Category: Computers, Science & Technology

Good for us ol’ time techies! Less folks are going into tech because it is too geeky. So, those of us that are hard core techies are in demand… good for us. After years and years of just plain ol’ hard core experience, I am now finally getting certified… I just got my Certified Citrix Administrator paper… and I am going for more. And, sure enough, I get more e-mails now saying, “Don’t you wanna move to California or New York and get a new job?” Ah, no. I like North Carolina!

Report: Supply of IT Pros Down, Though Demand Is Up

“The bad news is IT job growth is bad; the good news is because there aren’t enough good workers to go around. Good news if you’re in the workforce, that is. IT employment posted a small increase in April, but has remained essentially flat for the last 11 months, finds the April 2007 IT employment report released on May 9 by the National Association of Computer Consultant Businesses, a trade association that represents IT staffing firms. April saw an increase of 900 IT workers, leaving the total level of IT employment at 3.67 million, where it has rested since August 2006, found the report. Between May and July 2006, IT employment rested at 3.66 million. ‘IT employment has remained essentially flat for the last 11 months because of limited supply of IT professionals, not lack of demand. To the contrary, demand for IT professionals remains very robust with unemployment below 1 percent in many IT skill sets,’ said Mark Roberts, CEO of NACCB. The report stated that, while companies have always used IT staffing and solutions firms to address the flexible nature of their services, clients are increasingly turning to IT services firms because they are unable to fill their IT vacancies through internal channels.”

Vista can now be a guest or a host operating system in VMware!

VMware Workstation 6 Supports Vista

“VMware this week made available version 6.0 of its desktop virtualization product, which has set a standard for testing and development, and competes with Microsoft’s now-free VirtualPC. New features in Workstation 6.0 include support for Vista, dual monitors, and USB 2.0 devices. While the server world increasingly turns to virtualization to take advantage of the huge advances in CPU power with the advent of multi-core chips, virtual machines play a critical role in aiding IT administration, development and software testers. Users can quickly boot up a computer within a computer, as well as do cross-platform testing without multiple hardware setups. VMware supports a wide array of operating systems, including Linux, Solaris, FreeBSD, Windows and even Novell NetWare. It also can run fully 64-bit systems, and handles up to 10 network cards and experimental support for two-way Virtual SMP. With version 6.0, Windows Vista is now supported as both a guest or host (the physical machine running the virtual machines) operating system. VMware says this will enable businesses to upgrade while still supporting legacy applications, which can be run instead inside a virtual machine. Separate from VMware Workstation, the company has added what it calls the ACE Option Pack, which enables administrators to create secure and centrally managed virtual machine images. They can be transferred to portable devices such as USB thumb drives for added mobility. New experimental features include “recording” every action done inside a virtual machine such that it can be replayed exactly the same way at a later date. This ensures bugs can be reproduced and resolved, VMware says. Also experimental is support for Virtual Machine Interface (VMI).”

I’ve never really thought about it… but back there somewhere, somebody designed the fonts that we use every day… so, here’s a story on the Helvetica font at 50 years old!

Helvetica at 50

“The Helvetica font is celebrating its 50th birthday. You’ve probably seen it a thousand times today. Why? At this moment in boardrooms across the globe, captains of industry are leafing through sheet after sheet of typefaces. There are hundreds of choices, but many of these movers and shakers don’t take a lot of leafing before plumping for Helvetica. We live in a world where we are surrounded 24 hours a day by adverts and corporate communications, many in typefaces chosen to subliminally complement the message. Helvetica’s message is this: you are going to get to your destination on time; your plane will not crash; your money is safe in our vault; we will not break the package; the paperwork has been filled in; everything is going to be OK. It is sans serif. There are no wiggly bits at the end of the letters. It has smooth, clean lines, and an unobtrusive geometry that almost suggests it was designed not to stand out.”

OK… your odd thought for the day… does the Helvetica font really make you think that everything will be all right? Hummmm…

There are various reports by Sony of what the numbers are but here’s the last I heard:

$151 million Domestic
$231 million International
$382 million Worldwide

Wow. Apparently you guys went out and watched Spider-Man 3 from my recommendation. I must learn to use my power for good (I’m kidding!!! Yeesh!)

Hummm… that would be something wouldn’t it?

Reports: Microsoft Eyeing Deal to Buy Yahoo

“Microsoft Corp. has stepped up its pursuit of a deal to buy Yahoo Inc., two newspapers reported on Friday, as the two companies reenter talks to strike a deal amid huge growth from rival Google Inc. Yahoo shares jumped 14.6 percent to $32.20 in electronic trading on Friday, while Microsoft shares fell 1.4 percent to $30.53. The two companies have held informal deal talks over the years. But the latest approach comes as Microsoft seeks to ink a deal in the wake of Google’s expansion. ‘It’s been talked about for a long time, ever since Google came into the picture. I can’t imagine a more perfect deal,’ said Peter Lobravico, vice president of risk arbitrage sales/trading at brokerage Wall Street Access. ‘You can’t find a stronger buyer than Microsoft and while it would spur a lot of political and regulatory noise, everyone knows in the end that the deal would go through.'”

Well, this has to be one of the stranger stories in the tech world… and one I am sure you will be hearing a LOT about. First of all, let me say that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) is BAD legislation right up front. However, for the moment, it is the law of the land! What does this have to do with Digg, the social networking news site? Well, it seems that a Digg poster posted a story that included the code key that unlocks the new HD-DVD Hi-Def movie DRM (Digital Rights Management.) Publishing this key is a violation of the DMCA. Digg management made the decision to remove the post, and the poster’s account. And, it was on!

It seems that the users of Digg (pretty much en masse) claim that Kevin Rose and company should have left the post up, after all, they reasoned, “Isn’t post popularity the only thing that is supposed to elevate a posting on Digg?” And, the post with the code was up to over 15,000 Diggs! So, they said, “Leave it alone!” Never mind that according to the DMCA Digg could have been held accountable for the post (that THEY didn’t even know about until after the fact, I mentioned it was a bad law, didn’t I?) But, at the moment it IS the law. They acted in their own best interest to legally protect themselves, I am sure at the advice of their lawyers. But the Digg community is unrelenting! They are trashing Digg, Kevin, and the other Digg management for their actions. Come on, guys! Lighten up! There is no conspiracy theory to be propagated here… Digg is a company… they are protecting themselves from the Feds. Were they “in the pocket of the HD-DVD people” because they sponsored some Diggnation episodes? No. They were just covering their collective posteriors!

Long a subject of conjecture… it is now official! Dell will ship PCs with Ubuntu Linux pre-installed for customers!

Dell to Preload Ubuntu Linux on Some Consumer Machines

“Dell and Canonical will announce a partnership on May 1 that will see the hardware giant ship Ubuntu Linux preinstalled on some of its desktop and laptop computers. The move, which has been expected for some time, makes Dell the first major desktop vendor to release consumer desktops and laptops with preinstalled Linux. Jeremy Bolen, a Dell spokesperson in Round Rock, Texas, confirmed to eWEEK in an interview that the company plans to offer select consumer products preloaded with Ubuntu 7.04 but declined to be more specific, saying that an update will be made in the coming weeks.”

Imagine Microsoft and Adobe both trying to be first to Open Source new software? Are we in the Twilight Zone? Where’s Rod Serling? Wow.

Adobe vs Microsoft battle turns to open source

“Adobe open sources flex (as well as a growing list of other technologies). Microsoft responds by indicating it will open source some of its upcoming Silverlight product (which competes with Adobe’s Flash technology). There is a war emerging for Rich Internet Applications and the desktops that tie into them. And open source is quickly becoming the weapon of choice.”

Who would have thought THIS would happen? Well, at least, I believe, this is good for software customers.

“There is a war emerging for Rich Internet Applications and the desktops that tie into them. And open source is quickly becoming the weapon of choice.”

You have all that open highway… and we need alternative power sources. What if we turned those highways into wind farms? Cool!

Proposals would turn highways into wind farms

“Clogged highways and frustratingly waiting while your gas needle plummets to empty usually doesn’t conjure up thoughts of green, but it seems like these very roads could become the source of a lot more energy. Several recent student designs have proposed that major roadways be retrofitted with various forms of wind energy collection devices, ranging from overhead turbines that collect energy from quickly-moving cars below to barrier panels that harness the wind from closely passing vehicles moving in opposite directions. Ideally, the wind energy could then be sent back out to the grid to power nearby communities, light-rail transportation systems, or even intelligent billboards. Of course, most of these ideas are still in the research phase, and even if proven feasible, we can’t imagine the up-front costs (or inconveniences of installing these things) to be minor, but we’re sure that government subsidies should be able to to lend a helping hand.”

The next release of Windows Server is code named “Longhorn” and it will replace the current production version of Windows Server 2003 when it is finally released.

Microsoft Releases First Public Beta for ‘Longhorn’

“Microsoft will release the feature-complete, third beta for Windows Server ‘Longhorn’ on April 25, which is also the first public beta of the software. The product remains on track for release to manufacturing in the second half of 2007, and the beta code can be downloaded here. Some 10,000 people in Microsoft’s technical beta program have already tested the product, while thousands more downloaded or received the second beta and the Community Technology Preview that followed through their TechNet and MSDN subscriptions, Helene Love Snell, the senior product manager for Windows Server, told eWEEK. ‘We will be distributing beta 3 as broadly as possible to ensure the maximum number of IT professionals, developers and partners test and evaluate the new features. Our distribution programs will offer this chance to literally hundreds of thousands of people,’ she said.”