Data center power usage is soaring -- the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that data center energy requirements will double in the next five years. To address that surge in energy use, some companies are turning to alternative sources of energy, including solar arrays, natural gas turbines, wind power, fuel cells and hydro power. But one big question is whether these power sources will deliver a return on investment in the near future.
There's nothing like face-to-face meetings for really connecting with clients or team members, but with air travel becoming ever more expensive (and ever less pleasant), frequent in-person meetings are becoming less viable for many businesses. That means your best option is usually a videoconference.
What's happening -- Businesses are integrating location-based services such as Foursquare, Gowalla, Loopt and Socialight into enterprise applications. For example, ice cream retailer Tasti D-Lite incorporated Foursquare into its loyalty program, providing extra reward points for customers who check in at a store using the application.
The Titanic was thought to be unsinkable, a testament to the engineering prowess of its day and the fact that luxury liners rarely collided with massive icebergs.
Sure, consumer gadgets are getting most of the attention these days, but data centers are getting some love too. These new products and technologies promise to solve real data center problems or are already working to make enterprise operations run more smoothly. How many are on your wish list?
What's happening
They're collecting dust in storage rooms and taking up extra space in your garage or office. They can't handle today's applications, peripherals or operating systems. Yes, older computers are a nuisance, like the brother-in-law who sleeps on your sofa for a few months.
Storage virtualization is becoming more common as companies realize the benefits of consolidating storage-area networks and streamlining their management. As with applications and servers, storage virtualization enables IT departments to decouple data from dedicated devices. An appliance serves as a go-between from applications and operating systems to the mass storage, enabling you to manage them all using one console. Thirty-eight percent of IT professionals surveyed recently by CIO said they are piloting or have deployed virtual storage technology, and another 31 percent are interested in it.
Microsoft and Google aren't the only cloud e-mail providers setting their sights on the enterprise. Here's a look at some others.
Like the iPhone before it, <a href="http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9137163/Apple_Update">Apple</a>'s new <a href="http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9149338/Continuing_coverage_Apple_s_iPad_tablet">iPad</a> tablet is a technological powerhouse with a multitouch-screen interface, an accelerometer that senses movement and tilt, an antiglare screen you can view from a side angle, a long-lasting battery and more. To uncover how the iPad works, you could dismantle the device and void the warranty. Instead, let me explain the embedded technology.
High-performance computing (HPC) has almost always required a supercomputer - one of those room-size monoliths you find at government research labs and universities.
When the site GDGT.com went live this past summer, Ryan Block was expecting a lot of interest.
You put it up to your ear and the screen goes blank. Turn it on its side, and the screen rotates. Walk outside and it can find your location, point a compass in the correct direction and post your geostatus on Google Latitude. Point it at a Twitter user in the real world, and you can see his or her status on a pop-up screen.
They start as a mild tremor at first: rumors of an Apple Phone and rumblings about Web 2.0, whispers about touch interfaces and flash storage.
On tap: A color thesaurus, photonics, and book and magazine publishing