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Microsoft Security Essentials Available for Download
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69239
After introducing its antivirus software to 75,000 beta testers in June as Microsoft Security Essentials Beta, Microsoft has made its Security Essentials antivirus software available as a free download.
The software, initially code-named Morro, is said to protect PCs against malware, computer viruses, and spyware. Microsoft replaced its subscription-based Windows Live OneCare with Morro after discontinuing OneCare in June.
Microsoft Security Essentials is ideal for low-bandwidth scenarios or less-powerful PCs, according to the company. By targeting the core anti-malware features that most consumers do not keep up to date, the software behemoth said, it will provide the essential protection that consumers need without overusing system resources.
The Redmond, Wash.-based company said making the software available free is about taking down cost barriers that in the past have stopped customers from purchasing up-to-date security protection for their PCs.
"Security has always been one of the big issues surrounding Windows, so it makes sense for Microsoft to make it easy as well as cheap for Windows users to be protected," said Michael Gartenberg, an Interpret analyst.
Microsoft is also quick to remind potential users that the Security Essentials software is not a security suite that provides rich PC-tuning capabilities or backs up data.
"But if what you are looking for is 'install and forget' malware protection and solid quality, Microsoft Security Essentials may be just what you have been waiting for," the Microsoft Security Essentials team wrote in an official blog. Because it's free, no registration is required and no personal information is collected, according to Microsoft.
The software, which is available in eight languages and in 19 markets for Windows PCs, runs in the background so PC users are able to work without interruptions or long waits.
While Microsoft said its security software is to protect PC users, the...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
YouTube and Warner Music Kiss and Make Up
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69238
YouTube and Warner Music Group have kissed and made up. YouTube says Warner Music videos will reemerge on the video site after the companies settled a dispute over financial terms that spanned nine months.
With Warner on board, YouTube now has artists from all four major music labels and publishers, as well as hundreds of indie labels and publishers.
Under the new, multi-year global agreement, viewers will be able to discover, watch and share Warner music on YouTube. The partnership covers the full Warner catalog and includes user-generated content containing WMG acts, according to Chris Maxcy, director of YouTube partner development.
"Warner will also be able to sell their own ad inventory and will use our Content ID technology to claim and monetize user-generated videos uploaded to YouTube by Warner Music fans," Maxcy said. "The partnership is based on a revenue share generated from the ads on the videos, and this makes good business sense for everyone involved: Artists and labels can make money from their videos and the YouTube community gets to enjoy them."
Warner Music Group was the first record label to ink a deal with YouTube in September 2006. The original agreement was to distribute Warner's artists, as well as behind-the-scenes footage, artist interviews, original programming, and other special content. At the time, it was a first-of-its-kind agreement.
Warner Music had posted thousands of video clips from artists like rapper TI and the Red Hot Chili Peppers on YouTube. But last year, Warner reportedly wanted a larger share of the revenue YouTube generates from its visitor traffic.
Reuters cited a source familiar with Warner Music's talks as saying the amount the music label has been receiving from YouTube is "staggeringly low." YouTube responded with a blog posting about the difficulties of music licensing.
At that time, Warner said, "We simply...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Google Wave Will Invite Volunteers To Begin Preview
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69237
Google is poised to unleash a wider preview of its fledgling Google Wave, which produces collaborative "waves" of online information that are equal parts conversation and documents. On Wednesday Google will begin sending out Wave preview invitations to individuals who have signed up to provide feedback.
Wave's preview release will be hosted on the platform's own dedicated Web site rather than in the separate "sandbox" developers have been using since the platform's release to developers in May, according to Google Wave Project Manager Dan Peterson.
"In addition to the developers already using Wave, we will invite groups of users from the hundreds of thousands who offered to help report bugs when they signed up," Peterson said. "And we plan to involve about 100,000 users."
The goal of Google Wave, which is based on the HTML5 standard, is to enable individuals to communicate and work together while using richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, gadgets and other software elements. To dramatically speed up the collaborative efforts, each wave is presented to participants as a "tree structure of messages," within which conventional e-mail and IM capabilities are merged and delivered on a keystroke-by-keystroke basis, said Google Wave creator Lars Rasmussen.
"Here's how it works: In Google Wave you create a wave and add people to it" and "everyone on your wave can use richly formatted text, photos, gadgets and even feeds from other sources on the Web," Rasmussen said. "They can insert a reply or edit the wave directly."
Users see nearly instantly what their fellow collaborators are typing in the wave. This makes the collaboration process -- which Rasmussen calls "concurrent rich-text editing" -- equally well suited for quick messages and persistent content. "It allows for both collaboration and communication," Rasmussen said.
Google also made waves last week through its release of...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Garmin Rolls Out Navigation Smartphone on AT&T
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69236
Mobile-phone users who want directions are in for a treat in October. AT&T has been given the exclusive rights to sell Garmin's new nuvifone G60 mobile device.
Beginning Oct. 4, AT&T will have the exclusive rights to sell Garmin's new GPS-equipped smartphone, Garmin International and AT&T announced Tuesday.
Because of the exclusive arrangement, the nuvifone G60 will only be available with a two-year service agreement. It will cost $399 and come with a $100 mail-in-rebate at AT&T retail stores and through its Web site.
Garmin and AT&T are also encouraging users to activate the Premium Connected Services, which includes traffic updates, white pages, weather, movies and local events. It costs $5.99 a month after a 30-day trial ends.
"Personal navigation devices are already all about mobility, and taking the Garmin experience everywhere as your mobile phone is truly compelling for customers who travel often," said Michael Woodward, a vice president at AT&T. "We expect the nuvifone to be the guide for local restaurants, the least-expensive gas, and the nearest coffee shop for many customers."
Aside from the phone's core Garmin GPS navigation and preloaded maps, the nuvifone also includes a large touchscreen display, Web browsing, Gmail, a three-megapixel autofocus camera, e-mail and text messaging, and Bluetooth capability. The device uses a Linux-based operating system.
Whether mounted or portable, the device gives turn-by-turn voice directions. It also gives users information on road conditions, combining Garmin's HotFix technology with its receiver.
"The nuvifone has Garmin's easy-to-use interface, so navigating to a meeting directly from its calendar or contacts pages, or geotagging an e-mail or photograph with a location stamp, is intuitive, useful and fun," said Cliff Pemble, Garmin's president and COO.
If a user is lost and needs information on the closest hospital or gas station, nuvifone's "Where Am I?" feature provides answers to what the user...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Dell Entices Corporate Market with Ultrathin Latitude Z
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69234
Dell on Tuesday rolled out a new 16-inch laptop aimed at business professionals. With the Latitude Z, Dell hopes to differentiate its latest laptop in a crowded market.
Dell is billing the Latitude Z as the world's first ultrathin 16-inch laptop. It's less than an inch thick, weighs 4.5 pounds, offers a four-cell battery, and boasts a laundry list of features for the business crowd.
"Dell is introducing groundbreaking innovations that mark many industry firsts," said Steve Lalla, vice president and general manager of Dell's Business Client Product Group. "We're delivering robust solutions to solve real customer needs. We are committed to our core business and expanding our product line to meet the needs of our customers when they are ready to refresh or add to their existing infrastructure."
Clad in a black cherry-colored finish, the Latitude Z comes equipped with wireless docking and inductive charging capabilities. Dell's EdgeTouch lets users interact with media controls and the applications they use most often through a touch interface. Dell is offering the Latitude Z with WLAN, Bluetooth and optional 3G WWAN mobile broadband.
The laptop also comes with a high-definition WLED display and a two-megapixel camera with Dell Capture technology that lets users scan and save business cards and copy documents. For security, the laptop offers FaceAware Lock-Out technology that automatically locks out other users when the owner steps away.
Another standard feature aimed at business users is Latitude ON. Dell describes the feature as the convergence of laptop productivity with instant-on convenience and multi-day battery life in idle mode. This offers instant access to e-mail, the Web, contacts, attachments and calendars.
"The Dell Latitude Z laptop combines a thin, lightweight design with full-featured functionality," said Michael Keithley, CIO at Creative Artists Agency. "With a two solid-state drive option, a built-in camera, microphone array, and a...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Newton Veteran's Return Heats Up Apple Tablet Rumors
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69222
For those consulting tea leaves to see if Apple will release a tablet computer in the near future, there's a new leaf. One of the main figures behind Apple's previous tablet venture, the ill-fated but forward-thinking Newton, has returned to the company.
On Monday, Michael Tchao began work as vice president of product marketing at Apple. He was a key mover behind the Newton, which was a small, handheld tablet computer featuring handwriting-recognition software.
Tchao last worked for Apple 15 years ago. His most recent job was as head of Nike's Techlab, which develops athletic gear that is integrated with the iPod. His return has sparked speculation that Apple is putting into place the pieces for the launch, within the next few months, of a long-rumored tablet computer.
But Avi Greengart, an analyst with industry research firm Current Analysis, said he wouldn't "read anything into the hiring of any one individual."
If a Newton veteran's return is not necessarily part of a larger plan, one question is whether the Newton experience figures into Apple's strategy. Will the Cupertino, Calif.-based company be able to use that experience as a guide if it launches a tablet?
Greengart said a key takeaway from the Newton experience actually derived from Palm's highly successful Pilot, also an early personal digital assistant. "Instead of trying to create a portable computer," he said, "Palm made it an adjunct to the PC." By contrast, he said, Newton was less successful because it tried to be its own computer platform.
But Newton also had the problem of being ahead of the technology, he said, both for the form factor and the handwriting-recognition software.
Today, Greengart noted, we are in a different world, one in which the technology is highly developed for touchscreen interfaces, and powerful processors coupled with high-speed...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Steve Jobs on the Greening of Apple
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69207
Except for one keynote speech he gave on Sept. 9, Apple CEO Steven P. Jobs has shunned the press since he went on medical leave in January. But Jobs spoke with BusinessWeek on Sept. 22 about a subject that has nothing to do with the Mac, iPods, or iPhones.
The topic was Apple's reputation with regard to the environment and its effort to reposition itself as a leader instead of a laggard. While environmentalists tend to focus on carbon emissions from corporate operations and companies' publicly stated goals to do better, Jobs says Apple wants to set the pace in addressing what he says is a bigger challenge: reducing the amount of power required to run the company's products. "Unfortunately, we're way ahead of our competitors," Jobs contends.
Until recently, Apple did little to back up this argument other than to say "trust us." That didn't sit well with organizations that urge companies to engage in public debate over global warming or appoint executives or board members to push a green agenda. Apple almost never takes a position on public-policy questions, and few Apple staffers speak or even attend industry conferences. So it's not surprising that Apple scores poorly in rankings. "We tend to report rather than predict," says Jobs. "You won't see us out there saying what the PC is going to look like in 2016. We quietly go try to invent the PC for 2016."
But now, Jobs thinks the time is right to report on what Apple has accomplished. The company has finished a multiyear data-mining project to fully understand its environmental impact on the planet and has published data that may stir up controversy. Apple takes issue with studies that hand accolades to rivals such as Dell and Hewlett-Packard for cutting emissions at...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Social Media and Location-Based Services
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69206
Twitter knows where you are. Or at least it will soon, when it introduces a feature that lets your followers know where you are when you send a tweet. The announcement that Twitter will soon give users the option to disclose their physical whereabouts kindled debate over the role of location-based services (LBS) in social media and elicited criticism that the tools are an invasion of privacy.
I've been trying out a wide range of LBS tools to see for myself whether they're useful or something to be feared. I've used Brightkite; Plazes, which was recently acquired by Nokia; Germany-based Aka Aki, which I like to use in Europe, as well as a series of lesser-known services.
My conclusion after a year of testing is that far from being a threat, sites offering LBS represent vast, unrealized potential to radically transform the way we communicate and stay connected. ABI Research predicts that LBS will generate revenue of more than $14 billion in 2014, from about $2.6 billion this year.
Besides helping us track our location patterns or the nearest Starbucks, these apps collect valuable data about our daily routines and the routines of those closest to us. They track personal tastes in food, fashion, and music so we can receive alerts and location-based notifications. Individual users can use LBS to share relevant information and places with friends. The device maintains a record of our daily routines, and it's constantly looking for people we know who may be nearby. This added layer of movement and context is much more valuable than what's available on existing social networks, such as Facebook, that don't automatically offer location-specific information.
There's no denying LBS could also become a gold mine for marketers. "Context awareness is critical when you want to buy something, and advertisers get...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
How India's Next Outsourcing Wave Can Help the U.S.
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69205
Everyone agrees that the U.S. financial meltdown was the result of several factors, including indiscriminate lending, unprecedented levels of debt, poor assessment of risks, and indifferent oversight by corporate boards. An overlooked factor, however, is the breakdown of systems, especially risk management systems. Large financial institutions have been burdened by several generations of systems that operate in isolated "silos" and rarely talk to each other. These closed systems duplicate functions and make it impossible to get an integrated perspective of the underlying business. The systems kept regulators, investors, clients, and even the executives of the companies themselves from knowing exactly how things worked.
As the U.S. economy revives, it is critical that banks, insurance companies, and other financial institutions do a thorough overhaul of their underlying information technology applications to be able to compete and grow in the future. To do this, they can leverage the next wave of Indian IT outsourcing.
Over the last 30 years, the Indian IT outsourcing industry has gone through two stages. The first wave was characterized by staff augmentation -- "body shopping," as it was then called -- and established that Indian IT professionals were as good as their Western counterparts. The second wave saw the establishment of offshore development centers. Started during the 1990s to fix the Y2K bug, these centers evolved to deliver software maintenance and incremental developmental services for a fraction of the cost U.S. companies would pay for similar work at home. Second-wave firms now also deliver ERP implementation and maintenance, infrastructure management, and testing services. Today, India exports more than $25 billion of IT outsourcing services and is the mainstream destination for offshore programming. It commands more than a 70 percent share of the global offshore outsourcing market.
Over the last few years, we have seen a third wave emerge: a growing...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Solid-State Drives: Computer Storage Format of the Future
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69201
Solid-state drives (SSD) -- computer data storage units with no moving parts -- are becoming the new standard in computer data storage.
Indeed, a recent report from iSuppli, a US marketing company, showed that more than half of all mobile computers are expected to come with SSDs in 2010, as the new drive slowly edges out traditional hard drives.
But beware. Experts say SSDs aren't quite ready for prime time. Although they might perform well, it might not yet be time to purchase.
SSDs rely on flash memory to save data. "These are small memory chips upon which data is written," explains Ingolf Leschke of Computer Bild Spiele, a German computer magazine.
That compares with standard drives, where data is stored on magnetized, spinning discs. Dropping one of these drives usually renders them inoperable, since the impact will render the discs unusable.
"An SSD would survive that," says Leschke. The flash memory is more robust and less susceptible to bumps than the old-fashioned drive.
Another plus is the faster speed of SSDs. Leschke says the top-of-the-line models can read 250 megabytes (MB) per second and write at 150 MB per second. Such times allow data searches in half the time standard drives need. Indeed, there are many cases where the performance quality more than doubles over magnetic drives.
SSDs also have an advantage in accessing data. With a magnetic drive, the computer system has to hunt down the location of the desired data. But an SSD has direct access to every memory cell, significantly speeding up its index searches.
Markedly reduced power consumption is another bonus. "It takes a lot of pressure off the battery," says Thomas Littschwager of Chip, a German computer magazine. That attribute makes SSDs attractive for netbooks and notebooks. Manufacturers have gone a step further, advertising longer lifespans for a computer. "But that hasn't...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Open-Source Software: An All-Star Lineup
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69199
Washington (dpa) -- Want a PC full of free software? To get it, you don't need to adopt Ubuntu or any of the other Unix-based operating systems. Nor do you have to rely on the sometimes risky freeware you find scattered around the Internet. Instead, you can look to the open source movement, where free software is not synonymous with underpowered and unsupported. In fact, many of the best open source applications are not only updated as often as commercial packages. In some cases, they're simply superior. Here's a rundown of open source applications that are widely considered best-of-breed.
No surprise here: OpenOffice (http://www.openoffice.org) is the undisputed king of open source office software. Boasting most of what you get with the big commercial packages -- a word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation application -- the individual applications in OpenOffice are even compatible with the file formats used by MS Office and other leading fee-based software.
Beyond compatibility, though, there's plenty to like. Each new version of OpenOffice focuses as much on ease of use as it does on tacking on features. You're likely, in fact, to experience more of a learning curve when switching from Microsoft's Office 2003 to 2007 than you are from Office 2003 to OpenOffice. Complex graphics, tables, presentation effects, and interoperability are all de rigueur with OpenOffice. It's worth trying even if you're not focused on adopting open source software completely.
If you're still getting your e-mail the old fashioned way -- through a standalone e-mail program rather than through your Web browser -- then you're probably using a commercial package such as Outlook to organize it.
If you move to OpenOffice, however, you'll find e-mail sorely lacking. But don't fret. The same people that delighted millions with the popular Firefox Web browser also concocted the e-mail client Thunderbird (http://www.mozillamessaging.com).
With...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
Great Recession Transforms Workplace, Workforce
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69196
Going to work may never be the same again.
The Great Recession has reshaped the American workplace and work force in ways that will last years, if not longer.
The work force is graying as college graduates can't find jobs, young workers get laid off and older workers delay retirement. People in white-collar jobs are feeling increasingly vulnerable to economic downturns, an insecurity that blue-collar workers have known for years.
Perhaps the most enduring change is the permanent loss of millions of jobs across the manufacturing, services and retail sectors.
For textile factories and service sector employers like customer service call centers, the next wave of significant job creation will occur abroad, where labor is cheaper. That trend was under way before the recession and will accelerate, according to labor economists. Americans who would have held these jobs will have to retrain themselves for other jobs, such as assembling microchips and medical devices.
For retailers, growth will be limited by more cautious consumer spending, in part because the days of easy credit are over. That means fewer retail clerks milling about stores around the holidays, and fewer merchandise buyers and other staff jobs at headquarters.
"We're in a very deep jobs crisis, and we're not coming out of it," says William George, professor of management at Harvard Business School. "It's too glib to say that jobs are a lagging indicator" and that hiring will return to normal once the economy does, he says.
The national unemployment rate, now 9.7 percent, is forecast to rise above 10 percent before the end of the year and isn't expected to return to a "normal" level near 5 percent until 2014.
Of course, layoffs aren't the only thing transforming the workplace.
The need to cut costs deeply and quickly has forced businesses to get creative -- not just go the easy route of...
Wed, 30 Sep 09
EU To Set Volume Limits on MP3 Players
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69193
Now hear this, if you still can: The European Union said Monday it wants makers of popular digital music players to recommend users turn the volume down to preserve their hearing.
The EU's Consumer Affairs Commissioner Meglena Kuneva said experts and industry will together draft tougher standards to limit hearing loss.
"If you want to enjoy your favorite songs in 20 or 30 years time, turn the volume down," Kuneva said.
Action is necessary because there is cause for concern over health risks, especially to younger people, she said.
An EU scientific advisory body says that between 2.5 million and 10 million Europeans could suffer hearing loss from listening to MP3 players at unsafe volumes -- over 89 decibels -- for more an hour daily for at least five years.
The EU's executive commission said the maximum sound levels of players now being sold range between 80 and 115 decibels. Using different earphones could add to those levels by up to 9 decibels. Above 120 decibels is equivalent to the level of noise generated by an airplane taking off.
"The use of personal music players at high volume settings over a sustained time can lead to permanent hearing damage," said Kuneva. "We need to make sure consumers, particularly young people, are aware of these risks."
Kuneva said the new standards would see new players include a maximum sound level default at 80 decibels. However users could still switch that default off if they wanted to.
She said the risk of hearing damage also depended on the length of time users listen to music and urged manufacturers to beef up health warnings with players sold, either in instruction manuals or on the product itself.
Manufacturers welcomed the move, but said they would have to study the best way on how to issue better health warnings.
Bridget Cosgrave, director general of DigitalEurope,...
Tue, 29 Sep 09
TomTom Adds LIVE Service To Mid-Range XL 340S LIVE
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69217
TomTom is moving fast to expand its GPS product line. On Monday, the company rolled out the TomTom XL 340S LIVE. TomTom also announced a new agreement with AT&T to provide the wireless connection to the XL 340S LIVE.
TomTom initially launched LIVE services on the premium GO range of devices. Now the company is extending the services to its mid-range devices. The LIVE services include local search powered by Google, real-time traffic information, a fuel-price service, weather, safety alerts, and QuickGPSfix, which helps the TomTom personal navigation device find your current position quickly.
"TomTom is committed to delivering real-time information to drivers whenever they need it, so they can quickly search online for points of interest, route around traffic, find the best fuel prices or access the latest weather reports," said Jocelyn Vigreux, president of TomTom. "Backed by the strength of AT&T's network, we're giving drivers the very best foundation on which to enjoy a range of useful, real-time services."
The TomTom XL 340S LIVE includes TomTom's exclusive IQ Routes technology. It calculates routes based on historical speed measurements for every time of day and for every road segment, from large highways to small local roads. In up to 35 percent of all cases, drivers get a faster route, saving significant travel time, money and fuel, TomTom promises.
Real-time traffic speed and incident reports are automatically and wirelessly sent to the XL 340S LIVE every two to five minutes. Drivers can listen to information about traffic that is also displayed on the screen. Based on this information, a driver can either choose to remain on the current route with the new estimated time of arrival, or take an alternative route suggested by the device.
The XL 340S LIVE comes with full maps of the U.S., Canada and Mexico; seven million points...
Tue, 29 Sep 09
Xerox Will Acquire Affiliated Computer Services for $6.4B
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69216
Xerox announced an agreement Monday under which the document technology giant will acquire business process outsourcing (BPO) firm Affiliated Computer Services. The $6.4 billion cash and stock deal, which already has been approved by both companies' boards of directors, is expected to close in the first quarter next year.
Xerox CEO Ursula Burns called the deal a "game changer" that will help the company dramatically expand by combining its strengths in document technology with the expertise of ACS in work-process management and automation. "Through our strategic initiatives, it became clear that the BPO market is well aligned with our business and a key driver of long-term growth," Burns told investors.
With its acquisition of ACS, Xerox will become a $22 billion global company, of which $17 billion is in recurring revenue -- a significant boost to the annuity stream, Burns said. "The revenue we generate from services will triple from $3.5 billion in 2008 to an estimated $10 billion next year," Burns said.
ACS automates paper-based work processes and provides specialized BPO and information-technology services to a wide range of industries, including telecommunications, retail and financial services, health care, education and transportation. The acquisition will enable Xerox to target the $150 billion BPO market, which the company said is growing at five percent a year.
"Customers are increasingly seeking service providers that offer a full range of solutions -- from their document technology to the process management in their back and front office operations -- and large enterprises require global capabilities and global account management," Burns told investors. "That is exactly what we will deliver by expanding Xerox's portfolio of document technology and services to include the BPO capabilities of ACS."
Burns said ACS is the largest provider of managed services to federal, state, county and local governments...
Tue, 29 Sep 09
China Unicom Ready To Sell iPhone in October
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69215
China Unicom will sell the iPhone in China beginning next month, the company confirmed Monday. The deal between Apple and China Unicom was officially made public in August after news leaked that employees were being trained on the iPhone.
The first leak came when a company insider from subsidiary Guangdong Unicom said it had reached an agreement with Apple to purchase five million iPhones worth approximately $1.5 million. Then last month China Unicom confirmed the rumors with an earnings announcement that it had inked a deal to buy iPhones wholesale.
Although it came clean about the deal, China Unicom left out some significant details, including the price and the launch date. Now the Hong Kong-based company has confirmed it will sell the iPhone for 5,000 yuan (US$732), through a three-year service deal with Apple beginning Oct. 1, according to The Wall Street Journal. The company will offer a choice of eight service packages.
The iPhones will be sold at Apple retail stores in China as well as through China Unicom, which will be the exclusive carrier for now.
One major question that remains unanswered is how much iPhone the 5,000 yuan will buy, since no official details have been released on whether the company will sell an 8GB, 16GB or 32GB version of the iPhone or all versions.
The iPhones were purchased from Apple for $292 each, Yu Zhaonan, manager of Guangdong's consumer department, told China Business News. At that time, the newspaper said a 16GB iPhone would sell for $702 and an 8GB $351, both more than Apple charges for the iPhones in the U.S.
China Unicom's exclusive deal gives the wireless carrier a boost against rivals China Mobile and China Telecom and gives China Unicom a chance to increase its 142 million mobile subscribers and 36.6 million...
Tue, 29 Sep 09
Apple's App Store Reaches Two Billion Downloads
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69214
Apple's App Store has reached two billion downloads. The Cupertino, Calif.-based company has been promoting both its iPhone and its App Store as rivals have launched new smartphones and online app stores.
With more than 85,000 apps available to 50 million plus iPhone and iPod touch customers and 125,000 developers, Apple said its store continues to be a success.
Three weeks ago Apple said its App Store, which is available in 77 countries in more than 20 categories, including business, lifestyle and games, had reached 1.8 billion downloads. The new data show Apple downloads rose 200 million in less than a month.
"The rate of App Store downloads continues to accelerate, with users downloading a staggering two billion apps in just over a year, including more than half a billion apps this quarter alone," said Apple CEO Steve Jobs. "The App Store has reinvented what you can do with a mobile handheld device, and our users are clearly loving it."
"It has absolutely accelerated," said Natalie Kerris, an Apple spokesperson, about the downloads. "In the first nine months we had one billion and then 1.5, and we are at 14 months since launch with two billion."
Apple said it is still way ahead of its rivals' app stores that have rushed to market. Since Apple's App Store was launched in July 2008, companies such as Palm, Microsoft and Google have launched application stores.
Finnish phone maker Nokia has launched its Ovi Store, as has Research In Motion with its App World for BlackBerrys, and LG Electronics with the its Application Store. Last month, Samsung also announced it, too, will open an app store.
Despite the number of app stores available, Apple continues to proclaim that no competitor's store has reached the level of its App Store. "Tell me any other app...
Tue, 29 Sep 09
AT&T Asks FCC To Investigate Google Voice Limits
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69191
AT&T has asked the Federal Communications Commission to launch an investigation into Google Voice. AT&T suggested that Google's free service may violate federal communications laws.
AT&T pointed to news reports about Google Voice that indicate the service restricts users from making calls to areas where wireless carriers charge high access fees. Other telephone service providers are restricted from this practice under federal law. AT&T seemingly wants Google to play by the same rules.
"By blocking these calls, Google is able to reduce its access expense," AT&T said in a letter sent to the FCC on Friday. The telecom giant is also arguing that Google Voice violates the FCC's Net-neutrality guidelines because it hinders competition in the network and service providers market. AT&T said Google is breaking the rules by "openly flaunting the call-blocking prohibition that applies to its competitors."
Richard Whitt, Google's telecom and media counsel, was quick to respond to AT&T's complaint. He first offered background on the situation.
Whitt said certain local carriers in rural areas charge AT&T and other long-distance companies especially high rates to connect calls to their networks. Sometimes these local carriers partner and share revenue with adult chat services, conference calling centers, party lines, and others that are able to attract lots of incoming phone calls to their networks, Whitt explained.
"Under the common-carrier laws, AT&T and other traditional phone companies are required to connect these calls. In the past they've argued that these rural carriers are abusing the system to 'establish grossly excessive access charges under false pretenses,' and to 'offer kickbacks to operators of pornographic chat lines and other calling services'," Whitt said. "We agree with AT&T that the current carrier compensation system is badly flawed, and that the single best answer is for the FCC to take the necessary steps to fix...
Tue, 29 Sep 09
At Business School, Sustainability Takes Center Stage
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69180
It's that time again. Summer vacation is over, the sunscreen and swimsuits have been stashed, and a new school year at business school is under way. But what sort of welcome can the eager new entrants to top MBA programs expect in such interesting economic times?
Throughout the boom years, when a stint at a major business school was more or less a guarantee of a high-paying job in banking or consulting, most new students kicked off the year with an inaugural address from one of the great and good of the business world. These addresses, which tended to focus on "how I did it and how much I made in the process," were usually delivered by an alum of the school and served both as an inspiration and a confirmation that the tuition fees they had just paid were well worth the money.
This year, however, an altogether different type of person has started to replace the senior bankers and corporate CEOs of the past. Now we're seeing speakers who are there to deliver a much softer, more socially friendly message to the potential business leaders of the future. New students at Georgetown's McDonough School of Business (McDonough Full-Time MBA Profile), for example, have heard from Michael Dupee of the fair-trade pioneers, Green Mountain Coffee, while their counterparts at Boston University (Boston Full-Time MBA Profile) got the head of marketing from Stonyfield Farm, a company that gives as much as 10 percent of its profits to environmental projects. At one of Europe's leading schools, HEC Paris (HEC Paris Full-Time MBA Profile), the MBA program went even further by commissioning the environmental campaigner Yann Arthus Bertrand to deliver an address that had less to say about business per se and more about how responsible leadership could allow the class to play their...
Tue, 29 Sep 09
Sony Reader Touch Edition Fills a Niche
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69168
When Sony announced three new digital book readers in August, pundits quickly surmised that the mid-tier model, the Sony Reader Touch Edition, might find few takers. Their concern was that the $299 version might get lost between the lower-priced $199 Reader Pocket Edition, with its obvious appeal to budget-minded readers, and the high-end touch-equipped $399 Reader Daily Edition, which is due later this year and is expected to boast wireless access.
But after testing the Touch Edition over the past few weeks, it's easy to see why Sony opted to include it in the lineup. The touchscreen and other features are a step up for users of the current Sony Reader. And new users who aren't holding out for a wireless version will no doubt like the intuitive feel. Its features are far easier to master than those of the rival Amazon Kindle family of readers.
This isn't Sony's first touchscreen Reader. But the new Reader Touch Edition is a vast improvement over the previous iteration, the PRS-700, introduced in 2008. The now-discontinued earlier version suffered from the inclusion of a well-intentioned but poorly executed feature. Most e-readers are virtually impossible to read in poor lighting. To address that, Sony included a backlight. But to accommodate the light, Sony had to install another layer on top of the digital e-ink used to render images. Contrast was so poor in normal lighting situations, and glare so strong, that users needed to keep the backlight on all the time. That drained the battery within a couple of days instead of the two weeks without a charge that other readers boasted.
With the Touch Edition, Sony removes the backlight completely. Instead, it sells a book cover with an integrated book light for $55. Sony also jettisoned the stylish leather cover that came with previous Readers. It's...
Tue, 29 Sep 09
Effectively Protecting Your Customers' Data
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69064
Today's organizations depend and thrive on data for marketing, customer service and staff management, and like anything that is valuable, criminals have been seeking it to commit ID theft, blackmail or other crimes.
The 2009 Identity Fraud Survey Report by Javelin Strategy and Research reports that the number of identity fraud victims has increased 22 percent to 9.9 million adults in the U.S., while the total annual fraud amount increased by seven percent to $48 billion over the past year. The reasons include profitability, safety and simplicity, explains Greg Young, research vice president, Gartner.
To limit ID fraud U.S. Federal Trade Commission requires financial institutions and creditors to comply with its new Red Flags; after much delay enforcement begins Nov. l, 2009. The regulations mandate these firms to implement programs to identify, detect, and respond to the warning signs, or "red flags," that could indicate identity theft.
Unfortunately firms have been launching new data-using processes without having the tools in place to adequately protect users and themselves.
"The business uses of data have gone far beyond what the security architectures and procedures are designed for and these have not caught up," explains Young. "There is a disconnect between what businesses do and intended to do with data and what security fence system is in place to enforce those policies."
Also companies have been erring in favor of not inconveniencing customers as opposed to security such as asking for authentication through passwords and answers to challenge questions. These methods have become more difficult because the secrets used for authenticating users via passwords are readily available. This matter comes to a head with contact center agents who face annoyed buyers on the phone and who have to keep handle times short.
"There is a line between customer access and customer service that is tread more often than not...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
Additional Funding Pushes Twitter's Value to $1 Billion
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69190
There's a lot of tweeting about the micro-blogging company behind the tweets. Twitter closed an estimated $100 million round of funding Friday and its valuation soared to $1 billion.
With 40 million users and still growing, Twitter has not only grabbed the attention of technology giants, including Facebook, Google and Microsoft, which have reportedly offered to acquire the company, but attention from investors. Insight Venture Partners, T. Rowe Price, Institutional Venture Partners, Spark Capital, and Benchmark Capital have acquired a piece of the Twitter pie coveted by the tech giants.
Twitter cofounder Evan Williams wasted no time blogging about the investment. "It was important to us that we find investment partners who share our vision for building a company of enduring value," Williams wrote. "Twitter's journey has just begun and we are committed to building the best product, technology and company possible."
What Twitter plans to do with the $100 million is not clear, since the company previously reported $55 million in funding, with half of it in the bank. Some observers have speculated the funds will be used to acquire companies providing some of the background technology for Twitter, or to add more technology.
Analysts say the risk to investors from a company with no revenue model isn't high because Twitter still has potential for robust growth, has an experienced management team, and has a large number of users. Oh, and don't forget the stars on the Twitter wagon, including Ashton Kutcher, Kanye West, Oprah Winfrey, and President Barack Obama.
But the question that some analysts are asking is if the price is right.
"The high-water mark for social-network valuation was Microsoft's investment in Facebook in October 2007, which valued that company at $15 billion, or about $250 per user," said Rick Valdes, a Gartner analyst. "Five months later, AOL acquired second-tier...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
AT&T Finally Activates MMS Service for iPhone
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69189
AT&T launched its long-awaited MMS service for the iPhone on Friday. That puts the iPhone on a messaging par with other smartphones and, AT&T hopes, puts an end to complaints about the lack of this feature.
MMS is short for Multimedia Messaging Service. AT&T is making MMS, which lets users send text, photos, audios and videos across the network, available on the iPhone, iPhone 3G, and iPhone 3GS.
To activate the new service, users need to connect the iPhone to a computer and click "Check for Update" in iTunes. Once the update is completed, AT&T said, users need to restart the iPhone by turning it off and then on again. The iPhone OS 3.1 software is required, so consumers who haven't upgraded the operating system need to do this first.
"From the standpoint of the AT&T portfolio, every other phone could do MMS, but the iPhone could not," said William Ho, a senior analyst in the wireless services division of Current Analysis. "I think the original thought was that people who used the iPhone could just take a photo and e-mail it, and that would serve the same function. But the problem is you can't always e-mail it to another handset."
Ho said MMS lets users bypass the e-mail functions and send multimedia files directly to another handset. With the rise in social networking, this has become an important capability because many smartphone users rely on MMS to update Facebook accounts with new photos and videos generated on the device instead of uploading through a smartphone app.
Time spent on social networks and blogs has nearly tripled in the past year, accounting for 17 percent of the overall time spent online in August, according to the latest numbers from Nielsen. And more than 18.3 million unique U.S. smartphone users turned to their devices...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
RIM's Profits Shrink as BlackBerry Technology Ages
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69188
Bono couldn't save BlackBerry. Research in Motion reported a decline in quarterly profits Thursday, causing the company's stock to plunge in Friday trading. Although revenues were up, the BlackBerry maker's profits are shrinking.
RIM's revenue for the second quarter of fiscal 2010 was $3.53 billion, up three percent from $3.42 billion in the previous quarter and up 37 percent from $2.58 billion in the same quarter last year. Most of RIM's revenue, 81 percent, came from devices. Another 14 percent came from services, and two percent came from software.
RIM shipped about 8.3 million devices in the quarter and gained about 3.8 million new BlackBerry subscriber accounts. At the end of the quarter, RIM counted about 32 million BlackBerry subscribers.
"We are pleased to report a strong second quarter with excellent financial performance, successful product launches, and accelerating growth in international markets and new market segments," said Jim Balsillie, RIM's co-CEO. "RIM is entering the second half of the fiscal year and approaching the holiday buying season with an impressive product portfolio, continuing business momentum, and strong marketing support from our partners around the world."
Balsillie sounds optimistic, but the markets didn't respond well to RIM's earnings or its outlook. RIM's earnings declined four percent in the second quarter, thanks, in part, to patent-settlement charges. And the company projected third-quarter revenues of between $3.6 billion and $3.85 billion, with anticipated earnings of $1 to $1.08 per share. RIM also said the selling price for BlackBerrys will drop to $320 in the third quarter, about $25 less than the previous quarter.
Michael Gartenberg, a vice president at Interpret, said part of RIM's challenge is increased competition. Other companies, including Apple, have learned to emulate RIM's signature trick -- push e-mail. Perhaps more important, he noted, is the consumer trend toward using smartphones for more...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
Intel Unveils New CE4100 Media Chip for TV Interaction
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69187
TVs that blend video, 3-D animation, graphics and interactivity. That vision of the future of television was described by Intel Thursday during its unveiling of the Atom CE4100 media processor. The announcement was made at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco.
The CE4100, also known by the code name Sodaville, is the company's newest system on chip. Intel executive Eric Kim said the chip provides the processing power that is "the center of the TV evolution," featuring high performance and high-resolution graphics capabilities.
Consumer electronics manufacturers and software developers, he said, "now have a platform for real innovation." The new chip is intended for digital set-top boxes, networked media players, and digital TV sets.
High-end graphics and audio/video decoding are keys to Intel's vision of TV's future. As part of its push into this field, Intel said it is working with Adobe Systems to port Flash Player 10 to this new kind of media processor. This will mean, the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company said, that future consumer electronics devices will be optimized for playback of H.264 video, Flash-based applications, and graphics.
Intel's vision of the future also includes high-quality 3-D video in the living room, which will impose huge new computation and bandwidth requirements on consumer electronics.
With the CE4100 chip as a step toward solving the computing side, Intel executives also discussed a new, high-speed optical I/O technology with the code name of Light Peak. Light Peak, they said, will improve bandwidth and flexibility while decreasing complexity and cost.
If you think the present offers an overabundance of programming choices on a TV or computer, wait until the future arrives. To help find content in a more personalized way, Intel pointed to the CBS-developed TV Widget, a small application that allows viewers to find content based on customized preferences. The Widget...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
Verizon Wireless Reportedly Drops Plan To Offer Palm Pre
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69186
Just three months after Verizon Wireless indicated it would include the Palm Pre smartphone in its lineup of mobile devices, reports say the plan has been nixed. In June, Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam said people would see devices such as the Palm Pre available on the network. He didn't provide an exact date, but said it would be over the next six months, about the time Sprint Nextel's exclusive deal to sell the Pre in the U.S. ends.
Now, however, a source familiar with the situation said plans to offer the smartphone have been scrapped, according to TheStreet.com.
Verizon would not answer questions about whether it will offer the Pre in October or November, and would not comment on whether McAdam's plan has been nixed. "We don't provide comments on rumor or speculation," said Brenda Raney, executive director of communications at Verizon Wireless.
"At this point it's all speculation with no sources, so I tend to take it all with a grain of salt," said Interpret analyst Michael Gartenberg. "We do know Verizon Wireless' CEO said they would have 'Pre like' devices sometime in 2010, so if it's not a Pre, it might well be some other webOS device from Palm."
"Verizon Wireless does need a deeper smartphone catalog, though, so a webOS device would fill that need nicely," Gartenberg added. Palm has indicated it will focus on devices using its webOS operating system.
While it is still speculation at this point, observers believe Verizon's decision to consider nixing the Palm Pre may be because the Pre's sales at Sprint have not reached huge numbers.
People close to the discussions say Verizon could change its mind because of weak Pre sales. The source said if Verizon does decide to offer the Pre, it will not carry a lot of inventory and...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
Judge Delays Google Book Settlement for Revisions
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69177
At the request of the Author's Guild and the Association of American Publishers, a U.S. District Court has postponed a hearing on the proposed settlement with Google on the scanning and distribution of copyrighted books. Google didn't oppose the delay.
On Tuesday, the plaintiffs asked the court for more time to amend the proposed settlement with Google so it would conform to U.S. government concerns. "To continue on the current schedule would put the court in a position of reviewing and having participants at the hearing speak to the original settlement agreement, which will not be the subject of a motion for final approval," the plaintiffs said.
U.S. District Court Judge Denny Chin agreed to the request. "The court will, however, conduct a status conference on October 7 at 10 a.m. to determine how to proceed with the case as expeditiously as possible," Chin said.
The Department of Justice told the court on Sept. 18 that the breadth of the book settlement as originally proposed raises significant legal concerns. "A global disposition of the rights to millions of copyrighted works is typically the kind of policy change implemented through legislation, not through a private judicial settlement," the DOJ said.
Should the court elect to make a significant policy change through a class-action settlement as opposed to legislation, the DOJ advised it to undertake a particularly searching analysis to ensure that all federal requirements are met and the settlement is consistent with U.S. copyright and antitrust laws. "As presently drafted, the proposed settlement does not meet the legal standards this court must apply," the DOJ said.
In particular, the DOJ is concerned that the settlement would establish a marketplace in which only one competitor would have authority to use a vast array of works, especially the subset of publications called "orphan" works that...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
EU Nearing Settlement Deal with Microsoft
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69165
Two months before her term expires, Neelie Kroes, the European antitrust chief, is signaling that a settlement is within reach that could close one of the bitterest chapters of her tenure: the long-running case against Microsoft.
In recent weeks, European officials have been market-testing an unprecedented offer made by Microsoft in July that would give European computer users a choice of Web browsers when setting up the next version of its Windows operating system.
With the pace of negotiations accelerating, Ms. Kroes said in an interview Monday that she was eager to reach a deal. But she indicated that her legal team was carefully examining the fine print to make sure it meets all necessary conditions.
"I would be pleased if we could close that dossier," Ms. Kroes said about her battle with Microsoft -- a series of rulings that has resulted in EUR 1.2 billion, or $1.8 billion, in fines against the company since she took office in 2004.
But she said she wanted a solution that she could "present to the outside world" and that would enable her to tell consumers "that indeed competition is there."
Ahead of a visit to the United States this week, Ms. Kroes also said she would discuss with her U.S. counterpart antitrust issues involving Google, another technology giant with a powerful market position.
And she underlined the importance of trans-Atlantic cooperation in creating the "transparent and predictable competition policy" which, she said, globalization requires.
Attempts over the years by the European Union and Microsoft to settle the previous case failed, resulting in a ruling against the company in 2004, upheld on appeal in 2007. Microsoft had also fought earlier attempts to open Windows to another competing browser, Netscape, in the United States.
This July, however, facing new charges in Europe, Microsoft offered to tweak Windows so that users of new...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
HP's Bet in Buying EDS Seems a Winner
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69160
By many measures, it has been a tough year for employees of Electronic Data Systems. After Hewlett-Packard bought the computer services company in August for $13.9 billion, it immediately began hacking the work force.
Led by a master cost-cutter, Mark V. Hurd, HP laid off 25,000 EDS workers, and cut the salaries of some by more than 20 percent. Mr. Hurd even stripped the EDS brass of their plush offices and corralled them in cubicles.
But despite the risk that angry employees and customers would walk out the door, the acquisition has paid off well for HP -- so well, in fact, that an important rival has decided to strike a similar deal. Dell announced this week that it was paying $3.9 billion for Perot Systems, the Texas computer services company started by H. Ross Perot after he left EDS
Plenty of employees have complained about HP's tactics, but the company says it has persevered through the turmoil to keep most of EDS's customers. Last quarter, HP's operating profit margin on services hit 13.8 percent, the highest level in a decade. And the combined company's services division is HP's biggest business in terms of revenue -- a remarkable metamorphosis for what has long been viewed as a slow-growth maker of PCs and printers.
On Wednesday, HP will take another big step toward full integration of EDS, extinguishing the 47-year-old company's name. The new name, HP Enterprise Services, reflects the union of the services operations at the two companies.
"I acknowledge that we have done a lot of hard stuff, but this is all about getting HP in a position where we can compete and win," said Ann Livermore, an executive vice president at HP who heads its services and data-center-products businesses.
In talks with EDS employees, executives have put it more bluntly. At one meeting in...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
How To Add an E-Mail Program to Windows 7
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69156
Q. Is it true there is no e-mail program included with Windows 7?
A. Windows 7, due out on Oct. 22, is expected to be more streamlined than previous versions of Microsoft's flagship system, which included a bunch of bundled programs. In the Windows 7 test versions released this year, the built-in Windows Mail program was gone, along with the Windows Photo Gallery and Windows Movie Maker applications.
But while these programs are not automatically included with Windows 7, you can get them free by taking a quick trip out to the Web and downloading them from the Windows Live Essentials site at download.live.com. Here, you can get Windows Mail and Messenger (for exchanging instant messages), as well as Windows Photo Gallery, Windows Movie Maker and a program called Writer for composing blog posts.
If you use a Web-based mail service like Yahoo or AOL, you may not even need to have a separate e-mail program installed.
But if you want or need a stand-alone program for mail, free software like Mozilla Thunderbird (www.mozillamessaging.com) is another option. (Some people have reported problems with Thunderbird on early test versions of Windows 7; the Addictive Tips site has a guide with workaround suggestions at bit.ly/BsJF2.)
Q. What's the easiest way to get full-resolution photos from iPhoto '09 copied to a CD for printing at the neighborhood store?
A. Although iPhoto '09 has a Burn command under the Share menu, this particular option makes discs viewable only in the iPhoto program itself. To get your pictures to the store for processing through a self-serve kiosk or other service, you need to export them out of iPhoto and burn them to a disc with another program.
Once you select the photos or album in the iPhoto window, go to the File menu and choose Export. In the box that pops up,...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
SEC Charges Perot Worker with Insider Trading
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69152
The Securities and Exchange Commission said Wednesday it has charged Reza Saleh, an employee of a Perot Systems Corp. affiliate, with insider trading related to Dell Inc.'s offer to buy Perot Systems earlier this week.
In a complaint filed in Dallas, the SEC said Saleh, 53, reaped about $8.6 million in "illicit profits" based on his knowledge of "material, non-public information that he learned in the course of his employment with, or duties for, two Perot-related private companies and Perot Systems."
The SEC is seeking a court order to freeze Saleh's assets.
A message left under a listing for Reza Saleh in Richardson, Texas, was not immediately returned Wednesday.
Saleh works for Parkcentral Capital Management LP, the Plano, Texas-based investment firm of former presidential candidate and Perot Systems Chairman Emeritus Ross Perot. Saleh also works for Perot Investments, which manages Ross' personal financial affairs, and has sometimes attended Perot Systems planning meetings, according to the complaint.
Dell said Monday it will pay $3.9 billion -- a hefty premium -- for the technology services company. The move is part of Dell's attempt to expand beyond the PC business and compete more aggressively with Hewlett-Packard Co.
The SEC's complaint, filed the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, alleges that Saleh learned nonpublic information about the Dell offer on Sept. 4 through his work. The agency said Saleh made "extremely large" purchases of call options for Perot Systems common stock between Sept. 4 and Sept. 18, and then sold all of the 9,332 call options on Monday after Perot Systems' stock soared on the official merger announcement.
The resulting $8.6 million profit was distributed between two TDAmeritrade accounts, the SEC said. On the same day, Saleh withdrew $5,000 from one of his accounts and attempted to pull out another $55,000, but was denied after the SEC contacted...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
Baidu CEO Draws Big Crowd in Google's Backyard
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69151
The billionaire founder of a popular search engine drew a big crowd at Stanford University -- and it wasn't one of the guys that started Google Inc. just a few miles (kilometers) from the campus they once attended.
About 600 students crammed into a lecture room Wednesday to soak up the wisdom of Robin Li, who owns rare bragging rights over Google and its founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin.
Li, 40, is the chief executive and founder of Baidu Inc., a nine-year-old company that dominates Internet search in China like Google dominates the market in just about every other major country in the world.
The impressive feat earned Li rock-star treatment at Stanford, the place where Page and Brin conceived Google's technology as graduate students before dropping out to start their now-famous company in 1998.
Li, a China native who got his graduate degree from the University of New York at Buffalo, seemed to relish the adulation he received at his rivals' old stomping grounds.
"That part is sort of special," Li said in a brief interview with The Associated Press after he spent a half hour posing for photos and passing out business cards to the hordes of mostly Asian students who flocked around him after his 50-minute presentation.
Li has become an entrepreneurial hero in China, and not only because his company eclipsed Google in that country. He also became a mogul after starting Baidu nine years ago with just $1.2 million in venture capital.
Baidu's market value now stands at about $14 billion, and Li's stake in the Beijing-based company is worth more than $2 billion. Baidu's U.S. shares fell $1.34 Wednesday to close at $394.50 -- a more than 14-fold increase from their August 2005 initial public offering price of $27.
Baidu's meteoric rise from its IPO price also tops Google, whose stock...
Sat, 26 Sep 09
U.S. Weighs Cell-Phone Ban for Bus, Truck Drivers
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69149
Safety investigators told U.S. government regulators three years ago that it was dangerous for bus drivers to talk on cell phones while driving and recommended a ban.
The National Transportation Safety Board put that recommendation on its list of most important safety measures. Industry and safety groups had no objections.
Yet the regulatory agency that would write new rules on cell phone use by commercial drivers, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, has done little more than study the issue.
Now, after several high-profile accidents that focused public attention on using cell phones on the road, the Obama administration has decided to act on the issue, which was left hanging by the Bush administration.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood will convene a two-day summit next week on distracted driving and plans to announce actions to address cell phone use by bus and truck drivers, said spokeswoman Jill Zuckman.
The NTSB's recommendation was prompted by a 2004 accident in which the driver of a motorcoach carrying students on a trip to Washington became so engrossed in a cell phone conversation that he failed to notice signs that said the height of an upcoming bridge was nearly 2 feet less than the height of the bus. The bus slammed into the underside of the bridge, shearing off the roof and injuring 11 passengers.
"He drove that bus right into that bridge. It was like a can opener -- it just peeled the top back," said NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman. "If you could see the picture, you would be shocked that there weren't fatalities."
The safety board recommended that the motor carrier administration prohibit commercial bus drivers from talking on cell phones except in emergencies and that it encourage states to do the same for school bus drivers.
The agency responded that it would study whether a new rule was needed and...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Another Outage Slows Google's Gmail Service
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69176
Google's Gmail service suffered its second outage this month Thursday. The problem was unrelated to Tuesday's two-hour outage at Google News, the company said.
A problem with Google Contacts on Thursday caused many Gmail users to experience slow responsiveness and degraded service for about an hour, Google explained in an e-mail.
"Mail was back to full speed for everyone around 8 a.m. Pacific, and the issue affecting contacts was resolved shortly after," a Google spokesperson said. "We're sorry for the inconvenience. As usual, we'll provide an incident report on the Apps Status Dashboard, where we also gave ongoing status updates as this issue progressed."
What makes these Gmail issues notable is not just that they occur, but that they occur under great public scrutiny -- and that's related to cloud computing, noted Google spokesperson Andrew Kovacs.
"Glitches in the cloud don't happen behind closed doors -- you hear about them, whether they're affecting 10 users or 10,000," Kovacs said. "In contrast, when on-premises servers go down -- which they do every day, and more often than the cloud -- the world doesn't know about it."
Google's visibility certainly makes a big difference, noted Gartner Vice President and Distinguished Analyst John Pescatore. However, any service that starts out targeting consumers and later tries to encompass business customers can expect to run into such problems, he said.
"When they start out as consumer services, delivering a quick response may be more important than availability," Pescatore said. "Google has a world-class infrastructure, but clearly has more to do" when it comes to supporting the needs of big businesses.
Google said late last year that its Gmail service had been available more than 99.9 percent of the time -- for everyone, both consumers and business users -- during the previous 12 months....
Fri, 25 Sep 09
O2 Gets Exclusive Rights to Palm Pre in Europe
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69175
The Palm Pre will make its debut in Europe next month. U.K.-based carrier O2 has the exclusive rights to sell the webOS-powered smartphone in Europe.
Palm said Thursday that O2 will be the exclusive wireless provider in the U.K., Ireland and Germany for an undisclosed amount of time. O2 has confirmed the deal.
The Palm Pre, which has a slide-out keyboard, Web browsing, music, photos and videos, launched with exclusive rights in the U.S. through Sprint, and in Canada through Bell Mobility.
O2 said Palm's Pre will be marketed to businesses and will include multitasking features, GPS and compatibility with 3G and secure Wi-Fi networks. The device also includes support for Exchange ActiveSync.
In Europe, the Pre will be launched first in Germany on Oct. 13. Customers in Ireland and the U.K. will be able to purchase the Pre a few days later on Oct. 16, according to Palm's David Contreras.
O2 customers who sign a two-year service contract will receive the smartphone for free. For an 18-month contract, service will cost $117.74 a month, according to O2. The phone is being sold through O2, the Carphone Warehouse, Phones 4U, and businesses in O2's partner program, according to the company. Consumers will also be able to buy the smartphone online via O2's Web site.
In Europe, the Pre will be sold with Palm's Touchstone charging dock.
The Palm Pre's launch outside the U.S. has generated a lot of excitement, based predominantly on Palm's new webOS architecture, according to the company.
"There's a lot of excitement about Palm Pre in Europe as we continue to expand Palm webOS products across new carriers and countries," said Jon Rubinstein, Palm's chairman and CEO. "We look forward to launching Palm Pre with O2 so people in the U.K. can see firsthand how Palm webOS...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Moblin on the Move: Intel Porting OS to Other Platforms
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69174
The operating system landscape continues to heat up, with news from Intel that it will be releasing a version of its Moblin netbook OS for mobile devices, desktops and in-car computers. The Santa Clara, Calif.-based technology giant made the announcement this week at the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) taking place in San Francisco.
The open-source Moblin is based on the Linux operating system, as is the Google-backed Android, which was originally launched for mobile devices and is now moving to netbooks and possibly other devices. On handhelds and desktops, Intel will also be competing with Microsoft's Windows.
Intel showed a beta version of Moblin 2.1 at the IDF. It includes native capabilities for touchscreen input, including gestures, as well as other interface changes. The kind of desktop computer that Intel is targeting for Moblin is called a "nettop" -- an inexpensive computer unit to which a user adds peripherals.
The different versions of Moblin are designed to work with different-sized screens, but with comparable user experiences.
The netbooks -- and possibly other devices -- on which Moblin runs use the Atom microprocessor from Intel, which has been designed specifically for mobile units. The release of the final version of Moblin 2.1 is intended to coincide with the launch next year of Intel's Moorestown platform, which includes an Atom-core-based processor.
As with Android and other operating systems, the availability of third-party applications is important to the competitive positioning of Moblin. Intel said it will be providing software-development kits, and that applications could be sold through various app stores.
Even as Moblin is beginning to move into territory occupied by Microsoft operating systems, it will be supporting Microsoft technology. On Wednesday, Intel announced that support for Microsoft Silverlight technology will be included in Moblin beginning early in 2010. Among other things, Silverlight allows developers to...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Wireless Carriers Prep To Join FCC Net-Neutrality Fight
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69172
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski wants to mandate Internet service providers to grant consumers equal access to all legal Web applications and services -- and the debate is on. What was once the battleground for wired service providers has been expanded to the flourishing wireless industry, and that spells bad news for large telecom and cable operators like AT&T, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile and Comcast.
As of now, these companies can restrict any device, application, service or content on their networks that competes with their own products, Zacks Investment Research explained in a research note.
"In regard to controlling the flow of bandwidth-consuming applications such as video streaming, the ISPs have been discriminating against several Web content and application developers," Zacks said. "The FCC recommendation will disallow this discriminatory practice on the part of wireless, wireline or cable operators from either blocking or slowing access to any video or phone services. The new Net-neutrality rule will be a boost to the Web content and application providers like Google."
Christopher Libertelli, Skype's senior director of government and regulatory affairs, welcomes Genachowski's balanced approach to protecting investments in networks and the applications that drive people to buy broadband access. The FCC's decision could make room for Skype on mobile phones.
"If done correctly, this move will open up more innovation and allow consumers to make the choice about which applications they would like to use, without having that choice dictated to them by network operators," Libertelli said. "There has been much debate about whether to apply openness rules to both wired and wireless networks, and we are pleased about the (FCC) Notice of Proposed Rule Making, which maintains incentives for carriers to invest in their networks and it provides ample flexibility for carriers to manage their networks -- all while protecting...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Accounting Rule Change Boosts Apple and Others
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69171
Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Cisco and other technology earnings reports will benefit from a rule change made Wednesday by the Financial Accounting Standards Board. The FASB, which establishes standards for financial accounting, agreed to change how software and computer businesses report their earnings. The vote for approval was 5-0.
Because it is the FASB's mission to establish and improve accounting and reporting for the public, including issuers, auditors and others, it changed a rule to make reporting on software sales easier to understand. Under current guidelines, software revenues are recognized over a product's life cycle, which often is years.
Companies such as Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple lobbied for the change. Some analysts say that's no surprise, since Apple benefits the most from the change because sales of its popular iPhone and its Apple TV haven't been fully represented in quarterly results.
In 2007, Apple began selling the iPhone and Apple TV. Because Apple can provide unspecified features and additional software to iPhone and Apple TV customers in the future free of charge, the company has recognized revenue and the cost of goods for these products on a straight-line basis over their economic lives, with any loss recognized at the time of sale.
Because the product cycles are two years, the subscripting accounting results in Apple deferring nearly all the revenue and cost of goods sold during the quarter in which the products are sold. Sales of its other products, such as Macs and iPods, are recognized at the time of sale.
"It is our belief that investors, analysts and preparers would benefit significantly from the proposed changes to accounting for multiple deliverables," said Betsy Rafael, Apple's corporate controller and accountant, in a letter to Russell Goldman, chairman of the FASB. "The current allowable method of determining the value of individual elements in multi-element...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Wii Price Reduced $50 as Video-Game Battle Escalates
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69148
In what appears to be a clear response to price cuts by Sony and Microsoft, Nintendo is slashing the price of its popular Wii video-game console. Nintendo announced a $50 price cut that will go into effect on Sept. 27.
Nintendo introduced the Wii to millions of consumers at $250, making it the least expensive next-generation console on the market when it debuted in 2006. Sony launched late with its PlayStation 3 at twice the price of the Wii. Sony has never regained momentum.
However, analysts are bullish on Sony's PS3 Slim, introduced in August for $299. Just days later, Microsoft followed by knocking $100 off the price of its Xbox 360 Elite console, which now sells for $299. With Nintendo's latest move, the Wii will sell for $199.
Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of sales and marketing, said the Wii has reached more video-game players than any game system before because it attracts everyone -- both men and women, and people of all ages.
"Our research shows there are 50 million Americans thinking about becoming gamers, and this more affordable price point and our vast array of new software mean many of them can now make the leap and find experiences that appeal to them, whatever their tastes or level of gaming experience," Dunaway said.
Nintendo promised there will be no skimping on the feature set. The $199.99 Wii still comes with the motion-sensing Wii Remote controller, Nunchuk controller, and Wii Sports software. The company is also pointing to the Oct. 4 release of Wii Fit Plus and the first truly multiplayer Mario title ever, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, which debuts on Nov. 15.
Nintendo said Wii's inherent social nature comes to life with New Super Mario Bros. Wii. The game allows four players to take...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Gadgets: The Glue That Connects Us All
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69131
Jessica Stryczek reaches for her iPhone every morning, even before she gets out of bed.
It is her lifeline to the world -- an uber alarm clock/CD player/e-mail device/game player/newspaper/shopping guide/banking assistant/conduit to Facebook and Twitter.
"Without it, I wouldn't survive," says Stryczek, a 26-year-old teacher in Fremont, Calif.
The same goes for Sara Wilson, who starts and ends each day on her iPhones. Yes, she has two: one as an alarm clock, the other for "everything else" -- e-mail, texts, Facebook updates, Twitter "tweets," checking her bank balance.
"It's always on, and glued to my body," says Wilson, a 26-year-old media buyer in San Francisco who has not had a land line since college. "It's like a security blanket."
Such is life in the post-Web 2.0 world. The latest iteration of the Internet -- deemed the "real-time Web" by some analysts, is exemplified by the obsessive use of PCs or cell phones for quick interactions and dips into the online information stream. This hyper-connectedness is fueled by the rise in social media and distinguished by quick, short communication and, increasingly, an absence of privacy.
More than four in five U.S. adults online use social media at least once a month, according to a new Forrester Research report. While young people march toward almost universal adoption, the most rapid growth has occurred among consumers 35 and older. Now, established companies and start-ups are scrambling to develop real-time Web applications for gaming, intuitive online searches, location services and customer support. The market potential is huge, tech analysts and others say.
Everything from cell phones to common digital cameras is "being turned into eyes and ears for applications," says Tim O'Reilly, the founder of O'Reilly Media who is credited with inventing the term Web 2.0. "Data is being collected, presented and acted upon in real time. It's all about...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Publishers Try To Learn To Love the Web
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69129
Book publishers are learning to love the Web. They have to. In hopes of avoiding the toll inflicted by the Internet on newspapers and the music business, the publishing industry is experimenting with a growing array of ways to distribute reading materials digitally. Some might even boost profits.
Publishers already sell digital versions of books for electronic readers such as Amazon.com's Kindle and Sony's Reader. But other, newer methods being considered or tried out include Netflix-like online book rentals, sales of individual chapters, and placement of ads alongside digital books.
Selling lower-priced books online is likely to cut into revenue, but margins could hold up or even widen in some cases as publishers save on printing and returns -- which can account for as much of 40 percent of the sale of a physical book, analysts say. "If they can migrate to the [digital] model and eliminate manufacturing and inventory costs, the economics could be a lot more interesting," says Peter Appert, an analyst at Piper Jaffray. "That'll drive margin upside." Today, publishers' margins hover in the high single digits, although some companies, especially those selling textbooks to college students, fare better.
Across the publishing industry, revenue rose 1.8 percent, to $3.71 billion, in the first half of 2009, according to the Association of American Publishers. In the first half of 2009, e-book sales reached $61.2 million, up from $24.6 million a year earlier, the AAP says.
Alternative distribution brings some publishers into markets they might not otherwise tap. "We are growing our market," says Andrew Savikas, a vice-president at O'Reilly Media, which specializes in technical manuals. The publisher makes some books available as applications that can be downloaded from Apple's online App Store for as little as a quarter of the price of a physical book. Most buyers of...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
IBM Takes on Microsoft in Africa with Linux Netbooks
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69125
Computer giant IBM on Wednesday announced a challenge to Microsoft in Africa with a new open-standards software package for netbooks that would help Africa "bridge the digital divide."
IBM said it was partnering with Canonical Ubuntu, the company of South African entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth, to provide a "new, flexible personal computing software package for netbooks and other thin client devices."
Netbooks are small, low-cost, low-power notebook computers.
"This new package targets the rising popularity of low cost netbooks to make IBM's industrial-strength software affordable to new mass audiences in Africa," IBM said in a press release.
The software package, which runs on Canonical Ubuntu Linux operating system, is aimed primarily at businesses and organizations that cannot afford traditional PCs and proprietary software for all employees, IBM said.
Called the IBM Smart Work Client, it gives users of notebooks, netbooks and other mobile devices access to open-standards email, word processing, spreadsheets, communication, social networking and other software, IBM said.
By switching from Microsoft to Linux-based software, African governments could halve their IT licensing, administration and maintenance costs, freeing up money for disaster management, education and healthcare, IBM said further.
Shuttleworth, who is famous as South Africa's first space tourist, said the software package would further efforts to eliminate barriers to computer access for emerging markets.
IBM said the Smart Work Client would be available through IT service providers or directly to institutions, such as Uganda's Makerere University.
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Yahoo To Spend $100M in Bid for More Brand Buzz
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69119
Yahoo Inc. believes a lot of its good work has been overlooked by investors and the media so it's spending more than $100 million to get the word out to consumers directly.
The money is going toward the Internet company's most expensive marketing campaign since Stanford University graduate students Jerry Yang and David Filo started Yahoo's Web site 15 years ago. Yahoo provided a peek at the 15-month blitz Tuesday in New York.
The ads will run on TV and online and in other media in the United States and nine other countries where Yahoo hopes to expand on a worldwide audience that is already approaching 600 million.
Despite its extensive reach, Yahoo's brand has been bruised in recent years as its profits sagged and many people turned to Internet search leader Google Inc. and relative newcomers like Facebook Inc. and Twitter Inc. -- none of which have spent much money on self-promotion.
Yahoo's financial struggles were magnified last year when Yang and the rest of the Sunnyvale-based company's board spurned a $47.5 billion takeover offer from Microsoft Corp.
The rebuff alienated many Yahoo shareholders, and the missed Microsoft opportunity has remained a recurring theme in the business press because the company's market value now is about 50 percent below Microsoft's last takeover offer in May 2008. The rivals ultimately agreed on a search partnership nearly two months ago.
Yahoo Chief Executive Carol Bartz, hired eight months ago to steer a turnaround, believes the company has been getting a bum rap -- something she hopes to reverse with the new advertising push.
"When you get outside of New York City and Silicon Valley, everybody loves Yahoo," Bartz said Tuesday during a press conference that was webcast. "Why are you (the media) so cynical about us? Be cynical about frigging Google. If you don't love us, leave us...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
New Deal Sought in Dispute Over Google Book Plan
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69118
A $125 million settlement of a lawsuit that would give Google Inc. the digital rights to millions of out-of-print books will be renegotiated in light of the U.S. Department of Justice's contention that the deal probably violates antitrust law, lawyers involved in the case said Tuesday.
Lawyers for The Authors Guild, the Association of American Publishers and other plaintiffs said in court papers that they and Google met with senior Justice Department officials last Thursday and agreed to work with the government to resolve concerns.
The case involves Google's plans to scan millions of books and make them searchable and available for purchase online, with publishers and authors getting most of the money from the sales of books that are still protected by copyright. Google says the service will revitalize works that might otherwise be forgotten.
The Justice Department told U.S. District Judge Denny Chin in a brief filed last week that the agreement threatens to give Google the power to increase book prices and discourage competition, though it said a renegotiated settlement might obey U.S. copyright and antitrust laws.
The government encouraged an improved settlement, saying it "has the potential to breathe life into millions of works that are now effectively off limits to the public."
Lawyers for the authors and publishers said in court papers Tuesday that, "as the United States government put it, no one wants `the opportunity or momentum to be lost.'"
They urged Chin to delay a hearing scheduled for Oct. 7, saying that a new agreement may take away some objections among the roughly 400 opinions, both pro and con, which were filed with Chin by a deadline earlier this month.
The lawyers noted that the responses included hundreds of objections from individuals and corporate entities. In addition, the governments of Germany and France and the state attorneys general in Connecticut,...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
Industry Group: OK for iTunes To Block Palm Pre
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69117
Apple Inc. appears to have clearance from an industry group to block rival Palm Inc.'s Pre phone from connecting with iTunes software.
The $200 Pre was launched in June as a direct competitor to the iPhone, and became the first non-Apple device that could directly connect to iTunes. It did that essentially by pretending to be an iPod or iPhone.
Apple crippled that function by updating its software. To get around it, Palm used a workaround similar to the Pre's original method of connecting to iTunes: It updated the Pre's software so that when it was connected to a computer's USB port it gave out a hardware vendor code that Apple was assigned by the USB Implementers Forum, an industry standards group. ITunes would then see the Pre as an Apple device and allow users to transfer content to it. The phone does not work with the most recent version of iTunes, however.
Palm complained to the group in July that Apple was improperly using its USB vendor code to block competitors. But the group disagreed in a letter sent to both companies Tuesday.
The letter also warned that if Palm updates the Pre's software to include Apple's vendor code -- a move Palm indicated in its complaint that it planned to make in order to restore the iTunes feature -- it would violate the group's rules.
The group asked Palm to clarify its intent and respond within a week about the potential violation.
Palm spokesman Derick Mains said the company contacted the USB group because it believes consumers should be able to decide how they use media they own that is not subject to copy-protection restrictions. He said Palm is reviewing the letter and will respond if it thinks it is appropriate.
Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr said the company had no comment.
The iTunes spat is part...
Fri, 25 Sep 09
South Korea Approves Sale of Apple's iPhone
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69115
South Korea's telecommunications regulator said Wednesday that Apple Inc. can sell its hit iPhone in the country -- potentially shaking up a cell phone market controlled by domestic manufacturers.
The development comes a month after Apple cleared the way to enter China's massive cell phone market as well. As part of its deal with wireless carrier China Unicom Ltd., Apple is expected to begin selling the phone in China in the fourth quarter.
The Korea Communications Commission approved the sale of the device at a meeting attended by its five commissioners, said spokesman Lee Sang-hun.
The introduction of the iPhone has been keenly awaited in South Korea, where the handset market is dominated by Samsung Electronics Co., LG Electronics Inc. and other domestic manufacturers.
Apple spokesman Steve Park said the company had no comment on the commission's decision and added that nothing was decided or planned on the iPhone's release in South Korea.
Local service providers, however, said they are in talks with Cupertino, California-based Apple regarding the iPhone.
"We will try to release the iPhone as soon as possible," said Yeom Woo-jong, a spokesman for KT Corp.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency, citing KT officials it did not identify, said the company plans to start selling iPhones in South Korea next month.
Lauren Kim, a spokeswoman for SK Telecom Co., also said her company was in discussions with Apple.
According to Apple's iPhone Web site, the device is available in nearly 90 countries or territories.
South Korean law requires companies that provide so-called location-based services -- such as the maps and directions on the iPhone -- to obtain government permission, said Oh Sang-jin, director of the Korea Communications Commission's privacy protection and ethics division.
The commission decided that to facilitate the iPhone's entry to South Korea, local telecommunication service providers can obtain permission on Apple's behalf. The commission sought a...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Best Buy Will Carry Multiformat IREX E-Reader
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69145
Philips Electronics spin-off IREX Technologies introduced a new e-reader Wednesday that will operate over the Verizon Wireless 3G network and be sold nationwide by select Best Buy stores, beginning next month. The new Linux-powered device is equipped with an 8.1-inch touchscreen featuring stylus navigation and easy-to-read E Ink technology.
IREX said its DR800SG model is designed to accept any e-book DRM protocol and file format, including Adobe PDF, EPUB, NewspaperDirect, Fictionwise and text. The goal is to enable users to purchase and display books, newspapers and magazines from any source.
"Consumers are ready for e-readers, but the device is only one piece of the equation," said Kevin Hamilton, North American CEO of IREX. "Users want to easily purchase content from a variety of sources, and we allow them to read it on an IREX e-reader as well as other devices."
IREX announced last month that Barnes & Noble will be the primary bookseller on the new device. On Wednesday, the company said it has also made deals with newspaper and magazine aggregators NewspapersDirect and LibreDigital that will give IREX DR800SG users access to many periodicals.
Gartner Vice President Allen Weiner noted that the decision to partner with Barnes & Noble is a pragmatic one from a business standpoint, given the book retailer's name recognition and reach. "With multiformat support, however, it does not box consumers into a one-channel e-book purchasing choice, ala Amazon," he said.
Weiner also thinks that giving consumers the freedom to purchase content from a variety of sources will be a major driver for success in the digital publishing market. "Sleek devices with consumer-friendly features -- including the capability to purchase content on the go -- that support open e-book standards will introduce the e-book experience to an entirely new generation of readers," Weiner said....
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Now You Can Comment on Web Pages with SideWiki
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69144
Google wants to know what you have to say on everything from medical problems to cities visited. On Wednesday, Google launched SideWiki, a toolbar feature that allows users to add information or thoughts next to any Web page.
Users are being encouraged to contribute insights on important decisions, tips on various topics, background information, and added perspective on new products and technologies.
"Many people visit the same pages looking for the same information, and much of the Web browsing is a one-way experience," said Eitan Bencuya, a Google spokesperson. "Google SideWiki helps open up the Web experience by allowing everyone, from a local expert to a renowned doctor, to share helpful information with others about any page on the web."
SideWiki appears as a browser sidebar once a user downloads the updated Google Tool bar, and is combined with Google Profiles so users can find information about the entry's author.
"Under the hood, we have even more technology that will take your entry about the current page and show it next to Web pages that contain the same snippet of text," wrote Sundar Pichai, vice president of product management, and Michal Cierniak, lead engineer for Google SideWiki, in a Google blog post. "We also bring in relevant posts from blogs and other sources that talk about the current page so that you can discover their insights more easily, right next to the page they refer to."
However, before users share their knowledge on a specific topic or Web page with the world, Google has developed a mechanism to put relevant topics higher in the sidebar. Those entries considered most useful will be listed at the top.
Engineers are not sifting through the entries to decide their SideWiki ranking.
"Rather than ordering entries chronologically, we use a unique algorithm that incorporates various signals about...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Intel Says Larrabee Graphics Processor 'Breaks Rules'
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69143
Competition will be heating up between Intel and its rival chipmakers, Advanced Micro Devices and Nvidia. Intel has introduced a high-end graphics processor based on its Larrabee architecture that will go head-to-head with Nvidia GeForce and AMD Radeon video cards.
The Santa Clara, Calif.-based chipmaker demonstrated early silicon based on the Larrabee architecture during Intel's Developer Forum in San Francisco on Tuesday, showing the world that it will now integrate graphics into future chip products.
Larrabee is the code name for a family of graphics-focused coprocessors. The processor will allow programmers to easily add a variety of 3-D graphics such as rasterization, a technique that converts an image to pixels; volumetric rendering, a process to visualize 3-D data sets; and ray tracing, a technique for generating an image by tracing a path of light through pixels on an image plane.
The first Larrabee product is due out next year, according to Intel.
To demonstrate the processor's power, Sean Maloney, Intel's executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer, demonstrated a real-time ray-traced version of the game Quake Wars: Enemy Territory running on Larrabee and Intel's gaming processor, code-named Gulftown.
Larrabee will first appear in discrete graphics cards used in high-end gaming PCs, but will then be integrated into the processor along with other technologies, according to the company.
"What is different about Larrabee compared to other traditional graphics from a developer's perspective is that it allows full rendering," said Nick Knupffer, an Intel spokesperson.
Traditionally, programmers need to program within a specific set of rules and designers are restricted in what graphics are shown on the screen. Larrabee, however, allows artists to design and show what they want on the screen, according to Knupffer.
"It follows an existing pipeline defined by Microsoft (DirectX) and it has its advantages, but if you want to program outside...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Two-Screen 'Booklet' Reported Under Way at Microsoft
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69134
The tablet computer market has been heating up in recent months with rumors. Most eyes have been watching for an Apple tablet, but now there is a report that a groundbreaking tablet may be on its way from Microsoft.
The tech site Gizmodo reported Tuesday that a secret Microsoft project, code-named Courier, is working on a two-screen tablet -- essentially, a computer "booklet."
According to the report, the device features two approximately seven-inch multi-touch screens, and the primary interaction would be using a stylus for writing, flicking and drawing, in addition to finger-based input.
There's a camera on the back cover, and battery and Wi-Fi signal strength are shown along the rim of one of the screens.
The research project is reportedly being led by J. Allard, head of technology and user experience for Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices division. Gizmodo said Courier is in the late prototype stage, with the team working on development of the full user experience and making presentations to outside agencies who might work on final development and rollout.
A video demonstrating the device, labeled with the name Pioneer Studios, is also available on Gizmodo. It presents the user experience of the device with animation showing a user moving labels and other materials from one screen to another with a drag and flick of a finger.
The interface and user experience shown in the video are radically different from any version of the Windows operating system, with a smooth interplay of multi-touch interaction, stylus writing, and a seamless two-screen desktop of objects and mini-applications. Inspired touches include a virtual pocket in the hinge between the screens, which can "hold" items.
Other sites are contending that, while the tablet prototype is under way, it is only one of a variety of radical new directions Microsoft is internally developing.
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Nielsen Will Help Facebook Gain Advertiser Credibility
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69114
Facebook ditched its Beacon program earlier this week, deciding instead to partner with Nielsen on a less-controversial vehicle to push advertising to its social-networking masses.
On Tuesday, Facebook announced a multi-year strategic alliance with Nielsen to help marketers make better use of the Internet to develop and market new products. The alliance leverages Facebook's global consumer reach with Nielsen's market-research savvy to offer marketers deeper consumer insights.
"Facebook is an increasingly vital link between consumers and brands," said John Burbank, CEO of Nielsen's online division. "We will now be able to add deep knowledge of this important social network to our unmatched media measurement and consumer insight across all three screens. Together we will be able to provide the missing elements to clients seeking better understanding of how Web content and online advertising affect consumer behavior."
Facebook and Nielsen lost no time in rolling out the first collaborative product, called Nielsen BrandLift. BrandLift will launch in the U.S. with select test partners this week and roll out to all Facebook advertisers in coming months.
BrandLift measures aided awareness, ad recall, message association, brand favorability, and purchase consideration via a set of short one- or two-question online surveys. Nielsen will work directly with Facebook's advertising clients to conduct hundreds of BrandLift tests. Nielsen said the benefits of the program include accuracy, speed and ease of creation and implementation.
"Nielsen is the leader in measurement and is an excellent partner for us as we look to provide marketers with richer ad-effectiveness data," said Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook. "The combination of our unique ability to quickly and effectively poll a sample of our more than 300 million users and Nielsen's expertise in data analysis will give marketers access to powerful data they can use to understand and improve current and future campaigns."
According to...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Bing Gains More Ground in Search Engine Wars
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69113
Month after month, Bing continues to gain momentum in the search-engine market. Microsoft's so-called decision engine is rising up the comScore ratings percentage point by percentage point -- last month seemingly at Google's expense.
On Tuesday, comScore released its monthly qSearch analysis of the U.S. search marketplace, and with it more good news for Bing.
In August, Americans conducted more than 13.9 billion searches. Google and its related sites accounted for 64.6 percent of the search market. Microsoft and its related sites grabbed 9.3 percent, a meager 0.4 percentage point gain versus July. But it's a gain nonetheless.
According to comScore, Yahoo sites remain in second place in the reinvigorated search-engine wars with 19.3 percent. With just shy of 10 percent, Microsoft is holding on to a commanding third place while Ask Network captured 3.9 percent, followed by the once-dominant AOL with three percent.
Bing, Microsoft's successor to Windows Live Search, debuted on June 3. Microsoft has invested millions in advertising on television, the Internet and in movie theaters to drive brand awareness, attempting to differentiate Bing with the promise of faster, more informed decisions.
With Bing, Microsoft is aiming to build on today's search-engine technology but offer a new user experience and tools to accomplish any one of four goals: Making a purchase, planning a trip, researching a health condition, or finding a local business. Microsoft pointed to the explosive growth of online content and promises Bing will help users more easily navigate the information overload so the 30 percent of searches that comScore says are unsatisfactory can have a better outcome.
Bing seems to be resonating with more searchers. Nielsen's August data shows a different angle on Bing's growth: Bing search volume grew 22.1 percent in August. That qualifies Bing as the fastest-growing U.S. search engine. Bing Visual Search, a...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Microsoft Takes Notice as Google Docs Grows Popular
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69098
Some big companies are starting to move their spreadsheets, word-processing and other productivity programs off of PCs and on to the Web.
About 20 percent of respondents to a study by researcher IDC say Google's Google Docs offering is widely used in their organization, up from 5.8 percent a little more than a year and a half ago.
This good news for Google has not gone unnoticed at Microsoft. The software giant last week said Office Web Apps -- lightweight versions of Office programs delivered through the browser -- will enter a limited technical preview. Invited participants will test Word Web App, Excel Web App, PowerPoint Web App and OneNote Web App through Windows Live.
Google markets free and paid versions of Google Docs. IDC analyst Melissa Webster surveyed 262 respondents in diverse roles at a broad range of companies; 27 percent said they are either already widely using Google Docs or expect to be a year from now.
The suite is proving popular as a tool that enables several co-workers to edit content in real time.
"A healthy percentage of Google Docs adoption is coming from ad hoc use," Webster says. "It's the classic case of employees making use of free consumer (online) services to get their work done, without asking permission."
No one knows how fast the market for online productivity programs will grow. IBM sells Lotus Symphony and Lotus Live as an online suite; Zoho offers free Office-like tools popular with students.
One thing is clear: Microsoft has a lot at stake. Its business division, made up primarily of Office, generated revenue of $18.9 billion and operating income of $12.4 billion in 2008.
Chris Capossela, Microsoft's business division senior vice president, says Office 2010, due early next year, will have versions that work on Web browsers -- and on Windows Mobile smartphones. "We believe the...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Is Cell-Phone Safety Assured? Or Merely Ignored?
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69096
Russ Faulkner isn't worried about whether talking on his cell phone might harm his health. He uses his Apple iPhone even more these days, spending more than 1,000 minutes a month on business and personal calls. "A few years ago there was a study that claimed your alarm clock caused cancer," jokes the 36-year-old, who owns a corporate training company in Columbus, Ohio, and has used a cell phone for 12 years. "Didn't ditch that then, either."
Like Faulkner, most Americans rely heavily on their cell phones and do not expect health problems to result, despite several recent reports that raise concerns about potential risks. Because cell phones emit electromagnetic radiation to make calls, many people worry that radiation can seep into brain tissue, damaging cells and stimulating the growth of tumors.
The amount of time each month that the average wireless subscriber spent talking on a mobile jumped 430 percent, to 12.6 hours, between 1998 and 2008, according to the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Assn. (CTIA). As handsets gain additional capabilities, people are increasingly using them not only to make calls but also to check weather forecasts, watch videos, and play games. "The weight of scientific evidence has not linked cell phones with any health problems," the Food & Drug Administration states on its Web site.
The National Cancer Institute echoes that sentiment a bit more tentatively. "Studies have not shown any consistent link between cellular telephone use and cancer, but scientists feel that additional research is needed before firm conclusions can be drawn," according to NCI.
Many oncologists say they limit their own cell phone usage, don't hold mobiles against their ear, and instead use speakerphones, headsets, and hands-free setups. Columbia University associate professor Martin Blank, who has studied the effects of electromagnetic radiation -- waves emitted by...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Gadgets Gobbling Up World's Electricity
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69094
With two laptop-loving children and a Jack Russell terrier hemmed in by an electric fence, Peter Troast figured his household used a lot of power. Just how much did not really hit him until the night the family turned off the overhead lights at their home in Maine and began hunting for gadgets that glowed in the dark.
"It was amazing to see all these lights blinking," Mr. Troast said.
As goes the Troast household, so goes the planet.
Electricity use from power-hungry gadgets is rising fast all over the world. The fancy new flat-panel televisions everyone has been buying in recent years have turned out to be bigger power hogs than some refrigerators.
The proliferation of personal computers, iPods, cell phones, game consoles and all the rest amounts to the fastest-growing source of power demand in the world. Americans now have about 25 consumer electronic products in every household, compared with just three in 1980.
Worldwide, consumer electronics now represent 15 percent of household power demand, and that figure is expected to triple during the next two decades, according to the International Energy Agency, making it more difficult to tackle the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for global warming.
To satisfy the demand from gadgets will require building the equivalent of 560 coal-fired power plants, or 230 nuclear plants, according to the agency.
Most energy experts see only one solution: mandatory efficiency rules that specify how much power devices may use.
Appliances like refrigerators are covered by such rules in the United States. But efforts to cover consumer electronics like televisions and game consoles have been repeatedly derailed by manufacturers worried about the higher cost of meeting the standards. That has become a problem as the spread of such gadgets has countered efficiency gains made in recent years by appliances.
In 1990, refrigerator efficiency standards went into effect in...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Are Bulls Hanging Up on Verizon?
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69079
At an investor conference hosted by Goldman Sachs on Sept. 17, top executives of big telecom outfits expressed mixed sentiments about the economic recovery but were upbeat about the outlook for the industry. One of them was Verizon Communications Chairman and CEO Ivan G. Seidenberg, who noted that the company weathered the recession better than its peers as it aggressively acquired wireless assets and shed some underperforming wireline operations.
Indeed, Verizon's stock continues to garner some decent support on Wall Street, with 53 percent of the 32 analysts who track the telecom giant rating it a buy and 44 percent recommending holding the stock, according to Bloomberg data. So far only one analyst rates it a sell. The stock, which traded as high as 44 a share last year, has fallen to 29, although it is holding above its 52-week low of 23 reached on Oct. 10, 2008.
But some of the bulls appear to be having second thoughts. A few analysts have recently downgraded the stock to neutral from buy, citing concerns about deteriorating industry fundamentals.
One of them is John C. Hodulik of investment firm UBS [it has done business with and banking for Verizon], who scaled back his Verizon earnings estimates for 2009 and 2010. As Verizon's sales from its business customers "continue to worsen" and aren't likely to improve until 2010, "we now expect Verizon to miss its annual guidance for [earnings-per-share] growth in 2009 due to continued pressure on its wireline business," says Hodulik. And "cracks are beginning to appear," he warns, in Verizon's robust wireless business.
Verizon is one of the largest providers of wireline, wireless, and Internet broadband services. Through its joint venture with Vodafone Group, the company is the largest U.S. wireless carrier, serving 87.7 million customers. Alltell, which Verizon acquired in...
Thu, 24 Sep 09
Data Transfers Between Windows Systems
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69076
With Windows 7 just over the horizon, lots of people are going to be wondering how to transfer their files, settings, and e-mail to the new operating system.
The goal, of course, is a complete transfer with minimum hassle. The reality, often, is a bit more complicated. Read on for some solutions.
Q: I'm using Windows Vista and will be buying a new computer with Windows 7 on it as soon as I can. What's the easiest way to transfer my files? Should I buy a cable and use Windows Easy Transfer?
A: As you know, Windows Easy Transfer is a file and settings transfer wizard that comes with both Windows Vista and Windows 7. It's also available as a free download for XP users (http://tinyurl.com/2tabn5).
Both Microsoft and other vendors sell a special Easy Transfer Cable that can be used to connect and transfer files between two computers. This is a bi-directional USB cable designed especially to work with the transfer wizard. The cable can cost anywhere from 20 to 40 dollars, depending upon the source.
You don't need to buy the transfer cable in order to use Easy Transfer, however. Easy Transfer will also allow you to connect the old and new computer over a network and transfer files that way. Or you can have Easy Transfer create a transfer file on an external disk or USB drive that you can then open on the new computer.
The latter method of transfer, in fact, seems to work the best. It's not uncommon for transfers using the special cable or using a network to stall or to require an inordinate amount of time -- overnight, in some cases -- to complete. Having Easy Transfer create the intermediate file, by contrast, will probably get your files and settings onto the new computer in less than an...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Gmail Push Added To Google Sync for Mobile Devices
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69110
When Google first announced the offline, beta version of its Google Sync tool in February, users were clamoring for push support for Gmail, Google's free e-mail service. Google has now given users what they want.
The Internet search giant released Tuesday its push Gmail support for Google Sync on the iPhone, iPod touch, and Windows Mobile devices. Douglas Gresham, Google Mobile's software engineer, announced the support in an official blog posting.
Google Sync users can now get Gmail messages pushed directly to their mobile phones. Users no longer have to wait 15 or 30 minutes to pull Gmail messages. Instead, Google pushes the messages using a mobile phone's e-mail application so the user doesn't need any additional software.
"This is more about really giving users more choice in how they access their information. Those iPhone and Windows Mobile users who love the native applications can now get Gmail messages pushed directly to their phone," said Google spokesperson Andrew Kovacs. "Of course, those who prefer Web apps can continue to use Web apps for a rich experience, like threaded conversations and search across the entire inbox."
Mobile Gmail has supported push with iPhone and Windows Mobile devices, with the Gmail app on Android devices, and with Google Apps Premier Edition and Education Edition on BlackBerry smartphones.
The irony, however, is that Google used the Exchange ActiveSync protocol to offer consumers a free Exchange-like experience using Microsoft's technology. "You can get a powerful Exchange server-like experience while using Google architecture," said Interpret analyst Michael Gartenberg.
"This is big news and good news for Gmail users," Gartenberg said. "It has been one of the biggest user requests."
Users from France, the U.K., and the U.S. have been flooding Google's forum pages with push Gmail requests.
"Push notification Gmail for mobile devices (iPhone)," said Andy of Libertyville, Ill. "Is there...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
EU Probe Costs Sun $100 Million a Month, Ellison Says
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69109
Oracle CEO Larry Ellison told a Silicon Valley audience Monday that Sun Microsystems is losing about $100 million a month because of delays in Oracle's acquisition of the company. "The longer this takes, the more money Sun is going to lose, and that's not good for anybody," Ellison said, according to the Financial Times.
Oracle's $7.4 billion deal for Sun, which was originally announced in April, was approved by U.S. antitrust authorities in August. However, the European Commission's recent decision to open an in-depth investigation into the acquisition means that Oracle cannot expect to close the deal anytime soon.
"The U.S. took their time and deliberations and cleared it," saying the acquisition "was overwhelmingly a pro-competitive deal," Ellison told an event sponsored by the nonprofit Churchill Club in San Jose, Calif. "I think once the [Europeans] do their job, they'll come to the same conclusion."
The bad news for Oracle is that the EC's investigation could take until the middle of next January to complete. According to EC Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, European antitrust authorities have an obligation to ensure that customers looking to buy database products will not face reduced choice or higher prices as a result of this takeover.
"Databases are a key element of company IT systems," Kroes said. "The commission has to ensure that [open-source] alternatives would continue to be available."
If Oracle is forced to divest Sun's open-source MySQL database to receive the EC's blessing, Piper Jaffray analyst Mark Murphy thinks it would have a "small effect" on Sun's estimated contribution to Oracle's bottom line.
"My sense is that MySQL is growing extremely rapidly but is not wildly profitable yet, and is still probably inconsequential against the backdrop of Sun's total server and software business, in terms of how much operating profit it produces," Murphy...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Google Snares Partial Victory in Trademark Case
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69108
In a four-year battle between Google and French retailer Louis Vuitton, the Internet search giant has won a partial victory. The battle stems from when the luxury accessory retailer brought legal action against Google after searches with its trademark appeared in rivals' sponsored links.
The European Court of Justice on Tuesday sided with Google, saying the company did not infringe on trademark issues by allowing advertisers to buy keywords corresponding to registered trademarks.
Vuitton and other fashion brands have been battling advertisers after imitation product makers have used trademarked brands to attract customers in online searches. For example, when a search is conducted on keywords such as "Louis Vuitton," the results include links to competitors' products and to companies selling counterfeit goods. Advertising counterfeit goods is against Google's terms of service.
"We believe that selecting a keyword to trigger the display of an ad does not amount to trademark infringement, and that consumers benefit from seeking more relevant information rather than less," said Harjinder Obhi, senior litigation counsel to Google in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. "We also believe that consumers are smart and are not confused when they see a variety of ads displayed in response to their search queries."
Louis Vuitton won its case in France, but Google appealed. The French courts asked the European Court of Justice to review the case and provide an opinion on whether Google was breaking any European trademarks laws.
Advocate General Poiares Maduro said it is his opinion that Google did not infringe on trademark rights by allowing advertisers to purchase keywords that correspond to registered trademarks.
Google, however, has won only a partial victory. The court adviser also said Google should still be considered liable for the wrongful use of keywords in relation to ad content.
"Whilst the search...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Microsoft Allegedly Imitates Apple By Raiding Sales Staff
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69107
Microsoft is allegedly stealing Apple Store employees right out from under CEO Steve Jobs' nose. Reports are circulating about Microsoft targeting Apple Store retail managers and sales staff to man its Microsoft Stores.
IT Blogwatch broke the story, which cites anonymous tipsters. Anonymous or not, the story is spreading like wildfire and drawing varied reactions from industry watchers and Apple loyalists. But the poaching may not be Apple's only problem.
Employees at the Lyndwood, Wash.-based Alderwood Mall Apple Store are reportedly threatening to stage a walkout in October over abusive employee relations. The employees are protesting what they claim are violations of federal and state labor laws. The specific grievances have not been disclosed.
Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group, calls Microsoft's poaching party a smart move for the self-branded electronics stores. Microsoft Stores will feature PCs and laptops from partners, offering another sales channel. Microsoft's retail strategy is ramping up slowly, but the strategy is in place. With Apple Store employees, Microsoft may be able to ramp up more quickly.
"If you are going to open a store that mirrors Apple Stores to a certain extent, then what better than to go after people who are used to working in that kind of environment?" Enderle asked. "Since Microsoft is co-locating its stores near Apple Stores, the Apple workers happen to live and work in the same general vicinity."
Rumors say money is at the core of the issue; that Microsoft is offering higher wages than Apple. Enderle doesn't doubt it. If Apple Store employees weren't unhappy, he said, Microsoft wouldn't be successful in wooing them away. What's more, he added, Apple doesn't have a reputation for overpaying employees. In this economy, money talks.
Apple could be reaping what it has sown. Apple just poached Intel's chief counsel last week....
Wed, 23 Sep 09
AT&T's MicroCell Seeks To Improve 3G Connections
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69099
If you have broadband DSL or cable service in your home or business, but 3G reception is lousy, AT&T has a new product that might help. The company has announced a trial of its 3G MicroCell, a mini-cellular tower that turns an existing broadband Internet line into 3G.
The test of the MicroCell is currently taking place in Charlotte, N.C. Up to four simultaneous users can get what the company described as "improved cellular signal performance" of up to five bars within 5,000 square feet from the device for voice and data.
AT&T said the device is compatible with any of its 3G phones, and is secure so that a data signal cannot be accessed by unauthorized users. There is also "seamless call hand over," allowing a user to begin a call with the MicroCell, and the call can continue even if the user leaves the device's signal area.
A user registers the MicroCell and can manage the device settings via a networked computer. While the device can be moved, it needs to be set up within AT&T's service area and has to be registered online. Installation near a window is recommended, since a Global Positioning System (GPS) signal is required for verification during setup.
The MicroCell is a femtocell, which is a small cellular base station that allows a user to extend phone coverage by tapping into a broadband connection. The conversion could be to various data standards, not just 3G. For instance, femtocell devices are also available from Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel, although neither supports 3G.
According to news reports, the price for the MicroCell will be about $150 when it becomes generally available, with no charge for the service itself. Unlimited talking is expected to be $20 per month, plus a rebate on the MicroCell.
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Dubuque, Iowa: The First American 'Smart City'?
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69077
When IBM announced last January that it planned on locating an IT services center that would eventually employ 1,300 people in Dubuque, Iowa, it was great news for city leaders. Every additional job is a check mark in the win column for a place that has seen its traditional industry of farm equipment manufacturing decline over the past few decades. But the relationship between this city of 60,000 on the banks of the Mississippi and the global corporation with 400,000 employees has blossomed since the announcement. On Sept. 17 the two announced a joint effort to turn Dubuque into an international model for environmental sustainability.
Dubuque city government and business leaders have made green a priority since 2006. Now, with IBM as its partner, the city plans on using federal government stimulus money and other funds to make its electricity, water, and transportation systems operate more efficiently and to attract business investment. "We're developing processes where people can make good decisions that will save them money and that will be sustainable beyond their generation," says Dubuque Mayor Roy D. Buol. "We call it making sustainability sustainable."
For IBM, this marks its first so-called "smart city" arrangement in the U.S. Also on Sept. 17 the company announced an arrangement with the Chinese city of Shenyang to collaborate with government agencies and China's Northeastern University to turn that city into a model for environmental protection and sustainable development. IBM already has many engagements underway with cities around the world focusing on small slices of the sustainability puzzle, such as transportation or energy management. These two projects are the first that take a holistic view on improving the basic functions of urban centers.
IBM hopes to use the technology it develops and the lessons it learns in Dubuque to create a template that...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Little Surprises Discovered in Windows 7
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69072
Windows 7 will roll out next month full of big promises and headline features, including greater speed, improved compatibility with existing applications, and an enhanced interface.
But sometimes it's the little surprises in a new operating system that are the most endearing.
That's because small fixes or enhancements can go a long way toward making your daily life with the PC more productive or more fun. Luckily, Windows 7 is full of them. Here are a few.
Windows 7 makes it easier to see and organize your running applications than any previous Windows version.
"Drag and snap," for example, is a new feature that will automatically "snap" running applications to the edge of your screen if you drag them there. It will also sense the presence of other applications displayed on screen and allow you easily to align them side-by-side by making the edge of one application snap to the edge of another.
An open application window can also be "snapped" quickly to the edge of the screen by pressing the Windows key and tapping either the left or right arrow key on your keyboard. Holding down the Windows key and tapping the up arrow key will maximize an open application, while the Windows key plus the down arrow will minimize the program to the task bar.
Taken together, these new methods of application organization on screen will be of use to those who work with lots of applications open at the same time.
In Windows 7, you don't have to go far to find a program, file, or feature. All you need to do is open the Start menu and begin typing. While this was possible in Vista, Windows 7's Start menu search capabilities have been significantly enhanced to allow you to find features that previously were accessible only by opening...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Updating a Computer's BIOS Carries Rewards, Risks
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69071
Lurking deep in the motherboard of every PC is a small program known as the Basic Input Output System (BIOS), a vital component to the computer's ability to boot up.
Before any computer can run an operating system -- Windows, for example -- it needs to first run BIOS. It's commonplace these days to update standard operating systems, but fairly rare to do anything of the sort with BIOS.
However, there are times when a BIOS update is needed: for example, if your computer isn't capable of recognizing hardware additions. But that upgrade comes with risks. If done incorrectly, it can wipe a motherboard.
Thus, a BIOS update should only be undertaken after careful consideration and in certain circumstances, such as when there are hardware problems or compatibility issues between a computer's energy-saving mode and a new operating system, says Christian Helmiss of PC Welt, a German computer magazine.
Gigabyte, a Germany-based motherboard manufacturer, recommends approaching any update carefully and never interrupting one once started. The update involves overwriting information fundamental to the computer's ability to start. If things go wrong, the computer may no longer be able to boot up.
That will happen if an update is interrupted and the new BIOS program is only partially written onto the computer, says Thomas Littschwager of Chip, a German computer magazine. If that happens, a computer user needs to send the motherboard back to the manufacturer so the BIOS chip can be swapped out.
To avoid that problem, make sure a computer has a steady power supply before starting any BIOS upgrade and never shut it down while the upgrade is underway.
Another basic: pick the right version of BIOS to download. Helmiss says the exact model number is usually needed to pick out the right upgrade. That number can usually be found in the motherboard's handbook or...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Amazon Widens Private Labels with Electronics Gear
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69060
Consumers visit Amazon.com for deals on products from companies ranging from Apple Inc. to Zenith Electronics Corp. Now, the online retailer wants shoppers to check out stuff that carries Amazon's own brand name, too.
Seattle-based Amazon.com Inc. is beginning to sell a line of electronics accessories called AmazonBasics this weekend. It includes audio and video cables, computer networking cables and blank DVDs.
Amazon would not give price details ahead of the launch, but Paul Ryder, vice president of consumer electronics, said the items will cost "significantly less" than similar products on the site.
Amazon already sells its Kindle electronic reading device, along with a variety of products under private label brands. For instance it offers a line of outdoor furniture called Strathwood and home and garden items that carry the Pinzon name. In choosing the name AmazonBasics, Ryder said the company hopes customers will associate it with high-quality, low-price items.
It's common for retailers to offer their own private-label products alongside brand-name ones: The world's largest retailer, Wal-Mart Stores Inc., for example, sells goods under its Great Value store brand.
BWS Financial analyst Hamed Khorsand doesn't believe Amazon's private-label goods will really contribute much to its sales in the long run, though.
"I think they're just trying to have their own brand out there as more marketing than anything else," he said.
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Want To Read All About It Online? It May Cost You
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69059
With their advertising revenue drying up, newspaper publishers spent much of the spring and summer debating whether to cut off free online access to some of the material they run in their shrinking print editions.
It looks like the talk will turn to action this fall, when some large newspapers are expected to put up Internet toll booths.
They'll be testing readers' willingness to pay for information and entertainment that mostly has been given away online for the past 15 years. That happened largely because most publishers could afford to subsidize their Web sites with profits from their print franchises. But now those profits have crumbled, just as the prices for online ads are tumbling, too.
A recent study by the American Press Institute found 58 percent of the responding newspapers are considering online fees. Of that group, 22 percent expect to introduce the fee before the end of the year. The findings drew upon 118 interviews of newspaper executives in the U.S. and Canada.
The free-to-fee transition likely will occur in tentative steps rather than bold leaps that would lock all online content behind a pay gate. Publishers are taking this cautious approach because they are still trying to devise online payment plans that will generate more revenue without alienating too many of their readers.
For instance, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, a newspaper with a weekday circulation of about 206,500, recently launched a Web site that includes coverage and commentary on sports, politics and entertainment that isn't in its printed product or free online edition. The service costs $36 annually or $3.99 per month.
Other newspapers that have talked up subscription plans remain reticent. Newsday of Long Island, N.Y., still hasn't rolled out fees for its Web site, even though the newspaper's owner, Cablevision Systems Corp., said it was going to do so this summer. Newsday...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Review: Hewlett-Packard's Dandy DreamScreen
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69018
Though I have little data to back this up, I've often joked that manufacturers of digital photo frames have the world's moms to thank for their booming market. The electronic gadgets seem to make great gifts for Mother's Day or other occasions when a gift to Mom is called for. If Hewlett-Packard has its way, the appeal of digital photo frames will soon widen.
Worldwide shipments of all digital photo frames will reach 50 million units by 2013, from 25 million in 2009, researcher In-Stat predicts. But prices and margins on these devices are expected to fall sharply in the coming years as competition accelerates and the market becomes more saturated. So HP along with a host of other manufacturers, including Samsung, Pandigital, and Ceiva, are being forced to think of new ways to expand the market and get people of all ages to buy one.
Enter HP's new DreamScreen, introduced Sept. 17. A digital frame that goes far beyond letting users simply stream an array of photos from a home network, the DreamScreen is at the forefront of a new breed of multipurpose frames that also let users enjoy Internet radio, keep track of social media friends, and download pictures from photo-sharing sites such as Yahoo's Flickr.
For two weeks, I put the $249 HP DreamScreen 100 through its paces, and quickly became impressed with the potential for these devices to morph from a pictorial chronicle into a more comprehensive compendium of a person's social life. Forget all the talk about three screens -- the PC, TV, and mobile phone. Make way for No. 4. And HP plans to introduce a larger, $299 13-in. model later this year.
For lack of a better term, HP calls the 10.2-in. glossy black DreamScreen a PC companion. It could even be marketed...
Wed, 23 Sep 09
Review: New iPod Nano Impresses, Zune Improves
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69006
Back in 2004, when I got my first MP3 player, I never cared that it lacked a camera, Web browser and crystal-clear video playback -- features that are now common on digital media devices.
Apple's latest iPod Nano and Microsoft's freshest Zune, both released [recently], offer these kinds of perks and plenty more. Neither is right for everyone, but both serve as a reminder of how far digital media players have come in just a few years.
Apple has sold more than 100 million iPod Nanos since launching the first one in 2005, and the latest version should cement its title as king of the prom.
At first glance, the new Nano seems very much like the previous version. It has retained its skinny legginess and curved sides, along with its crisp screen and slightly annoying shake-to-shuffle music feature. Astute gadget hounds may notice it has a slightly enlarged screen -- it's now 2.2 inches on the diagonal, up from 2 inches.
There are some major additions, though, that make this tiny tune toter really worth its price tag ($149 for 8 gigabytes of storage space; $179 for 16 gigabytes).
The first is located near the bottom of the Nano's back: A little video camera lens with a pinhole-sized microphone. The location is prone to fingers-over-lens issues, but because the Nano has a built-in accelerometer you can solve this problem by turning the device upside down and it will still know to film right side up.
Apple says it simply wasn't possible to place the camera anywhere else without making the Nano pudgier, so I'm willing to forgive this inconvenience.
The quality of Nano videos probably won't get you into Cannes, but the camera is so easy to use that I found myself looking for cool things to record while wandering around listening to music. I also...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
FCC Chairman Expected To Outline Net Neutrality Rules
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69052
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski is expected to outline network-neutrality proposals on Monday, according to Reuters. The proposals could become rules at the FCC's October meeting.
Neutrality advocates want Internet service providers barred from blocking or slowing Internet traffic based on content. ISPs, including AT&T, Verizon Communications, and Comcast, say growing traffic needs to be managed, and they contend that neutrality could stifle innovation.
"He is going to announce rule making" at a speech to the Brookings Institution, a Reuters source said. "The commission will have to codify into new regulations the principle of nondiscrimination."
"We will reserve full judgment until we know all the details, but we are very pleased to see the FCC protecting the open Internet's free market for speech and commerce," Ben Scott, policy director of Free Press, said. "It will be a big win for consumers if the FCC delivers strong Net-neutrality rules that apply across all technologies."
At the urging of Free Press, the FCC under former Chairman Kevin Martin found that Comcast blocked file-sharing sites it blamed for network congestion. Comcast is appealing, arguing that the FCC cannot enforce principles not approved by Congress.
"We are waiting to read the chairman's proposal, but as we've said before, we are concerned about the unintended consequences that Net-neutrality regulation would have on investments from the very industry that's helping to drive the U.S. economy," said Chris Guttman-McCabe, vice president of regulatory affairs for CTIA. "We believe that this kind of regulation is unnecessary in the competitive wireless space, as it would prevent carriers from managing their networks -- such as curtailing viruses and other harmful content -- to the benefit of their consumers."
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Joltid Mounts a Legal Assault on Skype Acquisition
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69051
Joltid and sister company Joost filed a lawsuit Thursday against former Joost CEO Michaelangelo Volpi and Volpi's current employer, Index Ventures Management -- one of the private investors who acquired a 65 percent stake in Skype from eBay on Sept. 1. Among other things, the lawsuit charges Volpi with stealing trade secrets and other proprietary information for the purpose of putting together the successful bid for Skype.
At the core of the dispute is Joltid's Global Index Software -- the peer-to-peer technology developed by Skype founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom, the owners of Joltid and Joost. "Aware of its tremendous value, and on behalf of himself and his partners at Index, Volpi used his knowledge of the confidential information to form a group of investors to acquire Skype from eBay," Joltid's attorneys said in the brief submitted to Delaware's chancery court.
Joltid's latest legal maneuver followed on the heels of the company's filing of a copyright-infringement lawsuit Wednesday against eBay, Skype and Skype's new private investors. Both lawsuits demonstrate that Joltid clearly aims to disrupt eBay's sale of a 65 percent stake in Skype for $1.9 billion in cash, together with a $125 million note from the buyers.
In March, Joltid alleged in a U.K. court case that Skype breached the licensing terms governing its use of Joltid's peer-to-peer technology. The stakes are high for all parties concerned. According to Gartner Research Director Tole Hart, Skype has 480 million users; generated quarterly revenues in the $170 million range; is profitable, according to eBay; and carried 8.4 billion minutes of paid traffic in 2008.
On the other hand, Hart said he is skeptical of Skype's worth to its new investors. "Skype is good for primarily making international calling and in toll-call areas around the world," Hart said. "But the...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Google Contradicts Apple on Rejection of Google Voice
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69050
It has been two months since the Google Voice application for the iPhone and iPod touch was nixed by Apple, and now a confidential letter from Google, made public by the Federal Communications Commission, is shedding more light on Apple's rejections of Google apps.
The letter, addressed to FCC Senior Deputy Bureau Chief James Schlitching, was written and hand-delivered on Aug. 21. The letter includes all of Google's responses to questions from the FCC on the rejection of Google Voice and other applications.
In the letter, Google says Apple rejected the Google Voice app because "Apple believed the application duplicated the core dialer functionality of the iPhone." That contradicts Apple's earlier letter to the FCC that said, "Contrary to published reports, Apple has not rejected the Google Voice application, and continues to study it."
Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, broke the rejection news in a phone conversation with Google's Senior Vice President of Engineering and Research Alan Eustace on June 2, according to Google's letter.
The Google Voice app quickly gained popularity among Research In Motion BlackBerry users and Android mobile-phone users.
Rather than decide whether to reach someone at home, at work, or on a cell phone, callers can use the person's Google Voice number. The service, which is currently available by invitation only, also allows a user to manage how he or she can be reached by different callers.
It's for those reasons that potential users are speaking out against Apple's rejection, saying approving the Google app would take money away from Apple and iPhone wireless carrier AT&T. Many said AT&T was behind Apple's rejection of Google Voice, but AT&T denied having anything to do with the approval process.
This wasn't the first time Schiller had rejected a Google app submitted for the iPhone.
After several phone, e-mail...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Digital Content From Google Can Be Turned Into Books
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69049
What if you could print a copy of a rare book, complete with a cover and binding, while you wait at a kiosk? You can, now that Google has signed an agreement with On Demand Books.
On Thursday, Google inked the deal with the maker of the Espresso Book Machine, allowing consumers to print more than two million public-domain titles in the Google digital files. On Demand Books already offers 1.6 million titles.
"I'm a sucker for a cool piece of technology," said Brandon Badger, a Google product manager. "The Espresso Book Machine, which can print a book in minutes before your eyes, fits the bill. If sentient robots ever succeed in taking over the world, this is how they will print their books."
The Espresso Book Machine is a patented high-speed, automated book-making machine that can print, bind and trim a single-copy library-quality paperback book, complete with a full-color cover, within minutes. Now it will print rare and classic books from the public domain.
"On Demand Books, in effect an ATM for books, will radically decentralize direct-to-consumer distribution," said Jason Epstein, chairman and cofounder of On Demand Books. "With the Google inventory, the Espresso Book Machine will make it possible for readers everywhere to have access to millions of digital titles in multiple languages, including rare and out-of-print public-domain titles."
On Demand Books works in the opposite manner of the classic Gutenberg model of centrally producing, shipping and selling. Espresso sells first, then produces. Technology consumers are familiar with the process through computer maker Dell's business model.
The Espresso Book Machine relies on proprietary software to connect to a network of legal content. The software uses encryption to assure the security of publishers' titles, tracks all jobs, and provides payments to publishers. Content owners retain full ownership and control of their...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Palm Drops Windows Mobile To Focus on web OS
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69035
Palm will now sink or swim on its own operating system. The struggling handset maker announced Thursday that it will no longer develop phones using Windows Mobile, but will instead concentrate only on its webOS.
Palm has been developing Windows Mobile-based devices since 2005, but this year it launched its long-awaited Linux-based webOS, which has been receiving positive reviews. In fact, some reviewers have said it is a better OS than Windows Mobile.
Palm will still be selling the popular Centro, based on the earlier Palm OS, and the Windows-based Treo.
The announcement came during a conference call with analysts and media, following reports for its first fiscal quarter that showed Palm shipped more than 800,000 smartphones. This was up more than 130 percent from its previous quarter, but 30 percent less than the same quarter last year.
The Palm Pre, its first webOS product, is currently available in the U.S. only through Sprint Nextel.
Avi Greengart, an analyst with industry research firm Current Analysis, said the sales figures were "disappointing relative to other high-profile launches." But he noted that it isn't clear if customers weren't interested in webOS devices, or if they weren't interested in a webOS device through Sprint.
When the Pre first came out, demand seemed strong. In fact, there were reports that the supply couldn't quite keep up with demand, although the supply problem appears to have since been resolved.
Sprint has been struggling with its customer base, and Greengart said a better test of Palm's Pre will be when it moves to other carriers, such as Verizon Wireless or AT&T. "Verizon has been quite public about wanting to pick up the Pre" after Sprint's exclusive period runs out, he said.
In July, Verizon Chief Operating Officer Dennis Strigl confirmed that the company will release...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Malvertisers Sued as Microsoft Cracks Down
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69034
Microsoft filed five civil lawsuits Thursday in King County Superior Court in Seattle against alleged malvertisers. Malvertising is an industry term for malicious online advertising -- and Microsoft is moving to fight it in a first-of-its-kind suit.
Malvertising works by camouflaging malicious code as harmless online advertisements. These ads then lead to harmful or deceptive content. For example, ads may redirect users to a Web site that advertises rogue security software, also known as scareware, that falsely claims to detect or prevent threats on a computer. Malvertising may also directly infect a victim's computer with malicious software like Trojans.
Although Microsoft actively engages with other leaders of online ad platforms to mitigate malvertising threats, Tim Cranton, associate general counsel at Microsoft, said the company is taking the next step in the battle.
The lawsuits allege that individuals using the business names Soft Solutions, Direct Ad, qiweroqw.com, ITmeter INC. and ote2008.info used malvertisements to distribute malicious software or present deceptive Web sites that peddled scareware to unsuspecting Internet users.
"Although we don't yet know the names of the specific individuals behind these acts, we are filing these cases to help uncover the people responsible and prevent them from continuing their exploits," Cranton said. "We hope that [Thursday's] filings will help deter malvertising in the future, but meanwhile, adopting a few good habits can help you avoid online scams and ensure the safest computing experience possible."
Microsoft offers three key points to consumers hoping to avoid malvertising. First, the software giant suggested, make sure you're using legitimate and up-to-date antivirus, firewall and anti-malware and spyware tools. Second, be extra cautious about offers to secure or scan your computer with security software or programs you don't recognize. Finally, don't give out personal information or credit-card information unless you know the site...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
U.S. Tops IT Competitiveness; Finland Is No. 2
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69017
Recession or no, when it comes to running a tech company the U.S. is still the best place to do business, according to a new study released on Sept. 17 by the Economist Intelligence Unit.
Commissioned by the Business Software Alliance, a trade organization that represents the software industry, the study analyzes data on 66 countries around the world to determine which have the most competitive information technology sectors. Now in its third year, it examines such variables as a country's overall business climate; the pervasiveness of its tech infrastructure; the strength and transparency of its legal system; and the availability of a workforce that is both well-educated and technologically literate.
Home to some of the world's most recognizable tech companies, such as IBM, Oracle, Intel, Apple, Hewlett-Packard, and Google, the U.S. has topped the survey every year, but the country's predominance is vulnerable in key ways. "We see a number of factors where the U.S. is not in the lead," says Robert Holeyman, CEO of the BSA.
For instance, in the all-important research and development category, which accounts for 25 percent of a nation's score, the U.S. ranks fifth, well behind Canada, which led that category, as well as Singapore and Israel.
Finland was notable for its second-place showing, displacing last year's runner-up, Taiwan. The Nordic nation of 5.3 million is also the home of wireless-phone giant Nokia. It rose to second from 13th last year, in part because of a change in the study's methodology. This year the study's authors used data from the European Patent Office showing the actual number of patents applied for and granted within each country per 100 people. Last year the study's authors relied on estimates of the number of IT-related patents granted within a country. That, coupled with strong public and private...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Tough-Love Ways To Tame Those Digital Distractions
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69015
With so much available on your PC -- all your friends, blogs, games and television shows -- working in a modern office can often seem as rattling as working on the floor of a casino.
Sure, you could use your PC to analyze stats for the annual sales report due in two days. But hey, look at this -- someone wants to be your friend on Facebook! And wait a second: A zany couple decided to start off their wedding by dancing down the aisle, and lucky for everyone, they posted the video on YouTube. And did you hear what that ignorant congressman just said about health care? Now you have no choice but to spend the next five minutes crafting an impassioned tweet to express your outrage.
Over the past few weeks, I've been using a slate of programs to tame these digital distractions. The applications break down into three broad categories: The most innocuous simply try to monitor my online habits in an effort to shame me into working more productively. Others reduce visual bells and whistles on my desktop as a way to keep me focused. And then there are the ones that really mean business -- they let me actively block various parts of the Internet so that when my mind strays, I am prohibited from giving in to my shiftless ways.
The first category is epitomized by a program called RescueTime, which keeps track of everything that happens on your computer and then reports your habits in a series of charts and graphs. I found the software's analysis tremendously illuminating. I learned, for instance, that during a typical month I spend more than 70 hours surfing the Web, much of it on news and social-networking sites. By comparison, I spend only about half as much time in Microsoft...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Windows 7: Will Its Features Impress You?
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69013
Now less than two months from world-wide release, Microsoft's Windows 7 is bound to make the legions of existing Windows users wonder whether they should upgrade. And it will make those who have put off hardware purchases in anticipation of the new operating system wonder whether the time is right to hand over their hard-earned cash. Windows 7 has already won over the majority of those who have been beta testing the product for over a year now. So there's really just one question that remains: will it impress you? To give you a head start on deciding, here's an overview of what are likely to be the most talked-about new features of Windows 7.
Promises of greater speed and stability are likely to interest the majority of Windows users. But it's helpful to remember that every major release of Windows in memory has arrived with similar assurances. And each time, the reality of the operating system, once unleashed onto the millions of computers around the world, has fallen short of expectations.
Will Windows 7 actually be different? In terms of performance, most benchmarks put the release-to-manufacturing version of Windows 7 roughly on a par with both Windows XP and the first service pack release of Windows Vista. But Windows 7 is noticeably speedier in areas that matter a lot to most users: startup is faster, as is Windows shutdown, and most disk-intensive tasks are at least on a par with the speed of Windows XP.
In terms of stability, only time will tell. Anecdotal reports of Windows 7 running nonstop for a month or more without requiring a reboot are rampant around the Web, which is good. But there are also plenty of reported incidences of Explorer crashes and other glitches occurring in the new operating system, just as with...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Microsoft's New Zune Tries to Catch Up
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69012
Over the years, mention of the word "Microsoft" has triggered a variety of emotions. Some consider how Microsoft achieved its success and feel anger. Some consider how Microsoft borrows other companies' ideas and feel indignant. Some consider some recent battle with Windows and feel frustration.
But when you try out Microsoft's new Zune HD music/video player, you may feel a whole new emotion that most people don't associate with Microsoft: sympathy.
Why? We'll get to that.
The Zune, which replaces the old models, is Microsoft's version of the iPod Touch -- a gorgeous multi-touch screen dominates the front. Its handsome, beveled metal case weighs next to nothing yet still feels expensive and solid in the hand. It is nearly buttonless: You operate it as you do the iPod Touch -- you navigate by tapping things on the screen, magnify photos or Web pages by spreading two fingers apart, rotate images by turning the player 90 degrees, and so on. The software design is fluid, beautiful and incredibly responsive.
The new Zune has an incredibly bright, sharp and colorful OLED screen (organic light-emitting diode, not that that helps). Finger-grease streaks are an ugly problem, at least when the screen is off.
The Zune HD is narrower and shorter than the Touch, and a hair thicker. It's available in black or silver; online, you can order a Zune HD with any of several fancy artist-designed back panels. The 16-gig model is $220; the 32-gig model is $290. The "HD" means two things. First, like its predecessors, this Zune can tune into FM radio, but now it can tune into HD radio stations, too.
The Zune HD's name also refers to the hi-def (720p) movies that you can buy on Microsoft's online store. The store is a big new push for Microsoft; the same music, television shows and movies...
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Sector Snap: Broadpoint Downgrades Chips
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69009
Several chip stocks took a hit Wednesday after a Broadpoint AmTech analyst downgraded the semiconductor sector, saying there is a "good risk of inflated expectations" for the industry.
"Our downgrade today to equal weight is in response to a faster-than-expected recovery to demand levels in both the PC and handset space," analyst Doug Freedman wrote in a note to investors. He lowered his rating on the sector to "equal weight" from "overweight."
Freedman lowered Advanced Micro Devices Inc., Nvidia Corp. and Analog Devices Inc. to "neutral" from "buy" as part of the sector downgrade.
Freedman said he expects the semiconductor market to continue to recover from the recession, and possibly even see better-than-expected results in the third and fourth quarters of this year.
But, he added, given the volatility of the sector, among other reasons, there is a risk of inflated expectations for the shares.
"One of the cornerstones to our call today is that investors should take a more measured approach to semiconductor investing and play a little defense at this time of year," the analyst said.
Another Broadpoint AmTech analyst, Dinesh Moorjani, upgraded SanDisk Corp. to "buy" from "neutral" and raised his target price to $26 from $20. He said Wall Street under-appreciates the company's earnings recovery.
"We expect the next earnings report to be a catalyst for an upward reset in expectations," the analyst wrote in a client note.
Shares of Nvidia fell 41 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $15.97 in early afternoon trading, having traded in the 52-week range of $5.75 and $16.58.
AMD's shares slid 6 cents to $5.82. Analog Devices fell 68 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $27.87. The stock has changed hands between $15.29 and $30.68 in the past year.
SanDisk's shares rose 52 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $21.15. The stock has traded between $5.07 and $23.50 in the past year.
Sat, 19 Sep 09
Microsoft Urges Web Learning in Case of Swine Flu
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69008
Microsoft Corp. says it can help schools get through swine flu.
The company is promoting its free online service for storing files and collaborating on projects as a way for teachers to keep classes on track even if schools close because of a flu outbreak.
Microsoft has launched a how-to Web site that walks teachers through the steps of setting up accounts for their classes on Office Live Workspace, a free Web service. Teachers can use it to post handouts and presentations, and students can log on to get assignments, chat and work with classmates on shared files.
A few schools that have already seen swine flu outbreaks started using Office Live Workspace, and that prompted Microsoft to post tips and case studies online, said Anthony Salcito, a vice president for worldwide education at Microsoft.
"Many teachers have no idea that tools like this exist," he said.
Microsoft released Office Live Workspace in 2007 to let people with Hotmail or Live e-mail addresses log on to view and comment on Word, Excel and PowerPoint files. It was an early attempt by Microsoft to defend its turf against Google Inc. and others building free word processing programs that worked in Web browsers.
The effort drew criticism because the Office Live system didn't let users create or edit files, actions Google already supported. Since then, Microsoft has been working on more robust Web-based versions of Office programs that are due out in the first half of 2010.
Sat, 19 Sep 09
U.S., Canadian Judges Approve Nortel Bankruptcy Sale
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69007
Nortel Networks Inc. won approval Wednesday from judges in Delaware and Ontario for the $900 million sale of a Nortel unit that makes communications systems for businesses.
In a joint hearing involving a video link between courtrooms in Wilmington and Toronto, where Nortel Networks Corp. is based, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Gross and Canadian Justice Geoffrey Morawetz approved the sale of Nortel Enterprise Solutions to New Jersey-based Avaya Inc. for $900 million in cash and a $15 million contribution to a Nortel employee retention program.
The hearing followed an auction that concluded early Monday and resulted in privately held Avaya agreeing to pay almost double the amount of its "stalking horse" bid of $475 million for the Nortel unit, which supplies phone systems and other communications equipment to businesses and large organizations, including government agencies.
Derrick Tay, an attorney representing Nortel in Canada, said the auction bidding, which stretched over the weekend, amounted to an increase in the sale price of about $8 million an hour, which he joked would just about cover the fees of the professionals involved.
"I think this is a good news story, not just for creditors," Tay said, adding that the deal will resolve uncertainty among Nortel employees, customers and potential customers.
The court actions cover the sale of Nortel's Enterprise Solutions business in North America, the Caribbean and Latin America and Asia. Nortel and Avaya have a separate agreement covering Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Avaya said the company still needs court approval in France and Israel, among other things.
Meanwhile, Canadian Industry Minister Tony Clement said Wednesday the government won't block the $1.1 billion sale of Nortel Networks' wireless division to Sweden's Ericsson.
Nortel, a former telecommunications equipment giant that at one point accounted for one-third of the market value on the entire Toronto Stock Exchange, filed for bankruptcy...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
Microsoft Opens Office Web Apps for Selective Testing
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69029
Microsoft took the cover off its Web-based versions of the Microsoft Office suite on Thursday, at least partially. The software giant offered what it calls the Office Web Apps Technical Preview program that will allow a select group to give the software a test drive before the official beta rolls out later this year.
Invitees will receive access to a lightweight version of Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint on the Web through Windows Live. Microsoft also announced the formal name for the Web-based applications: Office Web Apps. The suite includes Word Web App, Excel Web App, PowerPoint Web App, and OneNote Web App.
Microsoft's aim with Office Web Apps is to allow people to access, share and work on Office documents from virtually anywhere with an Internet connection.
"Our mission with the upcoming release of Microsoft Office 2010 is to deliver a great productivity experience, improving upon what customers depend upon today, and innovating on what they'll expect tomorrow. Office Web Apps are a key part of our vision for Office 2010," said Michael Schultz, director of marketing for Microsoft Office Services.
Schultz said the Office 2010 release is designed to deliver a productivity experience across PCs, mobile devices, and browsers. Office Web Apps will be integrated with Office to give users the ability to save open documents on the Web directly from Microsoft Office 2010.
Microsoft is offering Office Web Apps through Windows Live because the company sees it as a strategic hub for people to store and share information such as photos, contacts, calendars and documents on Windows Live SkyDrive.
"The latest statistics tell us two-thirds of the worldwide population is online at least once a month, and in the United States, 89 percent of the top 100 companies offer telecommuting," Schultz said. "That means people are on the move and...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
Snow Leopard Sales Top Previous Mac OS X Releases
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69028
NPD Group said Thursday that sales of Snow Leopard Mac OS X so far have exceeded Apple's two previous Mac OS X releases during their first two weeks. According to the market researcher, Snow Leopard unit shipments were more than twice the volume of Leopard's initial sales and almost four times higher than Apple's earlier Tiger Mac OS X release.
Moreover, Snow Leopard's sales only declined about 25 percent from the first week to the second, said NPD Vice President Stephen Baker. In comparison, volume shipments of Leopard and Tiger declined more than 60 percent in the second week, he added.
"With pricing reduced by more than $100 for both the single-user and five-user pack versus Leopard pricing, Apple has clearly demonstrated that aggressive pricing policies in this economic environment generate an outstanding consumer response," Baker said.
Still, Snow Leopard's strong initial performance is unlikely to have much of an impact on Apple's bottom line in the current third quarter, according to Piper Jaffray, which is maintaining an "overweight" rating and $186 price target for Apple's stock.
"According to NPD data, Snow Leopard has outsold Leopard two to one, but since it is one-fourth the price, it is half the revenue event that Leopard was," said Piper Jaffray analyst Andrew Murphy. "It should still provide a slight tailwind to margins in the quarter, but in the end it's still a relatively minor product for Apple with a minor financial impact on the business."
Piper Jaffray also has analyzed NPD's retail data for domestic Mac sales during the first two months of the third quarter. The numbers show a seven percent rise in Mac sales, which led the firm's analysts to project unit shipments of 2.75 million to 2.8 million versus a Street consensus of about 2.75 million for the current quarter....
Fri, 18 Sep 09
Regulators Take a Close Look at Microsoft-Yahoo Deal
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69026
The 10-year search-engine deal between Microsoft and Yahoo is under scrutiny. The July 29 deal between the two behemoths is being closely monitored by U.S. antitrust regulators, and both companies are in talks with officials in the European Union.
The U.S. Justice Department last week asked the companies for additional information on the Internet search deal, a source told Reuters. It hasn't been established if the European Union will begin a formal probe into the deal, and it's still unclear whether Microsoft and Yahoo need approval from the European Commission or from regulators in each country in the EU.
The deal is expected to help Microsoft and Yahoo better compete against Google, the search-market leader.
"As we said when the agreement was announced, we anticipated that this deal will be closely reviewed in the U.S. and EU, and discussions in both geographies continue," Microsoft spokesperson Jack Evans said in an e-mail. "We remain hopeful the deal will close in early 2010."
Microsoft has also said it plans to seek approval in other countries such as Korea, Brazil and Taiwan.
The deal would give Microsoft and Yahoo about 30 percent of the search market, making them attractive to advertisers. The deal, according to Microsoft and Yahoo, will prove that a stronger rival is what Google needs and consumers want.
Google currently has 68 percent of the market in the U.S. and 90 percent in Europe.
The agreement has Microsoft providing the underlying search technology for Yahoo sites. Yahoo will handle sales relationships and receive 88 percent of search-generated ad revenues from its own sites for the first five years, for an estimated annual operating cash flow of $275 million.
Yahoo said it's confident the agreement will receive regulatory approval in both the EU and the U.S.
"As we indicated at the time of announcement, the...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
HP DreamScreen Turns Picture Frame Into Computer
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69010
Like a sidekick supporting a hero, a peripheral used to need a computer. Now peripherals are becoming more like the computer, a development that may make sidekicks everywhere rejoice. The latest peripheral-as-computer incarnation is the HP DreamScreen, a wireless display that can surf the Web, connect to Facebook, or present photos, music and video.
Announced Thursday, the DreamScreen is a piano-black, flush-glass widescreen, measuring 10.2 inches for the model 100 and 13.3 inches for the 130. Hewlett-Packard said the units are designed to fit on a nightstand, dresser, kitchen counter, or coffee table.
Wireless connectivity is 802.11 b or g, and the screen is designed for easy access to such sites as Facebook. Through a Facebook icon, a user can view status updates of friends, photos and other information.
Snapfish photos, slideshows and albums can be readily accessed, and there are five-day weather forecasts for cities around the planet, a built-in clock, tones or music for alarms, and a calendar view. Videos can be watched full-screen, and photos and music can be streamed wirelessly from a PC.
The device has two gigabytes of built-in memory for storing media, and content can also be read from a USB drive or several types of flash memory cards. Files can be streamed wirelessly by dragging and dropping on the virtual desktop of a networked PC.
Hi-fi speakers are built-in, along with connections for headphones or external speakers. Music streaming from the Internet is made possible through the Pandora service, plus a new service, HP SmartRadio. SmartRadio aggregates more than 10,000 radio-station Internet broadcasts that are selectable by location or genre.
Ross Rubin, direction of industry analysis for consumer technology at the NPD Group, noted that other peripherals are also beginning to make a play for a starring role.
He noted that ASUS has shown...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
Google Will Buy reCAPTCHA To Help Scan Books
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69001
On Wednesday, Google announced plans to acquire a startup that helps Web sites combat spam and fraud. Google is investing an undisclosed amount to bring reCAPTCHA into its technology fold to address scanning challenges in the Google Books project.
reCAPTCHA is a free anti-bot service that helps digitize books. The company also provides CAPTCHAs to help protect more than 100,000 Web sites. A CAPTCHA is a program that can detect whether its user is a human or a computer.
CAPTCHAs appear as images with distorted text at the bottom of Web registration forms and are used by many Web sites to prevent abuse from automated programs written to generate spam. But Google sees it as a way to teach computers to read.
Luis von Ahn, cofounder of reCAPTCHA, and Google product manager Will Cathcart explained the reCAPTCHA twist: The words in many of the CAPTCHAs provided by reCAPTCHA come from scanned archival newspapers and old books.
"Computers find it hard to recognize these words because the ink and paper have degraded over time, but by typing them in as a CAPTCHA, crowds teach computers to read the scanned text," von Ahn and Cathcart explained. "In this way, reCAPTCHA's unique technology improves the process that converts scanned images into plain text, known as optical character recognition (OCR)."
Now here's the Google-reCAPTCHA connection: OCR also powers large-scale text-scanning projects like Google Books and Google News Archive Search. As Google sees it, having the text version of documents is important because plain text can be searched, easily rendered on mobile devices, and displayed to visually impaired users.
Google plans to apply the reCAPTCHA technology not only to increase fraud and spam protection for Google products but also to improve the books and newspaper scanning process. Google will also continue to allow Web-site owners...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
The Hottest New Social Marketing Tool? The Telephone
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68996
That hoariest of social networking devices, the telephone, is making a comeback among Hollywood marketers.
Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are considered essential parts of the entertainment factory's marketing arsenal. Add another service to the list: SayNow, a tiny Silicon Valley company whose low-key approach -- connecting stars and their fans through voice mail -- is gaining traction, particularly among teenage audiences.
SayNow has been quietly amassing huge numbers of callers and winning celebrity converts. The free service says it averages 10 million fan calls a month, or about one million voice minutes each day. Use has doubled over the past year, according to Nikhyl Singhal, a company founder. About 65 percent of the callers are teenage girls.
"We effectively create a mobile army, allowing artists to directly motivate and direct their fans," said Mr. Singhal, who also plans to court athletes and politicians as participants.
SayNow, founded in 2005 with $6 million in venture capital, is essentially a telephone company. Stars are given personal phone numbers to post on their Web sites or mention in television interviews. Fans call and listen to recorded messages.
Callers can also leave voice messages of their own, many of which are then made public on SayNow.com. Callers can sign up to get text alerts when stars like Selena Gomez of "Wizards of Waverly Place" or the Jonas Brothers (22 million SayNow calls from fans and counting) record new messages.
A newly introduced "live" function allows celebrities to hold what are essentially giant one-way conference calls, chattering away as thousands of fans listen on mute.
Artists can also return calls for one-on-one conversations that are broadcast to the group, something the pop singer Jesse McCartney recently did. "When I come down to Texas, I expect you in the front row," he recently told a weeping Catherine from Fort Worth. Her response: "I...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
Facebook Takes a Page from Its Rival, Twitter
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68995
Like a balding hipster who imitates a young trendsetter's style, Facebook is updating itself to look a lot more like Twitter.
Unlike Facebook, where friends mutually agree to let one another into their online lives, Twitter lets people share updates and links with anyone who cares to read them.
That has turned Twitter into a tool for helping people to peer into the collective mind and see what people are talking about in real time. It is also a tool for businesses that want to reach customers and monitor what customers are saying about them.
Facebook seems to be very interested in those features. Since last autumn, when Facebook tried and failed to acquire Twitter, it has been slowly introducing features that mimic Twitter.
Last week, Facebook added two new, Twitter-like features. Users can now "tag" friends or companies that they mention in status updates, and they can use a pared-down version of the site called Facebook Lite that resembles Twitter's stream of status updates.
Meredith Chin, a Facebook spokeswoman, played down the changes. "We've been making iterations to our product over time to reflect the rapid evolution of how people share information online," she said.
But others see another force at work. "Twitter envy: Facebook has it, absolutely," said Jeremiah Owyang, a social media consultant at the Altimeter Group, which advises businesses on using new technologies. "Facebook absolutely recognizes that Twitter is a threat, and they're doing what they can to replicate the features before Twitter gets mainstream adoption."
To tag another Facebook member in a status update, users type the @ symbol before the friend's name. The @ symbol is a convention that Twitter users started. In response, Twitter added a section on its site where people can see any tweets that mention them. The mentions are hyperlinked so others can click on them to...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
France Approves Internet Piracy Bill
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68980
France's lower house of parliament approved a pioneering bill Tuesday allowing authorities to cut off Internet access to people who download illegally, a measure that entertainment companies hope will be a powerful weapon against piracy.
Critics, meanwhile, complain the bill threatens civil liberties, and questions remain about exactly how it will be enforced. The bill has garnered attention beyond France, both from music and film industries struggling to keep up official revenue and from privacy advocates who worry about government intrusion.
The Culture Ministry has estimated that 1,000 French Internet users a day could be taken offline under the bill. Pirates who ignore e-mail warnings and a registered letter could see their Internet connections cut for up to a year, and they could also face up to euro300,000 ($435,000) in fines or jail time.
Even parents whose children download illegally could be targeted for neglecting to police their online activities -- after warnings, the family's Internet service could be shut down for a month, and they could be slapped with a euro3,750 ($5,480) fine.
An original, more muscular version of the bill was shot down earlier this year as unconstitutional. The Senate approved a compromise version in July, and the National Assembly followed suit Tuesday, with a 285-225 vote.
The bill must clear at least one more hurdle to become law, gaining approval from a small committee of lawmakers tasked with harmonizing the two versions.
President Nicolas Sarkozy, the husband of model-turned-singer Carla Bruni-Sarkozy and friend to powerful French media figures, supports the bill.
Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand applauded lawmakers, saying, "Artists will remember that we at last had the courage to break with the laissez-faire approach and protect their rights from people who want to turn the net into their libertarian utopia."
David El Sayegh, general manager of France's National Union of Phonographic Publishing, also praised...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
After Outcry, T-Mobile Drops Paper Billing Fee
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68979
T-Mobile USA has dropped a plan to begin charging customers $1.50 per month to get a paper copy of their bill in the mail.
The wireless phone carrier had recently informed its 33 million customers that the fee would go into effect this past Saturday and apply to anyone who didn't sign up for a paperless billing plan, in which bills can only be viewed on the Internet.
After an outcry from customers and threats of legal action, however, the company changed its mind. In a statement posted on a company Web page, T-Mobile said it had decided not to implement the fee, "for now."
"Instead, we'll be taking more time to determine the fairest way possible to encourage people to go paperless," it said.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, whose office had issued T-Mobile a warning over the planned fee, said in a statement that the company couldn't legally impose new charges without giving customers the option of ending their service contracts early.
"My office will not sit back and let a company change its prices under the guise of "going green,'" he said.
T-Mobile's main competitors, Verizon Wireless, AT&T Inc. and Sprint Nextel Corp., all offer customers a free paper copy of a basic bill, but impose charges if customers want a paper copy of a more detailed bill with itemized calls.
T-Mobile USA, owned by Deutsche Telekom AG, has also been charging $3.49 for a detailed paper copy of a bill, and will continue to do so.
Fri, 18 Sep 09
Blockbuster May Close as Many as 960 U.S. Stores
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68977
Blockbuster Inc. may close as many as 960 stores by the end of next year, shedding more dead weight as the struggling video rental chain tries to reverse its losses and fend off rapidly growing rivals Netflix Inc. and Redbox.
The cuts outlined in documents filed Tuesday would leave Blockbuster with about 20 percent fewer U.S. stores. The previously confidential documents didn't identify the locations of the endangered stores.
Blockbuster hasn't made any final decisions on the possible store closures, Chief Executive James Keyes said in an interview Tuesday.
Keyes described the closures as something that Blockbuster is considering as it sets up more DVD-rental kiosks in the stores of other merchants. It's a concept that has been popularized by Coinstar Inc.'s Redbox.
By the middle of next year, Blockbuster hopes to have 10,000 kiosks scattered around the country. It had just 500 kiosks at the end of August.
"We could have fewer physical stores and still have more rental points for our customers," Keyes said.
Blockbuster's shift serves as another reminder of video stores' waning appeal as consumers buy and rent movies through the mail, on the Internet and through cable connections and standalone kiosks.
The shift has threatened to turn once-mighty Blockbuster into a dinosaur. The Dallas-based company has been trying to evolve by embracing kiosks and expanding into rentals delivered through the mail and the Internet.
But it hasn't been enough to justify keeping so many stores open, prompting management to consider cutting much deeper than it anticipated to save money and keep its lenders happy. About 18 percent of Blockbuster's stores aren't making money, according to the documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Blockbuster is thinking about closing between 810 and 960 of its U.S. stores before 2011, up from the 380 to 425 stores that normally would be closed during that time...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
Oracle, Sun Link Up for New Product; HP Snubbed
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68975
With the fate of its proposed $7.4 billion takeover of Sun Microsystems Inc. uncertain amid antitrust scrutiny, Oracle Corp. is moving ahead with a new product incorporating both companies' technology, and snubbing Hewlett-Packard Co. in the process.
Sun and Oracle unveiled a new database machine Tuesday built from Sun hardware and Oracle software.
The companies claim the Exadata machine works twice as fast as the previous generation of the device. The earlier version of the machine was built by Oracle and Hewlett-Packard Co. and when it was introduced last year marked the first time in Oracle's history that the company sold computer hardware.
The machines are a combination of servers, which carry out heavy computing chores, and database software, which companies use to store and retrieve information they've stored, such as payroll data. Oracle is the world's No. 1 database software company.
Oracle confirmed that it is no longer making database machines with HP. HP declined to comment.
Oracle's proposed takeover of Sun, which is being held up by European Union regulators, has touched off a fight for Sun's computer-server customers. Sun rivals HP and IBM Corp. have sought to lure business from Sun by raising concerns among customers about the future of Sun's hardware products under Oracle.
The tactics have been working. Sun's worldwide market share in servers stood at 10 percent in the latest quarter, down more than a percentage point from last year, according to data from research firm IDC.
Oracle has fought back with advertisements promising to invest more deeply in Sun's products than Sun, which has struggled with financial problems for nearly a decade, could do. Oracle has also said it will "dramatically improve" the performance of Sun's hardware by designing it to run better with Oracle's software.
The U.S. Justice Department has already approved the Oracle-Sun deal. European Union regulators are concerned...
Fri, 18 Sep 09
Scribblenauts Leads Parade of Nintendo DS Gems
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68972
Apple has turned the iPhone into a popular device for video games. Sony is about to introduce the PSP go, a slick new version of its handheld PlayStation Portable. But both companies are still playing catch-up with Nintendo, which has dominated the portable game market for decades.
The secret: a steady supply of terrific games. Here's a roundup of some of the best new releases for the Nintendo DS.
-"Scribblenauts" (WB Games, $29.99): This charming game from 5th Cell, the studio behind the nifty "Drawn to Life," boasts a thoroughly original gimmick. Instead of providing a limited set of tools to solve its puzzles, it encourages you to use your imagination. Think a ladder would be useful? Switch to the keyboard, type in "ladder" and -- voila! -- one appears on the screen.
The studio says there are tens of thousands of nouns in the game's dictionary, so you can conjure up anything from an aardvark to a zucchini (within the bounds of good taste). You'll want to keep using certain objects, like a rope or a helicopter, but "Scribblenauts" rewards you for trying different tools.
There are some frustrations: Some objects don't do what you might expect, and the main character can be hard to control. But with dozens of clever puzzles, and even more ways to solve them, there's a lot of value in this innovative package. Three stars out of four.
-"Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box" (Nintendo, $34.99): Puzzle maniacs will also adore this mystery, the second in a series from the Japanese studio Level 5. This time, the professor and his protege, Luke, race across a fantastical version of Europe in search of the title object, which is said to kill anyone who opens it.
While the story is solid, it's mainly a framework to present about 150 brainteasers, which are...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Adobe Will Buy Analytics Provider Omniture for $1.8B
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=69000
Adobe Systems, the maker of Flash, Acrobat and Photoshop, plans to acquire Utah-based Omniture for $1.8 billion, or $21.50 per share, the companies announced late Tuesday. The deal would combine Adobe's Web design tools with Omniture's Web analytics tools.
If the deal is completed, designers, online marketers, and developers are expected to benefit from additional creative tools while advertisers, publishers and online retailers get a better return on their investments, according to company executives.
"Omniture's mission has been to enable our customers to optimize every digital interaction," said Omniture CEO Josh James. "By joining forces with Adobe, we will accelerate our ability to deliver on that vision and together bring new innovation to the market that improves content engagement, advertising effectiveness, and the overall user experience, which will drive more advertising dollars online."
Analysts, however, believe the marriage of the two companies may not be well accepted by developers and designers and could cause a disruption for customers.
"I think when it gets down to the details of what the integration will actually look like, there are a lot of details to be worked out and questions on how analytics should enter into the design process," Gartner media analyst Andrew Frank said. "I think it will be a challenge for the category, and Adobe has now put itself in a leadership position for these integration issues."
Adobe has to predict how long it will take the Web-design discipline to evolve and accept the changes, Frank said.
Adobe, however, said the integration is what its customers need because they are looking for tools and services to monetize their content and applications online.
Additional tools and services also mean major adjustments, according to Adobe President and CEO Shantanu Narayen. "This is a game-changer for both Adobe and our customers," he said.
Not disrupting customers, including...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Seagate DockStar Creates a Personal Data Cloud
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68999
Seagate Technology has taken the wraps off a new storage adapter that promises to let individuals access their digital content from any location worldwide where Internet access is available. Called the FreeAgent DockStar, the device is designed to make it a snap for users to create their own personal storage "clouds" without having to place their content on a server hosted by others.
"DockStar is an easy-to-use network attached storage device that enables users to access and share everything on the drive," said Seagate spokesperson Nathan Papadopulos. "It is compatible with all types of multimedia files as well as all other computer file formats."
The installation requirements for the DockStar are straightforward. Plug the device's power cord into an AC receptacle, use an Ethernet cable to connect the DockStar to a wireless router, and slide Seagate's external FreeAgent Go hard drive into the adapter's docking port. The FreeAgent DockStar can be used in tandem with up to three USB storage devices.
Once users have logged on to the service and registered, their content immediately becomes accessible from any Web browser -- whether in a home or across the world.
"The sign-up process activates your DockStar and puts it on the network without any additional input from you," said Seagate Product Marketing Director Jon van Bronkhorst. "No router issues, no firewall issues -- it really is that simple."
The DockStar's Web-based interface has been designed to work equally well on Windows PCs, Macs and computers running Linux. Moreover, a free Pogoplug app provides DockStar users with direct access to content from their iPhones, together with the ability to send pictures straight from an iPhone to a folder on the network adapter.
"You are only limited by the available bandwidth," Papadopulos said. "We have been doing demos from an iPhone to a MacBook...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Google Expects Chrome 3.0 To Boost Market Share
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68987
On Tuesday, Google launched the third iteration of its Web browser after just a year on the market. Google is billing Chrome 3.0 as a brand-new release that comes on the heels of 51 developer, 21 beta, and 15 stable updates and 3,505 bug fixes in the past 12 months.
Even though Chrome is no longer in beta, it's still only available for PCs running Windows. But Google is reporting some major improvements in its first stable release and some ambitious goals for increasing market share.
According to Google, the company has improved JavaScript performance by more than 150 percent since the first beta of Google Chrome, and by more than 25 percent since the most recent stable release.
With Chrome 3.0, Google aims to grab five percent market share by 2010 and 10 percent by 2011. The company has just more than two percent market share today. Google's gains may come primarily at the expense of Microsoft's Internet Explorer unless it launches Chrome versions for Linux and Mac OS X.
Chrome 3.0 is set to compete with a New Tab page that facilitates one-click browsing. Google said it redesigned the tab page so it's customizable. For example, with Chrome 3.0, users can rearrange thumbnails of most-visited Web sites by clicking and dragging the mouse. Users can also pin thumbnails to a spot so they don't disappear even if browsing habits change.
"You can do even more to customize your New Tab page -- for example, you can hide parts of the page you don't want to see, or even opt for a simple list view of all your most visited Web sites. In addition, we've added handy tips to the bottom of the New Tab page to help you get the most out of Google Chrome," said Chrome program...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Android Devices Grow with New ARCHOS 5 Tablet
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68970
There's a new Android device on the market. On Tuesday, the French company ARCHOS announced the ARCHOS 5 Internet Tablet, based on Google's open-source Android mobile operating system.
The ARCHOS 5 features 720p high-definition viewing, TV recording, and built-in GPS with 3-D navigation in addition to Net browsing. It has a five-inch 800x480 touchscreen, and the company emphasized that it has a full-fledged browser and integrated applications. Connectivity is Wi-Fi, or 3.5G from a mobile phone connected through Bluetooth.
Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis for consumer technology at the NPD Group, noted that ARCHOS is already marketing a Windows-based tablet with a nine-inch screen that would probably provide "a more robust Net surfing experience."
He added that the use of the open-source Android is a "major differentiator," since the ARCHOS 5 is "one of the first Android products for consumers that is not a cell phone."
Current Analysis' Avi Greengart pointed out that the ARCHOS 5 "is not a large enough tablet" to really expand the tablet category. In fact, he said, "in some ways it looks like some of the phone devices we've been seeing."
Whatever category it fits into, Rubin said the impact may be limited in the U.S., since mobile media player maker ARCHOS does not yet have a very high U.S. market share, despite offering technologically advanced devices.
Tablet computers are beginning to emerge as a category. Rubin noted that Toshiba showed one larger than the ARCHOS 5 at the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this year.
There have also been persistent rumors that Apple will bring out a tablet device in the next few months. Depending on the rumor, the purported device is a bigger iPod touch, an entry into the growing netbook market, a new kind of e-book device, or all three.
And the CrunchPad, a Net-surfing Android-based...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Opera Mini 5 Brings Innovations To the Mobile Browser
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68969
On Wednesday, Opera Software pushed a little farther into the mobile browsing world with the release of Opera Mini 5 beta. With its latest release, Opera is hoping to solidify its position as the most popular browser for mobile phones.
Opera is leading the mobile-browsing market with more placements on mobile devices than any competing browser. More than 30 million people around the world are using the Opera Mini to browse more than 12 billion Web pages each month.
The fifth generation of Opera Mini is optimized for any mobile device. New features include a sleeker user interface, speed-dial bookmarks and tabs, and a password manager. Opera CEO Jon von Tetzchner said people who use the new version of Opera are never more than a click away from where they want to go online.
"In our own research, we have learned that the number-one reason people use Opera Mini is because it is easy -- easy to use the Web you know," von Tetzchner said. "The idea of navigating the vastness of the Web from such a small screen can be a daunting leap, which is why we have long committed to make the browsing experience you are familiar with from your PC easy to do on your mobile phone."
The company pointed out its favorite Opera Mini 5 features. The first is the interface's look and feel similar to desktop browsers, with intuitive navigation for browsing history, quick access to URLs users commonly visit, and the ability to open pages in new tabs.
Opera is bringing tabbed browsing to the mobile Web. Opera Mini 5 tabs let users browse several sites at the same time, and the browser is optimized for both touchscreen and keypad input.
Opera Mini 5 serves as a virtual memory bank that securely saves all passwords for e-mail,...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
The Case Against Buying Sprint Nextel
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68959
In the past couple of years it's gotten easy to take rampant rumors of a Sprint Nextel takeover with a grain of salt. That wasn't the case on Sept. 12, when the London Telegraph reported that Deutsche Telekom is considering a multibillion-dollar bid for the troubled U.S. wireless service provider.
Shares of Sprint Nextel rallied after the British newspaper said Deutsche Telekom may submit an offer "within the next few weeks." If a bid comes in and the merger goes through, the combined company would have as many as 82.3 million subscribers, and may become the No. 2 player in the U.S. wireless market, behind Verizon Wireless and ahead of AT&T. By banding together, Sprint Nextel and T-Mobile USA may find it easier to defend themselves against rivals.
Yet, there are a lot of ifs related to this potential deal, and the optimism lifting Sprint stock may be premature. Analysts question whether Deutsche Telekom can swing the purchase financially, regulators may not give their assent to a deal, and the two companies operate incompatible technologies that would make integrating operations a bear. "It would be a tough road" to travel, says Charles Golvin, a principal analyst at consultant Forrester Research.
Although Sprint has become cheaper in recent years amid dimming financial prospects, Deutsche Telekom may still struggle to finance the purchase. Sprint Nextel may hold out for as much as $5.50 a share, or $15.84 billion, says Michael Nelson, an analyst at Nelson Alpha Research. But in an effort to avoid overextending itself, Deutsche Telekom may not be able raise more than $14.6 billion, says Phil Cusick, an analyst at Macquarie Research. On Sept. 14, Sprint Nextel stock jumped 10 percent, to 4.15, while Deutsche Telekom slipped 1.15 percent in Germany (its ADRs on the New York Stock Exchange slipped...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
The Cost Appeal of Cloud Computing
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68952
Lowering operating costs has always been among the top priorities of today's enterprises, and cloud computing may be what they need to achieve that.
This technology has been around for years, but its role today has increased tremendously since it is used not just to provide software as a service, but infrastructure and platform as a service as well.
"This has enabled enterprises to cut costs tremendously on application delivery. It allows enterprise applications, whether they are in the data center or outside, to be delivered to users wherever they are," said Citrix Systems' director, strategy and communications, CTO office and Citrix labs, Dr Michael Harris.
This means users can take their notebook computers anywhere and still access their enterprise applications hosted on the cloud.
"Enterprises can perform cost reduction, compared to if the applications were installed on individual machines. This makes the enterprise more agile -- the enterprise architecture can now flex according to new demands," Harris said.
Studies have shown that the use of cloud can cut about 29 percent in IT operational costs, 40 per cent in hardware and software costs, and 88 per cent in worker downtime.
Harris sees cloud computing and virtual machines to be part of standard best practices for all data centers in the next few years.
"Cloud enables better use of data center resources through dynamic use of resources. It also reduces the amount of power used, air-conditioning and the speed to replace servers," he said.
Research firm IDC expects spending on IT cloud services to grow almost three-fold over the next five years, reaching $42 billion by 2012.
To help enterprises adopt cloud computing, Citrix has come up with the C3 product family.
This includes the XenApp and XenDesktop applications which let companies implement infrastructure and software as a service.
Then there is NetScaler VPX, an appliance for load balancing across...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Fewer Players in Wireless Could Rein in Price Cuts
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68948
How many wireless carriers do we need? It's a question that's popping up again as T-Mobile USA is said to be looking at buying Sprint Nextel Corp.
Now that most people have a cell phone and once-heady growth in the industry is slowing, analysts say carriers are going to be looking at buying each other to increase their scale and to avoid competing too much on price. Consumers have been benefiting from relentless price-cutting on cell phone service in the past few years.
But consolidation doesn't come easy to the industry, and the government may not look kindly on the combinations that reduce competition.
U.K.'s Sunday Daily Telegraph reported that T-Mobile USA's owner, Deutsche Telekom AG, has hired banking advisers to explore a bid for Sprint Nextel Corp.
It's not the first time there has been talk of such a combination, and the buyer would have significant hurdles to overcome. But if it were consummated, analysts say, it could at least momentarily put the price-slashing on hold.
"The U.S. wireless market is crying out for consolidation," Sanford Bernstein analyst Craig Moffett told investors in a research note Monday. He added that "there are too many cooks in the kitchen."
Deutsche Telekom and Sprint wouldn't comment.
Sprint's stock jumped on the news, gaining 38 cents, or 10 percent, to close at $4.15, giving it a market capitalization of $11.7 billion. Deutsche Telekom's U.S.-listed shares fell 8 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $13.79.
This year has seen dramatic price cuts on wireless service, particularly for customers who don't have contracts and go month to month on "prepaid" plans. Sprint, through its Boost Mobile brand, introduced a $50 prepaid unlimited-calling plan in January. Virgin Mobile followed suit, and regional upstarts Leap Wireless International Inc. and MetroPCS Communications Inc., which were already around the $50 mark for unlimited service, have trimmed prices...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Startup Lets You Play Console Video Games Remotely
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68947
As any a video game aficionado knows, it's easy to pop a game into your Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 and spend hours working your way from one level to the next. Without the hefty console, though, you're out of luck if you want to keep blasting those aliens while away from home.
A startup called Spawn Labs thinks it has a solution to this problem. Starting Monday, the Austin, Texas-based company began selling a box that is much like a Slingbox -- a device that lets you watch your home TV remotely -- for video gaming.
Spawn Labs' HD-720 costs $200, or about the same price as Microsoft's cheapest Xbox console. Unlike playing a video game on a Web site, when the box is connected to one of several different gaming systems you can remotely access any video game disc already inside, along with any games stored on the console's hard drive.
You can connect the HD-720 to up to two video game systems, including an Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, and to a TV set to play games at home. If you install Spawn Labs' free software on a computer, you can then log in to the company's Web site and play games remotely in real time, using a video game controller plugged into one of the computer's USB ports or a keyboard.
Spawn Labs, which showed off its product Monday at the TechCrunch50 startup conference in San Francisco, is also pushing its product as a way to connect remotely with friends who might not be able to come over and play games with you -- instead, you can allow them to access your console online and they can play on a computer from wherever they happen to be.
If you want to let more than one person to play remotely, Spawn Labs...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Cyber Cemetery Is Internet Time Machine
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68945
It was a historian's nightmare. During the change from the Clinton to the Bush administration, Web sites affiliated with the Clinton White House went dark, and an unknown number of online documents and files were forever lost.
Such Internet deaths inspired the Cyber Cemetery at the University of North Texas, which preserves government Web sites in their final form. The Cyber Cemetery archives sites when commissions or panels expire, allowing the online work of defunct government bodies to live on and remain accessible to the public.
The virtual graveyard was born in the late 1990s when a group of university librarians noticed that Web sites affiliated with the Clinton administration were disappearing.
"It was very early in the Web-publishing era for governments ... and these Web sites were just going away," said Cathy Hartman, an assistant dean of libraries at North Texas. "I began conversations with folks about recapturing the sites and keeping them available for public access."
Hartman's concern coincided with those of the federal Government Printing Office, which issued a 1995 report emphasizing the need to preserve electronic publications. North Texas and the printing office eventually joined forces, and early users of the system christened the depository as the Cyber Cemetery.
"It started as a joke. You know, `Oh, all these dead Web sites,'" said Starr Hoffman, who oversees the project as the librarian for digital collections at North Texas. "But it stuck, and nobody thought of a better name."
In an increasingly digitized world, the cyber cemetery has become the main publicly accessible depository for government records that don't exist on paper.
Other entities, such as the Internet Archive, take periodic snapshots of Web sites to preserve information. But the Cyber Cemetery, which also has partnered with the National Archives and Records Administration, focuses exclusively on government Web sites and captures them in their...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Password Managers: Your Key to Safe Surfing
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68919
Take all of the antivirus, anti-spyware, and anti-phishing software in the world. None of it can protect you if you surf the Internet with weak or weakly-protected passwords.
Just imagine the consequences if hackers were able to obtain one or more of your passwords. Would they be able to access your bank accounts, online shopping accounts, credit cards, and more? Even one compromised password could be big trouble.
Most people know this. Yet many, recent reports suggest, continue to use the same password for most if not all of their online accounts.
A recent study by U.S.-based communications firm @www found that over 60 percent of Internet users employ the same password for all of their online accounts. Other recent studies resulted in similar findings. So what's the solution?
Password managers can be a great solution to the problem of trying to create and remember passwords. There are dozens on the market, but two stand out on most people's lists as best-of-breed: RoboForm and Lastpass.
Roboform (http://www.roboform.com) has been around for many years. It has evolved from a first-class form filling application -- with a free version as well as a commercial "pro" version -- into a combination password-form filler that integrates into your browser by means of a toolbar. It's fast, easy to use, and contains no annoying pop-ups or adware.
The main knock against Roboform has been that the process of synchronizing your passwords on one machine with those on another is less than elegant. An add-on product, RoboForm2GO, is required to take your password and form filling data with you to another machine. And yet another associated product, GoodSync, can help to keep passwords, form data, and other common application data in sync automatically, assuming the computers are connected or that you carry around a flash drive with the latest updates.
What's really...
Thu, 17 Sep 09
Stolen Laptop Leads Police to Identity Theft Ring
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68918
Absolute Software and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) in North Carolina found more than they expected when they recovered a stolen laptop from one of the school's portable trailers. Using Absolute's Computrace Agent, which was embedded into the firmware of the computer, they were not only able to reclaim the device but also help federal and local law enforcement uncover an alleged identity theft ring and charge several individuals with immigration law violations.
"We were able to mine the forensic data on the computer," says David Hawks, business development manager, education industry for Absolute. "During the investigation, we're trying to track the computer to recover it, but then what happens is these cases lead to so much bigger cases."
When CMS was notified that the computer had been stolen, it reported the incident to local law enforcement and to Absolute via a web portal available to Computrace subscribers, Hawks says. Because the agent was embedded into the firmware, enabling it to survive everything from operating system reinstallations to hard drive removal, Absolute was able to contact the stolen laptop and instruct it to send updates on its location every 15 minutes instead of the usual 24.5 hours. The company's theft recovery team then used forensic tools such as keystroke capturing and registry scanning to learn as much about the computer's users as possible.
"It's only a matter of time before they reveal who they are," Hawks says. "They don't know what forensic tools are on there. You can actually see the computer screen, real-time, as they're surfing the web. You can see what they're clicking on. You can see who they're talking to through emails."
After uncovering evidence of possible immigration violations, the ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) stepped in. Then, federal agents and CMS law enforcement raided the trailer where the laptop was located....
Wed, 16 Sep 09
Obama CIO Advocates Cloud Computing To Cut Costs
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68968
A cloud-computing initiative was outlined Tuesday by the Obama administration. It aims to cut costs and reduce the government's environmental impact.
Vivek Kundra, the first U.S. chief information officer, said the government has been building multiple data centers, so many that about a quarter of its $76 billion IT budget goes to infrastructure. He noted that the Department of Homeland Security has 23 data centers.
As a result, he said, federal energy consumption doubled from 2000 to 2006. "We cannot continue on this trajectory," Kundra said.
Instead, he said, the Obama administration wants to change course and rely on existing systems wherever security considerations allow. He encouraged federal agencies to use online resources.
Toward that end, the administration has established the apps.gov Web site as a clearinghouse for cloud services and applications. While not yet fully functional, the site gives an indication of how Kundra hopes to reduce government IT spending.
While moving to cloud computing could take as long as a decade, Kundra cited some benefits that have already been achieved.
He said a revamp of the Web site for the General Services Administration was completed in one day and the site now costs $800,000 a year, compared to six months and $2.5 million a year that would have been expected using the government's traditional approach. And, he said, with cooperation from the IRS, the government's Free Application for Federal Student Aid can now be prefilled with IRS data at the click of a button, eliminating more than 70 questions and 20 screens.
For fiscal 2010, Kundra said, the administration will be advocating cloud computing, and in 2011 it will issue guidance to government agencies. He added that data security will have high priority.
Wed, 16 Sep 09
Lenovo Ships Multi-Touch ThinkPad Tablet and Notebook
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68967
Lenovo has begun shipping two multi-touch computing devices aimed at enterprise users. The world's fourth-largest PC maker also unveiled a new application called SimpleTap, which promises to bring simplicity to the touchscreens.
Leading the charge is Lenovo's ThinkPad X200 Tablet with Intel's 1.4-GHz Core 2 Duo processor and graphics media accelerator which targets people in sales, health care and education, said Lenovo Vice President David Hill.
"Tablet users can now use two finger touches to perform a variety of gestures, including pinching, zooming and tapping," Hill said. "You can also flick through documents, photos and Web pages with the touch of a finger."
Users of Lenovo's ultrathin ThinkPad T400s notebook -- which is aimed at professionals performing engineering and design tasks -- can now employ up to four fingers to manipulate objects, move images with two hands, and even have another person touch the screen to collaborate simultaneously, Hill said. "These demanding users can now manipulate four fingers on the T400s screen not only to replace traditional cursor movements, but to change the way they work," Hill added.
The T400s also sports a fingerprint sensor with LED indicators that allows users to view the state of their systems at a glance. "Corporate users, including our employees, have found this to be a convenient feature, since they can verify their PC is locked when they leave their desk," Lenovo said.
Lenovo said the advanced capacitive technology built into its multi-touch displays makes them sensitive and responsive to even the slightest touch of a finger. Moreover, the company says it has optimized the firmware to help compensate for the slightly imprecise taps on the screen that can occur when users close a window or navigate the start menu.
"With touchscreens increasingly becoming part of more devices we...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
Intel Outlines Objections to EC's $1.45 Billion Fine
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68965
Regulatory rules have kicked some sand on an anticompetitive case against Intel dating back to 2000. The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, on Monday published a summary of Intel's appeal of the EC's $1.45 billion fine.
Intel officials say they stand by their decision to contest the fine imposed in May. It was the largest ever levied by the EC on a single firm.
The case against Intel began in 2000 when Intel rival Advanced Micro Devices alleged Intel's business practices were anticompetitive. The chipmaker was accused of offering discounts to European computer manufacturers to purchase Intel's processors instead of AMD's. It wasn't until 2007 that the commission decided to fine Intel, and the fine was approved in May.
"We think the decision by the commission was wrong in terms of interpreting the law," said Chuck Mulloy, Intel's director of communications, in a phone interview. "They got the facts wrong; they got the economics wrong."
In the EC's summary, Intel said the commission had not provided evidence to prove Intel was breaking any laws or acting anticompetitive.
First, Intel said, the commission failed to analyze whether Intel's rebate arrangements with customers were implemented in the European community and had immediate, substantial and direct effects within the European community.
Intel also said the commission failed to prove Intel's rebate arrangements were conditional upon consumers buying all x86 CPUs from Intel rather than AMD.
The commission further failed to address evidence showing that during the period of alleged infringement, AMD substantially increased its market share and its profitability and that its lack of success in certain market segments and with certain OEMS was the result of its own shortcomings, according to Intel.
"Prices are falling, capacity is increasing," Mulloy said. "During the period of the case, AMD's prices increased and...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
Zune HD Outshines Apple's iPod with an OLED Display
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68964
Microsoft rolled outs its Zune HD touchscreen media player Tuesday. Beyond playing music, the Zune targets Apple's iPod with high-definition movie-watching capabilities on an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screen that analysts said could reflect the future of mobile TV.
Microsoft called Zune HD a significant step forward for portable media players. It features an NVIDIA Tegra HD processor, HD radio capabilities, and new software tools like the Quickplay menu that gives consumers one-touch access to favorites, last played, and most recently added items to streamline content searches.
"With today's announcement, the Zune business is growing into a comprehensive entertainment service that's no longer tied to any one screen or device," said Enrique Rodriguez, corporate vice president of the TV, video and music business at Microsoft. "Zune lets consumers connect to their music, TV shows, and movie content and enjoy it on the three screens they use every day."
While Apple rolled out an iPod model with FM radio last week, Zune is upping the ante with a built-in FM HD radio. The FM HD radio receiver offers higher quality sound on more than 2,000 stations in the U.S. Zune HD users can tag songs they hear on supported HD Radio stations for purchase.
"Apple does FM on one of its new iPods, but Microsoft does it better because you get FM HD, the new format that's rolling out nationwide. It provides a noticeable improvement in terms of sound quality," said Rob Enderle, principal analyst at the Enderle Group. "The primary reason people buy MP3 players, regardless of the video, is to listen to music. Right now, Zune stands out as having a better quality music experience."
Zune HD also offers new casual games and applications such as a calculator and an MSN Weather application. Later this year, Zune plans to release free applications...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
Hewlett-Packard Offers New Ultrathin Notebooks
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68963
Hewlett-Packard unveiled a variety of new computer products Tuesday for businesses and consumers, including what it described as "the world's thinnest full-performance notebook."
The HP ProBook 5310m is 0.9 inches thick and weighs in at 3.7 pounds. The target market is mobile professionals, and it features a 13.3-inch LED high-definition screen and black anodized aluminum in "soft-touch paint" for a stylish design. The 5310m is offered with an Intel Core 2 Duo SP9300 processor, and up to seven hours of battery life with a standard lithium-polymer battery. A longer-life six-cell battery will be available later this year.
The 5310m can also come equipped with an Intel Celeron dual-core, ultra-low-voltage processor if the customer doesn't need the higher performance.
HP QuickWeb on the 5310m enables a user to get online very quickly, even if the computer is shut down. A dedicated button can be pushed and, because the application lives outside the operating system, browsing can start within 20 seconds. Similarly, HP QuickLook3 allows users to get to e-mail, a calendar, and contacts without booting the computer.
The Pavilion dm3, also all-metal and thin at one inch, is aimed at consumers. It offers a choice of AMD or Intel processors, a 13.3-inch LED screen, and up to 10 hours of battery life from a six-cell battery.
The HP Envy sub-brand features high-performance notebooks with metal etching and "concierge service and support."
The company described the one-inch-thick Envy 15 as its "fastest consumer notebook PC ever," and it can be configured for maximum speed with the future Intel Core i7 processor and up to 16 gigabytes of memory. ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4830 graphics come with 1GB of dedicated video memory for high-definition video, Direct X 10.1 games, or graphically demanding applications.
The Core 2 Duo-based Envy 13 is also less than an inch thin, and has...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
With Fast Flip, Google Helps Drive Traffic to Publishers
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68958
Google is moving to befriend the news industry by making it easier for consumers to read articles. Google launched a new innovation Monday called Fast Flip, a news hub that aims to overcome issues associated with turning electronic pages with a Web browser.
As Google sees it, reading news online is a bit painful because browsing can be slow. Even with a broadband connection, pages that host pictures and video can take as long as 10 seconds to load.
Google set out to solve the issue with technology that lets you flip through articles at the speed you'd read a magazine or newspaper. Google promises a smooth, fast flip -- and a share of the advertising revenues.
Google describes Fast Flip as a "new reading experience that combines the best elements of print and online articles." Like a print magazine, Fast Flip lets readers browse sequentially through bundles of recent news, headlines and popular topics, as well as feeds from individual top publishers.
As the name suggests, flipping through content is fast, so readers can look through a lot of pages until they find something interesting. Google also provides aggregation and search over many top newspapers and magazines, and the ability to share content with friends and community.
"Fast Flip also personalizes the experience for you by taking cues from selections you make to show you more content from sources, topics and journalists that you seem to like," said Krishna Bharat, a distinguished researcher at Google News. "In short, you get fast browsing, natural magazine-style navigation, recommendations from friends and other members of the community, and a selection of content that is serendipitous and personalized."
Google partnered with three dozen publishers to build Fast Flip, including The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Salon, Fast...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
Google, Zoho Challenge Microsoft Abroad, Too
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68932
Prithwis Mukerjee, a professor of management at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur in eastern India, needed a convenient and low-cost way for his students to create spreadsheets. But rather than turn to Microsoft, the granddaddy of spreadsheet software, he opted for a lesser-known maker of free, Web-based software that gives his students more flexibility than Microsoft's Excel. "Many people don't have Excel, and that becomes a big challenge," Mukerjee says.
Aiming to meet that challenge are two California-based upstarts. One is Google, owner of the most popular Web search engine, and the other is Zoho, the maker of online business productivity tools that won over Mukerjee as a customer. Microsoft dominates the market for productivity tools in the U.S. as well as developing markets, but Google and Zoho hope to narrow the lead by emphasizing the lower price and broader accessibility of their products. "There's more of an open field that is there for the taking," says IDC analyst Frank Gens, adding, "They don't have to kick out Microsoft."
The market for productivity software in Asian countries, though smaller than in the U.S., is growing more than twice as fast. In 2008, sales of productivity software totaled $1.2 billion in the region, according to technology researcher Gartner, a 13.2 percent increase from the previous year. In North America, office software grew 6 percent, to $6.7 billion in the same period. In both parts of the world, Microsoft commands about 95 percent of the market, and the share hasn't budged in either place for the past three years.
A key selling point for both challengers is price, especially with budget-conscious small businesses and schools such as IIT Kharagpur. But the entrants also hope customers embrace a new type of software model, where files are created, edited, and shared online,...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
Getting Serious About Solid State Drives
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68924
SSDs -- short for "solid state drives" -- are the future of storage. And they're available now, in capacities that are sufficient and at prices that are within reach.
So what's stopping their widespread adoption? The main problem is that their price relative to standard magnetic platter hard drives is still high.
But another stumbling block is that many computer users are simply unfamiliar with the technology and unsure about how the drives fit in to their current computing needs. Read on for some answers.
Q: How do SSDs work? Are they a direct replacement for hard drives?
A: Instead of the spinning magnetic platters found in traditional hard drives, SSDs contain a type of nonvolatile flash memory. Unlike traditional computer memory, this flash memory does not lose its contents when the power is turned off. Hence is can be used to store large amounts of data, just like a standard hard disk.
The challenges in creating a solid state drive that could compete with conventional spinning platter disks have been creating units with enough capacity at a price point that consumers found attractive. SSD makers are moving ever closer to being competitive with the Seagates and Western Digitals of the world on both fronts.
And there are several reasons for consumers to be excited about this development. First of all, hard drive speed has long been the primary bottleneck in modern computers. CPU speed, memory speed, and the power of your graphics card could only go so far when the entire system had to wait for data to be read from standard hard drives.
SSDs significantly outpace the data reading and writing abilities of the hard drives we've been using for years. Add to that the fact that SSDs are sturdier, use less power, and generate less heat, and you have a storage solution that can...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
At Last, Art Finds Inspiration on the Internet
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68921
In an era when kitchen appliances connect to the Internet and cell phones have more memory than a 10-year-old PC, artists are engaging ever more creatively with computers.
In an era when even kitchen appliances connect to the Internet, and cell phones have more memory and data processing power than a 10-year-old PC, artists are engaging ever more creatively with computers -- or maybe vice versa.
As with video art in the 1960s and early digital work in the '80s and '90s, technological progress is providing not only an array of new tools for artistic creation, but also new sources of reflection and new subjects for social commentary. Out of it is emerging a new aesthetic inspired by YouTube and Google.
A global movement is hacking, subverting and critiquing the hardware, software, content, visuals -- even the philosophy of the wired world.
Take Beige. A four-member U.S. computer programming art collective, Beige has built a reputation in the past few years by breaking into the code of old Nintendo game cartridges, and transforming them into animation artworks. Hijacked from its original purpose the famous, now-retro game platform becomes an abstract space where fluorescent squares float and bounce to the rhythms of electronic music.
Since 2000, when it first elaborated its basic technique, the collective has shown more durability than some of the technology it uses. Members have shown at prestigious events and galleries, including the Whitney Biennial for contemporary art in New York, the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London and the Guggenheim, New York.
Among Beige's innovations is the exploitation of programming faults that cause a lapse in data transfer, leaving a pixellated effect known as a "residue" on the screen; this fault is used, and intentionally replicated, in several works.
"This is known as 'glitch art,"' said Paul Pieroni, co-curator of SEVENTEEN, a gallery in...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
New Cat in Town: Snow Leopard Sets a Faster Pace
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68916
Ever since Apple unveiled its latest operating system in August, Mac users worldwide have been asking themselves if the upgrade is worth it.
The answer is no, you don't need Snow Leopard, otherwise known as Mac OS X version 10.6, if you're only looking for new features. But it's an unqualified yes if you're looking for extra speed.
"Our engineers further developed more than 90 per cent of the more than 1,000 applications in Mac OS X," says Georg Albrecht, a spokesman for Apple's Germany operations.
The goal was to either improve or simply speed up most functions. That means there aren't hundreds of new functions awaiting customers. Johannes Schuster of c't, a German computer magazine, experimented with advanced versions of the operating system and has warned customers not to expect a lot of new features. "But Apple has done a lot under the hood, so a lot of things move faster," he says.
For example, the time required for an initial backup with the Time Machine function has been reduced by 80 per cent. "Macs wake up a lot faster with Snow Leopard and make much faster connections to wireless networks," says Albrecht.
The promised functionality -- "lean, fast and easier to use" -- is most evident on newer Macs, like MacBooks or the Mac Pro. Users will notice it when a program like Mail sorts through giant stacks of mail at a noticeably faster clip.
Snow Leopard is fairly flexible when it comes to the new 64-bit standard for computers. Whereas PC users have to opt for either a 32 or 64-bit system, Apple's system can switch seamlessly between the two, preferring a 64-bit system but resorting to 32 when necessary.
A 32-bit system can only support a maximum of four gigabytes of main memory. With a 64-bit computer, that same space can be used...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
Hacker Pleads Guilty to Huge Theft of Card Numbers
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68912
A computer hacker who was once a federal informant and was a driving force behind one of the largest cases of identity theft in U.S. history pleaded guilty Friday in a deal with prosecutors that will send him to prison for up to 25 years.
Albert Gonzalez, 28, of Miami, admitted pulling off some of the most prominent hacking jobs of the decade -- invading the computer systems of such retailers as TJX Cos., BJ's Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Boston Market, Barnes & Noble and Sports Authority. Federal authorities say tens of millions of credit and debit card numbers were stolen.
Gonzalez entered guilty pleas in U.S. District Court in Boston to 19 counts of conspiracy, computer fraud, wire fraud, access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. He also pleaded guilty to a New York indictment charging one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for hacks into the Dave & Buster's restaurant chain.
Under his plea agreements, Gonzalez faces 15 to 25 years in prison in the Massachusetts case and up to 20 years in the New York case. The sentences would run concurrently. If he had been convicted of all the charges and sentenced to the maximum, he could have received a sentence of several hundred years.
Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 8.
Authorities said Gonzalez was the ringleader of a group that targeted large retailers.
Gonzalez's Miami attorney, Rene Palomino Jr., said Gonzalez is "extremely remorseful."
"He just feels really bad, mainly because of the damage he's caused, but also because of what his family has had to endure," Palomino said. "He just wants to go ahead and do the right thing and take responsibility for his actions. One day, he will go and lead a productive life like any other citizen."
Michael Loucks, acting U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts, said the investigation and prosecution of identity...
Wed, 16 Sep 09
$100 Million Question: Where's Broadband in U.S.?
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68910
The national stimulus package passed by Congress in February may have been too enthusiastic about spending money on one particular project: figuring out where broadband Internet access is available and how fast it is.
The $787 billion stimulus bill championed by the Obama administration set aside up to $350 million to create a national broadband map that could guide policies aimed at expanding high-speed Internet access. That $350 million tag struck some people in the telecommunications industry as excessive, compared with existing, smaller efforts. The map won't even be done in time to help decide where to spend much of the $7.2 billion in stimulus money earmarked for broadband programs.
Now it appears the final cost won't be as high as $350 million -- though just how much it will be is unclear.
To ensure the mapping money is used "in a fiscally prudent manner," the National Telecommunications and Information Administration signaled Wednesday it would initially spend more than $100 million, and then reassess the program.
The agency, which is part of the Commerce Department, said it has received requests for $107 million in funding for projects that would map broadband in individual states over the first two years. The states want another $26 million for various purposes over five years, including steps to encourage broadband demand. On top of that, the NTIA will have to spend more money to collate the statewide maps into a national one.
But while the map should run much less than the $350 million cap set by Congress, the total still looks like it will be far higher than estimates based on the costs of smaller mapping programs in individual states.
In North Carolina, for instance, state broadband authority e-NC spends at most $275,000 per year on maintaining a map of broadband availability in the state, detailed enough to list...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
Microsoft Adds Visual Images Search To Bing
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68941
Microsoft has added images to its Bing search engine so search results now return images as well as text. Searches can also be started with preselected images at http://www.bing.com/visualsearch.
A search for "smartphones" produced more than 32 million results and clicking on the Images link produced 1,000 pictures so a phone could be selected by appearance rather than name. Scrolling over a phone image produces the image name and an option to show similar images. Caption details for the images can be turned on or off.
"A study conducted by Microsoft Research shows that consumers can process results with images 20 percent faster than text-only results. So it's clear that images play a big part in helping consumers with a variety of search activities," Todd Schwartz, Bing product manager, wrote on the Bing community blog.
The visual searches are powered by Microsoft's Silverlight technology and require that the browser helper be installed. Currently Bing's visual searches are in the beta stage and limited to categories set by Microsoft.
When potential buyers research products online, Schwartz wrote, images help them gather information. He compared a search for laptops, for example, to searching through an online catalog.
The new visual feature appears to be another way for Microsoft to chip away at Google's search-market share. Currently Google has about 83 percent of the market, Yahoo is second with seven percent, and Microsoft has about 3.5 percent.
In an effort to compete with Google, Microsoft recently reached an agreement with Yahoo under which Bing will become the primary search engine on Yahoo properties. In return, Microsoft gets access to Yahoo's search technology.
Tue, 15 Sep 09
Avaya Wins Auction for Nortel Unit for $900 Million
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68940
Avaya is the chosen one. The New Jersey-based company was selected -- instead of Siemens Enterprise Communications -- to acquire Nortel's Enterprise Solutions business and Diamondware, a Nortel-owned business, the company announced Monday.
Avaya will pay $900 million in cash for the voice, data and government systems businesses, exactly double the amount it agreed to pay just two months ago. Avaya also has agreed to offer an additional $15 million for an employee-retention program.
"We are excited to not only complete the process, but more importantly what this does for signaling to the marketplace, to our customers, and to our employees on the path forward," said Nortel Enterprise Solutions President Joel Hackney in a conference call. "We believe the combination provides our current and future customers with investment protection and a clear path forward."
"Our successful bid brings us closer to adding Nortel and its complementary channel, portfolio, research and development, and global presence to Avaya," said Kevin Kennedy, president and CEO of Avaya. "We believe the acquisition brings inherent value to both organizations' customers, employees and partners, and we look forward to its successful conclusion."
While the long bidding and auction process for the Canadian telecommunications equipment maker, which was under Chapter 11 protection since January, is close to complete, the deal is still subject to regulatory approvals in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware and the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
Hackney said regulatory proceedings will begin Sept. 15 and expects the acquisition to be complete by late December.
Avaya's victory was no surprise. The acquisition means Avaya will expand its global reach, increase the number of partners, and increase the quality of its products and services, according to the company.
Winning the bid also allows Avaya to better compete against telecom giant Cisco Systems....
Tue, 15 Sep 09
T-Mobile Eyes Sprint Merger To Battle AT&T, Verizon
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68937
T-Mobile plans to merge with Sprint Nextel to take on AT&T and Verizon Wireless in the U.S., according to Monday's The Daily Telegraph. The rumors come on the heels of a T-Mobile-Orange merger in the United Kingdom.
The Telegraph is reporting that T-Mobile's parent, Deutsche Telekom AG, could submit a bid for Sprint within the next few weeks. Sprint's current market value is $10.8 billion with debt of $21 billion. Sprint shares climbed 10 percent Monday in the wake of the reports.
Sprint is the third-largest U.S. wireless carrier behind Verizon with 80 million subscribers and AT&T with 78 million subscribers. T-Mobile is the fourth-largest. If Sprint and T-Mobile merged, they would battle with AT&T for second place.
Such a merger would have economies of scale in terms of gross subscriber numbers, but not in terms of networking technology, according to Avi Greengart, an analyst at Current Analysis. That's because the two companies promote multiple wireless standards.
Sprint's Nextel brand phones run on the iDEN network while Sprint-branded phones run on CDMA. Meanwhile, Sprint is promoting Wi-MAX for its 4G agreement with Clearwire. T-Mobile uses GSM for 2G and GSM in the 1700 band, which is fairly unique globally, for 3G.
"If T-Mobile acquired Sprint, they'd have a tremendous amount of spectrum assets, but they'd have them all over the place being used with lots of different interface technologies," Greengart said. "Figuring out strategically which ones to keep and which ones to ditch and how to get from point A to point B would be a mess."
According to Zacks Investment Research, T-Mobile's larger competitors deliver services more cost-effectively. The result is that T-Mobile is losing market share. T-Mobile had 15 percent market share in 2007. That declined to about 12 percent at the end of 2008.
Meanwhile, Sprint has struggles of its...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
Intel Claims New Jasper Forest Chips Will Save Power and Space
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68934
Intel has revealed further details about its forthcoming next-generation processors for dense server and data-storage applications. Code-named Jasper Forest, the new dual-processing chips promise to dramatically lower power consumption in comparison with the company's current Nehalem-based Intel Xeon 5500 processors.
Specifically designed to deliver increased computing density and integration when deployed in embedded and storage applications, Jasper Forest takes advantage of Intel's 45nm process technology and high-k, metal gate transistors to deliver "eye-opening low-watt numbers," said Intel spokesperson Bill Kircos.
"Jasper Forest for embedded, communications and storage equipment will provide the same robust performance of our Nehalem-based Intel Xeon processor 5500 series -- but with a 27-watt system power savings," Kircos said. "And of course, all of this just gets better as we prepare for our 32nm process on tap."
With Jasper Forest, Intel is integrating the I/O hub directly onto a dual-processing Xeon processor for the first time. According to Kircos, this eliminates the need for a separate I/O hub in the board design, thus providing both real-estate and power savings.
The design features and thermals of the new Intel chips make them ideal for deployment in the CompactPCI blades used in carrier equipment, Kircos noted. Intel's next-generation devices are also aimed at designs based on the emerging Storage Bridge Bay spec, which defines the mechanical, electrical and low-level enclosure management requirements for an enclosure controller slot that can support a variety of storage controllers from different hardware and system vendors.
To facilitate dense storage and communications applications making use of IPTV, VoIP, NAS, SAN and wireless radio network controllers, Intel's chips integrate two Jasper Forest processors with 16 second-generation PCI Express (PCIe) lanes each. Moreover, the new devices are being paired with the Intel 3420 chipset platform controller hub, formerly code-named Ibex Peak.
Jasper Forest provides...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
LG Will Offer Its First Android Smartphone in Europe
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68914
LG Electronics announced its first Android-based device on Monday. The announcement comes on the heels of company news about three new Windows Mobile smartphones coming to market in the next few weeks.
Dubbed the LG-GW620, the Android smartphone offers a three-inch touchscreen and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard aimed at consumers who want more flexibility with messaging. LG expects strong demand for smartphones that support social-networking functions out of the box. The phone will debut in "select European markets" in the fourth quarter, signaling that it may not see U.S. shores.
"The LG-GW620 will appeal to first-time smartphone customers by offering a new and different kind of user experience," said Dr. Skott Ahn, president and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications. "Our objective is to provide a wide selection of smartphones to satisfy the diverse preferences of today's consumers. This Android phone is just one of many smartphone models we plan to introduce worldwide in the years ahead."
LG is a member of the Open Handset Alliance, so its move into Android devices comes as no surprise. But LG isn't betting exclusively -- or even predominantly -- on Android, at least for the short term. In addition to the Android model, LG recently announced it will introduce a minimum of 13 new smartphones over the next 16 months that run on Windows Mobile.
"Very much like Samsung, LG's operating-system strategy is you can't lose if you bet on every horse. LG has Windows Mobile and Symbian," said Avi Greengart, an analyst at Current Analysis. "LG is not a power in smartphones and dabbling in different operating systems is not likely to get them there, either."
But LG is clearly betting on smartphones, likely due to market research that demonstrates their rapid growth. According to the NPD Group, when it comes to mobile-phone...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
160GB Apple TV Price Cut $100 as Net Videos Heat Up
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68908
With Internet videos on TV heating up, Apple has decided to make its Apple TV more appealing. On Monday, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company announced a $100 price drop for its 160GB Apple TV, and it will no longer offer the 40GB model.
The 160GB is now priced at $229, which had been the price for the 40GB system.
The move comes only a few days after the event last week where Apple released new iPods and revised iTunes software. Some industry observers have speculated that Apple TV will soon evolve into a more varied product line, as iPods have done, and as competing products and services are emerging regularly.
Apple TV allows a user to rent or buy high-definition TV shows and movies for viewing on a TV set, as well as listen to iTunes music, watch podcasts, or see photos. Content can be obtained from Apple's iTunes Store, YouTube, Flickr, MobileMe or any computer running Mac OS X or Windows.
While Apple's next moves in this category are being monitored closely, the trend toward watching Net-based movies and TV shows on TV sets is growing rapidly. There are reports that Microsoft will soon allow streaming and instant-on high-definition movies on the Xbox 360.
A variety of TV manufacturers have also announced deals with online video services in recent months. Earlier this month, Mitsubishi said two of its new TVs, each with an Ethernet port for high-speed Internet access, will feature the VUDU service.
As Apple lowers and streamlines its add-on box lineup, VUDU is moving out of the separate-box category, concentrating on embedding its service into consumer devices. In the Mitsubishi sets, for instance, VUDU is part of the sets' circuitry and software. VUDU offers more than 16,000 titles, including 2,200 HD movies, and the service also offers access to YouTube,...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
Boosting Your Leads with Web Analytics
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68903
If you don't have any "analytics" on your Web site, do not read any further. Instead, go directly to your Web company and have them install Google Analytics on your franchise business development Web site right away. It's free and it can show you quite a bit about creating more leads every month.
There are many franchise business development professionals who clearly state that they have analytics but don't have a clue on where to start. Believe it or not, you can boost lead counts each month by knowing what the numbers are and how to read them. Here are several solid analytics to follow for your franchise Web site.
Google Analytics is strongly recommended because it is wonderfully simply software and free. Although it may sound like we need to be "Web heads" to understand the analytics, it just takes a few lessons of "what to look for" and "how to understand it" to get the right numbers to make a better site.
When looking at your Web site statistics, note the visitors who have been to your Web site. In this new age, the "hits" count does not matter anymore. Instead, take a look at how many "unique individuals" (visitors) have visited your site. Divide your total Web site leads; that is, leads that came from your Web site, not total online leads by the unique-visitor count. This will tell you what your site's total conversion rate is; that is, the percentage of unique visitors that your Web site converts to leads.
For instance, if you had 20 people fill out a form or call you from your Web site and you had 1,000 unique visitors to your site, then your site has a visitor-to-lead conversion rate of 2 percent.
This measurement is your starting point. If you...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
Internet and Cell Phones Raise New Jury Concerns
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68902
Back in the old days, judges warned jurors to stay away from newspapers and dictionaries and not to discuss their case around the family dinner table or with friends.
Those were the good ole days, judges and lawyers say.
The days before Google, Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, Wikipedia and MapQuest opened up the world for all to see, and before BlackBerries and iPhones became an ubiquitous part of everyday life.
Two weeks ago, a domestic-violence victim in California tracked down a juror in her boyfriend's trial through MySpace to try to convince her to acquit the man.
The juror turned the girlfriend in, the man was convicted and now the girlfriend may end up behind bars herself.
In another case, an Arkansas juror in a civil case posted this -- "Just gave away TWELVE MILLION DOLLARS of somebody else's money" -- on his Twitter account during deliberations.
In yet another example, a Florida judge learned nine out of 12 jurors in a federal drug case had been spending their spare time doing research on the Internet. The judge had to declare a mistrial after eight weeks of testimony.
The examples have become so prevalent that Jan Kearney, the presiding judge of Pima County Superior Court, has called on other members of the bench to come up with steps they might take to prevent similar problems here.
Eventually, Kearney said, she'd like to form a committee of attorneys, judges and citizens to discuss the issues.
Who should be allowed to carry electronic devices into the courthouse? Should the standard admonishment now read to juries be changed? How should people be punished for violating a judge's order? Those are just some of the questions Kearney wants settled in the coming months.
"We need to have a way to address the issue to ensure that everyone receives a fair trial," Kearney said.
During trials, jurors...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
U.S. Video-Game Sales Slide in August for Sixth Month
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68898
Video games sales declined in August for the sixth straight month, following what analysts called a disappointing showing from the latest "Madden" game.
Nonetheless, game makers are eyeing a stronger September, boosted by the much-hyped launch of "The Beatles: Rock Band" as well as "Guitar Hero 5."
Although the video game industry held out longer than many other sectors in the recession, it began recording double-digit declines in March when compared with the same period in 2008. Besides the economic turmoil that has led consumers to sharply cut back spending, 2009 so far has also suffered from a lack of blockbuster games.
On Thursday, market researcher NPD Group reported a 16 percent August decline -- to $908.7 million -- in overall U.S. retail sales of hardware, software and accessories.
Sales of game software fell 15 percent to $470.3 million. Hardware sales dropped by a quarter to $297.6 million. Accessories -- such as extra controllers and musical instruments to play "Rock Band" and "Guitar Hero" -- increased 2 percent to $140.8 million.
Electronic Arts Inc.'s "Madden NFL 10," as anticipated, was the month's top-selling game, with nearly 1.9 million units sold across five gaming systems.
But analysts had expected even stronger sales. In a research note to investors, Ben Schachter of Broadpoint AmTech said EA likely anticipated "a down year for 'Madden,' but ... this is likely worse than the company's internal expectations."
EA did not immediately respond to an e-mail message Friday.
Price cuts in mid-August lifted sales of Sony Corp.'s PlayStation 3 by 72 percent over July. The console sold 210,000 units in August, trailing Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360, which also saw a price cut late in the month, by only about 5,400 units.
The handheld DS from Nintendo Co. was the month's best-selling gaming system with 552,900 units sold, and the company's Wii console came in second...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
TD Ameritrade Data Theft Settlement Nears Approval
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68896
The settlement over contact information stolen from online brokerage TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. is nearing approval, but the more than 6 million current and former customers affected will have to wait a little while longer.
A hearing on the settlement was held Thursday, but U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco did not rule on the deal, which offers customers anti-spam software and a promise of tighter security at TD Ameritrade.
Walker, who gave preliminary approval to the settlement in May, is expected to issue his final ruling later.
"We are looking forward to the judge's ruling," said Scott Kamber, one of the lead plaintiff's attorneys.
An Ameritrade spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a message left on Thursday, but company officials have said they were settling the case to resolve it in a timely manner. Ameritrade does not admit any wrongdoing in the settlement.
Anyone who held an Ameritrade account or provided an e-mail address to the company before Sept. 14, 2007, will be able to benefit from the settlement. The breached database included information on 6.2 million current and former customers.
The plaintiffs said in the lawsuit that they received unwanted stock e-mail ads. The ads appeared to be designed to manipulate the value of thinly traded stocks.
No identity theft has been linked to this data breach.
As part of the proposed settlement, the Omaha-based company will pay nearly $1.9 million in legal fees and cover the cost of one year of anti-spam service for the victims. Ameritrade also promised to better protect customer data.
Several of the benefits of the settlement have already been provided. But the Trend Micro anti-spam software Ameritrade agreed to provide won't be available until after final approval.
Ameritrade hired ID Analytics Inc., which has expertise in identity theft, to help investigate. ID Analytics has checked Ameritrade's customer data against other...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
Top U.S. Copyright Cop Opposes Google Book Deal
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68893
The top U.S. copyright official has joined the mounting opposition to a class-action settlement that would give Google Inc. the digital rights to millions of out-of-print books.
Her objections cast further doubt on whether the agreement will be allowed by a federal court, even as Google offered a concession Thursday aimed at smoothing the way for approval.
Parts of the settlement are "fundamentally at odds with the law," Marybeth Peters, head of the U.S. Copyright Office, testified in a House Judiciary Committee hearing Thursday that was webcast. She also expressed concerns that the settlement would undermine Congress' ability to govern copyrights and could have "serious international implications" for books published outside the United States.
Peters can't block Google's settlement with U.S. authors and publishers. That decision rests with U.S. District Judge Denny Chin, who has scheduled an Oct. 7 hearing in New York to review the settlement.
But Peters' conclusions will likely be drawn upon as critics of the deal try to convince Chin that the settlement shouldn't be approved, said Peter Brantley, director of access for the Internet Archive. The archive has joined forces with Google rivals Microsoft Corp., Yahoo Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. to lead the charge against the book settlement.
It's unclear how the copyright office's opinion might influence the U.S. Department of Justice, which is investigating whether the settlement would hurt competition in the growing market for digital books. The Justice Department is expected to share some of its findings with Chin in documents scheduled to be filed by Sept. 18.
At issue are Google's plans to scan millions of books, make them searchable online and sell subscriptions to libraries and individual copies to consumers. Google says this will revitalize works that might otherwise be long forgotten. The $125 million settlement emerged last year after trade groups representing publishers and authors sued...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
Tech Giants Offer Ideas on Charging Readers Online
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68889
Some of the world's most prominent technology companies are offering suggestions to publishers on how they can charge readers for news online.
IBM Corp., Microsoft Corp., Oracle Corp. and Google Inc. -- a company some newspapers blame for helping dig their financial hole -- responded to a request by the Newspaper Association of America for proposals on ways to easily charge for news on the Web.
But building the infrastructure for charging readers is one part of the equation. The other part looks more challenging: getting publishers to make the leap and stop giving news out for free on the Web.
Randy Bennett, the senior vice president of business development at the newspaper association, said his group initiated the process after a meeting of publishers in May near Chicago. A report that was posted online Wednesday by the Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University includes 11 different responses from technology companies.
Bennett said the trade group wanted to give newspapers options, and will not recommend one proposal over the others.
Google's proposal may be the most eyebrow raising, if only because the company -- which aggregates thousands of articles from media outlets on its news pages -- is so closely associated with the freewheeling ethos of an open Internet.
"Google believes that an open Web benefits all users and publishers," the company writes in its proposal. "However, `open' need not mean free."
Google proposed offering news organizations a version of its Google Checkout system, which is used for processing online payments. It would give readers a place to sign in to an account and then pay for media from a variety of sources without having to punch in their information over and over. And the company says it could offer publishers several pay methods, from basic subscriptions to so-called "micropayments" on a per-article basis.
Along with the technology...
Tue, 15 Sep 09
Proving Out Alternative CRM Solutions
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68595
There is a growing trend in the CRM space towards alternative delivery and design methods, versus traditional on-premises applications written to proprietary software. These Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) and open source models have several advantages, including flexibility, avoiding vendor lock-in, shorter lead times, and cost savings.
Alternative CRM solutions are also becoming more feature rich and robust. Here are two recent examples:
* Salesforce.com, recognizing that many workers are using Apple's 3G iPhone for business purposes, has updated Salesforce CRM Mobile to take full advantage of the new iPhone 3.0 OS software. Customers can easily cut, copy, and paste text from e-mails and text messages directly into Salesforce CRM. They can also create identical records to save typing, easily manage events with ease with a new date-indexed view, quickly find information with custom filters on any list of data and convert a lead as soon as the user hangs up the phone. The iPhone now offers lead conversion on a single form.
* SugarCRM has added a new web services framework, platform improvements, and enhanced mobile features for its open-source CRM solution. Customers can now easily create unique themes suited to the needs of companies or the preferences of individual developers without coding. There is also advanced password management that enables users to set password strength requirements, create system-generated passwords, and allows them to reset their own passwords.
That's the theory, anyway. What has been the experience of companies who have gone the alternative route? Here are several case studies:
Saveology.com is a comparison and shopping site for consumer services such as, communications (broadband, cable, satellite, and wireless), moving, and financial services. It has 52 Web sites and four contact centers: two in the U.S. with over 450 agents, and one each in India and the Philippines with 30 agents apiece.
Being a consumer-intensive online business,...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Microsoft Extends Olive Branch To Open-Source Groups
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68904
Microsoft is putting its weight behind a new endeavor to which the software giant has agreed to contribute $1 million. Called the CodePlex Foundation, the nonprofit organization describes its mission as enabling the exchange of code and understanding among software companies and open-source communities.
The foundation will be led by interim President Sam Ramji, who is leaving his position as senior director of platform strategy at Microsoft at the end of this month. However, Bill Staples, general manager of Microsoft's Web platform and tools team, claimed the new organization is independent from the software giant.
"The foundation's mission to help the exchange of code and understanding between software companies and open-source communities is really interesting to Microsoft," said Staples, who is also a member of the interim board of directors.
Still, the open-source community continues to be wary of Microsoft's intentions when it comes to Linux. The skepticism among Linux backers was recently heightened by media reports suggesting Microsoft has been instructing Best Buy employees on how to communicate with customers in ways that stress the superiority of Windows 7 over Linux.
What's more, the open-source community clearly felt threatened by Microsoft's recent divestiture of 22 patents with the potential to be cited in litigation aimed at bringing down Linux. According to Linux Foundation President Jim Zemlin, Microsoft put them up for sale to patent trolls to "generate fear, uncertainty and doubt about Linux" without having to worry about damaging itself by attacking the Linux community directly.
However, the Open Invention Network -- which is backed by the open-source community as well as IBM, Red Hat, and Sony -- moved quickly to nip the potential threat by acquiring the patents.
"This deal shows the mechanisms the Linux industry has constructed to defend Linux are working, even though the outcome also...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Motorola Needs More Devices Like Android-Based CLIQ
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68899
Motorola took the cover off its first Android-powered device on Thursday. The CLIQ will be available through T-Mobile USA in the fourth quarter. But analysts said the CLIQ alone can't rescue Motorola from its recent woes.
The CLIQ will run on MOTOBLUR, Motorola's rendition of the Android operating system. MOTOBLUR manages and integrates e-mail, social networking, and other communications on the handset and delivers them to the home screen in a stream organized by contact.
The 3G-capable CLIQ has a slide-out QWERTY keyboard and a 3.1-inch HVGA touchscreen. The device also features a five-megapixel autofocus camera with video capture and playback at 24 frames per second, a 3.5mm headset jack, a music player with a preloaded Amazon MP3 store application, Shazam, iMeem Mobile, and a preinstalled 2GB microSD memory card, with support for up to 32GB of removable memory.
"Motorola CLIQ with MOTOBLUR differentiates the Android experience for consumers by being the only smartphone that automatically syncs conversations, contacts and content, and delivers a solution that's instinctive, social and smart," said Sanjay Jha, co-CEO of Motorola and CEO of Motorola Mobile Devices.
The CLIQ builds on T-Mobile's lineup of Android devices, which include the G1, the myTouch 3G, and the TouchPro2. The company appears dedicated to delivering Android-based phones, striking an exclusive deal with Motorola and establishing an ongoing working relationship with phone maker HTC.
"T-Mobile's highly social and always-connected customers have a natural affinity for mobile social networking, and we're excited to feature the Motorola CLIQ with MOTOBLUR prominently in what's shaping up to be our most innovative holiday product lineup ever," said Cole Brodman, chief technology and innovation officer with T-Mobile USA. "The CLIQ lives up to Motorola's tradition of great design and quality, and to our history of working together to create products that enhance the lives and...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Apple Updates Fix Mac OS X, Snow Leopard, iPhone OS
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68888
Apple released a king-sized security update for Mac OS X on Thursday, a separate fix for its just-released Snow Leopard, and an update to the iPhone operating system. Some of the updates fix problems, but others seem to cause new ones.
Thursday's updates fix 33 vulnerabilities in the Mac OS X Leopard operating system involving third-party applications such as Adobe Flash, Samba, MySQL and PHP. The Leopard update also addresses potential security vulnerabilities in Alias Manager, CarbonCore, CUPS, ColorSynch, ImageIO, Wiki Server, CoreGraphics and Launch Services.
Apple has a history of being haunted by vulnerabilities in third-party products. The key issues in the latest advisories are buffer overflows, integer overflows, and memory corruption.
Apple would serve itself well to figure out how to optimize the bundling of third-party applications and create some space between third-party apps and the Mac OS, according to Andrew Storms, director of security for nCircle.
"Apple really needs to learn how to close the time loophole on third-party products. Thursday's PHP update was released into the community back in June," Storms said. "Unfortunately for Apple, they needed to create an entirely new point release for their operating system in order to push out a patch to a third-party product."
With the Leopard update, Apple is also addressing basic enterprise security needs. Two items of particular interest involve circumventing security if an attacker has access to a physical device.
"One of these items is the ability to circumvent the administrator set screen lockout time duration, the second lets an attacker recover data from the device even when locked by using the Apple recovery tool," Storms said. "These are both basic handheld-device security mechanisms that Apple needs to nail in order to be trusted in the enterprise."
Even though Apple previously released patches around SMS vulnerabilities based on...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
'Tweet, Buy XYZ, Tweet' on Horizon for Twitter Users
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68887
Soon, the only tweets that don't have ads might be from birds. On Thursday, microblogging site Twitter announced it will allow advertisements in the tweet streams sent by its more than 45 million users.
The two-year-old company revised its terms of service so that short, 140-character messages may now "include advertisements, which may be targeted to the content or information on the services, queries made through the services, or other information."
The company said it is "leaving the door open for exploration in this area, but we don't have anything to announce."
Brad Shimmin, an analyst with industry research firm Current Analysis, said a key question is which model the company intends to use.
"One model," he said, "could be the Google model, where ads are part of the user interface" on, for example, the Web page where the tweets are displayed. The other model, which he prefers, are ads that run in the tweet stream itself.
While Twitter has been mum about how advertising might be implemented, its executives have previously stated a dislike of banner ads. Shimmin said he hopes Twitter takes the stream-based model, but noted that "it doesn't sound like they've worked it out yet."
He said the big issue with the stream-based model is how the ads might work, given that some clients, such as the Tweetie client for Mac that he uses, insert their own ads.
It's possible that Twitter might seek to create a client, such as an Adobe Air-based one, to replace many of the third-party clients out there. Shimmin said he has wondered why Twitter hasn't done that yet, adding that he wouldn't be surprised to see that happen. But, he said, at the moment it "doesn't look like that train has left the station."
Although the popular service has some issues...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Facebook Takes on Twitter with Facebook Lite, Tagging
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68886
Facebook is going on the offensive against the rising Twitter star with new initiatives aimed at streamlining social networking. Facebook launched Facebook Lite and Tagging on Thursday to make updating simpler and more social.
As its name suggests, Facebook Lite is a lighter version of Facebook. It was designed for people with slower connections. The stripped-down version loads faster.
Facebook Lite is available in the U.S. and India, and the company plans to roll it out in China, Russia and other countries. That makes Facebook's intentions suspect, since most users in the U.S. have good connections.
However, Facebook issued a statement about the U.S. launch: "We decided to roll out Facebook Lite in the U.S. to give users a simple, expedient alternative to facebook.com, and hope that it will fill this need."
Facebook Lite focuses on events, inbox messages, wall messages, video and photos, and, of course, status updates. The difference between Facebook and Facebook Lite is most obvious in applications. You won't find support for applications on the Lite version, which reminds some observers of Facebook's original version.
"Facebook Lite was intended to be something for developing countries and places where high-speed connections were sparse or entirely nonexistent," said Greg Sterling, principal analyst at Sterling Market Intelligence. "However, the company is making it available in the U.S., and thus it now represents a total alternative for people who use or want to use Facebook but don't like all the 'noise' and clutter of the regular site."
Sterling's guess is that most U.S. and Western users won't access Facebook via the Lite version. But he noted that Facebook Lite is easier for mobile users to access with a browser.
Facebook is also offering a new way to tag people and other things Facebook users are connected to in status updates and...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
EU Warns Web Shoppers of Illegal Practices
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68878
More than half of all Web sites selling electronic goods may be breaking the law by concealing charges, misleading consumers or failing to provide an address to which products can be returned, according to a European Union study to be published Wednesday.
The survey, conducted by authorities in 28 European countries, examined 369 sites selling digital cameras, mobile phones, music players, DVDs, computer equipment and games consoles.
Of those, 55 percent showed irregularities which national consumer watchdogs said they intended to follow up.
The investigation, which was coordinated by the European Commission, was prompted by concerns that the growth of online commerce was being held back by consumers worried about what the rules are when buying online.
During the economic downturn, however, many shoppers appear to be turning to the Internet to compare prices in an effort to get the best deal.
The commission says that 150 million E.U. citizens -- about a third of the bloc's population -- have shopped online. The value of online consumer electronic sales was EUR 6.8 billion, or $9.9 billion, in 2007.
But worries that shady practices by retailers could be impeding growth appear to be borne out by the findings.
The most common deficiency, present in two-thirds of the problem Web sites, was the failure to provide accurate information about a buyer's legal right to return faulty products for refund or repairs for two years.
Information on extra delivery charges was either missing or difficult to find in 45 percent of the Web sites that gave cause for concern. And a third gave incomplete contact details for retailers, making it difficult to return goods or contact the seller in the event of a problem.
National authorities said they will contact problematic Web sites. The commission said that failure to bring sites into line could prompt legal action leading to fines or the...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
You Can Replace a Laptop's Hard Drive Yourself
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68877
Q. I have an out-of-warranty laptop with a dead hard drive inside. A repair shop wants $250 to replace the drive, but I see the drives themselves cost much less. How hard is this job to just do it myself?
A.If you're not squeamish about opening up the computer and popping out some of its innards, replacing a hard drive is fairly straightforward.
Going to a repair shop does have its advantages, like the potential for data recovery from the dead drive or confirming that the hard drive is actually the problem, and not some other part of the machine.
But if you are sure the hard drive is the issue and you don't need any of the data stored on it, you can upgrade it for as little as $50, depending on the storage capacity of the drive.
In addition to the new drive, you'll also need small screwdrivers to get the laptop's case open, as well as software discs to format the drive and install the operating system.
Some things to consider are the type of interface the drive uses (IDE or the newer SATA connections are two common choices), as well as the capacity and speed of the drive (5,400 revolutions per minute or 7,200 r.p.m. are the usual options).
If you can't tell what type of drive you need from your manufacturer's Web site or computer's manual, sites that sell replacement hard drives often guide you to the right product based on your laptop's make and model and have instructions for making the swap.
The ExtremeTech site has a tutorial -- at bit.ly/TJp -- of what generally to expect. One hardware site, NewEgg.com, also has a background guide for buying a new laptop hard drive, at bit.ly/111Pio.
You can also find laptop hard drives for sale at sites like CMS Products, at bit.ly/vWj4q; the...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Would-Be Pirate Bay Buyer Ousted from Stock Market
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68875
The would-be buyer of Swedish file-sharing Web site The Pirate Bay has been kicked out of the smallcap stock exchange Aktietorget for misleading the market, the Swedish trading platform said Wednesday.
Aktietorget said Global Gaming Factory X AB breached its transparency principles by saying the financing of The Pirate Bay acquisition was secured, that the company had received two informal takeover offers and that it was in final negotiations with copyright owners about content for the site.
In fact, the money hadn't yet been raised, the takeover offers couldn't be verified and negotiations with the music industry were at an early stage, the market place said.
GGF said in June it planned to buy The Pirate Bay domain name and related Web sites for 60 million kronor ($8.5 million) and transform it into a legal online hub for sharing music and films.
However, it hasn't presented the group of investors it claims will help finance the acquisition and Gunther Marder, head of the Swedish Shareholders' Association said he doubts the acquisition will go through.
"It is impossible to say what has been true and what has been a lie," Marder said. "This entire affair has been lined with clumsy statements and doubtful claims. ... Everything seemed shady from the start."
GGF chief executive Hans Pandeya has acknowledged he made a mistake when he sent out press releases with unconfirmed information, but he has dismissed claims that he lied.
On Wednesday he told The Associated Press that he intends to go ahead with acquisition and will pay out of his own pockets if the unidentified investors pull out. He called Aktietorget officials "incredibly scared" and "very weak people."
The Pirate Bay is one of the world's largest file-sharing venues with more than 20 million users globally. In April, four men connected with the site were sentenced to one-year prison...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Two Chipmakers Heading for Same Intersection
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68872
The inside of computers has been Intel's territory, as the world's biggest maker of microprocessors reminds consumers with its "Intel Inside" campaign.
The cell phone's guts have been the domain of Qualcomm. As the cell phone becomes more like a computer and the computer more like a cell phone, it was inevitable that the two chip makers would clash.
Intel wants to get inside smartphones, and Qualcomm, one of the largest suppliers of chips for wireless phones, wants to get into small notebook computers.
"Intel is trying to come down from the computer and bring their software ecosystem along," said Qualcomm's chief executive, Paul E. Jacobs. "We're trying to go up from the phone and build the software ecosystem."
Qualcomm -- which sells about 22 percent of all chips used in wireless devices, including the iPhone, BlackBerry Storm and T-Mobile G1 -- believes it has never been better situated in its 24-year history to break into the market for computing devices.
PCs are evolving into tablet PCs and small laptops, essentially big smartphones that are always on, always connected to the Internet, with all-day battery life -- in short, very much like a large iPhone or BlackBerry. Qualcomm calls the devices smartbooks because the design resembles a large smartphone.
Mr. Jacobs sees his company at the center of an industry that is driving the most cutting-edge innovations, as seen in devices like the iPhone and BlackBerry Storm.
"That energy is now coming out of the phone industry," Mr. Jacobs said. "The PC became so standardized that the degree of innovation was not the same as what you see in the phone space."
Intel, whose revenue is about triple Qualcomm's, disagrees. "As mobile devices become smarter, with PC-like performance, computer and Internet capabilities, this is Intel's strength," an Intel spokeswoman, Suzy Ramirez, said.
Qualcomm is counting on its Snapdragon chip...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Cable TV Operators Have a Big Case of iPhone Envy
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68869
The U.S. cable and satellite television business has a big case of iPhone envy.
Apple has been able to distinguish and popularize its cell phone in a crowded field by giving away or selling specialized applications that make the phone more useful. So far, independent developers have written more than 65,000 applications.
DirecTV and the FiOS service of Verizon have recently opened stores modeled directly on the Apple App Store. Just a few applications have shown up so far, but already the ones that are there -- Bible verses, Facebook updates and fantasy sports team updates -- suggest that people may not be content to sit back while watching TV, but rather want to lean forward and interact and customize their viewing.
Most of the other cable, satellite and phone companies are also developing technology that will let their set-top boxes run more complex applications, including those written by outside developers. But the companies are still wrestling with how open they want their systems to be, what business arrangement to make with developers and what sorts of things people really want to do while watching their TVs.
TV systems, after all, have long been tightly controlled by their operators, who deploy squadrons of lawyers to negotiate deals with even the most obscure channel. To them, the prospect of emulating Apple's sprawling marketplace is frightening, yet appealing.
"The beauty of the iPhone is that there are a lot of applications that Apple would not have imagined people want," said Sree Kotay, the chief software architect for Comcast. "We want people engaged with television in ways we haven't thought of yet."
The applications idea goes beyond interactive television. For years, many cable and satellite customers have been able to get news stories, weather forecasts and sports scores through their set-top boxes. Some boxes also insert on-screen messages during...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Rivals File Last-Minute Opposition to Google Book Plan
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68868
After a flurry of last-minute filings, an American judge must now begin untangling the mountain of competing claims about how a legal settlement granting Google the right to create the world's largest digital library and bookstore would affect competition, authors' rights and readers' privacy.
The $125 million proposed settlement among Google, the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers, which is awaiting review by Judge Denny Chin of the U.S. District Court in New York, has prompted dozens of opposing filings from individuals, rival companies like Amazon and Microsoft, advocacy organizations, groups representing authors and publishers and even some foreign governments.
It has also received the support of companies like Sony, civil rights groups and some antitrust and economics experts in academia.
Legal scholars say that Judge Chin will have to address not only whether the settlement is fair to authors, publishers and rights holders, but also whether it benefits the public at large. "The number and quality of opposition filings is very unusual," said Jay Tidmarsh, a professor at Notre Dame Law School.
The agreement, which would bring millions of rarely seen books online, has clear benefits to readers and authors. But scholars say the judge probably will weigh those benefits against arguments that the settlement would limit competition. Opponents say it would give Google a quasi-exclusive license to profit from millions of out-of- print books and create a consortium that would have power to set prices for digital books. Google, the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers have vigorously disputed those claims, but the claims are being investigated by the U.S. Justice Department.
The court has the power to either approve or strike down the settlement, an option that would revive the lawsuits filed in 2005 by the authors and publishers against Google over its plan to digitize millions of...
Sat, 12 Sep 09
Steve Jobs Opens Up About Liver Transplant
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68864
Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs returned Wednesday to the showman role that has helped define his company leadership, taking the stage for the first time since his medical leave to announce such new products as an iPod Nano that records video.
Jobs, who had a liver transplant this spring from a young adult who died in a car accident, got a vigorous standing ovation from many in the audience.
Looking thin and speaking quietly and with a scratchy voice, the 54-year-old CEO urged everyone to become organ donors.
"I wouldn't be here without such generosity," Jobs said.
Jobs had not appeared at such a product launch event since last October. He bowed out of his usual keynote at the year's largest Mac trade show in January and went on leave shortly thereafter for nearly six months.
At an event for journalists, bloggers and software partners, Jobs announced updates to Apple's iTunes and iPhone software and unveiled a new iPod Nano with a built-in video camera.
Phil Schiller, Apple's top marketing executive, also took the stage to announce price cuts and storage boosts to existing iPod Touch models.
Few chief executives are considered as critical to their companies' success as Jobs has been to Apple's since 1997, when he returned to the company after a 12-year hiatus, and Apple's stock has soared and plunged on news and rumors of his health.
Shares in Apple reached a 52-week high of $174.47 in Wednesday trading, then fell to close at $171.14, or $1.79 below Tuesday's closing.
Jobs, whose medical problems began more than five years ago and included treatment for a rare form of pancreatic cancer, seemed happy to be back in the spotlight, saying, "I'm vertical, I'm back at Apple and loving every day of it."
As was expected, Apple's announcements were mainly tied to music players and the iTunes software, though...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Google Defends Pending Book Deal Before Congress
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68885
Google defended its pending settlement with authors and book publishers on Thursday during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee. The search giant said the deal is important to American culture and literary history for people to be able to find and read copyrighted books that are out of print, and for rights holders to be able to market and sell them.
Google also said the settlement, which must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, would not have a negative impact on the $25 billion retail book market because most of the titles the agreement covers are no longer in publication and generate low commercial demand.
"It's the newest titles and books yet to be written that will drive competition and commerce for digital books, not out-of-print books held in libraries," explained Google Chief Legal Officer David Drummond. "So don't let anyone fool you that the future of books depends on what happens with the settlement of a lawsuit over out-of-print library books."
Of the 10 million books that Google has scanned to date, the search giant estimates that at least two million are clearly in the public domain and not part of the lawsuit. That is equivalent to less than three percent of the commercial book market.
"These include books published before 1923. For these books, when a user enters a relevant query, we display the entire text," Drummond said. "Users can freely download the book in multiple formats."
Drummond said making public-domain texts discoverable online is already advancing education and scholarly pursuits. However, as anyone who has used Google Books to search for works published before 1923 can testify, Drummond is clearly overstating what the online service actually delivers.
Though some of the titles published before 1923 are indeed provided for download, the...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Motorola Unveils Android-Powered MOTOBLUR Platform
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68884
Motorola is moving to make a comeback with new phones based on the Android operating system. Motorola unveiled its MOTOBLUR vision and its first device at the GigaOM Mobilize '09 Conference in San Francisco on Thursday.
MOTOBLUR will debut on Motorola's new 3G Android-powered device -- the Motorola CLIQ in the U.S. and Motorola DEXT in international markets -- later this year.
"With MOTOBLUR we are differentiating the Android experience for consumers by delivering a unique mobile-device experience designed around the way people interact today," said Sanjay Jha, co-CEO of Motorola and CEO of the company's mobile-devices division. "MOTOBLUR, which will be available on our first Android-powered device and on multiple Android devices in our upcoming portfolio, helps us to create phones that are instinctive, social and smart."
Motorola said it leveraged its experience with Linux and open platforms to design MOTOBLUR. Motorola's rendition of an Android-powered platform focuses on flexibility across devices with multiple carrier partners.
Motorola is billing MOTOBLUR as the first and only solution to sync contacts, posts, messages, news, photos and other content from social networks like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter and e-mail -- and deliver the content to the home screen. The concept is similar to Palm's webOS Synergy feature.
With MOTOBLUR, content is fed into streams that aim to allow consumers to spend less time managing messages. MOTOBLUR updates changes that contacts make to their information. When consumers make or receive a phone call, the caller's latest profile picture and status is shown on the screen. And in the contacts view, consumers can see their communication history and the latest social updates for each person. Contacts are backed up on a MOTOBLUR server.
When using the Motorola CLIQ, consumers can choose from thousands of applications and widgets from MOTOBLUR, the Android Market, or...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Sprint Nextel Offers Unlimited Mobile Services in U.S.
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68883
On the heels of Verizon's data packages for feature phones, Sprint Nextel is rolling out a new pricing model with unlimited mobile-to-mobile calling from the Sprint network to any wireless phone on any U.S. wireless carrier network at any time.
Dubbed Any Mobile, Anytime, the new model is a feature of Sprint Everything Data plans. The plans start at $69.99 a month and include unlimited text, picture and video messaging, and unlimited data services, such as e-mail, Web browsing, social networking, GPS navigation, Sprint TV, streaming music, and exclusive NFL Mobile Live and NASCAR Sprint Cup Mobile applications.
"Simply Everything and Ready Now were Sprint innovations to make wireless simpler and more worry-free for our customers," said Sprint CEO Dan Hesse. "We don't think our customers want to have to keep track of or only talk to friends, colleagues or family members who make the same choices they do. Any Mobile, Anytime provides unprecedented simplicity and value, so much that many more customers can now consider cutting the cord altogether."
Sprint offered an example of how the plan works from a dollars and cents perspective. At $42.50 per person, a family of four can get unlimited wireless for each family member. That includes unlimited calling, messaging and data to more than 250 million wireless customers in the United States for each member of the family.
Sprint is betting that offering unlimited calling to the people customers call most often -- other wireless users -- will win new subscribers. Sprint is also betting it will open the door to wireless data and messaging for people who may have held back due to cost concerns. Of course, there's nothing from keeping other wireless carriers from copying the offer.
The new Any Mobile, Anytime feature should be attractive to the middle market of customers, especially families...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
AMD To Rank Computers by Usage Instead of Specs
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68867
If you've ever felt that buying a computer based only on tech specs was like buying a car based only on what's under the hood, a new Advanced Micro Devices approach to computers containing its chips could be for you. On Thursday, the chipmaker announced a new branding effort called Vision Technology, which will emphasize the whole computer system, and especially the "superior visual experience."
Nigel Dessau, chief marketing officer at AMD, said consumers care "about what they can do with their PC, not what's inside." These days, he said, they want HD and entertainment, which AMD's CPUs and graphics processing units (GPUs) can deliver, adding that the user wants to make the choice "without having to understand what gigahertz and gigabytes mean."
The branding effort is an attempt by AMD to convert its position as "the only technology company in the world that creates both leading-edge processors and graphics solutions" into a value proposition consumers can appreciate. A processor, the company said, "is a computer's heart," while "graphics is its soul."
Beginning in the holiday season and timed to coincide with the release of Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system, notebook PCs with AMD chips will be marketed as having Vision Technology.
Among other things, the chips support new graphics capabilities that will be available in Windows 7. These include more lifelike images because of more polygons per image, multi-threaded rendering for processing along different paths in a dual-, triple-, or quad-core CPU, and DirectCompute, which provides easier access to parallel processing in a GPU.
AMD will promote three levels of Vision Technology. Computers featuring the "everyday use" level, simply called Vision, support Web surfing, music listening, watching photos and videos online, and e-mail.
Computers branded as Vision Premium have the ability to convert videos so they can be watched...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Apple Approves Rhapsody Streaming Music App
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68863
If you were expecting drama over the Rhapsody iPhone app from RealNetworks, get ready for a disappointment: Apple has approved the application for the iPhone and iPod touch. Rhapsody subscribers everywhere are rejoicing, and analysts are weighing in on what this means for iTunes.
Rhapsody submitted its on-demand, streaming music application to Apple for review in late August. Some wondered at that time if Apple would allow RealNetworks to offer a competing music service on its devices. Instead of buying songs from Apple's iTunes Store for 99 cents or $1.29 each, Rhapsody subscribers can listen to their song library on the iPhone as part of their $14.95 a month fee.
Subscribers log in to the app with their existing username and password. Users will see a menu bar across the bottom of the screen and have the option to check out the queue, their library, or browse the Rhapsody library for new music to stream. Non-subscribers will have an opportunity to try the app for a limited free-trial period.
"If you have kids, there are a ton of options for kid-friendly, parent-approved music to help entertain your little ones while you're running errands. You'll always be able to see if the 'Top 40' are really all that awesome," said Lacy Kemp of RealNetworks, counting down 10 reasons why people will love the new Rhapsody application. "There are so many ways to find new music on Rhapsody. Try listening to an artist station. You'll be amazed at what you find!"
Subscribers can also save the songs they've listened to as a playlist, hook into Rhapsody's exclusive artist premieres to hear new music before it hits anywhere else, experiment with new music without spending extra money, carry eight million songs on one device, and, as Kemp put it, get "instant gratification" by never...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Online Technology Rental Takes Off
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68849
A year ago, Roy Thompson had no use for software salespeople.
"We make money fixing your car," says the owner of Thompson's S&S Collision Repair in Sacramento. "I'm not one of these tech junkie guys."
Yet, last March Thompson accepted a 30-day free trial offer from ClaimTools Solutions. The Nanaimo, British Columbia-based software firm sent him five rugged digital cameras configured to send photos over the Internet to ClaimTools' computer servers for archiving and processing.
Repairmen began using the cameras to document every step of each repair job. Within a week, Thompson signed up for a three-year, $300-a-month, subscription. The rented technology has boosted the body shop's revenue by $3,000 a month.
"If you can document it, the insurance companies will pay for it," says Thompson. "We found out we were doing a lot of things for nothing."
Getting businesses to rent "software as a service" over the Internet has long been a Holy Grail for technology suppliers, who covet the steady cash flow from monthly payments. But small-business owners were skeptical of the benefits.
The global economic meltdown changed that. Scarce credit and soft consumer spending are compelling small-business owners to look more closely at using the Internet to improve the bottom line. AMI-Partners' survey of 3,600 small and midsize business in 11 countries found 44 percent of U.S. firms were interested in renting software as a service in the second quarter of 2009, double a year earlier.
Accounting and customer relationship programs delivered via the Internet are nothing new. Salesforce.com, NetSuite and SAP have sold such services to larger companies for years. But now start-ups are swarming in. Some, such as Box.net, YouSendIt, FolderMaestro and MuseWorx, lease online file storage and related programs that allow small firms to collaborate internally, as well as externally with key partners.
"This wave of technology brings a wealth of...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Cell-Phone Radiation Levels Vary Widely
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68848
Some cell phones emit several times more radiation than others, the Environmental Working Group found in one of the most exhaustive studies of its kind.
The government watchdog group today releases a list ranking cell phones in terms of radiation. The free listing of more than 1,000 devices can be viewed at www.ewg.org.
Concerns about radiation and cell phones have swirled for years. Scientific evidence to date has not been able to make a hard link between cancer and cell phones. But recent studies "are showing increased risk for brain and mouth tumors for people who have used cell phones for at least 10 years," says Jane Houlihan, senior vice president of research at the Washington-based group.
CTIA, the wireless industry lobbying association, disagrees. In a statement it noted that "scientific evidence has overwhelmingly indicated that wireless devices do not pose" a health hazard.
That's why the American Cancer Society, World Health Organization and Food and Drug Administration, among others, "all have concurred that wireless devices are not a public health risk," the CTIA statement says.
Houlihan acknowledges that "the verdict is still out" on whether cell phones can be linked directly to cancer.
"But there's enough concern that the governments of six countries" -- including France, Germany and Israel -- "have issued limits of usage of cell phones, particularly for children."
Houlihan says her group is "advising people to choose a phone that falls on the lower end of the (radiation) spectrum" to minimize potential health problems. The Samsung Impression has the lowest: 0.35 watts per kilogram, a measure of how much radiation is absorbed into the brain when the phone is held to the ear.
The highest: T-Mobile's MyTouch 3G, Motorola Moto VU204 and Kyocera Jax S1300, all at 1.55 W/kg.
The Apple iPhone, sold exclusively by AT&T in the USA, is in the middle of the...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
NTSB Tells Workers To Hang Up Cell Phones
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68847
The people who investigate the nation's most high-profile transportation accidents must now practice what they preach: They will no longer be allowed to use cell phones while driving.
Debbie Hersman, the new chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), said Tuesday that employees of the agency are barred from using any wireless device behind the wheel while on duty. The restriction applies whether the device is hands-free or not.
The action appears to make the NTSB the first federal agency to adopt an outright ban of wireless devices while driving, according to the agency and highway safety experts. It also puts stricter rules on NTSB employees than the citizens of all 50 states.
The NTSB, which investigates accidents but has no regulatory authority, has issued several recommendations to state and federal agencies in recent years calling for restrictions on wireless devices for motor vehicle drivers and train operators. A collision last year between two trains in Chatsworth, Calif., has been linked to text messages sent by the conductor of one train. The crash killed 25 people.
"Our own investigations have confirmed what safety researchers know," Hersman said in remarks delivered at her swearing in. "Using a telephone or other electronic device while driving, even with a hands-free kit, significantly increases the risk of an accident. ... We must lead by example."
Jonathan Adkins, spokesman for the Governors Highway Safety Association, called it "a best practice that we want to see emulated."
Such bans make sense, but questions remain about how to enforce them, said Russ Rader, spokesman for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, which studies how to reduce the risk of crashes.
Seven states plus the District of Columbia ban use of handheld cell phones while driving, but drivers can make calls on hands-free devices.
Research shows drivers talking on any type of cell phone are...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Technology Today Plays the Updating Game
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68846
My BlackBerry refuses to do anything whatsoever except dial the number of Trent Lott.
There was a time when people in search of a full and meaningful life were advised to start off each morning by telling themselves: "Every day, in every way, I'm getting better and better."
Now, we get up and hear: "Updates are ready for your computer."
It's depressing to realize that my computer is more bent on self-improvement than I am. At home, my laptop is so ready to update that it can barely be constrained. The other day, I found three different pleas floating around on the screen.
The "Dell Support Center Automatic Upgrade" was the most tempting since it sounded as if the computer wanted to give me a really good seat on a plane.
"Effective now," the announcement continued, "these valuable messages are part of the new Dell Support Center. Dell needs to upgrade Dell Support without impeding system performance so that messages continue to be received."
In other words, I need an upgrade so that I will better be able to receive more upgrade requests in the future. This is extremely important to my laptop, which is only offering me the response options of: More Details, Start Upgrade or Remind Me Later.
There was a time when I would have responded, but nothing good ever seemed to come of that. The updated computers were never any better at doing the things I wanted to do than the old ones. And there's always the possibility that I could trigger an inadvertent disaster.
I have been permanently traumatized by an experience with my BlackBerry, which started sending me signals that it was unhappy about something. I kept clicking around, looking for a positive response, trying to show it that I was a partner, eager to keep up my end of the relationship....
Fri, 11 Sep 09
PC Fights Back in the Mac Wars
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68842
Sean Siler would never be mistaken for a movie star. A former U.S. Navy officer who wears glasses and is a tad on the heavy side, Mr. Siler works at Microsoft, where he oversees the Windows division's adoption of new Internet connectivity software called IPv6.
But there were audible gasps last summer when Mr. Siler, 39, auditioned for Microsoft's new ad campaign for Windows, created by Crispin Porter & Bogusky, the Miami agency best known for its cheeky work for Mini Cooper and Burger King.
"I was like, 'Are you kidding?"' recalls Rob Reilly, one of the agency's executive creative directors. "It couldn't have been more perfect."
Everybody agreed that Mr. Siler looked exactly like PC, the character played by the comedian John Hodgman in Apple's popular "Get a Mac" ads that lampoon Windows-based computers and those who love them. Two weeks later, Mr. Siler reported to a nearby television studio. The agency dressed him in PC's dorky uniform -- white shirt, baggy khakis, brown sport coat and matching brown tie -- - and handed him a script with the lines: "I'm a PC. And I've been made into a stereotype."
Mr. Siler joined a parade of environmentalists, budget-conscious laptop shoppers, mixed-martial-arts fighters, mash-up disc jockeys and remarkably tech-savvy preschoolers who appear in Microsoft's new campaign, which is intended to show that real Windows users aren't all clueless drones.
For Mr. Siler, the experience was almost like being a geeky incarnation of Brad Pitt. His e-mail address was on the screen, and he received 4,000 messages from viewers -- some from grateful parents whose children had wanted expensive Macs over PCs and now had second thoughts.
Crispin Porter & Bogusky put up a video on YouTube in which Mr. Siler discussed his role in the campaign; it was viewed more than 702,000 times. At work, he...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Smartphones Remain a Hacker-Free Zone (Mostly)
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68840
"The likelihood of getting hit by mobile malware is almost nonexistent," said an executive at one anti-virus software company.
It has been great using smartphones as de facto computers. You don't have to buy anti-virus software, or worry that the devices will go haywire every time some Ukrainian crime ring finds a new way to steal data from the cloud.
Which is why you could almost hear a sigh of exasperation from the geekier layers of the mobile industry last month when they heard that hackers had found a way to break into iPhones and remotely control their every aspect.
For users in the United States, however, it appears that the worry-free ride will continue, at least in the near future, and not just because Apple quickly circulated a software patch to plug the vulnerability.
Rather, for their extended peace of mind, users can credit the more tightly controlled -- some would say, strangulated -- structure of the U.S. cell phone industry. They can also credit some sheer dumb luck.
Such luck is familiar to users of Apple computers. The machines, though loved by those who buy them, have never caught on around the world. That lack of market share was a protection; virus writers can't be bothered writing malicious code for so few targets.
The iPhone is in the same boat. As strange as it may sound in a country where so many children have these devices that you would think they were given away with McDonald's Happy Meals, iPhones worldwide barely register on the cell phone radar. Instead, it is Nokia phones, running Symbian software, that reign supreme nearly everywhere except the United States.
So while thousands of law-abiding software developers are diligently building applications to clutter the iPhone or BlackBerry, the black hats taking aim at phones have already found their targets, and they...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Microsoft's Latest Threat: VMware
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68838
Microsoft's No. 1 rival is a household name, Google. But a strong candidate for No. 2 is a company scarcely known outside the technology industry: VMware.
"VMware is definitely a threat," said Gary Chen, an analyst at IDC, a research firm. "After Google, it is the company Microsoft fears most."
Google and VMware, which is based in Palo Alto, California, pose a broadly similar challenge to Microsoft, by potentially undermining the dominance of its most lucrative desktop software and operating systems. Google represents the attack from above, while VMware is the assault from beneath.
Google, the search giant, is offering free and advertising-supported software for e-mail, word processing, calendars and spreadsheets online as alternatives to Microsoft's popular Office products. For Web-based programs like these, it is the browser -- not an operating system like Windows -- that is the vital layer of software on the computer.
VMware is the leader in so-called virtual machine software, which allows a computer to run two or more operating systems at once. Its software resides on top of the hardware and beneath the operating system.
But as VMware's technology becomes more powerful and adds more features to its products, it is starting to supplant the operating system from below -- just as the browser can from above.
VMware's leadership adds an edge to its challenge. A year ago, Paul Maritz, a former senior executive at Microsoft, took over as chief executive. In the late 1990s, he was regarded as Microsoft's third-ranked executive, the person with the most responsibility and authority after Bill Gates and Steven A. Ballmer.
Mr. Maritz walked away from Microsoft in 2000 a very wealthy man, and he focused mainly on philanthropic work like microfinance, conservation and rural development, especially in Africa (he was born and raised in Zimbabwe). In 2003, he founded a small Web start-up company,...
Fri, 11 Sep 09
Speeding Up a Sluggish Computer
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68836
Q. This Windows computer I inherited is agonizingly slow. It sounds like an air-conditioner running constantly (as though a program is running that uses all the power), and can take several minutes to go from page to page. How can I speed it up?
A. If the computer has outdated security software -- or none at all -- try installing some and running it to remove any resource-hogging malicious software. Plenty of commercial suites are available, but you can also find free basic protection with programs, that include AVG Free Antivirus (free.avg.com), Avast Antivirus Home Edition (avast.com), Spybot Search & Destroy (safer-networking.org) and Microsoft's free Windows Defender (microsoft.com/defender).
Once you have removed any hidden or malicious software from the PC, use its Programs menu and uninstall any applications you do not use to free space on the hard drive. If a program does not have its own uninstaller program listed with it in the Programs menu, use the Add/Remove Programs control panel; Microsoft has a tutorial at microsoft.com/athome/setup/cleansweep.aspx. Basic maintenance tasks can also help speed up your PC. You can find instructions at microsoft.com/atwork/maintenance/speed.aspx.
If the PC is still sluggish, it may need more memory. You can see how much memory is already installed by going to the Start menu to Control Panel, double-clicking on the System icon and clicking the General tab; the amount of random access memory (RAM) is listed. Memory dealers like Crucial (crucial.com) or Kingston (kingston.com) can guide you through buying the appropriate chips.
Q. The text comes over fine, but some of my Outlook contact pictures won't copy over to my BlackBerry when I synchronize it with my PC. Any ideas as to why some photos sync up and some don't?
A. The Outlook contact photos that refuse to synchronize with the BlackBerry might be too large (more than 32...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Apple CEO Steve Jobs Introduces New iPod Lineup
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68862
Paul and Ringo weren't on hand at Apple's music event Wednesday, but Apple CEO Steve Jobs was there to introduce a new lineup of iPods. Apple rolled out the world's smallest music player -- and the first music player to talk to you -- the new iPod shuffle, priced at $59 with 2GB of storage. Consumers can also opt for a 4GB shuffle for $79.
At the other end of the spectrum, Apple launched the new iPod nano, complete with a video camera, microphone and speaker. That means music fans can shoot video, view it on their nano, and upload it to YouTube.
"iPod nano is the world's most popular music player with over 100 million sold," said Jobs. "And now we've added a video camera to its incredibly thin design, without any additional cost to the user."
Taking a page from the Microsoft Zune playbook, the new nano also features a built-in FM radio with live pause and iTunes tagging, as well as a built-in pedometer. Live pause lets iPod nano users pause and resume playing FM radio shows. iTunes Tagging lets users tag, preview and purchase songs they like when they sync with iTunes. An 8GB nano sells for $149 and a 16GB model for $179.
Apple also rolled out a new iPod touch lineup with a starting price of $199. The iPod touch is similar to an iPhone without the calling capabilities. It offers a multi-touch user interface, a 3.5-inch widescreen glass display, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and a built-in accelerometer and speaker.
"At just $199 the iPod touch is the most affordable gateway to Apple's revolutionary App Store with more than 75,000 applications that you can wirelessly download right into your iPod touch," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide product marketing. "You get a great iPod, a...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
AT&T Will Upgrade To Faster 3G Speeds with HSPA 7.2
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68852
AT&T on Wednesday said it will upgrade its 3G wireless network to double speeds in six major cities by the end of the year. The exclusive U.S. carrier for Apple's iPhone has been heavily criticized for poor network connections.
By the end of next year, AT&T said, it expects to cover 25 of the nation's largest markets and extend the faster service to 90 percent of its 3G coverage area by the end of 2011. The cities to be upgraded this year are Chicago, Ill.; Los Angeles, Calif.; Dallas and Houston, Texas; Miami, Fla.; and Charlotte, N.C.
AT&T said the High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) 7.2 upgrade is necessary before it moves to 4G. It plans to begin 4G trials next year and move to LTE 4G in 2011.
The theoretical peak speed for the HSPA technology is 7.2 Mbps, but the actual speed is likely to be lower, affected by factors such as network load, antenna location, and the device in use. The technology is said to have trouble maintaining a strong signal indoors.
Six new HSPA 7.2 phones will be introduced by the end of the year, AT&T said, along with two new laptop cards. The company said it is also developing LTE devices for its move to 4G in 2011.
AT&T set the cost of this year's work at $17 billion to $18 billion, including expanding its network capacity.
Competitor Verizon Wireless plans to go to 4G this year and deploy it next year.
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Monopoly Streets Game Runs on Top of Google Maps
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68851
Google Maps is becoming a Monopoly -- a Monopoly board game, to be exact. On Wednesday, Hasbro and Google launched Monopoly City Streets, a free, online version of what the game maker describes as "the world's most popular board game." Monopoly City Streets runs on top of Google Maps, and is also available using the open-source Open Street Map.
The online, massive multiplayer game is available only for a limited run of four months, as part of a promotion for Monopoly City, a new board game from Hasbro where a 3-D city is built from more than 80 3-D buildings.
In the various Monopoly incarnations, the object is always the same: Make the most money in real estate through strategic use of properties to become, as Hasbro described, "the richest property magnate in existence."
In Monopoly City Streets, gamers can buy streets and place properties -- including houses, castles and skyscrapers -- anywhere in the world on Google Maps, and they play remotely against other participants. According to news reports, the starting price for London's Downing Street is $231,000, and Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C., begins at $2 million.
Each player starts by creating a profile at www.monopolycitystreets.com, and they get $3 million in play money. As with the classic board game, a player earns rent from streets and properties owned. Rent is reportedly $50,000 a day for a house and $100 million for a skyscraper.
However, at the beginning of Launch Day -- 09/09/09 -- the site was down, possibly due to over-popularity.
After buying a street, a player can acquire and set up houses, skyscrapers, hotels and other buildings. Players can increase property values by adding schools or even wind farms, or trash an opponent's holdings by setting up prisons or sewage plants through the use of chance cards....
Thu, 10 Sep 09
AMD Touts Phenom II X4 Over Intel's New Core i5
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68850
Intel introduced a new Core i5 750 processor and a single-chip P55 Express chipset on Tuesday that represent the latest challenges to rival Advanced Micro Devices. Priced at $196, Intel's new quad-core chip appears to present a good enough price/performance match to inspire adoption by mainstream desktop PC enthusiasts, beginning this autumn.
But AMD spokesperson Matt Davis said the Intel rival offers Phenom II X4 quad-core processors in the $200 price range that are also performance-oriented. "AMD platforms deliver impressive price/performance and the infrastructure compatibility that allows users' PC experience to grow with their changing needs, all at an affordable price," he said.
Davis admitted Intel's 2.66-GHz Core i5 is an "impressive processor," but said CPU performance alone does not ensure the best PC experience. Intel's new quad-core chip also presents several challenges for end users, he said.
"Consumers are forced to absorb the added cost of a new motherboard, and potentially a new graphics processor unit, in addition to the new processor," Davis said. "Conversely, the AMD desktop infrastructure is backward compatible and can easily help end users minimize the overall cost when upgrading to new AMD processors."
According to Davis, AMD platforms combine CPU, GPU and chipset technologies in a balanced configuration capable of delivering a superior PC experience that meets consumers' needs at an affordable price.
"For example, mainstream users can get an affordable platform that leverages AMD's motherboard graphics technology for a balanced platform that meets their needs," Davis said. "Core i5 PCs require a discrete GPU that adds cost and doesn't guarantee a balanced experience with the best value."
Intel said its latest Core i5 and i7 processors integrate several key design enhancements, such as the placement of the memory and PCI controllers on the CPU. "As well, we've gone from a two-chip chipset to...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Social-Networking Pixi Could Dust Off Palm's Image
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68830
On Wednesday, Palm announced its next smartphone innovation, the Pixi. Palm is aiming the device at social networkers with the promise of faster, more intuitive personal communication.
With a compact design, QWERTY keyboard, multi-touch screen, personalization options, and the webOS platform, Palm hopes the phone will turn heads when it debuts on the Sprint network before the holidays.
"With Palm webOS, we're creating a new, more intuitive smartphone experience defined by unmatched simplicity and usefulness," said Jon Rubinstein, Palm chairman and CEO. "Palm Pixi brings this unique experience to a broader range of people who want enhanced messaging and social networking in a design that lets them express their personal style."
Palm Pixi users can link to information from Google, Facebook, Exchange ActiveSync, Yahoo and LinkedIn. Palm's Synergy features show all the user's conversations with the same person in one chat-style thread, whether it's a social network, e-mail or IM. That means users can start a conversation in Google Talk and end it using AIM Instant Messenger, text messaging, or some other tool.
On the personalization front, Palm is rolling out the Palm Pixi Artist Series, limited edition back covers that let consumers change designs to suit their mood. Consumers can also tailor the Pixi with downloadable applications from the Palm Beta App Catalog. And Palm media sync lets users customize the device with music, photos and videos from Apple's iTunes Store or use the on-device Amazon MP3 store to purchase individual songs or full albums over the air.
"What you've got here is a device that's going to appeal to a slightly different demographic, a demographic that's more focused on text messaging and social networks where they really do need and want a keyboard," said Michael Gartenberg, a vice president at Interpret.
"The phone comes in a small package...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Critical Patch Tuesday Misses Serious Hole in FTP
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68829
Before the dust even settled on Patch Tuesday, Microsoft confirmed a bug in several versions of its Windows operating system that could leave the door open to malicious hackers. Windows Vista, Windows Server 2008, and the release candidates of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 are vulnerable.
"An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could take complete control of an affected system," Microsoft's advisory said. "Most attempts to exploit this vulnerability will cause an affected system to stop responding and restart."
Microsoft confirmed that hackers are actively using exploits of the FTP bug to attack Web servers. Until a patch is available, Microsoft recommends users disable SMB 2 by editing the Windows Registry or blocking TCP ports 139 and 445 at the firewall. However, this workaround disables the browser and several other applications.
Beyond the unexpected Patch Tuesday drama, Microsoft released five critical advisories to address eight vulnerabilities. The focus is on the Windows operating system family, and all versions are affected except Windows 7. There are critical vulnerabilities in the JavaScript engine, the wireless LAN autoconfig service, Windows Media, Windows TCP/IP, and the editing component of DHTML Active X.
Of the five critical patches, two will require mandatory restarts, causing some level of disruption within the enterprise, according to Paul Henry, Lumension security and forensic analyst. Leading the pack this month, however, is Microsoft Vista with four critical vulnerabilities.
"This brings up an interesting situation, as Windows 7 and Windows 2008 R2 were released to manufacturing (RTM) early last month, which means many Microsoft partners and corporate customers will have started using and evaluating these two new platforms," Henry said. "These early adopters are covered this month as Microsoft has identified these new platforms as non-affected for all five September updates."
Microsoft hasn't seen a serious bug in its...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Recession Can't Stop Japan's Online Shoppers
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68819
It never rains but it pours for Japan's department store operators, once the driving force behind Japan's bubble-era consumerism. This summer already-flagging sales plunged further as recession-hit consumers cut back on spending. Nature didn't help out, either, as poor weather hurt sales.
Yet, even when the recession eases and the weather improves, don't expect a big bounce in sales. These days, Japan's recession-hit shoppers increasingly prefer to shop without ever leaving home.
The numbers are startling. Using data from the Japan Direct Marketing Assn. and Nomura Research Institute [NRI], the Nikkei daily estimates online shopping sales in Japan rose 22 percent to $67.2 billion. That's despite Japan's deepest recession in the postwar era savaging consumer confidence following the collapse of Lehman Brothers last fall.
If catalog shopping is also included, the figure rises to over $86 billion -- or more than is spent in Japan's department stores or ubiquitous convenience stores. Noritaka Kobayashi, senior consultant at Nomura Research Institute in Tokyo, says that while the growth will likely slow due to the recession, the consumer e-commerce market will continue to outstrip other forms of shopping. Excluding eating out and other forms of consumption that can't be easily conducted online, Kobayashi reckons $2.2 trillion of consumption could be made from computers and cell phones. "A growing number of people are simply avoiding the trouble of visiting stores," he says. "This market has a big growth potential."
What explains Japanese consumers' shift to shopping online? In the last year, as the global recession pounded the Japanese economy, pundits began using the term sugomori ["chicks in the nest"] to describe people who stay home to keep outside expenses to a minimum. Shopping online is not only often cheaper, especially when compared with expensive department stores, but it also saves on transportation and eating...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Going To Extremes To Build App Store Buzz
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68817
Software developers are going to great lengths to get their wares noticed at the Apple App Store.
Brian Greenstone, CEO of Pangea Software, wanted some publicity for the games his company designs for use on the iPhone. So he hired Reverb Communications, a public relations agency, to get the word out. Reverb drafted press releases, provided marketing advice, and helped put Greenstone in touch with reporters who cover gaming. And in the section of the online storefront where users can append comments about an application, Reverb employees posted glowing reviews of Pangea games.
MobileCrunch, the blog that initially reported the reviews, accused Reverb of acting unscrupulously -- an allegation Reverb denies. The reviewers acted of their own accord, using personal credit cards, says Doug Kennedy, Reverb's vice-president of business development. Greenstone says Pangea paid Reverb not for reviews, but for "legitimate public relations." On that score, he says, "they did a good job."
Whatever the ethics involved, the incident underscores the rising stakes -- and increasing difficulty -- of getting noticed at the App Store, an online bazaar where customers can choose from among more than 65,000 applications that let them play games, do work, and carry out all manner of tasks on the iPhone or iPod Touch. With some 8,500 new apps -- or updated versions of existing ones -- being added to the App Store each week, it's getting harder to stand out, much less make money. "The gold rush is clearly over," Greenstone says. "But there's still gold left in that land." Case in point: Pangea generated $100,000 from 10 App Store games in July, compared with $750,000 from only two games available in July 2008, just after the store opened.
The crush to get noticed on the App Store has spawned a cottage industry for PR firms and...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Web-Monitoring Software Gathers Data on Kid Chats
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68816
Parents who install a leading brand of software to monitor their kids' online activities may be unwittingly allowing the developer to gather marketing data from children as young as 7 -- and to sell that information.
Software sold under the Sentry and FamilySafe brands can read private chats conducted through Yahoo, MSN, AOL and other services, and send that data back to the company. The information is then offered to businesses seeking ways to tailor their marketing messages to kids.
"This scares me more than anything I have seen using monitoring technology," said Parry Aftab, a child-safety advocate. "You don't put children's personal information at risk."
The software does not record children's names, addresses or other identifiable information, but it knows how old they are because parents customize the programs to be more or less permissive, depending on age.
Five other makers of parental-control software contacted by The Associated Press, including McAfee Inc. and Symantec Corp., said they do not sell chat data to advertisers.
One competitor, CyberPatrol LLC, said it would never consider such an arrangement. "That's pretty much confidential information," said Barbara Rose, the company's vice president of marketing. "As a parent, I would have a problem with them targeting youngsters."
The software brands in question are developed by EchoMetrix Inc., a company based in Syosset, New York.
EchoMetrix CEO Jeff Greene said parents who don't want the company to share their child's information to businesses can check a box to opt out.
But that option can be found only by visiting the company's Web site. It was not in the agreement contained in the program itself as downloaded Thursday by The Associated Press.
According to the agreement, the software passes along data to "trusted partners." Confidentiality agreements prohibit those clients from sharing the information with others.
In recognition of federal privacy laws that restrict the collection of...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Fans Wish for More from Apple iPods
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68815
Once again, it's time to peer into Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs' cup and try to read the tea leaves.
Apple, as usual, has said almost nothing about the new products it plans to unveil at an invitation-only affair Wednesday in San Francisco. Playing their part, bloggers and Apple fans have filled the vacuum with "leaks," rumors and wish-list items that, while often far-fetched, can't completely be ignored. Sometimes, just sometimes, a bit of truth shines through.
In recent years, the Cupertino, California-based company has used its September event to unveil new iPods, which have grown smaller, sleeker and more powerful with each new generation.
This year's event is along the same lines, if Apple's e-mail to reporters is any indication.
The invitation looks like an iTunes gift card and features one of Apple's iconic, iPod-toting silhouettes and the words, "It's only rock and roll, but we like it," a reference to a 1970s Rolling Stones song.
That still left room for creative speculation. Detail-starved bloggers took a close look at the image and noted that the headphones jack into the large-ish iPod at the bottom -- making it an iPod Touch, not an iPod classic. The observation has added weight to one rumor that Apple could discontinue the classic, the only model left to use a hard drive instead of flash memory.
Of course, other rumors postulate an even bigger hard drive on an updated iPod classic, which already boasts a 120-gigabyte hard drive, far beefier than any other iPod. Still more speculation, this time based on what appear to be photos of new iPod cases, call for built-in digital cameras on Touch and Nano models.
Apple watchers are also looking out for the ninth incarnation of iTunes, the media management software that helps people keep track of their music, videos, podcasts and data and send...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Congress Weighs Landmark Change in Web Ad Privacy
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68814
The Web sites computer users visit, the search queries they conduct and the products they buy -- along with all the personal details they reveal on social networking pages -- can give companies insight into what Internet ads they might be interested in seeing.
But privacy watchdogs warn that too many people have no idea that Internet marketers are tracking their online habits and then mining that data to serve up targeted pitches -- a practice known as behavioral advertising.
So Congress could be stepping in. Rep. Rick Boucher, a Virginia Democrat who heads the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet, is drafting a bill that would impose broad new rules on Web sites and advertisers.
His goal is to ensure that consumers know what information is being collected about them on the Web and how it is being used, and to give them control over that information.
While Congress has waded into Internet privacy issues before, this measure could break new ground, as the first major attempt to regulate a nascent but fast-growing industry that represents the future of advertising. Boucher insists his bill will benefit consumers and preserve the underlying economics of the Internet, which relies on advertising to keep so much online content free.
"Our goal is not to hinder online advertising," he said. "This will make people more likely to trust electronic commerce and the Internet."
Although his proposal is still taking shape, Boucher is confident lawmakers will pass an online marketing privacy law of some sort. He is working with Cliff Stearns of Florida, the top Republican on the Internet subcommittee, as well as Rep. Bobby Rush, an Illinois Democrat who chairs a separate subcommittee on consumer protection.
Already, Washington's interest in Internet marketing has put online advertisers on notice. In July, the industry released a set...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
Google Books Moves To Reassure EU Publishers
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68813
Internet search leader Google Inc. said Monday it is making concessions to publishers outside the U.S. to try and soothe worries over its Google Books project, which aims to put many hard-to-find books online.
Google plans to sell to U.S. customers digital versions of out-of-print books that are still in U.S. copyright as part of its Google Books digital library project. Under a settlement with U.S. authors and publishers, this will cover all books unless the copyright holders object.
That agreement doesn't cover copyright outside the United States, but it does affect foreign authors who sell books there.
Google says it will try to address concerns by adding two representatives of foreign authors and publishers to the board of the Books Rights Registry -- the nonprofit organization set up by the settlement to manage U.S. copyrights.
It also says books that are out of print in the U.S. but still commercially available elsewhere would not be displayed on Google Books without explicit consent. This aims to soothe European publishers' fears that they could not prevent the sale or display of U.S. translations of works still sold in the original language in Europe.
The company announced these plans as a European Commission hearing in Brussels listened to advocates and critics of Google Books on how the U.S. settlement would affect Europeans.
A wide coalition of Google's Internet rivals -- Microsoft, Yahoo and Amazon -- European publishers, libraries and copyright holders claimed that Google's U.S. settlement would lead to a de facto monopoly for digital access to works because the project is already so far ahead of competitors.
The German government has also criticized the deal, saying it would violate German law if it operated there because it goes beyond German restrictions on how much "fair use" content can be used or published without infringing copyright.
Google Books lawyer Daphne...
Thu, 10 Sep 09
AOL Taps Exec Who Warned Yahoo of Trouble
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68811
AOL LLC has tapped former Yahoo Inc. executive Brad Garlinghouse for a key position that is meant to beef up the struggling Internet company's presence in Silicon Valley.
Garlinghouse, 38, might be best known for calling attention to significant problems at Yahoo in a 2006 internal memo that was referred to as the "peanut butter manifesto" because it argued the Internet company had spread itself too thin.
Since then, Yahoo has changed CEOs twice as it has tried to nail down the best formula for keeping chase with Google Inc. in the online advertising market. Its latest leader, Carol Bartz, was hired partly to sharpen the company's focus, and recently sealed a search-advertising pact with Microsoft Corp.
Garlinghouse said Monday he's been cheered to see the changes Bartz has wrought at Yahoo.
Though AOL -- which is getting ready to be spun off from Time Warner Inc. -- is based in New York, Garlinghouse was due to start Tuesday at the company's offices in Mountain View, California, where AOL's e-mail operations are based. He will be responsible for increasing the use of AOL's e-mail, instant messaging and mobile offerings. He also will be expected to help AOL identify West Coast startups to invest in.
Garlinghouse spent more than five years at Yahoo, beginning in 2003. After leaving Yahoo as a senior vice president, he became a senior adviser at Silver Lake Partners, a private equity firm.
AOL CEO Tim Armstrong, a former Google Inc. executive who joined the company in April, said in an interview that Garlinghouse was hired because he is "deeply steeped" in the Internet.
Wed, 9 Sep 09
Verizon Rolls Out Low-Cost Data Plans on Feature Phones
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68828
Verizon Wireless and Samsung are rolling out two new feature phones with messaging in mind, the Rogue and Intensity. The mobile phones offer a fairly standard feature set for today's market, but analysts said Verizon's data plan for the feature phones gives consumers something to talk about.
The Samsung Rogue is a messaging phone with a full-touch display and a horizontal slide-out, four-row QWERTY keyboard. The phone offers threaded messaging and one-touch access to social-networking widgets, including Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, YouTube and Photobucket.
The Samsung Intensity is for communications-minded consumers. It offers a full line of advanced messaging capabilities such as mobile IM, text, picture and voice messaging with threaded messaging, mobile e-mail, and a mobile Web browser. The Intensity features a QWERTY keyboard for messaging.
"The Intensity is a QWERTY messaging phone with a 12-button keypad on the front for $30. That's well priced in a good form factor," said Avi Greengart, an analyst at Current Analysis. "The Rogue is a full touchscreen with a sliding QWERTY, and we've certainly seen that's a popular form factor as well. The Rogue is $99. That's not quite as good a value, but when compared to some of the other devices at Verizon, it's certainly competitive. But the story here is the service plans."
The Samsung Rogue is the flagship phone for Verizon's new data-pricing option. The just-introduced data plans let Verizon Wireless customers decide how much data and the type of data they want to use. Samsung Rogue customers who want to check e-mail, surf the Web, and download applications, games or ringtones can choose a 25MB plan for $9.99 a month or 75MB for $19.99. Those fees are in addition to the standard nationwide plan for voice.
"While there's nothing all that unique about the phones themselves, the data plans Verizon...
Wed, 9 Sep 09
Intel Offers High-Performance Core i5 and i7 for Desktops
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68827
Intel has introduced three new quad-core processors that promise to give next-generation desktop PCs a boost, beginning this autumn. Formerly code-named Lynnfield, Intel's Core i5 and Core i7 processors are squarely aimed at consumers in search of high-performance machines with the latest digital media, productivity and gaming applications.
According to Intel, the new Core i5 and i7 chips can accelerate performance intelligently in response to demanding tasks, such as playing games and editing photos. For example, the new quad-core chips promise to boost the user's speed when conducting multitasking activities by up to 28 percent, boost conversion rates for video transfers to the Web by up to 37 percent, and speed the transformation of CD music tracks into MP3 files by up to 17 percent, the company said.
The performance improvements come courtesy of the chipmaker's Turbo Boost technology, which accelerates processor clock speeds by up to 20 percent to match current computing workloads, Intel said.
The new processors, which are based on Intel's Nehalem microarchitecture, integrate both a 16-lane PCI Express 2 graphics port and a two-channel memory controller. As a result, core functionality that was previously hosted on companion chipsets comprised of two or more devices will now fit on Intel's single-chip P55, the company said.
The radical change in design philosophy produces several benefits, according to Matthew Wilkins, a principal analyst at iSuppli.
"As more of the functionality gets integrated onto the processor, you are able to use a lower number of chips in the chipset," Wilkins said. "A single-chipset solution means potentially lower heat generation and power consumption, and reduced cooling requirements."
What's more, the P55 chipset offers support for dual graphics cards, up to 14 USB 2.0 ports, and as many as six SATA 3GB/s ports. Connects between the Core i5 processor and the P55 chipset...
Wed, 9 Sep 09
Spotify Goes Live on the Apple and Android Platforms
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68824
Spotify has gone mobile. The desktop-based Web site, which trades free music for users' attention to ads, is now offering the service on the Google Android, Apple iPhone, and iPod touch platforms. The mobile service is available in France, Spain, Norway, Sweden and the U.K., but not yet in the U.S.
The Spotify mobile application is being made available to premium subscribers who pay a monthly or annual rate. Premium subscribers don't have to view advertisements, have 320 kbps, have the ability to be the first to listen to new albums, and gain entry to ticket lotteries and VIP competitions.
The application can be downloaded via Apple's App Store and the Android Market, according to the company.
"We've worked hard to bring you the same great Spotify experience you're already familiar with to your phone," wrote Spotify's Andres Sehr on the company's blog. "The mobile apps will allow you to take the entire Spotify catalog and put it in your pocket."
The mobile app is similar to the desktop application in that it gives users access to million of tracks updated through Spotify's catalog. What is different about the mobile app is that it also allows users to run Spotify while making calls and browsing the Web, according to the company. Updates from the desktop app are synced, as are updates from the mobile application to the desktop.
The app also enables users to listen to full tracks, fast-forward, rewind and shuffle music.
The feature that stands out from the rest allows users to listen to music in offline mode. Users can listen to their playlists even when no connection is available.
"The launch of the Spotify app for iPhone and iPod touch now provides our users with the best of both the online and offline worlds, making it even easier for...
Wed, 9 Sep 09
HP Launches 'Printer App' Store for Direct Web Printing
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68808
Hewlett-Packard is trying to stay ahead of the Web printing curve. On Tuesday, the computer and printer giant announced "new relationships and solutions" to make printing from the Web easier, including a "printer app" store.
"With the explosion of digital content on the Web," said Executive Vice President Vyomesh Joshi, "our goal is to enable consumers to print anywhere, anytime." HP is describing its announcements as a continuing part of a Print 2.0 strategy, responding to a trend of so much -- up to 50 percent of all printing -- coming from the Web.
The announcements pick up on similar initiatives announced earlier this summer. New partnerships provide embedded print-customization tools and apps with a variety of companies, including AOL, Flickr, Disney, CNET.com, 60 Minutes, and others.
The new HP App Studio is a "printer app" marketplace. As with app stores that are sprouting up from virtually every major mobile-device maker, the App Studio Web site will allow visitors to view and rate print apps and suggest ideas. The studio will also offer apps from third-party developers using HP's open-application programming interface. To get that ball rolling, HP said it is working with selected developers, including Kurt Noble, CashStar, FreePrintable.net and MovieTickets.com.
The effort coincides with the release this week of HP's PhotoSmart Premium with TouchSmart Web. HP describes the printer as the "ultimate all-in-one device," with printing, faxing, copying and scanning capabilities, as well as simplified access to printing Web-based content without a computer.
AOL will embed HP's Tabbloid publishing service throughout its Web properties, including RSS feeds. The service will enable people to create and print customized newsletters. Flickr is expanding to offer more printing opportunities through Snapfish.
Several Disney Web sites will offer printable coloring pages and craft projects using several characters -- Winnie the Pooh, Mickey Mouse, and...
Wed, 9 Sep 09
T-Mobile, Orange Form U.K.'s Largest Mobile Operator
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68807
T-Mobile and Orange are combining to form a wireless powerhouse in the United Kingdom. The companies announced a 50-50 joint venture company Tuesday that will create the U.K.'s largest mobile operator.
The combined company boasts 28.4 million subscribers. That represents about 37 percent of the U.K. market. The parent companies -- Deutsche Telekom AG and France Telecom SA -- said the joint venture will breed opportunities for converged solutions, expand network coverage, enhance network quality, and improve customer services.
The companies are also betting the joint venture will put them in a better position to invest in innovative new services and exploit new technologies. The joint venture's bottom line: The new business will be able to compete better with the other two large mobile operators in the market, Vodafone and O2.
"We will become market leader -- our customers will benefit in many ways, for example from the best mobile broadband offer in Britain. In the second-biggest market in Europe, which is undoubtedly one of the toughest and most competitive, we are giving T-Mobile UK a clear and strong future," said Timotheus Höttges, CFO of Deutsche Telekom. And with our partnership, we have taken the most value-enhancing strategy for Deutsche Telekom and its shareholders.
p
The companies expect financial synergies in excess of four billion euros (US$5.8 billion) from combining network and IT expenses, distribution and marketing costs, and administration costs. T-Mobile and Orange, however, expect to invest up to £800 million (US$1.3 billion) in integration costs from 2010 to 2014 to realize those synergies.
p
This will reinforce fair competition and will provide strong benefits for our customers through improved coverage, quality of service, and an enhanced capacity to develop new services and technologies, said Gervais Pellissier, CFO of France Telecom. Our shareholders will benefit from higher profitability and an immediate cash-flow-per-share accretion...
Wed, 9 Sep 09
Marketing Company Sells Clients Facebook Friends
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68802
On Facebook, most people make friends the old-fashioned way -- by sending a request to be added to someone's posse of pals. Now, an Australian marketing company hopes to save you time and energy by simply buying you a few thousand buddies.
p
The service from uSocial is mostly meant for businesses, celebrities and other individuals looking to expand on the social network, and Facebook isn't happy about it.
p
Under the service, which launched this week, 1,000 new Facebook friends cost less than $200. For 5,000 Facebook friends -- the maximum allowed by that site -- uSocial charges $727, though through mid-September, the promotional rate is $654.30.
p
The service can also help companies accumulate fans -- Facebook-speak for the users who acknowledge liking a person, business or idea on the site.
p
Leon Hill, the 24-year-old founder of Brisbane, Australia-based uSocial, said businesses and other clients are essentially buying a base of potential customers.
p
We are getting, basically, targeted friends and fans who are saying, 'Yes, I want information on this,' Hill said in a phone interview, adding that friends and fans can always change their minds and sever ties whenever they want.
p
He said businesses are interested in his service because they are realizing that social media Web sites can help generate buzz more quickly, cheaply and effectively than online ads and more traditional types of advertising.
p
Hill said friends are all gathered manually.
p
USocial logs in to a client's Facebook profile or creates a new one. It seeks out people who would be a good fit -- like car buffs if uSocial is trying to promote a specialty auto-parts company -- and sends them friends requests tailored to that business. The requests don't mention that uSocial is working on behalf of the business.
p
The process for getting fans is similar, except uSocial does not need to log in to...
Wed, 9 Sep 09
Next Up for Nokia: Netbooks, Banking
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68793
The conventional wisdom about Nokia is decidedly downbeat. Wall Street analysts say the Finnish handset maker is in for unimpressive profits as it loses share in the lucrative market for smartphones. Credit Suisse is the latest bank to turn sour on Nokia shares, downgrading them to underperform from outperform on Sept. 1 and predicting that the company will have trouble fending off competition from Apple's iPhone, BlackBerry handsets from Research in Motion, and phones using Google's Android operating system.
p
Nokia did its level best to counter the conventional wisdom during its annual Nokia World extravaganza in Stuttgart, Germany, on Sept. 2-3. There, as Nokia promoted new products and services, the mood was far less somber than at industry events a few months earlier.
p
Some analysts came away persuaded that Nokia has regrouped and is poised to use its formidable distribution power to forge into new businesses such as mobile banking and netbook PCs. The company has spent several years absorbing a host of acquired companies in fields such as mobile navigation and music. Now, Nokia could be regaining its stride, says Carolina Milanesi, wireless industry analyst at market watcher Gartner. All these disjointed pieces are coming together, Milanesi says.
p
subhead
No Fan on Nokia's Netbook
/subhead
p
Much of the chatter among developers, business partners, analysts, and journalists at Nokia World focused on Nokia's new Booklet 3G mini-laptop. Nokia had announced its first mobile PC on Aug. 24, but it disclosed more details in Stuttgart. Nokia watchers immediately wanted to know what would distinguish the $800 device in the crowded netbook market, especially since Apple is expected to launch its own competitor next year. Many netbooks now on the market cost hundreds of dollars less.
p
The answer boils down to battery life and software, says John Hwang, a former Yahoo! executive who led Nokia's crash effort to develop...
Wed, 9 Sep 09
Maine Widens School Laptop Program to High Schools
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68785
The state that was first to provide laptops to every seventh and eighth grader in its public schools is taking its campaign to the high schools, and Maine's top education official vowed Thursday that every high school student will have a laptop computer within two years.
p
The 67,000 computers currently being distributed at more than half of the high schools will give students the skills they'll need to compete in the workplace, said Don Siviski, superintendent of Regional School Unit 2.
p
The competitive world that these students are going to be engaged in -- it isn't only the United States, the Northeast or Maine. Their competitors are going to be all over the world. They need to be savvy, he said. Schools need to join the 21st century to prepare these kids for that world.
p
Under a four-year, $64 million lease, Apple Inc. will provide each student with an Apple MacBook with a 13-inch screen, 160-gigabyte hard drive, built-in camera and a full slate of software, as well as wireless routers, tech support and warranty repairs. The cost is $240 per year per computer.
p
Maine Education Commissioner Sue Gendron wanted to expand the program into all of the state's 119 public high schools, but had to settle with participation from only 64 this fall. The narrow window for high schools to sign onto the program over the summer and the nation's economic turmoil prevented full participation, she said.
p
Still, Gendron said, Maine's program -- the first statewide program to provide laptops to students -- is also the nation's largest. The students are allowed to take the computers home, but don't own them. The laptops have to be returned to the school in the spring.
p
Our young people really are digital natives, she said. We don't want them to unplug when they come to school.
p
On Thursday, 10...
Wed, 9 Sep 09
Review: Use Power Outlets as a Wi-Fi Alternative
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68772
Setting up a Wi-Fi network at home has gotten much easier, yet the process can still be daunting. Or the wireless signal won't reach everywhere. A good alternative that has gotten little attention involves your electric sockets.
p
Simply plug palm-sized adapters into regular wall outlets and connect your computers to the adapters. Believe it or not, your Internet traffic goes through your home electric wires, allowing you to extend the reach of Wi-Fi or avoid it completely. And perhaps even more unbelievably, getting this going is ridiculously easy.
p
The technology has been around for years but has recently come down enough in price to merit a new look.
p
In 2006, when The Associated Press first checked out Netgear Inc.'s Powerline HD Ethernet Adapter, two wall adapters cost $250. That got one computer online; the second adapter had to be connected to your cable or DSL modem or a router. Meanwhile, for well under $100, Wi-Fi can send signals to multiple PCs, TVs and gaming devices.
p
These days, Netgear adapters roughly comparable to the ones we tried in '06 retail for about $130. I also recently tested similar Hercules ePlugs from Guillemot Corp. that are available on Amazon.com for about the same price. Better yet, for about $79 you can get versions of these adapters that operate at a slower speed -- which still could be good enough for most people.
p
At that price, it's more competitive with Wi-Fi. At the very least, the technology is a good enhancement to Wi-Fi if that wireless magic can't blanket your whole house.
p
Any powerline adapter that, like the Hercules or Netgear models, uses the HomePlug networking standard should work pretty much the same.
p
Unlike the Hercules of ancient myth, who had 12 labors to perform, the Hercules ePlug just does one thing: It gets devices online, wherever they happen to...
Tue, 8 Sep 09
'Don't Post That!' Networking Etiquette Emerges
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68800
Stephanie Kahn wanted to bask in her engagement for a few hours before diving into the task of calling aunts, uncles and good friends with the big news. And even before she could call them, she had a surprise party to attend, one that her fiancé had set up for their parents and her closest group of girlfriends.
p
That party was when Kahn lost control of her news. Some of the guests took photos and were uploading them on Facebook before I could even post anything, Kahn said from Smyrna, Ga., where she lives. Of course the next morning I get a couple of calls, text messages from people I didn't call. They found out on Facebook. I think some people were a little upset.
p
In an age in which instant news and constant life streams from Facebook and Twitter change the way we communicate, the rules of etiquette surrounding these interactions are still evolving.
p
What happens when I expected a phone call about something and read about it in a status update instead? What's the polite response to a distant friend posting bad news on Facebook? What to do with sensitive information?
p
Making matters trickier, good etiquette on Facebook might not apply on Twitter or in an e-mail. These days, milestones like marriage, pregnancy, breakups and divorce are being described over more forms of communications than ever.
p
Because it's so new, there is sort of a gray area of what the manners are, said Brian McGee, a 33-year-old father-to-be in Charlotte, N.C.
p
He'd just gotten his first BlackBerry when he and his wife were driving to a doctor's appointment to learn the baby's sex. He had the BlackBerry out and was thumbing something.
p
I was like, 'What are you doing?' recalled his wife, Megan Gelaburt-McGee. He was posting that we were on the way to the...
Tue, 8 Sep 09
Internet Addiction Center Opens in United States
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68790
Ben Alexander spent nearly every waking minute playing the video game World of Warcraft. As a result, he flunked out of the University of Iowa.
p
Alexander, 19, needed help to break an addiction he calls as destructive as alcohol or drugs. He found it in [a] suburb of high-tech Seattle, where what claims to be the first residential treatment center for Internet addiction in the United States just opened its doors.
p
The center, called ReSTART, is somewhat ironically located near Redmond, headquarters of Microsoft and a world center of the computer industry. It opened in July and for $14,000 offers a 45-day program intended to help people wean themselves from pathological computer use, which can include obsessive use of video games, texting, Facebook, eBay, Twitter and any other time-killers brought courtesy of technology.
p
We've been doing this for years on an outpatient basis, said Hilarie Cash, a therapist and executive director of the center. Up until now, we had no place to send them.
p
Internet addiction is not recognized as a separate disorder by the American Psychiatric Association, and treatment is not generally covered by insurance. But there are many such treatment centers in China, South Korea and Taiwan -- where Internet addiction is taken very seriously -- and many psychiatric experts say it is clear that Internet addiction is real and harmful.
p
The five-acre center in Fall City, about 30 miles east of Seattle, can handle up to six patients at a time. Alexander is so far the only patient of the program, which uses a cold turkey approach. He spends his days in counseling and psychotherapy sessions, doing household chores, working on the grounds, going on outings, exercising and baking a mean batch of ginger cookies.
p
Whether such programs work in the long run remains to be seen. For one thing, the Internet is...
Tue, 8 Sep 09
Court Orders Google To Help Developer ID Critics
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68789
A resort developer has obtained a court order requiring Google Inc. to help uncover the identities of anonymous contributors to an online newspaper that posted articles linking him to government corruption in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
p
Developer Cem Kinay of Miami accuses TCI Journal of causing reputational damage and lost profits, according to a civil complaint filed in California. A court order tells Google to turn over data that may help identify users of the newspaper's account with Gmail, the Internet search company's e-email service.
p
Google said in a statement to The Associated Press it is obligated to comply with valid court orders, but generally notifies users to give them time to challenge an order, as it did in this case. Google has challenged court orders on its own in the past, notably refusing in 2006 to turn over records of millions of search queries to the U.S. Justice Department.
p
Shaun Malcolm, a contributor to TCI Journal, said Thursday that he and others involved with the newspaper hope to fight the court order.
p
He called Kinay's court action an attempt to intimidate government critics in the Turks and Caicos, a former British colony near the Bahamas that was put under direct rule by London on Aug. 14 because of alleged corruption. A British-appointed panel reported it found credible allegations that officials, including former Premier Michael Misick, misused public money and profited from the sale of government-owned land.
p
Kinay's complaint, filed Aug. 19, alleges unidentified contributors intentionally and maliciously published defamatory statements about the developer and his companies. Allegations included that they engaged in bribery and corruption; tried to bribe the Journal; made secret payments to obtain citizenship; and engaged in efforts to limit free speech.
p
No specific damages are sought, but the plaintiffs checked a box indicating potential damages exceed $25,000, the highest option on...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Sony Ericsson Has Shifted To Windows Mobile
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68806
Despite Nokia World grabbing the lion's share of the wireless industry news this week, Sony Ericsson stole some of the spotlight with its Xperia X2, a new Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphone that focuses on 24/7 multimedia communications. A Windows device marks a shift in strategy for Sony Ericsson.
The X2 lets users synchronize their mail and calendar and open and edit Microsoft Office Mobile documents. It also offers a SlideView feature that gives users a quick overview of missed calls, e-mails and text messages so they don't miss an important contact. The Xperia X2 has QWERTY messaging.
"In the fast-moving world we live in, the need to stay connected has never been so important," said Sumit Malhotra, marketing business manager at Sony Ericsson. "We constantly rely on our mobile phones as an extension to the office, and the Xperia X2, debuting with Windows Mobile 6.5, allows users to work quickly and efficiently while on the move."
The communications-centric Xperia X2 hosts Skype, Mytopia, Google, games, CNN, Windows Live, and lots of other application panels to help users stay up to date on their interests. The phone's touch interface has been improved and a new 3D signature panel makes way for categorization of business, fun and communications functions.
"Windows phones allow people to manage their whole world -- from work to home to play -- on a single handset," said Stephanie Ferguson, general manager of product management for Microsoft. "The Xperia X2 taps the powerful messaging and multimedia capabilities in Windows Mobile so customers can be in touch, productive and entertained wherever they are."
Although the X2 focuses on communications, there are plenty of entertainment features, including an 8.1-megapixel camera with instant upload to Facebook. The phone also offers the ability to play music, shoot videos, or play games.
This...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
As MMS Nears, Analyst Says AT&T Gripes Are Justified
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68805
After months or preparing its system and network, AT&T is finally rolling out Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) for iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS customers. The long-overdue service will debut on Sept. 25. AT&T said MMS will be delivered via a software update.
"We know that iPhone users will embrace MMS. The unique capabilities and high usage of the iPhone's multimedia capabilities required us to work on our network MMS architecture to carry the expected record volumes of MMS traffic and ensure an excellent experience from day one," AT&T said. "We appreciate your patience as we work toward that end."
After announcing this milestone, AT&T turned its efforts toward heading off more complaints about its iPhone network service.
As AT&T put it, the company is "riding the leading edge" of smartphone growth. The result is an explosion of traffic over AT&T's network. AT&T said wireless use on its network has grown an average of 350 percent year-over-year for the past two years, and is projected to continue at a rapid pace this year and beyond.
"The volume of smartphone data traffic the AT&T network is handling is unmatched in the wireless industry," the company said. "We want you to know that we're working relentlessly to innovate and invest in our network to anticipate this growth in usage and to stay ahead of the anticipated growth in data demand, new devices, and applications for years to come."
As Michael Disabato, a vice president at the Burton Group, sees it, AT&T's network wasn't ready for the iPhone -- and still isn't. His office in Chicago is less than half a mile from an AT&T antenna and his iPhone service spans from zero bars to five bars in the space of a second. He called AT&T's service in Chicago "the...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Google Urges Support for Proposed Books Settlement
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68804
In an effort to win public favor for a Google Books settlement, Google posted an official privacy policy and held a press conference with organizations that support the proposed settlement it reached with authors and publishers. But new opposition continues to stack up against the search giant.
Since last spring, Google has held discussions with a number of groups about its privacy practices for Google Books. Google has also offered some preliminary thoughts about what privacy protections the company wants to build into services authorized by the settlement.
While Google Books has always been covered by the general privacy policy for all Google services, Google understands that privacy in reading records is especially important to readers and libraries, according to Jane Horvath, global privacy counsel for Google.
Horvath said Google knows users want to understand how its privacy practices apply to Google Books today and what will happen after the settlement. Google has offered a FAQ that highlights key provisions in the main Google privacy policy for the Google Books service, as well as privacy practices specific to Google Books.
"As we noted in our letter to the FTC, because the settlement agreement has not yet been approved by the court, and the services authorized by the agreement have not been built or even designed yet, it's not possible to draft a final privacy policy that covers details of the settlement's anticipated services and features," Horvath said.
"Our privacy policies are usually based on detailed review of a final product -- and on weeks, months or years of careful work engineering the product itself to protect privacy," she said. "In this case, we've planned in advance for the protections that will later be built, and we've described some of those in the Google Books policy."
But the fight isn't...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Court Allows Microsoft To Sell Word During Appeal
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68798
The U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C., has ruled in favor of Microsoft -- for now. The court granted a stay against a landmark injunction by Toronto, Canada-based i4i, which told the court Microsoft infringed on its patents by using custom extensible markup language (XML) in both Word 2003 and Word 2007.
The ruling comes after the software giant filed an emergency motion on Aug. 19 asking the court to stay a ruling by Judge Leonard Davis of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, who ruled that Microsoft infringed on i4i's patent. Davis fined Microsoft $280 million and granted an injunction that would have stopped Microsoft from selling Word 2003 and Word 2007 in their current form after Oct. 10.
Microsoft's motion said taking Word off store shelves and away from partners and customers would cause irreparable harm. The appeals-court ruling will allow Word sales to continue while the case is appealed.
"We are happy with the result and look forward to presenting our arguments on the main issues on Sept. 23," said Kevin Kutz, a Microsoft spokesperson.
i4i Chairman Loudon Owen said his company will file its responding brief with the court on Sept. 8.
Microsoft has said it might have to stop distributing both Word and Office in the U.S. until it could redesign both products, but Owen wasn't buying it.
"Microsoft's scare tactics about the consequences of the injunction cannot shield it from the imminent review of the case by the federal circuit court of appeals on the Sept. 23 appeal," Owen said. "i4i is confident that the final judgment in favor of i4i, which included a finding of willful patent infringement by Microsoft and an injunction against Microsoft Word, was the correct decision and that i4i will prevail on the appeal."
"To...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
E-Reader Prices Need To Drop To Reach Mass Market
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68797
According to a survey released Wednesday, e-readers will not become true mass-market devices until pricing falls steeply from the $199 to $489 range of today's products. And even then, e-readers aren't expected to become as big a market as MP3 players, which 110 million U.S. consumers now own, said Forrester Research analyst Sarah Rotman Epps.
"The price points for how most consumers value e-readers is shockingly low -- for most segments, between $50 and $99," Rotman Epps said. "To reach the largest market possible, the prices will need to come way down."
The biggest obstacle to hitting the $50 to $99 e-reader sweet spot is the cost of the devices' specialized E Ink screens, currently about $60. However, device makers can be expected to "look for alternative providers of displays if E Ink can't bring its prices down fast enough," Rotman Epps said.
On a more positive note, wireless operators are increasingly willing to subsidize devices other than phones to increase data traffic. In Europe, service providers are already heavily subsidizing netbooks, noted Gartner Research Director Carolina Milanesi.
"Vodafone Italy offers a free notebook for a two-year contract at 39 euros a month," Milanesi said. "The same broadband contract without the device would be 30 euros."
Though no network operators in Europe or elsewhere are offering e-readers now, Milanesi believes they are potentially capable of driving competition among manufacturers. "This means that there will be less subsidy available to drive sales of mobile phones and smartphones," she said. Still, one way for handset and PC makers to fight back is to offer E Ink screen accessories for smartphones and other portable computing devices, Rotman Epps said.
Newspapers represent a potential avenue for e-readers to become subsidized. Plastic Logic has already inked a strategic partnership with the Detroit Free Press and The...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Toshiba Shows Prototype for JournE Tablet Computer
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68796
Toshiba may beat Apple to the tablet-computer market with its JournE tablet for Internet access and multimedia. The company showed a prototype of the tablet this week at the IFA electronics fair in Berlin.
The brushed aluminum tablet weighs under two pounds and has a seven-inch touchscreen. The operating system is Windows CE 6.0 Pro (now called Windows Embedded Compact) with a Toshiba interface and Wi-Fi. The JournE uses an ARM chip and has 1GB of NAND Flash memory.
The tablet runs Internet Explorer 6 and Toshiba said it comes ready to access Picasa, YouTube, Flickr and instant messenges. It includes Windows Multimedia Player 9.0 for viewing pictures and videos and playing music.
A base station cradle with USB and HDMI outputs will be sold separately. The dock also charges the JournE and has a memory-card slot that can add up to 320GB of memory.
On bootup, the JournE shows three rows of shortcut icons, five to a row. Each icon provides access to an application or a service, including a Toshiba Store that will offer apps for the device. A keyboard appears on-screen as needed.
The tablet is expected to launch in Europe in the fourth quarter and roll out to other countries later. It is expected to sell for 249 euros (US$356.43), much less than the $500 to $700 range expected for Apple's tablet.
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Judge Extends Deadline To Debate Google Book Deal
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68788
The final assault on a class-action settlement that would expand Google Inc.'s already vast digital library has been delayed until next week.
U.S. District Judge Denny Chin extended the deadline until 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) Tuesday for protesting or supporting the landmark deal that revolves around Google converting millions of copyrighted books so they can be read on computers and other electronic devices.
Ironically, Chin moved the deadline from Friday -- a date set in April -- because the computers running his court's electronic filing system went down for maintenance Thursday and will remain unavailable through the Labor Day weekend. The U.S. celebrates the Labor Day holiday on Monday.
The 11th-hour change gives the settlement's growing number of opponents more time to hone their arguments against a proposal that would empower Google to make digital copies of millions of copyrighted books now gathering dust on library book shelves.
An alliance that includes two of Google's biggest rivals -- Microsoft Corp. and Yahoo Inc. -- is among the strident critics expected to spell out their objections in Tuesday morning's flurry of filings. Silicon Valley attorney Gary Reback, perhaps best known for helping the U.S. government shape an antitrust case against Microsoft a decade ago, is spearheading the attack on Google on behalf of the group, called the Open Book Alliance.
Microsoft and Yahoo also could lodge their own separate complaints against Google, just as Amazon.com Inc. did earlier this week.
Google's 10-month-old settlement with groups representing U.S. authors and publishers would allow the Internet's search leader to act as its partners' sales agent. The nonexclusive arrangement has raised fears that Google -- already the owner of the Internet's most powerful advertising network -- could emerge as the ringleader of a literary cartel that wields too much control over the prices of digital books.
Those worries prompted the...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Consumers To Spend Big on TVs, Smartphones
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68777
Even a global recession can't come between Americans and the high-tech gadgets they love. Consumers of all ages and family situations are purchasing high-definition TVs, network gear, and smartphones at a breakneck pace, according to a study released on Sept. 2.
Already, half of U.S. adults are gamers; almost three-quarters of American households have a broadband Internet connection; and nearly half of those households own an HDTV, with 10 million units sold in 2008, according to the report by Forrester [FORR]. Over the next five years, nearly 39 million additional U.S. households are expected to be in the market for their first high-definition set, and more than 30 million homes will add network connectivity, Forrester says, based on mail-in surveys from nearly 48,000 U.S. and Canadian households.
The findings underscore North America's unwavering fascination with all things tech despite the tightening credit standards and job losses associated with the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Expectations for ongoing demand for consumer electronics bode well for a wide swath of tech companies specializing in TVs, smartphones, and other gear.
The report also augurs healthy holiday sales for retailers such as Best Buy and Wal-Mart, and suggests that broadband service providers will benefit as families seek faster connections to the Internet. That could help carriers such as Time Warner Cable, Verizon Communications, Comcast, and AT&T, which are locked in a race to provide the fastest broadband connections across home and mobile devices. Cisco Systems, Netgear, and other sellers of networking gear also stand to benefit.
While Forrester found differences in buying and consumption patterns among traditional demographic lines, researcher Charles Golvin said the unifying factor over time will be increasing reliance on the Internet for entertainment, business, and social interaction. "In the next several years consumers will increasingly rely on a ubiquitous...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Tech: When Options Cost More Than Research
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68776
If you want to spur innovation, is it better to lavish stock-based compensation on employees or boost spending on research and development? The question is posed implicitly by a recent study that compared R&D spending with stock options and restricted stock awarded to employees of tech companies. The surprising finding: Quite a few companies, including Apple and eBay, gave out more in stock pay in 2008 than they spent on research.
The comparison is aimed at helping investors decide whether companies are striking the right balance between employee pay and other obligations and expenses, says the report's author, Jack T. Ciesielski, founder of Baltimore investment and research firm R.G. Associates. "It makes sense for investors to relate [stock compensation] to other uses for these same dollars," he says. Among the other things companies could have done with their stock or the proceeds of a public stock sale: pay down debt, increase capital expenditure, strengthen the pension fund, or just shore up the balance sheet.
For technology companies, R&D can serve as lifeblood -- the route to higher-margin, breakout products. But U.S. companies spend less on it than they used to and now rank fifth among 40 nations in a report issued earlier this year by the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation [ITIF], a Washington-based think tank. Apple and eBay were among six companies in the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index that spent more on stock gifts last year than on research, Ciesielski found.
At a time of intense public debate over the size of CEO pay, the findings may rankle some who believe U.S. corporations are paying executives too much and innovating too little. At the same time, many in the technology industry consider compensation that is tied to the future performance of a stock an effective way to induce employees to hatch...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
YouTube Explores Renting Movies Online
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68775
The video-sharing site YouTube is hoping its attempt to woo Hollywood studios will go better this time.
Sources close to the discussions with studios say that YouTube executives have raised the notion of a service that would charge $3.95 to rent a movie, the same rate Apple's iTunes Store charges for new movie rentals and similar to video-on-demand prices. If reached, the deal would put Google's YouTube in direct competition not just with Apple but also with online movie rental services from Netflix and Amazon.com. It would also, for the first time, allow YouTube to begin charging consumers for its content. However, the sources said talks are at a very early stage, could take three months or more to come to fruition, and that details are far from set in stone.
YouTube is by far the most popular video site, though much of the material is either clips or snippets provided by studios and other companies for marketing purposes, or videos contributed by amateurs. YouTube's traffic, however, represents a huge audience ready for movies and other professionally produced video -- Google sites, chiefly YouTube, drew nearly 121 million viewers in July, according to ComScore.
For the past year or so, Google has pressed to come up with ways to make money on YouTube, which is believed to be losing money, though how much remains a matter of great debate. It has come out with a series of new ad formats. But so far, even Google CEO Eric Schmidt has conceded that the site hasn't lived up to its revenue hopes. Schmidt said in April that YouTube would try micropayments and other subscription models.
YouTube's Hollywood efforts apparently began with talks involving Warner Bros., which led to an agreement to allow more clips from TV shows Warner produces, such as Gossip Girl...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Facebook Scam Leads Woman To Wire $4K Abroad
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68770
A Missouri woman was tricked into wiring about $4,000 to someone in England after receiving faked messages from a friend on Facebook asking for help, police said Wednesday.
Jayne Scherrman of Cape Girardeau wired the money through Western Union after receiving what she believed were several requests for help from her friend, Sgt. Jason Selzer said.
Police were notified about the scam on Aug. 26, Selzer said. They believe someone took over the Facebook account of a Cape Girardeau County resident, Grace Parry, changed the password so she couldn't access it and sent out messages saying she and her husband had been detained in London and needed money.
Scherrman received several requests for help Aug. 25 and 26, and was also called by a man with a British accent who pretended to be an immigration official, Selzer said.
"He said the woman (Parry) and her husband were being detained and that more money was needed to fly them home," Selzer said. "She sent three different wire transfers to London."
Parry said the experience has been painful.
"I not only felt angry, but violated," she told the Southeast Missourian newspaper. She worried that whoever hacked into her computer might also come to her door.
Parry, who hadn't traveled to England, tried to access her account to warn other friends but couldn't. She suspended the account, and her husband posted warnings about the scam.
Parry and Scherrman did not immediately return phone messages seeking comment Wednesday from The Associated Press.
Selzer said it's unlikely the woman who was scammed will get her money back.
He said people should remember to change their passwords often and to be careful about posting personal information.
Palo Alto, California-based Facebook said Internet schemes like this one aren't uncommon. Facebook has systems to detect suspicious behavior tied to compromised accounts and blocks it when it possible, company spokesman...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
Every Baltimore Patrol Officer To Get a BlackBerry
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68768
Baltimore's police department will become one of the first agencies in the nation to issue every patrol officer a BlackBerry that allows for instant warrant checks, city officials said Wednesday.
The city's Board of Estimates approved using $5.3 million in federal stimulus money for the police department, including $3.5 million to buy 2,000 of the BlackBerries, known as "Pocket Cops."
The devices allow officers to run warrants, check vehicle registrations, and pull up criminal histories and suspect photos. Officers who use them can be more efficient and spend more time outside of their cars, Police Commissioner Frederick H. Bealefeld III said.
"In the last 15 years in domestic law enforcement, we've trained cops around their vehicle. We've made their vehicle their mobile office. Except that now, they don't leave the office," Bealefeld said. "This Pocket Cop will help move them away from that car and break that tether."
Bealefeld has urged his officers to repair relationships with residents of the city's poorest and most dangerous neighborhoods, who are often reluctant to cooperate with police. Baltimore has an entrenched illegal drug trade and remains one of the nation's most violent big cities despite a 20-year low in homicides last year.
The department has been using more than 100 of the devices in a pilot program in the city's western district and in specialized units. The 2,000 additional devices should be enough to equip every regular patrol officer with one, police said. There are more than 3,000 officers in the department.
Early reviews for the devices have been positive. Officers using Pocket Cops made twice as many arrests over a 3-month period than those equipped with radios or laptops, according to statistics provided by the department. They also hauled in more offenders on outstanding warrants.
The ability to pull up photos of wanted individuals has been particularly useful, said...
Sat, 5 Sep 09
EU Probes Oracle-Sun Deal, Cites Open-Source Issue
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68764
European Union regulators Thursday launched an antitrust probe into U.S. software maker Oracle Corp.'s takeover of Sun Microsystems Inc., saying they wanted to make sure Oracle wouldn't hinder Sun's rival open-source database software.
EU approval is the main stumbling block for the $7.4 billion deal, which Oracle had hoped to close this summer and has already been cleared in the U.S. by the Department of Justice.
The European Commission now has until Jan. 19 before it makes a final decision to clear the deal or block it. In some cases, such as with Intel Corp., the EU has been a stricter antitrust regulator than the U.S., and often presses companies to make changes that eliminate antitrust worries, such as selling off parts of their business.
EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said regulators needed to examine whether customers could have less choice or see higher prices "when the world's biggest proprietary database company proposes to take over the world's leading open-source database company."
Sun bought open-source database provider MySQL last year for $1 billion as a way to find more customers for its computer hardware. Because MySQL (pronounced "my sequel") is open-source, its underlying coding is given away for free, and Sun doesn't sell the software itself. In contrast, Oracle is a leading vendor of database software that gets sold to businesses.
Database software forms the underpinnings of most things people do in business or on the Web. It helps companies manage and retrieve data they've stored, such as payroll or sales information. Typing in a search term, for example, forces a Web site to scour a database and spit out an answer.
The EU officials claim that MySQL, already popular among Web-based companies, will increasingly threaten Oracle's database software as it adds features and attracts more customers. The regulators questioned "Oracle's incentive to further develop MySQL...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Snow Leopard 'Bricks' Some Macs with 'Ball of Death'
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68784
Apple has angered thousands of Mac users with the release of Snow Leopard Mac OS X 10.6 because the new operating system has caused some computers to fail. After a startup failure, users are greeted with a continuous icon described as the "spinning ball of death."
In most cases, a spinning color wheel or beach ball indicates that a system is engaged in a processor-intensive activity. The ball usually disappears after a few seconds. However, when the ball spins for a much longer period, as users of Snow Leopard have reported, it is referred to as the "spinning beach ball of death."
Apple touted the Snow Leopard upgrade as refined. And Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster predicted Apple would sell five million copies of Mac OS X 10.6 through the end of this quarter. The OS was touted as having faster startup and shutdown times, higher resolution for iChat, and a more powerful Safari 4 browser.
But for some it has been nothing but a slow crawl after installing the upgrade.
Users are flooding forums complaining of a major glitch in the OS that was supposed to be -- according to Apple -- "better, faster, easier."
Apple support forum poster Ravenx2012 said: "So many on so many different Macs seem to be getting the spinning wheel of death from snow leopard. How can so many people have their Macs bricked by this paid-for service pack?"
The upgrade bricked James Sheppard's iMac 24, according to his post on the support page.
"I also have a MacBook Pro, installed Snow Leopard, and now have a totally non-functioning machine -- just a spinning wheel and then black screen," posted Jer78. "It won't stay on or 'lit' long enough to try any remedies. The Apple phone tech told me as much after an hour of...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Industry Wants FCC To Set Broadband Speeds Low
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68783
In response to the Federal Communications Commission's request last month for comments about a definition of the term "broadband," key industry players have advised the FCC to tread carefully. The National Cable and Telecommunications Association, for example, is cautioning against incorporating substantive requirements regarding speed, price or openness.
"The commission should not use the process of defining 'broadband' as a vehicle for imposing substantive obligations on providers of broadband services," said NCTA General Counsel Neal Goldberg. "Rather, as Congress did in defining terms like 'cable service,' 'telecommunications service,' and 'information service,' the commission should adopt a more generic definition that focuses on the core functionality."
Congress has defined broadband as any technology with the capacity to transmit data to enable a subscriber to originate and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics and video. The FCC wants to redefine the term with a higher degree of precision in order to complete its recommendations to Congress on the implementation of a national broadband plan, said Carlos Kirjner, a senior FCC adviser.
"If we want to decide who has and who does not have broadband, we actually need to agree on what we mean by broadband," Kirjner said.
The FCC has noted that the advertised throughput rates of service providers generally differ from actual rates, are not uniformly measured, and place different constraints over different technologies. The FCC hopes to specify the general form, characteristics and performance that broadband should include.
"To ensure that consumers have a clear and accurate view of what they are getting for their money, we need to decide what the important metrics are and how to measure them," Kirjner said.
However, the NCTA and Comcast disagree, saying there is no effective way to control all these factors in every instance.
"The 'provisioned' speed is still the most useful metric in evaluating whether any...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Mitsubishi HDTVs Will Have VUDU Service Built In
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68782
The number of HDTV sets with an Internet-based movie service increased Thursday with Mitsubishi's announcement that two of its new TVs will feature the VUDU service. The announcement follows a series of similar moves from other TV manufacturers and online video services.
The models are the Unisen Diamond LT-46249 and LT-52249, both 1080p flat-panel HDTVs with a 16-speaker sound system and Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 surround sound. Both come with an Ethernet port for high-speed Internet.
The VUDU service is part of the circuitry and software, and Mitsubishi is including a two-month subscription to the service. VUDU has more than 2,200 HD movies in a library of about 16,000 titles, and will also offer access to YouTube, Flickr, Picasa, Pandora and more than 80 channels of on-demand TV.
Mitsubishi's announcement comes as VUDU has been redefining itself, with a strategic announcement in July focusing on its second-generation platform that is "optimized for Internet-capable smart TVs."
The first participating consumer electronics company was LG, which embedded the VUDU BX100 set-top box into its Netcast models. The platform includes instant fast forward and rewind, instant start, and a redefined user interface.
The emphasis on platform is redirecting VUDU's efforts toward offering its embedded service through consumer devices, rather than its stand-alone set-top boxes, to get the company back on a solid path. In January, the company laid off 15 percent of its staff on top of a 15 percent reduction last fall.
In May, VUDU said its BX100 functionality would be added to Entone set-top boxes and VCRs via a software upgrade. The Entone box is used by smaller video providers, such as regional phone companies.
Netflix has also announced that its online service will be added to TVs from such manufacturers as Sony, and Samsung has a similar deal with Blockbuster.
Ross Rubin, director...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Red Hat Rolls Out Enterprise Linux 5.4 at Summit
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68781
Red Hat rolled out its Enterprise Linux 5.4 platform, the foundation of its enterprise virtualization portfolio, at the Red Hat Summit this week. Red Hat is calling it the next generation of virtualization technology, and analysts are calling it an opportunity to surpass the Windows-vs-Linux story with stronger value.
Scott Crenshaw, vice president of Red Hat's Platform Business Unit, said Red Hat Enterprise Linux plays a significant role in the company's virtualization strategy. The latest release offers virtualization enhancements that aim to drive I/O throughput improvements, network advances, and hardware platform optimization.
"The release also features advances in performance, security and storage that span virtual and physical environments," Crenshaw said. "With this update release, Red Hat Enterprise Linux aims to raise the bar once again, offering compelling software technologies with impressive quality and reliability."
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.4 is heavily focused on hardware platform enhancements that focus on performance and scalability. At the processor chipset level, the latest iteration includes optimizations for Intel Xeon Processor 5500 Series platforms and AMD Istanbul platforms.
Network advancements include Generic Receive Offload (GRO) to leverage new processing components in advanced network adapters by off-loading portions of the receive stack. Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) performance enhancements and hardware support are also included in the latest release, along with device-driver enhancements ranging from disk, network and graphics to OFED InfiniBand drivers.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.4 focuses on the needs of application developers and system administrators. The Systemtap performance monitoring toolset, for example, offers support for profiling and monitoring C++ applications and includes static kernel tracepoints to simplify performance observation for the highest-profile kernel subsystems.
According to Dana Gardner, principal analyst at Interarbor Solutions, there's more to this story than Windows vs Linux. The uncertainly around the Oracle-Sun tie-up, the...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Sprint Will Bring Android-Based HTC Hero To U.S.
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68779
Sprint Nextel on Thursday said it will be the first U.S. carrier to offer the HTC Hero, its first Google Android-based phone, complete with built-in Google mobile services. The Hero will roll out on Oct. 11 at Sprint's retail channels and at Best Buy stores. With a two-year wireless service agreement, the smartphone will cost $179.99 with $150 in carrier subsidies.
Kevin Packingham, senior vice president of product development for Sprint, called the arrival of the Hero and the Android platform on Sprint's network an important milestone.
Indeed, Packingham made a bold claim that is sure to draw fire from AT&T and Verizon Wireless: "With the dependability and coverage of Sprint's 3G network, HTC Hero users will appreciate a much better experience than is possible now with any other Android phone operating in the United States."
But Mike Disabato, a senior analyst at the Burton Group, has a different view. "The Sprint network is probably not up to par with what Verizon has or AT&T has," he said, "but the HTC Hero should perform all right on the Sprint network."
Arguments about networks aside, the HTC Hero will give Sprint something other U.S. carriers don't have yet. The Hero features HTC Sense, which lets users customize the phone.
Users can populate their home screen with the widgets they choose and create and switch between what HTC calls "scenes" to reflect different aspects of their lives. For example, a work scene could include stock updates, work e-mail, and a calendar. A play scene could have music, weather and a Twitter feed. A travel scene could offer instant access to local time, weather and maps.
"HTC Sense on HTC Hero revolves around three basic principles: Make it mine, stay close, and discover the unexpected," said Jason Mackenzie, vice president of HTC America. "These principles...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Gear Retailer Makes User-Generated Content Pay
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68747
When sports gear retailer Backcountry.com launched an expanded online community in 2008, the founders considered it a marketing experiment. But a year later, interacting with 85,000 outdoor "fanatics" has transformed the mission of his 650-employee company, says President John Bresee. The open community takes Backcountry.com's content beyond just "what we say" and makes it all about "what they say," says Bresee, who founded the Park City [Utah] company with CEO Jim Holland in 1996. He spoke recently to Smart Answers columnist Karen E. Klein; edited excerpts of their conversation follow.
You and your partner founded Backcountry.com 13 years ago. Did it start out online?
Yes. We have a store in Salt Lake City, near our warehouse, because we have to have a physical location to satisfy our vendor agreements. But that's not what we're skilled at.
I'm a road and mountain biker and a skier, and Jim is a fanatical mountaineer and telemark skier. We began with the initial Web site because having fantastic outdoor experiences is our passion. We now have 10 specialty outdoor stores, all online, that focus on high-end camping, climbing, skiing, ice-climbing, and action sports like surfing and snowboarding. In June 2007 Jim and I sold a controlling interest in the company to Liberty Media Corp., but we still own part of the company and we're still running things.
Your Web site already encouraged customer reviews on the products you sell. How and why did you expand customer-generated content last year?
We started the reviews in 2001, and they've been very powerful. But our goal was to create perfect product content, and we realized the only way to get that was to turn over as much of the content as we could to our community of users. People are so careful with their gear dollar now, because they have to make...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Twitter, Texting Could Help Families in Disasters
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68746
Text messaging, Twitter and social networking Web sites could help families stay in touch in the wake of a disaster, a national safety group said Tuesday.
The Safe America Foundation announced a campaign to train families about alternate ways of staying in touch if traditional communication methods are not working. The Atlanta-based group is working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency on this "Drill Down for Safety" program to make people more aware of communication options during an emergency.
"In an emergency traditional phone lines may be down and traditional methods of communication may not be working," said spokeswoman Carla Shaw. "We want people to rehearse what would you do, and what other forms of communication would you have at your disposal."
She said drill participants should pre-load emergency messages onto their cell phones and pre-load useful communication Web sites, making these tools accessible in an emergency. Families should also discuss how they plan to use these tools and let each other know what types of signals to look for during a disaster, she added.
The organization's Web site offers a tutorial in emergency text messaging and may offer more tools in the future, according to Shaw.
More than 200,000 people are expected to participate in drills of alternative emergency communication tools starting on Sept. 11 and lasting through mid-October.
Some participants are individuals who pledged to practice disaster communication on Safe America's Web site. Others are employees of companies such as UPS, Motorola and Office Depot that plan to hold safety drills and training sessions.
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Study Finds Web No Equalizer for Civic Engagement
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68745
Unlike some people have hoped, the Internet hasn't led to big changes in the socio-economic makeup of Americans engaged in civic activities, a new study from the Pew Internet and American Life Project finds.
As in offline politics, people who participate in online civic life -- by contacting government officials, making political or charitable donations or signing petitions, for example -- tend to be richer and better educated.
According to the study released Tuesday, 35 percent of U.S. adults making at least $100,000 participated in two or more online political activities in the previous 12 months, compared with just 8 percent of people making less than $20,000. That's a gap of 27 percentage points -- the same gap seen for offline political activities.
There are signs that social media sites like Twitter and Facebook are driving civic engagement among younger people. On social networks, income and education levels seem to be less correlated with whether someone engages in civic activism.
Of course, that could result from the fact that younger people who are heavily engaged with such social media sites have yet to reach their full earning and education potential, so they appear poorer and less educated -- and falsely make it seem as if the sites are diversifying the makeup of people who are active in civic endeavors.
But researchers behind the study expressed hope that social media could serve as an equalizer.
Social-networking sites make it easier for people to get together and to express themselves, said Kay Lehman Schlozman, a political science professor at Boston College.
"This could evolve in a way that makes it easier to get involved," she said.
The survey of 2,251 adults, including 1,655 Internet users, was conducted Aug. 12-31, 2008, and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points.
Some of the percentages on participation may...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Deal Helps Disabled Dispute Credit Card Charges
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68743
A national credit card company has agreed to do a better job serving customers who are blind or deaf after it told a vision-impaired New Yorker she had to complete a written form to dispute a charge.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo announced the agreement Tuesday with HSBC Card Services Inc. The company will make several changes in customer service and on its Web site to help customers with vision or hearing loss or other disabilities challenge charges on their accounts. The company has millions of customers nationwide, but there was no figure on how many are disabled. Cuomo's investigation into the issue throughout the industry continues.
Barbara Ruel of East Aurora, 71, who is confined to her suburban Buffalo home because of a sensitivity to chemicals as well as vision and hearing impairments, remembers the sense of outrage that drove her to launch the case.
She had used her credit card to buy a household item costing a couple of hundred dollars, but it never arrived. So she contacted HSBC, asking its customer service staff to fill in the required form with her answers. She was told they didn't do that. She says two of the workers said they hadn't even heard of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires that sort of accommodation.
"I was so angry, and I just decided this has got to change," she said in an interview. "It took me almost three months of several phone calls a day, Monday through Friday, every single week, to get the charge taken off my account."
"It's very satisfying," she said of the agreement. "There are so many people that are disabled, sick, elderly or all three that do not have the physical ability to fight back and they end up paying for charges they didn't owe money on."
Cuomo said that...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Hoax Video of Michael Jackson Creates Online Stir
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68742
A hoax video purportedly showing Michael Jackson emerging from a coroner's van was an experiment aimed at showing how quickly misinformation and conspiracy theories can race across the Internet, German broadcaster RTL said Tuesday.
The video was posted by RTL on YouTube for a single day a week ago and received 880,000 hits. The broadcaster has since removed the video from YouTube, but it has been picked up by other Web sites around the world.
"We wanted to show how easily users can be manipulated on the Internet with hoax videos," spokeswoman Heike Schultz of Cologne-based RTL told The Associated Press. "Therefore, we created this video of Michael Jackson being alive, even though everybody knows by now that he is dead -- and the response was breathtaking."
Jackson died June 25 in Los Angeles.
The video -- posted under an "anonymous source" -- shows a coroner's van entering what seems like a parking garage and the King of Pop getting out of the back with another person. The lighting is bad, the sound muffled and the footage appears amateurish.
"Unfortunately, many people believed it was true," Schultz said. "Even though we tried to create the video in a way that every normal user can see right away that it is a fake."
She said the video was shot near Cologne -- "definitely not in the U.S." The van in the video had the word "CORONER" printed in English, suggesting it had been recorded in America.
RTL admitted to the hoax in an Aug. 26 report on its daily news show Explosiv.
Hoaxes and rumors commonly spread like wildfire on the Internet. Videos of flying saucers and impossible stunts routinely are among the most-viewed on video-sharing sites, though purported evidence of the deceased being alive is less common than false rumors of someone's death.
The rise of Twitter and its...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Twitter Opens a Door To Iowa Operating Room
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68739
From anesthesia to the recovery room, 70-year-old Monna Cleary's children followed her surgery -- 140 characters or less at a time.
Twitter is opening doors to the sterile confines of operating rooms, paving the way for families -- and anyone else for that matter -- to follow a patient's progress as they go under the knife.
Most of the Cleary family chose to track the developments from a laptop computer in the hospital's waiting room. But one daughter-in-law kept tabs from work.
"It's real time information instead of sitting and not knowing in the waiting room," said Cleary's son Joe, hours after his mother's surgery Monday at St. Luke's Hospital in Cedar Rapids.
"It made the time go by," said Cleary, who was joined by a brother, two sisters and a sister-in-law at the hospital. "We all feel it was a positive experience."
His mother, who underwent a hysterectomy and uterine prolapse surgery, had given her OK for hospital spokeswoman Sarah Corizzo to post a play-by-play of the operation on Twitter, a social-networking site that lets users send out snippets of information up to 140 characters long using cell phones or computers.
Corizzo sent more than 300 tweets over more than three hours from a computer just outside the operating room's sterile field. Nearly 700 people followed them. Eight tweeted questions to Corizzo about the procedure and a Cleary family member commented on how fascinating it was to follow the surgery.
The primary goal of the Twitter posts was education, Corizzo said, but it had the added benefit of keeping the family informed during surgery. It also helps to raise the profile of the hospital.
The idea to follow the surgery on Twitter at St. Luke's evolved after a similar surgery was Webcast several months ago.
"A lot of people would like to go into the operating room and...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Sun's Server Share Hit As Antitrust Scrutiny Looms
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68737
Uncertainty about Sun Microsystems Inc.'s future appears to have contributed to serious erosion in the company's market share for computer servers in the latest quarter, according to new data being released Wednesday.
The latest numbers from market-research firm IDC show that Sun's market share in servers stood at 10 percent in the second quarter, down more than a full percentage point from the same period last year.
Sun is the world's No. 4 maker of computer servers, which power Web sites and corporate back offices. Rivals have siphoned off business by stoking fears about the future of Sun's product lines under Oracle Corp., which has agreed to buy Sun for $7.4 billion but has been prevented from completing the deal because of antitrust scrutiny in Europe.
Rivals IBM Corp. and Dell Inc. gained market share in the latest quarter, to 34.5 percent and 12.4 percent, respectively. Hewlett-Packard Co.'s market share dipped slightly to 28.5 percent.
It was the toughest quarter for the server industry in 13 years, according to IDC. Many companies are still clamping down on spending on new servers and other computer hardware because of the recession.
But Sun faces an added challenge: Oracle's planned acquisition could see further probing and more delays. The European Commission has until Thursday to approve the transaction or launch a more detailed investigation. The deal has already been approved in the U.S. by the Justice Department.
Any further antitrust review of the Oracle deal would likely include a closer look at Sun's MySQL database, an open-source product that is popular among Web-based companies and competes against Oracle's market-leading database software.
Sun and Oracle declined to comment.
Daniel Harrington, an IDC analyst, said Sun was hurt in part because demand for specialized servers that aren't based on the widely used x86 microprocessors were hit badly in the latest quarter. Pressure from...
Fri, 4 Sep 09
Graphic British Safety Video Is an Internet Hit
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68736
A graphic British public service announcement about the dangers of sending text messages while driving has become an Internet hit and sparked debate around the world.
The Gwent police force in Wales said Wednesday that an excerpt from a video it made for use in schools has been viewed more than 6 million times on YouTube and other Web sites since it was posted last month.
The 30-minute film shows a bubbly teenager named Cassie -- "a nice girl from a nice Gwent Valleys family" -- who triggers a pileup that kills four people when she tries to send a text message while driving. The graphic, slow-motion depiction of the crash shows heads going through windshields, bloodied bodies and the lifeless eyes of a baby.
Talking on a hand-held mobile phone and texting while driving are both illegal in Britain.
"The film is hitting home because it has a hard edge and it taps into something that lots of people do but know they shouldn't," said the film's director, Peter Watkins-Hughes.
The film has been discussed on television shows in the United States, where more than a dozen states have banned text messaging while driving and where legislation is before Congress that would force states to ban drivers from texting or e-mailing.
Recent studies suggest text messages may be more distracting to drivers than talking on the phone.
Research by British motorists' group the RAC Foundation found that texting slowed young drivers' reaction times by 35 percent, more than drugs or alcohol. A study of truck drivers released last month by the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute found that texting increased the risk of collision by 23 times -- significantly more than the increase from talking on a cell phone.
Gwent Chief Constable Mick Giannasi said the issues in the film "are as relevant to the people of Tennessee...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
Free Windows 7 Enterprise Trial Offered To IT Pros
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68760
Microsoft is making available a free Windows 7 Enterprise Trial version for IT professionals without access to the release to manufacturing version. The trial must be activated within 10 days of download from the Springboard area of TechNet, and is good for 90 days.
The version was announced Tuesday by Microsoft's Stephen Rose on the Springboard Series blog. The trial is meant to give IT professionals a way to test their applications, hardware and deployment strategies.
Rose said only a limited number of licenses are available, so the download is only accessible while licenses remain. After 90 days, the trial version will shut down every hour and IT departments will have to buy and do a clean installation of Windows 7, including drivers and applications. Rose noted that Windows 7 Enterprise will not be available through retail channels.
The trial download is available in English, Spanish, French, German and Japanese, and in 32-bit and 64-bit versions. Microsoft stressed that the enterprise trial is for IT pros, even though almost anyone can download it.
The free trial appears to be an effort to convince users of Windows XP and Vista to upgrade to Windows 7. Vista is generally regarded as a failure, with many enterprises sticking with Windows XP. As a further incentive, Microsoft earlier this year offered significant discounts for upgrades to Windows 7 Home Premium and Professional, and it said Tuesday that it will offer a discount for upgrades to Windows 7 Professional through Feb. 28.
Also on Tuesday, Microsoft and Intel executives told news media that the companies have worked together to improve PCs with Intel chips that will ship with Windows 7. The improvements include faster performance and better energy efficiency, and they showed a PC with an Intel processor that booted in just...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
Sony Ericsson Will Offer Windows-Based XPERIA X2
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68759
Sony Ericsson has announced its second enterprise smartphone. The London-based mobile-phone maker introduced Wednesday the XPERIA X2, a Windows Mobile 6.5-based smartphone equipped with a QWERTY keyboard, a high-resolution touchscreen, and an 8.2-megapixel camera.
No release date or pricing was announced for the X2, which will come in black and silver, but the company said it will be available in select markets in the fourth quarter.
"It's a smartphone, which gives it immediate credibility," said Ramon Llamas, an IDC analyst. "It has a pretty cool user interface, considering it is a touchscreen. You have to give Sony Ericsson and Windows (credit)."
The X2 has Web browsing, text messaging, and a video camera. "For a lot of smartphones, all of that should already be included and is a prerequisite, not a nice to have," Llamas said.
The device supports North American 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS. "It's cool, compelling, but I don't think the smartphone will be the end-all," Llamas said.
A feature that Sony Ericsson is touting is the X2's ability to plug into a television. However, analysts say it's not a feature that will woo customers.
"When was the last time you uploaded something to your TV from your mobile phone?" asked Llamas. Sony Ericsson hopes the feature will woo business customers who need to show a presentation on the fly.
Sony Ericsson also announced the Panel software developer kit on Wednesday to encourage developers to create content for the XPERIA X2. The interface includes 14 preloaded panels on the home screen offering business, fun and communication features, according to the company. Sixteen additional panels are available for download, including CNN, Google and Skype.
"Putting developers' applications directly in front of consumers is a crucial focus for us," said Christopher David, head of developer and partner engagement at Sony Ericsson....
Thu, 3 Sep 09
VMware View Leads Market as Virtual Desktop Grows
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VMware said its VMware View has become the world's leading desktop virtualization client for enterprise applications, with more than one million seats estimated across 7,000 customers. By moving from a device-centric to user-centric computing model, VMware said, IT departments can embrace diverse user requirements and still maintain strong security and compliance while lowering overall costs.
VMware View has been widely adopted in the financial services, health care, education, manufacturing and telecommunications industries, where organizations are benefiting from strong total cost of ownership (TCO) savings, said VMware Vice President Jocelyn Goldfein.
"The first wave of virtual desktop adoption came from customers driven to address security and compliance requirements, followed by a second wave focused on TCO," Goldfein said. "The next wave of adoption is being driven by the shift from device- to user-centric computing -- where users have freedom of access to their applications and data from any device and location and IT can deliver desktops as a managed service."
A virtual desktop means the traditional desktop environment is not installed on or coupled to the device the user is interacting with, said Forrester Research analyst Natalie Lambert.
"More generally, desktop virtualization is defined as a computing environment, consisting of an operating system, applications and associated data, that is abstracted from the user's PC," Lambert said. "After speaking to organizations looking at desktop and application virtualization, we know that client virtualization is not just an emerging trend, it's the future of the corporate PC."
Virtual desktop offerings come in two flavors. With local desktop virtualization, the desktop executes in a protected environment on the user's PC. By contrast, with hosted desktop virtualization the desktop environment executes in a protected environment on data-center servers, Lambert said.
"The virtual-machine bubble runs directly on a data-center server alongside other virtual-machine...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
New Nokia N97 Mini Comes with Tracking on Facebook
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68757
A new service to publish your location to Facebook is among the news from Nokia World in Stuttgart, Germany, along with a variety of new handsets. Lifecasting is the name of the service, which will automatically transmit your position and status updates to the popular social-networking site.
Lifecasting "goes beyond just publishing your status," Nokia said in a statement, adding that "it triggers new kinds of communication patterns," which could include not only sending updates but navigating to a friend's place. With your position known instantly, the friend can help guide you.
Brad Shimmin, an analyst with industry research firm Current Analysis, said he is "grateful" that vendors who are implementing location services like Lifecasting are "very aware of privacy concerns" because "the consequences of this sort of real-time detail on where someone is could be very dangerous."
The vendors, he said, allow the user to "take themselves off the grid." But he added that it remains to be seen how vendors deal with the threat of hacking users' locations.
In any case, Shimmin said, he sees Lifecasting and similar services as being very popular with teenagers and other demographics that are highly tuned into social networking.
Nokia's Lifecasting will first be available on its new N97 mini handset, which was also announced at the Stuttgart show. The company described the new device as a "companion" to its successful N97 model. The Lifecasting software, part of Nokia's Ovi service, will be featured on the mini and available in the fall as a free download for the N97.
The mini has a tilting 3.2-inch touch display, a QWERTY keyboard, and a customizable keyboard. It also features a new Ovi Maps application with easier searching and navigating, and there is access to "premium content" from Lonely Planet, Michelin and Wcities.
Current Analysis analyst Avi...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
Privacy Advocates Call for Behavioral Targeting Limits
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68734
A coalition of nine privacy organizations is calling for legislation to restrict the collection and use of behavioral targeting data. Letters were sent to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and two subcommittees from the Center for Digital Democracy, the Consumer Federation of America, Consumers Union, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Privacy Lives, the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, Privacy Times, the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, and the World Privacy Forum.
The letters read: "Tracking people's every move online is an invasion of privacy. It's like being followed by an invisible stalker -- individuals aren't aware that it's happening, who is tracking them, and how the information will be used. They're not asked for their consent and have no meaningful control over the collection and use of their information, often by third parties with which they have no relationships."
But the coalition has fierce opposition. The Progress & Freedom Foundation (PFF) is speaking out with some strong words. PFF Senior Fellow Berin Szoka called the coalition members anti-consumer elitists who not only presume consumers are too stupid or lazy to make their own decisions about privacy, but also ignore the benefits to consumers. He said those benefits include more relevant advertising plus more and better content.
"Advertising has been the 'mother's milk' of media in America since colonial times and the future of media depends on the ability of publishers to replicate that revenue model online," Szoka said. "Micropayments, donations, subscriptions alone simply can't fund a vibrant marketplace of ideas. Only personalized advertising can sustain publishers through the Digital Revolution."
As Szoka sees it, regulatory advocates haven't demonstrated any harm to consumers that would justify the sweeping preemptive regulation the coalition wants. Such regulations, he added, would strangle funding for new media and amount to an "industrial policy" for the Internet. Instead,...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
Cloud Opponents Are Likely To Cite Gmail Outage
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68733
Gmail went down on Tuesday, taking Twitter search down with it and prompting questions about the reliability of cloud-based services. The 100-minute, widespread outage left Gmail users in the communications dark.
Google apologized and offered a prompt explanation that sounds similar to the culprit for past Gmail outages. Google took some of its Gmail servers offline to perform routine upgrades. This isn't unusual, as Google typically reroutes the traffic to other servers.
The problem arose when Google slightly underestimated the load that some of its recent changes put on its request routers. Ironically, those changes were intended to make Gmail more reliable. The request routers were overloaded and caused a ripple effect through other request servers that brought the lot to a screeching halt.
Gmail was back online within two hours, but could the continued outages cause credibility problems for Google and its cloud-based apps? The answer lies in the frequency of the outages, according to Greg Sterling, principal analyst at Sterling Market Intelligence.
This isn't the first Gmail outage and it probably won't be the last, but since this one involved the popular micro-blogging service Twitter, it received more attention than past overloads. If Gmail continues to experience these types of issues, Sterling said, it could spell trouble for its web-based applications strategy.
"Although people are pretty invested in Gmail -- it's a very successful product that people rely on -- the outages have a negative halo effect on Google's apps cloud strategy," Sterling said. "Google is quite aware of the importance of keeping Gmail up and running because it implicates other areas where they are trying to get people to rely on their apps."
Well aware indeed. After apologizing and explaining the root cause of the Gmail outage, Ben Treynor, Google's vice president of engineering and the...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
Techland's Tentative Job Recovery
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68728
As recession forces many tech companies to cut jobs, pockets of the industry are adding workers en masse. Consider Platinum Solutions, a provider of software and IT services to the government. In the past 12 months, Platinum has boosted its workforce by more than half, to about 130 employees, after receiving large multiyear contracts from government agencies, including the Food & Drug Administration. As of mid-August, the company had more than 50 job openings. "We're recruiting heavily, we have four in-house recruiters working around the clock," says Platinum Solutions Chief Executive Officer Laila Rossi. And this is to meet demand for ongoing projects, she hastens to add -- not jobs borne out of one-time federal stimulus.
Amid the worst recession for tech jobs since the dot-com bubble burst, companies are eagerly adding workers in such fields as cloud computing, computer security, business analytics, and IT services for government and health-care providers. Even some companies hit hard by recession are slowly reopening their doors to new employees amid signs that the tech sector may rebound before other areas of the economy. "We're hiring people while we can before the economy swings back and the best tech employees will be hard to find," says Don Vaccaro, CEO of Ticket Software. Vaccarro says the 220-person company is bulking up now in anticipation of demand six months from now.
In fact, two-thirds of senior technology executives recently surveyed by audit, tax, and advisory firm KPMG said they thought their industry would fully recover from the current economic crisis ahead of the overall U.S. economy. That survey, released Aug. 19, found that while 68 percent of those executives said the downturn forced them to reduce staff during the past year, only 14 percent of respondents said they are planning further reductions in 2010. Nearly half expect industry...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
What To Look for in a New Notebook
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68721
There are plenty of reasons right now to be considering the purchase of a new notebook computer. You might be gearing up for going back to school, getting ready for the launch of Windows 7, downsizing your equipment, or just upgrading an old machine.
Whatever the reason, the timing is right, as there have never been more choices in notebooks than there are now.
The bad news about lots of choices, however, is that you have lots of decisions to make when you look at the models available. Here are some guidelines that will steer you in the right direction.
Thanks to netbooks, there are now more notebook sizes available than ever before. That means that it's very important to be clear about how you'll primarily use the notebook you want to buy. That's because, frankly, there's no one size of notebook computer that's perfect for everything.
A netbook will be great for maximum portability, but not very good at all for running demanding applications. A desktop replacement notebook will have the muscle to power through high-end graphics software and games, but lugging it around with you on extended trips will be more of a burden than a pleasure.
Even the 15-inch widescreen notebooks -- often cited as a good compromise between portability and power -- are really better suited to replacing a desktop computer for general office chores than they are for typing on the tray of a cramped airline seat.
Bottom line: if you want both power and portability, the line of notebooks with screens from 12 to 14 inches make the most sense today.
You can outfit these models with high-end processors, plenty of RAM, and fast hard drives, and you can still carry them around comfortably. Anything larger you should really only consider if you'll primarily be using the notebooks at home...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
World War 3.0: 10 Critical Trends for Cybersecurity
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68720
"Cybersecurity is the soft underbelly of this country," outgoing U.S. National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell declared in a valedictory address to reporters in mid-January. He rated this problem equal in significance to the potential development of atomic weapons by Iran.
McConnell does not worry so much that hackers or spies will steal classified information from computers owned by government or the military, or by contractors working for them on secret projects. He is afraid they will erase it and thereby deprive the United States of critical data. "It could have a debilitating effect on the country," he said.
With this concern in mind, Forecasting International undertook a study of factors likely to influence the future development of information warfare.
Real-world attacks over the Internet also are possible. In March 2007, the Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory conducted an experiment to determine whether a power plant could be compromised by hacking alone. The result was a diesel generator smoking and on fire due to some malicious data that could easily have been sent to it over the Internet from anywhere in the world. In January 2008, a CIA analyst told American utilities that hackers had infiltrated electric companies in several locations outside the United States. In at least one case, they had managed to shut off power to multiple cities.
We conclude that information warfare will be a significant component in most future conflicts. This position is in line with both U.S. military doctrine and white papers published by the Chinese People's Army. One study affirms that as many as 120 governments already are pursuing information warfare programs.
Repeated reports that Chinese computer specialists have hacked into government networks in Germany, the United States, and other countries show that the threat is not limited to relatively unsophisticated lands. A 2007 estimate suggested that hackers sponsored...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
Wal-Mart To Sell Goods From Other Vendors on Web
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68716
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has launched an addition to its online business that has outside retailers selling nearly 1 million new items through Walmart.com, a move that could help the world's largest retailer catch up in the online world.
The Walmart Marketplace has products from categories that include home, baby, toys, apparel, sporting goods and sports memorabilia. The company said it picked the retailers -- including eBags, CSN Stores and Pro Team -- because they have large product assortments and solid customer service track records.
Retail consultant Burt Flickinger III said Wal-mart can use online sales as an area for growth, especially considering how the company's stores have saturated much of the U.S. market. He said Wal-Mart can also draw online customers from the European continent and South Korea, where it no longer has stores.
"This gives Wal-Mart a chance to close the widening gap with Amazon.com and Apple," Flickinger said.
Apple has knocked off Wal-Mart as the top music seller, and Amazon has posted healthy sales gains of late, though its second-quarter earnings in July came in below expectations. In its second quarter, Wal-Mart posted its first drop in sales at stores open at least a year, indicating a need to find new growth areas.
"Online is one key growth frontier Wal-mart has yet to conquer," Flickinger said. Bringing in established companies is faster than the company developing such a massive addition itself, he said.
Flickinger said that with Mike Duke taking over this year as Wal-Mart Stores president and CEO, the company has moved other managers into place to build sales across Wal-Mart's divisions.
"Wal-Mart is fully focused on winning against every key competitor on land and online," Flickinger said.
On the Web site, payment for products ordered from the partner companies is handled by Walmart.com. The partner retailer will handle shipping and customer service. Wal-Mart says...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
Judge Finalizes Dismissal of Web Hoax Charges
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68713
A judge has finalized his decision to throw out convictions of a Missouri mother for her role in an Internet hoax directed at a 13-year-old neighbor girl who committed suicide.
U.S. District Judge George Wu said in his written ruling that the case was never a legal test of crimes involving "cyberbullying."
Prosecutors, who adopted that terminology early on, brought charges against Lori Drew under the Federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Statute which does not involve cyberbullying, the judge said.
Wu acquitted Drew of misdemeanor counts of accessing computers without authorization last month but stressed the ruling was tentative until he issued it in writing.
Drew's attorney, Dean Steward, believes Wu's ruling in effect strikes down a portion of the computer fraud act.
"He's pretty much found that portions of it are unconstitutional," said Steward, who expects Department of Justice attorneys to go back to Congress for a clarification.
Thom Mrozek, spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles, said no decision had been made yet about a possible appeal.
Prosecutors say Drew sought to humiliate Megan Meier by helping create a fictitious teen boy on the MySpace social networking site and sending flirtatious messages to the girl in his name.
The fake boy then dumped Megan in a message saying the world would be better without her. Megan hanged herself a short time later, in October 2006, in the St. Louis suburb of Dardenne Prairie, Mo.
Drew was not directly charged with causing Megan's death. Instead, prosecutors indicted her under the computer fraud act, which in the past has been used in hacking and trademark theft cases.
Wu's 32-page ruling, filed late Friday, cited vagueness of the statute and the chance that innocent users of the Internet could become subject to criminal charges if Drew's conviction was allowed to stand.
He gave examples of people who could be liable...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
Free Trips to Thailand for the Internet Savvy
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68712
Attention Internet-savvy travelers: Thailand is giving away free trips to five lucky couples who don't mind sitting in front of a computer while on vacation.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand launched a new campaign Tuesday offering five couples fully paid trips to the country's most popular cities and beaches. In return, they will be asked to blog, chat and tweet about their holiday in a bid to win a grand prize of $10,000, a BlackBerry and a video camera.
Applicants should be "good storytellers" and must know how to navigate YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Flickr, the TAT said on the contest's newly launched Web site http://www.utlimatethailandexplorer.com where one-minute video auditions can be submitted until Oct. 15.
Thailand's tourism industry is facing its worst crisis in years, with foreign arrivals down 15 percent so far this year because of political upheaval and the global recession.
Tourism officials say they were inspired by Australia's recent highly publicized campaign dubbed the "Best Job in the World." The contest to serve as the caretaker on a tropical Australian island for six months, while promoting the destination on a blog, drew 35,000 applicants and worldwide media attention.
"We got the idea from Australia," said TAT official Phanom Kaributra, who is coordinating the contest. "We think it's a good way to use social networking to promote Thailand."
A panel of TAT officials will select 25 semifinalists by Oct. 15 and the winning five couples -- and grand prize winner -- will be chosen by worldwide online voting.
Each of the five couples will be sent early next year on a six-day trip to different destinations: the capital Bangkok, beach resorts Phuket, Samui and Pattaya, and the northern city of Chiang Mai.
Phanom said the couples would be free to explore but would not be encouraged to "go to red-light districts and places like that."...
Thu, 3 Sep 09
A Worm in the Apple: Macs Now in Hackers' Crosshairs
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68683
It all used to be simpler for Mac users: viruses and other malicious software affected Windows computers, not them. That is slowly changing. "The threats have intensified," says Candid Wuest from anti-virus maker Symantec.
The biggest threat comes from hackers trying to sneak viruses onto computers. OSX.RSPlug.A is the name of one that preys on Mac users. It claims to be a video codec required to watch certain porno films, but in fact tries to redirect the surfer to a Web site forged to look like an eBay page. An attempt is then made to phish for the access data to the user's real eBay account.
"This trojan hasn't drawn much attention," says Walter Mehl from Germany's Macwelt magazine. That may have to do with the fact that it is spread only through porn sites. It was also shoddily programmed.
Another trojan assumed control of Macs earlier this year, harnessing them into a "Botnet," Wuest says. A botnet is a remote controlled network of computers employed by hackers to send out spam. Some 10,000 to 20,000 computers have been infected to date. That number, however, pales in comparison with the countless Windows PCs infected by the Conficker worm.
Windows is a more common target for attacks partially because it's the user base is much larger. Virus writers know that with so many more computers running the software, even viruses that infect only a fraction of their targets can still rack up big numbers. The same is true for the search for vulnerabilities in applications -- common programs are a favourite target.
Malicious software used to be written only for specific operating systems. That has changed to some extent, Mehl says. For example, it was recently discovered that rigged PDFs could exploit a security hole in Adobe Flash, a popular software component. The problem affects both...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
Another Gmail Outage Blocks E-Mail for Millions of Users
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68732
Google's Gmail service failed again on Tuesday. Users trying to access their e-mail accounts were greeted with a server error, and Google acknowledged the problem on its Gmail forum.
The service is the third most-visited e-mail service in the U.S., and it suffered short outages twice in May. In February Google apologized for a significant outage, and there were other failures last year, including a 15-hour interruption that Google attributed to "a temporary outage in our contacts system."
Users from Italy, Germany, France, Ireland, Taiwan and the United States reported problems on the Gmail forum. Google's other Web services appeared to be working normally.
The outages create problems for Google as it tries to convince corporations to use its cloud-based services. Google Apps customers pay $50 a year and may be entitled to an extension of their contracts because of the outage.
Google said on its Gmail blog, "Because this is impacting so many of you, we wanted to let you know we're currently looking into the issue and hope to have more info to share here shortly. If you have IMAP or POP set up already, you should be able to access your mail that way in the meantime. We're terribly sorry for the inconvenience and will get Gmail back up and running as soon as possible."
Some Gmail users reported short and limited disruptions on Monday as well.
Frustrated users posted a flood of comments on Twitter, some of them humorous. Several posters quipped that cities were "in flames" and people were "eating pets" to survive.
Wed, 2 Sep 09
eBay Sells 65 Percent of Patent-Imperiled Skype
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68731
eBay has agreed to sell a controlling 65 percent stake in its Skype communications division to an investor group led by private equity firm Silver Lake Partners, but will retain 35 percent of the online telephone service it acquired in 2005. Andreessen Horowitz, a venture-capital firm led by Netscape cofounder Mark Andreessen, is among the investors.
When the deal is complete, likely in the fourth quarter, eBay will receive $1.9 billion and a note for $125 million.
"This is a great deal, unlocking both immediate and long-term value for eBay and tremendous potential for Skype," said eBay CEO John Donahoe. "As a separate company, we believe that Skype will have the focus required to compete effectively in online voice and video communications and accelerate its growth momentum."
In 2008, Skype generated revenue of $551 million for eBay, a 44 percent increase compared to prior-year results. This year, Skype's contribution in the economically challenged second quarter grew 25 percent year over year to $170 million, even as it added 37.3 million registered VoIP users worldwide.
However, eBay told the Securities and Exchange Commission in its annual report that Skype currently faces regulatory, intellectual property, competitive and other risks that threaten the service's financial performance. Among other things, Skype could lose its license for the peer-to-peer technology that empowers the world's largest international phone service.
As part of eBay's acquisition of Skype in 2005 in a cash-plus-stock deal, Skype founders Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis retained ownership of the core peer-to-peer technology behind the world's number-one international phone service. The technology's key patent now belongs to U.K.-based Joltid Ltd., which alleges that Skype has breached its licensing terms on the basis of copyright infringement as well as its misuse of confidential information. The case is scheduled to be heard in a U.K. court...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
Opera Releases Turbo-Charged Opera 10 Browser
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68730
Opera Software on Tuesday took the lid off its final version of Opera 10. The free, open-source browser works on Windows, Mac and Linux platforms and offers three key features it hopes will woo browser users.
First, Opera 10 features Opera Turbo, a new compression technology that, when enabled, automatically detects slow speeds and provides broadband-like speeds. Once turned on, Turbo instantly compresses pages so less data needs to be transferred over a limited connection.
Second, Opera 10 offers a new interface. And finally, Opera promises better tabs.
More than 40 million people use Opera, but the company has only two percent of the browser market. By contrast, Google Chrome has a 2.8 percent share, Safari holds four percent, Firefox boasts 22.9 percent, and Microsoft Internet Explorer dominates with 66.9 percent, according to Net Applications.
"At Opera, we have always worked hard to innovate new ways to improve everyone's browsing experience," said Opera CEO Jon von Tetzchner. "Opera Turbo is our newest innovation, and one we think everyone should try, because we all will face a slow connection at some point."
Opera is offering some productivity functions with the latest version. For example, Opera offers a built-in e-mail client. Opera Mail gives users options to organize, sort and search mail and contacts, and a new thread reader aims to make it easier for users to follow discussions. Opera 10 also features a spell checker.
Opera said it fine-tuned its overall speed, making the browser faster and smoother on resource-intensive pages such as Gmail, even without Opera Turbo. Opera also pointed to its adaptive memory-management function that works to conserve memory if a computer has limited RAM and uses more memory to enhance performance if the computer has memory to spare.
Opera 10 allows users to resize the tab bar by pulling down on it...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
Sony VAIO Laptops To Ship with Google Chrome Browser
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68729
Google just fired its latest missive in the browser wars. The search-engine giant has inked a deal with electronics behemoth Sony to bundle its Chrome Web browser on laptop computers.
"Users' response to Google Chrome has been outstanding, and we're continuing to explore ways to make Chrome accessible to even more people," Google said. Neither Sony nor Google disclosed the terms of the deal.
With Chrome installed on Sony VAIO laptops, Google could see millions of new users experiment with its browser. Sony predicted it will sell more than six million VAIOs in the current fiscal year that ends in March 2010.
"It's definitely a nice win for Google when a tier-one vendor is willing to put your software on the hardware. Now consumers who purchase Sony laptops don't have to go to Google's site to download Chrome," said Michael Gartenberg, a vice president at Interpret. "It is a win for Google, but Chrome has not displaced (Internet Explorer), it's in addition to IE. So the question is whether or not it will matter in the long term."
Google launched Chrome on Sept. 1, 2008, and has grabbed 2.8 percent of the Web browser market, according to Net Applications' August data. That puts Google well behind Microsoft's market-dominant IE at 66.9 percent.
But Mozilla has proven that Microsoft is not immune to competition from alternative browser companies. Mozilla's Firefox has slowly but steadily eroded IE market share and now holds 22.9 percent of the browser market worldwide. Opera, meanwhile, has garnered only two percent of the market while Safari holds a four percent share with its Mac advantage.
Google could be getting ready to make a major push for double-digit market share to pave the way for its Google Chrome operating system. The Sony deal is significant because Sony is a...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
New Windows Mobile 6.5 Phones Coming in October
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68717
The first phones with the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system will be released Oct. 6. Microsoft said the new devices will feature improved interfaces, better browsing, and access to such services as Windows Marketplace for Mobile and Microsoft My Phone.
The worldwide rollout will include new hardware as well as existing models. In North America, new Windows Mobile phones will be released by wireless operators AT&T, Sprint and Verizon Wireless, and from manufacturers HP, HTC, LG Electronics, Samsung and Toshiba.
Microsoft said the new Internet Explorer Mobile browser has been redesigned and carries a new engine as well as built-in support for Adobe Flash Lite. The redesign will make it easier to do such things as check in for a flight, pay bills, or find directions, according to the software giant.
Two new mobile services will be launched. Windows Marketplace for Mobile will provide a centralized location for finding and downloading "approved and certified" applications. Although Microsoft has said it has more than 20,000 applications for Windows Mobile devices, many users may not have noticed, because the apps have been scattered across a variety of outlets. This follows the trend of mobile platforms to create their own App Store, following the highly successful model of Apple's iPhone.
And the free My Phone service lets users back up their phone-based content to the Web automatically, so photos, music, contacts or text messages can be managed either from a phone or a PC. If a phone is lost, the idea is that a user's PC can be used to manage reloading the lost files onto a new phone.
Users of Windows Mobile phones can also customize their interface with designer themes, widgets or their own photo.
Sean Ryan, an analyst with industry research firm IDC, said this launch of new Windows Mobile...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
TiVo Claims Most DVRs Use Its Technology
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68697
TiVo is so well known as the pioneer of digital video recorders that many people mistakenly call any DVR a "TiVo." But if the company has its way, that perception may soon have the support of law, which could dramatically reshape the TV business.
In a patent infringement case coming to a head against Dish Network -- as well as cases filed last week against Verizon and AT&T -- TiVo says that it owns the technology behind processes found in almost every DVR.
That includes a function called the "time warp" that controls everything from fast-forward and rewind to the ability to view the beginning of a TV show as the DVR records the ending.
Competitors "are pushing (DVR) technology as a competitive differentiator to grab customers," says Matthew Zinn, TiVo's general counsel. "That irreparably harms TiVo, because those customers tend not to switch providers."
Dish, Verizon and AT&T declined to comment.
TiVo has a lot riding on the outcome. It has watched its subscriptions fall 31 percent since the beginning of 2007, to 3.1 million, as cable and satellite companies marketed less expensive DVRs.
If it wins its patent cases, "there's a high probability that (anyone offering a DVR) will have to pay TiVo licensing fees," says Lazard Capital Markets analyst Barton Crockett.
More to the point, he adds: "If TiVo lost, it would be a $4 stock. If they won, it could be in the high 20s." Shares closed Friday at $10.
TiVo has had the upper hand, so far. A Texas jury upheld its patent claims in 2006. Dish paid TiVo $105 million after the No. 2 satellite company failed to get the decision overturned later that year at a federal district court there.
That was just the beginning. The court ordered Dish to stop serving about 4 million of its DVRs. To avoid that costly...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
NYC To Track Its Building Inspectors with GPS
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68696
New York City will track its hundreds of building inspectors with GPS technology to make sure they are actually doing the inspections they report, the Department of Buildings said Friday.
The new scrutiny comes after an inspector was charged last year with faking a report that he had inspected a crane days before it collapsed and killed seven people.
Electrical, construction, elevator, crane and other inspectors will now have GPS tracking on their mobile phones so that department heads can follow their movements in real time through a web-based program.
Buildings Commissioner Robert LiMandri said the system will "ensure inspectors reach their assigned locations and are held accountable for their important work."
Last year city crane inspector Edward Marquette was indicted on criminal charges of tampering with public records. According to the indictment, he indicated on a Department of Buildings inspection sheet that he had inspected a construction site on East 51st Street on March 4, 2008, when in fact he had not.
The crane collapsed 11 days later. Officials said it was unlikely an inspection would have prevented the tragedy, but the incident sparked an agency-wide examination of its inspection processes.
The Manhattan district attorney also said Marquette also falsified inspection reports for cranes at other sites.
Marquette pleaded not guilty. The case is pending.
For years, other states and municipalities have tracked inspectors and employees using similar technology. Chicago follows its fire and buildings inspectors, and some state building and engineering inspectors in Massachusetts were suspended when they resisted the mandate a few years ago.
The union representing most of the New York City building department's inspectors said members were disappointed by the announcement Friday but did not threaten to oppose the monitoring system.
"It seems no matter how hard these guys try, management won't let them move past the transgressions of the past," said Joseph Corso, president...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
At Singularity University, Tech Is Seen as Savior
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68695
Chatter about ensuing plans permeates any graduation, though it's not common for the talk to surround which class projects will receive venture capital funding.
This was a hot topic at the first commencement at Singularity University, a school that is backed by Google, operates on NASA's Silicon Valley campus and gets its name from futurist and co-founder Ray Kurzweil's favorite term for our technologically enhanced future.
Founded last year with the idea that rapidly evolving technologies can be harnessed to solve problems like poverty and climate change, Singularity University does not offer a traditional degree -- though it is working to get some universities to accept students' coursework for credits.
More than a graduate school, it resembles an incubator for technological ideas that, at the end of a nine-week program, may turn into actual companies with a humanitarian edge.
Starting in June, students spent three weeks attending lectures by faculty members and visiting luminaries such as Vint Cerf -- one of the founding fathers of the Internet -- to get a basic grounding in fields ranging from networks and computing systems to artificial intelligence and robotics. After that, they chose one of four subjects to study more closely for three weeks. For the privilege, the 40 members of the initial class paid $25,000 apiece.
Singularity is working bring the cost down, by starting monthly sessions for executives in November. Those will fund scholarships for the summer program, said Peter H. Diamandis, Singularity co-founder and CEO of the X Prize Foundation. The school also has been bolstered by $2 million in seed donations, $250,000 of which came from Google.
Despite the cost, there were 1,200 applicants. Executive director Salim Ismail said the next session -- which is slated for mid-June 2010 -- will include 100 or 120 students, and added that even that expansion may not fulfill...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
Tennis Officials A-Twitter: U.S. Open Players Warned
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68694
Watch what you tweet.
That's the message tennis authorities are delivering as the U.S. Open gets set to start Monday, telling players and their entourages to be careful about what they post on the social networking site Twitter.
Signs are being posted in the players' lounge, locker rooms and referee's office at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center with the header: "Important. Player Notice. Twitter Warning."
The signs, written by the Tennis Integrity Unit, point out that Twitter messages could violate the sport's anti-corruption rules.
"Many of you will have Twitter accounts in order for your fans to follow you and to become more engaged in you and the sport -- and this is great," the notices read. "However popular it is, it is important to warn you of some of the dangers posted by Twittering as it relates to the Tennis Anti-Corruption Program Rules."
Andy Roddick, for one, is not a fan of the warning. In a tweet Friday night, the 2003 U.S. Open champion wrote that he thinks it's "lame the US Open is trying to regulate our tweeting.. I understand the on-court issue but not sure they can tell us if we can't do it on our own time ... we'll see."
He added in another tweet: "I definitely respect the rule about inside info and on the court, but you would seriously have to be a moron to send 'inside info' through a tweet."
Told of Roddick's comments, tournament spokesman Chris Widmaier said, "We agree with Mr. Roddick that it would be 'moronic' to provide what might be construed as insider information. However, in the age of new media, it is imperative to ensure the absolute integrity of the game."
Sports leagues and governing bodies are paying close attention as more and more athletes turn to Twitter to reach fans directly; some...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
Sun Absorbs $147M Loss as Oracle Deal Looms
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68693
Sun Microsystems Inc. recorded a $147 million loss while sales eroded 31 percent in the April-June period, likely the server and software maker's last full quarter as an independent company.
Sun's latest numbers, reported Friday in a regulatory filing without the usual news release and conference call with analysts, highlight the uneven financial performance that forced the Santa Clara-based company to put itself up for sale.
In April Oracle Corp. outbid IBM Corp. and agreed to buy Sun in a $7.4 billion deal. It is scheduled to be completed this summer, and still needs approval from European antitrust regulators, which could come any day now.
The deal will give Oracle more control over development of the Java programming language, which Sun invented and is a key ingredient of the Internet. It also moves Redwood Shores-based Oracle, a business software maker, into the hardware market. Sun is one of the world's biggest sellers of computer servers, which power Web sites and corporate back offices.
Sun said after the market closed that it lost $147 million, or 20 cents per share, in the three months ended June 30, which is Sun's fiscal fourth quarter. That compares with a profit of $88 million, or 11 cents per share, in the year-ago period.
Excluding employee stock-based compensation and other expenses, Sun said its loss would have been 3 cents per share.
Sales in the latest period fell to $2.63 billion from $3.78 billion last year.
Revenue from server sales fell 36 percent over last year to $1.1 billion. Revenue from support services fell 15 percent to $886 million.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected a loss of 19 cents per share and sales of $2.37 billion.
For the full fiscal year, Sun lost $2.23 billion, versus a $403 million profit last year.
Sun's shares fell 2 cents to $9.32 in after-hours trading. The stock...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
As Internet Turns 40, Barriers Threaten Its Growth
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68691
Goofy videos weren't on the minds of Len Kleinrock and his team at UCLA when they began tests 40 years ago on what would become the Internet. Neither was social networking, for that matter, nor were most of the other easy-to-use applications that have drawn more than a billion people online.
Instead the researchers sought to create an open network for freely exchanging information, an openness that ultimately spurred the innovation that would later spawn the likes of YouTube, Facebook and the World Wide Web.
There's still plenty of room for innovation today, yet the openness fostering it may be eroding. While the Internet is more widely available and faster than ever, artificial barriers threaten to constrict its growth.
Call it a mid-life crisis.
A variety of factors are to blame. Spam and hacking attacks force network operators to erect security firewalls. Authoritarian regimes block access to many sites and services within their borders. And commercial considerations spur policies that can thwart rivals, particularly on mobile devices like the iPhone.
"There is more freedom for the typical Internet user to play, to communicate, to shop -- more opportunities than ever before," said Jonathan Zittrain, a law professor and co-founder of Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society. "On the worrisome side, there are some longer-term trends that are making it much more possible (for information) to be controlled."
Few were paying attention back on Sept. 2, 1969, when about 20 people gathered in Kleinrock's lab at the University of California, Los Angeles, to watch as two bulky computers passed meaningless test data through a 15-foot gray cable.
That was the beginning of the fledgling Arpanet network. Stanford Research Institute joined a month later, and UC Santa Barbara and the University of Utah did by year's end.
The 1970s brought e-mail and the TCP/IP communications protocols, which allowed multiple...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
With New Products, Nokia Takes Aim at Apple
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68668
Nokia has seemed determined recently to remind the world that it, not a certain Cupertino [Calif.] rival, is the world's dominant handset maker. In the space of four days, the Finnish company, which accounts for 37 percent of global mobile-phone sales, announced plans for a netbook computer, unveiled a new bargain-priced touchscreen handset, and a high-end "Internet Tablet." Nokia also rejiggered its top management, elevating an executive in charge of user friendliness to the executive board. Finally, the company announced an ambitious effort to offer money-transfer services to the billions of handset owners in emerging markets who don't have bank accounts.
All but the last announcement seemed aimed squarely at Apple, whose phenomenally successful iPhone has thrown Nokia off-balance. Although the Apple accounts for less than 2 percent of the overall handset market, its iPhone has stolen share from Nokia in smartphones, the market's sweet spot. Sales of high-end gadgets with computer-like capabilities grew 27 percent in the second quarter, according to market watcher Gartner. That comes as the overall market for mobile handsets fell 6 percent over the same period. Gartner says Apple's share of the smartphone market soared to 13 percent from 3 percent in the second quarter of 2009 from a year earlier, while Nokia's slipped to 45 percent from 47 percent. (Nokia counters that it recently has regained share.) Apple declined to comment for this article.
Nokia Chief Executive Officer Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo denies Apple is driving the company's strategy. Rather, he says, Nokia is aiming at totally new markets as the mobile-handset business shifts from hardware to a greater focus on such services as games, music, and navigation. "It's not simply fighting against your competitors like Apple, it's claiming new ground. It's claiming no-man's land," Kallasvuo told BusinessWeek on Aug. 27.
Still, the unprecedented flurry of announcements signaled that...
Wed, 2 Sep 09
Review: Camera Phones That Let You Snap and Gab
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68637
Pretty much any cell phone you'd buy today comes with a digital camera, but only a few are good enough to take the place of even a cheap point-and-shoot.
It can be tricky to sniff out which phones really fall into that category. Highly advertised features, like a mass of megapixels and multiple settings, do not always add up to a solid camera. But after testing five devices from different manufacturers and wireless carriers, I can suggest some that prove it is indeed possible to get a good cell phone that also takes crystal-clear photos.
My favorite of the bunch is the 8-megapixel Samsung Memoir, which packs an impressive set of camera and phone functions into a slick package.
The Memoir ($200 from T-Mobile with a two-year contract and mail-in rebate, but available for $50 from Amazon.com with a contract) sports a crisp touch screen that is helpful for accessing the camera's numerous features. Those include mosaic and panorama shooting modes, as well as a feature that can warn you when one of your photo subjects blinked in a picture.
Taking photos is simple with the dedicated capture and zoom buttons on one side. The Memoir's flash can handle darker scenes fairly well, too.
The Memoir's built-in editing options let you crop photos, adjust colors or white balance, insert various effects and more. If you forgot to take a certain shot in black and white, no problem -- you can adjust it after the fact.
The Memoir has its weak points. It snaps photos slower than another contender I tried, the Palm Pre. And like most of the phones I tested, it lacks optical zoom, which gives more detailed images and lets you shoot from farther away. The Memoir uses a digital "zoom" that simply crops and magnifies what you see on the screen to give...
Tue, 1 Sep 09
Grand Theft Auto Could Be Next App Store Controversy
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68705
Even as rumors spread about the iPhone coming to new carriers next year, Rockstar Games has announced plans to bring its blockbuster franchise to Apple's iPhone this fall. But will App Store reviewers approve the violent game?
Rockstar Games, the publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, said it's bringing Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars to the iPhone and iPod touch. Rockstar also announced its Beaterator is coming to the Apple devices.
"Chinatown Wars is a perfect match for the iPhone and iPod touch," said Sam Houser, founder of Rockstar Games. "We are very excited to bring this incredibly ambitious version of Liberty City, with this level of detail and immersive game play, on Apple's new gaming platforms."
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars follows the story of Huang Lee, a young Triad who travels to Liberty City after the mysterious death of his father. Players navigate their way through the streets as they uncover the truth behind an epic tale of crime and corruption within the Triad crime syndicate, delivering the unprecedented amount of depth that has become a trademark of the Grand Theft Auto franchise.
Already available for the Nintendo DS, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars is also coming this fall for Sony's PlayStation Portable. But Nintendo and Sony will have to compete with Apple for gamers who want the franchise on a portable device -- if the device makes it onto the handset.
According to Mike Disabato, a senior analyst at the Burton Group, Rockstar can develop and submit Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, but Apple can still ban the game from its platform. If Apple doesn't like the way Rockstar has implemented it, he said, Apple may not approve the app.
"If the Grand Theft Auto developers have an interface that's bad or if they try to slip a...
Tue, 1 Sep 09
SanDisk Rolls Out Improved Sansa Clip MP3 Player
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68704
SanDisk has upgraded its popular Sansa Clip MP3 player to make it ready to roll with Windows 7 when Microsoft introduces its new operating system in October.
Like its predecessor, the Sansa Clip+ sports a one-inch OLED screen that displays a simple user interface for choosing playlists or songs sorted by title, artist, album and genre. The new device also features an equalizer mode for fine-tuning the listening experience, a built-in microphone for recording audio notes, and an FM tuner with 40 radio station presets.
"We made a great product -- the Sansa Clip -- even better," said SanDisk Vice President Eric Bone. "It's the perfect player for travelers, busy moms, fitness buffs, or anyone looking to enjoy music without the hassle of loading songs from their computer or updating playlists."
With the Sansa Clip+, users will be able to play microSD cards loaded with their favorite music tracks, with up to 4,000 songs fitting on a single 16GB card. However, SanDisk also is targeting music fans with preprogrammed slotRadio and slotMusic cards that will offer users plug-and-play compilations of Billboard hits as well as music albums released in the microSD format.
With preloaded cards, there's no password to remember or need to wait for music to download, SanDisk said. Even better, an entire music album comfortably fits on a 1GB slotMusic card, with plenty of room left to spare.
"Our latest music survey shows that 30 percent of online adults regularly use an MP3 player, yet only 23 percent say they maintain a digital music collection on their PC," noted Forrester Research analyst David Card.
On the other hand, slotRadio and slotMusic cards also can be used in PCs, mobile phones and car stereos featuring built-in microSD card readers. "SanDisk thinks slotMusic will play with tech-averse grownups while appealing to...
Tue, 1 Sep 09
AMD Ships Low-Power Operton EE for Cloud Computing
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68703
On Monday, Advanced Micro Devices shipped its latest generation of processors with cloud-computing and dense-computing environments in mind. The new six-core Opteron EE processor, code-named Istanbul, promises increased performance in the same 40-watt ACP power band as previous generations.
AMD said the Opteron EE delivers up to 31 percent higher performance per watt over standard quad-core AMD Opteron processors. The six-core processor is tailored to meet the demands of customers who need strong performance but also need to cut every watt possible in a server system and reduce a data center's power draw.
Patrick Patla, vice president and general manager at AMD's Server and Workstation Division, said it's important for the chip industry to look at how technology is being used and where customers have emerging needs. That's what AMD did with its Opteron EE.
"The AMD Opteron EE processor enables OEMs to deliver energy-sipping servers that don't compromise on power management, virtualization or performance features," Patla said. "It is specifically designed to help address the challenges that are generating a great deal of discussion these days -- building and running very dense data centers for Web services while doing more with less."
According to AMD, many customers requiring this very low-power processor deploy dense, large-scale IT projects where system power trumps raw performance and every watt of power savings can have a significant positive impact on the bottom line.
With the Opteron EE, AMD now offers 15 low- and very-low-power server processors. Like AMD's other low-power processors, the Opteron EE is available with AMD Virtualization (AMD-V) technology and AMD-P features for advanced virtualization and power-savings capability.
AMD said the 40W ACP processor is being integrated in custom solution programs and will be available from system builders for cloud and Web 2.0 customers where density and low power are key considerations....
Tue, 1 Sep 09
Samsung Will Open Smartphone App Store in Europe
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68702
Samsung Electronics is joining the smartphone app-store party. The Seoul, Korea-based company will open its Samsung Application Store in Italy, the United Kingdom, and France on Sept. 14.
Since February, the company has been testing a beta version of the online store in Britain. Now Samsung's app store will be extended to more than 30 countries, including Spain and Germany, Reuters reported on Monday. Samsung plans to open the store with 300 apps, with more than 2,000 by the end of the year.
The store will be interconnected with Samsung's developer site, Samsung Mobile Innovator, and its marketing site, Samsung Application Store Seller Site, to form an ecosystem.
"The challenge is to find business models that benefit consumers, the handset maker, and content developers at the same time," Lee Ho-soo, a Samsung executive vice president, told the Korean Times.
The launch of Samsung's mobile app store in Europe brings more utility to its devices, which is what consumers want, according to IDC analyst Ramon Llamas, but there are still unanswered questions.
"Since everyone is getting onto the mobile-application bandwagon one way or another, Samsung is attempting to brand its own experience to drive customer loyalty," he said. "What remains to be seen are the kind, breadth and depth of its mobile applications. (Will it be) sports, news, information, or commerce? Those (questions) need to be answered."
The mobile-phone company's competitors are already ahead with their own application storefronts. Number-three handset maker LG opened its Application Store in July with 1,400 applications, including 100 free programs in 15 different languages in Asia-Pacific nations, including Malaysia, Singapore and Australia. And like Samsung, LG said it will have 2,000 apps available by year's end.
But LG and Samsung are late to the mobile-app-store party. Apple celebrated the one-year anniversary of its App Store in...
Tue, 1 Sep 09
New iPods Expected as Apple Confirms Media Event
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68701
Apple has confirmed it will hold its traditional invitation-only media event on Sept. 9 at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. An announcement of the rumored Apple tablet computer is unlikely, but Apple is expected to announce new iPods.
Invitations with an iPod-style silhouette holding what appears to be an iPod touch were sent to members of the press, with the words "It's only rock and roll, but we like it," a play on the title of a Rolling Stones song. A keynote address will begin at 10 a.m. Pacific time.
Rumors have focused on an Apple announcement about cameras being added to new versions of the iPod nano and iPod touch. Some have also suggested a camera might be added to the iPod classic.
Another possible announcement could be an update to iTunes 9 with social-networking features. The company might also discuss Cocktail, its new interactive music-album format.
An interesting side note is that Sept. 9 is also the date The Beatles will release the band's music catalog, along with the video game The Beatles: RockBand. The game will be released for Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, and Nintendo's Wii gaming consoles.
It may be significant that Sept. 9 is a Wednesday and Apple has used Tuesdays in early September for music-related announcements since 2005. Some observers expect The Beatles catalog to be available on iTunes.
Tue, 1 Sep 09
iPhone Could Get Multiple Carriers Amid France Probe
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=68680
The talk about Apple's iPhones in France is currently revolving around two subjects -