Boot up: Windows Explorer gets ribbon, Microsoft launches cloud CRM deal, and more

A quick burst of 6 links for you to chew over, as picked by the Technology team

The fascinating thing in this is how few commands are used most of the time, and the appalling user interface decisions made in the new ribbon: "people use lots of commands, so let's cram them all in there explicitly."

An alternative view: keep the most used commands visible. Put the others in contextual menus. Simplify, don't complicate.

"Microsoft has rolled out a special deal (and new spoof video) for its cloud Customer Relationship Management (CRM) service, in an effort to draw customers away from from Salesforce.com, Oracle and SAP.
"The Redmond company will pay $150 in cash per user seat (minimum 50 seats per company; maximum 500) for customers that switch to its Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online service.
"However, to qualify for the service, businesses must be located in U.S. or Canada, subscribe to at least 50 Microsoft CRM Online licenses, and sign a 2-year licensing subscription for the service."

Interesting how Microsoft's principal business is built around the idea that it's expensive to shift from its products to rivals'. How does it go when the boot's on the other foot?

"Let's say you were given a year to kill Hewlett-Packard. Here's how you do it."

Witty.

Probably the best title for the COTD ever. Now you'll have to click through to understand it.

"One of the several new features in Chrome is the addition of HTTP Strict Transport Security. HSTS allows a site to request that it always be contacted over HTTPS. HSTS is supported in Google Chrome, Firefox 4, and the popular NoScript Firefox extension.
"The issue that HSTS addresses is that users tend to type http:// at best, and omit the scheme entirely most of the time. In the latter case, browsers will insert http:// for them.
"However, HTTP is insecure. An attacker can grab that connection, manipulate it and only the most eagle eyed users might notice that it redirected to https://www.bank0famerica.com or some such. From then on, the user is under the control of the attacker, who can intercept passwords etc at will."

Chrome will start having a preloaded list of must-HSTS sites. Seems like other major browsers should do this too.

A fun open data project in Toronto, Canada: "The City's controversial Core Service Review, a consultant-led examination of which municipal services might be cut or reduced for cost savings, involved public consultations in May and June. Those consultations generated over 13,000 responses from residents who either attended a consultation session, or filled out a form online.
"The City, being the City, crunched all that data into some black-and-white PDFs and posted it on an obscure section of its website. Brian Gilham had other ideas.
"What Toronto Said, a cleanly designed website that Gilham, a professional web designer, built over the course of three weeks in his spare time, provides a search-bar interface for the entire corpus of feedback data. It makes filtering the raw opinions of thousands of Torontonians about as simple as using Google to find a recipe for soup. It launches August 29."

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Boot up: Microsoft Windows 8 tablets, interview with ex-Anonymous hacker, and more

A quick burst of 9 links for you to chew over, as picked by the Technology team

Raises all sorts of questions about how the Windows 8 desktop/hybrid behaviour will be managed. Intriguing.

Inspired by this XKCD strip.

The total BitCoin economy has a value of £39m. At current exchange rates, anyway. Unless someone finds the lost wallet.dat that someone left on an Amazon web instance which got restarted.

Quote from a speech (much more at the post): "What we're seeing in the cloud era is not just hundreds of millions but billions of new users and devices now coming into play. Three years ago over 95% of the devices connected to the Internet were personal computers. Three years from now that number will probably be less than 20%. More than 80% of the devices connected to the Internet will not be Windows-based personal computers."

Obvious, really (think: smartphones) but intriguing to see it put that way. Maritz's real point though is about what becomes important when that is true.

Well, it isn't streaming, except that you can listen to it while it's downloading. And it's only sort of downloaded, as it might be in a cache. Anyhow.

From the conclusion: " the stellar 9900 shows that when its back is against the wall, RIM can produce winners. This phone is the best BlackBerry RIM has ever produced, but against the gigantic technological and marketing forces of iPhone and Android, it's a whisper in the wind. Let's hope that there are enough BlackBerry fans left to support their favorite phone and that the company completes its reboot in time to prevent the 2013 headline, 'RIM R.I.P.'"

Interview with @SparkyBlaze, who is in his 20s and from Manchester (but wants to keep the rest under his to-be-white hat).

"Q: What are some of the biggest challenges you see out there?
"SparkyBlaze: In my mind social engineering is the biggest issue today. We have the software/hardware to defend buffer overflows, malware, DDoS and code execution. But what good is that if you can get someone to give you their password or turn off the firewall because you say you are Greg from computer maintenance just doing testing. It all comes down to lies, everyone does it and some people get good at it."

James Surowiecki, the New Yorker's financial writer, dissects the problem around the virtual currency in typically astute fashion: "many--probably most--Bitcoin users are acquiring bitcoins not in order to buy goods and services but to speculate. That's a bad investment decision, and it also hurts Bitcoin's prospects.
"True believers in Bitcoin's usefulness prefer to deny that speculation is driving the action in bitcoins. But the evidence suggests otherwise.":

And if hoarding, instead of trading, takes over, then nobody uses it, so it becomes useless - trapped in a deflationary spiral where the velocity of the currency is zero.

Ed Bott finds the same thing that we pointed you to a while ago: a real-life crackdown by Russian police, rather than any fiendishly clever piece of technology, is what killed off Mac Defender and various Windows workalikes.

Trouble is, that could mean that more will be along soon, depending on when the next gang gets its act together.

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Boot-up: Cybercrime ' easier than ever before ", why dump Microsoft Bing and more will not"

Mac OS X lion... Launchpad makes your Mac to in fact a huge iPhone

Quickly to chew over, as picked by the technology team burst of 6 links for you

Brian Krebs, reliable as ever and per: "An explosion of online was tools and services online makes it easier than ever for beginners in computer crime entry." "At the same time suggests a growing number of prove, that much of the world of cybercrime activity may be the work of a core group of villains who have been there for many years."

Clever use of the nature of the FireWire. But: "Mac users who want to rule out the threat of forensic software can change the default from their accounts so that they no longer automatically log at startup." Mac antivirus vendor Intego has this here step by step instructions for action. Requiring a password to unlock or waking up a Mac prevents that X OS save the login password in your computer's memory. "Macs is the other way to help prevent them clear, if they instead of locks they or contact they are not used in sleep mode,."

You are warned.

Mary Jo Foley: "I wouldn't be surprised, to see more closely coupled with Windows 8 be Bing." Given, it will need to be a Windows-8-app store, users search the new marketplace for apps.
"While the world sees as a distant No. 2 search engine Bing, see Microsoft brass and bean counters bing as a reusable component and capital, which is more and more to create products." "Microsoft Bing will reject those who think, or to sell to the highest bidder dead false-, that now happen is not or anytime soon."

Baking Bing in Windows 8 sounds like a recipe for a competitive process. If Google has no sense, at least, a lawyer, the preparation has on it a case why consumers - which damage based on the Sherman antitrust cases.

A single page from John Siracusa enormous review of the Mac OSX 10.7 ("lion"), located on the dangers in the heart of Apple's OS file format references.

"Without my involvement with Windows and as was the prospect of me purchasing a Mac go a ridiculous concept in a huge history lesson until not that long ago long history I am short, a happy Windows user who decided it was time to acquire the latest MacBook Air." And I wonder how all out about it, despite my initial reservations on almost 2 large they Dole out (maxed out 13?) Model + taxes).
"Now, before I postulate my questions, I would like to questions that you please try to alleviate you."

Ping! This is the popcorn ready.

More seriously, he does not employ, why he moved, and is the more interesting question.

"RIM on Friday said it had bought JayCut in what is a likely attempt counter iMovie on the iPad." The agreement allows access to a mix of video edit it and cloud services. The BlackBerry maker made it clear to strengthen the acquisition was video editing textbook, as well as future BlackBerry phones.
"Conditions of the transaction were not assigned but were probably small enough that RIM do not have to report their conditions."

Amateur Director hour has begun.

Boot-up: Microsoft is nonsensical, search and Syrian hackers ' target anonymous'

Display Microsoft Bing... a sign of the times? Photo: Public domain

Quickly to chew over, as picked by the technology team burst of 8 links for you

"Microsoft must focus on a different kind of search: finding a buyer for Bing, the online search business." Bing is the industry's distant No. 2 after Google. It is a distraction for the software giant-one become expensive costing shareholders. The Division, the Bing houses lost $2.6 billion in the past year. May provide Facebook or even Apple a better home for Bing. "A sale would be a boon to Microsoft investors."

"Reports might buy Apple's staggering Q3 Dell twice and can a boatload money still in reserve, but they have a real ecosystem and strategy problem."

Apparently part of the problem is not search engine, who each quarter loses flows of money, and have made no LinkedIn in iOS5.

Mary Jo Foley: "as Microsoft's fourth quarter of fiscal 2011 profit made clearly, Windows 7 sales-with the glaring exception of Netbooks--are good, but not as it once was so good." Given it is still a year (give or take) s start up Windows 8, what is Microsoft's game plan to bottom drop out of the Windows PC market hold?
"The market for enterprise is chugging probably Windows 7 sales, keep many larger companies Windows 7, until finally after months of planning and testing provide." "And as Microsoft execs said during the yesterday's earnings conference call, the new market countries a lot of Windows 7, click though to lower prices - and with much higher piracy rates-as"developed"countries."

Interesting words on tablets. And this confirmed that Microsoft makes the worst PowerPoint decks in the world.

"Anonymous that hacker group, which saw some of their alleged members arrested last Tuesday had yet another blow to deal with on Wednesday, albeit less a: a dedicated social network page was hacked and defaced."
"The Group had announced earlier this week that it has started only AnonPlus, after his" your Anon "Newskonto of Google's new social network, Google +, was rejected for violating the website standards."

Syrian hackers apparently guilt. Ironic?

Sam Bowne of the 'ethical hacking' at the City College of San Francisco interviewed informed:
"RFE/RL: you see moral or ethical differences between what" news of the world "done has entry in" the Sun"for instance hacking into the individual phones or LulzSec, is there a moral equivalence here or are these different cases?" Bowne: "well, I mean, they are both wrong." They are both illegal. I think that they both be caught and punished. I think so, only that two wrongs make a right. And I do not see also, a real attack of the LulzSec purpose because I do not think there was some secret hidden things over which the news of the world have, would never come without them have hacking. Thus, it has not me clearly that she achieved nothing hacking. It was mostly just a trick, so she could laugh, that is, what about LulzSec always was. "
Thoughtful about the ethical differences between, for example, one physical sit-in and a DDOS "Visibility" staged.

"Yes, it grows further with five times the rate of the PC market (and 7.5 times the rate of only Windows PCs), but the iPad phenomenon is in fact affect the Mac."

Fascinating.

"The Android-based models Samsung Electronics Co., which can Nokia OYJ (NOK1V) world's second largest handset maker, and Apple Inc. (AAPL) smartphone sales in the second quarter exceeded have estimated driven due to the popularity, according to Boston-based strategy becomes Analytics.Samsung, that between 18 and 21 million smartphones sold worldwide iPhone's habenNeil Mawston in the period compared with 16.7 million for Nokia and 20.3 million", a London analyst at research said in an e-mailed response to questions on 22 July.

"The Galaxy device maker is passing in the Smartphone sales for the first time to Apple's on the next rival Google Inc. (GOOG) Android system on the way, Nokia and research in motion Ltd. (RIM) as consumers flock to devices." "Samsung, which is more than the double smartphone sales this year should aim at, and rivaled Apple replace use computer-like mobile phones Nokia as the biggest Smartphone seller and rising demand."

"Description: online"Pads"are used by anonymous / Antisec, information about their current target (s) post attack." "The pads contain information on any URLs, IP addresses, contacts, WHOIS records, and potential vulnerabilities exploit, links, phone numbers, addresses, status, etc." "shared"none"="

Analysis: Bing keeps Microsoft below weigh and PC gains are tips

Microsoft said that it has sold now more than 400 m Windows 7 licenses. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Following Microsoft blockbuster financial results on Thursday night, you look a little closer at Microsoft online services - which continue to a hole that eats everything just resemble, which is thrown into it. Above all, money.

Here is the chart:

Microsoft online services earnings after quarter of calendar 2005 - 4Q 2Q 2011 calendar

Any way you cut it, that is not good. Revenue is about flat and continue at a greater level than revenue - so of the first quarter sales was losses $62 m and the losses were 728 m.

True, Microsoft invested heavily in the cloud services (are part of the online services) - Office 365 has an overall positive reception - but at some point, the supertanker has either to turn or fall into a black hole and everything you start really suck (to metaphors in a terrible way mix) it is.

Saw what positive in the fact that Sequentlally revenues for the quarter, but rose as the chart shows it about 20% of the peak times, which were in the October 2006 - June 2007 analysts (the covering large three quarters in the middle).

And let us also refer to my predictions about Windows sales and profit from blog post a few days ago.

At the time calculated mulling Microsoft's claim on 400 m Windows 7 licenses have sold, I, on the basis of Microsoft's financials last numbers:

Going to Microsoft's own financial results (numbers come from the fourth quarter until next week), three-year average sales per Windows PC sold is $56.47, and profit is $39.91.

Close the two scenarios and the following result for the Windows Division:

• 75 m PCs sold: revenues: $4. 23bn; Enjoy $2-. 99bn

• 80 m PCs sold: revenues: $4. 52bn; Profit: $3 billion.

In the case, we know that there were a total of 81.2 m (Gartner) or 80.4 (IDC)-Windows PCs sold in the quarter. Call it 80.8 m for comfort. By my math, you will find Windows Division, which had revenues of $4. 56bn and profits of $3. 22bn then.

In the event, it was $2. 94bn (drum roll) $4. 74bn and profit. Benefits lower turnover (4% higher than the model), (9% as the model).

Why could that be? Since the prices of Windows down pushed are even while the sales. This is the China-effect, that it is more piracy in China, but it is also the place (along with India and other Asian countries), where the sale is booming.

Yet Microsoft Office, can that needed only an installed base, now in the direction to make 2 billion money reliable, even though Windows left in the device.

Meanwhile, Apple announced that it 1 m times OSX lion was sold in its first day. This is a whole lot. Of course, now can you argue about whether, which caught up with Windows 7 (to do quite a bit) or is always a head start on Windows 8. Of the performances of the two, I think that it is more like this. And what will Microsoft Pro-PC sales and profits look is ready by the time Windows 8?

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Associated: Rustock botnet reduced when Microsoft offers $250,000 bounty

If you know the Rustock botnet creator Microsoft you will be rewarded. Photo: Image source/Rex features
Microsoft has released a price on the heads of criminals behind Rustock spam botnet: $250,000. It may not quite a lottery prize of eradicating riches, but for many of those who could be on the edge of legality, which can, know who are the people behind the Russian-based network, there is a sufficiently tempting piece of fruit.
In a blog post, Richard Boscovich, senior Attorney at the company of digital crimes unit says that "we believe that the Rustock should be considered for their actions to the responsibility of Bot herders."
Rustock, Boscovich stressed, was a notorious spam generator able to produce up to 30 spam e-Mails per day. Despite the series in March, which reduced the number of infected machines of 1.6 m to about 703,000, is still a long way to go.
The worst infected countries prior to the game series were India (322,000), Russia (94,000), Italy (54,000), the United States (86,000) and Turkey (89,000).
They are then India (99,000), the United States (56,000), Turkey (50,000), Italy (32,000) and Russia (27,000).
Boscovich adds that "Microsoft has already been of strong prove in our ongoing research has collection and this reward aims these efforts one step further." We will continue in this case follow, where it takes us and continues to work with our partners around the world to help, again over their Rustock infected computer. (For free information and resources to help clean your computer, please visit support.microsoft.com/botnets.)
Here are the cards (generated by OpenHeatMap of the number of infections.) Apart from the fact that the United States is moved from the second largest number of infections to the fourth-largest, there is not much change between the two. Perhaps surprisingly, India, remains the place with the most infections. The surprising missing? China. We want to know why it show up not there.
Ago...
Rustock infections by country, prior to take-down
..and after
Rustock infections, from country to country, according to take-down

What does Microsoft Windows distribution announcement you inform us about PC sales?

PC sales are good - but how they compared to previous years? Photo: Arcaid / Rex features

Microsoft says that it has sold 400 m Windows 7 licenses. As mentioned back at the end of April when Microsoft said it had delivered 350 m licenses, the storage better gone, proportional to the total number of PCs sold each year, as it is with Windows XP in 2001 (and in any case better than with Vista in 2007).

-But do the two numbers 350 m and 400 m - be together with their announcement tell us about the PC sales in the second quarter?

Actually, they suggest that they are not, go the swimmingly. Here is the reason.
In the second quarter of 2010, the research company Gartner and IDC say that about 80 m were sold Windows PCs (I've deducted sold for the quarter the number of Apple Macs). In the second quarter of 2009 was the figure of 66 m. (Sun, that was a pretty impressive previous year growth of about 20% between 2009 and 2010.)
So: 350 m from 22 April sold (the blog post actually says "greater than", but let down, round us, because that puts a better light on PC sales for this quarter.)

Two months (and a week) later Microsoft says that it has sold an additional 50 m licenses. Assuming that sales through the district are to go, implies, sales of only 75 m PCs in the second quarter - which would be one 6% dip. This is quite significant and if properly, according to a 2% of bath in the Windows-PC sales in the first quarter would come. Possible causes can financial squeezes on companies and the earthquake in Japan slows business in the far East included.

One of the factors that could cause of conscience: my calculation in April showed that 7 licenses Windows 67% of PC shipments in the first 18 months. (This is because you get an overlap with older systems, including XP and Vista.) If this is still the case, then, would be that 75 m 125 m. But as there has never ever been the slightest hint of the PC market meeting this size, we can as the wrong discount. The figure of 67% for the first 18 months will release due to its OS overlap occurred. but now you not XP - Microsoft stopped on October 22 - sales, making it now the way Windows 7.
Allow maybe some small mix of Vista licensing and/or "white boxes" without licenses delivered will and Windsor at Nomura are still looking to 0 (zero) or very small growth 2010 - perhaps a total 80 m. financial Snalysts such as Richard PC forecast total growth rate of only 3% in PC sales this year.

Yes, but what does it mean? It means less money for Microsoft. There were only 75 m in the second quarter Windows PC directly on the bottom line sold, translated.
Going to Microsoft's own financial results (numbers come from the fourth quarter until next week), three-year average sales per Windows PC sold is $56.47, and profit is $39.91.

Close the two scenarios and the following result for the Windows Division:
• 75 m PCs sold: revenues: $4. 23bn; Enjoy $2-. 99bn
• 80 m PCs sold: revenues: $4. 52bn; Profit: $3 billion.
Are still large numbers - but they are not showing the growth of the Steve Ballmer could have hoped for. (75 M is pretty pessimistic, level access to the first quarter, but if more sales have reduced NetBook would be 80 m then may be too large.) This Windows 8 tablets are not really early enough can.

Update: It is actually higher than 80 m is what could mean that the number of PCs sold an another confusing factor, but the Windows licenses are not for them: PC sales in China. The Wall Street Journal in May reported a speech in the Ballmer said that Microsoft just about gets 5% of the revenue from China, which receives from the West, due to the rampant piracy. For 2011, Wall Street Journal IDC announced "projects PC unit shipments in China are 12% to 71 million units, just shy of 75 million units in the United States where it expected sales that flat increase."

If these programmes accesses Windows licenses are not, could we see doesn't grow sales PC even during Microsoft's revenue from them. It's a way: we find out next week.

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