NewsRumor: Windows Live Search to Be Rebranded?
Posted 11/24/08 at 04:50:49 PM by Mark Edward Soper
Ask three people what "Windows Live" is - and you might get more than three answers: "It's a social network" (Windows Live Spaces); "a photo organizing service" (Windows Live Photo Gallery); "an email client" (Windows Live Hotmail)...but no matter how many answers you get, you probably won't hear "a major search provider". Yes, despite Microsoft's lavishing of money, time, attention, and even offering cash back for searches, Windows Live Search is not a major contender in the search space currently dominated by Google and Yahoo.
Would a name change help? TechCrunch claims that a rebranding of Live Search as Kumo (Japanese for "cloud" or "spider") may be on tap for early 2009.
Will breaking Live Search away from the rest of the diverse Windows Live family with a new name help it prosper, or are you looking for better features? Join us after the jump for your chance to sound off.
NewsRedmond Makes It Easier to Arrive with Better Live Search Maps Features
Posted 10/01/08 at 10:45:05 PM by Mark Edward Soper
This week, Microsoft rolled out major enhancements to yet another member of its Live family: Live Search Maps.
Now, Live Search Maps places the directions in the left pane and the map in the right pane, making it easier to follow your route. Click the number next to each checkpoint to display a detailed map. And, you can switch quickly between 2D, 3D, aerial, and traffic views and, in a feature borrowed from its rivals, add stops as desired.
In a significant nod to those of us who navigate by landmarks, landmarks in six categories (gas stations, major national hotel chains, restaurants, convenience stores, grocery stores, and car dealerships) are now incorporated into the directions ("pass TACO BELL on the left in 1.1 miles"), and Live Search Maps even warns you if you've passed your last turn ("the last intersection is Main St If you reach Oak St, you've gone too far"). So, whether you're on a cross-country jaunt or just need to fill the inner geek with a quick meal, Live Search Maps has you covered.
Read on!NewsWindows Live Takes Over for Bundled Photo, Video, and Email Apps in Windows 7
Posted 09/23/08 at 07:30:48 PM by Mark Edward Soper
CNet's Ina Fried reports that Microsoft has decided to remove Windows Photo Gallery, Windows Movie Maker, and Windows Mail from Windows 7. Given the fact that Microsoft continues to upgrade its Live replacements for Photo Gallery and Mail, and added Movie Maker to the Live family, as we reported last week, this move seems to make a lot of sense.
As someone who's been recommending that Windows Vista users replace Windows Photo Gallery with Windows Live Photo Gallery ever since Live Photo Gallery was launched, I think that stripping Windows of utilities that only some people will use makes plenty of sense. Here's why:
1. Faster development of operating system releases. As Windows Live general manager Brian Hall told Fried, "It [this decision]makes it [Windows 7] much cleaner."
2. Fewer worries about antitrust actions. Lawsuits by the EU forced Microsoft to distribute EU-specific versions of Windows XP and Windows Vista that are missing Windows Media Player. By dropping other multimedia features, Microsoft makes Windows 7 even less appealing as a lawsuit target.
3. New partnership opportunities. According to Hall,"We can do things with specific partners to enable really great experiences that might be hard in Windows." We might see Windows 7+Adobe, Windows 7+Corel, or Windows 7+open source bundles from various OEMs.
4. Fewer opportunities for compatibility problems. As anyone who has ever wrestled with Windows Vista multimedia tools being broken by installing third-party tools (I recommend the freeware Vista Codec Package, available at http://shark007.net, if you can't burn CDs or DVDs in Windows Vista anymore after installing a third-party DVD burner), the possibility of reducing the chances of a "codec war" or other compatibility problems is a welcome one.
So, what do you think? Do you like the idea of choosing your favorite free or commercial photo, video, and email clients right from the start, or do you prefer the current method? Are you more likely to buy a preinstalled version of Windows 7 if it had a well-integrated third-party media and email software bundle, or do you prefer to create your own "best of breed" combination? Do you have a horror story of third-party apps and Windows butting heads? Tell them now before Windows 7 does away with them. Hit the jump for your chance.
NewsWindows Live's Third Wave Now Ready to Try
Posted 09/19/08 at 04:06:05 PM by Mark Edward Soper
Windows Live has come a long way since it was first introduced as a Microsoft brand in 2006. The first wave bolted Hotmail, Messenger, and Spaces into a single download. In last year's second wave, tools like SkyDrive, Events, Photo Gallery, LiveWriter, Calendar, and Family Safety joined the family, along with support for mobile devices. This week, Microsoft rolled out its third wave, adding a new member to the Windows Live family (Movie Maker) and new features to several existing programs (Messenger, Photo Gallery, Writer, Toolbar, and more). We've already told you about the new features in Hotmail, so join us after the jump to find out what's new and improved.
NewsOffice Live Workspace Due Out This Year
Posted 09/06/08 at 03:56:09 PM by Justin Kerr
ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley has apparently learned that Microsoft’s online alternative to Google Docs will emerge from beta before the end of this year. Office Live Workspace is a service that is geared to work as either a standalone product, or in tandem with Office 2003-2007. It has been suggested that the current public beta is fairly close to the final version, and the primary issue outstanding is language support. Microsoft wishes to expand the 11 languages it currently supports to 37 before it officially lifts the beta tag later this year. Spokesmen Kirk Gregersen from Microsoft has also reportedly commented on the surprising trends they have identified during the public beta. It was originally assumed that casual users such as students would use Live Workspace as a means to author and remotely access documents. Instead, the service is being used mostly as a single access point for collaborative efforts involving multiple users. Insiders have suggested that this only further demonstrates why desktop versions of Microsoft Office won’t be leaving us anytime soon.
For those who haven’t been following the development of Office Live Workspace, hit the jump to learn more about the services currently being offered.
NewsWant Windows Live OneCare with a Side of Office? Get Equipt!
Posted 07/03/08 at 07:57:06 AM by Mark Edward Soper
CNet reports that the Microsoft Office subscription service previously code-named "Albany" will be sold at Circuit City as Microsoft Equipt. Equipt provides home users with access to a lot of software for a yearly subscription that's not much more than Windows Live OneCare.
To find out more about what you get for your money, join me after the break.
NewsWeekend Update: Microsoft Edition, April 2008 [updated]
Posted 04/18/08 at 10:10:40 PM by Mark Soper
The latest real news from Redmond, including Vista's first feature pack, why Microsoft's new acquisition of a travel search site's not the same old "name your own price"-type thing, and more.
FROM THE ARCHIVEIt's Coming! Our Checklists Help You Prepare for Vista SP1 (updated)
Posted 03/17/08 at 05:41:33 PM by Mark 'Marcus_Soperus' Soper
Reliable sources indicate that Vista SP1 will be available this week. Pry yourself away from the St. Patrick's Day celebrations tonight to make sure your Vista RTM or Windows XP system is ready.
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