[Viral Video Chart] Music using ONLY sounds from Windows XP and 98!

In the realm of viral video, one of the main audiences you can play to remains to be the geeky, techie fan boy group who like seeing pretty amazing tricks done with the most mundane aspects of tech life - like the sounds that MS Windows makes (unless you're one of those custom theme kind of guys).

Thus it's no wonder this particular bit climbed up the Viral Video Chart pretty quickly...


#1 - Music using ONLY sounds from Windows XP and 98!

[Ubuntu] Wubi, the Windows Linux Installer

During one of my StumbleUpon sessions, I came across Wubi, the self-proclaimed "Easiest Way to Linux" for Windows users. That was a pretty interesting tag line and given my relative laziness to go about trying to get a copy of the latest Ubuntu distribution (I don't have a CD burner), setting up a partition and all that, I have yet to get onto the Ubuntu bandwagon. This seemed like a promising way to do it.

So I downloaded the decently-sized installer (around 9Mb), ran it, made my selections about the amount of space I wanted to give Ubuntu and other options, rebooted my computer a few times (as instructed) and presto, I can now dual-boot for Ubuntu (7.04 Feisty Fawn)! At least now I can finally get around to writing first-hand experiences about Ubuntu as opposed to just general news about it.

My only challenge so far is getting the screen resolution right - I'm using a wide screen LCD monitor and it never looks quite right no matter how much I play with the settings. More on this in the weeks to come.

So if you're (1) a sad Windows user like me and (2) interested in trying out Ubuntu, this might be the best way for you to do it. It worked pretty easily for me so far and Windows XP still seems to be running decently thus far.

[Security] Microsoft sneaks in updates while no one's looking

Before, I called Microsoft's Windows Genuine Advantage Tool as spyware. Now, another suspicious activity regarding Windows XP and Vista has been reported.

InformationWeek reports on Microsoft secretly updating Windows Update, the tool used by Windows for checking and installing patches to the operating system, even if the Windows Update is turned off by the user. In short, the operating system is being updated without the user's permission.

Microsoft's stance was understandable but quite risky. As Bruce Schneier opines:

Note that Microsoft can do this; that's just stupid company stuff. But what's to stop anyone else from using Microsoft's stealth remote install capability to put anything onto anyone's computer? How long before some smart hacker exploits this, and then writes a program that will allow all the dumb hackers to do it?

When you build a capability like this into your system, you decrease your overall security.

For Windows users: have you turned off Automatic Updates? Why?