Tag: Microsoft

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Don’t Get Tricked: protecting your PC from being a Zombie

Last year, Microsoft teamed up with the FTC in the “Don’t Get Tricked on Halloween” campaign to crack down on illegal methods used by spammers to distribute unsolicited e-mail. As October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month, only fitting that I replay this blast from the past… 



Timed to coincide with National Cyber Security Awareness Month and Halloween on Oct. 31, the “Don’t Get Tricked on Halloween” campaign alerts computer users to the threat of zombie computers and how to protect their personal computers (PCs) from being infected with malicious code. “The only way to slow the spread of zombies and other online threats is by going after them as resolutely and in as many ways as possible,” says Tim Cranton, director of Microsoft’s Internet Safety Enforcement programs.


Stop Zombie PC Attacks in their Tracks: Tips on how Internet users can prevent their computers from becoming zombies:



  • Use a firewall to protect computers from hacking attacks while connected to the Internet. 

  • Keep Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office programs up to date with security updates to shield computers from viruses, worms and other threats.

  • Use up-to-date antivirus software and antispyware software to help protect against the latest threats.

  • Beware of tricks designed to get people to download and install unwanted and sometimes destructive software. This software is sometimes distributed in non-commercial music downloads, file-sharing programs and free games.

  • Be cautious about opening any attachment or downloading any files in e-mails from unknown senders.

The campaign so nice we promoted it twice. Or something like that.


Have a Happy Halloween.


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Of Interest: Jim Allchin blogging on Vista

If you haven’t seen it on the http://windowsvistablog.com/blogs/, Jim Allchin (Co-President of the Platform and Services Division) is blogging now. From Jim:



“Welcome to the new and improved Windows Vista blog.  A few months back, I pushed our team to bring the blog from the blogging Dark Ages into something a little more modern.  The blog back then wasn’t quite doing the job.  Postings were infrequent, and the site wasn’t particularly helpful.


“In May, the team really turned the corner and today we’re launching the newly updated look and feel.  I hope you’ll agree it’s a big improvement.  It incorporates some key parts of the Windows Vista visuals.  We’ve also improved the organization of the site, so things should be easier to find.  The team’s providing great information, and I’m happy to see the comments and feedback from the community through the comments on the site.  I read these regularly, as do many others in the Windows leadership team, so please keep the feedback coming.”


The feedback is heard, circulated, shared and acted upon. I think that you’ll see more concrete examples in the weeks and months to come as Vista roles out.


Of further interest: see the interview with Jim on channel9.


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Your questions: Should I upgrade to Windows Vista?

I was asked via email this week a couple of times for my opinion on whether consumers should upgrade their Windows XP computers to the upcoming Windows Vista. Today in the Seattle Times, there’s a question from a reader of the Personal Technology Q&A column who asks “whether there would be any advantage to my upgrading to Windows Vista?”


The author, Patrick Marshall, recommends that they hold off on upgrading from XP until Vista is glitch-free:



“I wouldn’t recommend anyone upgrade to Vista on a machine they care about until the new operating system starts shipping, and maybe even for a while after that. I’ve been using Vista on a test machine for several months and there are still a number of glitches.


“Once Vista ships, you may want to consider upgrading, especially if you’re using your computer for such things as online banking. Fact is, while Vista offers a new slick look to the operating system, the more significant improvements are in security.”


OK, that makes sense, and falls in line with my general advice: waiting until Windows Vista is released and shipping makes sense for many consumers. At our home, not all PCs have been migrated to the latest Vista builds for various reasons… mainly related to legacy games for the kids that only run under Win9x compatibility mode. Many advanced consumers and computer users have already installed the Vista release candidates to get an early look at what to expect. I know of many consumers using the latest versions of Vista, and their experiences have been generally positive.


At home, I have found that the latest release candidate performs much better and is more reliable than XP (disclaimer: I work at MS), and admit that I run Windows XP and Vista side by side for various reasons. (In one case, I’m waiting for a hardware BIOS upgrade for my Tablet). That’s why I set up a dual boot system when I started with Vista RC1.


PC World published their own Ten Reasons to Buy Windows Vista last February, when they said…



“while the sleek new look and polished interface caught my eye, it’s what’s under the covers that impressed me most. Microsoft’s done a great job of improving security across the board. Things like Windows and spyware library updates are streamlined, and I definitely appreciate the more robust Backup software.



“Here’s what to be excited about:




  1. Security, security, security.


  2. Internet Explorer 7.


  3. Righteous eye candy, with the Aero Glass interface.


  4. Desktop search.


  5. Better updates via Windows Update, making it easier to keep your PC secure.


  6. More media: Windows Media Player, Windows Photo Gallery, DVD Maker and a new Movie Maker.


  7. Parental controls.


  8. Better backups with improved built-in data-backup software.


  9. Peer-to-peer collaboration.


  10. Quick setup.”

If you have one PC at home, run the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor to evaluate your current PC, as I mentioned in a previous post. That will provide a good assessment.


There are also reasons that some customers may decide not to upgrade, due to PC hardware limitations or legacy software incompatibilities – that will be the case for our kid’s PC, until we test their must have game software. That includes their favourite educational software like Encarta that is included in Microsoft Student, edutainment titles (Knowledge Adventure’s Adiboo!), general entertainment titles like our own Zoo Tycoon, online sites like PBS Kids! to MSN Games and Disney’s ToonTown (which seems to work fine so far in IE7). 


I’m off now as the kids are up – time to finish making Halloween costumes. We have an extra hour thanks to daylight saving time.


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Problems accessing the Internet with Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor? Try this

Yesterday I recommended the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor in my post “How can I find out if my PC is compatible with Windows Vista?”


A reader commented that he having difficulty using the application, getting an error msg that he “didn’t have an internet connection and it can’t contact the web service.”


So I tried it out on my remaining PC at home that is not running Windows Vista (waiting for an updated driver) and the Upgrade Advisor (aka VUA) ran fine. Then I tried it on the kid’s PC, which runs Windows XP due to the number of old games running under Windows 9x… guess what? Upgrade Advisor failed to connect to the Internet.


Well, I spoke with the Upgrade Advisor team (thanks, guys) and they gave me the following advice: if you have problems connecting to the web service during the scan, please carry out the following steps:



  1. Launch Internet Explorer

  2. Go to Tools -> Internet Options -> Connections -> LAN Settings

  3. Select option for “Proxy Server” and use address field: “itgproxy” with Port: 80

  4. Check option to “Bypass proxy server for local address”

  5. Click “OK” twice, and re-launch VUA to initiate the scan

  

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“How can I find out if my PC is compatible with Windows Vista?”

The New York TimesTechnology section has an article online today “On the Horizon: A Vista Upgrade.” In it, the author provides some answers to the question: How can I find out if my current computer hardware (including my scanner and printer) will be compatible with the coming Windows Vista system? Will this be as simple as merely downloading new drivers?


From the article…



“If you are holding off on any hardware purchases until after your Vista upgrade, Microsoft recently announced that about 250 hardware and software products for sale this holiday season will be labeled “Works with Windows Vista” or “Certified for Windows Vista.” Products with the “Works” label will work fine with Vista, but “certified” products (including some graphics cards), will be able to take better advantage of certain Vista features.


If you are planning on installing Windows Vista on your current computer, you can check to see if your hardware can handle Vista’s system requirements at www.windowsvista.com/getready.”  


Many PC OEMs (like Dell, HP, IBM, Gateway, Toshiba, Sony…), third party manufacturers and software makers are beginning to list the products that are compatible with Windows Vista. To check your current PC, you can evaluate your current PC with the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor.