It's Time For Web Services Weekly

Where to begin? Start small, according to the Software and Information Industry Association Web Services Forum. Our Web Services News Center is an excellent resource. And to keep up on the latest web service news, subscribe to our newest newsletter, Web Services Weekly. (Preview) Every Friday you'll receive our best coverage of XML, .Net, J2EE and other leading technologies, as well as insight into the companies making web services work. Like yours.

Opportunity Times Seven

But web services aren't the only area with plenty of opportunity for the channel. At a panel at last week's Emerging Technology XChange, web services was one of seven promising technologies discussed. The others: wireless, network security, Gigabit Ethernet, network printing, storage and servers, and platform and processors. VARBusiness editors compiled a roundup of all the news from the show.

Will You Go To 11?

The first beta of Microsoft Office 11 (due next year) was released this week. The new suite will provide far more integration with XML and Microsoft web-services applications. Is that a good thing? CRN editor-in-chief Michael Vizard looks at Microsoft's ambitions plans for Office 11, and concludes, "What is really on Microsoft's mind is nothing short of positioning Microsoft Office as the de facto front end for every application throughout the enterprise. And given the current penetration of those applications, the odds are more than good that Microsoft will make that happen."

Best of the Week

We examine IBM and Microsoft's efforts to bring wireless technology into the mainstream of solution provider offerings; In their earnings conference call, Microsoft outlined eight risks the company faces, ranging from the Euro to the courts; Novell is shipping MySQL, the open source database, with NetWare 6; Carly Fiornia tries to explain HP's delicate balance between direct and channel sales; the Internet was hit by a powerful, if unsuccessful, attack Monday; and I report on my talk with Bruce Mills, president of managed services at Inforonics, about the company's strategy of cleaning up "rogue apps."