Category Archives: Tech

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Get Ahead With the MCITP Certification

The MCITP will grant you a professional qualification, which reinforces your I.T skills to your employer and other future employers. It validates your knowledge as a trained and experienced professional. Furthermore, it allows to get to grips, out of the work place, with the ever advancing Microsoft technologies that are available – enabling you to advance your skills in the work place, and hopefully get that much needed promotion.

 

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The Lowdown – Database Administration (SQL Server 2005):

What is being tested?

A variety of skills will be tested in the following modules:

1. Designing a Database Server Infrastructure:
The central aim of this second module is to teach you how to optimise the performance of database servers and databases. It focuses mainly on design elements, which will enhance your databases’ efficiency and security. You will be taught how to design a database server infrastructure, design security solutions – enabling you to make the best choice of security; design the database so that you can improve performance, efficiency and choose the most appropriate view. Further testing includes: designing a database solution for high availability, data recovery and a structure for data archiving. As before, this is tested by an exam.

2. Database implementation and maintenance:
This module focuses on your ability to install and configure Microsoft’s very own SQL server 2005, implement high availability and disaster recovery so as to protect your database, support data consumers, maintain databases, create and implement database objects, as well as assessing monitoring and troubleshooting SQL server performance. This will all be tested by an exam.

After completing this module, you will gain a certificate known as the Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: SQL Server 2005. This acts as one credit towards the MCITP database administrator certification – you must complete the other two modules before you can gain this certificate.

3. Optimising and maintaining a database
This module continues to study database performance optimisation and maintenance using SQL Server 2005. It will analyse the performance of the database, the server and queries. One of the main focuses of this module will be – the implementation of a database recovery plan, so as to protect the database from any disasters. This module will then continue to analyse in depth strategies to maintain and monitor a database solution, which includes content management; will cultivate the ability to design a strategy to manage data, as well as security.

The MCITP certification will enable you to utilise the skills you need to optimise the database’s performance and security, which will in turn improve your company’s performance and effectiveness.

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Certkingdom 70-620 Passed, Quick Tips Here

Make use of the Virtual Labs that Microsoft provides, as well as the free Webcasts. Practice test material is just for that… PRACTICE. It may help you pass the test but believe me you will only last one day in a job if you don’t know what you are doing, so if you use practice material, read the question and if you don’t know the answer, research it and learn it, don’t just memorize the answer….I will tell you right now that their answers are not always right.

 

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Also make sure when you test that you read the questions carefully, they many times put extra information, that you don’t need, to see if you know what you are doing (not to throw you off as some think) or they are asking for a specific answer, not how to resolve all the problems in the scenario.. Be aware of the type of exam you are taking. For example, if you are taking a basic operating system exam, a networking problem is USUALLY resolved by using the TOOLS the operating system comes with and may not be the advanced administrator troubleshooting found in Server exams. Also in networking there is the Microsoft answer and there is the Cisco answer and they will both be right but only for THEIR type of test.

I hope to continue this thread with review mini-lessons using the above books,Microsoft websites and various forums as references. Any one that wants to share their studies, please join in…lets use the “open-source” concept and contribute so that we all LEARN and pass. I need help too, I am still learning this and there is a lot of experience in this wonderful forum, use those guys, they are willing to help. We are a community, we keep business productive, we are the last line of defense,we are Techies.

MCITP, mcitp certification, MCITP Training, MCSE, MCSE Certification, MCSE Training, MCTS, MCTS Certification, MCTS Training, Microsoft, Tech

IT Management: Leaving Microsoft: Software Giant’s Key Employee Losses

As with any big company, Microsoft has seen its share of departures. Turnaround is an issue in every business and in every industry. However, if many of those who left Microsoft banded together to form a single entity, it would be enough to scare the living daylights out of many a startup or even some established companies.

 

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Microsoft has seen key people abandoning positions across the board—from high, C-level executives to middle managers to evangelists and strategic engineers and architects. Throughout 2010, there were several key departures, and the brain drain spilled over into this year, with some big names leaving in January. Perhaps the biggest fish to jump the net was Ray Ozzie, chief software architect of the company. Ozzie primarily made his mark at Microsoft in the cloud computing arena, but in the end he opted to exit. Ozzie leads what has been a virtual all-star team of technical, managerial and business talent to leave Microsoft over the last year or two. From Web development standard bearers to search folks, open source liaisons to database gurus, tools leaders to language geeks and consumer tech specialists, Microsoft has seen talent hit the door. However, Microsoft has a deep bench and, as in sports, when one player goes down, there is always someone else to step in and take that position. How well that replacement plays is another matter. Moreover, as veterans hit the door, significant new hires find their way in. In any event, the list in this slide show is by no means exhaustive; there have been several others to leave Microsoft’s ranks. But we thought this was at least representative of the talent to leave the software giant in recent

Tech

Defcon: The security penetration testing quagmire

How corporate security flaws are handled raises lots of questions

LAS VEGAS — The relationship between CISOs and security penetration testers is anything but clear-cut and raises ethical issues for both parties, a Defcon crowd heard from a former CISO.

 

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Whether penetration testers should come in looking for the place where they can spectacularly break into the network or instead assess it clinically and point out potential vulnerabilities is the big decision CISOs have to make, says a CISO-turned penetration tester identified only as Shrdlu.

SELF TESTING: Metasploit 4.0 sets the stage for mass penetration testing

And the choice is the CISO’s, she says, because the CISO is paying the bills. “It’s not about your satisfaction,” she told a crowd that included many penetration testers.

She says that often penetration tests are mandated by regulations, and the network must pass in order to comply. In that case, she prefers a light touch by the tester, telling her informally about technical security shortcomings but not including them in the formal report that goes to the compliance auditor. “Tell me verbally what’s wrong and don’t write it down,” she says.

For example, if the help desk prompts users that they can’t login because they’ve gotten their username wrong, that’s a violation. But, she says, doing so saves a lot of help desk and employee time and is a good risk-business tradeoff. She doesn’t consider the practice a major breach of good practice.

“There are things I do on purpose and are not high-impact,” she says.

That drew protests from audience members, one of whom said it was unethical not to include security problems he finds and is possibly illegal because it is essentially lying to compliance auditors. “It sounds like avoiding regulatory scrutiny,” he said.

“That’s very fair,” Shrdlu responded. But she says most compliance regulations are vague enough that reports can be vague as well, indicating an unspecified problem without detailing it. She says penetration testers can prepare two reports, one for her use and a second for the auditor.

She says these dual reports are useful for public organizations where the reports may become public record. The vague one that doesn’t detail specific problems can be the public version and the detailed one can be called a working document and so avoid public scrutiny.

Another audience member said her approach could cause problems for penetration testers if a problem found but not mentioned is exploited. The tester would have no documentation that he’d done his job properly. Again, she fell back on the dual report, where the vague reference to the problem would provide cover for the penetration tester.

She says she’s found frustration with penetration testers who haven’t worked in corporate security and had to shore up problems testers have found. Often the problems present less of a risk to the organization than the time it would take to fix them is worth, she says. “I’m impatient with penetration testers that have never been on the fixing side,” she says. They need to be more aware of the big impact and the business impact of remedies. “There are things that just plain aren’t going to be fixed.”

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Tips for printing digital photos at home

It’s easy to capture and preserve memories as digital snapshots with Windows 7 and Windows Vista, and so is turning them into stunning scrapbooks or photo albums.

If you’d like to create professional-looking photo prints using a home PC, here are a few hints and tips that will help you produce sharper, more eye-catching results.
Photograph of red poppies in bloom

A little care is all it takes to turn photos into gorgeous prints.
Maximize image quality


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The best prints come from the finest images. Help improve picture quality by following these suggestions:
1. Increase photo resolution

As a rule, the higher the resolution, the better the picture. Most digital cameras offer a choice of settings. Check your camera’s instructions to figure out how to change the resolutions you’re using. For premium printing results, always select the maximum offered photo size and quality.

Here are some good resolution guidelines to consider:

2 megapixels: Appropriate for an attractive wallet-sized (2.5-by-3.5-inch) or album-sized (4-by-6-inch) print

3 megapixels: Minimum resolution required for projects like calendars and greeting cards or 5-by-7-inch reproductions

5 or 6 megapixels: A resolution that offers better image quality for use with craft projects. Also suitable for printing and framing an 11-by-14-inch photo for use around the home

8 megapixels: A resolution that’s capable of providing attractive 16-by-20-inch prints

10 megapixels or more: Optimal for printing larger (20-by-30-inch) projects, including posters and panoramas

The more you increase photo resolution, the more you’ll improve image clarity and detail.
Higher image resolutions (left) produce sharper snapshots.

Higher image resolutions (left) produce sharper snapshots.
2. Choose the correct file format

The JPEG file format, which compresses image data, is suitable for emailing pictures or posting them to the web. For photo-printing purposes though, it generally pays to stick with larger TIFF files. Despite consuming more space on a memory card, TIFF images are smoother, crisper, and vastly superior to their JPEG counterparts.
3. Edit and enhance images

Use programs such as Windows Live Photo Gallery (Windows 7) and Windows Photo Gallery (Windows Vista) to soften edges, experiment with lighting and color, remove blemishes from pictures, and touch up your photos. It’s a simple way to add special effects, get rid of red eye, and otherwise improve your snapshots. Read more articles about how to make simple fixes to your digital photos, take better pictures, capture the perfect moment, and create online photo albums.

Enterprising shutterbugs can even use Microsoft Photosynth to transform their images into three-dimensional scenes.
Add special effects to spice up any photo.

Add special effects to spice up any photo.
Prepare your printer

Enhance print quality by configuring your printer for optimum results.
1. Use current drivers

Drivers are software interpreters that let your computer and printer communicate. But printer manufacturers are constantly revising these drivers. Always use the most current drivers to help ensure peak performance and picture quality. Check your printer manufacturer’s website regularly for downloadable updates, or see this tutorial for advice on locating and installing them.
2. Don’t skimp on dots per inch

The higher your printer’s dots per inch (dpi) specifications, the better the prints it will produce. Avoid images which suffer from frayed and jagged edges by using a printer with 600 x 600 dpi or better printing capabilities when producing hard copies of color digital photos. You can find photo printers for sale at Microsoft Store and advice on picking the right model here.
3. Configure print quality settings

After installing your printer, check your owner’s manual for instructions on how to change print quality settings, or read this article, which covers the basics of printer selection, page orientation, and color management. Remember that it’s always important to choose the right print options and preferences before printing. Detailed instructions on how to print pictures are also available that can help you get the most from your images, as are answers to frequently asked questions.
4. Managing paper

Different types of paper, such as high gloss or card stock, require varying amounts of ink and touch-ups. When setting printing preferences, be sure to tell your printer which type you’re using to help ensure first-rate results and to avoid wasting expensive stock.
5. Ongoing maintenance

It’s a good idea to run printer alignment, color calibration, and print cartridge cleaning functions every 90 days. These practices help prevent blurring, streaking, and off-center photo prints. See your printer’s owner’s manual for instructions on how to perform this maintenance.
Pick the right paper and ink

Help improve photo prints by selecting the right choice of paper and ink to perfectly complement your images.
1. Go with photo paper

Standard printer paper isn’t suitable for creating pleasing photo prints. Unless you’re printing documents, choose a glossy or matte finish photo paper instead. Black and white prints generally look best on matte finish papers, and color tends to look best on glossy paper.
2. Creativity counts

Multiple varieties of paper stock are available, designed for a wide range of specialty uses. These special-purpose materials can enhance any photo printing project. Whether incorporating your photos into decals, business cards, or T-shirts, before starting a new project, browse the selection at your local office supply or electronics retailer.
3. Choose the right size

Photos come in many shapes and forms, from wallet-sized (2.5-by-3.5-inch) to album/scrapbook-ready (4-by-6-inch or 5-by-7-inch) prints. Match the paper to fit.

Alternately, choose a standard letter-sized (8.5-by-11-inch) paper and use Windows Photo Gallery or Windows Live Photo Gallery to squeeze several smaller images onto one sheet.
Windows Photo Viewer makes printing multiple photos a breeze.

Windows Photo Viewer makes printing multiple photos a breeze.
4. Get inked

The safest way to pick an ink is to choose a brand from the same company that manufactured your printer. Various types of ink provide differing degrees of resistance to water, smudges, age, and fading. Which one you should pick depends entirely on how much you’re willing to spend for various image-enhancing qualities.
Additional advice

Always align new print cartridges.

Experiment with free or commercial photo-editing software to eliminate image imperfections and to improve your subjects’ already stunning good looks.

Practice by making test prints. Try reducing image size and creating multiple prints on a single sheet of paper to cut down on wasted materials.

Before placing photos in an album or framing them, give the ink approximately 12 hours to dry.

Remember that Windows Photo Gallery and Windows Live Photo Gallery also make it possible to order prints online or print files at a local printer kiosk, for your convenience.

Google, Tech

Hosted productivity suites: Google Apps or Microsoft Office 365?

Microsoft and Google agree that hosted productivity suites offer unique benefits for evolving business needs. Of course the two behemoths traveled very different paths to reach this conclusion, and bring different strengths to their respective offerings. Which one is right you?

 

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John Dix, Network World Editor in Chief, sets up the debates and recruits the experts. Contact him with thoughts and ideas, jdix@nww.com.

The experts
Tom Rizzo, senior director of Microsoft Online Services says having online tools that complement existing on-premise productivity suites is a combination that is hard to beat.
Shan Sinha, group product manager, Google Apps for Business argues that Google Apps was built from the ground up as a hosted suite, and having that baked into the service’s DNA makes a real difference.

Google, Microsoft, Tech

Google vs. Microsoft: Who’s Winning?

Google and Microsoft are at each other’s throats over everything from patents to Android and Windows Phone market

 

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Google and Microsoft are at each other’s throats over Android.
The simmering rivalry between the two tech giants exploded this week, with executives trading barbs on Twitter and blog posts over patents related to mobile technology.

This newest burst of aggression has its roots in a high-stakes auction that took place earlier this year. Microsoft and a handful of other companies submitted a $4.5 billion winning bid for some 6,000 patents and patent applications formerly owned by Nortel. Google wanted the same property, but its own bid of $900 million couldn’t quite seal the deal.

Now Google seems concerned that Microsoft and its consortium partners (which include Apple, not exactly the search-engine giant’s bosom buddy) will use those patents to sue Android manufacturers into the ground. Indeed, Microsoft is rapidly making an industry out of what it claims are Android’s violations of its intellectual property: in addition to squeezing royalties from any number of Android-device manufacturers, the company has filed patent-infringement suits against Motorola (maker of Android-based smartphones and tablets) and Barnes & Noble (which produces the Nook, an Android-based e-reader).

“Microsoft and Apple have always been at each other’s throats, so when they get into bed together, you have to start wondering what’s going on,” David Drummond, Google’s senior vice president and chief legal officer, wrote in an Aug. 3 posting on The Official Google Blog. “Fortunately, the law frowns on the accumulation of dubious patents for anticompetitive means—which means these deals are likely to draw regulatory scrutiny, and this patent bubble will pop.”

He went on to claim that the Justice Department is “looking into whether Microsoft and Apple acquired the Nortel patents for anticompetitive means.”

Microsoft executives felt compelled to fire back.

“Google says we bought Novell patents to keep them from Google,” Brad Smith, Microsoft’s general counsel, wrote in an Aug. 3 Tweet. “Really? We asked them to bid jointly with us. They said no.”

The same day, Frank Shaw, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of corporate communications, also Tweeted: “Free advice for David Drummond—next time check with Kent Walker before you blog.”

He included a link to an Oct. 28 email sent to Brad Smith by Kent Walker, Google’s general counsel, suggesting that “a joint bid wouldn’t be advisable for us on this one.”

Rather than let Microsoft blow a hole beneath the waterline of his tight little narrative, Drummond updated his original post Aug. 4: “If you think about it, it’s obvious why we turned down Microsoft’s offer,” he wrote. A joint acquisition of the patents “that gave all parties a license would have eliminated any protection these patents could offer to Android against attacks from Microsoft and its bidding partners.”

A number of analyst estimates have Android leading the mobile market. According to recent data from Nielsen, for example, Android held 39 percent of the U.S. smartphone market, followed by Apple’s iPhone with 28 percent, RIM with 20 percent, and Microsoft with 9 percent. Similarly, research firm comScore placed Android’s share of the U.S. market at 40.1 percent, followed by Apple with 26.6 percent, RIM with 23.4 percent and Microsoft with 5.8 percent.

Combined with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer’s recent admission that Windows Phone’s market share is “very small,” it seems Android is handily winning the mobility wars despite Microsoft’s patent maneuvers. That being said, Microsoft seems to have found a viable source of revenue in its latest string of Android lawsuits and “royalty agreements,” something the company is likely to vigorously push in quarters ahead; Jack Gold, founder and principal analyst of J. Gold Associates, recently theorized that Microsoft’s cash stream from Android royalties could even top that of Windows Phone.

Meanwhile, Google’s core business—search—continues to outpace Microsoft’s Bing, although the latter has enjoyed incremental market share gains over the past several quarters. Microsoft has demonstrated a willingness to burn hundreds of millions of dollars to keep itself in the search game, something that makes its investors nervous—but doesn’t seem to have any appreciable effect on Google’s ability to earn lots of cash from advertising.

So Android continues to handily dominate Microsoft in the actual mobility and search markets, but Microsoft has a variety of good legal cards to play in order to make life more difficult, both for Google and its manufacturing partners. In other words, look forward to some messy battles (and more irate blog and Twitter posts) to come.

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Microsoft, Google War of Words Marked Week

Microsoft and Google intensified their animosity in a war of words related to mobile patents, even as new data suggests Microsoft’s smartphone share continues to fall.

Microsoft’s competition with Google proved the highlight of the week, as a series of Tweets and blog postings by the respective companies’ executives threatened to make an already-tense relationship even more acrimonious.

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The stage was set earlier this year, when Microsoft and a handful of other companies submitted a winning $4.5 billion bid for the 6,000 wireless technology patents and patent applications formerly owned by Nortel Networks. Google had previously offered some $900 million for the patents. In July, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross, in Wilmington, Del., and Ontario Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Morawetz signaled their approval of the deal in a joint session.

According to unnamed sources speaking to The Wall Street Journal, federal regulators are examining whether members of the winning consortium are planning to file additional patent-infringement suits against Android device-makers: “The Justice Department wants to know whether it intends to use [the patents] defensively to deter patent lawsuits against its members, or offensively against rivals.”

But now Google’s crying foul over the deal.

“Microsoft and Apple have always been at each other’s throats, so when they get into bed together you have to start wondering what’s going on,” David Drummond, Google’s senior vice president and chief legal officer, wrote in an Aug. 3 posting on The Official Google Blog. “Fortunately, the law frowns on the accumulation of dubious patents for anti-competitive means—which means these deals are likely to draw regulatory scrutiny, and this patent bubble will pop.”

He went on to claim that the Justice Department is “looking into whether Microsoft and Apple acquired the Nortel patents for anticompetitive means.”

Google’s competitors have taken to the courts to stop Android’s rise. Over the past several months, Microsoft has convinced several manufacturers to pay it royalties on their Android-based devices, and is currently locked in patent-infringement lawsuits with Motorola and Barnes & Noble. Meanwhile, Apple is embroiled in court cases with HTC, Samsung and Motorola over the use of Android technology.

Following Drummond’s blog post, Microsoft decided to take the battle to the Internets.

“Google says we bought Novell patents to keep them from Google,” Brad Smith, Microsoft’s general counsel, wrote in an Aug. 3 Tweet. “Really? We asked them to bid jointly with us. They said no.”

The same day, Frank Shaw, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of corporate communications (say that three times fast), also Tweeted: “Free advice for David Drummond – next time check with Kent Walker before you blog.”

He included a link to an Oct. 28 email sent to Brad Smith by Kent Walker, Google’s general counsel, suggesting that “a joint bid wouldn’t be advisable for us on this one.”

Drummond felt compelled to update his post Aug. 4: “If you think about it, it’s obvious why we turned down Microsoft’s offer,” he wrote. A joint acquisition of the patents “that gave all parties a license would have eliminated any protection these patents could offer to Android against attacks from Microsoft and its bidding partners.”

However the legal side of that patent battle turns out, the two companies will continue to batter each other for smartphone market share—although Google Android continues to handily outpace Microsoft’s own efforts in the space. According to research firm comScore, Microsoft saw its smartphone market-share decline in the three-month period ending in June, from 7.5 percent to 5.8 percent, over a period when both arch-rivals Google and Apple experienced gains.

Microsoft’s market share included both its antiquated Windows Mobile platform and the newer Windows Phone, which was supposed to reinvigorate the company’s fortunes in the smartphone space.

Instead, Windows Phone is showing signs of anemic adoption by consumers and businesses. According to data from Nielsen, Microsoft occupied some 9 percent of the U.S. smartphone market in June—trailing Google Android with 39 percent, Apple’s iPhone with 28 percent, and RIM with 20 percent.

During a July 11 keynote speech at the company’s Worldwide Partner Conference, CEO Steve Ballmer described Windows Phone’s market share as “very small,” but insisted that other metrics (such as consumer satisfaction) boded well for the platform overall.

Meanwhile, former Microsoft executive Steven VanRoekel has been tapped to become the nation’s second federal CIO. He will replace Vivek Kundra, who accepted a fellowship at Harvard University.

VanRoekel worked at Microsoft for 15 years, eventually rising to senior director for the Windows Server and Tools Division. After leaving the company in 2009, he served as the Federal Communications Commission’s managing director before leaping to USAID in 2011.

Oracle, Tech

Black Hat: Lots of hacks and a patriotic plea

Research reveals vulnerability to a key router protocol, as well as threats to critical infrastructure

LAS VEGAS — Black Hat hasn’t disappointed this year, with research revealing a flaw that undercuts OSPF routing, two separate assertions that security for Apple products in the enterprise isn’t that bad and a friendly hand being offered to hackers and crackers to join the U.S. fight against terrorists in cyberspace.

 

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Perhaps the biggest blockbuster, because of the sheer scope of the potential problem, is the vulnerability an Israeli researcher found in the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) routing protocol that puts networks using it at risk of attacks that compromise data streams, falsify network topography and create crippling router loops.

OSPF is the most popular routing protocol used within the roughly 35,000 autonomous systems into which the Internet is divided. Typically large corporations, universities and ISPs run autonomous systems.

MORE FROM BLACK HAT: Hackers and crackers needed to counter terrorists

The only remedies are using another protocol such as RIP or IS-IS or changing OSPF to close the vulnerability, says Gabi Nakibly, a researcher at Israel’s Electronic Warfare Research and Simulation Center, who discovered the problem.

Nakibly says he has successfully carried out an exploit against the vulnerability on a Cisco 7200 router running software version IOS 15.0(1)M, but it would be equally effective against any router that is compliant with the OSPF specification. He says he chose a Cisco router to underscore the severity of the problem, since Cisco dominates the router market.

Meanwhile, researchers took a look at Apple’s OS X operating system for desktops and laptops and its iOS operating system for mobile devices to see whether they are more or less vulnerable than competing Microsoft products.

The conclusion of Alex Stamos, who led a team of researchers from iSec Partners that researched the OS X and Windows 7 operating systems, is that Apple does pretty well, but Microsoft wins. While earlier versions of Apple’s software were more vulnerable to initial exploitation than Windows 7, the latest version, known as Lion, makes up ground.

Escalating privileges remains a problem on both operating systems, Stamos says, with OS X having more potential soft spots than Windows 7. But when it comes to network vulnerabilities, Apple is the loser. “OS X networks are significantly more vulnerable to network privilege escalation,” he says. “Almost every OS X server service offers weak or broken authentication mechanisms.”

Stamos says the bottom line is that enterprises should run Apple OS X products in isolated islands within networks.

On the mobile side, independent researcher Dino Dai Zovi says iOS does a pretty good job running applications in a sandbox that rogue applications would have to escape in order to do damage. The operating system has a dynamic signing feature for applications in which the device itself has to approve applications before running them, not just accepting the Apple certificate that says they are approved.

He says BlackBerries have better data protection than iOS, but that they lack a sandbox for running applications. He says that Google’s Android mobile operating system is more vulnerable than iOS. Android is about as secure as a jailbroken iPhone that has lost many of its security features by virtue of being jailbroken, he says.

Google, Tech

Gmail Unveils Preview Pane: Browse Emails While You Reply to Them

Gmail is taking a few cues from its tablet apps with Preview Pane, Google’s newest Gmail Labs feature.

Preview Pane, which is now available in Gmail Labs, allows users to simultaneously preview parts of an email while reading or replying to others. Users of Gmail for iPad or Android will instantly recognize the interface — its design is directly inspired by the email service’s mobile web apps.

 

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Activating Preview Pane opens up a three-window panel for Gmail, with the Preview Pane in between the navigation and email panes. Activating the horizontal split places the preview pane at the top and emails below the preview pane. Users can change pane settings with a button that appears on the top right corner of Gmail. Google‘s Official Gmail Blog suggests that users with higher-resolution screens will get the most out of the feature.

The concept of a Preview Pane sounds intriguing, but my initial tests lead me to conclude it’s a clunky and incomplete product. It breaks up my Gmail Labels in a way that keeps them from lining up with Gmail’s navigation pane, leading to a ugly and cluttered look. The standard two-pane system is cleaner, although you probably can get through more emails with Preview Pane activated.

Will you be switching to Preview Pane? Test it out and let us know what you think of it in the comments.