Site Updates, plus a Sun Eco Connection demo

We've moved the Sun Alerts notifications and Patch Reports RSS feeds off the Fresh Tools tab and into the Service / Support tab.

If you are already subscribed to these feeds no action is necessary -- you'll continue to receive updates.

For those of you who haven't yet subscribed, we've made it easier than ever. Just click on the Services / Support tab after logging in to My Sun Connection, and you'll find the XML links readily available in the SunSolve Patches portlet:

Expect to see more exciting uses of RSS on My Sun Connection in the months to come.

Staying Cool this Summer

A Google engineer recently warned that Power could cost more than servers. It's no joke - spiraling power consumption strains budgets through high energy costs, and stresses data centers with additional cooling requirements. The environmental impact should be considered, too.

Sun is doing a lot to stay ahead of rising energy consumption with innovative products like Sun Fire Servers with CoolThreads Technology, and Sun Ray 2 desktops that sip an amazing 4 watts of power -- that's less than a nightlight!

Another step in the right direction is The Sun Eco Connection, a service that helps manage overall power consumption of Sun systems in a data center environment.

You can easily view heat and power consumption metrics at the component, system, and datacenter level. Here is an example graph showing CPU temperature:

And, another graph plotting power consumption for a power supply:

We've got a demo of The Sun Eco Connection you can check out. Just log in and click the Fresh Tools tab.

Lastly, we've noted sporadic issues logging in to the portal and selecting tabs.
Please Contact Sun if you encounter any problems.

Discovering the Aquarium, A GlassFish Community

A community is a place where people come to discuss like interests, meet new friends, and support one another. On My Sun Connection, we actively promote online communities by featuring discussions on the Sun Developer Network, a buzzing, thriving site where Sun engineers contribute daily.

We're always on the lookout for new communities of folks using Sun products and technologies, and we've discovered a beauty — The Aquarium.

Based on GlassFish, a free, open source application server using Java technology, the Aquarium is a group blog, with writing and editing duties shared by several contributors.

The Aquarium is a great place to learn about:

• Open Source
  
• Application Servers
  
• Java EE 5
  
• J2EE, Web Services
  
• XML
  
• Java WSDP
  
• AJAX
  
• Databases
  
• Blueprints
  

User tagging, or folksonomy, where normal human beings get decide how to label and organize things, is popular on The Aquarium. The site is updated regularly with new entries, with tags you can use to explore topics and learn something new and different.

The site claims it has "nothing to do with fish." That may be so, but I'm sure many developers will be easily "hooked" by all the useful tutorials, tips, downloads and stories found on The Aquarium.

Feeds and Speeds

RSS, famously known as "real simple syndication," is everywhere.

Those little orange XML and RSS buttons are becoming ubiquitous on many sites, and My Sun Connection is no exception. By subscribing to an RSS feed, you can obtain the latest updates from your favorite web sites, without having to log in to the site directly.

When new content is available, it arrives in your RSS-enabled client in a simple, summarized form.

We're excited about delivering content to you in RSS, because it's a great way to help keep you up-to-date and informed. An example is the Sun Alerts feed--important notifications about patches to correct issues affecting system availability and security.

We're encouraged by the number of folks who have subscribed, and we're looking forward to doing a lot more with RSS on My Sun Connection, too.

If you're interested in using RSS to deliver news, updates and other content to your customers and partners, or just want to learn more, check out these resources:

• RSS: Lightweight Web Syndication is an excellent overview of RSS.
  
• The RSS DevCenter is a collection of articles related to RSS.
  
• RSS Tutorial for Content Publishers and Webmasters is a good brief technical overview
  

The Cure for App Envy?

Ever get a bad case of app envy, where you wish you could run that "killer app" but couldn't because your computer was under-powered or worst yet, unsupported by the developer?

Or, have you dealt with requests for new or non-standard equipment because a user can't function without that one critical (but unsupported) application?

I know I have. As a writer, I'm always on the look out for tools to help me organize ideas. I got excited when a colleague showed me a mind mapping application, only to be let down when I learned it was Windows only.

I may have found the answer. Sun Secure Global Desktop lets you run Windows apps in a Java-technology enabled Web browser. Better yet, it does Linux, and Solaris apps, too.

Here's a screen shot of the Sun Secure Global Desktop interface:

And, a picture of a Windows app running in my Web browser:

Interested? You can give it a try yourself right now using the online demo.

And, you can always learn more about Sun Secure Global Desktop using the links to forums, blogs and other resources on My Sun Connection.