You got to be kidding me. Did I just read that right?

It is true, according to TG Daily :

“Apple is expected to launch its next generation Leopard operating system (OS) in April, but according to industry sources, the release of the new OS will be postponed to October to allow Apple to make Leopard support Windows Vista through an integrated version of its Boot Camp software.

The sources pointed out that the launch delay is not due to software design problems with Leopard but instead is attributed to Apple’s plan to have its new OS support Windows Vista through an integrated version of Boot Camp.”

Is Apple just trying to BS? Why can it not launch Leopard and then release a patch later on that allows Vista to run on Boot Camp? It is clearly Apple’s fault and not Microsoft’s!

Update: Comments here and elsewhere suggest that the original article on DigiTimes where this information originated from may be inaccurate. Thanks all.

Apple : Leopard still on Schedule

It’s hard to believe, but I’ve just ordered 3 copies of it on disk. You need to be a Microsoft Partner, and that’s a 15 minute signup job and it’s free to sign up to.

1. Go here and sign-up for your Microsoft Parter account (if you don’t already have one).
   Note: make sure your address is correct, as this is where all your free stuff gets sent to.
2. Go here and sign-in with your Windows Live ID.
3. Select the third drop down box and select “Small Business Server (SBS)”
4. Below where it says “Windows SBS 2003 R2, Evaluation Software”, select your quantity (and feel free to be greedy :)
5. Click on “Proceed with order” and carry on with the wizard!

No need to thank me, I’m just good at being bloody sneaky.

Well I hope you should be. If you are interested in joining the ‘Centro’ Beta please go to http://connect.microsoft.com, click on Invitations, sign in with your Windows Live ID (Passport ID) and enter the following invite ID: EXTR-GHBC-JCJM.  You will be asked to take a short survey.  Once you complete the survey look for an email from msftconn@microsoft.com. If you don’t already trust this address, please add it to your trusted email addresses.

It’s as simple as that - check out Windows Server Centro on Connect here: https://connect.microsoft.com/centro

United Kingdom, France, Australia all had poor turn ups. Instead of huge queue that everyone expected outside stores before the PS3 launch only a few turned up. Is this a message to Sony from the Europeans who do not want the expensive consoles with gimped backward compatibility while the Americans and Japanese enjoy more features?

Here are a few interesting headlines:

Australian PS3 Launch Embarrassment

At midnight, about 40 PS3 buyers had arrived to collect their consoles, causing distress for the army of camera crews who turned up expecting to capture launch mayhem, while a team from 2Day FM let out bogus cheers to convince their radio listeners that a launch extravaganza was underway.

While in France..

Sony planned a big event at the Eiffel tower for the launch and were ready to hand 1000 PS3s but only 20 people were there. Same thing on the Champs Élysés where there were only 4 or 5 people.

Similarly in the UK, there are no long queue outside stores and you can get hold of a PS3 console even if you did not pre-order them.

This is a stark contrast to the US launch in November last year, where one man was shot by thieves and fights broke out over limited stock.

To make it worse, Microsoft did a few brilliant and hilarious marketing moves that are getting quite a few positive comments on the internet.

Xbox crashes PS3 launch party

At the PLAYSTATION 3 launch event in Paris, Microsoft found an opportunity to do a little guerilla marketing by sending French gamers queueing up for a PS3 a kind reminder via boat. You can check the video here, but don’t forget to view the… splendor of the midnight launch event over at Jeux-France. They have loads of shots of the, um, festivities.

Microsoft NZ Tease Sony, With Beer!

To commemorate the Xbox 360’s 1st birthday in NZ, the good people at DB sent a special present consisting of many a beer bottle to GamePlanet’s Auckland store. To be precise, $480-worth of beer, which incidentally is the exact price difference between the Xbox 360 (RRP$719.95) and the PLAYSTATION 3 ($1199.95).

Thumbs up to Microsoft on this one…

The Soapbox on MSN Video TeamThanks for helping us test the Soapbox on MSN Video beta – we’ve really appreciated the feedback we’ve gotten from our user community about the service. In order to grow and implement some important new features , Soapbox temporarily requires you to login using your Windows Live ID before you can watch or upload videos. If you don’t have a Soapbox account, we’ll be opening the doors again very soon with some cool new stuff to try. Thanks for your patience as we continue to build the best place to “make your statement” on the web.The Soapbox on MSN Video Team

The simple answer is, is that because of copyright infringment on MSN Soapbox, it’s cutting off all new users on the service and will only let existing beta testers access the website. Who knows when it’ll be back - could be a few days, a week or two, maybe even months. MSN Soapbox Mobile still works though.

Doesn’t that frustrate you? You have a few minutes to kill or have a break and you can’t access Digg. Here is a simple trick to access digg when it is down and I hope it will work for you. It has for me most of the time…

Digg usually only blocks entry from http://www.digg.com/ and http://www.digg.com/news when it is down. If you try any other digg address you can still get through.

Go to http://www.digg.com/news/upcoming instead and you should be able to access digg and get digging in no time! Any other address like http://www.digg.com/news/page1 works as well.

I couldn’t get through digg and it displayed the Out of Service page. I put in http://www.digg.com/news/upcoming and was able to see the page. (Screenshot below)

Happy digging!

Microsoft is frequently dinged for having insecure products, with security holes and vulnerabilities. But Symantec, no friend of Microsoft, said in its latest research report that when it comes to widely-used operating systems, Microsoft is doing better overall than its leading commercial competitors.

The information was a part of Symantec’s 11th Internet Security Threat Report. The report, released this week, covered a huge range of security and vulnerability issues over the last six months of 2006, including operating systems.

Source: internetnews.com

Well, Apple’s Mac adverts are no longer funny, just misleading! 

Alex Kipman from the Windows Ultimate blog has updated the site with a Soapbox video of static wallpapers as DreamScene content. Last week a whole load of wallpapers were up for download on the website, and it seems that some of these wallpapers are in fact moving video DreamScene content. Check out the video of “Upcoming DreamScene content”

That’s right - those in England should know what I’m on about. A figurehead for all that is British - the Teletubbies, one of the sickest, weirdest concepts on British television have reached the grand old age of 10 years old. From left to right, Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa Laa and Po (of which we all grasp the fact that the purple one is obviously gay with the addition of carrying round a handbag most of the time). Happy birthday to you all! May you have another 10 years decade, oh just get cancelled already.

Look what I found browsing around Live Search just a minute ago - Windows Search 4 (previously known as “Windows Desktop Search”, then codenamed: Casino/OneView), and it appears to be running in Windows Vista. It’s not clear whether this is an actual screenshot or whether it’s just a concept design - but it looks really good