Yes, Windows 7 really will RTM in ten days originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

b. Family Pack. If you are a "Qualified Family Pack User", you may install one copy of the software marked as "Family Pack" on three computers in your household for use by people who reside there. Those computers are the "licensed computers" and are subject to these license terms. If you do not know whether you are a Qualified Family Pack User, visit go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?Linkid=141399 or contact the Microsoft affiliate serving your country.

Family Pack license for Windows 7 could cover 3 machines on the cheap originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading 6 Microsoft freebies I actually love to use

6 Microsoft freebies I actually love to use originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Windows 7 Beta shuts down today. Repeatedly (time to upgrade to RC) originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Microsoft to OEMs: cut off free Vista to Windows 7 upgrades at 25 originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 29 Jun 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Regular Download Squad readers already know that I've been testing Microsoft's new Security Essentials since it first appeared in the wild last week and that I've been quite impressed with it so far. Some commenters weren't impressed, however, waving the NOD32 flag even though SE removed threats from my machine that NOD had missed.

AV-Test Labs has now put SE through a slightly more grueling test than scanning my piddly PC. They threw 3,200 different bots, trojans, and viruses along with a slew of items designed to trigger false positives and Security Essentials was up for the task.

In an email to Computerworld, Andreas Marx of AV-Test reported "All files were properly detected and treated by the product," said Marx in an e-mail. "That's good, as several other [antivirus] scanners are still not able to detect and kill all of these critters yet. None of the clean files were noted as malicious." The program was also able to tackle rootkits, though AV-Test will put it through more comprehensive testing before making a verdict on that particular ability.

Marx also addressed the concerns that SE was using Microsoft's own servers for cloud-based scanning. "The scanner works with the locally-installed anti-virus and anti-spyware databases -- it doesn't appear to use 'in-the-cloud scanning' methods," he stated.

If you missed out on the original download from Microsoft, don't fret. The nice folks at Softpedia have mirrored the SE files for you.

Microsoft Security Essentials tested, passes with flying colors originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 26 Jun 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Creating playlists can be tedious, and every bit of information can help. While some people maintain the ID3 tags in their MP3 files in excruciating detail, others (like me) can't seem to find the time. But when it comes to finding the tempo, no amount of manual ID3 tag maintenance will help.

If you're trying to put together a playlist that contains songs that are a similar speed, knowing the beats-per-minute of each song is immensely helpful. Luckily, there is a free download called BPM Analyzer from MixMeister that will analyze all of your MP3 tracks, and update the ID3 tags in them with exact BPM information. With that done, it's a simple matter of sorting your music library by the beats-per-minute field.

Now you can put together an upbeat energy-boosting playlist full of fast songs, a mellow playlist with slower songs, or pretty much anything you desire. And for the nerds like me, it's just another piece of information to sort and group your music by.

BPM Analyzer is available on both the Windows and Mac operating system.

[via Lifehacker]

BPM Analyzer gives you the tempo of all of your MP3s originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 26 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Windows 7 now available for pre-order originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 26 Jun 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Windows 7 Home Premium: $199.99
  
• Windows 7 Professional: $299.99
  
• Windows 7 Ultimate: $319.99
  

• Windows 7 Home Premium: $119.99
  
• Windows 7 Professional: $199.99
  
• Windows 7 Ultimate: $219.99

• Windows 7 Home Premium Upgrade pre-order: $49.99
• Windows 7 Professional Upgrade pre-order: $99.99

Microsoft announces Windows 7 pricing, unveils upgrade program originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Windows 7 box art, packaging gets official(er)

Windows 7 box art, packaging gets official(er) originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Much ado about Outlook 2010's lame HTML rendering originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 24 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you've been using an early build of Windows 7 beta and haven't upgraded to the Release Candidate yet, you'll probably want to do that by next week. Starting on July 1st, anyone still using Windows 7 Beta will have to put up with their computers rebooting every hour. The beta will expire altogether on August 1st.

Windows 7 RC downloads only available through August 15th originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 23 Jun 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sometimes developers hit the nail on the head when they name their applications. Make A Celebrity Odd is a pretty much perfect name for what the service does. The entire capability of this site is to take a celebrity's name, look up a headshot of them, and make it look weird by applying a mirror-type effect similar to one of the ones you might use in Photo Booth on a Mac.

The fun of it is that it seems to be able to consistently find head shot photos, and this is done through Microsoft's new Bing search engine's API. According to the site, this API offers a unique way to restrict photos found to just faces without showing shoulders, while Google can return faces but there is no ability to get specific about whether or not shoulders are shown. Interestingly, the site falls back to Google if not enough results are found on Bing, which is probably a wise choice. The example image on this post clearly must have come through the fallback Google search.

I wasn't sure what the copyright issues would be with a service like Make A Celebrity Odd, but given that everything on this site is done on the client-side via JavaScript, there may not be any. This is arguably no different than if I were to grab a photo of a celebrity online and put it in Photoshop, then manipulate it for my own entertainment.

Except, of course, that this is a web service that appears to display modified images that likely have copyrights on them.

So, what do you think? Aside from being a fun little time waster for a few minutes, is this site a legitimate use of search results? Do you think Make A Celebrity Odd is on shaky legal ground?

Make a celebrity odd - Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 23 Jun 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Microsoft Security Essentials public beta now available to download originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

FINAL ROADMAP FOR WINDOWS 7 [CLIENT-SERVER]:
6/1 - 6/19 BUILDING RTM ESCROW - already assembled RTM ESCROW.
6/22 - 7/10 RTM RECALL - assembly and search for candidates to the final RTM release.
7/10 WINDOWS 7 RTM FINAL BUILD TARGET - build day "gold code".
7/13 WINDOWS 7 RTM SIGN-OFF - the date of signing the final RTM release!

Windows 7 RTM final build on schedule for July 10th originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Oh man. Some day, Microsoft will get this contest right.

That day is not going to be today, it would appear.

In a response to all the hullabaloo the other day, they've retooled the landing page at Ten Grand is Buried Here. Now instead of telling you to "get lost" if you've got another browser, the page now reads as follows:

"Those who have Internet Explorer 8 can follow @tengrand_IE8 on Twitter and www.tengrandisburiedhere.com for daily clues..."

And what, people using other browsers can't follow that Twitter user and see the updates? That would be cool. Can I block Camino users from viewing my Twitter updates? Just kidding, of course. I don't actually hate any web browser - scout's honor.

I know I'm taking the new lines too literally, but come on. If you're going to take out the snark, why leave yourselves open to more prodding? I'm not mad at you, Microsoft Australia. I just thought your implication was kind of funny.

You know, funny like TechCrunch calling IStartedSomething a "Microsoft Blog." Last time I checked, our pal Long Zheng was looking for someone to sponsor his hosting (by the way - if you can help out, please do!). I really doubt that would be a problem if Microsoft was footing his bills.

Microsoft Australia re-words Ten Grand is Buried Here page, more LOLs ensue originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 19 Jun 2009 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There are plenty of good reasons to use web-based mapping tools besides simply finding directions from point a to point b. For example, let's say you're taking a holiday to Cork and you want to know where the good swimming spots are.

Fortunately for you, Microsoft and the European Environment Agency have just the thing for you. The Eye on Earth Water Watch does exactly that for countless spots across the continent.

Find a suitable spot, click the water quality icon, and the Bing-powered map displays an overlay containing a Virtual Earth image as well as live webcams and user submitted photos (if available, of course).

There's more to it than finding a place to have a relaxing dip, of course. As Microsoft's Rob Bernard puts it, "Eye on Earth is a great example of how technology has the power to help governments, business and individuals understand what is happening to our environment. Eye on Earth provides people with information which has historically been difficult to find."

[via Softpedia]

In Europe? Bing-powered Water Watch shows you where it's safe to swim originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 19 Jun 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Oh Microsoft, you and your wacky propoganda!

Yes, we know that Internet Explorer 8 isn't the same steaming pile of dung that past versions have been. Yes, we know it has some neat features like accelerators and InPrivate filtering. But we really had no idea that you had such a great sense of humor!

If you haven't seen the now infamous chart (and you likely have, thanks to Reddit), it's well worth a look. Don't go looking for any real world data to back things up though. There are no screenshots, nothing on the chart is linked to anything else, and the "mythbusting" page points only to two malware studies and the IE8 add-ons gallery.

There are, of course, some valid points - other browsers lacking enterprise tools, for example. The rest of it, well, you tell me. What do you think of the points they make?

My personal favorite: the Firefox add-ons I'd want to download are already built in to IE8. You know, like my three must haves - LastPass, Weave, and Greasemonkey. Oh wait, no...No, none of that functionality is built in.

I do like the little green checkmarks, Microsoft. They suuuuure are purty!

Microsoft offers a *cough* totally unbiased comparison of the Big 3 browsers originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Microsoft extends Windows XP lifespan through 2011 originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 18 Jun 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Microsoft changing its approach to user generated videos originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.