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Data Storage

2008, The Year of Solid State Storage 197

Posted by CmdrTaco from the owe-me-a-solid dept.
An anonymous reader writes "At CES, SSD drives were a plenty on the show floor. "Some companies said we could see 250GB SSD units by the end of this year, while others predicted it could take up to a couple of years for them to become mainstream. None of the companies promised mainstream adoption, but they promised a bright future and we are inclined to believe them. High capacity drives are going to be expensive due to their very nature of early technology and gradual adoption rate."
Google

Submission + - Verizon Might Deliver Google Phone (wsj.com)

Submitted by
MrCrassic
MrCrassic writes: "There are talks floating around surrounding Google's possible talks with Verizon and possibly T-Mobile to establish an agreement for the carrier to deliver phones carrying Google's speculated mobile operating system.

According to the article, one of the main hurdles slowing down the product are concerns about user privacy and advertising, one of Google's well-renowned strengths. With over 6 million customers potentially at their disposal, could this be "the deal" that establishes Google's hegemony in the internet sphere?

From the article:



After opposing Google Inc.'s moves to dramatically reshape the wireless industry, Verizon Wireless is now in serious discussions with the Internet company over carrying phones tailored to a new Google operating system, a person familiar with the discussions said.

Within two weeks, Google is expected to announce new software and services that handset makers could use to build customized Google-powered phones. The company needs wireless operators to sign onto the project in order to get Google-powered mobile devices in front of consumers by the middle of next year.
"
OS X

Submission + - Leopard can't run Java 1.6 (theinquirer.net)

Submitted by yvajj
yvajj writes: According to the Inquirer, Java 1.6 seg faults when running on Leopard. Apple hasn't commented officially but is said to be deleting forum complaints related to this.

Some Apple worshipers are blaming Sun, however that isn't the case, since this is Apple's own implementation of Java. According to Gosling Apple "wanted to do all sorts of customization and integration that only they could do — because they own the OS."
Businesses

Submission + - Who's the Expert here?

Submitted by brainee28
brainee28 writes: Recently, The IT Department for my company rebuilt from the ground up all infrastructure (servers, workstations and network switches)to deal with legacy issues from the last systems administrator. It was done in 2 phases, both of which were technically successful, but have created political issues.(I'm the administrator that advocated for the change. The political issues are that during the planning for this process, 2 engineers from one of our divisions were asked to consult because the IT Department was relatively new, and the president wanted other opinions. One used to build network switches for a discontinued LAN based product; the other created some of the basic VLAN software that's now used in most network switches. Both have expressed their dissatisfaction at the end result of this change; as it impacts some of their projects by the new structuring. One has now resorted to sniping, "testing" my system with potential backdoors, and advocating that the engineer's home network is better suited for his work than my corporate network, and general badmouthing. He unfortunately, has worked at this company for over 25 years, whereas I've been here for 8 years now. How would you handle this situation?
Software

Submission + - Software to double your cell phone memory

Submitted by
Roland Piquepaille
Roland Piquepaille writes: "Compression algorithms are not really new, so I've looked cautiously at the work of U.S. computer scientists claiming that 'they have developed technology that doubles the usable memory on cell phones and other embedded systems without any changes to hardware or applications.' The CRAMES (Compressed RAM for Embedded Systems) technology uses the Linux kernel's swapping mechanism to determine which pages should be compressed. According to the researchers, cell phones equipped with this technology don't use more power than regular ones and show a very small performance loss. The first phone to use the CRAMES technology is sold by NEC — but only in Japan right now. Read more for additional references and a diagram showing CRAMES On-Line Memory Compression concept."
Microsoft

Submission + - Microsoft extends Windows XP sales to June 2008 (businessweek.com)

Submitted by
LeandroTLZ
LeandroTLZ writes: "Looks like customers wanting to avoid Vista have some more time to do so. A corporate vice president for Windows product management says, "maybe we were a little ambitious to think that we would need to make Windows XP available for only a year after the release of Windows Vista". System builders, or smaller companies that make and sell PCs, will still sell the older operating system until the end of January 2009."
Displays

Submission + - The display I want on my desk (fsix.com)

Submitted by kingtut7
kingtut7 writes: A company called fs[ix] (pronounced physics) recently released a new 45" monitor. It is actually three monitors in one (20" center and two 17" sides) making one super-wide screen. It plugs in with one DVI or VGA connection. (Note: It splits the resolution up into three blocks, so make sure you have a really good graphics card). This would be nice for the day to day work — and awesome for games because of the surround effect. It is going for $1,795 direct from fs[ix]. Now I just need to convince my boss that it needs to be on my desk.
Microsoft

Submission + - Microsoft to allow PC makers to downgrade to XP (news.com)

Submitted by
mytrip
mytrip writes: "While Microsoft is still pushing Vista hard, the company is quietly allowing PC makers to offer a "downgrade" option to buyers that get machines with the new operating system but want to switch to Windows XP.

The program applies only to Windows Vista Business and Ultimate versions, and it is up to PC makers to decide how, if at all, they want to make XP available. Fujitsu has been among the most aggressive, starting last month to include an XP disc in the box with its laptops and tablets.

"That's going to help out small- and medium-size businesses," Fujitsu marketing manager Brandon Farris told CNET News.com."
Graphics

Submission + - Windows XP vs Vista Performance Update

Submitted by
Timmus
Timmus writes: "On launch day Windows Vista was plagued with early graphics drivers that ran poorly in some apps compared to Windows XP: games ran slower and with numerous graphical artifacts, features were missing, while GeForce cards often crashed the OS when resuming from suspend mode. NVIDIA was even threatened with a class action lawsuit! In this article, FiringSquad takes a look at how things have progressed, comparing the performance of 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Vista against Windows XP. It looks like NVIDIA has made lots of strides, but AMD has problems with some newer games."
Communications

Submission + - Adobe Flash Fuels CommuniGate Pronto (communigate.com)

Submitted by
Brian Blank
Brian Blank writes: "I wanted to give you a heads up on CommuniGate Systems, they are launching their unified communications platform based on Adobe Flash technology, aka Pronto!, today — plus they are offering five free user licenses for anyone to use (just download and install off of http://www.communigate.com/ and click on the "Download Now" link). So this is a great tidbit for the small office.

CommuniGate really pushed the limits with Adobe Flash to take the email beyond what's in your normal email exchange programs. With Pronto it ties in your traditional email and calendaring features plus voice, video, audio and more — a definite upgrade from MS Exchange and Outlook.

They went down the road of using Flash for a number of reasons:

1. Its very secure over other standards like Java or AJAX

2. The multimedia aspects are all in one — no need for the program to call up third-party programs (ie. iTunes, Windows Media Player)

3. The portability of it — you can use it over any OS and any browser with the same look no matter what combo, also portable to mobile devices via Flash Lite

This can be scaled and customized to the SMB and enterprise and on the flip side — any ISP or broadband provider. There are a lot of things either available now or coming down the road including voice services (voicemail, VoIP), IPTV, flash based games and more. With Flash Lite it can be ported to your mobile phone.

As far as server and installation with this, it runs on any server system, is a small package and simple to use and maintain. It's a great fit for the SMB that doesn't have the IT bandwidth or even with an IT department, it frees up time and resources.

I have attached the full press release below for your information and have tagged along these supporting links:

Homepage: http://www.communigate.com/content/default.html

Pronto Flash Movie Demo: http://www.communigate.com/content/pronto.html

Working Test Account: http://www.talktoip.com/Pronto/

RELEASE FOLLOWS

CommuniGate Systems unifies Internet Communications with launch of Flash based Web 2.0 portable client

Integrated User Interface gives users unprecedented single point of access for communications — IM, e-mail, presence; plus Rich Media like Music, Video, and more

Mill Valley, 5 June, 2007 — CommuniGate Systems, the leader in scalable carrier-class Rich Media Internet Communications solutions, today announced the availability of Pronto!, a unique user interface based on Adobe Flash® and Adobe Flex(TM) 2 technology that brings together Rich Media and IP Communications. Deployable today, Pronto! unifies all forms of Internet Communications — from e-mail and IM, to chat, rich media, and groupware — in a sleek, easy-to-use, easy-to-manage client interface.

Pronto! scales to support any deployment size, and flexible to meet the requirements of business or consumer subscribers. Pronto! promotes team collaboration and increases employee productivity by unlocking e-mail and other productivity tools from the desktop. Whether they're in the office, at home, or on the road, employees can access e-mail and stored data, schedule team meetings, and call colleagues from the integrated Pronto! Interface. For maximum flexibility, users can access Pronto! from any web browser without the need to install client software.

And with Pronto!, service providers can quickly generate new revenue streams and improve subscriber loyalty by offering new premium services to consumer and business subscribers. With its fully-integrated, easy-to-manage, and low footprint client, Pronto! ensures a fast return on investment by enabling service providers to add new services like blogging, IP TV and other Rich Media Applications through the client framework, without having to replace or expand their existing infrastructure. Pronto! is designed at the core to adapt to various subscriber requirements, and portable to allow Fixed Mobile Convergence due to the nature of the portability of Flash.

  "Pronto! illustrates how Flex 2 and Flash are reshaping the user's experience on the web," said Jeff Whatcott, vice president of product marketing, Enterprise and Developer Business Unit at Adobe. "Using Adobe's latest rich Internet application technology, CommuniGate Systems has been able to take business and personal communications to a whole new level — delivering design-friendly, rich functionality with the flexibility of a Web 2.0 application."

"The e-mail and collaboration software markets are merging and converging to enhance support for communication, sharing, and teaming behaviors," said Tom Eid, Vice President, Gartner Technology & Service Provider Research. "The integrated collaboration market is emerging in response to the demand for a coherent and integrated set of technologies, processes and services that support a broad range of collaborative activities."

The launch of Pronto! provides a Rich Media interface for the CommuniGate Pro Internet Communications platform, a scalable performance-driven platform that combines VoIP, data communications, and collaboration services. As the industry's most scalable IP communications platform, CommuniGate Pro continues to set record benchmarks for performance and scalability. Pronto! interfaces with CommuniGate Pro via the XIMSS API (XML Interface for Messaging, Scheduling, and Signaling). This revolutionary API enables ISPs and Enterprises to rapidly develop and design UIs, build portals, interface with cable modems, and link to external applications and services — all without any complex coding or protocol requirements.

Pronto! features include:

                Fully featured E-mail Application

                Calendaring

                Contacts management

                Secure Instant Messaging

                Presence

                VoiceMail Management and Calling Preferences

                RSS Feeds and management

                MyPhotos

                MyVideos

                MyMusic

                Portability to any Flash 9 Player on Windows, OSX, Linux

                Highly secure binary that runs in memory space not browser cache

The CommuniGate Pro Enterprise Suite, including Pronto!, is available today, starting at US$849 for 25 users. ISP and Carriers can contact sales@communigate.com for pricing information.

An animated demo of Pronto! can be viewed at http://www.communigate.com/pronto.

For a free live trial visit http://www.talktoip.com/ and Sign In for an account with yourusername@talktoip.com.

About CommuniGate Systems
Founded in 1991 and based in Mill Valley, California, CommuniGate Systems develops carrier-class Internet Communications software for broadband & mobile service providers, enterprises, and OEM partners worldwide. Over 125 million subscribers including 45 million voice customers rely upon CommuniGate Systems products for their voice and data communication today. CommuniGate Systems is the most trusted & financially stable vendor which maintains the highest customer satisfaction levels in the Rich Media Communications industry. CommuniGate Systems provides flexibility, performance, scalability, with the benchmark proven architecture that remains un-challenged in the industry. Our open development environment with simple APIs delivers extensible flexibility with a unique clustering technology for 99.999% uptime for the most demanding application environments. CommuniGate Systems has over 175 members in its partner network worldwide.

Download CommuniGate Pro today and join the initiative to drive interoperability of Unified Communications and convert nearly 2 billion e-mail accounts to a single identity for all forms of Internet Communications. For more information, go to www.communigate.com"
Announcements

Submission + - Beryl/Compiz naming poll (wordpress.com)

Submitted by
ketilwaa
ketilwaa writes: "Beryl/Compiz agreed on a merge some time ago. There is still a lot of tension on this subject, as one can see from the mailing list. [http://www.ubaight.com/pipermail/compcomm/] There is currently a poll going on, deciding the name for the new project: [http://www.opencompositing.org/viewtopic.php?f=46 &t=559] Browsing the forums reveal that some users (including the person who submit to /.) are not really happy with the state of affairs. Is the lack of official response hurting the merge? Is it hurting OSS altogether? How did other projects handle such problems?"

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