Windows 7 to Swim in Windows Live + Yahoo? Where Will Vista SP1 and XP SP3 Fit?

Traditionally, Microsoft's core business has been focused on the Windows platform and the Office suite. Windows and Office, by all means, continue to be the heart of Microsoft.

The latest versions of the flagship products, Windows Vista and the Office 2007 System, made available to the public at the end of January 2007, have fueled the vast majority of the company's most recent fiscal second quarter record financial results of $16.37 billion in revenue, and $6.48 billion in operating income. With Office SP1 out of the way at the end of 2007, Microsoft is currently building Windows Vista Service Pack 1, Windows XP Service Pack 3 and Windows 7 client platforms, as well as putting the finishing touches on Windows Server 2008.
But on February 1st, 2008, the Redmond company managed to steal the show away from its flagship products with the $44.6 billion cash and stock unsolicited acquisition proposal directed at Yahoo. Enjoying a continual near-monopoly on the desktop with Windows and Office, and pushing hard on the server side with the new lineup of Windows Server, SQL Server, ISS7 and PHP against Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP, and with the entertainment division starting to pick up steam, Microsoft is now turning to the Internet. In the Cloud, the Redmond company is the indisputable underdog.
And with the rival Internet giant from Mountain View hugging the online advertising and search engine markets, Microsoft is now doing a tad of hugging itself: bear hugging. Microsoft has been looking to acquire Yahoo since the end of 2006, but has been repeatedly shut down.

And All Because of Google

"We have been engaged in conversations with Yahoo! management off and on for the last 18 months. Last night I called Jerry Yang to discuss our proposal. This is a proposal we believe to be a very good deal for Yahoo! shareholders and an offer we want them to think about seriously, to be excited about, and particularly to have the Yahoo! employees be very, very excited about," stated Microsoft Chief Executive Officer, Steve Ballmer.
"A year ago the Yahoo! management team told us it wasn't really the right time to discuss an acquisition. We believed then in the benefits of combining the two companies and we believe now in those benefits more than ever. That is why we are making it public today so both sets of shareholders, employees and customers can understand the incredible opportunity in a combination of Microsoft and Yahoo!. This is a decision we have thought and I personally have thought long and hard about. And we are very, very confident it is the right path for Microsoft and for Yahoo!," Ballmer added.
Microsoft going public with the offer means that all private negotiations have failed to the extent that the Redmond company now feels that it's the right time to apply pressure on Yahoo's Board of Directors to consider their proposal. The tactic of delivering an unsolicited acquisition bid in order to force a public company to consider a takeover offer is referred to as a "bear hug". And the soil couldn't be more fertile for Microsoft, as Yahoo is now squeezed tight in between the $44.6 billion offer, and its falling profits, eroding search engine market share, audience and layoff perspectives.
And make no mistake about it. Microsoft did not just all of a sudden decide to take a close affinity to Yahoo. The $44.6 billion bid has been fermenting for almost two years. The unsolicited acquisition proposal is nothing more than the latest step in a ballet debuted at the end of 2006, and that is far from finishing whether Yahoo will say yes, or no. And all because of Google.
"Let me just start with the opportunity. The online advertising industry is a very large industry today at over US$40 billion and it is forecasted to grow quite rapidly to reach nearly $80 billion in the next three years. Online advertising not only represents a significant growth opportunity but it is also a critical element of the business model for monetization of consumer Internet services, Internet services we create and Internet services of our partners," explained Kevin Johnson, President, Platform & Services Division.
The Art of Biting off More than You Can Chew, Swallowing It without Chocking and Digesting It Whole

Resolving the Windows 7 + Windows Live + Yahoo Equation =?

How is Yahoo about Windows? And where do Vista SP1, XP SP3 and Windows 7 fit into Windows Live + Yahoo? Because between Windows Live and MSN, the Redmond company, after it will have merged in with the Sunnyvale company, will go on to melt the entire suite of Yahoo's services and products into its own. This means that by various degrees, Yahoo will essentially be broken up into components and integrated into both MSN and Windows Live in the long run. And if there is one small detail about Windows 7, outside of the MinWin kernel and the 2009 release date, it's the fact that the next Windows version will be intimately connected with Windows Live.
"We will invest to deliver a seamless experience for customers who own a Windows PC. We have a unique opportunity to remove the seams between Windows, our applications, and our services. Windows Live Wave 3 will be designed so it feels like a natural extension of the Windows experience. While we will target a seamless experience on Windows Vista, we will make a bet on the Windows 7 platform and experience, and create the best experience when connected with Windows 7. We will work with the Windows 7 team and be a first and best developer of solutions on the Windows 7 platform. Our experiences will be designed so when they are connected to Windows 7 they seamlessly extend the Windows experience, and we will work to follow the Windows 7 style guidelines for applications," Microsoft revealed back in 2006 via a memo put together by Chris Jones, Corporate Vice President of Windows Live Experience, David Treadwell, Corporate Vice President of Live Platform Services, and Brian Arbogast, Corporate Vice President of Mobile Services.
The bridge between Windows 7 and Windows Live fits perfectly into the Redmond company's Software plus Services business strategy. Initially, Microsoft planned to connect the next version of desktop client with Windows Live Wave 3. But this was back in 2006, before the Yahoo deal came into play. Now, Windows 7 still has to stretch into the cloud, but the difference is that Microsoft's cloud will also contain Yahoo components. Ballmer confirmed Microsoft's direction of going Live with Windows 7, and it is certainly a development direction that will illustrate the company's S+S vision.

source: news.softpedia.com

Microsoft to release Windows Vista Service Pack 1 on Monday?

Microsoft has scheduled Windows Vista Service Pack 1 for release to manufacturer (RTM) on Monday, February 4, 2008.

That's just 3 days away! The OEMs will also receive Windows Vista Service Pack 1 during that week.
Microsoft will be deploying Service Pack 1 in two "waves". Wave 0, which is the one released on February 4, will only include five languages - English, French, Spanish, German and Japanese. The second wave, Wave 1, is scheduled for release 1-2 weeks later, and will cover all 36 basic languages, including Chinese.
On January 29, a Microsoft spokeswoman said Vista SP1 had yet to be officially released to manufacturing. The recent SP1 Release Candidate (RC) Refresh 2 is not the RTM build, the spokeswoman said. “And we’re not commenting on the build number,” she said, when I asked whether the “18000? build number was the RTM version.
The latest buzz is that Microsoft will announce that Vista SP1 has RTM’ed on Monday February 4, according to the Tech ARP site. Even if SP1 doesn’t hit on February 4, its release is imminent, sources agree.
Vista SP1 will deliver in one package the various security, performance and reliability fixes Microsoft has been making to Vista for the past year-plus. SP1 also will include a few new minor features, including a less strident Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) piracy check and a tweak in the way Vista works with and displays third-party search engines.

source: blogs.zdnet.com, bink.nu

Windows Vista Wow! Forget about Vista SP1, XP SP3 and Windows 7!

That's it, forget about Windows XP Service Pack 3, about Windows 7, the next iteration of Windows and even about Windows Vista Service Pack 1.

So what if consumer demand for Windows XP is still strong even in the context of Vista? So what if original equipment manufacturers and users have forced Microsoft to prolong the availability of XP via the OEM and retail channels until mid 2008, taking sales away from Vista? So what if XP SP3 is stealing all the limelight away from Vista SP1? And so what if Windows 7 is moving to the Windows center stage with Milestone 1 in the detriment of Vista rather than XP? The Windows Vista Wow is making the mother of all comebacks!
Well... January 30, 2008 was supposed to be Vista's day. The celebration of the first year anniversary since Microsoft's latest Windows client hit the shelves. On January 30, 2008 the Wow was supposed to turn one, but it died sometime along the way... throughout the many sped bumps of 2007, the Wow was simply kicked off Vista's ride. Now the operating system flies solo, after the $500 million marketing campaign all but completely flopped. But still, it's the celebration of the one-year anniversary of Windows Vista's worldwide release. And Microsoft's idea for Vista's first birthday was to perform a round table Q&A with members of the Windows Vista team, as well as others that have been involved in the development, testing, deployment and selling of the operating system.
Bellow you will be able to find some excerpts of the Q&A. The highlights are my own:
1. 70% consider Vista better than XP – So what about the other 30%? 30% is by all means quite a large share of users that fail to see anything better in Vista compared to XP. And with Vista having sold 100 million licenses, that's 30 million users!!!
"The fact that we've passed the 100 million mark in licenses says something about people's response, but even more important has been people's increasing enthusiasm for using Windows Vista. With any new operating system, there's a natural reluctance to upgrade because people have concerns about compatibility, they’re uneasy about learning something new or unsure about what the move to a new operating system will bring. But those who are using Windows Vista have generally been very pleased. We commissioned independent studies from IPSos and NPD to explore the attitudes of users about the operating system not only in the U.S., but also in China, France, Germany, Japan, and the UK. According to NDP, 70 percent of these users say it's an improvement over their previous operating system," said Neil Charney, General Manager, Microsoft Windows Client.
2. Vista vs. XP – Throughout the development of Vista Microsoft has also run the "Life With Windows Vista". The program permitted 50 ordinary families to live with Vista as it was built and provided feedback. Robin Mason is the mom of a family that participated in the program.
"That's been my experience, too. Around the time of the launch last year, I was asked how I'd compare Windows Vista to Windows XP. I gave Windows XP a rating of 75 and Windows Vista 80. After using Windows Vista this past year on two of the three computers I have at home, I'd give it a 90. Nothing's perfect," Mason stated. 75? 80? 90? Out of what? 1,000?
3. In China, Windows Vista Home Basic and Home Premium got a permanent price discount. No less than 67% for Home Basic and 50% for Home Premium. That's while the rest of the world still pays $199 and $239 for the two SKUs. But on the other had, Vista Ultimate, the pirated edition is sold in China for as little as $1, certifying the failure of the Windows Genuine Advantage anti-piracy mechanism to keep the operating system genuine. In mid-July, Microsoft worked with the FBI and China’s Public Security Bureau to crack a counterfeiting ring from southern China province of Guangdong, responsible for pushing $2 Billion worth of Microsoft pirated software.
"I'm very pleased that Lenovo participated in the launch of Windows Vista as one of the top strategic partners of Microsoft worldwide and China. We worked hard with Microsoft to create a positive user experience by the seamless integration of Lenovo's unique LXT technologies and Windows Vista, and providing richer applications. We have also helped more customers to understand and adopt Windows Vista by leveraging Lenovo's marketing and service network. I'm very happy to see Windows Vista gaining popularity and more recognition from users along the way," revealed Chen Shaopeng, Lenovo's Senior Vice-President and President of Greater China Region.
4. Compatibility is getting better. Compatibility has been getting better throughout 2007? Are we there yet? Or on January 30, 2009, Microsoft is going to say that compatibility is still getting better?
"We've worked diligently with industry partners to increase the number of Windows Vista-compatible applications and devices, while also building support for them. While we were happy with what we launched with, we also built the system to update seamlessly with the new technology that has been and will be added every day. Today, Windows Vista supports over 43,000 hardware products, almost doubling the 23,000 thousand at launch," Charney added.
5. Microsoft got sued for its Vista logo programs from users claiming that they got duped in purchasing machines deemed Vista Capable and that were not Vista Premium Ready. Ooops...
"Microsoft developed the two-tier Windows Vista Logo Program to help customers more easily identify software and devices that have been tested for compatibility with Windows Vista. Today more than 900 hardware partners have certified thousands of devices and hardware components for Windows Vista that support new innovations in graphics, networking and imaging. We now have 3,494 software and 3,360 hardware products available on retail shelves," explained Jeff Price, Senior Director in the Windows Group at Microsoft.

source: news.softpedia.com

XP SP3 Refresh 2 and Vista SP1 RC Refresh 2 Join Windows 7

Windows XP Service Pack 3 Release Candidate Refresh 2 and Windows Vista Service Pack 1 Release Candidate Refresh 2 have joined Windows 7 on torrent trackers.

Pirated versions of Microsoft's software products and especially those developed under the Windows umbrella brand have a tradition of migrating on peer-to-peer file sharing networks. And Beta variants of the Windows operating system make no exception to this rule. And in this context, the second Refresh of the Release Candidate versions of XP SP3 and Vista SP1 have been leaked and are now available for download via BitTorrent clients, just like Windows 7.
With all the excitement orbiting around the first development release of Windows 7, namely Milestone 1 Ultimate edition Build version 6.1 (Build 6519.1.x86fre.winmain.071220-1525) ISO 6519.1.071220-1525, downloads claiming to be the next iteration of the Windows operating systems have begun popping out on various torrent trackers. According to reports from users that simply could not help it to jump the gun, all the Windows 7 torrents are actually ISO files containing everything but the next version of Windows.
But while fake zero byte ISO images are masquerading as the Windows 7 M1 release, the same is not the case with Vista SP1 and XP SP3. Vista SP1 RC Refresh 2 Build 6001.18000 is offered in a variety of ways, from a standalone installer to a slipstream installation. The registry script that Microsoft offers Connect users in order to tweak the Vista registry to identify, download and install Vista SP1 from Windows Update servers also leaked alongside torrents that claim to be the final version of the service pack. This is obviously not the case. Windows Vista SP1 is set to be released to manufacturing by the end of the first quarter of 2008, with all indications pointing to February for a more realistic RTM date.
And last but definitely not least, XP SP3 RC Refresh 2 Build 3282 was also leaked outside of the selected pool of 15,000 testers that it was released to through Connect, just as Vista SP1 RC Refresh 2. Apparently, the fact that all the Connect users involved in the testing process of Vista SP1 and XP SP3 are under a Microsoft Non Disclosure Agreement has done little to stop the actual leaking of the service packs. Testers are not supposed to share the update package, the resulting installation or even details with anyone.
"This is the self-extracting executable that contains the update package for Windows XP Service Pack 3 Release Candidate Refresh 2. Release documentation, including lists of fixes and known issues, are available in the downloads section of the Connect site. It is recommended that you apply this update package to an activated, genuine copy of Windows XP, in a test environment. As with any pre-release software, it is also recommended that you back up files and settings on your machine before applying this update package. You may apply this package to previous pre-release editions of Windows XP Service Pack 3 (e.g. the Release Candidate Refresh)," reads a fragment of the Microsoft official documentation that accompanied XP SP3 RC Refresh 2.

source: news.softpedia.com

Microsoft to Buy Yahoo for $44.6 Billion

In its race to become the runner-up on the search engine and online advertising markets, Microsoft is about to give Google a little something to chew on.

The Redmond company is looking to buy Yahoo for no less the $44.6 billion. Microsoft has just announced the proposed acquisition of Yahoo for $31 per share. According to current estimates, the transaction is valued at no less than $44.6 billion and Microsoft is to offer both cash and stock. Yahoo has been increasingly losing its position on the search engine market, as well as its audience eroded by social networks.
The latest financial results posted by the Sunnyvale Internet giant feature a consistent loss, with profit dropping to $660 million for 2007, down from $751 million in 2006. Yahoo was even preparing to lay off a reported 1,000 workers of its 14,300 workforce, after the poor financial results of the past year. Microsoft's proposed acquisition offers shareholders a 62% premium to current trading price for Yahoo! The Redmond company has presented its proposition to Yahoo's Board of Directors.
"We have great respect for Yahoo!, and together we can offer an increasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers and advertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the online services market," said Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer of Microsoft. "We believe our combination will deliver superior value to our respective shareholders and better choice and innovation to our customers and industry partners."
"Our lives, our businesses, and even our society have been progressively transformed by the Web, and Yahoo! has played a pioneering role by building compelling, high-scale services and infrastructure," said Ray Ozzie, chief software architect at Microsoft. "The combination of these two great teams would enable us to jointly deliver a broad range of new experiences to our customers that neither of us would have achieved on our own."
Yahoo has failed to officially respond or comment on the acquisition proposal from Microsoft. Still, it is clear that the Redmond company will not hesitate in the least to cough up no less than $44.6 billion for Yahoo. The aims is of course the online advertising market, which is estimated to double in the next couple of years, from $40 billion in 2007 to nearly $80 billion by 2010. Microsoft revealed that the move to buy Yahoo was made as a measure to counter Google and its increasing dominance over the online advertising market.
"The combined assets and strong services focus of these two companies will enable us to achieve scale economics while reaching R&D critical mass to deliver innovation breakthroughs," said Kevin Johnson, president of the Platforms & Services Division of Microsoft. "The industry will be well served by having more than one strong player, offering more value and real choice to advertisers, publishers and consumers."

Windows Seven: We're Hiring!

The software giant is looking to hire a technical evangelist for Windows Seven. That sounds like a really good idea to me.

But Microsoft had better hire someone who can be more thought leader than mouthpiece—a straight talker who can generate genuine enthusiasm while setting realistic expectations.
Longhorn really hurt Microsoft's credibility. In early 2004, Microsoft started breaking feature promises made in late 2003—and the broken promises continued through 2005, as Microsoft dumped more and more Longhorn (aka Windows Vista) features.
The Windows Seven evangelist needs to sell benefits while not overstating them. In fact, Microsoft needs someone who can sell aspiration around limited benefits so that people can get excited about the product and the company can deliver more than promised later on. People buy things because they want to be happy, to believe their lives will be better from the purchase. Apple sells aspiration so well, and Microsoft needs to, too.
The shoes are mighty big. Maybe Microsoft should call on the Friendly Giant. The job posting is dated Dec. 11, 2007, but Microsoft hasn't yet filled the position. It's a big, big job.
The requirements are daunting. Microsoft wants someone with five to seven years experience with .Net Framework, great communications skills and developer community leadership skills. That's for starters. The company also wants a diplomat, analyst and great public speaker. I'm surprised there's no call for a sociology degree.
In a blog post today, Microsoft evangelist Tim Sneath explains: "This isn't a 9 to 5 job: it's more of a vocation—you'll work hard not because you've got someone breathing down your neck but because you're passionate about making a difference and you see the impact of your work."
Really? Sneath describes the job as a "once-in-a-lifetime open position." The position is "the technical evangelist at this point in time. This is an extremely challenging, high-profile senior role, with tremendous reach and influence across the organization."
Sneath has got the "challenging" part right. I wouldn't envy anyone taking on this role, given Vista's reception, the state of mind IT organization and consumers have about operating systems or the rapid computing market shift to the services-plus-software rich Web 2.0 platform.
Stated differently: Microsoft needs someone who can make developers, enterprise customers, OEMs and technical enthusiasts feel good about Windows again. More importantly: The Windows Seven technical evangelist must sell something bigger than the operating system, something intangible: The Microsoft lifestyle.
All truly successful products—meaning those products that customers really love—imbue a lifestyle. There is an Apple lifestyle associated with Macs or a motorcycle lifestyle associated with Harley-Davidson.
The Microsoft lifestyle is a tough sell, because it is so potentially big. Microsoft products do so much and interconnect with one another in so many ways, their benefits aren't always obvious. They're tough to market. Perhaps the technical evangelist will have to sell many small lifestyles.
For the last month, I've been trying to live the Microsoft lifestyle, which, strange as it may sound, is helping me to better identify what it is. I'm using a Windows Mobile phone and Vista PC. I've got Windows Live Mail on the PC and phone. Then there is Office 2007 and Office Live Workspace... and so on. Different products connect together, creating nuances of different computing lifestyles. But that's for another post, on another day when my head isn't foggy from the flu.
Microsoft Watch readers, what would you want to hear from the Windows Seven technical evangelist? What message should he or she convey? What do you need to hear from him or her to regain confidence—for anyone that has lost it—in Windows?