Category Archives: Windows

Microsoft, Patches and updates, Windows 8.x

Windows 8.1 Update 1 coming in March 2014

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According to some reports, Microsoft is planning to release the next update for Windows 8 in March this year. It’s being referred to as “Update 1 for Windows 8.1”, which breaks new ground in Microsoft’s ongoing effort to confuse us with version nomenclature. If Windows 8.1 was the equivalent of Windows 8 Service Pack 1, then what’s this new thing? What makes it an ‘update’, while the previous release got its own version number? Both are free updates, so the only real difference is that Windows 8.1 is what you get when you try to buy Windows 8.

Version issues aside, speculation about the changes in Update 1 for Windows 8.1 is rampant. Of note is the rumour that Microsoft will finally relent and bring back the Start menu. The latest is that Microsoft may make it easier to find the controls for shutting down your computer, previously – and inexplicably – hidden in Windows 8 and 8.1. While welcome, it’s difficult to characterize this as progress when the feature was in Windows for decades previously. One step back, one step forward… eventually.

Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows 8.x

Windows news roundup

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Anyone buying a new HP PC these days will be steered towards Windows 7 instead of the more current – but flawed – Windows 8. It’s not entirely clear what prompted HP to stop selling their computers with Windows 8, but the lack of user acceptance of that O/S clearly played a part. It’s also likely that HP’s support costs have increased markedly for PCs shipped with Windows 8, with common questions being “where the &@*#%$ is my Start Menu” and “how do I find anything in this crappy operating system”.

Meanwhile, it looks like Microsoft might try to turn the tide of Windows 8’s failure by actually bringing back the Start menu in the upcoming Update 1 for Windows 8.1. You may recall that Windows 8.1 saw the return of the Start button, which for some reason was just a button with no useful menu attached, making it basically useless. Will this make a difference to Windows 8.x sales? Maybe. But I’m holding out for Update 2, where – and this is pure speculation, mind you – Microsoft may provide a method for disabling the “Metro” interface altogether.

And the rumours about Windows 9, the next major version of the O/S, are starting to make the rounds. At this point the pattern is clear: every other version of Windows is to be avoided. Perhaps Microsoft has realized this themselves, because Windows 9 is already under development. Code-named “Threshold”, it will supposedly meld the good bits from Windows 7 and 8. Sounds promising. And if the pattern holds, it might actually be a good O/S.

Adobe, Chrome, Flash, Internet Explorer, Patches and updates, Security, Windows

Flash version 12 released

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Yesterday, Adobe announced new 12-series versions of the Flash player for various environments and browsers:

  • Internet Explorer 10 on Windows 8 (via Windows Update): 12.0.0.38
  • Internet Explorer 11 on Windows 8.1: 12.0.0.38
  • Other versions of Internet Explorer: 12.0.0.38
  • Google Chrome (self-updating): 12.0.0.41
  • All other browsers on Windows: 12.0.0.43

You can get the new version from the main Flash download site.

Flash 12 includes some new features and enhancements, as well as fixes for several security vulnerabilities.

Microsoft, Patches and updates, Security, Windows

Patch Tuesday for January 2014

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It’s a light month for Microsoft patches, with only four bulletins, none of which are flagged as Critical. The updates fix vulnerabilities in Office, Windows, and Server software.

Patches for the Windows XP NDProxy vulnerability and Office on Vista are among those made available today.

A post on the ISC Diary blog over at SANS has a useful overview of the vulnerabilities associated with this month’s patches.

As usual, the MSRC blog has its own spin on this month’s patches.

Windows XP

No more updates for Security Essentials on Windows XP after April 8

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Update 2014Jan16: Microsoft must have decided it could use some positive press, because they just decided to extend Security Essentials support on Windows XP until July 14, 2015.

Microsoft has confirmed that they will stop issuing updates for its anti-malware software Security Essentials on Windows XP systems after support for Windows XP expires on April 8, 2014.

While I’m sure this comes as no surprise to anyone, since Microsoft will no longer be issuing any patches for Windows XP past April 8, it’s an important consideration for anyone who plans to run Windows XP after that date. Anyone doing so should also stop using Security Essentials and install anti-malware software that will continue to receive updates.

Free alternatives to Security Essentials

Ars Technica has more.

Patches and updates, Windows XP

Is your Windows XP computer booting slowly?

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Windows XP computers with autoupdate enabled are taking longer and longer to boot. Microsoft has discovered a flaw in Windows Update that is slowing down the update process. As the list of available patches for Windows XP has grown over the years, the delays have increased exponentially. Microsoft tried to fix this flaw with recent updates to little effect. Ars Technica has more.

Microsoft, Security, Windows XP

Windows XP NDProxy vulnerability remains unpatched

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A serious vulnerability affecting Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 was recently discovered. Microsoft issued advisory 2914486 to warn users about the vulnerability and recommend workarounds, but so far has not released a patch.

This vulnerability is being actively exploited, through the use of a specially-crafted PDF file. Opening such a file on a computer running Windows XP can result in an attacker gaining access to the computer.

The single workaround suggested in advisory 2914486 has some undesirable side-effects, including disabling VPN. But it may be better than the alternative, especially for users who frequently receive and open PDF files on Windows XP computers.

The usual advice applies: exercise extreme caution when browsing the web, clicking links in email, opening email attachments and opening files from unknown sources. When in doubt, don’t do it.

A post on the SANS ISC Diary blog has more, including a warning that these types of vulnerabilities may become much more common after Microsoft stops supporting Windows XP in April 2014. SANS has even coined a term for this event: Winmageddon.

Internet Explorer, Microsoft, Patches and updates, Security, Windows

Patch Tuesday for December 2013

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Yesterday being the second Tuesday in December, another batch of updates was made available by Microsoft. This month there are eleven updates, affecting Windows, Internet Explorer, GDI+ and various server software. Five of the updates are flagged as Critical.

The official Security Bulletin Summary has all the technical details. As usual, there’s a somewhat less technical explanation of this month’s updates over at the MSRC blog. The MSRC post is worth reading, if only for the explanation of the difference between a security advisory and a security bulletin. The short version is that a bulletin is always associated with an update, whereas an advisory usually isn’t.

Microsoft, Windows 8.x

Windows 7 sales outpacing Windows 8

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People are still staying away from Windows 8, according to the latest sales figures. When compared with historical Windows 7 sales, Windows 8 is selling extremely poorly.

To make matters worse for Microsoft, Windows 7’s current growth rate exceeds that of Windows 8. In other words, Windows 7 sales are increasing faster than Windows 8’s. That problem may actually get worse before it gets better – if it ever does get better – as we move closer to the end of support for Windows XP on April 8, 2014. Standard advice to anyone upgrading from Windows XP is to go with Windows 7: a solid operating system that will continue to receive support until 2020.

Microsoft is obviously aware that Windows 8 is starting to look like Windows Vista or Windows Me: versions of Windows heavily criticized and properly avoided where possible. And as you might expect, they are starting to look at backtracking on some of the most-despised features of Windows 8. Windows 8.1 brought back the Start button, but without the Start menu, that move was mostly pointless. But the next version of Windows may bring back the Start menu.