(PRWEB) July 28, 2010

Based on the industry leading System z data sharing architecture, DB2 pureScale integrates IBM technologies to keep critical systems available 24/7. DB2 pureScale allows organisations to have multiple database servers in a system that all share a common set of disks providing both scalability, availability and application transparency.

Triton Consulting recently sent a team of DB2 experts to the IBM labs in Boeblingen Germany on a research and development project into DB2 pureScale. After seeing DB2 pureScale in action, DB2 LUW expert Clair Ross said “If you’re a retailer with a high volume online transaction environment then pureScale is going to be absolutely ideal for you. You’ll be able to increase capacity when you need to at the really busy times like Christmas and the January sales and scale back at the times when you’re experiencing less demand. Plus, we’ve not mentioned here the need for continuous availability, pretty much every organisation would like continuous availability but for online retailers it’s essential.”

Continuous Availability

DB2 pureScale keeps critical systems available all the time, giving uninterrupted access to data throughout both planned and unplanned outages. Fast recovery and data availability is assured, even with large clusters, by utilising the centralised locking capability of PowerHA pureScale.

In situations where one or more servers fail, whether due to hardware or software problems; the workload balancer automatically recognises which servers are available and sends transactions across to these servers without application interruption. Whilst this is happening, DB2 pureScale is doing a fast crash recovery on the failing node. By using automatic workload balancing to ensure that no node in the system is over loaded, DB2 will route transactions or connections to the least heavily used server.

Zero Downtime for Planned Outages

DB2 pureScale allows routine hardware maintenance, operating system changes or other configuration changes to be carried out by simply removing the relevant server from the cluster. The workload balancer redistributes transactions to the other servers in the cluster. This is done with complete transparency to the application and no interruption to the environment meaning that planned outages can be carried out whenever necessary rather than waiting for that late-night on Sunday window. This is vital for global organisations with users accessing their systems 24/7.

Capacity on Demand

Being able to quickly respond to rises in workload has become a competitive advantage. IT teams need the ability to respond quickly to change requests and provide extra capacity at peak times.

DB2 pureScale is designed to allow organisations to grow and shrink their server cluster on demand. This can be done without application changes and with no interruption to the business. Organisations that experience large peaks and troughs in their workload can add more capacity during that period and remove it when workloads reduce.

Cost Savings

Instead of over-provisioning environments to handle peak times, organisations can license the machines they want for the time they need. Customers can choose to pay for the additional cores only on the days that they use them. This means that a server can be added for a few days during those peak times and released when it is no longer needed, without additional cost. .

Application Transparency

DB2 pureScale is transparent to the application and can be implemented with no changes to the underlying application code. Additional servers can be added without the need for application developers to re-design their applications.

About Triton

Triton Consulting are IBM Premier Business Partners and have expert knowledge of DB2 both in mainframe and midrange environments. Having expertise in both areas means that our consultants can bring their years of mainframe data sharing experience together with their knowledge of DB2 for midrange and so are ideally placed to provide support on DB2 pureScale implementations.

For more information on DB2 pureScale talk to the DB2 experts www.triton.co.uk

Download the podcast http://www.triton.co.uk/confessions-of-a-db2-geek/detail.php?id=21&s=2

IBM DB2 pureScale website http://www-01.ibm.com/software/data/db2/linux-unix-windows/editions-features-purescale.html

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebdb2pureScale/Triton_Consulting/prweb4311524.htm

(PRWEB) July 28, 2010

Following the success of their first report, released in 2009; UK based email marketing company Sign-Up.to are back with the 2010 instalment of the UK Email Marketing Benchmark Report.

This informative study shows which types of business, across 23 different sectors, are getting the best open rates, creating the most effective campaigns, have the highest subscriber loyalty, campaign engagement and more.

We all like to compare - so who came out top? Since the 2009 report the biggest gains in open rate were in the Restaurant, Music, and Legal and Accounting sectors.

The report shows that email marketing remains an effective channel for organisations of all kinds, with an overall average UK open rate of 17.98% and a click-through rate of 3.56% - providing a great return on investment in a time when everyone’s budgets are under pressure.

For the full report see: http://www.sign-up.to/email-marketing-benchmark/

The report is the result of an analysis of over 200 million email marketing messages sent through the Sign-Up.to online marketing platform in the 6 months from 1st January - 30th June 2010. These email campaigns are from small-medium sized UK organisations and have been sent to UK recipients. All of these messages were permission-based and sent to opted-in lists (never to 3rd party or purchased lists).

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2010/07/prweb4311564.htm

(PRWeb UK) July 28, 2010

The Falkirk-based signage company, which is part of the UK and Ireland’s largest sign franchise, has been recognised for the franchisees’ ability to turn what was once an unsuccessful and underperforming business into one of the largest franchises across the network.

Signs Express (Falkirk) franchisee Steve McMurray, has excelled through his strong belief in customer service, great attention to detail and his exemplary management skills. Such qualities have in turn helped the centre achieve high levels of repeat business, customer referrals and increase turnover by 150% since taking over the franchise in 2005.

With impressive growth year on year, Steve has been able to capitalise on his previous experience to build a stronger business structure and a dedicated workforce. By embracing the business potential, he has achieved in the past two months, the turnover equivalent of what the previous owner only managed to achieve in a year.

Steve commented on reaching the award finals: “When I first took over the business it was underperforming and had poor brand presence in the area. I could see the potential but nothing is ever guaranteed so there was a lot of hard work in the beginning. This mainly featured around changing from the previous owner’s approach from being largely price driven to focus more on customer service and satisfaction levels to help build loyalty. I’d say that around 80% of our business now actually comes from repeat orders so maintaining these levels are vital.”

The awards which will be hosted on 30th September to recognise the achievements of the UK’s most successful franchisees takes place in Birmingham on the eve of The National Franchise Exhibition at the NEC. The night brings together a number of franchisees from different market sectors to receive recognition for their astute business acumen and approach to the current economic climate.

Established over 10 years ago, Signs Express (Falkirk) has surpassed expectations since Steve became franchisee. By recognising the weaknesses, investing in new technology and his employees, Steve has achieved what he set out to and is continuing to see the business develop and flourish as a result. His hard work and success has already been recognised having reached the finals of Signs Express Franchisee of the Year awards last year. Signs Express (Falkirk) provides a complete design, manufacture and fitting service for all forms of signage including interior and exterior signs, vehicle graphics, banners, window graphics and exhibition display products.

Notes for editors:

1)    For further press information, please contact Sarah Critoph at Signs Express. Tel: 01603 625925 or e-mail: sarah(dot)critoph(at)signsexpress(dot)co(dot)uk.

2)    Signs Express is a member of the British Sign and Graphic Association, the British Franchise Association and The International Sign Association.

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2010/07/prweb4311504.htm

Chicago, IL (PRWeb UK) July 16, 2010

Only about 23% of Europeans own a credit card, and those that do are reluctant to use them online. This means that without a direct debit solution, over 75% of the European market is inaccessible to your business. With Netpays new Direct Debit Solution, you will be able to significantly increase your revenue from Europe. Direct Debit is the most popular European payment solution, because of its ease of use for customers. Money is withdrawn directly from ones bank account, and there is no expiration date.

“We are looking to apply over 10 years of experience in innovative payment solutions to help our customers increase their profits for the markets they serve”, asserts Elena Bouhaniche, Netpay International’s Marketing Manager.

Until now, Netpay almost exclusively worked with credit cards. The new solution is essentially a bank wire with an instant “approve or decline” reply, as opposed to regular bank wires which take 24 to 48 hours.

“In an increasingly complex business landscape, Netpay is constantly trying to expand innovative payment solutions with a major strive to become a “One Stop Shop” that delivers a broad range of payment options to merchants and reliably manages their payments, decrease costs, and maximizes their competitive edge,” remarks Alon Elbaz, Netpay International’s CEO.

There are two main kinds of solutions called Push and Pull. With the Pull solution, merchants work with Netpay to reach into customer’s bank account and pull the money from their account. Using this solution customers can still chargeback. With the Push solution, customers are redirected to their own bank accounts, log in and wire the money to Netpay. The customer is pushing the funds from their bank account, making it almost impossible for a chargeback to occur.

Regardless of whether you use Push or Pull, Netpay’s new Direct Debit Solution has enormous potential to transform your European business.

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2010/07/prweb4265044.htm

London, UK (PRWeb UK) July 22, 2010

To date, global brands including Burger King, Virgin Atlantic, AOL, Diageo, Nokia, Toyota and Hewlett Packard have taken part in the research with in-depth interviews. GyroHSR’s latest call to action is aimed at gaining the views of marketers from as broad a spectrum of industries as possible. To take part in the survey, go to: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/agency30.

Richard Perry, COO, GyroHSR comments: “With this study we really want to get under the skin of what clients want from their agency and what the agencies need to do to get there. Agency 3.0 will be published later this year and will provide great insight into the agency model of the future, which in turn will be an invaluable tool for today’s marketer.”

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebGyroHSR/marketers/prweb4286924.htm

(PRWeb UK) July 22, 2010

Totaling 9.7 million, UK consumer online search volumes for fashion-related terms in May were the highest of 2010, reveals the latest research from Greenlight, the independent specialist search and social marketing consulting and technology firm. According to its ‘Fashion Retail Sector Report May 2010’, Womenswear continued to dominate consumer online fashion searches, accounting for 67% of searches, an increase of 16% since Greenlight’s previous report in February. Menswear accounted for 1.1 million searches. The report also reveals ASOS was the most followed fashion brand in social media. However, in search, it lost 28% visibility on February levels.

To gauge social media interaction with brands, Greenlight monitored the Facebook and Twitter accounts of the top 15 brands. It based these on its integrated search league table. That determines the best positioned (top 60) and hence the most visible fashion websites in natural and paid search, representing their visibility to the 9.7 million searches in May. Greenlight ranked the brands based on the cumulative value of their ‘fans’ and ‘followers’, a score it terms the Social Media Popularity Index (SMPI). Greenlight further analysed the proactivity of brands by considering the number of ‘posts’ and ‘tweets’ they produced for consumers to interact with in May. Greenlight’s SMPI reveals:

• ASOS was the most followed fashion brand in social media, with a combined following of nearly 300,000 on Facebook and Twitter. Interestingly, on Twitter it also had an additional 2,506 followers on its ASOS_Dashboard account (which displays live updates on postal orders) and 3,132 following its customer service account: ASOS_HeretoHelp
• MarksandSpencer was the most interactive brand. It cumulatively produced 774 ‘posts’ and ‘tweets’ in May
• Some fashion brands utilised social networking relatively little, such as MissSelfridge which produced a total of just 41 ‘posts’ and ‘tweets’ in May, and MillwardBrown, which currently does not have official Facebook or Twitter accounts
• Brands utilised social media pages for multiple purposes; for example, MarksandSpencer, Very and Littlewoods not only generated press releases but also acted as a customer service contact by directly answering consumer queries and complaints on their official Facebook pages, whilst Lipsy utilised Facebook to promote its competition: ‘Lipsy Wall of Fame’.

Results from Greenlight’s integrated search league show:

• Debenhams was the most visible website in natural search, achieving 52% visibility. This was attained through ranking at position one for 23 keywords and ranking high on Google for high volume driving terms, such as featuring at position two for the keyword ‘Dresses’
• ASOS followed with 41% visibility. However, since Greenlight’s previous report it lost 28% visibility almost solely due to the fact that it ranked at position one for the term ‘Dresses’ in February, yet featured at position 12 for this keyword in May
• Peacocks ranked at position 13, having featured outside of the top 60 websites in Greenlight’s February report
• Very was the most visible advertiser in paid search, across all keywords. It achieved 53% visibility, a 14% increase on February. It was also the most visible advertiser for womenswear, attaining 76% visibility
• JohnLewis increased its share of voice in paid search by 32% since February, which saw it ascend Greenlight’s league table from position 13 to three

Please note: If you plan to run this story online, please link any references to Greenlight via the following:

http://www.greenlightsearch.com/knowledge/sector-reports/

Notes to Editors:

Greenlight is a leading independent specialist search and social marketing consulting and technology firm, the largest of its kind in Europe and the fastest growing. With over 100 blue-chip clients including Santander, Vodafone UK, New Look, Interflora, Co-operative Financial Services and ghd, and a multitude of awards to its name, Greenlight is a leader in the search marketing space, and is recognised worldwide for its commitment to delivering record ROI for its clients and investing in the future of search.

In addition, Greenlight is considered the premier thought leader in the sector, publishing widely read industry reports, original research, speaking at trade events, and delivering a highly respected search training programme in conjunction with the IDM. Greenlight was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in London, with offices in New York. www.greenlightsearch.com

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebGreenlight_UK-searches/fashion/prweb4287154.htm

But how can the state effectively energize Atlantic City? Would a total rebranding do the job or should the city simply flaunt its unique assets: the beach, the Boardwalk and diverse entertainment? Should it try harder to live up to its “Always Turned On” attitude or go more family-friendly?

If any plan to reinvigorate Atlantic City is going to work, marketers say, this much is certain: There must be a clear message for potential visitors.

“The challenge is, especially in destination marketing, that you have so many people at the table and it’s difficult in narrowing who and what you are,” said Drew McClellan, owner of McLellan Marketing Group in Des Moines, Iowa, and author of “99.3 Random Acts of Marketing.” “When you can say a city and someone can repeat a response, and a majority has that response, then you have done your job. But it means that everyone around the table has to agree that their focus is that one thing.”

Christie’s announcement Wednesday that he wants the state to oversee Atlantic City’s casino-entertainment district and form a new “clean and safe” Tourism District has been well-received by local lawmakers and casino executives. His goal, with approval from the state Legislature, would be to create the district in a year and boost marketing of the resort from the current $4 million limit.

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While all eyes continue to fixate on the future, a quick review of China’s e-commerce history reveals staggering results. Chinese online retail sales increased 117 percent (year over year) between 2007 and 2009. Chinese e-commerce sales are predicted to each 450 billion yuan ($66.45 billion) this year, a figure that will rise as the internet becomes a network driven by applications and mass participation. Today, Chinese consumers buy everyday articles as well as luxury items online, including cameras, laptops, and diamonds. Interestingly, a number of Chinese automakers have recently announced plans to sell vehicles on line, initiating a trend that may potentially change the way consumers evaluate and purchase automobiles globally. For many Chinese consumers, online shopping has brought convenient access to a product assortment that has been unparalleled historically. Online shopping has allowed Chinese consumers to develop buying groups to evaluate products, united consumers with similar interest, while encourage price and product attribute competition. Historically, technological limitations, specifically the lack of secure online payment systems, threatened the viability of the Chinese e-commerce industry as a whole. Fortunately, over the last 5 years, technological development has closed many of these gaps, providing Chinese consumers with the confidence needed to purchase online. In fact, during the spring of 2009, an estimated 128 million people used online payment systems, while 122 million Chinese citizens used online banking services.

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Cheshire, United Kingdom (PRWEB) July 23, 2010

Searchengineoptimization.co.uk, a leading search engine optimization services company, are exploring the future possibilities and habits of searching through Google after one of the search giant’s chief engineers revealed the progress the company is making in a recent online interview.

Amit Singhal, Google software engineer and Head of the core ranking team, was recently quoted as saying that image and video content is playing an increasingly relevant role in search engine optimisation, and also commented on the evolution of more social measures for users.

Searchengineoptimization.co.uk believe that Google are continuing to work on the functions of their Google ID feature, whereby, amongst other things, users can sync their Google account with their Twitter account. This can affect their searches on Google – whenever a user searches for something on Google then relevant social media posts may appear from people they follow amongst the gathered search results.

“There are always new developments in SEO, which is one of the things that makes this industry so exciting to be part of.” comments a spokesperson for Searchengineoptimization.co.uk. “From this latest Google interview it seems that the future is expected be ever more rooted in social media and increasing forms of different online content. Google seem to have taken notice of people power and just how broad the social media spectrum is. By including personalised Twitter posts in search results, users can enjoy a broader range of options to explore which are tailored towards their interests. The knock-on impact this will have on the SEO industry isn’t yet known, but we’re looking forward to finding out.”

To discover more about SearchEngineOptimization.co.uk and to view their range of search engine optimization services, visit http://www.searchengineoptimization.co.uk/ or telephone 08459 736 736 during office hours.

About SearchEngineOptimization.co.uk:

SearchEngineOptimization.co.uk are a specialist SEO company offering three packages – Gold, Platinum and Diamond SEO. SearchEngineOptimization.co.uk achieve proven rankings and results through impressive and technologically-advanced SEO practices. A leading SEO optimisation company in the UK today, SearchEngineOptimization.co.uk can offer clients their own dedicated account manager, free SEO tools, a unique and transparent online reporting system and creative online marketing campaigns.

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2010/07/prweb4287064.htm

(PRWEB) July 23, 2010

Local Irish wine merchant James Nicholson has registered an annual return of approximately 23% for investors in its wine portfolios, outstripping a sharp decline in other investment options, the company said today.

The team behind JNwine.com, which offers an integrated service in the areas of fine wine sales, investment, tastings, consultancy and professional wine storage solutions, said as economic anxiety and unease around pensions and shares continues, investors were keen to discuss alternative ways to generate returns, such as fine wine.

James Nicholson has been in the wine trade for over thirty years and has long standing relationships with some of Bordeaux’s top Chateaux:

“The economic downturn, particularly poor returns from the stock market and property has prompted people to look elsewhere and wine is attracting increasing attention as a commodity which can be expected to rise in value.

“Wine has performed well in recent years and despite experiencing a correction in late 2008, it has shown good growth since then, with many wines showing better returns now than before. Much of this has been driven by new wine-consuming markets, with China leading the charge. Demand has increased but the supply has remained constant.

With banks offering low interest rates on savings, and uncertainty in the world markets, people are seeking out alternative places to put their money.”

With some customers doubling their initial fine wine investment in two years, the level of return is largely dictated by the quality of the vintage and specific wines and the demand for these wines, according to James:

“For example, one customer who bought two cases on release in 2006 for investment – Lafite Rothschild 2005 and Mouton Rothschild 2005 paid £7,200 (€8,885.77) in 2006; the wines are now worth £16,000 (€19,746.12), a return of 122%,” James said.

According to the wine market tracker Liv-ex, the index for the top 100 investment wines has seen prices leap by almost 15 per cent last year. The Liv-ex 100 Fine Wine Index is the industry’s leading benchmark. It is calculated monthly and charts the price movements of 100 of the most sought-after fine wines for which there is a strong secondary market. The majority of the index consists of Bordeaux wines – a reflection of the overall market – although wines from Burgundy, the Rhone, Champagne and Italy are also included.

The index is calculated using Liv-ex Mid Prices and is then weighted to account for original production levels and increasing scarcity as the wine ages. As such, the index is designed to give each wine a weighting that corresponds with its impact on the overall market. The value of the index as of 31st May 2010 was 293.55, a rise of 4.4% on the previous month. The index is up 37.15% year-on-year and 23.8% year-to-date*

Figures show global wine consumption at around 26 billion litres and growing at 1.5% per annum. Although wines are produced all over the world, less than 1% qualifies as Investment Grade wine. Investment Grade wines are wines from top class wine producers, from outstanding to exceptional vintages, that are able to generate steady returns over the medium term because of extremely limited supply and consistently increasing global demand.

Working closely with top wine producers to secure annual allocations, James Nicholson is in a position to offer the most sought after wines to investors in Ireland and the UK. For example, the wines produced by the Thienpont family, including the iconic Chateau Le Pin, are part of the company’s portfolio. When Le Pin came on the market in 2001, cases sold at approximately £3,800.00 (€4,689.71). Today they are trading at £33,000.00 (€40,726.43), providing an exceptional return for those who invested.

“We work with a range of investors looking for different returns and we build tailor made portfolios to suit each individual customer. Investment levels range from £3,000 (€3,702.40) to £30,000 (€37,024.03) per annum.

Like stocks and shares portfolios, wine has its blue-chip members. There are wines that give solid guaranteed returns of around 10-20 per cent each year.

Over the last ten years, investors in the finest vintages have watched prices rise steadily. We worked with some of Bordeaux’s top wine producers to offer wines from the exceptionally high quality 2005 vintage for example to investors in Ireland and the UK, and the return on these wines is already proving to be substantial with potential further growth as the top wines are not even approaching maturity yet.”

The spotlight is now on Bordeaux’s 2009 vintage of red wines. The 2009 harvest in Bordeaux has generated more intense hype and fascination than perhaps any other in the history of wine investing. Last month, Robert Parker, the specialist in wine investing, dished out positive ratings on the 2009 Bordeaux vintage of fine reds.

Wines from top châteaux are in high demand. Waiting lists are lengthy and traders were short-selling some First Growth wines before they were even released, an unprecedented occurrence driven by nothing more than an insatiable market demand for the best wines of the 2009 vintage.

All of the top wines have finally been released at eye-watering prices: Petrus 2009 for example is currently trading at £12,900 (€15,920.33) for just six bottles, as of 30th June 2010. James Nicholson is delighted to have secured allocations of the 2009 vintage from Petrus, Le Pin, Latour, Ausone and Lafite amongst others thanks to long standing relationships with top growers.

Wine investing should only ever be seen as one of a number of strands in a portfolio. Care and attention is necessary to look after a wine investment and this is where consultancy is invaluable. Wine investments are exposed to risk like any other investment, with the value potentially going up or down, but the single greatest attraction for wine investment is the fact that Fine Wine profits are exempt from Capital Gains Tax - up to a point.

World-renowned wine authority and Master of Wine Jancis Robinson identifies James Nicholson Wine Merchant as one of the recommended merchants to buy fine wine futures - one of the best ways to obtain value in fine wine.

*Source: www.liv-ex.com .

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For the original version on PRWeb visit: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prweb2010/07/prweb4294534.htm