Summaries of in-depth product reviews on Paul Thurrott's SuperSite for Windows
Windows XP SP3
Pros: Aggregates all previous fixes; adds a
few new Vista-like features
Cons: Delayed in coming; last XP service
pack
Rating: 4 out of 5
Recommendation: Windows XP SP3
should prove a boon to companies of
all sizes still using Microsoft’s previous
desktop OS. XP SP3 adds support for
Network Access Protection in Windows
Server 2008, key-less new product
installation, and a new kernel mode
cryptographic module. You’ll see Internet
Explorer 7.0 and Windows Media Player
11 bundled as well. Microsoft should have
delivered XP SP3 two years ago. What
took so long?
Contact: Microsoft • 800-426-9400 •
www.microsoft.com
Discussion: www.winsupersite.com/article/faq/windows-xp-service-pack-3-faq.aspx
Microsoft SQL Server 2008
Pros: Huge performance and scalability
gains; unstructured data support; LINQ
capabilities
Cons: None serious
Rating: 5 out of 5
Recommendation: SQL Server 2008 is a
major update to Microsoft’s increasingly
popular database server and moves into
a world of non-relational data for the
first time. It features new development
possibilities with the Language-Integrated
Query (LINQ) framework for .NETmanaged
code languages and native
support for a wide range of unstructured
data, including file-system–based
documents. It will launch alongside
Windows Server 2008 and Microsoft
Visual Studio 2008 in February, but won’t
ship until second quarter 2008.
Contact: Microsoft • 800-426-9400 •
www.microsoft.com
Discussion: www.winsupersite.com/article/showcase/a-look-at-sql-server-2008.aspx