In this edition I am mainly dealing with the topic of Windows 7 since it is due for release next month and folks have so many questions about it.

I hope you get something out of the articles and please do leave a comment below with any suggestions for the next Windows newsletter I am publishing on the 2nd October.

Subscribers Questions:

BEFORE we dive into the following articles I have been asked what solution I use to backup Microsoft Outlook on my PC. The company I have trusted for the last 4 years is called A.J.Systems, a little known software company BUT they produce some great applications!

They have backup solutions for Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express, Windows Mail and Windows LIVE Mail!

OutBack Plus 7 - advanced data backup and restore for Microsoft Outlook – works with Outlook (98, 2000, 2002, 2003 and 2007) as well as the Microsoft Business Contact Manager.

- Download the TRIAL version: HERE!

Express Assist 9 - is the original backup, restore and synchronization tool for Outlook Express. It extends the utility to support Windows Mail and Windows Live Mail in addition to Outlook Express.

- Download the TRIAL version: HERE!

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Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor

The Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor is a free utility available for download from Microsoft.

Once the utility is installed it will automatically check the suitability of your current PC’s hardware and software and see if they are compatible with Windows 7.

http://www.win7articles.com/windows-7-upgrade-advisor.html

Windows 7 Available

From the 6th August both MSDN & TechNet Subscribers will be able to download Windows 7 English. On October 1st, the remaining languages will be released.

http://msdn.microsoft.com

Windows 7 Student Offer

Students in the US can pre-order their copy of Windows 7 in the US starting today and students in the UK can pre-order their copy beginning on September 30th (pre-ordered copies will be available for download beginning October 22nd). Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Korea and Mexico can participate in this offer on October 22nd.

http://www.win741.com

Windows 7 Calculates Your Mortgage

Windows 7 calculator includes a few more features than scientific and programmer modes. It has a series of conversion tools too. Want to convert temperatures from Fahrenheit to Celsius? It can do that….

http://blogs.msdn.com/stevecla01/archive/2009/09/14/windows-7-calculates-your-mortgage.aspx

The Excel IF Value

One of the MOST POWERFUL features of Excel is the use of IF functions.

Understanding this use of the IF Value will take you beyond what the majority of most users of Excel will ever achieve.

http://www.updatexp.com/excel-if-value.html

Improvements in current Hotmail features rolling out soon

The Hotmail team has started rolling out updates to improve your Hotmail experience. Most of these are improvements to current features and are meant to make your current Hotmail experience more efficient.

http://windowslivewire.spaces.live.com/Blog/cns!2F7EB29B42641D59!41458.entry

BING Visual Search

A study conducted by Microsoft Research shows that consumers can process results with images 20% faster than text only results. So it’s clear that images play a big part in helping consumer’s with a variety of search activities.

Introducing BING Visual Search BETA (US Only)

http://www.bing.com/community/blogs/search/archive/2009/09/14/visual-search-why-type-when-you-can-see-it.aspx

COREL Digital Studio 2010

COREL has introduced its all-new photo and video product “Digital Studio 2010″. Aimed at the home user it take s aunique approach to creating videos and photo albums – NO tech knowledge needed!

http://www.updatexp.com/corel-digital-studio-2010.html

See you on the 2nd October 2009 for the next newsletter.

Enjoy!

Kind Regards

Marc Liron
Microsoft MVP – Windows Desktop Experience
2004/2005/2006/2007/2008/2009

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In this edition I am mainly dealing with the topic of Windows Security.

I hope you get something out of the articles and please do leave a comment below with any suggestions for the next Windows newsletter I am publishing on the 18th September.

Corel Digital Studio 2010 - NEW!

BEFORE we dive into the following articles have you heard the BIG news from leading digital media software company COREL?

They have just released a brand new product called Corel Digital Studio 2010 that incorporates ALL the features you need for working with Photos, Home Movies and even stunning DVD playback – and it is even Windows 7 compatible!

Learn More about Corel Digital Studio 2010 – Click here.

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Creating Strong Passwords

You just can not escape passwords if you use a computer today. Yet many choose easy to remember passwords like names and birthdays etc.

However these are easy to guess by others or for automated software used by thieves! Read this article on how to create stronger passwords to protect yourself with.

www.updatexp.com/creating-strong-passwords.html

Online Data Storage

We all have computers full of important documents and memories such as digital photos. But are you making backups in case of a hard drive failure or some other disaster?

If you are and they are kept at the same location you could be heading for trouble. Or perhaps you have them stored on CD or DVD, but what if they get scratched? In this article we look at storing your files online.

http://www.updatexp.com/online-data-storage.html

Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

Microsoft has a tool freely available to scan your PC for the most common malicious infections that can cause harm to your Windows PC. Read more here:

www.updatexp.com/windows-malicious-software-removal-tool.html

The Microsoft Malware Protection Center (MMPC)

The MMPC is the authoritative industry voice on malware research and response on the Windows platform. Headed by veteran virus hunter Vinny Gullotto, the MMPC has one of the most experienced senior malware research teams in the industry.

www.microsoft.com/security/portal/

PC Tools Internet Security Price Reduction

I have received an email from the popular software company PC Tools that as of September 1st 2009, they have reduced the price of their 3 computer license of PC Tools Internet Security to $49.95USD

You can try a FREE Scan HERE

The Cyclic Redundancy Error

This error may appear on your screen after inserting a CD or DVD into a drive. Find out more about this error and how to resolve it.

www.updatexp.com/cyclic-redundancy-error.html

Hard Drive Data Recovery

A guest article on the topic of hard drive data recovery by data recovery expert Greg Duffield.

www.updatexp.com/hard-drive-data-recovery.html

FREE utility called SID Resolver

A free utility that allows you to cut and paste a Windows SID and instantly discover the user account etc that it is associated with.

www.updatexp.com/display-security-identifier.html

A Quick Guide To Online Security Terms

A list of popular online security terms explained!

www.updatexp.com/online-security-terms.html

The Advanced Fee Fraud

The advance fee fraud is widespread and costs its victims millions each year in lost savings etc, in this article we look at the scam!

www.updatexp.com/advance-fee-fraud.html

See you on the 18th September 2009 for the next newsletter.

Enjoy!

Kind Regards

Marc Liron
Microsoft MVP – Windows Desktop Experience
2004/2005/2006/2007/2008/2009

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I hope you find it helpful and please do leave feedback at the end of this page in the “comments” section!

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The Windows XP Task Manager Utility

Task Manager provides information about programs and processes running on your computer. It also displays the most commonly used performance measures for processes.

You can use Task Manager to monitor key indicators of your computer’s performance. You can see the status of the programs that are running and end programs that have stopped responding. You can also assess the activity of running processes using as many as fifteen parameters, and see graphs and data on CPU and memory usage.

www.updatexp.com/windows-xp-task-manager.html

The Windows XP DirectX Diagnostic Tool

The DirectX Diagnostic Tool is designed to help you troubleshoot DirectX-related issues.

It is also handy for finding out what graphics card you have installed and other general system information such as type and speed of the processor.

www.updatexp.com/directx-diagnostic-tool.html

Windows XP chkdsk Tool

This tool creates and displays a status report for a disk based on the file system. Chkdsk also lists and corrects errors on the disk. Used without parameters, chkdsk displays the status of the disk in the current drive.

It is a tool that all users should run occasionally to check the “high level” file integrity of their hard drives.

www.updatexp.com/windows-xp-chkdsk.html

The DVD Decoder Plugin For Windows Media Player

Need to play DVDs on your computer?

You can do it cheaply by purchasing a small plug-in that can turn Windows Media Player into a DVD player!

www.updatexp.com/dvd-decoder-media-player-windows.html

Defrag Podcast: Windows 7 MultiTouch

In this episode the guys from DEFRAG look at multitouch in Windows 7.

What are all the multitouch gestures? Will there be more? What is Microsoft’s thinking behind multitouch? How/when will I see multitouch on my desktop?

They answer all these questions and more.

http://blog.marcliron.com/windows-7/multitouch

Windows Updates For August 2009

Microsoft released a series of security updates for Windows and Office on August 11th 2009.

The following is a summary of these security updates.

http://blog.marcliron.com/security-issues/windows-updates-for-august-2009

XP Mode vs. Med-V

Strictly one for the “techies” reading this newsletter.

With the release of the XP Mode Release Candidate, there has been a lot of talk and confusion around when XP Mode is a ideal solution and when you should look at Med-V as a solution.

http://windowsteamblog.com/blogs/springboard/archive/2009/08/08/xp-mode-vs-med-v.aspx

Panda Internet Security 2010

Panda Internet Security 2010 is a complete security suite that lets you use the Internet with complete peace of mind. It protects you from:

Viruses / Spyware / Rootkits / Hackers / Online fraud / Identity theft and all other Internet threats!

http://blog.marcliron.com/tech-reviews/panda-internet-security-2010

SpinRite

Is your hard drive starting to play up? Then STOP and read this.

Famous tech and security guru Steve Gibson has a utility that may save you getting into the data loss territory!

Use SpinRite to check for and repair any obvious read-trouble on the drive and perform low level tests like data pattern testing, defect scrubbing, data relocation and unreadable sector repair and recovery.

There is nothing else like this on the market today.

www.grc.com/sr/spinrite.htm

Microsoft IE 8 Shines in Web Browser Security Test

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 8 rated tops among five browsers tested by NSS Labs for effectiveness in protecting against malware and phishing attacks — though NSS Labs acknowledges Microsoft paid for the tests.

http://threatpost.com/blogs/microsoft-ie-8-shines-web-browser-security-test-114

Microsoft Promising Office 2010 ‘Sandbox’ Security

Last week, Microsoft revealed more details about a new security feature in Office 2010, dubbed “Protected View,” that is designed to shut down the popular hacker tactic of feeding users rigged Word, Excel and PowerPoint files.

www.computerworld.com/s/article/9136831/Microsoft_struts_Office_2010_sandbox_security

10 Cool Features to Look Forward to in Office 2010

With the release of the Office 2010 Technical Preview, details are finally starting to roll in. Deb Shinder highlights some of the features she thinks might make the new version worth the upgrade.

http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/10things/?p=900

Windows Live Movie Maker – Now Live!

Microsoft has taken the wraps of Windows Live Movie Maker, “the one-minute way to turn photos and videos into great-looking movies that are easy to share — for free”.

http://windowslive.com/desktop/moviemaker

You can read a review here:

http://www.winsupersite.com/win7/wlmm.asp

You can watch a “demo video” here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94lYVLPBXpg

Listen to a Podcast: Windows Live Movie Maker:

http://marcusatmicrosoft.spaces.live.com/Blog/cns!503D1D86EBB2B53C!3674.entry

Using Voice Recognition in Windows Vista

A useful tool within Windows Vista that most folks don’t know is there.

http://www.instantvista.com/windows-vista-voice-recognition-tutorial.html

Windows Help and How-to Centres

See what’s possible with Windows Vista:

http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/windows/en-US/ideacenter.mspx

See what’s possible with Windows XP:

http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/windows/en-US/usingwindowsxp.mspx

Windows XP Support Ends in 2009 and 2014

2 important dates for ALL users of Windows XP

http://blog.marcliron.com/windows-xp/windows-xp-support-ends-in-2009-and-2014

Who Do I Host My Tech Websites With?

I get asked this all the time, especially when folks realise that I gave up my full time job as an IT manager due to the revenue these websites generate me each month!

www.marcliron.com/my-sitebuildit-story.html

Microsoft Retail Stores are Hiring

Yes its true, Microsoft are opening retail stores in the US. Some even next door to existing Apple stores!

http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/08/microsoft-retail-stores-are-hiring.ars

Coupons and Discounts

For residents of the United States of America I have discounts and coupons from major hard ware and software vendors. Check back often as they change weekly:

# Software Discounts and Sony Computers

http://blog.marcliron.com/coupons

# Hewlett Packard (HP) Laptop, PC and Printer Discounts

http://blog.marcliron.com/hp-coupons

# Trial Software Downloads – Try before you buy

http://blog.marcliron.com/trial-software

Parting Words

There was some confusion over my offer to give the first 25 customers to purchase my current Windows Resource DVD, a FREE copy of my upcoming “What’s In Windows 7 Video/Handout package“. Everyone who has made a purchase WILL get a copy, and I am also extending the offer until the 31st August 2009 as many folks are on summer vacations at the moment.

The DVD page: www.marclironpublishing.com/dvd.html

See you on the 4th September 2009 for the next newsletter.

Enjoy!

Kind Regards

Marc Liron
Microsoft MVP – Windows Desktop Experience
2004/2005/2006/2007/2008/2009

Friday 21st August 2009 marks the re-launch of my popular FREE Windows newsletter service!

The revamped newsletter will be published FORTNIGHTLY on a Friday…

UNTIL then:

Windows 7 – What’s Inside?

I am currently producing a short series of videos and handouts that will be highlighting the key parts of Windows 7 that home users will want to know about – before Microsoft release the new operating system on the 22nd October 2009.

I will be releasing the videos and handouts mid-September 2009 at a cost of $29.99

HOWEVER, I am making this special offer:

The next 25 purchases of my 2009 Windows Resource DVD will come with the “Windows 7 videos and handouts” totally FREE! (I will email you the special download link when they are ready in September.)

Hurry – this is a limited offer!

The DVD page: http://www.marclironpublishing.com/dvd.html

A New Blog!

I have been working on a new Blog that focuses on news related to Microsoft and its Windows operating systems. I am also working in partnership with HP by offering discounts and coupons on new PC’s and laptops so make sure you check out the Blog soon!

Visit here: http://blog.marcliron.com

Enjoy!

Kind Regards

Marc Liron
Microsoft MVP – Windows Desktop Experience
2004/2005/2006/2007/2008/2009