Linux, Open Source, & anti Microsoft news

Microsoft’s profits dipped during the three months to the end of last year, even though it reported a solid start for its new Windows 8 operating system. 

Microsoft blames PC makers for underwhelming Windows 8 sales over Christmas, The Register has learned. The software giant accused manufacturers of not building enough attractive Win 8-powered touchscreen tablets.  But…

With an eroding PC market causing mayhem among its allies, Microsoft is reportedly talking about investing big in Dell to help take the troubled company private.

Mozilla has taken a small step closer to finding out whether the world wants another smartphone operating system, with Spanish startup Geeksphone (working with Telefonica) announcing developer previews of two…

A day before Apple’s quarterly results land, Tim Cook will also have to deal with the some unwelcome stats on iOS smartphone market share, showing that the iPhone still trails…

Microsoft and Hewlett Packard won’t share a study claiming that the German city of Munich had its numbers wrong when it calculated switching from Windows to Linux saved the city…

Bad news if you want to upgrade to Windows 8 but are yet to do so. Microsoft has announced its introductory offer will end on 1 February. From then on,…

Industry doomsayers were circling Windows 8 like buzzards before it even launched, but they picked the wrong carcass. Microsoft’s real 2012 roadkill was Win8’s ARM-powered cousin, Windows RT.

Computer electronics biz VIA has updated its Raspberry Pi rival APC – a micro-motherboard its maker calls a “bicycle for your mind” – which it brought to market last May.

Microsoft’s popular Security Essentials anti-virus software has failed to gain the latest certificate from the AV-TEST institute. In antimalware testing against a range of products, AV-TEST failed to certify AhnLab…

Within the virtualization world, VMware can hardly claim to be more friendly to open source than competing platforms such as KVM and Xen. Nonetheless, the company has signed on as…

The Surface was supposed to be Microsoft’s real answer to the iPad — a Windows-based tablet that would satisfy both casual users and digital workers. Now it looks like it’s…

Microsoft’s chances of shining when it steps up with its latest quarterly report next week continue to diminish.  PC sales had a horrible holiday season. Industry tracker Gartner is reporting…

The latest beta release of the Mozilla Foundation’s Firefox for Android browser has lower hardware requirements than earlier versions, adding millions of potential users.

“Schools will now have the option to license software by headcount rather than by device, which is a greater freedom for them,” a DfE spokeswoman told ZDNet. “It also allows…