The VAR Guy

In April 2011, Ubuntu 11.04 was foist upon the masses — or at least upon those who chose to upgrade. Now that the new operating system has officially debuted, it’s time to recap its upsides and downsides. Read on for one user’s opinion.

Ubuntu’s new Unity interface is a geek’s paradise: It has fancy eye candy and myriad keyboard shortcuts, and makes it easy to call applications directly from the command line. But is it equally suited to the desktops of “normal people”? Here are some thoughts.

In an effort to extol the benefits of IBM’s database software, IBM has launched a program to entice Oracle software clients to migrate to IBM software. Additionally, the company is offering no-interest financing and training and support for those willing to make the switch. Sound interesting? Read on for the details.

Back in March 2011, The VAR Guy spoke with Dell Channel Chief Greg Davis about Dell’s buyout of Compellent Technologies,  its channel momentum and its storage, SaaS and cloud efforts in the wake of its positive Q4 results. Davis noted then the channel plays a big role in Dell’s success, and now Dell is hoping its moves to enhance its partner program will bring even more partner success. Paul Shaffer, Dell’s Worldwide Channel Marketing director, offered up a little color on the enhancements …

Let’s cut right to the chase: Wall Street has lost faith in Cisco Systems, and investors are wondering if CEO John Chambers can get the networking company back on track. How can Chambers energize the company — and its channel partners? Here’s an open letter to John Chambers from The VAR Guy… search engine optimized to ensure it reaches John’s desk — or Cius tablet — using the minimal number of router hops.

Fresh from Ingram Micro comes a brand new bundle to help out the channel when selling virtualization solutions. The EMC VNXe series of unified storage platforms are now available bundled, packaged and ready to deploy. Read on for package details…

Storage is booming, no doubt. In April 2011, we noted storage moves by Avere Systems, EMC, Dot Hill and Dataram. Now, BridgeSTOR has unveiled a new rack space-efficient iSCSI/NAS and DPM RAID storage device, shrinking storage capacity needs by 75 percent, according to the company. Through its new Application Optimized Storage (AOS) technology, BridgeSTOR claims a unique de-duplication process. If you’re a storage VAR tired of throwing more disks at a problem, read on …

When it comes to channel partners, Google briefly goofed earlier today. But now, Google is making amends. Rapidly. Indeed, the company now says Chromebooks for Business will be available for certain value-added channel partners to promote to customers. Here’s the most up-to-date information.

The VAR Guy and 5,000 of his closest friends are attending this week’s Google I/O conference in San Francisco. Google is making lots of Android- and Chrome-related news. But if you stop to really think about this conference you’ll see how Google is winning the hearts and minds of software developers and even some managed services providers (MSPs) in the channel.

When Google unveiled the Chromebook for Business strategy today at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco, The VAR Guy openly wondered where channel partners fit into the strategy. Now, The VAR Guy has received an answer from Google. Here’s the update.

Several of Novell‘s top executives — including Ronald W. Hovsepian, Dana C. Russell, John K. Dragoon, Colleen A. O’Keefe, Scott N. Semel and James P. Ebzery — have exited the company following Attachmate‘s recent buyout of Novell. Sources say Novell has made additional staff cuts. Next up, Attachmate and Novell must move quickly to publicly describe Novell’s channel, collaboration and security strategies going forward. The good news: Novell’s partner program remains unchanged. The big question: Which Novell executive will lead that program going forward?

The VAR Guy’s Interop 2011 visit so far has been heavy on the HP, but while the company may be commanding the biggest presence at the event, it’s not the only player in town. Citrix CEO Mark Templeton kicked off Day Two by providing the Interop Expo opening Keynote speech, during which he focused on a world of connected devices and the future of cloud in the upcoming years. Read on and learn how the virtualization company sees computing evolving over the next 10 years …

The VAR Guy can’t seem to find a place at Interop 2011 that isn’t a least one foot on the consumerization of IT bandwagon. Even the introduction of the Interop Expo Keynote, where UBM’s Lenny Heymann offered some quick survey results on tablet adoption and the “democratization of IT.” Read on for the details:

As The VAR Guy travels across Las Vegas for Interop 2011, and HP hypes up its high-end networking products as SMB-friendly, D-Link is taking cloud technology and bringing it back down to earth.  The company has introduced three new solutions designed to be cost-effective and feature-rich that could hit the sweet spot. Read on for details …

The VAR Guy had a conversation with Michael Nielsen, HP’s director of Network Solutions Marketing, about HP’s latest FlexFabric Networking technology. Nielsen said the lines between enterprise and SMB are being blurred, which could change the future of managed services. Read on for some interesting perspective …

Sources say CA Technologies is exiting certain security software businesses, apparently selling its anti-virus and anti-malware product portfolio to Updata Partners, an investment bank and growth equity firm focused on the IT market. Here’s the apparent scoop…

Let The VAR Guy set the stage: In San Francisco this week more than 7,000 software developers, cloud integrators and channel partners are attending NetSuite SuiteWorld (2,000 people+) and Google I/O (5,000 people+). The Google and NetSuite conferences each shift into high gear this morning. Meanwhile, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has decided to invade San Francisco as well this morning. His goal: Evangelize Microsoft’s $8.5 billion buyout of Skype.

After days of rumors, Microsoft has acquired Skype — the VoIP, instant messaging and video conferencing system — for roughly $8.5 billion. The VAR Guy has mixed emotions about the Microsoft-Skype combo. On the one hand, there are potential Skype synergies for channel partners that focus on Microsoft Lync. And Microsoft also gets a killer application for Windows Phone 7, Xbox, and other platforms. But on the other hand, The VAR Guy wonders if Microsoft will properly manage Skype’s assets. Here’s the update.

IP communications vendor ShoreTel believes unified communications has entered the realm of ‘must-have’ technology, and as such should be an integral part of the communications network.

Riverbed Technology and Akamai have announced a strategic partnership and joint product vision to create acceleration solutions for hybrid cloud networks. Such a combination of acceleration technologies could be a game-changer for the cloud space and for cloud providers. Here’s why.

Cisco Systems is once again expanding on its Borderless Networks vision of network infrastructure, announcing two solutions that enhance security and mobility in the branch office – even those embracing cloud services.

Fightin’ words? Maybe. During their keynote address at Interop 2011, HP’s Dave Donatelli and Marius Haas discussed HP’s networking portfolio, focusing on converged infrastructure and ease of management, and outlined how HP is bringing the future of network fabric to the enterprise by playing nice with other vendors. The two HP execs came out swinging against Cisco Systems, noting how their new products put Cisco’s comparable solutions to shame. Read on for HP’s perspective on the future and a quick rundown of the new product lineup …

Following HP’s keynote address at Interop 2011, The VAR Guy spoke to Erik Papir, manager of Worldwide Technical Marketing for HP Networking, who offered a deep-dive into HP’s networking strategy and how the company is helping its partners get on board with its new product offerings. Read on for the details …