Welcome to As We See IT, a blog that we Windows IT Pro editors dreamed up so that we can give you news and information you might not otherwise see, or that you wouldn't see in the way we'll present it. We can be an opinionated bunch and, being editors, we're often more comfortable--and more articulate--when we're "talking" with the written word. Expect to learn things here that you wouldn't otherwise know about; to disagree with some of us, agree with others; and just generally get a different perspective on things IT. Make sure to let us know how we're doing and whether we can follow up on things you'd like to know more about.
Easier Platform Integration Gets One Step Closer: Quest Acquires Vintela
Quest Software, maker of application, database, and Windows management software, announced yesterday that it will acquire Vintela, Inc., provider of platform integration solutions. Quest has hung its hat on Active Directory, providing early solutions to help its customers migrate to AD, and following up with products that enhance AD management. Vintela products use a standards-based approach to multiplatform integration. Look for the Quest-Vintela combination to develop products that leverage AD to enable easier, more seamless platform integration in heterogeneous environments. And what enterprise environment isn't heterogeneous these days?
At the Microsoft Management Summit in April, one of the catchphrases I kept hearing was "crisis of complexity and cost." It was my sense that Microsoft really gets it that most businesses don't have the luxury--or the resources--to run Windows-only shops. When Kirill Tatarinov, corporate vice president of Microsoft Enterprise Management, announced in his keynote that MOM is moving toward full support of non-Windows platforms, the room broke into applause. How soon we'll see practical cross-platform support in MOM is an open question, but at least IT pros struggling with the management headaches that come from trying to make multiple systems play nicely together can take heart that more effective reinforcements are on the way.
--Dianne Russell
