Opinion

Dealing with a smelly co-worker

When a colleague has an odor, dealing with the situation requires both directness and delicacy.

Universities announce virtual clusters project called SnowFlock

A new university research project called SnowFlock was announced on the Xen dev list. SnowFlock lets you clone Xen VMs into dozens of identical replicas running in different hosts.

Dell delivering quite a punch with its virtualization expansion

Dell attempts to simplify virtualization with a number of new releases with EqualLogic, new blade servers, new network and storage I/O offerings, and two new OEM announcements with PlateSpin and Vizioncore.

Sun expanding its virtualization portfolio with xVM Server

Sun continues to expand its virtualization portfolio with the addition of Sun xVM Server and its management product Ops Center 2.0. The company is showcasing its desktop to datacenter virtualization solutions at VMworld this week.

An HP OS to rival Windows? Unnh…

Martin recalls that the Windows NT group came to Microsoft from DEC, which later merged into HP — but he still doesn't believe that today's HP could pull this off, and challenges HP to prove him wrong.

It’s not so easy being green

Where is your old computer? Under the bed? In the garage? Maybe today is the day to donate or recycle it?

When worlds (and particles) collide

What happens when atoms collide at the speed of light? People get really stupid. Cringely takes on the Large Hadron Collider and its torch holding, pitchfork wielding critics.

Ubuntu gets ready for its close up

Mark Shuttleworth says it will take 2 years for Linux to catch up to the Mac

Data generation made easy

Red-Gate's new data generator is ready for Katmai (SQL Server 2008)

Covering the SOA Executive Forum next week

Next week I’m speaking at the InfoWorld SOA Executive Forum, to be held September 16th and 17th in NYC.

Microsoft Hyper-V gets Linux Integration Components

Microsoft is giving Linux virtual machines running on Hyper-V the chance to perform much better with the release of Linux Integration Components

BlackBerry-free with iPhone 3G: Read this first

Integrating iPhone 3G into an existing messaging, sync and Web-based service back end is one thing. Yanking a BlackBerry off a lifelong user's hip and replacing it with an iPhone 3G is something else. Want to watch?

Google could make a splash with water-based datacenters

Search giant has filed patent for floating datacenters powered by wave energy, cooled by the sea

Some observations on the next round of motions in the Terry Childs case

The latest filing by the City of San Francisco in the Terry Childs matter features more technical inaccuracies and raises many more questions

Building Google Chrome: A first look

Google's open source browser has much to offer prospective hackers (provided they use Windows)

Will the carriers kill the iPhone?

Developers are cranking out cool app after cool app for Apple's iPhone 3G and other smartphones. But if bandwidth stays skimpy, no one will care.

Cisco boxes up the remote office

Elegant, highly secure Cisco Virtual Office package aims to give remote workers that in-the-office experience

Clocking VMware Workstation and Sun xVM VirtualBox performance

The OfficeBench benchmark gauges Windows client performance by running a series of Microsoft Office workloads

Memo from Demo: Six startups worth watching

Contrary to popular opinion, all the cool new stuff doesn't come from Apple or Google. Cringely roamed the floor at Demo and found six startups worth watching (and one old player still in the game).

The unintended consequences of e-mail

Perhaps its biggest impact will really surprise you

Whether leaders or employees matter more

How combinations of weak and strong managers and weak and strong employees compare.

Apple rocks iPod updates

Some random updates to the iPod Touch, iPhone firmware, iTunes software and nano products.

AMD answers Nehalem

AMD gives Intel its due for finally getting its x86 server platform right… and for validating so many Opteron innovations

No surprise, Mendel Rosenblum resigns from VMware

VMware's co-founder Mendel Rosenblum is the latest to leave the company following Diane Greene's removal as CEO

Hello world! Send in your gripes

Christina Tynan-Wood steps into the late Ed Foster's role as InfoWorld's consumer advocate in The Gripe Line

Source code and vendor lock-in continued

Sacha asks whether switching support providers is really that difficult, while Bill brings up the question of open standards.

Dion Hinchcliffe and I on WOA

Download file…

SOA and Chrome follow-up

'By George I think she’s got it!'

Microsoft ad about… nothing?

What do Microsoft and Jerry Seinfeld have in common?

Who can you trust?

The guy who controlled the purse strings had a little too much say on purchases and returns. Then we found out why.

US Postal Service saves over $5 million on transportation using smart tech

USPS, IBM develop Highway Corridor Analytic Program to optimize mail transportation and cut costs

The Chrome backlash begins

Why all the anti-Chrome sentiment among Firefox fans and FOSS advocates is misplaced.

Why IT projects fail

It's easy to blame IT, but more often than not, poor governance is what sinks a worthwhile project

Is Web 2.0 already on its way out?

Analysis: Demo Fall 2008 gives indications that its social networking and ubiquitous connectivity business assumptions are wrong

Microsoft and VMware events showing off how far virtualization has come

Microsoft and VMware are both prepared for their own virtualization events. Microsoft had its big push today that included the launch of its worldwide tour of "Get Virtual Now". And VMware continues its larger than life virtualization show,

When an owner steals a sales rep’s leads

When your boss openly picks your pocket and prevents you from succeeding, what's the right answer?

An update on Directi

Apparently Directi isn't as bad as circumstantial evidence led Knujon and HostExploit to believe. Martin summarizes this weekend's update on the situation.

No power outage in the Terry Childs case?

An insider claims that the power outage that Terry Childs was accused of using to sabotage the San Francisco network was never intended to affect the datacenter

SOA Governance Monday: SOA governance delivered as a service?

I've been kicking this one around for 10 years. Perhaps it's time to stop kicking and start doing.

Virtual Computer emerges from stealth mode and goes after the laptop market

A new virtualization company coming out of stealth mode, Virtual Computer plans to make laptops more secure and manageable.

Google is 10 – but far from a perfect 10

It was 10 years ago today, Serge and Larry taught the band to play — and the world to search the Net. Has Google truly changed the way we live on the Net? And is the search giant on the decline?

Well-structured executive compensation

An example of well-structured executive compensation, proving that it is possible.

Red Hat buys Qumranet – Gets KVM and SolidICE

Red Hat buys Qumranet and its KVM virtualization platform and VDI technology for $107 million

Microsoft’s virtualization event launches before VMworld

Microsoft's answer to VMware is showcasing its own virtualization event called GetVirtualNow, and it takes place one week earlier than VMworld.

Google’s Chrome team: how it should be done

Google Chrome reviews

How is the newest browser fairing in technical reviews?

A few Google Chrome secrets

Martin gives a very short opinion about the Google Chrome beta, and shares a few, mostly developer-oriented features that might not be immediately obvious

Is Jerry Seinfeld the master of Vista’s domain?

The first videos starring Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld have appeared on YouTube, and the results are surprisingly amusing. But will they help sell copies of Windows Vista? The Cringemeister has his doubts.

Google Chrome seems to be shining for SOA

Chrome will become a valuable piece of the architectural puzzle, perhaps a missing piece

Access to source code doesn’t trump vendor control

As open-source vendors grow in strength, the value of source code diminishes as a guard against vendor lock-in.