Microsoft's Watson technology, for soliciting semi-automatic bug reports from end users and plowing the data back into the bug-fixing effort, has been mostly for the computer industry.
But last week at the Microsoft Management Summit in Las Vegas, the company demonstrated software to help in-house enterprise developers use Watson to improve ongoing quality and maintenance of in-house applications. While Corporate Error Reporting, as Microsoft calls it, has been available to Software Assurance subscribers since September, Microsoft hasn't highlighted it before. "This is the first show where we've really talked about it a lot," says David Hamilton, a director in Microsoft's Enterprise Management Division.
Will Sun Microsystems open-source Java or won't it? According to comments made by its chief executive Wednesday, the answer is likely not.
During a news conference at the FOSE 2004 show in Washington, McNealy said it is unlikely Sun will open-source Java. According to a report by Government Computer News, McNealy spoke of IBM's invitation to Sun to join Big Blue in developing an open-source implementation of the Java platform.
The European Commission's order for Microsoft to ship a version of Windows without the Windows Media Player could stifle innovation and help Microsoft's rivals instead of promoting fair competition, the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust chief said Wednesday.
"Imposing antitrust liability on the basis of product enhancements and imposing 'code removal' remedies may produce unintended consequences," Pate said. "Sound antitrust policy must avoid chilling innovation and competition even by 'dominant' companies. A contrary approach risks protecting competitors, not competition, in ways that may ultimately harm innovation and the consumers that benefit from it."
The battle between Lindows.com and Microsoft over the Lindows trademark took an interesting turn today when U.S. District Judge John Coughenour in Seattle proposed a deal in which Microsoft can proceed with an appeal of his earlier ruling that a jury must decide whether "windows" had been a generic term before it was trademarked and Microsoft would cease its efforts to get foreign courts to stop the sales of Lindows until the U.S. case is decided.
Microsoft spokeswoman Stacy Drake McCredy said of Lindows effort: "This is a baseless effort by Lindows to avoid the jurisdiction of international courts where they are violating local trademark laws. If Lindows does not believe it can reasonably comply with a preliminary injunction issued in a given country, then it is most appropriate for them to raise the issue with the court that rendered the injunction."
U.S. politicians lashed out Wednesday at the European Union's decision to seek sanctions against Microsoft, asking regulators in Brussels to reconsider their decision to levy an unprecedented fine of $613 million.
In a letter to European Competition Commissioner Mario Monti, 10 members of the House International Relations committee said the federal litigation against Microsoft had resolved outstanding antitrust problems and jointly cautioned that it was of the "utmost importance" that the U.S. continue to take the lead in overseeing American companies' business practices.
The letter, signed by five Democrats and five Republicans, noted that "this case involves a U.S. company, that the complaining parties in the E.U. were primarily U.S. companies and that all of the relevant design decisions occurred in the United States." The signers included Robert Wexler, D-Fl., Dan Burton, R-Ind., Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Steve Chabot, R-Ohio.
Microsoft will simplify the software for its money-losing Xbox video-game device to encourage game makers to create more titles and help the company take market share from Sony the company said yesterday.
Xbox programming software will be the same as that for Windows personal computers, making it easier for game makers to build games more quickly, Microsoft, the world's largest software maker, said yesterday.
No doubt you've been following closely the European Union's tangle with Microsoft, the intense debate over such significant issues as antitrust law, monopoly power and competitive balance in the market for computer software.
Or not.
To be honest, the EU-Microsoft battle and its attendant issues carry less interest to most consumers than the latest TV reality show or NCAA basketball tournament bracket -- and about as much relevance.
In an unexpected revelation that casts doubts on the future of Microsoft DirectX, Microsoft today announced a new gaming software-development platform dubbed XNA. Stating only that DirectX, which used to provide this functionality for software developers, would continue as the "baseline environment" for Windows and the Xbox, Microsoft representatives said that XNA will be the platform going forward for game development on Windows, the Xbox, and, now, Windows Mobile-based devices.
Can Microsoft appeal?
Yes, and the company has made it clear that it will appeal. The first round of appeals will go to the Court of First Instance in Luxembourg. If another appeal is needed, it will go to the European Court of Justice, Europe's highest court.
Can Microsoft seek to have the impact of the decision put on hold pending its appeal?
Yes. If the Court of First Instance decides that Microsoft would be "irreparably harmed" by the ruling, it will stay the commission's ruling. That process typically takes nearly three months to complete, but can vary widely.
The European Commission's antitrust decision against Microsoft is unlikely to change the tune of PC manufacturers when it comes to Windows Media Player, going by companies' first reactions.
The decision, handed down on Wednesday, calls for the software giant to create a version of Windows without Windows Media Player for European customers within 90 days. Right now, Microsoft bundles the multimedia application with the operating system, which is installed on new PCs at the factory.