IBM reports the Optica zVT system now offers a standard set of advanced features that protect your data against cyber-attacks and ransomware while enabling an efficient recovery methodology if your data is compromised or corrupted, which inevitably will occur sooner or later. Courtesty IBM The Optica zVT system can be architected using standard features to automate the creation of air-gapped, immutable copies of your backup data to protect from increasingly common modern cyber vulnerabilities. Here are, according to IBM, the various architectures for implementing the necessary data security fe ..read more

So what do you need to build your business for tomorrow, one starting right how. To begin, it needs to be cloud-ready from Day 1. That means multiple clouds, hybrid clouds, mixed clouds, any clouds however and whenever and wherever and whatever you find them. So what do you need to build your business for tomorrow, a tomorrow that’s starting right how. To begin, it needs to be cloud-ready from Day 1. That means multiple clouds, hybrid clouds, mixed clouds, any clouds however and whenever and wherever and whatever you find them. IBM z16 (courtesy of IBM) Why clouds? In case you haven’t noticed ..read more

Bias in Tech Advertising Are you surprised? If you, like me, probably have been on the receiving end of more bias-laden ads than you ever cared to receive but you also probably sent more than a few yourself. Still, IBM appears to be serious about this issue.  IBM first announced this initiative at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2022. It brought together agencies, brands, and others while commiting organizations like IBM, Delta Air Lines, WPP, Mindshare, 4A’s, IAB and the Ad Council. In addition, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2022, brought togethe ..read more

Are these uncertain times? Maybe. People are unsure where, when, how, or if they should report to work. Who will they report to; where, how, and when. If I was a typical employee these might appear uncertain times  FYI, DancingDinosaur has never been an employee so everything about work was always uncertain from Day One. People I meet with are rapidly automating their operations with software to improve productivity by managing manual infrastructure tasks. They want to leverage any increased productivity to enable even higher-value projects. All the new IBM Power10 processor-based server ..read more

IBM’s Wazi-as-a-Service (WaaS), introduced by Michael Cooney at the end of June, brings hybrid-cloud app services to z/OS mainframes. The company introduced WAZI as a service for its mainframe customers to create a cloud environment for developing and testing applications. Ideally, it  can be used to create z/OS infrastructure instances for cloud app testing and development. As such, Wazi-as-a-Service can be used to create z/OS infrastructure instances for development and testing z/OS application components in a virtualized, containerized sandbox. The instances would run on Red Hat OpenS ..read more

AI, cloud, and quantum computing are revolutionary in their own right, which is why DancingDinosaur continues to look at them ever more closely.  but where they converge, IBM believes, is the potential for a change in computing that could surpass anything before.  Sounds pretty outlandish to me, but IBM insists you could uncover solutions to complex problems. The company insists it is the future of solving problems. Even after watching its video, I’m not convinced. pic credit: tomwieden/Pixab OK, sure it is a tad overdramatic, even hokey, but let’s give IBM, for a moment, enough ben ..read more

In 2017 IBM declared the latest mainframe includes constant encryption protection. Not sure if DancingDinosaur covered it 5 years ago. From the initial announcement it sounded pretty good. If I didn’t cover it then let’s cover it now. IBM still periodically promotes continuous or pervasive encryption with the Z. and there have been plenty of opportunities for mainframe shops to upgrade over the intervening years. Most recently, the z16 has gained considerable attention in that regard.  The z16 (courtesy of IBM) Since then the Z mainframe technology has evolved dramatically by embracing L ..read more

For decades, most large-scale companies have used mainframes to host and run the software applications that make up their core systems. Often these mainframe computers and their applications are inherited from mergers and acquisitions, or from deferred IT investments. Today, it is estimated that more than half of core business processes may still run on a mainframe system. But maintaining and relying on these now antiquated applications pose cost and, soon, quantum security risks..  IBM’s Z16 with built-in inference processing Organizations are torn between the need to manage costs while ..read more

Surprise, surprise. IBM’s answer is both.  To respond to the ongoing pressures of the global pandemic and more, IBM observed that businesses around the world have turbo-charged their digital transformations.   At least some of these priorities are companies looking to take advantage of cloud computing.   Strategically, they also have concerns about optionality, or lock-in.  These realities explain why so few clients have made a wholesale move to cloud and many may never. The unique needs each company faces in their business transformation journey require a diverse mix of a ..read more

Have you experienced the metaverse? It’s being hyped as yet another next big thing. Supposedly all the forward-looking companies are gravitating toward metaverses. Is yours? Should it? IBM files a patent for metaverse Along with the metaverse comes the Metaverse Continuum. According to those supposedly in the know, it describes a spectrum of digitally enhanced worlds and business models that are poised to revolutionize life and the enterprise in the next decade. I’ve been following this most, but admittedly they lost me when they started referencing realities. Haven’t a clue what they might m ..read more