Thursday, September 22, 2011

Tips and Tricks to Make SQL Server Management Studio Awesome

 

SQL Server Management Studio is the de facto tool for working with SQL Server. But its default options may not always be the best way for you to work. After working with it for years, I’ve come up with a list of my favorite features.

(Secret: This is also my way of recording this so that the next time I need to set up a new PC, I just have to come back here.)

Part I: The Options Menu

In SSMS, go to Tools > Options. more @ Jes Schultz Borland (grrlgeek) blog

Facebook Timeline @ F8 Conference

Today at Facebook’s F8 conference, CEO Mark Zuckerberg unveiled the next evolution of the service more..

Microsoft has Skydrive, Apple has iCloud, and now HTC has Dropbox

 

Owners of new HTC Sense 3.5 devices like the Rhyme will get an additional 3GB for free i.e. 2GB dropbox free + this 3GB = total 5GB for these HTC phones..

How to install Windows 8 Developer Preview On Oracle VirtualBox

 

It’s the same install process as described for VMWare in my earlier post.. just make sure following settings are set while creating VM in Virtual Box:

 

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And enjoy Windows 8 Developer Preview on Oracle VirtuallBox!!

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Wednesday, September 21, 2011

How to install Windows 8 Developer Preview on VMWare WorkStation

 

STEP 01: Download VMWare Workstation 8 and install it

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Download VMWare Workstation 8 Trial Version

STEP 02: Create New Virtaul Machine

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STEP 03: Select I will install the OS later

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STEP 04: Select Microsoft Windows radio button and Windows 7 from the drop down

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STEP 05: Specify VM location

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STEP 06: Specify disk capacity

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STEP 07: Click on Customize Hardware

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STEP 08: Specify the Windows 8 Developer Preview ISO file location

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STEP 09: Installing Windows 8 (These screens are self-explanatory)

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Enjoy Windows 8 Developer Preview in VMWare !!

Mint.com Personal Finance app updated with new features

 

Mint.com

Intuit's popular personal finance app Mint has been updated with a few new features, along with some security enhancements. You can now add transactions from your device, as well as view your available and current balances for each of your accounts. Mint also now supports Google Maps to change the location of your transaction, and Google Places to find a merchant when adding a transaction. You can grab the update from the Android Market after the break. 

Mint.com Personal Finance app updated with new features by Anndrew Vacca

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

BEAST vs. TSL/SSL: HTTPS/HSTS Not so secure

 

Beware of BEAST decrypting secret PayPal cookies

Researchers have discovered a serious weakness in virtually all websites protected by the secure sockets layer protocol that allows attackers to silently decrypt data that's passing between a webserver and an end-user browser.

The vulnerability resides in versions 1.0 and earlier of TLS, or transport layer security, the successor to the secure sockets layer technology that serves as the internet's foundation of trust. Although versions 1.1 and 1.2 of TLS aren't susceptible, they remain almost entirely unsupported in browsers and websites alike, making encrypted transactions on PayPal, GMail, and just about every other website vulnerable to eavesdropping by hackers who are able to control the connection between the end user and the website he's visiting.

At the Ekoparty security conference in Buenos Aires later this week, researchers Thai Duong and Juliano Rizzo plan to demonstrate proof-of-concept code called BEAST, which is short for Browser Exploit Against SSL/TLS. The stealthy piece of JavaScript works with a network sniffer to decrypt encrypted cookies a targeted website uses to grant access to restricted user accounts. The exploit works even against sites that use HSTS, or HTTP Strict Transport Security, which prevents certain pages from loading unless they're protected by SSL.

The demo will decrypt an authentication cookie used to access a PayPal account

(More @ Hackers break SSL encryption used by millions of sites Dan Goodin)

Windows 8: Keep Both Start Menu and Metro UI at the Same Time

 

Step 1: Download software called Classic Shell. Don’t worry its works perfectly with Windows 8 even though it was created for Vista and Windows 7.

Step 2: Install it.

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Step 3: All set, click on the Windows Start Button, you should see the Default Classic Start Menu.

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Step 4: (Optional) To change Start Menu to Two columns Windows 7 Style.

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Clicking on the Windows Start button brings up the old Start Menu. To get to the Metro Start screen, hover the mouse pointer to the bottom corner of the Windows Start button as shown in the following screenshot.

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Enjoy! The Best of the Both Worlds Winking smile 

Note: For more details about the classic shell @ codeproject KB article. And don’t forget to play with other settings like Explorer, IE..

Monday, September 19, 2011

Active Architecture for Agile Projects

 

Active Architecture is a type of documentation that helps to bridge the gap between User Stories in Agile Projects and large design deliverables on Traditional projects. It leverages the power and simplicity of User Stories. Unlike traditional design documentation that defines the structure or passive state of the design, Active Architecture defines the actions or active state of the design.

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(more @ Terry Bunio blog..) 

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 10:48:00 GMT

Deploying Office XP on Windows Terminal Services

 

Microsoft® Windows NT® 4.0 Terminal Server and Terminal Services–enabled Microsoft Windows® 2000 Server provide a thin-client solution for Windows-based programs. Terminal Server and Terminal Services run applications and display the application's user interface on a client computer. For example, users who have computers with limited disk space, memory, or processing speed can connect to a Terminal Services computer and use Microsoft Office XP applications as if the applications were running on the local computer.


Note    Installation of Office XP on a Terminal Services–enabled system requires the use of the Application Server mode configuration. A computer configured for Remote Administration mode is not recognized by Office XP Setup; Office XP will install as if it were being installed to a generic workstation.

Also, it is recommended to use Windows 2000 compatibility mode for Terminal Services when installing to a Windows 2000 server to preserve a locked-down state of the registry.


How Office XP works with Terminal Services

With Terminal Services, you can install a single copy of Office XP on a Terminal Services–enabled computer. Then, instead of running Office locally on a single user's computer, multiple users connect to a server and run Office from there.

(more..)

Oracle Releases Security Alert for Oracle HTTP Server Products

 

Oracle has released a security alert to address a vulnerability in Apache HTTPD.  This vulnerability affects:

  • Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g Release 1, versions 11.1.1.3.0, 11.1.1.4.0, 11.1.1.5.0
  • Oracle Application Server 10g Release 3, version 10.1.3.5.0
  • Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2, version 10.1.2.3.0

Exploitation of this vulnerability may allow an attacker to cause a denial-of-service condition.

US-CERT encourages users and administrators to review the Oracle Security Alert for CVE-2011-3192 and apply any necessary updates to help mitigate the risks. Additional information can be found in Vulnerability Note VU#405811

Missile maker sees network hacked

 

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries factories that build guided missiles and rocket engines; submarines; and nuclear-power equipment have had their computer networks hacked, according to a report.

Missile maker sees network hacked
Mon, 19 Sep 2011 03:44:16 GMT

Raytheon passes major Navy destroyer radar milestone

 

The U.S. Navy is evaluating next-generation radar technology from three major military contractors. Raytheon says its Gallium Nitride technology has surpassed 1,000 hours of testing without problems, a crucial step towards demonstrating its power.

Raytheon passes major Navy destroyer radar milestone
Mon, 19 Sep 2011 13:01:00 GMT

Big Tables, Sorts and Indexes Solution (Right On Mother)

 

My, what a clever lot we have reading this blog Indeed, most of the work has already been done for me as we already have a couple of excellent demos in the list of comments. The answer is Yes, the CBO will consider using the index and Yes, there may be a number of scenarios when the [...]

Big Tables, Sorts and Indexes Solution (Right On Mother)
Richard Foote
Mon, 19 Sep 2011 10:50:16 GMT

Grab Free Full Version License of TuneUp Utilities 2011

 

TuneUp is running a promotion for Free full-version license of latest TuneUp Utilities 2011. It must be planning launch the new 2012 version in near future or so..

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STEPS:

1. Goto promotion page. Enter a valid email address, enter your name in Retailer, input captcha code and click on the ‘Get product key’ button. 

2. Check your email inbox for the confirmation e-mail sent to you. Click the link in the email to obtain your personal product key for TuneUp Utilities 2011.

4. Download TuneUp Utilities 2011 and activate it using the license key received.

The product key works on English version of TuneUp 2011. Enjoy!

Windows8 StartMenu gadget!

Project Description

Make it easy to use the start menu in Windows 8 with this gadget! Change the Start menu of Windows 7 and Windows 8. With one click change the Start menu style!

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Pre-Requirements
Microsoft Windows 8 Developer Preview
Get Started
Download the latest release

Project Features

  • Shows a  gadget in desktop with current Windows startmenu style
  • Change the Start menu style with a click on the gadget
  • Five options for background color of the gadget

How To Use A Picture Password Or Pin As Your Windows Password

 

Windows 8 comes with options to use Windows Live accounts as user accounts on the system, or to use a local account with no ties to the Internet. If security is an issue you have probably selected a secure password for your account log on. That may be inconvenient if you are using a touch based device, especially if it does not come with a full qwertz keyboard.

Microsoft has added two additional password options for Windows users to make the log on more comfortably. The two options are picture password and pin logon.

Both options are available under Control Panel > Users from the Metro UI. This opens a Control Panel applet where the currently logged in user can switch to a picture or pin password.

user account password

Either selection there will prompt for the current account password before the configuration options become available.

Picture Password

A picture password basically consists of three gestures on an image that make up the password.

The size, position and directions of the gestures, as well as their order become part of the picture password.

picture password

Setting up a picture password makes sense on touch based devices, as it is usually a lot faster to use gestures than to use a digital keyboard to enter the password.

Windows 8 asks you to configure three gestures and repeat them afterwards before the gesture based password will be set. While it is possible to use the mouse for that, it is not the most convenient thing to do. The verdict here is that a picture password can be a solid alternative on touch based devices, but not on desktop PCs or mobile devices without touch capabilities.

More (How To Use A Picture Password Or Pin As Your Windows Password Martin Brinkmann)

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