Stories by Wayne Rash

In Pictures: 10 reasons why the iPad with Retina display is better than the Surface RT

Our hands-on testing of Microsoft’s Surface RT vs. Apple’s iPad with Retina

In Pictures: 10 reasons why the Surface RT beats the iPad with Retina display

Our hands-on testing of Microsoft’s Surface RT vs. Apple’s iPad with Retina

Tablet Wars: Microsoft Surface RT v. Apple iPad

The Microsoft Surface running Windows RT is just about everything you'd want in a tablet, but how does it stack up against the market leader, the Apple iPad?

Gigabit Wi-Fi? Not so fast.

The newest Wi-Fi technology -- 802.11ac -- promises blazing speeds of up to 1.3Gbps, according to claims made by the leading vendors.

Four Wi-Fi tools deliver mixed results

During our review of 802.11ac routers, some of the vendors sent along additional products that they thought we might be interested in. Here are short reviews of four WiFi tools that you might find useful in your network.

Linksys prevails in dual-band duel

Wireless routers are always something of a mystery. They combine a number of features into a single box and are usually complex to set up, but require little attention after that.

How we tested dual-band routers

We used two platforms. One test platform was the Fluke Networks AirCheck WiFi tester. The AirCheck contains a 2 x 2 antenna system, and thus can support only two spatial streams.

Seven ways the iPad 2 is better than Motorola Xoom

Seven ways the iPad 2 is better than Motorola Xoom

Hands-on review: Xoom battles iPad 2 to a draw

We got our hands on the two hottest products in the tablet computing market -- the Motorola Xoom and the iPad 2 and put them to the test. This was a 15-round heavyweight fight and in the end, the Xoom stood toe to toe with the reigning champ, iPad 2.

Symantec Norton Utilities 14

Symantec bills Norton Utilities as a way to keep Windows PCs running longer by sprucing up their performance.

HP delivers another server workhorse

You know a product is good when you keep trying to think of ways not to send it back to its maker. Hewlett-Packard's HP ProLiant DL380 G4 is one of those products. It arrived in time for a test of desktop encryption solutions and then stayed around for a few other projects.

IBM unleashes 3U power on the enterprise

IBM continues to produce new servers that deliver greater value. The new xSeries 365 is clearly the next step in IBM's strategy, offering more performance, convenience, and scalability in a smaller package than its predecessor. The result is a server that can meet nearly any imaginable departmental need and fit well into many enterprise applications that once required more expensive servers and more resources to operate.

Software tightens loose network endpoints

If you manage IT for a government organization -- be it federal, state, or local -- you don't have the luxury of waiting to harden your network defenses, unlike IT managers of commercial enterprises. Public agencies are legally accountable for safeguarding the information they have on their computers, so you must protect that information to avoid serious consequences.

Securing Windows

As director of product management in the Security Business and Technology Unit at Microsoft, Amy Carroll is responsible for making sure that new enhancements to Windows and new versions of Windows are very secure. Carroll spoke to Wayne Rash about the company's approach to security and commitment to improving the overall security of its operating system.

Worm warfare

In the middle of last year it seemed the onslaught would never end. One after another, a progression of worms and other malware threatened to bring down systems as enterprises floundered in a morass of unpatched vulnerabilities and malicious e-mails opened by unwary employees.