Microsoft Archives

Microsoft Azure, data centres coming to Cape Town and Johannesburg in 2018
By Andy Walker: Editor on 18 May, 2017
Microsoft South Africa today announced its Azure Cloud servers and services are finally heading to the country. Previously, African companies relied on data centres beyond the continent's landmass to use the cloud, but the new servers -- which will be located in Cape Town and Johannesburg -- will be a much shorter digital trip for cloud traffic. "Microsoft will deliver cloud services, including Microsoft Azure, Office 365, and Dynamics 365," the company states in a blog post. While the company's marketing towards businesses and economic growth are clear, the company didn't mention gaming in its announcement. Sorry Crackdown fans. Microsoft instead explains that...
Edward Snowden reminds us all that he was right after WannaCry fallout
By Andy Walker: Editor on 17 May, 2017
It's hard being right all the time, especially if you're Edward Snowden. The infamous whistleblower who curently calls Russia home spoke on Monday via video link at a Washington DC security conference. And he just couldn't help reminding everyone that the NSA sucks. "They knew about this flaw in U.S. software, U.S. infrastructure, hospitals around the world, these auto plants and so on and so forth, but they did not report it to Microsoft until after the NSA learned that that flaw had been stolen by some outside group," the former CIA contractor noted, according to a Newsweek transcript. WannaCry infected over 300...
WannaCry ransomware infects a quarter million computers in 150 countries
By Staff Reporter on 15 May, 2017
WannaCry wins 2017's prize for most ominously named ransomware, and it has seemingly lived up to its name. A worldwide attack involving the ransomware swept through personal computers, companies and government institutions beginning on Friday 12 May. By Sunday, over 230 000 computers in more than 150 countries, including South Africa, were infected. Straight out of an episode of Mr. Robot, WannaCry (Wcry, WannaCrypt, WanaCrypt0r 2.0, or Wanna Decryptor) is a malicious software package that infects computers running Microsoft Windows. It's spread using an exploit developed by the NSA called EternalBlue which was leaked by a hacker collective in April. While Microsoft...

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Apple’s now valued $270bn more than Microsoft, $145bn more than Alphabet
By Andy Walker: Editor on 10 May, 2017
While its latest quarterly figures were less than impressive, Apple's persistent market growth remains undoubted. The Cupertino-based technology company is the first in the United States to smash though the US$800-billion market cap barrier, sitting at US$802.8-billion at the time of writing. That fatter market cap is primarily thanks to its strong performance during Tuesday's trading, with shares gaining 0.6% in value to end the day at US$153. That number might not sound large, but multiply that by its 5.21-billion shares... More impressively though is when the company hit this figure. Apple's US$800-billion market cap cements its place as the world's valuable publicly-traded...

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Weekly Round Up Podcast #105: WhatsApp’s blackout, Windows 10 S & more
By Staff Reporter on 5 May, 2017
Welcome to Weekly Round Up, our podcast discussing the latest tech trends, innovation and news from the last few days. This week sees Hadlee Simons hosting Andy Walker and Stephen Timm. Kicking off the show, we detail one of SA's biggest business deals this decade: the US$100-million sales of GetSmarter, a South African ed-tech startup, to a US company. Hadlee and Andy discuss Windows 10 S as well as the Microsoft Surface Laptop, which were both unveiled this week. With both Microsoft products having their ups and downs, the duo explores what makes them great and what makes them somewhat disappointing. WhatsApp was...
LinkedIn now boasts more users than Twitter and Snapchat combined
By Andy Walker: Editor on 25 April, 2017
LinkedIn, the business-orientated social network now owned by Microsoft, has hit the 500-million user landmark. "We recently crossed an important and exciting milestone," the company teases in its blog. "We now have half a billion members in 200 countries connecting, and engaging with one another in professional conversations and finding opportunities through these connections on LinkedIn." While much of the remaining post explains why you should be using LinkedIn, the company also sheds some light on who uses its service. Who uses LinkedIn for what? London, Amsterdam and San Francisco are the three most "connected places" using the service, while the United Arab Emirates,...

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Windows Vista: Microsoft’s hated but daring OS is shutting down for good
By Andy Walker: Editor on 11 April, 2017
It's finally here. Today is the final day that Microsoft will support Windows Vista. From 12 April, Windows Vista will effectively be disowned by Microsoft, thrown out of the house by its parents, and forced to get a job of its own. "After April 11, 2017, Windows Vista customers will no longer receive new security updates, non-security hotfixes, free or paid assisted support options, or online technical content updates from Microsoft," the company writes in an ultimatum. "Microsoft has provided support for Windows Vista for the past 10 years, but the time has come for us, along with our hardware and software partners,...
Xbox Ones and tiny tablets: this is South Africa’s ‘classroom of the future’
By Andy Walker: Editor on 27 March, 2017
When I was at school, the most advanced technology we had were space cases, chair bags and desks that didn't creak, but Microsoft and the Cape Town Science Centre's (CTSC) vision of education is quite different indeed. The Observatory-based institution today launched its classroom of the future exhibit to the public, backed by the Redmond tech giants, the likes of Intel, and a number of other technology partners. As one might expect, the exhibit doesn't include traditional text books or ink-based writing equipment, but rather things with screens, buttons and toggles. The exhibit, Microsoft explains, is a combination of what works...

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Weekly Round Up #97: YouTube TV, Xbox Game Pass, Google Launchpad & More
By Staff Reporter on 6 March, 2017
Welcome to Weekly Roundup, our podcast discussing the latest tech trends, innovation and news from the last few days. In this week's edition, Hadlee Simons plays host to Andy Walker, Graham van der Made and Julia Breakey. This time we discuss the possible effects of Trump's "travel ban" and how a Nigerian software engineer was forced to take a test when entering the US to prove he really was who he said he was. Over on Memeburn, we chat about YouTube TV and what it could mean for cable and other online streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon. We also discuss...
Microsoft’s Skype Lite Android app launches in India
By Staff Reporter on 22 February, 2017
An interesting counter-trend is emerging among the world's most popular apps. With Facebook launching the likes of Messenger Lite and Facebook Lite last year to cater for emerging markets, Microsoft is following suit debuting Skype Lite this week. Like its Facebook counterparts, Skype Lite will be available for low-cost Android devices, and cater exclusively (at least for now) to the Indian smartphone market. Overall the Hyderabad-developed app is said to be more usable on low-speed networks, use less battery and works with India's Aadhaar identification number system to streamline signups and identification. Skype Lite is a direct competitor to Facebook Messenger Lite...
Major tech leaders oppose Trump’s travel ban
By Julia Breakey on 7 February, 2017
Nearly 100 companies, including Google, Apple, Microsoft and Facebook, filed a "friend-of-the-court" brief against US President Donald Trump's travel ban late Sunday night. The companies believe that the ban precluding citizens of seven Muslim countries from the US will incentivise companies to move jobs outside of the US. "The Order makes it more difficult and expensive for US companies to recruit, hire, and retain some of the world's best employees. It disrupts ongoing business operations," the brief states. Surprising additions to the list of dissenters are Tesla and SpaceX -- both owned by Elon Musk, a member of Trump's business advisory council....
South Africa in last place for ‘digital civility’ – study
By Hadlee Simons on 7 February, 2017
A new study conducted by technology giant Microsoft, marking Safer Internet Day (7 February), found that South Africa was ranked last out of 14 countries for so-called digital civility. The study is part of a Microsoft challenge for people to embrace digital civility, or treating each other "with respect and dignity online". Microsoft conducted the study last year in order to gauge the degree of civility across online interactions. So what did it find? "South Africa ranked in 14th place in the Digital Civility Index, making it the country with the highest online risk exposure and lowest degree of digital civility out of...
Microsoft to cut 700 jobs this week – report
By Hadlee Simons on 23 January, 2017
Microsoft is expected to cut 700 jobs this week, being part of a group of 2850 cuts announced last year, it has been reported. According to Business Insider, citing "someone familiar with the matter", Microsoft will conduct the layoffs when it reports its quarterly results on 26 January. The website's source said that most of the 2850 cuts have already been made, adding that it won't be limited to any specific group. Cuts are apparently set to affect divisions such as human resources, engineering, finance, marketing and more. Business Insider also reports that the cuts were made to "update skills" rather than with the...
Project Murphy: a bot that answers ‘what if’ questions
By Hadlee Simons on 14 December, 2016
2016 has truly been a year for bots, as AI and machine learning combine to do some astounding things. Now, Microsoft has revealed a new bot, dubbed Project Murphy. The purpose of the bot though? Well, it's akin to Futurama's "what if" machine, coming up with imaginative image-based answers to your hypothetical "what if" question. For instance, asking "what if Donald Trump wore a dress?" yielded this result. You can even ask questions like "what if Barack Obama was Bernie Sanders?", with the bot spitting out a relevant image. Like what you see? Then you can reply with a smiley face to get...
Here’s what Microsoft Zo thinks about Cape Town, social media and Pokemon
By Andy Walker: Editor on 6 December, 2016
Microsoft is old hat at this artificial intelligence chat bot thing. Remember the drama its teenage bot Tay caused on Twitter? Well, the company has now taken to the less-traversed Kik for some more interesting results. Its new bot on the platform, dubbed Zo, is a little more reserved than her curious, parrot-like sibling, and responds to politics and politically incorrect content and questions with a bat of the eyelids. This makes Zo a less impressionable bot. But is she fun to chat with? And what can she actually do? Taking a few minutes out of my day to talk to an...