Windows Server 2008 Robot

Microsoft is billing Windows Server 2008 as "The Server Unleashed" and has created a cool Web site featuring a nice CGI robot. When you click on the different features of the OS, the robot takes slightly different poses. Aside from being amused by the robot, you can also download a trial copy of the software to evaluate it. And don't forget to grab some images for your Windows wallpaper from the Toy Box like the one below!

Carry an Operating System in Your Pocket

With large capacity flash drives, we have almost reached the point where we could carry our Windows environment with us in our pocket and have access to our familiar desktop and settings wherever there is a public computer. But we really aren't there quite yet.

A practical solution available now is taking Linux with you on a flash drive. Linux isn't geeky and scary any longer. The interfaces for many Linux builds, like Ubuntu shown below, look almost exactly like Windows.



The advantages of using your own Linux OS on a public computer are:

1) Reduce the risk of picking up viruses and malware from a public computer - When you boot a public computer from a flash drive you completely eliminate any interaction with the public computer's operating system. This significantly reduces the chances that your flash drive will become infected by any malware running infecting the public computer.
2) Linux isn't as prone to attack - Since Windows has a 91% market share, people who write malware tend to target Windows systems. By running Linux on a public computer, you are much less likely to be the target of an attack or infection.
3) Enhanced privacy - When you run off your own storage medium (flash drive), you avoid reading and writing to the hard disk of the public computer. Therefore, you don't leave traces of your activity behind.
4) Ease of use - Instead of dealing with a different configuration on each public computer you use, you have access to an operating system with which you are familiar.

Sometimes you can't find a public computer that lets you boot from a USB drive. You can also take a CD with you that contains a Linux OS which should help avoid this issue.

You still need some virus protection but fortunately you can get free antivirus programs that run in a Linux environment such as avast! Linux Home Edition. If you buy a flash drive with a switch that allows you to make it a read-only device, this will also increase your level of protection.

There are many distros (different variations of Linux) that you can choose from to load onto your flash drive. An excellent resource is Pendrivelinux which has many distros available for download and step-by-step instructions on how to install them to your flash drive. Personally, I like Ubuntu and Knoppix as they both include OpenOffice (which is just like using MS Office 2003) and the Firefox browser. But download a couple different distros and see which one you prefer.

And if you are a Mac user, there is an option for you too! gOS is a distro that provides a very close approximation of OS X so you too can feel right at home.

XP or Not XP -- That Is the Question

Or to put it another way... should I upgrade to Windows Vista or stay with Windows XP? A lot of people still aren't convinced that upgrading to the newest Windows operating system is the best route. In fact, a recent study by Forrester Research indicates that 84% of North American and European companies are currently using Windows XP. Additionally, some users who have upgraded to Vista are reinstalling Windows XP on their systems. They cite software and hardware compatibility issues and increased memory requirements (ideally, you should have at least 1GB RAM and more is better) as just a couple of (expensive) reasons why upgrading may not be a good idea. On the other hand, Windows Vista has a cool new interface, increased security, and improved search functions, just to name a few of the new features and benefits this OS provides. And let's not forget that at some point, Microsoft will stop supporting Windows XP. So, what to do? Many companies and individuals have adopted a wait and see attitude and have been planning to reevaluate their options after the first Vista service pack is released.

Well, that time is almost here. And the preliminary results aren't looking good for Vista. Microsoft expects to release Service Pack 1 for Vista and Service Pack 3 for Windows XP in early to mid-2008. According to testers at Devil Mountain Software who are working with early versions of these releases, XP SP3 is outperforming Vista XP1 on everyday computing tasks. Benchmark comparisons show that the current version, Windows XP SP2, already handles typical tasks 50 to 100 percent faster than Vista. After applying the service packs, Windows XP SP3 actually improved its speed by 10 percent! TechNewsWorld provides additional details on their blog, and the blog by Devil Mountain Software researchers - exo.blog - includes graphs and comparison charts, just to make the differences even more obvious.

It should be noted that these are preliminary test results. Hopefully, Microsoft will continue tweaking and refining the Vista service pack to provide better final results. However, it doesn't look like improved speed and efficiency is the main objective of this service pack and users who were hoping for increased performance results may be sorely disappointed.

Discussion Questions for Students
1. Have you upgraded to Vista yet, or purchased a new computer with Vista already installed? If so, what version of Vista are you using and what are your impressions of this new operating system so far?
2. What are benchmark comparisons? (Note: This may be a good hands-on exercise for students -- Ask them to search for some benchmark tests online or to create their own. Select several that would be appropriate to test, divide the students into groups, and ask them to run the tests on computers with different operating systems. If no one has access to a machine running Vista, try running the tests on an older version of Windows, such as Windows 2000 or 98. Have the students present their findings and discuss and compare their results.)
3. Findings seem to indicate that Vista's architecture, not bugs, are behind the lower performance results. Would you be willing to use a slower computer if it was more stable (i.e. less crashes or freezes) than a faster computer? When does slow become too slow?
4. How do you feel about releasing preliminary reports such as this, knowing that the final version of a product may change considerably? Is it fair to the consumer or the manufacturer? Will you take the time to find out what the final version can do or will you have already made up your mind based on early information?

Running with the Big Cats

Apple released Leopard, the much anticipated upgrade to their current operating system - Mac OS X - on October 26. Initial reviews are favorable and indicate that this new version of the Mac OS will be superior to the new Windows Vista OS. Leopard replaces the previous version, known as Tiger, and will come already loaded on all new Macs. Users will also be able to upgrade their current systems for $129. It should be possible to upgrade machines that are as much as six years old - something that is much less likely to happen for older computers running Windows. Unlike Vista, which is available in four different versions with a varying range of features and pricing (from $100 up to $260), Leopard has only one version. So the only decision the consumer needs to make is whether or not to buy it!

Apple indicates that there are 300 new features in this version of the operating system! Some features have received particularly good reviews, including Time Machine, a backup utility that works in the background to automatically archive and protect your important files. Boot Camp, which allows users to also run the Microsoft Windows operating system (Vista or XP, either of which must be purchased separately) on a Mac, is now included - formerly, it needed to be downloaded and installed separately. The Mac OS also plays well with Linux, making it a very versatile choice.

Reviewers, such as Walt Mossburg from the Wall Street Journal, have indicated that the installation of Leopard was relatively quick and painless and, unlike Vista, they have encountered very few compatability issues with software or hardware. Edward C. Baig of USA Today writes favorably about the aesthetics of the new OS. iChat has added many new special effects, Mail has a new assortment of stationery templates, and some of the new desktop features, including a new version of the Dock and the Spaces virtual desktop feature, allow users to view information in new and creative ways. The general consensus is that Mac users will be pleased with this new cat!

Discussion Questions for Students:
1. Have you ever used a Mac computer?
2. If you have, how do you think it compares to a computer running Windows?
3. Do you think the new features of the Mac will tempt more people to switch from Microsoft Windows?
4. The new Leopard launch seems to be proceeding much more smoothly, and with greater acceptance, than the launch for Windows Vista. What are your thoughts on this?