[The articles below were posted between Sep. 25, 2006 and Oct. 23, 2006 and appear in the November 2006 hardcopy edition of Update. One or more are available below for free to non-subscribers.]
Windows & Mobile
- Free! Vista Tunes Windows for Mobile Computing
- Improvements to mobile computing, combined with the new BitLocker Drive Encryption feature, may provide a compelling reason for organizations to move mobile users to Vista first
- Common Engineering Criteria Updated for 2007
- The Common Engineering Criteria for Microsoft's server products have been updated as part of a long-term plan to expand both the criteria and the products they cover
- Acquisition Bolsters Group Policy
- The acquisition of Windows management tool vendor DesktopStandard could strengthen Group Policy
- Cisco and Microsoft Tackle Net Quarantine
- Details are emerging about the cooperation between Cisco and Microsoft to ensure that their different approaches to protecting network infrastructure interoperate, but deployment will not be possible until 2007
- Oct. 2006 Security Updates
- Oct. 2006's 'Patch Tuesday' included critical, important, and moderate patches for Windows and Office, as well as changes to update tools and information on preventing automatic installation of IE 7
Consumer Products & Services
- Free! The Future of MSN
- Despite the emphasis that Microsoft is placing on its new Live initiatives, MSN continues to play an important role in Microsoft's consumer online strategy
- New Program Consolidates Ad Offerings
- The Digital Advertising Solutions program will let advertisers place commercials in multiple Microsoft products
- New Services Tap Users for Content
- MSN Soapbox lets users post and share videos online, while Windows Live QnA enlists users to answer questions
- Windows Live Bundle, Search Launch
- Windows Live Essentials bundles Windows Live software and services; Live Search emerges from beta and gets a name change
- Consumer Software Updated
- The 2007 versions of most of Microsoft's consumer software are out, but there's no sign of a rumored online version of Works
- Zune Date, Price Revealed
- The first Zune device will go on sale on Nov. 14, 2006, in the United States only, and will cost US$250
Server Platforms
- Unified Communications Roadmap
- Components of Microsoft's unified communications platform (the company's name for its converging platform for e-mail, instant messaging, voice, and video) will get major updates in the first half of 2007
- New Data Protection Manager in Beta
- An upcoming version of the Data Protection Manager (DPM) continuous backup product, now in beta release, will add support for SQL Server, Exchange, and SharePoint data stores
- ISA Server 2006 Ships
- ISA Server 2006, a minor update to ISA Server 2004, is now available and pricing remains unchanged except for the addition of a new bulk license
- Two Management Products for Midsize Businesses in Beta
- To meet the needs of midsize businesses, Microsoft is readying two products for system monitoring and software management that will be more powerful yet simpler to use than current offerings
Development Tools & Programs
- Visual Studio Service Pack Due
- Developers will need an upcoming service pack and patch to run Visual Studio 2005 on Windows Vista
- Visual Basic 6 Meets Windows Forms
- The Visual Basic Interop Forms Toolkit could help developers incrementally migrate VB 6 applications to .NET, but the process is not seamless and debugging is complex
- Promise Lowers WS-* and VHD Legal Barrier
- Microsoft's Open Specification Promise reduces the risk of patent litigation against users of the WS-* and VHD specifications, but it might not be sufficient to spur widespread adoption and deployment
- .NET Framework Gets Embedded
- Originally developed for Microsoft's Smart Personal Objects Technology (SPOT) devices, such as wristwatches, the .NET Micro Framework is now available to developers
Business Applications & Services
- Excel Server in SharePoint 2007
- Excel Services will support server-side spreadsheet publishing and allow users to view Excel spreadsheets in a browser, but limitations could dampen uptake
- Groove to Get Push from Office 2007
- Groove collaboration software will get a boost in late 2006 when Groove components ship in the Office suite for the first time
- New Product for Performance Management
- PerformancePoint 2007 expands on Business Scorecard Manager to help companies more effectively measure business performance; it will further squeeze traditional business intelligence players, such as Business Objects and Cognos
- Dynamics Licensing Plan Tweaked
- Minor updates to Business Ready Licensing, the packaging plan for Dynamics enterprise resource planning products, increase volume discounts on client licenses and add functionality to the plan's entry-level package
- Automated Support Company Acquired
- Colloquis sells automated online support solutions that mimic a real person in a text chat session; Microsoft will both resell these solutions and incorporate Colloquis's technology into its own support offerings
Sales & Support
- Desktop Management Applications Become Subscriptions
- Desktop utilities acquired through several 2006 acquisitions—AssetMetrix, DesktopStandard, Softricity, and Winternals—will be available only to Software Assurance customers and only as the Desktop Optimization Pack
- Legacy Software Support Continues
- Limited—and probably expensive—support will continue for legacy software such as Windows NT, under modified Custom Support agreements
- U.S. Financial Sales Reorganization
- The U.S. Financial Services sales team will be expanded and reorganized into three organizations targeting insurance, capital markets, and banking
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