I moderate all comments on StorageMojo and it is one of my favorite jobs. Moderation has turned into an unlooked-for pleasure, as I get to see the many insightful comments before everyone else. This morning’s came from David Vellante, who was at IDC for years. (Is IDC having a problem retaining bright people? I have no hard numbers but it seems like I’m seeing a rising number of good people leaving.)

Wikibon link love
David’s comment on The consumerization of IT is interesting:

The costs of storing a minute of audio are about the same as dial tone today and folks like Amazon and X-Drive (and I would argue Google with Gmail) are ‘double-dipping’ today using thin-provisioning-like technologies and easy-to-understand monitoring, metering and ‘chargeback’ software to condition consumers that storage consumption can actually be transparent and utility-like.

IT shops and vendors alike had better understand this trend.

Frankly, I’m not sure I understand it either, yet it certainly is provocative. Want to know more?

David thoughtfully included this link to a Wikibon discussion. The technique they use is interesting:

Decision making usually requires decision makers to make certain assumptions about future events. For example, “the past is prologue” is a common technique for assessing the future. Sometimes this technique works great, such as when predicting whether or not the sun will rise in the morning or set at night. Sometimes it doesn’t, such as when predicting whether or not the winner of the Kentucky Derby will win the Preakness. . . .

Essentially, instead of discussing “What will happen,” Future Perfect Peer Incite research meetings will assume that an event has transpired at some moment in the future and “look back” to discuss, “What happened?”

Which leads to Wikibon, infinity and beyond
So what the heck is Wikibon? I’m pretty sure it is a work in process. Wikibon seems to be a platform for analysts and consultants to strut their stuff and, without any one person necessarily breaking a sweat, creating good content that will bring people who are looking for the kinds of answers that community members are happy to provide.

The StorageMojo take
The ground is shifting under the IT analyst industry. Whether the analyst is helping a CIO make better business decisions or churning out content-free lead-bait, individuals now have an opportunity to attract their own audience. As capital-goods IT evolves into consumer IT, the need for core infrastructure analysts shrinks, while the new applications broaden and mutate. The brand-name on the analyst’s card becomes less important than what the analyst demonstrates every day in the flat-earth niche they work.

Clients, vendors and consumers alike, now have the opportunity to assemble virtual analyst firms. Pick the people whose thinking inspires and/or infuriates and engage with them. Find out what they think about your problems. Use what you can and leave the rest. And when the market changes, find the people who seem to get that and do it again.

Wikibon also appears to be partnering with Storage Markets, the innovative storage market research group. It may soon come to pass that the web-based independents will surpass the Gartners and IDCs in range and depth. All at a lower price!

Comments welcome, of course. I probably won’t attend the meeting tomorrow as I am getting ready to leave for Seattle. If you do attend, feel free to report on it here on StorageMojo.