Operating Systems and Software

Google Dishes More Details On Chrome OS: Web-Connected, Out Next Year

News — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:54:56 GMT

For awhile, Google's Chrome OS has been somewhat of a mystery to end-users. It was introduced this summer, but all that we were ever provided was a cute logo and a few vague promises. Since that time, Microsoft has launched Windows 7 and Apple has introduced Snow Leopard, so it's about time for Google to step up to the plate and give everyone an update on its first non-mobile operating system.

Today, the search giant held a press conference in order to clarify more on Chrome OS, but unfortunately, there's not much here to please those demand instant gratification. Google itself admits that Chrome OS won't be ready for end users until next year, but it's taking a step in the direction of production by open-sourcing the project as Chromium OS. This means the code is free, accessible to anyone and open for contributions.

One thing that was made very clear today was that Chrome OS is, and will always be, about the web. Every application that you'll load into Chrome OS will be connected in some way to the Internet, which is sure to enrage some of you and delight others. According to Google, the "entire experience takes place within the browser and there are no conventional desktop applications; this means users do not have to deal with installing, managing and updating programs." We understand that the cloud may be the future, but we're not quite sure our lifestyles and our existing Internet infrastructure is ready to handle that.

Google claims that since all of Chrome OS' applications live within the browser, security is heightened. To quote: "Unlike traditional operating systems, Chrome OS doesn't trust the applications you run. Each app is contained within a security sandbox making it harder for malware and viruses to infect your computer. Furthermore, Chrome OS barely trusts itself. Every time you restart your computer the operating system verifies the integrity of its code. If your system has been compromised, it is designed to fix itself with a reboot. While no computer can be made completely secure, we're going to make life much harder (and less profitable) for the bad guys." Sounds good in theory, but who knows how much hassle that'll be in practice.

What do appreciate that Google is striving to make things are snappy as possible. Chrome OS will be stripped of unnecessary process, and in many ways that's possible due to the stripped-down nature of the OS. Without a doubt, this isn't going to replace Win7 or OS X. It can't handle apps like Final Cut Pro or Adobe Photoshop, but it should handle most things that basic users use on a day-to-day basis.

We're also hearing that Chrome OS won't just run on any old machine, which is probably the biggest announcement today. It'll only be able to run on specific hardware, which should optimize it greatly but alienate quite a few existing PC users who were hoping to try it out. Still, Chrome OS should be great for next year's netbooks, and possibly even a few UMPCs and MIDs. Unfortunately, that means we'll have to wait until next year to see how things pan out, but for now, the video below will get you thirsting for more.

CDRoller 8.61 Recovers Lost Files On Discs

News — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:39:45 GMT

Digital Atlantic Corporation released CDRoller 8.61. CDRoller 8.61 is able to recover lost files on CDs, DVDs, flash memory cards, and Blu-ray discs. This program boasts of a friendly and easy-to-use User Interface with an intuitive list of data recovery commands and built-in adviser with basic recommendations for beginners.

The software is able to recover lost files on discs created by drag and drop CD, DVD, and BD writing software such as Roxio and Ahead Nero. CDRoller 8.61 has a fault-tolerant UDF Reader which provides direct access to discs with UDF file systems and also finds the lost data including accidentally deleted files, files located in the corrupted folders, and files on incorrectly closed or quick-formatted discs.

In addition, CDRoller 8.61 is able to retrieve lost video from improperly finalized discs created by DVD camcorders. It also claims to be able to retrieve video that is unplayable due to a failure of camcorder or bad quality of DVD media or if disc finalization was accidentally interrupted.

Finally, CDRoller 8.61 offers a Flash Data Recovery option. This option supports various flash memory cards and drives including SmartMedia, Memory Stick, and digital cameras with built-in flash and hard disk drives.

CDRoller 8.61 is compatible with Windows 95, 98, ME, NT4, 2000, XP, 2003, Vista, and 7. The program costs $39 for a personal license. You can download a free trial of CDRoller from http://www.cdroller.com.

What Happened To Apple's Software Quality?

News — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:23:27 GMT

Apple is a funny beast. We say "beast" because it's hard to deny that this company is ripping through the tech world like no other that we've seen in the last decade. Our television programs are laden with Apple ads poking fun at Windows and seducing you into buying yet another iPod, and every quarterly earnings report is filled with optimism. Even in the midst of the worst recession since the Great Depression, Apple was breaking profit records left and right. The company has continued to sell millions of iPhones, millions of iPods and even millions of Macs.

And remember, it wasn't that long ago that the industry at large considered Apple a sitting duck. The outfit's share price was abysmal, the management in disarray and the product line nothing short of woeful. Of course, we all know that Steve Jobs returned to his chair in the CEO corner office in order to turn things around, and things have gradually improved ever since...

What Happened To Apple's Software Quality?

Windows Vista Users Jump To 7 While XP Users Lag

News — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:52:47 GMT

Windows 7 is picking up market share quickly (in IT terms). However, much of that is at the expense of Windows Vista, as XP users are seemingly staying put, according to a (very) recent InfoWorld survey.

As tracked by InfoWorld's Windows Pulse service, Windows 7 already has more than 4 percent of the market, and that's after less than a month of general availability after its Oct. 22nd release.

However, according to the survey, Windows XP's share hasn't changed during this period. It's still holding at 64 percent. Meanwhile, Vista, after three years, has only 30% of the market, while among new users registering for the InfoWorld Windows Pulse service, 7 is already up to 10 percent.

While obviously still too early to tell, InfoWorld also sees a direct correlation between the 7 uptake and a Vista downturn. Seemingly, for every percentage point 7 rises, Vista drops 1 percent.

Obviously, it's still very early. Excitement has led, as NPD noted, to a 234 percent increase in Windows 7 retail box sales when compared to Vista's opening days.

The question is, how much of this is based on pent up demand for something better than Windows 7, or the promotional pricing that Microsoft used for early pre-orders? It would not be surprising to see Windows 7 sales drop off as the early adopters fade.

Additionally, XP users can't do an in-place upgrade to Windows 7. Rather, they have to do a clean install. While many recommend a clean install anyway, plenty of end users would eschew this because of the effort involved in re-installing applications.

Additionally, IT departments will take some time before they upgrade any XP machines to 7 (if they do). Many skipped Vista.

Finally, there are plenty of underpowered XP machines out there, which would not run Windows 7 effectively. The easiest way to get Windows 7 if you have an XP PC is to get a new box, and many will probably simply opt for this.

Windows 7 / Server 2008 Remote Crash Exploit

3vi1 — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 13:10:59 GMT

It looks like Microsoft's put a lot of new SMB bugs in their recent OS's. This is the second way we've seen to remotely crash a machine by sending it bad SMB packets.

Proof of concept/exploit code you can paste write into Python is located here: http://g-laurent.blogspot.com/2009/11/windows-7-server-2008r2-remote-kernel.html

This SMB bug is worse than the first one that was found; With this bug, you don't get a telling BSOD that you can ctrl-alt-del from (and which might have info letting you known the system was crashed by the SMB exploit). This bug simply hangs the machine hard with no indication of what happened and you have to punch the power/reset button.

Worse... there's apparently a way to use it in conjunction with IE to circumvent firewalls. So, if you're lured to click on a link and it hangs your machine - it might be some jerk messing with you. No one's found a way to use either of these SMB bugs to remotely exploit code yet, so at least you can't get a worm in this manner, yet.

Microsoft reportedly isn't planning on fixing this until SP1.

Microsoft Admits Upgrade Tool Uses GPL Source Code

News — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 15:36:04 GMT

In October, Microsoft announced a tool to allow netbooks lacking DVDs to install Windows 7; it was a key point of the new OS that it run on underpowered netbooks. Unfortunately, it improperly used GPL source code, which Microsoft admitted on Friday the 13th, a few days after pulling the tool.

Bad luck, Microsoft? Well, not really bad luck. GPL, or General Public License (open source) source code was included in the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool, which isn't off-limits, though putting a non-open-source license on a licensed tool is. The Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool was designed to modify a DVD or ISO image into a bootable image that could be put on a flash drive, to be used to install Windows 7 on DVD-less netbbooks, of which there are many. The faux pas was first noted by “Within Windows” blogger Rafael Rivera.

In a November 13th statement, Microsoft said:

After looking at the code in question, we are now able to confirm this was indeed the case, although it was not intentional on our part. While we had contracted with a third party to create the tool, we share responsibility as we did not catch it as part of our code review process. We have furthermore conducted a review of other code provided through the Microsoft Store and this was the only incident of this sort we could find.

Microsoft apologized for the "inconvenience" and said that it intends to make the source code and binaries for the tool available the week of November 16th under the terms of the GPL v2. They added that they “and are also taking measures to apply what we have learned from this experience for future code reviews we perform.”

Microsoft Details Dates, Versions of Office 2010

News — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:50:39 GMT

Microsoft plans to release its Office 2010 software suite in both 32-bit and 64-bit flavors, making it the first Office suite to support both versions. As its name suggests, both versions will be available sometime next year. In a statement, a Microsoft spokesperson said "Microsoft Office 2010, Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010, Microsoft Visio 2010, and Microsoft Project 2010 are scheduled to enter technical preview in the third quarter of 2009 and become available in the first half of 2010." After the productivity suite is shipped to manufacturers, Chris Capossela, senior vice president, Microsoft Office has said it takes six weeks to four months or more to reach PC users.

Applications included in Office 14 suite are Word 14, Excel 14, Powerpoint 14, Outlook 14, Access 14, InfoPath Designer 14, InfoPath Filler 14, Publisher 14, Groove 14, InterConnect 14, SharePoint Designer 14, OneNote 14, Visio 14, and Project 14.

One of the most significant new features of Office 2010 is the addition of a Web-based version of the software. Microsoft announced this feature at its Professional Developer Conference in Los Angeles last September. The company has said there will be a free, ad-supported version. Microsoft is still working out fees for businesses who want a version without ads. A Web-based version makes it possible for Office to run on Linux or the Apple iPhone.

Office 2010 was formerly known by its codename, Office 14. As you’ll recall, Office 2007 was codenamed as Office 12. Microsoft skipped “13” because it was supposedly suspicious and superstitious about the connotations associated with the number. Screenshots of the latest Office suite (in beta mode) were leaked in January.

Combined with Windows Vista, Office 2010 is set to push 64-bit onto the masses. (Until Office 2010, the suite has only been available in the 32-bit flavor.) The benefits of running Office in a 64-bit environment may not seem very exciting at first, but it could help expedite 64-bit adoption among other vendors. Moving to 64 bits provides the ability to take advantage of more RAM than the 4GB limit that exists with 32-bit OSes. Theoretically, 64-bit systems can support up to 16.8 million terabytes, though other system limitations make that quantity of RAM unfeasible at the present time. In addition, users who access large databases and spreadsheets as well as those who use multiple programs simultaneously could benefit from the move to 64-bit.

Microsoft also plans to roll out Service Pack 2 for the Office 2007 suite on April 28th.

Microsoft Announces Help for DVD-less Netbook Win7 Installers

News — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:42:07 GMT

Microsoft previously announced (or rather, trumpeted) that unlike Windows Vista, Windows 7 would run just fine on a netbook, thank you. But what about the fact that most netbooks are DVD-less? Well, there's an app for that, to steal a line from Apple.

Microsoft has released the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool. This tool will allow you to take the ISO image for your Windows 7 install, and turn it into a bootable flash drive image.

Once that's done, the netbook's BIOS must also be modified to set the boot order so that the USB drive is first on the list. It's pretty simple to be honest.

Just remember that, according to Microsoft's site, this isn't a general purpose tool designed to turn any ISO into a bootable flash drive image. While we haven't tried it ourself, Microsoft is pretty clear that this can only be used with a Windows 7 ISO. Of course, we've heard that kind of "certainty" before.

W7 beta/RC expiration date?

recoveringknowitall — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:46:28 GMT

Since procrastinating is a hobby of mine, I'm still running W7 RC build 7100. I haven't gotten any notices or reminders of any kind that it will be shutting down/expiring. When will it expire?

Microsoft's Natural User Interface Lets Your Body Do The Talking

News — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 01:55:07 GMT

Microsoft's research labs have been known to create some pretty wild projects. Granted, not all of them have hit the market or anything, but there's a good chance that something huge down the road will spring up. Project Natal is already proof that Redmond has quite a few out-of-the-box thinkers on staff, and while we can't say it with any real degree of certainty, we're guessing that this stuff is what techie dreams are made of.

During the company's College Tour 2009, Microsoft showed off what it's describing as a "mindblowing natural user interface." In essence, this is really just a supercomputer with loads of intellect.

Microsoft Chief Research & Strategy Officer, Craig Mundie, demonstrating natural user interface
(Credit: Microsoft)

According to the R&D gurus in Redmond, Washington, this is a next-gen computer that "docks and undocks from a transparent glass display and allows for not only pen and voice input as you’d come to expect from natural user interfaces, but also incorporates touchless gestures and eye-tracking to interact with the information at hand."

As you'd expect, the demo relies heavily on eye-tracking for the "wow factor," and everything is still definitely in the prototype stage. Just check out the video below to see for yourself.

The Top Windows 7 Features That Vista Should Have Had

News — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:19:22 GMT

This week may be as big a week in the company's history as Microsoft has ever had. We know, that's a pretty bold statement, but there is a lot of evidence to back that up. Microsoft has been drowning in negative press and negative vibes for most of Vista's life; it has tried for years to spit-shine the image of its "Wow!-inducing" operating system, and by and large, it has failed.

Join us to see the ten greatest features of Windows 7 that should've been in Vista, and learn how those ten features will make your life that much better if you're currently pondering the upgrade.

The Top Windows 7 Features That Vista Should Have Had

Windows 7 Beats Vista By 234% In First Week Sales

News — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:34:56 GMT

We wouldn't expect Microsoft to say anything other than positive things about Windows 7, but it's another thing when an independent company comes out and confirms that Windows 7 really is off to a good start. But one has to wonder--are sales of Win7 doing well because people can't wait to rid themselves of Vista? Or are sales of Win7 doing well because of Win7's own merits?

Whatever the case, Microsoft's newest operating system is off to a fantastic start, with sales of the system up 234% (during its first week on the market) compared to Vista during its first week. Regardless of your opinion on things, that's a large percentage, particularly during a time period where people are pinching pennies and are more likely than ever to remain on their current OS for the time being.

"Microsoft's program of early low-cost pre-sales, high visibility marketing, and aggressive deals helped make the Windows 7 software launch successful," said NPD vice president of analysis Stephen Baker. "In a slow environment for packaged software Windows 7 brought a large number of customers into the software aisles," he said.

Microsoft's Head of Windows Experience, Julie Larson-Green says the OS development train isn't just stopping here obviously. Larson-Green notes: "Emerging trends, such as gesture-controlled interfaces, like that found on Microsoft’s prototype Project Natal gaming system, are also of particular interest. “There are things we’re learning about that weren’t there at the start of Windows 7.” (credit: Telegraph.co.uk)

Julie Larson-Green - Microsoft Corporate VP, Windows Experience
Photo, credit: Microsoft

Of course sales weren't the only thing going up in Redmond. Revenue from Win7 also surpassed Vista by 83% out of the gate, and the OS also gave a nice bump to sales of new PCs. Were you one of those who snagged Win7 early? Are you pleased with the upgrade?

Kubuntu/Xubunut/Ubuntu 9.10

3vi1 — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:26:52 GMT

Kubuntu 9.10 was released today, as well as the other Ubuntu 9.10 flavors (Xubuntu, Ubuntu).

Here's a video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzajPDcJJ5A) of one of the alpha's leading up to this release, if you're not familiar with the KDE desktop.

(Please visit the site to view this media)

Psystar To Sell Its Mac OS X Enabling Software

News — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 03:05:54 GMT

Psystar, obviously not satisfied with the hot water is already in with Apple, has announced it will begin selling the software it itself uses to install the Mac OS X operating system on generic Intel hardware. According to company, the software, called the "Rebel EFI suite," allows users to easily install any OS on a computer.

Psystar has already been sued by Apple over selling Mac clones, with Mac OS X pre-installed on the computers. Apple says that doing so violates the EULA for Mac OS X, which says:

"You agree not to install, use or run the Apple Software on any non-Apple-labeled computer, or to enable others to do so."

which is a pretty straight-forward and simple statement. Still, to this point, Psystar has remained defiant. A trial date has been set for January 11, 2010.

According to the company, the software is compatible with the following CPUs: Intel Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, i7 or Xeon Nehalem. Sorry, AMD.

Psystar has a demo version of the software available for download. Users can install Mac OS X, but with "limited hardware functionality as compared with the full version." The full version of the Rebel EFI suite, removing any hardware limitations, costs $49.99, which would be pretty reasonable, if it works.

Psystar says that its software, through the use of the Darwin Universal Boot Loader, which available in the full version of the Rebel EFI Suite, will allow installing and running multiple operating systems, including Windows 7 as well as XP, Vista, various Linux flavors and OS X Snow Leopard.

There's reason to assume that it does work, considering that Psystar says this is the very software it uses itself to install Mac OS X on its Intel-based hardware. Of course, one difference between Macs and PCs is the wide variety of hardware available on PCs. That's what makes Windows impressive, despite its criticisms; while Mac OS X is great, it only has to support a limited amout of hardware, and that's far easier than what Microsoft has to do.

Given that, Psystar also announced the Psystar Labs approval program.

Users who are having difficulties getting a specific device to work correctly on their machines would send in their component to have it certified. The most common hardware set-ups are compatible, and through PsyLabs we will continue to work toward the Rebel EFI supporting an ever-broader range of hardware profiles.

One has to wonder how long past January 2010, given the trial date, these Labs will be running.

"Get a Mac" Ads Target Windows 7 (Already)

News — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 20:49:12 GMT

Apple isn't wasting any time. It's only been two days, and already they have "Get a Mac" ad all ready to blast Microsoft's just released OS, Windows 7. Naturally, they waited until after the OS was released to spring these on us.

There are three, count 'em, three ads.

The first is “Broken Promises." It's a series of flashbacks to promises made by earlier versions of Windows. Basically, it is a series of "It's not going to have any of the problems that Windows blah had" vignettes, where it is whatever version of Windows followed the problematic one. Apple's message: they're all problematic.

Then there's "Teeter Tottering." That shows a Windows user switching from Windows XP. The "big move," as she called it, is not to Windows 7, but over to the Mac. “I could stick with what I know, but what I know is pain and frustration.” Ouch!

The final ad is "PC News," with PC talking to a reporter at the Windows 7 launch. Unfortunately, the feed from the launch showed many getting ready to upgrade, but once again, to a Mac. Oops. Cut to commercial, but oh, wow, this is already a commercial. Yikes!

Students Finding WIndows 7 Upgrade Cheap, But Not Easy

News — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:35:26 GMT

The first SNAFU to show up on Windows 7, and it's not even an issue with the software, or even Microsoft. Rather, it's an issue with the installation package provided by Digital River for the nicely discounted student upgrade package that Microsoft has been offering at Win741.com.

Now, Digital River is not small potatoes when it comes to digital distribution of software, so it's amazing this sort of fiasco has happened. Instead of delivering a simple .ISO image that could be burned to a DVD, students receive an .EXE file that must be run to decompress two .BOX files. That's where the issue lies.

When trying to "Unload the Box" as the step is called, those trying to upgrade from a 32-bit OS to a 64-bit version of Windows 7 receive the error message ‘We are unable to create or save new files in the folder in which this application was downloaded.”

Microsoft has acknowledged the issue, saying:

Microsoft is aware that users who ordered the 64-bit Version of Windows 7 through the Windows 7 Student Offer and did not order the DVD Backup Media may have difficulty installing if their current operating system is running a 32-bit version of Windows such as Windows XP. Users who have encountered this difficulty should contact Digital River using the Customer Support link at the bottom of the page http://windows7.digitalriver.com/store/mswpus/help for possible solutions that would allow you to install Windows 7.

Naturally, it would have been much simpler if Microsoft / Digital River had simply supplied an ISO image. Ah, but it is possible to convert what Digital River delivered into such an ISO image. The problem is, that's only after you've gotten around the issue above.

Microsoft has also noted that there are other issues: for some, the download hangs at a certain percentage and won't continue or resume. In other cases, users get a generic unspecified error message. In the first case, it appears there is some incompatibility with 3rd party programs; in the second, the files may be incomplete or corrupt.

Assuming you have managed to download the files and extracted them, as well, you will end up with a folder called expandedSetup. Store that at your root directory (c:\) to make things easier.

Then, you'll need a tool from Microsoft. OSCDIMG is a tool included with the Windows Automated Installation kit (but that whole kit is nearly a GB in size). Download OSCDIMG.zip from here. Extract the contents of the file to your c:\Windows\System32 directory (or whatever amounts to that on your PC).

Next, open an "elevated" command prompt. To do this, in Vista you select Start, then Run, then type "cmd" and hit CTRL-SHIFT-ENTER. In XP, just type 'cmd' into the same Run dialog.

Then type the following into your command prompt (this assumes the expandedSetup folder is at the root, or c:\, as I suggested):

oscdimg.exe –u2 –b"C:\expandedSetup\boot\etfsboot.com" –h "C:\expandedSetup" C:\Windows7.ISO

You will end up with a Windows7.ISO file in your root (C:\) directory that you can then burn using a variety of methods. Then all you need to do is install it, which is another issue entirely.

Harry Potter Bows Down To Windows 7 Pre-Orders

News — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:50:58 GMT

Man, we knew Windows 7 would be a hit, but we definitely didn't seethis coming. The proverbial giant has been toppled, as Microsoft'snewest OS--which launched today, by the way--has beaten the mightyHarry on Amazon UK's pre-order charts. What Harry, you ask? HarryPotter, of course!

As of yesterday, Windows 7 was the outfit's best-selling pre-ordereditem of all time, though specific numbers weren't disclosed. Thosepre-orders began on July 15th, and they even sold out (albeit for onlya short period of time) that very same day. What's wild is that Win7'spre-order rate beat out Vista in a bad, bad way. The amount of Win7pre-orders within the first eight hours beat the amount of Vistapre-orders during the latter's entire pre-order period.

Of course, Microsoft's tasty upgrade pricing and the generalunhappiness with Vista probably helped matters, but to put Mr. Potterto shame (in Rowling's homeland, no less) is still a mighty feat. Goodgoing Microsoft--if you can keep this up, we'd say you'll be enjoying alovely Q4.

Rogue Security Software Infects Millions of PCs: Symantec

News — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 16:20:27 GMT

Symantec has released a report (.PDF) on what it calls "rogue security software." According to the report, Symantec has detected over 250 distinct rogue security software programs, and during the timeframe of the report, July 2008 - June 2009, 43 million attempted downloads of such rogue programs. The company was unable to determine exactly how many installs completed.

One of the most prevalent ways for these bogus AV programs to install is when a user browses to a website, which then pops up a message saying that "your PC is vulnerable," or "your PC is infected" or other similar warning. This type of scenario is an attempt to install "scareware" on a user's PC. If a user falls for the warning, he could download and install what is essentially malware.Of course, that's not the only way that such programs are distributed. They also infect PCs via the tried-and-true email attachment method. Of course, more users are savvy enough to avoid that trap, and many webmail providers pre-scan your email anyway.

That is yet another reason to use a free webmail provider such as Gmail. For example, if you redirect your email (even your own domain's email) through Gmail, it will check for spam and malware, and at the same time allow you to reply back to the email originator via the email address that was used.

Just as with legitimate businesses, traffickers in rogue security software use affiliate-based programs to distributed their malware. According to the report, these affiliates can make a considerable amount of money:

In the case of TrafficConverter.biz, the website was associated with the Downadup worm as a URL from which Downadup attempted to download its payload. The site was shut down in November 2008 before the worm could download the unknown payload. TrafficConverter.biz and other reincarnations of the website paid affiliates $30 per sale of their rogue security software programs, such as XP Antivirus. The site purported to have at least 500 active affiliates, with top affiliates earning as much as $332,000 in a month for installing and selling security risks—including rogue security software programs—onto users’ computers. The top 10 earning affiliates purportedly each earned $23,000 per week, on average.

You probably recall the Downadup worm, also known as Conficker, which was probably one of the most highly publicized malware programs of all time. Of course, with all the publicity, it was more a bust than a bang.

Still, some common sense and people wouldn't run into these rogue security programs in the first place. The key points are: have some sort of security software on your system (such as Microsoft's new free software); don't believe a site that tells you you're infected assuming you already have AV software installed; and don't open attachments you aren't expecting.

The top 10 rogue security programs, according to Symantec, are:

Spyware Guard 2008
AntiVirus 2008
AntiVirus 2009
Spyware Secure
XPAntivirus
WinFixer
SafeStrip
Error Repair
Internet Antivirus
DriveCleaner

Firefox plug in

bob_on_the_cob — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 07:34:45 GMT

Ok so I have a random question. Right now I use foxmarks to sync bookmarks between my laptop and desktop. Sometimes I have a page that I would like to read on the other system. Like I am sitting outside and I start to read a long article and I go inside and would like to finish it on the big screen. Right now I bookmark it with foxmarks of email it to myself since I have been trying Chrome on my laptop. What I want is a plug in to send a page to my laptop from my desktop and the other way around.

Snow Leopard Could Eat Your Data, But Apple's Working On A Fix

News — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 05:14:50 GMT

Apple prides itself on providing operating systems that "just work," though some are saying OS X 10.6 (its latest version) "just works against you." Too harsh? Maybe, but there's no denying that the latest bug is one that's simply too large to stay quiet about. For years, OS X was as stable a consumer OS as the world had ever seen; by and large, the system never really caused users any major issues, and security concerns were practically nil.

With the introduction of Snow Leopard, however, more bugs than ever are surfacing. Some of it probably has to do with the wider customer base that Apple has gained with its surge in popularity, but there's just no excuse for having a bug that literally consumes a user's data if they make one wrong move in the Guest Account. And mind you, this bug is still present even after 10.6.1.

As the story goes, users upgrading their Apple system to 10.6 could actually delete all of their data by entering the Guest Account at the wrong time. Users all over the Web have reported that entering the Guest Account would cause the system to hang, and when the forced an exit, their main profile greeted them with no user data at all. Documents, media, everything--just gone.

Of course, the easy fix is to simply disable the Guest Account, but what if that's a feature you routinely use? After widespread outrage, Apple has come forward to acknowledge the problem and promise a fix. In typical Apple fashion, it asserts that the problem only occurs in rare cases, but still, this is a huge, huge issue. If you don't backup your data, and you accidently surf over to the Guest Account in Snow Leopard, you just might lose all of your data. Not cool. Oh, and considering that Windows 7 launches next week, the timing here couldn't possibly be worse for Apple (or better for Microsoft, as it were). Might a new PC vs. Mac ad be on the horizon?

Firefox Users Exposed to Vulnerability Via MS Stealth Install

News — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 18:55:30 GMT

Earlier this year, Microsoft released the .NET Framework 3.5 update. At the same time, as an added bonus, end users would get an extra Firefox extension, the "Microsoft .NET Framework Assistant (ClickOnce)," without being asked. That's bad enough, but at the same time the extension made Firefox vulnerable to attack. Additionally, let's not forget the other stealth install, a plug-in called "Windows Presentation Foundation."

This sort of behavior is what we call a stealth install. Sometimes what's installed is spyware, or adware, and sometimes you can't get rid of it. That was the case with the original version of the extension: it could not be disabled or uninstalled, unlike most Firefox extensions, without some registry editing, not something most people are comfortable with.

Later versions added the ability to uninstall and delete the extension. That doesn't make the stealth install any more forgivable, however. And the fact that it added a vulnerability to Firefox adds insult to injury.

In a post on Microsoft's Security Research and Defense site, the company said:

While the vulnerability is in an IE component, there is an attack vector for Firefox users as well. The reason is that .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 installs a “Windows Presentation Foundation” plug-in in Firefox [...]

Nice. Our recommendation? Uninstall the darn thing. It's not like you can't live without the functionality they add to Firefox.

ClickOnce enables the user to install and run a Windows application by clicking a link in a web page. The core principle of ClickOnce is to bring the ease of deployment of web applications to the Windows user. In addition, ClickOnce aims to solve three other problems with conventional deployment models: the difficulty in updating a deployed application, the impact of an application to the user's computer, and the need for administrator permissions to install applications.

The vulnerability was patched by Microsoft in its Patch Tuesday release for October. According to Microsoft, the vulnerability is "critical," and can be exploited against any version of IE, including IE8.

Microsoft Security Essentials Downloaded 1.5 Million Times in First Week

News — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 04:37:02 GMT

While Symantec and other antivirus firms may make gibes at Microsoft's free Security Essentials antivirus, Microsoft reportedly offered the product in order to increase AV coverage in regions where people can't afford to pay for one. At least, that's the reason they gave, and at first glance it appears MSE is making some headway.

According to Microsoft, in the first week they saw over 1.5 million downloads of Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE). At the same time, the company reported only 535,752 distinct PCs running the software (hey, where'd the rest go?). However, the companycounted four million malware detections on those machines, which is the main reason they released MSE anyway. so all is not lost.

In terms of OS usage, 44% of MSE users are running Windows 7, followed by XP at 33% and Vista at 23%. Poor Vista, still trailing XP. Despite the platform distribution, 52% of detections were on XP PCs, while Vista was next, with 32% of detections. Windows 7 was last, or rather, lowest, with 16%.

Microsoft also tried to pitch the above numbers as evidence that Windows 7 is more secure than the other OSes, by noting that there are far more detections per machine in the older OSes. Interesting, particularly since the Windows 7 PCs outnumbered the XP and Vista machines.

By looking at detections divided by active Microsoft Security Essentials machines over the whole population, we see far more detections per XP machine, with the fewest from Win7. This follows our usual observed trend of seeing less malware on newer OSes and service packs.

OK, that's a good sales pitch for next week's Windows 7 release, isn't it?

At the same time, the nature of the malware found differed from country to country. Trojans were the top detected category in the U.S. Meanwhile, there were many exploits being encountered in China, which Microsoft attributed to PCs without the latest security updates. And that would happen if, perhaps, ahem, the PCs had pirated OSes and couldn't get said updates.

At any rate, this is a pretty good start for Microsoft's security offering. In reality, Symantec and the like can deny any worries, and they'd be right. Those firms that really need to worry about MSE are AVG, Avast, and other free AV vendors, who many feel the impact soon.

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recoveringknowitall — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 16:18:49 GMT

Paragon Partition Mgr. 9.5(32 or 64bit)can be downloaded for free until tomorrow!

LINK

Belkin's Easy Transfer Cable Makes WinXP/Vista-To-Windows 7 Upgrade Painless

News — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:02:09 GMT

You've heard horror stories from your pals who attempted to handle datamigration processes on their own, and you're scared to death to makethe leap to Windows 7. Thankfully, Belkin knows just what a tough spotyou're in, and it has devised a dedicated cable to solve the problemthat worries you most: upgrading. Of note, this cable won't do you anygood if you're planning to upgrade your existing machine from WindowsXP/Vista to Windows 7, but if you're putting together an all new rigand would like to migrate your data and settings over to the fresh rig,this should make your life a lot easier.

We'll confess--the Easy Transfer Cable for Windows 7 seems a bitunnecessary, but then again, we're PC enthusiasts. Something tells usthis is being marketed at those who don't know the different between anupload and a download, and if the cable does what it says it'll do,quite a few of those novices will be singing Belkin's praises shortlyafter October 22nd comes and goes. According to the company, the EasyTransfer Cable simplifies the transfer process with uninterruptedtransfer and a post-migration report that provides comprehensive detailof what was transferred. And yes, it works with both Windows XP andVista-based systems.

Of course, it'll cost you $39.99 for the time savings and promise of noheadaches, but you know, it could just be worth it if you're not usedto handling these things yourself. Or, you know, you could just pay your buddy to do it for $20...whatever!

AVAILABILITY
October 23, 2009, in North America

Q1 2010 in Europe and Asia

Pre-orders available on Amazon

Easy Transfer Cable for Windows 7 (F5U279) - $39.99
Migrates the following content easily and quickly, including*:
Music, photos, movies, documents, and other content
User accounts
Settings and customizations for Windows
Files and folders
Program settings and data files
Email messages and contacts
Quick setup in 3 easy steps: install software, connect the cable, and follow on-screen prompts
Transfers your information much faster than burning CDs, setting up a network, or other means of copy data
Sets up your new computer in minutes with your favorite settings from your existing computers and other devices
Post-migration report provides comprehensive view of what wastransferred, including lists of all programs and applications installedon old PC and links to download latest versions of programs
Improved custom selection: user interface allows you to specify which items you want to transfer
Officially designed for Microsoft Windows Easy Transfer utility
Moves files between two PCs at speeds of up to 480Mbps. Estimate transfer of up to 7,500 songs per hour to your new computer.
USB 2.0 Hi-Speed (480Mbps) and fully backward-compatible with USB 1.1 low-speed (12/1.5Mbps)
Windows 7 32- and 64-bit certified
8-foot cable length

European Union Approves Microsoft "Choose Your Browser" Option

News — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 03:58:43 GMT

Microsoft and the EU are finally close to an agreement on how Windows 7's browser should be configured after months of negotiation. Initially, Redmond's idea was to ship the OS without a browser at all, a move the EU nixed, as it felt this would result in consumers being offered less value, rather than more. Microsoft's new idea, unveiled last July and batted back and forth several times since, was to include a "Choose Your Browser" option as part of Windows 7 startup.

After further negotiation, that's the solution the EU is expected to agree to. Consumers who purchase the OS retail will be shown a list of browsers, an explanation of what a browser is, and a link they can click on for more information; users will have the option of installing Internet Explorer plus another browser, or eschewing IE entirely. As for which browsers it might offer, Microsoft is likely to err on the side of caution; Firefox, Chrome, Opera, and Safari are the likely suspects. It's implied (though not confirmed) that the "choose your browser" deal will stretch across all of the flavors of Windows Microsoft currently sells, although the focus to date has been on the upcoming Windows 7.

What EU customers might be seeing in a few short months.

Longer term, Microsoft's antitrust deal with the EU could shed new light on consumer preferences. Traditionally, Microsoft has maintained that consumers have always had a choice of browsers, and pointed towards the success of competitive browers like Firefox as proof that it held no special monopoly over the marker. The counter-argument to that has been that computer users tend to use whatever default has been installed on the system, and that consumers would choose other options if they were aware of them. If the current scheme is approved, both sides will finally have a chance to test their respective theories.

An EU-MS agreement over browser selection would clear the company's table in one area, but Microsoft is already bracing for a fresh round of scrutiny. The company's advertising deal with Yahoo—announced earlier this year—still faces regulatory scrutiny in both the EU and the US; the two companies must prove that their agreement will not harm market competition.