Stuart J. Johnston

Pick a browser, any browser. With a list of options that includes Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google’s Chrome, Apple’s Safari and Opera, Web surfers have plenty of choices in deciding how they want to surf the Web. As a result, market leader Internet Explorer has more competition than it’s had in years. And that competition […]

When Microsoft executives say that they’re “all in” on the cloud, as they are wont to do, a big part of that means BPOS, the pared-down Web-based version of the popular Office productivity applications. Known in longhand as the Business Productivity Online Suite, BPOS is a major focus for Microsoft’s enterprise sales team as it […]

Executives at Microsoft have been taking shots at archrival Google’s Android mobile operating system for months now, alleging, among other things, that the open source OS is hardly free and that it plays fast and loose with intellectual property rights. Now, the company has gone a step farther. Microsoft is suing Motorola for infringing on […]

Has Microsoft ever faced so many competitive challenges? SaaS providers are nipping away its traditional desktop software business, Apple and Google forced Microsoft to reset its mobile strategy and Google continues to eat the company’s lunch on the search side. Among developments on the plus side of the ledger, Office is still by far the […]

From Steve Ballmer on down through the executive ranks, Microsoft brass has made it clear that tablet computers are going to be a big part of the company’s focus. But those new tablets, or slates, in Microsoft’s parlance, that will be powered by Windows 7 aren’t likely to make it to store shelves until the […]

Just exactly when Microsoft will formally introduce the new smartphones running on its new Windows Phone 7 operating system has been a bit of a mystery. And Microsoft has been paying it close to the vest. But that hasn’t stopped members of the tech press from making it one of the great guessing games of […]

What business customers have known as the Office Communications Server has been rebranded as Lync, and Microsoft is now providing pricing details on the forthcoming unified communications offering. The new version, already out as a release candidate and on track to ship by the end of the year, might not be as much of a […]

Microsoft’s foray into cloud-based applications and services has been picking up momentum for more than a year, giving enterprises cheaper and more flexible application delivery and management options. As eCRM Guide reports, now its adding dashboards to its Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) offering. BPOS consists of Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, Office Communications Online, and […]

Microsoft hustled to release a security patch to address a flaw in its popular Web development framework that had been demonstrated to function as a tool to break server encryption. The software giant had alerted users that it would be issuing the out-of-band patch ahead of its regular monthly patch cycle, advising immediate installation of […]

The state of Minnesota is moving a significant chunk of unified communications and collaboration services to Microsoft’s cloud-based offering. As eCRM Guide reports, the deal, the state’s Office of Enterprise Technology (OET) will pony up for Microsoft’s cloud-based Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS), reducing overall IT expenses and, hopefully, improving its efficiency. According to the […]

It’s become a popular parlor game among tech industry watchers. When, exactly, will Microsoft release Windows Phone 7? A handful of gadget blogs have pegged the data as Oct. 11. Meantime, an industry insider cites a “very reliable source” who believes it will be Nov. 8. Microsoft, for its part, is keeping the actual date […]

Microsoft on Tuesday will push out a new fix to what it called an “important” security threat to its .NET framework when used on Windows Server operating systems. As eSecurity Planet reports, the out-of-band patch resolves vulnerabilities first brought to light just over a week ago and will first be made available on the Microsoft […]