On the heels of the Windows 7 Release Candidate public download going live, Microsoft has released a hotfix designed to fix the RC bits. The Redmond company has acknowledged the existence of an issue where incorrect access control lists (ACLs) are associated with the Windows 7 root. As a direct consequence of this bug, Windows 7 RC users will find that some applications fail to perform under normal parameters, and that the operating system fails to deliver on simple tasks. According to Microsoft, only the Ultimate SKU of the English version of 32-bit Windows 7 is affected by the problem.
“The folder that is created as the root folder of the system drive (%SystemDrive%) is missing entries in its security descriptor. One effect of this problem is that standard users such as non-administrators cannot perform all operations to subfolders that are created directly under the root. Therefore, applications that reference folders under the root may not install successfully or may not uninstall successfully. Additionally, operations or applications that reference these folders may fail,” Microsoft explained. Read More»
Posted in Windows 7 | No Comments »
December 17, 2008 by
Jason There’s no easy way to secure IE against similar flaws that will inevitably be discovered and used by hackers to their advantage in the future. For this reason and in response to pleas for help by many Pctipsbox readers here’s my recommendation on the best way to surf the Web more securely:
Step 1: Switch to Firefox, Opera, Chrome, or another contender and configure it to be your default browser. Use IE only to visit sites that require Microsoft-specific technology probably because they rely on ActiveX to function. (For example, you need to use IE to download patches at the Windows Update site.) I recommend Firefox because of the numerous add-ons available for that browser, some of which I describe in Steps 2 and 3.
Step 2: Install the Firefox add-ons known as User Agent Switcher (see UAS’s download page) and IE Tab (download page).
User Agent Switcher lets you change your browser’s identity. If a Web site demands the use of IE but actually works fine with other browsers, you can change the name of the operating system and browser the site thinks you’re using. Many “IE only” sites render perfectly well in Firefox and other browsers. Read More»
Posted in Firefox, Internet | No Comments »
Windows Vista is good for security, but sometimes it can go too far making it hard to run programs that you know are safe and not giving a way to run them in the future. The way it treats some startup programs is a classic example, frequently displaying an annoying ‘Windows has blocked some startup programs’ error message.
I’ve finally found a way to unblock startup programs in Vista and to remove the ‘Windows has blocked some startup programs’ message. To do this follow the steps below:
Read More»
Posted in Windows Vista | 2 Comments »
Although Microsoft has hammered away at Windows XP SP3 in order to provide an experience as seamless as possible for end users when deploying the service pack, failed installation scenarios are still a valid possibility. In the eventuality of a failed installation of XP SP3 RTM, there are some troubleshooting steps end users can take before running to Microsoft Support for help. The troubleshooting methods involve nothing more than basic actions on the part of the end user and are designed to resolve an unsuccessful installation process while, at the same, time ignoring the error message.
First of all, Microsoft advises all end users to turn to Windows Update for the primary source of the gold bits of XP SP3. “Sometimes an installation is unsuccessful because a previous operation was not completed. By restarting the computer, you close any pending computer functions and restart the process. Wait until the computer finishes the restart process, and then log on to your account. Visit Windows Update to reselect and install Windows XP SP3. Click Express Install (Recommended),” Microsoft stated. Read More»
Posted in Windows XP | No Comments »
Loading ...
