New Site for Microsoft Partners - Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit
Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit (MAP) is a network-wide assessment tool that helps both Microsoft customers and partners accelerate their IT planning through the use of our agent-less assessment engine.
Today, I am happy to announce the recent release of the Microsoft Partners site that showcase how our partners can benefit from this very important tool.
Visit the new Microsoft Assessment and Planning Toolkit web site for Microsoft Partners and see how Partners can accelerate IT planning projects for Hyper-V, Windows Vista, Office 2007, SQL Server 2008 and more…
Source- MAP Team Blog
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Windows Sysinternals Updates: Process Monitor v2.0, ZoomIt v2.11, Sigcheck v1.54, Contig v1.55
Process Monitor v2.0: This major update to Process Monitor adds real-time TCP and UDP monitoring to its existing process, thread, DLL, file system and registry monitoring. You can now see the TCP and UDP activity processes performed, including the operation (e.g. connect, send, receive), local and remote IP addresses and DNS names, and operation transfer lengths. On Windows Vista, Process Monitor also collects thread stacks for network operations.
ZoomIt v2.11: ZoomIt now includes the ability to change the color of the break timer and modifies the way it captures the screen so that it includes tooltip windows.
Sigcheck v1.54: This Sigcheck release fixes a bug in CSV output formatting.
Contig v1.55: Contig now supports the -accepteula command-line switch.
Source- Windows Sysinternals Blog
Download Windows Speech Recognition Macros
The Windows Speech Recognition Macros tool – or WSR Macros for short – extends the usefulness of the speech recognition capabilities in Windows Vista. Users can create powerful macros that are triggered by spoken commands which can perform a series of tasks from as simple as inserting your mailing address to as complex as providing a completely different speech interaction with applications.
While we have tried to make it easy to use, this release of WSR Macros is a technical preview of technology we are planning to release in the future. Not all the features we have planned are included, and some are incomplete. Users are cautioned to treat this release as “pre-beta.” While creating simple macros is very straightforward, the creation and editing of more complex macro files is best suited for advanced users. We welcome your feedback on how we can improve WSR Macros to best suit your needs.
New Windows Ultimate Extras Now Available
Today we are excited to announce that 3 new Windows Ultimate Extras are now available for installation via Windows Update! This is the 6th wave of Ultimate Extras released by Microsoft exclusively for Windows Vista Ultimate users. Users will find the following Ultimate Extras waiting to be installed:
Microsoft ® Tinker (TM): Microsoft Tinker is a casual game that provides players with short puzzle game play sessions set in a warm, calming environment.
Ultimate Extras Sounds from Microsoft Tinker: Based on the positive feedback we received from the release of additional Windows Sound Schemes in April, we’ve integrated the unique audio sounds from Microsoft Tinker into a new sound scheme.
Windows ® DreamScene (TM) Content Pack #4 Windows DreamScene Content Pack #4 which adds three additional nature-setting Windows DreamScenes.
Microsoft Tinker was developed for Microsoft as an Ultimate Extra by our Partner Fuel Industries.
Windows Ultimate Extras are only for Windows Vista Ultimate users and designed to add to their Windows experience. We will be shipping new Windows Ultimate Extras in the near future and will post additional information here on the blog when that occurs.
Source- Windows Vista Blog
Microsoft cuts apps from Windows 7
Microsoft has decided that Windows 7 won’t include built-in programs for e-mail, photo editing, and movie making, as was done with Windows Vista, CNET News.com has learned.
The software maker included Windows Photo Gallery, Windows Mail, and Windows Movie Maker as part of Vista, but later chose to offer separate downloadable Windows Live programs that essentially replaced those components with versions that could connect to online services from Microsoft and others.
Microsoft told CNET News late Monday that it has decided to remove those features entirely from Windows 7 and instead offer only the service-connected Windows Live versions as optional free downloads. Earlier on Monday, Microsoft had declined to say how it was handling things.
In a follow-up interview on Monday, Windows Vista general manager Brian Hall said Microsoft made the decision to remove the tools from Windows for several reasons, including a desire to issue new operating system releases more quickly than it has in the past. The move also removes the confusion of offering and supporting two different programs that perform essentially similar functions.
Source: news.com
The Early Previews of Windows 7 Continues
This looks like the weekend for Windows 7 and the screenshots are out there to prove it. The first blog to present us with screenshots of Windows 7 M1 build earlier this year, THINKNEXT updates us with new AERO enabled previews showing the improved bundled applications in Windows 7 WordPad and Paint. I personally want to share my thoughts based on the screenshots I have seen so far.
Windows 7 looks a whole lot like Windows Vista, I can understand this looking at the fact that its probably not going to be a major upgrade as Vista or 2000 was. Building on the foundation of Vista it will provide a smooth transition for application/hardware developers and end users who have invested in Vista since its release in January 2007. Windows 7 M3 looks promising, why? Because of a cleaner approach I believe to the present experiences in Vista, AERO looks slicker, the Start menu is cleaner almost with a glossy look and feel that I am sure will please those who want a lighter Windows since most of today’s built in Windows apps will become a part of the Windows Live Wave 3 of services. The interface, is identical in many ways, Explorers feature a lighter more silver/bluish look that is similar to Windows Live Wave 3 set of apps. So, consistency seems to be an ongoing theme that will resonate throughout this release.
Source: adacosta.spaces.live.com
Inukitut Windows Vista LIP now available
If you like your Windows Vista in Inukitut (a language of the Canadian Territory of Nunavut, then you can download the latest Language Interface Pack (LIP) now:
Click here to view the Inuktitut Download Center page.
Source- MSDN Blog
Microsoft Tears Down the Walls for a Better View
For the past two weeks, millions of people have watched the series of Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld television ads with the Windows logo at the end and wondered: “What’s next?”
Today, Microsoft answers that question with the next phase of a multi-year, multi-million dollar Windows marketing effort designed to reconnect with consumers. And tonight, the Bill-and-Jerry “teaser” ads give way to a new series of television ads that celebrate the diversity and passion of consumers around the world who use Windows to stay in touch with the people, information and ideas that they care about.
The new ads are just a part of this major Windows marketing initiative, all designed around connecting with consumers in meaningful ways throughout their Windows experience – whether buying a PC, using a Windows Mobile device, or living life on the Web.
“Windows is truly the shared language of creativity and connection for more than one billion people,” says Bill Veghte, Senior Vice President, Online Services & Windows Business Group. “It’s a vibrant community of individuals who are passionate about how Windows helps them express their ideas and live life on their own terms. Starting today, we want to reflect the passion and excitement of this community in how we tell the story of the Windows brand.”
Tearing Down Walls
Microsoft signaled the next phase of the Windows brand campaign with full-page newspaper ads carrying the headline: “Windows vs. Walls”. The copy in the ads lays out the driving philosophy behind the new Windows marketing approach. Veghte says: “At the core, Windows is about enabling each one of us, as individuals, to live our lives without walls … I want to work when I want to work, I want to play when I want to play. I want to communicate and share with friends and family and co-workers.”
The “Life without Walls” tagline brings another key facet of the Windows brand to life: Windows connects people not only via the PC, but also via phones, devices, and the Web. The Windows platform of Windows Vista, Windows Mobile, and Windows Live were built to work together and to expand the Windows experience beyond the PC to the phone and the Web. The campaign will reflect this holistic, connected approach.
“On our journey to make sure that Windows enables a life without walls, we’ve taken a step back, reevaluated and tuned and tweaked our approach. So you’re seeing that in the advertising, in the products, in the experience at retail and on Windows.com,” notes Veghte.
Source- Microsoft Press Release
