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Microsoft CEO: Windows 7 Japan Sales 'Fantastic' By Jay Alabaster November 6, 2009 7:16AM     Windows 7 was launched last month after consumers and businesses gave a poor reception to its predecessor, Vista. That operating system was considered slow and had trouble working with existing programs and devices. Many consumers and companies opted not to install Vista. Microsoft's Japan subsidiary is currently its best performing.   Related Topics Microsoft Windows 7 Japan Windows Vista Operating Systems Enterprise Software Latest News OLPC Envisions $75 Tablet Computer BlackBerry E-Mail Goes Down Again Apple Eyes Ad-Free Network TV Security Firms See Mobile Opportunity FBI Probes Hacker Attack on Citigroup Sales of Microsoft Corp.'s new Windows 7 operating system have been "fantastic" in Japan since its launch last month, CEO Steve Ballmer said Thursday. He declined to provide specific numbers for Japan, which is Microsoft's second-largest market, but said features like quicker start-up times were luring consumers to the newest version of the world's dominate software package. He added new computers were also helping attract buyers. "People don't buy operating systems, they buy computers with operating systems on them," Ballmer told reporters during a presentation in Tokyo. Windows 7 was launched last month after consumers and businesses gave a poor reception to its predecessor, Vista. That operating system was considered slow and had trouble working with existing programs and devices. Many consumers and companies opted not to install Vista at all. The company has also been hit by the economic downturn. Microsoft said Wednesday it is cutting 800 jobs, in addition to the 5,000 layoffs it announced in January, its first broad layoffs ever. Microsoft's Japan subsidiary is currently its best performing, Ballmer said. He said the company's Internet search partnership with Yahoo Inc. could be extended outside of the U.S. to markets such as Japan, without elaborating. Yahoo's Japan portal is dominant in the country, even in areas such as online auctions that are weaker in the U.S. Ballmer called Microsoft a "small player" in search and said it has a long way to go to rival Google's strength in that area. Microsoft and Yahoo are working out the details and awaiting regulatory approval on an alliance in the U.S. that would see Microsoft handle searches from Yahoo's site and provide much of the advertising based on the results. The Microsoft chief said the company was investing heavily on developing so-called "cloud " services, in which the majority of processing and storage is done online via the Internet, instead of on hardware "clients" like mobile phones and PCs. But he added that users would always be happiest when some programs ran locally.   © 2009 Associated Press/AP Online under contract with YellowBrix. All rights reserved.   Also Visit: Billions of Bytes | Top Tech Wire Advertisement  Microsoft/Windows 1.   Microsoft Scrambles To Fix Word 2.   Google Acquisition Targets MS Office 3.   Windows Mobile Is Losing Ground 4.   Microsoft Resolves Infringement Issue 5.   European Antitrust Drama Finally Ends Microsoft Scrambles To Fix Word Appeals court upholds patent ruling. Average Rating: Windows 7: More Hidden Features New OS is full of lesser-known gems. Average Rating: Fitness Games Reshape Medium Wii Fit's success spurs competitors. Average Rating:

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Network Security Spotlight

Report: FBI Probes Hacker Attack on Citigroup The FBI is investigating a hacker attack on Citigroup Inc. that led to the theft of tens of millions of dollars, The Wall Street Journal says, alleging the hackers were connected to a Russian cyber gang.   HP Offers Cloud Scaling with Cost and Risk Management Hewlett-Packard is moving deeper into cloud computing with three new ways to help businesses and telecom providers announced at the HP Software Universe event in Hamburg, Germany.   Cloud 'Catastrophe' To Dawn in 2010? Cloud-computing enthusiasts be warned. Computing services handled remotely and delivered via the web may undergo some kind of "catastrophe" that alerts companies to the risks of cloud reliance.

Enterprise Hardware Spotlight

OLPC Vision Points Toward a $75 Tablet Computer One Laptop Per Child (OLPC), the nonprofit organization that created an inexpensive laptop for children in developing countries, wants to create a $75 tablet computer to succeed its XO laptop.   Dell Revamps Inspiron Mini 10 with HD Video Options Dell has unveiled modifications to its popular Inspiron Mini 10 netbook with options that include a 1366x768-pixel high-definition display and HD media accelerator as well as a built-in HDTV tuner.   Review: Netbooks Meet Luxury in Ultra-Light Sony Netbooks have been a hit among laptop buyers largely because they're cheap and they're easy to carry. Now there's the option to pay a lot more and get a lot less -- a lot less weight, that is.

Mobile Enterprise Spotlight

AT&T Mulls Plans to Deal with iPhone Data Demand AT&T is knee-deep in a market research project that asks consumers to give their opinions on a range of potential tactics to free up network bandwidth for iPhone users and other subscribers.   Ford's In-Car Wi-Fi Is a Trend Toward Internet Everywhere Considering the limited reach of AT&T's 3G network, Apple iPhone users on the go are frequently reduced to the Edge network. Ford thinks it would be awesome to have Wi-Fi wherever you go.   As the Going Gets Tough, Nokia Wheels Out Legal Guns When Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone maker, sued Apple, Samsung, LG and eight other competitors within six weeks, it was conducting a routine defense of its intellectual property.

Enterprise Technology Spotlight

Security Firms See a Mobile Opportunity Today's smartphones are becoming ever more like personal computers. But that means they are also becoming more vulnerable to traditional computer menaces such as hackers, viruses and worms.   Google's Chrome Browser Focuses on Speed While the Chrome browser itself is rapidly changing, one thing seems constant: Developers at Google have their sights on a portion of the market share held by titans Internet Explorer and Firefox.   Report: FBI Probes Hacker Attack on Citigroup The FBI is investigating a hacker attack on Citigroup Inc. that led to the theft of tens of millions of dollars, The Wall Street Journal says, alleging the hackers were connected to a Russian cyber gang.

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