Microsoft Corporation

Microsoft Corporation, leading American computer software company. Microsoft develops and sells a wide variety of software products to businesses and consumers and has subsidiary offices in more than 60 countries. The company’s Windows operating systems for personal computers are the most widely used operating systems in the world. Microsoft has its headquarters in Redmond, Washington.

Microsoft’s other well-known products include Word, a word processor; Excel, a spreadsheet program; Access, a database program; and PowerPoint, a program for making business presentations. These programs are sold separately and as part of Office, an integrated software suite. The company also makes software applications for a wide variety of server products for businesses.

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) allows users to browse the World Wide Web. Among the company’s other products are reference applications; games; financial software; programming languages for software developers; input devices, such as pointing devices and keyboards; software for personal digital assistants (PDAs) and cellular telephones; handwriting-recognition software; software for creating Web pages; and computer-related books.

Microsoft operates the Microsoft Network (MSN), a collection of news, travel, financial, entertainment, and information Web sites. Microsoft and the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) jointly operate MSNBC, a 24-hour news, talk, and information cable-television channel and companion Web site.

Microsoft domination H.C.O.S

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT, HKEX: 4338) is an American-based multinational computer technology corporation that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of software products for computing devices.

Headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA, its best selling products are the Microsoft Windows operating system and the Microsoft Office suite of productivity software.

Originally founded to develop and sell BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800, Microsoft rose to dominate the home computer operating system market with MS-DOS in the mid-1980s, followed by the Windows line of operating systems.

Its products have all achieved near-ubiquity in the desktop computer market. One commentator notes that Microsoft's original mission was "a computer on every desk and in every home, running Microsoft software." Microsoft possesses footholds in other markets, with assets such as the MSNBC cable television network, the MSN Internet portal, and the Microsoft Encarta multimedia encyclopedia.

The company also markets both computer hardware products such as the Microsoft mouse as well as home entertainment products such as the Xbox, Xbox 360, Zune and MSN TV. The company's initial public stock offering (IPO) was in 1986; the ensuing rise of the company's stock price has made four billionaires and an estimated 12,000 millionaires from Microsoft employees.

Current Operating System (O.S)

Operating systems commonly found on personal computers include UNIX, Macintosh OS, and Windows. UNIX, developed in 1969 at AT&T Bell Laboratories, is a popular operating system among academic computer users.


Its popularity is due in large part to the growth of the interconnected computer network known as the Internet. Software for the Internet was initially designed for computers that ran UNIX. Variations of UNIX include SunOS (distributed by SUN Microsystems, Inc.), Xenix (distributed by Microsoft Corporation), and Linux (available for download free of charge and distributed commercially by companies such as Red Hat, Inc.).

UNIX and its clones support multitasking and multiple users. Its file system provides a simple means of organizing disk files and lets users control access to their files. The commands in UNIX are not readily apparent, however, and mastering the system is difficult. Consequently, although UNIX is popular for professionals, it is not the operating system of choice for the general public.

Instead, windowing systems with graphical interfaces, such as Windows and the Macintosh OS, which make computer technology more accessible, are widely used in personal computers (PCs). However, graphical systems generally have the disadvantage of requiring more hardware—such as faster CPUs, more memory, and higher-quality monitors—than do command-oriented operating systems.

O S works

In DOS, OS/2, and Microsoft Windows, a batch file is a text file containing a series of commands intended to be executed by the command interpreter. When a batch file is run, the shell program (usually COMMAND.COM or cmd.exe) reads the file and executes its commands, normally line-by-line. Batch files are useful for running a sequence of executables automatically and are often used by system administrators to automate tedious processes. Unix-like operating systems (such as Linux) have a similar type of file called a shell script.

Operating systems control different computer processes, such as running a spreadsheet program or accessing information from the computer's memory. One important process is interpreting commands, enabling the user to communicate with the computer.

Some command interpreters are text oriented, requiring commands to be typed in or to be selected via function keys on a keyboard. Other command interpreters use graphics and let the user communicate by pointing and clicking on an icon, an on-screen picture that represents a specific command. Beginners generally find graphically oriented interpreters easier to use, but many experienced computer users prefer text-oriented command interpreters.

Operating systems are either single-tasking or multitasking. The more primitive single-tasking operating systems can run only one process at a time. For instance, when the computer is printing a document, it cannot start another process or respond to new commands until the printing is completed.

All modern operating systems are multitasking and can run several processes simultaneously. In most computers, however, there is only one central processing unit (CPU; the computational and control unit of the computer), so a multitasking OS creates the illusion of several processes running simultaneously on the CPU.

The most common mechanism used to create this illusion is time-slice multitasking, whereby each process is run individually for a fixed period of time. If the process is not completed within the allotted time, it is suspended and another process is run. This exchanging of processes is called context switching.

The OS performs the “bookkeeping” that preserves a suspended process. It also has a mechanism, called a scheduler, that determines which process will be run next. The scheduler runs short processes quickly to minimize perceptible delay. The processes appear to run simultaneously because the user's sense of time is much slower than the processing speed of the computer.

Operating systems can use a technique known as virtual memory to run processes that require more main memory than is actually available. To implement this technique, space on the hard drive is used to mimic the extra memory needed. Accessing the hard drive is more time-consuming than accessing main memory, however, so performance of the computer slows.

Microsoft Disk Operating System.

MS-DOS, acronym for Microsoft Disk Operating System. In computer science, MS-DOS—like other operating systems—oversees such operations as disk input and output, video support, keyboard control, and many internal functions related to program execution and file maintenance. MS-DOS is a single-tasking, single-user operating system with a command-line interface.

Operating System (OS), in computer science, the basic software that controls a computer. The operating system has three major functions: It coordinates and manipulates computer hardware, such as computer memory, printers, disks, keyboard, mouse, and monitor; it organizes files on a variety of storage media, such as floppy disk, hard drive, compact disc, digital video disc, and tape; and it manages hardware errors and the loss of data.

In 1996, in response to the increasing relevancy and rapid growth of the Internet, Microsoft renamed its existing MSN service to "MSN Classic" and created a new version, called "MSN 2.0," which combined access to the Internet with web-based multimedia content in a new program known as the "MSN Program Viewer." The service was promoted to existing MSN subscribers beginning October 10, 1996; the general release followed on December 10, 1996.

Microsoft promoted MSN 2.0 with a series of advertisements and promotional materials describing the service with the phrase, "Every new universe begins with a big bang." The company offered the initial release of the new MSN 2.0 service on a CD-ROM that it sent to MSN subscribers in the fall of 1996. When inserted, the CD-ROM opened to the ambitious and flashy MSN Preview, an interactive video-based experience that introduced current and prospective subscribers to the new version of MSN and described the features of the MSN 2.0 software.

The "MSN Preview" was formatted as a guided tour of a mock premiere event for the new MSN. It was hosted by a witty and sarcastic character named "Michael" who welcomed viewers outside of a theatre and then guided them through the theatre to meet several other characters, each of whom represented one of the channels of MSN 2.0's "On Stage" area, which was designed as the main platform for interactive multimedia content in MSN 2.0.

A. 86-DOS (developed at Seattle Computer Products by Tim Paterson for the new Intel 808x CPUs; licensed to Microsoft, became PC DOS/MS-DOS. Also known by its working title QDOS.)
1. PC DOS (IBM's DOS variant, developed jointly with Microsoft, versions 1.0 – 7, 2000)
2. MS-DOS (Microsoft's DOS variant for OEM, developed jointly with IBM, versions 1.x – 6. Microsoft's now abandoned DOS variant)

B. DR-DOS (Digital Research's [later Novell, Caldera, ...] DOS variant)
1. Concurrent DOS (Digital Research's first multiuser DOS variant)
2. Multiuser DOS (Digital Research's [later CCI's. Real's/...] multiuser DOS variant)

C. FreeDOS (open source DOS variant)
D. ProDOS (operating system for the Apple II series computers)
F. PTS-DOS (DOS variant by Russian company Phystechsoft)

G. RDOS (Data General Corp)
1. TurboDOS (Software 2000, Inc.)

H. Multi-tasking user interfaces and environments for DOS
1. DESQview+ QEMM 386 multi-tasking user interface for DOS
2. DESQView/X (X-windowing GUI for DOS)

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation,

Philanthropic organization that became the largest endowed foundation in the world with assets of about $21 billion when it was founded in January 2000.

William Henry Gates III, known as Bill Gates, and his wife, Melinda, created the foundation out of two earlier philanthropic efforts. Using the vast wealth he earned from the Microsoft Corporation, the computer software company he cofounded in 1975, Bill Gates began his organized philanthropic interests in 1994 with the William H. Gates Foundation.


This foundation was focused on global health issues. Three years later, Gates founded the Gates Library Foundation, which was renamed the Gates Learning Foundation in 1999. The same year the William H. Gates Foundation was renamed the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Sharing a concern for public library access like that of philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, the Gates Learning Foundation created partnerships with public libraries to expand access to computer technologies.


In January 2000 the Learning Foundation combined with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Bill Gates’s father, attorney William H. Gates, Sr., runs the foundation, which is based in Seattle, Washington.

A major goal of the foundation is to bring medical advances and information technology to people living in poverty. Global health initiative grants help bring vaccines to the developing world and support ways to stop the transmission of diseases such as AIDS and tuberculosis. Global health grants also target reproductive health and infant mortality issues in developing countries.

The foundation’s education programs, which were launched in early 2000, committed $350 million to three areas: development of model schools and school districts, professional development for educators, and higher education scholarships, especially for talented low-income students.


The foundation’s education efforts address inequities in underserved school districts, particularly those in black and Hispanic communities. The foundation promotes the idea of creating high schools with small student bodies and personalized learning as an important education reform.


The foundation also seeks to bring Internet access to all public libraries serving low-income communities in the United States and Canada. As of November 2002, that goal had been largely realized with more than 95 percent of public libraries in the United States offering free Internet access.

Internet news service

Sites within MSN include MSNBC, an Internet news service operated by Microsoft and the National Broadcasting Company (NBC), and various channels that offer information on financial markets and personal finances, services for digital photography, and a variety of information about automobiles.

Other sites on MSN include Encarta Encyclopedia, which is published by Microsoft; Slate, an online magazine about news, politics, and culture; and Hotmail, which offers free Web-based e-mail. Some MSN sites provide their content free of charge. Other MSN sites charge users a subscription fee for access to premium content.

Microsoft offers a suite of server software, entitled Windows Server System. Windows Server 2003, an operating system for network servers, is the core of the Windows Server System line. Another server product, Systems Management Server, is a collection of tools providing remote-control abilities, patch management, software distribution and a hardware/software inventory. Other server products include:

Microsoft SQL Server, a relational database management system;
Microsoft Exchange Server, for certain business-oriented e-mail and scheduling features;
Small Business Server, for messaging and other small business-oriented features; and
Microsoft BizTalk Server, for business process management

It also offered premium services, such as Microsoft’s Money, Picture It!, and the deluxe edition of Encarta Encyclopedia.

Corporate Structure

The company is run by a Board of Directors consisting of ten people, made up of mostly company outsiders (as is customary for publicly traded companies).

Current members of the board of directors are:

• Steve Ballmer,
• James Cash, Jr.,
• Dina Dublon,
• Bill Gates,
• Raymond Gilmartin,
• Reed Hastings,
• David Marquardt,
• Charles Noski,
• Helmut Panke,
• Jon Shirley.

The ten board members are elected every year at the annual shareholders' meeting, and those who do not get a majority of votes must submit a resignation to the board, which will subsequently choose whether or not to accept the resignation.

There are five committees within the board which oversee more specific matters. These committees :

Audit Committee, which handles accounting issues with the company including auditing and reporting.
Compensation Committee, which approves compensation for the CEO and other employees of the company.
Finance Committee, which handles financial matters such as proposing mergers and acquisitions.

Governance and Nominating Committee, which handles various corporate matters including nomination of the board.
Antitrust Compliance Committee, which attempts to prevent company practices from violating antitrust laws.

There are several other aspects to the corporate structure of Microsoft. For worldwide matters there is the Executive Team, made up of sixteen company officers across the globe, which is charged with various duties including making sure employees understand Microsoft's culture of business.

The sixteen officers of the Executive Team include the Chairman and Chief Software Architect, the CEO, the General Counsel and Secretary, the CFO, senior and group vice presidents from the business units, the CEO of the Europe, the Middle East and Africa regions; and the heads of Worldwide Sales, Marketing and Services; Human Resources; and Corporate Marketing.

In addition to the Executive Team there is also the Corporate Staff Council, which handles all major staff functions of the company, including approving corporate policies. The Corporate Staff Council is made up of employees from the Law and Corporate Affairs, Finance, Human Resources, Corporate Marketing, and Advanced Strategy and Policy groups at Microsoft.

Other Executive Officers include the Presidents and Vice Presidents of the various product divisions, leaders of the marketing section, and the CTO, among others.

Microsoft’s Products

Platform Products and Services Division

The current logo of Microsoft Windows, the company's signature product.This division produces Microsoft's flagship product, the Windows operating system. It has been produced in many versions:

• Windows 3.1
• Windows 95
• Windows 98
• Windows 2000
• Windows Me
• Windows Server 2003
• Windows XP
• Windows Vista.

Almost all IBM compatible personal computers come with Windows preinstalled. The current desktop version of Windows is Windows Vista. The online service MSN, the cable television station MSNBC and the Microsoft online magazine Slate are all part of this division. (Slate was acquired by The Washington Post on December 21, 2004.)

At the end of 1997, Microsoft acquired Hotmail, the most popular webmail service, which it rebranded as "MSN Hotmail". In 1999, Microsoft introduced MSN Messenger, an instant messaging client, to compete with the popular AOL Instant Messenger. Along with Windows Vista, MSN Messenger became Windows Live Messenger.

Microsoft’s other well-known products include Word, a word processor; Excel, a spreadsheet program; Access, a database program; and PowerPoint, a program for making business presentations. These programs are sold separately and as part of Office, an integrated software suite.

The company also makes software applications for a wide variety of server products for businesses. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) allows users to browse the World Wide Web.

Among the company’s other products are reference applications:

• games
• financial software
• programming languages for software developers

Input devices such as:

• pointing devices and keyboards
• software for personal digital assistants (PDAs)
• cellular telephones
• handwriting-recognition software
• software for creating Web pages
• computer-related books.

The Microsoft Network,

The (MSN), collection of World Wide Web sites operated by Microsoft Corporation that provide news, information, entertainment, and electronic mail to users of personal computers.

MSN also acts as an online service by providing Internet access on a subscription basis to customers, who connect to the service over telephone lines or cable television lines.

Sites within MSN include MSNBC, an Internet news service operated by Microsoft and the National Broadcasting Company (NBC), and various channels that offer information on financial markets and personal finances, services for digital photography, and a variety of information about automobiles.

Other sites on MSN include Encarta Encyclopedia, which is published by Microsoft; Slate, an online magazine about news, politics, and culture; and Hotmail, which offers free Web-based e-mail. Some MSN sites provide their content free of charge. Other MSN sites charge users a subscription fee for access to premium content.

Microsoft launched the Microsoft Network in 1995, when it included a link to the service within its Windows 95 operating system software. Although MSN attracted more than a half-million subscribers in the first several months of operation, its subscription base did not match that of the other online services.

In December 1995 MSN abandoned its strategy of requiring specialized software and allowed users to access its content on the World Wide Web. By the end of its first year of operation, MSN had about 1.6 million subscribers, surpassing Prodigy in numbers of subscribers but still behind America Online (AOL).

In October 1996 Microsoft launched a radically redesigned version of MSN that more closely resembled television programming. The revamped MSN featured “channels” that focused on news, entertainment, travel, young adults, and teens.

In 1998, however, Microsoft retreated from this strategy by eliminating most of its entertainment programming. MSN began producing more information-oriented and transaction-related Web sites and offered more of its content for free.

By 2002 the MSN free site was offered internationally in many languages and surpassed the audience of AOL and other Internet portals. However, as an Internet subscription access service, MSN still trailed AOL by a wide margin.

In October 2002 MSN released a major redesign of its site known as MSN 8. The new site featured stronger controls enabling parents to protect their children from undesirable Web sites and e-mail solicitations.

Microsoft Founder

Bill Gates


Bill Gates is the chairman, chief software architect, and cofounder (with Paul Allen) of Microsoft Corporation, the world’s leading computer software company. The company’s success made Gates one of the world’s richest people.

Microsoft Founders

Paul Gardner Allen



Microsoft was founded in 1975 by William H. Gates III and Paul Allen. The pair had teamed up in high school through their hobby of programming on the original PDP-10 computer from the Digital Equipment Corporation.
In 1975 Popular Electronics magazine featured a cover story about the Altair 8800, the first personal computer (PC). The article inspired Gates and Allen to develop a version of the BASIC programming language for the Altair.
They licensed the software to Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS), the Altair’s manufacturer, and formed Microsoft (originally Micro-soft) in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to develop versions of BASIC for other computer companies.
Microsoft’s early customers included fledgling hardware firms such as Apple Computer, maker of the Apple II computer; Commodore, maker of the PET computer; and Tandy Corporation, maker of the Radio Shack TRS-80 computer.
In 1977 Microsoft shipped its second language product, Microsoft Fortran, and it soon released versions of BASIC for the 8080 and 8086 microprocessors.
Bill Gates is the chairman, chief software architect, and cofounder (with Paul Allen) of Microsoft Corporation, the world’s leading computer software company. The company’s success made Gates one of the world’s richest people.

Microsoft Corporation ( Founding )

1975–1984
Following the launch of the Altair 8800, William Henry Gates III, (known as Bill Gates) called the creators of the new microcomputer, Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS), offering to demonstrate an implementation of the BASIC programming language for the system.

After the demonstration, MITS agreed to distribute Altair BASIC. Gates left Harvard University, moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico where MITS was located, and founded Microsoft there. The company's first international office was founded on November 1, 1978, in Japan, entitled "ASCII Microsoft" (now called "Microsoft Japan").

On January 1, 1979, the company moved from Albuquerque to a new home in Bellevue, Washington. Steve Ballmer joined the company on June 11, 1980, and later succeeded Bill Gates as CEO.

Among pre-IBM-PC products were the software package TASC (The AppleSoft Compiler), which compiled a BASIC program into Apple machine language, and the hardware Microsoft Softcard, an add-on Z80 processor card for the Apple II and compatible computers which allowed the use of the CP/M operating system instead of Applesoft and Apple DOS.

DOS (Disk Operating System) was the operating system that brought the company its first real success. On August 12, 1981, after negotiations with Digital Research failed, IBM awarded a contract to Microsoft to provide a version of the CP/M operating system, which was set to be used in the upcoming IBM Personal Computer (PC).

For this deal, Microsoft purchased a CP/M clone called 86-DOS from Seattle Computer Products, which IBM renamed to PC-DOS. Later, the market saw a flood of IBM PC clones after Columbia Data Products successfully cloned the IBM BIOS, and by aggressively marketing MS-DOS to manufacturers of IBM-PC clones, Microsoft rose from a small player to one of the major software vendors in the home computer industry.

The company expanded into new markets with the release of the Microsoft Mouse in 1983, as well as a publishing division named Microsoft Press.