Microsoft confirms: no three app limit in Windows 7 Starter

from http://windowsteamblog.com/

It is important to note that Windows 7 Starter still includes only a subset of the features offered in the higher editions of Windows 7 such as Windows 7 Home Premium, Windows 7 Professional and above. Windows 7 Starter does not include:

• Aero Glass, meaning you can only use the “Windows Basic” or other opaque themes. It also means you do not get Taskbar Previews or Aero Peek.
• Personalization features for changing desktop backgrounds, window colors, or sound schemes.
• The ability to switch between users without having to log off.
• Multi-monitor support.
• DVD playback.
• Windows Media Center for watching recorded TV or other media.
• Remote Media Streaming for streaming your music, videos, and recorded TV from your home computer.
• Domain support for business customers.
• XP Mode for those that want the ability to run older Windows XP programs on Windows 7.

0-day Microsoft DirectX vulnerability discovered for XP

Microsoft warned yesterday that hackers are using QuickTime media files to exploit an unpatched 0-day vulnerability in DirectShow.

In a posting on Microsoft's security response center blog company officials confirmed the new vulnerability affects Microsoft DirectShow in Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003, under limited attack.

After initial investigation Microsoft have confirmed that the vulnerable code was removed as part of their work building Windows Vista. This means that Windows Vista and versions of Windows since Windows Vista (Windows Server 2008, Windows 7) are not vulnerable.

An attacker would try and exploit the vulnerability by crafting a specially formed video file and then posting it on a website or sending it as an attachment in e-mail. While this isn't a browser vulnerability, because the vulnerability is in DirectShow, a browser-based vector is potentially accessible through any browser using media plug-ins that use DirectShow.

Microsoft have provided workarounds for the exploit available under the 971778 security advisory.

 

source: www.neowin.net

Microsoft officially launches new search at Bing.com

After several months in the planning, Microsoft has finally taken the covers off its new web search engine, Bing. Set to go live in under a week, Bing is not just a re branding of Microsoft's previous search site Live Search but is a major update introducing new features and a new interface, touted as a "decision engine".

Having been in internal testing for a while under the codename of Kumo, Bing was unveiled today - as expected - at the All Things Digital D7 conference by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. Bing is expected to start rolling out in the coming days with worldwide availability expected by June 3.

According to Microsoft, Bing will initially have four main search verticals: shopping around for products (with reviews and price comparisons to help you make your decision), travel planning (using technology from their acquisition of Farecast), researching health conditions (possibly linked to Microsoft HealthVault), and local business search (with integrated reviews and maps).

You may be wondering where such a strange name came from. Yusuf Mehdi, the Senior Vice President of the Online Audience Business Group who demoed Bing on stage at D7 today, reveals "We needed a brand that was as fresh and new [...] A name that was memorable, short, easy to spell, and that would function well as a URL around the world [...] the name needed to clearly communicate that this is something new, to invite you to come back, to re-introduce you to our new and improved service and encourage you to give it a try."

Along with the relaunch, the Virtual Earth mapping platform will now be known as Bing Maps for Enterprise, the advanced travel search features made available from Microsoft's acquisition of Farecast will be fully integrated as Bing Travel, and the Live Search cashback program will also be branded to Bing Cashback.

 

source: www.neowin.net

Introducing the Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7

At Wall Street Journal's D: All Things Digital conference about a year ago today, Julie Larson-Green first introduced Walt Mossberg to Windows 7 and its multi-touch capabilities, which we call Windows Touch. While we’ve been working on bringing natural user interface to you in many Microsoft products, we first introduced multi-touch in Microsoft Surface. Since then, the Windows and Surface development teams have been collaborating closely on bringing multi-touch to Windows, and last year demoed a few applications they created to run on Windows 7. Today, we thought it would be fitting on this “anniversary” of first talking about Windows Touch to introduce the Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7.

While touch is built into the “DNA” of Windows 7, something that was talked about in the Touching Windows 7 blog post on the E7 Blog, we thought it would be fun to give you some applications that show what’s possible with this new way to interact with your PC. The Microsoft Touch Pack for Windows 7 is a set of six multi-touch optimized applications and games that are designed to truly showcase the capabilities of Windows Touch in Windows 7. It consists of 3 casual games, and 3 Microsoft Surface applications that have been created for Windows 7.

 

source: http://windowsteamblog.com

Free Vista to Windows 7 Upgrades Program Debuts June 26th

With the Release Candidate Build 7100 development milestone available for download since May 5th, 2009, and Windows 7 making its way toward RTM, Microsoft is also planning to debut the Tech Guarantee Program, now labeled Microsoft’s ‘Windows 7 Upgrade Option Program’ associated with the operating system. The Redmond company offered a similar program for Windows Vista, and it is now planning to do the same for Windows 7, starting June 26th, 2009. The marketing initiative is designed to offer free

upgrades from Windows Vista to Windows 7 for customers who will not wait for the next iteration of the Windows client.
Microsoft has failed to offer any details related to its Technical Guarantee Program for Windows 7, but TechARP revealed that the Windows 7 Upgrade Option Program was planned for debut by the end of next month. PC manufacturer Acer has already begun promoting the initiative in Australia, by offering marketing materials advertising the debut of the program. “Beginning June 26, 2009, customers who purchase a qualifying ACER Vista-based PC will receive a comparable version of Windows 7 when available,” reads the message of a slip included with new purchased Acer computers.

The Windows 7 Upgrade Option Program is designed to compensate eventual consumer trends to hold out from buying new computers and wait for the general availability of Windows 7 instead. The Redmond company, in partnership with OEMs, is working to convince users to buy new machines preloaded with Windows Vista and get a free upgrade to Windows 7 when the operating system will become available.

The only eligible Vista editions for the Upgrade Option Program are Home Premium, Business, and Vista Ultimate. The move will be made between equivalent SKUs, for example Vista Ultimate users will receive an upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate. Windows XP is also included in the program, but only for Vista downgrades, essentially only if a Vista license is present.

 

source: www.softpedia.com

Microsoft confirms Zune HD coming this fall

REDMOND, Wash. - May 26, 2009 - Microsoft Corp. today announced the evolution of Zune, the company's end-to-end music and entertainment service, to a new platform and new markets. Zune will extend its video service to Xbox LIVE internationally this fall. This marks an important development in the Zune strategy and brings the Zune brand to more than 17 million international Xbox LIVE subscribers. In addition, Microsoft confirmed the next generation of the Zune portable media player, Zune HD. Available in the U.S. this fall, Zune HD is the first portable media player that combines a built-in HD Radio receiver, high-definition (HD) video output capabilities, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) touch screen, Wi-Fi and an Internet browser.
"The Zune music player is an integral part of the overall Zune experience, and we're proud to be growing and extending our offering beyond the device," said Enrique Rodriguez, corporate vice president of the Microsoft TV, Video and Music Business Group. "Delivering on Microsoft's connected entertainment vision, this news marks a turning point for Zune as it brings cross-platform experiences and premium video content to living rooms around the world."

Zune Service Expands to New Platform
Zune will be a premium partner in the Xbox LIVE Video Marketplace, bringing an exciting catalog of TV and film to the platform. Zune will occupy the first slot within the Xbox user interface in the Xbox LIVE Video Marketplace, exposing the Zune brand experience to millions of new consumers for the first time. At the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) next week, attendees will see firsthand how Zune integrates into Xbox LIVE to create a game-changing entertainment experience.

Introducing Zune HD

Zune HD is the next iteration of the Zune device family and brings a new level of listening and viewing experiences to the portable media player category.

• Zune HD comes with a built-in HD Radio receiver so users can listen to higher-quality sound than traditional radio on the go. Users also will have access to the additional song and artist data broadcast by HD Radio stations as well as additional channels from their favorite stations multicasting in HD. If you don't like the song playing on your station's HD channel, switch to its HD2 or HD3 channels for additional programming.
• The bright OLED touch screen interface allows users to flip through music, movies and other content with ease, and the 16:9 widescreen format display (480x272 resolution) offers a premium viewing experience on the go.
• The HD-compatible output lets Zune HD customers playback supported HD video files from the device through a premium high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) audiovisual docking station (sold separately) direct to an HD TV in 720p.*
• Zune HD will include a full-screen Internet browser optimized for multitouch functionality.
• Zune HD is Wi-Fi enabled, allowing for instant streaming to the device from the more than 5 million-track Zune music store.

More information on Zune and related images is available at http://www.zune.net/press and http://www.zune.net/ZuneHD.

About Zune

Zune is Microsoft's music and entertainment brand that provides an integrated digital entertainment experience. The Zune platform includes a line of portable digital media players, elegant software, the Zune Marketplace online store, Zune Pass music subscription service, and the Zune Social online music community, created to help people discover more music. Zune is part of Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices Division and supports the company's software-based services vision to help drive innovation in the digital entertainment space.

More information can be found online at http://www.zune.net/en-us/press

Windows 7 Build 7140 Details Leaked

1. You can now add anything to the Taskbar.
2. Icons slightly expand when you hover over them on the taskbar.
3. The “System” menu is more simplistic, and easier to navigate.
4. You can change the login screen picture through the “Personalization” menu.
5. The menu/lists that pop up when you right click on things now have the Aero Glass effect.
6. The default icons for Folders have changed to be the transparent blue ones featured a long time ago.
7. The Minimize/Maximize/Exit buttons on the top-right of a window have changed icons, and are a bit smaller than the Vista/7 counterparts.
8. [BIG ONE]: There’s an “Upload” feature for Pictures, files, and videos. If you right-click a file, and click “Upload”, you can make it automatically upload to a website of your choice. After uploading, a pop-up will appear saying it’s done, and clicking “OK” will cause the link/download link to the file to appear in the popup box. I tried ImageShack and Facebook, and they work.
9. Spanish, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese unicode(s) and settings are integrated, so one can run foreign apps or use foreign keyboards without changing languages & restarting.

 

source: www.ihackintosh.com