Microsoft's strategic shift to creating apps and services for rival operating systems was born from the hard realization that Windows' share of the total device market was in the middle of a three-year slump, according to new forecasts Thursday by research firm Gartner.
This month's Black Tuesday crop of patches held <a href="http://www.infoworld.com/article/2834535/security/four-more-botched-black-tuesday-patches-kb-3000061-kb-2984972-kb-2949927-and-kb-2995388.html">more than a few surprises</a>. True to form, my choice for the "most likely to splat," the <a href="https://support2.microsoft.com/kb/3000061">KB 3000061</a> kernel mode driver patch, repeatedly fails to install on many machines. Although the Knowledge Base article hasn't been updated, Microsoft support engineer joscon confirmed a workaround for the problem on Thursday afternoon.
Yesterday Microsoft released <a href="https://support2.microsoft.com/kb/3005628">patch KB 3005628</a> for Windows 8, 8.1, Server 2012, and Server 2012 R2. It's a trivial, non-security patch. The fact that it wasn't kept and issued in the normal cadence (patches usually arrive on Update Tuesday, which is next Tuesday) points to either an accidental release to the Automatic Update chute -- which we've seen before -- or an unwelcome switch in Microsoft's patching strategy. Either possibility is troubling.
Online word processors, spreadsheets, and presentation apps can be surprisingly useful, or surprisingly lame, and not even Microsoft aces Office document compatibility
Web browser or Office suite? Microsoft's and Google's office productivity and collaboration clouds pit rich and complex against simple and lean
Microsoft observers knew CEO Steve Ballmer was due to step down soon, but announcing his impending retirement weeks after an executive reorganization seems odd. With that in mind, CIO.com contributor Jonathan Hassell examines the triumphs and missteps of Ballmer's 13-year tenure in Microsoft's corner office.
Smart in design and stingy on power, HP's Envy convertible works well as a laptop or a tablet.
Latest blend of Exchange, SharePoint, and Lync servers in the cloud combines an excellent feature set with easier setup and management
DOS 4.0, Zune, and Windows 8 are but a few of the landmarks among 25 years of failures Redmond-style