McAfee Readies VirusScan 8
McAfee is prepping VirusScan 8, currently in beta, for release as its flagship antivirus product. In an exclusive interview with BetaNews, product manager Bryson Gordon sat down to discuss what’s new in the product.
VirusScan 8 manages to meld together McAfee’s distinct boxed offerings with the McAfee.com line of services and achieve a more integrated product. Customers will notice UI simplification and greater consistency amongst individually branded products which McAfee hopes users will appreciate.
Microsoft PlaceWare Renamed
PlaceWare, a leading Web conferencing vendor and subsidiary of Microsoft, has lost its namesake. From this week forward, PlaceWare Conference Center will go by the moniker Microsoft Office Live Meeting 2003.
Office Live Meeting bolsters Microsoft's line of real-time collaboration business products by working in complement with Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2003, formerly Microsoft Office Real-Time Communications Server 2003.
Microsoft Announces Digital Image Suite
Redmond's A-team has announced Microsoft Digital Image Suite 9. Simply put, the suite is a blending of Digital Image Library 9 and Digital Image Pro 9 into what the software giant dubs a flexible and comprehensive photo solution. The goal of this union is to meet consumer needs of organizing, archiving, editing, and sharing soaring numbers of images.
Microsoft’s marketing mix declares that the inclusion of all of these features into one product is a first of a kind scenario for the software industry. This all-in-one approach, in tandem with ease of use and professional editing capabilities, sums up the product’s objective to create new competition among Microsoft’s digital imaging software.
New Microsoft Money Debuts
Microsoft has revamped its entire Money line of personal finance software. New Deluxe, Premium, Small Business, and Standard editions have been released.
This year's consumer releases take the pragmatic approach by seeking to match customer’s current financial situations by bundling wealth of credit and debt-related tools - more specifically, a credit center, and capital gains tools dubbed the CCH-GainsKeeper service.
Microsoft 'Yukon' Hits Beta
After months of anticipation, Microsoft’s Yukon has reached its summit. A select group of testers have been granted the first glimpse at the software giant’s next generation SQL technology. The download appears exclusively on the private BetaPlace Website – although bits and pieces have already shown up on the Web.
A Microsoft spokesperson told BetaNews, "The first private beta for Yukon was released yesterday to 500 customers and partners." The initial 500 are just the tip of the iceberg, "Microsoft will release the beta to another 1,500 by the end of the month," said the spokesperson.
Windows Password Flaw Revealed
In the snap of a finger, or a blink of an eye, your Windows password could be cracked. Swiss researchers have published a paper citing a weakness in Windows encryption allowing passwords to be revealed in an average of 13.6 seconds.
Most security experts recommend alphanumeric passwords for enhanced security. Despite even having following this precaution, users of Microsoft Windows are at risk due to the security designs of the operating system.
New Spam Blocking Beta Debuts
A new service-oriented beta is underway with the expressed intent of taking a bite out of spam. Unlike many other flavors of spam fighters, SHOREtech Systems’ MailGuard does not reply on keywords, heuristics, IP address, or third party mass blacklists. The user has complete mastery over email filtration to their advantage or detriment.
It works in conjunctions with MailFire!, a firewall for mail servers. All incoming mail traffic can be routed through these services before hitting any internal server.
Opinion: Norton AntiVirus 2004 - Worth the Upgrade?
Like many end-users of Norton AntiVirus (NAV), I face the decision of either paying for a new year's subscription of virus definition or upgrading to the latest release. Norton's 2004's release, codenamed Leno, is set to be released soon. While Norton is considered by many to be the gold standard in virus protection, the question remains: is this new version worth dishing out some hard-earned cash for?
Automation was the watchword for NAV 2003. Trojans and worms are automatically removed, and virus infections are repaired. Virus definitions can be downloaded behind the scenes as well — with reduced file sizes for quicker updating.
OpenGroupware Challenges MS Exchange
The open source community has added some more ammo to its arsenal by marshalling together an alternative to Microsoft’s Exchange server. OpenGroupware.org (OGo) intends to foster and maintain groupware to integrate with open source office suites such as its distant cousin OpenOffice, as well as other groupware clients.
OpenGroupware software runs on Linux and Solaris, initially having been based upon pieces borrowed from the SKYRiX 4.1 server distribution. It will provide access to all functionality and data through open XML-based interfaces and APIs, according to information pulled from the organization’s website.
Microsoft Solicits Speech Server Beta Testers
Testers are needed for the Microsoft Speech Server Beta Program (formerly .Net Speech Platform). Due to the close working relationship necessary throughout the duration of the program, participation is limited to North American customers. The Beta Program will provide options for testers to provision required equipment.
In related news, the beta 3 release of the Speech Application Software Development Kit (SASDK) was also released today. To hedge its bets in the speech arena, Redmond has also announced an Early Adopter Program (EAP); and specialized training courses on Speech Server, the SASDK, and voice user interface (VUI) and speech application design.
Microsoft Explores Customer Experience Improvement Program
Microsoft has launched a new initiative dubbed the 'Customer Experience Improvement Program' that actively monitors customers' hardware configurations, and how they make use of Microsoft products and services if they decide to participate. This represents an entirely new effort to improve Microsoft software.
Users of a beta version of Windows Messenger 5 are given the choice to opt into the program to provide Microsoft with non-personally identifiable data targeting trends, code failures, their hardware environment, and usage patterns.
Microsoft Warns of New Security Vulnerabilities
Microsoft has warned users of three new security vulnerabilities in its products; the most serious of which is a buffer overrun in Windows.
Buffer overflows are a common method exploited by hackers, and account for a great deal of product advisories. The security bulletin, deemed critical by Microsoft, reveals that the culprit is the HTML converter embedded in all versions of Windows for the purpose of converting file formats.
Dell Pushes for Tech Recycling
Each year unwanted technology comes to rest in landfills - with cadmium, lead and mercury making up some of its core components. If not properly disposed of, these toxic substances pose serious health risks.
Unfortunately, decades have passed were this trend has gone largely unnoticed as technology take-up steadily increases. Industry giant Dell Computer has taken up the task of recycling old hardware through a nationwide tour and home delivery program.
StarOffice 6.1 Takes on the Enterprise
Sun is hinging its bets on StarOffice 6.1 fitting the bill for the enterprise sector, making an early product preview available for a public beta test.
This interim StarOffice release is geared towards businesses, and is being issued conjointly with a software development kit (SDK) aimed at allowing customers to develop custom solutions. Such a move will help StarOffice grow horizontally, enabling Sun to better compete with Microsoft and Corel.
Sun Attacks Microsoft XML Strategy Shift
Sun Microsystems fired its first salvo at Microsoft's upcoming Office 2003 by calling into question the aim of Redmond's overall XML strategy, and touting StarOffice 6.1 as a low cost alternative for cost conscious enterprises.
During a telephone interview, Sun's Iyer Venkatefen, product manager for StarOffice, told BetaNews that Microsoft was not abiding by the OASIS standards. With more than 600 members in 100 countries, OASIS, or Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards, is a global consortium that establishes standards to ensure interoperability.
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