Last Patch Tuesday, PowerPoint got a security advisory about a zero-day exploit that uses remote execution. This coming Tuesday, a critical patch for the problem will be out.
The good news is that few of these PowerPoint attacks have been made, and they only affect older versions of the tool. The better news? In less than a week, your PowerPoint should be secure.
Posted on May 08, 20090 comments
When the economy goes south, a lot of expenses get quickly cut. Collision on your car insurance gets axed, those expensive guitar lessons for the kids get shelved, and lobster dinners are replaced with Hamburger Helper.
In the case of IT, middleware goes to the bottom of the heap. The Gartner Group claims middleware isn't just stuck in neutral, but is in reverse, with a nearly 1 percent decline this year. One bright spot in this otherwise gray forecast is Microsoft, which is gaining ground largely through its cloud services.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 08, 20090 comments
"Hey, hey, Ray, Ray, can't off of that cloud!" Now that I've subjected you to the world's worst pun, let me tell you about Ray Ozzie's latest cloud proclamations. In a recent
Q&A session, Ray talked about a world where we have three main data devices -- "something the size of a phone, something the size of a PC, and something the size of a TV."
These won't be the silos they are today, but all three devices will be synchronized over the cloud. Heck, if I could just get my phone to work properly with my laptop, I'd be a happy man!
Microsoft is obviously building the cloud infrastructure, but it's also at work adapting key apps. Office, for instance, won't be simply PC-bound in the future, but Office services will be available by phone or other small devices. My advice? Get it to work properly on netbooks first.
Is all this cloud talk just so much fluff or a future you can't wait to experience? Float your thoughts over to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on May 06, 20091 comments
Monday was a dark day for some Microsoft employees. They must have known it was coming as months ago Steve Ballmer announced the firm would lay off some 5,000 workers, but only immediately
hacked 1,400.
Even with that knowledge, it had to be hard for the up to 3,600 others to finally get the news. In discussing yesterday's layoffs, Ballmer said more cuts may be needed if the economy doesn't pick up.
Sales and revenue may be down, but Microsoft remains a highly profitable company and we here at Redmond magazine are bullish on the future of the Microsoft market. Heck, I even stuck my neck out in a cover story explaining why Microsoft will be just fine. Take a peek and tell me where I'm wrong at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on May 06, 20090 comments
Interested in cloud computing? Have a few databases you'd love to move out of your datacenter but need proof the cloud will really work? Then a
new testing program from Microsoft might be perfect for you.
Project Huron is a "synchronization-enabled cloud data hub" that runs under Azure. The idea is to have the database in the cloud, and have multiple users query and update the data without conflict. While this is old hat with standard databases on a single server, as I understand it, Microsoft is talking about multiple databases synced together via the cloud. That's a bit trickier.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 06, 20090 comments
Over the last few years, a few new companies have touted their search engines as superior to Google. I would then perform a simple test: Googling myself. None could match the master.
Now comes a new player: Wolfram. This tool promises the world. It doesn't just return results based on keywords, but shows a deeper understanding, offering answers that would make a Harvard prof proud. A couple of examples in an article from The Independent? It can play a scale based on a search for a note or compare the height of Everest to the Golden Gate Bridge (I don't want to give away the surprise, but apparently the mountain is higher).
This is all well and good, but my sense is the system can't automatically reach all these conclusions, but that vastly more complex tagging will be needed. And if this really is a Google killer, Google will probably just buy it.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 04, 20090 comments
How many times have you seen software break and the fix is to shut down some software? It's like telling a guy with no brakes not to push the brake pedal.
Our latest example of this time-honored tradition is Adobe, whose Reader has a hole big enough for hackers to drive a zero-day attack through. The flaw lies with JavaScript and the fix is -- you guessed it -- to turn off JavaScript.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 04, 20090 comments
As an industry long-timer (I started covering PCs on June 4, 1984), I well know who Ray Kurzweil is. This pioneer in optical character recognition, text to speech, and synthesizers (where would Yes have been without him?) never stopped inventing. Now Google has tapped Kurzweil to help run a
new Google-sponsored university called Singularity.
Only 40 students will be accepted each term, and instead of book-learning, pupils will work on projects that could change the world, like solving food shortages, addressing global warming and fighting disease.
But if you thought Wharton or MIT or Bennington were expensive, get a load of Singularity. It costs a cool $25,000 for nine short weeks.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 04, 20090 comments
Microsoft gets a bad rap over security issues, but Dan thinks open source systems shouldn't be left off the hook:
For those who bash the security of Microsoft systems, they might want to subscribe to the National Cyber Alert System from the National Institute of Standards (here's their weekly rundown of "New Vulnerabilities"). Considering that Windows is on 90 percent of desktop systems and that Microsoft spends a lot of time in the cross-hairs of its detractors, I'd say that Microsoft is generally under-representated on this list. The occurence of BIMBO software (Built In My Basement Occasionally) on the list keeps me more afraid of the Linux and open source crowd.
Microsoft isn't perfect, but it tries to fix the vulnerabilities that it has. With each new release of the Windows operating system, Microsoft knows its vulnerabilities and attempts to write the next version better than the previous. Security is a two-edged sword: If it is an easy and flexible environment to program in, then it probably has low security. If it is a more secure environment, then there will be more rules and the violations of those rules will be more severely dealt with. Back in the day, when Big Blue ruled, there was always the "Anything but IBM" crowd. It should have been easy to predict that we'd now have the "Anything but Microsoft" crowd. I guess we'll have to wait longer for the perfect operating system that is piloted by the truly benevolent dictator.
-Dan
Paul shares his thoughts on why Apple's bottom line, and why its computers are priced the way they are:
Marc said on Friday that "Dell and HP 'take a loss' on those entry-level systems but they make it up on very high volumes." I'm sorry but if I sold one computer and lost $1 and then sold a million computers, I would not make a profit but loose a million dollars. Apple has no intention -- nor has it ever wanted -- to sell a cheap computer. Its last price-competitive computer was in the '70s when it was trying to start up the business. Then it released the Lisa and boy, it has not looked back.
If Apple is so great, why can't it sell a competitive computer? Its computers aren't better so much as they are very controlled for the coolness factor. But I would rather have a less cool-looking computer that works and is affordable (comparable to a Dell) than one that looks cool and costs way too much. I think Microsoft is on target when it points out the cost difference. Now, if it could find a good ad company to come up with an ad that rivals Apple's, it would be set. It's all about branding and Apple does that well.
-Paul
Readers chime in on their impressions of Windows 7 so far and how it can be improved:
I have "obtained" a copy of Windows 7 RC1. I had a VM of Windows 7 beta 1 running and wasn't all that impressed; it didn't run very fast in my VM compared to the Win XP Pro that was also running in my VM. It also didn't have too many more features than Vista so I chalked up much of the hype to people who never really tried Vista and had a lot of new features when going from XP to Windows 7.
I installed Windows 7 RC1, replacing my copy of beta 1, and I am now a believer! It now runs FASTER than my XP VM, is stable and compatible with all of my software and hardware! It used substantially less resources than Vista and had a better user experience. I swear the development teams at Microsoft like to play little tricks on us every now and again! I always joked about removing Thread.Sleeps in my code to look like a hero late in the development cycle but I was never serious! Anyway, Windows 7 RC1 is so impressive that I am very tempted to install it over my Vista Ultimate x64 on my home PC.
-Nathan
I think it would be of great help to have a Windows 7 migration map from Vista and XP highlighting the process flow, the code input source, the price and the mode to perform it.
-Ezio
Meanwhile, Esteban's having trouble getting the Windows 7 beta in the first place:
I got the Windows 7 beta and installed it on one of my test bed computers and the hard drive crashed. Nothing to do with Windows; the hard drive was ready to go. When I went looking for the Windows 7 media that I had created, the media and ISO mysteriously disappeared from my office. I was not too happy but I didn't want to fight that fight with my guys so I let it go. I called Microsoft to get the download again and guess what: They will not give us the download again. I told them that I was testing this OS and that I have my CD key, etc., but Microsoft in India will not help me get the download.
It is a shame because we have a lot of say on what goes into our clients' machines and without being able to test it, it is hard to give my clients feedback. I have kept them all on XP because Vista is the little brother of Windows ME, in my opinion. Do you happen to know who I can contact so I can get Windows 7 again and we can put this thing through hell and back and see how it works?
-Esteban
Got any tips for Esteban? How about your thoughts on anything covered today? Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on May 04, 20090 comments
Microsoft has been
talking up the so-called "Mac tax" to dissuade people from moving to Apple. Marc thinks it's a little disingenuous to call it that:
For what it is worth, the "Mac Tax" is not real! If you want, you can configure a Dell with specifications virtually identical to any Macintosh in the Apple product line and come up with very nearly identical pricing. The catch, of course, is that an Apple Macintosh is severely overpowered to meet the needs of most folks. Most folks can meet their computing needs with a $500 to $800 Dell, or they can go overboard and spend $1,000 and get a "fully loaded" Dell that will last them a good five years. Or, they can buy a "bottom-of-the-line" MacBook.
The truth is that if Apple could sell as many computers as Dell or HP, they could afford to sell low-end $500 computers, but because they don't sell a large enough number of computers to tolerate the extremely narrow profit margins Dell and HP get on those $500 systems, Apple simply cannot afford to do so. Dell and HP "take a loss" on those entry-level systems but they make it up on very high volumes and the occasional sale of $1,000-plus systems. All of Apple's systems must be $1,000-plus systems for them to stay in business.
-Marc
And one reader chimes in about an anecdote Doug told a few weeks ago about his daughter forgoing a cheap PC for a Mac:
Interesting story about Lauren, but it assumes everyone can just plop down a grand or more for a Mac and are just too cheap or stupid to do so. Personally, my home laptop isn't important enough to me to lay out that kind of cash. I've purchased laptops for myself and both my daughters for less than any single Mac I've seen on sale here. My $300 Toshiba running Vista hasn't given me one problem. (Low-dollar laptops running Vista. Goodness! How anti-geek of me.) The same can be said for my daughters' HP and Acer. Plus, if they lose them, I can afford to replace them. When I have to replace a PC it is far less painful than replacing a $1,500 Mac. The truth is that many many people just can't afford an overpriced, almost criminally proprietary computer.
I should make clear that my rant concerns only the Mac and the situation with replacing cheaper systems with the Mac. I'm not disparaging your daughter, who is probably a complete adorabloid and, like all little girls, deserves to be spoiled rotten by their daddy. I know mine do.
-G.
Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on May 01, 20090 comments
If you aren't interested in Windows 7, you might want to skip down to our
letters section and pass over the next three items 'cause they're all about 7.
Earlier this week we talked about an XP compatibility mode tossed into Windows 7 at the last minute. Even though 7 seems pretty dang compatible, the XP Mode news was good. Then the doubts crept in: Would XP Mode be only for well-heeled Software Assurance customers?
We have the answer. XP Mode is only for semi-well-heeled Windows 7 Ultimate, Enterprise and Professional customers.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 01, 20090 comments
So the last item has you thinking about Windows 7. Want to try it? You can, and not just a beta, but a nearly done release candidate. RC1 has been
out through BitTorrent for a while, and I even snuck a peek at it this week in Las Vegas (what software goes in Vegas stays in Vegas).
You can now go the official route and get the RC direct from Microsoft. If you subscribe to MSDN or TechNet, the software is all yours. If not, just wait 'til next Tuesday when there will be an overall public beta.
With moves like XP Mode, the dirt-cheap pricing of PCs, and the stability and performance, Windows 7 is a far better bet than any I made in Vegas.
Posted by Doug Barney on May 01, 20090 comments