Virtually Speaking: Seven Virtualization Trends to Watch in 2008

Virtually Speaking: Seven Virtualization Trends to Watch in 2008: "With the number of days left in 2007 approaching single digits, it's time to put this year to bed and look ahead to 2008. It would be hard to argue that 2007 was a watershed for virtualization technology. From chipmakers to ISVs, every IT demographic felt a virtual tug as the technology made its way into the mainstream.
Virtualization is even starting to impact which servers are leaving the factory. According to research firm IDC, third-quarter factory revenue in the worldwide server market grew 0.5 percent year-over-year, while the number of server units shipped grew 1.5 percent less than it did for the previous period in 2006. Is this an indicator of a bigger trend, as companies soup-up hardware to scale out an go virtual?
Perhaps. But there's little doubt that in 2008 going virtual will bring sweeping changes to IT organizations and the data centers they support."

Steve's Commentary
As noted, 2007 was a big year for virtualization and 2008 may be bigger. It has been growing steadily since my early posts on the subject in 2005 (scroll down to the post heading "Spying on the spyware makers"). I still believe that virtualization technology will eventually become a common tool for individuals. It is already happening with companies like Zonbu who offers a personal virtual desktop for $14.95/mo.