Dell Technologies World happened last week and while the response online was somewhat muted compared to years past, there was one thing that stood out to several analysts in the audience. Per an article from Chris Mellor, some of the spotlight fell on Chuck Whitten, the current COO of Dell and the person that many have tapped as the heir-apparent to Michael Dell. Dell is in much better shape today than it was when it acquired EMC and spent a truckload of cash and stock to do it. Rumors are swirling that Michael Dell is set to depart sometime in the next 12-18 months. This and more on this week’s Rundown.
1:01 | Oracle Class-Action Suit Ramps Up
A class-action lawsuit against database giant and reported cloud provider Oracle gained steam today after the judge in the case approved the damages model proposed by the plantiffs. The suit alleges that Oracle falsely overstated cloud revenue by threatening to audit customers. The suit was brought by a number of shareholders accusing Oracle of inflating numbers through the aforementioned audits but also through big discounts for on-prem equipment if they would also sign short-term cloud contracts, even if the contract was never used. Jim, you’re the Oracle guy around here. What does this news mean for Oracle’s cloud aspirations?
Read More: Judge agrees damages model in Oracle cloud class-action
CIsco is having some problems with memory. Specifically they’re talking about DIMMs manufactured in 2020 that could fail prematurely. The notice from Cisco says that the errors may appear when the system POSTs and could reduce the memory capacity of the UCS server and could even disable the memory module completely. Cisco has created a serial number validation tool to check and see if you need to replace the modules.
Read More: Cisco warns of premature DIMM failures
6:06 | Cisco Can See the Future with AI
Not to be outdone by bad memory, Cisco has announced that they they have a new offering that leverages analytics and AI to predict problems and even provide fixes before the problem occurs. Per the press release, Cisco is using neural networks and AI developed by fellows like JP Vasseur to refine their ability to do this kind of predictive analysis.
Read More: Customer Trials Show IT Teams Can Predict and Avoid Issues with High Accuracy
8:03 | FIDO Alliance Gains Big Names
The FIDO Alliance got some support this week from big industry names. Apple, Google, and Microsoft have all announced they will support the FIDO password-less sign-in standard. Co-developed with the World Wide Web Consortium, this standard allows websites and applications to offer end-to-end sign-in options that don’t require passwords. The new standard could leverage existing PIN codes and biometrics like fingerprints and face prints to achieve security. With the backing of these large manufacturers the likelihood that FIDO will become a widely-adopted standard for authentication is very high.
11:38 | A Look at Dell’s Future
Dell Technologies World happened last week and while the response online was somewhat muted compared to years past, there was one thing that stood out to several analysts in the audience. Per an article from Chris Mellor, some of the spotlight fell on Chuck Whitten, the current COO of Dell and the person that many have tapped as the heir-apparent to Michael Dell. Dell is in much better shape today than it was when it acquired EMC and spent a truckload of cash and stock to do it. Rumors are swirling that Michael Dell is set to depart sometime in the next 12-18 months.
Read More: A glimpse at Dell’s future
17:22 | White House Wants Quantum-Proof Encryption
The White House announced last week that they are worried about quantum computers. Specficially, they are worried about the capability for quantum computers to invalidate many popular forms of encryption. In a new national security memorandum, the governement has announced the importance of a new strategy for creating quantum-resistant cryptography, In the memo, the government hints at the possibility that other countries could develop quantum computers that could crack any RSA-based encryption.
Read More: White House wants nation to prepare for cryptography-breaking quantum computers
AI Field Day is taking place May 18 through May 20, 2022
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Cloud Field Day 14 is taking place June 22 through June 24, 2022
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