Hardware

Bob Dylan famously sang that the times they are a-changin' -- but little did he know just how much. So much, in fact, that a MIDI-controlled orchestra made of old consumer electronics can now play one of his all-time classics.

Chris Cairns of production company Partizan teamed with creative firm Isthisgood? to turn old Brother photocopiers, scanners, fax machines, printers, hard drives, and modems into a full-scale scrapheap symphony with a penchant for folk.

They soldered, reprogrammed, hacked, and rewired 97 printer relics destined for the landfill and even custom-designed their own circuitboard that could control all of the printers from one main computer. … Read more

Windows 8 is neither a completely foreign experience, as some have said, nor is it a smooth continuation of the Windows you've known for the past 11 years, since the start of the modern XP era.

From a hardware point of view, using Windows 8 and its not-Metro interface is eventually navigable after some trial and error, and memorizing a few new commands and gestures -- at least if you have one of the many new touch-screen laptops or all-in-one desktops.

Having tried it on a couple of new Windows 8 laptops that do not have touch screens (and … Read more

Our nation faces a decision that could tear us apart.

Yes, the choice between running Windows 8 in Metro view or the traditional desktop view is what we must wrestle with.

Fortunately, there is a compromise to bridge this heated divide. By using a dual-screen setup, you can run Metro and desktop views simultaneously on the same machine.

In the How To video above, I'll walk you through the process of connecting a second monitor to your Windows 8 machine and adjusting just a few settings to achieve the ultimate dual-interface Windows 8 experience.

To cut to the chase, … Read more

If two lost unreleased iPhones -- and the resulting lawsuits, police investigations, and other recriminations weren't proof enough, a new story of a lost LG Nexus 4 prototype should convince those in possession of stealth devices that they should stay away from their local taverns.

In a post on Wired today, we learn the tale of a Nexus 4 -- the very phone that Google is expected to formally unveil next week -- that appears to have been accidentally left behind in a San Francisco bar. [Note: Google has canceled Monday's Android event because of Hurricane Sandy. We'… Read more

Who needs a ski resort map, when your goggles can tell you right where you are?

Next Monday, Oakley, one of the largest sports optics makers in the world, will unveil its $599 Airwave ski goggles, an all-new product featuring a small built-in heads-up display that mimics what appears to be a 14-inch screen seen at a distance of five feet.

The display, created using what is called "prism" technology, shows a wide range of imagery and information, including where a skier is, where their friends are, and even data about the last jump they took, or the … Read more

The future is made of plastic and is being gradually spit out of a 3D printer. CNET UK convention center veteran Luke Westaway took to the floor of the 3D Printshow London 2012 on Friday to examine trinkets, musical instruments, and even replica cat skeletons scanned from mummified remains that have been crafted by these marvelous making machines. Hit play on the video above to see them in action.

3D printers work by taking data from a virtual, computer-designed model and building them slice by slice into three-dimensional objects, which can even feature moving parts. Earlier this year, a U.S. designer created a working 3D phone glove that can be printed, but that barely scratches the surface of what these creator bots are able to achieve. … Read more

Wondering if you should upgrade to Windows 8? WD has teamed up with Microsoft to offer a quick solution for business users.

The company announced today that its My Passport Enterprise portable drive is now Windows To Go-certified and will be available on the same day as Windows 8, which is Friday.

In a nutshell, the drive comes with Windows 8 Enterprise environment pre-configured on it and makes it possible to provision a fully featured Windows 8 work space on a bootable USB drive. In other words, you can take this drive, plug it into any computer running Windows 7… Read more

Before taking the plunge into Windows 8, there are a few questions you should ask yourself. We've summarized some of most useful ones here, and by going down this checklist, you'll end up with a much better idea about the right path for upgrading existing hardware versus buying a new machine, and figuring out all the new styles of tablets and touch-screen hybrids hitting store shelves alongside Windows 8.

Do you want to stick with Windows at all, or would another OS work better for you? Microsoft has two new operating systems, Windows 8 and Windows RT. For … Read more

It's odd how women are often lumped into one homogenous group.

You know, like men, wolves, or southerners.

We're supposed to believe that all women think alike, act alike, and, of course, emote alike.

Yet it's not as if women are generally seen to be using a different sort of PC from men. They tend to lug around the same equipment.

The vastly sensitive brains at Fujitsu have decided this prejudice must end. Which is why there is now the Floral Kiss.… Read more