User-friendly Vista a boon to Pinoy youth

New windows to opportunity through information technology (IT) were opened to the public yesterday by software giant Microsoft Corp. — especially for the Filipino youth.

Microsoft Phils. executives were part of a 100-bicycle caravan that pedaled nearly 30 kilometers on EDSA from the Microsoft headquarters in Makati City to the SM Mall of Asia to kick off the much-awaited local release of Windows Vista, Microsoft’s latest operating system (OS).

Microsoft officials said Vista is the company’s most user-friendly and secure OS to date, adding that the new product fits in with its campaign to promote IT competency among students, who can now maximize their potential using their computers without the complications that make existing operating systems difficult to use.

"Windows Vista is especially advantageous to children, since it allows them to be more creative given its easier and improved applications," Microsoft Phils. managing director Antonio Javier said during the Vista launch at the SM Mall of Asia.

Javier said Vista already has a lot of built-in applications that could only previously be acquired through third-party downloads or installation — such as the Windows Media Center and DVD Maker — which are now bundled into Vista’s Home Premium and Ultimate versions.

He said Vista is certainly "more user-friendly and easier to use compared to Windows XP, since it takes away some complicated processes in current operating systems."

The new OS allows users to instantly locate documents, files or programs in a "stylish manner," with live icons that display thumbnails of the contents of each file and a three-dimensional "flipping" feature for "open windows."

Vista also provides innovative technologies, such as a new memory management system called Windows SuperFetch, which enables applications to launch much more quickly upon start-up.

The product also features Windows Aero, a new application available in the Premium and Ultimate versions, which allows graphics, photos and other contents to spring to life on "glasslike windows" without distracting on-screen clutter.

Javier also said Vista is the most secure Microsoft OS so far, since it has more built-in virus control programs "providing an unprecedented level of confidence when users browse the Web or engage in online activities."

The Vista has multiple levels of security that are capable of detecting and preventing silent installations of malicious code. Through Vista’s "Protected Mode" in the Internet Explorer 7 program, a green highlight in the address bar will indicate if the website a user is viewing is safe.

The product also has Windows Defender, which warns users about unwanted applications and allows them to instantly remove programs infected by computer viruses.

It also has a mechanism to block "phishing" websites and attacks that try to trick people into divulging personal information — such as credit card and other vital identity data.

"Window Vista is our most tested product so far," Javier said. "Over five million beta versions of different versions were downloaded and tested by consumers worldwide."

Specially assembled personal computers loaded with various versions of Vista were sold at a promotional discount at the SM Mall of Asia.

Complete PCs with Windows Vista Home Basic were sold at P25,988 each, PCs with Vista Home Premium at P36,988, and PCs with Vista Ultimate were priced at P49,988.

Microsoft Phils. is also tapping celebrities to endorse Vista through its "Stars for Empowerment" program. The new Microsoft OS was released in stores worldwide Jan. 30.

Through partnership with celebrities and some media outfits, Microsoft hopes to enable people to live out their respective passions through the use of Vista, Javier said.

Under the promotional campaign, four celebrities were each given the opportunity to experience Vista as well as choose a worthy recipient of a Vista-loaded personal desktop computer or laptop computer.

"Our mission in the Philippines is to enable people to maximize their full potential through technology," Javier said. "Microsoft believes that equipping people with the right software and tools will give them the capacity to explore big possibilities."

For multimedia artist and actor Epy Quizon, one of the four Vista endorsers at the launch, the release of the new product gives him a new challenge: "How can I maximize the overwhelming features of Vista considering my very active lifestyle?"

Quizon, who chose an art teacher from Silliman University in Dumaguete City as his beneficiary, said he personally waited for the Vista release in the Philippines: "This new product will certainly help me since I am into photography and film making. Besides, I really am a computer and gadget junkie."

The other three endorsers were actress and TV host Janice de Belen, band vocalist Rico Blanco and former teen star Liezl Martinez.

De Belen chose the adopted sons of her housemaid, now in college in Antique, as beneficiaries.

Blanco chose the new band Arko, whose members are Marikina City residents. Martinez selected a scholar from Payatas in Quezon City, who received a Vista-loaded laptop computer.