CLOUD COMPUTING — 2nd Quarter 2015

SuperMicro SuperServer 2028U-TR4+

One of the largest challenges data center architects have to contend with is power consumption and heat dissipation. As the IT industry grows, it is becoming a target of environmentalists and others who are looking to reduce carbon emissions. This is where Supermicro fits in. The company describes itself as a global leader in high-performance, high-efficiency server, storage technology and green computing producing... Read More >>>



Feature Articles

Services in a Cloud World: Identity Crisis or Opportunity?
While the Cloud and its impact on the technology industry is written about frequently, often overlooked is its impact on the Professional Services (PS) businesses of technology companies. Traditionally representing 20 percent or more of software companies' total revenue, PS has been a key contributor to financial performance as well as a key service to assist customers in adopting, integrating, and implementing software technology and updated business processes. In the world of the cloud, the role of PS is increasingly playing an integral role in defining the customer experience and driving overall enterprise growth.

Preparing Your Infrastructure for the Hybrid Cloud
Many companies are looking at the hybrid cloud as the ideal way to improve agility, shift or reduce costs, or drive greater innovation. But, what they don't consider is that today's enterprise IT environment is not inherently designed to support the move to the hybrid cloud. On-premises systems and public clouds each have their own management tools, driven by the particular product vendors or service providers. This dichotomy results in no single way to control, manage or secure shared compute resources across the entire enterprise IT environment. In fact, it could actually increase costs and complexity, and require more employees, which would negate any benefits a company expects to derive from a hybrid cloud strategy.

From Pilot to Production: Getting High Performance Private Clouds off the Ground
There is tremendous interest in hybrid clouds among enterprises today. Hybrid clouds afford the opportunity to combine the scalability, reliability and efficiencies of a public cloud with the security and control of a private cloud.

CEO Spotlight: Alan Masarek, Vonage
In short, Vonage has a stellar brand, a low cost structure, great technology platforms, and excellent cash flows and financial flexibility, and we combine all of this with a highly experienced leadership team.

CEO Spotlight: Tom Goodmanson, Calabrio
You've been at Calabrio for seven years. What first attracted you to the company and why did you feel it was a good fit for you? What did you have to offer the company?

COLUMNS

Publisher’s Outlook

CA Technologies the 800 Lb. DevOps Enabler
It isn't tough to understand how applications are changing the world of business. Traditional industries are being disrupted big time by software companies like Uber and Airbnb. Amazon, too, is essentially a software company and APIs are becoming a major revenue driver for companies sharing information or adding value of some kind. - 07/14/2015

Cloud Services

Building the Office of the Future
Not too long ago, I used to imagine the future of the modern office, wondering what it might be like to work away from my desk. Of course, at that time, cell phones were still cumbersome and rudimentary and the concept of a smartphone was just something out of science fiction. - 07/14/2015

Silver Lining

Data Virtualization: Valet Parking for Your Data Center
I'm not surprising anyone by mentioning that we are in an era of unprecedented data creation which, in turn, creates an equally unprecedented need for storage. Long gone are the days of megabyte-based capacities; once-large gigabyte ranges are being replaced by multi-terabyte size drives, and even those are being superseded by massive petabyte drives in many cases. Exabyte drives won't be far off as mobile data and video usage continues to climb. - 07/14/2015

The State of Cloud Computing

Single-Function Internal Clouds
As a new member of the QualiSystems team, I have been immersed in many recent discussions with our customers and prospects. In talking to them, it became clear that many are on a journey to IT-as-a-Service. This journey may take a few years, but it will be well worth it. - 07/14/2015

View from the Cloud

The State of Application Development
In a world gone application crazy, inquiring minds are interested in which apps and what capabilities are on the minds of enterprise IT shops. In fact, Atlanta, Georgia-based OutSystems, specialists in providing high-performance applications development via a Platform as a Service (PaaS) solution in collaboration with TechValidate, decided to find out directly from more than 200 IT decision makers at enterprises worldwide what was on their minds concerning critical apps for 2015. - 07/14/2015

Cloud Management

Business Analytics: The Key to Managing IT in the Cloud
Thanks to technology, we're able to store and retrieve copious amounts of data relating to all aspects of our businesses. In a perfect world, we'd be able to easily synthesize that data and use it to make informed decisions to better our companies' financial and competitive positions. - 07/14/2015

Cloud Communications

Why We Don't Have UC
I tend to throw Collaboration into the UC bucket, which means we have to include Microsoft Lync (renamed Skype for Business), Office 365, Dropbox, conferencing (audio, web, video), and contact centers. Many CLECs just offer the hosted voice as a standalone product. Some of it has to do with the buyer. Most buyers only know what they know; they don't know what they don't know. Do they have the time (and patience) to learn what they don't know about how UC can make the business flexible and competitive? In my experience, not usually. - 07/14/2015

IN EVERY ISSUE

View From the Cloud
By Peter Bernstein

Publisher's Outlook
By Rich Tehrani

Silver Linings
By Erik Linask