IBM aims at Google, Microsoft with new Webmail

IBM has launched LotusLive iNotes, an on-demand e-mail, calendaring and contact management system meant to compete with the likes of Gmail and Microsoft Exchange, the company said Friday. IBM is aiming the software at large enterprises that want to migrate an on-premise e-mail system to SaaS (software as a service), particularly for users who aren't tied to a desk, such as retail workers. Pricing starts at US$3 per user per month, undercutting Google Apps Premier Edition, which costs $50 per user per year. It is also hoping to win business from smaller companies interested in on-demand software but with concerns about security and service outages, such as those suffered by Gmail in recent months.

While alluding to Google's service outages, Poulley acknowledged that no company can guarantee 100 percent uptime for on-demand applications. LotusLive iNotes is based on technology IBM purchased from the Hong Kong company Outblaze. "What we brought to Outblaze and to the marketplace is what you'd expect from IBM in terms of security, reliability and privacy," said Sean Poulley, vice president of online collaboration. But IBM has a long-standing track record of running "the world's mission-critical systems," he said. Overall, the main point of interest in IBM's announcement is price, said Gartner analyst Matt Cain. "Outblaze always sold low-cost mailboxes and that's what this is," he said. "Google's long been in it, Microsoft's long been in it. IBM will also have an opportunity to win customers from Microsoft who aren't ready to migrate to the upcoming Exchange 2010 release, given the headaches and investments involved, Poulley said. Now IBM's in it." However, that's not to say IBM's brand on the software isn't of some value, Cain added. ."From an enterprise perspective, you'd rather buy e-mail from IBM than a company called Outblaze." It's unlikely that IBM's pricing strategy will cause competitors to lower fees for their offerings, according to Cain.

For one thing, Microsoft already has a $2 per month Exchange Online option called "Deskless Worker," Cain noted.

Ellison mocks Salesforce.com's 'itty bitty' application

Oracle CEO Larry Ellison mocked on-demand CRM (customer relationship management) vendor Salesforce.com during a shareholder meeting Wednesday, saying its "itty bitty" application depends on Oracle's products. "We think Salesforce.com has got terrific underlying technology," he said in response to a question from a shareholder about Salesforce.com and the competitive pressures posed by the cloud-computing model. "In fact, everything they run is on an Oracle database. But they don't stop there. We think the Oracle database is fabulous cloud technology. On top of the Oracle database they build their applications using - what is it?

Oh, my God." Ellison's comments follow reports that Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff will be speaking at Oracle's OpenWorld conference during an "executive solution session." Salesforce is also a sponsor of OpenWorld this year. Oracle middleware. His appearance seemed surprising to some observers, given the history between the two companies. Indeed, Ellison's scathingly sarcastic remarks on Wednesday made it sound like the companies' rivalry has not dimmed at all. "Let's look at their technology," he said. "They buy computers. Ellison was an early investor in Salesforce.com and once sat on its board, but left after a falling out with Benioff. They rent a room.

They buy electricity and plug it in. Uh, they put the computers in the room. They then buy an Oracle database to run on those computers and then they buy Oracle middleware to build their applications. A Salesforce.com spokesman wouldn't directly address Ellison's comments, but pointed to the company's successes. "Customers are moving towards cloud computing and away from traditional software," said Bruce Francis, vice president of corporate strategy, via e-mail. "We have more than 63,000 customers experiencing success in the cloud. Oh, excuse me, and then they build this little itty-bitty application for salesforce automation. ... Most of the technology at Salesforce.com is ours." In addition, a long list of companies have "chucked" Salesforce.com's software and replaced it with Oracle's on-demand CRM software, Ellison claimed. And, as we reported in August, the number of customers grew 32% in Q2."

3Com: one of the longest running shows in networking

Now consumed by HP in a $2.7 billion deal announced Wednesday, 3Com has a long and varied history, summarized here. 1979 – 3Com is founded, and it turns out that Bob Metcalfe, the father of Ethernet, is the father of 3Com, too. He stepped down as CEO in 2001, but he remains chairman. 1994 – The company buys switch maker Synernetics, remote-access server maker Centrum Communications and ATM vendor NiceCom. 1995 – 3Com buys hub and switch vendor ChipCom for $775 million. 1997 – The company spends $7.3 billion to buy U.S. Robotics, the maker of modems and Palm handhelds. 2000 – 3Com gets out of the large enterprise switching market and spins off Palm as a separate entity. 2003 – The company creates a joint venture with Huawei – H-3C - in an effort to get back into large enterprise switching. He holds the post of CEO for three years. 1981 – The company ships its first product, an Ethernet adapter. 1984 – Its initial public offering yields $10 million in stock revenue. 1986 – The company relies on sales of NICs, servers and its network operating system 3+ for most of its sales. 1988 – 3Com ships 3+Open, the first network operating system based on Microsoft's LAN Manager. 1987 – The company buys Bridge Communications, maker of multi-protocol bridges. 1990 – Facing stiff competition from Microsoft and Novell, 3Com gets out of the network operating system business. 1990 – Eric Benhomou is named president and CEO of the company.

The headquarters moves from Santa Clara to Marlborough, Mass. 2004 – 3Com buys IPS maker Tipping Point for $430 million. 2006 – 3Com buys out the H-3C joint venture for $882 million. 2007 – Bain Capital agrees to buy the company with help from Huawei for $2.2 billion, but federal regulators block the deal. 3Com spins out Tipping Point as a separate publicly held business. 2008 – Robert Mao is named CEO and sets up shop in China where H-3C claims dominance. 2009 – 3Com takes another run at the U.S. large enterprise market. The company agrees to be bought by HP for $2.7 billion.

Apple introduces its first home server

Among the retooling of the more prominent iMac and MacBook lines earlier Tuesday, Apple quietly introduced its first small-scale server, a $999 box based on the Mac mini that one analyst called the only significant announcement of today. Apple installs the server edition of Mac OS X 10.6, aka Snow Leopard, which costs $499 when sold separately. "This is the one interesting thing about today's announcements," argued Ezra Gottheil, an analyst with Technology Business Research. "It's perfect for a very small business or a classroom, but it will make a sweet home server as well." Apple did not pitch the Mac mini-based server as at-home hardware - instead, it touted the new system as "perfect for any small business or group" - but Gottheil sees it as the company's first move into a potentially broader market. "This wouldn't be bad in the house," he said. "It has a bunch of USB ports, 4GB of memory, it can connect to a home wireless network, and decent if not great graphics." The $999 Mac mini is equipped with a 2.53GHz Intel Core Duo processor, an Nvidia GeForce 9400M integrated graphics chipset - the same as used in the entry-level MacBook and the three least-expensive MacBook Pro models - five USB 2.0 ports, a Gigabit Ethernet connection and single FireWire 800 port. Dubbed the "Mac mini with Snow Leopard Server," the new device is essentially a $799 Mac mini with two 500GB hard drives squeezed into the petite case, compared to the one 320GB drive in the stand-alone mini.

Apple yanked the optical drive from the Mac mini to fit the second hard drive in the case, a potential problem unless users pop for the $99 external SuperDrive. Even though Gottheil trumpeted the Mac mini as a potential rival to Windows in the home server market, he realized that the biggest audience was very-small-to-small businesses. "This is significant," he said. "This says Apple is going to put a real toe-hold in really small business. And unlike the Time Capsule, Apple's backup and wireless device, the Mac mini lacks a built-in router. It's a 'My First Server' device, a 'My First Pony,' for small offices that want to get serious about backup and hosting their own e-mail." Its other selling point, said Gottheil, is the unlimited user allowance that comes with Snow Leopard Server. "You can have as many users as you want connected to this," Gottheil said. "You can't get that from Microsoft for this price." Microsoft has been selling a version of its Windows operating system specially crafted for home servers since 2007; it's working on a Windows 7-compatible edition of Windows Home Server, but has delayed the release of that upgrade, citing the need for additional testing . The Windows 7-ready upgrade is now set to ship before the end of the year. The Mac mini with Snow Leopard Server is available now on Apple's online store, and will ship within 24 hours of ordering.

Windows Home Server supports a maximum of 10 users.

Space agency wants volunteers to fly to Mars. Sort of.

The European Space Agency wants volunteers to take the 520-day trip to Mars. Starting in 2010, an international crew of six will simulate a 520-day round-trip to Mars, including a 30-day stay on the Martian surface. Well ok, a simulated version of the red planet voyage but you would get to go to Moscow and pretend you were on a spaceship. The 'mission' is part of the Mars500 program being conducted by ESA and Russia's Institute of Biomedical Problems (IBMP) to study human psychological, medical and physical capabilities and limitations in space through fundamental and operational research.

For the surface exploration, half of the crew will move to the facility's Martian simulation module and the hatch to the rest of the facility will be closed, ESA stated. NetworkWorld Extra: 10 NASA space technologies that may never see the cosmosTop 10 cool satellite projects The crew will follow a program designed to simulate a 250-day journey to Mars, a 30-day surface exploration phase and 240 days travelling back to Earth. The reason for such research? When contemplating missions beyond Low Earth Orbit, such as to the Moon and Mars, daily crew life and operational capabilities may be affected by the hazardous space environment, the need for full autonomy and resourcefulness, the isolation, the interaction with fellow crewmembers and other aspects, the ESA stated. When preparing for long-duration space missions beyond the six month range currently undertaken by Expedition crews on the International Space Station (ISS), medical and psychological aspects become an issue of major importance. Potential Mars explorers should be 20-50 years old, motivated, in good health and no taller than 6ft.

Candidates must have a background and work experience in medicine, biology, life support systems engineering, computer engineering, electronic engineering or mechanical engineering, the ESA stated. They should speak one of the working languages: English and Russian. Except for weightlessness and radiation, the simulations will be as close to a real Mars mission as possible including: • The crew will live and work in a facility in Moscow, which has been specifically designed for the needs of these simulations. Additionally, private communication to family and friends will be limited comparable to a spaceflight situation.• During work time the crew will conduct scientific experiments, perform physical exercise, as well as tasks related to maintenance of the facility, life support system control and maintenance, sanitary and hygienic procedures Selection will be based on education, professional experience, medical fitness and social habits. The facility comprises a medical module: it will accommodate up to 2 crewmembers in case of illness, and has equipment for routine medical and laboratory investigations; living quarters with 6 individual compartments; a kitchen-dining room, living room and a toilet; a Mars landing module, which will only be used during the 30 day Mars orbiting phase and; a storage module containing food supplies, an experimental greenhouse, sauna and gym.• Nutrition and hygiene of the crewmembers will be comparable to that on-board the ISS, i.e. food will be predefined and carefully rationed, there will be no shower, smoking and consumption of alcoholic beverages will not be allowed.• The crew will largely be autonomous, which will be expressed in independent decision-making, control of the environmental situation and of consumable resources, to name a few.• A signal passage delay of up to 20 minutes one-way during communication of the crew and the ground-based control center will be gradually built in with the aim of simulating a real interplanetary mission. Following an initial assessment, potential candidates will have to submit results from medical tests and will then be invited for interview, to be screened in a process similar to that used in astronaut selection.

You have to be a citizen of ESA Member States meaning: Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Ireland, Norway, The Netherlands, Sweden and Canada. The kicker?

Real estate firm plans mobile management upgrade

BoxTone Inc. today announced its BlackBerry management tools are being extended to a variety of smartphones, including the iPhone, Palm Pre, Windows Mobile devices and smartphones using ActiveSync. One real estate services company using Boxtone version 4, Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) in Chicago, plans to migrate to version 5 in two months, said Joe Ryan, senior vice president of IT operations in the Americas for JLL, in an e-mail. The new version, Boxtone 5.0, will start at $35 per user , according to BoxTone officials.

Ryan said the new version will help JLL monitor and manage ActiveSync devices, and could provide self-service features to help remote users activate and provide some basic management of devices on their own. He didn't say what devices using ActiveSync might be under BoxTone management. Ryan said JLL has invested in BoxTone to improve the user experience for about 4,000 workers using BlackBerry devices. BoxTone helps IT workers know when a problem with server software develops even before most users notice the problem and call with complaints, Ryan said. BoxTone "definitely saves us some money," he said, by reducing the number of trouble tickets that users create and by helping to spot users not using their BlackBerry devices so JLL can reclaim the BlackBerry Enterprise Server licenses to save money. If a wireless carrier is having network problems, the IT department can notify the users early. "We have had cases where an entire region of the country was down for one carrier, and we can e-mail users in that area, letting them know their carrier is having issues," he said.

Ryan called the BoxTone software "more of the Cadillac" version of tools he reviewed, which included Conceivium and BesMon, which is built into the BES server.