Keep Running Your Free Windows 7 Trial for Up to 120 Days

Want to milk that Windows 7 free trial for well beyond the 30 day trial period? You’re in luck. Like Vista before it, the new OS includes a rearm that allows you to get an extra 30 days out of the trial period. You can use it three separate times racking up a full four months worth. To activate, users should pull up All Programs from the Start menu, then Accessories, then Command Promp. In the Command Promp, enter in “slmgr -rearm” (quotes for emphasis not part of the command). After the computer is rebooted, the calendar is rolled back to the beginning and you’ve got yourself an extra 30 days. Proving that it’s even on the up and up with Microsoft, a spokesman told Computerworld: “A total of 120 days total time is available as a grace period to customers that take advantage of rearm.” A little extra time to help prove that Windows 7 has officially laid Vista to rest. [Telegraph via Gizmodo]

Google Chrome to Be Included On Sony PCs

Google and Sony have come to a deal that will package Google Chrome Internet browser onto new Sony PCs. The deal between Google and Sony represents the first Google has made as it pushes to compete with Microsoft IE and Mozilla Firefox in the browser market. According to the Web firm Net Applications, Chrome currently has just 3% of the market while Microsoft enjoys a large 2/3 share. Google described its plans: “”User response to Google Chrome has been outstanding, and we’re continuing to explore ways to make Chrome accessible to even more people.” [via BBC]

Vista and IE Market Share Give Way to Firefox, Chrome, Windows 7

From the “Tell Me Something I Didn’t Know” department comes word that Internet Explorer is losing market share, while Firefox and Google Chrome are posting big gains. But what’s really interesting is how Windows 7’s share has more than quadrupled since last month, even before the operating system goes on sale to the public. Numbers and thoughts, after the jump.

On the browser front, the data from Web metrics firm Net Applications says Internet Explorer’s share was down 1.26 percent in September, dropping its total share to the still-dominant 65.7 percent. Firefox trails with 23.75 percent of the market in September, jumping 0.77 percent since August. Google’s Chrome is still struggling to make a footprint with 4.24 percent of the market, but it did gain 0.34 percent last month. Safari and Opera also saw small gains, while the legacy Netscape browser predictably dropped.

Now, for operating systems, Vista slid by 0.18 percent to 18.6 percent — the first ever loss in market share since January 2008. Windows 7 more than picked up the slack, gaining 0.34 percent to have 1.52 percent of the market. With IT professionals and for-pay developers getting access to the new operating system in August, we shouldn’t be blown away that market share is surging ahead of Windows 7’s October 22 release date, but it’s foreshadowing what should be huge gains in the months ahead as new computers pack the new OS. [via ZDNet]