Microsoft News Tracker

Last week, Microsoft announced a new add-on for Microsoft Dynamics SL (formerly known as Solomon):

Microsoft Corp. today unveiled BIO™ for Microsoft Dynamics™ SL, an operational analytics application that gives decision-makers throughout an organization unique and relevant insight into business drivers. Slated for release to manufacturing in May, BIO (Business Intelligence Optimization) for Microsoft Dynamics SL provides personalized, role-based business performance scorecards that empower employees to help increase the value of their customer interactions, lower product and service delivery costs, and create strategic plans for expanding their business. BIO for Microsoft Dynamics SL extends the solution to include a robust strategic, operational and financial analytics solution.
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Built on Microsoft® SQL Server™ Analysis Services, it also fully integrates with SQL Server 2000 and 2005.
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Microsoft worked closely with channel partner NexVue Analytics Corp. to develop the new business intelligence capabilities for Microsoft Dynamics SL. NexVue, a business intelligence development and consulting organization, is focused specifically on delivering out-of-the-box business analytic solutions specific to the requirements of midsized businesses. NexVue has designed and developed both a business and technical model (BIO) that build on the Microsoft business intelligence development environment for the midmarket that reduces the technology gap and the cost of implementing BI solutions.

Today comes word of another Dynamics SL partnership:

Temtec, a leading provider of intuitive self-service analysis and reporting software for business intelligence, today announced it has signed a software distribution agreement with Microsoft Corporation whereby Microsoft will market a private label version of Executive Viewer® as part of its analytical platform.

“Our partnership with Microsoft Dynamics SL will enable us to significantly extend our penetration into the mid market and add real value to Microsoft Dynamics SL analytical capabilities,” commented Temtec Managing Director, Alan Parker.

Temtec is a Microsoft Gold Certified partner and a leading provider of self-service analysis and reporting software. Executive Viewer is designed to optimise user access to information stored in Microsoft Analysis Services and provide non-technical users the ability to analyse business critical information at the speed of thought for better informed decision making.

Press release:

In the face of escalating game development costs, expanding teams and ever more complex hardware technologies, Microsoft Corp. today delivered a pre-release version of the first XNA™ Studio tools and unveiled the XNA Framework to attendees of the Game Developers Conference 2006 in San Jose. Microsoft also announced that the company is opening its Xbox Live® Server Platform to game developers and publishers, allowing them to innovate and extend the Xbox Live experience in their titles.
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XNA Studio represents a set of tools and technologies Microsoft is building to help streamline and optimize the game development process.
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This community technology preview (CTP) represents the first public opportunity for game developers to get their hands on key components of XNA Studio.
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The XNA Framework contains a custom implementation of the Microsoft® .NET Framework and new game-development-specific libraries designed to help game developers more easily create cross-platform games on Windows and Xbox 360 using the highly productive C# programming language.
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In addition to XNA Studio, Microsoft today announced further enhancements for extending Xbox Live services with the Xbox Live Server Platform. Using this platform, developers can create their own back-end servers to run alongside Xbox Live. Developers will get firsthand experience with this update — which provides easier-to-manage and more scalable technology on Xbox Live — in the next Xbox Development Kit, expected in May. Microsoft Game Studios’ blockbuster Xbox 360 game, “Project Gotham Racing® 3,” offers an early example of how these services can work; up to 30,000 gamers can easily watch other racers play in real time through Spectator Mode. More recently, in the stunning “Burnout: Revenge” from Electronic Arts Inc., the Live Revenge feature and the Save and Share feature were made possible by functionality that will now be distributed through the Xbox Live Server Platform.

Just to be completely clear, “cross-platform” or “multiplatform” in the XNA context only means Windows PC and Xbox 360 games which isn’t unexpected and is useful. I do wonder though how many game developers will really use C# for any significant portion of their code. The Xbox Live Server Platform looks like an interesting idea.

Press release:

At a technology debate hosted by EuroISPA, the European Internet Services Providers Association, and co-sponsored by Interpol in Brussels today, Neil Holloway, president of Microsoft Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), unveiled a global law enforcement campaign that will target cybercriminals behind phishing attacks. Microsoft Corp. announced that by the end of June 2006 it will have initiated legal actions on more than 100 cases in EMEA against individuals suspected of committing online fraud; 53 of these will have already started by the end of March 2006.
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The legal actions are linked to a larger Microsoft® program, the Global Phishing Enforcement Initiative (GPEI), launched by the company to coordinate and expand its many anti-phishing efforts worldwide to fight phishers through consumer protection, partnerships and prosecution. “Microsoft’s global phishing enforcement initiative works in partnership with law enforcement, multiple industries and governments to educate consumers, prosecute criminals and develop technology solutions to address the threat of phishing,” Holloway said.

The recent massive increase in phishing is apparently due to the widespread availability of easy-to-use “phishing kits”.

Press release:

At a joint press conference later today, Brown University and Microsoft Research will unveil plans for the Microsoft Center for Research on Pen-Centric Computing, which will promote and fund research aimed at improving pen-based operation of Tablet PCs, Pocket PCs, Palm Pilot personal digital assistants, electronic whiteboards and conventional desktop computers. The center is the first academic research program in the nation dedicated to pen-centric computing innovation.

Through the three-year joint research and education alliance, Microsoft Research and Brown University will explore and develop new ways to use pen-like styluses to operate computing devices. Under the alliance, Microsoft Research will invest $1.2 million (U.S.) over the next three years.

The more the merrier. Maybe I’ll live long enough to see usable pen and voice input. In the meantime, I’m with Ross Rubin:

… in the graveyard of failed technology products, the pen computing section is overrun with tombstones

Today marks the start of Microsoft’s Mix Conference (Mix06) in Las Vegas featuring a keynote by Bill Gates (web cast - 9AM Pacific). The focus is on Web developers to whom Microsoft will pitch its various Web development initiatives including the Atlas framework for building AJAX applications and it is expected that a “layout complete” beta version of Internet Explorer 7 will be distributed to the attendees, but won’t be made publicly available. Despite earlier hints, the attendees apparently won’t get a look at Microsoft’s Expression Web Designer (aka Quartz) which has been noticeably AWOL lately.

Also of note, there are actually dueling Web development conferences as the Eclipse Foundation is kicking off its EclipseCon conference today as well.