"Microsoft (MSFT) handled the recent recession quite well, one of the most serious recessions since the 1930s, in which there were substantial declines in both consumer and business spending," says Sy Harding.

The editor of The Long and Short Stock Advisory explains, "And this was in spite of the cool reception of its Vista operating system, which was intended to replace Windows XP. Overall, we consider the stock to be a potential 'over-performer.'

"Run properly, as Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM) does, a cloud computing network also offers greater security, greater reliability, and lower costs (thanks to efficiencies of scale)," explains Timothy Lutts.

In The Cabot Stock of the Month report, he suggests, "Salesforce.com is very well managed, and in our mind its leadership in cloud computing gives it a fundamental advantage that should translate into growing market share gains and steady revenue flows for years to come."

"The company was founded a decade ago by a former Oracle executive, and today it's a leading vendor of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) services.

"Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is a well-run company with a fortress-like balance sheet," says growth stock expert Brandon Clay.

In his Invest with an Edge he suggests, "Maicrosoft's war chest of cash and their ability to sparkle with products like Bing makes the company an attractive long-term bet." Here's the advisor's review.

"Microsoft was once the kind of stock investors dreamed of owning. Rising thousands of percent from its IPO in the mid-1980s to the late 1990s, Microsoft was at one point the largest U.S. company by market cap.

"As technology evolved and Microsoft matured, Wall Street turned its focus to 'sexier' areas of technology like Internet stocks. Operating system software wasn't the in-thing anymore. Microsoft became a value stock rather than a growth play.

"The hottest IPO of late has been the offering from language instruction company Rosetta Stone (NYSE: RST)," notes Bill Martin.

In his BullMarket.com, he suggests, "The desire, not to mention need, to learn other languages in a global economy means the company is looking at a potentially huge market." Here's his review of the IPO:

"Shares of Rosetta Stone were priced at $18, which itself was above the anticipated range, but the price surged in the company's first day of trading on April 16th. The stock rose to $32.54 before retreating.

With President Obama highlighting the national importance of cyber security, we turn to technology specialist Gregg Early to find the best investment ideas in the sector.

Noting that "cyber security is one of the biggest new sectors in the information technology industry," the editor of Personal Finance offers a trio of buys in the field -- McAfee (NYSE: MFE), Versar (AMEX: VSR), and Unisys (NYSE: UIS).

The advisor explains, "In exchange for an annual fee, McAfee allows users to download the basic security software and regular updates. These frequent updates are essential because virus and malware threats are constantly evolving.

"Software giant Adobe Systems (NASDAQ: ADBE) has joined our model Growth Portfolio," says Stephen Leeb. Here's his assessment of the tech firm in The Complete Investor.

"When it comes to investing in tech, perhaps the most difficult task is to find one with a bona fide franchise, i.e., an ironclad grip on its market that keeps it largely immune to competition.

"Adobe -- also known as 'the PDF company' -- fits the bill. As most computer users know, PDF files are ones that you can read but can't change in any way-the content is controlled solely by the file's creator.