Daily download: What's going on in the world of Microsoft for Monday, May 18, 2015

Hello, and welcome to the beginning of another work week. In today's news round-up: OS X users rethink their choice of platform, admins learn how to keep email when a user leaves, and America's productivity is about to circle the drain in celebration of a very important Microsoft milestone.

WELL, THIS IS EMBARRASSING FOR SOMEONE. NOT MICROSOFT, THOUGH

As WinBeta reported today:

According to Alex King, a Computer Science student at Tufts University, the Windows 10 Insider Preview performs better on Apple’s new MacBook. While animations lag on OSX, Windows 10 provides a smoother experience. Only under heavy load will things start to slow down.

To check out King's full report, head to his site.

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WHAT YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT OFFICE 365 TODAY, IN HANDY Q&A FORMAT

Q. "Can I retain a former employee's email even after a) he or she has left the company, b) I have deleted their account, and c) I do not wish to use an Exchange Online license?"

A. Yes. This blog post explains how to use "Inactive mailboxes" to hold former-employee email (which you might need to do for legal reasons) and how much of it you can recover, restore or delete.
 

Q. "What if I need to map specific data sets of specific regions — and those regions are not the traditional zip code, county, state or country regions?"

A. So you want to set up custom regions because you might be trying to crunch numbers for a sales district? Or figuring out a crop rotation? Or doing any sort of data analysis using a custom-defined polygon? The latest update to Excel 365, Power Map for Excel 365, is exactly what you need.

Q. "I am using Outlook as a Web app. Can I save any/all attachments directly to OneDrive for Business?"

A. As of today, yes. If you're using Outlook Web App, just click Save to OneDrive or Save all to OneDrive. Your files will be added to a OneDrive for Business folder called Email attachments. From there, you can move the assets or forward them as cloud attachments.
 

Q. "I remember the Clutter email feature from your Microsoft Ignite coverage. When will it hit my organization?"

A. Real soon now -- and actual users are going to get Clutter by default. Users won't have the option to turn it on or off, but admins will. As the official blog post states:

We are introducing two PowerShell cmdlets to report on and turn off Clutter for users. These cmdlets are available for use today. Organizations who want to manage use of Clutter should use the cmdlet to turn off Clutter before it is turned on by default in June. 

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MICROSOFT TO MOBILE CARRIERS: WE GOT THESE UPDATES, THANKS

Ed Bott's confirmed that Windows 10 Mobile devices will be included in the Microsoft Update process, meaning that the software company, not your phone's mobile carrier, will decide when your device's operating system needs an update.

This approach is very similar to how Apple currently administers iOS updates to iPhones and iPads, with its new versions going out via its Software Update independently of any carriers.

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FROM OUR SITE/OUR SISTER SITES

Controlling Who Can Use the Skype for Business Client

Why don't some Server Admins like Server Core?

Viewing RMS protected content

Encryption of ExpressRoute content

Scalability changes in ESX 6

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FUN STUFF

This is arguably Microsoft's biggest news of the day: Twenty-five years ago, Microsoft Solitaire debuted on Windows. The company's celebrating by throwing thousands of man-hours down the drain with an internal Solitaire tournament, and then, in June, the rest of the world will get a chance to participate in a massive silver anniversary celebration-cum-tournament.