Microsoft

As the release of Windows 7 fast approaches, much of the tech industry has been neatly distracted by Microsoft's patent dispute with Canadian company i4i. The Redmond-based firm isn't about to lay down and accept a recent judgment barring its resale ... of its popular Word software -- instead, it's readying for a late September hearing it hopes will change its fortunes. Problems began for Microsoft two weeks ago now when a Texas federal judge ordered Microsoft to stop selling its Word software so long as it included XML functions whose patent is owned by Toronto company i4i. Tech Industry Faces ' ... (view more)

Hackers have launched a new wave of malware attacks against critics of Barack Obama, duping users into a supposed cyber "protest" against the policies of the US President. Nothing could be further from the truth, however. The message has been cited ... as a mere ploy to get users to install malware on their machines. (Source: sfgate.com ) So why are so many falling for it? Read on. A Hot Political Issue Few people can argue that Obama's rise to the Presidency was a historic feat. However, it is often forgotten that while the majority of democratic voters chose Obama, hundreds of ... (view more)

If you were planning to download the release candidate of Windows 7, you're too late. But there are still ways to try the system for four times longer than the standard 30-day trial period. Microsoft has, as scheduled, removed the release candidate ... of Windows 7 from its download sites. That edition, which had been available since May, marked the penultimate stage in the new operating system's development process. Those people who downloaded it will be able to continue to use the prenatal OS until March 2010, when it automatically and officially expires. (Source: pcworld.com ) If you want to ... (view more)

It seems all that press and some tasty "cashback" rewards have helped Bing, Microsoft's new search engine, gain more momentum in its race against industry rival Google. According to reports, Bing made more noise last month while its competitors took ... slight nose dives in popularity. Reporting on Bing's success is analyst firm comScore, which recently released figures revealing Microsoft's impressive climb in the search engine rankings. Back in late May, when Microsoft first released Bing, the Redmond-based company (known better for its operating systems and browser) held an 8 per cent market ... (view more)

In the aftermath of i4i's patent infringement victory over Microsoft in a Texas courtroom, two more small companies are making their way to the Lone Star State in hopes that David will slay Goliath once more. About a week ago, Toronto-based i4i made ... headlines around the world after a shock courtroom victory that saw Microsoft ordered to pay them $240 million in patent infringement damages. Microsoft was also asked to stop selling their popular Word software within 60 days of the ruling. Companies Seek Unspecified Damages Now, Allvoice Developments (a U.S. provider of speech recognition ... (view more)

Prominent PC makers say Microsoft's warning that the recent MS Word injunction could cause the company and the industry "irreparable damage" is no hype after all. The claim comes as i4i makes it clear it won't be backing down in the fight to protect ... its patent. As reported yesterday , Microsoft is asking a court to overturn an order that it stop selling Word in its current form from October 12; it wants the order put on hold until the appeals process is complete. The firm says that the order would cause it "irreparable harm". That's not an understatement. The term "irreparable ... (view more)

It seems the troublesome Microsoft Word injunction is finally unearthing some real emotion from the Redmond-based software giant. In a recent court filing, Microsoft, sounding a bit desperate, warned that if the injunction continued to move forward ... it could inflict "irreparable harm" on the company. Some of you will recall that late last week a Texas federal judge ordered Microsoft to halt the resale of its very popular Microsoft Word because several of its functions -- those involving XML (.XML, .DOCX, or DOCM) -- infringe on Toronto-based i4i's patent . Issue More Serious Than Expected ... (view more)

Those who made the upgrade to Microsoft's Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) will be pleased to learn that the browser has proven to be the most effective at blocking malware, following a recent study by NSS Labs . However, some experts question the validity ... of the results. Five Browsers Tested NSS tested a total of five Windows-based browsers including: IE8, Firefox 3.0.11, Safari 4.0.2, Chrome 2.0.0.172.33 and Opera 10 beta. The browsers were to defend their users against more than 2,100 malware sites in 69 tests run over a 12-day period. The malware peddled on the infected sites is "socially ... (view more)

A Bing webmaster representative has come forward admitting that Microsoft is guilty of utilizing a MSNbot to click onto adCenter ads. A MSNbot is basically a web-crawling robot issued by Microsoft to supplement the Bing search engine. This is how ... documents and web pages are collected to sustain a searchable index. Google and Yahoo both have their own versions of web-crawling bots, named Googlebot and Slurp respectively. One of the areas of concern for Microsoft's Bing has always been advertising. Because the "decision engine" is still a relatively new search medium, Microsoft is under ... (view more)

After experimenting with the "Cashback" concept for its new search engine Bing, not only does Microsoft intend on continuing with the program, the company will now offer double the cashback rewards. When Microsoft first released Bing, discount ... shoppers rejoiced at the thought of reclaiming a portion of their online retailing expenses thanks to the "Cashback" promotion launched in conjunction with the new "decision engine". The Cashback idea offers loyal users financial incentives for making purchases with advertising retailers found through Bing. Yes, Microsoft will actually refund ... (view more)