Jason Brooks

In the handheld computer world, hardware usually gets most of the attention, but its often software that determines whether a mobile device ends up as a relied-upon tool or a high-priced paperweight. For a few weeks now, Ive been testing Palms Tungsten W wireless handheld, which distinguishes itself from Palms previous wireless offerings with a […]

With their long battery life, most Palm OS handhelds dont need to return to their cradles for a charge as frequently as do their Microsoft Corp. Pocket PC operating-system-based brethren. However, Palm OS handhelds have depended more heavily than Pocket PC-based systems on their desktop docking stations for other needs, such as document conversion. Cutting […]

When Apple began not only encouraging people to Rip. Mix. Burn their favorite CD tracks, but also selling them the tools that made it all easy, the different-thinking computer company seriously ticked off the record business. You could imagine an Under Assistant West Coast Promotion Man sitting somewhere clucking that Steve Jobs and Co. would […]

As in previous years, the desktop & handheld hardware category this time around included a diverse group of product contenders, ranging from low-profile desktop systems and LCD displays to wireless communicators and Tablet PC systems. Mobility was the common thread among the products that made it to the final rounds of judging. WINNER TravelMate C100 […]

OpenOffice.org released a 1.1 beta version of its open-source productivity suite late last month, and I fired up the Linux version for a test drive. (Versions for Windows and Solaris are also available, but the Mac OS X release is still at Version 1.0.1.) Among the features in Version 1.1 is support for saving documents […]

Ive written in the past that I prefer KDE to GNOME as a desktop environment, and after reviewing the latest versions of these two environments, both in their vanilla and Red Hat-tweaked forms, my preference for KDE has held fast. The projects that provide Linuxs two most prominent graphical faces follow separate philosophies, which seem […]

“Better working through XML” is the prevailing theme for Microsoft Corp.s forthcoming Office 2003 productivity suite, and none of its components carries this banner more prominently than InfoPath, a new application for designing and filling out XML-based forms. eWeek Labs tests of InfoPath Beta 2 showed that, unlike its other Office siblings, this application eschews […]

“Release early and often” is an open-source mantra, but it has anything but a calming effect on enterprise IT administrators more concerned with maintaining stability in their infrastructure than staying on softwares bleeding edge. In a bid to court these enterprise customers without relinquishing its Linux leadership role, Red Hat Inc. has split its operating […]

When last weeks column hit the Web, wed just learned that Red Hats next Linux release would carry a full version number jump, from 8.0 to 9—an uncharacteristic move for Red Hat, since three point releases came between versions 7.0 and 8.0. Quite a few of you e-mailed me expressing dread over the release number […]

“Release early and often” is an open-source mantra, but it has anything but a calming effect on enterprise IT administrators more concerned with maintaining stability in their infrastructure than staying on softwares bleeding edge. In a bid to court these enterprise customers without relinquishing its Linux leadership role, Red Hat Inc. has split its operating […]