Stories by Matt Hamblen

3Com launches WAN routers based on Huawei's technology

Networking vendor 3Com has introduced its first WAN router line. The new products are made by Chinese vendor Huawei Technologies, a move that highlights 3Com's increasing reliance on business partners and operations in Southeast Asia for technology development and product manufacturing.

Novell to drop ZENworks from Linux tool bundle

Novell Inc. last week said it plans to use newly acquired systems management tools instead of including its own ZENworks technology in a Linux software package that's due to go into open beta testing next month.

HP acquires Talking Blocks

Hewlett-Packard Co. announced Wednesday that it has signed a deal to acquire San Francisco-based Talking Blocks Inc. for its Web services management technology. The deal is expected to close by the end of the month, and until that time, no financial details will be released, said Nora Denzel, senior vice president of HP's Software Global Business unit.

Vendor adds bandwidth expansion devices

Expand Networks Monday announced two networking appliances that support bandwidth expansion capabilities, an emerging technology that gives IT managers an alternative to ordering bigger network pipes.

MCI denies call routing approach, fights AT&T claims

WorldCom said Monday that its own internal analysis shows it has met legal and regulatory requirements for call routing, contrary to claims made by AT&T Corp.

Avaya profitable in Q3 for the first time in two years

Avaya has announced a profit of $US8 million for its third fiscal quarter yesterday on revenue of $US1.07 billion, its first profitable quarter in two years, atop a major customer win. The communications equipment and services provider said Merrill Lynch & Co is purchasing Avaya IP telephony gear to serve 7600 workers at its corporate offices and its Tokyo regional headquarters.

NetWare 6.5 to ship Aug. 15

Novell Wednesday said its NetWare 6.5 upgrade will ship Aug. 15 through resellers.

Foundry Networks launches XML switching

Foundry Networks Inc. has released a new version of its TrafficWorks Ironware operating system, which is used in its upper-layer load-balancing switches.

NetQos launches new response-time analyzer

NetQos Inc. this week launched SuperAgent v4, a tool for analyzing response time in applications running across large networks.

Nortel technology links IP, digital PBX systems

Nortel Networks Monday will unveil plans to deliver common operating software for its Succession line of IP private branch exchange (PBX) systems and its older Meridian 1 digital voice switches.

MCI defends its federal contracts

The top official in charge of federal government contracts for WorldCom Inc. defended the company's ethics and service record Wednesday and said the carrier, which is in the process of rebranding itself as MCI, has not received any special consideration in winning government bids for voice and data services.

Cisco unleashes cascade of new security offerings

Cisco Systems announced 14 security products and services this week, including three new products and an important revision to its security management software that supports threat-protection technology gained in the April acquisition of Okena.

Ethernet's creator describes its past, future

Robert M. "Bob" Metcalfe invented the local-area networking standard he called Ethernet on May 22, 1973, at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center. Ethernet originally meant a shared media LAN. It is greatly changed today, but the name still sticks for a set of networking protocols that have become ubiquitous in the past 30 years. Metcalfe went on to co-found 3Com Corp. in 1979, then became a publisher and pundit in the 1990s, serving as CEO of InfoWorld, where he also wrote a column. He recently became a venture capitalist and is in his third year as a general partner at Polaris Venture Partners in Waltham, Mass. He spoke with Computerworld about Ethernet as a venture model and where the technology is headed.

App uses particle physics model for corporate analysis

Network Physics Inc. last week launched a network management appliance that relies on high-energy particle physics experiments to help companies better manage large corporate networks.

Ariba upgrades software for managing corporate spending

Ariba Inc. this week will unveil upgrades to eight of its spending management software products, with a focus on helping companies better manage spending on services ranging from snow removal to legal help, marketing and travel.