[The articles below were posted between Jul. 25, 2005 and Aug. 22, 2005 and appear in the September 2005 hardcopy edition of Update. One or more are available below for free to non-subscribers.]
Business Applications & Services
- Free! InfoPath 12 Headed for the Web
- The InfoPath forms design and data entry product will evolve from a desktop product into a design environment for Web forms that users can fill out in a browser
Corporate News
- Free! Seven Businesses Ready for FY'06
- With antitrust problems behind it and Linux competition under control, Microsoft must convince existing customers to upgrade or expand their purchases and must enter new markets
- Renewed Interest in Subscription Services
- Hosting subscription services for corporate customers is again a priority, as Microsoft seeks to overcome slowing growth in its core businesses
- Volume License Renewals, Tax Benefits Aid Q4'05
- Strong PC and server sales and favorable tax changes helped Microsoft earn a record profit in the June 2005 quarter, but fiscal year revenue growth was the slowest ever
- New Operations Chief Takes Sales
- Wal-Mart executive Kevin Turner becomes chief operating officer and will head Microsoft sales efforts, replacing Kevin Johnson
Windows & Mobile
- Patching and Scanning Tools Use Common Platform
- While the release of two new tools shows progress toward delivery of a common set of scanning and patching technologies, the work is still incomplete
- Server Bundle for Midsize Businesses
- To encourage midsize businesses to upgrade their older software, Microsoft has created a discounted bundle of some Windows Server System software
- Longhorn Name, Beta Date Set
- A public beta of the next Windows client OS, code-named Longhorn and now officially named Windows Vista, will be available on Aug. 3, 2005
- August 2005 Security Updates
- Aug. 2005's 'Patch Tuesday' included three critical, one important, and two moderate patches for vulnerabilities in Windows
Server Platforms
- Improved Management in BizTalk 2006 Beta
- BizTalk 2006 will focus mainly on incremental improvements that could help IT and business workers better manage and monitor BizTalk applications
- FrontBridge to Be Acquired
- FrontBridge Technologies, a provider of e-mail security and archival services for messages passing between the Internet and internal and hosted e-mail servers, is slated for acquisition
- Adapters Acquired for BizTalk Server
- Adapters purchased by Microsoft from iWay Software will make Microsoft the sole technology vendor for core technologies in BizTalk-based solutions involving applications such as PeopleSoft and Siebel
- SharePoint Templates for Business Processes
- For the first time, Microsoft has published a set of templates for Windows SharePoint Services that target specific business tasks and processes
- MOM 2005 SP1 Available
- The first service pack for Microsoft Operations Manager 2005 is available and consists mainly of bug fixes
Development Tools & Programs
- Modeling Comes to Visual Studio
- Visual Studio 2005 Team System (VSTS) aims to help customers build and deploy IT applications by giving developers graphical tools to create models of their Web applications and data centers
- Visual Studio Tools Add Outlook Support
- An updated beta of Visual Studio 2005 Tools for Office (VSTO) adds support for Outlook, but deployment difficulties and product overlap may give IT planners pause
Consumer Products & Services
- Two Versions of Xbox 360
- Xbox 360 Core System, a bare-bones edition without hard drive, will cost the same as the original Xbox did at its launch; the complete Xbox 360 will be significantly more expensive
- New UI and Possible Rebrand for Hotmail
- Hotmail's front end has been slated for a redesign based on Ajax technology in 2006, and it might get a new name as well
Sales & Support
- Partner Business Planning Streamlined
- To reduce the burden on partners, Microsoft will streamline the paperwork associated with joint business planning and will focus more on partner priorities
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