Features

• Analysis: Why Linux is a desktop flop

  By Maria Korolov | 30 April, 2012 21:28

  It's free, easier to use than ever, IT staffers know it and love it, and it has fewer viruses and Trojans than Windows.

• OS X Mountain Lion: A big cat for business?

  By Ryan Faas | 19 February, 2012 09:13

  Apple surprised the tech world by unveiling a developer preview of OS X Mountain Lion, the next generation of its desktop operating system set to ship this summer - just a year after OS X 10.7 Lion arrived.

• In depth: Hands on with Apple's new OS X, Mountain Lion

  By Jason Snell | 17 February, 2012 01:38

  Apple updates its iOS mobile operating system once a year. But why should the iPhone and iPad have all the fun? Apple has announced that it will release a new version of OS X—Mountain Lion—this summer, just a year after the release of OS X Lion.

• 20 popular Ubuntu Linux apps you may want to try

  By Katherine Noyes | 10 February, 2012 07:01

  As Ubuntu Linux continues to grow in popularity, most discussions of it tend to focus on the basics of the operating system itself, including especially details about its desktop environment and user interface.

• Windows XP: Pros and cons of not upgrading

  By Ian Paul | 27 October, 2011 04:41

  Windows XP users, your favorite operating system is a decade old, and if you're still using it, you're not cool anymore, at least according to Microsoft. That's the software giant's recent take on its aging OS, which is still more popular than Vista or Windows 7 worldwide. Microsoft is hoping the final cadre of users hanging on to XP will start to dump it and move to the more modern Windows 7.

• Why IT won't like Mac OS X Lion Server

  By John Rizzo | 25 July, 2011 23:40

  Mac OS X 10.7 Lion Server adds innovative features and a new low price tag, but cuts in services and the elimination of advanced GUI administration tools may force some enterprise departments to think twice about the role of Mac servers on their networks.

• Windows on verge of dropping below 90% market share

  By Jon Brodkin | 14 January, 2011 09:15

  Windows is on the verge of dropping below 90% market share, with smartphones and tablets posing an increasingly serious threat to Microsoft's dominance of the operating system market.

• For an old or slow PC, try Puppy Linux 5.2

  By Katherine Noyes | 12 January, 2011 08:58

  There's no doubt Canonical's popular Ubuntu Linux distribution gets the majority of attention in the Linux world these days, but there are myriad others equally worthy of consideration.

• Patch Tuesday defined by the flaws that aren't fixed

  By Tony Bradley | 12 January, 2011 06:34

  Microsoft is easing in to 2011 with a light Patch Tuesday for January. There are only two security bulletins this month, and only one of those two is rated as Critical by Microsoft.

• ARM CEO: PC market not our target

  By Agam Shah | 12 January, 2011 05:41

  Chip design firm ARM grabbed the spotlight at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week when Microsoft announced that its new Windows OS would work on the ARM architecture. ARM processors go into most of the world's smartphones and tablets, and with Windows support, the company can now focus on the wider market for PCs, where it has virtually no presence. Nvidia also announced that it was building its first ARM-based chip, code-named Denver, for PCs and servers.

• Motorola Atrix hints at a virtualized, cloud future

  By Keir Thomas | 08 January, 2011 08:07

  Motorola announced the Atrix smartphone at the Consumer Electronics Show, and while many have been concentrating on its 4G connectivity and clever desktop dock that lets it run a cut-down Linux desktop on a full-sized monitor, nearly everybody has missed something very important.

• Asus unveils three tablets and a slate

  By Jason Cross | 05 January, 2011 12:32

  At CES 2011 today, Asus announced three new Android tablets and a Windows 7 based slate PC. The tablets, all Android-based, go by the moniker "Eee Pad" while the Windows 7 device is called an "Eee Slate." Each one offers some unique features, from stylus input options to sliding keyboards or docking stations. Unfortunately, we don't yet have exact shipping dates or prices for the Android tablets, and the Eee Slate looks to be fairly pricey.

• In depth: Google's Cr-48 Chrome notebook

  By Howard Wen | 11 December, 2010 10:08

  My holiday gift giving season started early Thursday morning when the UPS guy pounded on my door and handed me a package. Inside was a notebook -- Google's much-discussed cloud-based Cr-48 Chrome OS laptop, which was announced by the company on Tuesday.

• Massive Mac OS X update shatters illusion of security

  By Tony Bradley | 12 November, 2010 02:15

  Perhaps you've heard that the Apple Mac OS X operating system is simply more secure by design and not prone to the security flaws and vulnerabilities that plague the dominant Microsoft Windows operating system? Well, don't believe the hype. Apple unleashed an update for Mac OS X this week which fixes a massive 134 vulnerabilities.

• 5 things Linux does better than Mac OS X

  By Katherine Noyes | 01 October, 2010 09:15

  Were it not for Windows' long-standing installed base and overwhelming market dominance, it seems unlikely that anyone would argue seriously for the merit of the operating system, plagued as it is by high prices, security problems and vendor lock-in.