Just as TV viewers are getting a taste of the networks' new fall lineups, so will IT execs and other industry watchers this week at DemoFall 2005, where 70 of the most- promising products and services will be unveiled.

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DemoFall Preview: Cool stuff for end users

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It's no surprise that among the top bets are start-ups pitching offerings that deal with security. From fending off malware to protecting corporate documents, DemoFall demonstrators are trying to help organizations protect their precious assets. Also on tap are companies debuting wares that ease the burden on IT groups.

Our favorites are listed over the next few pages - a complete list of the companies showing new technologies at the show is available at www.demo.com.

THE SHIELD

Product: Vulnerability Protection Suite
Company: Determina
Premieres: Available now, about $750 per server.

Details: "Every CXO is forced into a trade-off between two very important things: business disruption and boosting security," says Nand Mulchandani, vice president of marketing and business development at Determina.

Viruses such as the recent Zotob worm force IT groups to take down infrastructure for patches and other updates, Mulchandani says. "You have to react to every security threat that's coming out. If you're responsible for thousands of PCs, you're in a world of hurt," he says. The time it takes to test and circulate patches only worsens the situation.

The Vulnerability Protection Suite includes the Determina Memory Firewall and LiveShield. The software lets IT managers rapidly create a shield around vulnerable code. For example, if Microsoft announces a problem with Internet Explorer, IT groups can introduce a barrier to the affected code into the server while it is still running and without rebooting.

24 (BY 7)

Product: Application Continuity Appliance
Company: Teneros
Premieres: Available now, $15,000 for appliance and $3,750 annual service fee.

Details: "Companies have invested in Microsoft infrastructure and they need to keep end users of those mission-critical applications up and running," says Steve Lewis, president and CEO of Teneros. He says IT groups at smaller companies don't have either the IT staff or the budget to assure always-on mission critical applications
like e-mail. Teneros' appliance drops into the network with a simple 10 minute install, requires no network reconfiguration of Exchange server modifications, needs no ongoing in-house maintenance, and provides instant-on, non-stop 24 X 7 Exchange e-mail continuity for end users during either planned or unplanned Exchange server downtime.

I (ANTI-)SPY

Product: Active Malware Defense Technology, Version 2.0
Company: Sana Security
Premieres: Early 2006

Details: Sana Security thinks a lot about business continuity. Matthew Williamson, senior research scientist at the start-up, says today's security tools jeopardize business continuity because they rely on known signatures to stop worms. If a signature is not recognized, then IT groups must wait for a signature to be created and this can cause network disruptions.

"Worms are designed stealthily, and it can take a long time to get a signature," Williamson says. He says once signatures are detected, scanning can take a large chunk of time and that affects the productivity of end users.

Active Malware Defense Technology Version 2.0 uses generic detection to uncover malicious code, Trojans, backdoors and spyware. The software looks at the behavior of running programs, including key logger installs and whether code is being hidden from the user. If something malicious is detected, the software removes it without human involvement.

WIZARDS AND WEB SITES

Product: Portals for Mortals
Company: iCentera
Premieres: Now available, $30 to $90 per user, with hosting from Level 3.

Details: "IT would rather be involved in rolling out a new server, not forcing a new file to the server," says Craig Nelson, CEO of iCentera. The company developed Portals for Mortals, a software suite that lets business units develop dynamic Web sites without the involvement of IT. Nelson says marketing teams can use the service to customize sites around marketing campaigns, interact with customers and create a community for employees. The wizard-driven tool supports document loading, images and interactive content.

CLEAN SWEEP

Product: Hygiene
Company: Workshare
Premieres: Available in beta later this year. No pricing yet.

Details: Document transfers are beginning to concern IT groups as a security risk. "Every day over a hundred million documents are sent over e-mail, but these documents are 'dirty' with hidden and visible risks, including private information about customers and consumers," says Ken Rutsky, executive vice president at Workshare. "Companies have to find a way to keep this information from leaking without disrupting the flow of business."

Workshare will roll out its Hygiene application (client and server software), which uses policies to spot infractions in hidden and visible text. For instance, metadata or information held in "track changes" that compromise corporate security can be filtered or fixed based on internal policy. The tool also features identity-based routing and auditing so organizations can ensure that their compliance mandates are being followed. Compliance officers can utilize a dashboard to see the top alert triggers among senders and documents.