Jacques Martin

The IBM WebSphere family of products can be a lot of different things to different people, and - just like any family - each member has its own strengths and weaknesses. Some are fully developed and mature; others are just starting out. Each member has its own way of doing things, and of working with other family members. Some members are very cooperative and eager to work with outsiders; others stay close to home. The most important part of the family, though, is not the software itself, it's the people who design, build, customize, deploy, and administer the software. Without all of you...there would be no WebSphere. The professional life of a talented group of men and women at IBM is entirely focused on WebSphere, and literally thousands of companies have joined the family to help deploy, customize, administer, and create their own applications that run with it.... (more)

Awash in Red Ink

The U.S. equity markets are awash in red ink. Every day a new financial scandal is announced or some company misses their numbers. Nervous speculators crush the stock price instantly, sometimes taking an entire sector with them. What caused this is that the core of the financial markets is based on the truth of the financial performance reported by each company and certified by an outside auditor, which is then compared to other investment alternatives. Investors are supposed to choose based on perceived risk and hoped-for reward. Securities are priced in an open auction market,... (more)

EDS, Sun, and Smallpox: Living in the New World

Electronic Data Systems (EDS) stunned Wall Street September 18, announcing that third-quarter earnings will be 80 percent lower than previously forecast. Then Wall Street stunned EDS on September 19 by carving off over 53% of their market cap in one day. The Texas-based company said that businesses are spending less on information technology services and that it expects the market slowdown to continue into next year, as the company has signed fewer new contracts and sees no letup in the near term. "The slow global economy hurt; it hit us with a force that wasn't expected," EDS c... (more)

It's You, Not the Software

The IBM WebSphere family of products can be a lot of different things to different people, and – just like any family – each member has it sown strengths and weaknesses. Some are fully developed and mature; others are just starting out. Each member has its own way of doing things and of working with other members of the family. Some members are very cooperative and eager to work with outsiders; others stay close to the family. The most important part of the family, though, is not the software itself, it’s the people who design, build, customize, deploy, and administer the softw... (more)

Birth of a Platform: Interview with Don Ferguson

Jack and Pat Martin, editors of WebSphere Developer's Journal, recently sat down with Don Ferguson, "the Father of WebSphere," to talk about its history and his view of WebSphere's future. Editor's note: We would like to make a special note that Don is very modest about this "Father" title and, as a matter of fact, avoids claiming this title because so many people have provided leadership and insights. Next month, the interview continues when Don Ferguson discusses how business partners will collaborate in the future using WebSphere and some of the deficiencies in WSDL that need ... (more)