IIS 7.0 + Media Player 11 + Skype free calling

IIS 7.0 on the MSDN .NET Show
Microsoft revealed about some of the new features, which would be a part of IIS 7 release. Here is the quick summary.

As discussed in this post about IIS 6 that Microsoft has disabled most of the features by default to reduce the attack space for the vulnerabilities. So if some one is not using a feature of IIS, his application should not be a target of attack for some vulnerability in that feature. Now with IIS 7, Microsoft has extended it to next level that you will only install those many features with your IIS which you want to use. Other than this, MS is going to add logging features to help if something goes wrong. Also it would support role delegation so that Admin can delegate some user a role so that he can change some of the settings those defined by Admin.

Beta 1 for Windows Vista is already out in the market. One very important thing is.. IIS 7 is only meant for windows vista or windows longhorn server so all existing windows web server would need an upgrade to use IIS 7.

Windows Media Player 11 Beta Released
Microsoft has launched beta version for Media Player 11. I just installed it on my machine and by the first look, GUI looks pretty cool. Thought I could not manage to do a lot of RnD on the new stuff, but during installation it told about new Music Store, MS has launched like we have ITunes for Mac. You can read more about it here.

Skype Outgoing Calls to US and Canada goes free.
Skype has made outgoing calls to landline phone/ Mobile nos of US and Canada free for US and Canada customers. Its free only if source and destination of the call is both in US or Canada. But if you are skype customer from outside these counties, you will still need to buy Skype Outgoing Credits to make calls to landline/Mobile nos.

Development Tools

SQL Intellisense tool available for free.
Here is the tool available for SQL which adds SQL intellisense capabilities in your Query Analyzer. This is really helpful as you no longer need to look for exact table names and column names while writing SQL queries (as we don’t remember whole lot of things for .net library and mostly rely on intellisense).

Re-Sharper Tool for Visual Studio
Re-Sharper integrates with Visual Studio IDE and provides a lot of features which includes..
1. Syntax and Error Handling
2. Error and Quick-Fixes and Code Assistance
3. Refactoring
4. Code Generation and Code completion etc.

Only word of caution is that it impacts your IDE working speed. You can notice a significant performance hit working with .NET IDE after installing resharper. But still features outweigh the performance loss !!!

Google's Eric Schmidt : Pamela Video Moment

Hey.. This video is really interesting.

Google's Eric Schmidt Has a Pamela Anderson Video Moment

The way Eric started and then how he improved till end of the video... also the conflict thing he talked about... too good.

Microsoft Tech Ed 2006

Microsoft is back with Tech Ed 2006. Here is a newsletter telling details of the same.
----------------------

Dear Developer,

Microsoft India presents Tech.Ed 2006 this June. And for the first time ever - across six cities.

Microsoft Tech.Ed, as you know, is the most definitive technology conference for Developers, IT Professionals, and Architects. Tech.Ed 2006 promises to deliver a more relevant experience for you. With, more focused technology sessions that matter to you, the opportunity to network with the community and with your peers, and access to technology that will enable you to evaluate the technology for yourself.

Also, for the first time ever, we present Tech.Ed for Developers. Two complete days dedicated to Developers with four tracks (32 break-out sessions and multiple Deep Dive Sessions!)

Attend Microsoft Tech.Ed 2006 this June and you will return with the edge you need to keep up with the latest development trends. Here's how:

Gain hands-on experience trying out and evaluating the latest cool development tools.
Acquire skills to build more streamlined, scalable, and secure applications.
Meet and discuss topics of interest with industry gurus, Microsoft staff, and colleagues.
The event promises great content covering topics such as, Programming Mobile Devices; Windows, Web, and Microsoft Office Programming; Language Enhancements and IDE Productivity Features. Besides, addressing issues, such as easier development of applications across client types, migrating applications to .NET, building a scalable and secure architecture, and designing applications for easier and more effective deployment.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Regards,

Sheila Gulati
Director, Developer and Platform Evangelism
Microsoft Corporation, India

Tech-Ed for Developers (Day 1 and Day 2)



For more information on Attending Tech Ed 2006, Agenda, Speakers, Itinerary,
Conference Fees and Registration Form log on to www.techedindia.com

Programmer poetry

This is what i got as a forward mail..



Nice one to read… But Personally, I don’t agree with the poetry. I don’t feel like staring at the monitor, rather I enjoy it !!!
But it may be due to the fact; I haven’t spent that much time with the software industry till now. May be with the passage of time, I also start feeling like boring. :)

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 to Windows Internet Explorer 7

Windows Internet Explorer 7 beta has got some cool features other than most common visible multitab browsing support. Here are some of them:

1. Phishing Filter:-

Here are some FAQs about phishing from Internet Explorer Help.
What is phishing?
Online phishing (pronounced like the word fishing) is a way to trick computer users into revealing personal or financial information through an e-mail message or website. A common online phishing scam starts with an e-mail message that looks like an official notice from a trusted source, such as a bank, credit card company, or reputable online merchant. In the e-mail message, recipients are directed to a fraudulent website where they are asked to provide personal information, such as an account number or password. This information is then usually used for identity theft.
What is Phishing Filter and how can it help protect me?
Phishing Filter is a feature in Internet Explorer that helps detect phishing websites. Phishing Filter uses three methods to help protect you from phishing scams. First, it compares the addresses of websites you visit against a list of sites reported to Microsoft as legitimate. This list is stored on your computer. Second, it helps analyze the sites you visit to see if they have the characteristics common to a phishing website. Third, with your consent, Phishing Filter sends some website addresses to Microsoft to be further checked against a frequently updated list of reported phishing websites.
If the site you are visiting is on the list of reported phishing websites, Internet Explorer will display a warning webpage and a notification on the Address bar. From the warning webpage, you can continue or close the page. If the website contains characteristics common to a phishing site but isn't on the list, Internet Explorer will only notify you in the Address bar that it might possibly be a phishing website. You can click the notification for more information.
Is Phishing Filter always on?
No. When you first install Internet Explorer, Phishing Filter only compares the addresses of the websites you visit against the list of legitimate websites that is saved on your computer. It also helps analyze these sites to see if they have the characteristics common to a phishing website. No information is sent to Microsoft unless you choose to send it. The first time you visit a website that is not on the legitimate website list, you will be prompted to indicate whether you want to check websites automatically. If you choose this option, Phishing Filter will send certain website addresses to Microsoft to be checked against a frequently updated list of reported phishing sites and alert you about suspicious or reported phishing websites. If you choose not to check websites automatically, Phishing Filter will display an icon ( ) on the Internet Explorer status bar. To check the website, click the icon, and then click Check this Website. You can also check websites from Internet Explorer.

2. Zones:

Internet Explorer has different security zones for home internet users. Now, with Internet Explorer 7, it will automatically detect if user belongs to any intranet, then only intranet zone would be active. For home users, it would be inactive automatically to reduce the chance of using intranet zone settings by some malicious site.

3. Improved User Interface:

Internet Explorer 7 has improved User Interface a lot. It has better managed UI to use comparatively less space leaving more space for site navigation. Eg. Microsoft recognized very less use of File Menu, probably that’s the reason the File Menu remains hidden unless you press ALT key from your KeyBoard.

There can be a lot other features, which I could not explore. Would be great, if some one can add more in the list.

Guys who don’t want to take risk of using beta version (as I have noticed some of the sites crashing with Internet Explorer 7, at the same time working fine with Internet Explorer 6 or Firefox) and want to get some of these cool feature in their existing Internet Explorer 6, two of the most important features tabbed browsing and Phishing filters are available through MSN toolbar (Ad-In to Internet Explorer 6)

And yes… have you noticed? Microsoft has renamed Microsoft Internet Explorer to Windows Internet Explorer.

Google Calendar

Quick Digest

• This is why SEO (search engine optimization) is booming like anything
  


• MS followed Windows Desktop Search after Google Desktop Search
  


• Google launched Google Calendar
  


Waiting for MS follow up for calendar..