At last the beta version of Internet Explorer 7 is available for download, at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/ie7/default.mspx – This [...]]]> This week I’ll be publishing a letter from one of my loyal readers regarding the new beta version of Internet Explorer that has just been published on the Microsoft website:

At last the beta version of Internet Explorer 7 is available for download, at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/ie7/default.mspx – This will be the standard browser in Windows Vista when it is launched in September 2006.

The main emphasis of the new browser seems to be on simplicity, with the interface being considerably simpler than previous versions – This may not please the purists as some features are not now as easy to access as they were in the earlier versions. The main additions are tabbed browsing (which Firefox and Opera have offered for ages) and the built in RSS reader. RSS feeds with the orange RSS logo like this are becoming very common and for example they can be a much quicker way of reading the news headlines on the BBC’s website. IE7 can also display all of the currently open tabs as quick tabs, which is like a thumbnail image of all the open tabs.

Although there is nothing badly wrong with IE7, it is unlikely to bowl over the current enthusiasts of Firefox and Opera. Also worth a mention is the freeware Avant Browser which can be downloaded at www.snapfiles.com and is in my view a better all round browser and RSS feed reader than IE7. As ever Microsoft seems to be playing catch-up to newer and more flexible pieces of software, and nowadays I rarely use Windows Media Player because Winamp is so much better.

Having said the above, market research suggests that Internet Explorer has 90% of the market for web browsing, simply because many people do not get round to trying the alternatives like Firefox and Opera. This is a good time for people to look at the alternatives because frankly although it is okay, Internet Explorer 7 is not the best tabbed browser.

Ian MacMillan, via e-mail.

After downloading the latest version of Internet Explorer for myself I must side with Ian and say that I am somewhat disappointed with the modest improvements that Microsoft have made to the application in this latest incarnation. Rather than innovating in any shape or form they seem to have simply tried to make their browser more like Firefox and whilst imitation is the highest form of flattery I find it quite funny that such a large, expensive programming team should try to emulate a browser which was originally pioneered by a couple of bedroom programmers.

I don’t like the streamlined toolbar; it is missing a load of options that the average user requires and the new design is moving away from the standardised interface we are used to all Windows applications. I can see this leading to a fair amount of confusion as the fact there are no menus present for the ‘file’, ‘edit’ and ‘tools’ functions had me scratching my head for a minute.

The only truly unique feature I can see this application has having is the new ‘phishing filter’ which aims to protect you from websites that aim to gain personal details by deception. For example, a common problem at the moment is websites ripping off the designs of banking websites in an attempt to steal bank details off the unsuspecting. To be honest such a filter is long overdue in any browser as this problem has been around for a while now but quite how effective and up to date it’ll be remains to be seen.

It is also worth pointing out that as mentioned at the beginning of this article Internet Explorer 7 is still in beta format which essentially means it’s unfinished – We could see a fair few improvements before the final version is released and before it starts shipping with the new, unfinished Windows Operating System ‘Vista’. Personally I believe the improvements will be enough to stop many people moving to an alternative such as Firefox however those such as myself who are already using an alternative will have little incentive to switch back.

Last week I promised that I’d take a look at the new version of Windows that is currently under development, Windows Vista. Not wanting to disappoint, I will today be taking a look at the latest preview build (5231) that was released to beta testers a few days ago.

Windows Vista (formally codenamed ‘Longhorn’) was originally envisioned as a minor upgrade to Windows XP designed more as a stopgap although as work progressed on the Operating System it took the shape of an all encompassing major upgrade.

Let us take a look at some of the new features this Operating System will offer although please do bear in mind that the finished version is over a year away yet so obviously features are subject to change.

New look – Windows new look and feel is known as “Aero” which on suitably equipped machines will use the PC’s 3D accelerator to create a glass effect that will make the Windows visual experience deeper and more engaging. A downside to this effect is that it will require some pretty beefy hardware to create although on less powerful machines you will be able to go back to the classic Windows look.

Security – This is being touted as the big improvement over previous versions of Windows and Microsoft is confident that they have truly got it right this time around. Windows XP if you will remember was riddled with massive security vulnerabilities when it first released and it took the release of two service packs to get it up to anywhere near a decent standard. Obviously there is plenty happening behind the scenes to protect you from security vulnerabilities but since the majority won’t be aware of any of this background work we should focus on the things that will make a difference in the way you use the computer day to day.

Notable features include a firewall that will protect against unauthorised outbound activity in addition to the current ability to protect against inbound connections, parents will be able to set up parental controls to restrict what their children access and the OS should be able to prevent the installation of malicious software by using restricted access user accounts for day to day activities. The in-built e-mail client will provide anti-spam facilities as standard and Microsoft is planning to offer an anti-virus and anti-spyware subscription service although I would have personally liked to have seen this included as standard in the OS.

Internet Explorer – Windows Vista will include Internet Explorer 7 which is the replacement for the now four year old Internet Explorer 6. Although IE7 will be available for Windows XP eventually will be standard in Vista. As Microsoft is facing heavy competition from third party alternatives such as “Firefox” we should expect IE7 to be vast improvement although I think it is unlikely that they will think up anything original but just rip the best bits out of Firefox. For example, IE7 will support tabbed browsing and a built in RSS reader both of which Firefox has always included from the start. Security is again paramount in the new version of IE as it will include a protected mode to prevents Spyware and Malicious software from easily entering your system as well as a “phishing filter” which will protect you from fraudulent websites.

To summerise the new version of Windows looks as though it could be a worthy upgrade to the current Windows XP although we’ll have to wait until December 2006 to see everything that Microsoft has up their sleeves. Of course, there’s a lot more that I’d love to tell you about but unfortunately it’s difficult to cover an entirely new release of Windows in a 600 word article. For more information straight from the horses mouth visit www.microsoft.com/windowsvista

This week sees the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2; another monster update developed by Microsoft to close a number of holes in their Windows XP Operating System. Most of you will know the procedure by now – Go to the Microsoft website, download [...]]]>

This week sees the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2; another monster update developed by Microsoft to close a number of holes in their Windows XP Operating System. Most of you will know the procedure by now – Go to the Microsoft website, download a huge file, install it on your system and whilst the majority of users won’t see any visible change in the way you will be safe in the knowledge that your computer is more secure and stable than it was previously.

I can’t overemphasise how important this service pack is as only last week I was setting up a new system and before I had even finished setting it up it was infected with half a dozen viruses due to the large number of security holes present in the initial release of Windows XP. In addition to addressing these vulnerabilities this service includes a number of new features to make life a little easier and I will feature some of the better changes below.

- Enhanced Windows Firewall – Most importantly this is turned on by default unlike previous versions of Windows XP which required the user to manually enable it. Should you turn the firewall off it will start to nag you and warn that your system could be vulnerable although these warnings can be disabled.

- Security Centre Dashboard – This feature will pop up whenever Windows detects that your firewall, anti-virus or automatic updating is turned off, absent or out of date. This could be a very useful tool for many home users although you can ask it to go away and stop bugging you if you would rather take care of these things yourself.

- Pop-up stopper – Internet Explorer now blocks annoying pop-ups from displaying when you visit certain sites although this feature can of course be disabled.

- Improved Bluetooth support – Windows XP initially shipped without support for Bluetooth technology and whilst this has been gradually resolved with software updates, Service Pack 2 sees huge improvements in the way that Windows detects and interacts with this emerging technology.

- Enhanced Wireless Network capabilities – I wasn’t completely happy with the way that Windows handled wireless networks in the past as they were tricky to set up and very often insecure. This resulted in many people being hacked by their next door neighbour or businesses being attacked from someone parked outside their building with a wireless network enabled laptop. Windows XP Service Pack 2 includes a nice wizard to help you set up a secure wireless network on your PC and will then create a disk so that you can put these settings on any other PC’s that require use of the network.

Bottom line is that if you don’t install this update then you are either very brave or very stupid and more than likely it will be these very brave, stupid people that continue to e-mail me in months to come when their systems have been attacked. I must be honest in saying that the download is huge and so in a fantastic move of compassion Microsoft have agreed to send out a free CD to those who cannot get the update online which would be useful for those who don’t have access to a broadband connection.

In an ideal world our software would be safe and secure from day one and the people who search tirelessly for security vulnerabilities would have lives and not bother with trying to make life so difficult for the rest of us. Unfortunately we do not live in an ideal world so there really is no excuse for not taking steps today to protect your system for tomorrow so head to www.microsoft.com and either download the service pack or order the CD today.

One of the little mentioned benefits of the work that I do is that I often get the chance to use the latest software before it becomes commercially available for the general public. Such a piece of software that I had a chance to get to use recently is the [...]]]>

One of the little mentioned benefits of the work that I do is that I often get the chance to use the latest software before it becomes commercially available for the general public. Such a piece of software that I had a chance to get to use recently is the successor to Office 2000 entitled “Office XP”.

To start with, for those of you slightly unsure what Office 2000 is, let me explain: The Office suite by Microsoft contains nearly all the basic productivity software that a business or home user could ask for in one package, a Word Processor (Word), Spreadsheet (Excel), Presentation Package (PowerPoint), E-mail (Outlook), Database creator (Access) and in addition, high-end versions of the Office suite can also include a Desktop Publisher (Publisher) and a Webpage-designer (FrontPage). I estimate that the majority of readers have used a version of the Office suite in the past and so I will focus mainly on what Office XP adds to this so far successful package.

The first thing that hits you when looking at the package is that it doesn’t seem to include any new features that I would describe as revolutionary; many of them seem to concentrate on usability of the application, for example, the introduction of advanced Smart Tags to help with the format and layout of a document, for example to correct grammatical errors, undo small changes etc.

A nice new addition to the user interface is that of a feature called ‘task panes’. Basically, they are designed to help the user achieve common tasks quickly and easily. These task panes operate on the right hand side of the application screen and behave quite like wizards in previous versions of Office, just a lot less intrusive. For example, if trying to import a picture, the task pane pops up on the right hand side and presents your options. In previous versions of Office, a wizard would have popped up and obscured your whole document. The task pane can then stay on the right hand side of the screen until you need it next.

One thing that I particularly liked is that in Office XP, on the odd occasions that it does crash out, rather than just closing down and showing an undecipherable error like most Microsoft products have a tendency of doing, Office XP crashes with an element of tact. It apologises for any inconvenience that may have been caused and asks if you would like to report the fault to Microsoft. When you re-start the program it tries to recover any data that may have been lost as a result of the crash.

The apparent lack of new features isn’t necessarily a bad thing as there is only a certain amount of work that you can do on an application before you start to run out of ways of changing it; I personally would prefer existing features to be improved rather than the suite becoming more complicated with new features (and the possibility of new bugs) that would never be used. The general presentation of the package has been slightly modified, however I am left wondering whether the new look is improved at all or whether Microsoft changed it just allow it to be distinguished from past versions of Office.

Two new interesting features include a new OCR (Optical Character Recognition) and Speech Recognition engines. OCR allows the computer to read text from a scanner or other method such as fax and port it into your chosen application for editing without you having to re-type it. In contrast, Speech Recognition is used to convert your spoken word into text via your computers’ microphone. Unfortunately I have never had a great deal of success such with these systems and so remain slightly sceptical, however I will not say anything too negative as I know of many people who continually rave about such technology so it’s perhaps just my bad experiences.

Overall, I have found using Office XP quite a bit more pleasant than Office 2000, not because there are any radical changes but just because of the small little refinements. However, here comes the downside of the argument, to get the package of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access and Outlook is set to cost around £270 for the upgrade when it is released next week. This seems quite a bit of money for those who already own 2000 and would gain very few new features, however for those of you who still have Office 97 it may seem a better deal. If it is your first time buying, Office XP is likely to cost around £520 which is around the same price that the latest versions of Office have been released at in the past. One more thing to consider is that Office XP is incompatible with Windows 95 and earlier operating systems.