Ballmer To Intro New Microsoft Apps

By NewsFactor Network | November 27, 2006

The time is near. This week, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will unveil the often-delayed and much-discussed upgrades to Windows, Office, and Exchange at an invitation-only event held in New York.

More ink has been spilled on Microsoft’s new trifecta than perhaps any software launch ever. Among the new wares is Windows Vista, the first replacement to Microsoft’s OS in five years. Vista includes, among other features, a sleek new interface called Aero, enhanced security, and better options for road rogues and users of mobile tools.

Office 2007 now boasts 13 component programs. They include the old standards — Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and of course Outlook, the world’s most widely used e-mail client — and lesser known lights such as Microsoft’s SharePoint, which lets corporate teams share documents across the enterprise.

Exchange 2007’s chief claim to fame is unified messaging. The new version combines e-mail, voicemail, and faxing into a single system, letting knowledge workers more effectively manage a work life saturated (and even plagued) by people trying to reach them.

Upgrade or Not?

Windows, Office, and Exchange are Microsoft’s bread and butter, with some estimates claiming they comprise as much as 80 percent of Redmond’s bottom line. But now the software packages are facing a test like never before.

The rise of open-source software and inexpensive alternatives to Microsoft products is just one hurdle; others include the growing movement of software as a service, or SaaS, where key programs are accessed over the Web (often for free), and not from the user’s hard drive.

Additionally, Vista has been dogged by delays, and its new interface demands a hefty set of hardware just to run properly, including what Microsoft calls a “modern processor” running at least at 800 MHz along with 512 MB of RAM, both of which are big demands on aging corporate system.

Will companies…

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