A recent report from Forrester Research shows that early Windows 7 users are pretty happy with their decision. While the company only interviewed 40 customers (this is far more anecdotal than scientific), it found they like the new features that replace third-party products such as VPNs and encryption.
On the downside, Forrester believes that two-thirds of XP apps don't work with Windows 7. I'm not sure where they're getting this; I only had a problem with a driver for an old LaserJet 1000 printer (which Redmond Report reader Mike G. helped me fix).
I like Windows 7 a lot, but it still crashes when it goes to sleep. I hate waking up to a bunch of auto-saved docs I have to sort through. What about you? Any problems with Windows 7? Report glitches and glories at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/17/2010 at 1:17 PM10 comments
Microsoft bought its way into the enterprise search market when it bought Fast Search & Transfer ASA, with its semi-eponymously named FAST line of search tools (makes it almost easy to remember). FAST was a multiplatform system and is just as easily installed on Linux or Unix boxes as it is on Windows.
That will all end with next round of Windows-only search tools. The good news? While FAST won't install on Linux/Unix, future versions will still be able to search across them.
Should Microsoft directly support other operating systems (other than Mac OS)? Shoot your best advice to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/17/2010 at 4:59 PM3 comments
Social media and social networking are all the rage. Heck, you can't watch more than 10 minutes of CNN before you're pushed to some stupid Twitter page.
Now Google and Microsoft both want in on the act. Google stepped up to the plate with Buzz (not exactly an original name), a service that brings social features and YouTube hooks to Gmail. The Gmail requirement makes this very much a consumer play. But Google promises an enterprise version that ties into its premier version of Google Apps.
Between them, Gmail and Google Apps have less corporate share than Ron Paul in the last election. Microsoft Outlook, on the other hand, has market share to spare. That's probably why Redmond is adding social hooks to its messaging system so you can link to your contacts' Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter accounts. Some see using Outlook as giving Microsoft an edge, but never count out a brand-new participant like Google Buzz.
Meanwhile, some are questioning the privacy aspects of Buzz, arguing that anyone who follows you can see who you're following. This could create sticky situations with bosses and spouses!
Do you use social networking, and if so, how? E-mail me at [email protected], or follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Dougbarney.
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/12/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
Active Directory Rights Management Service (AD RMS) is designed to lock down files so that corporate info isn't sent to competitors, nosy reporters or other unintended recipients.
But if you don't install an update soon, those RMS restrictions will expire, defeating the whole point of RMS. In fact, you won't even be able to access protected files, nor create new protected files.
The solution is to install the update before Feb. 22. A hotfix is also forthcoming.
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/12/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
We're all pretty used to Microsoft coming clean with its bugs. We're less used to it disclosing bugs of others. In the case of a bug that affects both Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Transport Layer Security (TLS), most versions of Windows are impacted.
The vulnerability could let a hacker use these network protocols to gain access to wireless access points. It's a pretty difficult hack to pull off and so far there've been no reports of successful attacks.
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/12/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
A recent study estimated that salaries will increase by a paltry 1.8 percent. That's not much, but readers are making do with what they get:
While my increase was slightly more than the 1.8 percent, I know others received nothing. I'm thankful to have a job at this point. My sister and others have been out of work for quite a while.
-Andy
This year, my company did not give raises or bonuses due to the economic downturn. I know several people who are out of work and have been for some time so I am thankful to have a job right now. The way I see it, we all have choices to make and I am chosing to be grateful even in this less-than-ideal economy.
-Steve
At the school where I work, the entire staff decided to take four days without pay so that layoffs didn't have to happen. However, we still received our incentive pay, and I got a raise for getting my master's degree, so I came out a bit ahead. I don't like it, but I was able to keep my good job, so it was worth the sacrifice.
-Jim
Most everyone communicates online nowadays -- the former CEO of Sun even tweeted his goodbye -- but not everyone is as meticulous with their online spelling as these readers:
I must be old-school because I proofread any correspondence that leaves my mailbox. I find it somewhat rude that people don't feel the need to correct errors, especially when almost any application will tell you when you have spelled something wrong and if your sentence structure is incorrect or incomplete. Are we in so much of a hurry that we cannot be considerate of others?
I don't tweet or Facebook or any of the other "social" networking options because I spend so much time in e-mail that I don't need another place to keep track of conversations. When I text on my phone, I use complete sentences and spell the complete word. Takes longer but I believe the person with whom I am corresponding deserves my full attention. To air a pet peeve of mine, I find it disgraceful and unacceptable when I find misspellings on Web pages and official announcements.
-Jim
I don't tweet, but I do send text messages, use e-mail, have a Facebook page and do other stuff electronically that my 40-something brain can't remember right now. In any event, I make an effort to spell out complete words and sentences. That's just the way I was taught when I was in school. If you couldn't spell or write properly, the other kids thought you were stupid!
-George
Tell us what you think! Leave a comment below or send an e-mail to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/12/2010 at 1:17 PM1 comments
This all may be sour grapes, but an ex-Redmond exec now claims that other Redmond execs are more concerned with holding back competition than taking risks and innovating.
Dick Brass (now that's a great name for a guy who likes to take shots) wrote an editorial in The New York Times arguing that Microsoft's biggest groups, Office and Windows, care more about protecting their turf than breaking new ground.
While this might seem like the typical complaints of an ex-employee, Brass seems reasonable, and his very public comments should be a wake-up call. With immense sales and profits, Microsoft should take more risks -- and, in particular, channel more of its R&D efforts into real products.
Is Brass right or wrong? Share your thoughts by writing [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/10/2010 at 1:17 PM2 comments
Bill Gates always had a platform for his technical views. Now that he's devoting 90 percent of his $40 billion fortune (it used to be $58 billion before the market melted) to charity, he also has a platform for his views on world issues.
No, Bill doesn't weigh in on all the usual cable news talking points: Sarah Palin, Obamacare, the war on extremists. Instead, Gates talks about less sexy issues: disease, hunger, the environment and education. What's he thinking? No wonder he doesn't get as much press as the talking head buffoons on either side!
Bill isn't just Tweeting, but has a new Web site called "The Gates Notes" where he opines. One of his latest pieces shows faith in science and innovation to solve problems like global warming.
I love that Bill avoids politics and focuses instead on logical solutions to the world's biggest problems. Perhaps my column two years ago made more sense than most realized.
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/10/2010 at 1:17 PM2 comments
Two reports came out recently that paint a less-than-rosy picture of our beloved IT industry. While we're in the midst of some kind of economic recovery, it's not exactly raging.
IDC, for instance, predicts the software industry will grow an anemic 2 percent, services a paltry 3 percent, and hardware an OK 5 percent. IT salaries appear to be on a similar but slightly lower trajectory. Research firm Computer Economics predicts average raises of 1.8 percent.
That may seem like a slap in the face, but given the economy we've lived through and our current rate of unemployment, I'd thank my boss for any kind of raise.
What about you? Is your salary rising, or are bosses using the economy as an excuse to stiff workers? Gripes and gratefulness equally welcome at [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/10/2010 at 1:17 PM2 comments
Doug asked readers recently what "protected mode" used to mean back in the day. Here are some of your responses:
Wow. That is old, old, old, back in the stone ages of the big hair mid-'80s. Most people don't even remember that x86 processors could only use 640kb easily. If my memory serves, protected mode allowed the system to access the memory above 640kb. Do you remember all of the block device drivers that we used to load between 640-1Mb? SCSI, TSRs (that's a trip...my first IT job was writing a TSR in assembly).
-Joe
Wow. That was a long time ago. As I recall, it allowed 32-bit applications to run on a 16-bit OS. As I recall, it required an 80386 processor, whereas the 80286 processor ran in "real mode."
-Pete
If I remember right, protected mode had something to do with a program being able to use advanced CPU features like paging, virtual memory, etc.
-Jim
Protected mode used to refer to the native 32-bit kernel execution mode of NT 3.x and later -- i.e., the kernel was protected from rogue application actions. This also ensured that one user could not snoop on another user's data in flight. It existed in the 80286 processor family but because it had to be selected at boot time, it was not supported widely. This mode gave wide control over application execution to the operating system.
-Michael
Meanwhile, Bob has a different comment about protected mode:
You mentioned running IE in protected mode. I know that option is on IE 8, but not on IE 7 on XP SP3. I read the option is only available with IE 7 running on Vista...or maybe IE 8 with XP.
I will be upgrading soon to IE 8 on my LAN. but my preferred browser is still Firefox, and I tell my users the same -- use Mozilla for Internet work.
-Bob
And more readers share their thoughts on the iPad and its functionality (or perhaps lack thereof):
Just my opinion, but I think the iPad (like most things Apple has put on the market recently) belongs to the "expensive toys" group -- things that appeal to the technogeeks but aren't really tools.
-Gene
I think a lot of other people should actually try out some of Apple's products before saying you can't get work done on an iPad. Just because it's not owned by Microsoft, does not mean you are trapped using products that will not allow you to get things done. An example is Docs To Go Premium, which gives you all the editing necessary to generate and edit Microsoft-compatible documents -- not that the iPad's version of iWork won't work just as well.
No one in the Windows world has been able to make the tablet work (I've owned a couple and they were far too heavy to really be useful as a tablet). HP, Leveno, Sony, Toshiba and others have had their chance for many years to make this work. For the most part, they have failed. Let's give Apple a chance and see what comes of it. It can't be any worse that a 3.5-pound "light" tablet that others have produced.
-John
Laptops and netbooks are far and away more important to me than "pretty."
-Michael
My question is: Why on earth would I want to buy another $500 appliance to read digital books on? If I am going to read digital books -- and that's an IF contingent on digital books whose prices don't skyrocket to paper-based book prices -- I would want be able to read them comfortably on the laptop and/or PCs I am already using.
-Charles
Share your thoughts with the editors of this newsletter! Write to [email protected]. Letters printed in this newsletter may be edited for length and clarity, and will be credited by first name only (we do NOT print last names or e-mail addresses).
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/10/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
If it seems like Microsoft Patch Tuesdays are packed with more and more patches, you'd be correct! Though they ebb and flow every month, in general there are more patches now than there were six months ago.
Tomorrow is no exception, with an unlucky 13 fixes set for release. (Couldn't they have come up with just one more for the superstitious among us?)
On the Windows front, the old bugaboo remote code execution (RCE) gets five fixes. Interestingly, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 aren't covered by all fixes, perhaps proving these products are more secure than their predecessors. Also, Office 2007 doesn't get any patches, while older versions do.
Are Microsoft products becoming more secure, or are patches an indication of deep problems? You be the judge at [email protected] or post your comments below.
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/08/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments
I've spent so much time talking to people about Office 2010 I feel like I'm using it already (Office 2010 is on the cover of the March issue of Redmond). And soon I may be. That's because the software is now a release candidate (RC), or what used to be called a late beta back when test software nomenclature was simpler.
An RC is feature complete, but may need bug fixes and tuning. And that can take a while and sometimes several RC iterations. I predict a summer release.
So how much will it all cost? From $100 to $500 retail.
Do you use a non-Microsoft suite? Tell us about it at [email protected] or post your comments below.
Posted by Doug Barney on 02/08/2010 at 1:17 PM0 comments