Opinion

Dell tailors Inspiron desktop for green

Dell has unveiled a line of Energy Star 4.0-compliant desktop systems for home users: greened-up versions of the Inspiron 531, apparently with enough oomph to run Vista.

Nov 1, 2007 2 mins

Parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus

Ok, let's get into it again. I'm just trying to do something simple and I'm hitting roadblocks at every turn. The task is simple: Script out these databases on server1 and create the empty schemas on server2. I also want to save the sc

By Sean McCown

Databases

Java Flawed on Leopard

I know that my esteemed colleague Tom Yager loves OS X Leopard to death, but if you're a Java developer or a user of Java applications, Leopard may not be for you, at least not yet, and possibly not ever. Here's the skinny, courtesy of Mich

By Martin Heller

Nov 1, 2007 2 mins

Monsoon Settles GPL Violation

According to SD Times, the Software Freedom Law Center (SFLC) announced that it has reached a settlement with Monsoon Multimedia over its violation of the GPL. Monsoon had been distributing software from the BusyBox open source project without fully

By Zack Urlocker

Nov 1, 2007 1 min

One last shot at the ethics of deception

The comments posted in response to my recent Advice Line postings about the legitimacy of lying, deception, withholding information and so on cause me some concern – not because many are critical, but because of the nature of some of the criticism.So

By Bob Lewis

The Odds on Rain

A San Francisco startup lets smaller businesses hedge their bets against profit-killing weather Weather, either too good or too bad, can do a real number on a business. Pity the ski resort that has no snow or the golf course awash in spring rains. No

By Bill Snyder

Memories of green

In the world of computer hardware, no component garners more attention than the CPU. Hardware enthusiasts wait with bated breath for the next processor to shatter the existing speed barriers. That's hardly a surprise, either. The CPU boasts all

Nov 1, 2007 5 mins

Application Integration Small and Medium Business Technology Industry

The new lightweight service models: A no-brainer for SMB

Google and Amazon are two of the companies offering Web-based services that let your enterprise focus on its strongest value-added layer

By David Margulius

Nov 1, 2007 4 mins

What’s Apple So Afraid Of?

What a bunch of "Scaredy Cats!" That's what went through my mind as I read today's headline about Apple and Mac OS X virtualization. As David Marshall noted in his InfoWorld Virtualization Report blog, It seems the company is fina

Mac OS X Virtualization! Is It Trick or Treat?

When we talk about virtualization on the Apple Mac platform, we are usually talking about virtualizing Microsoft Windows or Linux operating systems as guest operating systems on either VMware Fusion or Parallels' Desktop for Mac products. But in

By David Marshall

When RCK Speaks, Canonical “Listens!”

Hello, Canonical? Are you listening? I've been trying to draw your attention to some of the deficiencies I've discovered with Ubuntu 7.10 "Gutsy Gibbon." However, I'm having a hard getting through, what with all the flaming a

A War That Google Isn’t Winning

With Google crossing the $700-a-share threshold, it’s hard not to be euphoric. But wait a minute, says Trip Chowdhry, of Global Equities Research: “Google is not winning the platform war.” And that could be a serious stumbling block

By Bill Snyder

Superbugs and Cybercriminals

When I wrote about Knujon last Thursday, I didn't realize that I'd been watching a confirmation of their principles in my own attempts to control junk email. (You'll notice that I'm not using the s-word that rhymes with ham today;

By Martin Heller

Microsoft: Be afraid, be very afraid

Here's a scary thought: Microsoft can take over your computer wherever you are, and do whatever it wants to. On this Halloween day I can think of few things more frightening (except maybe a blind date with Larry Ellison). Like Dracula or Freddy

By Robert Cringely

Oct 31, 2007 3 mins

Transformation at Red Hat?

About a week ago Matt Asay over at CNet noted how Joanne Rohde EVP Global Operations had left Red Hat and that Nick Van Wyk had been promoted VP Global Operations and Senior Transformation Executive. I've never heard of a title like that before,

By Zack Urlocker

Oct 31, 2007 1 min

Test Center Tracker: Trick or Treat?

Happy Halloween! If you have never tried your hand at carving a pumpkin read How Stuff Works step by step instructions on how to make the best, I mean the scariest, Halloween pumpkin. I'm still trying to find instructions on how to make a presid

By Mario Apicella

Can companies really compute employee value?

Dear Bob …Mind another comment about compensation? I'm commenting on your point that companies can figure out the value delivered by the sales force ("Comp logic," Keep the Joint Running, 10/29/2007).Even paying sales people based on

By Bob Lewis

Fixing My Broken Vista “Time Machine”

In my previous entry, I lamented how I had come *so* close to achieving a "Time Machine" like experience under Windows Vista only to be tripped-up by some lame decisions on the part of the Windows Storage Team. Since then, I've impleme

Oct 31, 2007 3 mins

Spring ahead, Fall backup

I got a call from the fine folks at Maxell the other day. It seems that they're promoting their second annual "Fall Backup" day on Nov. 2 — an attempt to encourage people to practice good backup hygiene, and of course to encourage the

By Sean Gallagher

Oct 31, 2007 3 mins

Leopard: Not an OS, but a system you operate

Apple tasks Mac users to rise to the next level On Saturday night, after I received my OS X Leopard client and server discs, I checked into a local hotel to work on my review of OS X Leopard, intending to blog along the way. I ran into the most delig

By Tom Yager

Oct 31, 2007 6 mins

As I go around the country speaking about social media, I'm noticing a thing or two about how corporations are approaching social media.

By Lena West

Microsoft to shine spotlight on green-tech initiatives

Though the green credentials of Microsoft's flagship OS are suspect, the company is making clear efforts to both embrace and push sustainable products and practices. The company is a partner in the Clinton Foundation's environmental initiat

Oct 31, 2007 1 min

Apple Boneheads!! or Zune your way to the Top!!

Some things you read and just can't believe. I came across this story of the little girl who wrote Steve Jobs a letter suggesting some imrpovements to the iPod, which she loved. The letter she got back was… well, let's say it left me spee

By Sean McCown

Databases

Review: Yoggie Pico Pro brings server-room protection to laptops in the field

Corporate firewalls shelter laptops connected to your network from outside access, while virus and spam security is often provided by yet more data center systems, such as your mail server. But employees working remotely must rely on less sophistica

By Mike Heck

Oct 30, 2007 3 mins

Hey Red Hat, where’s the love for Hyperic?

Matt Aslett at The 451 Group reports: "Red Hat and GroundWork Open Source announced an interesting expansion of their partnership today that sees Red Hat offering 24×7 telephone premium support for GroundWork products, as well as the sale

By Savio Rodrigues

Three Useful Web Books

My old friend and Windows Magazine colleague John Ruley is in Guatemala for a month on a medical mission at San Lucas Toliman. Before he packed to leave, he asked me if I could recommend any books on Web design. I came up with two at the time: Head F

By Martin Heller

Microsoft Oslo: Lacking Interoperability?

First, I'm an IBMer. These are my views. IBM does not necessarily agree with them. Second, I think most of you will agree that I'm relatively friendly towards Microsoft when they may a positive OSS move. I am not anti-Microsoft just because

By Savio Rodrigues

Last Chance Call for Papers

We're heading into the home stretch for the Call for Papers for the MySQL Conference & Expo 2008. The official deadline is end of day today, October 30 and so far, we have plenty of great submissions. However, there's still an opportuni

By Zack Urlocker

Test Center Tracker: Go Penguin, Here Comes a Little More Sun, and Next Year in Oslo?

It's a beautiful day in the Test Center, with penguins making their way onto desktops, Big Blue finding a way to go more green, and the possibility of a cold shoulder to open source in Oslo. Go Penguin: Have you seriously thought about making th

By Curt Franklin

IBM’s silicon recycling technique a boon for solar

Big Blue has devised a technique to reduce silicon waste that will save the company money and benefit the burgeoning solar-power industry, according to a Reuters report.

Microsoft is taking App Dev to Oslo

Microsoft has come up with a code-name for the latest generation of its "composite application" and SOA technology: Oslo. At the Microsoft SOA and Business Process Conference, the company laid out its vision for future versions of the .NET

By Sean Gallagher

Errors Can be Fun

A few years ago there was an article on SQLServerCentral.com that gave us some screenshots of some of the funnier windows and program errors. Here's my contribution to the lot. Yesterday I was troubleshooting a LiteSpeed problem and clicked on o

By Sean McCown

Databases

Notes for EAC and Stop with the Buzzwords

Download file…

By Dave Linthicum

Computer function 101

When troubleshooting, it's a good idea to know your audience I was a national support specialist for a major equipment manufacturer. Thirty minutes before quitting time on a Monday afternoon, a call was sent to my desk from a major customer who

By InfoWorld Anonymous

Oct 30, 2007 4 mins

Data Management

The five tenets of SaaS integration

The success of software as a service rests on IT Contrary to what SaaS (software as a service) vendors claim — namely, that their wares are pay-and-play — SaaS requires intervention from IT. Yes, three or four years ago, SaaS was rudimentary CRM, n

By Ephraim Schwartz

Oct 30, 2007 5 mins

With all of the recent OS X 10.5 coverage I was curious to see how many of the supposedly "new" features I could reproduce under Windows Vista (i.e. how many ideas they stole from the competition). Take the much ballyhooed "Time Machin

Oct 28, 2007 5 mins