Tag Archives: Cisco

2015 technology industry graveyard

2015 technology industry graveyard

Cisco, Microsoft, Google and others bury outdated technologies to move ahead with new ones.

Ba-bye
The Technology Industry Graveyard is pretty darn full in 2015, and we’re not even including the near-dead such as RadioShack and Microsoft’s IE browser. Pay your respects here…

GrooveShark
The self-described “World’s Music Library” is no more after shutting down in April in the wake of serious legal pressure by music companies whose songs GrooveShark allowed to be shared but had never licensed. Apple and Google had each kicked GrooveShark out of their app stores years ago due to complaints from music labels. Much more sadly than the 9-year-old company’s demise, however, was the death of co-founder Josh Greenberg in July at the age of just 28.

Typo iPhone keyboard
Not even the glamor of being co-founded by American Idol host Ryan Seacrest could help Typo Innovations save its iPhone keyboard, which BlackBerry said infringed on its patents. So instead, Typo bailed on the iPhone model and settled for selling ones for devices with screens 7.9-inches or larger (like iPads).

Amazon Fire Phone
With a product name like Fire, you’re just asking for colorful headlines if it bombs. And indeed, Amazon has stopped making its Fire Phone about a year after introducing it and media outlets were quick to highlight the company “extinguishing” it or remarking on the phone being “burnt out.” Amazon has had some success on the hardware front, namely with its Kindle line, but the Fire just didn’t distinguish itself and was going for free with a carrier contract by the end.

Interop New York
Interop Las Vegas carries on as one of the network industry’s top trade shows next May, but little sibling Interop New York is no more this year. The Fall show, traditionally held at the Javits Center since 2005, was always smaller and was discontinued for 2015 despite lively marketing material last year touting “More Than 30 Interop New York Exhibitors and Sponsors to Make Announcements in Anticipation of the Event.”

GTalk
Google ditched so many things in 2015 that we devoted an entire slideshow to Google’s Graveyard. So to choose just one representative item here, we remember Google Talk, which had a good run, starting up in 2005. But it’s never good when Google pulls out the term “deprecated” as it did in February in reference to this chat service’s Windows App. Google said it was pulling the plug on GTalk in part to focus on Google Hangouts in a world where people have plenty of other ways to chat online. However, Google Talk does live on via third-party apps.

Cisco Invicta storage products
Cisco has a good touch when it comes to acquisitions, but its $415 mlllion WHIPTAIL buyout from 2013 didn’t work out. The company in July revealed it had pulled the plug on its Invicta flash storage appliances acquired via that deal. It’s not unthinkable though that Cisco could go after another storage company, especially in light of the Dell-EMC union.

RapidShare
The once-popular file hosting system, begun in 2002, couldn’t withstand the onslaught of competition from all sides, including Google and Dropbox. Back in 2009, the Switzerland-based operation ran one of the Internet’s 20 most visited websites, according to Wikipedia. It shut down on March 31, and users’ leftover files went away with it.

Windows RT devices
This locked-down Microsoft OS for tablets and convertible laptops fared about as well as Windows 8, after being introduced as a prototype in 2011 at the big CES event in Las Vegas. Microsoft’s software for the 32-bit ARM architecture was intended to enable devices to exploit that architecture’s power efficiency, but overall, the offering proved to be a funky fit with existing Windows software. Production of RT devices stopped earlier in 2015 as Microsoft focuses on Win10 and more professional-focused Surface devices.

OpenStack vendor Nebula
As Network World’s Brandon Butler wrote in April, Nebula became one of the first casualties of the open source OpenStack cloud computing movement when it shuttered its doors. The company, whose founder was CIO for IT at NASA before starting Nebula in 2011, suggested in its farewell letter that it was a bit ahead of its time, unable to convert its $38 million in funding and hardware/software appliances into a sustainable business.

FriendFeed
Facebook bought this social news and information feed aggregator in 2009, two years after the smaller business started, and then killed it off in April. People have moved on to other means of gathering and discovering info online, so FriendFeed died from lack of use. It did inspire the very singular website, Is FriendFeed Dead Yet, however, so its legacy lives on.

Apple Aperture
Apple put the final nails in its Aperture photo editing app in 2015, ending the professional-quality post-production app’s 10-year run at Version 3.6. In its place, Apple introduced its Photos app for users of both its OS X Mac and iOS devices.

Secret
One of the co-founders of anonymous sharing app shared this in April: The company was shutting down and returning whatever part of its $35 million in funding was left. The company’s reality was just not going to meet up with his vision for it, said co-founder David Byttow. The company faced criticism that it, like other anonymous apps such as Yik Yak, allowed for cyberbullying.

Amazon Wallet
Amazon started the year by announcing its Wallet app, the company’s 6-month-old attempt to get into mobile payments, was a bust. The app, which had been in beta, allowed users to store their gift/loyalty/rewards cards, but not debit or credit cards as they can with Apple and Google mobile payment services.

Circa News app
Expired apps could easily fill an entire tech graveyard, so we won’t document all of their deaths here. But among them not making it through 2015 was Circa, which reportedly garnered some $4 million in venture funding since starting in 2012 but didn’t get enough takers for its app-y brand of journalism.

 

Click here to view complete Q&A of 70-355 exam

MCTS Training, MCITP Trainnig

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft 70-355 Training at certkingdom.com

 

Cisco to acquire malware prevention company

ThreatGRID will enhance products Cisco obtained in last year’s Sourcefire acquisition

Cisco this week announced its intent to acquire ThreatGrid, a New York-based maker of malware analysis and threat intelligence technology. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

ThreatGrid’s products will enhance the malware protection portfolio obtained from Cisco’s acquisition of Sourcefire in 2013, the company says. ThreatGrid makes products for both on-premises and cloud-based security.

[ Find out what topics and issues affect tech’s biggest names and news makers in the IDGE Insider CEO interview series. | Read Bill Snyder’s Tech’s Bottom Line blog for what the key business trends mean to you. ]

On-premises products are designed for internal data retention. The Sourcefire sourced products address network to endpoint capabilities, including malware detection and blocking, analysis and retrospective remediation of advanced threats.

The combination of Sourcefire and ThreatGrid will allow Cisco customers to aggregate and correlate data to identify cyber threats, Cisco says.

Cisco expects the acquisition to close in the fourth quarter of its fiscal year 2014.

ThreatGrid adds malware sandboxing capabilities for public and private clouds to the Sourcefire FireAMP (advanced malware protection) product line, says Derek Idemoto, vice president of corporate development at Cisco.

“Sourcefire’s been aware of ThreatGrid for years,” Idemoto said at this week’s Cisco Live conference. “We asked them, ‘What is the next thing we should be doing?'”

Acquiring ThreatGrid’s 25 engineers is apparently what the Sourcefire team recommended.

There is no product overlap with the FireAMP portfolio, Idemoto said.

Jim Duffy has been covering technology for over 28 years, 23 at Network World. He also writes The Cisco Connection blog and can be reached on Twitter @Jim_Duffy.

Read more about wide area network in Network World’s Wide Area Network section.


Cisco CCNA Training, Cisco CCNA Certification

Best CCNA Training and CCNA Certification and more Cisco exams log in to Certkingdom.com

Top 5 ways that IT wastes money

A number of common IT projects that seem like they should add value rarely do. Here are what I consider the top IT projects that waste budget dollars.

The role of the CIO has changed more in the past five years than any other position in the business world. Success for the CIO used to be based on bits and bytes, and is now measured by business metrics. Today’s CIO needs to think of IT more strategically and focus on projects that lower cost, improve productivity, or both, ideally.

However, many IT projects seem to be a waste of time and money. It’s certainly not intentional, but a number of projects that seem like they should add value rarely do. Here are what I consider the top IT projects that waste budget dollars.

Over provisioning or adding more bandwidth
Managing the performance of applications that are highly network-dependent has always been a challenge. If applications are performing poorly, the easy thing to do is just add more bandwidth. Seems logical. However, bandwidth is rarely actually the problem, and the net result is usually a more expensive network with the same performance problems. Instead of adding bandwidth, network managers should analyze the traffic and optimize the network for the bandwidth-intensive applications.

Investing in fault management tools
On paper, it makes sense to invest in fault management. You deploy network devices, servers, security products, and other infrastructure, so of course you would want to know when devices are up and down. However, the fact is that today we build our network so redundant that the loss of any single device has little impact on the performance of applications. Also, most of the fault management tools have a big blind spot when it comes to virtual resources, as the tools were designed to monitor physical infrastructure. IT organizations should focus on performance solutions that can isolate what’s been “too wrong for too long” to solve those nagging “brown outs” that cause user frustration.

Focusing IT energy only on the “top talkers”
When I talk to IT leaders about new initiatives, it seems much of the focus is on the top 5 or 10 applications, which makes some sense conceptually as these are the apps that the majority of workers use. Instead, IT leaders should monitor all applications and correlate usage to business outcomes to determine and refine best practices. For example, a successful branch office could be heavy users of LinkedIn, Salesforce.com and Twitter. In aggregate, these might not be among the company’s top 10 applications, and the usage would fly under the radar. If organizations could monitor applications and then link consistent success to specific usage patterns, unknown best practices can be discovered and mapped across the entire user population.

Using mean time to repair (MTTR) to measure IT resolution success
ZK Research studies have revealed a few interesting data points when it comes to solving issues. First, 75% of problems are actually identified by the end user instead of the IT department. Also, 90% of the time taken to solve problems is actually spent identifying where the problem is. This is one of the reasons I’m a big fan of tools that can separate application and network visibility to laser in on where exactly a problem is. This minimizes “resolution ping pong,” where trouble tickets are bounced around IT groups, and enables IT to start fixing the problem faster. If you want to cut the MTTR, focus on identification instead of repair, as that will provide the best bang for the buck.

Managing capacity reactively
Most organizations increase the capacity of servers, storage or the network in a reactive mode. Don’t get me wrong, I know most companies try to be proactive. However, without granular visibility, “proactive” often refers to reacting to the first sign of problems, but that’s often too late. Instead, IT departments should understand how to establish baselines and monitor how applications deviate from the norm to predict when a problem is going to occur. For example, a baseline could be established to understand the “normal” performance of a business application. Over four successive months, the trend could be a slight degrade of the application’s performance month after month. No users are complaining yet, but the trend is clear, and if nothing is done, there will be user problems. Based on this, IT can make appropriate changes to the infrastructure to ensure users aren’t impacted.

The IT environment continues to get more complex as we make things more virtual, cloud-driven or mobile. It’s time for IT to rethink the way it operates and leverage the network to provide the necessary visibility to stop wasting money on the things that don’t matter and start focusing on issues that do.


Cisco CCNA Training, Cisco CCNA Certification

Best CCNA Training and CCNA Certification and more Cisco exams log in to Certkingdom.com

 

 

15 Top Paying Certifications for 2013

15 Top Paying Certifications for 2013
Randy Muller, Global Knowledge Instructor, MCT, MCSE, MCSA, MCDST

Having earned an IT certification, many individuals think they are automatically entitled to a huge raise. The truth is that several factors, including geography, industry, experience, and yes, certifications, combine to play a major role in determining an individual’s salary. However, certain certifications do have greater impact on the earning potential of an individual. Here, we take a look at the 15 certifications with the highest earning potential for 2013.

Note: The rankings below are derived from certifications that received the minimum number of responses to be statistically relevant in the Global Knowledge annual salary survey completed in October 2012. Certain certifications pay more, but are not represented due to their exclusive nature. These include CCIE: Cisco Certified Internetworking Expert and VCDX: VMware Certified Design Expert, for example.

1. PMP: Project Management Professional – $105,750
The Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Project Management Professional (PMP) credential is recognized as the most important certification for project managers. It is globally acknowledged, in heavy demand, and highly sought after by corporations and individuals alike. A Project Management Professional designation demonstrates that you have not only the experience but also the education to successfully lead and direct projects. The PMP credential is for experienced project management professionals, as the qualifications and testing for this certification are rigorous, as are the required continuing education requirements. All of these factors ensure that the PMP credential is widely respected. The PMP experience and exam requirements focus on five process groups: Initiating, Planning, Executing, Controlling, and Closing.

2. CISSP: Certified Information Systems Security Professional – $103,299
The Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) credential is primarily intended for security managers and profes¬sionals who develop policies and procedures in information security. The CISSP certification has become the gold standard in information security certifications and education. Earning and maintaining a CISSP certification is required for many government, military, and civilian security positions. The CISSP was the first credential in the field of information security, accredited by the ANSI (American National Standards Institute) to ISO (International Organization for Standardization) Standard 17024:2003.

3. MCSD: Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer – $97,849

The Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer is the new Microsoft developer certification that replaces the old Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer certification. The new certification validates a candidate’s ability to design and build application solutions. These solutions may span multiple versions of a single technology or integrate multiple technologies. Developers are expected to analyze and design enterprise solutions using different Microsoft languages and development tools.

Currently, there are three separate certification tracks for those seeking to earn this certification: MCSD: Windows Store Apps, MCSD: Web Applications, and MCSD: Application Lifecycle Management. Each MCSD track requires anywhere from three to six separate exams. Microsoft has introduced a recertification requirement for the new MCSD. Current certification holders will have to recertify every two years, ensuring that they remain current on the base technology that will have changed due to service packs, revisions, and new product releases. (Those holding MCSE certifications will have to recertify every three years).

4. MCDBA: Microsoft Certified Database Administrator – $95,950

Access to information is critical in today’s fast-paced, global environment. Corporations are even more dependent on quick and reliable systems to process and retrieve information. This means they must operate their own database servers and business intelligence software to access this information in order to grow and become more successful, and Microsoft Certified Database Administrators (MCDBA) are the ones who provide this expertise. An MCDBA-certified individual has proven his or her ability to design, implement, and manage SQL Server 2000 databases. This certification was retired on September 30, 2012, though if you achieved it before that date it will still appear on your transcript as a legacy certification. There are two new MCSE certifications for SQL 2012: Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE): Data Platform and Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE): Business Intelligence.

5. CCDA®: Cisco Certified Design Associate – $94,799

The Cisco Certified Design Associate (CCDA) indicates that the certified individual has a strong foundation and apprentice knowledge of network design for Cisco converged networks. A CCDA certification is for network design engineers, technicians, and support engineers, who enable efficient network environments. The CCDA-certified individual has the skills to design a routed and switched network infrastructure and services involv¬ing LAN, WAN, and broadband access for businesses and organizations.

6. MCAD: Microsoft Certified Application Developer – $93,349

The Microsoft Certified Application Developer (MCAD) credential provides industry recognition for professional developers who build powerful applications using Microsoft Visual Studio .NET and Web services. Responsibilities include implementing requirements, developing, testing, deploying, and maintaining department-level applications components, Web or desktop clients, or back-end data services by using Microsoft tools and technologies. The MCAD certification is appropriate for Programmers, Analysts, Software Engineers, Software Application Specialists and Application/Software Developers.

7. VCP-DV: VMware Certified Professional Datacenter Virtualization – $92,400

Virtualization, and those who are knowledgeable on virtualization products, are in heavy demand, especially those professionals with datacenter virtualization skills. In the highly competitive virtualization market it is essential to distinguish yourself with a certification that validates your technical capabilities. VMware is one of the leading vendors of virtualization products and earning a VMware certification is the first step toward gaining industry-recognized expertise in virtual infrastructure. Earning the VCP-DV certification demonstrates that you have not only completed a VMWare-authorized training course but also have the necessary experience and training to successfully install, deploy, scale, and manage VMware vSphere environments.

8. CNE: Certified Novell Engineer – $91,350

The Certified Novell Engineer (CNE) shows that those certified individuals have the expertise and knowledge to solve advanced company-wide support problems and high-level network problems. They perform planning, installation, configuration, troubleshooting, and upgrade services for networks. The Certified Novell Engineer (CNE) has been recognized as one of the IT industry’s leading certifications for advanced networking and troubleshooting professionals.

9. ITIL v3 Foundation – $90,900

The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITILv3) is a foundational process that provides for quality IT Service Management. The success of ITIL is through the use of documented and proven processes that cover the entire Service Lifecycle. The ITIL Expert level is the third of four levels. The ITIL Expert level certification is aimed at those individuals who are interested in demonstrating a superior level of knowledge of ITIL Version 3 (v3) in its entirety. Once you have achieved ITIL Expert level you will also satisfy the pre-requisite entry criteria for the ITIL Master Level; the highest level of certification within the ITIL v3 scheme, though the Master level is still under development.

10. CCA: Citrix Certified Administrator – Citrix XenServer 6 – $90,850

The Citrix CCA is an entry-level certification. Earning this certification validates the candidate’s skills with one of 11 specific Citrix products, the most popular being XenApp, XenDesktop, and XenServer. The Citrix Certified Administrator (CCA) for Citrix XenServer 6 certification validates the certified individual’s ability to effectively install, configure, administer, troubleshoot, and maintain XenServer 6.0 Enterprise edition and Provisioning Services 6.0 in an enterprise environment.

11. MCITP: Database Administrator – $90,200

The MCITP certification validates that the IT professional is capable of deploying, building, designing, optimizing, and operating technologies for a particular job role. MCITP certifications builds on the technical proficiency measured in the Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) certifications. In order to earn the MCITP: Database Administrator you must first pass the Microsoft Certified Technical Specialist certification in SQL Server 2008 (by passing the 70-432 exam) and then pass the 70-450 exam. The MCITP Database Administrator demonstrates knowledge of SQL Server instances and database solutions, database server security solutions, high availability databases, backup and recovery solutions, monitoring strategies, database management and maintenance strategies, and data distribution strategies.

12. MCTS: SQL Server 2005 – $90,100

Those who have earned the MCTS: SQL Server 2005 certification are IT professionals who may pursue careers as database administrators, database developers, or business intelligence developers. They may also be people who do not work with Microsoft SQL Server as a part of their primary job functions but who want to show their breadth of technology experience, such as developers, systems administrators, and others. This certification validates that the IT professional can implement and maintain databases by using specific instructions and specifications.

13. MCT: Microsoft Certified Trainer – $89,949

Those holding the Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCTs) certification are the premier technical and instructional experts on Microsoft technologies. An MCT has earned at least one premier certification on a Microsoft product and maintains that certification. Some of the benefits of earning and maintaining an MCT include access to the complete library of Official Microsoft Learning Products; substantial discounts on exams, books, and Microsoft products; members-only newsgroups and online community resources; and invitations to exclusive events and programs. MCT’s must renew each year by completing an online application, pay an annual fee, and meet a number of program requirements to renew your certification for the coming year.

14. CCNP®: Cisco Certified Network Professional – $89,749

There are two tracks available at the Associate and Professional levels – Designing and Networking. The Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) demonstrates that you have the ability to plan, implement, verify, and troubleshoot local and wide-area enterprise networks. A CCNP-certified individual is expected to work collaboratively with other Cisco specialists on advanced products such as security, voice, wireless, and video solutions.

15. CCA: Citrix Certified Administrator – Citrix XenDesktop 5 – $89,499

The Citrix CCA is an entry-level certification. Earning this certification validates the candidate’s skills with one of 11 specific Citrix products, the most popular being XenApp, XenDesktop, and XenServer. The CCA for Citrix XenDesktop 5 certifies the expertise required to install, administer, and troubleshoot an enterprise environment containing a XenDesktop implementation, including Provisioning Services, XenServer, XenApp and the Desktop Delivery Controller
Summary

Earning a certification does not guarantee that you will walk into a higher paying job. Certification counts, but employers look at several factors, including experience. There was a time when certification holders were reasonably assured of landing a job. Today it is more of a qualifier – not having a certification means you may not even get an interview.
About the Author

Randy Muller (MCT, MCTS, MCSE, CEH) is an instructor with Global Knowledge, specializing in teaching Microsoft Office 365, Exchange, Lync Server as well as Windows Server 2008.


MCTS Training, MCITP Trainnig

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

 

 

Demise of Cius offers lessons for Windows 8

With Cisco more or less pulling the plug on its business tablet Cius, Microsoft tablets based on Windows 8 have an opportunity and a challenge.

The opportunity: give businesses an alternative to the popular iPad that employees bring in as part of sanctioned BYOD programs. This is a strong plus for Windows 8, which can support all the apps that Windows 7 can plus whatever new Windows 8 Metro style apps are developed. iPads can’t do either.
MCTS Training, MCITP Trainnig

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

BACKGROUND: Cisco all but kills Cius tablet computer

Even the more limited Windows 8 edition for ARM-based devices – Windows RT – has features attractive to businesses that iPads can’t duplicate, notably integration of four Microsoft Office applications.

The bottom line here is that from an IT management perspective and from a business functionality perspective, Windows 8 mobile devices are more attractive than iPads.

The challenge: for Windows 8 to succeed in a BYOD environment, employees first have to bring Windows 8 devices to the workplace. That means they have to choose them over iPads, a decision that likely doesn’t consider how well suited they are to work.

As consumers upgrade their personal mobile devices, they may in fact chose Windows 8 tablets based on their past use of Windows laptops and the new touch-centric features of the new operating system. Much depends on price, on how well cooked Windows 8 is at its release and on how well it performs on the hardware that it’s bundled with. If Microsoft and its hardware partners come through, there may be a surge in the number of Windows devices that are BYODs of choice.

That’s a big if, and Microsoft shouldn’t bet much on it coming to pass. The demise of Cius, however, offers lessons that indicate that eventually, Windows 8 mobile devices could do well in the enterprise.

First, businesses aren’t interested in buying business-tailored tablets when they can get employees to buy their own consumer-oriented mobile devices that support enough work-related tasks. But they might buy mobile PCs that support the corporate desktop, which is dominated by Windows. Windows 8 on tablets could become a preferred form of corporate desktop replacement.

Second, Windows 8 and Windows RT combined can be deployed on devices that range from low-cost tablets such as Kindle Fires and Nooks to ultrabooks and convertibles that can perform as tablets or full laptops. That gives the software the chance to fill a variety of corporate needs that could be met either buy businesses purchasing the devices or embracing them as part of BYOD programs. Either way, it’s good for Windows 8.

The downfall for Cius was inflexibility. It performed certain specific functions but not more general ones, and at the same time was being challenged by devices that couldn’t perform the work-specific functions, but did the more general ones well. The general and flexible won out.

Windows 8 in all its flavors does offer that flexibility and as such represents a wide net. Some of its success in business will depend on whether consumers embrace it.

MCTS Training, MCITP Trainnig

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

EMC unveils preconfigured private cloud for partners

VSPEX platform includes tech from multiple partners like Cisco, Citrix, Intel and Brocade

Computerworld – EMC today announced a pre-configured private cloud platform created through an alliance with six hardware and software vendors.

EMC will sell the new VSPEX Proven Infrastructure cloud through its Velocity Program channel partners, who can rebrand the platform.

Some of the initial 13 channel partners that will sell the offering include Arrow Electronics, Avnet, Ingram Micro, WestconGroup and SiS.

“EMC will be doing a lot to build the brand and customer demand for VSPEX,” said Gregg Ambulos, senior vice president of global channel sales at EMC.

EMC learned not to compete with its channel partners after many were not happy when the storage vendor also offered its Atmos public cloud storage service through its direct sales force.

MCTS Training, MCITP Trainnig

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training
at certkingdom.com

The new VSPEX Proven Infrastructure includes EMC’s VNX and VNXe hybrid storage arrays, along with Avamar software and Data Domain backup appliances. The cloud platform also includes processors from Intel, switches from Brocade, servers from Cisco, and software from Citrix, Microsoft HyperV and VMware.

Avamar and Data Domain products will offer data deduplication to users, while EMC’s Fully Automated Storage Tiering (FAST), will offer data migration between varying disk storage arrays based on data use patterns.

Ambulos said that since delivering the vBlocks integrated computing system through EMC’s Virtual Computing Environment alliance with Cisco, sales have soared.

“What we heard from customers is there were times when they wanted more choice in terms of components with regard to private cloud,” he said.

“By integrating these technologies tightly with the hypervisor and end-user computing environments, customers can also benefit from simpler administration and lower management costs,” EMC stated in a news release.

There are initially 14 VSPEX configurations, which EMC said represent the most popular use cases for companies moving to cloud computing.

For private cloud deployments VSPEX users have the option of running VMware vSphere 5.0 or Microsoft Windows Hyper-V from 50-250 virtual machines. For end-user computing deployments, users can choose between VMware View and Citrix XenDesktop from 50 to 2000 virtual desktops.

EMC said additional VSPEX configurations will be made available based on partner demand.

MCTS Training, MCITP Trainnig

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training
at certkingdom.com

Bluetooth in Brief

Bluetooth is a radio or wireless technology designed for short range data communications in the Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) band. The frequency range is from 2.402Ghz to 2.480Ghz, with the available frequency sprectrum being broken up into 79 x 1Mhz wide bands.

MCTS Certification, MCITP Certification

Microsoft MCTS Certification, MCITP Certification and over 2000+
Exams with Life Time Access Membership at https:://www.actualkey.com

Bluetooth was designed by Ericsson as a short range wireless connectivity solution and is used to build Personal Area Networks, or PANs as they are known so that devices in close proximity can pass information. Typical examples being a mobile phone downloading data to a Personal Computer or a mobile phone earpiece communicating with the phone itself.
The technology behind Bluetooth is known as FHSS (Frequency Hopped Spread Spectrum), where the datastream is broken up into small pieces, each containing several binary bits of data which are transmitted in a pseudo random sequence over a series of up to 79 frequency bands. As Bluetooth has developed and matured, a number of data modulation schemes have been used to modulate the data onto the radio carriers including GFSK (Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying), DQPSK (Differential Quadrature Phase Shift Keying) and 8DPSK (8-ary Differential Phase Shift Keying). The development and use of the different modulation schemes were an attempt to increase the data rates of the system.
So how does Bluetooth operate?
Two or more Bluetooth devices that establish a connection (and share a channel) form a small wireless network known as a Piconet, with up to eight devices, forming the piconet . One device becomes the Master station, can join a Bluetooth piconet. Normally the device which initiates the connection will be the Master and other devices joining the PAN will be slaves. The master passes a Frequency Hopping Synchronisation (FHS) packet to any slaves containing its address and clock. The address of the Master Bluetooth device is used to determine the hop sequence and all slaves use the Master Clock to determine which frequency to transmit or receive on at any given time.
A group of piconets are referred to as a Scatternet, with each individual piconet having a unique hopping sequence, determined by it’s Master’s address. If a collision occurs where two devices transmit on the same frequency, a device will just retransmit the data on the next frequency hop. Although this can ultimately affect the performance and data rate of the transmission, it is the accepted method, just like collisions are a way of life in a shared Ethernet network when a hub is in use.
Devices can be a member of multiple piconets by using each Master address to determine the hopping sequence for each network, but can only be the Master for one piconet. The access method used by Bluetooth devices is known as TDD (Time-Division Duplex) where each device (Master and Slave) share the same frequency and are allocated a timeslot during which to transmit. A master will normally use even-numbered time slots and the slave will use odd numbered timeslots.
There are two types of transmission links normally supported by Bluetooth, known as SCO (Synchronous Connection-Orientated) and ACL (Asynchronous Connectionless Link). General Bluetooth operation uses ACL, where the packet and payload length will determine how many timeslots are required. Because ACL is Connection-Orientated, packets that are not acknowledged will be automatically retransmitted, abeit on a different timeslot or timeslots. Forward error correction can be employed as an option and although the data delivery may be more reliable, the data rate will reduce accordingly depending on how error prone the environment is at the time.
Voice over Bluetooth normally used an SCO link, where the voice data is sent over a number of reserved timeslots within an already established ACL link. Retransmissions do not occur on an SCO link as this could cause a number of problems, least of all latency and jitter. However, forward error correction can be used to provide a degree of reliability. There is an Enhanced version of SCO that can employ retransmission in some circumstances.
The latest version of Bluetooth, version 4 and all previous versions of Bluetooth have been designed to be backward compatible with previous versions, so no worry about using older devices with the newer Bluetooth devices.
The Bluetooth technologies have allowed us to provide fast data communications between devices that are in close proximity (within a few metres) without the need for a cable running RS-232 protocol for example and so have provided us with mobility free from the constraints imposed with the use of copper wiring.

Cloud platform supports product development activities

OneDesk collects feedback and ideas from internal sources and social media; a new API allows it to integrate with apps from NetSuite, Oracle, SAP and Salesforce.com.

MCTS Certification, MCITP Certification

Microsoft Oracle Exam Training , Oracle Certification and over 2000+
Exams with Life Time Access Membership at https:://www.actualkey.com

When you talk about the sorts of internal collaboration activities that companies of any size need to support, those related to product development should be right up near the top of the list.

That’s why your organization might want to take a peek at a platform called OneDesk, a cloud-based application that is explicitly intended too coordinate product managers, engineers, marketing teams and even customer support professionals.

I spoke a few weeks back with Catherine Constantinides, one of the OneDesk team members, a few weeks back about how the platform might be used and the sorts of features that are included.

She describes it as a place for companies to declare and manage all the “needs requirements” associated with a given product or product development project.

Internally speaking, there are places to share ideas for the next releases, which can bubble up from anywhere. As some of these ideas are embraced for future features, the team can track the progress as well as any challenges or objections that might occurs along the way.

From an external perspective, OneDesk can be used to monitor and gather feedback about a product that is emerging in social media or social networks.

Ultimately, the main benefit is that all feedback — whether it is internal or external — can be gathered and searched from one location. “You can see all of the requirements, feedback and tasks associated with a particular product release,” Constantinides said. Then again, you can turn off any particular module that isn’t relevant to your organization.

There are two flavors of OneDesk, one that is free, which supports up to 30 people within a company (which is great if you are small small business) and that comes with up to 100 megabytes of data storage. OneDesk Pro will cost your organization $30 per user, per month. That essentially pays for the much larger storage capacity each users gets, up to 1 gigabyte per person.

For midsize businesses that need to worry about such things, OneDesk just released an application programming interface (API) that enables its application to be integrated with enterprise resource planning and CRM applications including Oracle, SAP, Salesforce.com and NetSuite (they aren’t the only applications supported, but are among the most relevant, of course).

RIM’s new CEO wants to focus more on consumers

RIM’s new CEO, Thorsten Heins, wants the company to improve its product development while also becoming better at marketing, he said during a conference call on Monday.

MCTS Certification, MCITP Certification

Microsoft MCTS Certification, MCITP Certification and over 2000+
Exams with Life Time Access Membership at https:://www.actualkey.com

Heins is taking over from Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie, who had co-CEO roles and will remain with the company.

“I pledge to do everything possible to exceed the expectations of all of the company’s shareholders,” said Heins.

RIM’s decision to pick its new CEO from within the company makes it clear that it won’t budge from current strategy, which is based on its acquisition of the QNX operating system, according to Geoff Blaber, analyst at CCS Insight. QNX is already used on its PlayBook tablet, and will also be used on its smartphones with the arrival of BlackBerry 10, Blaber said.

“Eighteen months ago Mike and Jim took a bold step when we had to make a major decision around our future platform, and they purchased QNX to shepherd the transformation of the BlackBerry platform for the next decade,” Heins said. “Right now, with PlayBook 2.0 coming out in February, we are more confidant than ever that this was the right path to go.”

At first, Heins will focus on improving the company’s marketing efforts, which include hiring a new chief marketing officer as soon as possible, and the way it develops products.

“We need to be more marketing driven, and we need to be more consumer-oriented because that is where a lot of our growth is coming from,” said Heins.

RIM will also change how it develops products. The company has been innovating while developing the products, and that needs to stop, Heins said.

Innovation will take place with much more emphasis on prototyping, and RIM has great teams that can try new ideas out, he said.

“But when we say a product is defined … execution has to be really, really precise, with no churn in existing development programs,” said Heins.

Heins didn’t address rumors about RIM being acquired, but emphasized that its current model is the way forward.

“I will not in any way split this up or separate it into different businesses,” said Heins, adding that while he will listen to anyone who wants to license BlackBerry 10, it is not his main focus.

Picking a new CEO from within was the right decision, according to analysts.

“Heins has been the COO for some time. He has been at RIM for over four years now, and he has been leading the current product transition,” said Blaber. “It will be about delivering on the strategy they have already embarked on.”

Pete Cunningham, analyst at market research company Canalys agreed: “RIM has been stagnating and needed an injection of fresh leadership.”

Bringing someone in from the outside would have been riskier, according to Cunningham.

The big challenge now is to get BlackBerry 10 smartphones to market as soon as possible. In December, RIM said it would not start selling phones with the software platform until the “later part” of 2012, because it wanted to wait for the arrival of more advanced chipsets.

“It is hard to see that a change of leadership at the company can accelerate that schedule terribly much,” said Cunningham.

Products based on the BlackBerry 10 platform were expected to arrive earlier, and the delay has hurt RIM, according to Blaber.

“The reality is that creating a new platform, albeit be it on a pre-existing operating system in QNX, was always going to take some time,” said Blaber, who thinks that the development of the PlayBook distracted RIM’s engineering department to the detriment of new smartphones.

Another of Heins’ main challenges will also be to help RIM regain some of former glory in the U.S. The company watched its market share drop from 24 percent in the third quarter of 2010 to just 9 percent in the same period last year, according to Canalys.

However, the picture for RIM in other parts of the world is more positive. The Middle East and Africa and Southeast Asia were particular bright spots during the third quarter, Canalys said.

“There are a number of markets where BlackBerries are still selling really well, but the problem RIM has that everyone is focused on the U.S. market, and that is where is has taken a real beating,” said Cunningham.

It is likely to get worse before its gets better for RIM. Just like vendors such as Sony Ericsson, Motorola Mobility and HTC RIM struggled during the fourth quarter.

RIM has its BlackBerry World conference coming up at the beginning of May. That will be one of the first opportunities for Heins to present his vision for the company, and bring back some excitement.

“But that will not be an easy job,” said Cunningham.

Oracle calls school’s revised lawsuit over software project a ‘transparent ploy’

Oracle is asking a judge to throw out some of the claims made in a lawsuit filed against the vendor by Montclair State University over an allegedly failed ERP (enterprise-resource-planning) software project, according to a filing made this week in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

MCTS Certification, MCITP Certification

Microsoft Oracle Exam Training , Oracle Certification and over 2000+
Exams with Life Time Access Membership at https:://www.actualkey.com

MSU sued Oracle in May 2011, blaming the vendor for a series of problems and delays on the PeopleSoft project, which was supposed to replace 25-year-old legacy applications. The parties had signed a US$15.75 million contract for software and implementation services in 2009.

The New Jersey school ended up firing Oracle and has said completing the project will cost up to $20 million more than the original budget. Oracle has countersued, seeking money it says MSU owes it and blaming school officials for the project’s woes.

In December, the school filed an amended complaint that added new allegations, including that Oracle had conducted a “rigged” demonstration of the software package at issue.

Oracle’s motion this week responds to that filing, asking that its allegations of fraudulent inducement, gross negligent misrepresentation, grossly negligent performance of contractual obligations and willful anticipatory repudiation of contract be dismissed.

The school’s initial complaint “was premised on the alleged breach of the Consulting Agreement between Oracle and MSU,” Oracle wrote in its filing this week. “Now, recognizing that there was no breach by Oracle and that the contract contains valid and enforceable limitations of liability, MSU has conjured up claims which completely contradict the allegations it filed initially.”

This amounts to a “transparent ploy” that “fails as a matter of law because, try as it may, MSU cannot avoid the fully integrated, extensively negotiated contract which covers the exact terms that form the basis of MSU’s new tort claims,” Oracle added.

MSU’s amended complaint includes claims of wrongdoing by Oracle that are “directly contradicted by a number of contractual provisions,” according to the filing.

For example, the school had alleged that Oracle said its base PeopleSoft system for higher education institutions would satisfy 95 percent of MSU’s more than 3,000 business requirements.

But “the Consulting Agreement makes clear, however, that 596 of the 3,071 requirements laid out in Attachment C-1 of the Fixed Price Exhibit were ‘Not in Scope,’ that 60 of the requirements were designated as ‘Undefined,’ and 52 of the requirements were to be met by customization of the base product,” Oracle said. “Thus, the Consulting Agreement provides that roughly 23% of MSU’s requirements were not to be met by the Oracle base product.”

Oracle’s motion also denies MSU’s allegation that the software vendor misrepresented how much MSU staff and resources would be required to finish the project on Oracle’s proposed schedule.

Once again, the parties’ consulting agreement contradicts the allegation since its wording “put the onus on MSU, not Oracle, to assure that MSU had the required personnel and resources,” the filing states.

If the school can provide documentation for all of its allegations in the 60-plus-page amended complaint, “they’re going to be in a real strong position,” but it’s not yet clear how the case will play out, said one IT consultant and expert witness who has testified in several cases involving Oracle software.

For example, the amended complaint included a long list of original project requirements. “Many of them are stated in general enough terms that it’s entirely possible there was a legitimate misunderstanding on the part of Oracle as to what those requirements involved,” said the consultant, who requested anonymity because of current involvement in another case regarding Oracle.

To that end, Oracle’s motion to dismiss cites an “assumption” in the consulting agreement regarding the project requirements.

If the base PeopleSoft product could do “what” a particular requirement called for, but not “how” MSU wanted it addressed, “it is MSU’s responsibility to change MSU’s business process to accommodate how the base product’s business process addresses the requirement,” the motion states.

“It’s entirely possible when you look at what was delivered it will be a judgment call, rather than a clear-cut determination, as to whether what Oracle delivered met those requirements or not,” the consultant said.

MSU plans to oppose Oracle’s motion, according to a spokeswoman, who declined further comment.

Overall, the case presents a cautionary tale for vendors and software customers.

“This is why both sides should document the process,” said analyst Ray Wang, CEO of Constellation Research. “When a project goes down, fingers point everywhere.”