Microsoft Partnering 101


Mexican Billionaire Donates Laptops

Billionaire Carlos Slim said he doesn't care if he is the world's richest man and promised to donate hundreds of thousands of laptop computers to Mexican children.

Lenovo To Sell $199 PC in Rural China

Lenovo Group Ltd. said Friday it will sell a basic personal computer aimed at China's vast but poor rural market and priced as low as $199.

Microsoft Works Goes Free, Ad-Supported

Microsoft Corp. will test a free, advertising-supported version of Works, an already inexpensive package of word processing, spreadsheet and other programs, but would not say whether it is exploring a similar Web-based suite.

Policy Management Tweak Misses Cut in 2nd SQL Server 2008 CTP

Anticipated improvements to the way polices are set up and managed in one or more instances did not make it into the second CTP of SQL Server 2008.

SourceLabs Unveils Enterprise Java OSS

SourceLabs is offering the latest version of its open source Java stack for enterprises. The company's SASH 2 software suite lets companies escape being locked into proprietary solutions by combining the popular Spring, Axis, Struts and Hibernate open source solutions. The stack works with Apache Tomcat, IBM WebSphere and BEA WebLogic servers.

SOA Bangers and Mashups

It's a service-oriented architecture (SOA) world -- well, not quite for everyone yet. However, what happens when IT departments increasingly use SOA to expose data and applications as services? The next step might be to begin collecting and using those services to create something useful.

Mass. Approves Microsoft Office Document Format

In a victory for Microsoft's open source efforts, Massachusetts has decided to accept Microsoft's Office file format as sufficiently open to allow it to compete with other office productivity suites.

Delays Hit Next Version of Office for Macs

The next version of Microsoft Office for the Mac platform has been delayed until next year.

Apple Releases Security Patch for IPhone

Apple Inc. has issued a software patch to fix some security holes that independent security researchers recently discovered for the company's vaunted iPhone.

Are You on Target?

Conduct strategic business planning and ask key questions -- especially if your company is missing its year-end goals.

Microsoft, Services and Partners: Survival of the Fittest

Partners need to be nimble when Redmond ventures into new territories, but they also have to wait.

Getting a Handle on Peer-to-Peer Applications

Watch out for security pitfalls, such as increasingly popular instant messaging apps.

The Right Stuff

Microsoft executives view their 'benefits wheel' as the hub of their new campaign to get the right benefit to the right partner at the right time.

Solving the Puzzle -- Together

In solution selling, partners and customers join forces to solve problems -- and both parties win.

Microsoft Forefront Aims to Integrate Security

For customers struggling to manage and maintain security wares from multiple vendors, Forefront offers a Microsoft-centric alternative.