*HOT* Tech News And Downloads, I Would Read This Thread And Post Any Good Info

How to Mask Your IP and Use Country Restricted Services

June 10, 2006 at 13:34 · Filed under Entertainment, Everything Else

If you want to watch ABC streaming TV episodes even if you don’t live in the US or see the Football Worldcup in the BBC Sport site, even if you don’t live in the UK - the next few steps will help you mask your IP by changing your default proxy to the correct country.

We always knew it was possible, but not that it’s this simple! This can probably help people who want to use different softwares and services online that are usually restricted to the locals and not only for just viewing the above online TV. This little IP and proxy tweak also makes your surfing much more secure and anonymous.

1. In IE -> Choose Tools -> Choose Internet Options -> Go to Connections (tab) -> Press LAN Settings (button) -> mark the “Use a proxy server for your LAN…” -> In the IP Address field, enter the IP (use 206.107.155.137 for US services, 62.171.219.179 for UK services) -> In the Port field, enter the port (US - 8080, UK - 80) -> Press OK (button) -> Press OK again (button).

2. For more IPs (proxy servers) from different countries, you can check out this site.
http://www.publicproxyservers.com/page1.html

3. If you’re having any problems, read the original, very detailed post here.
http://www.ghacks.net/2006/06/06/how-to-view-the-football-worldcup-online/#more-542
If you know any other good location based sites or great services that you thought were restricted to your country until now, please comment and share them with us.
http://6initiative.com/how-to-mask-your-ip-and-use-country-restricted-sites-2/

 

Today I am an unhappy bear, I am trying the Beta Vista and all I have to say at this time is &89$*@!~_+

After trying to dl for awhile I finally got the stupid thing in and then I tried to install my sound card and it gives me a message of that it cannot find it, I put in the disk and it says the information was written for Win 98 or higher OS, please make sure you have the correct OS. What a freaking pain, so I managed to get half of the my SB ZDS Platinum installed and got sound, but none of the add on programs work nor does the equalizers. Tried to install my chipset, but that finally took, but the stupid thing will not take my Dell drivers. Can hardly wait to see if I can get any of my other programs to work. Plus these stupid annoying messages keep popping up asking you if you want to continue with what you are doing. I feel the need to get back to my nice stable XP, I ain't liking Vista so far.

 

It was like test driving a car, you want to see whats under the hood, and it definitely is missing a few spark plugs. The new IE7 will not let me get into my AOL mail, it keeps freezing.

 

thanks to cdfreaks
ye got to love this article....

Apple faces threat from Scandinavia to open music to rivals
Posted by Seán Byrne on 11 June 2006 - 16:44 - Source: Financial Times

Apple's closed proprietary DRM system faces another threat across Scandinavia after three Nordic nations have jointly started action to force music download services to offer music that can be played on all digital music players. As most are aware, music bought from iTunes can only be played on Apple's own iPod series and Apple has already run into problems in the past, including being forced into making their DRM interoperable with rival players by proposed legislation in France up until recently, getting pressure from the BPI in the UK to open up its DRM to even protests carried out over its DRM.

Apple has received letters from Norway, Sweden and Denmark with set deadlines for which Apple must open its iTunes music to allow consumers to play back music on any player of their choice. Finland expects to start similar action also. Norway's deadline is June 21st and Sweden's is August 1st, however it is unclear what deadline Denmark has set at this time. Even though the opening of Apple's DRM is unlikely to affect its iTunes music sales, Apple previously announced that it actually profits on iPod sales and not the iTunes music store itself.

An Apple spokesman said on Friday: “We have received a letter from the Norwegian Consumer Council and are looking into it. We’re looking forward to resolving this matter.” Previously Apple has called the French legislation “state-sponsored piracy”.

Working together, Norway, Sweden and Denmark have sent letters to Apple setting deadlines for their demands. Similar action by Finland is expected.

The three states argue that consumers, having bought music on iTunes, must be permitted to listen to it on other players, such as mobile phones. “The consumer should be free to use their player of choice,” said Mr Waterhouse. Norway has set a deadline of June 21 and Sweden August 1.

If the Scandinavian countries succeed in getting music download stores to open up its DRM system to allow playback on all players, assuming Apple does not decide to pull out of the affected Scandinavian countries, it would be interesting to see how they would deal with this. If they offered their music as MP3, this would instantly solve the compatibility problem, but obviously would be against the wishes of most music industries due to no DRM. On the other hand, if Apple made its music available in several restricted versions such as WMA DRM, Sony’s Atrac3 and so on to cover all the hardware DRM systems out there, they would face having to take on the licensing costs of using all these DRM formats. This method would not even fully solve the issue either since players that lack restrictive DRM support will still not be covered.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/13531

 

An 'amazing' remote-controlled plane
June 11, 2006 6:00 AM PDT

We at Blogma would never claim to be experts in remote-controlled vehicles, so please withhold the flames if this strikes you as amateurish. Ranking high on blog some indexes this weekend is a YouTube clip of an "amazing R/C airplane demo."

video here
http://bigpicture.typepad.com/writing/2006/06/amazing_rc_airp.html

 

Good morning all! Strong iced coffee after my morning walk to the office and a bowl of what remained at the bottom of four cereal boxes. I've nearly completed decorating my victorian brothal replica and I'm making a list of additional materials I need. My sister added just the perfect touch ... just for the laugh, she brought me a box of doilies and antimacassars which my mother crotched in the forties and fifties to pin on sofas backs and arms and what not. My sister went around pinning them on everything LOL!...I quickly went around removing them ... you know, I can only take the joke so far without ruining my reputation!

I'm now on the 20th floor of a center city Philly high-rise with an unobstructed view of tens of thousands of offices, apartments, hotels rooms etc. I have such strong itch to buy myself and enormously powerful telescope. Never really realized I had a touch of the voyeur in me LOL!

 

thanks to cdfreaks

Former RIAA CEO & chairman sees RIAA lawsuits ineffective
Posted by Seán Byrne on 12 June 2006 - 00:30 - Source: Huffington Post

While Hilary Rosen was RIAA's former Chairman and CEO, she has often been accused of getting involved in suing college students and other potentially innocent people for the unauthorised sharing of copyrighted music. However, she has made it clear that it was not until after she left that the RIAA actually began targeting individuals.

During her time with the RIAA, their focus was targeting those who were involved in profiting from piracy such as those who's business involves pirating music. She then went on to mention that she honestly would not have known what to do when it came to suing individuals should she have stayed on, however she did participate in multiple planning and debate sessions about the lawsuits and mentioned about how most successful executives she knows have made controversial decisions.

Finally, she does feel concerned about how the lawsuits against individuals currently taking place as they are no longer as they have outlived their usefulness and that the record companies needs to start working on alternative measures such as creating legitimate file sharing sites and helping music services work better with portable music players. For example, she pointed out how Apple's proprietary DRM is a problem and that DRM itself is not the proper strategy for online music distribution.

Commenters on this site regularly accuse me of suing college students and other "innocents" in my past role as Chairman and CEO of the Recording Indsutry Assciation of America The lawsuits against individuals initiated by the RIAA was started after I left. When I was there, our litigation focus was on those who were bulding commercial businesses on the backs of the creative community without their agreement or participation.

I don't honestly know what I would have done about the individual lawsuits had I stayed. I certainly participated in multiple planning and debate sessions about them. There were good arguments on both sides and the staff at the RIAA are thoughtful, good people who work hard to protect their constituency. Thankfully my plan to leave was firmly in place and I didn't have to make that tough call or take the heat for the one that was made.

The full Huffington Post article can be read here.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/hilary-rosen/for-the-record-for-what-_b_22177.html
The RIAA would probably have been better off taking all of its resources it currently uses to target individuals and use them on organisations that pirate music for profit, particularly since consumers are more likely to buy music after hearing it from a file sharing network than if they bought a pirated copy.

Finally, locking all forms of music distribution online with DRM is not the answer either to cutting piracy either. It would be nice if they helped run a trial music download service which offers music in MP3, particularly since they could easily stop the trial should it turn out to be a failure. As the vast majority of music in shops is already available on file sharing networks, there is actually no real point in crippling music from online services in DRM, since consumers who wish to download music from P2P instead will find a shared version anyway.
http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/13532

 

CRBAP..........Control the recycle bin. Helps You Get Rid of Recycle-bin Files Quickly. No more answering "Yes" to delete files, Customizable Hotkey to Empty Recycle-bin, Customizable Hotkey to View the Recycle-Bin, Increased Functionality over previous versions. GUI Assissted Configuration, Completely Hidden - No Windows or Icons, Optionally Alerts you wehn you empty the Recycle-bin, Hotkey allows you to quickly exit the program entirely, Optionally Starts with Windows and uses lfew resources, 100% Freeware - Absolutely NO SPYWARE!, Features Automatic Live Updates utilizing the UpChk engine.....(free).....GO THERE!
http://members.shaw.ca/hruodperht/crbap/CRbAP.html

 

BANDWIDTH VISTA..........Monitor the network speed and bandwidth performance of your network connections. Any type of connection can be monitored on your lan or the internet, wireless or cable. Network activity is monitored and logged for each individual connection. Bandwidth Vista is an asset to the home computer or network server alike .....(free).....GO THERE!
http://www.tamarsolutions.co.uk/



Bandwidth Vista.
Windows XP
Requires the .net framework 2 from Microsoft.



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Download Bandwidth Vista
Please support this projects future by linking back to www.tamarsolutions.co.uk from your website or Blog.

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GO HERE TO SEE THE PIXS
http://www.tamarsolutions.co.uk/

 

Apple DRM problems grow

p2p news / p2pnet: Apple's consumer control problems are escalating. Fast.

When France seemed set to introduce a new law that would have forced Apple to let iPod owners download songs from services other than iTunes, Steve Jobs said it amounted to, 'state-sponsored piracy".

More recently came news that Norway's Consumer Council of Norway was claiming iTunes breaches fundamental consumer rights, and a couple of days later, "Apple Computer’s iTunes online music store could be shut down across Scandinavia," said the Financial Times..

Now, "As the outcry in Europe is spreading, there is some opposition to Apple's business practices in the U.S," says BusinessWeek Online, going on:

"A group called the Free Software Foundation carried out protests on June 10 at seven Apple retail stores in cities that included New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Seattle."

"Defective by Design" protests are aimed at Apple, "as well as other companies the foundation thinks are supporting a growing trend toward legal restrictions that bind digital content to particular playing devices."

Elsewhere, in Europe, "Apple is facing hassles over the same compatibility questions, as well as its pricing structure in Britain, says BusinessWeek Online, pointing out that iTunes songs there go for 79 pence, or about $1.45, against the .99 euros (about $1.25) charged elsewhere in the European Union.

"We know that prices in Germany and France are lower," it has Alena Kozakova, principal economist at Which?, a British consumers' advocacy group, saying.

"There is no justification of this because the product is virtual. The traditional way of justifying this is that property and wages are more expensive in Britain and therefore products should be as well. But because this product is virtual this cannot apply."

Apple's DRM (Digital Restrictions Managagement) is C.R.A.P., says ZDNet's David Berlind.

Digg this story.

Also See:
state-sponsored piracy - Apple: foiled in France, March 28, 200
consumer rights - Norwegian iTunes victory, June 8, 2006
BusinessWeek Online - Now It's Europe vs. Apple, June 12, 2006
David Berlind - Apple and its C.R.A.P., March 4, 2006

==================

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(Monday 12th June 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/9030

 

Korea bans p2p file sharing

p2p news / p2pnet: Eight of Korea's 11 p2p services have caved in to pressure from the Big Four Organized Music record labels.

They'll now "intercept" mp3 files, says PC Pro.

The Big Four's Korean Association of Phonogram Producers (KAPP) had threatened legal action unless the p2p companies took action by 12 June, says the story.

"We held an urgent meeting last week, and eight of 11 member companies agreed to block MP3 files until we find ways to charge users,'' TMCNet has spokesman Jun Hyun-sung saying. However, "he refused to name the eight companies because he worries they may suffer a disadvantage in negotiations with the music industry," it states.

Services such as Soribada and Purna, "have been widely used for file sharing, where thousands of users can give and take their music and movie data," says TMCNet. "Users pay only about 50 won (about 52 cents) to service providers for downloading an entire album, usually about 50 megabytes in MP3 file format ..."

In March, p2p sites including Soribada, forced to adopt fee-charging services and due to launch on April 1, said they could go on hold.

At the time, filtering technology to stop people from sharing music files owned by the Big Four hadn't been put in place, observed KMPA boss Seo Hee-deok.

After being forced offline by the KMPA, Soribada, Korea's largest p2p file sharing company, reappeared in February with the news that users would "have to pay certain amounts of service fees for downloading music files".

"We agreed with Soribada to charge 500 won (about 51 cents) for users downloading music files labeled with digital right management, 700 won (about 72 cents) for music files without DRM and 250 won (ahout 26 cents) for poor sound-quality music," Hee-deok stated.

Other p2p service providers were also said to be, "in talks" with the KMPA, "for similar arrangements," but major labels such as DoReMi Media, Manine Media, Ins Digital and CJ Music were opposing monthly flat fees, except for "outdated" songs,

Meanwhile, "The online service companies are worried the government only listens to the copyright holders," TMCNet has Jun saying, adding:

"We will request the government to take a more balanced stance on the matter."

Digg this story.

Also See:
PC Pro - Korea stops music file-sharing, June 12, 2006
TMCNet - Internet Music Sharing Blocked, June 11, 2006
fee-charging services - Korea p2p charges revealed, March 27, 2006

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(Monday 12th June 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/9034

 

Microsoft: Zombies most prevalent Windows threat


By Joris Evers
Staff Writer, CNET News.com
Published: June 12, 2006, 6:00 AM PDT
Tell us what you think about this storyTalkBack E-mail this story to a friendE-mail View this story formatted for printingPrint

Many Windows PCs have been turned into zombies, but rootkits are not yet widespread, according to a Microsoft security report slated for release Monday.

More than 60 percent of Windows PCs scanned by Microsoft's Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool between January 2005 and March 2006 were found to run malicious bot software, according to Microsoft. The tool removed at least one version of the remote control software from about 3.5 million PCs, the software maker said.

"Backdoor Trojans…are a significant and tangible threat to Windows users," Microsoft said in the report.

A computer compromised by such a Trojan, popularly referred to as a zombie, can be used by attackers in a network of bots, or botnet, to relay spam and launch cyberattacks. Additionally, hackers often steal the victim's data and install spyware and adware on PCs, to earn a kickback from the spyware or adware maker.

Microsoft introduced the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool in January last year. An updated version of the program ships monthly with Microsoft's security updates. The tool identifies and removes prevalent malicious software from PCs. Since its release, the tool has run about 2.7 billion times on at least 270 million computers, Microsoft said.

Over the 15-month period covered by the report, the tool removed 16 million instances of malicious software from 5.7 million unique Windows systems, Microsoft said. On average, that's at least one instance of a virus, Trojan horse, worm or rootkit from every 311 computers it runs on. The program does not remove spyware.

Backdoor Trojans are the most prevalent threat, followed by e-mail worms, which were found on and removed from just over 1 million PCs, Microsoft said. Rootkits, which make system changes to hide other, possibly malicious software, are less widespread, with removals from 780,000 PCs, according to Microsoft.

"Rootkits…are a potential emerging threat but have not yet reached widespread prevalence," Microsoft said in the report. This contrasts with a study from McAfee, which in April said the numbers of rootkits it sees are rising sharply.

Rootkits lunged into the public spotlight last year when anticopying software on certain Sony BMG Music Entertainment CDs was found to contain a rootkit. Microsoft added detection and removal capabilities for the Sony rootkit in December and its tool wiped off the software 250,000 times, according to the report.

The Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool found a rootkit on 14 percent of the 5.7 million PCs it removed malicious software from. This figure drops to 9 percent when excluding the Sony rootkit. In about 20 percent of the cases when a rootkit was found on a computer, at least one backdoor Trojan was found as well, Microsoft said.

Attacks in which a victim is tricked into running malicious software are a significant source of infections. Worms that spread through e-mail, peer-to-peer networks and instant messaging clients account for just over one-third of the computers cleaned by the Microsoft tool, the Redmond, Wash., software maker said.

The top five threats identified by Microsoft's removal tool: Rbot, Sdbot, Parite, Gaobot and FURootkit. Parite is an aggressive file-infecting virus that first appeared in 2001, Microsoft said, and the FURootkit is often used to hide a backdoor Trojan such as Rbot, Sdbot and Gaobot on a PC.

The Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool is available in 24 languages to people who use Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. The current release of the tool is capable of detecting and removing 61 families of malicious software.
http://news.com.com/2100-7349_3-6082615.html?part=rss&tag=6082615&subj=news

 

GOOD MORNING ALL...HAVING ME SECOND 12oz COFFEE

FREE...

FAST KAKE..........FastKake will create a set of handy and useful shortcuts which will give you full control of your Windows operating system and simplify your computing life. There will be shortcuts to quickly shutdown/reboot/standby/hibernate the computer, lock the desktop or logoff the current user. There will also be shortcuts to empty the recycle bin, close all windows, quickly compose and send an email, launch default browser, launch default email client, open/close your cd drive, disable/enable your screensaver, add/remove programs, device manager, search for files and folders, launch word, excel, powerpoint, notepad, etc. etc. FastKake is small in size (120kb), requires no installation and does not modify your system .....(free).....GO THERE!

http://www.phy.uni-bayreuth.de/~btp344/fastkake/



FREE
POWER METER PLUS..........Replace the native battery power meter for Windows with a better one. Power Meter Plus has the following features: It gradually appears as the power levels drop. The lower the power, the more prominent the meter will be. When you're charging the laptop it'll turn green and slowly disappear/fade as the charge increases. The meter appears either on the bottom left or bottom right of the screen; it moves to the opposite corner if you move your mouse over it.....(free).....GO THERE!
http://mattcollinge.wordpress.com/software/power-meter-plus/

 

I'm multitasking ... I'm testing clients while having nice strong coffee and the strangest breakfast I've ever had. I stopped by a new little asian diner with a sign reading "we serve breakfast". I ordered my usual eggs, bacon and homefries but I knew I was in trouble when they started slicing a potato then threw the slices in a wok with some onions as I asked for them. Bacon was off to the side somewhere but watching them cook my eggs was comical and I wish I'd taped it. After explaining what "over light" means, they were trying to cook my eggs in a wok which was about as hot as the surface as the sun. I never knew eggyolks could explode like that LOL! Well, I'm eating some sort of egg-based concoction with some sort of new styled potato chips that are as hard as a silver dollar ... the bacon was ok. Strange way to start the day but it was funny as hell even if the breakfast is crap. (I also had to buy the coffee elsewhere).

 

Google Earth - in 3D

p2p news / p2pnet: One of the coolest applications going is Google Earth which lets you zoom in from outer space for an amazing aerial view of your home town, say.

"You point and zoom to anyplace on the planet that you want to explore," says Google. "Satellite images and local facts zoom into view. Tap into Google search to show local points of interest and facts. Zoom to a specific address to check out an apartment or hotel. View driving directions and even fly along your route."

Now Google Earth has added a 3D interface.

And for the first time, it works with Linux.

Check it out here.
http://earth.google.com/
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(Tuesday 13th June 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/9046

 

VERY DAM GOOD READ


Hollywood needs YOU!!!

p2p news / p2pnet: "On the one hand, we're playing in the old-fashioned packaged goods business, and at the same time, we have to deal with new technologies."

So says Bob Chapek, president of Disney's Buena Vista Home Entertainment, quoted by The New York Times.

Disney is still trying, and obviously failing, to use antiquated business models centred on physical product in the digital 21st century.

"Studios are starting to beam digital movie files to consumers over the airwaves and send them through the Internet, but sales so far are minuscule," says the story. "Rentals and video-on-demand, though growing, generate far smaller profits for the studios than store-bought DVD's."

Thus, "plain old DVD will remain their bread and butter for several more years" while the studios try, "everything they can in their quest for a new cash cow".

That's you. And while you digest that, here's an interesting fact :

"Studios make money when Netflix and other companies rent out their movies," says story, going on, "But the amount that studios make on rentals pales compared to how much they make when consumers buy discs. Studios earn $17.26 for each DVD they sell, but only $2.37 for movies on demand and $2.25 per DVD rented, according to Tom Adams, the president of Adams Media Research."

It's also, "a business model that can't be matched," he said.

And it explains why Hollywood is pushing new high-definition DVD's, although there's an unfortunate hitch, namely, "The studios, electronics makers and technology companies that developed them came up with two formats: Blu-ray, backed by Sony, Dell, Disney and others; and HD-DVD, which is supported by Toshiba, Microsoft and Universal, among others."

Consumers risk getting saddled with obsolete players and discs if one side ultimately backs down, and, "Cost is another factor, says the NYT, " Toshiba has introduced a $500 player that, at least for now, can only play movies from three major studios. Later this month, Samsung will release the first Blu-ray machine, which will be able to play more movies, but it is expected to cost about $1,000."

There's a whole slew of expensive new products lined up for the new hi-def formats but, "Even so, the companies backing both high-definition formats are likely to see only modest sales initially," says the article, adding:

"Consumers will buy just $175 million worth of HD-DVD and Blu-ray discs this year; by 2010, high-definition DVD sales will still be only half those of standard-definition disc sales, according to Adams Media Research."

The Cash Cow (upper right) is with apologies to Dean McAdam ; P

Digg this story.

Also See:
The New York Times - As DVD Sales Slow, Hollywood Hunts for a New Cash Cow, June 13, 2006

(Tuesday 13th June 2006)
http://p2pnet.net/story/9052

 

Windows Vista pros and cons
http://www.zdnet.com.au/reviews/sof...ista_pros_and_cons/0,39023442,39259793,00.htm
By Robert Vamosi, CNET.com
14 June 2006 06:06 PM
E-Mail Story Printer Friendly Tell Us Your Opinion ZDNet Alerts

The decision for some small business users to upgrade to Microsoft Windows Vista once it becomes available in early 2007 will depend largely on what the new operating system can do for you and what hardware you have to run it on.

Microsoft has prepared a Get Ready page listing the hardware required to run Windows Vista, and for Windows Vista beta 2 there's a public download available.

It's still early, and Microsoft could easily change aspects of individual features between now and the final release. But based on what I've seen after living with Windows Vista beta 2 for a week, here are five things I think you'll like about the new operating system -- some of which might persuade certain fence-sitters to upgrade -- and five things that may convince others to stick with Windows XP for a few more years.

What I love about Windows Vista
Learn about the new features within the Windows Vista operating system that I think you'll like.

What I hate about Windows Vista
See what I think is wrong with the new operating system.

Windows Vista pros: What I love about Windows Vista
On this page, you'll learn about the new features within the Windows Vista operating system that I think you'll like. Since the Windows Vista Aero graphics system, which I like, will work only with certain high-end hardware configurations, I've focused here on features I like within Vista that do not require Aero. At the moment, all of these features are scheduled to be included in the Home Premium and Business editions of Windows Vista. If you're mainly interested in what's wrong with the new operating system, move on to the next page, where you can learn more about glitches we've encountered so far.

1. Search or create virtual files
Forget directories, forget directory trees. Microsoft has integrated search throughout its new operating system, and you'll quickly come to wonder how you lived without it. You can search for all documents authored by John Doe, then save the search as a virtual file folder for later reference without having to physically relocate or make copies of all those files.

2. Widgets -- er, Gadgets
In Windows Vista, Microsoft allows you to drag and drop Gadgets (think Widgets on the Apple OS X desktop) to tell time, calculate currency, or tackle any trivial task you perform regularly that would be handier if it were always on top of your current screen. Presently, you can acquire Gadgets, or Widgets, for your Windows XP machine from online sites such as Windows Live. In the near future, Microsoft says you'll be able to write your own Windows Vista Gadgets, allowing you to really personalise your desktop.

3. Built-in diagnostics
Programs won't run, the operating system crashes -- Microsoft says these will be in the past with Vista. So far, we've seen more dialogs, from explaining why an application won't run to warning us that there are driver conflicts that prevent our laptop system from going to sleep. For example, Vista will listen to your hard drive and report pending problems, giving you ample warning to back up your data.

There's also a Problems Report and Solutions monitor where you can see what problems Vista has encountered, and then go online to find possible solutions. And, have you ever noticed how Windows computers get slower with age? That's because files get separated from each other on your hard drive and require occasional defragmentation. Most of us never do it, in part because it uses too many system resources. In Vista, the process is automatic and runs in the background, so you won't even notice it.

4. Need more oomph? Vista will find it for you
Need more RAM? How about borrowing some from that 256MB or greater USB drive? In Windows Vista, the new Windows ReadyBoost feature can swap flash memory with any large USB device. If your laptop has a new hybrid hard drive, the Windows ReadyDrive can improve your system's overall performance, battery life, and reliability by taking advantage of the drive's built-in flash capabilities.

New Windows SuperFetch can cache on your hard drive frequently used apps based on the frequency of use so that, for example, every Monday morning when you arrive at your desk for work, you can count on Outlook and your Internet browser to launch quickly. Also, finally, there's a new feature called Low-priority Input/Output that should keep you productive: in Windows Vista, user applications will get higher priority with system resources than antivirus or defragmentation processes.

5. Enhanced help
Help used to be limited to a few pithy sentences about the task you want to perform. Windows Vista changes all that. There are more options available within Help inside Vista. For example, you can initiate a remote-assistance session so that someone you trust can take over your PC remotely and diagnose a problem or perform a task for you. You can also go online and search Microsoft's knowledge base or contact Microsoft's technical support.
Vista images

One really cool feature, however, is labelled Do It Automatically. Here, a task such as checking the version of a driver will be automated, with your desktop going dark as a pointer arrow floats over the screen indicating what to click and where. From time to time, the pointer will stop and a dialog box will require your input before it continues to perform the task. While there are only 15 of these automated help sessions within the current Windows Vista beta 2 release, we hope Microsoft adds more.

Windows Vista cons: What I hate about Windows Vista
On this page, you'll learn about the new features within the Windows Vista operating system that I think you won't like. If you're mainly interested in what's good with the new operating system, move to the previous page, where you can learn more about features I can't live without.

1. Your current hardware won't fully run Vista
Get ready for the media blitz. Get ready for the frustration. While many computers in use today will be able to update and run the new operating system, they'll be able to run it only in what Microsoft slyly calls Windows Vista Basic. That means while you'll have the ability to search files, you won't have 3D Aero graphics, live animation along the Taskbar, or smooth streaming graphics on your desktop.

Unless you buy a new PC sometime in 2007, or add a high-end video card and some extra memory to your current PC, you probably won't get the full visual Vista experience.

2. Vista's Aero graphics gobble up laptop battery power
If you're used to your laptop lasting on a long, cross-country flight, you might want to reconsider upgrading to Windows Vista -- that is, if you want the new Aero graphics features turned on.

In our tests, a laptop running Windows Vista Aero had significantly reduced battery life compared to one running in what Microsoft calls Windows Vista Basic. You'll sacrifice the 3D and smooth streaming of video, but you'll make it to your destination with some battery power to spare. Unfortunately, changing from Aero to Basic is harder than it should be.

3. User Account Protection
The User Account Protection feature has already gotten a ton of negative press. While I understand what Microsoft is trying to do -- protect the user from rogue software installs -- I don't think the company has figured it out yet.

In order to perform basic tasks, such as install or remove an application, even administrator account users must answer a series of pop-up messages, adding time to the process. Worse, whenever you are prompted to respond, the whole Vista desktop goes dark while the pop-up message remains on the screen, preventing you from doing anything else. While this feature can be valuable if rogue spyware attempts to install without your permission, good Internet behaviour will do as much. For most of us, the frequent appearance of User Account Protection on common tasks will be security overkill.

4. Missing drivers and incompatible apps
Not having all the necessary drivers or not having software compliant with a new operating system is to be expected in the beta of a new operating system, but even after several months of developer testing, I was surprised to see a number of common drivers still missing from the public beta for Windows Vista. For example, I had to manually import several Acer TravelMate 8200 drivers from a Windows XP partition on the same drive.

5. Troubled sleep
Microsoft claims that it has addressed the complicated issue of whether to put your laptop to sleep or have it hibernate when it is not in use. Instant Off, a new option on the Start menu, allows Windows Vista to take a quick snapshot of your system, then shut down completely, thus eliminating the occurrence of a hot laptop inside your backpack.
Vista images

After experiencing several false starts -- literally, I was unable to resume my Windows Vista session as I'd left it -- I discovered through Vista's Performance Ratings and Tools report that several legacy drivers, some installed by Vista during installation, were preventing the new Instant Off feature from performing correctly. Vista politely asked that I find updated drivers to replace those on my machine or remove them. I suspect a lot of people will encounter this problem in the months immediately following Vista's full release.

 

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