IBM launches mashups for business portfolio
IBM is mashing up its mashups to create a product line aimed at business people who want to make Web applications fast.
An avian flu mashup that matches bird types and wind types that shows bird movement patterns.
(Credit: IBM)Mashup Center is made up of Lotus Mashups, which lets people combine information from different Web sites and present them on a single screen, and also includes IBM InfoSphere MashupHub, a lightweight tool aimed at IT professionals for preparing data feeds from different sources.
IBM will continue to sell the two products separately.
The products originally came out of IBM's emerging technologies group, which started exploring the idea of giving end-users more power to make lightweight and short-lived applications.
These tools are meant to lighten the load on IT departments that can't keep up with users' requests for new applications.
Martin LaMonica is a senior writer for CNET's Green Tech blog. He started at CNET News in 2002, covering IT and Web development. Before that, he was executive editor at IT publication InfoWorld. E-mail Martin. 
