microsoft

cityfile · 11/23/09 01:30PM

New Moon smashed expectations this weekend, racking up $140 million at the box office and setting a record for the third-biggest opening ever. [NYT]
• News Corp. and Microsoft are in talks to remove News Corp. content from Google and have it appear on Bing, Microsoft's search engine. [FT, Bloomberg]
O is slumping, so Hearst is now planning to makeover the magazine. [NYP]
• Talks between GE and Vivendi over NBC seem to have hit a roadblock. [WSJ]
Project Runway's finale generated solid ratings for Lifetime, but it still didn't reel in the number of viewers it did when it aired on Bravo. [WWD]
• Scary: Glenn Beck is now looking to be more of a "political organizer." [NYT]
• Also scary: Lou Dobbs wasn't kidding about running for president. [NYDN]
Katie Couric: serious anchor by day, sexy dancer by night. [Gawker]

Microsoft Let NSA Spooks 'Enhance' Windows 7

Ryan Tate · 11/20/09 12:47PM

A National Security Agency director just bragged to a Senate subcommittee about his agency's close "cooperation" with Microsoft to, err, "enhance" how Windows 7 guards a user's privacy. Doesn't that just make you feel all warm and fuzzy?

Will Evangelize Your Tech Company for Food

Ryan Tate · 11/17/09 02:23PM

Don Dodge used to be an official evangelist for Microsoft, hyping the company's software and insulting its competitor Google. Then Microsoft laid him off, and Google hired him. Cue the bitter, flip-flopping blog post in which Dodge loudly switches sides.

Why News Corp. Keeps Threatening to Leave Google

Ryan Tate · 11/13/09 12:15PM

For the second time this week, News Corp. has promised to yank its content from Google, this time within "months." The conglomerate said loudly that search is profitless. But maybe that's just its way of making search hugely profitable.

Who's Turned on Family Guy?

Hamilton Nolan · 10/27/09 10:30AM

After much deliberation, Microsoft has decided against sponsoring the upcoming Family Guy special, 'Seth MacFarlane's Holocaust Incest Tampon Hour.' They join an illustrious list of Family Guy haters.

Bing Heats Google Ice Queen

Ryan Tate · 10/22/09 11:41AM

It's been ten years since Microsoft decisively buried Netscape, and Silicon Valley is still frightened of the monster in Redmond, Washington. Even giant Google is paranoid; the company is increasingly said to be chasing Microsoft's tail lights.

The Retreat of King Twitter

Ryan Tate · 10/21/09 11:30AM

With great power comes great responsibility, and with great responsibility comes great headaches. So after years as the hottest, most talked about startup in Silicon Valley, Twitter is ready to relinquish some control of the national conversation.

Selling Your Tweets to the Enemy

Ryan Tate · 10/08/09 11:30AM

Tech bloggers are in a tizzy over the prospect of tech giants Google or Microsoft getting real-time access to the thoughts of Twitterers, but Valleywag has learned that cash-hungry Twitter is already selling access to its "firehose" of data.

The Home Where Microsoft Got Reamed

Ryan Tate · 09/30/09 11:47AM

Microsoft is notorious for sticking it to enemies and business partners alike, especially among the tech elite of Silicon Valley. How satisfying for them, then, to hear how a hometown boy took the company to the cleaners.

Host Your Own Awful Party For Windows 7

Ryan Tate · 09/23/09 01:41PM

Microsoft's next operating system, Windows 7, is available to the public Oct. 22. So why not host an awkward launch party for a perfectly diverse group of your friends? Microsoft made an unbearable video tutorial to get you going.