Microsoft had its annual shareholders meeting on Thursday. And reading the press release, it sounds like the biggest snoozer ever.

But apparently things were a little different if you actually were there. A shareholder questioned Microsoft CEO (grilled may be a better term) Steve Ballmer on why Microsoft seems so much less cool than, say, Apple, especially when it comes to younger users. (Let's see: Exhibits A, B and C come to mind.) And the quote of the day:

"I'm just wondering why your marketing group can't do something to try to rein in this next generation, because you've got a real bad image out there."

No kidding.

Ballmer's probably as tired of that question as we are. Of course, he's in a slightly better position to do something about it. And simply deflecting talk about Windows phones — which absolutely don't get a fair shake — to Windows 7 and Office 2010 is a cop-out. The people want their phones, sir. They want their apps. They want their music. They want their video. And they want it now.

We've said it before, and we'll say it again. Microsoft has all the pieces. It's time to put them together and market them smartly. And it's far past time to deliver.

Techflash via Gizmodo

We're not even going to bother looking up how old Bill was in '72. Live with it. (via Gizmodo) [alternate version]

OK, so there's still no telling if Microsoft's rumored "Courier" project is real, or if it ever will see the light of day. But as a project, it's certainly gaining credibility with Gizmodo unearthing new details about how that slick interface works.

What's that have to do with Windows Mobile, you ask? Admittedly, not a whole lot. But it's another reason why we're expecting Windows Mobile 7 to not just be a new iteration of the operating system of yore. Also, tie it in with that mobile UI concept video we saw a while ago. (And if you want something more near-term, again, we'll point toward the Zune HD.) Even if the Courier never gets out of the concept stage, it shows that there are people thinking into the future. Now Microsoft has to let them loose.

We're really starting to get the feeling our grandparents are the ones running Microsoft's marketing arm. First there was the whole Windows 7 launch party thing. (You'll notice we couldn't even bring ourselves to post about that one.) We gave the fuzzy kitten commercial a pass -- some of us have kids now and have learned to appreciate fuzziness. And kittens.

Now, according to Variety [via], Microsoft apparently has changed its deal regarding the Nov. 8 "Family Guy Presents: Seth and Alex's Almost Live Comedy Show." Turns out there were some crude jokes and unseemly humor. You know, the bread and butter of that show since it debuted. Windows 7 will still appear throughout the show, but Microsoft won't be doing heavy advertising during commercial breaks.

"We initially chose to participate in the Seth and Alex variety show based on the audience composition and creative humor of 'Family Guy,' but after reviewing an early version of the variety show it became clear that the content was not a fit with the Windows brand," said a Microsoft spokesperson. "We continue to have a good partnership with Fox, Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein and are working with them in other areas.  We continue to believe in the value of brand integrations and partnerships between brands, media companies and talent."

So what began as an all-out pandering marketing push will now in all likelihood appear to be cheap and forced. If you're going to pull a stunt like this, go all out. bombard people for an hour. Otherwise, it's wasted.

Expecting "Family Guy" to do something other than its usual schtick is like asking Jack Bauer not to scream "Damn it!" every other line. Or like expecting a well-rounded person to appear on one of those "Real Housewives of ..." shows. Or like Brett Favre to retire gracefully. (Need we go on?)

Seriously, what did Microsoft think was going to happen?

Unless you've been living under a rock, you're probably well aware that Windows 7 will be officially released tomorrow, Oct. 22. For you new folks out there (and we know you're there), we've been using Windows 7 since the first beta was released in January, and it's played quite nicely with Windows Mobile. So, no worries there. No get to upgrading!

So, strictly speaking, this doesn't really have anything to do with Windows Mobile. But after the cerebral attacks we've seen our poor Palm-loving brethren undergo from the creepy Pre ads, we just wanted to help balance the universe a little bit. (And, see, it's not all fire and brimstone coming out of Redmond ...)

And, hey, Microsoft, remember us when you do the commercial for Windows Mobile 7, m'kay?

How does Microsoft know it has a hit on its hands? Two words: Walt Mosspuppet. The above anti-Windows 7 video may be NSFW if your place of business frowns on long rants, guns, venereal disease, threats against Steve Ballmer and rampant Mac fanboyism.

We can only hope we get the same abuse with Windows Mobile 7. But, dayum,  this is funny ...

Rantpuppets via Fake Steve Jobs

Back in April we whined complained about how syncing your Windows phone with Windows (the desktop operating system) took a few steps too many. You had to manually go out and find the software (ActiveSync for you XP users, Mobile Device Center for Vista and Windows 7).

Our cries have been heard.

With the Release Candidate version of Windows 7 (that's Build 7100, for those keeping track at home), everything's taken care of for you. We'd heard as much from PocketNow but just had to try it ourselves. Here's my experience:

1. Phil plugged in his trusty ol' Moto Q9h.
2. Windows 7 downloaded and installed some drivers.
3. Mobile Device Center was automatically downloaded and installed.
4. Phil thrust his arms in the air in celebration, sounded a barbaric yawp and immediately began a post praising Microsoft's foresight.

OK, it's not perfect. There really are no dialog boxes telling you what's going on, and the process isn't as quick as I'd like. It took a couple of minutes to install the drivers and software, which in and of itself was fine. But there basically were no dialog boxes (other than the one saying drivers were being installed) to let the user know what was going on. But we're not going to let that rain on our parade.

And for those of you wanting to try out the Release Candidate, it'll be available to the public on Tuesday.

Allow us to get up on our soapbox for a minute. We're well aware that in 2009, it's entirely possible to go the entire lifespan of a phone without connecting it to a computer.

But, Microsoft, occasionally we do need to plug in our phones, and it'd be a big help if your Mobile Device Center (the successor to ActiveSync) were actually built in to an operating system. It's not even a part of the Windows 7 beta (at least as of build 7068, which we're very much enjoying). Sure, my phone plays quite nicely with the cloud and will work over Bluetooth. But if I want to plug in the darn thing and transfer a bunch of files (which is quicker than doing so over Bluetooth, and easier than remembering where I left my microSD card adapter), then I have to hunt down and download Mobile Device Center.

If Microsoft's serious about connecting its three major platforms – desktop, mobile and gaming/entertainment – it needs to get serious about making things easier on the user, and it can start by including Mobile Device Center with Windows 7. Maybe we'll be pleasantly surprised and find it in the upcoming Release Candidate version or final build. But we're not holding our breath

/rant

(And so that we're not just whining, here are the 32-bit and 64-bit download locations for Mobile Device Center.)

Microsoft just announced that its next desktop operating system will come in five flavors, much to the chagrin of many:

• Windows 7 Starter
• Windows 7 Home Basic (for "emerging markets")
• Windows 7 Home Premium
• Windows 7 Professional
• Windows 7 Enterprise and Ultimate

Here in Windows Mobile world, we've got two choices within the OS – Professional (for touchscreen phones) and Standard (for those who like to keep their fingers off the screen). And, really, how much more would we need? We already know from the beta testing that Windows 7 plays just fine with Windows Mobile.

But here's a twist: Will Windows 7, which save for the multiple versioning has gotten mostly rave reviews, kill off the fledgling mobile companion market? We've seen from jkOnTheRun how well Windows 7 runs on netbooks. Between that and what we're hoping to see with Microsoft's new cloud services, will there be any room left for a devices that doesn't do it all? And as we saw in our Redfly vs. MSI Wind smackdown, is there any room for that now?