Business value: It's all about the applications

NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: STEVE TAYLOR AND JIM METZLER ON WIDE
AREA NETWORKING
07/12/05
Today's focus: Business value: It's all about the applications

Dear networking.world@gmail.com,

In this issue:

* How does the WAN add value to a company's key applications?
* Links related to Wide Area Networking
* Featured reader resource
_______________________________________________________________
This newsletter is sponsored by Oracle
Grid Glossary

Grid computing is a vehicle to extend the life of existing
assets, not to end the life of existing infrastructure assets.
The Oracle Grid runs applications faster than the fastest
mainframe. You can adopt Oracle Grid technologies with minimal
investment, zero disruption, and fast ROI. Learn more about the
specialized set of terms and acronyms that define Grid
technologies with this comprehensive glossary. Download the
Oracle Grid Glossary now!
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=108336
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THE NEW DATA CENTER: SPOTLIGHT ON STORAGE

Network World's latest report takes a look at storage trends
such as virtualization, encryption and archiving. Here you will
also find seven tips for managing storage in the new data
center, how storage encryption can help ease the threat of
identity theft, why one exec believes its all about the
information and more. Click here:
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=107966
_______________________________________________________________

Today's focus: Business value: It's all about the applications

By Steve Taylor and Jim Metzler

Information technology used to be a case of haves and have-nots.
The "haves" were large companies whose employees could access
the Internet, share files, access applications and send and
receive e-mails. At that time, just having access to information
technologies was a competitive differentiator.

However, IT rapidly became a commodity that's accessible to all.
As such, an IT organization can no longer claim to offer
business value merely by providing access to a standard set of
technologies.

One important measure of the current value of IT comes from the
CIO's background. These days it is increasingly common to have a
CIO who doesn't have a technical background. However, if the CIO
does have a recent technical background, it is virtually always
in applications and virtually never in networking.

Another important measure of the current value of IT comes from
a company's business and functional managers. These managers are
important because they often are the ones who fund IT based on
their participation on IT steering committees and other forms of
IT governance. These managers are quite clear - the business
value of IT comes from the applications that they use on a
regular basis and not from the network.

The business value placed on applications does not mean that
wide area networking is without value. It does, however, mean
that we need to continually find ways to identify how the WAN
adds value to the company's key applications. Future
newsletters will explore this topic from both a technology and
an organizational perspective.

RELATED EDITORIAL LINKS

Managing the WAN for Application Delivery
http://www.networkworld.com/nlwan3196

Traffic Management: It's about the Application, not the bits!
http://www.webtorials.com/abstracts/Nye5.htm

Tacit gear optimizes WAN traffic
Network World, 07/11/05
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2005/071105-tacit.html?rl
_______________________________________________________________
To contact: Steve Taylor and Jim Metzler

Steve Taylor is president of Distributed Networking Associates
and publisher/editor-in-chief of Webtorials. For more detailed
information on most of the topics discussed in this newsletter,
connect to Webtorials <http://www.webtorials.com/>, the premier
site for Web-based educational presentations, white papers, and
market research. Taylor can be reached at
<mailto:taylor@webtorials.com>

Jim Metzler is the Vice President of Ashton, Metzler &
Associates, a consulting organization that focuses on leveraging
technology for business success. Jim assists vendors to refine
product strategies, service providers to deploy technologies and
services, and enterprises evolve their network infrastructure.
He can be reached at <mailto:jim@ashtonmetzler.com>
_______________________________________________________________
This newsletter is sponsored by Oracle
Grid Glossary

Grid computing is a vehicle to extend the life of existing
assets, not to end the life of existing infrastructure assets.
The Oracle Grid runs applications faster than the fastest
mainframe. You can adopt Oracle Grid technologies with minimal
investment, zero disruption, and fast ROI. Learn more about the
specialized set of terms and acronyms that define Grid
technologies with this comprehensive glossary. Download the
Oracle Grid Glossary now!
http://www.fattail.com/redir/redirect.asp?CID=108335
_______________________________________________________________
ARCHIVE LINKS

Archive of the WAN newsletter:
http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/frame/index.html
_______________________________________________________________
FEATURED READER RESOURCE
TEN WAYS TO STOP SPYWARE

You will get spam down to a manageable level this year, but then
spyware will kick in. Spyware cleaners will help, but won't
eradicate all the unwanted activity at the office, at home.
Here's a ten step guide you can follow to curb the spyware
problem:
<http://www.networkworld.com/nlwan3046>
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