World IPv6 Day: Working Together Towards a New Internet Protocol

We’re pleased to announce that Cisco is joining The Internet Society for World IPv6 Day, a 24-hour global “test drive” of IPv6 on June 8, 2011.

For over 25 years, Cisco has been central to the development of the Internet Protocol (IP) that has helped fuel the incredible growth in global connectivity the world enjoys today. Very soon, the free pool of IPv4 addresses will finally run dry, and IPv6 is the only long-term solution the industry has available to continue growth in the manner that the world has come to expect.

Cisco has been involved in developing standards and products for IPv6 since its inception more than a decade ago. While we have helped a number of customers deploy IPv6 on networks large and small, stitching this together ubiquitously and seamlessly among not just the networks themselves but the software and applications running on top has been challenging.

On June 8, the industry is coming together to deploy and test IPv6 in what we believe will be an unprecedented manner in terms of participation and scale. On this day, major web companies, Internet Service Providers, enterprises, and equipment vendors will work together to “switch on” IPv6 for 24 hours. The switch that will be thrown is one within the global Domain Name System, or DNS, which translates a name such as http://www.cisco.com into an IP address. Today, while a number of large websites have IPv6 connectivity, in order to reach many of them over IPv6 the user must use a special DNS name. For example, even if you have an IPv6-enabled device connected to an IPv6-enabled network, you must type http://www.ipv6.cisco.com in your web browser in order to receive an IPv6 destination address to connect to.

On World IPv6 Day, we will advertise both an IPv4 and IPv6 address in the DNS for http://www.cisco.com for 24 hours along with the rest of the World IPv6 day participants. This will allow devices that have IPv6 connectivity to use it without requiring the user to type a special name, while those that do not have IPv6 will continue to reach our site as they always have over IPv4. Most major operating systems sold today have IPv6 capability built-in, but may not be configured to use IPv6 properly or may not be connected to an IPv6-enabled network. Further, those that do have IPv4 and IPv6 configured but have latent IPv6 connectivity problems can face noticeable delays due to the logic that these computers, tablets, and phones use when deciding whether to use IPv4 or IPv6. One of the very important goals of this experiment is to help the industry measure, work through, and put to rest a number of these types of issues.

In the coming months, Cisco will be working with our development teams, Cisco Services teams, and customers to ensure that this global experiment meets its objectives with the least amount of disruption possible to Internet users worldwide. We’ll be writing more soon about how World IPv6 Day might impact you, and what you can do to prepare for it.

IPv4 has served us remarkably well for the past 30 years.  Moving to a new version will not be easy, but it is essential to the continued growth of the Internet we have come to depend upon.

Tags: Cisco, internet protocol, Internet Society, ip, ipv4, IPv6, World IPv6 Day

Secure, Reliable and Seamless Shouldn’t Be a Luxury

I had the luxury of keynoting at a seminar last week on the topic of “Borderless Luxury.”  Yes, you heard right.  Borderless Luxury.

Being borderless is about connecting to information anytime on any device, from anywhere. And, as I’ve explained here before, doing so securely, reliably, and seamlessly. So what does that have to do with the high-end retail world? The retail luxury sector has watched as the internet has moved from being a single channel of information to a multi-channel of commerce, client services, social media and multi- media communications along with virtual and augmented reality.  Is there a way to bring all stakeholders together to have access to critical information on the network in a secure and reliable way?  How can companies meet the newly enacted PCI regulations with a seamless, secure infrastructure?

Today’s luxury brands are discovering that they need to evolve to cater to both online and on-premises customers. And in the process, they are tackling some provocative issues.  As an avid shopper, in the ether and on the ground, I was thrilled to lead this discussion as the CEOs and CIOs from the top luxury retail brands of the world gathered for the annual e-Luxe Club Breakfast seminar in Paris.  The top takeaway was that being Borderless and having a strategic and robust network architecture to support the business is a key imperative to address the future of luxury shopping from anywhere, any device.

Retailers and brands must identify fresh ways to differentiate themselves through technological innovation. One video that recently caught my eye was the Tiffany video, Blue is the Color of Dreams, a 4-D extravaganza to celebrate the opening of its Beijing store. Certainly that’s an arresting use of technology, but beyond that, we need to also look at new ways to change the way customers experience the shopping process and their relationships with the brands, themselves.

To see what some are doing, check out this article on The Next Web. As for my predictions of what we can expect even further down the road? I’m certain the luxury brands will be finding even newer ways to deliver that je-ne-sais-quoi ?-la-mode experience—sans borders.

 

Valentine's Day in America

• Valentine's Day in America is a special day to be a greeting card and candy roses dinner memorable three-quarters of Americans celebrate a special occasion this is not how to do it one way. Which are all extremely extensively. Bush on February 14 Americans send greeting cards to each and 160 million cards acquired The chocolate is worth 40,000 million baht and buy a rose 130 million flower Americans a number of selected enjoying dinner quietly at home but 3 out of 4 hits eating out in this special night.

Not only loved each other only to celebrate Valentine's Day. Mark Hall Company. Brand and greeting card manufacturers reported that within 2-3 years this sales card to send to friends and relatives rose to record. The network credits the family life that Chan commented. Phenomenon is very gratifying. "Valentine's Day Valentine's Day is not the only young. But the opportunity that we should show love to a person close to underline that they Are always important to us. "

Cisco Launches Videoscape, Joins Service Providers to Reinvent TV Experience

The plethora of TV and video devices, services and applications, which seems to grow on a daily basis, is enough to confuse even the most ardent technofile.  Today, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Cisco made a major step toward simplifying the TV experience.

Amid weeks of industry speculation, Cisco introduced  Cisco Videoscape, a comprehensive TV platform for service providers that brings together digital TV and online content with social media and communications applications to create a new, truly immersive home and mobile video entertainment experience.

“Videoscape represents the future of television,” said Pankaj Patel, SVP and GM of Cisco’s Service Provider Business.  “We believe this platform will do for television what the mobile Internet has done for mobile phones and devices.  This is the only entertainment solution available today that delivers this experience in full scope, combining all the necessary technology components of the cloud, the network and client devices.  We’re looking forward to working with service providers to give give consumers the best TV experience they can get.”

Tags: Pankaj Patel, video, videoscape

View the original article here

A Partner Holiday Wish List…

Great Products, Simplified Pricing and Easy Trade-Ins

Well Partners, we are making your holiday wishes come true. Cisco has made it easier than ever for customers to upgrade their networks in 2011 with compelling program and offers. Take advantage of these and watch your business grow.

Simplified Pricing on Major Switching Families
The Fast Track 2 program makes it easier for partners to access and sell high volume Cisco technology like the Catalyst 2K, 3K and Small Business 300 series switches. Fast Track 2 provides our partners aggressive upfront prices, allowing faster time to quote and sell, while also giving customers compelling “reasons to buy” Cisco technology.

Technology Migration Program for Architected Solutions
The Cisco Technology Migration Program and Competitive Equipment Exchange (Cisco TMP) is a trade-in migration program that encourages end-customers to trade-in their installed base of Cisco networking products and Strategic Competitive products including HP. End-customers earn trade-in credits which serve as an upfront discount towards the purchase of new Cisco solutions. TMP is a global program that has no minimum deal size and offers up to 25% trade in on existing Cisco equipment.

Highly Simplified Trade-Ins for FastTrack 2 Transactions
Cisco’s Stimulus Rebate promotion encourages customers to trade in competitive equipment towards the purchase of Cisco FastTrack 2 products. The stimulus rebate gives customers cash back and offers a chance to learn about the 2010 tax relief rules while upgrading their networks. The stimulus rebate has no minimum deal size and covers selected SKUs, which works up to ~20% of list price.

Tags: channels, partner, stimulus

View the original article here

2011: My Top Five Predictions for Technology

For many years, I started the New Year with a “top 10” list of network predictions.   Call it the Twitter effect, or even the Charles Barkley/Dwyane Wade/T-Mobile “who’s in your five” effect , this year I am coming in with “my 5.”

Prediction 1: The Battle for the Cloud is really about the next generation business OS – Much of the debate over the cloud is about competing architectures or proposals for either a) the infrastructure stack or b) a class of applications delivered on or off-premise.  Another way to look at the cloud is the “run-time” OS that supports a range of applications and business processes.  It could be Linux, Windows or a range of software engines, but when the (virtual) applications are delivered from virtual infrastructure, from the cloud, the rules of the technology industry are being re-written.

Prediction 2: Networked Technology Economics are Paramount - Traditionally, IT was seen as a cost structure in support of the business (or public sector) service delivery.   Increasingly, technology is part of the product, thus the actual cost of the product/service is in flux.   One clear example of this occurred in the past few years in the music industry.  More recently, the movie rental industry demonstrated this (whereby video streaming is replacing bricks and mortar).  Prediction within prediction: if a product or service can be delivered faster and more efficiently across a network, it will become the dominant delivery or consumption model within 5 years.

Prediction 3: Books go the way of music – There are two key drivers in the book industry today: pressure on the physical retail environments from eCommerce providers like Amazon as well as what we saw during the much of the holiday shopping season: an increased array of eBook readers, including a 3rd generation Kindle from Amazon, the BeBook Neo, The Barnes & Noble Nook, and the Sony Reader. Both of these trends are driving dramatic change in the availability, consumption and economics of our reading matter.

Prediction 4: Consumer Experience for Business – For decades, technology migrated from the office to the home: video recorders, computers, printers, Internet access, email and many other commonplace fruits of applied science started in the working world and eventually followed us through the front door on the return commute.  Today, mobile and web-based applications, and simple, easy-to-use technologies like Cisco’s own Flip video camcorder are changing our expectations of how IT works.  Shoppers walk into stores with more powerful devices and apps than the retail associates trying to help them.  Expect business users to demand migration of consumer experiences to the workplace.

Prediction 5: Cohen’s Unified Technology Theory of Coffee Price Increases – A little over 14 years ago, Tom Friedman, in his column in the New York Times, posited an early version of his “Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention.”  Tom noted: “when a country reaches a certain level of economic development, when it has a middle class big enough to support a McDonald’s, it becomes a McDonald’s country, and people in McDonald’s countries don’t like to fight wars; they like to wait in line for burgers.”

Here is my corollary theory: coffee prices will increase in those countries where a larger percentage of the economy is dependent on high technology industries and is growing faster than other nations.    A recent report issued by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences predicted uneven growth around the world, with mixed performance in many developed economies and strong economic growth in many developing countries.

Countries such as India, China, Brazil and Indonesia are on the rise and so is coffee consumption in those nations.  Indeed urbanization – with its associated acceleration of technology production and consumption – is directly related to coffee consumption.

Of my 5 predictions, I am most confident about the last!   Also, to see an excellent set of predictions for IT and the Education sector, check out the top 10 of my colleague Lev Gonick, CIO of Case Western Reserve University.

Happy New Year.

View the original article here

A Partner Holiday Wish List…

Great Products, Simplified Pricing and Easy Trade-Ins

Well Partners, we are making your holiday wishes come true. Cisco has made it easier than ever for customers to upgrade their networks in 2011 with compelling program and offers. Take advantage of these and watch your business grow.

Simplified Pricing on Major Switching Families
The Fast Track 2 program makes it easier for partners to access and sell high volume Cisco technology like the Catalyst 2K, 3K and Small Business 300 series switches. Fast Track 2 provides our partners aggressive upfront prices, allowing faster time to quote and sell, while also giving customers compelling “reasons to buy” Cisco technology.

Technology Migration Program for Architected Solutions
The Cisco Technology Migration Program and Competitive Equipment Exchange (Cisco TMP) is a trade-in migration program that encourages end-customers to trade-in their installed base of Cisco networking products and Strategic Competitive products including HP. End-customers earn trade-in credits which serve as an upfront discount towards the purchase of new Cisco solutions. TMP is a global program that has no minimum deal size and offers up to 25% trade in on existing Cisco equipment.

Highly Simplified Trade-Ins for FastTrack 2 Transactions
Cisco’s Stimulus Rebate promotion encourages customers to trade in competitive equipment towards the purchase of Cisco FastTrack 2 products. The stimulus rebate gives customers cash back and offers a chance to learn about the 2010 tax relief rules while upgrading their networks. The stimulus rebate has no minimum deal size and covers selected SKUs, which works up to ~20% of list price.

Tags: channels, partner, stimulus

View the original article here

Walk with Me into the Video Future

Profound changes are upon us – and especially how we consume television, use the Internet, and communicate with each other.

The entire video eco-system is in an extraordinary state of change – from the studios that create content, to the wired and wireless broadband networks that carry it, to the many types of Internet-connected screens that display it.

The whole Internet-connectable, video-capable display sector is poised to expand quickly and dramatically.  It was only this past April that tablet-based viewing of video entered the consumer mainstream. As it did, a seismic shift occurred: The notion of a portable screen that connects to the Internet and streams  video went from plausible to persuasive.

Put another way:  Video is about to become as integral to our everyday lives as the written word and voice communication.

Every week, it seems, we hear of alternative ways to create or consume video online. This is highly disruptive to many industries, including pay television! New opportunities also abound. Service providers, for example, are in a splendid position to create new video experiences – experiences that unleash more value, on more screens, for the entire video eco-system.

We are all increasingly part of that video eco-system.  Watch the video below to join me on a short stroll through this marvelous new world… the unstoppable fusion of wired, wireless, video, and the Internet.

Tags: internet, Service Provider, video, videoscape, wireless

View the original article here

If Hindsight is 20-20, What is Foresight?

The Huffington Post recently wrote about a re-published interview with Steve Jobs that appeared in a 1985 issue of Playboy. One of the points he made was that you can never really know in the beginning what something might become.

Here’s a quote: “A computer is the most incredible tool we’ve ever seen. It can be a writing tool, a communications center, a supercalculator, a planner, a filer and an artistic instrument all in one, just by being given new instructions, or software, to work from. There are no other tools that have the power and versatility of a computer. We have no idea how far it’s going to go.”

I can’t help thinking about that statement in the context of architectural planning.

When engineers start building out networks, there’s so much opportunity. In my experience, that can be a good thing and a bad thing. Of course, those who are thinking holistically are on the right path. It allows you to better see the potential of where things can go. And that’s what is great about the Borderless Network Architecture. It’s designed to provide a holistic platform that is layered with business-critical technologies, applications, and services that let you connect and collaborate seamlessly, reliably, and securely—regardless of your device or location. So, it provides a powerful network platform for now; but it also creates a platform for future innovation, which can give rise to new business models and ways of deepening productivity and customer intimacy.

So if we can achieve greater things from planning, why don’t more people apply that to network architectures? Ross Fowler, one of my colleagues here at Cisco, recently commented in an interview with Network World Canada: “There is no universal answer to it…..They want to go at different paces depending upon their business model and also their budget….”

But what if there was a standard blueprint that, if not universal, was at least based on the most common deployment scenarios and tested and validated by third parties? There is.  That’s what Cisco’s Smart Business Architecture (SBA) provides. It offers a series of modules that feature step-by-step guidance for planning and deploying a borderless network—in phases, at your own pace. So, you’re able to build your network in the framework of an overall architecture, but focus on product or solution sets along the way.  It’s all based on a subway system approach, as described in another recent Cisco blog.

To learn more about Borderless Networks, go to http://www.cisco.com/go/borderless. And, to learn more about SBA and how to plan and deploy your borderless network, go to www.cisco.com/go/sba. You just might find the foresight you need to better predict the full potential of your network.

View the original article here

Transforming Education through Collaboration

If you’re familiar with Cisco’s collaboration products, you’ve probably heard us discuss how they will change the nature of the workplace; from who we work with, to where and when we work, to how business processes are interleaved with the collaboration experience. But what about how they change the way we learn? Higher education represents an enormous opportunity for collaboration products to engage and educate the next generation of global leaders.

Last week, we demonstrated collaboration’s impact on education by announcing that Duke University is using Cisco Quad in their Fuqua School of Business, MBA – Cross Continent program. The reason? To ensure that students throughout the world can fully participate in the program at any Duke campus – not as passive listeners, but as active participants in the learning experience. Cisco Quad enables global students to create virtual working groups, find fellow students with common interests, share content, files or videos and instantly start video or audio conferences and chat sessions.

Using Cisco Quad in education is quite appropriate because the product was named after a university campus quad. It’s a place for social networking, where students meet and hang out, share experiences and create, in some cases, lifelong connections. As you go from one class to another, you probably always traverse the quad – it’s a place for constant action and change. This image of the quad seemed like a nice moniker for the product. With Duke, it’s particularly appropriate because we’ve expanded the physical campus to a virtual place that encompasses much more real estate, creating a hub for sharing information and changing the way education happens today.

The learning experience is transformed when students and faculty are unconstrained by traditional boundaries of time and location, allowing them to be more engaged in the overall process. Imagine being able to interact, ask questions and share ideas with your professor anytime, as opposed to the old days of faculty office hours. Working on team projects becomes more efficient because groups can work together regardless of each contributor’s schedule or location. You have a brilliant idea in the middle of the night? No problem. Simply share it on your Quad community. This also aids in accountability on team projects, as content and comments are tracked in activity feeds.

Take this to the next level with Video enabled collaboration in Cisco Quad. Imagine that video is the medium of conversation, of learning and for sharing. Video can make the virtual classroom experience that much more potent. We can now record each class through video – allowing students to review the session and learn at their own pace. And finally, what if, video was the medium of communicating classroom projects? All of this is possible now in the virtual campus quad.

When students use collaboration tools in the learning environment, they are fully prepared to embrace these next generation technologies when they enter the workplace. In fact, they demand them. Collaboration technologies prepare students to contribute to a global society, engage those who grew up in a digital world, and unify students and faculty in international locations. Transforming the workplace begins with transforming the learning experience for those who will be the business leaders of tomorrow.

Tags: collaboration, education, Enterprise, quad, social media, Social Software

View the original article here

Tech Definitions for the Non-Techie

The Challenge

At Cisco our business is focused on some pretty complex areas, to say the least. Collaboration, Virtualization, Video, Core Networking Technology…you’ve read, heard and watched us talk about all of this right here on this blog. And, as you know, when we talk about Video, for example, we’re not just talking about consumer products or just video use in the enterprise. We are talking about the entire experience of video from how it is captured and created to how it is shared and stored.

Our portfolio is great…and that is where being a communications professional becomes both a blessing and a curse.

We have an ENORMOUS amount of content to work with and at the same time we need to stay focused and make sure our stories  resonate, stick and make sense outside the walls of Cisco.

The Response

In preparation for the launch of our new corporate news website in early 2011, this fall we developed a series of videos (see example below) focused on the core foci of our business. Our goal with these videos was to provide a basic definition for a non-technical audience about the importance of Collaboration, Video, Virtualization and Core Networking Technology (Routing and Switching) in the marketplace.  We also wanted to hear from our fans and followers on these topics.

Video from the Series: Cisco on the Importance of Video

As these videos get shared and viewed, our hope is that they will not only further demonstrate our leadership in these areas, but also provide a better understanding of what the heck people are talking about when they throw out an all encompassing word like Collaboration. These are videos that serve not only to educate my mom on Cisco’s business, but, hopefully, also industry influencers  -- whether they are investors, analysts, media, business leaders -- who are looking for solid, creative ways to explain the techiest of tech topics in simple terms.

The Feedback

You need just check out the Cisco Facebook fan page to get a sense of how these videos have been sitting with our audience (See posts dated 12/6, 11/30). It didn’t hurt that we threw in a gaming element, putting viewers to the challenge to identify changes throughout each video.

The point is, it is possible to take complex material and make easily digestible.  Some tips to rely on when dealing with challenging content:  1. Set clear goals 2. Know your audience 3. Be creative.

Check out the full series of videos and let me know what you think.

Tags: collaboration, online video, routing and switching, tech definition, video, virtualization

View the original article here

Fashion Forward With Technology

It’s a new year and with that, lots of predictions abound for what to expect for 2011. One area that promises to see some dramatic and exciting changes: retail and fashion. Now, anyone who knows me knows that that is right up my alley. And what a bonus that Cisco plays a central role, as Lindsay Parker blogged about recently.

According to a survey reported in The Chicago Tribune, one in four moms who are on social media sites makes purchases based on friends’ recommendations.  One of Interbrand’s big predictions for the new year is a strong focus on the customer journey. When we look at what’s happening from the customer’s perspective, it’s clear that there’s a real opportunity to drive the game forward. And when you talk about fashion and luxury brands, the stakes become even higher. How do you create an intimate brand experience that conveys high-scale when you don’t have the power of in-person interaction?

This week, I’ll be in Paris talking about one of my favorite topics—Borderless Networks—and how it’s helping fashionista brands rethink their business models. We’ve known for years that the web has allowed us to extend our reach to customers but as e-commerce matures, the internet and its related tools and applications are increasingly being used by retailers to innovate and differentiate. And that means building deeper customer relationships that are reminiscent of the old days of personal, face-to-face interactions, but within a virtual context.

For 2011 and beyond, I’m betting the name of the game will be customer intimacy without borders.

View the original article here

Cisco Launches Videoscape, Joins Service Providers to Reinvent TV Experience

The plethora of TV and video devices, services and applications, which seems to grow on a daily basis, is enough to confuse even the most ardent technofile.  Today, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Cisco made a major step toward simplifying the TV experience.

Amid weeks of industry speculation, Cisco introduced  Cisco Videoscape, a comprehensive TV platform for service providers that brings together digital TV and online content with social media and communications applications to create a new, truly immersive home and mobile video entertainment experience.

“Videoscape represents the future of television,” said Pankaj Patel, SVP and GM of Cisco’s Service Provider Business.  “We believe this platform will do for television what the mobile Internet has done for mobile phones and devices.  This is the only entertainment solution available today that delivers this experience in full scope, combining all the necessary technology components of the cloud, the network and client devices.  We’re looking forward to working with service providers to give give consumers the best TV experience they can get.”

Tags: Pankaj Patel, video, videoscape

View the original article here

Experience the Virtual Desktop

The primary goal for desktop virtualization is a noble one:  to reduce total cost of ownership while enhancing security and increasing business agility without compromising the quality of the user experience.

How hard can it be?  That is of course the focus of our latest Data Center episode ‘Raising the Bar on Desktop Virtualization’

Read on for the shownotes!

Add this one to our growing list of old technologies re-cast as new innovation -- virtual desktop. I do think we make a good argument for what is being done differently this go round.

There are number of innovations that have lead to this point where we now find ourselves -- the ability to deliver truly ‘Centralized Desktop Virtualization’ which takes the user’s desktop experience and moves it into the Virtualized Data Center and does it in such a way -- that the user only notices what they do now -- that they could not do before.  In other words, if I notice anything different as a user, its ideally only because I have new flexibility or other benefits perhaps.

Most of the benefits for doing this fall within the organization itself:

- Dramatic simplification of the computing devices being managed

- Endpoints are easier to maintain and deploy

- Purchase of new endpoints is lower

- Endpoints can last longer

- Asset tracking, software licensing, backup, failure recovery….all better

- Much more control from a security standpoint

The user benefits become icing on the cake:

- Platform independence -- the ability to work from any device you choose based on your location, the actual work at hand, etc -- becomes a very easy thing to offer users.

Example: nice big desktop monitor for most of the workday but by late day the user shifts to a tablet or other ‘laid back’ device yet still has access to all the same work in progress and other applications available. (one of my favs)

So what are the challenges?

- The obvious challenge is we are talking about very large fundamental infrastructure changes that will ultimately succeed or fail based on user perception.

- The users IT environment is not limited to the desktop. This is a rich media game

- The collaboration needs and habits that have become mainstream now dictate that this experience must replicated as well.   This places endpoint communication with this virtualized desktop on par with IP telephony for the sensitive nature of the traffic.  Video is not a stretch goal here…its being touted as a baseline expectation.

- Visibility. Control. Intelligence.  IT administrator requirements that must be present from end to end.

THE SHOW

This one is is about defining the edges -- the requirements for delivering on these promises with a deep dive into Cisco VXI -- Virtualization Experience Infrastructure.  Not desktop as an endpoint software but the entire conversation needed here -- the reality of what it takes to fully realize these high expectations.

Segment 1 -- The Virtual Desktop Experience

Cisco’s move into this space has been covered through the normal set of articles one would expect:

Siva Mandalam, The Virtual Desktop Experience

Siva Mandalam was our special guest for the ‘keynote’ section of the show to help us understand Cisco’s unique positioning here.

Segment 2 -- Display Protocol Shootout

Quick.  Can you name the three Video Display protocols critical to your resource usage?  As my neighbor Nick will tell you, just ‘owning the tools’ is nuthin -- you gotta know how to use them.   Mark Dittmer has this and more covered as he joined Jimmy Ray in the lab.

Mark Dittmer

- ICA , PCoIP (Teradici) and RDP

- Packet deep dive into what makes each different/same

- QoS on the stream

- WAN Considerations

- Windows XP vs Windows 7 bandwidth/memory

MMR -- Multimedia Redirection (works with PCOIP, RDP)

HDX -- for ICA

These were built to handle the request for video

Bonus Reading: White Paper from the Catalyst 4500 team on Network Considerations in play here.

Segment 3 -- New Zero Clients

Brian Dal Bello

From think to thin…now to zero. This area of the show was of particular interest to me given that Cisco had new products in a space we have never played in before.  Brian Dal Bello was our guest on this one and now I agree there are multiple good reasons for us to be making end points here even I feel like it may end up being about how we seed the market more than anything else.  The ‘backpack’ client we have is especially intriguing (VXC 2100 on the back of a 9971 phone)

Look Ma...no desktop!

Two new Small Desktop Devices -

VXC 2200 -- standalone tower less than 5 inches high, shown in demo as next to a desk phone and telepresence monitor, four USB ports and two video portsVXC 2100 -- fits on the back of a Cisco IP phone (8900 or 9900 series), connect up to two monitors, has four USB ports

Links:

Segment 4 -- Server Load Balancing with VXI

Mark Dittmer, levity for the load

The always available network becomes even more important as the data center gets extended to the desktop.  Network design and the technologies needed get addressed with guest Mark Dittmer.

Application Control Engine

Virtualized ACE

ACE Deployment

Links:

Segment 5 -- vmware View 4.5

Mike Coleman, vmware

Special Guest Mike Coleman from VMware joins us to explore View 4.5 hosted on Cisco UCS and running on the new zero client desktops from Cisco

Links:

What do you think?

Thank you for watching and supporting the show.   We have gotten lots of questions on this one and the opinions are the to be expected variety.  The story will continue to evolve -- in fact, we covered Cisco’s VXI story not too long ago within episode 75 ‘Beyond the Virtualized Data Center’ -- check it out if you still want more.

Where do you stand on all this?   Have experience to share -- opinions to vent?  Use the comment fields below…

Tags: data center, desktop virtualization, shownotes, TechWiseTV, twtv, virtual desktop, Virtual Desktop Infrastructure, virtualized desktop infrastructure, VMware, vxc, zero client

View the original article here

2011: My Top Five Predictions for Technology

For many years, I started the New Year with a “top 10” list of network predictions.   Call it the Twitter effect, or even the Charles Barkley/Dwyane Wade/T-Mobile “who’s in your five” effect , this year I am coming in with “my 5.”

Prediction 1: The Battle for the Cloud is really about the next generation business OS – Much of the debate over the cloud is about competing architectures or proposals for either a) the infrastructure stack or b) a class of applications delivered on or off-premise.  Another way to look at the cloud is the “run-time” OS that supports a range of applications and business processes.  It could be Linux, Windows or a range of software engines, but when the (virtual) applications are delivered from virtual infrastructure, from the cloud, the rules of the technology industry are being re-written.

Prediction 2: Networked Technology Economics are Paramount - Traditionally, IT was seen as a cost structure in support of the business (or public sector) service delivery.   Increasingly, technology is part of the product, thus the actual cost of the product/service is in flux.   One clear example of this occurred in the past few years in the music industry.  More recently, the movie rental industry demonstrated this (whereby video streaming is replacing bricks and mortar).  Prediction within prediction: if a product or service can be delivered faster and more efficiently across a network, it will become the dominant delivery or consumption model within 5 years.

Prediction 3: Books go the way of music – There are two key drivers in the book industry today: pressure on the physical retail environments from eCommerce providers like Amazon as well as what we saw during the much of the holiday shopping season: an increased array of eBook readers, including a 3rd generation Kindle from Amazon, the BeBook Neo, The Barnes & Noble Nook, and the Sony Reader. Both of these trends are driving dramatic change in the availability, consumption and economics of our reading matter.

Prediction 4: Consumer Experience for Business – For decades, technology migrated from the office to the home: video recorders, computers, printers, Internet access, email and many other commonplace fruits of applied science started in the working world and eventually followed us through the front door on the return commute.  Today, mobile and web-based applications, and simple, easy-to-use technologies like Cisco’s own Flip video camcorder are changing our expectations of how IT works.  Shoppers walk into stores with more powerful devices and apps than the retail associates trying to help them.  Expect business users to demand migration of consumer experiences to the workplace.

Prediction 5: Cohen’s Unified Technology Theory of Coffee Price Increases – A little over 14 years ago, Tom Friedman, in his column in the New York Times, posited an early version of his “Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention.”  Tom noted: “when a country reaches a certain level of economic development, when it has a middle class big enough to support a McDonald’s, it becomes a McDonald’s country, and people in McDonald’s countries don’t like to fight wars; they like to wait in line for burgers.”

Here is my corollary theory: coffee prices will increase in those countries where a larger percentage of the economy is dependent on high technology industries and is growing faster than other nations.    A recent report issued by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences predicted uneven growth around the world, with mixed performance in many developed economies and strong economic growth in many developing countries.

Countries such as India, China, Brazil and Indonesia are on the rise and so is coffee consumption in those nations.  Indeed urbanization – with its associated acceleration of technology production and consumption – is directly related to coffee consumption.

Of my 5 predictions, I am most confident about the last!   Also, to see an excellent set of predictions for IT and the Education sector, check out the top 10 of my colleague Lev Gonick, CIO of Case Western Reserve University.

Happy New Year.

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Paragon TP-6 Theater Pop 6-Ounce Popcorn Popper Machine

I bought this Popcorn Popper  in December 2000. After nine years of use I can say this thing is great!

I looked at a lot of machines when I was shopping and I picked this one for a couple of reasons. First, it has both a heating unit below the floor and a heat lamp above. Most small units I looked at only had the heat lamp. Second, this machine has glass walls. The doors are hard plastic, but the walls are glass. I was worried that the smaller machines with plastic walls would scratch easily as I scooped the popped corn. I bought a metal popcorn scoop that's tapered to feed a popcorn box and has holes to allow unpopped kernals to fall through. If I had a plastic walled machine, I'd have to be careful how I used the scoop for fear of scratching the walls. But, as another reviewer pointed out, this thing is built like a tank!

One pre-packaged pack of popcorn makes about as much as two typical microwave bags. But it tastes much better! My wife and I love this popper. I've never regretted my purchase!

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

With the advent of HDTVs, Blu-Ray players, and surround sound systems, it's easier than ever to re-create the movie theater experience in the comfort of your own home. Now Paragon lets you take the next step in movie theater simulation with its TP-6 Theater Pop 6-ounce popcorn machine.

Enjoy movie-style popcorn at home with Paragon's TP-6 Popcorn Machine.

Styled just like the poppers you see at the local movie house, the TP-6 has a bright red cabinet and classic graphics that fit almost any decor. More importantly, the popcorn machine produces the same buttery goodness as movie theater machines but without charging $6 a pop. Easy to use and easy to maintain, the TP-6 pops 113 one-ounce servings per hour, and can produce a single batch of theater-quality popcorn in three to five minutes. The TP-6 measures 20 by 26 by 14 inches (W x H x D) and weighs 73 pounds. Features:

• Measures 20 inches wide by 14 inches deep by 26 inches tall
• Weighs 73 pounds
• Lower heating element for long-lasting popcorn
• Old Maid's Tray for catching unpopped corn
• Hard coat anodized aluminum kettle
• Stainless steel food zone
• Tempered glass panels
• Built-in warming deck
• Volts:120
• Watts: 1200
• Amps: 10

Product Description

Styled just like the poppers you see at the local movie house, the Theater Pop line has a bright red cabinet and classic graphics that fit almost any décor. Each full featured-machine pops delicious, theater-quality popcorn in 3-5 minutes, is easy to use and easy to maintain. 6 oz. machine pops 113 one-ounce servings per hour. Made in the USA

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Linguist: Kwanzaa without Swahili

Tomorrow marks the end of the day of the week, Kwanzaa. Initiated in 1966 as a means for African-Americans celebrate their cultural heritage, Kwanzaa uses language Africa East, Swahili, on behalf of his days. In a column online recently, linguist and commentator John McWhorter argues that Swahili must be removed from Kwanzaa. He tells why host Michel Martin.

Copyright ? 2010 national public radio ?. Personal use, non-commercial only. See the terms of use. For other uses, prior approval required.

MICHEL MARTIN, host:

Now for another holiday story. Celebrations continue this weekend, then Christmas and Hanukkah are obviously more and New Years Eve is tonight, another holiday is still in full: Kwanzaa.

Kwanzaa was launched in 1966 to give Americans of African descent a way of celebrating the cultural heritage as well as challenging materialism that many people say they dislike Christmas. It extends from December 26 to January 1, and each day is supposed to observe a different value or principle, such as unity and faith.

The word itself, Kwanzaa, comes from a phrase meaning first fruits in Swahili, a language is used to appoint the days of Kwanzaa African. But it is a problem, says political commentator John McWhorter. It is a linguist and lecturer at Columbia University. In a recent column in the publication online of the root, m. McWhorter argues that Swahili should probably be ignored celebrate Kwanzaa.

Jumbo, habari agencies, oh wait, sorry. This is the problem.

Mr. JOHN McWHORTER (Columbia University): This is a beautiful language, Michel. I think the Swahili is great, but there is a problem with him if we're going to split hairs, and is that none of our ancestors had spoken that.

A good thousand languages are spoken in Africa, depending on the way which rely you, and if one of them spoke in Swahili, it was an accident.

MARTIN: You have a problem with Kwanzaa itself? Because some people say, why do we need another holiday really? But this is not your problem.

Mr. McWHORTER: No. Kwanzaa is fine. There - I did he celebrate, but I certainly no other problem anyone to do so. The beauty of it is clear and it is based on the Swahili and is not likely change, just the typewriter QWERTY keyboard is not going to change.

And it is not that I have a problem with the fact that Kwanzaa established relatively recently, etc., etc. It is just that part Swahili, expanded in a general sense that the Swahili is another language of the black people and that you get in touch with you through learning Swahili, language is just not accurate. And I think that there are other languages that we get in touch with that we have in fact a sort of link authentic with and are interesting in their own ways.

MARTIN: Just to clarify this. You say that you think that the ancestors of most of the people of African descent are at the United States today probably speaking Swahili because...

Mr. McWHORTER: They didn't come from...

MARTIN: East Africa.

Mr. McWHORTER: Africa. And if they spoke languages such as Walla (ph). They speak languages such as Twi. They speak languages such as the Congo. They speak languages such as Igbo. Some - very few of them - languages speaking as Yarba. And I could go on. There is enough some of them, but as it happens, Swahili - and don't forget, the Swahili is one of about a thousand of African languages - Swahili was not one of them and not even further.

This is just a kind of an accident, at this point, 40 years and after it has been established as the language to go black - that we also believe in a symbolic way of us, and we must remember that to say that Swahili is because he is African, in a way stereotypes and therefore...

MARTIN: You're nominated Twi?

Mr. McWHORTER: Yes.

MARTIN: Who is?

Mr. McWHORTER: It really Twi or Twi. It is spoken in Ghana. If you encounter a Ghanaian, they almost certainly speak Twi, and they will be happy that you've never heard of it. And Twi language that I chose because it must choose one that there is indeed a means of learning. All African languages, there are several where you can to Amazon and it is not a single book on it. You could even go to a library and it will be a book with 1942. Therefore, it is no good.

But with Twi, there are actual sources that you can buy for the moderate price where you can teach yourself some Twi and Twi speakers – there you meet people from Ghana, they probably speak a local language, and then they talk about Twi and therefore you could actually practice. And what is important, many of our ancestors did in Ghana.

And so once again, we have a real connection.

MARTIN: OK. John McWhorter is a regular contributor to the root. If you want to read her piece on why it may be time to leave the Swahili go, at least as far as celebrate Kwanzaa, we will link it on our site Web, just go to npr.org. And he is the author of "our magnificent Bastard Tongue: the Untold History of English" and a linguist as you've heard it and lecturer at Columbia University. And he was with us in our offices in New York.

John McWhorter, thank you very much we reach. And I do not know how to say happy new year in Twi, but the happy new year.

Mr. McWHORTER: Well, even to Michel, in English.

Copyright ? 2010 national public radio ?. All rights reserved. Without quotation marks in the materials contained herein may be used in any medium without attribution to National Public Radio. This transcript is provided for personal use, non-commercial only, in accordance with our conditions of use. Any other use requires prior permission from the NPR. Visit our page permissions for more information.NPR transcripts are created on a rush period by a contractor for NPR and the accuracy and availability may vary. This text is not in its final form and can be updated or revised in the future. Please note that the registration authority of the NPR programming is audio.

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LG 32LD350 32-Inch 720p 60 Hz LCD HDTV

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These architects designed a nation

At the beginning of the 1890s Columbia College and the University of New York moved to the area north of the city to create a campus that they hoped would give them the academic credibility. Two Roman dome built at Summit in New York, two libraries built to preserve the thoughts of age; two beautiful buildings result in shaping the identity of the acquired recently wealth in the 19th century. The two colleges ready to take seriously. For their physical presence, the two Presidents of University turned to the more prominent Office of architecture in America, McKim, Mead & white for their respective schools provide a vision for the future.

One might think that each school would like a different architect, but the partnership had two distinct personalities, McKim, and white. Stanford White Board came first college his father, University of New York, which gave him an honorary causa in spite of the fact that Stanford had not yet completed their secondary education. McKim Colombia-follow-up work as it is surrounded by other competitors for the new campus. McKim, college career was limited to a single year at Harvard, science had no connection at Columbia. Two men designed what are, in fact, depleted institutions hope a donor to at least the central temple of learning, library, a center of new schools. Who are these men transform colleges in New York?

The name of the architecture firm McKim, Mead & white is almost word household in America. Practice, which was synonymous with closer American buildings a level equal to that of the contemporary European design has contributed to the creation of beauty as a goal for individual structures as well as whole cities during the golden age of manufacturers. These men who played a major role in the development of ethics in America beauty increased native stocks like nation, modest figures of international reputation.

Charles Follen McKim, William Rutherford Mead and Stanford White little seemed destined for glory. All were born a generation half before the civil war, all were intellectual but modest origins and had all sufficiently imperfect personalities make a surprise for their fate. Perhaps this is even true that none was for long a talented designer. This is the synthesis of their association and their loyalty throughout his life to another makes the firm almost architecture in turn-of-the-century American brand name.

To date, the eldest of the three, William r. Mead, remains enigmatic. Called partners, affectionately, "Artificial" * Mead described himself as the vessel's rudder, human has retained its partners to "fucking idiots" themselves. These comments were correct. It was Mead, guarding McKim, Mead & white flow from its early days, guiding the company thanks in the modern world and a major disaster.

An insistent taciturn soul deliberately to keep a low profile, Mead has avoided social life, continued for a frenzy by its partners. In addition, he married out of the loop, select a wife a Hungarian-born wife, Olga Kilyeni, who had no connection with potential clients to the United States. The couple had no children. Mead has no personal cause fire; Indeed, it has humorously noted among seniors that partner McKim, who noted that the exercise was the key to good health, died young, then that her partner Stanford White was faithful to his motto for a short, happy life. Hard only worked Mead was a quiet, perhaps boring life and long since exceeded them.

Abolition has caused a lot of people in the parental circle of McKim, Mead & white, United and brought to some customers at the beginning. No one fought the fight better than James Miller McKim, whose role in the abolitionist movement was his life. Stanford White narcissistic fop father also embraced the anti-slavery cause. Between the company first contacts, Augustus Saint - Gaudens, William Henry Furness, Henry Villard, Frederick Law Olmsted, Frederick f. Thompson, Theodore Roosevelt and Russell Sturgis all knew about events related to the release of slavery. Indeed, only family heading towards slavery Mead is unknown, although it was likely liberal. Like children, McKim, Mead and White grew with sounds of the war just out of reach of voice. They had to turn the fervor of abolitionist zeal parents in the case of beauty, carrying before the banner art, as their parents did with freedom to slaves.

* It is likely that the nickname of the whist, part three can play a dummy version rather than four players expected. While we're not clear on the exact meaning of the term for the three partners, the name is surely humour and self - Northern. It's probably lack of Mead loquaciousness as well as shifts in constant evolution of the three men.

Excerpt from triumvirate: McKim, Mead & white: art, architecture, scandal and the American class golden age by Mosette Broderick.  Copyright 2010 by Mosette Broderick.  Reproduced with permission from Knopf, a division of Random House Inc.

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Kick the Stock Market News Today

What is going on with the stock market news today?  It seems like every time that you have an insight into what the market should do next, a big news item comes up and blows your thesis out of the water.  The volatility caused by the stock market news today has left many investors reeling and wondering if they can really invest profitably in this market.
On the other side of the volatility that the news has been causing in this market, is a whole other realm of investors and traders that are making a killing with the big swings in individual stocks.  How have they been able to be so successful and know just when to get in and out of their stocks when average investors are getting killed?
After learning from professionals for a good portion of my stock investing career, I've learned that professionals who make money in the stock market day in and day out don't base their trades around what the news entails.  They don't waste their time reacting to what has already happened and stressing out about what the next earnings report will be or when the next government bailout package will hit the newsstands.
Instead, professionals trust that price movements of stocks and underlying signals in the market will let them know what will happen well before the news actually hits the market.  In fact, professionals oftentimes become so confident of their signals and systems that they learn that they don't have to watch the stock market news at all!  The freedom that they have from CNBC and online stock message boards enables them to leave behind the stressful volatility of the market while still reaping its rewards.
If you're interested in learning more about what these professionals know and want to kick the stock market news today, then read more at: Leave Behind the Stock Market News
To see an example of one professional who has taken these truths and ran with them to leave behind the stock market news forever, go to Jason Kelly's website at http://www.FINDSTOCKSTOBUY.com Take the opportunity to hear from a profitable professional who learned that he never has to watch the stock market news again, and can make money with very little time invested! Take the time to read through his site and watch his instructional video and you just might pick up on what he has learned as well.
Good Luck and Happy Trading!

Happy New Year 2011

Wishing you all the best in the new year. Let’s all stay safe, healthy and happy. And thank you ,ETHAN  COEY