Four days after going on sale, the cut-price ‘pre-order’ of the Windows 7 upgrades is proving a success through at least one retailer. The Home Premium and Professional upgrades are firmly atop the Amazon software chart.

It’s been a whole year since Bill Gates retired from the day-to-day running of Microsoft. After an extensive six months farewell tour, he handed the reins of the company over to Steve Ballmer at a town hall meeting in Redmond on June 27, 2008. Although Gates is still the part-time non-executive chairman, Microsoft has essentially been going for a year without him in charge. So, how are things going?

Businesses planning to buy new computers in bulk may be better off waiting until October. It’s emerged that a Microsoft scheme offering free upgrades to people buying Vista machines this summer has a maximum limit of 25 machines for businesses.

Windows Vista has been nothing shot of a disaster on all fronts for Microsoft. The question now is whether Windows 7 can undo the harm created by the failed operating system, wash away the nasty aftertaste, and restore some pride in the Windows name.

Netbooks are becoming an important part of the PC sector. These small, slimmed down machines meant mainly for surfing the Web are increasing in popularity by a huge amount. Which means they’re very important to the success of Windows 7, and Microsoft knows it.

Regular updates to the operating system or components of it are a necessary evil for anyone running Windows on their computer. Some are essential, many are not, but Microsoft really wants you to download and install them to your system. So much so that it will sometimes make you do so whether you want to or not.

Microsoft has released details of Windows 7 pricing, including a special offer allowing Vista users to pay for an upgrade in advance for as little as $49. This article aims to answer your questions about how much Windows 7 will cost in your circumstances.

Microsoft has received a double dose of good news about Bing. Figures suggest that the new search engine is helping the firm get a bigger share of advertising clicks, while the brand itself is achieving an increasingly positive reputation.

Microsoft’s decision to release Windows 7 in Europe without Internet Explorer 8 bundled was an important one because it almost (but not quite) took the wind out of the EU’s sails concerning antitrust issues. But it’s also had a follow-on effect, and this one means European Windows 7 buyers will have less options when it comes to upgrading from Vista.

An advance test of Microsoft’s new free security package suggests it avoids the bloatware problems associated with both antivirus software and Windows itself. The package, codenamed Morro, is released today with a supposed limit of 75,000 downloads.

Fujitsu has confirmed that it will impose an upgrade charge on customers who buy a Vista machine before Oct. 22 and then upgrade to Windows 7. The full details of Microsoft’s upgrade scheme are due to be unveiled this Friday.

We’ve known about Microsoft’s plans to release a free antivirus tool form some time now, and last week saw the first screenshots of the software leak on the Internet. Now, Microsoft has officially taken the wraps off its replacement for Windows Live OneCare, with a beta version of the now-titled Microsoft Security Essentials, is coming on June 23.

Spin doctoring, the art of subtly changing the facts to sell a product, person, or concept, is inherent in every aspect of our lives these days, from politics to entertainment. And, it seems, it’s also alive and kicking in the Web browser war, at least as far as Microsoft and Internet Explorer 8 is concerned.

There was me thinking Internet portals were dead and buried. But it seems I’m wrong. In fact, Microsoft claims research shows 37 percent of Web users still rely on an Internet portal. Which is probably why Microsoft is now giving its MSN homepage a complete revamp. Web 2.0 has finally hit MSN, as the rest of the Internet moves on.

Microsoft has confirmed that people buying machines with Windows 7 pre-installed will be able to downgrade to XP until April 2011. It strongly appears this has been increased after a poor reaction to initial plans.