interesting list here.. :)
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=printArticleBasic&articleId=9038638
Friday, October 5, 2007
What's Next for Google
Google ponders its next steps in an e-commerce environment shaped by mobile, social networking and, yes, search.
The typical American business executive likes incremental changes, like, perhaps, an 18 percent speed increase. Or maybe a little bit more efficiency over here, and some additional functionality over there.
PowerPoint slides to the contrary, a paradigm shift is the last one thing most executives honestly want because, to the typical executive with a large company, any monumental shift raises the frightening possibility that the company will end up a lot smaller than it is today.
That's why it's typically the startups and the small niche players that embrace big-picture change, if only to get someone to listen to them.
But what if one of those small companies that embraced big change—say, the Internet and its subsidiary, the World Wide Web—got big?
That's the question—and the challenge—facing $11 billion search giant Google. At a recent media day at Google's New York offices, Google executives and managers discussed the enormity of the current e-commerce conundrum, and how the company is struggling to find the best way to deal with it.
Consider this: In the early days of e-commerce, a typical retailer and manufacturer might have been marketing between eight and 12 products, especially with search-engine links. Today, that same company would typically be doing the same kind of Web marketing with some 12,000 products, said Tim Armstrong, who serves Google as its president of advertising and commerce for North America.
This new environment, Armstrong and other Google people said, requires a very different approach. Google's answer is something called an Asset Map, a way to visually lay out every single one of a retailer's assets, including all of its products and services. This, theoretically, allows a company to see not only which of their products are not covered, but to try and project some kind of return-on-investment analysis.
Armstrong argues that this is morphing ad budgets into operational budgets. Is a Google ad akin to a traditional piece of advertising—something that an ad budget should fund—or is it closer to the cost of a car dealer building a new showroom and dealership?
Google is making the argument that their auction-driven pricing model is more than a marketing cost. Google execs argue that it's actually a tool to help match inventory and purchase patterns with inventory. That's because, they argue, the variable pricing allows budgets to fluctuate with consumer interest.
In theory, that should allow better real-time information about demand, in a much more predictive way than simply examining purchases. In other words, if the number of times consumers look at ads for SUVs fluctuates in the same way during different months (or during different weather patterns), that can help influence core business purchasing decisions.
Another core change for e-commerce is the explosion of social networking and video sites—primarily launched for a younger audience—including Facebook, MySpace and YouTube (now owned by Google). These sites create the potential for customized, focused campaigns in a way that simply didn't exist a decade ago.
Armstrong said the social networking sites caught him off-guard—"the traffic is really incredible," he said—because he didn't initially expect search to be a factor. He saw videos as something people would merely browse. The high demand for video searches was "a very nice surprise."
Then there's the mobile movement, which places limits on ads (minimal screen size, less RAM and much slower bandwidth) but also opens up possibilities by being with a consumer at all times, and including very precise location information.
The typical American business executive likes incremental changes, like, perhaps, an 18 percent speed increase. Or maybe a little bit more efficiency over here, and some additional functionality over there.
PowerPoint slides to the contrary, a paradigm shift is the last one thing most executives honestly want because, to the typical executive with a large company, any monumental shift raises the frightening possibility that the company will end up a lot smaller than it is today.
That's why it's typically the startups and the small niche players that embrace big-picture change, if only to get someone to listen to them.
But what if one of those small companies that embraced big change—say, the Internet and its subsidiary, the World Wide Web—got big?
That's the question—and the challenge—facing $11 billion search giant Google. At a recent media day at Google's New York offices, Google executives and managers discussed the enormity of the current e-commerce conundrum, and how the company is struggling to find the best way to deal with it.
Consider this: In the early days of e-commerce, a typical retailer and manufacturer might have been marketing between eight and 12 products, especially with search-engine links. Today, that same company would typically be doing the same kind of Web marketing with some 12,000 products, said Tim Armstrong, who serves Google as its president of advertising and commerce for North America.
This new environment, Armstrong and other Google people said, requires a very different approach. Google's answer is something called an Asset Map, a way to visually lay out every single one of a retailer's assets, including all of its products and services. This, theoretically, allows a company to see not only which of their products are not covered, but to try and project some kind of return-on-investment analysis.
Armstrong argues that this is morphing ad budgets into operational budgets. Is a Google ad akin to a traditional piece of advertising—something that an ad budget should fund—or is it closer to the cost of a car dealer building a new showroom and dealership?
Google is making the argument that their auction-driven pricing model is more than a marketing cost. Google execs argue that it's actually a tool to help match inventory and purchase patterns with inventory. That's because, they argue, the variable pricing allows budgets to fluctuate with consumer interest.
In theory, that should allow better real-time information about demand, in a much more predictive way than simply examining purchases. In other words, if the number of times consumers look at ads for SUVs fluctuates in the same way during different months (or during different weather patterns), that can help influence core business purchasing decisions.
Another core change for e-commerce is the explosion of social networking and video sites—primarily launched for a younger audience—including Facebook, MySpace and YouTube (now owned by Google). These sites create the potential for customized, focused campaigns in a way that simply didn't exist a decade ago.
Armstrong said the social networking sites caught him off-guard—"the traffic is really incredible," he said—because he didn't initially expect search to be a factor. He saw videos as something people would merely browse. The high demand for video searches was "a very nice surprise."
Then there's the mobile movement, which places limits on ads (minimal screen size, less RAM and much slower bandwidth) but also opens up possibilities by being with a consumer at all times, and including very precise location information.
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Next Stop, Elastic Architecture !!
Very good article, easy and simple to understand as well. So what i understood is
Elastic computing is all about creating a virutal server, process stuff, and when that server is not needed, shut it down. The point is all has to be done by using an API, that is why that server is called a virtual server. Great concept.
Now after reading that article first question came into my mind was : What does it mean by a SERVER ?
Isn't this concept is same as allocating some memory when you need that by using new() keyword or by anyother means which is supported by the language, use that memory and deallocate when it is not required any more. But i think this is something different.
The difference is :-
Virtual Sever should behave like a SEVER means :-
Get the Memory +Processing Power + Take part in clustring + Perform load balancing + may have some kind of fail safe mechnism + anything that you can imagine with a SERVER
ALL BY USING APIs.
But i think the capability of those VIRTUAL SERVERS will be limited to the capability of available hardware.
Your thought / Comments are welcome.
Amrat Nandlal
Elastic computing is all about creating a virutal server, process stuff, and when that server is not needed, shut it down. The point is all has to be done by using an API, that is why that server is called a virtual server. Great concept.
Now after reading that article first question came into my mind was : What does it mean by a SERVER ?
Isn't this concept is same as allocating some memory when you need that by using new() keyword or by anyother means which is supported by the language, use that memory and deallocate when it is not required any more. But i think this is something different.
The difference is :-
Virtual Sever should behave like a SEVER means :-
Get the Memory +Processing Power + Take part in clustring + Perform load balancing + may have some kind of fail safe mechnism + anything that you can imagine with a SERVER
ALL BY USING APIs.
But i think the capability of those VIRTUAL SERVERS will be limited to the capability of available hardware.
Your thought / Comments are welcome.
Amrat Nandlal
Microsoft looks to remake itself!!
Stock Spotlight: Software giant looks to regain glory days of growth by becoming competitive in booming markets like online advertising and gaming.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In an era where the Web is king, Microsoft is no longer regarded as a growth stock. But if the company's bets on new businesses pan out, it could become one again.
Microsoft (Charts, Fortune 500) has has had to play catch-up in many areas - video games, MP3 players and online advertising - with varying degrees of success.
The company's new "Halo 3" game and Xbox console are increasingly important for Microsoft. The entertainment and devices division makes up 12 percent of Microsoft's revenue and is the company's fastest growing, with revenues increasing 28 percent in fiscal 2007, compared to overall sales growth of 15 percent.
But the Zune MP3 player, which is also part of the entertainment and devices division, failed to capture the attention of the iPod generation.
Microsoft has also seen faced legal setbacks in Europe. The recent court ruling upholding the European Union's order to offer a version of its Windows operating system without its Windows Media Player software is a major blow to the company since it bundles features with Windows.
Google and Microsoft go to Washington
Of course, Microsoft is still a corporate giant - with annual revenues of more than $50 billion and cash on hand of more than $20 billion. Its core businesses are doing well, thanks to the release of Vista, its latest operating system, and a new version of the Office suite of tools.
But even in these established businesses, Microsoft faces challenges. Office, in particular, faces increased competition from Google and IBM.
Although Microsoft has the cash to muscle its way into competitive new growth areas, it remains to be seen whether it really can become a growth stock again.
The emperor's new clicks
Microsoft has looked mainly toward online advertising and gaming to invigorate its sales and earnings growth.
Microsoft is a distant third in the lucrative business of online search. According to the most recent rankings from Web tracking firm comScore, Microsoft's market share in search was just 11.3 percent in August compared to 56.5 percent for Google (Charts, Fortune 500) and 23.3 percent for Yahoo (Charts, Fortune 500).
Earlier this year, Microsoft was in talks to buy DoubleClick, a top digital marketing company, but was outmaneuvered by Google, which agreed to purchase the company for $3.1 billion in April.
Not to be outdone, Microsoft then paid $6 billion to buy another top digital marketer, Seattle-based aQuantive, in May. It was the largest acquisition in the company's history.
Former aQuantive CEO Brian McAndrews has been tapped to run the engineering section of Microsoft's online advertising business, a move that Wall Street hailed.
Microsoft upgrades search engine
"The aQuantive acquisition gives (Microsoft) a team of people who really understand the business," said Sid Parakh, an analyst with McAdams Wright Ragen.
Microsoft also announced Thursday that it had launched an improved version of its Live Search in order to better take on Google. The redesigned search engine includes a significant increase in the number of Web pages indexed and an expansion of Live Search's rich answers" section, which provides responses to specific questions.
On the gaming side, the company has brought in new talent from outside of Microsoft to invigorate the division, which faces a tough battle from Nintendo and Sony. Microsoft hired former Electronic Arts executive Don Mattrick in February as an advisor to its video game group and appointed him head of it in July.
Halo 3 to Nintendo Wii: Check your rearview mirror
This week it launched "Halo 3", which amassed pre-orders of 1 million copies. Goldman Sachs analyst Sarah Friar wrote in a research report that strong demand for the game could contribute $50 million or more to the company's sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2008, which ends in September.
Microsoft has invested heavily in the division, anticipating long-term gaming trends as far as 10 years out. But the investments have not panned out for Microsoft's bottom line yet. The entertainment and devices division, despite its impressive sales growth, posted an operating loss of $1.9 billion in fiscal 2007.
Computers still at the core
Although growth has been slower for core products like Microsoft Windows and Office 2007, this year saw substantial revenue gains in both divisions because of their recent releases. Sales in the Windows division climbed 14 percent to the fiscal year ending June 30, while sales of Office were up 13 percent.
"The PC market has done tremendously well this year, so you're seeing that flow through Microsoft's numbers," said Morningstar analyst Toan Tran. "Vista is tracking toward expectations and Office 2007 is doing better than I thought it would."
The planned 2008 release of Windows Server should speed adoption of Vista, Tran believes, because executives like to upgrade individual computers and servers at the same time.
In addition, Microsoft is cracking down more aggressively on global piracy, which could spur the sale of more Windows and Office licenses. The company also plans to offer more premium editions of its software for clients who need for features, another possible revenue boost.
But several big-name companies have developed free software that could threaten Microsoft's stranglehold on the office software market.
Google Docs, the free Web-based offering from the search giant, has basic word processing and spreadsheet functions and allows easy sharing of documents. IBM (Charts, Fortune 500) is relaunching spreadsheet software Lotus Symphony as a free download, using the new Open Document Format standard, a favorite of governments.
"These new software packages are definitely more of a long-term threat - something that could happen five to seven years from now," said Tran. "Currently the online suites don't have the level of features that someone working in a business environment would need."
Can Microsoft ever be a growth stock again?
If Microsoft wants its stock to head significantly higher, analysts said the company is going to have to get a stronger foothold in markets like advertising and gaming.
Fortunately for investors, Microsoft pays a dividend that yields 1.5 percent, a healthy yield for a tech company. And Wall Street has a positive opinion of the company, with 29 of 38 analysts surveyed by Thomson One giving it at least a "buy" rating.
The stock also looks reasonably valued, trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 17.1, a discount to software rivals Oracle (Charts, Fortune 500) and SAP (Charts), which trade at 17.3 and 25.4 times next year's earnings estimates respectively.
Microsoft is more expensive than IBM, which trades at 15.8 times earnings estimates. But the slower-growth IBM is more than just a software company since it also has big hardware and services divisions.
Goldman Sachs' Friar has a 12-month price target of $37 on the company, which implies about 25 percent upside to its current price.
And Microsoft is starting to show some signs of healthier growth again. According to Thomson One, analysts expect earnings to increase 16 percent to $1.73 per share in fiscal 2008, which ends next June, and that sales will increase 12 percent to $57.3 billion.
"Microsoft faces a number of challenges, but we think the stock is a below-average-risk investment given the firm's dominant position in its major markets," wrote Tran.
It's no secret that the company is not going to return to its peak growth levels, but it still may have prosperous days ahead of it.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In an era where the Web is king, Microsoft is no longer regarded as a growth stock. But if the company's bets on new businesses pan out, it could become one again.
Microsoft (Charts, Fortune 500) has has had to play catch-up in many areas - video games, MP3 players and online advertising - with varying degrees of success.
The company's new "Halo 3" game and Xbox console are increasingly important for Microsoft. The entertainment and devices division makes up 12 percent of Microsoft's revenue and is the company's fastest growing, with revenues increasing 28 percent in fiscal 2007, compared to overall sales growth of 15 percent.
But the Zune MP3 player, which is also part of the entertainment and devices division, failed to capture the attention of the iPod generation.
Microsoft has also seen faced legal setbacks in Europe. The recent court ruling upholding the European Union's order to offer a version of its Windows operating system without its Windows Media Player software is a major blow to the company since it bundles features with Windows.
Google and Microsoft go to Washington
Of course, Microsoft is still a corporate giant - with annual revenues of more than $50 billion and cash on hand of more than $20 billion. Its core businesses are doing well, thanks to the release of Vista, its latest operating system, and a new version of the Office suite of tools.
But even in these established businesses, Microsoft faces challenges. Office, in particular, faces increased competition from Google and IBM.
Although Microsoft has the cash to muscle its way into competitive new growth areas, it remains to be seen whether it really can become a growth stock again.
The emperor's new clicks
Microsoft has looked mainly toward online advertising and gaming to invigorate its sales and earnings growth.
Microsoft is a distant third in the lucrative business of online search. According to the most recent rankings from Web tracking firm comScore, Microsoft's market share in search was just 11.3 percent in August compared to 56.5 percent for Google (Charts, Fortune 500) and 23.3 percent for Yahoo (Charts, Fortune 500).
Earlier this year, Microsoft was in talks to buy DoubleClick, a top digital marketing company, but was outmaneuvered by Google, which agreed to purchase the company for $3.1 billion in April.
Not to be outdone, Microsoft then paid $6 billion to buy another top digital marketer, Seattle-based aQuantive, in May. It was the largest acquisition in the company's history.
Former aQuantive CEO Brian McAndrews has been tapped to run the engineering section of Microsoft's online advertising business, a move that Wall Street hailed.
Microsoft upgrades search engine
"The aQuantive acquisition gives (Microsoft) a team of people who really understand the business," said Sid Parakh, an analyst with McAdams Wright Ragen.
Microsoft also announced Thursday that it had launched an improved version of its Live Search in order to better take on Google. The redesigned search engine includes a significant increase in the number of Web pages indexed and an expansion of Live Search's rich answers" section, which provides responses to specific questions.
On the gaming side, the company has brought in new talent from outside of Microsoft to invigorate the division, which faces a tough battle from Nintendo and Sony. Microsoft hired former Electronic Arts executive Don Mattrick in February as an advisor to its video game group and appointed him head of it in July.
Halo 3 to Nintendo Wii: Check your rearview mirror
This week it launched "Halo 3", which amassed pre-orders of 1 million copies. Goldman Sachs analyst Sarah Friar wrote in a research report that strong demand for the game could contribute $50 million or more to the company's sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2008, which ends in September.
Microsoft has invested heavily in the division, anticipating long-term gaming trends as far as 10 years out. But the investments have not panned out for Microsoft's bottom line yet. The entertainment and devices division, despite its impressive sales growth, posted an operating loss of $1.9 billion in fiscal 2007.
Computers still at the core
Although growth has been slower for core products like Microsoft Windows and Office 2007, this year saw substantial revenue gains in both divisions because of their recent releases. Sales in the Windows division climbed 14 percent to the fiscal year ending June 30, while sales of Office were up 13 percent.
"The PC market has done tremendously well this year, so you're seeing that flow through Microsoft's numbers," said Morningstar analyst Toan Tran. "Vista is tracking toward expectations and Office 2007 is doing better than I thought it would."
The planned 2008 release of Windows Server should speed adoption of Vista, Tran believes, because executives like to upgrade individual computers and servers at the same time.
In addition, Microsoft is cracking down more aggressively on global piracy, which could spur the sale of more Windows and Office licenses. The company also plans to offer more premium editions of its software for clients who need for features, another possible revenue boost.
But several big-name companies have developed free software that could threaten Microsoft's stranglehold on the office software market.
Google Docs, the free Web-based offering from the search giant, has basic word processing and spreadsheet functions and allows easy sharing of documents. IBM (Charts, Fortune 500) is relaunching spreadsheet software Lotus Symphony as a free download, using the new Open Document Format standard, a favorite of governments.
"These new software packages are definitely more of a long-term threat - something that could happen five to seven years from now," said Tran. "Currently the online suites don't have the level of features that someone working in a business environment would need."
Can Microsoft ever be a growth stock again?
If Microsoft wants its stock to head significantly higher, analysts said the company is going to have to get a stronger foothold in markets like advertising and gaming.
Fortunately for investors, Microsoft pays a dividend that yields 1.5 percent, a healthy yield for a tech company. And Wall Street has a positive opinion of the company, with 29 of 38 analysts surveyed by Thomson One giving it at least a "buy" rating.
The stock also looks reasonably valued, trading at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 17.1, a discount to software rivals Oracle (Charts, Fortune 500) and SAP (Charts), which trade at 17.3 and 25.4 times next year's earnings estimates respectively.
Microsoft is more expensive than IBM, which trades at 15.8 times earnings estimates. But the slower-growth IBM is more than just a software company since it also has big hardware and services divisions.
Goldman Sachs' Friar has a 12-month price target of $37 on the company, which implies about 25 percent upside to its current price.
And Microsoft is starting to show some signs of healthier growth again. According to Thomson One, analysts expect earnings to increase 16 percent to $1.73 per share in fiscal 2008, which ends next June, and that sales will increase 12 percent to $57.3 billion.
"Microsoft faces a number of challenges, but we think the stock is a below-average-risk investment given the firm's dominant position in its major markets," wrote Tran.
It's no secret that the company is not going to return to its peak growth levels, but it still may have prosperous days ahead of it.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Windows Service Pack Craze!!! Now a XP SP3 Update
With the news of Vista Servic Pack 1 being released First Quarter 2008, and the beta possibly dropping in 2 weeks, Microsoft has quietly said Windows XP Service Pack 3 will be made available for download within the next 2 weeks!! Everyone got a taste of it few weeks ago when someone leaked a copy of it, but it look as if MS is gonna do this officially! Here is the news excerpt from Softpedia News, and I quote...........
"Now Microsoft has confirmed that the full beta of the service pack for Windows Vista will be available for download via Connect to some 10,000 to 15,000 testers. Additionally, the Redmond company also announced that the first actual beta of Windows XP SP3 will be delivered to all TechNet and Microsoft Developer Network subscribers. The third refresh for XP is planned for limited availability by mid September. At this point in time, Microsoft failed to reveal if a public beta of the service pack will be offered to users, in a manner similar to that of Windows Vista SP1.
However, unlike Vista SP1 which only now had its final availability date confirmed for the first quarter of 2008, Windows XP SP3 was scheduled all along for the first half of the coming year. In mid July, Microsoft delivered to a select pool of testers Windows XP SP3 pre-beta build 5.1.2600.3180 (xpsp.070718-2058). The version was subsequently leaked to peer-to-peer file sharing networks. Microsoft emphasized that the third service pack for Windows XP, as well as the first service pack for Windows Vista, would not impact considerably the users’ experience on each of the two operating systems. Still, XP SP3 is long overdue as Microsoft delayed the product from 2006, to 2007 and then to 2008. The last refresh, for Windows XP, SP2 was made available back in 2004."
"Now Microsoft has confirmed that the full beta of the service pack for Windows Vista will be available for download via Connect to some 10,000 to 15,000 testers. Additionally, the Redmond company also announced that the first actual beta of Windows XP SP3 will be delivered to all TechNet and Microsoft Developer Network subscribers. The third refresh for XP is planned for limited availability by mid September. At this point in time, Microsoft failed to reveal if a public beta of the service pack will be offered to users, in a manner similar to that of Windows Vista SP1.
However, unlike Vista SP1 which only now had its final availability date confirmed for the first quarter of 2008, Windows XP SP3 was scheduled all along for the first half of the coming year. In mid July, Microsoft delivered to a select pool of testers Windows XP SP3 pre-beta build 5.1.2600.3180 (xpsp.070718-2058). The version was subsequently leaked to peer-to-peer file sharing networks. Microsoft emphasized that the third service pack for Windows XP, as well as the first service pack for Windows Vista, would not impact considerably the users’ experience on each of the two operating systems. Still, XP SP3 is long overdue as Microsoft delayed the product from 2006, to 2007 and then to 2008. The last refresh, for Windows XP, SP2 was made available back in 2004."
Microsoft working on Mind-Reading Software
Microsoft researchers are working on a MIND-READING SYSTEM -- hardware and software that can "interface directly with the human brain." The company's R&D department has figured out how to use a "low-cost electroencephalograph" for "detecting specific forms of brain activity." Research papers associated with the project say that "knowing the state of the user as well as the tasks they are performing may provide key information that would allow us to design context sensitive systems that adapt themselves to optimally support the state of the user." The technology might also "know the precise intention of a user who searches for an ambiguous term."
Black screen of darkness to haunt Vista pirates
September 11, 2007 (Computerworld Australia) Microsoft Windows' infamous "blue screen of death" has become synonymous with an operating system crash or freeze, but that's nothing compared with what users of pirated copies of Vista worldwide can expect from now -- a black screen of darkness.
In an e-mail to a large Windows Vista distributor titled "Pirated Vista -- A darkness descends!" -- a local Microsoft representative made it quite clear what Vista pirates can expect to happen to their unlicensed installations.
A copy of this e-mail was obtained by Computerworld.
"Good afternoon, as of this week, Microsoft has activated a function in Vista called 'Reduced Functionality.' This is a specific function in Vista that effectively disables nongenuine copies of Windows. Therefore anyone who has a pirated copy of Vista will experience:
A black screen after one hour of browsing
No start menu or task bar
No desktop
Please communicate this antipiracy initiative from Microsoft to your resellers -- note this function has only just been activated in Vista worldwide and therefore any issues with nongenuine versions will start to arise from now onward."
Microsoft's new tough antipiracy move also proves the company still controls its software releases with an iron fist, but it marks the first global use of heavy-handed tactics for pirated copies of Windows.
The e-mail message also included what resembled an advertisement of the new antipiracy initiative.
Titled "Don't let this happen to your customers," the advertisement indicates nongenuine copies of Windows Vista will lose access to key features, have limited access to updates, and thus risk attack from viruses, malware and spyware.
"If Windows Vista is not activated with a genuine product key, your customers will experience reduced functionality," according to the ad. "The blocking of nongenuine product keys is an ongoing process, not a one-time event. To help protect honest partners and fight piracy, Microsoft will continue to block product keys that are determined to be pirated, stolen or otherwise deemed nongenuine."
The ad concludes with "Don't risk it!" and "make sure your customers always get genuine Windows Vista preinstalled."
In an e-mail to a large Windows Vista distributor titled "Pirated Vista -- A darkness descends!" -- a local Microsoft representative made it quite clear what Vista pirates can expect to happen to their unlicensed installations.
A copy of this e-mail was obtained by Computerworld.
"Good afternoon, as of this week, Microsoft has activated a function in Vista called 'Reduced Functionality.' This is a specific function in Vista that effectively disables nongenuine copies of Windows. Therefore anyone who has a pirated copy of Vista will experience:
A black screen after one hour of browsing
No start menu or task bar
No desktop
Please communicate this antipiracy initiative from Microsoft to your resellers -- note this function has only just been activated in Vista worldwide and therefore any issues with nongenuine versions will start to arise from now onward."
Microsoft's new tough antipiracy move also proves the company still controls its software releases with an iron fist, but it marks the first global use of heavy-handed tactics for pirated copies of Windows.
The e-mail message also included what resembled an advertisement of the new antipiracy initiative.
Titled "Don't let this happen to your customers," the advertisement indicates nongenuine copies of Windows Vista will lose access to key features, have limited access to updates, and thus risk attack from viruses, malware and spyware.
"If Windows Vista is not activated with a genuine product key, your customers will experience reduced functionality," according to the ad. "The blocking of nongenuine product keys is an ongoing process, not a one-time event. To help protect honest partners and fight piracy, Microsoft will continue to block product keys that are determined to be pirated, stolen or otherwise deemed nongenuine."
The ad concludes with "Don't risk it!" and "make sure your customers always get genuine Windows Vista preinstalled."
10 things you should know about Microsoft's Silverlight
Crafting a Web strategy is important for any thriving business. However, implementing that strategy with rich Internet applications (RIA) is not always as easy as it should be. To ease that pain, Microsoft recently announced Silverlight, a cross-platform, cross-browser plug-in for Web application developers. The plug-in, currently available as a "Release Candidate" (which for all intents and purposes means it's released now), enables rich application development including media, interactivity and animation. The Silverlight plug-in currently works with Internet Explorer and Firefox Web browsers on Windows and with Firefox and Safari on Mac OS X.
I've been using Silverlight since I taught a course for internal Microsoft developers, shortly before the software's public unveiling as "WPF/E." I've written several books about Microsoft-based software development (such as Pragmatic ADO.NET [Addison-Wesley]), I co-wrote four Microsoft developer certification books, and I have invested quite a bit of time in examining the promises that the company is making for this "Flash killer." It's always hard to be critical of software that isn't fully released yet (for one thing, it's impossible to point out serious bugs since they may be addressed by the time you fire up the development tool), but the following reflects my professional and technical judgment based on several months of hands-on experience.
With the public release of Silverlight imminent, now is the right time to become familiar with Silverlight and how it might impact your Web application strategy. With so much Silverlight information available right now, it is difficult to distill what is important and what is hype. I'll do my best to lift the fog with these 10 things that you should know about Microsoft's Silverlight.
1. Silverlight Avoids Cross-Browser/OS Issues
For most development teams, developing a website that will work identically with the popular browsers of the day (including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Opera) is a difficult proposition. The problem is not simply the necessity for multiple code implementations but also exponentially large testing sets. As a developer creates matrices of browser versions and operating systems, the number of test beds needed becomes enormous.
Usually there are two ways that a development project addresses this: support only a small subset of Web browsers, or increase the number of quality assurance personnel.
In contrast, the Silverlight plug-in enables an identical development model regardless of user operating system and browser. Currently, two operating systems and three browsers are supported. Microsoft is promising to add support for the Opera browser on Windows and Mac. In addition, the Mono project has made tremendous strides in its Moonlight project, which intends to bring Silverlight to the Linux platform.
2. Silverlight 1.1 Is the Real Story
The recent Release Candidate of Silverlight 1.0 has many organizations considering whether they should start working with Silverlight. While Silverlight 1.0 has many important and interesting features, in reality most Silverlight adoption hangs on its anticipated 1.1 release.
The Silverlight 1.1 release (currently in an Alpha preview) is the first to support .NET in any appreciable way. This includes the basic .NET languages, C# and Visual Basic. In addition, according to Microsoft, Silverlight 1.1 will have .NET support for dynamic languages, such as Ruby, Python, dynamic Visual Basic and managed JScript. In my opinion, the important languages for Silverlight to support are C# and Visual Basic, as they allow current .NET developers to create interesting Silverlight applications. In the Silverlight 1.1 release, any .NET language should be supported, since what is actually delivered to the browser are .NET assemblies.
In contrast, Silverlight 1.0 only supports ECMA languages that are interpreted in the client. Silverlight 1.0 works well for existing Web developers who are already using client-side script for their work.
Silverlight 1.1 also supports a rich custom control model, which is important to ensure an integrated development experience. The Silverlight 1.0 experience is much less mature and is unlikely to get third parties interested in control development.
I've been using Silverlight since I taught a course for internal Microsoft developers, shortly before the software's public unveiling as "WPF/E." I've written several books about Microsoft-based software development (such as Pragmatic ADO.NET [Addison-Wesley]), I co-wrote four Microsoft developer certification books, and I have invested quite a bit of time in examining the promises that the company is making for this "Flash killer." It's always hard to be critical of software that isn't fully released yet (for one thing, it's impossible to point out serious bugs since they may be addressed by the time you fire up the development tool), but the following reflects my professional and technical judgment based on several months of hands-on experience.
With the public release of Silverlight imminent, now is the right time to become familiar with Silverlight and how it might impact your Web application strategy. With so much Silverlight information available right now, it is difficult to distill what is important and what is hype. I'll do my best to lift the fog with these 10 things that you should know about Microsoft's Silverlight.
1. Silverlight Avoids Cross-Browser/OS Issues
For most development teams, developing a website that will work identically with the popular browsers of the day (including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Opera) is a difficult proposition. The problem is not simply the necessity for multiple code implementations but also exponentially large testing sets. As a developer creates matrices of browser versions and operating systems, the number of test beds needed becomes enormous.
Usually there are two ways that a development project addresses this: support only a small subset of Web browsers, or increase the number of quality assurance personnel.
In contrast, the Silverlight plug-in enables an identical development model regardless of user operating system and browser. Currently, two operating systems and three browsers are supported. Microsoft is promising to add support for the Opera browser on Windows and Mac. In addition, the Mono project has made tremendous strides in its Moonlight project, which intends to bring Silverlight to the Linux platform.
2. Silverlight 1.1 Is the Real Story
The recent Release Candidate of Silverlight 1.0 has many organizations considering whether they should start working with Silverlight. While Silverlight 1.0 has many important and interesting features, in reality most Silverlight adoption hangs on its anticipated 1.1 release.
The Silverlight 1.1 release (currently in an Alpha preview) is the first to support .NET in any appreciable way. This includes the basic .NET languages, C# and Visual Basic. In addition, according to Microsoft, Silverlight 1.1 will have .NET support for dynamic languages, such as Ruby, Python, dynamic Visual Basic and managed JScript. In my opinion, the important languages for Silverlight to support are C# and Visual Basic, as they allow current .NET developers to create interesting Silverlight applications. In the Silverlight 1.1 release, any .NET language should be supported, since what is actually delivered to the browser are .NET assemblies.
In contrast, Silverlight 1.0 only supports ECMA languages that are interpreted in the client. Silverlight 1.0 works well for existing Web developers who are already using client-side script for their work.
Silverlight 1.1 also supports a rich custom control model, which is important to ensure an integrated development experience. The Silverlight 1.0 experience is much less mature and is unlikely to get third parties interested in control development.
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