Not so long ago, desktop environments tended to be variations on a dominant theme. Designed to help the user interact with key parts of the operating system, these interfaces featured icons, toolbars, ...

Windows 8 has two environments: the full screen, touch-centric Windows Store App interface (also called Metro) and the Desktop interface, which looks and acts like Windows 7. If you install programs ...

If this is part of Redmond’s alleged scheme to steal the Mac’s look, it’s got the wrong idea. Ad-themed desktops are new for Microsoft, which has long allowed PC manufacturers to customize the desktop ...