MSPmentor

Over on the official Google Enterprise Blog, the search giant announced Google Apps Migration for Microsoft Exchange, a server-side tool that migrates contacts, messages, and calendars from Microsoft Exchange to Google Apps. The migration tool is similar to offerings from Open-Xchange, Zimbra and other email upstarts. What comes next for VARs and MSPs? Here are some thoughts.

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From the South by Southwest (SXSW) convention in Austin, Texas this past weekend comes some interesting Google chatter as researcher and general social media expert Danah Boyd explained where Google Buzz went wrong and left its user base scratching its heads. Here’s what she had to say, and what services providers can learn.

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For skeptics, Google Apps represents consumer-oriented SaaS applications that aren’t really designed for enterprises. But poke your head inside the new Google Apps Marketplace, and you’ll begin to see just how serious Google is when it comes to pushing SaaS deeper into businesses. Here are some observations for managed services providers who are trying to decide whether to cooperate  — or compete — with Google Apps.

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In a blog post, Google has announced that Google Apps — the software-as-a-service collaborative productivity suite — is now fully disaster-proof and ready to instantly restore data lost in the event of a catastrophe. Here’s why their braggadocio has some IT pros seeing red.

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There’s high-level support for cloud computing in the government space so, unsurprisingly, vendors are following the money. The latest to do so is Microsoft. The company this week rolled out a federal-specific version of its Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS).  And you can bet Google and Amazon Web Services will be making some federal cloud moves as well. Here are some of the details and implications.

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I live in New York City, but I suspect that Mountain View (California) is the real city that never sleeps, as Google announces six Gmail features have graduated from Google Labs and are now fully supported in all versions of Google Apps. Here’s what’s new.

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From the what-will-they-think-of-next files: Search giant Google has gotten the all-clear to sell energy like a utility through newly-formed subsidiary (what else) Google Energy. Even more shockingly, there may well be implications for the IT channel. Here’s why.

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Can you afford to ignore seven million college students who will ultimately enter the workforce? That’s the question facing MSPs who overlook the fact that more than 7 million college students now leverage Google Apps. Another key question: Can MSPs learn anything from the Google Apps sales pitch? A new Google Apps Education Edition CIO Road Trip may provide some answers.

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Two bits of news out of the Googleplex today: first, Google Apps is now sporting a cloud copy-and-paste clipboard designed to make moving data between applications easier. Second, TechCrunch is reporting that Google Calendar may be getting a facelift. Here are some quick observations.

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As predicted, last week Google launched Buzz, a Gmail-native social network built to potentially compete with Facebook and Twitter. Unfortunately for the search giant, some excited users seem to have turned sour on Buzz because Google is still sorting out the systems’ privacy and  usability features. Here are some perspectives.

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If the rumors are to be believed, Google’s Gmail is getting a Twitter-like status update feed as early as this week. Here’s the scoop.

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Google is pushing ever so slightly into the remote management market. Specifically, enterprise administrators can now use Google Apps to remotely manage a growing number of smart phones — like the Apple iPhone, Nokia E series, and Windows Mobile devices. Here’s how.

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Yes, you likely know the City of Los Angeles is making a big move to Google Apps. But week after week, Google also seems to be promoting school district wins, too. For MSPs serving the education vertical, studying up on Google Apps is now a requirement. Here’s why.

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Thousands of MSPs and VARs flock to traditional technology events each year — from the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) to the Cisco Partner Summit. I still find those events valuable. But I’ve also penciled in a new event on my calendar: The Google I/O conference. The reason: Google will start to describe how partners can become Google Wave Service Providers (GWSPs). Here are the details.

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The rumors and speculation were all correct. VMware today acquired an open source email specialist — Zimbra — from Yahoo. If you’re a managed service provider that’s still sorting out your virtualization and SaaS email strategies then VMware’s move is worth following. Here’s why.

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Microsoft’s BPOS (Business Productivity Online Suite) team is bolstering its SaaS training options for channel partners. The effort includes learning tools, delivery support and technical support options for VARs and managed services providers. Here’s a look.

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It started in 2007: New Mind Group, purveyors of managed services to SMBs in the greater Kalamazoo, Mich. area, began to run into severe scalability issues with traditional Microsoft Exchange installations. As businesses grew, so did their computing needs, but they didn’t have the money or facilities to grow proportionately. That’s when New Mind Group decided to help blaze a trail now being followed by the city of Los Angeles and go to Google Apps.

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Where is SaaS (software as a service) heading next? Go visit a local college campus — where more and more universities and education centers are embracing Google Apps. The latest example involves the University of Southern Mississippi. For MSPs that are still studying the SaaS game, Google’s moves in the education market are worth noting. Here’s why.

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The City of Los Angeles has finalized its decision to migrate its 30,000 city employees from their existing GroupWise e-mail system to Google Apps, according to the official Google Enterprise blog. Yes, we’ve previously covered the deal, But there’s still plenty for MSPs to learn from this deployment. One example: City of Los Angeles CTO Randi Levin says the project will cut the municipality’s electricity bills by nearly $750,000 over five years. Here’s an update.

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Intermedia and Ingram Micro Seismic are marching forward with their plans to offer Hosted Exchange 2010 to managed service providers. The move comes as many VARs and MSPs continue to sort out their SaaS (software as a service) strategies for Microsoft applications.

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Anecdotal evidence suggests Google Apps is starting to catch on with managed service providers. A case in point: Roughly 16 percent of MSPs completing our third-annual MSPmentor 100 survey say they are offering Google Apps to their customers. How has Google built a following among MSPs? The answer is pretty simple.

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When Google takes the stage at the ConnectWise Partner Summit, channel manager Jeff Ragusa will deliver a key message: The managed services market is poised to expand beyond infrastructure management to application management. Regardless of your stance on Google Apps, Ragusa’s message is dead-on: It’s time for MSPs to figure out their application management strategies.

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Microsoft is slashing some SaaS prices by 33 percent, confirming a scoop from TheVARGuy.com earlier today. Sources close to Microsoft say this is the start of a SaaS price war with Google Apps, with VARs and MSPs potentially getting squeezed. But Microsoft is reminding reporters that more than 7,000 partners are building SaaS practices around Microsoft Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), Exchange Online and SharePoint Online, among other offerings. Here’s the updated report from The VAR Guy.

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