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Computers and hardware

Make your desktop shortcuts work for you, not against you

I once worked with a woman whose office looked like a hoarder's attic. Apart from very narrow passageways, every inch of space was piled ceiling-high with paper of every sort. The desktop of her Windows PC was similarly strewn with more icons than would fit on a single screen.

She claimed to be able to find exactly what she was looking for with little hunting, both in her office and on her desktop. The woman obviously had found a system that worked for her. If you find yourself struggling to manage the shortcuts and other items on your desktop, … Read more

How to set up iTunes Home Sharing

Editor's note: This guide was written about an older version of iTunes. For details on linking your iOS devices with newer versions of iTunes, see our story here: How to use home sharing on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod.

I have no idea how many MP3s I own. It's not that I'm too lazy to look--the problem is that my collection is scattered between all the computers in my life. I have a few albums on my personal laptop, a few more on my work laptop, and the bulk of my collection on an ancient Apple G4 … Read more

Dig deeper to find the cause of Windows start-up delays

Who doesn't want their PC to start faster? Even if you've trimmed the list of Windows' start-up apps, as described here in October 2008, you may still find your PC starts too slowly.

A year ago, I wrote about the free Startup Delayer from R2 Studios that lets you adjust how Windows loads your start-up programs. Two useful free tools for trimming your PC's roster of start-up apps are Pirisoft's CCleaner and Microsoft's (formerly SysInternals') AutoRuns. The problem is, you can do massive damage with such registry-editing programs--to the point of making your machine unbootable.… Read more

Customize Outlook's archive settings

You never know when you're going to need an Outlook message that was archived long ago. In a comment on a previous post about moving Outlook mail to local folders, Cliff Brandt asked how to move a file from the archive to one of his main Outlook folders.

Doing so is a breeze, but keep in mind, an archive relocates only Outlook data of a specific age and is intended primarily to keep your Outlook.pst file a manageable size. A backup copies all your Outlook data and allows you to restore all your messages, contacts, tasks, and calendar … Read more

2009 PC shipments inch into positive territory

The PC industry ended 2009 on a positive note.

Worldwide shipments for 2009 were up 2.3 percent compared to 2008, according to the IDC Quarterly PC Tracker Report released Wednesday. Several months ago, ending the year with any shipment growth at all was looking unlikely. But after showing signs of life in the third quarter, followed by a healthy fourth quarter, it appears that the PC business is making a comeback.

A combination of holiday shopping, pent-up demand, and good reviews of Windows 7 have led to 15.2-percent growth for worldwide shipments during the fourth quarter compared to … Read more

Intel promo points to new Core i5 MacBook Pro

It's a pretty safe bet Apple will eventually incorporate Intel's latest processors into its MacBook lineup, though when that will happen is still unknown.

But on Wednesday, AppleInsider got its hands on an e-mail promotion sent to participants in the Intel Retail Edge Program (IREP)--a training program for Intel sales representatives--that hints something might be coming soon. The e-mail to participants includes this language: "January Prize Draw: Win a MacBook Pro. Pass this month's trainings for 2 chances to win one of 2 MacBook Pro laptops with the accelerated response of an Intel Core i5 processor."

Reached for comment, an Intel spokesman said, "There was an error on IREP and we are investigating."

It could have been a mistake in the language in the e-mail, or--and this seems more likely--the mistake could have been that it was sent out too early. MacBook Pros with Arrandale architecture, which includes the Core i5 processor, have been anticipated for some time, as my colleague Brooke Crothers wrote on Monday. Check out his post for more about what to expect if Apple does indeed add Intel's latest silicon to its notebook lineup.

After the jump is the full text of the IREP promo e-mail.… Read more