Must We Pay a Lot to Keep Our Computers Free of Malware?
In a word, no. Plenty of free applications exist to protect your computer and many of them are even small enough to fit on a modest thumb drive. (Granted that 64GB thumb drives are now available but you don't need one.) Let's see what's available.
I'm a fan of the free version of Avast but you might want to take a look at CLAMWin, which is both free and open-source. I still prefer Avast because CLAMWin doesn't offer any real-time protection and I consider that to be an important option. It's easy to forget to scan a file for threats and you have to remember to do that with CLAMWin.
Still, the portable version fits easily on a thumb drive and it can be helpful if your regular antivirus application (whichever one you choose) misses a threat.
Sophos is considered to be one of the most competent tools when it come to detecting and removing rootkits. A rootkit is designed to hide the existence of certain processes or programs from normal methods of detection and enable continued privileged access to a computer. Rootkits are often malicious.
When a rootkit has been installed, the intrusion can be hidden and the process can maintain privileged access. Rootkits can modify existing software, including those applications that might be used to detect rootkits.
That's why you might want to have a rootkit detector on a handy thumb drive.
Spybot Search and Destroy is an application that's been around for a long time. The portable version is particularly helpful if your computer is infected.
Another handy tool to have on a thumb drive for after-the-fact malware removal is EMIsoft's Emergency Tool Kit. This application knows about 6,000,000 malware applications (Did you know that many existed?) and usually knows how to remove them.
If you really messed up your computer, Vipre Rescue might save the day. It doesn't require a graphical user interface, so you can launch the computer in safe mode and search for the malware that's making your life miserable.
No matter how careful you are, your computer might someday become infected and, when that happens, having a thumb drive (or a CD) that's filled with malware removal tools can convert your computer from a useless mass of muck to a workable tool.
Windows 8 Is Here
I had planned to talk about subjects other than Windows 8 this week. After all, I've produced a series of reports on the subject, ranging from the early days when I questioned Microsoft's sanity in doing away with the Start Menu through more recent discussions in which I decided that the Start Menu really isn't important and that other features offered by Windows 8 are. But there were so many questions and comments this week that a final pre-release report (although you won't read it until after Windows 8 has been on the market for a day or two) was called for.
Windows 8 Tablets Might Kill Android Tablets
By the time you read this, the first part of Windows 8 week will be behind us. In the week leading up to the launch, manufacturers were showing off new notebook computers, tablets, and hybrid computers — some of which run on Intel's Z2760 Atom processor, which has the clever alias "Clover Trail". These devices could be Android tablet killers.
Some of these devices include detachable keyboards so they can serve as tablets or clamshell computers. The Atom processor will limit them to the lower end of the performance spectrum but the primary use for computers such as these is likely to be light Web browsing, news reading, e-mail, possibly some light spreadsheet and presentation functions. In other words, nobody is going to mistake an Atom-based computer for a high-power game, photo, or video system.
Where they excel is cost (they're inexpensive), weight (they're light), and battery life (they typically promise 8 to 10 hours on a full charge.) And all the usual suspects will have computers on the market. I would expect to see these on airplanes, adopted by people who travel a lot and possibly by families who want more than a cell phone or a tablet when they're on vacation.
A Few Examples
Samsung Smart PC/Series 5 Slate: It starts as an 11.6-inch tablet with a 1366x768-pixel display but it connects to a keyboard so it converts to a clamshell computer. Samsung has worked with Wacom to include digitizer functionality and there are two cameras (2Mpxl, front-facing and 8Mpxl, rear facing). The tablet weighs in at slightly more than a pound and a half; add the keyboard and you'll double the weight to just over 3 and a quarter pounds.
Asus VivoTab: With any amount of luck, Asus will have used its experience with Android tablets and hybrid devices to eliminate mistakes. As with the Samsung device, you start with an 11.6-inch tablet that has a 1366x768-pixel display. Wacom digitizer technology is present and you can buy a separate keyboard that makes it a clamshell. Expect about a pound and a half for the tablet and about double that when you add a keyboard. As with the Asus Android docking station, the keyboard provides USB ports.
Dell Latitude 10: The screen in smaller (just 10 inches) but resolution remains the same (1366x768). The docking station includes USB ports, and SD card slot, and an Ethernet port so it appears that Dell's target market is business users. Unlike other manufacturer's Dell's offering makes it possible to swap out the battery in the docking station. Yet another sign that Dell is going after the business market is inclusion of a Smart Card reader that provides data encryption.
Acer Iconia W510: This device has a screen that's slight larger than Dell's but still smaller than most competitors (10.1 inches) and lower resolution (just 1280x800) but it's also more than half a pound lighter, slightly over 2 and three-quarters pounds with the keyboard. And Acer claims 18 hours of battery life with the keyboard attached.
Lenovo ThinkPad 2: Here Lenovo matches the size of the Acer device but its add-on keyboard doesn't offer extra battery life. In fact, keyboard may cost battery life because it uses a Bluetooth connection. The display is the more or less standard 1366x768 pixels and the Wacom digitizer offers added levels of sensitivity.
Hewlett-Packard Envy x2: HP includes the detachable keyboard and the screen is the full standard 11.6-inch size with 1366x768-pixel resolution. As with most of the other devices, the tablet alone is about a pound and a half and the keyboard doubles the weight. HP includes technology that improves the Envy's sound but don't expect too much from tiny speakers.
How Big is the Windows 8 Threat to Android?
I own an Android tablet and I bought the add-on keyboard. As much as I like the portability, I haven't found a lot to rave about when considering the Asus hardware or the Asus-modified Android operating system. Google has been accused of allowing manufacturers to make too many modifications to the operating system, meaning that buyers can have very different experiences depending on which manufacturer they buy an Android device from.
Microsoft has allowed manufacturers to add applications to Windows but has never permitted the kind of wholesale modifications Google has allowed. Using history as a guide, one would have to assume that the experience of using Windows 8 will be about the same whether the device was manufactured by Acer or Asus, HP or Dell, Lenovo or Samsung.
If you like the touch-based Android operating system, Microsoft probably considers you to be a potential buyer of a Windows 8 device. It's true that the Windows 8 store doesn't have anywhere near the number of apps available from either Google Play or Apple's Store. Few apps were available initially from Apple, either, but the landscape has changed. Apple had the market to itself back then. Now Microsoft will be competing against stores operated by Apple and Google.
Apple doesn't have a lot to worry about (at least not yet) but Google needs only to glance at the list of manufacturers who have signed on to build Windows 8 tablets and hybrid devices to realize that theses same manufacturers are currently making Android tablets. Samsung and Toshiba, for example. Or Asus. And the list goes on.
Android phones have taken a huge amount of market share from Apple but the same cannot be said for tablets. Amazon's Kindle Fire HD is an Android device and one of the few that seems to be in demand but that's likely because Amazon is pushing it hard, has set the price low, and is promoting the ability to view videos and other kinds of media. By this time next year, the tablet and hybrid market may well have shrunk to two primary players: Apple and Microsoft.
And the Kindle Fire HD is a perfect example of what Google got wrong: Amazon was allowed to almost completely obscure the underlying Android operating system. Buying a Kindle because it's an Android is like buying a Fiat because it comes from the same country where Lamborghini are manufactured.
It's possible, maybe even likely, that Android technology will be adopted by third- and fourth-tier manufacturers. Then tablets will become stocking stuffers at Christmas time, something you can give a child to play music and games.
The one thing that Android will never be able to match is the ability of devices that run Windows 8 to run Microsoft Office. Those who depend on Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Access, Visio, Project, and the rest of the suite won't find that on any Android device.
And the Windows Store, which was still technically in beta as I was preparing this report probably has at least as many tablet-based applications as Google Play. Play has thousands of apps but many of them work only on phone or work poorly on tablets.
Developers go where the market is. If you write an application that yields 75 cents every time someone downloads it, you'll be much more interested in larger markets.
By this time next year, we'll know the answers to some of the questions.
So What Else Is New?
You know there's no Start Button on Windows 8. Whether or not that's a big deal to you may well depend on your ability to accept change, your recognition of the fact that the Start Button is no longer needed (even without the Modern interface), and your realization that on a computer that doesn't have a touch-sensitive screen Windows 8 is really just a faster and more secure version of Windows 7.
Yes, more secure. I've talked about the speed in the past. It's good news whenever an operating system makes a computer faster but the increased speed isn't so great that it's worthwhile upgrading just for that feature.
Security might seem to be in the same general category but it's not.
Never before has Microsoft included antivirus protection that is enabled by default. An updated version of Windows Defender joins the Windows Firewall to provide protection. Windows Defender was released initially with Vista and was well matched to Vista's less than optimal performance. Since then, it's come a long way. Whether it's good enough to displace third-party security applications is something only time will tell.
Windows Defender has basic virus and malware protection. Even so, I plan to continue using a third-party program. In most cases, the third-party applications offer more features and more robust protections but Microsoft has made the business decision to provide at least a baseline of protection by default.
But that's not all. In fact, that's not even the most critical part. You've heard that Windows 8 boots faster than Windows 7 and, while that's true, it's only part of the story. Windows 8 also boots more safely.
The Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) finally eliminates the antique BIOS system that has been used since the 1980s. UEFI has a Secure Boot feature that can prevent malware (rootkits, for example) from running. This feature requires new hardware so Windows 8 will still run with older systems that boot using BIOS. If you buy a new computer that carries a Microsoft certification for Windows 8, it must have the new hardware.
Every advantage has an equal and opposite disadvantage and Secure Boot will make it much more difficult for anyone who wants to create a dual-boot computer that runs Windows and Linux. Microsoft does promise to allow users who want to create a dual-boot system to shut off the Secure Boot feature.
Web browsing and downloads will be made more secure by the Windows SmartScreen filter. This is a system-wide function that works for all browsers. The first time you try to open a file that you've downloaded from a network (local area network or the Internet) you will be prompted for confirmation. This affects both executable programs and Office documents (Word and Excel, for example). Because Microsoft documents can contain macros, they are considered to be executable.
You won't see the warning if the program checks out when compared to a list of known safe applications. By itself, SmartScreen doesn't provide any additional protection but it does serve as a reminder to evaluate applications before running them. SmartScreen will replace and eliminate some of the warnings you may have seen with Windows 7 and that's good because the warnings were so frequent that many people simply click "OK" without thinking about it.
The Sounds of Windows
Thanks to a German website, I was able to review and remember the sounds of previous versions of Windows.
But Windows 8 does have a unique sound that you'll hear when you've logged on to your account.
Windows 8 Is Not a Guaranteed Slam Dunk
This would be a scary time to be working at Microsoft. Halloween is approaching and everyone it wondering if Windows 8 will be a treat or a trick. Most people don't like change and Windows 8 is change personified.
Apple is a major threat. Many of the new Windows 8 features depend on touch-screen capabilities and that's where Apple leads, at least with tablets. Mac notebooks may not be selling like hot-cakes but they are selling like extremely popular computers. Apple's new Mountain Lion version of OS X includes significant changes but none so radical as those by Microsoft.
Microsoft's launch budget is reported to be about $1.5 billion and that undoubtedly includes advertising to launch the new Surface tablet.
Prices could be a problem, too. The Atom-based computers appear to be targeted for the $700 price range but that makes them expensive when compared to standard notebooks and other tablets. Apple's notebooks are even more expensive but people who buy Apple hardware seem to be willing to pay a premium.
The lower-end Windows devices that run the RT version of the operating system cost considerably less but they are also considerably less capable than equally priced Windows 7 notebooks
Compatibility could be an issue. When is a Microsoft Surface not a Microsoft Surface? You'll find two versions, one that runs Windows 8 and one that runs Windows 8 RT. The RT version looks a lot like the regular version but it won't run traditional desktop applications. You can bet that some people will buy the RT version and then try to run the applications that they run on their desktop or notebook computer.
I can already hear the gnashing of teeth.
Short Circuits
Have You Bought a Surface Yet? Will You?
Microsoft's Surface tablet is now available and competes with Apple's Ipad. It has 10.6-inch screen with nearly indestructible Gorilla Glass 2. The Windows RT model starts at $500 and has 32GB of storage. Add a cover for $100 more. Increase storage to 64GB for another $100 (You're now at $700).
This is Microsoft's first foray into the hardware market. Yes, Microsoft will tell you that they've been making hardware for 147 years if you listen to their PR department but this reminds me of IBM's statement in the early 1980s that it had been in the personal computer space for years. Microsoft has made mice and keyboards. The surface is a computer.
Microsoft apparently wants to be a serious player in the hardware space and specifically in the tablet space.
Pre-orders for the low-end Windows RT Surface tablets have been robust and the tablets almost immediately went on back order. Does Microsoft have an Ipad killer? Probably not but it might put a dent in Apple's sales.
Reports say that resellers are panning Windows 8 but those of us who have actually used the operating system generally seem to think that it offers features that users have wanted for years. The Ipad is still the best selling tablet and hundreds of thousands of applications are available for it. As appealing as the Microsoft Surface Tablet is, it doesn't have a lot of apps at the moment. Of course, when the Ipad was launched, it didn't have a lot of apps either and at $500-$700, the Surface looks like a good value.
There will be 2 versions of Surface Tablets, those that run Windows 8 and those that run faux Windows 8. Windows RT is the faux version. Windows 8 RT runs on ARM-based chips and that means that it won't run applications that are intended for the Intel/AMD x86 architecture and if people buy an RT-based tablet expecting it to run all their standard desktop or notebook applications, they're going to be surprised. And disappointed.
But if you need a tablet computer for the things that tablet computers are good at (Do you really want to run Access, Word, or Excel on your tablet?) the Surface might be just what you're looking for if you're not an Apple fan boy (or girl) and you want an alternative to the Ipad. If your primary tablet uses are surfing the Web and dealing with e-mail, this could be a winner.
Where's My Train? (We Might Have an App for That)
It's a fact that New York City subway trains are sometimes delayed and riders waiting in stations are at a loss for information. Sometimes there's an announcement from the MTA command center in Brooklyn but the public address system is old and stations are full of echos, so something better is needed.
Incidentally, October 27th was the 108th anniversary of the opening of New York City's subway. The original Interborough Rapid Transit line connected City Hall with Harlem. It ran under Park Avenue South to Grand Central, across 42nd Street to Times Square and then up Broadway to 145th Street. Two decades after the IRT began operations, it was joined by the Brooklyn-Manhattan Transit (formerly Brooklyn Rapid Transit) and in September 1932, the city-owned Independent Subway began operations. In 1940, the IRT and BMT joined the IND under city ownership to create the unified system that runs under (and sometimes above) New York today.
This was supposed to be a short account of how new technology will help NYC transit users but when I start writing about the MTA, I find it hard to stop. Sorry!
In 2007, the MTA started installing countdown clocks in stations. Eventually the clocks will be in 153 stations. These clocks have proved to be popular because they show which trains are expected in the station and when.
IMAGE PROVIDED BY THE NYC METROPOLITAN TRANSIT AUTHORITY.
Arrival data will be on the MTA website and the MTA will make the data stream available publicly.
The MTA says that developers will be able to use the data to create applications that will provide information to riders in ways the MTA might not think of. The information could be particularly useful during the overnight hours when trains run far less frequently than during the day.
Most of the numbered lines (1, 2, 3, and 4, for example) already have countdown clocks because those lines benefited from a massive project that upgraded signal and communications systems. The MTA now can see the exact location of every train on these lines and use that data to provide arrival information to the clocks. The MTA calls these lines the A Division.
On lettered lines (A, B, L, R, and the 7 line), a train’s exact location isn't known; instead, locations are indicated by referencing the closest dispatch tower. These lines are the B Division and it is considerably larger than the A Division.
Some apps already exist. The MTA challenged developers to create apps that people would find useful and offered a $5000 prize for the best app. (The MTA would like me to note that no public money was used for prizes.)
The author's image: It's that photo over at the right. This explains why TechByter Worldwide was never on television, doesn't it?
