Vulnerability found in Microsoft Excel( old news - 12:50PM Friday Jun 16 2006) By Jeremy Kirk, IDG News ServiceA new vulnerability has been found in Microsoft's Excel spreadsheet program, just a few days after the company fixed problems with several of its applications in its monthly patch distribution. Free IT resource One customer reported an attack using the vulnerability, which comes from an e-mail with a malicious Excel document attached, wrote Mike Reavey, Microsoft Security Program Manager, on the company's security blog. Reavey noted that the e-mail application should prompt users to take care if they attempt to open the attachment. He cautioned against opening unsolicited documents, whoever they come from.  Story Continues 1 comment
Gates Steps Down( old news - 05:15PM Thursday Jun 15 2006) Microsoft Corp. said that Chairman Bill Gates will step down from his role as chief software architect, tabbing CTO Ray Ozzie as his immediate successor. Ozzie will assume the title of chief software architect and will work with Gates on technical and product responsibilities until Gates completes his day-to-day duties in July 2008. Gates, who is leaving to spend more time on his global health and education work at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will continue to serve as the company's chairman and an advisor on development projects after July 2008. More at Internetnews.com2 comments
By Ken FisherIt has long been said that one of Microsoft's greatest challenges has been to support the wild and unpredictable PC hardware market, stemming from the fact that unlike Apple, Microsoft has little control over the hardware that its OS comes to reside upon. True or not, one thing is certain: a bad driver can turn an otherwise stable system into a nightmare. To help put an end to this, Microsoft is turning to a Driver Quality Rating (DQR) system that it hopes will motivate both OEMs and device manufacturers to increase their commitments to driver quality More Here 1 comment
by Tuan NguyenMicrosoft is enforcing tough requirements for PCs that claim to be Vista Premium devices While Microsoft works to prepare and update Windows Vista for launch in 2007, the hardware industry has continued to move forward. Microsoft however, has been following the hardware world steadily, incorporating changes into Windows Vista's requirements for the actual launch. Assuming that all factors work out on time -- and Windows Vista launches on schedule, which is already delayed to begin with -- a Windows Vista computer should be able to provide its owner with very interesting advantages. more at dailytech.com 3 comments
By Walaika K. Haskins Microsoft is limiting access to downloads of the beta version of Windows Vista, fearing that the massive demand for the software will adversely affect the Internet at large. While it is doubtful that downloads of Vista could bring down the entire Internet, said Mukul Krishna, an analyst at Frost & Sullivan, it is possible that increased Vista traffic could significantly degrade network performance around the world. Continued at NewsFactor.com 2 comments
Top Microsoft blogger to resign( old news - 08:35AM Monday Jun 12 2006) A business blogger who changed the wider world view of Microsoft is leaving the software giant for a Silicon Valley start-up. Robert Scoble's blog about his life and events inside and outside Microsoft became the unofficial corporate voice of the company. Many turned to his blog to find out how the firm reacted to big news events. His blog won praise for its neutrality and readiness to point out Microsoft's mistakes or praise its rivals. more at BBC Newscomments?
Microsoft to ease up on piracy check-ins( old news - 03:59PM Saturday Jun 10 2006) By Joris Evers - Staff Writer, CNET News.com
The software maker this month plans to update the Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications program so that it only checks in with Microsoft once every two weeks, instead of after each boot-up, a company representative said Friday. By year's end, the tool will stop pinging Microsoft altogether, the representative said.  story continues..2 comments
By Jeremy Kirk, IDG News Service
Microsoft warned Friday that customers face security risks if they use some of its aging operating systems after it ends support for them next month.
The systems affected are Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition and Windows Millennium Edition. story continues..comments?
Microsoft acknowledged that the tool contacts the company after users boot up their systems. It checks whether a new version has been released, and could receive instructions to disable itself. Read more here comments?
By Mary Jo Foley Microsoft officials decided the week of June 5 to cut another feature from Windows Vista: PC-to-PC synchronization. Microsoft officials said they cut the feature due to quality concerns, but the functionality is still "something we plan to deliver to our customers in the future," according to a company spokeswoman. Microsoft actually removed the PC-to-PC synchronization capability just before releasing Windows Vista Beta 2, which the company began distributing the last week of May, officials confirmed. Story Continues comments?
By Loyd Case
We've got a question for home users of Windows XP:
How many of you use Windows XP limited accounts? Raise your hands.
Not surprisingly, the answer turns out to be "not many." Windows XP limited accounts were too, well, limited. story continues..2 comments
By Scot Finnie The same thing happened with Windows XP. When Beta 2 arrived, I found myself torn between what was new and good about the operating system, and what was new and bad. computerworld.com comments?
Windows Live OneCare Software Ships Early( old news - 08:12AM Wednesday May 31 2006) Robert McMillan, IDG News ServiceMicrosoft will release a fully supported version of its Windows Live OneCare software tomorrow, marking the software giant's entry into the security software market. OneCare will be available for download as of May 31 on Microsoft's Web site, a day earlier than expected. By Thursday, the software is expected to be widely available in U.S. retail stores, said Microsoft's Samantha McManus, a business strategy manager with Windows Live OneCare. Story Continues
By Stan Beer
There's no word better than "ultimate" to convey the impression that you're getting nothing but the best. However, when it comes to Microsoft's new software, whatever you end up getting is going to cost you heaps. story continues..1 comment
Reuters Published on ZDNet News: May 25, 2006, 5:01 AM PT The release of Microsoft's Windows Vista is still on track for shipment in January, its chief executive said on Thursday, as speculation about delays in the much-expected new operating system persist. Full Story at ZDNet News comments?
by Anton Shilov Microsoft Corp., the world’s largest maker of software, will not release next-generation graphics application programming interface (API) called DirectX 10 for the currently shipping Windows XP operating system (OS), instead, the company will keep the new API strictly for the forthcoming Windows Vista OS, despite earlier assumptions about DirectX 10 for the XP. During a DirectX 10-related event in London, UK, Richard Huddy, ATI Technologies’ software developers relations chief, said that Microsoft’s Vista will integrate DirectX 10 and DirectX 9 APIs for different types of hardware, but the current Windows XP will not get DirectX 10 support, as suggested some rumours earlier. For end users this means that to get the most advantages of the new-generation graphics processing units (GPUs), the new OS will be required. more at xbitlabs.com3 comments
By Chris KraeuterGoogle has reportedly sealed an anticipated deal with Dell to pre-install some of its software on PCs before shipment, partially closing an advantage Microsoft has long held on users automatically defaulting to its products. The deal will span three years and will be announced soon, according to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported on preliminary negotiations in February. Financial details are not expected to be disclosed, but the Journal reported in February that a three-year deal of this type might result in Google paying Dell a total of $1 billion. Read more at Forbes.com 3 comments
Vista's Make Or Break Moment( old news - 06:39PM Tuesday May 23 2006) By Mary Jo Foley It's the hour of reckoning for Windows Vista. After five years of course changes, false starts and a host of beta and Community Technology Preview (CTP) builds, Microsoft is set to deliver a broad-scale build of Vista to two million testers. Microsoft is likely to drop the build – known by multiple names, including the consumer Vista CTP and Vista Beta 2 – as early as this week at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC) in Seattle, according to company watchers. (Around the same time, Microsoft also is likely to release Office 2007 Beta 2, the next major milestone of Microsoft's next-generation desktop suite, as well as Beta 2 of Longhorn Server.) microsoft-watch.comcomments?
Microsoft Outlines Virtualization Plans( old news - 12:20PM Tuesday May 23 2006) 05.23.06 By Jeffrey Burt Microsoft announced that it will have a beta version of its upcoming hypervisor virtualization technology ready by the end of 2006, and will release to manufacturing a final version within six months of the release of its Windows Server "Longhorn" operating system RTM. Microsoft made the announcements May 22 during the first day of its WinHec conference in Seattle. Along with the hypervisor news, Microsoft also announced that a beta version of its System Center Virtual Machine Manager—formerly codenamed "Carmine"—will be released within the next three months, and that it also intends to buy application virtualization company Softricity. Story Continuescomments?
Reuters
Published on ZDNet News: May 22, 2006, 4:52 AM PTMicrosoft CEO Steve Ballmer doesn't not expect Symantec's lawsuit to delay Vista, a next version of its Windows operating system. Read more at news.zdnet.com comments?
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