Las Vegas N+I is typically the biggest show of the year for the enterprise computing and technology market. But this N+I was particularly significant in that it was the first one held since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, when most of our editorial staff was at N+I in Atlanta. Many of us were wondering what this show would be like: Would vendors show up in force? Would you, our readers, trek to Vegas on your corporate or private dime? What would be the show's theme? (We figured security was a good bet.) And though I was sequestered in meeting rooms for most of the event, I did get out enough to arrive at this obvious conclusion: Times are still tough.
The number of vendors and attendees was down significantly. I heard some say the lower "quantity" was offset by the higher "quality" of the attendees. Now that's some excellent spin because, as far as I could tell, both quantity and quality were down. Just about all the big technology vendors were at the show, along with some new and interesting start-ups, but there was still a lot of empty real estate in that convention center. I cruised the floor when I could, yet never seemed to find much of a theme. As expected, some security vendors were busy, and the booths of some storage and traditional infrastructure companies were full, but nothing made me say "aha!" the way Linux and Quality of Service technologies did just a few years ago.
One reason I was hoping the show would be strong is because it's a good indicator of how other parts of the economy are doing. But I give the show an overall C rating--not a complete bust, but nothing great either. Only time will tell how viable N+I and other big trade shows will be in the coming years.
Here and Now
Enough with the doom and gloom--let's talk about some positive stuff, like the content of this issue. We cover a slew of technologies in these pages: everything from storage virtualization to wireless LAN analyzers. We also offer up a Workshop on NAT workarounds and Sneak Previews of some intriguing products.
And let us not forget our newest section, BuzzCut. Here, Network Computing staff and contributors comment on the key technology news and initiatives you see in the media. They dish out the analysis and perspective (with an edge) only Network Computing's IT-experienced staff can provide. We'd love to hear what you think of it--send some comments to help us make it the best it can be.
Keep an eye out for some other initiatives we have in development, too. We'll be building on our core technology content in upcoming issues, adding new sections and elements to help you make the right purchasing and implementation decisions for your organization.
Meantime, I'll keep my fingers crossed about the economy, so shows like NetWorld+Interop can return to their former glory.
--James Hutchinson, jhutchinson@nwc.com
RSS
