August 2008 Archives

Dell missed its latest earnings projections for the quarter ending Aug. 1, although sales actually grew 11 percent. The results rattled the tech sector, but there seems little for the channel to be concerned about in the vendor's latest numbers.

Distributor Avnet Technology Solutions (ATS) has named Gavin Miller vice president and general manager of its Technology Infrastructure Solutions Group, a segment of the business that combines enterprise software and storage with technology and market solutions.

The small and midsize business (SMB) market is becoming even more important to VARs, in part because enterprise spending growth is beginning to slow. Distributor Ingram Micro is stepping up its services in the space this week at a meeting of its SMB Alliance in Chicago.

The lingering controversy about Microsoft's operating systems appears as if it will never die, in part because XP just won't go quietly. Are businesses really shunning Visa? Wil Vista go the way of the short-lived ill-fated Windows ME?

In a world where airlines charge for pillows and aisle seats, I suppose this is inevitable: Distributors are passing on more fees to their channel partners. Tech Data has become the latest, heralding on its Web site a new $2 "freight policy" fee on orders.

Hewlett-Packard has decided to revamp its PartnerOne channel partner program in an effort to streamline access to its productrs and services. The company is dropping the "Gold" and Platinum" designations, replacing them with the terms "Preferred" and "Elite". The changes go into effect  Nov. 1. 

More small enterprise companies are looking to save money by consolidating their data centers, according to a new survey conducted by research firm Computer Economics. Some 79 percent of organizations will less than $350 million in annual revenue are involved in data-center consolidation, up from 56 percent last year.

More small enterprise companies are looking to save money by consolidating their data centers, according to a new survey conducted by research firm Computer Economics. Some 79 percent of organizations will less than $350 million in annual revenue are involved in data-center consolidation, up from 56 percent last year.

Distributor Tech Data is hosting its annual TechSelect University event next week, an annual partner education conference for SMB VARs. This year, the focus is on helping channel partners meet the rising demand for server virtualization solutions.

Avnet Technology Solutions is teaming up with VDoc Software to provide IBM VARs and software vendors to provide a new collaborative software solution designed to enhance the flow of information among people, documents and applications.

The fight for market share in the mini-notebook market segment is heating up. At a company event in San Francisco, Dell released two new entries the E4200 and E4300. The E4200 is a  12-inch, 2.2 lb "ultra-portable" laptop that is the lightest in the company's history.

Radio frequency identification (RFID) has been mostly a peripheral technology to the channel. Now a worldwide survey from the trade group CompTIA suggests this is about to change.

Green computing has been catching on in the industry, but most of the initiatives have come from hardware and software vendors, not the channel. Now distributor Ingram Micro has introduced a service that changes that.

How is Microsoft reacting to the new era of virtualization? Apparently, by developing a slimmed-down operating system that uncouples the software from the hardware on which it runs. A report from the BBC says Microsoft is busy preparing for the post-Windows age.