Keith Shaw
The first gadget Keith Shaw ever wanted was the Merlin, a red plastic toy that beeped and played Tic-Tac-Toe and other various games. Since then, his obsession with technology, both small and large, has grown into the multimedia empire that is Cool Tools. A child of the '70s and teen-ager of the '80s, Shaw has been a fan of computers, technology and video games right from the start. He won an award in 8th grade for programming a game on the school's only computer, and saved his allowance to buy an Atari 2600. He took a side trip in the '90s to the world of newspaper journalism, and has worked at a variety of newspapers in New York, Florida and Massachusetts. In 1997, he combined his love of technology with his journalism skills, working at Computerworld for a few years before joining Network World in 1999 as the company's product reviews editor. In 2000, Shaw took over the Cool Tools column, and the rest, they say, is history. Shaw has a bachelor's degree in newspaper journalism from Syracuse University. He won an award from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for a 2003 article on anti-spam testing, and a Gold Award in their 2010 Digital Awards Competition for the "ABCs of IT" video series. Shaw is also the co-creator of http://www.taquitos.net, the crunchiest site on the InterWeb, which has taste tested and reviewed more than 4,000 varieties of snack foods.
The stereotypical IT guy is now a lonely psycho. Progress?
Trailer for new "IT" movie pits techie vs. CEO.
Beginner's guide to virtual reality
Looking to experience VR without spending a lot of money on hardware and software? We'll get you started.
video
What's coming for IT in 2016? IDG Enterprise editors weigh in
Top editors from enterprise IT brands Computerworld, Network World, CIO.com and CSO offer up their predictions for things that will happen in IT in 2016.
Cool Yule Tools for Work
We offer up our humble list of products and technologies that may impress someone on your holiday gift list.
Cool Yule Tools for Play
Network World's gift guide is ultra-techie and ultra-geeky, some of the stuff you may look at and go, “what kind of gift is that?”. Quite simply, it’s stuff we’ve tried out this year, stuff we’ve liked, or stuff that we think can help...
Cool Yule Tools for the Home
Some of the stuff on our holiday gift list is ultra-techie and ultra-geeky, some of the stuff you may look at and go, “what kind of gift is that?”. Quite simply, it’s stuff we’ve tried out this year, stuff we’ve liked, or stuff that...
video
Get a raise! Salary negotiation tips from the experts
Videos: IT recruiter Suzanne Fairlie and CIO Angela Yochem share expert tips for tech pros who want to get a pay boost from their current employer or when switching jobs.
video
NASA's JPL preps two robots for DARPA challenge
Episode 6 of the DARPA's Road to the Finals series has us visiting Pasadena, Calif., where scientists for NASA's JPL are preparing two robots for the June 2015 DARPA Robotics Challenge finals.
video
Road to the DARPA Robotics Finals
Watch the entire series of videos showing scientists preparing for the June 2015 DARPA Robotics Challenge finals.