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New Security Essentials update and more Microsoft news of the week

New Microsoft Security Essentials and Forefront Client Security updates, an updated Eclipse tools for Windows Azure build and the Old Spice Guy -- all part of this week's Microsoft news you may have missed.
Written by Mary Jo Foley, Senior Contributing Editor

This week was mostly all about Windows Phone 7. But there were a few other things happening in and around the Redmond campus. Among them:

New MSE and Forefront updates out this week: With all the Patch Tuesday madness (and Microsoft setting a new record with 49 vulnerabilities addressed), a couple of new security updates worth a separate call-out.

Those running the first version of Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) -- not the one that is currently in beta and due by year end -- may have noticed an update pushed by Microsoft this week. "In addition to minor performance fixes (nothing noteworthy) and the inclusion of additional languages, this update includes the new EULA (end user license agreement) which allows small businesses to install Microsoft Security Essentials on up to 10 PCs," a spokesperson said when I asked what was included.

Microsoft also delivered on October 12 its Forefront Client Security (FCS) Update1. FCS is Microsoft's paid anti-malware client. Included in the update are a number of virus definition changes and other performance and reliability fixes. Microsoft is slated to deliver FCS' successor, known as Forefront Endpoint Security, before the end of 2010.

New CTP available of Eclipse tools for Windows Azure: There's a new Community Technology Preview (CTP) test version of the Windows Azure Tools for Eclipse for PHP available for download this week. "This CTP update refines the new features we announced in the upcoming version 2, which should be ready next month," according to a post on October 12 to the Microsoft Port 25 blog. The update enables one-click deployment of PHP Applications from Eclipse directly to Windows Azure; support for  Windows Azure Diagnostics; the integration of theAppFabric SDK for PHP Developers and more. Now if Microsoft would just post the list of sessions for its cloud-focused PDC 2010 -- which is less than two weeks away...

The real Old Spice guy (and not Steve Ballmer as Old Spice Guy) is stumping for Windows Phone 7: Around the time of Microsoft's company meeting, a rumor/joke surfaced that Microsoft might have been working on a spoof of the "Old Spice Guy" viral videos, starring SteveB. Well, it turns out there's no spoof. The real Isaiah Mustafa is going to be doing some WP7 spots (starting with Australia). No word on whether and when the Softies will be taking this campaign broader.

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