Pedro Hernandez

Microsoft makes no secret about its big data ambitions for Azure. In June, the company announced that it was working on enabling MapR clusters on the company’s cloud. Now, customers can spin up their MapR-based big data processing environments directly in the Azure Marketplace. “Using the streamlined Marketplace UI one can easily setup 3, 6, […]

Microsoft announced today that it posted revenue of $21.66 billion during the company’s fiscal year 2016 first quarter ending Sept. 30, a 7 percent year-over-year decline. Net income was $5.38 billion, or 67 cents per share, beating Wall Street estimates of 59 cents per share, a 3 percent improvement. In what is now a familiar […]

Microsoft published the 2015 Citizenship Report for the fiscal year 2015 on its new Transparency Hub this week, announced the software giant’s president and top lawyer, Brad Smith. “As we work to create more personal computing, build the intelligent cloud and reinvent productivity and business processes, our citizenship commitments and actions play an important part […]

OneNote will soon allow users to convert their hand-drawn doodles into precise, computer-generated shapes, Microsoft announced. “Ink Shape Recognition is a new mode that will automatically convert your hand-drawn shapes into perfect-looking shapes while inking,” wrote Ian Mikutel, a Microsoft OneNote Ink product manager, in an Oct. 20 blog post detailing the new feature. “It […]

Microsoft wants to make it easier for users of the Power BI mobile app to share their business intelligence findings, keep an eye on group dashboards and monitor their Mandrill data. An update to Power BI for Android now allows users to annotate and share snapshots directly from the dashboard, said Romi Koifman, program manager […]

On Oct. 6, the European Union’s (EU) top court ruled that the Safe Harbor provision was invalid. The legal framework efficacy—it required U.S. companies to protect data belonging to Europeans—was cast into doubt after Edward Snowden, a former U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) contractor, leaked documents detailing the U.S. government’s intelligence-gathering capabilities. Now, multinational companies […]

Microsoft is serious about turning its Windows-powered, laptop-replacing Surface Pro 4 tablet into the go-to mobile productivity solution for enterprises. Last month, the company raised eyebrows by announcing that Dell and Hewlett-Packard would resell the Surface Pro 3 to business customers, right alongside their own Windows tablets and two-in-one PCs. The move, part of the […]

Skype for Web, the browser-based version of Microsoft’s communications app, can come in handy when users can’t (or won’t) install a Skype client on their devices. Now, it can help users better connect with practically anyone with Internet access. “We’ve started to roll out the ability for users to invite anyone to join a Skype […]

Microsoft’s Windows 10 update policy, though meant to respond more nimbly to a rapidly shifting, cloud-enabled technology landscape, has drawn the ire of IT professionals. Despite some early indications that the operating system has a bright future in the enterprise, many administrators are distrustful of the software giant for its lack of transparency concerning the […]

Microsoft has gathered its reports into its new Transparency Hub, aimed at providing the public with easy access to data concerning the Redmond, Wash., software giant. The Website “includes a new transparency report that details requests we receive from a variety of parties seeking the removal of online content,” John Frank, deputy general counsel and […]