[windows] Forum Topics

Want to buy a Dell machine loaded with Linux? Shame, as it appears that Dell Europe would really rather you bought a Windows-powered one, despite having a website devoted entirely to selling Dell Ubuntu laptops. And, oh boy, does it use some strange arguments to dissuade you from becoming a …

It's hard for me to admit it but there are things, ten things to be exact, that I really hate about Linux. Sometimes I think it's just me but I do see other people stating a few of these in the forums so I'm at least not alone with some …

If you thought, or indeed hoped, that the Google Chrome OS would be a thoroughly modern marvel running web apps only then you are about to be disappointed. It would appear that even the brave new future of the OS cannot escape from the legacy of Windows. According to a …

[ATTACH=RIGHT]22213[/ATTACH]You may not be a big fan of Microsoft, but you wouldn't expect your computer to be held to ransom by the company would you? In recent months it has become quite commonplace, at least across Europe, for scammers posing as Microsoft technical support staff to 'cold call' people on …

If you are a user of Adobe Flash, be sure to apply the latest security update if you want to avoid becoming part of an in-the-wild attack exploiting a vulnerability which currently seems to be exploiting users of Internet Explorer on the Windows platform only. Adobe has, however, issued an …

[ATTACH=left]12481[/ATTACH]The New York Times [URL="http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2009/11/06/technology/tech-us-france-apple-louvre.html"]reported today[/URL] that Apple has opened its first Apple Store in Paris, underneath the Louvre no less, and just two weeks after Microsoft opened up a [URL="http://www.engadget.com/2009/10/22/microsofts-windows-cafe-opens-its-doors-in-paris/"]Windows 7 cafe[/URL] in Paris in another location. The idea of these two companies competing in a retail environment, and …

Time to enter the Wayback ([URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WABAC_machine"]WABAC[/URL]) Machine to an experience I had with a new Linux user and compare it to today's more tech savvy audience. The year was 1997 and I had settled in for the evening with my [URL="http://www.guinness.com/"]favorite beverage[/URL] and a bit of channel flipping, when I …

Microsoft [URL="http://www.zdnet.co.uk/blogs/davey-winder-10015443/microsoft-staying-silent-over-security-patching-10015776/"]recently admitted[/URL], via the Director of it's Security Response Centre, that it doesn't report every Windows security vulnerability discovered and subsequently fixed via patches and updates. No big deal you might think, as long as the holes get fixed that's all that matter. I happen to agree, however that …

I just read an article called: [URL="http://www.infoworld.com/d/windows/life-after-windows-what-happens-tech-if-microsoft-dies-551?source=footer"]Life after Windows: What happens to tech if Microsoft dies?[/URL]" The article made me think of what it really would be like without Microsoft. I didn't like it. We need Microsoft over there competing with us. No matter what happens to the economy, to …

Hey Windows fans, would you like to take Linux for a spin to see what everyone's buzzing about? It's easy to do in just five easy steps. You can test Linux for yourself without having to setup multibooting, worry about partitioning or installing over your current Windows system. That's right, …

Have you ever thought about measuring the Internet in terms if malware per minute? Me neither, but someone has and it makes for uncomfortable reading if you are a Microsoft Windows user. [attach]17145[/attach]How fast is the Internet? It depends on the metric being used, of course, but one new report …

I saw this article yesterday titled, "[URL="http://tech.yahoo.com/news/pcworld/20090220/tc_pcworld/studyfederalgovtcansavebillionsinitspending"]Study: Federal Gov't. Can Save Billions in IT Spending[/URL]," and feel compelled to comment. The gist of the article is that by switching to open source software, like Linux and OpenOffice.org, the federal government would save billions of dollars in IT costs. This is …

Because it is unrealistic for companies to mandate a particular kind of smartphone for all their mobile employees, a new app will soon makes it possible for iPhone and iPad users to have the same access to their companies mobile "line-of-business" applications as employees carrying Android or Windows mobile devices. …

[ATTACH=right]16305[/ATTACH]No more shortcuts for hackers - that's the word from Microsoft, which plans to release a patch today that the company says will fix a security loophole. The issue is tied to the way the Windows OS handles shortcuts, or .lnk files, or as Microsoft explains it in the [URL="http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/2286198.mspx"]official …

Dear Steve Ballmer, I believe it's time to give up development of a mobile operating system. With all due respect to the multi-billion dollar empire you're entrusted with running, the simple truth is that Microsoft is quite bad at developing user interfaces that are friendly and intuitive. Windows 7 is …

The good news is that security savvy Windows users will, more than likely, have already disabled the AutoRun and AutoPlay features. The bad news is that a new zero-day vulnerability could care less, and executes automatically anyway. [attach]15918[/attach]The zero-day vulnerability in question was first spotted by Sergey Ulase, a researcher …

Is it true that, if you speak up for GNU/Linux on the Desktop, you get flamed? I just had a virtual conversation with someone who claims that this assertion is fact. I've never experienced this anti-Desktop Linux sentiment or maybe my memory has failed me. I don't think the Linux …

I know it sounds crazy but the Linux Desktop isn't dead, it's just pining. It's pining for the correct platform--a tablet computer. And, I'm not referring to some cheap imitation tablet that will merely satisfy a few observers and nerdlets who use Linux. I'm thinking of a tablet computer for …

Steve Jobs of [URL="http://www.apple.com"]Apple[/URL] has declared that [URL="http://www.microsoft.com"]Microsoft[/URL] Windows is in terminal decline. No really, that's what he's said at the [URL="http://allthingsd.com/d/"]All Things Digital[/URL] conference in LA. And he's had backing from people like Dreamworks, who now access the Internet through an iPad. OK, we'll take it as read that …

OK, you two, stop fighting. These little spats of yours are getting old. A [URL="http://news.yahoo.com/s/nf/20100602/tc_nf/73685"]rumor[/URL], heard yesterday, that [URL="http://www.google.com"]Google[/URL] is not going to use [URL="http://www.microsoft.com"]Windows[/URL] internally in their company might be just that: rumor. And, a bad one at that. It's interesting to note that, while such a rumor stirs …

I recently upgraded a friend of mine to [URL="http://www.ubuntu.com"]Ubuntu[/URL] 9.04 Desktop for his five-year-old [URL="http://www.acer.com"]Acer[/URL] laptop with 512 MB of RAM. I removed Windows 2000 after backing up his precious documents, pictures and browser favorites. I installed the latest stable version of Ubuntu, restored all of his settings, Internet connection …

To you, my loyal readers, I must offer up a sincere apology for my recent post, [URL="http://www.daniweb.com/news/story254705.html"]Five *nix Myths Busted[/URL], and am posting this full retraction for that post. To fully drive home my retraction and refute any myths about my competence with Linux or Unix, I am going to …

Earlier this evening, I had a conversation with a friend and colleague in the IT business. He runs his own independent computer consulting firm and we were trading war stories about customers, hardware vendors and work sharing. Work sharing, also known as "farming out" work that you can't do yourself …

The latest MessageLabs spam index reveals that relative to its market share, any given Linux machine is five times more likely to be sending spam than any given Windows machine. But what are the facts behind those headline grabbing numbers and can Windows really get off the hook that easily? …

It isn't quite Perl version 6 but it's well on its way. Between now and Monday, [URL="http://www.activestate.com"]ActiveState[/URL] will release version 5.12 of its cross platform, easily installed ActivePerl. Version 5.12 offers more than simple bug fixes; it's a major release that some developers look toward with great anticipation. The major …

I learned a little from my dalliances with Apple products. I learned a lot from PCs running DOS and Windows. I've learned the most about computers from Linux. However, productivity-wise, the order goes in reverse. The learning curve with Linux is at least twice as long compared to Windows and …

I was driving down the highway the other day, and it ocurred to me that Facebook sucks. No, really it does. Sure, it lets us connect with friends and we all put up with it, but think about just how bad it is. [LIST] The security features are hard to …

Responses (from another site) on my recent, "[URL="http://www.daniweb.com/news/story261566.html"]Security Alert: They Should Have Used Linux[/URL]" led me to explore the conclusion that hacking is really only for those seeking the low-hanging security fruit as their prey. These folks, who tout themselves as "Linux Experts" intrigued me so much with their comments …

The long awaited unveiling of the latest Microsoft mobile phone OS is happening as I type in Barcelona at the Mobile World Congress. Twitter is all excited, as you might imagine, with tech journalists and gadget watchers alike swooning over the flashy new additions which would seem to suggest that …

I will never again refer to the Linux Desktop in any of my writings beyond this post. From now on, it's the Linux User Interface, which encompasses the likes of [URL="http://www.gnome.org"]GNOME[/URL], [URL="http://www.kde.org"]KDE[/URL], [URL="http://www.lxde.org"]LXDE[/URL], [URL="http://www.xfce.org"]XFCE[/URL], CLI and others. These Linux User Interfaces may be used on any Linux-enabled device. These interfaces …