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Microsoft. Inc.
producer of software for personal computers
{ now also producing hardware }
[est. April 1975]
 |
short history |
“640K ought to be enough [memory] for anybody.” — Bill Gates, in 1981
B I O
t e x t
h e r e
Founded in April 1975 in Albuquerque, New Mexico by Bill Gates & Paul G. Allen
Microsoft official website
Microsoft entry at Wikipedia
'history of Microsoft' entry at Wikipedia
Microsoft Corporation Common Stock Quote & Summary Data at NASDAQ
Primary Divisions
Microsoft Windows
2020 January 14: Microsoft support is coming to an end for Windows 7.
Microsoft Internet Explorer
Microsoft Store [est. 10/2009] brick & mortar locations
There are currently two Flagship stores (New York City and Sydney, Australia) and over 70 stores in U.S.A., Canada, Puerto Rico, and Finland.
Subsidiaries
MSN.com network's online divisions include MSN autos & MSN money & MSN entertainment & MSN sports & MSN travel
Microsoft bought Skype in May 2011 for $8.5 billion
Announced 6/2016: Microsoft is buying LinkedIn for $26.2B, which is a huge price to pay for a social network; the acquisition tops the charts as
Microsoft's biggest ever. While many are surprised at the cash figure, the question on everyone's lips is, why does Microsoft want LinkedIn?
Other Services & Products
 | "Microsoft Bob" software for Windows 3.1 [1995] Microsoft released the "Bob" Windows 3.1 front-end interface for kids or 'internet newbies' on March 31st, 1995; tech critics did not like Bob, users did not like Bob, and the product was discontinued before the release of Windows 95 in August. (The inclusion of an expanded version of Bob on Gateway 2000 computers went ahead anyway.) entry at Wikipedia • 2010 article & review |
 | "At Home With Microsoft Bob: Ideas and Activities For Getting The Most From Your Home PC" [1995] by Barbara Rowley "written to complement the new Microsoft Bob software and to provide information and ideas for using a computer at home; covers such topics as online communication, entertainment, education, home improvement, and nutrition" Microsoft Press 8x8 pb [4/95] out of print/used |
Announced 9/2012: A new Microsoft Entertainment & Digital Media production studio in Los Angeles will be headed by former C.B.S. Television Entertainment
Group president [1998-2010] Nancy Tellem; the company will develop interactive & linear content for Microsoft’s Xbox gaming console and other devices,
with the intention of "helping turn Xbox into a destination where consumers can enjoy all their entertainment in one place".
Announced 7/2013: Nancy Tellem’s Microsoft Team at Xbox Entertainment Studios hired Albert Page, formerly SVP at Mandeville Films
Microsoft's Surface hardware launched in October 2012; Surface Pro launched in February 2013; Surface Hub launched in July 2015; Surface Book launched
in October 2015; Surface Studio launched in October 2016; and Surface Laptop & Surface Pro 5g launched in June 2017
Surface Dept. at official Microsoft Store •
entry at Wikipedia
Microsoft Surface Store at Amazon
 | "Microsoft Surface Book: The Ultimate Laptop" [Oct 2016]
13½" diagonal LCD display with Windows 10 operating system Microsoft Surface Book laptop with Intel i5 chip, 8GB RAM, 128GB storage [10/2016] out of prodn/SOLD OUT? Microsoft Surface Book laptop with Intel i5 chip, 8GB RAM, 256GB storage [10/2016] for $1,899 13½" diagonal LCD display, with Windows 10 operating system & NVIDIA GeForce graphics Microsoft Surface Book laptop with Intel i7 chip, 16GB RAM, 1TB storage [10/2016] out of prodn/SOLD OUT? |
 | Microsoft Surface Studio computer [Nov 2016] with 28-inch diagonal touchscreen display, with Windows 10 operating system & NVIDIA GeForce graphics Microsoft Surface Studio computer with Intel i5 chip, 8GB RAM, 1TB storage [11/2016] for $2,977.97 Microsoft Surface Studio computer with Intel i7 chip, 16GB RAM, 1TB storage [11/2016] for $3,499.00 Microsoft Surface Studio computer with Intel i7 chip, 32GB RAM, 2TB storage [11/2016] for $4,199.00 |
 | Surface Dial on-screen device [Nov 2016] for use with Surface Studio similar to mouse, but operates by three actions: press & hold, click, rotate; works on all Windows 10 computers with Bluetooth; works directly with Adobe Creative Cloud, Mental Canvas, Bluebeam, Sketchable, StaffPad, and more AAA battery-powered 2.3" diameter x 1.3" high device [11/2016] for $93.44 |
 | Microsoft Surface Laptop [June 2017]
13½" diagonal LED display, with Windows 10 operating system {free upgrade to Windows 10 Pro until 31 Dec 2017} Microsoft Surface Laptop with Intel i5 chip, 4GB RAM, 128GB storage [6/2017] for $999 Microsoft Surface Laptop with Intel i5 chip, 8GB RAM, 256GB storage [6/2017] for $1,299 Microsoft Surface Laptop with Intel i7 chip, 8GB RAM, 256GB storage [6/2017] for $1,599 Microsoft Surface Laptop with Intel i7 chip, 16GB RAM, 512GB storage [6/2017] for $2,199 |
 | Microsoft Surface Pro 5g [June 2017] 12¼" diagonal LCD display, Intel Core i5 with Windows 10 Pro operating system Microsoft Surface Pro 5g tablet with 4GB RAM, 128GB storage [6/2017] for $999 Microsoft Surface Pro 5g tablet with 8GB RAM, 256GB storage [6/2017] for $1,299 |
 | "Microsoft Surface Pro Signature Type Cover" [2017]
for Surface Pro & Surface 4 platinum color keyboard [5/2017] for $157.95 cobalt blue color keyboard [5/2017] for $159.99 burgundy color keyboard [5/2017] for $159.99 |
Microsoft Surface Pen [2016]
compatible with Surface Pro models, Surface Laptop, Surface Studio, and Surface Book
can be used with apps like OneNote, Microsoft Office, Adobe Suite, Sketchable, Bluebeam Revue, Drawboard, CorelDraw, and StaffPad
AAA battery-powered 7x0.21x0.93-inch stylus [6/2016] for $99.99
Microsoft, Inc. position paper "The Future Computed: Artificial Intelligence and Its Role In Society" [2018]
 |
Foreword by Microsoft President Brad Smith & Harry Shum, EVP of AI & Research
ISBN 978-0-9997508-1-0 provided but not yet available on Amazon (2/2018) official bookpage at Microsoft Davos panel presentation participants include The Rt. Hon. Philip Hammond (Chancellor of the Exchequer of U.K.), Henry Blodget (CEO, Business Insider), Brad Smith (Microsoft), Jennifer Rexford (chair, Princeton Computer Science Dept.), and James Manyika (director, McKinsey Global Institute) panel presentation at World Economic Summit in Davos, 1/2018 [55:00] on video {new window} |
Works About Microsoft
 | "Pirates of Silicon Valley" [Haft/T.N.T. June 1999] Semi-humorous TV docudrama about the origins of Microsoft and of Apple, Inc. Written & directed by Martyn Burke, based on a book by Paul Freiberger & Michael Swaine; starring Noah Wyle {as Steve Jobs}, Anthony Michael Hall {as Bill Gates}, Joey Slotnick {as Steve Wozniak}, John Di Maggio {as Steve Ballmer} & Josh Hopkins {as Paul Allen}; won ACE Award, nominated for DGA Award, PGA Award, and 7 Emmy Awards Turner Home Ent. color VHS [5/2000] for $14.44 full credits at IMDb • official movie site "Fire In The Valley: The Making of The Personal Computer" [1984] by Paul Freiberger & Michael Swaine McGraw-Hill 2nd edition 9x7¼ pb [11/2000] out of print/many used McGraw-Hill 9¾x7½ hardcover with CD-ROM [12/99] out of print/used |
"World War 3.0: Microsoft and Its Enemies" [1/2001] by Ken Auletta /0375503668/
"Microsoft 2.0: How Microsoft Plans To Stay Relevant In The Post-Gates Era" [5/2008] by Mary Jo Foley /B001O0EH5Y/
 |
"A Microsoft Life" [2010] by Stephen Toulouse, Edited by Joanne Starer Stephen 'Stepto' Toulouse worked at Microsoft for 15 years. Kindle Edition from Amazon Digital Services [1/2011] for $6.99 LULU.com 9x6 pb [4/2011] for $15.99 |
Microsoft Executives
Microsoft co-founder William Henry 'Bill' Gates III
Bill Gates was born 28 October 1955 in Seattle, Washington; he and Paul Allen founded Microsoft on 4 April 1975 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He married Melinda French in Hawaii in January 1994; they have three children: Jennifer Katharine (born 1996), Rory John (born 1999), and Phoebe Adele (born 2002). Bill announced in June 2006 that he would transition out of day-to-day responsibilities at Microsoft in two years.
'GatesNotes' Bill Gates's weblog [est. 12/2009] •
Bill Gates entry at Wikipedia
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation [est. 2000] was formed by merging three family charity foundations.
Cascade Investment [est. 1994] is a highly secretive trust that invests in run-of-the-mill stocks like railways, waste removal, and agricultural equipment companies;
it also has real estate holdings in the Four Seasons and other hotel companies, often shielded by subsidiary LLCs.
subsidiary Mt. Lemmon Holdings, LLC invested $80 million in a greenfield development project in the Arizona desert (11/2017); the town of Belmont, Arizona
will be built on 25,000 acres of empty land where the existing I-10 Freeway meets the future I-11 Hassayampa Freeway from Las Vegas, Nevada.
2/2023: Bill Gates purchased a stake in the Dutch company that owns Heineken.
browse books by/about Bill Gates at Amazon
Bill Gates was listed #54 on The Atlantic Monthly's Top 100 Most Influential Figures in American History [Dec 2006]
and also listed #1 on Atlantic Monthly's "Top 30 Influential Living Americans" (12/2006)
 | "Hard Drive: Bill Gates and The Making of The Microsoft Empire" [1992] by James Wallace & Jim Erickson HarperBusiness 8x5¼ pb [6/93] out of print/70+ used Wiley & Sons 9¼x6¼ hardcover [4/92] out of print/50+ used Wiley & Sons 9¼x6¼ hardcover [4/92] out of print/many used |
 | "Gates: How Microsoft's Mogul Reinvented An Industry - and Made Himself The Richest Man In America" [1992] by Stephen Manes & Paul Andrews
Kindle Edition from Cadwallader & Stern [4/2013] for $9.99 Touchstone 9¼x6 pb [1/94] for $26.82 Doubleday 9½x6½ hardcover [12/92] out of print/100+ used |
 | "How To Prevent The Next Pandemic" [2022] bestseller by Bill Gates 
Kindle Edition from Knopf [5/2022] for $13.99 Knopf 9½x6½ hardcover [5/2022] for $18.10 "Cómo Evitar La Próxima Pandemia" Spanish Edition [2022]
Kindle Edition from Plaza & Janés [5/2022] for $9.99 Plaza & Janés 9¼x6¼ hardcover [5/2022] for $19.95 |
2021 May 3: Bill Gates and his wife Melinda announced that they are divorcing after 27 years of marriage
father William Henry 'Bill' Gates II [1925-2020]
Bill Gates, Sr. was basically a lawyer; he served on many corporate boards over the years, including for a Seattle bank that approved the initial loan
for the startup that became Microsoft.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gates_Sr.
Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen [1953-2018]
Paul Allen entry at Wikipedia
"The Accidental Zillionaire: Demystifying Paul Allen" [12/2002] by Laura Rich /0471234915/
 | "Idea Man: A Memoir By The Cofounder of Microsoft" [2011] by Paul Allen Portfolio 9x6½ hardcover [4/2011] for $15.37 |
"Paul Allen Remembered" article [10.22.18] by Edward H. 'Eddie' Currie
http://www.edge.org/conversation/edward_h_eddie_currie-paul-allen-remembered
former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer
hired by Bill Gates in 1980, promoted to president in 1998, promoted to CEO in January 2000, stepped down February 2014
Steve Ballmer entry at Wikipedia
Announced 8/2013: Longtime Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will retire within the next year. (Microsoft stock jumped 7 percent,
and the value of Ballmer's $10.7B in stock shares increased by $769 million in that 24-hour period.)
"Bad Boy Ballmer: The Man Who Rules Microsoft" [11/2003] by Fredric Alan Maxwell /0060935413/
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella
hired at Microsoft in 1992, worked up thru the ranks, promoted to CEO in February 2014
 | "Hit Refresh: The Quest To Rediscover Microsoft's Soul and Imagine A Better Future For Everyone" [2017] by Satya Nadella Kindle Edition from HarperBusiness [9/2017] for $15.99 HarperCollins 9¼x6 pb [9/2017] out of print/used HarperBusiness 9x6 hardcover [9/2017] for $16.27 |
Kate Crawford, principal researcher at Microsoft (2017) + co-founder A.I. Now Institute [est. 2017]
Image Gallery
L i n k s
Microsoft official website
Microsoft entry at Wikipedia
'history of Microsoft' entry at Wikipedia
search for keyword 'microsoft' {returns 60,000+ titles} at Amazon
here on the Microsoft, Inc. Page at Spirit of America Bookstore
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