Last week Microsoft announced the expansion of it's SkyDrive service (think DropBox with an extra 23GB) to devices beyond Windows PCs and Macs. Users can now experience a Dropbox-like service on iPads, iPhones and of course Windows Phone 7 devices.

The service is free and includes 25GB for users that have a Hotmail account. Those users who sign up today will get 7GB of data free. Like iCloud, Dropbox and Box.net you have the option to upgrade storage based on your needs.

Plans for SkyDrive start at $10/year for an additional 20GB to $50/year for 100GB. Not bad considering that Dropbox will set you back $200 for 100GB for essentially the same service.

You can download SkyDrive for the following devices:  Windows, Mac, iPad, iPhone and Windows Phone 7. Of course the key driver for Microsoft is having a cloud storage service that Windows 8 can leverage when it is released later this year. I think it is a better and opposite strategy that Apple took with iCloud and Lion last year.

I personally see the benefit compared to iCloud offered by Apple. You get the storage and the ability to edit Microsoft Office files online, for free. What do you think about SkyDrive? Will you switch from Dropbox or a similar service?

Learn more about SkyDrive by visiting the official Microsoft website.

As we approach the launch of Windows 8 later this year, XP users must be asking themselves three versions later, "Is it time to upgrade?"

The answer to that question is two-fold, first are you missing out on enhanced productivity and tools that have been made available in newer versions of Windows and second, will you be ready to face the world of malicious software two years from now when support for XP will cease to exist.

The latter, should be at the forefront of every business and end user relying on Windows XP to run their personal and business computers. Two years should be sufficient time for an organization to prepare applications and systems to accommodate Windows 7 or 8 when it is launched later this year.

However, regular users can wait longer for that upgrade due to less issues involved around the actual upgrade, but even at that stage, if you are running a computer designed for Windows XP, chances are you are probably better off upgrading your PC while you are at it.

So for those of you running Windows XP, mark your calendars, April 8 , 2014 is the last day that Microsoft will support the legacy operating system. If you need information about upgrading to Windows 7, make sure you checkout our upgrade section.

If you've been using the Consumer Preview of Windows 8 and tried to shut down your computer chances are you noticed that the Start Menu was gone.

Yes, Microsoft did get rid of the Start Menu it's not hidden somewhere, it is simply gone. In its stead you will find the tiles which represent all of the apps installed on your PC and the new Charm Bar.

The Charm Bar is where you will find the section of the Start Menu that dealt with the powering off options, some Control Panel options, sharing (new option) and most importantly the search option.

The intent here is to allow for a seamless touch experience, but what about all those computers running in corporate environments? Well, you still have the traditional Windows Explorer look and feel when using Explorer, but everything else, specifically those apps designed for the Metro UI will most likely find it difficult to reside in corporate environments where the mouse and keyboard dominate.

That is not to say corporate won't move towards the adoption of touch it just may take some time.

The question is, should Microsoft bring the Start Menu back? What do you think?

In a recent blog post, Microsoft detailed how they are going to bring the Windows Phone 7 platform to 60% more consumers. This is great news for developers on the platform looking to sell their apps to additional markets on the planet.

The aim of this goal is to include other price sensitive markets that would respond better to a lower priced Windows Phone 7 handset. In order for manufacturers to sell hardware at a lower price they will need to sacrifice components.

To remedy this and keep to Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 hardware guidelines, Microsoft has made a change to the minimum requirements that would drop the required memory on the device from 512MB to 256MB and allow for the use of more affordable processors.

I think it is great that Microsoft is trying to make their device available to a larger market, but I think that they will suffer for it because the experience will start to lag compared to the devices using Microsoft's original recommendations.

I thought Microsoft's goal was to create a a user experience that is the same across all devices, not fragment it. Apple has taught us that it works.

The whole reason we are going over the history of Windows Phone 7 and this example is that Microsoft is following the same approach with Windows 8 in that hardware manufacturers must meet a set of requirements for them to use the operating system in the tablet form factor.

I fear that pressure from OEMs looking to compete with Apple and Amazon's prices will force Microsoft to reduce hardware requirements for the benefit of cheaper components.

In the end I feel that moving in that direction will do more harm to the platform than help it. What are you thoughts? Do you think Microsoft should be strict with hardware requirements for Windows 8? Or should they allow OEM's to use the software as they wish a la Android? Share your thoughts below.