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IBM puts Big Iron on the Net

IBM is today expected to announce new software that will let customers transform their mainframes and minicomputers into Internet servers, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Jai Singh Staff Writer, CNET News.com
Jai Singh is the founding editor and editor in chief of CNET News.com.
Jai Singh
IBM figures if the network is indeed the computer then its Big Iron mainframe surely has a role to play on the Internet, the global computer network.

Today, the computer giant is expected to announce new software that will let customers transform their mainframes and minicomputers into Internet servers, according to The Wall Street Journal. Big Blue is also expected to announce that it will make a bigger push into the Internet services business, helping customers get connected to the Web and design home pages.

IBM mainframes, which still account for a substantial portion of its $69 billion in revenues, have been in disfavor because of their high cost and proprietary architecture. But the company plans to tap into the Internet and its ability to provide universal access. Since the Web doesn't care what kind of hardware one is using, IBM hopes that by adopting Web software standards it can make a customer's legacy data more readily accessible.