Entries tagged with windows vista - Channel 10

Windows Vista Feature Pack for Wireless

Sarah Perez — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:13:00 GMT

A new Vista feature pack for wireless has arrived. This software update offers a few items that improve wireless support, including: Bluetooth version 2.1 support, Unified Pairing user interface, and Windows Connect Now updates. In order to install these updates, you must be running Vista SP1. Unfortunately, though, there is not a download link for this software - it can only be acquired via OEMs, so you have to contact them in order to get the new features. (news/img via istartedsomething)

Get Vista Drive Icons for XP

Sarah Perez — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 13:08:00 GMT

In Windows Vista, the drive icons in "Computer" include a visual representation of the drive's capacity and how much space has been used by displaying a blue, glass-like bar underneath each drive. Now you can get those drive icons for Windows XP, too. With Vista Drive Icon from SourceForge.net, you can transform XP's icons to resemble those in Vista. The drives will show a blue bar unless they are close to getting full, then the color will change to red. The program actually works on several versions of Windows besides XP, including 2000, 98, NT, and 95.

Direct Folders

Sarah Perez — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 13:35:00 GMT

Don't you wish there was an easy way to add custom locations to the Save/Open dialog box? Well, actually, there is. With Direct Folders, you can quickly find frequently used folders in the Save/Open dialog box. After the program is installed, you can right-click in the white space of the window to access your customized list of folder shortcuts.

Of course, there are other ways to tweak this box too - for example, in Windows XP, a registry hack can let you update the box with your own settings:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\comdlg32\PlacesBar]
"Place0"="e:\\XP Utils"
"Place1"="e:\\research"
"Place2"="e:\\Registry Patches"
"Place3"="e:\\UtilitiesSet 2"
"Place4"="e:\\UtilitiesSet 1"

TweakUI does it too.

In Vista, it's a bit different. The Places bar is now the "Favorite Links" bar, so customizing them involves going into your Links folder: User_Profile\Links

In here, you can customize the Windows Shortcut (.Ink) files according to this document.

Need Help Installing SP1? Call Microsoft for Free!

Sarah Perez — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 19:58:00 GMT

Now that Windows Vista Service Pack 1 is out, many people are reporting that this update has either improved Vista's performance or has not caused any noticeable changes. However, for anyone who runs into issues, there will be free support available through March 18, 2009. You can submit your issues via email, chat, or by calling 1-800-234-6020. You can access the different options from this page. Support will even be available on weekends - which is especially handy for businesses deploying SP1 during the company's downtime.

Hot Pink Japanese Vista

Sarah Perez — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 12:57:00 GMT

You gotta love it. Only in Japan would you find a copy of Windows Vista packaged like this in hot pink. The packaging is part of a special promotion for the Japanese market, where Windows Vista Home Premium is bundled with Windows Live OneCare and a Vista tips & tricks book. Boy, and here I was thinking the environmentally-friendly Office:mac boxes were cool. (via)

Windows Desktop Search 4.0 Has Arrived

Sarah Perez — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 15:04:00 GMT

A new version of Windows Desktop Search has just been released - Windows Search 4.0 Preview. (The "preview" part means it's still being tested out, sort of like "beta.") For those of you who don't know, Windows Search is the desktop search feature that is built into Windows Vista, but you don't have to be running Vista to take advantage of Windows Search - you can run it in XP, too.

This latest update is a significant release, with many features designed for enterprise users. However, there are new features that will benefit everyone, like the speed increase (33% faster!), its ability to index encrypted files, and Remote Index Discovery, which means it can index all the Windows machines on your network, no matter what version of Windows they are running.

Other improvements include:

Bug fixes - most of the reported bugs seen since Windows Vista RTM have been fixed.
Rollback Recovery - your search index will roll back to the last known good state if an error occurs instead of being rebuilt from scratch.
Windows software updates for Watson errors
Faster previewer updates for Windows XP

For IT Professionals specifically, important new features include:

Improved performance when indexing Exchange in online mode - less packets and less RPC calls are made, which means less load on the server. Plus, no local cache (.ost)
Support for indexing online delegate mailboxes
Support for Group Policy settings (Search.adm/Search.admx) has been extended and improved, including per-user policies.
An add-in for indexing redirected "My Documents" files (32-bit)

Here's where you can get it:

Getting a List of Filenames in Vista is Easy!

Sarah Perez — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 13:30:00 GMT

Remember what a challenge it was to generate a list of filenames of all the files in a folder on your PC? In XP, you had to go to the command prompt and type in something like DIR /B /ON *.* > filelist.txt. (That command sorts them in order). In Vista, it's so much easier. Now, all you have to do is select the files, right-click, and choose "Copy as Path." Paste the list anywhere. Of course, this does copy the entire path to the file, but Find-and-Replace can quickly take care of that. It's the little things like this that really make my day. (Thanks to AppScout for reminding me of this!)

Adding Virtual Desktops to Your PC

Sarah Perez — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 13:20:00 GMT

Although XP has a Virtual Desktop PowerToy, there's no version for Windows Vista yet. However, there are not one, but three third party programs that Cnet just reviewed: VirtuaWin, which supports up to 20 separate desktops, Virtual Dimension, and Z-Systems' Vista/XP Virtual Desktop Manager, which takes advantage of Vista's Aero interface.

Out of these, the Z-Systems program looks like the one I would choose, not only because of the Aero aspect, but also because it offers full-screen desktop previews in Vista so that you can easily find the desktop you're looking for. With Z-Systems, you can generate a system tray icon for each desktop, which makes switching really fast. You can also select certain programs that will show up on all of your desktops.

Vista Caller ID

Sarah Perez — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:15:00 GMT

Vista Caller-ID is Windows software that seamlessly integrates with Microsoft Windows Vista to track and announce phone calls. It uses your Voice or Data modem and the Caller ID service provided by your local phone company in order to identify who’s calling. The service also tracks all incoming calls and logs the Date, Time, and Caller ID Name & Number.

There's also an add-in for Windows Home Server (thanks to Donavon West for the discovery!)

How To Search Your PSTs with Vista's Built-In Search

Sarah Perez — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 15:32:00 GMT

Do you archive your email to PST files (maybe due to a corporate policy limiting your mailbox size)? If so, you know that even though it's archived, you will still need to access those old emails from time to time. If you don't want to keep all your archives open in your Outlook, there is another way...if you use Windows Vista. With Vista's built-in search option, you can specify that you want PSTs to be indexed (this is not turned on by default). It's pretty easy to set this up, just follow these steps:

Go to the Control Panel
Choose "Indexing Options"
Click on the "Advanced" button
Click on the "File Types" tab
Check the checkbox next to "PST" to include it in the search
Select the bullet next to the option "Index Properties and File Contents"
Click OK and OK again on the message that appears.

You're done! Now you can use Vista's built-in search to find that email you need!

Premium HTPC solutions from Niveus Media

Nic Fillingham — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 10:40:00 GMT

Niveus Media had their impressive Media Extender - EDGE device on display at CES 2008. A high end, full 1080P, multi zone media center extender targeted at the premium audio/videophile market.
One feature that sets Niveus Media devices - including the EDGE - apart is the passive cooling system that is incorporated into the devices housing which enables virtually silent operation.
We spoke with Tim Cutting, CEO and co-founder of Niveus Media, at CES 2008 to learn some more about the company and the range of products and services they offer.

Vídeo: Windows Live Messenger na sua televisão

Galileu Vieira — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 11:02:00 GMT

Muita gente não sabe que o Xbox 360 se comunica com PCs para fazer um streaming do conteúdo do computador. Isso é um cenário bem legal para quem tem muita música em MP3 e fotos e filmes digitais mas que não quer ou não consegue ligar o PC na TV. Afinal, o PC é feito para ser navegado com teclado e mouse (por enquanto) e o WAF dele na sala é praticamente zero. Então com um console de vídeo game que toca CDs e DVDs e de fato é feito para um televisor, home theater e ambiente social, você consegue convencer à sua querida a aposentar o VCR que está acumulando pó e substituí-lo pelo Xbox 360. Mas, se por acaso ela ainda recusar, mostre o vídeo desse post e faça ela imaginar que em vez do futebol, ela estaria assistindo a novela e falando com as amigas.

My Dream Machine: Construction

Nick Hodge — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 13:08:00 GMT

This Part 2 of a 3 part series on My Dream Machine (Part 1)

Tinkering with bits and pieces is a part of growing up on a farm. Attempting to repair a motorbike's fuel system, fixing implements with some wire and a rope, through to more traditional toys such as Lego, meccano and electronics. However, I was never good at what our school called 'tech studies'. In fact, I was streamed into tech-studies-remedial, and recommended to never touch any hardware tools ever again.

So, working on my own PCs results in injuries. Cuts and scratches on my fingers and hands, and blood on clothing. I am just clumsy, and fiddly things just seem to annoy my nerve endings. Building my own PC, apart from a mental challenge, is going to be a daunting physical challenge, too. Onward to my personal everest!

Just before I start, I have to confess way back in history, I was a trained Macintosh Level-1 Sevice Technician. I'd like to also throw out a big thanks to Peter Harris, who had enough patience and bandaids to teach me the basics of electronic stuff. Like soldering in new Adobe ROMs onto the logic board of one of those original Apple LaserWriter (circa 20 years ago!) to obtain more fonts. On a US$7,000 device, with one mis-solder away from job firing: I owe Pete a lot.

Initial build

The bit start arriving from AusPCMarket, within 24 hours of ordering. In Australia, this is a major achievement! Thanks to Hillary in the Microsoft Australia Mail Room for excellent service, too. You guys rock.
Open the case and install the power supply. Case being a black anodised Lian Li case. Power Supply, a Corsair 620W. Simple thumbscrews and snaking the power cable from the rear to the front of the case. Fan in the power supply points forward. Fan at the rear of the case to flow air from front to rear, at the base of the case.
Hard drives, DVD/CD installed with power. Just wired the the Western Digital 10000RPM boot drive to a SATA connector motherboard to simplify the install process.
The modular power supply has a range of cables to wire up power from itself to the rear of the SATA drive. SATA power connectors are unique, and simple to install. With the Corsair beastie, each power coupler for SATA has three 'power take-offs'
Fans on the logic board use either the four-pin Molex connectors, or smaller three-pin connectors. Looking at the fans, I noticed that each have three conductive cables: two for power, one to throttle/measure the speed of the fan. Connecting these to the correct places on the motherboard has benefits when tuning. That's for episode 3.
Download the 64-bit (x64) "floppy" driver and place onto USB drive. Windows Vista x64 install is provided with many off-the-CD drivers to permit the operating system to install and bootstrap itself. However, some motherboards require later drivers to install correctly. In my instance, I gathered the Gigabyte Pre-install driver for Vista x64 and placed this onto a USB key for later use during the operating system install.
Picture note: The clamp for the processor is to but shut, thermal grease to be applied and CPU fan to be installed. Beauty of making your own is that I can purchase another, faster CPU in the future and self-install the wee beastie.
Place Beating heart into chest. The CPU is the beating heart of the PC. In my instance, I have chose the Intel Q6600 processor being inserted into a Gigabyte GA-X38-DQ6 Motherboard.
Intel CPUs going into "775" slots are female, with male pins already on the motherboard. Using thermal paste, a gooey silver-gray substance that assists the CPU to fan thermal coupling so the CPU fan can remove heat, applied to the top of the CPU. Fans supplied with CPUs are usually noisy and not as heat-efficient as after-market devices. In the first installation, I used the supplied CPU fan. Connect fan to the correct pins on the motherboard.
Intel CPU fans for the "775" slots have this strange "push in" connection that sort of snaps into place. I must admit, I didn't like pushing that hard on the motherboard: it felt like I was going to break something.
There are a multitude of wires starting from the front of the case that demand insertion. These cables connect to the front: USB, Firewire; and also power, reset and lights. Being able the read the manual's schematic diagram and reading the notice on the connectors assists in correct insertion. If these don't seem to have a "gender" (in other words, which way around they should be plugged in), my rule becase "text on cable such that it's readable"
Fans connected to motherboard. Power to motherboard. SATA connectors to motherboard. DVD/CD drive inserted, SATA and power connected.
Memory: DDR2 memory inserted into the first two connectors: whilst I am installing x64 Windows Vista, I am starting with 2Gb of memory to keep the beastie cool.
Install video card in to one of the light blue PCI-E slots; and wire in the separate power line for the plan of installing an NVidia 8600 video card whilst waiting for the NVideo 8800GT to arrive. as it has its own fan and dedicated memory. The video card is like a mini motherboard and CPU all of its own.
Picture note: the NB_FAN sits underneath a white connector. This is a fan connector containing power plus feedback on the speed of the fan. NB stands for Northbridge; which is a bunch of chips on the motherboard responsible for Input/output and the PC cards. As these chips get hot, they have their own heat-sink: that's the copper coloured lines and bits that remove heat, and can also have their own fan.
Find an old PS/2 style (or USB) keyboard and mouse. Plug in. Screen connected. Ethernet (network) connected. Countdown to launch begins.
Time to construct: 1h30minutes. I think I also did some emails in the midst of construction, too!

Initial Startup and Operating System Installation:

The magic of BIOS! The gigabyte BIOS finds all the pieces of hardware, including RAM, and just boots. Back in the olden-days, you had to set jumper pins to tell the computer where and when it's memory existed.
Put in Windows Vista x64. Tell the BIOS to have the CD/DVD as the secondary boot device. Restart, and were in Vista install.
After typing in the key, and starting a Full Install; Vista asks you which disk to install onto. Plug in the USB key with drivers gathered above, do a re-format of the drive. Install.
An extremely rapid install. That hard drive it nuts. Reboot. Windows Vista x64 starts up.

Post-Initial Boot Steps:

Update BIOS. Using the Gigabyte @BIOS configuration, gather and install the latest revision.
Update disk drivers, sound drivers, ethernet (network) drivers - including the hardware RAID drivers
Gather and install Video card driver.
Install Windows Vista updates; including Vista Ultimate extras.
Shutdown, install 2 x 500Gb drives into what is known as the G-SATA connectors
Reboot, use GSATA BIOS to configure two matching drives as RAID (to allow for redundant data storage)
In Vista, reformat drive (two drives seen as one by the operating system).
Using Vista's Backup and Restore: Backup boot drive. Just in case.
Install anti-virus and firewall. Just in case.

4.7 is a long way from my stated goal of 5.9. Whilst the performance of the 8800GT video card should improve performance, the memory result of 5.6 is a little disappointing. Therefore, more research!

It's tuning time.

Mande revelar suas fotos direto da Galeria de Fotos do Windows

Galileu Vieira — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 10:49:00 GMT

Acabo de receber essa informação de meu colega Miguel Ferreira, que autoriza as novas funcionalidades dentro do Windows. Foi lançado hoje o primeiro fornecedor de revelação de fotos online da Galeria de Fotos de Windows Vista e Galeria de Fotos do Windows Live – Submarino Revelação. Com essa funcionalidade, basta você selecionar as fotos, clicar em "Imprimir" e lá tem uma opção "Encomendar Cópias" que conectará automaticamente com o serviço do Submarino. Se você ainda não tem uma conta, você cria uma que será armazenada automaticamente pela Galeria de Fotos para a próxima vez que usar o serviço. Depois, basta escolher algumas opções básicas como tamanho da foto, bordas e efeitos especiais e número de cópias. Pronto, você receberá em casa pelo correio!

Para acessar, é necéssário configurar o Windows Vistas para o Brasil (No Painel de Controle em Configurações Regionais na aba Local):

Inicie a Galeria de Fotos do Windows Vista ou do Windows Live, escolha as fotos e clique em "Imprimir" depois "Encomendar cópias":

Selecione Submarino Revelação e continue:

Faça o ajuste de opções e pronto. O custo de uma foto tradicional 10x15 é R$ 0,59 mais o valor de entrega.

Windows Vista SideShow no Windows Mobile

Galileu Vieira — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 14:23:00 GMT

Eu li outro dia um post sobre o Windows Vista SideShow rodando em Windows Mobile. Não resisti e mandei um email para a empresa responsável pelo desenvolvimento dessa aplicação. Realmente é muito bacana. O conceito do SideShow é disponibilizar informações para o usuário através de telas externas. Nesse caso, a tela do celular. Veja o exemplo nesse vídeo curto.

Windows Sideshow toiminnallisuus Windows Mobile laitteisiin

Jukka Wallasvaara — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 12:06:33 GMT

Mielenkiintoinen juttu löytyi Jason Langridge:n blogista

Windows mobiili laitteet laajentavat liikkuvan henkilön mahdollisuuksia aivan uudelle tasolle. Katso, mitä Ikanos Consulting on kehittämässä ja lataa esiversio täältä.

Visualizando datas futuras e passadas no Vista

Galileu Vieira — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 09:56:00 GMT

Esse vídeo mostra duas coisas que eu nunca tinha percebido no Windows Vista. Além de poder colocar até três relógios na barra, a navegação pelas datas é muito legal. Confira no vídeo.

Video: Windows Vista Clock is Cool

Vídeo: Levando o conteúdo da Internet para sua televisão pelo Windows Media Center

Galileu Vieira — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 09:46:00 GMT

Finalizando a série sobre Windows Media Center, vamos ver nesse vídeo o componente Mídia Online do Windows Media Center, o qual contém conteúdo da Internet para você assistir ou ouvir na hora que quiser. Esse é um conceito bem legal, pois estamos falando de colocar a Internet na sua televisão ou aparelho de som. Confira no vídeo.

Vídeo: Escutando as suas músicas pelo Windows Media Center

Galileu Vieira — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 13:31:00 GMT

Continuando a série sobre Windows Media Center, nesse vídeo vamos ver como aproveitar os recursos do Windows Media Center para os arquivos de músicas.

Vídeo: Assistindo TV e filmes no seu Windows Media Center

Galileu Vieira — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 13:27:00 GMT

Continuando a série sobre Windows Media Center, nesse vídeo vamos explorar a função de TV e filmes do Windows Media Center. Para aqueles que têm uma placa de TV captura no seu Windows Media Center, esse acaba sendo o principal atrativo, já que é possível gravar os seus shows favoritos para assistir onde e quando quiser!

Vídeo: Vendo as suas fotos e vídeos no Windows Media Center

Galileu Vieira — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 13:02:00 GMT

Continuando a nossa série de vídeos sobre Windows Media Center, nesse vídeo nós vamos explorar a função de Imagens e Vídeos do Windows Media Center. Os vídeos aqui são aqueles tipicamente baixados da Internet ou filmados por usuários. Os shows gravados de TV ficam em outro componente do Windows Media Center que vamos ver mais adiante.

Vídeo: Configurações Opcionais do Windows Media Center

Galileu Vieira — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 12:07:00 GMT

Continuando a série sobre Windows Media Center, nesse vídeo nós vamos dar uma olhada nas opções de configurações adicionais para o Windows Media Center, visando personalizar ele um pouco mais para o seu uso.

Vídeo: Como configurar o Windows Media Center

Galileu Vieira — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 11:44:00 GMT

Continuando a série sobre Windows Media Center, nesse vídeo eu mostro as principais configurações de software do Windows Media Center. Vamos adequar o display para o tipo de televisor que você utiliza, ajustar o áudio para o seu tipo de som, e escolher as pastas com os seus arquivos digitais que estarão visíveis no Windows Media Center. Deixem suas dúvidas na área de comentários, por favor.

Vista-Style Desktop Clock for Non-Vista PCs

Sarah Perez — Mon, 24 Dec 2007 22:00:00 GMT

Are you an XP user with Vista widget-envy? One of the most useful Vista widgets is the clock, which is one of the default widgets included with Vista's sidebar. Now Windows XP users can get a clock of their very own. ClockX is a desktop clock that comes pre-loaded with lots of different themes from which to choose. You can also configure several options like whether you want the clock pinned to the desktop, always on top, how transparent it is, whether it should start with Windows, etc. However, its killer feature is the ability to configure alarms. The alarms can be configured to display a message, play a sound or video, execute an application, shut down the PC, or any combination of those options. Now, that's handy! Vista users, don't fret, ClockX will work for you, too. (Via the How-To Geek)

Vídeo: Como instalar o seu dispositivo Windows Media Center

Galileu Vieira — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 09:46:00 GMT

Iniciando a série sobre Windows Media Center, nesse vídeo eu mostro como se conecta um dispositivo Windows Media Center a um televisor, sistema de som e sinal de televisão. Há muita confusão em como fazer essas conexões pelo fato de muitos dispositivos Windows Media Centers serem PCs tradicionais que têm cabos bem diferentes dos equipamentos de áudio-vídeo. Espero desmistificar esse conceito com um vídeo bem prático e simples. Deixem suas perguntas na área de comentários.