Windows 7 SP1 Leaked

By DustinPosted on

GeekSmack has released screenshots and information on the upcoming Service Pack 1 for Windows 7. While this is a leaked version, it is a recent build, from March 27th. Fast install, hopefully a few fixes not available yet. SP1 is also supposed to support USB3, and a better Bluetooth and WLAN stack. No word on those, though.

The install process is much of what you would expect from a service pack installer, but one thing I noticed is the installation is MUCH faster than the install process for service packs on Vista was, which is a very welcome change.

Windows Server 8 Only x64

By DustinPosted on

Microsoft has stated that the still in development Windows Server 8 will support only 64-bit processors, minus the Intel Itanium. This is good news for most, as most (if not all) server grade processors are already 64-bit and have been for quite some time. Some of us still have older servers for development and testing and will be forced to upgrade, which is a shame (ok, it’s a great excuse to upgrade my home server!).

With the advent of Windows Server 2008 R2, Microsoft dropped support for 32-bit (x86) CPUs. In fact, at this point in time, the best choice for customers running servers with x86 processors, as far as Windows Server is concerned, is to run the plain vanilla version of Windows Server 2008. Reger argued that it was only natural for Windows Server vNext to move on from Itanium, just as Windows Server 2008 R2 moved on from 32-bit processors.

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XBox 360 Supports USB Storage

By DustinPosted on

Microsoft has released the newest update to allow it’s XBox 360 console to use USB memory sticks for your storage. It has a 16 GB limit, and you can use any USB drive you can get. Of course, Microsoft will be selling it’s own branded drives for a few bucks more than what you can buy from any other vendor: $70 for 16 GB or $40 for 8 GB. A little steep for something that normally costs so little.

Microsoft has been aggressively upping the storage ante for its Xbox 360 console of late. Two weeks ago, the Redmond outfit released a 250GB standalone hard drive with transfer kit after previously saying the company had no plans to do so. Could Blu-ray be next? Don’t hold your breath.

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Recover Windows Password

By DustinPosted on

We’ve posted another article, this time for those that have forgotten your Windows password. I’ve gotten several email requests asking for help with this issue, and thought I’d put up a couple of my favorite tools. Enjoy.

Forgetting your password in Windows can be troublesome at the least. Windows Vista and 7 have a place to backup your password and make a recovery disc, but that usually hasn’t been done. Most people don’t think they will forget a password. Of course, there comes a time in your life when your brain doesn’t rememberwhat it used to, as you get older…. Or, you just forget a password after you try to set it to something hard to guess!

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Microsoft Squashes 1,800 Bugs in Office 2010

By DustinPosted on

Microsoft has found and fixed 1,800 bugs in their newest version of Office, 2010. While not all are security related, a few of them are. I’m glad they are taking a much more active approach to security lately. Didn’t Bill Gates say 10 years ago or so that he was starting a new campain to make Windows more secure? This must be the start!

“We found and fixed about 1,800 bugs in Office 2010’s code,” said Gallagher, who last week co-hosted a presentation on Microsoft’s fuzzing efforts at the CanSecWest security conference in Vancouver, British Columbia. “While a large number, it’s important to note that that doesn’t mean we found 1,800 security issues. We also want to fix things that are not security concerns.”

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Opera Complains About Ballot Screen… Again.

By DustinPosted on

Opera is throwing another fit over the EU ballot screen… Seems like little Opera needs their bottle or something. I’m a fan of Opera, but come on. Their browser got a huge boost from the ballot screen. Their tactics are starting to remind me a bit of Apple. 🙂

Opera said the browser-ballot screen Microsoft introduced to Windows so users could pick a browser rather than take Internet Explorer by default is being almost completely hidden by a set of 10 IE configuration screens. Opera illustrated the problem at The Reg‘s San-Francisco, California, offices with a set of screen shots taken from a Thinkpad X31 running Windows XP SP2.

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New Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor

By DustinPosted on

Microsoft has updated their Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor. If you are still not using Windows 7, but want to, you can check the compatibility of your hardware and software with this tool. It does a great job of recognizing incompatiblities. Although, some of them listed have manufacturers drivers or a workaround to get them to work. It gives you a great starting point as to what to upgrade. Of course, if you are still running that Windows 3.11 application and expect it to continue working on your x64 version of Windows, you might look into a more recent version!

Download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor to see if your PC is ready for Windows 7. It scans your hardware, devices, and installed programs for known compatibility issues, gives you guidance on how to resolve potential issues found, and recommends what to do before you upgrade.

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