Microsoft Competing Unfairly on Virtualization, VMware Says
by Alex Woodie

Microsoft is leveraging its dominant market position to restrict Windows users from using non-Microsoft virtualization software, VMware claims in a new white paper posted to its Web site last week. According to VMware--still the dominant vendor in the nascent virtualization market--instead of competing fairly, the software giant is using licensing to restrict customer choice and to steer the industry toward its own virtualization specifications and APIs. Microsoft denies the claim, and says it's working in the best interest of its customers. READ MORE >

Server Sales Up a Bit in 2006, But Q4 Looks a Bit Weak
by Timothy Prickett Morgan

Sometimes, it is not what people say that matters, but what they don't say. The analysts at Gartner and IDC usually race to call each past quarter's server sales by revenue, shipments, and platform type. But this time around, only Gartner has thus far released numbers, and as it did last year at this time, the company is talking about all four quarters of 2006 instead of singling out the fourth quarter. READ MORE >

Google Launches Business Applications
by Alex Woodie

Google last week launched Google Apps Premier Edition, an updated collection of the Web-based productivity applications it originally launched last summer. With Premiere Edition, Google is including certain items--such as 24/7 support, guaranteed uptime, nearly unlimited e-mail storage, and a collection of APIs for integrating Google Apps with existing business applications. The company also launched Google Apps and Spreadsheet, two new services that could further pique the interest of business users, and possibly even grab some business from Microsoft. READ MORE >

HP Buys Clustering Software Maker, Launches D2D Backup Solution
by Alex Woodie

Hewlett-Packard continued its resurgence this week when it announced plans to acquire PolyServe, a developer of sophisticated file system software that helps manage storage resources in Windows and Linux environments. The IT giant also unveiled a new disk-to-disk (D2D) storage offering designed for lower-end Windows environments. READ MORE >