Vista: It Just Gets More Bizarre

We couldn't make this up. Not only is the release date for Vista's SP1 still a mystery, and not only is Microsoft already starting to drop hints about the next version of Windows after Vista, but it now appears as though Microsoft at some point posted the bulk of SP1 online...and then More

Posted by Lee Pender on August 01, 20074 comments


Open Source Initiative: Nice Try, Redmond

Microsoft's attempts to cozy up to the open source community , sans patent threats this time, haven't exactly gone over well so far.

Posted by Lee Pender on August 01, 20070 comments


Microsoft Works Still Exists? Yes, and It's Now Free*

Note the asterisk -- because Works isn't just free, it's ad-supported . Then again, this is the first time anybody has had a reason to write about Microsoft Works in about 10 years. It had joined Corel in the "dead or alive" (or, in Corel's case, "dead, alive or Canadian") category.

Posted by Lee Pender on August 01, 20071 comments


Ozzie Talks Up Microsoft's Consumer Forays

Perhaps (although probably not) rattled by RCPU's indictment of Microsoft's coolness (or lack thereof), Ray Ozzie has been defending Redmond's forays into the consumer world. The three(!) guys who write this blog have a pretty good take on Ozzie's comments. We'd have written something similar here at RCPU already, but we have only one writer; we're simply outnumbered.

Posted by Lee Pender on August 01, 20070 comments


RCP Reader Survey

Yes, we're doing another one, this time on everything from working with Microsoft to SaaS strategies to competitive threats. Want to know what your colleagues are thinking? They're curious about what you think, too. Be a part of it all here .

Posted by Lee Pender on July 31, 20070 comments


Bill Gates: Ghost in Microsoft's Machine?

Interesting New York Times article on just how inactive Bill Gates will actually be once he officially leaves Microsoft. Plus, the Wall Street Journal serves up a page-one article on Craig Mundie

Posted by Lee Pender on July 31, 20070 comments


Microsoft Courts Open Source, This Time Without Talking Patents

Microsoft revealed last week the lighter side of its Jekyll-and-Hyde approach to open source software, unveiling a glowing new Web site designed to attract the open source community (as if open source types don't see the mousetrap underneath that hunk of cheese).

Microsoft has also submitted its shared-source software licenses More

Posted by Lee Pender on July 31, 20070 comments


Ozzie Lays SaaS Talk on Thick

For those of you wondering just what Microsoft's software as a service -- or even Software Plus Services -- strategy might involve, Ray Ozzie spelled things out in fairly good detail last week.

This is one of those times when we'd like for you to take a look at what Ozzie said (yes, that means clicking the link) and tell us how you, as a partner, think you can fit into this strategy. We're reading over this carefully ourselves, but we're going to hold off on any commentary until we hear from you. So step up and let us know how SaaS-y you plan to get with Redmond in the months and years to come.

More

Posted by Lee Pender on July 31, 20070 comments


So, What Were Those Vista Numbers Again?

"Sixty million copies sold!" shouts Kevin Turner. "Mumble mumble mumble," adds Microsoft officially, not quite so confident, apparently, in Turner's boast.

Meanwhile, our old friend XP will finally More

Posted by Lee Pender on July 31, 20070 comments


Study: Microsoft-Novell Deal Good for Red Hat

So, who came out the big winner in the first of Microsoft's Linux patent deals? If we're to believe a recent study, it was le Chapeau Rouge , monsieur!

Posted by Lee Pender on July 26, 20070 comments


WGA Finally Proves Useful

Last summer, it burst onto the scene like a villain from a summer blockbuster movie, making enemies wherever it went and generally wreaking havoc in the channel and in corporate IT departments.

But now, Windows Genuine Advantage has gone from zero to hero More

Posted by Lee Pender on July 26, 20070 comments


'Vista Bounce' More Like a Thud So Far

Remember the good ol' days of November 2006? When Microsoft blasted Vista out the door to eager enterprise customers, and partners awaited the windfall that the new operating system was sure to bring? Well, just like Chicago Cubs fans wondering when their loyalty will pay off with a World Series title after nearly a century of frustration, partners are waiting for Vista to start making the cash registers ring. It isn't happening yet. More

Posted by Lee Pender on July 26, 20072 comments