The VAR Guy

Hewlett-Packard is launching a Google Android-based netbook. Shipping under the Compaq brand, HP calls it the AirLife 100. It will debut in the United Arab Emirates (no word on a U.S. launch). The big question: Is Android for netbooks a good computing solution?

So much for competing and cooperating. Cisco Systems and Hewlett-Packard are officially full-time competitors. According to a blog entry and video post from Cisco Channel Chief Keith Goodwin, Cisco “recently notified HP that we will not renew its System Integrator contract when it expires on April 30, 2010, resulting in HP no longer being a Cisco Certified Channel or Global Service Alliance partner.” Here’s the scoop.

Ho, ho, ho. HP has an early holiday present for anyone building SaaS and cloud applications. The PC giant has unveiled Elastic Test, an on-demand cloud-based web server load testing service, aimed at helping e-commerce sites prepare for massive traffic spikes as the holiday shopping season approaches. Here’s the scoop.

Hey Monty, who made key channel partner program deals for the week ending Sept. 4, 2009? Here’s a look at new alliances, reseller agreements and partner program initiatives, as tracked by The VAR Guy.

Hey Monty, who made key channel partner program deals for the week ending July 17, 2009? Here’s a look at new alliances, reseller agreements and partner program initiatives, as tracked by The VAR Guy.

When Hewlett-Packard announced plans to acquire LeftHand Networks on October 1, some skeptics wondered how the deal would impact LeftHand’s partners. In order to address that concern head-on, LeftHand has sent a letter to its existing customer and partner base. Here’s the letter, in its entirety.

Sometimes, bad or stressful news for one company spells opportunity for another. Consider the situation at GroundWork Open Source, a systems management company that competes with Hewlett-Packard OpenView. Apparently, GroundWork Open Source is looking to capitalize on the layoff news out of HP. Here’s a look.

Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd is taking out the hatchet again, this time cutting 7 percent of HP’s workforce — or 24,600 jobs — over the next three years, according to Reuters. The move will reduce costs as HP digests the recent acquisition of Electronic Data Systems (EDS).

The VAR Guy has been hyping TelePresence — that next-gen videoconferencing technology — for nearly two years. But is anyone (outside of Cisco Systems Inc.’s own offices) actually using TelePresence? You bet. Here are nine key data points to consider.

If you want to know when a high-tech market is reaching its tipping point, keep a close eye on Dell Inc. Generally speaking, Dell only jumps into high-volume, mass market opportunities. So the company’s decision to offer TelePresence solutions — designed by LifeSize Communications — is worth watching. Here’s why.

After several false starts, TelePresence — that next-generation video conferencing solution — is finally gaining traction in selected high-end vertical niches. Still, TelePresence will need to overcome at least two more major challenges before it goes mainstream, The VAR Guy believes.

Generally speaking, The VAR Guy is a procrastinator — except when it comes to timely blogs. In fact, he’s already confirmed plans to blog live from Ubuntu Live 2008, scheduled for July 21 and 22 in Portland, Oregon. Here are five reasons you should care about the Ubuntu distribution of Linux, and the Ubuntu Live conference.

Healthy competition is good for technology companies — and good for their customers. But The VAR Guy is starting to wonder if Dell is too obsessed with Hewlett-Packard. Let him explain.

The VAR Guy is in the market for a small office printer that supports Ubuntu Linux, Mac OS X and Windows XP. Alas, most PC companies do a lousy job describing which of their printers work with Ubuntu. Which means they’re leaving easy money on the table. Here’s our resident blogger’s sad story so far.

Generally speaking, The VAR Guy loves reading The Wall Street Journal. He welcomes longer in-depth reporting and investigative pieces. But he was recently shocked to read a misleading blog entry about Hewlett-Packard and Telepresence on The Journal’s Web site. The piece is a disservice to everyone — vendors, resellers and customers — who are evaluating Telepresence systems at the moment. Here’s why.

Novell didn’t deliver any home-run news during BrainShare on March 17, but the software company did manage to smack a few solid singles during the day. Overall, the buzz from Utah sounded pretty upbeat. Here’s a look at Monday’s developments, and The VAR Guy’s take on the situation.

When the next version of Ubuntu Linux ships in April, there’s a reasonable chance that server vendors could start jumping on the Ubuntu bandwagon by May or so. Here’s the scoop.