From the Blogosphere

Reality Check at the Cloud Computing Expo

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:30:00 EST

The talk at the Cloud Computing Expo this week in Santa Clara was all about enterprise cloud adoption. Is it real? Is it already happening? If so, who’s doing it, which applications are they running and which clouds are being tested? To a large extent, cloud computing is a victim of its own somewhat out-of-control hype cycle. Since so much has been written and discussed about the cloud in 2009, there is now a growing impatience for actual results. The fact that 2000 people showed up at the Cloud Expo in Santa Clara this week (double the number from last year’s show) suggests that at the very least, interest in enterprise cloud computing remains very real, and the need for practical solutions and use cases is growing more urgent.

Cloud, The New Taste of the Internet

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:45:00 EST

Lately there seems to be a minor debate among the clouderati about the semantic differences between the term "the cloud" versus the use of "cloud computing". So I thought I'd jump into the fray.

As someone who spends his days eating, breathing and sometimes drinking cloud computing, it's fun to see how the debate has recently devolved into a debate purely focused upon the finer semantic nuances of the various terminologies. The debate seems to generally focus on the varied usages within the companies that are attempting to "cloud-ify" themselves & their products/services. This cloudification seems to be the trend du'jour within the technology industry, an attempt to augment marketing materials and or product positioning to include cloud related buzz words, whether they make sense or not.

Actually one of the better stated criticism comes from Oracle CEO Larry Ellison who observes that cloud computing has been defined as "everything". It's everything and nothing in particular, a trendy word that is used more to impress than explain a particular problem. I for one completely agree.

As a marketing term, cloud has enabled us to broadly define the movement away from the desktop / server centric past to the cloud [Internet] enabled future. Wikipedia's cloud definition says it well, "it is a paradigm shift where technological details are abstracted from the users who no longer need knowledge of, expertise in, or control over the technology infrastructure "in the cloud" that supports them". Yup, enough said.

This message is to of you -- the ones who are jumping on the cloud bandwagon, let me say this as plainly as possible. Regardless of whether it's "the cloud" or "cloud computing" it all comes back to the fact that it's a buzzword. A way to say we're cool, we're now, we're new, with out saying it directly (a neologism). It's the New Coke of Computing / the new taste of the Internet.

So what is The Cloud? It's the Internet. And what is Cloud Computing? It's the next big thing in computing, it's using the Internet.

SAP Business One is Compatible with Windows 7

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:04:00 EDT

The Orchestra Team has tested SAP Business One running on a Windows 7 workstation and deemed them compatible. Check out the video and updates. Now that windows 7 has been released and all signs are pointing towards a migration away from windows XP and Vista, a number of questions arise for business users. Do all my other applications I depend on work on Windows 7? Will the performance of my applications be affected?

Now that's a Da Vinci!

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:15:00 EDT

Poor Leonardo. After losing out to Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni during his lifetime, he still doesn't get the credit or recognition his work deserves. Finally, someone trusted their intuition, and bought a sketch which looked to him like a Leonardo, and, lo - it was! His $19000 investment is now worth $150 million.

Are You Getting Excited About the Cloud Computing Expo in Santa Clara?

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 08:45:00 EDT

Whether you are searching for a Cloud Computing solution for your enterprise or you want to learn about the latest and greatest Cloud Computing technology, The Cloud Computing Expo in Santa Clara, California running from November 2 until November 4 is for you. http://cloudcomputingexpo.com/general/keynotes1109.htm Keynote speakers include Richard Marcello, President, Systems & Technology, Unisys, Shelton Shugar SVP [...]

Brad Windecker Launches "Open Source for Small Business" Topic on Ulitzer

Sat, 26 Sep 2009 15:00:00 EDT

Brad Windecker launched today "Open Source for Small Business" topic on Ulitzer. A topic for open source software specific to the small business marketplace. Small and midsize companies can today take advantage of the maturity in open source applications. This topic will collect stories that relate to both the open source community and small business.

SAP Business One on a Mac

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 20:15:00 EDT

SAP Business One, a business management application (ERP) for small and midsize companies, can be deployed in a Mac environment using Citrix XenApp Fundamentals and services from Orchestra LLC. Orchestra deploys SAP Business One on a hosted server and uses Citrix XenApp Fundamentals to virtualize the Business One application. This enables companies to to now deploy their most important business applications remotely like never before.

Five Reasons to Choose a Private Cloud

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 19:45:00 EDT

As enterprise interest in cloud computing offerings and concepts continues to increase, the number of solutions in both the public and private cloud spaces increases as well. Theres been much debate over public versus private cloud, even to the point of debating whether there can be such a thing as a private cloud. Im not here to debate the latter (in my opinion the location of the service has nothing to do with whether or not it is a cloud), but rather I want to take a look into why consumers would choose private clouds over their public counterparts.

The Neglected Flipside of SOA Security

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:00:00 EDT

Joe McKendrick kicks off a thread on the current state of SOA Security. As usual, most discussion of SOA Security applies to "how SOA can be made secure". This is understandable. And, as some commentators have pointed out, there is a body of Best Practice out there on how to secure services in an SOA. For example, Randy Heffner provides lots of good advice on how to secure the services in an SOA)

SAP Business One iPhone App

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:00:00 EDT

How very cool to see that an iPhone Application for SAP Business One get featured in a top story in the Silicon Alley Insider. Although, this was a list of the most expensive iPhone apps.

To check out the original story go here: The 10 Most Expensive iPhone Apps (AAPL)
To see the iPhone app in action, view product features, or buy it, go here: MATG SAP Business One
To check out the app's publisher, go here: My Accounts To Go

To check out the full story, click the title of the post or click Read More below.

Orchestrated Stimulus Program for SAP Business One

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:00:00 EDT

Orchestra LLC (Orchestra) is kicking off Orchestrated Stimulus, a stimulus program for small and midsize companies. Orchestrated Stimulus is a new program that enables companies to make an investment in SAP Business One at a low upfront cost and quick return on investment. The program was designed from the ground up to help small business combat the current credit crunch and make investments in their business when it counts.

Sales Tax Nexus - What Is It?

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 16:00:00 EDT

SAP Business One users have a company on their side to keep up with tax law.

The folks over at Sabrix never cease to amaze me, what with their obsession with everything taxes. Why would intelligent people do that to themselves? I better not ask to much, or they could realize it and stop doing all the dirty work for us.

Sabrix puts out a great newsletter and blog that provides updates to tax law changes and general information about taxes.

If you are a company selling on the web, and are unaware of the changes happening in Congress, checking out Sabrix's blog would be a good idea.

Here's a recent excerpt about Nexus, an always misunderstood concept that is sure to be at the forefront of many E-commerce site issues in the future.

Nexus:
A company is headquartered in State X and manufactures a product sold all over the country. It has a salesforce (most of whom are manufacturer’s reps) that have territories throughout the U.S., and all the sales force does is take orders. This company, through its sales force, sells to dealers and retailers in State Y, who in turn sell to the public and collect the sales tax at the time of sale. The company sells a small amount of accessories to it main product via the internet or by phone. It has no physical presence in State Y, no office, no warehouse, etc. Should it have to collect sales tax when selling these accessories via internet or phone I mentioned above?

To check out the full post: http://blog.sabrix.com/blog/sabrix/0/0/nexus-in-arkansas

Thanks to the folks at Sabrix for helping all of us out in following the tax law.

Call for Entries: Best Mobile App for SAP Business One

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:45:00 EDT

There's nothing like an Apple product to generate buzz. Our post last week about the iPhone App for SAP Business One has generated a lot of discussion and interest, so let's take it a step further.

What is the BEST mobile application for SAP Business One?

Let's here from some people that use Windows Moble, Blackberry, and iPhone. The first entry is in, with the MATG App from last week's post. We hear there is others, so let's have em.

Leave a comment below and we'll do a full write on the app.

SAP Business One Landed Cost Video

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:30:00 EDT

Here is a video on Landed Costs in SAP Business One. The Landed Cost document allows you to associate shipping and freight costs with the cost of an item upon receipt into inventory. The Landed Cost document in SAP Business One is a straightforward and efficient way of allocating costs, especially for those small and mid-size companies still forced to do it in Excel. While this primarily applies to companies that import goods from overseas, landed costs can be used to allocate freight cost for any transaction. Check back soon for another post on allocating freight costs in a more simplified approach.

SAP Business One on a Mac

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:30:00 EDT

I received a request to start a discussion about running SAP Business One on a Mac. Quite serendipitous, given that I use Business One every day on my Mac G5 with a 27" Cinema Display. It's okay to be jealous, I'm used to it.

Needless to say, it is awesome. Orchestra even customizes the SAP B1 icon to be a Mac icon for B1. It bounces in the dock when launched and everything. How pretty.
Click Read More to read the rest of the post...

Net-Centricity: SOA in Battle

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 05:45:00 EDT

As the DoD and their contractors hammered out the details of Net-Centricity, it became increasingly clear that Net-Centricity required a broad, architectural approach to achieving agile information sharing in the context of a complex, siloed organization. At that point, SOA entered the Net-Centricity picture, providing essential best practices for sharing information resources to support business process needs. In the military context, such business processes are operational processes, where the operation at hand might be fueling airplanes or deploying ground troops or spying on suspected terrorists with a satellite. When battlefield commanders say that they want the warfighting resources at their disposal to be available as needed to achieve their mission objectives, they are essentially requiring a Service-Oriented approach to Net-Centricity.

The Cloud, SaaS, and IT PPM

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 05:10:00 EDT

In the same vein as the article on BPMS, have you considered a SaaS based IT PPMS (Project and Portfolio Management Systems) tool for your next project? If you are in that process now, you're in luck as Gartner has recently released their review of those tools. The report can be [...]

Is a Private Cloud Worthwhile?

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 17:00:00 EDT

Much discussion in the cloud computing world has focused on a simple question: Is a private cloud infrastructure worthy of the name? It's been posed in many ways, with some going so far as claiming that there is no such thing as a private cloud. Although discussions like these are all too common in many areas, the question really amounts to little more than counting angels dancing on pin heads. The key issue is whether private cloud-style infrastructure can deliver real benefits like public clouds can.

Governance: Service Catalogs and the Cloud

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 15:30:00 EDT

My first read through a post on the Cloud Front Office led me to scoff disdainfully at the re-emergence of a concept central to a successful SOA implementation: the service catalog. Oh, we called it "registry" and then "registry/repository (reg/rep)" and finally "governance" but the concept behind it was exactly the same. Take a gander at the description of a cloud service catalog apparently growing out of discussions that began at Structure 09:

Regional Cloud Computing Providers

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 19:00:00 EDT

One of the oft discussed business challenges of cloud-based application deployments – or any remote app deployment where a service has to communicate over the public internet – is latency. It takes more time to fetch data when a request has to leave the LAN, and latency is usually variable and at the mercy [...]

Then What Does Make Someone an Architect?

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 17:45:00 EDT

"Historically, the architect has been the coordinator of all other disciplines involved in the building process. According to training and licensing exams, architects must be able to integrate all building disciplines to protect the overall health, safety, and welfare of a project. We are responsible for not only this integration and the accessibility of structures and their surroundings for human use and habitation, but also for the end result in terms of use, quality, composition, and appearance; engineers are responsible for the application of mathematical and physical sciences, within an area of expertise, and the related health, safety, and welfare. While architects are tested in engineering systems [structures, electrical, mechanical, and site design], building construction materials and methods, codes, contracts, programming, spatial relations, history, and theory, engineers are tested only for specific systems and disciplines. Engineers have a narrow focus; architects bridge the gap between the systems [what engineers design] and what the community needs."

Cloud Services Interest Erupts in Groundswell

Sun, 19 Jul 2009 16:30:00 EDT

The anticipated benefits from adopting managed cloud services have reached the executives suites of many corporations. Proactive CEOs and CFOs are pushing their IT leadership team to seek out actionable information and guidance. There's also a constant stream of service providers announcing new offerings -- and the momentum is becoming a global phenomenon. As a result, Forrester Research has witnessed an expanding number of client inquiries around cloud computing. The acceleration in market development has been building for some time now. Forrester analysts responded to more than 264 client inquiries about cloud computing between January 2008 and April 1, 2009 from companies of all sizes and industries.

Cloud Computing Is the Next Great Land Rush and It Is Happening Now

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 16:00:00 EDT

In theory, migration to the Cloud makes business sense; you’re enabling companies to rent computing power that would cost them too much to buy. I won’t bore you with yet another blog post on the ‘what is it’ topic. There is a great synopsis of Cloud Computing published by Mache Creeger and I recommend checking it out. In our model, we’re allowing companies to pool their resources on the supply side of Cloud Computing and leverage a much bigger, better shared infrastructure on the demand side of the equation.

What the Stimulus Plan Means for Your Business

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 15:15:00 EDT

The mantra heard most often in business these days is "Do More With Less." For many businesses, cutting costs while trying to grow—or even sustain their place in the market—is easier said than done. What could help many businesses is gaining access to some of that $787 Billion in Federal Stimulus Package monies. Not surprisingly, many small companies [94% of...

The Long Tail of Cloud Computing?

Thu, 16 Jul 2009 10:00:00 EDT

So, I can infer then that some $20 Billion will comprise the 2012 feed bag from which all the little cloud computing piggies will line up at the trough to consume. Not a bad market, from 10,000 feet away. But here’s the thing. The cloud computing market is already becoming pretty full. I mean rush hour commuter train full and it will get even more crowded in the coming few years. $20 Billion doesn’t last long when you have a litany of players stepping up to the plate, and with the recent moves made by Oracle, Microsoft, EDS and other big time shops, the groovy young open source outfits that are all the rage now could very well be fighting over table scraps by 2012 (um, what’s your exit strategy?). Table scraps in a $20 Billion market? Imagine that. Welcome to the hysteria of cloud computing.

Finding New Life For SOA in the Cloud

Thu, 28 May 2009 07:45:00 EDT

We’ve been having quite a few discussions with analysts over the past few months on the subject of “cloud”. The interesting thing about these discussions is the vast array of points of view from which those analysts are viewing “cloud”. Some are focused on the network aspects, others on pricing/differentiation, and some are even very focused on what “cloud” means to applications – and the organizations that will, allegedly, take advantage of the cloud as a means of application deployment. One such analyst is Daryl Plummer of Gartner. Daryl has always been very application focused so it’s always a pleasure to speak with him and, of late, read what he has to say via his blog. (Daryl is also a cartoonist, and has turned his interests in that area on the cloud, resulting in “G-Men”. If you haven’t yet, take a gander. He’s quite talented.) The last time we spoke to Daryl he asked “What can you do to help an organization move a monolithic application into the cloud?” That’s a fairly straightforward answer for F5, unless you specify that the organization wants to move workload into the cloud, not necessarily the entire application.

Microsoft Will End Up Buying Yahoo Anyway

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 17:15:00 EDT

Yahoo! founders Jerry Yang and David Filo received stupid advice from their investment bank advisers and blew their chance to close the deal with Microsoft as of this Sunday morning. Neither Yang nor Filo are experts on how to sell a company in a multi-billion dollar deal. They have relied on their investment bankers and advisers since the negotiations started with Microsoft. The difference between the offered price of $33 and the asking price of $40 per share is roughly $1.4b per share, so it's not small potatoes.

Red Hat Named "Platinum Sponsor" of Virtualization Conference & Expo

Thu, 29 May 2008 14:30:00 EDT

Red Hat is a trusted open source provider. Red Hat offers enterprise customers a long-term plan for building infrastructures on the quality and innovation of open source. Combining open source operating system platform, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, together with applications, management, and Services Oriented Architecture (SOA) solutions, including the JBoss Enterprise Middleware Suite.

SAP Targets iPhone with Its Web 2.0 Move

Sun, 09 Dec 2007 18:00:00 EST

SAP, in a Salesforce-beware move, has Web 2.0'd its next-generation CRM 2007 kit so it'll work on Apple iPhones and load business contacts, info on prospects and account data. It told Reuters, which was in Boston for the unveiling, that it was responding to demand and that businesspeople prefer the iPhone to the Blackberry, Treo or Microsoft-based devices. The widgetry, which uses a drag-and-drop interface adapted from Google's iGoogle, is due out later this month. SAP will do the hosting. CRM 2007 also runs on more conventional devices like PCs.

Why Are They Not Talking About Virtualization?

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 17:30:00 EST

Software virtualization is the ability to run multiple operating systems at the same time on the same computer. The basic premise is that for most of the day your server is basically idle and the CPU and memory are not tasked with processes all day long, the server has excess capacity and virtualization allows you to maximize your investment by installing another full version of an operating system on your hardware at the same time.

Ubuntu 1, Windows 0

Sun, 11 Nov 2007 11:00:00 EST

I installed Ubuntu on the Toshiba laptop. Ubuntu installed in 15 minutes - 49 for Windows XP and 125 for Windows Vista. Ubuntu's desktop came right up. I opened the pre-installed Firefox browser and found I could browse the Web immediately. Ubuntu installed a network adaptor for the Toshiba laptop. I shake my head at this Windows foolishness!