But Wait, There's More

Microsoft Offers Extended Support for Windows NT 4.0

Microsoft announced plans last week that will extend the length of time that Windows NT 4.0 users can get security patches and specialized support. Standard support for Windows NT 4.0 is still due to expire at the end of 2004, but under the new plan, which Microsoft co-announced with the BITS nonprofit consortium of 100 large financial institutions, customers will get a discount on the cost of purchasing a custom service contract. However, Microsoft says that users should not consider this an extension of the operating system, which was first released in 1996 and was superceded on the server with Windows 2000 and again with Windows 2003 Server. Instead, users must work with Microsoft to develop a migration plan to a newer release of the Windows server operating system as a condition to entering into an extended services contract. Microsoft recently launched a new 10-year support plan for its server operating systems and business applications in response to mounting criticism over its support policies (see "Microsoft Extends Product Support to At Least a Decade"), but Windows NT 4.0 was not one of the operating systems covered under the new support program. With last week's announcement, companies could get extended support up to December 2006.

Intel Debuts 64-Bit Xeon "Nocona" for Workstations

Intel this week rolled out the first of the 64-bit versions of the Xeon processors that it promised to deliver to the market this winter. The "Nocona" variant of the Xeon DP processor will have the Extended Memory 64-bit Technology embedded into the "Prescott" Pentium 4 core, upon which Nocona is based, turned on. Intel promised in February that it would ship the Nocona chips, which are built using a 90 nanometer chip process, before the end of the second quarter, and it is just squeaking by on that deadline as it gets the first chips and related "Tumwater" chipsets out the door for workstations on June 28. The Tumwater chipset for workstations, known as the E7525, supports 400-MHz DDR2 memory as well, which consumes anywhere from 30 to 40 percent less energy than DDR1 memory running at 266 MHz or 333 MHz respectively. The Tumwater chipset and Nocona chips also enable the first Intel machines to support PCI Express, which offers 8 GB/sec of total bandwidth between the memory controller, graphics processor, and Nocona processor. As for the server version of the Nocona chip and its associated "Lindenhurst" chipset, mum's the word. But the word on the street is that we can expect to see very similar configurations for servers sometime in the middle of summer.

Microsoft Goes "Express" with Visual Studio, SQL Server

Microsoft today launched new "express" versions of its SQL Server and Visual Studio product lines, aimed at the growing population of nonprofessional programmers. Hobbyists, enthusiasts, and students are the main targets of SQL Server Express Edition and Visual Web Developer 2005 Express Edition, which is based on technology in Visual Studio .NET 2003. SQL Server Express Edition will cost nothing, and will help developers and independent software vendors build database-driven applications with support for stored procedures, views, triggers, cursors, XML, and the Common Language Runtime (CLR). For a small fee, developers can get Visual Web Developer 2005 Express Edition, Visual Basic 2005 Express Edition, or a package of three tools that includes Visual C# 2005 Express Edition, Visual C++ 2005 Express Edition, and Visual J# 2005 Express Edition. With the express edition of the Visual Web Developer 2005 product, users also get a built-in development Web server and publishing tools that work with SQL Server Express Edition to quickly build and deploy Web apps. Each Express offering includes tutorials, sample source code, and starter packs from O'Reily Media. Microsoft also announced partnership with eBay, Amazon.com, and PayPal to provide easy-to-use interfaces for Web sites created by the rising class of non-professional programmers.

Disk Array Sales Up 6.5% in First Quarter, Says IDC

According to market research performed by IDC, the worldwide external disk array market surged 6.5 percent to hit $3.5 billion in sales in the first quarter of 2004. Total disk sales (including internal arrays) grew more modestly, at a rate of 3.5 percent, to $5.1 billion, which suggests that the market is shifting away from internal disks to external units. This is ironic, given that the shift to internal systems began about a decade ago as vendors tried to keep account control by integrating disk arrays with their servers. In terms of total disk storage sold, Hewlett-Packard was the dominant seller, with $1.2 billion in sales, but its revenues were down 6.1 percent. IBM was second in the IDC ranking, with just over $1 billion in sales, with revenues up 11.2 percent. As external arrays are taking off again, EMC's share of the market went up 26 percent, to $707 million. Dell and Hitachi had $351 million and $348 million respectively in disk sales in the first quarter. Sun Microsystems was number six, with $309 million, while all other vendors together accounted for $1.2 billion in sales, or 23.3 percent of the market.

Like, No Kidding: IT Morale Is Low

IT consultancy META Group has just finished putting together its "2004 IT Staffing and Compensation Guide," and Maria Shafer, author of the study, says that low morale in IT shops is reaching a critical point. As we all know, this whole "do more with less" approach to IT (indeed across all businesses) has put a lot of strain on work and home relationships. Offshoring and outsourcing, the uncertainty of the business environment, and heavy workloads are all contributing to morale issues. Of the 650 companies that META surveyed for the study, 72 percent said that low IT employee morale is a serious issue. To that end, 45 percent of those companies have begun implementing employee recognition programs (if you can't give money, give praise), and another 40 percent have given employees a chance to get some training to boost their moral as well as their skills (this thing tends to cut both ways). Only 4 percent of companies surveyed are giving cash incentives to demonstrate the value of the IT employees to the company.

Arizona Children to Benefit in Settlement of Class-Action Lawsuit

The State of Arizona and Microsoft this week settled the class action lawsuit that had been brought by Arizona residents against the Redmond, Washington, software giant. As part of the agreement, residents will get vouchers worth up to a total of $104.6 million to purchase computers and software from any manufacturer, as well as specific peripherals. The total amount Microsoft will give depends on how many members of the class action lawsuit step forward to redeem vouchers. Microsoft will also give Arizona's public schools vouchers, which they can use to purchase hardware, software, or consulting services; the value of the school voucher will be one-half of the difference between $104.6 million and the total value of vouchers eventually issued. Microsoft said it was happy to help the schools. "The novel approach we've taken in structuring this settlement has not only allowed us to resolve this legal matter, but provide needed benefits to students at the same time," said Brad Smith, general counsel for Microsoft.