The European Union commission has concluded its anti-trust case against Microsoft and is circulating a draft of its ruling, according to news reports published Monday.
Meantime, the Redmond, Wash.-based software giant told internetnews.com it continues to negotiate for a settlement. A final ruling on one of the last major pieces of Microsoft's legal troubles is expected this spring.
Microsoft spokesperson Jim Desler said his company hadn't seen the statement or the draft ruling, but he confirmed that Microsoft is still negotiating for a settlement.
To Microsoft's roster of employees, add the inventor of the wiki. A wiki? Unless you're heavily into the Internet, chances are you're wondering what the heck that is.
The wiki concept was created by Ward Cunningham, who joined Microsoft last month after working as a consultant to the company. Cunningham set out in 1995 to create a unique online site for people involved in technical aspects of a type of software development known as object-oriented programming.
Contacts are continuing to seek a settlement to the European Commission's antitrust case against U.S. software giant Microsoft, a source close to the case said on Monday. The source confirmed a comment by Microsoft's general counsel last Saturday that the company was talking to the Commission about a possible agreement that could avert a ruling that might impose penalties and a large fine on the world's biggest company.
The European PDA market is showing signs of growth again after a three year lull and Microsoft is gaining market share in the process, according just-released figures from market researchers IDC. The stats are further proof that many sectors of the technology industry emerged from the technology recession during 2003.
Preliminary data pegged PDA shipments in Europe at 2.6 million units last year, up 27.5 percent from 2002. The 2003 rise was driven by a particularly strong fourth quarter, which totaled shipments of 958,000 units, a 38 percent increase compared to the year-earlier period.
India may soon become the latest Asian country to gain access to the source code of Microsoft's Windows operating system. According to Peter Moore, Microsoft Asia-Pacific's chief technology officer, the company is in open discussions with Indian authorities on the possibility of joining Microsoft's Government Security Program (GSP).
The Redmond, Wash.-based company launched the program in January of last year to provide international governments with the highly guarded inner workings of its dominant Windows OS. The move is largely designed to alleviate concerns about potential vulnerabilities within the Windows source code and hidden backdoors that could allow outsiders to retrieve confidential information from government information technology systems.
Looking for a Windows Desktop Killer?
Reports of companies that are looking for inexpensive Windows alternatives on the desktop always amuse me because the one thing these folks never seem to realize is that they're not really willing to give up all the amazing functionality they take for granted on Windows. And functionality is where alternatives such as Linux fall short. Linux offers mind-boggling series of little problems and huge functionality holes will befuddle the average desktop user. So if you're looking for a next-generation Windows replacement, one that offers everything that Windows has plus more, Microsoft is working on that replacement right now--it's called Longhorn.
IE commands 94.8% of web usage
In news that should surprise no one, Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) dominates the Web with 94.8 percent of all Web usage worldwide, according to market researchers at OneStat.com. Broken down into specific versions, IE 6.0 is number one with 68.1 percent of the market, followed by IE 5.5 (13.8 percent), IE 5.0 (11.8), Mozilla (1.8), Opera 7.0 (0.8), IE 4.0 (0.7), and Apple's Safari (.48). Humorous note of the week: MacCentral's coverage of this event was titled, "Safari global usage nearly doubled."
Microsoft has introduced a beta version of its MSN Toolbar meant to offer simplified access to the company's various Internet portal services, such as Web-based e-mail and search.
The toolbar, which users can download at no cost and can set to appear in their Web-browsing software, offers single-click access to Microsoft's array of sites and applications, including the Hotmail Web-based e-mail, MSN Messenger instant-messaging software and search engine. It also provides access to the company's collection of content sites, such as MSNBC.com, features pop-up ad blocking capabilities, and offers a new tool for highlighting preferred Web content.
Microsoft announced on Monday new software to help small and midsize companies take advantage of new wireless technology that can help them to better manage their supply chains.
The company has added Radio Frequency Identification technology, which combines silicon chip and radio frequency technology to track inventory, to its Microsoft Axapta Warehouse Management software.
RFID has been lauded by manufacturers and retailers for its ability to provide better information about inventory and other data across the supply chain, which can increase product availability and help businesses reduce costs by trimming inventory levels.
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is set to receive an honorary knighthood from Queen Elizabeth II, in recognition of his services to global enterprise.
The Foreign Office announced early on Monday that Gates will become a Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. This is one of the highest honors that Britain can bestow upon those born outside the United Kingdom.
"Microsoft technology has transformed business practices and his (Gates') company has had a profound impact on the British economy," the foreign secretary, Jack Straw, said in a statement.
Microsoft has applied for patents that could prevent competing applications from processing documents created with the latest version of the software giant's Office program.
The company filed patent applications in New Zealand and the European Union that cover word processing documents stored in the XML (Extensible Markup Language) format. The proposed patent would cover methods for an application other than the original word processor to access data in the document. The U.S. Patent Office had no record of a similar application.