For a company with the mantra "don't be evil," Google sure does terrify a lot of folks in the technology industry.
Late last week, the search titan talked up Google Wave, a phenomenon probably best (and most often) described as a "real-time communication platform" but apparently packed with the destructive power of an asteroid slamming into the earth. Or at least into a bunch of big technology companies.
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Posted by Lee Pender on 06/03/20092 comments
Let's set the mood for this one with a Pink Floyd tune we hadn't heard in years until it broke the normally crushing banality of classic-rock radio on the commute home the other day. It's "Free Four" by Pink Floyd, and while it's actually incredibly depressing, it is catchy...and relevant to this entry.
Apparently -- and, as has been the theme lately, this seems to be still-unconfirmed stuff -- Microsoft is going to allow Windows 7 Starter Edition to run more than three applications at once. (See, that's why we cranked up "Free Four." Four apps, not just three. Get it? Free to run four.) Anyway, Starter Edition is the Windows 7 version most likely to ship with netbooks, those nifty little devices your editor loves so much these days.
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Posted by Lee Pender on 05/28/20090 comments
Redmond magazine Editor Doug Barney mentioned this in his newsletter, and it caught our eye. Apparently, Microsoft has patented a technology that will let manufacturers control operating system upgrades and which software applications can be installed on an OS.
No, seriously! Check it out. Here's our favorite paragraph from the story:
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Posted by Lee Pender on 05/28/20091 comments
Actually, we're just including this story because we love the phrase "boatloads of money," and apparently the Yahoo CEO does, too.
Posted by Lee Pender on 05/28/20090 comments
Since Ford (admirably) declined federal bailout money, and since your editor's parents have a Ford wagon they love, we're going to skip the "Fix or Repair Daily" joke that would have gone so well with this entry.
Posted by Lee Pender on 05/28/20090 comments
Apparently Microsoft is considering naming its new search engine Bing. No, seriously. Of course, the first thing that came to mind when we read this was the Bada Bing club on "The Sopranos," but since there aren't many images related to the Bada Bing that are appropriate for a family newsletter (and, in case our HR folks were wondering, yes, that was research for work), we'll just give you a picture of Tony.
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Posted by Lee Pender on 05/27/20091 comments
Yes, Vista SP2 is out, and in the interest of not kicking an OS when it's down, we're not going to make any snide remarks, such as, "As if anybody cares about this" or "If you're actually using Vista..." Nope, nothing like that. Not at all.
Posted by Lee Pender on 05/27/20090 comments
For today, we are -- actually, I am -- dropping the RCPU tradition of using the first-person plural and switching to good ol' first-person singular because I'm going to share a few personal experiences with you. And, yes, we're going to talk about netbooks. Again. But hang on -- there's a reason why.
It's true that I'm somewhat enamored with my netbook (which, for the record, runs XP). It's great for everyday use -- my old laptop serves mostly as a storage device now -- and was fantastic on a recent trip home to Dallas. Instead of lugging a laptop bag with a seven-pound monster inside it, I zipped my three-pound machine (a touch on the heavy side for a netbook, actually) in the neoprene case that came with it and tossed it in my carry-on, a trusty LL Bean backpack that has seen action from Rotterdam to Rhode Island.
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Posted by Lee Pender on 05/27/20094 comments
We told you yesterday that Microsoft is issuing its first bond offering, but what we didn't speculate on was how Redmond might spend the money it raises. Well, no surprise, somebody else did. The scuttlebutt was that Microsoft might look to buy SAP, the German software vendor and king of the enterprise resource planning mountain. Steve Ballmer moved quickly to...well, to not say much, really, except that the SAP thing is just a rumor.
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Posted by Lee Pender on 05/13/20094 comments
RCP Editor in Chief and all-around legend Scott Bekker tipped us off to the latest brand ranking from Millward Brown Optimor, which annually ranks the world's strongest brands. We wrote about the Microsoft brand in RCP the magazine well back in the mists of time (almost three years ago!), in the era when Microsoft was sitting atop Millward Brown's list.
Well, Redmond has slipped a bit since then, and although the experts and Millward Brown think it's strong enough to rank No. 2 this year, one rival still tops it: Google. Ouch. (You can download PDFs of the survey results here.)
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Posted by Lee Pender on 05/13/20090 comments
What's that? Tech-Ed is going on this week? It would be easy enough to forget, given the decreased attendance (as far as we can tell; there are about 7,000 folks there now, and we seem to remember the show hitting five figures in Boston back in 2006, as well as in 2007) and overall low-key tone of the event.
Anyway, yes, Tech-Ed is in session in sunny Southern California, and Microsoft folks are talking Windows development timelines. More details here.
Posted by Lee Pender on 05/13/20090 comments
Well, here's a big surprise. The operating system that's going to make us forget about Vista should be out for the holiday shopping season. Of course, that doesn't mean much to enterprise partners, but it could be a boon for Microsoft. And a healthy Microsoft means a healthy Microsoft channel. And we like that.
Posted by Lee Pender on 05/12/20090 comments