Monday, April 23, 2012

Microsoft yanks Office for Mac 2011 upgrade

Computerworld - Microsoft last Friday pulled an Office for Mac 2011 major update from its upgrade servers, acknowledging bugs that have corrupted the Outlook database on some machines.

Office for Mac 2011 Service Pack 2 (SP2) was released April 12. That same day, users who had upgraded began reporting problems on Microsoft's support site, saying that they were unable to run Outlook, the suite's email client.

Last Tuesday, Microsoft confirmed that the SP2 upgrade could in some cases corrupt the Outlook identity database, and offered workarounds to prevent that from happening for those who had not yet installed the service pack, as well as a step-by-step guide to reconstructing the database for those affected by the bug.

Three days later, Microsoft took more drastic action, shutting down the delivery of Office for Mac 2011 SP2 through the company's automatic upgrade service.

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Thursday, April 19, 2012

Microsoft and Intel Teaming Up, Plotting to Take Down Apple

Taiwan-based ODMs claim that Microsoft is teaming up with Intel to take tablet marketshare from Apple.

It's probably now a given that Microsoft and Intel are working together to produce top-notch Windows 8 tablets and touch-based Ultrabooks. Both have high standards when it comes to the consumer experience, and are bringing to first-tier device manufacturers their requirements and expectations. But Taiwan-based ODMs are claiming the duo are looking to reduce the iPad's 70-percent global market share down to below 50-percent by the middle of 2013.

What will be their secret weapon? Windows 8, of course. They'll also be coming after Apple on two fronts: tablets and hybrid Ultrabooks that can "fold" into a tablet. While the latter is still in a prototype stage, manufacturers are already lined up to offer Windows 8 tablet by the end of the year including Hewlett-Packard, Dell, Lenovo, Acer, Asustek Computer and Toshiba.

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Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Windows Phone's many problems: Should Microsoft give up?

Microsoft was resting much of its efforts in Windows Phone on the Nokia Lumia 900, and Nokia’s stake in the project was vital to its future smartphone building success.

Described by one colleague as the “only good phone” to come out of the Microsoft–Nokia joint venture, its flagship phone was hit with a critical bug, the Windows Phone marketshare is slipping, and the Windows brand itself is waning in the wake of Apple’s success.

Fortune described the Lumia 900 as a “sexy, award-winning smartphone is going on sale Sunday at half the price of the iPhone, and it’s launching on a blazing fast 4G network.”

“What’s the catch?” they asked. “Two things: The phone, called the Lumia 900, is made by Nokia — and it’s running Microsoft’s Windows Phone software.”

But since its launch, it has already suffered a data cut-off bug which will put off a vast percent of the consumer market, and business customers especially, where data is the lifeblood of mission-critical operations. It’s struggling with poor market share and hampered by an image problem in the wake of attention towards iOS and Android rivals.

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Friday, April 6, 2012

Indian IT firms are heading for a fall

Computerworld - India's IT firms understand software, but not America.

It is the American character not to back down, and to fight for what is right. Our children are taught this from their earliest ages. Even new arrivals, immigrants or people on work visas are quick to grasp this essential truth.

America's institutions reflect the national character. Our political system encourages sharp and hard contests. Our legal system facilitates a fight, as India's IT companies are now learning.

Three of India's largest IT outsourcing firms, Infosys Technologies, Larsen & Toubro InfoTech and Tata Consultancy Services, are involved in lawsuits filed against them by current and former employees.

The lawsuits are a problem for each of the companies. But taken together, the cases are a major threat to the Indian IT industry in America.

India's IT firms are dependent on American businesses for about half of their revenue. They can't operate in this country without work visas, such as H-1B and L-1 visas.

Thus the allegations by employees of visa misuse and harassment have broad implications and are attracting federal investigators and congressional oversight...

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