Calling Linux and Windows the "two platforms of the future," Novell this morning hailed the entry of Dell as the first systems vendor to join the Microsoft + Novell pact, as a reseller of Microsoft's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server certificates. The deal effectively makes Microsoft a real Linux distributor for the world's #2 supplier of servers.
As for Dell, already a Linux reseller for its server customers, the deal helps tilt its marketing bias somewhat more toward Novell and away from Red Hat, for which Dell is also a supplier. Dell committed this morning to a new marketing campaign that will target existing Linux customers who have not already purchased a Dell-branded distribution.
This morning, Dell said its marketing campaign would include support for modeling and effectuating customer migrations, as well as promoting interoperability - which presumably means, making Linux distributions fit better in environments where Windows is already installed.
When Microsoft and Novell entered into their still-controversial Linux covenant last November, Microsoft purchased 70,000 certificates for Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for resale to its own customers. By the end of the year, Microsoft claimed to have resold about 18,000 of those certificates; now, the company says it has resold 40,000.
HP - currently the world's #1 server supplier - is already a reseller of Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, though it purchases its certificates from Novell, not Microsoft. And while HP and Microsoft entered into a three-year "enterprise agreement" last December, that agreement extends to HP customers options with regard to Windows, not Linux.
While many Linux proponents are not too keen about the idea of the OS' biggest rival serving as its enterprise reseller, it isn't the fact that Microsoft can resell Linux that is at the heart of the current controversy. Proponents have challenged whether Novell and Microsoft had the authority to enter into a covenant agreement presumably protecting Novell's SUSE Linux customers from possible IP infringement suits from Microsoft, in exchange for a deal letting Microsoft resell SUSE Linux.
While Microsoft maintains that Linux contains key technologies that it originated and patented, Novell refuses to concede that the agreement constituted an acknowledgement that Microsoft has any legitimate claim over any part of Linux.
Authors of the General Public License under which Linux is distributed are currently busy rewriting it to effectively prohibit future licensees from entering into any type of covenant with another party, as though that party had any claim to Linux technologies whose suspension were of negotiable value.
This blog provide all info on Microsoft, Cisco, COmptia and more exams training at certkingdom.com
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
Microsoft's own numbers suggest declining Windows market share
Microsoft bragged Friday that it had licensed 350 million copies of Windows 7, but that number doesn't even keep up with the total number of PCs sold
Last summer, Microsoft announced that it had sold 175 million Windows 7 licenses through the end of June 2010. Cranking together a few numbers produced some surprising results, which I talked about in my July 26, 2010, article "Do the math: 175 million copies of Windows 7 isn't that impressive."
Last Friday, Brandon LeBlanc said the following on the Windows Team Blog: "18 months ago to this day was when we launched Windows 7 and with that we've hit another important milestone: we are pleased to announce that Windows 7 has sold more than 350 million licenses. The momentum we've seen and continue to see with Windows 7 is incredible."
Fair enough. Let's do the math once again.
Microsoft released Windows 7 on Oct. 22, 2009. On June 30, 2010, the company claimed it had sold 175 million copies. On April 22, 2011, Microsoft pegged the number at 350 million.
As I explained in my July 26 article, worldwide PC shipments between Oct. 22, 2009, and June 30, 2010, ran about 215 million machines, give or take a bit, based on Gartner's numbers. (IDC's numbers are just a touch lower.) Rifling through Gartner's press releases over the past year, I come up with a total of 266 million PCs and Macs sold between July 1, 2010, and March 30, 2011. Taking 9 percent off that total for Mac sales and adding a proportional amount to fill in the gap from April 1 to 21 of this year, I figure total worldwide PC sales between July 1, 2010, and April 21, 2011, came in around 260 million machines, give or take a few percent.
Here's where the numbers get strange -- very strange.
Between launch and June 30, 2010 -- a period of 251 days -- Microsoft sold 0.78 Windows 7 licenses for each PC sold.
Between July 1, 2010, and April 22, 2011 -- a period of 275 days -- Microsoft sold 0.67 Windows 7 licenses for each PC sold: 175 million Windows 7 licenses, and 260 million new PCs.
To turn the numbers the other way around, in the past nine months, more than one-third of all new PCs sold didn't have Windows 7.
How is that possible?
Microsoft doesn't release separate figures for single, shrinkwrapped copies of Windows 7 sold, nor does the company tell us how many volume licenses for Windows 7 are upgrades to existing machines. Each of those sales numbers would add to the percentage of new PCs shipped sans Windows 7. If the adoption rate for Windows 7 is as great as Microsoft would have us believe, it's entirely possible that 40 percent of all new PCs in the past nine months shipped without Windows 7. Maybe more.
Do the math.
Last summer, Microsoft announced that it had sold 175 million Windows 7 licenses through the end of June 2010. Cranking together a few numbers produced some surprising results, which I talked about in my July 26, 2010, article "Do the math: 175 million copies of Windows 7 isn't that impressive."
Last Friday, Brandon LeBlanc said the following on the Windows Team Blog: "18 months ago to this day was when we launched Windows 7 and with that we've hit another important milestone: we are pleased to announce that Windows 7 has sold more than 350 million licenses. The momentum we've seen and continue to see with Windows 7 is incredible."
Fair enough. Let's do the math once again.
Microsoft released Windows 7 on Oct. 22, 2009. On June 30, 2010, the company claimed it had sold 175 million copies. On April 22, 2011, Microsoft pegged the number at 350 million.
As I explained in my July 26 article, worldwide PC shipments between Oct. 22, 2009, and June 30, 2010, ran about 215 million machines, give or take a bit, based on Gartner's numbers. (IDC's numbers are just a touch lower.) Rifling through Gartner's press releases over the past year, I come up with a total of 266 million PCs and Macs sold between July 1, 2010, and March 30, 2011. Taking 9 percent off that total for Mac sales and adding a proportional amount to fill in the gap from April 1 to 21 of this year, I figure total worldwide PC sales between July 1, 2010, and April 21, 2011, came in around 260 million machines, give or take a few percent.
Here's where the numbers get strange -- very strange.
Between launch and June 30, 2010 -- a period of 251 days -- Microsoft sold 0.78 Windows 7 licenses for each PC sold.
Between July 1, 2010, and April 22, 2011 -- a period of 275 days -- Microsoft sold 0.67 Windows 7 licenses for each PC sold: 175 million Windows 7 licenses, and 260 million new PCs.
To turn the numbers the other way around, in the past nine months, more than one-third of all new PCs sold didn't have Windows 7.
How is that possible?
Microsoft doesn't release separate figures for single, shrinkwrapped copies of Windows 7 sold, nor does the company tell us how many volume licenses for Windows 7 are upgrades to existing machines. Each of those sales numbers would add to the percentage of new PCs shipped sans Windows 7. If the adoption rate for Windows 7 is as great as Microsoft would have us believe, it's entirely possible that 40 percent of all new PCs in the past nine months shipped without Windows 7. Maybe more.
Do the math.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
10 Fun Microsoft Facts You Might Not Know
Despite ever-increasing Mac sales, Microsoft still has an undisputed dominance over the computer industry.
With such a vast presence, much has already been written about Microsoft: Its history, its products, even its former CEO Bill Gates. For those itching to know even more, we’ve dug up 10 snippets of info that you might not have heard before.
What experimental musician created the Windows start-up sound? How do they celebrate anniversaries? Does Microsoft have a “pest” problem? Have a read of our Microsoft-themed facts, stats and trivia and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
1. “Micro-soft’s” First Ever Mention
The first ever mention of “Microsoft” was in a letter from Bill Gates to co-founder Paul Allen in 1975. Gates initially wrote the company name as Micro-soft, which made sense considering it’s a portmanteau of “microcomputer” and “software.”
Losing the hyphen, “Microsoft” was officially registered as a company in November, 1976 in New Mexico where Gates and Allen were working with their first major customer, MITS. Microsoft didn’t move to its current campus in Redmond, Washington until 1986.
The Microsoft logo has changed several times over the years, the current “Pac-Man” logo was introduced in 1987, but previous to that was the “blibbet” logo that’s pictured above. The “blibbet” refers to the stylized “o” and was apparently once the name of a burger served in the Microsoft company cafeteria.
2. Brian Eno Composed “The Microsoft Sound”
Pioneering musician Brian Eno was the musical brains behind Window 95′s start up tune, dubbed “The Microsoft Sound.”
The influential musician, who has worked with the likes of David Bowie and U2, told the San Francisco Chronicle that making such a short piece of music was “funny” and “amazing.” Eno likened the process to “making a tiny little jewel.”
Other musical trivia from the launch of Windows 95 is, of course, the use of The Rolling Stones “Start Me Up” in the ad campaign, while a related Eno fact is that he also composed the music for the computer game Spore.
3. Microsoft’s Fave Food Is Pizza
Although not quite at Google‘s level of snack-tastic, free-for-all wonder, Microsoft does offer free drinks. Over 23 million gratis beverages are downed on the corporate campus each year.
Apparently the top two drinks of choice for Microsoft staffers are milk and OJ. There’s also free candy on the Microsoft campus shuttle.
As far as food goes, Microsoft has around 35 cafeterias (one of which is pictured above) serving around 37,000 people each day. Pizza tops the list of most popular meal.
4. Microsoft Uses Codenames
Ever since the company’s first operating system, Microsoft has worked on its projects under codenames, of which Wikipedia has a long list. Apparently Gates was ready to launch Windows under the name “Interface Manager” before he was persuaded to change it by an employee.
Past codenames include “Longhorn,” “Lone Star,” and “Vienna.” While you might be tempted to add “Mojave,” to that list, it’s actually part of a Microsoft ad campaign. The “Mojave Experiment” was a marketing exercise that battled Vista’s poor PR by presenting the software to new users as a fresh product.
5. The Average “Softie”
The average Microsoft employee, or “Softie” as they call themselves, is a 38-year-old male with the average salary for a developer coming in at $106,000.
Microsoft currently employs 88,180 people who work across 32,404,796 square feet of Microsoft’s premises, over 50,000 of which are U.S.-based. The male to female ratio is very high among Microsoft’s American employees with a staggering 76% male workforce.
6. Microsoft Celebrates Anniversaries With M&Ms
All companies have their little in-house traditions, and Microsoft is no exception. It seems it’s customary for Softies to celebrate their yearly employment anniversaries with candy, and more specifically, M&Ms.
Each anniversary, a Microsoft employee is expected to provide one pound of M&Ms for every year they’ve worked. That means if Bill Gates observed the tradition, he should have turned up with 33 pounds of M&Ms on June 27, 2008.
7. Microsoft’s Stock Has Split Nine Times
Microsoft has split its stock nines times since it went public back in March 1986. Put very, very simply, a company will generally split its stock when its share price becomes too high.
Since Microsoft has had six 2-for-1 splits and three 3-for-1 splits, one original Microsoft share would now be equal to 288 shares today. Interestingly the price of Microsoft’s stock at its initial public offering was $21 a share, at the time of writing a share is now around the $23 mark. One original MSFT share would now be worth over $6,000.
8. Microsoft Has a Huge Art Collection
No, we’re not talking about Clip Art. Microsoft is one of the largest corporate collectors of artworks with over 5,000 contemporary pieces including painting, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, ceramics, studio glass, and multimedia works. Microsoft gathers arts from local artists, up-and-coming artists and big names such as Cindy Sherman, Chuck Close and Takashi Murakami.
A large proportion of the works are on display at more than 150 of Microsoft’s many campuses, as the company subscribes to the belief that art in the workplace reduces stress, increases productivity and encourages discussions and expression of opinions.
9. Microsoft Asks Strange Interview Questions
Microsoft has a reputation in the industry for asking off-beat, off-the-wall questions during its job interview. The most oft-quoted question is: “Why is a manhole cover round?” Whether this particular example is genuine, or an urban legend, it’s certainly true that Microsoft employs a very unusual, and forward-thinking interview process. It’s even rumored that companies like Google have since emulated the style.
Rather than plain “Where do you see yourself in five years” type questions, Microsoft is more likely to ask you to solve a logic puzzle or think through a problem like “Design a coffee maker that will be used by astronauts.” Obviously, Microsoft isn’t planning to go into the coffee-in-space industry anytime soon, but the process serves to find candidates that can think creatively.
10. Microsoft Holds Over 10,000 Patents
Microsoft holds over 10,000 patents and files around 3,000 every year, ranking as one of the top five patent owners in the U.S.
Although a large majority of the patents relate to obscure elements of software, the 5,000th and 10,000th were consumer-friendly, easily-understandable ideas. The 5,000th was for tech in Xbox 360 games that lets people “watch” a video game remotely, while the 10,000th was for the Microsoft Surface, linking real-life objects with data and images.
Microsoft also rewards its staff members for securing a new patent. Besides a $1,500 bonus, they get a wooden plaque and a decorative black “cube” that features their name, as well as the title and date of the patent.
BONUS: The Microsoft Campus is Full of Bunnies!
Our very own Jolie O’Dell found a great factoid about the Microsoft Corporate Campus, she gleaned while on a recent visit.
“So, back in the mists of time, some people dumped a bunch of rapidly reproducing pet bunnies — leftovers from kids’ Easter gifts — on a grassy knoll near the MSFT campus,” Jolie said. “The bunnies started doing what bunnies do best, that is, making more bunnies.
At one point, there were so many that MSFT staff had to start catching them and having them spayed and neutered! Nowadays, you’ll still see lots of rabbits hopping around, though. Way cuter than Google’s goats.”
It seems the bunny proliferation has been a long term issue. According to a 1998 Seattle Times article, the “Redmond rabbit problem” does not just affect Microsoft, but Nintendo, Eddie Bauer and other companies in the area.
The problem back then spawned the Redmond Rabbit Coalition group (many members of which are now involved in the current day Evergreen Rabbit Rescue) who campaign for a humane solution to the ongoing pest problem.
With such a vast presence, much has already been written about Microsoft: Its history, its products, even its former CEO Bill Gates. For those itching to know even more, we’ve dug up 10 snippets of info that you might not have heard before.
What experimental musician created the Windows start-up sound? How do they celebrate anniversaries? Does Microsoft have a “pest” problem? Have a read of our Microsoft-themed facts, stats and trivia and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
1. “Micro-soft’s” First Ever Mention
The first ever mention of “Microsoft” was in a letter from Bill Gates to co-founder Paul Allen in 1975. Gates initially wrote the company name as Micro-soft, which made sense considering it’s a portmanteau of “microcomputer” and “software.”
Losing the hyphen, “Microsoft” was officially registered as a company in November, 1976 in New Mexico where Gates and Allen were working with their first major customer, MITS. Microsoft didn’t move to its current campus in Redmond, Washington until 1986.
The Microsoft logo has changed several times over the years, the current “Pac-Man” logo was introduced in 1987, but previous to that was the “blibbet” logo that’s pictured above. The “blibbet” refers to the stylized “o” and was apparently once the name of a burger served in the Microsoft company cafeteria.
2. Brian Eno Composed “The Microsoft Sound”
Pioneering musician Brian Eno was the musical brains behind Window 95′s start up tune, dubbed “The Microsoft Sound.”
The influential musician, who has worked with the likes of David Bowie and U2, told the San Francisco Chronicle that making such a short piece of music was “funny” and “amazing.” Eno likened the process to “making a tiny little jewel.”
Other musical trivia from the launch of Windows 95 is, of course, the use of The Rolling Stones “Start Me Up” in the ad campaign, while a related Eno fact is that he also composed the music for the computer game Spore.
3. Microsoft’s Fave Food Is Pizza
Although not quite at Google‘s level of snack-tastic, free-for-all wonder, Microsoft does offer free drinks. Over 23 million gratis beverages are downed on the corporate campus each year.
Apparently the top two drinks of choice for Microsoft staffers are milk and OJ. There’s also free candy on the Microsoft campus shuttle.
As far as food goes, Microsoft has around 35 cafeterias (one of which is pictured above) serving around 37,000 people each day. Pizza tops the list of most popular meal.
4. Microsoft Uses Codenames
Ever since the company’s first operating system, Microsoft has worked on its projects under codenames, of which Wikipedia has a long list. Apparently Gates was ready to launch Windows under the name “Interface Manager” before he was persuaded to change it by an employee.
Past codenames include “Longhorn,” “Lone Star,” and “Vienna.” While you might be tempted to add “Mojave,” to that list, it’s actually part of a Microsoft ad campaign. The “Mojave Experiment” was a marketing exercise that battled Vista’s poor PR by presenting the software to new users as a fresh product.
5. The Average “Softie”
The average Microsoft employee, or “Softie” as they call themselves, is a 38-year-old male with the average salary for a developer coming in at $106,000.
Microsoft currently employs 88,180 people who work across 32,404,796 square feet of Microsoft’s premises, over 50,000 of which are U.S.-based. The male to female ratio is very high among Microsoft’s American employees with a staggering 76% male workforce.
6. Microsoft Celebrates Anniversaries With M&Ms
All companies have their little in-house traditions, and Microsoft is no exception. It seems it’s customary for Softies to celebrate their yearly employment anniversaries with candy, and more specifically, M&Ms.
Each anniversary, a Microsoft employee is expected to provide one pound of M&Ms for every year they’ve worked. That means if Bill Gates observed the tradition, he should have turned up with 33 pounds of M&Ms on June 27, 2008.
7. Microsoft’s Stock Has Split Nine Times
Microsoft has split its stock nines times since it went public back in March 1986. Put very, very simply, a company will generally split its stock when its share price becomes too high.
Since Microsoft has had six 2-for-1 splits and three 3-for-1 splits, one original Microsoft share would now be equal to 288 shares today. Interestingly the price of Microsoft’s stock at its initial public offering was $21 a share, at the time of writing a share is now around the $23 mark. One original MSFT share would now be worth over $6,000.
8. Microsoft Has a Huge Art Collection
No, we’re not talking about Clip Art. Microsoft is one of the largest corporate collectors of artworks with over 5,000 contemporary pieces including painting, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, ceramics, studio glass, and multimedia works. Microsoft gathers arts from local artists, up-and-coming artists and big names such as Cindy Sherman, Chuck Close and Takashi Murakami.
A large proportion of the works are on display at more than 150 of Microsoft’s many campuses, as the company subscribes to the belief that art in the workplace reduces stress, increases productivity and encourages discussions and expression of opinions.
9. Microsoft Asks Strange Interview Questions
Microsoft has a reputation in the industry for asking off-beat, off-the-wall questions during its job interview. The most oft-quoted question is: “Why is a manhole cover round?” Whether this particular example is genuine, or an urban legend, it’s certainly true that Microsoft employs a very unusual, and forward-thinking interview process. It’s even rumored that companies like Google have since emulated the style.
Rather than plain “Where do you see yourself in five years” type questions, Microsoft is more likely to ask you to solve a logic puzzle or think through a problem like “Design a coffee maker that will be used by astronauts.” Obviously, Microsoft isn’t planning to go into the coffee-in-space industry anytime soon, but the process serves to find candidates that can think creatively.
10. Microsoft Holds Over 10,000 Patents
Microsoft holds over 10,000 patents and files around 3,000 every year, ranking as one of the top five patent owners in the U.S.
Although a large majority of the patents relate to obscure elements of software, the 5,000th and 10,000th were consumer-friendly, easily-understandable ideas. The 5,000th was for tech in Xbox 360 games that lets people “watch” a video game remotely, while the 10,000th was for the Microsoft Surface, linking real-life objects with data and images.
Microsoft also rewards its staff members for securing a new patent. Besides a $1,500 bonus, they get a wooden plaque and a decorative black “cube” that features their name, as well as the title and date of the patent.
BONUS: The Microsoft Campus is Full of Bunnies!
Our very own Jolie O’Dell found a great factoid about the Microsoft Corporate Campus, she gleaned while on a recent visit.
“So, back in the mists of time, some people dumped a bunch of rapidly reproducing pet bunnies — leftovers from kids’ Easter gifts — on a grassy knoll near the MSFT campus,” Jolie said. “The bunnies started doing what bunnies do best, that is, making more bunnies.
At one point, there were so many that MSFT staff had to start catching them and having them spayed and neutered! Nowadays, you’ll still see lots of rabbits hopping around, though. Way cuter than Google’s goats.”
It seems the bunny proliferation has been a long term issue. According to a 1998 Seattle Times article, the “Redmond rabbit problem” does not just affect Microsoft, but Nintendo, Eddie Bauer and other companies in the area.
The problem back then spawned the Redmond Rabbit Coalition group (many members of which are now involved in the current day Evergreen Rabbit Rescue) who campaign for a humane solution to the ongoing pest problem.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Verizon Wireless: Taking account security too far
I am a security-conscious guy, I do what I can to protect my information online and I appreciate the efforts of companies I deal with that do the same. But my recent experience with Verizon Wireless shows that when the security effort interferes with the customer’s ability to use the service properly, it has been taken too far.
A couple of weeks ago I bought a Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot from Verizon and signed up for the monthly data plan. Since the transaction, enough time has passed for me to review the device on ZDNet, take it back when it started failing and replace it with a new one, and chronicle that experience. During the time that passed since starting the service I’ve already received the first monthly bill via snail mail from Verizon. What I can’t do is go online and track my data usage due to the insane security process the carrier uses for online account activation.
The instructions that accompanied the Samsung device and data service made it clear that the only way to track data usage is through a My Verizon account online. This data tracking is important as my monthly plan ($50) gets me 5GB of data usage, after which a hefty $10/GB overage fee kicks in. It is only prudent for me to keep a watchful eye on my data consumption through the My Verizon account. The problem is I can’t do that.
Following the instructions laid out by Verizon on the day my service was activated, I went online to set up and activate the My Verizon account. It stepped me through a process of entering my personal information, including the all-important email address that Verizon will use to warn me when I start getting close to hitting my monthly data cap, and then it asked me for the phone number associated with my mobile hotspot service. I entered the number and was greeted with a screen that informed me Verizon would send a text message to the “phone” I was registering that included a temporary password to get the My Verizon account up and running.
The problem is the Samsung device is not a phone, and is not capable of receiving text messages, much less displaying them. The account activation process gave me a link to click for information about the process if that was the case, which told me that for security reasons the temporary password would be snail mailed to me. This would happen after spending 24 hours attempting to send a text message to the device. There was no other way forward, I would have to wait for the postman to bring me a letter from Verizon containing the temporary account password to finish create my online account. So not only can I not go online to pay my bill, I can’t track my data usage which is what I really want to do. Little did I know it was only going to get worse.
A couple of weeks ago I bought a Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot from Verizon and signed up for the monthly data plan. Since the transaction, enough time has passed for me to review the device on ZDNet, take it back when it started failing and replace it with a new one, and chronicle that experience. During the time that passed since starting the service I’ve already received the first monthly bill via snail mail from Verizon. What I can’t do is go online and track my data usage due to the insane security process the carrier uses for online account activation.
The instructions that accompanied the Samsung device and data service made it clear that the only way to track data usage is through a My Verizon account online. This data tracking is important as my monthly plan ($50) gets me 5GB of data usage, after which a hefty $10/GB overage fee kicks in. It is only prudent for me to keep a watchful eye on my data consumption through the My Verizon account. The problem is I can’t do that.
Following the instructions laid out by Verizon on the day my service was activated, I went online to set up and activate the My Verizon account. It stepped me through a process of entering my personal information, including the all-important email address that Verizon will use to warn me when I start getting close to hitting my monthly data cap, and then it asked me for the phone number associated with my mobile hotspot service. I entered the number and was greeted with a screen that informed me Verizon would send a text message to the “phone” I was registering that included a temporary password to get the My Verizon account up and running.
The problem is the Samsung device is not a phone, and is not capable of receiving text messages, much less displaying them. The account activation process gave me a link to click for information about the process if that was the case, which told me that for security reasons the temporary password would be snail mailed to me. This would happen after spending 24 hours attempting to send a text message to the device. There was no other way forward, I would have to wait for the postman to bring me a letter from Verizon containing the temporary account password to finish create my online account. So not only can I not go online to pay my bill, I can’t track my data usage which is what I really want to do. Little did I know it was only going to get worse.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
What We Can Learn From Amazon’s Cloud Collapse
Call it Cloudgate, Cloudpocalyse or whatever you’d like, but the extended collapse of Amazon Elastic Cloud Compute (EC2) is both a setback for cloud computing and an opportunity for us to figure out how to stop it from happening again.
Amazon may be best-known for its online shopping site, but it also has a substantial cloud computing business. It provides a scalable, flexible and particularly efficient solution for companies to store and deliver massive amounts of content. Its model of only paying for what you consume was a radical innovation when it launched in 2006.
In fact, Amazon Web Services has been so affordable and reliable that thousands of companies from Foursquare to Netflix utilize the company’s cloud computing technology and servers to run their businesses. They put their faith in Amazon’s cloud because there was no reason to think that it would falter. One of cloud computing’s key tenets is reliability through redundancy of both servers and data centers.
Then on Wednesday, Amazon’s northern Virginia data center started experiencing problems that caused major latency and connectivity issues. The trouble was apparently due to excessive re-mirroring of its Elastic Block Storage (EBS) volumes — this essentially created countless new backups of the EBS volumes that took up Amazon’s storage capacity and triggered a cascading effect that caused downtime on hundreds (or more likely thousands) of websites for almost 24 hours.
The collapse took its share of victims. Among the most prominent companies affected were Foursquare, Quora, Hootsuite, SCVNGR, Heroku, Reddit and Wildfire, though hundreds of other companies big and small were affected. Luckily, one of Amazon’s most prominent customers, Netflix, didn’t experience problems because it’s built for the loss of an entire data center, while companies relying on Amazon’s four other global data centers didn’t experience too many issues.
A Learning Moment
FathomDB founder Justin Santa Barbara has a detailed post on his blog about what may be the biggest problem to come out of this week’s collapse: Amazon’s cloud redundancies failed to stop a mass outage. Its Availability Zones are supposed to be able to fail independently without bringing the whole system down. Instead, there was a single point of failure that shouldn’t have been there.
This week’s disaster in the cloud is a reminder to startups to build redundancy into their applications and their own systems, but as Santa Barbara points out, most startups don’t have the time or resources to engineer for multiple cloud systems (each Amazon global region/data center has its own rules and features, making a simple “switch” to another center difficult). These companies trusted Amazon to keep them online, and Amazon failed to deliver.
Catastrophic issues will always occur, but in the pre-cloud era, downtime only affected a single computer or website. Today, a catastrophic event takes down thousands of websites, causing millions or even billions of dollars in lost revenue and productivity.
This incident is no reason for us to shun cloud computing, though. Its benefits (scalability, cost reduction, device independence, performance and more) far outweigh its cons. We do need to take a hard look at how we structure our cloud infrastructure though and find new ways to either prevent single points of failure or quickly move content off failing clouds faster, especially as the world’s computing power is consolidated into fewer and fewer systems.
Cloud computing is still in its infancy, and today’s events make it clear that we still have a lot of work to do. It could be a whole lot worse next time if we aren’t prepared.
Amazon may be best-known for its online shopping site, but it also has a substantial cloud computing business. It provides a scalable, flexible and particularly efficient solution for companies to store and deliver massive amounts of content. Its model of only paying for what you consume was a radical innovation when it launched in 2006.
In fact, Amazon Web Services has been so affordable and reliable that thousands of companies from Foursquare to Netflix utilize the company’s cloud computing technology and servers to run their businesses. They put their faith in Amazon’s cloud because there was no reason to think that it would falter. One of cloud computing’s key tenets is reliability through redundancy of both servers and data centers.
Then on Wednesday, Amazon’s northern Virginia data center started experiencing problems that caused major latency and connectivity issues. The trouble was apparently due to excessive re-mirroring of its Elastic Block Storage (EBS) volumes — this essentially created countless new backups of the EBS volumes that took up Amazon’s storage capacity and triggered a cascading effect that caused downtime on hundreds (or more likely thousands) of websites for almost 24 hours.
The collapse took its share of victims. Among the most prominent companies affected were Foursquare, Quora, Hootsuite, SCVNGR, Heroku, Reddit and Wildfire, though hundreds of other companies big and small were affected. Luckily, one of Amazon’s most prominent customers, Netflix, didn’t experience problems because it’s built for the loss of an entire data center, while companies relying on Amazon’s four other global data centers didn’t experience too many issues.
A Learning Moment
FathomDB founder Justin Santa Barbara has a detailed post on his blog about what may be the biggest problem to come out of this week’s collapse: Amazon’s cloud redundancies failed to stop a mass outage. Its Availability Zones are supposed to be able to fail independently without bringing the whole system down. Instead, there was a single point of failure that shouldn’t have been there.
This week’s disaster in the cloud is a reminder to startups to build redundancy into their applications and their own systems, but as Santa Barbara points out, most startups don’t have the time or resources to engineer for multiple cloud systems (each Amazon global region/data center has its own rules and features, making a simple “switch” to another center difficult). These companies trusted Amazon to keep them online, and Amazon failed to deliver.
Catastrophic issues will always occur, but in the pre-cloud era, downtime only affected a single computer or website. Today, a catastrophic event takes down thousands of websites, causing millions or even billions of dollars in lost revenue and productivity.
This incident is no reason for us to shun cloud computing, though. Its benefits (scalability, cost reduction, device independence, performance and more) far outweigh its cons. We do need to take a hard look at how we structure our cloud infrastructure though and find new ways to either prevent single points of failure or quickly move content off failing clouds faster, especially as the world’s computing power is consolidated into fewer and fewer systems.
Cloud computing is still in its infancy, and today’s events make it clear that we still have a lot of work to do. It could be a whole lot worse next time if we aren’t prepared.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
RIM BlackBerry PlayBook: The Unboxing
Next week, RIM's first tablet, the BlackBerry PlayBook, will finally go on sale. Before we took the PlayBook to the labs for testing and itsfull review, we unboxed the tablet and played with it, taking photos all along the way, to give you a look at what you'll get if you buy a PlayBook when it becomes available on April 19th.
At launch, you can buy one of three versions of the tablet, all identical except for varying amounts of built-in storage. All current models are Wi-Fi-only, but 3G and 4G models are on the way. The 16BG model will sell for $499.99, the 32GB for $599.99 and the 64GB for $699.99—the same prices and capacities as the Wi-Fi-only Apple iPad 2.
Included with the PlayBook is a soft carrying pouch. And we also got our hands on optional rubber and leather cases from RIM. None of the cases have magnets or special interactions with the tablet, unlike the Apple iPad Smart Cover, which can wake up the iPad or put it to sleep by simply moving the cover on or off the tablet's screen. The cases have cutouts for the Volume and Power buttons, and for the front- and back-facing webcams. Pricing has not yet been announced for either case.
The PlayBook runs a new operating system, optimized for tablets, called the BlackBerry Tablet OS. In the past few months, other competitors have redesigned their mobile operating systems to be optimized for tablets as well (like Google's Android 3.0 and HP's upcoming WebOS 3.0 for the HP TouchPad.)
Check out our full BlackBerry PlayBook review to see how the latest tablet stacks up against the competition. And hit the slideshow below for the unboxing photos.
At launch, you can buy one of three versions of the tablet, all identical except for varying amounts of built-in storage. All current models are Wi-Fi-only, but 3G and 4G models are on the way. The 16BG model will sell for $499.99, the 32GB for $599.99 and the 64GB for $699.99—the same prices and capacities as the Wi-Fi-only Apple iPad 2.
Included with the PlayBook is a soft carrying pouch. And we also got our hands on optional rubber and leather cases from RIM. None of the cases have magnets or special interactions with the tablet, unlike the Apple iPad Smart Cover, which can wake up the iPad or put it to sleep by simply moving the cover on or off the tablet's screen. The cases have cutouts for the Volume and Power buttons, and for the front- and back-facing webcams. Pricing has not yet been announced for either case.
The PlayBook runs a new operating system, optimized for tablets, called the BlackBerry Tablet OS. In the past few months, other competitors have redesigned their mobile operating systems to be optimized for tablets as well (like Google's Android 3.0 and HP's upcoming WebOS 3.0 for the HP TouchPad.)
Check out our full BlackBerry PlayBook review to see how the latest tablet stacks up against the competition. And hit the slideshow below for the unboxing photos.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Is Your iPhone Tracking You?
Is Apple tracking your every move via the iPhone and iPad? A Wednesday blog post published on O'Reilly Radar claims that devices running iOS 4 are gathering location and storing it in an unencrypted manner.
"What makes this issue worse is that the file is unencrypted and unprotected, and it's on any machine you've synched with your iOS device. It can also be easily accessed on the device itself if it falls into the wrong hands. Anybody with access to this file knows where you've been over the last year, since iOS 4 was released," wrote Pete Warden, founder of the Data Science Toolkit, and Alasdair Allan, a senior research fellow at the University of Exeter.
The data is being stored to a file known as "consolidated.db," which includes latitude-longitude coordinates and a timestamp.
"The coordinates aren't always exact, but they are pretty detailed. There can be tens of thousands of data points in this file, and it appears the collection started with iOS 4, so there's typically around a year's worth of information at this point," Warden and Allan wrote.
The duo speculated that the data collection is erratic. Update times vary and might be triggered by traveling between cells or activity on the phone itself.
But while this data is being stored on your phones and iOS devices, Warden and Allan acknowledge that there is no "evidence to suggest this data is leaving your custody"—aka, being sent to Apple. There is also "no immediate harm that would seem to come from the availability of this data."
"But why this data is stored and how Apple intends to use it—or not—are important questions that need to be explored," they wrote. "The cell phone companies have always had this data, but it takes a court order to access it. Now this information is sitting in plain view, unprotected from the world. Beyond this, there is even more data that we have yet to look at in depth."
As one commenter on the blog post pointed out, this data collection was first discussed last year. Digital forensic specialist Christopher Vance wrote on his blog that the location data is used as part of iAds, in addition to apps that require location-based data. In a later blog post, however, Vance said "these points are being used not in direct connection with iAds but on your device itself."
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but another commenter pointed to a July 2010 letter that Apple penned to House lawmakers about its location-based services.
Apple insisted that its location-based services exist only to enhance the user experience and that the company does not activate these services until it has received express consent from users. It collects data "anonymously in a form that does not personally identify you and is used by Apple and our partners and licensees to provide and improve location-based products and services," Bruce Sewell, general counsel and senior vice president of legal and government affairs at Apple, wrote in a letter to Reps. Edward Markey and Joe Barton.
"Apple is committed to giving our customers clear notice and control over their information, and we believe our products do this in a simple and elegant way," he said.
The inquiry occured after Apple updated its privacy policy to say that it could "collect, use, and share precise location data, including real-time geographic location of your Apple computer or device."
In the letter, Apple said four Apple devices collected geographic location data: the iPhone 3G, the iPhone 3GS, the iPhone 4, and the iPad Wi-Fi + 3G. To a lesser extent, older iPhone models, the iPad Wi-Fi, the iPod touch, Mac computers with Snow Leopard, and Safari 5 also collect similar information.
Apple started collecting location-based data and Wi-Fi information in January 2008.
"Apple has always provided its customers with the ability to control the location-based service capabilities of their devices," Sewell said. "In fact, Apple now provides customers even greater control over such capabilities for devices running the current version of Apple's mobile operating system, iOS 4."
With iOS 4, customers can pick and choose the apps with which they do not want to share location information, even if the global, location-based capabilities on their device are turned on, Apple said. An arrow icon, meanwhile, alerts iOS 4 users if an app is using or has recently used location-based information.
Warden and Allan seemed to take issue with the fact that the data collected was easily accessible. They built an app that helps you look at your own data, and suggested that concerned users encrypt their backups via iTunes. To do so, click on your device within iTunes and then check "Encrypt iPhone Backup" under the "Options" area.
A more detailed look at Warden and Allan's investigation is in the video below.
The news is also interesting in light of a case out of Michigan where police officers have been accused of secretly extracting data from peoples' cell phones during routine stops. The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan has urged the Michigan State Police (MSP) to release information about the alleged practice.
"What makes this issue worse is that the file is unencrypted and unprotected, and it's on any machine you've synched with your iOS device. It can also be easily accessed on the device itself if it falls into the wrong hands. Anybody with access to this file knows where you've been over the last year, since iOS 4 was released," wrote Pete Warden, founder of the Data Science Toolkit, and Alasdair Allan, a senior research fellow at the University of Exeter.
The data is being stored to a file known as "consolidated.db," which includes latitude-longitude coordinates and a timestamp.
"The coordinates aren't always exact, but they are pretty detailed. There can be tens of thousands of data points in this file, and it appears the collection started with iOS 4, so there's typically around a year's worth of information at this point," Warden and Allan wrote.
The duo speculated that the data collection is erratic. Update times vary and might be triggered by traveling between cells or activity on the phone itself.
But while this data is being stored on your phones and iOS devices, Warden and Allan acknowledge that there is no "evidence to suggest this data is leaving your custody"—aka, being sent to Apple. There is also "no immediate harm that would seem to come from the availability of this data."
"But why this data is stored and how Apple intends to use it—or not—are important questions that need to be explored," they wrote. "The cell phone companies have always had this data, but it takes a court order to access it. Now this information is sitting in plain view, unprotected from the world. Beyond this, there is even more data that we have yet to look at in depth."
As one commenter on the blog post pointed out, this data collection was first discussed last year. Digital forensic specialist Christopher Vance wrote on his blog that the location data is used as part of iAds, in addition to apps that require location-based data. In a later blog post, however, Vance said "these points are being used not in direct connection with iAds but on your device itself."
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but another commenter pointed to a July 2010 letter that Apple penned to House lawmakers about its location-based services.
Apple insisted that its location-based services exist only to enhance the user experience and that the company does not activate these services until it has received express consent from users. It collects data "anonymously in a form that does not personally identify you and is used by Apple and our partners and licensees to provide and improve location-based products and services," Bruce Sewell, general counsel and senior vice president of legal and government affairs at Apple, wrote in a letter to Reps. Edward Markey and Joe Barton.
"Apple is committed to giving our customers clear notice and control over their information, and we believe our products do this in a simple and elegant way," he said.
The inquiry occured after Apple updated its privacy policy to say that it could "collect, use, and share precise location data, including real-time geographic location of your Apple computer or device."
In the letter, Apple said four Apple devices collected geographic location data: the iPhone 3G, the iPhone 3GS, the iPhone 4, and the iPad Wi-Fi + 3G. To a lesser extent, older iPhone models, the iPad Wi-Fi, the iPod touch, Mac computers with Snow Leopard, and Safari 5 also collect similar information.
Apple started collecting location-based data and Wi-Fi information in January 2008.
"Apple has always provided its customers with the ability to control the location-based service capabilities of their devices," Sewell said. "In fact, Apple now provides customers even greater control over such capabilities for devices running the current version of Apple's mobile operating system, iOS 4."
With iOS 4, customers can pick and choose the apps with which they do not want to share location information, even if the global, location-based capabilities on their device are turned on, Apple said. An arrow icon, meanwhile, alerts iOS 4 users if an app is using or has recently used location-based information.
Warden and Allan seemed to take issue with the fact that the data collected was easily accessible. They built an app that helps you look at your own data, and suggested that concerned users encrypt their backups via iTunes. To do so, click on your device within iTunes and then check "Encrypt iPhone Backup" under the "Options" area.
A more detailed look at Warden and Allan's investigation is in the video below.
The news is also interesting in light of a case out of Michigan where police officers have been accused of secretly extracting data from peoples' cell phones during routine stops. The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan has urged the Michigan State Police (MSP) to release information about the alleged practice.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
How to Recycle Your Technology
The Best Places to Recycle Tech
e-Stewards
This program is run by the Basel Action Network (BAN), a non-profit dedicated to confronting environmental injustice caused by toxic chemicals worldwide. BAN helped expose the atrocious things happening in Asia and Africa caused by the so-called "recycling" of e-waste exported there. With help from some corporations and citizens, it created e-Stewards to address what it says the government doesn't: "prevent the toxic materials in electronics from continuing to cause long term harm to human health and the environment." BAN and its group of e-Stewards Recyclers even recently called on the United States to halt all export of e-waste generated by the federal government alone; BAN says the feds buy around 500,000 new computers a year, making it "the largest source of electronic waste in the world." Washington should lead by example. By checking out the list of e-Stewards Recyclers on the site, you can be reassured that you are taking your digital detritus to someone you can absolutely trust to recycle it in the safest way possible.
Best Buy
The nationwide electronics retailer has, arguably, the best recycling program going. Its Web site details what exactly it'll take (small tube TVs, Bluetooth headsets, software, UPS battery backups, to name a few) and what it won't (projection TVs, rooftop dish antennas, hard drives, old cassettes and 8-tracks, go figure.) Small items such as ink/toner, old cables, and batteries can go in recycling kiosks right by the door.
The list of items it'll take is tremendously long, and even if it won't take it in store, it might pick it up. That goes for several large kitchen appliances, plus old CRT televisions over 32-inches in size. Check the listing for your state, however, as what Best Buy accepts could differ depending on local laws.
What's the catch? Not much. You can take in up to 3 items per day. It doesn't matter if you bought it there or not. It's mostly free: if you bring in a small tube TV or CRT monitor, they charge you $10 to take it... then turn right around and give you a $10 Best Buy gift card. Again, state rules can apply.
Even smarter: check Best Buy's Trade-In calculator to see if what you think is junk could be used to offset buying some new toys.
Staples
Bring in as many as 10 ink/toner cartridges per month and you get $2 for each in Staple Rewards to spend. Staples will also take any other old office electronics, like computers, monitors, and printers, for $10 per large piece of equipment. If the electronics are smaller, such as input devices, phones or cameras, the recycling is free. For items with the Dell brand, all recycling is free. Staples does not take TVs or big copiers.
Staples also offers a service called EasyTech to move data from an old computer you want to get rid off to a new PC. Plus, it sells a line of Sustainable Earth products, such as remanufactured toner cartridges.
Office Depot
At Office Depot, you can buy what it calls a Tech Recycling Box. You can put as much electronic junk in one of these boxes as you want, as long as it will close. Then bring the box back to the store unsealed and drop it off for inspection. Office Depot will ship it off to waste management partners to do the rest. It promises to break the devices down to components of glass, plastic, copper and aluminum to reuse. The boxes come in different sizes and costs: small (8x15x18 inches) is $5, medium (20x16x16 inches) is $10, and large (24x18x18 inches) is $15. Check out its FAQ PDF of items it accepts and items doesn't (which includes such obvious items as devices covered in or leaking liquid and anything radioactive).
Mobile phones, PDAs, batteries, and ink/toner cartridges can be dropped off for free with any sales associate, however. Or if you go to OfficeDepot.com, you can buy boxes—for the price of $0.00, including delivery to your home—to directly recycle laser toner and inkjet cartridges by mail.
E-Cycle
It's no surprise that the company that was on site at MacWorld to take old iPhones when Verizon Wireless announced it would sell the current iPhone 4 is in the market to get your old iProducts. E-Cycle will buy iPhones and iPads from individuals or organization. Just go to its site, tell it what kind of device you have, and it'll generate a quote. It'll even take broken devices. You simply mail it in a pre-paid box E-Cycle provides, and then payment shows up in the mail. I got a quote of $145 for a working condition first generation iPad with Wi-Fi and 16GB memory; $315 for an iPhone 4 with 16GB, which is more than most people pay for them brand new (with a contract). E-Cycle will take other phones if you ask, but won't pay you for them.
Call2Recycle is a non-profit program specifically for collecting and safely disposing of rechargeable batteries. Visit the site and enter your zip code and it will display any number of retailers that have a Call2Recycle drop off location. Partners include Lowes, Home Depot, RadioShack, Sears, and Best Buy, to name a few. This goes for not just your electronics, but all those rechargeable batteries on your tools and flashlights as well—none of them are doing us any favors in the landfill. Plus, it's free. Precious metals are recovered from the dead batteries and turned into useful stuff. For example, the kitchen flatware you eat with may once have been powering your drill or phone.
e-Stewards
This program is run by the Basel Action Network (BAN), a non-profit dedicated to confronting environmental injustice caused by toxic chemicals worldwide. BAN helped expose the atrocious things happening in Asia and Africa caused by the so-called "recycling" of e-waste exported there. With help from some corporations and citizens, it created e-Stewards to address what it says the government doesn't: "prevent the toxic materials in electronics from continuing to cause long term harm to human health and the environment." BAN and its group of e-Stewards Recyclers even recently called on the United States to halt all export of e-waste generated by the federal government alone; BAN says the feds buy around 500,000 new computers a year, making it "the largest source of electronic waste in the world." Washington should lead by example. By checking out the list of e-Stewards Recyclers on the site, you can be reassured that you are taking your digital detritus to someone you can absolutely trust to recycle it in the safest way possible.
Best Buy
The nationwide electronics retailer has, arguably, the best recycling program going. Its Web site details what exactly it'll take (small tube TVs, Bluetooth headsets, software, UPS battery backups, to name a few) and what it won't (projection TVs, rooftop dish antennas, hard drives, old cassettes and 8-tracks, go figure.) Small items such as ink/toner, old cables, and batteries can go in recycling kiosks right by the door.
The list of items it'll take is tremendously long, and even if it won't take it in store, it might pick it up. That goes for several large kitchen appliances, plus old CRT televisions over 32-inches in size. Check the listing for your state, however, as what Best Buy accepts could differ depending on local laws.
What's the catch? Not much. You can take in up to 3 items per day. It doesn't matter if you bought it there or not. It's mostly free: if you bring in a small tube TV or CRT monitor, they charge you $10 to take it... then turn right around and give you a $10 Best Buy gift card. Again, state rules can apply.
Even smarter: check Best Buy's Trade-In calculator to see if what you think is junk could be used to offset buying some new toys.
Staples
Bring in as many as 10 ink/toner cartridges per month and you get $2 for each in Staple Rewards to spend. Staples will also take any other old office electronics, like computers, monitors, and printers, for $10 per large piece of equipment. If the electronics are smaller, such as input devices, phones or cameras, the recycling is free. For items with the Dell brand, all recycling is free. Staples does not take TVs or big copiers.
Staples also offers a service called EasyTech to move data from an old computer you want to get rid off to a new PC. Plus, it sells a line of Sustainable Earth products, such as remanufactured toner cartridges.
Office Depot
At Office Depot, you can buy what it calls a Tech Recycling Box. You can put as much electronic junk in one of these boxes as you want, as long as it will close. Then bring the box back to the store unsealed and drop it off for inspection. Office Depot will ship it off to waste management partners to do the rest. It promises to break the devices down to components of glass, plastic, copper and aluminum to reuse. The boxes come in different sizes and costs: small (8x15x18 inches) is $5, medium (20x16x16 inches) is $10, and large (24x18x18 inches) is $15. Check out its FAQ PDF of items it accepts and items doesn't (which includes such obvious items as devices covered in or leaking liquid and anything radioactive).
Mobile phones, PDAs, batteries, and ink/toner cartridges can be dropped off for free with any sales associate, however. Or if you go to OfficeDepot.com, you can buy boxes—for the price of $0.00, including delivery to your home—to directly recycle laser toner and inkjet cartridges by mail.
E-Cycle
It's no surprise that the company that was on site at MacWorld to take old iPhones when Verizon Wireless announced it would sell the current iPhone 4 is in the market to get your old iProducts. E-Cycle will buy iPhones and iPads from individuals or organization. Just go to its site, tell it what kind of device you have, and it'll generate a quote. It'll even take broken devices. You simply mail it in a pre-paid box E-Cycle provides, and then payment shows up in the mail. I got a quote of $145 for a working condition first generation iPad with Wi-Fi and 16GB memory; $315 for an iPhone 4 with 16GB, which is more than most people pay for them brand new (with a contract). E-Cycle will take other phones if you ask, but won't pay you for them.
Call2Recycle is a non-profit program specifically for collecting and safely disposing of rechargeable batteries. Visit the site and enter your zip code and it will display any number of retailers that have a Call2Recycle drop off location. Partners include Lowes, Home Depot, RadioShack, Sears, and Best Buy, to name a few. This goes for not just your electronics, but all those rechargeable batteries on your tools and flashlights as well—none of them are doing us any favors in the landfill. Plus, it's free. Precious metals are recovered from the dead batteries and turned into useful stuff. For example, the kitchen flatware you eat with may once have been powering your drill or phone.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Apple sues Samsung, says it copied iPad
Apple has sued Samsung for allegedly copying the iPad, iPod and iPhone with its Galaxy Tab and Galaxy handsets.
Samsung copied Apple technologies, designs and even packaging with its Google Android-based products, according to a complaint filed Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Apple is seeking a jury trial in the case.
TEARDOWN: Inside an alleged iPad killer: the Samsung Galaxy Tab
"Instead of pursuing independent product development, Samsung has chosen to slavishly copy Apple's innovative technology, distinctive user interfaces, and elegant and distinctive product and packaging design, in violation of Apple's valuable intellectual property rights," Apple said in the complaint.
Late last year, Samsung became the first major consumer electronics maker to roll out a tablet to compete with the iPad. It is also one of the world's largest makers of mobile phones, especially handsets that use Android.
The complaint includes 10 charges of patent infringement, two of trademark violation and two of trade dress violations, plus unjust enrichment and unfair business practices. Apple named Samsung Electronics, Samsung America and Samsung Telecommunications America as defendants. The case was filed at the district court in San Francisco but is being transferred to Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler at the court's Oakland, California, location.
A spokesman for Samsung in the U.S. said the company had no comment on the lawsuit. Apple officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
The allegations span a broad range of Samsung's mobile devices, including the Epic 4G, Captivate, Indulge, Nexus S and Galaxy S 4G smartphones as well as the Galaxy Tab. Apple singled out the Galaxy product line for criticism.
"The copying is so pervasive, that the Samsung Galaxy products appear to be actual Apple products -- with the same rectangular shape with rounded corners, silver edging, a flat surface face with substantial top and bottom black borders, gently curving edges on the back, and a display of colorful square icons with rounded corners," the complaint said.
Apple wants an injunction to stop Samsung's alleged intellectual property violations, along with actual and punitive damages, Samsung's "wrongfully obtained profits" and funds for corrective advertising about the allegedly confusing products.
Samsung copied Apple technologies, designs and even packaging with its Google Android-based products, according to a complaint filed Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Apple is seeking a jury trial in the case.
TEARDOWN: Inside an alleged iPad killer: the Samsung Galaxy Tab
"Instead of pursuing independent product development, Samsung has chosen to slavishly copy Apple's innovative technology, distinctive user interfaces, and elegant and distinctive product and packaging design, in violation of Apple's valuable intellectual property rights," Apple said in the complaint.
Late last year, Samsung became the first major consumer electronics maker to roll out a tablet to compete with the iPad. It is also one of the world's largest makers of mobile phones, especially handsets that use Android.
The complaint includes 10 charges of patent infringement, two of trademark violation and two of trade dress violations, plus unjust enrichment and unfair business practices. Apple named Samsung Electronics, Samsung America and Samsung Telecommunications America as defendants. The case was filed at the district court in San Francisco but is being transferred to Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler at the court's Oakland, California, location.
A spokesman for Samsung in the U.S. said the company had no comment on the lawsuit. Apple officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
The allegations span a broad range of Samsung's mobile devices, including the Epic 4G, Captivate, Indulge, Nexus S and Galaxy S 4G smartphones as well as the Galaxy Tab. Apple singled out the Galaxy product line for criticism.
"The copying is so pervasive, that the Samsung Galaxy products appear to be actual Apple products -- with the same rectangular shape with rounded corners, silver edging, a flat surface face with substantial top and bottom black borders, gently curving edges on the back, and a display of colorful square icons with rounded corners," the complaint said.
Apple wants an injunction to stop Samsung's alleged intellectual property violations, along with actual and punitive damages, Samsung's "wrongfully obtained profits" and funds for corrective advertising about the allegedly confusing products.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Open source programming tools on the rise IV
OCoffeeScript seems like a precompiler for JavaScript, but it's really a full compiler built like all compilers. The creator said, "Underneath all of those embarrassing braces and semicolons, JavaScript has always had a gorgeous object model at its heart. CoffeeScript is an attempt to expose the good parts of JavaScript in a simple way." In essence, it makes it more like writing Python because the space bar does all of the work that the curly brackets and a few of the other punctuation marks used to.
Open source programming tool on the rise: Build management tools
Over the past few years, tools for building Java projects have evolved from something one person ran on a desktop occasionally into tools that run on a server every few seconds to coordinate the work of a team of programmers. The server constantly monitors the source tree, executing an Ant or Maven script whenever new code appears. Compilation and test results are then posted for all the developers to see. Fancy dashboards that display bugs and fixes in real time are a popular attraction.
The wealth of rising open source projects in this area indicates that programmers still haven't found the optimal mix of features. Cruise Control is the original open source build tool that is well-integrated with most repositories and bug databases. Apache's Continuum is highly integrated with Maven, and users of Continuum like to say that all you need to do is "point the pom.xml file at the repository." Another popular project once known only as Hudson is more open to using building scripts written for Ant or a few others. In late 2010, the team broke in two and the group dominated by Oracle's paid developers kept the name "Hudson," while the others are creating a new open source build management tool called Jenkins.
Many users stress that constantly building the software and often deploying it almost immediately afterward increases the harmony of the team and prevents programmers from drifting down different paths that require too much time to harmonize. By continuously rebuilding the software and applying unit tests, the team is more likely to converge.
Open source programming tool on the rise: OpenVidia
Graphics processing units are best known for popping up triangles from mythical worlds where people are always shooting at each other. This is rapidly changing as both video card manufacturers and programmers are realizing that the chips are massively parallel computers primed to manipulate almost any code, not just game realms. Scientists everywhere are learning that the cool graphics card used to play Grand Theft Auto can also run simulations to help cure humans. Many scientific problems can be structured to include a huge number of events that happen simultaneously, a perfect job for a massively parallel computer that does things simultaneously: in other words, a video card.
The OpenVidia repository is filled with projects that perform image recognition, searching, and more. It makes a perfect excuse for every programmer to ask their boss for an expensive graphics card with the potential to generate a very high frame rate -- er, I mean a very high rate of curing cancer in simulations.
Open source programming tool on the rise: Build management tools
Over the past few years, tools for building Java projects have evolved from something one person ran on a desktop occasionally into tools that run on a server every few seconds to coordinate the work of a team of programmers. The server constantly monitors the source tree, executing an Ant or Maven script whenever new code appears. Compilation and test results are then posted for all the developers to see. Fancy dashboards that display bugs and fixes in real time are a popular attraction.
The wealth of rising open source projects in this area indicates that programmers still haven't found the optimal mix of features. Cruise Control is the original open source build tool that is well-integrated with most repositories and bug databases. Apache's Continuum is highly integrated with Maven, and users of Continuum like to say that all you need to do is "point the pom.xml file at the repository." Another popular project once known only as Hudson is more open to using building scripts written for Ant or a few others. In late 2010, the team broke in two and the group dominated by Oracle's paid developers kept the name "Hudson," while the others are creating a new open source build management tool called Jenkins.
Many users stress that constantly building the software and often deploying it almost immediately afterward increases the harmony of the team and prevents programmers from drifting down different paths that require too much time to harmonize. By continuously rebuilding the software and applying unit tests, the team is more likely to converge.
Open source programming tool on the rise: OpenVidia
Graphics processing units are best known for popping up triangles from mythical worlds where people are always shooting at each other. This is rapidly changing as both video card manufacturers and programmers are realizing that the chips are massively parallel computers primed to manipulate almost any code, not just game realms. Scientists everywhere are learning that the cool graphics card used to play Grand Theft Auto can also run simulations to help cure humans. Many scientific problems can be structured to include a huge number of events that happen simultaneously, a perfect job for a massively parallel computer that does things simultaneously: in other words, a video card.
The OpenVidia repository is filled with projects that perform image recognition, searching, and more. It makes a perfect excuse for every programmer to ask their boss for an expensive graphics card with the potential to generate a very high frame rate -- er, I mean a very high rate of curing cancer in simulations.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Google's first quarter earnings miss projections as expenses spike; Page makes brief appearance
Google’s first quarter earnings fell short of Wall Street expectations as the company continued to invest heavily in data center infrastructure and headcount.
Google reported first quarter earnings of $2.8 billion, or $7.04 a share, on revenue excluding traffic acquisition costs of $6.54 billion (statement, preview). Non-GAAP earnings were $8.08 a share. Wall Street was expecting earnings of $8.10 a share on revenue of $6.32 billion.
Google CEO Larry Page made a brief appearance on the company’s conference call. He said the reorganization has gone as planned and the team has “hit the ground running.” Page added that the quarter worked out well and he was excited about moves to “simplify our org.
“I’m very optimistic about our future,” said Page. Here’s what Page said in full:
It’s great to take just a few minutes with all of you. We’ve had a tremendous quarter, 27% year over year revenue growth in Q1. I’m really excited about that and I think it shows the strength of our business and our continuing — kind of continuing growth really in the tech industry. It’s really still at the beginning from a user perspective. There’s tremendous improvements to be had in our core products and our core business, and we are really excited about that. I also wanted to mention a little bit about the management team. Everything we told you last quarter has happened as we expected. It’s all working very well, exactly as we planned. I’ll just reiterate that quickly I am managing the day-to-day operations of Google as CEO, working very closely with my team, and I’m really excited about the progress we’ve had there. I think we really hit the ground running. Eric (Schmidt) of course is focused externally on the government partnerships, government relations, and partnership outreaches. Last quarter alone, he was in Germany, Brazil, Argentina and Spain. He’s been just doing tremendous things for the Company. Sergey, as we mentioned, is working very intensely on a few emerging projects for us. Like I said, this is all exactly as we planned, and I’m very, very excited about those changes. I’d also mention we made a number of changes to just simplify our org and improve our velocity and execution, basically simplify our reporting structures and such. Now I’m very excited about Google and our momentum, and I’m very, very optimistic about our future. I also just want to mention we have Jonathan Rosenberg, who’s usually done this call, is transitioning out of the Company as we have announced a while ago. I really wanted to thank him for all of his insights and hard work and all of the fine communication with all of you. And so we will clearly miss him, and we really want to thank him from the bottom of our hearts. So those are the main things I wanted to say. I’m tremendously excited about all of the things that lay before us as a company, and I also want us to say you’re in very good hands with the team here.
With Google it’s a tug-of-war between earnings today and investments for tomorrow. Indeed, Google beefed up a good bit and ended the first quarter with 26,316 employees compared to 24,400 at the end of the fourth quarter. That level of investment has investors worried about profit margins.
CFO Patrick Pichette kept Google’s common refrain going. “It’s clear that our past investments have been crucial to our success today–which is why we continue to invest for the long term,” he said. “We will continue to make capital investments.”
All units at Google are expected to show productivity as they invest, said Pichette. Pichette was making the case that Google closely watches expenses, but analysts were skeptical.
On the conference call, Pichette was upbeat about Google’s progress and cited Android, display ad progress and YouTube develop as a win-win platform.
Highlights from Google’s earnings call:
* 350,000 Android devices activated every day.
* Google is investing in marketing the Chrome browser. Why? It’s a locked in user and that lowers traffic acquisition costs. Google is tracking the lifetime value of a Chrome user and there are real returns there.
* Enterprise business continues to grow.
* Japan hurt international revenue.
* New hires are working on areas “In fact, over half the [newglers] who joined this quarter are going to be working in high potential and revenue growth areas like YouTube, mobile, Chrome, commerce and local, and enterprise,” said Jeff Huber, senior vice president of commerce and local at Google.
* Social is a important as a search results signal.
By the numbers:
* Google’s owned and operated sites generated $5.88 billion in first quarter revenue, or 69 percent of total sales. AdSense delivered first quarter sales of $2.43 billion, or 28 percent of revenue.
* International revenue was 53 percent of the total sales pie in line with the year ago percentage.
* Paid clicks were up 18 percent in the first quarter compared to a year ago. Cost per click was up 8 percent.
* Data center expenses—or other cost of revenue—were $897 million, or 10 percent of sales.
* Google ended the quarter with $36.7 billion in cash and equivalents.
Google reported first quarter earnings of $2.8 billion, or $7.04 a share, on revenue excluding traffic acquisition costs of $6.54 billion (statement, preview). Non-GAAP earnings were $8.08 a share. Wall Street was expecting earnings of $8.10 a share on revenue of $6.32 billion.
Google CEO Larry Page made a brief appearance on the company’s conference call. He said the reorganization has gone as planned and the team has “hit the ground running.” Page added that the quarter worked out well and he was excited about moves to “simplify our org.
“I’m very optimistic about our future,” said Page. Here’s what Page said in full:
It’s great to take just a few minutes with all of you. We’ve had a tremendous quarter, 27% year over year revenue growth in Q1. I’m really excited about that and I think it shows the strength of our business and our continuing — kind of continuing growth really in the tech industry. It’s really still at the beginning from a user perspective. There’s tremendous improvements to be had in our core products and our core business, and we are really excited about that. I also wanted to mention a little bit about the management team. Everything we told you last quarter has happened as we expected. It’s all working very well, exactly as we planned. I’ll just reiterate that quickly I am managing the day-to-day operations of Google as CEO, working very closely with my team, and I’m really excited about the progress we’ve had there. I think we really hit the ground running. Eric (Schmidt) of course is focused externally on the government partnerships, government relations, and partnership outreaches. Last quarter alone, he was in Germany, Brazil, Argentina and Spain. He’s been just doing tremendous things for the Company. Sergey, as we mentioned, is working very intensely on a few emerging projects for us. Like I said, this is all exactly as we planned, and I’m very, very excited about those changes. I’d also mention we made a number of changes to just simplify our org and improve our velocity and execution, basically simplify our reporting structures and such. Now I’m very excited about Google and our momentum, and I’m very, very optimistic about our future. I also just want to mention we have Jonathan Rosenberg, who’s usually done this call, is transitioning out of the Company as we have announced a while ago. I really wanted to thank him for all of his insights and hard work and all of the fine communication with all of you. And so we will clearly miss him, and we really want to thank him from the bottom of our hearts. So those are the main things I wanted to say. I’m tremendously excited about all of the things that lay before us as a company, and I also want us to say you’re in very good hands with the team here.
With Google it’s a tug-of-war between earnings today and investments for tomorrow. Indeed, Google beefed up a good bit and ended the first quarter with 26,316 employees compared to 24,400 at the end of the fourth quarter. That level of investment has investors worried about profit margins.
CFO Patrick Pichette kept Google’s common refrain going. “It’s clear that our past investments have been crucial to our success today–which is why we continue to invest for the long term,” he said. “We will continue to make capital investments.”
All units at Google are expected to show productivity as they invest, said Pichette. Pichette was making the case that Google closely watches expenses, but analysts were skeptical.
On the conference call, Pichette was upbeat about Google’s progress and cited Android, display ad progress and YouTube develop as a win-win platform.
Highlights from Google’s earnings call:
* 350,000 Android devices activated every day.
* Google is investing in marketing the Chrome browser. Why? It’s a locked in user and that lowers traffic acquisition costs. Google is tracking the lifetime value of a Chrome user and there are real returns there.
* Enterprise business continues to grow.
* Japan hurt international revenue.
* New hires are working on areas “In fact, over half the [newglers] who joined this quarter are going to be working in high potential and revenue growth areas like YouTube, mobile, Chrome, commerce and local, and enterprise,” said Jeff Huber, senior vice president of commerce and local at Google.
* Social is a important as a search results signal.
By the numbers:
* Google’s owned and operated sites generated $5.88 billion in first quarter revenue, or 69 percent of total sales. AdSense delivered first quarter sales of $2.43 billion, or 28 percent of revenue.
* International revenue was 53 percent of the total sales pie in line with the year ago percentage.
* Paid clicks were up 18 percent in the first quarter compared to a year ago. Cost per click was up 8 percent.
* Data center expenses—or other cost of revenue—were $897 million, or 10 percent of sales.
* Google ended the quarter with $36.7 billion in cash and equivalents.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
The Top 10 Best Laptops 2011
Shopping for a laptop these days is a pretty daunting task. The sheer number of laptops available online or in a store's electronics section is enough to make your mind spin. Most people have a general idea of what their laptop should look like and what they want in terms of features, but are often intimidated by the choices available. That's where we come in.
The editors of PCMag.com test hundreds of systems each year to help you find the best laptop. There are a lot of laptops out there, from the large-screen desktop replacements to the lightweight ultraportables, and even netbooks, but all share common features. In this story, we help you narrow your choices by collecting the top 10 laptops on the market today.
HP Pavilion dv6-6013cl : Front HP Pavilion dv6-6013cl
In terms of looks, features, and cost, the HP Pavilion dv6-6013cl was already a great laptop, but the addition of a second generation Intel processor and dramatically improved graphics and gaming capability make it a winner.
Dell XPS 15 (Sandy Bridge) : Angle Dell XPS 15 (Sandy Bridge)
With a Sandy Bridge quad-core processor and excellent battery life, the Dell XPS 15 (Sandy Bridge) is arguably the most complete desktop replacement laptop, even if it isn't the fastest or the prettiest.
Lenovo ThinkPad X220 : FrontLenovo ThinkPad X220
The Lenovo ThinkPad X220 business ultraportable is an amazing piece of engineering when you factor in all the features it squeezed into a 12-inch frame, including best-in-class battery life and the new Intel Core i5 i5-2520M CPU.
Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Thunderbolt) : FrontApple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Thunderbolt)
The Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Thunderbolt) is the fastest, most technologically advanced laptop to grace our Labs benches, thanks to new Intel architecture, a renewed romance with AMD graphics chips, and a connection technology called Thunderbolt.
Asus_U41JF-A1 : Angle Asus U41JF-A1
The Asus U41JF-A1 is the most well-balanced mainstream laptop, combining excellent power with all-day battery life.
HP Pavilion dm1z : Front HP Pavilion dm1z
The HP Pavilion dm1z and its AMD Fusion APU offer the best of both worlds: faster-than-Atom speeds and great battery life.
Sony VAIO VPC-Z1390X Sony VAIO VPC-Z1390X
The Sony VAIO VPC-Z1390X is, hands down, the lightest and most powerful ultraportable money can buy.
Toshiba Portege R705-P35 : Angle Toshiba Portege R705-P35
The Toshiba Portege R705-P35 is a more practical alternative to the Sony VAIO Z, bundling a 13-inch widescreen, optical drive, and a standard volt processor.
Acer Aspire AS5745-7247 : Angle Acer Aspire AS5745-7247
The Acer Aspire AS5745-7247 is one sweet laptop deal, putting in parts and features you don't normally get at these prices.
Asus U45Jc-A1 Asus U45Jc-A1
The U45Jc-A1 is powerful and battery efficient enough to work through an entire day and look good while doing it.
The editors of PCMag.com test hundreds of systems each year to help you find the best laptop. There are a lot of laptops out there, from the large-screen desktop replacements to the lightweight ultraportables, and even netbooks, but all share common features. In this story, we help you narrow your choices by collecting the top 10 laptops on the market today.
HP Pavilion dv6-6013cl : Front HP Pavilion dv6-6013cl
In terms of looks, features, and cost, the HP Pavilion dv6-6013cl was already a great laptop, but the addition of a second generation Intel processor and dramatically improved graphics and gaming capability make it a winner.
Dell XPS 15 (Sandy Bridge) : Angle Dell XPS 15 (Sandy Bridge)
With a Sandy Bridge quad-core processor and excellent battery life, the Dell XPS 15 (Sandy Bridge) is arguably the most complete desktop replacement laptop, even if it isn't the fastest or the prettiest.
Lenovo ThinkPad X220 : FrontLenovo ThinkPad X220
The Lenovo ThinkPad X220 business ultraportable is an amazing piece of engineering when you factor in all the features it squeezed into a 12-inch frame, including best-in-class battery life and the new Intel Core i5 i5-2520M CPU.
Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Thunderbolt) : FrontApple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Thunderbolt)
The Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Thunderbolt) is the fastest, most technologically advanced laptop to grace our Labs benches, thanks to new Intel architecture, a renewed romance with AMD graphics chips, and a connection technology called Thunderbolt.
Asus_U41JF-A1 : Angle Asus U41JF-A1
The Asus U41JF-A1 is the most well-balanced mainstream laptop, combining excellent power with all-day battery life.
HP Pavilion dm1z : Front HP Pavilion dm1z
The HP Pavilion dm1z and its AMD Fusion APU offer the best of both worlds: faster-than-Atom speeds and great battery life.
Sony VAIO VPC-Z1390X Sony VAIO VPC-Z1390X
The Sony VAIO VPC-Z1390X is, hands down, the lightest and most powerful ultraportable money can buy.
Toshiba Portege R705-P35 : Angle Toshiba Portege R705-P35
The Toshiba Portege R705-P35 is a more practical alternative to the Sony VAIO Z, bundling a 13-inch widescreen, optical drive, and a standard volt processor.
Acer Aspire AS5745-7247 : Angle Acer Aspire AS5745-7247
The Acer Aspire AS5745-7247 is one sweet laptop deal, putting in parts and features you don't normally get at these prices.
Asus U45Jc-A1 Asus U45Jc-A1
The U45Jc-A1 is powerful and battery efficient enough to work through an entire day and look good while doing it.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Cisco Linksys E1200 Wireless-N Router
When Cisco released the Valet Plus ($90, 4.5 stars), it had raised the bar for wireless router setup. Other vendors, I predicted, were sure to follow suit. Since then, most of the newer routers on the market feature the same sort of easy setup, making routers simpler than ever for the average home user to configure. Cisco has set the bar even higher, in three important ways, with the new Cisco Linksys E1200 Wireless-N Router. First, the quirks in the Cisco Connect software are mostly gone. The throughput of the E1200 is almost double the Valet's; it is in fact the best throughput I have measured to date from a single-band 2.4 GHz consumer router. Best of all, the MSRP is $60 about $20-30 less than the SRP of the Valet.
Although it replaces the Valet Plus as our favorite single band router, the E1200 is actually billed as the successor to the underwhelming E1000 ($80, 2.5 stars). As with the E1000, the E1200 is not intended for high bandwidth consumption. For users looking for heavy-duty music or video streaming, multi-player gaming, or performing large file transfers with home servers and NAS devices, those users should consider Cisco's E4200 ($179, 4 stars) or Netgear's N600 ($130, 4.5 stars). The E1200 is a solid, reliable choice for simple Internet connectivity needs— at a great price.
E1200 Design and Specs
While not as attractive as the Valet Plus; with it's almost Apple-esque design, the E1200 boasts a sleek industrial look that netted the new E-series line the 2011 Red Dot Product Design Award. It's a small, unobtrusive router, with a black, high-gloss finish. Gone from the top of the chassis are the peculiar LED symbols that were hard to decipher (one was shaped like a planet!). Instead, the WAN and LAN ports all have simple, corresponding LEDs that turn a solid green to indicate connectivity.
What makes the E1200 superior in performance to the E1000 and even the Valet are some technological advancements. Cisco's networking chops are apparent in the E1200's integrated on-chip amplifier, which significantly improves the range of the wireless signal as well as the device's strong 2x3 internal antenna.
Specifications
Device Type Router
Networking Options 802.11n (2.4 GHz only)
The E1200 features four Fast Ethernet ports, so no Gigabit Ethernet, no USB, and only operates at the 2.4 GHz band.
Setup and Features
The E1200 is set up wirelessly using the new and improved Cisco Connect software. Using the Cisco Connect software I had my laptop connected to the router in under six minutes. The setup process automatically configures the SSID, passphrase, and security for you.
Although the Cisco Connect software has not changed much in look since the previous version, there have been some improvements. Now included is an Internet speed test which displays a speedometer that measures average download and upload speeds. Impressive features from the last version are still included; the software walks users through connecting other computers and devices to the routers and configuring guest access.
Parental access still works very efficiently. Users can block Internet access to any computer on a home network or can block at specific times (like when the kids are supposed to be doing homework.) As soon as I blocked another laptop connected to the router from accessing the Internet, that laptop had no access, even without opening and closing its browser.
Cisco Connect also allows you to block up to eight URLs. Blocking works well but it's rather limited when it comes to control. I would like to see Cisco incorporate the ability to block by keywords—a feature I found of value in Asante's AWRT-550N router ($109, 4 stars).
One caveat to using Cisco Connect's Parental Controls: if you have other parental control software installed it may conflict with Cisco's software. When I tested Cisco's Parental Controls I had another vendor's control software installed. Configuring controls on the Cisco side with the other software installed made Cisco's software block me from accessing the router's settings. I could no longer use the Cisco Connect after applying the parental control settings. Once I uninstalled the third-party's software and reinstalled Cisco Connect, I had no issues. If you already use some sort of parental control software you will probably just want to use it or Cisco's Parental Controls, but not both.
Gone, thankfully is the issue of not being able to get back into Cisco Connect after going into the advanced router settings; a problem I noted when testing the previous E4200. I was able to flip back and forth between Cisco Connect and the advanced settings. These settings are stored in the Linksys management console and include the ability to configure Dynamic DNS, QoS, port forwarding, and more geeky stuff.
Although it replaces the Valet Plus as our favorite single band router, the E1200 is actually billed as the successor to the underwhelming E1000 ($80, 2.5 stars). As with the E1000, the E1200 is not intended for high bandwidth consumption. For users looking for heavy-duty music or video streaming, multi-player gaming, or performing large file transfers with home servers and NAS devices, those users should consider Cisco's E4200 ($179, 4 stars) or Netgear's N600 ($130, 4.5 stars). The E1200 is a solid, reliable choice for simple Internet connectivity needs— at a great price.
E1200 Design and Specs
While not as attractive as the Valet Plus; with it's almost Apple-esque design, the E1200 boasts a sleek industrial look that netted the new E-series line the 2011 Red Dot Product Design Award. It's a small, unobtrusive router, with a black, high-gloss finish. Gone from the top of the chassis are the peculiar LED symbols that were hard to decipher (one was shaped like a planet!). Instead, the WAN and LAN ports all have simple, corresponding LEDs that turn a solid green to indicate connectivity.
What makes the E1200 superior in performance to the E1000 and even the Valet are some technological advancements. Cisco's networking chops are apparent in the E1200's integrated on-chip amplifier, which significantly improves the range of the wireless signal as well as the device's strong 2x3 internal antenna.
Specifications
Device Type Router
Networking Options 802.11n (2.4 GHz only)
The E1200 features four Fast Ethernet ports, so no Gigabit Ethernet, no USB, and only operates at the 2.4 GHz band.
Setup and Features
The E1200 is set up wirelessly using the new and improved Cisco Connect software. Using the Cisco Connect software I had my laptop connected to the router in under six minutes. The setup process automatically configures the SSID, passphrase, and security for you.
Although the Cisco Connect software has not changed much in look since the previous version, there have been some improvements. Now included is an Internet speed test which displays a speedometer that measures average download and upload speeds. Impressive features from the last version are still included; the software walks users through connecting other computers and devices to the routers and configuring guest access.
Parental access still works very efficiently. Users can block Internet access to any computer on a home network or can block at specific times (like when the kids are supposed to be doing homework.) As soon as I blocked another laptop connected to the router from accessing the Internet, that laptop had no access, even without opening and closing its browser.
Cisco Connect also allows you to block up to eight URLs. Blocking works well but it's rather limited when it comes to control. I would like to see Cisco incorporate the ability to block by keywords—a feature I found of value in Asante's AWRT-550N router ($109, 4 stars).
One caveat to using Cisco Connect's Parental Controls: if you have other parental control software installed it may conflict with Cisco's software. When I tested Cisco's Parental Controls I had another vendor's control software installed. Configuring controls on the Cisco side with the other software installed made Cisco's software block me from accessing the router's settings. I could no longer use the Cisco Connect after applying the parental control settings. Once I uninstalled the third-party's software and reinstalled Cisco Connect, I had no issues. If you already use some sort of parental control software you will probably just want to use it or Cisco's Parental Controls, but not both.
Gone, thankfully is the issue of not being able to get back into Cisco Connect after going into the advanced router settings; a problem I noted when testing the previous E4200. I was able to flip back and forth between Cisco Connect and the advanced settings. These settings are stored in the Linksys management console and include the ability to configure Dynamic DNS, QoS, port forwarding, and more geeky stuff.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Transform Windows 7 to Snow Leopard
If you are tired of watching the same look and feel of Windows 7, or you envy Mac OS X Snow Leopard for X reasons, it’s try to change the UI and transform the Experience.
We’ve already shown you in the past How you can Transform Windows 7 XP Vista to Mac OS X Leopard. Now lets go little further to match look and feel of Snow Leopard on your windows 7, Vista.
Snow Transformation Pack will change the appearance of your whole system, including the login screen, icons, wallpapers, sounds, dock, dialog boxes, and other UI elements.
STP even skins Internet Explorer to look a bit like Safari, and the familiar OS X style dock is included as well — based on RK Launcher. There’s even a stacks docklet included.
Installation:
Make sure you disable User Account Control to install it. On installing, you’ll get a few choices as to whether you want to install a few extra background apps that add extra graphics, which is nice if your computer doesnt have enough horsepower
We’ve already shown you in the past How you can Transform Windows 7 XP Vista to Mac OS X Leopard. Now lets go little further to match look and feel of Snow Leopard on your windows 7, Vista.
Snow Transformation Pack will change the appearance of your whole system, including the login screen, icons, wallpapers, sounds, dock, dialog boxes, and other UI elements.
STP even skins Internet Explorer to look a bit like Safari, and the familiar OS X style dock is included as well — based on RK Launcher. There’s even a stacks docklet included.
Installation:
Make sure you disable User Account Control to install it. On installing, you’ll get a few choices as to whether you want to install a few extra background apps that add extra graphics, which is nice if your computer doesnt have enough horsepower
Monday, April 11, 2011
Prevent, Fix Windows Explorer Crashes
Windows 7 has sold more than 30 Million copies, as per Microsoft. Its evident that it had been a big success bringing great improvements over windows XP.
Glitches would never go away till it’s a software. And they can be annoying at times, but there are ways you can minimize the annoyances and prevent havocs. One such problem is with Windows Explorer who like to act weird with its “Windows Explorer has stopped responding” “Windows explorer has misbehaved and needs to be closed”, blah blah.
You can always force close it but The Explorer process runs a lot of important things in Windows, and when it crashes, it can really slow you down.
But there is a solution to minimize the damage by sandboxing its process, so that when next time one crashes, others don’t in the fission.
The Solution to windows Explorer crashes
Windows Folder options actually let you create a separate process for the taskbar and desktop from the other open Explorer windows in two different explorer.exe processes (that you see in task manager). This comes handy when one of them crashes.
HowTo: Go to any Windows Explorer (say my computer), Alt+T > Tools > Folder Options > View > “Launch Folder Windows in a Separate Process”.
windows-7-explorer-crash
If you look more closely, its something that powers Google Chrome browser, new process for every Tab. Instead, there are just two processes. Of course it would be slightly more CPU intensive, but that’s definitely worth it.
Glitches would never go away till it’s a software. And they can be annoying at times, but there are ways you can minimize the annoyances and prevent havocs. One such problem is with Windows Explorer who like to act weird with its “Windows Explorer has stopped responding” “Windows explorer has misbehaved and needs to be closed”, blah blah.
You can always force close it but The Explorer process runs a lot of important things in Windows, and when it crashes, it can really slow you down.
But there is a solution to minimize the damage by sandboxing its process, so that when next time one crashes, others don’t in the fission.
The Solution to windows Explorer crashes
Windows Folder options actually let you create a separate process for the taskbar and desktop from the other open Explorer windows in two different explorer.exe processes (that you see in task manager). This comes handy when one of them crashes.
HowTo: Go to any Windows Explorer (say my computer), Alt+T > Tools > Folder Options > View > “Launch Folder Windows in a Separate Process”.
windows-7-explorer-crash
If you look more closely, its something that powers Google Chrome browser, new process for every Tab. Instead, there are just two processes. Of course it would be slightly more CPU intensive, but that’s definitely worth it.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Trends In Software Testing IV
As the recession grips more economies and enterprises, it's the perfect time to adopt the open source business model. We explain why.
the technology landscape has been undergoing a massive transformation over the past couple of years. In the early 2000s, organisations were going after products and appliances irrationally, investing huge sums without any guarantees of a quantifiable ROI (return on investment). Today, awareness of technology has grown and organisations tend to demand a measurable ROI before adopting a new technology. Open source software has always been a good option to provide effective solutions within relatively low budgets. Not surprisingly, a number of organisations have started adopting open source software solutions. This trend has been boosted by the ongoing recession, with companies looking to cut costs.
Foss1Open source can mean big bucks!
The revenues of Red Hat grew by 14 per cent during the last economic bust in 2001-2002, which then increased to 38 per cent and 58 per cent in 2003 and 2004, respectively, demonstrating the increased usage of open source software during the economic crunch. Novell also showed interest in playing a significant role in the open source software market in November 2003 by acquiring SUSE Linux for $210 million. Last year, Sun Microsystems acquired MySQL AB, the developer of the world's most popular and fastest growing database, for $1 billion. Writing open source software enables a company to gain access to the open community, which in turn helps in accelerating the pace at which an idea matures.
John Roberts, CEO and founder, SugarCRM, started his company in 2004 with a commercial open source concept. In one of his interviews given to Sramana Mitra, in December 2008, he said, "I convinced two strong engineers at E.piphany to join me. We all resigned together and started SugarCRM without any angel or VC (venture capitalist) money. It was the three of us, each in his house with headphones on, writing and designing code and posting it up on SourceForge.net. We did that for three months. And soon enough, people all over the world started downloading the code." Early this year, SugarCRM joined hands with Tata Communications to make its software accessible to the Indian industry.
A matter of generating revenues
But how do open source software companies make money? There are a variety of business models to generate revenues from open source software:
• Releasing commercial extensions/plug-ins to open source software
• Offering free community-based editions and paid commercial editions with more functionality and features
• Using free and open source to gain media attention, and attract users who might become potential customers for other commercial products
• Offering paid technical support along with free community-based support
• Making the software available via the Internet like on-demand applications, and offering paid subscriptions for online accounts and services
The point about paid technical support is particularly relevant in these times. A recent survey by IDC, a global market intelligence firm, suggests: "The economic slowdown in the United States may actually boost demand for open source services. If organisations adopt more open source software as part of a strategy to reduce software costs, the demand for related services should increase." Many service providers have switched from expensive proprietary system management software to open source software like OpenNMS, Zenoss, Hyperic, Groundworks, Nagios, etc, so that they can cut down the technology cost overheads of their customers.
Zoho_vs_Salesforce
Finally, the SaaS (Software as a Service) business model has proved successful. SaaS delivers non-intrusive and hassle-free cloud-based products via a subscription-based model with no one-time costs involved-an organisation can pay as per software usage. The key to success for a SaaS player is obviously best technology usage, application features, and more importantly, an optimised pricing model. Coming up with a competitive pricing model becomes very difficult if the technology is built over expensive hardware or proprietary software licences. This challenge provides a great opportunity to utilise open source software as SaaS-ready solutions. The success enjoyed by companies like SugarCRM, Zoho (a Chennai-based offshoot of AdventNet) and Zimbra (acquired by Yahoo! in 2007 for $350 million), follows the same concept-enabling organisations to reduce their IT expenditure and increase flexibility by leveraging open source software. Zoho prepared a cost saving chart that compared its services with those offered by its competitor, SalesForce, highlighting the difference in costs between the two (see diagram).
According to Springboard Research, the Indian SaaS market is set to reach $165 million by 2010, due to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 77 per cent from 2006 to 2010. We might see greater demand for software available under SaaS model running over private clouds or corporate networks than public clouds due to data security and compliance regulations, but small and medium-sized companies can utilise the software over public clouds to boost their performance at a much lower cost. The increasing demands for such models provides a huge opportunity for service providers to make a shift from traditional delivery models to avant-garde technology models. The economy might be having a tough time, but if they play their cards right, open source companies might never have had it so good.
the technology landscape has been undergoing a massive transformation over the past couple of years. In the early 2000s, organisations were going after products and appliances irrationally, investing huge sums without any guarantees of a quantifiable ROI (return on investment). Today, awareness of technology has grown and organisations tend to demand a measurable ROI before adopting a new technology. Open source software has always been a good option to provide effective solutions within relatively low budgets. Not surprisingly, a number of organisations have started adopting open source software solutions. This trend has been boosted by the ongoing recession, with companies looking to cut costs.
Foss1Open source can mean big bucks!
The revenues of Red Hat grew by 14 per cent during the last economic bust in 2001-2002, which then increased to 38 per cent and 58 per cent in 2003 and 2004, respectively, demonstrating the increased usage of open source software during the economic crunch. Novell also showed interest in playing a significant role in the open source software market in November 2003 by acquiring SUSE Linux for $210 million. Last year, Sun Microsystems acquired MySQL AB, the developer of the world's most popular and fastest growing database, for $1 billion. Writing open source software enables a company to gain access to the open community, which in turn helps in accelerating the pace at which an idea matures.
John Roberts, CEO and founder, SugarCRM, started his company in 2004 with a commercial open source concept. In one of his interviews given to Sramana Mitra, in December 2008, he said, "I convinced two strong engineers at E.piphany to join me. We all resigned together and started SugarCRM without any angel or VC (venture capitalist) money. It was the three of us, each in his house with headphones on, writing and designing code and posting it up on SourceForge.net. We did that for three months. And soon enough, people all over the world started downloading the code." Early this year, SugarCRM joined hands with Tata Communications to make its software accessible to the Indian industry.
A matter of generating revenues
But how do open source software companies make money? There are a variety of business models to generate revenues from open source software:
• Releasing commercial extensions/plug-ins to open source software
• Offering free community-based editions and paid commercial editions with more functionality and features
• Using free and open source to gain media attention, and attract users who might become potential customers for other commercial products
• Offering paid technical support along with free community-based support
• Making the software available via the Internet like on-demand applications, and offering paid subscriptions for online accounts and services
The point about paid technical support is particularly relevant in these times. A recent survey by IDC, a global market intelligence firm, suggests: "The economic slowdown in the United States may actually boost demand for open source services. If organisations adopt more open source software as part of a strategy to reduce software costs, the demand for related services should increase." Many service providers have switched from expensive proprietary system management software to open source software like OpenNMS, Zenoss, Hyperic, Groundworks, Nagios, etc, so that they can cut down the technology cost overheads of their customers.
Zoho_vs_Salesforce
Finally, the SaaS (Software as a Service) business model has proved successful. SaaS delivers non-intrusive and hassle-free cloud-based products via a subscription-based model with no one-time costs involved-an organisation can pay as per software usage. The key to success for a SaaS player is obviously best technology usage, application features, and more importantly, an optimised pricing model. Coming up with a competitive pricing model becomes very difficult if the technology is built over expensive hardware or proprietary software licences. This challenge provides a great opportunity to utilise open source software as SaaS-ready solutions. The success enjoyed by companies like SugarCRM, Zoho (a Chennai-based offshoot of AdventNet) and Zimbra (acquired by Yahoo! in 2007 for $350 million), follows the same concept-enabling organisations to reduce their IT expenditure and increase flexibility by leveraging open source software. Zoho prepared a cost saving chart that compared its services with those offered by its competitor, SalesForce, highlighting the difference in costs between the two (see diagram).
According to Springboard Research, the Indian SaaS market is set to reach $165 million by 2010, due to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 77 per cent from 2006 to 2010. We might see greater demand for software available under SaaS model running over private clouds or corporate networks than public clouds due to data security and compliance regulations, but small and medium-sized companies can utilise the software over public clouds to boost their performance at a much lower cost. The increasing demands for such models provides a huge opportunity for service providers to make a shift from traditional delivery models to avant-garde technology models. The economy might be having a tough time, but if they play their cards right, open source companies might never have had it so good.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Once upon a time there was Ustream. Then came YouTube Live
YouTube has broadcast several live events in the past, but, as they noted on the official YouTube blog, they’ve all been “one-offs”. Internet users interested in streaming live video relied on Ustream and other similar services, while larger broadcasters streamed video independently. YouTube, as one of the most popular sites on the Internet, was essentially an asynchronous tool for Lady Gaga and cute cat owners.
Today, however, Google announced that YouTube would become a live broadcasting platform:
Today we’re announcing the initial roll out of YouTube Live, which will integrate live streaming capabilities and discovery tools directly into the YouTube platform for the first time. This begins with a new YouTube Live browse page (www.youtube.com/live), where you can always find the most compelling live events happening on YouTube and add events to your calendar.
Their initial live-streamed event will begin in a few hours with a YouTube-sponsored concert series, featuring the most-viewed independent artists from the video sharing site. More interestingly, though, is the fact that this may finally become the social tool that Google has failed to create in its years trying to compete with Facebook.
Although YouTube has featured comments on videos for some time, being able to comment and interact during a live stream takes this to a new level. Right now, aside from the so-called Digitour, the selection of live shows is relatively limited. As Google notes, they are “gradually rolling out [their] live streaming beta platform, which will allow certain YouTube partners with accounts in good standing to stream live content on YouTube.”
As this becomes more widespread, YouTube Live stands to not only change the face of broadcast (can you say Google TV?), but also stands to change the face of social. It’s one thing to interact over static media. It’s quite another to interact (and ultimately, expect to interact) with live video.
Given YouTube’s existing extraordinary reach, this stands to be a big deal. Like a really bit deal. We’ll see what happens when partners beyond the Indian Premier League cricket matches begin to go live. Because while some of the partners will be major media outlets, this has the potential to enable a new level of success for the pre-Justin Bieber’s of YouTube-land.
Today, however, Google announced that YouTube would become a live broadcasting platform:
Today we’re announcing the initial roll out of YouTube Live, which will integrate live streaming capabilities and discovery tools directly into the YouTube platform for the first time. This begins with a new YouTube Live browse page (www.youtube.com/live), where you can always find the most compelling live events happening on YouTube and add events to your calendar.
Their initial live-streamed event will begin in a few hours with a YouTube-sponsored concert series, featuring the most-viewed independent artists from the video sharing site. More interestingly, though, is the fact that this may finally become the social tool that Google has failed to create in its years trying to compete with Facebook.
Although YouTube has featured comments on videos for some time, being able to comment and interact during a live stream takes this to a new level. Right now, aside from the so-called Digitour, the selection of live shows is relatively limited. As Google notes, they are “gradually rolling out [their] live streaming beta platform, which will allow certain YouTube partners with accounts in good standing to stream live content on YouTube.”
As this becomes more widespread, YouTube Live stands to not only change the face of broadcast (can you say Google TV?), but also stands to change the face of social. It’s one thing to interact over static media. It’s quite another to interact (and ultimately, expect to interact) with live video.
Given YouTube’s existing extraordinary reach, this stands to be a big deal. Like a really bit deal. We’ll see what happens when partners beyond the Indian Premier League cricket matches begin to go live. Because while some of the partners will be major media outlets, this has the potential to enable a new level of success for the pre-Justin Bieber’s of YouTube-land.
Friday, April 8, 2011
A Talent Assessment Tool That Connects Many Eco-system Dots
Across verticals, HR heads are grappling with the issue of tapping the 'right' kind of talent. Juxtaposed with this problem is that the number of the educated unemployed and under-employed youth in the country is rising alarmingly. Here's an innovative application aimed at overcoming the core issues responsible for this mis-match between industry needs and talent availability!
"I made my own assessment of my life, and I began to live it. That was freedom."
—Fernando Flores, a Chilean politician, engineer and serial entrepreneur
An innovation is often aimed at addressing a problem in the eco-system. Focusing single-mindedly on solving a particular issue invariably leads to the evolution of tools and technologies that have the power to challenge the status quo.
himanshu Aggarwal, director, Aspiring Minds"There was a requirement for a tool that could assess the disparate, nation-wide human capital/talent against certain standardised benchmarks-acceptable to the corporate world at large. The realisation led to the creation of AMCAT."
Himanshu Aggarwal, director, Aspiring Minds
When those at Aspiring Minds (AM) conceived the Aspiring Minds Computer Adaptive Test (AMCAT)-an 'intelligent' talent assessment tool-they also had a similar agenda. Himanshu Aggarwal, director, Aspiring Minds shares more: "If you look closely, a paradox exists within the industry-not only in the IT industry but in pretty much every vertical. On the one hand, the industry persistently complains about the dearth of skilled manpower, and on the other, an army of unemployed and under-employed youth in the country struggle to get jobs matching their skill-sets.
"We felt that a gap existed in the eco-system, which needed to be addressed in a scalable and efficient manner. There was a requirement for a tool that could assess the disparate, nation-wide human capital/talent against certain standardised benchmarks-acceptable to the corporate world at large. Furthermore, a platform was required where these assessment scores would be visible to recruiters any time, so as to enable them access to the large pool of available talent."
The realisation led to the creation of AMCAT. As the name suggests, AMCAT is a test that fresh graduates can take up, any time of the year, to get an assessment of how their skills compare against those required for different jobs in the market, explains Aggarwal. "This assessment is a standardised score, which is made transparent to all our clients on a portal. This way, the graduates get to highlight their skills to multiple companies and get the opportunities to land a job whenever they are shortlisted by our clients."
Multiple modes to reach a larger audience
AMCAT is a computer-based test, and can be delivered in both online and offline environments to ensure that no infrastructural challenge restricts its reach. Aggarwal says, "Although AM does have servers to deliver the test over the Web, due to infrastructure issues in campuses and remote parts of the country, the team thought it best to not rely only on the availability of the Internet and to come up with alternative ways to have the test conducted." A working computer is good enough to run the test, adds Aggarwal.
AMCAT delivery platforms
Over the Web: Suitable for good, reliable connectivity, like in corporate environments.
As a LAN (local area network) application: "We have laptops that act like assessment servers, which are highly secure, encrypted environments providing the complete assessment framework. We plug these laptops in the LAN network of a college lab and the test becomes available across the college lab. The laptop acts like the server and ensures that all the assessment details are captured on the server. These servers are then connected to the Internet to synchronise with our primary servers to upload data and generate detailed feedback. This LAN method of conducting the test is used extensively," explains Aggarwal.
As a stand alone PC application: This is a truncated form of the test that can be installed on a standalone PC and the PC can then deliver the test. "This is not used extensively but in rare situations. The test application has more than enough content to dynamically deliver questions as per the user response. Again, the data from the PC application is captured and uploaded to the Internet using any available PC," says Aggarwal.
Intelligence embedded
Aggarwal shares details related to the mechanism that makes the test dependable, scalable and dynamic in real-time: "The product is based on the item-response-theory (IRT), an advanced statistical theory in educational measurement that makes the test adaptive and leak-proof. "IRT provides a framework to build mathematical models for questions vis-a-vis their difficulty, discrimination power and the guess probability," tells Aggarwal. These algorithms estimate the candidate's ability after delivering every question and then provide a question with a difficulty level close to the estimated ability of the candidate. The test automatically ‘content-balances' and makes sure that the candidate gets the appropriate number of questions from each sub-section. "This allows a very accurate candidate assessment, with the final score depending on how hard a question the candidate answered correctly," says Aggarwal.
Another important aspect of the tool is the delivery and MIS (management information system) framework, which manages end-to-end delivery. This includes candidate registration, test delivery, result and feedback dispatch and finally the transfer of candidate scores on the Aspiring Mind's corporate portal with shortlisting and candidate-contact facilities.
Through another of AM's products, TalentMap, candidate scores are mapped against the criteria specified by the various registered companies. The application then shares leads with companies registered with AM on the resources that match their requirements. Candidates, on the other hand, are informed about jobs that they can apply for and where their chances of being selected are relatively higher.
"I made my own assessment of my life, and I began to live it. That was freedom."
—Fernando Flores, a Chilean politician, engineer and serial entrepreneur
An innovation is often aimed at addressing a problem in the eco-system. Focusing single-mindedly on solving a particular issue invariably leads to the evolution of tools and technologies that have the power to challenge the status quo.
himanshu Aggarwal, director, Aspiring Minds"There was a requirement for a tool that could assess the disparate, nation-wide human capital/talent against certain standardised benchmarks-acceptable to the corporate world at large. The realisation led to the creation of AMCAT."
Himanshu Aggarwal, director, Aspiring Minds
When those at Aspiring Minds (AM) conceived the Aspiring Minds Computer Adaptive Test (AMCAT)-an 'intelligent' talent assessment tool-they also had a similar agenda. Himanshu Aggarwal, director, Aspiring Minds shares more: "If you look closely, a paradox exists within the industry-not only in the IT industry but in pretty much every vertical. On the one hand, the industry persistently complains about the dearth of skilled manpower, and on the other, an army of unemployed and under-employed youth in the country struggle to get jobs matching their skill-sets.
"We felt that a gap existed in the eco-system, which needed to be addressed in a scalable and efficient manner. There was a requirement for a tool that could assess the disparate, nation-wide human capital/talent against certain standardised benchmarks-acceptable to the corporate world at large. Furthermore, a platform was required where these assessment scores would be visible to recruiters any time, so as to enable them access to the large pool of available talent."
The realisation led to the creation of AMCAT. As the name suggests, AMCAT is a test that fresh graduates can take up, any time of the year, to get an assessment of how their skills compare against those required for different jobs in the market, explains Aggarwal. "This assessment is a standardised score, which is made transparent to all our clients on a portal. This way, the graduates get to highlight their skills to multiple companies and get the opportunities to land a job whenever they are shortlisted by our clients."
Multiple modes to reach a larger audience
AMCAT is a computer-based test, and can be delivered in both online and offline environments to ensure that no infrastructural challenge restricts its reach. Aggarwal says, "Although AM does have servers to deliver the test over the Web, due to infrastructure issues in campuses and remote parts of the country, the team thought it best to not rely only on the availability of the Internet and to come up with alternative ways to have the test conducted." A working computer is good enough to run the test, adds Aggarwal.
AMCAT delivery platforms
Over the Web: Suitable for good, reliable connectivity, like in corporate environments.
As a LAN (local area network) application: "We have laptops that act like assessment servers, which are highly secure, encrypted environments providing the complete assessment framework. We plug these laptops in the LAN network of a college lab and the test becomes available across the college lab. The laptop acts like the server and ensures that all the assessment details are captured on the server. These servers are then connected to the Internet to synchronise with our primary servers to upload data and generate detailed feedback. This LAN method of conducting the test is used extensively," explains Aggarwal.
As a stand alone PC application: This is a truncated form of the test that can be installed on a standalone PC and the PC can then deliver the test. "This is not used extensively but in rare situations. The test application has more than enough content to dynamically deliver questions as per the user response. Again, the data from the PC application is captured and uploaded to the Internet using any available PC," says Aggarwal.
Intelligence embedded
Aggarwal shares details related to the mechanism that makes the test dependable, scalable and dynamic in real-time: "The product is based on the item-response-theory (IRT), an advanced statistical theory in educational measurement that makes the test adaptive and leak-proof. "IRT provides a framework to build mathematical models for questions vis-a-vis their difficulty, discrimination power and the guess probability," tells Aggarwal. These algorithms estimate the candidate's ability after delivering every question and then provide a question with a difficulty level close to the estimated ability of the candidate. The test automatically ‘content-balances' and makes sure that the candidate gets the appropriate number of questions from each sub-section. "This allows a very accurate candidate assessment, with the final score depending on how hard a question the candidate answered correctly," says Aggarwal.
Another important aspect of the tool is the delivery and MIS (management information system) framework, which manages end-to-end delivery. This includes candidate registration, test delivery, result and feedback dispatch and finally the transfer of candidate scores on the Aspiring Mind's corporate portal with shortlisting and candidate-contact facilities.
Through another of AM's products, TalentMap, candidate scores are mapped against the criteria specified by the various registered companies. The application then shares leads with companies registered with AM on the resources that match their requirements. Candidates, on the other hand, are informed about jobs that they can apply for and where their chances of being selected are relatively higher.
UK Gears Up For The StartupBuzz
The upcoming edition of The StartupBuzz promises to be a goldmine for technologists, entrepreneurs and VCs, alike.
All those who want to catch up with the latest happenings on the entrepreneurial side of the Indian technology arena are expected to head to UK on 29th August, to be part of the innovators' edition of The StartupBuzz.
The event offers a platform to Indian technologists -- mainly representing budding start-ups from across the country -- to demonstrate their products to an expected gathering of over 3000 people.
The start-up teams will also get an opportunity to make their presentations to the several VC teams present on the occasion.
Apart from serving as a launch pad for start-ups, the event will also have eminent speakers addressing the core issues relating to the Indian entrepreneurial eco-system. Dr T H Chowdary, director, Centre for Telecommunications, will present the keynote address. K V R K Rao, vice president, SG Technologies and Prashant Easwaran of IdeaSpice, will make presentations to the audience.
Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, minister for Information Technology and Communication, Youth Services and Sports, government of Andhra Pradesh, will inaugurate the event. M Mahesh, director--TABS Communication Solutions, will preside over the event.
Microsoft is the supporting partner for The StartupBuzz and Moorthy Uppaluri, general manager--Developer and Platform Evangelism, Microsoft India, will be the guest of honour.
All those who want to catch up with the latest happenings on the entrepreneurial side of the Indian technology arena are expected to head to UK on 29th August, to be part of the innovators' edition of The StartupBuzz.
The event offers a platform to Indian technologists -- mainly representing budding start-ups from across the country -- to demonstrate their products to an expected gathering of over 3000 people.
Best Microsoft MCTS Training, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com
The start-up teams will also get an opportunity to make their presentations to the several VC teams present on the occasion.
Apart from serving as a launch pad for start-ups, the event will also have eminent speakers addressing the core issues relating to the Indian entrepreneurial eco-system. Dr T H Chowdary, director, Centre for Telecommunications, will present the keynote address. K V R K Rao, vice president, SG Technologies and Prashant Easwaran of IdeaSpice, will make presentations to the audience.
Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, minister for Information Technology and Communication, Youth Services and Sports, government of Andhra Pradesh, will inaugurate the event. M Mahesh, director--TABS Communication Solutions, will preside over the event.
Microsoft is the supporting partner for The StartupBuzz and Moorthy Uppaluri, general manager--Developer and Platform Evangelism, Microsoft India, will be the guest of honour.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
To top iPhone sales, Microsoft must aim low
Our colleagues over at IDC caused some chuckles to break out across the tech world when they predicted that Microsoft's Windows phones will beat the iPhone in market share by 2015. Impossible! Absurd! seemed to be the default responses.
But is it really so far-fetched? Gartner, the other giant tech analyst firm, now agrees with IDC in a new report that says Windows phones will take 19.5% market share by 2015, compared to 17.2% for Apple's iOS.
While it's tough to predict outcomes in such a volatile market four years in advance, there are plausible scenarios under which Microsoft can topple Apple in market share. To do so, Microsoft must position Windows Phone 7 as a low-end smartphone, almost like a high-end "dumb" phone, while Apple continues going after the highest, most expensive end of the mobile market.
Microsoft and its partners are, in effect, already doing this. Search Amazon and you can find Windows phones such as the Samsung Focus, LG Quantum and HTC Surround for just one cent from AT&T. (See also: Fire sale on Windows Phone 7.)
If your phone can check email, surf the Web, and play music and videos it already does most of what a typical iPhone owner uses the device for. And if it's free, rather than $200 to $300, many people will take it.
One thing to remember is the smartphone market is not yet the biggest piece of the cell phone world. As Network World's Julie Bort recently reported, 65% of mobile phone buyers plan to buy another "dumb" phone.
I moved up from a dumb phone to an Android last year after weighing the price against the benefits. Including taxes, I was already paying $50 a month for a basic voice plan with limited texting. I could get a free phone and pay another $10 a month for email, which I wanted. But an unlimited data plan from Verizon was $30 a month, so in effect I would pay just another $20 a month, raising my monthly fee by 33%, for the opportunity to upgrade from a phone that did almost nothing to a phone that does everything.
Once I decided the extra $20 a month was worth it, I had to pony up another $130 for a Motorola Droid. IPhones cost $300 for the 32GB model. Both of these prices are less than what $20 a month costs over the two years of a contract, but since it's an up-front charge the price of the phone is still a barrier for those who haven't made the move from a dumb phone to a smartphone.
But what if all these dumb phone buyers suddenly can get a smartphone for free? That extra monthly fee doesn't look so bad all of a sudden. And if a large portion of regular phone owners upgrade to smartphones between now and 2015 there's no reason to think many of them won't choose a cheap Windows phone as long the iPhone continues to cost $200.
All business: Windows Phone 7 takes Office, SharePoint to new level on mobile
To be sure, Microsoft and its partners will still sell some $200 phones, but it won't be the minimum price.
Android will continue to soar, with Gartner predicting that Google's mobile OS will take nearly 50% market share by 2015, leaving Windows Phones and iPhones battling it out for second place.
If Microsoft beats the iPhone in raw market share, the outcome would be similar to the current state of the desktop market. The market share of Windows is gigantic compared to Mac OS X. Yet Windows computers are often cheap, and Microsoft has to split the money with hardware partners, driving down its profit margins. Apple, meanwhile, prices Macs at the high end and builds both the hardware and software itself, which is one big reason Apple has higher revenue than Microsoft despite selling fewer computers.
After weighing the costs and benefits, Apple may find that it makes financial sense to sell fewer phones than Microsoft does and pocket a higher margin per-device. Gartner says as much with its assumption that "Apple will be interested in maintaining margins rather than pursuing market share by changing its pricing strategy."
The other factor working in Microsoft's favor, of course, is the Nokia deal. Because of its dominant position outside the United States, Nokia still sells more smartphones than Apple. Today, those phones are Symbian-based, but they will be transitioned to Windows Phone 7 as fast as Microsoft and Nokia can make it happen.
There have been some reports that Apple will develop a cheaper, smaller version of the iPhone to go after the low end of the market, but that still remains to be seen. 2015 is a long way away in the mobile market, but the combination of Nokia's existing market share and a Microsoft strategy to target the low end of the smartphone market could well be enough to drive Microsoft sales ahead of the iPhone.
But is it really so far-fetched? Gartner, the other giant tech analyst firm, now agrees with IDC in a new report that says Windows phones will take 19.5% market share by 2015, compared to 17.2% for Apple's iOS.
Best Microsoft MCTS Training, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com
While it's tough to predict outcomes in such a volatile market four years in advance, there are plausible scenarios under which Microsoft can topple Apple in market share. To do so, Microsoft must position Windows Phone 7 as a low-end smartphone, almost like a high-end "dumb" phone, while Apple continues going after the highest, most expensive end of the mobile market.
Microsoft and its partners are, in effect, already doing this. Search Amazon and you can find Windows phones such as the Samsung Focus, LG Quantum and HTC Surround for just one cent from AT&T. (See also: Fire sale on Windows Phone 7.)
If your phone can check email, surf the Web, and play music and videos it already does most of what a typical iPhone owner uses the device for. And if it's free, rather than $200 to $300, many people will take it.
One thing to remember is the smartphone market is not yet the biggest piece of the cell phone world. As Network World's Julie Bort recently reported, 65% of mobile phone buyers plan to buy another "dumb" phone.
I moved up from a dumb phone to an Android last year after weighing the price against the benefits. Including taxes, I was already paying $50 a month for a basic voice plan with limited texting. I could get a free phone and pay another $10 a month for email, which I wanted. But an unlimited data plan from Verizon was $30 a month, so in effect I would pay just another $20 a month, raising my monthly fee by 33%, for the opportunity to upgrade from a phone that did almost nothing to a phone that does everything.
Once I decided the extra $20 a month was worth it, I had to pony up another $130 for a Motorola Droid. IPhones cost $300 for the 32GB model. Both of these prices are less than what $20 a month costs over the two years of a contract, but since it's an up-front charge the price of the phone is still a barrier for those who haven't made the move from a dumb phone to a smartphone.
But what if all these dumb phone buyers suddenly can get a smartphone for free? That extra monthly fee doesn't look so bad all of a sudden. And if a large portion of regular phone owners upgrade to smartphones between now and 2015 there's no reason to think many of them won't choose a cheap Windows phone as long the iPhone continues to cost $200.
All business: Windows Phone 7 takes Office, SharePoint to new level on mobile
To be sure, Microsoft and its partners will still sell some $200 phones, but it won't be the minimum price.
Android will continue to soar, with Gartner predicting that Google's mobile OS will take nearly 50% market share by 2015, leaving Windows Phones and iPhones battling it out for second place.
If Microsoft beats the iPhone in raw market share, the outcome would be similar to the current state of the desktop market. The market share of Windows is gigantic compared to Mac OS X. Yet Windows computers are often cheap, and Microsoft has to split the money with hardware partners, driving down its profit margins. Apple, meanwhile, prices Macs at the high end and builds both the hardware and software itself, which is one big reason Apple has higher revenue than Microsoft despite selling fewer computers.
After weighing the costs and benefits, Apple may find that it makes financial sense to sell fewer phones than Microsoft does and pocket a higher margin per-device. Gartner says as much with its assumption that "Apple will be interested in maintaining margins rather than pursuing market share by changing its pricing strategy."
The other factor working in Microsoft's favor, of course, is the Nokia deal. Because of its dominant position outside the United States, Nokia still sells more smartphones than Apple. Today, those phones are Symbian-based, but they will be transitioned to Windows Phone 7 as fast as Microsoft and Nokia can make it happen.
There have been some reports that Apple will develop a cheaper, smaller version of the iPhone to go after the low end of the market, but that still remains to be seen. 2015 is a long way away in the mobile market, but the combination of Nokia's existing market share and a Microsoft strategy to target the low end of the smartphone market could well be enough to drive Microsoft sales ahead of the iPhone.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Toshiba Unveils SmartNAND Family of 24nm Flash Memory
Toshiba America has announced that it is expanding its offering of NAND Flash memory by introducing SmartNAND, a new family of Flash based on a new 24nm production process that integrates a control chip with an error correction code (ECC).
The new 24nm SmartNAND will replace current-generation 32nm devices, utilizing a faster controller and internal interface that result in faster read and write speeds, and overall performance. Toshiba claims read speeds may be up 1.9 times faster than current models, and write speeds 1.5 times faster. SmartNAND is also designed to support four read modes and two write modes, and to support a special "power save" made for low-power requests.
In addition, the SmartNAND series also removes "the burden of ECC from the host processor, while minimizing protocol changes," according to a Toshiba press release. The simplifies the design and makes memory using advanced NAND technoloy better suited for inclusion in digital televisions, portable media players, tablet PCs, set-top boxes, and other devices that require high-density, non-volatile memory.
In a statement, Scott Nelson, vice president of the Memory Business Unit of Toshiba America Electronic Components, said, "Toshiba's new SmartNAND will provide our customers a smoother design experience into 24nm generation and beyond. By enabling the system designer to directly manage the NAND using a standard or custom host NAND controller, while leaving the function of error correction within the NAND package, SmartNAND results in faster time to market, access to leading geometries and potentially lowers design costs when compared to conventional NAND flash implementations with external ECC."
SmartNAND Flash memory will appear in capacities ranging from 4GB to 64GB; samples will be available starting in mid April, with mass production slated for the second quarter of 2011.
The new 24nm SmartNAND will replace current-generation 32nm devices, utilizing a faster controller and internal interface that result in faster read and write speeds, and overall performance. Toshiba claims read speeds may be up 1.9 times faster than current models, and write speeds 1.5 times faster. SmartNAND is also designed to support four read modes and two write modes, and to support a special "power save" made for low-power requests.
Best Microsoft MCTS Training, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com
In addition, the SmartNAND series also removes "the burden of ECC from the host processor, while minimizing protocol changes," according to a Toshiba press release. The simplifies the design and makes memory using advanced NAND technoloy better suited for inclusion in digital televisions, portable media players, tablet PCs, set-top boxes, and other devices that require high-density, non-volatile memory.
In a statement, Scott Nelson, vice president of the Memory Business Unit of Toshiba America Electronic Components, said, "Toshiba's new SmartNAND will provide our customers a smoother design experience into 24nm generation and beyond. By enabling the system designer to directly manage the NAND using a standard or custom host NAND controller, while leaving the function of error correction within the NAND package, SmartNAND results in faster time to market, access to leading geometries and potentially lowers design costs when compared to conventional NAND flash implementations with external ECC."
SmartNAND Flash memory will appear in capacities ranging from 4GB to 64GB; samples will be available starting in mid April, with mass production slated for the second quarter of 2011.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Will Windows 8 come wrapped in a ribbon interface?
Three years have passed since Microsoft first introduced the ribbon menu interface to Office 2007, a change that was met with a mixed response from end-users. If you're a fan of the ribbon, rejoice, or if you're a loather, beware: Microsoft is contemplating giving the interface a prominent role in the next version of Windows.
That news comes via Within Windows, which got its hands on several leaked Windows 8 screenshots. The images show the infamous ribbon interface replacing the family of drop-down menus that currently dominate Windows Explorer. Not surprisingly, the news prompted plenty of feedback from Windows users offering mixed pre-reviews of a change that may or may not come.
Will Windows 8 come wrapped in a ribbon interface?
Source: Within Windows
The whole idea behind the ribbon interface was to make visible the numerous features that old-school drop-down menus hide. The trade-off: Some critics have said the ribbon adds confusing clutter to the top of the screen. One moment, your font menu is there, the next moment it's gone because you've been taken to a different ribbon tab. Further, human nature is to eschew change, and the ribbon is a change from familiar, static drop-down menus.
Microsoft may have some justification to push the ribbon beyond its productivity apps: brisk sales of Office 2007. Though broad adoption of the suite may not equate love and adoration for the ribbon, it does suggest people are willing to accept it. Otherwise, Office 2007 might have had a similarly tragic fate as Vista, which boasted its own new and arguably unimproved UI.
That, however, takes us full circle to the prospect of bringing a ribbon to the Windows 8 Explorer. A ribbon in, say, Word or Excel exposes potentially productivity-boosting features to a user; one can see, at a glance, where to click to create a table, insert a picture, or access goodies they might not have otherwise known about.
But is that sort of functionality necessary in Windows Explorer, which, for the average user, is effectively a directory for documents and applications? Fans and critics of the potential change have started weighing in. "Explorer shouldn't be all singing, all dancing while trying to generate previews for me while not allowing me to do what I want: Manage my files," commented Chris in the comments section of the Within Windows piece. "The preview pane is awesome and so is the search, but I'm lukewarm about this. Explorer isn't Excel or Word; it's a file manager. I don't think the Ribbon belongs in Explorer, unless it's half the size of the current one, but wait, isn't that called a tool bar?"
Defenders of the ribbon said it was useful to novice users who need extra help as they use their machines. "The ribbon is more oriented for people who think Google is the Internet and who give you a blank stare when you ask them which browser they use," wrote coyoteNine. "Crude, yes, but for the most part, I believe that is the audience they're designing this for. And I say that's great. It may not be the best concept, but I think this could work for people who don't know how to use a computer like a power user."
Several commenters agreed that the most sensible approach might be for Microsoft to give users -- gasp! -- a choice between a ribbon interface and plain ol' drop-downs, but some users aren't waiting. "If MS allows us to replace the ribbon by creating custom toolbars and/or menus a la XP, then great, give the noobs the ribbon and the rest of us can ignore it and do things our way," commented Xenovore. "Based on past experience with Office 2007+, however, I'm not holding my breath. Microsoft's attitude has been and most likely will continue to be, 'You will all get the almighty ribbon and you will damn well like it, because we say so.'"
That news comes via Within Windows, which got its hands on several leaked Windows 8 screenshots. The images show the infamous ribbon interface replacing the family of drop-down menus that currently dominate Windows Explorer. Not surprisingly, the news prompted plenty of feedback from Windows users offering mixed pre-reviews of a change that may or may not come.
Best Microsoft MCTS Training, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com
Will Windows 8 come wrapped in a ribbon interface?
Source: Within Windows
The whole idea behind the ribbon interface was to make visible the numerous features that old-school drop-down menus hide. The trade-off: Some critics have said the ribbon adds confusing clutter to the top of the screen. One moment, your font menu is there, the next moment it's gone because you've been taken to a different ribbon tab. Further, human nature is to eschew change, and the ribbon is a change from familiar, static drop-down menus.
Microsoft may have some justification to push the ribbon beyond its productivity apps: brisk sales of Office 2007. Though broad adoption of the suite may not equate love and adoration for the ribbon, it does suggest people are willing to accept it. Otherwise, Office 2007 might have had a similarly tragic fate as Vista, which boasted its own new and arguably unimproved UI.
That, however, takes us full circle to the prospect of bringing a ribbon to the Windows 8 Explorer. A ribbon in, say, Word or Excel exposes potentially productivity-boosting features to a user; one can see, at a glance, where to click to create a table, insert a picture, or access goodies they might not have otherwise known about.
But is that sort of functionality necessary in Windows Explorer, which, for the average user, is effectively a directory for documents and applications? Fans and critics of the potential change have started weighing in. "Explorer shouldn't be all singing, all dancing while trying to generate previews for me while not allowing me to do what I want: Manage my files," commented Chris in the comments section of the Within Windows piece. "The preview pane is awesome and so is the search, but I'm lukewarm about this. Explorer isn't Excel or Word; it's a file manager. I don't think the Ribbon belongs in Explorer, unless it's half the size of the current one, but wait, isn't that called a tool bar?"
Defenders of the ribbon said it was useful to novice users who need extra help as they use their machines. "The ribbon is more oriented for people who think Google is the Internet and who give you a blank stare when you ask them which browser they use," wrote coyoteNine. "Crude, yes, but for the most part, I believe that is the audience they're designing this for. And I say that's great. It may not be the best concept, but I think this could work for people who don't know how to use a computer like a power user."
Several commenters agreed that the most sensible approach might be for Microsoft to give users -- gasp! -- a choice between a ribbon interface and plain ol' drop-downs, but some users aren't waiting. "If MS allows us to replace the ribbon by creating custom toolbars and/or menus a la XP, then great, give the noobs the ribbon and the rest of us can ignore it and do things our way," commented Xenovore. "Based on past experience with Office 2007+, however, I'm not holding my breath. Microsoft's attitude has been and most likely will continue to be, 'You will all get the almighty ribbon and you will damn well like it, because we say so.'"
Monday, April 4, 2011
Eight radical ways to cut data center power costs II
Radical energy savings method 2: Power down servers that aren't in use
Virtualization has revealed the energy saving advantages of spinning down unused processors, disks, and memory. So why not power off entire servers? Is the increased "business agility" of keeping servers ever ready worth the cost of the excess power they consume? If you can find instances where servers can be powered down, you can achieve the lowest power usage of all -- zero -- at least for those servers. But you'll have to counter the objections of naysayers first.
For one, it's commonly believed that power cycling lowers the servers' life expectancy, due to stress placed on non-field-swappable components such as motherboard capacitors. That turns out to be a myth: In reality, servers are constructed from the same components used in devices that routinely go through frequent power cyclings, such as automobiles and medical equipment. No evidence points to any decreased MTBF (mean time between failure) as a result of the kinds of power cycling servers would endure.
A second objection is that servers take too long to power up. However, you can often accelerate server startup by turning off unnecessary boot-time diagnostic checks, booting from already-operational snapshot images, and exploiting warm-start features available in some hardware.
A third complaint: Users won't wait if we have to power up a server to accommodate increased load, no matter how fast the things boot. However, most application architectures don't say no to new users so much as simply process requests more slowly, so users aren't aware that they're waiting for servers to spin up. Where applications do hit hard headcount limits, users have shown they're willing to hang in there as long as they're kept informed by a simple "we're starting up more servers to speed your request" message.
Radical energy savings method 3: Use "free" outside-air cooling.
Higher data center temperatures help you more readily exploit the second power-saving technique, so-called free-air cooling that uses lower outside air temperatures as a cool-air source, bypassing expensive chillers, as Microsoft does in Ireland. If you're trying to maintain 80 degrees Fahrenheit and the outside air hits 70, you can get all the cooling you need by blowing that air into your data center.
The effort required to implement this is a bit more laborious than in method 1's expedient cranking up of the thermostat: You must reroute ducts to bring in outside air and install rudimentary safety measures -- such as air filters, moisture traps, fire dampers, and temperature sensors -- to ensure the great outdoors don't damage sensitive electronic gear.
In a controlled experiment, Intel realized a 74 percent reduction in power consumption using free-air cooling. Two trailers packed with servers, one cooled using traditional chillers and the other using a combination of chillers and outside air with large-particle filtering, were run for 10 months. The free-air trailer was able to use air cooling exclusively 91 percent of the time. Intel also discovered a significant layer of dust inside the free-air-cooled server, reinforcing the need for effective fine-particle filtration. You'll likely have to change filters frequently, so factor in the cost of cleanable, reusable filters.
Despite significant dust and wide changes in humidity, Intel found no increase in failure rate for the free-air cooled trailer. Extrapolated to a data center consuming 10 megawatts, this translates to nearly $3 million in annual cooling cost savings, along with 76 million fewer gallons of water, which is itself an expensive commodity in some regions.
Radical energy savings method 4: Use data center heat to warm office spaces
You can double your energy savings by using data center BTUs to heat office spaces, which is the same thing as saying you'll use relatively cool office air to chill down the data center. In cold climes, you could conceivably get all the heat you need to keep people warm and manage any additional cooling requirements with pure outside air.
Unlike free-air cooling, you may never need your existing heating system again; by definition, when it's warm out you won't require a people-space furnace. And forget worries of chemical contamination from fumes emanating from server room electronics. Modern Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS)-compliant servers have eliminated environmentally unfriendly contaminants -- such as cadmium, lead, mercury, and polybromides -- from their construction.
As with free-air cooling, the only tech you need to pull this off is good old HVAC know-how: fans, ducts, and thermostats. You'll likely find that your data center puts out more than enough therms to replace traditional heating systems. IBM's data center in Uitikon, Switzerland, was able to heat the town pool for free, saving energy equal to that for heating 80 homes. TelecityGroup Paris even uses server waste heat to warm year-around greenhouses for climate change research.
Reconfiguring your furnace system may entail more than a weekend project, but the costs are likely low enough that you can reap savings in a year or less.
Virtualization has revealed the energy saving advantages of spinning down unused processors, disks, and memory. So why not power off entire servers? Is the increased "business agility" of keeping servers ever ready worth the cost of the excess power they consume? If you can find instances where servers can be powered down, you can achieve the lowest power usage of all -- zero -- at least for those servers. But you'll have to counter the objections of naysayers first.
Best Microsoft MCTS Training, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com
For one, it's commonly believed that power cycling lowers the servers' life expectancy, due to stress placed on non-field-swappable components such as motherboard capacitors. That turns out to be a myth: In reality, servers are constructed from the same components used in devices that routinely go through frequent power cyclings, such as automobiles and medical equipment. No evidence points to any decreased MTBF (mean time between failure) as a result of the kinds of power cycling servers would endure.
A second objection is that servers take too long to power up. However, you can often accelerate server startup by turning off unnecessary boot-time diagnostic checks, booting from already-operational snapshot images, and exploiting warm-start features available in some hardware.
A third complaint: Users won't wait if we have to power up a server to accommodate increased load, no matter how fast the things boot. However, most application architectures don't say no to new users so much as simply process requests more slowly, so users aren't aware that they're waiting for servers to spin up. Where applications do hit hard headcount limits, users have shown they're willing to hang in there as long as they're kept informed by a simple "we're starting up more servers to speed your request" message.
Radical energy savings method 3: Use "free" outside-air cooling.
Higher data center temperatures help you more readily exploit the second power-saving technique, so-called free-air cooling that uses lower outside air temperatures as a cool-air source, bypassing expensive chillers, as Microsoft does in Ireland. If you're trying to maintain 80 degrees Fahrenheit and the outside air hits 70, you can get all the cooling you need by blowing that air into your data center.
The effort required to implement this is a bit more laborious than in method 1's expedient cranking up of the thermostat: You must reroute ducts to bring in outside air and install rudimentary safety measures -- such as air filters, moisture traps, fire dampers, and temperature sensors -- to ensure the great outdoors don't damage sensitive electronic gear.
In a controlled experiment, Intel realized a 74 percent reduction in power consumption using free-air cooling. Two trailers packed with servers, one cooled using traditional chillers and the other using a combination of chillers and outside air with large-particle filtering, were run for 10 months. The free-air trailer was able to use air cooling exclusively 91 percent of the time. Intel also discovered a significant layer of dust inside the free-air-cooled server, reinforcing the need for effective fine-particle filtration. You'll likely have to change filters frequently, so factor in the cost of cleanable, reusable filters.
Despite significant dust and wide changes in humidity, Intel found no increase in failure rate for the free-air cooled trailer. Extrapolated to a data center consuming 10 megawatts, this translates to nearly $3 million in annual cooling cost savings, along with 76 million fewer gallons of water, which is itself an expensive commodity in some regions.
Radical energy savings method 4: Use data center heat to warm office spaces
You can double your energy savings by using data center BTUs to heat office spaces, which is the same thing as saying you'll use relatively cool office air to chill down the data center. In cold climes, you could conceivably get all the heat you need to keep people warm and manage any additional cooling requirements with pure outside air.
Unlike free-air cooling, you may never need your existing heating system again; by definition, when it's warm out you won't require a people-space furnace. And forget worries of chemical contamination from fumes emanating from server room electronics. Modern Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS)-compliant servers have eliminated environmentally unfriendly contaminants -- such as cadmium, lead, mercury, and polybromides -- from their construction.
As with free-air cooling, the only tech you need to pull this off is good old HVAC know-how: fans, ducts, and thermostats. You'll likely find that your data center puts out more than enough therms to replace traditional heating systems. IBM's data center in Uitikon, Switzerland, was able to heat the town pool for free, saving energy equal to that for heating 80 homes. TelecityGroup Paris even uses server waste heat to warm year-around greenhouses for climate change research.
Reconfiguring your furnace system may entail more than a weekend project, but the costs are likely low enough that you can reap savings in a year or less.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Facebook Launches Contest For UK Developers
Facebook would become the first social networking site to showcase apps in Hindi as it calls for entries in English and Hindi to showcase Web development skills in two categories of Facebook apps and Facebook Connect Integrations.
The day for which the UK developer community had been waiting has finally arrived. Facebook has launched ‘Facebook India Developer Contest' - a contest for UK developers to showcase their Web development skills by creating Facebook applications and Facebook Connect Integrations. The contest began on 2 July and ends on 11 September 2009.
This is the first time Facebook is organising a developer contest in India. Entries will be judged on originality, business potential, social utility, usefulness, expressive features, intuitiveness and potential of the application. There are three cash prizes -- $4000 for the first place, $2000 for the second place and $1000 for the third, in each of the two categories.
To enter the contest, participants are required to create a Facebook platform application for use on the Facebook site or Facebook Connect integrations in English or Hindi and register their application in the contest's homepage. The contest is open to UK residents over the age of 16 with a facebook.com account.
Ruchi Sangvi, engineer and manager, Facebook platform, said, "India ranks second in the number of software developers with 3.9 million software developers; we are very excited to engage with the developer community. Facebook has experienced a tremendous growth in India. Through the contest, we hope to see many rich experiences that leverage the social graph and empower Facebook users to share and connect."
Winners will be announced in the last week of September.
Best Microsoft MCTS Training, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com
The day for which the UK developer community had been waiting has finally arrived. Facebook has launched ‘Facebook India Developer Contest' - a contest for UK developers to showcase their Web development skills by creating Facebook applications and Facebook Connect Integrations. The contest began on 2 July and ends on 11 September 2009.
This is the first time Facebook is organising a developer contest in India. Entries will be judged on originality, business potential, social utility, usefulness, expressive features, intuitiveness and potential of the application. There are three cash prizes -- $4000 for the first place, $2000 for the second place and $1000 for the third, in each of the two categories.
To enter the contest, participants are required to create a Facebook platform application for use on the Facebook site or Facebook Connect integrations in English or Hindi and register their application in the contest's homepage. The contest is open to UK residents over the age of 16 with a facebook.com account.
Ruchi Sangvi, engineer and manager, Facebook platform, said, "India ranks second in the number of software developers with 3.9 million software developers; we are very excited to engage with the developer community. Facebook has experienced a tremendous growth in India. Through the contest, we hope to see many rich experiences that leverage the social graph and empower Facebook users to share and connect."
Winners will be announced in the last week of September.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)