Folks have been asking about anti-virus solutions that work with the Windows 7 Beta. In anticipation of this, Microsoft has been actively working with security partners to help them get their applications ready for Windows 7. Three security vendors have taken the build we released to developers at the PDC in October and have developed solutions available today that work with the Windows 7 Beta. The following anti-virus solutions are available via Windows 7 Security Provider page:

• Symantec offers the Norton 360 3.0 Beta which works on the Windows 7 Beta
• AVG offers AVG Internet Security and AVG Anti-Virus that works with the Windows 7 Beta
• Kaspersky is offering a technical preview of Kaspersky Anti-Virus for Windows 7.

It is great to see that these partners were able to have their solutions working so early in our development process. We will add additional partners to the Windows 7 Security Provider page when they make Windows 7 versions publicly available.

SAN FRANCISCO -(Dow Jones)- Most personal-computer makers aren't expecting Microsoft Corp.'s (MSFT) new Windows 7 operating system software to provide much of a sales spark when it debuts later this year, an influential investment analyst says.

Barclays Capital analyst Ben Reitzes, during a conference call Monday, said none of the computer makers with which he met at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas cited Windows 7 as a potential sales driver, even though computer makers that adopt the software can add features such as touch screens or prolonged battery life.

PC makers aren't holding out much hope because they "feel burned by Vista," the operating system software that Microsoft started selling in early 2007, Reitzes said. Operating systems command and control key computer functions. The launch of Vista was marred by a largely negative critical reception. Although many critics say the operating system has improved, many corporate buyers have held off on installing the system, preferring to remain with its predecessor, Windows XP.

The sentiment around Windows 7, a test version of which was released last week, is troubling because the new software was expected to provide one of two major

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Redmond, WA (AHN) - Microsoft Corp. has reset the number of downloads to its Windows 7 Beta from 2.5 million to unlimited to accommodate more PC users who want to try the new operating system.

The software giant made the move Saturday in response to an overwhelming demand for the trial version of Windows 7 that overwhelmed its servers. The company's website crashed on Friday when it rolled out Widows 7 Beta after it was swamped by millions of visitors seeking to download the program.

"We didn't quite anticipate the demand that we saw," Laurence Painell, product manager at Microsoft, told BBC News. Painell said they were only expecting IT and corporate people to download it.

The new operating system apparently is more attractive than its predecessor, the Windows Vista, as the new version requires lesser PC resources.

The unlimited download of Windows 7 Beta will last for two weeks, according to Microsoft.

AHN Staff

Redmond, WA (AHN) - Microsoft Corp. has reset the number of downloads to its Windows 7 Beta from 2.5 million to unlimited to accommodate more PC users who want to try the new operating system.

The software giant made the move Saturday in response to an overwhelming demand for the trial version of Windows 7 that overwhelmed its servers. The company's website crashed on Friday when it rolled out Widows 7 Beta after it was swamped by millions of visitors seeking to download the program.

"We didn't quite anticipate the demand that we saw," Laurence Painell, product manager at Microsoft, told BBC News. Painell said they were only expecting IT and corporate people to download it.

The new operating system apparently is more attractive than its predecessor, the Windows Vista, as the new version requires lesser PC resources.

The unlimited download of Windows 7 Beta will

...

All weekend as Windows 7 keys were hard to come by, people tried accessing Microsoft’s TechNet site to access their unique activation keys. Originally with a 2.5m download limit, people expected keys to go fast, but with that limit removed, it appears that the TechNet issued keys are generic nd I’ve used one to activate Windows 7 beta 1, so I know it works!


Activation keys used to “activateoftware programs are meant to be unique, thus ensuring your key is not claimed or used by anyone else.

It was expected that with a download limit of 2.5 million copies of the Windows 7 beta, something that has now been reversed (until January 24), there was unsurprisingly an expectation that there would only be 2.5 million activation keys, too.

Thus a scramble emerged for users to try and secure their keys before all were gone. Sites all over the Internet (including iTWire) were showing users how to get Windows 7 keys from the Microsoft TechNet site using a simple method that required refreshing the page a lot.

However it now appears that there are 10 different keys which can be used...

As anticipated, Microsoft Corp. CEO Steve Ballmer last week announced the first public beta version of Windows 7 at the International CES trade show.

The beta was scheduled to become available for download on Friday afternoon, although Microsoft at least temporarily postponed the release in order to add more "infrastructure support" to its Web site. That was driven by heavy traffic that overloaded the site hours before the beta code was even due to be posted. Microsoft said the beta will be capped after the first 2.5 million downloads. But users who aren't able to obtain an activation key can still download the code and run it on a 30-day trial basis.


The beta, which Microsoft called "feature complete," requires a PC with a 1-GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of available hard-disk space and support for DX9 graphics with 128MB of memory. The company noted that the recommended configuration may change for the final release.

In an interview at CES, Bill Veghte, Microsoft's senior vice president in charge of Windows, said the new operating system should be less of a resource hog than its predecessor, Vista.

"I don't want to...