I’m not sure Google’s new Chrome OS announcement is that big a deal, or that the eventual product that gets released will actually have that much impact, but it’s a useful milestone in marking Google’s evolution towards becoming an older company with...

Another new version of Windows is nearly upon us, as Microsoft will release Windows 7 later this year. Vista was greeted with probably a few too many jeers, which in the tech industry means Windows 7 will probably be greeted with a few too many...

If you’d like to open up the package for your licensed copy of Microsoft Windows Vista, you only need to follow these three helpfully-illustrated steps. “The Windows Vista box opens with a swing-out section that holds your DVD and manuals. The box...

One of my favorite posts that I’ve ever written was Excel Pile, about people’s propensity for using Office tools like Microsoft Excel to track mundane parts of their lives, or even as tools of artistic expression. From that post three years...

This is one of those “how to market a product effectively” examples that’s been kicking around in my brain for a while, I thought I’d share it. About half a decade ago, Microsoft implemented a technology called Volume Shadow Copy, which maintains old...

Summary: Earlier this year, I said that Office 2007 is the bravest upgrade ever, and the reason was simple: The audacity of introducing a radical new user interface was as surprising as the vast improvements it yielded in productivity. Now, Microsoft...

I don’t know exactly what the significance of this realization is to me, but I thought I’d share. The debate between Robert Scoble and Dave Winer about Microsoft and innovation, on the Wall Street Journal’s website, is the best thing I think I’ve...

Microsoft has just launched the Zune, which will be one of the most popular digital music players ever made, and could have been considered a wild success as a result. Instead, the device has been inevitably and irrevocably compared to Apple’s...

Short and sweet, the Ribbon and new UI in Microsoft Office 2007 is** the ballsiest new feature in the history of computer software**. I’ve been using Office 12 for about six months, and not only has it made me more productive, I’m struck by the...

It’s like they chose the onstage talent at this event just to appeal to me! ![Rock Your...

Dear Microsoft: What the fuck? Ten years ago, Windows 3.1 was the current version of Windows. I’d been using Windows for the better part of a decade then, and was moderately impressed with the system and thought it was pretty decent. Today, I’m...

Picture the following scenario: Microsoft has created a weblog tool that is designed to run inside the firewall at a company. It’s browser-accessible from any 4.0 or higher web browser and doesn’t require Windows on the client. It leverages their...

Microsoft’s been promoting its Tablet PCs for about a year now. Despite all the claims, they’re more evolutionary than revolutionary, of course. But that’s the not the surprising thing about them. The surprising thing about Tablet PCs is that they’re...

Microsoft Passport Part One and a Half: Continuing the User Experience At the end of yesterday’s exciting episode, User X was waiting, mouse-finger poised, to click on our "Sign In" link… let’s see where the story continues! The sign in...

As promised: Microsoft Passport Part One: User Experience Okay, so after spending waaaay too much time reading all the documentation at the official Passport site, I’ve been able to glean a little info on how the end-user will approach this...

Little bit of appreciation for good design— despite an underwhelming set of new features, Microsoft‘s Office 2000 has got some damn cool icons. They’re almost childlike in their simplicity, they’re extremely distinct from one another, even at very...