It remains to be seen if Microsoft can do a better job, then Google with Myspace, monetizing their search partnership.  Back in 2006 Microsoft was also in contention for Myspace's search rights but they lost to Google.  As I've noted in a couple of previous articles, Facebook Worth & Facebook Revenues, Microsoft's $15 billion valuation of Facebook is almost three times higher then the next closet valuation.  Microsoft's valuation of Facebook is still absurd but I'm sure a lot of the reasoning behind it was to guarantee that Google doesn't beat them again.

For one, Microsoft has been coming out with interesting developments with open source.  First, they became one of the largest sponsors of the SourceForge.net project competition.  Then, they become a diamond sponsor of the OSCON event, where they also announced that they would be giving the Apache project $100,000 a year to help with development costs -- development for Windows compatibility.  What I see on the surface is a more open Microsoft on some fronts.  What I really think:  Microsoft is working to get more and more open source development happening on Windows, which is what Steve Ballmer said he wanted.  Even deeper speculation:  Microsoft is working to take the developers for open source projects and get them working on Windows more, taking away from the time they use to develop Linux applications.  Just a speculation, but it would not be impossible knowing Microsoft.

Now on to a bigger topic -- Apple.

This week Mark Shuttleworth made it known he wants to see Linux leapfrog Apple in the interface category in the next two years.  This is big, because being the head of the largest and most popular Linux distribution, it would only seem natural that he would work to fulfill his wish within his own distribution.  Ubuntu has the manpower to do it, but it will take effort out of many in the community outside of Ubuntu to reach this goal.  It was nice, however, to see the head of one of the most powerful distributions acknowledging the fact that Apple set the bar for OS interfaces.

Steve Ballmer sent out a company-wide memo talking about the company's position in the marketplace.  It was interesting that he mentions Google and Apple both by name, and shows through the message that they are Microsoft's largest competitors.  Microsoft will have to work hard to redeem themselves in a marketplace that sees them as a company who has become bland.  However, Microsoft is a large company, and it will be especially interesting to see how they counter the Apple ads which delt a great blow to Vista's perception.  Interestingly enough, it seems as if Steve Ballmer wants to emulate Apple, where Mark Shuttleworth wants to blast past Apple.  Anoter interesting tidbit is that Steve Ballmer tries to convince Microsoft employees that their software is the best.  Encouraging at best, but please.  Ever hear of Mozilla Firefox?

One thing is clear -- Apple will be facing quite a storm throughout the next year.  Everyone, and I mean everyone will be gunning to make their systems better than Apple, and will also be marketing to help lead that perception.  It will be interesting to watch and see whether or not Apple can withstand the competitions' repeated blows without gaining a tainted reputation.  They will almost certainly have to target Vista, and maybe, just maybe, begin to notice Linux.

Xây dựng liên kết (Link bulding)

Mỗi một liên kết từ các trang khác được coi như một điểm cho trang Web được trỏ đến. Càng nhiều trang Web trỏ đến trang của bạn thì đương nhiên các công cụ tìm kiếm, đặc biệt là Google càng đánh giá cao trang Web của bạn. Và đương nhiên bạn sẽ có thứ hạng cao hơn trên trang kết quả của máy tìm kiếm.

Việc xây dựng liên kết bên ngoài có thể dựa vào sự năng động của chính các Webmaster. Các bạn có thể tự tạo ra các liên kết trỏ tới trang; ví dụ như tham gia các diễn đàn có nội dung tương tự và để lại đường dẫn trỏ tới trang của bạn trong bài viết hay chữ ký (phải kiểm tra xem links URL có được máy tìm kiếm nhìn thấy hay không, có bị thêm thẻ nofollow không).

Tuy nhiên cách làm lâu dài nhất vẫn là tạo một nội dung hấp dẫn và có ích cho người đọc. Và chính họ sẽ giúp bạn tạo liên kết tới các bài viết đó.

Chúng ta đang nói về các liên kết bên ngoài. Tuy nhiên liên kết bên trong cũng rất quan trọng, ngoài việc giúp đánh chỉ số dễ dàng, phân bố PageRank tốt hơn, nó còn giúp người đọc theo dõi dễ dàng toàn bộ nội dung. Các bạn xem thêm các bài viết sau về tối ưu cấu trúc bên trong trang.

• Tăng cường liên kết trong bài viết : Tăng cường sử dụng ký tự liên kết, các liên kết sâu, bài viết tương tự.
• Tối ưu cấu trúc nội liên kết Website : Phân tích tầm quan trọng của cấu trúc nội liên kết (Internal Link Structure) và cách tối ưu.

Các kiểu liên kết khác nhau

Máy tìm kiếm xếp hạng mức độ tin cậy của các liên kết. Vì vậy các liên kết đến từ các trang không có nội dung liên quan thì sẽ không giúp bạn mấy so với các trang với nội dung tin cậy. Vì thế đường dẫn đến từ trang có nhiều đường liên kết URL trỏ tới chính nó sẽ được đánh giá cao hơn các website không được phổ biến (ít liên kết trỏ đến).

Luôn luôn tiếp tục xây dựng liên kết

Việc có nhiều liên kết trỏ đến hơn các đổi thủ sẽ không giúp bạn luôn đứng trên các đối thủ. Ít nhất là trong trường hợp khi các đối thủ luôn liên tục xây dựng thêm các liên kết trỏ tới trang của họ. Và nếu như website của bạn gián đoạn trong việc nhận thêm liên kết trỏ tới thì chắc chắn website của bạn sẽ bị đối thủ vượt mặt.

Bời vậy xây dựng liên kết phải là một quá trình thường xuyên và liên tục. Bạn hãy nhớ lấy thủ thuật SEO này.

Mua bán liên kết có thể gây phiến toái (Buying links, Paid links)

Công cụ tìm kiếm không thích mua bán liên kết bởi nó cho rằng việc mua bán làm thay đổi bản chất của liên kết và làm sai độ xác thực của kết quả tìm kiếm. Chính Google đã tuyên bố chống lại việc mua bán liên kết và đã áp dụng các hình thức phạt đối với những trang mua bán liên kết. Matt Cutts, một kỹ sư của Google (biệt danh GoogleGuy) trong lĩnh vực chất lượng tìm kiếm, đã khẳng định rằng các thuật toán của Google rất hoàn thiện trong việc xác định các đường dẫn bị mua, bán.

Vì vậy bạn hãy tránh việc mua, bán liên kết. Ngay cả trong trường hợp Google không thể xác đinh được thì các đối thủ của bạn có thể thông báo tới Google. Và bạn sẽ bị Google áp dụng các hình thức phạt mà gần đây nhất là việc đánh tụt thứ hạng PageRank hiển thị qua thanh công cụ Google ToolBar.

Redirects - Redirections

Việc chuyển tiếp (Redirect) địa chỉ URL của trang web bị lạm dụng trong trong quá khứ bởi những spammers và rất nhiều máy tìm kiếm gặp phải khó khăn trong việc xác định. Vì thế nếu bạn có ý định sử dụng kỹ thuật chuyển hướng cho địa chỉ URL trên trang thì bận chỉ nên áp dụng chuyển tiếp 301 được khuyến cáo sử dụng bởi Google.

Nội dung kép (Duplicate content)

Các máy tìm kiếm chỉ muốn hiển thị các nội dung đa dạng và khác nhau trong kết quả tìm kiếm. Điều này giúp người tìm kiếm có được sự lựa chọn đa dạng hơn. Bởi thế các máy tìm kiếm sẽ chỉ hiển thị một bản sao duy nhất của tài liệu trong kết quả tìm kiếm.

Vì lý do nói trên, bạn không nên có nhiều tên miền cùng trỏ tới một nội dung, hay nhiều địa chỉ URL khác nhau cho một nội dung. Bạn nên dùng một nội dung duy nhất.

Các bản sao chép cũng bị coi như nội dung kép, ví như việc cùng một bài viết xuất hiện trên nhiều Website chẳng hạn.

Trên trang Web của mình, bạn có thể sử dụng tệp tin robots.txt hay các meta tag robots cũng như lệnh "nofollow" để hạn chế nội dung trùng lặp (ví dụ như bản in, archive, tags, rss...).

Các bạn nên xem thêm các thủ thuật SEO về nội dung kép (Duplicate content) :

• Phỏng vấn Matt Cutts về trùng lặp nội dung : Phỏng vấn matt Cutts, kỹ sư chất lượng tìm kiếm Google về nội dung kép (Duplicate Content)
• Nội dung kép và phương pháp phát hiện mới của Google : Bọ lọc và cách thức phát hiện Duplicate Content của Google.
• Thảo luận Webmaster sau phỏng vấn Matt Cutts về trùng lặp nội dung : Thảo luận trên các diễn đàn Webmasters về trung nội dung, nhận định của vietSEO.
• Máy tìm kiếm và spammy website, spammy blog : Phân tích các website có tính chất spam và cách tối ưu.
• Chỉ mục bổ sung và nội dung trùng lặp : Phân tích chỉ mục bổ sung (Supplement index) và Duplicate content.

Tối ưu hóa mã nguồn trang Web

Máy tìm kiếm sử dụng các bọ tìm kiếm để đánh chỉ số trang. Các con bọ tìm kiếm này sẽ phân tích mã nguồn trang Web của bạn để xác định chủ đề của bài viết.

Bởi thế, nếu các từ khóa được đặt đúng vị trí và ới tần xuất hợp lý, máy tìm kiếm sẽ gán từ khóa đó cho nội dung trang web với độ tin cậy cao này. Ngược lại, nếu từ khóa xuất hiện quá thường xuyên thì máy tìm kiếm sẽ phạt trang web với bị nó bị xếp loại các ý định spam, giống spammy website.

Các bạn nên xem thêm những bài viết thủ thuật SEO sau để tối ưu mã nguồn và cấu trúc website của mình :

• Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) - HTML SEO Website : Tối ưu mã nguồn, trình bày, cấu trúc trang qua việc sử dụng CSS.
• SEO WordPress Blog : Các kỹ thuật cơ bản tối ưu hóa Blog WordPress, có thể áp dụng tốt với các website, CMS.
• Quảng bá Web : Thủ thuật SEO, tối ưu hóa website cho công cụ tìm kiếm (Search Engine Optimization). Kỹ thuật quảng bá Web

Từ khóa là chìa khóa cho thành công

Việc chọn từ khóa cho trang web để tối ưu hóa cho công cụ tìm kiếm (search engine optimization) trong chiến dịch quảng bá Website là một trong nhưng thủ thuật SEO rất quan trọng. Một từ khóa đơn lẻ có thể rất phổ biến nhưng nó lại không giúp bán được sản phẩm. Vì vậy việc chọn từ khóa liên quan tới dịch vụ, sản phẩm là rất quan trọng và ảnh hương tới thiết kế, trình bày và nội dung. Các từ khóa tối ưu là những từ khóa có lượng tìm kiếm quan trọng, mang lại nhiều khách hàng và thúc đấy việc bán sản phẩm, dịch vụ.

Hoài Nam - Quảng bá Website.

Desde el Comic-Con de San Diego llega una noticia muy interesante, pues además de anunciarse a Jax, Kitana y Linterna Verde para el juego Mortak Kombat vs DC Universe, lo más importante es que también hará acto de presencia el Guasón (o The Joker para los sangrones).

Se especula que, como los villanos de este juego de peleas podrán realizar fatalities, el Guasón también tendrá un movimiento mortal, aunque esto es sólo un rumor por ahora.

Recordamos que Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe saldrá a la venta el 3 de noviembre de este año para Xbox 360 y PlayStation 3.

PD: No esperen ver al Guasón de la última película de Batman, así que no se emocionen tanto.

Fuente: Joystiq

This seems to fit Microsoft's general direction of increasing friendliness to opensource organisations such as ASF who do not pose an ideological or legal problem for them.  This is a progression from past deals such as sponsoring ApacheCon (Dublin 2006, IIRC) and offering free MSDN membership to Apache developers.

Thank you Microsoft.

Google's initial brilliance was recognizing that the link relationships on the web gave you great insight into the best websites.   Google correctly noted that sites with many links to them, especially for a particular keyword, were more likely to match a users interest for that keyword.   Although many factors have been included in Google ranking for years, pagerank was arguably the most important breakthrough.   Initially the system tried to be an online analogy to academic citation.  Google's Larry Page reasoned that websites with more incoming links would tend to be better, and that those incoming links themselves should also be weighted according to the importance of the site from which they came.

The system started to show severe signs of wear as search marketeers as well as mom and pop businesses began to "game" the pagerank system, creating spurious incoming links from bogus sites and buying links from high rank websites.

Enter Microsoft "BrowseRank", which will arguably be harder to game because it will monitor the behavior of millions of users, looking for relationships between sites, pages, length of time on page, and more.     It's a good idea of course but arguably it is Google that has *by far* the best data set to manage this type of approach.   So even if Microsoft's system starts to deliver results superior to Google's one can expect Google to kick their own efforts into gear.

As with all search innovation the users shoud be the big winners.   Search remains good but not great, and competition in this space will only serve to make everybody better....right?

See

7- Sony Sixaxis

Just before the release of Sony's heralded PlayStation 3, the company surprisingly announced it would be packaging a groundbreaking and distinctive controller with the system. This distinctive device turned out to be a motion sensing controller, which was hardly groundbreaking since Nintendo had already announced a similar device 8 months earlier, and which seemed somewhat desperate considering its sudden unveiling the day after Nintendo revealed its much more advanced Wii Remote. Presumably, Sony expected praise and handshakes after this groundbreaking controller was revealed, but what they got instead was a lot of negative gossip mixed with a dash of disappointment. "Why can't these "incredible" new controllers rumble like the old ones could? And why is the motion-sensing so piss-poor?" gamers initially grumbled. Eventually these grumbles became outcries and gaming enthusiasts the world over demanded a return of the rumble. Eventually Sony caved and the Sixaxis was replaced with a new controller that possessed the old fan-favorite feature which holds a special place in all of our hearts and pants: the rumble.

6 - Nintendo Game Boy Advance (original model)

It wasn't just awe and praise for the Game Boy Advance after its 2001 release. Some gamers complained of dark, hard-to-see screens and uncomfortable hand positioning. This prompted Nintendo to initiate the cogs of its video game-producing factory and create a similarly powerful system that now had a backlit screen and a smaller body. To some of the gamers who had bought the previous and now-inferior system, it felt like their beloved Mario had just walked up and thrown sewage in their face. Yet, to those gamers who hadn't gotten their paws on this technological marvel yet, they could now game on the go without having to squint their eyes or position themselves under strong light sources. A few years later Nintendo did it again when they released another Gameboy system entitled Game Boy Micro. However, Mario was unable to deliver any blows this time due to the majority of the Game Boy fan base having already moved on to the superior Nintendo DS.

5 - DIVX Players

The year was 1998 and a still-young DVD format was struggling to get a footing in the market. Apparently to some this seemed like the perfect time to introduce a confusing and inconvenient DVD rental service called DIVX. The DIVX was a special DVD player that cost more than a regular DVD player, but this higher price was justified by its ability to play disposable DVDs that could only be rented at Circuit City stores. These throwaway DVDs could then be repeatedly viewed for a 42-hour period before becoming unwatchable and literally trash. If you wished to view the DVD after that 42-hour window had closed, you had to pay another fee, which would allow further screenings, either permanently or for another rental period. Not surprisingly, this rental format did not catch on, and not surprisingly Circuit City ended up losing about $114 million on it. Consequently, the DIVX players ended up being just as disposable as the discs they played. The format used on the discs, however, still lives on to this day, allowing unlimited views of illegally-downloaded movies and TV shows. What a weird twist of fate, eh?

4 - HD-DVD

Like the now infamous Betamax/VHS battle of the late 70s, the HD-DVD recently fought it out with Blu-rRay in an attempt to be crowned the High Definition video king. Like Betamax, HD-DVD got trounced, albeit in a quicker fashion. After beating the Blu-ray to the market by about 3 months, the HD-DVD saw its sales slowly climb; however, its initially high price tag (around $950) quelled people's limited interest. Things seemed to pick up, though, when Microsoft decided to produce an HD-DVD add on for the Xbox360, causing many unfortunate gamers to embrace the upstart video format. Unfortunately, sales never reached the level many companies had hoped for and those same nearsighted gamers were left shaking their fists at the venerated Bill Gates when the format was discontinued in February of 2008. Blu-ray's victory celebration could not have been very lavish, however, since its sales have remained paltry and the public has remained apathetic.

3 - Apple EDGE iPhone

Remember on June 29, 2007, when the world was changed with Apple's release of the iPhone? And then remember a little under a year later when Apple announced that they would be releasing another, better, cheaper, iPhone and much of then world then laughed at the saps who purchased those "revolutionary" telephones? The new iPhone, called the iPhone 3G, will cost about a third of what the original device cost, only now it will work about twice as fast as the original, with better internet capabilities and internal GPS. This has caused many of the planet's techies to grow angry with balding men who wear black faux turtlenecks with blue jeans and who announce new, better, technology on a seemingly daily basis.

2 - Sega 32X

Those old, grizzled video gamers may recall a time when Sega seemed to release a new video game system almost every year. And for some time it seemed that the only way you could utilize the majority of these systems' mediocre power was by stacking and attaching them to your preexisting Sega systems. This Frankenstein-esque gaming machine consisted of the basic Sega Genesis, the Sega CD-Rom, and the Sega 32X. However, the massive console compilation was somewhat rare to behold and it was usually only witnessed by children whose parents had deep pockets. Alas, of those 3 systems, the 32X was the least successful and shortest lived, boasting only slightly improved graphics and a paltry lineup of compatible games. Also, Sega released its Saturn system shortly after the 32X, which many heralded as the true next-gen gaming machine, essentially ending what few, if any, called the 32X's dominance.

1 - Microsoft Windows ME

What do you get when you take Windows 98, make it crappier and more unreliable, and then raise the price? You get Windows ME, the inane PC operating system that was the intended successor to that ole workhorse called Windows 98. From the get go, the ME was the subject of criticism, with users complaining that it frequently froze and crashed, and as a result it gained the slighting and questionably clever moniker, "Windows Mistake Edition." Its tenure as the PC's operating system was also pretty short lived because a little over a year after its release, Microsoft put out the more popular Windows XP, and kicked the ME to the curb. In ME's defense, it did introduce the now-standard system restore function, yet naysayers will probably point out that it often would restore viruses and ended up being more hassle than it was worth. However, those same naysayers have made Bill Gates a very rich man, so who's getting the last laugh?

Source: http://www.omglists.com/article/86013/7-hyped-products-that-quickly-became-obsolete/

Uma das melhores maneiras de conquistar destaque e reconhecimento profissional é através do conhecimento. O quanto antes você aprende a utilizar novas soluções e tecnologias, mais evidência terá sua competência na empresa em que você trabalha e no mercado.

Com a crescente adoção do Microsoft SQL Server 2008 por empresas e corporações, aumenta também a necessidade de profissionais que dominem essa inovadora plataforma para base de dados. Por isso o TechNet preparou para você a Semana SQL Server 2008. Serão 14 WebCasts independentes, dos quais você poderá participar gratuitamente.

» Inscreva-se já e garanta sua participação!

Conhecimento Premiado: ao final de cada treinamento serão sorteados dois vouchers de certificação. Para concorrer basta participar.

São palestras com duração de 45 minutos, que podem ser acompanhadas ao vivo, permitindo a sua interação por meio de perguntas. O evento é gravado e disponibilizado para download 48 horas após sua transmissão ao vivo, no Media Center do TechNet.

28/jul 12h Planejamento do Analysis Services e Melhoria de Performance
28/jul 17h Data Mining
29/jul 12h Gerenciando o Data Warehousing
29/jul 17h Garantindo a Continuidade dos Negócios
30/jul 12h Data Warehousing - Escalabilidade e Performance
30/jul 17h Garantindo que Seus Dados estão Seguros com uma Plataforma Confiável
31/jul 12h Upgrade de sua Database
31/jul 17h Simplificando o Gerenciamento de sua Plataforma de Dados SQL Server 2008
1/ago 12h Melhorias na Arquitetura do Reporting Services
1/ago 17h Escale Seus Negócios
4/ago 12h Performance Troubleshooting
4/ago 17h Resposta Previsível para Seus Usuários
5/ago 12h Protegendo Seu Sistema
5/ago 17h Simplificando o Gerenciamento via Gerenciamento por Políticas

O SQL Server 2008 fornece um vasto conjunto de serviços integrados que permitem que você faça muito mais com seus dados como consulta, pesquisa, sincronização, relatórios e análises. Os dados podem ser armazenados em grandes servidores de um data center e acessados a partir deles para desktops e dispositivos móveis, fornecendo controle sobre os dados, não importando o local em que estão armazenados.

O SQL Server 2008 fornece uma plataforma de dados confiável, produtiva e inteligente para todas as suas necessidades relacionadas aos dados.

Ya les habíamos informado que la Xbox 360 Elite llegaría oficialmente a las tiendas chilenas, mientras que la Xbox 360 normal bajaría de precio.

Pues el modelo Elite (negro con 120 GB de memoria) ya está a la venta y cuesta 329.990 pesos chilenos.

Por lo pronto lo podrás comprar en línea en Microplay. No estoy ahorita en Chile, así que no puedo ir a checar si en la tiendas está también, pero supongo que sí, así que si buscaban adquirir este modelo, ahora es el momento.

Fuente: Microplay

-John

Good for a quick play on a Friday afternoon. Good for the ego too.  You never seem to lose.  Thank you Current for making me feel important again.

Que notan de raro en la imagen ? Si, Darth Vader y Yoda juntos ? pero como es posible, si Namco Bandai nos dijo que Yoda solo estara disponible en la version para Xbox 360 y Vader solo en la version de PlayStation 3.

Pues estos tios resultaron mas listos y todo indica que estaran disponibles en forma de contenido descargable (claro con una plata de por medio) la imagen es de gran calidad, y todo indica que via Xbox Live podras hacerte de Vader y via PSN de Yoda, demonios estos cuates si que saben hacernos sufrir.

Via Joystiq

Side Note: If you maintain the same level of quality but produce twice as many products, you'll have about... twice the number of bugs - which people will see.  But more accurately, each software application is no more buggy than before, it's just a matter of perception.  Being a successful and established company cuts both ways, good and bad.  In fairness, argument goes past perception.  Some may even argue that the biggest players in most any industry will become complacent, where bureaucracy and rules overshadow what's really important.  As part of this argument, its natural to ask if the company's quality is diminishing because it's investing more into FUD, and reacting to perceived market pressures -  but that's a post for another day.

I became a user of Microsoft products in the Apply II / IBM PC era.  In 1978, shortly after the Apple II came out I ventured off to computer camp at the local university.  That university's lab only stocked Apple II computers, so I started writing software exclusively on the Apple II.   Over the next few years, I migrated to the IBM PC as more friends got PCs.  Since my parents didn't see much value in buying a "game machine" (e.g. Personal Computers could play games, games are bad, thus.... PCs are bad).  So, my hobby software development was when and where I could get it.  I'd go to friends homes and... when they started watching TV, I'd fire up their computer.   Sometimes I'd write on an Apple II, II Plus, IIe, but more often friends had an IBM PC.  And as I wrote more hobby programs, I started bringing around a floppy disk (e.g. the USB key of 1980) so I could continue development on different computers.  Ultimately, all I was working on was PC because my PC programs didn't run on Apples, and thus an Apple II didn't do me any good.

Back then IBM was number one, and Microsoft was just an upstart competitor trying to get some traction in the world.  Since they were the embodiment of lean and hungry, Bill Gates and crew (but mostly Bill) focused and drove product offerings while cutting deals and making connections.  The small band of Microsofties commonly criticized the ineptness of the large monolithic empire, as known as IBM.  Yes IBM was dominating, but complacent.  its leaders couldn't see the value of PC software, much less value of an a PC Operating System (e.g. DOS).  IBM was merely continuing focus on what made them successful: business class hardware.  IBM embodied the mindset: "Who buys software?  Hardware's where the money is!"

But before there was Microsoft, two students were attending Harvard: Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer.  It was then that Bill and Steve forged a long lasting friendship, albeit somewhat improbable: Steve the large brash Jock with some book smarts, and Bill the wiry dedicated geek not willing to back down.  Bill ended up leaving school to found Microsoft, and pulled Steve onboard after his graduation.

The rest we can say is history.  Microsoft continued to successfully identity, develop and market products that people were willing and needing to purchase.  And, just as importantly, Microsoft got an early toe-hold into the world of PC software while forging crafty and enduring business relationship with important partners.  It was the relationships with other large companies that brought Microsoft their early, and often enduring windfalls.  These partnerships were the essence, the very foundation, of Microsoft's success.  These partnerships were crucial because people didn't just magic software onto their computers at home - because that's impossible ;-)

No, consumers walked down to brick and mortar stores where they were able to choose from a very limited selection of products preselected by that store's manager.  Or by that store's area manager. Or, perhaps, that store's company leadership.  Yep, those early alliances that Microsoft forged with large partners are what put Microsoft where it is today.  Since I didn't own a computer, I'd settle for using what was available at a friend's home.  Since the IBM PC came with the BASIC programming language, I was able to write programs wherever there was a PC.  (Shrewd move by Microsoft)

Now, here we are three decades later.  Microsoft is now the dominate producer of PC software, and exactly where Bill aimed during the past 30+ years.  Bigger and bigger, always moving forward.  Always looking for new angles, new enhancements, and new markets for PC software.   But in all fairness, they may have never gotten here if IBM hadn't lacked the foresight, the vision, to see the PC software market for what it really was, for what is would become.  Maybe that's a poor choice of words "lacked the foresight", because IBM was simply doing what large successful companies do: Focus on your offering, pursue incremental improvements, consider complimentary new tangents.  At most, an industry leader expends a small fraction of available thought and energy into new areas.  And, this effort is usually directed in a very controlled fashion:  Invent things that complement existing offerings, things that don't go too much against the grain.

Back in 1996 the Google momentum got started.  While attending Stanford, Larry Page starts a research project to better understand this newfangled thing: the Internet.  A friend of Larry's by the name of Sergey Brin becomes involved and together they gradually hone their focus of building a better search engine.  As I personally remember from that era, the internet offered great promise.  It was a new means of communication, possibly even more significant than the advent of the telephone.  In 1996, the internet was obviously the next big thing, that is if you weren't already a large successful company such as Microsoft.  In that year, Microsoft was busy shipping oodles of Windows 95, and was establishing itself as the dominant player in PC software.  Bill, Steve and Co didn't have their heads in the sand, and they did see this internet thing as something to keep an eye on.  Something on which to perhaps even develop a few offerings.  Quite simply they couldn't just drop everything they were doing with Windows, and all the applications that they've have running on top of it.  So, this resulted in Microsoft treating the internet as a something extra.

As a contrast in action, Google accurately identified how critical this Internet could become, while pouring all of their energy and time into making a tool so people could better locate things.  Just as Larry and Sergey saw, I too was hugely frustrated with my inability to locate things out there.  Without some sort of all high quality search engine, I'd waste time looking through news groups, emailing people, talking with friends, walking around the computer science lab looking for answers - all purposeful actions, but overall an extremely ineffective "search engine".  Here's where the story gets interesting. Larry and Sergey not only identified the user need, but took action required to build an online tool so people could better use the internet.  They correctly envisioned people needing to actually find things on the internet.  Then they took action to fulfill this need.  A daring proposition back then, when the highly expert, highly paid, and most powerful executive visionaries considered search as basically nothing.  Yep, search was considered a non-entity by executives in tech companies.  Any company with an inkling of internet presence was jumping on the portal bandwagon, and thus these business leaders basically said "no" to search.  That era's executive mindset was along the lines: "Why make a search tool that people would use to access your competitor's site?".  It was a mindset that completely missed the boat, and was purely based on FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt).

Larry and Sergey, on the other hand, saw Internet Search for what it truly was: a foundation for anyone wanting to use the internet.   Even I, a lowly customer science undergraduate could plainly see the necessity and significance of online search.  It's not that these technology company leaders were dumb, but they sure were blinded by their self imposed Tunnel Vision of tweaking current strategies and using the past to predict the future.  My personal take: It's more often the lower-level people who know the problems, contain the passion, and have the vision.  While the established leadership strives to maintain an even keel, often for the sake of pleasing investors with consistent quarter-to-quarter earning.  A seemingly good investor strategy, but also a reliable way to hide problems and at times deliver disaster (e.g. January 1986: Challenger;  February 2003: Columbia).  Add to that these leaders probably didn't need to search for anything on the internet.  (There's some derived advice for investors here: keep your eyes on the younger ones b/c they more likely identify new needs and pursue bold new paths, while the older more established leaders are more likely to tweak whats already there)

The working prototype of Google actually worked really well.  But when Larry and Sergey tried shopping it around to large technology companies, they hear something like "Wow! that does work really well.  But who needs search?".   In effect, these leaders were clearly blind to what was in front of them.

Larry and Sergey dedicated time, energy to what would become Google.  They put their selves and reputations on the line.  They ultimately got backing, looked for business relationships and partners.

In fact, all this was very similar to the path Bill and Steve took decades before in starting and growing Microsoft.  But now in 1996 Bill and Steve were focusing on their business, which was the conservative / sane thing to do.  And in doing so they completely missed the internet boat.  It's not that they didn't see the internet coming, they just misjudge its future worth weighed against MSFT's current (circa 1996) worth.

Microsoft still manages to hold considerable worth, energy, talent and passion.  But now they're competing in a market that plays by different rules.  Now, there's less benefit to closing big long-term deals with other big players, such as the Dells, the IBMs, the HPs of the world.

This new internet market really is very different.  It's a place where online access grants people the ability to instantly try new software for free, and without downloading anything.  In effect, people magic software onto their computers (something impossible when MSFT was up and coming).  People can embrace new applications and tell all their friends in a matter of moments.  Just as rapidly people can quit using an application and spread negative reviews, and damaging comments.  In short, people can sample without committing.  Eons ago, before the internet, the only way to try new software was to purchase a desktop PC and then it was too late.  Or, to visit a friend who purchased a new PC.  Or, head to somewhere selling computers and check out the new software - while incurring some degree of sales pitching and pressure.

In this new online world large OEM networks just don't seem to help as much.  Having deals, contracts, negotiations with other large players just isn't what it used to be.  Don't get me wrong, it still has some relevance - just ask anyone firmly in the anti-Microsoft camp, or anyone fully committed to Microsoft competitors (e.g. Apple customers).

But what I keep coming back to is Microsoft.  Because, well, I still use a bunch of Microsoft products, just as many others do.  In fact I even go one step further.  I use Microsoft development tools (e.g. Visual Studio) to develop software specifically produced to run on Microsoft Windows.  I do this out of choice, but as I said before, Microsoft owns most of the desktop software market.   And it's sort of natural to do what's most needed, most relevant by the world.  Yes it's sensible, but also a trap.  Just ask IBM. Just as Microsoft.

In fact, even ask Google, Myspace, Facebook and YouTube.  In the online world people gravitate to new things that offer worth.  It's a natural thing for consumers, but a very unnatural thing for the most successful paper-smart companies in the world.  Microsoft's historically been dominate continuing to do what it does best.  The same goes for the other biggest, most successful companies in their industry.  My point is this tunnel vision of success is not limited to Microsoft, but applies to the biggest most successful companies. Consider the top 7 companies on the Fortune 500 list for 2008:

1 Wal-Mart Stores
2 Exxon Mobil
3 Chevron
4 General Motors
5 ConocoPhillips
6 General Electric
7 Ford Motor

Are those companies' leaders making the right decisions for their employees?  How about for their customers?  Or, are those all-powerful CEOs, Boards of Directors, and top executives wearing the blinders of the past?  Will they experience tunnel vision at those critical decision points?  Will they do the right thing?

Ask any investor and he'll tell you it's generally the bigger risks that have higher pay offs.  To state it more plainly: If you want to win big, then when it counts you'll need to risk big.  To that I'll add: It's critical to make good decisions, and having an ability to see the future can come in kind of handy.

At Microsoft, roughly 90,000 real people, with real lives work.  For their sake, and for that of the people currently committed to using (and developing) windows software, I certainly hope Ballmer and his legion of highly compensated executives make the correct decisions, and have at least some inkling of future vision.

On a related topic, here's an interesting observation on Ballmer's strategy to achieve online dominance: A strategy of  bottomless-pit online spending. I certainly hope that's not Steve's primary strategy.  (Maybe it's his Plan B)

El rumor se ha convertido en realidad. Microsoft ha anunciado el futuro DirectX 11.

El anuncio ha tenido lugar durante el evento GamesFest, en Redmond, sede principal de la compañía, en el que se han revelado los primeros detalles sobre el nuevo conjunto de APIs para gráficos y multimedia.

Como no podía ser de otra forma, DirectX 11 será exclusivo de Windows Vista, aunque mantendrá la retrocompatibilidad con todas las tarjetas con soporte para DirectX 10 o 10.1 y será compatible con futuras versiones de Windows.

Entre las novedades más interesante, se encuentra una nueva tecnología que permite que los desarrolladores utilicen la GPU como un procesador paralelo, de modo que ayude al procesador o procesadores principales en lugar de emplearla tan solo para renderizar los gráficos. Esto se complementa con la implementación de un mejor aprovechamiento de las arquitecturas multinúcleo tan comunes hoy en día.

Otra novedad interesante es el soporte para teselación, una tecnología que permite que los modelos de los personajes aumenten en detalle cuando la cámara se acerca a ellos, renderizándolos con mayor o menor detalle según la distancia.

Así las cosas, el futuro DirectX 11 ha sido presentado por Microsoft como algo más que gráficos 3D, y promete dar mucho que hablar en el futuro cercano.

Fuente: Vidaextra

There are problems with the MobileMe web site, which is still slow for some users.  And Apple's push technology isn't exactly push, it's more like sync, and users are waiting sometimes several minutes for calendar items and email to push from the MobileMe to the devices or vice-versa.

Even great companies with great products slip up once in a while.  I'm not really surprised to see these problems, because the .Mac service was kind of a "second thought" to Apple.  I'm not sure where they got tripped up withMobileMe : maybe they thought everything would work, maybe they didn't think as many people would be wanting to use the service.  I don't know, I'm just speculating.

Ah! Conspiracy theory alert! Perpahs Apple botched the whole MobileMe launch on purpose, so they could show consumers that they can fix their problems, and be a stronger contrast to Microsoft's perceived inability to fix things, i.e., Vista.

Now I'm just being ridiculous.

But here is, indeed, an opportunity for Apple to show the world that they can fix a problem with one of their products or services.  I expect to see Apple in the coming weeks or months to put some real effort into fixing these problems with MobileMe.  Because if they don't put in some effort, and it they don't tell the world about it, then MobileMe will face the same images problems that Vista has faced.

Sony currently offers it's Playstation Network free of charge.It mostly likely makes up the costs in advertising and costs of companies to list items on the store.It's also one of the key benefits that Sony offers over Xbox Live.Is this a sign of things to come and will Live become free?

My belief is that it won't.Microsoft has done well by Live with a good amount of content and a great service along with little downtime.Add in the fact,that many users simply don't mind paying the cost of Live to insure a good reliable service and I think the most Live users could hope for would be a price reduction.

Any change in the future might be related to how the 360 is performing in sales though..

Segundo o site BetaNews, até o evento, não havia certeza da data de lançamento do navegador, que terá sua versão Beta 2 ainda em agosto, focada em novos recursos para o público final e profissionais de TI ao contrário da versão inicial, voltada para desenvolvedores web.

Ainda não se sabe, também, se existirá um terceiro beta para o IE 8, o que é improvável, conforme noticiou o site Ars Technica. Após o segundo beta, a Microsoft teria apenas quatro meses para corrigir os problemas encontrados e preparar sua versão RTM, que indica que o software já está sendo enviado para distribuição.

Além do Internet Explorer 8, Veghte também mencionou o próximo sistema operacional da Microsoft, Windows 7, que está progredindo muito bem, embora nenhum novo detalhe a seu respeito tenha sido revelado. O Windows 7 deve substituir o atual Windows Vista em 2010.

Fonte: Terra

- postado por Igor

Microsoft said Thursday at a meeting with financial analysts at its headquarters in Redmond, Wash., that it would soon begin providing Web search services and associated advertisements by the end of the year on the American portion of Facebook. (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/25/business/media/25adco.html?ref=media 7/25)

Users will be able to stream movie rentals to their PCs beginning this summer, with prices starting at $2. Titles will be available online the same day as DVD releases. The Dallas Morning News (7/24)

Google has announced that its search index, which chronicles the vast majority of the internet, has hit a major milestone: 1 trillion unique URLS. That’s 1,000,000,000,000 pages - more than twice as many as there are stars in the Milky Way. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/07/25/surprise-google-says-the-web-is-really-really-big 7/25)

Redlasso, the video site that allows bloggers to post clips of television content, has shut down its beta in response to a recently filed lawsuit by Hulu-backers Fox and NBC. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/07/25/redlasso-shuts-down-in-response-to-foxnbc-lawsuit 7/25)

Continuing the tradition of selling bad Web businesses for less than they were bought for (in the vein of Cnet selling Webshots for $45 million three years after paying $70 million for it), AOL is trying to unload online storage service Xdrive. Three years after buying Xdrive for a rumored $30 million (never officially disclosed), the price it is now trying to fetch is $5 million, and going south, says a source. Maybe AOL should put it on eBay. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/07/25/want-to-buy-xdrive-aol-is-trying-to-sell-it-for-5-million 7/25)

The as-yet unlaunched MySpace Music will likely partner with Amazon to handle all music ecommerce transactions, we’ve heard from multiple sources. Apple and Rhapsody are also bidding for the business, however, and one source says a final decision hasn’t yet been made. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/07/25/amazon-to-power-upcoming-myspace-music-downloads 7/25)

Netflix Inc.'s second-quarter profit crept up 4 percent, beating analyst expectations as the online DVD rental leader signed up 168,000 new customers while spending less money to attract them to the service. (http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Earns-Netflix.html?ref=technology 7/25)

Looking to cut down its main competition and most high-profile copycat in the growing market for social gaming, Hasbro has sued the two Indian brothers behind the popular Web game Scrabulous, which has more than half a million regular users on the social network Facebook. (http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/07/24/hasbros-notches-triple-word-score-against-scrabulous-with-lawsuit/index.html?ref=technology 7/24)

Microsoft has a secret new operating system they're showing to XP-using Vista haters, reports Cnet's Ina Fried. Codenamed "Mojave," over 90 percent of the focus groups in San Francisco loved it, with at least one moved to effuse, "Oh wow," while using it. When can you get hold of this wondrous new operating system? Right now. Mojave is actually just plain ol' Windows Vista. (http://gizmodo.com/5028903/windows-xp-users-actually-love-vista-if-they-think-its-something-else 7/24)

According to NPD Group, navigation equipment defied a decline in car-audio sales of nearly 20% over the past year. Kenwood reported a successful conclusion to its recent promotion with Garmin, helping it become the sector's top seller in the first quarter. (TWICE 7/24)