With little fanfare, Microsoft has released Service Pack 2 for updating its Windows Vista operating system. As with the previous service pack, it contained many bug fixes and will help security for users both on corporate networks and at home.

As well as bug fixes, it also contained a number of refinements to the advanced operating system.

Although many of the refinements have been designed with large corporate users in mind, they will make a difference to many home users as well.

Two of the key changes are the updated Windows Search 4.0 and Windows Vista Feature Pack for Wireless programmes.

Windows Search 4.0 updates include improvements to hep users index and find files on their machines, and Windows Vista Feature Pack for Wireless updates offer upgraded Wi-Fi and Bluetooth components for wireless networking.

But with more bugs being fixed, it should prevent a number of malicious attacks and generally make the operating system more secure.

Those users who have not automatically received the Vista Service Pack 2, should go to the Microsoft website to update their operating system.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Major software offerings from Microsoft and Google have this week drawn criticism from industry experts for major security flaws.

Close on the heels of Microsoft’s none too well received operating system Windows Vista, is Windows 7 which has been tested by the public in its “release candidate form.” Versions can be downloaded by the general public and tested.

Although the initial reaction has been good, seeing it as an improvement on the cumbersome Vista, there are worries that it contains an inherent security flaw.

Windows 7 was slated in for a release date of January 2010, but it might be earlier, with Microsoft saying that they are ahead of schedule. Generally, Vista was a disappointment, standing accused of being like a sieve when it came to security (requiring constant updates) and slowing down performance times. Windows 7 appears to solve a lot of those problems and features quicker response times, a new task bar, a touch-screen capability and an ability to stream media files (including music) from one computer to another via the internet.

But the question of computer security has reared its ugly head again with some suggesting that there is a major flaw in Windows Explorer (the heart of the operating system’s file management system) which allows other users to be attacked by hackers.

And what worries the experts is that this major flaw is not new, but existed in previous versions of Windows Explorer. And the irony is not lost on many, after Microsoft has sworn themselves to a “trust vision” to make security in their products a major preoccupation.

And Google’s all-singing, all dancing new browser has shown to be a little flaky. Chrome is liked by many, but Google has had to fix quite a few security holes, which then led to a problem with crashed computers. Chrome version 1.0.154.64 was released recently to put right two major security problems. The first concerned an ability for a hacker to run attack software that had the same priviledge as the primary user. The second problem centred on the 2D graphics which could have created an opening for attack software to be infiltrated into the browser’s security system.

But when the new version was released, having fixed the two security problems, it caused a few crashes, so a new version quickly followed.

Guest Article by Neil Camp