As editor in chief of
Redmond magazine, I should be embarrassed to admit that I don't yet use Vista. In fact, I used to feel that way.
But the more I hear from real IT experts (translation: you, the Redmond Report reader), the more I think I'm actually on the leading edge by sticking with good, old XP Service Pack 2. My printers and external hard drives still work, and it has performance I can live with.
Vista users are having less luck. Hardware drivers are lagging behind the operating system like me in the Boston marathon (I'm not exactly svelte).
Many believe a service pack will do the trick, but service packs are for bugs and performance. Drivers are an entirely different matter. Give some news about Vista by writing [email protected]!
Learn more from
this fine report from the Associated Press.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 16, 20070 comments
Like Vista, OneCare has seen its share of problems. This consumer security bundle was roundly criticized by users (including a
Redmond magazine staffer who had no end of problems) for installation troubles and what some claim is substandard anti-virus protection.
Now, Microsoft is prepping OneCare 2.0, which can protect multiple computers and offers centralized backup for networked computers.
OneCare 1.0 might not have been God's gift to computing (for me, that would be craigslist), but name one 1.0 product from Microsoft that has been top-notch. Word, Excel, Windows, even NT had growing pains.
Because Microsoft is such a patient company, OneCare (version 3.0, at least) is still something that Symantec et al should be very worried about.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 16, 20070 comments
Those who think that Microsoft has no Software as a Service strategy (SaaS+S) must not have heard of
Dynamics Live CRM, a hosted version of Microsoft's current CRM offering announced last week at Microsoft's annual partner conference.
Now, before you get too excited, I have a bone to pick with the name. Microsoft's original CRM product was called, I believe, simply "Microsoft CRM." Then it became "Microsoft Dynamics CRM." Now that everything that has anything to do with the Web is somehow called Live, it's now "Microsoft Dynamics Live CRM." That sure rolls off the old tongue!
Of course, if you are really hardcore, you can buy Microsoft Dynamics Live CRM Professional or Microsoft Dynamics Live CRM Enterprise!
Interestingly, but not surprisingly, Microsoft is undercutting Salesforce.com on price by a pretty big hunk.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 16, 20070 comments
Despite its detente with Novell, Xandros and Linspire, the open source community
is giving Microsoft no quarter. The latest open source license, GPLv3, specifies
that future deals between Microsoft and open source software makers will be
in violation of the new license.
Is it any wonder, then, that Microsoft wants
nothing to do with GPLv3?
The trick is that Novell fully supports GPLv3, and Microsoft had pledged to
support Novell. Now Novell and Microsoft must work out how to support mutual
customers with a license that Microsoft so soundly rejects.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 09, 20070 comments
Windows cognoscenti all know the Blue Screen of Death. Xbox 360 users are learning
about the Red Ring of Death: This is when three red lights turn on, indicating
that your Xbox is as frozen as Ted Williams' head (thanks to my daughter Lauren
for this sweet metaphor!).
Microsoft is tackling these hardware problems, extending warranties by up to
three years and setting
aside $1 billion to pay for repairs. If you're looking at a used Xbox on
craigslist or eBay, check the lights!
Posted by Doug Barney on July 09, 20070 comments
As you can see from the above item, Microsoft continues to do much of its product
planning by asking the question: "What would Google do?"
If Google didn't already own the world of online advertising, it might (if
Microsoft wasn't doing it already) shell
out $6 billion to buy aQuantive -- twice what Google is paying for DoubleClick.
The Microsoft-aQuantive deal could be nailed down next month.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 09, 20070 comments
Six patches
will
be released tomorrow, including three dubbed critical that involve the remote
execution of code. It's an equal-opportunity Patch Tuesday, as Office, Windows
and the .NET Framework will all get repairs.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 09, 20070 comments
Microsoft is continuing to reshape itself in Ray Ozzie's image. One of the bigger
initiatives is Live, a series of Web services meant to bring in either advertising
or subscription revenue.
Before the reorg, there was one group focused on the actual services and another
to build the infrastructure pieces, such as directory and identity. Now these
two groups are unified with the new entity tightly under the thumb of Mr.
Ozzie.
To my mind, Microsoft hasn't really explained what Live is all about. It's
clear that Microsoft is building an entirely new platform, but how will it actually
work, when will it appear and how does it all affect existing products?
Can you explain Live? If so, shoot me some mail at [email protected].
And yes, Ray, you're welcome to write in, as well.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 09, 20070 comments
Last
week, Doug asked readers if they want to work at Microsoft, despite the
Microsoft Security Reponse Center's appearance in
Popular Science's list
of the
worst
science jobs. Looks like these readers haven't been put off:
Would I like to work for Microsoft? In a word: Yes! If it is anything
like I have imagined, just doing a few years there (if that is all I might
be able to hack) would probably lay the groundwork for the rest of my career.
I see being a part of Redmond as a big challenge, but also a rewarding
one. It will have its ups and downs just like all jobs, but for the most part,
the Microsoft family is pretty close and the reward for being a member is
pretty nice, indeed.
So that is where I am striving to be, to meet the challenges and obtain
enough personal satisfaction that I can say it was worth it to have made being
a technologist my career choice. I'll have to let you know how it all works
out.
-Calais
Quick answer: Absolutely!
Long answer: Absolutely! Why? Microsoft is among the largest organizations
in the world. Microsoft didn't get where it is today by having a bunch of
slackers staffing its positions. Microsoft got where it is by carefully recruiting
high-performing and creative employees who stretch their minds more than a
runner stretches his/her legs. High-performance individuals with a thirst
for knowledge and a knack for problem solving should definitely consider Microsoft
as a potential employer.
-Adrian
I hear the politics at Microsoft are awful, that it is nearly impossible
to put new features in. The flip side is that you have the potential to work
with some of the brightest minds ever over there. Every time I go to conferences,
I am just amazed at some of the people that I meet from Microsoft. I think
that Hugh MacLeod is helping Microsoft understand what its mission needs to
be: Microsoft, change the world or go home. I would work for Microsoft in
a heartbeat if I could.
-Deanna
Why is Microsoft bragging about a $500
PC for India, when some Vista laptops can be had for cheaper here in the
States? Here's what some of you had to say:
I forwarded your article about the $500 PC to Cathy, a missionary I know
in the northeastern part of India. This is her response:
"You have to realize there is a luxury tax on everything here,
including toilet paper! So it is reasonable if you get a legal Windows in
it. Such is life here!"
There is so much counterfeiting done there.
-Len
The only thing that keeps us from having a good cheap computer is the
quest for speed and power. Twenty-eight years ago, I owned my first disk operating
system computer. It had 64K of RAM. (Yep, that's a K). It had NO hard drive
and I ran a word processor, a spreadsheet and a whole lot of truly neat games.
Where is it written that a computer today needs a gig of RAM and 80 gigs on
a hard drive? I think the answer to that is at Microsoft. There are days when
I wish for my H-DOS machine, or even the CP/M machine I bought after that.
Yes, I built those machines myself, but I bet you could make one with the
same capabilities for less than $100. OK, so today's calculator has more power,
but it doesn't have the flexibility.
The world will not have a cheap computer as long as Microsoft is building
the operating system.
-John
So, is it "U.K." or "Great Britain"? Doug asked, and readers
from across the pond answered:
Yes, you can say "Great Britain." The offical name is "the
United Kingdom of Great Britian and Northern Ireland." That's a bit of
a mouthful for most people so either "U.K.," "United Kingdom"
or "Great Britian" is still correct.
-Mitch
You can say "Great Britain" if you wish for everyone to know
what you mean, but it's not accurate. Great Britain is the name of the island;
the nation is called "the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland" and is made up of the big island of Great Britain, a bit of
the island of Ireland and a handful of smaller islands dotted around the area.
-Alec
Got something to add? Let us have it! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail
to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on July 09, 20070 comments
Speaking of security, Microsoft is having trouble keeping its Web sites unmolested.
The latest breach? It seems hackers
vandalized
Microsoft's U.K. Web site (can I also say Great Britain? Experts from across
the pond can write me at
[email protected])
using a SQL injection attack. Fortunately for our pals across the pond, the
site is now fixed.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 02, 20070 comments
Working for Microsoft has never been easy. The stories of long hours, unceasing
pressure and relentless rain are legendary.
Those days, stock options made it all worthwhile. These days, the stock is
as flat as a world-record flapjack. And yet, the work goes on.
According to a recent article from Popular Science, one job at Microsoft
is particularly deserving of our sympathy. Those who work in Microsoft's Security
Response Center (profiled here)
have the sixth-worst
job in science. That's because these folks fight off what could be millions
of hackers exploiting thousands of holes.
It could be worse. Other bad jobs include elephant vasectomist and whale feces
researcher. My guess? Neither of these come with stock options, either.
And as far as stinking goes, being a "garbologist" has got to be
the worst (I should know -- I put myself through college as an amusement park
trash man!).
Would you want to work for Microsoft? Tell us why or why not by writing to
[email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on July 02, 20070 comments
Anyone who has read this newsletter for longer than a week knows I'm interested
in Third World computing. My theory is that great minds exist everywhere. By
giving access to computers, the Internet and, thus, the entire world, who knows
what a poor child from a poor country can do?
I'm half-excited and half-disgusted with the efforts made by our biggest companies.
They talk about offering cheap technology to the Third World, but their definition
of cheap ain't exactly thrifty.
Two weeks ago, I found two different Vista laptops for $399 at Best Buy. Desktops,
as you know, are always cheaper.
So why is it that Microsoft is bragging about a $500
PC for the Indian market? At that price, it better come with a free iPod
(and no, people in India don't want a Zune!) and a side of pooran poli.
Posted by Doug Barney on July 02, 20070 comments