Those users should note that this is a legit Windows application that has been added to European versions of Windows by Microsoft to comply with European Union regulations. It basically allows European Windows users to select a different web browser than Microsoft Internet Explorer.

The problem with that screen however is that it appears every time the user loads the operating system if no selection is made on the screen (for instance by closing the window after it appears).

It is however very easy to remove the screen from appearing in Windows after startup. Just follow the instructions below to remove it from Windows:

Click on the start button of the Windows operating system, enter msconfig in there and hit enter. This should open the System Configuration tool in Windows.

Switch to the Startup tab in the window to see all the programs that are loaded during system startup. A checkmark indicates programs that are loaded automatically while programs without a checkmark are not loaded. Locate the entry browserchoice in the listing and remove the checkmark from that program to ensure that it will not be loaded on the next system startup.

A click on OK will submit the changes. You can then restart the computer right away to see that the browser choice screen does not appear again.

Themes in previous operating systems could alter many visual aspects of the system including the taskbar, fonts and even the shell. Standard Windows 7 themes on the other hand have been limited by Microsoft to only change the color scheme, desktop backgrounds (wallpapers), screen savers and sounds.

A benefit of this approach is that it is possible to save and share themes without the need for patching system files first.

Windows 7 still supports themes that change those other aspects of the operating system as well but users are then forced to replace system files before they can do that.

Most of the basic options to personalize the theme are available in previous Windows operating systems as well with the notable exception of wallpapers. It was previously only possible to use one wallpaper on the computer system. Users who wanted to use more than one had to install a software program that would exchange the wallpaper in regular intervals.

Windows 7 comes with the option to use multiple wallpapers in a theme which can be automatically rotated.

Windows 7 comes with multiple basic themes that can be activated by right-clicking the computer desktop and selecting the personalize option.

Available are several Aero themes as well as basic and high contrast themes. Microsoft has created a personalization gallery that offers additional Windows 7 themes, desktop backgrounds and gadgets for download. Users can download all country specific themes from there for instance.

Personalization has improved in Windows 7 and Microsoft is regularly updating the personalization gallery with new themes and backgrounds.

Non-security related patches are released more commonly and users with automatic updates enabled will usually get little to no notice about these updates. Users without automatic updates on the other hand might not even know that new updates have been released as the Oracle over at Lockergnome points out.

Microsoft has apparently released an update for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 on Monday night that they call a reliability update. The patch fixes the following issues that are related to Microsoft Customer Support Services and the Error Reporting Service:

• Keyboard function keys or keyboard shortcuts, such as mute or calculator, may not work correctly
• The notification icon for an application may be moved or lost when the executable application is update
• On a computer that is running Windows 7, you configure the Screen Saver Settings to display the logon screen on resume. Additionally, you configure the computer to go to sleep. However, the computer may not go to sleep after the screen saver starts. Instead, a black screen is displayed. This problem causes the operating system to stop responding. You must restart the computer by holding down the power button.

Links To Update on Microsoft website.

Windows 7 32-bit
Windows 7 64-bit
Windows Server 2008 R2

Microsoft has also released the following updates:

You may encounter problems when you move data over USB from a Windows 7-based or Windows Server 2008 R2-based computer that has an NVIDIA USB EHCI chipset and at least 4GB of RAM.

Links To Update on Microsoft website.

Windows 7 64-bit and Windows Server 2008 R2

Windows 32-bit

System Update Readiness Tool for Windows 7 – This tool is being offered because an inconsistency was found in the Windows servicing store which may prevent the successful installation of future updates, service packs, and software.

Links To Update on Microsoft website.

Windows 7 32-bit
Windows 7 64-bit
Windows Server 2008 R2

Update for Windows 7 (KB974674) – Utility for restoring backups made on Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 to computers that are running Windows 7 and Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2.

Links To Update on Microsoft website.

Windows 7 32-bit
Windows 7 64-bit
Windows Server 2008 R2

Cause of the problem is the virtual dos machine (vdm) that was introduced in 1993 to support 16-bit applications. The exploit was uncovered by Tavis Ormandy, a member of Google’s security team. It makes it possible to run code with elevated rights on the computer system. The full technical explanation of the vulnerability and example exploit code are available at Neohapsis.

No patch has been issued by Microsoft until now even though Ormandy mentioned that he had contacted Microsoft about the issue six months ago. There is however a quick fix for most Windows operating systems: Disallowing VDM.

There are two possibilities on how to do that. System administrators and users with access to the Windows Group Policy Editor and an operating system that is Windows 2003 or newer can enable the policy to “Prevent access to 16-bit applications” in Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Application Compatibility”.

This setting has the consequence that 16-bit applications will not execute on the computer system which should not have an effect on most home users.

Users with operating systems prior to Windows 2003, Windows XP comes to mind, can alternatively create a new Windows Registry key to close the security vulnerability in the operating system.

This is done by navigating to the Registry key

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\AppCompat

and creating the new DWORD VDMDisallowed and setting the value of the Dword to 1.

The pricing between Windows 7 Home Premium and Windows 7 Professional is steep. You can currently get a so called Windows 7 Home Premium Family Pack that contains three licenses for roughly $200 whereas a single Windows 7 Professional license puts you down $299 (some rebates are currently available dropping that figure to $260). Still, users would expect value for that price difference. As outlined yesterday there are only a few additional features in Windows 7 Professional that are not available in Home Premium.

• Backup and Restore Center (backup to networks is the additional feature here)
• Windows Server Domain support.
• Remote Desktop Server support.
• Location aware printing: Automatically changes the default printer based on the location of the user.
• Encrypting the file system
• Presentation mode: Presentation Mode is found in the Mobility Centre (Windows Key + X) and lets you control your machine’s behavior while you are giving presentations
• Windows XP Mode: Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC, available on Windows 7 Professional and Windows 7 Ultimate, allow you to run multiple Windows environments, such as Windows XP Mode, from your Windows 7 desktop

Most of these features have been designed for a business or professional environment while some could be useful for other users as well. Most of these features can be substituted with third party software including software backups, file system encryption, presentation mode, location aware printing or the Windows XP mode. Computer users who know that they need several of these features might want to pick this version whereas everyone else is probably better off with Windows 7 Home Premium or even Windows 7 Ultimate which retails for only $20 more than Windows 7 Professional.

Windows 7 Professional does on the other hand support computer memory of up to 192 Gigabytes whereas Home Premium only supports 16 Gigabytes. This could be a valid reason to use the Pro (or Ultimate) version instead of Home Premium although it is highly unlikely that many end users are using computer systems which exceed 16 Gigabytes of computer memory.

Chrome OS will be minimalistic which has the advantages that it will boot fast. Several security concepts like sandboxing processes or verifying core systems during startup make it harder to attack and less likely to spread.

There is one premise though that users have to understand. Chrome OS is not aiming for the same market that Microsoft is targeting with Windows or Apple is targeting with Mac OS. At least not in the years to come. Why? Because it is to limited. Here are a few examples:

• Cloud based data storage means that an Internet connection is required to access the data. Google probably plans to make it possible to store data on the local computer system (Google Gears?) so that it can be accessed without Internet connection. This does however mean that a fast connection is required to be able to upload, download and sync the data. It could on the other hand be the perfect system for users who want to use it for very specific operations, i.e. banking, chatting or social networking to name a few.
• Entertainment: If you want to play that 10 Gigabyte ultra-HD video sitting on your desktop you can do so by clicking on it. How will this work if the video is in the cloud? What about an audio collection? This could become really problematic if data cannot be stored offline, especially for users with slow Internet connections. But then again, who says that this is one of the applications of the OS?
• Games are another area where Chrome OS will not cut it. You can play browser games sure but that’s it for now.

There are however some advantages. This (likely) includes lower hardware requirements to run the operating system (not only cpu or memory but also hard drive space, optical drives), data backups that are taken care of or a possible lower battery usage for the system.

Chrome OS will be a very specialized operating system in my opinion and not the Microsoft Windows killer that many users hope it to become.

The 2012 release is codenamed Windows 8 and Microsoft does not explicitly state that this will also be the release year of the new operating system although that is generally assumed by everyone.

Windows 8, which is currently only a codename for the new operating system (did not they say so previously when asked about Windows 7 as well?), will be major released opposed to the release updates Windows Server 2008 R2 and Windows 7.

Our thanks to Stephen Chapman for publishing those two Windows roadmap images. Check out the Windows 8 News website for the latest news and rumors about Microsoft’s upcoming operating system Windows 8.

Windows 7 did introduce some new features that can increase the productivity. Since my recent switch to the operating system I have discovered five that I like a lot as they help me speed up Windows 7 which increases my productivity throughout the day.

1. Taskbar previews

The taskbar has been completely revamped in Windows 7. It is now possible to stick applications to it, see the number of open windows and thumbnail previews or make use of jumplists. The features that I personally like the most are the thumbnail previews, as they allow me to quickly find the Firefox, Thunderbird or Internet Explorer tab that I was looking for and the new icons that show the amount of open windows and that display file transfers.

Especially the previews save lots of time. Think of Firefox with ten open tabs. If you wanted to access a specific tab you previously had to display the window again, locate the tab in the web browser and click on it. Now you simply hover the mouse over the taskbar icon, locate the tab and click on it to be taken directly to it in Firefox.

2. Libraries

If you are like me you store multimedia files in various locations of the operating system. They are located on various hard drives and in various structures. Vista and XP were highly inflexible by concentrating on the My Documents hierarchy for those files. This could lead to a lot of file searching or a lot of self-discipline and work to build a centralized storage location for multimedia files. Even then users could run into trouble if they ran out of hard disk space on their primary hard drive.

Windows 7 introduces libraries. Libraries are basically virtual folders that can display the contents of multiple folders in its folder structure. With that it is now possible – or shall I say more comfortable – to access multimedia files in one folder on the hard drive even if those files and folders that are displayed are spread over multiple locations and hard drives.

3. Aero Peek, Aero Shake and Snap

If you want to arrange two windows next to each other in Windows 7 you can do so by one of the windows to the right side and one to the left. They will automatically be positioned so that each is taking up half of the screen estate of the computer monitor. That’s the new Snap feature. It is also possible to move the window to the top to maximize it.

Aero Shake can be used to minimize all but the active window by shaking it around on the computer desk. Aero Peek finally can be used to peak through the windows to see the computer desktop which might be handy for users who make use of gadgets in the operating system.

4. Automatic recognition of digital cameras

Back in the days of Windows XP I had to install a software program for my digital camera so that it would be recognized by the operating system when connected. This was the only option to directly connect the digital camera to the system. I still had the option to remove the memory card and place it in a card reader but all of that meant more work than it should be.

Imagine my surprise when I first connected the digital camera to Windows 7. The operating system automatically recognized the camera and offered to copy the pictures that I had taken to the hard drive in a menu that was automatically be displayed. This was comfortable and without any pre-configuration on my part.

5. Windows 7 Homegroup

Windows 7 Homegroup makes it easier to create a home network and share files and printers with other users on the network. Setup has been simplified and takes only a few minutes tops to set it up. The shared folders and printers then appear in the places sidebar in Windows Explorer from where they can be accessed.

Verdict:

I’m still discovering new features in Windows 7. Have not even touched some of the new tools yet, like the snipping or note taking tool. While the similarities to Vista are still very clear and dominant Microsoft managed to add and change features in Windows 7 that actually aid the user in completing tasks faster and with less knowledge required. Some of the features in this list can be emulated by installing third party software that provides that functionality.

If you have worked with Windows 7: What is your experience in this regard? Do you like other features that have not been mentioned in this article? Let us know in the comments.

The installation itself can be initiated in the old operating system. Windows XP users need to select custom installation in the process as described in the sheet that comes with the disks of the operating system.

Installation went fine and I was able to boot into Windows 7 in no time. I did encounter two problems with hardware that was not recognized by the operating system. One of the devices was unfortunately my Linksys network adapter which meant that I was not able to connect to the Internet until the problem was fixed. I thankfully had the driver ready and the device was recognized and installed in no time.

After that it took some time to download the latest device drivers and software programs to the computer system. Firefox and Thunderbird backups could be restored with Mozbackup and the rest of the process went smoothly as well. Here are a few tips for a Windows 7 Upgrade:

• Make Backups of everything that you consider valuable. Think about programs that you would like to use in the new operating system and do some research to find backup solutions. Make sure those backups are accessible in the new operating system
• Have the most important drivers ready before starting the installation, those are usually for the network adapter, video, audio and everything else that is required to run the system initially.
• Make sure you have enough time at hand for completing the process. A smooth installation and initial configuration can take up to two hours and a lot more if you run into troubles.
• If possible have another computer system ready for downloading files or troubleshooting issues

Did you make the switch to Windows 7 already? If so, what was your upgrade or installation experience?

Everton from Connected Internet and I have created a Windows 7 blog some time ago where we closely followed the development of the operating system.

Here are the things that I personally like in Windows 7:

• Automatic digital camera (and other devices) recognition with proper actions displayed (e.g. copy photos from digital camera to the computer system). No driver installation or third party software needed to do that.
• The operating system feels more responsive and seems to run better on low-end hardware than Vista
• Better troubleshooting options
• The new taskbar. It takes a while to get used to the new features but they are very handy (e.g. pinning software to the taskbar) once you get used to them
• Light theme customizations without system file patching
• Search Connectors to search the Internet from within Windows Explorer
• Better 64-bit support (meaning developers who want a certificate need to provide 32-bit and 64-bit editions of their programs)
• Home Group feature for easier home network management and creation

Some say the differences between Vista and Windows 7 are not big enough to justify a migration to the new operating system. I say it solely depends on the situation. If you are happy with Vista or XP stick with it. It would make sense from a security standpoint to migrate from XP to Windows 7. There are other aspects that make a migration from XP to 7 desirable.

About the different editions that are available: Most users should be fine with Windows 7 Home Premium as Windows 7 Professional and Windows 7 Ultimate cater to a professional audience with features that are usually not requested and needed by home users (think of virtual hard disk booting, location aware printing, Windows server domain, remote desktop host, presentation mode or Branchache). Best of all it is a lot cheaper than the other two editions of Windows 7.

Fake videos showcasing the new Google Chrome OS have been making their rounds on the Internet in the last months. There have not been on the other hand lots of attempts to turn an existing Linux distribution into something that resembles the Google Chrome OS.

Chrome OS is one of the first attempts. It is offered as a Live CD and virtual image currently. Chrome OS uses a GNOME 2.24 desktop environment with the Google Chrome 4.0.207 web browser integrated. Several other programs like Open Office or Flash Player have also been integrated into the distribution.

To be 100% clear here. This is a custom Linux distribution and not the official Google Chrome OS. It still resembles the operating system and can be used as a Live CD to run the Google Chrome web browser on Linux. Interested users can download the Live CD or the virtual image from the Chrome OS Linux website.

But it looks like those enthusiasts have given life to Be in the form of Haiku. The Haiku OS has been releases as an alpha  and is installable on x86 hardware. It is an open source project and, from the looks of it, has a lot of promise. I have installed the alpha and have worked only briefly with the desktop. From what I have seen it has promise. It’s far from ready for public consumption, but if developed correctly, could be something special.

The Haiku projects’ aim is to create an operating system focused specifically on personal computing with features like:

• Custom kernel designed for responsiveness.
• Fully threaded for multi-core CPUs.
• Database-like file system.

Figure 1

I would like to say Haiku is something most Ghacks readers should download, burn, and try. If you have a VirtualBox installation up and running it would certainly be worth the time. If you do decide to do so I will warn you not to go directly to the installer when you boot up the ISO image. You will want to first run from the desktop and then the installation from the clickable icon on the desktop (see Figure 1).

The installation will require you to partition the drive, but the Haiku partition setup tool is quite easy to use.

Out of the box, under VirtualBox, Haiku could not use my network. It took some digging around but eventually I found the solution. With the virtual machine stopped and closed you will want to go into the Settings of the Haiku VM and then take care of the following configurations:

• Change the adapter type to Intel Pro/1000 MT (82540OEM)
• Make sure it is attached to NAT

That should get you up and running with networking. There is also a strange issue with using Haiku in VirtualBox in that it can not write the boot loader properly. I believe the only solution to this is to use a VMWare image under VirtualBox. To do this you will need to create the VirtualMachine (using “Other” operating system as the type) and then mount the VMWare image (You can find an image on the Haiku Download Page) through VirtualBox.

What can you use Haiku for?

If you can imagine the Windows operating system installed with nothing more than what it ships with, you can imagine what you can do with Haiku. The applications that ship with Haiku include:

• Wonderbrush: A bitmap image editor.
• BePDF: A PDF viewer.
• BeZillaBrowser: Web browser.
• Pe: Programmers’ editor.
• Plenty of system tools.
• Plenty of media players (Including Television viewer).
• Teminal applications.

and more.

Figure 2

To Haiku’s credit, the applications all run smoothly and quickly (even in  a VM). Some of the applications are rather hard to find however.  There are two menus: Right click mouse on the desktop and then the Main menu in the upper right corner. To get to the entire list of applications click on the Main menu (upper right hand corner) and then click Applications (see Figure 2).

Final thoughts

I like where Haiku is going. I was a fan of the BeOS when it initially appeared and was disappointed that it didn’t find traction. I hope Haiku can fully bring back to life what BeOS promised. What do you think? Have you tried Haiku? Did you ever have the chance to run BeOS? Let us know your thoughts.

Operating systems that are not affected include Windows XP, Windows 7 final and Windows Server 2003. No patch is currently available to fix the vulnerability. Microsoft has published workarounds to protect the operating system from possible attacks.

Disable SMB v2

To modify the registry key, perform the following steps:

Note Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk. For information about how to edit the registry, view the “Changing Keys And Values” Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or view the “Add and Delete Information in the Registry” and “Edit Registry Data” Help topics in Regedt32.exe.

1. Click Start, click Run, type Regedit in the Open box, and then click OK.
2. Locate and then click the following registry subkey:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services
3. Click LanmanServer.
4. Click Parameters.
5. Right-click to add a new DWORD (32 bit) Value.
6. Enter smb2 in the Name data field, and change the Value data field to 0.
7. Exit.
8. Restart the “Server” service by performing one of the following:
- Open up the computer management MMC, navigate to Services and Applications, click Services, right-click the Server service name and click Restart. Answer Yes in the pop-up menu.
- From a command prompt and with administrator privileges, type net stop server and then net start server.

Impact of workaround. Host will not be able to communicate using SMB2.

Block TCP ports 139 and 445 at the firewall

These ports are used to initiate a connection with the affected component. Blocking TCP ports 139 and 445 at the firewall will help protect systems that are behind that firewall from attempts to exploit this vulnerability. Microsoft recommends that you block all unsolicited inbound communication from the Internet to help prevent attacks that may use other ports. For more information about ports, see TCP and UDP Port Assignments.

Impact of Workaround: Several Windows services use the affected ports. Blocking connectivity to the ports may cause various applications or services to not function. Some of the applications or services that could be impacted are listed below:

• Applications that use SMB (CIFS)
• Applications that use mailslots or named pipes (RPC over SMB)
• Server (File and Print Sharing)
• Group Policy
• Net Logon
• Distributed File System (DFS)
• Terminal Server Licensing
• Print Spooler
• Computer Browser
• Remote Procedure Call Locator
• Fax Service
• Indexing Service
• Performance Logs and Alerts
• Systems Management Server
• License Logging Service

Users that are running one of the operating systems that are affected by the vulnerability are encouraged to use one of the workarounds to protect their computer systems. More information are available at the Microsoft Security Advisory page.

Users who are interested in hosting a Windows 7 launch party can apply at Microsoft’s House Party website.

In order for you to be considered in the host selection process, you need to fill out the online application (which asks you questions about your knowledge of the sponsor brand, how you typically throw parties, whether you are an internet user and have a digital camera, etc). After completing the application, you will need to respond to the confirmation email by clicking on the link within it (to make sure our means of communicating with you works). From the group of applicants who confirm their email address and complete the application, we choose a pool of hosts who fit House Party’s and the sponsor’s host criteria.

A signup is required to the House Party service. This can be done by filling out the information manually or using an existing Facebook account to fill out most information. A short survey has then to be filled out afterwards. Microsoft has plans to host more than 1000 house parties which means that the chance is probably not that good to be selected as one of the hosts as there is no way to individualize the application.

Party hosts that are selected by Microsoft will not only receive a special signature edition of Windows 7 Ultimate edition but also a party pack for the party. Follow this link to the House Party website to apply to be one of the party hosts for the Windows 7 launch party.

Users who want to try out the final version of Windows 7 but do not have access to a version through one of the partner programs can now download a Windows 7 Enterprise trial version that is good for 90 days of testing directly from Microsoft. The trial version is the full Enterprise version of Windows 7 and will not require a product key as it is already embedded in the download and will be applied automatically during installation of the operating system.

Windows 7 Enterprise Trial needs to be activated within 10 days after installation. Failure to do so will shut down the operating system automatically every hour until Windows 7 is activated. The same will happen after the 90-day trial. It should also be noted that it is not possible to continue using the operating system or purchasing the retail version as Microsoft is not selling Windows 7 Enterprise to end users.

Windows 7 Enterprise Trial downloads are provided as 32-bit and 64-bit editions in the five supported languages English, German, French, Japanese and Spanish. Help is provided at the Windows 7 Enterprise 90-day Trial FAQ website.

The Windows 7 release candidate will expire on June 1, 2010 and start to remind the user about that from March 1, 2010 on by automatically shutting down every two hours. This still means more than 6 months of free testing for users who download the Windows 7 release candidate.

Users who have already downloaded it (or are about to) can get Windows 7 product keys from the same website the downloads are offered. Both 32-bit and 64-bit editions are offered in English, German, French, Spanish and Japanese.

A Windows Live account is required to complete the process.

Yes we got things like global search, hi-def support, cool animations and visual effects, but where are the revolutionary ideas that should be popping up. While our hardware is getting more and more powerful, our software seems to lag in support for such features. Operating systems do a pretty good job of the basics, intermediate and advanced, but I think it’s about time we see some better integration between our electronic devices.

No doubt you’ve probably heard of “Microsoft’s Home,” Redmond’s idea of how our homes will look if 2012 proves to be incorrect. While the ideas are great, it’s clear to see that many of them will be, to say the least, expensive. More importantly these technologies require much more then a simple computer to operate.

Reinventing an OS however, while radical, could render it useful. Let me give an example, the “Desktop” is a wonderful place and without it most of us wouldn’t have our bearings in our OS. But it limits what we can do in many ways. For example, retrieving a file from a remote computer is one that can involve a lot of pain and headache especially if both systems are operating two different OS’s.

The Fix? Cloud computing! Yes, we’ve heard the term mentioned hundreds of time, but it’s not been until recent years that the necessity of cloud computing has become evident. For instance, I have changed smartphones and carriers three times in the past year (I know what you’re thinking). Although switching from the original MotoQ to the Blackberry Curve was a painless process, not so when I decided to get the Pre. While numbers and most emails as well as websites were transferred, this was not the case for birthdays, notes and such. More importantly, it failed to synchronize my email contacts with my phone.

If I happened to have all my contacts “in the cloud” it would cut out the need to find a way to synchronize my messenger, email, and phone contact lists between different models and manufacturers. All I would have to do is sync any new phone, computer or PMP with the cloud and all data would remain intact. Plus I could cancel the risk of those horrible duplicates that always seem to arise when switching platforms. Yes, I know Microsoft, Apple, Google and Palm among others have programs that sync contact and calendar information among multiple platforms. But I’m still looking for a solution that allows me to run Adobe Photoshop, Google Sketch-Up or Microsoft Office remotely.

This of course could give users the ability to run graphical, CPU and memory intense programs from netbooks, nettops and other bargain PC’s thus reducing the need to buy multiple licenses for the same product. More importantly data lost would be less common as the event of a hard drive failing or a virus taking over a system would not affect data stored remotely.

Small businesses would be able to cut IT costs as most employees would only need a small computer, one that is capable of Internet access, and of course the required security details to log in. Speaking of security, “the cloud” could not be accessed unless a security key (USB dive) were plugged into the computer accessing the data. Other security measures such as facial recognition, and fingerprint readers could also be utilized in these security keys. Best of all these keys would keep a record of the who, what, when and where.

The USB key could also double as a USB modem thus the ability to bring access to “the cloud” anywhere service is provided. In an event that the user would be traveling to an area that internet access is unavailable, information, programs and other data could be downloaded onto the USB key and used on any computer through a dedicated virtual environment.

I know what you’re thinking, this would be impossible to implement in a short amount of time. But quite the contrary. All of what I have mentioned are technologies used everyday. Many Mac users run Windows virtually, Linux users do the same for Windows and vise versa. USB keys have been used for quite some time from providing network security IT professionals to high end software of the likes of AutoDesk and Houdini. Best of all, Microsoft, Linux and Apple support a basic amount of virtualization. All that is left is to port the OS’s to “the cloud.”

It’s a wild idea, but it’s plausible and something that could break barriers as information could be easily shared across different environments as well as mobile devices, vehicles and other electronical equipment.

Your thoughts?

It was therefor welcome when rumors about a Windows 7 Family Pack emerged on the Internet. This family pack was supposed to contain three Windows 7 licenses so that the operating system could be installed on three computer systems in one household.

The pricing for the Windows 7 Family Pack and the Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade was announced yesterday in an official blog post over at the Windows Team Blog. The features remain the same: Customers can buy a Windows 7 Family Pack consisting of three Windows 7 Home Premium licenses to install the operating system on three computers in one household. Windows 7 Home Premium is the only edition of Windows 7 that is offered in the family pack. The price for the Family Pack has been set to $149.99 in the US. It should be noted that the editions are upgrade editions and not retail editions which means that users need a Windows XP or Windows Vista license to perform the update.

The Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade pricing was announced in the same blog post. Anytime Upgrade refers to the possibility to upgrade a Windows 7 edition to another edition by paying a certain amount of money. This process does not involve installing the operating system anew and could be interesting for users who purchase a computer system with a Windows 7 edition that they want to upgrade because of the increased functionality that the upgraded system offers.

Three different Anytime Upgrade editions are available. It is possible to upgrade Windows 7 Starter, a version aimed at primarily at the netbook market, to Windows 7 Home Premium. It is furthermore possible to upgrade Windows 7 Home Premium to either Windows 7 Professional or Windows 7 Ultimate. The prices for the different versions are as follows:

• Windows 7 Starter to Windows 7 Home Premium: $79.99
• Windows 7 Home Premium to Windows 7 Professional: $89.99
• Windows 7 Home Premium to Windows 7 Ultimate: $139.99

The pricing looks to be expensive considering that the Windows 7 Home Upgrade sells for $119.99 currently. Users safe between $40-$70 when performing the Anytime Upgrade instead of buying a retail upgrade edition of Windows 7 instead.

I found a bootable disc image smaller than 10MB which downloads the packages on the machine on which they’ll be installed, rather than having to burn them onto a disc and then run them. However, this method of installation also allows the user to only select the packages they want to download, which potentially dramatically reduces the size of the download.

This small disc obviously uses a text-based installer. Whilst this isn’t quite as user friendly, it ensures compatibility and can be used in many scenarios in which the alternative installation CD would currently have to be used.

Discs are available for 32-bit and 64-bit installs on PCs; 32-bit PowerPCs and patchy support is available for Sparc and 64-bit PowerPCs.

This seems like a much better way to install Ubuntu, because one can avoid pointless packages and the time needed to burn the 700MB image!

There are a few options that European customers have to get a web browser. They can download one from another computer system, start the computer from a Live CD and move a web browser to a removable device, buy a computer magazine that comes with a web browser or order Internet Explorer right from Microsoft.

Amazon customers can add Internet Explorer 8 to their shopping cart for about 4 Euro. It is also possible to buy Internet Explorer directly from Microsoft for roughly the same price. Customers who want to order Internet Explorer directly from Microsoft can visit the website that is offering information about Windows 7 in Europe and options to either download or order Internet Explorer 8.