More turmoil at Novell

The timing couldn't be worse for Novell. On the eve of Comdex/Fall, the company's vice president of North American field sales has quit.

That vice president, Chuck Meister--the former vice president of field and channel sales for the company--unceremoniously gave notice and left the company on Friday, say sources close to the company.

Novell is considering replacing Meister with its west coast region manager, one source said. Novell officials confirmed Meister has left the company, but had no further details to offer.

Novell has suffered a string of executive departures over recent months, including some high-level and visible vice presidents. A week ago, the company layed off about 60 people in a consolidation of its product marketing and management divisions.

Novell CEO Eric Schmidt is slated to keynote Comdex/Fall on Tuesday. He will speak on "Making Life Easier On The Net," and will outline Novell's e-business strategies, partners and customers.