Microsoft Launches Exchange Server 5.0

Exchange Server offers full support for open internet, messaging and collaboration standards. Company line: You wont have to sacrifice security, reliability and extensibility to build powerful internet and intranet solutions. What they mean: Stick with Windows NT, and have the goodies. Not a bad thing in itself.

But whether you are a Unixwallah or not, the features are alluring enough. You have support for SMTP and POP3 for internet mail, NNTP for internet discussion groups, support for Lightweight Directory Access protocol, HTTP and HTML. You can now access Microsoft Exchange information using a variety of clients on any desktop operating system, including Microsoft Exchange client, Outlook 97 or browsers.

And Microsoft has plugged all holes by ensuring usability in your existing network environment, whether it is Netware, Unix or mainframe. Exchange scales from small business through workgroup to enterprise, claims Microsoft. Another cornerstone in Microsofts strategy of penetrating the enterprise by surrounding it?