Windows Live

Outlook.com suffers downtime, but status page says otherwise

Microsoft has confirmed that its consumer Web-based e-mail service, Outlook.com, is down for some people.

The Redmond, Wash.-based technology giant said on Twitter it is currently "aware of the issue," but did not detail what was causing the downtime. In another tweet, it was noted that it was not clear how long it would take to restore services but that "hacking is not suspected."

In many of the tweets sent by @MicrosoftHelps, the company posted a link to the site to Microsoft's service status page. However, at the time of writing, the site … Read more

Windows Live Mesh users must switch by Wednesday

Still using Windows Live Mesh? You won't be much longer.

Come Wednesday, the online storage and syncing service will draw its final breath, leaving Mesh users without a home. So, where can you go if you're currently using Mesh to back up, store, and synchronize your files?

A variety of online storage sites are available. Microsoft's SkyDrive is one obvious choice since it already offers some, but not all, of the features of Live Mesh.

How do you switch from Live Mesh to SkyDrive? And what are the potential pitfalls? Let's go through the process.

First, … Read more

SkyDrive users can now share Office documents with anyone

People who need to access your shared MS Office documents via a SkyDrive link should now find the process a bit easier.

Using Microsoft's Office Web Apps or Office 2013, you can create a URL of any document that you store online. You can then e-mail that URL to anyone who needs to view or edit your file. Previously, that process required your collaborators to sign in with a Microsoft account before they could tweak your document. Now that restriction is gone.

Users who receive the URL to your document can click on it to view the file in … Read more

Microsoft to kill the Messenger on March 15

Beware the Ides of March if you are a user of Microsoft's Windows Messenger Live.

Microsoft announced last November it would soon retire its instant messaging client in favor Skype, which Microsoft acquired in October 2011. Today it began informing Messenger users that the service would go dark for the majority of users on March 15.

Hello,On 15th March 2013 we are retiring the existing Messenger service globally (except for mainland China where Messenger will continue to be available) and bringing the great features of Messenger and Skype together. Update to Skype and sign in using a Microsoft … Read more

Microsoft: Come next February, Live Mesh will be dead

Live Mesh fans, the day many of you feared has come: Microsoft is acknowledging its plans to "retire" its Live Mesh PC-sync service on February 13, 2013.

"(W)e're starting to communicate with the remaining Mesh users and provide a set of instructions on how to keep their files in sync and alternative options for some of the features they're still using," said the Redmondians in a December 13 post on the "Inside SkyDrive" blog.

Microsoft introduced Live Mesh back in 2008 with much fanfare. The original plans for Live Mesh were … Read more

Ballmer decided Windows chief Sinofsky was too divisive

Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer decided he had had enough of Windows Division President Steven Sinofsky.

Sinofsky had developed a stellar reputation for shipping quality products on time. And he streamlined the management structure in the gigantic Windows division so that it hummed and produced the latest version of the company's flagship product on a tight deadline to solid, if not spectacular, reviews.

But a day after Sinofsky's sudden departure from Microsoft, it's also clear that Ballmer recognized that the Windows leader was too divisive of a figure to continue on at the software giant, where … Read more

Shocked by exit of Microsoft's Sinofsky? You shouldn't be

Anyone who is surprised by Steven Sinofsky's departure as Windows boss at Microsoft wasn't paying attention.

As I wrote in a profile of Sinofsky last month, the now-former Windows boss had been sparring with other Microsoft executives, including Chief Executive Steve Ballmer. Sources said at the time that the company's senior leadership was increasingly concerned about Sinofsky's inability to work across divisions at Microsoft.

Working with other groups is becoming more and more crucial for Microsoft, as it weaves its consumer offerings together. The company is racing to make Windows work well with Windows Phone and … Read more

Steven Sinofsky: Microsoft's controversial Mr. Windows 8

Two years ago, Microsoft Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie was working on a file synchronization technology that would make stashing and grabbing pictures, documents, and music from any device a cinch.

Ozzie, hand-picked by Microsoft co-founder and Chairman Bill Gates to succeed him as the corporate visionary, gathered a team of 50 or so employees to piece together the concept. Something of an industry legend, Ozzie was a co-creator of Lotus Notes, and he joined Microsoft in 2005 after the company bought his startup, Groove Networks. To hear Microsoft insiders tell it, Ozzie was stepping straight into one of the … Read more

Microsoft replaces Live Mesh with SkyDrive in Windows bundle

Microsoft yesterday released a new bundle of free services meant to complement Windows 7 and Windows 8. Now known as "Windows Essentials" rather than "Windows Live Essentials," it adds some new capabilities, but also removes Live Mesh from the PCs of those who install it.

Microsoft has used the "Windows Live Essentials" name to refer to the bundle of services that has included Windows Live Mail, Messenger, Movie Maker, Photo Gallery, Family Safety (parental controls), Writer (its blogging tool) and Mesh (its PC sync service). Microsoft released the 2011 version of its Windows Live Essentials bundle … Read more

Microsoft's Outlook.com lures 1M users in 6 hours

Outlook.com has seen more than 1 million people sign up for the service in just a few hours, Microsoft has said.

The sign-up figures for the successor to Hotmail were tweeted by @Outlook yesterday just over six hours after the new service was first announced.

The changes include the new e-mail address -- @outlook.com -- which will replace the older @hotmail.com address, used by hundreds of millions worldwide across its more than 10 years of its service. Users can already "upgrade to Outlook.com" to keep their existing address.

The new Web-based e-mail service will … Read more