Windows

Its no big secret that I have been a big fan of Firefox. I have been using Firefox 3.0 beta 5 ever since it got included as the default browser with Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron). Needless to say, I was quite impressed with the new avatar. Ars has a great series of articles that cover the new features introduced in Firefox betas. However, the Linux interface had not changed much from Firefox 2.0.

Today, I was forced into trying the beta in Windows (yes, it's been that long since I've had to use a Windows maching on a regular basis). On one side, I'm disappointed by why a major interface overhaul was not included in the Linux release. On the other hand, I'm practically smiling with joy looking at the pure aesthetics of this release in Windows. The Forward/Backward button integration, the enhanced address bar, the default navigation buttons, the screen preview of text/graphics selected and dragged - wow! (Read this article for a summary of the changes)

The browser is said to be using significantly lower memory than previously releases, and is really fast. And the browser has not crashed on me even once (though, I have to admit, I have not exactly stress tested it yet).

You can download the beta here. As always, the normal warning of beta releases apply - don't use it for anything critical (like share trading, bank transactions, etc.), and don't blame me if anything goes wrong.

I recently learnt about the Ken Burns effect and wanted to use it in a slideshow I had to make. The Ken Burns effect is a mixture of pan and zoom effects to create a really professional slideshow. During my extensive search for a tool I looked at open source alternatives (such as the dvd-slideshow tool for Linux) and proprietary software (Microsoft Movie Maker which comes bundled with Windows XP is surprisingly useful), I finally landed on the page for Microsoft Photo Story 3.

This tool is exactly what I was looking for. You customize start and end points in a photo, customize motion, add speech, audio, notes, and you're off. You can export your slideshow in a variety of resolutions (unfortunately, only in the windows media video format).

I believe in giving credit where it is due. This is the second Microsoft software after Microsoft Excel that I appreciate. The next time you want to create a slideshow, give Microsoft Photo Story 3 a run.

My first attempt at Linux was 5 years back when I had given it up with a 'too difficult to handle' tag. Just installing the operating system was a big event in itself with tons of caveats and configuration changes. The release of Ubuntu made things a lot better, but still, I wanted a safe and easy way to experiment without making any significant changes to my PC configuration.

I read about Wubi - a program for installing Linux on a virtual drive in a Windows computer and allowing it to be loaded at boot time. I craved for more ease. My efforts led to VirtualBox - a virtualization software that can install and run Ubuntu in a window within Windows XP. Virtualization is a method of creating a virtual computer for an operating system that makes the operating system believe that it is working in a computer of its own, whereas it is actually working in an environment created by another operating system. You can do whatever you want to inside the environment without affecting the main operating system. To see the results, click on the screenshot.

Here's a step-by-step of getting your own Ubuntu system up and running:

• Download and install VirtualBox from here (choose the Windows x86 binary if you are running an Intel based PC)
• Download an Ubuntu ISO (I would suggest the Desktop version) from this page (it will be ~700 MB in size)
• Run VirtualBox, click on the New Virtual Maching button and give it a name (I chose Feisty after Ubuntu's current release codenamed Feisty Fawn), select the type as Linux 2.6
• On the next screen choose how much RAM to offer to Ubuntu (I chose 256 MB on my 512 MB RAM laptop, and it worked wonders - Ubunty was quite breezy :)
• In the next screen, click on 'New' to create a virtual hard disk for Ubuntu to use
• You can create one that is 'Dynamically increasing in size' in the screen that follows
• I chose to make the drive 6GB in size - this left a good 4 GB for me to experiment in
• Back in the Virtual Machine screen, 'Finish' to create the drive
• Your drive should appear in the main VirtualBox screen
• Next, click on the settings button, and then select the 'CD/DVD-ROM' tab
• Check the 'Mount' checkbox, select the 'ISO image file' radio button, and navigate to the Ubuntu ISO you downloaded
• That's it, click on OK, and double click on 'Fiesty' to start Ubuntu's installation.

You'll go straight to the Ubuntu Live desktop. Click on 'Install' and just follow the instructions. When asked for hard disk options, let Ubuntu take the entire virtual hard disk you created. The installation will take some 20 minutes - so you can grab a cup of coffee in the meantime (or play Jetman!).

Once the installation completes, do remember to unmount the Ubuntu CD-ROM ISO so that 'Fiesty' goes to the installed OS and not the live OS the next time you start the virtual machine.

Wasn't that easy? I hope to open a world of Linux applications with this soon. Let me know if there is any particular application that you want me to cover by leaving a comment below. Also, do let me know if you run into a problem installing Ubuntu.

I have seen so many spyware/malware/virus infested PC's that its finally time that I let the cat out of the bag. There are two steps you can take to ensure that your PC remains healthy and fast.

The first, of course, is to stay away from untrusted sites and NOT to open email attachments unless you're sure who they're from. No one is going to give you even a single dollar (let alone thousands) for free - so don't believe that mail. Similarly, do not download and install any program until you read its review on a trusted site such as Download.com (which gaurantees all downloads are spyware free).<

The second (drum roll please - big secret being unvieled) is to use a limited account in Windows XP or 2000 for casual surfing, gaming, document processing etc. Any program executed from a limited account cannot affect your Windows or Program Files directory. So the chances of an infection while you surf get reduced drastically. To create a limited account, go to the Control Panel and click on 'User Accounts'. Select 'Create a New Account' from the tasks list, enter the name of your new account (something like 'Everybody' or 'General' or 'Limited' will do), and select the 'Limited' radio button on the next screen. Click on 'Create Account' and you're done. Remember to logon using this account from now on.

To install a new program, to change settings, or to run a program with administrator priveliges, right click the installation/program and select 'Rus As..' from the context menu. Select your full priveliges profile (usually the one you create with your name during installation) in the dialog box that appears and enter your password (remember that this will not work if your password is blank). To start an Explorer window with administrator priveliges, right-click on the Internet Explorer icon on your quick launch menu, select 'Run As..', and enter the password. Activate the address bar of the window that launches and enter 'c:'. You should have an administrator priveliges explorer window. Any program executed through this window will run with full priveliges - so be careful. You can even uninstall programs, make changes to the registry, stop services - anything that you could do earlier.

There, now you have no reason to have a slow and buggy computer. I have been using a computer without an antivirus or spyware remover (highly unadvisable - unless you know what you are doing) without having any problems whatsoever just by following these simple steps.

Everybody has heard of JPEG. This is the format of most of the photographs that we see on the Internet and the ones that we click with our digital cameras. It has been around for quite some time now (since 1994 to be precise).

However, continuing with their tradition of starting media format wars, Microsoft recently announced the availability of a new Windows Media Photo format that is supposed to be a new and improved (pardon the oxymoron) file format that allows better quality with possibly a reduced size.

Enthusiasts would know that Microsoft took on the MP3 format with their Windows Media Audio format. Similarly, they took on DivX, RealVideo, MPEG-x, and QuickTime video formats with their Windows Media Video format. Both Windows Media formats gained mild popularity primarily because of their support for Digital Rights Management (DRM). However, most users still prefer MP3, DivX and MPEG for personal use.

On a related note, a company named Forgent has been suing companies (31 - including Microsoft and many other major players) for infringing on a patent which they say covers the basic aspect of JPEG encoding. In a landmark decision, the USPTO decided that the broadest claim for this patent was actually invalid, based on a review request and prior art submitted by the PUBPAT (Public Patent Foundation), a non-profit organization that challenges patents that stifle innovation, instead of supporting it.

With the Forgent threat over, people should find the JPEG standard easier to return to, instead of defining and supporting a new format. Then again, Microsoft *is* the world's largest software maker and has the monopoly in the operating system market. If the equivalent of the 'Windows Paint' tool in Windows Vista saves files in the Windows Media Photo format by default, people would more often than not, go for this option. Stay tuned in as the story unfolds.