Microsoft Archive

Microsoft founder Bill Gates, 49, talks about the thorny issues of computer security, competition, software bundling and how he lives with the downsides of his wealth and fame. In addition to being the world's richest man, Gates is the founder of the world's most powerful software company.

Money certainly isn't everything. But when you’ve worth nearly $50-billion it tends to alter prejudices. In person, Bill Gates might still be a living example of the Super Nerd - gangly, bespectacled, and hugely intelligent with only the pocket protector missing. But unlike most other geeks, when Gates talks, everybody listens. Elsewhere, In an effort to boost sales of Windows, Microsoft has its sights set on its nearest competitor.

Microsoft is leaving its options open on charging for full versions of anti-spyware and virus disinfection tools. Speaking in London yesterday, Detlef Eckert, chief security adviser for Microsoft EMEA, revealed there will be a second beta of Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware application. However, the company remains unsure how the product will evolve from then on.

ActiveWin.com recently had a chance to interview Dee Dee Walsh, Director of Communities for Windows Client Group. Elsewhere, Longhorn migration will be more than a technology upgrade -- it will affect IT staff skills and knowledge, as well as the way employees work, says ComputerWorld.

Microsoft Office is fast becoming a software platform unto itself. There are a growing number of programs being developed that run on top of Office, much the same way that Office and other programs run on Windows.

In a move dear to the hearts of conspiracy theorists, Microsoft has taken a minority position in Vintela Inc, a sister company of the SCO Group by virtue of the Canopy Group, their common investor.

Microsoft announced on Tuesday a program that will pay some transition costs for companies that want to move from Novell's NetWare operating system onto servers running Windows. Microsoft sees the uncertainty surrounding NetWare's future as an opportunity to win more customers over to Windows Server 2003. Some Novell customers are concerned that the company's focus on Linux could result in the abandonment of NetWare.

Microsoft made a minority investment on Monday in Unix/Linux management vendor Vintela on Monday. Neither Microsoft nor Lindon, City, Utah-based Vintela would comment on the size of the investment. But sources said the amount was under $10 million. Vintela has acted a key participant in Microsoft's Unix/Linux interoperability strategy. Nonetheless, Vintela is an unlikely Microsoft partner. Update: I hope to interview someone from Vintela this week, and ask them about their relationship with SCO (other than having the same investor). If you have any other burning questions, please suggest them in the comments.

Borrowing a line from Allstate Insurance, Microsoft says it wants customers to know they are in good hands when they choose its software. Elsewhere, since May this year we've heard dribs and drabs about Microsoft's much hyped next generation Operating System. According to the internal calendar Longhorn is due to hit Beta 1 on February 16th 2005 and hit RTM May 22nd 2006. Don't be surprised if the Beta 1 date slips let alone the RTM date.

Has Microsoft been trying to retroactively claim IP (intellectual property) rights over many of the Internet's basic protocols? Larry J. Blunk, senior engineer for networking research and development at Merit Network Inc., believes that might be the case.

Microsoft plans a Dec. 1 release for the latest version of its server software that aims to give companies more secure instant messaging and other corporate communications tools.The standard version of Microsoft's Live Communications Server 2005 will start at around $750, said Taylor Collyer, senior director of product management, about the same as the previous version. An enterprise edition, which can be coupled with other servers to allow for many more users, will start at $3,000. Microsoft also released on Tuesday a preview version of new tools intended to make it easier for companies to create custom Web applications.

Former Microsoft employee and software-development pundit Joel Spolsky shares his two cents on what's going on with Microsoft.

What's one of Steve Ballmer's biggest headaches? It's not Linux or security breaches. It's piracy, the Microsoft CEO said Wednesday.

Martin Taylor, global general manager of platform strategy at Microsoft, talks to vnunet.com about how the company is handling the open source threat.