Microsoft Swallows Fast Search & Transfer

By Nick Mokey Published April 25, 2008

Microsoft Swallows Fast Search & Transfer — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Microsoft may have been unsuccessful so far in its attempts to romance Yahoo, but its moves on a company from Norway have been much more successful. On Friday, Microsoft announced that it had completed settlement of its tender offer for Fast Search & Transfer ASA, an enterprise search company based in Oslo.

Fast, which provides search platforms to help companies sift through and access internal data, is now a Microsoft subsidiary, but will stay planted in Oslo. The company’s CEO, Markus Lervik, will become Microsoft’s corporate vice president of Enterprise Search, and existing Fast customers will be able to continue their relationships with the company.

Recommended Videos

“Together we’ll deliver better technologies that make enterprise search a ubiquitous tool, central to how people find and use information,” Lervik said in a statement.

As a Microsoft subsidiary, Fast will begin work on a variety of Microsoft projects, including Microsoft Search Server 2008 Express, search for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 and FAST ESP, and future delivery of a single enterprise search platform.

Former Editor in Chief

As Digital Trends’ Editor in Chief, Nick Mokey oversees an editorial team covering every gadget under the sun, along with…

Topics

QuickCharge: This Week in EV

Computing

Google changes its Workspace privacy promise on ads, and opting out limits Personal Intelligence

Smarter AI answers, with a side order of ads.

AI mode in Google Search

There’s no such thing as a free recommendation. Google’s latest policy tweak is a clear reminder. Google has long promised that your Gmail, Drive, and Google Photos content never helps it personalize ads.

However, since October 16, 2026, its privacy policy adds a catch. The promise lapses if you let other ad-showing Google services use that content. That means using Personal Intelligence, an opt-in tool that lets Google’s AI search read your connected apps, does exactly that (via Google).

Computing

OpenAI is locking its most advanced AI models offline after a string of security scares

OpenAI’s fake internet is a safety fix and an admission.

Part of me is relieved that an AI lab is hitting the brakes. The other part wishes it hadn’t taken real incidents to get there.

OpenAI said Friday that its most advanced models will now train without live internet access. Instead, they’ll practice on a cached, simulated copy of the web.

Computing

Your Windows touchpad is about to make scrolling long pages way less tiring

Three touchpad tricks that make long documents feel a lot shorter.

Windows new scrolling feature

Today I learned about a touchpad tip that I think every Windows laptop user should know. Microsoft shared it as its Friday Windows tip of the day, and it’s all about scrolling.

If you read long documents, browse webpages, or write code on a Windows laptop, you know the drill. You swipe, lift your fingers, and swipe again until you reach the part you need. Microsoft has three touchpad features that cut down on all that swiping.