Computer Related Articles

Windows Vista was the first major deviation in an operating system for Microsoft’s since 95′s improvement over the previous editions (which still incorporated DOS extensively). Windows 98 and XP, which were certainly popular, were more expansions on Windows 95 than independent formats. While 95 represented a revolution in the realm of personal computing, instead of hitting the ground running, Vista landed and then tripped over its own feet. After barely a year on the open market, Microsoft decided to scrap the Vista name, fix the biggest errors, and repackage the system as Windows 7. How did one of the largest and most successful tech firms in history make a mistake of this magnitude?

Vista hit the racks (figuratively and literally) during the early part of 2007. The marketing strategy revolved around an up to date user interface, stronger security and firewalls to prevent viruses and malware, and a greater incorporation of internet search and multimedia programs. The last two items were obviously a nod that Apple and Google had products that offered advantages over the previous Windows editions. This was a bit of a revelation as Microsoft had rarely acknowledged that any competitors offered a strong enough threat to affect their overall business and development strategies.

The Mac vs. PC commercials featuring Justin Long may have doomed Windows Vista from the get go. Coinciding with the Vista release, Apple released a commercial in which the PC characters claims that Vista will not have the problems offered by previous Windows’ versions (this is coupled with flashbacks that show PC saying the same thing for every prior release of Windows (XP, 98, 95, etc.). So when it became obvious that Vista did have some of the same problems (in addition to a few of its own) – Apple could chuckle with a series of commercials that had become all too accurate.

So what were the issues that frustrated Windows Vista users? A major one revolved around the inability to integrate many popular programs offered by third party companies. The security firewall of Vista would often block (intentionally or accidentally) drivers from being installed by external programs. If this is a malware program – this is a good thing, but when it blocks a driver that a user clearly wants, that is an issue. Even users of the extremely popular iTunes and Adobe suite found problems with full compatibility for their programs. These two items are so popular that this could not be swept under the rug or considered a rare case. There were even occasions where songs downloaded from iTunes would corrupt iPods after being uploaded. People tend to frown upon their digital media destroying their hardware. Another issue involved networking for VPN users. Users who were trying to work from home by logging into their business computer found the Vista VPN system very difficult (there actually still exist issues for this with Windows 7). Consumers became very frustrated that a corporation with the volume and cash flows of Microsoft released a product with issues that should have been foreseen and never made it past beta testing. It was simply an unacceptable situation.

On the plus side, Microsoft has remedied many of these problems with the Windows 7 release. Critics have found it to be the best system from the company in a very long time. Since Microsoft has often been (rightly) accused of resting on its laurels, taking the proactive approach by doing a complete overhaul (even in packaging) was a very wise decision. This system is a cleaner OS, more friendly to users, the interface is much improved, and it is much more compatible with third party software than the previous system. So kudos on that one Bill Gates.

Author Bio: – Felix Chesterfield
Also offering information regarding: Apple Data Recovery

Gadgets that are made for Windows 7 are portals for inclusion of many of the additional features that can make your Windows 7 work in the way that will suit you. Some of the uses of the gadgets are those that are very helpful in keeping track of your computer system and monitor the activity of the computer like CPU, memory, hard drive, network usage and much more. Listed below are some of the best and most useful Windows 7 gadgets that can come in handy to ease the hectic day-to-day life activities.

1. All CPU Meter GadgetV 3.1:

This is the only CPU meter that enables display of your computer’s CPU usage at the time of running, cores temperature and RAM usage. Having this CPU meter installed onto your computer will enable to cut short on those programs and uninstalling unwanted programs that will alleviate the performance of the computer. This will be very helpful in identifying and sorting out the problematic program that is affecting the functionality of other programs and software.

2. Xirrus Wi-Fi Monitor Gadget:

The Xirrus Wi-Fi Monitor gadget is the one that can conduct a better comprehensive search for monitoring, tracking and managing Wi-Fi via your Windows OS. This gadget is used to search for networks, verify the Wi-Fi coverage limits, locate the presence of other devices using the same resources, detect rogue APs and present Wi-Fi in connection. This customizable gadget can manage on the system the various Wi-Fi networks.

3. Auto Shutdown:

This is one of the gadgets that works efficiently, and will allow you to override the computers normal set up to go to sleep mode or any other instructions when not in use. Therefore, when you have this gadget on your PC or laptop, you will be able to override these preset instructions, and will allow shutting down of the computer automatically, only after downloading those big files and restart if required immediately.

4. Language Translator:

While there are a number of online translator tools available on the net and will require constant internet access, you will be able to download this language translator that can translate your text information automatically from nearly 43 different languages. Nevertheless, if you are pleased with the translation done by this tool, you can use this to translate to other languages.

5. Traffic By Bing Maps:

While if you find yourself stuck in the traffic every time, in spite of leaving early for an appointment, and still find yourself locked up in the traffic, Microsoft’s new affiliation with Bing has brought forward a gadget that will cater to your needs. This gadget, Traffic by Bing Maps, gives a quick review of the real time traffic conditions instantly and will help to find the best alternative route to reach your destination on time. Till now only Canada and US users are the only beneficiaries.

6. Uptime Gadget Version 1.0.0.2 Changelog:

You will require to know how much you computer has worked and how good is the lifetime of your computer, accessories and the battery life, to know how reliable are the specifications as mentioned at the time of the sales of the computer. Downloading this gadget to your PC or laptop will let you know to see how much time you have been using the computer since the last time that you used.

7. AlertCon:

AlertCon is the gadget that your Windows 7 desktop will require to keep monitoring the security of your internet usage. The barometer in this gadget is the place where you gain more information on the overall protection of your computer against internet hackers and hijackers. This four level internet threat level meter sends alert messages to users of internet, if they come across some kind of large-scale worms and virus infestation that might probably crash your computer to nothing with a single click.

8. Ultimate Explorer:

If you are going to be grateful to me for writing this article, then surely this will be one of the main reasons. This gadget is a powerful gadget designed to do a web search by fetching and combining all the search results from individual search engines into one single platform. Some of the many search engines that they operate will include Amazon, Google, Digg, You Tube, Drugstore, Wikipedia, eBay, Weather bug, etc., and much more.

9. The Magic Folder v2.0:

The Magic Folder is one of the best gadgets that you could use for cleaning up your messy desktop by spending heaps of time to get organized. However, you will not have the pain in the neck, thanks to Magic Folder, which categorizes files based on the extension and pile them in a single document folder. Nevertheless, you will still have the option of removing these extensions and getting them stored separately.

10. App Launcher v3:

This is one place where you can bring all the icons that you want to launch with a single click, and is one way where you can avoid these shortcut icons messing up your desktop. All you have to do is drag and drop these icons to the list. You should be able to save these shortcut icons appropriately and directly into these folders. With one click on the icons, you can launch the program desired.

Author Bio: Do not forget to read some of the best articles like best blackberry apps and google chrome themes . There are many other useful posts in the main domain.

I have to tell you, the more I run Ubuntu, the more I love it.

Now, this is from a guy who has run too many OSes to count. I’ve used every single version of Windows, from 3.11 to Windows 7. I’ve dabbled in Mac OS, fro the mid-90′s to today. I’ve tried them all, and I just find Ubuntu spectacular.

Why? Am I just a rebel? Some guy who just likes to feel superior? Nope. Ubuntu just works for me. The sound works, when I plug in my USB headset. The browser works perfectly. My wife logs in, and used my Ubuntu laptop without incident, the first time.

That, my friends, is why I love Ubuntu. On the rare occasion that a program freezes, all I have to do is open the console, check the process number, and kill it. It ends instantly. It doesn’t ask if I want to help improve Ubuntu by reporting the crash. It doesn’t try to fix the problem, while tying up my system ram and processor for an eternity. It just does what I tell it to do.

Ubuntu does what you tell it to do. Need an application? Tell it to download. Want to mess with your configuration files? Ubuntu figures you are an adult, and can deal with the consequences of your actions. It doesn’t ask me whether I am sure 1000 times. It just does what you tell it to do.

I appreciate the fact that the machine is cognisant that it is a machine, and should be inclined to obey the owner. I love the choices that Ubuntu offers, as well. If I want a different window manager, all I have to do is download a new one. If I think that a feature is unnecessary, I can delete it.

Ubuntu (and Linux in general) offers you the freedom to make mistakes, and choose a different path. MAC and Windows don’t allow me that option.

Now, there are a few things that people seem to really hate about Linux, but to be fair, many of them are the same things that people dislike about MACs:

1. Generally, Linux is not considered a gaming system. This is gradually changing, as independent developers continue to produce content, and broaden their purchasing base. Penny Arcade has released their latest game, at launch for the Linux OS. Like anything in the free market, the greater the purchasing base, the greater the chance that the game gets made.

2. Linux Driver Support: People consistently complain about Linux driver support, or a lack of support for their peripherals. With the latest release of Ubuntu, this practically became a non-issue. The only thing that I have to manually configure has been my built-in laptop webcam. I haven’t done it, simply because I don’t use it that often. That may be a deal-breaker for some. Other than that, driver support continues to improve, and in many cases, exceed Window’s quality of support, with each release.

3. Sound – Hey, Linux has buggy sound. Ummm..not so much anymore. While the Pulse Audio server has created a few issues, the bugs continue to decrease with every passing day. Now, I have, in the past, found it annoying when Pulse didn’t integrate properly with my apps, and I had to uninstall and add ALSA base, back in. That, too me, would be a dealbreaker if I was the average Windows user. As things stand, I’m willing to wait it out.

Is the future bright for Ubuntu? I think it is. In fact, I think Linux adoption rates will rise in the near future, thanks to the iPad. Why? Because Steve Jobs has demanded that HTML5 video support be made available for the iPad. Linux users are big on standards, and as more and more web apps are developed in HTML5, it really won’t matter what OS you run.

Currently, Adobe has improved application usage for Ubuntu, via the AIR platform, and flash in general. AIR runs flawlessly on Ubuntu. Flash is buggy on Linux, and often suffers from frame rate issues, and general video bugginess. HTML5 will not have that problem.

Eventually, all of the problems people have with Linux will be solved via the delivery of applications via the web, or a cross-platform software API that is more robust than AIR. Games will be delivered simultaneously to all platforms at once.

This is when Ubuntu adoption will go through the stratosphere, as it becomes apparent that linux doesn’t demand as many resources, as MAC and Windows do. Applications will be fast and secure, and we will see people move to open source software in droves.

In the meantime, I will continue to love and support the development of Linux and Ubuntu, even if it doesn’t get the respect that I feel it does.

Author Bio: Kurt Hartman has been running Ubuntu for nearly 3 years now. He enjoys using open source tools to edit video, and is eagerly awaiting the next GIMP release. Currently, he is a partner at OTR Tire Supply. They sell OTR Tires, and you can find their website at http://www.otrtiresupply.com