The VAR Guy

ZaReason, one of the best-known companies developing Ubuntu desktops and notebooks, plans to introduce Ubuntu server products soon. I welcome the news, but the Ubuntu server market still faces tall challenges.

Hello again Dean Darwin, goodbye Steve Hale. Darwin (not pictured) has rejoined F5 Networks as channel chief, replacing Hale (pictured), according to The VAR Guy (not pictured). Details about the change are sketchy but here are some early details.

How bad is the economy? Novell has just canceled BrainShare, one of the IT industry’s long-standing events. Initial perspectives from Matt Asay (Blogger, The Open Road). Plus, here’s the official statement from Novell Chief Marketing Officer John Dragoon.

Novell is generating buzz this week with the December 18 launch of OpenSUSE 11.1. But The VAR Guy is looking at Novell from a slightly different perspective. The far bigger news involves senior VP Roger Levy (pictured) — who may bring order to Novell’s product lines. Here’s the scoop, from The VAR Guy.

The Economist published an article recently about netbooks, the small and cheap laptops that may well prove central to bridging the gap between geeky Linux users and the masses.  While it doesn’t say anything very original, the recommendations it makes–and the audience of professionals that’s likely to read them–are noteworthy in their own right.

During the Avnet Analyst Day in New York, Avnet Technology Solutions described its fastest growing business opportunities for VARs. But the more intriguing discussion occurred over lunch. That’s when John Paget, president of Avnet Technology Solutions, answered questions about possible hosting partnerships involving Cisco Systems Inc. Unified Communications and Microsoft Office Communications Server. Here’s the scoop.

Still skeptical about the value of Web 2.0 technology? Consider this startling fact: Dell has booked $1 million in revenue by leveraging Twitter sales alerts over the past 18 months or so. Sure, $1 million is chump change for Dell. But The VAR Guy is still impressed.

When it comes to Linux, most U.S. headlines involve Canonical, Novell or Red Hat. But another Linux distribution — from Mandriva S.A. of Paris, France — is making a name for itself in the global IT channel. Consider this: More than 2,000 IT partners have lined up to back Mandriva, up from about 1,200 in 2007, The VAR Guy has learned. Here’s the scoop.

Former Tech Data Senior VP Bob O’Malley has his hands full trying to pull his current company — InFocus — out of a nosedive. The LCD projector maker, which has made a big channel push since O’Malley arrived in September 2007, is cutting 30% of its staff and has retained Thomas Weisel Partners for advice concerning unsolicited offers to buy the company.

techradar.com has an interesting interview with Jeremy Allison, leader of the Samba project (in other words, one of the people who makes it possible for your Ubuntu machine to connect to its Windows neighbors). Of particular interest is Allison’s assertion that Ubuntu, thanks to its unaparalleled popularity and huge user base, has “the strongest chance to take Linux mainstream.”

While speaking recently with one of my bosses, I was told I will receive a new business laptop in 2009. Now, for the problem: It will be running Windows Vista or Windows XP. Hooray for new gear. Boo for Luddite attitudes.

If you’re an open source software company building an IT channel partner program, The VAR Guy wants to hear from you. Participate in the Open Source 50 survey, and your company could be ranked among the top open source businesses working with VARs, solutions providers, integrators and managed service providers. Deadline for participation is December 18.

The VAR Guy was intrigued today when he read Mark Evans’ blog entry rehashing of Nortel Networks’ 1998 acquisition of Bay Networks. Evans wonders if Nortel would have been smarter to acquire someone else. The VAR Guy has a completely different view on the deal. Here’s the scoop.

Once again, the IT pundits were wrong. Lots of “experts” said the video conferencing and TelePresence industries would enjoy a boom during the economic bust. The reasoning: Executives are cutting business travel to save money, and opting instead for video conferencing and TelePresence. But here’s the problem: Not all video conferencing companies are built equally. Consider the situation of Polycom (a big, established player) vs. LifeSize Communications (a nimble start-up).

Software as a Service (SaaS) stocks are showing some strength, climbing three consecutive weeks. In the latest winning round, our SaaS 20 Stock Index climbed a modest 1.28 percent for the week ended Dec. 12. The index’s big weekly winners included SuccessFactors Inc. (SFSF, +23.95%) and Kenexa Corp. (KNXA, +18.40%). There were also some big weekly losers including Salary.com (SLRY, -24.24%) and Vocus Inc. (VOCS, -20.25%). Here’s some more background on each company.

Before you finish your holiday shopping, consider the following option: If you’re in the market for a low-end PC, put aside about $300 for the ZaReason Breeze, a small desktop computer that runs Ubuntu Linux. Based on our testing, we see some clear market segments where the Breeze is an ideal option for today’s consumers and small businesses.

As big PC companies like Hewlett-Packard finally push into desktop Linux, WorksWithU will give equal time to the industry pioneers that evangelized desktop Linux before it went mainstream. A case in point: System76 continued its long-term Linux commitment today by launching the Gazelle Ultra (pictured) — an Ubuntu laptop with some pretty slick hardware specs and a biometric fingerprint reader for security.

The VAR Guy’s sister site — MSPmentor — offers non-stop coverage of the managed services market, where more and more VARs are generating recurring monthly revenue from customers. Here’s a look at the top 10 stories making headlines on MSPmentor this week.

It’s a familiar trend: Smart people leaving Microsoft to launch a company that cashes in on Microsoft-oriented technology. The latest example: A group of Microsoft Unified Communications veterans have launched Unify2, a consulting firm focused on (wait for it… wait for it…) Microsoft Unified Communications. Here’s the scoop.

Nine Lives Media Inc. — publisher of The VAR Guy — is seeking lively, engaging bloggers who can contribute regularly to our market-leading media platforms. Here’s the scoop.

The VAR Guy is becoming a big fan of Sparkplug CEO, a web site that shows executives and entrepreneurs how to leverage Web 2.0 technologies. One of their most recent entries offers 23 trips to help take your business to the next level. Most tip-lists are pathetic attempts to attract traffic. But in this case, the Sparkplug CEO list offers some timeless ideas and some new approaches to promoting your business.

So, which Web browser has the most software bugs: Google Chrome, Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox? uTest, a fast-growing marketplace for software testing, uncovered some rather intriguing answers. Here’s the scoop, from The VAR Guy.

Two top managed service providers have agreed to share their expertise with you during our final MSPmentor Live: CEO Exchange Webcast of 2008, scheduled for today (December 11 at 2:00 p.m. eastern). Here are details about the event, hosted by MSPmentor — The VAR Guy’s sister site.