Todd Bishop in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer notes that publicly accessible weblogs by Microsoft employees are taking hold, albeit under a somewhat wary eye from the powers that be in Redmond. So far no "state secrets" seem to be seeping out, but the typical openness of weblogger's thoughts do seem to reveal a fair amount about culture inside the software/content giant. How far does this go is anyone's guess, but it's safe to assume that Microsoft, with its increased awareness of the role of content in its future, doesn't want to get caught off guard as it did when a little pipsqueak named Netscape threatened to turn their world on its head with an earlier disruptive content technology. Consider this phase one of Microsoft's examination of weblogging's impact on corporate culture. There's a complex interplay at work in weblogging between the individual and institutions that employ them, one that is likely to spill out into the broader arena of publishing sooner rather than later. You can almost hear the "embrace and extend" hounds baying in the background...