27/05/2013
Microsoft's Update Challenge
It's off to the races for many of Microsoft's product teams. After years of delivering new product releases every two to three years, Windows, Office, Visual Studio, and just about every other consumer and business product group at the company is in the midst of trying to remake itself as a leaner, meaner, and more agile fighting machine.
Seemingly overnight, Redmond's product teams are going whole-hog with continuous development, cloud-first deliverables and subscription services. Because of the magic of big data analysis, it's easier than ever for the `Softies to gauge the immediate impact of a new product or feature, which, in turn, makes quicker, staggered rollouts possible.
Some armchair pundits think this attempted agility isn't a big deal. Instead of one big-bang release every three years, just roll out three bite-sized releases every year. Rename "service packs" as "updates" and -- boom -- problem solved, they argue.
Here's what those folks are forgetting: Microsoft has more than 1.4 billion Windows users and multiple hundreds of millions Office users worldwide. There are users of all ages, at all levels of tech know-how and across all economic continuums. Some of them identify as business customers; others are home users first and foremost.
Not all of these users want more releases coming at them more quickly. In fact, some businesses can't digest new versions delivered every two or three years. They often skip new versions of Windows Server or Exchange because of the testing, training and integration work they require.
At the same time, other businesses consider quarterly updates too few. Andy Pisoni, the founder and CTO of Yammer -- now the Microsoft enterprise social-networking arm -- recently told me that weekly updates would likely be appreciated by his customer base. But suggest to most SharePoint administrators that weekly updates are coming soon to a SharePoint farm near them, and most will likely reject that model.
Striking a balance is tricky. The new motto, at least on the Windows client team, is to be "principled, but not stubborn" when responding to customer feedback, as Windows CFO Tami Reller said last month. That means listening to those with opinions across the spectrum, including the extremes, but ultimately making decisions that are right for the majority -- whether it's about the return of the Start button to Windows, or the speed at which new Windows releases should be made available to users.
Right now, some of the Microsoft teams seem to be gravitating toward a cloud/on-premises dividing line as one way to try to keep the rollout pace sane.
The Office team is advising customers who aren't ready for quarterly or monthly updates (which is what the `Softies are now promising for Office 365) to stick to on-premises and private cloud configurations. These customers will get service packs and new versions of Microsoft products delivered to them on a slower schedule. Those who want the latest bells and whistles as soon as they're developed and tested should go cloud, meaning Windows Azure, Office 365, Dynamics CRM Online and so on.
In addition -- with what might be a bit too subtle, yet still important, distinction -- the Office team is using the word "upgrade" to refer to a new version of a service or product, and "update" to refer to new features meant to be added to an existing release. It's not clear whether Windows and other teams are following this same convention. The thinking seems to be that users, even business-centric ones, will be more willing and able to incorporate updates than upgrades at a faster delivery pace.
With Windows "Blue," Office "Gemini" and the quarterly Visual Studio releases, Microsoft is making some big changes in the way it develops, tests and delivers new products. We'll soon see if Microsoft is too far ahead of the majority of its user base -- or still not moving fast enough.
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03:45 Publié dans Microsoft | Lien permanent | Commentaires (0)
Microsoft Unveils “Sculpt” Range Of Mice With Windows Start-up Key
Microsoft has been known from years for bringing a revolution when it comes to computers. Creating the Surface was one such example. The Wedge Touch Mouse and Keyboard announced last year was something people couldn't imagine.
This year, the tech giant has worked on the ergonomics and internal features of the mouse, and results can be seen clearly.
Switching to Windows 8 operating system was not easy as people often missed the "Start" button on the bottom left corner. Keeping that in mind, Microsoft has unveiled a new "Sculpt" range of mice with a "Start" button on the side. One can straight away reach the desktop without touching the keyboard.
Microsoft has introduced not only one but two new mice, Sculpt mobile mouse and Sculpt comfort mouse.
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03:44 | Lien permanent | Commentaires (0)
Microsoft Files Dispute Against Owner Of Xboxone.com And Xboxone.net
Microsoft has filed a complaint against the current owner of the websites Xboxone.com and Xboxone.net, just days after the company revealed its new next-gen console, the Xbox One. The company revealed the console, which had previously been called the Xbox 720 or Durango, on Tuesday, May 21. Microsoft announced that the console would be available by the end of 2013.
Microsoft filed the complaint with the National Arbitration Forum (NAF) on May 23, and its case number (1501205) is currently listed as pending in the forum’s domain dispute database. Both website domains are registered to London resident Krasimir Hristov Ivanov, who bought the domains on December 29, 2011, according to domain registration search engine WhoIs.
A Microsoft representative told IGN, “Microsoft’s domain name portfolio is a part of its ongoing business strategy, but beyond that we have no comment.”
Microsoft has filed domain disputes in the past, and the cases generally end in Microsoft’s favor. In 2003, a Canadian high school student named Mike Rowe registered the name MikeRoweSoft.com for his part-time web design business. Microsoft considered the domain to be trademark infringement, due to its phonetic resemblance to the trademarked company name, and demanded that Rowe give up the domain. Rowe asked to be compensated for giving up the domain, and Microsoft gave him the $10 he spent to register the domain. Rowe then asked for $10,000 because he was “mad” at the original offer, and Microsoft responded with a 25-page cease and desist order.
The company accused the high school senior of cybersquatting, a practice in which someone uses a domain name in an attempt to profit from someone else’s trademark. The cybersquatter will then offer to sell the domain to the company that owns the trademark for a large price. Mike Rowe and Microsfoft eventually settled out of court, and Microsoft gained control of the domain. The company also paid Rowe’s expenses, and gave him and his family an all-expenses paid trip the Microsoft Research Tech Vest at the company’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington. The company also gave Rowe training for Microsoft certification.
In this particular case, neither Xboxone.com or Xboxone.net are being used for anything, which may help Microsoft prove cybersquatting, even despite the timing of the websites’ registration.
Do you think Microsoft will win its against against the owner of Xboxone.com and Xboxone.net?
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03:42 Publié dans Microsoft | Tags : office 2010, microsoft office 2010, office home and student 2010, office home and business 2010 | Lien permanent | Commentaires (0)