Microsoft not up to par on anti-virus software

It is truly surprising that one of the biggest names in the computer industry, Microsoft, fails time after time to improve the security of its software. Microsoft's OneCare Program finishes last in a test done by AV-Comparatives. OneCare failed to live up to the standards of other anti-virus programs in the categories - viruses, macros, worms and scripts; backdoors, trojans, and other malware. OneCare received the worst score of 17 other tested softwares.

Launched in May 2006 with the intention of beefing up Win XP's security, the software has been trailing behind other commercial softwares and quite frankly has not been able to catch up. The program was launched in numerous countries following the release of Vista, aiming to tighten up the security holes of Vista. Despite Microsoft's advertisement of much improved security in Vista, there are apparently still flaws. With OneCare's poor test results, it would be wise to think twice before deciding upon yet another Microsoft product.

Changing Default Font and more in MS Office 2007

Microsoft recently released their newest, slickest, Vista-ready version of their office productivity suite, imaginatively dubbed "Office 2007." I got my hands on a copy recently, and I must say, it is very slick. Most of you have probably heard about this wonderful new ribbon menu system, so I won't belabor it here. But kudos to Microsoft for this cool idea. Time will tell if it's a useful cool idea.

But I do have some minor gripes with the new MS Word: the default font was set at 11 pt Calibri. Calibri is one of several of Microsoft's very pretty-looking "Longhorn Fonts" (which I had acquired two years ago). But Calibri is not a suitable font for essays... or any serious document for that matter. It's like Arial - it burns the eyes to read.

Another gripe I had with it was the paragraph spacing. For some reason, the default is set to add 10 points spacing between your paragraphs. I suppose that's fine for some types of documents, but I don't appreciate it as a default. So finally I moved my lazy ass to find out how to change it. It's very simple:







Just click on the icons that I circled, and up will pop a dialog box that will allow you to change the default font, etc. Hope that helps.

Vista Background Rejects; Wallpaper Cycler

I stumbled across http://www.hamaddarwish.com/content/index_2.html; this is the website of the photographer hired by Microsoft to create all their pretty, pretty backgrounds in their newest operating system, Vista. Well, apparently a lot of his shots did not make the cut so he has kindly released them, in a very high resolution (1920x1200) format for our use and delight. And I must say, if these pictures are that great, how great are the ones going to be in Windows Vista? Or maybe Microsoft just doesn't know quality.



Anyways, I couldn't decide which one to set as my desktop background (there's a lot). And they're all very pretty. So I wondered, is there a program that allows me to cycle my wallpapers periodically, like a slideshow? And lo and behold, a Google search for "Wallpaper Cycler" yields this fruitful result: http://www.tucows.com/preview/291538(Wallpaper Cycler Lite) which does just the job.

So enjoy the combination of the two!

The Launch of Vista

We've all heard about it on the news and we've all read about it on various forums and sites. Microsoft has taken 5 years to release their latest operating system - Vista.

As an employee of Best Buy, I am glad to say that we have had a glimpse of the many features included in the brand new package.

Major works have been done in turns of user interface, rendering the desktop much more aesthetically appealing to the average user. The new Aero interface generates a glass-like look which simulates depth and gives you a better idea of what's going on with your other windows. Another cool feature that has been implemented is that alt+tab provides live view of your applications, even the videos.

Browsing has been made a lot easier, search feature improved and some new features in terms of viewing options. Folders now give you a glimpse of the various files contained within for better browsing. Live icons give you an idea of the file content rather than generic icons. Start menu has been made to be more compact, no more annoying window sized "all programs" bars. I have to admit, I like the ease of browsing under the new windows.

Ready Boost is one of the cool features in addition. We've all had experience tweaking the settings of windows to boot faster for our needs. Who wants to wait 30 seconds for windows to boot up? Microsoft has designed Vista with ready boost buttons which will focus on certain programs when booting up and ignoring peripheral applications. for example, if you use ready boost to start up media center, it will load up media center before other programs, giving you much faster boot times.

Security underwent some changes. There's better control over program installation. For the price of windows asking you to confirm every action you take, you get the convenience of a spyware free computer. I suppose that the security of Vista will be tested in the upcoming months. I'll have my fingers crossed.

There has been a new feature in terms of Battery Management for laptop users.

Packaging has been changed up a little for better merchandising. Vista comes in four editions - Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, and Ultimate.

Home Basic - it's the skeleton of Windows Vista. It meets the basic needs of the average computer user, internet, email, etc. (lacks features such as Aero)

Home Premium - Home Basics with specialization in media center. Essentially it is for the younger generations. More dedicated towards videos, music, entertainment. One cool feature is the compatibility of Vista with TiVo for extra storage space.

Business - The name explains it all. Dedicated to small to medium sized business owners and has better security features. Other features that aid business owners are applications such as meeting place, think of it as skype.

Ultimate - The whole package. It has all the features listed above.

Cons:

Much higher system requirements:

Premium package(minimum requirements):
1 GHz processor
1 GB RAM
128 MBs video card
40 GB harddrive with 15 GB free

This almost reminds me of the latest trend in video games, focus on graphic upgrades. Anyone heard of the move towards Counterstrike: Source? It has greater graphic demands so of course the big companies are going to be reeling in some more moolah. If you want Vista to run smoothly, I would recommend getting above those requirements.

Conclusion: I was fairly impressed with the changes Microsoft has done to their system. Definitely a viable upgrade in the future. I'm not quite ready to do major upgrades to my system yet. However, the required hardware are not so outlandish in today's computer industry, so it is definitely a consideration. There ARE some features which resemble OS X from Apple, but it wouldn't be the first time competing companies have imitated each other's products. But Vista includes features beyond those features and should be given consideration.