Get outspoken insights and expert advice on the products and companies that define today's tech landscape, from a source who knows these technologies inside and out.
Ed Bott is an award-winning technology writer with more than two decades' experience writing for mainstream media outlets and online publications.
Last year, one prominent technology journalist complained - loudly, in America's newspaper of record - when the hard drive on his Windows PC crashed and some of his important files were lost. The new Backup program in Windows Vista would have saved the day for him. So why is he complaining about it?
In preparation for my obligatory end-of-year review/prediction posts, I've been reviewing ZDNet's collection of Windows Vista image galleries from 2006. You'd think we've shown everything there is to see, wouldn't you?
Gartner boldly predicts that Vista is the last big Windows release ever. Oh, now that's daring. I connected a few extra dots and have a bolder prediction. What if Microsoft carved Windows up into pieces that didn't have to run on Windows at all?
It's been a month since Microsoft released Windows Vista to manufacturing. That same week, I upgraded three heavily used machines in this household to the final build. So, how have they done? Each upgrade has a different story to tell, as it turns out. Here are some preliminary observations.
Microsoft is pushing full speed ahead on its plans to convert its servers to 64-bit technology. But the same can't be said on the desktop side. Even though every edition of Windows Vista is available in a 64-bit version, none of the retail boxes will contain those bits. So what's holding back the transition?
From Ed's mailbag: When you install Windows Vista, it runs a System Assessment Tool and gives your computer a performance rating called the Windows Experience Index. What does that number mean? What kind of hardware gets a perfect score
According to some critics, the Windows Vista license is loaded with draconian restrictions. Some of the critics are making stuff up, literally, and others are selectively quoting from the actual license agreement.
It's been a long and winding road, but Windows Vista is finally released to manufacturing. You'll no doubt be overwhelmed with coverage of the minutiae of Windows Vista in the next few days and weeks, but focusing on the road behind or on pixel-by-pixel inspections is a waste of time. After nearly a year of working with Windows Vista day in and day out in production environments, I've come up with three questions that every Windows user needs to ask about Windows Vista.
The Wall Street Journal says Microsoft and Novell are about to announce a joint sales and development agreement to make Windows and Linux work more smoothly together. Given the long and sometimes acrimonious history between the two companies, this is encouraging news.
Who says Microsoft doesn't listen? Three weeks ago, when the new license terms for Windows Vista were officially release, one change set off an avalanche of feedback from the enthusiast community. Today, Microsoft rewrote that part of the license agreement. Individual users can now transfer a retail license from one PC to another or upgrade an existing computer without fear of being forced to pay again.