Microsoft Archive
Microsoft executive on Linux, 64-bit computing
Bob Muglia, senior vice president of Microsoft's Windows Server division, in an interview last week discussed the road map for future operating system releases, the competitive threat posed by Linux and the promise of 64-bit computing. Part 1 of the interview is here.
Microsoft delays Virtual PC 7 for Macs
Microsoft has delayed until later this year the release of Virtual PC 7, the latest version of a program that allows Windows software to run on the Macintosh.
Microsoft readies XP Update Giveaway
Microsoft says it will give away Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, but remains coy about the exact nature of "XP Reloaded." Additionally, Microsoft said that the SP2 won't be available to pirates.
Is Microsoft A Slowpoke?
Microsoft's big new product is way overdue, according to Times. And Linux is challenging Windows' desktop dominance. What will it take to get the software titan moving again?
Microsoft Unveils New Antipiracy Tools
Microsoft will release details of a long-delayed update to its content protection technology Monday, offering new features aimed at bringing piracy-proof digital content to mobile devices and home networks.
Microsoft Wants to Get Devices Talking
Hoping to make the digital living room a bit less complicated, Microsoft plans next week to discuss a new method for Windows software to talk to various digital devices.
Ballmer: “Linux Requires Our Concentrated Focus and Attention”
In yesterday's annual strategy memo to Microsoft employees, CEO Steve Ballmer declared: "Noncommercial software products in general, and Linux in particular, present a competitive challenge for us and for our entire industry, and they require our concentrated focus and attention."
Microsoft to SpecOps: “Give David for free”
If the software developed by a Filipino company that enables Windows programs to run on Linux is indeed meant to propagate "open source computing," then the firm should give it away for free, the head of Microsoft Philippines told INQ7.net. "If they can't do that, it is just like any other commercial software business," Antonio Javier, managing director of Microsoft Philippines said, referring to the David middleware program developed by SpecOps Labs.
Microsoft Needs Geek Appeal
"I thought I had a pretty good handle on the differences between the open-source community and the traditional proprietary approach to software development. But watching a Microsoft spokesperson defend his company and its whole approach to business in front of a room full of Linux zealots last week helped crystallize the gulf between the two camps--not just in business strategy but in fundamental philosophy and political bent." Read the editorial at ZDNet.
Microsoft Stands Firm in the ‘great Linux debate’
The software giant ventured into hostile territory on Wednesday to argue its case during a live debate over the future of the Linux desktop.
MS: ‘We’d Have Been Dead a Long Time Ago without Windows APIs’
In an email, Microsoft outlines the reason why they think that customers have stuck with Windows despite Microsoft's shortcomings. He attributes their loyalty to the high costs of switching away from their existing heavy investment in the Windows Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). In fact, Microsoft feels that the pressure from Linux will lead the company to innovate more. In the meantime EU published their verdict (in PDF).
Microsoft Commentary Slams EU Ruling
Aiming to portray itself as the victim of overreaching regulators, Microsoft on Wednesday released a position paper insisting that the European Union's antitrust sanctions amount to "new law" that could hurt others in the technology industry. Elsewhere, the next Microsoft Tablet PC software renamed to Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 from the code-name Lonestar.
Great Moments for Rivals of Gates
Competitors with fresh ideas are hot on the heels of the software behemoth, writes Faisal Islam.
Microsoft Research – The Company in 10 Years
Research and development, or R&D, is a big deal with the Gates Gang. After all, in 2003, they spent over (all figures US) $4.6 billion on it. For a company that had revenues of $32.1 billion in the corresponding period, this is an impressive figure and to put in perspective, they spent $6.5 billion on sales and marketing during the same period. Clearly, R&D is important to the company. Read the article at Canoe.ca.
Microsoft: Not enough XPerienced PCs
While Microsoft is pleased with robust sales of new PCs that come loaded with Windows XP, the company has been less than satisfied with the rate at which large companies are installing its latest operating system.
Microsoft’s Midlife Crisis
Would you invest your hard-earned dollars in a company like this? Its revenues soared an average of 36% through the 1990s, but now it's heading into miserly single-digit growth. It has long been a powerful engine fueled by major updates of its products, yet the next major one, an unprecedented five years in the making, isn't expected until 2006. The company hasn't made much headway in newer, promising markets. And its share price is stuck exactly where it was in mid-1998. Not buying, huh? Well, tough luck: You probably already own a piece of this rock, says Yahoo! Finanace.
The Only Way Microsoft Can Die is by Suicide
Cringely editorializes: "When I wrote last week about my conclusion that the legal system -- any legal system -- is unequipped to change Microsoft's monopolistic behavior, I had no idea that within 24 hours, Sun would be throwing in the towel, trading its so-called principles for $1.95 billion in cash. So I guess I was right. Only now, a few thousand readers out there expect me to blithely produce an answer to the problem of what to do to bring Microsoft into the civilized world. Well, I say it can't be done".
Interview: Ballmer the Undaunted
In a wide-ranging interview, Ballmer talked about the state of the tech industry, the company's right to continue adding features to Windows and Microsoft's transition from adolescence into adulthood.
Microsoft Developer Tools Roadmap
Microsoft will continue the trend of integrating managed code support in major product releases—first with SQL Server 2005 and later in the Windows Longhorn operating system.