The team at dotCloud has been working on a semi-stealth project called Docker which is a container based approach to automating infrastructure. With Docker, you can deploy a fully functioning system that can run on your laptop, your AWS environment, your bare metal server, or anywhere you choose and it will run the same way because it is isolated at the process level. Here is a quote from the Docker web site that says it best: Docker is a... Read More
Developer returns from stone age, finds nirvana
The stone age developer is me and I just found software development nirvana! From the early 80s to the mid 90s I was a software developer. In the mid 90s to now I have been in numerous management and architecture roles which have kept me out of the world of coding. This week I dove back into coding and have totally embraced how productive the new world is versus the environments that I coded in back in the day. Here is my story. Back in... Read More
OSBR April edition on Cloud Computing
I had the privilege of being the guest editor for the April edition of the Open Source Business Resource. The topic for April is cloud computing. In my opinion, a big part of the success of cloud computing is the extensive use of open source software, especially the LAMP stack, which lowers the overall costs of the cloud services. With cloud computing, the operating system, the application server, and the underlying hardware has become a... Read More
Your biggest competitor may not exist yet
Or, your biggest competitor may be a startup that is in stealth mode and you have no idea what they are up to. There are many reasons why you should be worried about new startups if you are a big monolithic company. Startups don’t have the following baggage: Cultural barriers that prevent innovation and new concepts Legacy systems that drain valuable resources (people, infrastructure, and budget) Silos between the business and... Read More
How to give back to an Open Source community
Dru Lavigne, editor of Open Source Business Resource (OBSR) asked my opinion on “How can an individual or small business give back to an open source community? “. As some of you may know, I am a big advocate of open source and contribute to the Open Office community in a marketing capacity. There are many things one can do to contribute beyond coding. Please read the Q&A section of the February issue of OBSR or click here to... Read More
The Greek’s 2009 Technology Predictions
I just read a post from Dana Gardner where he highlights 2009 predictions from leading analysts. I agree with most of these predictions but I’d like to add my own. I am by no means an industry analyst, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night :-} The Greek’s Top 5 predictions/trends for 2009 Reduction in IT spending causes companies to start to be more fiscally responsible and take a more portfolio management approach... Read More
The Best of the Greek in 2008
2008 was a great year for me personally. My social network expanded and created many new opportunities for me including numerous public appearances, guest blogs, and interviews (all tracked here) as well as a great 3 month stint as a blogger for CIO.com’s SOA Drill Down blog. My first post for CIO.com (Top 10 Reasons why People are Making SOA Fail) happened to be my most popular and was actually published in the October edition of the... Read More
Are IT Leaders Missing the Boat?
I have spent a lot of time recently questioning the leadership of IT organizations who become a cost center due to a “keeping the lights on” mentality and have asked the question Are we Sleeping at the Wheel?. The other day I stumbled across a great article (thanks to some of my pals from Twitter land) that really hits the nail on the head. This is a must read article that brings to light what I think is the main reason why many IT... Read More
