“…Millions of us have grown comfortable with XP and don’t see a need to change to Vista. It’s like having a comfortable apartment that you’ve enjoyed coming home to for years, only to get an eviction notice. The thought of moving to a new place — even with the stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, and maple cabinets (or is cherry in this year?) — just doesn’t sit right. Maybe it’ll be more modern, but it will also cost more and likely not be as good a fit. And you don’t have any other reason to move.
That’s exactly the conclusion people have come to with Vista. For most of us, there’s really no reason to move to it — yet we don’t have a choice. When that strong desire to stick with XP became obvious in spring 2007, major computer makers such as Dell and Hewlett-Packard quietly reintroduced new XP-based systems (but just to business customers, so as not to offend Microsoft). Come June 30, however, even that option goes away.” Read the full story and sign the petition at InfoWorld.Com
Once confined to marketing departments and media companies, the Mac is spilling over into a wider array of business environments, thanks to the confluence of a number of computing trends, not the least among them a rising tide of end-user affinity for the Apple experience.
Luckily for IT, many of those same trends are making it easier for tech departments to say yes to the Mac by facilitating IT’s ability to provide enterprise-grade Mac management and support.
“We’re seeing more requests outside of creative services to switch to Macs from PCs,” notes David Plavin, operations manager for Mac systems engineering at the U.S. IT division of Publicis Groupe, a global advertising conglomerate. There are so many requests that Plavin now supports 2,500 Macs across the U.S. — nearly a quarter of all Publicis’ U.S. PCs.
And Plavin is less of an anomaly than you might think. Buoyed by increased interest in the consumer arena, Macs are cropping up in more and more organizations, in large part because end-users are pushing for them. Read the full article on InfoWorld.Com
Microsoft’s Windows juggernaut is collapsing as it tries to support 20 years of applications and becomes more complicated by the minute. Meanwhile, Windows has outgrown hardware and customers are pondering skipping Vista to wait for Windows 7. If Windows is going to remain relevant it will need radical changes.
That sobering outlook comes courtesy of Gartner analysts Michael Silver and Neil MacDonald. Half of a full room of IT managers and executives raised their hands when asked whether Microsoft needed to radically change its approach to Windows. Read the full story on ZDNet.Com
“WinCE/InfoJack sends the infected device’s serial number, operating system and other information to the author of the Trojan. It also leaves the infected mobile device vulnerable by allowing silent installation of malware. The Trojan modifies the infected device’s security setting to allow unsigned applications to be installed without a warning.
The Trojan was packed inside a number of legitimate installation files and distributed widely. It has been distributed with Google Maps, applications for stock trading, and a collection of games” Read the full story on ZDNet
I still can’t believe Microsoft wants to be more involved in the medical industry and that Bill Gates said he would trust his LIFE to Microsoft powered hardware in a hospital.
“According to the Washington Post’s Security Fix blog, cyber criminals are populating the Internet with Web sites designed to exploit several recently-discovered security holes in a half-dozen widely used ActiveX plug-ins for IE 6 and 7, most notably the one offered by Facebook and MySpace to help users upload photos. The sites, advertised via links in email and instant message spam, also ‘probe for other vulnerable IE plug-ins, including two recently discovered from Yahoo! and one for QuickTime (this one attacks a vulnerability Apple patched just last month). The sites also throw in an exploit against a six-month-old IE flaw.’ The article notes that the SANS Internet Storm Center has released a GUI tool to help users safely deactivate the vulnerable plug-ins in the Windows registry.” Found via Slashdot.Org
“…I’m just like you, seriously! I’ve been using Microsoft stuff since 1992! That’s right, I’ve been a windows user most of my life. I remember 3.1, NT, 95, 98, 2000, ME (fucking stupid, 2000 in a different box, right?), and then on to (OOooOOoo) Windows XP. Luckily for me, the buck stopped here.
It’s about here that I meet Jay Phillips. Jay, a fellow hacker, is the creator of a very successful Telephony application called Adhearsion. He will be the first to tell you owes some of his coder success to his MacBook. Honestly, Jay even looks like the Mac guy on the commercial (see right). Anyway I was in the mood to debunk this obviously misguided coder (because coders need TECH machines, not pretty toys, right?) and I can honestly say from the deepest techie place in my heart: I got PWWWWWWND. This is why: Read the full post on SiKaNrOnG.com (found via SwitchingToMac.Com)
“…Wallington, a division chief in the Army’s office of enterprise information systems, says the military is quietly working to integrate Macintosh computers into its systems to make them harder to hack. That’s because fewer attacks have been designed to infiltrate Mac computers, and adding more Macs to the military’s computer mix makes it tougher to destabilize a group of military computers with a single attack, Wallington says.
This past year was a particularly tough one for military cybersecurity. Cyberspies infiltrated a Pentagon computer system in June and stole unknown quantities of e-mail data, according to a September report by the Financial Times. Later in September, industry sources told Forbes.com that major military contractors, including Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Raytheon had also been hacked.” Read the full story on Forbes.Com
A little side note today about an experience of mine from yesterday. I found myself needing to print a few PDFs from my Gmail account while I was out and about. Hmm where to go for printing that’s along my journey? My first stop was the internet cafe in the local London Drugs
After paying for a 15 min slot of time I sat down at the XP computer, logged into my Gmail, found the e-mail, and clicked the attachment. But much to my surprise Read the rest of this entry »
“Microsoft bug squashers are investigating reports of a serious security vulnerability in Windows operating systems that could allow attackers to take control of vast numbers of machines.”
“A Microsoft spokesman had only minimal details about the investigation, which was prompted by a presentation last week by researcher Beau Butler at the Kiwicon security conference in New Zealand. According to [a report] in the Sydney Morning Herald, the flaw affects every version of Windows including Vista and is actually the continuation of an old vulnerability that Microsoft supposedly fixed years ago. Read the rest of this entry »
Web developers have known this for years. But now… well I guess it’s kinda official. The folks at SitePoint.Com have been working on authoring a definitive guide to .CSS code for web page building. Even though they tried to take it easy on Internet Explorer they’ve still come to the conclusion that it sucks.
“…Obviously, with IE7 Microsoft made great strides in correcting the most glaring and painful issues that plagued developers in IE6. But the unavoidable truth revealed by this reference is that Internet Explorer is still miles behind the competition.”
Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) is not measurably faster than the original stock edition, a Florida-based developer of performance testing and network metrics software said Monday.
“Microsoft has hinted that SP1 is faster than Vista RTM,” said Craig Barth, the chief technology officer at Devil Mountain Software, referring to the release to manufacturing version of the operating system. “But we found pretty much nothing measurable. It surprised me as much as it surprised everyone else, but the numbers are the numbers.” Read the rest of this entry »
Microsoft’s Windows Vista operating system will face increasing security threats, according to McAfee Avert Labs predictions for top 10 security threats in 2008. Jeff Green, senior vice president of McAfee Avert Labs and product development, said, “Threats are moving to the web and newer technologies such as VoIP and instant messaging. Professional and organised criminals drive a lot of the malicious activity. As they become increasingly sophisticated, it is more important than ever to be aware and secure when traversing the web.” Read the full article on Business-Standard.Com
People in the city of Lund in Sweden that use the Microsoft Vista OS can’t connect to the Internet. According to this local newspaper, the reason is because Lund is a Linux city which has a a Linux server that doesn’t like Vista. Lundis Energi blamed Microsoft because Vista has got a bug and it isn’t going to change the configuration of the server just to cope with the flaw. A local Microsoft rep said it could probably fix the problem if Lundis Energi got in touch with it. [via The Inquirer]
…She managed to find Google, run a search for Firefox, and click on all the right link to make the download happen. But Vista won’t let her install it, popping up an alert that it’s not digitally signed by Microsoft.
Signed by Microsoft?
As has been noted, that’s not security. It’s business terrorism — frightening the user in order to protect Microsoft’s business interests. Read more.
A Microsoft security executive released data Thursday showing that, six months after shipping Windows Vista, his company has left more publicly disclosed Vista bugs unpatched than it did with Windows XP. Read more.
Do you flinch when your inbox dings? The people manning secure@microsoft .com receive approximately 100,000 dings a year, each one a message that something in the Microsoft empire may have gone terribly wrong. Teams of Microsoft Security Response Center employees toil 365 days a year to fix the kinks in Windows, Internet Explorer, Office and all the behemoth’s other products. Read more.
I believe that Microsoft’s domination of the PC software market has dulled and altered our expectations of the ‘fit for purpose’ and ‘use from the box’ aspect of all - not just computer software - products we now shell out our hard earned for. Read more.
…the link supplied by Microsoft goes to a website which is available only to computer makers who are prepared to sign up to a non-disclosure agreement. Without knowing what’s included in the fact-rich program, it’s difficult to know why people should proceed with confidence. Read more.
c|net reports that Microsoft plans to release a beta version of SP1 for Vista later this year. Personally I thought service packs were bad enough, but a Service pack BETA?!?! Read more.
Office isn’t the only Microsoft hegemony that Google Gears could help destroy. One of the defining differences between Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux is the application lineup. That’s given the crew in Redmond, Wash., tremendous power. But technologies like Gears render the operating system irrelevant.
Have you seen that new Apple “Get a Mac” ad about PCs being loaded with bloatware? Have you wondered how truthful it is? The folks over at PC Pitstop performed their own study to determine how bad the problem REALLY is.
Apple today announced (via a news release) that more than 1 million copies of Safari for Windows were downloaded in the first 48 hours since the free public beta was made available on Monday. Read more.
Polish hacker Michal Zalewski has ratcheted up his ongoing assault on Web browser security models, releasing details on serious flaws in fully patched versions of IE 6, IE 7 and Firefox 2.0.
No Comments » | 
Acer, Annoyances, Asus, Business, Dell, HP, IBM, Internet Explorer, Media Center, Microsoft, Mobile, News, Office, PC, Poll, Quality, SP1, Security, Software, Sony, Upgrading, Vista, Windows, XP, directx, vs | 
Permalink
Posted by vistasucks
Microsoft’s Windows juggernaut is collapsing as it tries to support 20 years of applications and becomes more complicated by the minute. Meanwhile, Windows has outgrown hardware and customers are pondering skipping Vista to wait for Windows 7. If Windows is going to remain relevant it will need radical changes.
“WinCE/InfoJack sends the infected device’s serial number, operating system and other information to the author of the Trojan. It also leaves the infected mobile device vulnerable by allowing silent installation of malware. The Trojan modifies the infected device’s security setting to allow unsigned applications to be installed without a warning.
“According to the Washington Post’s Security Fix blog, cyber criminals are populating the Internet with Web sites designed to exploit several recently-discovered security holes in a half-dozen widely used ActiveX plug-ins for IE 6 and 7, most notably the one offered by Facebook and MySpace to help users upload photos. The sites, advertised via links in email and instant message spam, also ‘probe for other vulnerable IE plug-ins, including two recently discovered from Yahoo! and one for QuickTime (this one attacks a vulnerability Apple patched just last month). The sites also throw in an exploit against a six-month-old IE flaw.’ The article notes that the SANS Internet Storm Center has released a GUI tool to help users safely deactivate the vulnerable plug-ins in the Windows registry.”
“…I’m just like you, seriously! I’ve been using Microsoft stuff since 1992! That’s right, I’ve been a windows user most of my life. I remember 3.1, NT, 95, 98, 2000, ME (fucking stupid, 2000 in a different box, right?), and then on to (OOooOOoo) Windows XP. Luckily for me, the buck stopped here.
“…Wallington, a division chief in the Army’s office of enterprise information systems, says the military is quietly working to integrate Macintosh computers into its systems to make them harder to hack. That’s because fewer attacks have been designed to infiltrate Mac computers, and adding more Macs to the military’s computer mix makes it tougher to destabilize a group of military computers with a single attack, Wallington says.
A little side note today about an experience of mine from yesterday. I found myself needing to print a few PDFs from my Gmail account while I was out and about. Hmm where to go for printing that’s along my journey? My first stop was the internet cafe in the local 
“Microsoft bug squashers are investigating reports of a serious security vulnerability in Windows operating systems that could allow attackers to take control of vast numbers of machines.”
Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) is not measurably faster than the original stock edition, a Florida-based developer of performance testing and network metrics software said Monday.
Microsoft’s Windows Vista operating system will face increasing security threats, according to McAfee Avert Labs predictions for top 10 security threats in 2008. Jeff Green, senior vice president of McAfee Avert Labs and product development, said, “Threats are moving to the web and newer technologies such as VoIP and instant messaging. Professional and organised criminals drive a lot of the malicious activity. As they become increasingly sophisticated, it is more important than ever to be aware and secure when traversing the web.” 
People in the city of Lund in Sweden that use the Microsoft Vista OS can’t connect to the Internet. According to this local 
…She managed to find Google, run a search for Firefox, and click on all the right link to make the download happen. But Vista won’t let her install it, popping up an alert that it’s not digitally signed by Microsoft.
A Microsoft security executive released data Thursday showing that, six months after shipping Windows Vista, his company has left more publicly disclosed Vista bugs unpatched than it did with Windows XP. 
Do you flinch when your inbox dings? The people manning secure@microsoft .com receive approximately 100,000 dings a year, each one a message that something in the Microsoft empire may have gone terribly wrong. Teams of Microsoft Security Response Center employees toil 365 days a year to fix the kinks in Windows, Internet Explorer, Office and all the behemoth’s other products. 
I believe that Microsoft’s domination of the PC software market has dulled and altered our expectations of the ‘fit for purpose’ and ‘use from the box’ aspect of all - not just computer software - products we now shell out our hard earned for. 
…the link supplied by Microsoft goes to a website which is available only to computer makers who are prepared to sign up to a non-disclosure agreement. Without knowing what’s included in the fact-rich program, it’s difficult to know why people should proceed with confidence. 
Office isn’t the only Microsoft hegemony that Google Gears could help destroy. One of the defining differences between Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux is the application lineup. That’s given the crew in Redmond, Wash., tremendous power. But technologies like Gears render the operating system irrelevant.
Apple today announced (via a news release) that more than 1 million copies of Safari for Windows were downloaded in the first 48 hours since the free public beta was made available on Monday. 
Polish hacker Michal Zalewski has ratcheted up his ongoing assault on Web browser security models, releasing details on serious flaws in fully patched versions of IE 6, IE 7 and Firefox 2.0.
Statistics show that people are switching to Firefox fast as ever, while Internet Explorer’s share drops every day! Have a look!
Windows Vista Refunds!
