microsoft

Blogs were buzzing this week with reports that Windows users who thought they had automatic updates set to either not install or get permission before installing nonetheless had their machines patched and rebooted.

Friday afternoon, the company posted a response to its Web site saying no changes were made to the automatic update mechanism nor did any recent updates change AU settings. The company is looking into whether customers might have actually had their settings changed by Microsoft Office or Windows OneCare, two programs that do have mechanisms that will change a computer's automatic update preference settings.

"We … Read more

IGN News is reporting that Wii developers are becoming 'nervous' about the console's prospects and believe the device may be nothing more than a fad.

Nikkei Business Daily is reporting that anonymous developers are concerned that the Wii is only benefiting Nintendo and third-party developers are forced to play catch up in the hope their games will become a success. So far, some are claiming their games have been nothing more than expensive flops.

In fact, one developer explained that, "The Wii is like the 'Billy's Boot Camp' weight-loss program on DVD. People bought it out of curiosity, and it's likely a lot of them haven't used it."

So which is it? Is the Wii really a flop in the waiting? Or is it the video game savior we've all been waiting for? It's neither.… Read more

You can call Microsoft many things--but you definitely can't call it boring. Or sane. In a fit of undeniable lunacy, Bill Gates' staff invited us to jump out of a plane last week, so that we could experience some new features in Vista. It didn't make any sense then, and it makes even less sense now.

According to Microsoft's public relations guy, the idea was to film us skydiving, and then send our adrenalin levels through the roof by letting us edit the footage in Windows Movie Maker. Stupidly, we went along, and this accompanying video is … Read more

Sometimes you just have to sing. I read Groklaw's report on a new lawsuit launched by IP Innovation (subsidiary of Acacia) against Novell and Red Hat over Linux desktop infringements of its "a User Interface with Multiple Workspaces for Sharing Display System Objects" patent and just wanted to break out into Stephen Sondheim:

Isn't it rich? Isn't it queer? Losing my timing this late In my career? And where are the clowns? Quick, send in the clowns. Don't bother - they're here.

Why clowns? Well, the more Groklaw digs into this, the more it looks like the ultimate patent troll/clown, Microsoft, may be behind this all. Some might say that Ballmer always sings on cue, and surely his commentary about Red Hat last week may be coincidence or simply poor timing, but Monsieur le Troll must be smiling, regardless.

Groklaw writes:… Read more

As I'm sure many of you are aware, there are a number of factions in the technology world that seem to share extreme love for one company and severe distaste for another. Some side with Bill Gates and his buddies in Redmond. Of course, that group is met by a fierce resistance that genuflects at the altar of Steve Jobs. On the other hand, there is a cadre of individuals that believe Sony is the greatest company in the world, and still others that put Shigeru Miyamoto and his gang of creations on a pedestal. And yet, no matter what you say, every group will believe you're a member of the competing zealot faction. After a while, it actually becomes quite comical.

Take for example, this article I wrote just yesterday about Sony's desperation. You'll notice that in the comments, I was called all kinds of names. And while you get used to this as a writer, some really blow your socks off. For example, one commenter went so far as to say that I and the rest of the CNET writers are "typical." Why you ask? Because the commenter needed to ask us if "Gate's butt smells fresh today." In essence, I was a Microsoft fanboy for a day -- at least in the words of the cadre of Sony fanboys.

Unfortunately, my love for Microsoft must have been fleeting. For if you read the comments from readers on this day, I am nothing more than an Apple zealot that hates Microsoft. Even better, we even got some extra "typical CNET" comments which, for some reason, didn't reference the same smelling analogy. Can I be both? Can I be all five? Can everyone be all five?

No. And this is the issue we're left with today -- why can't everyone stop being zealots and realize that we all want the same thing -- the very best performance out of every tech company. We shouldn't be apologists -- we should be asking for a company's level best.… Read more

I love Mark Webbink. His post today calling out Microsoft's hypocrisy on patents is classic. Black pot? Meet kettle that so far is looking bright and shiny silver, whatever Microsoft's attempts to rub some smudge onto it.

It's irrefragable … Read more

That's according to the results of a poll created last week by the Google Operating System blog. Participants could try out three unidentified search engines and vote which had the best results. The results are in and 51 percent of the more than 2,000 people who voted said Google had the best results. That was followed by 35 percent for Live Search and 30 percent for Yahoo. In comments to the blog post people said they were surprised Microsoft was ahead of Yahoo, but … Read more

Microsoft is jumping into the world of online event planning with Windows Live Events, scheduled to launch late Thursday.

The free social event planning service lets you invite friends to an event and creates a Web page where people can share photos and stories with blog entries after the event. It uses the same infrastructure as Windows Live Spaces and lets you use your contact list there or in Hotmail or Messenger.

It's got all the standard online invite features and allows you to include a map and customize. I'm not sure if it will dent the business … Read more