Software History

Word and Excel were far from industry leaders when they first launched. They were late to the market and second rate, at best. This is the story of how Microsoft came up with the Office bundle — and how, over the next decade, it won.

Twig - The flexible, fast, and secure template engine for PHP

Introduction What this is not: This is not an attempt at keeping track of every mention of the iPhone, concept designs, re-hashed PR, near-i...

After a couple of stressful meetings (which reminded me of the need for an entire consulting discipline termed Change Management), a reassur...

We celebrate our 15th birthday by surprising Jad and Robert with a look back at when “Radiolab” was just that: a lab for experimenting with radio.   

An online exhibition of pretty software bugs, a museum of accidental art. Open for submissions!

Fun WIth Pastels by Tori Crossman

‎Computers & Internet · 2014

Mac OS X DP2 is a window into the future of Mac OS…a dark, scary future …

An e-book veteran looks at the past, present, and future of the business.

Knowing is half the battle.

No new features.

Long-time Ars contributor John Siracusa answers your questions.

Yesterday I woke up sucking a lemon.

Sober predictions for the (rumored) year of the Apple tablet.

Apple bets big on its ability to rapidly grow its mobile platform.

How future-proof is Apple's development platform? In 2005, Cocoa and …

Damage control, Apple-style.

What’s past isn’t necessarily prologue.

The tyranny of the set-top box.

For the vast majority of Mac users, the September 13, 2000 appearance of the …

Purity of design leaves a lasting impression.

The tension between platform ownership and participation.

Looking back on Mac OS X’s past with 20/20 hindsight.

Lion is no shrinking violet.