You Can Update XP Using An OS Hack

Are you are still using Windows XP and do not have enough funds to buy a new system? It is obvious that with the Windows tech support for XP having officially ended, you can no longer update your OS either, which means you are doomed with an outdated operating system. But, as it turns out, if you know a little bit of computer programming, you can use a hacking trick and update your officially-retired Windows XP OS.

How does this work?

Though Microsoft officially shut down Windows tech support for Windows XP, it seems that XP support is still available for some of the embedded OS versions. It is interesting to note that some Windows XP embedded platforms were released a few years after the official release of XP platform and they are still in their extended support period.

For example, Windows XP embedded POSReady 2009 OS, as it is evident from the name itself, was released in 2009. The ten-year Microsoft tech support is available for this OS at present, which means that the Windows XP embedded POSReady 2009 OS will receive official security updates until 2019.

Interestingly, you can install Windows XP Embedded OS updates on Windows XP desktop OS too. This can be done if you use an OS hack to change the registry file indicating the OS version you are using. After you have made this change, you can go to the Windows Update server online and check for the latest security updates available.

The Windows Update server will then recognize your system running on Windows XP Embedded POSReady 2009 OS and will release the latest Microsoft security updates available for it. You just have to download and install them in your system manually. Be reminded that you cannot use the Windows Update function for installing these updates directly.

Microsoft is aware of this loophole and they have issued a statement warning XP users not to use this option for getting security updates for their computer. Of course, hacking your OS like this is never a smart idea. In addition, according to Microsoft, those security updates are designed for the XP Embedded operating systems alone and if you install them in your XP desktop OS, it might lead to many OS errors and problems.

So, this so-called clever idea might not be that clever after all. You should just upgrade to a new generation OS instead.

Windows 8 Upgrade Guide

This article discusses the steps to do the Windows 8 upgrade. If you are a Windows 7 user, you can follow the simple steps that are explained below to upgrade to the latest Windows operating system.

Instructions

• Download the Windows8 Upgrade Assistant program.
• After the download completes successfully, you can run the Upgrade Assistant program on the Windows 7 computer in which you want to upgrade to Windows 8 OS. In the User Account Control prompt, click on the Yes button to proceed.
• The Upgrade Assistant program will start scanning your computer for all the installed devices and programs. After a few minutes, you will be able to see the compatibility report. You can click on See compatibility details button to see all the compatible and incompatible devices and programs. 
• Click on the Next button. Here the user can select what to keep during the upgrade process. If you are upgrading from Windows 7 operating system, you will be able to keep all the installed programs that are compatible, Windows settings, and personal files. After that, choose Windows settings, apps and personal files, and then click on the Next button to continue.
• In the next screen, you have to order your Windows 8 Pro upgrade license. You can click on the OK button to proceed.
• Select Windows DVD option in the next screen if you wish to purchase the upgrade DVD by providing more money. You can click on the Checkout button to continue.
• The Upgrade Assistant program will connect you to the Microsoft Store and will ask you to give the billing address. Type in your name, email address, and then select the Next button. Ensure that the information that you provide here matches with the billing address for the payment that you are going to use. Select the Next button to proceed.
• Select the payment method, type in the necessary information and then select the Next button. 
• Check the box named I agree to the terms and conditions, type in the promo code if you have one, and then select Buy to get your Windows 8 upgrade product key. If you wish to print out the receipt, you may click on View receipt and then select the Print button.

These are the simple and easy to follow steps to upgrade to Windows 8 OS. If you have any doubts, you can contact our tech support team.

Effective Email Search In Outlook

Microsoft Outlook continues to be better than ever, with newly released versions having effective productivity applications that help make our work a piece of cake. The built-in Outlook 2010 Instant Search feature is many times faster than its predecessors are, and even faster than some of the available third party extensions.

However, you have to open the entire Outlook application before you can search for a single email in Outlook, wasting valuable time. Outlook users would prefer searching e-mail even when Outlook is closed. Even though the built-in Instant Feature does not support this feature, Outlook Mai Finder, a third party application lets you search through your e-mails in seconds!

This lightweight (less than 1MB) freeware application lets you search through the indexed e-mails in an extremely short time. It does so by indexing all the emails in your folder beforehand. This application is highly customizable, letting you index only the folders whose contents should be displayed. Simply head over to the Search index options, from the left sidebar, and select the folders you want to archive.

Moreover, you can schedule this feature such that it is automatically indexed on a predefined time. It is recommended to index your mails every day, keeping the search feature up-to-date and saving time as well.

Outlook Mail Finder indexes your emails into a Microsoft Access Database file (flat file) automatically, but this can be changed into a MySQL database file upon your will. The ability to customize the way you want it makes this application the best suited search program.

Once you have configured all the settings and indexed the emails in your folder, click on the Outlook Search tab and type in the keyword you want to search. Search in the subject, Mail body, or attachment file name to bring relevant search results. You can narrow down your search list by choosing to search by Sender or Receiver. Searching for email in Outlook will be instantaneous!

Outlook Mail Finder is able to index a large folder in surprisingly short time. The time taken to index would depend on the number of folders you selected and the item inside those folders. However, if you need to recreate an index, you would have to delete the existing index, and then start from scratch. It is compatible with Windows XP, Windows 2003 Server, Windows Vista, Windows 2008 Server, and Windows 7 and runs on all versions of Office. The best part is, it even works on the Microsoft Exchange Server!

Use Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant For A Smooth Transition To The New Windows OS

For those, who want to know how to upgrade to Windows 8, Microsoft has released the Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant to guide you through the process. Whenever Microsoft releases a new Windows OS versions, there often emerges reports about OS upgrade errors and other problems. This time around, Microsoft planned to reduce the number of users getting affected by such errors.

So, how to upgrade to Windows 8 using this Upgrade Assistant?

You just have to go to the Microsoft Windows 8, where detailed instructions about upgrading to Windows 8, its OS system requirements and other details will be mentioned. There, you will find the link for downloading the Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant application, and some instructions to install and use it.

There is nothing to it really. Just install and run it like any other application in your OS. When you run the Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant application, it will scan the hardware and software components in your system to find out which of them falls short of Windows 8 system requirements. This information will be presented to you in the form of an OS compatibility report.

You need to go through this report to find out, which all hardware and software components you need to replace in order to make your system compatible with the new OS. You need to make all these changes before you upgrade to Windows 8. In some cases, it might be possible to install Windows 8 on a system that does not meet the system requirements in full. But, you would sooner or later encounter problems in your new OS.

To avoid such errors, follow the instructions of the Windows 8 Upgrade Assistant as you upgrade to the new OS. If your system indeed meets the Windows 8 system requirements, then you will be given the online link for purchasing the recommended Windows 8 OS version for your needs. Of course, Windows 8 is not a freeware OS. Here, you need to choose an online payment method and pay for the Windows 8 version you want to download.

With the successful transaction of the amount, you will receive the product key for activating the Windows 8 OS. Now, download and install the Windows 8 OS in your system and activate it using the product key. If you have any doubts regarding this, just visit the Windows 8 website for more information.

Windows 8.1 Users Have To Update Their OS To Continue Receiving Support

When Microsoft introduced the Windows 8.1 as a free Windows 8 update, many Windows 8 users started downloading Windows 8 OS update and upgraded it to Windows 8.1. But then afterwards, Microsoft issued a statement saying there are security flaws in the new Windows 8.1 OS, which can be fixed by installing the Windows 8.1 Update 1.

Microsoft to end support for the Windows 8.1 OS

Since the Windows 8.1 Update 1 files are too big – about 2 GB for the 64-bit Windows 8.1 OS – many users did not bother with the update. This means that these Windows 8.1 systems are vulnerable to hacking attacks and security problems. Microsoft has not made it clear what exactly these problems are. But, they are very keen on making sure that all the Windows 8.1 users update their OS using the Windows 8.1 Update 1 files.

So, how can you make all those Windows 8.1 OS users comply with this request? Microsoft has decided to end the tech support for Windows 8.1 OS. Tech support will only be available for the Windows 8.1 Update 1 operating systems. Microsoft hopes that this will force the Windows 8.1 users to update their operating systems, fixing all its security problems.

But, to the surprise of the Windows 8.1 OS users, all Windows 8 users are spared from this new end of support deadline from Microsoft. So, by downloading Windows 8 OS update and upgrading their OS to Windows 8.1, what they got was an operating system that has many security flaws, while the old Windows 8 OS has none of these problems.

Microsoft will in the next few months end the support for Windows 8 and ask them to upgrade to Windows 8.1, which is available for free to the Windows 8 users to continue receiving tech support. This is very similar to what Microsoft has done in the past. After a few months of releasing an OS Service Pack update file, Microsoft will stop supporting the old un-updated operating systems, and release updates that can be installed only after the installation of the Service Pack update file in the OS.

But, Microsoft considers Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 as different operating systems that share a common Metro UI architecture. So, the Windows 8 users will get more time for considering the upgrade. But, the Windows 8.1 Update 1 will be considered as an essential OS security patch that every Windows 8.1 user must install.

Not many Windows 8.1 users have installed the update, so Microsoft might have to extend the deadline yet again.

Interesting Surface Pro 3 Features

So, Surface Pro is all set to debut on June 20 and is certainly one of the most anticipated devices of 2014. As it was mentioned in the Microsoft support page, Surface Pro 3 tablet will run Windows 8.1 and has some interesting features to look forward to.

Higher-resolution screen

• As compared to the earlier versions, Microsoft has ensured that this time around, the screen size is actually bigger. With a 12-inch display, the 2160x144- pixel screen offers a slightly denser resolution as compared to Surface Pro 2.
• According to sources, Surface Pro 3 can display almost 6% more content that MacBook Air, making the former an outright winner.

Flexible kickstand

• In the first version i.e. Surface Pro, the kickstand supported only one position. This didn’t go well with most users. Although the company modified it to a two-step kickstand in Surface Pro 2, still some users find it not so convenient to use.
• In Surface Pro 3, Microsoft has ensured that the kickstand supports a range of positions. Thus, Surface Pro 3 aims at being more user-friendly as compared to its predecessors.

Surface Pen

• Microsoft has modified the note-taking and drawing options in Surface Pro 3 by including the advanced Surface Pen. This Surface Pen is well-integrated into the OS and is also sensitive.
• As soon as you touch the Surface Pen to the screen, it will open up the OneNote application. Several users had certain questions regarding the availability of this Surface Pen. To clear off such confusions, the company has mentioned about the features and availability of this accessory in the Microsoft support page.

Powerful Processors

• This is one aspect where Surface Pro 3 scores big over other tablets in the market. This advanced device can be configured with up to an Intel i7 processor.
• The inclusion of such powerful processors only adds up to the faster running of apps and programs on the tablet.

Improved battery life

• The battery life of Surface Pro 3 is claimed to be up to 9 hours. The tablet running on i7 processor will have an improved battery life as compared to those using the i5 processor.

These are some of the advanced and useful features that Microsoft has included in the latest Surface Pro 3. With the company touting that this device can actually replace the laptop, it would be interesting to see the user response to Surface Pro 3.