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Behind the taskbarComment Much better than Vista, and the best Windows yet. That seems to be the consensus view on Windows 7, and after two and a half months with the final build, I more or less agree - despite the niggling voice that says behind the new taskbar it is not really so different from Windows Vista. Nevertheless, Windows 7 on its launch today is a better experience than Windows Vista was when released in early 2007, thanks to a UI polish, faster hardware, better drivers, and new features that users actually enjoy - Taskbar, Libraries, Aero Peek -...

Now that we in the northern hemisphere have had some time to digest the Windows 7 hype and settle in for the coming winter, we thought we would get some more hard data regarding Windows 7 security. On October 22nd, we settled in at SophosLabs and loaded a full release copy of Windows 7 on a clean machine. We configured it to follow the system defaults for User Account Control (UAC) and did not load any anti-virus software.We grabbed the next 10 unique samples that arrived in the SophosLabs feed to see how well the newer, more secure version of...

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Ex-Microsoftie says that Windows 7 is doomed and Linux, free software, will ultimately dominate.A lot of open source advocates like to rage against the machine at Microsoft, but when a former Microsoft Research employee says that Windows 7 won't stop Linux from market domination, that's an opinion to note. Keith Curtis, author of the book After the Software Wars, says just that. But he goes further. He thinks Microsoft and its customers would be better off if the company ditched Windows and instead built its own version of the Linux operating system. These topics came up yesterday during my interview...

I know I need Windows 7. But, I have used xp for years. Just got a laptop with Vista a few weeks ago. My pc died and now I'm stuck temporarily with my vista laptop. Here's my problem that is driving me crazy!! Sometimes copy/paste will work with right click, sometimes not(on web sites/email, never when it used to) Spellcheck will show the misspelled word, but the right click does nothing!! Why??? No right click page reload either! Is this just one of the reasons people hated Vista?? This is insane!

After King County Superior Court Judge Gregory Canova awarded Microsoft an $8.7 million judgment in a 2008 lawsuit involving unpaid software licenses, he might have been surprised to learn that Microsoft isn’t actually in the software licensing business in Washington – or at least that’s what it reports to the state Department of Revenue. For tax purposes, Microsoft reports that it’s earned its estimated $143 billion in software licensing revenue in Nevada, where there is no licensing tax. However, for legal purposes, Microsoft executes its licensing contracts so they are governed by and rely on the protections of Washington law...

After nearly a year-long build-up, Microsoft’s ongoing pre-launch campaign to woo computer users has come to a close, with the public launch of Microsoft’s latest and greatest desktop OS, Windows 7.Windows 7 is being born in to a world of uncertainty, one Microsoft has never faced before to such a degree. Apple’s (and Mac OS X) market share is the highest it’s been in over a decade. Linux has finally gained however small a foothold in home computers through netbooks. And what was Microsoft’s next-gen operating system, Windows Vista, has taken enough backlash that it’s going to be in therapy...

Windows 7 has spawned a new breed of inexpensive laptops at retailers like Best Buy and Frys. At many stores on Thursday, Best Buy refreshed almost its entire stock of laptops: all running Windows 7 and all sporting new model numbers. Frys--a megastore electronics retailer with locations throughout California, Arizona, and Texas--also refreshed many of its laptops with new Windows 7 models. One of the most inexpensive Windows 7 arrivals is the Gateway model EC1410U. This tiny laptop is distinctly Netbook-like in appearance but uses a more powerful Celeron M ULV 743 processor (1.3GHz, 1MB cache) than the Atom-chip fare...

Windows 7, the new version of Microsoft Windows and the successor to Windows Vista, is officially released in two days time. On his blog, my good friend Patrick Crozier has asked a possibly not very important question, specifically I've heard of Windows 3.1. I am about to a lot about Windows 7. But I've never heard a peep about Windows 4, 5 or 6. Were they, by any chance, really good versions of Windows that we never got to hear about because the praise for them was drowned out by complaints about 95, 98, 2000, Millenium and Vista? I think...

What is it? Where is it? What's it do? ZoneAlarm Firewall

Microsoft’s latest operating system, Windows 7, is on course to break sales records following its launch today. The online retailer Amazon said that it was the “biggest grossing pre-order product of all time�, having overtaken the likes of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and Nintendo’s Wii. Speaking at the launch of Windows 7 yesterday, Jeremy Fennell, Category Director at DSGi, which owns Dixons, Currys and PC World, said: “We have sold more copies of Windows 7 in three weeks on pre-order than Vista sold in its first year.� At midnight, queues could be seen outside stores as computers users...

Several big tech companies depending on revamp of flagship product SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Toshiba Corp. has long maintained a staff of engineers at Microsoft Corp.'s headquarters, to consult on the development of products compatible with the Japanese conglomerate's personal computers. But collaboration between Toshiba and Microsoft on the newest version of the Redmond, Wash.-based company's flagship Windows software, dubbed Windows 7, was far more involved than it had been in the past - highlighting a need to dull memories of the product's flawed predecessor, and to bolster the fortunes of both Microsoft and the many technology companies that depend...

Through its XP Mode, Microsoft Windows 7 can extend the useful life of legacy applications and peripherals. With a feature called XP Mode in Windows 7, Microsoft hopes to make it easier to use legacy applications and equipment. In this video, ZDNet’s Ed Bott, blogger of Ed Bott’s Microsoft Report, shows you how the new XP Mode works and suggests a few possible uses for the feature.

Here's some important information for anyone thinking about upgrading to Microsoft's new Windows 7 on an existing machine, or using an existing device or peripheral (such as a printer or camera) with a new Windows 7 PC. Microsoft today released a new version of its Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor, which scans a computer to see if it can run the new operating system; along with a Windows 7 Compatibility Center, letting you see if your devices will work with Windows 7. Although many people will get Windows 7 when they buy new PCs, the automated Windows 7 Upgrade Adviser will...

My logs show that only a paltry 3.6% of readers have reached Complete Enlightenment. The bad news is that 83.1% of you live a hellish existence and suffer regular torments and agony, much of it self-imposed. How I weep for you! (The remaining 13.3% are in Limbo, including the 2 jokers last month who logged on using a PlayStation 3.) There are many flavors of Linux, but I recommend Ubuntu—one of those trendy African words meaning “warm fuzzy”. Log on to the site to see pictures of multicultural people holding hands and grinning weirdly, just like the photos appearing on...

Personal computers are about to get a makeover with the launch of the latest Windows operating system.**************************************************************** The BBC's Jason Palmer investigates Windows 7's pros and cons***************************************************** Microsoft is hoping the successor to Vista will be more of a hit with users when it launches on 22 October. Many of the features take into account multimedia applications and the fact that users are beginning to store their data on the internet. In the UK some computer stores are due to open at midnight so keen PC users can get their hands on the software.

Some scareware scammers building botnets, too (USA Today can only be linked to) Previous article: New twist on scareware locks up your PC

Windows alternative relies on Linux and the cloudIBM is trying to hit Microsoft where it hurts, with a new offering designed to lure customers away from Windows 7. < IBM takes aim at Microsoft Windows 7 with new desktop offering IBM is trying to hit Microsoft where it hurts, with a new offering designed to lure customers away from Windows 7. The top 7 roadkill victims on the journey to Windows 7 IBM Tuesday said it is teaming up with Canonical to provide cloud- and Linux-based desktop packages in the United States at half the cost of upgrading to Windows 7. It's...

Thanks to a special freepmailer for pointing to this article. # SNIPPET: "Computerworld - An add-on that Microsoft silently slipped into Mozilla's Firefox last February leaves the browser open to attack, Microsoft's security engineers acknowledged earlier this week. One of the 13 security bulletins Microsoft released Tuesday affects not only Internet Explorer (IE), but also Firefox, thanks to a Microsoft-made plug-in pushed to Firefox users eight months ago in an update delivered via Windows Update. "While the vulnerability is in an IE component, there is an attack vector for Firefox users as well," admitted Microsoft engineers in a post to...

Add-ons blocked because of serious security vulnerability for Firefox users. A war has been raging between different web browsers for a long time now. The two main combatants in the battle are Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Firefox from Mozilla. Microsoft is still in the lead in marketshare with IE, but Firefox is grabbing up a large portion of the market for itself. Firefox hit the one billion download mark in August and has 32% of the browser market while IE holds about 60% of the market. Mozilla and Microsoft are working together on a security flaw in some Microsoft add-ons...

XP's long reign over the hearts and minds of corporates will end on October 22 when Windows 7 is launched, predicts analysts Forester. Soothsayers in Forester's tarot reading division have pulled the Death card for Windows XP on the corporate desktop. Forrester’s Benjamin Gray said that businesses needed refresh aging IT infrastructure. There was also a predicted end to XP support and getting copies of the operating system was becoming trickier. Windows 7 had an XP mode which means that most of the software that businesses have will run on the new operating system. This will improve the OS's chance...

If you own a T-Mobile/Microsoft Sidekick smartphone I don’t have to tell you this. But if you are among the millions who don’t: on October 1st literally every user of the Sidekick data service lost the private personal records – emails, notes, calendar entries, contacts, etc. — they had stored on the system. Initially, it was believed that information was now lost forever. The official statement from Microsoft/Danger (the latter being the company that builds the Sidekick) and T-Mobile is that the data “almost certainly has been lost as a result of a server failure at Microsoft/Danger.”

I am a Mac user by choice, but my work computer is an HP Pavilion laptop running Vista. I am in NO way trying to bash MS (though I generally am no fan of Gates and his MS beast), but I am seeking real discourse and help. I am a fairly experienced computer users, and have spent a good deal of time over the last few years helping in the technology department at my previous employment. Back in the spring (machine was still under warranty), the HD died (supposedly, I am not convinced) right after a large Windows update (that...

An investigative series I've been writing about organized cyber crime gangs stealing millions of dollars from small to mid-sized businesses has generated more than a few responses from business owners who were concerned about how best to protect themselves from this type of fraud.

Microsoft (NSDQ:MSFT) released a record patch for its Patch Tuesday release, fixing 34 vulnerabilities in 13 updates, including two zero-day flaws in its Server Message Block protocol and FTP Service, which opens the door for hackers to launch malicious attacks on users' PCs. Altogether, eight of the 13 patches repaired critical errors in every version of Windows and Internet Explorer, including critical bugs in the SMB and one deemed "important" in the Microsoft FTP Service, which allows hackers to attack vulnerable systems remotely with malicious code, typically to steal information. The patches address a total of 34 vulnerabilities in Microsoft...

Microsoft sends biggest patch on record Tue Oct 13, 2009 4:03pm EDT SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp issued its biggest software patch on record on Tuesday to fix a range of security issues in its programs, including the yet-to-be-released Windows 7 operating system. In a monthly update sent to users of its software, Microsoft released 13 security bulletins, or patches, to address 34 vulnerabilities it identified across its Windows, Internet Explorer, Silverlight, Office and other products. It said six of the patches were high priority and should be deployed immediately. The patches -- which update software to write over glitches...

Microsoft is planning to make Windows 8 an 128-bit operating system, according to details leaked from the software giant's Research department.The discovery came to light after Microsoft Research employee, Robert Morgan, carelessly left details of his work on the social-networking site, LinkedIn. Research & Development projects including 128-bit architecture compatibility with the Windows 8 kernel and Windows 9 project plan The senior researcher's profile said he was: "Working in high security department for research and development involving strategic planning for medium and longterm projects. Research & Development projects including 128-bit architecture compatibility with the Windows 8 kernel and Windows 9...

If you use the Internet Explorer, Google Chrome or Apple Safari browsers to conduct PayPal transactions, now would be a good time to switch over to the decidedly more secure Firefox alternative. That's because a hacker on Monday published a counterfeit secure sockets layer certificate that exploits a gaping hole in a Microsoft library used by all three of those browsers. Although the certificate is fraudulent, it appears to all three to be a completely legitimate credential vouching for the online payment service. The bug was disclosed more than nine weeks ago, but Microsoft has yet to fix it. Monday's...

WASHINGTON — Wondering if swine flu's bad enough to require a doctor's attention? An interactive Web site may help you decide, using the same type of triage calculations that doctors at Emory University use. Microsoft Corp. unveiled the site Wednesday at http://www.h1n1responsecenter.com. Type in your age — it's only for people over 12 — and answer questions about fever, other symptoms and your underlying health.

OLYMPIA, Wash. -- Microsoft Corp. has donated $100,000 to the campaign supporting more partnership rights for Washington state gay couples. That's the largest single donation in favor of Referendum 71, which asks voters to approve or reject a new law that expands domestic partnerships for gay and lesbian couples.

Microsoft Corp.'s new Windows 7 computer operating system hopes to pull off a major trick with memory. Not computer memory, but ours. It's supposed to make us forget Vista. The Vista operating system, which Windows 7 will officially replace later this month, had a terrible reputation almost from the time it debuted in 2007. Because of Vista's technical foibles, sluggish operation and inability to play nicely with some other programs, consumers and professionals shunned it in droves, refusing to update from Microsoft's old, reliable XP operating system. Apple Inc. made fun of Vista in a set of hilarious TV commercials,...

Microsoft Corp.'s new Windows 7 computer operating system hopes to pull off a major trick with memory. Not computer memory, but ours. It's supposed to make us forget Vista. The Vista operating system, which Windows 7 will officially replace later this month, had a terrible reputation almost from the time it debuted in 2007. Because of Vista's technical foibles, sluggish operation and inability to play nicely with some other programs, consumers and professionals shunned it in droves, refusing to update from Microsoft's old, reliable XP operating system. Apple Inc. made fun of Vista in a set of hilarious TV commercials,...

You paid for your antivirus software? Why? Good free options have been available for years, mainly from no-name companies. Nervous consumers figure they’re better off buying major brands, like Norton security software from Symantec Corp. Well, here’s a major brand for you: Microsoft Corp.

A federal court on Tuesday reversed an earlier ruling that Microsoft's product activation technology infringed on another company's patent, overturning a $388 million verdict in the case. In a ruling on Tuesday, the court vacated the earlier decision and decided the case in Microsoft's favor. "We are pleased that the court has vacated the jury verdict and entered judgment in favor of Microsoft," Microsoft spokesman Kevin Kutz said in a statement. Tuesday's ruling is the latest twist in a case that has had plenty of them. Microsoft initially won a summary judgment ruling, which would have ended the case in...

Microsoft today lifted the curtain on its Microsoft Security Essentials, the free successor to its OneCare security program. MSE uses the same antivirus engine as the phased-out OneCare, but the new free program focuses only on malware blocking. It doesn't include a firewall, system optimizer or other security suite-type features......

Windows works for me. But I'd never recommend it to anybody else, ever.I admit it: I'm a bigot. A hopeless bigot at that: I know my particular prejudice is absurd, but I just can't control it. It's Apple. I don't like Apple products. And the better-designed and more ubiquitous they become, the more I dislike them. I blame the customers. Awful people. Awful. Stop showing me your iPhone. Stop stroking your Macbook. Stop telling me to get one. Seriously, stop it. I don't care if Mac stuff is better. I don't care if Mac stuff is cool. I don't care...

Microsoft is one of 15 companies being awarded the 2009 Employer Support Freedom Award, from the U.S. secretary of defense, for its support of employees in the National Guard and military reserves. Microsoft has several employee-run programs for military personnel, including Military Reservists at Microsoft and U.S. Military Veterans at Microsoft. They coordinate care packages for Microsoft employees on overseas active duty, organize military tours of the Redmond campus and help soldiers at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center get Microsoft certification. When Microsoft employees are called for National Guard or reserve duty, the company also will make up the...

My windows vista had me download 3 updates today. Told me they where "Important" one was called Vista Service Pack 2. After downloading them I can not get to any web pages except Free Republic. I am guessing its a DNS problem but Free Republic must be a SuperPage. It's faster then a speeding vista problem, able to leap DNS problems with a single bound,etc,etc.

According to a leak from a BestBuy employee, Microsoft is initiating a sort of "Anti-Linux Training" course for the employees, and those who take part in the said training are rewarded with a copy of Windows 7 for only ten dollars. The leaked screenshots of the campaign show Microsoft's comparison of its own system with an obscure "Linux" and how Windows is better in every way including security, "free downloads", and software and hardware compatibility. When Microsoft said a few weeks ago that its biggest threat was Linux, I suppose a campaign such as this was to be expected. We've...

Does anyone know anything about Seth Meyers other than that he was on SNL? He is appearing at the Microsoft Company Meeting this year as, presumably, entertainment.

Despite a potentially crippling patent injunction against selling Word that Microsoft is battling on appeal, Microsoft, via a senior lawyer, is nevertheless calling for a global patent system "to make it easier and faster for corporations to enforce their intellectual property rights around the world". Yep--despite the big hit they just took due to i4i's patent, Microsoft is concerned about the "unmanageable backlogs and interminable pendency periods" of national patent systems, which have 3.5 million patents pending. You hear that right--Microsoft things more is "needed to be done to allow corporations to protect their intellectual property." What, do they want...

Microsoft has been granted a stay of a landmark injunction in a patent infringement case that would have required the software giant to stop selling its popular Word in its current form by next month. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Thursday granted Microsoft's motion for a stay, pending appeal, of an injunction issued in August by a federal judge that bars sales of Word that include a custom XML code found to infringe on patents held by i4i--the plaintiff. "We are happy with the result and look forward to presenting our arguments on the main...

Unwinding bet on a Microsoft merger costs tycoon nine figures Pity the poor billionaire: Corporate raider Carl Icahn is still paying for last year's effort to marry Yahoo off to Microsoft. Icahn recently sold 12.7 million shares of Yahoo, new regulatory filings show, at less than $15. He acquired his stake at an average price of $25 a share last year in an effort to pressure Yahoo into accepting a takeover bid from Microsoft. That means he's taken a loss of about $130 million. And unless Yahoo's fortunes take an abrupt turn for the better, he's likely to face more...

Microsoft is fessing up and apologizing for altering a Web site photo to change a person's race. A photo on the Seattle-based company's U.S. Web site shows two men and a woman sitting around a conference table. The ad reads, "Empower your people with the IT tools you need." For the U.S. audience the men are Asian and African American. But on the Web site of Microsoft's Polish business unit, the black man's head has been replaced with a white face. When you look real hard, its clear there is something off about the white man sitting in the middle...

LOS ANGELES: Software giant Microsoft Corp is apologising for altering a photo on its website to change the race of one of the people shown in t he picture. A photo on the Seattle-based company's US website shows two men, one Asian and one black, and a white woman seated at a conference room table.

The iPhone & Steve Ballmer: It’s Time For Him To Eat Some Serious CrowWednesday, August 26, 2009 There are very few people in the tech world who annoy me quite like Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft. It’s not just that he’s loud, dismissive and arrogant. It’s that he manages to be all these things while usually being spectacularly wrong, especially when it comes to Apple. Take for example his thoughts on the iPhone from a USAToday article in 2007: “There’s no chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share. No chance,” said Ballmer. “It’s a $500...

Software giant Microsoft has apologised for editing a photo to change a black man's head to that of a white man. The picture, showing employees sitting around a desk, appeared unaltered on the firm's US website. But on the website of its Polish business unit the black man's head was replaced with a white face, although the colour of his hands was unchanged.

Parallels to make switching to the Mac easier, safe and painless August 24, 2009 by Dean Takahashi In the Windows vs. Mac war, we are at a crossroads. Apple is launching its Snow Leopard version of the Mac operating system on Friday at the low price of $29. Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system will launch in October with the primary aim of fixing the problems created by Windows Vista. There has never been a better time to switch to the Mac. Parallels, which makes software so you can run Windows or Mac software on the same machine and use them...

"APPLE HAS CHANGED THE WAY THE GAME IS PLAYED", says MSFT Win Mob chief Thu, 08/20/2009 - 01:21 by Jonny Evans "Apple has changed the way the game is played," Loke Uei, senior technical product manager for mobile developer experience at Microsoft said at the company’s first Windows Mobile Developers Camp (WinMoDevCamp) yesterday. His comments came during the developer meeting at which Redmond hopes to inspire/attract application developers to its platform. Attendees also got to see a preview of Windows Mobile at the event. The company hopes to take on Apple when it launches its Marketplace for Mobile later this...

Apple's 99-Cent Apps Are Too Cheap, Microsoft Says By Barry Levine August 20, 2009 9:39AM Microsoft is wooing developers to Windows Mobile by promoting the idea that Apple, Inc. prices App Store apps too low at 99 cents. Loke Uei told developers "your app is worth more than that" in sessions preparing for Microsoft's launch of Windows Marketplace for Mobile. The BlackBerry, Palm and Android stores also plan to charge more than 99 cents. With Apple's App Store offering many free and 99-cent apps whose prices please buyers but frustrate many developers, Microsoft is wooing developers to its Windows Mobile...