Hardware
Everything connected
There are a growing number of devices that can be directly connected to the Internet without having to use a PC. The recent Consumer Electronics Show featured quite a few of these. Om Malik reports at his blog:
The recently concluded Consumer Electronics Show brought home one simple fact: We will soon be hard-pressed to find [...]
Praise for the netbook
As readers of this blog know, I have been saying that the netbook is an important development towards providing a consumer-oriented PC. And this is true in spite of the opposition of Microsoft and its Windows ecosystem partners. Coming down on the side of netbooks with even more enthusiasm than I have expressed is computer [...]
Remove the touchpad problem when typing
I know that touch is the hot new paradigm of computer interfacing but I have never liked touchpads on laptops. One problem that I and others have with touchpads is the annoyance of accidentally contacting them while typing. I’d be working away on a document and suddenly half of it would disappear or text would [...]
Acer Aspire notebook recall
Because of a problem with a microphone wire shorting out and causing overheating, Acer is recalling a number of notebooks. The recalled notebooks are the Acer Aspire AS3410, AS3410T, AS3810T, AS3810TG, AS3810TZ and AS3810TZG models sold between June and October of 2009. If you have a question about a PC that you own, you [...]
Pixel fix
Pixels in LCDs sometimes get stuck or go bad. A previous post mentioned massaging a stuck pixel to get it going again. There are also software programs that can help with trying to revive a dead pixel. One freeware application is Injured Pixel:
A defective (hot, dead or stuck) pixel is a pixel that does not [...]
The “smartbook” arrives
Back in June I posted about a new category of mini-notebook called the “smartbook”. In conjunction with the annual Consumer Electronics Show that starts January 7, a number of models of smartbooks are being announced. Smartbooks use an ARM processor and Linux or Android operating systems. The primary function is mobility and quick access to [...]
A different comparison- netbooks with smartphones
In the previous post, I point out that comparing netbooks to notebooks makes little sense. The two kinds of PC are intended for different types of use. A post at CNET make a related point. It notes that many young people are used to smartphones as their Internet platform and they think a netbook is [...]
Comparing apples and oranges- netbooks and notebooks
A recurrent theme on the Internet consists of articles and blogs comparing netbooks to larger notebooks and pushing the thesis that netbooks are inadequate systems. These complaints about netbooks are from groups who have an ax to grind or have special applications and ignore the fact that netbooks satisfy a real consumer need.
For example, a [...]
Low cost alternatives to Windows and the $99 PC
It has been clear for some time that a simple, inexpensive computer box would have sufficient power to satisfy hundreds of millions of would-be Internet users. Nicholas Negroponte of MIT made the first serious effort in this direction with his One Laptop Per Child project. Unfortunately, heavy-handed tactics from Microsoft and Intel helped keep [...]
FTC charges Intel with anti-competitive practices
Microsoft isn’t the only near-monopoly in the news. The United States Federal Trade Commission is going after Intel. The New York Times reports:
The Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday sued the chip maker Intel, accusing it of using its dominant market position “to stifle competition and strengthen its monopoly.”
In its complaint, the F.T.C. accused [...]
Check your drivers
Drivers are the software that help devices interact with a computer and are a major source of trouble when a new operating system comes out. One freeware program that can help you keep drivers updated is Device Doctor. The application has been written about at several sites recently, including MakeUseOf and the Windows Club.
An example [...]
