Microsoft hid a major bit of news right in the middle of an obscure whitepaper. The paper describes how Office 365 security works...or perhaps I should say, how it doesn't work.
Here's the deal. Microsoft believes it has the right and duty to hand over your data when it suits Microsoft, the government's or another party's interests. It doesn't even have to ask.
Of course this is all in a "limited number of circumstances." Right, and aneurysms affect only a limited number of people. But when you get one, it still hurts like heck.
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/28/2011 at 12:47 PM8 comments
Today is a big day in the Big Apple, as Steve Ballmer is personally announcing the release of Office 365.
This ain't news to Redmond magazine, which recently interviewed about a dozen Office 365 beta testers who in large part said the experience was great. Folks in the SMB space were particularly impressed, whereas bigger enterprises were looking for a bit more oomph.
Analysts from Directions on Microsoft weighed in on a pre-launch conference call. There are many things for IT to consider, the analysts say. First, is a cloud solution as good or better than on-premises software? How fast is it, what is the uptime and how do you handle backup and recovery? Then, of course, come the economics, and here you have to compare the total cost of the cloud to the total cost of your in-house solution.
If you are still interested, you then need to choose a package that fits your bill. You can go small with either a range of server apps such as Exchange and SharePoint, stay small but opt for Office apps, or get the whole kit and caboodle, which includes nearly every major server and desktop app Redmond has in stock.
Here's what regular reader Ian has to say:
"I've just put my first customer on the cloud using Office 365. Their first comment was, why is it so slow? But for $6 per user per month (P1 plan) that's a bargain compared to BPOS.
"But, back to UC. The Lync on Office 365 is dumbed down, just like Exchange, and you can't use Office Communicator (MOC) AND Lync on the same computer. Lync isn't compatible with OCS 2007 R2 and MOC isn't compatible with Lync Server 2010. Now that's a problem. Let's hope Office 365 Service Pack 1 has some answers. Microsoft bought Skype, but what they need is Vonage. Wonder if they have enough cash left over to buy Vonage?
"I'm not sure the cloud will ever be as big as anyone hopes. Not a single customer wants to go slower. Ever. Go ask any computer user if slower is OK and see what they say. Opening a large PDF on the cloud can be agony."
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/28/2011 at 12:47 PM4 comments
Wyoming, a state that most high schoolers can't find on a map even when the word is printed in a 25-point font, is ditching a grab-bag of software and going all in with Google Apps.
Roughly 10,000 employees will be using the Google software over the Web, saving the state a cool million bucks a year. Google actually has a special version of its apps for the government market.
I happen to think this is great. Every company needs competition and Microsoft Office has gone far too long without a serious alternative.
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/28/2011 at 12:47 PM5 comments
Longtime software integration player Talend is now moving its middleware to the cloud. The Talend Cloud can stitch together apps on-premise, in pure public clouds, private clouds or hybrids. Talend claims it can also join data and apps even as you move all this off-site and onto service provider networks, and keep it all secure.
The way the company describes its wares sounds a lot like what folks used to call SOA, or software-oriented architecture. Haven't heard that term since George W. was in office.
While old-style middleware (this phrase is about as common as SOA but I still use it) handled Oracle, SAP, SQL Server et al., Talend Cloud supports new stuff such as Google Apps, Amazon, Saleforce, Twitter and more of this kind of fluff.
There are a lot of companies in this space and I covered Talend because it just announced its new cloud tool. If I was smart enough to be in IT, I would definitely do a lot of research before buying such an essential tool.
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/21/2011 at 12:47 PM1 comments
I remember when Iridium first came to the fore. The whole idea was to build a global network of satellite communications. Although Arthur C. Clarke invented the concept over a half-century ago, Iridium was still leading-edge stuff.
Now the company is harnessing its network of 66 birds circling the stratosphere to let those in need be found.
I remember 10 years ago I had precious little cell, DSL or cable modem access. And by "precious little," I mean none. And I live in a suburb.
Millions -- billions, actually -- live beyond these bounds. The Iridium program is not for everyone, but is instead designed to let these folks, when in need, call for help.
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/21/2011 at 12:47 PM0 comments
After two decades of hype and struggle, unified communications (UC) is finally starting to make sense. I recently interviewed about a dozen customers of Microsoft's offerings and they were all very pleased with IM, presence, Web conferencing, IP telephony and the rest. Now UC is moving to the cloud, primarily through Microsoft's Office 365, which includes a hosted version of Lync, Redmond's latest UC tool.
But many in IT say, "Not so fast, Buster." In fact, the sour news comes from a survey that a Microsoft partner, Azaleos, paid for.
A scant 10 percent of respondents said they will use UC over the cloud in the next 12 months. Almost 60 percent lament the lack of control and inability to customize as the major stumbling blocks. Another big deal, or deal breaker: Can one really trust the cloud to stay up and available?
These are, indeed, the early days of the cloud, and providers need to provide proof that their wares are secure, stable, controllable and customizable.
What do cloud providers need to do to get more of your business? Share your thoughts with this newsletter's readers by writing [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/21/2011 at 12:47 PM5 comments
Fujitsu just announced a new cloud service based on Microsoft Azure. The service will use Microsoft's Azure appliance, making it faster and easier to start offering services. HP and Dell have also committed to building similar services, but they apparently won't beat Fujitsu to market.
Clearly, not all Microsoft software is perfect, but in talking to partners and customers, Azure is looking pretty good.
I have no reasonable opinion about technology until I hear from experts such as you. Teach me about Azure at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/14/2011 at 12:47 PM0 comments
The cloud, in part, evolved from virtualization. Server virtualization makes massive server farms act as a utility. And client virtualization makes in-house and remote servers act as a sort of cloud. The processing is separate from the client, and if constructed right, is adaptable the way a cloud should be.
This is all justification for why I'm covering Microsoft's newest thin client tool. Windows Thin PC is now solid enough that CDs are being pressed and downloads readied.
Microsoft has a ton of virt tools. This one is based on Windows 7, and like the old Terminal Services, serves up apps from a Windows Server. In this case, Win 7 apps and its interface can be accessed by older PCs that could never run the OS from their own hard drives. This is a nice lifeline for decrepit machines that otherwise would be in a dump in China.
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/14/2011 at 12:47 PM2 comments
There are many ways to approach the cloud. You can be all in, go partway or ignore the whole thing. And whether you go all in or partway, you still need to decide on an architecture.
Two main choices are building your own cloud -- what they call a private cloud -- or buying a public cloud service. The problem with this nomenclature is a public cloud should not be public. How can data be secured if it is truly public? Access to the public (remote) cloud should only be granted to trusted users. Done right, a public cloud is just as private as a private cloud. So how about we change our terms to "in-house cloud" and "remote cloud"?
Anyhoo, noted IT guru Greg Shields believes that some kind of move to the cloud is inevitable and that shops will have a mix of private (in-house) and public (remote) clouds. The key difference, according to Shields, is you build a private (in-house) cloud, but you buy a public (remote) cloud.
On the private -- er, in-house -- side, you are halfway there if you've already virtualized your servers. Once you take that step, you then just need to set it up so these VMs are flexible, taking advantage of extra resources as they're needed and creating a view where all these apps look like a unified manageable service. Jeepers. Sounds easy and cool. Wish it were so.
That brings me back to the whole notion of a private (in-house) cloud. A private cloud is only a cloud if it acts like a cloud, like a utility. I wonder how many private (in-house) clouds actually fit the true description of a cloud. To me, private clouds are more hype than truth. Tell me where I'm right or wrong at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/14/2011 at 12:47 PM3 comments
This week, Apple announced the widely anticipated iCloud, a relatively free service where all your tunes, photos, docs and such are in the cloud. Is it cool? I guess. Does it give Apple more control over you and the entire music biz? You bet.
Here's how it works. You sign up, presumably giving Apple enough information that it knows who you are and how to reach you. Then you get 5 free gigs to do with as you please. The exception here is that anything you bought from Apple doesn't count against the 5 GB limit. The cool part is all this stuff is stored centrally so you can sync all your Apple devices, getting at the content through a Mac, iPad or iPhone.
Here's what makes me worried: We are now opening our content kimono to Apple. What will it do with this knowledge? What about content that isn't on the copyright up-and-up? Maybe we can trust Apple now, but what about the future? Guide me through this morass by sending your thoughts to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/07/2011 at 12:47 PM5 comments
Office 365 isn't just a cloud version of Microsoft Office. It is actually a mega-suite: Besides getting all the Office apps, you can get software from the server side such as SharePoint, Exchange, SQL Server and Lync (the unified communications suite).
We've looked at the pricing and it ain't bad. As long as your WAN connections are robust, this is a usable and affordable approach to equipping end-user PCs.
Now in late beta test, Microsoft has confirmed the mega-suite will ship on June 28, the same day the Treaty of Versailles was signed.
Redmond magazine (redmondmag.com) recently interviewed a bevy of beta testers and the news was pretty darn good. It seems the suite is particularly well-suited for smaller shops with limited IT staff, who find it much easier to manage than on-premise solutions. What is your take on Office 365 or cloud apps in general? Spill the beans at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/07/2011 at 12:47 PM2 comments
If you care about patching your computers, you must have heard of Shavlik Technologies. In fact, Microsoft OEMed Shavlik's patch product and made it part of the Redmond arsenal years ago.
Recently, company founder Mark Shavlik has been telling me about moving patches and other wares to the cloud. This way, you can secure and manage your computers without managing the whole mess in-house.
VMware apparently caught wind of all this and wanted in. Last month, VMware bought its way in by picking up Shavlik, or at least promising to.
It is unusual for VMware to buy a company not 100 percent devoted to virtualization. Perhaps VMware is looking to spread its wings. Or perhaps VMware simply has good taste in technology. Either way, I hope both will do fine.
Posted by Doug Barney on 06/06/2011 at 12:47 PM5 comments