Ubuntu Server: Lean, mean, cloud-making machine

Ubuntu Server is a fast, free, no-frills Linux distribution that fills a niche between utilitarian Debian and the GUI-driven and, some would argue, over-featured Novell SUSE and Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Survey: Even Linux-loving firms only deploy it to one-fifth of employees
Half of the businesses that have deployed Linux on the desktop have rolled it out to less than 20% of their workers due to perceived and real obstacles, according to a survey by released by a U.K. analyst firm.

Ex-Microsoftie: Free software will kill Redmond
Bill Gates probably will not sing the praises of Keith Curtis, a programmer with Microsoft for 11 years who's now left the fold and written a book about why the Redmond way will fail. Oh yeah, Curtis is not afraid to speak his mind as a Linux guru, either.

Novell throws support behind Moblin Linux for Intel Atom netbooks, devices
Eschewing its own SUSE Linux, Novell said it will back Intel's Moblin Linux in the fast-growing market for netbooks and smartphones.

More e-mail for less money
There is no recession if you're a certified and experienced Microsoft Exchange administrator. Headhunters tell me these techs are earning up to the $100,000 in some parts of the country. So if you or your management have been avoiding hosted e-mail because those services cost money and the belief around your shop is e-mail is free, think again. Then take another look at hosted e-mail services in general, and hosted Exchange services in particular.

Last hurrah: Sun updates Solaris with Nehalem features
In the last major release before its acquisition by Oracle, Sun on Thursday made available version 10 05/09 of its venerable Solaris server operating system.

Solving problems graphically
Businesses, especially white collar businesses, are all about "processes and information" (thank you Michael Dortch). But what do you do when you find yourself looking at the same processes and the same information and can't improve your results? Try looking at things in a new way, graphically, using tools such as MindManager or TheBrain.

Novell's SLES 11 is packed to the gills and keeps moving at a decent clip
In our Clear Choice test of Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 11, we found it to be packed with useful management tools, to have virtualization threaded though many of its processes, and to perform at rates close to the high bar set by past versions of the Linux bundle.

New surveys on small business security and success
Understanding small business is tough because there are so many of them and they vary so widely. But all small businesses share certain problems, attitudes, and approaches to those problems. Let's give a hand to Symantec and Network Solutions for doing their part to discover the state of security and creating (and studying) the Small Business Success Index.

OpenSolaris, Linux could merge under Oracle
Oracle may end up merging the best of OpenSolaris with Linux once it takes control of Sun Microsystems, but it is unlikely to kill off Sun's widely used Solaris OS, analysts said.

College student fights warrant seizing his computer
Boston College is finding itself in the middle of a controversy over its handling of a case involving a student who allegedly sent an e-mail claiming that a fellow student was gay and used a college computer network to change grades.

Improving local storage capacity and flexibility
I said it years ago, but it's even more true today: you can never be too rich, too thin, or have too much data storage. Now that you can buy hard drives holding a terabyte of data (1,000 gigabytes) for a little over $100, you might think storage isn't a problem anymore. But upgrading storage across various desktops and laptops isn't really data storage, it's just data scattered. Organized storage takes some planning, so let's talk about three new products that will help you intelligently increase local storage capacity.

Microsoft eating up U.S. and global netbook markets
Microsoft's chest thumping last week over its 96% share of the U.S. netbook market for February doesn't appear to be just its normal bravado as the company also is charging toward dominance on a global front.

One foot on the ground and one in the clouds
The early adopter "cloud crowd" makes the most headlines, but they're only the tip of the small business iceberg. Looking at various data storage vendor customer numbers has convinced me 90% of small businesses are still mostly land (or LAN) based. Some people don't yet trust Internet data storage, and some like to wear data storage suspenders with their data storage belts. The good news for both? Options for combo cloud and local storage hybrids continue to grow.

Project Spring Cleaning 2009
Technology needs spring cleaning just like rugs and garages. The trick today is to focus on security and maintenance issues that get ignored during normal work days. Set aside some time now to clean up and your technology will support you much more smoothly through the summer.

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The end of phone tag. Sprint Mobile Integration. - Sprint

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