Joel Snyder
Snyder, a Network World Test Alliance partner, is a senior partner at Opus One in Tucson, Ariz. He can be reached at
Review: Slow Internet? Firebind can sniff out the problem
We found Firebind to be an effective tool for reaching into branch office networks to diagnose Internet-based performance problems. Firebind has a simple agent installation procedure and uses email-based alerting, so network managers...
Review: Graylog delivers open source log management for the dedicated do-it-yourselfer
Graylog is an open-source log management tool, complete with a three-tier architecture, super-scalable storage (based on Elasticsearch), an easy-to-use web interface, and a powerful toolkit to parse messages, build ad-hoc dashboards,...
First Look: NetBeez net management tool creates a buzz
Newcomer NetBeez is strong on network troubleshooting; needs work on long-term performance analysis, reporting.
First Look: Amazon Echo: Novelty item or ready-for-prime-time part of your digital life?
While some parts are beautifully done, the information services at the back end have a long way to go before the Echo is more than a novelty.
Review: Dell WYSE delivers Android-on-a-stick
Thin clients aren't very exciting, and for a reason: they're designed to allow remote access to servers, usually with a Citrix, Microsoft, or VMware client. The folks at Dell WYSE have spiced up the category by building a thin client...
Oh, Bi the Way…
Hidden in Cisco's Nexus 9000 and Application Centric Infrastructure news was another nifty announcement: an optical transceiver that delivers 40Gbps speeds using older 10Gbps fiber and standard connectors. Cisco's "BiDi" optical...
First Look: Cisco ACI re-imagines the enterprise data center network
Cisco's Application Centric Infrastructure (ACI) is a revolutionary re-thinking of how to provision and manage data center networks. While the early version we looked at has some rough edges, and Cisco still has some hard problems to...
FIRST LOOK: Cisco Nexus 9000
The Cisco Nexus 9000 series, the fruit of Cisco's Insieme spin-in, is more than another fast router -- it's a change in the way that high-end routers are designed and built.
I wrote the Macworld Networking Bible and it was good
My first Mac was a Mac 512K from the early 1980s, probably 1985. It replaced my Heathkit CP/M system, and when I went on business trips, that thing -- and an external hard drive, what a luxury -- traveled with me all over the country...
Riverbed wins 7-vendor WAN optimization test
As applications move to the cloud, network managers are seeing increasing requirements to optimize and manage WAN connections. Most enterprises have migrated to web-based applications and make heavy use of Internet services for...
Cisco impresses with first crack at next-gen firewall
When we tested next-generation firewalls last May, at least one important security vendor wasn’t there: Cisco, because they weren’t ready to be tested. Now that the ASA CX next-generation firewall has had a year to mature, we put the...