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Office management, Azeroth-style
Josh had his leadership role in WoW pop into his mind during a job interview, and he channeled that into an interesting little article about how to convert WoW roles into the roles people play around the office. I think he's really got something here-- stay tuned for how you can buy a ticket to his "Management, Azeroth-style" seminar, which will teach you and your staff how to tackle even the hardest raid bosses projects.We've heard quite a few times before that WoW can help you on the job, but I don't know that I've ever seen the roles detailed so clearly. Josh says the Main Tank is the outside communications person for the project, and fends off managers and other departments to make sure members can get their jobs done. The Main Healer keeps motivation up rather than hit points, and make sure everyone stays on task and working. And the DPS are the meat of the project, doing the day-to-day damage to accomplish objectives. The idea works pretty darn well, actually-- at least until your project manager starts taunting the CEO and your senior producer stays up late one night and catches aggro. But definitely an interesting read if you've ever been given the task of running a team of people, in or out of game.
Office 11.4.0 update squashes nasty Entourage data loss bug
Among the security patches delivered with Microsoft's 11.4.0 update to Office 2004 this week, there was a fix for a subtle and deeply irritating bug that's been nipping at Exchange users for a long time. Under certain rare circumstances, Entourage users could unexpectedly and unexplainedly lose days or weeks worth of email, poof! I've personally seen this happen a handful of times over the past three years, and it's always a challenging conversation when the affected user asks "What the hell happened?" and the official reply is "Um... let me check the backups for you, mmmkay?"TUAW reader Vermyndax, who worked with Microsoft support to track down the bug, blogged about the cause and resolution of the issue today:The bug occurs due to a bad logic assumption. Entourage 2004 treats its local database as authoritative to the mail stored in your mailbox. As such, if the Exchange server happens to be virus-scanning your mailbox when you synchronize your mail, Exchange will refuse to allow Entourage access to the items being scanned. Since Entourage receives no information on the existence of those items, it will mark them for deletion in its local database. On the next sync, you lose all of those items in the mailbox too. In cases we noted, users were losing large swaths of email at once (on the order of 2-3 weeks' worth all at once). Yech. While you could recover the mail from Outlook/OWA "Deleted Items," it was a pain -- and worse if you didn't notice the problem until after your retention deadline had passed. Upgrading to 11.4.0, assuming you aren't quite ready to make the leap to Office 2008, is sounding better all the time. Thanks Vermyndax!
A peek into Will Wright's office
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/Will_Wright_s_office_It_s_not_a_bug_it_s_a_feature'; While wandering through EA's Maxis office for a recent Spore demo or two (or three), we snapped a few pictures of building art and Will Wright's office. (We've grown unexpectedly fascinated with people's desks.) "It's not a bug, it's a feature" never gets old. And it's a veritable game of spot-the-technology-that-shouldn't-be-here inside Wright's workspace. Well, "shouldn't" for game developers who aren't trying to launch the SimEverything genre. Somehow, we think Wright needs everything in the photo.%Gallery-15885% Check out all our extensive coverage of Will Wright's Spore!
Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac 11.4.0 Update
Microsoft releases patches for most of their products on a monthly schedule, on the second Tuesday of the month specifically. I'm telling you this because today is the second Tuesday of February and Microsoft has a gift for all you Office 2004 for the Mac users: a patch for a critical vulnerability (insert obligatory Microsoft joke here).Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac 11.4.0 Update addresses, 'a vulnerability that an attacker can use to overwrite the contents of your computer's memory with malicious code.' Nobody wants malicious code on their computer, so if you're running Office 2004 for Mac on your Mac, apply this update as soon as possible. Office 2008 for Mac does not have this vulnerability.
Office Snapshots goes inside Apple's Cupertino offices
And they found ... not that much. There's something not-quite-right about these snapshots purportedly from inside Apple's Cupertino campus. They look like they come from almost anywhere -- despite the plentiful Apple products (and one notable Microsoft natural keyboard), there's no major signs of genius -- no "the crazy ones" posters, iTablet prototypes lying around, or "how to act around His Steveness" employee pamphlets. Could it be that the people who work at Apple are, strangely enough, just like us?No, surely not. These pictures are also a bit out of date, we're told, as rumor has it that the front lobby always shows off the new products, not the old iMacs. So clearly these snaps are from the late '90s, when the rest of us were using beige boxes and OS 9 to compute, and only Apple employees had the luxury of using thin keyboards and horizontal LCDs gone vertical (madness!) in their super-futuristic office space. There: our worldview is back to normal. As normal as it gets, anyway.Thanks, Steve!
Microsoft's "Vista for privacy" offer still on?
Details are still fuzzy at this point, but according to an e-mail received by numerous tipsters, Microsoft is indeed offering up a free copy of Vista in exchange for their privacy. Yeah, even though it claimed otherwise late last year. According to the note, Redmond is viewing these folks as "registered members" of the Windows Feedback Program, and if they keep their guard down for the remainder of a three month period, they will seemingly receive a copy of its latest OS gratis. So, any others out there finding an unexpected message from the Big M regarding said offer? Let us know in comments below, particularly if you get any free wares or previously analyzed keylogging reports.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Kerio MailServer provides Leopard-compatible groupware
When I posted about the Zimbra collaboration suite a little while ago, it was noted in the comments that, while the Zimbra client is now working in Safari 3, the server isn't yet Leopard-compatible. Kerio MailServer offers a Safari 3 and Leopard-compatible alternative with a lot of groupware functionality. Kerio's Safari 3 compatibility stems mostly from the fact that it doesn't have a rich text editor in the client, but it works flawlessly for plain text email and the interface is as smooth and AJAXy as Zimbra's. Kerio has had a Mac version of the server since 2003, with drop-in Exchange replacement capability and the ability to sync contacts, calendars and email without the need for an external client. Kerio has even had iPhone sync since last Fall. Kerio's pricing structure is slightly different from Zimbra's, but competitive; there's no open source Kerio version, as there is with Zimbra. But if you're in the market for a Leopard-based mail server and collaboration solution, Kerio seems to be a pretty good choice.
Mac 101: Don't move those files!
No, this won't be another post where I explain my reasons for loving and ordering the MacBook Air. That will come later when I actually have the MBA in my hands. Until then, I want to pass along a little bit of knowledge I learned while doing Mac consulting many moons ago: many files and folders on your Mac should be left alone and not moved or thrown away.One particular incident that illustrates this point happened to a user who called me one day saying his entire Microsoft Entourage store of emails, contacts, etc. had just "disappeared" and Entourage had "reset to when it was new." Well, naturally that sounded a bit odd to me so I went over to see what I could do to resolve this little problem.After a bit of searching around I discovered the user had "accidentally" moved a very important folder out of a folder called "Documents" (which is located in his individual "Users" folder) to the Trash. For the win, can you guess which folder he threw in the trash? iI you guessed it was his "Microsoft User Data" folder, you would be correct. Fortunately for this particular user, after moving the folder back where it belonged all was well with Entourage and his data was restored. Let's go over that again, just to be clear. This particular folder, the "Microsoft User Data" folder, is located in your particular "Documents" folder on the hard drive of your computer.
Macworld video: TUAW looks at Microsoft Office 2008
If you do any work in Office you've probably been waiting for the latest update for a couple of years now. Especially if you're on an Intel machine or have struggled with Entourage's funky interface (or is that just me?). Last week Microsoft released Office 2008 for the Mac, and it's a doozy of an update. Being a universal binary is really the least of the changes. This is a complete overhaul, with a ton of UI changes and workflow improvements. Amanda Lefebvre takes us on a whirlwind tour of some new features, and explains the difference between the three different editions of Office.
Zimbra offers Safari 3 support
I'm not ashamed to admit that I love Safari. Unfortunately, not all web developers are hip to it, especially when it comes to Ajax-based web apps. In fact, I'd have trouble naming very many web-based, "WYSIWYG" editors, let alone full collaboration suites, that work well with Safari. That's why I was pleased to hear that the Leopard-loving folks at Zimbra, the open source messaging and collaboration suite, have announced expanded support for Mac users, including Safari compatibility. To the best of my knowledge (and according to their press release), this makes them the first major collaboration suite to support Safari. And the support, especially in the document editor, is good. It uses valid XHTML tags and CSS to create cross-browser compatibility. I think the feature I love the most right now is the full support for rich text pasting (and no font tags). If you're using Firefox, you get page previews, monetary conversions and more when hovering over different bits of information. These seem to be missing on Safari, but that could be on account of an odd setting in my configuration. In addition to Safari support, Zimbra has also added support for CalDav, allowing iCal 3 to sync and share calendars through its server. And for the mobile set, they've added a mobile HTML client that makes the suite iPhone compatible. With the preexisting Zimbra Connector for iSync, Zimbra users can sync their email, address books and calendars to their iPhone. You can catch Zimbra at Macworld in booth W-4348. Zimbra is available for free as the ZCS 5.0 Open Source Edition. They also offer a Network Edition with commercial support, educational discounts available. And for the curious, you can demo the suite online at their website.
Apple ships five million copies of Leopard in three months
It was but a few months ago that Apple trumpeted the fact that two million copies of Leopard had been sold in its first weekend. As of Macworld 2008, you can add three million more to that figure. According to Jobs, it's the "most successful release of OS X ever," and nearly 20-percent of the install base has made the leap to 10.5. Oh, and just in case you were wondering about Office Mac 2008, it is indeed shipping today, which means that all the "big apps" for OS X are finally Intel native.
Office 2008 now available for pre-order
Many of you have already gotten the email inviting you to dig deep into your pockets, so let me relay the news to them that hasn't: you can now pre-order Microsoft Office 2008 from Apple and Amazon, with delivery scheduled on January 15th.If you were hoping to install Office 2008 in the first few moments after its official release... well, my suggestion is to wait a few days for the issues to shake out. Otherwise, better have a second machine around to get work done.Thanks to everyone who sent this in.
Hands-on with Quickoffice 5
Pretty much anyone who has used a Symbian-based device is familiar with Quickoffice, the suite of applications that brings Office documents within reach for the millions of power users out there who've brushed off Windows Mobile's in-built capabilities for something a little more European in flavor. The package has just been updated to version 5, bringing with it a handful of tweaks -- and most importantly, support for Office 2007's XML-derived files.We've had a while to play with it, and we're pleased with what we've seen. Quickoffice has historically managed to find the right compromise between functionality and simplicity and v5 is no exception; documents loaded quickly (by phone standards, anyway -- 5 seconds or less) and reading them was as painless as it could be considering our E61's 320 x 240 display. Office 2007 docs loaded as advertised, and one of Quickoffice's advertised new features -- marquee scrolling of file names in the title bar with auto-collapsing tabs -- is an awesome trick that we'd like to see in more S60 apps. At $70, the suite is probably the most you'll ever spend for a single piece of software for your phone, but it's pretty much a must-have if you plan on using it as a business tool. If you have a Nokia smartphone, odds are you already have a Quickoffice trial loaded that you can use to buy the goods; otherwise, it's available now from Quickoffice's site. Click on for some screen shots!%Gallery-12427%
Microsoft pulls Vista from snooping offer
Yesterday, we told you about an offer wherein you could completely sacrifice your privacy for a free software bundle from Microsoft which included Windows Vista Ultimate and Office Ultimate '07, amongst others. Well, apparently the big M has decided to pull the offer of free software -- but still wants to track your digital footsteps and pry into your private dealings. Here's Redmond's official line to those inquiring about the discontinued offer: "Thank you for your interest in the feedback program. Due to high volume, we have reached our 'while supplies last' limit and have closed our free product incentive on 12/11/2007 at 2pm." Needless to say, they'd still love to have a look at your browser history, emails, IM logs, crash reports, and blood type.[Thanks, Jerry]
Take Nintendo to work with you
If you have a need for a pile of business cards at the ready, then we have something special for you. Surely you want to personalize the ol' office, yeah? What better way to do that than by showing off your Nintendo love? Etsy seller lostmitten has this sweet little NES-themed business card holder that might be just what you need for that touch of flair.
Helio outs File Viewer for Ocean, reads most of the important stuff
Helio's Ocean certainly has the hardware credentials to see some duty as a business device, but with Helio's consumer focus, the software necessary to turn the phone into a productivity powerhouse hasn't really materialized. That changes a bit today though with the introduction of File Viewer, a free application that allows Ocean users to read a variety of popular file formats, among them Word, Excel, and Powerpoint documents, PDF, plain text, HTML, and several image types in both landscape and portrait modes. Helio's commemorating the event by also upgrading its Mail for Exchange platform to version 1.2, offering a handful of improvements and providing direct integration to the File Viewer. Both are available today; follow the break for the full press release.
Run your company like an online game
Do business culture and the principles of online gaming belong together?Two entrepreneurs in Palo Alto think so. Inspired by Second Life and World of Warcraft, they theorized that principles used in the management of online game communities could be used to manage businesses. They formed a company called Seriosity and its maiden voyage is a product called Attent. It's their first gaming-inspired product, but they want to launch more in the future. Learn more about it after the jump.
Eclipse Office Partitioning System concept adds privacy to the workspace
Let's face it, not everyone can get relocated to the corner office, but if designer Marcus Ward Curran has anything to do with it, even the newbies can look forward to a certain level of privacy in the office. The Eclipse Office Partitioning System enables desk dwellers to cover up their space with panels in varying degrees, and it even touts the ability to change colors throughout the day to liven up the mood. Furthermore, the unit includes an RFID sensor (hey, The Man has to hold you down somehow, right?), a wireless charging mat, pillar-based speakers, an internal projection system and a built-in lighting system to boot. Throw in a teleportation feature to get us home on the double and we'd be sold. Check out the video after the break.[Via YankoDesign]
The Office's Dwight takes to Second Life, hilarity ensues
As fans of NBC's hit 'The Office' are probably well aware, last Thursday's episode "The Ad" gave a fair bit of screen time to Second Life. Games don't usually get a terribly fair treatment in popular media, as writers tend to perpetuate popular stereotypes about players as unsociable, unhealthy, or both for the sake of making an easy joke.And while we have to concede that The Office's take on Second Life did focus on the escapism for which many people play the game, the punchlines were in all the right places. (See: Dwight's Second Life character playing an MMO within the MMO, to help escape further.) Check out the full episode on NBC's website, it's a good one.
NTT DoCoMo erects office in Vietnam
Joining overseas facilities in Beijing, Shanghai and Singapore, NTT DoCoMo has established a fourth distanced home in Hanoi, Vietnam. Reportedly, the firm plans on using this building to "enhance its information-gathering capabilities, explore potential business opportunities, and raise its profile among and strengthen relationships with government officials and corporate executives in the burgeoning Vietnamese market." Notably, only four people will be kept on staff at the locale, which will also have oversight for Laos and Cambodia.
