www.eweek.com ANDREW GARCIA How to navigate the suddenly lush SMB VOIP market 39 Virgin’s VOIP Mega-hit Robert Fort, director of IT, Virgin Entertainment Group BY ANNE CHEN Virgin Entertainment saves big bucks, builds new business with an integrated IP network 45 digital EXCLUSIVE BONUS CONTENT! NEWS LABS SPENCER F. IBM celebrates Anne Chen KATT the 50th year walks through Spencer charts of the hard updates in the evolutionary drive by looking Microsoft Office history of Linux SPONSOR ahead Beta 2 Man HP EW1 EW3 EW4 SEE THE HP BLADES SEPTEMBER 25, 2006 AD ON PAGES 2-3 VOL. 23, NO. 38 • $6 YOU’VE ALWAYS BEEN COOL UNDER PRESSURE. YOU JUST NEEDED SYSTEMS AS CONTROLLED AS YOU ARE. 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Disk http://www.diskeeper.com/eweekdocs ® ©2006 Diskeeper Corporation.All Rights Reserved.Diskeeper,The Number One Automatic Defragmenter,“Set It and Forget It”and the Diskeeper Corporation logo are reg- istered trademarks or trademarks of Diskeeper Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.Microsoft is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.Diskeeper Corporation • 7590 N.Glenoaks Blvd.Burbank,CA 91504 • 800-829-6468 • www.diskeeper.com f THIS WEEK Cios and technology profession- sense of security about the importance of of all kinds are on the rise, with 69 per- als, like the legendary groundhog, IT,” Hopper said at the conference. cent of all attacks focused on the browser, are starting to peer out of their bur- But things are finally looking up. IT Hines found in a new report issued by rows for signs of the end of IT’s nuclear spending is increasing, and some jobs and Symantec. In all, the security company winter. What they are seeing are definitely skills are in demand despite, or perhaps detected almost 100 new vulnerabilities the more optimistic signs of an early because of, the outsourcing trend. As a in three top Web browsers—Firefox, In- spring, according to Executive group, CIOs are more focused on ternet Explorer and Apple’s Safari—in Editor Stan Gibson, who talked the future than on ducking and the first six months of the year, and a 52 with CIOs at the Society for covering and are putting Web percent rise in browser problems overall. Information Management’s services on the top of their priority Security companies and CIOs will never SIM posiumconference, held in lists, Gibson reports on Page 18. completely solve the security problem, Dallas Sept. 17-20. Not all is completely rosy. but what must be done is not let security Experts point to the Y2K Some of the emerging tech- issues hinder the growth possibilities conversion, dot-com bust, nologies that are driving Web Web applications can offer.´ 9/11 and increased regulations services growth are being found such as Sarbanes-Oxley as to have security issues. The Contact eWEEK Editor Scot Petersen at the mortars that IThas had SCOT PETERSEN so-called Web 2.0 apps being [email protected]. to endure in the past seven years, all the developed with AJAX (Asynchronous Java- while being pressured to cut costs and be Script and XML), for instance, are being PODCASTS more efficient and more secure. “I think targeted specifically, as the apps are going Y2K is one of the worst things that ever up faster than secure development tech- happened to our profession,” said Sabre niques can be instituted, reports eWeek go.eweek.com/podcasts founderMax Hopper, now president of Senior Writer Matt Hines on Page 14. the Max D. Hopper Associates consultant Meanwhile, browser-based attacks eWEEK InfraSpectrum group. “The hype about the dangers and A smaller server footprint, lower power the subsequent nonevent created a false consumption and quick peak-load response are the promises made by Azul Systems. F WEEK.COM Technology Editor Peter Coffee talks with Pallatto’s reporting. Chief Operating Officer Scott Sellers about the company’s Java appliance technology. HAPPY B-DAY,MICRO- THE SKINNIER INTEL Senior SOFT RESEARCH It’s TestRun WriterJohn G. Spooner will 15, and it’s showing LINE The hackers who Labs Director Jim Rapoza and Ad- find out what’s next after Intel’s off Sept. 26. Sneak peeks: the exposed the Windows/Mac vanced Technologies Analyst Jason layoffs as he heads to the latest in surface computing and Wi-Fi driver flaw, David Brooks talk about XenSource’s Xen- chipmeister’s INTEL DEVEL- augmented cognition and visual- Maynor and Jon “Jonny Enterprise3.0. Brooks says that Xen- OPER FORUM Sept. 26-28. ization. Senior Editor Peter Galli Cache” Ellch, tell the story at Enterprise is the best implementation of DEMOLICIOUS Senior Writer gets the story. TOORCONSept. 29-Oct. 1. Xen virtualization that he has seen but Anne Chen is at DEMO FALL Senior Writer Ryan Naraine’s OPEN WIDE After Microsoft land, that doesn’t mean that Xen is ready to Sept. 26-27. Hot. New. Stuff. reporting. Expect stories on Galli’s going to GARTNER’S take on VMware. the Windows monoculture, YOU SAASY THING, YOU IDG OPEN SOURCE SUMMIT Sept. inserting genetic diversity OnSecurity ponders the software-as-a- 27-29. Topics: licensing, com- service market at SAASCON petitive landscape, case studies. into software on the sly and a Senior Writer Matt Hines talks with Sept. 25-26. News Editor John Vista exploitation counter- David Marcus, security research and uI WALK THE SECURITY measures demo from iDe- communications manager for McAfee’s fense’s Richard Johnson. AVERT Labs, about frustrations in chasing TRY IT NOW! digital BUG SQUASHING 101 the malware money trail, the range of IT go.eweek.com/zinio SYMANTEC’S doing a work- crimes that likely aren’t ever reported and Exclusive bonus coverage for digital edition subscribers: shop on anti-virus products the new threat known as smishing. Sept 28-29. Labs Technical News Labs Spencer F. Katt SIM Report AnalystAndrew Garcia says IBM celebrates Anne Chen Spencer charts Executive Editor Stan Gibson reports he’s enrolled and expects it the 50th year walks through the evolutionary from the SIMposium conference in Dal- of the hard drive updates in history of to be blogorific. las about what’s on the minds of CIOs. by looking ahead Microsoft Office Linux Man Beta 2 www.eweek.com SEPTEMBER 25, 2006 n eWEEK 5 Don’t let a trading partner’s failure disappoint your customer. Assure flawless information hand-offs and make your systems collaborate the way 75% of the FORTUNE® 100 do. If your company depends on partners outside your control, you should depend on Sterling Commerce. Only Sterling Commerce Multi-Enterprise Collaboration (MEC) solutions allow you to optimize communities, pro- cesses and technology. So you can leverage your current assets with configurable software and services built on a services-oriented architecture, ready for implementation right now. You get visibility into your entire value chain and increased control moving forward. With over 30,000 customers worldwide, we’re sure to have a solution that pleases you…and your customers. Visit us at www.sterlingcommerce.com COMMUNITY ENABLEMENT / SUPPLY CHAIN APPLICATIONS / PAYMENT APPLICATIONS / ON-DEMAND SOLUTIONS / B2B COLLABORATION ©2006 Sterling Commerce, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Sterling Commerce and the Sterling Commerce logo are trademarks of Sterling Commerce, Inc. Sterling Commerce is an AT&T company. FORTUNE is a registered mark of Time Inc. SEPTEMBER 25, 2006 Editorial Director Eric Lundquist Editor Scot Petersen CONTENTS Executive Editor/News Larry Dignan Director/eWEEK Labs Jim Rapoza Executive Editor/eWEEK Labs Deb Donston Technology Editor Peter Coffee Executive Editor Stan Gibson NEWS News Editors John Pallatto, Lisa Vaas, Steve Bryant, Don Sears Senior Editors Jeffrey Burt, Peter Galli, Paula Musich, Darryl K. Taft Senior Writers Renee Boucher Ferguson, John Hazard, Matt Hines, Ryan Naraine, Chris Preimesberger, Staff Writers SJochont tG F.e Srgpuosoonne, rD, Webaoyrnaeh Rash NEWS& 27 Citrix scales new WAN Rothberg optimization appliances. gWEEK LABS ANALYSIS 28 RFID state legislation is 54 West Coast Technical Director Cameron Sturdevant Advanced Technologies Analyst J ason Brooks on the rise. Technical Analysts Michael Caton, Andrew Garcia Senior Writer Anne Chen 13 CEO Paul Otellini 32 Microsoft’s Jim Allchin maps out Intel’s plans FEATURES tells developers to pre- Associate Editor, Solutions Series David Weldon at its developer forum. pare for Vista now. OPINION EDITORIAL PRODUCTION 32 Microsoft adds another Managing Editor Rick Dagley Deputy Managing Editor Debra Perry IT threat researcher to its 5 This eWEEK: IT’s future Copy Chief Jim Williams Senior Copy Editor Emily Zurich security arsenal. is looking bright. Copy Editors Kelsey Adams, Vikki Lipset, Shane O’Neill Newsletter Editor Alethea Yip 34 The Buzz 10 Eric Lundquist: The compliance movement ART DEPARTMENT f has a long way to go. Senior Art Director Stephen Anderson WEEKLABS Associate Art Director Paul Connolly Senior Production Designer Tara-Ann Fasulo 36 Our View: Microsoft’s Senior Designer Chip Buchanan open-source pledge is gWEEK 39 SMBs now have a good step. PKuarbl lEislkheenr 13 many VOIP options to 36 Reader mail Business Manager choose from. Eric Berk PeterE Crich iaLcucbheicakro, ,S MAeasnsriokorec Ritaientesg eRaercseha Drcirhe cMtoarnager 40 lDin-eL icnakn’s bSeM cBon VfuOsIinPg . 43 CTeasmtse srohonw S tSuSrdLe VvPanNts: Production Manager 14 Symantec cites Web can coexist with VOIP. Michael DiCarlis Ad TraTfifmic BCeononredttinator attacks as biggest threat. 41 Slawcki tlcohnvgo-txe SrmM VBO mIPa y 50 Jim Rapoza: RSS securi- 16 Oracleand SAP spar ty woes need a fix before potential. over recent earnings release of IE 7 and Vista. reports and their meaning. 42 Tech Analysis:Virtual 51 Peter Coffee: Tech pro- ZIFF DAVIS MEDIA PBXes offer VOIP Chairman & CEO 17 The OSDL defends its jections usually err on Robert F. Callahan patent policies. without hardware the side of caution. Chief Financial Officer upgrades. Mark Moyer Executive Vice President &Chief Content Officer 18 The SIMposium pro- 54 Spencer F. Katt: Katt Michael J. Miller jected a positive future 43 Trixbox beefs up scratching turns up Executive Vice President,Licensing & Legal Affairs, Asterisk’s capabilities. General Counsel for the IT profession. skepticism on Vista. Gregory Barton PRESIDENTS 20 Labs: A technical refresh Scott McCarthy (Game Group) gives Office 2007 a per- Sloan Seymour (Enterprise Group) Jason Young (Consumer Tech/Small Business Group) formance boost. SENIOR VICE PRESIDENTS 21 An IE hole is used to Kenneth Beach (Corporate Sales) Ira Becker (Game Group) flood infected machines Jim Louderback (Editorial Director, Consumer/Small Business Group) Angelo Mandarano (Internet) with malware. Martha Schwartz (Custom Solutions Group) Michael Vizard (Editorial Director, Enterprise Group) 21 Microsoftsues resellers VOIP TOPS VICE PRESIDENTS of potentially illegal ver- John Davison (Game Group) Elaine Ebner (Corporate Sales) sions of XP and Office. CHARTS Karl Elken (Publisher, eWEEK) Aaron Goldberg (Market Experts) Barry Harrigan (Web Buyers Guide) 24 Avokia claims to have Kristin Holmes (International Licensing) Michael Krieger (Market Experts) the most far-flung data- 45 Virgin Entertain- RRaiyc kL eLdedhrab (aGumam (eIn Gterrnoeutp)) base cluster. ment and IT Eric Lundquist (Editorial Director, eWEEK) Chris Maginn (Internet) 26 Network General auto- Director Robert Jim McCabe (PC Magazine) Scott McDaniel (Game Group) mates troubleshooting. Fort are reaping Paul O’Reilly (Event Marketing Group) Beth Repeta (Human Resources) the rewards of Dave Rock (Circulation) 26 Silver Lake Partners Chris Stetson (Research/Market Intelligence) a converged IP Stephen Sutton (Audience Development, Consumer/Small Business) bet on Network General. Stephen Veith (Enterprise Group Publishing Director) network. Monica Vila (Event Marketing Group) Randy Zane (Corporate Communications) Photo: Mark Robert Halper eWEEK editorial staff members can be reached at (781) 938-2600 or (800) 451-1032, or via e-mail using the following formula: firstname_ [email protected]. For example: [email protected]. (Don’t use middle initials in address.) www.eweek.com SEPTEMBER 25, 2006 n eWEEK 7 TAKE CONTROL OF THE GAME. Go Pro. Introducing Intel® vPro™ technology. Greater control built in to your desktop  eet. Intel® vPro™ technology is more than just a new processor. It’s an integrated set of new technologies designed to work together. Your ability to manage your entire enterprise is built in. So is your ability to remotely heal PCs even when powered down. Built around the extraordinary performance of the new Intel® Core™2 Duo processor, Intel vPro technology adds functionality to leading network management software. To download the Intel vPro technology whitepaper, go to intel.com/vpro. ©2006 Intel Corporation. Intel, the Intel logo, Intel vPro, Intel Core, Intel. Leap ahead., and the Intel. Leap ahead. logo are trademarks or registered trademarksof Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries. All rights reserved. & NEWS ANALYSIS WEBLOG ERIC LUNDQUIST: UP FRONT Regulations can’t keep up ERIC’S PICKS FROM GWEEK BLOGS go.eweek.com/weblog HP, OTHER SAGAS SHOW FAILURE OF COMPLIANCE MOVEMENT @ Riddle me this: in 100 public companies, many of which are ALLAN ALTER this era of Sarbanes- high-tech. At issue is the practice of back- IT budgets rising Oxley,HIPAA and dating when companies award stock options more regulations than I retroactively to provide the option holder The 2006 Society for Infor- can keep track of, why with the highest stock price gain. The pro- mation Management survey does there continue to be cess is an affront to shareholders and com- found 51.8 percent of its 140 a stream of outrageous pany employees too low on the money chain respondents expecting IT bud- corporate technology fail- to take part in the financial reward system. gets to increase in 2007, with ings? Let’s look at three Wasn’t SarbOx supposed to stop these types 32.8 percent expecting them of the most recent. of financial shenanigans? Regulatory compli- to remain the same. IT bud- The first is the ongoing seedy saga of ance has become one of the great drivers of gets this year are 3.6 percent Hewlett-Packard’s top board member and IT spending, yet all that spending apparently of revenues, on average. other HP executives engaging in corporate missed the ability to send up a red flag when Internal staff, the larg- spying on HP’s own board members and an option date was retroactively changed est slice in the budget pie, employees and on journalists. Wasn’t SarbO x, or granted. Before regulators set about try- will drop from 35.2 percent written four years ago in the wake of major ing to “fix” the current system by asking for to 33.9 percent of the total accounting scandals at the likes of Enron, even more detailed reports, they need to ask budget, even though 70.9 supposed to bring accountability and respon- themselves how something as apparently wide- percent of respondents say sibility to the boardroom? The amount of spread as stock-option backdating could exist IT staff salaries will increase money and time spent on regulatory compli- under the current regulatory environment. in 2007. The drop is occur- ance has been staggering, yet all those regula- The third area where regulatory oversight ring largely because fewer tions have done little to thwart a company missed a burgeoning problem was the recent companies are growing their deciding to engage in unethical and possibly laptop recalls resulting from contaminated IT organizations, keeping illegal practices to root out someone leaking batteries. Last week, Toshiba joined several head counts the same as corporate information. other computer makers engaged in recalls what last year’s SIM survey Last week, regulators when it announced it projected—or 72 percent, were called to Capitol WASN’T SARBOX SUPPOSED was recalling 340,000 compared with the 83 per- Hill to provide an update laptops worldwide. The cent projected in the previ- TO BRING ACCOUNTABILITY on and defend the state Toshiba recall was related ous year’s survey. 9/19/06 of regulatory compli- TO THE BOARDROOM? to the batteries suddenly @ ance. It seems more and losing power and was far more likely that change (in either loosening less serious than the recalls by Dell and Apple, STEVE BRYANT Google AdWords some regulations or lengthening the time for which were due to their products’ potential fire compliance deadlines) will happen during problems. All the battery woes seem to lead in e-mail? this legislative session. The chief complaint I back to batteries supplied by Sony. hear from tech execs about compliance is that, Maybe I’m missing something here, but Some Google AdSense pub- many times, regulations call for incredibly these recalls seemed to follow a consistent proc- lishers are now using Google detailed reporting on products and processes ess. First, blog entries popped up talking about advertising inside e-mails and (often with a joke about the need to detail battery issues. Vendors said they were looking newsletters, say posters on the the process for buying coffee included in the into the issues and, after a period of weeks or Digital Point Forums. Blogger discussion) but miss the bigger violations that months, suddenly issued a recall notice. Dur- Barry Schwartz points us to might be taking place. While public compa- ing that time, consumers were left in the dark the forum, where a poster has nies are under orders to track and archive all to figure out whether their product was safe or noticed that an e-mail sent by e-mail, what about a process where a company unsafe. I always thought one goal of increased a job listings service contains chairman can go out and hire private investi- regulatory compliance was to make the opera- links to Google ads. One poster gators to track down a corporate leak? Where tions of public companies more transparent. hypothesizes that Google has was SarbOx when those private detectives were Making the product-complaint-and-resolution begun to allow AdSense pub- being signed up to cull through the phone process more transparent would be a noble goal lishers to place ads in e-mails records of those under suspicion? for lawmakers looking to reshape the current in order to make up for the Coming in behind the HP scandal, and state of regulation. ´ revenue lost this summer after apparently far more widespread, is the the AdWords landing page algo- stock-option-backdating scandal that, accord- Editorial Director Eric Lundquist can be reached rithms were changed. 9/18/06 ing to BusinessWeek, involved more than at [email protected]. 10 eWEEK n SEPTEMBER 25, 2006 www.eweek.com