IBM has managed to create a carbon nanotube transistor that is more powerful than silicon, and even smaller than it’s predecessor. When it comes to processors and transistors, silicon is the material of choice. The problem however is that once it reaches it’s physical limit, it no longer works and will just fizz off.

That limit is 11nm (nanometers) and scientists have been working on ways of either fixing that, or finding an alternative. Intel has also been doing much research into this area as they’re a top seller of processors.

Via ExtremeTech:

“IBM has demonstrated a nine nanometer (9nm) carbon nanotube transistor (CNT) — the smallest CNT ever made, and significantly smaller than any commercial silicon transistor. At 9nm, IBM’s transistor is also smaller than the physical limit of silicon transistors, which is around 11nm.”

“Beyond its diminutive size, the 9nm CNT is capable of switching at very low voltages (0.5V), thus consuming less power than its silicon counterparts — but it can also carry four times as much current, meaning a better signal quality and a wider range of applications.”

The benefit of this is very clear: More powerful connections and the ability to go incredibly small means far more powerful processors. Using this carbon nanotube transistor, albeit is a very long ways away, will allow for next generation processing.

While what we currently have now is very fast and impressive, what we’ll have in a decade (or less) will be many times beyond that.

Is IBM onto something here?

IBM Creates Transistor That Is Smaller And More Powerful Than Silicon is a post from: The Inquisitr

Data storage is always a topic of conversation when it comes to computers, laptops, tablets, and especially servers. IBM scientists are looking at a new experimental storage technique called magnetic memory.

With this new technique, they’ve figured out how to make it 100 times denser than hard drive storage already on the market which means that this could potentially pack in 100 times more storage in the same size.

Imagine something the size of a typical hard drive, but with the storage of 100TB or more. Very intriguing and could revolutionize data storage as we currently know it.

Via IBM:

“By taking a novel approach and beginning at the smallest unit of data storage, the atom, scientists demonstrated magnetic storage that is at least 100 times denser than today’s hard disk drives and solid state memory chips. Future applications of nanostructures built one atom at a time, and that apply an unconventional form of magnetism called antiferromagnetism, could allow people and businesses to store 100 times more information in the same space. ”

“The chip industry will continue its pursuit of incremental scaling in semiconductor technology but, as components continue to shrink, the march continues to the inevitable end point: the atom. We’re taking the opposite approach and starting with the smallest unit — single atoms — to build computing devices one atom at a time.” said Andreas Heinrich, the lead investigator into atomic storage at IBM Research – Almaden, in California.”

Very exciting research and if IBM can pull if off in a reliable package, we could see our next generation of data storage.

We Could Store 100 Times More Data With ‘Magnetic Memory’ Says IBM Scientists is a post from: The Inquisitr

In the World of tech patents, Google scored a big win today with the acquisition of 217 patents from IBM. Patent wars have been heating up the last couple years, most notably with Apple and their never ending quest of going after mobile phone manufacturers.

Of the 217 patents that Google acquired, 188 were granted while the other 29 are still pending. Below is a small example of the kinds of patents from IBM:

• NFC (Near Field Communication)
• Mobile advertising
• Rendering web pages on mobile devices
• Voice search
• Update delivery for mobile operating systems
• Reducing load on wireless networks
• VOIP

Google has been very proactive in acquiring tech patents, especially with the acquisition of Motorola Mobility, the mobile division of Motorola. From the $12.5 Billion deal, they also received a whopping 17,000 patents with, at the time back in August, 7,500 pending.

Going forward, this means a number of things for Google. For one, they have better security when it comes to patent lawsuits and potential issues in that aspect. Also, it gives them the ability to leverage existing patents, patents that they have, for their own use in Android and other products, without any possible conflicts.

As mobile and technology as a whole continues to grow, the number of lawsuits continue to grow as well. Having a strategy such as Google, that is being proactive and acquiring things of such value, is very smart and will help them cover their bases as time goes on. Google has been known for their innovation and these patents will likely be put to good use.

Google Acquires Over 200 IBM Patents, Covers Multiple Technologies is a post from: The Inquisitr

IBM stocks were down at the close of the market on Tuesday as other tech stocks witnessed gains. The disappointing results which saw stock prices fall by 3 percent came after the company posted lower than expected Q3 earnings.

Analysts had expected IBM to post earnings between $12 billion to $13 billion while the company posted $12.3 billion. The company’s overall revenue increased by 8 percent to $26.2 billion, just shy of analysts expectations at $26.26 billion.

Keith Wirtz, chief investment officer for Fifth Third Asset Management told The Star:

“We’re in the early stages of third-quarter earnings season and everyone’s looking at top-line numbers to see any evidence of the economic slowdown working its way into financial results.”

“All the news on macro has been negative. At what point does it creep into the company numbers? We’re still seeing above-average results.”

While the company took a hit on Tuesday its steady stream of revenue has allowed IBM to increase their share prices by 28 percent this year when compared to the Standard & Poor 500 index’s 4 percent slip.

For investors IBM with their emphasis on both hardware and software has remained a good bet as their data centers and internet technologies continue to witness a growing market with higher demands for their products. In comparison to the full-year 2010 IBM said their revenue from cloud company had doubled in the first nine months of 2011.

It should be noted that IBM has been consistently beating market expectations and in Q2 2011 they surged by 16 percent.

For the full-year diluted earnings forecast IBM on Monday raised their per share expectations to $13.35, up from a prior call at $13.25.

Do you think IBM’s tech stock is a sound bet in a struggling economy?

IBM Stock Slumps As Other Tech Stocks Make Gains, But There’s No Reason For Concern is a post from: The Inquisitr

It hasn’t been the best 12 months for Microsoft, first Apple, Inc. surpasses them as the world’s “most valuable” tech company and now former #1 IBM has taken away their #2 ranking.

According to market value IBM has reached $214 billion while Microsoft fell to $213.2 billion. The valuation difference marks the first time since 1996 that IBM is considered more valuable than Microsoft.

According to analyst’s the movement shows that the industry has begun to shift away from personal computing, a major chunk of Microsoft’s focus. IBM got out of the PC business six years ago and now focuses mostly on software and services for corporations and government entities.

Apple according to the report is still the most valuable tech company in the world thanks to their iPhones, iPads and iPods along with a strengthening desktop and laptop market.

In the meantime Microsoft has failed to offer any real penetration in the Smartphone market or cloud computing sectors, both seen as critical as users move away from traditional computing to a more “connected” environment. Even Google has recognized the need to reinvent the traditional operating system through their Google Chrome OS.

Microsoft in recent months has begun to focus much of their effort on what is expected to be a very tablet friendly Windows 8 operating system that comes complete with touch friendly functions and a user interface that more closely resembles offerings from Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android systems.

Do you think Microsoft can regain their footing and once again begin offering consumers the type of products they want and need?

IBM Boots Microsoft Out Of #2 Tech Spot is a post from: The Inquisitr

Technology stocks

Following the Dow Jones Industrial Average’s 272 point jump – the biggest point gain since Sept. 7 and fourth-largest rally of the year – on Monday, the blue-chip index once again surged 250 points, or 2.3%, to 11294. The last time the Dow registered back-to-back gains of 200 points or more was in December 2008.

The index is up more than 5% since plunging 391 points last Thursday.

H-P’s shares set the pace, gaining 7%, while IBM rose 2.8%, Intel added 3.2% and Cisco moved up 2%.

Other tech-sector components that helped the blue-chip rally included Oracle Corp. (Up 2.63%), Google Inc. (Up 2.64%) and Dell Inc.(+4.54%).

In addition to the Dow gains, the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index rallied 26 points and the Nasdaq Composite also shot up 56 points to 2573.

According to reports by the Wall Street Journal, the U.S. market rally follows sharp gains in overseas markets amid reports of a potential expansion of the European Financial Stability Facility as well as plans for the European Union to aggressively recapitalize its banks. European shares were broadly higher.

“This activity represents an elimination of something between a panic and high levels of pessimism” among investors, said Morris Mark, president of Mark Asset Management. “There seems to be a real commitment on the part of leadership in European countries, financial institutions and the European Central Bank to solve the problems. But until we see definitive outcomes, you just don’t know what’s going to happen.”

via MarketWatch

Technology Stocks Join Broader Market Rally is a post from: The Inquisitr

The move to launch the center comes on the heels of a statement made by IBM’s CFO Mark Loughridge last week in which he stated that nearly 30% of the company’s revenue growth is expected to come from emerging markets by 2015. That number is a 9% increase when compared against 2010 numbers and up 11% from 2000.

According to AllThingD’s Arik Hesseldahl:

The new center will ramp up in April, first offering IBM’s infrastructure as a service (IaaS) that’s aimed at supporting an environment development and test activities.

Let the cloud wars rage on.

IBM Expanding Cloud Service Support and Development With $38 Million Singapore Data Center is a post from: The Inquisitr

In February IBM’s Watson Supercomputer will take on Jeopardy heavyweight champions Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter during several rounds of the popular game show and this week the first test round has proven that Watson is no contender to scoff at.

You may recall that IBM’s “Deep Blue” supercomputer took on chess champion Garry Kasparov, one of the first tests to show the analytical skills of IBM’s machines. Just like the Kasparov competition, Watson will be forced to analyze answers in real time, choose to buzz in based on the analytical skills of it’s system and then answer the question.

During an early test round not a single question was answered incorrectly with Watson answering in a computer voice, while using color codes to show it’s certainty of the answer being given.

The match wasn’t a total loss for Ken and Brad. Jennings ended with $3,400, while Rutter finished with $1,200. Watson ended the test trial with $4,400.

The test trial was missing Double Jeopardy and Final Jeopardy and Watson does require approximately three seconds to make a decision which means Ken and Brad do have time to buzz in quickly and hope for the best.

One cool part of the Watson program, he shows his most likely three answers and then rates them as he answers, allowing audience members to see how Watson operates in real-time.

According to Engadget, this is how Watson comes up with answers:

While Watson’s ability to understand questions, buzz in, and give a correct answer might seem very human-like, the actual tech behind Watson (dubbed “DeepQA” by IBM) is very computer-ey. Watson has thousands of algorithms it runs on the questions it gets, both for comprehension and for answer formulation. The thing is, instead of running these sequentially and passing along results, Watson runs them all simultaneously and compares all the myriad results at the end, matching up a potential meaning for the question with a potential answer to the question. The algorithms are backed up by vast databases, though there’s no active connection to the internet — that seems like it would be cheating, in Jeopardy terms.

In other news, we’re one step closer to complete computer domination.

IBM’s Watson Supercomputer Wins Jeopardy Practice Round is a post from: The Inquisitr

See that keyboard up there?

Apparently it’s a very rare IBM M15 ‘split’ ergonomic keyboard. Only a small number of them were made over a short span of time (1994 – 1995) where new ones sold for around $179, unless you got the optional number keypad which would drive the price up to $199.

These things are so rare that when one hits eBay it’s a rather big deal it seems even though the starting bid was only $29.95.

How big of a deal you ask?

Well the current bid in the lead is $1,625 with four days left in the auction, and the thing is the keyboard isn’t even in primo shape as you can see from the picture.

Time to start checking those computer parts bins in your closet eh.

via Geek.com

Rare IBM keyboard driving open wallets on eBay is a post from: The Inquisitr

That’s right folks it’s the IBM 5100 the ultimate portable computer that you can plug in anywhere as long as you don’t mind lugging around 50 pounds of electronic hardware and have plenty of tapes.

Thanks to Sean P. Aune from TechnoBuffalo for this trip down memory lane.

The 50 pound portable computer is a post from: The Inquisitr

Oracle’s Sun Acquisition

Oracle will pay about $7.1 billion for Sun. That comes out to $9.50 a share — more than IBM’s $9.40 a share offer last month. Altogether, the transaction is valued at $5.6 billion, taking into account various debts. Sun’s board has given unanimous approval for the deal. It still requires a shareholder sign-off, however, as well as regulatory approval to go through.

Oracle and Sun have been partners for more than 20 years, with Oracle’s Fusion Middleware being built on Sun’s Java protocol and its database business using Sun’s Solaris operating system.

Oracle execs believe the deal will add a minimum of 15 cents a share to the company’s earnings, a projected gain of $1.5 billion in the first year. Already, Sun’s shares were up 36 percent in premarket trading. Oracle’s shares dropped 4.5 percent, while IBM went down by only about 1 percent.

Oracle-Sun Acquisition Analysis

The following Bloomberg video features more analysis on the Oracle-Sun acquisition and what it could mean for the market.

Sorry, IBM: Oracle Buys Sun Microsystems is a post from: The Inquisitr

IBM has withdrawn its $7 billion takeover offer for Sun Microsystems after the Sun board balked at a reduced offer.

According to the New York Times, IBM shaved its offer Saturday from $9.55 a share to $9.40 a share after issues rose in due-diligence. The Sun board did not reject the offer, but wanted certain guarantees that IBM considered onerous. Sun is also said to have told IBM that it would no longer abide by its exclusive negotiating agreement, forcing IBM’s hand.

Sun (NASDAQ:JAVA) stocks closed at $8.49 Friday, up from a 52 week low of $2.60. The stock traded at $4.97 prior to the takeover offered being disclosed, and may well return to similar levels when trading opens in New York on Monday.

Cloudy days: IBM’s $7 billion takeover of Sun withdrawn is a post from: The Inquisitr

The new round of layoffs, expected to be formally announced Thursday, represent about 4% of IBM’s US based workforce of approx. 115,000 people, according to the Wall Street Journal. This is the second round of cuts this year for IBM, having cut thousands of jobs back in January.

The controversial aspect will be the offshoring; IBM has a big presence in India and has previously replaced US workers with workers based in India who demand far lower wages. It’s believed that many of the jobs being cut this week will also shift to India, although the exact number isn’t known.

(img: Businessweek)

IBM Layoffs: 5000 US workers to go, jobs shifting to India is a post from: The Inquisitr

IBM Sun Takeover

If an IBM-Sun takeover happens, it could come at a price of $6.5 billion, the unnamed insiders are quoted as saying. That’d be a massive premium over Sun’s $4.97-a-share closing price Tuesday evening.

IBM may not be the only company in the runnings, though: Sun is said to have informally chatted with numerous other companies about a possible purchase.

Adding credit to the idea is a separate report in The New York Times today, citing another source as saying a near-$7 billion IBM-Sun deal is on the way. The merger, The Times also points out, could face an antitrust challenge before its completion.

IBM currently has roughly double the annual research and development budget as Sun. Sun has approximately 1 million software developers writing applications on its platforms, compared to IBM’s stated 8 million. Sun also owns MySQL, an open source business for which it paid $1 billion back in 2008.

Sun has been financially unsound for some time, though. An IBM takeover would mark the largest-ever deal pulled off by International Business Machines.

Report: IBM Looking to Acquire Sun Microsystems is a post from: The Inquisitr

The list is the result of a nationwide survey of nearly 6,500 U.S. adults. The participants were asked which companies they thought best safeguarded their personal information.

Coming in top for the second consecutive year was American Express, followed by eBay, IBM, and Amazon. Apple, Yahoo, Microsoft, and HP all saw improved rankings from 2007 as well.

Here’s the full top 20 and how much they climbed/slipped from last year:

1. American Express (remained number one)
2. eBay (+6)
3. IBM (no change)
4. Amazon (+1)
5. Johnson & Johnson (+1)
6. Hewlett Packard (+10)
6. U.S. Postal Service (+1)
7. Procter & Gamble (+2)
8. Apple (new to the top 20)
9. Nationwide (remained the same)
10. Charles Schwab (-8)
11. USAA (+4)
12. Intuit (+7)
13. WebMD (-1)
14. Yahoo! (new to the top 20)
15. Facebook (new to the top 20)
16. Disney (-1)
16. AOL (-12)
17. Verizon (new to the top 20)
18. FedEx (new to the top 20)
19. US Bank (-2)
20. Dell (-7)
20. eLoan (-9)

The 20 Most Trusted Companies For Privacy is a post from: The Inquisitr

For most of us it would probably be companies like DEC, Microsoft, Oracle or IBM affectionately known as Big Blue. For the younger generation these would probably be dinosaurs since for them anything before last month’s newest startup would be considered old.

This new generation who tout the powers of things like social media, blogging and Twittering as the greatest thing to happen since .. well since Microsoft got slapped by the DoJ look upon the relics of the industry as leftovers who will never be able to make it in this new world. Unfortunately they could be in for a really big shock because some of these so-called relics are coming out of their slumber and they are proving that they can be just as hungry and these little upstarts littering the cyber landscape.

Such is the case of Big Blue; or for you youngsters out ther – IBM. Even though they are laden down with legacy crap like Lotus Notes they are beginning to make some very serious moves into the … are you youngsters sitting down? … into the social media field. they are doing this in any small way either. Yes they have have many employees who have been blogging and the such for some time but recently they launched a corporate backed blog called The Greater IBM Connection which is a group blog effort of a bunch of really smart people at IBM.

It was on this blog that IBM announced a new initiative called Smarter Planet for which they will be utilizing the Tumblr platform

 

I wanted to share a quick link to a new site focused on IBM’s exciting new Smarter Planet initiative.

We’re trying out an innovative service called Tumblr that is a very easy way to share links, quotes, videos, images, audio and other content, a sort of spontaneous form that the creators call a “tumblelog.” You can check it out here:

http://smarterplanet.tumblr.com/

The goal to highlight the many different ways that this smarter world is emerging in areas such as intelligent energy grids, transportation systems, healthcare and the environment, to name a few.

 

However they aren’t just stopping there either for they have set up a Smarter Planet room on FriendFeed. All this from a company that I would bet most of the Web 2.0 upstarts have written off as a leftover from a day gone by.

Well if there is a lesson you should be learning from this it is never ever count us old timers out cause we could just come back to bite you on the ass as we move pass you in the incredible technology race we are all a part of.

Even old dogs like IBM can learn new tricks is a post from: The Inquisitr

IBM has opened access to Bluehouse, a “Facebook for business” service based on IBM’s Lotus Foundations.

Bluehouse offers regular social networking tools, tailored to corporate use, including web conferencing, instant messaging, document sharing, directory, profiles, all delivered via the web.

Sean Poulley, vice president of IBM’s online collaboration services told Computerworld that “Bluehouse will allow people to quickly create a collaborative space, but unlike Facebook it has management features to ensure privacy and other controls that businesses want.”

The significance in a broader sense is IBM’s focus on Bluehouse as a “cloud utility.” IDC Analyst Frank Gens said that “Our view is that being able to provide software offerings through a cloud services model is the foundation for new growth for the industry…Bluehouse is Lotus moving much, if not most of what they do in a traditional software model, and putting it right out there in the cloud.”

Bluehouse will be offered for free during a testing period, with a subscription model to be implemented at a future date.

(thx to Mona for the tip)

IBM launches business social networking tool Bluehouse is a post from: The Inquisitr

VBusiness Expo is a regular virtual conference dedicated to corporate opportunities in virtual spaces run by Nick Wilson’s Clever Zebra.

The event is entirely hosted within virtual worlds (mostly Second Life), and brings together thought leaders and innovators from across the physical globe to discuss how virtual world technologies are being used in business. Over 170 companies and 511 people attended the first Expo in April, with leading companies such as Sun, IBM, Kelly Services and Gartner speaking on how virtual worlds are changing business.

The next vBusiness Expo is being held July the 29th to August 1st 2008. Attendees can expect to hear from companies “who have experimented in virtual worlds, discover the practical uses and opportunities available to them today, and how to take their first steps into the emergent 3D web.” Interesting content and a serious take on the opportunities virtual worlds provide.

VBusiness Expo Is Talking Virtual Worlds is a post from: The Inquisitr

The appropriately titled IBM Mashup Center will debut as a web-based program with a free trial. IBM claims anyone from corporations to “non-technical users” will be able to easily manage information with the software.

Mashup Center has been under beta status for about a month, with Boeing on-board as one of the initial testers. The public trial version is expected to launch at IBM’s Lotus Greenhouse site sometime in the next few weeks.

IBM Readies New Mashup Utility is a post from: The Inquisitr