CSTechcast.com, the home of the podcast for IT professionals released every week. This week we talk to Stephen Wynkoop, founder and editor of SSWUG.org, about virtualized conferences and how it can get your tech skills sharp. Find more info at www.vconferenceonline.com/upcoming.asp. In the news, more mess for Microsoft from the DOJ, Sun gets Nehalemized with new Intel Xeon processors and a network switch addition much like Cisco's new server solution, IBM aims to have 28-nanometer chip manufacturing next year, Intel dips its profits but sees a bottom, and Verizon Business Security reports security breaches of 285 million records last year and the problem is still most common from servers and applications. Twitter's spotlight on Entertainment Tonight gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the new Exchange 2010 beta, and we give you some tools for your malware tool belt in "The Weekly Tech Tip".
Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Feds Want Eyes On Microsoft For Another 18 Months (InformationWeek)
Sun Strikes Back At Cisco (InformationWeek)
IBM Alliance Looks To Top Intel With 28-Nm Chips (InformationWeek)
Intel Faces Roadblocks Despite Hope In PC Sales (InformationWeek)
More Data Breached In 2008 Than In Previous Four Years Combined (InformationWeek)
Oprah's on Twitter, Twitter's on Oprah, and Everyone's So Excited! (Gawker)
Send in any comments you have on the show through our feedback form at CStechcast.com or visit us on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Do us a favor a post a review on iTunes. Tell your friends to check it out. As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast.
Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=71
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com is your source to get the podcast for IT professionals. This week we talk to Toby J. Velte, author of Green IT: Reduce Your Information System's Environmental Impact While Adding to the Bottom Line , about the hard facts you can use to get buy-in to green your data centers. Find more info at Velte.com. In the news, the Confiker worm continues it's appetite for destruction by charging you for fake anti-virus software, Microsoft says Happy Easter with a basket-full of new patches, Google gives up some detail on data center efficiencies they have developed, spies are apparently successfully hacking US infrastructure interests, and Sun wins a big contract from the US Health and Human Services to build open source apps for health care. The media's reporting of recent technology trends gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at our experience implementing open source solutions, and we give you some group policy goodness with Windows 7's AppLocker which you can use to control programs in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Updated Conficker Ropes Victims into Rogue Anti-virus Scam (eWeek)
Microsoft warns of monster patch day next week (ComputerWorld)
Google Data Center Secrets Now Showing On YouTube (InformationWeek)
Google container data center tour (YouTube)
Electricity Grid in U.S. Penetrated By Spies (The Wall Street Journal)
Before Grid Hack Reports, NERC Advises Industry on Cyber Assets (eWeek)
Feds Tap Sun For Healthcare IT Despite Uncertain Future (InformationWeek) We send congratulations to Dana and her family on her new baby. Send in your good wishes or any comments you have on the show through our feedback form at CStechcast.com or visit us on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Tell your friends to check it out. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=70
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Welcome to the podcast for IT pros, available at CStechcast.com. This week we talk to Avinoam Nowogrodski, co-founder and CEO of Clarizen, about collaboration using SaaS applications and what benefit the SaaS platform serves a business over traditional internal applications. Find more information at clarizen.com. In the news, the Conficker worm comes in with a whimper on April 1st but is still considered a threat, all major server manufacturers get online with the latest Intel Nehalem-based Xeon processors, Intel keeps taking share away from AMD, IBM is getting closer to swallowing Sun, and Microsoft debuts Windows Server 2008 Foundation for small business. Mac fans who can't leave that Microsoft price commercial alone make "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at spear phishing, and a little application called PRTG Network Monitor helps you monitor and report on network devices, workstations, and servers in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Is Conficker Finally History? (PC World)
Fresh Crop Of Intel Nehalem Servers On Way (InformationWeek)
Intel's Share Of Chip Market Rises, AMD's Falls (InformationWeek)
IBM-Sun Deal 'In Final Stages' (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Offers Server For Tiny Businesses (InformationWeek)
Microsoft's "I'm just not cool enough to be a Mac person" ad tries to kick Apple where it hurts (ZDNet)
Give me a break. Microsoft isn’t cheaper than Apple. Dell might be, but Microsoft isn’t! (Macgasm.net)
PRTG Network Monitor (Paessler.com) After we finished the recording of this week's episode, our lovely co-host Dana gave birth to her brand new baby boy Jaden. We send congratulations to her and her family and I hope you do too. Send in your good wishes or any comments on our feedback for at CStechcast.com or visit us on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=69
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CStechcast.com brings you another podcast for IT pros. This week we talk about innovations in the server space and what to consider for the modern data center and cash strapped businesses with HP Vice-President of Industry Standard Servers, Paul Gottsegan. Find more info at hp.com. In the news, Conficker is ticking down to April 1st, HP releases an analysis tool for Adobe Flash code to look for security holes, Sun releases it's latest Virtual Desktop Infrastructure Software 3, and Red Hat beats Wall Street expectation giving good news to the tech economy and open source. Complexity on network equipment updates to protect against security holes gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the need for standards in the cloud, and we show you some tricks to get Linux setup in Hyper-V in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Conficker Worm Worries Exaggerated (InformationWeek)
Questions and Answers: Conficker and April 1st (F-Secure)
Malware probes find a China angle (CNet)
Sun Brings Storage Management To Desktop Virtualization (InformationWeek)
Red Hat Profit Beats Forecasts, Shares Rise (InformationWeek)
Linux on Hyper-V (TechNet) As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Keep us going by spreading the word about CS Techcast and writing a review at your favorite podcast service, like in iTunes or at Podcastalley.com. As always, find us all week on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Please also send us feedback; link at CSTechcast.com. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=68
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Once again, CSTechcast.com brings you another podcast for IT pros. This week we talk to Marc Borbas, Vice President at INETCO, about how the approach to measuring and monitoring real-time applications that often leave your sphere of control. Find more information at INETCO.com. In the news, Internet Explorer 8 is officially release and gets a cool reception, IBM is looking to swoop in on Sun with a takeover bid, the FTC looking into privacy concerns around Google cloud applications like Apps and GMail, EMC pushing bigger and faster solid state drive technology into the data center, and Microsoft aims to make it easier to find bugs in your code with Crash Analyzer. Quick hacks at a contest of the top 3 browser's security gets "The Worst tech Move of the Week", small and mid-size business security options gets "A Closer Look", and new features of DHCP server in Windows Server 2008 R2 and a new tool are covered in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Explorer 8: Bugs, Crashes, Glitches, Oh My! (InformationWeek)
IBM-Sun Rivalry May Finally Reach An Accord (InformationWeek)
Feds To Shut Down Google Apps? (InformationWeek)
EMC Offers Larger-Capacity Flash Drives For Symmetrix Systems (InformationWeek)
Microsoft to Unveil Open-Source Security Analyzer for Application Developers (eWeek)
DHCP Server Events Tool (TechNet Blogs)
A grim day for browser security at hacker contest (The Register) As always, thanks for subscribing to our podcast. Keep us going by spreading the word about CS Techcast and writing a review at your favorite podcast service, like in iTunes or at Podcastalley.com. As always, find us all week on the social networks at the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Please also send us feedback; link at CSTechcast.com. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=67
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Welcome to another podcast for IT pros always available at cstechcast.com. This week we talk about Platform as a Service and get the scoop on cloud computing trends for business with the CEO of LongJump, Pankaj Malviya. Find more information at longjump.com. In the news, Amazon launches their Reserved Instances service for EC2, open source is steadily gaining in IT shops, Linux gets a boast in use in server rooms and may be the future on the desktops of businesses, AT&T boosts capital spending and hiring, and the Confiker worm continues it's attack with a new variant and threat of massive DDoS attacks. Twitter's strange approach to it's own influence gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at new features and fixed bugs coming for the Windows 7 release candidate, and a story to keep you on the a logical troubleshooting path is "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Amazon Offers You Your Own Little Place In The Clouds (InformationWeek)
Linux Gaining Strength In Downturn (InformationWeek)
AT&T sets '09 budget cuts, to add some jobs (Reuters)
Latest Conficker worm gets nastier (CNet)
Microsoft Details New Changes to Windows 7 (PCMag)
Calacanis Offers $250K For Twitter Paid Inclusion (MediaPost)
Calacanis Discussion on Friendfeed (Friendfeed) Catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening and make sure you're subscribed so you can catch us every week. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=66
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Announcing another podcast for IT pros, straight from CSTechcast.com. This week we talk about what approach you should take to application testing and the tools to help you get there with HP Senior Director of Products Mark Sarbiewski. Find complete information at hp.com. In the news, IE8 will get a sort of on-off switch in Windows 7, new critical updates for Microsoft Patch Tuesday, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is forced to defend Windows Mobile at the CIO Summit, virtualization and cloud service continue to gain acceptance in business, and the general economy continues to dive but IT consulting jobs are trending up. Tech companies sitting on cash instead of investing for the future get "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at alternative tech training, and understand network teaming in Hyper-V with "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Windows 7 Will Have IE 8 On-Off Switch (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Patch Day Won't Fix Excel Vulnerability (InformationWeek)
Microsoft CEO Gets Earful About iPhones In IT (InformationWeek)
Survey: Virtualization Takes Off, Cloud Computing on the Rise (eWeek)
Employment Situation Summary (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Technology firms sitting on mountains of cash (MarketWatch) Catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening and make sure you're subscribed so you can catch us every week. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=65 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com brings you the podcast for IT Pros; a "Top 10" according to CIO Insight. This week we talk hacking and vulnerabilities with Joel Scambray, CISSP, co-founder and CEO of Consciere, and co-author of Hacking Exposed . Find more info from Joel at http://webhackingexposed.com. This week, Microsoft stays steady on custom support pricing, HP earnings result in job cuts, Sun likes its encryption open source, IBM wants in on the broadband stimulus money, and Microsoft gets cozy with Red Hat with an interoperability pact. Facebook's ToS meltdown gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at some utility cloud options, and DHCP migration to Server 2008 is "The Weekly Tech Tip. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Microsoft Holds the Line on Custom Support Pricing (Redmond Channel Partner Online)
HP earnings dip nearly 10%, will cut salaries (CNet)
Sun Releases First Protocol for Encryption Key Interoperability (eWeek)
IBM Eyes Stimulus Funds for Broadband Project (eWeek)
Red Hat, Microsoft Sign Virtualization Interoperability Pact (eWeek) Catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening and make sure you're subscribed so you can catch us every week. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=64 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com brings you the podcast for IT Pros; a "Top 10" according to CIO Insight. This week we talk with Jim Thor, network engineer for Wild Packets, about VoIP in the enterprise and how to identify the pitfalls and get a successful system in place. Find more on their solutions at WildPackets.com. In the news, IT sees a slight uptick in jobs, Ruby is becoming the programming language of choice for techies in emerging markets, not all is well at the Sun acquired MySQL with David Axmark and Michael Widenius resigning, IBM will be providing core IBM software such as DB2 and WebSphere from Amazon's Web Services cloud platform, and Microsoft puts a $250,000 bounty on the head of the Conficker Worm's author. A Canadian court's ruling that ISP logs are fair game for authorities gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at hiring a consultant versus hiring an employee, and we help you protect against the Conficker Worm in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Some IT Jobs Defy Employment Downturn (InformationWeek)
Ruby Shines in Emerging Markets (eWeek)
MySQL Exits May Open Sun Customers To Other Databases (InformationWeek)
IBM To Deliver Software Via Amazon's Cloud (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Offers $250,000 Bounty For Worm Authors (InformationWeek)
Canadian judge: No warrant needed to see ISP logs (Ars Technica)
Virus alert about the Win32/Conficker.B worm (Microsoft.com) Catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening and make sure you come back again. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=62 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com, where you can find the podcast for IT professionals. This week we have Chris Poelker, VP of Enterprise Solutions at FalconStor and author of “Storage Area Networks for Dummies ", to talk about data de-duplication as a solution for greening your data center. Find more on the topic at his blog http://blog.falconstor.com/ChrisPoelker/. In the news, the downturn in the global economy has NEC possibly pulling out of PC market in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, Lenovo replaces their CEO after a bad quarter, Oracle is still making acquisitions with it's purchase of mValent, VMWare adds a free open-source virtualization client, and MS Patch Tuesday comes to us with 2 critical and 2 important updates. Human error in IT by those who don't really care gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", worst practices in insecure code get the wrath of "The IT Pet Peeve", and find out how to get your Windows 2008 Servers network load balancing working outside of a domain in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
NEC Says May Withdraw From PC Business In Europe (InformationWeek)
Lenovo CEO Resignation Tied to Company Performance (eWeek)
Oracle Acquires Leader in Application Configuration Management (eWeek)
VMware Announces First Open Source Virtual Desktop Client, Enabling Partners to Optimize Devices for VMware View and Provide Low-Cost Desktop Solutions (VMWare)
Microsoft Security Bulletin Advance Notification for February 2009 (Microsoft TechNet) Make sure your subscribed to the podcast so you don't miss an episode. Find out how at cstechcast.com. You can also catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and at friendfeed.com/cstechcast being social. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=62 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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The podcast for IT pros at CSTechcast.com. This week we discuss the benefits of moving your desktops off the desk and into the data center with Mike Fodor, VP at Pano Logic. Find more information on their desktop virtualization solutions at panologic.com. In the news, Toshiba and NEC are merging chip operations, high-speed broadband goes to Washington, government employment program E-Verify gets postponed, and a fired employee is indicted for planting a logic bomb in Fannie Mae computers. School officials pouty about criticism from students on the Internet gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the top 5 areas to consider when introducing new technology, and we try to help out when Windows 2008 DNS can't resolve some top level domains in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Top Japanese Chip Makers Studying Merger (InformationWeek)
Congress Wants Neutrality On Publicly Funded Broadband (InformationWeek)
Feds Delay E-Verify Deadline to May 21 (eWeek)
Fannie Mae Contractor Indicted For Logic Bomb (InformationWeek)
Court: No right to shout "douchebag" in a crowded blog (ArsTechnica)
Cannot resolve names in certain top level domains like .co.uk. (TechNet Blogs) You can subscribe to the podcast through various means at cstechcast.com. You can also catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and friendfeed.com/cstechcast where we are easy to contact. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Plus, catch us when we're recording live at our UStream page CS Techcast – Behind The Scenes. Thanks for listening. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=61 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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I wanted to let all our CS Techcast listeners know that our podcast made the list of the 10 Must Listen Podcasts for CIOs at cioinsight.com! We are on a list with the likes of HP's CTO Phil McKinney Killer Innovations podcast, the Deloitte Insight podcast, and the CERT podcast. We are very excited about making this list and hope to continue bringing you a great podcast for IT professionals every week. - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com brings you the podcast for IT pros. This week we talk with Adam Swidler of Google's Enterprise Division about their new report on the state of spam. Find the report at http://googleenterprise.blogspot.com and more information on the products at www.google.com/a/security. In the news, Intel drops chip prices up to 40%, Qualcomm buys AMD's mobile chip division, top web site spread malware, Seagate post a fix for a hard drive problem that just causes more problems, and despite the economy tech paychecks take a tick up. The White House's state of tech shines a light on out of date government systems in "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we discuss the need for high-ranking official to carries devices like a Blackberry in "Point/CounterPoint", and we give you an old school tip on email troubleshooting in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show: Intel Drops Desktop, Server Chip Prices As Much As 40% (InformationWeek)
Qualcomm buys AMD’s handset division, technology for $65 million (ZDNet)
70 Of Top 100 Web Sites Spread Malware (InformationWeek)
Seagate Posts Hard Drive Fix (InformationWeek)
Tech Paychecks Grew Last Year Despite Economic Gloom (InformationWeek) We'd like to thank the Google folks for talking to our audience about this new report. If you'd like to be in the loop every week, subscribe at cstechcast.com. You can also catch us on the Facebook fan page, at twitter.com/cstechcast, and friendfeed.com/cstechcast where we are sharing all week. We also have a feedback form off the main page if you have anything you'd like to say. Thanks for listening. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=60 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast has yet another information filled podcast for IT pros. This week we consult Alex Scoble, a CISSP certified security consultant and risk analyst, about the common security threats to your network and what you can do about it. Find Alex's blog at itmanager.blogs.com. In the news Steve Jobs is taking a leave of absence from Apple CEO duties, 1TB Seagate drives are seeing an abnormal level of failures, The “Downadup” virus infected about 6.5 million PCs in 4 days, the inauguration may prove challenging to Internet bandwidth, and United Airlines offers up Wi-Fi on some planes with some limitations, of course. The lack of hard nose reporting from the traditional media on Steve Jobs over the past few weeks has garnered "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the common problem of weak passwords, and multi-monitor support comes to Remote Desktop Connections in Windows 7 and we show you how to get at it in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Letter from Apple CEO Steve Jobs (Apple.com)
On eve of Macworld, Jobs talks health (CNet)
Seagate customers swamped by Barracuda drive failures (The Register)
'Amazing' worm attack infects 9 million PCs (ComputerWorld)
Unprecedented live streaming video during inaugural will tax Internet (ComputerWorld)
United Airlines To Offer In-Flight Wi-Fi (InformationWeek) If you want more you can find us on the socials. Be a fan at the CS Techcast Facebook Fan Page and leave something on our wall or find the UStream channel where we stream video live during our recording every week. Also, seek us our on the other socials at twitter.com/cstechcast and friendfeed.com/cstechcast or join the Friendfeed room. Send us feedback and keep coming back. In fact, encourage your friend to subscribe and join in the fun. Thanks for joining us. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=59 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com brings you the weekly podcast for IT pros. This week we talk about technology communities and SQL Server in particular with Andy Warren, President of End to End Training. Find him blogging at http://www.sqlservercentral.com/blogs/andy_warren/. In the news, we cover the coming USB 3.0 devices, Microsoft tries to patent pay as you go computing, Microsoft System Center Data Protection Manager gets an update with service pack 1, SSL certificates gets compromised by a bunch of PS3s game consoles, and Windows experiences the largest usage drop in 4 years. The cable box method of pay as you go computing gets “The Worst Tech Move of the Week”, we take “A Closer Look” at the most in demand skills for the new year, and when you migrate an Outlook user make sure they get their nicknames in “The Weekly Tech Tip”. Our sponsor this week: Admin Script Editor by iTripoli. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Prepped For Storage (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Seeks Pay-As-You-Go Computing Patent (InformationWeek)
What's New in DPM 2007 Service Pack 1 (Microsoft.com)
Theoretical attacks yield practical attacks on SSL, PKI (ArsTechnica)
Windows market share dives again as Mac nears 10% (ComputerWorld)
Microsoft Patents Pay-As-You-Go PC Computing (PC Magazine)
There are new ways to get your fix of CS Techcast. Check out the new CS Techcast Facebook Fan Page and leave something on our wall or find the UStream channel where we stream video live during our recording. Also, find us on the socials twitter.com/cstechcast and friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Join the Friendfeed room to share and discuss all things geeky. As usual, find ways to send us feedback at CSTechcast.com. All the best, and keep coming back for more tech goodness. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=57 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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3, 2, 1, CSTechcast.com for IT pro podcasts in the new year! This week we discuss encryption solutions, why it matters and separate the press hype and reality with John Callas, CTO of PGP Inc. Find their solutions at PGP.com. In the news we discuss the effect the economy is having on data centers, Microsoft working on a fix for a SQL vulnerability since April, notebook sales steadily outstripping desktops, and Citrix is giving you a way to get Windows on your iPhone, sort of. Michael Arrington trying to police how Robert Scoble uses the Internet gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take the bandwagon on a left turn and give you the top 5 tech predictions for 2010, and we give you a couple points of note when using Windows authentication for your websites in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Our sponsor this week: Admin Script Editor by iTripoli. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show: Credit crunch takes toll on datacenter spending (InfoWorld)
Microsoft confirms it's been working on SQL bug since April (Infoworld)
Notebook Sales Outpace Desktop Sales (eWeek)
What's the coolest app that doesn't work on the iPhone .... yet ? (The Citrix Blogs)
I’m Sorry Robert, But It’s Time For A Friendfeed Intervention (Techcrunch via Friendfeed)
How to troubleshoot Kerberos-related issues in IIS (Microsoft Knowledge Base) Thanks for supporting us in 2008. Be ready for more great content in 2009, where we will cover the topics that matter to IT professionals. Contact us from the home page CSTechcast.com or hit us up on twitter.com/cstechcast or friendfeed.com/cstechcast and get social. Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast and don't forget to come back. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=56 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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I’ve observed a curious phenomenon on the web. From tech blogs to social networks, people seem to be willing to give Windows 7 a chance. This from the crowd that has, in the past few years, called out Microsoft every chance they got. From the days of the Netscape trials to the recent filleting Vista received, chopped and diced in so many blog reviews that still linger today in the collective geek consciousness, one wonders why anyone would want to give Microsoft another chance with their desktop.
When it comes down to it, geeks still want Windows. Some converted to Macs, some converted to Linux, but for the most part Macintosh is too expensive and limiting and Linux was just too hardcore, needing a real intimate familiarity with configuration files just to upgrade a video driver. They want what they know, but they want it better. Some have begrudgingly accepted Vista onto their desktop, claiming it’s just “not that bad”, while others cling to Windows XP like it’s the last stop before the abyss of blue screens and misbehaving applications.
What we’ve seen of Windows 7 is exactly what we wanted to see, proof that it addresses the criticisms of the recent past. The OS installs faster, loads faster, comes back from standby on your laptop faster, and will run with less resources, like a demonstration where it ran on a netbook with a simple processor. The bloatware from built-in applications is gone, although calling these programs bloatware was debatable, and things that gave the appearance of annoyance, like the multiplying icons in the System Tray, have been paired down to necessity only. In fact, they have made the Taskbar so simple looking, it’s almost Apple sleek. It’s proof that the geek community still has a voice with the software empire.
But what about the calls to have Microsoft completely rebuild Windows from the ground up and all the opinions that the basis on which Windows was based was too broken to fix? The common wisdom was Microsoft needed a reboot similar to the Mac OS when they debuted X, something that broke legacy apps and built something modern. MinWin was often sighted as a possible replacement, a version of Windows that was so small as to be trivial to run on basic hardware. The components you wanted would attach and run what you need, not that much unlike Linux and Unix.
None of those opinions became this new operating system. Windows 7 is really Windows Vista tweaked. Windows 7 is the same basic kernel and does the same basic things. Like the Six Million Dollar Man they’ve made it better, faster, stronger. Why stick with the old code that turned so many off? Simple, it actually worked, just not as well as it could. The biggest problems, UAC security and incompatible drivers, have mostly been addressed. Programmers now know they will encounter the security features of UAC and, therefore, write better programs with better security standards. The driver issue, so prevalent when Vista launched, is now a distant memory. All new hardware has a Vista driver and older peripherals are either no-longer in use or had a proper driver written for them.
Windows can only be Windows, with it’s decade of compatibility with hundreds of thousands of programs and required GUI. It can’t break with the past and most of us would have a problem with that in one way or another. It can’t be Mac, because the choices in hardware and software afforded us by the former WINTEL alliance has built the PC generation and we would still have to run Boot Camp to get what we needed. Linux, with all its goodwill and improvements is still a text-based operating system at its core and most people, even geeks, can’t get their arms around that kind of required fuss on their desktops. We want Windows to be Windows, but we want them to do it right.
Geek blogs are singing the praises of recent trade show demonstrations of Windows 7, even if they can’t figure out the reason for the name. Early adopters are installing the beta and trying to get their hands on it by any means necessary, back channels and all. The posts we’ve seen from the formerly grumpy blogosphere about Windows 7 have been so positive. In fact, the glowing requires sun glasses. It seems like they’ve finally gotten it right after two years of bad blood with their users. Make it a good one Microsoft, it may be your last chance to impress us all.
- Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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The weather outside is frightful, so if you’ve no place to go, download the latest podcast from CSTechcast.com. This week we talk the open source option and why it makes sense for your operations with Curt Finch, CEO of JourneyX and author of All Your Money Won't Another Minute Buy: Valuing Time as a Business Resource . In the news, IE8 is winning the war to have the least bugs, new patches for critical vulnerabilities released after Patch Tuesday, the .tel domain aims to make it easy to share contact information, Sun retires Network.com and launches a new cloud initiative, and version 5.1 of MySQL is released debuting several new features. Sony and Facebook get dissed for their collection of private data in “The Worst Tech Move of the Week”, people who put desktop in service as servers get the wrath of “The IT Pet Peeve”, and a little tip to help get your Hyper-V machines shut down cleanly in “The Weekly Tech Tip”. Our sponsor this week: Admin Script Editor by iTripoli. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Internet Explorer Has Fewer Software Bugs Than Firefox, Chrome (InformationWeek)
Zero-Day Microsoft Vulnerabilities Being Exploited (InformationWeek)
Microsoft Security Advisory (960906) (Microsoft.com)
.Tel Them Where to Find You (New York Times)
Sun Discloses Plans To Enter Cloud Computing (InformationWeek)
Sun MySQL 5.1 Upgrades Partitioning, Replication (InformationWeek)
Sony Violates Children's Privacy Act (Washington Post) Keep the holiday cheer coming, with feedback at our website and interaction on Twitter and Friendfeed. Don't forget us, get us a present by getting your friends to CSTechcast.com for the podcast for IT pros by IT pros. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=54 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com brings you good cheer in another podcast for IT pros. This week we talk about your online brand and why it's important with the co-founder and editor of sqlservercentral.com Steve Jones. In the news, IBM unveils the Open Collaboration Client open source desktop system, Microsoft and RSA get cozy with security integration, Amazon announces a free tier of access to SimpleDB, Windows 7 beta gets an official date, and patch tuesday plays the Grinch with six critical updates to keep you up late. The irrational logic that keep people hanging onto Windows XP, making some a tidy profit, gets "The Worst Tech of of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at what to do with the firesale deals caused by the bad economy on enterprise tech equipment, and "The Weekly Tech Tip" is a simple quick fix to SQL Server database orphaned users. Our sponsor this week: Admin Script Editor by iTripoli. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
IBM Launches Microsoft-Free Linux PCs (InformationWeek)
Microsoft, EMC's RSA Partner To Protect Data (InformationWeek)
Amazon Opens SimpleDB To Unlimited Public Beta (InformationWeek)
I know where you can get Windows 7 Beta 1 DVD's... shhhhh (Technet Keith Combs' Blahg)
Patch Tuesday will have eight bulletins (CNet)
Hate Vista? Dell Now Charging $150 Extra for Windows XP (Sillicon Alley Insider) Thanks for catching our podcast. Submit feedback at our main page CSTechcast.com and follow our updates and randomness throughout the week on twitter.com/cstechcast and friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Let your friends know where they can find us so they can get in on the info and fun. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=53 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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A full year of shows at CSTechcast.com, and here's another for the IT pro. This week the topic is VM sprawl and how to control it with guest David Lynch, VP of Marketing at Embotics. In the news, the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India bring up the question of stability for IT companies in the region, spammers get their mojo back despite the shutdown of spam hoster McColo, a seemingly ignored Microsoft patch is seeing exploits in the wild, new Lenovo laptops can foil thieves with a text message, and IBM announces consulting services in for cloud computing. The Blu-ray consortium's seeming ignorance of it's real competition gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at the upcoming service pack 2 for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008, and find out how to extend your play time beyond 60 days with the evaluation copy of Windows Server 2008 in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Our sponsor this week: Admin Script Editor by iTripoli. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Mumbai terrorist attacks don't deter technology companies (InfoWorld)
Spam spikes again weeks after McColo shutdown (InfoWorld)
Microsoft warns of new Windows attacks (InfoWorld)
Lenovo service disables laptops with text message (ComputerWorld)
IBM to offer cloud computing services for enterprises (ComputerWorld)
Why You Probably Won't Find Amazing Sony Deals for Christmas (Gizmodo) Wow, has it really been a year? We started out thinking this would be fun, but we have also tried to make it professional with content that makes you want to keep coming back. If you like it, help us out and tweet, blog, or post about our show so you can share the podcast with those who can benefit. Keep coming back to CSTechcast.com for more great content for you, the IT professional. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=52 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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Download the podcast for IT pros at CSTechcast.com. This week Barry Phillips, Vice President and Group Manager at Citrix, talks about the continued convergence of voice and data and what that means for IT. In the news Citrix gets serious on the iPhone with Xen, Office makes a push onto the web with support for Mac and Linux, AMD tries to mount a comeback with it's quad-core Shanghai processors, Sun and others get layoff fever, and spammer centric ISP's get taken down. AVG's crippling false positive gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we talk about the next four years of technology and government in "A Closer Look", and we provide some Group Policy troubleshooting pointers in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Our sponsor this week: Admin Script Editor by iTripoli. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Citrix developing XenApps and XenDesktop for the iPhone (InfoWorld)
Microsoft: Mac, Linux systems can access Office Web (InfoWorld)
Dell, IBM, Microway Unveil AMD Shanghai Servers (InformationWeek)
Sun To Cut 18% Of Jobs, Reorganize Software Business (InformationWeek)
ICANN Shutting Down EstDomains Nov. 24 (InformationWeek)
Update: Flawed AVG antivirus update cripples Windows XP PCs (ComputerWorld) We'd like to thank our sponsor iTripoli for helping us bring you CS Techcast. Drop us a line or send us feedback all at the web site CSTechcast.com. Also find us during the week at twitter.com/cstechcast and friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Thanks for listening. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=50 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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CSTechcast.com has the latest podcast for IT professionals. This week Tableau CEO Christian Chabot talks to us about techniques for exploring new and unfamiliar data using business intelligence tools. Find out more about Tableau at tableausoftware.com. In the news, Microsoft's PDC show saw the unveiling of Windows 7 and Azure cloud services, Sony recalls another 100,000 laptop batteries, Linux is getting popular as a utility OS when you don't want to wait for Windows to boot, Informatica and Salesforce.com team to sync data between internal apps and SaaS software, and the Google-Yahoo deal sees scrutiny from the US Department of Justice. Shortchanging a tech policy debate by a certain presidential candidate's policy wonk gets "The Worst Tech Move of the Week", we take "A Closer Look" at Windows 7, and we tell you how to find a successful DFS sync in "The Weekly Tech Tip". Our sponsor this week: Admin Script Editor by iTripoli. Links to stories and sites discussed during the show:
Microsoft launches Windows Azure (CNet)
Sony Recalls Notebook Computer Batteries Due to Previous Fires (CSPC)
HP, Toshiba Recall Sony Laptop Batteries (InformationWeek)
Linux Headed For More PCs Than Windows (InformationWeek)
In Age of Impatience, Cutting PC Start Time (New York Times)
Linux to Ship on More Desktops than Windows (Linux-foundation.org)
Informatica To Offer Salesforce.com Integration Service (InformationWeek)
Yahoo, Google May Walk Away From Search Deal - Report (InformationWeek)
Obama tech advisor sounds cautious notes at one-man "debate" (Ars Technica) Your continued support for CS Techcast is appreciated. Thanks for posting reviews to the podcast directories like iTunes, Podcast Alley, and TechPodcasts.com. Give your feedback and let us know what your thinking. If you have show ideas, let us know. All our contact information is available on CSTechcast.com. Support our sponsors, who help cover the costs of doing this show every week. Check us out on the social networks at Twitter.com/cstechcast and Friendfeed.com/cstechcast. Thanks. Link to the episode: http://www.cstechcast.com/home.aspx?Episode=49 - Eric Beehler (consortioservices.com/blog)
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