Server Applications

"Five Nines"—Is it even Possible?

In spite of Microsoft’s recent "Five Nines" advertising campaign, achieving real 99.999% availability is so costly that only the most critical applications justify it

SharePoint Portal Server Ships

SharePoint Portal Server is designed to help companies create customizable intranet portals

Exchange 2000 Certified on Windows 2000 Datacenter Server

Datacenter systems with Exchange 2000 will be available later this summer

Mobile Products Due in June

Mobile Information Server, Outlook Mobile Access, and Outlook Mobile Manager give wireless devices access to e-mail and other corporate applications

In Brief: Hyperion Promotes XML for OLAP

Microsoft and its top competitor in the On-Line Analytic Processing market jointly publish an XML- and SOAP-based data access interface specification

Operating Systems

Second Service Pack for Windows 2000

Service Pack 2 includes tested fixes for 36 security problems and many other bugs

In Brief: IIS 5.0 Printing Major Security Threat

A buffer overflow bug in all versions of Windows 2000 makes it possible for a hacker to take full control of the machine

In Brief: Final NT Service Pack Cancelled

NT4 SP7 plans canceled in favor of a "security update" that consolidates all post-SP6a security-related hot fixes

In Brief: Security Bulletin Search Finds Patches

The new on-line tool makes it easier for IT professionals to quickly identify the set of security patches relevant to a particular system configuration

Development Tools & Programs

VB.NET Requires Tough Choices

Visual Basic.NET offers significant benefits but also radical changes

Desktop Applications

Office XP Offers Collaboration, Discoverability

New collaboration, online document storage, & speech recognition capabilities, and user interface & administrative improvements will make the upgrade compelling for some

Appliances & Emerging Networks

Xbox Pricing, Availability Revealed

The Xbox game console will ship on Nov. 8, 2001, for a suggested retail price of US$299

Vendors Back Tablet PC

Five major PC manufacturers are working toward a 2002 rollout of the Tablet PC, an easier-to-carry and less obtrusive alternative to laptops

Commercial & Consumer Services

MSN Adds E-Mail Payment Service

Citigroup's c2it Internet payment service will be offered as an MSN-branded service

In Brief: Qwest Deal Brings DSL, Ads

Qwest, which offers local phone service in 14 U.S. states, will sell DSL-based MSN Internet Access and provide network infrastructure and billing

In Brief: MoneyCentral, CNBC.com Merge

The merger of the two financial Web sites offers cost savings for NBC, and additional content and cable TV promotional opportunities for Microsoft

In Brief: bCentral Adds Full Service Option

bCentral hopes to broaden its customer base by offering custom Web site design services to small business

Sales & Support

Major Makeover for Volume Licensing

Sweeping changes to volume licensing programs introduce software subscriptions and alter upgrade terms

Consulting, Product Support Merge

The reorganization puts 4,000 consultants and 9,000 support personnel under VP Robert McDowell

Trainers to Need Continuing Education

Starting Oct. 1, Microsoft is raise the bar for its Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) program

Corporate News

Microsoft Reports Strong Q3 Earnings

Both US$6.46 billion revenues and US$0.44 earnings-per-share exceeded analysts' expections

Strategist Criticizes Open Source

Senior vice president Craig Mundie tries to shore up public support for its business model and head off open source products

Merck CEO to Join Board

Raymond V. Gilmartin adds welcome strength to a board short on powerful outsiders

June Legal Update

A racial discrimination suit and European antitrust investigation end without action, but a new patent suit looms