Software: Features

I'm sitting in my breakfast nook, my Samsung Series 9 sitting on the countertop. I check the news, and then look at how the markets are doing. After that, I fire up IE 10 to check my morning blogs, which kills another 15 minutes or so. At that point, I swipe the home page to the list of apps and open Word. It's a little disconcerting to be in the Metro-style interface--in what Microsoft calls the "Windows Home Page"--and then suddenly be in the desktop as Word launches. But cognitive dissonance is likely to be a common phenomenon among experienced Windows users.

The rapid-fire spread of mobile devices being used by enterprise employees can be a huge boon for businesses in productivity and customer service gains, but those advantages don't come without a price.

High-end desktop publishing programs, such as Adobe InDesign and QuarkXPress, feature lots of tools to help designers produce stunning pages. But these programs are expensive, and novices require training to use them, factors that render their acquisition difficult to justify for most small businesses.

There's been much attention focused lately on Canonical's recently released Ubuntu Linux 12.04 "Precise Pangolin," but it's by no means the only popular Linux distribution out there with a major update in the offing.

Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference is less than one month away, and speculation is high about whether Apple will announce new iCloud features, refreshed MacBook Pros, overhauled versions of iOS and OS X and maybe even a new smartphone during the conference.

We all make mistakes. But when you work in IT, those errors can quickly go public.

There is an interesting post from the Microsoft Windows team on the Windows On ARM (WOA) version of Windows 8 that was recently renamed Windows RT-which reminded me why I'll never do Microsoft naming again. Windows RT is targeted directly at the iPad users who are bringing that product into the enterprise today on a wave of trend we are alternatively calling consumerization of IT or Bring Your Own Device ( BYOD) because we evidently can't come to a consensus on just one term.

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

Whether you consume it or create it, entertainment is likely a huge part of the reason you love tech. You probably already have a subscription to big names such as Amazon Instant Video, Hulu Plus, or Netflix, and those are all good services, but they're not free.

You're on a budget, but you need reliable programs that will make your 9-to-5 run more smoothly.

IT as we know it is over.

iOS is making inroads into the enterprise right now, largely thanks to the growth of the BYOD (bring your own device) trend.

With Windows 8 and Mac OS X Mountain Lion, Microsoft and Apple are both trying to bring features and concepts from their mobile operating systems to their desktop OSs.

Microsoft says its latest version of Internet Explorer clears out a lot of clutter and creates a more immersive browser experience when paired with Windows 8's touch environment, and that it can be navigated by mouse and keyboard as well, although from the sounds of it not as elegantly.

As everybody knows, the most striking thing about Windows 8 is its Metro interface - those brightly colored tiles that serve as both shortcuts to programs and live widgets reporting data from those programs.

Change is terrifying, and few things in technology have a greater capacity to set us on edge than a fundamental reimagining of the Windows operating system--a piece of the PC that's as vital to our lives and productivity as our mice and keyboards. But change is afoot, and Windows 8 is designed to play a pivotal role in Microsoft's quest for relevance in a future awash with touch-centric devices.

Windows 8 Consumer Preview is one of the biggest changes that Microsoft has made to Windows, moving it from an operating system aimed at a single class of hardware (PCs and laptops) to one that spans a wide range of devices, including desktops, laptops, tablets and smartphones.

Early yesterday, Microsoft shipped the Consumer Preview for Windows 8, the drastically different refresh of the venerable operating system.

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Last week, Apple took most Mac users by surprise when it released a developers preview of Mountain Lion, the company's newest desktop operating system, and announced it would ship the upgrade later this year.