Times are tough all over in the land of security while vendor community looks to take virtualization to the next level.

Security Spending Stuck in Neutral
As the number and types of security threats continues to diversify IT organizations are finding that most of their security dollars are going to pay for license renewals of products they already have. That leaves little left over for much needed new products and services so the question is do we need a different approach to security that may mean more reliance on managed services.

VMware CEO Faces Virtual Reality
As Microsoft gears up to release a virtual machine platform that is getting positive reviews, VMware is planning to take virtualization to the next level. Alas, there are more players than ever in the virtualization space, including a new company that is leveraging tools developed by the IT department of Credit Suisse. So the question is can VMware really create a second act now that everybody understands the implications of virtualization.

Gates Says It Is All About the Data
At his last speech in front of the developer community that made Microsoft what it is today, Bill Gates tells everybody that at the end of the day it's all about the data. As such, Microsoft rolled out several new offerings, including an in-memory database. Separately, Microsoft is also now putting the finishing touches on Internet Explore 8.

The Chaos of Cloud Computing
While big vendors continue to act like they are going to be the only clouds of computing that matter, chief technology officers say cloud computing is only going to be one piece of the overall puzzle as we move towards a more blended computing model. In the meantime, Adobe is now moving into the cloud and Steve Ballmer took another swipe at Google now that the latter company's ambitions to be a platform have been made plain. But if you want to see how cloud computing is being applied in the real world, check out this video.

Low Cost PC Category Set to Take Off
With Intel now touting its Atom processor for use in a new class of PCs, we're seeing companies such as Via and Nvidia stepping up with alternative offerings. Whether Windows or Linux will dominate in this space remains to be seen but the action should be hot and heavy as everybody vies for a piece of the pie.

Intel Lays Out WiMax Vision
The semiconductor giant says it expect to see a global WiMax network develop, which is something that Fujitsu apparently agrees with. But that might be a neat trick given the current dismal state of municipal Wi-Fi networks.

AMD Looks to Redefine the Way We Visualize PCs
With the launch of its Puma platform AMD is hopping to steal a march on Intel be delivering a better graphics experience that it thinks will get more people to want AMD inside.

Clout of the Channel Continues to Grow
The number of IT people working for services companies is growing at such a rapid rate that they could eventually outnumber the people working inside IT departments. In the meantime, the value of certifications continues to fall precipitously.