Archive for September, 2005

New IE Flaw Affects Windows XP Sp2

eEye Digital Security has warned that a flaw with Internet Explorer could enable a remote attack on computers running Windows XP SP2. This is the intital reporting stage, so they have released no info to the public, they do not release info until the vendor issues an advisory or releases a patch.

The flaw, which also affects systems running Windows XP, is found in the default installations of Microsoft’s IE, according to an advisory released by the security company on Thursday.

“The flaw is not wormable but allows for the remote execution (of code) with some level of end-user intervention,” said Mike Puterbaugh, eEye’s senior director of product marketing.

No one should be at risk, YET, unless someone has also discovered the vulnerability and released a virus or some other kind of exploit. Read more here.

Windows Vista and Tablet PC’s

Microsoft has been releasing some Windows Vista related news as well, talking about how it will make tablet pc’s better, by allowing people to enter examples of their writing to allow the operating system to better recognize what they write. They are trying to make tablet pc’s work better, since some people were becoming frustrated with them and their operation.

Microsoft is trying to make tablet technology more pervasive in Windows Vista, as opposed to the niche product it’s been to date. In order to take advantage of tablet features in Windows XP, a computer had to be running the specialized Tablet PC edition of the OS. With Vista, Microsoft appears ready to broaden this considerably.

“To date, developers have had problems redistributing Tablet PC technology,” Microsoft said in a white paper posted to its developer Web site. “In part to address this, Tablet PC technologies are ubiquitous across all Windows Vista editions.”

In Vista, the “personalize handwriting recognition” feature presents two options. For those having a problem with a particular letter, word or phrase, there is a “target specific recognition errors” window. For those who are having more pervasive problems, there is an option to provide a more extensive set of samples–from A to Z.

With Vista, tablets will learn not only how users write particular words but also which words they turn to frequently, making those more likely guesses in cases where the software is unsure which word was meant. The software will also adopt Web sites and e-mail addresses that are not part of its standard dictionary.

Sounds like they are on the right track, it would be impossible for the OS to include thousands of samples of handwriting so it could guess what you said, allowing you to include your own samples should be a huge step to making them better. Go here for more.

In a related story, this week at the software giant’s Professional Developers Conference, Gates rallied the troops–software developers, Microsoft’s most important audience–to build enthusiasm for Vista, the oft-delayed new version of Windows, and Office 12, an update to Microsoft’s most profitable franchise.

Gates’ mantra hasn’t changed much in 20 years: The PC is the center of the computing universe, and Windows, along with Office and other products, represents the best platform for new software development. What is new, and is much in evidence this week in Los Angeles, is the growing influence of Web-based development.

They also ask Gates many Google related questions, worth a read.

Microsoft on Longhorn Server Security

Microsoft has been talking up it’s security on the upcoming Longhorn server, saying a couple features such as a self healing file system and an automatic patch check system. The self healing file system will take care of things such as bad sectors, and even cpu’s with a high number of self correcting errors, but really all it is is some of the desk checking utilites, such as chkdsk and defrag will be running in the background.

One of the new features is “secure-at-install,” which is designed to help secure new installations of the operating system in specific server roles. When a new server is installed as a terminal server or file server, for example, the system will automatically find and apply security updates that apply to a particular role, Microsoft said.

NAP, or network access protection, will also be included int he server OS, which will let users perform a check on PCs connecting to their network and block clients that don’t meet rules, such as the latest patches and virus signatures.

At an unspecified time after it releases Longhorn Server, Microsoft plans to add a Security Token Service, or STS, to Active Directory. This new service is to extend capabilities Microsoft plans to offer with Active Directory Federation Services, or ADFS, which is set to ship with Windows Server 2003 R2.

Previous Next ADFS lets users create trust relationships with other Active Directory users and enable authentication across corporate boundaries. STS will offer extended federation and privacy support, and integrated resource discovery and management, among other features, Microsoft said.

STS also will support InfoCard, a code name for a new Microsoft technology designed to provide secure storage for identity information that will be shared with online services such as Web stores.

They also made WinFx available, which is designed to make it easy for developers to use some of the security features in Windows, meaning they would no longer have to write the code for dealing with identity and access.

Read more here.

Xbox 360 will be out for Christmas

I know my boy will be excited about this little news nugget, Microsoft, hoping to take advantage of the Christmas shopping season, will release the Xbox 360 on November 22 2005 in the United States, in Europe it will be available December 2 2005 and in Japan December 10 2005.

Last month, Microsoft said the Xbox 360 would come in two flavors: a base model for $299 and a souped-up version with a 20GB hard drive and wireless controllers for $399.

For months, Microsoft has said it would have the Xbox 360 out in time for the holidays, and Wednesday’s announcement confirms the company will get several months of first-mover advantage over Sony’s forthcoming PlayStation 3 and Nintendo’s Revolution, both of which are expected to be released next spring.

Okay, I’m looking forward to it as well, just hope they have some good games out in time as well. I also hope, they have some games quickly that will take advantage of all of it’s resources, video game developers are having a hard time keeping up nowadays.

“Still, Microsoft said that by combining its new machine with its Xbox Live online gaming initiative, it has every hope of taking over the top spot in console gaming now firmly held by Sony.”

I hope so, can only help they boy and I out. Read more at News.com.

Power Tools for Students

Found this page on Microsoft’s site linking to a bunch of resources for students, and these four power tools to help them do their homework or study. Note For some reason I assumed the four power tools would be free, but ofcourse they are not, all require a purchase except for the free clip art. But, it will save you time and money since you will be able to do all of the research from home.

Your kids can do a great job with even the toughest school projects with just a computer running Microsoft Windows XP and the right information resources. Research no longer requires a trip to the neighborhood library because a whole world of information?and the tools to put it all together?are right at home on your family computer.

Microsoft Student – If your middle- and high-school student is looking for just one resource to help them save time and complete high-quality homework, Microsoft Student might be it. It includes tools to help students find information faster, improve their study skills, and complete their projects.

Microsoft Encarta – Which includes More than 50,000 articles (in the Standard Edition), thousands of sound, video, and image clips, tens of thousands of maps and easy-to-understand, thought-provoking content.

Microsoft Powerpoint – An easy-to-use but sophisticated program, PowerPoint includes dozens of ready-made templates but also allows students to design their own look and feel. Your students can simply plug in their information, choose the slide transitions they want, and give their presentations in the classroom.

Microsoft Office Online Clip Art – No presentation would be complete without some kind of art?a photo, drawing, cartoon, or media clip.

Lawsuit filed against 180Solutions

Someone in Illinois has filed a lawsuit against an adware company, one of the biggest and most brazen of them all, 180Solutions. They have been caught stuffing their programs on computers in many different ways, some of the most recent being a security hole exploit on a child porn site, and bit torrent installations.

The complaint on behalf of residents of the United States and the state of Illinois charges that 180solutions downloaded spyware on computers illegally causing a number of damages. 180solutions’ alleged illegal practices include deceptively distributing spyware files and preventing users from removing them, engaging in deceptive misconduct to download its spyware without users’ knowledge or consent, lying to consumers about its spyware, etc.

Hopefully, this one will go to court and not be settled so we can have more and more lawsuits until we can make it to expensive for them to keep forcing themselves on people all over the world.

Counts include computer fraud and abuse, violating Electronic Communications Privacy Act/Wiretap Act (United States), Trespass to Personal Property/Chattels, Consumer Fraud Act, Negligence, Computer Tampering and Invasion of Privacy, (Illinois). Numerous examples are given for each. On page 11, it states “Finally, the public health and safety is also threatened by 180solutions’ spyware because it was distributed at an Internet site (and thus financially supported an Internet site) showing child pornography.”

New VMware beta

Just saw this posted on news.com, “VMware on Monday released a test version of its next workstation software that’s able to run 64-bit and dual-processor virtual machines.

VMware Workstation 5.5, scheduled for final release by the end of the year, lets one computer simultaneously run several operating systems. Each OS is called a virtual machine. The feature is handy for programmers testing crash-prone prototypes or simulating the interaction of several servers.”

I haven’t used this program near as much as I thought I was going too, but it was great a few years ago, and now, version 5.5 adds support for 64-bit Windows, Linux and Solaris, as well as support for FreeBSD 5.3. It’s also added support for multi-processor machines, a feature that used to only be available in their high end product. This software is great you can actually run a server os and then install a client os and login into the server os! You can test so much stuff with this program on one computer, it’s unbelievable.

Wanna Know a Secret?

Just read this great article on PCWorld.com, it’s called 20 Things They Don’t Want You to Know. They are manufacturers, technology companies, etc, trying to sell you stuff, like cpu’s, extended warranties, game consoles, etc. The first one is one I thought a lot of people knew, but it may not be so it is definately worth retelling here.

Most CPU’s are actually capable of faster speeds, mostly, although some are not and you may even damage them. It’s called overclocking your CPU and it’s been around for a long time, and companies have tried to block it or slow it down while others, such as some motherboard manufacturer’s encourage and market their products that way. Most manufacturers set a minimum speed their CPU’s can run and sell them at that speed, even though they may be able to run a little faster, or in some cases, like when they switch manufacturing processes, a LOT faster. Anyway, I will let you read their article, there is some good info there, like the article on extended warranties or the one on useless specs.

Microsoft’s Professional Developers Conference

According to news.com, “Looking to drive demand for a wave of forthcoming products, Microsoft will fill the pockets of developers this week with early versions of several programs, including the latest “build” of Windows Vista.
At the software giant’s Professional Developers Conference in Los Angeles, Microsoft is planning to provide programmers with the code for an early version of Vista, as well as Visual Studio 2005 and SQL Server 2005, both of which will be released in November. Vista, the client version of the next release of Windows developed under the code name Longhorn, is expected to be released next year.”

This should be good news for a lot of people, including us because “As it has done at past conferences, Microsoft is providing technical details as a way of seeding the market for third-party applications that run on Microsoft’s development “stack,” or combination of components, as well as its Web properties.”

At the conference, Microsoft is also expected to provide more details on BizTalk Server 2006, which is due early next year, and its integration server strategy.

More news to follow, I’m sure.

The Moodgrapher

Ever wonder about the general mood of the internet? Wether everyone who is posting on their blogs are happy, sad or mad? Well, I hadn’t either, but if you have, there’s a great new tool that is trying to track it and predict the future moods of the internet. It’s called the Moodgrapher and it uses LiveJournal to track users moods. LiveJournal is one of several simple-to-use personal publishing (“blogging”) tool. Bloggers using LiveJournal can report their mood at the time of writing a post; about 80% of the posts indeed have a mood attached to them. Moodgrapher tracks these moods by periodically gathering recent posts from Livejournal, and checking for their “mood report”. It currently tracks about 100,000 posts every day.

It looks pretty cool and from some of their graphs, their algo’s are already close to being able to predict the general mood of the internet. Check the most recent here.

From News.com, “It could definitely turn into a cool little tool if some functionality–namely archiving, date selection or location specifics as they relate to weather or local events–were added. As part of the larger research though, I’m skeptical but interested in how good their predictive technology can get.”