This newest addition to the line of Clickfree back up products gives professionals a simple way to save all their critical productivity, email, calendar, Internet and design files. With support for more than 200 file types including Microsoft Office and Adobe applications, Clickfree Office DVD is designed for anyone who wants to protect their most valuable business asset – their daily work information.

As soon as the disc is inserted into a PC’s DVD drive, the Clickfree software automatically launches, searches and backs up files, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Acrobat, Photoshop, Illustrator files and more. While the software’s default settings will probably be sufficient for most, it is user-modifiable, giving users full control over their backups.

Available now, Clickfree Office DVD will be demonstrated at Interop 2008 in Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, April 27 – May 2. Storage Appliance Corporation’s booth is #1984.

“Today, 85 to 90 percent of the population does not back up their PC,” said Ian Collins, president, Storage Appliance Corporation. “We hope the simplicity of our products will influence people to back up their data on a regular basis, significantly reducing the easily preventable devastation that comes from data loss.”

Because the Clickfree Office DVD is so easy to use, it is ideal for employees with limited computer knowledge, making it a perfect solution for small businesses without dedicated IT support. In addition, IT managers supporting non-technical remote workers will find tremendous value in its simplicity. Off-site employees can easily back up their laptops or home computers (that often contain work files) on a regular basis, without requiring IT help or resources. If a computer crashes, they can instantly restore their data themselves by pushing the “restore” button and be back up and running within minutes.

Clickfree Music and Photo DVDs Protect Cherished Digital Media

The new Clickfree Office DVD joins a line of existing back up DVDs offered by Storage Appliance Corporation, including Clickfree Music DVD Backup and Clickfree Photo DVD Backup. A hassle-free way to protect music collections and cherished photos, the DVDs automatically search for and back up music or photo extensions right out of the box. All popular and file formats are supported.

Back Up Your Entire PC with the Clickfree Hard Drive

For customers who want to back up all their data onto a hard drive, Storage Appliance Corporation also offers the 120GB Clickfree HD701. It automatically backs over 350 file types including Word, Powerpoint, emails and their attachments, photos, movies and music files. It even finds preferences, favorite websites and browser lists. At $149, it offers a tremendous value to families and IT managers, as one device can back up data from up to 10 computers, compartmentalizing each PC’s information for easy data identification and recovery.

All Clickfree back up devices are ideal for transferring files to a new computer. In case of hard drive failure or to share files with a new computer, simply click the “restore” button, and all the files will be brought into their original locations again.

The Clickfree Office DVD 5 Pack is available now at leading retail outlets in the U.S. and Canada. The MSRP is $14.99. All Clickfree back up solutions can also be purchased online direct from Storage Appliance Corporation. Visit www.goclickfree.com for more information or to locate a store.

See also:

• GSS8000 High Dynamics GPS Simulation System (0)
• Adobe Announces New Acrobat Connect Pro (0)
• CPU Tech Launches Acalis CPU872 MultiCore PowerPC with Embedded DRAM and Tamper Protection (0)
• Data Center Performance Testing with New 10 GbE IxYukon Architecture (0)
• Worldwide Availability of E-Government Platform (0)

The CSP, a culmination of Microsoft’s partnerships, programs and projects conducted with governments over several years, was developed based on challenges faced by diverse government offices and different regions worldwide.

From London to Porto, Portugal, to all the municipalities of Denmark, governments of all sizes are using technology to interact with citizens in a variety of new and innovative ways. Microsoft has developed an applications framework upon which partners can build solutions that address specific government needs, including technical guidance regarding implementation and customization for use by both partners and customers. To date, more than 90 partners have signed up to build solutions on the CSP.

“The need for a platform like the CSP is clearly demonstrated by the response we’ve received from our partners,” said Ralph Young, vice president for the Worldwide Public Sector at Microsoft. “A common framework to build from allows partners to tailor their solutions to specific government needs and, after working with governments for the past several years on early versions of the CSP, it’s exciting to watch this community effort really start to pay dividends to both citizens and the governments that serve them.”

In Porto this week, the Local and Regional Government Solutions Forum will bring together almost 300 partners and customers to discuss the management challenges governments face and technology’s role in solving these issues. Some already have experienced how the CSP, in combination with a tailored partner solution, can increase efficiency, decrease costs and bring constituents and government closer together. Others will be coming to view firsthand how they can make further use of their existing technology investments by using them as part of the CSP rather than starting from scratch.

“E-government initiatives can be difficult to implement as resistance is generally high due to legacy and integration issues,” said A. Kaare Norgaard, CEO of Resultmaker A/S, the CSP partner on the implementation of Denmark’s sickness reimbursement program. “However, now the system is appreciated as the best example of e-government in practice, which simply demonstrates how installing a platform where parts already exist is half the battle, as is often the case with the CSP.”

CSP availability includes templates available for existing customers to download at no cost, bolstering their ability to do more with existing technology investments.

See also:

• Adobe Announces New Acrobat Connect Pro (0)
• Storage Appliance Corporation Introduces Clickfree Office DVD Backup (0)
• Thermal Power Generating Units With a Capacity of Below 300MW per Generator to Be Restricted or Banned in China (0)
• Microsoft Releases Latest Microsoft Security Intelligence Report (0)
• Microsoft and Novell Extend Reach of Interoperability Collaboration to China (0)

The latest SIR shows the fewest number of security vulnerability disclosures across the software industry since the second half of 2005, along with a rise in malicious and potentially unwanted software, which demonstrates a continued use of malware as a tool for targeting computer users for profit.

More specifically, the second half of 2007 showed a decline in new security vulnerability disclosures by 15 percent and a decrease in total vulnerability disclosures by 5 percent for all of 2007. Vulnerabilities are weaknesses in software that allow an attacker to compromise the integrity, availability or confidentiality of that software. The data also reveals a 300 percent increase in the number of trojan downloaders and droppers — malicious code used to install files on users’ systems — illustrating that the malware category continues to grow in popularity among attackers.

The report also shows a 66.7 percent increase in the number of potentially unwanted software detections — programs that may impact user privacy or security by performing actions the person may not want — between July 1 and Dec. 31, with a total of 129.5 million pieces of potentially unwanted software found on users’ systems.

“The SIR provides us with a chance to share with our customers and industry partners what we’re seeing in the threat landscape so we can all help ensure users are better protected and work toward a more trusted Internet,” said Vinny Gullotto, general manager of the Microsoft Malware Protection Center. “This latest volume supports our position that today’s threats continue to be motivated by monetary gain, and it also gives us a solid view of vulnerability and exploit trends.”

The purpose of the SIR is to keep customers informed of the major trends in the threat landscape and provide valuable insights and security guidance designed to help customers make better, more informed decisions with regard to products, technologies and resources. The latest report builds on previously gathered data, but also includes new sections focused on issues of security breach notifications, spam and phishing, Internet safety enforcement, and the storm worm — a highly visible, continually updating and adapting trojan dropper.

Based on these and other key findings from the report, Microsoft recommends all interested parties use the data, insights and guidance contained in the report to better assess and improve their own security practices. Active steps Microsoft recommends include the following:

— Check for and apply software updates on an ongoing basis, including
updates provided for third-party applications.
— Enable a firewall.
— Install and maintain up-to-date anti-virus and anti-spyware programs
that provide increased protection from malicious and potentially
unwanted software.

A copy of Microsoft’s newest Security Intelligence Report and other related information can be found at www.microsoft.com/sir.

See also:

• N.Y. Fights Crime With Wireless Video Surveillance (0)
• Storage Appliance Corporation Introduces Clickfree Office DVD Backup (0)
• Increase Adoption of VMware Virtualization in China (0)
• Worldwide Availability of E-Government Platform (0)
• Microsoft and Novell Extend Reach of Interoperability Collaboration to China (0)

This increased demand is exemplified by the People’s Insurance Company of China Group (PICC), The Dairy Farm Company Ltd. (Dairy Farm) and Dawning Information Industry Co. Ltd. (Dawning), which have agreed to receive Microsoft certificates for three-year support subscriptions for SUSE Linux Enterprise Server from Novell(R).

“It’s very encouraging to see that our business and technical collaboration continues to resonate with customers around the globe,” said Ron Hovsepian, president and CEO of Novell. “Both Novell and Microsoft are committed to furthering this alliance, and we couldn’t be happier with the results to date. PICC, Dairy Farm and Dawning exemplify the benefits our strengthened alliance provides for the international IT community.”

“We recognize that our customers want to use Microsoft products in heterogeneous environments, and therefore we are pleased to offer this option to meet customer needs in one of the leading global markets,” said Ya-Qin Zang, Microsoft corporate vice president and chairman of Microsoft China. “We are very pleased with the initial response in the Chinese market to our joint offerings for IP peace of mind and technology interoperability in such areas as virtualization and high-performance computing.”

Expanded Investment

Microsoft and Novell’s collaboration in China will focus on joint marketing and training efforts that tap into two emerging areas of interoperability demand: high-performance computing (SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and Microsoft Windows Compute Cluster Server running in a dual-boot configuration) and virtualization (cross-platform virtualization solutions featuring Microsoft Windows Server 2008 with Hyper-V and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 with Xen technology). This will include hosting round-table discussions with local chief information officers in Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing, running a virtualization customer pilot, and conducting technology workshops to assist the conversion from unsupported Linux to SUSE Linux Enterprise Server.

In addition, Novell and Microsoft’s collaboration will focus on efforts to convert unsupported Linux users to SUSE Linux Enterprise support, in China and elsewhere, which builds upon a growing global trend of large, multinational companies increasing their demand for subscribed and supported Linux. This is due at least partly to the growing recognition among customers of the true costs and risk associated with running an unsupported IT environment, including the need for patches and bug fixes, supporting forked code, and retaining IT staff.

Demand in China

Companies in China are recognizing the challenges of deploying and managing heterogeneous IT environments and the opportunities to simplify with solutions such as the dual-boot operating system configuration from Microsoft and Novell.

“We are very pleased with the original approach by Microsoft and Novell to address our concerns about deploying and managing a complex high-performance computing infrastructure across two platforms. It is essential for our future competitiveness and success that we can simplify with such solutions and look forward to further utilizing the standards-based systems management technologies being developed by both companies,” said Nie Hua, vice president of Dawning. “We fully understand the concerns surrounding intellectual property rights and feel reassured that these issues have been addressed by our vendors.”

“The Microsoft-Novell collaboration helps to solve interoperability problems and creates a more harmonious IT ecosystem. We are confident that Microsoft and Novell would be able to provide the right level of support when we go ahead,” said Colin Rice, IT director of the Dairy Farm. Dairy Farm is a leading pan-Asian retailer, including 7-Eleven in Hong Kong, Macau, Southern China and Singapore, and other well-known local brands.

The Microsoft-Novell Agreement

As part of the five-year Microsoft-Novell agreement, announced Nov. 2, 2006, Microsoft can make subscription certificates available for customers to redeem SUSE Linux Enterprise Server support services directly from Novell. Since the announcement, Novell has invoiced more than $141 million in SUSE Linux Enterprise Server subscriptions from the Microsoft and Novell collaboration agreement.

A recently released study by IDC, “Worldwide Linux Operating Environments 2008-2012 Forecast: Taking Linux to the Next Level,”(1) reported that SUSE Linux Enterprise-paid server operating environment (SOE) subscriptions increased by 38.6 percent from 2006 to 2007 and that Novell’s share of the paid SOE market increased from 26.1 percent in 2006 to 29 percent in 2007. IDC stated in the report, “That surge, thanks to the company’s alliance and interoperability efforts with Microsoft, led to a highly successful year for Novell in 2007.” Novell’s 2006-2007 growth was the highest of any paid or unpaid SOE distribution tracked by this study.

See also:

• Storage Appliance Corporation Introduces Clickfree Office DVD Backup (0)
• Worldwide Availability of E-Government Platform (0)
• Dramatic Virtualization Performance (0)
• Microsoft Releases Latest Microsoft Security Intelligence Report (0)