Burton Group - Network and Telecom StrategiesThe Network and Telecom Strategies (NTS) service empowers you to design and implement a future-focused architecture that will support your company for years to come. Nothing is overlooked. From routers to switching, to ATM vs. IP, to public WANs vs. private WANs, to convergence, to wireless, to optical, to cabling, and everything in between, NTS ensures that the decisions you make will be cost-effective and will meet your long-term needs for scalability.Optimizing WAN Performance- May 29, 2008 Redesigning applications to make them less sensitive to wide area network (WAN) environments may be impractical; improving WAN characteristics is expensive; and improving only one factor, such as bandwidth, may not appreciably improve application performance. This report, updated by Senior Analyst Eric Siegel, describes cost-effective bandwidth optimization techniques such as compression and caching along with protocol optimization techniques, wide-area file services (WAFS), and single-user...http://www.burtongroup.com/Client/Research/Document.aspx?cid=779 Designing WLANS as a Service- May 20, 2008 Wireless LANs introduce subtle complexities that render normal network troubleshooting techniques ineffective. Instead of the predictability of copper wires, the vagaries of radio must be taken into account. Unlike switched Ethernet, wireless is a shared medium. Interference sources abound, and even room layouts can affect a wireless network. In this TeleBriefing, Service Director Michael Disabato provides information on WLAN interference sources, describes design considerations that can be...http://www.burtongroup.com/Client/Research/Document.aspx?cid=1407 Network Tracing Tools- May 13, 2008 Summary measurement tools assist operations-center staff in handling routine incidents, but more complete information is required when staff members deal with complex situations that involve root-cause analysis or advanced performance tuning. A major source of that information is a set of network activity traces, often from multiple locations. This overview, by Senior Analyst Eric Siegel, investigates the tools for gathering, storing, transporting, and interpreting that detailed diagnostic...http://www.burtongroup.com/Client/Research/Document.aspx?cid=1339 Microsofts Telephony Strategy: Mediation or Domination- May 9, 2008 The introduction of Microsofts Office Communications Server (OCS) 2007 has generated significant market momentum for unified communications and is challenging current enterprise telephony strategies. Microsoft has emphasized that OCS 2007 will enable mediation with enterprise telephony infrastructure. But will Microsoft use telephony mediation as a beachhead to provide a substitute for, and eventually displacement of, the Internet Protocol private branch exchange (IP-PBX) In this report, Senior.http://www.burtongroup.com/Client/Research/Document.aspx?cid=1264 Ciscos Unified Communications Strategy: Evolving Beyond Telephony- May 2, 2008 The introduction of Cisco Systems Unified Workspace product suite exposes the key product positioning and differentiation with which Cisco plans to address the unified communications market. With strong competition from software titans such as IBM and Microsoft, Cisco plans to focus its product beyond the desktop and address the full work environment or workspace of users. In this report, Senior Analyst Mark Cortner examines Ciscos strategic approach to unified communications, and how its...http://www.burtongroup.com/Client/Research/Document.aspx?cid=1338 |