The VAR Guy

The VAR Guy is a busy guy, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t take the time to watch some television. And during the broadcast of Grammys on Feb. 13, 2011, The VAR Guy noticed a whole lotta HP advertising going on. So what is HP up to, exactly? Here’s our resident blogger’s take:

Symantec is barreling into the future of security technology with the launch of Endpoint Protection 12. Version 12 brings with it new features designed specifically for virtual environments along with improvements to detection engine technology. Here’s the scoop …

Websense is expanding its distribution agreement with Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions (ECS) to North America. Until now, Arrow ECS has carried Websense security products through ECS, but only in Europe. Read on for the meat and potatoes of the expanded partnership …

July 4, 2011, will not only mark the 235th anniversary of America’s freedom, it also will mark the effective start of Rick Hamada as CEO of distribution giant Avnet. Read on for the details regarding his new appointment.

From all appearances, the economy is improving. With people and businesses alike putting their money back to work, where are you going to put yours? I suggest investing your money and efforts where they will pay the highest returns—for both you and your customers’ businesses. One area of intrigue: A lot of independent software vendors (ISVs) are investing in software appliances and the tools to build them more efficiently. Here’s why.

It’s a safe bet that cron doesn’t rank highly on most Ubuntu users’ priority lists — in fact, I’d be surprised if a majority even know what cron is. For those who do, however, the Ubuntu 11.04 release in April promises some notable new features for cron in the form of the run-one wrapper script. Here’s the scoop.

SonicWALL thinks it’s got the last word when it comes to firewall security. The company is launching the SuperMassive E10000 Next-Gen Firewall at RSA 2011 this week, complete with up to 96 cores of processing power per unit. Designed to chew through 40Gbps of firewall throughput and 30Gbps of application control, SonicWALL believes the term ‘future-proof’ is a bit of an understatement. I spoke with Patrick Sweeney, SonicWALL’s VP of Product Management, about the offering:

Dell Services is launching six new services designed to provide mobile device management, as well as application and security features. Dell has positioned the product to be open standards-based, multicarrier, multivendor offerings for addressing network security concerns encountered by companies. Here’s the deal …

It’s no secret the enterprise loves the iPad. The VAR Guy has seen enough survey results proving that to wallpaper his office. And now comes further proof from Barclays analyst Ben Reitzes, who provided some tantalizing commentary to Barrons.com (part of the Wall Street Journal network) about iPad adoption in the enterprise. But The VAR Guy isn’t as bullish on sustained corporate adoption of the iPad. Here’s why:

The VAR Guy just got home from VMware Partner Exchange. He’ll recharge for the next day then continue on to IBM PartnerWorld (Feb. 15) before checking out the new MSPmentor 100 list (Feb. 16). Busy times, but fun times. Here are six channel partner blog entries The VAR Guy didn’t have time to write for the week ending Feb. 11, 2011.

Sure, The VAR Guy is super-busy. But so are you. So how can you possibly keep track of all the big channel partner stories each week? Simple. Here’s a list of the 15 most read blogs from across our sites (The VAR Guy, TalkinCloud and MSPmentor) for the week ending February 11, 2011. Take a look…

Depending on your reference point, and on your definition of “diversity,” the Ubuntu ecosystem may or may not be a diverse place. In one developer’s eyes, however, the community suffers from enough “social obstacles” to merit the establishment of an official diversity statement. Here’s the scoop, along with some thoughts.

The VAR Guy always has his ear to the ground, but call him skeptical for the latest Apple-related rumblings. Bloomberg is reporting that Apple is going to launch a smaller version of the iPhone that’s also cheaper in an effort to compete with Android offerings. The rumors about the new phone may be true, but The VAR Guy doesn’t think Android competition is the reason behind the new phone. Here’s why:

Netgear is looking to expand its Smart Business Solutions into the midsized enterprise market with a new 10GE managed switch and free, next-business day, onsite replacement support of parts. Interested? Here’s what VARs and resellers should know…

ISVs in the market for a mobile application development platform might want to check out WorkLight. The company is launching a partner program for ISVs and OEMs looking to capitalize on the growing demand for mobile applications that integrate with the workplace. Intrigued? Read on for the details.

UC guru Polycom has expanded its UC Intelligent Core Platform in an effort to tap Cisco’s Telepresence Interoperability Protocol (TIP). TIP, which Cisco developed originally for multi-screen telepresence interoperability, was gifted in Summer 2010 to the International Multimedia Teleconferencing Consortium (IMTC) to be managed as an industry standard. Polycom is taking it a step further by using TIP to enable its systems to interact with Cisco technology. Here’s the deal…

Move over, Red Hat Summit. In addition to that annual customer gathering, Red Hat is now planning an entirely separate Red Hat Partner Conference, The VAR Guy has heard from sources who wear the red fedora. Smart move. Here’s why.

The wait is over … HP launched its webOS tablet, dubbed TouchPad. Believe it or not, it’s much more than an iPad competitor. HP’s level of integration and innovation on this device show a very Apple-like approach to a device ecosystem, and it should come as no surprise, considering Jon Rubinstein (now a senior VP and general manager at HP following its acquisition of Palm in 2010) previously had a successful career at Apple. Although I haven’t actually played with the product, at first blush it looks as through HP hit the nail on the head with the TouchPad. Here’s why:

Flash 10.2 has been released with hardware acceleration support, which initially you might not see the benefit of. But there are implications with this latest version of Flash that MSPs, ISVs and even VARs should be excited about, all of which could directly impact their bottom line. Read on for the details:

Former SAP Global Channel Chief Pat Hume has joined GFI Software, The VAR Guy has heard. Hume’s move to GFI Software, promoter of SaaS and cloud-based management tools for VARs and MSPs, signals a strategic win for the managed services market, The VAR Guy believes. Here’s the scoop.

Most solution providers probably would agree that specializing in one or more vertical markets is a great way to build their business. After all, the more you know about how another business operates, the more qualified you are as an IT partner to recommend and implement the right solutions. The real heavy lifting is in determining which verticals are right for your business, which have the highest profit potential and how to get started. One potential opportunity: The retail vertical. Here’s why.

The VAR Guy is spending the next couple of days at VMware Partner Exchange in Orlando, Fla. But he’s also tracking nearly 100 other channel partner summits and conferences in 2011. So, how does The VAR Guy survive all that travel? Pull up a chair and stick around. Here are five secrets to success for today’s channel partner road warriors.

At VMware Partner Exchange in Orlando, Fla., VMware CEO Paul Maritz (pictured) called on channel partners to transform legacy applications into modern, virtualized applications that serve the FaceBook generation. He also said it was “the beginning of the end” for the Windows-centric era. Those are intriguing words, considering Maritz previously helped Microsoft to build the Windows empire. Here’s the update, including five highlights from Maritz’s keynote.