Latest Hi Tech News

Microsoft is going to release a stripped-down version of Windows XP, Code-named ‘Eiger‘. This Windows is designed for business users who want more security and manageability on older PCs.

Quoted:
Eiger, a stripped-down version of Windows XP Professional, is designed for customers who want more security and manageability, but who aren’t ready or able to upgrade to Windows XP, according to Microsoft officials. It is not a thin client in the traditional sense. Instead, Microsoft will offer it as an interim, “bridge” solution for enterprise users who ultimately plan to move to XP or Longhorn, officials said.

Actually, the specification of this verwion of Windows XP has already been published since April by Steven Bink, a Microsoft certified systems engineer based in Amsterdam.

Continue Reading »
A “Thinner” Version Of Windows XP

Just a few hours ago written a short article about flaws found in Internet Explorer and Microsost Outlook, now I’ve just read another article regarding vulnerabilities in the Firefox.

According to the article, in the latest incident, a 16-year-old security researcher – who asked only to be identified by his first name, Paul – found three vulnerabilities in the Firefox browser that together could be exploited to run arbitrary code. It seems that now flaw finders are digging up more security holes in Firefox, while vulnerability researchers frequently flogged Microsoft for the number of security holes found in its Internet Explorer browser.

Quoted:
For the last six months of 2004, researchers found more vulnerabilities in Mozilla’s Firefox than Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, according to Symantec’s bi-annual Internet Security Threat Report. The report tallied 21 vulnerabilities for Mozilla Firefox versus 13 for Internet Explorer. However, a smaller percentage of the vulnerabilities found in Firefox were considered a severe security threat, said Symantec’s Oliver Friedrichs, senior manager with the company’s security response team.

Anyway, as compared to the number of critical flaws found, Firefox still is having an edge over Internet Explorer. In other words, quantity of flaws found doesn’t necessary reflect the seriousness of the hole in any browser.

Quoted:
“Severe vulnerabilities in general allow for drive-by installs,” he said. “So just by visiting a website, you could have [anything from] spyware to malware to Trojan horses installed on your system.”

Friedrichs stressed that the number of vulnerabilities found by researchers is not necessarily a good indication of product security. He pointed to the Mozilla Firefox’s relatively young age, the browser’s increasing popularity, and commercial software vendors tendency to silently fix vulnerabilities as factors that could affect the vulnerability count.

To reduce flaws, Microsoft changed more than 50 features of Internet Explorer in WinXP SP2. In total, Microsoft changed more than 428 features in Windows XP, including eliminating two classes of vulnerabilities on which the company did not revealed before.

Those changes have made Internet Explorer a tougher target for vulnerability researchers, said one flaw finder.

This makes me wonder, is reducing the features (not 1, but more than 50) in an application a wise move to eliminate flaws?

Anyway, let’s see what’s the progress of fighting secirity flaws between Firefox and Internet Explorer in coming months.

[Source]

Have you ever wonder what is actually inside Windows Xp Service Pack 2, which was released last year to patch all the security flaws found?

Microsoft security chief just revealed that SP2 for Windows XP changed or eliminated more than 400 significant features in the operating system, also eliminating two previously undiscovered classes of security flaws.

Quoted:
Speaking at the CanSecWest conference in Vancouver, Microsoft security strategist Window Snyder [apparently his real name] said the company changed or removed 428 Windows XP features considered security loopholes. 51 of them were in Internet Explorer and 107 were in Windows XP’s networking functions.

Snyder also said in the report that security firm SecurityFocus also discovered two “entire classes of vulnerabilities” that have never been reported outside the company. Snyder said the vulnerability types had been wiped out and declining to provide details.

[Source]

You guys know Google has a free translation service, right?

Anyway, in case you do not know, here is the Google Language Tools.

Try type in “Jessica Simpson’s mom is nice and cool“.

Choose from “English to Spanish“, after that click Translate button.

After that, copy and paste the translated text into the translation text box, and choose from “Spanish to English“, then click Translate button.

See what you get. :D

After more than a month I wrote “Yet another “Don’t Use IE” article“, today more holes are found in IE and yet no further information about the patch for it.

Well, please don’t say I anti IE or siding Firefox, I write my posts based on articles that I come across. If firefox developers are slow in patching the vulnerable application, I’ll sure turn to other better alternatives as well. This post is nothing special but just another “Critical Holes Found In IE” article.

Security consultants at eEye Digital Security, has discovered high-risk vulnerabilities in two of Microsoft’s most widely used software programs, Internet Explorer web browser and Microsoft Outlook email client. These flaw found are serious ones, and they warned that users of the 2 dominant applications were at risk of PC hijack attacks.

Qouted:
“A vulnerability in default installations of the affected software allows malicious code to be executed, contingent upon minimal user interaction,” eEye said in a notice posted on its upcoming advisories Web page.

Users running Windows NT 4.0, fully patched Windows 2000 and Windows XP (even with Service Pack 2 installed) are all vulnerable, the security-research firm told Microsoft.

Qouted:
Marc Maiffret, eEye’s co-founder and chief hacking officer, told Ziff Davis Internet News that the vulnerability carries the highest severity rating because of the “ease with which an attacker can compromise a vulnerable system.”

Anyway, Microsoft and eEye are working on a fix but unfortunately no further information on when it will be available.

[Source]

Well, this is not about telling you how to get free Microsoft products, but to share with you why, how and the tradeoffs to be Microsoft-free these days.

From the article written in ExtremeTech, it covers 4 parts, which are :-

Part 1 – Why switch to Linux?

• Life without Microsoft: What You Gain
• Life without Microsoft: What You Lose

Part 2 – Linux home file server and basic client PC

• A Three-Tier Approach
• Building a Home Server

Part 3 – Gaming PC

• Design Considerations and Component Choices
• Component List
• OS Setup

Part 4 – Build Your Own Linux Home Theater PC

• The Challenges
• Candidate Applications and Components List
• Installation/Configuration
• Up and Running

By the way, I’m still a windows user. Thought of getting into Linux world long time ago, but just don’t have much time to try it out. :-< Anyway, hope you guys enjoy those interesting articles.