10 Best IT Products Of 2006 223
digihome writes "CRN.com chooses the ten best new products of 2006, including the best development tools, server, notebook and storage device. Some of the choices may surprise you ... such as their choice for operating system of the year." From the article: "With Windows Vista, Microsoft has refreshed the user desktop experience. While debate rages over whether the five-year wait was worth it, the truth is Vista is pretty much the only game in town. One may question whether Vista should be bestowed with Product of the Year recognition in the operating system category. But the product unquestionably brings new features and capabilities to solution providers that in turn promise new revenue generation dialogues with end users."
Impressive! (Score:5, Funny)
Wow! It must be really cool if it does that!
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Insightful)
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yeesh.
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Bingo! This publication is aimed at people who resell technology products. That means that for a product to be of interest to them, it has to be a recognizable brand that can be resold at a markup. Open-source software or whitebox PCs are The Enemy to these people.
I recall reading a best-of/worst-of list by either CRM on a similar publication. What I remember was that all of
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Funny)
I took me a while to figure it out, but this is the best Engish translation I can come up with:
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Funny)
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-matthew
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Re:Impressive! (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Insightful)
Yeah, I figure they mean this kind of dialogue:
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"Buy it."
"Why? We don't need it."
"Buy it or else."
"Okay."
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Funny)
"Why? We don't need it."
"sudo buy it"
"ok"
With apologies to xkcd
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(install "untrusted" software aka we didn't pay MS $500)
run software
Vista: whoa! are you sure you want this to run? click yes
Vista: whoa! your software is accessing your HD, is this ok? click yes
Vista: whoa..... you get the picture
basically its going to be a pain in the ass to run open source software unless you turn this "feature" off, and then its just as insecure as any other windows. Vista security is just a bandaid, nothing more.
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Impressive! (Score:5, Funny)
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No! No! No! They got it all wrong (Score:5, Funny)
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That didn't stop them from picking a product that won't be generally released until NEXT year...
10 Best VAR Profit Makers For 2007 (Score:4, Insightful)
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Also known as 10 Best IT product press releases nobody here is actually going to care about. Bleah.
Then again, it is CRN, so what else would we expect?
Hate these lists. (Score:2, Interesting)
Generally, I hate these lists. The usual response is, "But X isn't on it." Well, first thing on the list was a schnazzy little tool that I started using this year. Fantastic, awesome, Stylus Studio 2007. Rock on.
Re:Hate these lists. (Score:5, Insightful)
I've read enough trade magazines to recognize that the blurbs on all of these products come pretty much verbatim from the sales office of the respective companies.
This article is purely for VARs. None of the blurbs are anything close to actual reviews. Having worked for a company whose product looked cool but had major problems under the hood (due to feature creep and unrealistic deadlines primarily), but still managed to get great reviews from "analysts," I can tell you it's distressingly easy to get publications like this to give glowing reviews, even if what you're offering is either broken or primarily vapor.
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You are clearly not a manager.
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2006? (Score:5, Insightful)
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I have to agree with that.
I've disliked the betas of Vista, and hate the marketing. But, I generally like MS. My personal thought is that Vista will be tepid, like Windows ME. I'm sticking with my XP Media Center, and won't upgrade my hardware for awhile, maybe the next OS will have something that will make me want to upgrade.
That said, to have a product on the list that is not even in public use is a little bit of a stretch.
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Would you care to check my post history first and see that I generally trash the people that trash talk MS?
But then, I generally militate against knee-jerk, and the jerks they are attached to, on either side of that childish argument. Welcome to the list.
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-GiH
Top 10... (Score:5, Informative)
Anyways, here's the top ten, Karma Whore, Beeeeatch!
WEB DEVELOPMENT TOOL
DataDirect Technologies Stylus Studio 2007
SECURITY SOFTWARE
Astaro Security Gateway
NETWORKING HARDWARE
Server Partners File Engine
STORAGE
Intel SS4000-E
APPLICATION DEVELOPMENT TOOL
Compuware DevPartner 8.0
IMAGING
Minolta Magicolor 7450
NOTEBOOK
Hewlett-Packard Compaq NC6400
APPLICATION SOFTWARE
Microsoft Exchange 2007
OPERATING SYSTEM
Microsoft Vista Enterprise Edition
SERVER
SuperServer 5015M-MR
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... and prices (Score:3, Informative)
WEB DEVELOPMENT TOOL
DataDirect Technologies Stylus Studio 2007
"Stylus Studio 2007 XML Enterprise Suite is priced at $795. Oak Park, Calif.-based DataDirect offers average margins between 10 percent and 35 percent. Seasonal spifs also are offered."
SECURITY SOFTWARE
Astaro Security Gateway
"Pricing is based on active users and concurrent connections. Configurations for as few as 10 users to unlimited users and connections are available. Suggested pricing for a sample configuration allowing 250 active users and
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This is a firewall evaluated to EAL2 - are they completely insane? There are loads of EAL4 and EAL4+ firewalls that will give you much better protection than this. Not to mention a firewall running on a virtual machine - that is an extremely bad idea (I'm not sure if the product of the year is actually evaluated to EAL2 but the best they've got for any product seems to be that).
Intel SS4000-E - The SS4000-E is available as a barebones unit with no hard drives for $550 or fully loaded
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I'm kind of interested in the DevPartner title but I just did a quick Google search and saw the licensing varies from $2-6K/seat. That's a bit steep for a debugging tool. I doubt I get a copy where I work.
I guess they don't count on selling too many copies.
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If I cared (Score:5, Informative)
If I still cared I'd throw a fit at that comment. Instead I'll happily continue to use Ubuntu on my laptop and OSX on my Desktop. Vista who?
Re:If I cared (Score:5, Funny)
why not make our own list? (Score:2)
So Dapper for being a real alternative to the microsoft options.
hardware wise I think the thing most people have been thinking about is dual core processors...
any more nominations?
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Web Development Tool: Eclipse+Webtools. Webtools has incorporated the best features from JBoss-IDE and combined them with their already tres cool Webtools. Now I can get a vendor-neutral Web Development Tool whose features match or exceed anything out there. Cost: $0.
Application Software: Evolution 2.2. All of the features that everyone
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Can't speak to hibernate, I never need to hibernate and I use a dm-crypt swap partition, so I suspect I wouldn't be able to do it if I wanted too.
Well, duh. (Score:3, Informative)
Every "best product" description includes suggested pricing, margin and contact details.
Of course in that respect Vista is THE product for 2007.
Poor choice on server (Score:2)
Does this remind anyone else... (Score:2, Funny)
Consider the source (Score:5, Insightful)
This is hardly an award given for technical merit. Vista represents a full trough for all the revenue-hungry pigs to crowd around.
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Good thought. Guess I should probably carry by butt to Dallas next year and hit 1st Saturday for some bargains. I remember when corporate america was tossing all of their perfectly good CRTs because they had to buy crappy 1st generation LCD panels to keep up appearances. Lots of good deals for about a year.
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I would be willing to lay down money, matter of fact, I might, if they're taking bets on such a thing in Vegas, that Apple is just waiting for the not-quite-as-technical-as
Re:Consider the source (Score:5, Interesting)
Yes that was my thought after reading a few of the blurbs. The thing I was most amused by though is the percentage of their top-ten products that are basically special purpose Linux boxes. Which OS is really making more money for VARs? :-)
CRN Mission Statement (Score:5, Informative)
Mission Statement
CRN drives sales by empowering VARs and technology integrators with the vital news and technology information they need to generate demand and grow revenue. CRN is the newspaper of record for the channel. For 24 years, VARs, Solution Providers, technology integrators and IT consultants have turned to CRN first each week for immediate and actionable information.
This has nothing to do with "best of breed" or anything like that. It's purely about MAXIMIZING REVENUE by doing as little as possible.
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Vista? (Score:4, Insightful)
I have been running Vista for a few weeks now and it is nothing more than an incremental improvement on Windows XP/Server 2k3.
Given the resources of Microsoft, the worldwide importance of the OS and the time taken for development, Vista is a disgrace.
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This Article Smells of Bad Cheese (Score:5, Insightful)
-- Jeff P. Realname
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CRN should be reported to whoever that government agency was that was investigating viral marketing. The 'Top 10 IT products' seem to be little more than advertisements.
wow what a spammy website (Score:5, Interesting)
Adblock Plus blocked 44 out of 90 objects on each page (not including referrer links or sponsor links!)
so >50% of each page is adverts and then the "article" (if i can call it that) is spread over 10 pages, i guess there is no dignity on that site
adding content must be so inconvenient them, at what point does a site go from providing a quality service to becoming a spam linkfarm ?
thank goodness for adblock and a hostsfile, good example of how to piss off a visitor
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Vista is the product of the decade (Score:3, Insightful)
Of course, it won't really be all there until next year, so perhaps they're being premature in including it on the list. Also, it will indisputably be the product of the year next year in terms of money.
One almost wonders if it made the list this year so they can omit it from next year, when other OSes might embarrass it. Not to name any names.
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intel iMac and MacBook (Score:2)
God Damnit Zonk.!!! (Score:2, Informative)
Vista promises (Score:2)
Ahhh yes, increased support calls and service contracts. Exactly why an IT admin would lovingly bestow such wonderful products upon those he is paid to help.
Worthless link bait. (Score:5, Insightful)
On the Notebook (Score:4, Insightful)
I actually own the workstation edition of this laptop (the model from last year, nw8240). I think that while the specs (at that time) were top notch and could not be beat in a smaller package, the build quality of the computer is kind of bad. The casing is quite easy to break and is easier to look "beat up." The screen is also questionable, as mine had dead pixels and "yellow" spots after less than six months of use. The service department of my school replaced that computer's motherboard two times in the last year alone, and I am not one to put my computers through the rough.
Why aren't any of IBM/Lenovo's Thinkpad offerings on that list? I see that computer used more often than the high-end HP's in business anyway, which is well deserved because they are rock solid and last a really long time. I had their 760L from 10 years ago working until 2 years ago when someone took the computer and smashed it to the floor. And even after that it still worked! The same went for my Thinkpad 600.
If my computer's internals hadn't been replaced, the thing would have been gone in less than six months, which is unacceptable to me.
Color Laserjets, Compaq/HP, Exchange, Vista... (Score:2)
That sums up what they listed there, and it's pretty sad, when, of the stuff I do recognize, Vista is in the lead.
Laserjets? Sorry, waxjet offset has been out for longer, and looks better. You can get one from Xerox for $500 less and it will out perform what they have.
HP/Compaq? *cringe*, Never again. Those are some of the buggiest computers I've seen, and the tech support is second only to Apple in terms of bad experiences for me.
Oh Supermicro is on there, too, I gues they are OK, though I p
They didn't have an OS category last year (Score:5, Interesting)
So it seems to me that this new "best operating system" category was tailor-made for Vista. Add to that the fact that Vista is being named product of the year for a year where it's been available for companies for less than a month, hardly enough time for companies to migrate, and it looks to me like a marketing puff piece written, or funded, by Microsoft.
This article was FUD... (Score:2, Informative)
IT shouldn't give a damn about a
and Vista...you can bet your sweet @$$ IT folk are NOT putting that in their top 10 list!
Operating System of the Year (Score:2)
*Feels a sudden disturbance in the force. As if a million slashdotters cried out it horror, and then their frickin heads exploded.*
this is one really disturbing organization... (Score:5, Interesting)
Of course their reviews may be neutral and may uphold journalistic principles.
Adjust your tinfoil hats to maximum shield strength folks this publication looks like the Illuminati UK Branch IT Monthly.
Top 10 Reasons to Hate Top 10 Lists (Score:3, Insightful)
Best server a generic 1u box? (Score:3, Insightful)
Yes, for the pedantic nitwit lurking out there ready to pounce, IBM does not recommend this without some serious upgrades to the BladeCenter power supply and a very good external cooling system. Seriously though, generic dual core 1u servers are so two years ago.
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They had to get Vista in there somehow... (Score:2)
"...brings new features and capabilities to solution providers that in turn promise new revenue generation dialogues with end users."
"...an OS that brings enhanced stability to the desktop should shepherd a plethora of upgrades and opportunities for the channel through the coming year."
So, apparently, it's
Vista is pretty much the only game in town (Score:2)
Just something to think about.
Ratboy.
marketing material cut-and-paste (Score:2)
(Vista)
"But the product unquestionably brings new features and capabilities to solution providers that in turn promise new revenue generation dialogues with end users."
Holy corporate shilling batman.
This list seems to have been written by marketing droids, I wouldn't put too much stock in their determinations of the relative merit of this year's tech products.
Re:Vista is pretty much the only game in town. (Score:2, Informative)
What the.....? (Score:2)
Welcome to the Top 10 (Score:2)
CRN == Channel (Score:2)
Number One criteria for 'Top Product' is potential for 'profit maximization'.
Need I say more.
Vista will make channels a barrel of money which history has proven does not a good OS make.
was i the only one (Score:2, Funny)
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Now, intelligent? That's a whole different matter. And my above definition certainly didn't answer just *how* innovative that change was.
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By suits, yes. The same suits who can't tell authorization and encryption apart, and think that security is a product you can add afterwards.
De-innovating (Score:2)
Which, of course, everyone will do. And which, of course makes ya wonder: is this thing going to be even the itsy-bitsy-tiniest bit more secure?
CRN drives sales! (Score:5, Interesting)
Amazing? Why should the lack of Open Source products in a site whose mission is to "drive sales by empowering VARs and technology integrators with the vital news and technology information they need to generate demand and grow revenue" [crn.com] be amazing?
Open Source is "Best of Breed" when it comes to generate advantages for the users, not to "drive sales".
Re:CRN drives sales! (Score:4, Interesting)
Two of the products on the list run Linux ... isn't that open source?