operating systems - News, Features, and Slideshows

Features

• The lazy geek's guide to building a home media center

  Anything less than a DIY digital home entertainment project means making the most of Apple TV

• Microsoft Surface Pro has problems but also big promise

  The Microsoft Surface Pro tries to be a tablet and an ultrabook, but it brings out the worst in both devices. If Microsoft gets v2.0 right, though, people may be willing to replace their iPads.

• Exchange Server 2013: Not quite ready for the datacentre

  Thinking about upgrading? Hang back at least a year before implementing this release, our expert advises.

• In-depth first look: Microsoft's Surface for Windows 8 Pro

  Microsoft's home-built ultrabook called Surface for Windows 8 Pro goes on sale on Saturday in the US and may be the Windows 8 device that best meets a wide range of corporate needs from tablet to desktop.

• Opinion: Will Apple, Google and Samsung lose the smartphone market?

  Mobile phone competition intensifies. Linux-based platforms are gunning for iOS and Android, and Chinese companies want to price the iPhone and the Galaxy S line out of the market.

• Microsoft's 13 worst missteps of all time

  DOS 4.0, Zune, and Windows 8 are but a few of the landmarks among 25 years of failures Redmond-style

• Windows 8, Surface tablets to lead Microsoft's fight for relevance in 2013

  Microsoft made big bets on Windows 8, Windows Phone and Surface tablets in 2012, and now it needs to make those bets to pay off. As more consumers and businesses go mobile, 2013 will be Microsoft's most challenging year yet.

• Top 12 Microsoft Stories of 2012

  It was a challenging year for Microsoft as it continued to adapt to a mobile world and launched Windows 8. Here's a look back at the most popular CIO.com stories and slideshows about Microsoft from 2012.

• After 2012 launch splash, Windows 8 faces enterprise skepticism

  Among the raft of recent and upcoming Microsoft upgrades, Windows 8 towers in importance but its chances for success remain cloudy among enterprise customers.

• Enterprise IT is on the losing end of Microsoft's CAL price hike

  Microsoft's recent increase in the price of its user client-access licenses (CAL) is a 'lose-lose' deal for enterprise customers but will likely yield a major revenue boost for the vendor.

• Microsoft: What it did right and wrong in 2012

  At the time of writing, Windows 8 could be the biggest thing Microsoft has done wrong -- ever. But it could also wind up being one of the best things it has ever done.

• Tablet smackdown: iPad vs Surface RT in the enterprise

  IPads are already making their way into businesses via bring-your-own-device efforts with Microsoft Surface RT tablets hoping to follow suit as employees lobby for their favorite devices. But which one makes more sense from an IT perspective?

• Microsoft's Sinofsky, by the numbers

  Microsoft is best known for Windows, and or the past six years, Steven Sinofsky has been best known as the man behind Windows. Even the numbers tell a story.

• Microsoft Build: Wooing Windows 8 developers

  At its conference this week, Microsoft pulled out all the stops to convince developers why they should build Windows 8 apps.

• Gartner: How big trends in security, mobile, big data and cloud computing will change IT

  When you go to a Gartner conference one of he main things you'll notice is the sheer volume of data they can generate on just about any IT topic. Last week's Gartner Symposium/ITxpo in Orlando, Fla., was no different. The conference, attended by some 9000 executives focused on the changes security challenges, mobile computing, big data and cloud will be bringing to IT in the near future.