Microsoft is continuing its efforts to standardize its C# programming language, the software giant's competitor to Java and a foundation for its next-generation Internet services. Microsoft on Tuesday said that the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in April will certify Microsoft's programming language C# (pronounced C sharp) and the Common Language Infrastructure (CLI), which is underlying software "plumbing" that can run applications written in different programming languages.
The ISO standardization will ease Microsoft's entry into large corporations or governments that prefer certification of commercial products from international standards bodies, Microsoft executives said.
Windows CE .Net is poised to put VoIP (voice over IP) capability in handhelds, Windows-powered Smartphones, and other devices with a set of enhancements for Version 4.2 to be outlined Wednesday at the Voice on the Net conference in San Jose, Calif.
Todd Warren, general manager of Microsoft's Embedded and Appliance Platforms Group, will outline features of the forthcoming version that are designed for making VoIP-capable hardware. They could find their way into a variety of devices, including Windows CE-based desktop IP phones and mobile devices that can be used for calls over a wireless LAN, said Scott Horn, director of the Embedded and Appliance Platforms Group, in a Monday interview.
Researchers are warning of serious security holes in two popular digital media players -- RealNetworks' RealOne and Apple's QuickTime -- that have put millions of systems at risk. The vulnerabilities, which are not related, affect the way the media players read certain file types and could leave susceptible systems open to intrusion.
RealNetworks confirmed the security hole in its flagship media player, which has enjoyed widespread adoption among digital media enthusiasts. Affected versions of the player include the RealOne Player and RealOne Player v2 for Windows, RealPlayer 8 for Windows, RealPlayer 8 for Mac OS 9, RealOne Player for Mac OS X, RealOne Enterprise Desktop Manager and RealOne Enterprise Desktop.
There's nothing like a few cold, hard facts to motivate better performance, and Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer leveled a few yesterday at higher education officials and politicians in Washington state. At Eastern Washington University's first-ever "Civic Breakfast" in Seattle, an event aimed at raising the university's profile on this side of the mountains, Ballmer noted that only 8 percent of Microsoft's work force in Washington had been educated in the state. Microsoft employs roughly 53,700 worldwide, and more than half of those people work in Washington.
A Microsoft manager accused of stealing $9 million in software to fuel a lavish lifestyle died from drinking antifreeze, according to the King County Medical Examiner's Office.
Daniel Feussner died Feb. 7 from ingesting ethylene glycol, the main ingredient in antifreeze, according to the Medical Examiner's Office. How it happened is unknown; there were no witnesses to his death.
A judge released him on a $100,000 bond almost two weeks later, on the condition that he remain electronically monitored at home. Federal prosecutors dropped the case against him after his death.
When Microsoft releases its Office 2003 suite in June, several new application bundles will join the Office lineup, including a high-end Professional edition and a new Small Business edition. Microsoft's current Office suite, Office XP, has three retail editions: Standard, Professional, and Developer. Microsoft also sells a Students and Teachers version of Office XP, offering all the applications included in the Standard Edition at a lower cost.
With Office 2003, Microsoft plans to drop the Developer edition. The Office XP Developer edition included all the applications bundled with Office XP Professional, along with additional tools such as Microsoft's FrontPage Web site creation and management software, which the company also sells as a stand-alone product.
Microsoft is making a double-barreled effort to trigger new action on a flagging Web speech specification. The software titan has commissioned demonstrations of its toolkit for building voice-powered Web applications; a Microsoft-backed group responsible for the technology has changed its rules to drum up more members.
Microsoft said that it has paid Vertigo Software to produce demonstrations of the second test version of Microsoft's Speech Software Development Kit (SDK), for which the company started taking orders in October as part of its .Net initiative for providing applications and services online.
A new version of Microsoft's operating system for small devices, due in June, can be used to make IP phones, the software maker will reveal Wednesday. Hitachi, NEC, Casio Computers, Samsung and three other manufacturers intend to develop IP phones using the new version of WindowsCE.Net after the software's release, according to Microsoft Director Scott Horn. Makers of processors used inside these devices, such as Texas Instruments and ARM, are adapting their own products to support the new feature, Horn said.
The head of Microsoft's digital media division has a problem. Should he watch the college basketball finals on television or online? The dilemma for Dave Fester, general manager of Microsoft's Windows Digital Media, comes because Yahoo's new subscription service is using, in part, Windows Media technology to stream the National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament online.
The Windows Digital Media division is one of Microsoft's most influential--and controversial--product groups. Critics have slammed Microsoft for giving away valuable digital media technologies, much the same way it did during its browser battle against Netscape Communications. At the same time, the division is wooing customers on the merits of Windows Media 9 Series, which introduces new capabilities such as digital music with 5.1-channel surround sound.
Microsoft is significantly stepping up its investment in search technology, including paid models, in a move that could eventually supplant its relationship with Overture, according to a new research report. The report, authored by SoundView Technology Group analyst Jordan Rohan, said that after an extensive investigation, the research team was able to "confirm definitively" that Microsoft was increasing its focus on search.
The report said that the company plans to triple its search staffing to 200 employees and that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer discussed search plans at a "town hall" meeting last week. It also said that an internal memo confirmed the new focus.