The Microsoft Office Blog has posted the official system requirements for Office 2010. No surprise there, really. For the basic operations, you'll need just a basic machine. Office never has really been a huge resource hog. If you are doing development with Office, and value your time, you might want to upgrade a tad bit. :)

First off, I’d like to explain what level of performance you can expect from minimum-requirement hardware. The minimum hardware spec is about defining the kind of computer that an average Office customer needs to have in order to have an acceptable experience performing typical tasks. This means tasks like opening up and editing a 20-page report. Tasks like creating some simple pie charts or scatterplots that highlight your findings, and putting together a few slides summarizing your results for that meeting next Tuesday. Or even tasks like writing up your blog post about system requirements. You should also be able to comfortably run two applications simultaneously.

For those that want a blast from the past and want to relive the old Windows 3.1 operating system, or the somewhat newer Windows 2000, these sites are great at recreating the experience for you. Very detailed and a lot of time had to go into these. Definitely brings back memories. A bit of caution, though: The Windows 2000 site is only supposed to work on Internet Explorer. I didn't do a lot of thorough testing, but it worked alright on Firefox 3.6 for me...

The Windows Club has taken the wallpapers from the National Geographic site and made a custom theme for Windows 7. If you're a fan of National Geographic like I am, this is a great download! Grab it if you want it, it's free, and it's great!

The NatGeo Theme for Windows 7 consists of 12 select wallpapers from the Official National Geographic Wallpaper Website and all credits are due to them. As a NatGeo fan and a Windows 7 enthusiast I have simply created this theme free for personal use.

For those that want to work for Microsoft, the interview process is described over at Carson Critique. I've heard that some of the questions are pretty wacky, and try to get you to really think (although there are no right or wrong answers).

They stated to dress casually, as that's how most Microsoft employees dressed. So instead of suiting up in my jacket and tie, I went with a more casual button up and jeans. As I walked up to my interview location, I noticed a good amount of people were in suits (interviewing with other companies), but my recruiter greeted me sporting a casual attire as well, so all was good.

While I know this is obviously an excuse for mishandling some luggage, it's not a very good one. At all. If you fly and take your game system with you, you might want to make sure it's carry on. Even better, ship it UPS to your destination. I can't wait to see how this pans out!

He is understandably pissed off, and US Airways has essentially told him to piss off because it was done for security reasons. Of course! We all know that if an Xbox 360 is checked, it could be used by the pilots, which would be distracting and dangerous. Only by rendering it inoperable was US Airways able to keep our skies safe. Thanks, you wonderful, sensible airline

This is somewhat unsettling. A problem with the way Windows handles older applications is still an issue with Windows 7. Sad part is that it's been an issue since 1993. Come on, Microsoft, get this fixed ASAP! It may have been a problem before, but now that it's getting more attention, its sure to be exploited a lot more!

"Microsoft isn't having an easy time of it these days," said the Heise article. "In addition to the unpatched hole in Internet Explorer, a now published hole in Windows allows users with restricted access to escalate their privileges to system level – and this is believed to be possible on all 32-bit versions of Windows from Windows NT 3.1 up to, and including Windows 7."

For those that use the alternative (which is quickly becoming the norm) browser, Firefox, the new version 3.6 is out. This isn't another release candidate. It's the release version of 3.6. Grab it if you need it!

Download Link (Windows)

Download Link (Mac OS X)

Download Link (Linux)

If you are a student going for your Microsoft certifications, look here for some great discounts. This is great for anyone that is a student, worldwide (Except India and China). You can even add to that the second shot offer. So, either way, it's an amazing deal. I'm going to take advantage of it, for sure. Just have to beat the famous "Beast" to finish my MCSA and then a couple more to my MCSE. Of course, after I take my Cisco exam on Wednesday!

Stand out from the crowd! Choose a certification based on the job role you want, and then register for the related exams at a great discount. Register for your exam by June 30, 2010, and take advantage of the Student Second Shot offer. If you do not pass your Microsoft Certification exam on your first try, don't worry. You can retake the exam without any additional cost!

My hearts and prayers are out to the Haitians for the disaster that is affecting them currently. A huge earthquake laid waste to the small Caribbean country, leaving it in ruins. Microsoft has donated an initial 1.25 million dollars to the efforts down there.

"Microsoft is committed to supporting the immediate relief and rescue efforts in Haiti and we are working with our NGO partners to provide the necessary support," Badshah added. "There are many opportunities to help, through donations of your time as a volunteer, and through financial contributions."

Microsoft has admitted to making any mistakes, most notably the target market. They were aiming the software at the business end, rather than the consumer end. They promise this will change with the release of Windows Mobile 7, to be shown next month in Barcelona.

Microsoft is up against the poorly received Windows Mobile 6.5 it released last year, and the expectations ofWindows Mobile 7, which it plans to highlight next month at the Mobile World Congress and in March at its annual Mix Conference. Shipment is expected this year.

Once again, Microsoft has appealed the case for their Word XML patent case. And once again, I'm sure the outcome will be the same. I guess they are persistent!

The world's largest software company wants all 11 judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which handles many patent and trademark cases, to review the long-running case against Toronto-based i4i Ltd, in the hope of overturning the original judgment.

So, I don't know if you've noticed... Ok, I'm sure you have. This "new" God Mode for Windows 7 has been making it's rounds. There seems to be a lot of people excited about it. Yet, as usual, there are those that "already knew" about it, or realize that it's just a shortcut, nothing spectacular. They bash the author and the website for posting such drivel. Yet, these same websites (mine included) also included other simple things. Like, customizing your desktop (REALLY?!) or setting up your email (SAY IT AIN'T SO!).

Sure, the "super uber leet God Mode/Master Control/Super Dooper God Mode" isn't new. No one has really claimed it was. In fact, it dates back to the beginning of the registry, way back in Windows 95. 15 years or so. Nothing new.

So, why all the hate for those helping out other users? And then there are the few website owners that are taking advantage of these bashers, making their own posts calling others out in weird and obnoxious ways. So, does that mean all the other help they offer is bunk as well? The simple things (like setting up email) have been around a lot longer than "God Mode", yet these are helpful posts. Why is it that this is not helpful? I find it extremely helpful. The Control Panel is a ever more complicated place to go. It takes twice as many clicks to get to where you want (or 3 or 4 clicks). A quick shortcut is great. It works for Quick Launch. If you use something frequently, why not have a shortcut to it?

There will ALWAYS be those that are new to something. New to computers, new to cars, etc.. They need to be shown the ropes, the same way we all were. There were times when we heard of a certain technology or tip that wasn't new, but we were excited, weren't we? I started overclocking my PC in the 486 era. And I loved it. But, it wasn't anything new. PC tinkerers have been doing it for years! But, I was a newbie to that area, so I took in all the information I could and learned what I could.

Come on guys, cut the new guys some slack. We were all there at some point. ALL of us.

Ok, it being called "God" mode is getting ridiculous. Sure, it's a special little tip, but it's nothing that's not documented or not built into the operating system to be anything "secret". And it doesn't give you any special options that weren't there before. It does give you a quick, easy way to access those regular options with a single click, rather than the multiple clicks that it would take to browse the Control Panel. I like using it, but it's nothing that would be considered Godly or even like a special Doom style "cheating" mode. It's just a shortcut menu. But, if you're like me, it's handy.

Ed Bott has wrote an article about how and why it works, and some other GUID shortcuts for you to use at your pleasure. Quite a bit of them, really, and it seems like there are more and more options in each Windows version. So, with so many options out there, of course it could be handy to have a shortcut with them all listed!

As with the other shortcuts, the process of turning one of these GUIDs into a shortcut that opens a shell folder or Control Panel item is straightforward. Start by right-clicking any empty space on the desktop or in a folder. Right-click and choose New, Folder. Type the name you want to appear under the shortcut, followed by a period and then the GUID shown in the list here, complete with curly braces on either end. Press enter and voila, you’re done.

Download Squad posts that Windows 7 is the fastest selling OS in history. Usually, these claims are pretty baseless, but the author includes a nice chart and numbers to back it up. Not bad, Microsoft. But, with my experience with Windows 7, it's no surprise!

I don't like reporting news without exact numbers, especially when making claims like this, but the Director of Marketing at Microsoft is fairly confident about this one: "Windows 7 is by far the fastest selling Operating System in history."

We've all had some troubles with e-mail in the past. Well, Outlook can be troublesome and Computer Talks helps you troubleshoot some of the most common errors.

Email is one of the most common forms of communication for home and corporate users alike. For many, it has become a way of life. There are several mail clients to choose from but Microsoft Outlook is easily the most widely used. While the application is efficient and very useful, there may be times when you encounter nagging errors.