You Call To Cancel Your Zune Account, Microsoft Deactivates XBOX Live
,----[ Quote ]
| After he called Microsoft to cancel his Zune account, reader Will noticed
| that his XBOX Live account was suddenly silver instead of gold.
`----
http://consumerist.com/376110/you-call-to-cancel-your-zune-account-microsoft-deactivates-xbox-live
Microsoft Succeeds in Making Vista Even Worse
,----[ Quote ]
| Windows Vista is already perhaps the most frustrating product Microsoft has
| yet heaved onto the computing public. But now its Service Pack 1 update,
| which is supposed to FIX holes and squeaks in the Vista code, seems to be
| making things worse...
`----
http://seekingalpha.com/article/69867-microsoft-succeeds-in-making-vista-even-worse
Related:
[Full-disclosure] Xbox live accounts are being stolen
,----[ Quote ]
| I just got off the phone with a Microsoft Tech for Xbox live that has
| confirmed this to with me and they have stated that accounts are
| being stolen and that "Hackers have control of Xbox live and there is
| nothing we can do about it"
`----
http://lists.grok.org.uk/pipermail/full-disclosure/2007-March/053032.html
Microsoft: There Were XBL Security Issues Last Week
,----[ Quoet ]
| What a twisted tale we weave. It all started in the middle of last
| week when Microsoft told C|Net they were beginning an investigation
| into possible fraud and account theft on Xbox Live. Scary stuff, but
| not to worry; the very next day, popular Microsoft blogger Major
| Nelson posted there was, in fact, no security compromise. Not so
| fast, though.
|
| Late Friday, Nelson posted another security update, this one with a
| very different story to tell. Apparently some wires crossed before,
| and he was a little off the mark.
`----
http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3158219
Vista SP1: Still lagging behind the Linux desktop
,----[ Quote ]
| I've now been working with Vista SP1, the so-called RTM (release to
| manufacturing) version, for about two weeks. I am amazed at how little
| improvement I see in this so-called major update.
|
| Last year, I took a long, hard look at Vista versus desktop Linux, testing
| SimplyMEPIS 6, in a four-part series. In the months since then, we've learned
| that Microsoft lied about how much hardware was needed to run Vista in an
| affair that we're now calling Vistagate.
|
| Personally, I didn't need to see Microsoft/Intel e-mails to know that "Vista
| Capable" PC requirements were so much BS. I found that doubling Microsoft's
| minimum daily PC requirements would get you to the point of a bearable Vista
| experience. Not a good one, mind you, just one that wouldn't have you pulling
| out your hair.
`----
http://www.desktoplinux.com/news/NS5456703154.html
Angry Vista Users Vent Over SP1 Driver Issues
,----[ Quote ]
| The service pack is being withheld from machines containing one or more of
| the listed drivers, because, as Microsoft put it in a support
| document, "these device drivers are problematic on Windows Vista-based
| computers when you update to Windows Vista SP1."
|
| That made an industry analyst wonder about Microsoft's driver testing
| process. "When Microsoft said there were problems with drivers, I assumed it
| was some odd scanner or camera, or an ancient printer or something," said
| Michael Cherry, analyst with Directions on Microsoft, a Kirkland, Wash.-based
| research firm. "But then I saw the list. It makes me wonder what's going on
| with device driver testing.
`----
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,143708-pg,1/article.html
Vista SP1: Threat or Menace?
,----[ Quote ]
| The multimillion-dollar question is whether SP1 will be the hoped-for
| catalyst that triggers a widespread migration from XP to Vista. The Service
| Pack may help to allay concerns about code quality, but the perception that
| Vista's benefits simply don't outweigh the risk of the upgrade remains a
| challenge for Microsoft, particularly among business users.
`----
http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/blogs/mcallister_on_software/143695/vista_sp1_threat_or_menace.html
http://tinyurl.com/328vkf
Windows is caught between Mac and Linux
,----[ Quote ]
| For the first time in ages, the sale of new PCs with Windows as a percentage
| of the PC market is declining sharply. The new winner is the Mac, but, while
| no one does a good job of tracking the still-new, pre-installed Linux desktop
| market, it's also clear that Linux is finally making impressive inroads into
| Windows' once unchallenged market share.
|
| [...]
|
| How Microsoft deals, or fails to deal, with this new challenge will determine
| if Windows continues to be the dominant desktop operating system. Distracted
| by its Yahoo buyout plans, its courtroom failures and its leadership changes,
| Microsoft is in trouble, and that means the other desktop operating systems
| have their best chance ever to knock Windows off the top of the desktop hill.
`----
http://www.desktoplinux.com/news/NS8541837412.html
Windows Vista SP1 Flunks Out At Penn
,----[ Quote ]
| University of Pennsylvania tech staffers are advising faculty and students
| not to upgrade to the new service pack for Microsoft's Windows Vista
| operating system.
`----
http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml;?articleID=206905083
Vista SP1 downloaders bite back
,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft has acknowledged that the service pack will not install on
| computers that use “incompatible” peripheral device drivers from the likes of
| Realtek and Intel.
`----
http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2008/03/20/vista_sp1_complaints/
Re: Configurating updates: stage 3 of 3 stuck in endless reboot loop
,----[ Quote ]
| My install of the SP1 RC Refesh has gone wrong.
|
| Everytime I start the computer it says:
|
| Configurating updates: stage 3 of 3 - 0% complete
|
| And then reboots, and reboots, and reboots ... I had it rebooting for over an
| hour before I stopped the madness.
| All the safe modes does the same, so how do I uninstall the installer,
| without being able to log in?
`----
http://forums.microsoft.com/TechNet/showpost.aspx?postid=2848906&siteid=17
Vista SP1 a Performance Dud
,----[ Quote ]
| After extensive testing of both RTM and SP1-patched versions of Windows
| Vista, it seems clear that the hoped-for performance fixes that Microsoft has
| been hinting at never materialized. Vista + SP1 is no faster than Vista from
| the RTM image.
|
| Bottom Line: If you've been disappointed with the performance of Windows
| Vista to date, get used to it. SP1 is simply not the panacea that many
| predicted. In the end, it's Vista's architecture - not a lack of tuning or
| bug fixes - that makes it perform so poorly on systems that
| were "barn-burners" under Windows XP.
`----
http://exo-blog.blogspot.com/2007/11/vista-sp1-performance-dud.html
Microsoft Says Vista SP1 Blocks Third Party Apps
,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft has confirmed that some third party applications are either blocked
| or lose functionality on machines that have Vista service pack 1 installed,
| including products from Trend Micro, Zonelabs, BitDefender, and Novell.
`----
http://www.crn.com/software/206801221
Microsoft publishes list of compatibility problems with Vista Service Pack 1
,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft has published a list of programs that may "experience a loss of
| functionality", if they run at all, once Service Pack 1 has been installed on
| Windows Vista.
`----
http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/103815/from/rss09
A Second Shot: Windows Vista SP1
,----[ Quote ]
| As far as the Vista user experience is concerned, users shouldn't expect any
| significant changes with SP1.
`----
http://www.anandtech.com/systems/showdoc.aspx?i=3233
Hands off Vista Service Pack
,----[ Quote ]
| It's annoying that despite the Service Pack, Vista still doesn't correctly
| handle backup archives which were generated with its predecessor Windows XP.
| Neither is there a noticeable improvement to notebook battery life. When
| tested, one notebook only worked half as long as with Windows XP. Eight
| further notebooks didn't run differently either in the c't test. There even
| were some entirely new issues, for example with virus scanners. Norton
| Antivirus produces error messages, and Bitdefender Antivirus can't be
| installed any more at al
`----
http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/103646/from/rss09
Vista SP1 won't sacrifice security for compatibility
,----[ Quote ]
| Vista SP1 will include a significant number of "proactive" security changes,
| DeVaan said. These do not represent fixes for specific vulnerabilities,
| instead they represent Microsoft's efforts to head off potential threats.
`----
http://www.itwire.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14224&Itemid=1054
Vista's Upgrade: Not Worth the Wait
,----[ Quote ]
| Although Microsoft has reported solid sales of Vista, a lot of copies went to
| corporations that tried the program for a few weeks, then downgraded to XP.
`----
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_05/b4069000450184.htm?campaign_id=yhoo
Microsoft Windows Vista SP1 Beta
,----[ Quote ]
| Windows lives and dies by its service packs. I can't recall the last initial
| release of any Windows product that didn't have at least some problems.
|
| [...]
|
| Still, given that Vista is essentially a rewrite of XP meant to enhance
| ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
| security (and, of course, media features), I'm not surprised to see Microsoft
| take this route for the service pack.
`----
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2704,2192546,00.asp
Windows Vista Ultimate SP1 delayed
,----[ Quote ]
| Microsoft has admitted that service pack one (SP1) for its Ultimate edition
| of Windows Vista will not be made available to everyone in mid-March as
| originally planned, because of a delay with 31 of its language packs.
`----
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/04/vista_ultimate_sp1_language_packs/
Vista SP1 Released and Delayed Simultaneously
,----[ Quote ]
| Continuing their apparent efforts to take the steam out of Windows Vista,
| Microsoft today announced that the long awaited Windows Vista Service Pack 1
| is being released, but not to Vista users. That’s right, SP1 is now RTM
| (Released to Manufacturing), but won’t be released via any means to end users
| or even system administrators for at least another month and a half.
`----
http://itsvista.com/2008/02/vista-sp1-released-and-delayed-simultaneously/
Vista marketing chief to bid Microsoft adieu
,----[ Quote ]
| Michael Sievert, Corporate Vice President for Windows Product Marketing, is
| moving on, according to multiple sources of mine.
|
| It’s hard to make the case that Sievert, who was responsible for the
| worldwide introduction of Windows Vista, isn’t being pushed for the
| less-than-enthusiastic public perception of Microsoft’s latest version of
| Windows. Even though Microsoft has moved 100-million-plus copies of Vista,
| many consumers and businesses still consider the new release buggy, sluggish
| and incompatible with existing software and drivers.
`----
http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=1158
Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista not for pirates
,----[ Quote ]
| Although, unlike previous Windows versions, Vista is not available as an
| activation-free version, a number of more or less effective methods were
| quickly found to run Vista without activation. However, this is soon to end.
| According to Microsoft, Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista closes two
| vulnerabilities which previously enabled operation of Vista without a
| license.
`----
http://www.heise.de/english/newsticker/news/100006/from/rss09
|
|