China's State Intellectual Property Office on Thursday denied reports that Microsoft and other software behemoths were under investigation, according to an Associated Press report.
The antitrust agency's statement was a response to a Wednesday report by the Shanghai Securities News saying the Intellectual Property Office was investigating allegations that large software companies were using their market position to gain favorable pricing, as well as curtail research and development by local Chinese companies.
The Chinese news agency also reported that some local companies were contemplating filing antitrust lawsuits, based on a new law that is set to take effect August 1.
Although the Shanghai Securities News did not cite Microsoft, specifically, in its report, it quoted a source, who referenced Microsoft and its pricing practices.
Google Docs, the online office suite from the search giant, now has some limited but still useful support for PDF files.
PDF files now show in Google Docs' interface.
People using the service now can upload and view documents encoded with the widely used and now standardized Portable Document Format initially created by Adobe Systems. People also can transfer PDFs stored on the Web. (Look below for a screenshot showing the two-pane PDF view.)
The move, announced on the Google Docs blog Friday, isn't much of a surprise. In addition to the fact that it makes eminent sense, close observers already had begun seeing signs that hinted at imminent Google Docs PDF support.
Google Docs, still in beta testing, competes with Microsoft Office but is relatively primitive when it comes to feature support.
However, because it's Web-based, Google can add new features relatively easily; users simply use the Web site, and they appear, one of the chief advantages of the software-as-a-service approach. And given that Google's three big areas of focus are search, ads, and applications, expect lots of resources to be poured into this area.
I found the PDF support snappy and very handy. However, my quick test of the service showed some rough spots with the PDF support.
For example, I couldn't find a way to zoom in or out, which definitely is essential, even on ordinary 1024x768-pixel screens. Being able to hide the minidocument page view pane on the right, which lets you scroll quickly through the document, might help.
Search also doesn't scour the contents of PDF files, a feature whose significance Google, of all companies, presumably understands.
Editing has a long way to go. You can't type text in a PDF, though you can export other Google Docs files to PDF. And copying uses a peculiar box to select text, not the familiar cursor with highlighted words.
You'd better have a screen at least 1024 pixels wide. Most of us with PCs these days do, of course, but what about support for mobile devices?
I also didn't like one user interface moment: the site offered a very unhelpful error page when I tried to upload a file exceeding the 10MB size limit.
Overall, though this is a big step in the right direction.
An example of Google Docs showing a PDF file.
Havoc Pennington has long been one of the pioneers of the Linux desktop movement, and a primary GNOME developer. Once at Red Hat, now at Litl (cool name, by the way), Havoc should be the poster boy for Linux desktop advocacy.
Nope.
In a recent blog post, Havoc rubbished the idea of anyone needing a new (traditional) desktop:
GNOME 2.0 and KDE 4 are bad models for change. They rewrote and broke the code, but from a user-goals perspective, they are the same thing as before. We shouldn't feel bad; Windows Vista made the same mistake. Nobody cares about Vista, because XP allows users to accomplish all the same goals. Even if Vista didn't have a bunch of regressions, nobody would really care about it.
The fact is that people already have a desktop. They don't want a new desktop from GNOME, from Apple, or from Microsoft. Making another desktop does not add anything to the world. On average, people who have GNOME want to keep it, and the same for the other desktops.
I agree. I've long argued that what is needed is not Yet Another Desktop, but rather a novel conception of what "desktop" means. Microsoft won the desktop war. Time to move on to the next battle. It's not about Vista or GNOME. It's about what "office productivity" means and where I do it.
Hint: Not in Office.
You could create every document, spreadsheet, and presentation you work on from scratch, but if you're like me, you'll likely spend more time futzing with the file's layout and design than entering the data that comprises it.
That's why I rely on the many free templates and extensions for my favorite productivity apps. I've written in the past about places to find add-ons for Microsoft Office, but there's also a wealth of free extensions and templates for OpenOffice.org's Writer word processor, Calc spreadsheet, and Impress presentation program.
Start at OpenOffice.org's Extensions page. Click one of the options at the top left to list the extensions by application, category, popularity, or other criterion.
One extension that workgroups may find helpful is O3Spaces Workplace Community Edition, which offers version control, check in/check out, and other collaboration features for OpenOffice.org and StarOffice apps. The add-on combines an AJAX Web client with a desktop component that you can access via a system-tray icon. It even works in mixed Microsoft Office and OpenOffice.org/StarOffice environments.
I'm less impressed with OpenOffice.org's templates for Writer, Calc, and Impress. Still, I have to admit that they're better layouts than I would be able to devise on my own. One compilation of OpenOffice.org templates that business people will likely find indispensable is Sun Microsystems' own Professional Template Pack, which provides an abundance of templates for business letters, presentation backgrounds, and worksheets.
Preview your templates in OpenOffice.org apps
Before you can select the right template for your needs, you need to be able to see it. Previewing templates in OpenOffice.org apps isn't as easy as you might think. If you click File > Templates > Organize, you see the templates installed on your system and can place them in new or different folders, but you can't see what they look like.
You can view some of the templates via the applications' wizards: click File > Wizards, and choose one of the top five categories. When the wizard opens, choose From template and select one of the templates listed in the window below the radio buttons.
Preview the templates in OpenOffice.org by running a wizard and selecting "From template" on the first screen.
(Credit: OpenOffice.org)Another way to get a glimpse of your templates is to click File > New > Templates and Documents. With Templates selected in the left pane (it should be highlighted automatically), double-click a folder in the middle pane to view the templates in that category. Select one to preview it in the right pane. When you find one you like, click Open and start entering your data.
Preview the templates in OpenOffice.org via the Templates and Documents dialog box off the File > New menu.
(Credit: OpenOffice.org)A wonderful resource for OpenOffice.org templates, tips, and tutorials is Kaaredyret's all-purpose site.
Monday: customize Windows' context (right-click) menu.
OpenOffice.org Ninja has posted an interesting analysis for anyone who has found themselves complaining that OpenOffice is slower than frozen honey on a frozen three-toed sloth's frozen right nostril.
The spoiler? It's getting slower all the time.
OpenOffice.org is generally getting slower with each release. However, some parts of OpenOffice.org are getting faster, the performance losses are relatively small, advances in new computer hardware are more than making up the losses, and OpenOffice.org continues to mature with new features.
I'm not sure if this is supposed to count as advocacy for the open-source productivity suite, but it hardly sounds like a ringing endorsement. Of course, there's more to this report than immediately meets the eye.
... Read more
It's a simple fact that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (the "USPTO") is inundated with patent applications. Given the sheer volume of applications, patent examiners can only spend a limited amount of time examining those applications. Further, given the fact that an applicant for a patent does not have to conduct a "prior art" search before filing, it is virtually impossible for an examiner to turn up all of the prior art that is relevant to a patent application.
Unbeknownst to many patent practitioners, however, the USPTO is getting ready to wrap up a yearlong pilot project directed at giving the examiners a little help in turning up prior art.
Last year the USPTO, in conjunction with the New York Law School, launched a program titled "Peer to Patent." This pilot project enables the public to comment on and submit prior art that may be relevant to pending patent applications. The project is somewhat limited in scope as only patent applications that relate to computer architecture, software, and information security are eligible for this process and applicants must agree to submit their patent applications to this process. However, preliminary numbers reported by the organization indicate that the project may be an effective means of reviewing patent applications.
According to the "Peer to Patent" Web site, over 2,000 people have signed up to participate as reviewers of patent applications and have submitted 192 pieces of prior art on 42 patent applications.
For more information about the process, see the USPTO's description of the program here.
Since I tend to reopen files repeatedly, I like Microsoft Office's list of recently used files that appears at the bottom of the File menu in Office 2003 apps, and on the right side of the window that opens when you click the Office button in their 2007 counterparts. (These documents are also accessible via the My Recent Documents button on the left side of Open and Save As dialog boxes in Office 2003.)
What I don't like is the default of four documents that Office 2003 shows on the File menu. Since I'm likely to cycle through more than four files at a time, I reset the number to the maximum of nine. Of course, many people prefer to show no recent documents in this list. Fortunately, changing this setting is a breeze.
To change the number of files shown in your recently opened list in Office 2003 apps, click Tools > Options > General, and change the number in the "Recently used file list" up to the top limit of nine, or down to zero, if you prefer to see no files listed. (See below for a Registry tweak that disables this feature in all Office applications.) When you're done, click O.
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Increase or decrease the number of recently opened files listed on Office 2003's File menu via this setting.
(Credit: Microsoft)The list of recently used files is enhanced in Office 2007 by adding these entries to the right pane of the window that appears when you click the Office button. You can show as many as 50 files in this pane, though they may not fit (my version of Office 2007 defaults to showing the 17 most recently opened files).
The file names are now easier to read because they're no longer truncated by the narrow width of Office 2003's File menu. You're also able to keep certain files on this list by clicking their pin icon on the right. Normally, the least recently used file would drop off the list automatically, as the maximum number of files was reached.
Add more files to the recently used list in Office 2007, or reduce the number to zero to show none.
(Credit: Microsoft)If you find the "Recently used file list" option grayed out in Office 2003, it could be due to a setting in the Tweak UI add-on for Windows that disables this option. To enable it, double-click the Tweak UI icon in the Control Panel, choose the IE tab, and check "Add new documents to Documents on Start Menu." Microsoft has more information about this in a Knowledge Base article.
Another way to customize your list of recent documents is via a Registry tweak. Just be sure to back up your Registry by creating a restore point before you make any changes. Microsoft provides step-by-step instructions for clearing your list of recently used Office files via the Registry.
Tomorrow: tweak Windows XP's list of My Recent Documents and Vista's Recent Items.
A new plan by Microsoft to allow its Office software to save and edit files in a rival format will face a probe by the European Commission.
The Commission said late Wednesday that it will investigate whether Microsoft's decision to add support for the Open Document Format to Office will result in greater consumer choice.
Microsoft's move, also announced Wednesday, is seen as a concession to regulators concerned about competition and to customers, mainly governments, worried about product lock-in.
"The Commission will investigate whether the announced support of Open Document Format in Office leads to better interoperability and allows consumers to process and exchange their documents with the software product of their choice," the commission said in a statement reported by Dow Jones.
A Microsoft product manager told CNET News.com on Wednesday that the company plans to discuss its move with the Commission. "We have ongoing dialogue with the EC, so we will absolutely have a discussion with them about these steps and get whatever feedback they may have on it," said Tom Robertson, general manager of Interoperability and Standards at Microsoft.
Starting sometime in the first half of next year, Office 2007 will support ODF as a native file format alongside Microsoft's own Office Open XML. Customers will be able to choose one or the other as the default format.
For roughly two years, Microsoft has made available translators that let Office work with ODF documents. The company plans to continue to do that for older versions of Office. Support for ODF, along with the Portable Document Format and the XML Paper Specification, will be built into the next version of Office, code named Office 14.
Microsoft is opening up Office to other file formats, slowly but steadily.
On Wednesday, the company said it plans to add new formats to Office 2007, including the OpenDocument Format (ODF), Portable Document Format (PDF), and XML Paper Specification (XPS). The new formats will be added to Office as part of Service Pack 2 for Office 2007, due in the first half of next year.
ODF, a rival document format to Office's native format, has become popular with governments and schools. Microsoft, acknowledging requests for compatibility with ODF, released a converter to allow Word users to open documents saved in the OpenDocument format.
Likewise, the company had earlier made available an add-on for Office that allows users to save documents in PDF format.
Now, the company is going a step further by building ODF and PDF support directly into Office. In addition, customers will now be able to set ODF as the default file format in Office 2007.
The company said it will continue to work with the open-source community to make a translator for ODF available for older versions of Office, such as Office 2000, Office XP, and Office 2003.
"We have heard from customers and governments that they would like to see us do this. Now is the time to announce this support. It's also important to announce this now because we want to get involved in the maintenance of ODF," said Tom Robertson, general manager of Interoperability and Standards at Microsoft.
Microsoft has come under increasing pressure to support rival file formats in Office. Earlier this week, the British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta) said that it has filed a complaint with the European Commission against Microsoft, alleging that Office 2007 will impede educational initiatives because it does not natively support open standards, namely ODF.
Robertson said the timing of Wednesday's announcement was not related to the Becta complaint filed on Monday. Microsoft will, however, discuss the new format support with the EC. "We have ongoing dialogue with the EC, so we will absolutely have a discussion with them about these steps and get whatever feedback they may have on it," Robertson said.
Also on Wednesday, Microsoft said it will add support for the latest version of Open XML, ratified by standards bodies in March, to the next major version of Office, being developed under the code name Office 14. Robertson said no date has been set for office 14's release. Typically, Microsoft releases a new version of Office approximately every three years. Office 2007 was made available to business customers in November 2006.
Microsoft plans to join a technical committee of the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards, or OASIS, working on ODF advancements. The company will also take part in the International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission (ISO/IEC) working group being formed to maintain Open XML.
As it continues to work on a turnaround, Dell on Monday announced that it has named a former General Electric executive to serve as its new chief financial officer.
Brian Gladden, who had nearly 20 years of finance and management experience at GE, will join the computer maker Tuesday as a senior vice president, assuming the role of chief financial officer on June 13. Gladden is coming from Sabic Innovative Plastics, a GE Plastics spin-off where he has been serving as chief executive. Sabic is a unit of Saudi Basic Industries.
Prior to joining Sabic, Gladden held such posts as CFO of both GE Plastics and GE Medical Systems Healthcare IT.
"We look forward to welcoming Brian as an operationally focused CFO whose skills in running multibillion-dollar enterprises, and substantial experience with an industry leader, make him an ideal fit for the global economies in which we operate," Michael Dell, chief executive of Dell, said in a statement.
Gladden is replacing Donald Carty,
Carty, who will remain a Dell director, took over the CFO position in January 2007, as the computer maker tried to address a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation into its accounting practices.
Carty, who was on Dell's board at the time of his CFO appointment, had been serving on the board's audit committee, which initiated its own investigation into the company's
"Don has played a key role in re-establishing transparency and integrity in our financial practices, and we are extremely grateful to have had his leadership," Michael Dell, chief executive, said in a statement.
