Dan Burger
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IBM Piles on the Patents, Promises to Publish Plenty
January 19, 2009 Dan Burger
… Read moreCan anyone remember a time when IBM wasn’t the dominate technology company when it comes to patents? This is the 16th consecutive year that Big Blue has piled up more patents than any of its competitors. Sixteen years is a long time for anyone to stay on top of anything. IBM makes it look easy. It removed the element of suspense in this annual announcement a long time ago. No one asks “Who won?” It’s more like: “How many patents did they get this year?”
In 2008, IBM was awarded 4,186 U.S. patents. No company has ever crossed the 4,000-patent
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Server-Printer Combo Deal Results from IBM-Ricoh Alliance
January 19, 2009 Dan Burger
… Read moreIBM Global Services and its WebSphere software division should be expecting a boost now that IBM and Ricoh have a new deal to share sales networks. The arrangement more closely ties IBM’s service oriented architecture efforts with Ricoh’s document solutions lineup.
Two years ago, IBM and Ricoh created a joint printing business so that IBM could focus on its core server, storage, software, and services businesses. That high-volume printer business (IBM called it InfoPrint and it has retained that name), along with Ricoh’s document management software, was a good match for a great many IBM mainframe and midrange shops. And
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Layoff Rumors Panic IBM Workers; Nothing Confirmed
January 12, 2009 Dan Burger
… Read moreFor many IBM employees, last week was torture. Rumors have been swirling that jobs are on the chopping block and that close to 16,000 workers will become victims of a one-two combination punch from the economic downturn and IBM’s continual moves to lower its costs and extend its string of profitable quarterly reports.
As is its standard practice, IBM has nothing to say on the topic of layoffs. That includes any denial that this move is about to be made.
Information on the rumored job losses comes primarily from the Website of the IBM Employees Union, Alliance@IBM. (Yes, IBM
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Application Modernization: Money in the Bank
January 12, 2009 Dan Burger
… Read moreYou might think that the combination of do-more-with-less business planning and the dire economic reports that dominate the daily news coverage would cause IT budgets to fizzle like last year’s uncorked bottle of champagne. That’s not exactly true, even though three out of four organizations are targeting IT spending as a good place to make cuts. You can’t forget about the one in four companies that are moving their business plans ahead by investing in IT.
Investing in IT is something a lot of companies aren’t very good at, if you add the word “strategic” to describe the investing. At
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IBM’s Academic Initiative Partners with DeVry University
December 8, 2008 Dan Burger
… Read moreWith more than 65,000 students enrolled at nearly 100 locations in 26 states and Canada, DeVry University qualifies as one of the largest degree-granting higher education institutions in North America. So, for IBM to get its Academic Initiative program plugged into DeVry, there is reason to celebrate. Beginning in March 2009, students aiming for bachelor’s degrees in computer information systems have the option of taking enterprise business computing courses that will incorporate IBM i, AIX, and z/OS coursework.
DeVry University is the first educational institution to incorporate multiple IBM Systems technologies into a single degree program track. As is the
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IBM Hitches Business Continuity Horse to Managed Backup and Recovery Wagon
December 1, 2008 Dan Burger
… Read moreThe dependence of business on information technology has never been stronger. Planning and investment in one requires the same focus on the other. For some, that link between business and IT may feel a lot like handcuffs. Building a business demands the full focus of some organizations, and although IT may be recognized for providing competitive advantages, it can be a distraction that upper management prefers to turn over to someone else. IBM is happy to help.
Getting the full benefit of IT resources is sometimes better left to others. Business continuity, which includes such things as backup and recovery,
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Traveler Has Arrived; Lotus Notes Gets Handheld Mobility
December 1, 2008 Dan Burger
… Read moreIt’s been a long journey, but the Traveler has finally arrived. IBM‘s Lotus Notes users–particularly those who count on mobile access and have been wishing upon star after star that an option to Windows mobile devices would be available–know what I’m talking about. Nokia S60 smartphones, which already support Microssoft Exchange, are about to deliver Lotus Notes collaboration functionality that includes e-mail, calendaring, and other applications such as an address book, journal, and to-do lists. Mobility options for Notes users had been limited to laptops.
According to IBM, there are more than 140 million licensed users of Lotus Notes.
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Public Safety Works on Information Sharing, May Go for SaaS
November 24, 2008 Dan Burger
… Read moreData integration problems plague a lot of organizations, but this curse may be best illustrated by examining the grief it brings to law enforcement agencies. It’s here that information sharing can come down to life and death situations without that claim setting off the hyperbole alarms. Improving data integration internally as well as among federal, state, county, and local agencies is a law enforcement priority and there are numerous initiatives and best practices paving the way. The IBM AS/400, iSeries, and System i are sometimes in the line of fire.
Using law enforcement as an example of the challenges of
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Maintenance Expert ServIT Partners with Data Center Provider
November 24, 2008 Dan Burger
… Read moreServIT, a System i solution provider specializing in consulting, maintenance, and wholesale distribution, completed a partnership deal last week with Peak 10, a data center operator and managed services provider with a pocketful of high-profile clients across the United States.
Peak 10 is particularly adept at managing regulatory compliance solutions for SAS70 Type II, HIPAA, FDA, PCI, and Gramm-Leach-Bliley (GLBA) requirements, according to the company. Tony Merendino, president of ServIT, described Peak 10 as “a valuable partner as well as a trusted IT advisor to the local business community.”
In addition to the above-mentioned expertise, ServIT has more
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IDC Patches Punctured IT Spending Forecasts
November 17, 2008 Dan Burger
… Read moreYou can hear air leaking out of the tire, but it’s not flat yet. That’s how I view the most recent IT spending forecast by the analysts at IDC. We might be getting close to pulling over to the side of the road and putting on the spare, but, heck, we don’t even know with any certainty whether the spare has any air in it. So let’s keep driving on this one and see how far we get. We’ll just drive a little slower.
Here in the IBM System i user community, there are tendencies to not spend as