The OneNote for Windows 8.1 has been updated and it finally brings support for accessing password protected sections in your OneNote notebooks. But it still isn’t complete support which means you still need the desktop version of the app. Why Microsoft? Why?
While it may not be the soothing balm of a new release of Office, Windows Phone users should take some comfort in that Microsoft is listening. Well, at least Joe Belfiore is on the subject and if you are going to have one person listening, he’s the one. Microsoft’s Vice President of Windows has posted on the Chinese blog site Weibo that an update for Office for Windows Phone is coming and news about it and the next version of Windows Phone will be announced before the Chinese New Year. For those who want to keep score, that’s 48 days from today: February 19, 2015.
Okay, so if you follow me on Twitter then you have undoubtedly seen my posts throughout the afternoon on the Microsoft Work & Play Bundle that I picked up today at my local Microsoft store here in Dallas.
Seriously peeps, the Work & Play bundle @microsoftstore is a huge deal. $149 for 12 Months @xbox Gold & Music, @skype @office365 Home
— Clinton Fitch (@ClintonFitch) December 20, 2014
I appreciate that I may be beating the proverbial dead horse. I got it… but this is a seriously good deal peeps if you use these services from Microsoft. Even if you use just two of these services, this is a deal that you can’t pass up.
Microsoft today announced that next year they will be rebranding their enterprise communications app & service Lync to Skype for Business. The move shouldn’t be a big surprise for those who follow Microsoft in the enterprise space as there has been rumors floating around this rebranding for sometime. Skype for Business will bring both intra- and extra-company communication to enterprises and their customers on one common platform and application.
In the first half of 2015, the next version of Lync will become Skype for Business with a new client experience, new server release, and updates to the service in Office 365. We believe that Skype for Business will again transform the way people communicate by giving organizations reach to hundreds of millions of Skype users outside the walls of their business.
In addition to the platform changes, users can also expect some significant improvements around functionality including simplified one-click telephony (assuming you have the appropriate licensing in place).
Dear Microsoft,
It’s Clinton, that former MVP that has returned to Windows Phone after three years in the iOS wilderness. I’m happy to be back thanks. I’ve enjoyed connected with old friends and being back on a platform that I love. It’s great to see how much it has grown up in the last three years and the amount of productivity I have now with my phone compared to a few years ago is in stark contrast.
There is one area though that the difference between iOS and Windows Phone remains and it is painful. That is Office for Windows Phone. My Microsoft friends, it is horrific. Not to the scale of Office for Mac horrific but pretty close. It is so limiting – so ultimately useless many times – that it is the single set of apps that I miss on my iPad. As I put in my Windows Phone app gap article a few days ago, generally I can find anything I need for Windows Phone these days and in fact Office for Windows Phone comes built into my Lumia 1320. But it is such a painful experience that even when I want do a quick edit to a Word document or PowerPoint, I end up lugging out the laptop. It shouldn’t be this way.
Earlier this week Microsoft announced that Office 365 customers would have their current 1TB of OneDrive storage increased to an unlimited amount. This was big news and I think it is a show of force by Microsoft that they are serious about being the cloud storage leader in the market. This morning it appears that this massive increase in OneDrive storage is starting to happen for some users.
Earlier today I posted an article bringing to light how serious Microsoft is about cloud computing based on their financials from last quarter. As if they actually read my post, Microsoft’s OneDrive division has just upped the game for cloud storage in a big way. If you are an Office 365 subscriber, starting today OneDrive is beginning to roll out unlimited storage for as low as $6.99 per month.
Is there really any doubt left on how good of deal this is for you?
To get this outstanding deal when it comes you need to do the following:
If you are already an Office 365 user then there is nothing more you need to do. Microsoft will be rolling out this unlimited storage to users over the course of the next few months. If you want to jump the queue and get it first, follow this link to get moved up in line.
For those of you on Office 365 for Business, the unlimited storage plan will be coming as part of a roadmap update in 2015. According to the OneDrive blog:
For OneDrive for Business customers, unlimited storage will be listed on the Office 365 roadmap in the coming days and we will begin updating the First Release customers in 2015, aligned with our promise to provide ample notification for significant service changes. In the meantime, get started using your 1 TB of storage today by backing up all those work files kicking around on your PC – with the knowledge that even more storage is on its way!
I cannot think of any reason not to give this a go. You have the latest and greatest suite of Office apps along with unlimited storage for your documents and pictures. What’s not to love?