Service Packs
Are On The Way...Sort Of
By Cate Eales
Appeared March 6, 2008 on castanet.net
Coming soon! Vista Service Pack 1 and XP Service Pack 3.
And while we're waiting for those giant updates, check out a couple of
programs to make your media experience more enjoyable.
Vista Service Pack 1
Finally! At last! Vista users will get Service Pack 1...sometime soon.
A Service Pack is a collection of updates, enhancements, and fixes for a
program.
More
information here. SP1 will include all the updates released for Vista
so far, and additional patches and fixes as well. Microsoft will not say
when SP1 will become available to the end users, but they have released it
to computer manufacturers. This means that in the near future anyone
buying a computer with Vista on it will have the Service Pack included,
and won't have to download and install it. Rumour has it that the Service
Pack will show up in your Automatic Updates sometime this month.
If you have Vista, you should absolutely check out the list of software
that Microsoft already knows will be broken after you install SP1.
That list is available here. If you are running any of those programs
under Vista, you should look for an update to the programs now, before
Vista SP1 is released. If the manufacturer doesn't have an update for you,
I suggest you seek out an alternatative program, or contact the
manufacturer to find out when they plan to make the program compatible.
XP Service Pack 3
The third and final Service Pack for Windows XP is expected sometime
between now and July. (Microsoft's
best guess here.) Near-final versions are available for download to
those intrepid souls who want to give it a try. I do not recommend trying
this out on a computer that's important to you. If you have an extra one
lying around and it already has XP SP2 on it, maybe you want to give it a
go. You can
download Release Candidate 2 here. Otherwise, if you are using a
computer because you actually need to get work done, my advice is to wait
for the official release.
Quick Media Converter
Here's a nice little application that will convert audio and video files
from almost any format to almost any other format. It's free, there are no
nag screens, and there are no ads. I know it works in XP because I've
tested it there. I can't figure out whether it will work for Vista or not.
Although part of the website is in English, English is clearly not this
person's first language. If your French is better than mine, maybe you can
tell me!
Also, be aware that this is Beta software, so use it at your own risk.
Grab it
here. The program is free, and you can easily toggle from basic to
advanced mode if you want more control over the settings.
VLC media player
If you're looking for a player that will play just about any type of audio
or video file, try VLC media player. It's free, and
available here. It
just works, under XP. With Vista, you have to brute force it. Try the
insructions here.
Thank you everyone who emailed questions, comments, and
suggestions. Please add yours! Email me at
cate@rlis.com. You can also
browse the column archives at any time by pointing your browser here.
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Links
What is a Service Pack?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_pack
What Vista SP1 breaks
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/935796/en-us
Service Pack Road Map
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/lifecycle/servicepacks.mspx
XP SP3 Release Candidate 2
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=114f3599-12af-42b2-aab1-b969a62c68a7&displaylang=en&tm
Quick Media Converter
http://www.cocoonsoftware.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=13&Itemid=92
VLC media player
http://www.videolan.org/
Run VLC media player under Vista
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/using-vlc-player-under-vista/
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Cate Eales has been helping people make online computing safe, accessible
and fun for over 20 years. She lives in Kelowna with her husband, Eric,
and her dog, Sandy. Cate is a partner in Real Life Internet Solutions,
helping individuals and small businesses with virus, spyware and malware
eradication; personal computer training and management; digital image
management; music transfer; and website design, hosting and management.
Email Cate at cate@rlis.com with your
comments, suggestions, or questions. To browse the column archives, visit
the Real Life Internet Solutions website at
www.rlis.com.
©
Cate Eales 2008 – All Rights Reserved
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