More PCs In Depth

Predator secures your PC with a USB drive...and some difficulty

Predator may not be as magical as BioTrust, which lets you unlock your computer using a webcam and your face, but it's still a nice idea.

Alienware X51: The little PC that could

Among built-to-order gaming PCs, Alienware is about as close as one gets to a household name, and the brand is largely synonymous with huge black boxes covered in garish blinking lights. The new Alienware X51 is a marked departure from that routine, cutting both costs and girth to deliver a machine that's palatable to the masses but doesn't lose any of that gamer cred.

10 IT news stories to expect in 2012

Well, we erred in our 2011 predictions in not repeating a 2010 forecast that Carol Bartz would be ousted as Yahoo CEO -- it was bound to happen, we just called that one too early. Then again, we also predicted last year that Oracle would buy Salesforce.com and have decided not to repeat ourselves this year, so we'll see if we were just ahead on that one, too. Meanwhile, these are our predictions for the next 12 months:

New computer interfaces challenge touch screens

Touchscreens could be extinct if researchers pioneering new human-computer interfaces have anything to say about it. From brain-controlled machines to gesture-driven devices, there's a range of technologies in development that may find their way into everyday electronic devices.

Windows 8: The InfoWorld Deep Dive report

Find out what Microsoft's forthcoming OS means for developers, admins, network security, mobile usage, and more in InfoWorld's comprehensive guide Insider (registration required)

Toshiba DX1215: Decent performance and a gorgeous display

Toshiba's touchscreen all-in-one, the DX1215, has one of the best touchscreens around. Add some shiny wireless peripherals and awesome speakers, and you have a decent -- but not great, thanks to the mobile processor -- multimedia all-in-one.

Lenovo ThinkStation C20: A compact, powerful and pricey business PC

Lenovo's ThinkStation C20 compact workstation saves space and supports high-end graphics.

Silver Surfers are past it? Never!

Been around a while? You may well be a "Silver surfer" and that makes you an IT hero!

Visual tour: The future of tablets

Folding tablets. Solar-powered slates. Apps that automatically install -- and delete -- themselves based on your location. Not all of these concepts will survive the leap from research to retail, but many will ship before you know it.

QuickPoll: Is the PC dead?

IBM engineer Mark Dean, who helped design the first personal computer, recently proclaimed that the PC was dead. Also of note: Google this week said it would buy Motorola Mobility, not a PC maker. Are you ready to trade in your desktop or laptop for a tablet or smartphone? Has the PC outlived its usefulness?

Rise of the planet of the tablets

Just like in the Planet of the Apes series, primitive touch tablets will take over from brainier PCs. Here's how.

QuickPoll: Will ARM chips provide a shot in the arm to laptop sales?

Industry observers say that a stagnant laptop market could be reinvigorated by the energy-efficient ARM chips that power today's tablets. What do you think? Will ARM chips provide a shot in the arm to laptop sales, or has the post-PC era already arrived?

Continuing coverage: Microsoft Windows 8 -- News, analysis, opinion, blogs, more

Microsoft has unveiled the next generation of its flagship operating system, calling it a "reimagining" of Windows that will run on all types of devices from small, touch-sensitive screens to traditional large-screen PCs. Follow all the Windows 8 news, analysis, opinion, and blogs with our continuing coverage page.

Cash for clunkers: Old tech equipment boosts the bottom line

Rather than paying to recycle, you can get cash or credit for your used tech gear -- if you have a solid asset-management plan in place.

X1 Desktop Search

When was the last time you've used a search engine? If you are like most Internet users, it was probably less than an hour ago--possibly much less. But what about a local search engine for your own desktop, like X1 Desktop Search ($50, 14-day free trial)?

PC Upgrades Almost Everyone Does Wrong

Whether you're an experienced hand or a technophobic novice, chances are good that your last PC upgrade didn't exactly follow the industry's best practices. Many newbs flub upgrades through inexperience, but it's just as common to see a hardcore system builder throw caution to the wind while swapping out a CPU, snapping in some RAM, or swapping out a hard drive or graphics card. Whichever camp you fall into, cutting corners as you work on your computer puts it at risk of sustaining damage to sensitive components. In the worst case, you might even destroy the entire machine.

Changing of the Guard: Microsoft Falls to No. 3

Microsoft can react to being eclipsed in market value by Apple and IBM by either resigning itself to its fate or taking a cue from those that surpassed it.

The Best Web Apps and Online Services

Everyone seems to be moving into the cloud. With Web-based apps and online storage services that give us constant access to the most important data from all of our devices, we have more computing power at our disposal than ever before. Online productivity suites let you work with Office documents on your laptop or smartphone, and keep them perpetually available on the Web for easy access. Cloud streaming services make your entire music library available on any device you have handy, or let you tap into an unlimited supply of free tunes from a personalized online radio station. Web-based phone services allow you to call anyone in the world--with video--for next to nothing, and receive calls on any phone. You can even protect your PC with online antivirus apps.

Elgan: Here comes Amazon's 'Kindle for movies'

The stars are aligned for Amazon to come out with something millions of consumers are going to want: a high-quality, low-cost tablet appliance for watching movies.

Dirty little secrets of virtualization

How can you ensure the stability of your data center while at the same time taking maximum advantage of the flexibility of virtualization?