eWEEK EDITORS

TORONTO—Microsoft is readying a new Web site its calling “Windows Marketplace” via which it plans to provide customers with drivers, applications and services from both Microsoft and its partners. Company officials offered a bit of information on the forthcoming service during the Sunday morning keynote at Microsofts annual worldwide partner conference here. Kevin Johnson, group […]

On Friday, there were a number of reports on various Windows enthusiast sites noting that Microsoft had informed testers of its intention to post another beta release of Windows XP Service Pack 2. Now, according to Neowin, Microsoft is saying there will be no more SP2 beta releases and that the notice, allegedly posted by […]

The Seattle-based Microsoft Corp. spinoff, The Graw Group, announced Thursday that it has completed a $4.75 million round of financing led by August Capital and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. As reported by Microsoft Watch in February, Graw is a company composed of a number of former Microsoft employees developing social-networking software and Web services […]

Microsofts competitors smell blood in the enterprise waters. They are swarming around NT 4.0 like sharks. And Apple is among the school of circling predators. Like Red Hat Inc., Novell Inc., Sun Microsystems Inc. and other vendors, Apple Computer Inc. sees a silver lining in Microsofts decision to phase out support for NT Server 4.0 […]

Is that cell phone a Trojan horse? It might be, according to a recently released report, “How to Tackle the Threat From Portable Storage Devices,” by The Gartner Group discussing the security risks associated with the proliferation of small USB- and Firewire-enabled electronics and peripherals. As as the cost of RAM chips and hard drives […]

The first Personal Media Centers are now being offered for sale on Amazon.com, Microsoft Corp. announced on Friday. Portable Media Centers—also known as Portable Video Players—will be sold initially by Creative and Samsung. Both machines will retail for $499, contain 20GB of storage, and allow consumers to view video and still images on them, as […]

“He Aint Kooky. Hes My Buddy.” So say the posters adorning Microsoft Corp.s Redmond, Wash., campus, announcing the launch of companys latest independent-software-vendor partner initiative. Microsoft quietly has taken the wraps off its “ISV Buddy Program,” which is designed to match up Microsoft employees and software-vendor partners. “Its about putting a face to Microsoft and […]

Birmingham, AL-based SouthTrust Bank, with more than 700 branches across the south, is saving more than $5 million annually in telecommunications and other costs after installing an IP PBX from Cisco Systems, and moving from BellSouth to AT&T for networking. Cost reductions include savings of 20 percent annually in local and frame-relay circuits; 51.3 percent […]

Saflink Corp. on Wednesday announced a deal with Microsoft Corp. to provide software security programs to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. “Together, we provide a compelling solution for Homeland Security programs involving biometrics, smart cards, tamper-proof identities and physical security controls,” said Mark Belk, Microsoft Homeland Security chief architect. Read the full story at […]

nCircle Network Security Inc. recently released version 6.2 of its IP360 Vulnerability Management System with new features to assess security risks and meet new regulatory reporting requirements. The company said its system blocks holes in IT systems that might serve as avenues of attack, making it more proactive than firewalls and antivirus software. IP360 plugs […]

Worldwide trade in pirated software hit nearly $29 billion in 2003, according a Business Software Alliance (BSA) survey announced Wednesday. That value amounted to about 60 percent of all legal global desktop software sales of $51 billion, the BSA said. The BSA came under some criticism for its previous tallies because it couldnt clearly spell […]

Industry experts said that business communitys interest in Wi-Fi will skyrocket in the next year or two now that 802.11i is an official IEEE security standard. “Having a new standard in place is an important step forward,” Frank Hanzlik, managing director of the Wi-Fi Alliance, said. “Half the notebooks shipping today have Wi-Fi built in, […]