Author: Paul Thurrott

Because $1.5 trillion is an awful lot of zeros, this edition of Short Takes looks at Microsoft’s new market cap milestone, why Microsoft won’t sell facial recognition to cops, Zoom trips over its own feet in China, Google plays the bully, and Sony announces a digital taco.

Because it’s probably Friday, this edition of Short Takes looks at Microsoft’s push to a dystopian future, the sad tale of Microsoft trying to deploy its own software to its customers, AppGet developer gets a small bone, two of Microsoft enemies team up and try not to look desperate, and so much more.

Because I heard you missed me, I’m back, this edition of Short Takes looks at Microsoft’s mea culpa on open-source, a cute return to the Microsoft of the 1990s, Microsoft Teams vs. Windows, Microsoft Teams vs. Slack, the future of command lines, and much, much, more.

Because it’s such a great time to be alive, this edition of Short Takes looks at a ton of Coronavirus-related news, including Azure capacity issues, Microsoft/Office 365 service throttling, certification retirement extensions, unprecedented Xbox Live demand, and much, much, more.

Because of the Coronavirus, this edition of Short Takes looks at a lot of virus-related collateral damage, including Microsoft Build 2020, Apple’s retail stores, Microsoft Teams, Microsoft’s ability to manufacture hardware, and even the DOD JEDI contract. OK, that one isn’t related to the Coronavirus.

Because I want you to be my Valentine, this edition of Short Takes looks at Microsoft finally doing the right thing, Amazon’s legal challenge to Microsoft’s JEDI contract, some real news about Windows 10X, the schedule for Windows 10 version 2004, and much, much more.

Because Microsoft announced its most recent quarterly earnings this week, this edition of Short Takes is going to obsess over the results, with a deeper dive into key parts of the business.

Because it’s been a while, this edition of Short Takes looks at Microsoft’s new carbon-negative push, thanking the NSA for finding a serious Windows 10 flaw, Microsoft’s new Edge browser, a new Walkie-Talkie feature coming to Teams, and much, much more.

Because the year is winding down, this edition of Short Takes looks at the terrible new direction of the Windows Insider Program, New Edge is to browsers as New Coke was to cola, Windows 7 and Microsoft Security Essentials, and much, much more. Now they’re just messing with us Keeping track of how the Windows… Read More

Because ‘tis the season to snark, this edition of Short Takes looks at major breaking news about Notepad, another unwanted Windows 10 push, the secret behind Microsoft’s JEDI win, a new Microsoft design system for mobile, and much more.

Because millennials always have the answers, this week’s edition of Short Takes looks at Slack’s response to a Microsoft rip-off, Amazon suing over Microsoft’s JEDI contract, Salesforce’s unlikely Microsoft partnership, and so much more.

Because this is the best reason to go to Florida, this special edition of Short Takes looks at the biggest announcements from Microsoft Ignite 2019.

Because it’s that time of the quarter, this edition of Short Takes looks solely at Microsoft’s quarterly earnings report, which was huge for Commercial Cloud, Microsoft 365, and Windows, and not so much for Surface and Xbox. Right. Nothing changed.

Because corporate executives are paid far too much, this edition of Short Takes looks at top Microsoft executive salaries, an ironic Windows 10 patch, a presidential candidate who mocked Bing, Apple’s most pointless stat ever, and much, much more.

Because I embrace my AI overlords, this edition of Short Takes looks at the next version of Windows 10, Microsoft’s AI art installation, whether Surface is really profitable, whether Microsoft’s embrace of Linux is real or a secret plot, and so much more.