Bonum Certa Men Certa

Novell News Summary - Part III: SCO, PlateSpin Forge, Teaming, GroupWise, and More

View with a rock



Summary: The remainder of this week's news about Novell

There is almost nothing to see here but a few minor items.



Legal



The SCO saga was last mentioned in:

  1. A Look at the Microsoft-funded SCO Lawsuit in Light of Newer Anti-Linux Microsoft Lawsuits
  2. Novell Responds to SCO Ruling, More News Coverage
  3. More SCO Headlines and What Comes Next
  4. More SCO Headlines and What Comes Next


Nothing particularly exciting has happened since then, but ZDNet has some more coverage and Groklaw got a hold of another IBM letter. It seems likely that SCO is stuck in the middle of nowhere and will disappear real soon now. We've heard it all before, haven't we?

Netware



NetWare was mentioned very briefly in this article.

Other network operating systems, such as Novell Netware, have had access enumeration features for many releases, leaving one to wonder why Microsoft has waited so long to introduce it. The argument is that the feature isn't needed if properly configured permissions on objects are already in place, but that doesn't necessarily cover all the reasons one might want to hide the names of certain folders.


Another small history lesson:

And yet, that almost never happens. History says Google will struggle as technology shifts. But good luck figuring out what company might catch the next wave and give Google fits. In 1995, Gates worried about existing companies such as Novell and the start-up Netscape Communications. Neither wound up a serious rival. Google was three years from being born. Fear what you can’t see, not what you can.


Virtualisation



Ross Chevalier wrote about the subject while Novell's PR people were beating the Xen drum and IDG wrote about where Novell fits in the SpringSource takeover by VMware.

And as Microsoft, Red Hat and Novell move more into the virtualisation and application server markets where does that leave VMware? Well, now VMware has a competing offering.


Todd Weiss, who used to write for IDG, warns that VMware's state is similar to Novell's. It's a familiar analogy.

Some on Wall Street say the company's stock is overvalued. And a leading IT analyst thinks VMware could be headed for a Novell-like downfall.


Trading Markets repeated some of the expected buzz about PlateSpin Forge:

Novell today announced the availability of PlateSpin Forge 2.5, the latest release of the only all-in-one, out-of-the-box disaster recovery hardware appliance. PlateSpin Forge leverages virtualization to back-up and restore physical and virtual servers. In the event of production server downtime or a disaster, protected workloads can be rapidly recovered, including failover directly on the PlateSpin Forge appliance, so there is no need for additional hardware. The protected workloads can later be restored to the production environment, either to the repaired server, or even to a replacement server of a different make or model.


Also on PlateSpin Forge, from the same source:

Version 2.5 features an improved block-based transfer protocol, making replications up to 50 % faster than previous versions. In contrast to traditional file-based transfers that copy entire files, block-based transfer technology replicates only changed blocks at the disk level, dramatically reducing the amount of data transferred, according to the company.


Novell is attributed for sort of pioneering the division of labour among nodes in another article about sharing a CPU (virtualisation).

With the PC, the balance changed: although software became a commodity, every PC needed some. A single central computer that hosted the operating system, applications and data became an expensive and outmoded idea. Novell sold us the idea of networking PCs and Microsoft jumped on the bandwagon with Windows 3.11 or Windows for Workgroups.


Mail/Collaboration



A new press release (also found here) speaks about Novell Teaming as a "leader".

Novell Teaming was evaluated in several categories including security, team collaboration platform, and architecture and administration. The report also notes that, "Novell's acquisition of SiteScape and rebranding as Novell Teaming has placed it in a solid position as a collaborative platform vendor." A member of Novell's suite of Collaboration products, Novell Teaming is a next-generation collaborative application that brings people, projects and processes together in a workspace that boosts efficiency and fosters innovation.


Novell has also just released (or merely uploaded) two videos that promote Novell Teaming. Here is the first:



And the second video:



When it comes to GroupWise, attempts are still being made to reverse a decision in Los Angeles (more here). We wrote about this at the beginning of the month.

Some 15 bids were submitted to Los Angeles to replace its e-mail system. Those not selected appear to be unhappy at the prospect of losing millions of dollars in business to Google. In a July 20 letter, Novell client executive Brian Hervey said that his company wants to continue providing e-mail service to the city and offered a 10% discount on the annual maintenance fee.


IDG spreads more fear of Fog Computing and adds:

Shortly after the breach, some public interest groups and local law enforcement officials cited potential security concerns in calling on the city of Los Angeles to reconsider plans to replace its Novell GroupWise e-mail and Microsoft Office software with Google Inc.'s hosted e-mail and office productivity applications.


GroupWise support in BlackBerries is still being noted.

Management/Monitoring



BMC has bought a company in a move that may affect Novell because it entered this field in a similar fashion (an acquisition).

BMC competes with Novell, CA, IBM and a range of smaller vendors in the market for BSM (business service management) software, which is meant to help companies manage their IT infrastructure effectively and align it in support of business processes.


More here:

BMC on Monday said it has bought MQSoftware, maker of middleware that helps companies monitor the performance of IBM's WebSphere MQ as well as other platforms. Terms were not disclosed. BMC competes with Novell, CA, IBM and a range of smaller vendors in the market for business service management software, which is meant to help companies manage their IT infrastructure and align it with business processes. By purchasing MQSoftware, BMC wants a stronger play in companies that are working on SOA projects. WebSphere MQ is a messaging platform that allows various applications and systems to communicate with each other. It can play a key role in SOA implementations, which seek to create composite applications consisting of multiple, sometimes shared sources.


Security



When it comes to security, Novell's PR people have been very busy recently. A ZDNet placement from last week is promoted by Novell's marketing people now that it's 'sunk' in there. Novell is also mentioned in the following article which requires registration to read and there's this IDG article about Sentinel (in Swedish).

People



Former Novell managers are seen making their move, the latest examples being:

i . US Venture Partners takes on Gary Gysin as entrepreneur-in-residence

Before joining McData, Gyson was the senior vice president of products at Volera, a majority owned subsidiary of Novell. Prior to Volera, he held a variety of executive leadership roles including president and CEO of PGSoft, leading the company through five successful years culminating in the company’s sale to Novell. He was also vice president of sales and marketing at Crosswise Corporation, WorldTalk and Touch Communications.


ii. Revell leaves Zintel after six-month absence

Revell is a longtime figure in the New Zealand IT industry, having been general manager for Novell until 2003, held the role of services director at Computerland and solutions delivery manager at Gen-i, before becoming Zintel's managing director in 2006.


Partners



The little event which took place earlier this month (Burton) had Novell demonstrate identity management. This is mentioned by IDG.

Earlier this month both CA and Novell demonstrated identity management products tweaked to be able to provide better security to both cloud- and SaaS-based applications.


Novell's relationships with companies are also mentioned briefly in here, here, here, here, and here. It's all minor and almost negligible. Novell was also brought up by this publication which is known for its Novell affinity.

Videos



There is not much to see here except Novell's marketing videos and a Moodle tutorial that involves Novell's networking software.

These are the steps to create an account in Moodle in my district which has Moodle linked with Novell via LDAP.


Utah



Transit changes in Utah have Novell's campus mentioned, but this is nothing of significance.

A BRT line between Orem and Provo has been in MAG's long-term plans for quite some time, Eccles said. The approved plans call for the bus rapid transit line to run from an intermodal center west of Utah Valley University, around BYU to downtown Provo and down to the Novell campus in south Provo.


Here ends another week with no major Novell news to report.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Getting the European Court of Justice to Annul the Illegal and Unconstitutional Unified Patent Kangaroo Court (UPC)
We're still working on it
They Tell Us Slop Replaces Workers, But the Reality Is, US Debt Has Surged 2,300 Billion Dollars in Six Months (the Economy is Collapsing)
Oligarchy already entertains the option of running away to (or colonising) some other planet without pitchforks and "unwashed masses"
 
Expensive errors: Forbes Gold price, $44 billion Bitcoin given away by Bithumb, South Korea
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 08/02/2026: Microsoft OSI (Openwashing Lobby) in Europe, Raised Against Social Control Media Provocateurs in EU
Links for the day
The Open Source Initiative (OSI) Lobbies for Microsoft in the EU, Promoting Proprietary Lock-in
OSI pushing and selling Microsoft and GitHub. OSI is Microsoft front group.
Finland's Dependence on GAFAM (US) Needs to be Lessened, EU Must Follow This Path
It's unwise to make one's entire national infrastructure (computer systems) dependent on a regime which compares its black citizens to monkeys and assassinates nonviolent dissenters
Links 08/02/2026: Microsoft GitHub as Burden on Developers and "The Chomsky Epstein Files"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 08/02/2026: "Doing Not Much Tweaking" and "Reclaiming Digital Agency"
Links for the day
Forbes: BitCoin, Cryptocurrency pages removed from investment database, links stop working
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Bitcoin warning followed immediately by network outage
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Money Funneled to Protection of Software Freedom, But Nothing Really Lost
Crossposted from personal site
Mozilla Firefox Sinks to Just 1.5% in the United States
According to analytics.usa.gov
We're Still Fast
The site is even faster than the BBC's despite being on shoestring budget with only a small technical team
Gemini Protocol is Not a Waste of Time of Effort
We see more and more GNU/Linux- or BSD-focused bloggers turning to Gemini
Our Gemini Protocol Support Turns 5 Today
today is a rare anniversary for us
In Today's World, One Must be Tough and Principled to Get Ahead Morally
But not financially (sellouts)
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, February 07, 2026
IRC logs for Saturday, February 07, 2026
The Right Wing in the United States Does Not Support Free Speech, It Supports Its Own Speech
Free speech is often opposed by those who also oppose Free software
IRC is a Lot Better Than Social Control Media (They're Not the Same at All)
A good social analogy for IRC is, there are many buildings with a party in each building
Microsoft 'Open' 'AI' is 'Dead Meat'
Or 0xDEADBEEF as some geeks might call it
When Identifying "Low Performers" and "PIPs" Aren't About Improving Performance But Reinforcing a Clique in Your Company/Organisation
It's very troubling to see once-respectable brands like IBM and institutions like the EPO resorting to this
Slop and Flop (IBM), Slopfarms and Hybrids (Linuxiac)
Did Bobby Borisov assume he would never get caught?
Crowdfunding vs Bitcoins: donations are better investment than digital tulip mania
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 07/02/2026: Misinformation by Slop, Overrated Slop Causes Stock Market Panic
Links for the day
Gemini Links 07/02/2026: Diode Function Generators and Panic Over Buzzwords and Slop
Links for the day
A Can of WORMS - Part III - Envying the Influence and Accomplishments of RMS, Socially Deleterious Attacks on Popular Movements
the actions are deliberate and coordinated, not some 'organic' or grassroots behaviour
Crisis teams assembled as financial regulators anticipate Bitcoin implosion
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Reddit as a Hive of Trolls, Social Control Media Curated (Many Voices Censored and Banned) by Marketing Firm of GAFAM
Typical Reddit
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) Delusion - Part III - Women Failing Women to Help Violent Americans From Microsoft
Summed up, SRA will gladly prioritise the "legal industry" over women strangled, raped etc
The World Gets Smaller, as Does Its Real Economy ('Human Resources') and So-called 'Natural Resources' (What Humans Call the Planet)
Don't talk about "AI"
Converting FOSDEM Talk on Software Patents in Europe Into Formats That Work for "FOS" and Don't Have Software Patent Traps
transcoded version of the video
Links 07/02/2026: More White House Racism, "Europe Accuses TikTok of Addictive Design"
Links for the day
Silent Mass Layoffs: It's Not the Revolution, It's the Loophole and the Hack ("Low Performers" or "Underperformers")
Layoffs by another approach
Mark Shuttleworth (MS) Pays Salaries to Microsoft (MS) Employees
Canonical selling Microsoft
Links 07/02/2026: Windows TCO Rising, Lousy Patents Invalided
Links for the day
Microsoft Leadership: Stop Taxing Us, Tax Only Poor People
Does Microsoft create jobs?
Biggest "AI Companies" (Meta, Alphabet, Microsoft) Borrowed (Additional Debt) About $100,000,000,000 in a Year
Who will be held accountable for all this?
In Case You've Missed It (ICYMI), Google's Debt More Than Doubled in a Year
Wait till it "monetises" billions of GMail users with slop
In 2009 Microsoft Was Valued at ~150 Billion Dollars, Now They Tell Us Microsoft Lost ~1,000 Billion Dollars in Value. Does That Make Sense?
Or Microsoft lost 700 billion dollars in "value" in less than two weeks
PIPs and Silent Layoffs at IBM (and Red Hat) Still Going on, It's "Forever Layoffs" (to Skirt the WARN Act)
American workers out
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, February 06, 2026
IRC logs for Friday, February 06, 2026
Stressful Times for Team Campinos ("Alicante Mafia") at Europe's Second-Largest Institution
Keep pushing
Growing Discrimination in the European Patent Office (EPO)
it's a race to the bottom, basically
Google News Drowning in (or Actively Promoting) Slopfarms Again
LLM slop is a nuisance
Microsoft Stock Crashed When Alleged Vista 11 Numbers Disclosed
And last summer Microsoft indicated that it had lost 400 million Windows users
Gemini Links 07/02/2026: "Choosing a License for Literary Work" and "Social Media Is Not Social Networking (Anymore)"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 06/02/2026: Git and Email Patches; MNT Pocket Reform
Links for the day
Geminispace Net Growth in 2026 About a Capsule a Day
A pace like this means net gain of ~300 per year, i.e. about the same as last year
It's Not About Speed, It's About the Message (or Its Depth)
Better to write news than to just link to news if there's commentary that the news may merit
Benjamin Henrion Warned About the Illegal and Unconstitutional Unified Patent Court (UPC) in FOSDEM 2026
Listen to Benjamin Henrion
Economies Crashing Not Because of Slop Improving 'Efficiency' (That's a False Excuse) and 'Expensive' (Read: Qualified) Workers Discarded in Race to the Bottom
Actual cocaine addicts are pushing out moral people
IBM's CEO Speaks of Layoffs, Resorts to Mythical (False) Excuses
This has nothing to do with slop
Links 06/02/2026: Voter Intimidation and Press Shutdowns in US, Web Traffic Warped by LLM Sludge
Links for the day
Does Linux Torvalds Regret Having Dinners With Bill 'Russian Girls' Gates?
See, the rules that govern the Linux Foundation and its big sponsors aren't the same rules that apply to all of us
IBM: Cheapening Code, Cheapening Staff, Cheapening Everything
IBM's management runs IBM like it's a local branch of McDonald's. IBM is a junk company with morbid innards.
GNU/Linux Measured at 6% in One of the World's Largest Nations
Democratic Republic Of The Congo
Linux Foundation Operative Says We and Our Software All "Owe an Enormous Debt of Gratitude" to a Software Patents Reinforcer
The only true solution is to entirely get rid of all software patents
Mobbing at the European Patent Office (EPO) - Part IV - EPO Can Get Away With Murders, Suicide Clusters, and Systematic and Prolonged Bullying by 'Team Campinos' ("Alicante Mafia" as Insiders Call It)
Nobody in the Council or the EU/EC/EP gives a damn as long as laws are broken to fabricate 'growth'
Jeff Bezos Isn't Just Killing the Washington Post, He's Killing Thousands of News Sites/Newsrooms (in Dozens of Languages) That Rely on It for Many Decades Already
Not just slopfarms; even the Ukraine-based reporters are culled by Bezos, who's looking to please the dictators of the world
Central Staff Committee Confronted António Campinos for Giving His Cocaine-Addicted Friend Over 100,000 Euros to Do Nothing, Just Pretend to be Ill, While Cutting the Salaries of Everybody Else
"On the agenda: Amicale framework & Financial assistance for courses"
How to Win Lawsuits in 5 Simple Steps
Keep issuing threats every week and send 60 kilograms of legal papers to the target
More Than 99% of "AI" Companies Aren't AI, They're Pure BS
We need to discard those stupid debates about "AI" and reject media that gets paid to participate in such overt narrative control (manipulation like The Register MS)
AI Used to Save Lives, Now "AI" is a Grifting Scheme That Burns the Planet and Will Crash the Economy
What the media calls "AI" (it gets paid to call it that) is the same stuff that could instead be dubbed "algorithms"
Living in Freedom When 'False Flag Operations' Like EFF Get Captured by Billionaires to Take Freedom Away
There are many ways to think of Software Freedom
Amutable is a Microsoft Siege Against Freedom in GNU/Linux, Just Like the People Who Brought You 'Secure Boot' Controlled by Microsoft
Do whatever is possible to avoid Amutable and its "products"
Growing Focus on Publication
Over the past ~10 days we always served more than a million Web hits per day
"Going to be a large number of Microsoft layoffs announced soon"
Everybody knows a giant wave of layoffs is coming Microsoft's way
End of the 'GPU Bubble' and NVIDIA Finally Admits It Won't Bail Out Microsoft OpenAI Anymore
circular financing (financial/accounting fraud)
Corrupt Media Won't Hold Accountable Rich People for Role in Pedophilia
Journalistic misconduct or malpractice is a real thing
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, February 05, 2026
IRC logs for Thursday, February 05, 2026
EPO Management ("Alicante Mafia") Not Properly Sharing Information on Scale of Strikes by EPO Staff
disproportionate (double) deductions in salaries against people who participate in strikes, which are protected by law
Gemini Links 06/02/2026: Slop/Microslop, Home Assistant, and Valid Ex Commands
Links for the day
Blackmail evidence: Debian social engineering exposed in ClueCon 2024 talk on politics
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Bitcoin crash: opportunity or the end game?
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Changes at the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA)
SRA is basically a waste of money
Claims That IBM Will Lay Off 20% (or 15%) of Its Workforce This Year Unless It Finds a Way to Push Them All Out by Threats, Shame, Guilt
Where are the articles about IBM layoffs?
IBM Isn't a Serious Company Anymore, It's a Ponzi Scheme Operated by a Clique and It Misuses Companies It Acquires to Prop Up or Legitimise the Scheme
IBM seems like it's nothing but a "Scheme"
Google News Drowning in Slop About "Linux" (Slopfarms Galore)
Google should know better than to link to any of these slopfarms, but today's Google is itself a pusher of slop