CloudViews Unplugged!

Watch the October episode of CloudViews Unplugged - a monthly video chat analyzing the top cloud news stories.  

Cloud News

• Cloud services are putting new demands on enterprise networks, a recent survey by Juniper Networks and Forrester Research revealed, according to this AllThingsD article. Of the 150 senior IT executives surveyed, 58% said that they had to upgrade their networking hardware to meet the new demands brought on by cloud services.
• A new infographic by CA Technologies reveals that 80% of companies believe that cloud computing drives innovation, but over half of those companies don't have plans to implement the technology yet, according to this Mashable article.
• Citrix announced that its open-source CloudStack platform gained key support from CA Technologies and Cisco this week, according to this GigaOM blog. Citrix's commercial CloudStack implementation, CloudPlatform, will now connect into Cisco's Nexus switches, Unified Computing System (UCS) and Open Network Environment (ONE) and CA Technologies' Cloud Automation Suite and Nimsoft Monitor. 
• A recent survey by Tecala of 136 CIOs and IT managers reveals that 62% of Australian organizations are planning to increase their spending on cloud computing in the next year, according to this ZDNet article. Close to 80% of those respondents said they'd use cloud to replace physical servers.
• The cloud may be heading to cooler climates, according to this Data Center Knowledge article. By strategically choosing the location of cloud data centers, cloud providers may be able to drastically reduce or eliminate their cooling costs and cut down on overall power consumption.

Featured Content

• IDC Report: Cloud Systems Management 2011 Vendor Shares: Market Moves Beyond
• A new report from IDC examines the growth of the worldwide cloud systems management software market and ranks the current vendors, including CA Technologies, VMware, BMC, HP, and IBM based on their 2011 cloud systems management software revenue. You can read the full report on CA.com.  

Feature article

Cutting through the cloud clutter By Katherine Demacopoulos, CA Technologies

 It feels like there is never enough time to keep up with the changes that cloud computing is bringing to the IT market. What's the latest data on projected market growth and enterprise adoption of cloud services? Which cloud deployment models are proving most popular with enterprises and why? What's the latest news from the vendor community and what's the real impact behind the hype? What are some of the unexpected and interesting applications of cloud computing across healthcare, financial services and other industries? What's been going on lately with cloud standards and regulations and why does it matter?
These are the types of questions that Andi Mann and George Watt answer in CA Technologies new monthly video chat series, CloudViews Unplugged. We know you don't have a lot of extra time to spare, so we keep every episode short and only cover the stories that matter most. Read the full article.

Cloud Views

• Are cloud standards important? In this special edition of CloudViews Unplugged, Marvin Waschke, author of Cloud Standards: Agreements That Hold Cloud Together, is interviewed by Andi Mann and George Watt of CA Technologies. In the video, Waschke discusses why cloud standards are important and how they can help foster innovation. Join Marvin, Andi, and George for a @CloudCommons #CloudViews cloud standards tweetchat on Tuesday, October 30^th at 2 PM ET. 
• Is the clock ticking for OpenStack? Forrester analyst James Staten says that organizations that are members of the OpenStack cloud computing project need to see a return on their investment soon or they may lose interest, according to this PC Advisor article.
• Should educational institutions adopt cloud computing? In this Huffington Post blog, Naibo Yu describes how his startup is promoting the use of cloud computing in Chinese classrooms. Allowing students to access lessons and materials at any time from their PC or tablet is an obvious benefit, but Yu also cites the ability to access user analysis and data as a crucial step in ensuring the students are receiving the best education.
• What are the top 5 benefits of cloud computing? In this Wired blog, Edwin Schouten outlines the 5 key benefits that cloud provides for companies including business agility, new business models, less operational issues, better use of resources, and less capital expense.

MSP Corner

• Is the cloud leading to more opportunities for MSPs? In this Channel Partners blog, Angela Trillhaase describes how the cloud and mobile are opening up more opportunities for MSPs when it comes to midsized companies.
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• Will IT ever regain control of all employees' devices again? In this MSPMentor blog, Jessica Davis takes a look at the rise and future of bring your own device (BYOD).

Upcoming Cloud Events

• Gartner Symposium & ITxpo 2012: October 21-25, Orlando, FL
• Cloud Computing World Forum Asia: November 12-14, Singapore
• AWS re:Invent: November 27-29, Las Vegas, NV
• Gartner Application Architecture, Development & Integration Summit: November 27-29, Las Vegas, NV