OK, so you're excited about XP Mode and ready to download the Windows 7 RC. But what you really want is a replacement for your dull XP or less-than-satisfying Vista. What you want is a final version of 7.
Can you wait 'til October? That's when the rumor mill predicts a release. One piece of evidence? Acer plans to ship a Windows 7 box on Oct. 23.
Here's what the rumor mill doesn't understand: Software isn't like cheese, where it ages a certain amount and is ready that day. Software (should) only get released when it's ready. How on earth would Microsoft know with exactitude that it can incorporate the feedback of all the release candidate testers into a product that ships in a particular month?
October sounds about right to me, but who knows what will happen when hundreds of thousands of people pound on millions of lines of code?
Posted by Doug Barney on May 01, 20090 comments
During last week's big
Oracle-Sun hoopla, Doug asked readers what they think Oracle should do with Sun's portfolio. Here are one reader's suggestions:
Here is my wholly unqualified opinion on the subject from the perspective of what I could see being the most valuable/sensible actions for Oracle: Sun hardware, along with Solaris, becomes a pre-packaged Oracle database solution complete with storage, software and hardware optimization (sort of a database appliance, if you will). NetBeans and Java, including the recently released JavaFX, get packaged and sold together (to IBM, perhaps?). MySQL becomes an Oracle-backed open source project with the goal of pushing the envelope and proving concepts that will get refined and optimized into Oracle. OpenOffice gets released to the public domain and/or Open source community to thrive or die. VirtualBox goes one of two ways -- either the whole xVM project gets placed in its own division to survive or die as a strategic counter to the other virtualization solutions Oracle is able to run on (in theory), or the xVM project gets scrapped and sold or left to die on its own.
Is this what will happen? Who knows. Is this what I would like to see? No. I like Sun the way it was (well, except for the nearly non-viability of the operation). What I want to see is marketing and business operation consolidations between the companies and the rest left alone. I just have never seen any buy-out like this happen that way.
-Thomas
Sure, Microsoft's Q3 earnings report was kind of a downer, but James thinks the company can learn something from it:
Is this the beginning of the end for Microsoft? No, I don't think so. What I do believe is that if MS continues laying eggs like Vista, then yeah, they might as well fold up shop and retire as millionaires or maybe become reclusive hackers. But I don't think that is really going to happen.
Hopefully, this will make Microsoft realize that they can't just throw out software that nobody really likes and expect people to blindly buy it and rejoice in it. Without getting into who's fault, the bottom line is that Microsoft paid for it. Now, will people that still use MS move to Windows 7 or bail for good? I guess that is something that we will have to watch for in the coming quarters. Keep watching those MS headlines...maybe the next one will be "Microsoft Rebounds from 32% Q3 Loss."
-James
Chris wonders whether VMware's vSphere is actually a cloud, and why localized clouds aren't a bigger deal:
Is it a cloud? I don't know, but I do know that we need localized clouds. Localized clouds need to become the replacement for SANs. For example, in the database space, the vendors all need to support having clients connect to a virtual IP that front-ends a database, but allow the data in the database to be moved between different instances inside a locally managed database cloud. They also need to let us specify where to store different pieces of the data, including which pieces should be stored on multiple instances (and how many instances). Then they need to give us the ability to move the data from one instance to another so that individual instances can have service packs and patches applied.
Some vendors support this kind of vision partially, but Microsoft needs to get into this game in a large way. Otherwise, they run the risk of losing market share to other products that are less capable from a data query, modeling and management point of view for two reasons: first, proponents for those other data platforms are being very vocal about their benefits; and second, because Microsoft is being too slow to deliver on this kind of model with SQL Server.
-Chris
More letters coming on Friday, including thoughts about Microsoft's latest ad campaign, the so-called "Mac tax" and more. Meanwhile, coment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on April 29, 20090 comments
I may have been wrong, very wrong about Windows 7. I interviewed dozens of Windows 7 beta testers, and no one said a word about a virtual XP compatibility mode. When I suggested that Microsoft give Windows 7 a virtual layer to mimic or even fully include XP, it wasn't an entirely original thought; some analysts, including from Gartner, made a similar argument.
Apparently, behind the scenes, Microsoft felt the same way. Word is now leaking out that at least some versions of Windows 7 will run XP apps in this virtual compatibility box.
Turns out, I wasn't such a dunce, as none of the test versions have this feature. It's strange that something of such significance would show up so late. And there's another worry, at least according to Redmond magazine columnist Mary Jo Foley: It may be that the XP Mode will only be for Software Assurance customers. Well, they should get something sweet for all that dough!
Posted by Doug Barney on April 29, 20090 comments
What kind of software does pretty much every PC have? Yeah, an operating system. But they also have a browser, especially as Microsoft still largely considers the browser and OS as one and the same. That, and the fact that the browser is the most Internet-facing tool, make it a
perfect target for hackers.
But there's another factor making browsers so vulnerable: the features war that has us upgrading browsers faster than Donald Trump switches girlfriends. As we move to more Web-based apps, we best start battening down our browsers.
Posted by Doug Barney on April 29, 20090 comments
Microsoft may be in the process of
laying off 5,000 workers, but there's one area where Redmond can't get enough new employees:
Windows 8.
The job postings reveal a smidge about new features, including clustering and replication. The replication is interesting as Notes creator Ray Ozzie is considered the father of modern replication. The ads also mention that "the core engine is being reworked," which is a very good thing. Some experts, however, are focusing on the term "rework" and believe there won't be a new core.
Posted by Doug Barney on April 29, 20090 comments
In the April
Redmond cover story, I stuck my neck out farther than the Toys "R" Us giraffe. In it, I argued that Microsoft has the talent, product set and fiscal discipline to make it through the recession relatively unscathed.
This flies in the face of longtime critics who even in times of prosperity predicted the demise of the Redmond juggernaut. First, it was the Internet that would do away with old styles of computing. More recently, open source signaled the Redmond death knell. And most recently, the Internet and cloud computing re-emerged as Microsoft's doom.
I knew my article would come out just a few weeks before another Redmond earnings report. If the news was horrible, I'd look like a real dope. So what happened? As my colleagues reported this past Friday, revenue and earnings were down, but even in a deep recession, Microsoft pulled in nearly $4 billion in profit.
Not quite Exxon territory but not too shabby. If this is as bad as it gets, Microsoft will do just fine.
Posted by Doug Barney on April 27, 20090 comments
One reader takes issue with the description of Microsoft as having had "
two straight losing quarters":
Microsoft doesn't need me to defend them, really, but your choice of words, "two straight losing quarters," is deceptive, misleading or even untrue in that it implies that Microsoft lost money. A more accurate choice of words would have been "two straight quarters of declining earnings growth," which is still a critical business indicator, just not deceptive.
Upon further reflection, you could even say "declining earnings" without the "growth" if earnings are actually lower than the prior period. But it's still not losing when they're still profitable.
-Anonymous
Sharon airs a couple of her grievances about the Office ribbon:
Honestly, the Office ribbon is just one of those things that's going to continue to change as new versions are released. It's easier for those learning Office apps to see the icons for what they need.
My complaints: One, why is inserting a hyperlink not on the "Home" tab? Other than text formatting -- I do that more than anything else. Two, why are the same commands in different locations depending on which app you're using? Look for the hyperlink button in Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook (the four apps I use most often in communicating with others at work). At least they're all on the "Insert" tab. PITA! And before anyone says anything: Yes, the quick key is CTRL+K across the board; just using this one as an example.
-Sharon
One reader likes what he's seen so far from Windows 7, but another reports that it's still not without its problems:
I am very excited by the release of Windows 7! If the beta is any indication of what type of product Windows 7 will be, I am truly impressed. Windows 7 in its beta form boots in less than half the time of Vista, and I have found that it is fully responsive in 30 to 40 seconds from the time Windows starts to boot to when the desktop becomes available (although booting from a machine joined to the Windows domains takes probably an extra 15 to 20 seconds). I am excited and hope it is released soon!
-Asif
Using Windows 7 has been an experience. However, during my time using it, I have found that if you find yourself not being able to run some of your favorite installed software on the system, you probably have Windows Event Log stopped. I then found there was no way to start it. Had to format the drive and start over. Hope Microsoft finds a cure for this because it has also happened in Vista. No cure found to date.
-Geff
Robert isn't buying into the recently released Windows Server 2008 Foundation, a server targeted at really small businesses:
I can only imagine the conversations I am going to have with future prospects who buy into this useless product. Is Microsoft trying to make it more difficult for me to sell their solutions? SBS is FAR superior in terms of benefits, features and scalability. Sure, Foundation is a bit cheaper, but the total cost of an installation and the ongoing maintenance of a system is not affected much by the initial price of the OS.
The SMB owner will be greatly disappointed once I inform them the guy at Dell pushing this cheap OS (just to make a hardware sale) didn't really sell them a viable solution. The cost to "fix" it with a retail or volume license of SBS plus our installation services doesn't do anyone much good. Yes, honestly, I don't want that business -- I want to engage prospects strategically, not reactively. I'm shocked (actually, not really) that Microsoft would create a product to confuse an already chaotic market and undermine the countless and loyal SBS-ers out there.
-Robert
And Phil says thanks, but no thanks to Microsoft's desktop virtualization product, MED-V:
I would use MED-V if it did not require SA. I played with Altiris SVS when I was trying to get Vista to play nicely with some apps we have to use. They were 16-bit, or at least had 16-bit installers. It worked great, and would have allowed centralized app configs and updates. I could not package a couple of programs, but the software was beta and free-ish before Symatec purchased it.
-Phil
Watch this space for more reader letters on Wednesday, including thoughts on what Oracle should do with Sun's portfolio, VMware's virtualization plans, and more. Meanwhile, submit your own comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on April 27, 20090 comments
A few months ago, I got hammered when I mentioned a certain non-public Microsoft beta was available on BitTorrent. A reader or two complained that these were unauthorized downloads and I was an unwitting accomplice.
So now I will report that the Windows 7 release candidate is up on BitTorrent, but will refrain from advising you to try it.
Posted by Doug Barney on April 27, 20090 comments
Microsoft spends billions on security, whether it's built into the products, an add-on or a fix. But as we all know, this isn't enough. Now Microsoft wants a helping hand -- from you! That's right, Microsoft wants IT professionals to
help stem the hacker tide. It also want resellers and ISVs to kick in, as well.
One recommendation, it seems, is for IT to buy into Microsoft's security vision (and product line) which includes not only malware detection and eradication, but identity verification.
Posted by Doug Barney on April 27, 20090 comments
Don't worry, readers: Doug will be back on Monday to deliver Redmond Report as usual, but in the meantime, we're filling in for him. Let's get started:
Microsoft changed its plans: It won't be holding its business intelligence (BI) conference this year in October. Instead, its next BI event will take place in Seattle, Wash. Some time in October 2010, according to Microsoft's
announcement. What does this mean? The announcement simply explained that Microsoft was meeting a request from its partners and customers to hold the event every other year. Moreover, event organizers expected to see travel cutbacks in the current down economy.
David Linthicum, a consultant on distributed computing and SOA, took a different view on the cancellation.. "The larger issue is that I just don't see Microsoft as a player in the world of BI, beyond their database presence, which is significant," he wrote.
Ouch! As an indication of Microsoft's weakness in BI, Linthicum pointed to the folding of Microsoft's PerformancePoint Server into SharePoint, which was announced in late January. Stephen Elop, president of Microsoft's Business Division, later explained PerformancePoint's removal as a standalone product, saying that Microsoft was pulling back somewhat from vertical competition with IBM and SAP, as noted by Redmond magazine's Lee Pender.
However, Andrew Brust, director of new technology at twentysix New York -- and, by the way, a Microsoft Regional Director and MVP, as well as a contributor to Visual Studio Magazine -- disagreed with Linthicum's critique. He took Microsoft at its word that conference attendance is generally down and that BI will be discussed at several other upcoming Microsoft events, including next month's Tech-Ed in Los Angeles.
"Microsoft is not getting out of BI," Brust contended in an e-mail. "They are imbuing Office and SharePoint (and SQL Server and Dynamics) with BI to get BI past niche status and into the mainstream. The rest of the market is still going the niche route, which doesn't make them more dedicated or serious. It makes them more elitist and far more expensive."
Indeed, BI has shown increasing signs of commoditization or even "death," as smaller companies specializing in BI have been gobbled up by the likes of IBM, Oracle, SAP and Microsoft.
Microsoft's last BI event, held last October, highlighted three forthcoming BI components -- all currently at the CTP stage -- including the next version of SQL Server (code-named "Kilimanjaro"). In addition, Microsoft plans to release a data mash-up tool code-named "Gemini" and a scalable data warehousing solution using massive parallel processing technology that Microsoft acquired after buying DATAllegro. Other existing components in Microsoft's BI stack include Office, SharePoint and Dynamics.
Back in October, Microsoft had predicted that Kilimanjaro would be a "full product" in "the first half of calendar year 2010." Microsoft touts Kilimanjaro as a way of simplifying BI functionality for end users by supporting a beefed-up Excel interface, as Visual Studio Magazine Editor Jeff Schwartz has reported previously. Microsoft also promises that Gemini will simplify data manipulation by end users of BI. Madison is also expected to appear as a product some time in 2010.
Those who can't wait for Kilimanjaro and Madison news can sign up to hear Microsoft's webcasts planned for next week, starting Monday.
Is Microsoft's BI dying? Are you disappointed by the rescheduling of Microsoft's BI event? Tell Doug what BI means to you at [email protected].
PC Struggles Hurt Microsoft's Q3 Earnings
When the headline crossing the wire simply states "Microsoft Reports Third-Quarter Results," you know the news is gonna be bad. In my memory, it's only the second time we haven't seen a Microsoft earnings report embellished with words like "record" or "fastest" or "robust."
As the saying goes, what goes up must come down. The global recession makes for a good excuse right now, and indeed the 6 percent revenue drop -- the more painful number was the 32 percent drop in Q3 net income -- was mainly attributed to sluggish sales of Windows-loaded PCs worldwide.
The sky didn't completely collapse, though: Microsoft made gains in software license renewals, as well as Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008 and the Systems Center suite.
With two straight losing quarters, is this the beginning of the end for Microsoft? Chicken Littles can send their predictions to [email protected].
Oracle's Sun Buy: Will OpenOffice Remain Free?
There are already lots of analyses about Oracle's purchase of Sun, mainly looking at how the buy will affect Microsoft (think MySQL and Oracle 11g), IBM (think DB2 and Big Blue's failed talks with Sun) and Web browsing and development (think Java).
Not mentioned much is OpenOffice. It'd be interesting to see if OO continues to remain free, figuratively and literally. All I care about at this point is that I don't have to resort to migrating once again to Google Docs or Zoho.
Mailbag: Upgrading from XP, Microsoft Security Falls Short, More
On the topic of upgrading to Windows 7, one reader says not offering an upgrade path from XP isn't very a smart move on Microsoft's part, but another says he probably wouldn't take the upgrade anyway:
Microsoft HAS to provide an update path from XP Pro to Windows 7. They may be posturing to get some dupes to buy Vista as a means to upgrade, but the overwhelming majority of XP users may bail, go Apple/Linux and use VM platforms to run Windows apps. Not providing an update path is political and commercial suicide.
-Bernie
Speaking only for our organization and as an IT professional, I see little interest in upgrading to Windows 7 from XP. The main reason would be that there is little value gained and the industry is looking at acquiring low-cost netbooks with either Android or Windows XP Home utilized for free. So why upgrade?
-Matt
Meanwhile, Kevin thinks it's not completely the end of the road for XP support:
You might want to verify for your readers' benefit that the support that's about to end on XP is only for the version that shipped originally. To my knowledge, Microsoft's support for XP running with certain service packs will continue for quite a while. I don't have the exact dates in my head but I'm sure a journalist of your \ caliber could find them quickly enough.
I only mention this as I think what you wrote is a bit misleading without this additional, very important information. I don't write this to dissuade people from upgrading to Vista or Windows 7, as I think they are both fine operating systems. I'm just pointing out what I believe is an important thing to know.
-Kevin
These readers say it doesn't make much sense to pay Microsoft for its security products:
I can't see myself selling Microsoft security to my clients. Why would I trust my security to the company who created the security problems in the first place? And why should I pay for something from Microsoft that helps fix those holes? If they can develop software that will protect their security problems, why don't they just fix them in the OS like they should?
The last thing I would do is try to sell my clients on a Microsoft security solution. I don't care how great Forefront is -- it just seems like paying them twice for something I shouldn't have to worry about in the first place.
-Matt
If software is open to attacks, isn't that a flaw in the software? Should the publisher charge you an additional fee to protect you from the flaws in the software it just sold you? Isn't this a bit absurd? Are there other industries that openly sell you a defective product, then charge you an additional fee to remedy the defects?
-Jim
I give Forefront an "A" just because it did the job. After using it for a few years, I have replaced it with a more comprehensive and cost-effective SaaS solution. In a cost comparison, I give it a solid "C" and I don't really miss it.
-Kurt
One reader responds to John's gripe last week about paying for a full-year subscription for the soon-to-be-axed OneCare:
Microsoft has publicly stated that they're going to support OneCare until all the paid subscriptions expire.
I couldn't tell if John was saying it was asinine for them to sell it to him, or for him to buy it.
-Anonymous
And speaking of gripes, Bill's letter last week about IT pros who "blame Microsoft" struck a chord with some readers:
Thanks for printing Bill's rant. It is the best thing I have read in a long, long time!
-Art
Many thanks to Bill for pointing out that most user problems with Microsoft are because the user either has poor administration skills or will not follow best practices. Kudos for pointing out that this incompetence actually improves job security. As I told my college students, if they ever bill clients hourly, learn how to say, "Darn Microsoft and Bill Gates" and keep the meter running. And if you can sweat a little, you can be totally incompetent but your client will believe you are an expert.
-Earl
Blaming Microsoft for your computer/server rebooting from a security patch during a 4TB RAID rebuild is ridiculous. Any admin worth anything would NEVER have their server update automatically. For the love of God, turn off auto update.
Ignorance is bliss, isnt it? Ignorant users who have no idea what they are doing, thinking the grass is greener on the other side. All computers are a pain in the ass, whether it's Apple, Linux or Microsoft. You just need to know how to use them correctly. Otherwise, it's all bash and not one fact to back it up.
-Charles
Tune in Monday for more reader letters. In the meanwhile submit your own comments below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on April 24, 20090 comments
VMware loves clouds so much it wants to help you build your own. VMware last year announced a broad strategy to help service providers build clouds, and for IT to do the same. Then these IT clouds can be linked to outside clouds so extra capacity doesn't require more internal servers -- just a fatter WAN connection.
The notion of an internal cloud may be a bit ahead of its time. We wanted to do a full cover story on how to build your own cloud but felt the tools weren't mature enough and IT not quite ready.
VMware hopes its latest cloud tool, vSphere 4, will offer a shortcut. This puppy used to be called VMware Infrastructure (I guess like Microsoft, VMware likes to change product names midstream), and helps IT build clouds based on virtual machines.
The main breakthrough of vSphere 4, as I understand it, is that IT can load up each server with more VMs. The overall idea is that all applications run as services across the virtual servers, stay up via heavy-duty fault tolerance, and always have the right amount of storage through thin provisioning.
Is this really a cloud or just a virtualized and efficient datacenter? You tell me at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on April 22, 20090 comments
Press reports of Oracle buying Sun imply it's a done deal, and maybe it is. Some of these deals go fast and smooth and others collapse faster than a Jenga stack. Some open source fans may prefer the latter as it's unclear how the commercially oriented Oracle (and boy, is it ever) may not have the love for Java, open source IDEs and MySQL that Sun has.
With the wealth of Sun open tools, it's pretty clear that not all would survive being commandeered by Oracle. Many see NetBeans getting quickly roasted. Beyond that, will Oracle put muscle behind OpenOffice just to irritate Microsoft, or set it adrift? And what about Java itself?
In the short term, all this uncertainty plays to Microsoft's favor, at least in the developer market. Everyone knows that Microsoft and Visual Studio ain't going anywhere and that new products and new versions will steadily appear for years to come.
What should Larry do with the Sun portfolio? Free business advice welcome and passed along at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on April 22, 20090 comments