Get it? Rolls out? It's a pun wrapped in a word play. Anyway, the question here isn't how good
Microsoft's car software is, but whether there will be an auto industry in the next few months to actually buy it.
Posted by Lee Pender on March 03, 20090 comments
OK, we're not going to lie to you. (We never do lie to you, actually, but in this case we're going to be ridiculously truthful.) Your editor just spent a decent chunk of Monday afternoon shoveling snow, uncovering cars and watching the neighbor clear the driveway with the second-greatest invention of all time, the snow blower. (The greatest invention is still air conditioning.)
So this might not be the most poignant, clever or analytical RCPU entry of all time. But it will be informative, starting with this week's news, lovingly crafted by RCP Editor in Chief Scott Bekker, that Microsoft is taking its online services worldwide.
Yes, these are the "Software plus Services" offerings that partners either freaked out about or loved at the Worldwide Partner Conference last summer. Now we'll get to hear complaining or praise in multiple languages from 19 mostly European countries, some of which are actually snowier than New England in the winter. We just hope that those who need them have snow blowers. The front steps were enough of a backache.
What's your take on Microsoft's S+S plan for partners? How long and dreary has this winter been for you? Comment, complain or gloat at [email protected].
Posted by Lee Pender on March 03, 20090 comments
Microsoft is suing the Linux-loving GPS company, and since patents are involved in the suit, the open source community is
getting nervous. And probably for good reason.
Posted by Lee Pender on March 03, 20090 comments
If we were hosting a '70s variety show or possibly "Saturday Night Live," we'd be smiling, pointing and saying, "Once again, ladies and gentlemen, Scott Bekker!" And here he is with details of
changes to Citrix's partner program. Followed by a song, we hope.
Posted by Lee Pender on March 03, 20090 comments
It makes sense if you think about it. It might even make sense if you don't. That's why we're prone to believe the rumor that Windows 7 could arrive as early as September.
This week, an executive at an OEM in Taipei dropped the mega-hint that the final version Windows 7 might not wait until December or January to come bursting out of the womb. Ray Chen of Compal Electronics is talking about Microsoft releasing the magnificent 7 this fall, maybe in September or October.
There are a lot of reasons that this could be true. First of all, OEMs usually know about this stuff before anybody else does for reasons we hope are obvious. Second, as Redmond magazine details in its March cover story, Windows 7 already looks very stable and impressive in beta form, although we're also careful to note that not everybody is raving about the forthcoming OS.
Beyond all that, getting users' minds off of Vista seems to be a priority for Microsoft (although Redmond still tows the questionably credible line that it's better to "upgrade" to Vista before moving to 7) and there's no better way to do that than to release a brand-new, whiz-bang OS ahead of schedule. Plus, a September release would get Windows 7 into consumers' hands by the all-important holiday shopping season, which might help give a kick-start to what's expected to be a sluggish PC market this year.
Of course, for enterprise partners, timing isn't everything. Chances are that clients aren't moving to Vista, and companies likely won't go rushing out to implement Windows 7 the day it hits the shelves. Besides, it's consulting and integration revenue that really matters, not so much OS sales, which are mostly tied to purchases of new PCs.
Still, Microsoft's financial health does matter to partners because more revenue means more investment in products and in the Partner Program. And Redmond, like many companies in the industry, could use a little jolt right now. What's more, it wouldn't hurt Microsoft to smooth over some of the rough feelings it caused with the debacle that was Vista. A successful Windows 7 released early could have a feel-good effect among customers, which could trickle down into revenues for partners.
Of course, this is all just the product of a rumor, but it's a rumor that we're inclined -- and would like -- to believe. Stay tuned.
How excited would you be by a September release of Windows 7? Have your say at [email protected].
Posted by Lee Pender on February 26, 20092 comments
Hmm. Maybe there's something to the idea that a down economy will be a boon to companies that offer a hosted model. Salesforce.com bucked the industry -- and the global -- trend by blowing its earnings out of the water in its most recent fiscal quarter.
Posted by Lee Pender on February 26, 20090 comments
HP is distributing Solaris 10
on Proliant servers and blades; the two companies seem to be aiming the effort squarely at both Microsoft and Linux. Good luck.
Posted by Lee Pender on February 26, 20090 comments
Bull, Dell and HP are some of the big partners involved with
this effort.
Posted by Lee Pender on February 25, 20090 comments
In the same week in which VMware
started releasing parts of its Virtual Data Center Operating System (which
Redmond magazine was
all over back in December), Red Hat also threw its, um, hat into the virtualization ring. Keith Ward has that story with a much better hat reference
here.
And if you're curious about VMware's overall strategy, be sure to check out Chris Wolf's take on RCPmag.com's sister site, VirtualizationReview.com.
Posted by Lee Pender on February 25, 20090 comments
"Dance with the one what brung ya."
-- Old Texas saying often used by, and possibly even coined by, Darrell Royal, former football coach at the University of Texas
We hope that your editor's fellow TCU Horned Frogs out there -- we know you're reading -- will forgive a quote from an old rival, but we just couldn't think of a better quip to describe Steve Ballmer's state-of-Microsoft speech delivered on Wall Street this week.
As Redmond magazine columnist and long-time friend of RCPU Mary Jo Foley explains, Ballmer laid out Microsoft's product-investment priorities for the year, and he mostly avoided dwelling on the stuff that produces groans and eye rolls from our little corner of the peanut gallery. (RCPmag.com's Kurt Mackie gives a great breakdown of the actual investment numbers plus some additional analysis here.)
Mary Jo lays out Ballmer's seven areas of focus in a blog entry -- we've removed her lengthy and helpful analysis for the purpose of brevity:
"1. Windows
2. Mobile
3. Desktop productivity (as in Office, SharePoint and even Dynamics)
4. Server and tools
5. Enterprise software (as in SQL Server)
6. Search and advertising
7. Entertainment and TV"
We like that list, and especially the order of it. Knock mobile down a few notches, and it would be just about perfect. Hack the last two categories off altogether, and it might look even better. But we digress. It wasn't all that long ago that Ballmer was making noises about turning Microsoft into an ad agency, or at least coming close to it. Now, though, the austerity required to survive a recession seems to have brought Microsoft back to its roots: the software and tools that have made the company the titan it is today. We've said before (and more than once) that these bad times might be a good time for Microsoft to de-emphasize some of its more fanciful projects, such as trying to catch Google in consumer search or trying to create the next iPod, and get back to the basics that have made the company and its partners so successful over the years.
Apparently, Ballmer is starting to see things our way -- hello, Steve, if you're out there -- and while Microsoft isn't giving up the ghost on going after Google, the company does seem to have its priorities in order. Microsoft's core product portfolio -- Windows, Office, servers, the enterprise stuff -- might be the strongest in the industry, and it's going to be that portfolio that'll carry Microsoft and its channel through the rough economic times to come that Ballmer keeps predicting.
And maybe, if and when the economic sun does shine again and we can all check our portfolios without cringing, Redmond will remember this downturn and continue to focus on the bread-and-butter products that got it where it is today rather than chasing after other dance partners. The one what brung Microsoft still looks pretty darn good.
Where would you like to see Microsoft invest its money in 2009? Sound off at [email protected].
Posted by Lee Pender on February 25, 20091 comments