 percent of the Web apps
it looked at lacked
secure communications. Two-thirds of these apps were deemed "easily
exploitable." In many cases, there's no system in place or real plan to
improve Web security and plug holes. The two biggest vulnerabilities, Cenzic
reported, are SQL injections and cross-site scripting.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 14, 20080 comments
Carl Icahn loves to make mischief. He buys just enough stock to have leverage,
then forces large companies to do his bidding, pocketing billions in the process.
Now, sitting
on 3.6 percent of Yahoo's shares, Icahn is reportedly looking to ditch the
board of directors for a group that's more amenable to a Microsoft bid. Icahn
likely bought at least a portion of Yahoo stock after it fell
in the wake of the failed Microsoft takeover. A new bid would, by definition,
be a premium over the current price -- and Icahn keeps the difference.
Here's the rub: Microsoft just publicly said it's no
longer interested in Yahoo and plans to attack the Internet alone. Can Microsoft
change its tune just because Icahn forms a friendly board? If that were to happen,
then all those words about independence from Gates and Ballmer have no meaning.
That doesn't sound like the Bill and Steve that I know.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 14, 20080 comments
Tomorrow should already be on your -- or one of your minions' -- schedule,
so you won't forget to patch your Windows and client PCs. Luckily, this month
is pretty light with a
scant
four patches.
Microsoft Word tops the list with a remote execution exploit just begging to
be fixed. Publisher also gets a plug (write me at [email protected]
if you're one of the few that actually use this program). Lastly, the Jet Database
Engine gets one of its flaws un-flawed.
How does your shop patch? Manually? A patch management tool? A combo? Any advice
for would-be patchers? Write me at [email protected]
and I'll pass it along.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 12, 20080 comments
Virtualization can be a confusing area to understand. By its very definition,
virtualization is an abstract endeavor. And with the ability to virtualize everything
from PCs to servers to mainframes to storage to files and I/O, no wonder so
many are perplexed.
Just the client alone is filled with many ways to virtualize. You can turn
a PC into multiple PCs with PC virtualization. You can isolate an app from the
registry through application virtualization. You can stream apps from a server
to a PC through application streaming or desktop virtualization.
Tom Valovic, a longtime IDC analyst who just joined Virtualization
Review, recently dissected the world of client virtualization in a recent
blog posting. Now I think I almost understand it. This guy is going to be
really good!
Posted by Doug Barney on May 12, 20080 comments