Computer Software

You'd like to learn how to watch free movies on your computer. Read here about how to watch free movies on your computer.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

You want to consolidate all the music you have and create a music library on your computer. This article will teach you how to create a music library on a computer.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

You can copy songs from any CD, or an entire CD to your computer, using Windows Media Player. Learn how to rip a CD using Windows Media Player in this article.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

Understanding data is a critical business tool. Learn how data mining and data warehousing are related in this article.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

You need to make a table on Microsoft Word, but you’re not sure how to do it. Learn about how to make a table on Microsoft Word in this article.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

You need to make a graph in Excel, but you’re not sure how to do it. Learn about how to make a graph in Excel in this article.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

Microsoft Excel is an advanced spreadsheet program that enables you to keep track of and display data in many ways, including bar graphs. Learn how to make a bar graph in Excel from this article.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors & Zach Taras

You need to make a data table, but you’re not sure how to do it. Learn about how to make a data table in this article.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

Google's new operating system is designed to be faster and to require less maintenance than existing OSes. What will you give up in return? Will you be running it on your everyday machine?

By Nathan Chandler

Some say the reason people steal software is because of its cost. But it turns out there are many reasons why people pirate computer programs. Is there any effective way to prevent software piracy?

By Jonathan Strickland

File sharing is a controversial and, in many cases, illegal pastime. Sites that track BitTorrent files are already magnets for scrutiny. But with a name like The Pirate Bay, you know the site will get extra attention.

By Stephanie Crawford

As they branch out into other fields, tech giants Google and Microsoft are engaged in a full-scale turf war. Which one -- if either -- will come out on top?

By Jonathan Strickland & Stephanie Crawford

To broadcast the 2008 Summer Olympic Games online, American broadcast network NBC chose Microsoft Silverlight. Can it beat Adobe Flash and set a new standard?

By Jonathan Strickland

is well-known for Flash, Photoshop, Illustrator and other design software. So why did the company release AIR, a software development platform?

By John Fuller

Data integration is a simple idea, but the process can be quite complex. Once a computer gets information from a user, how does it know what to do next?

By Jonathan Strickland

What if you could access all your software and files from any computer? If you use a Web operating system, all you need is a Web browser and the Internet.

By Jonathan Strickland

Plain and simple, productivity software takes our ideas and makes them a reality. These programs will help you get the job done. But how much of the work do they actually do?

By Jonathan Strickland

LimeWire is a peer-to-peer file sharing system that features music and other media downloads shared between users. Learn about LimeWire in this article.

By Dave Roos

Content-recognition software does a lot more than just help you find that song you heard while shopping. It serves as a watchdog for copyright infringement, thus eliminating some of the toil of countless human workers scouring websites and other public spaces.

By Jonathan Strickland

A study published in February 2007 shows that through brain scans and corresponding computer software, researchers are able to read people's intentions with great accuracy. Find out how they did it and what it means for the future of "private thoughts."

By Julia Layton

After lengthy delays, Microsoft finally released the much-anticipated first version of the graphics-heavy Windows Vista. Check out what's new.

By Tracy V. Wilson

The digital revolution that has empowered consumers to use digital media in new and innovative ways has also made it nearly impossible for copyright holders to control the distribution of their property. Enter "digital rights management," or DRM.

By Julia Layton

Microsoft is a software company. It makes money by selling its software for use on computers. That's an accurate summary, but it doesn't tell anywhere near the whole story. Microsoft rules the world, but just what does it do, anyway?

By John Postley

Instead of downloading a file in its entirety, BitTorrent gathers pieces of the file you want and transfers them simultaneously from other sources. How does it put the pieces back together?

By Carmen Carmack

With unlimited file sharing comes the big question: Should users be granted unrestricted -- and free -- access to copyrighted movies, music and games? Find out how Kazaa has weathered the legal storm so far.

By Stephanie Watson