Vista and XP users interested in checking out Windows 7 may have plenty of time to decide. There's a little trick that can extend the free trial from 30 days to a full four months. If you can't figure out what to do by then, I'd suggest getting a little backbone.
The geniuses at Windows Secrets figured this whole deal out, and offer detailed instructions. All you've got to do is click the link.
Posted by Doug Barney on 08/24/20091 comments
Which format camp do you belong to -- the tried and true .DOC or the sleek and shiny .DOCX? Here are some more of your thoughts:
I love the .DOCX file format, mainly because for macros to run, the file needs to be in .DOCM or plain old-fashioned .DOC format. Security wins. I'll open an e-mailed .DOCX file much more readily than any other...even .RTF. Well, plain old .TXT works, as well.
-Anonymous
I like .DOC because I can open it with an editor (for example, Ultra Edit) and see what someone wrote. .DOCX is not human-readable.
-Andes
I save ALL of my work in the newer .DOCX, .XLSX formats.
-Anonymous
Not in love with Office 2007. Change for change's sake never made any sense to me. How does the .DOCX file format improve the product? I see no apparent advantages and the major disadvantage is that it is not backward-compatible.
-Gene
I like the new XML-based formats for Word, Excel, etc. The file sizes are smaller -- in some case half as small as the old formats. Office 2003 users can easily install a free compatibility pack from Microsoft, although not all of the newer features are supported. Generally, though, it does a good job.
In a fast-moving, technology-based world, I'm amazed how many people are reluctant to change. Wait 'til Office 2010 happens!
-Andy
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Posted by Doug Barney on 08/21/20090 comments
Free speech nuts and Internet libertarians don't always like my opinions. For one, I don't think the Internet should be a free-for-all of filth, and there should be a way adults can prove their age to see the crazy stuff and block it for 10-year-olds. Nor do I believe in pure online anonymity. One should not be able to harass, commit crimes or hack -- and then hide behind a cloak of Internet invisibility.
Microsoft researchers apparently agree and want to help us all track down hackers by finding out who they are and what host servers they use.
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Posted by Doug Barney on 08/21/200933 comments
David Coursey is a veteran computer journalist and commentator with whom I had the pleasure of working years ago at InfoWorld. Coursey is still up to his old tricks, offering insight, analysis and bold opinions that would make Bill O'Reilly and Keith Olbermann proud.
I'm not sure I totally agree with his Mac Office conspiracy theory, but here goes: Coursey believes that Microsoft hobbled Mac Office by not including Outlook, making the Mac as tough a sale in enterprises as copies of the Quran in a Baptist convention (or the Bible in a Taliban camp). In David's view, Microsoft only agreed to a Mac Outlook after Apple itself started building Exchange-compatible clients.
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Posted by Doug Barney on 08/21/20096 comments
Exchange 2010 is now in release candidate stage and interested parties can download the beast from TechNet. Oddly enough, Exchange 2010 works with Exchange 2003 and Exchange 2007 R2, but not Exchange 2007 itself.
Are you attracted by 2010's SaaS and unified communication features, or are you currently using or eying an alternative? Use whatever e-mail system you want and send your thoughts to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on 08/21/20094 comments
Microsoft is trying to push users of older browsers to IE 8, but as Andy found out, that's easier said than done:
We are currently using IE 7 because our accounting software, made by Microsoft, doesn't support IE 8. The software doesn't support .NET 3.5 SP1, either.
Maybe Microsoft should get all of its own software compliant before it worries about helping others.
-Andy
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Posted by Doug Barney on 08/19/20090 comments
I've long toyed with using a Mac as a full-time work machine and running Windows on a home machine or two just to stay current. The only problem (besides shelling out big bucks for the honor of using a Mac) is Entourage. While this is a pretty good system, it ain't quite Outlook, which is my corporate standard.
Now, my only excuse is not wanting to shell out big bucks for the honor of using a Mac. That's because the next rev of Office for the Mac will dump Entourage for a newly built Outlook.
Posted by Doug Barney on 08/19/20091 comments
On Monday, I told you about a court order preventing the sale of Word in the U.S., an order that I believe doesn't actually go into effect for a few months.
If you thought Microsoft was going to take this lying down, then you know nothing about how this firm operates. It doesn't take anything lying down, not even a nap. That's why it's no surprise that Microsoft is going back to court, trying to reverse the ruling tout de suite.
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Posted by Doug Barney on 08/19/20092 comments
Windows 7 may be getting all the headlines due to consumer excitement, but many in IT are far more interested in Windows Server 2008 R2, which is now ready, willing and able for download at TechNet and MSDN. You can even test it out for the next half-year by getting an evaluation license.
The 64-bit server software has Live Migration, so VMs can be moved on the fly, as well as storage swapping, so the same thing can happen with disks.
Posted by Doug Barney on 08/19/20091 comments
Now this is a mindblower: A Canadian company beat the barrister-packed Microsoft and as a result, Word will no longer be for sale in America in two months. It sounds nuts, but i4i LP owns an XML patent which da judge ruled Word violates.
The ruling awards gives i4i a cool $290 million -- a drop in the old Redmond bucket. It looks like Microsoft may appeal, but my guess is it will pull out a few moneybags and toss 'em i4i's way.
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Posted by Doug Barney on 08/17/200916 comments
After 25 years as an IT journalist, I've seen a million patent and copyright lawsuits like the one from i4i. Often, a patent holder demands royalties. Sometimes they get a part of what they ask for, and sometimes they get beaten down by high-priced lawyers.
Some of these claims are legit. If I invented something that an IBM or Oracle used, I'd want some scratch. In other cases, entrepreneurs buy up patents then go after anyone that even comes close to infringing.
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Posted by Doug Barney on 08/17/20092 comments
Microsoft should be happy that millions of people are using IE 6 instead of Chrome or Firefox. But that's just not enough for the IE product team. They want you on the latest and what they believe is the greatest. There's a big push to move users up to IE 8 to take advantage of vastly improved security.
I myself made the move from Firefox to IE 8 and despite a few weird behaviors (from the browser, not me), I'm basically satisfied.
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Posted by Doug Barney on 08/17/20093 comments