Tomorrow, many (but not enough, in my opinion) will take the day off in honor
of Veterans Day. The only trouble for IT is tomorrow is also Patch Tuesday.
Luckily,
only
two patches are expected tomorrow. And only one of these patches, to fix
a remote code execution in Office and Windows, is deemed critical.
Are you taking off Veterans Days, and if so, why? Your opinions and beliefs
welcome at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on November 10, 20080 comments
Microsoft and Yahoo sometimes act more like dating teenagers than real grown-up
companies. First, Microsoft asked Yahoo to be its one and only with a multibillion-dollar
bid. Yahoo wanted to play the field, and said, "Thanks, but no thanks."
Then Microsoft, feeling snubbed, pulled back its affections -- just when Yahoo
was starting to get interested.
Now that Yahoo's relationship with Google to share ad revenue fell
apart, Yahoo is pining for good old Microsoft. In fact, last week, Yahoo's
Jerry Yang said Microsoft
would be well-served by buying his company. Alas, it appears that Steve
Ballmer has moved on.
Posted by Doug Barney on November 10, 20080 comments
I've long been concerned about XP's and Vista's inability to exploit
multi-core
processors. Both generally do a good job of using dual-cores and, depending
on the apps, can gain some benefit from quad-cores.
Windows Server is different. The latest rev of Windows Server 2008 uses up
to 64 processors. R2, due out in the next year or two, promises to exploit as
many as 256. That could handle some mighty big databases, legions of mailboxes
and a fair share of SharePoint!
What is your biggest server and what does it do? Brag to me at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on November 10, 20080 comments
Based on early demos,
Windows
7 already looks much-improved compared to Vista. Doug asked readers how
they think the next OS will stack up to its predecessors:
Maybe Microsoft will get it right with Windows 7. I've said all along
that if Microsoft had an OS which was small and responsive, it would win over
many companies. If the price is right and the performance is better than XP
on our computers, we would switch to the new Vista.
-Mike
Windows 7 was good to take out some of the driver loading. But I've seen
some of the videos of demos and they are ALL about appearance. Most of us
don't need fancy front-ends (many people rarely have more than one app running
at a time, possibly two if they are daft enough to monitor their e-mail).
They need something simpler, more stable and more secure.
-Joe
I think Windows 7 is already competing more with Vista than it will with
XP. However, as I think of my recently bought laptop and the pain I went through
to get my apps working, I doubt that I will risk losing them by updating to
Windows 7. This is in spite of the good words about Win 7. There is peripheral
hardware involved and I am not confident the change would go well.
-John
Windows XP can be a more effective OS, but it still lacks in operating
ability, troubleshooting techniques and user-friendliness. XP has been around
for about seven years, but it still doesn't meet today's customer expectations.
I think Microsoft should have developed and invested more on XP rather than
any other OS.
-Brian
We have resisted using XP in our organisation for some time now since
upgrading from 2000. Because of the fact that XP is very stable (ironically,
not on my PC at home) and performs very well on our newer PCs, we have no
reason to use Vista. We will be keeping a keen eye on Win 7 as hopefully it
will fulfil the role Vista was supposed to.
I have used Vista a number of times and although the general look and
feel are OK and functional, it still seems overly heavy on hardware.
-Colin
What do you think? Leave your comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on November 10, 20080 comments
With the Professional Developers Conference (PDC) barely over, Microsoft conference
organizers have already moved onto WinHEC, the Windows Hardware Engineering
Conference. PDC was all about Windows 7. Guess what?
So
is WinHEC!
Most know that one of Vista's biggest bugaboos is hardware incompatibility.
It's no surprise, then, that hardware compatibility was Topic No. 1 at WinHEC,
where Windows execs touted a new approach to integrating and loading all those
device drivers.
Most also know that one of Vista's biggest bugaboos is performance -- at least,
the lack thereof on lower-end hardware. For Windows 7, Microsoft is using parallel
techniques to speed hardware and is changing the way applications load. Instead
of loading and remaining in memory, applications will be loaded just when needed.
Finally, most know that one of Vista's biggest bugaboos is the eternity it
can take to shut down the machine. Windows 7 should be orders of magnitude faster
to turn off -- in part, I'd guess, because fewer items remain active in memory.
Will Windows 7 compete more with Vista or XP? And does XP SP2 satisfy your
computing needs? Send me your thoughts at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on November 06, 20080 comments
Adobe Reader is about as ubiquitous to PC users as milk is to babies. That's
why the Adobe Reader's stack overflow flaw is so troubling and installing
Adobe's
new patch so important.
Without the patch, hackers can build a malicious PDF -- and once one is built,
these creeps will pass it around like a bottle of Ripple in a hobo camp. This
one bad PDF, then, could let hackers control literally millions of PCs.
Another smart move? Updating your Reader, as the flaw only affects older versions.
Posted by Doug Barney on November 06, 20080 comments
Last week, after Microsoft announced plans to offer a stripped-down version
of Office to
run
in the cloud, Doug asked readers what it would take for them to put their
files on the Web. Here's what you said:
A frontal lobotomy and a bottle in front of me.
-James
In your article, you ask what it would take for a reader to put their
files in a cloud somewhere. My answer is: NOTHING. I wouldn't do it. I know
we're breeding a whole new generation that believes having your apps and files
in a cloud is supposed to be more appealing and secure than traditional methods,
but for me, I don't want my files to be the responsibility of anyone but myself.
If my Internet connection is down and I need to work, where are my files?
If the Web site where they are stored gets taken down or fails, where are
my files? If I have to access the Internet over dial-up, are my files really
accessible? If someone hacks the site hosting my files, are they still there,
and if so, are they all over the world, as well?
No thank you! I will keep my files safe, secure and backed up at my home
office and continue to use offline files when I travel. It's worked for me
for years, and with nine copies and regular tape backups (moved offsite every
week), I'll continue to have my files to work with when I need them and without
all the worries. For individuals who are comfortable with the possibility
of having their files unavailable, maybe it's a good thing. For myself, I
can't imagine giving my file storage and safety away. It's almost like asking
your best friend to mind your checkbook for you and make sure all your bills
are paid, too. I may trust them, but never that far.
-Anonymous
I can't see myself using such capabilities in the near future. I have
100GB of information and backups that I manage securely between my three personal
computers. Growth rate is 1 to 1.5GB per month. Remote access has not been
an issue thus far as a flash drive and a laptop have proved sufficient for
data I need to access away from home.
-Brian
I think cloud computing and Internet banking have some similarities. Why
do I manage my money over the Web? I have a written contract with the bank.
I can see my bank balance and my transactions at any time. I have access to
history. I know that I can withdraw my money whenever I need it. (The analogy
breaks down a bit here.) And I'm working with a firm that I can trust.
I'd want all of these things before storing my data in the cloud. I'd
also want to be able to 'back up' my files onto my personal computer whenever
I choose.
-Dave
And Floyd responds to another
reader's thoughts about Azure -- specifically, that people with dial-up
wouldn't be able to access the cloud OS:
Recently, Mike said that "dial-up...with today's large data transfer
requirements, is quite useless." I think Mike misses an opportunity for
dial up users in that Azure could be the perfect solution to these folks.
Why? Well, just like with the remote terminals we use here, the only bandwidth
that's needed is for updating those parts of the screen that change as the
user moves the mouse, opens a window, closes a window and so on. Since the
data is stored and worked on remotely, there would only be a couple of instances
where a large download of data would be required -- say, when printing a document
to a local printer or when saving a file to a local drive.
If Azure can provide me with cloud encryption for my files that I can
control, I say, "Bring it on!"
-Floyd
Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on November 06, 20080 comments
Google's Android OS may be small (small enough to drive the new Google phone)
but it has plenty of code it seems for hackers to attack. Case in point: Last
week, researchers showed how hackers can take over the phone by tricking the
user into going to a malicious Web page. With that control, your passwords could
be stolen, no matter how many obscure letters and characters they contain.
The patch is now
out and requires a simple restart.
Posted by Doug Barney on November 06, 20080 comments
Yesterday,
I wondered where Sen. McCain and now President-elect Obama stood on high-tech
issues. Well, all I had to do was go to the candidates' Web sites -- the answers
were already there!
Obama is for network
neutrality (so we can do pretty much what we want with our broadband connections),
wants to expand these broadband networks to areas not currently covered, invest
in the American high-tech industry, and use the Internet to let citizens track
government more closely.
McCain also posted
his positions on his Web site. He believes low capital gains taxes spur
risk and innovation, seeks low taxes for those investing in research and development,
wants the Internet to be a tax-free zone (at least on Internet use), and wants
more H-1B visas (which Bill Gates has long sought, as well),
Like his rival, McCain wants to expand broadband access. While he doesn't specifically
support net neutrality, he wants to preserve consumers' freedom to use their
connections as they like.
Posted by Doug Barney on November 05, 20080 comments
Anyone with a 401(k), a TV set or an ounce of sense knows our economy is in
deep fill-in-the-blank-with-the-expletive-of-your-choice. IT has been through
bad times before -- jobs were lost, budgets were slashed and cool technologies
were never adopted.
This one could be even worse. And preparations, if not already underway, should
be made soon. Smart IT folks like yourselves are proactive, finding ways to
cut spending before bosses decide your salary is a great place to start. Upgrades
may be downgraded, servers virtualized so they do more, little-used apps decommissioned,
and perhaps cloud services eyed as replacements for expensive server-bound programs.
What are you doing now, and what will you do in the near and perhaps grim future?
Inquiring minds want to know at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on November 05, 20080 comments
Chrome is still in beta, but that isn't stopping reviewers from weighing in.
On our Web site is a
review
that finds Chrome to be pretty good, pretty simple and pretty much in need of
a few more features like RSS.
But if you want to really dive deep into Chrome, check out what you and your
fellow IT pros had to say in this
Reader Review. And thanks to the dozen-plus of you that answered my many
Chrome questions.
Posted by Doug Barney on November 05, 20080 comments
Readers share their thoughts on the presidential election and what it would
really take to boost the economy:
I think that many will be surprised at the election results this year.
And as for the economy, I think we have more tough times ahead and getting
the government involved may not be the best course of action, unless it is
to encourage the banks to work with their customers to see what can be done
to keep them in their homes. I believe that these business cycles will happen
no matter what the government tries to do. All we can do is pray and vote.
-Raymond
The Austrian School of Economics' theory of the business cycle predicted
America's current financial fiasco, and its proponents like Congressman Ron
Paul not only recommended methods to avoid the disaster but have provided
recommendations on how to get ourselves out of it. Unfortunately, neither
of the leading presidential candidates (one of whom will be president-elect
shortly after I send this message) seems to have ever heard of the Austrian
School of Economics and probably wouldn't recognize that their own proposed
"solutions" are merely warmed-over Keynesian or even Marxist/fascist
ideas in some cases.
That said, I believe three things about the election: One, whoever wins
will regret winning by this time next year. Two, nothing is going to fundamentally
change for the better. Three, Americans are hosed (or should I say sheared?)
regardless of the outcome. Also, government should leave IT alone. But I think
government should leave everybody alone which would put all of those government
busybodies out of work -- so that ain't gonna happen, is it?
-J.C.
You said: "Apparently, when you have a $10 trillion deficit and a
collapsing economy, the answer is to increase spending and cut taxes. If I
ran Redmond that way, it would be out of business; and if I ran my house that
way, I'd be in a run-down apartment and my 1980 Porsche 928 would be repossessed."
I would like to point out that tax rates (I emphasize the word "rates"')
are a lot like prices. When a business is not getting enough buyers for its
products or services and its revenues are down, reducing the prices for those
goods and services is often a good idea. It is often possible to get enough
new buyers to bring overall revenues up. Government tax rates often behave
in a similar fashion, which is why, for instance, capital gains tax rate reductions
have usually resulted in increased revenues. I think you will also find that
the last few times that income tax rates were reduced, revenue did not fall.
-Rich
But it was Doug's ride of choice -- the aforementioned 1980 Porsche 928 --
that caught Bill's eye:
I always wanted a '80s 982 convertible but the family doubled from two
to four in '83 and '84. I have a '96 SL320 now -- probably cheaper to maintain
than the 928 but not the same.
-Bill
Check in tomorrow for your thoughts on cloud computing. 'Til then, tell us
what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on November 05, 20080 comments