Software

Amazon UK confirmed this morning they have completely sold out of their allocation of pre-order stock for Home Premium and Professional editions of Windows 7 inside 24 hours.
A customer services rep said, in classic contradictory terms, that popular demand expected by the company led to a surprise sellout (not sure how you can be surprised [...]

Apple has rolled out important updates to its Safari web browser today across multiple platforms.
Version 4.0.2 addresses a couple of nasty security flaws in Apple’s semi-popular browser:

An issue in WebKit’s handling of the parent and top objects may result in a cross-site scripting attack when visiting a maliciously crafted website. This update addresses the issue [...]

The internet is abuzz today with the news that Google plans to enter the netbook space with its own cloud-driven operating system. Chrome OS, as the product is being dubbed, will be pre-installed on a range of portable devices offering almost instant boot access to the web.
Unlike other low-powered Windows and Linux netbooks, Chrome OS [...]

Pricing details of Microsoft’s planned foray into family licensing of its Windows operating system have apparently been leaked to the web.
Online retailer ExperCom has a list price of $136.95 for the Windows 7 Home Premium family pack, permitting up to three product activations of the software in a single family home.
This pricing would make Windows [...]

There is mounting speculation that Microsoft plans to introduce special family pack pricing for the Home Premium version of its forthcoming Windows 7 operating system.
According to Windows 7 release candidate testers, recent builds have slipped in language specifically relating to family pack licensing. The whole clause states:
b. Family Pack. If you are a “Qualified Family [...]

Microsoft has confirmed it will start rolling-out its free software security product for Windows users from next week.
The software solution, codenamed “Morro”, has been given the considerably less interesting name “Microsoft Security Essentials” for its public debut; replacing Microsoft’s paid “OneCare” security solution.
Security Essentials will be available on June 23rd to users in the US, Brazil and [...]

Linux enthusiast Gary Nielsen has listed a few reasons why his desktop is still running the Windows Vista operating system and not an Open Source alternative.
His top reason really goes back to my most recent post on this subject: Why Linux will always be stuck in the minority. (lack of good commercial software on the [...]

World famous comedian Jerry Seinfeld has reportedly cut a deal with Microsoft to help tell the world about the benefits of switching to Windows Vista (”Ultimate”).
The Wall Street Journal reports that Seinfeld will be paid around $10 million to star in a bunch of clever advertisements with charismatic chairman Bill Gates.
The funnyman will be armed [...]

I’ve written a series of blog entries on this site documenting my frustrations with Ubuntu Linux on the desktop. In return for my efforts, I’ve been labeled a Microsoft shill or “fan boi”, an evil capitalist, and an obvious Linux hater who feels the need to antagonise Ubuntu users. Only one of those four labels [...]

There’s a reason why Linux usage will always be confined to a tiny minority of computer geeks. It has nothing to do with hardware companies, lack of driver support, nor the command line.  And nobody should be pointing an accusing finger at the aggressive licensing strategies employed by Microsoft.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer spells out the [...]