The cloud and the fallout

SBS MVPs Calvin McLennan and Boon Tee, MVP Kerry Brown, SBS MVP Kevin Royalty and marketing guru Matt Makowicz

Back in the McCarthy era when atomic proliferation was on the minds of most politicians, the looming threat of mushroom clouds and nuclear fallout from potential first or second strikes scared the living daylights of most reasonable people. It became a matter of life or death to get everyone to think about life under the constant threat of nuclear annihilation and how to prepare for the inevitable. In the IT professional world, the newest threat and challenge to its business model is the amorphous "cloud," the term used to include all services, monitoring and threat management being sent to the Internet. In reality several corporations whose services live in the cloud are a direct threat to those who have traditional business models or offer managed services for clients on a local basis. There are potential problems of fallout with these companies due to legal liabilities or lack of failsafe methods being employed that can directly impact clients. Such scenarios include servers that may reside side-by-side with enterprises that are not legitimate, which could then get impounded by law enforcement officials or changes in H.I.P.P.A. laws which now put the physicians at risk should a breach of data occur, for example. This fallout can mean real costs to IT professionals and can lead to clients losing trust in them because of shortsightedness on the IT firms' parts. It is essential that everyone in the IT industry know of their legal responsibilities and that they inform their clients of how moving their data to the cloud can lead to future problems. What happens if the company they choose fails? How do they get their data back or, if they decide to leave the firm, at what cost will that firm charge them for the data? And, if the data is recoverable, in what form will they send it back? If the client wants to look at costs, how do we explain that the upfront costs may be miniscule compared to the overall cost of liabilities that may arise later? These cases are critical to the future of the IT industry and will be of prime import as more business move to the cloud and current managed services firms grapple with how to stay afloat with the burgeoning threat of the cloud. Today's panel discussion included several Microsoft Most Valuable Professionals who gave their take on what to look for and what to look out for. Also, Matt Makowicz, a former IT firm owner who now deals solely as an author and marketing guru, lent his own suggestions and warning to IT professionals. It was agreed by everyone on the panel that change is coming and all of those in the IT industry will have to change with it or lose viability in the next few years. Once again, thanks to Jeff Middleton for an impressive three-day event.

To "v" or not to "v"

MCP Ryan Spillane, left, and MVP Oliver Sommer

Virtualization has taken on frightening new possibilities since the core processors have come out that have made it a real consideration for business applications. The primary question is whether it makes sense to virtualize single applications on a server or run them outright without virtualization. Three major experts on virtualization answered questions and gave their own tack on virtualization: Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) Dave Sobel of Evolve Technologies; Oliver Sommer, an Austrian Microsoft MVP; and Ryan Spillane, an Australian Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) with tons of business experience. They each gave their own reasons as to why or why not virtualization makes sense in a business setting and where they ran into some problems. Others in the room offered their own opinions, some welcomed by the panel, some not. More on this later tomorrow when Jeff Middleton takes on some of his own musings on the subject.

The first day of the IT Pro Conference 2010

Jeff Middleton, Matt Makowicz, Karl Palachuk and George Serchio

The IT Pro Conference 2010 sponsored by Jeff Middleton's SBS Migration.com got underway with a plethora of IT professionals gathering to inform each other of some of the best ways to maintain and grow their businesses. Much of the fear from industry insiders has involved thinking about how "the cloud" will affect the market and impact IT firms, who previously have offered services on a local basis. Much of the early panels discussed how to determine strengths within IT businesses and how to mitigate problems with cash flow and liability management. Later discussions revolved about servers and ramifications of data servers hosted remotely ("the cloud") as well as real answers to questions about how to brand Small Business Server and other Windows Servers to clients. The best of the later sessions was done by Ofer Shimrat, the San Diego guru whose SoundOff is about to launch its first Managed Services platform in July. It will be interesting to see how they make the transition from advanced client support to full unified threat management and monitoring of clients through the cloud. Sessions tomorrow will deal with an alternative mail server to Microsoft Exchange, VPN firewalls and monitoring alternatives as well as virtualization tips and best techniques.

It's that SBS Migration time again

Jeff Middleton, "Old Betsy" and Tim Laughlin

Tireless Microsoft Small Business Server Most Valuable Player Jeff Middleton hunkered down at the Astor Crowne Plaza Hotel tonight with a mission. He is hosting his third annual SBS Migration.com IT Professional Conference there, welcoming a gaggle of geeks from across the globe to his own beloved New Orleans. In order to appreciate the charms and joys of New Orleans, he has summoned up a number of special events for evening time and started the three-day event with Tim Laughlin's band performing before a crowd of nearly 80. Laughlin, who is the premiere New Orleans clarinetist played "Old Betsy," Pete Fountain's fabled clarinet which he presented to him some time back. It was a pleasant kickoff to what should be several days of impressive panels of IT gurus who, along with Middleton, will impart knowledge and answer questions about Microsoft Windows servers and how to best implement effective solutions in the business arena. Some of the presentation team members have come from as far away as Germany, the Netherlands and Australia. A number of major players from the IT industry will be on hand to pitch their products as well like eFolder, Storagecraft, BackupAssist, Cloud Services Depot, Own, Cloud, Autotask and Kerio. My own eports will emanate from the hotel throughout most of what remains for this holiday weekend. Middleton definitely knows how to show off his own beloved New Orleans and the cuisine, drinks and music will reflect that. After the conference concludes on Sunday, there will be an opportunity for many of the visitors to leave New Orleans for a short cruise to exotic ports of call.

BSA National Annual Meeting in Dallas

National Commissioner Tico Perez, left, with Alan

The Boy Scouts of America meets once a year in a venue that is determined by its National Council. Over the course of the past decade this important meeting of delegates from councils all across the land has been held in cities such as New Orleans; Boston; Philadelphia; Grapevine, Texas; Chicago; San Diego; Orlando and Dallas. This year's meeting is being held at the Hotel Anatole in Dallas, not far from the National Council's headquarters in nearby Irving. This is the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Boy Scouts of America and much of the attention being paid by attendees is to the centennial Jamboree being held for the final time at Fort A. P. Hill in Caroline County, Virginia. This event will feature 50,000 Scouts from across the nation with 250,000 visitors slated to appear over the course of the nearly two-week long event. In reality it is like a small city that springs up literally overnight at the U. S. Army reservation. Over the course of the last 30 years that Fort A. P. Hill has been the permanent site of the Jamboree an infrastructure has been put into place (dining halls, sites for camping, toilet facilities, etc.). Following the departure of the Scouts this year in August, monies raised by the Scouts themselves will be used to tear down those structures and return the space back to its original green footprint. In this way the phrase "leave no trace" will truly figure in a meaningful way. The National Council of the BSA has purchased property for a new permanent site for future Jamborees in West Virginia and Virginia. This tract has yet to be improved and there is some question remaining as to how much of it will be developed by the time of the next Jamboree in the summer of 2013. After all, it has taken several decades to make the existing facilities at Fort A. P. Hill effectual, so it will take some time to build the facilities at the new site. Nonetheless, the emphasis for everyone is to make this 2010 Jamboree the most fun and safest event of its kind ever held. In the meantime, it's time to focus on how to deliver the Scouting program to local councils and to the Scouts themselves.

The greatest gift

There are times when I wonder what will become of me after I have passed on.? What will I bequeath to my son and other family members when I am no longer in need of physical comfort or crave wealth? What will friends and relatives think about me when I can no longer defend myself or answer the sharpened tongues of critics? Invariably, there is the answer that cannot be prevented or pondered. There is no wealth or riches in this world that is worth more than a good name. That is the legacy I leave, for good or bad. Wills direct where fortunes are to be split or sent, but a good name is something that only those closest of family or friends can receive or from which they can benefit. There are rules by which we live. In the Jewish faith we refer to these rules as mitvot (Commandments). There are both positive and negative mitzvot, meaning there are things we should do and things from which we should refrain. Similarly, in the case of other faith groups or religions, there are acts which are not allowed and others that are advocated in scripture or by spiritual leaders. These are simple ones like don't steal or kill, but there are others that require more consideration. Whenever there are choices in life which are not covered by my faith, I tend to lean on the Scout Law and its 12 Points. For those of you are not acquainted with the 12 Points of the Scout Law, let me state them:

"A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent." The Scout Law implores everyone to hold those values giving service to G-d, their nation and their neighbors and themselves. The world at large would be a much better place in which to live were everyone to adhere to these standards of behavior. Sadly, I have found there are some who claim to keep the values inculcated in the Scout Law and Oath in their hearts and consciences, but their actions speak far louder than words. They lack the kindness and selflessness that would make them shining examples of what humanity should be. They have the power to heal, but inflict wounds instead. They dole out advice to others that they do not follow themselves. It is a pity, but I have no power to change them. So what I will do is work on myself, hoping that they will someday learn by my example. I have a lot of work to do in that area, because I recognize I have many faults and a long way to correct them. In the meantime I will pray that others will see the error of their ways. Many of them would like to believe they are G-d's chosen. They delude themselves because it is my expectation they will not earn the eternal reward they believe they are due. Their names will be sullied and after all, a spotless name is the greatest gift anyone can leave behind.

Saturday's commencement

Tulane's 2010 Commencement - Click on image to expand to full size

It's been two days since Tulane University's 2010 Commencement and what was quite probably the most extraordinary commencement to which I've ever been witness. Yes, it took up approximately half the interior of the Louisiana Superdome with huge black backdrops that could have covered small skyscrapers. Yes, the monumental theatrical display and dais from which the graduates on the floor and the crowds in the stands were addressed was modeled after iconic Gibson Hall, the gothic building that graces the historic St. Charles Avenue campus. Yes, the commencement music was traditional jazz by Dr. Michael White and the Liberty Brass Band with special guest Wanda Rouzan singing "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans?" at the very end. Yes, the university presented honorary degrees (Doctor of Humane Letters) to Harlem community advocate Geoffrey Canada, medical activist James Ruffin and U. S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin. Yes, the President honored the New Orleans Saints and their entire organization with the President's Medal given to the team's part-owner Rita Benson Leblanc, Defensive Coordinator Gregg Williams and Tight End Jonathan Vilma. And, yes, the keynote address was delivered by none other than Anderson Cooper, the son of Gloria Vanderbilt and Wyatt Cooper, himself a former resident of New Orleans. Cooper gave one of the best speeches I've ever heard relating his own experiences in which he failed to get an entry level job at ABC News right out of college. His advice to graduates was they should look forward as the failures of one day may prove to be an opportunity for another. Cooper related how he financed his own work as a foreign correspondent for two years in Burma, Somalia, Bosnia, Afghanistan and on other dangerous assignments, building up expertise so that he was eventually hired as the youngest correspondent ever by ABC. "In retrospect, not getting that entry level job was one of the best things that ever happened to me," he opined. "Had I gotten that entry level job that I wanted, I would never have become a network correspondent. I probably would have never become one at all." Aside from Cooper, perhaps the most impressive figure on the stage was Tulane University president Scott Cowen, who once called Cleveland home and who has been instrumental in bringing about the university's rapid rise to the 43rd best school in the nation. This is especially significant given the severe damage the university suffered during the Hurricane Katrina crisis. As a matter of fact, this was the class that chose to attend Tulane the uncertain year following the destruction. As part of a tough series of measures imposed by Cowen and the university board of governors, many professors were terminated, the formerly separate Newcomb College for women was merged into Newcomb-Tulane College and the engineering school was gutted. The endowment at Tulane under Cowen's direction after Katrina ballooned to well over $700 million and its academic stock rose appreciably too. His address to the graduates was read from the heart and seemingly without any notes or aids. Although the event took nearly two hours, the drama surrounding it and the extra touches like indoor fireworks, confetti and hundreds of dropped balloons and green and white commencement beach balls made the festivity of what might have been just another boring commencement exercise an exciting and attractive affair. For those who would like to view the entire show from start to finish, click here.
In the meantime congratulations to my son David, who received his B.A. degree from the Liberal Arts college on Saturday during the second part of the unified commencement ceremonies at which the diplomas were actually passed out to the graduates. David started his college career at the University of Kansas, but the destruction of his hometown following Hurricane Katrina caused him to lose focus on his studies at the beginning of his sophomore year. He left K.U. and traveled first to Cleveland, where he lived with my sister at the same time as I lived and worked there. After his return to New Orleans, he first began to study at the School of Continuing Studies, eventually accruing enough hours and good academic work to allow him to enroll full time. Thankfully, the long ordeal is now over. He took six years to do what most do in four, but I am not upset. Understandably, this road less traveled has been the one he chose to take and, given the recovery in the city and his commitment to be back here, I am pleased that he took this path. I am a proud papa and I wish him and his new bride much success in the future.