I'm not usually one to make public service announcements, but I can't wait to be a fly on the wall for this call...With the departure of Diane Greene, salvage boats trawling for the stock price (down to $38.50 at close today, a far cry from last fall's peak) and lively competition in all sectors, many folks will be tuning in next Tuesday at 14:00 Pacific time, 17:00 Eastern, to hear how VMware's second-quarter numbers played out. Have the big international and channel partner-based initiatives borne fruit? We'll have to tune in to find out.

No word if Paul Maritz will be presenting the numbers. You gotta wonder if he's worried about a pat on the back from Joe Tucci and an abrupt, heartfelt The Board thanks her for her considerable contributions to VMware and wishes her every success in the future-esque press release sometime next year if he can't bring the stock price back up...

Will any big announcements accompany the second-quarter results? How will the market react post-numbers? How uncomfortable will everyone be?

I'll be tuning in, like most of the world, to the live Webcast from VMware Investor Relations http://ir.vmware.com at 5 here on the Right Coast.

Investor relations plans to post the audio for a month after the 'cast if you can't carve time out of your day or want to catch a replay.

Cheers.I'm not usually one to make public service announcements, but I can't wait to be a fly on the wall for this call...