May 1, 2005

ExtremeTech has published two articles, one arguing for using Voice Over IP (VOIP) for your residential phone service, the other arguing against using VOIP. Both articles bring up very valid points and are worth reading for anyone considering making the switch to VOIP.

April 28, 2005

If you're a Java developer trying to decide between using Swing or SWT for your next project, this excellent article is just what you need. Although the article comes out in favor of Swing, it does contain has a lot of information about both SWT and Swing that you really should be aware of before making your choice.

April 21, 2005

Many are starting to think that eBay is starting to collapse. One thing is for sure, eBay shareholders aren't very happy as they watch eBay's market cap deflate and its traffic diminish. According to comScore Networks, traffic to the eBay site dropped by 14% in February and another 5% in March, completing nine consecutive months of declining traffic. Sellers are upset at eBay over poor treatment and fee hikes and are now starting to view the entire Web as their marketplace, setting up Yahoo Stores and buying keywords on search engines. The only wildcard is eBay's PayPal service, which has huge potential for finally bringing micropayments to the Internet. The question now is whether eBay will continue to stumble or catch its second wind. See the article at the AlwaysOn network for more about eBay and its problems.

April 8, 2005

LinuxWorld looks at the state of laptop Linux in 2005 by trying out a number of distributions to see if any of them have what it takes. Drivers are the biggest issue with getting Linux to install smoothly on a laptop and this article gives you all the details.

March 29, 2005

A BBC reporter decided to try his hand at freelance PC support, so he put up a few flyers and his phone wouldn't stop ringing. Among the things that he found out was that the vast majority of all current PC problems are caused spyware, worms, and viruses. He also found out that there is a huge and unmet demand for fast, reliable PC support for small businesses and individuals.

February 27, 2005

Columnist and pundit John C. Dvorak wrote a column in PC Magazine earlier this week called "How To Kill Linux", explaining how Microsoft could kill Linux by allowing Linux to run on top of a Windows driver layer. With a topic like that, I guess he didn't really expect the Linux community to stay silent. Well, today, he got his ass handed to him with a response that shows exactly how much Mr. Dvorak knows, or rather doesn't know, about Linux, GPL, and Open Source.

January 28, 2005

Speculation is rampant that Dell, HP, and Gateway are preparing to launch their own Mini PCs.