Web Usage Share of Microsoft's Newest Operating System Rises to More Than 2 Percent in Its First Two Weeks of Release
WebSideStory, Inc. the world's leading provider of outsourced e-business intelligence services, today reported that Microsoft Windows XP has gotten off to a quick start in only its second week of release. As of November 5, 2001, the new operating system's global usage share had risen to 2.36 percent, according to WebSideStory's StatMarket, a Web site design optimization service and a leading source for data on global Internet user trends. StatMarket publishes information gathered from more than 50 million Internet users a day to more than 125,000 sites worldwide using WebSideStory's HitBox Enterprise and other HitBox e-business intelligence services. Global usage share is the percentage of daily Internet users worldwide that are using a particular operating system. Windows XP was launched Oct. 25, 2001.
Sources familiar with Intel's plans say the chip maker plans to demonstrate the first 0.13-micron Pentium 4 processors at the Comdex computer industry trade show -- which runs November 12 through 16 in Las Vegas. Intel also is to introduce a new category of 0.13-micron Pentium III chips supported by a server-grade chip set with advanced I/O and error-correcting code memory. Intel is expected to demonstrate the new Pentium III chips running in ultradense server racks, known as server blades. In the first half of 2002, Intel is to take the server-grade 0.13-micron Pentium III chips another step, introducing low- and ultralow-voltage versions of the processors that carry an "S" suffix, designating them as server chips.
Several states have refused to accept an agreement between the Justice Department and Microsoft, choosing instead to press further antitrust litigation against the software company. The settlement agreement, to which nine of the co-plaintiff states have now given their support, remains essentially unchanged from the proposal put forward by the Justice Department and the software giant on Friday. Any changes would be only clarifications and not a substantive reworking, according to the government. Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who did not sign onto the proposal, said that the settlement is a "triumph of hope over history," a deal that is "good but may not be good enough." (Compare the original document with the revised proposal.)
The Windows 2000 Service Pack 3 Beta testing has just started. Testers should receive their beta kits within the next 5-7 business days. No more details on the fixes it contains are avaliable yet, but we will let you know more as soon as we get more information.
Following today's news that nine states have joined the settlement between Microsoft Corp. and the U.S. Department of Justice, Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates made the following statement: "We are pleased that nine states have joined the Department of Justice in supporting this settlement. "The fact that so many states have joined the federal government in supporting this agreement is a very significant positive step toward resolving these issues once and for all. "We made every effort to reach a compromise to address the states' concerns and allow everyone to move forward. Yesterday, at the request of the states, we made some additional revisions to clarify the proposed decree and better capture the intent of the parties.
Thanks ActiveWin for link!
It is easy to criticize Microsoft. Heck, I've made a career of it. Yes, they are bullies and their technology tends to be derivative and uninspired, but what bothers most of Microsoft's competitors is none of that. Microsoft's competitors are bothered by Microsoft's success, which is to say by Microsoft's lack of a credible competitor. And that's one thing (maybe the only thing) that isn't Microsoft's fault. I am tired of people complaining about Bill Gates rather than beating him in the marketplace. All this comes on the eve of a rumored settlement between Microsoft and the Department of Justice -- a settlement that will do little or nothing to slow down the Microsoft juggernaut. That juggernaut could have been ended by competitors so many times and so long ago, yet it wasn't. And I say that's entirely because of a lack of competitive will.
Microsoft, seeking to give a boost to the flagging market for business-to-business software, on Tuesday announced a new software package to help get more suppliers online. Business-to-business exchanges, which bring together buyers and suppliers over the Web, burst onto the high-tech scene in late 1999 promising to save companies millions of dollars by linking them with thousands of suppliers over the Web. But to date, suppliers have been reluctant to sign up because they fear their goods will lose value alongside cheaper alternatives and decreased competition. Furthermore, getting products online is a long and expensive process, and with all the main e-commerce firms--Commerce One and Ariba--pushing different Internet standards, many suppliers don't know where to begin.
The coalition of 18 states that sued Microsoft for antitrust violations splintered Tuesday, with two-thirds poised to settle the case and the others determined to go to trial. U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly consulted with the court-appointed mediator after getting an update on the negotiations. Lawyers struggled to salvage the tentative settlement struck last week in the landmark monopoly case. The deal to settle the 4-year-old antitrust charges was reached between the Justice Department and Microsoft, but the states asked they be given until Tuesday to evaluate the terms. Six of the states negotiated some additional terms.
Microsoft's new operating system extends the software giant's reach into more technologies than ever before - and it appears the settlement agreement to end the company's battle with the Justice Department will do little to change that. Microsoft will eventually be forced to make some modifications to Windows XP, the less than two-week-old system that has raised competitor ire for aggressive moves into such areas as digital photography and instant text and video messaging. But analysts and industry watchers said Monday that those changes are unlikely to come fast enough or be significant enough to hinder Windows XP's ability to make inroads into areas competitors have until now controlled.
Microsoft is sending Hotmail subscribers a message: E-mail on the go isn't just for people in pinstripes anymore. Microsoft announced Tuesday that consumers will be able to send and receive e-mail messages and online content on Motorola's Talkabout T900 two-way pagers. The devices will run on the Arch Wireless network. There are three monthly service plans. For $14.95 a month, customers get 15,000 characters per month to use in sending and receiving e-mail messages. For $19.95 a month, the limit is 30,000 characters, while $24.95 buys unlimited use. Those who subscribe to the $19.95 plan with a one-year contract also get a $100 rebate on the pager, bringing the price to $59.99.