HP to add storage to converged server/switch

Inquiring minds really want to know when HP will add storage to its converged hardware offering.

The answer appears to be as soon after Jan. 2, 2010 as possible. Continued »

Cameos by Blue Angels, Marc Benioff highlight OOW

A late night cab trip from SFO to Union Square was lightened up a bit with the big Michael Dell billboard on the 101. It went something like this: Dell enjoys the best of both worlds: See Salesforce.com @ Oracle OpenWorld. Continued »

Sun partners burnt at Oracle OpenWorld

Oracle OpenWorld 2009 did  not open well for Sun partners who are already reaching for anti-anxiety meds as the Sun Microsystems acquisition finalizes. Continued »

Top five questions for Oracle OpenWorld 2009

This’ll be easy. As Oracle keeps trying to close its Sun Microsystems acquisition, the top Oracle OpenWorld queries are locked up this year. But partners and solution providers still have other nagging issues they want addressed at the show. So, here goes:

1: What will Oracle do with Sun hardware (and Sun’s hardware channel?) Granted, with those pesky EU regulators breathing down it’s neck–mostly on MySQL questions–Larry Ellison needs to reassure Sun partners and customers that Oracle wants their business but without saying anything detailed that could further inflame the law-and-order crowd.

2: Specifically, how will Oracle deal with Exadata? The first, HP-based big-bang “database machine”  was a direct sale from Oracle although any Oracle partner worth his or her salt knows that can be finessed if they file a non-standard deal and can best the Oracle rep. With a new Sun-based box, will Sun hardware partners get to play? If so, how much will they love competing with Oracle partners (and Oracle direct sales?)

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The Oracle conspiracy

For those who attribute Machiavellian motivations to everything Larry Ellison does, here’s a doozy of a theory.

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Benioff to take stage at Oracle OpenWorld

This is interesting: Salesforce.com CEO (and former Oracle guy) Marc Benioff will speak at Oracle OpenWorld next Tuesday alongside Michael Dell.

For those who haven’t followed the labyrinthine tales of the Oracle-Salesforce.com rapport, believe it, this is interesting.  Salesforce.com says this will be an official OOW event although it will be held  at the Yerba Buena Arts Center a venue that is very close to but may not be part of OOW’s overall Moscone Center site.

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Oh wait! There’s more

Still more news from HP just as folks were trying to digest the juicy tidbit that it’s about to meld its printer and PC businesses into one. 

This news is official, however. HP  brought in a former Sun exec to run sales for its  big storage, server and networking business in the Americas. Gee, I wonder what brought that on?  Randy Seidl will be senior vice president of Enterprise Servers and Storage  (ESS) and Networking Group, reporting to executive vice president Dave Donatelli. Continued »

Huge HP changes on deck

Whoa.

Is HP really going to converge its once-sacred printer business with the PC group? Yes, according to a Wall Street Journal report (password required) today. Continued »

HP, Microsoft moves irk partners

Hewlett Packard channel partners were unpleased to learn this week that HP will make them foot the bill for new compliance training.

HP wants all its parters to comply with the U.S. Government Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by year’s end. And said compliance will set them back $120 which they will be required to front on their credit card upon registration.

The goal is to make it “easy and affordable..for our channel partners to comply,” according to HP. The problem is, the FCPA is for “U.S. firms seeking to do business in foreign markets” and many of the affected HP partners are not authorized to sell HP products outside the U.S.

Well, at least they can charge it. Microsoft ERP partners were unpleased to learn that, starting in November, tehy won’t be able to fund their software license purchases with credit cards–corproate or otherwise. The reason? Microsoft was sick of the associated charges so now VARs must pay by check or PO.  The news was first highlighted in Bob Scott’s Insights last week. 

Check out more channel news at SearchITChannel.com.

Big changes for spawn of Perot

Wow.  it was quite a week for the IT brainchildren of H. Ross Perot.

On Monday, Dell announces a $3.9 billion buyout of Perot Systems to bulk up its enterprise IT services against nemesis Hewlett Packard. Two day later, that same HP drops the venerable EDS moniker it acquired a few years ago for a cool $12 billion and change. Continued »