Microsoft have released the "Enterprise Library" in the patterns and practices web site. This is a revised suite of application blocks that includes the blocks listed below. It looks a much more complete and better integrated product than the previous app blocks and comes with full source code, quick starts, helper configuration applications and unit test. For example, the new version of the Data Access block can use encrypted connection string by taking advantage of the cryptography application block. Certainly worth a look.
Caching Application Block. This application block allows developers to incorporate a local cache in their applications.
Configuration Application Block. This application block allows applications to read and write configuration information.
Data Access Application Block. This application block allows developers to incorporate standard database functionality in their applications.
Cryptography Application Block. This application block allows developers to include encryption and hashing functionality in their applications.
Exception Handling Application Block. This application block allows developers and policy makers to create a consistent strategy for processing exceptions that occur throughout the architectural layers of enterprise applications.
Logging and Instrumentation Application Block. This application block allows developers to incorporate standard logging and instrumentation functionality in their applications.
Security Application Block. This application block allows developers to incorporate security functionality in their applications. Applications can use the application block in a variety of situations, such as authenticating and authorizing users against a database, retrieving role and profile information, and caching user profile information.
Details here: http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/default.asp?url=/library/en-us/dnpag2/html/entlib.asp
Latest news is that BETA 2 (with the 'GoLive' license) will be March 31, 2005 and the final release will be mid September in time for the PDC.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1753556,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03119TX1K0000594
After the purchase of Giant Software (http://www.giantcompany.com/) Microsoft have released a free public Beta of their AntiSpyware software. I have been running it on a couple of machines and even though it is Beta, it seems pretty stable, and certainly worthwhile if you don't already have spyware protection (with the usual caveats regarding Beta software of course)
You can get it here: http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx
Microsoft also bought GeCAD last year (http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/2003/jun03/06-10GeCadPR.asp), who build anti-virus software, so they are obviously moving into this market. Whether the antivirus/antispyware products will be rolled into one product, and then released bundled with Windows, or charged separately is not confirmed yet...
I've put up a gallery of wallpaper images I have taken over the years. Feel free to sample and download:
http://www.bbits.co.uk/blog/gallery/13.aspx
Cheers
Ian
I must admit I am fed up of the hysteria that accompanies news of a vulnerability in a Microsoft product. In the last (admittedly serious) one in IE swarms of people were reporting they would never use IE again. So what are they going to switch to? FireFox, Opera – are these browsers invincible? Of course not! You only need to look at http://secunia.com/ to see that all software is vulnerable. This week they reported that “23 vulnerabilities have been reported in various Oracle products” (http://secunia.com/SA13862) and the following were the top read advisories:
1. [SA12889] Microsoft Internet Explorer Multiple Vulnerabilities
2. [SA13599] Mozilla / Mozilla Firefox Download Dialog Source Spoofing
3. [SA13482] Internet Explorer DHTML Edit ActiveX Control Cross-Site
Scripting
4. [SA13804] Apple iTunes Playlist Handling Buffer Overflow
Vulnerability
5. [SA13786] Mozilla / Mozilla Firefox Dialog Overlapping Weakness
6. [SA13129] Mozilla / Mozilla Firefox Window Injection Vulnerability
7. [SA13792] Check Point Firewall-1 NG SmartDefense RFC2397 Bypass
Weakness
8. [SA12041] Microsoft Outlook / Word Object Tag Vulnerability
9. [SA13818] Opera "data:" URI Handler Spoofing Vulnerability
10. [SA13704] Internet Explorer FTP Download Directory Traversal
We need a more balanced approach to the reporting of these issues, and less MS scaremongering.