Remember These Letters - RSS

RSS, Real Simple syndication, has been around for a while now. I have been using it to capture posts to my favorite blogs for over a year. My own blogs all have RSS feeds. RSS is a method of pushing information out to the Internet so that RSS Readers can grab it and present it to the user. The user does not have to go and check each blog or website to see if anything new has been posted. It's a great tool that's just getting started. Podcasting is a variation that includes audio feeds.

Microsoft has announced that IE 7 and Longhorn (the next version of Windows) will include RSS tools. This is great news for the RSS community. Microsoft doing something like this always adds credibility to a new technology. Although it usually sends shivers down the spines of the companies that make their living creating similar tools.

It's yet to be seen how far Microsoft will go with this. One thing is for sure though, RSS is here to stay. This is a technology everyone should keep their eyes on! Click here for more info on RSS.

Sprint Nextel Corporation

The merger between Sprint and Nextel will create a new company called Sprint Nextel Corporation. It appears that for now Nextel will be a separate labeled product from the company. This is mainly because the two systems are not compatible. Nextel will continue to use its popular push to talk function over its IDen network. The two systems should merge down the road a bit. (If not what was the point of the merger?) For you racing fans, the Nextel name will still be used for the Nextel Nascar series at least through 2006. What a relief! More information can be found here.

IE7 For Windows XP Only

Microsoft has announced that the next version of Internet Explorer, IE7, will be available for Windows XP only. Windows 2000 users will not be able to use it. Two reasons given are the fact that Win2K is getting to the end of its life cycle (extended support through 2010) and several of the IE7 enhancements are dependent on technology built into WinXP but not Win2K.

It seems Microsoft is pouring fuel on the alternative browser fire to me. Why does the browser have to be so connected to the operating system? There are several alternative browsers including Firefox that are not dependent on the OS and do a great job. Is Microsoft saying you must use one of those if you want a better or secure browser for Win2K?

Over the years Microsoft has back stepped on many of these types of announcements. There are still a large number of Win2K users out there. This type of announcement can not only make them consider a browser alternative but possibly even an OS alternative. If IE6 needs a refresh, Win2K users should not be left out. Get the browser out of the OS!