MicroScope articles from November 2007

MicroScope archives from November 2007

14 Miscellaneous.
November 12, 2007... Selling software has never been as straightforward as selling hardware or peripherals. The chief cause of its complexity comes from software licensing programmes, which are configured to meet the needs of different types of customer, and...

12 Soap.(briefs)(Radiohead)(Carphone Warehouse)
November 12, 2007... Rob the fans It has been a week dominated by technology issues in the music market. First of all, a survey showed that on average, customers had only been prepared to pay [pounds sterling]2.90 for Radiohead's new album. Then, Prince, or...

05 Editorial.(Editorial)
November 12, 2007... Discovering a different way of selling software is naturally attractive and there has been a hell of a rush to try to promote Software as a Service (SaaS). But now the reality is starting to hit that actually, it might just be a bit more...

05 Editorial.(Editorial)
November 12, 2007... Up until the latest version of its Mac OS X operating system, Apple has released a new version every 12 months or so. The gap between 10.3 (Panther) and 10.4 (Tiger) stretched to 18 months, but few would have predicted it would be more than two...

10 Features.
November 12, 2007... Bob Alcorn spends a lot of time worrying about energy. As chief operations officer at US-based data centre company NFrame, he has to ensure that the lights are on and the servers are running. Traditionally, data centre managers spent their...

15 Columns.
November 12, 2007... One device to rule them all, one device to bind them. One device to bring them all, and to one supplier bind them? Given the pace of convergence and our technology-savvy society, surely we are all impatiently waiting to trade in our...

11 Letters.
November 12, 2007... Vista interoperability affecting school lessons The fact that BECTA [the Government's schools IT partner] is taking Microsoft to the OFT over its Vista strategy in schools demonstrates the proliferation of technology in education. More...

03 Networking.
November 12, 2007... CVD marketing director Convergence and reprographics integrator Charterhouse Voice and Data has appointed ex-Mitel and AT Communications man Campbell Williams as its new marketing director. Williams, who has been in networking since 1997,...

01 News.
November 12, 2007... All eyes were on BT last week, not only as it announced its results, but also as it was expected to confirm it was to shed several thousand jobs. In response to questions on job cuts, a spokesman said the firm would be cutting back in some...

04 Hardware.
November 12, 2007... Sun Microsystems has poached IBM System x channel manager Stewart Legge to head its volume business and review the partner strategy, after releasing the first in a range of Intel-based x64 boxes. Last month, Sun confirmed plans to evaluate...

04 Hardware.(Acer Inc.)(Westcoast Ltd.)(Brief article)
November 12, 2007... In an attempt to iron out some issues and breathe new life into a faltering trading relationship, Acer's UK managing director is planning to meet distribution partner Westcoast's senior management. Appointed by Acer in 2005, the...

08 Storage.
November 12, 2007... To find out where the storage industry is heading there's no better place than SNW Europe, which this year attracted 1,458 channel, customer and vendor delegates to its Frankfurt venue. Green storage, data de-duplication and the growing...

01 News.(Westcoast Ltd.)(Brief article)
November 12, 2007... The past week has seen a number of moves in the channel, with management personnel leaving senior positions - the most shocking being Andy Dow resigning from the post of director at Westcoast. He worked at the Reading-based distributor for...

01 News.(Dell Inc.)(EqualLogic Inc.)
November 12, 2007... Dell plans to buy EqualLogic for $1.4bn ([pounds sterling]700m), but has assured channel partners that they still have a role to play in the iSCSI SAN specialist's business - even though they may face competition from its direct sales force....

01 News.
November 12, 2007... The new owner of Maverick should be announced later this week, according to the administrator handling the sale of the distributor's assets, after a number of "serious and significant" offers were put on the table. The company voluntary...

01 News.
November 12, 2007... Avaya's owners, venture capital group Silver Lake, have reassured partners of a continued channel commitment and outlined plans for a more aggressive push. Speaking to partners at Avaya's annual BusinessPartner conference in Paris, Silver...

01 News.
November 12, 2007... The battle against software pirates continues to rage across the UK with Cardiff the latest city to be targeted by copyright enforcement bodies. In a test case that expolits the changes made to the Copyright Design & Patents Act that came...

01 News.
November 12, 2007... In an effort to increase the number of customers installing unified communications kit, Cisco has unveiled a zero per cent finance offer to tempt those that might have been put off by cost. But there have been mixed responses in the channel...

01 News.
November 12, 2007... Hewlett-Packard has introduced two specialisations based on products and services in the Imaging and Printing Group and one that will attempt to bolster services sales and skills including Carepaq warranties. The Sales Services...

02 Software.
November 12, 2007... The consequences of buying software based on cost could be decreases in productivity and poor communication with customers and staff if the systems are not implemented correctly, according to a study carried out by Professor Soumitra Dutta of...

02 Software.
November 12, 2007... The increasing popularity of offering applications and data transfer via hosted services is attracting security specialists to support the managed services market. With hosted services, information can be accessed remotely and from...

03 Networking.(Silver Peak)(Brief article)
November 12, 2007... The war of words in the WAN optimisation market continued as vendor Silver Peak claimed a series of improvements to its products would put it ahead of main competitors such as Cisco and Riverbed. When given the chance, vendors will pour...

03 Networking.
November 12, 2007... ViNO (Virtual Indirect Network Operator), the indirect channel arm of business comms provider Matrix Communications, has increased its channel commitment in an attempt to enable resellers to compete with large carriers. Developments within...

12 Soap.
November 19, 2007... What is the best/worst advice you have received? The worst advice I ever received was stocks and shares advice from my brother-in-law. The best advice I ever received, but sadly too late, was never to take advice from my brother-in-law. ...

01 News.
November 19, 2007... Most data centres are anything but greenfield sites. Rather than being developed in a methodological, organised way, they have evolved gradually throughout the course of the business, surviving multiple IT managers, and the pressure of...

05 Editorial.(Editorial)
November 19, 2007... One of Silicon Valley's pioneering companies is set to introduce what it calls PC 3.0. Phoenix Technologies is not as well known as the Intels or Apples of this world, but it was fundamental to the birth of the PC revolution since its BIOS...

05 Editorial.(Editorial)
November 19, 2007... Years ago, when a news editor was explaining where issues arose in the channel, he advised us to look at the terms and conditions of contracts, mark in our diaries when they were being renewed, and seek out the anger and frustration. That...

10 Features.
November 19, 2007... Although the vendor community has traditionally pitched software as a service (SaaS) predominantly as a small to medium enterprise proposition, adoption in this space is still relatively low. And while there are varying reasons for this...

14 Miscellaneous.
November 19, 2007... The day before the Queen trundled down to the House of Lords to outline the Government's priorities for the current session of Parliament, Ed Balls, the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, stole some of her thunder with some...

14 Miscellaneous.
November 19, 2007... The latest predictions about the likely shortfall in qualified IT staff - 300,000 by 2010, according to the European Commission - are worrying for anyone concerned about the long-term health of the IT industry. To continue to provide...

04 Hardware.(Brief article)
November 19, 2007... The impact of consolidation and virtualisation on the growth of x86 sales has yet to be felt acutely as enterprises moved to quad core systems more quickly than expected last quarter, helping to keep the market buoyant. Earlier this year,...

04 Hardware.
November 19, 2007... Hewlett-Packard grew at 19.4 per cent to hold 42.3 per cent market share.e_SClBDell shipments increased 14.5 per cent, with 18.7 per cent market share.e_SClBIBM sales declined 1.7 per cent and it held 15 per cent market share.

07 Security.
November 19, 2007... The outbreak of phishing attacks on MySpace has put social networking sites firmly on the security radar. For a while there have been concerns not just about the possiblity of phishing attacks and identity fraud but also the sheer amount of...

07 Security.(data security)(Brief article)
November 19, 2007... The drive towards hosted services continues to sweep through the security market with F-Secure the latest to take the wraps off its offering for resellers. Later this week the vendor will outline its Protection Service for Business package...

08 Storage.
November 19, 2007... Hitachi Data Systems (HDS) and Dell have jointly upset the small business storage applecart - HDS by raising the bar, Dell by buying its way in big time. That's right: staid old HDS, the enterprise-focused, big storage iron supplier, has...

01 News.
November 19, 2007... Hewlett-Packard is to reduce partner marketing funds based on revenues and increase discretionary payments linked to the share of its products in a reseller's portfolio, return on marketing investment and quality of plans. In a letter to...

01 News.(Maverick Presentation Products Inc.)(Company overview)
November 19, 2007... A number of bidders for the assets of Maverick Presentation Products have been pipped to the post by broadline giant Computer 2000, which last week acquired the Reading-based specialist in its entirety. The company voluntary arrangement...

01 News.
November 19, 2007... Virtualisation specialist VMware has signed up Computer 2000's Azlan division to meet demand from smaller customers for its products. Although VMware targets the enterprise market, a growing number of smaller customers are using the...

01 News.
November 19, 2007... While welcomed from an environmental standpoint, the latest green networking initiative may be flawed, according to those in the channel that have looked at the sales pitch. Avaya and Extreme Networks have teamed to address power-saving...

01 News.
November 19, 2007... Sun Microsystems' Sun Partner Advantage (SPA) programme is being extended to appeal more to software developers, by allowing them to reach top-level accreditations and accrue higher rebates without selling hardware. Piloted in the US, the...

01 News.
November 19, 2007... The case of a Cornish roofer that had a sideline selling forged anatomical software on eBay has illustrated the frustration the industry has with auction sites. Using a similar argument to that used by ISPs, the auction sites are claiming...

01 News.
November 19, 2007... Hewlett-Packard is believed to be close to naming the new UK country manager for its ProCurve networking division, with Darryl Brick expected to take up the reins early next month. Brick is currently HP's enterprise server and storage...

09 Tech Traders.
November 19, 2007... If the look and design of technology is something that matters to your customers then the Sony Vaio XVGNSZ61VN is going to get some welcome attention. The reason why it is a head-turner is because it not only looks good but it has a number...

02 Software.
November 19, 2007... Software vendors have launched a number of initiatives to ensure the future is bright and the channel is strong enough to take advantage. One approach has been to target SME resellers, help them improve their skills and provide them with...

03 Networking.
November 19, 2007... ShoreTel In its first serious play since a recent successful IPO, ShoreTel has unveiled a series of improvements to its IP telephony management platform, adding more functionality for mobile workers and international trunking for EMEA...

03 Networking.(unified communications )
November 19, 2007... The channel has appealed to unified communications (UC) vendors to adopt a more banded view of the technology in the face of growing complexity. Peter Titmus, managing director at networking services firm Networks First, suggested there...

03 Networking.
November 19, 2007... Cisco resellers have reacted coolly to claims from German VPN client software vendor NCP - which launched an assault on the British market last week - that the company intends to exploit a weakness in Cisco's VPN portfolio. NCP's war-cry...

12 Soap.
November 19, 2007... The date Race of Champions at Wembley 1pm-8pm on Sunday 16 December 2007 (main race 5pm-7pm). The details MicroScope has teamed up with Grenke Leasing to give one lucky reader the chance to take a friend, their best client or...

10 Features.
November 19, 2007... Adrian Williams, T-Mobile's head of OEM and IT channel partners in the UK, reveals his take on the IT reseller market for teleworking. Q: How can the reseller create the best margins, turn the biggest profit and exploit the potential of...

10 Features.
November 19, 2007... The latest research from communications solutions provider Mitel suggests that the phrase "I'm working from home today" strikes fear into the hearts of 21 per cent of managers, who interpret it as "I'm taking it easy today". But that still...

10 Features.(Company overview)
November 19, 2007... As think tank organisation the Globalisation Institute urges the European Commission to move towards a market where computers are sold by default without any bundled operating system - arguing that the bundling of Microsoft Windows is not in...

12 Soap.
November 26, 2007... What is the best/worst advice you have received and from who? Best advice: "Stop feeling sorry for yourself", from an Outward Bound instructor during a mountaineering course when I was 16. I was finishing a run and was wilting from the...

15 Columns.
November 26, 2007... Deep in the heart of the Murdoch empire there's an office with frosted glass in the door, a threadbare carpet, and a filing cabinet containing nothing but a quart of bourbon. A hawk-faced man leans back in his chair with his feet on the desk,...

05 Editorial.(Editorial)
November 26, 2007... The idea of Web 2.0 might seem to be for many people just talking about the funny movie clips that are on YouTube or the friends you have rediscovered on MySpace or the odd clubs you have joined on FaceBook but there are more in the channel...

10 Features.
November 26, 2007... The phenomenal success of social networking site Facebook - and Microsoft's decision to take a minority stake in the software start-up, valuing it at $15bn - is changing the way people behave online. The Facebook generation of users expect to...

14 Miscellaneous.
November 26, 2007... When Microsoft started out on its awareness campaign to help resellers to understand the costs of piracy to the UK channel and also the benefits of selling genuine product, the vendor commissioned research to measure the attitude of the channel...

03 Networking.(Company overview)
November 26, 2007... The networking channel has welcomed growing movement towards addressing a lack of confidence in unified comms skills among resellers, with some arguing that closer co-operation is needed between vendors and value-added distributiors. ...

03 Networking.(Blue Coat Systems Inc.)(Northern Telecom Ltd.)(Brief article)
November 26, 2007... SME hosting provider Lumison has appointed Demon Internet founder Grahame Davies to its board of directors. Davies was formerly group managing director at Easynet and chairman of the London Internet Exchange. Lumison has recently launched a new...

01 News.
November 26, 2007... The Cisco channel has voiced concerns that a large amount of kit is being stolen to order by organised gangs, with some products even turning up on the vendor's online support service SMARTnet. One reseller, who declined to be named,...

01 News.
November 26, 2007... Eight resellers have won a three-year tender to supply 650 higher education institutions with Microsoft Select and Campus licensing deals at discounted rates, shutting out the rest of the channel. Not-for-profit outfit Eduserv, which works...

01 News.(investigation of sale of plasma screen trade rental division PSco )(Brief article)
November 26, 2007... The administrator of Maverick has been urged by creditors to investigate the sale of its plasma screen trade rental division PSco months before the company collapsed. Accounting errors of [pounds sterling]700,000 over four years were...

01 News.
November 26, 2007... Colourful industry veteran Paul Cook is returning to the channel after a long absence and today becomes UK director of commercial products at Bell Micro in a role that includes a seat on the executive board in Europe. Cook left Acer in...

01 News.
November 26, 2007... Dell has broken its silence on the appointment of Andy Dow as the first channel director for the UK and Ireland in more than a decade and welcomed him into the fold. The channel veteran was expected to join Dell mid-December and will be...

01 News.
November 26, 2007... The first Glaswegian scalp in the month-long campaign running in the city against anti-piracy has produced another payout for the Business Software Alliance (BSA). The BSA launched a campaign targeting the Scottish city for November in an...

01 News.
November 26, 2007... Former Bell Micro director Alex Tatham has surfaced at memory and storage distribution minnow Simms International where he is developing plans to triple sales at the [pounds sterling]25m operation in the next three years, writes Paul Kunert....

07 Security.(increasing movement of security to provide productivity tools )(Brief article)
November 26, 2007... The increasing movement of security to provide productivity tools continues to get resellers a foot in the door at an SME level, but it could also be an enterprise pitch. The reaction from some corporates to the Web 2.0 phenomenon appears...

07 Security.
November 26, 2007... Magirus is preparing to launch a web-based support portal next month, which it says will enable resellers and their customers to track the progress of service calls and make it easier for partners to deliver SLAs to users. The support...

02 Software.
November 26, 2007... Microsoft has stepped up its intention to be more closely associated with system-oriented architecture (SOA). "We have been doing it since 1999 but it is something we have been guilty of not really shouting about," admitted Gavin King,...

02 Software.
November 26, 2007... Red Hat has appointed a channel manager to build relationships with partners in the UK for JBoss middleware software, a year after it bought the company for $350m. Red Hat has signed more than 50 EMEA middleware resellers to the JBoss...

08 Storage.(Network Appliance Inc.)
November 26, 2007... ISCSI vendors have seized on Dell's purchase of Equalogic as a sign that the technology is now validated. Leonard Iventosch, vice-president of worldwide channel sales at NetApp, told MicroScope the company was already calling on its...

09 Tech Traders.
November 26, 2007... Chipdrive Keeping track of staff that are coming and going and then charging by the hour of the job can be a nightmare for even the most organised managers. In these days when trust is something that is all too often abused the...