IT Week (UK) articles from October 2007

IT Week (UK) archives from October 2007

More style-phone than smartphone.
October 1, 2007... More style-phone than smartphone Apple's iPhone is stylish and user-friendly, but it offers little for business users to get excited about Writers usually sum up their opinions at the end rather than the beginning of an article, but I...

Replicated VMs avert disaster.
October 1, 2007... Replicated VMs avert disaster Vizioncore's vReplicator 2.1 provides a reliable means of backing up virtual machines Launched on 4 September, vReplicator 2.1 is the successor to Vizioncore's esxReplicator 2.0 virtual machine (VM)...

Data mining unearths hidden talent.
October 1, 2007... Data mining unearths hidden talent New enterprise social networking tools can help firms to quickly put together teams of inhouse experts There's a certain kind of penetrating insight that comes from spending far too long in one...

Jury still out on virtual PC business case.
October 1, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Jury still out on virtual PC business case Turning PCs into virtual machines could save on management, but might it add cost elsewhere? Virtualisation is a topic that is never far from the headlines these...

Management boost for PC virtualisers.
October 1, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Management boost for PC virtualisers Firms can now use ClearCube's Sentral tools to manage virtual PCs on third-party kit Companies looking to implement a virtual desktop strategy could find their task...

Minister to hear business case for fibre.(Stephen Timms)
October 1, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey Minister to hear business case for fibre A summit will address concerns that a lack of fibre is endangering the UK's competitiveness In his first major speech on broadband, minister for competitiveness Stephen...

Growth of VoIP boosts EPM prospects.
October 1, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey Growth of VoIP boosts EPM prospects As more real-time apps are run over networks, enterprise performance management tools are becoming vital Just before a recent meeting I had with Fluke Networks, the firm that...

Brick-and-click firms raise their game.
October 1, 2007... Brick-and-click firms raise their game Multi-channel vendors catching up with online pure-plays in terms of customer service A new report by online market research firm eDigital Research provides some interesting insights into the...

Complexity breeds open-source risk.
October 1, 2007... Complexity breeds open-source risk Black Duck's Doug Levin on why developers need help to manage open-source licences IT Week: What do developers have to gain by using Black Duck software to manage open-source development projects? ...

Business phones get back to basics.
October 1, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Business phones get back to basics Symbian's Andrew Moran explains how the mobile industry has a renewed focus Enterprise mobility is going back to basics with a new focus on voice communications and...

Compact PC saves energy.
October 1, 2007... Compact PC saves energy Daniel Robinson Fujitsu-Siemens is addressing the twin requirements for space saving and power efficiency with the latest addition to its Esprimo Q series of compact business PCs. The move comes as lobby group...

Online storage gains credibility.
October 1, 2007... Online storage gains credibility Martin Veitch Storage giant EMC is expected to acquire startup firm Berkeley Data Systems in a deal that suggests online and outsourced storage could become a bigger factor for businesses. EMC will...

SAP enters hosted fray.
October 1, 2007... SAP enters hosted fray Martin Veitch SAP's big move into on-demand services is set to cause a sea change in the way buyers in small businesses and satellite operations view their application needs. The 19 September launch of...

Green Ethernet moves closer.
October 1, 2007... Green Ethernet moves closer James Murray and rosalie marshall More energy-efficient network technology moved a step closer last week after networking vendor D-Link unveiled a range of desktop switches that it said offer energy savings...

BSI to set standard for ECM tools.(British Standards Institution )(Enterprise Content Management)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... BSI to set standard for ECM tools Martin Courtney Enterprise content management (ECM) solutions will be defined by new best-practice guidelines to be issued by BSI British Standards within the next nine months. The UK standards...

EU scheme aims for ID card interoperability.
October 1, 2007... EU scheme aims for ID card interoperability Phil Muncaster in Warsaw E-business trade association Eema has revealed plans to make national identity card services in the European Union transferable across member states. The...

Microsoft previews key upgrades.
October 1, 2007... Microsoft previews key upgrades Martin Courtney Microsoft made the first Release Candidate (RC0) of its Windows Server 2008 operating system (OS) available to download last week, simultaneously previewing its Viridian server...

Cisco powers up office comms.(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... Cisco powers up office comms Legions of Cisco shops could be tempted by new branch-office systems and upgrades designed to give network performance normally only found in company headquarters. The Cisco Empowered Branch range will...

Ofcom sits on fence over fibre.
October 1, 2007... Ofcom sits on fence over fibre Dave Bailey UK communications regulator Ofcom last week published its consultation document on a future regulatory framework for high-speed broadband. The watchdog said it is not sure whether it should...

GMail to get a refresh.(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... GMail to get a refresh Rosalie Marshall A refresh of Google's free email service GMail is likely to be available soon, although it will not be a complete upgrade, Google has confirmed. Rumours of a new GMail surfaced on the web...

Comment.(SAP AG enters on-demand services)(Brief article)
October 1, 2007... SAP's entry into the on-demand arena comes years after several specialists, including Salesforce.com, RightNow and NetSuite, have made their respective moves. However, the German giant's approach is significantly different. First, rather...

Is BlackBerry data ripe for interception?
October 8, 2007... Is BlackBerry data ripe for interception? All traffic destined for a BlackBerry is routed via Canada, where laws allow disclosure and interception Reports that government officials are having their BlackBerrys taken away do not come as...

IT risks must be understood by all.
October 8, 2007... IT risks must be understood by all To avoid technology failures, business executives must be told about the consequences IT risk can have serious consequences for an organisation, even an entire industry, therefore IT risk management...

An acute observer of LAN behaviour.(Local Area Network)(Product/service evaluation)
October 8, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey An acute observer of LAN behaviour The latest version of the Observer packet analyser can now troubleshoot MPLS systems Network Instruments' Observer family of application performance troubleshooters was...

Few takers for latest version of GPL.
October 8, 2007... Few takers for latest version of GPL Open source developers see no compelling need to move up to version 3 of the licence Few open source developers have migrated to licensing their software using the controversial General Public...

How to stay on the right side of the law.
October 8, 2007... How to stay on the right side of the law Firms are under increasing regulatory pressure to safeguard sensitive data The compliance landscape that IT managers in all sectors must negotiate is constantly evolving to keep up with new...

VMware readies tools to virtualise business PCs.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson VMware readies tools to virtualise business PCs Package enables virtual desktop deployments to scale up As the most prominent firm in the virtualisation market, VMware is well positioned to help companies...

True extent of uptake will not show for some time.
October 8, 2007... True extent of uptake will not show for some time Rowan Wilson of open source software advisory service OSS Watch warns against writing off GPL version 3 The Palamida figure is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of potential...

Building a circle of trust.
October 8, 2007... Building a circle of trust Federated ID management lets firms reach out while keeping their guard up The rapid proliferation of threats to corporate data has spawned various different approaches to information security. It has been...

Steps to federated identity management.(Brief article)
October 8, 2007... Steps to federated identity management n Maintaining up-to-date security polices and communicating them to users can help eliminate data and privacy breaches as a result of human error. n Fit the method of identity management to the...

Iti?1/2s time businesses faced up to Facebook.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson It's time businesses faced up to Facebook Some users waste hours on social notworking sites, but a gentle hint may work better than a ban The sign of a lazy article is often a quirky survey report. "Ninety...

Pros and cons of desktop virtualisation.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Pros and cons of desktop virtualisation Stephen Yeo explains why virtualisation may not be the best architecture for all users With all the current hype over virtualisation, IT departments must be careful...

How green is your Ethernet?
October 8, 2007... How green is your Ethernet? Energy Efficient Ethernet is a great concept but its impact on global energy consumption is likely to be small The growing emphasis on energy efficiency in IT has led to plans to reduce the amount of power...

The case for federated ID management.
October 8, 2007... The case for federated ID management In a recent IT Week Vendor Video Q&A in association with CA, Simon Perry, vice president of security strategy at the management software specialist, discussed the current identity management landscape...

NGA funding is a private matter.(Next-generation Access)
October 8, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey NGA funding is a private matter Ofcom and the government have little appetite for the public funding of network upgrades Ofcom this month published a consultation document called Future Broadband: Policy...

Rivals to give Cisco a run for its money.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey Rivals to give Cisco a run for its money Growing pressure on Cisco in the Ethernet switch market should benefit IT buyers Competition in the Ethernet switch market has been heating up over the past few weeks....

It pays to have a sense of identity.
October 8, 2007... It pays to have a sense of identity By failing to invest in identity management systems, organisations are not only risking the exposure of sensitive data and subsequent reputation damage, but are also missing out on a host of ...

Asian domain up for grabs.(Brief article)
October 8, 2007... Byline: Phil Muncaster Asian domain up for grabs Phil Muncaster The first round of the registration period for the new top-level .asia domain opens tomorrow, promising organisations that are based in or trade with countries in...

Indian firms enjoy rapid growth.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Phil Muncaster Indian firms enjoy rapid growth Rosalie Marshall Indian service providers will continue to increase their share of the global outsourcing market, according to analyst Gartner, thanks to their young workforce...

Fraud deterrent is lacking.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Phil Muncaster Fraud deterrent is lacking Phil Muncaster An overwhelming majority of the UK's top online retailers want the government to crack down on internet fraudsters, according to a new survey. Anti-fraud...

PDA makers target mobile staff.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson PDA makers target mobile staff Daniel Robinson HTC has unveiled a new range of devices, including an enterprise-oriented PDA, an updated version of its Touch phone that adds a keypad, and its Shift...

Xerox cuts cost of colour.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Xerox cuts cost of colour Daniel Robinson Xerox has introduced new printers that it claims can output colour documents for the same cost as black and white. The Xerox Phaser 8860 printer is available...

Applix On-Demand launched.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Rosalie Marshall Applix On-Demand launched Rosalie Marshall Business performance management (BPM) specialist Applix has launched Applix On-Demand (AOD), a new web site providing a wide range of downloadable,...

3Com deal to boost market.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey 3Com buyout to boost market The $2.2bn acquisition of network vendor 3Com by private investment firm Bain Capital could help foster more competition in the switch market, according to some experts. As part of...

Momentum builds behind online office apps.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Phil Muncaster Momentum builds behind online office apps Phil Muncaster The business credentials of online productivity tools were strengthened last week following announcements by Adobe, Google and Microsoft, but experts...

The colour of money.
October 8, 2007... The colour of money Printing costs are one expense that businesses always seem to be trying to control, so the announcement by Xerox of new colour printers that it claims cost no more to run than mono lasers should be good news all round...

Microsoft kick-starts UK startups.
October 8, 2007... Byline: Rosalie Marshall Microsoft kick-starts UK startups Rosalie Marshall Microsoft last week launched its Startup Accelerator Programme, which will offer technical and commercial support to UK software entrepreneurs. The scheme...

Sideways.(Brief article)
October 8, 2007... sideways VIEW Good Week Indian service providers are likely to have been cheered by analyst Gartner's prediction that they will soon cement themselves firmly at the top in an outsourcing version of Top of the Pops. Now that that BBC...

Fortune favours 3Com.
October 8, 2007... Fortune favours 3Com? The purchase of 3Com by Bain Capital looks to be a direct consequence of the network specialist's failure to lay a glove on the 800lb gorilla in the market, Cisco. However, the fact that 3Com has gained the...

Adobe moves towards the online office.
October 15, 2007... Adobe moves towards the online office Seamless online and offline use will boost Adobe's new web-hosted word processor and storage service I am writing this using Buzzword, an online word processor developed by Virtual Ubiquity and...

Users must resist lure of victimhood.(Viewpoint essay)
October 15, 2007... Users must resist lure of victimhood It's time to stop worrying about bogus behavioural disorders like CCU and state the case for free will I learned a new acronym this week: CCU. Minding my own business one morning in a hotel room in...

Let web giants do the work for you.
October 15, 2007... Let web giants do the work for you Why fork out on inhouse web solutions when the likes of Google and Yahoo have already taken the trouble? Many companies are beginning to integrate their web sites with those of industry leaders, such...

IT earns kudos by proving its worth.
October 15, 2007... IT earns kudos by proving its worth To enhance their standing within firms, IT managers must demonstrate business leadership The issue of how best to align IT with the business and improve the perception of the IT function was the main...

Optical fibre yes, nuclear subs no.
October 15, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey Optical fibre yes, nuclear subs no The billions being lavished on our armed forces would be better spent on installing fibre across the UK The question for today is, "Should the UK government fund a residential...

PDAs back in favour with enterprises.
October 15, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson PDAs back in favour with enterprises Renewed interest in enterprise mobility has spawned a new generation of Pocket PC-style PDAs The handheld PDA is supposed to be a dinosaur, threatened with extinction by...

A bug is in the eye of the beholder.
October 15, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson A bug is in the eye of the beholder If a program does not work as users expect but the developer sees nothing amiss, is it a bug? When is a bug not a bug? When it's an undocumented feature. This is an old...

Appliance keeps rogue systems at bay.(Fortinet's FortiGate-224B)
October 15, 2007... Appliance keeps rogue systems at bay Fortinet's UTM offers a good range of security options, but configuration can be tricky Fortinet's FortiGate-224B is a security appliance for Windows systems that also acts as a Layer 2 switch or...

Plenty in store for CIOs at Storage Expo show.
October 15, 2007... Plenty in store for CIOs at Storage Expo show Compliance, business continuity and energy efficiency are just three of the many issues that will under the spotlight Storage Expo 2007 kicks off this Wednesday at London Olympia,...

Gmail updated with business in mind.
October 15, 2007... Gmail updated with business in mind Google's updated Gmail service sees it moving deeper into the role of enterprise apps provider Since Google acquired messaging security firm Postini, new security and compliance functionality has...

Chips bring SMP to mobiles.
October 15, 2007... Byline: daniel robinson Chips bring SMP to mobiles Daniel Robinson Smartphones and other mobile devices are to get a performance boost from a new multi-core processor design unveiled by ARM. The company also announced it is...

Sun to add hypervisor to Solaris.
October 15, 2007... Byline: Martin Courtney Sun to add hypervisor to Solaris Martin Courtney Sun Microsystems plans to add server virtualisation to its Solaris operating system (OS) next year, though its xVM Xen-based type 1 hypervisor will be a...

Service offers insight into Web 2.0 risks.(Secure Web 2.0 Anti-Threat )
October 15, 2007... Byline: Phil Muncaster Service offers insight into Web 2.0 risks Phil Muncaster Secure Computing has unveiled a service designed to help IT security teams combat the latest Web 2.0 threats. The Secure Web 2.0 Anti-Threat (Swat)...

Suite enhances IT's agility.
October 15, 2007... Suite enhances IT's agility Rosalie Marshall IT management vendor BMC Software has launched BMC Service Automation, a solution designed to let IT departments quickly adapt an entire IT infrastructure to the changing demands of a...

Boost for apps over net.(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Boost for apps over net Dave Bailey Akamai last week launched a new service that is designed to provide corporates with a reliable means of delivering back-end enterprise applications over the public internet. The service supports...

IT Week comment.
October 15, 2007... Multi-core chips for smartphones are a logical progression, given that the devices are starting to gain a multitude of uses, many of which are applications that would have required a powerful desktop PC only a few years ago. However, the...

Tool aids Vista migration.
October 15, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Tool aids Vista migration Daniel Robinson ScriptLogic has made available a free tool to aid IT departments in migrating to Windows Vista. The software analyses applications for potential compatibility...

MPs call for UK anti-fraud tsar.
October 15, 2007... MPs call for UK anti-fraud tsar Phil Muncaster MPs are urging the government to appoint a UK ID fraud tsar to co-ordinate efforts to combat the problem. The call comes in a new report by the All Party Identity Fraud Group, released...

Google widens enterprise searches.
October 15, 2007... Byline: Phil Muncaster Google widens enterprise searches Phil Muncaster Search giant Google strengthened its push into the business market last week with the launch of a major new version of its enterprise search appliance,...

SAP buys into BI with Business Objects deal.
October 15, 2007... SAP buys into BI with Business Objects deal Rosalie Marshall Software giant SAP has announced plans to acquire business intelligence (BI) solutions vendor Business Objects, at a cost of e4.8bn ([pounds sterling]3.3bn). The deal...

Service management keeps systems shipshape.(Brief article)
October 15, 2007... Service management keeps systems shipshape MCA's use of automated service management reduced the risk of failures during Napoli rescue One of the advantages of automated service management and monitoring systems, according to Findlay,...

OQO provides PC for your pocket.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson OQO provides PC for your pocket The Vista-ready model e2 packs the power of a laptop into a handheld format The OQO model e2 is a portable computer that manages to squeeze a full PC specification into a...

When IT service levels save lives.
October 22, 2007... When IT service levels save lives James Findlay explains how service level management helps keep our coastal waters safe IT Week: What does the Maritime and Coastguard Agency do? Findlay: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) is...

Building a 21st century trading floor.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Building a 21st century trading floor Mitsubishi UFJ Securities International chose remote Dell blades for its London dealing room Finance firms in the City of London face severe constraints on their IT...

GPS yet to demonstrate its full potential.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson GPS yet to demonstrate its full potential Sat nav is appearing in all sorts of devices and can be used for more than just route planning The incredible growth of satellite navigation use shows little sign...

Keeping networks on right side of law.(interview with Alan Black)(Interview)
October 22, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey Keeping networks on right side of law Misconfigured devices can land firms in legal hot water, warns Intelliden chief Alan Black IT Week: As chief executive of Intelliden, could you explain how policy-based...

Is home broadbandi?1/2s future wireless?
October 22, 2007... Byline: Bill Pechey Is home broadband's future wireless? Wireless technology using freed-up radio spectrum courtesy of Ofcom could give fibre a run for its money In the same way that everyone always wants a faster PC, we also want...

Gigabit switch offers controllable power.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey Gigabit switch offers controllable power Nortel Networks' 4548GT-PWR is a fully featured switch with impressive PoE capabilities Nortel Networks' 4548GT-PWR switch has 48 10/100/1000BaseTX RJ-45 connections...

Letters.(Letter to the editor)
October 22, 2007... The iPhone is a smart choice for business Apple has never promised to support Microsoft's proprietary Outlook email protocol as claimed in your article (More style-phone than smartphone, 1 October, www. itweek.co.uk/2199850), but there are...

Hitachi plans 4TB hard drive.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Hitachi plans 4TB hard drive Rotating hard drives will remain the best choice for high-density storage for the foreseeable future thanks to new technology from Hitachi that is expected to deliver 4TB desktop...

Video meetings made easy.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Rosalie Marshall Video meetings made easy Rosalie Marshall Video and voice collaboration specialist Polycom has announced a new product designed to give firms an "off-the-shelf" solution for videoconferencing. The HDX...

EMC adds de-dupe to backup tool.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Rosalie Marshall EMC adds de-dupe to backup tool Rosalie Marshall EMC has announced the next generation of NetWorker, its flagship back-up and recovery solution. The new version of NetWorker integrates data...

BEA plays hard to get.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Dave Bailey BEA plays hard to get Dave Bailey Despite Oracle's initial attempt to acquire BEA Systems reaching an impasse, industry experts last week predicted the deal would go ahead, and would have benefits for IT...

Wyse unveils thin laptops.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Wyse unveils thin laptops Daniel Robinson Wyse Technology has introduced new thin client terminals, including its first laptop format device. The models are among the first to address one of the chief...

Symbian boosts graphics and comms.
October 22, 2007... Byline: Daniel Robinson Symbian boosts graphics and comms Daniel Robinson Symbian has unveiled graphics and networking enhancements to its smartphone operating system and predicted that such devices will become increasingly...