There’s something about USB thumb drives that bring out the worst of tech. design.
December 8, 2011
by sjvn01
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December 7, 2011
by sjvn01
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Opera 11.6: Better but not good enough (Review)
I want to like Opera. I really do. But, while this version is a step up from where it’s been, it’s still just not as good as its competition: Chrome, Internet Explorer, or even the beleaguered Firefox, are simply better.
On the plus side, Opera 11.6, which is available as a free download for Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows, has a new HTML5 parser, code-named Ragnarök. For users, this will mean that Opera does well with HTML5 encoded Web pages. Still, its HTML5 compatibility score, 325 out of a possible 450 lags behind Chrome 15.
The user interface also comes with a new default tab page: “Speed Dial.” This displays thumbnail images and link of your favorite sites. It’s nice, but Chrome and the latest versions of the other Web browsers already have it. In another similar “following the pack” move, Opera’s settings dialogs are now reached via the “wrench” button.
December 6, 2011
by sjvn01
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The Ethernet Switch market explodes and Cisco wins
Before it disappeared into Oracle, Sun’s motto was “The network is the computer.” They didn’t know the half of it. According to IDC’s latest worldwide router market report, the worldwide Ethernet switch market reached record revenues of $5.9 billion in the third quarter of 2011. In particular, the 3Q11 results showed exceptional Ethernet switch market performance in the Asia/Pacific region, which increased 27.8% year over year and now accounts for 25.8% of worldwide revenue. Can you say explosive growth? I knew you could.
We’re used to think of North America and Europe as being the center of the Internet, but in a statement, Rohit Mehra, IDC’s director of Enterprise Communications Infrastructure said, “After a weaker than expected first half of 2011, the Ethernet switch market rebounded strongly this quarter largely on the basis of healthy demand in the Asia/Pacific region. China experienced remarkable 44.1% year-over-year growth this quarter, but other countries in the region also showed exceptional growth. Australia, Korea, and India, for example, all ended the quarter with 27-30% annual gains, further reaffirming the continued relevance of network infrastructure within enterprise IT.”
In particular, 10Gibabit Ethernet (10GbE) growth has exploded. Since its standardization in 2002 10GbE has been becoming the high-speed interconnect of choice for Internet backbones and metropolitan and wide area networks (MANs and WANs). IDG’s numbers show this with 10GbE switch revenue having increased 29.9% year over year and 99.0% in port shipments due to continued adoption in datacenters and campus core deployments. 10GbE port shipments grew to a record 2.09 million ports in the quarter.
December 6, 2011
by sjvn01
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Finding a Linux Job
So you want a Linux job do you? Well, according to The Linux Foundation, the jobs are out there. Specifically, Linux jobs are divided up almost evenly between developer, 53% and system administrator. 47%, jobs.
Amanda McPherson, the Linux Foundation’s vice president of marketing and developer programs, told me, “The Linux jobs market is booming, and we’re doing a variety of things to understand what skills are most in demand and how we can help address that opportunity for our corporate and individual members and with things like our Linux Training courses. The data we’ve surfaced from our Jobs Board really reflects the importance of common programming languages, as well as areas of great success for Linux–such as Android. Mobile and embedded development skills are extremely valuable in today’s market. If you can work on security, power management and integration at the device level, you’re well prepared for this burgeoning area of Linux development.”
In particular, Android, and Java, the language that goes with it, is in enormous demand.
December 5, 2011
by sjvn01
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Is Firefox toast?
I remember just how great it was when Firefox first came out. In 2004, when Firefox first appeared, Firefox was a breath of fresh air. Firefox 1.0 was far better and more secure than the already awful Internet Explorer 6. I loved Firefox then. We all did. But, that was then. This is now.
Today, Firefox is getting pummeled from all sides. Its performance is mediocre. Sure, Firefox 8.01 beats the stuffings out of “classic” Firefox 3.6, but that’s not saying much. Compared to Chrome and Internet Explorer 9 Firefox isn’t keeping up.
As features and security go, Firefox no longer really offers anything that the other browsers don’t. At the same time, Google is turning Chrome into not just a Web browser, but an integral part of its software as a service (SaaS) and cloud application stack. Yes, you can run Google Docs and Gmail on Firefox or IE, but the combination of Chrome’s innate speed with Google’s applications makes it the most attractive package.
December 5, 2011
by sjvn01
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Operating systems don’t matter much anymore
For decades now, we’ve been fussing about operating systems. “Mac OS X is better than Windows!” “Why upgrade to Windows 7 when XP works just fine?” “You’re all wrong. Linux rules.” Such arguments are about to become history.
Thanks to advances in virtualization, cloud technology and the Web, it matters less and less to users which operating system is behind their desktop screens — or, for that matter, their tablet and smartphone displays.
Don’t get me wrong. Operating systems will remain important for as long as we use computers. But for the most part, they are going to matter only to the people behind the scenes.