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Are 64-Bit Databases a Cost-Effective Solution?
Following dismal sales revenues during 2002, database vendors are eager to convince users that they need to acquire and upgrade their data management systems. In addition to their usual push, vendors are offering products that will take advantage of the 64-bit processors that are coming to market. The outcome of these activities will depend on whether potential buyers can be convinced that migrating to bigger machines can produce positive returns.
June, 2003
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AMD’s Opteron Processor Offers New Value (2Q03)
Advanced Micro Devices recent announcement of its Opteron family of processors offers a new opportunity to organizations wishing to move up to 64-bit computing. Back compatibility with 32-bit applications means that applications do not need to be recompiled before they can be run efficiently on the new processor. Early benchmarks of Opteron processors executing 64-bit code have show speed gains in comparison to Intel Itanium processors in many cases.
June, 2003
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Update: Oracle Trying to Spoil the Peoplesoft/JDE Deal
Just four days after PeopleSoft offered to buy J.D. Edwards, Oracle announces that it is offering to buy PeopleSoft for $5.1 billion. Although by every sign, the PeopleSoft/JDE deal is friendly - the two CEO's claim to have been talking about this for months - the Oracle bid for PeopleSoft is hostile. Furthermore, unlike PeopleSoft and JDE, whose products and markets can be viewed as complementary, Oracle and PeopleSoft are fierce competitors.
June, 2003
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Outsourcing Desktop Management Services Is a Popular Strategy
Outsourcing desktop management is now a multi-billion dollar global industry. There is a long and growing list of major vendors providing a variety of services in this area, as well as many smaller players that offer more specialized, targeted desktop services.
June, 2003
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Web Metrics Assess Site Usability (2Q03)
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed a Web Metrics Testbed to support rapid, remote testing and evaluation of a websiteâs usability. The tools are in the public domain and can be downloaded free. The payoff from automating some of the test functions is that website evaluation can be more economically undertaken and additional information can be gained.
May, 2003
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Economic Realities of Wireless LANs (2Q03)
Planning for the inevitable introduction of WLANs into your organization, if they are not already there, is much better than allowing a hodgepodge to develop. The two major concerns for managers in regard to WLANs are data capacity and security. Consideration of WLANs today should be limited to those defined by the 802.11 family of specifications.
May, 2003
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Is Sarbanes-Oxley the New Y2K?
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was passed by Congress in 2002 in response to a number of high profile financial scandals, such as those at Enron and WorldCom. Its goal is intended to make corporate accounting procedures more transparent to investors and regulators. Although the law includes a number of new mandates, there are two sections that have clear implications for corporate information systems.
May, 2003
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Many IT Organizations Require a Better Focus on IT Facilities Management
IT facilities management is a critical discipline, but it is not receiving the attention it deserves and needs in many organizations. More formalization in this area can improve recoverability and security, while lowering the overall cost of managing the data center.
May, 2003
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Organizations Move Toward Server Consolidation Cost Savings
Many IT managers have found that their server farms have proliferated to the extent that a great deal of staff time must be dedicated to the maintaining of this infrastructure rather than the development of new capabilities. In such cases, server consolidation becomes an attractive possibility. Results of Computer Economics' 2003 Information Systems Spending survey indicate that nearly one-half of all IT organizations are involved in server consolidation.
May, 2003
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Asia Internet Users by Gender — 2003 to 2007 (2Q03)
Computer Economics projects Internet usage statistics based on quarterly research, which consists of data compiled from a variety of sources including governmental and Internet agencies, market research organizations, and our own surveys and proprietary methodology.
May, 2003
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Service Level Agreements Are Critical to Successful Network Management
Although many companies have implemented formal service level agreements to manage network availability, a large number of organizations are not using this important management strategy.This article outlines key points for establishing effective SLAs for network management.
May, 2003
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The Latest Word-on-the-Street Concerning MAPICS
Reliable sources indicate that there are some interesting developments concerning MAPICS, following its acquisition of competitor Frontstep last year.
May, 2003
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DRP and BCP: Building an Effective Corporate Plan
The ability of your business to perform successfully is potentially at the mercy of many unknown factors. These factors can include disasters caused by Mother Nature, physical and environmental accidents, utility failures, and more. Additionally, every organization now faces the ongoing threat of a catastrophic terrorist event--whether you conduct business domestically or internationally.
May, 2003
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Users Turn to Other Options as Mainframe TCO Increases
Although the majority of large business applications still run on mainframes, the growing likelihood of high ownership costs and increased management challenges are cutting into those numbers. The just completed Computer Economics 2003 Information Systems Spending survey clearly shows more mainframe owners seem to be migrating toward a server-based architecture. These statistics imply that buyers are highly satisfied with the value offered by small servers in their organizations.
May, 2003
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Standardization Boosts iSCSI Economic Potential (2Q03)
The advent of the Internet SCSI standard holds the potential for reducing cost of ownership of SANs. The iSCSI standard marries IP, SCSI, and Gigabit Ethernet technologies to provide a high-speed data path that removes many of the bottlenecks of traditional TCP/IP data transfers. Even though SANs are relatively new technology, they have become widely used. The 2003 Computer Economics Information Systems Spending survey indicates that half of IT sites either are using or implementing SANs.
May, 2003