Rss Directory > Misc > Technology > Windows Update and Microsoft Update Team
 

Q. Is it possible to change the linguistic communication of the menus and dialogue boxes in Windows Vista?

A. Windows View can be viewed in every other linguistic communications using what names Multilingual User Interface Packs. These data files can be downloaded with the Windows Update utility, but you necessitate to utilize either Windows View Ultimate or Windows View Enterprise. Other View versions, like Home Basic, make not offer the M.U.I. feature.

A page on Microsoft's land site at gives golf course and inside information to downloading and using M.U.I. data files with compatible versions of Windows Vista.

The same page also have an account of the free Language Interface Packs (LIP) that states it works with all versions of Vista; follow the nexus to the Microsoft Local Language Web land site to see what is available. These data files are not fully translated versions of the operating system, however, and mainly expose the most common parts of the operating system in the every other language.

LIP data files work on top of a peculiar "parent" language, so you may necessitate to have got a certain edition of Windows already installed on your personal computer to utilize a specific language. For example, the Hindi linguistic communication battalion necessitates the English edition of Windows, while the Catalan linguistic communication data files necessitate the Spanish edition of Windows. There may also be a limited pick of lip data data data files available for Vista, compared with the files available for Windows XP.

If you make have got got Windows View Ultimate or Enterprise — and have downloaded and installed M.U.I. files to utilize with your system — you can change the linguistic communication by going to the Start bill of fare to Control Panel. Chink on Clock, Language, and Region and then Regional and Language Options. Select the Keyboards and Languages tab, take the linguistic communication you desire to utilize under Display Languages and chink the O.K. button.Questions about computer-based technology may be sent to QandA@nytimes.com. This weekly column will turn to inquiries of general interest, but e-mail and letters cannot be answered individually.

As you believe about your substitution window project, you necessitate to believe about the options that you will have. How make you desire to command the visible light and the ventilation? Are you thinking about security? Bash you desire to have got more than privateness or do your room look larger? These are all things that you necessitate to inquire yourself.

You will desire to program your windows with the other features of the home. This volition be called kerb appeal. You can really change the expression of any place with the substitution windows that you do up one's mind to use.

You necessitate to make certain that you are keeping in line with the edifice codifications that may be in your area.

Having window replaced or new installing of windows is not a hard undertaking for a DIY. There are different books and websites that you can turn to for aid in just about any type of window occupation there is. You can acquire great tips to assist you with your substitution ideas.

Here are some helpful thoughts that volition acquire you ahead in your selecting of substitution windows.

You should take good quality merchandises with a dependable warranty. You should have got windows to last for about 40 or so years.

Choose windows with low-e glass.

Choose windows that are double-glazed or gas filled for colour topographic points to be more than weather condition efficient.

Look at mags and online for reappraisals about different types of windows. The better trade names are going to have got a higher terms but they may be deserving it in the end with the good workmanship and the dependability that you will acquire with them. Materials for replacing

The single pane of glass of glass theoretical accounts have got hardly any insulating value and are used in the warmer climes of today.

The dual pane or dual glazed styles are built with an air space that is located between the two panes of glass of glass. This glass-air-glass thought will take much less energy to acquire the glass to radiate better. Having more than insulating value is going to be offered in the clear Ar gas instead of air. Another type of system is going to compound the dual glazed types of windows with panes of glass of glass that are then coated with a low vitamin E movie for added value and protection. This volition aid save energy and be more than cost effective.

The frameworks for the window sashes can be made from wood, aluminum, or vinyl. Sometimes they are even made from fiberglass. Wood is a great pick for windows that tin be trimmed out to have got a perfect fit. Wood clothed with aluminium or vinyl group is a good pick to in countries that have got high humidness or a batch of rain.

Vinyl is a good pick for any place that is in high wet countries with a lake or ocean. Wood clothed and vinyl group windows are a great low care type of window after the installation.

There are going to be different options in the glass that you will desire to see for your project. You can take clear or tinted glass. You may desire to have got leaded, beveled, or tempered glass for your windows. Many different movies can be used on the glass to curtail the visible light and have got more than privacy.

Double pan windows are going to restrict the amount of noise coming from out side. This volition aid in the higher traffic and metropolis areas.




Microsoft's 1 measure closer to what it names the biggest coincident release of concern software system in its three decennary history, a three of launches of SQL Server, Ocular Studio and Windows Waiter next year. On Monday, the company announced the up-to-the-minute diagnostic test version of SQL Waiter 2008 would be available this month.


The new diagnostic test release, Community Technology Preview (or CTP) 5, is a important milepost in that it will come up with a Go Live licence for the product. That bespeaks the up-to-the-minute SQL release is nearly finished and ready for Microsoft support.


SQL Waiter 2008 CTP5 spreads out the figure of information types supported by SQL Server, including geospatial data, and includes new information storage warehouse features. Microsoft states there have got already been 20,000 downloads of SQL Waiter 2008 diagnostic test versions. The concluding release is owed out sometime in the 2nd one-fourth of adjacent year. SQL Waiter 2008 purposes to construct mostly on the success of its predecessor. According to Gartner, Microsoft is both the fastest growth database seller and the fastest growth concern intelligence seller in the market.


Though it was once pegged as a engineering that could only manage littler databases, SQL Waiter is now running information storage warehouses bigger than 20 Tbytes in size, according to Microsoft, and is now a leader in Gartner's magic right angle for information warehousing. SQL Waiter 2008 will add even better compaction technology, which Simon Peter Hammond, president of Microsoft spouse and concern intelligence seller CyberSavvy, in an interview, called "huge." Hammond said SQL Waiter 2008's back-up compression ratios are between 60% and 80%.


SQL Waiter 2008 will concentrate on a few countries of improvement beyond what's in the popular SQL Waiter 2005, including even better scalability, improved concern intelligence characteristics and creating an easier manner to develop against SQL Waiter via engineerings like LINQ, a new database querying syntax. There volition be new support for spatial -- believe geo-location -- data, better day of the month and clip support, and support for unstructured information that will percolate properties of written documents and information files into the data.


Encryption is another large improvement. Crystalline encoding intends the application that organizes information in the database won't necessitate that the user specifically petition to decrypt information. With crystalline encryption, the database makes all the interlingual rendition without user input.


"With 2008, we're making 2005 better," Microsoft manager of merchandise direction Francois Ajenstat said in an interview. "We're really targeting that high-end scenario. With 2008, we are at par with Prophet and IBM." Bold claims, but SQL looks to be on a roll.


Q Last week, you compared the start-up clip of Windows View to Apple's new Leopard operating system, and establish View to be much slower. But you used different laptop computers for each. What would the Numbers be on the same Mackintosh running play the two operating systems?


A Iodine ran the diagnostic tests again on a single computer, a fairly new Apple iMac, which can be started up, and restarted, in either View or Leopard. I used the Mac's Boot Camp feature, in which only one operating system is running at a time, have its ain dedicated part of the difficult disc and fully commands the hardware. The machine utilizes an Intel processor and other key constituents commonly establish on Windows machines, and runs Windows just like a Dell or any criterion Windows PC, without any engagement from the Macintosh operating system.


This View installing doesn't include any of the speed-robbing trial software system system commonly included by personal computer makers, though it makes have got security software from Symantec. However, the diagnostic diagnostic test consequences were very similar â€" Leopard started and restarted much more than quickly than View did.


In this simple test, I timed both operating systems from a cold start and a restart until the computing machine was fully ready for operation, with the difficult disc lull and the web connexion established. The cold start, beginning with the computing machine completely off, took Leopard 46 seconds, but took View one minute and 42 seconds. A restart, beginning with the computing machine running an e-mail program, the Firefox Web browser, and Microsoft Word, took one minute and two secs for Leopard, and three proceedings and 17 secs for Vista.


Q: I currently pass about $50 to $60 per twelvemonth for Norton Security software. Are this necessary when Windows XP have its ain security built into the operating system?

A: Windows XP doesn't include antivirus or anti-spyware programs, so you definitely necessitate some kind of add-on security software. If you don't desire to pay for it, there are free options available.


Q How make we find when to buy a new PC? Our current Dell is about five old age old. I'm feeling a small disquieted because I have got my music and photographs on the computing machine and don't desire to lose them.

A There's no cosmopolitan reply to your question. In general, I don't believe people should replace computing machines that are working well for them just because they attain a certain age. On the other hand, five old age is pretty old for a PC. At that age, the likelihood addition that the difficult disc may develop problems, and that newer versions of the software system you like volition necessitate hardware ascents that may be more than than you desire to put in an aged machine.


Assuming your Dell is working fine, that you aren't a powerfulness user, and that your music and photograph activities are simple and basic, there's probably no pressing demand to replace the PC. But, to pacify your concern about "losing" your images and music, you might back up those cherished data files to an external difficult disc or an online stand-in service.

There are many different customer relationship management software options but none quite as superior or affordable as Microsoft CRM and you can choose between a locally installed program or you can get connected and have Microsoft do the hosting.




Microsoft CRM Connected provides you with all of the benefits of the stand alone software. Of course each method has their pros and cons. The biggest problem with hosted software is an ongoing expense month after month that never goes away.




Locally hosted has a larger cash outlay in the beginning but then it's over with and you have minimum costs associated with it. It really comes down to which method fits your budget the best.




There is no question that the hosted CRM Connection solution gets you up and running faster and easier but then again you have no control over your software or your data which is stored somewhere else. Connecting to the host can be a perfect solution for smaller businesses that don't have an IT department but want the benefits of a sophisticated reliable and flexible CRM package.




Each year more and more businesses decide to turn to ASP or Application Service Providers for their IT infrastructure and to host their applications and never has there been such an excellent CRM choice then with Microsoft Dynamics CRM. It's great that Microsoft offers choice to their customers depending on individual company needs. The new connected version changes the dynamics completely.




You can access Microsoft CRM Connected from any web connection and you can integrate your Microsoft Outlook on your local server with your Microsoft CRM connected. It's easy to set up, and you can customize it to your personal needs. It's very flexible and you can also add Microsoft Business Solutions Financials to your integrated system. In fact there are also some third party applications that can be integrated. Add as many users as you like.




Whether your business runs 9 to 5 or is open 24/7 you have secure access to your online Microsoft CRM anytime, anywhere. And with your CRM software sitting on the web you don't have to concern yourself with installing software, managing it, or upgrading it. Then again remember nothings for free and if you are going to be paying for the service of hosting. The simple pricing scheme can be easier on your pocket book initially but then you'll pay forever.




Sure software is a big investment for any company and packages as complex, complete, and integrated as Microsoft CRM can be a bit hard on the budget – between hardware, software, and training the pocket book can become taxed to the limit. But – and this is a big BUT because this is an investment that you can write off and you don't have an ongoing monthly expense.




Choosing the web based software may reduce your costs and training is just a matter of end user. Just open up, log in, and get to work and it doesn't matter where you access it from. So whether you have one business location or locations around the world you will stay connected. On the other hand you will not really understand your software nor will you be in complete control of your software or data.




I know what you're thinking – "If I outsource my stuff to Microsoft Dynamics CRM I don't have to worry about a implementation." Well sure but then again a good stand alone system leaves you as secure as a hosted site. Stuff can happen whether on a hosted site or stand alone and the key is to have a good backup system in place.




So really you can see where each has it's pros and cons. Should you get connected with Microsoft Dynamics CRM . or should you go stand alone. It really depends on your business and your budget. What's for sure is that when you invest in Microsoft Dynamics CRM you never have to worry again about your customer relationship software.

The Law Newswire - 'Forbes' reports on attempts by major tech companies to strong-arm Digg into removing a commercially sensitive code.

A Web user and his information are like a grizzly and her cub. Come between them, and you're likely to get mauled. That's what a group of heavyweight tech and entertainment companies learned last week when they tried to keep the lid on the code that could help break the electronic locks on HD-DVDs.

A consortium of companies such as Disney, Microsoft and IBM, who have invested in the disc format, responded with a cease-and-desist letter, trying to strong-arm the site's owners into removing the code.

Digg's administrators cooperated; its users didn't. Crying censorship, they staged a digital riot, covering Digg's pages with links to the banned digits, printing them on T-shirts and immortalizing them in a song that's been played on YouTube more than 200,000 times.

Thanks to Digg's rebels, the HD-DVD encryption code has become another victim of the "Streisand effect," an increasingly common backlash that occurs when someone tries to muzzle information on the Web. When the Streisand effect takes hold, contraband doesn't disappear quietly. Instead, it infects the online community in a pandemic of free-speech-fueled defiance, gaining far more attention than it would have had the information's original owners simply kept quiet
Microsoft is close to making a $500million investment in Dublin, creating up to 250 jobs.

The software company, one of the country’s biggest employers, is looking to build a massive data centre at Grange Castle in west Dublin, which would employ skilled technical staff and house tens of thousands of computer servers.

The project is well advanced, but has yet to be fully approved.

‘‘We can confirm that Ireland has been selected as the preferred location for the development of a data centre, which would meet the growing demand for our online services,” Microsoft said in a statement.

‘‘However, final confirmation for this project is yet to be secured and therefore it is inappropriate to provide any further details at this time.”

A decision on the project is expected later this year. Microsoft set up in Ireland in 1985 and employs 1,200 full-time staff and about 700 contractors at four centres in Dublin, including a European operations centre and a product development centre.

The firm is investing heavily in a small number of data centres worldwide, as it sells an increasing amount of software and services over the internet, rather than on packaged CDs.

If it is approved, the Irish centre would be similar to a new Microsoft centre in Washington.

That centre involves an investment of about $500million and will employ up to 250 people, according to reports in the US. The first phase of that project measures 470,000 square feet and will ultimately be expanded to 1.4 million square feet.

Data centres require big sites – the Washington centre is built on a 75-acre site - and consume large amounts of electricity to power the computers and to run cooling systems.

Microsoft has strict criteria for selecting data centre sites, including access to a reliable electricity supply and good international network connectivity.
Microsoft Corp. gave a sneak peek at its "Halo 3" game on Friday, saying the next chapter of the fast-paced shooter trilogy will help it fend off competition from Sony Corp. and Nintendo Co. Ltd.

Gamers at the invitation-only preview gave mixed reviews.

"The graphics can use some work ... They're not much different than the previous Halo," said Nicholas Puleo, editor of gaming news Web site Evilavatar.com.

"They've got five, six months until release, so they'll add some polish ... When I compare it to other things in the platform, it's not standout."

Microsoft held previews in New York and San Francisco on Friday in advance of the public test, or "beta," of the game, which goes live next Wednesday.

A public beta is unusual for a console game, and the one for the flagship title for Microsoft's Xbox 360 is being closely watched by gamers eager to know how it looks and plays, and whether it will live up to the considerable buzz.

"I definitely believe that 'Halo 3' is going to be bigger than 'Halo 2'. Retailers know what 'Halo 2' did and they are not going to want to be caught out of stock," Shane Kim, head of Microsoft Game Studios, told Reuters.

The first "Halo" helped the original Xbox gain a foothold in the highly competitive video-game market, while the second installment became the top-selling game ever for the system, with sales of $125 million -- roughly 2.5 million copies -- in its first 24 hours of availability.

Microsoft plans to launch "Halo 3" in the autumn, Kim said. The first two games were released in November of 2001 and 2004 ahead of the year-end holiday season.

"I believe this is going to be one of the three biggest consumer entertainment events of the year, along with 'Spider-Man 3' and the new 'Harry Potter' book," Kim said.

"This is going to be a huge competitive advantage for us. Sony has nothing like it."

The game once again puts players in control of "Master Chief," a futuristic soldier trying to save humanity from an alien coalition known as the Covenant.

To make things more realistic, game maker Bungie Studios made the movements in "Halo 3" more closely follow the laws of real-world physics.

Dead bodies float. Grenades tossed in snow stay in place, while those thrown on harder surfaces skip and roll. Bullets ricochet off walls. And gamers' characters straying too close to grenades will be maimed by their shrapnel effect.

The games have also driven adoption of the Xbox Live online gaming service, which offers some basic features for free but charges users about $50 a year for being able to play against other gamers.

In addition to being one of the year's hottest-selling games, the publicity surrounding "Halo 3" should also spur some consumers to run out and buy an Xbox 360, said Craig Davison, Microsoft's director of marketing.

"There's a significant number of people just waiting for that one game," he said, "and this is the game."
It's the first public unveiling of Microsoft Corp.'s alien-blasting action game "Halo 3", but Shane Kim is already looking ahead to a kinder, gentler face for its Xbox 360 console.

The head of Microsoft Game Studios said on Friday that his division is working on two previously unannounced games aimed beyond the hardcore fans who relish the shooting, driving and sports games that make up the bulk of popular Xbox titles.

The idea is to make the Xbox 360 more attractive to casual gamers, who have flocked to Nintendo Co. Ltd.'s Wii console and its innovative motion-sensing controller.

"We have a couple games that have not been announced," Kim told Reuters at a preview event in San Francisco for "Halo 3", the next installment in Microsoft's flagship franchise.

"I will tell you that they target a broader market. We think it's very important this holiday, and to winning this generation, to expand beyond our core audience," Kim said.

Microsoft has had mixed success in the casual area. Last year, it launched "Viva Pinata", a colorful, quirky game in which players tend a garden and raise pinata animals.

The title won critical praise but sold poorly, which Kim said was due to the price of the Xbox 360 being too high to draw in casual players for that game alone. The Xbox sells in two versions: a $300 basic system and a $400 premium system with a hard drive.

"The fact is that we are not at a mass-market price point," Kim said. "We have that work to do ... to make us more palatable to moms and stuff."

At the other end of the market, Kim said a new "Elite" Xbox 360 that sells for $480 and comes with a larger hard drive and better support for high-definition graphics and video was selling well, despite concerns over the high price.

"We are selling everything we can make. People want the black color, they want the bigger hard-drive capacity," Kim said. "And the price is great, especially when compared to the PS3 options."

Kim was referring to Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 3, whose high price of $600 for the premium version is believed to be hampering sales.

Critics have said price comparisons to Sony's machine are unfair since the PS3 includes a Blu-ray high-definition DVD player, while Xbox owners must shell out an extra $200 for a plug-in unit that supports the rival HD-DVD format.

"Obviously, the big difference between us and Sony is that we've made it the consumer's choice," Kim said.

UPVC windows can be the ideal way to make a good impression when people visit your home. You can choose from sash windows or casement windows and have a range of features. Here are some reasons why PVC may be the right material for your new house windows.

PVC, called vinyl in North America, is a strong and durable material and it has become a popular choice for modern windows and doors. Most people now replace old house windows with UPVC windows and may include those as part of a package to modernise the house, with doors and a conservatory also included.

There are several reasons to install windows of PVC when considering home improvement projects. The fact that they are weathertight is a major factor when remodelling. Double glazed UPVC windows consist of a membrane between two sheets of glass (hence the alternative term 'double glass windows'). This protects against heat loss and means that your heating bills will be lower once your new windows have been installed.

These windows also have security features such as a tight locking mechanism which makes them harder to break into than traditional windows - at least if it's a question of picking the lock. And many modern vinyl windows can be left ajar in the locked position so you can have both airflow and security.

When it comes to choosing new windows for your home, PVC or vinyl wins out over wood in many ways. In addition to the additional insulation that such windows provide, PVC requires considerably less maintenance than wood. There's no need to sand and paint every couple of years. Instead, soap and water should maintain a good finish for a decade or more.

One of the choices you will face when deciding on new windows for your home is the type of window you should select. These are likely to be either sash or casement. Sash windows are the windows that slide up and down and may have a locking mechanism at the top of the sash. Some sash windows are single, sliding one way only, while others are double, with both top and bottom panes able to move.

Casement windows are popular when it comes to UPVC windows. These are the windows that are hinged on the side and open inwards or outwards. Sometimes these windows can swing in several directions, to allow a fire exit or to increase the flow of air. Many companies that specialise in windows offer casement windows.

There are other options for using windows to dress up your home. In sunny areas, consider a slight tint to reduce the glare while keeping the light flowing in. You could also consider stained glass panels or leading to make your house windows stand out. And don't forget that you can also include clear or frosted glass panels at the side of a window fitting. Although these will not open, they will increase the amount of light coming into a room and make it a bright and pleasant environment. Whether you go for sash windows or casement windows, UPVC windows will be a beautiful and energy saving addition to your home.

As a young man I lived all over Brooklyn and Manhattan. I stayed three years in a brownstone in Cobble Hill, four years on the Upper West Side, and 15 in a SoHo loft. Even after moving away I came back to work in the city for six summers, sharing apartments in midtown, the West Village, and Tribeca. In every neighborhood, I spent a lot of time walking and cycling the streets and enjoying the city's people, stores and restaurants, and most of all, its amazing buildings.

Now that I spend most of my time in the country, I miss one feature of New York buildings that just doesn't show up in most other places – window gates. They decorate brownstones, surround air conditioners, keep children from falling out of highrises and, softened by bright red geraniums and draping green ivy, protect tens of thousands of New Yorkers from break-ins and burglaries. They even add a certain elegance to the glazed-white-brick apartment houses that everyone loves to hate in east midtown.

They didn't always strike me that way. When I first moved to the city I perceived them as bars, not gates. The only barred windows I'd ever seen were in prisons, and those were clearly designed to keep people in, not out. I pitied the people who lived behind them.

But like many attributes of the Big Apple, window gates grew on me as I began to understand why they were so popular, and so necessary. NYC wasn't a very safe place in 1970 (though it was never as dangerous as most people seemed to believe), and those half-inch square wrought iron bars made a point. In no uncertain terms they told would-be burglars, "Don't even think about it."

The point was driven home further by a few horror stories from the Times, the News and the Post about children falling out of 10th-story apartments (so did one cat, surviving a fall from the 11th floor, as I recall).

I still wasn't crazy about the cheap safety gates of aluminum or steel alloys that were deemed essential for highrise-dwelling families with children, especially the accordion-fold ones with (illegal) padlocks that blocked access to fire escapes. They're ugly, not particularly secure, easily manipulated by a determined kid, and not at all hard to pry out by a determined burglar.

But wrought iron. What beauty, what quality, what style! Graceful curves accommodate planters bursting with flowers or serve as an elegant encasement for a mundane air conditioner. A delicate fleur-de-lis softens the straight lines of a vertical gate, and crosshatched iron alloys create a diamond-shaped pattern like antique leaded glass. Horizontal white gates recall Venetian blinds rather than prison bars. Even high-security gates with both horizontal and vertical bars painted white can make a plain window look like one with 12-over-12 panes. To me, they're all beautiful.

They're really a city phenomenon, I suppose because city residents feel more vulnerable to crime than most suburban and small-town residents. Their main purpose is to provide security, and the particular value of quality gates like those at Mr. Locks- New York Locksmith company, is that they do it affordably and unobtrusively. In short, they're among the most sensible inventions ever designed to protect people and property. They're a phenomenon worth celebrating.

And, like elegant doors with secure locks, well-designed window gates can also make a statement about the taste and values of the people who live behind them, while providing an unending feast for the eyes of passersby.

While prowling the Internet I found pictures of a wonderful old house in Cuernavaca, Mexico, of a set of gated Moorish arched windows in an outside wall. And of course I familiarized myself with the full range of window gates available at Mr. Locks, Inc., which has one of the most wonderful selections I've ever seen, most of them custom-built to your specifications. If you need to install gates on your windows, as you should, pay Mr. Locks a visit.

I also had what I think is a terrific idea. Everyone has seen the best-selling poster, "The Doors of Dublin," or one of the many knock-offs that followed (The Doors of . . . Brooklyn, Chicago, London, and who knows where else). Imagine a beautifully photographed, handsomely designed and printed poster, "The Windows of New York," showing the five boroughs' incomparable window gates in all their variety and beauty. I bet it would be a best-seller, too.

When people visit your home UPVC windows can make a good first impression. There are several features available with these windows and you can choose from sash windows or casement windows. PVC is a good material choice. Here are some of the reasons why.

In North America, they call it vinyl, but on this side of the pond it's known as PVC. This is a durable material which is very strong and many people now prefer it for modern doors and windows. Indeed most people include UPVC windows in a modernisation package which includes doors and a conservatory as well.

There are several reasons to install windows of PVC when considering home improvement projects. The fact that they are weathertight is a major factor when remodelling. Double glazed UPVC windows consist of a membrane between two sheets of glass (hence the alternative term 'double glass windows'). This protects against heat loss and means that your heating bills will be lower once your new windows have been installed.

Windows of this material also improve the security of your home. They are more difficult to break into than traditional windows if people are trying to pick the lock. The locking mechanism is tight for additional security and if you want to experience a good flow of air, you can also lock modern vinyl windows in an ajar position for the best of both worlds.

When selecting new windows for your house, there are many ways in which PVC is superior to wood. For a start, there is the additional insulation that it provides but there is another important advantage as well. You won't have to spend as much time on maintenance with PVC. With wood, sanding and painting is standard every couple of years. With PVC the same renewal can be achieved with soap and water, leaving the material looking good for years.

One of the choices you will face when deciding on new windows for your home is the type of window you should select. These are likely to be either sash or casement. Sash windows are the windows that slide up and down and may have a locking mechanism at the top of the sash. Some sash windows are single, sliding one way only, while others are double, with both top and bottom panes able to move.

Casement windows are popular when it comes to UPVC windows. These are the windows that are hinged on the side and open inwards or outwards. Sometimes these windows can swing in several directions, to allow a fire exit or to increase the flow of air. Many companies that specialise in windows offer casement windows.

UPVC windows are a great way to save energy in the home, but let's not forget about decoration. There are additions to your windows that will enhance their attractiveness and the attractiveness of your home as well. Consider having leaded casement windows for timeless elegance, or enhancing your windows with stained glass panels. Let more light into a room by putting clear or frosted glass on the sides of your casement windows. There are several options which will make your home more beautiful.

Microsoft Corp. will pay as much as $180 million to settle claims by Iowa consumers who said they were overcharged for company products purchased between 1994 and 2006 (seattlepi.nwsource.com) .

The settlement, to be paid in cash and vouchers for products, was made public Wednesday at a hearing in state court in Des Moines, Iowa. Microsoft and lawyers for the consumers didn't disclose terms of the accord, first announced during trial in February. The statewide group of consumers claimed Microsoft used its monopoly position to overcharge for products including its Windows and Word.

"This is a very generous settlement," said Roxanne Conlin, one of the lead lawyers for the consumers.

Iowa Judge Scott Rosenberg gave the settlement preliminary approval Wednesday. If given final approval, the deal will resolve one of the last remaining private antitrust cases filed against Microsoft. The Iowa consumers claimed $329 million in damages, which could have been tripled under state law.

The settlement is the largest, per customer, of any of the similar cases the company has settled, Conlin said. It's also the only settlement that provides cash to consumers, according to both sides.

Microsoft has settled private antitrust suits in 18 other states and the District of Columbia. The company now faces only one such lawsuit, in Mississippi. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company estimated the total cost to resolve all of the private antitrust suits will be between $1.5 billion and $1.8 billion.

Conlin told the judge that she and the other consumer lawyers will seek $75.5 million in costs and fees in addition to the settlement. Microsoft agreed not to oppose a $75 million fee request, Wallis said.

Under the agreement, Microsoft will pay consumers and businesses that purchased its operating systems and applications software between May 18, 1994, and June 30, 2006. Individuals will get cash payments. State and local government users and large-volume licensees can claim vouchers to buy computer hardware and software from Microsoft and other companies.

Consumers and businesses that no longer have a receipt or other proof of purchase can claim as much as $200 by mail or $100 over the Internet, under the accord.

"This was really designed to make it easy for class members," said Richard Hagstrom, a Minneapolis lawyer who was co-lead counsel with Conlin for the Iowa consumers.

"Somebody can sit down and fill out the form in about two minutes."

The class members may claim $16 for each copy of the Windows or MS/DOS operating systems, $25 for Excel, $29 for Microsoft Office and $10 for Word, Works and Home Essential.

Microsoft agreed to pay half the unclaimed settlement proceeds in vouchers that will permit rural and disadvantaged Iowa schools to buy computers and software, it said in a statement.

The company also will pay $1 million of the unclaimed money to the Iowa Department of Education to administer the program and $1 million to the Iowa Legal Aid Society.

US software giant Microsoft plans to set up a multi-million-dollar joint research and development centre in Beijing with China's leading computer maker Lenovo, the Chinese company said Wednesday.


"The investment involves several million dollars but the specific figure will vary according to the need of different projects in the cooperation between the two," Lenovo spokesman Chen Ji told AFP.


He said each party will hold 50 percent of the joint research and development centre.


The state-run China Daily said Wednesday that the facility will be in Lenovo's existing research base in Beijing, with around 40 engineers from Lenovo and equipment, training and some staff from Microsoft.


The partners will try to identify opportunities in the consumer and mobile markets such as digital photography, digital media and the Internet, the China Daily said, citing Craig Mundie, chief research and strategy officer at Microsoft.


Lenovo, which has about 30 percent of the market in China, sold five million computers with Microsoft Windows operating systems last year, out of its total shipment of eight million units, the China Daily said.

YOU KNOW THE politics of antitrust enforcement have come full circle when Microsoft and AT&T are weighing in on behalf of the little guy. The two companies, along with media giant Time Warner Inc., are urging federal antitrust officials to scrutinize Google's pending purchase of the ad agency DoubleClick, arguing that it would diminish competition in online advertising (Los Angeles Times).


Microsoft has plenty of expertise in anti-competitive behavior, having been slapped with injunctions in the United States and Europe for trying to parlay its virtual monopoly over computer operating systems into other software markets. And not only was AT&T subject to a landmark antitrust settlement in 1982, its top executives used a series of mergers in the last two decades to gobble up potential competitors.


The pair argue that a combined Google and DoubleClick would have unsurpassed economies of scale and a vast amount of information about Web users' behavior — assets that would help Google target ads more precisely, making it more attractive to advertisers and websites alike.


But as Microsoft urged less credibly during its own battles with the Justice Department, antitrust officials should bear in mind how quickly things change on the Net. Companies can shoot up (YouTube, for example) or fade (amihotornot.com) seemingly overnight. Remember that Yahoo bought Overture for $1.6 billion four years ago, yet that combination of online advertising powerhouses didn't stop Google from becoming the behemoth it is today.


The market for advertising online is still in its infancy. Advertisers continue to experiment with ways to reach Web surfers, and they're not yet sure how much to spend online instead of on television and other venues. And neither Google, DoubleClick nor anyone else dominate the emerging market for video advertising, which in the broadband era may emerge as the most effective and lucrative sector yet.


It's telling that Microsoft, AT&T and Time Warner all tried to buy DoubleClick, only to be outbid by cash-happy Google. Although Google's money shouldn't buy it a free pass, antitrust officials should keep in mind the dynamic nature of the market they would regulate.

Microsoft Corp. has consolidated some of its efforts to help Web hosting companies offer software-as-a-service (SaaS) into a new program tailored for offerings to independent software vendors (ISVs).
The Microsoft SaaS Incubation Center Program is set to debut Monday. The program provides both infrastructure and services that Web-hosting companies can offer to ISVs to help them turn their applications into SaaS offerings, said Michael van Dijken, a marketing manager in Microsoft's communications division.

Microsoft already gives hosting companies infrastructure and services to help them offer SaaS enablement. The new program puts some of those offerings under one umbrella for Web hosters, and tailors them specifically to turning ISVs into SaaS providers, he said.

"This is a collection of a number of efforts we've been working on ... to bring hosters and ISVs together," van Dijken said. As part of the program, Microsoft will help Web-hosting companies reach ISVs in Microsoft's partner channel to offer their SaaS-enablement services.

On the infrastructure side, the Microsoft SaaS Incubation Center includes a software bundle called the Microsoft Solution for Windows-based Hosting for Applications, as well as guidance and sample scripts to help service providers host SaaS offerings. Windows-based Hosting for Applications includes Windows Server, SQL Server, Microsoft Operations Manager and Microsoft Provisioning System.

On the services side, Microsoft will give hosting companies guidance on how to help ISVs deliver SaaS offerings from a business perspective, and help them provide business consulting and marketing for ISVs, van Dijken said.

Microsoft already has signed up eight Web hosting companies, four in the U.S. and four in the U.K. and Europe, van Dijken said. They are Opsource Inc., Affinity Internet Inc., NaviSite Inc., Wizmo Inc., NTT Europe Online, 7global, Siennax and Visionapp GmbH.

In addition to the SaaS Incubation Center Program, Microsoft is announcing on Monday the second phase of its SaaS On-Ramp Program, which offers discounted licensing for ISVs to help them become SaaS providers. This second phase gives ISVs the option of acquiring the discounted licenses not only directly from Microsoft, but also from hosting providers enrolled in the program.

Microsoft launched the SaaS On-Ramp Program in November, and it is scheduled to run through 2008.

Microsoft Corp. this week will reveal new technology to deliver rich media applications on the Web, part of a broader strategy to go head to head with Web and design tools powerhouse Adobe Systems Inc (Yahoo News).

As described by Forest Key, a director of product management for Microsoft's Server and Tools Division, Silverlight is a browser plug-in that allows Web content providers to offer rich video and interactive media experience from directly within Web sites. The technology, which leverages Vista's new graphics framework Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF), will debut at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) conference, being held this week in Las Vegas.


Microsoft also will unveil Web content providers who have signed up to use the technology once it is available, including Akamai Technologies, Brightcove Inc., Eyeblaster Inc., Major League Baseball and Netflix Inc.


Key said Microsoft is targeting three core audiences with Silverlight, formerly code-named WPF/E: content providers that want to distribute video and rich media over the Web; designers and developers that are building rich interactive applications; and end users that want the best possible experience when viewing Web-based media.

Microsoft's plan to phase out OEM shipments of
Windows XP, the predecessor to the new Windows Vista platform, is not sitting well with some observers, based on Internet-driven feedback.


According to a Microsoft Life-Cycle Policy Web page, Microsoft plans to discontinue shipments of Windows XP to OEMs on January 31, 2008. The page also said retail licenses will be discontinued at that time. Editions affected include the Professional, Tablet PC, Professional x64, Home, and Media Center editions of XP.

A bidding war between Google and Microsoft ended on Friday with Google agreeing to pay 3.1 billion dollars to add online advertising firm DoubleClick to its Internet money-making arsenal (Yahoo News).
Google's stock price dipped slightly in after hours trading as investors wrestled with whether its victorious bid resulted in it overpaying for DoubleClick.

"Google is throwing a lot of money at things and it is not clear that they are spending wisely," analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group told AFP.

"After the negative press that followed the YouTube purchase it looks like investors are looking at this acquisition more carefully. Maybe buying DoubleClick is strategic, but it is not clear they are not wasting money."

Video-sharing website YouTube, which Google bought in November in a 1.65-billion-dollar stock deal, has generated copyright litigation instead of profits.

San Francisco investment firm Hellman and Friedman reportedly paid a billion dollars for DoubleClick in July of 2005 and put it on the market about a year later for twice that amount.
"DoubleClick did not increase in value three times from initial purchase to when it was sold," Enderle said while discussing Google's winning bid.

"Previously, Google has been able to buy stuff and pay a premium and have the market reward them favorably. This time the market is down."

Google's stock price slipped slightly more than a dollar, or nearly a quarter of a percent, to 466.29 in after hours trading.

The Mountain View, California-based Internet search colossus will combine DoubleClick's technology with its proven advertising platform.

Google and DoubleClick, which is based in New York City, will provide an efficient way to manage both search and display ads online, according to Google chief executive Eric Schmidt.

"We've come to an agreement to purchase DoubleClick," Schmidt said in a conference call from Argentina, where Google is opening a new office.

"It is something we have thought about for a very long time."

Google and DoubleClick executives expect the cash deal to clear regulatory hurdles and close later this year.

The companies should easily combine operations because they share a "common vision" and have offices in the same building in New York, according to DoubleClick chief executive David Rosenblatt.

"We are both Internet companies of the same generation," Rosenblatt said in the conference call with investors and reporters.

"There is a lot of overlap. We are in the same building. There are former DoubleClick employees who are at Google and vice versa. I see very little problem with integration."

Many of Google's major advertisers use DoubleClick's software platform for buying, selling and tracking digital advertising, according to Schmidt.

Combining DoubleClick's prowess in display and video advertising with Google's search-ad savvy, promises to enable Google to create products that better target Internet users and measure results, the companies said.

DoubleClick technology is likely to be part of a strategy to generate revenue from YouTube.
"Certainly (video advertising) is a category that could be served with better measurement tools and better targeting," Google co-founder Sergey Brin said during the conference call.

"The combination of the companies together with YouTube will be a better experience for advertisers."

Brin said DoubleClick technology will also enhance Google's ability to protect the privacy of search engine users.

"Overall, we care very much about end-user privacy and that will take a Number One priority when we talk about advertising products," Brin said. "There are quite a few plans with respect to how we feel about privacy."

DoubleClick came under fire several years ago from consumer advocacy groups that accused it of planting software known as "cookies" on users' computers to record what people were viewing online.

The company was targeted for investigation by attorneys general in 10 US states.
It negotiated a settlement in 2002 that included being more open about what data it keeps and removing the information from the Internet within three months of its collection.

DoubleClick was created in 1996 and its client list includes Nike, Motorola, Microsoft, and Coca-Cola.

"We've had informal chats before but the alignment wasn't there," Schmidt said of the acquisition, Google's largest. "We got that alignment now. We felt we could afford the price and that it is a very good deal for Google and our shareholders."

A zero-day vulnerability in several of Microsoft's server products could enable a hacker to divert the Web traffic of not just a single user but of a company's entire roster of employees, the company warned this week (Yahoo News).


Microsoft released an advisory late Thursday warning users that it is investigating a "limited" number of attacks that are exploiting a vulnerability in the Domain Name System (DNS) Server Service. The bug could affect servers running Microsoft Windows 2000 Server Service Pack 4, Windows Server 2003 SP 1, and Windows Server 2003 SP 2.


The advisory states that Windows Vista, along with Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional SP 4 and Windows XP SP 2, do not contain the flawed code, and so they are not affected.

A Russian cosmonaut hosting American billionaire Charles Simonyi aboard the
International Space Station said in a television interview Wednesday that Simonyi told him that Microsoft chairman Bill Gates is planning a space flight (Yahoo News).


During a live interview on Russian state television, cosmonaut Fyodor Yurchikhin revealed that, "Charles said that Bill Gates is also preparing to visit space," according to reports of the interview emanating from Moscow.

Simonyi is a former Microsoft engineer. He paid $25 million to a U.S.-based company called Space Adventures to arrange his trip to the space station aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket.

Gates, the world's richest man with an estimated net worth of $25 billion, could presumably afford the ticket. But unlike fellow billionaires such as Virgin's Richard Branson -- a hot air balloon enthusiast -- Gates to date has shown little inclination for high-risk endeavors.

Microsoft officials were not immediately available for comment.

Space Adventures cashes in on wealthy individuals' desire for adventure travel that is literally out of this world. For $102,000, the company will arrange for a sub-orbital space flight 62 miles above the earth. At the other end of the spectrum, Space Adventures is planning an expedition to the moon that will cost wannabe Neil Armstrongs $100 million each.

Simonyi, the fifth tourist to travel to the International Space Station, is scheduled to return to earth on April 20th. Previous Space Adventures customers include South African Internet entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth.

Officials of Microsoft and Google traded comparisons of their enterprise search products to their rival's during a technology conference in San Francisco Wednesday.

To underscore that it was all in fun, Nitin Mangtani, lead product manager for Google's search appliance business, feigned throwing a punch at Jared Spataro, group product manager for Microsoft's enterprise search, as they shared a stage at the Gilbane Conference on enterprise technology issues (Yahoo News).

Like Web surfers searching the Internet, enterprises need search engines for their own IT networks for finding important files, digital presentations, databases, and other internal information.

Microsoft's Spataro said Google may be the leader in the consumer Internet search market, but that doesn't necessarily translate into success in the enterprise market where more sophisticated functionality is needed. He outlined three general markets for enterprise search including entry-level commodity search functions where Google is the leader. A middle market offers some additional features enterprises need and also is scalable as a company grows. The third, high-end market delivers very sophisticated search techniques, such as those designed for e-discovery.

Spataro claims Microsoft is better positioned than is Google to serve those middle and high-end markets

"We think we have a much more compelling solution for the enterprise space because we understand the IT professionals who buy it, we understand their needs and how to service these folks," he said.

But Google's expertise in consumer search extends into the enterprise markets, said Mangtani.

"We understand the needs of the high end markets. There is some perception with a small segment of the market that we don't, but we have all the tools the market needs," said Mangtani.

It's not yet clear, however, whether Google can be as successful in enterprise search as it has been in consumer search, said Michael Maziarka, director of InfoTrends Inc., a market research firm, because enterprises need search that is integrated with their other business process software.

"A document needs to be seen in context. Who created it, when was it created it, what was the role of the person who created the document? For a business, that information is critical," he said.

Microsoft's Windows Live Search combines search of the enterprise network, the Internet and individual desktop computers.

Google offers Google Search Appliance and Google Mini, hardware that contains Google software to facilitate enterprise search. The Google Mini starts at as low as $2,000.

While praising the Google Mini for the simplicity of its design and interface, Maziarka says other enterprise software makers like Microsoft, SAP, or Oracle, may be closer to the enterprise buyer than Google.

"The issue is, how in tune are you to business processes? It's not clear how easily Google can do that," he said.

McAfee, Inc., announced that it provides coverage for the security vulnerabilities disclosed by Microsoft Corporation today. This out-of-cycle patch contains seven security vulnerabilities, five of which were not previously disclosed (www.huliq.com).

These vulnerabilities have been reviewed by McAfee Avert Labs, and based on their findings, McAfee recommends that users confirm the Microsoft product versioning outlined in the bulletins and update as recommended by Microsoft and McAfee. This includes deploying solutions to ensure protection against the vulnerabilities outlined in this advisory.

"Today Microsoft issued a rare out-of-cycle patch to fix vulnerabilities in GDI," said Dave Marcus, security research and communications manager, McAfee Avert Labs. "McAfee Avert Labs is always concerned when Microsoft releases an out-of-cycle patch. We urge our customers and the computing public to take this release seriously, as there has already been active exploitation of at least one of these vulnerabilities in the wild. Consumers and enterprise users should immediately evaluate this patch as well as ensure that they have up-to-date proactive security technologies in place to mitigate and manage all risk."

Microsoft Vulnerability Overview:

MS07-017 - Vulnerabilities In GDI Could Allow Remote Code Execution

Microsoft released a security advisory last week, warning customers that a vulnerability in Windows ANI files was allowing hackers to break into computers and install malicious software. The files are used to change the mouse cursor into an hourglass icon or another animated option while a program is busy. The so-called zero-day attack is aimed at PCs running Windows. McAfee was first to discover the ANI exploit and worked with Microsoft to proactively disclose this vulnerability. McAfee has rated the exploit "highly critical" and suggests that users download the patch as soon as Microsoft releases it.

McAfee has been actively updating its partners, customers and the public on this Microsoft issue via its Avert Labs security research blog available at http://www.avertlabs.com/research/blog/

With McAfee's security risk management approach, customers can effectively address business priorities and security realities. McAfee will continue to update its coverage as needed, as new exploit vectors are discovered and new threats emerge. For a complete description of McAfee's individual product coverage for the vulnerabilities announced today by Microsoft, visit http://vil.nai.com/vi l/newly_discovered_vulnerabilities.aspx

McAfee Avert Labs maintains one of the top-ranked security threat and research organizations in the world, employing security researchers in 16 countries around the globe. The Labs combines world-class malicious code and anti-virus research with intrusion prevention and vulnerability research expertise. McAfee protects customers by providing deep analysis and core technologies that are developed through the combined efforts of its researchers. McAfee Avert Labs continually monitors the Internet for new threats and attack vectors on a daily basis. Whenever possible, we will update our security technologies and coverage as these new threats and vectors emerge - McAfee.

Messenger on Xbox 360 Microsoft Corp has announced the launch of Windows Live Messenger on Xbox 360,connecting people across Xbox 360 consoles, Microsoft Windows-based PCs and Windows Mobile-powered devices.


With this update to Xbox 360, people can connect and chat directly from their television using Windows Live Messenger, a network of more than 20 billion relationships and more than 260 million active accounts.


Beginning the week of May 7, the Xbox 360 spring update will provide Xbox 360 owners worldwide with access to Windows Live Messenger features, broadening the communication options on the Xbox LIVE social network.

When Microsoft launched the consumer versions of its Windows Vista operating system in January, it tried to drum up interest with one of the most expensive marketing campaigns in history (www.playfuls.com).

"The Wow Begins Now" was the campaign's tagline, aimed at convincing people that it was worth upgrading to the expensive and long-delayed new operating system.

But two months after the launch, Windows Vista is proving such a disappointment to many users that a new version of the catchphrase is making the circuits in internet forums and blogs: "The woes begin now."

The latest blow to the Vista's prestige came in a new lawsuit made public this week by a woman who claimed that Microsoft's marketing campaign deliberately duped customers into buying computers that weren't even capable of running Vista's most prominent features.

Lawyers for personal computer buyer Diane Kelley are seeking class action for the lawsuit which centres on efforts by Microsoft and computer makers to avoid a lull in PC sales by assuring consumers that the machines they were buying last year could run the delayed operating system when it was released in January.

Microsoft agreed to allow the computer makers to apply "Windows Vista Capable" stickers to computers and offer discounted upgrades once the new Vista became available. However, many of those computers only met the hardware requirements for Windows Vista Home Basic - a bare-bones version which lacks the "Aero" on-screen appearance, Media Center PC interface, Flip 3D window-switching and other features heavily advertised as central to the Vista experience.

"Microsoft engaged in bait and switch - assuring consumers they were purchasing 'Vista Capable' machines when, in fact, they could obtain only a stripped-down operating system lacking the functionality and features that Microsoft advertised as 'Vista', " the complaint said.

"All the 'wow' stuff that Microsoft is selling and marketing is present in (Windows Vista Home) Premium, but it's not present in Basic," said Michael Rosenberger, one of the lawyers representing Kelley in the case.

News of the complaint hit the internet just as Microsoft suffered another embarrassing Vista hitch. The software giant was forced Tuesday to issue an emergency security patch for the operating system to fix a vulnerability that allowed hackers to take over any machine that visited websites embedded with malicious code.

The patch addressed the so-called Windows animated cursor vulnerability and was released a week ahead of the regularly monthly patch date. It was only the third since January 2005 to be posted outside Microsoft's normal monthly schedule.

The two developments turbocharged an already impressive groundswell of criticism against the latest offering from the software giant. Users complain about a lack of compatible drivers for their peripheral devices, faulty upgrades and impaired performance compared to their previous systems.

It's clear that many of the derogatory comments come from avid fans of the rival Apple Macs. But there's also a groundswell of opinion by disappointed Vista users.

"Isn't it great when a major release is tested with the general public?" quipped one reader on the tech website CNet.com. "I'll personally hold off on any flavour of Vista. Or maybe I'll finally visit the darkside and get a Mac."

Another writer appeared remarkably cool considering his predicament.

"Microsoft has some explaining to do," said someone named as russray, who chronicled the woes of his new Vista-ready machine. "Where am I in this situation? The system has frozen twice while typing this comment! Microsoft, please explain."