Stories by Robert Mullins

VMware files prospectus for IPO

New details have emerged of virtualisation software provider, VMware's, plans to sell its stock to the public.

Apple's board defends Jobs in stock options case

The same day the company posted strong financials, the board of Apple Wednesday publicly defended CEO Steve Jobs against allegations by a former executive about Jobs' involvement in stock options backdating.

Sun: 160,000 channels, should be somethin' on

Sun Microsystems is introducing a new platform for streaming on-demand video over IP networks, to put movies into the hands of customers more efficiently than cable, DVDs-by-mail or the corner video store.

When in doubt, buy more storage

Imagine driving a car without a fuel gauge. You have no idea how much fuel is in the tank and worry that you're about to run out, so you stop at every petrol station you see to buy more. Storage managers in data centers have much the same problem.

HP extends market lead over Dell in PC sales

Hewlett-Packard (PC) has extended its lead over Dell in personal computer sales according to two industry reports released Wednesday.

Sun, Fujitsu and Hitachi freshen server lines

Sun Microsystems and Fujitsu are introducing new servers Tuesday that they jointly developed, while another server maker, Hitachi, is unveiling new blade servers. They each aim to address buyers' dual needs for computing power and energy efficiency.

HP, IBM make new plays for the SMB market

IBM and HP, in separate announcements, have each used words such as "simple", "reliable" and "affordable" to describe how each of their new products serves the small-to-medium business market.

HP is ready to play in the gaming market

Any lingering image of Hewlett-Packard as a stodgy company was dispelled Wednesday night in San Francisco as the company called "Game On" in its bid for a piece of the online gaming industry.

Sun gives UltraSparc a power boost

Sun Microsystems has brought new, faster UltraSparc IV+ processors to market, continuing to promote its homegrown chips even as it sells servers with processors from rivals Intel and Advanced Micro Devices.

Silicon Valley VCs predict tech winners, losers

In what has become an annual Silicon Valley ritual, leading venture capitalists have made their predictions about which technologies will thrive and which will take a dive in the near future.

HP targets SMB markets with new hardware

Hewlett-Packard is adding new entry-level hardware to a product line aimed at buyers in emerging global markets as well as small-to-medium sized businesses.

IDC: Changes afoot in the x86 server market

Shipments of servers powered by x86 processors will not grow as fast as previously forecasted, but x86 will remain the dominant chip design, according to IDC.

IT spending growth forecast to slow in 2007

IT spending is expected to rise 4 percent to 6 percent in 2007, down from 8 percent last year, as companies seek to rein in the expense of running their computer systems, according to a consensus of industry forecasts.

Red Hat release renews OS debate

As Red Hat prepares to launch the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 operating system on Wednesday, the question is again being asked whether a robust and feature-laden operating system is really needed for some computing situations.

IDC: Q4 storage revenue drops at Dell, HP

Dell and Hewlett-Packard reported declines in storage hardware revenue in the fourth quarter of 2006, running contrary to a growth trend for the storage industry.