Microsoft appears to have leaked and then pulled a Web site describing a service that would let Windows Mobile users back
up and access information stored in the cloud.
Skybox may be different because it appears that it will automatically sync appointments, photos, videos, text messages, calendar
and contact information, and more.
In addition, while anyone with a phone and a browser can use Live Mesh, Skybox appears limited to people using phones with
Windows Mobile 6.
A spokesman with Microsoft's public relations firm said he didn't yet have comment about the appearance of the Get Skybox
Web site.
Microsoft this week announced that over one million Xbox 360 owners have downloaded and activated the Netflix application for Xbox Live since the service launched in November. In that time, these users have watched over 1.5 billion minutes of movies and TV shows. More impressive, perhaps: Over one in ten Netflix subscribers are now accessing Netflix content online via the Xbox 360.
"Adding Netflix to our ever-growing library of 30,000 movies and TV shows makes Xbox 360 the best value in home entertainment," said Microsoft corporate John Schappert. "Netflix is a great win for Xbox living rooms nationwide. These families are getting more entertainment from Xbox 360 than from any other device connected to their TVs.
Microsoft is suing a former employee, claiming that he applied for a job at the company under false pretenses and then used his role at Microsoft to gain access to confidential data related to patent litigation he is now waging.
Miki Mullor was hired by Microsoft in November 2005, after stating in his job application he was a former employee at Ancora Technologies, a Sammamish software development company that he said had gone out of business.
But, according to Microsoft, Ancora had not gone out of business and Mullor was still chief executive.
Bill Gates developed quite the reputation as a pointed pitchman -- if not necessarily a slick one -- during his long tenure as the public face of Microsoft. He certainly didn't disappoint at the TED conference this week, when he unleashed a jar full of mosquitoes on the audience.
The stunt took place during Gates's 18-minute presentation at TED -- short for Technology, Entertainment and Design, an annual conference that gathers many of the world's intelligentsia to discuss everything from world politics to architecture to genetics to charity. Gates, who is now retired from active participation at the software company he co-founded, now works full-time at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Developers at BeyondTrust examined all of the security vulnerabilities that Microsoft disclosed in 2008 and came to a startling conclusion: Over 90 percent of them could have been completely mitigated if Windows users simply ran under normal user rights instead of with administrative privileges. "This speaks to what enterprises should be doing," BeyondTrust CEO John Moyer says. "Clearly, eliminating administrative rights can close the window of opportunity of attack." Looked at in a product-by-product comparison, 69 percent of Windows flaws in 2008 could be have completely averted by users running under non-admin privileges, as could 89 percent of IE flaws and 94 percent of Microsoft Office flaws.
Rumors that Microsoft will launch its own smartphones have gained steam again, with one analyst predicting that the device
may be introduced at the GSMA Mobile World Congress in two weeks.
Nvidia declined to comment. At last year's MWC, Nvidia announced that its Tegra APX 2500 mobile processor would support Windows
Mobile and enable 3D user interfaces and high-definition video on smartphones.
Freedman also said that Nvidia is investing additional resources to support other mobile operating systems, which could include
Apple's OS X used in the iPhone.
After a brief pause, Microsoft's Windows ad campaign will start singing a new tune.
Microsoft plans to debut a new commercial during the Grammy Awards on Sunday that focuses on its Windows Live services as part of the company's overarching Windows ad campaign that began with a short-lived series featuring Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld and morphed into the "I'm a PC" campaign that started in September and directly targeted Apple.
The new ad features a 4-year-old girl using Microsoft's Windows Live Photo Gallery. It's part of a new phase for the campaign, which Microsoft is calling "Rookies."
"The aim is to put a spotlight on how Windows enhances your life regardless of your age," one Microsoft representative told me.
In a reversal, Microsoft said on Thursday that it will make changes to the way a controversial security feature works in Windows 7.
After getting lots of feedback that Windows Vista too often prompted users to approve changes, Microsoft had decided in Windows 7 to prompt users less frequently. However, in recent days, some enthusiasts and security experts warned that the specific changes Microsoft planned to make with Windows 7 could put users at risk.
Microsoft initially downplayed the risks and defended its choices around the User Account Control feature. On Thursday, though, the company's two top Windows engineers said the company will make some modifications in response to the outcry.
It's not often that Steve Ballmer sounds like Steve Jobs.
Says Ballmer: "If you deploy a four or five-year old operating system today, most people will ask their boss why the heck
they don't have the stuff they have at home."
Ballmer's thoughts are being put into action lately. Microsoft recently revealed that it will move directly from beta 1 of Windows 7 to release candidate, implying a quicker release of the new OS than initially expected.
Additionally, Microsoft announced yesterday that it will issue discounted upgrade licenses to customers moving from Windows XP to Windows 7.
Microsoft delivered the latest version of its unified communications platform on Tuesday, a release that makes progress towards its goal of integrating telephony and instant messaging features on the same commodity servers.
The software titan unveiled Office Communications Server 2007 Release 2 in mid-October at the VoiceCon conference in Amsterdam, saying at the time that it would be ready for sale this month.
However, despite an on-time arrival, there's plenty of work that remains to be done.