Clint Boulton

IBM said it has snapped up a large contract with Ohio Supercomputer Center (OSC) in which Big Blue will provide the facility with hardware and virtualized storage software to manage and run OSC’s research applications. With the infrastructure, OSC data such as global climate modeling, weather forecasting and genetic sequencing will be fed to thousands […]

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) today recommended a standard to help handheld computers and smartphones communicate with Web servers about displaying content. The schema, the Composite Capability/Preference Profiles (CC/PP): Structure and Vocabularies 1.0 (CC/PP 1.0), is a system for expressing device features and user preferences using the Resource Description Framework (RDF), a spec that […]

Novell isn’t resting on its laurels in the Web services department, as the Provo, Utah, company rolled out new identity management software that helps businesses control what employees can access what computing device and to what degree. Formerly Novell DirXML, Nsure Identity Manager can be used to set policies for names, e-mail addresses or passwords […]

In the continuation of its attempt to ward of a hostile takeover by applications rival Oracle , PeopleSoft said it would extend until March 31 the deadline for a refund program that industry-watchers call an “unofficial” poison pill. That “pill” is a Customer Assurance Program that promises PeopleSoft customers refunds of between two and five […]

Sun Microsystems and BEA received ringing endorsements in the brick-and-mortar space as both vendors announced significant customer wins that highlight their disparate approaches to providing Java software. Sun said it has agreed to provide its Java Enterprise System software to clothier The Men’s Wearhouse and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) for undisclosed sums. […]

Oracle’s board of directors rejiggered the responsibilities of its executive lineup, giving CFO Jeff Henley the role of board chairman, a title CEO Larry Ellison had held since 1995. Ellison will remain CEO, according to a company statement. Henley, Oracle’s CFO for 13 years, will take over his duties as board chairman but will remain […]

Oracle will wait longer than expected to hear whether its bid for PeopleSoft is acceptable. The European Commission has put its in-depth investigation into the hostile takeover attempt on hold to request additional information from the database and applications vendor, according to published reports. EC spokeswoman Amelia Torres told internetnews.com “we suspended the clock because […]

While speed and performance are considered requisite constants in the realm of database software, major vendors aim to keep their products fresh by adding new features. On the strength of that notion, IBM is poised to unveil a few new features to its next-generation Universal Database next week at LinuxWorld Conference and Expo in New […]

Compression has arrived among enterprise content management players with Stellent announcing it has agreed to acquire Optika for $59 million in stock and cash. Stellent officials said in a conference call that they believe Colorado Springs, Colo.-based Optika’s software assets will significantly bolster its own document imaging, business process management and compliance capabilities. Optika’s flagship […]

MySQL AB took the wraps off the latest version of its database server Monday, a product that now offers enterprise-grade capabilities such as stored procedures to the open-source software. Stored procedures are Structured Query Language (SQL) statements that are compiled in the database so that they can be accessed across multiple applications. Such features, which […]

In keeping with its goal to automate data center environments as part of its utility computing strategy, VERITAS Software Monday said it has added rapid server recovery capabilities to its disaster recovery software. By automating the multiple, manual-intensive tasks required to restore a failed system, Bare Metal Restore technology helps companies bring their computer systems […]

Analysis: VERITAS Software elbowed its way into further contention in the utility computing space when the storage company moved to acquire application virtualization concern Ejascent for $59 million this week. Analysts say the purchase could help it compete with larger utility computing rivals IBM , HP and EMC . Although the space has taken raps […]