Playing the Odds

Many investors and more than a few Storage Pipeline readers were placing bets just a few weeks ago on the next big, potential merger deal in the storage industry. That most of us chose the Cisco-EMC combo is testimony to the suggestibility of the market.

One of the other possibilities we threw out as a lark was a merger of Hewlett-Packard and AppIQ. Only 14 percent of more than 260 respondents picked that one, so I guess there are some other unlucky gamblers out there as well.

If the story of their actual deal flashed quickly before your eyes this week, that's understandable. The general press headlines have been filled with belly-flopping jetliners or the do-si-do in progress at the Supreme Court. And of course, the dynamics of tropical storms and what happens to them as they cross warm bodies of water. My e-mail inbox runneth over with invitations to disaster recovery webinars and offers for free business continuity audits.

The last thing I want to do is pound that nail in any deeper. The need for smart backup doesn't need to be made so much with storage professionals as it does with executive-level managers and those who control budgets. To help in that awareness building campaign, you can flag Jon William Toigo's latest column for them, which in addition to his usual lacerating insights, also provides some compelling first-person experience of disaster preparation in southern Florida.

It's not something businesses should be gambling on, but it's appalling how many do. Here's to proactive thinking and the safety of all the people (and data) that lie in Rita's path.Terry Sweeney, Editor in Chief, Byte and Switch