Operating Systems

Quick guide to Microsoft Windows 7

What is Windows 7?

Er, ok. You really need this one answered? Well, Windows 7 is Microsoft's eighth consumer focused operating systems for personal computers. Don't ask us why the company chose 7 - possibly because it's a suggestion that we forget about either Windows...

VIDEO: Windows 7 launches with new ad

"Nearly a billion people use Windows. Their ideas added up to Windows 7", says Microsoft of the above advert, as Windows 7 sees its official general release.

While some UK consumers have received their copy of the new OS in the last couple of days due to early...

Seven reasons to buy Windows 7

After all the hullabaloo, Windows 7, Microsoft's new operating system, is now here. Finally you can now officially ditch Windows Vista or Windows XP once and for all. But why should you spend £79.99 on getting it? Here are seven reasons why you should and one reason you...

Daily Tech Deal: Windows 7 half price

To celebrate the forthcoming Windows 7 release, PC World has announced that it will be discounting some of its hardware as well as Window 7 itself.

Perhaps one for the more enthusiastic among you this deal begins at the PC World Tottenham Court Road shop from...

Windows 7 ships early to avoid postal strike

Those that pre-ordered Windows 7 are already seeing their copies drop through their letter box as the US software giant has been forced to ship early due to the threat of postal strikes here in the UK.

Microsoft has authorised retailer PC World to send out copies...

A brief history of Microsoft Windows

If a rose by any other name would have smelled as sweet then we'd all be looking forward to the launch of Interlace Manager 7 this week. That was how it all began for Microsoft's projected in 1981 when Windows was first under development....

Windows 8 and 9 could go 128-bit

Microsoft's follow ups to its soon-to-be-released Windows 7 operating system are already in development, and the first nuggets of information about the software packages are starting to appear. It looks like the operating systems could feature 128-bit support.

A...

Five Windows Mobile 6.5 phones to watch out for

It may not have been quite the upgrade Microsoft had conceived of with the company's initial route map for 2009 but the launch of Windows Phone/Windows Mobile 6.5 today comes with no less ceremony. Naturally, an operating system is all very well and good so, here are...

Quick guide to Windows Mobile 6.5 - Windows Phone

Want to know what all the fuss is about? Read our quick guide to find out more about what the changes are, what they mean, and how they affect you. We'll also give you a run down of the good and bad points.

It's the rebranded name of Windows...

Lenovo promises ultra-speedy Windows 7 boot times

Lenovo has begun the Windows 7 battle with a shot across the bows of other hardware manufacturers. The company is claiming that it has the fastest boot and shutdown times out there - it says that its ThinkPad notebooks and ThinkCentre desktop PCs will boot Windows 7 56%...

Google issues cease-and-desist to Cyanogen

Open-source Android mod Cyanogen has been hit with legal trouble from Google. The ROM heavily modifies the original Android operating system to make it much faster, using parts of code that are already available from the open-source development team, but not yet publicly...

Nvidia and Google working on Chrome OS hardware

Further to previous rumours, Nvidia has now officially confirmed it is "working closely with Google" on Chrome OS Tegra devices.

As well as Android devices, Mike Rayfield, Nvidia's GM of mobile business, has told JKOnTheRun that netbooks, or "smartbooks" running...

VIDEO: Dell Mini 10v gets Ubuntu Moblin Remix

Dell is offering a Mini 10v netbook running an "Ubuntu Moblin Remix" for developers.

Moblin, an open source project, created by Intel and the Linux Foundation, is optimised for mobile devices.

It boasts a user interface focused on using the internet,...

Linux founder says OS is bloated

Linus Torvals, the creator of the Linux kernel and therefore the founder of the open-source OS, has claimed that the operating system that he birthed has become "bloated", labelling it "huge and scary now".

As a result of its success and more widespread adoption,...

Windows XP phone gets details, pictures

The Windows XP handset which Pocket-lint brought you news of earlier in the year has been fleshed out with a little more information, including full specs for the device and some promotional images. The xpPhone, as it's called, also has the ability to make video calls.

Apple Mac OS x 10.6 sales beat previous OS releases

Sales of Apple's latest operating system, "Snow Leopard", or Mac OS X 10.6, have beaten those of the company's last two OS releases in the first 2 weeks on the shelves.

The US figures, from the NPD Group from both online and retail shops, although not revealed...

Students get discount Windows 7

Microsoft has announced a deal for cash-strapped students ahead of the start of the University term across the country. Windows 7 will cost anyone with an .EDU email address (eg yourname@reading.ac.uk) just £30.

The offer is available from 1 October for those...

VIDEO: Android 1.6 SDK announced

The Android developer team has announced the release of the Android 1.6 SDK, with the biggest news from the release support for GSM, CDMA and additional screen sizes.

This means the OS and Android apps will be able to be deployed on more devices than ever,...

VIDEO: Microsoft kicks off Windows 7 advertising with "happy words" ad

October 22nd is a little way off yet, but it seems Microsoft has already kick-started its advertising campaign for its new OS, due to be released on that date. The clip, featuring a cute kid, focuses on the "happy words" that Windows 7 has garnered from reviewers. If you're...

Apple Snow Leopard 10.6.1 update issued

Apple's recently launched Snow Leopard operating system has received its first software update on Thursday as Apple moves to fix a number of bugs experienced by those who opted to update from day one.

The new software update, version 10.6.1 weights in at just...

Toshiba TG01 Windows phone announced

Toshiba has announced a new "variant" of its Snapdragon-powered TG01 touchscreen phone, the "TG01 Windows phone".

The "new" model differs only in the fact that it will feature the new Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system, although those that already have an "old"...

The 10 hidden gems of Snow Leopard

It's all very well reading the official line on the bumps and buffs of Apple OS X Snow Leopard but the company can't possibly tell us every little detail of what comes in the package. So, after a chance to play with it ourselves over the weekend a glean what else we can,...

Amazon discounts Snow Leopard in UK and US

Amazon is tempting those yet to grab a copy of Apple's new OS, Snow Leopard, with an 8% price reduction in the UK and 14% price reduction in the US.

In the UK, Amazon.co.uk is currently selling the new operating system £2 cheaper than Apple's own suggest price...

Service Battery: Snow Leopard encourages battery replacement

MacBook and MacBook Pro users upgrading to Snow Leopard are being encouraged to replace flagging batteries via a new feature in the new OS.

"Mac OS X v10.6 Snow Leopard includes an improved Battery menu bar extra for portable Macs. The Battery menu bar extra...

Snow Leopard launch sees Apple Store queues

With the launch of Apple's latest operating system Snow Leopard, queues were forming in the street before the opening of the Regent Street store in London.

You'd hardly think that a £25 upgrade was worthy of the excitement, but with a long weekend to tinker...