Stories by John Fontana

  • Microsoft exceeds goal of 5000 layoffs

    Microsoft has more than made good on its plan from a year ago to eliminate 5,000 positions by the middle of June 2010, the company reported as part of its quarterly 10Q filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

  • Apple iPad could give Microsoft fits

    Microsoft shouldn't be shaking in its boots after this week's unveiling of the Apple iPad, but the tablet computer could give the software giant fits in the future with its potential to define important device form factors as well as shape user attitudes toward alternative operating systems and cloud-based application adoption.

  • SharePoint 2010 overkill for some, Forrester says

    Despite platform improvements coming in Microsoft's SharePoint 2010 server, the software is likely to be overkill for users seeking to meet isolated and specific requirements, according to a study by Forrester Research.

  • Ballmer's 10 years with Microsoft and the Internet

    Ten years ago on Jan. 13, 2000, Microsoft's Bill Gates turned over the CEO reins to Steve Ballmer, who emphasized then that the Internet would be the target for much of the company's new software development efforts.

  • Facebook joins Apache foundation

    Facebook Tuesday joined the Apache Software Foundation as a Gold sponsor, looking to cement its commitment to open source and pledging to help drive the group into the future.

  • Microsoft admits mobile missteps, but fights on

    Microsoft doesn't have a business model problem in the mobile market, but its phones are skewed toward business users at the expense of consumers and are not as modern as they need to be, Robbie Bach, president of Microsoft's entertainment and devices division, told financial analysts Thursday at the Consumer Electronics Show.

  • Microsoft's history with the Tablet PC

    Microsoft's demonstration Wednesday of "Slate PCs" made by HP, Pegatron, and Archos is by no means its first attempt to help develop such a form factor. The Slate PC seems to be identical to a Tablet with only the name changed. In fact, the Tablet PC has long been a pet project for Microsoft founder Bill Gates, who showed the first Tablet PC prototype in 2000 at the now-defunct Comdex trade show in Las Vegas.