Microsoft just rolled out a tonne of new services for everyone

Atlanta - Ignite conference begins in Atlanta; promises to showcase what's possible in technology

Microsoft wants to let everyone know that they're not just still very much in the technology game - they are leading it on several key fronts.
And so, they have a message for all: get ready for a slew of new stuff that will improve your computing experience.
The Redmond, Washington-headquartered technology giant on Monday unveiled a plethora of new and upgraded products and services at its annual Microsoft Ignite conference in Atlanta.
The event will run until Friday. The live stream can be watched here.
The announcements are part of Microsoft's efforts to address the challenges of the IT world, particularly those being faced by organisations in streamlining their businesses.
These also represent the opportunities Microsoft has in the world of technology; what the company has on offer will be able to assist professionals in a technology landscape that has become increasingly complex, simplifying processes to meet the demands of every day business and end-users.
The new products and services are broken down into three key categories, each representing the advancements made by Microsoft and how users can benefit from it: security, productivity and intelligence.
 
Security

Enhancements in security across Microsoft's products - including Windows 10, Office 365 and Enterprise Mobility + Security - offer powerful protection against security threats.

. Windows Defender Application Guard: Coming next year to Windows 10 Enterprise customers and soon to Windows Insider, this will make Microsoft Edge the most secure browser for the enterprise. It is powered by virtualisation-based security technology and uses isolated containers built directly into the hardware to prevent malicious code from moving across employee devices and the corporate network.
Important note: Microsoft says that this feature will not be limited only to its own Edge application; it would be rolled out to other browsers in due time.
. Windows Defender Advanced Threat Protection (WDATP) and Office 365 ATP: These now share intelligence mutually across both services, helping IT pros to investigate and respond to security threats across Windows 10 and Office 365 more quickly and efficiently.
Dubai's very own Emirates airline is among the top-tier companies being protected by WDATP.
. Office 365 Advanced Threat Protection (ATP): ATP protects e-mails in real-time against sophisticated and unknown attacks, and this will now be extended to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business. Other enhancements include dynamic delivery, which enables users to receive email immediately with a placeholder attachment while the actual attachment undergoes scanning, and URL detonation, which analyses links in real time to identify unknown malicious URLs.
. Office 365 Threat Intelligence: This will provide alerts and information on the origination of specific attacks, integrates with existing security incident event management systems, and enables customers to deploy dynamic policies based on the nature of the threat.
. Outlook for iOS and Android: This service is now fully-powered by Microsoft Cloud for Office 365 commercial users, supporting Exchange Online mailboxes natively so that no mailbox data is cached outside Office 365.
. Enterprise Mobility + Security E5: This new offering expands security to help the transition to mobility and cloud, and will be available starting October 1. The suite includes the new Microsoft Azure Information Protection service to help organisations classify, label and protect sensitive data.

. Secure Productive Enterprise: Also available from October 1, this will offer the latest and most advanced security and productivity capabilities across Office 365, Windows 10 Enterprise and Enterprise Mobility + Security.
 
Intelligence

 
Microsoft's new artificial intelligence capabilities - which span agents, applications, services and infrastructure - will be able to transform what's possible for people and organisations.
. Cortana: Of course, no Microsoft AI news will be complete without its rather lovable AI assistant, Cortana. Among the previews will be new skills, which included health insights and reminders.
. Office 365: New cloud-powered intelligent capabilities are coming to the suite, which include:
     - Tap in Word and Outlook: This uses Microsoft Graph to make it easier to incorporate content from existing documents within an organisation into own documents and e-mails.
     - Quickstarter for PowerPoint and Sway: These provide curated outlines for any topic, including text and images, that can be used as a starting point to build presentations.
     - Maps: Yes, even this is coming to Office 365. Specifically, this is a new chart type in Excel powered by Bing Maps, it transforms geographic data into high-fidelity visualisations.
. Microsoft MyAnalytics: Formerly Delve Analytics, this is a personal analytics service in Office 365 that helps people understand how they spend time at work. New capabilities provide team members and leaders with insights to help find better ways of working together.
. Relationship Assistant: Included in the soon-to-be-released Dynamics 365 for Sales, this makes customer engagement more intelligent than ever before on any device.
Additionally, Microsoft customers will be showcased for how they are using Cortana Intelligence to innovate in their industries. Lowe's will deliver a digitally-enhanced kitchen remodel experience, while Dymaxia will make healthcare more efficient and accessible. Uber announced it is using Microsoft Cognitive Services for its real-time ID check security feature to improve rider and driver security.
Microsoft has also deployed a new AI-enabled virtual agent across all of its US support centers to improve customer experience.
The company also announced that it has signed a global, multiyear agreement with Renault-Nissan Alliance to advance connected driving experiences worldwide. The companies will work together to develop next-generation mobility services for cars powered by Microsoft Azure that will improve customer experiences including personalization, advanced navigation, predictive services, remote monitoring of car features, external mobile experiences and over-the-air updates. Renault-Nissan selected Azure because of its enterprise-grade security and Microsoft's commitment to compliance.
 
Cloud productivity

Building on the industry's richest hybrid cloud portfolio, the release of Windows Server 2016 and System Center 2016 helps transform customers' infrastructure to support future-ready cloud applications, while advances in the Microsoft cloud infrastructure provide a path toward an AI supercomputer in the cloud.
. Windows Server 2016: The new service will be generally available in October, giving IT professionals new layers of security and Azure-inspired innovation for infrastructure and cloud applications. Microsoft and Docker extending their partnership to make the Commercially Supported Docker Engine available to Windows Server 2016 customers at no additional cost. System Center 2016 will also be generally available in October, offering a simplified management solution across the data centre and the cloud for Windows Server 2016 software-defined datacenter features.
. Azure upgrades: New Azure monitoring abilities, combined with Operations Management Suite updates, will help IT manage cloud and on-premises assets from one place. Additionally, thenext technical preview of Azure Stack will bring Azure technology to customers' datacenters, furthering Microsoft's unique hybrid differentiation.
Microsoft is also advancing a vision of what's possible with intelligence and machine learning using the world's largest deployment of custom developed field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), spanning 15 countries and five continents. These FPGAs could be used to accelerate AI to near real time, making Azure the foundation for the world's first AI supercomputer.
In addition, new free training and educational resources will help ensure that IT professionals have the know-how and expertise to help companies complete their digital transformation.  
he Microsoft Technical Community is a new online community that brings together IT professionals, MVPs and Microsoft subject-matter experts to exchange ideas, build connections and share best practices about Microsoft products and solutions.   
The Microsoft IT Pro Career Center and Microsoft IT Pro Cloud Essentials are now available in 25 languages and 40 markets globally. The Career Center provides free expert advice on cloud career paths, skills and curriculum by cloud role, while IT Pro Cloud Essentials provides a free annual subscription to cloud services, priority support and certification.
- alvin@khaleejtimes.com