Introducing ELPaaS ( Enterprise Legacy Platform as a Service )

The cloud just got a little bit bigger and better thanks to Heirloom Computing’s new legacy application deployment service solution

I think we can all agree that cloud computing is certainly a step in the right direction, but who’s to say that there isn’t always room for improvement? Realistically, cloud computing is more or less in a constant state of evolution, or growth. However, of the various cloud computing model types (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS = Infrastructure as a Service, Platform as a Service, Software as a Service), there exists no platform which is able to take those existing applications and seamlessly integrate them, until now that is.

Thanks to Silicon Valley’s “Heirloom Computing” and their newly introduced ELPaaS (Enterprise Legacy Platform as a Service), those mainstay applications / programs / services / components can now be easily integrated into a cloud computing infrastructure. Along with merely introducing legacy applications / components into a new cloud computing model / scheme, ELPaaS allows an organization to deploy them across an entire cloud, or clouds. The potential uses for ELPaaS are virtually limitless, now it may be possible to deploy that crucial component (which your organization relies on heavily) in, with or on any cloud platform / provider imaginable.

Let’s step back a bit and examine what ELPaaS might be able to really do for your company and department(s). Currently, ELPaaS can be obtained free of charge by visiting this site.

Imagine the possibilities
One of the perceived limitations of cloud computing is its ability to enact changes (like the addition or deployment of legacy applications) without causing too much disruption among other components. ELPaaS introduces the concept that your legacy applications can be packaged and deployed like services. What’s interesting about this approach is that legacy components (which are often crucial to an operation) aren’t exactly assimilated in the standard fashion; they operate and function like services in their own right. This means that virtually any legacy application, which is formatted via ELPaaS, can be applied to any cloud, public or private.

Redefining and repackaging a crucial element of your organization’s operation
Most legacy components / applications / programs are holdovers from the days when an organization first established its formal IT infrastructure. Over time, these “legacy” components often become integral to how business is (and was) performed. Simply removing or replacing these applications is not an option because they are essential; this is to say that nearly all personnel depend upon the processes performed with them on a daily basis.

Additionally, as is often the case, it might very well be that the only thing which is providing said organization with a competitive edge could very well be these same legacy applications. If one were to attempt removing or replacing such vital components, you are literally putting the entire organization at risk. The obvious solution is to simply repackage these components via ELPaaS so that they can function independently as services. As more and more businesses begin transitioning to cloud-based systems / infrastructures, the importance of being able to quickly, cleanly and efficiently integrate legacy applications into one’s cloud(s) will only grow in importance.

ELPaaS also further facilitates a more manageable and problem-free move to the cloud by means of allowing an organization to avoid having to interrupt their current service(s). For instance, if your business were transitioning to the cloud, you could simply apply your legacy applications to said cloud while simultaneously running your standard operation unabated. This is a much better approach than attempting to stop or halt services with your current infrastructure. Once your cloud has been tested, components have been moved, and personnel have been trained in its use, you can begin to wane the organization off of the older infrastructure.

Let’s back up; is your IT department even cloud certified?
Long before you can even begin considering a move to cloud computing or even integrating specific cloud services with that of your current IT infrastructure, you are going to need IT personnel who understand and can utilize cloud technologies.

Luckily, there is an effective solution (which also happens to be quite affordable given the benefits offered), it’s called e-learning. Through an e-learning program in cloud computing, your IT team members will come to understand how cloud computing works, how to service it, and of course, become certified technicians in the field. Given that cloud computing is on the rise, now is the time to begin providing your IT department with the training that they will need to help keep your business technologically up-to-date and competitive. (Ss you might expect, group rate discounts are available for multiple course / license purchases.)

Next stop, ELPaaS
For more information about ELPaaS, please visit www.heirloomcomputing.com, or www.elpaas.com. The abilities of your legacy applications should never be underestimated, now thanks to ELPaaS; you can deploy them in an almost infinite number of ways, even across multiple clouds.

Supplement your ITIL training with a slide show

What an ITIL v3 PPT (power point presentation) can offer you as a student

While there’s certainly no substitute for a great ITIL training / certification program (especially if it’s a top e-learning enabled one), there are a number of excellent slide shows available (via the web) that will only further enable you to comprehend specific elements of ITIL. Many of these PPT-developed or enabled (power point presentations) slide shows are often times constructed by well known individuals that work for major corporations or perhaps are well-known experts / educators in the ITIL and IT fields. Furthermore, given that these PPT / slideshows are largely simplified / “boiled-down” reflections which (more or less) represent the entirety of what experts in these fields think students should focus on, it serves those who are eager to really learn, very well.

One of the most searched for keyword strings among those potentially seeking ITIL certification (or perhaps those merely trying to absorb as much information about ITIL as possible) is in fact; ITIL V3 PPT. What this tells us is that most individuals are apparently electing to study or become certified in ITIL V3 (obviously), and are in need of a simple presentation which can provide a more basic overview of ITIL (V3) and its components. It could be argued that the ITIL community isn’t necessarily doing enough to create basic introductory / informative materials for ITIL initiates or those who are newly interested in it.

So, why are people so intent to study ITIL V3 in lieu of a more recent build / release (like ITIL 2011)? When many fail to realize is that the actual bulk content of ITIL 2011 is largely unchanged from V3. The major differences between the two have to do with a complete restructuring (to allow for easier searching / study) and the creation of a definitive glossary. Additionally, many of the terms which the ITIL training community found that were considered to be either too ambiguous, or perhaps not defined the same way across multiple volumes, were fixed / altered. However once again, the major portions of the ITIL are largely unchanged from V3 to 2011; the main advantage being that it’s probably much easier to study with ITIL 2011.

Here are a few notable examples of ITIL V3 power point presentations / slide shows / ITIL overviews that you might want to check out:

• www.slideshare.net/itilconnect/introduction-to-itil-v3-foundation
• www.thinkhdi.com/chapters/nebraska/Events/ITIL%20V3%20Overview_Brenda%20Iniguez%20-%20FrontRange.pdf
• www.authorstream.com/Presentation/khaliquezafar-447665-itil-v3-overview/

If you’re an IT professional and still in the “contemplative phase” concerning whether or not you should take the plunge into attaining your ITIL certification, here are some excellent points to consider:

Employers and IT managers appreciate IT employees who are ITIL certified
Landing your “perfect career” is becoming increasingly difficult given the global economic downturn and increasing job competition. As a result of these factors (and other considerations), today’s employers are looking for ways to ensure that their choices (regarding choosing new employees) are going to be able to deliver something of value to the company.

Additionally, those who primarily come from a background in business tend to view ITIL in a favorable light. This is because, through the use and implementation of ITIL, it is possible to create more value from one’s IT department than might have been previously possible. Through the application of the various methodologies inherent to the ITIL itself, virtually any IT group can dramatically increase their overall efficiency.

Most IT managers are ITIL certified
It should probably come as no surprise that those who are tasked with overseeing operations for an entire IT department would be certified in ITIL. After all, what is ITIL aside from being a complete compendium of the most effective IT infrastructure-related methodologies, practices and fixes?

ITIL certification means potential salary increases
If you believe the reports coming from the government concerning salary / wage increases in specific sectors of IT-related careers, all evidence seems to point toward ITIL being responsible for significant boosts in personal earning power.

Take your ITIL certification online, via an e-learning program
Now, you don’t even need to attend physical classes or sink ridiculous sums of cash into your ITIL certification; thanks to ITIL e-learning, you can take your course online. What this essentially means is that you can get all of your training materials delivered to you digitally and you don’t have to worry about class / study time interfering with your current work schedule. Moreover, with an ITIL e-learning / certification course, you can take your materials with you wherever you might go; in other words, deploy your program on any device including tablets, smartphones, PC’s, and Mac’s.

What you’re really looking at here is professional development that’s optimized for the new century. Get involved and get your certification today (ahead of everyone else).  Click here for a complete ITIL 2011 certification package / solution.

Cloud Computing could become a powerful ally of the Green Movement

Over the last several years, the push for energy conservation has extended to nearly every area of society and business that you can think of. This drive to produce more energy efficient devices, systems and processes is often a featured aspect of what many have referred to as, “the green movement”. It has been argued by a great number of individuals that pollution, hyperinflation, and dwindling resources are among the most crucial issues that we face today as a global society. Given that IT assets are fast becoming the life blood that drives modern business, and the current model (grid computing / networking) is expensive and inefficient, alternatives must be sought out. This is of course, where cloud computing comes into the picture.

Let’s envision a fairly large company with extensive IT resources, and a network of several hundred user machines. As you are no doubt already aware, most organizations have this type of setup (either on-site or off-site). You’re probably also clued into the fact that it’s common for these “user machines” to stay powered on most of the time, even when no work is being performed. Needless to say, when you have hundreds of machines continuously sucking down power without producing anything of value in return, you are wasting energy. This same line of thinking can perhaps also be applied to how the IT department manages energy efficiency for networking. These systems (networking) might also be utilizing power in wholly inefficient ways that some might even say are counterintuitive.

Cloud computing, an energy and networking solution
Arguably, the most groundbreaking facet of cloud computing in general is the fact that it is not merely a new type of IT infrastructure, computing, or networking; it is all three. In the old model, you absolutely must have separate systems for each individual process. For example, one system is used solely for networking, and does nothing else. On the computing side of things, each individual user terminal, or machine, is entirely dependent on its own internal resources for processing power, storage, and the like. Under the current model, an entire IT / business operation is essentially made up of individual components. What makes cloud computing such a groundbreaking concept is that it effectively combines these areas into one infrastructure.

For instance, in a cloud computing scenario, there are no more grossly overpowered individual machines, operating systems, or storage; these items are all requisitioned facets of “the cloud” now. Try to think of it this way; it’s like removing all the processing and storage components from the hundreds of machines in your office and transferring them to a centralized cloud. This cloud in turn performs just like the internal components of your self-contained machine.

Why cloud computing is considered to be energy efficient
Simply put, cloud computing could also be called “remote computing”. Cloud systems basically use networking to deliver computing resources to its users. As previously stated, this is in essence, merely the combining of resources into one entity. This not only affords us the opportunity to manage energy efficiency more effectively, it also gives users the opportunity to requisition more resources (like processing power) as needed. All individual machines / terminals can be setup to simply turn off when inactive for a length of time. However, the real reason that cloud computing is more efficient than its grid counterpart has to do with the way the energy is used centrally.

If you can imagine all computing resources being resigned to one central location, and then in turn distributed to individual nodes, it’s not hard to see how more efficient distribution is achieved; but what about servicing it? This is yet another one of the great facets of cloud computing, its ability increase the effectiveness of IT. Because cloud computing is so highly centralized, there is no need for IT personnel to make constant trips around their company to deal with issues. This is because all the individual “systems” or “machines” are virtualized; now IT workers can basically do their job without having to leave their department.

Green clouds
All of the aforementioned items make cloud computing the ideal candidate for those organizations who are looking to both upgrade their technology, abilities, assets, and perhaps even become aligned with the green movement. The theory and application of cloud technology has been proven to be useful and highly efficient, all that’s left if implementation.

The solution for your organization
Having said that, the biggest stumbling block facing the green cloud movement is a lack of knowledge and/or experience in cloud computing itself. That’s right; the only thing standing between increased technological potential and significantly reduced energy expenditures is perhaps a lack of qualified personnel. Luckily, this is easily remedied with cloud computing training and certification.

Not only are most e-learning programs for cloud computing certification affordable, they’re also one of the easier ways to familiarize an entire IT team with cloud technologies (as quickly as possible). Additionally, these programs are often designed by true experts in the field who really know how to teach the subject matter in order to facilitate true comprehension. A great number of businesses these days are increasingly turning toward various cloud computing foundation programs (which teach the basic fundamentals). If that’s not incentive enough to jump on the cloud bandwagon, you should also know that there are deep discounts available for group licenses (group rate discounts).

ITIL Foundation Certificate – GET YOURS HERE

ITIL Intermediate Certificate – GET YOURS HERE

ITIL Foundation Certificate – GET YOURS HERE

ITIL Intermediate Certificate – GET YOURS HERE

What does a CAB (change advisory board) do in the context of ITIL service transition?

There is no such thing as infallible infrastructure; this line of thinking applies directly to IT as well as many other examples from the real world. Even the most thoroughly contemplated design or system is going to require some level(s) of adaptation at some point, even if it is only on a minute scale. This is because the world is dynamic and always shifting in many different directions. At the same time, newer (and perhaps better) technologies are always in development; which once again, requires some kind of adaptation on the part of the IT community.

What does all of this talk of change have to do with ITIL, you ask?  
As you well know (hopefully), ITIL is the pre-eminent resource for methodologies concerning the maintenance and improvement of IT infrastructure, it too (the ITIL) is often subject to the whims of change and sudden progress. But this isn’t about alterations that are to be made to the ITIL itself necessarily (although that is a concern), this is about how organizations that are using ITIL to facilitate a service transition will / can interface with what is know as a CAB.

CAB stands for change advisory board; it is the duty of this specially elected board to oversee that major (and sometimes minor) changes are in fact beneficial to both an IT group and its related business constituency. Whenever some form of request for change is put forth, the change advisory board attempts to look at all the mitigating factors and/or fallout from enacting said changes. The goal here is not only to minimize potential losses in favor of gains, but also to ensure that other areas (which are functioning properly / sufficiently) aren’t negatively impacted. Additionally, it is the job of the CAB to ensure that any changes that are to be put forth are scheduled in such a manner as to not impair ongoing work/production in other areas.

Who is / might be a member of a CAB?
As you might expect, key members of an IT department as well as those in seats of authority on the business side of things are featured members of a change advisory board; but third parties are also often asked to participate, for various reasons. If, for example, suppliers are featured participants of a change advisory board, it is usually because their role in an organization’s business operation is fairly significant. It is very important to have a diverse group of individuals (from virtually all sectors of an institution) presiding on a CAB simply because this allows for more thorough collection of potential missteps (that may occur do to enacted changes).

According to what is generally written (with regards to the ITIL lifecycle), the purpose of service transition is to essentially update elements of one’s IT infrastructure to meet new business demands or goals. However, despite its seemingly simple definition, service transition can be a difficult and sometimes tricky situation to navigate, particularly if your organization is reliant on certain elements which are being addressed / upgraded.

How important is a Change Advisory Board?  
If a change advisory board isn’t properly doing its job the entire IT and business operation is at serious risk; this is especially true for those institutions who are more or less solely reliant on the consistent delivery of IT services / assets (on a daily basis). Given that service transition is another facet of instituting an ITIL service-lifecycle scenario, it should also go without saying that members of any CAB should be well-versed in (at the very least) basic knowledge of the foundations of ITIL.

This of course brings us to yet another vitally important question; are you or your IT department ITIL certified / trained?

The purpose of familiarizing oneself with ITIL is to gain additional insight into the best practices for servicing and / or improving upon elements of IT infrastructure. Aside from any increased knowledge or understanding you might gain from formally undertaking study of ITIL, there are other real-world benefits to consider, such as promotions and salary increases.

Regardless of how any one person or group might feel about ITIL, the fact of the matter is that it is one of the absolute best references for IT professionals, and as such, should become common knowledge and intrinsic to how operations are carried out. Likewise, elements of IT infrastructure are going to have to be changed and/or upgraded from time to time, given that ITIL has a system which is specially designed to help facilitate this type of “service transition” doesn’t it make prudent sense to utilize it?  However, as previously stated, before that can happen team members need to be onboard the “ITIL express train”, so to speak.

If you’re looking for top-quality personal ITIL 2011 certification / training, or perhaps looking to purchase multiple course licenses at discount rates, then click here.