Microsoft released a Blog post today called: IE9 Top Browser on Windows 7 and Other Highlights from 2011

To get the numbers out-of-the-way, Microsoft predicts that Internet Explorer 9 will land, by year-end, at the 25.6% mark on Windows 7 globally. That puts it well within striking distance to overtake Internet Explorer 8 as the top browser on Windows 7.

As usual, Internet Explorer 9?s numbers are stronger in the United States than abroad. The browser controls over 30% of Windows 7 market share in the US, essentially tied with Internet Explorer 8, and is set to overtake it in days.

Kind Regards

Marc Liron – Windows OS Specialist

In this video WinRumors give a side by side experience using the iPad2 and a tablet running an “early” build of Windows 8.

I’ll let you decide wich one you like the best!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Regards

Marc Liron – Windows OS Specialist

Steven Sinofsky. President, Windows and Windows Live Division gives a short presentation @ the Microsoft developer-focused BUILD conference 2011.

The presentation was on Windows 8

Click here to view the embedded video.

Regards

Marc Liron – Windows OS Specialist

The following are a selection of Windows Vista keyboard shortcuts…

Ease of Access Keyboard Shortcuts:

Right SHIFT for eight seconds – Turn Filter Keys on and off
Left ALT+left SHIFT+PRINT SCREEN (or PRTSCRN) – Turn High Contrast on or off
Left ALT+left SHIFT+NUM LOCK – Turn Mouse Keys on or off
SHIFT five times – Turn Sticky Keys on or off
NUM LOCK for five seconds – Turn Toggle Keys on or off
Windows logo key +U – Open the Ease of Access Center

General Keyboard Shortcuts:

F1 – Display Help
CTRL+C – Copy the selected item
CTRL+X – Cut the selected item
CTRL+V – Paste the selected item
CTRL+Z – Undo an action
CTRL+Y – Redo an action
DELETE – Delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin
SHIFT+DELETE – Delete the selected item without moving it to the Recycle Bin first
F2 – Rename the selected item
CTRL+RIGHT ARROW – Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word
CTRL+LEFT ARROW – Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous word
CTRL+DOWN ARROW – Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph
CTRL+UP ARROW – Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous paragraph
CTRL+SHIFT with an arrow key – Select a block of text
SHIFT with any arrow key – Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text within a document
CTRL with any arrow key+SPACEBAR – Select multiple individual items in a window or on the desktop
CTRL+A – Select all items in a document or window
F3 – Search for a file or folder
ALT+ENTER – Display properties for the selected item
ALT+F4 – Close the active item, or exit the active program
ALT+SPACEBAR – Open the shortcut menu for the active window
CTRL+F4 – Close the active document (in programs that allow you to have multiple documents open simultaneously)
ALT+TAB – Switch between open items
CTRL+ALT+TAB – Use the arrow keys to switch between open items
CTRL+Mouse scroll wheel – Change the size of icons on the desktop
Windows logo key +TAB – Cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Windows Flip 3-D
CTRL+Windows logo key +TAB – Use the arrow keys to cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Windows Flip 3-D
ALT+ESC – Cycle through items in the order in which they were opened
F6 – Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop
F4 – Display the Address bar list in Windows Explorer
SHIFT+F10 – Display the shortcut menu for the selected item
CTRL+ESC – Open the Start menu
ALT+underlined letter – Display the corresponding menu
ALT+underlined letter – Perform the menu command (or other underlined command)
F10 – Activate the menu bar in the active program
RIGHT ARROW – Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu
LEFT ARROW – Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu
F5 – Refresh the active window
ALT+UP ARROW – View the folder one level up in Windows Explorer
ESC – Cancel the current task
CTRL+SHIFT+ESC – Open Task Manager
SHIFT when you insert a CD – Prevent the CD from automatically playing

Dialog Box Keyboard Shortcuts:

CTRL+TAB – Move forward through tabs
CTRL+SHIFT+TAB – Move back through tabs
TAB – Move forward through options
SHIFT+TAB – Move back through options
ALT+underlined letter – Perform the command (or select the option) that goes with that letter
ENTER – Replaces clicking the mouse for many selected commands
SPACEBAR – Select or clear the check box if the active option is a check box
Arrow keys – Select a button if the active option is a group of option buttons
F1 – Display Help
F4 – Display the items in the active list

Microsoft Windows Logo Keyboard Shortcuts:

Windows logo key – Open or close the Start menu
Windows logo key +PAUSE – Display the System Properties dialog box
Windows logo key +D – Display the desktop
Windows logo key +M – Minimize all windows
Windows logo key +SHIFT+M – Restore minimized windows to the desktop
Windows logo key +E – Open Computer
Windows logo key +F – Search for a file or folder
CTRL+Windows logo key +F – Search for computers (if you are on a network)
Windows logo key +L – Lock your computer or switch users
Windows logo key +R – Open the Run dialog box
Windows logo key +T – Cycle through programs on the taskbar
Windows logo key +TAB – Cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Windows Flip 3-D
CTRL+Windows logo key +TAB – Use the arrow keys to cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Windows Flip 3-D
Windows logo key +SPACEBAR – Bring all gadgets to the front and select Windows Sidebar
Windows logo key +G – Cycle through Sidebar gadgets
Windows logo key +U – Open Ease of Access Center
Windows logo key +X – Open Windows Mobility Center
Windows logo key with any number key – Open the Quick Launch shortcut that is in the position that corresponds to the number. For example, Windows logo key +1 to launch the first shortcut in the Quick Launch menu.

Windows Explorer Keyboard Shortcuts:

CTRL+N – Open a new window
END – Display the bottom of the active window
HOME – Display the top of the active window
F11 – Maximize or minimize the active window
NUM LOCK+ASTERISK (*) on numeric keypad – Display all subfolders under the selected folder
NUM LOCK+PLUS SIGN (+) on numeric keypad – Display the contents of the selected folder
NUM LOCK+MINUS SIGN (-) on numeric keypad – Collapse the selected folder
LEFT ARROW – Collapse the current selection (if it is expanded), or select the parent folder
ALT+LEFT ARROW – View the previous folder
RIGHT ARROW – Display the current selection (if it is collapsed), or select the first subfolder
ALT+RIGHT ARROW – View the next folder
CTRL+Mouse scroll wheel – Change the size and appearance of file and folder icons
ALT+D – Select the Address bar

Windows Sidebar Keyboard Shortcuts:

Windows logo key +SPACEBAR – Bring all gadgets to the front and select Sidebar
Windows logo key +G – Cycle through Sidebar gadgets
TAB – Cycle through Sidebar controls

Windows Photo Gallery Keyboard Shortcuts:

CTRL+F – Open the Fix pane
CTRL+P – Print the selected picture
ENTER – View the selected picture at a larger size
CTRL+I – Open or close the Details pane
CTRL+PERIOD (.) – Rotate the picture clockwise
CTRL+COMMA (,) – Rotate the picture counter-clockwise
F2 – Rename the selected item
CTRL+E – Search for an item
ALT+LEFT ARROW – Go back
ALT+RIGHT ARROW – Go forward
PLUS SIGN (+) – Zoom in or resize the picture thumbnail
MINUS SIGN (-) – Zoom out or resize the picture thumbnail
CTRL+Mouse scroll wheel – Change the size of the picture thumbnail
CTRL+B – Best fit
LEFT ARROW – Select the previous item
DOWN ARROW – Select the next item or row
UP ARROW – Previous item (Easel) or previous row (Thumbnail)
PAGE UP – Previous screen
PAGE DOWN – Next screen
HOME – Select the first item
END – Select the last item
DELETE – Move the selected item to the Recycle Bin
SHIFT+DELETE – Permanently delete the selected item
LEFT ARROW – Collapse node
RIGHT ARROW – Expand node

Keyboard Shortcuts For Working With Movie Maker Videos:

J – Move back one frame
K – Pause the playback
L – Move forward one frame
I – Set the start trim point
O – Set the end trim point
M – Split a clip
HOME – Stop and rewind all the way back to the start trim point
ALT+RIGHT ARROW – Advance to the next frame
ALT+LEFT ARROW – Go back to the previous frame
CTRL+K – Stop and rewind playback
CTRL+P – Play from the current location
HOME – Move the start trim point
END – Move to the end trim point
PAGE UP – Seek to nearest split point before the current location
PAGE DOWN – Seek to nearest split point after the current location

Windows Help Viewer Keyboard Shortcuts:

ALT+C – Display the Table of Contents
ALT+N – Display the Connection Settings menu
F10 – Display the Options menu
ALT+LEFT ARROW – Move back to the previously viewed topic
ALT+RIGHT ARROW – Move forward to the next (previously viewed) topic
ALT+A – Display the customer support page
ALT+HOME – Display the Help and Support home page
HOME – Move the to beginning of a topic
END – Move to the end of a topic
CTRL+F – Search the current topic
CTRL+P – Print a topic
F3 – Move to the Search box.

Regards

Marc Liron
Windows OS Specialist

Windows Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) is now the current version of the Internet Explorer web browser from Microsoft, as it was released to the public last night.

Features include:

# Improved JavaScript performance

# Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG).

# Hardware-accelerated graphics rendering using Direct2D

# Hardware-accelerated text rendering using DirectWrite

# Hardware-accelerated video rendering using Media Foundation

# High fidelity printing powered by the XML Paper Specification (XPS) print pipeline.

# Also supports the HTML5 video and audio tags and the Web Open Font Format.

The system requirements for Internet Explorer 9 are Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Vista Service Pack 2 or Windows Server 2008 SP2 with the Platform Update. Windows XP and earlier are not supported.

Internet Explorer 9 is the last version of Internet Explorer to be supported on Windows Vista; Internet Explorer 10 will only be supported on Windows 7 and later. Both 32-bit and 64-bit builds are available.

For more information and to download – click here

Regards

Marc Liron
Windows OS Specialist

Google Apps is a service from Google providing independently customizable versions of several Google products under a custom domain name. It features several Web applications with similar functionality to traditional office suites, including: Gmail, Google Groups, Google Calendar, Talk, Docs and Sites.

The Standard Edition is free and offers the same amount of storage as regular Gmail accounts. The Premier Edition, which offers additional e-mail storage, is available for an annual fee. The Education Edition, which is free, combines features from the Standard and Premier editions.

Here in these Google Apps Training videos you can gain the undertsanding you need to make use of these services in your business etc.

http://www.marclironpublishing.com/google-apps-training.html

Regards

Marc Liron – exMicrosoft MVP (2004-2010)

]]> http://blog.marcliron.com/google/google-apps-training/feed 1 http://blog.marcliron.com/internet-explorer/3-important-internet-explorer-8-security-features http://blog.marcliron.com/internet-explorer/3-important-internet-explorer-8-security-features#comments Wed, 26 Jan 2011 16:41:27 +0000 Marc Liron http://blog.marcliron.com/?p=1184 Continue reading →]]>

Internet Explorer 8 was released on March 19, 2009 and is supported in Windows XP SP2 and SP3, Windows Server 2003 SP2, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 on both 32-bit as well as 64-bit versions of these operating systems.
Here are three ways Internet Explorer 8 can help you have a safe Web browsing experience:

#1 – SmartScreen Filter – Avoid phishing scams and malware. In Internet Explorer 8, the SmartScreen Filter helps to protect you from unsafe Web sites as you browse. It alerts you if a site you are trying to open has been reported as unsafe, and allows you to report unsafe sites yourself.

SmartScreen Filter helps to protect you in three ways:

- It operates in the background as you browse the web, analyzing webpages and determining if they have any characteristics that might be suspicious. If it finds suspicious webpages, SmartScreen will display a message giving you an opportunity to provide feedback and advising you to proceed with caution.

- SmartScreen Filter checks the sites you visit against an up-to-the-hour, dynamic list of reported phishing sites and malicious software sites. If it finds a match, SmartScreen Filter will show you a red warning notifying you that the site has been blocked for your safety

- SmartScreen Filter also checks files downloaded from the web against the same dynamic list of reported malicious software sites. If it finds a match, SmartScreen Filter will show a red warning notifying you that the download has been blocked for your safety

#2 – Identify Fake Web Addresses – Internet Explorer 8 helps you avoid deceptive Web sites that are designed to trick you with misleading addresses. The domain name in the address bar is highlighted in black and the remainder of the address is in gray to make it easy to identify a Web site’s true identity.

#3 – Cross Site Scripting (XSS) Filter – Cross-site scripting attacks try to exploit vulnerabilities in the websites you use. In this attack, you might receive an email that contains a tampered website address. Once you click on the link, you are directed to a legitimate website that has been compromised to contain malicious content that can capture keystrokes and record your login and password. These attacks have emerged as a leading online threat so Internet Explorer 8 includes a cross-site scripting filter that can detect these types of attacks and disable the harmful scripts.

Regards

Marc Liron
Windows OS Specialist

iCare Recovery Software Ltd. is specialized in data recovery software and solutions.

The company was established in 2003 by three technical veterans to offer local data recovery solutions and computer problem fixes. With years of data recovery experiences, iCare Recovery Software Ltd attracted another two programmers and began to develop iCare Data Recovery Software in 2004.

Until December 25th 2010, they are running a Christmas Giveaway of their flagship home user data recovery software.

iCare Data Recovery www.icare-recovery.com normally sells for $69.95 – but is free for this holiday season!

What does the program do?

iCare Data Recovery Software is a handy toolkit for recovering files after you deleted them, emptied recycle bin, formatted wrong hard disk drives memory cards; some software failure that makes your hard disk suffered data loss like PartitionMagic resize failure, copy data failure, format wrong disk; storage devices that reported not formatted or has been reformatted by mistake; restore files from digital camera…

Giveaway information can ONLY be found on the following page and NOT via the homepage!

http://www.icare-recovery.com/giveaway/data-recovery-hard-disk.html

Enjoy!

Kind Regards

Marc Liron
Microsoft MVP (2004-2010)

Looking to turn your photos into a great looking movie? Slideshow features in Windows Live Movie Maker will make it a breeze!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP (2004-2010)

You hear the term “The Cloud” everywhere today in IT.

But where is it?

…well one great example is Windows Live. In particular SkyDrive the popular Microsoft service that operates in t”he cloud” and allows you the freedom to share your documents worldwide:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP (2004-2010)

Technology is supposed to help make life easier, but sometimes it leaves us even more frustrated and disconnected. See how Windows 7 + Windows Live changes everything.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP (2004-2010)

Microsoft have just posted a security warning on their Windows Live blog: Security alert: Active links in Messenger 2009 temporarily turned off to prevent a malicious worm. They are alerting users that there is a malicious worm currently trying to spread itself through IM networks, including Windows Live Messenger 2009 (Wave 3).

The worm spreads by inserting a link into an IM conversation with a person whose computer is already infected. When someone clicks the link, it opens in a browser, downloads the worm on the recipient’s computer, and then repeats this process.

This however does NOT concern users of the latest version of the software – Windows Live Messenger 2011

Stay alert!

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP (2004-2010)

Internet conection become a bit flakey?  Try and flush the Windows Vista DNS cache.

Follow these simple instructions…

http://www.instantvista.com/flush-the-vista-dns-cache.html

Kind Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP (2004-2010)

Microsoft has made the new version of Messenger more social, says Jamie Cannon, group product manager for Windows Live. “We like to think of Messenger as your people app. It’s the one place to stay up to date on all the social networks you belong to.”

In addition to the familiar IM service, Messenger now brings together all the content from a user’s social networks. It incorporates updates and newsfeeds from sites such as Facebook and MySpace, and lets users comment on them right from Messenger. Users can easily share photos across their networks, plus Messenger introduces an immersive experience for viewing friends’ photo galleries from Facebook. Inline video eliminates the need to leave Messenger to watch YouTube videos that friends post.

The Windows Live team also included updates to improve chat. For example, high-definition video chats are now available through Messenger. And users can hold multiple conversations at the same time through the new tab chat feature. Facebook chat, another feature, lets people IM across networks.

“We didn’t want to create another social network,” Cannon says. “We really designed Messenger to help you stay in touch with the people that matter to you most, wherever they already are.”

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP (2004-2010)

Microsoft today released Windows Live Essentials 2011, a suite of free consumer apps that connects Windows to the cloud to help people connect, create and share online.

As Windows 7’s one-year anniversary approaches, Microsoft is bringing together the power of the PC with the promise of the cloud. On Thursday, September 30, Microsoft released Windows Live Essentials, a set of free applications that helps Windows 7 users connect, create, and share online.

The software suite is available for download and includes:

Windows Live Photo Gallery, Movie Maker, Messenger, Mesh, Mail, Family Safety, and Writer.

Windows Live Essentials reflects a changing landscape in consumer behavior, where more and more people communicate and share online, says Jamie Cannon, group product manager for Windows Live. Today’s release offers Windows users an integrated experience that acts as their “key to the cloud.”

“We’ve brought together the best of Windows with the best of the Web,” Cannon says. “People are spending more time in the cloud, and as a result it’s where people communicate, connect and share. And so, we believe that bringing them together in a seamless way allows consumers to bridge the power of both.”

Windows Live Essentials is that bridge, Cannon says. The free suite helps users share their photos and movies, organize their e-mail, and stay in touch with the people that matter most, regardless of whether those people use social networks, chat or traditional e-mail, he says. It also enables users to access their “stuff” from anywhere over the Internet.

“We’re getting every Windows 7 PC connected to the cloud with Windows Live Essential,” Cannon says. “It takes the Windows that you know and brings the promise of the cloud so you can create, communicate and share all from one place. With Windows and Windows Live, you’re connected to your people and your networks whenever and wherever you want – from your PC, devices and phone.”

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP (2004-2010)

Microsoft’s Future Social Experiences Labs (FUSE) has launched another new project

Project Emporia sifts through the ever-evolving web content streams to identify hot stories, categorizes them into topic areas and ranks them, and then presents them to you in a friendly browser based UI. Just by opening the Project Emporia page you get popular stories on topics of your choice without ever having signed up for anything.

This is just the starting point however; as mentioned, there is no login required to browse by topic and read the stories that other users have shared and voted on. That said, by logging in with your Facebook credentials, you can also influence how future stories are chosen for you, one vote at a time. Your votes will improve the relevance of Project Emporia’s story choices not just for you, but for every other user as well.

Project Emporia is currently in Alpha release from FUSE Labs and Microsoft Research.

Discover more here: http://www.projectemporia.com/

Kind Regards

Marc Liron
Microsoft MVP

When Microsoft started planning IE9, they recognized the need for a close relationship with the Web developer community.

So, on the 15th March 2010, Microsoft released the first IE9 Platform Preview for developers to review the changes/new technologies etc coming in the new browser.

At that initial announcement Microsoft stated they were committed to updating the IE9 Preview approximately every eight weeks. So today they are releasing the second Platform Preview of Internet Explorer 9.

Please Note:

The Internet Explorer Platform Preview is NOT a full web browser. It’s intended to give Web developers an early look at the Web platform technology coming in the next release of Internet Explorer. To distinguish it from a full browser, it is called a platform preview.

Here are the links:

Demo:  http://ie.microsoft.com/testdrive/

FAQs:  http://ie.microsoft.com/testdrive/info/FrequentlyAskedQuestions/Default.html

IE9 Blog:  http://blogs.msdn.com/ie/

Simply download and install the Platform Preview of Internet Explorer 9 and when it runs it will take you back to the download page where you can test out the various elements on the page.

Enjoy!

Kind Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

For over 10 years newsgroups (NNTP) have been Microsoft’s primary public support forums for its products and technologies.

Currently there are more than 2,000 public newsgroups and 2,200 private newsgroups devoted to its various products and services.

But from June 2010 these will be moved to revamped forums on Microsoft TechNet, MSDN and Microsoft Answers.

Here is a statement from a Microsoft spokesperson:

“On June 1, Microsoft will be progressively  closing newsgroups and helping active newsgroups users migrate their discussions to the refreshed Microsoft forums that include Microsoft Answers, TechNet and MSDN.  This decision was made in an effort to provide the best community and support resources and experience to our customers with social features and functionalities that address their feedback and needs.”

You can read more about this transition on the Microsoft Newsgroup page: Click Here.

I personally think this is a good move as it will allow less technical users to access these communities, rather than rely on newgroup readers. In 2010, a web based (and even social) approach to support is the way to go.

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

Here are 6 new features in Outlook 2010:

1) Outlook Social Connector – provides you with a stream of content from SharePoint, Windows Live and other famous social networking sites. At the bottom of your Outlook emails, you will see the latest social networking posts of your contact.

2) A new “Publish Online” feature lets your Outlook 2010 calendar synchronize with Office Online.

3) The new Quick Steps feature lets you consolidate multiple steps into one. So once you will click the Quick Step, it’s relevant multiple steps (as per your configuration) will occur.

4) A new UI, and its customisable.

5) Office Backstage – Easily allows users to easily save attachments, access account settings, clean their mailbox, and configure other settings.

6) A new schedule feature called “Scheduled View” which provides a better insight into your daily schedule (in Outlook calendar).

Click here to view the embedded video.

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

The NWZ-A845 is the thinnest ever Walkman Video MP3 player with a super wide OLED display.

16GB, S-Master Digital Amplifier, Digital Noise Cancelling, EX headphones, 7.1cm / 2.8″ display.

Watch the following video for a quick review by Stuff Magazine…

Click here to view the embedded video.

Messenger Connect from Microsoft marks an important step forward for the Windows Live Messenger service as it will allow websites to integrate the function into their pages resulting in better sharing with friends.

Essentially its a new social API that allows new ways for partners and developers to connect with Windows Live Messenger. (It incorporates exisitng APIs Windows Live ID, Contacts API, Messenger Web Toolkit).

Messenger Connect is a major leap for Microsoft. Until now, the company’s social products have been largely closed off to 3rd parties. Now, this new API allows Windows Live Messenger and 3rd party websites and applications that use it, to pull in data from across a user’s online social world.

Developers are going to be able to create compelling social experiences on their websites and apps by providing them with social promotion & distribution via Windows Live Messenger, and when you see the new capabilities of the Windows Messenger due in a few weeks time – that is really going to be a great experience for the end user.

Microsoft really are putting “Social” at the heart of their new Windows Live products coming this summer!

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

The new Windows Live Messenger (part of Wave 4 coming very soon) helps saves you time with tabbed conversations, Bing integration and brings your conversations to life with HD video chat (in 16/9 full screen), photo sharing, video messages, YouTube videos and more…

Windows Live Messenger Wave 4 Beta will be offered to early adopters for testing on June 21st, 2010.

Get a brief demo in this video from Microsoft:

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Kind Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

…in a word YES, if you know how.

Go into any Starbucks, or similar, coffee shop on a busy day and you will notice many folks sitting down with their laptops and Netbooks using the free (usualy) WiFi.

It is truly scary to think how many of those laptops I could easily invade whilst sitting there myself, armed only with a Windows laptop and some free software available for download via the Internet.

Or, another scenario is driving through a town/city looking for businesses with wireless networks that are either unsecured or poorly secured.

Perhaps even sitting in a hotel room all day connected to the free WiFi and slipping in and out of other folks laptops.

Wireless networks are everywhere today, even many homes now have them…. and yet I see SO MANY that can easily be hacked into and sensitive data such as passwords to online banking stolen.

I am not trying to be alarmist here, just trying to provide a wake up to the home user/small business user who are basically targets waiting to be found by cyber criminals!

Did you know anyone can learn enough skills to become a half-decent cyber criminal just by spending a day on YouTube.com ?

Don’t believe me? …just look at some of these Video titles:

# Hacking WiFi Passwords with Cowpatty…

# Vista Security Hacks…

# How to Steal WPA-PSK keys…

# Bypass Local Windows Logins with a Kernel Modifying Boot CD…

# Bypass Your Corporate or University Firewalls…

# WiFi Packet Sniffing…

# Intercepting Passwords on a Network…

# Cracking Wireless Passwords…

# How to Hack a Friends Computer…

# How to Steal Data from WiFi Connected Laptops in a Coffee Shop…

# Making Money by Infecting Internet PCs with Malware…

…and yet many security threats can be limited just by knowing a few simple steps.

There are many websites that can help you just Google some security terms and then read through the many pages. Or, you could grab my latest guide aimed at helping Windows PC users to NOT becoming a victim of CyberCrime: PC Security Bootcamp.

Kind Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

Microsoft has been hard at work on the next version of Windows Home Server – codenamed “Vail”.

This new version of Windows Home Server is notable chiefly for being based on Windows Server 2008 R2 — a major upgrade from the current version, which uses Windows Server 2003 SP2 as the underlying OS.

Essentially it’s an Operating System with a built in Media Server, Backup, Data Recovery, Document Management, Remote Access and a gaggle of “add-ons” bundled in; and allows you to build a reliable network at home!

The Windows Home Server team blog cites four key areas of improvement with the new version: extending the ability to stream media outside of the home network and over the internet; multi-PC backup and restore; simplified setup and user experience.

This time round the OS is 64-bit only, with no 32-bit version available. Minimum hardware requirements are modest: a 1.4GHz x64 CPU, 1GB or RAM and a 160GB hard disk.

Individual hard disks larger than 2TB are now supported, as are iSCSI storage devices, and drive removal operations have been improved.

Here is a screenshot of the new User Interface:

In the following video you will see a walk through of the new product UI and take a first look preview of Windows Home Server v2

Click here to view the embedded video.

At a warehouse in New Jersey, 6,000 used copy machines sit ready to be sold. CBS News chief investigative correspondent Armen Keteyian reports almost every one of them holds a secret.

Nearly every digital copier built since 2002 contains a hard drive – like the one on your personal computer – storing an image of every document copied, scanned, or emailed by the machine.

In the process, it’s turned an office staple into a digital time-bomb packed with highly-personal or sensitive data.

If you’re in the identity theft business it seems this would be a pot of gold.

“The type of information we see on these machines with the social security numbers, birth certificates, bank records, income tax forms,” John Juntunen said, “that information would be very valuable.”

All the major manufacturers offer security or encryption packages on their products. One product from Sharp automatically erases an image from the hard drive. It costs $500.

But evidence keeps piling up in warehouses that many businesses are unwilling to pay for such protection, and that the average American is completely unaware of the dangers posed by digital copiers.

…watch this short but shocking report:

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

Marc liron – Microsoft MVP

Microsoft has released new software that aims to automatically repair the most common faults found in some of its older operating systems.

The “Fix It” package, based on the successful automatic diagnostics system in Windows 7, is currently in beta trial and aimed at Windows Vista and Windows XP users.

According to the BBC, once installed the software will update itself, scan for problems and comes with onboard fixes for 300 of the most common faults.

The package also keeps a list of the PC’s hardware and software so that if an automatic fix can’t resolve the problem then the data is quickly available to support staff.

Microsoft, like many other software firms, has built a vast database of faults and problems as technology built into Windows reports back about crashes and other bugs that machines encounter.

The minimum operating system requirement is Windows XP running Service Pack 3 (SP3).

Get started right away with the “Fix It” package:  http://fixitcenter.support.microsoft.com/Portal

Click here to view the embedded video.

Kind Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

A new survey on the state of internet security has found a large increase in malware and suggested that a new PC is infected every 4.6 seconds.

The Symantec report, which covers 2009, highlighted a number of trends across the year, one of which is the shift in malicious activity to emerging countries.

Another major trend was the increase in availability of DIY toolkits such as Zeus that allowed novice hackers to carry out cyber crime.

Overall the United States was the country with the highest levels of malicious activity. The UK came sixth in the chart, down from fourth place the year before.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Kind Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

Managing huge amounts of applicant data using custom databases, outlook, and servers has become a “snap” for employee placement company Elite Personnel with Windows 7 Professional.

Click here to view the embedded video.

.

For eMAZZANTI, the upgrade to Windows 7 Pro wasn’t change for change’s sake. It’s taken them to a new level of productivity.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Web hosting company Network Solutions LLC has had a bad month for security this April 2010.

At the start of the month some of their customers who were running WordPress blogs started noticing that visitors to their sites were being redirected to a website that then infected their PCs with malware!

Sadly, the company tried to explain it as an issue with WordPress and try an deflect any questions away from their own security setup.

It later became apparent that Network Solutions LLC had a poor security configuration on one of their servers and that allowed people on the same box to read each others’ configuration files – YIKES!

…essentially that meant the person that did this, just setup an account with the company and was then able to “scan” other customers WordPress files and insert the code for the malware URL redirect.

(If you want some basic security advice for WordPress blogs then I have a section in my new Security Guide that walks through this important topic.)

The second security problem Network Solutions LLC have had this month is some customers having code added to their websites! Here is a quote from their support blog:

“We have received reports that Network Solutions customers are seeing malicious code added to their websites and we are really sorry for this experience. At this time since anything we say in public may help the perpetrators, we are unable to provide details. It may not be accurate to categorize this as a  single issue such as “file permissions”. Please know that we have all hands on deck fighting this new internet threat and investigating the cause.”

…well this clearly shows, in their rather cryptic language, that this is NOT another WordPress iframe injection issue.

So what is it?  …well the company are not saying at the moment.

When it comes to selecting a webhost for your hosting needs, i suggest you do some research in the search engines first to read any stories like this one.

Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP

As I mentioned in an earlier post:

http://blog.marcliron.com/windows-vista/windows-vista-rtm-deadline

Windows Vista RTM (Thats Windows Vista with NO service pack installed) goes out of support TODAY!

Make sure you visit Windows Update and download the current service pack for Windows Vista.

For more information please read:  http://support.microsoft.com/kb/935791

Kind Regards

Marc Liron – Microsoft MVP