Sun is offering a major price reduction on the 900 MHz Sun Blade 1000 Workstation configuration. This entry-level price promotion offers interoperability capability with existing hardware and software investments. Sun Blade 1000 Workstation is expandable up to a high-end dual CPU 8 GB RAM 72 GB disk configuration. This provides for future capability without the need to upgrade the base system.

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There is a new web site dedicated to users of Sun Open Net Environment (Sun ONE). The inside Sun ONE web site offers information to the community for software users and Internet drivers. The web page has several sections including Subscriptions to Sun ONE publications, Perspectives, Ask the Community, Net Talk, Insights, in the News, and Tool Kit.

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Shaw Communications, the largest provider of high-speed Internet service in Canada, has chosen Sun to build a second Internet Data Center. Sun was the provider of choice for Shaw's first Internet Data Center, successfully launched in August 2001. Shaw's use of Sun applications and services is expected to position the company favorably for anticipated future growth.

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This is an update to the Solaris 8 10/01 Operating Environment (Solaris OE). This update release supersedes all previous Solaris 8 OE releases. Solaris 8 10/01 OE adds key new product features and customer requested enhancements while maintaining compatibility with previous releases of Solaris. New features include Energy Star Clustering of Sun Fire 15K Server nodes, PPP-over-Ethernet for high speed connections, large memory support, and Sun Enterprise 10000 server (also known as a Starfire Server) Next Generation Dynamic Reconfiguration.

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A featured article in the October edition of the Sun BluePrints Online Magazine discusses "Writing Scalable Services with Sun Cluster 3.0 Software." The Sun Cluster 3.0 software release introduces new features for availability and horizontal scalability, with the global file service, global networking and scalable data services. This article is a guide for system administrators and developers who are considering making an application into a scalable service using this new framework.

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The Floor Tile Ready (FTR) systems program is designed to provide customers a simpler, safer and swifter way to deploy Sun products. It delivers systems that are customer specified, factory integrated, and racked or rack ready. Customer-provided software can be installed on FTR systems. In addition to the standard testing of the individual components, the customer's configuration will be tested for connectivity to confirm the successful integration of the hardware.

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UltraSPARC processor-based, entry-level systems and services help deliver a low total cost of ownership (TCO) and to tackle data center infrastructure problems. Customers include Time Warner Cable and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Consolidating and migrating systems along with the consulting and support services from Sun minimize costs. Time Warner Cable chose Sun to upgrade, develop and deploy a high-performance call-center infrastructure to provide its 400 customer service representatives with near real-time system performance. NCMEC chose Sun to develop an architecture to manage the traffic on their reporting site, CyberTipline II.

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The new Sun Fire V880 Server outperformed the Compaq Proliant 8500, by more than 37 percent when running Microsoft Windows NT . The world record price performance benchmark was set on the NotesBench Lotus Domino WebMail. The WebMail workload simulated 7,200 active users sending and receiving email using a standard web browser on a Sun Fire V880 Server.

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The new Sun Fire V880 entry-level Server features mainframe-like technologies such as the innovative Sun Fireplane system interconnect, and combined scalability and reliability of the Solaris Operating Environment (Solaris OE) and the UltraSPARC III processor at prices below the competition. The integrated portfolio of professional and support services from Sun will provide Sun Fire V880 Server customers with assistance in Microsoft Windows NT Migration and server consolidation to lower their total cost of ownership (TCO).

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There is a product update to the 3/6/01 announcement of Sun Database Platform 420/3 from the SunTone Platforms portfolio (formerly known as Sun Database Reference Configuration C1). This updated product features a new pre-installed software image with more recent versions of VOS products. It also offers further storage flexibility, the convenience of a single recovery DVD and cheaper installation service options for rack-mounted SunTone Platforms.

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Sun now has a Netra Server that is UltraSPARC III processor-based. The new Netra 20 Server is rack-optimized and ruggedized. Built on 750 MHz UltraSPARC III processors, the Netra 20 Server uses the same Sun Fireplane interconnect technology in the Sun Fire 15K high-end Server. The Netra 20 Server offers higher compute density than any major competing NEBS Level 3-certified dual processor UNIX system.

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A recent True Developer Tales on the Sun web page cautions others about using products that do not adhere to standards. This article discusses the problems that arose when a developer began working on a software project that did not adhere to general Java technology standards nor to Java DataBase Connectivity (JDBC) and Open DataBase Connectivity (ODBC) standards. Additional details about the project are available on the Sun web site.

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An article from the Dot-Com Builder Best Practices case studies section covers Newtrade Technologies and how the company incorporated Java technology, Jini technology and XML to create innovative web services for the travel, tourism and hospitality industries.

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A joint agreement between Sun, Callisto Media Systems and CANARIE will offer educators worldwide access to a high quality broadband streaming video solution based on Sun technology, Callisto applications and running on CANARIE's CA*net 3 network. Benefits of the agreement include enabling universities to use a video library and to share video content with any network connected to the new broadband infrastructure.

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"JumpStart Technology" by John S. Howard and Alex Noordergraaf provides techniques on using JumpStart software technology for automated, standardized, and secure installations of the Solaris Operating Environment (Solaris OE). There are detailed examples of using JumpStart technology effectively on a day-to-day basis.

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One of the featured articles in the October edition of the Sun BluePrints Online Magazine discusses Sun Fire Midframe Server Best Practices for Administration. Sun Fire 3800, 4800, 4810, and 6800 Midframe Servers utilize new functions to monitor, diagnose, and administer the system to increase overall system Reliability, Availability, and Serviceability (RAS).

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Peter Kacandes is a senior product manager for Java APIs, architectures, and technologies for XML. In this interview with Claire Sponheim, Kacandes talks about each of the Java XML APIs and how to integrate them with other technologies. Topics discussed in the interview include how developers can drop Java XML APIs into their code, use them for web services, and deploy them.

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The new capabilities of the I/O APIs for the Java technology platform go beyond non-blocking I/O operations to include a regular expression package for pattern matching, encoders and decoders for character set conversions, and improved file system support such as file locking and memory mapping. John Zukowski covers these topics in the article on the Java Developer Connection Program web page. Other topics include buffers, mapped files, and socket channels.

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SurfControl has achieved Check Point Software Technologies' OPSEC (Open Platform for Security) Certification for its SuperScout Web Filter v2.1 on Solaris Operating Environment (Solaris OE). OPSEC is an open, multi-vendor security framework. Products that carry the OPSEC Certified seal have been tested to guarantee integration and interoperability. SuperScout Web Filter helps network managers define, manage and enforce their organization's Security and Internet Acceptable Usage Policies and increase security and productivity, optimize network bandwidth and reduce legal liability.

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Sun and Talaris Corp. announced a broad-based technology and marketing partnership in support of the Sun Open Net Environment (Sun ONE) integrated, open software product architecture, joining other industry leaders in the effort to drive market adoption of enterprise solutions that deliver Services on Demand. Sun will also market Talaris to the Global 2000.

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Annuncio Software produces marketing automation solutions and has incorporated Sun Open Net Environment (Sun ONE) technologies into its product offerings. Sun ONE provides a highly scalable architecture that enables enterprise customers to easily integrate Annuncio's products into existing infrastructure and enable one-to-one marketing.

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Valaran Corp. provides dynamic business process and network integration software solutions to the global communications market. Valaran launched its V-aerial software suite at the TeleManagement World trade show in Las Vegas. V-aerial addresses integration challenges with Jini Network Technology, allowing carriers to more readily integrate next generation network infrastructure with legacy back office systems.

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