CMP's Stephanie Stahl sat down at Interop with Cisco CEO John Chambers for a wide-ranging interview covering the idea of the "network as a platform" and more.

Click on the video below to see the whole story. (.wmv)

Take a sneak-peak into the Best of Interop awards ceremony, hosted by NWC editors, in this video report.

Click on the video below for your virtual front-row-seat. (.wmv)

We talked with Internet Security Systems CEO Thomas Noonan about the changing nature of security attacks -- and what IT needs to do to keep one step ahead of the bad guys. Check out this video Q&A.

Click on the video below to see the whole story. (.wmv)

It's not exactly like dotcom-boom-days, but Interop's "Startup City" area featured some intriguing IT startups trying to make their mark. Check out our latest video blog segment as we look at companies looking to take the startup leap.

Click on the video below to see the whole story. (.wmv)

Originally Published on CRN By KDan Neel

Telepresence blends high-bandwidth IP communications into a high-resolution video- and voice-conferencing system. Such solutions will be so refined that users will be able to detect subtle nuances in the responses of other participants and follow them around a room, according to Chambers.

Continue reading "Cisco's Chambers Predicts Dawn Of 'Telepresence'"


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Originally Published on CRN By Kevin McLaughlin

Borderware introduced a platform for protecting companies from inbound and outbound threats through multiple protocols, while Elemental Security rolled out a network access control (NAC) solution that uses a policy-based approach to safeguard networks. Continue reading "Security Vendors Take Aim At Multiprotocol Threats, NAC, Compliance"


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Tuesday afternoon, Network Computing editors officially announced the Best of Interop winners. NWC's tech editors spent two days vetting the BOI entries to come up with this year's award winners:

Best of Interop Grand Prize Winner Crescendo Networks - Crescendo ALP (Application Layer Processing)

Best Startup Product
Kaidea Innovation, Inc - NASVault

Application Networks and Performance
Crescendo Networks - Crescendo ALP (Application Layer Processing)

Data Center and Storage
D-Link - D-Link xStack Storage iSCSI SAN Arrays (ISN-3000 Series)

Infrastructure
ConSentry Networks - CS4048X, Secure LAN Switch

Network Software and Services
eTelemetry, Inc. - Locate

Security
Application Security, Inc. - AppRadar 3.0

VoIP and Collaboration
Sipera Systems - Sipera IPCS 310

Wireless and Mobility
Reva Systems - Tag Acquisition Processor - Platform Edition

Podcast from Interop - Day 2 report (download here). Tuesday was a busy day. All morning was spent picking the Best of Interop. Last episode I talked about the finalists in VoIP/Collaboration; find out who won in today's podcast. I also had a chance to sit down with Raritan. They announced a server monitoring product at the show. That's quite interesting, considering Avocent's latest move (see previous blog entry). If you were curious what it sounds like when a Network Computing editor is briefed by a vendor, here's your chance to listen in.

We talked with several Cisco execs about the vendor's vision of "application-oriented networking" -- the move of more and more services into the network infrastructure to support next-generation service-oriented applications. Learn what this big-picture vision means for your network today -- and in the future.

Click on the video below to see the whole story. (.wmv)

From John Chambers' keynote to the buzz in the conference hallways, the story at Interop 2006 was the re-emergence of IT as a key driver of business strategy -- not just corporate cost-cutting. Check out our latest video blog segment direct from Las Vegas.

Click on the video below to see the whole story. (.wmv)

Originally Published on CRN by Dan Neel

Opsware on Monday rolled out a new version of its data center automation software at Interop Las Vegas 2006.

Just over a year ago we were reminded that the infrastructure behind your Internet operations matters, in a big way, by well-publicized crashes at sites such as Delta.com. If you recall, that one was crippled by traffic following its launch of a revamped web site that encouraged customers to purchase tickets online.

Podcast from Interop - Day 1 report (download here). The show floor officially opens in just a few hours. However before the show, the editors of Network Computing (as well as our freelance writers and other CMP publications) interview and interrogate vendors to determine which product is considered the Best of Interop. In today's podcast, I talk about the three finalists I met with for Best of Show in the category "VoIP and Collaboration". The winner will be announced at 4:00pm today.

The show floor might not have been open on Monday, but there was plenty to see behind the scenes at Interop 2006 in Las Vegas. Check out our latest video blog segment as we go behind closed-doors to provide a sneak preview of NWC's Best of Interop judging and get the scoop on the latest iteration of the InteropNet show network.

Click on the video below to see the whole story. (.wmv)

Internap's Brandon Ross is an InteropNet veteran. In this video Q&A, Brandon gives Network Computing's Jenny Zaino the inside scoop on the what makes the show network hum.

Click on the video below to get the full story.

Steven Hill covers Storage and Servers for Network Computing. You can find NWC's choices for Well-Connected Award winners in the storage and servers area here, including Cisco Systems, EMC, Symantec, VMware, EqualLogic, NeoScale Systems and EVault.

Click on the video below and hear Steven talk about the storage and server trends that mattered and the best products of 2005. (.wmv)

Pick-up of USB drives in the consumer world has been rapid, but not so much in the business arena—at least, not on an official basis. We all know plenty of these come creeping onto the network on an unofficial basis—heck, just think how many you might pick up as a souvenir from Interop alone.

(Originally Posted on InformationWeek by J. Nicholas Hoover)

A year ago, the expected download time for a 5-Mbyte building design file at architectural firm Ghafari Associates' branch offices was about three minutes. Now it takes 50 seconds the first time a file is downloaded and about two seconds for subsequent downloads.

It's not a drastic increase in bandwidth that has speeded download times, but application acceleration devices that enhance protocol efficiency and file caching for quick access after the first download.

(Originally posted on CRN.com By Jennifer Hagendorf Follett and Kevin McLaughlin)

Network access control solutions will be in the spotlight at Interop Las Vegas 2006, where Enterasys Networks, Vernier Networks and other vendors are slated to unveil NAC wares.

NAC technology ensures that all devices linked to a network are free of malware and comply with corporate security policies before they're allowed to connect, providing an effective and economical way to protect the corporate network.

Podcast from Interop - Day 0 report (download here). It has been an all travel day for me. Fortunately the ride was smooth, and I didn't get delayed for hours. In today's podcast, you'll ride along with me on my journey to Vegas. We'll eat dinner in Cincinnati, descend into McCarran airport and then check in to an oddly shaped hotel. I conclude the show by describing my expectations of the show. I'll have more information about vendors, products and Interop in tomorrow's podcast.

Two trends could spur more business the way of ISS' managed services division: the convergence of security information management and network vulnerability assessment, and regulatory compliance demands. Wait, make that three—the desire to transition critical but mundane security tasks to a third-party provider without actually handing over the keys to the entire infrastructure. Or maybe four—the fact that fully implementing a security information management system can be a long, difficult and costly process, potentially taking (ISS says) up to six to 12 months and eating up hundreds of thousand of dollars just in product, plus deployment and management fees that can rack the bill up to a million bucks in just the first year.

Don MacVittie covers Security for Network Computing. You can find NWC's choices for Well-Connected Award winners in this beat area here, including Forum Systems, Juniper Networks, WatchGuard Technologies, Sunbelt Software and AirMagnet.

Click on the video below and hear Don talk about the security trends that mattered and the best products of 2005.(.wmv)

Lori MacVittie covers Application Infrastructure for Network Computing. You can find Lori's choices for Well-Connected Award winners in the application infrastructure beat area here, including SonicWall, Cast Iron Systems and BEA Systems.

Click on the video below and hear Lori talk about the application infrastructure trends that mattered and the best products of 2005.(.wmv)

Lori MacVittie covers Enterprise Applications for Network Computing. You can find Lori's choices for Well-Connected Award winners in her beat area here, including Cognos, Fuego, Sage Software, ThinkFree Office and Forum Systems.

Click on the video below and hear Lori talk about the enterprise application trends that mattered and the best products of 2005. (.wmv)

Mike DeMaria covers Messaging and Collaboration for Network Computing. You can find NWC's choices for Well-Connected Award winners in the storage and servers area here, including Apple, Polycom, Interactive Intelligence, Avaya, Webex and Atlassian Software Systems.

Click on the video below and hear Mike talk about the collaboration trends that mattered and the best products of 2005.

Bruce Boardman covers Network and Systems Management for Network Computing. You can find his choices for Well-Connected Award winners in his beat area here, including Symantec, Opsware, Coradiant, WebSideStory, ClearSight and ScriptLogic.

Click on the video below and hear straight from Bruce about this year's best network and systems management products and most important trends. (.wmv)

Every year at this time, Network Computing makes our picks for the best IT products and services of the past year -- the NWC Well-Connected Awards.

This is no mere popularity contest. Our tech editors have spent the year testing countless products over countless hours in the NWC Real World Labs. For the awards, they relive the highs and lows of a year spent testing and reviewing producs and services in eight core areas of coverage: Security, Network & Systems Management, Enterprise Applications, Wireless, Messaging & Collaboration, Network Infrastructure, Application Infrastructure and Storage & Servers.

There's a lot going on at Interop 2006, and whether you can make it to the show or not, be sure to stop here for the NWC Interop Video Blog to catch all the happenings. We have almost a dozen editors trolling the event, and via video posts, podcast segments and plain old-fashioned text posts, we're going to cover the show from top to bottom.

Among the highlights:

- Behind-the-scenes access to the Best of Interop testing, which is being handled by NWC's own tech editors.

- A virtual guest pass to the NWC Well-Connected Awards Ceremony

- Daily news and analysis reports live from the show floor

- And more.

And now, in the spirit of our video blogging efforts, please spare 30 seconds to click on the video below for a brief video introduction to the Interop 2006 Video Blog. (.wmv)