Vendors: N+I Online!; IBM; NetWare; 3Com; Strategic Networks Consulting; Novell; Microsoft; Cisco; General DataComm; Digital Equipment; NetVantage; Cabletron; Ethernet; GTE Corp.; Interphase; Newbridge; Networks; Pacific Bell; StrataCom Inc; UB Networks Inc.; U.S. West; Intel; Network General; Frontier Software Development; Xircom; Silicom; Megahertz; Shiva;
NetWorld+Interop
By Kimberly Maxwell
Special to Government Technology
Amidst slot machines and gambling tables, more than 600 companies and 50,000 networking professionals gathered to display, evaluate and discuss interoperability wares at this spring's NetWorld+Interop show in the Las Vegas Convention Center. NetWorld+Interop was the first networking trade show interactively available on the Internet. The service - called "N+I Online!" - provided exhibitor and conference information during and after the event. The intent of N+I Online was to allow attendees to discover how the Internet is evolving.
Attendees visited vendor booths on the trade show floor, and participated in conferences that included some of the original Internet developers, technology inventors and leading reference authors. Some of the more popular conferences were IBM's OS/2 Seminar Series, Network Analysis Forum `95 and the NetWare User Conference.
In addition to the conferences, hands-on classroom-type opportunities were available. One of the most popular was the Internet Classroom where attendees could gain a better understanding of Internet access, features and benefits. The networking sessions provided the basics of networking to help those who are not as experienced with the technology.
There were also Product Presentation Theatres that took place throughout the three-day show. These gave attendees an opportunity to ask vendors questions about their products as well as their plans and strategies for the future. More than 150 vendors gave 50-minute presentations to attendees over the three-day period.
KEYNOTES
Keynoters included David Dorman, president and CEO of Pacific Bell, and Eric Benhamou, president and CEO of 3Com Corp.
Dorman discussed the inevitable and imperative move from LANs to wide-area connectivity. Benhamou spoke about the impact of the information superhighway on the global economy. Nicholas J. Lippis, president and founder of Strategic Networks Consulting Inc., described a new order emerging within the computer networking industry. He stated that the entire global computer networking industry is now ready to enter the mass consumer marketplace because of the recent infiltration of operating system vendors bundling Internet and commercial online service software.
WHAT'S HOT
The World Wide Web was one of the most talked-about topics of the show. Companies are providing user front-ends for creating, publishing, and maintaining home pages on the Web.
Home pages are created using what's known as HTML (HyperText Markup Language). A home page is used to represent a company's image and to produce an effective means of combining marketing, public relations, technology and creative talents. Some Web home pages already created can be used to browse an entire selection of book titles, order them by dragging them into a stylized shopping bag, search a database of all the bookstores in the U.S. and even listen to audio clips of particular book titles.
Novell - one of the world's largest network operating system software providers - and Microsoft, the world's largest computer operating system provider were in head-to-head competition as information systems decision makers compared NetWare and Windows NT to see which of the two was better for delivering multimedia applications to the desktop. Attendees also swarmed the Novell booth to find out Novell's plans for NDS (NetWare Directory Services) and its integration with third-party applications and NetWare Embedded Systems Technologies (NEST). NEST allows vendors that manufacture products such as fax machines or printers to run on NetWare even though they don't have the processing power to run on a NetWare LAN.
ROUTING AND SWITCHING CONVERGE
Switched network technologies covered the show floor. Companies such as Cisco, General DataComm, Digital Equipment, NetVantage, Cabletron and others touted their switching wares, announced new products, and made everyone at the show feel as though switched network products were as important to enterprise networking as peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are to kindergartners.
The switches being introduced at the show ranged from LAN to WAN. ATM, and Token Ring switches were announced. Overall, however, Ethernet switches took the limelight. A partial reason for Ethernet switch popularity is that they are displacing shared hubs in work groups. Another reason is their falling prices. All this means a true convergence of routing and switching, according to some industry experts.
ATM TECHNOLOGY
Although ATM - a cell switching technology - has been touted as mostly hype in the past, this trade show proved that ATM is a technology that should be taken seriously by IS managers. In fact, NetWorld+Interop was the site of the ATM Forum's annual meeting
ATM was the center of many announcements on the show floor. Still, ATM carries a high price tag causing few organizations to actually purchase and use the product. Some of the companies making announcements regarding ATM were GTE Corp., Interphase, Newbridge, Networks, Pacific Bell, StrataCom Inc, UB Networks Inc. and U.S. West.
MULTIMEDIA AT THE DESKTOP
Multimedia seems to play an important role in most trade shows these days, and it was no different at NetWorld+Interop. It seems the common concern for most integrators is how internetworking technologies such as switched LANs, Fast Ethernet and ATM can support multimedia applications to the desktop. This is one area where IS managers have been stonewalled in making decisions on whether they should change their infrastructure to handle the bandwidth and extra network traffic.
To solve the problem, vendors are saying IS managers should consider collaborative data sharing to be an option, but in most cases users at the end of the line don't work in collaborative work environments.
MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
As with most NetWorld+Interop shows, there were new products for help desks, desktop management and network design covering the show floor. Microsoft's release of Systems Management Server gathered attention from many spectators, as did the joint announcement from Novell and Intel of their Managewise, an integrated server, desktop and network infrastructure. Companies such as Network General and Frontier Software Development showed their network design and analysis software.
The buzz around some of the more routine management software applications was how network managers will bring all of their applications under one management umbrella. Managers want a way to use and exchange management data between applications. One of the ways managers will be able to bring their applications together is through the use of network management platforms based on objects. This will help decrease the time and labor it will take to manage a network.
PORTABILITY: A MUST
Linking portable computers, notebooks, PDAs and palmtops to the rest of the network - whether on-site or remotely - was fascinating to explore on the trade show floor. Companies such as Xircom, Silicom, and Megahertz introduced or displayed their versions of PCMCIA modems, LAN cards and LAN/modem combo card adapters.
Remote access was another favored term at the show. Over 30 vendors provided their solutions for remote computer users to dial up their corporate LANs and WANs. Because more corporate workers are traveling and working at home, IS managers are searching for effective ways for their workers to still stay linked to their corporate networks. At NetWorld+Interop this year, they were able to see the newest generation of solutions with Shiva, Microsoft, and Novell to name just a few.
According to Interop Co. Chairman and Founder Dan Lynch, NetWorld+Interop show was a success this spring, and there are plans to increase the number of shows.
Kimberly Maxwell has written hundreds of articles and several books relating to connectivity and communications. She is the author of "The Modem Coach." She lives in Tucson, Ariz.
