Microsoft Virtual PC 2007

Downloaded and installed the free full version of Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 successfully on Lenovo Z61t running Windows 7 Beta.

Within Virtual PC 2007, the option for hardware-assisted virtualization is not available. According to Intel, the processor on Z61t which is Intel Core 2 Duo T5500 does not support Intel Virtualization Technology. But on further checking revealed that it is supported. Also in the BIOS, there is no option for Intel Virtualization Technology. Using another tool SecurAble confirmed that the processor does not support hardware virtualization. The conclusion is it does not matter whether your processor or BIOS support virtualization for Virtual PC 2007 to work.

Next, I tested installing Windows XP in the virtual environment. It took almost an hour to get Windows XP up and running. As shown, I can run IE 6.0 SP3 in Windows XP simultaneously with IE 8 in Windows 7 Beta. This is useful to run those software applications that are still not supported in Windows 7 Beta.

However, you can't expand to full screen in Windows XP and the maximum screen resolution is 1024 x 768 even though Windows 7 Beta runs in 1440 x 900 mode. Also, the date and time in Windows XP don't correspond to the date and time in Windows 7 Beta.

PC Advisor July 2009

Features

1. Is your web browser fit for business?
2. People-search engines: what the web knows about you
   

Cover DVD (Free Paid Full Version)

1. Ashampoo Magical Snap 2.0
   

Mozilla Firefox 3.0.10

The latest release fixed a security issue:

MFSA 2009-23 Crash in nsTextFrame::ClearTextRun()

Australian APC Magazine May 2009

Features

1. Windows on USB
2. iPod your home
   

Budget Intel 64-bit CPU Desktop PC

Compaq Presario CQ2019AP ($599)

1. Intel Atom 230 CPU (1.6GHz, 1MB L2 Cache, 533MHz Hyper Threading)
2. Genuine Windows Vista Home Basic
3. 1GB SDRAM DDR2
4. 160GB Hard Drive
5. 6-in-1 Digital Media Reader
6. SuperMulti DVD+/-RW SATA Drive with LightScribe Technology and Double Layer Support
7. 18.5" LCD widescreen monitor

Drivers

1. Windows Vista (32-bit)
2. Windows Vista (64-bit)
   

Mozilla Firefox 3.0.9

The latest release fixed several security issues:

MFSA 2009-22 Firefox allows Refresh header to redirect to javascript: URIs

MFSA 2009-21 POST data sent to wrong site when saving web page with embedded frame

MFSA 2009-20 Malicious search plugins can inject code into arbitrary sites

MFSA 2009-19 Same-origin violations in XMLHttpRequest and XPCNativeWrapper.toString

MFSA 2009-18 XSS hazard using third-party stylesheets and XBL bindings

MFSA 2009-17 Same-origin violations when Adobe Flash loaded via view-source: scheme

MFSA 2009-16 jar: scheme ignores the content-disposition: header on the inner URI

MFSA 2009-15 URL spoofing with box drawing character

MFSA 2009-14 Crashes with evidence of memory corruption (rv:1.9.0.9)

Australian PC User May 2009

Features

1. Extend your netbook battery life
2. Ultimate burning guide
   

Personal Computer World June 2009

Features

1. Home Media Network Superguide
2. Multi-booting Guide

Cover CD (Free Paid Full Version)

1. Paragon Hard Disk Manager 8.5
2. TuneUp Utilities 2008
   

Computer Shopper June 2009

Features

1. Create a home network
   
2. Save money on printer inks
   
3. Publish your own book

Cover DVD (Free Paid Full Version)

1. Kaspersky Internet Security 2009 (100-days)
2. Steganos Safe One
   

PC Pro June 2009

Features

1. eBay exposed
2. 3D: Coming to a screen near you

Cover DVD (Free Paid Full Version)

1. Paragon Drive Copy 2009
2. Paragon Disk Wiper 7 Personal
3. Paragon Partition Manager 2009
   

Securing Router

According to DroneBL, a recent botnet worm called "psyb0t" has been affecting routers connected to Internet.

Your router is only vulnerable if:

1. Your router is a mipsel (MIPS running in little-endian mode, this is what the worm is compiled for) device.
2. Your router also has telnet, SSH or web-based interfaces available to the WAN, and
3. Your username and password combinations are weak, OR the daemons that your firmware uses are exploitable.
   

To mitigate the above risks, look for the following features when choosing a router:

1. disable remote management
2. change password
3. upgradeable firmware
   

Other important features are:

1. change SSID
   
2. MAC address filtering
3. Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) firewall. Run a ShieldsUP test for Common Ports and All Service Ports to check all ports are stealth
   
4. disable DHCP if unnecessary
5. disable uPnP if unnecessary
6. change DNS servers to openDNS
   

Other good to have features are:

1. Block ping from WAN
2. restrict to 802.11g mode only if all your devices can support it
   

PC Advisor June 2009

Features

1. Scams, Tricks and Swindles
2. Make Free Web Calls
   

Cover DVD (Free Paid Full Version)

1. Avira Premium Security Suite 2009 (6-month licence)
2. Webroot Internet Security Essentials 2009 (90-days licence)
   
3. Serif PagePlus 9.0
   

Inaccurate Battery Wear Meter

On my Lenovo IdeaPad S10, I've installed BatteryBar for more than a month. The readings for Battery Wear were erratic 0.2%, 0.3%, 2.1%, 2.2%, 2.3%, 0.7%, 2.3%, 2.4%, 2.2%, 2.3%, 0%, 2.5% and lately to 0.1%.

Does it mean my battery is getting better with time? I don't think so.

Error in JRE Version 6 Update 13

The latest version running in Windows 7 Beta resulted in an error while visiting its own website.

PDF Readers

I've stopped using Acrobat Reader for quite a while because it is bloated and slow. My favorite is Foxit Reader 2.3 for Windows. Foxit has also released Reader 3.0 for Windows with more features that I didn't need. After installation, you can copy the files in your installed directory to a USB flash drive and run Foxit Reader on any computer. You can't disable auto update but your third party firewall should prevent it. Also, for privacy reason, you can remove the list of files opened using CCleaner.

Another alternative is Sumatra PDF which does not require any installation. You can disable auto update but you can't remove the list of files opened. During testing, I encountered "Couldn't render the page" error while opening a pdf file as shown.

Lavasoft Ad-Aware Pro Anniversary Edition

I downloaded the 30 day trial version of Ad-Aware Pro Anniversary Edition from Lavasoft. After installation, it showed Ad-Aware Free Anniversary Edition instead of Ad-Aware Pro Anniversary Edition. Managed to run a Web Update successfully.

Also, according to the product comparison, Ad-Watch Live! Basic which provides real-time process protection should be available for Ad-Aware Free but it is turned off as shown for processes even though it is activated by default in the Settings.

So it seems Lavasoft does not want you to test the Ad-Watch function and malware protection. Ad-Aware Free does not provide any real-time protection.

CCleaner 2.18.878

The changes are as follows:

- Added support for Internet Explorer 8.
- Improved Wipe Free Space routines.
- Improved internal communication between threads.
- Escape key no longer closes CCleaner.
- Added scrolling to Options screen.
- Added support for multiple DetectFile options in INI files.
- Fixed bug when clicking links to navigate to URL.
- Fixed Win98 progress bar problem.
- Fixed repaint problem on Options screen when resizing.
- Minor GUI bugs fixed.

Anti-malware for Windows 7 Beta

Microsoft has updated the list of anti-malware software for Windows 7 Beta. Now, it includes McAfee, Panda, Trend Micro and F-Secure.

Surprisingly, Avira is not included in the list. So far, only AVG, Avira and Norton are the only non-beta products which support Windows 7 Beta.

Australian PC Authority May 2009

Features

1. Secure your PC
   
2. Tame your inbox
3. Boost your battery life
   

Cover DVD (Free Paid Full Version)

1. Avira Premium Security Suite (90-days licence)