Microsoft hasn't exactly seen an executive exodus, but instead a steady departure of key execs, including Bill Gates, Jeff Raikes, Ray Ozzie and now Bob Muglia.
Muglia isn't nearly as famous at these other three, but as a 23-year veteran and most recently leader of the Server and Tools division, Muglia had a lot of power.
For those not steeped in Microsoft organizational history, Servers and Tools brings in around $16 billion a year (at least that's the run rate) and sells development tools, the Windows Server family, security and management software and Azure.
The division has growth that would make most companies proud. But Microsoft is never content with just good -- it wants great. And that's why Steve Ballmer is trolling for a new leader, one with clear cloud chops and lots of savvy.
On a personal note, I've always found Muglia straightforward and accessible, and have personally watched him interact with customers -- in the exact same manner. I'm sure he'll do well in his next endeavor -- even if it's lying on a beach!
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/12/2011 at 1:18 PM0 comments
This month's Patch Tuesday was almost insanely light -- maybe because not all flaws got patched!
First and foremost is an IE flaw in its graphics rendering engine that could let hackers install malware and gain elevated privileges (two of hackers' favorite things). Microsoft is working on a fix, but like Paul Masson, will ship no patch before its time. That doesn't mean Microsoft will wait till another Patch Tuesday. When the fix is in, it may ship it out-of-band.
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/12/2011 at 1:18 PM0 comments
It's only the second week of January and we already have a frontrunner for reader e-mail of the year:
Doug, I just want to throw this out there, and if you want, you can send it right back (Anchorman). I really like you. This is kind of like one if those late night texts that should never be sent.
I'm drunk right now, sitting in total darkness in my living room, wife in the room all huffy with the door locked, all cause I told her to "Relax, its not that big of a deal" when she was freaking out because of how carelessly I opened a letter WITH MY NAME ON IT, which I ripped the contents of (which were an invitation to my friends wedding) a tad, (you're on my side right? You better be!) reading your newsletter (on my Android telephone) (this is becoming like a set of nested if statements resulting in a giant run on sentence, sorry to insult your English skills), I doubt this is even comprehensiveable (yeah, new word). So forget all that.
What I'm really trying to say is that I really appreciate your newsletters. I read them almost every day on the train on the way to work. And it's pretty awesome that they are free because they are better than the coffee on the train (which I have to pay for). So please, keep up the good work. I could never keep up with the times without my Redmond Report! I'm feeling a little self conscious about what I may have written earlier in this message and kind of want to reread it, but I really have to pee, so I'm not going to.
Bottom line is, delete what you've just read from your memory, and tell yourself "This is why I do what I do" (because people enjoy it, not because of the money, Doug!) ) Sorry for sending this, I realize I should just delete it, but the Jim Beam and Pepsi Max have taken control of my fingers. To recap, I like you, And I hope you keep writing newsletters until…
-Anonymous
Here's another's take on storing data in the could:
I agree with Dr. Dave's points on cloud computing. Another point concerns businesses that are having financial difficulties in our trying economic times in making payments to their cloud providers. I can see cloud providers using mafia-style extortion or blackmail in holding your data hostage to secure ever-increasing costs to maintain your use of your own data. If you fail to pay, they will erase your data, or sell it to the highest bidder.
Companies are bought and sold regularly. If the Taliban uses a benign overseas company to purchase a cloud provider that has important data, could they use it for their terrorist activities against us? Again, we may need strict government control that would increase costs and plague businesses.
We need to look again at the cost of using the cloud to protect and use our data.
-Alan
Share your thoughts with the editors of this newsletter! Write to [email protected]. Letters printed in this newsletter may be edited for length and clarity, and will be credited by first name only (we do NOT print last names or e-mail addresses).
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/12/2011 at 1:18 PM2 comments
After a half decade solely in the inept hands of AT&T, the iPhone will soon finally be available on another network: Verizon.
I for one am happy. I use Verizon because it reportedly has the best service especially in New England where I live. I say reportedly because on Cape Cod, a pretty populous place, coverage stinks, and most times people call me in North Central Mass, another pretty populous place, it never connects or alerts me (and yes, the ringer in on). "Hey guys, I'm not screening my calls. I just have a lousy phone with lousy service!"
Nonetheless, I hear horror stories about AT&T, and along with my two year contract, reckon I'll stick with Verizon a bit longer.
I have the newest BlackBerry Bold, which I got this summer after dousing my old one in ocean water. That means I don't qualify for a free phone upgrade for another 18 months. That gives Verizon time to get its wireless network up to 4G speeds, work out any remaining iPhone kinks and presumably offer the next generation of iPhone.
The best thing is now we have real competition...almost. Having two main choices makes this market about as competitive as Pepsi and Coke -- last time I checked their prices were identical!
How good or bad is your wireless carrier? Share your thoughts at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/12/2011 at 1:18 PM4 comments
Intel and Microsoft have been in the sack together for so long they both have bed sores. Now Microsoft has a new partner with news that the next version of Windows is expected to support both Intel and ARM – maker of tablet and smart phone chips. The end of the Microsoft/Intel duopoly means future Windows devices will turn on faster, be more stable and hopefully offer true utility-style computing.
But some see the new deal as a sign of weakness. And now that Microsoft is pledging a full tablet push, the fact that it is some years behind Apple and even Android will become more clear.
I definitely buy into this logic as the excitement about netbooks has died down like the crowd at a Carolina Panthers home game.
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/10/2011 at 1:18 PM4 comments
As if you didn't have enough time off over the holidays, now I'm going to help you get out of more work. Every Friday, associate Web editor Chris Paoli gathers up links to silly, unimportant and altogether fun sites.
This time around he reports on what you can do on the Internet that could have you serving hard time, a clever skit by Larry David mocking people talking on Bluetooth headsets, and funny faces for the latest CES keynote addresses. Nice job Chris. Now could you please get back to work!?!
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/10/2011 at 1:18 PM0 comments
Patches, it turns out, are only effective if they are installed. That is the case with Office, which got a fix for a Rich Text Format hole in November. Hackers know that many machines don't get patched, and the patch itself is a blueprint for how to attack these unpatched machines. Some hacker dweeb has done just that, posting code that exploits this hole.
Suites from Office XP all the way up to Office 2010 are vulnerable, and the posted code lets hackers gain full privileges, mess with your data, and install malware.
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/10/2011 at 1:18 PM0 comments
Here are some thoughts on Microsoft's attempt to block Google from buying ITA Software:
Microsoft going against Google for becoming a monopoly is like the pot calling the kettle black. Microsoft is grabbing up companies left and right to become number one online. It's just another way to control the competition. It happens to a lot of large corporations. Microsoft has even been called a monopoly many times.
In a capitalist market, the best get to the top. Injecting government intervention in their success or failure is more of a dictatorship. Look how Ma Bell came out of the government mandated breakup. Not even close to the huge success it once was. It built this country's phone system to become what it is today. Who knows if the Internet would even be what it is today without them.
-Dustin Harper
If owning ITA will let Google dominate online travel does that mean ITA already has a monopoly on online travel? If so, what's the diff? Is it one monopoly per customer? Of course, Microsoft has already exceeded that limit. Google's just playing catch-up.
-Anonymous
One reader shares his thoughts on keeping private data in the cloud:
I do not store personal or corporate data on the cloud. I advise all my clients against this practice. My reasons are simple. There is a legal question of data ownership. In storing your data on another company's servers and secondary storage, you may be ceding rights to inspect or review the data by any person or company the cloud's management designates to inspect or review the data. That means your data may no longer be completely private. Worse, legally, it may not even be your data. Another reason is that it opens your data to search without due process, only cooperation from the cloud provider.
Two other potential issues worth mentioning include cost of bandwidth to access your data and proposed regulations that allow federal agents to order the shutdown of a Web site without due process. Currently, ISPs are doing everything they can to move Internet access to a metered service. As a metered service, the cost of operating on the cloud becomes staggering. Worse, under the guise of "traffic management," your ISP controls your ability to operate competitively in your market. In a nightmare scenario, the fed uses its new-found power to shut down your cloud site as leverage to force both you and your cloud provider into compliance with their whims. Long term, the cloud is a very bad idea for all. On the other hand, a private cloud could provide amazing benefits to a corporation. However, that's a horse of another color and fodder for a future discussion.
-Dr. Dave
Share your thoughts with the editors of this newsletter! Write to [email protected]. Letters printed in this newsletter may be edited for length and clarity, and will be credited by first name only (we do NOT print last names or e-mail addresses).
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/10/2011 at 1:18 PM0 comments
Patch Tuesdays are always unpredictable. Some months are brutal, others are cake walks. This Tuesday is the latter. Get this: There are only two patches! Two measly patches! As usual, remote code execution is the culprit in both.
That's the good news. The bad news is there are a couple of flaws that are known but not yet fixed.
One flaw involves the graphics rendering engine for Windows, and impacts XP, Vista and Windows Server 2008. Hackers can create image files that can create stack overflows to gain access to elevated privileges. So far no attacks have been reported.
Two other flaws, also remote code execution-related, are being looked at. One involves IE and the other involved the FTP features built into Windows Server 2008 and Windows 7. While not yet fully plugged, you can cover up the IE hole by using the Enhanced Migration Toolkit. And as always, using a firewall and updated antimalware software is a good idea.
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/07/2011 at 1:18 PM0 comments
If Steve Ballmer wasn't CEO of Microsoft, he'd probably be on television. Man, that guy can put on a show. And every year Steve schleps out to Vegas for the Consumer Electronic Show. Bill Gates used to do the honors, but is too busy saving the world (if you thought you detected sarcasm, you'd be wrong. His foundation does incredible work).
This year, as widely expected, Ballmer talked about tablets. But there was much more. He hinted at a fundamental revamp of Windows itself, far faster, smaller and more reliable. Just like the iPad OS!
On the tablet side, Ballmer mostly focused on what's in stores now for Windows 7 machines. These aren't exactly jumping off the shelves, but Microsoft is not one to give up easily.
Tablets are hot, but Microsoft has its eggs in other form-factor baskets. Ballmer touted a dual screen Acer and a Samsung box where the keyboard emerges from the body of the machine. Sounds slick.
Windows itself, in its next rev, should be more of an embedded OS, tightly tied to the underlying processor. And here's why the game is changing: Windows 8 will not just support Intel and AMD x86 chips, but system-on-a-chip designs those companies, as well as SoC designs from ARM.
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/07/2011 at 1:18 PM1 comments
Recently we reported on Paul Allen's unsuccessful bid to sue nearly the entire software industry for patent infringement. The patents, won by Allen's company Interval Research, involve some pretty fundamental aspects of Web computing. As such he sued everyone from AOL to Google. For some reason he left Microsoft alone, perhaps because Redmond is responsible for his $13.5 billon in net worth (just for the record, Mark Zuckerberg is worth a cool $14 billion).
An earlier suit was dismissed because the charges were too vague and the court gave Allen more time to put some meat on the lawsuit's bones. Now he's back with more details on just how AOL, Facebook Yahoo, Apple, Google, YouTube and others purportedly violate patents held by Interval Licensing.
Many Redmond Report readers blanched at the earlier suit. The patents in question seem to apply to almost anything one might do with a Web page. Interval is seeking compensation for anything that supports "browsing audiovisual data, grabbing the user's attention on display devices and alerting users to items of current interest."
But there is one interesting nugget: Allen's company claims it loaned manpower and gave money to help start Google, and now it wants something in return. This, too me, has far more gravitas than a bunch of overly general patents.
If Allen wins, what should he do with the money? Buy another sports team or a new mega-yacht? You tell me at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/05/2011 at 1:18 PM3 comments
It is clear that Microsoft got smoked in the tablet space -- first by the iPad and now by Android. Many forget that Microsoft, with its pen computing initiative, has had tablets for years. They just never really caught on.
But do you expect Microsoft to simply give up? Not on your life. Last year it promoted Win 7 tablets, but they just never really caught on. I looked at Bestbuy.com and couldn't recognize the names of the companies selling Win 7 tablets.
At this month's Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas, Microsoft will take another stab as it is expected to announce the development of a new line of tablets running on ARM chips. Even though Windows Phone 7 already supports ARM chips, some expect these new tablets to take up to two years to emerge. By then the iPad and Android will be well ahead of where they are now.
Too little too late? Isn't that what they said about Word, Excel and the Xbox?
Do you use a pad, netbook or just lug around a beast of a laptop when mobile? Share your thoughts at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 01/05/2011 at 1:18 PM6 comments