VMware's latest announcement wasn't as big and broad and futuristic as Microsoft's
but for Mac users, it's probably way more important.
The company's latest
rev of VMware Fusion for the Mac works with Leopard and supports DirectX
9.0 on an "experimental" basis. It can also create virtual machines
out of Vista Boot Camp partitions.
And the new VMware tool is shipping!
Posted by Doug Barney on 11/12/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
PCs these days are so cheap, we usually don't bother buying them used. And if
we do, we often worry about flaky hardware, food-filled keyboards, whether Microsoft
will still support the OS and if we can reinstall it in the inevitable event
that the old machine refuses to work.
Microsoft has an answer. Those that sell used machines in volume can get
licenses from Microsoft in bulk, which means these machines will be supported
and eligible for updates and fixes, service packs, and security software such
as Windows Defender.
I'm a bit puzzled by the plan. Microsoft will only sell licenses (these are
XP licenses) if the machine has a certificate of authenticity. If so, Microsoft
will sell a license with a new certificate of authenticity. If it's already
authentic, why would I need a new license and certificate?
The only thing the Microsoft press release didn't detail is the price of the
refurb license. If the new licenses are cheap and supported, it might be a decent
deal after all.
Posted by Doug Barney on 11/12/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
Microsoft has a PR machine that J-Lo, Paris Hilton and the Bush administration
must all envy. The company can get journalists (like me) to write about an upcoming
product -- and then get us to write about it again (and again).
Here's how it works: Word sneaks out about a major new tool, and we all run
to our keyboards. Then Microsoft doles out a few official details -- and we
pound out a few thousand more stories. Later, Microsoft actually names the product,
producing more copy. After almost all the details are known, it officially announces
the product. And once the product is finished, there's a huge launch. No one
wonder competitors have a hard time getting their message out!
Today in Barcelona, Microsoft
announced (and I quote from the headline of the press release), "Windows
Server 2008 Details." What's new here is pricing and a final set of version
types. Product details should be well-understood; the product is in heavy beta
testing.
Microsoft also made a virtualization splash, officially naming its Viridian
hypervisor "Hyper-V." This tool could be as much as a year away.
But virtualization isn't as simple as dropping in a new version of PowerPoint;
this is a fundamental infrastructure decision. In many cases, there's more planning
than actual virtualization, which makes it imperative for Microsoft to offer
as much detail as possible.
Is all this coverage too much? How should Microsoft announce its products?
Write me at [email protected]
and let us all know.
Posted by Doug Barney on 11/12/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
Last week, a computer luminary (let's call him Mark Shavlik) asked me over a
lunch of chowder and butterfish (we live well here at
Redmond magazine)
what was going on with security. I dabbed the cream and clam juice from my beard,
which gave me time to think (I was stalling).
I know security is the biggest issue but, like with the 9/11 attackers, we
just aren't afraid anymore. On the Microsoft side, the older products are becoming
legacy and have been patched so many times they look like a Three Stooges car
tire. The newer products, so far as I can see, are more secure out of the box.
This is all a good thing. Hackers are like violent political/religious extremists:
They do it for the power and publicity -- kinda like Paris Hilton! Let's not
be afraid of any of them. When a virus circulates, block it, delete it and go
on with your life. When extremists release a video tape, how about we keep it
off the 7 o'clock news -- they aren't important enough. And let's never ever
again call them "terrorists," as this gives them power they don't
deserve. And the next time Paris crashes her car into a West Hollywood sushi
bar in a mini-dress, let's use those cameras for real news, shall we?
I've clearly lost my train of thought here, so let's get back to the patch
news. Tomorrow, Redmond will set
forth a mere two patches, one for XP and the other for Windows Server spoofing
attacks. You might even get away with sleeping late this Tuesday.
Is security less or more of a problem today? Let us know by writing me at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 11/12/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
Microsoft has been working quite well with the world's top scientists on solving
big problems: disease, hunger, global warming and open source (I made up that
last one). A lot of this has to do with harnessing computers to massage massive
quantities of data.
I wrote about this in two different articles (here's
one and here's
the other) and came away impressed.
As cool as all this is, though, I worry that Windows clients are falling behind
hardware, with multi-core advances and revolutions in graphics every fortnight.
So I wrote a far
more distressing article about that.
Maybe Daniel A. Reed can help. Just
hired by Microsoft as director of scalable and multi-core computing, Reed
has a great track record in academia, and currently serves as director of the
Renaissance Computing Institute in North Carolina.
My fear is that Microsoft sees this as a server/cluster/high-performance computing
problem. But multi-cores are made for more than climate modeling, 3-D rendering
and deciphering the human genome. Our laptops and desktops are going multi-core,
as well. This is the area I'd love to see Reed attack.
Posted by Doug Barney on 11/12/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
The Open Document Format (ODF) is a terrific concept: a single file format that
can be used by productivity apps and more, and allows for easy sharing -- even
with Microsoft Office. That's the promise.
The reality ain't so hot. A leading advocate of ODF now says it isn't living
up to its promises, isn't so great at interoperability, and thus not so great
at application migration. All this is leading former ODF proponents to suggest
a newer format, the
Complex Document Format (CDF).
Hey, if that's what it takes to get a nice, common file format, I'm happy to
wait for CDF to take hold.
Posted by Doug Barney on 11/05/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
For parents, there's no shortage of articles on how to tell if your child is
sniffing glue, drinking booze or even addicted to the Internet. For those worried
about computer mischief, there's also a guide by T. Reginald Gibbons called
"Is
Your Child a Computer Hacker?"
I have no clue whether this is real or a put-on (if you know, tell Redmond
Report readers by writing me at [email protected]),
but Reginald claims he's a model parent, scrutinizing every aspects of his kids'
lives and even tagging along when they go to parties to make sure there are
no shenanigans (I'm pretty sure this is an Irish beer).
Reginald was unprepared for all this computer stuff, and suspected that his
previously perfect son was a hacker. You may be facing a similar crisis, so
here's what he says to look for:
- If your son asks you to change from AOL to a "hacker-friendly ISP,"
he might be a hacker.
- If your son plays "Quake," he might be a hacker.
- If your son becomes a Lunix (that's how Reggie spells it) geek, he might
be a hacker.
- And if your son becomes "argumentative and surly," he might be
a hacker.
Based on the last one, all my kids are hackers!
Posted by Doug Barney on 11/05/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
A lot of people are sending me links to the $200 desktop running Ubuntu Linux
that Wal-Mart is offering. While it's a fairly low-end box, it packs some decent
power for short money. The Everex Green gPC TC2502 (how's that for an intuitive
name) has 512MB of RAM, an 80GB drive and a CD burner (the DVD is unfortunately
read-only).
What's most interesting is just how much usable software one can get for free,
and gPC has it all -- Mozilla, OpenOffice and every Google app that ever came
out of Mountain View.
The bad news is there's no built-in wireless, and reviewer Gary Krakow of MSNBC
found it rough
around the software edges. The worst news is that Wal-Mart may not be planning
to carry it in all its stores (though my local Wal-Mart has plenty).
I'm hoping for broad distribution and a good, hard marketing push. We'll know
if Linux is an alternative only by having loads of people (and not just Linux
geeks) give it a whirl.
I'm very tempted to pick one up for my sons, who yearn to be Linux geeks. But
before we all get too excited, keep in mind that for an extra $100, Everex will
give you a machine with twice as much RAM and Vista pre-installed. And before
you get too excited about that, keep in mind that neither come with a
monitor or a wireless card.
Posted by Doug Barney on 11/05/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
IT people love to be in control of their own machines. You're not going to spend years becoming an expert only to have someone else tell you how to run your PC. And if you've taken steps to set things up a certain way, and it gets changed anyway, why them's fightin' words!
This September, the WindowsSecrets Web site broke the news that Windows Automatic Update was updating files even if the user specifically blocked those updates.
Now the boys from WindowsSecrets have a new scoop -- apparently OneCare is doing the exact same thing! Not only that, but the Microsoft security service will automatically reboot your machine. Of course, XP has been doing that to me for years!
Posted by Doug Barney on 10/29/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
VMware is a shockingly good company. It just can't fail. When the company had too much market share, Microsoft started giving virtualization away. VMware just made more money. When nearly all other high-tech IPOs floundered, VMware's was a raging success, giving the company a staggering $40 billion or so market cap (this changes by the hour).
In fact, we're so impressed we put VMware's CEO on the cover of our November issue (read the article online here).
But VMware's rivals aren't just rolling over. Microsoft is still working on Viridian, its new hypervisor set to ship six months or so after Windows Server 2008. But the dark horse may well be Citrix, which just completed its acquisition of XenSource. Citrix now has desktop virtualization (we used to call it terminal or thin client computing), application virtualization and server virtualization. And with XenSource, it has terrific relationships with the open source community and a great multi-platform play.
Who do you think has the best long-term virtualization strategy? Let us know by writing me at [email protected] or posting your comments below.
Posted by Doug Barney on 10/29/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
Last week I got you all hot and bothered about Leopard, the
new Mac OS. If you recall, I wondered if Apple was going to make any exciting hardware announcements. I've been waiting for the new OS and some hot new hardware so I can plunk down some of my spare cash down on a Mac laptop, or even the solid-state sub-notebook they've been teasing us about.
But no. A quick search of Apple.com reveals that the hardware line hasn't changed any of its spots. It is the basically same overpriced line they've been selling since they moved from PowerPC to Intel.
While that may save me from shelling out a grand or two for a new machine, it still doesn't make me happy. I guess I'll have to wait till next year to get all hip with a new Mac. As David, my Mac guru points out, Jobs usually trots out new hardware at his annual MacExpo keynote.
This is what Apple has for hardware as of today.
Posted by Doug Barney on 10/29/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments
New versions of the Mac OS, record fines from the European Union, and a slow Vista enterprise uptake have done nothing to tame Microsoft's growth. This quarter was a record of sorts as Microsoft experienced the fastest growth in six years.
Microsoft pulled in $14 billion in sales (a run rate of nearly $60 billion) and profits of almost $4 billion. Yes, my friends, software is still a high-margin business.
Posted by Doug Barney on 10/29/2007 at 1:15 PM0 comments