Windows Archive

Tom Rizzo launches his new colum with an overview of why the new "Longhorn" storage subsystem (code-named "WinFS") is needed, what WinFS promises to do to help solve our data-overload problems, and what his column promises to deliver in the coming months.

Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) provides an enhanced security infrastructure that defends against viruses, worms, and hackers, along with increased manageability and control for IT professionals and an improved experience for users. To aid IT professionals in planning and testing for the deployment of Windows XP SP2, Microsoft is making available this preview, based on RC1 of the SP2.

The release candidate of Windows XP SP2 offers several new features not offered in the first beta that shipped in December, including the Windows Security Center accessible from the Windows Control Panel, the Pop-up Blocker on by default and for consumers, the Windows Update V5 RC1.

Rrevealed at SuperSite for Windows, R2 will include all of the free out-of-band updates Microsoft shipped for Windows Server 2003 since April 2003, including the Group Policy Management Console and Windows SharePoint Services.

The presentation subsystem in "Longhorn" (code-named "Avalon") provides powerful new APIs for input. This article gives an overview of these APIs: What services are provided to applications, the architecture of the input system, and how new input devices can be supported.

The Windows Application Compatibility Toolkit (ACT) version 3.0 for Windows 2000 Service Pack 3 or later, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 contains the tools and documentation you need to design, deploy, and support applications on these platforms. Tools include the latest versions of the Microsoft Windows Application Compatibility Analyzer that simplifies application inventory and compatibility testing, the Windows Application Verifier that assists developers and testers in locating common compatibility issues during the development cycle, and the Compatibility Administrator that provides access to the necessary compatibility fixes to support legacy applications in Windows.

A basic understanding of Stop errors and their underlying causes improves your ability to locate and understand technical information or perform diagnostic procedures on Windows Server 2003.

FlexBeta has a quick look at the recent Longhorn Build 4053 with screenshots.

Some software developers may find their applications no longer work on machines using Microsoft Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, which will be released later this year.

This guide in PDF provides prescriptive guidance to enable Microsoft Windows Server 2003 to be used for authentication and as an identity and authorization data store within heterogeneous Microsoft Windows and UNIX environments.

Right after dropping hints that it is readying new initiatives to combat the growth and popularity of open-source software overseas, Microsoft acknowledged Tuesday that it is offering a low-priced Windows bundle to Malaysian users.

Do you still use the old Microsoft Windows 3.1(1 for Workgroups)? It still holds some value for some people, but the old Program Manager isn't all that great for today's standards, says ABZone. That's why Calmira exists, it's a shell for Windows 3.1 that gives you a Windows 95 look-and-feel. Calmira XP goes a step further; it has a Windows XP interface for Windows 3.11.

People who use Microsoft's Windows XP operating system aren't taking advantage of many of the systems best features, a top executive said - and the world's largest software maker has only itself to blame. Jim Allchin, Microsoft's group vice president for software platforms, including Windows, said he thinks customers aren't using gadgets like Windows Messenger and Movie Maker because Microsoft hasn't done a good enough job telling people about them.

Despite Microsoft's repeated denials, the company will indeed release an interim version of Windows XP that will bridge the gap between the initial XP release and Longhorn, which is currently due in late 2005 at the earliest. The interim XP version will ship as a new retail product that replaces existing retail boxed copies of XP and as a set of updates, called XP Reloaded, that existing XP users can install separately.