Daily News : Windows 7

A researcher has discovered a zero-day flaw in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 that could be exploited to remotely crash a computer. Microsoft is aware of the hole and is currently working on a patch. The recommended quick-fix is to disable TCP ports 139 and 445.

"Microsoft is concerned that this new report of a vulnerability was not responsibly disclosed, potentially putting computer users at risk," the advisory said. "We continue to encourage responsible disclosure of vulnerabilities."

Yesterday, an employee of Microsoft was quoted as saying that the Windows 7 design team tried to match the graphical beauty of Apple's OS X software in the Redmond, Washington company's latest operating system release. It now appears that one of the design team's members has come in to bat cleanup and dispel any rumors that have surfaced as a result of the quote.

[...] the post, written by Brandon LeBlanc, continued, "Unfortunately, this came from a Microsoft employee who was not involved in any aspect of designing Windows 7. I hate to say this about one of our own, but his comments were inaccurate and uninformed."

BusinessWeek reports that Microsoft's new OS might not have the economic impact its predecessors once had. While many feel Windows 7 trounces Vista, the sagging economy could dampen any prospective surge in sales.

Before Vista, a new Windows release could set off a corporate and consumer buying binge--not only for PCs, but also printers, mice, and software. Some analysts have pointed out that the Windows pop this time could be especially pronounced, since many people never bothered to buy Vista and some 600 million PCs are running the nine-year-old Windows XP.