Category: Windows XP

Internet Explorer 8 Looking to Help Businesses

When it comes to Internet Browsers such as the Internet Explorer, rarely would you consider them having any impact as far as the business aspect of things is concerned. But apparently, that is one additional highlight that Microsoft aims to cater to as it has announced better performance, easier Web development tools for enhanced browser experiences and improved security and reliability.

Dean Hachamovitch, general manager of the Internet Explorer team at Microsoft, showcased solutions from industry partners such as ESPN, eBay Inc., Digg Inc., Facebook and OneRiot that create new value for their customers.

“With the Internet Explorer 8 platform, Microsoft creates opportunities for Web sites to engage customers in new ways and drive not only more traffic, but also more value in the online experience,” Hachamovitch said.

Developers will benefit from performance features that enable Web sites to allow customers to engage more deeply with their site content. Accelerators and Web Slices make it easier for developers to reach beyond the page and provide new ways for people to stay connected to the content and services of their choice. Internet Explorer 8 has enhanced search features and capabilities to provide more interesting and relevant content, increased speed, and enhanced security, and offers greater performance and reliability.

Internet Explorer 8 is Microsoft’s most standards-compliant browser to date, and benefits from work the company is doing with standards bodies to bring increased measurement and consistency. As part of Microsoft’s commitment to supporting standards, the company has submitted more than 7,000 cascading style sheet (CSS) 2.1 test cases to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) in the last year to help drive easier and more measurable standards adoption for all developers.

Moreover, Internet Explorer 8 now passes more of the W3C CSS 2.1 test cases than any other shipping browser and has invested significantly in support for HTML 5. Defaulting to standards-mode for Web sites and featuring a Compatibility View list to ease the transition enables developers to be sure their code runs across multiple browsers and platforms, freeing developers to innovate, not re-create.

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IE8 Removable in Windows 7

After some horrendous problems with the Microsoft Vista, the Windows 7 which is tasked to recover the lost faith that Microsoft users have had due to inconveniences brought about, are getting quite a number of reprieves including the potential removal of the Internet Explorer 8 browser just in case you don’t like it. Microsoft has confirmed, via its Engineering Windows 7 blog, that IE8 among other significant features will be user-removable.

A “Windows Features” dialog box will allow users to remove programs they don’t want, although the programs themselves are more buried than actually removed. I guess Microsoft heard the million cries of annoyance when users had to put in their install disc just to get some service installed: now everything will be installed initially and then unwanted components will be “removed,” but ready for reinstallation in a heartbeat.

The “big ones” you can remove are:

  • Windows Media Player
  • Windows Media Center
  • Windows DVD Maker
  • Internet Explorer 8
  • Windows Search

There are lots of other services, games, and so on as you can see in the big list (right), but I think we’re all thankful that Microsoft has made these main five programs totally optional. It should be noted that any dependencies or shared services will not be affected by removal, so you won’t have to worry about DVDs not working in other programs because you removed the Windows version, or the like.

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Panda Software Heads Study for Child Internet Safety

One thing that most parents worry these days is the content that children can access on the web. Internet-related risks have been an issue for some time now and today, they have become worse, making it entirely disturbing since we are all aware how much the Internet has evolved and enticed practically anyone of all ages to go online.

On that note, Panda Security, a world leader in IT security, today announced that it is encouraging consumers to participate in a nationwide study that surveys parents and educators to better understand the evolving online behaviors of children and their families, and guarantee their safety against Internet-related risks.

“Internet-related risks are clearly on the rise, and children are especially vulnerable,” said Carlos Zevallos, security evangelist, Panda Security U.S.A. “Panda Security is dedicated to children’s safety, and we are taking strides to foster partnerships, promote educational programs and develop solutions that will keep kids and their families safe in the wake of escalating cyber threats. The results of this study will help us better understand what children and their parents are aware of with regard to taking online safety precautions, and we’re looking forward to learning from and sharing the results.”

Panda Security has been conducting the survey through private channels until now, and it will be open to parents and educators through March 13, 2009. Participants will be given a free 30-day trial of Internet Security 2009 for their contributions.

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Windows 7 Trials Released

In a move that has been christened to save the face of the mess that Windows Vista has left, Windows 7 has been pre-released for trial to some programmers before its actual release in the market within the year. Windows Vista has gotten nothing but negative reviews and apparently Microsoft wants to erase that notion by improving the new Windows 7 as much as possible.

The pre-release is actually a tactic to get the initial feedbacks from the computer geeks themselves. They are the best option to solicit the possible problems that Windows 7 has right now, learning their lesson well from the debacle that Vista has created.

Windows 7, which analysts say is a streamlined version of Vista, is expected to play nicely with most of the computers in the market. That should make the software an easier sell as the sour economy leaves companies and consumers less inclined to replace computers.

Indeed, if the Windows 7 lives up to the expectations and makes use of the flaws that Vista obviously showed, then perhaps consumer confidence on the new Microsoft operating software can be established. There are a lot of disappointed computer users out there and Microsoft has to start somewhere if they want to once again win their approval for the best operating software to be used today.

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Office Computers Plainly for Business

Most people who go to the office are bound to be equipped with their own PC these days and normally, these are given for work purposes. However, we cannot discount the possibility of perhaps surfing some sites or using our computers for other purposes. However, some companies are not as lenient and if you are not careful, you may just find yourself getting the pink slip and out in the cold looking for a new job.

The employees in question worked in half a dozen departments from Purchasing to Public Works, WPBF News 25 reported.

Human resources managers said the investigation began with a check into one employee’s e-mails and Internet history.

There is no doubt that companies mean business these days. Productivity is their main focus. And finding employees simply surfing or bumming around doing non-work related things with their computer, the position may as well be open to other people who really want to buckle down and work.

They have ways to check your computer. E-mails, instant messaging history and even your search history. All of these are cached and can be accessed in an instant. So if you want to avoid getting the boot, better avoid these sidelights unless you have a new job in mind. Certainly, this is not the time to lose a job especially that recession issues are increasing in numbers. Use your PC well!

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Google Android to Invade Laptops

Google Android is a free mobile OS that was originally developed for use on mobile devices. But while this may sound like this OS is mainly for miniature gadgets we are all paying much attention to, it seems that Google Android may soon find its way towards laptops and notebooks soon if Google finds a way to help the accidental OS to function normally under a notebook operating environment.

It does seem to be a good option considering that initial tests were done by two bloggers on how the Google Android can perhaps adhere towards the laptop setup.

Matthäus Krzykowski and Daniel Hartmann, posted the news on Thursday on the blog. They showed that they ported Google Android on a 1000H unit of the EEE PC series and that the operation took about four hours to complete.

The authors reported that Android is stable and has enough capabilities to make it a good operating system option for netbook manufacturers. The fact that the Android is open-source means that it offers virtually endless customizing and developing possibilities, just as Linux does today through its various distributions.

So if this is indeed a possibility, is Microsoft alarmed about it? For now maybe not but once Google finds a way to enhance the development of the Google Android to suit laptops (maybe even PCs), then perhaps a sense of urgency may be called for.

Google is certainly taking note of these developments and given their current manpower capable of getting the job done, it should not be surprising if they do indeed start checking out what they can do to cover these findings.

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System Cleaner helps you Clean up for 2009

What is the best thing you can do in preparation for 2009? Well for one, you can start by cleaning up your system from the uninstalled traces and removed programs, two factors that slow down you computer if you don’t address them. We have seen various registry cleaners to aid us but here is something new that can speed up that slowpoke computer of yours which may be lacking in systems maintenance.

System Cleaner quickly and efficiently cleans up and eliminates the things that cause crashes, slow your computer down, and lead to frustration. It frees up hard disk space by eliminating all of the “garbage” files that accumulate on your computer and slow it down. It can also look for any duplicate files that reside on your system. One module can scan the Windows Registry, remove useless entries, and then defragment the Registry so your computer runs better.

So if you are not satisfied with the performance of other cleaners and utility programs you are currently using, check out this new System Cleaner from Poinstone Software, LLC for a change. It promises to bind all the formal program utilities you may need to have a faster and reliable PC and in time for the start of a new year at that.

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Windows 7 to Cover Up Bumbling Windows Vista

Windows Vista is an obvious flop. With all the praises that most people gave it when it first hit the market, Microsoft now finds itself trying to win back its customers no thanks to the defects and problems that this erring operating system has caused. And the savior’s name? Windows 7.

Expected to be shown at CES this coming January, rumor has it that Windows 7 will come out in three versions, namely:

• Windows Vista Home Premium Edition => Windows 7 Home Premium Edition
• Windows Vista Business Edition => Windows 7 Professional Edition
• Windows Vista Ultimate Edition => Windows 7 Ultimate Edition

Why you may ask? For one, operating systems cater to all levels. But one thing noticeably missing is the very basic version of the OS. We saw that in Windows Vista but it seems that it only caused a lot of problems rather than results. In fact, don’t be surprised if you see an upgrade version which allows current Windows XP users to upgrade straight to Windows 7 to avoid the issues with Vista.

But that remains to be seen. Microsoft has a lot of work to do to cover up the mess that Windows Vista caused. Many users reverted to Windows XP but do bear in mind that Windows XP is no longer available in the market.

Windows 7 has been programmed to use lesser resources. This should be welcome news to all Windows OS users. This was one of the issues with Windows Vista and apparently Microsoft has learned its lesson. Will Windows 7 click? Expect reviews and feedbacks once it hits the market in 2009.

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Google Chrome Being Preferred by PC Manufacturers

It looks like Google is buckling down and seriously trying to penetrate the software market via its new product installment, the Google Chrome. Today, most computers come installed with the usual Internet Explorer but manufacturers are seriously considering shifting towards the Google Chrome for a change.

Microsoft has dominated the PC market for some time now but a lot of factors right now may be pushing some PC manufacturers towards considering a change of pre-installed programs. Among them include the bugs that new Microsoft software has been bringing, making life miserable for vendors as well since they will be the immediate people tasked to help out people experiencing these problems like system and driver incompatibilities.

Google has been known to go all out and it is reportedly trying to cater to other platforms as well like Linux and Mac. It gives you an idea on how dead serious Google is as far as expanding its niche and that is focused a lot on the software business.

The company is pushing hard to get Chrome pre-installed on computers getting shipped directly from the factory. Big computer companies Dell, HP, Acer and Toshiba are reportedly thinking about ditching Internet Explorer and pre-packaging Chrome instead.

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Internet Explorer Security Flaw Revealed

One thing about browsing these days, you may want to consider what type of browser you will be using. Normally, the Windows Internet Explorer would be the prime preference, considering it comes in by default with most Windows Operating systems upon installation. But if there is one thing you have to note, Microsoft will always be prone to security flaws and apparently there is one that has reportedly infected over 2 million computers today.

More than two million computers worldwide have been infected because of a major security flaw in Microsoft’s Internet Explorer web browser, the software giant admitted today.

The problem, first revealed last week, allows criminals to hijack computers and steal passwords if the user visits an infected website.

As many as 10,000 sites have already been compromised to take advantage of the flaw, according to anti-virus software producer Trend Micro.

So far the websites, mostly based in China, have largely been used to obtain computer game passwords which can be sold on the black market.

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We are all aware that there are usually updates or patches sent out by Microsoft to its valued users. But timing is always essential. If you are late in attending to such a problem in security, that is a wide opening that a hacker will need. In this case, it is more of stealing gaming passwords that was the main agenda to which they profit by selling them in the market. That is only the lighter side of things.

Imagine these hackers being able to get their hands on other sensitive information like bank account or credit card numbers. The thought alone is scary and though we are aware that such activities exist, isn’t it wary to find out that Microsoft’s very own Internet Explorer can be made the bridge of it all?

So if you are using Internet Explorer at the moment, it would be wise to try out other browsers such as Firefox for the meantime. This is only temporary and knowing Microsoft, they will have this issue resolved in no time.