Month: February 2008

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Windows 2008 Products Are Really Reedy For Launch??

MS-2008

In Los Angeles on Feb. 27, Microsoft will formally introduce Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008, and Visual Studio 2008. In many respects, they need no introduction. As the flagship products in Microsoft’s enterprise line, they’re used by millions of customers. Sales of Microsoft’s servers and tools have grown more than 10% annually for the last 22 quarters, fueling an $11.2 billion business. Windows Server Enterprise Edition alone grew at 35% last quarter.

The game tables are idle and the hallways are quiet on Microsoft’s Redmond, Wash., campus. All heads are down as the company’s developers race to meet their deadline for what’s billed as Microsoft’s biggest enterprise product launch ever. They’re not even close to making it.

But it’s been five years since Microsoft released a new server operating system–Windows Server 2003–and three years since it upgraded the database that runs on top of it, SQL Server. So the hoopla isn’t surprising, and, according to InformationWeek’s just-completed survey, there’s pent-up demand. But Microsoft–as it too often does–has fallen behind on two of the key pieces. SQL Server 2008’s delivery date has been pushed back to the third quarter, and the much-anticipated Hyper-V virtual machine hypervisor is running as much as six months behind Windows Server 2008, meaning Hyper-V probably won’t ship until the third quarter, either.

In other words, it will still be months before IT departments can push ahead with Windows Server virtualization or SQL Server upgrades, and it’s impossible to know the quality of those releases in the meantime. Microsoft’s vision for data center automation–a work-in-progress for the past five years that it now calls “Dynamic IT”–remains unfinished business. We’ll get back to that, but first the basics:

  • Windows Server 2008 was released to manufacturing earlier this month and will be generally available March 1. In addition to Hyper-V, major improvements include Server Core for task-specific deployment, Server Manager for simplified management, and a new version of Microsoft’s Web server, Internet Information Services 7.0.
  • SQL Server 2008’s key advances include no-fuss data encryption and a resource governor for tuning performance.
  • Visual Studio 2008 shipped in January. Its distinguishing features are the ability to develop applications for multiple versions of the .Net Framework and a focus on Web development.

Microsoft officials are trying to assuage concerns about Windows Server 2008’s compatibility with the applications customers use. A major compatibility program is under way, with 80 apps expected to be certified for use with Windows Server 2008 by late February and hundreds more vetted by Microsoft to work with the new operating system. The company has set up a Web site (www.windowsservercatalog.com) to track progress.

Adam Baum, an IT architect with the city of Mesa, Ariz., says Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008, and Visual Studio 2008 are evidence that Microsoft’s data center strategy is progressing. “They’ve listened and added what people wanted,” he says.

 

source:informationweek
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Study says 10% Piracy Reduction Worth US$40 Billion In Asia

Piracy

Business Software Alliance  released a new study showing the huge economic, tax and employment gains to be made in the Asian region if piracy was reduced by only 10% over the next four years.

If Australian piracy was reduced by 10% over the same timeframe, the BSA suggest that an additional 3,900 jobs could be created, AUD $2.1 billion in additional economic growth could be achieved, and Federal, regional and local governments could see their tax receipts swell by an astounding AUD $485 million.

On an Asia-wide level, the totals grow even higher – 435,000 new jobs, US$40 billion in economic growth and an eye watering US$5 billion in tax revenues.

That’s because, as the BSA study points out, “for every $1 spent on legitimate packaged software, an additional $1.25 is spent on related services from local vendors such as installing the software, training personnel and providing maintenance services” – essential services that many companies need, while also demonstrating that the true cost of software for companies isn’t just the cost of the software alone.

Spending accounted for 3.0% of gross domestic product (GDP), supported more than 23,500 IT companies with nearly 178,000 IT industry employees, and helped generate AUD $11.6 billion in IT-related taxes – all from a country of only around 20 million people.

Sheryle Moon, CEO of the Australian Information Industry Assocation (AIIA) commented that: “The growth of the Australian ICT industry is reliant on the ability of local companies to reap the benefits of their IP in the globalised marketplace. It is important that such innovation be protected at home and abroad from piracy. Protection would result in increased export revenue for Australia which is imperative to address the ICT trade deficit.”

So, what steps does the BSA suggest Governments can take to reduce software piracy? The study suggests what could well be a 5 point plan:

1. Update national copyright laws to implement World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) obligations;
2. Create strong enforcement mechanisms, as required by the World Trade Organization (WTO), including tough anti-piracy laws;
3. Dedicate significant government resources to the problem, including national IP enforcement units, cross-border cooperation, and more training for local officers;
4. Improve public education and awareness; and
5. Lead by example by requiring the public sector to use only legitimate software.

 

source:itwire
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HTC P3470 A cool Smartphone

HTC

HTC has announced the new quad-band smartphone which comes with a trendy 2.8 inch QVGA LCD touch screen.

The Smartphone will be powered by Windows 6 Mobile and offers better navigation with TomTom Navigator 6.

HTC P3470 comes with a 256 MB Flash memory, 1GB microSD memory card and 2 MP camera. The phone supports Bluetooth 2.0 but doesn’t have Wi-Fi or 3G.

The stylish and practical PDA phone weighs 122 gm with battery. HTC P3470 is powered by TI’s OMAP 850 201.5 MHz processor. The phone offers an easy navigation with 4-way Navigation wheel with an enter button in the middle.

HTC plans to boost the sales of the new P3470 by selling it through Orange Cellular services dealership network.

The smartphone which will be available in some parts of Europe within a month will cost around Euro 440 -470. The company claims that the phone has a long battery life offering around 350 minutes of talk time and 10 days of standby time.

source:topnews

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Symantec’s Online Living Report: Scary Stats For Parents

symantec

Symantec’s first ever ‘Norton Online Living Report’ (NOLR), taking into account Internet users across the globe, is a comprehensive report on the digital lifestyle habits of adults and children.

The survey was conducted online by third-party research firm Harris Interactive and returned a total of 4,687 adult and 2,717 child responses. All respondents spend at least one hour per month online and were surveyed in their native language across eight countries (U.S., U.K., Australia, Germany, France, Brazil, China and Japan).

Symantec says their NOLR report is the “first multi-region survey-based document to catalogue the migration of offline activities to the online world”.

The report finds that, more than ever, users around the world are turning online for their primary source of personal interaction and emotional connection – including dating, friendship and playing – as well as for information and communication.

For example, an unprecedented number of adult Internet users worldwide have made friends online (54% of Australians) and that many of them (52%) enjoy those relationships more than their offline friendships. This indicates a major shift in how people relate to one other and provides potential clues for the future of human interaction.

Of course Symantec didn’t just create the report for fun, they say that the report was created to “better comprehend how consumers interact with technology on a daily basis in order to understand the mindset of consumers worldwide”, with the detailed data within to be used by Symantec to “hone its products, deliver targeted and streamlined services and to anticipate online threats and trends”.

Another common theme represented through most of the data worldwide reveals that parents perception of what their children are doing online does not reflect the reality of what their children say they are doing. Read more in Itwire.

 

source:ITwire
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Yahtzee Game came to iPod

Yahtzee

Hasbro’s classic dice game Yahtzee is now available for third-generation iPod nanos, iPod classics and fifth-generation iPods.

Yahtzee is a Poker-themed game in which you have to score the most points by rolling five dice to make combinations in thirteen rounds. It’s been a popular family game since it was first introduced in the mid-1950s.

The iPod version, developed by Electronic Arts and licensed from Hasbro, includes multiple game modes and rule sets, help menus and hints, the ability to play against a friend or against a computer component with multiple skill levels, automatic score keeping, an auto-save function and custom sound effects and music.

The new game can be purchased from the iTunes Store for US$4.99.

source:pcworld

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Google Updates Mobile Phone OS Android SDK

Android

It’s the Google’s first update since the SDK was released in November and includes changes requested by developers.

Google highlighted a couple of changes in the updated SDK, which was released midweek. It has a new user interface that the search giant said is still a work in progress.

In addition, developers can now support additional file formats in the Android media player. Also, applications can translate an address into a coordinate and the reverse, in location-based programs.

Even though developers said that the first version of the SDK was thin, Android has managed to gain momentum. Four chip makers, including Qualcomm and Texas Instruments, showed off prototypes that support Android this week in Barcelona at the annual Mobile World Congress.

Still, Android faces competition from the established mobile operating systems as well as companies that have rallied behind LiMo, the consortium that is developing an open Linux mobile operating system. At the conference in Barcelona, LiMo announced 18 phones that comply with the operating-system specification that are either on the market already or will be.

source:pcworld 

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Sony leaks PS3 messaging images

 sp3

Sony appears to have leaked some future plans for improving the in-game functionality of the PlayStation 3 on the company’s own official site.

Recently spotted and snapped by a US site user, a slightly blurry banner image appears to advertise voice and video chatting functionality of the PS3.

msg
The text says: “Talk to others during game play, say hello anytime you’re online, or have a video chat with an Eye camera, USB Camera or headset”.
In-game Xross Media Bar access has been confirmed for the PS3 in 2008, so this apparent leak would suggest PS3 owners will see it sooner rather than later, with an announcement at Game Developers Conference at the end of the month hotly tipped.

source:pocket 

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A New Dualpix “Chat and Show” Webcam

cam

Hercules announced, it will be adding the “Dualpix Chat and Show”; a new flagship high-end webcam to its range, this month.

The new webcam boasts never-before-seen features designed to make online video communication a far more engaging experience by allowing users to both video chat and show off photos simultaneously.

With Chat and Show, Hercules says users can interact with their contacts as if they were in the same room. Users can show photos or slide shows while still viewing their contact via a video window that is run during chat and presentation sessions.

There is even a hand-shaped pointer which allows users to pinpoint detail on pictures in real time.

Hercules claims that the whole process is intuitive and simple with no lengthy downloading of images or time-consuming conversion required prior to sending the images as it all works in real time.

The Hercules Dualpix Chat And Show will be available mid-February with a price of £34.99.

Features:

– 5 Megapixels in photo mode (with interpolation)
– 1280 x 1024 megapixels in video node
– Embedded Microphone and additional microphone headset
– USB 2.0 video class (UVC) compliant
– 3 photo modes – single shot, burst and self-timer
– Face tracking
– Automatic file transfer

source:pocket 

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New Microsoft Forums

MS-Logo

Microsoft has been running newsgroups and forums to provide community support for its products.. incidentally, many MVPs come from forums where they are TOP contributors to the forums..

but this isn’t about MVPs today 🙂

it is about MS forums… to begin with Microsoft used Community Server from Telligent to host its forums. And now they are revamping the same on to its own code.. in the background, there seems to be an entire Community Platform emerging with blogs, tags, forums & wikis within Microsoft.. (very much in line with MSs focus on community)..

The new forums are available at:
http://forums.msdn.microsoft.com/

http://forums.technet.microsoft.com/

http://forums.community.microsoft.com/

source:reuters 

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Hackers Attack Code For Works Bug Using Microsoft Products

MS-bugs

No sooner had Microsoft issued a massive set of security patches for its software than hackers started posting code showing how to exploit one of the flaws.

The proof-of-concept code, posted Wednesday to the Milw0rm Web site, exploits a bug in the Microsoft Works file converter software that is part of Office 2003 and can be used to run unauthorized software on a victim’s computer.

The flaw also affects Works 8 and Works Suite 2005. To fall prey to the attack, a victim would first have to open a malicious Works attachment.

Hackers have uncovered many of these file-format bugs in recent years and they are generally not used in widespread attacks. In fact, security vendor Symantec predicts that we’ll see fewer of these attacks in the months ahead as online criminals increasingly rely on browser bugs to do their dirty work.

Still, Periman expects criminals to try out this latest attack code. “It’s so simple,” he said. “All you have to do is get someone to open the document.”

The software vendor released 11 sets of patches this week, fixing 17 flaws in its products, but this is the first exploit code to pop up following the updates. A second program exploiting one of these vulnerabilities — this one in an ActiveX control used by the Visual FoxPro database — was posted to Milw0rm in September, months before Microsoft patched the issue.

source:pcworld