Oh dear, it looks as if the most feared scenario has already come true for Microsoft Windows Vista. Reports are revealing that pirated copies of Vista are making their way to BitTorrent sites. One report that I located recently stated that there is a copy of Vista floating around with an activation hack included to bypass the new "Vista Anti-piracy" feature. Let the games and the corporate disinformation begin!

It's official; you can indeed run Windows Vista safely enough without the benefit of an antivirus. Well, that?s according to recent comments from Microsoft Co-President Jim Allchin that is. As insane as it seems, the general consensus is that Windows Vista is secure enough that one could allegedly run the OS securely without the need for an antivirus program. It?s an interesting idea, but could it be a flawed one? Let's take a closer look...

PC support companies build their business on the backs of high school and college graduates, the people who get a job just to get by until something better comes along. These people are called hardware technicians; they bare huge responsibility and work for low pay, often for little better than minimum wage. Hardly any of these people take their job seriously and those that do are usually looking to get into a more prestigious field like Network Administration or Security.

I think that we have long since established that Vista will indeed offer better security features than any other version of Windows before it. And considering this, I also believe that Vista will become a rather large exploit target once it's released to the mainstream market.

Other examples, such as the GNOME trademark and Linux's Tux trademark issues, are not required for distribution; however, the same cannot be said for Mozilla. Why is this? Is Mozilla simply being unfair in their requirement? Or instead, are they being proactive considering the heavy connection with Google and the fact that Microsoft is perched, just looking for a soft spot in which to attack.

For those of you who spend the better part of your free time scouring the latest Vista news, you are likely aware that Vista software is beginning to roll out in full force. One of the most notable software rollouts would have to include the latest applications from Symantec, the Backup Exec 11d and the Antivirus 10.2 Beta for enterprise customers.

If you?re a true gamer, then you use Windows, and that?s pretty much the end of the story. The upgradeability, the wide range of titles, and the community certainly are important reasons for equipping yourself with a PC. I?m not even close to being categorized as a gamer, although I used to be.

Have you ever wondered why Windows rose from the ashes while other operating systems of yesteryear fell behind and eventually disappeared for good? Money and the distribution of generated revenue, of course. Not just in capital funds to make Microsoft's R&D a reality mind you, but the mindset behind a system of voluntary servitude based on people rushing to what turned out to be a virtual gold rush.

As the release date approaches, more and more gamers are expressing their concern over support for their favorite gaming titles in Windows Vista. Many of these same individuals understand that Microsoft's concept of "running" and the gamers' differ drastically. To software developers, it does not crash - fantastic! Those of us in the gaming world, however, have slightly higher expectations...

In a previous article on OSWeekly.com, we looked at concerns that a few of us had with Vista's potential for lax security features. Points were made, and opinions were debated, but in the end, what will be the future of Vista?

One of the key advantages with Windows Vista is that it's supposed to be a lot more secure than its predecessor, Windows XP. Well, allow me to take a moment to remind everyone of something that you might not remember - XP was also touted as being ultra secure. Seriously, can anyone honestly look themselves in the mirror and say this is the gospel truth? You have got to be kidding me. Similar to XP, Microsoft promises to have the most secure Windows version to date yet again.

Unlike some people, I'm not a Mac or a PC guy - I'm a Mac and a PC guy. There's room for both options in this world, and there doesn't have to be a bitter rivalry between both sets of users. In fact, I think you're only firing on all creative and productive cylinders if you use both (or all three, if you include Linux).

The open source revolution has shaken the slowly crumbling foundations of closed source software, and while it hasn't taken over completely just yet, the tide is beginning to turn in its favor. Your normal everyday user may not really understand or appreciate what open source means, but that doesn't mean that they're not experiencing the effects of it.

Word on the street is that many businesses are simply not interested in Vista. The Seattle PI ran a recent piece that explains how many companies have decided early on that they are not really interested in dealing with the likelihood of a fresh set of Windows Updates.

How much common sense do people apply when reading e-mail, chatting on AIM, using MySpace, and talking on the phone and cell phone? Technology is so full of possibility and promise, and it grows more powerful and exciting every day. And every day, there are new dangers, and we hear of new victims?and depending on the scam or virus attack or spoof or vulnerability, there can be thousands of victims. Can they all really be stupid?

No matter how confident a company may be about the products and services that they offer, there's just no excuse for thinking that the user experience is going to be perfect. I know you believe in your product, but you have to be able to convince others that you have something worth using, too.

In all appearance of an ad-supported operating system is probably not that far off. This article takes a look at some of the finer points behind an OS which is financed with ad views, and more specifically the logic behind a free version of Windows which could make this a reality. There are a few issues which must be resolved first, but with Microsoft refining Windows Live and shifting some of their focus to advertising, many of the pieces seem to be falling into place.

For any traditional company, keeping trade secrets away from the public is very important. Frank's Pizza isn't going to want Tony's Pizza to figure out how they make their community renowned pizza sauce, are they? When you take that concept to a higher level, you begin to understand why so much work is done by bigger companies to assure that the details of what they're working on and how they do what they do is kept internally, and is as far away as it can be from competitors.

Paranoia is becoming more common these days, and if you let yourself be engulfed by it, there's definitely not a shortage of things to be concerned about. We know that the governments have the technology to monitor our lives (wiretapping, satellites, other stuff we have no earthly idea about), but regular users are also using certain tools to invade our privacy. Most people just don't like the idea that Big Brother is watching them wherever they go, and that Big Brother can be anything from one or all of the multiple levels of government, a next door neighbor, or even your actual big brother.

It?s time that we let innovation prevail and let companies like Nvidia and ATi create products for consumers that work properly out of the box. No more paper launches, no more buggy hardware ? and hopefully no more trying to get to the king of the mountain position by releasing hardware that?s unattainable for most consumers and doesn?t work for enthusiasts either.