CharlotteTheHarlot

Windows 8 RTM one year ago today; we take a look back ( NeoWin 2013-08-01 ) Yeah, one year of RTM but over two years of controversy and criticism. Ladies and gentleman we have our joke of the day. Another peek into the dysfunctional mind of the MicroZealot. In their universe where everything revolves around Microsoft, all companies are expected to build hardware for the sole purpose of making Windows look good. This is a common theme among these, people. In a nutshell, they believe that the 1st party is Microsoft and the OEM manufacturer is their 3rd party supplier. Such thinking mirrors those that believe the "people" exist to serve their government, rather than government existing to serve the people. Inverted reality in both cases and it helps to explain the cheerleading for Microsoft and their Tiles, and also for those that welcome the government spying. The comment section is shaping up nicely thanks to a few intrepid truth-tellers driving Dot MetroTard and others nuts. Until the end of 2013, Microsoft's ex-Windows head can't work at seven rival companies ( NeoWin 2013-07-31 ) 7 Companies Microsoft ex-Windows Chief Isn't Allowed to Join ( Tom's Hardware 2013-08-01 ) Microsoft clarified the severance package agreement over what companies that Sinofsky is temporarily banned from. They are: Amazon, Apple, EMC, Facebook, Google, Oracle, and VMWare. Strategy Analytics: Big boost in Windows Phone units shipped in Q2 2013 ( NeoWin 2013-08-01 ) More results showing that the destruction of Windows to achieve some tiny marketshare was a bad idea. Naturally the shipments of WP increased 100% from before and after WP8 was released as WP7 was dead at the time. But how did the marketshare react to WP8? Global Smartphone Marketshare Q2 2012 vs 2013 Android ........ 69.50 ... 79.50 Apple iOS ...... 16.60 ... 13.60 Microsoft WP .... 3.60 .... 3.90 Other .......... 10.40 .... 3.00 The sneaky fanboys are busy talking about the SHIPMENT numbers comparing Q2 in 2012 and 2013 instead of MARKETSHARE because the latter, as shown above demonstrates that for destroying Windows and sacrificing the reputation of Microsoft, they gained nothing. NOTHING. Microsoft releases Office for Android, requires Office 365 subscription ( TechSpot 2013-07-31 ) Office for Android phones released for Office 365 subscribers ( NeoWin 2013-07-31 ) Microsoft Office Mobile for Android Arrives ( Maximum PC 2013-07-31 ) Microsoft Launches Office for Android Phones. Office in your pocket (but not on your tablet). ( Tom's Hardware 2013-07-31 ) No Microsoft Office for UK Android Users Just Yet ( Tom's Hardware 2013-08-01 ) That is a very strange thing noticed by more than a few commenters. They go through the trouble of releasing the Office 364 "service" to Android phones but not any other size Android devices, like tablets and future laptops and PC's. Maybe a pre-emptive strike because they realize by poisoning Windows they have opened the door for its replacement. Microsoft celebrates one year of Outlook.com ( NeoWin 2013-07-31 ) Outlook.com users experiencing problems accessing email (Update: Back up) ( NeoWin 2013-07-31 ) Nice juxtaposition of two stories up at NeoWin, eh?

Microsoft's ten percent marketshare goal looking unrealistic as XP remains strong ( NeoWin 2013-08-01 ) Windows 8 crawls up another 3/10ths of a percent. Meanwhile both Windows 7 and Windows XP also increase a tiny bit. When you consider that only Windows 8 is being pushed by advertising AND is being shoved into the monopolized OEM channel this is not the kind of thing that the fanboys wanted to see, which is demonstrated by the fact that the author spends most of the article discussing Windows XP and its imminent "demise". The numbers ... Windows XP .. 37.17 .. 37.19 .. + 0.02 % Vista ........ 4.62 ... 4.24 .. - 0.38 % Windows 7 ... 44.37 .. 44.49 .. + 0.12 % Windows 8 .... 5.10 ... 5.40 .. + 0.30 % OSX 10.6 ..... 1.76 ... 1.68 .. OSX 10.7 ..... 1.73 ... 1.69 .. OSX 10.8 ..... 3.14 ... 3.28 .. Other ........ 2.11 ... 2.04 .. BTW: it sure looks like there is an upcoming problem that will bite Microsoft in the butt for choosing a point update nomenclature for the upcoming Windows 8 service pack. Since they are using separate entries for Apple's Mac OSX point updates they will have to do the same for Microsoft Tiles or look like hypocrites. So here are the two future charting possibilities, neither of which will please the fanboys. Which one will they decide to use? ... (1) Display OS by major version without breaking down point updates, merging all Apple OSX into a single category where Microsoft Tiles still trails the combined Apple Mac OSX releases! Windows XP .. 37.19 Vista ........ 4.24 Windows 7 ... 44.49 Windows 8 .... 5.40 OSX .......... 6.65 Other ........ 2.04 (2) Or, breaking out all OS versions including Microsoft Tiles into point editions ( like OSX currently is ) and having to watch Windows 8.1 Blew start from 0.00 all over again and scratch and crawl its way past Windows 8 RTM. Windows XP .. 37.19 Vista ........ 4.24 Windows 7 ... 44.49 Windows 8.0 .. 5.40 Windows 8.1 .. 0.00 OSX 10.6 ..... 1.68 OSX 10.7 ..... 1.69 OSX 10.8 ..... 3.28 Other ........ 2.04 There are so many idi0tic comments over there, as usual. So much misinformation they are spreading about Windows XP. They have no idea of "security" concepts and how malware works. One example is from our dear Dot MetroTard who says: "It'll shrink considerably after April 2014 when it get inundated with attacks.". ~sigh~ These people actually believe that the Windows Update system and all the alleged fixes it delivers is somehow akin to an IV in a hospital room delivering medicine to patient keeping them alive on life support. Unplug the IV and the patient dies. They really believe this stuff! Gabe Newell's Windows 8 'catastrophe' is now the second most used OS on Steam ( NeoWin 2013-08-01 ) ~sigh~ For the umpteenth time, Windows is not used on Steam! What an incredible inversion of logic that is. And it is NOT a nitpick for several reasons. Most obviously the operating system that Steam is allowed to run on is governed by Valve and what they program it for and this will likely change soon. Secondly, Windows 8 is the only operating system that Microsoft is pushing into their monopolized OEM channel so how can anyone be surprised that it is growing? But the most important reason is that Steam users are not running out and buying operating systems to use on Steam! Additionally, Steam is a solution for moderate gamers lacking the patience to buy or build a gaming rig or too cheap to buy a console because it is a point and click solution at game purchasing and game management. It is perfect for MetroTards because it perfectly fits their Playskool skillset. Naturally they are using Steam on Windows 8! Given those facts, Steam being used on Windows 8 still only rose 1%. That's pretty embarrassing if you ask me. EDIT: editor CRLF quote bug

Well first of all remember this is a kludge, and a fantasy at that, so I don't want to get to wrapped up in it! Why not install the operating system itself to bare metal? This is a direct consequence of planned obsolescence and some ridiculous design flaws in Windows using the registry to stitch together the hardware virtually, where a single error can break something from working. They decided to map out the core hardware spaghetti in elaborate hardware trees generated from entries taken out of INF files supplied by the hardware makers, and in the case of most motherboards that is a chipset package of INF files describing that generation motherboard hardware. When Intel doesn't supply the package for some previous version of Windows ( as it tends to stop doing after a period of time ), boom, it becomes obsolete even though it may be perfectly functioning hardware. And not just Intel, but any number of OEMs stop shipping drivers for earlier Windows for a variety of reasons such as the new SDK or DDK simply won't create files for the last Windows. There is much, much more to it than this quick summary, including likely strong-arm tactics and incentives by Microsoft to stop making drivers for previous versions of Windows, like XP for example. All things considered, it's quite a testament to its longevity as it retains over 1/3 marketshare despite all efforts to kill it. Perhaps someday we'll just rewrite the Windows setup routine ( see below ) and make planned obsolescence a moot point. Why not just use a plain VM on future hardware to run past versions of Windows? Well there are two definite problems. One is that there is a speed tax for most of them which is compounded by the sudden thwarting of CPU performance advancements for the last few tick-tock cycles from Intel. If CPU throughput and speed had continued to rise and had doubled or tripled instead of crawling along for the past 3-4 years this would be completely unnecessary because any VM software would now be sufficient because the speed tax would be dwarfed by the CPU speed. Only Hyper-V seems close enough to the hardware to minimize the speed tax presently, however this brings up the second problem: Planned Obsolescence, yet again! The last time I checked Hyper-V has a typically ridiculous Microsoft designed supported OS list. There is no Windows XP or earlier, and no home editions of the few recent Windows versions that they do allow. Will this policy change later? Why would it? It's not a bug, it's a feature. As far as USB goes, I would expect new versions to fallback to whatever speed was standard for that specific version of Windows hosted in the VM session. I believe this is because Microsoft has wedded the USB interface so tightly to Windows that it will be impossible to use the improvements in new releases of USB on older versions of Windows because of likely changes to ( or completely new ) driver files and registry keys. Why new hardware trees in the registry and new product identifiers and new links to new keys are continually needed is beyond me since we are only talking about faster signaling and maybe some error checking. So without a patch to "fix" that old version of Windows ( registry and driver files ) I don't really see using USB 4 on XP or 7 except maybe at the level of compatibility that version of Windows had used. Actually it remains to be seen if even USB 3.1 will work on 7. It was only just announced ( see below ) and is yet another opportunity for Microsoft to obsolete Windows 7. The USB committee could divorce itself from Windows by making the hardware smart enough to detect it's attached devices and operate on it's own but that is off-topic speculation for another day. Can this compatibility instead be fixed by a theoretical super-VM Intel hypervisor? With some far-thinking complex coding I do think they could chose to somehow thunk the USB 4 interface to transparently appear as USB 2 to the hosted operating system, and provided that the onboard controller and attached devices contain sufficient logic to distinguish which devices operate at what speed and what allowed power, then it would work. But again, Intel, who is very close to the onboard circuitry would have to choose to undertake this step in coding. An act of benevolence for customers of their chipsets. We're way off in fantasyland now, and it is because of decisions made long ago by Microsoft offloading their low level responsibilities to vendors because it suited their purpose of enjoying cash flow from continual customer updating to newer versions of Windows. Finally, I repeat, this fantasy of an Intel designed hypervisor is merely a daydream, and it is but one of several other possible alternatives that would allow users to continue using Windows of their own choosing. Let's try to summarize them ... (0) Somehow convince Intel, nVidia and other OEM and chipset makers and peripheral hardware makers to continue releasing drivers and INF files for newer hardware for older Windows versions such as XP. NOTE: I was wrong in saying that the worst nightmare for Microsoft would be item (7) an Intel VM. That would certainly burn them up, but nothing compared to what would happen if hardware makers kept releasing new drivers that sustain Windows XP and other operating systems. That would cut them right to the bone. Ballmer's head would explode like a scene from 'Scanners'. (1) Hack an older OS like Windows XP to install on a new motherboard. A very nice solution indeed. This might involve disassembling the Windows Setup executable and some other related modules, modify and then recompile them, as well as adding in new custom INFs and system files to the cabinets which would all serve to allow Windows XP to install on new motherboards. This would require an organized effort at updating the chipset INF package also. Overall it could be thought of as a super evolved NLite process. If this were successful installing to bare metal would certainly be a desirable option, perhaps the most do-able of all options. (2) Microsoft simply fixes the GUI in Windows 8 and any other disasters they have in the pipeline. This seemingly unlikely scenario is for Microsoft to simply come to its senses and modularize the user interface for Windows, and make it user selectable and customizable. A simple theming engine would do, preferably the existing UxTheme model with some added fixes and expansions but backward compatible. This solves everything because the knuckleheads who want to can keep their Playskool tiles, and the grown-ups can select whatever they feel like, chrome, 3D, Aero, Classic, Bliss and everything else in the archives. That's how a smart company full of smart employees would do it. Unfortunately all the excuses we heard are lies, this was done solely to turn us all into obedient little Appletards. (3) Windows goes Open Source. This scenario is of course about convincing Microsoft to just release the source code for x86 Windows ( and the related storage and other associated IP ) and get it into the public domain. God knows they ain't using it. Then they can continue their MetroTard dreams and we can get back to work. What happens after that in the open source model is total speculation but I can imagine kernel compiles similar to Linux as workable. But Open Source is unlikely because Microsoft doesn't think they've completely milked the cows dry yet and will probably keep it under wraps forever. Alternatively, let federal SWAT teams storm redmond with flashbangs and liberate the source code as punishment for their monopolistic antitrust violations. Just sayin' :-) (4) A replacement OS from Intel. And as much as I would like to see an OS by Intel for their x86 architecture, I just don't see trusting them to not screw up the GUI in the process. Maybe they could cut a deal with Microsoft and grab the x86 source code and then move forward ( this is probably more likely than Microsoft selling it to some other company, or releasing it to public domian ). All very unlikely in the present because Intel seems to have some mismanagement themselves who are unwilling to face the threat that Microsoft is now posing to them. (5) A replacement 3rd party OS ( that's if you want to call Microsoft 1st party, which they are NOT unless you are only thinking of the recent Surface hardware ). There certainly are a few contenders out there but what are the chances that they will get the user interface correct? There are between one and two BILLION people wedded to the classic Windows GUI and history shows that they might get it 70% or 80% right, but skimp on some important detail. Besides that, they have to get the insides correct as well ( Registry, File Systems, etc ). If "legacy" software cannot function they will fail and it is all for naught. (6) Use an existing available VM. As described earlier the downside is a speed tax under current consumer CPU's, and limited choice of hosted OS, especially on Microsoft's Hyper-V. (7) A theoretical new lower-level VM hypervisor from Intel. Daydreaming as described above but not impossible since Intel knows the hardware better than anyone. Other ideas and possibilities welcome to add to the 'Windows Preservation' list.

More coverage ... XKeyscore: NSA tool collects 'nearly everything a user does on the internet' ( UK Guardian 2013-07-31 ) XKeyScore How the NSA Can See Everything You Do Online ( Tom's Hardware 2013-07-31 ) Microsoft Excel used as example in new NSA XKeyscore leak ( NeoWin 2013-07-31 ) NSA's XKeyscore database tracks everything you've ever done online ( TechSpot 2013-08-01 ) I think we can safely say that every bad nightmare that was discussed in the late 1990's has come true, and then some. Back then they talked about government backsoors in DES and cracking computer passwords and possibly legislating a backdoor going forward for use under court orders in rare cases. Then came 9/11. Now it looks like they have no restraints, not even the illusion of a restraint and have set upon taking anything and everything by all means necessary. I'm having a hard time thinking of something now that is "private" or "safe". We're simply going to need a new Internet. And you know what we could do? We'll use the EULA approach pioneered by Big Technology and Big Hollywood and backed by Big Government. We'll just have a disclaimer that says "Use of this Network is reserved for private citizens everywhere, no trespassing by government employees allowed." EDIT: typo

More coverage ... Microsoft ordered to rename SkyDrive over trademark infringement ( TechSpot 2013-07-31 ) Microsoft agrees to change SkyDrive name worldwide; won't appeal ruling (Update) ( NeoWin 2013-07-31 ) Microsoft to Drop SkyDrive Branding Following Defeat in Trademark Case ( Maximum PC 2013-07-31 ) Microsoft to Change 'SkyDrive' Name Following UK Lawsuit ( Tom's Hardware 2013-08-01 ) Karma steps in a week after Microsoft snatched away some Xbox domain names from private citizens. Frankly I'm amazed that they ever thought they had a chance in the first place. They went and surrendered on the Metro name yet fought for this one? Some legal department they have. One huge mistake after another. Neowin readers offer suggestions for renaming SkyDrive ( NeoWin 2013-08-01 ) Someone else deserves the credit for this ... why not just change it to SpyDrive.

I suspect that he means passwords used on websites and forums through a browser. In this case it depends. Using several Nirsoft utilities, if they were used in Internet Explorer they will be easy to get. Firefox and Chrome are a little less easy. Opera even less so. I'll leave it to him to study Nirsoft security tools.

Everything you are describing is about protecting the average user, the "Sheeple" as they are affectionately known to so many. I'll be the first one to agree that they are hopeless, I see their handiwork everyday. However, if I do not invite you in from the inside, and you cannot hack your way in from the outside, the computer will not be compromised, period. This includes any version of Windows including Windows XP, unpatched, running as administrator, bare naked with no antivirus. I think there are two kinds of people in the world nowadays, in large part thanks to Microsoft, Apple and others. There are those with situational awareness, and those without. In the former case the people are not connecting everything they own to the Internet, especially anything important, and obviously not clicking on everything in sight. In the latter case, well, they go online with everything they own and click on it all. And they don't really care. If it means digging into a menu to change a setting they won't even bother. Strong passwords and passphrases, forget it. Many times they don't have any clue that they are even online, and again we can thank Microsoft and others, but especially Microsoft for blurring the distinction between online and offline. It has been their obsession since Windows 98. These are natural born victims. It's positively Darwinian. Microsoft and all their patching cannot save them. That's one way of saying that the sheeple invited the malware into the computer and executed it. And that wouldn't really be "bypassing" a NAT router, it would be normal use of communications by design. It did not break in, it did not bypass anything. All the discussion above about 8/8.1 and its countless patches and ductape to numerous files compared to earlier versions of Windows come into play after the sheeple invited the malware into the computer and executed it. You are describing an OS that is built for the worst case scenario, and I agree, it is. It is reduced to the lowest common denominator, the sheeple that operate in this environment. And that's fine. It keeps many of us in business cleaning up after them, despite all the exploit patching. I can name quite a number of things, though it may get somewhat technical, and I don't know what level you'd understand. MSE makes no difference to me, since bypassing AV isn't difficult, and it also isn't a technology that makes 8 any harder to hack than XP. One major difference over XP is a proper implementation of ASLR. XP lacks all ASLR, making remote code execution trivial. Windows 8 ASLR is the first proper implementation on Windows, with multiple information leaks removed, and the ability to have all memory maps randomized. There is significantly more entropy as well. Vista+ are immune to shatter attacks. On XP the difference between Admin and restricted user is not enforced properly, making escalation attacks incredibly easy. Microsoft released a patch to solve this, and it does somewhat, but it's not as well implemented. Privileges in general are improved, as system services run with lower rights on Vista+, and areas of the kernel have been moved to userland, where an exploit won't be so critical. /GS is used further in 8+ for system services. I could go on. These changes are considerable. Okay fine, I can accept all that as fact. But nothing you said there was about Windows 8.x versus Windows 7. We're well aware of where Windows XP sits in the evolutionary tree ( ironically it's a benefit to XP in many ways that is not weighed down by a hundred services and tasks, and yes this was correctly said about Win9x compared to XP ). But I asked about 8 versus 7 specifically because unless there is a giganto-humongous increase in real security over Windows 7 ( and I highly doubt it ) then the never ending stream of infected Windows 7 systems will simply evolve into never ending streams of Windows 8.x systems. All the bullet lists of patchwork and ductape from version to version has made no difference in over a decade when those systems are owned and operated by sheeple. Please note that none of what I am saying here is aimed at you in any way, it is aimed at the security treadmill industry whose chief product is bullet lists full of theoretical vulnerabilities. No one attacks a users laptop anymore in any way that a network Firewall will matter much. Worms like conficker are remnants of the past, anyone on a modern system is far more likely to be attacked through a service that already is taking in input. This is where I disagree. You can't even use remote assistance without opening ports on the NAT router. You cannot torrent. P2p comm programs and other utilities will not work. Even Xbox requires a change. Everything is opt-in, and it really can't get much more secure than that, can it? Many common pathways are slammed shut by default, arriving packets tossed and no CPU wasted in the process. Maybe I was unclear in that phrasing above. When Windows XP came out useful broadband was just arriving for the average home consumer ( speeds above ISDN ) and this meant they now used a modem from the ISP. People just shoved their ethernet wire from their single home PC into it and were off to the races. Thus began the download era, the worm era and also the near instantaneous computer virus infection era when a typical user clicked on those attachments and those "click me" links in email or on pictures of Pamela Anderson ( or was it Anna Kournikova? ). Then when laptops arrived in quantity and demanded either another ethernet jack or a wireless access point now a local router was added. Thankfully these routers mostly came with NAT ( lucky too, this was long before IPv6 was talked about much ) and thus home computers and networks suddenly became relatively secure overnight. Well, until the geek in the home started reconfiguring for torrents and other stuff. It's not at all about how a laptop is attacked because there are so many methods. The victim clicks a link or opens an attachment or autoruns a local file with a malware payload that quickly infects the PC with malware that uses port 3389 ( or any other ) which are now blocked. It's what happens after that. At today's CPU speeds malware can quickly change the registry settings for a software firewall to open all those ports or disable it completely ( even on a reduced user account tricking them into "OK" a prompted change, or I suspect simply using SetACL silently because I have a few unexplained cases with customers that swear they never clicked anything in Windows 7 ). Anyway, the point is that none of this ( opening up the firewall ) is possible with hardware security without intentionally entering the configuration interface for the router. The hardware based security therefore is immune to unintentional alterations, and reduces CPU load at the same time. So I'm trying, but failing to understand why you keep saying that a hardware firewall in a router is somehow inconsequential. It really is anything but that. A point of agreement in that Windows XP will likely run out of usable browsers. This is not something Microsoft should ever brag about though because they are the malevolent force behind this by obsoleting a working operating system, and spreading FUD daily about the cut-off date Armageddon and no doubt whispering into the ears of the other browser makers to get them to stop developing for XP because it will somehow save them money or something. They should get crucified again over this issue because even though their strategy is different this time ( obsoleting their own browser and operating system ), the end result is till the same, thwarting development and use of 3rd party browsers on a working perfectly operating system. This goes double for device drivers for new hardware. Microsoft is trying to force people to upgrade to a new operating system. Has anyone ever asked them why? Yes, Opera and Mozilla and Google are also to blame, but they are merely being stoopid while Microsoft is being reckless and yes, evil. No company that really cares about security would stop making their super duper secure browser for their own working operating system, which runs at least one third of all computers on the planet. Now about MSIE, Internet Explorer has always been the single biggest Achilles heel for Windows users on the Internet. Sure it's getting better ( could it get worse? ) but I have screenshots from last year of the FBI trap on Windows 7 ( non-administrator, MSE running, etc ). Dialogs painted by Internet Explorer can look exactly like the operating system itself because Microsoft jammed MSIE it into the operating system itself. The social traps love to simulate official looking boxes which MSIE happily accommodates and is yet another fabulous reason to use try to third party browser software that does not mimic the Windows native look ( personally I use Opera with a custom skin I made but on Vista/7 you can always just kill the Aero glass look on an ad hoc basis in a shortcut's properties ). This means the potency of the trap bait is reduced because the phony dialog will stand out differently. But this problem is actually getting worse now - MSIE is actually getting more problematic because as Windows itself drifts more towards a web look the difference between what is "official OS business" and what is online garbage and what is a phony dialog all converges into a mess. Worst of all, MSIE is often quite stoopid. Just unplug your ethernet wire and then click something in MSIE. It still serves up a "cannot display ..." page with that "Diagnose" option to scramble your network settings because the plug is out! That's just plain dumb. And dangerous because it trains the sheeple to accept that very low-quality web page as "official OS business" and later when that same user is confronted with a much more "official looking" but fake dialog they will understandably click it. The operating system looks like a web page so web pages easily look like the operating system. What I am trying to say is that by blurring the difference between online and off, and by not distinguishing the "official" interface from crappy webpages they are hurting the users because they no longer can discern what something is and where they are. IMHO, Microsoft isn't even trying to protect the user. They simply are not thinking these things through properly. And we're not even mentioning ActiveX yet. How can anyone take seriously a browser that allows something like this? Oh, Botnets. Well I do agree that they are an evolving form of threat and I wasn't even thinking of them because I have seen so few so far. But point taken. Just don't underestimate the social traps like FBI and FixMeUp or PC Antivirus 2011 or whatever else. These I see all the time. And some of these folks have already paid cash ( the AV traps ) by the time I got their PC and then they had to undergo the whole credit card canceling and everything else. I don't believe those numbers though ( "hundred thousand dollars" ) but I'm not saying it's not a threat. Like above, they will have an easy go of it if the sucker hosting the botnet client is connected straight into the ISP modem, I doubt that will be the same for a hardware firewall. They are correct with respect to protecting the hapless sheep. That's as far as I'll go though. Well you can definitely put it behind a router also, but it sounds like you really don't think it's necessary. Here are two scenarios again ... (1) Windows 8 system plugged directly into ISP modem ( NO Router ), standard user account, Windows firewall and the full CPU hogging disk thrashing MSE antivirus running. Using MSIE. (2) Windows XP system plugged into NAT router, administrator account, no antivirus, bare nude naked. Anything but MSIE. The answer depends largely on one's situational awareness and competency. I would think that someone such as yourself that used the phrase "it may get somewhat technical, and I don't know what level you'd understand" would be comfortable in either scenario. But there is a very good reason to select #2 and it addresses something you said in another comment: "But, of course, performance is not the question here. Security is.". Life is full of choices, we are constantly mapping out plus-minus decision matrices in our heads and this is a good case of that. Sure XP has some disadvantages thanks to planned obsolescence from Microsoft. But it has advantages that for many trump all the new potholes built-in to later versions. It is fast. There are less events occurring per millisecond because there is less housekeeping and disk indexing ( none in my case ). Also, of ever increasing importance is the fact that while Windows XP is less secure to all those theoretical exploits, it is quite reasonable to conclude that it is more secure with respect to government intrusion. The Windows 6.x kernel was entirely developed post 9/11 and then scrapped and re-written again - Longhorn to Vista. Windows XP has been service packed three times since 9/11 but so far I see no indication of a major Microsoft sanctioned spyware injection, but I could be wrong. We'll see. Therefore I'll gladly go with scenario #2. And in fact I have been going with #2 for several years now. Why not? In the never-seen-yet scenario of some malware or infection I would just swap in a backup HDD or just drop the HDD in another computer and scrub it. It's not rocket science. ... Benefits? ... You gain back in the full power of your CPU which in scenario #1 is already taxed by numerous standard operating system tasks in Windows 6.x, but then what is left over is spent servicing the realtime antivirus, not to mention running the software firewall which is going to be busy rejecting all those packets that will never make it past the router in scenario #2 in the first place. Scenario #1 simply repulses me. It does not fit my personality. I do not need hand-holding, or a browser that screens websites or an AV that downloads stuff to scan for threats ( and I forgot to mention scans folders clicked on in Explorer, and scrubs inserted flashdrives for what it thinks are threats wiping out my Nirsoft files, etc ). Nothing about this makes me want to do anything except vomit. There are far, far too many negatives in this scenario. It is simply unacceptable. BTW, I'm not in this thread evangelizing scenario #2 over #1 for the average person out there. Let me be clear. Both scenarios have perfectly logical applications in the real world. #1 for the average user out there. If it was 5 and 10 years ago these Sheeple would be Apple users. But Microsoft has been busy grooming them, somewhat successfully and now they have their own flock to tend to. I get that. So for them, scenario #1 it is. For the rest of us who have been in this game since Microsoft was a hyphenated word, we'll just have to muddle along, taking our chances.

You also have to consider that installing the preview means a reinstall later of apps and programs after the full release is RTM'd. Actually, neither of those articles mentioned any difference in the Enterprise version so I am assuming the rules applies here as well.

This is interesting -- can you elaborate on the part about a virtualizing hypervisor being (potentially) Microsoft's worst nightmare? I can see how Intel releasing its own OS could be a problem for MSFT, but am not so clear on how the hypervisor thing would affect MSFT. Why would they care -- couldn't they argue that unless you're running the latest version of Windows, you're exposed to Internet nasties and also missing out on great new features? Intel very well could write a complete x86 operating system, in fact I would say it is likely they already have for internal use because I simply cannot imagine them needing Microsoft to supply one for their development systems holding schematics, roadmaps and other top secret stuff. The danger for them writing an OS for consumers has at least two big problems ... (1) The final user interface design may drift too far away from classic Windows ( like Metro! ) and turn off the market and it would be dead in the water after a substantial development and testing expense. What would be the point of a nice OS that is GUI crippled to end-users? They have shown they won't touch it. (2) The legal war with Microsoft over the API. Even though Intel owns the intellectual property of the processor instruction sets, Microsoft no doubt holds patents on the API implemntations. This is mega-complicated by some of them like Win16 and Win32 being way old but probably adjusted along the way so that they somehow are kept out of the public domain. My gut feeling is that Intel would win on the merits but lose financially from the expense of the legal bloodbath. It is a fight that needs to be fought though. So if the goal is for the end-users to be able to continue using their own Windows versions on existing and forthcoming hardware ( and flip the bird at Microsoft because they are using NuWindows as a trap ) then it might be a better idea to forgo a cleanroom clone of Windows ( because they just might get the thing working great but screw up the GUI ) and just develop the low level software that facilitates the already existing Windows operating systems. VM's started out functioning at much lower levels than we see today with most running essentially as just another piece of client software ( although I see that Wikipedia says that Hyper-V is considered low-level ). It will make more sense if I just copy that section here ... Now, Intel is closer to the CPU instruction set and the microcode than anyone on Earth, and in fact has even added VT-x ( see this for details ) to some of their CPU's, unfortunate key word here being some. Physically all the pieces are in place for a perfect bare metal solution if Intel would stop playing games by only adding features to certain chips to segment their products. That perfect solution ( for consumers tired of chasing Microsoft but want Windows ) is a low-level, lean and mean hypervisor that on one side talks right to the chip microcode and on the other side presents the normal instruction set to the operating system. This could be a 2nd, higher layer of microcode and therefore might be just added to the CPU itself or a secondary on-package chip. The existing operating systems would still see the CPU and retrieve the normal CPUID to determine which HAL to install and you have business as usual after that. Naturally this depends upon Intel's benevolence and sympathy for the plight of the x86 universe which Microsoft is presently targeting for destruction ( they are not trying to kill the physical architecture, but are planning on preventing user mode software from ever talking to it again ). This is why I say it would be Microsoft's worst nightmare because it removes them from the new operating system business altogether. Users could install whatever version of Windows they have lying around and hardware makers would only need to write device drivers for new hardware using any existing DDK targeting any version of Windows they want. Of course there is much wishful thinking here, and the point is that these thoughts never crossed our minds until now. Microsoft is getting out of the neutral operating business and moving to a curated gatekeeping system. The very best solution would be for Microsoft to liberate all the x86 source code and related IP and continue with their walled-garden Metro madness. The 2nd best would be for the government to send in SWAT teams and just take it ( which would be an ironic taste of what some people have actually had happen to them thanks to IP and patent laws pushed by Microsoft and others ).

Windows RT having another bad week ... Asus scaling back Windows RT plans ( NeoWin 2013-07-30 ) ASUS Drops Windows RT. Another PC maker has had enough with Microsofts ARM experiment ( Thurrott 2013-07-30 ) Check out the radically different coverage between NeoWin and Thurrott! Ouch! More on what Jorge already mentioned ... Microsoft: $853 million sales of Surface tablets from launch until June 30 ( NeoWin 2013-07-30 ) Microsoft Surface officially a flop, brings in just $853m in revenue ( TechSpot 2013-07-31 ) Microsoft's Bumbled Surface Strategy Generated Just $853 Million in Revenue ( Maximum PC 2013-07-31 ) So there are NO numbers released at all. None. That's means it is really bad. And finally ... Windows 8.1 Enterprise Preview now available ( NeoWin 2013-07-30 ) Microsoft: Businesses should plan their Windows 8.1 deployments now ( NeoWin 2013-07-30 ) ... Today's joke of the day? EDIT: added articles

Security related ... Intel drops facial recognition capability from upcoming set-top box ( TechSpot 2013-07-30 ) The spy scandal has long legs, and Intel seems to be listening. How 'bout you Microsoft? News from the Competition ... Asus Announces New 10-inch MeMo Pad FHD Tablet ( Maximum PC 2013-07-30 ) Seriously, only Windows 8 and Metro could have made this happen. Fiddling around with Xbox again ... Microsoft is 'looking into' adding headset to Xbox One bundle ( NeoWin 2013-07-30 ) See how a little competition will do wonders!

Yeah, that's a load of crap right there. Microsoft was convicted and sentenced to be broken up and but for a technicality ( Microsoft's lawyers sliming the judge and getting him pulled ) had an alternate sentence with a slap on the wrist. Ed cannot even accept this slap on the wrist. Think of what he is saying here in his carefully selected choice of words about Microsoft: "... it was unable to do anything to stop PC makers from ...". You see, in Ed MicroBott's world and probably Thurrott's, Microsoft is king of the universe and all the OEM's with their own factories and their own suppliers making their own computers, NOT Microsoft computers, but Dell, Compaq, Toshiba, ( ... etc ... ) computers are merely servicing the king. It never even crosses their mind that Microsoft is the 3rd party here to other people's computers whether built from scratch or from those listed OEMs. Hence he expects the king to be in a position to order these private and public companies to do their bidding. He also throws in the bloatware as a strawman pitting Microsoft as David versus the Goliath of "bloat". This is also a kick in the teeth of the OEMs because in many cases over they years their profit margins on complete shipped working computers was maybe $100 profit after costs including the Windows tax, and OEMs sometimes took to recoup some money by preinstalling "bloatware". Ed blames the slap on the wrist as the reason we have bloatware, not Microsoft itself. It naturally follows that Ed MicroBott and Paul Thurrott have no frame of reference to even vaguely understand the concept of Microsoft's monopoly as 3rd party supplier of the operating system for other people's computers allowing them to use this as leverage in anti-competitive practices. This is what they were convicted of. This is also the problem for MicroZealots ( and their baby MetroTards ) who cannot differentiate between Apple and Microsoft for many, many years. I maintain that Microsoft itself has used Apple as a foil to fool people into believing there was competition in the marketplace and throw off the scent of the antitrust dogs, but there never was competition and no direct comparison between Apple and Microsoft ( until Surface ). Apple makes and sells computers with a functioning operating system but the OS here was never replaceable, so it can be thought of as a kind of firmware. They cannot support their hardware without a constant predictable OS inside it. Therefore Apple doesn't monopolize Apple hardware ( that's ridiculous! ) and thus ends all those idi0tic strawman arguments. Microsoft however, makes and sells an operating system for other people's computers, NOT Microsoft computers. Furthermore, it has squeezed out all competition along the way. There was a time that we trusted Microsoft to play fair here. In fact with Windows 3.0 after a couple of confusing, direction-less, wasted years, many or most techies were ready to accept them in this "special" role. We got a common, predictable platform, with API's and ( eventual ) stability, and they got rich. Then they got greedy and then nasty and then arrogant and finally stupid. What they are doing now is IMHO the worst thing yet. They are trying to shutdown the open PC industry, that means the "personal computer" workstation concept, and are trying to rope in everybody they can from their "special" situation as 3rd party supplier of the operating system on other people's computers, into their new vision of a Microsoft walled-garden empire. They are racking up enemies along the way too. OEMs are angry and many are teetering towards fiscal collapse. I hope that Intel wakes up and realizes how they are getting screwed here with Windows 8 because this thing by design on the Metro side manages to kill x86 software compatibility, meaning that when the desktop side finally gets pulled, all that's left is an OS that makes the underlying Intel designed x86 hardware useless for native x86 software in favor of crappy apps built in Microsoft's "modern design" tools. It is like a chipset eliminator. I can't think of anything this egregious ever happening before, and unless Intel is part of this plan they are going to be hosed. Intel can really hit back by releasing very fast chips again, so fast that emulation and virtualization becomes completely painless, rendering Microsoft's OS planned obsolescence completely moot because then anyone can run any version they choose. They could really hurt them by getting into their own OS business, even if it is merely a super virtualizing hypervisor that sits between the hardware and any Windows version. This would be Microsoft's worst nightmare. At some point Microsoft will have nowhere else to go except for becoming exactly like Apple and selling Microsoft hardware because there will be no-one willing to service the old king any longer. Well, that is if anyone will choose to sell them parts. The problem here is that they have now tarnished their own hardware reputation with their stupid Microsoft Tiles interface. It does not have the gravitas to walk on its own. No way. They made so many miscalculations here and each are substantial. Ed and Paul can pontificate all day long and still manage to miss the broad side of the barn as they always do.

Bring Back Windows XP ( Dvorak PC Magazine 2013-07-29 ) Hehehe. You know this is gonna rope the 'Tards in. Yep, it's working.

PRISM harming US cloud providers' business abroad as contracts cancelled ( ZDNet 2013-07-26 ) It's only a survey but I take it as more vindication for what I believe was first predicted by John Dvorak as the spy scandal was breaking. US patent office dismisses Apple's claim on 'pinch-to-zoom' patent ( NeoWin 2013-07-29 ) About time, huh? Now they should fine Apple for abusing the English language for getting most of the world to say "pinch to zoom" when it should have been "pinch to shrink" all along. A little more mention of Windows NT Birthday ... Microsoft's Windows NT turns 20 ( ZDNet 2013-07-26 ) Windows NT and VMS: The Rest of the Story ( Mark Russinovich 1998-12-01 ) Note that 2nd story ( mentioned in the 1st story ) is a nice historical read and is authored by the great Mark Russinovich! 20 Years of Windows NT ( Thurrott 2013-07-29 ) EDIT: I didn't realize this ironic fact ... The comments date from 1999 to 2005 and it is kinda fun to see how a predictions pan out ... Also, an interesting comment describing Microsoft dodging yet another bullet ... EDIT: added article

Strategy Analytics: 2.3 million Windows tablets shipped in Q2 2013 ( NeoWin 2013-07-29 ) By the Numbers, Android is King of the Tablet Market ( Maximum PC 2013-07-30 ) Well now, lets tabulate the 2nd Quarter numbers pulled from that article ... Android ... 34.6 million Apple ..... 14.6 million Windows .... 2.3 millionIt is presently unclear if that "Windows" total includes Microsoft Surface because the word "Tablet" has conveniently become as flexible as a gymnast. Anywho, this what you killed Windows for, Ballmer?Analyst: Nokia Lumia 1020 sales off to 'modest' sales start ( NeoWin 2013-07-29 ) This is Nokia's latest and greatest WP8 phone, a nice piece of hardware with a stunning 41-megapixel camera ( yes, that's forty-one ). It's stll early yet but if this keeps up I would bet that this model may wind up with an Android release also because it is a shame to have it die on the vine because of Microsoft Tiles. EDIT: added article

Yes, I can say it and do say it. Patched or unpatched the most significant variables here are where the computer sits in the network, who sits in front of it, and what they do when they sit there. Staying away from MSIE also helps significantly as does disabling remote access. Everything else factors in much later and lower in priority. You will have to get a little more specific and identify the exact "patch" for XP that trumps any of these factors. Since you named "8/8.1" and used the phrase "considerably more secure", can you explain how its security is increased over say 7 or 7(sp1) ? It will have to be mega-gigantically more secure to even make a dent in the flourishing infection rate on those Windows 7 systems. Note that the inclusion of MSE out of the box does not count as a security boost because it still needs to get the latest signature update anyway as soon as 8/8.1 is installed. The only thing it saves is the initial download of the engine and this is a tiny download every tech keeps on a stick anyway. Wait, "not really relevant" ? Sorry, but this is incorrect. Hardware firewalls are everything when talking about home PC's on broadband. And history backs this conclusion as the proliferation of NAT routers ( thanks mostly to so many people getting laptops ) served to lock down many homes from port scanning attacks that were popular in the dawn of the broadband era before Windows shipped with any software firewall. Throwing away most incoming packets is the first line of defense because they never even arrive at the computer in the first place. It is why my software firewall logs are always empty. If you rephrase that to say "... attackers will certainly still attack Windows users using MSIE without a hardware firewall ..." then I'm right with you. Well, except for the money part. The money collection scams are almost always socially engineered to rope in n00bs that believe the silly dialog in their browser telling them that their system needs to be sped up or is now locked down by the FBI. These are the same silly n00bs that are likely to not have a router in the first place, or if they do will have it misconfigured from some quick-setup utility or have ports open so their son in the basement can use torrents all night long. Don't worry, these people will seamlessly morph into MetroTards later and if Windows 8 survives and supplants Windows 7 it will become just as infected because it is designed for uber-n00bs. It almost sounds to me like what you're saying here is that 8/8.1 is like magic for home user protection ( "considerably more secure" ), but even Microsoft would never ever go that far. The hardware firewall in a NAT router is the main ingredient, it needs to be standing between your PC and the physical ISP connection ( the Cable/FIOS/DSL modem ). Common sense and the other things I mentioned like not using MSIE, remote access come next. So let's just cut to the chase here. What would be safer: using Windows 8.x in a restricted account with its software firewall and CPU hogging antivirus and updated security magic connected directly to the ISP modem ( like so many n00bs are doing ), or bare naked Windows XP as administrator with no antivirus behind a router ( patched or unpatched, software firewall or not )? The answer to that question is not what is being fed to the Sheeple.

I should clarify one thing in there, that bolded part. This PC ( the one I am talking about in that quote ) is NOT connected to any internal network here. It is truly standalone, and files only get to and from other computers through classic sneakernet. It talks directly to a router that is the gateway to the Internet. In this particular scenario the Windows XP firewall can definitely be disabled ( I simply haven't because it is too much trouble with the balloon warnings and security center nagging ). The hardware firewall in the router when properly configured is more than adequate for security. However, if you had a typical network of computers talking to each other and they also can access the Internet through a router, then the hardware firewall may be enough but it would be wise to have individual firewalls operational on each PC. This is for protection from a sibling computer on the network that somehow gets infected ( probably through operator error ). Naturally the software firewall needs some management to work in this scenario, you have to watch for exclusions which get inserted into the registry and open up vulnerabilities. It happens quickly from executing local files with malware payloads. But you always have to watch for this kind of thing anyway. So I just want to be clear that when I suggest others try this they understand I am talking about isolating a standalone computer behind a router. And yes, absolutely no CPU killing antivirus, and no Windows updates except for specific ones for odd things that I go get by hand. It is easily do-able. The bulk of the Windows updates can be considered nothing more than placebos with respect to daily use.

Glenn Greenwald: Low-Level NSA Analysts Have Powerful and Invasive Search Tool ( ABC News 2013-07-28 ) Note that this is the end-user product, the spook version of Google. It is mutually exclusive to the collection of data that was recently exposed. This is merely how they access it once they vacuumed it up. Let's also remember that they just said a few days ago ( look upthread a bit ), they allegedly have no ability to search their own emails to satisfy a FOIA request! EDIT: editor CRLF bug

So the infrastructure is already in place to squelch any opposition through legal channels, Vladimir Putin-style, as soon as it becomes too bothersome. Yes it certainly is in place. Everyone from the ISP's to Search Engines to Social to the major websites are now agents of Big Brother. They found a loophole you see! They enlist these companies at gunpoint ( or they come running willingly like Microsoft ) to become proxies to the actual dirty work of committing the felonies of First and Fourth Amendment violations, while the federales hide behind "national security". It is inevitable that the "national security" excuse gets diluted and finally erased, in fact it already has with those ISP's and others already giving up the data for other causes du jour. First driven by RIAA and then MPAA, then BSA, then Hollywood proper, but that's just the beginning. Eventually everyone with an axe to grind will be allowed to rifle through the data mountain, everyone except for us, the citizens. As mentioned in that quoted discussion, naturally the court system will also jump in. Every dirtbag lawyer and prosecutor will be drooling like Pavlov's Dogs to get their paws on this pile. Here's a cause du jour occurring as we speak: Bing first to introduce popup warning for sites containing illegal images ( NeoWin 2013-07-28 ) Hard to argue against such things of course, "it's all about the children", and that's precisely what they are counting on. Later they'll move on to using it for narcotics, cigarettes, alcohol, prescription drugs, gambling, rape, bullying ... EVERYTHING. Count on it. Along with BING warnings comes the back-channel requests to allow watchdog groups to sift through whatever they want. Have a look at the BING image which shows the message someone will receive when they search for something about child abuse. Then just project ahead to what will come next ... ( original image at NeoWin )

Intelligence services fear Lenovo products due to back-doors ( NeoWin 2013-07-27 ) I nominate this as Joke of the day. Our spooks are worried about back doors in Chinese technology. I guess they're worried about our privacy or something. That's a good one! Nokia exec hints Microsoft should speed up Windows Phone app development ( NeoWin 2013-07-27 ) Ya think? No known Kinect-exclusive titles now scheduled for Xbox One launch despite bundled sensor ( NeoWin 2013-07-27 ) And the main justification for forcing the Kinect into the homes of each Xbox purchaser just evaporated. Next excuse? David Einhorn refers to Microsoft as sinking ship, dumps stake ( NeoWin 2013-07-27 ) Ouch. That's gonna leave a mark. Haven't read the comments yet ( 100 already ) but I expect it will be ugly.

Two most recent Dvorak columns ... Will Bill Gates Return to Microsoft? ( Dvorak PC Magazine 2013-07-24 ) I would have to agree with that. Billg has far to much to lose to go back now. And besides all the reasons Dvorak mentioned, let's not forget that he left when he was exposed in the Antitrust trial in a very bad light. He had literally become the lightning rod and most likely promoted Ballmer to take the heat off ... Although I was personally on Microsoft's side on those specific issues of MSIE, Netscape and ill-advised government intrusion into that trivial matter, I do remember feeling ill after reading and then seeing his deposition which came off as arrogant at times. Looking back now though it is impossible to feel the same sympathy for the company. Can't imagine why. What Ballmer Can't Get Right ( Dvorak PC Magazine 2013-07-26 ) Boy, he got that right. Of course we all got that right in this very thread last October. It is amazing that nine months have come and gone and this obvious and inevitable outcome has only barely started to penetrate everywhere else. Not talking about Dvorak, but Ballmer and company. BTW: If you look upthread a couple of posts for the article about a new HP tablet you will see that this $99 price is once again in play! What on Earth is HP doing I wonder? EDIT: clarity, editor CRLF bug

Aw, you're being too scientific, diplomatic, and kind again. I like how one commenter at the NeoWin thread put it ... Naturally this doesn't go over too well P.S. Jaclaz, have you noticed the editor bug that keeps adding an extra CRLF before the first quote tag each time you hit preview? You have to edit the post, preview it, rinse, repeat, and then check for it one last time and delete any extra line(s) right before you hit 'post'. There are other bugs to and they all occur right after you hit 'preview'. It seems to make a pass through the post it just displayed and applies a set of "corrections". Just wondering.

My Windows 8.1 Preview. My advice? Stay far, far away. ( Dvorak PC Magazine 2013-07-23 ) John Dvorak weighing in again, and as usual comes quite a flame war in the comments. ZDNet has lots of MicroZealots in general, many that attack Dvorak for not loving Microsoft enough even though he has been at this since the early 1980's when these fanboys were still in diapers playing with their actual Playskool toys and watching Sesame Street. There are also some obvious astroturfers as well. But nowadays we have lots of warriors for truth in there taking them on as I expected would be the case from Windows 8.1 Blew because it could only serve to anger real Windows users as it is the most arrogant insult they have yet perpetrated. Ballmer states that Windows is not selling well enough, next gen Surface in testing ( NeoWin 2013-07-24 ) Ballmer: We built too many Surface RT tablets ( TechSpot 2013-07-26 ) Told ya so. But instead of listening to Windows veterans for the past two years ( the current controversy, but for about seven years since Vista ), Microsoft was busy cherry picking their telemetry which was by definition already "cherry picked", or more precisely "sheeple picked", since the CEIP telemetry was disabled by anyone remotely concerned about privacy and security. What they had for data was completely useless. Study shows IE10 to have better privacy protection than rivals ( NeoWin 2013-07-26 ) The only possible way that could have been funnier is if it started out with: "A Priest, a Minister and a Rabbi walk into a bar ...". Microsoft celebrates Windows NT's 20th birthday ( NeoWin 2013-07-26 ) Quite an important day in the history of the PC. Naturally the Generation Xbox MetroTards don't quite know what to make of it as they stumble through useless comment after useless comment lest they say something that might shine the light away from Windows 8 and onto its much more competent predecessors. Ah children. Here's a boo-boo from one of them, so let's wait and see if any of the others there are smart enough to figure it out and correct him ... None yet. EDIT: typo, and the editor bug adding linefeeds ahead of the first quote

Magazine controveries ... What Microsoft's Earnings Report Means for Small Businesses ( PC World 2013-07-22 ) I wasn't the only one that noticed that steaming pile of bullcrap. Here's a commenter ... Nailed it. And apparently the commenter was exactly right in every way. Next, here comes an editor of PC World ... He's lying about everything but especially that last part. There is no mention that it is a sponsored post, NONE whatsoever. He refers to some earlier page that links to the sponsored post but I didn't come from there nor did probably anyone else. And there is nothing at the top of the page even now at this writing. Sneaky and corrupt media practices that Microsoft is capitalizing on. The commenter was exactly right! Here's an article from earlier this year that addresses a similar situation at ZDNet. Use it as a starting point to jump to other stuff ... Dubious Editorial Control in ZDNet ( TechRights.org 2013-03-02 ) Here's three current articles at ZDNet that Microsoft clearly did NOT pay for ( ) ... Windows 8.1: Close, but no cigar ( SJVN ZDNet 2013-07-08 ) Did we all just witness Windows start to die? ( MBR ZDNet 2013-07-22 ) Windows isn't dying, it's just becoming irrelevant ( AKH ZDNet 2013-07-23 ) The comment sections in these are completely interchangeable with the only exception that there are extra haterz at the SJVN article because he is listed as covering Linux and Open Source topics and this does not sit well with brainwashed MicroZealots. How dare he report on that wacky alternate universe not controlled by Redmond? The nerve of him!

Fiddling around with Xbox again ... Report: MSFT to Release Xbox One Sans Kinect in 2014 ( Tom's Hardware 2013-07-24 ) Microsoft Shoots Down Rumors Of Kinect-Free Xbox One Bundle ( Kotaku 2013-07-24 ) The 1st article, about a Kinect-less Xbox model, is apparently still a rumor as reported in the 2nd article. Microsoft may change course and allow Xbox One games to be self published ( NeoWin 2013-07-24 ) Microsoft confirms Xbox One game self publishing plans; details coming later ( NeoWin 2013-07-24 ) Microsoft Will Allow Indies to Self-Publish on Xbox One ( Tom's Hardware 2013-07-26 ) The rumor describing another easing of the walled-garden publishing aspect is now confirmed. Whoop-de-do. Dear Microsoft, just release two Xbox models. one cloudy restricted model for MetroTards, and a standalone classic for normal people. News from the Competition ... Ubuntu Edge crowd sourced campaign raises $5 million inside three days ( NeoWin 2013-07-25 ) Crowd source funding for a Linux smartphone totaling 6.6 million now. That's a lot but I don't see how they can expect the 32 million they desire in a month without a couple of bigtime investors jumping in. It looks like they are funding everything including factory time from the ground up. Geeksphone announces Peak+ Firefox OS smartphone ( TechSpot 2013-07-25 ) Looks like it really is happening. This is in Spain currently and at 149 euros or approximately $200. Asus Intros Portable 18.4" AIO Android PC ( Tom's Hardware 2013-07-25 ) I wouldn't really call this a PC, yet, it's a giant tablet to me, looks pretty slick though. Naturally it's an underpowered ARM chip, in fact the same one in the Surface RT if I'm not mistaken. Let's call it Android RT. No word on price but if it is in the $300 range then Surface RT is toast. Walmart, HP Planning $99 Android Tablet Sale ( Tom's Hardware 2013-07-26 ) That price is NOT a typo. It says $99 which is the same as the clearance was for the doomed WebOS TouchPad. Not sure what's going on with HP these days because there cannot be any money in that!