Windows 7
Windows 7 (M3) pre-beta features detailed in privacy statement
God I love privacy, or to be more exact, privacy statements. Microsoft today has just published the “Windows 7: Pre-release privacy statement” detailing some new and very interesting features which we’re expected to see tomorrow at PDC 2008 when everyone gets the Windows 7 pre-beta build.
Here’s some quick excerpts from the “privacy supplement“,
BitLocker™ Drive Encryption
What this feature does
BitLocker Drive Encryption (BitLocker) is available on computers running Windows 7 Enterprise Edition and Windows 7 Ultimate Edition. Should your computer be lost or stolen, BitLocker protects your data by helping to prevent offline software attacks. Turning on BitLocker encrypts the hard drive where Windows is installed, including all information that is stored on that drive.Device Information Retrieval
What this feature does
Device Information Retrieval downloads information from Microsoft for your hardware devices and displays it in the Windows 7 Devices and Printers control panel, and when you first install and use a device, in the Device Stage.
Choice and control
If you choose the recommended settings during Windows 7 setup, you turn on Device Information Retrieval. You can turn this feature off by going to Devices and Printers in Control Panel. Right-click your computer icon, and then click Device Installation Settings. Select “No, let me choose what to do” and click to clear the “Display enhanced device icons…” check box.
Driver Protection
What this feature does
Driver Protection helps prevent the operating system from starting drivers that are known to cause stability problems. These drivers are listed in a Driver Protection List database that is stored on your computer. The Driver Protection List is updated through Windows Update and Dynamic Update (below). Driver Protection checks this database while the operating system is running. These checks are performed to determine whether to start a driver. For more information, see the Driver Protection List article online at the Microsoft website.
Dynamic Update
What this feature does
Dynamic Update enables Windows 7 to perform a one-time check with the Windows Update website to get the latest updates for your computer while Windows is being installed. If updates are found, Dynamic Update automatically downloads and installs them so your computer is up to date the first time that you log on or use it.
Gadgets
What this feature does
Gadgets are programs that run on the desktop and provide at-a-glance information, and easy access to frequently used tools.
Games Folder
What this feature does
You can also choose to check for updates to some games by right-clicking the game icon and selecting Scan for Update. Game version details and game identification numbers will be sent to Microsoft, and you will be notified of any updates that are available. You may choose to have Windows automatically scan and notify you about game updates from the options menu.
HomeGroup
What this feature does
A HomeGroup allows you to easily link Windows 7 computers on your home network so that you can share pictures, music, videos, documents and devices. It also makes them ready to stream media to devices on your home network such as a media extender. You can help protect your HomeGroup with a password, and you can choose what you want to share.
Source-istartedsomething
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Microsoft’s secret peek at Windows 7
A group of analysts and reporters got an extensive sneak peek at Windows 7 from Microsoft executives today, but don’t look for any research reports or articles about the session right away. To get the early preview of Microsoft’s next operating system, those who attended had to agree not to disclose what they saw until it’s shown publicly here later this week.
Non-disclosure or "NDA" briefings, as they’re known, are common in the tech industry and on the Microsoft beat. But given the high level of interest in the next Windows version, and the chatty nature of some analysts and reporters, it will be interesting to see if this one survives without leaks. The session — in an ironically windowless hotel conference room — lasted about six hours, according to one person who was there. Windows executives including Steven Sinofsky and Mike Nash gave presentations, and others gave live demos.
Source- TechFlash
Windows 7 software logo requirements published
If you intend to develop applications for Windows 7, then take a good look at this. Otherwise if you’re in the niche of developing for Windows Me, you can safely ignore. Microsoft’s just published the “Technical Requirements for the Windows 7 Software Logo Program for Client Operating Systems” document for the Windows Logo Program for Windows 7.
The short but concise document of only 10 pages describing 5 steps, 3 policies and 10 requirements gives developers a clear guide on how their application can qualify certification for the pre-release version of Windows 7.
The document of course is still in preliminary stages and may be changed over time. Microsoft however does have a survey up which allows people to give feedback on. Remember, if don’t certify, the terrorists win.
Source- istartedsomething
Security Update for Windows 7 Pre-Beta (KB958644) really??
Indeed updates for Windows 7 has been released before it’s release and is available for public download.
A security issue has been identified that could allow an authenticated remote attacker to compromise your Microsoft Windows-based system and gain control over it. You can help protect your computer by installing this update from Microsoft. After you install this item, you may have to restart your computer. This update is provided to you and licensed under the Windows 7 Pre-Release License Terms.
System Requirements
- Supported Operating Systems: Windows 7
If someone is using windows 7 then do download it from here-
Security Update for Windows 7 Pre-Beta x64 Edition (KB958644)
Security Update for Windows 7 Pre-Beta for Itanium-based Systems (KB958644)
Security Update for Windows 7 Pre-Beta (KB958644)
Windows 7 Pre-Beta sees first security upgrade
When Microsoft released an out-of-cycle patch, one of the standout inclusions was the recent Pre-Beta release of their new operating system Windows 7. The highly anticipated OS, which also comes as a source of debate for Vista fans, is affected by the same remote code execution vulnerability that affects all the other production platforms.
Earlier this afternoon, Microsoft released MS08-067, which is an out-of-cycle security patch that should be added to this month’s security patch cycle for both IT departments and home users.
The patch centers on a vulnerability in the Server service, which is enabled by default on Windows 2000, Windows XP (all versions), and Windows Server 2003. The vulnerability is triggered if the system receives a malicious RPC request.
Source- The Tech Herald
The Windows 7 Blog for Developers
Windows 7 blog for developers has been online now.Here is what the first blogpost reads-
Welcome to the first post of a new Windows 7 blog. This blog will mainly focus on the development aspects of Windows 7 by providing valuable content for developers. We shell call this blog “The Windows 7 Blog for Developers”. By valuable content we mean that this blog will be a “one stop shop” on the road to get yourself familiar with what Windows 7 has to offer for developers and how you can “Light-Up” using Windows 7 features in your application.
With your help, this blog should evolve to become some sort of Windows 7 developer content index. If you are looking to write some code using one of Windows 7 new features, you should find some reference to that topic in this blog. If you don’t find it, please feel free to comment and we’ll try to pick the subject as quick as possible. In case you have content you want to share, ping us so we can write a post and reference your content.
You can also expect this blog to have lots of code samples, and cool demo showcasing some Window 7’s new features. You can also expect this blog to have Web Cast with different people from different parts of the windows organization. With that in mind, some Windows folks have their own blogs which we will try to keep track and listing all the important Windows 7 content posted on these blogs.
Finally, this blog is part of an effort to highlight Windows 7 development story, a story that for some reason got lost with Windows Vista. As part of the Windows 7 Evangelism team and as developers, we hope, together with you and the rest of the community will be able to create an open and direct dialog about developing for Windows 7.
This new release of Windows has a lot of new features that will give developers a chance to differentiate their applications, as well as solid foundations to build upon.
Join us on this trip through Windows 7 development features and help us share some of that joy and happiness.
Source- MSDN Blog
E7: Windows Desktop Search
Are you one of those folks who believes that search indexing is the cause of your drive light flashing like mad? Do you believe this is the reason you’re getting skooled when playing first person shooters with friends? If so, this blog post is for you! The Find and Organize team owns the ‘Windows Search’ service, which we simply refer to as the ‘indexer’. A refrain that we hear from some Vista power-users is they want to disable the indexer because they believe it is eating up precious system resources on their PC, offering little in return. Per our telemetry data, at most about 1.5% of Vista users disable the indexing service, and we believe that this perception is one motivator for doing so.
The goal of this blog post is to clarify the role of the indexer and highlight some of the work that has been done to make sure the indexer uses system resources responsibly. Let’s start by talking about the function of the indexing service – what is it for? why should you leave it running?
Source- Engineering Windows 7 Blog
Windows 7 officially named as ‘Windows 7’
In a few weeks we are going to be talking about the details of this release at the PDC and at WinHEC. We will be sharing a pre-beta "developer only release" with attendees of both shows and giving them the first broad in-depth look at what we’ve been up to. I can’t wait for them to see it.
And, as you probably know, since we began development of the next version of the Windows client operating system we have been referring to it by a codename, "Windows 7." But now is a good time to announce that we’ve decided to officially call the next version of Windows, "Windows 7."
While I know there have been a few cases at Microsoft when the codename of a product was used for the final release, I am pretty sure that this is a first for Windows. You might wonder about the decision.
The decision to use the name Windows 7 is about simplicity. Over the years, we have taken different approaches to naming Windows. We’ve used version numbers like Windows 3.11, or dates like Windows 98, or "aspirational" monikers like Windows XP or Windows Vista. And since we do not ship new versions of Windows every year, using a date did not make sense. Likewise, coming up with an all-new "aspirational" name does not do justice to what we are trying to achieve, which is to stay firmly rooted in our aspirations for Windows Vista, while evolving and refining the substantial investments in platform technology in Windows Vista into the next generation of Windows.
Simply put, this is the seventh release of Windows, so therefore "Windows 7" just makes sense.
We are very excited about the opportunity to tell you more about Windows 7 in the coming weeks, and show you how we have continued to build on investments begun in Windows Vista to deliver on the next release of the Windows operating system.
Source- WindowsVistaBlog
