Microsoft targets the enterprise with Windows 8.1 security improvements
If it's August, a whole lot of security professionals and hackers alike are headed to Las Vegas to spend as much time indoors as possible at the Black Hat conference to avoid the 110-degree daytime...
View ArticleMicrosoft introduces HTTP 2.0 Server
As development of the HTTP 2.0 protocol moves forward, Microsoft has also posted a prototype server called Katana, an HTTP 2.0 server for testing both in Web serving and a .Net environment. The code...
View ArticleWhy nobody cares about touchscreen laptops
It's starting to become clear: people just don't care for touch when it comes to the PC. New research from IDC shows that touchscreen-enabled laptops will account for as few as 10% of all laptops sold...
View ArticleShould Microsoft Dump Bing and Xbox?
A financial analyst has gone on record as saying Microsoft would be better off dispensing with Bing and Xbox because they are distractions. Rick Sherlund, a senior analyst at Nomura Equity Research,...
View ArticleMicrosoft's latest screw-ups suggest bigger problems
If Microsoft has screwed up worse than this, I don't recall it. The company had to recall six botched fixes issued on Patch Tuesday and suffered outages for SkyDrive and Outlook.com that ran for...
View ArticlePotential successors to Steve Ballmer at Microsoft
After years of enduring demands of "off with his head" from stock analysts and cranky shareholders alike, Steve Ballmer gave in and announced his intention to retire in the next 12 months. Whether he...
View ArticleHow the Nokia acquisition could hurt Microsoft's Windows Phone strategy
The news late Monday that Microsoft had purchased the hardware assets of Nokia and acquired access to other IP for a total of $7.17 billion effectively marked the end of any potential third-party...
View ArticleBlackmail, other conspiracy theories surround Microsoft's deal with Nokia
It didn't take long for the conspiracy theories to show up regarding Microsoft's $7.17 billion purchase of Nokia's hardware and licensing of assets, not the least of which asserts that Microsoft was...
View ArticleLet's evaluate Microsoft's acquisitions under Steve Ballmer
Steve Ballmer may have been and always will be Microsoft's most passionate and enthusiastic salesman, but one thing's for certain: he couldn't strike a winning deal to save his life. If you look at his...
View ArticleLet the Windows 9 and 10 rumors begin
Windows 8.1 isn't on the market yet but there is already talk of Windows 9 and 10. Actually, that should not come as a surprise; Microsoft always has to be thinking several versions ahead, but the fact...
View ArticleHTC is sticking with Windows Phone, for now at least
When Microsoft announced plans to purchase Nokia, my concern was that it would nudge out OEMs. Of course, at this point, Microsoft has one remaining OEM for Windows Phone other than Nokia, HTC, which...
View ArticleHTC grants our wishes: HTC One will run Windows Phone 8
This one burns me. Having given up on the Lumia family for being power-hungry monsters, I had gone over to the dark side and finally found an Android phone I could live with, the Samsung Galaxy S4. I...
View ArticleThe two outsiders attracting Microsoft's attention for Steve Ballmer's job
As I said in a prior blog post, I feel Microsoft's problems are too big for an insider to handle. This person will have allegiances, friendships and biases that may cloud his or her judgment at a time...
View ArticleReflecting on 10 years of Microsoft's Patch Tuesday
Today marks the 10th anniversary of the debut of Microsoft’s Patch Tuesday program, through which it would regularly issue fixes to its software on the second Tuesday of every month. It had been...
View ArticleI agree with Alan Shimel: The Samsung Galaxy S4 is junk
For some time, I had been on a quest to retire my iPhone 4s, for no reason other than that the puny screen was too small for my fat fingers. I looked at beautiful large screens like the Lumia and...
View ArticleWhy Lenovo should, and may, buy HTC
Much of the recent chatter on the blogs and Asian news sites suggests that China's Lenovo, the only PC vendor left that can sell PCs, is looking to either partner with or outright purchase struggling...
View ArticleOffice 2003 is a bigger threat to Microsoft than Google Docs
Market research firm Forrester Research has just published a report that shows Microsoft has little to fear from the free office application suites gunning for Office's dominion, though the company...
View ArticleNokia's 2520 could beat Microsoft at its own tablet game
Microsoft doesn't own Nokia yet, so the two are still competitors for now, although they deny it. One thing you can't deny: on paper, the Nokia 2520 tablet is a seriously impressive piece of hardware....
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