PC World: Techlog

A Win for PCW!

Harry McCracken — 2008-05-04T20:56:22-08:00

I'm pleased to say that several of us PC Worlders spent Friday night at the Western Publications Association's annual Maggie Awards banquet, which recognizes magazines and Web sites published west of the Mississippi--and we didn't go away empty-handed. Chris...

No MicroHoo? Hallelujah!

Harry McCracken — 2008-05-03T20:48:14-08:00

When I saw the headline, I smiled: "Microsoft Abandons Yahoo Acquisition." Absent a surprise ending, the behemoth of Redmond's attempt to go head-to-head with Google in Web advertising by paying billions to snap up Yahoo has failed. And I'm relieved--if...

The $199 iPhone: Cool! Possibly Imaginary!

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-29T23:27:42-08:00

As nifty as the current iPhone is, there are muliple reasons not to buy it: It's got a slow data connection, it doesn't yet run third-party applications...and at $399 with no subsidy from AT&T, it's kinda pricey. We know that...

Sorry, MSN Music "Buyers!"

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-23T12:49:33-08:00

As I've said before, I don't have any religious opposition to the very notion of Digital Rights Management. But boy, does DRM in the real world keep turning out to be a compelling argument for the elimination of DRM, period....

Mysteries of Lending Tree

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-20T11:28:44-08:00

Okay, so I'm trying to buy a house. As with anything I do, I naturally wanted to do as much of it as I could online. So when mortgage shopping, I signed up for Lending Tree--the guys with the TV...

Seven Ways to Fix Technology Retailing

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-16T09:11:22-08:00

No doubt about it: The last few months have been weird and dismal in the world of technology retailing. First, CompUSA announced plans to shutter all its locations--then got a sort-of-reprieve when TigerDirect bought the brand and said it would...

Help Emru Townsend Find a Bone Marrow Donor

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-08T23:46:03-08:00

The blog item I'm about to write is one of the most unusual I've ever posted here on PC World. But it's also one of the most important. And while it doesn't relate directly to technology, it has an awful...

Microsoft's Bizarrely Patronizing Anti-Piracy Campaign

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-08T22:09:42-08:00

I've said it before: If you use Microsoft's software, you oughta pay for it. I have no sympathy for pirates, especially in an era in which there's a good-to-excellent free alternative to just about every major desktop application that hails...

The Frustratingly Unfulfilled Promise of Google Gears

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-06T20:56:32-08:00

Back on May 30th of last year, Google released Google Gears, a browser plug-in designed to help Web-based applications work even when they couldn't connect to the Internet. I was pretty jazzed up about it, and so were my PCW...

Windows XP Gets a Reprieve--Kinda Sorta

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-03T12:01:00-08:00

Yesterday, rumors surfaced that Microsoft would extend sales of Windows XP past the cut-off date of June 30th it had announced--but only for low-cost laptops. Today, the company is confirming the buzz: It'll still sell Windows XP Home as an...

A Very Special Announcement

Harry McCracken — 2008-04-01T12:01:00-08:00

Everybody likes saving time and money. Some save string or rubber bands or postage stamps. Others strive to save the whales, or the rainforest, or even the whole darn planet. Our pals at InfoWorld are trying to save Windows XP....

Microsoft Makes Moving Friends Between Social Networks (Slightly) Easier

Harry McCracken — 2008-03-25T09:19:55-08:00

In my Techlog column in the May issue of our magazine--which subscribers will get in a week or so--I grouse that Facebook doesn't give me the ability to export my list of friends for use elsewhere. Damn you, print deadlines--there's...

How to "Get Twitter"

Harry McCracken — 2008-03-19T21:06:15-08:00

Twitter may have more good buzz than any other Web service right now, but there's also no service that more people say they don't get--including some very smart. hip friends of mine. Check out this Google search for a surging...

Help Us Choose the Top 100 Products, Get a Chance at an iPod Touch

Harry McCracken — 2008-03-19T10:46:08-08:00

It may well be the most venerable tradition here at PC World: For 25 years now, we've given out annual awards for the year's best products in an array of categories. Our picks for the 100 Best Products of the...

A Good Day for PC World

Harry McCracken — 2008-03-17T12:23:58-08:00

On Friday, I attended the annual luncheon in New York at which American Business Media bestows its Jesse H. Neal awards. The Neals have been called the Pulitzers of the business press--and I'm thrilled to report that PC World received...