Microsoft
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So, it’s not surprising Google is apparently coming out with a Powerpoint-like service that will complete its online productivity suite portfolio - and, more important, give it the same arsenal as Microsoft Office. The question is whether it matters? Just because Google built it, does it necessarily mean users will come?
On my computer, I’ve got Office 2003 (no plans to upgrade to Office 2007) but I’ve also got an increasing number of documents on Google Docs, Spreadsheets and GMail. The Docs and Spreadsheets documents were created so I can easily share documents and spreadsheets with other people. While Google won’t replace Microsoft Office as the “go to” productivity suite any time soon, it is a nice complement to Office given I have yet to wade into the world of Microsoft Live.
But what will it take for Google Office to take major amounts of market share from Microsoft Office? There is a lot of enthusiasm for Web-based services but it’s difficult to see many people, particularly corporate-types, abandoning Office any time soon for Google. Why should Google Office be anything different as a competitive threat as WordPerfect or Open Office, which are, in theory, easier products for many people to embrace? (One different Google Office does have over WordPerfect and Open Office: it’s free. (Update: My bad, Open Office is free too).
That said, Google Office could get some more traction if wireless networks become more ubiquitous, and the use of Web-based services becomes more mainstream. One thing I have noticed in recent months is how Google-based services such as GMail, Docs & Spreadsheets and Google News have become key parts of my computing environment.
For more, check out Paul Kedrosky, who doesn’t care Google Office may not have all the bells and whistles as Office.
Technorati Tags: Google, Microsoft
Written by Mark Evans on February 5th, 2007 with no comments.
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Earlier this week it was announced that Bryan Lee, corporate vice president of Microsoft's entertainment and devices division, was going to take an early retirement.
Mr. Lee is 43.
Also probable is that Allard might have to work quickly to deliver a level of success for Zune, or he could find his position [...]
Written by Russell Shaw on February 3rd, 2007 with no comments.
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Vista is a nice upgrade from Windows XP but it’s hardly a ground-shaking product even after five years of development and 50 million lines of code. The lack of enthusiasm has been muted (highlighted by the WSJ’s Walter Mossberg who described it as “worthy, but largely unexciting product”.
So what can Microsoft do to get people talking about Vista, which has many attractive features and far better security? How about spending a whopping $500-million on advertising, which makes the $150,000 or so that Microsoft spent sending free Ferrari laptops to bloggers look like a drop in the bucket. Over the next little while, it is going to be impossible to avoid Vista. There will TV commercials, billboards, magazine, newspaper ads and public transit vehicles featuring Vista. Even Bill Gates is getting into the action by making appearances all over the place, including The Daily Show.
The strange and ironic part about spending $500-million (which is higher than the GDP of 17 countries) is, at the end of the day, most people will end up buying Vista anyway. At some point, you’ll have no choice but to trade in your Pentium III, 1GB machine for someone even more powerful, which, of course, will be powered by Vista. It’s like that old Fram oil filter ad where the garage mechanic says “You can pay me now, or you can pay me later”. Well, you get Vista now or get Vista later but either way you’re going to get it - unless you’re a Mac-ite.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting Vista is a bad or unworthy product. I’m just saying there’s no reason to be rushing out the door to upgrade if your computer is doing most of what you want it to do now. My sense is Vista is just phase one of a multi-part plan to introduce a far better OS than XP. Rather than delay Vista’s launch, Microsoft finally got it/rushed it out the door, which likely explains why people see it as alright but not earth-shattering.
For more, check out this video by the NYT’s David Pogue, who looks at how much Microsoft borrowed by the Mac. Engagdet’s Peter Rojas blogged live from the official Windows Vista launch event in NYC, while CrunchGear offers up six good reasons not to upgrade to Vista.
Technorati Tags: Advertising, Microsoft, Vista
Written by Mark Evans on January 30th, 2007 with no comments.
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When the New York Times’ Walter Mossberg talks, people listen. So, I suspect many people at Microsoft must be somewhat disappointed with Mossberg’s take on Vista, which is sees as a “worthy, but largely unexciting, product”.
“Vista is much prettier than previous versions of Windows. Its icons look better, windows have translucent borders, and items in the taskbar and in folders can display little previews of what they contain. Security is supposedly vastly better; there are some new free, included programs; and fast, universal search is now built in. There are hundreds of other, smaller, improvements and additions throughout the system, including parental controls and even a slicker version of Solitaire.”
My take on Vista is pretty much the same as Mossberg’s. Vista is a definite improvement from a user-interface perspective with some really nice, user-friendly features, particularly the multi-media players. That said, my overall reaction is akin to what my mother says when goes to a movie or play that’s alright but not amazing. Her default phrase is “It was very nice”, which is a mild praise, at best. (I’ll provide a more in-depth review of Vista in a few days.)
As one of the bloggers who received a Ferarri laptop pre-loaded with Vista, one thing I can say is I’m more impressed with Vista than the laptop. The Acer machine has a great screen but it’s fairly heavy, difficult to open and the exhaust fan blows on your hand (if you’re right-handed).
Technorati Tags: Microsoft, Vista, Walter Mossberg
Written by Mark Evans on January 19th, 2007 with no comments.
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I’m not sure whether this is the right phrase but do consumers have a bad case of “upgrade fatigue” when it comes to Microsoft software? Look at Internet Explorer, which has seen its market share decline to about 80% in the U.S. while Firefox has climbed to 14%, according to WebSideStory and Net Applications. This is despite the fact IE7 has Firefox-ized itself by adding such as tabs so you can open multiple Web sites at the same time. Are people moving to Firefox because it’s better and/or cooler, or are they simply tired of IE?
While there’s no Firefox in the operating system world (sorry, Mac and Linux supporters), there doesn’t seem be much buzz about Vista’s impending launch. While I haven’t drilled down into Vista yet, there appears to nothing compelling that will drive XP users to buy Vista. And what about Office 2007? How many people really need a new version of Word or PowerPoint when Office 2003 will do pretty much everything and anything you need.
Of course, millions of computer users will happily upgrade to IE7, Vista and Office 2007, while people buying new computers will have no choice. That said, IE7’s battle against Firefox puts the focus on the upgrade cycle and how difficult it can be to migrate people to new versions at a time when interesting competitors are battling for the attention of consumers.
Technorati Tags: Firefox, Microsoft
Written by Mark Evans on January 17th, 2007 with no comments.
Read more articles on Microsoft and Main Page and Browsers.
Live from CES in Las Vegas, special correspondent Kevin Restivo (aka my Talking Tech podcasting partner) has some thoughts about Microsoft’s efforts to win over bloggers and podcasters. Take it away, Kevin.
Microsoft is pulling out all the stops to win over notoriously critical bloggers and podcasters this weekend in Las Vegas. The software giant, which is fighting to make gains in the Web 2.0 world, flew 60 bloggers and podcasters to a two-day conference called Featured Communities Vista Lab 2007. Microsoft also flew in renowned photographer Art Wolfe to give a lecture on digital photography, and gave attendees a signed copy of Wolfe’s latest book, which sells for a cool $125. Oh, and some guy named Bill Gates addressed the group on Sunday morning.
The conference comes on the heels of a controversial giveaway, which saw Microsoft give away Acer Ferrari notebook computers pre-loaded with the Vista to about 90 bloggers (including Mark) And ya, there was some actual talk about software and new Web 2.0 services.
Web surfers looking for directions will probably appreciate two new services, called Virtual Earth 3D and Local Live that were previewed for the group yesterday. At first glance, they don’t seem to be ‘me-too’ services. Virtual Earth, for example, lets you cruise through 15 U.S. cities in 3D fashion. Canadians can still use the service but only in 2D format. Microsoft hopes to include detailed 3D mapping for other Canadian and U.S. cities over the next year.
All told, the company’s weekend efforts seem to have paid off with positive posts and lots of general gushing during the sessions.
Update: Microsoft unveiled the Home Server this morning. At first glance, it seems very cool, especially for people who have multiple computers that they access over a home network. The idea of a single repository for all things digital can only be a good thing. To be honest it’s something I expect from Google given all the talk about the company putting together a service that syncs your bookmarks, digital photos and music across the Web. For other views, check out 10 and Jeremy Wright, who sees a bright future for porn within Home Sever - Mark Evans
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Written by Mark Evans on January 9th, 2007 with no comments.
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Rather than immediately jumping into the controversy over the rightness or wrongness of Microsoft’s offer of a free Vista-loaded laptop to dozens of bloggers, I decided to watch from the sidelines for awhile to gather my thoughts. (Disclosure: I’m one of those bloggers who was given a Ferrari laptop by Microsoft. My employer, b5media, plans to give it away as part of a contest).
The Vista issue is fascinating on a number of different levels. One, it puts the spotlight on whether bloggers need to be editorially “pure” like journalists so the content they produce is seen as objective. It’s an interesting concept as blogging evolves into a mainstream medium read by people looking for information and insight. As Joel (on Software) Spolsky argues, trust is a key consideration for many bloggers who wants their posts to be seen as credible and authentic.
Perhaps what the Vista issue does is continue the fragmentation of the blogosphere. There will be bloggers who will write and behave like journalists - and expect to be treated as such by companies, PR firms, conference organizers, etc. There will be bloggers who have little interest in being treated as a journalist because it’s not a job, and they get paid little or nothing to write their blogs so how’s a freebie here and there really going to matter. Then, there’s the Pay-Per-Post crowd.
Truth be told, no one is really, really pure - not even journalists, particularly high-tech reporters who operate in a PR-happy world of product trials, demos and evaluations (and this comes from a decade as a high-tech newspaper reporter). I would hazard to guess, for example, the majority of Microsoft XP CDs sent to journalists in 2001 were never returned to Microsoft even though we’re talking about $350 to $500 product. In general, I would strongly suggest the majority of hardware/software sent to reporters is never returned, and everyone carries on their merry, objective way.
And what about when a source takes a reporter out for an expensive lunch, or a PR firm invites a group of journalists to a concert or sports event, or a company takes a reporter(s) on a junket/conference and picks up the flight and accommodation expenses? Where do you draw the line on accepting freebies? It’s a very tricky game.
That said, Microsoft’s offer - albeit generous - strikes me as over the top given we’re talking about a $2200 product. It’s awful tempting to keep something so shiny and new but to me it doesn’t seem quite right (maybe this comes from nearly 20 years as a journalist). If I were Microsoft, I would have asked for the laptops back and donated them to charity, or asked the bloggers to donate them to the charity of their choice after three months.
For more thoughts, check out Internet News, Deep Jive Interests, ex-Microsoft employee Robert Scoble, who thinks Microsoft is doing something awesome, Web Worker Daily, and BL Ochman, who provides a snapshot of the controversy.
Technorati Tags: Microsoft, puppy
Written by Mark Evans on December 30th, 2006 with no comments.
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Can a tiger change its stripes? Can you turn water into wine? Can Ray Ozzie and Steve Berkowitz transform Microsoft into an Internet company from its Windows/Office roots? This is a question highlighted by the New York Times, which looks at Microsoft efforts to beef up is online operations through initiatives such as Live. At the risk of under-playing the dominance of Internet Explorer and the popularity of MSN.com, Microsoft isn't an Internet company and, frankly, it will never be seen as anything else other than a giant software company with some interesting side projects (e.g. Xbox).
This isn't necessarily a bad thing but it is what it is even though Microsoft has been struggling to convince people otherwise for the past decade. If you take a step back, Microsoft's track record beyond Windows and Office has been, at best, mediocre. A good example is television where it has toiled for years and spent billions of dollars to establish a foothold in the living room. Microsoft has acquired stakes in cable companies, purchased start-ups (anyone remember WebTV?) and, most recently, tried to developed an IP-TV platform for carriers. But after all this time, money and effort, Microsoft only has a modest presence in the TV or video markets.
Microsoft's problem - and challenge - is the Internet isn't part of the corporate DNA so it's hard to really be a vibrant and innovative Internet player when it's not really who you are. A part of this reality is Microsoft continues to make billions of dollars from selling Windows and Office. It's the business so Microsoft's lack of success in diversifying into other businesses is no different than what many other companies have faced over the years. Microsoft, however, is fortunate its core business continues to rumble along as opposed to being forced to diversify because the core business is eroding.
What Microsoft and investors need to accept is Microsoft will continue to be a software company with a Web presence as long as its continue to operate in its present form. If, however, the company decided to break itself into independent operations (Windows/Office, Xbox, MSN/Internet) then it might be a different story because each entity would have its own core mission and raison d'etre. In the meantime, Microsoft will attempt to fight the good Internet fight while chasing after dyed-in-the-wool Internet rivals such as Google and Yahoo.
For more on Berkowitz, News.com recently did a Q&A with him. By the way, read what you will into this quote Berkowitz gave the NYT about life at Microsoft compared with his previous employer, Ask.com: "I’m used to being in companies where I am in a rowboat and I stick an oar in the water to change direction. Now I’m in a cruise ship and I have to call down, Hello, engine room!. Sometimes the connections to the engine room aren’t there."
Technorati Tags: Google, Microsoft
Written by Mark Evans on December 10th, 2006 with no comments.
Read more articles on Microsoft and yahoo and Web 2.0 and Media and Web-based Services.
APC magazine and other outlets report that Office for Mac 2004 users who intend to install Office 2007 are not in for a pleasant experience.
That's because Word, Excel and PowerPoint 2007 now all use different file formats: .docx instead of .doc, .xlsx instead of .xls and .pptx xlsx in lieu of .ppt.
Because Word 2007 [...]
Written by Russell Shaw on December 6th, 2006 with no comments.
Read more articles on News and General and Microsoft and Apple.
So how keen are you about Microsoft Vista? Keen enough to be among the first people to embrace the new, much-anticipated and much-delayed operating system? During this week's Talking Tech podcast, Kevin Restivo and I both advise smart computers users to wait on Vista until Microsoft fixes any of the inevitable bugs that will emerge despite years of development and billions of dollars of R&D. After all, we're talking about an operating system with 40 million lines of code.
That said, when I think of Vista, I think of those old Fram oil filter commercial in which a mechanic tells a customer, "you can pay me now or you can pay me later". For computer users, it means you can migrate to Vista now (not recommended) or do it later but at some point, you'll probably have to do it to take advantage of new software and Web services designed specifically for Vista. While everyone is focused on Vista, people and investors shouldn't overlook the launch of Office 2007 given Office accounts for 30% of Microsoft's sales and 50% of profits.
Earlier this week, the Toronto Sun laid off 16 more employees - reflecting the newspaper industry's continued struggles. The question is if you owned a newspaper, what would you do to fix it? USAToday's Kevin Maney had an interesting column exploring the idea earlier this week, while I was inspired to write a blog post with my take.
Finally, Kevin (Restivo) and I looked at BitTorrent's $20-million venture capital deal. We're not sure how BitTorrent is going to spend $20-million given it doesn't have a P2P network to operate. Perhaps it's a sign investors believe the music and movie industries will start to capitalize on P2P rather than fight it like the music industry has insisted on doing. It could also suggests BitTorrent's investors believe consumers may be willing to pay for an online service that provide high-quality downloads at reasonable prices (much like iTunes). Then again, the problem with the P2P world is even if you have a legitimate player emerge, there will always be new ones offering free content...such as DailyMotion.com, which has a library of commercial-free TV shows.
Technorati Tags: Microsoft, Newspapers, P2P, Video
Written by Mark Evans on December 3rd, 2006 with no comments.
Read more articles on Microsoft and p2p and Main Page and Podcasting and Media.
iPod lovers=Zune haters. They are out there in the teeming millions.
I am convinced that a significant proportion of these Zune debunkers are really Microsoft haters. If MSFT developed a cure for cancer, then maybe folks like this would hate Microsoft somewhat less.
At roll-out ceremonies for the Zune today, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said that the […]
Written by Russell Shaw on November 15th, 2006 with no comments.
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Written by Skype Journal on November 1st, 2006 with no comments.
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After months of anxious anticipation, Internet Explorer 7 is finally available. Now, we can abandon those pesky open-source browsers that have kept IE from cementing its domination of the market. I can't wait to uninstall Firefox, Flock and Opera. No more worrying about cool extensions and plug-ins from an army of developers, no more worry about Web sites that just don't look quite right, and finally no more guilt about trying to be one of those people who seeks out Microsoft alternatives. If I were you, I'd rumble over to IE7's download site immediately. Can it only be a matter of time before Firefox's 10% to 12% share of the browser market returns to a more reasonable level - say 2% to 3%? Then, we'd be back to normal again with a true king and lots of little wannabes wandering around to make it seem like competition is alive and well.
Then again...what if IE7 isn't the be all and end of browsers? What if it's a simply much-needed improvment from IE6, which was still using Spyglass technology from late-1990s? What if Firefox 2.0 is just as good and user-friendly? (and less of a memory hog would help as well!) Surely, this wouldn't mean Microsoft would still have to deal with competitors (Firefox, Opera, Flock, Maxthon, etc.) that encourage innovation. What if all those Firefox users and all those Firefox developers just keep on doing what they're doing? Now, this could be interesting, very interesting.
So what do you do as a browser user? Well, if you're curious and brave, download IE7. If you're happy with Firefox, Flock and Opera, just keep on doing what you're doing. For more view check out FactoryCity, Inside Microsoft and Matt Cutts.
Written by Mark Evans on October 19th, 2006 with no comments.
Read more articles on Microsoft and internet explorer and Main Page and Browsers and Firefox.
I'm at a big VoIP trade show that starts tomorrow. Come here and you'll get plenty of VoIP.But right now, I am cranky. And when bloggers get cranky, ooh boy, better watch out. Kill switches are NEVER, EVER OK.
My colleague David Berlind makes a very true and valid point that even the most benevolent instances [...]
Written by Russell Shaw on October 11th, 2006 with no comments.
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Not to be outdone by Dell's deal with Alienware (and not to be confused with the Congressional hearing (aka "HP FUD" -- Fear Uncertaincy and Doubt) now going on, Hewlett-Packard plans to buy niche PC manufacturer Voodoo Computers.
Voodoo makes cool looking, high-end PCs (expensive!) that are popular with gamers. We've blogged about them previously -- some hot boxes!
Will be interesting to see how the PC companies (Dell and HP) fare against game-console manufacturers Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft.
Another battle of the titans to enjoy ...
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 29th, 2006 with no comments.
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That's the date and that's the price for Microsoft's new MP3 player.
The press release gives all of the details.
The big question: Will this make any kind of dent in Apple's domination of this market?
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 28th, 2006 with no comments.
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It's
official,
Yahoo! Messenger and
Microsoft Live Messenger now interoperate! As of today, the limited beta is no more and it's fully available to all users. That's right, starting today the combined community approaching 350 million user accounts (arguably the world’s largest IM community) can take advantage of Yahoo! Messenger interop with Windows Live Messenger. Woohoo!
Here are some interesting stats that resulted in a recent poll commissioned by Yahoo! and Windows Live which was conducted by Harris Interactive:
Some IM Users Are Willing to Forego Their Guilty Pleasures for (IM) Inter-Connectivity Feature:
- 29% said they’d be willing to give up watching American Idol
- 16% said they’d give up ice cream for one month
- 15% are willing to give up their morning cup of coffee
- 15% said they’d give up their morning paper
Some other interesting findings:
One in four IM users surveyed said that being able to use one IM service to connect with friends on other IM services is the next great thing since the creation of the cell phone.
57% of the IM users surveyed have a friend or family member on a different IM service.
More than one-third (35%) of students (over the age of 18) use more than one IM service.
Hat tip to
yodel.yahoo.com:
Today I woke up, logged onto Yahoo! Messenger, and pinged my friend Blake Irving, head of Microsoft’s Windows Live Platform Group, to applaud him and his team. Congratulations are definitely in order, as today marks a true milestone in Internet history. For the first time ever, interoperability (a.k.a. interop) between consumer instant messaging (IM) services is possible.
In July, Microsoft and Yahoo! introduced interop on a limited basis and received an overwhelming response. In just two months more than 90 million messages were sent and received across our networks — a level of usage that is a dream for us Internet geeks.
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 27th, 2006 with no comments.
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Remember we blogged earlier this week about the question about Zune's pricing?
Well, today much and all kinds of speculation, rumors, innuendoes, viewpoints and blogging about just how much that Zune "in the window" will cost.
Maybe Microsoft should sell them all online via an auction; can you imagine an eBay auction of that scale? Or how about "Microsoft Direct" -- would be very interesting ...
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 21st, 2006 with no comments.
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It's beginning to look a lot like HD around here, with Microsoft's announcment today at the Tokyo Game Show 2006 that is has a library of 110 HD Xbox 360 games that will be available this holiday season in Japan, including the highly anticipated Blue Dragon.
(Look for a lot of those to be headed our way, too.)
Also, Microsoft is going "old school" with a tribute to “Pac-Man” with the announcement of the first “Pac-Man” World Championship will be held in early 2007 using Xbox 360 and Xbox Live Arcade.
The Xbox 360 games showcased included:
- Blue Dragon (Microsoft Game Studios)
- Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (Capcom)
- Dead or Alive: Xtreme 2 (Tecmo Inc.)
- Trusty Bell (NAMCO BANDAI Games)
If this isn't enough, read the complete press release on the Microsoft web site.
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 20th, 2006 with no comments.
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Richard Ozerman of CruchGear cites the "latest rumors from people in the know" that Microsoft's upcoming Zune will be VoIP-enabled.VoIP functionality could be delivered through the device's already-revealed WiFi capability. A rumored add-on attachment that fits into a dock on the Zune would, it is believed, be able to hold a mic necessary for these [...]
Written by Russell Shaw on September 20th, 2006 with no comments.
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If you want some insight into why the iPod is such a smash success - and why Microsoft's Zune will have a tough time getting a solid market foothold - check out National Post Robert Fulford's recent column. At 74, Fulford likely falls outside the iPod's "target market" but the fact he finds his Nano "the finest private luxury object of this century so far" reflects how the iPod has resonated with so many consumers (more than 60 million and counting to be precise). If Fulford starts publicly pining for an iTV device, you know Apple has scored another home run.
Written by Mark Evans on September 20th, 2006 with no comments.
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Does anybody really know the price of Microsoft's new Zune?
(Does anybody really care? Hey, sounds like a tune from Chicago, or Chicago Transit Authority as the band was originally known.)
Seems Apple's new iPod pricing threw Microsoft for a loop, according to reports, so the retail pricing for the product is still up in the air.
Lots of intrigue about how to market a product in this story, with one of the key marketing "Ps" (there are four) -- price -- still a big question mark.
Is this anyway to run a company?
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 19th, 2006 with no comments.
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Found an interesting company that can do VoIP over EVDO, a popular high-speed data network used by Sprint, Verizon, and other mobile carriers.
PeerMe, today launched its free service designed to allow users of
Sprint EVDO mobile phones to make free unlimited calls. They currently offer a PocketPC and Windows Mobile 5 version of their client.
Actually, upon further review, my excitement over PeerMe has now waned. Although PeerMe uses VoIP technology to enable mobile phone users to communicate with other mobile phone users running PeerMe for free, it appears that PeerMe doesn't allow for PSTN calling. Thus, what you get with PeerMe is simply a PC-to-PC type service with IM capabilities. Well what's the point of that? PC-to-PC softphones and IM clients are a dime-a-dozen. How is PeerMe going to compete with the likes of Skype, Yahoo, Google, Microsoft, and others that offer IM, PC-to-PC,
and PC-to-Phone functionality?Well, maybe I should ask PeerMe that question. In the meantime, check out what their CEO had to say. PeerMe CEO Tom Lasater says, "Sprint has the best EVDO network in the U.S., but at the same time they have the highest churn in the industry and they signed up fewer new users than any of their competitors this year. We are giving them the ability to use their technological edge to become the leader in the U.S. wireless market."
"Nobody in the cell phone industry has done a marketing campaign touting the tremendous cost savings that can result from using peer-to-peer voice on a wireless broadband mobile device. Carriers are probably scared of cannibalizing their revenues, but lets look at the real cost of offering this service. Most people pay a flat fee for what is basically unlimited talk time within the U.S., so PeerMe usage is going to affect revenue from overseas calls. The reality is that the erosion of revenue from overseas calls already happened in the 1990s. Sprint should do a massive advertising campaign touting their EVDO-enabled devices as the solution for outrageous communications costs. Sprint could not only crush its mobile competitors with this strategy, they could also blindside the DSL and fixed-line broadband industry."
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 14th, 2006 with no comments.
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While Sony PS3 delays (at least not in Japan and the U.S.) have been making the rounds lately, the big news today is that Nintendo's new gaming console -- the oddly named Wii -- will cost $250.
Now that's a good thing right? Well, as in all things, you get what you pay for, so while this will be a lot less than the other big boys' consoles (think PS3 and Microsoft), will this deliver on its promise?
Only time -- and gamers (aka "the marketplace") -- will tell.
In the meantime, check out this report on pricing, dating, games and more.
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 14th, 2006 with no comments.
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Music is, of course, a deeply personal experience. But far more instructive of the human condition than that, music is all about sharing.Ever since our species learned to communicate musically, we have been sharing music- in our celebratory and sacred rituals, to listening parties, through the "you got to come down to the club and [...]
Written by Russell Shaw on September 14th, 2006 with no comments.
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Microsoft has introduced a new and improved search engine called Live Search. So like any good blogger and ego-centric Web user, naturally the first thing I did was conduct a search for "Mark Evans". Wait, what's this? Live.com barely has me on the front page -whereas Google and Yahoo both rank me #1. So who does Microsoft love more than me? Well, the top-ranked Mark Evans is some guy in England who's a veterinary surgeon, TV personality, author, amateur engineeer and e-commerce retailer. Now, that's a Mark Evans who's living up to his name but I'm not going to take this sitting down, Mark Evans. Until Live.com makes me the #1 Mark Evans, this is war...well, sorta, kinda, maybe given all of us Mark Evans should probably stick together. Microsoft's press release can be found here, while everything else you'd want to hear from folks in the blogosphere is here.
Written by Mark Evans on September 12th, 2006 with no comments.
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What's going on at Microsoft these days? Is Ray Ozzie's Web 2.0 mantra really that effective? Let me explain. First, the company that somehow misjudged the Web's emergence mid-1990s comes out with a solid blog publishing tool - Windows Live Writer - and now it launches an impressive RSS reader called Max (the software, which is a chunky 54MB can be downloaded here). Unlike many RSS readers, Max has a newspaper-like interface that makes it easy to look at multiple blog posts at the same time (complete with graphics and images). As a loyal FeedBurner user and Microsoft-alternative seeker, I'm loathe to admit Max is a pretty tempting alternative. In particular, I reallly like the look and feel, although it may not be a tool for someone who reads dozens of blogs given the "panel" on the left side of Max only lets 10 feeds appear (I'm not sure if the list expands if you add more than 10 feeds) Despite my initial enthusiasm, Max has some holes. First, you have to become a Passport member to get Max to work. It's not a cumbersome exercise but it may make people normally uneasy about Microsoft software a little uneasy. Second, there doesn't seem to be a way to import OPML files, which makes it difficult to migrate from FeedBurner, Bloglines, Pluck, etc. Max also seems to require RSS feeds to add a blog, even though it suggest all you need is a URL. The Universal Desktop has a glowing review, Scoble is positively giddy while TechCrunch says Max is "beautiful".
Written by Mark Evans on September 10th, 2006 with no comments.
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Love this show!
DigitalLife, "the leading consumer electronics and video gaming event," will take place at the Jacob K. Javits Center in New York City, next month! October 12-15, to be exact,.
This year’s show will feature more than 200 leading consumer electronics and entertainment companies, including Microsoft, Intel, Sony, Toshiba, HP, Kodak, TiVo, Verizon, Nintendo, SEGA and many more.
(And to be sure some of the best new products will be from companies you barely heard of ...)
www.digitallife.com
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on September 1st, 2006 with no comments.
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After much braying from the sidelines, Google watchers are finally getting what they wanted with the launch of an Web-based productivity suite. According to InformationWeek, Google will unveil Google Apps, which will feature e-mail, calendar, instant messaging and Web site creation services. Later this year, it will also include word processing (Writely), spreadsheet and collaboration features, and start selling the package for a fee to corporate users. Apparently, Google doesn't want to go head to head with Microsoft. Instead - and I find this difficult to believe - little, old Google wants to grab foothold with corporate users by offering tools so that people can open Office documents shared on the Web. That does not seem to make much sense given most corporate computers have Office installed. You have to believe Google wants a chunk of the lucrative Office market that Microsoft has dominated for far too long. With broadband becoming more ubiquitous and Web-based services increasingly accepted, Google must see the multi-billion dollar productivity market as a natural vehicle to drive revenue beyond its Golden Goose, AdSense. Over time, I can easily see lots of people adopt Google Office as their primarily productivity suite given documents can be accessed from any computer connected to the Web. It will also help that it appears Google Apps will be free for individuals, and I suspect reasonably price for business users.
Reaction across the blogosphere as been refreshingly pragmatic.ZDNet's Dan Farber said business users aren't going to "defect" from Office or other products overnight, and that Microsoft is developing its own suite of hosted Windows Live applications. "But, there is disruption in the air, and the Microsoft Office monopoly is definitely going to face a major competitive threat in the near future," he said. Read/Write Web offers up a nice list of Office alternatives. Scott Karp doesn't buy into the idea Google is not aiming to butt heads with Microsoft. "It’s so plainly obvious that Google wants to take over the enterprise software market from Microsoft and the rest of the old guard — the question is not IF but HOW, i.e. what’s the business model? Will Google use enterprise software as a Trojan horse for advertising inside the corporate firewall, or will they fall back on the old model of licensing fees?". Paul Kedrosky, who has tried and been impressed with Google Apps, said Google new suite is "mostly directed at people sending "Enterprise 2.0" business plans my way: If you're thinking of doing something squarely in Google's enterprise-lusting aim you need to ask yourself one question only: Why? What makes you think that you can do it so much better than Google can that the inevitable free Google Apps product doesn't kick your ass out of the office market?" It's an interesting comment given his VC firm, Ventures West, recently made a first-round investment in DabbleDB, online spreadsheet service.
Written by Mark Evans on August 28th, 2006 with no comments.
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With all of the excitement around Apple and little (or at least not so much) around Microsoft computer products and gadgets, many may be thinking of switching from a PC to a Mac.
(Not too many going the other way ...)
Well, if that's the case, check out the fine article in yesterday's New York Times' "Circuits" section.
Anybody what to counter any of those observations?
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Written by VoIP & Gadgets Blog on August 11th, 2006 with no comments.
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TWICE (This Week In Consumer Electronics) Magazine's Amy Gilroy reports that Microsoft's forthcoming $299 Zune digital audio players will have Wi-Fi, but not for the purpose you may be thinking.Retailers interviewed by Gilroy tell her that Zune will al
