IBM on Wednesday outlined its entry to be the hardware vendor of choice among Web 2.0 companies with a server dubbed iDataPlex.

<A HREF="http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=8588&tag=nl.e622">Big Blue calls the iDataPlex a new server category</A> designed to be one of thousands crammed into a data center. IBM claims iDataplex uses less than 40 percent less power, can use a liquid cooled wall to run at room temperature, has a small footprint so you can double the number of servers in a rack and uses Linux and other industry standards. IBM's iDataPlex is designed as a rack system.

The technology giant unveiled the server at the Web 2.0 conference in San Francisco so it can pitch a lot of potential customers, but it could appeal to a lot of enterprises too.