Read our analysts’ opinions and perspectives on some of the latest ideas and developments in the IT industry:

Opening up mainframe data, one utility at a time

Freeform Dynamics recently caught up with VirtualZ, an often overlooked vendor of connectivity tools that[...]

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AI and analytics? Been there, done that

In a recent article, I covered a discussion I’d previously had with a company called[...]

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Enterprise AR redux: Will Apple succeed where Microsoft floundered?

When Scandit announced its integration with Apple’s Vision Pro mixed reality headset, I experienced a[...]

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Cloud Storage Revisited: What has the last decade taught us?

It is clear that cloud storage has become an important component of modern IT infrastructure.[...]

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Generative AI in analytics: Enhancing the user experience without overreach

As scepticism creeps more and more into the generative AI discussion, I’ve been trying to[...]

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Generative AI tooling: Is the user the weakest link?

One of the challenges I’ve had with generative AI is figuring out where the real[...]

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IT Sustainability: Passive vs Active Gains

In the 20 odd years that I’ve been following developments in ‘Green IT’, the industry[...]

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The convergence of OT and IT

Having worked in both operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) environments for years, I’ve[...]

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Canon comes out of the closet on information management

When I received an invitation to attend another Canon industry analyst event, I was in[...]

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Mainframe skills; time to flip the telescope around?

The more I learn about the world of mainframes, the more I find myself drawn[...]

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Mitigating AI Risks: 5 Essential Steps for Secure Adoption

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) are finding their way into industries worldwide as[...]

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Breaking Free From Vendor Lock-in with Managed Services

As organisations become more intertwined with their key IT vendors, they may find themselves in[...]

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S/4HANA Migration: Is Selective Transformation the Answer?

The last big market survey carried out by Freeform Dynamics on SAP migration was completed[...]

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IT transformation fatigue? Time to bust those big bang blues

As an industry analyst, you always want your questions answered openly, confidently and convincingly when[...]

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Observability and Security: Thoughts on the Cisco-Splunk Acquisition

The tech world is now trying to work out exactly what the news of Cisco’s[...]

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The IT Sustainability Paradox

IT leaders today often find themselves grappling with a perplexing situation. On one hand, they[...]

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Mainframes and workload placement: Time for a dose of objectivity?

When Tony Lock and I interviewed Reg Harbeck, Chief Strategist at Mainframe Analytics Ltd, it[...]

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From clipboards to smart data capture; how software-defined scanning is changing the game

When I first heard about ‘smart data capture’, I couldn’t help thinking back to a[...]

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The Untapped Potential of Liquid Cooling in Modern Data Centres

Ever since IBM sold off its x86 business to Lenovo back in 2014, I’ve been[...]

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What are you doing to ensure your IT suppliers work for you?

Navigating the Complex IT Supplier Landscape in 2024 It is a truism that IT evolves[...]

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Taking the next step in mainframe observability

Despite their frequently less visible role, mainframes remain indispensable in supporting the critical operations of[...]

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The mainframe skills crunch; an outsider vs insider perspective

During my career, I’ve worked hands-on with a great many operating systems, programming languages, mainstream[...]

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Taking IT Cost Tracking and FinOps to the next level

A CIO I interviewed recently told me candidly: “It’s always a bit nerve wracking when[...]

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Mainframe Skills: Challenge or Opportunity?

People in mainframe circles have been talking about skills development and succession planning ever since[...]

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Challenging the traditional boundaries between IAM and UEM

It’s always refreshing to engage with vendors who aren’t bound by the rigid category definitions[...]

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IT Governance for Today and Tomorrow: Minimum Viable Principles

Introduction The traditional one-size-fits-all approach to IT governance, particularly in relation to data, is becoming[...]

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Making IT sustainability more objective and actionable

I’ve heard a lot of pitches from technology companies on how they can help customers[...]

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Goodbye Bryan – Rest in Peace

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our friend and colleague,[...]

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It’s Time to Raise the Bar on Observability

Observability has come a long way in the last 30 years

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Can contributing to open source get you a job?

Could voluntary work on open source projects be a stepping stone to employment?

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Tape is back on the main menu

The news that another of the big players in global file systems, Hammerspace, has integrated[...]

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What does “Investment in Generative AI” actually mean?

I’ve found myself in a number of conversations recently where the discussion has turned to[...]

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Why laptops and other edge devices are being AI-enabled

Why do we need dedicated AI engines in laptops, and especially in the ultrathin laptops[...]

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Why Intel has joined the race for the AI-enabled laptop

A new AI battlefield is opening up, not among all the GPU ‘farms’ in data[...]

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Broadcom swings its axe at VMware

What a difference a week can make. The dust had barely settled on Broadcom’s $69bn acquisition of[...]

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Broadcom finally swallows VMware: what now?

The news that Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware has finally gone through, after more than a[...]

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Custom chatbots and model gardens: putting Private AI to work

Part 2: More to think about It’s essential to decide where to run your Private[...]

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Understanding the rise and role of Private AI

Part 1: AI hype vs fear and doubt The leakage of proprietary IP and other[...]

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Can steel fences halt the march of cyber?

Cyber: for some, it’s a prefix that conjures up images of Dr Who’s silvery cyborg[...]

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A straightforward look at SAP master data automation

If you’re knee-deep in the world of SAP and data management, you almost certainly know[...]

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CIO perceptions of vendor AI marketing

With all the recent press coverage, it’s not surprising to see IT vendors clamouring to[...]

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Time to sound the alarm as AI hype catches fire

One of the most worrying things that’s coming out of recent research

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It’s time to look again at IT and Software Asset Management

In the realm of IT administration, it’s all too easy to get stuck in familiar[...]

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An AI crash is coming: don’t let it drag you down

All the signs are there that an AI crash is coming: overinflated claims and dodgy[...]

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Want to become a data-driven organisation? Start thinking differently about change management

Need a strong data strategy? Look for a CDO who’s a change manager and data[...]

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Just because it’s innovative, doesn’t make it good!

One of my hobbyhorses at the moment is how words and adjectives that ought to[...]

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The key to future IT success is a switch to managing services, not systems

For most of the history of commercial IT, system design has focused on meeting the[...]

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Are tech vendors pulling their weight on fixing fragmented IT?

Many organisations have silo’d data and fragmented IT systems, but

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Digital identity: the many images of you

More and more of the topics we deal with at Freeform Dynamics now also relate[...]

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Trust: easy to lose, hard to recover

Here are just a few of the topics that my fellow Freeformers and I have[...]

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Dealing with the growing problem of edge and IoT sprawl

Amidst all the hype regarding the massive growth potential for IoT

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To maximise potential, mainframers must reach out and engage

The team here has always had immense respect for the mainframe community

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Does application modernisation mean what you think it means?

Most people in IT probably think they know what application modernisation is

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Kubernetes and the open-source maintainer question

While much of October's KubeCon-CloudNativeCon North America

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VMware’s breadth and depth impresses, but is it still a safe bet?

At the recent VMware Explore conference in Barcelona

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Digital identity and opening up the smartwallet

When an 80 year-old relative asks you how she can use her phone to both[...]

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Has the cloud caught up with the mainframe?

Yes, you read that right

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What’s up with Google’s plan to supplant SMS and drive mobile e-commerce?

Ask most people what RCS stands for, and you’ll probably get a blank look.

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Like a teenager, Kubernetes looks almost grown-up, yet still a bit awkward and confused

Platform: that’s the key word that sprung to mind after attending Kubecon

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Frustrated with your company’s cloud obsession?

What goes around, comes around

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HP Inc’s Poly opportunity: look beyond devices and software to a real collaboration strategy

Could its takeover of workspace collaboration specialist Poly

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‘Traditional’ is not a dirty word

Sometimes ‘new’ and ‘disruptive’ really doesn’t make sense

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Singing the key management blues

We need cryptographic keys, but who is going to manage them?

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Hybrid working isn’t turning out as expected

Last year, as companies recognised both the value of face-to-face interaction

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Citrix and Microsoft: who’s really leading the transformation agenda?

Citrix loves Microsoft and Microsoft loves Citrix

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Do you feel trapped by Microsoft?

Thoughts on loosening Redmond’s grip on your business

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Is the commodity server bandwagon running out of steam?

The term “paradigm shift” gets flung about far too much in IT, but we may[...]

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One SSD to ruler them all

Why the new EDSFF storage format is hot stuff – and what else you need[...]

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Why does ransomware still work?

As someone who first encountered ransomware during the last millennium

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Ransomware teaches the importance of data protection

Several years ago, around the time that ransomware attacks started making the front pages

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Having trouble overcoming the S/4HANA confidence gap?

As John Lennon and Yoko Ono didn't quite sing

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Got a strong story to tell? Don’t settle for a place in the chorus

Have you lost your voice? Or is the market just not hearing you?

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Has Windows 11 strengthened the case for Chromebooks?

Analyst Opinion: I was left with two overriding thoughts

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Forget the ‘free’ software, the real value of open-source is the collaboration

Analyst Opinion: It’s a cliché, but why are we still reinventing wheels?

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Which is worse: noise, or the sound of silence?

Analyst Opinion: If you’re one of the many people who find offices too noisy

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Google Calendar auto-adds shared meeting notes

Analyst Opinion: If, like me, you often find yourself hunting for notes

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Is it a Suite, Package, Bundle or Platform?

People have been selling collections of products and tools for centuries, and with the advent[...]

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Is ‘suite’ becoming a dirty word?

How much attention do you pay to the pros and cons of software and service[...]

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Windows 11: could this ‘feel good’ update actually help IT pros?

Much has been written about Windows 11, and many YouTube videos have been published. If[...]

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Where vendors too often go wrong: SMBs need enterprise-grade IT too

For far too long now, many vendors seem to have assumed that the IT requirements[...]

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Remember when Agile was treated with suspicion?

Throwback Thursday: When we researched the topic of Agile development back in 2008

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Is IT investment handled better now than a decade ago?

Throwback Thursday: People like to think that the way IT works with business has changed

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From virtual desktops to Chromebooks and the work-anywhere web

Throwback Thursday: If there’s one thing our report from eight years ago reminds us

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The allure of the log-in-anywhere desktop

How can organisations simplify desktop management if we all still want our own devices?

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Of cats and clouds

A lifetime TCO question

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So many ways to pay for IT

Which best suits your needs?

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The SMB solution selection challenge

It's all too easy for smaller businesses to get caught out

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The business change agenda

Throwback Thursday: Research carried out in 2011

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How to boost supplier commitment without spending more money

Time to tune into those non-revenue goals

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Even data fragmentation has gone virtual

Throwback Thursday: If there’s one thing our report from eight years ago reminds us

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Data governance in software testing

Throwback Thursday: this week we're going back to 2008

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Private cloud in contexts old and new

Throwback Thursday: What a difference a decade can make

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Mobile moments and the past left far behind

Throwback Thursday We have looked at many reports from years ago that show that, whilst[...]

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Remember when cloud was going to kill the IT channel?

Throwback Thursday: taking a regular stroll in the Freeform Dynamics archives. 

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Has the data centre of the future already arrived?

Throwback Thursday: Predicting the future back in 2012

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Effective IT recovery in small/midsize businesses, 10 years on? Maybe tomorrow…

Throwback Thursday: this week we're going back to 2011

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The #WFH ‘New Normal’ is nothing of the sort

Analyst Opinion At least, not yet. The world is still in the very abnormal grip[...]

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10 years on, and HPC is taken for granted

Throwback Thursday: Heading back to 2010

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Business performance management still chasing the real-time dream

Throwback Thursday: This week we are going back to 2007

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How have attitudes to risk and resilience changed?

Throwback Thursday: Looking back to June 2008

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A prophetic look back at Green IT

Throwback Thursday: Back in the summer of 2008

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x86 Server virtualisation check point

Throwback Thursday: This week we are heading back to 2010

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Why I’m uneasy about the Salesforce Slack acquisition

Analyst Opinion: Most coverage on the Salesforce acquisition of Slack has focused on the industry[...]

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Linux on the Desktop

Throwback Thursday: The first thing that struck me when I re-read our ‘Linux on the[...]

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We need to start prioritizing workforce health and wellbeing

Analyst Opinion: “This has been a shot in the arm for those who have long[...]

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The authentication arms race continues

Throwback Thursday: This week we are heading back to 2006

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Social interaction in the digital workplace

Analyst opinion: As workplaces increasingly pivot to virtual presence, how can we stay connected?

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IT Support, now and then

Throwback Thursday: Comparing IT support in 2020 with IT support in 2006

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The #WFH extended talent opportunity

Analyst Opinion: The rise of the virtual “workplace” – implications for inclusivity and Generation Z

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Make the camera work for you, not against you

Analyst Opinion: Hands up anyone who expected not just to spend 2020 at home, but[...]

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The pandemic and productivity: a Covid-19 conundrum

Analyst Opinion “I’ve never been more productive!” With so many people getting their first experience[...]

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Are you ready to pay the ‘mental debts’ of Covid-19?

Analyst Opinion It’s easy to predict many of the pains that are going to hit[...]

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AI without tears: the drive for automation and self-service

Analyst Opinion In the post-pandemic, post-Brexit world, businesses of all sorts face a range of[...]

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How Covid-19 can sicken your AI apps too

Analyst Opinion AI might not be the first thing you think of when you start[...]

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Outsourcing: a clear look at a cloudy subject

Analyst Opinion “Wasn’t cloud just another name for outsourcing back then?” joked another guest in[...]

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Data protection is too complex for RTO and RPO to be singular

Analyst Opinion I think we can all agree that protecting data is important – perhaps[...]

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Consent and GDPR: get the basics right!

Analyst Opinion Why do companies find it so hard to get their heads around even[...]

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For business AI, focus on psychology, not technology

Analyst Opinion There’s no doubt now that AI works, and it can work very well[...]

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DevOps needs more perspective and humility

Analyst Opinion DevOps started as a grass-roots movement led by practitioners. The motives were pure,[...]

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Today’s hybrid clouds look more closed than open

Analyst Opinion We’ve had convergence towards hybrid clouds and ‘universal’ applications, but now we are[...]

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Kubernetes catches up with operational reality

Analyst Opinion With Kubernetes now established in many organisations as the container orchestration platform of the future,[...]

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Mea culpa: Trendy isn’t the same as important

Analyst Opinion I hate it when you realise that your point of reference has been[...]

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New financing models target IT’s acquisition challenges

Analyst opinion The availability of funding – or rather, the lack of it – is[...]

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Threat vs trust: the overlooked power of words

Analyst Opinion Words have power – in particular, your choice of words modifies how your[...]

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Growing fast, OpenStack shakes off old misconceptions

Analyst opinion One of the most interesting things about the recent Open Infrastructure Summit – the new[...]

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Hard drives that do their own data processing

Analyst opinion It’s getting hard these days to find places where container technology doesn’t feature,[...]

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Cybersecurity needs both psychologists and generals

Analyst opinion Many cybersecurity professionals like military analogies. Indeed, some security pros are ex-military. But[...]

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Beware the application complexity monster

Analyst opinion How many new applications, tools, devices, and cloud services have you introduced into[...]

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How Brexit-friendly are your SaaS contracts?

Analyst opinion If you think Brexit will be advantageous for the UK economy and the[...]

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Six months on, GDPR is a qualified success

Analyst opinion Anyone hoping that we would by now have greater clarity on GDPR will[...]

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How long will your New Year stay Happy?

The Freeform Dynamics fortune-telling kit has been dusted off for 2019. Here some of the[...]

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Google Chrome: It’s more than a browser

Chrome has come a long way, but the journey might only just be starting I[...]

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Don’t ignore the complexity of hybrid multi-cloud

Analyst opinion Many vendors will argue that moving to cloud brings consistency and simplicity, thanks[...]

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Open source is growing up – and here’s how

Analyst opinion If you’re among those who still think that open source is just for[...]

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The mainframe returns – as a platform for large-scale Linux

Analyst opinion There are several ways to build large scale Linux server environments, with x86[...]

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Last call for a European public cloud?

Analyst opinion Europe’s self-described No.1 ‘hyper-scale cloud provider’, OVH, held its 6th annual customer conference[...]

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Industrial IoT makes your people more important, not less

Analyst opinion The recent Industry of Things World conference in Berlin offered insights into the[...]

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Google has got serious about Enterprise IT

Analyst opinion Google has made a complete about-face on the enterprise. It took so long[...]

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Cloud Foundry’s growth highlights open source success and the cracks in commercial licensing

Analyst opinion Open source has crested the hill of enterprise acceptance. There’s no longer the[...]

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When modern meetings don’t work

Analyst opinion Once upon a time, pretty much every meeting had a minute-taker – someone[...]

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Is IBM relevant to today’s mainstream?

Analyst opinion When IT vendors talk about the market, they tend to focus on how[...]

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DevOps is wasted unless the business goes Agile too

Analyst opinion When analysts and journalists write about Agile and DevOps, the focus is typically[...]

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What can Chromebooks offer the enterprise desktop market?

Analyst opinion If you’re an IT professional managing a large desktop estate or an end[...]

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A conference room for the future

Analyst opinion In some ways, the recent completion of Plantronics’ $2 billion purchase of Polycom[...]

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Workplace software as an occupational hazard

Analyst opinion The US Department of Labor has updated its Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system.[...]

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Millennial versus Mature – who’s the real IT security risk?

Analyst opinion Passwords have been the mainstay for securing applications, devices and the data they[...]

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Your PC is rooted and jailbroken: deal with it!

Analyst opinion One of the defining characteristics of the modern digital workplace is a PC[...]

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Cloud storage is hot

Analyst opinion But do people know what they mean when they talk about it –[...]

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Xero highlights the role of the modern software ecosystem

Looking beyond the technology I recently caught up with Gary Turner, co-founder and managing of[...]

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Growth mindset lets Microsoft love Linux

Analyst opinion Timed to coincide with the RSA security conference, Microsoft has announced Azure Sphere,[...]

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Routes to AI goodness

Analyst opinion It’s all too easy to conflate the kind of AI being hyped in[...]

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Time to dump the all-flash scepticism

Analyst opinion When we surveyed several hundred IT professionals on the topic of All-Flash Arrays,[...]

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Microsoft’s challenge for 2018: mindshare & market relevance

Analyst opinion Microsoft’s revenues are up, but compared to its biggest competitors — Amazon, Apple,[...]

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