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        <title>ZDNet Blogs</title>
        <link>http://blogs.zdnet.com</link>
        <description>ZDNet Blogs Focus: Vista</description>
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<title>More information on the Vista SP1 activation hack</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1271</link>
<pubDate>Mon, 11 Feb 2008 04:50:54 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1271</guid>
<description><![CDATA[My post on the Vista SP1 activation hack has generated a lot of feedback (especially in the form of questions) from both individuals and other media outlets.   I've put together this post in order to answer some of these questions. First off, the hack.   The hack in question is another variation of the OEM BIOS hack but packaged under the name of Vista Loader.    It is similar to the Paradox OEM BIOS which seems to be  the most commonly used Vista activation hack (which is why Microsoft pulled the plug on it).   However, Vista Loader  (along with several others) also seems to be  quite popular, so I'm not sure why Microsoft pulled the plug on one hack while leaving others open.   Since other outlets have ... ]]>
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<title>Vista SP1, making it (a little) harder for users to forget their logon password - Day 4</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1263</link>
<pubDate>Sun, 10 Feb 2008 02:41:35 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1263</guid>
<description><![CDATA[A number of readers have asked me to list the changes that SP1 makes to Windows Vista.  To be honest with you, I can't see that many but I have seen a few little tweaks here and there.  One such tweak you will only see when you carry out a full Vista SP1 installation. Check out the initial setup gallery for Vista SP1 here. The tweak centers around password hints.  Currently when Windows Vista is first booted up after installation it asks for an account to be created - that account consists of a username and a password.  Now I know that you and I, being the organized, together folks that we are, never forget the passwords that ... ]]>
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<title>UPDATED: Hackers - 1 : SP1 - 0</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1267</link>
<pubDate>Sun, 10 Feb 2008 10:29:29 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1267</guid>
<description><![CDATA[[UPDATE 02/11/08 4:55pm - Further information has been posted about this hack here.]   [UPDATE 02/11/08 3:30am - Just to answer a few questions I've received with regards to this post: No, the hack is not complicated - download, run, wait a few seconds, reboot, done. I have no idea whether it has any side-effects. Given how it works it is possible that it could hose a system. Yes, I have video, but no, I'm not posting it. No, I'm not making any links to hacks available. No, I won't publish virtual machine images of the compromised OS. I'm not sure if Microsoft can sift out real genuine systems from fake genuine systems ... probably can though. I hope you understand.] [UPDATE 02/10/08 5:05pm - It does seem that Microsoft ... ]]>
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<title>A Vista SP1 FAQ</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=365</link>
<pubDate>Sat, 09 Feb 2008 05:55:10 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Ed Bott</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=365</guid>
<description><![CDATA[I   ve been working with Windows Vista Service Pack 1 for several months now, in beta releases and, for the last two weeks, in the final released code. I   ve put together this post to answer some questions I   m frequently asked about this long-awaited update. If you have a question that isn't in this list, ask in the Talkback section. Update: I've answered more questions in  a follow-up post: More Vista SP1 answers. How big is SP1? That depends on how you get it. The standalone updater for the five-language version weighs in at 434MB (455,562,200 bytes) for the x86 version, and 726MB (761,740,600 bytes) for the x64 version. If you download the installer via Windows Update, however, the package is much smaller, typically over 50 ... ]]>
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<title>SP1 brings with it a softer, gentler, naggier WGA - Day 3</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1253</link>
<pubDate>Sat, 09 Feb 2008 03:59:52 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1253</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Windows Vista SP1 brings with it a new tweaked version of the WGA (Windows Genuine Advantage) anti-piracy scheme.  How does this look to the end user? Check out the complete SP1 WGA gallery here. Currently Vista offers two different user experiences to those considered to be running non-genuine installations of Vista: Reduced Functionality Mode (RFM) - This is a state where the user can only access Internet Explorer for 60 minutes at a time before being logged out.  Users can also boot into Safe Mode and access documents.  Ultimately though, Microsoft is pushing the user to get the system properly activated.  This state can be reached if the product activation period expires. Non-Genuine State (NGS) - This state occurs when ... ]]>
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<title>The SP1 upgrades continue - Day 2</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1251</link>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 Feb 2008 09:52:29 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1251</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Today I carried out the most critical SP1 upgrade so far - I upgraded my main system.  This is a Core 2 Extreme monster that's been running Vista Ultimate 64-bit.  All the SP1 upgrades I've done so far have been 32-bit upgrades.  How did the upgrade go?  What's the system like afterwards?  Read on. First, give so you know the landscape, here's the spec of the system: Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650 processor running at 3GHz ASUS Maximus Formula motherboard 4GB of 1066MHz RAM 2 x WD Raptor X drives 2 x ATi Radeon 3870 graphics cards Dual monitors This system scores full marks (5.9) on the Windows Experience Index.  This system is fully up-to-date with respect to patches.  This system ... ]]>
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<title>Vista SP1 hands-on: six trouble-free upgrades</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=364</link>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 Feb 2008 06:39:13 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Ed Bott</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=364</guid>
<description><![CDATA[On Wednesday, FedEx delivered DVDs containing the final, RTM bits of Windows Vista Service Pack 1. My colleagues George Ou and Adrian Kingsley-Hughes received similar packages at roughly the same time. George was first out of the gate, reporting on his    near death    experiences with a desktop and a notebook PC. I was baffled when I read the original piece, which was completely at odds with every experience I   ve had with SP1 throughout its beta cycle and with the delivered RTM bits. The issue came into clearer focus later in the day, when George updated that original post to note that the problems he encountered had little or nothing to do with SP1. The notebook suffered a catastrophic hardware failure. And ... ]]>
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<title>RIP Ultimate Extras</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1245</link>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 Feb 2008 03:42:45 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1245</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Back in September of last year I wrote a piece about how the Windows Ultimate Extras window from the RTM version of Windows Vista differed from the pre-release SP1 code that was floating about at the time. Is Microsoft going to do right by Windows Vista Ultimate customers and start handing over the goodies or not?  Looking at SP1, it seems that Windows Ultimate Extras as good as dead. OK, time for a little trip down memory lane.  Here's what the Windows Vista Ultimate screen looks like for Windows Vista Ultimate RTM: And here's what that same screen looked like in the early SP1 pre-released code: At the time a few people responded that this was early days for SP1 and ... ]]>
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<title>Vista SP1 - The promised performance gains are there</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1244</link>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Feb 2008 12:45:20 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1244</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Note:  These are very preliminary results - I'll be carrying out more tests over the coming days. People are very anxious to know whether Windows Vista SP1 brings with it any noticeable performance gains when carrying out day to day tasks.  My preliminary results seem to indicate that SP1 offers measurable benefits when carrying out a variety of tasks. I've carried out a number of tests: Real world tests File copy (disk to disk) Copy files to compressed folder Extract files from compressed folder Synthetic PassMark PerformanceTest 6.1 PCMark Vantage   Vista RTM Vista SP1 Change PassMark PerformanceTest 6.1  489.2 pts 479.5 pts -9.7 pts Boot time (from BIOS handover to usable desktop)  53 sec 44 sec 9 sec PCMark Vantage  2701 pts 2683 pts -18 pts Copy 2477 files (20 folders) 239 sec 199 sec 40 sec Copy 55 files, 193MB to compressed file 26 sec 25 ... ]]>
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<title>Vista SP1 - Day 1</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1243</link>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Feb 2008 10:36:57 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1243</guid>
<description><![CDATA[On Monday the 4th of February Microsoft announced that Windows Vista Service Pack 1 had been released to manufacturing.  Although the code has been finalized, Windows Vista users won't start to get their hands for a few weeks.  I've been fortunate to be sent the SP1 installer files, along with a complete copy of Vista with SP1 integrated into it.  It's time to fire up a test system and see what happens. Check out the complete SP1 installation gallery here. Given the fact that my ZDNet blogging colleague George Ou had some pretty negative experiences with installing SP1 (one machine seems to have eaten a dirt sandwich, which another is ill after having taken a few bites) I demonstrated ... ]]>
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<title>Vista SP1 will contain undocumented fixes</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1225</link>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 Feb 2008 09:33:23 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1225</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Interesting email in today mailbag:  "Will SP1 contain undisclosed or undocumented security fixes?" For some people, counting the number of security flaws that one OS has compared to another is important because it offers a metric upon which to determine which OS is the most secure (personally, I feel that it's a bogus metric, but I'll let it slide for now).  However, many claim that Microsoft stacks the deck in its favor by not disclosing a full list of vulnerabilities that have been patched by omitting to include those discovered and patched in-house. Well, for those of you who do count security flaws then SP1 is likely to annoy you because it will contain an unknown number of fixes that ... ]]>
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<title>Vista SP1 highlights in 60 seconds - The reasons why I'll be applying the service pack</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1224</link>
<pubDate>Tue, 05 Feb 2008 08:32:12 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1224</guid>
<description><![CDATA[So, yesterday Microsoft announced that SP1 for Vista had gone RTM.  This means that the first service pack for Windows Vista has been finalized and this is what we'll have to live with until we see SP2.  I've been plowing through the masses of SP1 related documentation to come out of Redmond and come up with a shortlist of reasons why I'll be applying SP1 as soon as I get my hands on the code. A good source of SP1 related information is the Notable changes in Windows Vista SP1 document which Microsoft released yesterday (available as PDF and XPS formats).  I've worked through the 55 pages of this document and here is a shortlist of reasons why ... ]]>
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<title>No Vista SP1 bits for users until mid-March</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1151</link>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Feb 2008 09:58:18 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1151</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Customers who've been waiting for Microsoft to release the final Vista Service Pack (SP) 1 bits are going to have to wait another month or two to actually get their hands on them -- at least through legal channels. In a posting to the Windows Vista team blog, Corporate Vice President of Windows Product Management Mike Nash explained how and when users can get the Windows Vista Service Pack (SP) 1 bits. Microsoft released Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008 to manufacturing on February 4. According to Nash, the schedule looks like this: Update: Early March: SP1 bits will be made available to TechNet and Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) subscribers. Mid-March: Microsoft releases SP1 to Windows Update in five languages (English, French, Spanish, German ... ]]>
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<title>Windows Vista SP1 goes RTM</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1218</link>
<pubDate>Mon, 04 Feb 2008 06:24:27 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1218</guid>
<description><![CDATA[This is the day that Windows Vista users (and those waiting to make the leap to Vista) have been waiting for.  Windows Vista Service Pack 1 has been released to manufacturing. Here's the Microsoft announcement. OK, so what does this mean?  Well, first off, you won't be able to get your hands on it just yet.  Going RTM means that Microsoft's OEM partners will be getting their hands on the code so that they can start pumping out PCs with SP1 loaded onto them.  The process of making retail copies of Vista with SP1 included also begins. Here's a quote by a Microsoft spokesperson: "Microsoft has integrated with its partners to significantly improve the Windows Vista experience. Customers will especially ... ]]>
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<title>Reports: Vista SP1 gold bits on track for next week</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1146</link>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Feb 2008 03:53:40 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1146</guid>
<description><![CDATA[After both public and private betas galore, Microsoft is set to make the final, gold Windows Vista Service Pack (SP) 1 bits available, most likely next week. This week, I've been getting reports of SP1 bits being available on torrents. I asked Microsoft earlier this week if these builds were, as some were saying, the final Vista SP1 bits. And, as usual, the Windows client team wasn't saying a whole lot. On January 29, a Microsoft spokeswoman said Vista SP1 had yet to be officially released to manufacturing. The recent SP1 Release Candidate (RC) Refresh 2 is not the RTM build, the spokeswoman said. "And we're not commenting on the build number," she said, when I asked whether the "18000" build number ... ]]>
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<title>Vista SP1 - Download it for the kill-switch removal, keep it for the increased performance, reliability and compatibility</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1199</link>
<pubDate>Fri, 01 Feb 2008 05:15:55 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1199</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The release of Vista SP1 is imminent.  It might be next week, or it might be the week after, but it's now close.  And Microsoft's SP1 marketing machine is also revving up to tempt you to download and install this latest update.  But will people be enthusiastic about downloading and installing a major OS update onto their Vista systems?  If so, what feature or features will encourage them to take the plunge? Running Vista SP1 is a far nicer experience than running Vista RTM ever wasI'm going to be my cynical self and suggest that one of the most compelling "features" of Vista SP1 is the removal of the "kill switch" functionality which Microsoft can use to ... ]]>
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<title>Microsoft wants to help you speed up Vista</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1196</link>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Jan 2008 01:31:10 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Adrian Kingsley-Hughes</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1196</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft has published an article aimed at helping Vista users speed up their system - but the article takes a somewhat hit-and-miss approach to speeding up a PC.  Oh, and the best performance tip of all has been left out! Since several of you sent me a link to Optimize Windows Vista for better performance I just had to take a look at what gems of information Microsoft were handing out.  The article begins with statement which I agree with 100%: That state-of-the-art PC you bought last year might not feel like such a screamer after you install a dozen programs, load it with antispyware and antivirus tools, and download untold amounts of junk from the Internet. The slowdown might ... ]]>
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<title>Will Vista and Windows Server 2008 really be better together?</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1138</link>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jan 2008 10:50:28 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1138</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft doesn't trot out its old "Better Together" marketing campaign much any more. But "Better Together" will be one of the messages Microsoft will be playing up in February, as it marches towards its big-bang Windows Server 2008 launch. Microsoft's premise is that the combination of Vista Service Pack (SP) 1 on the desktop and Windows Server 2008 on the back-end will be preferable to running either product by itself. As James Senior, a Microsoft Technical Specialist, noted on his blog recently, Microsoft is emphasizing that Vista and Server 2008 came from the same core. Senior points to a Windows Server 2008 Overview article that explains the shared heritage of the pair: "Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 originally began as part of ... ]]>
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<title>Windows 7 = Vista Release 2</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=361</link>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Jan 2008 05:54:00 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Ed Bott</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=361</guid>
<description><![CDATA[All the kerfuffle over Windows 7 - leaked memos, shaky handheld video clips of leaked builds, equally shaky tentative release schedules - is amusing. I don't have any inside information to offer, only a perspective drawn from 17 years of watching the Windows development process in action. The most common comment I've read lately is that Microsoft has accelerated the development schedule of Windows 7 in a desperate attempt to replace Windows Vista. Dave Methvin at Information Week argues that Windows 7 may mean Vista's "early demise." APC Mag speculates on the meaning of this "early release," complete with a screenshot it calls "probably fake." Randall Kennedy at InfoWorld piles onto the meme with this prediction: Will Microsoft ship Windows 7 early ... ]]>
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<title>Windows 7: The Anti-Vista?</title>
<link>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1132</link>
<pubDate>Fri, 25 Jan 2008 08:08:04 -0800</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary Jo Foley</dc:creator>
<guid>http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1132</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Even with Windows Vista's one-year anniversary launch just a week away, all that anyone in the tech-enthusiast community seems to want to talk about is Windows 7 (Except for those who are already sick of hearing about 7, as one Windows user characterized himself in a conversation I had yesterday.) There are Windows 7 screen shots, Windows 7 videos, Windows 7-Windows Live-integration to-do lists. And of course, there is the infamous Milestone 1 (M1) Windows 7 build out there, with M2 and M3 successors due out later this year, if rumored roadmaps are to be believed. Some pundits believe Microsoft is trying to stoke the Windows 7 fires to "build excitement" for its next Windows release. I don't think this is the ... ]]>
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