Lenovo ThinkPad X301 Announced
Where Lenovo has made improvements is with the Intel processors. The ThinkPad X301 offers a pair of not-yet-released Intel ultra-low volt processors that the PC vendor lists as the U9300, which has a clock speed of 1.2GHz, and the U9400, which as a clock speed of 1.4GHz. The two chips have 6MB of L2 cache and a 1066MHz front side bus.
In addition to the new processors, the Lenovo X301 will support DDR3 (double data rate 3) memory, which consumes less power and is faster than standard DDR2 memory
The other significant improvement to the ThinkPad X301 is its data storage capacity. While the original X300 offered a 64GB SSD, the X301 offers a choice of either an 80GB or 128 GB SSD.
Other improvements include DisplayPort and VGA video ports to support multiple displays. The X300 and X301 offer the option of a ultra-thin optical DVD burner that measures 7 millimeters.
The Lenovo X301 is available Aug. 26 for a starting price of $2,599. The 128GB SSD option will be available in September.
http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Desktops-and-Notebooks/Lenovo-ThinkPad-X301-Updates-Companys-Notebook-Line
Engineering Windows 7
We are going to start looking forward towards the “Windows 7” project. We know there are tons of questions about the specifics of the project and strong desire to know what’s in store for the next major release of Windows. Believe us, we are just as excited to start talking about the release. Over the past 18 months since Windows Vista’s broad availability, the team has been hard at work creating the next Windows product.
The audience of enthusiasts, bloggers, and those that are the most passionate about Windows represent the folks we are dedicating this blog to. With this blog we’re opening up a two-way discussion about how we are making Windows 7. Windows has all the challenges of every large scale software project—picking features, designing them, developing them, and delivering them with high quality. Windows has an added challenge of doing so for an extraordinarily diverse set of customers. As a team and as individuals on the team we continue to be humbled by this responsibility.
...
In leading up to this blog we have seen a lot of discussion in blogs about what Microsoft might be trying to accomplish by maintaining a little bit more control over the communication around Windows 7 (some might say that this is a significant understatement). We, as a team, definitely learned some lessons about “disclosure” and how we can all too easily get ahead of ourselves in talking about features before our understanding of them is solid. Our intent with Windows 7 and the pre-release communication is to make sure that we have a reasonable degree of confidence in what we talk about when we do talk. Again, top of mind for us is the responsibility we feel to make sure we are not stressing priorities, churning resource allocations, or causing strategic confusion among the tens of thousands of partners and customers who care deeply and have much invested in the evolution of Windows.
Related to disclosure is the idea of how we make sure not to set expectations around the release that end up disappointing you—features that don’t make it, claims that don’t stick, or support we don’t provide. Starting from the first days of developing Windows 7, we have committed as a team to “promise and deliver”. That’s our goal—share with you what we’re going to get done, why we’re doing it, and deliver it with high quality and on time.
Local policy on server does not allow TLS secure connections
IIS 7.0 FTP Error message while attempting SSL authentication:
[R] 220 Microsoft FTP Service
[R] AUTH SSL
[R] 534-Local policy on server does not allow TLS secure connections.
[R] Win32 error: Access is denied.
[R] Error details: SSL certificate was not configured.
[R] 534 End
[R] Failed SSL/TLS negotiation, disconnected
[R] Connection failed (Connection lost)
Solution: Set a server-level SSL certificate, not just at the site level.
pptPlex - A Zoomable Canvas
From: http://blogs.msdn.com/stevecla01/archive/2008/08/14/microsoft-officelabs-releases-pptplex.aspx
Taking inspiration from the Plex technology used in the Bill Gates’s TouchWall demonstration at the CEO Summit, OfficeLabs have created a prototype that allows people to have similar zooming capabilities using Office PowerPoint 2007. With pptPlex you can show slides on a zoomable canvas moving around the canvas to show groups of slides, individual slides, or zoom in to display a particular section of a slide.
Download: http://msofficelb.vo.llnwd.net/o25/4fcaa65e-086d-4d49-a292-a5e764667263/1.1.0.0/pptPlex.msi
Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2008 Update 1 is now Available
Microsoft Deployment Toolkit 2008 Update 1 is offered in two versions to support Solution Accelerator component installation on x64 or x86 hosts. Select the version that corresponds with your host hardware type. Both versions of Microsoft Deployment Toolkit support deployment of x86 and x64 Windows operating systems.
Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) 2008 Update 1 unifies the tools and processes required for desktop and server deployment into a common deployment console and collection of guidance. The fourth generation deployment accelerator adds integration with recently released Microsoft deployment technologies to create a single path for image creation and automated installation. MDT’s tools and end-to-end guidance reduce deployment time, standardize desktop and server images, limit service disruptions, reduce post-deployment help desk costs, and improve security and ongoing configuration management.
Microsoft Deployment Toolkit technologies eliminate interaction time required to install desktop and server operating systems. Interaction at the targeted computer may take a few moments using the Lite Touch Installation (LTI) method or it can be completely automated using Zero Touch Installation (ZTI). Zero Touch Installation utilizes Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007 or Systems Management Server 2003 with the Operating System Deployment Feature Pack. Lite Touch Installation can be used when software distribution tools are not in place.
Microsoft Deployment Tookit 2008 Update 1 also uses Configuration Manager 2007’s stand-alone media-initiated operating system deployment feature. This release offers project management guidance for all deployment roles and separates technical documentation for the products and technologies to facilitate automation tasks.
Walkthrough: Create a Windows RE Image
This walkthrough describes how to build a Windows Recovery Environment (Windows RE) image. Windows RE is a solution based on Windows PE 2.0. In this example, you create a customized Windows RE image on your technician computer.
Making a Bootable Windows 98 USB Key
A USB key that boots like a Windows 98 boot disk is useful for BIOS flashing, firmware flashing, and other scenarios where WinPE or other environments are not suitable. Most machines don't have floppy drives now, and USB keys are much, much faster.
HP has released a utility for this purpose, and this can be downloaded here.
Alternative download links:
- http://h50178.www5.hp.com/support/PB137UA/more_info_local_17550.html
- http://h50177.www5.hp.com/support/DW978A/more_info_local_18026.html
- http://www.google.com/search?q=SP27608+site%3Ahp.com
- Unverified: http://files.filefront.com/SP27608exe/;9868201;/fileinfo.html
Additionally, you will need Windows 98 boot disk files, which I have included here.
ISA 2004 SQL 2000 MSDE and SSL Certificates
Event Type: Error
Event Source: Microsoft Firewall
Event Category: Log
Event ID: 7
User: N/A
Description:
The Microsoft Firewall was unable to open ADO connection. The MSDE Error description is: Invalid connection string attribute, [DBNETLIB][ConnectionOpen (SECDoClientHandshake()).]SSL Security error..
For more information, see Help and Support Center at http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/events.asp.
Data:
0000: 05 40 00 80 .@.
Cause:
A SSL certificate was installed, and MSDE is attempting to use it. As a result, the Microsoft Firewall Service is unable to connect to MSDE. Remove the certificates and reboot the machine.
Remote Desktop Client (RDC) 6.1
Remote Desktop Client (RDC) 6.1 now available for XP SP2 users
We have received a lot of feedback from customers about the need for the Remote Desktop Connection client 6.1 to be made available as a standalone install for Windows XP SP2 to ease deployments of Windows 2008 Terminal Services.
In response to this feedback, we have released the Remote Desktop Connection client (RDC 6.1) for Windows XP SP2 on x86 platforms.
You can download RDC6.1 for Windows XP SP2 from the Microsoft Download Center (KB 952155): http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=6E1EC93D-BDBD-4983-92F7-479E088570AD&displaylang=en
These are some of the supported features of Remote Desktop Client 6.1 for Windows XP SP2:
- Windows Server 2008 & Windows Vista feature support
- TS Web Access support
- TS Easy Print support
- TS Remote Programs support
- TS Gateway support
- Please review the complete list of features and details about RDC6.1 for Windows XP SP2 in this Knowledge Base article: http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=952155
RDC6.1 is now available on the following platforms:
- Windows Server 2008
- Windows Vista SP1: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/bb738089.aspx
- Windows XP SP3: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=68c48dad-bc34-40be-8d85-6bb4f56f5110&displaylang=en
- Windows XP SP2 (KB 952155): http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=6E1EC93D-BDBD-4983-92F7-479E088570AD&displaylang=en
D-Link Routers Have Emulator Page on Support Site
I frequently call people who have routers at home, and I try to help them configure their router remotely. Problem is, I can never see what they're seeing on the router page. I discovered that D-Link has router "emulator" pages - allowing you to look at what the firmware is showing the end user, greatly simplifying the remote-support process.
Sample Link: http://support.dlink.com/Emulators/dir635/Basic_Internet.html
All emulators (may redirect you): http://support.dlink.ca/faq/view.asp?prod_id=1457
Comparing Apple and Microsoft keynotes and Windows 7 vs. Snow Leopard
Comparing Apple and Microsoft keynotes and Windows 7 vs. Snow Leopard
Opinion
By Rob Enderle, Principal Analyst, Enderle Group
Tuesday, June 10, 2008 19:11
Analyst Opinion - You really don’t get a sense for Microsoft’s breadth of products unless you attend an event like TechEd. At the conference you are introduced and trained on a product list longer than your arm only to realize that TechEd basically represents only one division of the company. The respective keynotes of Steve Jobs and Bob Muglia, who runs Microsoft’s server and tools business, are showcasing the fundamental differences between the two companies.
One of the things that always strikes me about an Apple event where Steve Jobs is speaking is that it always appears to be perfect. Steve Jobs personally will not allow anything to be out of place and he will micro-manage most aspects of his own presentation. This may seem like overkill to the novice but the result is almost always an event that people will never forget, even when, like this time, his primary product, the new 3G iPhone isn’t actually ready. The word “breathtaking” can commonly be applied to the events Apple puts on.
He is focused, keeps the presentation elegant and simple, and I doubt there is a single Apple employee, either current or past, who doesn’t feel a moment of pride. The end result is you leave an Apple event generally exhilarated and excited about what was presented and sometimes more than a little amazed. For this recent show, so much had leaked about the new iPhone that there was little in the way of new news and not having the product ready to go was very unusual. What wasn’t unusual was that Steve Jobs is the star of the show and the products he announces are the costar. Microsoft was generally mentioned as comic relief.
For TechEd, the customer is the star. It was not Muglia, who acted more as a moderator/coordinator, but Hunter Ely, initially it was the IT manager who used a number of Microsoft technologies to connect families after the Katrina disaster. He mostly spoke about the difficulties of that time and how the Microsoft products were critical to his efforts to put families in touch with each other. At the end he was grateful to Microsoft but praised his LSU compatriots who made the project possible.
This was followed by a number of customers and product managers in a sequential representation of product advocacy and demonstration. One of the most interesting was on interoperability where WS02, an Open Source company that competes with Microsoft, came up on stage and demonstrated how their tools could be swapped with Microsoft’s similar offerings on the fly with no loss of resolution or efficiency. I can’t think of any other vendor that would allow a competitor on their stage, let alone allow them to showcase how good their own offering was. Yet, this was the exact right thing to do to convey the message that Microsoft was aggressively addressing interoperability IT requirements.
While they didn’t have VMware on stage to talk about virtualization, they did bring up the VMware offering but didn’t disparage it. In fact they showcased a rapid transition function that VMware has that Microsoft’s offering, Hyper-V, doesn’t and pointed out that customers may want to swap on the fly to make use of this unique VMware capability. Microsoft closed that segment by demonstrating that the Microsoft management tool could manage both equally well and allow customers to easily use the competitive offering. They never disparaged a single competitor during the entire event and for virtualization the principal architect for Kroll Factual Data praised HyperV.
Contrasting the differences
While the Microsoft keynote was well orchestrated, Bob Muglia struggled with his script and didn’t seem to be well enough rehearsed, Steve Jobs in contrast hit every mark and line. Steve’s two products, Snow Leopard and the new iPhone were showcased in their best light and I doubt there were many in the audience that didn’t personally want them. Bob’s many products were thinly covered and I doubt if many will even remember all of them or what the key benefits of each single one are.
On the other hand you got the strong feeling from Microsoft’s presentation that the company admired and respected the IT managers they had on stage and, by proxy, the other IT managers who were in the audience. Each capability showcased addressed a specific identified need these IT managers actually had with the undercurrent that Microsoft’s offerings were generally easier to implement and less expensive to use.
Nothing Microsoft presented was targeted directly at consumers and everything Apple presented had consumers as a target. Interesting enough, both Microsoft and Apple folks spoke to customer needs but only Microsoft had actual customers articulate some of these needs.
Snow Leopard vs. Windows 7
In many ways at both shows the OS took a back seat to everything else that was going on. For both companies this is because they want buyers focused on products that are in the market and not on products that wouldn’t show up until late 2009 at the earliest.
Still, and this is outside of the keynotes, it wasn’t hard to pick up an undercurrent of where both offerings were headed and how similar some aspects of them might be. For Windows it was a seamless integrated virtual machine based on Kidaro which allows you to open applications that use other supported OSs and make them look like they are running natively in Vista. In addition there were quiet discussions on major improvements in performance and on the new multi-touch interface.
On the Snow Leopard side, much of the discussion was on massive improvements to graphics performance once again suggesting gaming may be coming to that platform and future compliance with a number of desktop and network management tools which would allow future Apple products to easily co-reside right next to Windows products. Some of the specs being talked about were just short of unbelievable making me wonder if Snow Leopard would run on anything but future brand new Apple hardware.
In short, when these products make their run at each other (and right now both look like they will actually show up at almost the same time) we’ll see a head-to-head fight with both parties drifting into areas of traditional strength for the other.
Final thoughts
I’m not sure that Apple really gets the IT thing, even though they are clearly altering both the iPhone and Leopard to address IT needs. IT buyers aren’t consumers and they need to believe the vendors that serve them (and this is key because they don’t like vendors who think the IT managers are servants). On the other hand, I’m not sure Microsoft understands the need for simplicity and how incredibly powerful it is to be able to stand up and say something that drives people to line up to buy products after getting deeply excited about them because these products are perceived as almost magical in capability.
I’m still left with the impression that if Bob Muglia and Microsoft could understand and do what Steve Jobs does to create magic or Steve Jobs and Apple learned to embrace IT and turn them into stars, the result would be amazing and probably unstoppable.
Rob Enderle is one of the last Inquiry Analysts. Inquiry Analysts are paid to stay up to date on current events and identify trends and either explain the trends or make suggestions, tactical and strategic, on how to best take advantage of them. Currently he provides his services to most of the major technology and media companies.
Windows Server 2008 Installation on Dell Optiplex 745
Mostly for fun, I installed Windows Server 2008 x64 on my Dell Optiplex 745 tonight. It is an Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 1.86GHz, 2 GB RAM, WD Raptor 74GB, with a Pioneer DVR-212D DVD burner.
Started Windows 2008 Enterprise x64 install @ 12:26am
91% expanding files @ 12:33am
Reboot @ 12:34am
Completing installation @ 12:36am
Reboot @ 12:39am
Logon screen / changed password @ 12:40am
Start menu opened @ 12:41am
Zero to OS menu in 15 minutes flat. Nice.
Regulators want answers from Bell Canada on P2P throttling
Words are funny things; while "quizzes" can be fun, the very similar "interrogations" usually aren't. And interrogation is exactly what the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has in mind for Bell Canada. Late last week, the regulator issued a detailed set of "interrogatories" (PDF http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/ENG/Letters/2008/lt080515.htm) complete with chart that must be filled in by May 29. The goal is to find out exactly how Bell's deep packet inspection technology throttles traffic and the justifications for using it on all Bell traffic, even that sold at wholesale rates to smaller ISPs. Anyone interested in these matters stands to learn plenty of interesting information 10 days from now.
One of the claims that Bell Canada makes in its defense is that 5 percent of users generate 60 percent of its total traffic and that 60 percent of this total traffic is P2P that is negatively impacting 95 percent of all customers (did you follow that?). The CRTC wants to see the calculations, and it wants to Bell Canada to show its work. "Provide full rationale and evidence in support of Bell Canada's view that 95 percent of its customers were being negatively affected," says the first of the CRTC interrogatories.
The list of questions goes on:
- Explain in detail how the values for total traffic and P2P traffic during the peak period were determined. The explanation should describe how measurements were carried out, indicating the period of time over which measurements were taken, what peak period was used, whether a single sample or an average of are multiple days (indicate number of days) was used
- Describe all other approaches, if any, considered by Bell Canada as an alternative to shaping P2P traffic to address the network congestion it described, and explain why each approach was rejected. Include a discussion of the conditions under which Bell Canada would augment its network capacity to address congestion
- Provide data on the growth of traffic on Bell Canada's network for supporting Internet access from 2004 to 2008, indicating the mix of P2P and non-P2P traffic over time. Further, describe to what extent Bell Canada has increased its network capacity to support the traffic growth
- In paragraph 14 of its Answer, Bell Canada submitted that "the actual content of the packet is not examined, just the protocol headers encapsulating the content." Discuss whether the DPI technology deployed by Bell Canada has the capability to examine the content of the P2P traffic being shaped and to identify the sender and the intended recipient
The gist of these questions is clear: Bell has to detail the methodology behind these traffic claims, claims that are often put forward by both ISPs and DPI providers, but which generally don't describe the way the information was gleaned. In addition, the CRTC is going to take on the thorny question of when and how ISPs should be allowed to throttle and whether they are doing it in place of making necessary network upgrades. And if that's not enough, the regulator wants detailed information on Internet traffic growth that ISPs are generally reluctant to provide in much detail (we took a look at the estimates last month).
Given all these meaty questions, it's no wonder that CRTC head Konrad von Finckenstein said recently that the Bell Canada complaint "will have wide-ranging consequences and will lead to a much wider debate. This will undoubtedly occupy much of our time this year." Michael Geist, who noted both the CRTC letter and Finckenstein's comment (http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/2930/125/), calls the plan "an aggressive timeline." A decision should be made within 90 days of the final June 26 comment date, by which point the FCC might finally have produced a ruling of its own in its investigation of comcast.
The CRTC has already refused to stop Bell's throttling on an interim basis, but might well come to a different conclusion when the full process is complete. Given the thoroughness of the questions and the interesting data called for in the interrogatories, the CRTC at least seems willing to give the matter real attention. Between the Comcast case pending at the FCC and the Bell Canada case at the CRTC, 2008 could see a boom in seminal regulatory opinions on the use of DPI as a throttling technology.
Has Windows Vista's UAC feature failed Microsoft?
By Liam Tung, ZDNet.com.au
URL: http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/security/soa/Has-Windows-Vista-s-UAC-feature-failed-Microsoft-/0,130061744,339289101,00.htm
Experts agree that Microsoft's Windows Vista is relatively well-protected, but its security features -- such as User Account Control (UAC) -- have been highlighted by security experts as one reason why the operating system is far less popular than its predecessor, Windows XP.
According to Scott Charney, vice president of Microsoft's Trustworthy Computing Group, UAC was designed to give users more control over the applications they run and help them make better security decisions by providing them with more information.
However, the main problem with Vista's UAC, according to Charney, is that it prompts the user far too often.
"Clearly there has to be work done on UAC user prompts, where users get prompts at times they don't necessarily expect it — and it's not intuitive. The challenge is — as with many of these things when we try to give users control — if you give people too many prompts in too many situations, they view it as an impediment," Charney told ZDNet.com.au yesterday at the AusCERT security conference on the Gold Coast.
Mikko Hypponen, F-Secure's chief research officer, said although security features in Windows Vista are impressive, UAC remains a problem.
"There's not much we can criticise in Vista's security. Microsoft did a good job. UAC is not a bad idea by itself, but I don't see any way you could implement it in a way so it doesn't buck the user," said Hypponen.
In a recent survey, security vendor PC Tools discovered that out of 1,000 Vista-based PCs, 639 had been infected by malware in the previous six months. The company's managing director Simon Clausen blamed the high rate of infection on users that had switched off UAC because it was so annoying: "The majority of machines we see have UAC turned off if the user knows how to do it," he said.
The difficulty with UAC, according to F-Secure's Hypponen, is that Microsoft assumes the user should have administrator rights, an issue that Mac- and Linux-based systems dealt with a long time ago.
"Most Linux installations will say that you must create a user account. The big difference between a Mac and Vista is that, by default, on a Mac, you're not an administrator. On a Mac you only get prompted for root password when you're installing an application. Under Vista this happens a lot more because you have admin rights, so the UAC pops up often. Vista installation should end with [mandatory creation of] a user account with user access rights, not administrator rights," said Hypponen.
Microsoft's Charney said that UAC was Microsoft's first attempt to break away from its tradition of users being an administrator by default.
"Part of the reason UAC exists is we've been pushing people to the standard computing model. When you're an administrator on a machine, you have these all-powerful rights that also allow malware to do bad things. Increasingly we want people to be standard users.
"At the same time, there are times you need to be elevated to administrator to install programs. UAC was an attempt to say let's run a standard but when you need a higher level of privilege, rather than doing that silently, let's involve the user in that decision. Clearly we have to do more work in this area," Charney added.
Microsoft security architect Roger Grimes said that although features such UAC in Windows Vista are useful, some malware writers already know how to defeat them — and the rest will learn once UAC-type protections are ubiquitous.
"Least privilege permissions are a part of a good defence-in-depth strategy but it's not the endgame. If everybody is logged-in not as admin or not as root, it is really not going to stop the malware in the long run ... malware is not going to disappear," Grimes told AusCERT delegates.
Grimes added malware could infect a computer using various attack vectors but if the user is not an administrator, the attacks are generally less dangerous.
"Can a malware program steal your password if you are not an administrator? Can [criminals] create a program that waits for you to log into your bank, authenticate and then take all your money? The short answer is, yes, absolutely," he added.
According to IBRS security analyst James Turner, Microsoft's decision to sacrifice security for user friendliness has backfired on the company.
"This is a tough legacy which Microsoft has been dealing with since the days of MSDOS. DOS was almost like a stripped back version of Unix and Microsoft left some of the cool stuff — things like file permissions — behind. So they've been dealing with this fairly fundamental void in their core ever since. Microsoft has always been the easy, user-friendly operating system and now this same ease of use has become a liability," said Turner.
ZDNet.com.au's Munir Kotadia contributed to this report.
Disabling Adobe Acrobat COM Add-Ins
Summary:
Addins for the PDFMaker and other Adobe PDF "features" are unnecessary and annoying. When you attempt to disable these in the Office 2007 Plug-In centre, you get a message saying "The connected state of Office Add-Ins registered in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE cannot be changed".
Solution:
Start regedit as an administrator. Navigate to HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Office\Outlook\Addins. For x64, navigate to HKLM\Software\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Office.
To disable the plugins, open the LoadBehavior value for each registered addin in HKLM. Set LoadBehavior to 2.
To remove the plugins entirely, delete the subkeys for the AdobePDF entry altogether.
Firefox Plays Nicely with SSL Certificates
When I visit https://mail.justinho.com/OWA (the access page to my webmail), I get a lovely warning from Firefox 3, insisting that the certificate is "not trusted because the issuer certificate is unknown."
Yes, fine. I didn't pay lots of money for my SSL certificate, but it's not self-signed. (I get my certificate from Comodo.) To make matters worse, the "Add Exception" option has been stashed away. Clicking on the "Or you can add an exception..." warning to get this:
Then you click on "Add Exception", which opens a nice popup:
At which point you can click the "Confirm Security Exception" and load the site.
Granted, the classic argument that "you bought a cheap certificate" or "you signed your own certificate" is perfectly valid, and most likely true, but there doesn't appear to be any proper consideration for the first case. Having a certificate issued by an "unrecognized" CA shouldn't require 3 or 4 mouse clicks.
The wording on the main page of this being a "temporary problem" is also misleading and confusing to the general public. This error isn't "temporary" - trying again later is not likely to solve the problem. How about a link there that says, "I've connected in the past, and I trust this site"? Or how about providing the necessary information to the user to quickly made a decision about whether or not to trust the certificate, instead of hiding it away? For example, if the browser could keep track of certificates it had previously seen on SSL sites, THEN display this cryptic error message when the certificate SUDDENLY and MYSTERIOUSLY changed, then perhaps it is appropriate.
Users cannot possibly make informed security decisions if they're not given the necessary information to make the decision. Requiring 3 or 4 mouse clicks compromises on the usability, and the particular implementation here does NOTHING to inform the user of a potential certificate impersonation.
I would definitely recommend Firefox to all my friends, for this reason alone.
Windows Vista Bashing Continues - Most of it Unfounded
It's Friday afternoon, and someone just needs to publish an article before heading home. Why not bash Vista? It's so easy!
(See http://blogs.computerworld.com/changes_to_uac_in_vista_sp1_much_less_than_meets_the_eye )
I'm tired of reading in the press about how something that Vista does is "annoying" and that it "better be fixed in Windows 7." Microsoft has, so far, unofficially released videos and blog posts from various people, in a disorganized attempt to tell the world "how great Vista is."
We have people posting articles about a variety of improvements in Vista, some of which are true, most of which MAY be true:
a) SP1 reduces the number of UAC prompts from 4 to 1 for a specific scenario.
Original post: http://edge.technet.com/Media/Windows-Vista-SP1-UAC-improvements/
The problem: Assuming that a high number of UAC prompts is undersirable, a thorough user analysis of ALL possible tasks needs to be realised, documenting the "number of prompts" for each task. Once this is done, an internal effort can be made to streamline the process. In the meantime, these public videos do little but to stir up more discontent in the general public due to the prevalent "general knowledge" that Vista "sucks."
b) Vista improves network copy performance when used against a Server 2008 file server under high latency conditions
Original video: http://edge.technet.com/Media/Windows-Vista-SP1-outperforms-Windows-XP-SP2-in-file-copy/
The problem: This was an attempt at a controlled experiment, done horribly wrong. Both XP and Vista are shown running in virtualization on the same physical host, running against a 2008 server. The intent here is, of course, to show that Vista outperforms XP in certain tasks. Assuming this is worthwhile... the attempt in this video demonstrates poorly controlled network conditions, poorly controlled sources of network latency, and poorly controlled starting conditions, and all of these contribute to making this nothing more than anecdotal evidence of a potential improvement under some (as far as the average person is concerned, rare) conditions. In order to be compelling, these tests need to be run officially by Microsoft, properly documented, and published, replicating these results across multiple computer configurations, various network cards, various routers, various disk controllers...
c) Windows Vista SP1 matches XP SP3 in Gaming Performance
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2303830,00.asp
Here's a good start. Why can't Microsoft open their Hardware Compatibility Labs and run these tests exhaustively and publish replicatable results demonstrating identical, if not better performance (assuming that's the case, of course!) in Vista SP1 versus XP SP3?
The time has come for rigourous and properly documented testing. If the general public is rejecting an upgrade to a new version of software based on anecdotal benchmark results, it is time for Microsoft to put its weight behind a huge battery of tests, and to refine the operating system against these benchmarks to demonstrate superiority (or regression in certain areas) against the previous release.
Problems Connecting Entourage to Exchange?
Problems connecting Entourage to Exchange?
Apparently, the solution is to export the full certificate path, AND your private key to your SSL certificate on your Exchange Server, then import that to all your client machines! Why didn’t I think of that?
http://www.themachelpdesk.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=index&catid=&topic=19
Broadband: other countries do it better, but how?
(From a US perspective...)
Japan. The government requires local loop unbundling so that new ISPs can emerge without having to rewire the last mile every time. The government also has a 34 percent stake in NTT, one of the major telecoms, and has ordered it to deploy fiber whether or not it shows a profit; broadband is considered a key piece of infrastructure that can't simply be deployed only where it is profitable. The government also subsidizes a third of the cost of all fiber-to-the-home deployments in rural areas, where rolling out new lines can prove terribly expensive. The result is one of the fastest broadband networks in the world at one of the lowest price-per-megabit points anywhere.
France. In France, local loop unbundling was mandated in 1999 (the US ditched similar rules a few years later) and multiple competitors emerged. In December 2007, new fiber rules were promulgated that required all new construction to be compatible with fiber, which is much cheaper to install at the time of construction. The country's policies have been successful enough that competing ISPs like Iliad and Neuf Cegetel are no longer just content to lease their lines but are rolling out their own fiber infrastructure. While fiber ramps up, DSL too remains far above US offerings, providing 20Mbps for around $20 a month using ADSL2+ technology of the kind AT&T is now deploying for U-verse (though in AT&T's version, only part of this is available for Internet access).
Sweden. Sweden was the first European nation to have a broadband policy, and it has sunk $820 million into infrastructure so far. That might not sound like much, but it represents a $30 billion expenditure for a country the size of the US. The Swedish government is now recommending another $500 million to build fiber out further into rural areas, and fiber lines are unbundled to encourage competition.
Canada. Finally, Canada adopted a broadband plan in 2001 and it treats broadband as a core infrastructure element. It has about the same rural/urban mix as the US but a smaller economy per capita, and it is near the top of the OECD rankings
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080511-broadband-other-countries-do-it-better-but-how.html
Debunking 15 Myths About Microsoft
Windows Vista Is A Bird That Can't Fly
Lee Nicholls, global solutions director for Microsoft Technologies at Getronics, a global, $3.4 billion IT services company and Microsoft Gold partner, believes the problems that have plagued Vista have more to do with marketing than technological shortcomings.
"Microsoft did a really bad job of communicating the enterprise value of Vista when it was launched. There is lots of value to the OS that didn't get communicated," said Nicholls.
Security is not a selling point, but a requirement, and Microsoft seems to have lost sight of this reality with its marketing of Vista, according to Nicholls.
Todd Swank, vice president of marketing at Nor-Tech, a Burnsville, Minn.-based system builder, says much of the criticism of Vista is unfounded. "It's so easy for everyone to bash Vista, and people have it in their heads that Vista sucks. But Microsoft has been working hard to iron out the kinks," said Swank.
"We're running into software products that are not ready for Vista, but is this a Microsoft problem? Of course not. The ISV community had the opportunity to play with the betas [of Vista]," said Stuart Crawford, director of business development for Canadian IT services firm IT Matters.
Microsoft Licensing Is A Nightmare
OK, this 'myth' may be a bit of a stretch -- most Microsoft partners would tell you they've encountered at least some frustration trying to navigate the Byzantine alleyways of Microsoft software licensing.
However, there are those who insist that a little bit of work goes a long way toward reducing Microsoft licensing confusion. "My personal opinion is that licensing isn't really that complex if partners invest about an hour every six months to seriously learn about it," said Erik Thorsell, president of Success Computer Consulting, a Minneapolis-based Microsoft Gold partner.
"If we just spend those few minutes learning about the licensing options that are available for our clients, it really will become less overwhelming. I also think that Microsoft partners have a responsibility to do this," added Thorsell.
Frank Ballatore, president of The New England Computer Group, in Ridgefield, Conn., says Microsoft licensing can present problems for channel partners that try to figure it out on their own, a practice he doesn't advocate. "Whenever I have questions, I call my Microsoft resources, and case solved. It's easy if you know where to get the answers," he said.
Anyone Can Make Money Selling SharePoint
Microsoft has been telling partners for years to ready themselves for SharePoint, and those that heeded that message are now seeing the fruits of that labor, said Ric Opal, vice president of Peters & Associates, an Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.-based solution provider. "Anyone can, in fact, make money with SharePoint, if they're willing to invest and do what it takes to become competent with the technology," he said.
SharePoint has many people claiming to be able to build out solutions, but relatively few true 'enterprise architects,' said Ken Winell, CEO of Expertcollab, a SharePoint-focused solution provider in Florham Park, N.J. For partners with the right skills, however, SharePoint is a great business, but one that requires a comprehensive understanding that extends beyond the technology, he said.
"You need to understand collaboration concepts, social networking, and how teams interact before you can develop a site definition or design templates. Otherwise, customers run the risk of spending money on a solution that is dead on arrival," said Winell.
Steve Ballmer Is A Wild Man
OK, so maybe he has calmed down a bit from his 'Monkeydance' days. But Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer still exudes a fun, youthful vibe that belies his age and standing as CEO of the world's largest software company. Ballmer recently threw a bone to tech historians when he reprised the Monkeydance in an interview with venture capitalist Guy Kawasaki at Mix '08 in Las Vegas.
Solution providers love the energy Ballmer brings to the table and don't feel it detracts from the serious nature of the business he controls. "I think there needs to be a lighthearted side of all business," said Mitch Cannady, CEO of Spinnaker Solutions, an Irvine, Calif., solution provider.
"He's a passionate individual, no doubt. But he can also tell you, within a fraction of a decimal, information about his P&L, and that is unique," said Ric Opal, vice president of Peters & Associates, an Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.-based solution provider.
Matt Scherocman, vice president of consulting services at PCMS IT Advisor Group, a Cincinnati-based solution provider and Microsoft Gold partner, sums it up best: "I love coming to work every day, and the team of people I interact with is excited, enthusiastic, and has energy. However, Ballmer is at a whole different level in these areas."
Vista-To-XP Downgrades Are Embarrassing To Microsoft
As a result of Vista's well-publicized technical glitches and application compatibilities, the downgrade rights Microsoft offers with the high-end Vista Business and Vista Ultimate editions have received unprecedented attention. While the rising use of downgrade rights might seems like an indictment of Vista's flaws, it's actually a sign of good customer service on Microsoft's part, according to some solution providers.
Todd Swank, vice president of marketing at Nor-Tech, a Burnsville, Minn.-based system builder, says Microsoft has made the process of exercising downgrade rights easier than in the past.
"Microsoft is simply being realistic: They know that XP is a good product, and they're getting a Vista license sale whenever downgrade rights are exercised," said Swank. "Microsoft obviously wants companies to transition to Vista, but I don't think they would have made downgrade rights as easy to use if they really were against people using them."
"Downgrade rights are about flexibility for companies, and not about generating money for Microsoft," said Lee Nicholls, global solutions director for Microsoft Technologies at Getronics, a global, $3.4 billion IT services company and Microsoft Gold partner.
Microsoft and Cisco Will Play Nice In Unified Communications
No matter how many dog-and-pony shows Microsoft and Cisco stage to discuss building bridges of interoperability in unified communications, many VARS doubt that the two tech Goliaths will ever be willing to share the market. And, in light of the fierce competition that's brewing between Cisco and Microsoft on expanding number of fronts, who can blame them?
"We're very concerned that the motivation to collaborate [in unified communications] is not there today," said Doug Gallant, CTO at NSPI, a Roswell, Ga.-based solution provider that partners with both companies.
"Both companies clearly have their markets and individual opportunities, but by working together, they would vastly expand and accelerate opportunities and benefits for customers, providers, and partners," Gallant said.
Lee Nicholls, global solutions director for Microsoft Technologies at Getronics, a global, $3.4 billion IT services company and Microsoft Gold partner, says Cisco and Microsoft "have no choice but to work together" in unified communications.
"Neither company is fully mature in the other's market: Cisco isn't mature in collaboration, and Microsoft can't yet challenge Cisco in terms of who handles the dial tone," said Nicholls.
Microsoft Is The Virtualization Turtle To VMware's Hare
The number one thing you hear about Microsoft is that they're too late to the dance in virtualization, said Mark Crall, president of Charlotte Tech Care Team, a Microsoft Small Business Specialist in Charlotte, N.C. that partners with both companies.
"It's true that VMware has a head start, but the reality is that Microsoft has the R&D and internal resources and marketing engine to get up to speed extremely quickly. Combine that with their ability to lowball, and I think they'll be a force," Crall said.
Chris Ward, senior solutions architect at GreenPages Technology Solutions, Kittery, Me., believes the key to the success of Microsoft's virtualization strategy rides on MinWin, the slimmed down version of the Windows core that will serve as a framework for building all future Windows based offerings.
"The problem with Hyper-V is that it's not truly 'bare metal.' It's still running Windows Server 2008, albeit maybe a slightly less bloated version with Server Core," said Ward. "If MinWin becomes a reality and allows Microsoft to completely modularize the Windows OS, then VMWare, Citrix, and Virtual Iron had better watch out."
Microsoft Isn't Innovative
This canard has been floating around for decades, and even IT pundits who've carefully cultivated their disdain for Microsoft over the years admit it's a stance that's difficult to defend.
If you're searching for examples of Microsoft innovation, look no further than Microsoft bringing the graphical user interface to the PC, and making the PC almost as easy to use as the Mac, says Ron Herardian, president of Global System Services, a Mountain View, Calif.-based solution provider.
Stuart Crawford, director of business development for Canadian IT services firm IT Matters, says Microsoft's innovations are sometimes obscured by the fact that its competitors are innovating just as fast. "Microsoft is often left playing catch-up, which could lead to the perception that they are not innovating by purchasing other technologies," said Crawford.
"They do innovate, it's just a bit slower [than other companies], and that's because of the sheer market size they deal with," said Lee Nicholls, global solutions director for Microsoft Technologies at global IT Services firm Getronics.
Microsoft is continually working to create new, better and advanced products and new enhancements are obvious throughout their product line, says Phil Aldrich, Microsoft practice director at Dimension Data Americas.
"In fact, the level of change in the new suite of Microsoft offerings is unprecedented. As Microsoft adds to its product lines, smart companies are taking advantage of this in the marketplace by developing complementary products," Aldrich said.
Microsoft Is Clueless About Security
"When people say Microsoft is clueless about security I have to laugh," said Dana Epp, a Microsoft security MVP and security software architect at Scorpion Software, Chilliwack, B.C.
Microsoft has some of the most brilliant minds when it comes to security. People like Kim Cameron (chief architect of identity and access), Michael Howard (Microsoft's top security official), Mark Russinovich (technical fellow in the Platform and Services Division) and Crispin Cowan (Linux security expert) lead in their fields of work and directly impact on where Microsoft is going now and in the future when it comes to security, according to Epp.
Microsoft has made a concerted effort to bake security into its internal software development lifecycle, and the results show in the significant reduction of the number of vulnerabilities and severity of the patches released for Windows, says Chris Lavelle, Vice President of Idea Integration, a Jacksonville, Fla.-based solution provider.
"There was a time when Microsoft wasn't focused on security, but that time has long past," said Lavelle.
Microsoft's Online Services Will Erode Partner Business
Microsoft in March raised hackles in the channel by revealing plans to offer Web-hosted versions of Exchange and SharePoint Server to SMB customers, a segment that has traditionally been served by solution providers.
But Ron Herardian, president of Global System Services, a Mountain View, Calif.-based solution provider, says most of Microsoft's online services target small- and medium-sized enterprises and won't significantly impact most channel partners.
At the same time, there are many new opportunities for resellers and service providers to work with Microsoft, several solution providers told ChannelWeb. "This gives us a way to effectively compete with companies like Salesforce.com, and tackle a market we normally would just pass on," said Mitch Cannady, CEO of Spinnaker Solutions, an Irvine, Calif., solution provider.
Michael Nicholson, COO of POSitive Technology, a Rockville, Md.-based solution provider, says Microsoft has created a framework for allowing partners to build richer, 'last mile' solutions," said Nicholson. "Microsoft wants to do the heavy lifting around data centers and infrastructure, and they're allowing us to customize the solutions, which is a great situation," he said.
Silverlight Is Designed To Lock People Into Microsoft Products
Scott Stanfield, CEO of Vertigo Software, Richmond, Calif., disagrees with the notion that Silverlight is a naked attempt by Microsoft to force people to use its other products to view Web content.
"Adobe Flash is widespread, but we're not locked into Photoshop. In fact, if anything, Silverlight gives us a choice where before there wasn't -- we just had Flash," said Stanfield. Dave Meeker, user experience strategy lead at RoundArch, a Chicago-based software development firm that partners with Microsoft and Adobe, doesn't believe Microsoft's approach to Silverlight is about locking people into Windows.
"If that were true, they wouldn't have made Silverlight playable on a Mac. From a development perspective, Microsoft is obviously trying to reach out to a huge core of developer using Visual Studio, and their goal appears to be about building better user experiences," said Meeker.
Microsoft Doesn't Care About My Business
Partners have long bemoaned the fact that Microsoft often puts enhancements into its products that replace services performed by the channel, with one example being the '15 minute install' Microsoft came out with when Small Business Server 2003 was released.
"Prior to that, many partners made thousands of dollars on installing SBS," notes Michael Cocanower, president of Phoenix-based solution provider ITSynergy.
However, instead of complaining, some forward thinking partners started building new service offerings around things like Sharepoint extension and customization on SBS, according to Cocanower. "In many cases, the amount of revenue they generated far exceeded lost revenue from installation engagements," he said.
"The less visionary partners will kick and scream about a move like this, and blame Microsoft for ruining their revenue. The smarter ones, however, know that Microsoft will continue to 'move the cheese' and we need to stay one step ahead," said Cocanower.
Stuart Crawford, director of business development for Canadian IT services firm IT Matters, says some partners simply need to step up their efforts to engage with Microsoft.
"Many partners don't make the effort to get on Microsoft's radar screen, and they sit back in their own worlds and expect that Microsoft will knock on the door," said Crawford.
Microsoft's Products Aren't Ready For The Enterprise
Believe it or not, the idea still persists in certain parts of the industry that Microsoft software isn't ready for the enterprise.
There are examples where this is true, and also where it's false, says Jay Lendl, vice president of Microsoft services at Granite Pointe Partners, a solution provider in Plymouth, Minn.
"There are plenty of very large organizations that have deployed Microsoft technology, but there are also some technologies that are billed as 'enterprise ready' that might be a bit more fragile than you'd like them to be," he said. "For these technologies, you have to have lots of experience in order to make them 'enterprise ready." But Tim Huckaby, CEO of Interknowlogy, a Carlsbad, Calif.-based solution provider, scoffs at the notion that Microsoft products aren't enterprise-ready. "That may have been true five years ago, but I don't think you'll find anyone who doesn't find that the Microsoft stack meets their enterprise computing needs," said Huckaby.
Microsoft Doesn't Discount Its Software
While it's true that there's no negotiation when it comes to buying Microsoft software, the company does offer significant discounts to education, government, and volume licensing customers.
"The idea is, the more you buy, the better pricing you get, which makes a lot of sense," said Arnie Bellini, president of ConnectWise, a Tampa, Fla.-based solution provider and Microsoft Gold partner.
Of course, as Microsoft moves toward delivering its applications over the Internet, the conversation over software pricing will shift to one of service subscription rates, Bellini noted. "If Microsoft has their druthers, they'll never sell software again, and it'll just be software + services, where you're renting their software instead of buying it," he said.
But Andrew Brust, chief of new technology at twentysix New York, a New York-based IT consultancy, says when it comes to purchasing Microsoft's Software Assurance maintenance contracts, negotiation is de rigueur and discounts aren't uncommon.
"Even without Software Assurance, buying in bulk yields discounts. The Home and Student version of Office 2007 also represents steep discounts, not to mention the numerous bundles of Office with new PCs, and Microsoft gives stuff away all the time to developers and IT pros," said Brust.
Windows Home Server Isn't Reliable For Data Storage
The Windows Home Server Lovefest Of 2007 has cooled a bit in recent months, due mainly to a nasty data corruption bug that Microsoft says it'll fix in an update sometime in June.
The glitch has created the misguided belief that Home Server isn't a reliable place to back up data, says Mark Crall, president of Charlotte Tech Care Team, a Microsoft Small Business Specialist in Charlotte, N.C.
"The reality is that Home Server is a great backup tool for homes and small businesses. But if you're reading and writing to it as a file server, that's where there's the risk of encountering the vulnerability," said Crall.
John Bowman, a system builder at Fusion Microsystems, Centennial, Colo., has been using Home Server for the past two months without incident. "I've had two terabytes of data crossing four different drives, and haven't yet lost any data. I've got backups happening nightly and I feel comfortable that all my workstations are protected," he said.
XP and Vista: A Look at the Numbers
Popular opinion is that Microsoft’s Windows Vista operating system is a dud, a view fueled in part by a low adoption rate among businesses. But a look back at history shows why it may be premature to write Vista off.
By the end of 2007, businesses computers running Vista accounted for just 3% of the nearly 1 billion computers in use worldwide, according to the research company Gartner. Sounds dismal, but that’s the same percentage that ran the business version of Microsoft’s previous OS, XP, in 2002, the first year after its release. (Out of 582 million total computers.) By the end of 2003, business computers running XP accounted for 10% of the total. Gartner projects that by the end of this year, business computers running Vista will make up 13% of all computers.
That puts Vista ahead of its predecessor’s pace, and bolsters Microsoft’s argument that Vista adoption is inline with the company’s expectations. “The numbers are the numbers,” Gartner’s George Shiffler tells the Business Technology Blog. “I can’t refute them.” But he adds that they don’t tell the whole story. “Vista is certainly facing headwinds,” he says.
Shiffler compares the metrics to a baseball batting average – a useful measure but not a complete picture. A batter with a .300 batting average might at first glance appear better than a player with a .290 average. But if the player with the lower average hits a lot of homeruns and draws walks, he might be more valuable.
In this case, there just isn’t a lot of enthusiasm for Vista among businesses, many of whom view it as an unnecessary expense. Rather than train employees on the new OS and inspect software to make sure its compatible with Vista, many businesses are downgrading new computers to XP, Shiffler says.
http://blogs.wsj.com/biztech/2008/05/09/xp-and-vista-a-look-at-the-numbers/
Microsoft Photo Tools
Microsoft Pro Photo Tools version 1 (30-04-2008)
The Pro Photo Tools allow you to add, change, and delete common metadata properties for digital photographs. You can place photos on the Live Earth map and then drag them to the right location. The GPS information will be stored back into the photos. If you have a GPS device, can load track route files from the most popular formats (NMEA, GPX, and KML) and see them on the map. Then you can place your photos on the track route. Again, the GPS info will be stored into your file. When you have the right GPS location for your photos, you can automatically generate location info like country, state, city and even street names. Or if you know the location where a picture was taken, you can type it in and get the GPS location information automatically.
Microsoft Photo Info 1.0 (22-01-2007)
Micros