In Windows 7, we’ve improved how people can play and manage their digital media content (like music and videos) through Windows Media Player. Not only did we give Windows Media Player a face lift, it also takes advantage of key Windows 7 features such as the new Windows Taskbar, HomeGroup and Jump Lists. With all the new stuff packed into Windows Media Player, I thought it might be a good idea to highlight some tips for using Windows Media Player.

Starting today, I plan to do a series of 6 blog posts over the course of the next 3 weeks, each dedicated to a single tip for Windows Media Player.

Today’s Tip: Keyboard Shortcuts!

Below is a list of keyboard shortcuts you can use for a variety of activities in Windows Media Player ranging from switching to Player Mode to turning on or off shuffle to shifting between play speeds. If you’re a keyboard fiend – this list is a must-have.

Stay tuned – I’ll have another tip for Windows Media Player coming up soon!

NOTE: These tips are for Windows Media Player in Windows 7 only.

Neowin has a nice scoop on the next generation of Antivirus and Antispyware technology that Microsoft plans to make available to Windows XP, Vista and 7 customers in the near future for free. An anonymous tipster provided the folks at Neowin with some screenshots of 'Microsoft Morro' (which is most likely the code name), showing what looks like a hybrid version of Microsoft's current AntiSpyware utility 'Windows Defender'.

Microsoft 'Morro'

Read the entire article here

Back in 2005 Microsoft launched its Windows Live OneCare security service (once codenamed 'A1') which included a variety of utilities such as Antivirus, AntiSpyware (Windows Defender), Backup capabilities and PC maintenance tools such as Defragger and Disk Cleanup. Version 1 was released in May 2006, version 1.5 October 2006, version 2 November 2007 and the latest version 2.5 in July of 2008. Most of these technologies have since been consumed by the Windows operating system or integrated into the Windows Live Essentials suite. Microsoft announced that Windows Live OneCare would be discontinued in June 2009.

(reposted from our blog of May 26th)

After we announced Windows XP Mode, I sat down again with Jeremy Chapman at the Microsoft Management Summit in Las Vegas a few weeks ago to find out what he thought about Windows XP Mode as a solution for solving application compatibility issues.

Stephen Rose: Hi Jeremy, seems like I’m interviewing you a lot lately. So we’re at MMS here in Las Vegas and we just announced the Windows 7 Release Candidate and Windows XP Mode as a solution for allowing applications to run within a Windows XP session on a Windows 7 machine. What do you think about this technology? Will this solve everything for people having problems moving off Windows XP or Internet Explorer 6?

Jeremy Chapman: Windows XP Mode adds the seamless virtual desktop integration like we saw in Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization (MEDV), so you can see applications within the virtual operating system in the start menu:

And you can view applications within the physical operating system’s desktop without showing the entire virtual machine desktop.

It definitely makes the use of Virtual PC technologies much easier for the average user. As we’ve seen for the last decade or so, you can run legacy applications under the context of the legacy operating system. Initially that sounds like a good thing, as Virtual PC always has.

Stephen Rose: Explain what you mean by initially.

Jeremy Chapman: To the undiscerning eye, this looks like an easy fix and for many in sales and marketing roles, it might sound like a silver bullet for application compatibility. Despite the more intuitive user experience, the IT management issues with that are essentially the same as they have been for the last ten years or so with Virtual PC.

Stephen Rose: What do you see as the challenges with this technology then?

Jeremy Chapman: First, there are two operating systems to manage per userSecond, while we can automate and customize full operating system provisioning, it isn’t so easy to custom provision the virtual machine according to user roles and needs. Third, by default the virtual PC user account is a local administrator.

Stephen Rose: Ok, so is there anything that helps IT pros with any of these areas?

Jeremy Chapman: Definitely, MED-V (Microsoft Enterprise Desktop Virtualization) adds the control so you can sandbox the virtual PC environment from the physical environment. It also provides the administrative tools to provision within the virtual environment. There is granular control over how the two operating systems behave with one another and you can even pre-define which websites or web-based Line-of-Business applications need to be automatically invoked in the virtual machine’s web browser (Internet Explorer 6 by default). MED-V is also self adjusting as the virtual PC memory allocation based on available RAM on host, so that the virtual PC does not take significant resources from the user. Features like TrimTransfer update a master Virtual PC image, and MED-V will automatically distribute and apply the changes to all endpoints. Finally, MED-V will work on both Windows 7 and Windows Vista, and will not require processor-based virtualization support

Stephen Rose: That definitely sounds like the more manageable solution, but is running Virtual PC and MED-V the only recommended solution for Windows 7?

Jeremy Chapman: From the application compatibility perspective, the best thing to do is to get applications that run natively without any virtualization aids, recoding, compatibility fixes or compatibility modes needed. If you own the code and can recode the application, then do that. If you can’t recode a line-of-business application or are not dependent on support for a third party application, you can try compatibility fixes – or “shims” – to remediate the application. Finally, when all these options aren’t possible, then look into legacy operating system virtualization. If you have exhausted all other options for application remediation and intend on using Windows XP Mode, then I’d recommend following all the best practices in the Windows XP Security Compliance Management Toolkit to secure the virtual environment and manage configuration with Group Policy and desired configuration management in System Center Configuration Manager.

Stephen Rose: So who should be using Windows XP Mode then?

Jeremy Chapman: For individual users or smaller organizations where desktops are not managed, Windows XP Mode is a relatively easy solution to get working. You’ll need to find installation media for those older applications and manually install them, but it can get them working until you port everything over to the physical operating system.

Stephen Rose: So for a transitional period to the new OS, these legacy client virtualization tools can help people run their incompatible legacy applications. Is there anything else to remember with Virtual Windows XP?

Jeremy Chapman: We haven’t talked about hardware yet. So hardware needs to have hardware virtualization – Intel VT or AMDV – and have it enabled in the BIOS. Most business grade hardware produced in the last 2-3 years has that, but netbooks and older PCs often do not meet this requirement. The virtual machine also uses memory, so you’ll probably want to use PCs with 2 GB or more RAM.

Stephen Rose: Good advice. So where can people find more information on Windows XP Mode?

Jeremy Chapman: Check out Scott Woodgate’s blog post on the Windows Team Blog and Scott’s Q&A on PressPass. There is also a Virtual PC Tips and Tricks FAQ on Springboard located here

Stephen Rose: Thanks again for your time Jeremy.

Messenger81What a coincidence? Back in May I wrote a Clubhouse story about my favorite application I cannot do without in response to a Clubhouse suggestion by Technogran. I thought, why not just republish it? Well here it is again, take 2, my 'Messenger 10th Anniversary Story' with some screenshots.

This is a difficult question simply because of the richness of the Windows Ecosystem. I run a variety of applications on Windows that I use almost everyday, whether its Microsoft Word, Microsoft PhotoDraw 2000 V2, Internet Explorer 8, Microsoft Outlook 2007 and Windows Media Player 11. But when I try to think about it from a fundamental point of view, some of those applications I mentioned are not detrimental, because they are available on the majority of PC's that run Windows. So, what is that one app I just cannot do without? The app that triggers some weird paranoia, anxiety moments if I don't have access to it on a daily basis? I thought about this carefully and looked at my usage patterns and management of the application itself. So, I would conclude that Windows Live Messenger is my must have, can't do without, can't cope without it application of them all.

Why is it so important to me?

Windows Live Messenger to me is my line of communication, just like my cellular phone, I am able to stay in touch with many friends and family. Windows Live Messenger goes beyond the traditional PC, just the other night, I saw my brother come online and I we started a chat session. I broke the ice, saying, 'you are up rather late tonight', he replied, 'I'm at work'. I asked 'where', he said at a 'Cell' tower. 'So late?' and 'how are you getting Net access?' I asked. He said from his Blackberry phone (he works for a Cellular carrier, so he is on stand by 24 hours). This particular scenario for me shows how powerful and connected Windows Live Messenger is, not necessarily the connection which could be EDGE or 3G, but the anytime, anywhere, almost any device experience Windows Live Messenger provides. In addition to being a connected platform, I have formed some life long friendships through Messenger over the years, to the point I have gotten the chance to meet persons face to face I got to know through Windows Live Messenger. One of the things I have discovered that others have agreed with is the ice breaker experience it provides. Being able to get to know persons over a long period of time from around the world establishes a trust and comfort when that opportunity arrives to actually meet in person. I remember traveling abroad and my only form of contact was through Windows Live Messenger being able to utilize features such as voice and video allowed me see my family and them to see me - all with the help of a free Wi-Fi connection.

How long have I been using Windows Live Messenger?

My first experience with Instant Messaging was MSN Messenger 2.2 that came with Windows Millennium Edition back in 2000. I was a bit scared at first, since it was a new experience for me, but I adjusted quite fast to this new way of communication when I discovered a few friends from high school were also using the service. I have upgraded to every version ever since and have enjoyed the fast pace level of innovation the platform has delivered with each release along with the opportunities to know so many wonderful persons and cultures from around the world. Here is a list of some the countries I have gotten to know people from:

Australia, Trinidad & Tobago, St. Kitts and Nevis, USA, France, Germany, Pakistan, United Kingdom, China, India (and many others I am sure I can't remember). Its quite amazing when you can say, ' I know a person or two from these fascinating lands and one of the engaging experiences that makes Windows Live Messenger such a worthy and powerful application/service for me.

Just the other night I was going through some old folders on my hard disk and I discovered some old beta screenshots of Windows Live Messenger 8.0 beta I took when it just came out. This was the first version of Messenger to embrace the 'Live' moniker.

Windows Live Messenger 8.1 - 2006

Windows Live Messenger 8.0 beta - December 2005

Along with that, here are some older versions of Messenger from yester-years.

Here is a screenshot of MSN Messenger 7.5 from August 2005

MSN Messenger 7.0 showing integration MSN Spaces - December 2004 click to enlarge

MSN Messenger Service 2.2 came bundled with Windows ME - circa 2000

I am sure I have some other screenshots of Messenger versions 4, but I will probably have to look on some old back-up disk. Here are some concepts of Messenger that I also found, its amazing the stuff I have stored on my hard disk:

Concepts that were being thought up for future versions of Messenger - circa 2004 click to enlarge

Here is one of those random but interesting conversations I have had over the years.

Yahoo! Messenger

Every now and then I try out Yahoo! Messenger, Windows Live Messenger's main rival in the IM field, but I have discovered quickly that I know limited group of contacts who use the service. In fact, the majority of my 313 Windows Live Messenger contacts are mostly Hotmail, MSN or Live members. With the release of Windows Live Messenger 8.1, Microsoft in partnership with Yahoo! integrated support for Live Messenger users to communicate with Yahoo! Messenger users on their respective services. Apart from being able to chat with Yahoo! contacts, Windows Live Messenger delivers some unique enhancements that makes it the best platform for instant Messaging, features such as photo-sharing, personalized theming capabilities, integration with Windows Live products and services, ability to sign into multiple locations and devices make it best choice for me and the must have application on all the computers I use. Messenger has seen some evolutionary changes over the years, some that focus on integration with the Windows OS, some with services and others that were more about introducing new ways of interacting your friends. The Messenger Teams rapid pace of development and innovation is just exceptional and I would like give them a big thank you for all the great releases and I am looking forward to many more!

Resources

Instant and Social Communication with Windows Live Messenger 9