Microsoft Extends Windows 7, Vista Support to 10 Years
It looks like Microsoft has finally learned that old operating systems don't die quickly. Read more
Perhaps in an acknowledgement of reality, Microsoft has quietly extended the consumer support for its two most recent operating systems, Windows 7 and Vista, from the usual seven years to 10 years.
Coming soon: Office for iPad?
Microsoft has already promised Office for Windows 8 tablets, but it looks like the company is covering all of its bases. Read more
Office will be available for Windows 8 tablets when it ships, presumably this fall, but Microsoft isn't content with that. The company allegedly has an iPad version of its widely-used productivity suite almost ready to go.
Microsoft CFO Offers Insights on Windows Plans
Apple chief Tim Cook wasn't the only tech executive speaking at the Goldman Sachs Technology & Internet Conference, as you'd expect. Microsoft CFO Peter Klein was another featured guest and he had some pretty interesting comments.
Klein's talk was to outline where Redmond is headed in the next few years, usually the sort of thing a CEO would lay out. Maybe I'm reading too much into that, since Klein has only been on the job two years. Read more
Just How Old is Windows on ARM? Older Than the iPad
Something tells me Microsoft will be checking the EXIF data on images from now on. Read more
Microsoft Tackles the File Attachment Problem
Attachments, like meetings, annual reviews and certain managers, are a nuisance reality of the workplace we all have to deal with. They carry with them a number of issues: clogging up or choking e-mail, malware, and version control. So Microsoft is offering its own fix to the problem via SkyDrive. Read more
Windows 8 Power Efficiency Also Includes Apps
Power efficiency is a buzzword for the hardware vendors, and Microsoft has done its part by adding different power settings to Windows over the years. With Windows 8, the company is trying to make the apps you use less of a drain on the battery.
The first and likely only public beta of Windows 8, called the "Consumer Preview," is just a few weeks from being released. If it's anything like the Windows 7 beta, expect it to be fairly solid and usable. Some pre-release builds have leaked and there are lots of details out there, if your Google-Fu is strong. Read more
Windows Phone Leak Shows One Kernel to Rule Them All
A significant leak of details on Windows Phone 8 reveals that Microsoft is planning on unifying its client behind one kernel, providing one platform for developers to target; phones, tablets and desktops. Read more
Kinect for Windows Ships
Microsoft on Wednesday released the 1.0 code for its Kinect for Windows software development kit and has made the PC version of the Kinect sensor hardware available for sale. Read more
SQL Server 2012 Coming on March 7
Microsoft has set March 7 as the launch day for SQL Server 2012, a.k.a. "Denali," the latest version of its relational database. There will be an online event to be held to kick off the product through the Web site SQLserverlaunch.com. Read more
Nokia's Windows Phone Strategy: Serious Business
With Windows Phone's market share in the single digits, drastic action would seem to be the order of the day, and that's exactly what Nokia is doing, according to a new report from a mobile blog. Read more
Microsoft Releases Windows 8 Tablet Hardware Requires
If you've got a bad case of insomnia, Microsoft has 943 pages of specs to bring on the shuteye. That's the size of the PDF with the set of hardware requirements for tablet manufacturers that want to sell a Windows 8 tablet.
There are three PDFs total, for PCs, one for devices, and one for "filter drivers." The devices PDF, which is for tablets, is easily the largest and goes into extremely minute detail, so I'll bottom line it for you. Read more
Microsoft's Trustworthy Computing Group Turns 10
It was ten years (and a week) ago that Bill Gates announced to all Microsoft employees that the company was creating a new group that wasn't designed to make a dime of money, but it would become a major player in the company.
In his memo announcing the Trustworthy Computing initiative, Gates called upon employees across the company to fundamentally rethink their approach to product development and work to deliver much more secure products. Read more
Exit NTFS, Enter ReFS.
There has been talk about a new file system in the upcoming Windows client and server thanks to details that came out at BUILD, but up to now, Microsoft has been quiet. That ended today with a blog post on the new file system. Read more
More Confusion Over Windows 8 Tablets
That soft chuckling you hear is Steve Jobs snickering in the afterlife.
Jobs famously refused to do any kind of surveying, market research or focus groups, arguing people didn't know what they want "until we give it to them." It was how he brought quantum leaps to a society that tended to prefer evolution to revolution. Read more
Windows Server 8 Will Lose its Face
Windows Server is an operating system where the apps running don't need much of an interface, if at all, yet it still has a full Windows desktop. That's going to change with the latest version, though. Read more
Reality Bites Microsoft's Earnings as Well
Microsoft on Tuesday admitted that fourth quarter earnings would take a hit due to a drop in PC sales as a result of the massive floods in Thailand. How these are all connected shows that the term "supply chain" isn't just a saying. Read more
Microsoft Gets Into the PC Business (Sort-of)
From the "It's-about-time" files: Microsoft has finally done what OEMs won't seem to do: it's selling PCs without unwanted bloatware/junkware preloaded on the PC.
The PCs are sold through Microsoft's retail stores – all 14 of them – or they can be shipped to you. Wisely, these aren't Microsoft-branded PCs. Instead, Microsoft worked with OEMs like Sony, HP, Acer, Dell and Lenovo to create Signature PCs, which isn't very hard. It just has Windows 7, optimized for that PC, pre-loaded on it. Read more
Windows 8 Gains Storage Intelligence With Storage Spaces
Steven Sinofsky is back with a lengthy blog update that shows there will be a lot more to Windows 8 than just a pretty interface, thankfully. The way you store data is about to change.
Microsoft is working on a new back-end infrastructure called Storage Spaces that will pool physical disks, which are then carved up into spaces. Sounds like RAID, you say? Well, RAID was never this versatile. Read more
IE 6 is Finally Dead. Long Live IE9 (Please?)
After begging, pleading, and nearly coming to people's houses to bust their kneecaps, Microsoft has gotten its wish: Internet Explorer 6, which just passed its 10th birthday, is now as dead as the Zune. Read more
Windows Phone Roadmap, Hiring, Offer Hints
Submitted by Andy Patrizio on Thu, 12/29/11 - 1:15pm.Microsoft's history has shown the company is nothing if not tenacious, and that habit is on display in the Windows Phone family. Despite single-digit market share, Microsoft is pushing ahead with at least two more versions of the software some time in the next year and expanded features. Read more
- About Microsoft Explorer
- Andy Patrizio is a freelance technology writer based in Orange County, California. He's written for a variety of publications, ranging from Tom's Guide to Wired to Dr. Dobbs Journal, and has been on staff at IT publications like InternetNews, PC Week and InformationWeek.
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