Network Velocity » Cloud http://www.nvelocity.com/blog Client Newsletter and Company Blog Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:19:50 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 The cure for software upgrades? http://www.nvelocity.com/blog/2010/02/18/the-cure-for-software-upgrades/ http://www.nvelocity.com/blog/2010/02/18/the-cure-for-software-upgrades/#comments Fri, 19 Feb 2010 00:43:31 +0000 Stuart http://www.nvelocity.com/blog/?p=527 Continue reading →]]> A software upgrade can be a major disruption to a business. We’ve listed the revisions to Microsoft’s core businesss products going back to 1995.

Windows Servers Office Exchange (email) SQL (database)
Windows 95 Windows NT (1993) Office 95 Exchange 5.5 SQL 7.0
Windows 98 Windows Server 2000 Office 98 Exchange 2000 SQL 2000
Windows 2000 Windows Server 2003 Office 2000 Exchange 2003 SQL 2005
Windows XP Windows Server 2008 Office XP Exchange 2007 SQL 2008
Windows Vista   Office 2003 Exchange 2010  
Windows 7   Office 2007    
    Office 2010  

Each upgrade represents a significant investment in licensing, migration time and user training.  To make matters worse, some software vendors require an upgrade by discontinuing support on products as soon as 24 months after release!

For those looking to break the cycle of software upgrades there is an option: a move towards Software as a Service (sometimes called Cloud computing). A prime example of Software as a Service is Google Apps. With any web browser Google Apps users have access to a suite of products that are very competitive to Microsoft Office. No installation, no security patches and more importantly, no upgrades!

In addition to controlled costs and easy scalability, one of the major benefits of Software as a Service is the ease of obtaining updates. In fact, new Google Apps features are rolled out almost daily, but there is zero impact on the user as upgrades are done on Google’s Servers. The next time a user logs in new features are available. It’s that simple. No upgrades, no overtime, no risk of losing data. Since the changes are done on a regular basis vs a completely new interface every few years no user retraining!

Given the prospect of staying on the software upgrade cycle and considering a move towards Google Apps what makes sense for your business? If you are struggling with this question, or other ways to effectively manage your technology, we encourage you to contact us at 858-270-3595 x 1 to learn more.

]]> http://www.nvelocity.com/blog/2010/02/18/the-cure-for-software-upgrades/feed/ 0 VMware View with PCoIP – Is this the cloud? http://www.nvelocity.com/blog/2010/02/11/vmware-view-with-pcoip-is-this-the-cloud/ http://www.nvelocity.com/blog/2010/02/11/vmware-view-with-pcoip-is-this-the-cloud/#comments Thu, 11 Feb 2010 21:35:27 +0000 Stuart http://www.nvelocity.com/blog/?p=520 Continue reading →]]> VMware View is a product that provides desktop performance levels to remote desktop clients.

VMware View with PCoIP allows companies to deploy inexpensive, power efficient and virtually unbreakable PC’s called thin clients to users while retaining a full dekstop experience with multi monitor setup, streaming video and fast video refresh. Company data can be securely locked away in a remote datacenter without users ever noticing a difference in their day to day computer usage.

In the video below, keep in mind this person is performing all these activities over a remote connection. The video and sound at the 3 minute mark is indistinguishable from a local PC.

VMware View promises to be the first no compromise Cloud based desktop product on the market today.

]]> http://www.nvelocity.com/blog/2010/02/11/vmware-view-with-pcoip-is-this-the-cloud/feed/ 0