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Databases: Microsoft’s elusive file system, WinFS, the one that was most recently supposed to be the feature in Vista, is now going to be included with the next version of SQL Server, code-named Katmai. Of course, this runs counter to what Microsoft said two weeks ago at TechEd, that it would be in a beta 2 release come year’s end.

Hardware: Intel rolls out its Dual-core Xeon 5100 processor, code-named Woodcrest, which the company claims consumes less power while boosting performance. And Gartner says that because notebooks are prone to hardware failure, 15 percent will break within a year, and 22 percent within four years.

Columnists’ corner: The end of the Gates era at Microsoft cannot come fast enough, writes Neil McAllister in Open Enterprise. Why? “A Microsoft that can learn to play fair, be more transparent, and embrace the radical changes taking place in the way enterprises procure, develop, and deploy software could be a powerful boon for the industry,” he explains. “But I’m not holding my breath.”

Best of the blogs: Jon Udell fesses up to being indicted. For the crime of businessspeak, that is. “The dope slap continues and it’s worth reading if, like me, you aspire to do more than speak to hardcore geeks about esoteric technologies. I care about ends not means, and the ends that matter to me also matter to everyone: finding information, using it effectively, working together to solve problems,” Udell adds.