This is probably a whole lot of nothing and really doesn't seem like a  big deal, anyway, but you clicked, right? Anyhow, somebody's accusing Microsoft  of inflating Windows revenue figures by bringing in numbers from other parts of  the company, specifically the Entertainment and Devices Group.  Uh, that seems kind of backwards to us. Windows needs help from the  entertainment group? Really? We kind of doubt that. 
 
	Posted by Lee Pender on November 15, 20100 comments
          
	
 
            
                
                
 
    
    
	
    
		
Ahahaha. Please, Microsoft and Verizon. Please do this. Please bring  the Kin back. 
Yes, that's right. Arguably the biggest flop in Microsoft history could  -- although there's nothing official on this yet -- make a stunning return as a  feature phone with a cheaper Verizon data plan. We really want this to happen.
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	Posted by Lee Pender on November 15, 20103 comments
          
	
 
            
                
                
 
    
    
	
    
		
The storage giant just got...more storage. One whole heck of a lot  more, actually, with its purchase of Seattle-based Isilon.  Ha, for once, an East Coast company consumes a West Coast firm. New England represent! 
 
	Posted by Lee Pender on November 15, 20100 comments
          
	
 
            
                
                
 
    
    
	
    
		
It's Microsoft's new tagline -- Be What's Next, that is.  The question is, what is next for Microsoft? A wave of new cloud products? A  new CEO? Success in the mobile market? Billions of dollars more in revenues?  Probably billions of dollars more in revenues.  
 
	Posted by Lee Pender on November 10, 20101 comments
          
	
 
            
                
                
 
    
    
	
    		
The first test build of the next version of SQL Server is available for  download now,  if you're a TechNet or MSDN subscriber. Denali  will bring cloud enhancements and a whole bunch of other stuff Mary Jo Foley  describes in her piece. 
 
	Posted by Lee Pender on November 10, 20100 comments
          
	
 
            
                
                
 
    
    
	
    
		
Go figure. Microsoft has taken more knocks about security over the  years than Gerry Cooney has taken punches, and now that Redmond has actually made a pretty solid  effort at protecting its own operating system, its security partners are  whining.
Microsoft's free Security Essentials is available to Windows update  subscribers who actively say that they want it -- it is not, in other words, an  automatic download.  But security firms such as McAfee, Symantec and especially Trend Micro are  complaining that Microsoft's practice of offering Security Essentials as part  of an update download -- even a completely elective one -- is anti-competitive. 
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	Posted by Lee Pender on November 10, 20107 comments
          
	
 
            
                
                
 
    
    
	
    
		
In Berlin  this week, over beer and schnitzel (probably...and mmm, by the way), Microsoft  announced a lineup of partners that will help the company provide private cloud  infrastructures. Dell, Fujitsu, Hitachi, HP, IBM and NEC are on the  not-so-surprising list. Mary Jo Foley, Microsoft watcher extraordinaire and Redmond magazine columnist, has all the details. 
 
	Posted by Lee Pender on November 08, 20100 comments
          
	
 
            
                
                
            
                
                
 
    
    
	
    
		
We're sure that Steve Ballmer doesn't mean to cause any panic with his  planned big sale of Microsoft stock.  He's very wealthy. He can do what he wants with his money. His tax preparations  have to be only slightly more complicated than doing calculus in Mandarin. 
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	Posted by Lee Pender on November 08, 20103 comments
          
	
 
            
                
                
            
                
                
 
    
    
	
    
		
OK, OK, so "ravaging"  might be an overstatement. But for users of IE 6, 7 and maybe 8, the latest  zero-day mess could cause some problems.  
 
	Posted by Lee Pender on November 04, 20100 comments