As I've noted in this blog several times over the past couple years, I have become a devoted Google Chrome user because Internet Explorer 9 on my Windows 7 PC is not up to snuff.     Yes, I have tried just about everything imaginable to fix this. I've disabled all add-ons. I've reinstalled the browser. I've called in the big guns from Microsoft, ZDNet and other shops to try to provide help. Nothing made IE9 running on Windows 7 on my UL30A laptop from ASUS run acceptably. In spite of all of

Who is Julie Larson-Green? Meet the new head of Windows     I don't know the back story here, but here's what I do know: Microsoft President Steven Sinofsky is leaving Microsoft, effective immediately -- just days after launching his babies, Windows 8 and the Microsoft Surface. And the new head of Windows is Julie Larson-Green.   As my CNET colleague Jay Greene reported, Microsoft is saying Sinofsky's departure was mutually agreed upon. Sinofsky is leaving to pursue other unspecified inter

The company says the decision was mutual. But reported disputes between Sinofsky and Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer may have strained the relationship.     Former Windows President Steven Sinofsky (Credit: Microsoft)   Steven Sinofsky, the Microsoft executive who turned its Windows franchise around and just led the effort to release Windows 8, is leaving the company, effective immediately. Sinofsky, a controversial figure at the company, was the subject of a recent CNET profil

Microsoft formally launched its Windows 8 operating system today, sabering the champagne bottle (so to speak) on one of its two cash cow software platforms. (The other is the Office productivity suite.)     The event, which was live-streamed on the Web, featured chief executive Steve Ballmer, Windows chief Steven Sinofsky, Windows program management chief Julie Larson-Green and Windows client and ecosystem chief Michael Angiulo. Heavy on pomp and light on substance, the presentation noneth

So Microsoft has gone and done it.     The company has sold operating systems for other companies' computers for more than 30 years. Sticking to the software and letting other people deal with the hardware side is what made Microsoft the multinational behemoth that dominated the computing landscape through the 1990s and much of the 2000s. MS-DOS; 16-bit Windows 1, 2, and 3; the hybrid Windows 95 family; and the 32-bit (and, later, 64-bit) Windows NT family that is still with us to this day:

Today we reached an important milestone in the development of the new Office. Moments ago, the Office engineering team signed off on the Release to Manufacturing (RTM) build. This milestone means the coding and testing phase of the project is complete and we are now focused on releasing the new Office via multiple distribution channels to our consumer and business customers. This is the most ambitious release of Office we've ever done. It spans the full family of Office applications, servers

With Windows 8, Windows RT devices, and Windows Phone 8 coming soon, we are excited to give you a preview of the new client management capabilities and vision we’ll be delivering in the coming months: System Center 2012 Configuration Manager Service Pack 1 Interoperability of Windows Intune and System Center Configuration Manager Console Management of Windows RT and Windows Phone 8 Windows Intune Licensing Changes Support for the Management of Windows Embedded devices   Syst

Windows PowerShell 3.0 is now available for download for Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2 and for Windows Server 2008. Windows PowerShell 3.0 comes in the Management Framework 3.0. You will need to download the appropriate package for your target operating system. Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 must be at service pack 1, while Windows Server 2008 requires service pack 2.   Some of the new features in Windows PowerShell 3.0 include: Workflow - Windows PowerShell Workflow lets IT Pros an