5 Most Significant New Features in Microsoft Vista
Microsoft Vista is thus far the largest upgrade since the Windows operating system was invented. With approximately 6 years in development, Microsoft wanted to make sure it had a new operating system that was a vast improvement from all previous versions. New features include improved graphics, safety upgrades, and many more.
1) The Aero graphical user interface (GUI) in Vista is being touted by Microsoft as the best and highest performing interface to come out of Microsoft workshops. Aero is slick and dynamic and allows the user greater control over the desktop. In addition, user experience is enhanced because of the manner in which the interface elements can scale and move with fluidity. Furthermore, you can set the color and opacity level of the windows. Another interface upgrade, the flip feature (alt + tab), lets you see your current document in the semi transparent screen while you check out the other open documents making it easier to move between them.
2) The Instant Search present with Windows Vista is a major enhancement over previous operating systems released by Microsoft. The search function has been made ubiquitous and is integrated in all Explorer windows. It is also more intuitive as you are able to search for a file or an email by putting in any bit of information you can remember, be it the filename, type of file, date of creation, etc. The search function has been made contextual so the results that are returned will mirror your current activity. The search function is of fast-as-you-type nature. Other Microsoft applications like Outlook and OneNote are building on top of this search facility.
3) The Windows DVD Maker that is available with the Premium and Ultimate editions of the operating system lets you create first class DVDs that you can then view on any DVD player anywhere in the world unhindered by geographical region codes. You can transfer your creations to a DVD format from any program that you may be running on Windows Vista. You can also, burn the DVD from the Windows Photo Gallery, transfer content directly from your video camera onto the DVD in the MPEG-2 format and make use of the Software Development Kit (SDK) provided by Microsoft to add your own ingenious creative inputs to the final DVD picture.
4) The Windows Sidebar on Vista is on the right hand side and can be used to place Desktop Gadgets which are applets that let you accomplish a number of activities. The sidebar is customizable and you can move it to any place on the screen where you feel it looks best on your desktop. Windows Vista comes with thirteen default gadgets some of which include: a calculator, clock, CPU Meter, currency converter, feed viewer, feed watcher, notes, etc. Other gadgets developed by Microsoft and submitted by users can be downloaded from the Microsoft website.
5) The Windows Mobility Center user interface (Windows+X) is another feature which compiles all important information within a series of square tiles. Each tile has one piece of information about a particular part of the system. These tiles contain options such as brightness and sound adjustment, battery level as well as some new computing functions such as presentation settings. More tiles may even be added so mobile computer manufacturers are free to add further information that tells more about how their particular product functions. However, this system is only accessible on mobile computers.
Delicious Bookmarks
SEOmoz | Launching a New Website: 18 Steps to Successful Metrics ...
The process of launching a new website is, for many entrepreneurs, bloggers and business owners, an uncertain and scary prospect. This is often due to both unanswered questions and incomplete knowledge of which questions to ask. In this post, I'll give my best recommendations for launching a new site from a marketing and metrics setup perspective. This won't just help with SEO, but on traffic generation, accessibility, and your ability to measure and improve everything about your site.
Using MySQL version 4.0 or higher you can update a table by joining two or more tables together; note that the examples shown in this article are not possible with MySQL 3.23 or earlier. By joining two tables together you can update one table based on fields in associated records in another table.
SEOmoz | SEO Guide: How to Properly Move Domains
Moving domains can have a tremendously negative impact on search engine rankings. This is because the major search engines use metrics on both the domain level and the page level to determine rankings. When a Webmaster decides to switch to a brand new domain, they are resetting their domain metrics to zero whether they know it or not. Luckily, there are steps one can take to minimize and in many cases completely negate the effects of a domain move.
10 Usability Tips Based on Research Studies
This article discusses usability findings of research results such as eye-tracking studies, reports, analytics, and usability surveys pertaining to website usability and improvements. You’ll discover that many of these usability tips will be common sense but are further supported with numbers; however, some might surprise you and change your outlook on your current design processes.
SEOmoz | The History of SEOmoz (1981-2010) + Open Q&A
Mixergy's Andrew Warner interviewed me about the founding of SEOmoz and our trajectory to date. It was a very personal interview about the background of the company, but turned out to be a great experience. I've posted it below for those who might want to watch over the weekend and if you prefer, there's also a full text transcript on the Mixergy blog post.
Delicious