A new chipset and aggressive pricing may finally push Intel's Pentium 4 processor--now segregated in high-end PCs--into the computing mainstream.
Pentium 4 sales have lagged behind expectations since the processor was introduced late last year. But analysts say the forthcoming 845 chipset--which will allow the Pentium 4 to work with standard SDRAM memory rather than with expensive Rambus DRAM--combined with further processor price cuts should drive down Pentium 4 PCs to prices that will appeal to average consumers.
Microsoft executive vice president promised that Windows XP RC1 would be released "Friday or this weekend" during a meeting with financial analysts yesterday. In an embarrassing moment, Allchin asked which press attendees were already using Windows XP beta releases, and got precious little response. He then asked them to run Windows XP and contact him if they had any questions. Allchin is a nice guy, and I honestly believe that his offer to help was genuine, but wouldn't it make more sense for reporters to have better access to the people actually making the product?
Signaling "X marks the spot'', Microsoft Corp. on Thursday sounded a bullish note to Wall Street analysts, saying it was in a strong position ahead of the roll-out of key new products like the Windows XP operating system and Xbox video game console. Although there was no blockbuster news at the software giant's annual analyst meeting, executives ended the day by defending the company's business practices and saying it worked hard to earn the trust of consumers. "What we have gone through in the last several years has caused some people to question, can they trust Microsoft,'' Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said, referring to the U.S. Justice Department antitrust lawsuit.
Microsoft next month will reveal more details of its XML plans, including new partnerships for the technology that is central to the company's new software objectives, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said Thursday. At issue is XML (Extensible Markup Language), the Web standard for information exchange that proponents say easily allows businesses to connect to one another electronically, so they can communicate and conduct trades online. The technology lies at the heart of Microsoft's .Net plans, which aim to make software available as a service over the Web to PCs and handheld devices, such as cell phones. Gates on Thursday said Microsoft intends to make multiple XML announcements at its annual Professional Developers Conference for software programmers.
It may not be the key to boosting profits at the world's biggest software company, but a flatulent green ogre stole the limelight at Microsoft Corp.'s annual pitch to Wall Street analysts on Thursday.
After hours of detailed presentations concerning Microsoft's line-up of upcoming software like a new version of the Windows operating system, some 300 analysts were treated to new video games that will run on the company's highly anticipated Xbox console. In the first public showing of one exclusive Xbox title, Microsoft games evangelist Seamus Blackley played "Shrek'', a game based on the hit animated movie from Dreamworks studios.
Streaming media company RealNetworks said Thursday it laid off 15 percent of its work force in an effort to keep its costs in balance amid the economic storm. The Seattle-based company said the layoffs, which are the first for RealNetworks, affected 140 out of 950 employees. RealNetworks added that it also has plans to make significant reductions in discretionary spending. "The way the economy is going generally and the tightness in our own market segment, we had to take steps to keep our costs in balance and make sure we manage wisely during the slowdown so that we can grow smartly when we come out of the slowdown," said Eric Liu, vice president at RealNetworks.
Lets hope they will have enough to run the company, hehehehe.
Computer makers are being drawn into the battle raging between rivals Microsoft Corp. and AOL Time Warner Inc. as both companies pitch deals to PC makers to gain prominent placement of their icons on computer screens. "There's been a lot of hard discussions with AOL, and MSN,'' said Compaq Computer Corp. spokesman Roger Frizzell. Microsoft and AOL are jockeying for prominent placement on the screens that first greet consumers when they turn on their computers in an effort to boost growth in their services. The talks were opened up by Microsoft's decision earlier this month, made in the wake of legal pressure, to offer computer makers flexibility in how to present icons on the main screen, or desktop, of its new operating system Windows XP
shared source vs. open source
C|Net Video
U.S. prosecutors on Thursday urged a federal appeals court to press ahead with the case against software giant Microsoft Corp. by denying a request that the court re-examine part of the ruling in the landmark antitrust case. In a brief filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, the Justice Department (news - web sites) and 18 state attorneys general pressing the case denied Microsoft's contention that a lower court's findings were "clearly erroneous.'' "Microsoft's repetition of its arguments offers no basis for this court to reweigh the evidence that it has already considered,'' the government's brief said.
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates on Thursday told financial analysts that the software giant is on course to deliver key pieces of its strategy to make its software available as a Web-based service.
Gates, speaking before more than 350 financial analysts, reporters and investors at Microsoft's annual analysts meeting at its headquarters, said Microsoft is on track to release a test version of its Web services technology, called HailStorm, late this year.
HailStorm is central to Microsoft's .Net strategy to conjoin its applications with Internet services. The company envisions tying content delivery, shopping, banking and entertainment through a variety of devices--including cell phones, PCs and handhelds--through HailStorm, which relies on Microsoft's Passport authentication system.