windows media

Here's another probing question from an Infopackets.com reader: "Dear Infopackets Team, Have I missed one of your informative reports? I don't seem to know how to play DVDs in Windows 8? Actually, I can't even find Windows Media Center anywhere, and ... without it I'm stuck! I like Windows 8 so far, but I'm going to feel very frustrated if it won't let me play DVDs on my laptop. Thanks for your help, Frank G." My response: Frank, you're right: Windows Media Center is entirely missing from the new Windows 8 operating system. Fortunately, you can still find a way to play DVDs. Microsoft chose to ... (view more)

Patch Tuesday for January 2012 was released this week by Microsoft and includes seven updates designed to fix eight Windows security vulnerabilities. One patch in particular fixes a serious Windows Media Player exploit. The flaw could allow a hacker ... to take remote control of a PC running Windows. For those who don't follow Microsoft security news, Patch Tuesday refers to the second Tuesday of every month -- the day on which the Redmond-based firm normally releases a series of software updates intended to fix known problems in its various programs. The majority of patches are usually for ... (view more)

Microsoft has announced it will stream movies from Netflix through its Windows Media Center software. It's a major breakthrough in the firm's attempt to make sure that PCs can compete with game consoles and dedicated devices in the streaming market. ... Netflix already provides Xbox 360 DVD rentals , allowing customers to watch directly on their TV sets. Until now, PC users had only been able to watch streaming movies from Netfix on their computer screens. Streaming it to a TV set could only be done through "unofficial" methods and copy protection meant the resulting image would be of a ... (view more)

At the annual Windows Hardware Engineering Conference, Microsoft unveiled their latest technology in saving and uploading digital photography. Available for Windows XP and the upcoming Windows Vista, Windows Media Photo ("WMPhoto") suggests a ... revolutionized means of compressing digital photos. (Source: news.com ) Presently, digital photos are converted into the JPEG picture file format when stored on the computer: a standard form of file compression. Converting a digital photograph in JPEG format keeps the picture file size small, while maintaining almost the same quality as the original, ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader John L. writes: " Dear Dennis, I recently used Windows Movie Maker to create a video compilation. When I was finished editing the project, I clicked the 'send to CD' button, which then launched a Movie Maker Wizard. The wizard ... took me step by step and explained how to convert my project into a Windows Media Audio/Video file and ultimately burn it to CD. I chose to burn the file to CD-R so that I could play it in my DVD player; however, near the end of the burn, Windows Media Maker reported that the project "did not save successfully". After I clicked OK, I ... (view more)

In yesterday's issue of the Infopackets Gazette, Jerry D. asked if there was a way to erase the history which contains the names of all previously loaded files in Windows Media Player. The feature is also known as the "Most Recently Used", or MRU ... file history. Unfortunately, there is a downside to the MRU feature. Although MRU saves time by allowing users access to recently used data, it also compromises privacy: anyone who can gain access to a shared PC can also see what files have been accessed recently. I personally did not know the answer to Jerry's dilemma, so I used searched ... (view more)