November 12th, 2009

Microsoft lines up testers for free Office Starter 2010 product

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 5:31 am

Categories: Apple, Corporate strategy, Google, Office, Office 2010/Office 14, Office Live, Office Live Workspace, Open source, SharePoint Server

Tags: Microsoft Corp., Office Starter 2010, Potential Tester, Microsoft Office, Office Suites, Software, Mary Jo Foley

Microsoft is soliciting existing Office Live Workspace users to be part of a pool of testers for its forthcoming, free (but ad-supported) Office Starter 2010 product.

The ithinkdiff.com enthusiast site has posted a copy of the Office Starter 2010 invitation that Microsoft has sent out. Potential testers are asked to commplete a survey, which includes questions about the personal productivity applications and services they currently use. On the list are Google Docs & Spreadsheets, Apple’s iWork, Microsoft Works, Open Office and Microsoft Office.

In spite of its name, Office Starter 2010 really has little resemblance to Windows 7 Starter Edition. Office Starter 2010 is a new version of Microsoft’s Office suite that is expected to launch in May/June 2010. Office Starter will bundle together stripped-down versions of Word and Excel only, Microsoft officials said in October. (Stripped-down here means basic document viewing and editing only.) Starter will be ad-supported and free. Microsoft is positioning Office Starter as a replacement for the Microsoft Works trial that is often preloaded on new PCs.

Microsoft officials also said recently that Microsoft is planning to phase out Office Live Workspace, the company’s existing add-on to Office that allows users to share and collaborate on documents over the Web. Office Web Apps, another of Microsoft’s new Office SKUs being introduced in 2010, is the natural successor to Office Live Workspace.

Microsoft officials have said the company is planning to field a public beta of Office 2010 in November. Many are expecting that beta to be opened up next week, in conjunction with Microsoft’s Professional Developers Conference (PDC). Microsoft is  on tap to make available public betas of Office 2010, Office Web Apps, SharePoint Server 2010. Microsoft also may show off the Office Mobile 2010 product, a version of Office for mobile phones, next week as well.

November 11th, 2009

Microsoft delivers new Zune HD games; Twitter and Facebook still to come

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 6:54 am

Categories: Apple, Corporate strategy, Gaming, Windows Live, Windows Mobile, Xbox, Xbox Live, Zune

Tags: Facebook, Twitter Inc., Microsoft Zune, Microsoft Corp., Games, Personal Technology, Mary Jo Foley

On the heels of providing a new firmware update to the Zune HD that provided support for forthcoming games, Microsoft is rolling out those games starting on November 11.

The firmware update, version 4.3, enabled 3-D gaming on the new Zune HD. The new six games that are available for download from the Zune HD Marketplace today for free (but ad-supported — there’s an ad at start-up) are:

Audiosurf Tilt: Audiosurf creates a rollercoaster ride from any song.

Checkers: A classic checkers game that can be played against a computer or a buddy.

Lucky Lanes Bowling: Bowl in different game modes: exhibition, blackjack, golf — either against the computer or up to four friends.

Piano: Play your own tune, or play along with music.

Project Gotham Racing: Ferrari Edition: A racing game using multi touch controls and the built in accelerometer.

Vans Sk8: Pool Service: “Put these Vans skaters to the test with all the tricks in their bag and achieve hero status once you unlock their pro model skateboards.”

A spokesperson sent me the following update, as well:

“As we’ve said in the past, we will be delivering additional applications for Zune HD including Facebook and Twitter in the future.”

I bought a Zune HD a month or so ago and have been showing it off to some disbelieving Apple die-hards. “Are you sure this is a Microsoft product?” is often the reaction I’ve gotten. Being able to change the music I’ve got on it whenever the mood strikes (thanks to a $15 per month ZunePass subscription) has been a great way to sample lots of new content. If this device had been available a couple of years ago, when I was searching for any MP3 player as long as it wasn’t an Apple one, I’d have snapped it up long ago…

But, as I’ve noted before, Microsoft isn’t planning to put a ton of resources into developing apps for its dedicated Zune HD players. Microsoft officials have said the not-so-long-term plan for Zune is to turn it into a service. There will be “at least one more” player release coming, but after that, it sounds like Microsoft is planning to integrate the Zune music and video services into its Windows Mobile, Xbox and possibly other third-party platforms. (The new Xbox Live services including Zune video went into public beta on October 21. The go-live launch date is still to be announced. is November 17.)

Microsoft officials still won’t give a firm yes or no answer as to when or if the company will make the Zune HD available internationally. (I ask periodically but still can’t get an answer.)

November 10th, 2009

New tool aids .Net developers in writing Linux, Mac OS X apps

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 8:48 am

Categories: .Net Framework, App Compatibility, Apple, Corporate strategy, Development tools, Novell, Open source, Visual Studio 10 ("Hawaii")

Tags: Mono, Developer, Linux, Tool, Teamprise Add-on, .Net, Development Tools, Microsoft Visual Studio, Productivity, Open Source

Not all .Net developers are writing Windows apps. Some (besides Miguel de Icaza and his merry band of Mono folks) may be interested in writing Linux, Unix and Mac OS X apps, too.

On November 10, Novell rolled out the final version of a new Visual Studio add-on aimed at these developers. Known as Mono Tools for Visual Studio, the product comes in three flavors: A Professional Edition (individual) for $99; Enterprise Edition (for one developer in an organization) for $249; and Ultimate Edition for $2,499 which includes a limited commercial license to redistribute Mono on Windows, Linux and Mac OS X and includes five enterprise developer licenses.

Mono Tools for Visual Studio allows developers to port their existing .Net Windows apps to non-Windows operating systems, as well as to write brand-new apps. The new product is based on Mono — which is an open-source implementation of .Net — but doesn’t require it.  Novell has been testing externally Mono Tools for Visual Studio since September.

The goal of Mono Tools for Visual Studio is to make it easier for programmers to use Visual Studio’s testing, debugging and deployment features, which may be more familiar to some developers than the open-source-specific tool alternatives, said de Icaza, Mono project founder and Vice President of Developer Platforms at Novell.

The new Mono Visual Studio Tools also enables integration with SuSE Online, a tool for building and testing turnkey virtual appliances that are based on SuSE Linux Enterprise Server or openSuSE.

Yesterday, Microsoft announced some tool-interoperability news of its own; the Redmondians are buying Teamprise and plan to make it an add-on to Visual Studio. The Teamprise add-on is designed to allow Java developers using Eclipse-based development environments to collaborate with .Net developers via Team Foundation Server.

October 22nd, 2009

Was Windows 7 totally your idea?

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 6:21 am

Categories: Advertising, Apple, Corporate strategy, Vista, Windows 7, Windows client

Tags: Advertisement, Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Software, Mary Jo Foley

Crispin, Porter + Bogusky — the ad agency that is behind a variety of Microsoft’s recent ad campaigns (everything from the confounding Gates/Seinfeld skits, to the  Laptop Hunters, to the newest Kylie happy talk series) — is launching yet another group of ads starting this week.

The new campaign, which kicks off  Thursday in six countries, is “I’m a PC and Windows 7 was my idea.” The thought behind the message is that Windows 7 was created out of user feedback and complaints: They wanted an operating system that was faster, less complicated, smaller, more secure. And Windows 7 is the result.

Blogger Long Zheng noted that one of Microsoft employees featured in the video clip from the campaign is Chaitanya Sareen, responsible for developing the new Windows 7 taskbar.

The new campaign will include TV, print ads, banner ads, posters/billboards and branded-entertainment elements, according to The New York times. I saw one of the posters on a bus-stop kiosk here in New York yesterday and I have to admit it left me scratching my head, wondering who the guy was in the picture who was claiming Windows 7 was his idea…

The new campaign provides a new way for Microsoft to put Vista behind it, without actually disparaging Vista by name. But it’s undeniable that   Vista is the operating system  about which most of these user complaints is targeted.

What do you think of the “totally my idea” campaign?  And what do you expect Apple’s reaction to the new ads to be?

October 22nd, 2009

Microsoft starts selling PC hardware, third-party software via its online store

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 5:33 am

Categories: Apple, Channel, Corporate strategy, Windows 7, Windows client, Xbox, Xbox Live, Zune

Tags: Software, PC, Online Store, Microsoft Corp., Games, Netbooks, Nettops & MIDs, Tools & Techniques, Personal Technology, Hardware, Management

The first brick-and-mortar Microsoft retail store is opening in Scottsdale, Ariz., today, October 22. But Microsoft has opened its revamped virtual store today, as well, and has added PC hardware and third-party software titles to its mix.

The online Microsoft Store opened for business last November. The online store was a replacement for Microsoft’s Windows Marketplace site. When it opened, the online store only allowed  users to purchase Microsoft hardware and software — games, keyboards, games and gaming consoles, Windows (client and server versions), Office and development tools.  The electronic distribution capability of the online store made it  an ideal complement to netbooks, Microsoft executives said.

Trevin Chow, Senior Lead Program Manager for Microsoft Store, announced Microsoft’s online sales strategy via an October 21 blog post. The online Microsoft Store opened for business last November

“On the new online Microsoft Store, we’ve added a bunch of new products, including Windows 7 PCs as well as select 3rd party software and accessories.  And let’s not forget a ton of gaming products that have been added including a bunch of the top selling Xbox 360 titles.”

The revamped store includes machines in the desktop, laptop, netbook and accessories categories. It also is selling Zune HD media players.

October 15th, 2009

Might Google drop Chrome OS beta as a Windows 7 spoiler?

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 9:22 am

Categories: Apple, Channel, Corporate strategy, Google, Windows 7, Windows client

Tags: Google Inc., Operating System, Microsoft Windows 7, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Software, Mary Jo Foley

Warning: This is a completely speculative post. But stay with me as I paint a possible scenario…

Microsoft is launching Windows 7 seven days from today on October 22. This evening, Google is holding an “open house” — which, it turns out, is open to everyone but the press — during which company officials are slated to share more details on its forthcoming Chrome OS. (You can bet there will be plenty of bloggers in attendance who will share all…)

Meanwhile, a leaked copy of the browser that’s allegedly part of the Chrome OS seems to be circulating out there. (Update: This isn’t the OS but the implication seems to be the actual Chrome OS is in the wild or soon could be. Thanks for the clarification, TZ.)

Given the propensity of competitors (including Microsoft) to try to rain on each other’s parades — or new product launches — it’s not so far-fetched to see this evening’s Chrome OS show-and-tell as Google’s attempt to confuse the OS market just in time for Windows 7.

When Google first shared its intentions to deliver Chrome OS by the latter half of 2010, the company created a lot more questions than answers. Was Chrome OS simply a version of Linux with the Chrome browser fused into it? Would it be a netbook OS only? How would it differ from Android? Would Chrome OS even be a true “operating system,” in the sense we understand that term today?

If I were Google’s CEO Eric Schmidt, I’d pick October 22 as the date when I’d drop the first Chrome OS beta. Guess we’ll find out by next week if Schmidt is as diabolical as I am….

Meanwhile, what do you expect Apple to do in honor of next week’s Windows 7 launch?

Update: Hmmm. It looks like Google didn’t end up showing Chrome OS after all and officials are claiming it wasn’t on the agenda.  Schmidt did say during yesterday’s earnings call with press and analysts that it is on track to go to testers before the end of this year, however.

October 13th, 2009

Office 2004 for Mac gets a new lease on (supported) life

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 6:51 am

Categories: Apple, Corporate strategy, Office, Office for Mac

Tags: Apple Macintosh, Microsoft VBA, Microsoft Office 2004, Scripting Languages, Microsoft Office, Software/Web Development, Web Development, Office Suites, Software, Mary Jo Foley

Microsoft’s decision to cut Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) support from Office 2008 for Mac has come back to haunt the company.

The result: Microsoft is prolonging the support date for the Office 2004 for Mac version of the product so as to continue to appease Mac Office users who stuck with the older release in order to keep their VBA support.

From a just-under-the-wire October 12 post on the Microsoft “Mac Mojo” blog:

“Today I am happy to share that we have extended the Mainstream Support date for Office 2004, originally scheduled to end October 13, 2009, through January 10, 2012.

“The date has been extended to 2012 specifically to ensure continuous cross-platform compatibility for Office 2004 customers reliant on VBA until support for VBA is released in the next version of Office for Mac.”

Microsoft officials said this past summer that the next version of Office for Mac (which is due out in time for holiday 2010) will add back in VBA support. (The new version also will swap out Entourage for Outlook.)

VBA support is important to users who need cross-platform compatibility. Excel add-ins dependent on VBA, such as Solver, were not bundled into the Office 2008 for Mac release.

October 6th, 2009

Microsoft opens Windows Marketplace for Mobile with 246 apps

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 1:38 pm

Categories: App Compatibility, Apple, Channel, Code names, Corporate strategy, OEMs, Windows Live, Windows Mobile

Tags: Phone, Microsoft Windows Mobile, Mobile, Microsoft Corp., Microsoft Windows, Mobile Operating Systems, Operating Systems, Mobile Applications, Handhelds, Telecom & Utilities

Windows Marketplace for Mobile, Microsoft’s equivalen to the Apple’s iPhone App Store, opened for business officially on October 6 with 246 applications.

Yes, that is nowhere near the more than 85,000 apps in the App Store. But Microsoft officials claimed not to be discouraged by the disparity. At Microsoft’s consumer-focused open-house showcase in New York City today, company officials noted that the company has 753 independent software vendors working on Windows Mobile ports.

Robbie Bach, the President of Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Unit, told press and analysts that he was upbeat about Microsoft’s progress.

“Apple had less than 100 applications when it first launched its marketplace,” Bach said. (I did a quick search and found a story claiming that number was actually closer to 500, when Apple launched its store in 2008.)

Bach also claimed it was “kind of goofy” to focus on the absolute numbers of applications in Microsoft’s Windows Mobile store, since the real measure of success is how many of those applications get used.

Bach told press and analysts who attended a private roundtable that there are more than 20,000 applications available for Windows Mobile 6 and 6.1 phones — and even if the applications focused on specific business verticals and IT tasks are subtracted, there are still “tens of thousands” of Windows Mobile apps out there.

The newly launched Windows Marketplace for Mobile currently only works with Windows Mobile 6.5 phones, which launched today. Microsoft officials have said that the Marketplace will also be accessible to Windows Mobile 6 and 6.1 phones before the end of the year. But that doesn’t mean the current crop of Windows Mobile 6 and 6.1 apps get an automatic berth in the Windows Marketplace; they still need to go through the certification and evaluation process.

Windows Live services – other than instant messaging — aren’t are going to be available via the Marketplace. Windows Live Hotmail will be included with all Windows Mobile phones, but the some other Windows Live services will be available preloaded on select phones, since “operators are trying to monetize this space separately,” as Aaron Woodman, Director of Product Management for Windows Mobile told me today. (Note: Corrected my misunderstandings here.)

Read the rest of this entry »

October 6th, 2009

Microsoft considering making Zune services available to Apple users

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 12:55 pm

Categories: Apple, Corporate strategy, Linux, Windows CE, Windows Mobile, Windows client, Xbox, Xbox Live, Zune

Tags: Microsoft Zune, Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp., Corporate Communications, Digital Music, Digital Media, Marketing, Personal Technology, Consumer Electronics, Mary Jo Foley

For all you who still believe Microsoft is still consumed with the impossible task of beating the iPod with the Zune, here’s more proof that Zune’s future is all about software and services and not hardware.

Microsoft is considering whether it should port the Zune software and services to other platforms, including Apple’s. There’s no guarantee that the Redmondians will end up doing this — or timetable as to when this could happen — but it’s one of many strategies under active consideration.

That’s what I heard today from Jose Pinero, Director of Communications for Microsoft’s TV, Video and Music Business. I had a chance to chat with Pinero at Microsoft’s consumer open-house showcase in New York on October 6.

As I’m currently using the Zune Pass subscription in conjunction with my Sony Walkman MP3 player, I realized that the service isn’t tied to the device. Sure, you don’t get the Zune HD operating system and user interface, but it’s still workable (with a little finagling).

I’ve been thinking that there might be a number of Apple iPod/iPhone users who might prefer a music subscription service over a pay-per-song one. (And one that’s better than Rhapsody.) Given the problems many iTunes users have trying to run iTunes on Windows, maybe they’d be interested in using the Zune software on their Windows PCs, even if they are iPod/iPhone users.

“We are evaluating a lot of options in terms of platforms,” Pinero confirmed, when I asked about this scenario.

He noted that with the addition of the ability to stream music from a browser that is part of the new Zune 4.0 experience, Mac and Linux users already can stream music to their systems if they have a ZunePass subscription. The streaming capability isn’t limited to Internet Explorer; it works with any browser, he said.

So what would it mean to take the Zune experience to Apple users? simply make it easier for iPods/iTouch devices to connect to Zune Pass and to run the Zune software?  I didn’t get any more specifics from Pinero.

While most pundits and many enthusiasts continue to posit that Microsoft is still focused on trying to beat the ubiquitious iPod, that isn’t what the Zune team is thinking.

“Zune is a music and video service from Microsoft. Period,” said Pinero.

(As I’ve reported before, Microsoft officials have said they plan to deliver “at least one more” version of the Zune media player to market, but beyond that, aren’t committing to continue making Microsoft-branded music/video devices. Their thinking is that users will prefer converged devices and want their music  and video on phones and other portable devices instead of dedicated media players.)

I asked Pinero when Microsoft might be bringing the Zune music and video service to Windows Mobile phones.

“Our next step is mobile phones, but we haven’t talked about a timeline for when that will happen,” he said.

Pinero said Microsoft’s more immediate priorities are to get Zune music and Video services on the Xbox. Microsoft officials said earlier this year that Microsoft plans to make the Zune video marketplace available as part of Xbox Live this fall.

Do you think Microsoft could and should port the Zune software and services to other platforms, especially those from Apple? Any brave and/or crazy Apple iPod/iTouch users out there who have found a way to use their devices with ZunePass?

October 6th, 2009

Microsoft kicks off its Windows uber-branding campaign

Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 6:06 am

Categories: Advertising, Apple, Azure, Channel, Corporate strategy, Utility/cloud computing, Windows CE, Windows Live, Windows Mobile, Windows client, Xbox, Xbox Live, Zune

Tags: Phone, Microsoft Windows Mobile, Mobile, Microsoft Zune, Microsoft Corp., Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Mobile Operating Systems, Mobile Applications, Handhelds

October 6 is the retail launch of Windows Mobile 6.5-based phones from a variety of handset makers and carriers. But it’s actually something bigger: It’s the kick-off of Microsoft’s plan to convince users that Windows is (or, at least, should be) everywhere they are.

I’m not going to repeat what lots of other blogs and sites already have, in terms of a feature-by-feature review of Windows Mobile 6.5. (Gizmodo’s review has screen shots and details and ends by noting that the Zune HD team has completely one-upped the Windows Mobile team — kind of ironic, given the Zune software team is now part of MediaRoom/Media Center and the Zune Hardware folks are part of Windows Mobile.)

Today is the day when Microsoft and its phone partners start using officially the “Windows Phone” branding for Windows Mobile phones. Windows Mobile is still the name that will be used for the operating system powering phones; Windows Phones is the uber-brand for all phones running Windows Mobile, regardless of the carrier.

That change may seem like semantics, but it’s not. It’s key to the three-screens-and-a-cloud mantra that Microsoft officials are repeating these days. The idea is you have Windows on your PC, Windows on your phone, Windows on your TV and Windows in the cloud and because it’s one big Windows world, everything works seamlessly.

The reality is not quite like the ads. The operating systems powering these different Windows platforms aren’t all the same. Windows Mobile — for now, at least — is still based on the Windows Embedded CE core. CEO Steve Ballmer lamented to TechCrunch recently:

“We have one and a half operating systems, Windows and Windows Mobile. Windows Mobile is kind of a half because it’s not entirely the same as Windows. And everyday, I say I’d love to get those two things to share more.”

But until Microsoft can figure out how to do that, the company will have to rely on user-interface similarities and common services to further the company’s “One Windows’ message.

Example: Notice the way that Windows Media Center, the Zune HD and Windows Mobile 6.5 all use the same kind of vertical text menus as their primary interface. (However, because OEMs can and do layer their own interfaces over Windows and Windows Mobile, this UI consistency, in cases where it does exist, often gets buried.)

There will be more examples going forward, as Microsoft makes its Zune Video Marketplace, Zune music-subscription service and other premium services common across multiple Windows platforms. But until then, Microsoft’s “Life Without Walls” message still has some pretty solid walls in its path.

Do you think Microsoft will ever get to the point where Windows is the one and only OS that the company is supporting across platforms? Does it actually matter whether the Softies can do so?