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Microsoft is going to start pushing automatically to customers its Office 2003 Service Pack (SP) 3 via the Microsoft Update patching mechanism starting on February 27.
Last year, Microsoft officials committed to giving customers a three- to six-month heads-up regarding its plan to push Office service packs using MU.
Microsoft made SP3 available to Office 2003 users via its Microsoft Downloads site on September 18, 2007. MU is one of the Microsoft patching/updating mechanisms aimed primarily at business users, and is designed to allow them to get security and other kinds of updates pushed automatically to multiple users.
Microsoft posted an update notice to the Microsoft Update Product Team blog on January 27 regarding its planned MU push:
“Today we are providing our customers a minimum of 30 days advance notice that Service Pack 3 (SP3) for Office 2003, which was made available to the public on September 18, 2007, will be distributed automatically via Microsoft Update beginning February 27, 2008. This means that those customers who have not already installed SP3 and that have chosen to receive updates automatically will start to receive the service pack as early as February 27. The distribution through MU is a gradual process and so not every customer will see the service pack on February 27.”
Microsoft is billing Office 2003 SP3 as adding “important” security enhancements, as well as improving compatibility with Windows Vista and Office 2007.
Can corporate users who still aren’t keen on having Office 2003 SP3 pushed automatically to them block or defer SP3? I’m not entirely sure and have put a question into Microsoft on that. I’ll post the answer here once I receive one.
It sounds like if you’re part of MU, SP3 is coming your way. A Microsoft spokeswoman responded to my question with the following:
“To optimize the customer experience, Microsoft recommends people update their Office 2003 applications and servers to take advantage of the improvements and new security tools available in SP3.
“MU continues to be an opt-in service and any customers wishing to remove themselves from the service can do so. That said, because of the impact this service pack has on end user security, we highly recommend that any customer who has not downloaded it does so. We also do not recommend that users opt out of MU.”
source: blogs.zdnet.com
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Microsoft to push Office 2003 SP3 to users in February
Introducing Windows 7, Codename Translucency, Milestone Sinofsky
Introducing... Windows 7, codename Translucency, Milestone Sinofsky... After a diluvian leak of Windows 7 information, from intimate details to screenshots and videos, Microsoft has finally managed to talk Windows 7.
The Redmond company has been hard at work on the next version of the Windows Operating system, as soon as it was done with Windows Vista.
Throughout 2007, Microsoft has given details about the next Windows iteration. Windows 7 will be delivered in both 32-bit and 64-bit flavors, with a new core, the MinWin kernel stripped down of all dependencies with the remaining components of the operating system. And there was even talk of an official timetable, initially interpreted as pointing to 2010 for the delivery of Windows 7.
The debut of 2008 brought with it Windows 7 Milestone 1 Build 6.1.6519.1, shifting the focus away from the imminent releases of Windows Vista Service Pack 1 and Windows XP Service Pack 3. And once the Windows 7 genie was out of the bottle, details came pouring in about Windows 7 M1. From the new Windows Media Center to the official timetable featuring M2 in April/May 2007, M3 in the third quarter and the Betas, Release Candidates and the RTM date apparently all squeezed into 2009. Apparently, because Microsoft keeps completely mum on Windows 7.
And then there were the leaked screenshots of Windows 7. The images were taken with a grain of salt, and the high level of skepticism survived even the availability of a low-quality video of Windows 7. But outside of leaked information, the muzzle put on Windows 7 is functioning to perfection, gagging all details. Steven Sinofsky, Senior Vice President, Windows and Windows Live Engineering Group, is responsible for erecting a wall of silence around the successor of Windows Vista. The official policy over at Microsoft, concerning the Windows 7 project, is a new translucent strategy, as opposed to transparency. Essentially, Sinofsky will not promise and underdeliver, but instead will say nothing in the hope that users will take all that Microsoft will eventually has to give with both arms.
On the heels of leaked details, screenshots and videos, Microsoft finally talked Windows 7, but of course that the Redmond company has nothing to say. "We are currently in the planning stages for Windows 7 and expect the development to take approximately 3 years since the release of Windows Vista. The specific release date will be determined once the company meets its quality bar for release," said a Microsoft representative to CRN.
"We are currently in the planning stages for Windows 7 and expect it will take approximately 3 years to develop. The specific release date will be determined once the company meets its quality bar for release," a Microsoft spokesperson revealed to The WinVista Club. "We’re continuing to work with our partners on the development of Windows 7, and are not sharing any additional information at this time."
Sure enough, doing the math on the potential dates for the final release of Windows 7 is rather easy. Taking into consideration the consumer launch of Vista in January 2007, Windows 7 will come in 2010. But judging from the release to manufacturing to businesses dates of the latest Windows client, Windows 7 is indeed aimed at a time before the 2009 holiday season. But predicting what Microsoft will actually do is an entirely different matter altogether.
source: news.softpedia.com
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ATI to Dismiss PCI-Express 2.0 Compatibility Issues
ATI, the graphics division of Advanced Micro Devices aggressively dismissed the rumors alleging the fact that its graphics cards do not and will not have compatibility issues with older platforms. While Nvidia's GeForce 8800 graphics cards experienced some problems on the old platforms, the ATI Radeon HD 3000-series of graphics cards did not encounter any problems.
Last year, Taiwanese PC manufacturer and vendor Asustek Computer claimed that some of the Canadian company's PCI Express 2.0 graphics cards may experience compatibility problems when seated on motherboards that only support PCI Express 1.0a and 1.1 2.5GHz transfer rates.
On the other side on the fence, many of Nvidia's GeForce 8800 GT-based graphics cards that come with PCI-Express 2.0 support, could not correctly work on Intel 925 chipset-based systems, although they should have been backwards compatible.
"There were potentially compatibility issues with PCI Express 2.0 graphics cards and certain PCIe 1.0/1.1 platforms. We asked Asustek to double check if there were any issues with ATI Radeon HD 3800-series as we believed there shouldn’t be. Asustek carried out that test and verified that, indeed, ATI Radeon HD3000-series cards do work with no compatibility issues," said David Baumann, a technical marketing manager at AMD’s graphics product group.
AMD spokespersons claimed that the ATI Radeon HD 3000-series initially starts up as a PCI-Express 1.0 device, and then "expands" to higher modes if they are supported by the host motherboard. "This way ensures that there shouldn’t be any compatibility issues with pre-PCIe 2.0 platforms," Baumann added. Further tests did not reveal any compatibility issues in the Radeon HD 2000 and HD 3000-series running on PCI-Express 1.0 or 1.1 motherboards.
source : softpedia.com
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Comodo Memory Firewall 2.0.4.20
Comodo Memory Firewall is a buffer overflow detection and prevention tool which provides the ultimate defence against one of the most serious and common attack types on the Internet - the buffer overflow attack.
Comodo Memory Firewall protects against data theft, computer crashes and system damage by preventing most types of buffer overflow attacks. This type of attack occurs when a malicious program or script deliberately sends more data to its memory buffer than the buffer can handle. It is at this point that a successful attack can create a back door to the system though which a hacker can gain access. The goal of most attacks is to install malware onto the compromised PC whereby the hacker can reformat the hard drive, steal sensitive user information, or even install programs that transform the machine into a Zombie PC.
The product is aimed for system administrators as well as desktop users to protect their systems and detects suspicious code executions in the stack or the heap portions of the memory.
Download : Comodo Memory Firewall 2.0.4.20 (32-Bit)
Download : Comodo Memory Firewall 2.0.4.20 (64-Bit)
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SUPERAntiSpyware 4.0.1114 Beta
SUPERAntiSpyware is the most thorough AntiSpyware scanner on the market. Our Multi-Dimensional Scanning and Process Interrogation Technology will detect spyware that other products miss! SUPERAntiSpyware will remove ALL the Spyware, NOT just the easy ones!
The following are the most significant changes in this version.
Interface and Functionality Changes
* Hover text/bubble over SUPERAntiSpyware tray icon shows program version, database versions and last update date
* Main screen now shows subscription expiration date (if any) and product version i.e. Professional or Free Edition
* When registering/activating the Free Edition, all references to Free Edition are changed to Professional
* Windows Vista Security Center Integration
* Updates now has it's own tab in the Preferences
* Drastically reduced memory usage
Technology Changes
* Up to a 30%-50% increase in scanning speed
* Direct Disk Access (DDA) technology bypasses all of the Windows API/Kernel to detect and remove difficult spyware
* Additional repairs for Windows Vista and Windows XP including Control Panel Access Restore
* Improved detection of packed/compressed threats
* Termination protection - you can optionally allow Task Manager to terminate the application if something hangs
* Enhanced detection and removal of in-memory threats
* Improved hardware detection and logging to reduce re-activation problems
Important: You MUST uninstall any previous version before installing this version. SUPERAntiSpyware Professional users, your existing registration code works with the pre-release.
Download:
SUPERAntiSpyware 4.0.1114 Beta
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Vista SP1 on schedule for March RTM
With a major launch event next month serving as an unmovable anchor for Microsoft at this point, the ancillary launches for Vista Service Pack 1 and XP SP3 would probably raise suspicion if they were delayed.
A group of 15,000 private beta testers received what's being called "RC Refresh 2" of the release candidate for Windows Vista Service Pack 1, Microsoft confirmed to BetaNews this morning.
Numbers for the actual release candidate or the beta number, judging from Microsoft's recent correspondence with us, are no longer being used, which could lead some to believe that this may not be the final "refresh" coming down the pike.
Nonetheless, there appears to be no more room for the company to open the beta window further.
"We are still on schedule to deliver SP1 RTM in Q1 CY08 [the first quarter of calendar year 2008]," a Microsoft spokesperson told BetaNews this morning. "The final release date is based on quality, so we will continue to track customer and partner feedback from the beta program before setting a final date."
Yesterday's release follows one day after an "RC Refresh 2" of Windows XP Service Pack 3 was given to beta participants who had already signed up for the program via Microsoft's Connect service. There's more wiggle room for that program, we're told, and the release timeframe for XP SP3 remains the first half of this year (read: June). "Though our timing will always be based on customer feedback as a first priority," the spokesperson told us.
Microsoft declined to provide change logs that would detail precisely what new or revised features either "Refresh 2" contains.
source: betanews.com
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Windows 7 top feature request list leaked to the public
With Windows still managing to find its way to over 95 percent of the desktop computers sold each year, it's not surprising that one can find plenty of people interested in giving their feedback about what future versions of Windows should be able to do.
A few years ago, before Windows Vista had even shipped, Microsoft sent out a wish list form asking people what features they would like to see in the next version of Windows, currently code-named Windows 7. The top wished-for features in this list were recently leaked to the public and have popped up at various sites (e.g., Neowin). While anonymous sources at Microsoft tell us that they bear no relationship to the actual feature set Microsoft is currently writing for Windows 7, the list does provide interesting insight into what the Windows-using public most wants from Windows.
The features are listed in no particular order, but they break down into various categories depending on what part of Windows the feature request falls under. Many requests for improvements in Internet Explorer, such as a session restore function, are fairly obvious wishes for features that already exist in competitive products such as Firefox and Opera. Other suggestions, such as a tabbed Windows Explorer, look for features from web browsers to migrate into the general user interface.
Some of the feature requests are clearly unrealistic, such as the desire to "back up" Xbox 360 games to the PC (yeah, I don't think Microsoft will be doing that one). Others are minor user interface enhancements that would be nice additions but wouldn't really change the Windows experience, such as a progress bar when hibernating the system. However, there are a few that make good sense and would be welcome additions to the operating system, such as a built-in video and audio codec manager.
A Windows 7 insider who wishes to remain anonymous told Ars that the leaked feature list was gathered before any real development on Windows 7 was started, and readers should not expect to see requests from the list necessarily implemented in Microsoft’s next major Windows release.
The Windows 7 team was directed to look at all major desktop operating systems, including the latest Linux distributions and Apple's OS X Leopard, but this was more for general impressions than to look for specific features to implement. Development of Windows 7, which is being built off the Windows Vista code base, is apparently proceeding at a fairly brisk pace, with about half of the desired features already implemented. Unlike the tortuous development process for Windows Vista, the Windows 7 team is actually ahead of schedule at this point, although as with all major software projects, this may not last.
One thing that Windows 7 is likely to contain is a new look for the user interface. The same Microsoft insider told Ars that several options are currently being considered, with the general goal being a cleaner look rather than adding on more gloss and shine. Of course, this too could change before Windows 7 hits the shelves. Microsoft has not committed to a firm release date for Windows 7, but a target date of somewhere between late 2009 and early 2010 is the current goal.
source: arstechnica.com
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