VMware has some fantastic technology, and I was expecting some demos of new features and capabilities to enthuse the VMware partners. An entire session after lunch was dedicated to the "Competition". Come on guys show us the technology! They even reeled out that old chestnut "VMware is cheaper than the competition" - I'm sure some of you have heard this one before, but the gist of it is as follows: -
On a planet called VMworld, the evil king has decreed that you are not allowed to add RAM to servers, but VMware comes to the rescue with memory overcommit so you can put more VM's on each server, but the other poor hypervisors need to buy a whole new server.
The maths in this rather contrived scenario means that VMware is actually cheaper. James O'Neill wrote quite an amusing piece on this a month ago: http://blogs.technet.com/jamesone/archive/2008/03/15/vmware-running-hot-enough-to-cook-the-figures.aspx
Now don't get me wrong, memory overcommit is a great feature that reduces memory requirements in many instances. I just think, if I were VMware, I wouldn't be going around saying "I'm the cheapest", the technology is compelling enough to sell itself.
Lastly here is an excerpt from the teaser email for the symposium, referring to the "Competitive" segment:
"The international team has arrived and we are now putting the finishing touches on what you will see tomorrow is a very compelling technology segment for you to lead your engagements with, and when you do so why VMware is the ONLY technology to lead with to ensure your credibility with your customer remains intact."
Emphasis on ONLY is VMware's not mine. Oh dear! I tend to advise the client to use the technology most appropriate to their environment; there goes my credibility then ;)