Posts
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Classic Start Menu for Windows 7
Attention Luddites…
For all of you who just must have the classic Start Menu and can’t live your computing day without doing things in an antiquated way, there’s a 3rd-party utility to turn the clock back and allow you to point and click like in the days of yore.
Seven Classic Start returns the convenience of the Windows XP and Windows Vista original Start Menu to Windows 7 users…expect to pay US$24.95 for your trip down memory lane though. And, for you true Luddites out there, pay an additional $9.90 for a CD. According to the publisher, Skyshape Software, Seven Classic Start is compatible with all 32 and 64-bit editions of Microsoft Windows 7.
So, quick, run don’t walk, click the link above to get your very own way-back machine…as for me, I hung up my buggy whip a long time ago; as it silently collects dust, it reminds me of the days of Program Manager and File Manager.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Remove Windows 7 or Vista from a Dual-boot Configuration
From the article Video: Remove Windows 7 or Vista from a Dual-boot Configuration with the Bootsect Command
by Bill Detwiler on July 2, 2009
Dual-booting Windows is a handy way to test betas and service packs before committing to a new OS. But once you’ve made your decision to stick with the new OS or give it the boot, you’ll likely want to get rid of those extra partitions and revert to a single OS. If you don’t want reformat the hard drive and completely re-install your chosen operating system, there is an alternative. In this IT Dojo video, I show you how to use the Windows Bootsect command to extract Vista or Windows 7 from a dual-boot configuration with Windows XP.
For those of you who prefer text to video, you can click the Transcript link that appears below the video player window or you can also read Greg Shultz’s article, “Use Bootsect to extract Vista or Windows 7 from a dual-boot configuration,” on which this video is based.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Warning: New Computer Buyers - Windows 7 QnA
From the Blog posted by Jonathan Matthis on July 3, 2009 at 7:25pm
I'm sure that most in this forum are completely aware that Windows 7 does not exist on a marketing scale because it technically doesn't exist yet and won't exist until October 22, 2009.
There is a disturbing new scam going on where people, looking for a good deal on a computer, are purchasing a computer from an individual or some third party where the machine is being marketed as being loaded with Microsoft's newest operating system, Windows 7.
They buy the machine only to find out later that the machine is running the beta version of Windows 7, is now in bi-hourly shutdown and are potentially screwed since they have no XP or Vista re-installation discs that are typically included in the purchase of a machine from a genuine vendor.
Full article - WARNING NEW COMPUTER BUYERS - Windows 7 QnA
![[Get Copyright Permissions]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u7FueCg2mSJQ7kdy_eiEcsVWm6v1j10yGsEAJhIAIdCYFUn5F-3OwI7lY3CVXsSvFK8AJmruAFgK49qvxnQMvWhgd33qSEl4y6g4FO1l8QcWHa=s0-d){kind=small} Copyright 2009 Agave Anejo Stay on Top of Windows 7 at the Windows 7 QnA Site | |
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Thursday, July 2, 2009
Family Pack for Windows 7 Home Premium
From Ed Bott's Microsoft Report Microsoft to offer Family Pack for Windows 7 Home Premium Posted July 1st, 2009, 9:40pm
Thanks to a tip from Kristan Kenney, I took a close look at the agreements embedded in the License folder of the latest leaked builds of Windows 7. This is no longer a beta license agreement and is presumably very close to the final agreement that customers will accept. The agreements for retail copies of Windows 7 Home Premium contain this eye-opening clause:
If you can’t read the screen shot, here’s the relevant section: “If you are a ‘Qualified Family Pack User’, you may install one copy of the software marked as ‘Family Pack’ on three computers in your household for use by people who reside there.”
Note, as of this post, the link in the screen-shot is not live; you’ll have to wait to see the definition of ‘Qualified Family Pack User’.
Full Article - http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=1145
| Copyright 2009 Agave Anejo Stay on Top of Windows 7 at the Windows 7 QnA Site | |
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Friday, June 26, 2009
My ACD – Last Herd
Roxy, my Australian Cattle Dog (ACD) of the past 7 years was diagnosed yesterday with liver cancer that had metastasized. Her prognosis was poor; even with surgery and prolonged chemotherapy, her quality of life would be severely limited, painful, and short; so the very hard decision was made to put her down and let her go peacefully onto the last roundup.
In this Blog
are deposited the Remains of one
who possessed Beauty without Vanity,
Strength without Insolence,
Courage without Ferocity,
and all the virtues of Man without his Vices.
This praise, which would be unmeaning Flattery
if inscribed over human Ashes,
is but a just tribute to the Memory of
Roxy, a DOG,
who was born in 1995
and died on June 25, 2009.
When some proud Son of Man returns to Earth,
Unknown by Glory, but upheld by Birth,
The sculptor’s art exhausts the pomp of woe,
And storied urns record who rests below.
When all is done, upon a tomb is seen,
Not what he was, but what he should have been.
But the poor Dog, in life the firmest friend,
The first to welcome, foremost to defend,
Whose honest heart is still her Master’s own,
Who labors, fights, lives, and breathes for him alone,
Unhonored falls, unnoticed all her worth,
Denied in heaven the Soul she held on earth.
An edited excerpt from "Epitaph to a Dog" (1808) Lord Byron
Roxy was seven years old when I rescued her; it wasn’t a traditional rescue, but instead, a pre-emptive rescue. Her previous owner could no longer keep her. If she were not adopted, she would have been sheltered, and at seven years old, her prospects seemed unfavorable. Fate stepped in when I was visiting my aunt and uncle. While drinking my morning coffee and reading the local paper, I was scanning the classified ads on the off-chance that I could find a bargain for a used garden tractor. Way away from the Home and Garden section, my eyes caught a very little ad – “ACD Free to Good Home. Call ---“, that was it, nothing more. I called; we chatted for a bit and set a time for me to stop by on my way back home.
An ACD’s caution and loyalty is well known, so I was skeptical that she would want to leave her family of seven years and go off with a stranger. After about a half-hour of getting to know one another and deciding that we’d give it a go, I opened the door to my truck, hand signaled and said, “Up”. Without missing a beat, Roxy jumped into the truck and sat on the seat. I closed the door, started the truck, and off we went on our eleven hour ride to her new home – and the beginning of our seven year adventure together. Roxy’s loyalty was almost instantly transferred to me. Even during those first few hours and weeks, it never seemed as though she was not 100% focused on me. Family and friends were amazed how connected we were and her unswerving dedication and need to protect me…even from a cat walking into the room (LOL).
For those of you who know of ACDs, you’ll know their trait of being a shadow dog is well deserved – wherever I went, there she was. When I’d be working around the house – going from room to room, inside or out, getting up and sitting down, stopping to do a little thing and then moving on, she’d be one step behind me. On my more manic, caffeine and adrenaline-filled days, I’d marvel at her natural stamina to rest, but always stay alert and be on guard. She could be laying between any perceived danger and me, but any little change caused a perking up of head, eyes, and ears – scanning the horizon, accessing the threat, and responding accordingly. Many times, thank goodness, this meant her laying back down for yet another of her hundreds of cat naps that day.
Towards the end of such days, I’d often wonder if she’d been thinking to herself “This knucklehead can’t decide what he wants to do and where he wants to go. I’ve been getting up and laying down a hundred times today, I’m just staying here – he can chase his own tail for a while.” Even if such thoughts danced around her over-developed brain, she never showed her frustration, nor did I even notice my shadow wane.
As my constant companion, our adventures took us to 30 states and countless places: inside and out; city, country, and wilderness; forest, beach, mountain, and desert; hotel and truck stop; and many times to hang out with other critters. I hope she enjoyed sharing in those adventures as much as I enjoyed her being there. Future adventures will be un-whole and the thought of my traveling the road alone is profoundly saddening.
We were by each other’s sides until the end. The final goodbye and looking into her eyes was one of the most difficult things I have ever had to do. I hope, after seven years of cat naps and chasing my tail, Roxy gets her well deserved and overdue rest. Roxy will always be missed and in my heart and thoughts.
Vaya con Dios my guardian, travel mate, companion, shadow, and friend.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Windows 7 Programming Guide – Libraries
From the Windows Team Blog - Windows 7 Programming Guide – Libraries Yochay Kiriaty Thu, 11 Jun 2009 16:51:24 GMT
This post is an index to the recent Windows 7 Libraries series. It includes relevant Channel 9 videos and links to additional relevant sources of information as well as code examples for programming Windows 7 Libraries.
Posts
- Windows 7 Libraries .NET Sample Library – an Overview
- Understanding Windows 7 Libraries
- Libraries Under the Hood
- Light Up with Windows 7 Libraries
- Consuming the Contents of Windows 7 Libraries
- Stay in Sync with Windows 7 Libraries
- Windows 7 Libraries Helpers
- Windows 7 Libraries – Managed Code
- INSIDE WINDOWS 7: Introducing Libraries - MSDN Magazine article by Yochay Kiriaty and Alon Fliess
Resources
- Windows 7 Libraries: Developer Resources on MSDN
- Windows 7 RC Training Kit for Developers – Complete set of Hands-On-Labs and presentations
Videos
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Ensure Successful Enterprise Social Computing Adoption
A Six-Step Roadmap to Ensure Successful Enterprise Social Computing Adoption
June 17 2009 7:27 AM
NewsGator white paper reveals how a modicum of planning can deliver quantifiable business results and cultural transformations
DENVER, June 17, 2009 – The seismic success of Facebook, Wikipedia, Twitter and other social computing tools often creates soaring expectations for viral adoption of social computing in business settings. While the “just build it and they will come” strategy works in the consumer world, it’s a dangerous approach for business: users may never come, or they may come and waste their time.
Full article and link to White Paper - http://www.newsgator.com/companyinfo/press/archive.aspx?post=189
Beware of Windows 7 Downgrade/Upgrade Mess – The Mountain and the Mole Hill
As Blogged by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes of ZDNet – June 17, 2009
According to Gartner analyst Michael Silver, businesses looking to migrate to Windows 7 could find the whole process much harder and more expensive than it needs to be … thanks to Microsoft.
Here’s what Silver had to say to Infoworld:
“Under Microsoft’s planned enterprise licensing rules, businesses that buy PCs before April 23, 2010, with Windows 7 pre-installed can downgrade them to Windows XP, then later upgrade them to Windows 7 when they’re ready to migrate their users. But PCs bought on or after April 23 can only be downgraded to Vista - which is of no help for XP-based organizations, Silver notes - and could cause major headaches and add more costs to the Windows 7 migration effort.”
My $0.02
One could adopt the Chicken Little behavior of Messrs Kingsley-Hughes and Silver, or one could take a closer look at enterprise R&D, provisioning, packaging, and roll-out to see that enterprises have been preparing for a transition away from XP for much longer than the last 24 hours. Even for those enterprises not transitioning from XP to Vista, plans were underway a long time ago to move to Windows 7.
A large, 25,000+ user enterprise, which shall remain nameless, has been in the process for the past 3 years of auditing all internal systems and evaluating all new initiatives to be Vista compliant; for over a year, they have been regression testing Vista compatibility for Windows 7. They had planned to roll-out Vista later this year, but will instead wait and roll-out Windows 7 the 3rd quarter of next year. Which, interestingly enough, seems to fit right in with purchasing new PCs by the April 23, 2010 deadline.
Unless enterprises are waiting for the retail release of Windows 7 before doing any planning, I think Messrs Kingsley-Hughes and Silver are making a mountain out of a mole hill…or else, enterprises are looking for a Microsoft bail-out (can you say “AIG”).
Friday, June 12, 2009
Windows 7 RC Training Kit for Developers - Windows 7 for Developers
From the The Windows Blog
This week the Windows 7 RC Training Kit for Developers was released as part of the ongoing effort to give you, all the Windows developers out there, valuable content to work with while making your application shine on Windows 7. This version of the training kit includes 10 presentations and 8 Hands-On-Labs (HOL), covering most of the Windows 7 light-up features as well as application compatibility topics. Note that the HOL gives you the opportunity to get firsthand experience in programming key Windows 7 Light-Up features, such as the Taskbar, Libraries, Multi-Touch, Sensors and Location, Graphics, Ribbon, Trigger Start Services, Instrumentation and Event Tracing for Windows (ETW). It also provides a brief Application Compatibility overview.
This is an “early preview” to the full set of Windows 7 Training for Developers that will be released shortly after RTM. You can download the training kit and get started, but make sure you have a Windows 7 RC machine to work with, and install Visual Studio 2008 SP 1 and the Windows 7 RC SDK as some of the native applications requires libraries from the SDK. See more details and downloads at the link below.
Windows 7 RC Training Kit for Developers - Windows 7 for Developers - The Windows Blog
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