Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Technology Stocks : EMC How high can it go? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Gus who wrote (13469)	11/13/2001 1:25:32 AM
From: Gus	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 17183

More about the crumbling differences between open and proprietary.... EMC Is Open To Exchanging Its APIs With Other Competitors By Sonia R. Lelii, VARBusiness 1:41 PM EST Fri., Nov. 09, 2001 The deal struck this week between EMC and Compaq Computer to exchange each other's application program interfaces is not necessarily limited between the two storage rivals. EMC is more than willing to include other vendors in the swap as long as it is a reasonable trade--meaning the function that EMC is trading is equal to the one it is getting, says Don Swatik, vice president of alliances and information sciences at EMC. "We are willing to take the first step and we will go a little more than halfway in the spirit of getting this moving," says Swatik. "We will swap like-function for like-function." EMC has often been criticized for keeping its proprietary software and hardware close to its vest. But EMC executives contend they have had an API program now for five years now. It received publicity in the summer of 1999 when Hopkinton, Mass.-based company mounted a marketing campaign to draw attention to it. Thus far, EMC executives say they have more than 88 partners in the program. "[But] in the past, third-party ISVs participated, not competitive storage companies," says Swatik. "During the past five years, we have developed the most robust suite of APIs around. We have more than 22 APIs for Symmetrix alone." This week, EMC and Compaq announced they would exchange APIs, loosely defined as hooks into a system or hardware, so the two can develop storage management tools that can discover and monitor each other's storage subsystems. This move means the Houston-based Compaq can put a new module into its SANworks software, called ElementManager, to monitor EMC's high-end Symmetrix. Another module to manage EMC's midrange Clariion system will follow. Conversely, EMC can adapt all the pieces of its new management software, which is part of its open AutoIS Initiative, to monitor Compaq's hardware. Swatik says they have exchanged one of their APIs with Compaq to enable this broad management function. The hardware and software must have the function built into its microcode. Then the APIs can developed to communicate with the with the microcode in the storage device. *"You have to structure the microcode inside the storage platform so it has well-defined interfaces," Swatik says. "This has to be done from the ground up. It has to be built-in, not added on."* varbusiness.com