Articles about Microsoft

A total of 73 percent of IT professionals will deploy Windows 10 within the first two years, a new report by Spiceworks shows.

The report, called Windows 10: Will it Soar? found that 96 percent of IT decision-makers are interested in Windows 10, and 60 percent of IT departments have tested or are actively testing the new operating system. The survey also found that 40 percent of companies plan to begin rolling out Windows 10 within the first year and an additional 33 percent expect to begin deploying Windows 10 within two years.

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Office 365 debuted with the last release of the software, bringing the service to what Microsoft has always likely wanted -- a subscription. It's a decent deal with five licenses and the ability to move them to new computers.

Now the software giant is rolling out one-click app access in its Office 365 store. The company is trying to make things as simple as possible, by adding the store and deployment without admin support. No configuration or admin support? That sounds like an IT nightmare, but hopefully Microsoft is vetting everything before it goes live.

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When it comes to geeky stuff, space exploration is definitely on the top of the list. I am sure many of you dreamed of becoming astronauts as kids; representing your country by working for NASA. Of course, life is unpredictable and we rarely realize our dreams; only a small percentage of humans get to become astronauts with NASA.

Do you know what else is super-geeky and awesome? Virtual reality. Microsoft's implementation with HoloLens takes this to an entirely different level -- beyond just strapping a screen to the user's face. Microsoft has truly captured the imaginations of many. NASA has certainly taken notice, as today it announces a partnership with the Windows-making company to bring HoloLens to space, with a new project called Sidekick.

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I owe Sony a lot of credit. It wasn't the original Xbox and the young Xbox Live service that gave me my first taste in console online gaming. It was my beloved PS2 that connected me to the early adopters skating around Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3, and wannabe commandos practicing flanks together in the original SOCOM.

With an add-on Ethernet adapter and LAN cable strung halfway around my house, the PS2 allowed me to engage in an activity that gamers on most modern consoles take for granted. Getting online with PS2 games was part test of patience and part geekdom experiment. PlayStation Network wouldn't launch for another four years or so, and one console later -- on the PS2, you were truly on your own when it came to navigating online gaming.

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After a few weeks in preview, Microsoft Office is now available for Android smartphones. Despite Microsoft's mobile-first, cloud-first philosophy, it has actually taken some time to bring the world's most popular office suite to Android phones -- it joins the tablet version of the suite that was released last year.

Just like the tablet editions, the phone versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint won't cost you a penny, allowing for the viewing and editing of a range of files when on the move. There is a cloud focus with support for not only OneDrive, but also Google Drive, Dropbox, and Box, and Microsoft says it has made changes based on the feedback received during the preview period.

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Microsoft's Xbox One gaming console does much more than just play games, there are many entertainment options. It aims to be the hub of the consumer's living room, with all sorts of choices and even HDMI pass-thru. Now music streaming service TuneIn is adding one more option to the mix.

TuneIn bills itself as "the world's largest collection of radio stations". This is more than just music, though. It's also stations that deliver news, sports, talk radio and podcasts. It's enough to cover just about any eclectic taste.

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The path to a free copy of Windows 10 should be very straightforward, but Microsoft has made it more confusing than necessary by making several contradictory statements.

In a nutshell (as it stands at the moment), if you have a valid installation of Windows 7, 8 or 8.1 then you can upgrade to the new OS for free, provided you do so before July 29 2016. If you don’t upgrade in that time frame you’ll need to purchase a license. This will set you back $119 for the Home edition or $199 for the Pro version. If you’re a Windows Insider you can continue getting free beta builds, license free. Still confused? We’ve put together a simple flowchart to help you work out if you’re eligible for the free upgrade or not.

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Windows Update has long been pushed as the way to make sure that Windows is fully patched and secure as possible. It is recommended that it be left in Automatic mode so updates are downloaded as they are released. Samsung, however, has different ideas.

The company has been found disabling Windows Update on a number of the computers it sells, channeling people to use its own SW Update tool instead. Microsoft MVP Patrick Barker noted the activity when he found a program called Disable_Windowsupdate.exe on his computer. The culprit was Samsung's crapware.

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It is that time of the month again when Microsoft releases new firmware updates for its Surface tablets. And this time around the devices for which updated firmware is offered are Surface Pro 3 and Surface 3.

Surface Pro 3, being the oldest slate of the two, has received regular firmware upgrades since June 2014, with one offered just last month, but for Surface 3, June 2015 marks the release of its first firmware update. Here is everything that is new.

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Over the weekend Microsoft had several stabs at explaining who will get Windows 10 for free come July 29. Previously we’d been told users would need a valid Windows 7 or 8.1 license, but three days ago Microsoft said anyone running a Windows Insider build of the new OS would get the final release too -- no license required. Great news for anyone on XP or Vista.

Then Microsoft backtracked a bit, suggesting a license was needed. But Windows Insider chief Gabriel Aul, chipping in on Twitter, seemed to contradict that by suggesting Insiders would get it free, so again no license required. Finally, Microsoft clarified things, but even then it did so in a slightly muddled way. And this isn’t even the first time Microsoft has confused would-be users of its future operating system.

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Even though Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile are part of the same "One" product strategy, the two feel like two separate projects at Microsoft. There are many commonalities and a similar core, but while Windows 10 has evolved tremendously since the technical preview build that arrived in January, the development of its mobile counterpart has progressed at a glacial pace. Windows 10 almost looks ready for its July 29 launch, but Windows 10 Mobile is far, far from being ready for prime time.

That is because the teams working on the upcoming operating system have devoted more of their attention to the PC version, leaving Windows 10 Mobile in the background. Microsoft is wise to play the PC card, as that is a market which it singlehandedly dominates, but not treating smartphones equally could be another mistake it is making on the mobile front. This is about to change.

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If you've been following the news about Windows 10, you can’t have avoided the confusion that arose from Gabe Aul's poorly written (but ultimately updated and clarified) blog post. We now know exactly where we stand. If you have a genuine version of Windows 7 or Windows 8.x you can upgrade to a fully licensed version of Windows 10 for free on July 29. For anyone without a genuine copy of 7 or 8.1, you can legitimately keep running Windows 10 if you are happy to stay on as a Windows Insider.

Of course, even if you upgrade from a valid version of Windows 7 or 8.x, you can still choose to remain a Windows Insider. Just as happens now, this means that you are granted access to pre-release builds on the Fast and Slow rings. Each preview build will be time-limited, but a new version will be released before the previous one expires. So... what will you do? Do you want to stay on the cutting edge of Windows advancements? Or would you prefer to stick with a more stable version of the operating system. There are, of course, pros and cons to both routes.

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NASCAR racing has both its fans and detractors. Try as I might, I fall into the latter category. For me, watching cars go around a circular track for hours is a great cure for insomnia. Rally car racing is certainly a much more interesting spectator sport, but I digress.

While I don't like NASCAR, enough people do to make it a smart organization to partner with. This is why you see so many sponsorship logos on the cars. Today, NASCAR and Microsoft partner to display the Windows 10 logo on Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s car. The partnership expands beyond the superficial, however.

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Known as the 1TB PS4 Ultimate Player Edition (or PlayStation 4 Ultimate Player 1TB Edition depending on who you're talking to), Sony is launching a new PlayStation 4 next month. With the ever-growing market for downloadable content, it's difficult to have too much disk space. Recognizing this, Sony is doubling the size of the largest capacity PS4.

The 1TB console will launch next month in the US, Asia and Europe, and the announcement comes just weeks after Microsoft announced a 1TB version of its Xbox One. Gamers in Japan will be able to get their hands on the console by the end of June, but the rest of the world will have to wait until July 15. There's no word on pricing, but Sony has detailed a few other changes that have been made to this version of the console.

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Right before the weekend my colleague Brian Fagioli explained how basically everyone can get a valid Windows 10 license for free. The best part about it is that you do not even need a valid Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 license, even though that is what Microsoft had previously told us, to upgrade from. Or do you?

Shortly after, however, Microsoft apparently had a change of heart, deciding to alter the blog post which announced this so that it reads like users still need a Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 license to take advantage of its free upgrade deal. And this has generated plenty of confusion, with Microsoft's own Gabriel Aul seemingly writing one thing in the latest version of the said blog post and saying something else after on Twitter. It is amateur hour at Microsoft, people.

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