The NSA’s weird alphabet soup of code names for secret spy programs and hacker tools

by Ellen Messmer

Documents leaked by Edward Snowden to the media have revealed the sometimes strange code names.

15 FREE steganography apps for mobile devices

by Tim Greene And Michael Cooney

Hide messages within innocent-looking photos and audio files from your phone or tablet

11 tech products we couldn't live without

by Pc World Staff

12 Best Free iOS 7 Holiday Shopping Apps

by James A. Martin

Braving the long lines and crowds for holiday shopping on Black Friday (and beyond)? Use these free iOS7 shopping apps to make your life a little bit easier.

7 items most prized by computer collectors

by Josh Fruhlinger

There are some things money can buy, some that it can't -- and some that are a joy at a good price.

Top Tech Turkeys of 2013

by Brandon Butler

Gobble, gobble - these techies deserve to be carved up

Products of the week 11.2513

by Ellen Messmer

Our roundup of intriguing new products from companies such as Extreme and BeyondTrust

NAS goes outside the box

by Eric Geier

Reviews of five software-based network attached storage (NAS) products that can be deployed in the cloud, on virtual machines or on the hardware of your choice

OS X Mavericks tips and tricks you need to learn

by Yoni Heisler

15 programming productivity killers

by Peter Wayner

Meetings, know-nothing managers, productivity metrics -- here's what's threatening to slay the next generation of great software

5 ways to lockdown your mobile device

by Grant Hatchimonji, Senior Editor

Locking your mobile device is important because it's often your first line of defense. It may not be the strongest form of security – but it could prove to be the difference in protecting your organization by keeping the device locked down until mobile device management measures like remote wiping are put into play. Here are five ways to lock on various mobile platforms.

A very strange and special Thanksgiving slideshow

by Stephen Sauer

Gravy Geeks, Tech Turduckens, and (Scot) Pilgrims Celebrate the Holiday

12 jobs getting the biggest raises in 2014

by Ann Bednarz

The average salary for newly hired IT pros is expected to increase 5.6% in the coming year

20-plus eye-popping Black Friday tablet, computer & tech deals

by Bob Brown

Apple iPads, latest Android and Windows machines all in for big discounts. Oh, and free snow globes.

Time to order a Tricorder

by Mark Gibbs

13 highly productive Android apps that play nice with your PC

by Brad Chacos, Pc World

Hot products from SC13

by Jon Gold

Some of the biggest new products rolled out at SC13

8 iPad Apps That Are Complex, Powerful and Advanced

by John Brandon

Most people don't think of the iPad as a high-end computing device. These eight apps prove otherwise.

10 reasons to upgrade to Windows 8.1

by Marco Chiappetta

Microsoft has responded to the feedback from Windows 8 with some useful upgrades in Windows 8.1.

From the 2110 to the Lumia 1020, Nokia's most iconic phones

by Mikael Ricknäs, Idg News Service

Between 1994 and 2013 Nokia released five phones that deserve to be remembered

18 cool apps that online journalists are using

by Bob Brown

Creativity reaching new heights thanks to latest photography, graphics, audio and video tools

Negotiation tips for IT pros

by Mary K. Pratt

You know what would make your work life better -- stretch assignments, more training, a promotion. Here's how to convince the powers that be to say yes to your requests.

10 things we love about Windows Server 2012 R2

by Tom Henderson

12 creepy new robots that could take over the world

by Ms. Smith

A roundup of robots and drones that could take over the world.

12 Simple Ways to Boost Your Travel Experience with Smartphones, Tablets

by Al Sacco

Traveling today without a smartphone or a tablet can be considered cruel and unusual punishment. #'s Al Sacco shares 12 travel tips and tricks for smartphone and tablet users, all of which are sure to ease and enhance the travel experience.

Sneak peek: Firefox's fresh new look

by Serdar Yegulalp

Firefox's revamped Australis UI ditches the squared-off edges and goes for a look more akin to Google Chrome

Top 10 Cloud Computing Certifications

by Sharon Florentine

Looking for a way to benchmark your cloud computing knowledge and skills? Want an extra edge when looking for that cloud computing job? Get cloud computing certified.

20 hottest tech toys for the holidays

by Keith Shaw

Cool Yule Tools 2013: Our Tester Elf-approved picks for awesome gadgety goodness

Top computer gifts holiday 2013

by Keith Shaw

The 10 fastest supercomputers on Earth

by Jon Gold

The latest twice-yearly Top500 report is out – see which supercomputers are the world's fastest.

Wacky or unique tech gift ideas Holiday 2013

by Keith Shaw

Top photo and video gift ideas for Holiday 2013

by Keith Shaw

Top phones and tablets for holiday 2013

by Keith Shaw

How cops and robbers are using Google Earth

by Colin Neagle

Law enforcement and criminals have both used Google Earth and Google Maps to commit and solve real-world crimes.

Quick look: NASA’s Mars MAVEN mission

by Michael Cooney

NASA mission is first to explore upper atmosphere of red planet

9 Step CIO Survival Guide

by Thor Olavsrud

Will the CIO role fade to black or shine as a catalyst of change? The jury is still out, but this CIO Survival Guide will help you redefine the role at your business.

Products of the week 11.18.13

by Ellen Mesmmer

Our roundup of intriguing new products from companies such as Extreme and CloudLock

10 mistakes companies make after a data breach

by Steve Ragan, Staff Writer

Michael Bruemmer, vice president of Experian Data Breach Resolution, outlines some the common mistakes his firm has seen as organizations deal with the aftermath of a breach during a presentation for The International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) Privacy Academy.

New Juniper CEO: Meet the real Shaygan Kheradpir

by Bob Brown

From FiOS to the CIO Hall of Fame to Twitter: Kheradpir makes for an interesting choice by Juniper.

7 Technology Job Boards to Find or Fill Positions

by Rich Hein

Job boards are an important element of a well-rounded job search for workers or employee search for recruiters and hiring managers, but with so many options where should you start? This guide is a good place. We look at job boards that focus squarely on technology and IT jobs.

NASA: Kepler's most excellent space discoveries

by Michael Cooney

NASA’s Kepler space telescope continues to amaze

Hot new products from Amazon's cloud show

by Brandon Butler

Amazon's re:Invent conference is a hot place to show off the latest and greatest tools for the cloud

IT budgets, salaries & priorities: 2013 SIM IT Trends Study

by Bob Brown

Highlights from annual Society for Information Management survey of CIOs and other senior IT leaders

Products of the week 11.11.13

by Brandon Butler

Our roundup of intriguing new products from companies such as Radware and NetMotion

18 must-have Android productivity apps

by Jr Raphael

From basic business tasks to advanced automation, these 18 apps will make your Android device more useful than ever

Top tools for WAN optimization

by Joel Snyder

Upstarts Exinda, Ipanema challenge network optimization kingpin Riverbed

Recent iOS app updates people hate

by John Cox

Of punchcards, platters, and wooden mice: The PC's origin story

by Brad Chacos, Pc World

Quick look: The hot Asian space industry

by Michael Cooney

Asian countries of India, China and Japan are in a space race

The hidden fangs of Windows 8.1 -- and how to avoid them

by Woody Leonhard

Before you install Windows 8.1, make sure you understand the gotchas and how not to get bit

First look: The Cisco/Insieme family

by Jim Duffy

Cisco's Nexus 9000 product line, developed by spin-in Insieme Networks, is the company's response to the SDN craze

8 false economies in application development

by Phil Johnson

Here are the most common ways in which companies choose to save now when developing software, but usually end up paying much more later

Tech's greatest flip-floppers: When big shots change their tunes

by Josh Fruhlinger

If you don't like their answer, wait a while, maybe it'll change.

Biggest Tech Industry Layoffs of 2013

by Bob Brown

HP, IBM, Cisco and Juniper among those slimming down this year

12 must-have iPad apps for newbies

by Network World Staff

With the iPad Air now available, a fresh look apps to try for work and fun

10 Chrome offline apps for business

by Howard Wen

Products of the week 11.04.13

by Brandon Butler

Our roundup of intriguing new products from companies such as Service Mesh and Red Lion

First Look: Google's new Nexus 5

by Jon Gold

It's here! It's here! Google’s new smartphone is (FINALLY) here!

Monster bosses: Be very afraid

by Rebecca Linke

Even the best bosses can occasionally take on some of the traits of these monsters.

10 tech terrors that will haunt your dreams

by Robert X. Cringely

Step into our house of techno-horrors where there is no Esc key

Big Data Analytics Use Cases for Healthcare IT

by Brian Eastwood

Advances in technology, not to mention government mandates, are forcing healthcare to take analytics seriously. Here's a look at the current (and future) analytics landscape in healthcare, along with 10 real use cases of analytics in action.

Big Data Analytics Use Cases for Healthcare IT

by Brian Eastwood

Advances in technology, not to mention government mandates, are forcing healthcare to take analytics seriously. Here's a look at the current (and future) analytics landscape in healthcare, along with 10 real use cases of analytics in action.

First look (and listen): Firefox 25

by Jon Gold

Firefox's new support for HTML5's web audio feature steals the show

Silicon Valley's Tech Culture: 'We Just Want to Be Alone'

by Tom Kaneshige

From a distance, Silicon Valley may look like a center for technical innovation. But it's more than that. Look closer and you'll find a home for social outcasts, radical libertarians and nerdy geniuses who dream of fleeing society entirely and building their own tech-utopias.

Nightmares: 9 frightening realities from within the IT department

by Steve Ragan, Staff Writer

In the spirit of Halloween, CSO recently spoke to Adam Stewart, the Vice President of Engineering at Autotask, to outline the most frightening aspects of working in IT.

The coolest Air Force UFO videos

by Michael Cooney

National Archives features UFO-related images, interviews

Tech-or-treat: What 13 tech companies might be handing out this Halloween

by Phil Johnson

Here’s what trick-or-treaters could expect to get if these technology companies turned on their porch lights this Halloween

19 Apple rumors that were just wrong

by Yoni Heisler

Some of the rumors about Apple over the years were just ridiculous.

The open-source graveyard: 7 projects that have gone belly-up

by Jon Gold

An septet of (somewhat) recently deceased open-source projects, for your ghoulish, pre-Halloween interest.

5 Best and 5 Worst Cities for IT Salaries

by Rich Hein

Want to know where IT professionals make the highest -- and the lowest -- salaries? We dig into Kforce's 2014 Salary and Employment Guide to see where today's tech workers make the most and the least, the top paying IT roles in each city, and the cost of living for each community.

Developer picks: 7 hot tools for agile development

by Paul Krill

Project managers weigh in on the top tools fueling the agile movement at modern dev shops

Windows 8.1 networking cheat sheet

by Eric Geier

Products of the week 10.28.13

by Brandon Butler

Our roundup of intriguing new products from companies such as Zscaler and Tufin

The must-have iPad office apps, round 7

by Galen Gruman

The revamped Apple iWork suite changes the game for tablet productivity

Supersonic dream: Remembering the Concorde

by Michael Cooney

Celebrating the 10-year anniversary of the last supersonic passenger flight.

Rise of humanoid robots

by Michael Cooney

From the new Bionic Man to robotic bartenders, machines are looking and acting more human that ever.

9 things job-hunters expect and what employers really want

by Melissa Shaw

Here's what employers want, what job-hunters must do, and the disconnect between the two parties when it comes to interviewing, social media, etiquette and more.

Best Chrome apps for managing data, clients, money, and more

by Christopher Null

10 most powerful network management companies

by Jon Gold

Our look at the biggest players in the network management, um, world

First look: Apple iPad Air & more

by Jon Gold

The first glance at Apple’s latest additions to the iPad tablet line.

The 10 best new features in OS X Mavericks

by Galen Gruman

The latest version of the Mac OS is no transformative update, but it includes several key changes that most users will like

The 20 greatest milestones of Android's first five years

by Armando Rodriguez, Tech Hive

Android, this is your life.

8 mobile OS features you saw on Android first

by Florence Ion And Armando Rodriguez, Techhive

On the eve of Android’s fifth birthday, it’s time to give the little green guy the respect he deserves.

Best Halloween musical light shows

by Bob Brown

Techies wire up spooky home light shows to scare/entertain the neighborhood.

10 tech tools to get things done faster

by Paul Mah

We could all use some help improving our productivity. Here are 10 apps that help you collaborate, take notes or just plain save time.

10 things that scare the bejeezus out of IT pros

by Josh Fruhlinger

If long hours and failed projects terrify you, these sentences will chill you to your core.

Say hello to the text-friendly office chair

by Ann Bednarz

Gesture, a flexible desk chair from Steelcase, caters to the texting, swiping crowd

Microsoft's Graveyard: 16 products that Microsoft has killed

by Andy Patrizio

Some were killed off, others folded into new products. Either way, no product lives forever.

Six ways the sharing economy can make your business more efficient

by Nancy Gohring

There's a new generation of startups that are hopping on the sharing economy band wagon in ways that can benefit businesses

Word at 30 quiz

by Tim Greene

Everybody knows Microsoft Word now, but what do you know about where it came from?

Sizing up the Hadoop ecosystem

by Jesse Anderson, Curriculum Developer At Cloudera

Tech logo quiz

by Stephen Sauer

Test your inner design geek and take a look under the hood at some of tech's most famous logos.

Products of the week 10.21.13

by Ellen Messmer

Our roundup of intriguing new products from companies such as IBM and Dell

5 IT security horror stories (and 5 solutions)

by Sharon Florentine

When it comes to security, your employees may be your weakest link. While policies and training can go a long way toward helping your employees keep devices and data safe, sometimes technology is the answer.

10 old-school IT principles that still rule

by Bob Lewis

These graybeard IT tenets still reign -- when applied in their modernized guise

World’s craziest Halloween coffins

by Michael Cooney

From KISS caskets to lions and airplanes, a plethora of burial boxes populate the world

20 must-see products at DEMO 2013

by Colin Neagle

DEMO Fall 2013 kicks off this week, giving more than 40 startups and entrepreneurs the chance to introduce their products to the world.

The 9 hardest things programmers have to do

by Phil Johnson

Software developers have all sorts of hard tasks - most of which don’t involve writing code

12 drones to own

by Mark Gibbs

The unsung women of technology

by Rebecca Linke

Sure, you've heard of Ada Lovelace and Grace Hopper. But how about Frances Allen, Deborah Estrin or Radia Perlman?

Quiz: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said what?

by Tim Greene

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is famous for his colorful quotes and keeping people guessing about what he might say next as he spreads the word about Windows 8, Surface devices and upgrades to a range of Microsoft servers. Given the great number of public speaking engagements he conducts every year, he expresses thoughts on a wide range of other topics, too. Here are some of his words lined up against those of some major historical figures who have opined on similar subjects. On each slide can you figure out which quote fell from Ballmer’s lips? Keep track and check your score at the end.

RELATED:  The Windows 8 Quiz 

Quiz: Can you navigate Windows 8?

by Tim Greene

Building on our general Windows 8 Quiz, here's a test of how well you have learned to get around in Microsoft's new operating system. Validate what you already know or use the quiz to learn new tips and tricks that will make climbing the learning curve for the platform less painful. Keep track of your answers and check your score at the end to see how well you did.

Quiz: What do you REALLY know about Interop?

by Tim Greene

Interop Las Vegas 2012 unfurls at Mandalay Bay Convention Center May 6-10 with a lengthy history since it was first held in 1986 as a plug-fest to work out kinks implementing TCP/IP in commercial products. Here are a few interesting questions about the Interop show to test your knowledge of the people and technology around the show. Keep track of your score and see how well you rank at the end.

Last year's Interop quiz

Follow all the breaking news from the show

10 Las Vegas alternatives to Interop

Do you know the new iPad?

by Tim Greene

Few things have been more anticipated than the new iPad announced March 7 and that became available March 16, with speculation running wild about what the upgraded tablet would include among its new features. While plenty is new and innovative, that doesn’t include the name – new iPad – which shows a distinct minimalist bent on the part of Apple marketers. Test yourself on the new iPad essentials here with a brief quiz about the latest must-have tech device. Keep score and rate yourself at the end.

RELATED:  10 terrific apps for the new iPad 

The Windows 8 Quiz

by Tim Greene

Tiles, touchscreens, Metro style – lots of buzzwords surround the Windows 8 operating system. With its promise to expand Microsoft’s influence on tablets and a user interface that mimics that of the well reviewed Windows Phone 7, the latest Windows version should draw a lot of consumer attention. Here is a brief quiz to test your knowledge about the new operating system. Keep track of your answers and at the end check how well you did.  

RELATED: Windows 8: A visual tour of what we now know

The top hidden features of Windows 8

Windows 8: What you need to know

The Apple iPad quiz

by Tim Greene

As the world waits breathlessly for Apple’s March (?) release of iPad 3, here is a brief quiz about all things iPad from its design, to its features to its accessories. This device is definitely remarkable, dominating a tablet market that  nevertheless remains flush with new competitors. Keep track of your score and find out at the end how you stack up in iPad knowledge.

Other quizzes:

The encryption quiz

Google Android quiz

So you think you know Apple?

Network World's Products of the Week

by Network World Staff

Our round-up of intriguing new products from Total Defense, Infoblox, Sophos among others.

Read how to submit an entry to Network World's products of the week slideshow.

Egg-(de)faced Apple cancels iPhone 4S sales in China

by Paul McNamara

Crowd loses control

Apple says it is suspending all iPhone 4S sales at its five retail stores in China after huge crowds waiting to enter one of them were determined to pose a safety risk to personnel. The abrupt cancellation prompted howls of protest, a melee and arrests, with one of those protesting producing a bag of eggs that were hurled against the store’s glass doors.

Network World’s 2011 Tech News Quiz

by Tim Greene

This year saw the rise of political hacktivism by the likes of Anonymous and LulzSec, the hacking of millions of emails, a shortage of hard drives and a big role for the Internet in uprisings across the world. Here’s a brief quiz of some of the events that shaped tech news in 2011. Keep track of your score and see how well you did at the end.

Related:

25 top tech news stories of 2011

The year in security mischief making

30 events that shaped in Cisco in 2011

Geekiest sweaters of all time

by Bob Brown

You can have your tacky Christmas sweaters. But here at Network World we’re all about celebrating things geeky and techie. Without further ado, a collection of some of the more fabulous ones found around the Web.

10 Laptop Alternatives for Working on the Go

by Michelle Mastin

Laptop Alternatives

Compared with the first laptop I owned, which was new back in 2000, my Motorola Atrix 4G has twice the processor speed, twice the amount of RAM, and more storage space.

At the rate that advances in mobile devices are moving, maybe it's time to replace your aging laptop with something that isn't a laptop at all. Smartphones with laptop docks, and tablets with keyboard docks, provide much of the same functionality with less weight, more battery life, and more flexibility than many laptops offer. And although most of these devices don't run full-featured desktop office productivity suites, you have plenty of lightweight options for managing word processing documents, spreadsheets, and more--and even ways to control your work computer via VNC. Many of these devices aren’t meant to replace your PC completely, but they can replace a laptop when you’re traveling. Check out these laptop alternatives to see if you could work on the go with one.

Network World's Products of the Week

by Network World Staff

Our round-up of intriguing new products from Thales, vKernel, Tenable among others.

Read how to submit an entry to Network World's products of the week slideshow.

10 Things We Love and Hate about Ubuntu Oneiric Ocelot 11.10

by Tom Henderson

1. Love

Ubuntu 11.10's Unity interface now works on more hardware. We'd love it even more if Canonical came out with a comprehensive list of devices that Ubuntu is compatible with.

15 Hot Phones for the Holidays

by Eric Mack

'Tis the Season to Give a Phone

This holiday season, all of the big phone makers are pushing hot new handsets, from the iPhone 4S with Siri to the first crop of solid Windows Phone "Mango" devices to the first generation of Ice Cream Sandwich-ready Android phones. Read on to learn more.

9 festive Microsoft themes for Windows 7

by Paul McNamara

Windows dressing

The guys at MajorGeeks have gotten into the holiday spirit by offering a collection of Windows 7 themes for download, explaining: “As you might be aware, MajorGeeks rarely posts themes because many third-party themes can be more trouble than they are worth. Not so with Microsoft themes. Downloading these official themes from Microsoft is just as safe and stable as the default themes included with Windows 7. So why not try one or two and let your PC spread some holiday cheer?”

This slideshow will let you breeze through the screen shots to see if anything rings your sleigh bells.

Best and worst celebrity technology moments of 2011

by Bob Brown

You might think Charlie Sheen is the most dangerous celebrity around, but no, McAfee says it’s actually a supermodel turned TV show star (based on the amount of malware that pops up when you search her name).  But plenty of other celebrities also proved to be dangerous when technology was put at their disposal. Others, meanwhile, integrated technology with their creative sides to deliver new products and funny bits. Here’s a look back at the Best & Worst from 2011 (look even further back at 2010’s slideshow.)

The weirdest, wackiest and coolest sci/tech stories of 2011

by Michael Cooney

This year was certainly one of the weirdest and wackiest in recent memory. We have everything from burning iPhones and secret spacecraft to orbiting space hotels and self-driving cars. The year is over but you can relive the best parts here!

And don't forget we put together a list of the weirdest, wackiest and coolest sci/tech stories from the first part of the year. Read here.

12 Tech Gifts for Commuters

by Sarah Jacobsson Purewal

Gifts for the Commute

Whether someone special in your life travels to work by train, bike, or automobile, here are 12 great gadget gifts that will help make their commute a little more enjoyable.

8 Free Wi-Fi security tools

by Eric Geier

Even if you have an enterprise-level Wi-Fi spectrum analyzer, like Wi-Spy or AirMagnet, free Wi-Fi tools can also come in handy. You might use them during the planning or installation stages of your wireless LAN, while troubleshooting, or when performing maintenance. They could even serve as your primarily tools in smaller and less-complex environments.
Here are several free programs you can use to do Wi-Fi stumbling and surveying on all the popular platforms—Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. You’ll be able see all the nearby wireless access points (APs) and their details, including channels, signal levels, and MAC address.

7 free Siri alternatives for Android

by Howard Wen

The release of the iPhone 4S brought the debut of Siri, a personal assistant tool which has quickly attained a pop-culture following. Programs that control the functions of a computer and can look up things for you on the Internet through voice commands have been around for a while. Apple pitches Siri as letting you do this in a more conversational way, and the program talks back to you at times with clever responses, especially to absurd questions.

But Android device owners already have had a number of voice-controlled personal assistants to choose from, and most are free. In fact, some of them were originally published prior to the iPhone 4S, while the others are obviously cashing in on the current popularity of Siri. Here are seven Android personal assistants that you can chat up to do your bidding.

Network World's Products of the Week

by Network World Staff

Our round-up of intriguing new products from HBGary, SonicWall, Solarwinds among others.

Read how to submit an entry to Network World's products of the week slideshow.

The Worst Web Design Mistakes, and How to Prevent Them

by Michelle Mastin

Design Mistakes From Around the Web

With Geocities gone and Adobe Flash dying, what will we make fun of in Web design now? Never fear: Many companies continue to employ Flash in annoying ways (restaurant menus, I'm looking at you); and though animated GIFs still terrorize some dark corners of the Web, visitor counters are being replaced at the top of the annoyance scale by ham-handed overuse of social widgets. Elsewhere, side-scrolling websites, text that matches the background color far too closely, and blog updates that consist of apologies for not updating remain prevalent. Put your speakers on mute -- because yes, some websites still automatically blare music -- break out the eye bleach and learn from the mistakes of others.

20 Most Anticipated Tech Products of 2012

by Jeff Bertolucci

Tech in 2012

We're nearing the end of the year, so it's time to ask what wonders 2012 will bring. No, I'm not talking about the possible end of the world. I'm talking about tech wonders--products that many of us wish were here right now, such as Apple's (alleged) iPad 3 and iPhone 5, and Microsoft's tablet-friendly Windows 8 operating system.

What are you anticipating in the new year? Here's what I'm looking forward to.

Awesome Gifts for the Geek in Your Life

by Nick Mediati

Merry Geekmas

We at PCWorld's GeekTech blog cover lots of unique and clever gadgetry and geekery over the course of a year, and some of the items we see would make great gifts. Browse through this slideshow to get some unique gift ideas for the geeks you love--and maybe to add some entries to your own wish list.

10 Tech Wins of 2011

by Jared Newman

Here are 2011's Biggest Tech Winners

Looking back on this year's most anticipated tech products, disappointment is a common theme. Android tablets were sales duds. HP, the world's biggest PC maker, temporarily had the bad idea to stop making PCs. The Nintendo 3DS was such a failure at launch that Nintendo had to slash prices. And for months, we've heard talk of a bubble in Silicon Valley, fueled by well-funded failures such as Color. But among the flops, some companies managed to find success this year.