2009 - A look back

Insightful analysis by consultants Steve Taylor and Jim Metzler, plus links to the latest WAN news headlines

In this, our final newsletter for 2009, it seems appropriate to look back at some of the major products, services and trends for the year. And what a challenging year it has been!

Will 2010 be the year for IPv6?

Above all else, this year seems to have had a theme of survival. Few, if any, organizations have had the luxury of embarking on strategic long-term plans. Instead, the primary emphasis has been on tactical decisions that all critical telecommunications functions to be carried out in extremely tough economic times with very little, if any, additional staffing. So here's our list of "Top Trends" that we've seen.

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In this, our final newsletter for 2009, it seems appropriate to look back at some of the major products, services and trends for the year. And what a challenging year it has been!

Will 2010 be the year for IPv6?

Above all else, this year seems to have had a theme of survival. Few, if any, organizations have had the luxury of embarking on strategic long-term plans. Instead, the primary emphasis has been on tactical decisions that all critical telecommunications functions to be carried out in extremely tough economic times with very little, if any, additional staffing. So here's our list of "Top Trends" that we've seen.

Cloud computing. While cynics may also refer to this as the reinvention of time-sharing, Cloud computing has quickly become a critical part of future WANs. Finally, after years of lip-service, the network and the processor are becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish. But moving to the cloud also raises myriad questions. For instance, there's a question of whether you use a public cloud or a private cloud. Additionally, all of the traditional issues such as compliance, security, application performance still abound. For a great overview of the entire cloud arena, see Jim's two reports (very highly recommended.)

Virtualization. Of course, this is a continuing trend, but it is one that has taken on added importance as companies have attempted to consolidate operations. As with cloud computing, while it seems to simplify operations, the associated issues of performance, security, etc., can be complicated by moving to virtualized processes.

Mobility. Earlier in the year, we highlighted our products of the year as being various methods for incorporating cellular and Wi-Fi services. Whether accomplished best via an integrated product (such as "MiFi") or a separate cellular-enabled router is basically a question of which functions are needed. But the bottom line is that these products allow for cost-effective integration of a wide range of capabilities.

Telepresence and other collaborative meeting products. This is not good news for the airline industry, but suffice it to say that many, many of the videoconferencing and application-sharing tools have eliminated the need for many of the hours that were spent on planes 10 years ago. With appropriate network support, the products can even be better than "in person" in many cases.

B2B social networking. This is an area that is just taking off, but once again, as with technologies like IM, an idea that originated in the consumer space is starting to make its way into the business space as well.

There's no doubt that 2010 will be yet another year of challenge and change. But for now, we'll thank you for reading and responding to our newsletter, and wish you the best for the New Year!

Read more about lans & wans in Network World's LANs & WANs section.

Steve Taylor is president of Distributed Networking Associates and publisher/editor-in-chief of Webtorials. Jim Metzler is vice president of Ashton, Metzler & Associates.