Another deal from Microsoft on it’s XBox One system. Buy the system, get a free game. I recommend one of the newer ones to maximize your buying power. Some, like Call of Duty: Ghosts, can be found for under $25 quite often.

Those expecting Windows 8.1 Update 2 in the coming weeks will be disappointed. However, Microsoft is bringing a few improvements next Tuesday for the August updates. So, they are clearing up some Windows 8.1 Update 2 speculation. However, I’m sure there will be some (true or not) speculation on if this is a move to bring Windows 9 to market sooner and leave the larger update for that, rather than a new, large update to Windows 8.1. Take that as completely BS that I just made up, and may or not be true.

With the above in mind, rather than waiting for months and bundling together a bunch of improvements into a larger update as we did for the Windows 8.1 Update, customers can expect that we’ll use our already existing monthly update process to deliver more frequent improvements along with the security updates normally provided as part of “Update Tuesday.” So despite rumors and speculation, we are not planning to deliver a Windows 8.1 “Update 2.”

OneNote team posted a funny video (parody?) of a popular song, but switched it up to be a bit more relevant to the Surface Pro 3 and OneNote. This came out last month, so many may have already watched it, but I just caught wind of it.

Microsoft is going to drop Windows RT from it’s product line according to CNN Money. But, it’s the headline that got a chuckle from me – “Microsoft’s most boneheaded product is about to be killed off”. Sounds pretty brutal. One thing they did mention in there is that the Surface RT was the only mainstream Windows RT tablet. There were others, most have already dropped out from the RT offerings, though.  It had potential, but I see more users wanting the full Windows OS and not a watered down lookalike.

Windows RT was supposed to usher in the tablet era for Microsoft. But Windows RT has two fatal flaws: it’s missing crucial apps, and it’s poorly designed. Unsurprisingly, the stripped-down operating system failed to take off. (Actually, that’s an understatement: Microsoft took a $900 million writedown last year because of awful Surface RT sales, the only mainstream tablet than ran Windows RT.)

OneDrive users have been upgraded to a much larger quota. From the free OneDrive accounts to the business accounts (and Home/Home Office/Education), all have been given more space for your files. Of course, there is the ability to pay for more space as needed.

New and existing personal OneDrive accounts will come with:

 

• 15 GB of free storage (up from 7 GB)
• 1 TB of additional OneDrive storage with an Office 365 Home/Personal/University subscription (up from 20 GB)
• The option to buy additional storage at much lower prices, starting at 100 GB for $1.99 per month

 

Also, people who use OneDrive for Business now have a 1 TB quota (up from 25 GB).

As part of the layoffs and cuts at Microsoft this week, the newer XBox TV program has been axed. The series based on Halo will continue (as well as Signal to Noise), but all other projects are gone. I was hoping for some new original content from Microsoft with the platform.

Interestingly, that series (along with Signal to Noise) will continue, but everything else is being closed up. This means that the short life of Xbox Originals is already over. It’s unclear why this newly developed platform wasn’t allowed to grow, but evidently the new leadership saw limited potential in a crowded (and expensive) market. It’s also possible that leadership felt that creating content just wasn’t in Microsoft’s wheelhouse, and that the resources it’d require would be better placed elsewhere.

I was one of the many that were upset when Microsoft dropped Pearson Vue in favor of Prometric for their IT certification exams. Now, Microsoft is dropping the contract with Prometric, and is renewing with Pearson Vue. This is excellent news for many, as the nearest Prometric test center for me was 4 hours away (similar to many others). Pearson Vue has more centers available. Now, I can say that I am going to finish my CCNA: Security and then move on to many more Microsoft exams (Windows 8, Windows Server 2012, etc..). A FAQ for details is available here (PDF).

The partnership officially ends on December 31, 2014, however on September 4, 2014,Pearson VUE will renew its authorization as an exam delivery provider. Microsoft certification exams will continue to be available through both exam delivery providers through December 31, 2014.

Microsoft has declared that it no longer has 90% of the market share. However, the 90% is still true for PC’s, but it does only have 14% in the total device market. This includes all devices with an OS – PC’s, laptops, phones, tablets… Kevin Turner of Microsoft has a good outlook on the situation. Basically, it comes down to “Challenge Accepted.”.

But the rise of computing on tablets and smartphones has turned the PC market into one slice of a much larger pie, and Microsoft chief operating officer Kevin Turner this morning told the company’s partners that they have to look at the world differently. Even though Microsoft still has 90 percent of the PC market, he said, the important figure is 14 percent, taking into account the entire world of devices.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s has a way with words. The guy can really deliver some inspiration and motivation for the employees of Microsoft. He has delivered a large memo to the employees (and public to read) that really makes me love the “new” Microsoft.

The day I took on my new role I said that our industry does not respect tradition – it only respects innovation. I also said that in order to accelerate our innovation, we must rediscover our soul – our unique core. We must all understand and embrace what only Microsoft can contribute to the world and how we can once again change the world. I consider the job before us to be bolder and more ambitious than anything we have ever done.

Microsoft backtracked on the announcement and release of the Surface Mini (rumored, then somewhat ‘official’ with mentioning it in current Surface manuals). But, a new rumor is that Microsoft will again announce the smaller, iPad mini competitor running Windows RT.

Well-known gadget leaker @evleaks takes a break from posting marketing renders from time to time to share information about upcoming device launches, and he did just that on Monday. According to a post on his blog, Microsoft’s Surface mini is currently back in production ahead of a possible launch sometime this summer.