This Issue Sponsored By
Argent Software
http://www.argent.com/products/download_whitepaper.cgi?product=mom&&Source=WNT
===========
http://www.argent.com/products/download_whitepaper.cgi?product=mom&&Source=WNT
1. Short Takes
- Is Microsoft Shifting Concentration from .NET, Web Services?
- Lindows Trial Delayed
- Former Microsoft Employee Sentenced for Theft
- Server Market Grows Faster Than Expected
- Dell DJ: An iPod Killer? - Linux 2.6 Due in December
- See You Monday!
2. Announcements
- Quick Answers for Microsoft Small Business Server
- Are You Ready to Buy Hardware, Software, Networking Products, and Accessories?
3. Event
- New--Microsoft Security Road Show!
4. Contact Us
- See this section for a list of ways to contact us.
=== Sponsor: Argent Software ====
NETWORK TESTING LABS COMPARES MOM TO THE ARGENT GUARDIAN
Network Testing Labs, one of the world's leading independent research companies, put together a comprehensive Comparison Paper on two leading enterprise monitoring solutions. Their conclusion: "The Argent Guardian easily beats out MOM in all our tests ... The Argent Guardian will cost far less than MOM and yet provide significantly more functionality." Find out for yourself why organizations like Major League Baseball, GE Capital, AT&T, Harley Davidson, and Nokia all rely on The Argent Guardian for their enterprise monitoring and alerting needs. Download this Comparison Paper now:
http://www.argent.com/products/download_whitepaper.cgi?product=mom&&Source=WNT
==== 1. In the News ====
by Paul Thurrott, [email protected]
Is Microsoft Shifting Concentration from .NET, Web Services?
No. A curious "Computerworld" report this week says that Microsoft is moving away from Microsoft .NET and Web services in the Longhorn wave, a curious misreading of the company's plans. If anything, Longhorn is the .NET release Microsoft promised us 3 years ago, with deeply embedded Web-services technologies, including a .NET-based communications and collaboration infrastructure called Indigo. Indeed, Microsoft is shifting the software-development layer away from API-based Win32 libraries to the .NET-based WinFX framework, meaning that .NET will be the core method for accessing Longhorn's programmatic features--for the first time in any Windows version. Anyway, don't believe the report: .NET is still very much at the core of everything Microsoft is doing.
Lindows Trial Delayed
This week, the US District Court in Seattle rescheduled a trial that pits Linux-maker Lindows.com against Microsoft; the trial is delayed another 3 months to March 2004, the second time this year the court has delayed it. Lindows.com argues that Microsoft's ownership of the trademark for the word "Windows" is bogus because windows is such a generic term. Earlier, Microsoft sued Lindows.com over its use of the term "Lindows," which Microsoft argued was too close to Windows and would cause consumer confusion. Lindows.com's abrupt about-face and countersuit cast doubts on the validity of Microsoft's Windows trademark, which Lindows.com court documents say that Microsoft procured mysteriously in the mid-1990s after multiple failed attempts.
Former Microsoft Employee Sentenced for Theft
A former Microsoft employee who was arrested earlier this year for stealing software and selling it for personal gain was sentenced this week to 17 months in jail. Kori Robin Brown, a former administrative assistant in the Xbox Division, ordered more than $6 million worth of database software by using Microsoft's internal ordering system, then sold the software to third parties, often through the mail, which is a violation of federal mail-fraud laws. Let's hope that Brown uses his incarceration to pursue more fruitful skills, like software hacking or music downloading. But seriously, folks: Did the people who stole software at Microsoft that way honestly believe that they'd never be caught?
Server Market Grows Faster Than Expected
Although the wider IT industry still seems to be stuck in a never-ending no-growth phase, last quarter the server market actually grew 2 percent--faster than analysts had expected. The growth, thanks largely to high sales of low-end server systems, represents the second straight quarter in which server sales have improved. And some server sales are dramatically better: According to IDC, volume server sales are up 19.5 percent--a dramatic improvement. IDC also notes that the top-four server makers--Dell, HP, IBM, and Sun Microsystems--accounted for more than 80 percent of all server revenues in the third quarter.
Dell DJ: An iPod Killer?
Apple Computer's tenuous hold on the portable audio-player market might soon fall thanks to a predictable foe, Dell, whose Dell Digital Jukebox (Dell DJ) is off to a strong start. The Dell unit is a bit bigger than Apple's elegant iPod, but it features a more intuitive scrolling navigation wheel and support for Microsoft's ubiquitous Windows Media Audio (WMA) format, which all online music services except Apple use (even staunch Microsoft competitor RealNetworks, which has its own audio and video formats, uses WMA--a telling decision). The Dell DJ, which I previewed at COMDEX last week and will review soon for Connected Home EXPRESS, also features dramatically better battery life than the iPod, lower prices, a built-in audio recorder, and--gasp--a simpler interface than the iPod. As the owner of two iPods, I've long expected the PC world to catch up with--and surpass--Apple's entry. My only surprise is that it's taken this long. After all, Creative Labs, a PC company, not Apple, first innovated the hard-disk-based portable media player.
Linux 2.6 Due in December
Open-source developers will ship a new version of the Linux kernel, version 2.6, as soon as mid-December, providing Linux users with major new functionality compared with the earlier "stable" Linux kernel, version 2.4. Linux 2.6 will help the open-source sensation scale well beyond four CPUs, a major stumbling block for rolling out Linux in large servers today. It also includes better support for the embedded products on which Linux will likely be quite popular, faster interaction with mouse and keyboard clicks, and overhauled interfaces for storage devices. Expect a slow burn to the 2.6 kernel, however: Most major Linux distributions probably won't switch over until the kernel has been extensively tested, perhaps as late as 2005.
See You Monday!
This week is a short week; we'll be on hiatus tomorrow and Friday because of the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States, but if anything dramatic happens over the long weekend, I'll post it to the WinInfo Web site ( http://www.wininformant.com ). Have a great weekend; see you Monday!
==== 2. Announcements ====
(from Windows & .NET Magazine and its partners)
Quick Answers for Microsoft Small Business Server
Is Small Business Server right for you? Do you need answers about how to set up Small Business Server? Learn about Small Business Server’s key features, upgrade possibilities, and storage and find how-to guides, troubleshooting tips, forums, and more at Windows & .NET Magazine online.
http://www.winnetmag.com/smallbusinessserver
Are You Ready to Buy Hardware, Software, Networking Products, and Accessories?
Check out the latest offerings on the IT Buyer’s Network. Find clearance items and rebates, research products in the solutions library, check out reference guides, and learn about the latest technology seminar. Easily search the most up-to-date products by category and sign up to receive product information from the email newsletter.
http://www.itbuynet.com
==== 3. Event ====
(brought to you by Windows & .NET Magazine)
New--Microsoft Security Road Show!
Join industry guru Mark Minasi on this exciting 20-city tour and learn more about tips to secure your Windows Server 2003 and Windows 2000 network. There is no charge for this event, but space is limited, so register today! Sign up now for our December events.
http://www.winnetmag.com/roadshows/security2003dec
==== Sponsored Links ====
Sybari Software
Free! "Admins Shortcut Guide to Email Protection" from Sybari
http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;6574227;8214395;q?http://www.sybari.com/ebook
VMware Inc.
FREE VMware Workstation for Microsoft Certified Trainers.
http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;6602582;8214395;m?http://www.vmware.com/wl/offer/486/0
=========
- Is Microsoft Shifting Concentration from .NET, Web Services?
- Lindows Trial Delayed
- Former Microsoft Employee Sentenced for Theft
- Server Market Grows Faster Than Expected
- Dell DJ: An iPod Killer? - Linux 2.6 Due in December
- See You Monday!
- Quick Answers for Microsoft Small Business Server
- Are You Ready to Buy Hardware, Software, Networking Products, and Accessories?
- New--Microsoft Security Road Show!
- See this section for a list of ways to contact us.
Network Testing Labs, one of the world's leading independent research companies, put together a comprehensive Comparison Paper on two leading enterprise monitoring solutions. Their conclusion: "The Argent Guardian easily beats out MOM in all our tests ... The Argent Guardian will cost far less than MOM and yet provide significantly more functionality." Find out for yourself why organizations like Major League Baseball, GE Capital, AT&T, Harley Davidson, and Nokia all rely on The Argent Guardian for their enterprise monitoring and alerting needs. Download this Comparison Paper now:
http://www.argent.com/products/download_whitepaper.cgi?product=mom&&Source=WNT
by Paul Thurrott, [email protected]
No. A curious "Computerworld" report this week says that Microsoft is moving away from Microsoft .NET and Web services in the Longhorn wave, a curious misreading of the company's plans. If anything, Longhorn is the .NET release Microsoft promised us 3 years ago, with deeply embedded Web-services technologies, including a .NET-based communications and collaboration infrastructure called Indigo. Indeed, Microsoft is shifting the software-development layer away from API-based Win32 libraries to the .NET-based WinFX framework, meaning that .NET will be the core method for accessing Longhorn's programmatic features--for the first time in any Windows version. Anyway, don't believe the report: .NET is still very much at the core of everything Microsoft is doing.
This week, the US District Court in Seattle rescheduled a trial that pits Linux-maker Lindows.com against Microsoft; the trial is delayed another 3 months to March 2004, the second time this year the court has delayed it. Lindows.com argues that Microsoft's ownership of the trademark for the word "Windows" is bogus because windows is such a generic term. Earlier, Microsoft sued Lindows.com over its use of the term "Lindows," which Microsoft argued was too close to Windows and would cause consumer confusion. Lindows.com's abrupt about-face and countersuit cast doubts on the validity of Microsoft's Windows trademark, which Lindows.com court documents say that Microsoft procured mysteriously in the mid-1990s after multiple failed attempts.
A former Microsoft employee who was arrested earlier this year for stealing software and selling it for personal gain was sentenced this week to 17 months in jail. Kori Robin Brown, a former administrative assistant in the Xbox Division, ordered more than $6 million worth of database software by using Microsoft's internal ordering system, then sold the software to third parties, often through the mail, which is a violation of federal mail-fraud laws. Let's hope that Brown uses his incarceration to pursue more fruitful skills, like software hacking or music downloading. But seriously, folks: Did the people who stole software at Microsoft that way honestly believe that they'd never be caught?
Although the wider IT industry still seems to be stuck in a never-ending no-growth phase, last quarter the server market actually grew 2 percent--faster than analysts had expected. The growth, thanks largely to high sales of low-end server systems, represents the second straight quarter in which server sales have improved. And some server sales are dramatically better: According to IDC, volume server sales are up 19.5 percent--a dramatic improvement. IDC also notes that the top-four server makers--Dell, HP, IBM, and Sun Microsystems--accounted for more than 80 percent of all server revenues in the third quarter.
Apple Computer's tenuous hold on the portable audio-player market might soon fall thanks to a predictable foe, Dell, whose Dell Digital Jukebox (Dell DJ) is off to a strong start. The Dell unit is a bit bigger than Apple's elegant iPod, but it features a more intuitive scrolling navigation wheel and support for Microsoft's ubiquitous Windows Media Audio (WMA) format, which all online music services except Apple use (even staunch Microsoft competitor RealNetworks, which has its own audio and video formats, uses WMA--a telling decision). The Dell DJ, which I previewed at COMDEX last week and will review soon for Connected Home EXPRESS, also features dramatically better battery life than the iPod, lower prices, a built-in audio recorder, and--gasp--a simpler interface than the iPod. As the owner of two iPods, I've long expected the PC world to catch up with--and surpass--Apple's entry. My only surprise is that it's taken this long. After all, Creative Labs, a PC company, not Apple, first innovated the hard-disk-based portable media player.
Open-source developers will ship a new version of the Linux kernel, version 2.6, as soon as mid-December, providing Linux users with major new functionality compared with the earlier "stable" Linux kernel, version 2.4. Linux 2.6 will help the open-source sensation scale well beyond four CPUs, a major stumbling block for rolling out Linux in large servers today. It also includes better support for the embedded products on which Linux will likely be quite popular, faster interaction with mouse and keyboard clicks, and overhauled interfaces for storage devices. Expect a slow burn to the 2.6 kernel, however: Most major Linux distributions probably won't switch over until the kernel has been extensively tested, perhaps as late as 2005.
This week is a short week; we'll be on hiatus tomorrow and Friday because of the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States, but if anything dramatic happens over the long weekend, I'll post it to the WinInfo Web site ( http://www.wininformant.com ). Have a great weekend; see you Monday!
(from Windows & .NET Magazine and its partners)
Is Small Business Server right for you? Do you need answers about how to set up Small Business Server? Learn about Small Business Server’s key features, upgrade possibilities, and storage and find how-to guides, troubleshooting tips, forums, and more at Windows & .NET Magazine online.
http://www.winnetmag.com/smallbusinessserver
Check out the latest offerings on the IT Buyer’s Network. Find clearance items and rebates, research products in the solutions library, check out reference guides, and learn about the latest technology seminar. Easily search the most up-to-date products by category and sign up to receive product information from the email newsletter.
http://www.itbuynet.com
(brought to you by Windows & .NET Magazine)
Join industry guru Mark Minasi on this exciting 20-city tour and learn more about tips to secure your Windows Server 2003 and Windows 2000 network. There is no charge for this event, but space is limited, so register today! Sign up now for our December events.
http://www.winnetmag.com/roadshows/security2003dec
Free! "Admins Shortcut Guide to Email Protection" from Sybari
http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;6574227;8214395;q?http://www.sybari.com/ebook
FREE VMware Workstation for Microsoft Certified Trainers.
http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;6602582;8214395;m?http://www.vmware.com/wl/offer/486/0
4. ==== CONTACT US ====
About the newsletter -- [email protected]
About technical questions -- http://www.winnetmag.com/forums
About product news -- [email protected]
About your subscription -- [email protected]
About sponsoring UPDATE -- [email protected]
==============
About technical questions -- http://www.winnetmag.com/forums
About product news -- [email protected]
About your subscription -- [email protected]
About sponsoring UPDATE -- [email protected]
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