Many users who have grown accustomed to the functionality of Windows XP have been reluctant to take the plunge and upgrade their operating systems to Vista. Users who are heavily involved in gaming, however, are beginning to find that the choice in operating system has already been made for them.

At the 3GSM World Congress 2007, Barcelona, Microsoft launched three new Windows Live products for mobile devices. The products are Live Search for Windows Mobile, Live Search for Java and Windows Live for Windows Mobile.

The blogosphere has been buzzing amid reports that Microsoft plans to release a successor to Windows Vista within the next two years. Some insiders predict that Vienna, the codename for the project, is poised for a 2009 release.

At January’s Consumer Electronics Show, Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates dropped a bombshell. In an interview with this blogger, he openly discussed the future of the Windows brand and when we could expect to see the next offering in the product line:

The new email service from Microsoft will receive a name that combines the familiar Hotmail name with the heavily-backed Windows Live brand.

Ultimately we think faithful Hotmail users will continue to call the Windows Live branded service by the name they have known for over ten years. Long-time users who recall Hotmail’s origins may remember the various obstacles Microsoft encountered in 1997 when they bought Hotmail and moved it from Solaris to Windows servers.

The blogosphere has been singing both positive and negative tunes about Microsoft’s latest offering in its long line of operating systems. Vista has been the talk of the town as of late, but there are still some of us who envision a world where more than one platform can thrive in the OS marketplace.

OK, if you like short videos you won’t like these. Move along. Click “J” if you’re using Google Reader.

Searching the Net to find out more about Microsoft’s oft-delayed, finally-arriving operating system, Vista, sends people where they want to go today; Vista’s creator tops the list, followed by Wikipedia.

Social networking sites are the primary force driving US and UK mobile phone users to upload content to a variety of Web sites.

Google has done a terribly unpopular thing, redesigning Google Images so that it presents no new information, no new features, just increases the white space. It could be one of the worst redesigns I’ve ever seen.

On January 31, Windows Vista will hit the shelves in Korea. Microsoft’s latest operating system, however, may leave many Korean users unable to reach many of their favorite web destinations.

God, Microsoft is changing! Windows Vista is coming out soon, and they’re already looking for beta testers for Service Pack 1, which they plan to release in the second half of this year.

Windows Vista works based on the capabilities of the hardware installed. Windows Vista Capable PCs and Windows Vista Premium Ready PCs both are geared for running Windows Vista but the experience varies with the “premium” delivering more advanced user experience.

While no doubt Google’s simple and clean applications have been a hit with some users, I’m really impressed with what Yahoo is showing off in its new Messenger for Windows Vista.

The big unanswered question with Windows Home Server is how much it’ll cost you to get one.

A whole lot of Windows Vista beta testers are miffed to find out that Vista’s Media Center stopped working properly on December 31.

The phrase “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” seems to be an appropriate idiom to describe a developing kerfuffle surrounding Microsoft’s latest blogger outreach campaign ahead of the launch of Windows Vista at the end of January.

Google added a new advanced feature to Google Maps: multiple destinations. Now, if you need to go to more than one place, you can enter more than one destination (by hitting the new “Add destination” link) and get directions to each place in order.

So as most of you probably already know by now, when I graduate from the University of Kent in June 2007 with my BSc Honours Degree in Information Technology, I want to work for Microsoft, more specifically in either the MSN or Windows Live Division!

Here are a couple of tips to speed up your Windows XP computer and help keep you protected and secure online.

Trying to fight your way through the mall for a picture of your kids with jolly old Saint Nick always end up the same way, with you knuckle-punching some rude soccer-mom in the throat for cutting in line, followed by the usual arrest, processing, and posting bail. Save yourself some grief thin 2006.

If knowing the precise date when Windows Vista will be released to the world at large is important to you, mark January 30, 2007, in your diary now: