Stories by Gregg Keizer

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 over the weekend to power a turbine or two. IT staff, small business users and consumers have been trying to figure out which way is up, and whether this is a Big Deal or just another security industry siren blaring in the background. This FAQ on the flaw, explains what it is, which machines are at risk and what you can do to protect yourself.

Gartner: XP can be 'green' too

Microsoft might have tooted the public relations horn about Vista's power-saving features, a Gartner analyst said this week, but businesses would be smart to look at ways they can save electricity on their XP-powered PCs rather than worry about what the new OS offers.

Windows zero-day flaw 'very dangerous,' experts say

The Windows zero-day bug now being used by attackers is extremely dangerous, security researchers said Friday, and ranks with the Windows Metafile vulnerability of more than a year ago on the potential damage meter.

Apple's Boot Camp updated for Vista

Apple yesterday updated Boot Camp, the still-in-beta application that lets Mac users run Windows on Intel-powered machines, to support Vista, Microsoft's newest operating system.

Has IE 7 turned back Firefox?

Firefox's success in chipping away at Internet Explorer's (IE) majority Web browser market share has slowed since Microsoft began pushing the new IE7 as an automatic update to Windows users last year, a management consulting firm said Wednesday.

Microsoft warns of zero-day Windows bug

Microsoft confirmed Thursday that Windows, including Vista, contains a critical unpatched vulnerability that can be used by attackers to usurp PCs when users surf to malicious sites.

Microsoft, not Apple, releases Vista iPod fix

Microsoft Tuesday released several fixes for Windows Vista bugs, including one involving the ubiquitous iPod music player that Apple didn't fix in an iTunes update three weeks ago.

Critical bugs plague StarOffice, OpenOffice suites

Bugs in Sun Microsystems's StarOffice and OpenOffice.org's OpenOffice application suites allow attackers to snatch control of a computer by serving up malicious documents or URLs, the two organizations said Monday.

Vista bug turns file copying into drawn-out affair

A Vista bug is frustrating some users with extra-long wait times to move, copy or delete files. Microsoft has acknowledged the flaw and produced a hot fix for it, but users must call the company's support line to obtain the patch.

US gov't warns about batteries after in-flight fires

U.S. transportation officials last week warned travellers to take precautions when flying with battery-powered gear such as laptops and cell phones after two in-flight fires involving batteries were reported in the last six weeks.

Yahoo refreshes Widgets

Yahoo Thursday updated its free Widget software and touted the program's new automatic updating feature and its lighter appetite for RAM.

Is Xbox support staff helping hackers hijack accounts?

Microsoft Thursday blamed Xbox Live network account hacks on users' gullibility, but evidence shows that in some cases the gaming service's own support staff could be unwittingly helping hackers snare players' identities.

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