os

VMware unveils its cloud OS

This was originally posted at ZDNet's Between the Lines.

VMware announced on Tuesday its cloud operating system--dubbed vSphere 4--with plans for general availability in the second quarter.

With the effort, VMware is attempting to bridge virtualized data centers--now known as "private clouds"--and growing cloud computing services from the likes of Amazon.com and others. However, this bridging process is a work in progress due to the lack of standards. VMware's big pitch is that vSphere can run your data center and allow you to bridge out when external resources are needed.

John Gilmartin, director of … Read more

Apple releases iPhone OS 3 beta 3 to developers

Apple's engineering department still isn't sparing the horses for iPhone OS 3.0. It has released beta 3 to developers only two weeks after beta 2 was released.

Like most Apple updates, we suspect that the new beta 3 includes several stability and performance enhancements that might make the beta more pleasing to use, if you are testing it.

We've heard from some early beta testers complaining (see article comments) about the number of issues they were experiencing with the previous releases.

It is too early to tell what kinds of changes have been made in beta … Read more

Parsing the nuances of Windows 7 decisions

This was originally posted at ZDNet's Between the Lines.

A new survey reveals that 84 percent of IT pros don't have plans to upgrade to Windows 7 in the next year and that half of respondents are considering alternatives. But it pays to parse a few nuances.

The survey, which was conducted by Dimension Research and commissioned by KACE, a systems management appliance company. The survey had 1,142 respondents and 99 percent of them had a Windows operating system installed at their companies.

The spin here has been that it's somehow bad that most IT professionals … Read more

More iPhone OS 3.0 secrets revealed: Wi-Fi 802.11n and video editing

Developers have had the iPhone OS 3.0 beta for nearly a month now and are continuing to uncover new features. Initially reported by TAUW and AppleInsider, a few of these features hint at Apple's next iPhone hardware revision.

Reports are that the iPhone OS 3.0 firmware beta now includes driver support for a new Broadcom Wi-Fi chip that might support high-speed 802.11n Wi-Fi and improved support for 5 Ghz Wi-Fi networks--a logical step for Apple, since this feature would improve compatibility between the iPhone, current MacBooks, and Apple's newly refreshed Time Capsule and Airport Extreme … Read more

Is an Apple more form than function?

Updated at 10:45 p.m. PST with additional system specifications.

The aesthete buys an Apple. This dig in the latest Mac-attack Microsoft ad contains a kernel of truth.

Here's the essential choice: A Dell with a pedestrian design but all the fixin's or a gorgeous Apple MacBook that doesn't offer quite as much. (Whether the prospective buyer needs a maxed-out laptop is a pertinent question too.)

The Dell paradigm is how many people define practicality, i.e., you get more box for the money. Hewlett-Packard of course falls into this category too.

I use both a … Read more

iPhone OS 3.0 beta 2 jailbroken

If you blinked, you might have missed it: one day after Apple released an update to the iPhone OS 3 beta, hackers have already jailbroken the OS 3 beta 2 release.

A new version of QuickPWN for Windows only (direct download link) has been released. This version should work with all versions of the iPhone or the iPod Touch. We have not yet tried the jailbreak, but our sources have not reported any trouble with the hack. (As usual, however, download and use QuickPWN at your own risk.)

Jailbreaking is competitive in the hacking community. The Dev Team, the favored … Read more

Palm opening WebOS SDK up to developers

Palm is ready to let the world get its hands on the software development kit for WebOS, its next-generation mobile operating system.

At the Web 2.0 Expo on Wednesday, Palm's Michael Abbott announced that the company is ready to let developers start playing with its Mojo SDK, until now restricted to a few dozen select invitees.

He also showed how developers can tap into the messaging stream at the bottom of a Palm Pre using a Palm-hosted notifications service, and provided a link to Palm's past with the announcement of an emulator that will let WebOS users … Read more

Apple releases iPhone OS 3 beta 2 to developers

Apple's engineering department isn't sparing the horses for iPhone OS 3.0. It has released beta 2 to developers along with the green light for developing applications with push notifications. Beta 1 was released only two weeks ago.

Like most Apple updates, the new beta 2 includes several stability and performance enhancements that might make the beta more pleasing to use if you are testing it. We've heard from some early beta 1 testers complaining about the number of issues they were experiencing with the first release.

Stability is good, but now there are reports cropping up … Read more

Mac, Linux skills grab higher salaries than Windows

Microsoft likes to tout the cost savings that derive from paying Windows-skilled employees less money.

That's great, if you're an employer, but if you're an engineer who needs to feed her family, the money is in Linux and Mac OS X skills, as highlighted in a recent post on the site of the Free and Open Source Software Learning Centre:

Of course, once you look past the operating-system data, it's clear that open-source skills do, on average, command less of a premium, perhaps because they're in more abundant supply. Because students are more likely to … Read more