Real Time View

  When this saying of Mark Twain popped up in my LinkedIn feed, I took it as a sign that this month’s post should feature commentary on the journey I took this month. It involved many miles, a conference, and opportunities to talk to well-placed industry experts. Time on the road is also an opportunity to escape routine and in so doing, provides ample time to simply observe what transpires around us – an important element even for the most jaded of IT professionals. From Florida, drive to Colorado to then fly to Dublin, London and Paris before an extended weekend in the Bordeaux idly drifting on rivers while passing wineries, musing all the time on what is happening today with NonStop. Or should I correct myself and say, with HPE Nonstop Compute. Yes, I am missing HPE Discover this year as I extended my stay in Europe. Put this down as yet one more case where I cannot acquire things ‘by vegetating in one little corner of the earth.’ Not even for a week or two. The desire to thi...

Oakland Colosseum, November 1981 There was a time when I thought I would pursue a career in professional rugby. Back in the day, this meant playing for a regional Rugby League team in my home country of Australia and I was absolutely sure I could make the grade. Having won the high school annual best-and-fairest aware for Rugby League three years in a row; making it to zone representation and then to district trials for a national side (to tour New Guinea), I thought that well, why not? To this day as much as I may rue the decision by my parents not to sign preliminary papers allowing me to try out for an entry level team within the pros, it was not to be. Ever since I catch myself wondering how that might have turned out. This was late 1960s where the signing bonus was limited to just $2,000 and where the “salary” maxed out at $200 with a win and $20 with a loss. Professional, yes! A career, not so much! Over the years I have spent many hours watching all forms of football. I ha...

With as many virtual events as there continue to be, it’s not always easy to get a message across to a target audience. I was reminded of this just a few days ago when I was enjoying an exchange with another vendor about an upcoming purchase. To say it was car related purchase would be something that you would expect to hear from me and so it was.  GM announced the arrival of a new car and it did so in a virtual event that it broadcasts to the globe. Calling it an event, free to all interested parties and recorded for posterity, maybe a stretch at a time when much is being conveyed in webinars and podcasts, but then again, the launch of a new Corvette certainly warranted the creation of an event all by itself. It was only a short time ago that this year’s NonStop Technical Boot Camp (NonStop TBC21) came to a close and in the intervening time, we have all had time to review sessions of interest to each of us. I certainly have been no slouch in this regard and have found that taking ...

Driving into Ft Collins, Colorado, Margo and I came across this big billboard. It brought a smile to both our faces even as we were later to comment that in fact, it was a poor reflection on our times. The creative process leading to innovative expressions seems to have lessened during the lockdowns driven by the global pandemic as not being able to congregate around the water cooler, throwing out ideas, and challenging each other just doesn’t seem as productive in the virtual world as it did when we could hassle over the choice of words in person. I wasn’t familiar with Creative Agency of Ft Collins, Colorado, but when I looked them up on the web, turned out that they were “a full stack digital marketing & creative agency.” Naturally enough, the reference to a full stack caught my attention, but then again, as they state on their web site, “ Your time is precious. Leave the strategizing up to us.” Well, there you go again, leave the strategizing up to you marketing partner. Ouch!...

Whether you are looking for news about NonStop, NS SQL, GreenLake, a cloud experience and more, it is hard to overlook just how well HPE is performing in the marketplace. The news certainly looks good for Nonstop in 2021. In former times, it was the town crier we relied upon for the news of the day. It therefore comes as no surprise to hear that down through history,     such news was often misconstrued. Semantics, emphasis, a wrongly placed punctuation mark can play havoc with what may have been communicated. I am always encouraging my readers to check things out for themselves as my take on the news may differ from what you read elsewhere. Indeed, I will take that as a complement should you follow the links I provide in many of my posts. When HPE released its financial results for Q1, 2021, the response was mixed to say the least. There was good news reported by HPE CEO Antonio Neri even as there were some declines in sales for some products within the HPE product portfoli...

Whether you are familiar with a bugle playing Taps or The Last Post, either way, finally, the sun is setting on 2020! Bring on 2021 … When we first talked about taking a break during the 2020 Christmas to New Year holiday season, we had no intention of including breaks of any other kind. But then, Margo and I were unaware that lady luck would intervene and not in a positive manner. Whereas we had been checking out locations from Key West to Palm Desert (where we have previously spent the holidays), we are now reconciled to the simple fact that we will be spending time on the couch. For those who follow Margo and me on social media channels you will have read of how Margo broke her leg in a bad fall while heading downstairs to our bar. I would like to say that a drink had been involved, but no, both of us had refrained as we were entertaining neighbors that night and it was Margo who was leading them downstairs where she had laid out a buffet that had taken all afternoon to prepare. W...

How much does a computer have in common with a car? Not much, until you want to purchase: For NonStop customers getting from A to B is not a good enough reason to buy!          Ever wondered what finally tips the scales when it comes to buying a new computer? Thought about what transpires behind the scenes when key pieces of software are acquired? Was it the price a choice of features or comprehensive packaging providing an all-in-one solution? There are many factors contributing to an outcome and of late, within the NonStop community, there couldn’t be more options to choose from what is being sold today.  While Margo and I aren’t involved in the major decisions influencing the technical direction at any major enterprise, it’s something we run into on a regular basis. Whether it’s buying the latest Apple iPhone or iPad or a really big smart TV, sometimes it comes down to the intangibles. Can I buy it online and can it be delivered soon? Do we like the fo...

Ever since it was first rumored by IT professionals that the label strategic came with Velcro backing for ease of re-use (on a whim by sales and marketing), seeing “strategic” appended to products raises the hackles of even the most ardent supporters about any merits such product might have! As news broke this week of HPE setting up shop in a suburb of Houston, Texas news media jumped on the story very quickly. Was this just another case of a Silicon Valley company leaving California for a more tech-friendly state? Was it a case of simply giving its employees better housing options with the benefits of a less onerous tax structure? Timed to coincide with the announcement of Q4 2020 financial results with references to sales of HPE products looking more like pre-pandemic results, perhaps the company felt encouraged to throw in a reference to changes of address for its Head Quarters.    In this announcement was a phrase that caught my attention. HPE said that it is making the de...