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Windows XP SP2 Beta Reviewed
worm eater writes "Ars Technica has a characteristically thorough review of Windows XP Service Pack 2 Beta, with plenty of screen shots. In a nutshell, it's all about security fixes, including a seriously beefed up firewall. The final release is expected this summer." The review concludes: "Overall, Microsoft has made a step in the right direction with this service pack. The increased focus on security will be good not only for the average user who does not spend much time thinking about security her system, but also for 'power users' and those who work supporting end users."
popup blocker in IE. Finally!
:D
It ASKS YOU before installing random crap in the background and at least notes that "Some software could be harmful"
Good. Step in the right direction.
Is this available for download now? where?
the "never install software from..." button.
Microsoft must be trying to bankrupt Gator / GAIN / THAT COMPANY THAT MAKES a product remarkably simliar to SPYWARE. They'll be filing for name changes once a week now.
There are some people that if they don't know, you can't tell 'em.
I've been running 2003 as a desktop for a couple of weeks now. Haven't found one thing that ran on XP that couldn't be made to run on 2003. Everything is locked down until expressly opened. All the eye candy and useless dross from XP is turned off or MIA. Seems much peppier as a desktop and webserver than XP or even 2000. IIS 6 almost (almost) makes you forget all the crap MS released in the past.
Found this article from Microsoft, might be of interest to some, "This document contains preliminary information about the security technologies in Windows XP SP2."
Windows XP Service Pack 2: A Developer's View
Again, apples and oranges. Decimal updates of OS X are more than just security updates. You can't compare them to a windows service pack. And yes, Apple does release free security updates too.
So it's large because most of the binaries have been recompiled, even ones where the code hasn't changed.
However, the main thing that drew my attention was this, which Ars Technica only briefly mentioned:(lots more detail on the MSDN link)
No, the CSS isn't fixed, so it's still 1998 for 95% of the web browsing world.
It's pretty perverse that IE6 for Windows in 2004 doesn't even support CSS as well as IE for the Mac did in 2000. They can't even compete with their own abandonware!
It let me know a pop-up blocker was on the way (I was SO going to get Earthlink :), it let me know Outlook will be better in keeping viruses in check, and finally a firewall that will help keep viruses and spyware from running on my computer.
Cause you had no browsers with native pop-up blocking,,No virus-free mail clients,, and no free anti-virus for XP before now
please...
SAILING MISHAP
Same rendering engine (i.e. dll) so no, no PNG goodness, no CSS2 that doesn't make you want to beat your head in, and no fix to 2 pixel differences in margin rendering and table artifacts from hell.
Well, another screenshot shows a dialogue with the system asking you if you want to allow UT2k3 to connect to/receive conenctions from the net.
I'd assume, therefore, that it works like any other software firewall I've used - the default is to ask the user on first connection attempt, and subsequently, until they tell you to always do X.
It's official. Most of you are morons.
Not really... rather depends how the spyware runs. If it runs from inside Outlook itself, and Outlook is permitted to access the internet, then you're screwed. Likewise for any other program which is extensible.
Karma: It's all a bunch of tree-huggin' hippy crap!
My firewall blocks spyware and trojans. Traditional (think corporate) firewalls may not block spyware and trojans, but recent years have seen the development of the "personal" firewall. Every time any executable tries to access the network or the internet, my personal firewall pops-up a box telling me the details of the connection, and asking if I want to allow it. The same is true of incoming connections...and listening sockets, for that matter. A hash check upon execution of an allowed executable prevents a trojan or virus from altering a file unnoticed. No network traffic on my pc goes unmonitored.
The relatively recent windows worm that exploited RPC was blocked by my personal firewall because it needed me to explicitly allow the connection to occur. Even if I had become infected, I would have then needed to allow the worm to connect to other computers if I was to be contagious.
I use the free(!) Sygate Personal Firewall, and I highly reccomend it.
--this is my real sig.
@ASP.NET's parent-teacher meeting: "Little Johnny.NET is very bright, but he doesn't play well with others."
Outlook as never automatically opened attachments as a default mode of operation. Heck, it's never even had "Open Attachment" as the default option when users try to open an attachment. Apart from software bugs, it's always required the user to a) deliberately try to open the attachment and b) manually change the default action from "Save" to "Open".
Did you troll on purpose or what?
Windows XP is based on the NT kernel and is a direct descendant of Windows 2000, itself a descendant of NT 4/3.
All of the above mentioned operating systems are true securable multiuser systems.
Microsoft hides and softens the details in Windows XP Home edition, but that changes nothing. On an XP pro workstation, create users and assign them permissions and group membership as you desire, including full DACL support on both the registry and filesystem.
tl;dr: think & know before you open your mouth.
Natural != (nontoxic || beneficial)
"After all, if their operating systems are actually just as or more secure, proponents of alternative operating systems can no longer use that as ammunition, can they?"
If by some folks you mean 5%, granted. Most people are just cynical from the years of constant promises and security FUD from MS, the real reason they're happy to see them take a shot in the chones evry once in a while. But maybe this linux user's just torqued from spending a quarter his xmas vacation helping XP users clean the redirectors and spyware from their machines.
Of course, someone will come up with another set of keys, and it will start all over again. Just don't plan to install sp2 for some time, if you haven't paid for the software.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"