New Apple TV with Apps & Siri Coming in June

Apple is planning on releasing an all new Apple TV set-top box this summer, according to a report from Buzzfeed. The new Apple TV is said to feature a redesign, all new hardware components, an App Store, and Siri.

Updates to the device will apparently include significantly larger internal storage capacity, presumably to accommodate app and media downloads, and the hardware is expected to be powered by an A8 CPU or a variation thereof, the chip which currently powers iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. BuzzFeed suggests the physical enclosure will get a redesign as will the remote control used to manage the device.

The revised Apple TV is apparently set to be unveiled at the annual Worldwide Developer Conference which Apple hosts in June. The report also says the new Apple TV will include an SDK allowing developers to create apps specifically for the television box, making the WWDC debut appropriate. It’s unclear, but this could suggest an Apple TV App Store will be different from the general iOS App Store, though that remains to be seen if apps from, say an iPhone or iPad, will be able to run on Apple TV, or vice versa.

Given the rumors of a streaming TV service from Apple, a new Apple TV set-top box would make considerable sense to offer such a service on.

There have long been rumors of apps, games, and Siri coming to the Apple TV, but thus far nothing has panned out.

Current generation Apple TV models were recently repriced at $69, though it’s suggested a new Apple TV may cost more, perhaps closer to the original $99 which Apple TV has long been priced at.

Security Update 2015-003 for OS X Yosemite Released

Apple has released an important security update for OS X Yosemite users. Labeled as “Security Update 2015-003 1.0, the update is available to all Macs running OS X Yosemite 10.10.2.

The easiest way to install the update is through the Mac Software Update mechanism, accessible from the  Apple menu > App Store > Updates tab.

The update should appear automatically, but refreshing the App Store can be helpful if it does not show up. You may find a recent security update to Safari as well. It is recommended to start a backup with Time Machine before installing. Altenratively, Mac users can download the update directly from Apple, though you’ll want to be sure to pick the proper version (curiously, there’s a general version available and one specific to early 2015 Mac models):

Security Update 2015-003 for Mac

Security Update 2015-003 for early 2015 Mac models

The update is recommended for all OS X Yosemite users to install, as it improves the security of OS X against several potential issues. The update also includes security fixes from the prior Security Update, for those users who have slacked on installing that one for whatever reason.

Specifically, the detailed release notes for Security Update 2015-003 1.0 for OS X Yosemite are as follows:

Security Update 2015-003
• iCloud Keychain
Available for: OS X Yosemite v10.10.2
Impact: An attacker with a privileged network position may be able to execute arbitrary code
Description: Multiple buffer overflows existed in the handling of data during iCloud Keychain recovery. These issues were addressed through improved bounds checking.
CVE-ID
CVE-2015-1065 : Andrey Belenko of NowSecure
• IOSurface
Available for: OS X Yosemite v10.10.2
Impact: A malicious application may be able to execute arbitrary code with system privileges
Description: A type confusion issue existed in IOSurface’s handling of serialized objects. The issue was addressed through additional type checking.
CVE-ID
CVE-2015-1061 : Ian Beer of Google Project Zero

It’s a good idea to always start a back up of a Mac before installing software updates, even small security updates like this.

USB-C vs. USB 3.1: What’s the difference?

With the launch of the Apple MacBook and Google’s Chromebook Pixel, USB-C (also called USB Type-C) and the accompanying USB 3.1 standard are both hitting market somewhat earlier than we initially expected. If you’re curious about the two standards and how they interact, we’ve dusted off and updated our guide to the upcoming technology. The situation is more nuanced than it’s been with previous USB standard updates — USB 3.1 and USB Type-C connectors may be arriving together on the new machines, but they aren’t joined at the hip the way you might think.

USB Type-C: Fixing an age-old problem

The near-universal frustration over attempts to connect USB devices to computers has been a staple of nerd humor and lampooned in various ways until Intel finally found a way to take the joke quantum.

USB Type-C promises to solve this problem with a universal connector that’s also capable of twice the theoretical throughput of USB 3.0 and can provide far more power. That’s why Apple is pairing up Type-C and USB 3.1 to eliminate the power connector on the MacBook. It’s a goal we agree with, even if we’re less thrilled with the company’s decision to dump USB ports altogether with that single exception. Google’s approach, in providing two USB-C and two regular USB 3.0 ports, is obviously preferable, even though it adds a bit of bulk to the machine.

Type-C connectors will be shipped in a variety of passive adapters (an earlier version of this story erroneously asserted that such cables would not be available, Extremetech regrets the error). The spec provides for passive adapters with USB 3.0 / 3.1 on one end and USB Type-C on the other.

USB-C, USB 3.1 not always hooked together

The Type-C plug can be used with previous standards of USB, which means manufacturers don’t automatically have to adopt expensive 3.1 hardware if they want to include it in mobile devices. Apple, to be clear, is offering USB 3.1 on the new MacBook, though the company hasn’t disclosed which third party vendor is providing the actual chipset support.

The disconnect between USB 3.1’s performance standard and the USB Type-C connector is going to inevitably cause confusion. One reason the shift from USB 2.0 to 3.0 was relatively painless is because coloring both the cables and plugs bright blue made it impossible to mistake one type of port for the other.

The upside to decoupling USB 3.1 from USB-C, however, is that companies can deploy the technology on mobile phones and tablets without needing to opt for interfaces that inevitably consume more power. Then again, some might argue that this would be a moot point — the USB controller can be powered down when it isn’t active, and when it is active, the device should be drawing power off the PC or charging port anyway. Heat dissipation could theoretically remain a concern — higher bandwidth inevitably means higher heat, and in devices built to 3-4W specifications, every tenth of a watt matters.

If I had to bet, I’d bet that the 100W power envelope on USB 3.1 will actually be of more practical value than the 10Gbps bandwidth capability. While it’s true that USB 3.1 will give external SSD enclosures more room to stretch their legs, the existing standard still allows conventional mechanical drives to run at full speed, while SSDs can hit about 80% of peak performance for desktop workloads. It might not be quite as good, but it’s a far cry from the days when using USB 2.0 for an external hard drive was achingly slow compared to SATA. Signal overhead is also expected to drop significantly, thanks to a switch to a 128-bit and 132-bit encoding scheme, similar to that used in PCI-Express 3.0.

The ability to provide 100W of power, as opposed to 10W, however, means that nearly every manufacturers could ditch clunky power bricks. There would still be concern about ensuring that connect points were sufficiently reinforced, but provided such concerns can be accounted for, the vast majority of laptops could switch over to the new standard. Hard drives and other external peripherals could all be powered by single wires, as could USB hubs for multiple devices.

The higher bandwidth is nice, and a major selling point, but the flippable connector and the power provisioning will likely make more difference in the day-to-day reality of life. As for competition with Intel’s Thunderbolt, USB 3.1 will continue to lag Intel’s high-speedstandard, but as bandwidth rises this gap becomes increasingly academic. At this point, it’s the features USB doesn’t allow, like RAID and TRIM, that matter more than the raw bandwidth does in most cases.

Apple’s MacBook will be first out the door with USB 3.1 and USB-C support, with vendors scurrying to match the company on both counts. LaCie has announced a new revision of its Porsche Design Mobile Drive that takes advantage of the Type-C connector, but only offers USB 3.0. It’s going to take time for the 3.1 spec to really show up on peripheral devices, even those that adopt the USB-C cable. Motherboard support outside the Apple MacBook is probably 4-5 months away, though the first peripheral cables should be available well before that point.

OS X 10.10.3 Beta 3 Released to Mac Developers

Apple has released a new developer version of OS X 10.10.3 for Mac. The new beta build of 14D98g includes Photos app, as well as support for Force Touch API, which is the redesigned touch-sensitive trackpad included in the new 12″ MacBook and MacBook Pro 13″ Retina. The new diverse Emoji characters and some other features from iOS 8.3 beta 3 are also included in the release.

The new beta version can be downloaded on Macs running existing developer builds of OS X 10.10.3 through the Software Update function of the App Store, accessible via the  Apple menu. OS X developers can also access the download from the Mac Dev Center. Currently this version is only available to those in the actual Mac Developer program, though Apple seems to release similar betas to OS X Public Beta users soon after.

The Force Touch API allows developers to access and build features for the Force Touch trackpad, which is sensitive to varying degrees of pressure and the force of a click or press on the Trackpad. The new trackpad also supports haptic feedback. Aside from the Mac, the Force Touch feature will be included in Apple Watch, andrumors suggest Force Touch is coming to the next iPhone as well, so a familiarity with how it works on one Apple device should carry over to others.

Apple describes features of the Force Touch API as follows:

• Force click. Apps can have any button, control, or region on the screen respond to a press of stronger pressure. This Force click can provide a shortcut to additional functionality within the app.

• Accelerators. Pressure sensitivity in the trackpad enables apps to give users greater control. For instance the fast-forward button in media playback can speed up as pressure increases.

• Pressure sensitivity. Drawing and other creative apps can take advantage of the pressure-sensing capabilities of the trackpad to make lines thicker or give the brush a changing style.

• Drag and Drop. Apps can add the springLoaded property to their controls so they can react to a Force click gesture while in the middle of performing a drag, for instance to immediately open a new target for the drop.

The new bundled Photos app aims to replace iPhoto in OS X, with an interface that is familiar to iOS users and heavy iCloud integration.

Other features, bug fixes, and improvements to OS X Yosemite are certain to be included in the final release.

Separately, Apple has released a new beta build of OS X Server 4.1 for developers, and iOS 8.3 beta 3 for iPhone and iPad developers.

iOS 8.2 Beta 5 Released for Developers

Those registered with the iOS Developer program will find a new beta of iOS 8.2 available. The fifth beta version build arrives as 12D5480A and continues to focus on general bug fixes and improvements.

The upcoming iOS release will also include support for iPhone and iPad communicating with the Apple Watch,the Watch is set to be released sometime in April, perhaps indicating a rough timeline for when public users can expect the iOS 8.2 final version as well.

Developers who are currently running iOS 8.2 on their iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch devices can find the fifth beta available now as an Over-The-Air update, weighing around 270MB, through the delta update mechanism in Settings > Software Update. As usual, it’s also possible to download the iOS 8.2 beta firmware through the iOS Dev Center website and update a compatible iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch through iTunes. Beta builds of iOS are generally buggy and best limited to developers, though anyone can pay the annual fee and register with the iOS developer program to gain access if so desired.

Separately, a new Xcode 6.2 beta 5 with WatchKit SDK has been released to coincide with the iOS 8.2 beta 5 update. Users who are interested in developing for Apple Watch or the upcoming iOS release should get both.

The most recent public version of system software for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch is iOS 8.1.3, a small update that includes multiple bug fixes.

How Much RAM Do You Really Need?

Most people know that their computer has RAM — but fewer could tell you just what is it and what it does. Here’s how to gauge how much RAM you need, how much your computer has and how to get the most out of it.

RAM is one of the most crucial specifications of your computer’s hardware, so it’s a very useful thing to understand. A working knowledge of RAM can give you an idea of just what your PC can and cannot run, so it’s particularly handy to know if you use system-intensive software like video editing programs or modern video games.

What Is RAM?

RAM, or random-access-memory, is a type of data storage that allows files to be written and read at short notice, no matter what order individual entries are being accessed in. Alternate forms of data storage — like hard drives and disks — can’t match this speed as a result of their physical and mechanical limitations. RAM allows your PC immediate access to the data it requires, which contributes to how fast and responsive it is.

This makes RAM well-suited for temporary storage, used by software for data that needs to be accessed quickly and frequently. For instance, if you’re using a word processor to create a text document, it’s stored in your computer’s RAM while you’re editing it — the speed that RAM can be read and written to allows you to see your edits shape that document in real time.

There are two different types of RAM; static and dynamic. DRAM can offer access times of roughly 60 nanoseconds, whereas SRAM can cut that down to just 10 nanoseconds. However, DRAM is used more often because it’s substantially less expensive.

How Much RAM Do I Have?

To check how much RAM is installed on your computer, first open a new File Explorer window. Then, find the icon for your system — it might be labelled ‘My Computer’ or ‘This PC’ or something of your own choosing if you’ve renamed it. Right-click that icon and then select Properties.

This will present you with a screen that gives you a rundown of all your computer’s specifications; look under the System subdivision for the entry marked Installed memory (RAM).

If you’re seeing an amount of RAM contrary to what you expected, it might well be thanks to a known issue with the Windows OS. Due to a longstanding quirk of the Windows system architecture, the 32-bit version only supports up to 4GB of RAM.Switching to the 64 bit OS should sort out this problem.

Note that if your graphics card doesn’t have dedicated memory, it will block RAM for its own use. Shared graphics memory reduces the available system memory.

How To Get The Most From Your RAM

Now that you know how much RAM your computer has installed, you can begin to ensure that it’s being used to its full capabilities. You can increase RAM in a variety of ways, and the correct method for any individual case will depend on the particulars of the software you want to run on your system, as well as your level of experience with computers.

One simple way of giving your RAM a boost is by supplementing it with a tool like ReadyBoost. Included as part of the Windows OS since Vista, ReadyBoost can use a USB drive as a bit of additional memory. It’s not as effective as buying more RAM, but it’s an easy and quick alternative that’ll reap decent results — particularly if you’re using a slow computer.

Another method is to use Task Manager to keep an eye on which programs and processes are putting the strain on your system’s resources. To access this, right-click the Taskbar and select Task Manager.

The Memory column is what we’re interested in. If you see programs that you’re not using eating up plenty of memory, then it might be worth investigating whether they need to be running, or even if they can be uninstalled completely. Of course, this will vary on a case-by-case basis, but there are some non-essential startup items that most users can do without.

How Much RAM Do I Need?

Like many computer components, it can seem like the amount of RAM necessary to keep your computer running at a brisk pace is steadily increasing. Check the requirements of individual programs to make sure you’ll be able to run the software that you need to, but here are some broad pieces of advice on RAM requirements as of early 2015.

The baseline for RAM in a computer is 4GB; that’s how much you can expect from a budget model, and it’ll just about do the job — just don’t expect to be running high-intensity programs or to have several applications open at the same time without performance taking a hit. 8GB is closer to the current norm, and it’ll be enough to keep your computer fresh for the immediate future.

For gamers wanting to keep up with new releases, or if you need access to hardware-intensive programs like video editing software, then it’s worth having 16GB of RAM at your disposal. Anything beyond that is only really necessary for systems set-up for a particular purpose, or for users wanting to make sure their computer is as future-proof as possible.

If In Doubt, Add More RAM

If the RAM you have installed on your computer is less than what you need, don’t fret — these days, a RAM upgrade can be quite inexpensive, and the component itself is relatively easy to install. However, if you’re looking to buy more RAM then you’ll need to check how much your motherboard can handle — it’s much more of a hassle to replace that component, and a waste to purchase RAM that your system can’t use.

Will You Be Adding More RAM?

There’s a whole host of different elements that go into constructing a computer perfectly suited for your needs, but RAM is one that you can’t afford to ignore. It’s good practice to know how much RAM you have available to you, and what processes are using it at any given time — doing so can mean the difference between a machine that can handle anything you throw at it, and a sluggish, stuttering system.

How to Add a Longer-Lasting Battery to Your Smartphone

Well, it’s noon and your phone’s battery is already at 37 percent. There are ways to avert this disaster, adding more battery capacity to your favorite smartphone.

Phones are becoming thinner every year — if only they stayed the same thickness and had a larger battery instead! Be sure to follow the battery-saving tips for your Android phone or iPhone, too.

Option 1: The Battery Case

case. This is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a case you put your phone in — like a typical case designed just to protect your phone — but the case is thicker than normal and includes a built-in battery. The case itelf plugs into your phone’s charging port, and you generally plug the charging cable directly into the case’s charging port when it’s time to charge both your phone and the battery case itself.

Technically, this is just getting a separate battery and carrying it around with you. In practice, a battery case gives your phone more battery power at the cost of increased thickness. The case just becomes part of your phone — you don’t need to carry a separate battery pack in your pocket and attach your phone to it via a cable when it’s time to recharge. Just flip a switch and the battery pack will charge your phone with the power from its own battery. The battery pack can even be charged at the same time you charge your phone, so it’s not even a second device to charge.

This is probably the ideal option for most phones if you consistently need more battery power to make it through a day. Mophie’s line of iPhone battery cases are probably the most well-known, but Mophie has also made cases for other smartphones. They’re not the only company that’s made battery cases, either. Just be sure to get a battery case designed for your specific model of phone so it will fit! Search on Amazon or a similar website and you’ll find many battery cases to choose from.

Option 2: The Aftermarket Battery Replacement

Most phones don’t have user-replaceable batteries anymore, but some do. Samsung’s line of Galaxy phones stand out here, with even the high-end Galaxy S5 and other S-series phones offering user-replaceable batteries. Because these batteries and the entire plastic back panel of the phone can be removed and replaced, it’s possible to get aftermarket batteries that are larger, complete with new back panels to accomodate them.

If you have a phone with a user-replaceable battery, you can probably buy a larger replacement battery for it. The battery and its accompanying back replace your phone’s existing battery, so it’s a more effective solution than a battery case with a battery separate from your phone’s battery. Perform a search for “extended battery” and the name of your phone to find one. For example, you can pick up third-party extended batteries that promise three times the battery life for your Samsung Galaxy S5 for $40 or so on Amazon.

As with a battery case, this will make your phone thicker and larger. Whether that’s worth the trade-off is up to you — if you struggle to make it through a day with your phone’s current battery, it probably will be worth it. But, whatever you do, don’t buy super-cheap battery replacements.

Option 3: Just Carry Around a Separate Battery Pack

There’s also the external battery pack option. Rather than replacing your phone’s battery or adding a battery case, you can just carry a separate battery pack around with you and connect it to your phone with a cable whenever you need to charge your phone away from an outlet. This has the benefit of ensuring your phone stays thin, and you can use the battery pack to charge other devices that might need more power — a tablet, for example.

Editor’s Note: for our recent trip to CES 2015, we bought this RAVPower external battery packand it worked amazingly well. We were able to recharge an iPhone 6 repeatedly throughout the trip without having to recharge the battery pack at all.

But there are downsides here. The battery pack is yet another thing you have to carry, so it’ll be difficult to pocket and will be more at home in a bag. You’ll have to connect it to your phone via a cable, so you can’t just tuck your phone into your pocket normally and have it charging as you could with a battery case. You’ll also need to charge your battery pack separately, so it’s yet another thing you have to charge at the end of the day.

Still, a battery pack isn’t a bad option. If you only need the extra power for your phone occasionally, it’s a good option you can take with you if you know you’ll be using your phone a lot on a particular day. On days when you won’t be using your phone much, you can take your still-thin phone with you and leave the battery pack at home. However, if you struggle to make it through every single day with your phone’s battery, a battery case or extended battery is a more convenient option you can always take with you and always have in your pocket.

Charging your phone throughout the day can also help. Whenever you’re using your computer, you can plug your smartphone into it via its charging cable — the one with a USB connection — and your phone will charge from the computer. There’s no memory effect with modern batteries, so regularly topping your phone off throughout the day won’t actually damage the battery.

How to Find Your Lost Windows or Office Product Keys

If you’re planning on doing a reinstall of Windows but can’t find your product key, you’re in luck because it’s stored in the Windows Registry… it’s just not easy to find, and it’s impossible to read without some help. Luckily, we’re here to help.

As you can see in the screenshot above, the product ID is stored in the registry but is in a binary format that can’t be read by humans unless you are some sort of Cylon. You aren’t, are you?

We’re not really sure why Microsoft went to great lengths to make it difficult to see the product keys for their software, especially since they are stored right in there in the registry and can be read by software, if not by humans. We can only assume that they don’t want anybody to re-use a key from an old computer.

The great thing is that you can even recover a key from a computer that won’t boot anymore. All you need is access to the disk drive from a working computer. Keep reading for more.

Note: the keyfinder won’t always work for OEM computers, depending on how they decided to activate the licenses they might have used a single license for all computers. It also doesn’t work for Office 2013.

Finding the Windows Key Without Any Software

Assuming you can boot your computer without any problems, you can easily create a simple VBscript that will read the value out of the registry and then translate it into the format that you need for reinstalling. We’re not sure where this script came from, but reader raphoenix posted it on our forum a long time ago, so we’re sharing it here for you.

Copy and paste the following into a Notepad window:

Set WshShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
MsgBox ConvertToKey(WshShell.RegRead("HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\DigitalProductId"))

Function ConvertToKey(Key)
Const KeyOffset = 52
i = 28
Chars = "BCDFGHJKMPQRTVWXY2346789"
Do
Cur = 0
x = 14
Do
Cur = Cur * 256
Cur = Key(x + KeyOffset) + Cur
Key(x + KeyOffset) = (Cur \ 24) And 255
Cur = Cur Mod 24
x = x -1
Loop While x >= 0
i = i -1
KeyOutput = Mid(Chars, Cur + 1, 1) & KeyOutput
If (((29 - i) Mod 6) = 0) And (i <> -1) Then
i = i -1
KeyOutput = "-" & KeyOutput
End If
Loop While i >= 0
ConvertToKey = KeyOutput
End Function

You’ll need to use File -> Save As, change the “Save as type” to “All Files” and then name it productkey.vbs or something similar ending with the vbs extension. We’d recommend saving to the desktop for easy access.

Once you’ve saved it, you can just double-click and the popup window will show you your product key.

Protip: If you use CTRL + C when the popup window is active, it will copy the contents of the window to the clipboard, and then you can paste it into Notepad or somewhere else.

Use NirSoft’s ProduKey to Recover Product Keys (Even if You Can’t Boot the PC)

The easiest way to get access to your product key is with a third-party utility, and there’s nobody better at those than NirSoft. Their utilities are always crapware-free, and are always really useful. The only issue with this particular utility is that some antivirus will detect it as a false positive, because some malware might try to steal your product key.

All you have to do is download ProduKey, unzip it, and then run it to immediately see all of your product keys. It’s as simple as that.

If you want to recover a key from a dead computer, you can hook up the hard drive to a working PC, and then run ProduKey and use File -> Select Source to point to the external Windows directory. You can then grab the keys from that computer easily.

You can also use a Linux live CD to pull the Windows directory off the other computer and onto a thumb drive, or just grab the registry files if you prefer. If you need help, we’ve got a guide to pulling data off a dead computer.

With the death of Windows XP, now is the perfect time to switch to Linux

If you’re one of the few hundred million people that are still using Windows XP, I have a suggestion for you: It’s time to switch to make the switch to Linux. With the official retirement of Windows XP, the release of Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, and surprisingly healthy software and gaming ecosystems (yay, Steam!), there has never been a better time to switch to Linux. Linux will also run very well on any old, Windows XP-era hardware that you might still be using, too — and if you’re anxious that you’ll be filled with switchers remorse after nuking your Windows installation, don’t worry: dual-booting is a cinch as well.

Why switch to Linux?

As you’ve no doubt heard over the years from writers and enthusiasts far beardier than I, there are all sorts of reasons for switching to Linux, from financial to ideological to functional, and everything in between. For some tasks, Linux is far superior to Windows. More importantly, though, there are many tasks where Windows isn’t significantly better than Linux — such as surfing the web (Chrome for Ubuntu is the same as Chrome for Windows or OS X). Even for gaming, Linux is definitely catching up with Windows, thanks to Steam and the Source engine. (The big exception is big-budget FPSes, where Linux definitely falls flat).

Linux is great for reviving your old Windows XP beige box

Really, a better question to ask is why shouldn’t I switch to Linux? If you need to use Microsoft Office, or one of Adobe’s multimedia apps, you should stick with Windows or OS X. If need a very Windows-specific tool, like Visual Studio, then Linux isn’t for you. If you want to play the latest and greatest PC games on release day, then you really need to use Windows.

For most everyday tasks, thanks to advanced browsers like Chrome and Firefox, and the maturity of web apps like Gmail and Google Docs, you may be surprised by how proficient a modern Linux distro is.

How do you switch to Linux?

Most modern Linux distributions make it fairly easy to switch from Windows. Wubi lets you install Ubuntu in a dual-boot configuration from Windows. For most other distros, such as Linux Mint or Debian, it’s mostly a matter of grabbing the correct 32-bit or 64-bit ISO, burning it to a CD or USB stick, and rebooting your PC. (How to do that is beyond the scope of this story, but Google will give you a dozen easy-to-follow guides.)

To begin with, make sure you install Linux in a dual-boot configuration. That way, if you’re struck by switchers remorse, or you suddenly remember that you need to use an app that’s only available in Windows, you can simply reboot.

Depending on your hardware setup, installing and running Linux for the first time can be a bit tricky as well. A modern distro like Ubuntu 14.04 supports most hardware under the sun, but you may have trouble with older hardware or extreme outliers. Bear in mind that hardware makers focus their efforts on Windows and OS X drivers, relegating Linux drivers to a distant third place. Things like mice and keyboards and external hard drives should be fine — but you might have issues with your monitor calibration gizmo or USB audio breakout box.

Unfortunately, the only real way to find out if Linux has any issues with your computer is to install it (most distros install fairly quickly, though).

Fortunately, if you are having issues with a device after installing Linux, you can normally find very good support online. Linux support isn’t quite at the same omg-500-search-results-for-a-really-obscure-bug level as Windows, but it’s pretty good.

Steam for Linux, on Ubuntu

What should you do after installing Linux?

I won’t lie: Switching to Linux from Windows XP (or indeed any other operating system) will be a fairly harsh experience. Modern Linux distros are much better than they used to be, but there are still a lot of rough edges that you won’t notice until they’ve stabbed you in the ankle. In my opinion, the best thing you can do after installing Linux is to use it. Don’t fall for the usual trap: Don’t run back to Windows with your tail between your legs the first time Linux throws an error in your face. Stick with Linux, and you might just find that you like it.

Here are a few more tips for making the switch to Linux:

• Install Steam, and then buy some Linux games. You will be surprised at the number of good and half-decent games that are now available for Linux through Steam, including FTL: Faster than Light, Dota 2, Europa Universalis IV, and all the usual Source engine games. Through Wine and Cygwin emulation, other older Windows games are available to you as well.
• Read an Ubuntu guide. One of the biggest issues with switching to Linux is not knowing how to perform basic tasks, such as watching a video. The Getting Started guide, produced by the Ubuntu Manual team, is pretty good (you don’t need to read the whole thing, but the table of contents makes for a useful reference). Always remember that googling for “how do you do X in Ubuntu” will usually turn up a ton of results.
• Finally learn to use the command line. Linux, at its heart, is a command-line based operating system. The Linux command line is incredibly powerful; there’s almost nothing you can’t do, and in many cases it’s the best or fastest way to do something. Ubuntu’s official Using The Terminal guide is a pretty good starting point. You willlove apt-get.

If you have your own tips for switching to Linux from Windows, be sure to share them in the comments. Alternatively, if you think that Linux still isn’t ready for an influx of ex-Windows XP users, be sure to let us know as well.

Windows 10 will come with a command line package manager, much to the lament of Linux users

Sorry, penguin lovers — if you thought that 2015, in the heinous wake of Windows 8, would finally be the year of desktop Linux, you were sadly mistaken. Microsoft is trying its best to make make amends with Windows 10, to ensure it’s the dream OS for billions of people around the world who use a desktop PC with a mouse and keyboard — and, as a result, this means Microsoft is going to ship Windows 10 with a package manager. Yes, in Windows 10 you can open up a command line shell and install VLC or Firefox or thousands of other packages by typing in a single command.

If you’ve ever ventured into the dark and mysterious land of Linutopia, where Ubutologists and Debianites reign, you will have noticed that one of the things that Linux users are most proud of is package management. While Windows and Mac users have to run graphical installers — you know, where you hit Next a few times and try to avoid installing bundled crapware — Linux users can just open up a command line and type sudo apt-get install vlc. I’m a Windows user through and through, but I have to admit that installing apps and keeping a system updated is much more pleasant in Linux.

With Windows 10, however, we are finally getting an official package manager: OneGet. In the current build of Windows 10 Technical Preview, you can open up PowerShell and use OneGet to install thousands of applications with commands such as Find-Package VLCand Install-Package Firefox. OneGet seems to implement all of the usual functions that you’d expect from a package manager. You can search for packages, add new sources/repos, uninstall packages, install packages, and so on. OneGet uses the same package format as Chocolatey, one of the most popular third-party package managers for Windows (and indeed, you can add the Chocolatey repo to OneGet if you so wish).

OneGet was originally rolled out as part of the Windows Management Framework 5.0 preview for Windows 8.1, and it’s being actively worked on to try and ship it as a standard tool in Windows 10. As far as we’re aware, it will only be available through PowerShell — a command-line utility that’s mostly used by power users and IT admins. If you don’t know your way around PowerShell (and indeed, it’s a much more complex beast than cmd or most Linux shells), you can still theoretically use OneGet through the standard cmd command line with @PowerShell. HowToGeek has some more details on OneGet and its implementation in Windows 10, if you’re interested.

What remains to be seen is just how far Microsoft will take OneGet. Will it just be an obscure tool for nerdy admin types? The eventual plan is to expose a set of OneGet APIs, which means other apps will be able to tie into it — and who knows, that might just trigger some kind of revolution in Windows app management. OneGet would certainly be one way for Microsoft to offer desktop apps through the Windows Store (at the moment it can only install Metro apps). This time next year, maybe you’ll be able to open up PowerShell and type Install-Package Photoshop, or Update-Package Windows 10.                                                                                                                                                         The Store in Windows 10 is still pretty bad

Last week, Windows 10 Technical Preview received its first update — and indeed, Microsoft plans to roll out a new, major update every few weeks. We will continue to closely track OneGet and Windows 10’s other desktop-oriented features as and when they appear in new builds.

Why Memory Optimizers and RAM Boosters Are Worse Than Useless

Many companies want to sell you “memory optimizers,” often as part of “PC optimization” programs. These programs are worse than useless — not only will they not speed up your computer, they’ll slow it down.

Such programs take advantage of inexperienced users, making false promises about boosting performance. In reality, your computer knows how to manage RAM on its own. It will use RAM to increase your computer’s performance — there’s no point in having RAM sit empty.

Is Your Computer’s RAM Filling Up? That’s Good!

Memory optimizers are based on a misunderstanding. You may look at your computer’s RAM and see it filling up — for example, you may have 4 GB of RAM and see that 3 GB is full with only 1 GB to spare. That can be surprising to some people — look how bloated modern versions of Windows are! How are you ever going to run additional programs with so little memory available?

In reality, modern operating systems are pretty good at managing memory on their own. That 3 GB of used RAM doesn’t necessarily indicate waste. Instead, your computer uses your RAM to cache data for faster access. Whether it’s copies of web pages you had open in your browser, applications you previously opened, or any other type of data you might need again soon, your computer hangs onto it in its RAM. When you need the data again, your computer doesn’t have to hit your hard drive — it can just load the files from RAM.

Crucially, there’s no point in having RAM empty. Even if your RAM is completely full and your computer needs more of it to run an application, your computer can instantly discard the cached data from your RAM and use that space for the application. There’s no point in having RAM sit empty — if it’s empty, it’s being wasted. If it’s full, there’s a good chance it can help speed up program loading times and anything else that would use your computer’s hard drive.

Notice that very little RAM is actually “free” in the screenshot below. The RAM is being used as a cache, but it’s still marked as available for any program that needs to use it.

In the past, full RAM did indicate a problem. If you were running Windows Vista on a computer with half a gig of RAM, you could feel the computer constantly slowing down — it had to constantly read and write to the hard drive, using the hard drive’s page file as an inefficient replacement for RAM. However, modern computers generally have enough RAM for most users. Even low-end computers generally ship with 4GB of RAM, which should be more than enough unless you’re doing intensive gaming, running multiple virtual machines, or editing videos.

Even if RAM was a problem for you, there’s no reason to use a memory optimizer. Memory optimizers are snake oil that are useless at best and harmful at worst.
How Memory Optimizers Work

When you use a memory optimizer, you’ll see your computer’s RAM usage go down. This may seem like an easy win — you’ve decreased RAM usage just be pressing a button, after all. But it’s not that simple.

Memory optimizers actually work in one of two ways:
They call the EmptyWorkingSet Windows API function, forcing running applications to write their working memory to the Windows page file.
They quickly allocate a large amount of memory to themselves, forcing Windows to discard cached data and write application data to the page file. They then deallocate the memory, leaving it empty.

Both of these tricks will indeed free up RAM, making it empty. However, all this does is slow things down — now the applications you use will have to get the data they need from the page file, reading from the hard drive and taking longer to work. Any memory being used for cache may be discarded, so Windows will have to get the data it needs from the hard drive.

In other words, these programs free up fast memory by forcing data you need onto slower memory, where it will have to be moved back to fast memory again. This makes no sense! All it accomplishes is selling you another system optimization program you don’t need.

If Windows needs RAM, it will push data to the page file or discard cached data, anyway. This all happens automatically when it needs to — there’s no point in slowing things down by forcing it to happen before it’s necessary.

Like PC cleaning apps, memory optimizers are a scam. They appear to be doing something positive to people who don’t understand how memory management works, but they’re actually doing something harmful.

How to Actually “Optimize” Your Memory

If you do want to have more available RAM, skip the memory optimizer. Instead, try to get rid of running applications you don’t need — purge unnecessary programs from your system tray,disable useless startup programs, and so on.

If you do need more RAM for what you do, try buying some more RAM. RAM is pretty cheap and it’s not too hard to install it yourself using one of the RAM installing guides available online. Just ensure you buy the correct type of RAM for your computer.

Yes, memory optimizers can free up some of your PC’s RAM. However, that’s a bad thing — you want your computer to use its RAM to speed things up. There’s no point in having free memory.

4 Things About Windows That You’ll Miss On A Mac

Are you a Windows user thinking about switching over to a Mac? The huge popularity of iPads and iPhones has tempted many long-time Windows devotees into confirming their place in the Apple ecosystem with a home computer that will play nicely with their iOS phone or tablet. However, anyone thinking of making the switch has a few considerations to make beforehand — there are things about Windows that you’ll miss once they’re gone.

Being Part of the World’s Biggest OS Userbase

Despite the rise in popularity of Mac systems over the past decade or so, the Mac OS still can’t compete with the ubiquitous nature of Windows. While this might seem like more of an advantage for Microsoft than you, there is something to be said for being part of such a huge crowd.

For one, you can be quite confident that if you’re having a problem, someone somewhere has had it before and found a fix that you can use too. With less Mac users out there, the likelihood of that happening dwindles. This isn’t an exact science, but it’s something that you’ll undoubtedly find to happen in practice — the fact of the matter is, more users means a greater shared knowledge of the OS between them.

Possible Alternatives: The closed nature of the Apple ecosystem allows them to offer their own first-party methods of troubleshooting your device. Whether you sign up for AppleCare or take your problem to one of the experts at an in-store Genius Bar, there’s a culpability to Apple products that Windows machines don’t have.

Using the Programs That You’re Familiar With

While you’re more likely to be able to find a Mac alternative to many of the most popular Windows programs today than you would have been in the past, most are still not a perfect replacement. For instance, while broadly used email client Outlook is available for the Mac, the most recent version you’ll have access to is from the Office 11 suite and is showing its age somewhat. Even with the patches that have been supplied since its release to improve the capabilities of its sync functionality, it’s not a full replacement for the version you’ll be used to from Windows. The same can be said for other programs that many use regularly, for instance the popular image editing tool Paint.NET.

There are also programs that appeal to a more niche audience, but prove to be vital for the users that they cater to. Quicken is widely regarded as the premier choice in terms of money management software, but if you’re looking to switch from the PC version to the one released for the Mac, you might well be disappointed.

Quicken Mac 2007 has been much maligned by users looking for an equivalent to the Windows version for its lack of features, and early response to the recently-released Quicken for Mac 2015 seems to be undecided on whether it’s a true step forward. What’s clear is that Windows users making the switch to Mac can’t be completely sure that the OS X versions of their favorite programs will offer the experience that they’ve grown accustomed to.

Possible Alternatives: If you can work around their limitations, then you might well find that the Mac versions of the programs you use on a daily basis work for you. If not, you might want to check out Mailbox instead of Outlook, GIMP in lieu of Paint.NET and Mint to replace Quicken — but all of the above have compromises attached.

Using Your PC as a Robust Gaming Platform

While the outlook for gamers wanting to use their Mac to play the latest releases is better than it was a few years ago, it’s still not on a par with the PC scene. Valve’s Steam service has certainly played a major role in growing the Mac as a platform for gaming and encouraging developers to port their games across from Windows, but for the most part you’ll be looking at the very biggest releases and small independent games, and missing out on most things in the middle.

One of the greatest strengths of PC gaming is the sheer breadth of titles available to you, and that’s something that you won’t have access to with only a proportion of new releases being made available for Macs. Not to mention, if you’re planning on going back and revisiting titles from the past, you’ll likely be disappointed; while now there is something of a movement to release games on the Mac, this wasn’t so commonplace even just five years ago.

Possible Alternatives: Looking to the independent scene can be a good source of Mac-compatible games, produced by some of the most exciting studios working today. There’s also the option of looking into Wine as a means of running Windows games on a Mac; the process of doing so can sometimes be quite complex, but it’s very useful once you’ve got your head round it.

Being Given the Freedom to Upgrade Your Hardware

This is one for the desktop crowd rather than most laptop users, but one of the most overlooked features of a Windows PC is the freedom that you have to customize your rig with the components of your choosing. Say you want to swap out your hard drive for something a little bit bigger, or upgrade your graphics card to something top of the line — being given this sort of control over the innards of your machine allows you to keep it current without simply buying a new one.

Of course, the Apple system of simply having a few models to choose from can save a lot of headaches when comparing specs and parts, but it’s at the cost of having a real grasp of what’s going into your computer and what it’s doing for you. As well as being a cost-effective method of buying a high-spec machine, building your own computer can be rather rewarding, if you approach it with the right sort of planning and caution. If you’re looking to even open up your Apple computer to do your own repairs, you’ll have to buy a special screwdriver to remove their proprietary pentalobe screws.

Being able to open up your computer and get your hands dirty is not for everyone — and, in fact, some will much prefer the simplicity of buying an Apple machine — but for the more technical sort, it’s a prime reason to stick with a Windows PC.

Possible Alternatives: If you want to have this sort of freedom while sticking with a Mac OS, your best bet is to go the whole hog and perform an install of the OS itself onto a build of your own. However, this is easier said than done and not really a job for anyone who’s not completely adroit with this sort of endeavour.

New data shows big OS market share drop for Windows 8 and 8.1 in September

While Microsoft may have launched a public preview of Windows 10 this week, the current versions of the OS, Windows 8 and 8.1, are actually losing market share among PCs worldwide, according to the latest numbers from Net Applications.

Based on stats generated by unique visitors to its websites, Net Applications's worldwide OS market share numbers show that Windows 8.1 went down from 7.09 percent in August to 6.67 percent in September. Windows 8 also went down from 6.28 percent in August to 5.59 in September. Combined, Windows 8 and 8.1 claimed 12.26 percent of the OS market share worldwide in September, over once percent below the 13.37 percent share they had in August.

Net Applications shows Windows 7 at the top of the OS market share list with 52.71 percent of PCs worldwide still using it in September. That is up from the 51.21 percent it had in August. Windows XP, which is no longer being supported by Microsoft, went down just slightly from 23.89 percent in August to 23.87 percent in September. Windows Vista is still used by 3.07 percent of all PCs, according to the new September data.

Why do you think Windows 8 and 8.1 took a big hit in OS market share in September?

Universal Windows apps get better with Windows 10

Today Terry Myerson and Joe Belfiore talked about the future of Windows and gave the world its first look at Windows 10. They demonstrated new features designed to make people and businesses more productive and announced that a Technical Preview build of Windows 10 will be available tomorrow through the Windows Insider Program. I know you’re probably wondering what this all means for you.

From a developer standpoint, Windows 10 continues the work shared at Build last April. Universal Windows apps and the ability to leverage the same code to deliver appropriately tailored experiences to multiple device types were the centerpiece of that announcement. They continue to be the cornerstone of the single Windows application platform announced by Terry and Joe today. The most important thing you should take from today’s announcements is that the best way to prepare for Windows 10 is to keep building universal Windows apps.

We have more work to do before we can share details about the Windows 10 developer experience, but you can already see that Windows 10 is designed to reach more customers and device types with a common user experience that includes several news ways for people to discover and engage with apps.

We continue to make progress in platform commonality, Store unification, and discoverability. Giving you the ability to easily publish to one Store across all device types and providing you a variety of new places in which to showcase your app functionality will increase your ability to reach new users and engage your existing users, in ways you couldn’t before.

Windows 10 will:

• Build on our commitment to provide a common Windows platform and give you one consistent API layer with consistent UX design surfaces and flexible tools.
• Enable Windows Store apps to run in a windowed environment on the desktop so that they perform better on a wider range of hardware.
• Deliver one Store for all devices, making it easier for you to reach customers in consistent and compelling ways no matter what type of device they’re using. We’re also planning to make the Store more useful for corporations with volume app purchasing, more flexible distribution mechanisms, and the ability to create a custom or curated Store experience (note that the Windows 10 Preview contains the existing Windows 8.1 Store).

For more information about Windows 10 and the Windows Insider Program, check out Blogging Windows.

Where do we go from here?

The path forward for developers is simple. Today’s universal Windows apps provide the foundation for development on Windows going forward.

I know many of you will participate in the Windows Insider Program. Keep in mind that this is all prerelease software and you are likely to encounter a variety of issues at this stage:

• We don’t recommend using Windows 10 as your primary OS for software development. The Windows App Certification Kit does not currently work on Windows 10 and there also a few bugs in the tools which mean that this combination can’t be used for ‘go live’ software development.
• Don’t worry if you encounter issues running your apps. We have not yet done the extensive app compat work that we do for every Windows release, we are too early in the cycle yet. These problems will be fixed and we remain committed to app compatibility.
• We haven’t integrated all of the visual designs into this build. As with previous previews of Windows the look and feel will be finalized as we get closer to the release date, so please don’t consider the UI you see, or the features you use, as complete. Things will change.

When you join the Windows Insider Program, you’ll get information on how to let us know what you find. We want your feedback.

And, if you haven’t yet, now is a great time to get started building universal Windows apps. Here are some links to some of the best resources to get started:

Official Documentation

• Building universal Windows apps for all Windows devices
• Universal Windows app samples - Official sample code package covering a broad spectrum of application developer scenarios.

Comprehensive Online Training

• Developing Universal Windows Apps (C#/XAML) Jumpstart. Live online event 9/30-10/1. Available subsequently on demand, providing real world guidance to build universal Windows apps with C# and XAML.
• Developing Universal Windows Apps with HTML and JavaScript Jumpstart. Comprehensive 12 part video training covering how to build universal Windows apps using HTML & WinJS.These resources will provide you the information you need to get started delivering outstanding apps using the same code to target multiple device types. Universal Windows apps are the future of the Windows platform.

Microsoft skips Windows 9, jumps straight to Windows 10

Well, it's official folks, Microsoft has officially introduced its new version of Windows, but guess what - this isn't Windows 9 that we're talking about. Don't worry, though, we aren't dealing with some form of a spin-off or an enterprise-centric version - it'll be a full-blown Windows alright. You see, we were all expecting Microsoft to reveal Windows 9 at its event in San Francisco today, but what we got instead is... drum roll, please... Windows 10!

We ain't joking - it appears Microsoft is so proud of the work it's done on the new Windows, that it's willing to give it a bigger name, something that will reflect the new beginning of sorts. Of course, all the meaningful leaks we've seen about Windows 9 thus far remain valid, including the metrofied Start Menu and a refocus on the desktop environment. Stay tuned for more details, as Microsoft reveals more about the upcoming Windows 10, which, by the way, is scheduled for release in 2015.