OEM Logo and Information for Windows Vista - Auto Patch
Thanks to Steve Jobs for this post in forum. You have successfully activate Windows Vista instantly in OEM style by using hardware-level BIOS ACPI-SLIC mod, or one of the two software based OEM BIOS emulator such as softmod SLIC BIOS bootloader and Paradox OEM BIOS Emulation Toolkit.
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20.3.2007 Disable Aero Snap Auto Maximize and Arrange Window in Windows 7
Windows 7 includes a new feature called Aero Snap that intends to improve open windows management on the desktop. Aero Snap allows user to drag a window to the top of the screen to maximize the window automatically, or to the left or right side of the screen to resize the window to fill and take up half of the screen estate on the moved side automatically.
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19.5.2009 It's Time to Face the Ugly Truth, SP3 or No SP3, the Clock Is Ticking for Windows XP
As 2008 has kicked in, it's now time to face the ugly truth. The clock is ticking for Windows XP. And while Microsoft may view this as a natural stage in the evolution of a product introduced all the way in 2001, a healthy proportion of end-users and businesses will fail to see eye to eye with the company on this one.
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5.1.2008 Hack to Turn Off and Disable Windows 7 CD or DVD Writer Burning and Auto Tray Ejection Feature
Windows 7 inherits the capability to burn or write to CD and DVD burner or writer, with additional support to directly burn ISO and IMG disc images with Windows 7 Explorer.
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18.8.2009 Two Unofficial IE Patches Block Attacks
eWeek reports that two well-respected Internet security companies (eEye and Determina) have released unofficial patches to correct the vulnerability being exploited to load spyware, bots and Trojan downloaders on Windows machines.
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29.3.2006 Microsoft is not trying to block access says Kaspersky
Microsoft's new operating system Vista will not make it more difficult for anti-virus systems to work, Russian computer security group and potential IPO candidate Kaspersky Lab said on Friday, contradicting rivals.
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9.10.2006 MySpace to 'block sex offenders'
Social networking website MySpace says it will release tools to identify and ban US sex offenders from its service.
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7.12.2006 Microsoft: ‘Very difficult’ to block IE attack vector
A member of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer team says it is “very difficult” to put protections in place to block the protocol handlers attack vector exposed by the recent IE-to-Firefox code execution vulnerability.
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22.7.2007 Vista SP1 RC Leaves XP SP2 in the Dust, but What About XP SP3?
Although Microsoft has indicated a strong disapproval of benchmarking tests involving development milestones of Windows Vista Service Pack 1, the temptation is simply too big to ignore.
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17.1.2008 Microsoft Makes Its Own Vista SP1 vs. XP SP2, Leaves XP SP3 Out
Ever since the advent of Window Vista, at the end of November 2006 for businesses and in January 2007 for the general public, Microsoft has virtually invited the comparison between the two operating systems.
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8.5.2008 Microsoft Hands out XP SP3 beta – Final SP for XP
In an email sent to selected testers telling them they have been accepted to begin testing XP SP3, Microsoft has also informed them that this will be the final Service Pack for the now aging OS.
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5.10.2007 Anti-Spam Sites Block Microsoft Hosted Exchange Services
Microsoft's Exchange hosted mail services, designed to help businesses combat spam, have themselves been blocked by several anti-spam blacklists around the Web, CRN has learned.
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31.12.2006 How to Run IE 7 without installing it
If you want to test IE7 without the risk of installing a beta software, here is a simple way to do it. This method does not install IE 7 the usual way- instead you just run it from the installer package and hence your system does not get littered with beta dlls all over the place.
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17.4.2006 XP SP3 Does Not Support Windows XP
Believe it or not, but Microsoft does not support Windows XP with XP SP3. Well, maybe that's not entire true. But it is true nonetheless. End users will find they they are unable to deploy XP SP3 on top of XP. What is the catch?
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16.1.2008 7 Things to Try after Installing Windows 7
On October 22, 2009 Microsoft reached the final milestone of the Windows 7 release schedule, namely general availability.
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7.11.2009 Windows Service Pack Blocker Tool Kit - Block Vista SP2 Automatic Upgrades
Microsoft is offering Windows Vista SP1 users the chance to block automatic upgrades to Service Pack 2. In addition to making available Vista SP2 RTM as a standalone download, DVD ISO image, the bits are also released to Windows Update, and subsequently served to Vista SP1 users who have Automatic Updates enabled.
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3.7.2009 Installing Windows 7 Milestone 1 Build 6519
Installing Windows 7 Milestone 1 Build 6519 provides an experience almost identical to that of Windows Vista with the exception of a quite different finish.
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20.6.2008 Installing Vista Beta 1 (x86) without DVD media
I know, I know - Everyone should have a DVD burner these days... but I don't. Here's a rough guide on getting Vista Beta 1 (x86) installed without the use of DVD media. I am not responsible for lost partitions, data, etc!
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Bypass WGA checks while installing .msi files
Microsoft has released a new Internet Explorer 7. The new version is IE 7 RC1. Also called Release Candidate 1.
microsoft - comments - 27.10.2006
Microsoft Australia installing new PC's just to run Vista
I have just got off the phone with a Microsoft product support specialist in Australia who, when asked if he was using Vista, confirmed that they are installing Vista tomorrow - as the new computers to run it have recently arrived!
windows - comments - 5.3.2007
Why installing Vista SP1 might fail via Windows Update
When you try to install Windows Vista SP1 via Windows Update you can get error: Windows Vista Service Pack 1 is not available for installation from Windows Update and is not offered by Automatic Updates.
windows - comments - 20.3.2008
Lessons learned from installing Windows 7, over 16 times
When the first Windows 7 beta (build 6801) was announced at PDC in late 2008, everyone was excited, myself included.
windows - comments - 27.5.2009
Installing the Windows 7 Beta with Virtual PC 2007 SP1
Yesterday we made the Windows 7 Beta available for public download. Hopefully you’re as excited as I am that the beta is here! The Windows 7 Beta is already getting some rave reviews for its new features, performance, and stability. But it is a beta, and with that comes the potential risk that some things may not work as well as they will in the final release.
windows - comments - 13.1.2009
Installing and Configuring Away Mode for Windows Media Center Edition 2005
Away mode is a new feature included in Update Rollup 2 for Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 that allows the computer to appear off to the user while it continues to perform tasks that do not require user input.
microsoft - comments - 9.4.2006
Could Not Find Valid System Volume Error When Installing Windows Server 2008 R2
When installing Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2 with or without Hyper-V, Hyper-V Server 2008 or Hyper-V Server 2008 R2, and HPC Server 2008 or HPC Server 2008 R2, the Windows Server installation failed with “The computer could not find a valid system volume” error message.
windows - comments - 17.8.2009
The Only Way for Windows XP SP3 Is Down
SP3 will do nothing for XP, but still more than what SP1 will do for Vista - The third and final service pack for Windows XP will do little to nothing for the operating system, but will manage to deliver a superior boost to the platform's momentum in comparison to Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista.
windows - comments - 12.4.2008
Office XP SP3 Info
Office XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) provides the latest updates to Microsoft Office XP. SP3 contains significant security enhancements, in addition to stability and performance improvements. This service pack applies to any level of Office XP.
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Sneak Preview of XP SP3?
An unofficial preview pack containing what purports to be Windows XP Service Pack 3 has been uploaded to The Hotfix web site. The Hotfix is an independently-run site that specializes in downloads and discussions of Windows patches and bug fixes.
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Microsoft Delays XP SP3
Bink has an interesting article up on his site concerning Windows XP SP3. Microsoft has apparently pushed back the scheduled release date of SP3 to the second half of 2007.
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16.1.2006 Windows XP SP3 Preview No. 5
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11.2.2006Expiration dates for Vista SP1 and XP SP3 blocks announced
If you're an IT professional and currently using Microsoft's Service Pack Blocker, the software giant recently announced that the current
blocks for Vista SP1 and XP SP3 are going to expire in a few months. The Service Pack Blocker Tool only temporarily prevents Windows from the
installation of a Service Pack via Windows Update, and the block is only effective for one year after the Service pack is released to the market via
Windows Update. Effective April 28th, 2009, Windows Vista SP1 will no longer be blocked by the tool and will be delivered via Windows Update. The
same goes for Windows XP SP3, but the block will be lifted on May 19th, 2009.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
30.01.2009Firms need to plan for XP Service Pack 3
Organisations that expect to be running Windows XP in mid-2010 should plan to test and deploy XP SP3, Gartner has advised.
Microsoft is planning to release Windows Vista Service Pack (SP) and Windows XP SP3 will be available in the first half of 2008.
According to Gartner, deploying Windows XP SP3 should be significantly easier than testing and deploying SP2, which many users considered a major
change of the operating system.
Annette Jump, a research director at Gartner, said, "We will probably see a mixture of Vista and
XP SP3 deployments in 2008. Jump believed some businesses would deploy Vista and some could stick with XP, in which case, they would be looking at
installing the SP3 service pack.
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01.12.2007XP SP3 distribution proceeds after auto download filter put in place
After delaying the availability of Windows XP Service Pack 3 through its Download Center for one week after an incompatibility problem was discovered,
Microsoft has now opened it up to automatic distribution...
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07.05.2008Installing Branded IE7 on Windows XP SP3
Jane Maliouta: Last week, I blogged about installing Windows XP SP3 and how it affects different versions of Internet Explorer (See my earlier blog
post
here). Today I will be discussing installing branded/custom
versions of IE7 on machines with Windows XP SP3 installed. This post is primarily aimed towards folks who use the
Internet Explorer
Administration Kit 7 (IEAK7) to create custom IE7 packages, like Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and web developers. If you ever installed the
IEAK7, built a custom version of IE7 or distributed a version of IE7 to others, this post is for you.
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13.05.2008Despite rumors, Windows XP SP3 still not quite ready
With Windows Vista Service Pack 1 out the door, Microsoft was largely expected to release Windows XP SP3 last week or this week. It didn't, instead
making public a refresh build of SP3 Release Candidate 2...
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26.03.2008Windows XP SP3 RC2 Standalone Packages Available (English, German, Japanese)
Note that this is the same exact build (3311) Microsoft previously released as a Windows Update only download
last week.
Microsoft is allowing Windows XP
Service Pack 2 machines to be offered Windows XP Service Pack 3 Release Candidate 2 via Windows Update. You may also download standalone update
packages for Windows XP SP3 RC2, in English, German, and/or Japanese. Windows XP Service Pack 3 will be offered on Windows Update when Service Pack 3
releases in the first half of 2008.
Windows Service Pack 2 is required in order to install this preview. Please uninstall any
previous beta release of Service Pack 3 before installing SP3 RC2.
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28.02.2008Daylight Saving Time Update Available For XP SP2 & SP3
Looks like we've got our first XP SP3 update although this was expected as Microsoft had
previously announced that the DST update would not be included with
SP3.
Installing this update enables your computer to automatically adjust the computer clock on the correct date in 2007 and
2008 due to revised Daylight Saving Time laws in many countries. After you install this item, you may have to restart your computer.
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22.04.2008Microsoft continues to warn of IE8 lock-in for XP SP3 users
Last year when Microsoft launched Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2, Jane Maliouta announced that consumers using Windows XP SP3 would be locked-in with the
IE8 if they had installed the IE8 beta prior to upgrading to SP3. Microsoft again yesterday issued that same warning to it's consumers. If you are
still one of the millions of users on Windows XP with SP3 installed, Microsoft has provided crucial steps to follow if you're ready to upgrade to
IE8 RC1. You can obtain IE8 RC1 from the links on this page. To see if you're one of the people who will have IE8 locked in, follow these steps.
Is your computer running Windows XP SP3?
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
27.01.2009Windows XP SP3 moves closer to completion
Beta testers have received access to a release candidate of Windows XP Service Pack 3, but general consumers still have a long wait until they'll see
SP3 available for download...
betanews.com -
20.11.2007Is Microsoft Playing Games With XP SP3?
Call it a Hamlet moment for the PC industry, filled with political intrigue and machinations worthy of the great Shakespeare play: to wait for XP SP3
or move to Vista now that Microsoft has released Vista SP1? Or in other words: "To XP, or not to XP?" That is the question.
It's a
question that is burning up the blogosphere with some speculating that Microsoft has delayed XP SP3, a long awaited release that could boost the
performance of XP, to get more users to adopt Vista, a potential cash cow for Microsoft and PC makers given the operating system's robust hardware
refresh requirements.
With many in the blogosphere speculating that Microsoft could release the final version of XP SP3 this week,
Microsoft late Tuesday snuffed out all hope that users would see the service pack, originally slated for release in 2006, any time soon.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
26.03.2008XP SP3 RC Preview Clarification
I just noticed a post at
Bink.nu where Steven mentions that the XP SP3 RC Preview is now available on Connect. Just to clarify, Microsoft have not
released any new build of XP SP3 to the general Windows Beta Program. While there is the possibility that he may be talking about a different private
beta program on Connect, the main Windows Beta Program on Connect which houses the Vista SP1/Server 2008/XP SP3 betas was last updated with the XP SP3
Beta (Build 3205) in early October.
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24.10.2007New Features Discovered in Windows XP SP3: Is It Better Than Vista?
The principal reason given for the tremendous under-the-hood changes to Windows unveiled early this year in Vista was the need to overhaul the
security model. Now it seems many of those changes are also coming to XP in SP3...
betanews.com -
10.10.2007Don't slipstream XP SP3 on Windows Vista!
This just in from Bink, seems he had a pretty interesting weekend attempting to Slipstream XP SP3.
"So I build a new Windows XP ISO with
SP3 integrated, this is a Volume License editions (VOL) which only accepts Volume License Keys (VLK). When I want to install it on a clean machine, I
noticed that setup prompts for a product key and it does not allow me to continue, which should be a new feature in XP sp3. OK so I fill in the VLK
but it does not accept it, I try another one from a customer of mine, does not work either. Angry
I found out that the problem is when you
do the XP Sp3 slipstream process on a WIndows Vista machine, the API gives a different response and screws up the PID process. This is a bug and
Microsoft knew about this in December, still the bug remained and made it all the way to RTM, nice work Microsoft.
So XP SP slipstream only
on XP or 2003 machines!!!"
neowin.net -
05.05.2008Windows XP SP3 Not Until Late
2007
According to an update on
Microsoft's support lifecycle
Web site, the next service
pack for Windows XP isn't due
out until the second half of
2007 -- one full year after
Windows Vista launches. XP SP3
will likely serve as a
cumulative update for what
will soon become Microsoft's
legacy operating system...
betanews.com -
18.01.2006XP SP3: TechNet and MSDN subscribers to get beta in two weeks
Microsoft provided an update on the timing for Windows XP Service Pack (SP) 3 on August 29.
Company officials said on Wednesday
that the Windows team plans to deliver a near-public beta of XP SP3 (its going to all TechNet and Microsoft Developer Network subscribers) by
mid-September.
The final version of XP SP3 is slated to hit some time in the first half of calendar 2008, officials said. (Thats
the same date the Softies have been promising officially for a while now. Microsoft wont be any more specific on XP SP3 timing.)
Company officials did not release a feature set for XP SP3 on August 29. The only new piece of information available was the public-beta due
date.
Microsoft made available to a set of private testers a preview of XP SP3 earlier in August. I saw an alleged fix list at
that time: It consisted of nearly 1,000 items.
The last time Microsoft provided a cumulative update to Windows XP was in 2004,
when it released XP SP2.
winbeta.org -
29.08.2007Microsoft to ease XP activation with SP3
Microsoft Corp. will change how users activate Windows XP when Service Pack 3 launches in the first half of 2008, a company white paper said.
New installations of Windows XP SP3 will give users the same 30-day grace period currently offered to Windows Vista customers before they're
required to enter a product activation key, the 25-character code that proves the copy is legitimate.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
28.12.2007Microsoft: XP SP3 an 'Update Roll-up'
Although Windows Vista Service Pack 1 is the big news of the day, Microsoft is concurrently preparing the third service pack for Windows XP. But SP3
won't introduce much of anything new for XP users, and will simply serve as a roll-up of already released fixes, Microsoft says...
betanews.com -
30.08.2007Rumor: Vista SP1 coming February 18, XP SP3 on March 23
French tech website
PC INpact is reporting that
it got its grubby little hands on the exact release dates of Windows Vista Service Pack 1 as well as Windows XP Service Pack 3. According to a source,
Vista SP1 is to be released on the night of February 18 while XP SP3 will be released on the night of March 23.
Although Microsoft has not
given a tight timeframe for when to expect XP SP3, it did state earlier that Vista SP1 will be available in mid-March. The screenshots should be
therefore taken with a grain of salt. It is possible that these memos were sent out before Microsoft delayed Vista to mid-March. Could it be that the
Vista date is wrong but the XP one is correct?
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
07.02.2008Windows XP Service Pack 3 Install Info
Via
Bink.nu:
I
did a clean install of Windows
XP Professional (English,
32bit, Volume License) with
Service Pack 2 integrated in a
Virtual Machine. After that I
installed Windows XP Service
Pack 3 Beta build 3180.
The SP3
executable pack is named
windowsxp-kb936929-sp3-x86-enu
.exe. So there we have the
reserved KB article number.
The size of the pack is 332
MB.
When
installing is replaces and
backs up 2,848 files (456 MB )
to
C:WINDOWS$NtServicePackUni
nstall$
As before it also archives
the SP3 itself in
C:WINDOWSServicePackFilesni386
2,921 Files (552 MB
)
winbeta.org -
09.08.2007XP SP3 cripples some PCs with endless reboots
Installing Windows XP Service Pack 3 sends some PCs into an endless series of reboots, according to posts to a Microsoft support forum.
Jesper Johansson, a former program manager for security policy at Microsoft and a prominent Windows blogger, has worked with users to tentatively
identify the problem as involving only machines using processors from Advanced Micro Devices.
Messages from frustrated users began
accumulating on the XP SP3 support newsgroup Wednesday, just a day after Microsoft released the update to the general public.
"I just
installed Windows XP SP3 and after completing the processes and when the system reboots, the system cannot proceed to load the Windows," said a user
labeled as "Olin" in a message that kicked off a long thread. "It just displays the flash screen of Windows then after it reboots again.
Most users who left messages on the forum said that they were unable to boot into Windows Safe mode.
neowin.net -
09.05.2008
