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Hands-on: ATI Catalyst 8.8 Analysis - Windows XP & Vista

AMD has just released ATI Catalyst 8.8, how does this driver for Radeon graphics cards perform under Microsoft Windows Vista and XP? This is just what Tweak Town aimed to find out.

They covered the details over a 12-page review and in their final thoughts they Read more

New Catalyst driver for Radeon graphics cards under XP and Vista

There is a new Catalyst driver for Radeon graphics cards and if you are wondering how it will perform under Microsoft Windows XP and Vista, then you need to check out Tweak Towns 12 page review and test.

The ATI Catalyst 8.7 analysis under XP and Vista goes into depth to find out the real performance and in their final thoughts Tweak Town said, “While the new drivers don’t offer massive performance gains or anything like that, there are a number of nice little bumps on offer here today.

With the fixes implemented in the driver, they’re a good upgrade for most users. People who will be particular happy, however, are mid-range HD 3650 users who want an extra few FPS here and there.

There’s no doubt that the AMD guys are extremely busy at the moment with the HD 4800 series of cards, but with the X2 just around the corner, hopefully it begins to calm down a little bit and the team can get stuck into the drivers and try and get us some more performance from the new cards”.

Read the 12 page review and test.

Microsoft gives in: Windows XP Support until 2014

It seems that Microsoft has listened to public demand; the software giant has decided to extend their offer of technical support of Windows XP. Microsoft will now offer extended support for updates and security patches on the XP operating system until April 2014. However it seems that Microsoft has not reversed their decision to stop selling XP after June 30.

I am so happy that there will still be full support for Windows XP until 2014, I have tried twice now to use Windows Vista and both times I went back to my old faithful that is XP. Many people will not be happy that they will not be able to get a copy of XP anymore after June 30, but if you are lucky you might be able to find a few copies in a few stores or new computers for a few months to come.

It seems that Microsoft are doing a lot to try and keep people happy, they have just announced that they will allow customers to downgrade Vista systems to XP. This is possible through a loophole in the company’s licensing terms. Let me explain it to you in simple terms, those of you who purchase a copy of Vista will also be able to run XP at no additional cost.

According to Tech Tree, The decision for Microsoft to extend XP support is more for large business customers, as many of them still have not upgraded to the newer operating system. Many of these businesses have delayed upgrading to Vista, as it will be a huge cost to them and they might have to upgrade some of their hardware systems.

Video of Microsoft revealing Windows 7 at D6: The scoop shows multi-touch support

We are all up for Windows 7 and when Microsoft showed off a snippet of it working we fell in love because the scoop is it reveals multi-touch support. Steve Ballmer and mastermind Bill Gates was on stage at D6 talking all about Microsoft.

The company have not said much and are of course being “coy” about Microsoft Windows 7, some have said that some people have blamed chit chat early on in Vista development for saddling the operating system with too high of expectations which makes things difficult for developers. Ballmer is a lovely man because he was good enough to show off the smallest snippet as they call it of Windows 7, the main thing that stands out here is the fact it reveals multi-touch support which is fantastic and of course something I would love to play with. The demo was running on a Dell Latitude XT tablet notebook and apparently Microsoft is working the whole interface with multi-touch experience in mind.

Expect Windows 7 in late 2009 or early 2010 which for us is too far away, we would love to buy it now as it seems something we would love to use everyday, well that of course if it works good. To me Windows Vista is a pile of crap and has gone back to XP. Maybe I am old fashion but I need something that stands out and with Windows 7 featuring multi-touch support which is great.

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Yahoo Messenger Beat for Visa: now with voice and SMS support

It’s now been about three weeks since we learnt of the new Yahoo beta version of their instant messenger that is for Windows Vista users. This messenger client is not an update of an older version, this piece of software has been built from the ground up. This new software uses Vista-only features and Windows Presentation Foundation; this gives users an interface that is both beautiful and functional.

Yahoo Messenger beta version 1.2.0.1029 is focused on just a few things and a few of these are voice-features, which means that you can get free PC-to-PC calls as well as low cost PC-to-home phone calls. You can also send free SMS texts from your PC to a cell phone. However; that is not all as the new beta version also has voice visualizations, this uses WPF 3D features which helps to animate callers voices while talking in a conversation. Another great feature that has been asked by Yahoo Messenger for some time now is Yahoo! Mail alerts.

You will also notice that the overall speed of the software is much faster and stable than previous versions. This beta software has been in the making since the launch of Windows Vista, but we know that Vista is not the best operating system in the world and these things take time to get working perfectly. Yahoo are now working on their next update for this software which will add support for video chatting, and photo sharing as well as the addition of archiving and chat rooms.

Source - Ars Technica

Microsoft Windows XP support not to end June 30

It seems that many people who still use Windows XP are getting a little nervous as the Operating System will not be available to buy in the stores soon and that means that there will no longer be anymore support. However; Microsoft has tried to calm people down by reminding people that Windows XP support will be available until 2014.

Jared Proudfoot one of the managers from Microsoft’s support lifecycle group has said “Recently, there have been a number of posts in the blogosphere about Windows XP and the upcoming end of direct OEM and retail license availability,” he also added “Some people are interpreting this as the end of support for Windows XP.”

So the mainstream support will go on until April 14, 2009 which will offer free fixes as well as security patches. The extended support lasting until April 8, 2014 will offer just security updates. This would mean that Windows XP will be 13 years old once the support comes to an end; this is not something that did not happen with previous Windows operating systems.

I am so thankful of this as it gives me just a little longer with XP, before I have to make the choice and switch over to Windows Vista.

Source - Computer World

Bill Gates says Windows 7 OS will launch next year?

In a recent interview at the Inter-American Development Bank, Bill Gates has hinted that says Windows 7 OS could launch next year. Gates was asked about when this new operating system will be available, which he replied “Sometime in the next year or so we will have a new version.”

However it is not certain if it will be the full version of Window 7 or just a beta version. One thing is sure; it is a lot sooner than many thought. It shows that Windows Vista has not taken off as good as Microsoft had hoped.

As yet there are new details on what features Windows 7 will have, and Bill Gates was not giving anything away either. One thing is certain, they will learn from mistakes made from Vista.

Source - PC Pro via Pocket Lint

S3 Graphics DirectX 10.1 Certification for Windows Vista, Chrome 400 Series

S3 Graphics today released WHQL-certified drivers for Microsoft® DirectX® 10.1 API as part of Windows Vista™ Service Pack 1 to take advantage of new graphics features brought to market by Microsoft. This milestone allows software developers to start DX10.1 development on S3 Graphics Chrome 400 Series hardware using the latest March 2008 DirectX SDK.

WHQL certification represents a high level of achievement and strict adherence to Microsoft’s high quality standards for reliability and usability on PC platforms. It is also considered an important part of the Windows Vista™ computing experience for consumer and corporate desktops and notebooks.

DirectX 10.1 provides additional instructions and features to improve rendering realism, by increasing filtering and computational precision Read more

Review of Apple MacBook Air with Microsoft Windows Vista Installed

The Apple MacBook Air does look stunning, but we have heard many opinions on the hardware usability and how it compares to a windows machine, Xbit Labs have took this a step further by reviewing the Apple Mac Air as a Microsoft Windows Vista machine.

They did have a few problems getting Vista installed on the MacBook Air due to no built-in optical drive and Vista installer’s not wanting to wipe out the OS X partition. Read the full story on xbitlabs.com

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Panasonic Toughbook UMPC: with Intel Atomic CPU

We know that the new Intel Atom CPU is now available, and we knew that it would not be long until UMPC makers would start using them. The Panasonic Toughbook is one of the first Ultra Mobile PC’s to use the Intel Atomic processor.

Panasonic have not let anything slip so not much is known about the Panasonic Atomic Toughbook, however what we do know is that this UMPC has a 5.6-inch display and will have an optional keyboard. The Panasonic Toughbook will have Wi-Fi, a barcode reader and a built-in webcam.

If you like your Ultra Mobile PC’s chunky, then this new Atomic Toughbook is for you, it will run on Windows Vista; however I would prefer it to have XP.

Source - Register Hardware

Asus U2E ultra portable notebook: see it unboxed

It seems like an age since we first learned of the release of the ultra portable Asus U2E notebook. The company delayed the release of this hot product, just so they could release some of their Read more

Class-action lawsuit status for Microsoft Windows Vista Capable stickers

If the massive fine of $1.4bn (€899 million) by the European Commission was not bad enough for Microsoft, we are now hearing that the Vista Capable sticker lawsuit has been given class-action status by a federal judge Read more

The death of HD DVD shows a weak side to Microsoft

Ok so unless you have been living on another planet, you would already know that the HD DVD format is pretty much dead. With the death of this format many people have been drawing up their own Read more

Windows 7: Vista replacement as early as 2009 not 2010

Remember not so long ago that the world was buzzing of the prospect of a new operating system from Microsoft called Windows Vista, well as we know this OS failed to capture our imagination and it seems that Microsoft have been working Read more