What the Heck Is the Midrange, Anyway?
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

It is a story we hear again and again from the IT vendors: They are going to double down and make aggressive moves into the small and medium business space because the growth rates for IT spending are higher than they are among larger enterprises, at least when those businesses are all lumped together. To many of us, who remember the minicomputer revolution and who know a thing or two about the midrange market, such statements seem a little odd. READ MORE >

Overseas and Notebook Sales Offset Printer Declines for HP in Q3
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

While the U.S. dollar may be strengthening a bit in recent weeks, overseas currencies where IT sales are growing very rapidly were and continue to be a lot stronger and business is a lot more brisk, which means that Hewlett-Packard's third quarter of fiscal 2008 ended July 31 was helped considerably by the ongoing lopsidedness in the global economy. HP posted sales of $28.2 billion in the quarter, up 10.2 percent, and net earnings of just over $2 billion, up 14 percent. READ MORE >

Two More Xeon-Based Galaxy Servers from Sun
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

Server maker and X64 wannabee Sun Microsystems used the occasion of Intel's Developer Forum in San Francisco as the launching pad for two more Xeon-based 'Galaxy' servers. The new machines do not, by the way, sport any early versions of the future "Nehalem" Xeon chips that Intel is talking up at IDF. Those chips probably won't be in servers until late 2008 or early 2009. The two new Galaxy boxes use existing dual-core Xeon 5200 and quad-core Xeon 5400 processors. READ MORE >

Mad Dog 21/21: Newtonian Economics
by Hesh Wiener

Isaac Newton's contributions to science and mathematics were monumental. They elevated English technology to a state of great prominence and helped usher in the Age of Enlightenment. More than three centuries later, every teenager studying science is taught classical mechanics, and Newton's principles provides food for thought in other disciplines, too. IBM's recent financial results, a sunny patch on a graying economic landscape, beg for analysis as well as praise, and Newton's laws might offer just the metaphorical basis required to examine Big Blue's blooming. READ MORE >