Microsoft

LAS VEGAS - Bill Veghte may not be as well known as his boss at Microsoft, Steve Ballmer. But as the head of the company's Windows business, Veghte is one of the key executives to the future of the company.

At the Consumer Electronics Show here Wednesday, Veghte sat with CNET News senior writer Ina Fried for a wide-ranging interview, touching on everything from the planned release of Windows 7 to future of Microsoft's gee-whiz touch technology. The following is a condensed and edited version of that interview:

Q: It's fair to say that you guys would … Read more

Windows 7 is going into public beta, Microsoft head Steve Ballmer announced at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas late on Wednesday.

The first beta version of the successor to Windows Vista is immediately available as a downloadable disk image to MSDN, TechBeta, and TechNet subscribers, while the general public will get to test-drive the new operating system starting Friday.

Windows 7 is expected to hit shelves toward the end of this year or the start of 2010, according to Microsoft's broad roadmap for operating system releases, which specifies a three-year gap between releases. The new OS first … Read more

Microsoft Research on Thursday is releasing software that gives musicians, both casual and professional, a new way to speed up song development. Called Songsmith, the $29.99 application creates musical accompaniment based on whatever is sung into the computer's microphone.

In order to do this, the software processes the pitch and tone of what's recorded and lets users hear how it might sound if they had a little backup in the form of a virtual piano, drums, and keyboard. Microsoft is expecting them to use the new track either as inspiration for further song development or as a … Read more

LAS VEGAS--As he takes the stage Wednesday, Steve Ballmer has a mighty big task ahead of him.

Not only is he taking over Consumer Electronics Show keynote duties from Bill Gates, he is also aiming to convince the tech world that Microsoft is serious about defending its turf on the PC as well as making headway on the Web, television and phone. Oh yeah, and then there's that whole economy-melting-down thing.

Ballmer hasn't arrived in Sin City empty handed, however. In perhaps the biggest announcement of the night, he will announce Microsoft is ready with a beta version … Read more

A long time ago, Bob Muglia worked on a Microsoft project designed to offer a variety of services in the cloud. That effort, known as Hailstorm, didn't exactly go gangbusters, and Muglia's career took a detour.

But both Muglia and Hailstorm are back. On Monday, Microsoft elevated Muglia to divisional president, a recognition of the success he has enjoyed as head of Microsoft's server software business.

As for Hailstorm, the name is gone, but many of the concepts are back, as part of the Windows Azure platform that Microsoft announced in October. Last month, I had a … Read more

Microsoft started off its new-year executive shuffling by promoting longtime Server and Tools unit head Bob Muglia to president, a title he shares with entertainment boss Robbie Bach and business software chief Stephen Elop.

It's a title elevation for Muglia, whose responsibilities remain the same. It also reflects the growing importance of the server unit, which accounted for $13 billion in revenue in the most recent fiscal year, now making up fully a fifth of Microsoft's total sales.

"The core of our success at Microsoft has always been great people--people who combine talent, drive, vision, customer focus, … Read more

With Apple's last Macworld keynote speech just hours away, Microsoft is again talking up the idea of an "Apple tax" that people pay when they opt for a Mac over a Windows PC.

It's a concept that Microsoft started touting in the fall. While the words may be fairly new, the melody sounds familiar. Saying that customers pay an added cost when using a rival is a well-worn page from the Microsoft playbook. One need only look back to the anti-Linux "Get the Facts" campaign for another example.

In any case, it is a … Read more

Eleven counterfeiters have been given jail sentences of between one and a half and six and a half years by a Chinese court after being found guilty of producing fake Microsoft software.

The "ringleaders of the world's largest software-counterfeiting syndicate," as Microsoft described them in a statement on Wednesday, were sentenced on New Year's Eve. According to Microsoft, theirs were the longest sentences given for this type of crime in China's history.

The syndicate was charged with making and distributing more than $2 billion worth of fake Microsoft software, which had ended up all over … Read more

A leap-year issue with Microsoft's Zune music player is still leaving many users cold, despite the company's reassurance that all would be well by sometime on New Year's Day.

Postings on Zune message boards Thursday morning, as people tried out Microsoft's recommendations and fellow Zune users' suggestions, ranged from the hopeful...

"The wipe process should only take a minute or two. If it is hanging on this screen, disconnect it from power, let the battery drain, and then reconnect it to start the device again," user Raw Deluxe wrote on Zune Forums.

...to the … Read more