Ed Bott

Senior Contributing Editor

Ed Bott is an award-winning technology writer with more than two decades' experience writing for mainstream media outlets and online publications. He has served as editor of the U.S. edition of PC Computing and managing editor of PC World; …both publications had monthly paid circulation in excess of 1 million during his tenure. He is the author of more than 25 books, including Windows 10 Inside Out (now in its 4th edition) and Windows 11 Inside Out (scheduled for publication in 2022).

Ed Bott is a freelance technology journalist and book author. All work that Ed does is on a contractual basis. Since 1994, Ed has written more than 25 books about Microsoft Windows and Office. Along with various co-authors, Ed is completely responsible for the content of the books he writes. As a key part of his contractual relationship with publishers, he gives them permission to print and distribute the content he writes and to pay him a royalty based on the actual sales of those books. Ed's books are currently distributed by Pearson Education under the Microsoft Press imprint. On occasion, Ed accepts consulting assignments. In recent years, he has worked as an expert witness in cases where his experience and his knowledge of Microsoft technology and licensing have been useful. In each such case, his compensation is on an hourly basis, and he is hired as a witness, not an advocate. Ed sometimes receives fees and/or travel expenses for live speeches and webinars from companies and organizations. Acceptance of these fees does not constitute an endorsement of the company's products. Ed does not own stock or have any financial interest in any technology company. Ed does not accept gifts from companies he covers. All hardware products he writes about are purchased with his own funds or are review units covered under formal loan agreements and are returned after the review is complete.

Latest from Ed Bott

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How big a security risk is Java? Can you really quit using it?

How big a security risk is Java? Can you really quit using it?

As OS vendors get better about patching their own flaws, malware authors are increasingly turning to third-party code to get their dirty work done, and Java is high on the list. It's easy to say, "Just don't use Java," but what if a program you use requires it? I've got a list of problem apps and solutions.

April 9, 2012 by in Developer

IE9 takes top benchmark prize, no cheating involved

IE9 takes top benchmark prize, no cheating involved

I was going to write a short post this morning passing along the news that Microsoft was releasing a new Platform Preview for Internet Explorer 9. And then I got distracted by (I am not making this up) a "slashdotted flamebait troll story." Is it true? Who cares?

November 17, 2010 by in Developer

That Internet Explorer "IQ test" was a hoax [Updated]

That Internet Explorer "IQ test" was a hoax [Updated]

Last week dozens of tech publications and mainstream news outlets unquestioningly printed the results of a study purporting to show that Internet Explorer users have lower IQs than those who use other browsers. It was a hoax. But the "study" made a telling point about journalism.

August 2, 2011 by in Developer