Enterprise Desktop | Randall C. Kennedy

Hyper-V's Achilles' heel

Randall Kennedy — 2008-05-13T03:00:00-08:00

A house of cards -- that's how I'd describe the current state of the Windows device driver ecosystem. With so many Windows-compatible devices and so few competent driver developers, it's no surprise that hunting for driver updates has become a necessary part of every power user's skill set. Most of the time, the search ends in frustration: Either the new driver doesn't correct the existing problem(s) or, worse, creates a set of new ones. And now, with the introduction of Hyper-V, we have a whole new failure vector to think about. In a nutshell, one of Hyper-V's advertised strengths --... READ MORE

Are MCSEs too stupid to learn Linux?

Randall Kennedy — 2008-05-08T12:04:01-08:00

How Unix politics are killing OS innovation

Randall Kennedy — 2008-05-07T00:10:25-08:00

Streaming Office: Death knell for Google Apps?

Randall Kennedy — 2008-05-01T11:23:05-08:00

Windows XP SP3: More than a simple Service Pack

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-29T03:00:00-08:00

Update: It appears that Microsoft is continuing to play games with the SP3 release schedule. First they make it available via MSDN, then they tease everyone with general availability (via Windows Update and direct download) only to pull the release hours later due to an obscure bug involving Microsoft Dynamics RMS. If I were a cynical man I might see this latest delay as a deliberate attempt to sabotage their own Service Pack release (and thus give Vista another reprieve) - sort of like "cutting off your nose to spite your face." I mean, delaying the most anticipated XP Service... READ MORE

Note to Popular Mechanics: Leave the PC reviewing to us professionals

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-21T10:17:35-08:00

"Beryl" comes to Vista

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-20T11:03:11-08:00

Why I'm glad I don't work for Microsoft

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-16T14:47:05-08:00

Solving the legacy Windows compatibility puzzle

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-15T03:00:00-08:00

There's been a lot of chatter lately about how Microsoft needs to start over with Windows. Many point to the (NT) code base's 16-year history and how the need to maintain backward compatibility is hampering efforts to move the platform forward. According to these critics, a clean break is necessary in order to stop the kind of bloatware madness that so crippled Windows Vista. Dump the creaking legacy that is the Win32 API/ATL/MFC, they say, and solve the compatibility riddle through VM technology. While I can appreciate the logic behind these assertions, I don't agree with the proposed remedy. For... READ MORE

Ubuntu: More doomed than ever...

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-10T09:55:02-08:00

UPDATE: I just tried a clean install of the Ubuntu 8.04 RC build. Setup completed, the system rebooted and I logged into the desktop. I then clicked the Power button in the upper right corner and chose Suspend from the list of options. Went to resume and...wham! Black Screen of Death! On a pristine install with no proprietary drivers (first boot after setup completed). Unacceptable! I consider myself a patient person. When it comes to OS quirks and difficulties, I've put up with more than my fair share. After all, I was an original Windows NT 3.x early adopter (feel... READ MORE

Burned by Acrobat and Windows Update...on the same day!

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-09T00:55:40-08:00

Bitter fruit and broken promises: My "hackintosh" odyssesy (and more)

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-08T09:53:00-08:00

Why we still need Windows XP

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-04T15:24:03-08:00

Greed, politics, and CanSecWest

Randall Kennedy — 2008-04-01T03:00:00-08:00

Windows Search 4.0 preview: first impressions

Randall Kennedy — 2008-03-28T11:10:43-08:00

I just finished downloading and installing the Windows Search 4.0 Preview and I must say I'm impressed by the results. File system searches are now blazingly fast (at least within indexed folders), while preview images of even complex documents pop-up almost instantly. Even Outlook seems to have gotten a speed boost. Searching for an object using the All Mail Items option is no longer a coffee-break-inducing endeavor. Overall, it's a major improvement over the integrated desktop search in Vista and Server 2008 (it updates them seamlessly), and it also serves as a nice upgrade for users of Windows Desktop Search... READ MORE