Stories by Rob Garretson

Why standards matter

The fact that a particular enterprise-class piece of network gear meets a formal industry standard certainly doesn't guarantee that it works and performs as advertised.

Job rotation pays dividends

Scott Manuel had a lot to learn when he arrived at Thomson two years ago. After all, the newly minted MBA graduate began his professional career in 2000 with two years at Enron, just at the crescendo of its infamous collapse.

Andreessen Unveils Loudcloud Services

Loudcloud Inc. took the wraps off its electronic commerce outsourcing services strategy today, as Chairman and Co-founder Marc Andreessen fielded questions at several briefings here at the Demo industry conference.

TELECOM 99: 3Com's Palm, Symbian to "Cooperate"

3Com Corp.'s Palm Computing Inc. and Symbian Ltd. today announced plans to cooperate and potentially license each other's technology.

UPDATE: TELECOM 99: Nokia, Palm Team on Handhelds

3Com Corp.'s Palm Computing Inc. and Nokia Corp. will jointly develop products that wed the pen interface of handheld Palm computers with wireless phones, the companies announced today. Under the agreement announced here at Telecom 99, Nokia will license the Palm OS and develop pen-based wireless devices that can run Palm applications, Anssi Vanjoki, senior vice president for Europe and Africa at Nokia Mobile Phones, said at a press conference. The first Nokia pen-based phones will hit the U.S. in 2001, followed by a worldwide rollout, he said.

Gerstner warns of proprietary 'trap'

Without identifying Microsoft by name, IBM chairman Lou Gerstner last week warned against getting "trapped" by the "worst" elements of the computer industry, and instead called on IT and telecommunications companies to merge the best of their respective industries to forge the emerging internet economy.

Piracy could aggravate Y2K problems

Software piracy could be the leading cause of eventual year 2000 computer problems, a panel of information technology industry executives told US lawmakers yesterday.

ITU aiming to rev up to Internet speed

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will form new informal working groups of experts or "policy sherpas" to help spur the lumbering organisation into faster action on key infrastructure issues, the new ITU chief said in his first visit to the US since taking office earlier this year.

US, Canadian electric industry eyes Y2K

The North American electric industry is confident that it will solve year 2000 computer problems with little or no disruption to electricity supplies in the US or Canada, according to the latest industry self-assessment submitted yesterday to the US Department of Energy (DOE).