IE9 and Tracking Protection

Ed Bott: Microsoft disrupts the online ad business. I’m not sure if that’s the correct conclusion, but with “mal-vertising” on the rise consumers do need more protection of their browsing data.

More on our new “Trustworthy Browsing” features on the IE blog.

“How Do I?” screencasts with Windows Azure

MSDN has posted a new set of “How Do I?” videos on Windows Azure. These screencasts are focused on helping developers to learn more about this platform and to see how they can accomplish specific tasks with Windows Azure, .NET Services, SQL Data Services and Live Services. Here’s a list of some of the screencasts currently available:

• Deploy a Windows Azure Application
• Store Blogs in Windows Azure
• Leverage Queues in Windows Azure
• Debugging Tips for Windows Azure
• Store Data in Windows Azure Tables
• Harness the Microsoft .NET Services Bus
• Access Contacts and Profiles from PHP Applications

Be sure to check out these “How Do I?” videos and to provide your feedback to the MSDN and Azure teams on the content.

Gundotra says “[f]ollow the mobile user”

Vic Gundotra: “Worldwide phone penetration continues to climb at a break-neck pace, with over 4 billion mobile subscribers at last count. (In comparison, the PC industry is forecasted to see its sharpest unit decline in history.) Prevailing economic conditions will accelerate this trend, as users consolidate pricey communication services into cost-effective, all-in-one mobile devices. And for the first time ever, half of all new connections to the internet will come from a phone in 2009.”

While it may seem obvious many, Vic argues (with significant data to support his case) that flat-rate data plans and the continual evolution of the search experience on mobile phones will be key to satisfying Web users. With the role of the PC in flux and form factors under dramatic shift, the rise of mobile phones supporting web access is undeniable. Both corporate and personal use of mobile Web is growing significantly and to many the mobile Web is their primary access to the internet for both business and personal data.

Glad to see Vic’s article and looking forward to more from him at Google- he’s been too quiet over the past few years.

Twitter IM on hold

Evan Williams, Twitter: “To summarize, we want to bring IM back. We intend to bring IM back. But we’ve officially moved it from our Things That are Broken list to our Things We Want to Build list. Based on our analysis, the cost-to-benefit for IM for the most users is not as high as some other things—so it will be a while before we tackle it.”

I think that Twitter has made a great decision here. The IM integration and all of the talk about other approaches for platform level integration with Twitter have been led by a small but highly vocal group of Web pundits and microblogging advocates. Today, the average Twitter user is satisified with the browser app for mobile and desktop use and with Twhirl for a slightly more advanced experience.

IM integration and a more aggressive feature creep is not what is needed right now and Twitter has done a great job of focusing on improving core features and extending those for new scenarios like their Election 2008 site. Congratulations to Twitter on weathering the stability storm and making good choices about new feature additions going forward.

Developing with Microsoft cloud services

Jon Udell: “Microsoft platforms have not historically encompassed the continuum of access styles. Happily, the emerging cloud does. And while the novelty of “just coding to a URL” on a Microsoft platform will undoubtedly attract some tirekickers who otherwise wouldn’t show up, the real draw will be the ability to exercise choice along the whole continuum.”

Good commentary from Jon about the nature of cloud services and how Microsoft’s services platform will open up access to a host of new developers.