Hackers Open Up Mac OS X Leopard for PC

Apple has a new set of hackers to contend with: a group of developers on the OSx86Scene forum have published instructions on how to install Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard on a standard PC.

The move will no doubt bring Apple's legal team a knocking very soon, but for the time being, the instructions are still available on the organization's website. Not all features are available to those who install the OS, however it is apparently stable.

Apple is not only fighting hackers who wish to bring the company's OS to the PC, but also those who are trying to break into the iPhone and iPod Touch. An application called Jailbreak has been released, and Apple in updates have specifically tried to fight back through "bricking" hacked devices.

source: betanews.com

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Windows Live Messenger 9.0

Drops in late 2008, early 2009. Forget about Windows Live Messenger 8.1 and 8.5, Microsoft is cooking Windows Live Messenger 9.0.

Currently, Windows Live Messenger 9.0 is in the very early stages of baking, but this does not mean that the Redmond company is not perfecting the receipt of its instant messaging client. Andrew Jenks, a Microsoft employee speaking at the Georgia Institute of Technology revealed that Windows Live Messenger 9.0 is planned for availability towards the end of 2008, but it could slip into 2009.

LiveSide, quoting Ampcoder, focused on Jenks' announcement of a new Microsoft application programming interface designed to be joined at the hip with the 9.0 version of Windows Live Messenger. The API will permit third-party developers to build upon Windows Live Messenger 9.0, creating customized versions of the instant messaging client or even programs that take advantage of the features available. The details are scarce, but developers apparently will be able to access a technical preview of the API concomitantly with the MIX08 conference next year.

In addition, Microsoft is also looking to include the first beta of the application programming interface with the finalized version of Windows Live Messenger 9.0. Over at Redmond, very early, internal builds of Windows Live Messenger 9.0 already include some of the components that will make up the final API.

Still, Microsoft plans a consistent evolution with Windows Live Messenger 9.0. If the currently available versions of the IM client, builds 8.1.0178 and 8.5.1288.816 Beta 2 are targeting integration and support for Windows Vista as a primary focus, Windows Live Messenger 9.0 will potentially bring to the table multi-person audio/video chat capabilities, although there is even a chance that the feature will be pushed back as far as v10.

However, one aspect that Microsoft is hard at work on is the interoperability of Windows Live Messenger 9.0 with alternative instant messaging clients such as AIM, Gtalk and ICQ, in a similar manner to the integration with Yahoo Messenger. And last, but not least, while Apple users will not be getting an upgrade to the MSN Messenger for Mac, they will be able to access a new client designed with Mac OS X in mind.

source: news.softpedia.com

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MagicTweak 4.11

MagicTweak is a special program designed to optimize and personalize Microsoft Windows. It provides one-stop, instant access to a variety of Windows settings that can be altered for a friendlier Windows environment.

This unique software makes it easy to tweak hundreds of hidden settings in Windows Vista/2003/XP/2000/Me/98, so there is no longer any need to dig through the registry looking for that specific setting (from the Start Menu, Desktop, Internet Explorer, System Icon to System Security) that just doesn't seem to be there.With the ability to customize almost any aspect of Windows, you can become a Windows expert instantly!

Changelog:
* Add function to Disable the Autorun Feature on All Drives on Security section.
* Add function to Disable the Ability to Change Wallpapers on Security section.
* Add function to Removes Active Desktop Content on Security section.
* Add function to Prevents Users from Adding Web Content to Their Active Desktop on Security section.
* Add function to Prevents Users from Deleting Web Content to Their Active Desktop on Security section.
* Add function to Prevents Users from Changing Web Content to Their Active Desktop on Security section.
* Add function to Prevents Users from Manipulating Destop Toolbars on Security section.
* Add function to Prevents Users from Adjusting Desktop Toolbars on Security section.
* Add function to Permits Only Bitmap Images for Wallpaper on Security section.
* Add function to Hide Windows Update on Start Menu section.
* Add function to Disable the Ability to Use Windows Update to Locate Updated Drivers for Hardware in Device Manager on Explorer section.
* Other small bug fixed.

Download:
MagicTweak 4.11

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Will 2008 Be Vista's Golden Year?

Despite months of rumors and innuendo suggesting that sales of Windows Vista were lackluster, Microsoft last week turned in its best first quarter in eight years.

And among the products credited with driving that revenue jump was Vista. However, Microsoft officials are being even cagier than usual when it comes to talking about the specifics behind those numbers.

Chief Financial Officer Chris Liddell told financial analysts during the company's quarterly earnings call Thursday that sales of Vista so far stand at 88 million units. He said that compares to 45 million units for Windows XP in a similar time period after XP first shipped.

That number, according to a Microsoft spokesperson, includes sales of Vista installed in new PCs and as retail packages. In July, Liddell told analysts that Vista units sold via PC makers and at retail locations totaled 60 million to that point. (Vista began shipping to corporate customers last November and to consumers in late January 2007.)

But that doesn't even begin to tell the whole story when it comes to license sales.

In late August, David Zipkin, senior product manager for the Windows client, told InternetNews.com, that besides the OEM and retail numbers, Microsoft had also sold some 42 million units through volume license agreements with large customers.

However, as Liddell pointed out, volume license numbers are not directly comparable to installed units. They are rather an indication of the "intent" to install Vista. In that regard, he said volume licenses were up significantly during the quarter that ended September 30.

"The volume licensing portion of our business was up 27 percent in the client area so that's a very good leading indicator from our point of view," Liddell added.

Compare that to a statement made by CEO Steve Ballmer at the company's annual financial analyst meeting in July when he said that by the end of the current fiscal year—which concludes at the end of June 2008—there will be more than 1 billion PCs running Windows worldwide.

Indeed, sales of new PCs remain strong. In late September researcher Gartner predicted worldwide PC sales in 2007 will increase 12.3 percent compared to 2006, and will grow by another 11 percent in 2008. For 2007, that translates into 260 million PCs sold worldwide.

Microsoft's own predictions, while not directly comparable, see the industry selling between 14 percent and 16 percent more new PCs in fiscal 2008. Perhaps even more aggressive is the firm's "guidance" for analysts regarding sales of Windows "clients," which includes XP as well as Vista.

Liddell told analysts the company expects sales for its second fiscal quarter of 2008—the so-called "Christmas" quarter—to be up 62 percent to 64 percent over the same period last year. While he didn't provide guidance for the third fiscal quarter, the one in which the first Vista service pack is slated to ship, he did say the company expects client sales for the entire fiscal year to increase between 12 percent and 13 percent compared to fiscal 2007.

In fact, a strong Christmas quarter followed by the shipment of Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) in the January quarter might just make for a very jolly fiscal year for Vista sales. Traditionally, large IT shops tend to wait for the first service pack before adopting a new version of Windows. And that means the period between January and the end of June 2008 may be a very good time indeed for Vista uptake.

source: internetnews.com

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One year later, Vista really is more secure

Windows Vista was released to manufacturing a year ago next week, and landed on retail shelves exactly nine months ago today. To mark the occasion, I dragged a system out of mothballs and installed the original RTM version of Vista Ultimate on it. (Well, OK, I also needed a test bed for some upcoming work, but still…)

Anyway, I was surprised to see that the automatic update process picked up only 35 updates totaling 93.9 MB in size. That’s an average of fewer than four updates per month. And the number drops to fewer than three per month if you start counting with the original release to manufacturing date, which will mark its one year anniversary next week.

Jim Allchin, who led the Vista development and launch, is probably feeling at least somewhat vindicated today. After all, he predicted in an interview with PC World that patch counts would go way down with Vista:

“In my opinion, it’s the most secure system that’s available and the most secure system we have shipped,” he said. This means the number and severity of security updates Microsoft must release every month on Patch Tuesday, the name security researchers have given for when Microsoft releases its monthly security patches, should be reduced, Allchin said.

“That can be proven,” he said of his patch prediction. “We will see about that.”

The lineup of patches for October 2007 offers some instructive examples. MS07-55 was a Critical update for Windows XP SP2 but didn’t apply at all to Vista. MS07-56 was rated Critical for XP SP2 but was only Important for Vista. (For an explanation of the differences, see this page.)

And those 35 patches weren’t all security related, either. Some were reliability and compatibility fixes. There are updates to the Windows Mail Junk Mail filters, and in the case of this system at least one driver update. So how does Vista measure up to its predecessor if you filter out all but security updates? Out of curiosity, I went to the Microsoft Security Bulletin Search page and looked for Critical and Important bulletins issued in the past year. Here are the results:

* Windows XP with SP2: 41
* Windows Vista: 14

That’s almost as thorough a drubbing as the Patriots gave the Redskins last weekend. Microsoft has taken a lot of flak for Vista, but these results, in my opinion, validate the Security Development Lifecycle process, which was and is at the core of Vista’s design and evolution.

source: blogs.zdnet.com

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Blu-ray BD+ Copy Protection Cracked!

It would seem that there's absolutely nothing out there, no type of copy protection system that can resist the hard efforts of ingenious "security researchers", especially when the respective system is designed to protect valuable multimedia content (namely, movies).

And the latest such example is none other than Sony's famous next-generation DVD format, the Blu-ray, which, apparently, has just been cracked by a company specialized in developing DVD copying tools.

to the German website Golem.de, it would seem that the SlySoft company (the maker of such disc cloning tools as the AnyDVD, CloneDVD, etc.) has announced that it has managed to overcome BD+ protection, used generally for securing the contents of Blu-ray discs. Moreover, the company's CEO, Giancarlo Bettini, announced that a software tool meant to circumvent the Blu-ray copy protection system might actually be launched by the end of 2007.

Despite the fact that we're waiting to see if Bettini's claims are actually true, one thing's for sure. BD+ lasted a bit longer than its HD DVD counterpart, whose encryption keys were cracked back in early 2007. This copy protection system was announced back in June 2007 and allows each BD+ code to create an embedded virtual machine inside player hardware allowing for the introduction of some specific content protecting functions. A BD+ virtual layer can run diagnostics on the host environment to see if the disc player has been modified, or to verify the set of keys. Moreover, if any ripping attempts are noticed, the content encrypts itself in order to prevent future attempts.

Quite obviously, the practice of copying a Blu-ray disc is illegal, but even if SlySoft does come out with a working solution, there's always another problem: that of discs and recorders. For the time being, Blu-ray recorders are extremely expensive, and the same goes for blank discs, which retail for around 40 US dollars (close to the price of an original Blu-ray movie).

On the other hand, the possibility of copying Blu-ray discs might actually improve hardware sales, since most users will more likely buy a standalone player if they have a bunch of pirated discs available. This has happened time and time again over the past few years, and this is also the reason why Sony and the other major Blu-ray supporters might actually overlook this not so minor "transgression" from SlySoft.

source: news.softpedia.com

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How-To: Remove the Windows BSOD icon in Leopard, make OS X a little less smug

It's pretty clear that Apple left no stone unturned in Leopard, making changes and fixes throughout the new operating system.

Unfortunately, that also included an upgrade to its crucial smugness subsystem: the image you see above of an old school CRT monitor with a blue screen of death is actually the not-so-subtle gag icon Leopard uses to represent Windows machines on your local network. (Is it any wonder why PC and Mac fanboys tend to get in so many fights?) Granted, many Leopard beta users have seen this icon since the early releases, but we didn't actually think the shipping version would include something so pompous and galling to the other 90%.

We'll save the missive on the subject (although if that's what you're looking for, Anil Dash wrote a pretty good one), and skip straight to the problem solving: hidden away deep within the recesses of Leopard, far, far away from the reaches of Spotlight, is an unassuming icon file that's doing a great job at perpetuating the myth of Mac users' disdainful sense of self-superiority. Luckily it's an easy fix, and we'll show you the three easy steps necessary to get rid of the BSOD and make your Mac a little less condescending.



Ok, so the file in question (public.generic-pc.icns) lives in /System/Library/CoreServices/CoreTypes.bundle/Contents/Resources/, which is basically a pretty boring place to cruise around (unless you like looking at hundreds of sets of icons). And unfortunately for us, boring places like this are usually locked down tight in Unix systems, so we'll need to use the command line to make some changes.

This is a pretty easy process, especially if you know your way around a command line. First, open up Terminal (it's at Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app), or the terminal app of your choice (we also like iTerm).

Then, type in the following three commands:
* cd /System/Library/CoreServices/CoreTypes.bundle/Contents/Resources/
* sudo mv public.generic-pc.icns public.generic-pc_lame.icns
[enter your admin password]
* sudo cp com.apple.mac.icns public.generic-pc.icns

That's it! You've backed up the BSOD icon and moved the generic Apple Mac icon to where the system was expecting it, which, if we're not mistaken, should stop it from showing up when browsing your local Windows network. (Of course, you're also free to use another icon instead of the generic Mac icon.) Enjoy, and try not to go around telling people how much more amazing your Leopard machine is than their Vista laptop (and vice versa), ok? It's unbecoming.

source: engadget.com

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