Microsoft tunes up Windows 8 multi-screen

Better task-bar control, window mobility coming next month

When Microsoft launches Windows 8 Release Preview next month the operating system will have improved navigation features for users who like more than one monitor to display all their applications.

The upgrade - the last major tune-up expected before the final version launches sometime this fall - addresses task bars, desktop backgrounds and that no man's land, the common edge shared by adjacent screens, according to the Building Windows 8 blog.

The current problem with that common edge is that when users mouse over to them - for example to hit the minimize button - they sometimes overshoot and wind up on the next screen instead of the screen they started off on. They either have to slow down or adjust the window size so there's a buffer between the edge of the window and the edge of the screen.

TEST YOURSELF: The Windows 8 Quiz

MORE WINDOWS 8: Why aren't Apple and Amazon dumping on Windows RT?

With Windows 8 Release Preview, Microsoft has created interface corners that are larger than 6 pixels tall so users can pull up a little short of the edge but still hit the active interface. The active area extends a little beyond the corner itself to present a larger target.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

These corners have new uses with Windows 8 that they didn't have with Windows 7. Corners contain access to applications, charm bars and the Start screen.

The active corners have also been revised so they only work for the monitor the cursor is active on. So when the cursor moves from one screen to another, the corners won't initially work on the second screen until the user establishes that that is the screen being worked on. So if users do overshoot the active screen, they won't accidentally click on an active corner on the other screen.

To improve the ability to organize the location of active applications, the Release Preview will add a new keyboard shortcut just for moving Metro applications from screen to screen - Windows key+page up/page down. The shortcut for moving traditional desktop apps remains Windows key+shift+arrow. All apps can be moved from screen to screen via drag and drop as well.

In the upcoming version Microsoft gives more options for the functionality of taskbars on each screen, giving users new options.

The default setting is to make the taskbar fully functional on all screens. Rather than having to manipulate the cursor back to the primary screen and perhaps turn their heads, users can access all taskbar icons from every screen.

Alternatively, they can have the taskbar show icons only for those windows that appear on each screen. The downside is that users have to remember which windows are open on which screens in order to find their icons.

Or users can set up a main monitor with a taskbar that always displays all icons, and other monitors' taskbars show only icons for the windows open on them. So when users are looking for a particular window but aren't sure on which screen it is open, they know they can find it on the master monitor.

The Start button, charms bar and calling up recently used application will be accessible from all monitors. In the Consumer Preview they were available only on one screen.

Microsoft has spent a lot of effort on desktop backgrounds in the release preview, making it possible to put a different one on each screen or to spread a single image so it is displayed just once over all the screens. When different pictures are used, they can be displayed on horizontally oriented monitors in landscape mode or rotated 90 degrees with in portrait mode.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

Microsoft issues release candidate of System Center 2012

The company says the software can help businesses more efficiently manage their use of cloud services

IDG News Service - Microsoft on Tuesday said the release candidate of System Center 2011, software that companies use to manage their cloud services, is now available.

Customers are already managing more than 100,000 virtual machines using the software as part of an early access program, Satya Nadella, president of Microsoft's Server and Tools Business, said during a video conference about the news.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

Using System Center, an organization can manage its internal private cloud as well as applications and services it is running in public clouds. This hybrid approach -- where a company may run an application in a public cloud but retain the corresponding database on a private cloud, for example -- is increasingly common.

System Center 2012 combines eight former products into one and addresses one common complaint customers have, said Brad Anderson, corporate vice president of Microsoft's Management and Security Division. "We hear a lot that licensing is complex," he said. System Center 2012 aims to simplify licensing by combining several former products into one and by offering just two different versions.

In addition, Microsoft bases its license on a slightly different model than its competitors, he said. Customers pay for System Center 2012 on a per-server basis, rather than a per-virtual machine basis. That can keep costs down for people who are running many virtual machines per server.

During the video conference about the release, Microsoft showcased a few companies that have already been using System Center. They include Luftansa, T. Rowe Price and Unilver. Those companies said that System Center 2012 has let them quickly expand their infrastructure and automate the management of their systems.

Microsoft says that using a tool like System Center can help organizations more efficiently manage their cloud environments. The company typically hears from customers who have full time IT administrators managing 30 to 40 servers. But Microsoft itself, which operates huge data centers to run services like Bing, Azure and Hotmail, finds that each of its IT workers, using System Center 2012, manages as many as 5,000 servers.

System Center 2012 has also expanded to allow IT administrators to manage non-Microsoft devices, including mobile phones. Rather than thinking of devices as being at the center of the management process, System Center 2012 puts the user in the middle, said Anderson. That means a manager can set policies for an employee that applies no matter what device the employee is using, including Android phones, iPhones or a variety of tablets.

The release candidate of System Center 2012 is available immediately. Provided users don't find any major bugs, the next step should be general availability of the software.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

Microsoft security patches include fixes for Word, Office, Windows

In its May "Patch Tuesday," Microsoft released seven bulletins covering 23 vulnerabilities

Microsoft has fixed 23 vulnerabilities in its software products, including several considered critical, the company said on Tuesday in its monthly security patch report.

The most mortiyfing moments in network security history

The security holes, included in seven bulletins, affect Office, Windows, .Net Framework and Silverlight, and in the worst-case scenarios could give attackers control of affected systems, including the ability to run malicious code remotely on them.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

The first critical bulletin covers a vulnerability in Microsoft Office that could allow attackers to execute remote code on compromised systems. For that to happen, users would have to open an infected rich-text format (RTF) file. If successful, the exploit would give attackers the same usage rights as the current user.

The issue is labeled critical for all supported editions of Microsoft Word 2007. It is rated "important" -- the second highest severity level in Microsoft's four-level scale -- for all supported editions of Word 2003, Office 2008 for Mac and Office for Mac 2011, as well as all supported versions of Office Compatibility Pack. The security hole was privately reported to Microsoft.

The second critical bulletin involves 10 vulnerabilities in Office, Windows, .NET Framework, and Silverlight, seven of which were privately reported to the company. The most dangerous vulnerability would let attackers run code remotely on an affected user's machine if the user opens an infected document or is tricked into visiting a malware-laden webpage with embedded TrueType font files.

The problem is rated critical for all supported editions of Windows, .Net Framework 4 (except when installed on Windows editions for Itanium chips); and Silverlight 4 and 5. It's considered important for Office 2003, Office 2007 and Office 2010.

Commenting on this bulletin in a separate blog post, Jonathan Ness, from the Microsoft Security Response Center Engineering team, said that since fixing a vulnerability five months ago that was being exploited by the Duqu malware through malicious Office documents, Microsoft found that the problematic Microsoft code, win32k.sys, was in other products as well.

Fixing the vulnerabilty, an insufficient bounds check within the font parsing subsystem of win32k.sys, in the newly-discovered places led Microsoft to include several products in this bulletin and consolidate a variety of other fixes in it, according to Ness.

The third critical bulletin covers two privately-reported vulnerabilities in .Net Framework that could open the door for attackers to execute code remotely on the infected machine with the same level of rights as the affected user. For the exploit to be successful, users would need to visit an infected webpage using a browser that can run XAML Browser Applications (XBAPs).

This security update is considered critical for all supported editions of the Microsoft .NET Framework on all supported editions of Microsoft Windows.

The four bulletins labeled important include one that covers six Office vulnerabilities that could allow remote code execution if users open an infected Office file. This fix is considered important for all supported editions of Excel 2003, Excel 2007, Office 2007, Excel 2010, Office 2010, Office 2008 for Mac, and Office for Mac 2011, as well as for supported versions of Excel Viewer and Office Compatibility Pack.

Another important bulletin addresses one vulnerability in Visio Viewer 2010 that could give attackers the ability to execute malicious code remotely if users open an infected Visio file.

The third bulletin tagged as important deals with two security holes in Windows, including one affecting the TCP/IP component that could allow an attacker that logs on to a system to upgrade his user access privileges by running a specially crafted application. This hole is considered important for all supported editions of Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2.

The final bulletin also involves Windows, specifically its Windows Partition Manager and a vulnerability that could let an attacker who gains access to a system to run a malicious application to elevate his user access privileges. The attacker needs to have valid credentials to access the system, and must log on manually on the affected machine. This issue is considered important for all supported editions of Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, Windows 7, and Windows Server 2008 R2.

Users who have their machines set up to receive Microsoft's software patches automatically don't need to do anything. The fixes will be installed on their computers automatically. The updates can also be manually downloaded at the Microsoft Update and Windows Update sites.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

MCTS Windows Server 2008 Active Directory Configuration Study Guide: Exam 70-640

I had previously started out with the Microsoft Press material but found myself falling asleep after reading just a few pages. Technical material is rather dry and boring so it’s difficult to find the right books to study with. After reading reviews on Amazon I picked up this book by William Panek.

William Panek has a number of Microsoft certifications – MCSA, MCSE – 200 & 2003, MCT, MCDBA, MCTS and more.

What I find most valuable in this book is how simple it is to follow and learn the concepts. There are many exercises in each chapter. Steps are easy to follow with a simple VM setup. Concepts are explained clearly.

Each chapter begins with the objectives that they’ll be covering. I found this helpful for my own studies so I can drill in further on my weaknesses.

This book is a good resource for self-study of the 70-640 Microsoft exam but I wouldn’t make it your only resource. Additionally, some of the steps are different in Windows Server 2008 R2.

Chapters of the book:

Chapter 1 – Over of Active Directory
Chapter 2 – Domain Name System (DNS)
Chapter 3 – Planning and Installation of Active Directory
Chapter 4 – Installing and Managing Trees and Forests
Chapter 5 – Configuring Sites and Replication
Chapter 6 – Configuring Active Directory Server Roles
Chapter 7 – Administering Active Directory
Chapter 8 – Configuring Group Policies
Chapter 9 – Planning Security for Active Directory
Chapter 10 – Active Directory Optimization and Reliability

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

LinkedIn to buy SlideShare for $119M

LinkedIn also reported 101% revenue growth for the first quarter

IDG News Service - LinkedIn is acquiring SlideShare, which allows its users to share presentations online, for $118.75 million as it tries to find new ways to make its site more useful, the company said on Thursday.

SlideShare allows users to upload presentations publicly or privately, which can be embedded on blogs, websites, company intranets and shared across Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, so the two companies aren't new acquaintances.

Exactly how LinkedIn will integrate SlideShare beyond what is possible today remains to be seen. The company is "excited to figure out the best ways our offerings will work together," according to a LinkedIn blog post. In the meantime, SlideShare will continue to work as it usually does, the post said.

SlideShare users have uploaded more than 9 million presentations. In March, SlideShare had nearly 29 million unique visitors, according to data from market research company ComScore, LinkedIn said.

Besides presentations, SlideShare also hosts documents, PDFs, videos and webinars.

The purchase price is a combination of approximately 45% in cash and 55% in stock, according to LinkedIn. If everything goes according to plan, the acquisition will close during the second quarter.

On Thursday, LinkedIn also released its financial result for the first quarter. Revenue was $188.5 million, an increase of 101% compared to the first quarter last year. Net income grew from $2.1 million to $5 million during the same period.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training at certkingdom.com

Microsoft to retire Windows Live brand ahead of Windows 8 launch

Windows 8 will allow Microsoft to offer a more tightly integrated set of online services and desktop apps for consumers

IDG News Service - Microsoft will retire the Windows Live brand as it gets ready to release what it describes as a more connected set of online consumer services with the launch of its Windows 8 operating system.

Its vision for a set of tightly woven services and desktop applications that Microsoft outlined when it unveiled Windows Live in 2005 hasn't been fully realized, the company said on Wednesday.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training
at certkingdom.com

Right now, services like its Hotmail webmail service, SkyDrive storage service and Messenger IM service aren't as closely meshed as they should be with Windows Live desktop software like Photo Gallery and Movie Maker, nor with the Windows Live ID account service, Microsoft said in a blog post.

The problem lies with Windows desktop operating systems, which so far haven't been designed to fully interact with cloud services. Microsoft expects that situation to change with Windows 8, which is being designed to work not just with desktop and laptop PCs but also tablets and other devices. For example, Windows 8 features a new user interface called Metro, which uses a tile design and is optimized for touch interfaces.

"Windows 8 provides us with an opportunity to reimagine our approach to services and software and to design them to be a seamless part of the Windows experience, accessible in Windows desktop apps, Windows Metro style apps, standard web browsers, and on mobile devices. Today the expectation is that a modern device comes with services as well as apps for communication and sharing. There is no 'separate brand' to think about or a separate service to install -- it is all included when you turn on your PC for the first time," reads the blog post, authored by Steven Sinofsky, president of the Windows and Windows Live Division.

Some of the changes in the pipeline for the coming months include a rebranding of Windows Live ID as Microsoft Account, along with back-end changes intended to make the account service the main door into a broad set of online services that can be accessed via Web browsers but also synchronized and replicated through Windows Phone devices and Windows 8 PCs and tablets.

In Windows 8 machines, pre-installed applications that will have both local and cloud components include Microsoft Account, SkyDrive, Mail, Calendar, People (contacts), Messaging and Photos/Videos.

Along the way, Microsoft will shed their existing names, including Windows Live ID, Windows Live Mail, Windows Calendar, Windows Contacts, MSN Messenger, Windows Live Photo Gallery and Movie Maker.

It will also be possible to link the Microsoft Account with third-party online services, like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, in a way that a single list of contacts is maintained not only across Microsoft products but is also augmented by contacts from these other sites.

Microsoft plans to provide more information about this initiative in the coming weeks, including more details about how Skype will fit in with this plan.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training
at certkingdom.com

Microsoft a decade ahead of Apple on security, We’re not so sure

In a recent interview, Kaspersky Lab founder and CEO Eugene Kaspersky claimed that Apple is “10 years” behind Microsoft on security, as evidenced by the recent malware attacks affecting Mac OS X

There’s been a lot of chatter lately that the recent Flashback and Flashfake malware infestations plaguing Apple’s Max OS X are a sign that the Mac is not nearly as secure as Apple and its devout fans would like you to believe.

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training
at certkingdom.com

Eugene Kaspersky, however, founder and CEO of Kaspersky Lab—a leading producer of security software—claims things are much worse. He says that Apple is in a potentially dire position and must change its approach to patches and updates, much in the same way Microsoft did year ago to more quickly and efficiently address vulnerabilities in Windows.

In a recent interview with CBR Online, Kaspersky said,

“I think they are ten years behind Microsoft in terms of security. For many years I've been saying that from a security point of view there is no big difference between Mac and Windows. It's always been possible to develop Mac malware, but this one was a bit different. For example it was asking questions about being installed on the system and, using vulnerabilities, it was able to get to the user mode without any alarms."

Of course it’s possible to develop malware for OSX. Malware could be developed for any OS. As far as malware exploiting vulnerabilities, is that what’s been happening on Windows systems for ages?

Before we go on, we should point out what we believe to be a serious flaw in that statement. When Kaspersky says “there is no big difference between Mac and Windows,” that may be true on some level because they are both consumer operating systems, but the underlying technologies in OS X and Windows are fundamentally different. OS X is based on UNIX, which is decades more mature than Windows. And with that maturity also comes strong security.

Kaspersky goes on to say, "They will understand very soon that they have the same problems Microsoft had ten or 12 years ago. They will have to make changes in terms of the cycle of updates and so on and will be forced to invest more into their security audits for the software."

This may or may not be the case. Kaspersky asserts that the success of Flashback / Flashfake will result in more malware being released for OS X. We’re not so sure. Most malware producers are in it to make a quick buck, not for notoriety. And the success of one piece of malware, doesn’t guarantee more will follow. Flashback / Flashfake may be getting some attention now, but targeting the Mac just doesn’t make as much financial sense as targeting Windows.

The fact of the matter is, even with relatively strong Mac sales, Windows-based systems far outsell the Mac and malware producers are always going to more aggressively target the largest install base. At least that’s our opinion. What say you?

Best Microsoft MCTS Certification, Microsoft MCITP Training
at certkingdom.com