eWeek articles from April 2002

eWeek archives from April 2002

JavaOne 2002: Write the Apps, the Money Will Follow.
April 1, 2002... Developer issues will be the central concern of IT for the next several years. The platform choices, the tools, and the new ways of thinking about loosely coupled asynchronous interactions--Web services, for short--completely overshadow rising...

Tools of the Trade.
April 1, 2002... Poor taxonomy won't sink your corporate portal as fast or as noticeably as, say, flawed system integration, but, over time, it will degrade portal usability. In best-case scenarios, either the new breed of knowledge management/portal...

New Way to Manage Storage.(Common Information Module-based storage management software)
April 1, 2002... Top storage vendors will gather this week to test software that promises to help solve incompatibilities in heterogeneous environments. At the Storage Networking World show in Desert Springs, Calif., the client software will demonstrate...

At Microsoft, Security Trumps App Compatibility.
April 1, 2002... In a sea change of philosophy, Microsoft Corp. is working to put security ahead of not just features and functionality, but also legacy application compatibility. In a meeting with eWEEK last week, several Microsoft executives responsible...

Oracle, IBM DB2 Gain Intelligence.
April 1, 2002... IN REDWOOD SHORES, Calif.--Moves by Oracle Corp. and IBM to embed new business intelligence functionality in their database management systems are designed to improve performance and simplify data warehousing. But they could also add unwanted...

Intel to Cut Chip Pricing by 57%.
April 1, 2002... Intel Corp. is set to slash prices on its top-performing Pentium 4 chips by as much as 25 percent this month and up to 57 percent this spring, according to sources close to the company. In one example of the potential savings awaiting...

SAP Combines Java, ABAP in Server.
April 1, 2002... SAP AG is tightening the integration between its Web Application Server and the Java programming language, expanding development options for developers currently using SAP's proprietary programming language, ABAP. The Walldorf, Germany,...

SoapSwitch Wraps Apps With Web Service Features.(Product Announcement)
April 1, 2002... Enterprise application integration software maker Actional Corp. is readying software that its officials say has the ability to wrap applications with Web service functionality in about 30 minutes. Actional's SoapSwitch technology, which...

Readers Talk iMac Supply and Demand.
April 1, 2002... Funny: I didn't think I was stirring up anything particularly controversial with my last column, in which ruminated on the recent drought of Apple Computer's next-generation iMacs and CEO Steve Jobs' announcement at Macworld Expo/Tokyo that...

NAI Tool Scans for Network Cracks.(Network Associates' ThreatScan)(Product Announcement)
April 1, 2002... Network Associates Inc.'s McAfee Security division on Monday unveiled a new scanning tool designed specifically to find network vulnerabilities that viruses and worms might be able to exploit. Known as ThreatScan, the software works in...

Affinium Upgrade Manages Brands.(Unica's Affinium 4.0 customer relationship management software suite)(Product Announcement)
April 1, 2002... Unica Corp. is adding higher-level marketing capabilities in the next release of its Affinium customer relationship management software suite. In Affinium 4, which was introduced this morning, the company moves beyond marketing campaign...

HP Board Balks at Hewlett Renomination.(Walter Hewlett )
April 1, 2002... After deciding just last week to once again renominate board member Walter Hewlett to its board of directors, Hewlett-Packard Co. announced early Monday that it has withdrawn his nomination. In a statement, HP cited the "adversarial...

Pair of Office XP Bugs Uncovered.
April 1, 2002... A well-known security researcher has released an advisory about--and exploit code for--two new unpatched flaws in portions of Microsoft Corp.'s Office XP application suite. The two bugs are closely related and, if used in concert, could...

Teradata Jump Starts Data Mining.(Data Mining Accelerator Packages )(Product Announcement)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... In an effort to make data mining easier, Teradata has launched a set of what it is calling Data Mining Accelerator Packages that combine its data mining software with specialized professional services. Teradata, a division of NCR Corp.,...

Additional Internet Explorer/Apache Problems Surface.
April 1, 2002... Two weeks ago, I documented an incompatibility between how Microsoft implements digest authentication (RFC 2617, which can be seen at http://kaizi.viagenie.qc.ca/ietf/rfc/rfc2617.txt, a secure log-in standard for Web sites) and how Apache,...

Long Road to Simple Systems.
April 1, 2002... The voice on the telephone sounded as if its owner couldn't decide between rage and exhaustion. "My machine re-booted while I was working, and now most of my e-mail in-box is gone. I thought you could only lose work that you hadn't saved!" ...

DOS Still Rules ... at Least at the Fed.(Federal Reserve's FedLine service will not adopt Microsoft's Windows NT)(Federal Reserve)
April 1, 2002... Given the economic climate, it seems any announcement from the Federal Reserve garners scrutiny from the world. The Kitty wonders, though, whether anyone besides bankers has noted the Fed's announcement that its FedLine service has discontinued...

Mad as Hell About 'Food Fight' HTML.
April 1, 2002... When I wanted to read a web article on my handheld device, I knew enough to bring up the "printer-friendly" version before saving to my synchronized-files directory. I was sadly mistaken, though, in hoping to get device-independent HTML. ...

Sun Is Striving for Its Own Identity.
April 1, 2002... The Javaone Show, held last week, began life as a technical gathering and quickly evolved into a forum for chest thumping, top 10 lists and chants that Sun was the king of the world. It finally settled into a nice balance between technology...

UCITA Shields Purveyors of Buggy Apps.
April 1, 2002... When it comes to bad software, you will eat your lemons and like it, Bubba. At least you will if your company has the misfortune of being located in Maryland or Virginia, the only states so far to have enacted UCITA. In case you've missed...

HP-Compaq: Time for Leadership.
April 1, 2002... By any reasonable measure, the battle for the future of Hewlett-Packard and Compaq is over. Now the real work begins. The plans, although heretofore undisclosed, should be ready. HP CEO Carly Fiorina and hundreds of staffers from both...

Internet Insight: Right Way to Build Dynamic Content.(Edge Side Includes specification)
April 1, 2002... Once a company decides to distribute its dynamic content, it has to put mechanisms in place to ensure proper page creation. The ESI specification includes features to help ensure that page information is updated correctly. The markup...

Portal/KM Mix Gains Mind Share.(knowledge management)
April 1, 2002... First there was knowledge management, and it promised to bring order to all the documents and other content generated by corporations. Then came portals, which took many of the features of KM and combined them with powerful search engines and...

Standards to Drive Services.(Web services and portals)
April 1, 2002... Web services are defined in part as programmatic interfaces that build bridges among disparate IT resources. When portal vendors hear things like that, they invariably say, "Hey! That's what we do." And, for the most part, they're right....

Expert Storage Manager.(PowerQuest's PowerExpert Storage Resource Manager 5.0)(Evaluation)
April 1, 2002... PowerQuest Corp.'s PowerExpert Storage Resource Manager 5.0 gives Windows 2000 administrators powerful tools to manage storage resources. In eWeek Labs' tests, we found that PowerExpert SRM 5.0 blends handy reporting and auditing...

Ignore SRM, Put Bottom Line at Stake.(storage resource management)
April 1, 2002... Overlooked and underappreciated--but far from unnecessary--SRM is a key element that IT departments ignore at their peril. What's at stake is nothing less than the bottom line. With high-capacity storage getting less expensive every day and...

ActiveScout Nips Attacks in the Bud.(ForeScout Technologies' ActiveScout 2.1)(Evaluation)
April 1, 2002... ForeScout Technologies Inc.'s ActiveScout 2.1 IDS provides an extra layer of protection from attackers and certain viruses that will be appreciated at security-conscious sites. Although it's more expensive than its competition, an...

Geekspeak: April 1, 2002.(worm)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... Microsoft customer, this is the latest version of security update, the '9 mar 2002 cumulative Patch' update.... " So begins the text of W32.Gibe@mm, which first appeared early last month and has been spreading rapidly since then. This...

Mono Advances .Net Platform on Unix.
April 1, 2002... The future of Microsoft Corp.'s .Net Framework development platform is still unclear, but one thing we can safely predict is that solid Unix support will be critical to the platform's ultimate success. That's why organizations testing .Net...

The Buzz: April 1, 2002.
April 1, 2002... Sun Boss Rips Microsoft .Net Sun CEO Scott McNealy is never shy when talking about archrival Microsoft, particularly when talking to developers, such as at last week's JavaOne show. In his keynote, McNealy urged developers to unite...

HP Sued for Vote Pressure.(HP-Compaq merger)
April 1, 2002... Although Hewlett-Packard Co. is pressing on with its integration plans for Compaq Computer Corp., issues surrounding the proposed buyout are far from settled. In addition to the fact that the official HP shareholder vote has not been tallied,...

Financial System Integration Tools on Way.(from WebMethods and IBM)
April 1, 2002... WebMethods Inc. and IBM are each readying software that should help financial institutions better integrate systems that share data inside as well as outside the firewall. WebMethods this week will announce integration suites, a set of...

Labs'-Eye View.(storage management software standards)
April 1, 2002... IT managers don't need more tools. What they need--as they attempt to oversee a rapidly expanding array of storage technologies--is a universal tool belt to organize and make these tools accessible. Many vendors claim to offer centralized...

StarOffice 6.0 Gains Early Support.(Product Announcement)
April 1, 2002... As Sun Microsystems Inc. readies its StarOffice 6.0 suite for a May release, some enterprises are already planning to rip out existing desktop productivity suites for the new product. Eric LeSatz, vice president of IS administration for...

Vigilance Offers Web Services.(Vigilance SCEM 3.0)(Product Announcement)
April 1, 2002... Vigilance Inc. last week made available software that provides supply chain event management capabilities presented as Web services. Version 3.0 of the Vigilance SCEM suite offers real-time event management via Universal Description,...

Nauticus to Combine Load Balancing, SSL.(Nauticus Networks)
April 1, 2002... A networking startup wants to make deploying Internet applications easier by combining load balancing and SSL in a single switch. Nauticus Networks Inc. this week will announce its plan to develop a series of application switches that...

Tapping Into the Spectrum.(mobile virtual network operators)
April 1, 2002... While wireless carriers may be too big to cater to the data access and billing desires of particular customers, there seems to be hope for innovation through a small but growing industry called the mobile virtual network operator. An MVNO...

Bridging Enterprise Gaps.(Ximian Connector for Microsoft Exchange and Red Carpet CorporateConnect)(Product Announcement)
April 1, 2002... Open-source software company Ximian Inc. last week released two products to help integrate Linux into the enterprise, Ximian Connector for Microsoft's Corp.'s Exchange and Red Carpet CorporateConnect. Connector is a proprietary product...

Brocade Software Illustrates Debate.(Brocade Communications Systems' Fabric Access API 2.0)(Product Announcement)
April 1, 2002... Brocade Communications Systems Inc. late last month unveiled its latest storage switch technology, a product that fits with the company's vision that switches should help others make management software. At the Storage Management show...

A Boost for E-Com Security.(acquisition of Digital Signature Trust by Identrus)
April 1, 2002... With last week's acquisition of Digital Signature Trust Co. by Identrus LLC, the possibility of a standard, secure payment and authentication system for banking and financial services moved a big step closer to reality. DST, jointly owned...

Netegrity Server Expands E-Biz Resource Defenses.(Netegrity Interaction Server 5.1 portal server)(Product Announcement)
April 1, 2002... Netegrity Inc. is rolling out software to aid companies in securely managing e-business activities. The Waltham, Mass., company last week formally announced the launch of its Netegrity Interaction Server 5.1 portal server, the first of four...

Fuegotech Cuts Cost of B2B.(with UXO, or Unidentified XML Objects)(Product Announcement)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... The business-to-business arena has always been difficult for small businesses to break into. Fuegotech Inc. said it has one way to make the move easier. The Dallas company last week unveiled its UXO (Unidentified XML Objects) technology, a...

SiteStor Shows System Needs.(W. Quinn Associates' SiteStor network storage management software)(Product Announcement)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... As most new storage software emphasizes agnostic management and virtual hardware pools, a new product from W. Quinn Inc. focuses on performance management and helps administrators deduce what storage to buy when expansion beckons. SiteStor...

Cases Made for Bluetooth.(Samsonite's Hardlite ICT case with Bluetooth chip)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... Waiting for takeoff Bluetooth technology may not be taking off in the United States yet, but products supporting the wireless specification are appearing. Last month, Samsonite Corp.'s European division, based in Oudenaarde, Belgium, unveiled...

Protocol Info in the 'Zone'.(LDAPzone.com)(Internet/Web/Online Service Information)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... At Novell's Brainshare Conference, I heard a couple of the company's developers touting LDAPzone.com, a handy Web site for keeping track of what is happening with LDAP, from a (theoretically) vendor-neutral viewpoint. The site has useful...

The Strategy for WebSphere.(IBM)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... Speaking to eWeek's Corporate Partner advisory board in New York in late March, WebSphere Platform Chief Architect and IBM Fellow Donald Ferguson described an all-encompassing role for Web services in the WebSphere product line. "Our model...

A Sage Way to Send Large Files.(Sage Analytics Technologies' MagicVortex)(Evaluation)(Product Announcement)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... Several products have popped up during the last year or so that try to use peer-to-peer technology to make it easier for users to send very large files. Sage Analytics Technologies' MagicVortex is a more usable and effective tool for this than...

Users Don't Want to Be Forced to Choose.
April 1, 2002... The adage in the operating system market was always that Microsoft's installed base is the company's biggest benefit and its biggest detriment. The need to strike a balance between cool new features and compatibility with past applications is a...

AT&T Phone Goes Global.(Product Announcement)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... AT&T Wireless has a new phone aimed at extending users' wireless reach. The Siemens Mobile Information Group's S46 supports GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) and Time Division Multiple Access. The phone also supports General...

Host Your Own Web Meetings.(Sonexis' NetCollaborator)(Product Announcement)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2002... First, there was audio collaboration. Now, Sonexis Inc. is rolling out a new appliance for Web collaboration. NetCollaborator is a Web conferencing appliance that handles such tasks as scheduling, document sharing, whiteboarding,...

E-Biz Apps Aimed at the SMB Customer.
April 1, 2002... Small and medium-size businesses need enterprise software to help them run their businesses and connect business processes to customers as much as larger companies, but most of the smaller organizations don't have the financial and technical...

Knowledge Management: Value Is Relative.
April 1, 2002... Seconds are precious in Jamie Manning's world. Manning doesn't want to see peoples' eyes wandering aimlessly, as they waste time hunting for buttons to click. He doesn't want to see search terms such as "paid time off" entered over and over if...

Sun Easing JCP Licensing Rules.(Java Community Process)
April 1, 2002... The Apache Software Foundation in February took Sun Microsystems Inc. to task for hindering open-source implementations through rules associated with the workings of the Java Community Process. The foundation said the Palo Alto, Calif.,...

Server Keeps Data in Sync.(Extended Systems' XtndConnect Server Professional Edition 3.0)(Evaluation)
April 1, 2002... Companies can make the most of the handheld computers in their enterprise by providing them with flexible access to corporate mail and data via a server-based synchronization product--the sort of product that Extended Systems Inc. has been...

Caution NAS, SAN Merge Ahead.
April 1, 2002... Although Hugh Hale and Bob Venable oversee a large and rapidly growing pool of data--46 terabytes, so far--the storage administrators at BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee Inc. have managed to keep their storage environment relatively simple and...

Internet Insight: ESI Does It.(Edge Side Includes caching standard)
April 1, 2002... Call it a Cache-22. Dynamic Web content is emerging as a key to successful e-business sites. But that fluid information can lead to heavy network traffic, slowing application servers to a crawl and, in turn, bringing an e-business to its knees....

Sun Builds Out Java Tool Sets.(Sun Microsystems )(Monty)
April 1, 2002... SAN FRANCISCO--Sun Microsystems Inc. is aggressively expanding its Java technology in multiple directions, with plans for wireless, Web services and peer-to-peer applications. One project, code-named Monty, is designed to increase Java...

Plug-In Links Linux, Windows.(CodeWeavers' CrossOver Plugin 1.1)(Brief Article)(Evaluation)
April 8, 2002... No matter how things end up shaking out for Microsoft vs. the Department of Justice, Windows will, for the foreseeable future, maintain its hammerlock on desktop computers and the software they run--such as Web browser plug-ins. However,...

Unit Puts Lock on Small Offices.(Evaluation)
April 8, 2002... Celestix networks' latest Linux-based server appliance, the Aries One, features Check Point Software Technologies' VPN-1/ Firewall-1, which helps it deliver enterprise-class Internet security to small businesses or branch offices. At less...

eGov Prompts Ambitious Agency Efforts.
April 8, 2002... Two years ago, soon after enactment of federal mandates to make information accessible to constituents online, the Federal Aviation Administration scrambled to get its compliance effort off the ground. Various departments within the agency that...

Top Layer Filters Traffic.(Top Layer Networks Attack Mitigator)(Evaluation)
April 8, 2002... Top Layer Networks Inc.'s Attack Mitigator Version 1.0 provides powerful protection from DoS and distributed-denial-of-service attacks on Web servers and other network infrastructure devices and desktop systems. The Attack Mitigator is...

Top Layer Testing.(Top Layer Networks Attack Mitigator)
April 8, 2002... To put Top Layer Networks Inc.'s Attack Mitigator through its defensive paces, eWeek Labs used 60 clients, some set up as targets, most set up as attackers; a Dell Computer Corp. four-way PowerEdge 6300 500MHz system running Windows 2000 with...

Linux Makes Inroads on Desktop.
April 8, 2002... For all its server room successes, Linux has found the mainstream corporate desktop a much harder nut to crack, and much of the blame belongs to usability issues. With a solid, configurable interface that should please Linux newbies and power...

Microsoft Takes Security Defense.(Trustworthy Computing initiative)
April 8, 2002... Microsoft Corp.'s newfound security zeal is shaping up to become one of the company's main weapons in its ongoing antitrust battle. The Redmond, Wash., software maker launched its Trustworthy Computing initiative in January, claiming...

WECA Wrestles With Wi-Fi.(Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance)
April 8, 2002... The organization that drove the adoption of the popular 802.11b WLAN specification is now struggling with how to test and market future wireless LAN products. At issue in the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance is how to best route...

Judge Mulls Over Motion to Dismiss Hewlett Suit.(Walter Hewlett's lawsuit against HP)
April 8, 2002... A Delaware judge today is mulling whether to allow Walter Hewlett to proceed with his lawsuit accusing Hewlett-Packard Co. of illegally buying shareholder votes in order to allow it to proceed with its controversial buyout of Compaq Computer...

High Tech Enters Classic Era.(Column)
April 8, 2002... Live long enough, and eventually everything will become "classic." We already have classic rock on the radio, classic TV on cable, classic sports on ESPN (a wonderful thing), classic fashions and classic cars. Now, it seems, the classic...

Even Smart Cards Can Make Dumb Mistakes.
April 8, 2002... Bits are a lie. The difference between the fiction of bits and the truth of actual hardware is a fundamental threat to secure computing. The software pretense of bits depends on an upstream hardware reality of voltages, currents, stray...

Did Ya Hear the One About the Two Sites?
April 8, 2002... At a time when people are still trying to figure out how to effectively use the Internet as a business tool, El Gato thinks the industry may have finally latched onto something--Web sites designed just to slam the competition! Just recently,...

Hot Java Revives Mac Programming.
April 8, 2002... After years of being infamously unfriendly to casual programmers, the Macintosh has suddenly become the machine of choice for out-of-the-box programmability--with tools that not only generate great-looking Macintosh applications but that also...

Microsoft's Tablet PC--Maybe Next Year.
April 8, 2002... Talk about tablet computers has been de rigueur for at least 10 years--maybe more, if you count some of the Tandy TRS-80 junkies out there. But this time, we're a tiny bit closer to reality; in other words, we've finally evolved beyond the...

It's Time to Kill the Telecom Act of 1996.(Editorial)
April 8, 2002... You'd have a hard time finding a bigger jumble of flawed logic than the Federal Communications Commission's recent attempts to even the playing field for the competition between telephone and cable companies over residential broadband. FCC...

Red Flag on Rights Management.(Consumer Broadband and Digital Television Promotion Act)
April 8, 2002... In 1865, the English Parliament passed the so-called Red Flag Law, requiring that self-propelled vehicles on public highways be limited to a maximum speed of 4 miles per hour and be preceded by a man carrying a red flag. The law remained on the...

Internet Insight: Following the Money.
April 8, 2002... XML must be a sure bet. The financial services and insurance industries, notable for conservatism, are leading the way in adopting XML as many companies convert data to XML formats. "The capital markets are taking the lead. The largest...

Package Aids Java, XML Developers.
April 8, 2002... Technology enabling Java application developers to connect to database data has taken a step forward with the publication of the Java Database Connectivity 3.0 standard in February. Longtime database driver manufacturer DataDirect...

JDBC 3.0 Offers Database Control.(Java Database Connectivity 3.0 )
April 8, 2002... In mid-February, Sun Microsystems Inc. released the latest version, 3.0, of the JDBC API specification, defining how Java applications access relational databases. The core Java Database Connectivity 3.0 libraries are included in Java 2...

Computer Crime Takes Heavy Toll on Companies.(Statistical Data Included)
April 8, 2002... The cost of computer crime and vandalism is rising rapidly, as is the number of incidents occurring each year. Fully 85 percent of the respondents to the Computer Security Institute's annual Computer Crime and Security Survey reported...

Cisco Buttresses Its Services Pitch.
April 8, 2002... Cisco Systems Inc. today announced a revamped Advanced Services program aimed at providing customers with more flexibility in choosing support options and expanding the number of Cisco applications included. Cisco's move comes as...

Compaq Racks Up $900 Million in Deals.
April 8, 2002... The high-end storage division of Compaq Computer Corp. signed $900 million worth of new business spanning 63 petabytes of data over the past six months, according to officials. The Houston company's Enterprise Storage Group made the...

Hardware Is Only Part of the Solution.
April 8, 2002... A denial-of-service attack can cripple a network, even if access isn't gained, and a single distributed-denial-of-service onslaught can disable a multitude of systems. Products including Top Layer Networks Inc.'s Attack Mitigator Version 1.0...

Siebel Makes Application Integration Play.(Product Announcement)
April 8, 2002... Siebel Systems Inc. took a stab at easing application integration headaches Monday with the announcement of its Universal Application Network at its European user conference in Barcelona. The new technology, first reported by eWEEK in...

IBM Hits Financial Bump.(Statistical Data Included)
April 8, 2002... IBM warned on Monday that its first quarter sales will fall about $1 billion short of Wall Street's expectations because its customers are continuing to delay purchases, rekindling fears that the high-tech industry still remains mired in a more...

MS Dismisses UMS Plan as Litigation Tactic.
April 8, 2002... SBC Communications Inc. is developing a unified messaging service expressly for enterprise users, and it plans to deploy a consumer version of the system in January, a company executive revealed Monday while testifying in the Microsoft Corp....

Judge Allows Hewlett Suit to Proceed.
April 8, 2002... A Delaware judge ruled Monday that Walter Hewlett can proceed with his lawsuit against Hewlett-Packard Co., a decision that could ultimately block the computer maker's planned $19 billion buyout of Compaq Computer Corp. Judge William B....