[TechRepublic] Learning to love Windows 8

TechRepublic Australia Wrapper TechRepublic Member | August 15, 2012

Editor's note It's a big day for Windows folks, with Windows 8 due to appear on MSDN and TechNet today to usher the future of Microsoft operating systems into the wider world. The most controversial aspect of the new OS is its new Metro interface; Tony McSherry penned a piece on coming to terms with and embracing the new look. A large discussion has taken place at the end of the article, so be sure to have your say in the comments. With the recent spate of hacking leading to database dumping with plaintext passwords, we have a timely article on using the Blowfish algorithm (.NET devs can use the inbuilt AES algorithm instead, and it's better, too). If you are still using an md5 or sha hash with your authentication system, please move to a better algorithm now! Have a good week, everyone! --Chris Learning to love Windows 8 The future is coming whether you like it or not, and it's called Windows 8. Read more Resource of the day Charting the Course to a Customer-Centric Business Forrester surveyed over 400 business who are succeeding in challenging times. Register for this live, interactive broadcast to learn how business leaders are dealing with growing uncertainty, tougher competition, increasing costs and inflexible, overloaded IT systems. Securing passwords with Blowfish In 2012, there's no excuse for not having a properly hashed table of user passwords. Read more Nokia sells Qt to Digia Qt finds a third owner and new home away from Nokia Read more Additional TechRepublic resources   10 things I've learned from working in IT When you've been in IT for awhile, you pick up all sorts of random knowledge. Jack Wallen shares a few highlights from almost 20 years in the field. Read more Secure your Google Account with two-step authentication Two-step authentication significantly increases the security of your Google account and it takes less than three minutes to setup. Read more Build web application CSS layouts with the YAML framework The CSS framework YAML provides developers and designers with a starting point for their web application and design work. Tony Patton suggests giving YAML a try. Read more MacBook Air 11-inch (2012) teardown reveals upgraded hardware, same battery/internal design Bill Detwiler tears down the 2012, 11-inch MacBook Air and shows you how Apple upgraded its hardware without changing the internal design. Read more Featured multimedia   Record setters: How fast does that X-Plane go? (pictures) An X-51A yesterday fell well short of its goal of Mach 6, but there have been some remarkable speedy achievements in X-Plane history. View on site How to build a life-size 'Star Wars' Rancor (pictures) Get close up and personal with the 14-foot-tall "Star Wars" beast that will make its big debut later this month at the Star Wars Celebration VI convention in Orlando, Fla. View on site Today's recommended downloads Social Meets IT - Using Online Communities to Reduce Help Desk Costs (Citrix Online) Remote support for PCs, Macs and Smartphones (LogMeIn) On-demand Webcast: Comprehensive and Effective Payment Security Strategies (Chase Paymentech Solutions) Social Media Analytics: Making Customer Insights Actionable (IBM) Smarter Planet Leadership Series: Air Canada (IBM) Connect with TechRepublic Survey says: People do care about their privacy Finally, someone asked users how important it was to remain private while online. Michael Kassner shares what the research team found, including some surprises. TechRepublic newsletters   Get programming, mobile development, and design tips and more in the following TechRepublic newsletters. Automatically sign up today! Software Engineer App Builder Web Designer IT Consultant

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