1. It's Still a See-Saw Economy

As the economy wanes, IBM Global Financing serves up good year-end news for the SMB sector, while jobs decline and fraud plagues H-1B. By Maria A. DeGiglio While the topics covered in this article could not be more disparate, they do de

2. Reading Between the Lines of IBM's Third-Quarter Report

Though reported revenues of older System i servers are down, the replacement Power Systems servers are doing well. By Chris Smith IBM announced new hardware and software offerings this month just before it released its third-quarter fin

3. IBM Focuses on 'Engaging' Business Users with Latest Version of Cognos 8

New V4 is all about supporting better decision-making by supplying timely and more accurate information in a personalized way. By Chris Smith IBM Cognos last week released a new version of IBM Cognos 8 business intelligence software tha

4. Software as a Service (SaaS): Cloudy in SMBs

A recent survey shows limited awareness, constrained usage. By Ron Exler Small and midsize business (SMB) executives have significant challenges in today's economy, including finding and keeping customers, controlling costs, and pos

5. The World of Enterprise Content Management May Be Shaking

But it's not due to colliding protons in Switzerland. By Chris Smith IBM announced last week that it has been working with Microsoft, EMC Corp., and several other companies for the past two years to develop a specification using Web

6. IBM Releases Lotus Symphony V1.1 as Users Begin Considering the Linux Desktop

Development teams continue to enhance Symphony as IBM bundles it with Lotus Notes and Sametime in a move to edge Microsoft off the desktop. By Chris Smith IBM Lotus released V1.1 of Symphony last week, a release that runs significantly

7. Microsoft Sleeper Silverlight Scores Olympic Knockout

Battle lines form around who will dominate emerging rich Internet applications. By Chris Smith As the 2008 Summer Olympics fade into memory and the athletes bring home the gold from what is being dubbed the "great haul of China,&qu

8. Will Google's Android Cure iPhone-Envy?

The emerging open mobile platform promises a wealth of opportunities for developers and may quench longings for Apple's tempting touch-screen device. By Chris Smith Psychologists this summer have identified a new emotional syndrome sp

9. As IBM Reaches Out to Business Partners, Will They Reach Back to IBM?

A new marketing initiative hopes to stimulate a dialogue with Business Partners and ultimately strengthen ways that IBM can support increased sales to the SMB market. By Chris Smith IBM has announced it will spend $1 billion this year o

10. OSCON 2008 Highlights

News and highlights from the O'Reilly Open Source Convention in Portland, Oregon. By Max Hetrick The tenth O'Reilly Open Source Convention (OSCON) kicked off on Monday, July 21, in Portland, Oregon, at the Oregon Convention Cent

11. Laptop Technology Comes of Age

Dell's announcement this week of new laptop designs marks the state of the art in a long and arduous road toward building the ideal portable computer. By Chris Smith This week's announcement by Dell that it's introducing a n

12. Microsoft Sleeper Silverlight Scores Olympic Knockout

Battle lines form around who will dominate emerging rich Internet applications. by Chris Smith As the 2008 Summer Olympics fade into memory and the athletes bring home the gold from what is being dubbed the "great haul of China,&qu

13. Let the Games Begin! (But Let's Watch Them on PCs)

The two hallmarks of the 2008 Olympics are that all TV broadcasts will be in high definition and that all events will be streamed live to our computers. By Chris Smith The 2008 Summer Olympic Games begin in Beijing today, and the event

14. Power Systems Off to an Impressive Start

While users may have gasped when they read that System i server revenues plummeted during the second quarter, it's all business as usual, according to the group's GM. By Chris Smith IBM Power Systems had a "great quarter,&qu

15. The Business Relevance of Virtual Worlds

The worlds may be virtual, but their future is real. By Ron Exler (Ptolemy Jacobus in Second Life) IBM and Linden Lab, creator of the virtual world Second Life (SL), recently announced that they demonstrated virtual world interoperabili

16. Mobile Business Intelligence Gains Traction

After a tepid response a few years ago, mobile BI products now appear ready for prime time as larger companies look forward to benefiting from their implementation. By Chris Smith In the march toward smaller, lighter, and more portable

17. Open-Source Software: Evolving Toward Broader Acceptance

Businesses are more seriously considering open source for all layers of the software stack. By Ron Exler Open source is assessed for more than half of businesses software acquisitions, according to Saugatuck Technology, a research and c

18. OCEAN Technical Conference Gets Users Pumped About Power Systems

The 15th annual conference drew more than 200 people for a day of educational sessions and IBM presentations. By Chris Smith The OCEAN User Group held its 15th annual Technical Conference last week and hosted in excess of 200 people who att

19. Personal Health Records May Be Dangerous to Your Privacy

Many entities are offering consumers a way to store their healthcare information, but are these pie-in-the-sky offerings anathemas to privacy? By Maria DeGiglio  Many entities--from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, to many

20. Rochester Celebrates the 20th Anniversary of AS/400

The event presents an opportunity for reflecting on the success of a unique platform and gives rise to the question of whether it will last another decade--or perhaps longer. By Chris Smith IBM workers in Rochester, Minnesota, and their

21. IBM Enhances Social Networking with Lotus Connections 2.0

The new release focuses on improved customization, interoperability, and enhanced management of the user's most relevant information. By Chris Smith IBM this week released Lotus Connections 2.0, an enhanced version of what is now th

22. IBM Rational Software Development Conference 2008: A Recap

IBM promotes collaboration within and between teams as critical to successful application development in enterprises. By Ron Exler Over 3,500 IBM customers and partners convinced themselves that Walt Disney World might be a good place t

23. IBM's Project Big Green, Big Green Linux, and VMware Help Consolidate Data Centers

IBM and its Business Partners provide technologies to help companies achieve a green and eco-friendly status, proving their commitment to energy conservation. By Max Hetrick Everywhere you go these days, you hear the hype about turning

24. Major SaaS Deal Marks Tipping Point in Software Industry

As on-demand service providers get ready for the upcoming Amsterdam conference, SaaS ERP provider Workday signs a large deal to serve 200,000 employees. By Chris Smith There's a sea change taking place in the software industry, and

25. iDataPlex Server Expected to Help Fuel Growth of Web 2.0 Technologies

Based on readily available components but sporting an efficient new rack form factor, the  x86-based scalable server running Linux will also save companies thousands on energy bills. By Chris Smith As I see the direction that compu

26. SAP Touts SMB Progress, Allies with HP and IBM

Once the bellwether of large business enterprise resource planning (ERP), SAP is trying to show the world it can be all things to all people. By Ron Exler During the first week of May at its annual user conference SAPPHIRE 2008 Orlando, SAP

27. IBM Debuts Blue Business

Through the venture, Big Blue hopes to regain the companies that flocked to the AS/400 20 years ago. By Lee Kroon Last Thursday, IBM unveiled an initiative that could utterly change the way the company markets and delivers applications

28. IBM Reveals Plans to Simplify IT Delivery and Target Growth Markets

The company's emphasis on green IT is designed to lower users' energy costs while boosting sales of its valued technology. By Chris Smith IBM introduced a series of new business initiatives last week that will be a roadmap for t

29. IBM Combines System i and System p onto a Single Hardware Platform

The company announces three new POWER6 servers along with special financing. By Chris Smith IBM introduced a new generation of POWER6 servers last week at COMMON and consolidated the System i and System p brands onto one hardware platfo

30. IBM's Power Systems Announcement: An Analysis

By bringing two product lines together, IBM created exciting possibilities and a few short-term headaches for its customers. By Lee Kroon When IBM unified the System i and System p last week, it did much more than change the nameplates

31. New Products, Upgrades, and Enhancements Grace COMMON Expo

Many of the 1,800 attendees visit COMMON's 92 Expo vendors this year in Nashville. By Chris Smith COMMON 2008 by all standards was a very good show in the eyes of vendors who greatly help to support it. It didn't matter that Nas

32. Green IT, Networking, and Product Convergence Are Themes at CeBIT

Conserving energy is an IT movement developing tremendous momentum as people realize the wasted heat loss in yesterday's products. By Chris Smith I like to go to Germany in the fall when people are celebrating Oktoberfest, but this

33. Reliability and Simplicity Will Continue to Define the System i

IBM's Ian Jarman talks with MC Press Online editors and says that while the platform is enhanced to run three operating systems in a virtualized environment, many customers will continue to buy the more traditional solution.   B

34. IBM to Unveil High-End POWER6 Servers Next Month

While Big Blue plans a flurry of POWER6 server launches this year, its competitors stand ready to rain on its parade. By Lee Kroon From what sources inside IBM have been saying lately, it looks like we are in for several POWER6 server a

35. German CeBIT Show Ends, but International Offspring Abound

With attendance reaching almost the half-million mark, organizers this year will take their success to other shows around the world. By Chris Smith CeBIT in Hannover, Germany, experienced a modest rebirth this year as show organizers re

36. CeBIT May Be the Greatest Show on Earth

The largest technology and communications trade show in the world is being held in Germany this week and offers insights into future product trends. By Chris Smith The CeBIT trade show going on this week in Hannover, Germany, must be an

37. Vendors Adapt to a Changing IT Market

With companies getting cautious about their IT spending, vendors are launching new initiatives to keep the orders flowing. By Lee Kroon Over the last several weeks, most of the news items that have landed on my desk have been too small

38. System i and i5/OS Are Cornerstones in IBM's SMB Plans, Says Shearer

A guiding light in the evolution of the System i says i5/OS is the "secret sauce" in the simplicity formula to reach a larger share of the SMB market. By Chris Smith The System i operating system, i5/OS, is here to stay, and I

39. IBM Reorganizes Itself to Reach Midmarket Customers

While IBM's latest management moves deserve kudos, there is something else that the company must do to revive its flagging systems sales. By Lee Kroon If you have not heard from your favorite IBM representative lately, there's a goo

40. The Trend Toward GDSN: How It May Affect Your Business

An interview with GS1 executives reveals what the future holds for the supply chain. By Jeff Holzman Editor's Note: On January 9, 2008, LANSA's Jeff Holzman (JH) interviewed GS1 US Chief Operating Officer Charles E. "Chip&q

41. Zeitler: IBM Will "Reincarnate" the System i

Determined to boost lagging sales of the company's flagship midrange product, IBM's Systems and Technology Group will soon introduce a new family of server products for SMBs. By Chris Smith IBM is poised to launch a new family o

42. Conjuring the Coming Year: Eight Predictions for 2008

The System i community will face a complex set of economic and business trends this year that will make for interesting times. By Lee Kroon As we stand at the leading edge of 2008, allow me to ask a less-than-philosophical question. Wha

43. As Technology Accelerates, Will We Be Leading or Following?

Keeping ahead of the economic power curve will require that businesses aggressively pursue new technology initiatives managed by skilled and knowledgeable CIOs. By Chris Smith With the growth in the economies of India, China, and, latel

44. The Latest News… and a Year in Retrospect

While 2007 was full of surprises, it was also surprisingly predictable. By Lee Kroon As the year winds down and dissolves into the holiday season, many of us pause to reflect on what the past 365 days have brought us. Since I happen to be o

45. Climate Change Is Upon Us—Is Your Firm Up to the Challenge?

Tracking a company's carbon footprint may be IT's next big undertaking. By Chris Smith Last week, IBM announced a new software technology that should make it easier to measure a company's carbon footprint and likely will sti

46. A Year in the Life of Vision Solutions

An interview with Nicolaas Vlok explores the rapid changes that catapulted Vision Solutions into the headlines. This has been a very busy and exciting year for Vision Solutions, the software company located in Irving, California , and k

47. IBM: Financially Sound and Well-Poised for Cognos Acquisition

In October, IBM reported third-quarter results, which met Wall Street expectations, and last week IBM announced plans to acquire Cognos, Inc. On the heels of a solid third quarter, in which Big Blue reported total revenues of $24.1 billion, a

48. IBM Encourages Customers to Upgrade Now

Still waiting for POWER6 servers before making a big hardware purchase? You may want to rethink your position. The season is upon us when many IT departments decide whether they should spend any remaining budget they have on new hardware and

49. Minwin: Microsoft Takes a Very Fresh Approach

With less than a year since Vista's release, Microsoft has tipped its hand for its next client operating system, currently called Windows 7. Last week, in a presentation to students and faculty at the University of Illinois, Microsoft ope

50. SAP and Oracle Take Positions on Software as a Service

Since the two vendors disagree about almost everything, is it any surprise that they part ways on this subject?  While SAP and Oracle may be fighting viciously for the hearts and minds of enterprise application users, there is one part o