But if you look past all the hoopla, you may find a couple of great apps in there, available for free to everyone.

First of all, there are actually two “Windows Live” categories.
In the first category, software programs: downloadable apps that should have come with Windows, but don’t, because Microsoft is afraid of more antitrust lawsuits. They’re a one-click download away, they’re collectively called Windows Live Essentials, and they include Windows Live Mail (formerly Windows Mail, formerly Outlook Express); Windows Live Photo Gallery; Windows Live Messenger (formerly MSN Messenger); Windows Live Movie Maker; Windows Live Family Safety; Windows Live Toolbar; and Windows Live Writer (a tool for composing blog posts).

The second group is a suite of Windows Live *services*–basically Web sites–that includes Windows Live Calendar; Windows Live Events (a invitation service); Windows Live Groups (discussions–great for organizing team, club, or family events); Windows Live Hotmail (yes, regular old Hotmail); Windows Live People (address book); Windows Live Photos (online Web gallery); Windows Live Spaces (a blog site); and Windows Live Skydrive.

Some of these services are really good, and some offer just bare-bones functionality, a feeble attempt to catch up with rival products from Google, Apple and many others. But there are some gems.

Take SkyDrive for instance.
SkyDrive is a free, 25-gigabyte virtual hard drive on the Internet, accessible from any computer. It’s a perfect temporary parking spot for files you want to transfer from one computer to another. You can also use it for offsite backup of your files, or as a handy intermediary for sharing big files and folders with friends and family. This feature alone is becoming much more important as personal file sizes are growing larger than most ISP’s (Internet Service Providers) like Verizon and Comcast allow you to transfer or share via email.

The key point is that you can access the SkyDrive from any computer–Mac, Windows, whatever–at your office, at your home, at your friend’s house, so you don’t need to carry around a CD, DVD or USB Stick to transport files.

Yes, of course, this is the same idea as dozens of other online storage services–but there are two big differences. First, this one is free. Second, its storage offering is many times larger than the other free services, which usually offer something like 2 gigabytes per account.

It’s easy to get started. First, you’ll need to sign up for a free Windows Live account (http://home.live.com). Once you’re signed up and logged on, choose SkyDrive. If you already have a Windows Live ID, go directly to SkyDrive here: http://skydrive.live.com.

Now that I’ve defined Microsoft’s free online storage service, there’s yet another player offering double the storage space – 50GB – for free. For you folks who simply hate all things Microsoft, check out this site: www.adrive.com

The adrive.com service doesn’t integrate directly with Internet Explorer but it does let you send links via e-mail to individual downloadable files you’ve parked there. Sign up for your free account here: https://www.adrive.com/login/signup

Now for my caveat! Even though you get substantially more storage space with these free services then with the ”other guys” offering a paid application as well, remember… when something is given to you for FREE, you tend to get your money’s worth.

Don’t expect either company to provide you with guarantees that the free service will meet your needs or be reliable and available when you need it. Do not, I repeat, Do Not use these sites as the only place you store your irreplaceable files. Take a few minutes to actually read the “terms of use” policy – it’s a good thing to do with any service you intend to take advantage of.

If you do sign up for either or both of these services, feel free to come back here an post an entry describing your experiences. My readers would love to hear from you!
Thanks

Some of Microsoft’s older operating systems will soon take another step towards the end of their lifecycles.
Businesses using Windows XP will need to upgrade to Service Pack 3 (SP3) of the operating system by July in order to continue receiving support from Microsoft.

Although XP is currently in its extended support phase, which runs until April 2014, users will need to be using a supported service pack to be eligible for this. The cut off for XP SP2 support is 13 July 2010 while support for XP SP1 ended in October 2006.

XP users will need to install SP3 through the Windows Update online service. Those not using XP SP2 will need to install this before downloading SP3.

XP SP3 will be supported for 24 months after the release of any additional service pack or until the end of the extended support phase – available to Software Assurance subscribers – in April 2014.

Microsoft will inform users of the need to upgrade in a number of ways. As well as the Windows Blog, the company is revamping its windows.com website to inform customers about the end of support for XP SP2 and prompt them to take action.

When users visit a Microsoft website, the website will detect if they are using XP and direct them to the relevant section if they need to install service packs.

July 2010 will also signal the end of support for Windows 2000 which was first released a decade ago. Meanwhile, support for the release to manufacture version of Vista, will end on 13 April 2010. Users running Vista without any service packs will need to install one by this date with Microsoft suggesting they upgrade to the latest version, SP2.

Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) is an important update that includes previously released security, performance, and stability updates for Windows XP.

How to get SP3
The recommended (and easiest) way to get SP3 is to turn on Automatic Updates, which will automatically download SP3 when it’s available for your computer. You just need a few clicks to begin the installation and the rest of the process is automatic.

In order to install SP3, you must first have Windows XP Service Pack 1a or Service Pack 2 installed. These are also available when you have Automatic Updates turned on.

Manually installing SP3 using the Microsoft Download Center
If you have problems obtaining the service pack from Windows Update, you can download SP3 as a standalone installation package from the Microsoft Download Center website, and then install SP3 manually. The installation package is intended for IT professionals and developers, but you can still download and install this file.

Finally, if all else fails, you can order a CD from Microsoft containing SP3. For more information, go to the Microsoft website. The cost is only $3.99 per CD for up to a maximum of 4 CD’s.

Not sure what version of XP you have installed?
Click Start, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.

If Service Pack 3 is listed in the System section, SP3 is already installed on your computer and you don’t need to do anything until April 2014.

A collection of over 900 experts interviewed for the Pew Internet report The Future of the Internet IV, released last Friday February 19th, were asked their views on how the Internet is affecting us–now and in another 10 years. Though most felt that the Internet can and would improve our reading, writing, and overall grasp of knowledge, some experts were reluctant to jump on that bandwagon.

“Three out of four experts said our use of the Internet enhances and augments human intelligence, and two-thirds said use of the Internet has improved reading, writing, and rendering of knowledge,” said Janna Anderson, study co-author and director of the Imagining the Internet Center, in a statement. “There are still many people, however, who are critics of the impact of Google, Wikipedia, and other online tools.”

In the summer of 2008, writer Nick Carr wrote a controversial article for The Atlantic entitled “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” One of his rants went like this: “Remember books? Those were the things we read before e-mail, Web browsing, and Twitter came on the scene. Speaking of Twitter, am I the only one who views it as further evidence of a soundbite culture that struggles even to think beyond 140 character blips? We really don’t want to think like Google. We don’t want to speak like Twitter. We don’t want to converse like e-mail. And yet we increasingly do, as the Internet reshapes the world in its image.”

Pew Internet asked the same question of its panel of experts and most disagreed with the premise that browsing and skimming through Web sites is lowering our ability to concentrate. Some said that Google makes us more informed and creative. Others said sites like Google make us intellectually lazy. And for many, the answer was not as simple as the question.

One train of thought is that Google will make us stupid and intelligent at the same time. In the future, we will live in a transparent 3D mobile media cloud that surrounds us everywhere. In this cloud, we will use intelligent machines, to which we’ll delegate both simple and complex tasks. Therefore, we will lose the skills we needed in the old days…but we will gain the skill to make better choices.

What do you think? Will the gains outweigh the losses? Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts.

I’m especially concerned for parents of younger children, t-weens and teens who have un-tethered or un-limited internet access, free of parental monitoring.

Does your child have a computer or a laptop with a working webcam? If so, you might be surprised at how easy it is for them to become involved in some “very un-savory” web browsing activities.

This latest “social networking” entry is Chat Roulette – essentially a portal for people of “any” age to meet, chat and share with other webcam enabled computer users. After spending a little time “playing roulette” I’ve found that there are many socially unfit individuals sharing way too much “personal information” via their webcam. Remember, a web cam shows a live feed of who or what is sitting in front of it. I hope you can see where I going with this. By the way – there were 24,834 users online when I “played the game” in the early afternoon on a week day. I’m sure the user count increases dramatically in the evening. More users = potentially more wacko’s!!!

With Chatroulette there’s absolutely nothing stopping children from accessing the site or any of the “live content” being shared. Here’s what their “log in” page states as well as what, I assume, they consider terms of use:

Welcome to the world of Chatroulette!
Click “Play” to start the game.

Tips:
• You can also access this site by typing chatrt.com
• If you are having a bad video connection, enable UDP in firewall or turn your firewall off. 
Most likely you don’t need to do this step, as everything should be working well by default.

• If you don’t want to see the “allow/deny webcam” window every time you are connected:
1. Right-click anywhere and select “Settings”.
2. In the second tab, check “Remember” to remember your choice.

Terms of Service:
• You have to be at least 16 years old to use our service
• Chatroulette does not tolerate broadcasting obscene, offending, pornographic material and and we will have to block users who violate these rules from using our service
• Please use “Report inappropriate video” link to notify us about inappropriate content and we will take necessary steps

There’s no signup process, no credit card info, no verification that a user is actually over 16 and no real information or warning to anyone as to what they might encounter by “playing the game”. Once you click “Play” you’re instantly connected to and through thousands of randomly selected users sitting in front of their webcams. Some funny, some strange and some that will make you cover or avert your eyes - not the kinds of images you want younger kids “exposed” too.

Now, it’s surprising to me that this service is hosted on Google’s servers. Perhaps they aren’t aware of how potentially dangerous this site could be or maybe their “testing the waters” for a new service themselves – perhaps Internet Speed Dating or something like it. Whatever the pretense, it doesn’t excuse the ease of access to minor children.

 I’ve included the sites DNS information below in case some tech savvy parents would like to block access to ChatRoulette in their router. This would be a good first step and will keep most kids from accidentally accessing this service but if your kids are even a little savvy, they’ll soon find a way around your parental blocks. If folks need a reliable, secure solution to protect their children from these types of sites and services, feel free to contact my technical support team for additional options. As parents, we need all the help we can get.

The upgrade program runs between March 5, 2010 and September 30, 2010.

Customers who buy a copy of Office 2007 during that period — with or without a new PC — from a participating reseller will qualify for the promotion.

To qualify, customers must activate their copies of Office 2007 by September 30 and request their free upgrade to Office 2010 by October 31.

Those who are eligible will get a free download of Office 2010 (discs will be available for a shipping and handling fee)

Microsoft is rapidly approaching the finish line with Office 2010 and SharePoint 2010. This week, Microsoft made the near-final Release Candidate (RC) of Office 2010 available to participants in its Technology Adoption Program (TAP). The company is not planning to make the RC more broadly available. Release to manufacturing could happen any time, but it’s likely to happen this spring. Microsoft officials have said the final code will be available by June for sure. Microsoft execs said last year to expect SharePoint 2010 to be released alongside Office 2010.

Microsoft has already revealed the planned version line-up for Office 2010 as well as the system requirements shown below for the final Office 2010 product.

A PC with these minimum recommended specifications:
•500 MHz 32-bit or 64-bit processor or higher
•256 MB of system memory or more
•3.5 GB of available disk space
•1024×768 or higher resolution monitor
•DVD-R/W Drive

Supported Operating Systems:
•Windows XP with Service Pack (SP) 3 (32-bit)
•Windows Vista with SP1 (32-bit or 64-bit)
•Windows Server 2003 R2 (32-bit or 64-bit) with MSXLM 6.0 installed
•Windows Server 2008 with SP2 (32-bit or 64-bit)
•Windows 7 (32-bit or 64-bit)
•Terminal Server and windows on Windows (WOW) (which allows installing 32-bit versions of Office 2010 on 64-bit operating systems) are supported.
*Please note these specifications could change.

Still not sure you want or even need Office 2010? You can check out the Office Home and Business 2010 Beta release at no charge – the download is still available and it’s FREE: http://us1.office2010beta.microsoft.com/default.aspx?culture=en-US

You can review my December 28th 2009 blog post on Office 2010 Beta here.

With COFEE, law enforcement agencies without on-the-scene computer forensics capabilities can now more easily, reliably, and cost-effectively collect volatile live evidence. An officer with even minimal computer experience can be tutored—in less than 10 minutes—to use a pre-configured COFEE device. This enables the officer to take advantage of the same common digital forensics tools used by experts to gather important volatile evidence, while doing little more than simply inserting a USB device into the computer.

Hackers have released software, appropriately named “Decaf” that they say sabotages the suite of forensics utilities Microsoft provides for free to hundreds of law enforcement agencies across the globe.

Apparently, Decaf is a light-weight application that monitors Windows systems for the presence of COFEE, a bundle of some 150 point-and-click tools used by police and other law enforcement officials to collect digital evidence at crime scenes. When a USB stick containing the Microsoft software is attached to a protected PC, Decaf automatically executes a variety of countermeasures.

Last month, when COFEE leaked to the internet, Microsoft downplayed concerns the breach would allow hackers to create countermeasures and Redmond representatives weren’t immediately available for comment. By the time Microsoft lawyers demanded the removal of COFEE from sites such as Cryptome, the genie was already out of the bottle.

Decaf boasts a huge variety of user-driven countermeasures against COFEE. In addition to nuking temporary files within seconds of detecting files or processes associated with the investigative tool, Decaf can also clear all COFEE logs, disable USB drives, and contaminate or spoof a variety of MAC addresses. Future versions promise to add features that allow users to remotely lock down protected systems.

While the hackers are making the Decaf executable available, they are not releasing the source code for fear, they say, that the signatures used will be reverse engineered. The end user license agreement that accompanies the software states: “You will not disassemble, decompile, or reverse engineer it, in whole or in part, except to the extent expressly permitted by law. You will not use DECAF for illegal purposes. You will comply with all export laws. DECAF is licensed, not sold.

More information is available via a google search.

And here’s why… You may have heard back on January 12th, Google reported that someone had launched a large-scale attack on their and other people’s servers in an attempt to gather information about Chinese dissidents.  Rumor has it that the Chinese government was behind this attack.

Google’s specific example was that the attacker tried to access the dissidents’ Gmail accounts, but the buzz on the Web has been that whoever launched the attack was pretty successful at gathering a boatload of intellectual property.  But how did the hackers do it?  The answer was revealed a couple of days later in a blog post by McAfee’s CTO George Kurtz:  it was another zero-day IE exploit.

Apparently the problem involves an invalid pointer in Explorer.  What that means in English is that this bug, similar to the “buffer overflow” bugs we saw in Code Red and SQL Slammer, allows a hacker to reach into your computer and instruct Internet Explorer to do, well, pretty much anything:  shut it down, delete files, upload some data from your computer to the hacker, and so forth.

Here’s a simple example of how this exploit could work.  The hacker creates a fake Web page with useful information on it like, say, a complete listing of all the charitable organizations providing relief to people in Haiti.  The web page has text explaining who to contact as well as pictures and videos to keep your attention… and a hidden browser-side script.  Unless you’ve got your Internet Explorer security set at “Trust no one at all” – then the script is silently downloaded and executed.  (I am over simplifying, but this is basically what happens – hackers have found that social engineering around current events works very well.)  The script then uses this invalid pointer to hand Internet Explorer a bunch of code written by the hacker, and tells IE to execute that code.

Now, in the case of my example, the code could delete files, slow down your system, email personal files from your hard drive, you name it.  The only restrictions on the code would be that it runs “as you”, and so it can’t do anything that you do not have permissions to do.  Unfortunately, most of us log on to our computers as the local administrator so we have full access to everything meaning we are at the hacker’s mercy. Even the most limited-power user is allowed to start and stop programs, look in most folders, or access any credit card information the user keeps on their computer.

The good news is that there’s a patch, which is the reason for this article. The bad news is that the hackers have known about this for a while so, at this point, there are many, many sites all around the world that have been infected and that have nothing to do with the original Google attack. Visiting infected sites with an un-patched copy of Explorer would do… well, I have no idea what it’ll do, and that’s the point.

If you are using Internet Explorer to view Web pages and your version is not yet patched, then you could be letting yourself in for anything, and that’s not just a hypothetical case because, again, the exploit code is already planted on the Web.  A hacker with half a brain can get it running, and lots of half-brained hackers want your credit card number and personal information.  What’s the probability that one of your family members or employees will visit one of those sites?  I would not want to take a chance and find out.

Finally, you’ll probably read somewhere that this only affects IE6, not IE7 or IE8.  That’s not entirely true, as researchers have reported that while IE7 and IE8 still have the invalid pointer bug, the result of viewing infected Web pages is more often an IE lockup or nothing at all… but on some systems, exploit code has been made to work on IE7 and IE8. Nuff said – download the patch today!

Here’s the link again:
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/

For tons more information on this, check out the following links
Google Blog
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/new-approach-to-china.html

New York Times: Google, Citing Attack, Threatens to Exit China
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/13/world/asia/13beijing.html

Time Magazine: Chinese Government Attacks Google Over Internet Porn
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1906133,00.html

VeriSign Confirms Chinese government Behind Google Attack
http://www.blackberrycool.com/2010/01/14/verisign-confirms-chinese-government-behind-google-attack/

    Okay, maybe you’re not foolish enough to leave your laptop unattended in a public place, but one of your employees might think it’s okay to leave a laptop or PDA in their car, a hotel room, or in their gym bag and end up exposing your company’s data and network to thieves.

    If it hasn’t happened to you or someone you know, according to the FBI, it will.  Sure you have a backup of the data, but now detailed information about you, your family, your business and your clients is in the hands of a criminal intent on stealing your money, identity or worse.  There is a lot of software and hardware that protects your data from being stolen by online criminals, but how do you protect your data when someone steals your physical laptop or PDA?

    Until now, if your laptop was stolen, your primary recourse was to change the passwords to your network, financial websites, etc., watch your credit report and cross your fingers hoping for the best.

    Now there’s a relatively inexpensive option that can help you get your laptop back. Here’s how it works: If your laptop is stolen, PC-Trak™ from GadgetTrak® is activated by logging into your online account and clicking a button to activate tracking. The next time your PC connects to the Internet the software will activate and start sending you emails with the specific location and network environment of the system, as well as use the camera to take a photo of who is using the system every 30 minutes.

    We have been researching and evaluating the various technologies that are available to provide this level of protection and we’ve selected GadgetTrak ProActive Security as our recommended technology. GadgetTrak supports PC’s, Mac’s, Blackberries, Smart Phones, PDA’s, iPhones and USB devices like USB keys, iPods, Cameras and more.

    If your Blackberry is stolen, you simply text a message to it that includes your password and the phone is reset to its blank factory default condition.  What could be easier?

    As with all theft and hacker deterrents, thieves can circumvent this software by downloading your data before connecting the device to the Internet.  Surprisingly, the typical thief isn’t smart enough to know this.

Over the years, we have had a few clients experience lost or stolen laptops and PDA’s.  In some cases, there was real concern about the data that was stored on those systems. So, for absolute security, data encryption still remains the most reliable form of protection. Encrypted data is unreadable to thieves unless they have your encryption key. There are pros and cons to both approaches, but it’s important for you to have SOME protection.

For additional information:
http://www.gadgettrak.com/

LoJack for Laptops:
http://www.absolute.com/products/lojackforlaptops

And if you like bold predictions, here’s one, courtesy of the president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association, which hosts the massive Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. ”In my 28 years of attending the CES and participating in it and being a part of it and running it for most of that time, I can honestly say there will be more innovation at this show than any one in history,” Gary Shapiro said.

This comes from the head of the yearly show that has launched such big tech ideas as compact disc players, high-definition television and Blu-ray. CES is the largest consumer technology trade show and one of the best chances to see new technologies before they hit the market.

Despite Shapiro’s enthusiasm, though, this week’s CES buzz may be dampened by the lingering economic challenges and the fact that big announcements from Google and Apple are likely to bookend the show this month.

On Tuesday, Google is expected to launch its own mobile phone called Nexus One, and rumors are flying that Apple will unveil a touch-screen tablet computer January 26. Neither of the tech giants is scheduled to exhibit at CES, although Google said in an e-mail to CNN that it will attend a CES media event.

Watch a video about what to expect from CES:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/01/04/consumer.electronics.show.preview/

Attendance at CES 2009 plunged 20 percent compared with 2008 numbers, largely because of the economic recession. The number of people at CES this week is estimated to hold flat at about 110,000 people. Still, after a slump in 2009, some market analysts predict a brighter future for consumer electronics this year — and the innovative CES that Shapiro predicts could blossom from this preliminary optimism.

Here’s CNN’s take of the hottest consumer tech trends to watch at CES.

1: Tablets and midsize screens
Size is everything in computing these days. Netbooks — those 8- to 10-inch dumbed-down laptops — were big news in 2009. This year, they may be eclipsed by an abundance of other midsize computing devices.

2: E-books and e-readers
Heard of the Amazon Kindle? The Barnes & Noble Nook? The Sony Reader? All of these e-readers — portable devices that let readers consume digital books without the eye strain caused by computer monitors — will face new competition at CES this year.

3: TV + Internet, or “Smart TV”
TVs will continue to morph into living room-based computers in 2010. The industry calls the new generation of televisions “Smart TVs” or “Connected TVs,” and they do things like download Netflix films, stream Pandora music, check e-mail and communicate with other electronic devices in the home.

4: Mobile TV
In June of last year, the U.S. switched from analog to digital television (goodbye, rabbit ears!). A quiet side effect of that change: U.S. television signals now can be viewed on mobile devices like smartphones and portable media players.

5: 3-D TV, games and laptops
In the wake of hit 3-D movies like “Avatar” and “Up,” several TV makers including Sony and Panasonic have announced plans to sell 3-D television to consumers in 2010. Most of the products demonstrated so far require viewers to wear clunky 3-D glasses in order for images to jump off of the screen. New at CES, will be 3-D technology from 3M that does not require glasses for viewing — as well as laptops and video games that display three-dimensional images.

6: Connected cars
Cars are turning into computers. Ford and other automakers have announced in-car wireless Internet. Ford will offer one of the keynote addresses at CES, which emphasizes the growing importance of the in-car technology industry. The emergence of mobile television also probably means live TV will come to automobile consoles and headrests soon.

7: Android everywhere
Despite the recession, smartphones — those mobile devices like the BlackBerry and iPhone that work almost like computers — were hot buys in 2009.Google’s rumored announcement of its Android phone on Tuesday will lead to new phones using the Android platform being unveiled at CES. The Android platform, which runs on phones like the Droid and myTouch, is expected to extend its reach from smartphones into other electronics like televisions.

8: Apps and accessories
With consumer spending down, cheap buys like mobile phone applications and accessory electronics may take center stage at CES. Apple’s iPhone is the dominant device for using mobile applications. The iTunes app store has sold more than 2 billion apps since it opened in July 2008. An iLounge at CES will feature 100 exhibitors with Apple-related products, including new mobile phone applications.

Get the whole Consumer Electronics Show story here:
http://www.cesweb.org

How would you like to finally get a head start on the “next release” of Office 2010? Now you can start learning the newest version while still maintaining your “old” version of Office allowing you to stay productive.

Why would you want to upgrade to Office 2010 anyway? WARNING: The following paragraph is strictly Microsoft Marketing Babble – take it with a grain of salt and feel free to form your own opinions!
According to Microsoft, Office 2010 offers you rich and powerful new ways to deliver your best work – at work, home or school – on your computer, from a Windows Mobile-based Smartphone or via a Web browser. Quickly and creatively grab your audience’s attention and inspire them with your ideas by using enhanced and easy-to-use tools, customizable templates, color schemes, and photo-editing capabilities. With a new co-authoring experience, you can work with people from different locations at the same time. And by offering more ways to access your files from almost anywhere, Office 2010 puts you in control of getting things done according to your schedule. Simplify your tasks and create amazing results with Office 2010 — wherever life takes you. (end of Microsoft Babble)

One slick new feature is Click-To-Run
If you have High Speed internet access you’ll be able to use Click-To-Run to download and install the beta. Click-To-Run uses virtualization to allow you to use your Office programs as they are streamed and cached on your computer. If you have a slower internet connection you’ll be forced to download the entire program prior to installation (the Click-To-Run option downloads 3MB of data to start the install – the downloaded file otherwise is 600MB total.)

There is one small caveat – isn’t that always the case? What happens to your current version of Microsoft Office when you download the Office 2010 Beta?
Upon installation of your Office 2010 Beta, you may be offered the option to Upgrade or Customize. BE CAREFUL if you want to maintain your original installed version of Office. Clicking Upgrade results in only the newer Office 2010 Beta product remaining on your machine, but you may explicitly select to have multiple versions of Office coexist with the exception of Outlook and SharePoint Workspace (formerly known as Microsoft Office Groove 2007). These applications cannot co-exist with previous versions so you will need to select one version of the program to have installed on your computer.

If you are not offered the option to Upgrade or Customize, the default behavior will be for your Office 2010 Beta to co-exist with your previous Office product(s).

What happens to the Office Beta applications after the final release?
Office 2010 Beta will become non-functional on October 31st, 2010. The non-functional product may be removed from your computer by using the Programs and Features option from within the Control Panel. If you selected to perform an upgrade to a previous version of Office when you installed you will need to manually reinstall your previous version, or you may choose to download a new trial or purchase the full version of Office 2010 to update your software.

If I’ve I peaked your interest, you can download the Office 2010 Beta here:
http://www.microsoft.com/office/2010/en/default.aspx

Be sure to click around this site for additional information and to see a video of Office 2010 in action.