In addition, Ozzie noted that Microsoft plans to federate its Windows Live identity service with Active Directory to enable authenticated users to access a vast array of Internet-based services without having to create a separate identity for each one. His keynote speech made use of Microsoft's Windows Live Virtual Earth mapping technology to trace his employment roots in a display so detailed that attendees could see the colors of buildings where he used to work.

Joel Zinn, a Tulsa-based senior IT developer at American Electric Power Co., said the Virtual Earth technology could help the utility's service technicians as they respond to calls. But like other users, Zinn said he harbors doubts about services such as hosted Exchange, especially at a company as geographically dispersed as AEP, which is based in Columbus, Ohio, and has 5 million customers in 11 states.

"Utilities tend to be conservative, so [company executives] would have to be convinced that there's a good return on it," Zinn said.

Andy Gorman, a senior technologist at a major financial institution, said Microsoft's services vision had a "pie in the sky" feel to him. "It's good in concept," he said. "I just can't see it being implemented in the next 10 years, and I don't think many companies are ready for it. They wouldn't buy it culturally."

Many users also would be on pins and needles over concerns about information security and a lack of control over their data, he said.