Windows 7s draconian DRM?
Once again, we see fanciful claims about ludicrous DRM schemes in the new Windows operating system, but a closer look suggests that Windows isn't to blame after all. Most users, in fact, won't even notice Windows 7's DRM.
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18.2.2009 Windows 7s biggest threat: Journalists
When Microsoft finally releases its follow-up to Windows Vista and it's time for the business and technology journalists (yes, bloggers are included in that grouping) across the world to decide if Windows 7 is the kind of operating system most people should want to use, Microsoft will be facing a deluge of biased individuals that, aware of that bias or not, won't give Windows 7 a fair shake.
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17.11.2008 Windows 7s XP Mode Will not Run on Some CPUs
oping to use Windows 7's XP Mode on your new laptop? Better check your specs, because many big-name, Intel-powered notebooks including Asus, Dell Studio, HP Pavilion, Sony Vaio, and Toshiba Satellite models may not have what it takes to run Windows 7's XP mode.
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7.5.2009 Microsoft discusses Windows 7s XP mode in-depth
Earlier this month we reported that Microsoft was on the verge of announcing something major regarding Windows 7, and on April 24th our friend Paul Thurrott finally revealed what we were all waiting for.
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29.4.2009 Vista SP2 and XP SP3 Get Windows 7s AutoPlay-AutoRun
Even before the release of Windows 7 Release Candidate Build 7100 Microsoft announced that it would take extreme measures in order to increase end user protection and amputate the AutoPlay/AutoRun feature of the operating system.
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26.8.2009 How much DRM is too much?
Myth: Windows Vista is loaded with new forms of digital rights management (DRM) that will make the Vista experience more frustrating than ever.
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12.10.2006 Zune DRM cracked
A program has surfaced that strips DRM off of tracks purchased from the Zune Marketplace, or traded via Wi-Fi.
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16.7.2007 Microsoft announces investment in DRM for mobiles
Today at CTIA WIRELESS 2006, Microsoft announced it will make significant investments in its digital rights management (DRM) technologies for wireless devices.
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5.4.2006 Bill Gates Takes a Jab at DRM
Microsoft recently held a get together for a small group of high-profile bloggers ahead of the Mix Conference.
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17.12.2006 Xbox DRM Transfer Tool Is Released
If there's one thing Microsoft can do right most of the time is protecting its intellectual property. The software giant has always been at the forefront of creating ways to stop other people from stealing the company's work.
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30.6.2008 DRM is "too complicated" - just rip CDs, says Bill Gates
Even Microsoft founder Bill Gates finds it easier to "just buy a CD and rip it" than grapple with the copyright protection used by online music stores.
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18.12.2006 Windows Vista Doesn't Add DRM To Unprotected Content
Robert McLaw: Of all the FUD that's out there about Vista, the false information about Vista's DRM is the FUD that frustrates me the most.
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28.2.2007 Windows DRM Not Up To Snuff, Claims BitTorrent Founder
"We are using Windows DRM because it is the only solution that has been vetted widely, but we are not happy with how it affects playback," says BitTorrent's Bram Cohen.
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20.3.2007 Microsoft Confirms Move to DRM-Free Musi
Lost amid the hoopla over last week's EMI announcement regarding their decision to sell digital music without digital rights management (DRM) restrictions was the fact that Apple was only the first digital music reseller to sign on for the new offerings. This week, Microsoft admitted that it, too, would offer music without DRM.
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9.4.2007 DRM-Free Music Plays for Microsoft. Sorry, Apple
Apple CEO Steve Jobs is getting exactly what he asked for nearly a year ago: industry movement away from DRM music. But the DRM freedom he wanted is looking more like DRM freedom from Apple.
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8.1.2008 Silverlight 2, Microsoft's Flash Killer, Gets DRM, Just Like Vista
Microsoft's Flash killer, Silverlight, is on track to get digital rights management just like the company's latest Windows client, Windows Vista. Microsoft has faced a barrage of criticism over the content protection capabilities in Vista, and the subject is bound to yet again come into play with Silverlight 2.
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14.4.2008 Microsoft AntiSpy program will remove Sony's DRM Rootkit
From antimalware blog:
I've been getting a lot of questions in the last week about Microsoft's position on the Sony DRM and rootkit discussions, so I thought I'd share a little info on what we're doing here. We are concerned about any malware and its impact on our customers' machines. Rootkits have a clearly negative impact on not only the security, but also the reliability and performance of their systems.
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14.11.2005 Yahoo Music continues DRM-free download experiment
Yahoo put another music track without DRM (digital rights management) on sale through its Yahoo Music service Tuesday.
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6.12.2006 Microsoft patents watermark technology that may lock down DRM-free music
Microsoft has won a patent for a digital-watermarking technology that could be used to protect the rights of content owners even when digital music is distributed without DRM protection.
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12.9.2007 How to Enable or Disable Windows Task Manager
ask Manager is a versatile task management and system utility in Windows operating system. With Task Manager, user can view detailed information about computer performance (CPU usage, physical memory, kernel memory, handle, thread, commit charge, etc.), running applications, processes, network activity and statistics, logged-on users, and system services.
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18.6.2008 Twelve unnecessary Vista features to disable
Excess code has a way of slowing down an operating system; here are 12 Vista features that you can turn off right now.
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5.9.2008 Bypass and Disable Genuine Windows Validation Check
Microsoft has made it harder for illegitimate, or for whatever reason, your copy of Microsoft Windows couldn't be validated, users to retrieve updates via Microsoft Updates or Windows Update, and download programs from Microsoft Download Center.
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19.5.2006 Toolkit to Disable Automatic Delivery of Internet Explorer 7
To help our customers become more secure and up-to-date, Microsoft will distribute Internet Explorer 7 as a high-priority update via Automatic Updates for Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 soon after the final version of the browser is released (planned for fourth quarter 2006).
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27.7.2006 Disable Windows Vista Evaluation Watermark from Desktop
If an user install Windows Vista in trial or demo or evaluation mode, by skipping and not keying in any Windows product registration key when asked during installation of Windows Vista.
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24.11.2006 Microsoft: Disable or Remove the Pilot of WGA Notifications
Microsoft is providing end users with the instructions necessary to disable or remove altogether the WGA Notifications anti-piracy mechanism from Windows XP.
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1.9.2008 How to Disable/Turn off Bing Home Page Image
Microsoft new search engine Bing.com is steadily becoming popular and more and more users have started using bing to search.
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3.8.2009 How To Remove and Disable Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool
Windows 7 and Windows Vista comes with a memory diagnostic utility named as Windows Memory Diagnostic. Windows Memory Diagnostic is an utility that capable of scan, check and diagnose computer’s memory subsystem including physical RAM modules or sticks.
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5.10.2009 Do not make Win 7 too Mac-like
Blogger Paul Thurrott has written a couple of interesting posts about the difference between “simple” and “easy” in the context of Windows 7.
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4.12.2008 Win 7 changes coming in the next build
Windows 7 testers wanted more feedback from Microsoft. It looks like they’re getting it.
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26.2.2009 Enable/Disable/Swap the Task Manager in Windows Vista
Task Manager is a system utility that ships by default with Windows Vista. The tool is not new to Microsoft's latest operating system, having survived from older versions of Windows.
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11.10.2007Oh, the humanity: Windows 7's draconian DRM?
The popular technology website Slashdot plumbed new depths on Tuesday with
a post
about the terrible DRM situation in Windows 7. Proving that some sites will publish just about anything as long as it's anti-Microsoft, the post
enumerated the DRM restrictions that Windows 7 apparently inflicts on the honest and upstanding computer user.
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18.02.2009Sony laptops disable Windows 7's XP Mode
It's not looking good for Sony Vaio owners who were looking to get their hands on a hot, fresh release of Windows 7 - Sony has disabled hardware
virtualization in their laptop range, thus rendering Windows XP Mode in Windows 7, and many other Virtual Machine Based products, such as VMware and
Virtualbox pretty much useless. Sony claims that they are disabled for "security" reasons - which doesn't really seem to make any sense; Sony
has also said that they will re-enable hardware virtualization on "select" laptops from the Vaio range.
Read full story.....
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11.08.2009iTunes Lowers Price of DRM-Free Tracks
Apple has silently dropped the price of its DRM-free iTunes Plus tracks, which come as 256kbps AAC. Instead of $1.29, the tracks will cost the same as
standard songs with DRM: 99-cents. The move is seemingly in response to Amazon's launch of its DRM-free music store that sells 256kbps MP3s...
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16.10.2007Microsoft: Please Don't
Disable UAC
At Windows Vista lab in
Redmond before the release of
Beta 2, Microsoft developers
showed off the new OS to a
room full of MVPs and
enthusiasts. But even the
company's most loyal fan base
turned ugly when User Account
Control took the stage. Now,
Microsoft is begging users not
to disable the controversial
feature...
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28.06.2006Apple to go DRM free?
There are rumors and then there are "rumors". This one falls under the later category that Apple may be taking its iTunes DRM free. While not
every rumor makes it to the front page this one can't seem to die off. Again and again we have heard trickles of whispers that it may happen.
The idea is that DRM free services such as Amazon may catch on much faster than Apple's DRM filled iTunes store. It only makes sense that at some
point Apple would finally seal a deal with the major four record labels to sell DRM free songs as well. It was also noted that a subscription based
iTunes model may not be too far off either.
Read full
story.....
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09.12.2008Sun: Open Source DRM is the Answer
Sun Microsystems has called on the industry to rally around a single standard for digital rights management and is touting its latest project DReaM, or DRM Everywhere Available, as a possible solution. Dubbed the Open Media Commons, Sun will offer its DRM to any interested party free of royalties..
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22.08.2005Measuring up Windows 7s new "super" taskbar
Long Zheng: For some users, one hurdle of the new "superbar" is its enormous size, or so it appears. To set the record straight, I conducted a
little side-by-side experiment with two quick-launch items and two active applications on both Vista and Windows 7. Together with a measuring tape in
one hand and a magnifying glass in the other, I counted. Soon enough, I grew impatient and resorted to Photoshop instead. Here's how they measured
up...
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04.01.2009Flash and DRM: Does Adobe really have any choice?
The Electronic Frontier Foundation is taking Adobe to task for including DRM in Flash Media Server 3 and Flash Player 9. But does Adobe really have
much choice, now that social networking sites such as YouTube are under pressure from content providers to implement DRM?..
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22.02.2008Apple Releases iTunes 7.2, Launches iTunes Plus (DRM Free)
Apple released iTunes 7.2
updated in the Mac OS X
Software Update tonight, which
offers support for "iTunes
Plus", Apple's new DRM-free
$1.29 offerings announced in
April.
With iTunes
7.2, preview and purchase
iTunes Plus musicnew
higher-quality, DRM-free music
downloads from participating
music labels.
Despite the software
update, the Apple iTunes Store
itself does not show any
DRM-Free music currently
available for purchase. The
DRM-Free launch will likely
occur later this morning (Wed,
May 30th)...
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30.05.2007DRM lobby scrambles to block HD DVD crack
A digital rights management
(DRM) licensing authority is
strong-arming search firms,
bloggers and open source
advocates in a desperate
attempt to stop the spread of
a software key that disables
copyright protection on
Blu-ray and HD-DVD disks.
Copyright reform
activist Cory Doctorow decided
on Monday to remove the
information from a group blog
to which he contributes after
receiving a cease-and-desist
letter from the Advanced
Access Content System
Licensing Administrator
(AACS-LA).
The
AACS-LA is backed by
technology vendors including
IBM, Intel, Microsoft, Sony
and Walt Disney, and oversees
the Advanced Access Content
System (AACS) DRM technology
used on high-definition
DVDs.
The so-called
processing keys published on
the blog let users disable the
DRM that prevents users from
copying the disks or playing
them on unlicensed equipment
or software.
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02.05.2007CES Trend #9: Will CE vendors start steering clear of DRM?
Our countdown to next week's CES centers now on whether the CE industry will at last reach a solution to the DRM conundrum. The new trend toward
DRM-free music doesn't appear to be shaking the Blu-ray and HD DVD folks, who continue to cling to proprietary disk formats. Will consumers seek a
video alternative, and might it come from China?..
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31.12.2007Windows 7's Calculator bundles real-life uses
Calculator is one of the programs that Microsoft has 'upgraded' to a much nicer interface (than what is available now) in Windows 7. The new
Windows 7 Calculator now has 4 different modes :
- Standard Mode
- Statistics Mode
- Programmer Mode
- Scientific
Mode
This default calculator goes above and beyond the brick on your desk by including unit conversions, date calculations, and a
neat new set of "templates" that let you do things like figure out gas mileage, hourly wages, mortgage payments, leases, and more. Check out some of
the calculator goodness in the Windows 7 Preview
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09.11.2008Reverse Engineering DRM on CDs Deemed Lawful
The US Librarian of Congress
is recommending that Congress
officially recognize that
engineering intended to expose
flaws in DRM schemes on audio
CDs to be non-infringing.
Soon, the type of work
engineers like Mark
Russinovich and Ed Felten
performed to expose DRM flaws,
will be protected by law...
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29.11.2006Sony BMG Confirms DRM Free Music
Sony BMG Confirms DRM Free Music, But Will Force Customers to Visit A Store To Buy It:
As we reported January 4, Sony BMG will become the last of
the big four record companies to sell DRM free music, but with one very stupid catch. DRM free music from Sony BMG will be available from January 15
to those who purchase a plastic card called the “Platinum Music Pass” for the album they want from a retail store for $12.99. Buyers
will then have to visit MusicPass.com and enter a code to download the DRM free album they selected in the store.
Read full story.....
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08.01.2008Most European Music Execs Agree with Jobs on DRM
A report issued last week by
JupiterResearch lead analyst
Mark Mulligan, just two days
after Apple CEO Steve Jobs
published an open letter
advocating the end of DRM,
revealed that in a continental
survey of European music
industry executives, more than
half agree with the statement
that DRM measures are
"overly restrictive."..
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16.02.2007Wal-Mart revamps DRM-free MP3 music site
A few weeks after shutting down its old DRM servers and then turning them on again, Wal-Mart has re-launched its newer DRM-free MP3 music downloads
site...
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29.10.2008First look at DRM for Silverlight
It had to happen sometime: Microsoft announced today DRM is making its way onto the Silverlight platform, powered by none other than the company's
elusive PlayReady content access technology...
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15.04.2008DRM-less Amazon MP3 store now complete with Sony BMG
With the last remaining label of the big four to join the online retailer's new music store, it could be argued that DRM is essentially dead...
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11.01.2008Lenovo lets you disable your laptop with a text message
In the next couple months Lenovo will be rolling out a BIOS update for its Montevina laptop users which enables remote shutdown and subsequent
encryption via text message. The tech relies on the laptop having a WWAN connection and activates when a custom string, defined by the user and sent
from a single, paired phone, is received. In other words, you can choose whatever you want as the shutdown signal, from a cool "Kill" or
"Self-Destruct" to a long, patronizing multi-part message about the thieving youth of today. Constant Secure Remote Disable, as it's called,
isn't being touted as a first line of defense.
Read full story.....
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25.11.2008Microsoft: Malware can disable UAC in Windows 7 "by design"
A month has barely passed since the public beta debut of Windows 7 and we have our first horror story. UAC (user account control) was the major gripe
with Windows Vista which annoyed most tech savvy users and confused ordinary consumers. Microsoft has changed the behavior in Windows 7, lowering the
requirement for user interaction when changing system settings. The apparent downside to this is, according to reports, the way Microsoft has changed
the behavior makes it extremely easy for malware authors to write code to disable UAC without user intervention.
Read full story.....
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30.01.2009
