vista

It's a fact: a clean install of Windows is *always* preferable to upgrading a new version over top of a previous Windows installation. Why is this so? The answer is three words: The Windows Registry. For example: when you install and uninstall ... programs to a Windows PC, things get added to the Registry -- the 'heart' of the Windows Operating System. The Registry is a complex database that keeps track of installed programs, program preferences, user data, operating system settings, and the like. However, over time, some programs may not install or uninstall properly, and the Registry becomes ... (view more)

A few days ago, I took a look at some of the reasons for the rather dull launch of Windows Vista, with many critics finding ample reasons to stay home, grumble, and refuse to do the XP upgrade shuffle. Most of the criticisms were about the lack of ... "killer apps" already available for the new operating system, leaving many people wondering, "why bother?" Come to think of it, the lineup is thinner than most game console launches... and Halo 2's release party sure was certainly much more exciting. (Source: news.com ) Today, more criticisms are slowly rising to the surface. They're predominantly ... (view more)

With the big box electronics stores and everyday department retailers now (finally) selling Vista to home consumers, it's time to wait and see exactly how well the new operating system does for Microsoft. The project, once code named "Longhorn", has ... involved ten thousand employees and a whole lot of investment -- both in time and money. It seems as if the first indicators of release success are coming from major online computer retailer Dell, who announced a few days ago that they've already shipped tens of thousands of copies of Vista. (Source: dell.com ) Dell's own Vista flurry began last ... (view more)

Arovax Shield Rather than looking for spyware traces or tracking applications that secretly send or receive data over the Internet, Arovax Shield blocks any attempt by malicious software to add entries to the auto-start menu, change the registry, ... hijack or install itself into a browser, or find any other way to stealthily get itself onto a PC. http://www.arovaxshield.com/ Dual-Booting Vista And Linux On XP and earlier Windows PCs, making Windows and Linux live together was almost automatic. Any of the major distributions made it easy. With Vista, things have changed. Microsoft has deep-sixed ... (view more)

Well, Vista has just launched. It's been months and months of ramped up excitement as Microsoft's most anticipated product in ten years finally reaches the average consumer, and although the buzz is hardly a fraction of what it was for Windows 95, ... Vista, like a McDonald's double cheeseburger, has people talking. Of course, now the big questions surround whether the new OS is worth the investment, with many insiders concerned there simply are not enough "killer apps". One such app is Office 2007, the most recent version of software deemed necessary by business workers and university students ... (view more)

With the anticipated launch of Vista's home version nearing, Microsoft is making a valiant effort to bring as many people into the fold as humanly possible. They're doing so via a limited time offer that will give consumers who purchase the ... operating system's "Ultimate Edition" the ability to install it on an extra PC. Such a notion was previously thought unlikely from Microsoft, who plan on demanding an additional $50 for each PC license afterwards. (Source: pro-networks.org ) Microsoft is launching the opportunity at what it calls "super-engaged customers", the type who may be involved in ... (view more)

There are no "must-have" features in Vista. It's a "high-risk strategy" to get it early. Installing the operating system within the next twelve months brings about a set of "technical, financial and organizational challenges." That harsh critique of ... Vista comes from an unlikely source: an agency of the UK government. The British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta) "strongly recommends" schools to stay away from Vista for at least a full year. "There is not a case for schools to deploy it unless it is mission-critical stable," Becta technical consultant Tom McMullan stated ... (view more)

According to VAR Business Magazine (VAR), Microsoft recently commissioned an independent research firm to determine the impact of their upcoming (January 30) general release of Vista on the computer industry. The answer? $72 Billion! That's the ... conservative US Dollar amount Microsoft Vista is going to cost the consumers when they upgrade their systems. However, the figure is likely to be much higher. VAR suggested that $18 in hardware, software, and services would be spent for every $1 Microsoft makes from Vista alone. Every PC component and system manufacturer wants their piece of the ' ... (view more)

Microsoft recently revealed details of the Vista Ultimate Extras add-on package. Although there has been talk about Ultimate Extras for months, Microsoft has remained relatively tight-lipped about the specifics. But on January 7th, at the Consumer ... Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Microsoft officials finally detailed the final lineup for the Ultimate Extras package. (Source: zdnet.com ) First up is a Vista enhanced version of the Texas Hold 'Em poker game. (Source: zdnet.com ) Also in the package are multi-user interface language (MUIL) packs. These packs allow users fluent in different ... (view more)

It wasn't so long ago that we reported on a Vista crack , which gave hackers access to the new operating system (OS) without ever paying a dime. Now, it appears that crack has been improved, and it means more headaches for Microsoft as the home ... release of Vista nears in only a month's time. The original crack surrounded setting up a Key Management Server, and then exposing a weakness in Microsoft supported Voice Activation 2.0. By doing this, hackers could gain free access to Vista for 180 days before the activation ran out. That's six months, and although not an eternity, it's certainly ... (view more)