Newsletter Archives

• Microsoft Security Essentials – get yours today

  Posted on September 29, 2009 at 16:06 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  I’ve been using Microsoft Security Essentials (code-name Morro) on a dozen computers for more than a month.

  I like it. I bet you’ll like it too.

  I like it so much that I’ve thrown away my old antivirus programs and replaced them. All of them.

  MSE is free. It works, and works well. I’ve written about it several times on this site, and cover it extensively in my new Windows 7 book.

  According to a Microsoft Press Release, it will be widely available today.

  Microsoft Security Essentials, Microsoft Corp.’s new no-cost, core anti-malware service that helps protect consumers against viruses, spyware and other malicious software, will be available tomorrow, Tuesday, Sept. 29. Microsoft Security Essentials, independently certified by West Coast Labs, is backed by the company’s global security response team and is built on the same award-winning core security technology found in the company’s security solutions for businesses. It requires no registration, trials or renewals and will be available for download directly from Microsoft at http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials.

  There may be some glitches, so I don’t yet recommend that you throw caution to the wind and change immediately. But you should certainly watch closely.

  UPDATE: It’s up.

  Windows Patches/Security Microsoft Security Essentials, Morro

• Morro = Microsoft Security Essentials

  Posted on June 18, 2009 at 16:33 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  Several of you have asked why I haven’t posted anything about the leaked Morro screenshots. Simple reason: there isn’t much there to see.

  What a difference a day makes.

  Neowin has just posted new screen shots of Morro, and there are several surprises in store, not the least of which is that Morro has finally been given a name: Microsoft Security Essentials.

  I’ll let you know when there are more details.

  UPDATE: It’s MICROSOFT Security Essentials, not Windows Security Essentials. Not to be confused with Windows Live Essentials, eh?

  Windows News Morro, Windows Security Essentials

• Make Way for Morro

  Posted on June 11, 2009 at 07:37 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  Reuters broke the news.

  Thurrott confirmed it, without actually confirming it, if you know what I mean.

  Morro is imminent. The beta could hit any day now.

  As you may recall, Morro is Microsoft’s free antivirus product that’s supposed to be the replacement for the ill-fated AV portion of Windows Live OneCare.

  What surprises me is the stock market reaction: Microsoft is up more than 2% and the AV manufacturers are down quite a bit. The market should’ve taken Morro into account months ago, when it was first announced. Some investors were clearly asleep at the wheel.

   

  Windows News Morro

• Idle speculation on Windows Defender and Morro

  Posted on April 14, 2009 at 12:53 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  I’ve been digging deep into Windows 7’s version of Windows Defender, and come to the conclusion that Microsoft is hiding it for a reason.

  Consider: Windows Defender used to appear on the start menu. In Windows 7, to find it you either have to list the Control Panel programs individually, or you have to type defe in the Search box.

  Windows Defender used to have a good blocker for auto-starting programs. The version in Windows 7 doesn’t have the “Software Explorer.”

  Windows Defender used to sit in the notification area – the system tray down near the time.

  My guess is that Microsoft has already decided to turn Windows Defender into an orphan. And the most likely beneficiary is the program that also inherits the Windows Live OneCare mantle: the promised (but not yet announced) Morro antivirus program.

  I wonder…

  Other Morro, Windows Defender, Windows Live OneCare

• Microsoft plans major Windows 7 announcement – urp

  Posted on April 5, 2009 at 08:43 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  Okay, so I’m seeing notices all over the Internet that Microsoft is going to make a “major” Windows 7 announcement shortly. InfoWorld said:

  Microsoft will make “major new announcements” relating to its forthcoming Windows 7 operating system when it launches the Release Candidate of the OS, according to a British technology news site.

  Well, of course Microsoft will make major new announcements when the RC ships. It’s another non-news event that doesn’t even rise above the background level – one of the reasons why I haven’t posted anything about it.

  That was until I read Paul Thurrot’s take on the topic:

  I do know what at least one of these big surprises is. And no, I’m not talking. But let’s just say I’ve been hinting at it for a while now.

  Gad.

  My guess is that Microsoft will announce some sort of Windows XP emulator that runs under Windows 7 Enterprise Edition. (No, they won’t call it an emulator, they’ll call it “Enterprise Desktop Virtualisation” but – with apologies to the developers who hate the term – it’s basically a fancy emulator.) That’ll make a lot of companies happy. But it’s not something I would call major.

  Major would be an announcement about Morro. You may recall that Morro is the promised FREE Microsoft antivirus/antimalware program that’s supposed to ship in “the second half of 2009.” Ryan Naraine has a good write-up on his ZDNet blog.

  I’d stand up and cheer for Morro – if only because it’d reduce the cries of pain from Norton and McAfee users.
  

  Windows News Morro, Windows 7