Nikon has released an updated version of their RAW (NEF) Codec for Vista that resolves an issue that caused it to suddenly stop working last week. Apparently the problem had something to do with an expired certificate. The new Codec is still labeled version 1.01. However, if you uninstall the...

Here's a flock of butterflies, brought to you in XNA, which can soar around their environment with the help of the Wii controller. By tilting and rolling the Wiimote, you can control the flight of the lead butterfly. The rest of the flock sticks together, chasing you wherever your accellerometer...

I'm working on two projects in the evenings: One is an XNA app (no surprises there), and the other is a Live Messenger bot that is going to integrate the DotMSN bot library , WCF, WF, SQL2005 and more. I've been building that second project with the March CTP of Visual Studio Code Name "Orcas". Lots...

I wanted to take a moment to congratuate Valentia Technologies , an Ireland-based company and one of our Microsoft Ireland Vista Launch Partners, for the release of their Microsoft Global Case Study . Valentia's solution for patient-care reporting is used by emergency care personnel during the "golden...

The Vista Team blog tipped me off to a useful utility called Start++ that improves upon the search functionality in the Vista Start Menu. I already use the Start Menu's Search box (pictured here) for launching applications, and finding documents and e-mails on my computer. With Start++ I can create...

Daft.ie is Ireland's biggest property website. Their listings include properties for sale, letting and sharing. In fact, I found my Dublin apartment through Daft when I moved here from Canada. Daft has just released Daft Realtime , a Windows Vista Sidebar Gadget which receives live updates from their...

SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2 was released yesterday, and I've just downloaded and installed the Express Edition with Advanced Services SP2 onto my Vista PC. Smooth sailing all the way, and no compatibility warnings. Hooray! Here's a link to SQL Server 2005 SP2 on the TechNet site , and you can review...

Here are 3 tips and tricks for Outlook 2007, plus a bonus tip for those running Outlook 2007 on Vista. You can enlarge the screenshots by clicking on the images. #1. Quickly add Calendar and Availability information to an e-mail message. In conjunction with Exchange 2007, Outlook does an...

My job here is done. I’m going to get these lads to do my Vista demos in future, or maybe even apply for the open Evangelist role. For my out-of-Ireland readers, Podge and Rodge are local celebs that host an irreverent late-night talk show. Which I watch religiously. (Some people might find...

If you're a developer or IT Professional, you might want to add the Administrative Tools shortcut to your Start Menu in Windows Vista. Here's how: Right-click on the Taskbar (or the Start menu pearl) and select "Properties". On the Start Menu tab, click "Customize..." Towards the bottom of the...

This is excellent explanation and commentary by Jim Allchin on some of Vista's new security features , including User Account Control (UAC) and Data Execution Prevention (DEP). He goes into detail about the security features vs. convenience decisions that were made during the development of Vista...

On December 5th, Microsoft Ireland launched Windows Vista, the 2007 Office System, and Exchange Server 2007 at Croke Park in Dublin. If you were one of the 3,000 people there on the day, you got to experience a whistlestop tour of those three very important releases, a drill-down presentation into Vista...

One of the Vista features I was intrigued by, and formerly a little confused by, is Windows ReadyBoost, which promises to improve system performance when you plug a flash drive (or even a fast enough USB 2.0 drive) into your Vista PC. Jim Allchin explained ReadyBoost in the Vista Team blog: ...

I'd been running test builds of Windows Vista for over a year prior to its release last week, and I wasn't alone: thousands of Microsoft employees were testing Vista to iron out the kinks. Our Partners in the Early Adoption programs also slug their way through Community Tech Previews and Betas. Some...

I had a zillion people ask me today when the Vista release will be available for download by MSDN subscribers . Actually I had a jarbled message on my voicemail I couldn't make out, so it could have been a zillion and one. Vista is scheduled to be available for download through the MSDN Subscriptions...

Jim Allchin said it all with two words on the Windows Vista Team blog : IT'S TIME! Here's a few more words from Nick White.

It was alluded to, almost as an aside, during this morning's keynote speech at Tech Ed Europe. But let's not let today's most impressive bit of Microsoft developer news pass us by: The .NET Framework 3.0, formerly known as WinFX, has been released and is available for download . Its components --...

Last Wednesday I gave a presentation to SkyNet , the University of Limerick Computer Society. About 30 undergrad and graduate students turned up for Atlas, Vista and pizza, in that order. What I showed them was basically a riff on my ASP.NET "Atlas" presentation from ApacheCon Europe , but I also...

Windows Vista RC2 (build 5744) was available internally late last week, and I'm writing to you from it right now. It's available for download to technical beta testers, Customer Preview Program participants, TAP Testers, and MSDN/TechNet subscribers. Here are the details and announcement in the Windows...

Launch is coming soon, not just for Windows Vista and .NET 3.0, but also the 2007 Office System and Exchange 2007. We're looking for a few great Partners to be involved in this very significant event. Over the past two weeks, I've met with local development teams who are building applications using...

In Windows Vista, the Event Viewer user interface now allows you to quickly attach tasks to system events - in fact, Application, Security, System, Setup and Forwarded events. For instance, in the image below, I am attaching a task to the System event that is raised when I lose my DHCP context. ...

Vista's Reliability and Performance Monitor provides you with insight into how well your system is performing. In previous versions of Windows client (and server), your system collected a variety of information about events related to system reliability and performance, but you had limited ability to...

The Galway ICT Productivity Conference, which will take place on Thursday October the 12th, promises top-class speakers for Developers, Architects and IT Professionals . The theme of the day is ‘Increasing Productivity through Technology,' which is looked at from three perspectives during three parallel...

I've been meaning to write for some time about Charles Petzold 's book on the Windows Presentation Foundation, Applications = Code + Markup . Early reviews of the book offered glowing praise , so I ordered a copy of my own. I've read enough of it by now to offer it my highest recommendation. If you...

Clare asked Dave and me to reveal some hidden gems that are available from Microsoft for technical support and learning. This was our list of the shiniest gems that we find devs and IT pros don't always know about. I also posted the Best of the Rest as an article. 1. MSDN Forums – http://forums...