The Windows 8 ecosystem: 5 best and 5 worst features
Windows 8 hasn’t just arrived—it has arrived in full force, with an armada of ancillary products. Microsoft’s deployment of the new Windows platform across desktops, laptops, tablets, hybrids, and smartphones constitutes a major push to make Windows 8 your defining computing experience regardless of your hardware persuasion. Depending on your point of view, this can be a good thing or a very, very bad thing.
Or maybe it’s both.
Let’s take a walk through some of the triumphs and failings of Microsoft’s sprawling Windows 8 ecosystem. Like it or not, this is the environment that all new-PC users (and many PC upgraders) will be working with for the next few years.
Although Windows 8 stumbles in its attempts to push a touch-centric operating system onto desktops and laptops lacking finger-friendly screens, I’m nonetheless impressed by Microsoft’s execution in delivering a unified experience across all of its major consumer platforms. Windows 8 on x86-based tablets is the same Windows 8 that you can find on laptops and desktops, and this provides a tight degree of unification that’s missing from Apple’s product lineup, which is split between Mac OS and iOS.
You can access SkyDrive across pretty much all your new Windows devices.
The linchpin is the new Microsoft Account sign-in (formerly Live ID). Through a single username and password, your Microsoft Account taps into the cloud and establishes common preferences among all the Windows-based hardware and services you may use (though regional barriers are still a problem; more about that below). So kudos to Microsoft for acknowledging that our computers, tablets, smartphones, and game consoles should be connected, sharing a common, user-specific experience.
From SkyDrive to SmartGlass to the ability to synchronize settings across environments quickly and easily, the new Windows 8 platform provides the essential core connections for all your software and gear.
Forcing a touchy issue
Since touch is the cornerstone of Windows 8—regardless of whether you actually have a touch-responsive display on your chosen device—Microsoft is pushing third-party developers to take the next big step in app creation. Simply put: Touch cannot be ignored. This mandate is an issue for people without touch-enabled hardware. And it’s bad news for people who have tried touch control but hate it. Yet Microsoft's new “the touch way or the highway” philosophy shows vision and innovation, and affirms the public’s overwhelming support for touch gestures on computing hardware.
Adopting a touch-centric approach will help move Microsoft forward into the modern computing era.
Sure, some developers will never jump on the touch bandwagon, either because they don’t have an interest in advancing their users' experience, or because their software can’t benefit from touch in any way (after all, some utilities are so simple, one-dimensional, or keyboard-dependent that an investment in touch development wouldn’t make sense). Nonetheless, you can expect to see many more apps that tightly and creatively leverage touch support. These are the apps that will carry Microsoft forward.
And these are the apps that will ensure a consistent, high-quality user experience, regardless of which hardware you use to tap into the new Windows regime.
Leading by (hardware) example
Microsoft isn’t just reinventing its Windows platform. It’s also doubling down on a hardware strategy designed to lead by example, showing tablet manufacturers that tablet-laptop hybrids are the future of PC computing.
Surface RT forces hardware partners to innovate and advance the basic computing form factor.
Yes, I know: Pairing touch-based tablets with keyboards isn’t a new idea. Other parties have done it before, with Asus being the most effective. But Microsoft’s elegant execution of Surface RT, with its keyboard-cover accessories, sets a high bar for what a Windows 8 tablet-laptop hybrid should be. What’s more, because Surface RT is Microsoft’s first foray into computer manufacturing, the company will now compete with its hardware partners, and this might lower prices and encourage the creation of better, more interesting, more innovative computers across the entire Windows 8 ecosystem.
In essence: Consumers get more choice, and better products to pick from. Microsoft, meanwhile, achieves faster market-share gains for Windows 8. The new Surface tablet isn’t just the premier hardware component in the new Windows ecosystem—it’s actually a catalyst for greater ecosystem success.
Fearing giants promotes innovation
Now that Microsoft has committed to the brave new world of touch—and smartphones and tablets—it has to deliver the goods. It’s now competing directly with the iPad and iPhone. It’s now competing with scads of Android devices. This isn’t necessarily an enviable position given Microsoft’s uphill climb, but it will definitely drive innovation, and that bodes well for the Windows ecosystem as a whole.
In short, Microsoft has to get very creative, very quickly. Ultimately this challenge will benefit consumers the most. Microsoft will have to drive new features throughout its platform, especially new ways for all of the hardware components to interact with one another. And this is an opportunity that neither Apple nor Google really gets to explore, since Apple splits its ecosystem between Mac OS and iOS, and Google doesn’t even have a computer OS.
Apps such as Xbox SmartGlass, and services such as the SkyDrive cloud platform and Xbox Music streaming, are great starts. But what else can Microsoft do to persuade users to abandon their existing devices and ecosystems, and leap head-first into Windows 8? More important, how fast can Microsoft pull that off? These are scary questions for Microsoft, but I think standing in place doing nothing is an even scarier option.
Joining the app-store masses
Apple had one first. Then Google got one. Now, finally, Microsoft has one too: a software store. It’s not for your Windows Phone 8 device, but for Windows itself. And the new Windows Store is the only place you can download “Windows 8 apps,” the Start screen-centric programs previously known as Metro apps.
The new Windows Store ensures a reliable user experience for PC neophytes.
Although the move has frustrated developers who create software that Microsoft doesn’t want—either a result of a particular app falling short of Microsoft’s guidelines, or the fact that Microsoft isn’t opening the Windows Store to the full purchase of desktop applications—it’s nonetheless a powerful driver in making Microsoft’s ecosystem more accessible, more convenient, and more secure for users.
The Windows Store is a great step forward; but in order to recognize its benefits, you can’t look at it through the eyes of a power user. Envision, instead, the typical technological neophyte who wants access to online shopping, streaming movies, financial information, games, rudimentary media editing, and all the other simple services that computers make possible. Throughout their computing lives, these novices have been tempted numerous times: A Web ad has asked them to install something they shouldn’t. Or they’ve installed software upon the recommendation of a friend, but that software isn’t compatible with their system. Or, even sadder, these newbies might not even know how to find and download new programs for their PCs.
The Windows Store gives such users a simple and secure entry point for downloading apps that have passed stringent certification from Microsoft itself. Sure, an app might ultimately stink, but at least users now have strong assurance that the software won’t muck up their systems. To wit: Apple’s App Store went more than five years before succumbing to its first piece of malware, and the company quickly expunged the app so that no new user could download it ever again.
To construct a user experience that works fairly seamlessly across desktops, tablets, and smartphones, Microsoft had to make some compromises, and these trade-offs are affecting desktop users the most. Although it’s relatively easy to operate a touchscreen-oriented interface on a device with an actual touchscreen, it’s not so easy to translate touch gestures to the world of mice and keyboards. Power users aren’t happy with Microsoft’s new Windows 8 mouse gestures, so you can only imagine how well they’ll be received by the enterprise market, and by all of our grandparents.
In some cases Microsoft didn’t even have to make compromises, but still opted to restrict the user’s ability to navigate Windows in a familiar, friendly way. The company had ample opportunity to give users choice and freedom in its construction of Windows 8, but decided not to.
Want a Start menu? We won’t show it by default, but you can enable it if you really need to. Don’t like the Start screen? That’s totally cool. We’ll make it so that you can still access it, but we won’t force you to deal with it up front each time you start the OS. Don’t need a lock screen since you’re on a desktop computer instead of a tablet? Great. We won’t force you to “reveal” your password prompt. Or at least, we won’t bury the option that lets you eliminate this.
That’s how Microsoft’s internal dialogue could have sounded. But in the real world, Microsoft chose differently. In creating a common ecosystem for Windows 8, Microsoft has shifted portions of its new user interface into places where they don’t need to be.
Common interface, uncommon apps
The scariest part of the Windows 8 ecosystem is the fact that Microsoft has put a good chunk of the potential success of its OS—across PCs, tablets, and smartphones—in the hands of third-party developers. Even though it’s premature to declare Windows 8 a complete dud in terms of available apps, we have to be concerned about the critical dearth of apps that one would otherwise expect to find on a major new platform. Windows 8 has no official Facebook app, no official Twitter app, and no Instagram. And those are just three of the most obvious omissions.
Windows Phone 8 devices bear a similar interface to Windows 8, but they can't run Windows 8 apps.
The app situation could very well change in a few months, so I won’t quibble about specifics. After all, Microsoft execs have stated that they hope to have 100,000 apps in the Windows Store within 90 days of the Windows 8 launch.
What’s worse for Microsoft is the way that it has decided to treat the Windows Stores on smartphones, tablets, and desktops, walling them off in separate silos instead of unifying all of the environments. How cool would it be to buy a copy of Microsoft Office, and receive a version geared for your Windows 8 smartphone and for your Windows 8 desktop or tablet? Or, for that matter, wouldn’t it be nice to purchase rights to run your favorite Windows 8 smartphone game on your tablet?
But, no, that’s not happening.
A Windows 8 tablet or hybrid is the functional equivalent of a laptop, which shares the same Windows Store as your desktop PC (unless you’re running a Windows RT-based tablet; I'll get into that below). In contrast, a Windows Phone device—whose interface inspired Windows 8 and exhibits many of the same behaviors and features of Windows 8—taps into a completely different software store. Phone apps share a common code with tablet and PC apps, but they can’t directly transfer over to your tablets and PCs.
The sins of Windows RT
If you thought the Windows 8 ecosystem was confusing enough in terms of app support, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
Windows 8 RT has entered the fray, too. If the Windows 8 ecosystem of desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones were a great land mass, then Windows 8 RT would be an island off the coast. It’s under the mother country's protection, and it likely enjoys much of the same climate and vegetation, but it’s still separated enough to be its own little, self-contained world.
The desktop in Windows RT is little more than a home base for Microsoft Word and file management.
Microsoft representatives have had trouble explaining the differences between Windows 8 and Windows RT in the months leading up to Windows 8’s big launch. And if they can’t get it right, how is an average consumer supposed to understand that Windows RT is a stripped-down OS version that won’t run desktop applications, save the ones that come preinstalled? In a nutshell, the Windows RT desktop runs a junior edition of Microsoft Office and a motley crew of legacy utilities. That’s it, along with providing the basic file-management functions of any Windows desktop OS.
Microsoft might gain some depth-of-ecosystem advantages by opening Windows 8 to inexpensive (and energy-efficient) ARM processors; in fact, the move to support ARM extends the reach of the new Windows platform. But Windows RT also has the potential to create serious confusion for people expecting to jump between all Windows 8 devices without issues.
It’s commercial time
Never before has Microsoft been so unapologetic about tying its commercial interests so closely with the raw mechanics of its OS ecosystem. Although you’re free to set up your own default applications in Windows 8, or to install other apps to manage the multimedia as you see fit, there’s no question that Microsoft would prefer that you use its branded, tiled apps to watch or listen to content. And, oh, while you’re there, perhaps you might like to rent or purchase a movie or two from one of the tiles advertised on your screen.
The Games app mostly feels like a storefront for, well, games, including those designed for the Xbox 360.
It’s bad, folks. The Music app isn’t so much a media player as a storefront for Xbox Music. The Games app isn’t so much a portal for installed games as a platform for buying Windows 8 games—and even Xbox 360 games. And the same conceit holds true for the Video app. These are sales tools, not user-focused programs, and the sales pitch persists throughout the Windows ecosystem.
Android—and even iTunes, to a lesser extent—separates commercialization from content to such a degree that it’s there if you want it, and you know how to reach it, but it isn't in your face, atop a lackluster multimedia player (or games browser). But in the new Windows ecosystem, no matter what you’ve paid for your device or for your subscription content, advertising is now a part of the norm. That’s not fun.
Region migration?
Although this issue won’t affect the mainstay of Microsoft’s Windows 8 user base, one of the problems Microsoft has now created in unifying its ecosystem under a common account—the Microsoft Account—is that transferring your account between regions is about two degrees short of impossible. In other words, if you’ve done a lot with your old Live ID in Europe, for instance, and are about to move to the States, you’re in for a bit of a shock: Your new Microsoft Account will remain tied to the country where you created it.
Unfortunately, at the moment you can't just open a drop-down menu in some options panel and change over from, say, England to the United States. Without the ability to make such a switch, users lose the capability to pay for the very services Microsoft offers—apps, Xbox Live points, and the like—in addition to losing access to any region-locked apps, games, services, or subscriptions they’ve already ponied up for.
What would have been an annoying issue in previous years is even worse now that Microsoft is tying a number of Windows 8’s more compelling features to a user’s online account. Microsoft’s standard solution—create a new Microsoft Account—just doesn’t cut it anymore, not when the goal is to have a single sign-on for the entirety of the Windows 8 ecosystem.
The real solution is twofold. First, Microsoft should give its users the opportunity to switch their billing country without hassle. And second, those people who already took Microsoft up on its advice to create multiple accounts need the ability to merge multiple accounts into one.
Microsoft, however, would just prefer that you “hold tight” for now.
Reviewing an operating system is an odd endeavor, because people don’t really use operating systems; they use applications. The OS should be as transparent as possible, acting as a platform for applications. In today’s cloud-driven world, however, the notion that your application will run in a single OS is tenuous at best. Toss in the increasing use of smart devices, whether phones or tablets, and the idea of a single-platform operating system is less relevant now than it was just a few years ago. These days we have “ecosystems”—Microsoft, Apple, or Google, take your pick.That said, PC users still expect their Windows applications to run as before, and they want to have the same control over their laptop and desktop computers as they’ve always had. New software features should enable users to do more. And as the reaction to the late, unlamented Windows Vista illustrated, all the shiny new bells and whistles should not harm performance or require new hardware.Can Windows 8 meet its goal of being one aspect of a new Microsoft ecosystem while maintaining its roots in the PC? Can existing computers run Windows 8 without the need for expensive new touch displays? Will the revamped Windows 8 user interface turn off existing Windows users or pull them into the ecosystem? I’ll try to answer those questions and others as I dive deeply into Windows 8.
This review is based on the Windows 8 final release—what Microsoft calls the “release to manufacturing,” or RTM, version. The final release is available to Microsoft TechNet and MSDN subscribers. Desktop PCs, laptops, and tablets ship with Windows 8 preinstalled on the official launch day, October 26.
We ran Windows 8 on a moderately high-end desktop system along with a standard (nontouch) monitor, mouse, and keyboard. We also used a Samsung Series 9 laptop with an Elan touchpad supporting full multitouch gestures.
The Windows 8 user interface
Windows 8 tries to get you to tie your Windows login to your Microsoft account; it’s optional, but if you do link the two, the Windows login and password serve as your Microsoft account login and password. Enabling this link allows tighter integration with the remote and cloud-based features of the new OS.
As mentioned previously, Windows 8 is designed to be part of an ecosystem, alongside Windows Phone and Windows RT. Microsoft believes in this idea so strongly that it has made the Windows 8 user interface (formerly called Metro) the primary interface for Windows users. PCs with the new OS installed will boot into the Windows 8 interface; the OS offers no built-in way to set it to boot to the traditional Windows desktop.
The Windows 8 interface acts as the Start menu now. Instead of appearing as columns of small icons that pop up when you click the Start button, all your applications show up as tiles on the Windows 8 Start screen. You can also search for an application by typing its name when you’re in the Start screen; the results list autosorts as you type more characters.
All applications show up as tiles on the Windows 8 Start screen.
It’s important to realize that the Start screen is no more Windows 8 than the Start menu was Windows 7 or Windows XP. The screen exists as a launchpad for applications, not as a desktop replacement. That concept is easy to forget, since the Start screen occupies the entire display. Even so, Windows 8 apps consume the entire screen, whereas desktop applications can still run in a window on the desktop.
However, not all desktop applications appear on the Start screen by default. Some accessory apps, such as Paint, live in the Apps screen. You can force these programs to appear in the Start screen by right-clicking them to select them and then clicking Pin to Start at the bottom of the screen. Nevertheless, getting to the Apps screen is simple: Right-click a blank area in the Start screen and then click the All apps icon at the lower right.
This is where you’ll run into a fundamental change in how you interact with Windows. Previously, right-clicking an object on the desktop always brought up a context menu, giving you a choice of actions to take. In the Windows 8 interface (but not the desktop), right-clicking now produces a bar at the bottom of the screen containing assorted context-sensitive items. It’s a jarring change, but the arrangement makes sense within the context (no pun intended) of a touch-based display such as a tablet’s. (Context-clicking still works the same way when you’re in the Windows desktop.)
Live tiles are among the key features of the Windows 8 Start screen. While normal (non-live) tiles measure 150 by 150 pixels, most live tiles are double-wide (310 by 150 pixels) and display dynamic information. The People tile, for instance, shows you tweets and Facebook posts from your feeds, assuming that you’ve set them up. As you install apps from the Microsoft Store, more dynamic tiles may appear. Live tiles first appeared in a broad fashion in Windows Phone 7 and Xbox 360 updates, but will exist across all Microsoft platforms going forward.
Navigating the Start screen is easy. If you’re using a mouse with a wheel, moving the wheel scrolls left and right. If you’re using a touchpad, swiping left and right (with one finger) scrolls the tile list. You can drag individual tiles to any location.
Navigating the desktop
Microsoft now partitions applications into “Windows 8” apps (formerly known as “Metro” apps) and desktop applications. The latter are those programs we all know and love from previous versions of Windows, including Microsoft Office.
You cannot boot directly into the desktop, since Microsoft wants the Start screen to be users’ initial experience with Windows 8. For most people, this restriction may not be an issue, but certain vertical applications (specialized programs, such as those for point-of-sale PCs) need to boot directly into a desktop environment. Until Windows 8 versions of such programs become available, users requiring vertical applications should stick with earlier versions of Windows.
If all you need to do is launch an application, you can simply click its tile in the Start screen. If you need robust file management and navigation features, you have to access the desktop. After you boot the machine, pressing the Windows key sends you to the desktop. Unfortunately, the Windows key isn’t consistent in this behavior: If you’re in an app, pressing the Windows key always returns you to the Start screen. Press it again, and you’re in the most recent Windows 8 app. Instead, to move to the desktop consistently, you need to be in the habit of pressing Windows-D. Another option is to move the pointer to the lower left of the screen and click there (though this method works only if you have used no other app recently).
The desktop offers familiar shortcuts and pinned icons.
Except for the omission of a Start menu, the desktop mostly behaves the same in Windows 8 as it did in Windows 7. So how do you reach commonly used features such as the Control Panel, the file explorer, and the Run command? Move your pointer to the lower-left corner and right-click, ignoring the Start-screen peek that pops up. This is the simplified Start menu; you can also bring it up by pressing Windows-X. Or you might prefer to use the search function, entering “Control Panel” or “Run” as the search terms.
Microsoft has chosen to leave the Windows 8 desktop bare, as it did with Windows 7. Given the absence of the old-style Start menu, you may wish to add the system and user-file icons by right-clicking the desktop and selecting the Personalize menu. After you have added those two icons, you can pin them to the Windows 8 Start screen.
Connecting to networks is easier than ever, once you have installed the right drivers. Windows 8 enumerates and displays all of your networked devices—including DLNA devices, network folders you’ve set up, and other computers residing on the network—in any file manager window.
The appearance of individual windows has changed. Gone are the faux transparency and the fake beveled edges, replaced by a completely flat appearance. If you click one of the menu items (such as ‘File’), each window will show a Ribbon similar to the Office 2010 Ribbon. (The Ribbon isn’t sticky, though; it shows up only when you click one of the top-menu items.) The Ribbon contains, in one location, all the information that previous versions displayed in a series of menus and submenus.
Ultimately, navigating the new desktop is similar to getting around the old version, but the absence of a full Start menu may throw you off at first. Using hotkeys, and customizing the desktop and Start screen, might help you become more comfortable in the short run. Once you get used to navigating the system, it’s as transparent as the old one—just different.
The touch experience
The PC you own today almost certainly lacks a touchscreen. You may have a laptop with a touchpad, but most existing touchpads can't take full advantage of the touch capabilities inherent in Windows 8, since they lack the edge detection that is built into recent touchpad hardware.
On the other hand, your next PC may very well have full ten-point multitouch support, even if it's a stock desktop PC. Manufacturers are starting to ship desktop displays with touch capability; the first touch-enabled displays have built-in capacitive touch sensors, which work via a USB connection to the PC. Future touch displays might communicate through some flavor of wireless, including Bluetooth.
More likely candidates for built-in touch are mobile PCs, including traditional clamshell laptops and convertible units that you can transform into tablets, either by concealing the keyboard or by detaching the display, which can act independently as a tablet.
Windows 8 is a different experience with a touch-enabled display, even if you're using such a display with a stock desktop system. At first, you don't think you'll use the touch capabilities. But then your kids come up and start touching the screen—after all, these days young users are growing up expecting displays to be touch-enabled. I've been running Windows 8 on a desktop PC equipped with an Acer T232HL touchscreen display, and although I use the mouse some of the time, I find myself reaching out to use gestures on the screen at other times.
As for other desktop-PC options, look to the emerging generation of all-in-one PCs, such as Sony's 20-inch Tap 20 and the updated version of Lenovo's A720, which are shipping with Windows 8. The Tap 20 is unusual in that it has a built-in battery, which allows you to move it around the home easily and use it as an oversize tablet.
Sony Tap 20 All-in-One
With any touch display, you tap app tiles to launch software, swipe the display to access other features, and use multitouch gestures, such as pinch-to-zoom to enlarge or shrink what's on the screen. Touch support makes the Start screen more usable, though the user interface still has some rough spots. For example, if you swipe your finger in from the left just a little, you get thumbnails of currently running or suspended applications. But slide it a bit too far, and one of those apps takes over the screen. You need to develop a delicate touch (no pun intended) to take full advantage of the interface.
Despite Windows 8's new features, performance tweaks, and improvements over Windows 7, its touch support will likely be the defining factor. And despite some imperfections, the touch interface works smoothly. After you use it for a few days, the old way of using Windows will start to seem slightly cumbersome.
Windows 8 on tablets
One of the big reasons for the creation of Windows 8’s new Start screen is the emergence of tablets. Microsoft has tried and failed on several occasions to create a market for tablet PCs, but the models released during those attempts have always been clunky and difficult to use. The gargantuan success of Apple’s iPad—with its streamlined interface and its relentless focus on encouraging content consumption instead of serving as a general-purpose tool—seems to have clarified Microsoft’s goals.
Microsoft's Surface comes in Pro and RT models.
Even so, Microsoft is planning to support two types of tablets. The first type, which resembles the company’s original Tablet PC concept, consists of convertible laptops running Windows 8. Even Microsoft’s Surface Pro is just a thinly disguised laptop that emphasizes touch interaction over keyboard input.
The second type will carry a slightly different flavor of Windows 8, dubbed Windows RT. This version runs only on tablets using ARM processors, rather than Intel or AMD processors. ARM doesn’t make its own hardware, but licenses its processor technology to other companies such as Nvidia, Qualcomm, and Texas Instruments. These companies design system-on-chip (SoC) products, which typically consume very little power relative to their performance. (The iPad, for example, uses an ARM-based SoC that Apple designs and builds.)
Windows RT tablets will have a restricted version of Windows 8. Although such tablets will include the traditional desktop, you will have access to the desktop only on a limited basis, to run preinstalled applications such as Office. You will not be able to install desktop programs; instead, RT tablets will focus on the Windows 8 apps you buy through Microsoft’s Store.
In contrast, tablets with Intel-compatible processors can run the full PC version of Windows 8, and offer complete access to the desktop. They’ll probably cost more than RT tablets, too, as they’ll need broader expansion options, bigger batteries, and more memory. Intel-based tablets will almost certainly be heavier and bulkier, as well: For example, Surface Pro, which has an Intel Core i5 CPU, weighs about a half-pound more than Surface RT does.
The existence of two types of tablets on the market may end up confusing consumers, though the differences in price will likely drive shoppers in one direction or the other.
The Microsoft Store
Late to the game, Microsoft is adding a store to Windows, much like the marketplaces for Mac OS X, iOS, and Android. If you want to buy apps from the Microsoft Store, you need to create a Microsoft account.
Perhaps I should say stores, since you’ll find more than one store within Windows 8. You buy Windows 8 apps by clicking the Store tile—but you purchase music by launching the Music app, and you buy videos by launching the Video app.
In addition to playing tunes, the Xbox Music app sells songs.
Even more confusing, the app store is called just the “Store” while the music and video stores are named Xbox Music and Xbox Video. (Of course, both the Music app and the Video app are media playback tools as well, though they are less robust compared with Windows Media Player or the likes of iTunes. The new operating system’s lack of a unified Windows 8–style media player is a pretty significant hole.)
Navigating the Microsoft Store is similar to navigating the Start screen. Featured apps come in individual tiles, and are sorted by groups; each group also has a ‘Top Free’ tile and a ‘New releases’ tile. As of this writing, however, the Store listed only about 1000 apps, so Microsoft has a little catching up to do. The number of apps available at the official Windows 8 launch on October 26 will be more telling.
Personalizing Windows
If you don’t like Windows 8 out of the box, you can customize it, with some exceptions. Perhaps the most controversial exception (as mentioned earlier) is the fact that you can’t set Windows to boot directly to the desktop, though third-party utilities promise to enable this.
Since the Start screen consists of groups of tiles, moving your favorite or most commonly used tiles to the left side of the screen is pretty easy. You can also specify the tile size (normal or double-wide) and turn off live-tile updates if you find them distracting. In addition, you can group tiles by program type, such as business applications, games, and so on.
One configuration option that Microsoft has buried in the past is the startup configuration. In older versions of Windows, customizing which applications launched on startup required entering the Msconfig system-configuration utility. In Windows 8, you can select which applications launch at boot-up with the new Startup tab in Task Manager, which you can easily launch in the simplified Start menu.
The tile-based app store offers both free and paid items.
Some customization configurations are less obvious. One example concerns the games you might buy from Valve Software’s Steam download service. When you install a game from Steam, the procedure asks you whether to create a desktop shortcut. But that shortcut isn’t an application shortcut; it’s actually a URL, which points to the local Steamapps folder where the game is installed. If you right-click a URL shortcut, you’ll find no option to pin it to the Start screen. Instead, you have to copy the shortcut to the Start Menu folder (yes, it’s still called the ‘Start Menu’ folder), typically in C:\Users\user folder\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu.
Desktop customization is also available, except for the obvious lack of Start-menu tweaks. The taskbar is present, as it was in Windows 7, and you can pin applications to it as before.
Graphics improvements
Nearly all of the desktop and Start-screen functionality now relies on acceleration from your machine’s graphics processing unit. Many of Windows 8’s windows subsystems use the DirectX API. HTML5 and SVG (scalable vector graphics) also depend on GPU acceleration, in the form of enhanced 2D geometry rendering. Applications tell Direct2D what to draw in the form of 2D objects, such as circles and rectangles, plus additional features such as color and style. The API converts the instructions into a format suitable for Direct3D, which passes the instructions to the GPU. As a result, normal desktop windows will likely see substantial performance increases.
On top of that, Microsoft has added a new programming interface, DirectText, which offloads text rendering to the GPU. Text-rendering performance in desktop programs and in Windows 8 apps is double that of Windows 7—often better than double.
Why, then, did Microsoft return to “flat” windows, eliminating the transparency and other 3D effects it used in previous editions of the OS? Direct2D and Direct3D will also work with Windows RT and Windows Phone 8, and removing the eye candy will help Windows perform equally well across diverse platforms.
Storage and file system
Windows 8 includes a new file system called ReFS (Resilient File System). It’s compatible with most NTFS file features, and, as the name suggests, it adds features to improve data integrity. Features left out include BitLocker, compression, and 8.3-format short filenames. What ReFS brings to the table is improved data verification and auto-correction: ReFS continually scans the file system, including rarely used older files, to ensure they haven’t become corrupted, repairing bad disk clusters and moving data as necessary. Note, however, that ReFS works only on secondary drives, not boot drives. Your boot drive will still be NTFS.
If you’re worried about encountering a problem that may force you to reinstall Windows, you’ll be pleased to learn that reinstalling Windows is now much easier; in fact, Windows 8 provides multiple levels of system repair.
The Reset option nukes the hard drive and reinstalls Windows from scratch. You can use this option to get the machine back to a factory-fresh Windows install, without the need for a new Windows key or the Windows setup disk.
If you prefer something less drastic, the Refresh option resets important Windows settings but maintains your personal files and installed Windows 8 apps. Note, though, that it doesn’t keep desktop applications, so you might wish to first uninstall or deregister software that will need reinstallation and activation.
Finally, you can customize the refresh process by using the “recimg” command-line tool. Using recimg makes an image of your current version of Windows—including installed desktop applications—and makes that the default image when you refresh your PC. Then, when you run Refresh, you’ll still reinstall Windows from scratch, but you’ll also retain your desktop applications. You will need to run recimg occasionally if you have desktop programs that you don’t want to reinstall all over again.
Windows 8 and SkyDrive
The new operating system ships with a Windows 8 app for the SkyDrive cloud-storage service. If you have a Microsoft account, you begin with 5GB of SkyDrive space.
Out of the box, SkyDrive shows up as a Windows 8 app, but it does not appear in the file manager on the desktop; to make that happen, you need to download and install the SkyDrive desktop application. Once you download the application, install it, and link it to your Microsoft account, both the Start screen and desktop become coupled to your SkyDrive.
Assuming that you’re logged in to your Microsoft account, SkyDrive is available as the default storage for many applications, but you can change that on a per-application basis. Of course, that default setting could cause you to consume your 5GB allotment of free storage pretty quickly. An additional 20GB costs $10 per year, while 100GB costs $50 per year.
SkyDrive can serve as the default storage for many apps.
SkyDrive has several important drawbacks that for many users may make it less viable than local hard-drive storage or competing cloud services. First, it imposes a 2GB limit on individual files, so the high-definition video you took of, say, your child’s soccer match might not copy to your SkyDrive if it’s bigger than 2GB. Second, Microsoft restricts the types of files you may upload: Illegally copied commercial content is prohibited, and so are files that contain nudity or excessive violence.
Microsoft has been vague when asked for the specifics of how it defines and detects prohibited content. Although it’s understandable that the company would ban the uploading of illegal content, Microsoft’s decision to serve as a moral authority on prohibited private material seems excessive.
Microsoft Office integration
Microsoft Office 2013, still in beta at this writing, is more tightly tied to Windows 8 than any previous version of Office was to any older OS. Like Windows 8, Office 2013 is closely coupled with SkyDrive: If you sign in with Office to your Microsoft account, you can specify SkyDrive as Office’s default storage location. This arrangement is handy if you’re constantly moving between a home system, a laptop, and a work computer.
Office 2013 is closely tied with both Windows 8 and SkyDrive.
In addition, Office 2013 seems to perform better on Windows 8 than on Windows 7, most likely because the new Office takes full advantage of the GPU acceleration built into Windows 8. The overall look of Office 2013 also matches that of the new OS, mimicking the Windows 8 look and feel.
Bottom line
Windows 8 is almost here, and system makers are readying new models. Some will be touch enabled or otherwise optimized for Windows 8, while others will be similar to existing PCs. For some time, PC sales have been down, partly because everyone has been waiting to see what Windows 8 will be like on new systems. Although we’ve delved into the RTM version, and we like what we see, the success of Windows 8 will depend on how rapidly customers adopt the new user interface and the hardware to support it.
Under the hood, Windows 8 offers performance improvements, a new file system, easier recovery from system problems, better cloud integration, and numerous minor enhancements. However, the Start screen seems to overshadow all the cool new stuff. Although admittedly the original Start menu created some controversy when it launched years ago, Windows 8’s Start screen seems much more polarizing. Toss in Microsoft’s overly aggressive stance in trying to sell apps and content, and some users will likely rebel. Of course, you can avoid much of that hard sell simply by using a local account rather than tying your Windows account to a Microsoft account. But in doing that, you’d miss a lot of what’s intriguing about Windows 8.
In some ways, Windows 8 also highlights Microsoft’s tribal nature; for example, “Xbox Music” stands alone as its own thing, rather than as part of the Microsoft Store. Internal company differences shouldn’t confuse users, as some of these moves probably will.
Love it or hate it, Windows 8 is ushering in a new era of cloud-connected Microsoft services, a unified user interface, and more-robust social media interaction. Younger users may find Windows 8 more attractive than some old-school computer users will. It’s a risk that Microsoft needed to take to try to remain relevant in today’s connected, mobile world. Only time will tell whether it’s the right risk at the right time.
Windows 8 isn’t for everyone. If you’re mostly a desktop PC user comfortable with Windows 7, upgrading to Windows 8 is probably not worthwhile. If you’re a mobile user who needs easy access to the complete Microsoft ecosystem, including SkyDrive, Windows 8 is definitely a good fit. If your needs lie somewhere between those two extremes, give Windows 8 a close look; the cost is low, but you’ll need to learn your way around the new Start screen and make sure that your existing software runs well in the new OS.
Acer C7 Chromebook review: Chrome OS on the cheap, but at what cost?
It's been just over a month since Google unveiled its gorgeous and affordable $249 Samsung Chromebook only to surprise us days later with an even cheaper system, the $199 Acer C7 Chromebook. At first glance, these two laptops are very similar, both in purpose (cloud-based computing on a budget) and in specs (11.6-inch display, dual-core CPU, 2GB of RAM), but there are significant differences under the hood. Samsung's offering achieves its svelte form factor, 6.5-hour battery life and attractive price via a fully integrated and fanless ARM-based design while Acer takes a more conservative approach -- cramming standard off-the-shelf components like a 2.5-inch hard drive, small-outline memory module, mini-PCIe WiFi card, and Intel Celeron processor into a traditional netbook-like chassis. Does being $50 cheaper make up for the C7's lack of sex appeal and short 4-hour battery life? What other compromises in performance and build quality (if any) were made to achieve this lower cost? Most importantly, which budget Chromebook is right for you? Find out after the break.
Cheap molded plastics abound, making this laptop sturdy but not particularly elegant.
Whereas Samsung's $249 Chromebook is purpose-built and inherits most of the finer design attributes of its larger, faster and more expensive cousin, the Series 5 550, Acer's $199 Chromebook looks and feels like a cheap netbook. In fact, other than the Chrome logo and OS-specific key labels, you'd be hard-pressed to tell the C7 apart from its twin, the company's 11.6-inch Aspire V5. Build quality and materials are on par with other low-end Acer systems we've come across -- cheap molded plastics abound, making this laptop sturdy but not particularly elegant. If Samsung's Chromebook evokes the 11-inch MacBook Air, the C7 is completely generic and purely utilitarian. Beyond the obvious aesthetic differences, Acer's Chromebook is also thicker (one inch vs. 0.7 inch) and heavier (three pounds vs. 2.4).
The screen lid and keyboard deck are painted "iron gray" while the bottom shell is made of textured black plastic and the display bezel is finished in shiny black. Strangely, each of these disparate surfaces manages to attract fingerprints to various degrees. Acer's brand is stenciled below the glossy 11.6-inch screen and in the middle of the lid. The Chrome logo is embossed in the top-left corner of the lid -- it's actually a sticker which started peeling off within minutes of us unboxing the C7. You'll find a webcam and microphone above the display and the power button with an embedded blue LED above the keyboard to the left.
Speaking of which, the keyboard uses black island keys but differs in layout from other Chromebooks, which is problematic (more on this later). The left side is home to a 10/100 Ethernet jack, VGA and HDMI outputs, plus a USB 2.0 port, while the right side features a Kensington lock, the power socket, two more USB 2.0 sockets and a standard 3.5mm headphone jack. In front, there's an SD card slot on the left and a pair of blue / orange status LEDs (sleep and charge) on the right. The removable four-cell Li-ion battery slides into the back of the system and is secured via a sliding lock mechanism accessible from the bottom.
Flipping Acer's Chromebook over reveals a few vents and grilles for the cooling fan and the speakers. What's more interesting is that the bottom shell is largely covered by a plastic door that's fastened with a single Phillips screw located under the warranty seal. Opening this door provides access to a 7mm-thin 2.5-inch SATA hard drive (320GB / 5400rpm) made by Seagate, two DDR3-1066 / 1333 SoDIMM slots (one of them populated with 2GB of RAM) and an Atheros half-height mini-PCIe 802.11a/b/g/n card (connected to a pair of antennae). This, combined with the Ethernet jack, VGA output and additional USB 2.0 port makes the C7 a lot more tinker-friendly than Samsung's Chromebook. In fact, resourceful hackers are already dual-booting Chrome OS and Ubuntu 12.04 on this laptop -- we're sure Windows 8 is not too far behind.
We've been spoiled by the quality of the keyboard and trackpad on Samsung's $249 Chromebook, which seem to be lifted right from the pricier Series 5 550. The C7 falls short in comparison -- the keyboard and trackpad are decent, but we can't see ourselves writing an entire review on Acer's $199 Chromebook.
First, the keyboard deviates from the standard Chromebook layout by losing the power button (it's separate) and including caps-lock (instead of the search key). Second, it's cluttered with vestigial keys (such as Home, End, Ins, Del) which are too small to be useful and in some cases (like Pg Up / Dn) interfere with the cursor keys, something that quickly makes editing documents extremely frustrating. Third, the Ctrl and Alt keys are too small and are separated by other keys on the left side, while the Alt key is missing on the right (replaced with Alt Gr). Once you're past these niggles, it's a serviceable if somewhat mushy chiclet keyboard.
Acer's trackpad almost matches Samsung's. Single-finger tracking and two-finger scrolling work as expected but pressing to click requires more force, which becomes tiring after using the C7 for a while. Of course tapping to click is available in the settings, but we prefer the tactile feedback of a properly calibrated switch.
There's one major difference between the 11.6-inch, 1,366 x 768-pixel LED-backlit screens on these two budget Chromebooks -- Acer's is glossy and Samsung's is matte. In fact, this is the second Chromebook ever with a shiny display (the first being Acer's AC700). Colors are slightly cooler on the C7, but brightness, contrast and viewing angles are similar on both screens -- neither is as bright as the Series 5 550, and you'll probably want to adjust the lid for the best viewing angle once you're in a comfortable position. While Samsung's matte display is easier on the eyes (especially when working outdoors), Acer's screen opens almost flat, which is a nice touch.
Neither Chromebook is going to break any records in terms of audio quality when using the built-in speakers. These sound tinny and are easy to obstruct, being located in the bottom shell near the front edge of the keyboard deck on both systems. Samsung beats Acer on loudness here, but the C7's volume is still adequate in a quiet room.
Acer's Chromebook, which is rated for four hours of operation, lasts only three hours and 16 minutes in the same test.
Acer's $199 Chromebook features Intel's 1.1GHz Celeron 847 processor and a 320GB hard drive. Samsung's $249 Chromebook is built around the company's A15-based 1.7GHz Exynos 5 Dual (5250) SoC with 16GB of flash storage. Both laptops sport a dual-core CPU and 2GB of RAM, so it's really a battle of x86 vs. ARM and HDDs vs. SSDs. On Chromebooks, the processor speed usually affects things like page rendering and scrolling, the amount of RAM impacts how many tabs you're able to open at the same time, and storage performance generally affects boot times and page caching
In our experience, Samsung's Exynos-packing system slots somewhere between the Atom-equipped Chromebooks and the Celeron-based models like the Series 5 550. Of course, those are all equipped with solid-state drives. The C7, then, is an anomaly -- it's marginally faster than its budget stablemate, both subjectively and as reflected by SunSpider web rendering results (528ms vs. 677ms), yet it takes twice as long to boot (18 seconds vs. nine). We don't remember noticing any hiccups or crashes -- as such, it's a perfectly competent Chromebook that provides middle-of-the-road performance.
Battery life is another matter. Samsung's Chromebook comes out ahead by matching its specs and scoring six hours and 33 minutes in our usual battery rundown test (which involves playing a video in a loop from local storage with WiFi turned on). Acer's Chromebook, which is rated for four hours of operation, lasts only three hours and 16 minutes in the same test. While the C7 features a smaller 2,500mAh battery (vs. 4,080mAh), it's also saddled with less-efficient components, like that 2.5-inch hard drive, the Intel Celeron CPU and its associated cooling fan. Speaking of which, the fan is always spinning, and while the speed varies, it's often loud enough to be noticed. While it's somewhat annoying, it keeps the laptop cool even when the vents are partially covered by fabric.
There's a certain beautiful simplicity to cloud-based computing.
For many, Chrome OS is an acquired taste -- you really have to live with it for a few days to appreciate it. While it's not for everyone, it's a compelling option once you wrap your head around the idea. There's a certain beautiful simplicity to cloud-based computing that becomes clear once you start using a system designed to do only one thing really well -- the one thing people do the most -- surf the web. No more worries about managing apps or updating software or lending your laptop -- you're able to focus and be productive. We have several fans in our midst here at Engadget, and this pair of budget Chromebooks is generating more interest than ever among colleagues, friends and family.
Acer's $199 Chromebook runs version 23 of Chrome OS. We reviewed build 19 earlier this year, which marked a significant change for the OS -- the UI evolved from being pretty much a full-screen instance of Chrome to offering a more desktop-like experience, complete with wallpapers, a task bar and a launch menu. It also introduced additional functionality with a photo editor, broader media compatibility, offline documents including Google Books, support for Hangouts, plus tab synchronization with other versions of Chrome (mobile and desktop). That build of the OS also comes with Chrome Remote Desktop to access remote systems and share your own screen. Version 23, which also ships on Samsung's $249 Chromebook, features a revised log-in screen, additional wallpapers, a calculator app, a camera app (with funky filters) and deep Google Drive integration -- complete with 100GB of free storage for two years.
Whether you're interested in cloud-based computing on a budget or you're just curious about Chrome OS, there's never been a more affordable selection of Chromebooks. Acer's $199 system certainly wins on price, but it looks and feels extremely cheap. It offers a fast processor along with Ethernet and VGA connectivity, but at the expense of a glossy screen, poor keyboard layout and lackluster battery life. Did we mention the sea of cheap plastics?
Still, it's hard to ignore the C7's tinker-friendly ways. Adding another 2GB of RAM (by installing a second SoDIMM) and replacing the hard drive with a small SSD is a trivial way to achieve Series 5 550 levels of performance for less money than buying Google's flagship laptop -- not to mention, this Chromebook's already been hacked to run other operating systems. Plus, the removable four-cell Li-ion battery opens the door to larger-capacity replacement packs.
Ultimately, we think it's worth spending a little extra for Samsung's $249 model. It's more elegant, better built, thinner and lighter. This, together with the matte display, top-notch keyboard and decent battery life makes for a more polished Chromebook experience. After all, if you're gonna live in the cloud, might as well be on cloud nine, right?
2014 Ford Fiesta gets MyFord Touch, smarter Sync voice commands
For all of Ford's emphasis on Sync, it's hard to deny that Fiesta drivers usually sit on the bottom rung of the automaker's technology ladder when they're denied MyFord Touch and the related perks of larger vehicles. Pick up the keys to a higher-spec 2014 Fiesta, however, and you'll be in for a treat. The compact will stuff a 6.5-inch touchscreen and MyFord Touch into the center stack, with a few software upgrades over what we've already seen in cars like the Focus and Fusion. The highlight is undoubtedly the more direct voice command system -- the Nuance-driven recognition no longer demands that we specify music categories or radio formats to start playing tunes. Bluetooth smartphone pairing and navigation by address should be streamlined at the same time. Motorists will have to wait until 2013 to reap the rewards, but it could be worth the wait to drive away with Ford's better electronics in an affordable ride.
New 2014 Ford Fiesta Adds MyFord Touch with Improved Voice Recognition, Navigation and Phone Pairing
2014 Ford Fiesta comes to market with one of the most comprehensive suite of in-car connectivity technology features available in a small car: SYNC® with MyFord Touch® featuring a new 6.5-inch LCD touch screen
The technology is driving up purchase consideration and appeal of Ford products, proven by internal data showing new vehicles ordered with MyFord Touch exceed expectations
Ford, working with Microsoft, continues to improve MyFord Touch with new capabilities and features including more natural and accurate voice recognition, simpler Bluetooth® phone pairing and better navigation controls
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 26, 2012 – The latest trend in consumer electronics is the miniaturization of the gadgets we love, while packing them with even more performance such as a razor-thin phone that doesn't bulge in a pocket, smaller tablets that can be held with one hand, or music players that can be worn on the wrist. Ford is following suit, and beginning next year it will offer MyFord Touch® with a new 6.5-inch LCD touch screen available on the 2014 Ford Fiesta.
"Technology features are important to all of our customers including small car buyers, and MyFord Touch continues to drive up purchase consideration of our vehicles," says Michelle Moody, Ford cross-vehicle marketing manager. "MyFord Touch is appealing to customers, as it consistently ranks among the top 10 purchase considerations with new owners. We're excited to bring it to the small car segment, where it will really help Fiesta stand out from the crowd."
The migration of this technology comes right as Ford hits the five-year anniversary of its award-winning SYNC® in-vehicle connectivity system that was co-developed with Microsoft; more than 5 million cars and trucks have been sold with the system. Ford first launched SYNC on the 2008 Focus, then its smallest and most affordable car. Now, unveiling MyFord Touch for Fiesta cements Ford's commitment to making technology affordable and accessible to everyone.
"We are seeing strong brand lift from MyFord Touch amongst in-market shoppers, with 65 percent of those intending to purchase a vehicle reporting SYNC definitely plays a role in their purchase consideration," says Moody. "Take rates for MyFord Touch on new vehicle orders, such as the 2013 Escape and Fusion, continue to outpace our internal projections. We expect the same trend for Fiesta."
Besides the new MyFord Touch 6.5-inch color touch screen, which is an upgrade over the currently available 4-inch screen, the 2014 Fiesta will launch with the latest SYNC software that adds new features including:
Simplified Bluetooth® phone pairing: When pairing, the driver simply has to hit "OK" if the PIN on the phone and touch screen match each other
More natural voice recognition: Drivers can now simply say "Play " when requesting a specific artist, song, album or genre of music (i.e. "Play jazz" versus "Play genre jazz")
Improved voice recognition accuracy: The latest version of Nuance's speech software, VoCon® 3200 v4.2, improves overall voice recognition performance
Flattened audio command structure: At any time, drivers can say the station frequency, "AM 760," or the official name of the Sirius station, like "Hits 1," to tune in; drivers no longer need to say "Radio" or "Sirius" to indicate their desire to listen to those audio sources
Simplified navigation controls: The destination entry screen has been improved to help make it easier to enter an address
With MyFord Touch powered by Microsoft, Fiesta drivers will be able to stay connected to their lives, easily getting the information and entertainment they want while keeping their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road.
Black-hat is a term in computing for someone who compromises the security of asystem without permission from an authorized party, usually with the intent ofaccessing computers connected to the network. The term white hat is used for aperson who is ethically opposed to the abuse of computer systems. The termcracker was coined by Richard Stallman to provide an alternative to using theexisting word hacker for this meaning. The somewhat similar activity ofdefeating copy prevention devices in software which may or may not be legal ina country’s laws is actually software cracking.
A self-proclaimed “hacker poster boy,” Mitnick went through a highly publicizedpursuit by authorities. His mischief was hyped by the media but his actualoffenses may be less notable than his notoriety suggests. The Department ofJustice describes him as “the most wanted computer criminal in United Stateshistory.” His exploits were detailed in two movies: Freedom Downtime andTakedown.
Mitnick had a bit of hacking experience before committing the offenses thatmade him famous. He started out exploiting the Los Angeles bus punch cardsystem to get free rides. Then, like Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, dabbled inphone phreaking. Although there were numerous offenses, Mitnick was ultimatelyconvicted for breaking into the Digital Equipment Corporation’s computernetwork and stealing software.
Mitnick’s mischief got serious when he went on a two and a half year“coast-to-coast hacking spree.” The CNN article, “Legendary computer hackerreleased from prison,” explains that “he hacked into computers, stole corporatesecrets, scrambled phone networks and broke into the national defense warningsystem.” He then hacked into computer expert and fellow hacker TsutomuShimomura’s home computer, which led to his undoing.
Today, Mitnick has been able to move past his role as a black hat hacker andbecome a productive member of society. He served five years, about 8 months ofit in solitary confinement, and is now a computer security consultant, authorand speaker.
James gained notoriety when he became the first juvenile to be sent to prisonfor hacking. He was sentenced at 16 years old. In an anonymous PBS interview,he professes, “I was just looking around, playing around. What was fun for mewas a challenge to see what I could pull off.”
James’ major intrusions targeted high-profile organizations. He installed abackdoor into a Defense Threat Reduction Agency server. The DTRA is an agencyof the Department of Defense charged with reducing the threat to the U.S. andits allies from nuclear, biological, chemical, conventional and specialweapons. The backdoor he created enabled him to view sensitive e-mails andcapture employee usernames and passwords.
James also cracked into NASA computers, stealing software worth approximately$1.7 million. According to the Department of Justice, “The software supportedthe International Space Station’s physical environment, including control ofthe temperature and humidity within the living space.” NASA was forced to shutdown its computer systems, ultimately racking up a $41,000 cost. James explainedthat he downloaded the code to supplement his studies on C programming, butcontended, “The code itself was crappy . . .certainly not worth $1.7 millionlike they claimed.”
Given the extent of his intrusions, if James, also known as “c0mrade,” had beenan adult he likely would have served at least ten years. Instead, he was bannedfrom recreational computer use and was slated to serve a six-month sentenceunder house arrest with probation. However, he served six months in prison forviolation of parole. Today, James asserts that he’s learned his lesson andmight start a computer security company.
Lamo’s claim to fame is his break-ins at major organizations like The New YorkTimes and Microsoft. Dubbed the “homeless hacker,” he used Internet connectionsat Kinko’s, coffee shops and libraries to do his intrusions. In a profilearticle, “He Hacks by Day, Squats by Night,” Lamo reflects, “I have a laptop inPittsburgh, a change of clothes in D.C. It kind of redefines the term multi-jurisdictional.”
Lamo’s intrusions consisted mainly of penetration testing, in which he foundflaws in security, exploited them and then informed companies of theirshortcomings. His hits include Yahoo!, Bank of America, Citigroup and Cingular.When white hat hackers are hired by companies to do penetration testing, it’slegal. What Lamo did is not.
When he broke into The New York Times’ intranet, things got serious. He addedhimself to a list of experts and viewed personal information on contributors,including Social Security numbers. Lamo also hacked into The Times’ LexisNexisaccount to research high-profile subject matter.
For his intrusion at The New York Times, Lamo was ordered to pay approximately$65,000 in restitution. He was also sentenced to six months of home confinementand two years of probation, which expired January 16, 2007. Lamo is currentlyworking as an award-winning journalist and public speaker.
Also known as Dark Dante, Poulsen gained recognition for his hack of LA radio’sKIIS-FM phone lines, which earned him a brand new Porsche, among other items.Law enforcement dubbed him “the Hannibal Lecter of computer crime.”
Authorities began to pursue Poulsen after he hacked into a federalinvestigation database. During this pursuit, he further drew the ire of the FBIby hacking into federal computers for wiretap information.
His hacking specialty, however, revolved around telephones. Poulsen’s mostfamous hack, KIIS-FM, was accomplished by taking over all of the station’s phonelines. In a related feat, Poulsen also “reactivated old Yellow Page escorttelephone numbers for an acquaintance who then ran a virtual escort agency.”Later, when his photo came up on the show Unsolved Mysteries, 1-800 phone linesfor the program crashed. Ultimately, Poulsen was captured in a supermarket andserved a sentence of five years.
Since serving time, Poulsen has worked as a journalist. He is now a senioreditor for Wired News. His most prominent article details his work onidentifying 744 sex offenders with MySpace profiles.
Morris, son of former National Security Agency scientist Robert Morris, isknown as the creator of the Morris Worm, the first computer worm to beunleashed on the Internet. As a result of this crime, he was the first personprosecuted under the 1986 Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
Morris wrote the code for the worm while he was a student at Cornell. Heasserts that he intended to use it to see how large the Internet was. The worm,however, replicated itself excessively, slowing computers down so that theywere no longer usable. It is not possible to know exactly how many computerswere affected, but experts estimate an impact of 6,000 machines. He wassentenced to three years’ probation, 400 hours of community service and a fined$10,500.
Morris is currently working as a tenured professor at the MIT Computer Scienceand Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. He principally researches computernetwork architectures including distributed hash tables such as Chord andwireless mesh networks such as Roofnet.
Mass media claimed at the time he was a mathematician and had a degree inbiochemistry from Saint Petersburg State Institute of Technology.According tothe coverage, in 1994 Levin accessed the accounts of several large corporatecustomers of Citibank via their dial-up wire transfer service (FinancialInstitutions Citibank Cash Manager) and transferred funds to accounts set up byaccomplices in Finland, the United States, the Netherlands, Germany andIsrael.In 2005 an alleged member of the former St. Petersburg hacker group,claiming to be one of the original Citibank penetrators, published under thename ArkanoiD a memorandum on popular Provider.net.ru website dedicated totelecom market. According to him, Levin was not actually a scientist(mathematician, biologist or the like) but a kind of ordinary systemadministrator who managed to get hands on the ready data about how to penetratein Citibank machines and then exploit them.ArkanoiD emphasized all thecommunications were carried over X.25 network and the Internet was notinvolved. ArkanoiD’s group in 1994 found out Citibank systems were unprotectedand it spent several weeks examining the structure of the bank’s USA-basednetworks remotely. Members of the group played around with systems’ tools (e.g.were installing and running games) and were unnoticed by the bank’s staff.Penetrators did not plan to conduct a robbery for their personal safety and stoppedtheir activities at some time. Someone of them later handed over the crucialaccess data to Levin (reportedly for the stated $100).
In human terms, it’s a case of a trusted, 11-year employee gone bad. Lloydbuilt the Novell NetWare computer network at Omega South and then blew it upwith a software time bomb after he fell from corporate grace and was ultimatelyfired for performance and behavioral problems. Today, he faces a sentence of upto five years in prison.
In a business sense, the loss of its key manufacturing programs cost Omega,which builds measurement and instrumentation devices for customers like NASAand the U.S. Navy, more than $10 million, dislodged its footing in the industryand eventually led to 80 layoffs.
The 1996 incident set off an intense investigation that brought together theU.S. Secret Service and one of the world’s top data recovery and forensicsexperts to piece together the evidence that would ultimately lead to Lloyd’sarrest and conviction.
David Smith, the author of the Melissa virus, was facing nearly 40 years injail when he decided to cooperate with the FBI. Facing jail time, public wrathand a fortune in potential fines, the 30-year-old sender of the fast-spreadingMelissa computer virus did what hundreds of criminals have done before. Heagreed to go undercover. Federal court documents unsealed at the request of theAssociated Press show that for almost two years, Smith – then out on bail –worked mostly full time cruising the dark recesses of the Internet while theFBI paid his tab.
What did the FBI get? A windfall of information about malicious code senders,leading directly to two major international arrests and pre-empting otherattacks, according to federal prosecutors.
What did Smith get? Just 20 months in federal prison, which was about two yearsless than the minimum sentencing requirement, and about 38 years less than hefaced when initially charged.
Sometimes it takes a thief to catch a thief, said former federal prosecutorElliot Turrini, who handled Smith’s case and agreed to the reduced sentence.
About 63,000 viruses have rolled through the Internet, causing an estimated $65billion in damage, but Smith is the only person to go to federal prison in theUnited States for sending one.
The computer hacker known as “Mafiaboy,” who crippled several major Internetsites including CNN, arrives in court Thursday, Jan. 18, 2001 in Montreal,Canada. He pleaded guilty on Thursday to 55 charges of mischief. The trial ofthe 16-year-old Montrealer, who can not be identified under Canadian law, wasset to begin Thursday on 66 charges relating to attacks last year on severalmajor Web sites, as well as security breaches of other sites at institutionssuch as Yale and Harvard.
Mark Abene (born 1972), better known by his pseudonym Phiber Optik, is acomputer security hacker from New York City. Phiber Optik was once a member ofthe Hacker Groups Legion of Doom and Masters of Deception. In 1994, he served aone-year prison sentence for conspiracy and unauthorized access to computer andtelephone systems.
Phiber Optik was a high-profile hacker in the early 1990s, appearing in The NewYork Times, Harper’s, Esquire, in debates and on television. Phiber Optik is animportant figure in the 1995 non-fiction book Masters of Deception — The Gangthat Ruled Cyberspace.
Hackers that use their skills for good are classified as "white hat."These white hats often work as certified "Ethical Hackers," hired bycompanies to test the integrity of their systems. Others, operate withoutcompany permission by bending but not breaking laws and in the process havecreated some really cool stuff. In this section we profile five white hathackers and the technologies they have developed.
"Woz" is famous for being the "other Steve" of Apple.Wozniak, along with current Apple CEO Steve Jobs, co-founded Apple Computer. Hehas been awarded with the National Medal of Technology as well as honorarydoctorates from Kettering University and Nova Southeastern University.Additionally, Woz was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame inSeptember 2000.
Woz got his start in hacking making blue boxes, devices that bypasstelephone-switching mechanisms to make free long-distance calls. After readingan article about phone phreaking in Esquire, Wozniak called up his buddy Jobs.The pair did research on frequencies, then built and sold blue boxes to theirclassmates in college. Wozniak even used a blue box to call the Pope whilepretending to be Henry Kissinger.
Wozniak dropped out of college and came up with the computer that eventuallymade him famous. Jobs had the bright idea to sell the computer as a fullyassembled PC board. The Steves sold Wozniak's cherished scientific calculatorand Jobs' VW van for capital and got to work assembling prototypes in Jobs'garage. Wozniak designed the hardware and most of the software. In the Letterssection of Woz.org, he recalls doing "what Ed Roberts and Bill Gates andPaul Allen did and tons more, with no help." Wozniak and Jobs sold thefirst 100 of the Apple I to a local dealer for $666.66 each.
Woz no longer works full time for Apple, focusing primarily on philanthropyinstead. Most notable is his function as fairy godfather to the Los Gatos,Calif. School District. "Wozniak 'adopted' the Los Gatos School District,providing students and teachers with hands-on teaching and donations ofstate-of-the-art technology equipment."
Berners-Lee is famed as the inventor of the World Wide Web, the system that weuse to access sites, documents and files on the Internet. He has receivednumerous recognitions, most notably the Millennium Technology Prize.
While a student at Oxford University, Berners-Lee was caught hacking accesswith a friend and subsequently banned from University computers. w3.orgreports, "Whilst [at Oxford], he built his first computer with a solderingiron, TTL gates, an M6800 processor and an old television." Technologicalinnovation seems to have run in his genes, as Berners-Lee's parents weremathematicians who worked on the Manchester Mark1, one of the earliestelectronic computers.
While working with CERN, a European nuclear research organization, Berners-Leecreated a hypertext prototype system that helped researchers share and updateinformation easily. He later realized that hypertext could be joined with theInternet. Berners-Lee recounts how he put them together: "I just had totake the hypertext idea and connect it to the TCP and DNS ideas and - ta-da! -the World Wide Web."
Since his creation of the World Wide Web, Berners-Lee founded the World WideWeb Consortium at MIT. The W3C describes itself as "an internationalconsortium where Member organizations, a full-time staff and the public worktogether to develop Web standards." Berners-Lee's World Wide Web idea, aswell as standards from the W3C, is distributed freely with no patent orroyalties due.
Torvalds fathered Linux, the very popular Unix-based operating system. He callshimself "an engineer," and has said that his aspirations are simple,"I just want to have fun making the best damn operating system Ican."
Torvalds got his start in computers with a Commodore VIC-20, an 8-bit homecomputer. He then moved on to a Sinclair QL. Wikipedia reports that he modifiedthe Sinclair "extensively, especially its operating system."Specifically, Torvalds hacks included "an assembler and a text editor…aswell as a few games."
Torvalds created the Linux kernel in 1991, using the Minix operating system asinspiration. He started with a task switcher in Intel 80386 assembly and aterminal driver. After that, he put out a call for others to contribute code,which they did. Currently, only about 2 percent of the current Linux kernel iswritten by Torvalds himself. The success of this public invitation tocontribute code for Linux is touted as one of the most prominent examples offree/open source software.
Currently, Torvalds serves as the Linux ringleader, coordinating the code thatvolunteer programmers contribute to the kernel. He has had an asteroid namedafter him and received honorary doctorates from Stockholm University andUniversity of Helsinki. He was also featured in Time Magazine's "60 Yearsof Heroes."
Stallman's fame derives from the GNU Project, which he founded to develop afree operating system. For this, he's known as the father of free software. His"Serious Bio" asserts, "Non-free software keeps users dividedand helpless, forbidden to share it and unable to change it. A free operatingsystem is essential for people to be able to use computers in freedom."
Stallman, who prefers to be called rms, got his start hacking at MIT. He workedas a "staff hacker" on the Emacs project and others. He was a criticof restricted computer access in the lab. When a password system was installed,Stallman broke it down, resetting passwords to null strings, then sent usersmessages informing them of the removal of the password system.
Stallman's crusade for free software started with a printer. At the MIT lab, heand other hackers were allowed to modify code on printers so that they sentconvenient alert messages. However, a new printer came along - one that theywere not allowed to modify. It was located away from the lab and the absence ofthe alerts presented an inconvenience. It was at this point that he was"convinced…of the ethical need to require free software."
With this inspiration, he began work on GNU. Stallman wrote an essay, "TheGNU Project," in which he recalls choosing to work on an operating systembecause it's a foundation, "the crucial software to use a computer."At this time, the GNU/Linux version of the operating system uses the Linuxkernel started by Torvalds. GNU is distributed under "copyleft," amethod that employs copyright law to allow users to use, modify, copy anddistribute the software.
Stallman's life continues to revolve around the promotion of free software. Heworks against movements like Digital Rights Management (or as he prefers,Digital Restrictions Management) through organizations like Free SoftwareFoundation and League for Programming Freedom. He has received extensiverecognition for his work, including awards, fellowships and four honorarydoctorates.
Shimomura reached fame in an unfortunate manner: he was hacked by KevinMitnick. Following this personal attack, he made it his cause to help the FBIcapture him.
Shimomura's work to catch Mitnick is commendable, but he is not without his owndark side. Author Bruce Sterling recalls: "He pulls out this AT&Tcellphone, pulls it out of the shrinkwrap, finger-hacks it, and startsmonitoring phone calls going up and down Capitol Hill while an FBI agent isstanding at his shoulder, listening to him."
Shimomura out-hacked Mitnick to bring him down. Shortly after finding out aboutthe intrusion, he rallied a team and got to work finding Mitnick. UsingMitnick's cell phone, they tracked him near Raleigh-Durham InternationalAirport. The article, "SDSC Computer Experts Help FBI Capture ComputerTerrorist" recounts how Shimomura pinpointed Mitnick's location. Armedwith a technician from the phone company, Shimomura "used a cellularfrequency direction-finding antenna hooked up to a laptop to narrow the searchto an apartment complex." Mitnick was arrested shortly thereafter.Following the pursuit, Shimomura wrote a book about the incident withjournalist John Markoff, which was later turned into a movie.
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