End-users and departments are choosing their own devices, selecting and using Software as a Service applications and other cloud resources, and generally doing end-arounds to bypass the IT function whenever they feel like it.

FORBES: The Coming Crisis of IT Management

Microsoft's competitors say the company is using its control of the desktop to dominate the market for other software applications.

ECONOMIST: America��s trustbusters may have moved too soon

The bulk of the keynote address was taken up by developers showing off applications they'd built for the iPhone using a software developer kit Apple introduced in March.

FORBES: 3G iPhone: Calling The World

Firefox has become one of the most important pieces of software around today as consumers shift from using their PCs to run applications living on their hard drives to a communications device able to connect with applications living on distant servers.

FORBES: Why Firefox Matters

The Azure Marketplace can now vend commercial applications meaning that any software application built for Windows (using the VMrole) or through Visual Studio (using the worker role) theoretically can be offered through Windows Azure as well.

FORBES: The Cloud Computing Market Grows Up

With Surface Pro, customers can do virtually everything they have ever done on a PC, ranging from using their favorite desktop applications to enjoying the protection of world-class safety and security software.

ENGADGET: Surface RT coming to six more countries in late March, Pro in the 'coming months'