open source alternatives

For many Windows users, the surge of free applications might suggest there’s little reason to spend a dime on software nowadays. However, certain premium Windows apps continue to justify their price with convenience, robust features, and continued reliability that free alternatives often...

The UK public sector is navigating an era of digital transformation at an unprecedented scale, and its relationship with major technology vendors has never been more significant. At the heart of this evolving landscape lies the latest five-year agreement between the government and Microsoft—a...

As of July 2025, Windows 11 has officially surpassed Windows 10 to become the most widely used Windows desktop operating system, capturing 50.88% of the market. This shift follows a gradual increase in adoption since its 2021 release, initially starting with under 10% market share in 2022 and...

Microsoft’s gradual approach to winding down support for Windows 10 sits squarely at the center of a growing storm, with privacy advocates, environmental campaigners, enterprises, and everyday consumers all questioning the company’s motives, methods, and the real-world consequences of its...

With the impending end of support for Windows 10, a seismic shift is about to shake the everyday routines of millions of users worldwide. For many, October 14th looms like an expiration date on a product that still works perfectly, functioning as reliably as ever. Microsoft, in its typically...

From the moment Microsoft announced Windows 11's system requirements, the very relationship between users and Windows PCs entered uncharted waters. No longer was upgrading the operating system merely a question of software compatibility or performance. Instead, the introduction of mandatory...

As Lenovo banners tout Windows 11’s Copilot+ AI powers and Microsoft pushes every remaining Windows 10 user to upgrade—or buy a new PC—the landscape of Asian computing is quietly shifting. In tech circles from Shenzhen to Jakarta, the name "Huawei" surfaces again and again, not just as a...

The recent blocking of International Criminal Court (ICC) Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan’s Microsoft email account has sent ripples throughout the Netherlands, sparking an intense debate over the country’s reliance on U.S. technology giants. The incident, directly tied to U.S. foreign policy in the...

As Microsoft approaches the official end-of-support phase for Windows 10, users, enterprises, and IT administrators are bracing for a wave of changes impacting how they work and secure their devices. Amid a flurry of announcements, policy updates, and user anxieties about shifting to Windows 11...

In a world where subscription fatigue runs rampant—with everything from productivity tools to cloud storage vying for a slice of our monthly budget—finding credible, cost-effective alternatives is more vital than ever. Google's ecosystem of free apps offers a compelling proposition to anyone...

The recent decision by Microsoft to block the C/C++ extension for alternative Visual Studio Code (VS Code) distributions has sent ripples through the developer community, igniting debates around digital dependency, open-source ethics, and the future of independent development environments. On...

When enterprises contemplate moving their substantial IT operations and applications to the cloud, those heavily invested in Microsoft ecosystems face a very challenging dilemma. The practical realities of migrating complex Windows Server and SQL Server workloads swiftly confront IT...

Microsoft’s recent move to restrict its C/C++ extension for Visual Studio Code (VS Code) exclusively to its first-party products has stirred significant concern and debate throughout the developer community. As of version 1.24.5 released on April 3, 2025, the extension now refuses to work on...

Microsoft's recent enforcement of licensing restrictions on its C/C++ extension for Visual Studio Code (VS Code) has stirred significant controversy among developers relying on open-source VS Code forks like VS Codium and commercial derivatives such as Cursor. This move, which first became...

Microsoft's recent move to restrict the use of its C/C++ extension for Visual Studio Code (VS Code) exclusively to its own official IDE and products has triggered significant concern and debate within the developer community. As of April 2025, the essential extension that provides C/C++ language...

Microsoft's recent enforcement move to block its popular C/C++ extension for Visual Studio Code (VS Code) from working in derivative products like VS Codium and Cursor reveals complex tensions at the intersection of open source, proprietary control, and competitive AI tools. This enforcement...

Microsoft Draws a Boundary: The Fallout from Restricting the C/C++ Extension in VS Code Forks For years, Visual Studio Code (VS Code) has been a linchpin in the code editor world—a sleek, open-source project from Microsoft that is widely praised for striking a balance between performance...

Imagine waking up, opening your trusted VS Code alternative, and finding out that your favorite C/C++ extension has packed its bags and left the building – all thanks to a well-timed update from Microsoft. For many open-source developers and users of VS Code forks such as VS Codium and Cursor...

Here's a summary of the situation described in the article from The Register regarding Microsoft's C/C++ extension for VS Code and its impact on forks like VSCodium and Cursor: Issue: As of early April 2025, Microsoft's C/C++ extension for Visual Studio Code (VS Code) no longer works with...

If you blinked, you might have missed it: VMware, the virtualization juggernaut, has pulled a plot twist more dramatic than a soap opera season finale. The company quietly revived its free ESXi hypervisor, a move that has set the virtualization and IT communities abuzz. For those following...