Fw: Windows Live Essentials announced

 

From: Kip Kniskern

Sent: Thursday, June 03, 2010 12:00 AM

Subject: Windows Live Essentials announced

Looks like we’re one step closer to getting our hands on Windows Live Wave 4.
Tonight (9pm pdt) Microsoft is taking the wraps off their preview of Windows
Live Essentials, which you can check out at www.windowslivepreview.com.
Sometime soon (think end of the month), you’ll be able to download the public
beta of Essentials. As
we laid out for Mary Jo Foley today, the schedule is supposed to go
something like this:

First, Windows Live Essentials beta gets announced. Then, on
June 15, Hotmail begins rollout. Somewhere end of June (blogger
Francisco Martin is reporting June 21-25), Essentials downloads will be
available and the public beta starts. Final is “in the fall” - we’ve heard
that it will coincide with Windows 7 SP1, as the “first big feature update to
Win7″

If you’ve been following along at home, you should have a pretty good idea of
what’s coming up with (what we think will be called) Windows Live Essentials
2011: Ribbons all around, the re-emergence of Live Mesh as Live Sync, some
really cool new features in Photo Gallery like Photo Fuse:

and people tagging:

and lots more, most of which we’ve been telling you about already. You can
check out Inside
Windows Live or WindowsLivePreview.com for
more.

__________ Information from ESET Smart Security, version of virus signature database 5177 (20100606) __________

The message was checked by ESET Smart Security.

http://www.eset.com

Bing’s Best 3-Download Bings Best 3 themepack

Bing’s Best number
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Previous themepacks:
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__________ Information from ESET Smart Security, version of virus signature database 5177 (20100606) __________

The message was checked by ESET Smart Security.

http://www.eset.com

Live Sync FAQ for Live Mesh users (it lives!)

On Friday, we received a nice tip from Robert
McLaws about a post on the Live Mesh MSDN blog (which hadn’t had an update
since last October), entitled
“Windows Live Sync beta: FAQ if you used Live Mesh beta or the
previous version of Sync”. We were planning on going through the FAQ step by
step and make some comments (which we still plan on doing), but when we went to
pull up the post, *poof* it was gone.

Well, this is the internet. Things don’t just disappear. A quick
Bing search found a nicely
preserved copy on a blog called MSDN Blog Postings via RSS, which we’ll
reproduce here:

Windows Live Sync beta:
FAQ if you used Live Mesh
beta or the previous version of Sync

A new Sync beta will be available for download in the coming weeks. For
information about the beta, please see the
product overview. You can also get instructions for switching to
the new version of Sync here – but we recommend reading the FAQ first.

(LiveSide edit: List of questions at the top removed for space )

Q: Why is Live Mesh beta being replaced by Sync?

A: We heard from customers that they were confused by Microsoft
having two products with similar features. In response to their feedback, we
announced at PDC 2008 that Live Mesh would be integrated into Windows Live.
Since then, we have been focusing our efforts on a single product and working
hard to get Live Mesh technology into Windows Live and ready to serve millions
of customers.

Q: How is the new Sync different from Live Mesh beta?

A: The new Windows Live Sync will be the first version of Sync to
include Live Mesh technology. However, there are some differences between the
new Sync and Live Mesh beta, including:

• Faster remote desktop with zoom
  
• Improved peer-to-peer (P2P) file synchronization
  
• A new web interface integrated with rest of Windows Live
  
• Internet Explorer and Microsoft Office program settings can be synced
  across PCs
  
• Simplified user interface
  
• 2 GB of online storage for synced folders
  
• Support for only Windows 7, Windows Vista with SP2, Windows Server 2008
  R2, Windows Server 2008, and Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard and later
  

Q: What happened to the Live Desktop and device view in Live
Mesh?

A: We heard from customers that they liked these features, but
wanted them to be integrated with other web services that they used
frequently. As a result, we created a web service (devices.live.com) that is integrated into
the other Windows Live services and has a similar look and feel. You can use
Devices to connect to a PC remotely, browse folders that are synced online,
and see information about your computers that are online. Over time, we hope
to make Windows Live services available across more devices.

Q: What happened to integration of Live Mesh into Windows Explorer (e.g.
blue folders, context menus)?

A: In this release, we have focused on making it easy to setup and
manage syncing within the Sync application. We understand that some users
would like to manage sync settings from elsewhere. This is something we would
consider for a future release.

Q: Why can’t I sync folders on my mobile device?

A: With this release of Windows Live Sync, we focused on syncing
folders between computers. In the future, we’ll explore adding support for
other devices including mobile phones.

Q: Why is there less online storage for Sync than there was in the Live
Mesh beta?

A: We made this compromise to reach as many people as possible with
a free service. We learned from the Live Mesh beta that most people used much
less than 2 GB of online storage.

If you used more, here are two options to consider:

• If you need to share and collaborate on folders with a lot of people,
  use Windows Live SkyDrive.
  SkyDrive has 25 GB of storage space and lots of sharing options. You can
  even edit Office documents at the same time and track versions.
  
• If you synced lots of photos or personal videos on your Live Mesh online
  storage, sync them between computers only. With the new Sync beta, you can
  sync pretty much as many files as you want between computers.

Q: Why isn’t the Sync beta supported on Windows XP or Windows Home
Server?

A: Given the growing popularity of Windows 7, we made the decision
to invest our resources in building the latest version of Windows Live
Essentials – including the new Sync - to enhance the Windows 7 experience. The
newest generation of Windows Live Essentials includes innovative technology,
including HD video file formats that aren’t supported on older operating
systems such as Windows XP. As such, we made the difficult decision not to
make this version of Windows Live available for Windows XP.For Windows Home
Server users, the new Sync will work with the new version of Windows Home
Server (code name “Vail”) - currently in preview.

Q: How is the Sync beta different from the last version of Sync
(previously known as FolderShare)?

A: Here are just some of the differences:

• Folders can be synced on online storage for access even when computers
  are offline
  
• Remote connection functionality replaces web-based browsing of folders
  on connected PCs
  
• Internet Explorer and Microsoft Office program settings can be synced
  across PCs
  
• More files (100k) are supported per Sync folder and more Sync folders
  are supported (200)
  
• Even larger files (up to 50 GB) can be synced
  
• The location of synced folders is automatically selected so folders can
  be synced across multiple PCs in one step
  
• Support for only Windows 7, Windows Vista with SP2, Windows Server 2008
  R2, Windows Server 2008, and Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard and later
  

Q: When will I have to upgrade to the new Sync?

A: We will provide more details regarding the transition to the new
Windows Live Sync in the coming months.

Q: Can I still sync my Mac with my PC using Windows Live Sync?

A: Yes. Windows Live Sync supports Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard and later.

Q: Can I run the new Sync beta on the same computer and at the same time
as Live Mesh beta or the previous version of Sync?

A: Please click here for more information.

Q: I’m using Windows Live Toolbar to keep my Internet Explorer favorites
in sync across my PCs. Will Sync beta change this?

A: As part of the overall upgrade to Windows Live Essentials, we’re
replacing Windows Live Toolbar with Bing Bar. Bing Bar offers many
improvements while retaining easy access to Hotmail and other services.
However, Bing Bar doesn’t offer the ability to sync favorites in Internet
Explorer. Instead, you can use Sync beta to sync Internet Explorer settings
like favorites across PCs.

If you currently use Windows Live Toolbar on a computer running Windows XP,
you won’t be able to use the new version of Sync since it isn’t available for
Windows XP. Any favorites you have synced to SkyDrive using Windows Live
Toolbar will still be available on SkyDrive (http://skydrive.live.com).

Q: Why can’t I use all 25 GB of my SkyDrive storage for synced
folders?

A: Synced folders on SkyDrive work differently than the rest of your
SkyDrive. Learn more
about the differences between Sync and SkyDrive

Q: Will I be able to purchase additional online storage for the new
Sync?

A: While we expect that most customers will be satisfied with the amount of
free online storage for synced folders, we understand you might be interested
in more space. This is something we would consider for a future release.

This post originated from and is provided by the MSDN Blogs RSS feed.
The original post of the article can be found here.

We’re not sure why the post was pulled, maybe it was just because the order
of the questions was a little mixed up.Anyway, it was/is a very handy and
informative FAQ, and we don’t want it to get lost in the ether.

__________ Information from ESET Smart Security, version of virus signature database 5177 (20100606) __________

The message was checked by ESET Smart Security.

http://www.eset.com

Live Sync 2011: Improved! With Less Storage!

In another variation on the confusing naming theme that has become a
trademark of Windows Live, Windows Live Wave 4 (or Windows Live 2011, if you
prefer) introduces a newly revamped Live Mesh, which is replacing the current
Live Sync (which itself was an updated FolderShare, a
ByteTaxi product Microsoft bought in 2005). Live Sync 2011 is functionally quite
similar to Live Mesh, minus the mobile component that never got out of limited
beta. It features much improved peer-to-peer sync of your computers, a remote
desktop function, and SkyDrive sync with some built-in sync capabilities for
Office and Internet Explorer settings.

For those of us who have been using Live Mesh since it came out in 2008, the
2gb limit imposed on SkyDrive sync for Live Sync 2011 is certainly
disappointing. Here is a
chart from windowslivepreview that compares “regular” SkyDrive storage to Live
Sync storage:

Live Sync still provides seamless sync between computers, and some limited
storage for your most important or most-used documents (remembering that Office
Web Apps provides versioning to keep you working with the latest version of your
Office documents anyway). We’ll have more on Live Sync hopefully very soon.

__________ Information from ESET Smart Security, version of virus signature database 5177 (20100606) __________

The message was checked by ESET Smart Security.

http://www.eset.com

Wave 4: Windows Live Service Status

So ever since the MSN Messenger days, Microsoft had always provided a page to allow users
to check the current service status for the .NET Messenger Service, despite this
page never really updating even during the rare widespread outages we have had
in the past few years. With the Windows Live Online Services now expanding way
beyond just Messenger, and the massive push towards cloud computing from
Microsoft, services like Hotmail, Calendar, Contacts, SkyDrive, and even your
“Messenger Social” feeds become just as important as the Messenger service. As
such, Microsoft has provided a new page on Windows Live Wave 4 which allows you
to not only check the service status for Messenger, but other Windows Live
services as well. Here’s the description for this new Windows Live
Service Status service on the “All services” page:

Service Status
Get information
about the current performance of Windows Live services.

(Thanks to Jamie
Thomson for this screenshot!)

As you can see, this service also allow users to view the history of any
service outages for the specific services listed, as well as reporting any
issues with the Windows Live services.

Windows Live Service Status will be available at http://status.live.com. Thanks to Picturepan2 @ LiveSino.net for
the heads up!

__________ Information from ESET Smart Security, version of virus signature database 5177 (20100606) __________

The message was checked by ESET Smart Security.

http://www.eset.com

RINGO STARR lyrics - It Don't Come Easy

 

RINGO STARR lyrics - It Don't Come Easy

It don't come easy,
You know it don't come easy.
It don't come easy,
You know it don't come easy.
Got to pay your dues if you wanna sing the blues,
And you know it don't come easy.
You don't have to shout or leap about,
You can even play them easy.
Forget about the past and all your sorrows,
The future won't last,
It will soon be over tomorrow.
I don't ask for much, i only want your trust,
And you know it don't come easy.
And this love of mine keeps growing all the time,
And you know it just ain't easy.
Open up your heart, let's come together,
Use a little love
And we will make it work out better.
(ah -)
(ah -)
(ooh-ooh)
(ah-ooh-ooh)
Got to pay your dues if you wanna sing the blues,
And you know it don't come easy.
You don't have to shout or leap about,
You can even play them easy.
Peace, remember peace is how we make it,
Here within your reach
If you're big enough to take it.
I don't ask for much, i only want your trust,
And you know it don't come easy.
And this love of mine keeps growing all the time,
And you know it don't come easy.

RINGO STARR lyrics - It Don't Come Easy

57 tombs with mummies found in Egypt

 

57 tombs with mummies found in Egypt

Archaeologists say discovery throws new light on religion

Supreme Council of Antiquities / AP

This painted wooden sarcophagus was discovered in Lahoun, south of Cairo.

View related photos

updated 12:48 p.m. ET, Sun., May 23, 2010

CAIRO - Archaeologists have unearthed 57 ancient Egyptian tombs, most of which hold an ornately painted wooden sarcophagus with a mummy inside, Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities said Sunday.

The oldest tombs date back to around 2750 B.C., during the period of Egypt's first and second dynasties, the council said in a statement. Twelve of the tombs belong the 18th Dynasty, which ruled Egypt during the second millennium B.C. The 18th Dynasty includes such well-known pharaohs as Tutankhamun, Akhenaten and Queen Hatshepsut.

The discovery throws new light on Egypt's ancient religions, the council said.

57 tombs with mummies found in Egypt - Science- msnbc.com

Fatal Familial Insomnia: The True Story of The Man Who Never Slept

 

Fatal Familial Insomnia

The True Story of The Man Who Never Slept

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Nov 1, 2007 Rebecca Turner

Fatal Familial Insomnia, or FFI, is a devastating genetic sleep disorder, which strikes during middle age and results in death. This is the story of Michael Corke.

Fatal Familial Insomnia is a rare curse that affects about 40 families around the world. It is caused by prion diseases (mutated proteins) which can affect both humans and animals. Here is one story of Fatal Familial Insomnia, or FFI.

Michael Corke (Michel A Corke)

Shortly after his 40th birthday in 1991, Michael Corke, a music teacher from Chicago, began having trouble sleeping. In the following weeks, the insomnia grew worse and his health rapidly deteriorated. Eventually he couldn’t sleep at all.

The doctors were baffled but could do nothing for him. Michael was physically and mentally exhausted, and wanted nothing more than to be able to fall asleep. But his brain wouldn’t let him.

Video footage of him appearing at a school orchestra concert revealed a frail old man - a far cry from the fit and healthy individual he was just months earlier. Eventually he was admitted to hospital and doctors diagnosed him with an extremely rare genetic disorder discovered just seven years prior: Fatal Familial Insomnia (FFI).

Michael Corke died in hospital after six months from a complete lack of sleep.

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Symptoms of Fatal Familial Insomnia

The FFI sleep disorder is so rare that only 40 families worldwide have been identified as carrying the defective gene. If only one parent has the gene, the offspring has a 50% chance of inheriting and developing the disease.

Fatal Familial Insomnia strikes between the ages of 30 and 60 years, with no apparent trigger that the sufferer can relate to. Patients have been known to survive for up to three years, gradually passing through four stages of illness:

1. The onset of insomnia, creating panic attacks and unfounded phobias, lasting for four months.
2. Severe insomnia, worsening panic attacks and hallucinations, lasting for five months.
3. Complete insomnia and rapid weight loss, lasting for three months.
4. Dementia and unresponsiveness, lasting for six months. FFI is eventually fatal.

Causes of Fatal Familial Insomnia

Ten years ago, scientists discovered that Fatal Familial Insomnia is caused by a dual mutation in a gene that codes for proteins. The tell-tale sign of prion diseases is an insoluble protein that causes plaque to develop in the thalamus. This is the region of the brain responsible for the regulation of sleep, as well as sensory and motor systems.

As the plaque "eats away" at the brain, the sufferer loses the ability to shut down at night. This manifests in the form of insomnia. The resulting symptoms of FFI are caused by the complete lack of REM and NREM sleep, proving that sleep is vital to everyone.

Treatments for Fatal Familial Insomnia

Because of the nature of prion diseases, Fatal Familial Insomnia has been linked with other gene disorders like Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE – or mad cow disease) as well as wasting diseases in deer and elk. It is also linked to Kuru (the laughing disease).

There is currently no known cure for FFI. This prion disease is still shrouded in mystery, and sleeping pills only worsen the symptoms. However, there is hope that one day, Fatal Familial Insomnia will be controlled through gene therapy.

Further Reading

If you found Fatal Familial Insomnia interesting, you may also like:

Fatal Familial Insomnia: A History of FFI

The Effects of Sleep Deprivation

Fatal Familial Insomnia: The True Story of The Man Who Never Slept

Roger Waters gives 'The Wall' a new, 'more political' edge for tour - USATODAY.com

 

Roger Waters gives 'The Wall' a new, 'more political' edge for tour

Updated 4/12/2010 8:32 PM | Comments 13 | Recommend 5
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By Jeff Christensen, AP

Roger Waters is asking relatives of war victims to submit photos on his website to be projected in arenas during his tour.

By Elysa Gardner, USA TODAY

NEW YORK — Roger Waters is rebuilding The Wall— and he wants fans to help.

The British rock veteran will launch a North American tour this fall — kicking off Sept. 15 in Toronto, with shows in the USA scheduled through Dec. 13 — revisiting the epic concept album that he introduced in 1979 as principal songwriter of Pink Floyd.

It has been 30 years since that group launched a string of visually ambitious live performances of the songs and 20 since Waters performed them solo in Berlin.

After showcasing another Floyd classic, The Dark Side of the Moon, on a 2006 trek, Waters "realized that the story in The Wall— of a young man who is alienated and defensive, because he's fearful — could be an allegory for a more universal story. We're all frightened of each other, and that makes us behave in ways that are sadly inhumane, like engaging in wars. I wanted to make this show more political."

To do that, Waters, 66, is posting an appeal on roger-waters.com to relatives of those lost in war. He's asking for their photographs to project onto arena surfaces representing the title's metaphorical wall — so that each victim becomes, in effect, another brick.

"I get slight shivers talking about this," says Waters, who lost his father in World War II. "I want people to remember their loved ones as I remember mine, as part of a show that has a strongly anti-war message."

Rolling Stone contributing editor Anthony DeCurtis doesn't expect Waters' approach will prove too controversial. The Wall's songs have always had "a generalized anti-war message," he says. "People are going to go for the spectacle."

They shouldn't be disappointed. Waters says video technology allows for projections twice the size of those in the original Wall dates, in which a huge wall was constructed between the band and the audience. Album illustrator Gerald Scarfe, who worked on the tour and 1982 film, is providing new art and redesigning puppets and inflatable objects.

Waters also is developing The Wall into a stage musical with Billy Elliot librettist Lee Hall. He doesn't plan to collaborate again with surviving Floyd members Nick Mason and David Gilmour, despite fond memories of the band's reunion at Live 8 in 2005.

"But Nick and I have become great friends again," he says. "We had a bad 15 years, so to come back together is fantastic."

Roger Waters gives 'The Wall' a new, 'more political' edge for tour - USATODAY.com

The 4th Kind (Movie)

"The Fourth Kind" Movie Poster (Image: Universal Pictures)

 "The Fourth Kind" is an alien abduction film 'somewhat' based on real life events, with an out-of-this world twist. The story, set in Nome, Alaska, is loosely based on the mysterious disappearances of 24 people in the town. The FBI did investigate the disappearances, which took place between the 1960s and 2004, and concluded in 2006 that "alcohol" was  common factor in most of the disappearances. Before the FBI concluded the investigation, it was believed that the deaths and disappearances were the work of a local serial killer.

The movie is based on the theory that the missing-persons cases were actually alien abductions. "The Fourth Kind" hit theaters on November 6, 2009 and featured "archival footage" of the "most disturbing evidence of alien abduction ever documented." The 'footage' is that of hypnotherapy sessions between a "Dr. Abigail Tyler," played by Milla Jovovich, and patients who claimed they were abducted. The aliens in the movie spoke the long-lost Sumerian language.

True Story: The FBI and Missing Villagers in Nome Alaska

In 2005, the FBI sent homicide detectives to investigate a series of unsolved disappearances and deaths in Nome, Alaska. Most of the victims were Native villagers. Between the 1960s and 2004, over 20 people mysteriously died, or vanished. In 2006, the FBI concluded that "excessive alcohol consumption and a harsh winter climate" were to blame for the disappearances.

Dr. Abigail Tyler and the "Alaska Psychiatry Journal"

In the movie "The Fourth Kind," Milla Jovovich plays Dr. Abigail Tyler, the Nome, Alaska, psychiatrist who stumbles upon the 'alien abduction' link between her patients, during clinical hypnotherapy sessions. If you search for Dr. Abigail Tyler, Nome Alaska, a website called "Alaska Psychiatry Journal" provides a "biography" of Dr. Tyler with "related articles" on the topics of sleep disorders, emotional issues, hypnotherapy and regression therapy. However, the website does not have a homepage or contact information. The website was registered on GoDaddy in August 2009. A real online-medical publication would have such information, so this leads to the conclusion that the website is a viral marketing ploy, much like the promotion for the upcoming "2012" movie and the  for "Institute for Human Continuity." Sorry to burst your bubble, but this doesn't rule out that Dr. Tyler 'could' have been based on a 'real' doctor; but if there were, the true account would have made for a much more interesting find.

Overall, I love a good horror/sci-fi flick whether it is true or not. This one looks promising. Check out the trailer below.