Michael Hickins

Microsoft  is tweaking the pricing of its new Vista operating system before the product even hits the market. When the company drops Vista to the retail and consumer market on Jan. 30, it might encounter a very different selling environment than it did five years ago, when it made its last major consumer release. So […]

NEW YORK — Microsoft  and Nortel  introduced three new integrated computer and telephony products they say will improve productivity and reduce cost and complexity for end users. The unified products will be based on the Microsoft Office Communicator 2005 user interface, Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005 for messaging and presence, and Nortel’s Communication Server […]

SAP  is repackaging its well-known ERP  platform in the hopes of making it more digestible for mid-market companies. The Walldorf, Germany-based software vendor today introduced enhancements to its All-in-One application suite that will help mid-size companies implement versions of the mySAP ERP 2005 platform that are tailored for their specific industries. Some of these enhancements […]

On-demand customer relationship management (CRM) application vendor Salesforce.com  used the winter release of its flagship CRM service Salesforce SFA to formally launch Apex, a new platform and programming language. First announced in October, the Apex platform allows corporate and in-house developers to create business applications, such as data models and objects, to manage data in […]

Financial portals such as CNBC  and Google  will be able to offer free real-time stock quotes if the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) accepts a new proposal filed today by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) . In its filing, NYSE said it wants to start a pilot program called NYSE Real-Time Trade Prices (RTTP), […]

You probably remember the last time you bought a computer. And you probably know exactly how much it cost you. But the same probably can’t be said for when you got your last tetanus shot, or how much your last medical procedure really cost. According to health care industry experts and policy makers, Americans are […]

Microsoft  is encouraging its partners to familiarize themselves with the next version of Dynamics CRM for a number of reasons. Code-named “Titan,” the customer relationship management  application is the next generation of Dynamics CRM 3.0. Customers will be able to pick one of three deployment options for Titan: on-premise, Live CRM hosted by Microsoft, or […]

Microsoft’s  Macintosh Business Unit (MacBU) is readying a new version of Office for Mac users, but not before saving current users from falling into a time warp. The unit has released an update of Entourage, MacBU’s e-mail application for Mac users. The update takes into account the new March 11 start for daylight savings time […]

LAS VEGAS — Michael Dell announced a pair of new services reflecting increased broadband penetration and the importance of the consumer market to Dell’s  business. He also noted that the company has stumbled in terms of service and support and that these new offerings were the first step in improving that performance. “We haven’t done […]

Microsoft  wants to be everywhere we are, all the time — from when we make our morning coffee to when we get in our cars and drive to the office. No one would be surprised to see a wireless device embedded in our travel mugs, just to make sure we’re even connected between the kitchen […]

Microsoft  and Ford  unveiled an in-car system called Sync that lets customers access a variety of digital products, such as cell phones, handheld computers, portable music players and other USB-based storage devices. The product, based on Microsoft Auto software, allows customers to use voice commands for accessing contacts and performing other functions. Ford’s contributions to […]

IBM  believes that it can turn its brand of product lifecycle management (PLM), sitting atop its Websphere platform, into a dominant enterprise planning hub in the manufacturing sector. IBM is attempting to expand the traditional definition of PLM  into a holistic approach encompassing product design, production, after-sales and end-of-life information processing. The application vendor is […]