The last couple of years have been painful, to say the least. Some call them unprecedented, financially, but I do believe that is pushing the descriptor a bit far, since there have been plenty of instances where business pretty much en-masse questioned the amount that IT returns for their investment and cut budgets, so the feel of this recession is not much different than what we’ve felt before, it’s just by necessity. The funny bit of this is that everyone seems to agree that IT spending still went up in 2009, just by a massively reduced amount. Since the pinch is definitely out there, one can only assume that a 1.6% (or so, depending upon your source) increase in spending was not enough to cover increases in maintenance costs and new purchases. The impact on IT is pretty straight-forward, at least in my mind. Major IT projects were delayed or canceled based on to... (more)

Cost Optimization for Cloud Applications at Cloud Expo Silicon Valley

Cloud Expo Silicon Valley $800 Savings here! Traditionally, the cost of deployment has not been considered an important parameter of architectural tradeoffs. Since the main driver of cloud computing is its promise of cost savings through "pay for what you use," there is a strong incentive to build applications that consume fewer resources. In his session at the 7th International Cloud Expo, Udayan Banerjee, CTO at NIIT Technologies Ltd., will: Establish the need: 10% less resource required = 10% cost saving Identify what we need to unlearn: Parallel and distributed world is a di... (more)

CloudFucius Investigates: The Comeback Cloud

Not that it was ever down and out, but the whole cloud computing concept has gotten off to a grand but challenging start.  It was all the rage when first ‘conceived’ as the new way of hosting applications with the promise of cost savings, automation, flexible/dynamic architectures, fast and repeatable deployment and a pay-as-you-go model.  The Coin Operated Cloud but with very little understanding of all the buttons, functions and risks.  As IT started to comprehend the nuances of the cloud, then some very serious questions regarding it’s ability to protect and secure information... (more)

The Top 250 Players in the Cloud Computing Ecosystem

In the run-up to the next Cloud Expo, 7th Cloud Expo (November 1–4, 2010) being held at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Silicon Valley, it's time to give my earlier list a complete overhaul. Here, accordingly, is an expanded list of the most active players in the Cloud Ecosystem. I have increased it from the 'mere' 150 I identified back in January of this year, to 250, testimony – as if any were needed! – to the fierce and continuing growth of the "Elastic IT" paradigm throughout the world of enterprise computing. Editorial note: The words in quotation marks used to describe ... (more)

Stoneware Named “Bronze Sponsor” of Cloud Expo Silicon Valley

Cloud Expo Silicon Valley $800 Savings here! SYS-CON Events announced today that Stoneware, a leader in private cloud computing, has been named "Bronze Sponsor" of SYS-CON's 7th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on November 1-4, 2010, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Explore Cloud Expo Sponsorship & Exhibit Opportunities ! Headquartered in Indianapolis and founded in 2000, Stoneware is a privately held corporation providing innovative software that enables organizations to build their own 'private' cloud with a virtual web desktop to access a... (more)