tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18043383575291967792024-03-14T20:38:33.296+05:30MS EXPERIENCEHi this blog is to share the latest news related to computers.Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.comBlogger217125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-7422616842122974562007-09-18T10:53:00.002+05:302008-08-18T21:41:22.322+05:30Join the Microsoft Student rockstar contest!!!<p> Few days ago Microsoft announced the 2nd edition of the <strong>Student Rockstar</strong> contest. Calling out all young technology enthusiasts to learn more about Microsoft technologies, share knowledge, participate in competitions, projects, events, quizzes, and much more. For these activities, you earn points and get a rank in the contest, which eventually determines your rewards and opportunities. This is the perfect chance to try your luck at becoming a Microsoft Student Partner or win XBoxes, Windows mobile phones and flash drives. </p> <p><strong>Register before 25th Sept 2007 to win 50 bonus points!<br /></strong>Also an exciting competition is being held by Microsoft- <strong>“<a href="http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=7399913">Light Up Your College</a>” </strong>– that gets your creative juices flowing and gives you the chance to design an innovative website for your college, using Microsoft Next Web technologies.<br />So, if you’re interested in web development, you can make this your first step to real life assignments and in the run, win prizes worth Rs.50,000 !<br />Find out more… <a href="http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=7399914">http://www.studentrockstar.com/LightUpYourCollege.aspx</a> </p><p>This contest is only for the students studying in engineering colleges in India.</p> <p>So hurry up friends and join the student rockstar contest here- <a href="http://studentrockstar.com/">http://studentrockstar.कॉम</a></p><p><br /><br /><table align="center" width="468" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style=" height:62px; border:solid 1px #666666; font-size: 9pt; font-family: Arial; color:#F0F0F0; text-decoration:none; background:#09A7D7; padding: 3px;"><br /> <tr><br /> <td rowspan="3" style=" font-size: 32px; "><span style="color:#FFF">f</span><span style="color:#EEF">l</span><span style="color:#DDF">y</span><span style="color:#FFF">.</span><span style="color:#CDF">c</span><span style="color:#BCE">o</span><span style="color:#FFF">.</span><span style="color:#ACE">u</span><span style="color:#ABE">k</span></td><br /> <td colspan=2"" align="center" style="color:#CEF;font-weight:bold;">cheap flights from the uk to the whole world</td><br /><br /> </tr><br /> <tr><br /> <td><a style="font-size:10px;color:#C0E0FF;text-decoration:none;" title="Canberra Flights" href="http://www.fly.co.uk/airports/canberra.html">Canberra Flights</a></td><br /> <td><a style="font-size:10px;color:#C0E0FF;text-decoration:none;" title="Memphis International Airport" href="http://www.fly.co.uk/airports/memphis.html">Memphis International Airport</a></td><br /> </tr><br /> <tr><br /> <td><a style="font-size:10px;color:#C0E0FF;text-decoration:none;" title="Website" href="http://www.fly.co.uk/airports/pierre-elliott-trudeau.html">Website</a></td><br /><br /> <td><a style="font-size:10px;color:#C0E0FF;text-decoration:none;" title="Cheap Flights to Buffalo" href="http://www.fly.co.uk/airports/buffalo.html">Cheap Flights to Buffalo</a></td><br /> </tr><br /></table><br /></p>Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-91236808564388400532007-02-19T18:00:00.001+05:302008-08-18T21:38:18.961+05:30Windows Vista Tips,Tricks and tweaks<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:Navy;"><b>Boost Windows Shutdown Speed</b></span></span><br />Vista is normally fast to shutdown, takes maybe 3 seconds on my beta machine. Some configurations however may lend their selves to a longer shutdown period, some of the time the longer shutdown is due to waiting for Vista to kill some services. If your affected by this the following might help.<br /><br />Start up Regedit and navigate to [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Contro l]<br />On the right pane look for the "WaitToKillServiceTimeout" string and change its value to 1000 by right clicking the string and selecting Modify. However, to make sure its going to work OK for you modify the value to WaitToKillServiceTimeout=5000 first and try it out.<br />Modified value WaitToKillServiceTimeout=1000 (1000 is a bit much for this one so be careful)<br />3000 seems to work just about right but try the 5000 first.<br />(The default value for WaitToKillServiceTimeout=20000 in case you need to change it back)<br /><br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Extend Activation period</span></span></b><br />Would you like to extend the activation period to the maximum 120 days instead of the 30 day period that is set by default? It is possible and legal to do this using the software licensing manager in Windows Vista. Simply run <b><span style="">slmgr -rearm</span></b> to get another 30 days. You can do this a maximum of three times before Microsoft blocks further extensions.<br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Install Vista without product key</span></span></b><br /></span><span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">Don't feel like typing in your product key before installing Windows Vista? It is now possible to install any version of Windows Vista and use it for 14 days before having to enter a product key and activating it. </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">While on the product key screen during install, just hit the Next button. You will be presented with a new screen that allows you to select the version of Windows Vista you would like to install. </span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Launch Flip 3D Alt+Tab Replacement</span></span></b><br /></span><span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">This has been one of the most demonstrated features of Windows Vista and also one that I have been asked the most about how to use it. </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">Keep in mind that your computer must support the DWM for this feature to run. If you are running Aero Glass right now, it will work perfectly for you. </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">Launch Flip 3D:</span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-size:130%;">Just press and hold the Windows Key + Tab. Then use the scroll wheel on your mouse or the up and down keyboard arrows to navigate through the windows. When the window you want is on top, release the Windows and Tab keys.</span> </span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><b><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" > Check Windows Vista Activation Status</span></b><br />Are you a user of Windows Vista Enterprise or Business edition and would like to know the status of activation of a specific computer? Want to make sure that the computer connected properly to the Key Management Server (KMS) or used your Multiple Activation Key (MAK) properly? Or are you a home user and just want to make sure your computer is fully activated?<br />Included in Windows Vista is very useful utility that will help you check the status of activation of your computer:<br />1.Click on the Start Button and key in CMD and hit Enter to start up Command Prompt.<br />2.At the prompt, type in "slmgr.vbs -dli"<br />3.After a few seconds you will be presented with a pop-up message with your activation status.<br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Remove Windows Mail splash screen</span></span></b><br />Are you a frequent user of Windows Mail? Would you like to shave a second off of load time and remove that annoying splash screen? Using a quick reg hack, you can easily remove the splash screen.<br />1.Click on the start button and type in regedit and hit Enter.<br />2.Navigate through HKEY_CURRENT_USER, Software, Microsoft and Windows Mail.<br />3.Create a new DWORD called NoSplash.<br />4.Set the value of NoSplash to 1.<br />5.Exit Registry Editor.<br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Enable Vista Glass look on Unsupported Video Cards</span></span></b><br /></span><span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">Microsoft Windows Vista, formally Codename longhorn has a new user interface system codenamed Avalon. This new user interface engine greatly enhances the look by utilizing several cool looking 3D effects. Of course, to be able to fully utilize the new engine you need a good 3D video card on top of special drivers, WDDM (Windows Display Driver Model). </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">To turn on this effect just execute c:\Windows\System32\UXSS.exe or enable and start the User Experience Session Management Service. </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">1. Open up Regedit.<br />2. Navigate through HKEY_local_machine, Software, and Microsoft.<br />3. Create a new KEY called DWM.<br />4. In the new DWM key you created, create a DWORD called EnableMachineCheck.<br />5. Make sure this value is set to 0 and hardware checking is now disabled. </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">Quick Note: Although you can get it to run on older hardware, with the lack of WDDM drivers available, it is going to run very slowly if at all.</span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Enable Vista Glass on Compatible Hardware</span></span></b><br />If you have a video card that is using WDDM drivers and supports DirectX 9c but is not allowing you to use vista glass, there is a cool trick that you can use to force Aero to run. Follow the steps below:<br />1.Click on the start button and key in <b>regedit</b> and hit Enter.<br />2.Navigate through, HKEY_CURRENT_USER, Software, Microsoft, Windows and DWM.<br />3.Set Composition to <b>1</b> and CompositionPolicy to <b>2</b>.<br />4.Restart the DWM by restarting the Desktop Windows Manager Session Manager service. This can be done in services.msc or by typing <b>net stop uxsms</b> and <b>net start uxsms</b> at command prompt.<br />Once the service restarts you will have glass!<br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Show Run Command on Start Menu</span></span></b><br /></span><span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">Windows Vista has a new search bar located on the Start Panel. You can use the new search box to find items in the various folders of your Start Menu as well as run any application from it. Just type in the name of the executable and it will search your hard drive for it and run it. This is a great feature but if you have a lot of files on your computer, then be prepared for a short delay since it may have to search for a while. </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">If you do not want to wait that long, there is a quick way to get the old Run command back on your Start Panel. </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">1. Right click on your taskbar and select <b><span style="">Properties</span></b>.</span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">2. Click on the <b><span style="">Start Menu</span></b> Tab and then select <b><span style="">Customize</span></b>. </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">3. Scroll through the list and check the <b><span style="">Run Command</span></b> check box.</span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span> <span style=""><span style="font-size:130%;">4. Hit OK a few times and it is back. </span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Disable pop-up balloon tips</span></span></b><br />Tired of pop-up tips showing up all over the interface? With group policy editor, you can easily stop them from showing up for good.<br />1.Start up the group policy editor by clicking on the start button and keying in gpedit.msc and pressing Enter.<br />2.Expand User Configuration, Administrative Templates and Start Menu and Taskbar.<br />3.Select Remove Balloon Tips on Start Menu items, right click on it and select Properties.<br />4.Select Enable and hit OK.<br />5.Close Group Policy Editor and you are finished.<br /><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:130%;" >Enabling addition Avalon effects</span></span></b><br />Once you have the new Aero engine enabled on your build of Windows codename Longhorn, you can enable additional transition effects that are currently turned off in builds. Follow the steps below to add some additional desktop and explorer effects:<br /><br />1. Open up regedit.<br />2. Navigate thru HKEY_Local_Machine, Software, Microsoft, Windows, Current Version, and Explorer.<br />3. Create a new DWORD and call it MILDesktop.<br />4. Set the value of MILDesktop to 1.<br />5. Create a new DWORD and call it MILExplorer.<br />6. Set the value of MILExplorer to 1.<br />7. Exit explorer and restart.<br /><br />I hope your system and drivers can handle the new effects!<br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><b><span style=""><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);">How to disable user access protection ( UAP )-</span></span><span style=""><br /></span></b><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style=""></span></span></span>While logged in with admin rights. Press the key combo Win+R (the "Run command" box comes up).<br />Run "msconfig".<br />Go to the "Tools" tab.<br />Scroll down to "disable UAP", & click the "launch" button below.<br />It will execute a command & leave behind a CMD window, exit that, reboot Vista, and you're done!<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);"><b>Show Administrator on Welcome Screen</b></span><br />start > run = " control userpasswords2 " select administrator account, click reset password (input new pass) / Ok<br /><br />start > run = " regedit " create the key below<br /><br />HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserLis t<br /><br />create "DWORD (32bit) Value"<br />Value Name: Administrator<br />Value Data: 1<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 204, 153);"><b><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Disable some Visual Effects</span></span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;color:Black;" ><br /></span></b></span></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;"></span></span>Browse to Control panel/ System/ Advanced system settings/ Advanced tab/ Performance-Settings/ Visual effects (Default Tab)<br /><br />Uncheck the following boxes:<br /><br />- Animate controls and elements inside windows<br />- Fade or slide menus into view<br />- Fade or slide tooltips into view<br />- Fade out items after clicking<br />- Show shadows under menus<br />- Show shadow under mouse pointer<br />- Show translucent selection rectangle<br />- Slide open combo boxes<br />- Slide taskbar buttons<br /><br />Optionals (Affecting Vista Eye candy)<br />- Enable transparent glass<br />- Enable Desktop composition<br />- Use a background Image for each folder type<br />* And all other Visual effects. Feel free to toy with them and uncheck what you don't consider vital. As we mentioned before we will optimize Vista while keeping alive the "Eye-Candy" that's why we leave the "optinals" effects for you to decide what to disable and what not.<br /><br />Apply changes.<br /><br /><b style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Adjusting Virtual Memory (Pagefile, Swapfile size</span></span></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">)</span></span></span></b><br /><b style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></b>Memory management in Windows Vista is very similar to what we saw in Windows XP taking into account that there is more use of it now with the indexing and superfetch features. At the same time it is different to that under the previous Windows 95/98/SE/ME series. No matter how much physical RAM you have in your system, your Windows Vista Virtual Memory (also called the Swapfile or Pagefile) settings will have a major impact on your system's performance. if you want to gain a clearer understanding of what virtual memory is, and why most of the myths you've heard concerning virtual memory and 'freeing up RAM' are blatantly untrue we recommend you to read these articles Here and Here for references.<br /><br />Before setting a new pagefile size, first clear your existing pagefile. To do this select the 'No Paging File' option and click the Set button, then reboot your system. This step does two things: first it deletes the pagefile, fixing any potential pagefile corruption which can occur after a bad shutdown (remember this tip for future troubleshooting purposes); and secondly it ensures that any new pagefile you create will start off as a single unfragmented contiguous block on your hard drive for optimal performance.<br /><br />Once you've cleared your existing pagefile, you can now set a new pagefile. Which drive or partition this pagefile should be located on is based loosely on the following rules:<b style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></b><br />One hard drive and one partition: The pagefile can only be located on the primary partition of your hard drive.<br /><br />One hard drive and multiple partitions: Make sure the pagefile is placed on the first partition as this is the fastest partition. Placing it on another partition does not simulate the benefits of having two hard drives since the read head of the Hard Drive can still only seek information from one place at a time.<b style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Disable System Restore<br /></span></span></span></b><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;"></span></span><br />In Windows Vista, the System Restore service is one cause of performance issues. Even when this has changed compared to the earlier releases of Windows Vista we recommend you to use PC Backups periodically instead running the System Restore service. To turn off System Restore follow the instructions bellow:<br /><br /><br />1. Click on the "Start" button.<br />2. Right click "Computer", and then click "Properties".<br />3. On the panel (left hand side), click "Advanced Settings".<br />4. If asked to permit, click "Allow".<br />5. Click on the "System Protection" tab.<br />6. Uncheck any checkbox listed for your hard drives.<br />7. Apply changes.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;color:Black;" ><br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:Segoe UI;" ><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Disable Hibernation<br /></span></span></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:Segoe UI;" ><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:Segoe UI;" ><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:85%;"></span></span></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color:Black;">Windows places a file on your hard drive that it uses when your computer goes into hibernation mode. If you do not use hibernation mode, you may want to disable hibernation and clear the file off your hard drive to free up some space (the file will use as much space as you have in physical memory, so if you have 1GB of RAM, it's going to use 1GB of your hard drive space).<br /><br />There are two ways of disabling it:<br /><br />To disable using Disk Cleanup:<br /><br />1. Click Start/ All Programs/ Accessories/ System Tools/ Disk Cleanup<br />2. If prompted to choose a drive, select the drive in which Windows Vista is installed onto and press OK.<br />3. Disk Cleanup will scan the hard drive and present you with a list of options.<br />4. Check "Hibernation File Cleaner", and then click OK.<br />5. When asked "Are you sure you want to permanently delete these files?" click on the Delete Files<br />button.<br /><br />To disable hibernation using the Command Prompt:<br /><br />1. Click Start, All Programs, and then right click on "Command Prompt".<br />2. From the context menu click on "Run as administrator".<br />3. If User Account Control prompts you to allow the action, click on Continue.<br />4. In the command prompt window, type "powercfg -H OFF" (without the quotes).<br />4. Close the Command Prompt window.<br /><br />Two or more physical hard drives: You should put the main pagefile on the drive that doesn't contain your Windows installation and installed applications. This will reduce hard drive head movement on the main disk and speed up access to the pagefile on the other disk.</span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:Segoe UI;" ><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /><br /></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-weight: bold;font-family:Segoe UI;" ><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">CPU Priority<br /><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">This Registry hack will tweak your CPU Priority if you don't have a PnP BIOS.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">What could this trick do for you? Well basically the system will be configured to dedicate more </span>processor power to the applications you launch (all foreground tasks in general), dedicating at the same time less processor power for background applications. Some people say that you really notice no performance gain. In my personal opinion you DO notice a great performance improvement in your system. It becomes more responsive to</span><b style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"> </span></b><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;">your clicks and as far as I'm concerned it has a major impact under Windows vista.</span><br /><b style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">Here is what to do:</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">Run Regedit and go to:</span></span> <b style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span></b><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Contro l\PriorityControl</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">Look for a DWORD [REG_DWORD] Value called "Win32PrioritySeparation", double-click on it and type into value data box: "6"(Hexadecimal value; no quotes). Click OK to save.</span></span><br /><b style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">When this value is set to 1, the foreground (active) application has more CPU Power </span> than the background (inactive) applications (if any), and if you set the value to 2, you get even more power to the foreground application(s):</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">0 = F</span></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">oreground and background applications equally responsive.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">1 = Foreground applica</span></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">t</span></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">ion more responsive than background.</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">2 = Best foreground application response time.</span></span><br /><b style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">T</span></span></b><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">he maximum value allowed is 26 (Hex) or 38 (Decimal).</span></span><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">Play around with these values until you find your own "sweet spot".</span></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color:Black;">Notes:</span></span><span style="font-family:Segoe UI;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style="color:Black;">Higher settings will drag down system resources considerably. Ask a Professional to know the better settings for you in this tweak. NEVER use a value of 0 because that will lock up your PC<b><br /><br /></b></span></span></span><span style="font-family:Arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><i><b>How to disable the command prompt during the Windows Vista Enterprise installation process</b></i></span><br /><i><b>INTRODUCTION</b></i><br /><i>In some cases, you may want to use the command prompt to troubleshoot the Windows Vista Enterprise installation process. By default, the command prompt is enabled in Windows Vista Enterprise. This article describes how to disable the command prompt during the Windows Vista Enterprise installation process.<br /><br /><b>Note</b> To start a command prompt during the Windows Vista Enterprise installation process, press SHIFT+F10.</i><br /><i><b>MORE INFORMATION</b></i><br /><i>During all phases of the Windows Vista Enterprise installation process, Windows Setup and the related setup files examine the Windows Vista Enterprise setup directory for a file that is named the DisableCMDRequest.tag file. When Windows Setup and the related setup files find the DisableCMDRequest.tag file, Windows Setup disables the command prompt for the duration of the Windows Vista Enterprise installation process.<br /><br />The Windows Preinstallation Environment (Windows PE) runs when you start Windows Setup for the first time. To disable the command prompt during the Windows Vista Enterprise installation process, follow these steps: </i>1.Verify that the computer has Windows Automated Installation Kit (Windows AIK) or Windows OEM Preinstall Kit (Windows OPK) installed.2.Click <b>Start</b><img src="http://support.microsoft.com/library/images/support/kbgraphics/Public/EN-US/VistaStartButton.jpg" alt="" border="0" />, click <b>All Programs</b>, click <b>Windows AIK</b> or <b>Windows OPK</b>, and then click <b>Windows PE Tools Command Prompt</b>.<br /><br /><b>Note</b> If you follow these steps on a Windows Vista Enterprise-based computer, right-click the Command Prompt window, and then click <b>Run as Administrator</b>.3.Use the ImageX tool to mount the Boot.wim file to a folder. To do this, run the following command: <b>md \mount imagex /mountrw WimFileFolderName\boot.wim 2 \mount</b><br /><b>Note</b> In this command, WimFileFolderName is a placeholder for the name of the folder that contains the Boot.wim file.4.In the Windows Vista Enterprise setup directory, create the DisableCMDRequest.tag file. To do this, run the following command: <b>md \mount\windows\setup\scripts echo.>\mount\windows\setup\scripts\DisableCMDReque st.TAG</b><br />5.Apply the changes to the Boot.wim file. To do this, run the following command: <b>Imagex /unmount /commit \mount</b><br />6.Deploy the image. To do this, use the methods that are specified in the documentation for Windows AIK, for Windows OPK, or for Windows Deployment Services.<i><b>Note</b> After you follow these steps, you cannot run audit mode by pressing CTRL+SHIFT+F3.<br /><br /></i><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><b>Speed Up Start Menu<br /></b></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;">Are you on Vista and having issues with the Start menu response? Is it taking a few seconds to open up a program folder? </span></span> <span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;">Well there is no magic here. Just a few clicks and you will be set. Right Click the Taskbar and select Properties. Click on Start Menu tab/ Customize and uncheck the "Highlight newly installed programs" box in the options. Click Apply, OK and you are ready to go. </span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;">Also you may want to modify the following registry value:</span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;">Navigate to: [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]</span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;">String Value: 'MenuShowDelay'</span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;">Default value: 'MenuShowDelay'='400'</span></span><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Black;">Modified value: 'MenuShowDelay'='0'</span></span><br /><br /><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><b>Disable performance counters<br /></b></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:Black;">Open a Command Prompt by going to Start/ Search box type "cmd" (without quotes), the cmd.exe will show up on the search results. Right Click the cmd.exe icon on the list and select "Run as Administrator".<br /><br />Once the MS DOS prompt is open, type the following lines exactly as shown, pressing return after each:<br /><br />Set devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices=1<br /><br />In the Device Manager window that opens go to the "View" menu and select "Show Hidden Devices". Now start looking through all the devices. Devices in gray are usually old/unused and safe to remove by right clicking on each one and selecting "Uninstall". In particular, you might find several entries under the Monitors section from previous graphics driver installations. You can typically delete all the greyed out entries but at least one un-greyed entry should remain. You may also find old entries for previous graphics cards under the Display Adapters section that again can be removed. Remember that even with only one monitor connected there are usually two entries for most ATI graphics cards, one of which is the Secondary - this is normal. You should not remove any Microsoft devices such as those under the Sound section, or devices that you are unclear about. Once done, you can close Device Manager the usual way and the next time you open it up it will not show unused devices until you again use this method to do so. Close and reopen Device Manager and disable any unused device you are not using in your system. For example you may have installed a Floppy Disk Drive which is useless on these days. If that's your case you want to disable it to prevent the system from loading unnecessary drivers. That will reduce your boot times waiting and free up some system resources. Do the same to any other device you don't use. See the screenshot.<br /><br /></span></span><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><b>Turn off unnecessary Services<br /></b></span><i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;">Note:</span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"> Even when we suggest in our guide to disable services it is important that you know that some 3rd party programs may call some of these services to run properly. For that reason we would like to point out that the "Disable Service" could be set to "MANUAL" instead and it will have the same effect in your system, allowing the OS to start running the service when a specific program requires it to run... With this said, it is up to the end user what action to take. Good Luck and Backup before Tweaking.<br /><br /></span></span></i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"> <span style="color:Black;"><b>Computer Browser</b>: Maintains an updated list of computers on the network and supplies this list to computers designated as browsers.<br />If you aren't on a network environment, set to Disabled.<br /><br /><b> D</b></span></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;"><b>esktop Window Manager Session Manager</b>: Provides Desktop Window Manager startup and maintenance services.<br />If you are not running the Aero Glass transparency interface, set to Disabled.<br /> <b>Distributed Link Tracking Client</b>: Maintains links between NTFS files within a computer or across computers in a network.<br />If you don't have links between NTFS Files, set to Disabled.<br /><br /><b> IP Helper</b>: Provides automatic IPv6 connectivity over an IPv4 network.<br />If you don't need IPv6 support, set to Disabled</span></span></span><i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span></span></i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /><b> Offline Files:</b> The Offline Files</span></span></span><i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;"> service performs maintenance activities on the Offli</span></span></span></i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;">ne Files cache, responds to user logon and logoff events, implements the internals of the public API, and dispatches interesting events to those interested in Offline Files activities and changes in cache state. If you don't use offline files, set to Disabled.<br /><b><br />Portable Device Enumerator Service</b>: Enforces group policy for removable mass-storage devices. Enables applications such as Windows Media Player and Image Import Wizard to transfer and synchronize content using removable mass-storage devices.<br />If you don't own any portable device, set to Disabled. If you do then set it to Manual<br /><br /><b> Print Spooler</b>: Loads files to memory for later printing<br />If you have no printer installed in your system, set to Disable. If you do have a printer or you decide to install one later, make sure to Enable this service otherwise your printer installation may fail. This service manages the printing priority in your system plus the order in which documents will be printed after loading them to memory.</span></span></span><i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /></span></span></span></i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /> <b>Program Compatibility Assistant Service</b>: Provides support for the Program Compatibility Assistant.<br />If you don't use the Program Compatibility Assistant, set to Disabled.</span></span></span><i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;"><br /><br /> </span></span></span></i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;"><b>ReadyBoost</b></span></span></span><i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;">: </span></span></span></i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><span style="color:Black;">Provides support for improving system performance using ReadyBoost.<br />If you don't use USB drives (flash drives) as a memory booster, set to Disabled. Otherwise buy a flash drive, connect it to your USB and using it as system memory you will notice the great improvement in performance right away.</span></span></span><i><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color:Red;"><br /></span></span></i><br /><b> Security Center</b>: Monitors system security settings and configurations.<br />If you run an Antivirus software, firewall, etc and you don't want Windows to monitor your system security configuration, set to Disabled. Note that this action must be taken only if you monitor and take care of your system security by yourself. Most users use third party applications to secure their OS. If that's your case you do NOT need to have this service enable.<br /><br /><b> Server:</b> Supports file, print, and named-pipe sharing over the network for this computer.<br />If you don't send files or print them over a network, set to Disabled. Your system doesn't need to run as a server at anytime unless you have a Home network to share files and print documents.<br /><br /><b> Table PC Input Service:</b> Enables Tablet PC pen and ink functionality.<br />If you don't toy with Tablet PC, set to Disabled.<br /><br /><b>TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper</b>: Provides support for the NetBIOS over TCP/IP (NetBT) service and NetBIOS name resolution for clients on the network, therefore enabling users to share files, print, and log on to the network.<br />If you don't plan to share files between computers within a network, set to Disabled.<br /><br /><br /><b>Terminal Services</b>: Allows users to connect interactively to a remote computer.<br />If you don't remotely connect to other computers, set to Disabled.<br /><br /><b>WebClient</b>: Enables Windows-based programs to create, access, and modify Internet-based files.<br />If you don't use it, set to Disable. The WebClient service provides WebDAV (Web Distributed Authoring and Versioning) integration in the Explorer shell. It makes it possible to use "web folders" and to browse the file systems of web servers (not unlike FTP, but better - adds secure password authentication and file locking) within an Explorer window. WebDAV is an extension of the HTTP/1.1 protocol. It is not needed. You can use Internet Explorer 5 and above for this functionality (File > Open > enter URL and check the "Open as Web Folder" checkbox), as well as a host of other downloadable tools that implement WebDAV.<br /><br /><b>Windows Defender</b>: Scan your computer for unwanted software, schedule scans, and get the latest unwanted software definitions.<br />Personally I shutdown Windows Defender service and disable it from running at startup. Of course I use 3rd party applications to keep my system as secure and clean as possible. In my personal opinion Windows Defender has proven to be a useless Windows application to protect your system. I don't pretend to have a discussion about this at all. Do what you believe is better for your system. I pick to shut it down...<br /><br /><b>Windows Error Reporting Service</b>: Allows errors to be reported when programs stop working or responding and allows existing solutions to be delivered. Also allows logs to be generated for diagnostic and repair services.<br />If you feel bothered when a program stops working and Windows asks you to send a report, set to Disabled. Bye bye report. You can leave it as is if you think you may need it for reports and troubleshooting.<br /><br /><b> Windows Time</b>: Maintains date and time synchronization on all clients and servers in the network.<br />If you don't need to keep your system synchronized, set to Disabled. (It auto-updates the system clock)<br /><br /><b> Windows Update</b>: Enables the detection, download, and installation of updates for Windows and other programs.<br />Not every day you receive a new update from Microsoft but you do have the service running 24/7. We recommend you to set this service to Manual and check for updates manually once a week or maybe once every 15 days. Note that changing it to Manual will prevent the service to run when the system boots up but it will be automatically loaded when you run Windows Update manually. To run Windows Update, click on Start/ All Programs/ Windows Update.<br /><br /></span></span><span style="color:Red;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Create a Custom Boot Logo for Windows Vista</span></span><br /></span><br />If you are a desktop customization kinda guy, one of the first things you’ll want to figure out is how to create a customized boot logo. There’s a little utility that you can use to create the boot logo formats.<br />First you’ll need to download the <a href="http://www.computa.co.uk/staff/dan/?p=18" target="_blank">Vista Boot Logo Generator 1.1</a> utility, which we’ll use to create the correct logo image type. Once it’s installed, you need to make sure that you run the application as administrator:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/CreateaCustomBootLogoforWindowsVista_604/image%7B0%7D%5B1%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />We should choose an appropriate logo file. Since I’m a big fan of linux, and not as big a fan of Windows Vista, I chose an image of Tux making windows suck that I found over <a href="http://www.arabx.com.au/tux/" target="_blank">here</a>.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/CreateaCustomBootLogoforWindowsVista_604/image%7B0%7D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Choose two versions of the image, one needs to be 800×600 at 24 bit color, and the other 1024×768 at the same color depth. Both files must be in Bitmap(BMP) format. Save the file somewhere like your desktop, because we can’t yet copy directly to the correct directory, until we take ownership of the file.<br />To take ownership of the file, you’ll have to open an administrator command prompt. (type <i>cmd</i> into the start menu search box, and hit Ctrl+Shift+Enter), and then run this command:<blockquote>takeown /f C:\Windows\System32\en-US\winload.exe.mui<br /></blockquote>Now run this command, substituting geek for your username:<blockquote>cacls C:\Windows\System32\en-US\winload.exe.mui /G geek:F<br /></blockquote>Now copy the file that you created into the C:\windows\system32\en-US\ directory. Make sure you choose the overwrite option.<br />Now you’ll need to use the msconfig utility. Just type msconfig into the start menu search box, and then click the Boot tab:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/CreateaCustomBootLogoforWindowsVista_604/image%7B0%7D%5B10%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Check the “No GUI boot” option, and we’re all ready to reboot and test it out. Sweet!<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Disable Windows Sidebar in Vista</span></span><br />Let’s be honest: The Windows Sidebar in Windows Vista is cheesy and useless. It’s also easy to disable.<br /><br />To disable this, right click on the sidebar or sidebar icon, and choose properties:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/DisableWindowsSidebarinVista_BCCE/image0.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Uncheck the “Start Sidebar when Windows starts” checkbox:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/DisableWindowsSidebarinVista_BCCE/image01.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Then right-click on the icon, and choose Exit to close the sidebar:<br /><br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/DisableWindowsSidebarinVista_BCCE/image02.png" alt="" border="0" /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Enable Run Command on Windows Vista Start Menu</span></span><br />A number of people wants to know that how to enable the old Run dialog that existed on every other version of Windows until Vista. One of the nice features of the old Run dialog was that it saved the history of what you had typed in.<br />We should note first that you can always get to the run dialog by just hitting Win + R on the keyboard, which is the simplest way to do so, and would probably be worth getting used to.<br />Otherwise, you can re-enable the run dialog by right-clicking on the Start Button, selecting Properties, and then clicking Customize on the ensuing dialog window. You’ll be taken to the Customize Start Menu screen.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/02/WindowsLiveWriter/EnableRunCommandonWindowsVistaStartMenu_CE33/image%7B0%7D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Check the “Run command” checkbox in the list, and you should now be in business:.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/02/WindowsLiveWriter/EnableRunCommandonWindowsVistaStartMenu_CE33/image%7B0%7D%5B1%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Note the addition of the Run… button.<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Stop an Application from Running at Startup in Windows Vista</span></span><br />Back in the old days, there were a lot of places an application could hook itself to run at startup. You had to check the registry in more than one place, as well as your start menu. With Windows Vista, there’s a built-in panel that handles all that for you.<br />To quickly get to this panel, you can open Control Panel, and then type “startup” into the search box. The link for “Stop a program from running at startup” shows up immediately. You could have also opened Windows Defender and fooled around with the menus until you find the right spot, but this seems quicker to me.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/StopanApplicationfromRunningatStartupinW_7B45/image%7B0%7D%5B4%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Now you can see the Windows Defender screen that lets you manage the startup programs.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/StopanApplicationfromRunningatStartupinW_7B45/image%7B0%7D%5B3%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />You can choose to Remove or just Disable any startup item using this panel, as well as lots of other useful information so that you can see what each item is.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Disable Power Management on Windows Vista<br /></span></span>If you are using a desktop computer, chances are that you don’t want the computer to go to sleep automatically. This is even more the case if you are running Vista in a virtual machine for testing purposes.<br />Disabling power management is simple and easy. First go to the start menu and click on the Control Panel.<br />Click on the System and Maintenance link:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/10/WindowsLiveWriter/DisablePowerManagementonWindowsVista_BD5/vistacontrolpanel%5B1%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Then click on the Power Options link:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/10/WindowsLiveWriter/DisablePowerManagementonWindowsVista_BD5/poweroptions%5B1%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Then select High Performance:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/10/WindowsLiveWriter/DisablePowerManagementonWindowsVista_BD5/highperf%5B1%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />This will disable the automatic sleep mode, but will still turn off the display. You can click on Change Plan Settings to disable that as well if you want.<br />Tested on: Windows Vista RC1<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Enable or Disable UAC From the Windows Vista Command Line</span></span><br />If you’ve used Windows Vista for more than 3.7 minutes, you know what UAC (User Account Control) is.. it’s the obnoxious, nagging popup window that will be your life for the next 3-5 years unless you switch back to XP in frustration, or to a better OS like… OS X, Suse, Ubuntu, or even XP.<br /><b>Windows need your permission to annoy the crap out of you:</b><br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/WindowsLiveWriter/EnableorDisableUACFromtheWindowsVistaCom_CEBC/uacannoying.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />There’s a quick way you can enable or disable this annoying window from the command line:<br /><b>Disable UAC</b><blockquote>C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe /k %windir%\System32\reg.exe ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Pol icies\System /v EnableLUA /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f<br /></blockquote><b>Enable UAC</b><blockquote>C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe /k %windir%\System32\reg.exe ADD HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Pol icies\System /v EnableLUA /t REG_DWORD /d 1 /f<br /></blockquote>After you enable or disable UAC, you will have to reboot your computer for the changes to take effect<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><u><b>Using Windows Vista System Restore<br /></b></u></span></span>Windows Vista has a feature called System Restore that automatically backs up registry and system files whenever you install new software or drivers. This feature is useful when you install evil software that makes your computer run really slow. But don’t worry, System Restore won’t remove Windows Vista.<br /><br /><b>Using System Restore in Windows</b><br />There are two places that you can use the system restore feature from. From within Windows, you can just type <i>restore</i> into the Start menu search box, and you’ll immediately see System Restore at the top of the start menu:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/UsingWindowsVistaSystemRestore_1395E/image%7B0%7D%5B4%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Or you can type <i>rstrui</i> into the search box and hit enter. Your choice.<br />Note: If you choose the more geeky way of launching System Restore, you will be rewarded with unlimited credit to Newegg. I’m lying, but wouldn’t that be sweet?<br />You will immediate see a screen where you can choose to roll back the system to the last restore point. You can select “Recommended restore”, and just click next, or you can choose a different restore point.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/UsingWindowsVistaSystemRestore_1395E/image%7B0%7D%5B2%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />If you do choose a different restore point, you will see a list of restore points that you can choose from. How many times have I typed the word choose at this point?<br />You’ll notice in the screenshot below that the last thing I did was install Virtual CloneDrive to mount ISO images, but right before that I installed the NVIDIA drivers.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/UsingWindowsVistaSystemRestore_1395E/image%7B0%7D%5B3%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Click one of them, and you will have to confirm and then restart your computer to roll the system back.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/UsingWindowsVistaSystemRestore_1395E/image%7B0%7D%5B5%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br /><b>If your system won’t boot</b><br />If you can’t even get into windows, you can boot off the installation dvd, and choose the “Repair your computer” option on the lower left hand side. Click next on the next screen.<br />Now choose System Restore from the System Recovery dialog. It will take a few seconds to come up, and you will see the same screen that you would see in Windows:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/UsingWindowsVistaSystemRestore_1395E/image%7B0%7D%5B3%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Click next, and on the next screen select the drive that your copy of Windows Vista is installed on.<br />Click Finish, and Vista will roll back to the previous restore point. Really pretty simple stuff.<br /><br /><b>Conclusion</b><br />I’d absolutely recommend keeping the system restore feature on in Vista. I’ve already blown the system up at least 3 times, and had to restore.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><b><u>Test Your Computer’s Memory Using Windows Vista Memory Diagnostic Tool<br /></u></b></span></span>If you are an overclocker, or are just suspecting a memory problem with your computer, you should probably run some memory tests. Rather than spending money, you can use the free tool included in Windows Vista.<br />Using this tool will require a reboot, so keep that in mind before you launch it.<br />Type in <i>memory</i> into the start menu, and you should see the first option will say Memory Diagnostics Tool.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/TestYourComputersMemoryUsingWindowsVista_640C/image%7B0%7D%5B1%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />A dialog will pop up asking if you want to reboot and check for problems now, or check for problems the next time you restart.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/TestYourComputersMemoryUsingWindowsVista_640C/image%7B0%7D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />If you choose to restart now, Vista will reboot into the memory diagnostic utility:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/TestYourComputersMemoryUsingWindowsVista_640C/image%7B0%7D%5B13%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />You can also get to this utility directly from the boot manager menu. You’ll notice it at the bottom of the window in the screenshot below:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/TestYourComputersMemoryUsingWindowsVista_640C/image%7B0%7D%5B15%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Getting to it is a little strange, though, if you only have Vista installed on the machine. You’ll have to hold down F8 for the boot menu, and then hit Esc to get to the screen above.<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Set XP as the Default OS in a Windows Vista Dual-Boot Setup</span></span><br />When you install Windows Vista as a dual-boot with your regular Windows XP partition, Vista is always set as the default OS. If you want to set XP as the default OS instead, there’s a quick command you can run to change it back.<br /><br />First you’ll have to open an administrator command prompt. Type cmd into the search box, and then hit Ctrl+Shift + Enter to open it in administrator mode. You should be prompted for the UAC dialog.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/SetXPastheDefaultOSinaWindowsVistaDualBo_463E/image%7B0%7D2.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Enter in the following command:<blockquote><b>bcdedit /default {ntldr}</b><br /></blockquote>Example:<blockquote><b>C:\Windows\system32>bcdedit /default {ntldr}<br />The operation completed successfully.</b><br /></blockquote>Now when you reboot, it will set XP as the default.<br /><br /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;"><u><b>Resize a Partition for Free in Windows Vista</b></u></span></span><br />Windows Vista includes a built-in functionality in Disk Management to shrink and expand partitions. No more 3rd party utilities needed!<br /><br />To get to this utility, open up Control Panel, and type in <i>partition</i> into the search box.. you’ll immediately see the link show up:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/ShrinkaPartitionforFreeinWindowsVista_ABC6/image04.png" alt="" border="0" /><br /><b>Shrink a Partition</b><br />In the Disk Management screen, just right-click on the partition that you want to shrink, and select “Shrink Volume” from the menu.<br />In the Shrink dialog, you will want to enter the amount you want to shrink by, not the new size. For example, if you want to shrink your 50gb partition by roughly 10gb so that it will now be roughly 40gb, enter 10000 into the box:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/ShrinkaPartitionforFreeinWindowsVista_ABC6/image05.png" alt="" border="0" /><br /><b>Extend a Partition</b><br />In the Disk Management screen, just right-click on the partition that you want to shrink, and select “Extend Volume” from the menu.<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/ShrinkaPartitionforFreeinWindowsVista_ABC6/image08.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />On this screen, you can specify the amount that you want to increase the partition by. In this case, I’m going to extend it back to the roughly 50GB size that it was before.<br />Note that the extend partition feature only works with contiguous space.<br /><br /><br /><u><b><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="color:DarkOrange;">Configure Disk Defragmenter Schedule in Windows Vista<br /></span></span></b></u>Windows Vista automatically configures Disk Defrag to schedule defragment to run once a week, usually at 1am on Wednesday. I don’t know about you, but I’m usually awake at 1am on wednesday, and I’d rather schedule it for a different time.<br /><br />To open up the defragment utility, just type <i>defrag</i> into the Start menu search box, and hit enter. Click through the obnoxious UAC prompt, and you should see this screen:<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/ConfigureDiskDefragmenterScheduleinWindo_EBC0/image%7B0%7D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />From this screen, you can disable automatic defrag by unchecking the box. You can also modify the schedule by clicking the Modify schedule button (no surprise there)<br /><img src="http://www.howtogeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/WindowsLiveWriter/ConfigureDiskDefragmenterScheduleinWindo_EBC0/image%7B0%7D%5B1%5D.png" alt="" border="0" /><br />Much better.. Not like I’m ever awake at 8am.<br /><br /><span style=""><span style="font-size:100%;">[ <span style="font-size:130%;">I have been working on these tweaks for so many days, although I had taken them from different websites but I have myself checked all the tweaks and all of them are working fine. I would be posting new tips and tricks regularly here. If you have anything to add, just post a reply! Constructive feedback and criticism is also welcome.]<br /><br />sources are-<br />bink.nu<br />neowin.net<br />tweakvista.com<br />msfn.org<br />thehotfix.net<br />howtogeek.com<span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span></span></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34);"><span style=""><u></u></span></span></span><br /><br /><table style="border: 1px solid rgb(102, 102, 102); padding: 3px; background: rgb(9, 167, 215) none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 62px; color: rgb(240, 240, 240); text-decoration: none; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;font-family:Arial;font-size:9pt;" width="468" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><br /><tbody><tr><br /> <td rowspan="3" style="font-size:32px;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">f</span><span style="color: rgb(238, 238, 255);">l</span><span style="color: rgb(221, 221, 255);">y</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span><span style="color: rgb(204, 221, 255);">c</span><span style="color: rgb(187, 204, 238);">o</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.</span><span style="color: rgb(170, 204, 238);">u</span><span style="color: rgb(170, 187, 238);">k</span></td><br /> <td colspan="2" style="color: rgb(204, 238, 255); font-weight: bold;" align="center">cheap flights from the uk to the whole world</td><br /><br /></tr><br /><tr><br /> <td><a style="font-size: 10px; color: rgb(192, 224, 255); text-decoration: none;" title="LIL" href="http://www.fly.co.uk/airports/lille-lesquin.html">LIL</a></td><br /> <td><a style="font-size: 10px; color: rgb(192, 224, 255); text-decoration: none;" title="Buffalo Flights" href="http://www.fly.co.uk/airports/buffalo.html">Buffalo Flights</a></td><br /></tr><br /><tr><br /> <td><a style="font-size: 10px; color: rgb(192, 224, 255); text-decoration: none;" title="Find Deals" href="http://www.fly.co.uk/airports/cairns.html">Find Deals</a></td><br /><br /> <td><a style="font-size: 10px; color: rgb(192, 224, 255); text-decoration: none;" title="La Sarre Airpor" href="http://www.fly.co.uk/airports/la-sarre.html">La Sarre Airpor</a></td><br /></tr><br /></tbody></table>Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com328tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-19669057491961218182008-04-28T08:24:00.001+05:302008-04-28T08:24:02.724+05:30Windows XP SP3 now available via Windows Update<p> For the people who doesn't want to download from pirated sites and who were waiting for the official release of Windows XP SP3, now the wait is over and it is available for download via Windows Update site though it is still not available on automatic updates.This is the full 316 meg file.</p> <p>This file can be <a href="http://download.windowsupdate.com/msdownload/update/software/svpk/2008/04/windowsxp-kb936929-sp3-x86-enu_c81472f7eeea2eca421e116cd4c03e2300ebfde4.exe" target="_blank">downloaded here</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-31038826490143272002008-04-25T20:25:00.001+05:302008-04-25T20:25:03.043+05:30Microsoft says 140M Vista licenses sold<p><b>Microsoft Corp. said Thursday that it has sold 140 million licenses of Windows Vista.<br></b>Colleen Healy, general manager of investor relations, made the statement during a conference call with Wall Street analysts after Microsoft posted its third-quarter earnings. The company pointed to strong PC sales for helping the much-maligned operating system achieve that number.<br>However, revenue from Microsoft's client division, which overwhelmingly comes from sales of Windows Vista or XP licenses, was down 24% from last year's third quarter to $4.03 billion. Chris Liddell, Microsoft's chief financial officer, attributed the decrease to strong sales a year ago immediately after Vista's launch, plus increased software piracy in developing countries and other reasons.<br><b>View Full Article: </b><a href="http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=windows_and_linux_pcs&articleId=9080320&taxonomyId=64&intsrc=kc_top">Computerworld</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-1273469454085031842008-04-24T18:51:00.001+05:302008-04-24T18:51:28.113+05:30New FolderShare client for Windows available<p> There's a <a href="https://foldershare.com/clientdownload.aspx">new version of FolderShare for Windows</a> that's designed to help improve security and reliability. To bring as many people as possible up to date, we’ll start prompting users to upgrade this week. When the time comes, you won't be able to sign in until you update. We understand this process may cause some inconvenience, so we strongly encourage you to get a head start and install the <a href="https://foldershare.com/clientdownload.aspx">new version</a> today. </p> <p>Thanks for your patience as we get FolderShare into even better shape! </p> <p>—The FolderShare team </p> <p>Source: <a href="http://foldershareteam.spaces.live.com/Blog/cns%219D186A323DE6761%21427.entry">foldershareteam.spaces.live.com</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-47181601191452248592008-04-24T18:42:00.001+05:302008-04-24T18:44:30.247+05:30BizTalk R3 Announced<p>Steve Martin sent out the announcement yesterday that the BizTalk Server line of products would be getting an R3 update during the first half of 2009. BizTalk Server 2006 R3 moves the BizTalk platform to the Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008, and .NET Framework 3.5 wave of releases. In addition, there are feature enhancements planned for: </p> <ul> <li>Supporting UDDI 3.0 <li>Improved integration and hosting with service-oriented applications <li>Connectivity with RFID and mobile devices <li>Enhanced interoperability for business protocols such as EDI and SWIFT </li></ul> <p>You can read the <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/stevemar/archive/2008/04/23/biztalk-server-platform-updates.aspx">original announcement by Steve on BizTalk Server 2006 R3</a> for more details. </p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-14537211055855057452008-04-24T18:38:00.001+05:302008-04-24T18:38:48.601+05:30Microsoft Not To Raise Bid For Yahoo!<p>Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft Corp, Steven Ballmer was adamant and refused to raise its $44.6 billion offer for Yahoo! Inc. The CEO of Washington-based Microsoft said, “We know what Yahoo is worth to us. We offered a lot of money: $44 billion. It is not a lot of euros anymore. If their board thinks that's fair, great. If not, we'll move forward,"</p> <p>Ballmer did clarify as to what he meant by ‘moving forward’. He however clarified that Microsoft would not make a bid for Google primarily for regulatory reasons.</p> <p>Yahoo! has four days before Microsoft's deadline to agree to its offer or face a hostile takeover fight and risk a lower bid. Earlier Yahoo! had rejected Microsoft’s offer and had argued that it's worth more than the $31 a share in cash and stock that the latter offered. Yahoo! management and directors have said Microsoft's cash-and-stock offer "significantly" undervalues their company.</p> <p>Meanwhile, Yahoo! also announced its first-quarter financial results on April 22nd. These results were closely watched as these could make a statement in themselves and coax Microsoft for a higher bid. Revenue, excluding the amount paid to advertising partners, rose to $1.35 billion. That beat forecasts of $1.32 billion. </p> <p>After the results, CEO and co-founder Jerry Yang reinforced that the Microsoft bid was low and said, "The quarter's results underscore the fact that our strategy and investments are beginning to pay off. Our board and management are committed to choosing a path to maximize stockholder value and will not enter into any transaction that does not recognize the full value of this company." </p> <p>Are these results good enough to compel Microsoft shell out a higher amount? At least Steven Ballmer does not think so. He has already threatened to take the proposal straight to shareholders if Yahoo doesn't agree to its terms by April. 26. Prior to the declaration of the results, e had said, "I wish Yahoo all the success with its results, but it doesn't affect the value of Yahoo to Microsoft."</p> <p>Microsoft fell 17 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $30.25 in Nasdaq Stock Market trading yesterday. The shares have fallen 15 percent this year. Yahoo fell 1 cent to $28.54 yesterday and the stock has risen 23 percent this year.</p> <p>Source- <a href="http://www.themoneytimes.com/articles/20080423/microsoft_not_to_raise_bid_for_yahoo-id-1020922.html" target="_blank">TheMoneyTimes</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-73939168193062208952008-02-20T00:58:00.001+05:302008-02-20T00:58:33.862+05:30DreamSpark: Free Microsoft software offered to all students globally<p> DreamSpark is a new program that launched today (Feb 18th) with Bill Gates giving the keynote. If you're a student you can get <ul> <li>Windows Server 2003 <li>Visual Studio 2008 Professional Edition <li>SQL Server 2005 Developer Edition <li>Microsoft Expression Studio including Expression Web, Blend, Design and Media <li>A one year subscription to XNA Game Studio Creator's club</li></ul> <p>DreamSpark is simple, it's all about giving students Microsoft professional-level developer and design tools <strong>at no charge</strong> so you can chase your dreams and create the next big breakthrough in technology - or just get a head start on your career.</p> <p>Here is what the <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/Presspass/press/2008/feb08/02-18GSDPR.mspx" target="_blank">Microsoft press release</a> reads-</p> <blockquote> <p><em>Microsoft Corp. Chairman Bill Gates today will unveil a software giveaway that will ultimately provide millions of college and high school students around the world with access to the latest Microsoft developer and designer tools at no charge to unlock their creative potential and set them on the path to academic and career success. </em> <p><em>The Microsoft DreamSpark student program (</em><a href="http://channel8.msdn.com/"><em>http://channel8.msdn.com</em></a><em>) makes available, at no charge, a broad range of development and design software for download. The program is now available to more than 35 million college students in Belgium, China, Finland, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the U.K. and the U.S. Broad global coverage, as well as an expansion of the program to high school students around the world, potentially reaching up to 1 billion students worldwide, will continue throughout the next year. Gates will share details with students and faculty at Stanford University as part of a U.S. and Canada college tour that kicks off today.</em></p></blockquote> <p>For full information, check out <a href="https://downloads.channel8.msdn.com/">https://downloads.channel8.msdn.com/</a> and watch <a href="http://channel8.msdn.com/Posts/2047/">Max Zuckerman's interview with Bill Gates</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-90848445925822993662008-01-09T01:05:00.001+05:302008-01-09T01:05:35.837+05:30Microsoft January 2008 Security Bulletins<p>As part of Microsoft's routine, monthly security update cycle, today they released <strong>two</strong> new security bulletins that affects Windows system.<br><em>Note</em>: There may be latency issues due to replication, if the page does not display keep refreshing. <p><strong>Critical</strong> <ul> <li><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS08-001.mspx">MS08-001</a> - Vulnerabilities in Windows TCP/IP Could Allow Remote Code Execution (941644)</li></ul> <p><strong>Important</strong> <ul> <li><strong><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS08-002.mspx">MS08-002</a></strong> - Vulnerability in LSASS Could Allow Local Elevation of Privilege (943485)</li></ul> <p><strong>Microsoft also released Non-Security, High-Priority Updates on MU, WU, and WSUS:<br></strong>- <strong>Five</strong> non-security, high-priority updates on Microsoft Update (MU) and Windows Server Update Services (WSUS).<br>- <strong>Two</strong> non-security, high-priority updates for Windows on Windows Update (WU) and WSUS. <p><strong>Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool</strong><br>Microsoft has released an updated version of the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool on Windows Update, Microsoft Update, Windows Server Update Services, and the <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=AD724AE0-E72D-4F54-9AB3-75B8EB148356&displaylang=en">Download Center</a>. <p><em>References:</em><br>January 2008 Security Bulletin Summary: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms08-jan.mspx">http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/ms08-jan.mspx</a><br>Security Bulletin for end-users: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/protect/computer/updates/bulletins/200801.mspx">http://www.microsoft.com/protect/computer/updates/bulletins/200801.mspx</a><br>MSRC Blog: <a href="http://blogs.technet.com/msrc/archive/2008/01/08/january-2008-monthly-release.aspx">http://blogs.technet.com/msrc/archive/2008/01/08/january-2008-monthly-release.aspx</a> <p><em>Support:</em><br>Call 1-866-PCSAFETY. There is no charge for support calls that are associated with security updates. International users should go to <a href="http://support.microsoft.com/common/international.aspx">http://support.microsoft.com/common/international.aspx</a> <p><em>Security Bulletin Webcast:</em><br>Microsoft will host a <a href="http://msevents.microsoft.com/CUI/EventDetail.aspx?EventID=1032357213&Culture=en-US">Webcast</a> tomorrow. The webcast focuses on addressing your questions and concerns about the security bulletins. Therefore, most of the live webcast is aimed at giving you the opportunity to ask questions and get answers from their security experts. <p><em>Update sources:</em><br>Microsoft <em>NEVER</em> send security updates via e-mail. As always, download the updates only from the vendors' website - visit Windows Update and Office Update or Microsoft Update. You may also get the updates thru Automatic Updates functionality in Windows.<br>Security updates are available on ISO-9660 DVD5 image files from the Microsoft Download Center. For more information, please see <a href="http://support.microsoft.com/kb/913086">http://support.microsoft.com/kb/913086</a><br><em>Note</em>: Don't be a victim of spoofed emails. Read "<em><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/protect/yourself/phishing/msemail.mspx">How to tell whether a security e-mail message is really from Microsoft</a></em>" <p><em>Recommendations:</em><br>Microsoft advises customers to install the latest product releases, security updates, and service packs to remain as secure as possible. Older products, such as Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, may not meet today's more demanding security requirements. It may not be possible for Microsoft to provide security updates for older products. More info at <a href="http://support.microsoft.com/lifecycle/">Microsoft Support Lifecycle website</a>. <p><em>Report Security Vulnerability to Microsoft:</em><br>If you have found a Microsoft security vulnerability, please report: <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/...in/alertus.aspx">https://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/...in/alertus.aspx</a> <p><em>Tool:</em><br>Check your system for missing or misconfigured patches using <em><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/tools/mbsahome.mspx">Microsoft Baseline Security Analyzer (MBSA).</a></em><br>For 3rd Party tools in scanning your computer for missing updates, hotfixes, end of life or out-dated version, please see the list at <a href="http://www.dozleng.com/updates/index.php?showtopic=13587">http://www.dozleng.com/updates/index.php?showtopic=13587</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-82436216180202923272008-01-05T09:49:00.001+05:302008-01-05T09:49:10.452+05:30Microsoft .NET Compact Framework 3.5 Redistributable<p>The Microsoft® .NET Compact Framework 3.5 Redistributable contains the common language runtime and class libraries built for the .NET Compact Framework. In addition to version 3.5 support, it also supports applications developed for version 1.0 and 2.0. The .NET Compact Framework 3.5 provides new features such as Windows Communication Foundation, LINQ, SoundPlayer, new runtime tool support, and many other features. <br>Important: To develop .NET Compact Framework applications, Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 is required. <br>This package uses ActiveSync 4.0 to update the device. Before running NETCFSetupv35.msi, connect your device to your PC. If your device is not connected, ActiveSync will store the CAB file and will not install the package until you connect. If you are not using ActiveSync, run the CAB files on the device that correspond to the device–specific CAB files found in the install folder.<br>System Requirements<br>Supported Operating Systems: Windows 2000 Service Pack 4; Windows CE .NET; Windows Mobile 2003 SE software for Pocket PC; Windows Mobile 5.0; Windows Mobile 6; Windows Vista; Windows XP<br>Supported Device Operating Systems: Windows Mobile Software for Pocket PC 2003, Windows Mobile 5.0 for PocketPC and Smartphone, Windows CE .NET 5.0 and higher.<br>Important: This download utilities Microsoft® Windows® Installer technology. Windows 98 and Windows ME users should install the Microsoft® Windows® Installer 2.0 before proceeding with this download.<br>Download: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=e3821449-3c6b-42f1-9fd9-0041345b3385&displaylang=en&tm">Microsoft .NET Compact Framework 3.5 Redistributable</a><br>Link: <a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/netframework/">Home Page</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-31758672524622220782008-01-05T09:47:00.001+05:302008-01-05T09:47:33.897+05:30Sysinternals Suite Build 2008.01.04<p>The Sysinternals Troubleshooting Utilities have been rolled up into a single Suite of tools. This file contains the individual troubleshooting tools and help files. It does not contain non-troubleshooting tools like the BSOD Screen Saver or NotMyFault. Microsoft acquired Sysinternals in July, 2006. Whether you’re an IT Pro or a developer, you’ll find Sysinternals utilities to help you manage, troubleshoot and diagnose your Windows systems and applications. If you have a question about a tool or how to use them, please visit the Sysinternals Forum for answers and help from other users and our moderators.<br><b>What's New ( January 4th, 2008 )</b>: <ul> <li><u>Updated Autoruns to version 9.01</u>: Autoruns v9.01 fixes a bug in the way that it handles certain shell extension points and adds awareness of several additional shell extensions. <li><u>Updated PsExec to version 1.94</u>: This update fixes a bug in the timeout option and it makes it possible to use more options when launching local processes, like processor affinity, without administrative rights. <li><u>Updated Tcpview to version 2.52</u>: Tcpview v2.52 fixes a bug that causes partial display of UDP endpoints on Windows XP. <li><u>Sigcheck to version 1.41</u>: This Sigcheck update correctly displays long comments in file version information.</li></ul><br> Download: <a href="http://download.sysinternals.com/Files/SysinternalsSuite.zip">Sysinternals Suite</a><br> View: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/utilitiesindex.mspx">Applications Descriptions</a><br> Link: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/utilities/sysinternalssuite.mspx">Home Page</a> | <a href="http://forum.sysinternals.com/">Official Forum</a> | <a href="http://blogs.technet.com/Sysinternals/">Official Blog</a> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-39825360082717473622008-01-01T22:59:00.001+05:302008-01-01T22:59:35.396+05:30SideShow Coming To Windows Mobile, iPhone<p><a href="http://vistasquad.co.uk/blogs/james/archive/2007/11/19/windows-mobile-sideshow-renderer-released-to-beta.aspx">Ikanos Consulting is developing</a> a framework which is in beta testing which will, when completed, allow you to run Windows SideShow Gadgets on a Windows Mobile device, finally bringing SideShow to the masses. <p>SideShow is a wonderful technology in Vista, allowing the display and access of data from a Vista PC on external mini-devices (usually little screens with a few buttons on the outside of a PC case), but the hardware is very specific and very rarely implemented. With support for running SideShow programs (Gadgets, just like the Sidebar kind) on mobile phones, SideShow can be used by any of the millions of Windows Mobile phones. <p>With SideShow, you can check email on your host PC, select music for the PC to play, see the weather or your Messenger buddy list, or load up any Gadget that's been created by anyone for the purpose. There aren't a ton of Gadgets now, but once the hardware gets out there (and by enabling existing devices, it gets out there a lot faster), developers will start creating even more cool functionality. <p><a title="http://microsoft.blognewschannel.com/archives/2007/12/31/sideshow-coming-to-windows-mobile-iphone/" href="http://microsoft.blognewschannel.com/archives/2007/12/31/sideshow-coming-to-windows-mobile-iphone/">http://microsoft.blognewschannel.com/archives/2007/12/31/sideshow-coming-to-windows-mobile-iphone/</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-81125839680459174062007-12-27T10:37:00.001+05:302007-12-27T10:37:38.371+05:30Microsoft Robotics Studio (1.5) Refresh<p>As a platform, our intent is also to enable third parties to supply support for new hardware, technologies, and tools, just as Microsoft Windows provides a platform for others to bring their products and technologies to the community of PC users. So while we may populate our platform with some of our own contributions, those should not be considered exclusive to tools or libraries provided by other parties looking to provide interesting technologies for this platform.<br>The Microsoft Robotics Studio delivers three areas of software: <ol> <li>A scalable, extensible runtime architecture that can span a wide variety of hardware and devices. The programming interface can be used to address robots using 8-bit or 16-bit processors as well as 32-bit systems with multi-core processors and devices from simple touch sensors to laser distance finding devices. <li>A set of useful tools that make programming and debugging robot applications scenarios easier. These include a high quality visual simulation environment that uses the AGEIA Technologies™ PhysX™ engine. <li>A set of useful technology libraries services and samples to help developers get started with writing robot applications.</li></ol><br>Our development environment runs on the platforms listed in the section "System Requirements". It can be used to support robots that support these platforms as well as robots that can be remotely controlled from a PC running a supported platform. The remote control can for example be through a serial port, Bluetooth®, RF or Wi-Fi. We provide information that can be used by hardware or software vendors to make their products compatible with our development platform.<br>System Requirements <ul> <li>Supported Operating Systems: Windows CE; Windows Server 2003 R2 (32-Bit x86); Windows Server 2003 R2 x64 editions; Windows Vista; Windows XP; Windows XP 64-bit <li>To use Microsoft Robotics Studio with .NET Framework 2.0 Software Development Kit (SDK): .NET Framework 2.0 Software Development Kit (SDK) (x86 or x64) <li>To use Microsoft Robotics Studio with Visual Studio 2005: Any of the Visual 2005 Express Editions, Visual Studio 2005 Standard Edition, Visual Studio 2005 Professional Edition or Visual Studio 2005 Team System Edition</li></ul> <p><b>Important</b>: With the exception of the Simulation Engine, Microsoft Robotics Studio is fully compatible with 64-bit Windows. The Simulation Engine uses the XNA Framework which does not yet support 64-bit Windows so you can't run simulation on 64-bit Windows. Microsoft Robotics Studio can be used to develop services that can be deployed on Windows CE. The development tools themselves do not run on Windows CE, only the services developed for Windows CE.<br> </p> <p>Download: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=73092ff6-e37b-45c6-8e5e-c23d5d632b1e&displaylang=en&tm">Microsoft Robotics Studio (1.5) Refresh</a><br> Link: <a href="http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-ca/robotics/default.aspx">Home Page</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-43959412493195405962007-12-27T10:34:00.001+05:302007-12-27T10:34:00.310+05:30Microsoft ILMerge 2.0.7.1226<p>ILMerge is a utility that can be used to merge multiple .NET assemblies into a single assembly. ILMerge takes a set of input assemblies and merges them into one target assembly. The first assembly in the list of input assemblies is the primary assembly. When the primary assembly is an executable, then the target assembly is created as an executable with the same entry point as the primary assembly. Also, if the primary assembly has a strong name, and a .snk file is provided, then the target assembly is re-signed with the specified key so that it also has a strong name. ILMerge is packaged as a console application. But all of its functionality is also available programmatically. Note that Visual Studio 2005 does allow one to add an executable as a reference, so you can write a C# client that uses ILMerge as a library. If you are using Visual Studio 2003, you must use the v1.1 version of ILMerge and rename it to be a dll in order to use it as a reference. <br>There are several options that control the behavior of ILMerge. See the documentation that comes with the tool for details. The v2.0 version of ILMerge runs in the v2.0 .NET Runtime, but it is also able to merge v1 or v1.1 assemblies. However it can merge PDB files only for v2 assemblies. The v1.1 version of ILMerge can only process assemblies built in the v1.1 runtime (but does merge PDB files for those assemblies). Currently, ILMerge works only on Windows-based platforms. It does not yet support Rotor or Mono. It runs in the v2.0 .NET Runtime, but is also able to merge v1 or v1.1 assemblies.<br>System Requirements<br>Supported Operating Systems: Windows 2000; Windows Server 2003; Windows XP<br>Important: Make sure you have the latest service pack and critical updates for the version of Windows that you are running. To find recent security updates, visit Windows Update.<br> </p> <p>Download: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=22914587-b4ad-4eae-87cf-b14ae6a939b0&displaylang=en&tm">Microsoft ILMerge 2.0.7.1226</a><br>Link: <a href="http://research.microsoft.com/%7Embarnett/ILMerge.aspx">Home Page</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-31422901475782025552007-12-06T10:12:00.001+05:302007-12-06T10:12:40.265+05:30Microsoft Office 2007 SP1 download available Dec 11<p> Microsoft Office 2007 SP1 will be available for download Dec 11. The improvements in 2007 Office System SP1 are in response to direct feedback from power users at large organizations or indirect feedback from home and Office users through the Dr. Watson bug-reporting system. <p>It will eliminate many deployment barriers. it will provide support for Windows Server 2008, and will provide critical fixes. <p>2007 Office System SP1 will not be released to AU immediately. Instead, the Microsoft Office System team will announce the ate to use automatic updating so IT departments will have time to learn yourself about SP1 and determine the best method to deploy it. <p>For more information, see the <a href="http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/downloads/default.aspx">Microsoft Office download</a> site.</p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-78236691308797740902007-11-07T11:23:00.001+05:302007-11-07T11:23:34.923+05:30The new Windows Live is here!<p> Today Microsoft released the next generation of Windows Live! You can get all the new products now at the new <a href="http://www.windowslive.com/">WindowsLive.com</a>. You can install everything in one download, or pick just the products you want. <p>Everything coming out today is designed to work with the Windows Live services you’re already using, like Windows Live <a href="http://spaces.live.com/">Spaces</a>, <a href="http://hotmail.live.com/">Hotmail</a>, Messenger, and <a href="http://www.imagine-windowslive.com/Mobile/Landing/Home/Default.aspx">Windows Live for mobile</a>, but of course, they add a whole slew of new features into the mix. <p>Today’s release includes: <ul> <li><b>Windows Live Mail</b> — This desktop mail program lets you see all your e-mail accounts in one place (including Hotmail, Gmail, AOL, or any other IMAP or POP web e-mail account), and adds all kinds of features you don’t normally get with web mail. <li><b>Windows Live Messenger</b> (update) — The popular IM program has a new upgrade, including improved contact cards, file sharing, video calling, and VOIP capabilities. <li><b>Windows Live Writer</b> — A WYSIWYG editing program for bloggers that makes it easy to add photos, maps, tags and more to your blog, and publish directly to Windows Live Spaces, Blogger, TypePad, and many other blogging services. <li><b>Windows Live Photo Gallery</b> — Helps you find, organize, fix, and share your photos and videos, stitch together panoramic photos, and upload them all directly to Windows Live Spaces or Flickr. <li><strong>Windows Live Toolbar </strong>(update) — Easy access to Live Search and Windows Live, custom buttons, and security features that help you block suspicious websites and pop-ups. <li><b>Family Safety from Windows Live OneCare</b> — Tools to help you protect your children from inappropriate websites and contacts. You decide how much control you want for each child. </li></ul> <p>U can download all the products here- <a title="http://get.live.com/wl/all" href="http://get.live.com/wl/all">http://get.live.com/wl/all</a></p> <p>More info can be found at the official blog <a href="http://windowslivewire.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!2F7EB29B42641D59!560.entry">here</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-16159406314222818542007-11-06T12:18:00.001+05:302007-11-06T12:18:48.490+05:30Windows Live Wave 2 including Windows Live Messenger 8.5 Final build 8.5.1302.1018 leaked<p>The latest version of <strong>Windows Live Messenger,Writer, Toolbar, Photo Gallery, Family Safety</strong> and including <b>Sign-in Assistant</b> has been leaked by mess.be on the net before it's official released this evening.Not much updates has been available till yet but If U are eager to download the latest version then U may download here.You might have to <b>uninstall</b> your previous client first.</p> <p>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67732674/WLinstaller-FINAL-English_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (English)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67732835/WLinstaller-FINAL-Spanish_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Spanish)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733094/WLinstaller-FINAL-Dutch_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Dutch)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733016/WLinstaller-FINAL-Italian_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Italian)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67732923/WLinstaller-FINAL-French_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (French)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67734055/WLinstaller-FINAL-BrazilianPortuguese_premiered-by-www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Brazilian Portuguese)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733260/WLinstaller-FINAL-German_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (German)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733168/WLinstaller-FINAL-Turkish_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Turkish)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733372/WLinstaller-FINAL-Arabic_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Arabic)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733488/WLinstaller-FINAL-Japanese_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Japanese)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733566/WLinstaller-FINAL-Russian_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Russian)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733651/WLinstaller-FINAL-Hebrew_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Hebrew)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733768/WLinstaller-FINAL-Romanian_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Romanian)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733863/WLinstaller-FINAL-Ukranian_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Ukranian)</a>. <br>>> Download <a href="http://rapidshare.com/files/67733947/WLinstaller-FINAL-Finnish_premiered_by_www.mess.be_.zip">Windows Live Installer (Finnish)</a>.</p> <p>We are also downloading all the updates and will let U know more about it very soon!!!!!!</p> <p>(<b>NOTE:</b> MS Experience does not support piracy and these links are just for the guys who cant wait for the official release :) )</p> <p>Source- <a href="http://mess.be/">Mess.be</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-64561452679135077152007-11-06T11:55:00.001+05:302007-11-06T11:55:25.821+05:305 Years Later, Microsoft IPTV Coming to India<p><b>At a press event in Mumbai, India today, Microsoft announced a partnership with India's Reliance Communications Ltd. to bring IPTV service to the country by March 2008.</b></p> <p><b></b>Microsoft Corp. and Reliance Infocomm Ltd. today announced that the two companies plan to work together to jointly create, test and deliver next-generation Internet Protocol (IP)-based television services using an upcoming IPTV solution being developed by Microsoft® TV. This new technology is designed to enable Reliance Infocomm to leverage its nationwide high-speed infrastructure to deliver a unique set of next-generation television services that take full advantage of its state-of-the-art network. The new relationship also will enable the companies to test the benefits to Indian households of leading Microsoft technologies such as Windows Media® 9 Series, Microsoft .NET and Microsoft Windows Server 2003. <p>"We are happy to be working with Microsoft to create and test a solution that will help Reliance Infocomm offer our customers a variety of services for a rich TV experience," said Amit Khanna, official spokesperson, Reliance Infocomm. "This understanding highlights the strategic relationship between Reliance Infocomm and Microsoft to provide next-generation broadcast TV and video-on-demand services to our Indian consumers." <p>"Microsoft TV's IPTV solution allows Reliance Infocomm to maximize the value of its network," said Moshe Lichtman, corporate vice president of the Microsoft TV Division. "Reliance Infocomm has the strategic vision to look to the future and next-generation TV services. Reliance Infocomm clearly recognizes the value that software can add to the IPTV and advanced video services market, and we are pleased to kick off our new IPTV efforts by announcing this alliance with one of India's largest private-sector enterprises." <p>Source- <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/tv/content/Press/PressReleases/RelianceIPTVPR.mspx">Microsoft Press release</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-20209410974587798432007-11-04T12:39:00.001+05:302007-11-04T12:39:21.481+05:30Try Windows Home Server for 120 days<p>Microsoft is offering a 4 month trial of Windows Home Server for evaluation purposes. The Windows Home Server 120-Day Evaluation Kit includes a Windows Home Server Installation DVD, a Windows Home Server Connector CD and a Home Computer Restore CD. A backup is recommended prior to installation as the setup process for server installation will erase any existing data. Microsoft provides the minimum specifications, which aren’t very high at all, and minimum requirements on the website below. The software giant also notes that a wireless connection between Windows Home Server and the network is not supported, although home computers connected wirelessly to the wireless router can access the Home Server.<br> </p> <p>Link: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/windowshomeserver/countries.mspx">Order Now</a><br>News source: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/windowshomeserver/eval.mspx">Microsoft</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-13641516989955807272007-10-31T10:48:00.001+05:302007-10-31T10:48:35.073+05:30Cumulative Update for Media Center for Windows Vista (KB941229)<p>This update addresses issues with Media Center for Microsoft Vista. For complete listing of issues included in this cumulative update, see KB941229. After you install this item, you may have to restart your computer. <br>This update is provided to you and licensed under the Windows Vista License Terms. <p>32 Bit- <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=48477121-4427-483d-8309-4c18de611bd4&DisplayLang=en">http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details...;DisplayLang=en</a> <p>64 Bit- <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=dc17da0a-46a9-4cd7-88f1-e8c576f8e585&DisplayLang=en">http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details...;DisplayLang=en</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-52899577352030550192007-10-31T10:44:00.001+05:302007-10-31T10:44:22.175+05:30Microsoft Announces Availability of New Zune Accessories at Retail<p><a href="http://lh5.google.com/coolankurmittal/RygPEoRupHI/AAAAAAAAAEc/AfAJ3_tV2Qg/Zune%5B4%5D.jpg"><img style="border-top-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px" height="240" alt="Zune" src="http://lh4.google.com/coolankurmittal/RygPJYRupII/AAAAAAAAAEk/0VaTAy8hXLU/Zune_thumb%5B2%5D.jpg" width="180" align="right" border="0"></a> Microsoft Corp. today announced the retail availability of <a href="http://www.zune.net/accessories">new accessories</a> for its innovative digital media player, Zune. The new first- and third-party accessories will usher in the next generation of Zune digital media players, which will be on shelves Nov. 13. <p>Zune also announced an expanded third-party accessory partners program, teaming up with leading manufacturers to offer a wide selection of products created exclusively for Zune. Microsoft is collaborating directly with 23 accessory partners to ensure customers have a number of accessory options, complementing and enhancing their Zune experience. <p>Licensed Zune accessory partners are Agent 18, Altec Lansing Technologies Inc., Belkin International Inc., Case-mate, Digital Lifestyle Outfitters (DLO), Directed Electronics Inc. (Polk Audio), Dual Electronics Corp., GPX, Griffin Technology Inc., Golla, iHome, Incipio Technologies, Integrated Mobile Electronics Corp., , Kicker, mStation Corp., Memorex Electronics, Monster Cable Products Inc., Skinit, Speck, Targus Group International Inc., VAF Research, Vaja Corp., and zLive (DPI, Inc.). <p>With these new partners, the Zune accessory family now includes more than 60 new products. The accessories will be available for purchase at a variety of online retailers and major retail store locations beginning this week. <p>Source- <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2007/oct07/10-30NewZuneAccessoriesPR.mspx">Microsoft Press release</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-19488488430525202132007-10-30T12:20:00.001+05:302007-10-30T12:20:49.232+05:30Project Gatineau Web Analytics Begins Beta Today!<p>We are happy to announce that Project Gatineau, Microsoft’s new, free web analytics service, is ready for beta testing and the first invitations are now being sent to customers. </p> <p>To manage Project Gatineau’s growth and give customers the best web analytics service possible, the beta is for US advertisers by invitation only for the moment. </p> <p>All advertisers can request an invitation here: <a href="http://advertising.microsoft.com/microsoft-adcenter-gatineau">http://advertising.microsoft.com/microsoft-adcenter-gatineau</a> </p> <p>Project Gatineau’s web analytics are useful to sites of all sizes – from smaller sites that can’t afford an expensive web analytics solution to larger sites looking for a boost in their web analytics capabilities. </p> <p>With the Gatineau beta, you can learn more about where your visitors come from and easily measure your marketing campaigns across any medium and from any traffic source. </p> <p>Features include: </p> <ul> <li>Click and visitor tracking reports <li>Marketing campaign reporting and conversion tracking <li>Unique demographic and geographic information from your site visitors </li></ul> <p>Of course, Project Gatineau is a beta service so we are still adding features and working hard to improve. </p> <p>With your participation and feedback, we hope you will help us build Gatineau into the best web analytics service possible. </p> <p>Request your invite today! </p> <p>Check out the <a href="http://forums.microsoft.com/AdCenter">adCenter Forums</a> to see what people are saying! </p> <p>Thanks </p> <p>Ian Thomas & Justin Carder - Microsoft Project Gatineau </p> <p>Source: <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/adcenter/archive/2007/10/29/project-gatineau-web-analytics-begins-beta-today.aspx">http://blogs.msdn.com</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-29456544592919408472007-10-30T12:19:00.001+05:302007-10-30T12:19:00.039+05:30Microsoft Accepting Applicants for Next-Gen PC Design Competition<p>Microsoft Corp.’s annual Next-Gen PC Design Competition is open for online entry submission until 11:59 p.m. EST Dec. 14. The competition aims to encourage ongoing enthusiasm for Windows-based PCs by engaging the imagination and creativity of the industrial design (ID) community and delivering a resource for the PC industry at large. <p>With this competition, Microsoft hopes to identify great talent and spur a dialogue between the ID field, the PC industry and their shared customers regarding what makes a great PC fit their customers’ digital lifestyle. <p>This year’s competition theme focuses on designs that help people fuel their passion, whether it’s music, traveling or photography. This year’s next-generation PC designs must contain scenarios and features that address ways to help people pursue their passions more easily, more powerfully and more enjoyably — and even how to help users obtain results they had never thought possible. This is also the first year the competition will look at software and hardware as part of the PC design. Applicants will need to focus not only on exterior design, shape and color, but they must pay attention to programs that will enhance what people feel passionate about. Successful entries will clearly define and thoroughly understand the audiences that the PC is designed for as well as the culture, lifestyle, habits and practices of the user. <p>All eligible entries will be reviewed January through April 2008 by a distinguished panel of Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA)-member judges from the international PC and industrial design community in addition to representatives from leading hardware manufacturers. The entries will be scored by the following criteria: <p>•<b>Innovation.</b> Is the design new and unique? <p>•<b>User experience and interaction.</b> In what ways does the design make the PC easier to use? <p>•<b>Aesthetics.</b> How does the appearance enhance the emotional appeal of the product? <p>•<b>Technology integration.</b> How is the design enhanced by new technologies? <p>•<b>Windows software.</b> How does this design enhance or expand the users’ experience with Windows? <p>•<b>Market viability and manufacturability.</b> Who does this design appeal to, and what are the viable markets? <p>•<b>Ecology. </b>How is the design environmentally responsible? <p>Five winners will be selected, and up to five honorable mentions may be chosen by the judges. From Feb. 15 through March 15 the selected finalists will be posted on the Next-Gen PC Design Competition Web site, <a href="http://www.nextgendesigncomp.com/">http://www.nextgendesigncomp.com</a>, where the public will be invited to vote for its favorite entry to determine the Public’s Choice Award. The winners will be announced in May 2008 and honored at the 2008 Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC). More information about the competition, including how to enter, is available at <a href="http://www.nextgendesigncomp.com/">http://www.nextgendesigncomp.com</a>. <p>Source: <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2007/oct07/10-29NextGenPCPR.mspx">Microsoft Press release</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-87127552769099561002007-10-24T23:06:00.001+05:302007-10-24T23:06:37.408+05:30Updates for Windows Vista<p>Install this update to resolve an issue where Omniquad Firewall and TT Firewall Version 2.0.3 fail to install on systems running Windows Vista.<br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=31&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d3b588267-a337-4998-82ca-4197750d38d9%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista (KB942089)</strong></a><br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=24&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3ddcd4495b-8daf-41bc-8c36-8fae1bd01c9b%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB942089)</strong></a> <p>Install this update to resolve an issue where an indexing service query, using a LIKE predicate, returns an incorrect result on a system running Windows Vista.<br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=32&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d1fcec28f-48b9-495f-ac78-2681d0e3a940%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista (KB940069)</strong></a><br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=41&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3dc25998f2-5cfc-4ba1-b2c4-87ee51adbbc8%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB940069)</strong></a> <p>Install this update to resolve an issue where a duplicate or incorrect date is displayed on the Windows Vista Sidebar Calendar gadget.<br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=43&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d30b9fa74-deb1-4b53-8b96-21b29ee386d5%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista (KB943544)</strong></a><br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=35&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3dd9fb3d04-7ec9-4e1c-86cf-7c2bd32b7738%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB943544)</strong></a> <p>Install this update to resolve an issue where connecting to a non-UNC (Uniform Naming Convention) printer fails on a system running Windows Vista.<br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=38&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3db9837bab-e6c0-45c7-8a3a-f35dd896858b%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista (KB941542)</strong></a><br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=42&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d0ccfd0e4-e881-487f-83e2-089d07dc2cb3%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB941542)</strong></a> <p>Install this update to resolve an issue where the computer continually restarts with Microsoft Windows Pre-installation Environment (Windows PE) 2.0 on an AMD Barcelona processor, and the Operating System Capabilities ( _OSC ) method enabled in the BIOS.<br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=39&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d40f4edfd-566c-420d-b9c7-c41e5afcdba0%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista (KB942813)</strong></a><br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=30&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d583fd9f0-fad1-41d9-84d6-a373dbd638a3%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB942813)</strong></a> <p>Install this update to resolve suspend and resume issues on Windows Vista systems configured with a digital cable tuner.<br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=34&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d31dc7f58-cbb3-4d18-a32b-94ee00b6d045%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Media Center for Windows Vista (KB938929)</strong></a><br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=27&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d2aed5953-0386-4ea2-93b5-03d04e032cb9%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Media Center for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB938929)</strong></a><br>Install this update to resolve suspend and resume issues on Windows Vista systems configured with a digital cable tuner.<br><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=36&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3dae9d82fb-3938-4f7f-9f87-c4ce407af85e%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Media Center for Windows Vista (KB927084)</strong></a><strong><br></strong><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/info.aspx?na=22&p=33&SrcDisplayLang=en&SrcCategoryId=&SrcFamilyId=&u=%2fdownloads%2fdetails.aspx%3fFamilyID%3d545692d9-3561-44c3-81f4-1023b8e4ded6%26DisplayLang%3den"><strong>Update for Windows Media Center for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB927084)</strong></a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1804338357529196779.post-49285249006785777592007-10-24T23:04:00.003+05:302007-10-24T23:04:49.622+05:30New version of the compatibility, reliability, and stability update for Windows Vista<p>This update improves the compatibility, reliability, and stability of Windows Vista. This update includes the following improvements: <p>•It extends the battery life for mobile devices. <p>•It improves the stability of portable computers and of desktop computers that use an uninterruptable power supply (UPS). <p>•It improves the reliability of Windows Vista when you open the menu of a startup application. <p>•It improves the stability of wireless network services. <p>•It shortens the startup time of Windows Vista by using a better timing structure. <p>•It shortens the recovery time after Windows Vista experiences a period of inactivity. <p>•It shortens the recovery time when you try to exit the Photos screen saver. <p>•It improves the stability of Windows PowerShell. <p>This update also resolves the following issues in Windows Vista: <p>•A compatibility issue that affects some third-party antivirus software applications. <p>•A reliability issue that occurs when a Windows Vista-based computer uses certain network driver configurations. <p><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=E3992046-32B9-4A0D-9E02-ACBA698AA675">Download the update for Windows Vista x86-based versions (KB941649) package now.</a> <p><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=06011901-DF0C-4474-8C2C-72C09B7CEC04">Download the update for Windows Vista x64-based versions (KB941649) package now.</a></p> Ankur Mittalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09266383572971060129noreply@blogger.com0