Mainsoft, IBM to Convert .NET Code to Java on All eServers
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

Turnabout is fair play, and it is refreshing to see that IBM is beginning to understand that it needs a strategy to try to bring the 100,000 partners who write code for Microsoft's Windows platform onto all of its eServer platforms--not just xSeries and BladeCenter servers that run Windows natively on Intel and AMD processors. For a decade, software vendors have been porting their OS/400, AIX, and MVS applications to Windows, or creating whole new application suites that compete against software developed for those platforms. READ MORE >

Top Mainframe Stories from Around the Web

(Isham Research) You may have noticed that competitive advantage has as much to do with reducing costs as it does with increasing performance. And this brings us to a conversation regarding the primary advantages of offloading processor cycles from z/OS-based mainframe engines to zAAPs and Linux engines, and the prospect of a System Utility Processors on mainframes. READ MORE >

(IT Jungle) The march of The Penguin continues at IBM. Last week commercial Linux distributors Red Hat and Novell became strategic alliance partners, which puts them in elite status at IBM. If you haven't done so already, you might start investigating Linux partitions. Customers will soon be buying Linux licenses tied to their server, their software, and/or their tech support. READ MORE >

(Processor) Beta Systems Software announced a new version of its SAM Jupiter identity management and access management products. The product has a pure Java business server, which allows cross-platform rules for access control. It is a option to IBM's Tivoli Identity Manager. READ MORE >

Chats, Webinars, Seminars, Shows, and Other Happenings

January 23 -- New York, New York - This all-day meeting of the Metropolitan VM Users Association includes sessions titled z/VM and Linux on zSeries: From LPAR to Virtual Servers in Two Days; What's new with the MainFrame - System z9 109; System z9 Connectivity Snapshots; and Tape Manager, Backup and Restore for z/VM. It will be held at the Information Builders Corporate Headquarters and begin at 8:30 a.m. LEARN MORE >

January 26 -- Webinar - The changing requirements of data warehousing and business intelligence and the challenges they bring are topics of discussion during this one-hour online session that highlights the roles of the DB2 Universal Database and the z9/zSeries platform. Guest speakers are IBM's Business Intelligence Chief Technology Officer, Bill O'Connell, and Jay Yothers, the DB2 for z/OS development expert. The event begins at 11 a.m. EST. LEARN MORE >

January 26 -- Lincolnshire, Illinois - This all-day meeting of the Chicago Area VM (and Linux) Enthusiasts includes sessions titled VM TCP/IP Routing; High Availability and Automatic Network Failover using VSWITCH; and Provisioning Expert for Linux on zSeries. It will be held at the Hewitt Associates East Campus offices and begin at 9 a.m. LEARN MORE >

January 31 -- Webinar - This IBM-sponsored Webcast examines how IBM CICS tools can help improve efficiency, maximize system availability, improve CICS skills, and play a role in a Web services implementation. Presenting this material is Peter Siddell, IBM's CICS Tools Business and Development Manager. The event begins at 11 a.m. EST. LEARN MORE >

February 6 -- New York, New York - The IDC Virtualization Forum: Making Optimal Use of IT Resources will present the many forms of virtualization and how the effective use of this technology can help IT and business executives address the need to cut costs, support an ever changing dynamic environment, and make more optimal use of their IT resources. The program features end-user case studies, a focus on the "commoditization" of hardware, virtual environment software, and the deployment of distributed applications. LEARN MORE >

February 22-23 -- Las Vegas, Nevada - The Unified Compliance Summit examines the role of technology in business governance and regulatory compliance. General topic areas include streamlining compliance activities, understanding how compliance efforts and options overlap, developing action plans, and offsetting the compliance burden. Educational tracks are available in the areas of leadership and design. LEARN MORE >

March 27-29 -- Orlando, Florida - The Service Oriented Architecture and Web Services Best Practices conference is designed for organizations looking for ways to create an architecture for interoperability across disparate systems. It will focus on the key steps for implementation, the role of Web services, new models for building applications, and return on investment. Discounts on registration costs are in effect until January 27. LEARN MORE >