A few days ago, the WSJ ran an article entitled "Software Firms Scramble to Jump Into Containers"
I read it with great interest because it might relate to solving my Watson connection problem - and then I realized it may also help VFP applications in general. The gist of it, what I'm seeing, is that these containers are going to replace the use of VM as we know it today. For VFP<->Watson, this might be a way for a hosting service to add RESTive servers to their mix by simply installing a container provided by IBM, and then I'll be able to access that container on the web server. For VFP, or any software product, it looks like a way to go smoothly from dev to server based production, and possibly containerized distribution to end users. The article doesn't get technical enough to answer detailed questions about how containers supersede VMs. And it's also possible my wishful thinking is reading too much into this. The article does say " Some observers say the buzz surrounding containers outstrips their utility", but growth is growth, and articles like this are one way to fuel growth " Some clips from the article: "What makes containers so compelling? The technology encloses a program (or a piece of one) in a layer of software that connects seamlessly to the operating system and other computing resources it depends on to run. Putting a program in a container has a number of benefits, but a crucial advantage is that it can be moved quickly and easily from one computer to another-say, from a programmer's laptop to a test system to the cloud." "The interest level is off the charts," says Dave Bartoletti, an analyst with technology research firm Forrester Research Inc." "Although containers are redefining the Internet's state of the art, they're not entirely new. The idea has been around since the early 2000s, and it has been part of the Linux operating system since 2007." "Beyond revving up the pace of online development, containers are an emerging alternative to the software construct known as a virtual machine, or VM, that is a foundation of today's Internet. Containers aren't only faster and easier to use than VMs; they also make far more efficient use of computing hardware. Engineers say they can run between two and six times as many containerized programs as VMs on the same hardware, dramatically reducing infrastructure costs." "VMware has warned about container technology's limits but also moved to embrace it as a complement to its software. The company announced in the summer that it is working with Docker and said the best way to use containers is with VMware's virtualization software." "Pantheon, a Web host that is a heavy user of containers rather than VMs, employs two full-time employees to run more than 70,000 websites. Fifty technicians would be required to do the same work using VMs, according to Pantheon Chief Executive Zack Rosen." "[google] announced a product that lets software developers run and manage Docker containers on Google's servers." I read it in the printed paper, but I see there is a link to it from a google search: http://online.wsj.com/articles/software-firms-scramble-to-jump-into-containe rs-1415149692 (I noticed something: if the article is partial and wants you to subscribe to read it, use a google search on "wsj containers" and get to the article from there, which - on my machine with firefox - now sees the entire article ... interesting) Bill _______________________________________________ Post Messages to: ProFox@leafe.com Subscription Maintenance: http://mail.leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profox OT-free version of this list: http://mail.leafe.com/mailman/listinfo/profoxtech Searchable Archive: http://leafe.com/archives/search/profox This message: http://leafe.com/archives/byMID/profox/002301cffbc3$787c72d0$69755870$@h2officesolutions.com ** All postings, unless explicitly stated otherwise, are the opinions of the author, and do not constitute legal or medical advice. This statement is added to the messages for those lawyers who are too stupid to see the obvious.
