As Novell acquired Ximian in August of this year and the integration of the two companies is now in full swing, you may not know all the reasons Novell decided to acquire a small Linux company. With several things in common, from product strategies to philosophies, The Ximian Play will help you understand why this acquisition makes perfect sense to Novell and its customers. Be sure to watch for the article in our January/February issue covering details of one of our Ximian products.  

Our customer focus in this issue is TRW Automotive, the world leader in automotive safety. Stacking up Profits tells you how Novell is a driving force behind saving TRW truckloads of money.  

With companies reaching in every direction to save money, several are giving access to legacy data and systems via Web portals...and implementing them with several partners simultaneously. In Serving Up the Proper Balance of Web Services read how you can save your company money too, with all of the Web services tools included in the recent release of NetWare 6.5.  

If you're one of those trying to stretch your dollars by putting legacy data and systems to work and partnering with other vendors to serve up Web services, take a look at Making Sure You Secure the Door. This article covers the new release of SecureLogin 3.5 and will help you make sure you're securing the doorways to the digital identities you want to access that information.  

You've probably heard the old riddle, "Why do they put fences around grave yards?" Obviously, "Because people are just dying to get in." In the same way, you've got to have that definite border around your Net because your competitors and customers are just dying to dig at your data. With Opening Up and Tying Down Remote Access Security read how BorderManager 3.8 can solve your firewall and virtual private network issues based on the roles and relationships people hold with your company.  

If you've spent countless hours managing and synchronizing identity information so your users can have appropriate access to network resources, a must read is Locking Down Identity and Password Management with The New DirXML: Identity Manager 2.0. This article spells out the logic as to why this product has been renamed with this new release and how it can simplify what some call "one of the worst tasks in the world."  

Finally, in Extend the Power of GroupWise...Automatically, BrainStorm Inc. shows how your users can implement Rules in GroupWise to automate tasks and keep their info organized. With these three simple tips, they'll begin to harness some of the power that GroupWise offers.  

Well, this issue completes 14 years for Novell Connection magazine (including NetWare Connection) and the first year of our new format. We've had great feedback all along the way, and we appreciate every bit of it. Keep your thoughts and ideas coming to editor@novell.com and stay tuned for another year of great content to help make your jobs easier.

Regards,

Bottom Line - The Ximian Play