Articles about Windows

Microsoft has confirmed that it will deliver Windows XP Service Pack 2 to users via Automatic Update starting tomorrow. The company previously delayed including SP2 as an automatic update due to concerns from businesses that their infrastructures were not prepared for the significant operating system changes. Users who cannot download the hefty 100MB service pack will be able to find the update on CD bundled with numerous computer magazines, according to Microsoft. An official SP2 end-user Web site will also launch tomorrow.

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Security firm Secunia has detailed a new flaw in Internet Explorer that affects users running Windows XP Service Pack 2. The vulnerability involves drag-and-drop, which can be used within a Web page to place a malicious program in the Windows startup folder.

Secunia has branded the issue "highly critical" and says it comes from "insufficient validation of drag and drop events issued from the 'Internet' zone." Users are advised to disable Active Scripting, or use a Web browser other than Internet Explorer.

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On Friday, Microsoft announced the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2 to manufacturing. The RTM build, 2180, is available now for testers, with a general release next week. Users with Automatic Updates turned on will begin to receive the service pack starting Tuesday.

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Windows enthusiast site Neowin.net has posted what it claims to be the release schedule for Windows XP Service Pack 2. According to sources, the service pack will be released to manufacturing August 4, with a release to the web the following day. A general public release is due August 25.

Despite Neowin's specificity, credible rumors have emerged that the service pack is once again delayed – making the exact release dates anyone's guess.

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BetaNews has confirmation that despite published reports, Microsoft is not preparing a major release of an entry level version of Windows dubbed Windows XP Starter Edition.

Windows enthusiasts speculated that Windows XP Starter Edition was a realignment of the software giant's Office and Windows releases with Office 2003 Service Pack 1 and Windows XP Service Pack 2 that would effectively re-launch both products; however, Windows XP Starter Edition is merely the formal name given to a no-thrills version of the operating system that will be distributed exclusively in Thailand and Malaysia.

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Microsoft has finalized the second release candidate of Windows XP Service Pack 2, signifying the long-awaited upgrade is nearly complete. Numbered build 2149, RC2 is currently available to testers and will soon be offered for public download.

Although a final release of SP2 could be months away, RC2 is a significant milestone that Microsoft hopes will correct numerous bugs and software incompatibilities discovered after the preview release of RC1 in March.

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The industry is inching one step closer to the broad adoption of 64-bit computing. 

Computer graphics giant NVIDIA is delivering 64-bit beta drivers for motherboards and systems based upon its nForce3 media and communications processors (MCPs). The drivers are designed for Microsoft's Windows XP 64-bit Edition for Extended Systems operating system, also currently in beta.

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To encourage broad consumer testing and forestall incidents of "broken" applications due to the bevy of changes integrated in the update, Microsoft is launching a Windows XP Service Pack 2 technical preview program.

Under the preview, Windows XP SP2 Release Candidate 1 will be made available to customers through a new TechNet portal beginning Friday, March 19.

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Microsoft is busy laying the groundwork for an interim release of Windows XP which would arrive before the Longhorn wave hits store shelves. Known internally as XP 'Reloaded', the interim release is expected to include the functionality of the upcoming Service Pack 2 revision, as well as some extras exclusive to the upgrade.

When asked for comment, a company spokesperson told BetaNews, "Microsoft is examining ways to continue to add value to the current Windows XP platform. We look forward to outlining all the details, but at this time we don't have anything to announce."

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Microsoft has packed more of a punch into Windows XP Service Pack 2. Details have emerged indicating that a new "Security Center" will be incorporated into the update to further secure the three year old operating system.

Contrary to some reports, Security Center is not the PC Satisfaction code that Microsoft tested several months ago. Instead, Microsoft drew upon the feedback gained during the trial to introduce a new user interface concept.

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Paul Allen is back in the entrepreneurial spirit. Allen's Vulcan Inc. is demonstrating its new FlipStart "MiniPC" at DEMO 2004 in Seattle, claiming the portable is the world's smallest form factor Windows XP PC.

FlipStart runs full versions of XP Home or Professional, but is engineered to exploit the nascent benefits that the size and flexibility of PDAs have presented to the mobile market.

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From Atkins to South Beach, diets have swept the globe on a monumental scale. This trend has not passed by the rolling lawns of Redmond, Washington, where Microsoft has joined the dieting craze.

In order to participate in the Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) program crafted by the government of Thailand to help low-income earners afford PCs, Microsoft is busy readying a "light" version of its Windows XP operating system - tailored to suit the needs of first-time PC buyers.

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Microsoft is gearing up to release a beta version of Windows XP Service Pack 2. An e-mail sent out Thursday invited testers to install and evaluate the pre-release code when it becomes available within the next several weeks.

The second Windows XP service pack is the first major upgrade to Microsoft's flagship operating system. The package is slated to include a variety of bug fixes, as well as new security features, improved patch distribution and updated Internet technologies.

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Late last week, America Online acknowledged it taken the drastic and unprecedented step of programming its software to silently turn off a Windows service so that it could stem the tide of spam and security vulnerabilities facing its subscribers.

The Windows Messenger service, enabled by default, allegorically leaves the door wide open for pop-up ads to pester Windows XP and 2000 users, while leaving them at risk of security exploits. Now, Microsoft has weighed in and says it will turn off the service in Windows XP.

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To coincide with today's launch of the AMD Athlon 64, Microsoft has issued a beta version of Windows XP designed for the long-awaited new desktop and notebook processor.

Redmond announced its intentions to support the AMD64 platform last April, after it shipped a preview version of the operating system to developers. Dubbed Windows XP 64-Bit Edition for 64-Bit Extended Systems, the beta will also natively support AMD's Opteron processor for servers and workstations.

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