Stories by Gregg Keizer

Latest Vista bug may be tougher nut to crack

The second Windows Vista vulnerability patched in the last week may be very difficult to exploit, a security researcher said Wednesday, because of the new operating system's additional defenses.

Microsoft patches Vista bug that snuck through beta

Microsoft Tuesday unveiled the second stage of its April security updates by releasing five security bulletins that patched eight vulnerabilities -- including one that was missed during the company's Windows Vista beta testing and ended up in the fin...

Microsoft unites Xbox, PC IM

Microsoft Monday promised that within four weeks it will expand instant messaging on its Xbox 360 game console so that players can chat with others running Windows Live Messenger on their PCs and mobile phones.

Mozilla unveils Thunderbird 2.0 RC1 e-mail client

Mozilla on Friday posted release candidate code for the newest version of its e-mail client, Thunderbird 2.0, which emphasizes message organization and support for Windows Vista.

Users gripe about Vista start-up, shutdown speed

Windows Vista users are complaining on Microsoft's support forums about long start-up, shutdown and application load times compared with Windows XP.

Apple passes 100M iPod mark

Apple has announced that it has sold 100 million of its iconic iPods since the popular music player's release five and a half years ago.

Hackers dupe users with spam about bogus US-Iran war

A weekend spam run tried to dupe recipients into downloading the infamous "Storm Trojan" by attaching files that posed as videos of a bogus missile strike by the U.S. against Iran, antivirus vendors said Monday.

Separated at birth: WMF and ANI bugs compared

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Microsoft defends 100-day ANI patch process

Microsoft first learned of the animated cursor flaw in Windows in December 2006, more than 100 days before it released an emergency patch. The release marked just the third time in more than two years it has released an out-of-cycle security update.

Apple unveils octa-core Mac Pro

Apple has added an option to its Mac Pro desktop line that lets customers build out systems equipped with two of Intel's fastest quad-core Xeon processors, marking the first time users have been able to buy a Mac powered by eight -- yes, eight -- pro...

Firefox also vulnerable to Windows cursor exploit

Contrary to other reports, Mozilla's Firefox 2.0 is vulnerable to attackers armed with the Windows animated (ANI) cursor exploit, a researcher said Tuesday.

EMI's decision to drop DRM good news for consumers

EMI Group's announcement that it will ditch digital rights management (DRM) restrictions on tracks sold through Apple's iTunes music store is a major win for consumers, a smart tactical move by both companies and may be the turning point in making di...

Here's the scoop on the Windows animated cursor bug

When a major vulnerability affecting every flavor of Windows -- including Vista -- breaks, it only seems like chaos ensues. Okay, so it is chaos. Witness the so-far short-lived flaw in Windows' animated cursors (ANI), which picked up enough steam ove...

Microsoft to patch animated cursor bug early

Microsoft will patch the increasingly dangerous Windows animated cursor vulnerability tomorrow, a week early, a spokesman of the company's security team said Sunday.