Received an e-mail today from Kanoodle.com BrightAds Service telling me that my space has not matched their criteria for generating enough revenue and clicks. Read the letter:

 

"Hello Andre,

Although BrightAds may have already been activated automatically on your MSN® Space, we find now that we must suspend publication. After a routine review, our editors have determined that your MSN Space isn't the good fit for BrightAds that we hoped it would be. Be assured, however, that any payments due you prior to this change will be honored.

In order for BrightAds to work for you it's important that the ads we serve match the content on your MSN Space. A good match means Web surfers are exposed to products and services that we know they may be interested in, while our advertisers receive traffic from qualified consumers. So, despite the quality of your MSN Space, it's just not a good match for the BrightAds program at this time.

As we expand BrightAds in the future, new opportunities may open up for your MSN Space to be successful using BrightAds. If they do, we'll let you know.

Thank you for your interest in BrightAds.

The BrightAds team"

Well, thanks so much for believing in me, I hope I get my $8.09 soon.

 

From Windows Connected

 

Experts

Sam White (Moderator): Hello everyone. We will be getting started in about 15 minutes. In the meantime, just hang in there.

Sam White (Moderator): I'm going to open up the chat for questions. You can start submitting them now.

Sam White (Moderator): Hello everyone and thanks for coming out to the chat today. We have members of the Windows Sidebar Team to answer your questions. I’m Sam White and I work on the Windows Beta team and I will be the chat moderator today. Don’t forget to hang around until the end. I’ll have a random drawing for some swag. You have to be here to win.

Bruce Williams (Expert): Howdy, I'm a test developer for sidebar. Among other things, I test the sidebar object model that we expose to the gadget's DHTML script.

Shawn Morrissey (Expert): Hi Everyone. I'm Shawn Morrissey, a program manager on the Sidebar team. I'm responsible for the gadgets that will ship with Vista. Thanks for taking the time to chat with us today.

Jeff Tretheway (Expert): Jeff Tretheway. Test Manager for Sidebar.

Brian Teutsch (Expert): Hi, I'm the PM responsible for actually creating gadgets - DHTML usage, our OM, the gadget manifest, and so on.

David Streams (Expert): Welcome. I'm the group program manager for Sidebar and looking forward to hearing your questions and feedback on the product.

Mindy Martin (Expert): Greetings, I'm Mindy Martin. I'm a program manager on the Sidebar team resposnsible for partner relationships.

Read the entire Chat Transcript here

From Microsoft Windows Vista

 

"Microsoft Windows Vista™ is designed to dramatically improve the computing experience of every kind of PC user—from people at home who use their PC for simple web browsing, to business people who must organize and act on large volumes of data, to scientists who routinely perform complex mathematical analysis. To make sure that everyone has an offering tailored to meet their specific needs, Microsoft will deliver five different versions of Windows Vista. Each version is focused on the needs of a specific type of person."

 

 

Read the rest here

From Microsoft PressPass

 

REDMOND, Wash. — Feb. 26, 2006 — Microsoft Corp. today announced the product lineup of its upcoming Windows Vista™ operating system. Scheduled for release later this year, the Microsoft^® Windows Vista product lineup will bring clarity to customers’ digital world by helping them easily accomplish everyday tasks, instantly find what they want, enjoy the latest in entertainment, improve the safety of their personal information, stay connected at home or on the go, and help ensure PCs are up-to-date, more secure and running smoothly.

The Windows Vista product lineup consists of six versions, two for businesses, three for consumers, and one for emerging markets: Windows Vista Business, Windows Vista Enterprise, Windows Vista Home Basic, Windows Vista Home Premium, Windows Vista Ultimate and Windows Vista Starter. The number of offerings is the same as the number of offerings currently available for Windows^® XP. More important, the lineup is designed to deliver clear value to a broad range of customers, each product tailored to meet specific needs of various segments of customers — home PC users, small and medium-sized businesses and the largest enterprises — and is aimed at bringing 64-bit, Media Center and Tablet PC functionality into the mainstream.

“We live in a digital world that is filled with more information, more things to do and more ways to communicate with others than ever,” said Mike Sievert, corporate vice president of Windows Product Management and Marketing at Microsoft. “The PC needs to give people the clarity and confidence to handle this ‘world of more’ so they can focus on what’s most important to them. With our Windows Vista product line, we’ve streamlined and tailored our product lineup to provide what our customers want for today’s computing needs.”

The Editions of Windows Vista are:

1. Starter Edition
2. Home Basic
3. Home Premium
4. Business
5. Enterprise
6. Ultimate

Read more about the Editions of Windows Vista that will be available here

From WinInformant

 

From PC World

 

"Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few months, you probably know that the latest version of Windows--called Vista--is due to hit store shelves later this year (in time for the holidays, Microsoft tells us). The successor to Windows XP offers a little something for everyone, from eye-catching graphics and new bundled applications to more-rigorous security. In fact, there is so much in the new operating system that it can be tough to get a handle on it all.

 

Here's what to be excited about:

1. Security, security, security: Windows XP Service Pack 2 patched a lot of holes, but Vista takes security to the next level. There are literally too many changes to list here, from the bidirectional software firewall that monitors inbound and outbound traffic to Windows Services Hardening, which prevents obscure background processes from being hijacked and changing your system. There's also full-disk encryption, which prevents thieves from accessing your data, even if they steal the PC out from under your nose.

Perhaps most crucial (and least sexy) is the long-overdue User Account Protection, which invokes administrator privileges as needed, such as during driver updates or software installations. UAP makes it much more convenient for users to operate Vista with limited rights (meaning the system won't let them do certain things, like load software, without clearance from an administrator). This in turn limits the ability of malware to hose your system.

2. Internet Explorer 7: IE gets a much-needed, Firefox-inspired makeover, complete with tabbed pages and better privacy management. There's also the color-coded Address Bar that lets you know if a page is secured by a digital key, or, thanks to new antiphishing features, if it's a phony Web site just looking to steal information about you.

These features will all be available for Windows XP users who download IE7. But Vista users get an important extra level of protection: IE7 on Vista will run in what Microsoft calls "protected mode"--a limited-rights mode that prevents third-party code from reaching your system. It's about darn time.

From Microsoft Watch

 

"While Microsoft officials had told its core of elite beta testers to expect the next Windows Vista milestone on Tuesday, February 21, it now looks as Microsoft is now planning on delivering the code later in the week. Our sources are saying Vista Build 5308 will likely be christened the February Community Technology Preview (CTP). And it's now sounding like testers will be able to start playing with that build on Friday or Saturday."

 

Read the rest here 

 

Well, I don't mind, gives you a chance to check out my preview of Windows Vista Build 5270 here

This is a bit late, but I have been so busy, with other projects and work, but I had to do it, so here it is. Thanks for your patience.

I have been using Windows Vista Build 5270 for the past couple of months now and I must say it’s been quite an experience. The move from Build 5231 to 5270 I would best describe as being a dramatic change for me personally, both user interface and device driver wise. The December CTP has been anticipated so long now many testers were beginning to get restless and frustrated to the point that some persons were able to access leaked internal builds such as 5259 and use it all along, just to satisfy their cravings. But the Windows Team made up for that with 5270 and I must say it’s sort of well worth it.

The installation routine is pretty much the same as past builds except for implementation of certain welcome changes such as Time Zone Setting, User Account setup and some customization options. A new background image and Aero style dialogue window is used during setup, very elegant, simple and not over powering as past builds. I don’t know if it’s a hint of more to come or the Windows Team is experimenting at the moment. Some users have reported using a new setup process that reduces the install time down to 15 to 30 minutes. Some have reported bad experiences with it, I have not tried and I don’t plan to since my efforts are really focusing on the user interface and how the operating system functions on daily use. I started my installation from within an existing installation of Windows and selected a dedicated partition. It seems that the minimum hard disk space keeps changing with each release, first we started off with 4 GBs, then 6GBs, and then 8.5GBs, 5270 is no different, requiring a minimum 10.5GBs for installation, although the actual amount of disk space used by the OS is 4.5GBs.

Andre

Read the entire preview at Windows Connected

My Resources:

Windows Vista 5231 (October CTP) - Testing, Testing...

Windows Vista 5219 (September CTP) – The Inspection
Windows Vista Beta 1 (Build 5112) - The Inspection
Longhorn Build 5048 - The Inspection
Longhorn - A Very Delicate Subject
The Progress of Windows Longhorn
Longhorn Build 5203 - An Analysis
Vista: A Scenic View Into The Future of Windows

From Bink.nu

 

"Microsoft still is expected to deliver the next Windows Vista milestone, the February Community Technology Preview release, next week — most likely on Feb. 21, according to testers briefed last month by Microsoft.

While beta testers contacted this week said they had received no updated information as to when to expect the so-called February Community Technology Preview, most said they were still expecting it to arrive on February 21, as Microsoft privately told testers a month ago."

Read the rest here 

Well, Neowin was right about the Editions of Windows Vista that will be available, here they are:

 

From Tech Target

 

"The same throttling functions that customers look for when they expect certain time-sensitive applications to get priority on the network will be making their way into Microsoft's next-generation desktop and server.

The company has begun testing a Quality of Service (QoS) feature, which will be in both Vista and Longhorn Server. QoS technology helps cut down network congestion while optimizing traffic to the available bandwidth. QoS becomes useful when customers have multimedia applications or Voice over IP.

Now that VoIP is becoming more prevalent, it's crucial to be sure packets are all delivered when they need to be."

Read the rest here

From eWeek

 

"Another Windows Vista build is about to arrive via Microsoft's Community Technical Preview program.

The program hasn't managed to meet its initial goal of monthly releases, but it has offered members of the Windows ecosystem more opportunity than ever to participate in the development of Windows.

The road from "Whistler" to Windows XP, in contrast, offered precious few pit stops—two beta releases and a couple of release candidates leading up to an RTM that was to form the foundation for the Windows desktop for five years to come."

Read the rest here 

From Microsoft Watch

 

"The Vista February CTP test build and a first beta of new Vista deployment tools are both expected next week, according to beta testers.

 

Microsoft still is expected to deliver the next Windows Vista milestone, the February Community Technology Preview release, next week — most likely on Feb. 21, according to testers briefed last month by Microsoft.

While beta testers contacted this week said they had received no updated information as to when to expect the so-called February Community Technology Preview, most said they were still expecting it to arrive on February 21, as Microsoft privately told testers a month ago.

Around the same time that it releases the updated test build of its next version of Windows, Microsoft also is expected to launch a beta of deployment tools designed to help corporations implement Vista.

Microsoft invited hundreds of TAPs (Technology Adoption Partners) — its pool of elite beta testers—to the Redmond, Wash., campus on Jan. 24 and 25. There, according to participants who asked not to be named, Microsoft officials said the next Vista CTP was slated for Feb. 21. TAP testers said the follow-on release, the Customer Preview Program CTP, is slated for April."

Read the rest here

I'm definitely excited about it, I have not been able to deliver my 5270 Preview yet, but will this weekend. Been so busy, so bear with me. :)

From Microsoft TechNET

 

"This Technical Library contains technical resources for IT Pros evaluating, deploying, managing, and supporting Windows Vista. Please note that some of this documentation is preliminary and subject to change; the documentation included on this Web site is not a complete documentation set for the Windows Vista release. Check back regularly for updated content and new features.

Windows Vista: Evaluation

Find overviews, system requirements, set-up information, and more.

Windows Vista: Planning and Architecture

Use these how-to articles and technical white papers to help plan your implementation.

Windows Vista: Deployment

Get the resources you need for the deployment process, including the Windows Automated Installation Kit (WAIK) as well as step-by-step guides for configuring specific features.

Windows Vista: Security and Protection

Find information to help protect your system from malicious attacks.

Windows Vista: Operations

Learn about performance, and other aspects of administration and management.

Windows Vista: Product Help

Review the preliminary feature Help content included in the Windows Vista Beta 2 product.

Windows Vista: Step By Step Guides

Use these scenario-driven Step-by-Step Guides to try out key Windows Vista features.

"Thanks for testing Windows Defender Beta 2. We have updated the release notes at:

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/about/releasenotes.mspx
Here we have links to KB's and other FAQs of issues commonly reported in the newsgroups, and is a good place to start before posting issues with the beta. Once again thanks for running Windows Defender!

--
-steve

Steve Dodson [MSFT]
Windows Defender Beta Lead
MCSE, CISSP
http://blogs.technet.com/stevedod"

From BetaNews via Bink.nu

 

From PC Magazine

 

"It's a fact: People finally care about video, music, and TV on their PCs. Managing all these things through a simple, intuitive interface from across the room has become a top priority at Gates HQ in Redmond. So with the upcoming Windows Vista OS, Microsoft will no longer segregate MCE in its own box destined for PCs masquerading as set-top boxes. The Media Center functionality will be built into the "Home Premium" and "Ultimate" editions.

 

We took a look at some of these changes in Vista beta build 5231. The OS is still a year from release, but we can already see significant changes. We all know the new OS will bring about a huge transformation in the desktop look and feel. MCE is getting a similar facelift."

 

Read the rest here 

Here are list of available Office 2007 Blogs so far, I don't see Office Groove yet.

 

Microsoft® Office Access

What's New in Access “12” (Eric Rucker)

 

Microsoft® Office Excel®

What's New in Excel “12” (David Gainer)

 

Microsoft® Office FrontPage

What's New in FrontPage “12” (Rob Mauceri)

 

Microsoft® Office OneNote®

A User-oriented View of OneNote “12” (Chris Pratley)

OneNote General (Owen Braun)

 

Microsoft® Office Outlook®

Outlook General (Will Kennedy, GM)

Outlook Tasks and Time Management (Melissa MacBeth)

RSS/Search/Sharing (Michael Affronti)

Outlook Programmability (Ryan Gregg)

 

Microsoft® Office Project

What's New in Project “12” (Dieter Zirkler)

 

Microsoft® Office Publisher

Publisher “12”, XPS and more (Jeff Bell)

What's New in Publisher “12”

 

Microsoft® Office Visio

Visio “12” (Eric Rockey)

 

Microsoft® Office Word

What's New in Word “12” (Joe Friend)

 

Microsoft® Windows SharePoint Services

Windows SharePoint Services (PJ Hough)

Document Management, Workflow, & Records Management (Rob Lefferts)

 

Office “12” New User Interface

Office “12” New User Interface (Jensen Harris)

 

Office “12” New XML File Format

Office “12” New XML File Format (Brian Jones)

 

Publishing XPS Documents

Publishing XPS Documents (Andy Simonds)

Publisher “12”, XPS and more (Jeff Bell)

 

PDF Support in Office “12”

PDF Support in Office “12” (Cyndy Wessling)

 

TechTalk with Steven Sinofsky

TechTalk with Steven Sinofsky

Well, not yet, we have until the end of the year to decide if we should continue using Office 2003, XP, 2000 or 97, but in the mean time, check out the line up for the next version.

Individuals programs have also been priced: