Today, I installed the pre-release copy of Microsoft Windows 7. Instead of totally screwing up my own PC, I decided to attempt the install on a Microsoft Virtual PC lab. By the way, this is what Virtual PC is supposed to be used for.....testing beta software. At least that is what I use it for.
A couple of things to know if you decide to try out Windows 7:
1) You must already have a copy of Windows Vista SP1 installed in order to upgrade to the pre-release version of Windows 7.
2) If you have an actual DVD in ISO format, that would be best. But for those of you who "obtained" a copy like I did....with a setup file and the rest of the files just in folders on the DVD. I had to copy the entire contents of the DVD to the desktop first and then run setup.exe from there.
3) Supposedly, you will need the Windows Vista RC1 key or Vista beta key from last year if you wish to activate Windows 7. I personally do not care to do this, I just wanted to see how it works and how it looks. There are ways around activation....but I do not recommend doing it since its against Microsoft TOS.
After the installation was finished....Windows 7 looks almost exactly like Windows Vista. It did seem to load faster than Vista but I was running it on Virtual PC which makes all versions of operating systems faster. I will follow up with another post about Windows 7 and its features sometime this week.
Read more about Windows 7 here: Windows 7 news
Windows on a Cloud
Microsoft has unveiled Windows Azure - its new cloud computing operating system, writes Barry Collins in Los Angeles.
The company claims Azure will allow anyone from hobbyists to enterprises to write and host applications on the software giant's data centres.
"We've been working for some years now on a platform for computing in the cloud," said chief software architect, Ray Ozzie, announcing Windows Azure. "We're setting the stage for the next 50 years of systems."
read the rest of the article: Cloud Computing
The company claims Azure will allow anyone from hobbyists to enterprises to write and host applications on the software giant's data centres.
"We've been working for some years now on a platform for computing in the cloud," said chief software architect, Ray Ozzie, announcing Windows Azure. "We're setting the stage for the next 50 years of systems."
read the rest of the article: Cloud Computing
Work from Home | A Solution to high Gas Prices
Could I work from home?
I probably could....but how many days in a row that would work is a different story. Eventually, I would need to come in to work to fix a PC problem that I was unable to fix remotely. All one needs to work from home is a PC with a highspeed internet connection and a work PC with remote desktop enabled. Both PCs could be Windows XP or Windows Vista or a combination of the two. And since I have my work PC setup with SMS 2003, I remotely connect to our clients PCs anyway to fix an issue for them instead of going to their office. I probably can do this about 95% of the time with success. So I figured, why not just do it from home and not even commute to the office? I am going to inquire about "testing" this scenario out but I have a feeling that my boss will not go for it.
Oh well, a guy can dream right? If you could work from home would you? How would you do it?
I probably could....but how many days in a row that would work is a different story. Eventually, I would need to come in to work to fix a PC problem that I was unable to fix remotely. All one needs to work from home is a PC with a highspeed internet connection and a work PC with remote desktop enabled. Both PCs could be Windows XP or Windows Vista or a combination of the two. And since I have my work PC setup with SMS 2003, I remotely connect to our clients PCs anyway to fix an issue for them instead of going to their office. I probably can do this about 95% of the time with success. So I figured, why not just do it from home and not even commute to the office? I am going to inquire about "testing" this scenario out but I have a feeling that my boss will not go for it.
Oh well, a guy can dream right? If you could work from home would you? How would you do it?
Benefits of Microsoft Virtual PC
I have another "testimony" of using Microsoft Virtual PC. A few months ago, I wrote about one reason to use a Virtual PC on your desktop/laptop. Well, just recently, one of our network administrators purchased a fiber optic cable inspector. Besides installing the drivers for the cable inspector on to Windows XP, he also needed software to be able to view inside the cable. Well, he found out that the old application called Imaging for Windows that worked with this type of cable inspector on Windows 95/98/2000 did NOT work on Windows XP. Why, you say? The answer is the company that created the Imaging for Windows software did not include their software with Windows XP for free. You would need to dish out about $200 for a license. At the time, he said he could not find another free application to use and our department was not going to spend money on something that is not used too often.
So I suggested that we install Microsoft's Virtual PC 2007 on his laptop, setup a virtual machine with Windows 2000 and then he could use the cable inspector. Without delay, he told me to go ahead. About an hour later, he had his Windows XP laptop with a virtual copy of Windows 2000! I really do love this application! It definitely can save a business or even a home user some money if you know what you are doing.
How have you used Virtual PC, or any other Virtual Machine applications?
So I suggested that we install Microsoft's Virtual PC 2007 on his laptop, setup a virtual machine with Windows 2000 and then he could use the cable inspector. Without delay, he told me to go ahead. About an hour later, he had his Windows XP laptop with a virtual copy of Windows 2000! I really do love this application! It definitely can save a business or even a home user some money if you know what you are doing.
How have you used Virtual PC, or any other Virtual Machine applications?
Benefits of a custom-built PC
Computer manufacturers such as Dell, HP, IBM, etc, have come a long way in providing consumers with a number of options in building a custom computer system. These computers can be quite good for the typical user but if you really want a system that you can use for years after you buy it then you really need to consider a custom-built PC.
Most manufacturers use proprietary hardware with their PCs and this can make it extremely difficult to upgrade your PC as the various components become obsolete or are not compatible. Examples include the CPUs, RAM, network adapter, sound and video adapters. While some of these components can be upgraded after the initial purchase, you will often find that you are very limited with what you are able to upgrade.
Building your own PC allows you the most flexibility and when you look at the quality of the components used in the system, the cost is often less than buying a pre-built system of the same specifications. Another advantage of a custom-built PC is that you can start with a very basic system with a low end CPU combined with maybe a mid-range system board and minimal memory. You may also want to just start out with a generic sound card and video card or you could purchase a system board that has on board sound and video (not recommended unless you are totally broke or short on cash at the time of purchase). You can always upgrade to a better sound & video card later. You will want to do this if you decide to play some graphic intensive games on your PC.
Now you have a basic custom-built PC. When you have some more money, you can then install more RAM which is one of the best ways to enhance PC performance. Eventually, you may decide to upgrade your CPU and you may be able to do this once or twice depending on how much you are willing to spend. Best practice is to just upgrade the CPU to the best one that the system board will support. A custom PC like this would probably last you 1-2 yrs before it "feels" like its outdated. So, instead of going out and buying a whole new PC, you would only need to at most swap out the system board and processor. You can still use the same sound card, video card, computer case, RAM, CD/DVD drive, hard drive and of course keyboard/mouse. The only thing you will have to do though is probably reinstall your operating system and applications. The reason for this is that the current setup may or may not support the changing out of a system board which can cause the OS (either Windows XP or Windows Vista) to crash. Best practice, is to back up all important data to a CD/DVD, and then swap out the system board and reinstall your OS. Once that is back up and running, you can then restore your data.
Do you have a custom-built PC? What are your thoughts about them?
Most manufacturers use proprietary hardware with their PCs and this can make it extremely difficult to upgrade your PC as the various components become obsolete or are not compatible. Examples include the CPUs, RAM, network adapter, sound and video adapters. While some of these components can be upgraded after the initial purchase, you will often find that you are very limited with what you are able to upgrade.
Building your own PC allows you the most flexibility and when you look at the quality of the components used in the system, the cost is often less than buying a pre-built system of the same specifications. Another advantage of a custom-built PC is that you can start with a very basic system with a low end CPU combined with maybe a mid-range system board and minimal memory. You may also want to just start out with a generic sound card and video card or you could purchase a system board that has on board sound and video (not recommended unless you are totally broke or short on cash at the time of purchase). You can always upgrade to a better sound & video card later. You will want to do this if you decide to play some graphic intensive games on your PC.
Now you have a basic custom-built PC. When you have some more money, you can then install more RAM which is one of the best ways to enhance PC performance. Eventually, you may decide to upgrade your CPU and you may be able to do this once or twice depending on how much you are willing to spend. Best practice is to just upgrade the CPU to the best one that the system board will support. A custom PC like this would probably last you 1-2 yrs before it "feels" like its outdated. So, instead of going out and buying a whole new PC, you would only need to at most swap out the system board and processor. You can still use the same sound card, video card, computer case, RAM, CD/DVD drive, hard drive and of course keyboard/mouse. The only thing you will have to do though is probably reinstall your operating system and applications. The reason for this is that the current setup may or may not support the changing out of a system board which can cause the OS (either Windows XP or Windows Vista) to crash. Best practice, is to back up all important data to a CD/DVD, and then swap out the system board and reinstall your OS. Once that is back up and running, you can then restore your data.
Do you have a custom-built PC? What are your thoughts about them?
Hard Drive dead? Don't just trash it...
Destroy it!
Just because a dead hard drive will no longer boot an OS or the computer BIOS says its DOA, that does not mean the data is. There are utilities out there that will destroy hard drives (also called writing 1s & 0s to the disk). There are military standard DOD wipe programs as well.
And then there is the Verity Systems VS7000 manual hard drive destroyer which crushes the hard drive with the turn of a handle. The destroyer warps the hard drive platter so any data on it can never be read again. I've never seen anything like this!
Check out the other ways to destroy hard drive data
Just because a dead hard drive will no longer boot an OS or the computer BIOS says its DOA, that does not mean the data is. There are utilities out there that will destroy hard drives (also called writing 1s & 0s to the disk). There are military standard DOD wipe programs as well.
And then there is the Verity Systems VS7000 manual hard drive destroyer which crushes the hard drive with the turn of a handle. The destroyer warps the hard drive platter so any data on it can never be read again. I've never seen anything like this!
Check out the other ways to destroy hard drive data
Vista slow? Download this free performance E-book
Microsoft recently released a free e-book called Windows Vista Performance and Tuning. I just downloaded the 14 page e-book and it is definitely something that all Windows Vista users can benefit from reading it. Microsoft claims that Windows Vista along with the recent release of SP1 provide major advancements in usability, reliability, connectivity and security.
The following areas are covered in this e-book:
1) Improve PC responsiveness
2) Improve speed by using external hardware
3) Improve PC start-up time
4) Improve PC performance
5) Maintain & Monitor PC performance to help stop small issues from becoming big ones.
The article focuses on performance improvements for a single computer but there is a section that includes ways to use tools for enterprise environments as well. Right from the start, it mentions having at least 2GB of RAM for PCs that use Windows Vista. I wrote an earlier post about RAM and how Windows Vista would barely boot-up with less than 1GB of RAM. You can never have too much RAM installed in your PC.
That is the summary of the free e-book titled Windows Vista Performance and Tuning which you can download here: E-book download
The following areas are covered in this e-book:
1) Improve PC responsiveness
2) Improve speed by using external hardware
3) Improve PC start-up time
4) Improve PC performance
5) Maintain & Monitor PC performance to help stop small issues from becoming big ones.
The article focuses on performance improvements for a single computer but there is a section that includes ways to use tools for enterprise environments as well. Right from the start, it mentions having at least 2GB of RAM for PCs that use Windows Vista. I wrote an earlier post about RAM and how Windows Vista would barely boot-up with less than 1GB of RAM. You can never have too much RAM installed in your PC.
That is the summary of the free e-book titled Windows Vista Performance and Tuning which you can download here: E-book download
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