Free Republic

Please pardon the vanity ... just wanted to ask a question for a person who got an iPod Nano for Christmas. She can't use her iPod with her iTunes since (apparently) the newer iPods need to use SP3 (XP is her OS). And she can't update Windows to SP3 for the following reason: she bought the computer from a local PC discount store, which has long since gone out of business, and about 3-6 months ago started getting a message that her Windows is not legit (pop-up in the lower-right corner of the screen). She said Microsoft wants $149.99 to...

On Tuesday, April 12, Microsoft will turn off the blocking feature that has made it possible for some enterprises to block Windows XP Service Pack 2 downloads by employees who use Automatic Update. That means in companies that used the blocking tool, SP2 will be downloaded automatically to desktop computers that use Windows' Automatic Update feature. In its April 4 report on business adoption of Windows XP SP2, AssetMetrix warned that a surge of SP2 downloads on April 12 could stress IT help desks and cause "productivity brownouts" among employees. But a Microsoft spokesman downplayed that scenario, saying fewer than...

BEIJING, April 5 (Xinhuanet) -- Less than 20% of North American companies have adopted Windows XP Service Pack 2, a new survey showed. A survey of 251 North American companies has found that less than a quarter have installed Windows XP Service Pack 2. The results of the survey, by Canadian PC inventory and asset analysis company AssetMetrix, have been released a week before Microsoft makes such downloads automatic on PCs which have been configured for auto updating. "To date, more companies are tending to hold back on SP2 than accept it as a standard," writes Steve O'Halloran, managing...

Microsoft downplayed the significance of a reported flaw in its latest update to Windows XP. Responding to a Russian security company's claim that it found a way to beat a protective element of Microsoft's Windows XP Service Pack 2, the software giant on Tuesday said it does not believe the issue represents a vulnerability. In fact, the company said the technology highlighted by Moscow-based Positive Technologies was never meant to be "foolproof" and added that the reported flaw does not, by itself, put consumers at risk.

After three months, the most popular question is still whether or not users should go ahead and install XP2. I'm not going to tell you that all is right with SP2 and that you won't experience some problems. What I will say is that as more users install SP2 the percentage of users that are experiencing problems seems to be dropping. What I said when SP2 first appeared is still true; if your system is functioning to your satisfaction and you have top quality, current firewall and anti-virus programs installed, there really isn't a compelling reason to make the jump...

Installed SP2, I cannot access start menu, cannot even run a disc defrag. Computer is running fine, otherwise. I tried uninstall on SP2, still had the problem. Tried to run the XP disc for repair, it tells Me that the OS is more advanced. Do I need to wipe the whole thing clean, and start over?

With Microsoft's acquisition of anti-spyware maker Giant Software, the company seems well-poised to enter the anti-spyware and anti-virus marketplace. At the very least, in combination with its well-publicized secure computing initiative, and the security upgrades in Windows XP Service Pack 2, Microsoft appears to be taking security more seriously ... Or, the company may simply be using its new anti-spyware technology as a ruse for rooting out and eventually destroying unlicensed copies of its operating system. Early last month Microsoft announced that it would permit downloads of a beta version of its anti-spyware software from its website. However, users attempting...

My company is having a major problem with Peoplesoft and SP2 conpatability. Has anyone else had this problem? And if so, how did you work around it? Please help.

Windows has a well-deserved reputation as a large operating system. A standard installation of Windows XP (with nothing else installed) can easily occupy something in excess of 1.5 Gbytes of disk space. In part, that's because Windows is a general-purpose operating system. As such, it's a kind of kitchen sink software, with all manner of tools, capabilities, and functions thrown into the mix. That trend started almost a decade ago when Microsoft built HTML rendering functions into Windows: What had previously been part of a separate application--a stand-alone browser--was now inside the operating system and available to any application or...

After downloading the XP SP2 update I have experienced the following problem: When accessing the Drudgereport home page I do not see any images/graphics. I haven't experienced this problem on any other web pages. Everything else seems to work okay I checked the security settings and they appear correct.

Pre-patch your XP Setup CD once; never have to install SP2 again. Fred Langa walks you through a 16-step process. Our recent discussions about Windows XP's SP2 show that the huge patch is working fine for most users; and that with caution (make a full backup or image beforehand; read and follow all of Microsoft's pre-SP2 installation tips), even potentially troublesome installations can be handled smoothly. But not swiftly: The update process can take a considerable chunk of your workday, even if you don't count the download time or install from the free SP2 CD. Twenty to 40 minutes seems...

(note from Stoat: This article goes on for eleven pages and so I'm only going to post an excerpt. Please be sure to go to the original article and read more than what I've posted here because there's a tremendous amount of real-world information that I would consider essential reading if you're considering the XP-2 patch either for your PC or for your enterprise) Forget the ivory-tower pundits--here are first-hand reports from the trenches, relayed by your peers who've already installed the new Service Pack. By Fred Langa, InformationWeek Sept. 6, 2004 URL: http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=46200911 You've heard a lot about Windows...

Last night attempted to download Symantec/NortonAV LiveUpdate fixes and patches in preparation for SP2 loading. There were also some goofy popups from the Norton which are usually fixed with update downloads. Tried 3 times last evening (9:30 CDT-11:00 CDT) and three times this AM to get the download. Couldn't. The page would not open and the my 'incoming' monitor said that the site was not transmitting. Maybe they didn't figure all 10 million Windoze users would hit the site at once, huh?

One in 10 corporate PC users will encounter difficulties in upgrading to Windows XP Service Pack 2, according to AssetMetrix. Smaller firms will be hit hardest by compatibility problems between their applications and the much anticipated update of Microsoft's flagship operating system, the Canadian asset management firm says. Microsoft has issued a list of applications that require modification in order to work properly with XP SP2. The list has been in a state of flux since XP SP2 was released. But based on the current list of approximately 60 applications with SP2 compatibility problems, AssetMetrix reckons that an average company...

The "highly criticial" vulnerability affects Internet Explorer 5.01, 5.5, and 6 on fully patched PCs running either Windows XP SP1 or the newer SP2.By Gregg Keizer, TechWeb News   Another flaw in Internet Explorer has been uncovered by Danish security firm Secunia, which said that the gaffe left all PC users open to attack, even those who had updated Windows XP with the massive Service Pack 2 upgrade. According to the alert that Secunia posted Thursday on its Web site, the vulnerability affects Internet Explorer 5.01, 5.5, and 6 on fully patched PCs running either Windows XP SP1 or...

Microsoft is only partway into delivering the long-awaited Service Pack 2 for Windows XP to users, yet it has already begun releasing fixes for problems that the mammoth update can cause, however inadvertently. The company has issued what is likely the first of several "hotfix" patches, which developers and analysts say are just a fact of PC life. *** This first hotfix for Windows XP SP2 patches a problem that SP2 creates for some users of virtual private networks, telecommunications software that is generally used to let workers connect securely--usually to a corporate computer--from a remote location such as home...

The update for Windows XP makes a long list of programs appear to stop working, including Microsoft's own SQL and Visual Studio .Net Microsoft has published the details of more than 40 programs that have conflicts with the newly released Windows XP SP2. The list includes several widely used Microsoft products including SQL, Visual Studio .Net, and SMS 2003 Server. The list can be found under the heading "Some programs that seem to stop working when you install Windows XP Service Pack 2" on Microsoft's website. XP SP2 has also created problems with Symantec's Antivirus Corporate Edition 8.0, MacAfee's...

The best method known for getting people extremely angry at you is simply to be right where they're wrong -- especially if you give them any opportunity to read a moral subtext into whatever they're wrong about. It's sometimes okay be a tiny bit smarter than the people you work with, but it's always devastating to working relationships to be proven right if that makes people feel you are somehow morally better than they are. Have that happen and they'll soon be calling you smug, self righteous or pious. No matter how humbly you do the self-effacing shuffle, the working...

Windows XP Service Pack 2: Install With Care By Frank J. Ohlhorst and Vincent A. Randazzese, CRN 9:00 AM EDT Fri. Jul. 23, 2004 The real surprise with Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2 isn't potential compatibility issues, but the mayhem that can occur when SP2 is downloaded onto a system. CRN Test Center engineers evaluated a release candidate two (RC2) version of SP2, and upon completion of the install on three out of five systems, the machines blue-screened. A message stated that "winserv" was missing. The blue screen occurred on both Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Intel platforms,...

Customers can delay installation of service pack to provide time for validation and testing Microsoft Corp. is letting customers disable installation of SP2 until they are ready to deal with the multitude of issues it brings. Users, largely expected to be corporates, can prevent the installation of the newly minted XP service pack while permitting the installation of all other automatic OS updates. The idea behind it is that smaller organizations may find that the update process overwhelms their resources, whether download bandwidth, or technical staff who will have to manage the fall-out of a massive OS update dropping into...