If you’re a Windows Vista user, you will probably be interested in this.  Microsoft is maintaining a list of Windows Vista compatible applications that have earned the “Certified for Windows Vista� logo or the “Works with Windows Vista� logo, which is currently around 800 or so.  Apparently, this list will be updated weekly, so I recommend bookmarking it for future reference if you use or plan on upgrading to Windows Vista

Source:http://kylescove.com/2007/02/26/800-windows-vista-compatible-applications/

Overall, Windows Vista seems to work really well.   The problem seems to be with other software not being Vista compatible, or problems with some of the new features included with the operating system.

If you are one of these people, Geeks are Sexy has posted 20 great how-to tips for Windows Vista users, which should be very helpful.   The tips included are:

1. How To Change the Way Pages Print from IE7
2. How To Easily Share Folders in Vista
3. How To Use Vista’s Speech Recognition Feature
4. How To Hide Messages You’ve Already Read in Windows Mail, Outlook Express, or Windows Live Mail
5. How To Use the People Near Me Feature
6. How to Use Windows Meeting Space for Collaboration Sessions
7. How To Select Which OS to Start If You Dual Boot
8. How To Independently Control Volume Levels for Each Application
9. How To Quickly Batch Rename Photo FileNames Using Windows Photo Gallery
10. How To Set Up Vista Parental Controls
11. How To Use Windows Remote Assistance
12. How To Use Vista Backup and Restore
13. How To Create and Format a Partition in which to Store Your Documents
14. How To Sync Desktop and Laptop with Vista Sync Center
15. How To Run Older Incompatible Software on Windows Vista
16. How To View Files in Stack View
17. How To Use Windows Calendar
18. How To Transfer Data to Another Computer Using Windows Easy Transfer
19. How To Create A Shortcut for Locking Your PC
20. How To Create An XPS Document

Source:http://kylescove.com/2007/03/29/20-how-to-vista-tips/

In what could be the most embarrassing exploit to impact Windows Vista since its commercial launch in January, security engineers at McAfee’s Avert Labs confirmed today - and posted the video to prove - that the operating system can be caused to enter an interminable crash-restart-crash loop, by means of a buffer overflow triggered by nothing more than a malformed animated cursor file.

It isn’t even a new exploit, as researchers with eEye discovered in January 2005. At that time, Microsoft acknowledged it affected versions of the operating system from the first edition of Windows 98 through to early releases of Windows XP, though it stated at the time XP SP1 was unaffected.But apparently after researching field reports of limited attacks, Avert Labs discovered an apparently similar exploit using .ANI files impacts XP SP2 and Vista as well, as well as Windows 2000 SP4 and versions of Windows Server 2003 from the initial release through to SP1. Avert Labs stated XP SP1 and versions since were unaffected, though Microsoft warned the exploit does affect XP SP2.If both firms’ accounts are correct, Microsoft may have fixed the problem with XP SP1 in 2005, and inadvertently un-fixed it sometime afterward.

Avert Labs’ video of the incident, posted to YouTube, shows a Vista system wherein the test file apparently trying to load the custom animated cursor. When the operating system detects a crash, it first tries to save vital data prior to a restart sequence - one of Vista’s newer features. It then informs the user that Windows Explorer has crashed.

But in trying to restart Explorer, the restarting crashes itself, sending Vista into a tailspin from which the only escape appears to be the off button.

The mouse input routines in Windows are designed with the intention of being relatively failsafe. That’s why when the system appears to hang, you can often still move your mouse pointer. As I’ve personally witnessed on many occasions with Windows XP, it’s possible for a smaller OEM’s mouse driver - often an unsigned one - to trigger a similar tailspin loop that crashes Windows Explorer repeatedly. In Windows, a lot depends on the mouse pointer’s very existence.

So if a customization feature can impact the mouse pointer’s ability to function, the integrity of the entire system can be jeopardized. With my own systems, drivers and services that are unfriendly to one another - such as Stardock’s CursorXP animation program trying to co-exist with a Synaptics Pointing Device driver on a notebook with ATI Mobility Radeon 9600 graphics - can trigger an Explorer tailspin.

What I’m calling the “tailspin” is nothing new. What is very disturbing about this revelation, however, is that it can be triggered by nothing more than Microsoft’s own operating system software and processes.

McAfee reports this exploit is being utilized in the wild, and Microsoft today issued its boilerplate language warning users not to open e-mail attachments they don’t recognize.
Sourcehttp://www.betanews.com/article/Vista_Can_Be_Taken_Down_by_an_Animated_Cursor/1175201875

Apple updated Boot Camp, the still-in-beta application that lets Mac users run Windows on Intel-powered machines, to support Vista.

Boot Camp 1.2 is now compatible with the 32-bit version of Vista, says Apple. Other improvements to the dual-boot utility include updated drivers for the Mac’s audio, graphics, iSight camera and other features designed to improve Windows’ operation when it’s run on Apple systems.

The update also adds a system tray icon to the Windows taskbar for easier access to Boot Camp information and commands, and adds support for Apple’s remote within Windows.

Boot Camp, which was introduced nearly a year ago, lets owners of Intel-based Macs run both Mac OS X and Windows XP or Vista on the same machine, if not simultaneously. Users must shut down one operating system and reboot the computer to start up another.

The program will go final when Apple ships its spring 2007 OS update, mac OS X 10.5 “Leopard,” the Californian company has promised. However, Apple hasn’t yet said whether it will charge a fee for the software for those running now Mac OS 10.4, dubbed Tiger.

Ironically, Boot Camp 1.2’s release puts to rest talk that Leopard would be delayed because Apple was struggling to make the application Vista-compatible.

Boot Camp 1.2 can be downloaded for free from the Apple site, where Apple continues to warn the faithful that: “Windows running on a Mac is like Windows running on a PC. That means it’ll be subject to the same attacks that plague the Windows world. So be sure to keep it updated with the latest Microsoft Windows security fixes.”

Source:http://reseller.co.nz/reseller.nsf/news/FCA8EF653BDD90CACC2572AD007D2095

As with using any new computer operating system, pioneering Microsoft’s new Vista OS is an activity with high potential for failures, troubleshooting, and cussing. And unlike any other OS before it, Vista comes with a tool that allows you to monitor how well (or how poorly) Vista is working on your computer.We’ve been running the tool, known as Vista Reliability Monitor, on a new desktop since the beginning of February. It uses a scale from 1 (worst) to 10 (best). According to Microsoft, the Monitor’s score considers how well the system has handled time changes and software uninstalls. It also scores a full range of failures, including those by applications that stopped working and/or were terminated; the hard-disk or memory; and Vista itself.

The score for our PC, shown in the screen shot (click for a larger view) above, is currently 3.07 and has gone lower than that–as low as a dismal 1.29. The low score reflects the unfortunate reality of new operating systems, as well as the (admirably) tough way the Monitor scores Vista performance.

New OSs never work with every peripheral and piece of software right off the bat. Some components do make the transition from old OS to new seamlessly; we had no trouble with our PC’s printer and external USB hard drive, for example. But many more don’t work or play well with the new system, at least at first. If you load applications that aren’t yet compatible with Vista, the Monitor takes note and responds by lowering the index score. Trying stubbornly to reload those applications just to be certain they don’t work further degrades the score. The same applies to trying out supposed updates to the application that also don’t work and using (obviously unsuccessfully) hardware that doesn’t yet have working Vista drivers.

Utilities like disk defraggers, antivirus software, and firewalls are especially notorious for failure to work with new OSs. With Vista, Microsoft has built the utilities you’ll likely need, except for antivirus, into the new OS, but in versions that are less full featured than the third-party versions, and you may want to pay to upgrade the Vista versions (which generally aren’t available yet).

Consumers of a new OS, then, are to some degree trapped in a corporate technology tussle. Microsoft may say it’s up to the third-party hardware and software makers to have all their applications, drivers and firmware updated for the new OS. The third parties may counter by saying the new OS should be able to run all the existing software and hardware with no updates necessary.

What does our test (and the above reality) mean if you’re poised to go Vista? They add to the good reasons not to rush into using the new OS. If past OSs are a guide, the landscape will change for the better. More drivers and application fixes will invariably arrive through Vista’s first year, culminating in the first service pack, probably in the second half of 2007. By then, the hardware and software manufacturers should have most if not all of their products Vista-compatible.

Already have Vista, or can’t wait to buy a new PC until the bugs are worked out? You may then want to use Monitor to confirm (or challenge) your feeling that all is going well, or badly. I’ll cover how to use the tool in another blog entry soon.
Source:http://blogs.consumerreports.org/electronics/2007/03/vista_check_an_.html

Description:
This particular software suite updates both the AMD Display Driver (version 8.351.3), and the Catalystâ„¢ Control Center (version 7.3). This unified driver has been further enhanced to provide the highest level of power, performance, and reliability. The AMD Catalystâ„¢ software suite is the ultimate in performance and stability.

New Features

The following section provides information on new features introduced in this release of Catalystâ„¢.
OpenGL CrossFireâ„¢ Support Under Windows Vista

Catalystâ„¢ 7.3 introduces OpenGL CrossFireâ„¢ support for the entire ATI Radeonâ„¢ X1000 product series under Microsoft Vista. Users will see significant performance gains in a number of applications when running in CrossFireâ„¢ mode under Windows Vista.
CrossFireâ„¢ Enhancements for Windows Vista

Catalystâ„¢ 7.3 includes CrossFireâ„¢ enhancements for Windows Vista that enable the Alternate Frame Rendering (AFR) CrossFireâ„¢ rendering mode by default, enabling performance benefits for all AFR compatible applications immediately (including newly released applications that have not been officially profiled for CrossFireâ„¢). Future Catalystâ„¢ releases will add further CrossFireâ„¢ performance gains once new applications have been profiled specifically for CrossFireâ„¢.

Performance Improvements

Dark Messiah Might and Magic performance improves 12.5% or greater on all Radeonâ„¢ X1000 series configurations when running in CrossFireâ„¢ mode under both the Windows XP and Windows Vista operating systems. Larger gains of 60% or more can be seen on high end products.

To read the complete release notes please go to https://a248.e.akamai.net/f/674/9206/0/www2.ati.com/drivers/Catalyst_73_release_notes.htmlBefore proceeding with your driver installation we suggest you make sure you are installing the latest version available and for the appropriate model/revision and Operating System. We strongly suggest following ‘readme’ instructions for installing drivers when available. Often restarting your system will be necessary for the new driver to become active and start functioning properly.

You can check back regularly for new updates at TechSpot’s Drivers Section or stop by our frontpage on a daily for the best technology information on the web.
Source:http://www.techspot.com/drivers/driver/file/information/8776/

Kingcope, a security researcher that has started an exploit selling service, has disclosed a new vulnerability in Windows Mail. Windows Mail is Windows Vista replacement for Outlook Express.

Symantec’s DeepSight network, which issued a warning about the vulnerability in Windows Mail early this morning, upped the threat rating from 6.8 to 7.5 in a follow-up alert after it confirmed that the bug was remote code exploitable. That means an attacker could introduce his or her own malware onto a compromised computer. Windows Mail is the successor to Outlook Express, the entry-level e-mail app that’s been bundled with the operating system since the Windows 95 edition.

By crafting an e-mail message with a link to a malicious file — one hosted on a remote Internet server, say — and duping the recipient to click on the link, an attacker could infect a Vista PC with software that steals identities or with a backdoor Trojan horse.

In some cases, all that’s required is that the user clicks on the link, said Symantec. “An attacker can deliver an e-mail message containing a malicious link that references a local executable,� the DeepSight alert read. “If the victim clicks on this link, the native program is executed with no further action required. For instance: An attacker could achieve the execution of the local file ‘winrm.cmd.’�

If run, “winrm.cmd� — the Windows Remote Management command-line tool — would give an attacker complete access to a PC.

Microsoft is down playing the potential risk but this is just another chink in armour. Vista’s security has hardly been fool proof and as more security vulnerabilities are found in the new OS, security experts are questioning reports that Microsoft’s new OS is the most secure system yet.

I said it before and I’ll be saying it again…reinstall XP, or if you are due for a new computer try to get one with XP, buy a Mac, or try Ubuntu .

SMEs offered discount for booming Vista

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 12:45:28 GMT

Microsoft has released a number of updates for Windows Vista:

• Update for Windows Vista (KB931671) 
  Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB931671) 
  Install this update to resolve an issue where an error message is received when placing a Windows Vista system into a sleep state while a PPP connection is active.
• Update for Windows Mail Junk E-mail Filter [March 2007] (KB905866) 
  Update for Windows Mail Junk E-mail Filter for x64-based Systems [March 2007] (KB905866) 
  Install this update for Windows Mail to revise the definition files used to detect e-mail messages that should be considered junk e-mail or that may contain phishing content.
• Update for Windows Vista (KB931174) 
  Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB931174) 
  This update configures the Windows Customer Experience Improvement Program to improve the quality of software information sent to Microsoft.
• Update for Windows Vista (KB932649) 
  Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB932649) 
  Install this update to resolve an issue where poor video quality may be experienced when configuring video to interlaced mode on a system running Windows Vista.
• Update for Windows Vista (KB933824) 
  Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB933824) 
  Install this update to resolve an issue where an Apple iPod may be corrupted by using the Safely Remove Hardware feature on a system running Windows Vista.
• Update for Windows Vista (KB932988) 
  Update for Windows Vista for x64-based Systems (KB932988) 
  Install this update to resolve an issue where when adding metadata to RAW images from Canon EOS-1D or EOS-1Ds cameras, the file is truncated and the image is permanently lost.

I’ve come across people affected by the PPP and iPod issue.  These fixes will come as relief to many.

Apple on Wednesday pushed an update to its Boot Camp dual booting feature, providing support for the 32-bit version of Windows Vista, as well as updated drivers for various hardware included with Intel Macs.
While Windows Vista could be installed on Intel Macs even before the update, some of the drivers provided by Apple for Windows XP would not work with Microsoft’s latest operating system.Boot Camp 1.2 addresses this, while also making the process of installing drivers smoother and including a new feature called Apple Software Update. The application will allow users to update drivers and Apple software from within Windows.Support for the Apple Remote from within Windows has been added, and the Cupertino company said it will work with both Windows Media Player and iTunes. Additionally, a new system tray application allows for easy access to common actions and information, the company said.
Keyboard support has been improved for Korean, Chinese, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, Finnish, Russian, and French Canadian languages as well.
The update is the second to Boot Camp since Apple introduced the functionality in April of last year. It has said BootCamp will be included in Leopard, but it is still not yet clear how tightly the functionality will be integrated into the operating system.

Source:BetaNews | Apple Adds Vista Support to Boot Camp