Comdex/Fall Report: Viva Las Videos New Browsers, New Security Eric Grevstad
Norway's Opera Software ASA caused Microsoft some embarrassment a few weeks ago when it turned out MSN.com was blocking access to users of the Opera Web browser; MSN briefly argued it was upholding true XHTML standards, but the Norwegians pointed out that (a) Opera rendered XHTML better than Internet Explorer and (b) changing the number-three browser's ID string to "MSIE 5" gave it access to all barred pages.
Though it didn't exhibit at Comdex, the gadfly hopes to sting Redmond again with a new beta release of Opera 6 (which, like Opera 5.12, will be free with an ad banner or $39 without). The update adds a new, cleaner interface, with the option to open multiple windows as separate Taskbar frames for users unused to Opera's default multiwindow interface; support for Asian/Pacific and Eastern European character sets; new ways to organize favorite bookmarks, searches, and pages; the ability to double-click a word to see pop-up options ranging from a dictionary definition to foreign-language translations; and more secure e-mail with Outlook Express import. The company vows Opera will always be more compact and render pages quicker than IE and Netscape.
Another new browser, Browse3D, puts an interesting spin on the Internet Explorer engine: It makes the current browser window a recessed center panel between 3D "walls," the left showing multiple thumbnail pages in your "Back" browsing trail and the right showing images of available forward links or subpages. You can pan from side to side to focus on the 4-, 9-, or 16-thumbnail walls, leaping back over in-between pages or fetching new ones without losing the current view, or tack pages to a "sticky wall" to peruse later. A beta version is free for the download; the commercial release and price will be announced in January.
Of course, you should always practice safe surfing. McAfee.com showed a new version of its McAfee.com Personal Firewall, which combines Win XP compatibility with an advanced intrusion detection system to analyze and collect data on suspicious network traffic and graphical trace utility to reveal the network used by and geographical location of snoopers' computers. Results will be linked to the www.hackerwatch.org clearinghouse or database of rogue network activity. Shipping next year, the revised Personal Firewall will cost $30, with a Pro version available for $40.
Another company ready to protect online travelers -- and to make a dent in McAfee's and Symantec's dominance of the U.S. antivirus market -- is Russia's Kaspersky Labs, which came to Comdex with Lite ($20), Personal ($50), and Personal Pro ($100) versions of its germ-fighting software.
Though relatively new to these shores, Kaspersky has an estimable record of antivirus performance in Europe and the U.K. as well as Moscow; the company promises 24/7 tech support, daily downloadable upgrades (only 3K to 30K in size), and escalating levels of protection ranging from Lite's full-time monitoring to Personal's e-mail checking and Pro's "behavior blocker" detection of any file modification or suspicious script activity. We were impressed, although Kaspersky's site and product packaging don't specifically mention Windows XP support yet.
Whether it's Win XP, Linux, or another operating system, V Communications' System Commander 7 makes it simple to install and switch among multiple OSes. In addition to XP compatibility, version 7 of the mega-boot-menu ($35 for registered System Commander 2000 users) can install directly to any Windows file system -- FAT, FAT32, or NTFS -- and create, copy, move, resize, and convert hard disk partitions, even hiding NTFS partitions so you can have multiple versions of Windows 2000 or XP on one PC.
We also met with Executive Software International execs, who touted their own Windows XP upgrade -- Diskeeper 7.0, the disk-defragmenting utility that, the company claims, not only works up to five times faster than Windows' built-in defragger but runs unnoticed in the background to prevent fragmentation without slowing performance, even optimizing files only accessible at boot time. IT managers can instantly deploy Diskeeper 7.0 to all workstations on a network, while individual PC users can install the $50 single-user edition, then forget it, while getting the longest life and fastest performance possible from their hard disks.
Looking Good, Working Smart
One last Las Vegas attraction for Windows XP users was Stardock's WindowBlinds 3, which not only brings much of the XP look to Windows 98, Me, or 2000, but gives Win XP users a prettier, more customizable interface than XP's choice of three color schemes. In addition to almost unlimited cosmetic changes -- think Internet Explorer or Media Player "skins," but for the whole operating system -- the $20 toolkit lets users add "smart bars" or productivity helpers like quick-launch buttons, e-mail checkers, Web links, clocks, and stock tickers to applications' title bars.
With all of these creative multimedia and enhanced online and utility products, was there any good old-fashioned productivity software to be seen? Well, HumanConcepts announced a major upgrade to its popular OrgPlus organization-chart software: OrgPlus 4.0 Professional (starting at $495) automatically imports data from human resources databases; creates interactive, hyperlinked charts using a variety of styles and templates; and publishes them to Web sites, PowerPoint presentations, or Word documents. For smaller firms, OrgPlus 4.0 Standard is $190.
And Lernout & Hauspie showed it's alive and kicking despite the bankruptcy and bookkeeping-fraud charges that have deposed (and even jailed) its top managers (and, a company rep confessed, left it eagerly hoping for a buyer): The speech-recognition experts have merged the accuracy and broad vocabulary of Dragon NaturallySpeaking 5 with the best features of L&H VoiceXpress 5 (such as its ability to ignore "um"s and "ah"s during dictation) in Dragon NaturallySpeaking 6, which debuted in a $695 Professional edition plus $995 Medical and Legal packages. The under-$200 retail versions of NaturallySpeaking 6 will be sold by Broderbund beginning in January.
