In Depth

In Depth

Operating systems software

• Thought for the day: Don't pick on the Penguin!

  Legal squabbles over Linux demonstrate its strategic significance but do businesses no favours, says Simon Moores.  Continue Reading

• Novell must adopt strategy of co-operation to realise benefits of SuSE Linux takeover

  Novell needs to convince users and developers that it can make the most of Linux.  Continue Reading

• Adding memory boosts servers more than adding chips

  Installing 1Gbyte or 2Gbytes of extra memory on servers can boost the performance of database and operating system software...  Continue Reading

• Use more than one operating system to limit the impact of malicious code attacks

  In enterprise computing, a diverse operating system environment is more resistant to infection. Enterprises hit by SQL Slammer...  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: Government's Big Blue-eyed boy

  The government seems desperate to avoid supplier lock-in as it weighs up the benefits of open source against Windows. Yet Simon...  Continue Reading

• HSBC Bank saves by opening up the e-mail channel

  A wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings, HSBC Bank is one of the world's largest banking and financial services organisations....  Continue Reading

• Suppliers introduce price incentives to get users to invest in the latest PC hardware

  Users who are delaying the hassle of upgrading their PCs are being offered a host of different outsourcing options by suppliers...  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: Peaceful co-existence in our time?

  Microsoft seems prepared to accept that the open-source movement is not going to go away, especially now Linux is adopting an air...  Continue Reading

• IT bosses must keep tight rein on customisation of new Office apps

  The new version of Microsoft Office, due out on 21 October, will be a very different beast to its predecessors. The popular Word,...  Continue Reading

• Advice on data storage problems

  Users with storage problems would benefit from attending presentations by representatives from two sectors with very high storage...  Continue Reading

• Sun prepares to shine after gloomy spell

  Sun Microsystems has much to prove as it prepares for its annual user conference in San Francisco, which starts today.  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: Open source, open season

  Microsoft appears to be a victim of its own success, says Simon Moores. Why else would it be the target of virus writers and the...  Continue Reading

• Could Linux e-mail be your best option?

  Corporate e-mail In his latest report, Butler Group founder and president Martin Butler assesses the viability of SuSE...  Continue Reading

• The real cost of switching to Linux

  After years of experimentation with Linux in the enterprise, customers, analysts and suppliers are starting to agree on where...  Continue Reading

• Linux rises to every challenge

  What is it that makes users flock to use Linuxwhen they are threatened by costly licensing measures and doubts over security...  Continue Reading

• IBM countersues SCO over Linux

  Last week saw significant developments in the row over whether the latest versions of Linux infringe SCO copyrights, with SCO...  Continue Reading

• Users left in the dark as SCO remains tight-lipped about evidence for Linux lawsuits

  Questions about its plans to sue users are likely to dominate SCO's annual forum.  Continue Reading

• Sun and SuSE form Linux pact

  Sun has struck a deal to incorporate SuSE Linux's version of the operating system on its servers running x86 chips from Intel and...  Continue Reading

• Will Longhorn be a bull's-eye for Microsoft?

  Microsoft has talked up Longhorn, the next version of Windows, so much that industry expectations have rocketed. However, some...  Continue Reading

• Sun integrates Gnome into Solaris

  Sun has announced it has integrate its Solaris operating system with the open source Gnome (GNU Object Model Environment)...  Continue Reading

• Your shout! On the proliferation of junk e-mail

  Have your say at ComputerWeekly.com  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: Prepare for the code war

  The quest to harmonise software patent rules may sound good in theory, but the reality will only benefit predatory big business,...  Continue Reading

• Fear and doubt won't stop the march of Linux

  SCO's lawsuit against IBM and concerns about security have failed to dampen enterprise users' enthusiasm for the open-source...  Continue Reading

• Exchange 2003 to come with new licensing options

  Microsoft will introduce a per-user licensing option with the release of Exchange Server 2003 later this year, legitimising the...  Continue Reading

• Apache is no cowboy web server

  In the SSL/CW list of top IT skills, Apache is number 69  Continue Reading

• Still tied to your desk

  Technology may have removed the need for cables and desks, but we are still a long way from working from the sofa.  Continue Reading

• Letting your computer know how you feel

  Brunel University researchers aiming to improve the user experience are investigating computer systems that recognise and respond...  Continue Reading

• After an overload, I was shaking all the way home

  Nats One air traffic controller went home shaking after an incident. And a leaked report reveals that problems with technology...  Continue Reading

• SCO claims trump card in Unix ownership battle with Novell

  The confrontation between SCO and Novell has taken a new twist, with SCO claiming it has clear, documented evidence which proves...  Continue Reading

• Your shout! On Windows on the continent

  Have your say at ComputerWeekly.com.  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: Penguin power in the public sector

  Munich may have chosen Linux, but it's not all bad news for Microsoft. Peaceful co-existence between Windows and open source is...  Continue Reading

• Novell calls on SCO to prove Linux allegations

  Novell has joined the tumult surrounding Unix and Linux by challenging the SCO Group prove its allegations that some of SCO's...  Continue Reading

• Activity monitoring boosts data visibility

  BI and EAI suppliers are tying message feeds with analytics to provide real-time visibility through business activity monitoring...  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: An open source of anxiety for business

  The popularity of open source among small businesses has been vastly exaggerated, Simon Moores believes.  Continue Reading

• Microsoft autonomic at last

  Some claim that it was IBM that first put forward the term ‘autonomic’ for self-managing computers. Now it is thought that...  Continue Reading

• Minister backs open source as future for UK business users

  Giving his strong backing for the open source movement e-commerce minister Stephen Timms this month called on UK organisations to...  Continue Reading

• Could self-healing software be the IT director's way of cutting support costs?

  Difficulties lie behind the supplier hype for self-managing systems.  Continue Reading

• Housing charity slashes 70% off call costs with integrated communications solution

  The PeabodyTrust implements an IP communications network  Continue Reading

• HP anniversary: Software strategy still in flux

  Hardware represents most of Hewlett-Packard's product focus, but the company has several software products it needed to stabilise...  Continue Reading

• Ballmer: Windows Server 2003 does more with less

  Microsoft chief executive officer Steve Ballmer officially launched the company's long-awaited and thrice delayed Windows Server...  Continue Reading

• End-users lack faith in IT

  Technological compulsive disorder sweeps the UK.  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: Flights of fancy

  Launch a Java-based office suite? Simon Moores questions the sanity of any company that would consider doing so, even if it is...  Continue Reading

• Finding out the hidden costs of open source

  Although corporate attitudes to open source software are becoming increasingly positive, there are implications other than cost...  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: A marriage of convenience

  Unix has realised that it must enter the mid-range server market, to ensure it doesn't get bitten by the Linux penguin, says...  Continue Reading

• IT helpdesk software will only meet basic requirements

  Can we use our IT helpdesk software implementation to support our external customers as well?  Continue Reading

• The leap to Linux: Determining training needs

  Many companies initially install Linux for non-critical uses, but the operating system is now frequently being used to run core...  Continue Reading

• Facts and effects of Caldera/SCO vs IBM

  Microsoft may be the only winner in SCO's lawsuit against IBM and the open source ideal.  Continue Reading

• Strategy clinic: Where do legacy systems hide?

  I am preparing to streamline the IT infrastructure within my business. Can you give me any tips about how I can identify legacy...  Continue Reading

• Microsoft's failure to patch NT4 raises support issues

  Microsoft's statement last week that it would not offer a version of a security patch for NT 4.0 has raised questions about its...  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day: This will be the year for Linux

  Buying the open-source operating system is no longer a question of cheaper licensing, says Graham Taylor.  Continue Reading

• Getting wired: Caldera - a burnt-out case?

  An early open-source champion is threatening to revoke IBM's licence to use Unix code.  Continue Reading

• Can Computer Associates become more user friendly?

  The past two years has seen Computer Associates make sweeping changes in an attempt to change its public image, but market...  Continue Reading

• Thought for the day Games without frontiers

  As Linux reaches the next level of user acceptance, Simon Moores relishes the prospect of staid old IBM providing networking...  Continue Reading

• Obstacles on the road from Unix to Linux

  Gartner is predicting that 2004 will be the year Linux broke into mainstream enterprise computing. Cliff Saran spoke to Gartner’s...  Continue Reading

• Originality: an open question

  Microsoft has criticised the free software movement for being incapable of innovating.  Continue Reading

• New Linux editions signal start of a war on Unix

  The stage is set for a battle royal over which server operating system will dominate IT departments in coming years. Butler Group...  Continue Reading

• Professors propose quest for systems that never fail

  Two of the big computing issues - developing systems that never fail and getting computers to act like humans - have been...  Continue Reading

• Microsoft buys into server consolidation market

  Microsoft is attempting to encourage users of Windows NT Server 4.0 to consolidate and upgrade their servers by offering them...  Continue Reading

• Lindows a viable alternative to Windows

  Industry experts have said the Lindows operating system could become a viable open source alternative to Windows on the desktop,...  Continue Reading

• Linux community fears legal onslaught

  The Linux community must get ready for a significant increase in legal challenges on intellectual property grounds, experts have...  Continue Reading

• Schools link up to share content

  Broadband connectivity is allowing the region's pupils and teachers to plug into a community of learning schoolchildren in the...  Continue Reading

• Special Report: Linux means business

  Linux rules, OK! Well, that may be a few years away given Microsoft's apparently iron grip on the market, but the costs to the...  Continue Reading

• Linux on the rise in datacentre, study claims

  Linux will continue its march into the heart of the data centre, according to a study from investment banker Goldman Sachs.  Continue Reading

• Skills: Aim wide to hit the target

  As the IT jobs slump continues, now is a good time to get your existing skills certificated or train to gain new ones - but not...  Continue Reading

• Has Linux dug a grave for Unix?

  Linux has, traditionally, been seen as a threat to the dominance of Microsoft's Windows operating system, but many at the...  Continue Reading

• HP struggles to realise the potential of Compaq deal

  Compaq may now be fully integrated ito HP, but HP's roadmap for the merged company is still not clear.  Continue Reading

• Islington becomes transparent

  People in the London Borough of Islington can now monitor council decisions online, writes Ross Bentley.  Continue Reading

• Getting wired: Google's biological future?

  A service that uses real people to rank Web pages is helping academics find data online  Continue Reading

• E-mail overload causes stress for UK managers

  Irrelevant and poor-quality e-mails are causing stress among UK executives, according to a study by the BCS and Henley Management...  Continue Reading

• Your Shout: Outsourcing perils and the joy of text

  Simon Moores' warning about the dangers to the UK of over-eager outsourcing abroad rang bells with many readers, while some...  Continue Reading

• What the hacker saw

  Alfred Hitchcock was right to warn us to beware of strangers on a train. The difficulty has always been that you cannot tell the...  Continue Reading

• Follow the W2K leader

  Migrating to Windows 2000 Server should be easy if you copy others, writes Sally Whittle.  Continue Reading

• Getting wired: Time for desktop GNU/Linux?

  The open source movement goes for co-existence with Microsoft on the desktop.  Continue Reading

• Linux: the pic'n'mix solution

  If you want applications from different suppliers to interoperate, Linux is the way to go, writes Julia Vowler.  Continue Reading

• Remember: Memory skills

  Elephants may never forget, but many professionals find that names, important details and brilliant ideas go in one ear and out...  Continue Reading

• Have you considered an alternative to Exchange?

  IBM's launch of Lotus Domino 6 this week has focused attention on the cost and functionality of rival e-mail systems.  Continue Reading

• Selling the IT vision

  Empowering its 37,000 employees with the tools to do their jobs well is the main aim of Reed Elsevier's vice-president of...  Continue Reading

• Data quality for business intelligence

  When selecting a tool for data migration and cleansing what are the core characteristics and extended features of an intelligent...  Continue Reading

• When 999 won't work, get texting

  SMS has made it easier for hard-of-hearing people to contact the emergency services, writes Karl Cushing  Continue Reading

• Knowledge management benchmark measures

  How can businesses ascertain whether knowledge management is being used effectively within the business?  Continue Reading

• Gartner: Microsoft digital certificate flaw makes Explorer prime target

  Analyst group Gartner has warned that a security flaw in Internet Explorer could expose personal information, undermine...  Continue Reading

• Linuxworld: How Amazon saved millions with Linux

  Amazon, the online retail pioneer, surprised the IT world last year when it announced that it had saved 25% of its IT costs in a...  Continue Reading

• Sun focuses application strategy with LAMP initiative

  Sun Microsystems' announcement of a new, entry-level Linux server this week is the opening salvo in an aggressive effort to...  Continue Reading

• Linuxworld: Assessing the commercial reality

  The Linux operating system has seen dramatic growth in the past year as users try to stretch their tight budgets.  Continue Reading

• .net benefits?

  Microsoft has shipped its latest Windows Server operating system. But, asks Danny Bradbury, does it solve enough of Windows...  Continue Reading

• Acting to build online bridges

  Children from the UK and the US are learning together through a Web theatre project, writes Karl Cushing  Continue Reading

• Four hot technologies

  Butler Group examines the business case for Grid Computing, Citrix's portal strategy, web collaborative computing plus a new...  Continue Reading

• The power of four

  The recent formation of UnitedLinux has caused some confusion in the industry on a number of levels.  Continue Reading

• Instant benefits

  Once the domain of Internet buffs and teenagers, instant messaging has moved into the mainstream and is now being considered by...  Continue Reading

• The state of the Linux nation

  Linux has come a long way from its home-grown roots to the extent that many people now proclaim it the saviour of computing. But...  Continue Reading

• Computer scrawl

  Microsoft is shipping its tablet PC operating system in the fourth quarter of this year. But will anyone care? Danny Bradbury...  Continue Reading

• P2P finds business applications

  Peer-to-peer computing has moved beyond music file swapping to offering business users a secure environment for collaboration and...  Continue Reading

• Microsoft's licence to bill

  Microsoft's Software Assurance licensing scheme has been the cause of much complaint in the past few months. Danny Bradbury...  Continue Reading

• Does Staroffice offer business a real alternative to Microsoft?

  As users grumble about Microsoft's software licensing charges, Eric Doyle assesses an open source alternative for corporate...  Continue Reading

• White heat column:Facts and myths

  Don't be afraid of making the first step towards Linux, says Jasmin Ul-Haque, because your customers will appreciate that you are...  Continue Reading

• UnitedLinux could kill off Unix

  The move to create a standard version of Linux for the enterprise could boost the prospects of the free, open source operating...  Continue Reading

• The mainframe killer carves itself a niche

  Despite the hype when it was launched, Windows 2000 Datacenter has not taken the mainframe market by storm. However, it has found...  Continue Reading

• Should you be using Windows XP?

  The latest version of Microsoft's Windows operating system offers a way in to 64-bit computing and Web services. But should your...  Continue Reading

• The World Cup at work

  Warning: the daily grind could seriously damage your enjoyment of World Cup 2002. To make sure that none of you miss out, Mark...  Continue Reading

• What your inbox says about you

  Will Brown, chief technology officer at Telecom One, talks to Monica Seeley about how he runs his e-mail without letting it run...  Continue Reading