Microsoft

In a surprisingly frank admission, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has said the company's Kin phones were a mistake. Ballmer's comments were not so much about the handsets themselves, but rather the way they distracted the company's attention from the ... upcoming Windows Phone 7 system. Microsoft Kin Phone Fails to Catch On The company released two handsets, the Kin One and Kin Two, earlier this year after several years of development. Although the phones received positive reviews, they failed to catch on. The major problem: while they appeared to be aimed at teenagers and young adults, the Kins ... (view more)

Earlier this week we reported that the upcoming Internet Explorer 9 web browser would require Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (SP1). Since that post, it appears that Microsoft's website regarding this issue has been changed. For those who have already ... installed the Internet Explorer 9 Beta Edition, the installation process requires a Windows Update, followed by a restart of the operating system (OS). According to Microsoft's updated FAQ, the single most important reason for announcing the Windows 7 Service Pack 1 requirement was to prevent Internet Explorer 9 installations from requiring a system ... (view more)

Thinking about upgrading your Windows XP netbook to Windows 7? Recently, a ZDNet contributor did just that with his Samsung N150 Plus single-core CPU netbook. The results, however, were disappointing. Since many netbooks now ship with Windows 7 ... Starter Edition and Home Premium -- and because Microsoft is making the push away from XP , the upgrade seemed to make sense. Windows 7 Starter Edition: For Netbooks Only Windows 7 Starter edition is exclusively for netbook computers. You cannot use Windows 7 Starter Edition for standard PC (nor would you want it, in most cases, as many features have ... (view more)

Microsoft has taken considerable flak from critics and end users in its decision to not allow Windows XP to run Internet Explorer 9. The only operating systems currently supported are Windows Vista and Windows 7. But the requirement doesn't stop ... there. In fact, those interested in using Internet Explorer 9 will need to upgrade their copies of Windows Vista to Service Pack 2 (SP2) and Windows 7 to Service Pack 1 (SP1). News of the requirement comes courtesy of a frequently asked question (FAQ) posted on Microsoft's website. "Organizations must plan, pilot and deploy Internet Explorer 9 as part ... (view more)

A recent survey by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) has found that Microsoft's newest operating system (OS), Windows 7, has brought the company near all-time high approval ratings. It's an ideal outcome for a firm whose satisfaction ... ratings plummeted after the release of its last OS, Windows Vista. Commenting on the findings, ACSI's founder Claes Fornell said: "Windows-based PC brands appear to have recovered from the problems associated with the Windows Vista software," said ACSI founder Claes Fornell. "Barely a year into the release of Windows 7, satisfaction with ... (view more)

Despite the fact that Microsoft's Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) won't be available to Windows XP users , IE9 is off to a fast start. Released on the 15th of September, it's estimated that Internet Explorer 9 was downloaded two million times in just two ... days. It's an incredible adoption rate for the Internet Explorer 9 beta, particularly considering the fact that Microsoft hasn't widely advertised the new browser. Users won't get access by simply waiting for an update, but must intentionally download the beta edition. Internet Explorer 9 Receives over 9 Million Visitors The IE9 beta site itself ... (view more)

Microsoft has urged business users not to let the wait for the next edition of Internet Explorer 9 put them off upgrading to the latest edition of Windows. The company insists that waiting won't make the process any easier. 3 Reasons Why Businesses ... Are Waiting for IE9 While reviews of Windows 7 have been positive, it's clear businesses are taking their time to upgrade for a variety of reasons. Reasons for not upgrading to Windows 7 include: keeping spending under control because of financial concerns during the present economic crisis, cautiousness resulting from bad experiences with Windows ... (view more)

Microsoft has made the beta version of its upcoming Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) web browser available for download. However, those interested in downloading Internet Explorer 9 should remember that it is restricted to Windows Vista and Windows 7 users ... only. Windows XP users are not eligible . Microsoft on Wednesday introduced a beta-test edition of IE9, a browser it hopes will overcome the company's steadily declining market share. Consumer mistrust of Microsoft's browser started a few years ago with the buggy and insecure Internet Explorer 6, and although recent updates Internet Explorer 7 and ... (view more)

As announced late last week , Microsoft has released a patch addressing thirteen vulnerabilities in its Windows operating systems (OS) and business suite Office. The most critical of these threats are posed by the Stuxnet worm, of which 2 zero-day ... flaws remain at large and unpatched. (Source: eweek.com ) Stuxnet Worm: Sophisticated, Huge Threat Security experts say the patch is an important one. For users of the ubiquitous Windows XP, the exploit has been ranked "critical" by Microsoft, its most serious rating. However, if you're running the more recent Vista or Windows 7, the Stuxnet threat ... (view more)

Microsoft has convinced a judge to grant it legal ownership of 276 web domains previously used to control networks of infected PCs. It's the first time this has happened, and the company believes it could be used as a legal weapon. The case involves ... a botnet , created from computers infected with the Waledeac worm . A botnet is short form for "robot network" -- or quite simply, a network of infected computers controlled by one or few individuals. Botnet Sends 1.5 Billion Spam Email Messages Per Day At one point an estimated 80,000 computers were under part of the botnet and were ... (view more)