Microsoft has released Microsoft Commerce Server 2009 code name "R2" - November 2009 Community Technical Preview

"We invite you to install this pre-release version of Microsoft Commerce Server 2009 code name “R2” into a non-production environment to learn how Commerce Server 2009 “R2” provides an improved business management experience, enhanced cross-channel enablement with multi-tier development and deployment support, and a more streamlined deployment experience. It is recommended that you install this pre-release on a clean machine and consult the Quick Install Guide for manual steps required.

Note: Given the pre-release nature of this release, not all functionality is currently available. The release is for evaluation purposes only and is not intended to be used in a production environment. The November CTP will stop functioning on June 6, 2010."

>> Microsoft Commerce Server 2009 code name "R2" - November 2009 Community Technical Preview

Lifehacker takes a look at the new features in Office 2010

"Now that we've had some time to play with the Office 2010 Professional Beta, we thought we'd share what's new and useful inside Microsoft's big suite. Take a gander at the pictorial evidence below.

Overall, Office 2010 is not the kind of leap forward that Windows 7 was from Vista (or, for most PC upgraders, from XP). It adds a lot of stuff that's previously been available only through plug-ins, makes performing the basic tasks of opening, printing, and sharing documents a good deal more convenient, and throws in a few new features that will expand the repertoire of those who really know their Office."

>> Hands-On Look at What's New in Office 2010

Betanews talked with Microsoft's Bob Muglia and Ray Ozzie

"The first issue on our plate Tuesday afternoon concerned Silverlight, and Microsoft's continuing efforts to entice developers to build Web sites around a platform that is not considered a "standard," and perhaps never will be. Some developers discount Adobe Flash as a "standard" for the same reason; while others suggest that Flash's ubiquity renders it a de facto standard. The questions for Web developers have centered around whether they can afford to evolve any portion of their forward-facing online assets around a proprietary standard (around Silverlight) and still have it be on "the Web," whose values are based around platform neutrality. Those questions do seem a bit more pronounced for Microsoft than for other platform developers. But how should Microsoft handle the delicate issue of developing for a platform that's "ours" versus one that is "yours?" (And what's the difference really?)"

>> Microsoft's Bob Muglia and Ray Ozzie on Silverlight vs. standards

All about Microsoft published more information on Office Starter 2010

"Office Starter 2010 is the Microsoft-designated replacement for its Microsoft Works product. Starter will be a low-end, free (but ad-supported) bundle of Word and Excel.

One (of many) criticisms of Works was that it didn’t support all the same file types as Microsoft Office did, making Works only somewhat compatible with Office. It looks like that same limitation will be present in Office Starter, based on a frequently-asked questions document from Microsoft that one tester forwarded to me. "

>> Office Starter 2010: The fine print on Microsoft's Works replacement

Microsoft has released Microsoft Expression Web 3 Service Pack 1

"Microsoft Expression Web 3 Service Pack 1 (SP1) contains significant fixes and improvements in publishing, SuperPreview, file management, extensibility, and other areas of the program.

You can get a more complete description of SP1, including a list of issues that were fixed, in the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 976594: Description of the Microsoft Expression Web 3 Service Pack 1.

SP1 includes improvements developed as a result of user input from Microsoft Connect, such as support for custom Windows colors, improved text selection, and better performance.

Help us improve Expression Web by reporting any technical issues.

For more insight into Expression Web, please see the Expression team blog."

>> Microsoft Expression Web 3 Service Pack 1

SuperSite for Windows posted a preview on Internet Explorer 9

"At the Professional Developers Conference (PDC) 2009 day two keynote (see my PDC coverage), Microsoft president Steven Sinofsky showed off a very, very early version of Internet Explorer (IE) 9, the next major version of Microsoft's now-venerable web browser. This was an unexpected development, given that Internet Explorer 8 (see my review) shipped earlier this year and was just included with Windows 7 (see my review), which shipped last month. But Microsoft clearly wanted to demonstrate that it would continue advancing IE at a rapid pace, meeting criticisms of the current product and--the real surprise--delivering on some unexpected functionality.

What we don't know about IE 9 is a much broader discussion than that about what we do know. It's early yet, so that's OK, but I do want to set some expectations: The very early IE 9 preview build we saw this week at PDC did not contain any hint at all about the future user interface or other functional aspects of the browser. In fact, the build used in the keynote, and the one I saw separately in a meeting, lacked any kind of user interface at all. It's just a bare window frame that's designed to let the rendering engine do its thing and show off the few bits of functionality Microsoft is now publicly committing to."

>> Internet Explorer 9 Preview

Neowin reports that Microsoft Office 2010 beta is available on MSDN/TechNet

"It's widely expected that a public beta build of Office 2010 will be available this week. Microsoft has kept quiet on the reports but has hinted on the official Office twitter account "MS Office team has some exiting news to tell at PDC. This is a must attend event. Stay tuned!" and a follow up post hints at possible social networking features in Outlook, "would you like your inbox to talk to your social networks? Useful integration or distraction?". "

>> Microsoft Office 2010 beta available on MSDN/TechNet

Neowin reports that a new Microsoft Office 2010 beta build leaked on the Internet

"The build, numbered version 14.0.4514.1009, is tagged with the "beta 2" naming. The leak reportedly requires keys to install but accepts Office 2010 Technical Preview keys. Michael Aulia of Craving Tech posted some screen shots and his initial impressions after Microsoft sent him the beta directly.

From the screen shots posted it's clear the UI has been refined in the Office 2010 beta and the program icons have been updated."

>> Microsoft Office 2010 beta build leaks

TechReviewSource.com posted 8 things they want to see in Windows 8

"Windows 7 was just released this week and we are already starting to look ahead to Windows 8, which Microsoft is already in the process of developing even before 7 was released earlier this week. So far the reception of Windows 7 has been mostly positive and definitely better than Windows Vista, but there are still things we wish it had. Below are our top 8 things we want to see in Windows 8."

>> 8 Things We Want to See in Windows 8

Paul Thurrott reports that the Office 2010 Public Beta will be available in November

"Today, at Microsoft Corp.’s SharePoint Conference, Microsoft Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer announced that the public beta of Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 and Microsoft Office 2010 will become available in November."

>> Microsoft Office 2010 Public Beta in November

Maximum PC posted the 50 Best (and Worst) Moments in Windows History

"Windows' storied history isn't without its many bumps and bruises along the way, from record setting fines for anti-competitive practices to controversies surrounding Microsoft's WGA scheme. As Microsoft gears up to release its greatest OS to date, we celebrate the occasion by taking a trip down memory lane to where it all began, and how we got to this point. We cover the good, the bad, and the downright ugly."

>> The 50 Best (and Worst) Moments in Windows History

istartedsomething reports that Microsoft adds free root certificate authority to Windows

"A couple of weeks ago some very interesting Windows news flew by under the radars that I think deserves much more credit than it received, considering how much we rely on the web and the impact this has on making it safer.

In the September 2009 update to the Windows Root Certificate Program, Microsoft has added to the list of trusted root certificate authorities StartCom Ltd, notably its first member who issues amongst others free Class 1 digital certificates."

>> Microsoft adds free root certificate authority to Windows

Exchange Server 2010 has reached RTM

"The big news today is that Exchange 2010 is now code complete. The senior leadership team has signed off on the final code, and it has been sent to early adopters for a final look before its public release. This Release To Manufacturing (RTM) milestone means we are well on our way to general availability and launch at TechEd Europe in November."

>> Exchange Server 2010 RTM

Neowin reports that Windows Live Movie Maker will be released today

"Windows Live Movie Maker allows for direct YouTube, Facebook (through plugins), burn straight to DVD, save in 480, 720 or 1080p HD video format or play through your HDTV. Auto Movie allows users to easily create a video automatically for you in under one minute using selected images, captions, a title and soundtrack to go along with the slides.

The new Movie Maker comes with dozens of polished features over previous versions. Live Movie maker introduces a smarter storyboard, allowing faster and easier editing than before, audio editing in the storyboard is also available. Detailed animations are available for usage for adjusting videos and images with a range of filters and transitions."

>> Windows Live Movie Maker to be released today

Microsoft has released Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Release Candidate

"Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 RC helps you achieve new levels of reliability and performance by delivering features that simplify your administration, protect your communications, and delight your users by meeting their demands for greater business mobility. And when you download the latest software, you're automatically registered to access valuable product resources assembled in one convenient location.

Please review the Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 system requirements before you proceed. Actual requirements and product functionality may vary based on your system configuration."

>> Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 Release Candidate

Neowin reports that more invitation e-mails were sent out to Microsoft Connect members for the Microsoft Office 2010 Technical Preview

"Available for download from the connect site are:
Microsoft Office Professional 2010
Microsoft Word 2010
Microsoft Excel 2010
Microsoft PowerPoint 2010
Microsoft OneNote 2010
Microsoft Outlook 2010
Microsoft Publisher 2010
Microsoft Access 2010
Microsoft Visio 2010
Microsoft SharePointDesigner 2010
Microsoft InfoPath 2010
Microsoft SharePoint Workspace 2010
Business Contact Manager for Microsoft Outlook 2010
Microsoft Outlook Connector
Microsoft Office Language Pack 2010 - English
Microsoft Office Language Pack 2010 - Japanese
Business Contact Manager for Microsoft Outlook 2010 Language Pack - Japanese
Business Contact Manager for Microsoft Outlook 2010 Database Tool

Upgrades are available for the matching architecture - 32-bit Office 2007 can be upgraded to Office 2010, but Office 2007 running on a 64-bit Operating system cannot be upgraded to Office 2010 - you must uninstall Office 2007 first."

>> Office 2010 CTP and Click to run released to more testers

Supersite for Windows published a preview on Windows Home Server Power Pack 3

"The Windows 7 beta test was notable--notorious, really--for a number of reasons. Chief among these is that those on the technical beta only received the same two public milestone builds--the Beta and Release Candidate (RC)--as did the general public. This led some testers to complain--fairly, I think--that they were afterthoughts to Microsoft and not able to supply the same level of feedback as they had on previous Windows betas. (Microsoft responded to this complaint by highlighting a ton most inconsequential changes it made to Windows 7 in the wake of feedback from the Beta release.)

But I'd point to another bit of misdirection that I find more damning. Throughout the Windows 7 beta test, representatives of Microsoft held semi-regular chats with testers, each of which targeted a specific Windows 7 feature. One of these chats, oddly enough, concerned Windows Home Server. And testers were told, quite explicitly, that Windows Home Server would not be updated to accommodate Windows 7 features like libraries, backup and restore, and Windows Search."

>> Windows Home Server Power Pack 3 Preview

SuperSite for Windows published a report on Office 2010 Technical Preview

"It's a challenge anyone in the movie industry can probably relate to: How do you follow-up an absolute, no-holds-barred, smash? And that issue, too, is most likely the impetus behind Microsoft's surprisingly funny Office 2010: The Movie promotion, in which the company is touting its upcoming office productivity suite as if it were a Hollywood summer blockbuster. Office 2010, following hot on the heels of Office 2007 (see my review), has a lot to live up to. And now that we've pretty much gotten over the innovative but jarring ribbon UI--it's been formally added to virtually all Office applications and services now--there's only one question remaining, and in the context of Microsoft Office, it's sort of a classic: How, exactly, do you improve on a product line that is as mature and full-featured as Office?"

>> Office 2010 Technical Preview

Neowin reports that an updated Office 2010 technical preview build has been leaked on the Internet

"Office 2010 build 14.0.4302.1000 is the latest to work its way out of the Redmond based software giant. Office 2010 has been surrounded with leaks from screenshots leaking early to beta builds leaking early.

Office 2010 promises tighter integration with Windows 7, full Ribbon UI for Outlook and compatibility with Microsoft's forthcoming Office Web Applications."

>> Updated Office 2010 technical preview build leaks

All About Microsoft posted a news story that Microsoft will start pushing Internet Explorer (IE) 8 to business users via Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) on August 25

"Microsoft already began pushing IE 8 to users via Windows Update and Automatic Update in April.

If WSUS admins aren’t ready/willing for IE 8 to install across PCs in their organizations, they should turn off auto-approve for the IE rollup, the IE team is advising."

>> Microsoft to push IE 8 to more business users in August