Ed Bott

The first review is in. I don’t want to spoil the ending , or anything, but to quote Sally Field: “He liked it! He really liked it!”

Reviewing Ed Bott’s Windows 8 Head Start | 7 Tutorials

After being walked through the basics by the earlier chapters, I think many non-expert, non-developers would feel confident trying out some of these more advanced topics. Having instructions from someone who really knows what he’s doing, and who can write everything clearly and without confusing jargon, is always important to understanding.

And a reminder that my special offer on this book is still valid.

Windows 8 Head Start is based on the Windows 8 Developer Preview, and in its 100 pages you’ll get a thorough overview of the new user interface and learn what you need to know to prepare. When the Consumer Preview arrives (in “late February”), I’ll immediately begin updating the book and making it substantially longer.

And here’s the best part:

If you purchase the current edition you will get the next edition for free.

Oh, and I have a coupon code you can use to get 30% off your order total when you check out. That means you’ll pay $6.96 instead of the list price of $9.95.

The book is available in a single download package that contains full-color editions suitable for reading on any device. Use the PDF file on your PC or Mac, copy the MOBI file to your Amazon Kindle, or use the EPUB file on a Nook or other Android device.

Interested? Here are the details:

• Go to the book page at the Fair Trade DX bookstore.
• Add the book to your cart.
• When you check out, include the code FriendOfEd. Your 30% discount will be reflected in the checkout price.

You can purchase the book at the Amazon or B&N store, but the checkout discount is only available from FairTrade DX directly. (Copies purchased from any source are eligible for the free update to the next edition.)

Why am I doing this? Because I want your feedback. Tell me what you want me to cover in the next edition and you’ll see that feedback reflected in my update.

This essay by Wondermark cartoonist David Malki is thoroughly delightful, entertaining, and educational.

I’ve excerpted one of the more boring parts here, but the entire thing is filled with eye-opening historical footnotes and observations.

Thoughts on intellectual property, Part 1

Patent law was created to preserve the rights of an inventor to the profits derived from his invention, without fear of the invention being duplicated by a rival; trademark law, the same for brand names (essentially to prevent counterfeit goods from being sold under a reputable name); and copyright law, the same for works of creative expression such as books, plays, and music. The three forms of intellectual property are nowadays often bundled together as far as legal rights are concerned, but it wasn’t always so.

Not convinced? As Malki points out, in 1877 someone in Congress tried to stealthily push through a law that would have abolished patents.

Read all about it.

I’ve heard from a few friends who were concerned after they read this story by The VAR Guy:

Ziff Davis Enterprise, Channel Insider, eWeek Sold: Now What?

The short version is this: a spinoff from the 20th Century Ziff-Davis publishing empire was sold, and the acquiring company plans to lay off 80-90% of the staff. The company being sold is Ziff Davis Enterprise, which publishes eWeek, Baseline Magazine, CIO Insight Magazine and Channel Insider.

Here’s the part to pay close attention to:

Today’s news has nothing to do with Ziff Davis (a completely separate company) and ZDNet (the popular blog destination, also a separate business).

I write for ZDNet, which is a member of the CNET family of companies, which in turn is owned by CBS.

The ZD in ZDNet derives from its heritage with the old publishing company, but the two companies’ paths diverged a long, long time ago.

The VAR Guy post has a good recap of how the various “companies whose names begin with Z” have evolved through the years. You can also read my brief history, from 2006:

Ziff Davis is not ZDNet (and vice versa)

Anyway, best of luck and good wishes to my fellow writers/reporters who are getting pink slips.

I literally laughed out loud this morning when I saw these sponsored ads on a search results page at Bing:

(No, I didn’t bother clicking.)

Meanwhile, back in the real world…

The beta of Windows 8 (officially called the Consumer Preview) will be publicly released in “late February.”

Here are some links that might help you get caught up.

• Looking ahead to Windows 8: five big questions for Microsoft (by me at ZDNet)
• Windows 8: Why the coming beta is likely to be labeled the ‘consumer preview’ (by Mary Jo Foley at ZDNet)
• Windows 8 has a special Bing homepage, Consumer Preview name all but confirmed IMichael Gillett, LiveSide)

I’m also soliciting feedback on whether and how you plan to test the Windows 8 beta … sorry, Consumer Preview. Please take a second to vote in this ZDNet poll. If you have any additional suggestions or comments, feel free to leave them in the comments here.

I don’t write about Linux much, but this story by fellow ZDNet blogger Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols caught my eye today:

Red Hat extends Red Hat Enterprise Linux lifecycle to ten years

I’m a big believer in “It’s not broke, then don’t fix it.” So is leading Linux company, Red Hat. The company has just announced that it is extending the production lifecycle of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 5 and 6 from seven to 10 years in response to enterprise customer demand and Red Hat’s hardware original equipment manufacturer (OEM) partners.

A lot of consumers and tech bloggers fail to understand that enterprises prefer stability over shiny new toys. It’s hard to imagine using a 10-year-old mobile phone or MP3 player, but boring corporate apps need stability on the dektop and server sides.

Interestingly, this puts the leading maker of Linux servers on the same support lifecycle as … Microsoft. Consumer versions of Windows are supported for five years, business versions (including servers) get extended support for a total of 10 years.

I’ve got an old but still useful post that explains it all:

How long will Microsoft support XP, Vista, and Windows 7?

The point of having a predictable release cycle—a new Windows version every three years—is to encourage upgrades. That’s especially true for consumers, who can skip one version but not two. Even so, full support will be available until the beginning of 2015. For businesses, anyone considering a Windows 7 migration can take comfort in knowing it will be supported for nearly another decade more—until January 14, 2020.

If you’re curious about how this translates into actual dates, the post also includes a table that breaks support for desktop Windows versions down by version.

Way back in 1999, the first draft of the Open eBook Standard was submitted for final approval. It evolved to become the current open EPUB standard.

Here’s what the man who spearheaded the standards-setting body had to say at the time:

It was critical for the success of the electronic book industry to unite and provide publishers and consumers with a common standard to which all eBooks could be formatted … Without a common standard, publishers would have to format eBook titles separately for each electronic device and the number of titles available for any device would be small. This would be a recipe for disaster.

Guess where that effort started.