Whereas Spirent's SmartBits, Abacus, and Avalanche/Reflector product lines have long remained entirely separate products, TestCenter's new direction is obviously to combine these tools, allowing them to communicate and even share test data across devices. Full-feature synergy isn't quite all here yet, but TestCenter is definitely a step in the right direction.

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Podcasts: Microsoft and Sun groom their OSes for 10 Gig

With 10 Gig making inroads into mainstream datacenters, we had to check and see how server OS vendors were responding to this fast new media. In the past, even when straight Gigabit Ethernet adapters were first introduced, operating systems simply weren't prepared to handle the increased bandwidth.

So we called Microsoft and Sun Microsystems to find out what specific features and capabilities Longhorn and Solaris have to take advantage of 10 Gig. Turns out, 10 Gig has been on both manufacturers' minds for quite some time. We had in-depth discussions with Ian Hameroff, senior product manager at Microsoft, and Darrin Johnson, Solaris engineering manager at Sun, and we recorded those conversations for your listening pleasure.