Enterprise storage is hot right now, and file-based storage is even hotter. EMC just spent $2.25 billion to acquire Isilon Systems, and perennial NAS contender NetApp is on tear. Clearly, "big data", as it's called, is on the rise. But how big can data get with conventional systems? For the answer, we need look no ...

One of the recurring themes from this week’s EMC World conference was the extent to which corporations (including EMC) are incorporating elements of social media. I heard similar points from all sides: Independents were concerned that big companies are hiring all the good bloggers. Corporations were trumpeting the success of their social media efforts. Through ...

I love April Fools Day. Not because I love getting fooled, mind. No, I love April Fools Day for the same reason I love Halloween: It's a chance for people to loosen up, get creative, and maybe even re-evaluate their own self-importance.

I really dislike non-disclosure agreements, but NDAs are a fact of life in the IT industry. Even folks like me that actively avoid NDAs sometimes have to sign the paperwork to gain access to people or information, and employers regularly require such an agreement as a condition of employment. I suspect most folks try to ...

It's fun to bash Microsoft. It's easy, too, with Apple solidly conquering the high end of the PC and mobile markets and Google's command of the Internet. But how fair are these articles skewering Microsoft, such as "Microsoft's chronic lack of innovation" published today at Techworld? I suggest that Microsoft innovates as well as, if ...

Although "don't be evil" isn't Google's official corporate motto, the company and its admirers have embraced the concept implicitly and explicitly. But pride goeth before a fall, and the buzz around Google isn't just about their new social networking feature: Cynicism and disillusionment with Google is growing.

Today, Google announced that their existing Docs platform will soon open up to storage of all file types. This was widely anticipated, as Google evolved the Docs service over the past year and added references to "Files" rather than specific document types. This could be the next step towards the long-rumored "GDrive" storage offering.

What's the difference between naughty and nice when it comes to IT companies? Microsoft and EMC would definitely not have made the nice list over the last decade, but things are changing. With their competition taking dents in the ongoing battles, Microsoft and EMC just don't look so bad anymore.