Microsoft
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Product: Microsoft Windows 7
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Product: Windows Live OneCare
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Product: Microsoft Visio 2010



About Microsoft

Almost everyone knows that Microsoft was formed by Bill Gates. Some people may know he was a Harvard College Dropout. Did you know that he was born on the 28th October, 1955 and his actual name is William Henry Gates III? His family was successful in business and lived in Seattle, Washington as part of the upper middle class. Gates was exceptional at school especially in math and science. It was when he was enrolled at Lakeside Prep School, in 1968, that he was first introduced to computers.

Gates and his friend Paul Allen were amongst students chosen to use computers at various corporations, since they were still too expensive for schools to purchase. They took to computing so well, spending nearly all their time learning everything they could about them, that soon they were even able to hack the system. After they had altered and crashed valuable company files they were banned from using the corporate computer completely!

Very soon Gates and his friends were actually hired by the same company to find bugs and find the reasons for continuous system crashes. For payment they were given unlimited computer time. During this time the boys absorbed all they could about computers, questioned the employees extensively, all the while forming a base of knowledge for their future. They also ran a small company called Traf-O-Data and designed a computer that could count traffic which they sold to the city of Seattle. Gates and Allen were hired properly in 1970 by Information Sciences Inc. to write a payroll program. In 1973 Gates started studying prelaw at Harvard although he spent most of his time programming in the computer centre. He met Steve Ballmer there, who is Microsoft's current CEO. He also stayed in touch with Allen and they continued planning for the future.

A year later when Allen saw the first microcomputer, made by Altair manufacturers, on the cover of a magazine, he took it to show Gates. Realising that someone was going to have to provide software for this budding market, Gates arranged a meeting with the company telling them he had written a programme for them. In actual fact he and Allen then stayed up for many nights writing the promised programme, which was a version of BASIC programming language. It was a hit at the next meeting and the programme was sold. Realising that selling software was now a reality for them, Gates dropped out of Harvard and Microsoft was formed.

After a few rough years the company was able to license Ms-Dos to IBM. The success of the IBM PC reflected Microsoft's success. More software was written for businesses and the private users. The company went public in 1986, with Gates becoming a billionaire at the age of 31. In 1987 the first version of Windows was released with a million copies a month being sold by 1993.

Microsoft's focus changed dramatically in 1995 when Gates realised that they had to get into the Internet market. They launched the Internet Explorer browser, which soon became a bestseller. Today nearly every computer has some Microsoft software.

The Products

The products listed below are some of Microsoft's top sellers.

- Microsoft Office Home and Student includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote which is everything essential for use at home and by students.
- Windows 7 Home Premium, a version of Windows 7, which apart from the regular Windows 7 features, offer the user excellent entertainment on their PC.
- Microsoft Home and Business has all the same programmes as the Home and Student version but also includes Outlook.
- Microsoft Outlook lets you stay connected with the newest e-mail and calendar tools.
- Microsoft Windows 7 Professional provides the user with everything they will ever need for work as well as home use.
- Streets & Trips is Microsoft's travel and map software and has been the top seller for eleven years in a row.

Strengths

Microsoft's strength lies mainly in its ability to predict trends and leap in confidently before other companies cotton on to what's happening. They have a very strong hold on the desktop application market. In addition they have all other areas well covered with Windows OS, the Office suite of productivity software, software for computer servers and the Web browser Internet Explorer. There is also their line of Xbox consoles and games which remains an important product for them in the consumer area.

Awards

Microsoft has received many rewards over the years. Listed below are some of them.

- Engineering & Information Technology Reader's Choice Survey: Best diversity Company in 2011.
- The Ethisphere Institute New York: Named on World's Most Ethical Companies list.
- Danish Magazine Ingenioren: Most attractive IT workplace in Denmark.
- Great Place to Work Institute Dubai: Best Workplace.
- Careers & Disabled Magazine: No.2 on 20th Annual "Top 50 Employers".

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