June 16th, 2008

Posted by Larry Dignan

The Windows XP era ends June 30 and soon hardware vendors will be shipping you all Vista all the time (in most cases). The save XP effort failed. The whining should cease. And now it’s time for Vista to sink or swim.

Ina Fried has a good overview of where Windows XP will stand with PC manufacturers. And Matt Asay highlights a report from Evans Data noting that 92 percent of developers are ignoring Vista. Coupling these two items together and you come to one conclusion: Folks are skeptical about Vista, but a lot of that skepticism is because XP is still lingering.

If you’re a Vista complainer you have two options from here:

• Move away from Windows completely (users try a new OS and developers jump ship).
• Or shut up and go with Vista.

My hunch is most folks will do that latter. I’d love to believe that Microsoft’s Vista miscues would result in a mass exodus, but I doubt that will happen. I also wonder why people live in New Jersey and pay those ridiculous property taxes, but shockingly enough people stay. Based on my Libertarian leanings I’d reckon there would be four people left in Jersey by now.

But I digress. Once consumers no longer have the XP option they’ll fall in line with Vista. Sure some percentage will go Mac, but if you didn’t jump yet–after a gazillion brilliant Apple ads knocking Vista–you probably won’t. And the developer worries: Developers will fall in line too. Evans Data notes:

Only eight percent of North American software developers are currently writing applications to run on Microsoft’s Vista operating system, while half are still writing programs for XP, according to Evans Data’s Spring 2008, North American Development Survey. These same developers forecast a fragmented Windows market in 2009 with only 24 percent expecting to target Vista and 29% expecting to continue with XP.

“Developers have taken a wait and see approach to Vista”, said John Andrews, Evans Data’s President and CEO. “The new operating system has had more than its share of problems and the desire to move from XP on the Windows platform is still lagging – that coupled with interest in alternative operating systems is suppressing development activity and that in turn will further erode Vista’s acceptance.”

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Also see: Ed Bott, Mary Jo Foley, Adrian Kingsley-Hughes and all resources on Vista.

Should Vista supporters be worried? Probably not. Developers have clearly hedged their bets, but that’s because XP was still being distributed. Once that distribution ends developers will have to step up their efforts on Vista. Corporations will complain but still roll out Vista. There’s a reason Microsoft cuts off previous versions of Windows–it works. And it’ll probably work this time too.

by Mark Kaelin | Mar 30, 2007

Takeaway: Like Windows XP before it, Microsoft Windows Vista relies on a system of file extensions to determine which application will be called for a particular file. To change file associations, a user must navigate to the Set Associations tool. Mark Kaelin shows how it works.

To determine which application will run when you double-click a file icon, Windows Vista uses the familiar file extension system made famous (infamous) in earlier versions of Windows. And just like the previous versions of the operating system, figuring out how to change a file extension association in Windows Vista can be a little frustrating if you don't know where to look.

The steps

The Windows Vista tool you use to change file associations in located in the Control Panel under the Default Programs icon, as shown in Figure A.

Figure A

Control Panel

Oddly enough, searching the "association" in the Vista search tool off of the Start Menu returns no results — at least for me.

Once on the Default Programs screen you have two choices for changing file associations:

1. Set your default programs
2. Associate a file type or protocol with hair loss propecia a program

You can also change AutoPlay settings for CDs and DVDs for this screen, as well as set program access settings. (Figure B)

Figure B

Default Programs

The first selection on the Default Programs screen (Figure B) is Set Your Default Programs. On this screen of the tool, as shown in Figure C, you can select a program and either give it complete control as the default program for all file extensions it can handle or choose the file extensions you want individually. How the list of programs was formed for this tool is not explained, but a few programs are missing from the list. The one program that comes to mind almost immediately is Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Figure C

Set Default Programs

Clicking the Choose Defaults For This Program option on the Set Default Programs screen (Figure C) shows you a list of potential file extensions that can be associated with the chosen program (Figure D). From here, you can check additional file extensions you would like Windows Vista to associate with the program.

Figure D

Select extensions individually

The second selection on the Default Programs screen (Figure B) is Associate A File Type Or Protocol With A Program. On this screen of the tool, shown in Figure E, you get a very long list of file extensions, including a description and the name of their associated program if it is known. To modify the program associated with a particular extension, you select the extension and click the Change Program button.

Figure E

Set Associations

In the example shown in Figure F, I have chosen the .inf extension, which is currently associated with Notepad. From this screen, I can choose to change the association to another available program.

Figure F

Change an extension association

If another viable program is not listed on the screen in Figure F, you can browse your system for programs (Figure G). Note that it is generally not a good idea to associate a file extension with a program that is not capable of reading or otherwise acting on it.

Figure G

Browse programs

Once your file extensions are selected, you click Save and then OK to apply your changes to Windows Vista.

Have you recently made the switch over to Windows Vista? Or, have you been using it for awhile? Either way, are there some features on the 3D desktop that you'd just love to turn off? I mean, some of them are quite overwhelming and you might have a better Vista experience if you cut them off. Well, have no fear, because WorldStart is here to help!

I've heard so many varying views about the Vista operating system, it's not even funny anymore. Some people hate it, some people love it and others just ride along in the middle. Yes, Vista comes with a lot of brand new features and while it would be in Microsoft's best interest if everyone fell head over heels in love with them, that's just not very realistic.

So, if you want to change your Vista computer around a little, have at it! Now, as the person who asked today's question stated, one of the new features in Vista is the 3D desktop. And while it's cool to look at sometimes, it can also be a little too much. The 3D desktop has to do with Vista's appearance and performance and all the other Windows versions allowed you to make some changes within those realms, so why would Vista be any different? Come along with me as we make your Vista desktop all that you want it to be!

First, right click on the Computer icon on your desktop and choose Properties. From there, click on the Advanced System Settings link that is located off to the left side of the dialogue box. Once you click that, you will be asked if you're sure you want to continue on (since they're advanced settings and all). Just click Continue and go on. Next, choose the Advanced tab and then hit the Settings button. From there, you want to be under the Visual Effects tab.

Once you're there, you will see four options at the top of the window: "Let Windows choose," "Adjust for best appearance," "Adjust for best performance" and "Custom." Below those options, you will see a list of settings. The list is pretty long, so it may take you awhile to scroll through them all. As you look through them, you may want to start picking and choosing the ones you want to keep on your computer. Think about each one and picture in your mind what it would do to your PC. Here are some of the settings you have to choose from:

• Animate controls and elements inside windows
• Animate windows when minimizing and maximizing
• Enable desktop composition
• Fade or slide menus into view
• Fade out menu items after clicking
• Show shadows under menus
• Show shadows under mouse pointer
• Slide taskbar buttons
• Smooth scroll list boxes

Okay, I think you get the picture. There's so much to choose from! Now, let's go over a couple of the options I mentioned above again. If you click on the first one (Let Windows choose), the Windows operating system will choose what it thinks are the best choices for your computer. Now, this may be a good choice, but it still may leave you wanting more (or less) from your desktop experience.

On the other hand, if you click on the Custom choice, you can make your own decisions. You can just check or uncheck certain settings and everything will come out just the way you want it. I think this is the best option for anyone who likes to do things on their own. That's why I told you to really pay attention to the options in the list as you're reading through them. If you picture in your mind what a certain setting will do to your computer, you'll have a better reason for choosing what you choose.

When you're all done customizing your 3D desktop, just click the OK button and all will be saved. You can then go and test your new settings out. See how everything best price for propecia online changed? Do you like it? Not so sure? Either way, you now know how easy it is to change those settings and you can go back time and time again until you have everything set perfectly for your Vista experience. Have fun!

Date: May 9th, 2008

Author: John Sheesley

It has taken Microsoft four years to ship another service pack for Windows XP. After all that time, you might think that they’d get it right. However, even as what is viagra used for SP3 went to RTM, problems cropped up with SP3, including problems that it caused with Microsoft’s own Dynamics line of software.

With the practically unlimited hardware and software combinations that are out there, you can’t necessarily blame Microsoft if things break when they ship something as significant as a service pack. Even simple patches and fixes can sometimes break things. That’s why it’s often a good idea not to configure Automatic Updates on Windows software. You need to have a strategy in place to deal with updates and to test them in advance.

Where to begin?

Of course, in some cases users can receive updates automatically and you don’t have to worry about them. For lower-level users doing noncritical work, you may think you can save yourself some time by just enabling Automatic Updates. Usually the places where updates and service packs cause the most damage is where you’re using custom applications or rely a lot on non-Microsoft solutions. So for those users, you may want to have a testing regiment in place before you allow them to receive updates. The main difficulty with such a strategy is that you can spend a lot of time doing triage.

It’s often easier to have a blanket policy in place. Either allow Automatic Updates for everyone, hope for the best, and deal with the fallout, or block updates for all users and distribute them on an as-needed basis once you’re sure they work properly.

Do-it-yourself distribution

It’s a gamble which is the better strategy. In the short term, certainly the most labor-intensive option is to block automatic updates and distribute them yourself. If you’ve standardized the workstations in your organization, you should keep back a representative machine with typically installed software. Apply the patches and do some testing yourself. If everything seems to be fine, then you can push the patches and service packs out.

Microsoft helps with the blocking of XP SP3 and Vista SP1 with the Windows Service Pack Blocker Tool Kit. Even if you have Automatic Updates installed, this tool will prevent them from loading the target service packs for up to a year. This gives you the flexibility of allowing Automatic Updates without having to worry about dealing with bad results from the service packs.

Another alternative is to set up your own update server and redirect workstation updates to it. Microsoft’s Windows Server Update Services will help you get that job done. Third parties create update services as well, such as PatchLink, PatchQuest, and Patch Authority.

Finally, you can also just create individual MSI files for each patch or update and then push them out via Group Policy. This takes a little more effort than the other solutions, but it gives you the maximum flexibility about who gets what and when. If you don’t like Active Directory and Group Policy, you can use things like ZENworks and LANDesk to do essentially the same thing.

Avoid fixes that break things

Service packs and updates have the ability to introduce as many problems as they fix. As an IT leader, you need to have a strategy in place before you deploy them. You may get lucky and not encounter any problems. However, it’s just as likely that when the updates fix one thing they break something else along the way. Do some testing in advance, and you can save yourself time in the long run.

Okay, so I know we've gone over this one before, but a lot of you have been asking about it recently and it seems like many of you are still having trouble with it, so I thought I'd go over it again today. What am I talking about? Well, you may or may not know that the Control Panel on your computer has two different views. That's right, it has a Classic View and a Category View. They're both very different and either one of them can be used for all sorts of things. It's also very easy to switch back and forth between them. Read on!

Let's start with the Classic View. If you choose this particular option, you will see a box that's filled with different icons. They include everything from Accessibility Options to Date and Time to Printers and Faxes to User Accounts and so on. It contains quite a bit more than the Category View does, but it's also an older version of the Control Panel. On the other hand, the Category View is a more condensed version, but it still has everything you could possibly need from the Control Panel.

Now, certain computer techniques require you to be in a particular view and if you're not in the right one, you may run into some trouble. But, like I said earlier, it's very easy to switch between them, so you're never too far from where you need to be. To see how you can do that, go to Start, Control Panel and look in the top left hand corner. There you will see a link that either viagra sales says "Switch to Category View" or "Switch to Classic View." Once you click on that, you will be taken to the Control Panel you need and you can get your work done. It's as easy as pie!