Hardware manufacturers that want to ship Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 8 operating system with their PCs need to implement the Secure Boot feature that is part of the UEFI specification. The feature basically determines which code or programs can be started during boot. The core intention here is to prevent malware and other unauthorized code from [...]
- Author: Martin Brinkmann
- Comments: 6
Windows 8 BluePoison, Enable Disabled Features
Microsoft released the Windows 8 developer preview exactly a month ago as part of the Build Conference. The release was made available publicly – it in fact is still available for download – and users had ample time to test some of the new features of the operating system. It did not take that long [...]
- Author: Martin Brinkmann
- Comments: 10
The State of Windows 7 Two Years After Release
Back in October 2009 Microsoft released the long awaited and highly acclaimed Windows 7 operating system. Unlike Windows Vista, the operating system’s immediate predecessor, Windows 7 managed to do what where Vista failed: Snag away market share from Windows XP. Depending on which statistics you look at Windows 7 is installed on 39% (Statcounter), 42% [...]
- Author: Martin Brinkmann
- Comments: 10
Windows 8: Start Screen Not Final
If you had the chance to play around with the Windows 8 developer preview that Microsoft released publicly last month you have noticed that it feels different from previous versions of the operating system in many regards. This can be largely attributed to the new Metro start screen that pops up whenever you start the [...]
- Author: Martin Brinkmann
- Comments: 3
Windows 8 Supports Zero-Power Optical Disk Drives
Microsoft’s intention to optimize the upcoming Windows 8 operating system for mobile devices like netbooks or tablets has the consequence that the Redmond company has to optimize the operating system’s power consumption. Laptop users with optical disk drives may benefit from the operating system’s support of a feature called Zero-Power Optical Disk Drive (Zero Power [...]
- Author: Martin Brinkmann
- Comments: 18
Microsoft Retires Gadgets In Preparation Of Windows 8 Launch
Microsoft introduced gadgets when the company launched the Windows Vista operating system. First in a limited gadget’s sidebar that restricted the location that gadgets could be placed in, and then usable on the full desktop with the release of Windows 7. Users who visit the Windows Live Gallery page are now redirected to a Looking [...]
- Author: Martin Brinkmann
- Comments: 15
Enable Snap Feature Of Windows 8
You should not confuse the new snap feature of Windows 8 with the Aero Snap feature that Microsoft introduced under Windows 7. Aero Snap back then allowed users to snap windows to the left or right side of the monitor where they’d resize to take up exactly half of the available screen estate. It was [...]
- Author: Melanie Gross
- Comments: 3
Your PC Doesn’t Support Virtualization? Dual Boot Windows 7 and Windows 8
The word is out: Microsoft released the Windows 8 Developer Preview recently and many users want to try it out. All it takes is a CPU that supports virtualization and virtualization software. Wait a second. What if your CPU does not support virtualization? Does this mean that you can’t try out Windows 8? As long [...]
- Author: Melanie Gross
- Comments: 3
Tools to Tweak Windows 7 and Make it Like Windows 8
Windows 8 will be released soon, perhaps not soon enough. No big news there except that if you are a Windows fan, you probably want Windows 8 now. Windows 7 is fantastic and you may not want to let go. What do you do? It is time to tweak your Windows 7 operating system to [...]