WinInsider

Making the Switch ... From Linux to Windows
There's been a lot of news lately about Windows users switching to Mac OS X, though of course, the number of people that have actually done so probably numbers in the dozens. And naturally, there have been Linux switching stories all along, though these usually occur mostly on small Web servers and tech enthusiasts' desktops, not exactly huge markets. What doesn't get discussed much, oddly, is the type of switch that must happen every single day, when a Mac or Linux user gives it up and just goes back to Windows. So with the caveat that the only interesting thing about this story is that the guy chose to document his experience, we present Tony Collins, a 27 year old Australian who made the switch. Welcome back, Tony.

Longhorn Details Slowly Emerge
Last month's Palladium revelations were clearly the first step in a long term plan to expose the various bits of functionality that will become available in Longhorn, the next version of Windows. And if the long rollout of Windows XP is any indication, we're going to be hearing about bits and pieces of this new product for years to come. This week, snippets of information about Longhorn's new programming interface, code-named Avalon, appeared in various places. Avalon will expose elements of Longhorn's inductive user interface, which will feature a docked Start Menu some have compared, rather obviously, to the task panes in Office XP. But the notion that Microsoft would extend the task-based UI that debuted in Windows XP isn't exactly news: The company has been upfront about that plan all along. What's interesting about Longhorn, really, is how the system will abstract the underlying file system and let users interact with their data in ways that don't rely on where that data is physically stored. Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates says that Longhorn should answer just one question to be successful: "Where's my Stuff?"