SYS-CON Events announced today that Layer 7 Technologies, a provider of API Management and mobilization tools for the new open enterprise, will exhibit at SYS-CON’s 12th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on June 10–13, 2013, at the Javits Center in New York City, New York.
Layer 7 is a leading provider of security and management products for API-driven integrations spanning the extended hybrid enterprise. Layer 7 products simplify:
The management of open API for developer communities
Partner and cross-divisional integration via SOA
Cloud connectivity
Enterprise mobile enablement for BYOD (bring-your-own-device) initiatives
Monthly Archives: February 2013
McAfee Named “Gold Sponsor” of Cloud Expo New York
SYS-CON Events announced today that McAfee, a wholly owned subsidiary of Intel Corporation, has been named “Gold Sponsor” of SYS-CON’s 12th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on June 10–13, 2013, at the Javits Center in New York City, New York.
McAfee, a wholly owned subsidiary of Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC), empowers businesses, the public sector, and home users to safely experience the benefits of the Internet. The company delivers proactive and proven security solutions and services for systems, networks, and mobile devices around the world. With its Security Connected strategy, innovative approach to hardware-enhanced security, and unique Global Threat Intelligence network, McAfee is relentlessly focused on keeping its customers safe.
A Cloud-Based Testing Tool for the Budget-Minded
Finally, a low-cost cloud-based QA testing tool hits the market. After an extensive beta program by software testers at 500 companies from 23 countries, QASymphony announced general availability of qTest, a cloud-based enterprise test management solution.
The testing tool is aimed at small and growing QA teams looking to escape the heavy lifting and expense required from enterprise-focused systems such as HP Quality Center.
Its vendor claims qTest is on par with large enterprise systems, yet unlike those heavyweights the platform’s SaaS subscription model makes it a low-risk proposition to pilot and adopt.
At a scant $20 per user per month, it certainly offers teams an affordable path towards formalizing their quality control procedures.
The tool offers a collaborative work environment for teams to manage requirements, design test cases, plan test execution, track defects, and generate status and quality-metrics reports.
Cloud: Commoditizing End Users
Prioritization. It’s something that’s built into nearly every technology, particularly that which services network traffic. Rate shaping. Queuing. Coloring bits.
We do a lot of interesting gyrations with technology to ensure that some user traffic and requests are more equal than others.
Today we still do the same thing, but it’s done in different ways. Software as a Service charges a premium for “extra” API calls, for example, and if you want access to premium content there’s sure to be a paywall in front of it.
But that’s at the service level. It’s not the same as prioritization of individual users; of affording specific users privileges of some kind based either on their position (No, no, the CEO can’t have his e-mail be delayed – never apply bandwidth limiting policies to him) or on their customer status (They’re a “gold” customer, make sure their requests go to the fastest application instance).
Rackspace Cuts Prices
Rackspace has slashed the price of its cloud bandwidth and content delivery network (CDN) services by 33%. It’s also implementing tiered pricing for its OpenStack products, starting with Cloud Files, its object storage service.
Most of the new pricing will kick in over the next few weeks.
The bulk of Rackspace’s revenues still come from hosting. In its last quarter its cloud sales, which compete with Amazon’s, were up 49% year-over-year to $87.3 million. As good as that might sound for the last five quarters its cloud sales have been on a downward trajectory. For instance, year-over-year cloud revenue rose 69% in Q2 but only 57% in Q3.
The Wall Street Journal concluded that the company isn’t delivering on its high valuation. Its growth depends on how quickly its OpenStack Infrastructure-as-a-Service is adopted.
Creating classrooms and learning in the cloud
Patrick Fogarty with some of his students
Guest blog by Patrick Fogarty
Faculty Advisor of Technology and Teacher at Xaverian High School
When I tell my students they need to be learning the skills for jobs that don’t even exist yet, I’m speaking from personal experience. As Xaverian High School’s Faculty Advisor of Instructional Technology, I find myself frequently defining an ever-evolving job I more or less made up for myself.
My responsibilities change with the needs of our students and institution, and that’s why cloud storage has proven to be one of the most invaluable weapons in our arsenal of tech tools.
I work at one of the first iPad one-to-one schools in the United States, which means each and every student and teacher is provided with an iPad and expected to utilize it in the everyday business of teaching and learning. It’s worked …
The best cloud companies and CEOs to work for in 2013
Hiring great people and creating a culture of achievement that is fun, focused and able to get challenging tasks done is not an easy task.
Keeping that culture strong and focused on the customer takes a unique leader that consistently earns trust and respect. Those are the qualities I think of whenever I’m asked to recommend the best cloud computing companies to work for.
Using the scores from Glassdoor.com I’ve put together the table below comparing cloud computing companies and when available, the percentage of employees who approve of their CEO.
If you’re not familiar with Glassdoor, it’s a website that gives employees the chance to rate their companies and CEOs anonymously, along with reporting salaries. Friends in the Human Resources community tell me it’s an effective recruitment site as well.
Cloud computing companies are sorted based on the percentage of employees would recommend …
Parallels named 2013 IBM Beacon Award Finalist for Best Industry Solution for Telecommunications
Parallels today announced it was named an IBM Beacon Award Finalist in the “Best Industry Solution for Telecommunications” category. This prestigious honor is awarded each year to a select number of IBM Business Partners to recognize information technology excellence, commitment to skills attainment, industry knowledge and innovative solutions based on IBM products and services.
The Beacon Awards are an important element of IBM’s Business Partner recognition program. Chosen from among hundreds of nominations by leading industry journalists, analysts and IBM executives, Beacon Award winners have set the standard for business excellence, innovative technology solutions, industry knowledge and client satisfaction. The IBM Beacon Awards provide a wide range of industry recognition, increased visibility and promotional opportunities to award winners and finalists.
Being a Beacon Award Finalist in the Telecommunications category is quite an honor to Parallels. It highlights our commitment to IBM as well as our joint efforts to provide the telecommunications industry with technical solutions and expertise for launching and managing cloud services. We look forward to continuing to work with IBM to drive success in the cloud for our joint customers.
For more information about the IBM Beacon Awards, including information about winners and finalists, please visit the IBM Beacon Awards site.
A Love Story: Devices and Cloud – Perfect Together
We’ve heard about Google Glasses. And we’ve heard about Apple iWatch. And yes, we’ve heard about people embedding cellphones into shoes [1]. Once again, the term “wearable computing” is becoming a hot topic in news and literatures. Some have even announced that the age of wearable technology is here [2]. The world is surely changing fast. Aren’t we still debating who makes the best smartphones and the best tablets? What’s going on here?
The foreseeable booming of wearable computing is just another chapter of the unstoppable fusion process between cyber space and reality. Eventually, machine computing will become ubiquitous, and the boundary between human bodies and devices will fade away. This is a vision shared by many scientists, innovators, entrepreneurs and Hollywood writers. It’s becoming a reality faster than we might have expected. Devices will no longer be just peripheral augmentations, but be inextricably intertwined with human lives.
Cloud Computing Is Simplifying Things
“You need two groups when dealing with cloud compliance,” explained Rob LaMear IV, CEO and Founder of Fpweb.net, in this exclusive Q&A with Cloud Expo Conference Chair Jeremy Geelan. “First,” LaMear continued, “you need a provider that is willing to operate transparently and work with you and your auditors. Most seasoned providers are well aware of this symbiotic relationship and are open to getting it out in the open early.”
Cloud Computing Journal: The move to cloud isn’t about saving money, it is about saving time. – Agree or disagree?
Rob LaMear: Agree. Time is money. Focusing your team on strategic initiatives gives you a competitive advantage. You get to market faster and can deliver something truly special before your competitors. First one to market typically owns 70–80% of the market share. Think Apple.