Brandon Dimmel

Now that Microsoft knows you want it, Office 2007 Beta 2 downloads are no longer a gratuity. Since its release two months ago, the extremely popular program has been downloaded a total of three million times, leading the Redmond-based company to ... start charging $1.50 USD, beginning August 2. According to Microsoft, the beta program -- 550 MB for the basic version, 2GB for the full suite -- and its explosive popularity have put a fantastic strain on the company's networks. Even Microsoft itself has been caught off guard by the intense downloading of the Office beta, stating that the 3 million ... (view more)

In the last few years -- perhaps even decade -- the cost of wages has forced many technological jobs to a place in our galaxy far, far away. Manufacturing as a whole has exploded in China and the Far East, but in recent years, the boom has expanded ... to include other nations in the near-Pacific theatre with a workforce capable of technological achievement. The most recent market for manufacturing outsourcing has been India, but as its wage rates increase, its appeal to the North American and European tech industry decreases. Outsourcing is most widely known as the delegation on internal duties ... (view more)

For those of you who missed the rather sensational story a few weeks ago, Dell is apparently having a small problem with their laptops. That is, they are becoming known in the industry -- especially amongst the "tech tabloids" -- for products that ... spontaneously combust. Now there's word from UK insiders that Dell has a stockpile of the burnt out systems, and is (hopelessly, perhaps) trying to keep the problem on the "down-low". Last month, video surfaced on the worldwide web showing a laptop burst into flames not far from its Japanese owner. You can see a picture here . Since the mishap, word ... (view more)

With Microsoft increasing online capabilities and downloads via Xbox Live in anticipation of the release of the Sony Playstation 3 (PS3) and Nintendo Wii, the gaming landscape is busier than ever. And it's exciting too: console launches have become ... events occurring about once every four years, making them rare affairs. As the industry continues to grow, excitement over such releases has become comparable to the popularity of the Olympics and perhaps even the anticipation of a U.S. presidential election. But, is gaming growing too fast? Can the North American culture and economy keep up with ... (view more)

Stepping outside the bounds of its usual focus on security and operating systems, Microsoft has recently licensed touch-screen technology. Dubbed "Touchlight", the technology is one of twenty projects being offered to venture capitalists for ... development in cooperation with Microsoft. Signing on for Touchlight is EON Reality, who will use the technology for exhibitions, technical demonstrations, and training exercises. EON hopes to begin commercialization of the Touchlight and other similar projects before the year ends. (Source: microsoft-watch.com ) Touchlight: How It Works Microsoft's ... (view more)

The first question that pops into this writer's head is: What is Lars going to complain about now? Metallica and most publicly, drummer Lars Ulrich, were one of the first and most vocal opponents to online music downloading. Their most sensational ... events were open and often angry speeches against Napster, the Internet's first massive peer-to-peer service. Since then, the bell has long since tolled for Napster, but others have picked up the torch, leaving a few veteran bands like Metallica shaking their fists at technology. However, the recent demise of downloading giant Kazaa (not that it ... (view more)

Let's face it: Wal-Mart is the most dominant retail chain in North America. By importing cheaper Chinese wares and selling them to U.S. and Canadian consumers for slightly less than the competition, the massive all-in-one department store franchise ... has choked out small business pennies at a time. Yet there is one demographic that has not yet contributed fully to Wal-Mart's tremendous growth: Youth. In an attempt to act on the popularity of MySpace, Wal-Mart has launched its own similar site, "The Hub", a social site with the intention of raking in as much disposable income as possible. So, ... (view more)

Even with massive revenues through a number of initiatives, the cost of meeting demand for the Xbox 360 console has left the Microsoft Home and Entertainment division with a posted operating loss of $414 million for Quarter 4, 2006. Similar losses ... were felt last year in anticipation of the 360 launch, but despite promises that a number of concepts would force a profit, such explosive revenue has yet to materialize. Luckily for Microsoft, its SQL server (the language used to retrieve and manipulate database materials) has exploded in recent months, making up for the growing pains of raising ... (view more)

In a pair of recent surveys on brand power and popularity in Britain and the United States, Microsoft dominated and dropped out of the top ten in each, respectively. In a public survey by consultant agency Superbrands and research group YouGov, ... Microsoft launched into first in the hearts of British voters. The poll, conducted by a group considered "industry experts", asked 2,373 members of the public what brand they felt was the most reliable, distinct, and routinely showed the best quality. In the provided list of some 500 companies, Microsoft, to the astonishment of many UK tech insiders, ... (view more)

As peer-to-peer file sharing programs are coming under fire abroad, as the American courts are taking a chunk out of one of the Internet's biggest download networks. As of Thursday morning, Reuters has announced that Sharman Networks, owners of the ... file-sharing web site Kazaa, have reached a legal settlement with a conglomeration of music industry representatives. The result will see Sharman pay EMI Group, Universal Music, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, and Warner Music a combined $100 million in compensation. In addition, following in the footsteps of the original bad boys of file-sharing ... (view more)