hyperic

Windows 8 will include Microsoft's Hyper-V virtualization tool in an effort to attract developers, IT pros, and other users who need to run, test, or support virtual environments.

Describing the move in the latest edition of the "Building Windows 8" blog, Mathew John, a program manager on Microsoft's Hyper-V team, noted that Hyper-V has previously been available only in recent server-based editions of Windows, making Windows 8 the first client OS to include the feature.

Virtualization tools such as Hyper-V allow users to run multiple operating systems and environments on the same machine. That's helpful … Read more

Windows 8 will let you open and view ISO and VHD files all on its own, according to the latest "Building Windows 8" blog from Microsoft.

Posted yesterday by Microsoft engineer Rajeev Nagar, the new blog post, titled "Accessing data in ISO and VHD files," revealed that native support for ISO and VHD files was one feature often requested by users, prompting the company to add it to its upcoming OS.

ISO (International Organization for Standardization) files are image files that hold the contents of a CD or DVD. Large programs available for download through the … Read more

You know the gag where film credits list one guy as the producer, director, writer, star, publicist, music composer, and key grip? It came to mind while trying out Michael Hardy's HyperSonic Web Browser, a customized version of Firefox. The developer--Michael Hardy--says his browser proved five times faster than Firefox. It's fast, but as far as we can tell, the only real difference, other than frequent mentions of Michael Hardy, is that it's a bit less intuitive than the latest version of Firefox. However, it's highly customizable and, like Firefox, freeware.

Obviously, HyperSonic resembles Firefox and … Read more

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which we answer questions e-mailed in by our readers. This week there were questions on toggling Hyper-Threading in Intel CPUs on Macs, options for upgrading RAM on older Mac systems, and how to rename multiple items in a folder at once. We continually answer e-mail questions, and though we present a few answers here, we welcome alternative approaches and views from readers and encourage you to post your suggestions in the comments.

Question: RAM upgrade options for older Macs MacFixIt reader "Ronald" asks:

LAS VEGAS--Marvell announced its new storage controller this week that combines a regular hard-disk drive (HDD) and a solid-state drive (SSD) to create a hybrid storage solution designed to offer SSD-like performance while retaining the capacity benefits of traditional hard drives.

Intrigued by the idea, I visited the company's demonstration today and found it indeed intriguing and at the same time practical.

At the demo, Marvel used a controller card, powered by its HyperDuo chip, that has two SATA 6Gbps ports. This card is similar to any PCIe SATA controller cards you find on the market. The difference is, … Read more

LAS VEGAS--You should by now have heard of Seagate's Momentus XT (if not, check out our review). It is the first mass-produced hybrid hard drive that offers some benefits of a solid-state drive (SSD) at a much lower cost and without the sacrifice of storage space.

The Momentus XT is called "hybrid" because it consists of a traditional platter-based hard drive and 4GB of flash memory, within one physical chassis. Now what if you want to create a hybrid package by combining an SSD and a traditional hard-disk drive (HDD)?

The answer is what Marvell announced today, … Read more

Microsoft today announced several enhancements to its Windows Server platform, aimed at giving IT buyers hardware and software configurations ready for use as part of a private cloud.

The new platform additions, which were announced as part of Microsoft's annual TechEd event going on this week, are dubbed Hyper-V Cloud. This is essentially a blueprint for the software and hardware configurations that Microsoft's customers and partners can use to get a private cloud set up quickly and without changing hardware buying habits.

These configurations are highlighted in a new program called Hyper-V Cloud Fast Track, which sets each … Read more

Sanho, which sells HyperMac external batteries for several Apple products, announced today it will stop selling cables that connect those components to some Apple hardware.

According to the company, which cited "ongoing comprehensive licensing negotiations with Apple," it will halt sales of its "MacBook charging cables and car charger on November 2." Although it will continue to sell its batteries, the lack of cables basically renders them useless, since people won't be able to connect those products to Apple's computers.

Sanho's decision to stop selling cables with its batteries was a response to … Read more

Yesterday, I heard a story about a CIO of one of the big NYC-based financial services firms explaining to his audience what was delaying further virtualization of the firm's application environment. The reason wasn't related to hardware or software.

The problem was staffing. Given the current state of virtual server management practices, the number of virtual machines was outrunning the number of people needed to effectively manage them.

IT has traditionally been about automating things. But automated IT management, and particularly automated management of the storage environment, has traditionally been approached cautiously at best by IT administrators. Nevertheless, … Read more