MSBC NewsSource is currently being produced in a shorter format to give our writers and editors a well-deserved break. To make up for fewer reports, we are including an above-average number of links to reports on other sites that will make up the difference. Standard NewsSource production will resume on January 10, 2000.

COURT NOTES: Since the government antitrust case began, Microsoft and the Department of Justice have entered several laughable attempts to settle the case before the judge's final ruling. But the latest discussion, started in Chicago on November 30, is expected to at least come close to some kind of settlement agreement because of its newly appointed moderator - appeals court judge Richard Posner [see NewsSource, Nov. 22].
Security is so tight at this series of talks that the participants are required to use passwords to even get meeting dates, and everyone involved is under orders (presumably from Posner) not to comment on anything about the meets. That prevents us from knowing much about the meetings right now except Bill Gates has, so far, not attended any of them, and all future meetings are expected to continue in Chicago, since that city lies roughly halfway between Redmond and Washington DC.

On the 3rd of December, Microsoft quietly realigned its divisions into a more manageable mass of products and services. Significantly, Windows 9X has been reunited with NT/2000 under the leadership of Brian Valentine, who has been heading the development of 2000. Valentine will report to Microsoft VP Jim Allchin, who heads up a broad category containing operating systems and other platforms like streaming media. The Consumer and Commerce Division was chopped up and tossed into a pile of seven consumer oriented groups all headed up by former SGI head Rick Belluzzo [see NewsSource, Sep. 13]. 'Commerce' duties of the former Consumer and Commerce Division will be handled by a new Small Business unit that will primarily deal with business components of MSN like bCentral and LinkExchange. That unit is contained in Microsoft's broad Business Productivity Group, responsible for Office and the company's server products. The Developer Tools Division headed by Paul Maritz remains unchanged.

As rumored for some time, sources are now confirming that Microsoft will abandon Visual J++ sometime early next year. While still a popular product, the Java development tool has been crippled by a ruling in the Sun antitrust lawsuit forcing Microsoft to bring it into compliance with contractual requirements for Java [see NewsSource, Nov. 23 '98]. Microsoft, now unable to continue its Java bastardization, has apparently decide to drop Java development entirely in favor of XML. That, too, was confirmed by sources, who say the next version of the Visual Studio development suite will not contain an update for VJ++, instead featuring tools for working with XML - a standard Microsoft can corrupt more easily than it could corrupt Java. This also means Microsoft has decided not to advance COOL, its own proposed Java-compatible C++ extension set [see NewsSource, Feb. 22].

Trying to escape Windows CE's bad reputation, Microsoft announced that it will abandon that moniker for the unpopular handheld operating system. In place of CE, CE-based devices like the Casio E-10 and the now-deceased Philips Nino will be badged "Windows Powered." This move is expected to do little for the handheld systems beyond stopping us from referring to them as 'Wince' machines.
According to several reports, agencies of the German government may be prevented from using Windows 2000 when it finally ships because one of the system's bundled utilities was created by a group controlled by Scientology - a religious group the German government is legally prevented from doing business with. But according to our German associates, the impact may not be too significant since their government relies heavily on open source systems like Linux already.

Financial adviser to study Microsoft remedies
Israeli lawyer mounts $120m Y2k suit against MS
MS quietly dumps Windows OpenGL support
Gates reveals partnership in Hummer Winblad
Microsoft rolls out IE 5.5 browser
Global Crossing, Microsoft sign Asian fibre net JV deal