The Linux Ecosystem to More than Double to $49 Billion
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

Linux may be a free platform for many and a reasonably inexpensive alternative to Unix and proprietary platforms for others, but make no mistake. For years, Linux has been big business, and if projections made by the market researchers at IDC turn out to be correct, in a few short years the Linux server ecosystem spending on hardware, software, and services directly relating to the platform will hit $49 billion by 2011. That's more than twice the $21 billion in Linux-related server spending that IDC reckons the companies of the world accounted for in 2007. READ MORE >

IBM Goes Stateless and Cooler with iDataPlex Servers
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

The evolution from tower to rack to blade to future servers continues apace, and IBM is cooking up a new line of custom-built servers called the iDataPlex that it hopes will make it the king of the so-called Web 2.0 hill. While the details on the iDataPlex server line, which will begin shipping in June, are sketchy, IBM is talking generally about the product and throwing around some pictures to get people interested in what is coming down the pike. READ MORE >

IBM Previews "Blue Business" SMB System Sales Approach
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

Last week, at its Business Partner Leadership Conference in Los Angeles, IBM gave its partners and customers a sneak peek at a future application and systems strategy, code-named the "Blue Business Platform," that Big Blue could roll out this year or next. While that doesn't sound like much of a code-name, the Blue Business Platform project represents a new and potentially game-changing way in which IBM will chase the $500 billion IT market driven by small and medium businesses worldwide. READ MORE >

As I See It: That Competitive Bug
by Victor Rozek

It has become an article of faith that competitiveness is inherently good, historically inevitable, and the fountainhead of economic dominance. It's rare that business-related nouns appear in print without their default companion adjective 'competitive.' The job market, global markets, wages, and prices all share the same pugnacious descriptor. As any first-year business student will attest: in order to be successful, companies must pursue competitive advantage by developing competitive solutions and executing competitive strategies. READ MORE >