Microsoft moving Office online in duel with Google

Microsoft on Monday said that the 2010 version of its popular Office software will feature online collaboration as the technology giant duels “in the cloud” with Internet titan Google. Microsoft made the announcement at the opening of a Worldwide Partner Conference in New Orleans. Next-generation Office, Visio, Project, and SharePoint Server programs to be released in the first half of next year are being given to tens of thousands of people selected to test the nearly completed software. Full Story : Zawya.com….

A key upgrade to widely-used Office is that online hosting will make it possible for users to access projects from any Internet-linked computers and to collaborate online in real time.

Office Web applications will be lightweight, browser versions of Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote that provide access to documents from anywhere, according to MicrosoftMicrosoft
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Google OS May Force Microsoft to Reinvent Windows

Google’s Chrome OS won’t be an immediate threat to Windows, but it may force Microsoft to reinvent its operating system more quickly into a product that takes full advantage of the Web and can move more nimbly across devices and form factors, analysts said. Microsoft is unlikely to have been surprised by Google’s announcement late Tuesday that it is working on a new OS for people who “spend most of their time on the Web,” as Google described it. From what has been revealed about the Google Chrome OS — which won’t be available until the second half of next year. Full Story : PCWorld.com….

Microsoft warns of serious computer security hole

Microsoft Corp. has taken the rare step of warning about a serious computer security vulnerability it hasn’t fixed yet. The vulnerability disclosed Monday affects Internet Explorer users whose computers run the Windows XP or Windows Server 2003 operating software. It can allow hackers to remotely take control of victims’ machines. The victims don’t need to do anything to get infected except visit a Web site that’s been hacked. Security experts say criminals have been attacking the vulnerability for nearly a week. Thousands of sites have been hacked to serve up malicious software that exploits the vulnerability. People are drawn to these sites by clicking a link in spam e-mail. Full Story : Yahoo.com……

Microsoft Bing Performed Strongly in Second Week, Says comScore

Microsoft’s new search engine, Bing, continued to gain market share in the U.S. market during its second week of release, according to research firm comScore. During that period, which extended from June 8-12, Microsoft’s share of search result pages in the U.S. increased 12.1 percent, also increasing by 3 percentage points from the week before Bing’s June 1 release. In addition to traditional “page of hyperlinks” search, Bing also offers subject categories such as “Images” and “Shopping” that allow for a more specific drilling-down by users. Full Story : eWeek.com….

Bing Bounces High in Early Search-Ranking Results

According to comScore’s preliminary study, Microsoft’s latest effort to dethrone Google in the search-engine wars is posting gains. The results show substantial improvement in Microsoft’s position in the search market in the days following Bing’s launch. Microsoft increased its average daily penetration among U.S. searchers from 13.8 percent during the period of May 26-30 to 15.5 percent during the period of June 2-6, according to comScore. The research firm concluded this is an indication that the search engine is reaching more people than before. Microsoft’s share of search-result pages in the U.S., a proxy for overall search intensity, increased from 9.1 percent to 11.1 percent during the same time frame. Full Story : Yahoo….

MicroSoft’s New Search Engine Puts Porn in Motion

Bing, Microsoft’s new search engine, went live in the U.S. this weekend, aiming to challenge and possibly unseat industry titan Google. But bloggers and Internet safety experts quickly discovered that one of Bing’s “features” is that it takes only a few clicks for anyone — of any age — to view explicit pornographic videos without even leaving the search engine. Bing includes an “autoplay” tool that lets users preview videos simply by hovering a mouse over them. That asset may become a liability, because users can get a taste of porn videos on Bing instead of having to go to a smutty Web site — an innovation other search engines have yet to offer. Full Story : Foxnews.com…..

EU may mandate multiple browser bundling with new PCs

According to The Wall Street Journal, the EU is considering forcing Windows users to choose a browser to download and install before they can first browse the Internet. The EU is looking into more sanctions against the software giant for including Internet Explorer with Windows, according to WSJ’s sources, and will likely announce a final ruling in the next few weeks. An EU spokesperson said that if the regulator rules against Microsoft, any remedy “would be based on the fundamental principle of unbiased choice” while a Microsoft spokesman says the company is “committed” to “full compliance” with EU law. Full Story : ArsTechnica.com….

Cuba criticizes Microsoft blocking Messenger

Cuba criticized Microsoft on Friday for blocking its Messenger instant messaging service on the island and in other countries under U.S. sanctions, calling it yet another example of Washington’s “harsh” treatment of Havana. Microsoft recently announced it was disabling the program’s availability in Cuba, Syria, Iran, Sudan and North Korea to come into compliance with a U.S. ban on transfer of licensed software to embargoed countries. Full Story: MSNBC.com……

Vista Service Pack 2 Now Ready for Download

Windows Vista Service Pack 2 is now available for download. The Vista SP2 update includes new support for recording Blu-ray discs straight from the Vista OS, updated support for Bluetooth v2.1, and bug fixes that address slow shutdowns and mysterious crashes. You can download Vista SP2 directly from Microsoft at its Web site (348MB) or it will be automatically delivered to your Vista system via Windows Update within a few weeks, according to Microsoft. You must have Vista SP1 installed on your system to install the SP2 Vista. Full Story : PCWorld.com….

Microsoft May Rename Live Search ‘Bing’

Microsoft’s new search engine is reportedly dumping its codename, Kumo, in favor of the brand name Bing. To get the word out, Microsoft is planning a massive advertising campaign to launch its new search brand. Bing’s debut will feature a $80 to $100 million online, TV, print, and radio advertising campaign, according to AdvertisingAge. This week, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is expected to demonstrate Bing during the D: All Things D conference, which runs from May 26 through 28. Full Story : PCWorld.com….

Microsoft blocks Messenger in US-embargoed countries

Microsoft this week decided to turn off its Windows Live Messenger service for five countries: Cuba, Syria, Iran, Sudan, and North Korea. All five of these countries have a few things in common, but the one that apparently concerns Microsoft is that the US has put embargoes on each of them. Users in these countries get the following error: “810003c1: We were unable to sign you in to the .NET Messenger Service.” Full Story : ArsTechnica.com….

Microsoft seeks patent for holographic meetings

Earlier this month, Microsoft applied for a patent for “Virtual Office Devices” which would allow users to have meetings with holographic images of other, remote attendees. The patent is rather vague on the actual hardware and software that would create these holographic meetings, although it does include 21 pictures and diagrams of how these meetings would take place. Patrice Simard, chief scientist and manager of the recently gutted Microsoft Live Labs, is listed as one of the inventors. Full Story : NetworkWorld.com…..

Microsoft opens up mobile backup application to all

Microsoft is now letting anyone download My Phone, a mobile data backup program for Windows Mobile devices, which was released in February as an invitation-only beta. My Phone can be installed on most Windows Mobile 6 phones and is intended to let people restore all of their data on a new device if their old one is lost. Full Story : ComputerWorld.com…..

Microsoft to unveil Kumo search engine next week

Microsoft will demonstrate its long-awaited next-generation search technology, code-named Kumo, next week at the D: All Things Digital technology conference, according to reports. Kumo, a name sources say is not final, is expected to include more than just changes to the look of Microsoft’s search engine. Among the expected enhancements is the inclusion of semantic search technology Microsoft got as part of last year’s purchase of Powerset.  Full Story : CNet.com….

Microsoft says EU may boost Google dominance

Microsoft says EU regulators will hand Google more dominance of the Internet search business if they go ahead with planned regulations on Microsoft’s Windows operating system, the Financial Times reported. By bundling Internet Explorer with Windows, Microsoft shielded its browser from competition with rival products, harming innovation and reducing customer choice, the EU regulators had said. Full Story : Reuters.com…..

Mozilla, Opera blast Microsoft over IE8 upgrade practice

Browser makers Mozilla and Opera accused Microsoft yesterday of force feeding Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) to users with Windows Update and silently changing the default browser on PCs. Both companies, which make Firefox and Opera, respectively, are involved in the European Union’s antitrust action against Microsoft, which was accused in January of “shielding” IE from competition by bundling the browser with Windows. Full Story : ComputerWorld.com…..

RIM rolls out latest BlackBerry Enterprise Server

As expected, RIM rolled out its BlackBerry Enterprise Server 5.0. The latest version offers more IT administration controls and integrates RIM push technology with Microsoft Exchange, IBM Lotus Domino and Novell Groupwise. RIM’s latest effort also focuses on role-based controls, identifying “disallowed” applications and scheduling deployments. Full Story : ZDnet.com……

Microsoft may soon drop Vista

Microsoft may stop selling its Windows Vista operating system as soon as an upgraded version is available, a company manager said. Microsoft customers complained that the Vista system was slow and included cumbersome prompts that required granting permission for various tasks. Full Story : UPI.com…..

Microsoft Vine To Connect Family, Friends When Crisis Hits

Microsoft is launching a new product into private beta on Tuesday morning with the aim of keeping friends and family in touch during emergencies. Vine is designed to keep family and friends in touch when other communication methods are either broken or not particularly efficient. Full Story : Techcrunch.com……

‘Sleep talking’ PCs save energy and money

Personal computers may soon save large amounts of energy by “sleep talking.” Computer scientists at UC San Diego and Microsoft Research have created a plug-and-play hardware prototype for personal computers that induces a new energy saving state known as “sleep talking.” Normally PCs can be in either awake mode where they save substantial power but are essentially inactive and unresponsive to network traffic. Full Story : Eurekalert.com….