THE Journal — Integration/Networking
'Installfest' Brings Open Source Tools to Northern California Schools
Open-source developer Untangle and the Alameda County Computer Resource Center are holding an event called "Installfest" in the Northern California Bay Area March 1. The event will see donated hardware and open-source software distributed free to several schools in San Francisco, Berkeley, San Mateo, and Marin County.
(2/27/2008)
Apple Releases Xsan 2; MacBook Firmware Also Updated
Apple this week released an update to Xsan, the company's 64-bit storage-area network solution designed to allow workstations and Xserve systems to share RAID storage over Fibre Channel networks. The new version adds workflow enhancements across the board and also introduces a new feature called MultiSAN.
(2/20/2008)
The 2 Mistakes Schools Make in Deploying Wireless Networks
When the School District of Philadelphia announced last fall that it was deploying wireless Internet access at every school in the district--some 268 campuses--it was hyped as one of the world's largest enterprise wireless local area networks. Aside from the scale of the project (which involves the equivalent of 14,000 access points), the news barely raised an eyebrow among K-12 administrators. After all, announcements of new school deployments of WiFi have practically become a monthly occurrence on THEJournal.com.
(2/12/2008)
Network Access Control Adds Self-Service Registration for Users and Devices
Lockdown Networks has upgraded its network access control (NAC) solution, Lockdown Enforcer, implementing new features that simplify initial setup and user and device registration. A NAC ensures that only authorized users and policy-compliant devices can be added to an enterprise networks and provides a centralized mechanism for responding to malware outbreaks and other security events.
(2/7/2008)
Windows Server 2008, Vista SP1 Released to Manufacturing
Microsoft Monday announced that two of its most important products of the last half-decade are complete and ready to be shipped. Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista Service Pack 1 were released to manufacturing (RTM), marking a dual milestone in the history of both products. It also means that Windows 2008 will be officially shipping by the "Global Launch Wave" of enterprise products on Feb. 27. Others include Visual Studio 2008, released last year, and SQL Server 2008, which was recently pushed back to Q3.
(2/5/2008)
Tennessee Department of Education Opts for Oracle
The Tennessee Department of Education has begun implementing a new strategy in data governance. In an effort to improve efficiency in student and teacher data collection and to streamline reporting, the department has deployed several solutions from Oracle, including data warehousing, business intelligence, and portal technologies.
(2/4/2008)
Joyent's Hosted Apps Back Up, Going Open Source
After a more than week-long crash of a server hosting two of its inexpensive Web-based services, Strongspace and BingoDisk, Joyent is taking steps to address customer complaints following the outages--and taking both applications open source.
(2/1/2008)
Microsoft: SQL Server 2008 Will Be Late
Despite public confidence that SQL Server 2008 would ship by the end of June, Microsoft indicated it probably is more likely to arrive toward the end of the year.
(1/30/2008)
Oracle Acquires BEA for $7.2 Billion
Oracle Corp. and BEA Systems announced Wednesday that they have completed a deal whereby Oracle will acquire BEA for $7.2 billion, or $19.375 per share. Oracle originally offered to buy BEA in October for $6.7 billion, or $17 per share. BEA countered with a $21 per share price. Now that the companies have found a middle ground, the acquisition is going forward.
(1/22/2008)
Microsoft Opens Up Vista Virtualization
Microsoft, still trying to find its way in the new world of virtualization licensing, has changed its mind again on Windows Vista, and now says it will allow more versions of the desktop OS to be virtualized.
(1/22/2008)
GigaFin, Amer.com Partner for K-12 Network Control
GigaFin Networks and Amer.com are partnering up to provide network services for K-12 institutions. The partnership, announced at the FETC conference in Orlando, FL Jan. 22, aims to "help education administrators curb bandwidth drainage and ensure networks are free of misuse."
(1/22/2008)
Macworld Expo: 3ware Sidecar SATA II RAID Adds Leopard Support
At the Macworld Conference & Expo this week in San Francisco, Applied Micro Circuits Corp. (AMCC) announced that its SATA II hardware RAID solution, the 3ware Sidecar, now offers support for Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard. The units have also undergone a price reduction, and the company is offering a $100 Macworld show discount.
(1/15/2008)
Macworld Expo: Apple Launches MacBook Air, Time Capsule
At the Macworld Conference & Expo in San Francisco, Apple CEO Steve Jobs took the stage Tuesday to introduce the company's latest technologies. As rumored, Apple launched a new, super-slim version of the MacBook laptop computer, known as the MacBook Air. Jobs also introduced a new version of the AirPort Extreme Base Station known as Time Capsule, which combines an 802.11n router with a wireless backup storage solution.
(1/15/2008)
Macworld Expo: SATABeast Xi Delivers 42 TB Storage for Xserve
At the Macworld Conference & Expo being held this week in San Francisco, Nexsan is debuting a new high-density storage solution for Apple's Xserve and Mac Pro systems. Dubbed the SATABeast Xi, the 4U rackmount system, which is expected to ship in mid-March, will offer up to 42 TB of storage and features that allow it to improve energy efficiency.
(1/14/2008)
Visalia USD Bolsters Network for Converged Services
Visalia Unified School District is beefing up its converged network to support higher bandwidths for voice, data, and video. Visalia USD, located in the San Joaquin Valley, has signed AT&T in a five-year deal to act as the primary service provider for network services for the California district.
(1/8/2008)
Virtual Machine Use May Tilt OS Dynamic
The rise of virtual machines may prove to be somewhat of a nightmare for entrenched purveyors of closed operating systems, but it may become a boon for independent software vendors (ISVs) and end users -- so a recent Yankee Group report suggests.
(1/2/2008)
How a Security Play Streamlined a Business Process in a Texas School District
New security initiatives could be viewed as one of those ever-demanding burdens in a school district, sucking up financial resources and adding a layer of complexity to user and IT operations. Or, if you're like Kyle Berger, executive director of technology services for the Alvarado Independent School District, south of Ft. Worth, TX, you could view it as a route to gaining efficiencies in your business processes while reducing expenses.
(12/11/2007)
Windows Server 2008, Vista SP1 Hit RC Milestone
Microsoft Wednesday continued its hand in hand development of Windows Server 2008 and Windows Vista's first service pack, publishing release candidates (RC) for each product. The big updates in Windows 2008 RC1 revolve around enhancements to Group Policy, a management framework first introduced in Windows 2000 Server.
(12/10/2007)
Marysville Schools To Deploy WiFi District-Wide
Ohio's Marysville Exempted Village School District (also known as Marysville Schools) is upgrading its network infrastructure with high-speed wired and wireless across the entire district. The objective of the upgrade, with equipment furnished by Extreme Networks, is to improve student performance and communications with enhanced bandwidth for voice and data and to open up support for distance learning.
(12/6/2007)
Parallels Adds Full Mac OS X 10.5 Support, Launches Premium Edition
SWsoft has released an update for its virtualization software for Mac OS X, Parallels Desktop. The latest build (3.0 build 5582) brings full support for Mac OS X 10.5 ("Leopard"). It also brings various other, minor enhancements added since the previous build, released at the end of November. The company has also shipped a new suite called Parallels Desktop 3.0 for Mac Premium Edition, which bundles the core virtualization software with various Windows utilities.
(12/6/2007)
Abbotsford Rolls Out WiFi To Support Classroom Technologies
Abbotsford School District 34 in British Columbia (Canada) this semester began rolling out a new wireless network, one that, at present, covers about a quarter of the district's 51 sites. The move is part of an effort to improve access for teachers, who are increasingly using wireless technologies in their classrooms, according to information released by the district.
(12/5/2007)
North Vancouver SD Accelerates WAN with Silver Peak Appliances
North Vancouver School District in British Columbia (Canada) is optimizing its wide-area network through the use of Silver Peak NX appliances from Silver Peak Systems. According to the company, the district has used the systems to improve network performance, particularly for transferring data between schools and administrative offices and to improve performance for hosted applications.
(12/5/2007)
WiFi Bolsters Alabama District's 1:1 Tablet PC Program
Auburn City Schools in Alabama has found that a "no strings attached" approach to classroom networking has let new approaches to instruction take flight. The district has deployed a WiFi network to more than 1,000 tablet PC-equipped students and teachers at its junior high and high schools as part of a 21st Century Learning Initiative.
(11/26/2007)
Kansas School District Rolls Out 1:1 MacBook Program
In one of the poorer districts in the Kansas City, KS metropolitan area--where more than 75 percent of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunches--administrators and school board members have launched a project to ensure that their students have all the technological advantages that wealthier students have in their education. The district serving that area, Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools (KCKPS), is giving every high school student and teacher a laptop for use in the classroom and at home--and not just any laptop, but the latest generation of Intel-based MacBook laptops from Apple, which were distributed to students Nov. 6 and 7 district-wide, about 5,400 systems total.
(11/8/2007)
Fremont Bolsters Web Security with Blue Coat Appliance
As part of its 2007-2008 technology goals, Fremont School District in California had deployed appliances from Blue Coat Systems to improve Web security and reduce bandwidth consumption. The district is also using the Blue Coat ProxySG appliances to provide Web security and policy control across its Internet gateway.
(11/1/2007)
