Category: Uncategorized

My kids clicked on some crazy web page yesterday and installed a piece of software that just wouldn’t uninstall. (Note: I remembered today that I could’ve booted in safe mode and then unistalled the #$%&ware, but with two screaming boys scrambling for the PC you don’t always think clearly…)

Call out the dogs: the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool on the MS website checks computers running Windows XP (as well as Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003) for infections. I ran it last night and poof, no more malware.

Very cool.

(While you’re at it check out the AntiSpyware beta which I found worked well and was easy to set up.)

What I found interesting while looking though the parent’s guide on Microsoft.com (which I like) was what they said about…

What 5-6 year olds can do online
Kids at this age may be very capable at following commands on the computer, using the mouse, and playing computer games. They are, however, highly dependent on adults or older siblings to help them find Web sites, interpret online information, or send e-mail.

Huh? My 4-yr-old easily heads off to PBS Kids, Nick Jr and other sites without so much as a holler. Once he starts to type the first couple of letters, IE autofill takes over…

The Washngton Post today has an interesting online transcript of a discussion between consumers and company execs to discuss customer service in the communications industry. Included were execs from Cingular Wireless, Cox Communications and Verizon. This was a follow up to an article that ran in August in the Post…

Consumers Frustrated With Static on the Service Line

Communications Companies Rankle Customers

Yuki Noguchi, Washington Post Staff Writer, Tuesday, September 20, 2005; 1:00 PM

Even as technology races to new heights in the communications industry, the mundane matter of customer service keeps dragging consumers back to earth. Such companies now rate near or at the bottom in some customer satisfaction surveys, even as the government moves to loosen oversight and deregulate the industry.

OK, this has nothing to do with delighting Windows customers and partners, but for those who didn’t see this Sunday’s article in the Seattle Times on preparing for a disaster, I’ve shared it here. [Ed: I updated the link to a current article as the original is 404.)

No matter where you are, there’s always a chance that nature will throw something your way. Coming from Northern California a couple of years ago, we’ve had emergency kits in the garage and in each of our cars in anticipation of an earthquake… but this reminded us that we still had a few things left to take care of in case of emergency. At our home we’ve implemented the preparedness that’s popular in Japan, of having suitacases for each member of the house (actually, duffles and packs for the kids), and plastic containers in each car filled with the basics: bottled water, first aid kits, pre-packaged (non-perishable) foods, space blankets, fire extinguisher, flashlight with batteries, rope, tarp and misc personal hygiene items. Water is the most important item: figure on a gallon a day per person, twice that in the summer.

Included in the article was a link to their printable disaster tip sheet which you can use “to get your personal disaster plan into shape.”

The USGS also maintains a page on earthquake preparedness, in addition to their info on activity by state accessible from their home page (here’s a link for WA).

Highly recommended.

Tags: preparedness, earthquake, disaster.

Although I blog internally at Microsoft and kept up a family web site with regular updates going since our first boy arrived in the late 90’s (a barn burner of bits), I thought it would be interesting to kick a blog off on MSDN.

I’ve titled the blog “Satisfy Me” more as a reference to the movie of a similar name, where the star/director spends a month overeating fast food. Not that I’m going to live on a diet of burgers and fries for a 30 days to prove a point. About a year and a half ago I took on a new role at MS to work with our business groups (aka as our “product families”) on their efforts to improve satisfaction with our customers and partners to “ensure that customers and partners have positive experiences with Microsoft,” as noted on MS.com. As part of Engineering Excellence, we coordinate cross-group efforts with the Sales, Marketing, and Service Group (SMSG).