ComNet reporter's Notebook

Dwindling vendor and user attendance was the main observation most show-goers had about last week's ComNet. The show that once overflowed the Washington Convention Center's 381,000 square feet now only uses about one-third of that space. Another sure sign of deteriorating vendor interest: The "Program, Buyers Guide and New Product Directory," which outlines sessions and vendor products, was 81 pages long this year vs. 169 in 2001 and 199 in 2000. One attendee said, "I was thinking vendors would pack up [Thursday] morning since it was so empty on Wednesday. Have you heard anything about ComNet next year . . . will there be one?" Good question.

Vendors participating in Network World's Web Services Showdown tossed a few barbs at each other. In one exchange, Microsoft representative Neil Charney asked IBM representative Bob Sutor how IBM managed to make so much money off a free technology - Linux. Sutor replied that the key was selling useful applications on top of the platform. "If you gave away Windows, you could see how it works," he said.

There are lots of pitchmen at trade shows, but NetScaler's Sprockit was the hands-down best at ComNet. Sprockit is a robot on wheels that stands about four-feet tall and chats up the crowd as it passes the booth. "Hello, my name is Sprockit. What's yours?" it asks in a flat, mechanical voice. It remembers your name and engages you in conversation about what you are doing at the show or whether you're visiting NetScaler's booth. The robot is remote-controlled and equipped with a microphone and video camera that feeds back to a human somewhere out of sight. Oddly, many people are afraid to talk to the machine and scurry away.

To continue reading, register here and become an Insider. You'll get free access to premium content from CIO, Computerworld, CSO, InfoWorld, and Network World. See more Insider content or sign in.

Dwindling vendor and user attendance was the main observation most show-goers had about last week's ComNet. The show that once overflowed the Washington Convention Center's 381,000 square feet now only uses about one-third of that space. Another sure sign of deteriorating vendor interest: The "Program, Buyers Guide and New Product Directory," which outlines sessions and vendor products, was 81 pages long this year vs. 169 in 2001 and 199 in 2000. One attendee said, "I was thinking vendors would pack up [Thursday] morning since it was so empty on Wednesday. Have you heard anything about ComNet next year . . . will there be one?" Good question.

Vendors participating in Network World's Web Services Showdown tossed a few barbs at each other. In one exchange, Microsoft representative Neil Charney asked IBM representative Bob Sutor how IBM managed to make so much money off a free technology - Linux. Sutor replied that the key was selling useful applications on top of the platform. "If you gave away Windows, you could see how it works," he said.

There are lots of pitchmen at trade shows, but NetScaler's Sprockit was the hands-down best at ComNet. Sprockit is a robot on wheels that stands about four-feet tall and chats up the crowd as it passes the booth. "Hello, my name is Sprockit. What's yours?" it asks in a flat, mechanical voice. It remembers your name and engages you in conversation about what you are doing at the show or whether you're visiting NetScaler's booth. The robot is remote-controlled and equipped with a microphone and video camera that feeds back to a human somewhere out of sight. Oddly, many people are afraid to talk to the machine and scurry away.

Read more about software in Network World's Software section.