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Preston Gralla

Biography

Preston Gralla is the author of Windows Vista in a Nutshell, the Windows Vista Pocket Reference, and is the editor of WindowsDevCenter.com . He is also the author of Internet Annoyances, PC Pest Control, Windows XP Power Hound, and Windows XP Hacks, Second Edition, and co-author of Windows XP Cookbook. He has written more than 30 other books. He has written for major national newspapers and magazines, including PC Magazine, Computerworld, the Los Angeles Times, the Dallas Morning News (where he was the technology columnist), USA Today, and several others. A well-known technology expert, Preston has also appeared on many TV and radio programs and networks, including CNN, MSNBC, and NPR. In addition, he's won a number of awards for his writing, including Best Feature in a Computer Magazine from the Computer Press Association. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Books

Big Book of Windows Hacks Big Book of Windows Hacks
by Preston Gralla
October 2007
Print: $34.99
Ebook: $27.99

Windows Vista Pocket Reference Windows Vista Pocket Reference
by Preston Gralla
February 2007
Print: $12.99
Ebook: $10.99

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Windows Vista in a Nutshell Windows Vista in a Nutshell
by Preston Gralla
December 2006
Print: $34.99
Ebook: $27.99

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Windows XP Cookbook Windows XP Cookbook
by Robbie Allen , Preston Gralla
August 2005
Print: $44.95
Ebook: $35.99

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PC Pest Control PC Pest Control
by Preston Gralla
July 2005
Print: $24.95

Windows XP Hacks Windows XP Hacks
by Preston Gralla
Second Edition February 2005
Print: $29.95
Ebook: $23.99

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Internet Annoyances Internet Annoyances
by Preston Gralla
January 2005
Print: $24.95

Windows XP Power Hound Windows XP Power Hound
by Preston Gralla
September 2004
Print: $24.95
Ebook: $19.99

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Trucos Windows XP Trucos Windows XP
by Preston Gralla
June 2004
OUT OF PRINT

Windows XP Hacks Windows XP Hacks
by Preston Gralla
August 2003
OUT OF PRINT
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Articles

Blog

Recent Posts | All Posts

No Bloat Here: Microsoft Is Leaner than Wal-Mart

July 18 2007

Microsoft has been criticized as being bloated, with too many layers of bureacracy. Wal-Mart, on the other hand, has often been held up as a lean business machine. But an interesting new analysis holds that Microsoft is far more efficient than Wal-Mart. Deo Melgaco, in an MSDN blog, calculates what’s called… read more

The long wait for Vista Ultimate "Extras"

July 11 2007

If you were one of the people who forked over extra money for Vista Ultimate because of Microsoft’s promise of soon-to-come “Ultimate Extras,” you haven’t been particularly pleased with Microsoft. The company has only delivered a handful of underwhelming “Extras” to date, and it’s not clear at all what it… read more

Don't Give Up Vista Search for Google

June 20 2007

Microsoft has agreed to make changes to Vista so that it’s easy to use other search tools instead of Vista’s built-in search. The change will take effect with SP-1 for Vista, the beta of which is due later this year. But just because you’ll be able to change your search… read more

Is the Fix In for Microsoft at the Bush White House?

June 13 2007

Microsoft may be getting preferential treatment from the Bush administration’s Department of Justice because one of the department’s key lawyers was a top antitrust lawyer for the firm that represented Microsoft in the lengthy antitrust suit a few years ago. So reports the New York Times. The newspaper reports that the… read more

Microsoft Backs Municipal Wi-Fi

June 06 2007

In the fight over whether towns and cities should be allowed to have their own Wi-Fi networks, Microsoft has clearly come down on the pro side. The company has conducted several market studies about municipal Wi-Fi, and has found, in the words of Stefan Weitz, director of planning for MSN… read more

Microsoft Surface: Not Coming to a Home Near You

May 30 2007

Much of the criticism of the new Microsoft Surface computing table is misguided, for one simple reason: It’s intended to be used in commercial settings, not at home. Why, after all, would you want one of these things in your living room? Microsoft Surface looks like a run-of-the-mill coffee table, but… read more

Mashups for the Rest of Us

May 23 2007

Mashup fans: You don’t need to know how to write a line of code if you want to create your own, customized mashup. You can use the beta of Microsoft’s new Popfly site, to build them by simply dragging building blocks onto a page and connecting them. Within minutes of logging… read more

Microsoft's Mistake with Windows Home Server

May 16 2007

I’ve been using the beta of Microsoft’s Windows Home Server, and I’m a fan. But Microsoft is making one big mistake with it: It won’t sell the software to people like you and me. It’ll only go to systems makers. Microsoft is missing a big opportunity here. I’ve installed Windows Home… read more

Windows Live Hotmail: Still Not as Good as Gmail

May 10 2007

Microsoft formally released its new Web-based email service,Windows Live Hotmail, and while it improves over previous Microsoft Web-based mail, it’s still not as good as Gmail. Windows Live Hotmail is certainly prettier than Gmail. It looks more like a PC-based mail client than a Web-based service. Gmail, by contrast, is about… read more

Is Vista More Secure than Mac OS X?

May 02 2007

Smug Mac lovers who point to Windows vulnerabilities now have something to worry about: A top security researcher claims that Windows Vista is more secure than Mac OS X. Dino Dai Zovi recently won a $10,000 prize for hacking into a MacBook Pro, exploiting a security flaw in Apple’s Safari browser.… read more

More Reasons Why Linux Will Never Take Over the Desktop

April 25 2007

My last blog entry, Why Linux Will Never Take Over the Desktop, got a lot of pushback from Linux folks. Now I’m back with more reasons why Linux will never overtake Windows. One big reason Linux will never outdo Windows is that when it comes to Linux, there’s simply too many… read more

Bill Gates Confronts the Future in 1989

March 28 2007

What did the PC future look like back in 1989? Take a trip in the Wayback Machine in this speech from Bill Gates. Gates and his execs should listen to it as well, because there’s an unintended warning in it for the future of MIcrosoft. Remember the 640K memory barrier? EGA… read more

Save the Planet: Put Your PC to Sleep

March 22 2007

Think you can’t do something about global warming? In fact, you can. Putting your PC into sleep mode when you’re not using it, such as is the default in Windows Vista after it’s idle a set amount of time, can reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by more than half a… read more

Office XML Gets a Big Thumbs Up

March 14 2007

A little-noticed item is big news for Microsoft: The The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is putting Microsoft Office 2007’s Open XML format on a fast track to become an ISO standard. This may not sound like much, but big money is involved. What’s the big deal about becoming an ISO… read more

Is the Microsoft "Live" Brand DOA?

March 07 2007

I’ve written before that the confused Microsoft “Live” brand is an unholy mess, costing the company millions of dollars. Now it looks as if Microsoft may kill the brand, or at least take away its life support. Microsoft has applied the “Live” brand to everything under the sun, including online services… read more

Recent Posts | All Posts

Preston Gralla