That’s right…we’ve reached another important product milestone!  The highly anticipated Windows Home Server Release Candidate is available today.  The product team has been logging long hours and doing heroic work to finalize this new and improved build.   

The community has been chomping at the bit for RC.  And while with Beta 2 and CTP we accepted applicants into the beta program in stages, we’ll make the RC software available to all 100,000+ beta program applicants asap, as well as all new sign ups. 

Source: Bink.nu

“The complaint says that Vista’s indexing service cannot easily be turned off and creates a drag on system resources when operating at the same time as rival indexers, like the one in Google Desktop Search. Google argues that this behavior is anticompetitive”

-via ars technica

Google is over doing it this time. This is absurd and the complaint will be throw out. Vista search performance and UI is better, if you using XP use Google desktop search, on Vista the in-built search is excellent. I see no reason why Microsoft should provide alternatives, it is their OS.

So they should give an option for every 3rd party app. that is out there? All that will be left is the core system programs and explorer, wait there will be a 3rd party explorer too! Rubbish!

Why is it when Microsoft adds anything to their operating system it’s anti-competitive, but when anyone else adds to theirs it’s a feature?

Well ask Google to provide search alternatives like ask.com and Live Search on their page or stop whining and start build their own freaking OS! I guess their ‘Don’t be Evil’ motto is still beta.

Ask.com’s recent relaunch seems to have built upon a prototype called Ask X.

If you look at the Ask X’s search field it is shockingly similar to Microsoft’s Live Search.

Mirroring the Search (Zoom) glass the other way round doesn’t really count as original design now does it?

The Windows Live Jewel button that is found across all Windows Live Services seems to have problems with the Internet Explorer 7 zoom functionality.

(IE7 Zoom at 50%)

When I zoomed out to 50% on IE7, the Jewel button did not scale back like the rest of the website and it was all pixelated. I hope Microsoft fixes this, although it is a minor annoyance it is still something they should look into as it developed both of these products.

Update:

This only occurs when you zoom from normal to 125% or higher and then zoom to 50%.

Another interesting thing…

When you zoom from normal (100%) to 50%, the button scales down as it should like the rest of the website. Then when you try to zoom to something more than the 100%, say 150% , the button does not scale and remains at the 50% zoom level.

(Zoom from 50% to 150%)

When you punch ‘Popfly’ into Google this is what the first result comes up as…

Steve Jobs and Bill Gates at the joint interview at All Things Digital…

We have one beta invite for the Windows Live Suite beta (Live Messenger, Live Writer and Live Mail). Although the betas are in the public to download, if you want to be a part of the testing experience and guaranteed placing on the Windows Live Messenger 9.0 beta, then leave a comment below with your email address in the correct field and we’ll pick one out.

But to make things interesting - I’d like to know in your comment, reasons “why someone will never look at me the same way again”. These can be hilarious as a result - the best one gets the invite. Go!

LiveSide jumped on this story as soon as it broke, in the middle of the night UK time. Chris dude, please sleep. I do worry about your health at times. You’re a good bloke and I’ve known you for a good few years - please sleep once in a while

Windows Live Messenger 8.5
Nothing really new except this emoticon ““ which can be written as (’.') - oh, there seems to be some Windows Live Folders integration for when that’s out of beta, but that’s soon to come too, part of the Live Drive “cloud” of storage service. There’s a new theme as well, but that’s really all there is to it… there’s not even any added Aero support.
Download here or check out it’s beta web page.

Windows Live Mail
The new name for Windows Live Mail desktop, which will replace Outlook Express and Windows Mail in Windows Vista. It’s awfully confusing with all these mail applications that Microsoft have suddenly thrown at us all, but Windows Live Mail is meant to overtake everything that it’s previously made, allowing Hotmail accounts and Outlook accounts to be used in this new client.
Download here or check out it’s beta web page.

Windows Live Writer
The new way to blog to whichever blog site you have - whether it be Windows Live Spaces or Wordpress, you can add an entry with picture, map or video support. Fully extensible with plugins (some of the ones that Scott at LiveSide has made are brilliant), and it keeps everything in a nice tight-nit place.
Download here or check out it’s beta web page.

All of these products now have the same confluent theme, which I can only presume will eventually resonate throughout all the new versions of the Windows Live products which come out. They all have new installers which simply install and give no more than 2 shortcuts on your desktop, but they’re all new and exciting and I recommend anyone with some spare time to check them out.

Microsoft has unveiled a new touch-sensitive coffee table-shaped computer called “Surface”. Designed to do away with the need for a traditional mouse and keyboard, users can instead use their fingers to operate the computer. Also designed to interact with mobile phones placed on the surface, Microsoft says it will initially sell the unit to corporate customers. These will include hotels, casinos, phone stores and restaurants.

So-called “multi-touch” interfaces - which allow the user to “gesture” with several fingers at once to manipulate data, rather than relying on a mouse and menus - have been making waves in tech circles for some time. One of the most hotly-awaited examples is Apple’s iPhone, which is scheduled to be released in June.

Hewlett-Packard has also been looking at expanding multi-touch technology, in addition to leading research scientists such as Jeff Han of New York University’s Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences. With a 30-inch screen, Surface will initially sell for between $5,000 and $10,000 (£2,525-£5,050). However, Microsoft said it aimed to produce cheaper versions for homes within three to five years.

“We see this as a multi-billion dollar category, and we envision a time when surface computing technologies will be pervasive, from tabletops and counters to the hallway mirror,” said Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer. Microsoft says small groups of people will be able to use each Surface machine simultaneously.

They will be first deployed in November in Sheraton hotels, Harrah’s casinos, T-Mobile stores, and numerous restaurants. The computer giant has had a mixed record recently with new consumer products. While its Xbox games console has been a success, its Zune music player continues to lag far behind Apple’s iPod.

Source: BBC News