Web sites live or die by traffic. Microsoft hopes to pump some life into yours with a search engine optimization (SEO) tool you can have for free. The SEO Toolkit does all the things an SEO Toolkit should do -- it maps sites, finds broken links, helps you select strong keywords and validates your page markup.
Check your systems: The toolkit runs with IIS on Vista, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008, but it will check sites on other Web platforms, like Apache.
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/15/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
IBM and Microsoft, it seems, have never gotten over their nasty Windows-OS/2 breakup. While they should be very much aligned (IBM sells tons of servers that run Windows Server operating systems), they bicker like children.
That's perfect for HP, which has used this animus to stay close to Microsoft. And now that IBM and Microsoft are fighting over the cloud, why wouldn't HP sidle up and becomes Microsoft new cloud best friend?
That's just what HP did this Wednesday with the announcement of a three-year partnership with Microsoft to jointly build and sell cloud solutions. Much of the work centers around integration -- just making sure that Microsoft software works well on HP software and that techies from either side can support it. These efforts will help cloud providers as well as IT who may want to build private clouds in their own datacenters.
But with a quarter-of-a-billion dollars pledged to the effort, I'm hoping to see more than integration, but nifty and compelling new services.
Are any of your apps in the cloud, and if so, how are they faring? Share your experiences by writing [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/15/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
Doug wrote this week about some problems customers have been having with Microsoft's revamped licensing Web sites. Here are some of your stories:
I've been unable to access my products for nearly a month at this point. Contacting Microsoft to fix the issue is met with all the urgency and competency that one would expect from a giant, lethargic monopoly.
-Steve
I have run into the Microsoft license portal problems. I had to place a support call and wait awhile before the problem was resolved. The problem was I could not see a new purchased license, which I had to activate to be able to use. Older data was visible.
-Craig
This has been a huge hindrance for me. I haven't been able to administer benefits since they "upgraded" the site in December. I sent a number of e-mails to support; no response. Tried calling, and was placed on terminal hold forever. Given the amount of money we pay every year for our EA, this is NOT good.
I finally asked my sales rep if we'll get one month off of our EA renewal. That finally got some action.
-Anonymous
We completely lost access to all our expired Open license agreements. The big problem with this is that the old agreements contain the actual licence purchase; the current ones only are renewals of SA. Therefore, when we look at our license summary, all our licences are now unresolved!
-Daryl
We bought volume licenses in December for Windows 2008, Exchange and Office. Haven't been able to get to the licenses and download the products yet! Still trying.
-Lou
Microsoft recently pulled some versions of Word to comply with the i4i ruling. Brandon thinks a little warning would've been nice:
Why did they pull Word off the e-open and MSDN download sites last week?! We are a gold partner and had a customer that purchased 100 copies of Word. After getting the license key, we had no way to download it for them! We couldn't use the full suite and only install Word because the key wouldn't work.
After six hours on the phone with Microsoft, they finally determined that Word was pulled from the site because of this lawsuit and they had no way for us to get access to it. We have not received any e-mails from MS about this issue. Where is the communication to partners? This does not make MS partners look very good to the customer.
-Brandon
Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/15/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
IT pros have an easy week this week, at least when it comes to Microsoft patches: Only two fixes were delivered yesterday.
As usual, remote code execution is the biggest problem, and one patch fixes an RCE flaw that exists in all flavors of Windows. Sounds like this puppy should be installed pronto.
The other patch really isn't a patch in the sense that it doesn't close any vulnerabilities or fix any bugs. Instead, this patch -- which you should install only if you get a notice from Microsoft -- removes bits of XML technology from Microsoft Word. That XML technology violates a patent held by i4i, a Canadian content management company, a U.S. court found. Microsoft argues that removing the offending technology isn't a big deal and won't affect the performance or functionality of Word.
But if you think Microsoft has the software with the most holes, think again. Oracle this week issues two dozen patches. Larry's been busy!
Which vendors do a good job with patches and which don't? Answers welcome at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/13/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
OK, so my first item is pretty positive about Microsoft. Lest you think I'm a mindless Redmond apologist, allow me to talk about licensing for a bit.
I think Microsoft's licensing plans are purposely complex. Like legal documents that only a lawyer can understand, you need a Microsoft rep to explain how its licensing works, and I doubt that more than a handful of those really understand it all. That complexity gives Microsoft control -- it can lead you to the deal it wants you to make.
Now there's apparently even more confusion, this time relating to Microsoft's licensing Web sites that were redesigned last year. Customers are having problems logging in, and once in, often have trouble finding their accounts or accessing features that used to be a cinch. Microsoft says only a portion of customers have these problems and the issues are being addressed.
If there's one group you don't want to irritate, it's volume customers. What do you think of Microsoft licensing? Do you have any special negotiating techniques you'd like to share? Send answers to both to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/13/2010 at 1:17 PM4 comments
Archiving powerhouse Mimosa Systems has cause to pop a few corks: It just signed up its 1,000th customer.
For Web apps, iPhone tools or end user solutions, 1,000 customers isn't even enough to keep the lights on, never mind stock the programmers' fridge with Jolt. But for enterprise software, 1,000 customers is a very big deal.
Mimosa's main technology is NearPoint, a line of tools that can archive files, Exchange e-mail and SharePoint documents. I first met Mimosa soon after its founding in 2003. At the time, startups came by my office several times a week, and most were never heard from again. But Mimosa was heard from again and again. It's a bold, aggressive company that isn't afraid of a little competition.
What's next for Mimosa? The company plans to offer its archiving tools on-premise, in the cloud, or as a combination of the two.
Who's your favorite third party and why? Vote at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/13/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
Milton thinks the upgrade-less Office 2010 pricing won't do Microsoft any favors:
Microsoft Office's high price is a strange choice, considering Google Apps and Open Office are such viable alternatives.
-Milton
But Scott thinks that there are some savings to be had with the upcoming version of Office:
What I think is getting lost in the "no upgrade pricing" stories is that Microsoft is selling the software as multi-license packages. When you take that into account, the software is actually cheaper than its 2007 equivalent. If you buy the Home and Student version ($149), you get three licenses to install. Last time I checked, $50 for four mainstream apps is pretty good. If you buy the Home and Business version ($250), you get two licenses to install and Outlook added in. If you buy the Professional version ($499), you get two licenses to install as well as Publisher and Access; that's $250 per person for seven apps -- less than $40 per application. And the mother of all deals, the Professional Academic, is $99 for the same apps that are found in the Professional version and can be installed on up to two PCs. And since this version is available to K-12 and college students, anyone with a child in school would qualify for this price point. Granted, the single-user license "key card" isn't hugely discounted, but how many home users will need anything more than the Home and Student version? Most businesses have a software agreement so they'll get it cheaper anyway.
Too many people seem to be denigrating Microsoft for actually making the app structure simpler and cheaper because they aren't being given all of the details. I commend Microsoft for this pricing structure and I think more people would if each article headline regarding this subject didn't start with "Microsoft no longer offering upgrade pricing."
-Scott
IDC's prediction that the fat client era will soon come to an end was met by a chorus of disbelief among most readers. Peter's no exception:
There was a serious case to be made for thin clients in the era when they cost around 10 percent of a thick client (the 1980s, if you can remember that far back!). But no matter how strong its proponents made the case, it was never a success, and for the same reasons that are around today -- single points of failure, the true ratio between dumb terminals per server (they advocate 1:40 when it is nearer to 1:20 and hence the requirement to purchase twice as many servers), bandwidth requirements, etc.
One can now buy thin clients that are more expensive than a reasonably configured thick client! Fat chance. It has always been and will remain a niche market -- unless cloud computing to a browser wins the desktop, and that is not very likely.
-Peter
Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/13/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
Last year, Microsoft lost a patent infringement lawsuit to i4i, a company that owns an XML patent that Word violates. Microsoft has to pay i4i $290 million and take the offending Word off the market.
Not one to take the death of a 27-year-old product lightly, Microsoft has issued a patch that removes the specific XML function.
Meanwhile, Redmond's legal eagles plan to fight the ruling, and i4i promises to keep a close eye on Word.
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/11/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
While consumers get no break on Office 2007, small and medium-size businesses with small and medium-size volume licenses can get half-off the first year's subscription price of Windows 7 and Office 2007. As an added bonus, because Software Assurance is involved, SMBs that purchase Office 2007 get a free upgrade to Office 2010. The only catch: You have to buy before June 30.
Is this the kind of deal for your organization? Would you wait for Office 2010 in June, or take advantage of the Office 2007 deal now? Let me know at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/11/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
Loyal Redmond customers are used to getting a deal when a new version of their favorite software arrives. But Office users are out of luck this go 'round as there are no upgrades for Office 2010. Microsoft claims it killed the upgrade to simplify its lineup.
Simpler it is, cheaper it's not. This is a risky strategy. I've interviewed nearly a dozen Redmond Report readers who are beta testing Office 2010. You generally like the new rev a lot, but I don't think I've come across anyone who's truly blown away. And you have to be plenty impressed to shell out at full price!
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/11/2010 at 1:17 PM17 comments
Doug is out today, so filling in for him is Michael Domingo, editor of MCPmag.com and the voice behind Redmond Radio.
Microsoft's Azure has finally gone gold (no pun or mixed metaphors intended). Redmond says it's now time to hop on or off if you've been testing it out with data that resides up there. Data will be accessible in read-only mode after Feb. 1 and then, come March 1, that data will be vaporized if subscriptions aren't upgraded.
Azure testers, we'd like to hear about your experiences and whether you plan on upgrading for an upcoming feature. Send all feedback to [email protected] and put "Azure experience" on the subject line.
Posted by Michael Domingo on 01/08/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
Doug is out today, so filling in for him is Michael Domingo, editor of MCPmag.com and the voice behind Redmond Radio.
The federal government's recent jobs report pegs unemployment at 10 percent (arguable, maybe). So, what's the outlook in IT? Two recent studies tell us that it's still the winter of our recession.
Janco Associates' most recent report shows IT hiring and spending to be as frigid as the weather fronts sweeping across the U.S. -- and salaries are just as icy. A study from Computer Economics mirrors Janco's report in IT hiring. But then it offers a ray of sunshine, predicting that those who plan to spend more has jumped from 11 percent in 2009 to 52 percent in 2010. [End of sentence corrected, per Computer Economics. -- MD]
That's a pretty big jump; do you buy it? Tell us at [email protected]. Also, do us a favor and vote in this poll at MCPmag.com about how many IT people your company plans to hire in 2010.
Posted by Michael Domingo on 01/08/2010 at 1:17 PM2 comments