Traditionally, Microsoft’s core business has been focused on the Windows platform and the Office suite. Windows and Office, by all means, continue to be the heart of Microsoft. The latest versions of the flagship products, Windows Vista and the Office 2007 System, made available to the public at the end of January 2007, have fueled the vast majority of the company’s most recent fiscal second quarter record financial results of $16.37 billion in revenue, and $6.48 billion in operating income. With Office SP1 out of the way at the end of 2007, Microsoft is currently building Windows Vista Service Pack 1, Windows XP Service Pack 3 and Windows 7 client platforms, as well as putting the finishing touches on Windows Server 2008.
Read the rest of this entry »

• 0 Comments

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 introduces two new compression features (available in Enterprise and Developer editions) that are of interest to users with large databases. Data compression applies to individual tables and indexes within a database and comes in two options: ROW and PAGE. Backup compression is a new option when backing up a database to external storage. Both compression techniques can be used to reduce the amount of online storage required for databases and their backups.
Read the rest of this entry »

• 0 Comments

AutoCAD Map 3D is the leading engineering GIS platform for creating and managing spatial data. AutoCAD Map 3D bridges CAD and GIS by providing direct access to data, regardless of how it is stored, and by enabling the use of AutoCAD® tools for maintaining a broad variety of geospatial information.

Using Open Source FDO Data Access Technology, AutoCAD Map 3D natively accesses spatial data stored in relational databases, files, and Web-based services, providing easy management of large geospatial data sets while streamlining entire workflows.
Read the rest of this entry »

• 0 Comments

1. Work with data in a unified and integrated way.
• Be more productive by using a single approach to querying and manipulating data that’s integrated with the way you write code—in the programming language.
• Language-Integrated Query (line) lets you use a single model to query and transform XML, Microsoft® SQL Server TM, and object data, helping you focus on what you need the data to do rather than how you are going to access the data.
Read the rest of this entry »

• 0 Comments

If you work with Microsoft technologies, most likely a portion of your development effort is taking place within Visual Studio, Microsoft’s flagship developer environment. Microsoft products such as SharePoint, Commerce Server, Exchange Server, BizTalk Server, Office, SQL Server, CRM, Windows Mobile Devices, and even the Xbox all support .NET development, and most have deep integration with Visual Studio.

With the release of Visual Studio 2008, Microsoft has further enhanced the environment, and added support for new features. We’ll take a look at these enhancements, broken down into four groups: Environment, Designers, Language, and Products.
Read the rest of this entry »

• 0 Comments

Use SQL Server 2008’s new and enhanced T-SQL programming features to create next generation database applications that support the most demanding end-user requirements.
New Table-Value Parameters Pass large amounts of data efficiently to functions and procedures using new Table-Value Parameters.
Read the rest of this entry »

• 0 Comments