microsoft

Users of Microsoft's very popular Office 2007 software will be pleased to hear that a free update and download for the program, dubbed MS Office 2007 Service Pack 2, is available now, and promises to improve performance while adding several select ... new features. Unfortunately, there have been some reported issues preventing a full-blown ticker-tape parade. The main draw for users will undoubtedly be Microsoft's decision to add some support for non-Microsoft file formats. Once the download is complete, it will allow users to read and write Open Document Format files, documents used by the ... (view more)

According to reports, it looks like Windows 7 will be released October 23, 2009. That's a few months earlier than Microsoft had publicly committed to, and could mean extra sales for the holiday season. So far, Microsoft has only described its target ... of releasing the new system three years after Windows Vista, which would have been 23 January. But British laptop manufacturer Acer has told a tech website his firm will be selling a Windows 7 PC after October 23. Bobby Watkins told pocket-lint.com that Acer's new Z5600 model, specially designed for Windows 7, will be available with the system ... (view more)

According to reports, Microsoft has met the deadline set by the European Union for addressing antitrust concerns, including the bundling of its Internet Explorer browser with Windows. The European Union has thus far led the fight against what many ... feel are Microsoft's antitrust policies, the most concerning of which include the company's packaging of its ubiquitous Internet Explorer (IE) browser with its equally popular Windows operating systems. Some claim that the packaging practice "shields" IE against competition from Mozilla and other, smaller companies, and that Microsoft owes its power ... (view more)

Microsoft has again denied reports it is planning to launch its own phone despite rumors that suggest it's working on a music-based handset to rival the iPhone. The latest report, one of the most mainstream so far, comes from the Wall Street ... Journal. It says Microsoft has had discussions with Verizon about teaming up to launch a smartphone on the network. Such a phone wouldn't just be another handset running Windows Mobile, but would have enhanced multimedia capabilities and include the Windows Marketplace for Mobile, Microsoft's take on Apple's App Store, due to launch later this year. ... (view more)

Critics complain social networking kills privacy , allowing friends and enemies alike to slowly and methodically 'creep' your personal details without you ever having to know. It would seem appropriate, then, that Microsoft's first major foray into ... social networking should be called "Vine," which both uses and attempts to improve upon Facebook and Twitter. Vine works by asking users to download its special dashboard-style application. Once that's installed, a user is prompted to sign into his or her Windows Live account, where they're presented with a map-like interface that provides news and ... (view more)

A Service Pack (SP) is a collection of updates, fixes and/or enhancements to a software program delivered in the form of a single installable package. Many companies (such as Microsoft) typically release a service pack when the number of individual ... patches to a given program reaches a certain (arbitrary) limit. Installing a service pack is easier and less error-prone than installing a high number of patches individually, even more so when updating multiple computers over a network. Service packs are usually numbered, and thus shortly referred to as SP1, SP2, SP3 etc. They may also bring, ... (view more)

Apparently Microsoft has learned a few lessons from some of their many Windows Vista fiascos . In a move that appears aimed at backwards compatibility, some versions of Windows 7 will include a virtualized Windows XP mode. Dubbed Windows XP Mode, or ... XPM (formerly known as Virtual Windows XP or Virtual XP, VXP) will ship alongside the Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) in May and then in its final version with Windows 7's own ultimate release. (Source: itwire.com ) Dramatic Changes in Compatibility XPM is the next generation Microsoft Virtual PC 7 product line, and according to Rafael Rivera and ... (view more)

With only a few weeks until Microsoft's Windows 7 Release Candidate 1 (RC1) is released, Microsoft is already looking for people to help with Windows 8. An April 14th job ad posted by Microsoft says the upcoming version of Windows will have new ... features like cluster support and support for one way replication. Apparently the Windows 8 kernel is being reworked to provide dramatic performance improvements. Windows 8 will also include innovative features that, according to Microsoft, will revolutionize file access in branch offices. (Source: microsoft.com ) In the Planning Stage for a While ... (view more)

Those anticipating Windows 7 , Microsoft's new operating system, will be happy to hear that the Redmond-based software giant will make its Release Candidate 1 (RC1) edition available soon. Starting May 5, Microsoft will provide Windows 7 RC1 through ... TechNet.com and MSDN.com. There's been some confusion about the download date. Microsoft's Partner Program site not so long ago bragged that the Windows 7 Release Candidate was already available, luring users in with the promise that the build was available "now". However, as Ars Technica recently found out, that appears to be a typo and the full ... (view more)

The U.S. Department of Justice (US DOJ) and several states have requested an extension of restrictive antitrust oversight of Microsoft Corp. An 18 month extension was requested by the DOJ and 17 U.S. states, including New York and California, in ... order to 'thoroughly scrub' technical documentation Microsoft is producing to comply with antitrust law. The DOJ's restrictive oversight of Microsoft was first implemented in 2002 as part of an antitrust settlement that required Microsoft to produce reams of technical documentation designed for enabling rivals to design compatible products with ... (view more)