Microsoft’s latest operating system running on 200 million devices

SAN FRANCISCO — Microsoft Corp’s latest operating system, Windows 10, is running on 200 million devices in what the company said was the fastest adoption rate of any of its operating systems.

Windows 10, which the company released as a free download in July, powers both personal computers and devices like phones. It replaced Windows 8, the heavily criticized system dating from 2012.

Just over two months ago, Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella said 110 million devices were running Windows 10, meaning the system is now on almost double the number of phones and PCs compared to before the holiday season.

“I would characterize this as white hot adoption out of the gate,” said Daniel Ives, an analyst at FBR Capital Markets, who has an “outperform” rating on the stock.

Much of the growth comes from retail consumers, with devices such as Microsoft’s Xbox gaming console helping drive adoption of Windows 10, the company said. Xbox’s busiest day ever was Dec. 28, it added.

But the ultimate success of Windows 10 will be judged by the take-up rate among businesses. About three-quarters of Microsoft’s enterprise customers are testing Windows 10, the company said.

Microsoft also needs more mobile developers to build apps for Windows 10 to help catch up with players like Apple and its popular iPhone and iPad devices. It reported some progress in that area Monday, citing more visits to its Windows Store for apps such as video service Netflix and music service Pandora.

source: interaksyon.com

Microsoft plans celebratory debut of Windows 10

SAN FRANCISCO — Microsoft on Monday announced plans for a celebratory debut this month of Windows 10 operating software designed to spread the US software titan’s offerings across a broad range of devices.

Word that Windows 10 would be welcomed in grand style came less than a week after Microsoft said it will cut 7,800 jobs and write down the value of its struggling mobile phone division acquired last year from Nokia by some $7.6 billion.

The announcement represented the second major round of layoffs in a year for the US tech giant, which cut some 18,000 jobs a year ago as part of its effort to integrate the Finnish-based phone group.

Microsoft said in a statement that it would “restructure the company’s phone hardware business to better focus and align resources.”

Microsoft will make the latest version of its Windows operating system will available July 29 for computer and tablet users.

Insider events

Special events are planned in 13 cities around the world in tribute to those who took part in a Windows software test period, Microsoft executive Yusuf Mehdi said in a blog post.

“We will celebrate the unprecedented role our biggest fans – more than five million Windows Insiders,” Mehdi said.

“These celebrations will offer hands-on opportunities, experiential demos, entertainment and opportunities to meet the Windows team.”

The list of cities where Windows 10 launch events will take place includes Beijing, Sydney, Tokyo, London, New Delhi, Sao Paolo, and New York.

The new Windows 10 software will come as a free upgrade to people who already use Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 and will be available in 190 countries.

Windows 10 will come pre-installed on Microsoft-compatible computers and tablets from July 29 and will be available for purchase later in the year.

The move marks a major launch for Microsoft, after the relative failure of Windows 8, which was rolled out in 2013.

High hopes

Microsoft has high hopes for Windows 10, which it wants to see installed in a billion devices around the world by 2018.

Windows 10 boasts a common base on which developers will be able to build apps that work on smartphones, tablets, PCs and desktops, and even Xbox.

As part of the launch celebration, Microsoft will invest $10 million to support missions of nonprofit groups including Malala Fund, CARE, Code.org, Special Olympics, and The Nature Conservancy.

While it still dominates the market for personal computers, Microsoft has struggled in the market for mobile devices, the majority of which are powered by the Google Android system or Apple’s iOS.

Satya Nadella, who became CEO in 2014, is seeking to reinvigorate a company that had been the world’s largest but which has lagged in recent years as Google and Apple have taken leadership of the tech sector.

source: interaksyon.com

Windows 10 coming in 190 countries, 111 languages

WASHINGTON — Microsoft says its new Windows 10 operating system will be coming “this summer” in 190 countries and 111 languages.

In a blog post late Tuesday, Microsoft executive vice president Terry Myerson said the operating system designed for multiple devices would also have a “small footprint” for connected devices.

“We continue to make great development progress and shared today that Windows 10 will be available this summer in 190 countries and 111 languages,” he said.

Microsoft has yet to provide a precise date for the launch of the operating system, which is aimed at powering PCs,smartphones and also connected devices such as bank machines and medical equipment.

“For the first time, a new version of Windows for small footprint IoT (Internet of Things) devices will be available — for free — when Windows 10 launches,” Myerson said.

“Windows 10 will offer versions of Windows for a diverse set of IoT devices, ranging from powerful devices like ATMs and ultrasound machines, to resource constrained devices like gateways.”

Microsoft is also working with fast-growing Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi to test Windows 10 on its devices.

The US tech giant also announced partnerships with Chinese-based Tencent and Lenovo to help customers in China upgrade to Windows 10.

The company also said Tuesday that Windows 10 will allow users to sign in to a device without a password by using biometrics, including facial recognition.

source: interaksyon.com

Microsoft to spotlight new Windows software September 30

SAN FRANCISCO — Microsoft on Monday sent out invitations to a September 30 event at which it is expected to provide a glimpse at the next version of its Windows operating system.

The US software titan revealed little with invitations that read: “Join us to hear what’s next for Windows and the enterprise.”

The event slated to take place in San Francisco will be aimed at developers behind programs designed for computers powered by Windows software, and at businesses that depend on Microsoft programs in their networks.

Microsoft was said to be working on a separate version of Windows for smartphones and tablets, as it works to adapt to lifestyles centered increasingly on Internet-linked mobile devices.

source: interaksyon.com

New Windows operating system sent to computer makers

SAN FRANCISCO — Microsoft on Tuesday began sending a revamped version of Windows to makers of computers, smartphones or tablets powered by the software.

“We’ve hit an important milestone for Microsoft,” Windows team executive Antoine Leblond said in a blog post.

“In many ways, this marks a new day for Microsoft, reflecting a number of rapid-release firsts.”

Developers of applications tailored to run on Windows devices were irked, however, to find out that they will not get their hands on the finished version of Windows 8.1 until it hits the market in October.


In the past, developers had early access to new versions of Windows to allow time to make sure their applications work with the software.

“Seriously, has Microsoft fallen off its rocker?” a developer asked rhetorically in a chat forum below Leblond’s blog post.

“This decision is yet another that leaves me questioning the judgment of Microsoft’s current management.”

Microsoft in June provided developers with a preview version of the “re-blended” Windows 8 operating system released late last year.

Windows 8.1 incorporated feedback from users and developers, and came with the promise that the US software giant was speeding up its release cycle to adapt to the dizzying pace of innovation in consumer technology.

“Windows 8.1 is a significant update,” Leblond said.

“As we consider the code we just handed off, and the new intuitive and fluid computing experience it provides — anytime, anywhere, across all devices — we’re confident we made the right bet.”

Windows 8.1 remains true to the vision of an operating system tuned for touch-screen controls and multi-gadget lifestyles increasingly revolving around tablets and smartphones, according to Microsoft.

Microsoft is under pressure to adapt to a huge shift in how people engage with computers.

Smartphones and tablets have vanquished the days when people devoted the bulk of computer time to Windows-powered desktop or laptop machines.

The overhauled Windows 8 operating system released in November was designed to power the array Internet-linked devices.

Better adapting to the shifting Internet landscape is believed to be among the reasons behind the unexpected announcement last week that Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer will retire within 12 months.

“There is never a perfect time for this type of transition, but now is the right time,” Ballmer said Friday in a written release.

“My original thoughts on timing would have had my retirement happen in the middle of our company’s transformation to a devices and services company. We need a CEO who will be here longer term for this new direction.”

Ballmer took over as CEO in 2000 from co-founder Bill Gates, a classmate and friend from their days at Harvard University in the 1970s.

While its Windows software is used on the vast majority of personal computers, Microsoft has had little impact in the fast-growing segments of tablets and smartphones.

source: interaksyon.com

Samsung to ship 19 million Windows 8 computers this year: executive

NEW DELHI — Samsung Electronics Co Ltd will ship 19 million laptop computers and tablets operating on Microsoft Corp’s new Windows 8 operating system this year, said Jin Park, vice president of the IT solutions business at Samsung.

Microsoft, the world’s largest software company, launched its new-look, touch-friendly Windows 8 earlier this year to grip customers’ imagination, as it looks to regain ground lost to Apple Inc and Google Inc in mobile computing and shake up the moribund PC market.

source: interaksyon.com

Microsoft profit slips as PCs fizzle; Windows 8 awaited

SEATTLE — Microsoft Corp’s quarterly profit fell a greater-than-expected 22 percent, as sales of computers running its Windows operating system dipped and some revenue was deferred ahead of upcoming releases of its core Windows and Office products.

The sharp decline surprised investors, who had underestimated the effect of weak personal computer sales, sending Microsoft’s shares down 1.3 percent in after-hours trading.

“To us it seems like the macro conditions certainly deteriorated and no tech company will be immune to it,” said Trip Chowdhry, analyst at Global Equities Research.

Earlier on Thursday Google Inc reported sharply lower profit amid slowing advertising, following downbeat reports from Intel Corp and International Business Machines Corp this week.

Sales of PCs are expected to fall this year for the first time since 2001, according to research firm IHS, due to the weak economy and inability of the latest crop of lightweight laptops to compete with Apple Inc’s iPad.

Microsoft is betting the release of touch-friendly Windows 8 will rev up sales of PCs, laptops and Windows-compatible tablets as soon as it launches next week, and break Microsoft’s heavy reliance on PC sales for profit.

“I don’t control the macro-environment, but there’s a huge opportunity in the explosion of devices,” Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein said in an interview. “There’s demand for compelling devices and a connected set of cloud experiences. That’s what Windows 8 is all about.”

Steep dip

Microsoft, the world’s largest software company, said fiscal first quarter profit fell to $4.47 billion, or 53 cents per share, from $5.74 billion, or 68 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.

Wall Street had expected earnings of 56 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Sales fell 8 percent to $16.01 billion, largely caused by the dip in demand for personal computers running Windows, as consumers held off new purchases in the tight economy or opted to buy tablet devices instead.

The revenue decline was exaggerated by Microsoft’s deferral of some $1.36 billion in revenue, chiefly from its Windows unit, which it will regain next quarter after Windows 8 is launched.

Analysts, anticipating the dip in PC sales and accounting for the deferred revenue, had called for sales of $16.4 billion.

On the positive side for Microsoft, its fast-growing server and tools business – whose datacenter ‘cloud’ services are in high demand – posted a 12 percent jump in operating profit to $1.75 billion. Its perennially money-losing online services unit – containing the Bing search engine and MSN portal – narrowed its quarterly operating loss by 29 percent to $364 million, as it increased its share of the search advertising market and cut costs.

“Investors were not expecting a home run. All expectations are on the launch of Windows 8 and the entrance into the tablet market,” said Daniel Ives, analyst at FBR Capital Markets. “In light of the environment, the macro and PC situation, these are respectable numbers.”

source: interaksyon.com

Windows 8 signals the end of Windows as we know it, analyst says

MANILA, Philippines — The impending release of Microsoft’s new operating system Windows 8 will bring forth such tectonic changes in user computing that will lessen the relevance of desktop-based computing and applications, according to analyst firm Gartner.

The shift, according to Gartner analysts, is underpinned by Microsoft’s decision to support a common core development platform for its desktop, phone, tablet and server flavors, also known as WinRT (Windows Runtime).

Microsoft announced the gist of that move last week for its next-generation Windows Phone 8 mobile OS, as well as the revelation that the software giant will soon ship its own tablet called Surface.

“Windows 8 is the start of Microsoft’s effort to respond to market demands and competitors, as it provides a common interface and programming API set from phones to servers,” said Michael Silver, vice president and analyst at Gartner, who pointed out that Microsoft will still continue support for Win32 applications but “will encourage developers to write more manageable and engaging applications using WinRT.”

Gartner said such a move is Microsoft’s response to intensifying demand from consumers for more mobile and flexible computing options, qualities found mostly among smartphones and tablets today.

More than a major upgrade, Windows 8 has been touted by the analyst firm as a major “technology shift,” similar to Microsoft’s move from DOS-based computing to Windows NT technology in the early 90′s.

“The user computing world is changing. PCs, although still critical components of the computing landscape, are no longer the only devices for delivering services and applications to users,” stressed Steve Kleynhans, vice president for client and mobile computing at Gartner.

Could enterprises keep up?

Consumers, in general, are quick to adapt to such changes and are relatively accepting of major technology shifts. It’s the enterprise segment, Gartner said, who should be keeping a close watch of developments within Microsoft, particularly its push for a Metro-style user interface, which uses a tiled design and a full-screen app-like experience in place of windows.

That said, the analyst firm predicts that most users and organizations will continue to run legacy applications for 10 or more years, but stressed that “the Windows Desktop and legacy Windows applications will decline in importance in future Windows client releases.”

It added that Metro-style apps will only gain significant traction in user-facing enterprise apps in at least five years’ time, adding that firms will take many years to move their applications to the new model, with many running Win32 apps and the desktop browser through 2015 even if they have already upgraded to Windows 8.

The turning point, Gartner said, for Metro-style apps to gain foothold in the enterprise would be by 2020, when it predicts that enterprise users would spend less than 10 percent of their time running Win32 applications.

“Organizations planning to develop new Win32 applications should switch to Metro for all new user-facing applications beginning in 2013 and should focus on external apps first and internal apps later,” it suggested.

source: interaksyon.com