TECH NOTES

April 7, 2009

Windows OS: ZDNet’s Mary Jo Foley Tells Us Windows 7 users can downgrade to XP

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 3:20 pm
Tags: , , , ,

znet_logo


Microsoft will allow Windows 7 users to downgrade to XP


April 6th, 2009
Posted by Mary Jo Foley @ 10:04 am

Go to article source…

Microsoft and its PC partners are going to allow Windows 7 users to downgrade not just to Windows Vista, but also to Windows XP, Microsoft officials are confirming.

Some company watchers have been wondering about the downgrade rights that Microsoft will offer when Windows 7 ships. When AppleInsider reported this weekend that HP was going to offer Windows 7 users the ability to downgrade to XP, I asked Microsoft about the story.

Here’s what a spokesperson representing the company’s Windows client division told me via e-mail on April 5:

MJF: Does Microsoft have downgrade rights for Windows XP planned as part of Windows 7?

Microsoft spokesperson: Yes. This is not the first time that Microsoft has offered downgrade rights to a version other than its immediate predecessor and our Software Assurance volume-license customers can always downgrade to any previous version of Windows. (Note: Microsoft changed the statement from “Software Assurance” to “volume license” Monday afternoon.)

(The spokesperson clarified later that downgrade rights allow users to install previous versions of Windows, not just the most recent predecessor. In other words, a Software-Assurance-covered volume-license user who wanted to downgrade from Vista could, technically, go back to Windows 2000 or even Windows 95, not just XP. Who knew?)

MJF: Is Microsoft cutting these kinds of rights deals with each OEM individually? Has it made such an arrangement with HP?

Microsoft spokesperson: Downgrade rights policies are the same for all of our main OEM partners and what you are talking about is not a special arrangement. Since the End User right to Windows XP Professional is part of the license terms for these editions, it’s really about making facilitation options easier for our OEM customers and End Users.

(It’s worth noting that the only two versions of Windows Vista for which Microsoft and its PC makers provide downgrade rights are Vista Business and Ultimate — and those must downgrade to XP Professional. I’d think similar limitations would be likely with Windows 7.)

The AppleInsider report claimed that Microsoft and HP had agreed to provide downgrade rights from October (one rumored launch target for Windows 7) and April 30, 2010. Microsoft officials did not comment on whether either date is real. And HP didn’t respond to my request for comment at all. (I am doubtful about the April 30th deadline. Why only provide downgrade rights for a handful of months?)

Update: The Microsoft spokesperson said the April 30 cu-off date in the original story is not something the company is ready to discuss. The exact quote: “No dates have been announced for the end of Windows 7 downgrade right facilitation to Windows XP.”

Update No. 2: An HP spokesperson responded Monday afternoon, concurring with Microsoft’s statement that Microsoft terms and conditions are consistent across OEMs. The spokesperson declined to provide any details, citing “confidentiality” of HP communications.

With Windows 7 looking good (even at this beta stage), why would users want to downgrade to XP, you may wonder. For many businesses, supporting a slew of different Windows releases is a nightmare. They’d prefer to have all their users on one (or possibly two) different versions.

If Microsoft ends up finding a way to insure that legacy Windows apps work on Windows 7 — beyond supporting them with a combination of Virtual PC and MED-V, another option available only to users who buy Microsoft’s Software Assurance licensing — downgrading to an older version of Windows from Windows 7 could look a whole lot less appealing.

Meanwhile, in related news, TechARP — the site that brought us the still-unconfirmed-but-likely-true report that Microsoft is planning to offer PC buyers a free upgrade from Vista to Windows 7 if they purchase new systems starting this summer — is now reporting that users who downgrade to XP also will be eligible for free Win 7 upgrades via the Windows 7 Upgrade Option program.

Mary Jo FoleyMary Jo has covered the tech industry for more than 20 years. Don’t miss a single post. Subscribe via Email or RSS.

Got a tip? Send Mary Jo your rants, rumors, tips and tattles. For disclosure on Mary Jo’s industry affiliations, click here or to see Mary Jo’s full profile click here.

August 14, 2008

Windows OS: ZDNet’s Adrian Kingsley-Hughes Tells Us, Vista is Broken…

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 12:30 am
Tags: , ,


August 9th, 2008

Windows broken … I’m surprised it took this long

Go here for article source…

Posted by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes @ 9:52 am

So, in a stroke, two security researchers (Mark Dowd of IBM and Alexander Sotirov or VMware) at Black Hat have set browser security back 10 years and rendered Vista’s security next to useless (PDF of paper here – site currently Slashdotted …).

(more…)

August 8, 2008

Windows OS: LifeHacker Presents – Windows Performance Tweaking Myths

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 3:34 pm
Tags: , , ,

Debunking Common Windows Performance Tweaking Myths


As a tech writer, one of my biggest pet peeves is the plethora of bad advice littered across almost every web site dedicated to system tweaking. Besides the tweaks that simply don’t work, some of them will actually cause your computer to run even slower—or worse. Let’s examine some of the most offensive myths out there regarding PC performance tweaking, and debunk them once and for all.

Disabling QoS to Free Up 20% of Bandwidth

This tip made the rounds with people believing that Microsoft always allocates 20% of your bandwidth for Windows Update. According to the instructions, you were supposed to disable QoS in order to free up bandwidth. Unfortunately this tip was not only wrong, but disabling QoS will cause problems with applications that rely on it, like some streaming media or VoIP applications.

Rather than taking my word for it, you can read the official Microsoft response: “There have been claims in various published technical articles and newsgroup postings that Windows XP always reserves 20 percent of the available bandwidth for QoS. These claims are incorrect… One hundred percent of the network bandwidth is available to be shared by all programs unless a program specifically requests priority bandwidth.”

Go here to read rest of article…

August 2, 2008

Windows OS: “Microsoft maps out migration from Windows”

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 4:23 pm
Tags: , , ,


Go here for article source…

Microsoft maps out migration from Windows

By David Worthington

July 31, 2008 — At the risk of undercutting one of its core product lines, Microsoft is carefully conceptualizing a way to move millions of users away from the existing Windows codebase and onto Midori, a legacy-free operating system that it is currently incubating in its skunk works.

SD Times has viewed internal Microsoft documents that reveal the company’s preference of an orderly replacement strategy rather than breaking sharply with its past.

The company is acutely aware that Windows is installed on the majority of the world’s computers and has a broad legacy of applications and devices—one that carries with it a lot of value.

But heritage comes at a price: Evolving Windows to meet new opportunities is a costly proposition. “Legacy support is a huge anchor on Windows,” remarked Larry O’Brien, an independent analyst and consultant who writes the Windows & .NET Watch column for SD Times.

To read details about Microsoft’s post-Windows operating system, click here.

According to the documents, the company plans to create Midori’s “legacy-free bubble,” both at the programming model and at the user level. The models differ in the degree to which Midori and Windows coexist, and virtualization could wind up in the mix.

Microsoft’s desire for legacy support has twin roots: It needs to establish a migration path that offers comfort to its customers, while avoiding the pitfall of users implementing virtualization to run other operating systems that would perform tasks better than Windows can. Such a future runs the risk of relegating Windows to the role of a co-resident installation that executes legacy applications.

(more…)

July 30, 2008

Windows OS: Microsoft Continuing to Work on Brand New OS

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 12:49 am
Tags: , , ,


Go here for article source…

Microsoft’s plans for post-Windows OS revealed
By David Worthington


July 29, 2008 — Microsoft is incubating a componentized non-Windows operating system known as Midori, which is being architected from the ground up to tackle challenges that Redmond has determined cannot be met by simply evolving its existing technology.

SD Times has viewed internal Microsoft documents that outline Midori’s proposed design, which is Internet-centric and predicated on the prevalence of connected systems.

Midori is an offshoot of Microsoft Research’s Singularity operating system, the tools and libraries of which are completely managed code. Midori is designed to run directly on native hardware (x86, x64 and ARM), be hosted on the Windows Hyper-V hypervisor, or even be hosted by a Windows process.

According to published reports, Eric Rudder, senior vice president for technical strategy at Microsoft and an alumnus of Bill Gates’ technical staff, is heading up the effort. Rudder served as senior vice president of Microsoft’s Servers and Tools group until 2005. A Microsoft spokesperson refused comment.

“That sounds possible—I’ve heard rumors to the effect that he [Rudder] had an OS project in place,” said Rob Helm, director of research at Directions on Microsoft. He noted that it is quite possible that the project is just exploratory, but conceivably a step above what Microsoft Research does.

One of Microsoft’s goals is to provide options for Midori applications to co-exist with and interoperate with existing Windows applications, as well as to provide a migration path.

Building Midori from the ground up to be connected underscores how much computing has changed since Microsoft’s engineers first designed Windows; there was no Internet as we understand it today, the PC was the user’s sole device and concurrency was a research topic.

(more…)

July 26, 2008

Windows: “Mojave” OS Better Than Vista… So it seems…

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 4:20 pm
Tags: ,


Go here for article source…

July 24, 2008 4:00 AM PDT

Microsoft looks to ‘Mojave’ to revive Vista’s image

Posted by Ina Fried
142 comments

REDMOND, Wash.–After months of searching for ways to defend its oft-maligned Windows operating system, Microsoft may just have found its best weapon: Vista’s skeptics.

Spurred by an e-mail from someone deep in the marketing ranks, Microsoft last week traveled to San Francisco, rounding up Windows XP users who had negative impressions of Vista. The subjects were put on video, asked about their Vista impressions, and then shown a “new” operating system, code-named Mojave. More than 90 percent gave positive feedback on what they saw. Then they were told that “Mojave” was actually Windows Vista.

“Oh wow,” said one user, eliciting exactly the exclamation that Microsoft had hoped to garner when it first released the operating system more than 18 months ago. Instead, the operating system got mixed reviews and criticisms for its lack of compatibility and other headaches.

To be sure, the focus groups didn’t have to install Vista or hook it up to their existing home network. Still, the emotional appeal of the “everyman” trying Vista and liking it clearly packs an emotional punch, something the company has desperately needed. Microsoft is still trying to figure out just how it will use the Mojave footage in its marketing, though it will clearly have a place.

(more…)

June 25, 2008

Business, Windows OS: Windows XP… Not dead yet… MS to support thru 2014…

Filed under: IT Business, IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 11:24 pm
Tags: , , ,


Go here for article source…

Microsoft Pledges Windows XP Support Through 2014

Microsoft may have little choice but to support XP for an extended period since most of its business customers have not upgraded to Windows Vista.

By Paul McDougall, InformationWeek
June 24, 2008
URL: http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=208800494

In an unprecedented move, Microsoft has committed to providing support services for its soon to be retired Windows XP through 2014 — a full 13 years after the operating system was originally released.

In a letter sent to customers this week, Microsoft senior VP Bill Veghte said the software maker will provide security patches “and other critical updates” for Windows XP until April, 2014.

“Our ongoing support for Windows XP is the result of our recognition that people keep their Windows-based PCs for many years,” Veghte wrote.

That may be, but Microsoft normally terminates support for an OS within ten years of its release — at the latest. For instance, it plans to end support for Windows 2000 in 2010.

Microsoft may have little choice but to support Windows XP for an extended period, given that the majority of its large business customers have not upgraded their personal computers and laptops to the newer, Windows Vista operating system.

Many companies have balked at Vista’s cost, resource requirements, and lack of compatibility with older applications.

Microsoft released Vista in January of last year. But the company has apparently accepted the fact that many of its largest customers will skip Vista altogether and will continue using XP at least until Windows 7 becomes available three years from now, and possibly longer.

In addition to supporting XP through 2014, Microsoft is now actively promoting a program that allows customers to downgrade Vista systems to XP through a loophole in the company’s licensing terms. Microsoft’s software license allows customers who purchase a copy of Windows to install and run a previous version of the OS at no additional cost.

“It’s true that we will stop selling Windows XP as a retail packaged product and stop licensing it directly to major PC manufacturers [after June 30],” wrote Veghte. “But customers who still need Windows XP will be able to get it,” he said.

Beyond the downgrade program, Microsoft will continue to make Windows XP available to manufacturers of low-cost PCs incapable of running Vista through June 2010. Low cost PCs, like the Asus Eee PC, are gaining popularity in fast growing emerging markets like India and China.

Without continued access XP, manufacturers of such systems would be forced to offer them with the rival Linux OS on board — a situation Microsoft is hoping to preempt.

April 29, 2008

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes of ZDNet Shows XP\SP3 Benchmarks

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 10:26 pm

April 28th, 2008

XP SP3 vs. Vista SP1 – Which is fastest?

In the TalkBack section on my post looking at SP3 benchmarks, _deitrich asked a really good question:

Adrian, how about a comparison of XP SP3 vs Vista SP1? Oui? C’est possible?

Good question! Fortunately I’ve already done a fair bit of the groundwork in that I used the Phenom 9700 system I have for benchmarking both XP SP3 and Vista SP1.

I benchmarked both operating systems using PassMark PerformanceTest 6.1 and bringing together the results from both tests allows me to answer _deitrich’s question.

Go here to read rest of article… and see the stats… http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=1772&tag=nl.e539

September 26, 2007

Windows OS: “Confirmation of stealth Windows Update”

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 10:32 pm


Confirmation of stealth Windows Update
Click title to read rest of article at ZDNet.com…

Adrian Kingsley-Hughes
September 13th, 2007

I can now confirm that the stealth Windows Update that I blogged about yesterday actually exists – because I’ve detected its presence on a machine at the PC Doc HQ.

At the PC Doc HQ we have several systems set not to update automatically. This is so that they are kept at a specific patch level for testing duties. Many of these systems are virtual machines but some are physical. When I heard about this stealth update I decided to take a look at one of these systems that don’t update automatically (it was set to download and notify) – and within seconds I found what I was looking for.

[UPDATED - Just to clarify, I can confirm that this stealth update was applied to systems where Windows Update was set to “Download updates but let me choose whether to install them” and “for updates but let me choose whether to download and install them” but not on systems set to “Never check for updates.”]

September 25, 2007

Windows OS: Upset with Vista? Upgrade to Windows XP…

Filed under: IT Windows OS — Black Falcon @ 8:27 pm


The XP alternative for Vista PCs
Click title to see rest of article at ZDNet.com…

Ina Fried, (News.com)
Sep 21, 2007 1

While Microsoft is still pushing Vista hard, the company is quietly allowing PC makers to offer a “downgrade” option to buyers that get machines with the new operating system but want to switch to Windows XP.

The program applies only to Windows Vista Business and Ultimate versions, and it is up to PC makers to decide how, if at all, they want to make XP available. Fujitsu has been among the most aggressive, starting last month to include an XP disc in the box with its laptops and tablets.

“That’s going to help out small- and medium-size businesses,” Fujitsu marketing manager Brandon Farris told CNET News.com.

Next Page »

Blog at WordPress.com.