Kategorie: technology

The solar eclipse in an application world: What’s new with IBM APM

Like millions across the U.S. last week, I found myself very intrigued by the prospects of witnessing a rare total solar eclipse. So intrigued that I found myself outside during the time of the phenomenon, watching with a small crowd in the parking lot.
The eclipse itself was fascinating. But I noticed something else that was interesting: the majority of the people in the parking lot were using a smartphone application to track the event and learn more information about the amazing things happening up in the sky. Applications have become such an integral part of our experience that even during an unmissable natural phenomenon, people still will look to interact with them.
My vision that day was crystal-clear. I realized: we live in an application world.
I see this very clearly in the business world, where organizations of all sizes are directly affected by applications, both customer-facing and internal. In the parking lot during the eclipse, I was thinking about all the work that must have gone into making sure these applications were available and performing well precisely when users wanted to access them. It made me realize how lucky I am to work on a product that helps companies do exactly that: IBM Cloud Application Performance Management (APM).
IBM Cloud Application Performance Management is a significant component of the IBM cloud offering that intelligently monitors, analyzes and manages multicloud environments. IT professionals and application developers can monitor user experience and improve the stability of application infrastructure. They can also quickly identify the root cause of issues to proactively prevent outages and keep users satisfied.
APM capabilities have proven to be a great asset to businesses, resulting in a projected market of  $4.98 Billion by 2019, according to Research and Markets.
IBM just introduced some exciting new features to IBM Cloud Application Performance Management that will improve overall functionality and experience. Highlights include:

A new page designer tool to customize views for your specific needs
Enhanced synthetic monitoring capabilities to find issues in webpages and APIs before they affect end users
A new, industry-leading Predictive Insights add-on that incorporates machine learning algorithms to detect anomalies and provide early warnings so you can fix application issues before users are impacted
Integrated log search analytics to identify the source of issues right down to the line of code, helping developers increase efficiency
Integration with IBM API Connect, where you can monitor the availability and performance of APIs exposed through this service, and use transaction tracking to find the source of a slowdown

For more information on IBM APM solutions that could help your business, check out our research papers on application performance management for insurance, finance, and telecommunications industries.
And I hope you’re looking forward to the next solar eclipse as much as I am.
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Quelle: Thoughts on Cloud

What can cognitive computing do for you?

In February 2011, viewers watched with amazement as IBM Watson went against Brad Rutter and Ken Jennings, two of the sharpest and fastest thinking human beings at that time, and beat them handily at Jeopardy!.
It is not just the speed at which Watson made the decisions that was impressive, but also that it used a confidence score to arrive at an answer. There were times when Watson had the right answer on the board, but with a lower confidence score, so it didn’t ring the buzzer. Another amazing fact is that Watson was conversing with host Alex Trebek as a normal human being would.
In my previous post, I described how cognitive disruption isn’t about man vs. machine; it’s about machines helping mankind by augmenting the human brain. How exactly can that happen?
Well, for starters, it can add a human element to your systems and do it fast. It is more than just looking at random data, understanding it, recognizing a pattern in it and invoking a rule based on that.
As IBM CEO Ginni Rometty recently said when asked what “cognitive at the core” means, “You make your computers almost have all the senses that you and I have, the ability to see, to feel, to hear, and to read.”
The human brain can see and interpret an image, or follow a conversation with about 95 percent accuracy and so does Watson. Imagine the possibilities when you get that power into your systems and remove the human weaknesses such as carelessness, fatigue and overlooking facts.
For the magic of the “man and machine in one” to happen, we need to not only interact effortlessly with each other, but become part of each other. That is what humanizing the computer is all about.
To accomplish this, a true cognitive system must learn at scale, reason with purpose, work with confidence, reduce human-introduced errors and interact with humans naturally.
For example, cognitive systems such as Watson can not only read x-rays, MRI images, CT scans and understand and analyze them just as a specialist would, but they can also learn a patient’s medical history and recommend treatment options just as a human brain would augment  decision-making abilities. Watson helped with treating a cancer patient, coming up with same recommendation as two cancer specialists did. Imagine the power of these expert medical recommendations readily available to doctors treating patients in remote locations via mobile phones.
Ultimately, it will be the ability to speak to and understand a user in their native tongue, when they need it the most, in a form that is most consumable (such as mobile apps, speech, text, chatbot or virtual agent), with an understanding of the urgency, needs and emotions at that time, and making critical decisions based on the “human” context in conjunction with the existing data that will add the powerful differentiator for your business in the marketplace.
Either you could do business as usual with an average, programmable-era cloud or look for a cloud solution in the cognitive era that can make possible what was once thought to be impossible.
Cognitive solutions are ready to help us. It’s about time to embrace them.
You can browse through the list of Watson APIs and SDKs to see how Watson can help you build a cognitive enabled smarter solution for you.
Learn more about IBM Watson Developer Cloud.
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Quelle: Thoughts on Cloud

8 essential criteria for your enterprise integration tooling

IBM just received the highest scores for “technology” and “execution and market impact” in a Middleware Ovum Decision Matrix. I’ll tell you what that might mean for your business in a minute. But first, a quick story you’ll probably find familiar.
I had to call a plumber the other day. An underground pipe for my sprinkler system burst and it started flooding my yard. While the pipe was being replaced the plumber asked me if I cared what type of pipe he used. Nope—it’s all the same, right? Apparently, not, and that’s what got me into trouble in the first place. It’s funny that you don’t think about how complex and critical your plumbing is until it breaks. Then you have a huge mess on your hands, or in this case, in my yard.
Integration is no different. Less visible areas tend not to get the attention they deserve. Integration might not be as cool as cognitive computing, or getting the buzz of blockchain. But without the right underlying connections your data doesn’t flow. And even the coolest innovations cannot deliver on its potential for your business without the ability to access all relevant data and services. For years, middleware has been the technology plumbing, the critical information infrastructure, that brings all of the data and services in an organization together. And it still is.
But now with the expansion of cloud computing, the state of integration has been refactored to meet the growing demands of new digital business and the agility requirements that come with it. Some of the big, multiyear projects are going the way of the iron plumber’s wrench. (That is a plumbing joke.)
Enter middleware as a service.
Middleware as a service (MWaaS) might not be a term you are familiar with. The analyst firm Ovum defines it as:
“a cohesive suite of cloud-based integration services aimed at hybrid integration use cases, including cloud service integration, API-led integration and API management, B2B integration, mobile application/backend integration, and IoT application and data integration.”
Today’s businesses don’t leverage only one form of integration. Moreover, they can’t throw out years of IT investment and completely start from scratch. And they can’t give up the security of an on-premises or private cloud environment. A multicloud approach is critical to success in the digital world. And integration and middleware are what powers it.
But where do you start? Ovum recently released their Decision Matrix: Middleware-as-a-service suites, 2017-2018—download it here. They outlined some of the critical characteristics of a leading solution. Considerations they mention include:

An API-centric, agile approach to application, data and process integration, reducing development effort and costs
The flexibility to provision various combinations of cloud-based integration services based on specific requirements
Uniformity in underlying infrastructure resources and enabling technologies
Flexible integration between various components of the middleware suite
Openness to federation with traditional, on-premises middleware platforms
Uniform user experience across different integration scenarios and middleware components
Support for embedding integration capabilities through APIs into a range of applications and solutions
An extension of developer productivity features and tools to a broader set of integration capabilities. For example, a drag-and-drop approach to integration flow development and prebuilt connectors and templates to a broader set of integration capabilities

Success depends on selecting the right partner for your journey. That is why I am so pleased to announce that IBM received the highest scores for “technology” and “execution and market impact” categories in the recent Ovum Decision Matrix. The recognition that integration is no longer the sole domain of the IT department or tooling that only runs in the central data center has helped drive us to create a solution with comprehensive integration capabilities.
The plumbing matters. Access to the right data and services matters. Flexibility, security and scalability matters. Your digital success is reliant on something that almost no one thinks about. That is, until it breaks your business.
Download the Ovum Decision Matrix: Middleware-as-a-service suites, 2017-2018.
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Quelle: Thoughts on Cloud

Why Syniverse turned to IBM Cloud to manage surging seasonal mobile traffic

While the shift to mobile continues to change how we communicate, many of us still use text and mobile messaging to connect with the world. According to CTIA’s Annual Wireless Industry Survey, Multimedia Messaging Services (MMS) traffic rose 27.2 percent in 2016 with a mind-boggling 1.9 trillion messages exchanged across the U.S. The survey also found that just under of 49 percent of U.S. households are wireless-only. It’s pretty clear that MMS exchanges are eclipsing once-ubiquitous wired phone connections.
Telecommunications companies continue to evolve their IT infrastructure to keep up with the constantly-growing needs of their customers. And some are turning to the cloud to manage rising data demand and seasonal traffic spikes.
Syniverse, a global connectivity enabler, is no stranger to sweeping changes in telecom. Syniverse has been a pioneer in mobile since the dawn of the industry more than 30 years ago. Today the company connects more than 1,500 mobile operators, enterprises, ISPs and OTTs in almost 200 countries.
Syniverse handles up to 4 billion MMS transactions per day. The company must also manage fluctuations in data volume and demand during key holidays. For example, Syniverse consistently sees a steep rise in MMS use during holidays, when many people share photos and graphics. From 2014 to 2016, the company saw compound annual growth rate for MMS messages-per-second increase 57 percent for Halloween, 34 percent for Thanksgiving, 30 percent for Christmas and 53 percent for New Year’s Eve.
To help manage seasonal spikes in traffic, Syniverse just extended their VMware environments to the IBM Cloud. By tapping into VMware solutions on the IBM Cloud, Syniverse can quickly scale up existing VMware environments and connect to the global IBM cloud infrastructure.
Syniverse also uses IBM Cloud to test and integrate new services into their hybrid cloud environment. As a result, billions of MMS messages reach family and friends, whether it’s a holiday or a Tuesday morning.
To learn more about the deal, read the full announcement [link to news release]. And learn how IBM Cloud can help your business scale out IT infrastructure when your customers need it most.
For more insights from Chris and his peers, check out the Syniverse blog.
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Quelle: Thoughts on Cloud

Business transformation with S/4HANA and cloud managed services

This post is the third in a three-part interview series with Brian Burke, global SAP solutions executive with IBM SAP Alliance. Read part one.  Read part two.
Thoughts on Cloud (ToC): In our previous conversations, you discussed how cloud managed services can provide the skills needed to realize the benefits of S/4HANA much faster. Do you have examples you can share?
Brian Burke, global SAP solutions executive, IBM SAP Alliance (BB): Sure. The first one that comes to mind is a construction services company that stored all finance, inventory, project and personnel data across multiple disconnected infrastructures. This meant that common tasks like month-end close sometimes took more than two months to complete because employees had to manually gather data from each environment.
Having such a segregated environment also made it difficult to quickly respond to shifts in demand projections when procuring raw materials. As a result, the company had to keep way too much inventory on hand.
When the company migrated its enterprise resource planning (ERP) suite to SAP S/4HANA, it deployed the new environment with cloud managed services. The company achieved a 90 percent reduction in time spent managing and maintaining the infrastructure by moving the day-to-day management to IBM skilled specialists. This approach also helped the company optimize its SAP environment by integrating end-to-end processes so data could be shared. That integration sped up reporting and allowed the company to be more agile in their procurement of materials, which reduced inventory costs.
Another construction services company used a similar approach, realizing a 15 percent cost reduction by eliminating the need to manage and maintain hardware.
ToC: What about disaster recovery (DR)? How can cloud managed services help companies get back online after a disaster?
BB: A large part of the value that cloud managed services can deliver is the ability to deploy across multiple data centers in the same country or even across continents.
For example, IBM worked with an international food manufacturing company to migrate its entire SAP ERP environment to a managed cloud solution and set up DR in another geographic region. This allowed them to reduce their recovery time objective (RTO) by 98 percent and improve their recovery point objective (RPO) from four hours to 15 minutes, improvements that are advantageous in such a competitive industry.
ToC: Business leaders today need to make decisions faster. How are companies using cloud managed services with SAP applications to achieve that goal?
BB: IBM worked with one department store management company that wanted to accelerate its fact-based decision-making abilities. The problem was that their existing analytics models — based on a traditional SAP Business Warehouse (BW) platform — couldn’t support its objectives.
The first order of business was migrating to SAP HANA. To do that, the company worked with IBM on a managed cloud solution to host the platform and simplify the transition to HANA. The solution was designed to handle high transaction rates and complex queries on the same platform, allowing users to make business decisions in near-real time.
Because availability of the services is vital in real-time decision making, these services also included service level agreements (SLAs) that improved availability rates to 99.5 percent for the application layer in development and testing and to 99.7 percent for the SAP Solution Manager layer.
This move to SAP in a managed cloud environment boosted the company’s ability to analyze and respond to various types of data, including customer trends, which in turn improved decision-making.
Read the IBM Cloud for SAP Applications data sheet for more information on how managed SAP services can reduce complexity and boost agility.
To learn more about the benefits of deploying SAP applications in a managed cloud environment, visit the IBM Cloud Managed Services for SAP website.
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Quelle: Thoughts on Cloud

Beyond scale: How IBM is accelerating enterprise cloud adoption

The enterprise cloud market is continuing to evolve, and the industry is growing beyond just infrastructure as a service.
As The Wall Street Journal reported in July, global spending on information technology is expected to reach $3.5 trillion this year, up 2.4 percent from 2016, fueled in part by the rise of new cloud-enabled technologies such as the Internet of Things and blockchain.
It comes as no surprise that enterprises are now in search of higher value services so they can tap new technologies to win in today’s market. Enterprises need more than just productivity and cost saving perks. They want a cloud that can turn increasing volumes of structured and unstructured data into easily accessible insights and help them continually improve customer experiences and applications by infusing cognitive and AI.
While other cloud providers are starting to realize this, IBM has been down this path for a long time and has been working to build a unified cloud from the ground up to meet the unique needs of modern businesses. That’s why, with more than $15.1 billion in cloud revenue over the past 12 months, IBM is a leader in cloud for the enterprise. The IBM Cloud is unified as one architecture, bringing together a technology stack that, at its core, harnesses the power of data and cognitive computing.
As enterprises rapidly transition to the public cloud, often one of the first phases in their journey is embracing a hybrid model. In February 2016, IBM became the first cloud provider to partner with VMware to simplify hybrid adoption by jointly designing and delivering new solutions to help enterprises easily extend their existing workloads to the cloud. The ongoing partnership between IBM and VMware builds on a unique history and approach to helping today’s enterprises move to the public cloud and reap the value benefits that go beyond scale.
In the past 18 months alone, IBM and VMware have made significant progress through the partnership:

IBM has mobilized 4,000 global service consultants with the expertise required to help VMware customers use IBM Cloud and provide a full portfolio of lifecycle services including planning, architecture, migration and end-to-end management.
IBM Cloud for VMware solutions are available in 21 of the nearly 60 IBM Cloud data centers across North America, South America, Europe, Australia and Asia.
IBM has enabled channel partners to provide a one-stop shop for clients looking to migrate their on-premises VMware solutions to the cloud.
A broad ecosystem of partners has emerged that support VMware solutions on IBM Cloud, including HyTrust, Veeam and others.

As a result of the partnership, more than 1,000 enterprises are moving their VMware environments to IBM Cloud, such as Telstra, Clarient Global and Dream Payments to name a few.
Take Dream Payments, for example. As its business began to grow and large financial institutions wanted to adopt its mobile payments platform, VMware solutions on the IBM Cloud enabled Dream Payments to quickly deploy cloud infrastructure to support its platform. IBM Cloud also provides Dream Payments with the environment it needs to foster innovation and quickly pilot new products, all with cloud infrastructure that is trusted by clients, auditors and regulators in the financial industry.
Together, IBM and VMware have made great progress, but stay tuned, because we’re just getting started.
To find out what’s next, join us at VMworld 2017 Europe on 11 September.
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Quelle: Thoughts on Cloud