not sure if this is Tads or not .....


Fri 7 February 2003 10:27AM GMT

Surfing at 30,000ft - how it works
Please fasten your seatbelts and prepare to boot up



Still, the flying internet does currently have some kinks. This story was written on Connexion's plane to demonstrate in-flight internet connections with a notebook containing a 1.6GHz Banias chip from Intel. The plane circled the San Francisco airport for close to 30 minutes before a connection with the satellite could be established. Once connected, downloads occurred at sub-56K speeds. My personal Hotmail account refused to open. (To be fair, others on the flight had far better luck and could download pages faster.)


"The good news is that we got a connection," said Andrew Weisheit, vice president of direct sales for Connexion. "Otherwise we'd be in a cone."



Service is established through a combination of wired, wireless and satellite technologies. Depending on the plane, passengers can plug into a standard phone jack or connect via 802.11b. Either way, the connections feed directly to an in-plane bank of servers, which authenticate users and ensure payment has been made. Many planes also will come with electrical plugs so laptops won't have to run on batteries.


For now, connecting through a jack likely will be more common. National air traffic authorities have to approve specific Wi-Fi products for in-flight use. Wireless users on Lufthansa's flights, for instance, have to use loaners from the airlines. Regulatory approval, however, will likely accelerate, Weisheit said.


The in-flight servers then connect to satellites orbiting the equator. Connexion specially designed the antenna the airplanes use to connect, Weisheit said, and the company is working on a more high-powered version with Mitsubishi.


"It is mechanically like the same technology that links terrestrial ATM machines," he said. "The difference for us is that our ATM machines are moving at 600 miles an hour."


Connections to the satellite on the current system fade out north of Iceland, he said. The coming antennas will allow planes to maintain reception for planes on polar routes above Greenland.


Weisheit and others also stated that the system is robust enough to not require in-flight IT managers.


The company is part of Boeing's overall effort, kicked off in 1996, to broaden its revenue base, according to company executives. Boeing formed Connexion in November 2000. Originally, it was targeted at providing service in the US. American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines were investors.


The decline in air traffic after 11 September 2001, however, forced these companies to drop their equity positions in Connexion, Weisheit said.

Web Services are discrete applications that fulfil a specific business process like credit check, process order etc. Enterprises will be able to build their own applications by locating specific Web Services and by gluing them together they will be able to create a custom application.

The Web Services may run in distributed environments i.e. hosted by the service provider or may be downloaded. In either case some form of usage billing processing will obviously be required.

As we know Application Express is promoted as an application for streaming Windows based applications to any device. This obviously includes things like Project, Visio, Word etc.

I am of the opinion that the MS partnership is more then the streaming of traditional applications. I think the longer term goal maybe to play an active role in the enablement of Web Service architectures. I have re-read the MS release and again the wording does (to me anyway) imply this.

This was written by nkb156 on 3i's


M

Press Release Source: HP



to Integrate and Manage New Services
Monday February 10, 9:09 am ET
Modular Platform Gives Mobile Operators Flexibility to Integrate New Services -- and Adapt Rapidly to Customer Demand


PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 10, 2003-- HP (NYSE:HPQ - News) today announced a telecommunications platform that provides mobile operators a more efficient way to launch, integrate and manage new wireless services for their subscribers.

The HP Mobile Service Delivery Platform (MSDP) is a powerful set of telecommunications software and tools, partner solutions, carrier-grade hardware and integration services. Combined, these elements constitute an integrated environment to incorporate all of an operator's different mobile services, such as messaging, location and entertainment.

Typically, operators have created and deployed new mobile services one at a time, each with its own network and management resources. With HP MSDP, mobile operators can integrate their mobile services into a single platform in which network and management resources are shared, thus minimizing duplication, simplifying management and reducing costs.

HP MSDP enables mobile operators to create and launch new services quickly, cost effectively and with reduced risk, ultimately, allowing operators to compete more successfully in a rapidly changing market. HP is currently working with mobile operators around the world to design and deploy such platforms in their network environments.

HP MSDP is built on industry-standard network interfaces (OSA/Parlay) and Web services (SOAP, UDDI, WSDL). HP's emphasis on a flexible, standards-based approach provides shared access to common resources, open interfaces to OSS and BSS (operations and business support systems), seamless interaction between applications and managed third-party access to network resources without compromising network integrity and security.

"To survive, operators must reduce the complexity and cost associated with the way they create and manage new mobile services," said Iain Gillott, principal and founder of iGillottResearch, Inc., a market strategy consulting company focused on the wireless and mobile industry. "A single, standards-based platform helps them reduce costs and get services to market faster. It also attracts third-party service developers, whom operators really need to enrich their applications and services."

Mobile operators need a vibrant ecosystem of service and content providers to ensure a flow of exciting, revenue-producing services on their networks. HP MSDP encourages such third-party providers, who are attracted to the standards-based platform that allows them to create and provision new services into an operator's network.

"HP has a powerful presence in mobility, which spans from end-user access across the enterprise to network infrastructure. We contribute all along the mobility value chain, and HP MSDP is a very strategic link," said Sebastiano Tevarotto, vice president and general manager, HP Network and Service Provider Business Unit. "HP MSDP helps provide mobile operators what they need to build a services-rich, profitable network: a single, shared platform that attracts developers and can integrate and manage many mobile services cost effectively."

HP Enriches MSDP with Technologies from Industry Partners

HP MSDP incorporates HP-developed technologies, as well as those from partners.

As a key part of HP's Mobile E-Services Architecture (MESA), MSDP features technology from the HP Opencall and HP OpenView portfolios, including: HP Opencall Service Controller; HP Opencall Media Platform; HP OpenView Web Services Management Engine; HP OpenView Internet Usage Manager; HP Mobile E-services Server and HP Mobile Portal Solution.

The HP Opencall Partner Program offers a suite of technical and commercial benefits that helps Opencall partners from the solution development cycle through go-to-market planning and implementation.

HP also works with solutions providers to enrich MSDP with features that add significant value for mobile operators. Key among these providers is BEA, which partners with HP to create integrated solutions. The BEA WebLogic Application Server is optimized on the HP platform and contributes a core component in the middleware infrastructure of HP MSDP.

"BEA and HP are committed to providing our joint customers with best-in-class solutions for any operating system and for any service they wish to deliver over HP's Mobile Service Delivery Platform," said Morris Beton, senior vice president of business development, BEA Systems. "As the number one Java application server on the market, BEA WebLogic Server can provide HP's MSDP with the industry's most robust platform for the full spectrum of wireless services."

An important feature of MSDP is interoperability between J2EE and Microsoft .NET environments. MSDP is founded on the J2EE Web Services middleware standard, and, at the same time, it is designed to communicate with .NET-based services through standard interfaces. Customers need this flexibility and the enabling environment to leverage the innovation of external content and services (from third-parties or enterprises). HP is delivering this important interoperability as a sponsor board member of the Open Mobile Alliance and as Microsoft's first worldwide prime integrator for .NET technologies.

HP also is working with Microsoft to incorporate a .NET-based service called MapPoint. Such innovative services provide the building blocks for efficient development of user-centric mobile services. Additionally, HP is working with partners such as Incomit to incorporate into MSDP its Movade Network Service Platform and its Proxy and Development Studio Server. These support OSA/Parlay and JAIN standards and add value by managing access, security and capacity-loading policies between Internet protocol applications and telecommunications network services.

HP is leveraging existing relationships with innovative mobility solution providers 724 Solutions, ACCESS, Elata, MobileAware, Netegrity, Pixo, Purematrix, Vignette and Volantis.

The HP Bazaar, a unique community of developers producing innovative mobile applications for HP customers, also participates in MSDP and adds significantly to the value the platform brings to mobile operators.

HP Services, with its global telecommunications practice, provides critical consulting and integration services as well as ongoing customer support to help mobile operators design, trial and build out a fully populated MSDP.

Now we have a direct link between all 3, HP .NET and MAGI

Or am i being too presumptious?

M

steady ML presumptious ...thats a ramp isnt it lol
The link is there though....who knows what to expect??
Tris

I think not :-)) ...... I remain convinced we are about to hear of something exciting and relating to all three


ains

Its all coming together

M



http://www.endeavors.com/ai_desk_web_services.html



Desktop Web Services
Dealer-to-Manufacturer or Dealer-to-Dealer communication involves tremendous "hurry-up-and-wait."

Magi Desktop Web Services breaks this cycle and allows secure, trusted, self-service of information between remote sites.

Enable dealer and manufacturer self-service:

To documents, information, collaboration capabilities, access & approval by others.

With the approval of the user but without his or her same-time involvement.


Deploying across an enterprise

Frees users from needing to get in touch with other users in order to request a service.

Means no waiting to send a document or waiting for long, untrackable return email, fax, or phone call.

Endeavors Technology Releases Advanced Instant Conferencing Tools for
Business Critical Decision Teams Using WebEx Meetings

Endeavors Technology Extends the Power of the Desktop Before, During and
After a WebEx Meeting

###

Irvine (CA) and Cambridge (UK), February 11, 2003 - Endeavors Technology,
Inc. today strengthened its growing portfolio of secure Magi solutions for
the enterprise with the release of its first product that integrates WebEx
meeting capabilities. Its latest Magi offering provides a secure
collaboration environment allowing project managers, corporate financial
analysts, design teams and all others involved in the business-critical
decision chain to increase the efficiency of their meetings before, during
and after each session.

Pre-meeting features include allowing a host to immediately see who is
online and available for conferencing, as indicated on a presence status
display in Magi. Next, initialization of the meeting through Magi is only a
two-click operation that smartly and quickly handles, behind the scenes, the
standard WebEx meeting startup process normally accomplished by going to a
company's WebEx Web page.

During the meeting, participants benefit from real-time viewing, discussing
and editing of any document, presentation or other media with other team
members or groups who are available and online. Magi Enterprise, with
integrated access to the WebEx MediaTone Network, empowers team members to
chat, instant message and search for information, as well as share
presentations, documents, applications, voice, and video, including
whiteboarding, application sharing, and annotation features. With Magi, all
relevant documentation can be shared and searched for at will, including
documents stored in document management systems or portals.

Also during a meeting, a unique feature available is access to up-to-date
cache files of an offline participant. For example, if a person is away
from their desk and was expecting to present budget information in a
spreadsheet located on his or her laptop, the host can still open the latest
information because Magi automatically cached the file with each 'save' made
by the file's owner.

In addition, all conferences and transactions between meetings can be
centrally recorded for an audit trail or storage within a call center or
other application database.

After a meeting, participants have instant access to master files without
having to upload the documents to a central server. The decentralized
aspect of the Magi community keeps master files with their owner at all
times, eliminating the need to replicate, duplicate or post in a secondary
location. This greatly reduces the duration of, and ultimately increases the
value of projects and meetings since time is not lost on "after meeting"
aggregation of changes.

"By adding presence, messaging, file sharing and search outside meetings,
Magi provides a secure business communication and collaboration platform
before, during and after conferences," says Nick Goddard, director of
alliances at WebEx Communications.

"The combined Magi-WebEx solution extends the value of Web conferencing as a
real world enterprise business tool," adds Bernard Hulme, CEO of Endeavors
Technology. "As a complete instant business solution, enterprises can
shorten project cycles, improve business processes, and exercise better
control over executive time and costs."

About Endeavors Technology, Inc.
Endeavors Technology develops cross-enterprise infrastructure software
called Magi. which securely networks existing applications and files to or
from the desktop. Magi-enabled enterprises can harness and manage their
available computing assets in a web services environment without extensive
re-engineering or expensive management. Endeavors Technology, Inc. is a
wholly owned subsidiary of Tadpole Technology plc (LSE-TAD,
www.tadpole.com), which has offices in Irvine (California), and Cambridge,
Edinburgh, and Bristol (UK). For further information on Endeavors' Web
software, call 949-833-2800, email to info@endeavors.com, or visit the
company's website www.endeavors.com.

ends

Is there any wonder MS and HP are talking to Tad..this is great news and a very positive move forwards.
Tris

Conferencing Born Is Boom To WebEx Feb. 5, 2003





The company's revenue and profits soar as companies seek alternatives to business travel.
By Tony Kontzer



Online meetings and conferences are among the few areas that got a boost from the events of Sept. 11, as companies look for alternatives to business travel. Those adjusted priorities appear to have taken permanent hold, much to the delight of companies such as WebEx Communications Inc.
WebEx posted year-end earnings Tuesday that demonstrated the market has gotten even stronger. Revenue for the year was up 72% from 2001, significant losses in 2001 have turned into healthy profits, and the company expects 2003 to be another banner year. The online conferencing market got an ominous validation last month when Microsoft agreed to purchase WebEx rival PlaceWare Inc. for a reported $200 million.

For the year ended Dec. 31, WebEx reported a profit of $16.6 million, or 41 cents a share, on revenue of $139.9 million. That compares with a loss of $27.6 million, or 76 cents per share, on revenue of $81.2 million a year ago. Fourth-quarter revenue was $40.3 million, up 56% from $25.9 million during the fourth quarter of 2001, the company's first full post-Sept. 11 quarter. WebEx execs expect revenue of about $200 million for 2003.

Nice one Moneylender it would seem Tads news this morning is rather timely .........plus the chart is starting to look VERY interesting

(we've had 3 higher lows)

Gc

looks like this could turn out to be a good month for TAD first WebEx and we've still got the Seminar to look forward to on the 18th





Gc

nice one, that's a week today!!

M

fyi


Conference addresses Web services



BY STAFF WRITER, ITWEB


[Johannesburg, 11 February 2003] - Seven international business and technology thought leaders are to address the issues of Web services and business process management (BPM) at a conference in Cape Town next month.

The one-day conference, entitled Beyond the Bleeding Edge 2003, is aimed at CEOs, CIOs, change management executives, IT and business consultants and financial directors. It is intended to give practical insight into new Web services and BPM technologies and how they can benefit an organisation.

The event organisers say the conference will present the dominant principles of sound Web services deployment, based on an analysis of 15 years of software technology evolution, combined with practical experience from real Web services applications deployed today. Delegates will also benefit from the findings of an intensive study tour of vendors and users undertaken in October 2002.

Recent research has identified a need for companies to develop outward-facing IT-enabled services that are capable of responding to the needs of demanding customers, digital partners and IT-literate employees.

Businesses are now using BPM to respond to the demands of their customers for greater quality, innovation and service at ever-lower prices. Analysts report that BPM may provide the greatest return on investment of any software category on the market today. Beyond the Bleeding Edge 2003 aims to qualify these claims and debunk the myths and misconceptions surrounding these concepts and products.

The conference will feature a keynote address by John Thompson, chairman of Arthur D Little, Medpanel and The Masiphumelele Corporation, who will offer insights into how the IT world has changed.

CSC Research Services researchers Lynette Ferrara, Chris Dale and Francis Hayden will give delegates an overview of Web services and BPM, and elaborate on the role of technology in these areas.

Donal O'Shea, independent consultant and research associate of CSC Research Services, will separate the hype from reality, based on an intensive study of leading vendors' and analysts' views.

Doug Neal, Fellow, CSC Research Services, will deliver a live demonstration of tomorrow's BPM technology today. Paul Tomlin, GM, Avis Futures, Avis-Europe, will outline the business benefits of Web services and BPM.

The conference contribution is R1 995 per person, including VAT. Gross proceeds from the conference benefit the Masiphumelele settlement near Simon's Town.

All speakers also volunteer their resources, time and labour to the settlement, where they will spend a week building or improving the resources in the settlement.

The conference will be held at the Vineyard Hotel in Newlands, Cape Town, on Wednesday, 5 March. For online registration, go to http://www.pieto.com/csc/Register.pdf.

BT launches new conferencing tools

London, January 28 2003, (netimperative)






BT Conferencing has today launched BT MeetMe Web Tools, enabling its customers to conduct virtual meetings securely via the internet. The software, which requires users to have access to a web browser and telephone to take part, displays a conference table with icons to represent those present, plus a chairperson. The pay-as-you-go application is powered by WebEx, which has integrated Tadpole's Magi collaboration software to allow users to share applications such as Powerpoint and Excel over the internet, chat online and brainstorm ideas on a virtual whiteboard.

-----------------------------------------------------------------


Endeavors Technology Releases Advanced Instant Conferencing Tools for
Business Critical Decision Teams Using WebEx Meetings

Endeavors Technology Extends the Power of the Desktop Before, During and
After a WebEx Meeting

###

Irvine (CA) and Cambridge (UK), February 11, 2003 - Endeavors Technology,
Inc. today strengthened its growing portfolio of secure Magi solutions for
the enterprise with the release of its first product that integrates WebEx
meeting capabilities. Its latest Magi offering provides a secure
collaboration environment allowing project managers, corporate financial
analysts, design teams and all others involved in the business-critical
decision chain to increase the efficiency of their meetings before, during
and after each session.

Pre-meeting features include allowing a host to immediately see who is
online and available for conferencing, as indicated on a presence status
display in Magi. Next, initialization of the meeting through Magi is only a
two-click operation that smartly and quickly handles, behind the scenes, the
standard WebEx meeting startup process normally accomplished by going to a
company's WebEx Web page.

During the meeting, participants benefit from real-time viewing, discussing
and editing of any document, presentation or other media with other team
members or groups who are available and online. Magi Enterprise, with
integrated access to the WebEx MediaTone Network, empowers team members to
chat, instant message and search for information, as well as share
presentations, documents, applications, voice, and video, including
whiteboarding, application sharing, and annotation features. With Magi, all
relevant documentation can be shared and searched for at will, including
documents stored in document management systems or portals.

Also during a meeting, a unique feature available is access to up-to-date
cache files of an offline participant. For example, if a person is away
from their desk and was expecting to present budget information in a
spreadsheet located on his or her laptop, the host can still open the latest
information because Magi automatically cached the file with each 'save' made
by the file's owner.

In addition, all conferences and transactions between meetings can be
centrally recorded for an audit trail or storage within a call center or
other application database.

After a meeting, participants have instant access to master files without
having to upload the documents to a central server. The decentralized
aspect of the Magi community keeps master files with their owner at all
times, eliminating the need to replicate, duplicate or post in a secondary
location. This greatly reduces the duration of, and ultimately increases the
value of projects and meetings since time is not lost on "after meeting"
aggregation of changes.

"By adding presence, messaging, file sharing and search outside meetings,
Magi provides a secure business communication and collaboration platform
before, during and after conferences," says Nick Goddard, director of
alliances at WebEx Communications.

"The combined Magi-WebEx solution extends the value of Web conferencing as a
real world enterprise business tool," adds Bernard Hulme, CEO of Endeavors
Technology. "As a complete instant business solution, enterprises can
shorten project cycles, improve business processes, and exercise better
control over executive time and costs."

Tadpole, WebEx deal bears fruit

London, February 11 2003, (netimperative)



by Chris Lake

Peer-to-peer software developer Tadpole Technology has released the first fruits of a deal struck with WebEx after the two companies combined their software to launch a product aimed at the fast-growing web meetings sector.


WebEx, the world's largest web meetings operator, inked an agreement with Tadpole last October, in order to produce a product that uses Magi's secure collaboration and enhanced instant messaging functionality.

Developed by its Endeavors subsidiary, Tadpole's latest Magi release will allow users to use WebEx's online meetings and conferencing tools, enabling participants to work on projects together and share applications and files over the internet.

The combined Magi-WebEx product will directly initiate web meetings via a two-click procedure, with Magi doing the groundwork so users do not need to go through the normal process of accessing WebEx's website to organise meetings.

Users taking part in meeting via the web can view, discuss and edit documents and presentations with other participants, and Magi Enterprise enables team members to chat, instant message and conduct internet and intranet searches. Magi also provides an audit trail and storage capabilities in line with corporate governance policies.

Web meetings, conferences and presentations are expected to become increasingly popular in the coming years, as they increase efficiency and productivity, cut travel costs, and ultimately shorten project cycles.

BT also struck a deal with WebEx last year in a bid to develop its own web conferencing division, based on WebEx's technology, and last month started to launch its range of online meetings products.

28 January: BT launches new conferencing tools

www.webex.com

not sure whether tads is involved - or not but looks like a winning idea


BA launches in-flight email and surfing
By James Watson Over the Atlantic at 35,000 feet [11-02-2003]
The web at 35,000ft - but not in the cheap seats
The first British Airways scheduled flight to offer onboard internet and email access to passengers took off from London's Heathrow airport today.
The service, available only to selected members of the press today, will be available to regular passengers from next Tuesday.

Initially it is only available on planes flying from Heathrow to New York, but the airline plans to roll out the service to the rest of its long-haul flights over the next two years.

BA chief information officer Paul Coby explained that the system will allow the airline to test passenger response and work out an ideal price.

"This is a chance for us to gauge how customers react to the service and will help determine how we roll it out further," he said.

The airline is charging between $25 and $35 per flight for the service. It plans to test alternative prices during the trial period to determine what passengers are willing to pay.

"Obviously, this is a tough time for the industry, which has put some pressure on the roll-out of this service, but we believe it will be a very attractive offering for our passengers," said Coby.

Connexion by Boeing is supplying the service, which connects passengers' laptops to the internet via satellite.

Users can connect through Ethernet ports in their seats, or via 802.11b wireless networking.

Passengers can access their corporate email, files and business applications from 35,000ft above the Atlantic. This story has been written and filed en route to New York.

Connexion by Boeing, a provider of mobile information services, is a business unit of airline giant Boeing.

Stanley Deal, the company's vice president for global network sales, said that it is tough to bring new technology to market in the current economic climate, but that the service presents airlines with strong benefits.

"The ability to bring business travellers a great service is very valuable," he explained.

"And, by offering the airlines the ability to implement new applications that can reduce operating cost on a day to day basis, we give them an additional incentive."

Lufthansa launched a similar three-month trial of the Connexion by Boeing service on its Frankfurt to Dulles route last month. Japan Airlines and Scandinavian Airlines plan to test the system on their planes from 2004.

The service will only be available to BA's First, World Traveller Plus and Club World classes.

ains
The adoption of secure file transfers wherever you are has got to be good for Tad even if they are not directly involved at the moment. There is a good chance with their security aspects they wiil eventually be involved.
Guru 1 1/4

Yes guru .... I go along with that. Looks like the mm's are reluctant to maske a proper market this afternoon ..... speads are discouraging trading. I suspect we are going to see some late biggies agan.

The netimperative explanation of todays announcement helps peeps like me to understand what is going on :-))



ains

Genisis


Peer-to-peer software developer Tadpole Technology has released the first fruits of a deal struck with WebEx after the two companies combined their software to launch a product aimed at the fast-growing web meetings sector.

What other fruits are on their way would you say?


M