February 28, 2008
Save space when using two drives or dual-booting
You may be able to free up some valuable space if you're using two disk partitions, using two physical drives, or dual-booting between XP and Vista on the same machine. I'll show you several steps you can take to eliminate duplicate files and get more out of your disks. Read more »
Ultimate gets less support than XP Media Center
My Feb. 21 story reported that Microsoft considers Vista Ultimate, an upgrade from Vista Home Premium and Vista Business, to be a "consumer product," reducing the company's support for Ultimate to a maximum of 5 years rather than 10. What's confusing to buyers is that Microsoft does give a full 10 years of support to another consumer product: Windows XP Media Center Edition. Read more »
I want to ride my bicycle
In an age when being "green" is everything, here's an emerging art form that (in this video, at least) is purely white. In an interesting use of 4x6 white card stock, this short clip showcases an experimental technique called "stratastencil." Read more »
Should you trust Windows Update hardware drivers? 
I don't trust Windows Update to install new drivers for devices that Microsoft isn't responsible for. Check out my reasons in this week's column and see if you agree. Read more »
The storage landscape times, they are a-changing
Disk-drive storage capacity is growing at a rapid pace, but there's a new player in town. In the not-too-distant future, we might find that good ol' hard drives are a thing of the past; this week, I'll tell you about new storage technology that's growing by leaps and bounds. Read more »
A parade of problem service packs for Windows
If you're responsible for updating your company's systems, you now face service packs (and related problems) for XP, Vista, and Microsoft's .NET Framework — and even Mac enthusiasts have to deal with repercussions from the recent 10.5.2 OS X upgrade. If that weren't enough, those of you who haven't yet deployed the latest MS Office service packs will find plenty of quirks to chew on this week. Read more »
February 21, 2008
Microsoft cuts Ultimate licenses for volume buyers
During most of 2007, buyers of Microsoft's volume-licensing bundle were allowed to run one copy of Vista Ultimate on each machine covered by the arrangement. Microsoft quietly changed this policy, however, and now allows businesses to get only one Vista Ultimate product key for every 100 copies of Vista Enterprise they purchase. Read more »
Dual-booting XP deletes Vista restore points
My Feb. 14 article explained how to set up a Vista machine to dual-boot between that OS and Windows XP. But booting to XP on a dual-boot system has the negative side-effect of deleting any Vista restore points, in addition to all but its latest backup file, and a Registry workaround is required to prevent this. Read more »
Roll over, Beethoven
Chopin. Strauss. And now Robbi-985. In this two-minute clip by the afore-mentioned composer, a musical masterpiece is created using nothing but sounds from Windows XP and 98. Read more »
Vista Service Pack 1 — boring but necessary
For those of us who lived through the toe-curling changes in Windows XP Service Pack 2, Microsoft's new Vista Service Pack 1 rates as a real yawner. I've had a chance to put Vista's upcoming SP1 through its paces, however, and my toes didn't even twitch. Read more »
Now is the time for debunking the Mocmex threat
I'm going to do something a little unusual for me; I'm going to tell you that a particular security threat isn't as bad as it seems. You'll never catch me saying a particular security problem is impossible or can't happen to you — I'm often warning about possible future threats — but this time I smell hype. Read more »
Microsoft pulls buggy Vista 'prerequisite' patch
Microsoft on Feb. 19 halted automatic downloads of a Vista patch that caused numerous PCs to reboot uncontrollably. The patch, numbered 937287, is a "prerequisite" or "preliminary" patch that was intended to prepare machines for the installation of Vista Service Pack 1, which is expected to be released in March. Read more »
February 14, 2008
Make your computer dual-boot Vista and XP
It's getting harder to buy a new computer with Windows XP installed and — after Microsoft stops selling XP on June 30, 2008 — it will become nearly impossible. Fortunately, you can have your XP cake and eat your Vista, too, by setting up your system to boot between the two operating systems. Read more »
Labs provide alternatives in evaluating suites
My Feb. 7 article explained that the WSN Security Baseline summarizes the top ratings of several respected computer publications, but it is only a starting point for those who want to do their own research. One reader responded with an impressive list of independent labs that evaluate security software and publish the results online. Read more »
Suffering the slings of Cupid's arrow
Cupid. That sweet, cherubic boy of Valentine lore who, with a single pluck of his bow, can bring together star-crossed lovers, awaken a cold heart from its frosty slumber, and famously inspire love down through the ages. Read more »
Task Scheduler tricks help you save time
Some excellent reader feedback came in this month that lets us get even more out of task automation. One little password trick and two freeware tools can help you ease your PC maintenance chores and unleash the full power of Windows Task Scheduler. Read more »
A few jolts to increase your desktop performance
Some of your systems might be running slowly — but maybe you don't have to replace them just yet. This week, I tell you about some tips and tools you can use to boost performance on Vista, XP, and even older versions of Windows. Read more »
Instead of roses, send a dozen patches today
A whopping 11 security patches and 7 nonsecurity patches were released this month for Windows, Firefox, Acrobat, and QuickTime, which means a potentially rough patching month. Rather than giving your loved ones red roses or fat-laden chocolates for Valentine's Day, show them how much you care by fixing their systems with these updates that the patch gods have sent us. Read more »
February 7, 2008
Symantec uninstaller may not finish the job
Like most Windows software, Norton security products, published by the Symantec Corp., come with an uninstall option to remove the software from your computer. Unfortunately, neither Symantec's bundled uninstaller — nor a little-known, special utility from the company — removes every single thing. Read more »
Positive reviews for Norton raise readers' ire
I wrote on Jan. 24 that Norton Internet Security 2008, a Symantec product, now has the greatest number of Editors' Choice awards of any security suite, and therefore has replaced the ZoneAlarm suite in the WSN Security Baseline. This story touched a nerve for a significant number of readers, who have had bad experiences with Symantec and its products in the past. Read more »
Nuts — a little dab'll do ya
Maybe there's something in the air. Maybe it's just the raw, animal attraction that comes with a unibrow. Whatever it is, the star of this 30-second Planters Peanuts commercial has it and is turning heads. Read more »
Don't let social-networking viruses bite you
The foolish people who develop Web sites that only work in Internet Explorer, and users who still run IE instead of safer browsers, such as Firefox, repeatedly expose themselves to one hacker attack after another. The latest example is an exploit that afflicts the social-networking sites MySpace and Facebook, in addition to the Yahoo Music Jukebox — but there's an easy way to protect yourself. Read more »
WinBubble is the best free TweakUI replacement
With Vista now officially one year old and toddling into its Terrible Twos, I've given up hope waiting for Microsoft to deliver an up-to-date TweakUI for the new OS. Fortunately, six enterprising developers have rushed in where Redmond feared to tread, and I'll tell you which is my favorite at goosing Vista in wondrous — and sometimes useful — ways. Read more »
Make use of advanced Process Monitor features
I continue today the coverage of Process Monitor (PM) that I started in my Jan. 17, 2008, column. Last time, I just introduced the basics. This time, I cover more advanced uses and a "case study." Read more »