March 27, 2012

SNW Spring is Almost Here! See you in Dallas

SNW Spring will take place April 2 – 5 in Dallas, TX at the Omni Dallas Hotel. As the co–owner of the event, SNIA will be offering SNIA Tutorials, SNIA Certification preparation sessions, and SNIA Certification on-site testing. There will be 38 SNIA Tutorials that will cover the following topics: Cloud Technologies, Data Protection and Management, File Systems and File Management, Green Storage, Networking, Security, Storage and Storage Management, Solid State Storage, and Virtualization / Applications. There are also non–technical career development tutorials offered in the Professional Development track. The Certification preparation sessions are presented by SNIA Certified Instructors and set the stage for participants to be introduced to the key learning points from the full instructor–led courseware. In addition, if you take a Certification exam at SNW, there will be a 25% discount applied to the exam fee. For more information, visit www.snwusa.com.

Make Plans for Storage Developer Conference 2012

Storage Developer Conference (SDC) 2012, September 17 – 20, Santa Clara, CA, recently extended the deadline for our call for presentations until April 23, so if you would like to submit a proposal for a presentation, there is still time! SDC is looking for presentations that are suited for a technical community of storage solution/product developers, architects, and engineers. For more information on the topics that are being considered for SDC 2012, click here. Vendors and end–users will find the SDC agenda rich with storage solution information, case studies, tips, and best practices. Vendors can also become involved in SDC by becoming a sponsor. There are many different options for sponsorship and the opportunity to reach the uniquely qualified SDC audience. Visit www.storagedeveloper.org for more information.

International Cloud Plugfest a Success

SNIA and the Open Grid Forum (OGF) recently conducted the first in a series of international plugfests targeting Cloud Interoperability on February 28 in Dusseldorf, Germany. About 40 people from various universities, companies, and research projects participated, including several undergraduate and graduate students for whom the plugfest was their first opportunity for real–life experience. Vendors included CleverSafe, who participated for the first time, and research projects represented included Venus–C, SAIL, FI–Ware, and CompatibleOne. It was the 4th plugfest for implementers of the SNIA CDMI specification for management of cloud storage, and the first in which CDMI and OGF OCCI implementers participated side by side. Organizers and sponsors plan for the next plugfest to reach even more people and more organizations interested in Cloud Standards. It is scheduled for June 14 – 16, 2012 in Delft Netherlands, Shenzhen, China and Colorado Springs, Colorado. For more information, contact Mark Carlson at [email protected].

New CompTIA Storage+   Powered by SNIA Exam Training Course

The SNIA Technology Center is now offering certification training courses for the new CompTIA Storage+   Powered by SNIA exam which became available worldwide on January 18. These are 5–day courses held in a hands–on lab environment that provides experience working in a multi–vendor environment. Howie Goldstein of Howard Goldstein Associates, Inc. (www.hgai.com), a CompTIA Delivery Partner, is the class instructor. Classes have already been offered in February and March and the next available class takes place on April 16. Register now to receive a 10% discount off this course fee. One student from the March 2012 class stated, “This was the best class that I can remember. The volume of information and the structure of the presentation was a perfect combination.” For more information, visit http://www.snia.org/education/comptia.

Hot Off the Press: The 2012 SNIA Dictionary

Each year, the SNIA Dictionary Author and Production Team puts together the SNIA Dictionary, a glossary of storage networking, data, and information management terminology. It is printed in hard copy in the Spring and is also updated online in the Fall. The dictionary contains 316 pages of storage terminology and over 30 new terms have been added to this version. The following SNIA volunteers contributed to this edition of the SNIA Dictionary: Alan G. Yoder, NetApp; Mark Carlson, Oracle; David Thiel; Don Deel, EMC Corporation; and Eric Hibbard, HDS. The SNIA Dictionary is searchable online and will available at the SNIA booth at SNW as well as other events where SNIA participates.

2012 Brings Exciting New Opportunities for Membership and Involvement

Some of our readers may not be SNIA members and others not as aware of the many programs and benefits SNIA membership offers. 2012 is the time to take a closer look and to get engaged. 2011 found SNIA volunteers around the world creatively contributing to new technical work, presenting educational content at a variety of venues, and collaborating with peers to spread the word on exciting new technologies. Networking is central to SNIA both in its name and in the kinds of things we do. If you are looking to advance your value to your employer or to your own career, consider joining one of SNIA’s Committees, Forums, and Initiatives – Cloud, Data Protection, Ethernet, Green, Solid State, Storage Management, and Storage Security – and their associated Technical Work Groups. Each one has a wide variety of activities and the opportunity to work together with enthusiastic volunteers from the leading industry companies to influence technical specifications and storage solutions. This is a key benefit to each individual and every member company that joins the SNIA. For more information, visit www.snia.org/join or call Marty Foltyn, SNIA Business Development Representative at 858.720.9780 or Lisa Mercurio, Membership Services Manager at 781.293.9860.