One of the advantages of Microsoft Windows is its generally excellent approach to backwards compatibility. Thanks to a mixture of virtual machine support and native OS capabilities, you can generally run x86 apps from any era in a modern system. There are exceptions to this, but backwards compatibility works very …

Apple announced a bevy of new products, software, and hardware refreshes at WWDC 2017; CEO Tim Cook wasn’t kidding when he called it the largest WWDC the company has ever produced. For years, Apple’s approach to traditional computing hardware could charitably be called erratic. For some users — specifically, those who …

IBM researchers announced a new manufacturing breakthrough yesterday that could clear the way to 5nm device scaling and the implementation of next-generation transistor design technologies. The company has used silicon nanosheets — sheets of 2D silicon stacked on top of one another — to assemble a test chip with 30 …

For most of Apple’s existence, gaming on the Mac has meant second-rate performance, particularly for the dollar. While there have been a handful of exceptions over the years — often only when major GPU refresh cycles happened to precisely coincide with Mac refresh cycles — the GPU performance available in …

Google launched its Google Home hardware last year as a way to bring the Google Assistant into your daily life. Unlike Assistant on a phone, Home is designed for everyone to use, and it launched with various smart home integrations like Philips Hue lights and Nest thermostats. Google has been …

When Apple gets into a market, it usually has something innovative to bring to the table. HomePod might be an exception, though. Apple announced this $350 smart speaker at WWDC to go up against Amazon Echo, Google Home, and Sonos Play 3. Despite the company’s insistence that HomePod will sound …

Microsoft used to ship Windows without a built-in antivirus client, which seems foolishly naive in this day and age. However, the addition of Windows Defender to the operating system has caused some tension with third-party antivirus makers. Windows Defender has occasionally interfered with other antivirus apps. Kaspersky recently accused Microsoft of unfair …

As June is upon us, the summer vibes in Toronto are quickly picking up steam and the party is just getting started. Locals and tourists alike are spending more time on patios, by the water and exploring what the city has to offer. This month, the 6ix is full of …

Photo: Twenty20 Seltzer. Carbonated water. Club soda. Whatever you call it, sparkling water is certainly having a moment as Americans attempt to sidestep soda. What’s not to love? It’s refreshing, bubbly and has a hint flavor. “Sparkling water is a better alternative to soda, and sometimes flat water is just …

Strange fields of polygons seen during New Horizons’ visit to Pluto could be explained by million year variations in the dwarf planet’s orbit caused by its ice giant neighbors, says a team from Taiwan’s Institute of Earth Sciences. Their conclusion, which challenges existing explanations of bottom-up heating of the glacier …