Improved Insights and Analysis From IT Systems Logs Reduce Complexity Risks From Virtualization Virtualization has certainly taken off, but less attention gets directed to how to better manage virtualization, to gain better security using virtualization techniques, and also to find methods for compliance and regulation of virtualized environments -- but without the pitfalls of complexity and confusion. Virtualization is new enough that best practices are still being formed. To help learn about new ways that systems log tools and analysis are aiding the ramp-up to virtualization use, BriefingsDirect's Dana Gardner spoke with Charu Chaubal, senior architect for technical marketing, at VMware; Chris Hoff, chief security architect at Unisys, and Dr. Anton Chuvakin, chief logging evangelist and a security expert at LogLogic. Read a full transcript of the discussion at http://briefingsdirect.blogspot.com/2008/09/virtualization-use-requires-improved.html. Sponsor: LogLogic.
Direct download: BriefingsDirect_LogLogic_Podcast_2.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 6:28pm EDT

Oracle and HP Explain History, Role and Future for New Exadata Server and Database Machine The sidewalks were still jammed around San Francisco's Moscone Center and the wonderment of an Oracle hardware announcement was still palpable across the IT infrastructure universe late last week. Oracle Chairman and CEO Larry Ellison caught the Oracle OpenWorld conference audience by surprise Sept. 24 by rolling out the Exadata line of two hardware-software configurations. The integrated servers re-architect the relationship between Oracle's 11g database and high-performance storage. Exadata, in essence, gives new meaning to "attached" storage for Oracle databases. It mimics the close pairing of data and logic execution that such cloud providers as Google use with MapReduce technologies. The unveiling clearly deserves more detail, more understanding. Listen as Dana Gardner interviews Rich Palmer, director of technology and strategy for the industry standard servers group at HP, along with Willie Hardie, vice president Oracle database product marketing, on the inside story on Exadata for BriefingsDirect. The discussion took place Sept. 25, 2008 at the Oracle OpenWorld conference. Sponsor: Hewlett-Packard.
Direct download: HP_OOW_Exadata_Podcast.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:02pm EDT

Interview: From Oracle OpenWorld, HP's John Santaferraro on Latest BI Modernization Strategies Leading up to HP and Oracle's blockbuster announcement Sept. 24 of record-breaking data warehouse appliance performance, the business value of these infrastructure breakthroughs was the topic of a BriefingsDirect interview with John Santaferraro, director of marketing for HP's Business Intelligence Portfolio. Now that the optimized hardware and software are available to produce the means to analyze and query huge data sets in near real-time, the focus moves to how to best leverage these capabilities. Listen as Dana Gardner interviews Santaferraro on such new and productive concepts as "operational BI" and "BI Modernization." The discussion took place Sept. 23, 2008 at the Oracle OpenWorld conference. Sponsor: Hewlett-Packard.
Direct download: HP-OOW_BI.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:26pm EDT

From OpenWorld, Oracle and HP Align Forces to Modernize Legacy Apps and Spur IT Transformation The avenues to IT transformation are many, but the end result must include modernization of data, applications, systems, and operational best practices. It's no surprise then that the partnership of Oracle and Hewlett-Packard gained new ground at the 2008 Oracle OpenWorld conference. The companies are providing products and services that holistically support the many required variables to successfully implement IT transformation. To learn more about how HP and Oracle will continue to act in concert, especially as enterprises seek the highest data center performance at the lowest cost, BriefingsDirect's Dana Gardner interviewed Paul Evans, worldwide marketing lead for IT transformation solutions at HP, and Lance Knowlton, vice president for modernization at Oracle. The discussion took place Sept. 23, 2008 at the Oracle OpenWorld conference. Sponsor: Hewlett-Packard.
Direct download: HP-OOW_Transformation_Podcast.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 2:21pm EDT

Amid Finance Turmoil, Combined HP-EDS Solutions Uniquely Span Public-Private Divide As Wall Street faces some its most turbulent times, HP and the newly acquired EDS unit are combining forces in unique ways. Between them, EDS and HP have been servicing the financial and government sectors for decades. Combined, HP and EDS are uniquely positioned to assist potentially massive transitions and unprecedented public-private interactions. To learn more about how HP and EDS newly align amid financial sector turmoil, BriefingsDirect interviews Maria Allen, vice president of Global Financial Services Industry solutions at EDS. The discussion, moderated by Dana Gardner, was recorded Sept. 22, 2008 at the Oracle OpenWorld conference in San Francisco. Sponsor: Hewlett-Packard.
Direct download: HP-OOW_EDS_Podcast.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 5:27pm EDT

iTKO's SOA Testing and Validation Role Supports Increasingly Complex Integration Lifecycles The real value of IT comes not from the systems, but from agile business processes in actual use. Growing complexity, and the need to support a process orchestration of the old applications and the new services, places a premium on validating at the process level before -- not after -- implementation. iTKO, through it's LISA product and solutions methods, has created a continuous validation framework for SOA and middleware integrations. To learn more about performance and quality assurance issues around enterprise integration, middleware, and SOA, we interview John Michelsen, chief architect and founder of iTKO. Our podcast is moderated by Dana Gardner, principal analyst at Interarbor Solutions. Sponsor: iTKO. Read a full transcript of the discussion at http://briefingsdirect.blogspot.com/2008/09/itkos-john-michelsen-explains-roles-and.html.
Direct download: BriefingsDirect_iTKO_Podcast.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 9:25am EDT

Systems Log Analytics Offers Operators Performance Insights That Set Stage for IT Transformation Despite growing complexity, IT organizations need to reduce operations costs, increase security and provide more insight, clarity, and transparency across multiple IT systems -- even virtualized systems. A number of different tools and approaches are available for gaining contextual information and visibility into what goes on within IT infrastructure. The solutions that capture all the available systems information and aggregate and centralize that information are becoming essential. To learn more about systems logs analytics, BriefingsDirect conducted a panel discussion with Pat Sueltz, the CEO at LogLogic; Jian Zhen, senior director of product management at LogLogic, and Pete Boergermann, technical support manager at Citizens & Northern Bank. Our podcast is moderated by Dana Gardner, principal analyst at Interarbor Solutions. Sponsor: LogLogic. Read a full transcript of the discussion at http://briefingsdirect.blogspot.com/2008/09/systems-log-analytics-offers-operators.html.
Direct download: BriefingsDirect_LogLogic_1_Podcast.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 8:44am EDT

Interview: HP's Virtualization Services Honcho John Bennett on 'Rethinking Virtualization' Hewlett-Packard announced a series of wide-ranging virtualization products, services and initiatives on Sept. 2. The drive indicates a global and long-term surge by HP on managing solutions for virtualization, but in the context of business outcomes and in a management framework that includes larger IT transformation strategies. To better understand HP's goals and offerings, BriefingsDirect interviewed John Bennett, the worldwide director of data center transformation solutions and also the HP Technology Solutions Group (TSG) lead for virtualization. Our podcast is moderated by Dana Gardner, principal analyst at Interarbor Solutions. Sponsor: Hewlett-Packard. Read a full transcript of the discussion at: http://briefingsdirect.blogspot.com/2008/09/interview-hps-virtualization-services.html.
Direct download: BriefingsDirect_HP_Bennett_Podcast.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 12:05pm EDT

HP Experts Portray IT Transformation Vision, Explain New Wave of Virtualization Products and Services Virtualization has been gaining attention and adherents faster than ever, but the context of virtualization to business outcomes has been sketchy. Hewlett-Packard on Sept. 2 announced a series of products and services designed to place virtualization into a business and economic framework, one that helps enterprises embrace virtualization in the content of IT transformation. The goal is to use many virtualization products and attain the needed professional services in a way that optimizes the outcomes and paybacks from virtualization activities, to make them related and managed holistically over an IT lifecycle. In order to better understand the new role and return for virtualization, how HP approaches the issues, and to gain more details on the Sept. 2 news, BriefingsDirect conducted a panel discussion with Greg Banfield, consulting manager for the HP Consulting and Integration (C&I) Group infrastructure practice; Dionne Morgan, worldwide marketing manager for HP’s Technology Services Group (TSG), and Tom Norton, worldwide practice lead for Microsoft Services at HP. Our podcast is moderated by Dana Gardner, principal analyst at Interarbor Solutions. Sponsor: Hewlett-Packard. Read a full transcript of the discussion at: http://briefingsdirect.blogspot.com/2008/09/hp-experts-portray-it-transformation.html.
Direct download: HP_Virtualization_External_Podcast.mp3
Category:podcasts -- posted at: 10:00am EDT