Brian Madden
Brian Madden is an independent technology analyst, author, and thinker. He's written several books and over one thousand articles about application and desktop virtualization technology. Brian is the creator of BriForum, an annual independent application delivery technical conference. He’s also the editor-in-chief of BrianMadden.com, a popular industry website with millions of visitors per year. Brian lives in San Francisco.
Updated: 23 min 11 sec ago
BriForum 2010 early-bird registration ends next week! ($500 discount)
BriForum 2010 will take place at the Chicago Hilton from June 15-17 this year. The regular registration price is $1495, although we're currently in the final few days of our early-bird promo where you can register for only $995. The early-bird rate...(read more)
Citrix releases report on ICA versus PC-over-IP. VMware cries foul. Both are half-right. Here's my full analysis.
A few weeks ago, a company called Miercom released a report ( download PDF ) that was sponsored by Citrix to compare XenDesktop 4 remoting (ICA protocol) to VMware View 4 remoting via PCoIP. Then last Friday, VMware's Mike Coleman wrote blog post...(read more)
Citrix releases virtual appliance versions of their WAN accelerator. When will this be built into XenDesktop?
Back in 2007 I wrote how WANscaler could become Citrix’s secret weapon if they integrated its WAN smarts into the server-side creation of ICA (now HDX) data packets. Then in 2009, I wrote about WAN optimization again , stressing that the emergence...(read more)
VMware has been doing a better job with the desktop blogs lately
Last December I wrote about VMware's lack of blogging in the desktop space (which was true) and claimed that meant they didn't really care about desktops (which was debated). Since then, VMware desktop blog posts have become more frequent with...(read more)
Is Hyatt hotels Citrix’s newest competitor?
In-person meetings versus virtual meetings. Huge industries behind both. Who will win? ...(read more)
Hey! Neocleus has a strategy now! (Plans to OEM their client hypervisor to others. First is BigFix.)
Neocleus (along with Virtual Computer) is one of two startup companies shipping client hypervisors today. We've spoken with both companies quite a bit over the past 18 months or so, but now that VMware and Citrix are getting close to shipping their...(read more)
Confirmed: VMware buys every part of RTO Software except what they owe Citrix. Here's our full analysis.
A few weeks ago, I wrote an article about the fact that Symantec had suddenly stopped selling their Workspace Profiles product which they OEM'ed from RTO Software. I wondered why this was, and suggested that perhaps it was because Symantec competitor...(read more)
The difference between Microsoft's "in box" VDI solution and their "VDI Suite"
A few months ago I blogged about the irony of the Microsoft VDI Suite bundle marketed for "lower complexity" environments, while the bundle itself consists of several different and completely unrelated Microsoft products--and hooking them all...(read more)
Prediction: 90% of the future "VDI" will be client-based
In our " Trends for 2010 " episode of Brian Madden TV, a few of the trends we focused on included a "renewed client-based VM focus" (thanks to the release of client hypervisors from VMware and Citrix this year) and a "smarter...(read more)
VMware is doing a great job of equating success in virtual servers to success in virtual desktops
VMware's Partner Exchange kicks off today in Las Vegas. I'm not at the conference, but I'm getting updates via twitter from folks who are attending. Interesting updates are coming from Donn Bullock about the desktop virtualization element...(read more)
Symantec suddenly stops selling Workspace Profiles. Does this mean VMware is acquiring RTO?
Last March, we learned that Symantec’s Workspace Profiles product was an OEM / rebranded edition of RTO Software’s Virtual Profiles . Then in September, we learned that VMware also signed an agreement with RTO Software for their Virtual Profiles...(read more)
Help us pick the “fifth vendor” in our VDI week
[UPDATED with Winner at the end of this article] Last month, Gabe and I announced that we’re planning on doing a five-day, five-product VDI shoot-out. There were a lot of great ideas in the conversation around the idea , and we’re working...(read more)
BriForum 2010, June 15-17 in Chicago. Registration now open.
After talking about BriForum 2010 for months and jockeying some dates around, we're pleased to let everyone know that we've finalized all the details for BriForum 2010 , which will take place from June 15-17, 2010 at the Chicago Hilton. 2010:...(read more)
Next week: exclusive video interviews with Citrix's and VMware's desktop CTOs. What questions should I ask?
February is "sweeps" month in the US, so we thought we should participate on BrianMadden.com with some great videos! Specifically, I'll be doing hour-long, one-on-one videos interviews with VMware's desktop CTO Scott Davis and Citrix's...(read more)
Look out Pano, Sun, Ncomputing! Wyse Project Badger is their entry into the "zero client" space.
Details are starting to emerge about something called Wyse Project "Badger," a software solution that will challenge the so-called "zero" clients like those from Pano Logic, Sun, and Ncomputing. Badger (which should come out of beta...(read more)
Everyone who needs VDI already has it
Citrix, VMware, and other vendors are spending millions trying to convince customers that they need VDI. The reality is that everyone who really needs VDI is already using it. There are 500-700m corporate desktops in the world. The number of VDI users...(read more)
BriForum 2010 Call for Papers is officially open, you too can present!
We've talked a bit about BriForum 2010 in the past, which will take place June 15-17 at the Chicago Hilton. This year's BriForum will be just about the same as BriForum 2009, except we'll have real food at the party and it will take place...(read more)
Is the world ready for the BYOPC / employee-owned PC?
We've written quite a bit about the Bring-Your-Own-PC (BYOPC) / employee-owned PC concept over the years. (Check here and here if you're not familiar with the concept.) Now that Citrix and VMware are getting closer to releasing their client hypervisors...(read more)
Why do people decide NOT to use VDI today?
Yesterday's conversation on BrianMadden.com was about the real-world non-BS reasons people use VDI today . So I thought a fun follow-up for today would be to have the opposite conversation where we look at the real-world reasons that customers decide...(read more)
What are the real-world non-BS reasons people use VDI today?
Yesterday I had a discussion with some business-type people who weren't terribly technical and who were interested in desktop virtualization as it relates to power savings. They were generally familiar with server virtualization and equated desktop...(read more)