Stuart J. Johnston

Microsoft’s monthly Patch Tuesday release of bug fixes coming up on May 12 may seem a little thin next week, according to the company’s advance notice released Thursday. This time, when it delivers the patches as well as security bulletins explaining the security implications, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) only has one patch rated “critical.” However, that’s […]

Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) just shipped in late March, but Microsoft is already asking users for input on its replacement. The company has said it is trying to release updates to its venerable browser much more quickly than in the past. Meanwhile, some long-time Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) watchers contributed their own feedback as to what […]

Goodbye, Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA). Hello, Windows Activation Technologies (WAT). It’s not just a name change, according to Microsoft claims. With the final testing of Windows 7 which began Tuesday, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is talking about a persistent problem — reducing software piracy — and how it’s trying to make the validation experience cause less […]

Microsoft’s lawyers are busy prepping for a hearing to argue that the European Commission (EC) shouldn’t punish them for bundling Internet Explorer (IE) with Windows since the mid-1990s. In the meantime, some Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) competitors are taking the opportunity to speak out against the company and its browser behaviors once again. The company’s legal […]

The same day that Microsoft celebrated the launch of the Windows 7 Release Candidate, the company had less pleasant news for at least a couple thousand employees: They’re getting a pink slip. It’s the second round of cuts in a larger move to eliminate 5,000 jobs across the company by the end of June 2010. […]

Users, start your downloads: The race is on. While racing of all sorts is a spring ritual, this time it isn’t the (just passed) Kentucky Derby or the Indianapolis 500 (still almost three weeks away). Instead, Tuesday is opening day for the last public test of Microsoft’s (NASDAQ: MSFT) Windows 7 — and if the […]

Microsoft is quietly gearing up for the last public test of Windows 7 before it goes to PC makers and software retailers. The question is, with so much pent up demand, will users be able to get a download to test? Put another way: Will Microsoft’s (NASDAQ: MSFT) download servers be able to handle the […]

Microsoft began limited distribution of the final test version of Windows 7 on Thursday — putting final release of the planned replacement for Windows Vista that much closer to reality. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) also finally revealed this week that, although the company has repeatedly promised that Windows 7 would be out by next January 30, […]

Microsoft took the covers off a new Website Thursday aimed at convincing IBM WebSphere customers to move their applications to Windows. Named WebSphereLovesWindows.com, the site purports to prove that users can knock down hardware costs by as much as two-thirds by simply adopting less-expensive Intel servers and, of course, Microsoft software. “Given the current economy, […]

Microsoft announced late yesterday that it has released the second service pack for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 to manufacturing, but it will still be some time before it’s actually in customers’ hands. “Today we are announcing the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) of Service Pack 2 (SP2) for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008,” […]

With rumors already flying that Verizon is in talks with Apple regarding new wireless communications devices, who should turn up as another willing suitor but Microsoft? According to reports in the Wall Street Journal, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is doing just that. The software giant apparently wants to sell Verizon (NYSE: VZ) on a Windows Mobile-based […]

In a major emergency, many people still turn to AM stations, amateur radio and word-of-mouth to pass along critical information such as locations of problem areas, what types of relief is needed and where it’s available, as well as the condition of friends and loved ones. Now Microsoft is about to beta test its own […]