desktops

Windows XP users can now take advantage of Microsoft's Bing Desktop app to run searches without leaving their desktop.

Released yesterday, Bing Desktop version 1.1 supports all versions of Windows starting with XP. The latest flavor also lets you set your desktop wallpaper to match the image displayed by the Bing home page. You can cycle through the past nine days worth of images, according to Microsoft. And as the Bing home page image changes each day, so will your desktop wallpaper.

The Bing Desktop sports a search bar at the top so that you can enter a … Read more

You have a sonic screwdriver toothbrush. You have a Dalek Christmas tree. You even have a Tardis felt purse. Don't worry, you still have plenty of opportunities to express your "Doctor Who" fandom in strange and unusual ways, like with a Tardis-shaped computer system.

Scan Computers in the U.K. got the BBC's blessing to put out a PC that looks just like the Tardis. It has been matched to the exact color of blue of the original Tardis. The door doesn't open, but the DVD drive access is through the police box sign on the front.… Read more

If it feels like you've already gotten a full helping of new laptop, desktop, and tablet PC news very recently, you're right. That's because Microsoft's new Windows 8 operating system launched at the end of October, and with it, dozens of new and updated computers from every major PC maker.

While it's great that we've seen so many new systems, including inventive hybrids and convertibles, very recently, it also means there may not be much left for CES 2013, especially compared with last year's ultrabook-heavy lineup. That said, there are still some major … Read more

If Made In USA is a feature, Hewlett-Packard's got Apple beat.

In effect, that's what HP said today. "Lots of noise...about Apple moving Mac production back to the U.S.... [We] wanted to offer HP's story," said an HP representative via e-mail Friday.

Part of that story was provided by way of a blog post.

"HP PCs have been assembled in the U.S. since the beginning," the post begins. "HP workstations and commercial desktop PCs are manufactured in Indianapolis, and HP servers are manufactured in Houston. These manufacturing facilities employ … Read more

Dream Wallpaper is a free screensaver that rotates a series of stunning high-resolution desktop background images. You can choose from regular and widescreen images in a range of categories, and download more wallpaper images online, too.

Dream Wallpaper set its first image as our desktop background as soon as we installed the program. Unlike many single screensavers, Dream Wallpaper has a user interface you can open from a system tray icon that also accesses the previous and next wallpapers. Dream Wallpaper's main view displays six or more wallpaper images in each of its Local Wallpaper and Network Wallpaper categories, … Read more

Views of Earth from space are as close as the nearest weather site, but in the great scheme of things, we've only had the privilege a short while. We were reminded of just how awesome the view of everyone's home from space can be when we tried Desktop Earth, a free screensaver that rotates high-resolution satellite images of Earth on Windows desktops. But Desktop Earth does more than most other screensavers do. For instance, it changes with the time of day, displaying daylight and night images centered on your location. You can set it to center on any … Read more

iTunes 11 is finally here. I hear that it's a step in the right direction, correcting many of the missteps and redundancies that have crept into the bloated software over the years.

But I can't really give you a full opinion on iTunes 11 because I really haven't spent that much time with it on a personal level.

That's because I don't use my Mac for media.… Read more

Decor8 is a simple app for Windows 8 that enables users to customize the look and feel of their desktops, lock screens and the new Modern UI environment. Though Windows 8 comes stocked with some basic options, Decor8 adds extra features to give users that extra level of personalization and refinement.

After you install the app, Decor8 will appear on the Start screen like any other tile. When you open the app, you'll be greeted with an options menu that appears mighty hard to discern from a standard Windows 8 settings menu. From the Background settings, choose any custom … Read more

The end of the desktop is near, according to reports trickling out over the last few days.

Changes in the way Intel connects its processors to the circuit board may signal broad changes to the desktop PC as we know it today.

Desktop processors are attached to the PC's main circuit board (aka motherboard) via a socket. Intel processors compatible with that socket are then inserted by the end user, be it an enthusiast or PC supplier.

This is the design that is in danger of disappearing, reports claim.

Mobile processors, on the other hand, are soldered directly to … Read more