Author Archives: halberenson

To 3G or Not to 3G?

Posted on March 9, 2012 by halberenson

With the launch of the new 4G version of the iPad, the initial popularity of the WiFi-only Kindle Fire, and the release of the Windows 8 Consumer Preview I decided to do a test of the viability of living with a … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Mobile, Telecom | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on To 3G or Not to 3G?

Hacktivism: Some things never change

Posted on March 9, 2012 by halberenson

Over the last couple of weeks we’ve seen the FBI and international law enforcement groups arrest members of the LulzSec and Anonymous groups for their computer hacking activities.  For the last five years or so these (and other) groups had been … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Security | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Hacktivism: Some things never change

Can you use multiple “windows” with Windows 8?

Posted on March 2, 2012 by halberenson

Of course you can, particularly with the Desktop.  Yes when you live primarily in the Desktop then the Start Screen is more jarring then the Start Menu was.  I would likely pin more things to the Task Bar or put … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Windows | Tagged , | 14 Comments

Unlimited Data Plans: A reality check

Posted on March 2, 2012 by halberenson

AT&T has really been pissing me off lately with their attitude towards unlimited data plans.  Look, if you don’t want to respect your original definition of “unlimited” then stop screwing around and just eliminate the plans.  Nothing could be worse … Continue reading →

Posted in Mobile | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

Can Windows 8’s Metro succeed on the desktop?

Posted on February 25, 2012 by halberenson

The biggest cloud hanging over Windows 8 is how desktop (and notebook) users will react to the new Metro user experience (which I’ll refer to as MoSh to differentiate the new “Modern Shell” from the app model and Store change).  What … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Windows | Tagged , , , | 36 Comments

Untangling Tango

Posted on February 22, 2012 by halberenson

There have been a couple of rumors recently that I wanted to comment on. The first is the confusing signals about Windows Phone Tango. The one that had me head-scratching was that Tango would co-exist with Windows Phone 8. That … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Mobile, Windows Phone | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Why a locked down Metro/WinRT model makes such a big difference to security

Posted on February 15, 2012 by halberenson

Secunia is reporting that 78% of end-point (individual computers for all those not in the security business) vulnerabilities are attributable to third-party software.  That’s everything from browser plug-ins like Flash and Java, to Adobe Reader, to Quicken or any other desktop … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Security, Windows | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Dear Developer, excuse me while I slap you silly

Posted on February 15, 2012 by halberenson

Today I’m going to abandon my usual balanced friendly analysis approach and play devil’s advocate, because I think there is an audience that needs a wakeup call.    No it’s not developers of consumer apps, I think they’ve already gotten it.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Windows | Tagged , , , , , | 76 Comments

Silverlight is dead, long live XAML

Posted on February 13, 2012 by halberenson

Although I’ve half-written blog entries on this before, I’ve scrapped them because at the time I would have been speaking out of turn.  Then I thought Microsoft had said enough that everyone got it and a blog entry would be pointless.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft | Tagged , , , , | 21 Comments

Windows 8 is not all about Tablets, it’s about the future

Posted on February 12, 2012 by halberenson

What we know about Windows 8, mostly driven by the Developer Preview but also by various comments from Microsoft, is quite polarizing.  The most controversial aspects are around the move to the new Metro app model and user experience.  Many … Continue reading →

Posted in Computer and Internet, Microsoft, Windows | Tagged , , , | 97 Comments