Newsletter Archives

• Intel’s troubles

  Posted on August 12, 2024 at 02:45 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 21.33 • 2024-08-12

  INTEL

  

  By Will Fastie

  In the nearly 50 years I’ve been following Intel, I’ve never seen the company in such disarray. Things are bad.

  On August 1, Intel released its financial results for its second fiscal quarter ending July 31. Although there was a tiny bright spot in its Client Computing Group (up 9% year over year), net revenue was down 1% and the company recorded a quarterly loss of USD $1.6 billion, nearly $3 billion lower year over year.

  Intel’s stock dropped by over 25% in the two following days. And that’s just one of Intel’s problems.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.33.0, 2024-08-12).
  This story also appears in our public Newsletter.

  Intel AI, Apple, Core 13900K, Core 14900K, Intel, Intel News, Microsoft, Microsoft Surface, Newsletters, Qualcomm, Silicon, Surface

• What has Microsoft done right?

  Posted on July 1, 2024 at 02:45 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  

  ISSUE 21.27 • 2024-07-01

  EDITORIAL

  

  By Will Fastie

  We spend a lot of time here griping about Windows and, for that matter, all things Microsoft.

  It’s not exactly our job to look for the bad stuff. It is our job to cast a critical eye on the matters we cover in the newsletter and to report and analyze as objectively as possible.

  But it can’t be all bad. After all, if we decided not to embrace change, we’d be calling ourselves the AskWoody XP Newsletter.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.27.0, 2024-07-01).

  Editorial Microsoft, Newsletters

• You’ll be amazed to learn how Microsoft really makes dough

  Posted on July 1, 2024 at 02:44 CDT by B. Livingston • Comment in the Forums

  PUBLIC DEFENDER

  

  By Brian Livingston

  If you think the sale of Windows software is Microsoft’s primary source of revenue, you’re in for a big surprise when you see the way the Redmond corporate giant actually earns money.

  As of the fiscal quarter ending March 31, 2024, more than 56% of the company’s revenue — easily a majority — is generated by Microsoft’s cloud services, including Azure Server, Office cloud services, and other online income streams.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.27.0, 2024-07-01).

  Public Defender Azure, Cloud computing, Financial Performance, Gaming, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Newsletters, Office, Windows

• The software subscription model

  Posted on June 10, 2024 at 02:42 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  COMMENTARY

  

  By Will Fastie

  My data is being held hostage.

  A recent email from TechSmith, the maker of Camtasia and Snagit, rubbed me the wrong way. This came on the heels of an annoying experience trying to activate Adobe Creative Suite 3 (CS3, from 2006) on my newest computer. I admit to knowing, in advance, that I would be annoyed.

  I then started thinking about software subscription plans and their pros and cons.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.24.0, 2024-06-10).

  Commentary Adobe, Camtasia, Creative Cloud, Creative Suite, JetBrains, Microsoft, Microsoft 365, Newsletters, Office, Snagit, Software, Software Subscriptions, Subscriptions, TechSmith

• The Windows 11 disconnect

  Posted on May 6, 2024 at 02:42 CDT by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PATCH WATCH

  

  By Susan Bradley

  Despite my being a CPA, earnings calls are not usually a part of my technology coverage for Patch Watch.

  I’m making an exception. I read the transcript of the Microsoft Fiscal Year 2024 Third Quarter Earnings Conference Call and found myself concerned with CEO Satya Nadella’s remarks. In the call, Nadella addressed recent problems Microsoft had encountered with security — from the company itself being hacked due to its own lack of attention to OAuth, to attackers breaking through using various other means.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.19.0, 2024-05-06).

  Patch Watch KB5036979, KB5036980, Microsoft, Microsoft earnings, Newsletters, OAuth, Patch Lady Posts, Windows 11 24H2

• Mouse quest

  Posted on April 22, 2024 at 02:42 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  HARDWARE

  

  By Will Fastie

  I’m filled with angst about Microsoft getting out of the PC accessories business.

  PC peripherals of any kind are a very personal matter. But those with which we interact the most can have an enormous impact on our productivity. I know this intellectually, of course, but recently it’s become reality.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (21.17.0, 2024-04-22).

  Hardware Logitech, Mice, Microsoft, Newsletters, Touch Pad, Touch screen

• The patching year in review — for consumers

  Posted on December 26, 2023 at 02:42 CST by Susan Bradley • Comment in the Forums

  PATCH WATCH

  

  By Susan Bradley

  We’re closing another patching year for consumers and home users (aka the “unmanaged crowd”).

  Will and I have an ongoing, two-year struggle with a phrase I commonly use, “consumer and home users.” Will thinks it cumbersome and that there is no meaningful difference.

  I define consumers as anyone running Windows Home or Professional editions but not configured in a domain or not using patching tools favored by businesses. Consumers don’t have an IT department (assuming you don’t call the teenager next door an IT department) and don’t use a managed service provider. Consumers usually have a peer-to-peer network (because who doesn’t have multiple devices connected to their Internet service these days?) and may use it to connect to shared devices such as printers. Consumers tend to blur the lines of technology and will use Apple iPads or Android phones right alongside Windows machines.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.52.0, 2023-12-26).

  Patch Watch Apple, Consumers, Drivers, Home PCs, KB5025885, Microsoft, Newsletters, Patch Lady Posts, Repair Install, Secure Boot, Very Small Businesses

• A strong Microsoft

  Posted on October 30, 2023 at 02:42 CDT by Will Fastie • Comment in the Forums

  MICROSOFT NEWS

  

  By Will Fastie

  Microsoft’s FY24 Q1 numbers are excellent and will please investors, but results in certain sectors may spell future trouble.

  These days, decoding financial statements can be very difficult, much more so than during my time as a securities analyst in the ’90s. Complicating matters today are strained economies, inflation, political uncertainty, post-pandemic recoveries, supply-chain disruption, and currency fluctuations.

  Despite all that, Microsoft’s first-quarter financial results justify optimism.

  Read the full story in our Plus Newsletter (20.44.0, 2023-10-30).

  Microsoft News Financial Performance, Microsoft, Newsletters, Surface, Windows
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