Just wanted to say that this forum is the best resource for computer main/info that I have run across on the net. I have been helped with a couple of small problems by you folks already; but probably the most important aspect is what I have learned by simply reading the various posts and the responses to same. I am a bit of a tweaker and have made quite a number of small adjustments to the OS based on the recommendations / suggestions. I really don't know how the moderators find the time to responded(and sometimes the patience ). - Webster 
This Weeks Computing News
Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 08:46, 14th May 2008
Source: C/Net News
If ever there was pressure, it falls on the shoulders of development teams trying to follow up a smash hit with a sequel.
That's the position that the folks at Epic Games find themselves in right now as they put the finishing touches on their forthcoming video game, Gears of War 2. And that's because the original Gears of War sold more than 5 million copies, becoming one of the most successful titles for Microsoft's next-generation video game console.
On Tuesday, Gears of War 2 was one of the featured games at the Microsoft Games Studio Spring Showcase event here. Dozens of video game journalists flocked to the shindig, as they do each year, for a series of tight controlled demos and hands-on play with a few of the titles.
Full story here.
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 21:30, 13th May 2008
Source: Microsoft
Microsoft has released the latest monthly security updates for May 2008 and has made them available for download from the Microsoft Download Center and also from Windows Update/Microsoft Update.
Critical:
-KB951207: Vulnerabilities in Microsoft Word Could Allow Remote Code Execution
-KB951208: Vulnerability in Microsoft Publisher Could Allow Remote Code Execution
-KB950749: Vulnerability in Microsoft Jet Database Engine Could Allow Remote Code Execution
Moderate:
-KB952044: Vulnerabilities in Microsoft Malware Protection Engine Could Allow Denial of Service
Microsoft has released the usual update for the Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool and the Windows Mail Definition Update (x86) (x64).
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 23:48, 12th May 2008
Source: Tech ARP News
The release of Windows Vista Service Pack 1 not only heralded a long-awaited update of the operating system, it also meant the end of two common Windows Vista anti-activation exploits - the Grace Timer exploit and the Paradox OEM BIOS activation crack. But those who think they can escape by not updating to Service Pack 1 would be sadly mistaken.
That's because Microsoft has surreptitiously released an anti-hack detection update via Windows Update. Those who chose to have Windows Vista install updates automatically would have this update installed and running by now. If you chose to manually select updates to be installed, you should find this update listed.
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 23:46, 12th May 2008
Source: Windows Live Messenger
As some of you might have faced problem with Windows Live Messenger blocking some of the URLs, now the problem has been fixed and this is what Messenger Team had to say :
"Greetings Messenger fans
As some of you noticed, we had a problem from Friday night to Saturday morning where our Messenger service was incorrectly blocking some legitimate IP addresses. We sincerely apologize for any difficulties this caused our users. And we want to thank those of you that reported this problem to us so that we could quickly fix it. Because of your help, the incorrect block was only in place for a few hours.
As you can imagine, we are very serious about our efforts to block virus, malware and other harmful URLs from being passed on to our users. And we're continually working to improve this process so that we can keep our users safe without having a negative impact on your Messenger service.
There have been some pretty outlandish speculations on what happened so I'd like to give you some facts about our process for trying to block unsafe URLs and about what happened Friday night:
* There are a number of factors that can be used to determine whether a URL is potentially harmful: number of times a URL is sent, the frequency of the URL being sent, the number of accounts the URL is sent from, manually checking the URL, comparing with other "block lists", etc.
* When a URL is deemed harmful, a block can be instated for a specific URL (i.e. www..com/) or an entire domain (i.e. *..com)
* This entire process for Messenger is managed by a 3rd party that is a Microsoft partner
* On Friday, Microsoft did not request to block any of the URLs that were accidentally blocked
* The blocks were made by our partner as a result of their process to block harmful URLs
* We are still investigating the specific reason our partner made these incorrect blocks and we will work with them to improve their process for detecting harmful URLs while not blocking safe ones
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 23:43, 12th May 2008
Source: Electronista News
Microsoft is launching a mystery device nicknamed "Lips" as part of a gaming event tomorrow, says a rumor reportedly confirmed by 8Bit Joystick. Nicknamed "Lips," the device is expected to be a voice communication add-on for the Xbox 360 but is unlikely to be a typical headset, which is either packed into higher-end Xbox models as a wired headset or sold separately for wireless versions. Speculation has the device offering some level of voice recognition or else a dedicated microphone for music games.
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 20:07, 10th May 2008
Source: Beta News
Game maker id Software quietly confirmed it is working on Doom 4, almost four years after the release of the third installment of the series that made the first-person shooter a permanent fixture in the public conscience.
Instead of a large public announcement, id's notice came in the form of a brief mention on its Web site along with a call for developers and artists interested in working on the game.
"Doom is part of the id Software DNA and demands the greatest talent and brightest minds in the industry to bring the next installment of our flagship franchise to Earth," id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead said in a statement published on the company's Web site. "It's critical for id Software to have the best creative minds in-house to develop games that meet the standards synonymous with our titles."
The original Doom video game, launched in 1993, is cited as one of the first video games to help make the first person shooter (FPS) genre popular.
Doom 3 was met with high levels of anticipation, but many gamers were left disappointed after finishing the game. Some gamers claimed id spent too much time working on its engine and graphics, while leaving the game's plot line developed.
Id Software admitted it listened to gamers' complaints about Doom 3, and will likely make sure it does not replicate the same mistakes with Doom 4. For example, the next game may be based in a dark environment where lightning is scarce, in order to retain that dark, abysmal mood. But in the last installment, gamers quickly became frustrated when they were forced to hold the flashlight while at the same time managing their weapon. A third-party modification was made available so users could attach the flashlight to their shotgun or machine, much to gamers' delight.
Since the launch of Doom, id Software remained loyal to the PC gaming platform, but is expanding to game consoles due to high levels of piracy and the increasing popularity of console gaming.
The publisher has not mentioned an expected release date or which platforms the game is planned to support. Rumors indicate it will likely be available for Windows, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Gamers also are interested in seeing what game engine will be used for Doom 4's development, with some rumors indicating id will use the Rage engine. It is highly unlikely id will use the Doom 3 engine, which is now more than four years old.
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 20:06, 10th May 2008
Source: Beta News
Five months after the first service pack for Office 2007 was made generally available to customers, the company has determined it will be safe to provide it over its automatic update service.
The original intent of Automatic Updates was to ease the burden of ensuring clients had the latest software, especially security patches. But with the growing variety of permutations of Windows installations, any problems clients might find with their automatically updated systems can only be tracked and identified through extensive field testing.
So Microsoft waited a fairly significant period of time before enabling Office 2007 SP1 to be downloadable automatically, and may still wait six weeks longer, perhaps more, according to a post on Microsoft's Office Sustained Engineering blog late yesterday evening.
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 20:03, 10th May 2008
Source: The Wall Street Journal
Popular opinion is that Microsofts Windows Vista operating system is a dud, a view fueled in part by a low adoption rate among businesses. But a look back at history shows why it may be premature to write Vista off.
By the end of 2007, businesses computers running Vista accounted for just 3% of the nearly 1 billion computers in use worldwide, according to the research company Gartner. Sounds dismal, but thats the same percentage that ran the business version of Microsofts previous OS, XP, in 2002, the first year after its release. (Out of 582 million total computers.) By the end of 2003, business computers running XP accounted for 10% of the total. Gartner projects that by the end of this year, business computers running Vista will make up 13% of all computers.
That puts Vista ahead of its predecessors pace, and bolsters Microsofts argument that Vista adoption is inline with the companys expectations. The numbers are the numbers, Gartners George Shiffler tells the Business Technology Blog. I cant refute them. But he adds that they dont tell the whole story. Vista is certainly facing headwinds, he says.
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 20:01, 10th May 2008
Source: Slashdot News
A number of readers are sending word that the blogosphere and Twittersphere are alight with reports of Microsoft's new block on messages containing YouTube URLs. Both MSN Messenger and Windows Live Messenger reportedly implement the block. One blogger sniffed the network to discover that such messages receive a NAK from Microsoft's servers. Microsoft has been blocking messages by keyword, as an anti-phishing measure, for some time, but *.youtube.com would not seem to provoke much worry about phishing.
Instead, as B.E.T.A Daily speculates, "This block seems to be related to the recent launch of Messenger TV in 20 countries which allows for sharing video clips from MSN Video on messenger." Hard to get away with in an arena where you don't enjoy a monopoly.
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 08:52, 9th May 2008
Source: Computer World News
Microsoft today said it plan to post four security updates next week, three of them "critical," to patch Windows, Word, Publisher and all of the company's anti-malware applications.
Among the critical fixes will be one that quashes bugs in Microsoft's Jet Database Engine that go back as far as 2005. The other critical patches will close holes in Microsoft's word processor and desktop publishing programs.
"Finally, the expected fix for Jet," said Andrew Storms, director of security operations at nCircle.
Seven weeks ago, Microsoft rang an alarm over critical vulnerabilities in Jet Database Engine, a Windows component that provides data access to applications such as Microsoft Access and Visual Basic. The company posted a security advisory on March 22 that acknowledged "public reports of very limited, targeted attacks" using Word documents that triggered the Jet Database bug.
Several days later, Microsoft's security team admitted it had known of the Jet Database bugs for more than two years, but had not patched the problems because it thought it had blocked the obvious attack vectors. In a post to the Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC) blog, Mike Reavey, the group's operations manager, said it might replace the version of Jet in Windows 2000, XP and Server 2003 SP1 to fix the flaws.
The Jet Database Engine included in Windows Vista, Windows Server 2003 SP2 and the just-released Windows XP SP3 is not vulnerable to the attacks, and doesn't require replacement.
According to Microsoft's prepatch notification, which it issued Thursday, Microsoft will swap out the buggy Jet in Windows 2000, XP SP2 and Server 2003 SP1.
It also appears that Microsoft will fix Word to shut down that attack vector, said nCircle's Storms. "I have a strong feeling that they're patching both ends of the problem," he said. "They're covering all the bases, which is the right thing to do."
The single non-critical patch slated for release is a fix marked "important" by Microsoft that will affect the company's consumer and enterprise anti-malware products. The patch will address what Microsoft called a denial-of-service issue in Antigen, Forefront Security, Windows Live OneCare and Windows Defender.
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Posted by: Tweaker
Date added: 08:51, 8th May 2008
Source: Computer World News
The Internet Storm Center, which tracks online threats, warned Wednesday that a worm is infecting vulnerable Web sites with a database attack. Though relatively small by Web attack standards with about 4,000 reported infected sites, the assault adds invisible code to a site that can force visitors to download malware onto their PC. Bad PR, to say the least.
IMPORTANT: DO NOT visit the domain named in the following test, or any sites that show up on a Web search as having this domain listed in their pages' code (including cached pages). Doing so could infect your PC with malware.
To see if your site has been hit, run the following Google search: "site:your company domain (ex. pcworld.com) winzipices.cn." -- or search for that domain within your Web site's HTML code. If you find anything, let your IT know immediately. When I ran a search just now I saw sites for everything from insurance companies to cemeteries to universities that all appear to have been infected.
The worm uses a SQL injection attack, according to the ISC, but it doesn't yet know just what vulnerability is targeted. The attack highlights the importance of keeping your site secure. It's likewise critical to keep your own PC software up-to-date, as the ISC says visitors to infected sites can be hit via a known flaw in old Real Player software.
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