Microsoft Windows - How Bill Gates Stole My Idea!

Just kidding, I love you Bill Gates, you are my Jedi Master! But, way back in 1984, with my first computer, the Apple IIe, I learnt Apple Basic and had an idea for speeding up the process of using the computer. For those of you, who are unfamiliar with the early days of micro-computers, or personal computers ("PC's"), there was no such thing as Windows. No mouse, no icons, no start menus..."NADDA"! To understand what the early days of home computers usage was like, simply go to your Windows Start Menu and find, under "Accessories", "Command Prompt". That black screen you are looking at, with that simple ">:" icon, was all you had in the early days of the 1980's.

User's of the Apple IIe used DOS and Apple Basic. DOS was an acronym for Disk Operating System, a means to actually control the use of the floppy disk drive storage system. Apple Basic was the IIe's language. So the legendary "Hello World" program came with the User's Manual of the IIe. You would turn on the IIe in the back, the large video monitor would warm up and you would have a black screen with a blinking white prompt next to the infamous ">:" icon. If you wanted to run a program you would simply type in the command for directory and "poof" the list of programs would be listed. To run, you would have to type in the command for ">:Run HelloWorld". Very similar if you use the Control Prompt in Windows. The IIe used a 80 column peripheral card. Meaning a graphics card that only produced 80 columns of text. So no Mario jumping or Master Chief "tea-bagging" around the universe.

After getting familiar with the User's Manual I got a pretty good grip on Apple Basic. After a while I was able to create programs for balancing your check book or creating a scheduler. Mainly programs that would produce reports, or store data, but the user could enter input and save it. Most Apple games used the idea of Dungeons and Dragons, where it would display simply text and sound then you would respond appropriately. The Word Processor was the most important software to my friends and I, because of the ability of not having to redo typing!!!!

Eventually I started to ask if there was a way to make things more user friendly. So I created programs that would allow the user to see all programs available on disk and all they had to do was choose which one. I was pretty pleased with my self. In 1987, at the age of 18, I signed up with the Coast Guard. After leaving the service and going to Computer Learning Center I finally was introduced to C++. The current language used by modern programmers for applications. Then in 1990, at my first job as a HelpDesk Support Programmer, I got my very first computer with Windows! Ahhhhhh mouse, what a wonderful word!!!!!!!! And at the same time "Dohhh!" Bill Gates beat me to the punch!!! (hehe) The job, as a support guy, still used the same type of operating system DOS. I wouldn't see Windows, again, until the mid 90s when the internet was introduced to the public.

Today, I'm enjoying the "techno-revolution". Cell phones, internet, I-Phones, MP3 players, virtual reality......my mind is exploding!!! But I am thankful to those wonderful peeps, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, for catapulting technology to the place we are today. Even though Mr. Gates stole my idea!!!! ;0)

Hi I am Jim Carrillo. I have my own business as a Help Desk programmer. So if you have a computer or Windows related problem check out my website:

http://tekkynasekky.webs.com/

I hope to have further articles of more interest in upcoming days. Please let me know how I'm doing! Thanks!

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The Amazing, Incredible Secrets Of The Windows Phone

All of us love Bill Gates' Windows on our computers. Anytime there's an update to Windows technology, we would like to have it. We just can't get enough of it! A number of versions seem to have been somewhat less of a success than others have been, however finding our way through the maze of the Internet would not provide us with the incredible experience we are able to get by using Windows. Now we have the opportunity to get a similar experience with the advent of the Windows phone. This latest Bill Gate's innovation was released over the Christmas holiday of 2010. The Windows Phone 7 Series incorporates just about everything we have fallen in love with that Windows 7 for our PC's have. Yes, all that good stuff has been incorporated into the Windows phone!

The interface can be described as being unlike any other interface that has yet been seen on a smartphone up to now. The screen display is loaded with an extra-large group of flat squares in vibrant primary rainbow colors. The text is large and the screen features a modern day lively appearance. The graphics are magnificent. The start screen is highlighted with live tiles which are constantly being updated. You can obtain news, weather, or live, up to date traffic reports. In the event you decide to do so, you are able to pin a person on the start screen and obtain current status and images of that individual throughout the day.

The Window Phone is centered on a pair of hubs; ponsisting of pictures, people, music, games, video, office and marketplace. You will be able to gain access not just to your personal contacts but also to MySpace and Facebook. Video and music is the product of Zune's HD software which is on the phone concealed on the inside of the Window Phone. If you happen to be a video game lover, you will probably be delighted to know that X-Box Live is located right there also on the phone. You will be happy to know also that your scores can be hooked up to your X-Box that is at your home.

The browser used in the phone is of course Internet Explorer and although it is not as fast as that of Mobile Safari, it does contain multiple browser windows. The Outlook e-mail app is exceptional. The text is big, vivid, and quite simple to see and read. The Marketplace is the location used to buy your phone apps. The old apps associated with Windows Mobile is not going to work with the new Windows Phone 7. Built inside the phone you will find Bing and Bing maps. Microsoft Office is connected to Cloud for OTA syncing and those that plan on using the Windows Phone for business purposes will be very pleased when they find out everything the phone can do to help them out with their business needs.

The exact same mega corporations that control the market for desktops find themselves as part of the three way competition to see who comes out on top of the mobile phone market. Google, Microsoft, and Apple are the three big dogs in the race as well. Microsoft in the past has been very deliberate in bringing new products to the market, however, largely because of this, they have a track record of getting it right the first time! All signs point to Phone 7 replacing Windows Mobile in the not too far off future. If you want to get your hands on the latest in mobile phones from Microsoft, take a look at the Windows Phone. You won't be disappointed.

The Apple Iphone 4 is a truly amazing technological wonder. You will receive a free Apple Iphone 4 right now in return for testing out the phone you will receive. CLICK HERE [http://www.freesmartphones.info] Become an iPhone 4 Tester today by visiting [http://www.freesmartphones.info]

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Why is Windows 7 So Much Better Than Vista?

Either Microsoft has got it right, or the folks who are playing with the 'beta' version of the new Windows 7 are all in on a big conspiracy with Steve Ballmer and Bill Gates. I have been doing my fair share of research on the newest operating system and the early testers are happy with what really is an upgrade to Windows Vista. Not since Windows Millennium Edition have so many beat up an operating system for the Redmond tech campus. I admit that I hate change, so I have never owned a computer with Vista on it, but I have worked with it and I never saw an overpowering reason to switch. My first taste of Windows XP and I was hooked and had to have it! But Vista.... nah. The knock on Vista has always been it's buggy, and even with upgrades there was never anything that changed that image for most of us. According to survey I recently read, less than ten percent of the people out there actually made the upgrade to Vista. Furthering that was people ordering new computers and insisting on Windows XP long after Vista's 5 release versions. I just checked over at newegg.com and you can still buy a copy of XP Home Edition complete with Service Pack 3 for a smidge under $90.

My first sarcastic question was why is Win 7 so good, and yet Microsoft always seems to put out a buggy first edition of its operating systems? Heck, this is still the beta version and it will probably be replaced with another beta before the real deal comes out. And why did Microsoft make the beta of Windows 7 so easy for everyone to get an play with? My belief is competition, something that has been so foreign to Gates and Ballmer in the past is a reality in 2009. The competition from Apple and Linux was not a big deal when Microsoft kept Vista - better known in the pre-release days as "Longhorn"- and it was hard to get your hands on a beta copy. But now things have changed, big-time.

Starting with the 'iPhone' and the 'Ubuntu' version of Linux, Apple and other alternative operating systems are making headway. Shoot, I was in Best Buy the other day and saw they had a Mac display. Wow. The iPhone to the Mac and suddenly there is a competitor than can take market share away from Windows if doesn't get a better street image. Ubuntu is over hyped in my opinion. I've seen easier Linux versions to use that will allow the casual computer user to get on the net and not be that different from the interface they have become used to with Windows.

So Microsoft faces a problem they haven't faced in years. Real competition for the home and business computer marketplace. Competition makes you better, and in the case of Windows 7, first reports are better, much better than what we saw with Vista. As long as there are rivals for the 800 pound gorilla of computer desktops, we can expect better products from Microsoft. The good news for you and I is that Mac and Linux are getting a good footing and aren't likely to disappear from the competition soon.

Let me know what you think.

Mark Barron is a direct marketing professional and an internet broadcaster. He has over 20 years of experience on "Real Radio" and really enjoys the internet so much more. For more information on successful marketing and on internet radio, email markbarron@hotmail.com or go to his website: http://www.MarkBarron.com. Find out more about Mark's favorite business by going to his tech website, [http://www.BransonComputerRepair.com].

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Microsoft Windows Comes Of Age - Happy 21st Birthday!

Believe it or not Windows is 21 years old on 20th November 2006. When it was launched in 1985 the PC market was barely out of it's infancy, and whatever you may think of Microsoft it is amazing what they Bill Gates & Co have built in such a relatively short time.

Windows has been through many iterations since Windows 1.0 hit the shelves 21 years ago, with the latest and most advanced (and probably the most expensive) Vista due to be launched soon after 5 years of development.

In honour of Windows birthday and to celebrate it's coming of age, here are 21 things you never knew about Windows, Microsoft and Bill Gates:

1. Windows 1.0 was released on 20th Nov 1985 and the hardware requirements were 256KB of RAM, DOS 2.0 and two floppy drives, two years late.

2. The retail price was $100, which is worth about $177 in today's money - the same as Windows XP Home.

3. Microsoft sent out a press kit featuring a squeegee and washcloth to announce the launch of Windows 1.0, a full two years before the product was launched.

4. If Bill Gates had got his way, he would have called it "Interface Manager". 21 years later, I don't think Interface Manager Vista, or Vista Interface Manager would have had the same ring to it....

5. When Vista was launched Microsoft were David fighting Goliath, and had to fight many court battles:

"We weren't kidding that we bet the entire company on it," Gates recalls. "The strange thing was we were a much smaller company at the time. We were competing to establish this platform with companies larger than ourselves."

6. Windows 1.0 was only out for two weeks before it had to be patched to fix bugs (sound familiar?).

7. Windows crashes an estimated 25m times a day.

timeline_DOS.gif8. Windows 1.0 included a large number of utilities that are still part of Windows today - Calendar, Notepad, Terminal, Calculator, Clock, Windows Write and Windows Paint, Control Panel, and the Reversi game.

9. Support for Windows 1.0 was weak, and even Microsoft's own apps didn't support it. In fact, Excel and Word didn't work with Windows until 1987 and 1989.

10. Windows 3.1 was the first stable release, which led to many hardware manufacturers preloading it on their computers. This proved to be a major turning point in Windows history and world domination.

11. Windows 3.1 (Pre-release name Janus) was released in March of 1992. In its first few months on the shelf it sold over 2 million copies (including upgrades). The Windows 3.1x OSs were groundbreaking for their time and they paved the road for today's modern Microsoft environments.

12. Between 1986 and 1996 Microsoft's stock soared hundredfold and it was estimated that Microsoft had created 10,000 millionaires by 2000.

post_59416_1106163459_thumb.jpg13. Bill Gates earns $250 every second, $20m a day and $7.8BN a year.

14. If Bill drops a thousand dollar bill, it's not worth his while to pick it up, as he'll make the same amount in the time it takes him to pick it up.

15. If Bill Gates was a country, he would be the 37th richest country in the world.

16. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is the weathiest organisation for charitable grants with assets of approx $65Bn.

17. Erik Noyes from Charles Schwab came up with the phrase Blue Screen of Death "BSoD" in 1991.

18. Bill Gates scored 1590 on his SAT. Paul Allen, scored a perfect 1600.

19. windows_54.jpgThe Windows operating system has 50 million lines of code (a line averages 60 characters) and grows 20% with every release. It's put together by 7,200 people, comes in 34 languages and has to support 190,000 devices-different models of digital cameras, printers, handhelds and so on.

20. An estimated 250-300K applications have been developed for Windows.

21. Over 5 million testers signed up for Vista's release candidates (I'm wagering the first patch will be released within 3 weeks!)

Everton Blair is respected Internet Strategist and Blogger, who runs the Connected Internet blog following developments in the internet and mobile internet sectors. With over 12 years experience in strategy consulting and business development, and has seen and lived through the highs, and the lows of the industry.

Based in London, the author can be contacted on admin@connectedinternet.co.uk and his blog can be found at [http://www.connectedinternet.co.uk]

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Why you Should Avoid Windows Vista Like the Plague (at Least for Now) Part 3

Not everybody realizes this, but all the "new" features in Vista are old features stolen from Mac OS X, and not very well.

Microsoft has a history of stealing ideas and presenting them as their own -- all of the basic ideas behind Windows (having information displayed in one or more windows, having a desktop, having a recycle bin or trash can, using a mouse, etc.) were directly taken from the Mac after Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak (the co-founders of Apple) invited Bill Gates over to show off their new type of computer.

Bill took notes and ran back to Microsoft to copy it, and he's been doing it ever since.

The new version of Windows -- Windows Vista -- was supposed to come out years ago, but it got delayed and delayed, and finally was released around the beginning of 2007.

Back in 2004, Apple announced the then-new version of Mac OS X, OS 10.4 or "Tiger" (the "X" in Mac OS X is a Roman numeral 10, not a letter X by the way) at their developers conference.

Early in 2007, some internal emails were leaked from inside Microsoft that revealed that when one high-up employee from Microsoft was at the 2004 Apple Developers Conference, he was taking notes (just like Bill did all those years ago) and he confessed Microsoft had to take a lot of features of OS X from Apple to put into Vista.

He was also worried they wouldn't be able to do those features as well.

When Vista finally came out (two and a half years later) I remember watching the promotional video that showed off all of the supposedly new features of Vista.

Every single one was clearly a knock-off of features in the 2004 version of Mac OS X, and in my opinion, not very good knock-offs.

In fact, the Microsoft employee who wrote those leaked emails is on record saying that he'd use a Mac himself if he didn't work for Microsoft.

So why pay for recycled "new features" when they won't really do that much to improve your computer (and as I mentioned in an earlier email, are likely to slow it down) -- it doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

I won't deny that I like Macs better than PCs too -- and unlike a lot of people who are big supporters of one and bash the other, I am very familiar with both types of computer, and realize that neither type is perfect -- and I honestly think that 99% of the time, you're better off using a Mac than a Windows PC.

So if you're going to get a new computer, which you're better off doing if you're getting Vista, why not get the real deal instead of the pale imitation?

Just my opinion.

Worth Godwin is a computer coach with over 15 years' experience helping computer users of all levels, and has also worked for many years "in the trenches" as a hardware and software tech, solving real-world computer problems.

Worth has also been studying the human mind, and how people learn, since the early 1990s. He draws upon all of this experience, as well as his English and writing degrees, to teach people in a unique way with explanations that really make sense.

In 2006, Worth began putting his easy lessons together on computer training CDs, carefully designed to make it easy to learn both basic computer skills for Windows and basic computer skills for Apple Mac at your own pace, for an affordable price, with a system that really works.

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Windows 7 Requirements - Not Meeting Them Will Make For a Slow Computer

The Microsoft people have come up with a new version of an operating system in recent months. In an interview to Newsweek, Bill Gates announced this version is meant to be more user centric than previous OS's. This is a new wrinkle of an upgrade. Certainly, earlier versions of the Windows operating systems were never said to be centric, though in some ways, they were.

So, what does Mr. Gates mean by centric and what will it do for us? The word centric is derived from the word center. A centric structure has its main body in the middle and layers form around it which this central body controls. However, the real meaning I get from the way the word centric is being used here is that Microsoft is the central controlling body.

Tracers

The reason I say this is because Windows 7 uses tracers to keep the operating system running. Whereas with previous versions of Windows you used to have to click OK to send a report to Microsoft after a crash, this is no longer necessary because Windows tracers will take care of it. While all this sounds 1984ish, it really is not a bad thing.

If you were to take your Windows XP or Vista Operating System disk and try to install it on another computer, you would not be able to. So, you can see Microsoft has, to some extent been in our homes for a while already. Though this concept may be hard for some of us to swallow, that is just the way it is.

Cutting the Waste

Of course, probably what Mr. Gates was meaning to convey by centric is that the time has come for operating systems to be very, very efficient. In the past, upgrades were built as additions slapped onto the previous operating system.

With Windows 7's centric system the waste has been cut from the inner to the outer core of the system. This makes it so your microprocessor can do more while working less. Windows 7 has achieved this goal by sacrificing, to some extent, compatibility. In other words, you won't see too many programs compatible with Windows 7 and everything else.

No Windows Mail!

Window 7 comes without Windows Mail or Photo Gallery installed. However a free download including these two pieces of software and some other niece features as well, can be downloaded. All in all, I see this as a plus over previous operating systems.

Some users of Windows 7 have complained it is slow. Actually, this operating system is built for speed but your computer has to have the horsepower to run it. A 40GB hard drive with 16GB of free space is an absolute minimum. Also, you cannot even get this OS off the ground without at least 1 GB of RAM. Microsoft states the minimum speed of the processor to be 1 GHZ, but I would add you need a top Microprocessor with ample L1 cache onboard as well. In other words, a so-so computer will not run Windows 7 very well.

Still, this operating system has some nice features. Myself, I have been delighted with my Windows Vista system but with we computer users becoming more and more video obsessed, an operating system structured to cutout wasted computer effort is needed. Windows 7 is at least an attempt at designing this non wasteful, centric system.

The author, Ed Lathrop is a comp TIA A+/Network+ certified computer technician familiar with the operation, repair and upkeep of today's PC's. His site, Registry Repair Reviews, rates the latest registry programs and tells which registry cleaners work and which ones might actually be dangerous to your computer. Also, Computer is Slow Why? gives you step by step instructions on how to get your computer's speed back!

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The Real Cost of $3 Windows

LEAVE it to Bill Gates. There's a reason he's the richest man in the world.

On a visit to China last April, he announced a program that would sell a $3 bundle of Windows XP and MS Office to governments in poor countries that subsidize computer purchases by students.

"All human beings deserve a chance to achieve their full potential," Gates said in announcing Microsoft's latest program to bridge the digital divide.

It was a public relations coup and a shrewd business move besides.

Now $3 is a great price for MS Office 2007, even though it's the Home and Student Edition that doesn't have PowerPoint. But Windows XP Starter Edition is a crippled version of a five-year-old operating system, with networking disabled and multitasking severely limited.

So the software isn't great, but it's good enough to do the job.

Unfortunately, the "job" isn't just personal productivity, it's technology lock-in. It's all about creating a new generation of computer users who are hooked on Windows and programs that run under the proprietary operating system.

Microsoft isn't shy about this goal of "reaching the next billion" computer users and tying them in to its technology.

"Many of these people we think are going to be consumers down the road," said Orlando Ayala, senior vice president for Microsoft's emerging segments market development group.

A closer look at the $3-deal also exposes software pricing as an artificial and arbitrary affair. Why sell software priced at hundreds of dollars for just $3. Why not $2? Or $5?

Even the Starter Edition is an arbitrary, marketing-oriented creation that artificially limits the functionality of software. It harks back to the day when some marketing geniuses at Intel decided to sell a version of the 486 processor with the math co-processor disabled, simply so it could sell the same chip at a lower price--without having customers who were willing to pay more for it complain. Crippling a piece of software so you can sell it cheaply makes just as much sense.

Significantly, Microsoft's $3 offer comes at a time when the open source Linux operating system is becoming increasingly popular as a free alternative to Windows on desktop and notebook computers. By aiming its program at developing countries, Microsoft seems determined to head off Linux in markets where the free alternative is most likely to thrive at Windows' expense.

But in the same week that Gates announced the $3 subsidy, a major software milestone passed without fanfare.

There was no Times Square countdown. No whiz-bang demo by an aging technology guru. No big advertising campaign or clever TV commercials. With a refreshing lack of marketing hype, the latest version of Ubuntu, one of the most popular Linux distributions, was released to the general public on April 19.

On that day, the Ubuntu home page was replaced with a bare page under a headline that read "Ubuntu 7.04 - Well Done."

There were just two sentences under the headline: "Thank you to everyone who has helped make Ubuntu 7.04 a reality. Thousands of you have helped code, test, translate and promote Ubuntu and everyone can celebrate today's release."

Below the note were links to servers in 30-odd countries where the 700MB file (an ISO disc image) could be downloaded.

The lack of hype wasn't the only thing that set Ubuntu apart.

Bucking industry trends, Ubuntu developers delivered the latest version of the operating system on time, as promised. In stark contrast, Microsoft missed numerous launch targets on its five-year road to Windows Vista, and even Apple has had to push back the June release of Leopard, the new version of the Mac OS X operating system.

The on-time delivery of Ubuntu 7.04 is yet another sign that the open source approach to software development works. Unlike the traditional approach in which one company hires all the programmers and controls product development, open source projects are farmed out to volunteer programmers around the world, working cooperatively over the Internet.

And Ubuntu 7.04, code named Feisty Fawn, is not crippled software. It's a sophisticated, fully functional, modern operating system that is more secure, and arguably more efficient than Windows Vista. It also comes with a boatload of excellent software, including an office suite that does what MS Office does--all for free.

So why would a developing country want to pay $3 per PC when it can get a much better deal for free? The real cost of Microsoft's $3 offer to developing countries is much higher than its price tag suggests. The real cost is getting sucked into a proprietary world and the loss of choice that open source software would bring.

From Digital Life by Chin Wong

http://www.chinwong.com

Chin Wong has been covering the technology industry since the 1980s, starting as a reporter for Business Day, Southeast Asia?s first daily business newspaper. He is now a lecturer in journalism at the Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines and associate editor for the Manila Standard Today. Before that, he also served as technology editor of the Manila Times until October 2004.

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The Evolution of Microsoft Windows

A lot of people today are not aware of the evolution of Microsoft Windows. Today we have seamlessly moving, semi-transparent windows that glide across the screen with remarkable feel and sensitivity. However, this was not always the case. In this article I'd like to take you back to some of the original Microsoft Operating Systems and how they paved way for the computing world as we know it today.

In the Beginning

In the 1970's people used typewriters to create documents. Microcomputer's existed but nowhere did you see them in the workplace. In fact, very few people had even heard of them. However two talented men, Bill Gates and Paul Allen, set out to change all of that.

In early 1975 Allen and Gates partnered up and created a small company called Microsoft. Shortly after in 1980, IBM contacted Allen and Gates to create a new operating system that would control the hardware side of a computer as well as offer an application layer for software programs. This operating system was later named MS-DOS. Though MS-DOS was effective it was hard for some users to use due to its long and sometimes cryptic commands.

Windows 1.0, 2.0 & 3.0

Later in 1985 Microsoft releases Windows 1.0 which offers a graphical user interface (GUI) rather than the original DOS commands of its predecessor. Following that, Windows 2.0 hits the shelves. The upgrade took advantage of the new Intel 386 processors and its memory management capabilities. Microsoft would then go own to release Windows 3.0 which introduced new features like File Manager and Print Manager. It was also considerably faster and would go on to out sell all of its original versions.

Windows NT

Windows NT did not derive from its older siblings. Microsoft set out to design a new operating system from scratch. Their answer was Windows NT. Of the enhancements most notable is its ability to operate at 32 bit. Unlike the other 16 bit operating systems of the past, operating at 32 bit allowed engineers and scientist to take development to new lengths.

Windows 95

In 1995 Microsoft released Windows 95 which went on to sell seven million copies in five weeks. Windows 95 was released at the dawn of the internet and hit the shelves ready. It boasted dial-up support for networking allowing users to access email and browse the World Wide Web. Windows 95 also included a new feature called Plug and Play which made installing hardware and software a breeze. This is also the time we are introduced to our beloved start menu and taskbar.

Windows 98

Windows 98 was developed as an upgrade to Windows 95. It offered better performance and quick launch bar. It was also the first Windows operating system that offered support for DVD drives and USB devices. Windows 98 was the last operating system based of MS-DOS.

Windows ME

Designed for home use instead of business, Windows ME offered better media support as well as network enhancements making it easier for user setup. It also introduced the System Restore which allowed you to roll back your computer state to a previous time. Windows ME was also the last of the Windows 95 core code. All future versions of Windows would be based off of Windows NT.

Windows 2000

In 2000, Microsoft set out to replace all earlier business computers with its new version, Windows 2000. Basically an enhanced Windows NT, Windows 2000 offered better support for USB, Firewire and other technologies.

Windows XP

Windows XP was a usability landmark for Microsoft. The menus became much more intuitive, and made navigation a synch. It offered the network wizard to assist with connection your home network. It also greatly improved on its media programs. Windows XP shipped in several different forms: Home Edition, Professional, 64-bit(the first 64-bit system from Microsoft), Media Center Edition and XP Tablet PC Edition.

Windows Vista

At this point security was largely a concern in the computing world. To answer the call Windows Vista was introduced with the strongest security system yet. User Account Controls are introduced to add an additional layer of security along with new disk encryption methods. The user interface also changed significantly with its start button makeover.

Windows 7

By the time Windows 7 makes its debut the wireless world is booming. Laptop computers far out sell traditional desktops. With the reality of the mobile computer, Windows 7 adds the ability to configure multiple networks for home, work or public hot spots allowing users to manage security settings based on the network they are connected to. It also makes improvements from Windows Vista's user interface and media management tools.

About the Author
Cory Clough is a web programmer and developer for many first class websites and has worked on several high profile projects. He enjoys playing guitar and the outdoors.

http://dubuque-computer-repair.com
http://coryclough.info

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Bill Gates WOWs us with Microsoft Windows Vista at CES Keynote

I just came back from my annual trip to CES to find the best iPod accessories and the latest technology for my company. This year, the 2007 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) celebrated his 40th birthday and was kicked off by the Bill Gates keynote on Sunday November 7 in Las Vegas at the Venetian Hotel. The event was sold out! 5,000 people attended and hundreds more people tried to get in without success. Security was tight! The focus of Bill Gates keynote was a showcase of the newest products from Microsoft including Windows Vista and the new Zune music player; Gates also gave us a glimpse into the future with products such as Ford (F) Sync and a demonstration of technology from the Microsoft futuristic house.

Here are some of the Windows Vista features demonstrated in the keynote. You can now play video files as the background of your desktop in Windows Vista. It was visually stunning! Another new feature was the Windows Photo Gallery where you can easily organize, find, and view pictures. With Windows Vista, you can also easily burn DVDs complete with a main menu and the play option, just like in commercial movies! This is definitely something the many Windows users will love to use! Windows Vista also provides enhanced capabilities to play games and access to XboxLive. Something really cool in Windows Vista is Windows Live with a lot of functionality such as Windows Live Search powered by Microsoft Virtual Earth, somewhat similar to Google (GOOG) 3-D application, Google Earth, which lets you view maps and satellite images for regional searches. The actual demonstration was very real. I felt like I was inside a video game, going down the Las Vegas strip and seeing hotels and traffic. What a trip! Windows Vista includes other impressive features such as Instant Search Box and Windows Sidebar & Gadgets to quickly access functionality, data, and files, Internet Explorer 7, which I have been using since the beta and that I love, Data Backup and Restore so you never lose information, and a lot more.

Windows Vista also features a digital entertainment system, called Windows Media Center (not included in Windows Vista Business Edition)--providing the ability to store and access live and recorded TV, movies, music, and pictures with an easy-to-use menu and remote --in one place. Very nice!

The new Microsoft Office 2007 was very impressive with major improvements in the look and feel and with key functionality at your fingertips to make it much easier for new users to be up and running quickly. Another benefit of Microsoft Office 2007 is that it also runs on Windows XP in case you do not want to upgrade to Windows Vista, just yet!

With Windows Easy Transfer, Microsoft makes it easier to transfer your data, user accounts, settings, photos, videos, and more to your new computer running Windows Vista. Belkin also offers the new Easy Transfer Cable for Windows Vista working in conjunction with Windows Easy Transfer to facilitate the transfer on your new computer.

However, if you upgrade, watch out that the software you run on your current version of Windowsâ are all compatible with Windows Vista. You can check the Microsoft (MSFT) Web site to view a list of the software that work with or are certified for Windows Vista. Otherwise you may have some downtime struggling with software that may not run smoothly on Windows Vista.

To sum it up, Microsoft got really great reviews about Windows Vista, which won the Best of CES Award in the Computers and Hardware category. I must admit: it looks real tempting to upgrade!

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This article has been written by Marylin Stompler, MBA, President of Power Accessories Corp., a leading company dedicated to provide quality iPod Accessories at Affordable Prices. Marylin Stompler has more than twelve years of technical and business experience in the high-tech industry. Prior to working at Power Accessories Corp., Marylin Stompler was a Vice-President for several successful high-tech companies. Visit [http://www.poweraccessories.com] for additional articles and iPod accessories.

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Microsoft Windows - How Bill Gates Stole My Idea!

Just kidding, I love you Bill Gates, you are my Jedi Master! But, way back in 1984, with my first computer, the Apple IIe, I learnt Apple Basic and had an idea for speeding up the process of using the computer. For those of you, who are unfamiliar with the early days of micro-computers, or personal computers ("PC's"), there was no such thing as Windows. No mouse, no icons, no start menus..."NADDA"! To understand what the early days of home computers usage was like, simply go to your Windows Start Menu and find, under "Accessories", "Command Prompt". That black screen you are looking at, with that simple ">:" icon, was all you had in the early days of the 1980's.

User's of the Apple IIe used DOS and Apple Basic. DOS was an acronym for Disk Operating System, a means to actually control the use of the floppy disk drive storage system. Apple Basic was the IIe's language. So the legendary "Hello World" program came with the User's Manual of the IIe. You would turn on the IIe in the back, the large video monitor would warm up and you would have a black screen with a blinking white prompt next to the infamous ">:" icon. If you wanted to run a program you would simply type in the command for directory and "poof" the list of programs would be listed. To run, you would have to type in the command for ">:Run HelloWorld". Very similar if you use the Control Prompt in Windows. The IIe used a 80 column peripheral card. Meaning a graphics card that only produced 80 columns of text. So no Mario jumping or Master Chief "tea-bagging" around the universe.

After getting familiar with the User's Manual I got a pretty good grip on Apple Basic. After a while I was able to create programs for balancing your check book or creating a scheduler. Mainly programs that would produce reports, or store data, but the user could enter input and save it. Most Apple games used the idea of Dungeons and Dragons, where it would display simply text and sound then you would respond appropriately. The Word Processor was the most important software to my friends and I, because of the ability of not having to redo typing!!!!

Eventually I started to ask if there was a way to make things more user friendly. So I created programs that would allow the user to see all programs available on disk and all they had to do was choose which one. I was pretty pleased with my self. In 1987, at the age of 18, I signed up with the Coast Guard. After leaving the service and going to Computer Learning Center I finally was introduced to C++. The current language used by modern programmers for applications. Then in 1990, at my first job as a HelpDesk Support Programmer, I got my very first computer with Windows! Ahhhhhh mouse, what a wonderful word!!!!!!!! And at the same time "Dohhh!" Bill Gates beat me to the punch!!! (hehe) The job, as a support guy, still used the same type of operating system DOS. I wouldn't see Windows, again, until the mid 90s when the internet was introduced to the public.

Today, I'm enjoying the "techno-revolution". Cell phones, internet, I-Phones, MP3 players, virtual reality......my mind is exploding!!! But I am thankful to those wonderful peeps, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, for catapulting technology to the place we are today. Even though Mr. Gates stole my idea!!!! ;0)

Hi I am Jim Carrillo. I have my own business as a Help Desk programmer. So if you have a computer or Windows related problem check out my website:

http://tekkynasekky.webs.com/

I hope to have further articles of more interest in upcoming days. Please let me know how I'm doing! Thanks!

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