Verizon Wireless has confirmed earlier reports that it's ready to enter the Netbook market. Spokeswoman Brenda Raney, who was quoted to a similar effect in an Internetnews.com story Friday, said Saturday that the plan is for the company to start selling 3G-enabled Netbooks by the end of the second quarter, or by June.
Unfortunately, Raney could offer little else in the way of details regarding pricing or potential PC partners. Crave's Erica Ogg suggested Dell would be an obvious partnering candidate. Dell already has a relationship with Verizon parent company Vodafone, which has sold Dell Netbooks in Europe since September 2008. However, a similar rumor floated around the Web last week regarding HP hooking up with Verizon.
Verizon's chief rival, AT&T, already sells Acer Netbooks for $99 with service through RadioShack, and also sells Dell Mini Inspirons through the wireless provider's Web site.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Monday, March 23, 2009
Internet Explorer 8's Poor Reception Not a Good Sign For Microsoft
Just days after the browser's big debut, IE 8's market share has fallen a full 28 percent from its peak. Alternative browsers, meanwhile, have held steady ground, losing no significant number of users to Microsoft's new offering.
IE 8 managed to break the 2% mark within a day of its release last Thursday, according to tracking data by analytics firm Net Applications. It grew slowly over the weekend, topping out at 2.59% of the overall browser market at 3 a.m. Sunday. From there, things started heading downhill. With a steady decline, Internet Explorer 8 dropped down to 1.86 percent of the market by Monday morning.
The results shouldn't necessarily come as a surprise. Internet Explorer has been losing market share consistently for months now. In February, Microsoft's overall slice of the pie slipped to 67.44 percent, down .11 percent from the previous month.
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IE 8 managed to break the 2% mark within a day of its release last Thursday, according to tracking data by analytics firm Net Applications. It grew slowly over the weekend, topping out at 2.59% of the overall browser market at 3 a.m. Sunday. From there, things started heading downhill. With a steady decline, Internet Explorer 8 dropped down to 1.86 percent of the market by Monday morning.
The results shouldn't necessarily come as a surprise. Internet Explorer has been losing market share consistently for months now. In February, Microsoft's overall slice of the pie slipped to 67.44 percent, down .11 percent from the previous month.
Full Story
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Internet Explorer 8 Ignores One Third Of The Market
With today's release of Internet Explorer 8, everyone who use Microsoft's browser will be getting some much-needed improvements but it may not be as fast as its competitors, according to early reports.
But speed is really everything. Without speed, all the other features fall by the wayside. If you look at Internet Explorer's market share, it has steadily been eroded over the past few years by its faster rivals Firefox, Safari, Chrome, and Opera.
Microsoft is doing what it always does: focusing on its massive installed base of users and ignoring the rest. If you've already left IE for a speedier browser, IE8 is not going to bring you back, and Microsoft knows it. IE may still hold 67% of the browser market, according to Net Apps, but that share is declining. Firefox claims 22%, Safari has 8%, and Chrome has captured 1%.
Full Story
But speed is really everything. Without speed, all the other features fall by the wayside. If you look at Internet Explorer's market share, it has steadily been eroded over the past few years by its faster rivals Firefox, Safari, Chrome, and Opera.
Microsoft is doing what it always does: focusing on its massive installed base of users and ignoring the rest. If you've already left IE for a speedier browser, IE8 is not going to bring you back, and Microsoft knows it. IE may still hold 67% of the browser market, according to Net Apps, but that share is declining. Firefox claims 22%, Safari has 8%, and Chrome has captured 1%.
Full Story
Monday, March 16, 2009
Number of People Using Mobile Devices Doubles
ComScore reports that the number of people using their mobile devices on a daily basis to access news and other information more than doubled between January 2008 and January 2009, to 22.4 million.
The number of people using their mobile devices to access online news and other information on a daily basis is rising sharply.
Between January 2008 and January 2009, the number of people who used their devices every day more than doubled, from 10.8 million to 22.4 million.
Some 8.2 million users downloaded maps, making that the most popular downloadable application; about 14.1 million users utilized their SMS-based news and information access for search, making that the most-favored use.
Full Story
The number of people using their mobile devices to access online news and other information on a daily basis is rising sharply.
Between January 2008 and January 2009, the number of people who used their devices every day more than doubled, from 10.8 million to 22.4 million.
Some 8.2 million users downloaded maps, making that the most popular downloadable application; about 14.1 million users utilized their SMS-based news and information access for search, making that the most-favored use.
Full Story
Friday, March 06, 2009
Windows 7 Will Have IE 8 On-Off Switch
Microsoft said the upcoming public release candidate of Windows 7 will include the ability turn off Internet Explorer 8, which is the target of antitrust charges.
The option will be available through a control panel called "Windows Features," which will allow IE 8 to be turned off. The feature does not uninstall the browser. Instead, it deletes the IE 8 executable file "iexplore.exe." All other components remain, and the browser can be turned back on through the same panel.
The governing body could require Microsoft to distribute Windows in the European Union without IE, or offer an installation screen that gives consumers a choice of which browser to install. It's too soon to say whether Microsoft's latest move will satisfy the EC.
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The option will be available through a control panel called "Windows Features," which will allow IE 8 to be turned off. The feature does not uninstall the browser. Instead, it deletes the IE 8 executable file "iexplore.exe." All other components remain, and the browser can be turned back on through the same panel.
The governing body could require Microsoft to distribute Windows in the European Union without IE, or offer an installation screen that gives consumers a choice of which browser to install. It's too soon to say whether Microsoft's latest move will satisfy the EC.
Full Story
Monday, March 02, 2009
Windows Market Share Rises Slightly; Mac Drops
The market share of Microsoft's Windows OS crept up every so slightly in February to 88.42 percent as Apple's Mac took a dip, according to data released by Net Applications.
Microsoft Windows inched up about 0.20 percentage points, from 88.2 percent in January to 88.42 percent last month. Apple's Mac, meanwhile, dropped from 9.93 percent to 9.61 percent over the last two months.
Compared to the same time last year, Windows has decreased slightly while Mac has had some gains. In February 2008, Windows had 90.67 percent market share, while Mac had 8.03 percent, and Linux had 0.76 percent.
Most Windows users, or about 64 percent, are still using XP while about 23 percent have upgraded to Vista. On the Mac front, about 6 percent are using the Mac OS X 10.5 and nearly 3 percent are on 10.4. A small amount - 1.35 percent - are still plugging away with Windows 2000.
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Microsoft Windows inched up about 0.20 percentage points, from 88.2 percent in January to 88.42 percent last month. Apple's Mac, meanwhile, dropped from 9.93 percent to 9.61 percent over the last two months.
Compared to the same time last year, Windows has decreased slightly while Mac has had some gains. In February 2008, Windows had 90.67 percent market share, while Mac had 8.03 percent, and Linux had 0.76 percent.
Most Windows users, or about 64 percent, are still using XP while about 23 percent have upgraded to Vista. On the Mac front, about 6 percent are using the Mac OS X 10.5 and nearly 3 percent are on 10.4. A small amount - 1.35 percent - are still plugging away with Windows 2000.
Full Story
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Microsoft's List of Improvements to Windows 7
Microsoft has released a lengthy list of 36 improvements it plans to make to the release candidate for Windows 7, though they didn't provide any details on when that RC might actually be available.
The Windows team separated the updates into nine categories, including the desktop experience, touch, and Windows Media Player. Desktop tweaks received the most attention, with 10 expected changes.
Microsoft has incorporated its "Aero Peek" window transparency tool to the ALT+TAB function to give you a better idea of the items you have open on your desktop.
The RC will also make it easier to open files with a specific program, now allows for 24-39 percent more icons to be displayed before the taskbar scrolls, and makes it easier to see what files are open when items do scroll, among other changes.
The release candidate will also include Internet radio playback that is "more reliable and resilient". Microsoft will also no longer interrupt content playing via Media Player if the user inserts a USB drive.
Full Story
The Windows team separated the updates into nine categories, including the desktop experience, touch, and Windows Media Player. Desktop tweaks received the most attention, with 10 expected changes.
Microsoft has incorporated its "Aero Peek" window transparency tool to the ALT+TAB function to give you a better idea of the items you have open on your desktop.
The RC will also make it easier to open files with a specific program, now allows for 24-39 percent more icons to be displayed before the taskbar scrolls, and makes it easier to see what files are open when items do scroll, among other changes.
The release candidate will also include Internet radio playback that is "more reliable and resilient". Microsoft will also no longer interrupt content playing via Media Player if the user inserts a USB drive.
Full Story
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Microsoft unveils new online employment resource
Microsoft announced the creation of a website, Elevate America, aimed at improving access to job training tools.
The site provides resources to help individuals gain the technical skills needed for acquiring jobs, the world's largest software company said.
The economy has shed 3.6 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007 with about half of the decline occurring in the past three months, recent Labor Department data showed.
The website provides access to several Microsoft online training programs, including how to use the Internet, send e-mail and create a resume, as well as more advanced programs on using specific Microsoft applications.
"We are also providing a full range of work force development resources for state and local governments so they can offer specialized training for their workers," said Pamela Passman, corporate vice president of Microsoft Global Corporate Affairs.
Microsoft tapped Washington state as the first state to provide Elevate America to its residents.
The site provides resources to help individuals gain the technical skills needed for acquiring jobs, the world's largest software company said.
The economy has shed 3.6 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007 with about half of the decline occurring in the past three months, recent Labor Department data showed.
The website provides access to several Microsoft online training programs, including how to use the Internet, send e-mail and create a resume, as well as more advanced programs on using specific Microsoft applications.
"We are also providing a full range of work force development resources for state and local governments so they can offer specialized training for their workers," said Pamela Passman, corporate vice president of Microsoft Global Corporate Affairs.
Microsoft tapped Washington state as the first state to provide Elevate America to its residents.
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