Month: March 2009

CHECKING COMPATIBILITY
• For those who outsource website management, please contact your developer to determine if
your website is Internet Explorer 8 compatible. And for more general information, please check here.

• For those who manage your own website, reference the Resource links below and/or the
following steps:
1. Download Internet Explorer 8 here.
2. Navigate to your website in the Internet Explorer 8 browser.
3. If pages look as they should, you’re done! If pages look different from how they did in Internet Explorer 7 or
don’t work the same way, follow one of the following options:

• Preferred: Revise site content to support the standards-compliant default view for web
pages in Internet Explorer 8
Internet Explorer 8 supports the HTML 4.01 Specification more closely than any previous version and
supports some features of the HTML 5 Specification. This release of Internet Explorer also offers
full support for CSS 2.1 and supports some popular features of CSS 3.0. For more information, please see
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc817575.aspx.

Or you can

•Tell Internet Explorer 8 to display your site in Internet Explorer 7 mode
1) On a per-site basis, add the HTTP header: X-UA-Compatible: IE=EmulateIE7
2) On a per-page basis, add a special HTML tag to each document, right after the <title> tag (and before
any other tags following <title>):
<meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=EmulateIE7" />

Build applications, revenue, brand, and customer trust. In this fast-tracked world, you need a flexible, fast, and secure browser. One with developer tools to help you build applications quickly and deploy them reliably. Designed to work seamlessly with other browsers. Develop once, render always—that’s the Internet Explorer 8 mantra, and it means that you can save time and money writing applications for Web-wide deployment. With the special features of Internet Explorer 8, like Web Slices and Accelerators, you can extend your presence and brand, and create more services opportunities for your businesses. And it can help you build trust in your business. Because almost everyone using the Internet is at least a little bit worried. About viruses and worms. About spying. About identity theft. That’s why unique features like InPrivate browsing and SmartScreen filter can help you convince your customers that they’re in good hands with your Microsoft-based browser solutions. Stability features like automatic crash recovery build credibility, too. Get a complete features overview with this video series. Find valuable information and links to key resources in the Internet Explorer 8 FAQ. Learn more about Microsoft’s commitment to interoperability. Ensure the compatibility of customer sites with the simple metatag option. Personalize your browser offerings with the add-ons available in the Internet Explorer 8 Gallery—and get the logos you need, too. No-charge support is now available in Online Technical Communities.

An Army database that contains personal information about nearly 1,600 soldiers may have been penetrated by unauthorized users, Army officials have announced.
Soldiers who registered with, or participated in, the Army-sponsored Operation Tribute to Freedom program during the past five years may be affected by the security breach, Army officials said March 10. The service is notifying those soldiers about the issue through e-mail messages and letters.
The information that may have been breached includes the service members’ names, e-mail messages, phone numbers, home addresses, awards received, ranks, gender, ethnicity, and dates the soldiers deployed and returned from their deployment, Army officials said.
Only information that was provided at the time of registration was potentially compromised, officials said. The Criminal Investigation Command is investigating how the password-protected, secure Web-based information was penetrated.
Operation Tribute to Freedom lets soldiers share their stories with the public. The program’s speakers service helps event coordinators find the soldiers for events and the service members speak about their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan.

as reported by

Doug Beizer is a staff writer for Federal Computer Week

What is STEP ?
STEP = Springboard Series Technical Experts Panel
I am one of 70 people world wide chosen as the original members of the program. Our volunteer job is to inform you with talks and presentations on  who deals closely with Windows 7 and Server 2008 r2. Last weekend i did a talk in Florida for the FACUG with over 140 user where we went over new features about Windows 7.

Stay turned as i post my schedule  for upcoming events I be talking at, We also be working on build events, where you can come and get help loading Windows 7 on you computer.

Here a great article from a friend on this important topic.

Online criminals can use a virus to take control of large numbers of computers at a time, and turn them into "zombies" that can work together as a powerful "botnet" to perform malicious tasks.

Botnets, which can include as many as 100,000 individual "zombie" computers, can distribute spam e-mail, spread viruses, attack other computers and servers, and commit other kinds of crime and fraud.

Botnets are highly valued by online criminals, and have become a serious problem on the Internet.

How to tell if your computer has been infected

A virus that makes your computer into a zombie might cause your computer to slow down, display mysterious messages, or work in an unexpected manner.

These viruses usually do not disable your computer, because zombie computers must be plugged in and connected to the Internet in order for the botnet to work.

You can get a free virus scan with the Windows Live OneCare safety scanner. If you want continuous protection, you should use antivirus software such as Windows Live OneCare, which is free for 90 days.

Read other ways to tell if a virus has infected your computer.

What to do if your computer is infected

If your computer shows symptoms of virus infection, first make sure that the software on your computer is up to date. Then run the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool. The Malicious Software Removal Tool checks computers running Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003 for infections by specific, prevalent malicious software and helps remove any infection found.

Read detailed information about how to help remove a virus.

5 ways to help keep your computer from becoming a zombie

1.

Never open an attachment in an e-mail, instant , or mobile message unless you know exactly what the attachment is, even if it’s from someone that you know. Attachments can contain e-mail viruses.

2.

Use an Internet firewall.

  Note: Windows XP with Service Pack 2 (SP2) has a firewall already built-in and active.

3.

Stay up to date. Visit Microsoft Update and turn on Automatic Updates.

Note: If you’ve installed the 2007 Microsoft Office System, Microsoft Office 2003 or Microsoft Office XP, Automatic Updates will also update your Office programs. If you have an earlier version of Microsoft Office, use Microsoft Office Update.

4.

Subscribe to industry standard antivirus software and antispyware software, and keep them current. Microsoft offers Windows Live OneCare, which is free for 90 days and Windows Defender. Windows Defender comes with Windows Vista. If you use Windows XP SP2, you can download Windows Defender for no charge.

5.

Use licensed software products. Botnets are often comprised mostly of computers that run illegally copied versions of operating system and productivity software. Unlicensed software can be more susceptible to viruses, and can even come with viruses already installed without your knowledge.

 

to see the orginal posted article go here

 

Well done Rob

 

Windows Vista was the first to introduce BitLocker, full-disk encryption. With server 2008 and Vista Service pack1, we were given the to encrypt other non-boot fixed drives in addition to the boot partition.   In Windows 7 (both the client and Server versions), you now the ability to protect removable storage devices, such as USB-based hard drives, flash devices, and other Microsoft is call this feature "BitLocker To Go".

BitLocker to GO is only available in the Enterprise and Ultimate versions of Windows 7, to create the protected storage. Once this is added to a storage device, that device can be used normally with any version of Windows XP , Vista, and Windows 7. So now you can protect external hard drive and flash drives.

 

Server 2008 and Vista working better together but until then here is some information for you

 

Implementing Network Access Protection in Windows Server 2008

This Snack describes the benefits of implementing Network Access Protection (NAP) in Windows Server 2008. It describes how to configure network and health policies for various types of clients. It identifies the options for configuring Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) enforcement for NAP and demonstrates the steps for testing a NAP implementation with DHCP enforcement.

 

Microsoft Virtualization

The Microsoft Virtualization solution consists of four virtualization technologies: server, application, presentation, and desktop. Together, these technologies provide you with a complete desktop-to-datacenter virtualization solution that can help you create a dynamic IT infrastructure. This free Learning Snack highlights various features and benefits of the four virtualization technologies. It also takes a closer look at server virtualization and how it is implemented and managed in the Windows Server 2008 operating system

 

Intro to Windows Server 2008 Virtualization

This Snack explains the new virtualization features in Windows Server 2008 and lists the system requirements. It also demonstrates the steps necessary to install Windows Server virtualization.

 

Green IT and Virtualization

Organizations are becoming increasingly aware of the environmental and business benefits of adopting a Green IT environment. This Learning Snack highlights how virtualization facilitates a Green IT environment. It describes the Hyper-V server role and the System Center Virtual Machine Manager (SCVMM) tool, which help create and support a virtualized infrastructure in Windows Server 2008.

Here a a few bite size modules on technology that are easy to watch and learn about.

Windows Vista Essentials

This Snack describes some of the innovative new features in Windows Vista, including a sidebar that provides information at a glance. It showcases the Windows Aero technology and demonstrates the improved file organization techniques. In addition, this Snack walks you through the various ways you can search for information on your computer or on the Internet.

Deploying Windows Vista

Microsoft provides a range of tools and utilities that can help organizations successfully deploy Windows Vista. This Learning Snack describes how to deploy Windows Vista across a network and demonstrates how to create Windows Vista installation images and deploy them on desktops on a network. It also provides guidelines and best practices for deploying Windows Vista in an organization.

Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack

The Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP) is a suite of products that can help organizations implement the Core Infrastructure Optimization (Core IO) model. This Learning Snack explains how the MDOP facilitates Infrastructure Optimization (IO). It also demonstrates procedures for recovering lost files and managing Group Policy objects (GPOs) by using products in the MDOP suite.

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