Microsoft has finally finished the long-awaited upgrade for Windows XP, which should be available to PC users in August. The second major update since XP was released in October 2001 focuses on fixing the security holes that have plagued it in recent months. Microsoft has followed Apple's lead in turning all the security features on by default, rather then leaving the OS wide-open to attacks. As well as making virus-writers' and hackers' work that much more difficult, the update could also spell the end for the pop-up ad. Internet Explorer 6 will be set to block pop-ups by default, trailing all the other major browsers that have long had built-in pop-up blocking.
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