Microsoft Comfort Optical Mouse 1000: X-Y resolution: 500 points per inch (19.7 points per millimeter).

Ага, тысяча. Наебали, наебали. Молодцы.

It's an interesting full circle for me having started OWASP back in 2001 and now having had a hand in one of the biggest technology companies in the world (my current employer) joining. Someone sent me a mail on Friday asking "What's in it for Microsoft?". My reply "It's just the right thing to do."

New fetures in this release include support for Microsofts OOXML, ODF 1.2 and notably an Auqua native release for folks on Mac OS X...

Enjoy

Sony, the clear dominator in the previous generation's console war with their PlayStation 2 took such a gamble with the PlayStation 3. They should have easily won this generation as well, but instead of focusing on great games, they decided instead to focus on great hardware.

Microsoft has so much going for them with the Xbox 360 even against the PlayStation 3's far superior hardware, but it takes a lot to compete on the same level as the NES once did. How has the Xbox 360 achieved this merit? What has made it stand out?

The Accessibility

Anyone who can use a computer can use an Xbox 360. It has superior operability versus virtually any other console. It is not only a gaming machine, but a home media center. Anyone can easily stream videos and music to and from their Xbox 360 with relative ease.

The Retail Games

A console is worthless without great software to accomodate the hardware. This is one of the Xbox 360's strongest points. With great exclusives like Halo, Gears of War, and Fable, the Xbox 360 is a gaming powerhouse. What amazing exclusives does the PS3 have? Beyond Metal Gear Solid 4, LittleBigPlanet, and Resistance: Fall of Man, virtually nothing. Before earlier this year, the only real reason I could imagine anyone wanting a new PS3 was for Final Fantasy XIII - but it seems that it's not exclusive anymore.

The Arcade Games & Online Content

One of the greatest things about the Xbox 360 is the Xbox Live! Arcade. The XBLA makes it easy to relive some of your favorite gaming classics from a wide plethora of consoles and generations. Whether you want to replay Asteroids, Contra, or Banjo-Kazooie, you'll find it on the Xbox Live! Arcade.

Back in the days of the NES, just about every game used to be hard and take a lot of patience and dedication to beat. There was seemingly a pot of gold sitting atop your television. As the third generation consoles died out and many generations came after them, this feeling subsided. Now, however, Microsoft has a system called "Achievement Points." When you accomplish a certain difficult task in a game, you are awarded a certain number of achievement points which are accumulated into your Gamerscore. Who out of your friends has the highest Gamerscore? The pot of gold has returned :)

Sony made a big mistake by not ripping this off until way too late in the game. At this point, there is no excuse why I would want to buy the PS3 version of one game over the Xbox 360 version. Can I increase my Gamerscore with the PS3 version of GTA4? No.

Conclusion

Do you want an estimate of how bad Sony is doing the PS3 right now? Sony literally made millions off of the PS2, but they have had so much loss over the PS3 that it has all but negated their PS2 profits. Essentially, the two consoles have cancelled themselves out. With Microsoft raking in more and more cash everyday, Sony is going to have to do something quick to catch up. Indeed, we may see a PS4 around 2010, but will it be able to compete with Microsoft's latest project - the Xbox Phoenix? Only time will tell, but I'm willing to predict we will not see a PS5.

What's clear to me is that the return to economic fundamentals will rub off on everything else. In tech, media and marketing circles, that means a flight to quality companies, quality products, and the radical pursuit of simplicity.

So it's incumbent on the digital media industry to clearly articulate the social media value proposition. I think we need less talk about social media theory, less industry obsession with jargon and the wow factor, and more focus on real results achieved by companies using social media.

I've been conducting some research for more speaking engagements coming up, such as this one at the Financial Planners Conference. And I found myself getting lost in a thousand different theories about where it was all going. After clearing my head, I realised we need to get back to basics.

Social media, or whatever you want to call it, represents a fundamental shift in how we understand and use digital media to communicate.

In the same way the world faces a new economic reality, most of the corporate world still needs to discover the new communications reality. Yes, it's so-called two-way model of communications and conversation. Most of us get that. What we need now are more success stories that prove the theory.

So I smiled when I stumbled across this video from Microsoft (of all companies!). If you still don't "get it," try watching this for a funny insight into a profound disconnect I hope many companies will avoid in the months ahead.

Microsoft is suing U.S.-based cargo-delivery service DHL Express for allegedly losing 21,600 Xbox game consoles because of a train derailment in Texas, according to court documents.

In a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington in Seattle, Microsoft said it is seeking more than US$2 million in damages from DHL for two containers of Xbox consoles that sustained "impact damage, wetting, pilfering and shortage" after a derailment near Duke, Texas.

The Xboxes were en route from a Microsoft office in McAllen, Texas, to Long Beach, California, for eventual delivery to Hong Kong at the time of the loss, which occurred on Oct. 13, 2007, according to court papers. Flextronics Industrial in Hong Kong was the intended recipient.

Microsoft claims that DHL has refused to compensate it for the loss, even though the delivery service "negligently breached its duties as a common carrier, handler, bailee, warehouseman, agent, or in other capabilities," according to the court papers.

DHL could not be reached for comment Friday.

Microsoft's Xbox game consoles also were the center of a recent controversy in Colorado, where a man was indicted on Sept. 23 for illegally reselling both Xbox 360 and Sony Playstation consoles, and returning inoperable consoles to retail and online outlets for money as if he had purchased them legally.

According to the U.S. State Attorney's Office in the District of Colorado, 27-year-old Yewchoo Ng of Boulder purchased the consoles at Target, Amazon.com, Buy.com, Best Buy, Circuit City, Sears and Wal-mart using several credit cards. He took the consoles out of the boxes, removed the serial numbers, put those numbers on older, inoperable consoles, and returned those consoles to the retail outlets, according to the state attorney's office.

The retail and online outlets lost $182,001 as a result of the scam, the office said. Ng also sold the new consoles online via e-Bay and other auction and shopping sites for his own personal profit.

article form PC World.

ummmm....Why is it that when I sell a PS3 and it gets lost and UPS doesn't want to give me my money even though I put insurance on it, I can't do anything. When the same thing happens to Microsoft they just sue them for a million dollars. that's corporate America for you.

What she wanted was a PC that runs Windows XP. She only heard bad things about Windows Vista. So I showed her the Microsoft Mojave Experiment. Surprisingly she found the site helpful and interesting. But we're not here to talk about Microsft. We're here to talk about the MacBook.

So while I was looking at the beuatiful MacBooks trying to figure out which one would convert my mother into a Mac Disciple and not be to expensive, I noticed that the difference between the Black MacBook and the White MacBook is $108 dollars and the color. Taking the basic White MacBook, all anyone has to do to create the same computer as a Black MacBook is to increase the hard drive to 250 gigabytes. That makes the White MacBook the exact same as the Black, just $180 and a different color.

If you don't believe me check out the Apple site here with the specs for both versions of the MacBooks. Make sure to click the "Compare" button to see the side by side comparison.

Dimulai dari interface depan XBOX Live, menu cascade horisontal yang bersih menyerupai interface pada Apple iPod.Tombol-tombolnya pun hampir mirip Windows Aero.

Lalu lompat ke informasi Account user XBOX Live.Lengkap dengan Rep Status,Gamescore dan Zone ditampilkan secara bersih dengan model menu cascade horisontal. Dan avatarnya pun ikut nampang disitu.

Tampilan futuristis pun disajikan saat kita melakukan kostumisasi avatar kita.

Menurut sumber yang saya dapatkan update tampilan anyar XBOX Live ini akan hadir pada 19 November 2008 ini. Bagaimana? siapkah anda merasakan pengalaman yang berbeda seperti yang ditawarkan Microsoft XBOX 360 ini? Lalu bagaimana dengan Sony PlayStation 3 dan Nintendo Wii ? kita lihat saja tanggal mainnya :).(bbs)(dailytech.com)(cnet)

Desde o início da grande crise, as ações do Yahoo! despencaram, sendo uma das empresas mais atingidas pela desvalorização de seus ativos no país.

Para os investidores do grupo, que defende um acordo em que a Microsoft pague US$ 22 por ação ao Yahoo!, essa é a hora de retomar as conversas e salvar a empresa de uma baixa ainda maior. A direção de nenhuma das companhias se manifestou, mas, a princípio, para o grupo de Bill Gates, pode ser difícil dispor de dinheiro neste momento de crise financeira.

Fonte: AdNews

New Xbox 360 Dashboard

New Halo 3 info not enough for you and your Xbox? Well this should be enough. The Xbox website says that on November 19, the new dashboard update will be available. A recap on some of the things the update brings:

• Slick 3D "flip" menu interface
• Load games off of your hard drives instead of the disc (this is faster and brings no more worries of scratched discs!)
• Avatars (like Mii's on the Wii) for Xbox Live Arcade games

This is a nice little update and will be both mandatory and free (you will need to download it, but you will also need to have at least 256 MB free for it to download) when it comes out next month.

We also have news for those perspective buyers out there who didn't buy an Xbox 360 last week when Dell was giving those $50 off coupons (we wrote about it here). From now till who knows when, all versions of Xbox 360 (yes all: Arcade, Pro and Elite) will be bundled with full games in the box...free! The Pro and Elite with the Kung Fu Panda and Lego Indiana Jones and the Arcade (already including the regular 5 Xbox Live Arcade games like Pac-Man and Uno!) with a full copy of Sega Superstar Tennis. There are no changes in the overall price of the system, so think of this as an early holiday present to you from Microsoft ;)

New Xbox 360 Pro Bundle. Pic from Gizmodo.com

Any of this info enough to make you wanna save up some $$$ and buy an Xbox 360, or are you gonna wait a little longer till the holiday season comes closer, looking for a better deal? Let us know in the comments.

Dashboard info from Xbox.com, Xbox 360 deal info from Gizmodo.com

My teammate, Jason, and I carefully weighed our options. We could play it safe and come up with a marketing plan that a typical agency would come up with. This would entail a nice mix of search, display and print advertising to the relevant target markets. Or we could come up with something totally unique and show the judges something they haven't seen before.  We chose the latter option.

We immediately took aim at the metrics we were being judged on. Downloads don't tell you much. Anyone can download something. Using the product is what's important. We focused on product usage, not downloads. Inspired by AMEX points and Marlboro points, we created a program called Microsoft LivePoints. Users accrue points by interacting with the products they downloaded. They also accrue points by referring friends. Users with the most points win weekly, monthly, and yearly prizes. It's not the best program. But at least it wasn't typical.

We had all the details written out in our proposal document. Got accepted into the semi-finals where we presented our plan to high-level Microsoft executives. We made it to the finals and presented to some even higher-level Microsoft executives. Eventually we came in 2nd place. The criticism we got on our plan that while the execs loved the focus on use rather than downloads, they felt the plan required some implementation on Microsoft's end and they have a history of not implementing well (I'm not kidding. That is what they said). We ended up getting a couples of Zunes as prizes. It was good experience and I'm glad I did it.

Last week Microsoft announced a new program called SearchPerks. The program allows users to accrue tickets by using their search engine. Users can submit these tickets for prizes. While somewhat different, this idea sounds eerily similar to the pitch my friend Jason and I gave to Microsoft execs 6 months ago.

Check out my presentation from the competition embedded below. Then check out SearchPerks. Our team was named after the first prize...an XBox, Zune and a dinner with Microsoft executives.

[slideshare id=650149&doc=msftpresentationforblog-1223671148154395-9&w=425]

What do you think? Do you think my pitch had any influence on this new SearchPerks program? I'll let you decide.

When it was time to buy a new media player, I had 2 choices.  First was the ipod, and then it was the zune.  I already had an ipod mini, So I was in favor of an ipod video.  But there was someting about the zune that caught my attention.  So I went to my local best buy and checked it out.  At first I didnt like it becuase I wasn't used to the players twist interface.  Owning an ipods for 3 years, I was accustomed to the basic list format.  But 5 minutes into it, I actually noticed that it was much faster getting through songs.  Radio grabbed my attention, becuase I know everyone says "who listen to radio anymore" but I actually spend a good 30-40% of my day listening to radio.  I dont care how much music you have on your mp3 player, youre going to get tired of it sooner or later.  And thats when the radio comes in handy.  Spending a good 25 minutes messing around with the player, I chose to buy.  As soon as I got home I ripped that box open ( not literally ) and got my entire music/video/photo collection onto it.  after a good 3 hours of syncing I was set.  As I rode the bus to school the next morning some guy a couple of seats down also had a zune.  I was excited but the first thing that hit my mind was the wifi sharing.  So without evening knowing the guy I went to him and asked him if I could try the wifi sharing on the zune.  The man didnt even know that his zune could do that, he told me he got it a few days before for a birthday present.  So he sent me some techno music that he was listening to, and it took roughly about 30-40 seconds per song to transfer.  There was something about being able to share your music that as I got off the bus the guy waved at me and I waved back with a good feeling insided.

From Reuters:

Under the proposal by investment fund Mithras Capital, Microsoft would unload Yahoo's Asian assets and non-search businesses, extract $3 billion worth of cost savings and receive $2.8 billion of tax benefits, meaning the software giant would pay $10.3 billion for Yahoo's search business.

A quick refresher on Yahoo’s stock:

• Closed at $19.18 per share on January 31st, the day before Microsoft made the offer
• Closed at $28.38 per share (up 47%) on February 1st, the day of the Microsoft offer
• Closed at $24.37 per share on May 5th, the Monday following the failed merge announcement.
• Closed at $23.52 per share on June 12th, the day Yahoo! announced "discussions have concluded"
• Closed at $16.00 per share a week ago (October 3rd)

So at this point Yahoo! has a chance to get a price a little above what their stock was worth prior to this whole hostile take-over offer from Microsoft some 8 months ago. Even better almost $10 a share more than the stock is currently worth. Granted not even close to the initial $31 & $33 per share offers that Yahoo! rejected. Of course this is all dependent on Microsoft's willingness to consider buying Yahoo!

Source: The Microsoft Blog

Their peanut machine is pretty large and has dozens of utters for dispensing. They even have an automatic box makers that is built to the customers orders to ensure safe packaging while reducing shipping cost with tailored precision.

(Photo from AnandTech.com)

Their systems also seem very automated and completely leaves the decision making and costly error prone procedures robotic. Their pick, pack and pull procedures are control ed by computers and use bins with what looks like some bar-code hierarchy. This brief and rare inside tour of a companies internal operations is a great way to see how large e-commerce vendors are able to use the best in technology and conveyor belt systems.

(Photo from AnandTech.com)

While all the procedures are not spelled out, Anand's article might give you some ideas on your operations. You can view the entire tour and a great write up of newegg's facility at AnandTech.com.

Os Avatares do 360 serão obrigatórios e... Ocupam 210MB! Como a Microsoft irá resolver esse problema com as pessoas que não tem HD ou um Memory Card que não possuem essa capacidade é um mistério. Talvez ela faça uma campanha que você leva seu memory para uma loja e troca, uma unidade USB, ninguém sabe. O que eu tenho a dizer é: esses carinhas são pesados!

Cael

VoIP PBX is a switching system meant for core communication. The abbreviation stands for "Private Branch Exchange" and it offers several features that make calling exciting. It is a key telephone system and provides business owners with the ability to set up call setup dial tones, tear-down functions and other call processing features. A PBX system is supported by a management system -- typically on a traditional PC. Most systems have a feature that can keep all call detail records. Then the voice messaging system is used not just for voice messaging but also for other array of functions.

With the growth in business the VoIP PBX solutions have proved to be a smart means of accessing telephony services. There are several reasons for that. It involves simplicity of the system, affordability and easy installation procedures. So, business organizations have started to deploy the system on a rapid scale. One such system is from Microsoft called "Response Point".

The Voice Over IP is a fairly new technology meant for transferring of voice calls to end users over medium as that of internet. Besides, the system allows integration with the traditional methods of telephony. This is done with various software that are upgraded from time to time. The operation cost for the system is also substantially low.

This business phone system is beneficial for business houses such as that of call centers. This is because calls are forwarded at a minimum call rate. Then the users are also supported by an Automatic Call Distributor (ACD) system and a Management Information System (MIS). These systems make the VoIP phone very interesting for business organisations. Moreover, the PBX system includes basic features and functions such as Direct Call Dialing (DID), Automatic Route selection (ARS) and Call Detail Recording (CDR).

The PBX system is much more superior than the traditional Key Telephone System (KTS). This is because the features that are basic to a PBX system are considered advanced in case of a KTS. The functionality in case of PBX systems are meant to provide more robust functions, enhancement of ports, voice traffic, call processing and more such important applications.

An IP PBX VoIP can be used to function as an Automatic Call Distributor(ACD). The ACD system are known for four basic call processing functions. They are screening, routing, queuing and answering. The method is very innovative. It allows calls to be distributed to a group of answering stations.

Thus the PBX is viewed upon as a solution to all the basic needs of a user. It brings the latest features with VoIP network connections. People can use the system to forward calls effectively to the end users. As Voice Over IP is coupled with other features such as video conferencing, messaging, 3 way calling while making calls to others, this system is looked upon as a very innovative means to forward calls. The PBX makes it possible to access this telephony service at workplace or at home with ease.

The growth of business is enhanced with the business phone systems. The users can get detailed information about the service on internet. There are several websites that have uploaded thesis on VoIP that are a result of research of many scholars and scientists . So, reading them gives an in-depth understanding of VoIP and PBX systems.

Teresa Carlson was named general manager of U.S. Government Civilian Agencies and International Global Organizations, and Brian Roach general manager of the Federal Department of Defense group. And Suzanne Behrens, former director of public sector marketing, was named general manager of the company's Business Marketing Organization, handling public sector communications.

Microsoft has a powerful federal team -- a group of people who are passionate about helping the government accomplish it's mission. Yes, they are also interested in helping Microsoft be successful, but...
I know Carlson and Behrens fairly well, and I have met Roach several times. Carlson was a powerful force in helping the government establish the Federal Core Desktop Configuration. (Read Microsoft's info about the FCDC here.) That is a case where the FCDC may have helped Microsoft, but... it is also an important piece of securing agency PCs... and it is a key part of OMB's cyber-security initiative. She did not win a Fed 100 award for her efforts -- Shelly Bird, chief architect at Microsoft Consulting Services did, and, from what I have heard, deservedly so. But I have also had insiders tell me that this initiative never would have come to fruition without Carlson's energy and efforts.

I think FCDC is an example where both government and industry can work together. It doesn't always work out that ways, does it?

I didn't get a copy of the press release -- in fact, I don't see it posted anywhere -- but... GovExec has it, so... I'm passing it along...

Curt Kolcun, Vice President of Microsoft Federal, is the over all leader of the team. Last year, Federal Computer Week honored Kolcun with a Fed 100 award for his impassioned work helping veterans and USO. Kolcun spearheaded a remarkable event in New York -- A Salute To Our Troops -- held at Radio City Music Hall. I mention it because they are holding the second annual salute again in November.

Read more about the salute after the break.

As promised, here is the full release on November's "Salute."

Kudos to Kolcun for his work... and to the others for their new jobs.

Wireless Card that picks up 31 Miles Link   Add on card that picks up incredible ranges
Wireless Antennas Link   Great supplier of antennas and supplies
Wireless Coverage Estimater Link  Use to see where to place your access points

Shortly after learning that the Flood would be making an appearance in Halo Wars, Joystiq respondents were whisked away to a meeting with Ensemble's Graeme Divine where they immediately asked: "Is the Flood a playable race?" As quickly as they asked it, they were answered: no. With an emphasis on the story-driven single-player campaign, Divine told them that the multiplayer component would only include the UNSC and Covenant forces, as already revealed, and the campaign would only be playable as the UNSC, not the Covenant (shall we begin guessing now that there will be an expansion making the Covenant a playable campaign). But that brings up another issue: how is the Flood present in a prequel taking place 20 years before the events in Halo: Combat Evolved? The more Halo-aware amongst you (read: total nerds) will recall that the introduction of the mysterious Flood in that seminal title was a surprise to the player and, indeed, to the entire UNSC command. When asked if they're retconning the Flood earlier into the Halo timeline, Divine said that the events observed in Halo 1 "was the first time UNSC knew about the Flood." So how does the existence of the parasitic aliens twenty years earlier go entirely unrecorded? Unsurprisingly, they're not saying (our guess: everyone dies).