New Power6+ Iron: The Feeds and Speeds
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

In last week's issue of The Four Hundred, I gave you the scoop on the Power6+ rack, tower, and blade server announcements that Big Blue was making at the COMMON midrange trade show out in Reno, Nevada. A lot of the details about the new machines were not available at the time, and I have done some digging to get you more information on the new boxes. READ MORE >

COMMON Exceeds Expectations in Reno, But Group's Future Uncertain
by Alex Woodie

Looking back, we'll likely view the 2009 COMMON conference held last week as a turning point for the user group, and perhaps the midrange industry as a whole. Despite the significant drop in attendance compared to last year's show, conference-goers expressed a glimmer of optimism that things are about to get better. And while COMMON coped admirably after being dealt a mixed hand in Reno, the group's financial situation means significant changes are likely before the group's big 50th anniversary show a year from now in Orlando. READ MORE >

Bettin' on the Blade
by Dan Burger

Will the BladeCenter serve the IBM i community along the same lines as the AS/400 served the System/38 community? It could happen. And if you are Ian Jarman, manager of Power Systems software, you make the crossing from 'could happen' to 'will happen.' Moving from the current BladeCenter on i installed base of several hundred to thousands and tens of thousands seems like a long row to hoe, but Jarman says the pieces are coming together. READ MORE >

Mad Dog 21/21: The Age of Acquire Us
by Hesh Wiener

It looks like Oracle is going to buy Sun Microsystems. This will probably happen soon, but it's hard to be sure. Not long ago it looked like IBM was going to buy Sun, at least according to a passel of ace reporters, but it didn't happen. However as events unfold, one thing seems clear: Sun's role in computing is huge. For an America suffering economic collapse, Sun is a necessity, which makes it a mother of invention. Sun is akin to hope, that strange invention, which may have feathers. And we need hope so much right now. READ MORE >