Microsoft - Infoworld

Microsoft to issue more critical patches next week for Windows 7 than XP

admin — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:51:05 +0000

Microsoft on Thursday said it would deliver nine security updates next week, four of them critical, to patch 21 vulnerabilities in Windows, Internet Explorer (IE), Office, .Net, and Silverlight.

This year's February Patch Tuesday will feature three fewer updates and one less patch than 2011's.

Microsoft to launch Windows 8 beta Feb. 29

admin — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:25:22 +0000

Microsoft on Wednesday said it will host a launch event for the Windows 8 beta on Feb. 29 in Barcelona, the site of the Mobile World Congress.

Previously, Microsoft had promised that it would distribute a public beta -- the company used the label "Consumer Preview" instead -- in "late February." Wednesday, Feb. 29 is the last day of the month.

Microsoft teams up with 24/7 for customer service software

admin — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:23:41 +0000

Microsoft has entered into a broad partnership with customer-service software provider 24/7 that the companies expect will yield a superior cloud-based platform that large companies can use to better address their customers' needs.

As part of the deal, 24/7 will get access to Microsoft's TellMe speech-recognition and interactive self-service software, which will get integrated into 24/7's Predictive Experience products, such as Px Online for Web self-service customer attention, the Px Speech voice-based customer service tool and Px Mobile for mobile-device-based support.

Microsoft to roll out wave of native mobile apps for its CRM software

admin — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:37:21 +0000

Microsoft is gearing up to release a phalanx of native mobile applications for its CRM software, with clients aimed at BlackBerry, Windows Phone 7, iOS, and Android 2.2 and higher devices, the company announced Monday.

The release, which is scheduled for the second quarter as part of Microsoft's regular CRM (customer relationship management) service update, will also build on existing browser support with Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox, and Safari, running on Macs, iPads, and Windows PCs.

Microsoft researchers say anonymized data isn't so anonymous

admin — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:10:47 +0000

Data routinely gathered in Web logs -- IP address, cookie ID, operating system, browser type, user-agent strings -- can threaten online privacy because they can be used to identify the activity of individual machines, Microsoft researchers say.

At the same time, analysis of such data when anonymized can help detect malicious activity and so improve overall Internet security, they add.

Kelihos botnet, once crippled, now regaining strength

admin — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:45:56 +0000

A botnet that was crippled by Microsoft and Kaspersky Lab last September is spamming once again and experts have no recourse to stop it.

The Kelihos botnet only infected 45,000 or so computers but managed to send out nearly 4 billion spam messages a day, promoting, among other things, pornography, illegal pharmaceuticals, and stock scams.

Windows 8 on ARM: Not so vaporous after all?

InfoWorld Tech Watch — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:26:06 +0000

Last week, I suggested that the lack of even demo units of Windows 8-based ARM tablets meant that we may not see any ARM tablets, at least not when Window

Drive-by-download attack exploits critical vulnerability in Windows Media Player

admin — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 17:36:16 +0000

Security researchers from antivirus vendor Trend Micro have come across a Web-based attack that exploits a known vulnerability in Windows Media Player.

"Earlier today, we encountered a malware that exploits a recently (and publicly) disclosed vulnerability, the MIDI Remote Code Execution Vulnerability (CVE-2012-0003)," Trend Micro threat response engineer Roland Dela Paz said in a blog post on Thursday.

15 worst Internet privacy scandals of all time

admin — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:36:01 +0000

In honor of National Data Privacy Day this Saturday, Jan. 28, we've put together a list of the 15 worst Internet privacy scandals of all time.

These high-profile privacy scandals involve many underlying technologies, from search to social media, email to voice mail, mobile phones to Webcams to GPS. But at the heart of all of these privacy scandals are companies collecting personal data without the user's knowledge or consent and then either sharing it with third parties or simply failing to keep it safe.

Windows 8 Metro: Now with mouse support

InfoWorld Tech Watch — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:06:48 +0000

If you've been running the Windows 8 Developer Preview on a touchless PC, you know just how much fun it is to mimic simple touch gestures with a mouse.

How does Google's new privacy policy compare?

InfoWorld Tech Watch — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:40:28 +0000

Some politicians, privacy advocates, and pundits have been stirred into a frenzy in the wake of Google's newly announced overarching privacy policy.

Microsoft reveals launch date for SQL Server 2012

ccraig — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:58:40 +0000

Microsoft has announced a March 7 online event for the launch of SQL Server 2012, the next generation of its database product.

The event will feature keynote addresses from Microsoft corporate vice presidents Ted Kummert and Quentin Clark, who will respectively give attendees a look at Microsoft's "data evolution vision" and a general overview of SQL Server 2012's features.

Windows Phone 7 sales numbers confound -- again

InfoWorld Tech Watch — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 15:56:55 +0000

It's like deja vu all over again.

Microsoft takes aim at VMware and the cloud with System Center 2012

David Marshall — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:15:27 +0000

The skirmish between VMware and Microsoft for greater control over the virtualization and cloud markets is only going to get bigger and more intense in 2012.

Microsoft results yield unexpected good news

InfoWorld Tech Watch — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:46:52 +0000

Microsoft's results for the quarter ending Dec. 31, 2011, were pretty much in line with what industry observers expected. But two items caught my eye, and they both fall in the category of good news for Microsoft and its shareholders.

Windows' cut of Microsoft revenue drops to two-year low

admin — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 12:13:46 +0000

Windows' contribution last quarter to Microsoft's revenue hit its lowest point since Vista's swan song more than two years earlier, according to figures released by the company Thursday.

For the quarter ending Dec. 31, 2011, the Windows division accounted for 22.7 percent of the company's total sales, its lowest share since the 20.3 percent that the group recorded during the third quarter of 2009, at the end of Vista's reign and just weeks before Windows 7 launched.

Microsoft, Alcatel-Lucent settle dispute

admin — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 23:33:35 +0000

Microsoft and Alcatel-Lucent have settled a patent dispute, following a jury verdict last year that would have had Microsoft pay $70 million for infringement.

The companies did not reveal details of the deal, but Microsoft said the settlement is "to the satisfaction of both parties," in a statement.

Microsoft issues release candidate of System Center 2012

admin — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 18:33:25 +0000

Microsoft on Tuesday said the release candidate of System Center 2011, software that companies use to manage their cloud services, is now available.

Customers are already managing more than 100,000 virtual machines using the software as part of an early access program, Satya Nadella, president of Microsoft's Server and Tools Business, said during a videoconference about the news.

Microsoft: More secure but mission not over

InfoWorld Tech Watch — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:41:39 +0000

In January 2002, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates kicked off the software maker's Trustworthy Computing Initiative with a companywide memo, telling employees "there are many changes Microsoft needs to make as a company to ensure and keep our customers' trust a

Windows 8: Not as unified as we thought?

InfoWorld Tech Watch — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:40:40 +0000

Over the weekend the blog world erupted in response to a report by Computerworld UK blogger Glyn Moody, who discovered that