ADAZVIBES: windows

In case you didn't know, Windows 10 has a lot of neat little things built-in that allow you to save your battery life for longer. Sure there is the traditional power options menu that allows you to pick how long your computer should stay awake when you're not using it, but that's boring. What's cool is the new battery saver feature that switches off things like push notifications (Yes we know, your PC operating system has push notifications because Windows 10 was designed with mobile devices in mind too, get over it). So what do you need to know about these new battery settings?

The Power & Sleep menu, which can be accessed by going to Settings > System > Power > Sleep, isn't anything new. From this menu, you can choose how long your computer can be idle before it automatically shuts off the screen or goes into Sleep Mode. In addition to that, you can also customize it to do so when your computer is plugged in or running solely on battery power. There are also Additional Power Settings that you can click on, which opens up the Power Options menu in the Control Panel. From here you can edit your power plans, choose what happens when you close your laptop lid, or decide whether or not you need a password to unlock your computer when it wakes up from Sleep Mode.

A new feature with Windows 10 is Batter Saver. This is a battery-saving power mode that has been specifically optimized for Windows 10. This means that it can do things like limit background app activity and push notifications. This mode is very similar to ones that you would find on mobile devices, like smartphones or tablets. In addition to this, Batter Saver will automatically turn on when your laptop drops below 20% battery life though you can turn that off manually by going to Settings > System > Battery Saver and turning it off.

You can also tinker with Battery Saver mode. By going to the Battery Saver menu, click Battery Saver Settings to bring up the settings menu. From here you can adjust the point at which Batter Saver mode automatically kicks on from a range of 5% to 100% battery life. You can also choose whether or not to allow push notifications or lower screen brightness in Battery Saver mode or add app exceptions. Apps that you want to exclude from Battery Saver mode will be able to run in the background and send push notifications at all times.

The main Battery Saver menu allows you to see how much of your battery life is being used by different apps, simply click Battery Use to see. This will help you determine which apps to disable in Battery Saver mode, which is extremely useful. You can turn off the apps that drain the most battery life and not even worry about the ones that don't use any at all.

If you find yourself always needing to be connected when you're using your laptop and you can't figure out why your Windows 10 device is using so much power, consider going into some of these settings and tinkering around with things. You might be surprised at how much more efficient your battery usage will become and how much longer your laptop will last without having to be plugged in.

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Windows has not yet decided to give us an exact release date for Windows 10 except the fact that it will be some time in the summer. But, they are revealing all of the different versions of the operating system that will be available when it is done. They are calling Windows 10 Home the "consumer-focused desktop edition". This is the one that is going to come installed on most of the home PCs and laptops, and it is going to have pretty much all of the neat features, like the new Edge browser, Hello face recognition, and all of the built-in universal apps. There will also be a "Pro" edition like the versions before that will come with a bunch of business software and the ability to connect to domains and take advantage of the business updates for Windows.

With the release of Windows 10 across all the different platforms like PCs, smartphones, tablets, and the Xbox One, Microsoft is also renaming the Windows Phone. The new name is officially "Windows 10 Mobile". It is going to have touch optimized versions of Office and support for a new Continuum for Phone feature. This is going to support phones and small tablets that are less than 8 inches in size. There is also going to be a version of Windows 10 Mobile called the Enterprise edition that will be designed for big businesses to license the operating system on smartphones and small tablets.

Those are the main editions that are going to be coming out, but on top of them there will be a few others like Windows 10 Enterprise, Windows 10 Education, and Windows 10 IoT Core for smaller gateway devices. In total there are 7 different editions of the operating system for a bunch of different devices. Since this is going to be the last version of Windows and they are just going to build on it from here on out, we can also expect to see huge updates and different additions some time around fall of this year. And from there on out, who knows what kind of sweet updates we will see.

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Windows 10 is coming out this summer, but it will not run Windows Media Center, Microsoft's major software used for PCs. If you've already seen the early stages of Windows 10 then you would have noticed in the preview versions of the system that Media Center wasn't compatible with it. "We can confirm that due to decreased usage, Windows Media Center will not be part of Windows 10," a Microsoft spokesperson told PCWorld via email. Media Center hasn't had any significant updates in almost 6 years and in Windows 7 and Windows 8 it was nearly the same, so ending it shouldn't come as much of a surprise to anyone.

With the release of Windows 10, Microsoft has decided to drift away from the whole idea of having your computer run everything in your living room and turning it into an entertainment hub. The Idea of having your computer connected to everything in your house was pretty cool and it would certainly be convenient. The problem with it though is that it would be a huge pain in the butt to set everything up, and the possibility of something going wrong is very high. But while everything was working, it would be super cool.

The idea, though, never really caught on. It doesn't make sense for most people these days, and it is too much to worry about. With smart TVs and smartphones, you pretty much have access to any TV program or movie ever. Having a PC dedicated to the living room just isn't worth it. It isn't 1998 anymore.

There are still plans to put software in the living room from Microsoft. The plans just don't involve a computer anymore. The company offers a Miracast-powered TV dongle called the Wireless Display Adapter, which lets you project your phone's screen onto your TV. This makes more sense to me than all of the other complicated stuff and having a dedicated living room PC just for entertainment.

Another A/V type is the Xbox One that offers different TV-centric features like digital TV tuner capabilities and multiple apps like Netflix and Sling TV. Of course a PC is much more customizable, but it's not everyone's first choice. If the new Steam Machines from Valve become more popular, they could be used for HTCP purposes on top of their PC gaming functions.

If you are running an HTCP with Windows that relies on Windows Media Center, don't bother upgrading it to Windows 10. If you have no choice but to upgrade your current HTCP, then just go with a Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 PC. If you don't really care for losing Media Center, then you could go with the Plex Media Server or XBMX, which works with Windows and Linux, as well as Raspberry Pi.

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At the end of January, Microsoft released the Technical Preview of Windows 10, which is an unfinished build that Microsoft lets its enterprise partners try out ahead of the final release so that they can provide feedback. The actual release date of the operating system has been kept under wraps, until now. During an earnings call AMD slipped up and announced that Windows 10 will launch at the end of July.

If you're thinking about or planning to get the new Microsoft Surface 3 tablet coming out soon then this should help you lean more towards actually getting the tablet. When Microsoft was announcing the new Windows 10. they never gave a specific time frame. Microsoft only mentioned it was launching this summer.

During the call, it was reported that AMD President and CEO Lisa Su stated, "What we also are factoring in is, with the Windows 10 launch at the end of July, we are watching the impact of that on the back-to-school season, and expect that it might have a bit of a delay to the normal back-to-school season inventory buildup."

AMD makes processors that power some Windows laptops, and is considered to be Intel's biggest rival in the space. If Su is correct, we can probably expect to see Microsoft's various hardware partners show off new tablets, laptops and desktops that run on Windows 10 in the coming months. Windows 10 will be a free upgrade for Windows 8.1 and Windows 7 users, and it comes with a new Start menu that also shows you tiles from the Windows "modern" user interface.

Microsoft is focusing on two different types of app experiences in Windows 10; desktop apps, and "universal" apps that work the same across smartphones and tablets. Microsoft says the new Surface 3 will be running Windows 8.1 until Windows 10 is released. Now if you wanna upgrade your Surface Pro 3 to the Surface 3, then shortly after your Surface 3 will upgrade a bit more to Windows 10.

Keep on the look out for the Microsoft Surface 3 coming out in May and then shortly after for Windows 10 releasing at the end of July.

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Microsoft is trying as hard as possible to make Windows 10 the best operating system yet thanks to the less-than-enthusiastic response to the launch of Windows 8. In an attempt to wipe our memories of everything involved with Windows 8 Microsoft is looking to unify as much as possible.

The next version of Windows is said to be a unified operating system for all of Microsoft's devices. The operating system is said to be designed in such a way that it will look, feel and function in the exact same way on every piece of technology, whether it be a desktop PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone.

There will be different interfaces across the different platforms, with "universal" apps that are able to be scaled across all screen sizes. Well now, Microsoft has announced that the Windows Store is going universal as well. The company recently confirmed that the store in Windows 10 will be your one-stop shop for apps, games, music, movies and TV shows.

These functions were distributed across apps in Windows 8. The Xbox Music app allowed users to purchase songs and albums, the Xbox Video app allowed users to get videos and general apps and games were found in the Windows Store. The unified store will take all of these things and combine them into a single app store.

There have been hints about a unified app store circulating around the internet for a while now, right after Microsoft added a dormant "Movies & TV" option to the beta version of the Windows 10 Store Beta. You couldn't actually use the page but it was still there.

The pages for movies and television should be live no for most Windows 10 Technical Preview users in the US. The preview OS now allows you to rent and purchase movies and TV shows from the Store Beta and even watch them from the Video Preview App. Microsoft does warn, however, that the current version of the movies and television option in the technical preview is functional but unfinished, missing things like cast and crew information and videos can only be streamed, not downloaded. In addition to that, you may also have problems with frequent Store crashes.

Music is the one thing that is currently missing from the beta, though Microsoft says it is planning on releasing that in the coming weeks, probably around Microsoft's annual Build conference on April 29. The Build conference is when Microsoft plans on sharing more information about the plans for the unified app store.

Unification is huge for Windows 10 as it should make finding everything you need way easier. With everything in a single location you will no longer have to go open up multiple different app stores. Microsoft has a lot riding on Windows 10. The success of this release really needs to go off without a hitch as people are still upset over Windows 8. To see what Windows 10 looks like in the Technical Preview check out the video below.

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If you've been keeping tabs on Microsoft's Windows 10 Technical Preview then you should really focus in here for a second. Microsoft has been consistently tweaking its Windows 10 Preview with new builds loaded with new features. These builds have been coming out pretty regularly with the first one debuting on October 1. The next iteration, which was known as Build 9860, came out around three weeks ago and Microsoft has just released the newest build, Build 9879. But why are these new builds so important?

With Windows 8 failing to attract customers like Windows 7 did so, naturally, Microsoft is under a lot of pressure to make sure that Windows 10 releases to as much fanfare as possible. In that respect, Microsoft has opened up a Windows Insider Preview Program, the purpose of which is to encourage people to download and install Windows 10 and share their opinions with Microsoft in order for the company to see if it is making the right choices. By keeping up with the latest builds you ensure that your feedback is relevant and up to date.

In order to be up to date you have to be running the latest build, but how do you make sure that you're doing so? If you're not already running the Windows 10 Technical Preview then you can download it on your PC, though that isn't recommended unless you plan on doing so on a separate, spare computer. You can download it as an ISO file and then copy that file to a DVD or USB drive in order to install it on another PC, in a separate partition or as a virtual machine on your current computer.

Ok so if you've done all that or already have Windows 10 running it's time to get the latest build. And here's how to do it:

If you're using Windows 10, click the Start button and then click the option for PC settings.
On the PC settings screen, click the Update and Recovery setting.
On the Update and Recovery screen, click the option for Preview Builds.
On the Preview Builds screen, click the button to Check Now.

Once you do all this, Windows will tell you if a new build is available and display a Download Now button. If there are no new builds then another message appears alerting you that there are no new Preview Modes found. If a new build is found then:

Click the Download Now button. Windows will begin downloading and then installing the new build.
Once the build is installed Windows will prompt you to restart your PC.
Restart your PC, log back in and the new build will be ready and waiting.

You can then confirm that you are running the newest build by looking at the lower right portion of your desktop. There you will see the label Windows Technical Preview Evaluation Copy followed by the number of the build. At the moment, the latest build number is 9879. The next time you run this process you should see a higher build process number.

Now you are able to mess around with new build to see what you like, what works and what doesn't. Microsoft's OneDrive, for example, is not working in the current build. As Microsoft unleashes new builds, new features and new bugs will be noticed. In order to send feedback, click the Start Button and then click the Windows Feedback tile. At the Windows Feedback page you can select a specific category and feature to see feedback from other users or add your own.

Microsoft already has certain plans for Windows 10 and how it will tweak and shape things for the final build, though the company is definitely relying on the feedback it is receiving from users of the Technical Preview builds. If you were less than thrilled with Windows 8 then this is your chance to make Windows 10 the operating system you've always wanted.

As we all know, Microsoft officially retired Windows XP in April, and it was a really big deal to a lot of people. After the huge zero-day bug that affected every version of Internet Explorer from Windows XP to Windows 8, Microsoft actually decided to put out a patch for XP users when they put out a patch for everything else. Although this is ultimately a good thing, it may not have been the smartest move that Microsoft ever made. The whole reason they decided to abandon Windows XP was to get more people to upgrade to the newer versions of Windows. It is now very apparent that Microsoft will still continue to fix major issues with XP as long as it still has a lot of users.

The bug was found by a security firm called FireEye on April 26th, and Microsoft confirmed it the next day. It was one of the most dangerous bugs ever, and even the U.S. government was telling everyone not to use Internet Explorer. Although it was dangerous, it may have been one of the best things that could have happened to Microsoft. Companies couldn't keep using Windows XP if there was an insane, crippling security issue with it. Thousands of people would have been forced to upgrade if Microsoft would have stuck to what they said and not put out a patch for XP.

Microsoft says that the reason they put out the patch is because this incident happened so close to the end of the support for Windows XP. That makes sense, but are they going to do the same thing if something else happens next week? Don't get me wrong, I'm not one to complain about a company being nice and doing good things for its customers, I'm just talking here. But it still doesn't seem like the smartest thing ever. Now everyone is just going to assume that Microsoft will always cave in, and there is no reason to give up on Windows XP.

The worst part about all of this is that it may give some people false hope. Yes, you are safe for now as an XP user, your company might be safe, and whatever else. But the thing that everyone should realize is that this is not going to be the last time something like this happens. This isn't the last security breach of all time. Not only that, but Windows XP is going to be the biggest target of all now because Microsoft absolutely can not keep supporting such an outdated operating system. Either way, the time has come to go ahead and upgrade if you haven't already done so yet.

Tonight, you can use Windows XP and sleep well knowing that you are safe. Tomorrow, however, is another day where anything in the world could happen. It's best to look at this as a warning or just a close call. But it is actually time to upgrade now. Seriously this time.

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If you have ever had to actually use your laptop on your lap, you know all too well that they can produce a ton of heat, especially when the processor is working hard. No matter how advanced computer technology gets, the amount of heat that a computer produces is something we can't seem to get away from. If you think about it, all of the extra heat given off is just wasted energy that could be used for something else. A team of engineers at UCLA have found a way to make integrated circuits more efficient using a class of magnetic materials that are called multiferroics.

Basically, everything you use daily, like your computer, phone, TV, and many other things, relies on tons of transistors packed together making an integrated circuit. When chained together, transistors act as logic gates. The energy passing through these transistors results in large amounts of heat and loss of electrons. There really shouldn't be a way around it, but multiferroic materials have found a way to bypass this.

By simply applying an alternate voltage, a multiferroic material can be switched on or off. Doing this allows it to carry power to different parts through spinning electrons instead of actually moving them. This effect is call a "spin wave bus". The energy of the wave moves in, but the actual molecules don't have to move at all. It is a little bit hard to understand, but trust me... that's how it works.

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There was actually an experiment that the team did to test the ability of the materials to keep a stable spin wave bus. The device that they used in this experiment was made of nickel-based film on a piezoelectric substrate. The initial voltage is applied here to generate the spin wave. In the middle of the chip they used for the experiment was a 5-micrometer-wide ferromagnetic strip, which is where everything happens. The strip is the waveguide for the spin wave bus and directs power from one section to another without moving any electrons at all.

The experiment worked and successfully generated a voltage-driven spin wave. It is still a super long way away from replacing a regular charge current, but the team thinks that the improved efficiency of this method could make processors 1,000 times more efficient at very least. This would mean that there could be a whole new generation of computers that could work so much harder with a lot less power. The possibilities are endless.

For over a decade, the best way to cool your PC has been with a water cooling system. This year at CES 2014 a new product has emerged and introduced what could be the new standard for cooling your PC.

The MP1120 from Captherm may have a slightly boring name, but don't let that fool you. This awesome new product that has PC enthusiasts excited is an extremely simple integrated phase change cooler, and it plugs directly into a processor socket adapter. The way that phase change cooling works is by heating up the liquid until it turns into a vapor. Then, the vapor moves to a condenser and is changed back into a liquid and finally returned to the processor.

This method cools your PC much more efficiently and does not require the use of a pump. Eliminating the pump also eliminates the risk of break or leaks and annoying noises that you may have to put up with.

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The MP1120 is made of corrosion resistant metals, but these metals can't be welded together in a normal way because they won't accept a strong and long lasting bond. So, they have to use "explosion welding", which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Large chunks of the materials are put together in slabs, and then they are bonded together by the force of an explosion instead of welding. After that, they are cut to fit the pieces of the cooler. Using this method means that the bond will never leak or get weaker.

In case you were wondering, yes; There is a built in window so that you can watch the process of the phase change cooling. You can actually watch the water turn into vapor. You also have the choice of any color lights that you would like, as the system comes with fully customizable LED lighting.

According to Captherm, the MP1120 will sell for $249. This may seem a little bit pricey compared to other cooling systems, but it's actually a pretty good price compared to other phase change cooling kits on the market. Some sell for over $1000.

Well, it's official, you can no longer purchase an upgrade to Windows 8 Pro for the discounted price of $39.99. As of February 1, Microsoft has quintupled the price to $199.99. Just upgrading to the standard Windows 8, which doesn't include corporate features like BitLocker encryption and the ability to remotely connect to a company's network, will cost $119.99, though that edition was never discounted.

Upgrading to Windows 8 from an existing Windows operating system, like XP, Vista or 7, comes with varying degrees of success. It should come as no surprise that upgrading from Windows 7 causes the least amount of hassle with bringing along existing files, settings and applications whereas upgrading from XP is a little more difficult.

In addition to the end of the discount, several other deals also ended, including $69.99 prices for Windows 8 Pro on a DVD and something Microsoft was calling Windows 8 Pro Pack, which upgrades Windows 8 to Windows 8 Pro. The first upgrade will jump to $199.99 with the latter costing $99.99. Windows 8 Media Center pack, which is an add-on that makes it possible to play CDs and DVDs on a Windows PC, now costs $9.99.

Only one time has Microsoft discussed Windows 8 Pro upgrade numbers. This occurred back in October when CEO Steve Ballmer said his company had sold 4 million copies in its first three days. Since then, Microsoft has declined to give any specific sales numbers, even though the firm's CFO recently cited upgrades as one of several reasons why the Windows division's revenue increased 11% in the fourth quarter of 2012.

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Purchasers of the Windows 8 upgrade do not have to install it right away. Instead, they can create a bootable flash drive or installation DVD, then set aside the physical media for a later date. The final offer that recently expired was the eight-month deal that offered a $14.99 upgrade for customers who purchased a Windows 7-powered PC between June 2, 2012 and January 31, 2013. Those customers have until February 28 to claim the promotional code for the $14.99 price.

Windows 8 has received quite a bit of flak from users who believe that the heavy focus on touch-screen features do not translate well to desktops and laptops without touchscreens. Having used Windows 8 personally, I can honestly say that the new home screen and layout definitely take some getting used to, especially for long-time Windows users, though some of the features that are available are pretty cool and the operating system itself isn't all that bad (though that was at the time of the $39.99 download). I don't know if the operating system (or any, for that matter) is worth $200.

Just one day after it released Firefox 9, Mozilla quickly released an update after backing out of a bug fix that was causing users on Mac, Linux and Windows computers to experience browser crashes. Mozilla released Firefox 9.0.1 on Wednesday which made many people think that it was fake due to the fact that it released right behind version 9.

According to a post on the Mozilla support forum, "Seeing links for [Firefox 9.0.1], why is it being released? Or is it a hoax?" Other discussions on the support forum's threads included messages from users asking whether or not Mozilla actually updated the Firefox browser and if so, why?

Mozilla did not specify in the release notes of v9.0.1 why it needed to re-release the browser though developers did note that the update was prompted by crash reports, specifically for Mac users, though Windows and Linux users also experienced crashes. According to a statement from Alex Keybl, one of the engineering Project Managers on Mozilla's Release Team, "We built Firefox 9.0.1 with bug 708572 backed out. We've pushed Firefox 9.0.1 for all platforms. Although, we think Windows is mostly unaffected, we still decided to move forward with Windows-v9.0.1."

In order to rectify the problem, one that caused crashes whenever users ran certain add-on toolbars (like the one distributed by the Dallas Cowboys), the developers at Mozilla removed a patch that had been applied previously. The rush update that occurred on Wednesday was the second by Mozilla in the last 30 days. Mozilla shipped Firefox 8.0.1 back on November 21 to deal with a large number of crashes with Mac OS X. The crashes were eventually traced back to an Apple update of Java that occurred earlier in the month.

Anybody who upgraded to Firefox 9 in between the time of its release and the release of 9.0.1 can update to the new version by choosing "About Firefox" from the Firefox menu on the Mac or "About Firefox" from the Help menu under the Firefox button on Windows and then approving the new version's installation after it has completed downloading.

Source: Computer World - Mozilla re-releases Firefox 9, backs out fix causing crash

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Google Chrome was just updated and the newest version brings an option to print any webpage using Cloud Print and multiple profile support for users who are on one computer to maintain separate settings. These new additions will become available with version 16 for Windows, Mac and Linux users when it is released.

Launching back in January, Google Cloud Print allows you to print to your home or office printer from almost any web-enabled device, though it was restricted to webpages with special Cloud Print buttons and specific Google apps like Docs or desktop apps like Cloud Print for Mac. With the new update any user can use Google Chrome to print to a Cloud Print-ready printer or computer acting as a Cloud Print server.

Using Cloud Print is also very easy. All you have to do is select Print from Chrome's menu options under the wrench icon. This will take you to a print preview page where you can select "Print with Google Cloud Print" from the "Destination" dropdown menu on the left. Then select "Print" at the top of the print dialogue when you're good to go.

Another addition to the update is multiple profiles. Multiple profiles started appearing in Chrome's beta channel back in November as a way for multiple users to keep their bookmarks, Web apps and other settings separate. This can be particularly useful if you have more than one user trying to use the household computer but you can't be bothered to switch user profiles using the operating system of your computer.

In order to get started with Chrome's multiple profiles, click on Chrome's wrench icon and select "Preferences" to open the browser's settings page in a new tab. After that, click "Personal Stuff" on the left side of the screen. If that is too much work, you can always just type in "chrome://settings/personal" in an empty browser tab.

Once you do this, select "Users" and then "Add New User." A new browser tab will appear with a blank profile on it that has some generic name and one of Chrome's avatars. The active user's avatar will appear in the upper right corner of the Chrome browser for Mac users and the upper left corner for Windows users. In addition to that, you can edit each profile's username and avatar at "chrome://settings/personal".

Each user also has the ability to sign in separately to their Google account to sync Chrome settings stored online. This is useful if you want access to your Chrome settings on a PC that isn't yours. Just make sure you erase your profile on any computer that isn't yours because Chrome profiles are not secure and they don't have any password protection options so anyone using the same PC as you will have access to your browser settings.

Source: PC World - Google Chrome Adds Cloud Print Option, Multiple Profile Support

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Do you get tired of constantly having to upgrade to a bigger hard drive? Wouldn’t it be awesome if you could have unlimited disk space? What if you could access your files from anywhere and any device? As a photographer I can’t tell you how invaluable this would be! Photos take up lots and lots of space. To get a good quality print just one photo can take 5mb of space and when you are dumping 150 photos onto your hard drive after every shoot, it doesn’t take long to fill it up.
A new beta software just might be the solution. It’s from a startup called Bitcasa; when you install it, the capacity of your computer's hard drive becomes, essentially, infinite! It is currently only available for Apple computers but a Windows version is in development; and plans of apps for mobile devices are in the works as well.

Bitcasa creates the illusion of unlimited hard drive space but the files are kept on a cloud server. Your computer will respond to opening any file as if it is local and there would be no wait for downloads, even videos!

Using a storage service is not a new concept. Dropbox, SkyDrive, Google Docs, Amazon and countless others have been offering online storage for some time. But Bitcasa is not like any of those services. It doesn’t move files around or sync. Bitcasa doesn’t know what the file is, what the name is, what the contents are or anything about the file itself. It only deals in bits and bytes, the 1′s and 0′s of digital data. Data is encrypted on the client side. This is kind of like contemplating the universe for me because I am amazed that my photos can go from a picture to zeros and ones and back again.

Bitcasa is only $10.00 a month! Ten dollars for unlimited space? How can that be? Bitcasa CEO Tony Gauda says $10/month still gives the company large margins. The fact is, 60% of data is duplicate. For example, if I have an MP3 of the Foo Fighters new single and someone else has it too, those would be made up of the same zeros and ones. I think that’s amazing! Also times are hard so if $10.00 a month is hard to squeeze from your budget, a less than unlimited free version is on its way. Bitcasa will be free while in limited beta trials. You can sign up for access here.

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According to a recent report from Microsoft, the company is planning on releasing a total of five security updates next week in order to fix 15 vulnerabilities located in Windows, Excel, SharePoint Server and Groove. All five of the updates will be rated as "important" which is the second highest ranking in the four-step security system set up by Microsoft.

Typically, Microsoft ships a smaller number of updates in months labeled as an "odd number month" and is keeping to that plan. The volume of September is down compared to August when Microsoft patched 22 problems with 13 bulletins or individual security updates. According to Director of Security Operations at nCircle Security Andrew Storms, "Not a lot there, but we didn't expect much. It is the light month, the down month."

Microsoft laid out all the details about the coming patches in an advanced notice of next week's patch day which is Tuesday. Two of the updates affect Windows with one of them only impacting Server 2003, 2008 and 2008 R2. The second patch fixes a few more bugs found in all supported versions of the operating system which include XP and Windows 7.

"There are a number of server-only components that have been present through the whole lifecycle of Windows Server," Storms added about the server-only update. "SMB is an example. And they patched SMB often in the last several months."

SMB, or server message block, is a network and file-sharing protocol designed by Microsoft that has already been patched multiple times this year including an update that took place in April that stopped up a critical hole that some analysts believe could be used by criminals to construct a dangerous worm.

An additional two updates also coming out next week will patch up problems located in Excel 2010 and Excel 2011 for the Mac and in the Office software altogether. The fifth patch will fix a plethora of server-side software including SharePoint, Groove and Office Web Apps, which is the cloud-based version of Microsoft's suite.

Source: Computer World - Microsoft plans 15 patches for Windows, Office next week

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