Leverage the Open Storage Grid for Enterprise Mobile Applications

Many existing mobile applications face a barrier entering the enterprise market because IT needs to maintain control over company data and users. While the iPhone’s pin lock may be “good enough” for a normal consumer, it often doesn’t meet the security requirements in a corporate environment.

So to all mobile developers out there who want to build business solutions, this is how we will change the game together.

Oxygen’s Open Storage Grid is a unique platform that supports private storage infrastructure while providing cloud access to enterprise content. Companies won’t have to move their data elsewhere to gain mobile access. Why should they when they already have everything in place? Oxygen’s platform provides secure encryption for data from end to end, and synchronizes data across multiple platforms and devices. You can now take advantage of all the benefits of the Open Storage Grid by leverage our SDK so your mobile application will be enterprise friendly!

Learn more about Oxygen’s program for partners and developers.

We are very excited about this new page on the next chapter for Oxygen. Make sure to stay tuned about our Enterprise Mobile Alliance Program because this is just getting started!

- Julia
@JuliaMak

Yes you heard me right – you can win one of these awesome Star Wars Force FX Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader Lightsabers! Check out how awesome they are:

Come by our booth #921 to collect your free #ICloudFiles tee and other Oxygen swag during the event! We’ll have live demos and presentations from our own team and partners going on all week.

Here is how you can win the limited #Dontbeasheep tee and a chance to win the lightsabers:

1. Wear the Oxygen #ICloudFiles tee during EMC World
2. Tweet and post a picture of you in your #ICloudFiles tee, make sure to include hashtag #EMCWorld and mention @OxygenCloud
3. Come back to the Oxygen booth #921 to collect your new #Dontbeasheep tee (don’t forget to show us your tweet/post)
4. Wearing the Oxygen tee during the event will also automatically enter you for the drawing of our grand prize – the lightsabers!
5. Lookout for me at the event I’ll be running around to find a lucky user who is wearing the Oxygen tee as the winner for the lightsabers on Tuesday (5/22) and Wednesday (5/23) afternoon!

So wear your Oxygen tee proudly at EMC World 2012 and make sure to drop by and say hi!

**On the left: The cutest Oxygener ever – photo courtesy of @pbradz. In the middle its @mjbrender - technologist, blogger & EMC Community Manager, and myself with our new #Dontbeasheep tee on the right.

Can’t wait to see you all in person!

Cheers,
Julia
@JuliaMak

My first week at Oxygen Cloud was a challenge, because  I wasn’t a startup person, I needed to make a change quickly or else my time at Oxygen would end faster than it started.

So how did I become the People Person that I am today? A person who doesn’t just accept what’s right in front of her, who doesn’t just get comfortable, who isn’t just a doer, but an innovator?

An Oxygener’s steps to success: Don’t be a sheep

 Our motto here is “don’t be a sheep” – dare to invent and just do it.

Availability: We don’t just hire anyone, we don’t fill warm bodies into empty seats. We make sure these people are not only talented but also “right for us”. This becomes a challenge to hire, but we want ones who enjoy being challenged every day and are always trying to learn more.

Committees & Ignorance: We work in groups of 1-2 so there are never “too many cooks in the kitchen.” This allows everyone’s creative juices to flow. The small team and flat structure makes it easier for everyone to shine and build something great.

Comfort: We never get comfortable nor would we settle for second best. We are building a technology platform for the future, and we work with all the latest, most cutting-edge technologies. We are a technology company.

Momentum: We’ll never let you get in a rut and there are always new projects to work on. If you are motivated then you’ll always find something to do!

Passivity: We never want you to give up and say “fine, whatever,” because that will get us no where. We always encourage people to speak their mind and share their ideas with others!

So don’t be a sheep! Join Oxygen Cloud today! It’s time for you to shine, to be successful and change the world!

- Hanh Huynh (@HanhtHuynh)
People Person of the Oxygen Team

We just released a generic installer for our Linux Storage Connector, extending our Linux support beyond Ubuntu. This new installer works with x86/x86_64/amd64 Intel/AMD processor architectures, and it will work with Ubuntu, Fedora 16 and centOS.

So do you have an old Linux laptop, desktop or server lying around? Now you can easily recycle them into your own private storage cloud with Oxygen. And if that isn’t challenging enough? You can also try to install Oxygen’s Storage Connector for Linux on other Linux devices beyond laptops and servers.Check out Linux for Devices for some cool ideas and inspiration. We would love to see our users play around with Oxygen and get creative!

Cody Bunch from Professional VMware recently shared his experience on how he configured and set up his own private storage with Oxygen’s Storage Connector for Linux (Ubuntu) in his post: Migrating to Oxygen Cloud. Check it out to learn more about what Cody did and what he thinks!

Get started and download Oxygen’s Storage Connector for Linux today! Same with all of the Oxygen clients and storage connectors, this will also be free for you to use! Share your Linux-private-cloud building story with us here and we’ll send you the awesome “I Cloud Files” t-shirt and other swag as thank you

- Julia
@JuliaMak

George Reese summed this all up really nicely in a recent tweet – “Once upon a time, desktop was for video & programming & laptop was for convenience. Today, no desktop. Laptop for heavy stuff, iPad for other.”

Yes! It’s just sooooo much easier to edit a document, update a spreadsheet, make changes to the sales presentation and even sign a PDF at your fingertips from the iPad. There are more and more mobile applications that can help you do these things from your smart devices so you wouldn’t need your laptop or desktop as often anymore.

The tablet is driving a “work anywhere” system in which mobile devices are connected to the cloud, according to Alan Masarek, CEO of Quickoffice who recently spoke at the TabTime Tablet Strategy Conference. But the problem of how to secure mobile access to company data continues to remain a challenge for enterprise IT to support BYOD movements. Many existing applications cater to consumer needs and cannot meet the level of control and security required for the enterprise.

This is one of the problems Oxygen solves very nicely with our Open Storage Grid. We are integrating with mobile application partners such as PDF Expert, Quickoffice, Notability and more to support a secure BYOD initiative for enterprise.

For many industries who have a large sales force working on-the-go with customers, such as insurance companies and their field agents, need an easy and secure way to fill out important forms from anywhere – and Oxygen’s integration with PDF Expert is the perfect solution. All sensitive corporate files can be stored on the company’s private storage leveraging Oxygen’s Open Storage Grid, but the files are also easily accessible by users from their iPads with PDF Expert! Just open up the document, sign it on PDF Expert and have that signed document synchronize back to the team without having to jump through hoops!

Just watch this quick video to see how easy it is to use Oxygen with PDF Expert:

We want to help your company kickstart your BYOD strategy. With the unique approach of our Open Storage Grid, your company can plug in your existing storage into the grid for anywhere, any device access to your own data safely secured behind corporate firewall. With Oxygen, IT can focus on providing a secure mobile productivity solution, enable remote users to access and work on files the way they want to without losing control over company data. With Oxygen, you can now Bring-Your-Own-Device to work freely and  securely in the cloud.

So what is your company’s mobile strategy? Share your story and let us know how we can help!

Cheers,
Julia
@JuliaMak

Key Features & Updates:

• Syncing files are now lightning fast… almost comparable to The Flash!
• Upload nearly any type of file directly from your Android (including memory cards) into Oxygen
• Edit files on-the-go with awesome productivity apps like Quickoffice

Upload nearly any kind of file:

Stay synchronized across all your devices and with all your team’s shared files with Oxygen. Download Oxygen for Mobile – Android (beta) on Google Play today and let us know how you like our revamped Android app!

- Julia
@JuliaMak

Google finally launched Google Drive. Recently rumors are flying everywhere that the launch of Google Drive, or G Drive, is imminent. Analysts and bloggers are now predicting the downfall of popular cloud storage services, namely the boxes, as Google enters the market as the giant 800-pound gorilla.

These assumptions make sense. After all, Google can gain an upper hand in quite a few ways. Google has the resources to offer more storage and a lower cost – and not to mention the massive existing user base in other popular Google products such as Gmail and Google Apps.

It offers 5GB for free, and additional available for purchase. John Biggs from Techcrunch just tried it and you can get more details here. So the one thing with using Google Drive (or other consumer cloud storage applications) is that it means you have to upload your data into Google.

Now on to the million-dollar question: Will the enterprise really buy Google Drive?

No.

I mean, sure, they may purchase some storage and licenses for selected departments who are collaborating on Google Docs. However, Google Drive ultimately is not an enterprise ready cloud storage solution, but rather just another me-too service like the many existing consumer services, and maybe with a slightly cheaper subscription price tag.

Gartner just predicted tablet sales to go up to 119 million units this year. Mobile access to files has become a driving factor for the rise of cloud storage services everywhere. But such services face multiple adoption barriers in the enterprise. IT does not want to lose control over corporate data, and uploading terabytes and petabytes of your company’s data else where just seems impractical, insecure and costly.

Don’t be a sheep

We don’t want to be another sheep. This is why we decided to take the opposite approach with our Open Storage Grid, a platform that combines the control, performance and economics of private storage infrastructure with a cloud service that scales data access to millions of users and devices.

By plugging in your own storage and devices into the Open Storage Grid, your company can adopt a secure BYOD solution through Oxygen. Users get the benefits of mobile access to the files they need and IT maintains control over all corporate data behind the firewall. Oxygen allows companies to leverage the storage they already have by supporting a wide range of private storage from Windows and Linux servers to enterprise storage platforms like EMC’s Atmos, Isilon and VNX.

And the best part is, the Open Storage Grid is available for free. Just use the storage you already have at no cost. Google Drive may offer up to 100GB for free, but that isn’t nearly enough for a company. A monthly public cloud storage subscription for mass amount of data becomes extremely expensive over time.

Google Drive and the rest of the consumer services/boxes are offering a false tradeoff for mobile access to your own files. Your company shouldn’t have to surrender your data, compromise security compliance, or give up control and governance over your storage.

With Oxygen’s Open Storage Grid, you can now have your cake and eat it too.

We have been busy upgrading businesses all around world already. Check out Oxygen’s private cloud storage solution with Intel and EMC:

Don’t be a sheep! Try Oxygen yourself today and sign up for the Open Storage Grid for free at www.oxygencloud.com.

- Julia
@JuliaMak

You don’t have to do anything differently, just work and save files as you normally do into your Oxygen spaces. When you need to email the file, simply browse and select the file the same way you add an attachment. But let us handle the rest! A downloadable live link to that file is automatically generated and placed within the content of your email, and the recipient can easily click to download the file.

Oxygen links are living links – if you update the file after a shared link is created, the recipient will always get the most updated version of that file when the download takes place. You won’t have to worry about creating a new link. You can also set an expiration date for the shared link to control access just the same way you can do with any file on Oxygen.

Sounds good? Try it and let us know how much you love it! Download and start using Oxygen’s Outlook Add-In today!

Sorry attachments – you have now been replaced! Please don’t be sad it’s nothing personal after all

- Julia
@JuliaMak

Live Free or Die Linux

You can now turn your Linux servers, desktops, laptops, netbooks and other Linux powered devices into your own secure private storage cloud and access it anywhere for free!

Yes, free!

We believe in the transformative power of mobility, so we encourage free usage of the Open Storage Grid for individuals and businesses. There are no terms on the free usage – you can have unlimited private storage and share that with unlimited users! 

So just go ahead and try it. Enjoy it and tell a friend if you like it! And let us know how it worked for you and what you would like to see from Oxygen in the future =)

Download Oxygen’s Storage Connector for Linux (Ubuntu) today!

Until next time,

Julia
@JuliaMak

It is really, really easy. And I’ll show you how I did it in about 2 and a half minute by myself at home the other night.

My set up:

• Signed up for a free Oxygen Cloud account on www.oxygencloud.com
• Installed Oxygen clients on my Macbook and my iPad
• Downloaded Oxygen’s Storage Connector for Windows onto my old Lenovo laptop that has 500GB of storage

In the video, you can see how I transformed my old laptop into my private storage. It started working immediately so I can sync and access files on my iPad in less than 3 minutes!

Oxygen’s Storage Connector for Windows is available for free. Yes – that means all your old Windows computers can be turned into your own private storage. Store, sync and share files with Oxygen for free using your own storage! Why pay $20 a month just to get 100GB when you can recycle your old laptop and get much more than that at no cost?

So what are you waiting for? Try it yourself today!

And if you also liked the cool “I Cloud Files” tshirt I was wearing in the video -now you can get one too! Just post a video or write up about how you built your Oxygen private storage cloud and share your story with us here. We’ll send you the free tshirt and some other cool Oxygen swag right away!

Cheers,
Julia
@JuliaMak