XDelta Limited - The Mission Critical Architects

17^th - 18^th May 2010 - Oxford Belfry Hotel, Oxford, U.K.

UKCMG TEC 2010 - the UKCMG Annual Conference and Exhibition

UKCMG (UK Computer Measurement Group) is a user group association of Information Technology professionals, the purpose of which is to exchange information and share expertise about products, processes, services and issues affecting the management, planning, performance and administration of computer systems.

The UKCMG Annual Conference and Exhibition provides an excellent learning and networking environment and brings together many of the professionals in the field.

The slide set from Colin's talk on "I/O in a virtual environment" is available for download here.

5^th May 2010 - 10:00 BST (GMT + 1 hour) and 16:00 BST (GMT + 1 hour) - webinar - "Designing and Implementing Mission-Critical Systems"

Connect webinar series - "Designing and Implementing Mission-Critical Systems" by Colin Butcher of XDelta Limited

You can watch the webinar recording and work through the slide set at your own pace.

The design and implementation of highly available disaster-tolerant systems requires a more disciplined approach to systems engineering than is common in the IT industry. It is important to have a sound understanding of the technology as well as the ability to communicate effectively and see the project through to successful completion.

The rapid pace of change and the wide range of available technologies make it essential to understand the underlying principles and to have a clear view of how to apply systems to solve business issues. System designers need to understand both the purpose and the behavior of their target systems and surrounding infrastructure in order to create well engineered solutions that are reliable, which have minimal performance impact and which scale well in a production environment.

The webinar discussed the factors governing systems availability and performance, complemented by real-life examples of the design and implementation of all aspects of a system from hardware and infrastructure to application software.

The main example used is the system described in the recent NHS Blood and Transplant case study by HP, which uses HP OpenVMS systems on Integrity Servers to run the world's biggest single donor database and blood product production control system.

26^th April 2010 from 18:00 to 21:00 - PCG Networking at the Mercure Holland House Hotel, Bristol.

The PCG Network - connecting professional freelancers and entrepreneurs with the business community.

Meet new people, hear new ideas, learn how the world of work is changing, understand more about the growth of the independent sector.

The evening's topic was "The complete art of running a freelance business (reduced)" where we covered many of the key areas of setting up and running a professional freelance business. Unfortunately Adrian Collins of Medical Money Mangament suffered a blow-out on the M4 and was unable to join us.

The complete slide set is available for download here.

6^th April 2010 - 10:00 and 16:00 BST (GMT + 1 hour) - webinar - "Virtualisation in theory and practice"

Connect webinar series - "Virtualisation in theory and practice" by Colin Butcher of XDelta Limited

You can watch the webinar recording and work through the slide set at your own pace.

This session provided an overview of virtualisation and the underlying principles that apply when designing and implementing virtualised systems and infrastructures. There are a wide range of issues to be considered. The context within which your business operates will help to determine to what extent and in which areas virtualisation may be applicable. Virtualisation techniques can in many cases provide a useful solution to a wide range of problems, especially when combined with blade server technology.

10^th March 2010 - XDelta Limited - The Mission Critical Architects

XDelta expands to provide design, implementation and operational support of mission critical systems.

The core team consists of:

Colin Butcher CEng FBCS, who has built a world-wide reputation as one of the leading systems architects for mission-critical systems.
Steve Jones, ex-HP Client Principal for the provision of consulting services into Government, Public Sector and Defence.
Derek Webb MBE, specialises in delivering programme management and leadership.
Gareth Davies, ex-HP Industry Consultant. Gareth specialises in the design and leadership of how to best apply technology to business issues.
Euan Barker, who has built an international reputation as one of the best voice and data network architects.

XDelta also brings in additional trusted expertise as required to assist with the design, delivery and support of projects, thus providing a single point of contact for the design and implementation of mission-critical systems.

See the press release for further information.

9^th March 2010 at 19:00 - Lecture Room TC103, University of Gloucestershire, The Park Campus, Cheltenham GL50 2RH

BCS Cheltenham & Gloucester - masterclass - "Designing and Implementing Mission-Critical Systems"

9^th March 2010 - Designing and implementing mission-critical systems

See the BCS Cheltenham & Gloucester web pages for further information.

12^th February 2010 - 10:00 GMT and 16:00 GMT - webinar - "Networking with OpenVMS"

Connect "OpenVMS month" webinars - "Networking with OpenVMS systems" by Colin Butcher of XDelta Limited

You can watch the webinar recording and work through the slide set at your own pace.

This webinar covered how network infrastructures work, what protocols are available with OpenVMS, together with guidelines on how to configure the infrastructure, protocols and interfaces for availability and performance. The intention is to provide practical advice on how to design and implement networked systems and clusters using real-world examples.

Part 1: Fundamentals of networking
Part 2: Protocols in an OpenVMS environment
Part 3: Network infrastructures, availability and performance

11^th February 2010 - PCG launches the "Britain's Brain Gain" campaign.

The PCG Network - connecting professional freelancers and entrepreneurs with the business community.

Meet new people, hear new ideas, learn how the world of work is changing, understand more about the growth of the independent sector.

Read "Freeing Up Growth: How to harness freelance talent for business success". This document provides insight into how using talent on an ‘as needed’ basis is becoming a major competitive strategy (published Feb. 2010).

Watch "Freelancers and your business". This interactive resource takes you through the various stages of the setting up, engaging and managing a project with freelancers. The guide draws on the experience of both clients and freelancers, looking at common mistakes and providing key tips to ensure success.

Read "Case Studies" highlighting how freelancers can make the crucial difference between success and failure.

1^st February 2010 from 18:00 to 21:00 - PCG Networking at the Mercure Holland House Hotel, Bristol.

The PCG Network - connecting professional freelancers and entrepreneurs with the business community.

Meet new people, hear new ideas, learn how the world of work is changing, understand more about the growth of the independent sector.

The evening's topic was "Finding work and the importance of personal networks".

Freelance web designer (and student) Dan Sheerman published some thoughts in his blog shortly afterwards.

January 2010

NHS Blood and Transplant - case study published by HP

Read the NHS Blood and Transplant "Pulse renewal" project case study by HP.

It describes how the NHSBT made use of HP OpenVMS systems on Integrity Servers to build and run the world's biggest single donor database and blood product production control system. The disaster-tolerant system infrastructure was designed and built by XDelta on behalf of HP in collaboration with the application provider and system maintainer Savant. The database vendor was Mimer. The hardware reseller was OCSL.

Further details about the "Pulse renewal" project and its success in the 2009 Itanium Solutions Alliance Innovation Awards are available here.

25^th January 2010 at 18:00 - St. Paul's Centre, St. Helier, Jersey - (rescheduled from 18^th Jan. 2010)

BCS Jersey - masterclass - "Designing and Implementing Mission-Critical Systems"

25^th Jan. 2010 - Designing and implementing mission-critical systems

See the BCS Jersey event pages for further information.

3^rd December 2009 - IoD, 116 Pall Mall, London, U.K.

HPUG / BITUG exhibition and seminars - "NHS Blood and Transplant - Mission-critical healthcare" - Colin Butcher, XDelta Limited

HPUG / BITUG - NHSBT Case study - Click to download the file 3^rd December 2009 - NHS Blood and Transplant - mission-critical healthcare

23^rd November 2009 from 18:00 to 21:00 - National Freelancers Day at the Mercure Holland House Hotel, Bristol.

The PCG Network - connecting professional freelancers and entrepreneurs with the business community.

Meet new people, hear new ideas, learn how the world of work is changing, understand more about the growth of the independent sector.

Watch the webcasts highlighting the contribution that freelancers, contractors, interims and consultants make to the UK economy.

We had a highly successful evening in Bristol as part of the National Freelancers Day initiative.

Freelance writer Judy Darley published some thoughts in her blog shortly afterwards.

29^th September 2009 at 19:00 - City of Bristol College, College Green Centre, St George's Road, Bristol, BS1 5UA, U.K.

BCS Bristol Branch seminar - "Virtualisation in theory and practice"

This seminar gave a comprehensive overview of virtualisation and the underlying principles that apply when designing and implementing virtualised systems and infrastructures. There was a good audience with some good questions and discussion.

29^th Sep 2009 - Virtualisation in theory and practice

See the BCS Bristol Branch web pages for further information.

24^th September 2009 - HP Executive Briefing Center, 19091 Pruneridge Avenue, Bldg. 46, Cupertino, CA 95014, USA

Connect - San Francisco Bay Chapter - masterclass - "Designing and Implementing Mission-Critical Systems"

As part of his visit to San Francisco for the Itanium Innovation Awards event, Colin gave the following masterclass for the Connect San Francisco Bay Chapter.

24^th Sep 2009 - Designing and implementing mission-critical systems

See the San Francisco Bay Connect Chapter event pages further information.

23^rd September 2009 - San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

NHS Blood and Transplant "Pulse renewal" project gains an "Honourable Mention" in the 2009 Itanium Solutions Alliance Innovation Awards.

Watch the NHS Blood and Transplant "Pulse renewal" project keynote video.

Read the NHS Blood and Transplant "Pulse renewal" project case study by HP.

Read the NHS Blood and Transplant "Pulse renewal" project Availability Digest article.

The project was a collaborative effort between the following organisations:

NHSBT - the end customer
Savant - Pulse application provider and maintainer
Mimer - Mimer-SQL database provider
OCSL - HP reseller and hardware installer
XDelta - disaster-tolerant system platform design and implementation
HP - consulting & integration and HP OpenVMS Engineering

Video production by ArtGal Media

June 2009

XDelta Limited joins the Itanium Solutions Alliance.

June 2009

The Ambassador Spirit Award (formerly the John Wisniewski Spirit Award).

Sue Skonetski (formerly of HP OpenVMS Engineering in Nashua, NH, USA) was presented with the Ambassador Spirit Award. This award from peers and colleagues around the world recognises her outstanding contribution to the OpenVMS community over many years. We all wish her well for the future. Sue is THE OpenVMS Ambassador of all time.

VMS Engineering created this award in 2004 in memory of a larger-than-life guy called John Wisniewski. He was a well-known and passionate OpenVMS expert who poured huge amounts of energy into his teaching, writing and consulting work. John was the guy who started the OpenVMS Hobbyist programme and who trounced all-comers at DEFCON with an impregnable OpenVMS system.

Previous recipients are:
2004: Brian Schenkenberger (of Tmesis in the USA) and Al Meier (OpenVMS Ambassador for HP in the USA).
2005: Colin Butcher (of XDelta Limited in the UK) and Kerry Main (OpenVMS Ambassador for HP in Canada).
2006: Dave Cathey (of Montagar Software Concepts in the USA, also www.openvmshobbyist.com) and Keith Parris (OpenVMS Ambassador for HP in the USA).
2007: Ian Miller (of EDS in the UK, also www.openvms.org).
2008: Volker Halle (of Invenate in Germany).