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Will iPad Scratch the Surface, or Vice Versa?

Despite Android device makers' best efforts, Apple has ruled the tablet market for years with its iPad line. But one of the company's oldest rivals will soon come knocking, and this week it showed off just how it plans to enter the tablet scene. Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system will be built w...

When testing a new operating system from Microsoft, finding the right hardware is often the biggest problem. Many of the negative reviews of Windows 8, including my own, are tied to the hardware that just wasn't designed for it. I was at Microsoft's TechEd last week, and after hearing presenters dri...

Microsoft invited reporters and industry experts this week to a special event on Monday in Los Angeles, where it promises to make a "major" announcement. Since then, speculation has been rampant about exactly what that announcement will be, though Microsoft has not released any further details. Theo...

OPINION

The Problem and Promise of Windows 8

Windows 8 is a make-or-break platform for Microsoft and likely the most complex operating system launch ever attempted. It comes at a time when Microsoft is losing share on both operating systems and browsers, when Apple has once again replaced Microsoft at the top of the tech heap, and many would a...

One in three high school students has texted or emailed someone while driving a vehicle over the past 30 days, a study by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found. The CDC said motor vehicle crashes account for more than one-third of U.S. teen fatalities each year. Thos...

Any vendor can be beaten, and Apple was beaten badly in the years between Steve Jobs' termination at the company and his triumphant return. On the other hand, Apple continues to execute very well, even though Cook is making what appear to be critical early mistakes in terms of priorities. The compan...

Google users in China will now be notified when they are using search terms that could trigger Internet blocks set up by the country's government. This new feature is perhaps Google's boldest move yet in a censorship battle with Beijing that has been going on for two years. On Thursday the search gi...

OPINION

Facebook Is a Fraud

I've been up to my armpits talking about Facebook for most of this month, and maybe because I'm unusually dense, just realized that Facebook is a new kind of dot-com. By this I mean its revenue and profit are based on a series of false beliefs. Unlike the first dot-coms, which failed, Facebook does...

With Facebook now public, the search is on for that next big-idea company that can excite the market. Coincidently, Nvidia has its Emerging Companies Summit about this time of year, where it has a series of sessions that allow each firm the opportunity to present what makes them unique and powerfu...

Last week was rather quiet except for the increasing drama surrounding Facebook and what was to be their $100B IPO. It could still be, but thanks to its young, inexperienced, and clearly still-maturing CEO, it found itself digging out of an avoidable hole. Its experienced executive team was by all r...

OPINION

The Un-Death of the PC

This occurred to me last Thursday when first-quarter PC sales came out. Apparently, sales are up 21 percent year-over-year and HP retook the lead from Apple in this segment. In this report, Apple's numbers include iPads, and sales for iPads collapsed in the first quarter. This got me thinking of ...

Microsoft is reportedly planning to release its Xbox 360 bundle beginning next week for $99. If rumors are to be believed, it could rival a TV infomercial's promise -- "but wait, there's more" -- by including the Kinect motion control sensor with a 4 GB version of the game console. However, as with...

Last week, I was at the Dell annual Industry Analyst Conference, and it suddenly struck me that we are looking at a very different technology market this decade. Apple is expected to slide, largely due to the firm's inability to replace Steve Jobs; the dynamic that created Microsoft is changing, a...

Demo is a fascinating show. What you see is a string of companies that each have six minutes to pitch their products to an audience of media, investors, other companies (who might buy them), and peers. My initial thought is that my friend Carmine Gallo, who wrote The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jo...

One of my favorite lines from the original "Conan" movie came when he was asked "what is the best in life?" Conan's response: "To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women!" Maybe I watch too many old movies, but I could swear I saw three companies ch...

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