I’ve been busy lately working on finishing the final touches to the OPC UA – Part 11 Historical Access specification, in preparation for the next upcoming release date, so I’ve been a bit lax in keeping up with the latest RSS feeds.  Since I subscribe to all the automation blogs, process control on-line magazines and OPC feeds, there really aren’t that many to keep up on.

Gary Mintchell was lamenting our small world just recently on the Feed Forward blog, and I agree completely.  The more interesting discussions and opinions that get shared, the more innovate ideas and solutions they can produce.  I’m happy to do my part in promoting connectivity, on the plant floor and in cyberspace.  So, does a blog dedicated to OPC count as part of the Automation Blogsphere?   I think Greg Hale answered that with the statement on his InTech blog:  “At the end of the day, in this industry it is all about connectivity.”  In fact many of the folks in the ‘sphere discussed the release of OPC UA, including Gary, Greg, and of course OPC Connect.  That even goes for those who don’t necessarily agree with what OPC has to say, like Sharon at SCADA 2.0 .

Traditionally the automation industry is slow to adopt ‘cool, new technology’.  I think it is great that guys like Jim Cahill is helping to introduce the benefits of RSS and blogging to the automation masses.  BTW: Thanks Gary for mentioning the Opto 22 and ProSoft feeds, my list just grew by two.  To return the favor I’d suggest adding the Scada Security blog.   Like it or not, cybersecurity is moving from the IT world to the Process world.

As a side note: my RSS reader can’t seem to validate either the SOUND OFF, or InTech feeds.   Not sure why.   Anyone out there got these linked in to an aggregator?   These are two sites I really enjoy following and it would be nice to bring them into the fold.