CenterBeam
Computerworld, 12/2/02: Dell Takes a Swipe at IBM, HP With New Blade Servers;
Comes in below top rivals on pricing, but management tools a potential issue
Bob Brewin
Dell Computer Corp. last week announced that it has started shipping a line of blade servers priced to undercut similar products already on the market from vendors such as IBM and Hewlett-Packard Co.
Dell said its PowerEdge 1655MC blade server starts at $1,499 with a single Pentium III processor, putting the cost of the device several hundred dollars below what IBM and HPcharge for their entry-level models (see chart). Dell is also selling a system chassis for less money, although it holds far fewer blade servers than the ones sold by IBMand HP. Blade servers pack the functionality of traditional rack-mounted systems onto high-density boards. Framingham, Mass.-based IDC estimates that sales of the space-saving servers will total about $120 million this year as top vendors start to ship devices.
Russ Ray, senior product manager for Dell's PowerEdge server line, claimed that Dell's pricing will give it a competitive edge when users factor total cost of ownership (TCO)into their buying decisions.
Increasing Competition
Dell's blade servers aren't the lowest-priced ones on the market. RLXTechnologies Inc., a start-up in The Woodlands, Texas, sells an entry-level model for $1,249, plus $3,299 for a 24-slot chassis.
But Glenn Ricart, chief technology officer at CenterBeam Inc., an IT outsourcing vendor in Santa Clara, Calif., said Dell's entry into the blade server market should increase competition and "drive quality up and prices down."
CenterBeam uses HP's blade servers to shadow systems it has installed at customer sites with a mirror image of all their applications and files. Ricart said CenterBeam embraced the emerging technology because blades are less expensive and easier to install and manage than conventional rack-mounted systems, in part because of reduced cabling needs.
David Freund, an analyst at Illuminata Inc. in Nashua, N.H., said Dell "has drawn a line in the sand" for IBMand HP with its pricing. But while Dell has commoditized products such as PCs and Windows-based servers to its competitive advantage, Freund questioned whether it can have the same success with blade servers.
Hardware costs are just a small slice of TCO for blade servers, Freund said, adding that the devices also require an extensive suite of management tools to handle functions such as load balancing. That could become a key differentiator for IBM and HP, he said.
Although Dell offers software to help manage server loads, Freund said he thinks users will also need to buy third-party tools from vendors such as Altiris Inc. in Lindon, Utah, to maximize the potential of Dell's blade servers.
Tim Dougherty, director of blade strategy for IBM's server group, said the company's IBM Director software, which includes automated setup and configuration wizards, gives it a competitive advantage over Dell's technology.
Hugh Jenkins, vice president of marketing for HP's industry-standard server group, emphasized the breadth of HP's blade product line, which is due to be expanded next year to include four-processor servers and models based on Intel Corp.'s Xeon chip.
Dell also introduced a dual-CPU version of the 1655MC. Both models support Windows 2000 and Red Hat Linux, the company said.
[complete article above}
Wireless
The Wall Street Journal, 11/29/02: ‘Wi-Fi’ gives cell carriers static
Wireless firms’ expensive bet looks increasingly risky
By Jesse Drucker and Julia Angwin
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Nov. 29 — At first glance, software executive John Baron would seem to be a cellphone company’s dream. He subscribes to the slow Internet browsing option on his cellphone, painfully pecking away on the dial pad to type in Web addresses. Lately, though, he has found a better way: When on the road, he uses Wi-Fi, the technology that gives him wireless access to the Internet on his laptop computer, at blazing speeds. “It’s brilliant,” he says. “The phone stuff is pretty clunky.”
[more]
Security
Information Week, 11/27/02: New Worm Adds Insult To Injury
Winevar worm can delete every file on a hard drive--and call the user foolish in the process.
By George V. Hulme
Antivirus vendors are warning users about a new E-mail worm that has the potential to wreak havoc on computer systems and call the user "foolish" while it does its damage, possibly even deleting every file on an infected hard drive. Most antivirus vendors have updated their software to stop the worm and have made removal tools available for those already infected. The worm, named Winevar, was first spotted in South Korea, the vendors say.
[more]
Microsoft
Computerworld, 11/27/02: Microsoft bends on small-business software licenses
By Matt Berger, IDG News Service
Microsoft Corp. said yesterday that it will launch a program early next year aimed at easing the financial burden for small and medium-size companies that sign multiyear contracts to license its software.
[more]
The Wall Street Journal, 12/2/02: The Unsolved Mystery Of 'Intermittent Error'
"You're going to pay for this, Bill Gates; Not only should your company be broken up, but you should be forced to move out of your big lakeside mansion and into a studio apartment next to Seattle's busiest freeway."
That was me talking to myself one evening a few weeks back. Ordinarily, I am the quiet type, and something of a Microsoft fan to boot.
Hell, though, hath no fury like a Windows user whose machine suddenly, and for no apparent reason, quits working. That's what happened to mine. I turned it on, and after being teased with the Windows XP welcome screen, I saw only darkness.
[more]
Disaster Recovery
IDG, 11/27/02: New system promises disaster proof e-mail
Paul Roberts, IDG News ServiceBoston Bureau
E-mail systems have increasingly proved themselves vulnerable to incapacitation by viruses and destruction by natural or human-made disaster, but MessageOne Inc. on Tuesday unveiled a new "hot standby" technology meant to let businesses route messages through offsite servers when primary systems go down.
[more]
8:28:33 AM 
|
