Technology World

Main

Technology

Army Technology
Cyberwars
Military Technology
Newsfactor Technology
Technology World
Yahoo Technology
Random Feeds

Archives

| Feb 2012 | Jan 2012 | Dec 2011 | Nov 2011 | Oct 2011 | Sep 2011 | Aug 2011 | Jul 2011 | Jun 2011 | May 2011 | Apr 2011 | Mar 2011 | Feb 2011 | Jan 2011 | Dec 2010 | Nov 2010 | Oct 2010 | Sep 2010 | Aug 2010 | Jul 2010 | Jun 2010 | May 2010 | Apr 2010 | Mar 2010 | Feb 2010 | Jan 2010 | Dec 2009 | Nov 2009 | Oct 2009 | Sep 2009 | Aug 2009 | Jul 2009 | Jun 2009 | May 2009 | Apr 2009 | Mar 2009 | Feb 2009 | Jan 2009 | Dec 2008 | Nov 2008 | Oct 2008 | Sep 2008 | Aug 2008 | Jul 2008 | Jun 2008 | May 2008 | Apr 2008 | Mar 2008 | Feb 2008 | Jan 2008 | Dec 2007 | Nov 2007 |

Sun, 27 Dec 09
Making the Web Wider With an Eye on Accessibility
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68896.html
Imagine not being able to use a mouse to open a Web browser or a keyboard to type an e-mail. What if you couldn't distinguish colors on a computer screen or type the distorted letters in order to buy concert tickets or enroll in a class? Despite technological advances aimed at making the Internet easy to use, the World Wide Web is not wide open for many people. However, as the number of people with disabilities grows and more of everything is done online, companies are finding it makes good business sense to make their sites more accessible.

Thu, 24 Dec 09
Web-Based Worms: How XSS Is Paving the Way for Future Malware
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68946.html
I first became aware of cross-site scripting (XSS) nearly a decade ago. At the time, despite being an all too prevalent bug in Web applications, the risk posed by the flaw was of limited value. It was the go-to vulnerability for any pen tester that was having trouble digging up a meaningful vulnerability to add to his audit report. That has all changed now. Today, XSS represents a meaningful threat -- a threat that is not only leveraged by attackers to harvest authentication credentials, but also is enabling a new generation of malware in the form of Web-based worms.

Thu, 24 Dec 09
Software Appliances: Lean, Mean Deployment Machines
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68967.html
Today's enterprises are clamoring for software applications that run in a wide variety of environments -- everything from physical to virtual to cloud. If you are a software vendor, how do you make it easy to give them what they want? You could hand customers your software on a CD and let them figure it out. However, in this environment, independent software vendors that find ways to help their customers get where they need to go earn big dividends in terms of market adoption and revenue.

Wed, 23 Dec 09
Relearning Trust in a Web 2.0 World
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68964.html
Social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace rely on the trusted nature of the relationship between friends, colleagues, associates and followers. Unfortunately, the level of trust that end-users invest in each other is also being applied to the makers of applications and is perhaps a little over-optimistic. Increasingly, cybercriminals are being drawn by the possibilities opened up by application development on popular Web 2.0 Web sites with the promise of more money, which results in more infections and more potential for something to go horribly wrong.

Wed, 23 Dec 09
Automobiles, Digital Technology and Safety: It's Complicated
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68971.html
A new study from the University of Utah provides more fuel for the conviction that sending and receiving text messages while driving affects concentration and reaction times. However, more potential digital distractions lie down the road -- as shown by another Monday announcement: Ford Motor said its second-generation Sync service will turn cars into rolling WiFi hotspots in 2010. Granted, the next-level Sync entertainment and connectivity qualities are designed for everybody in a car except the driver.

Wed, 23 Dec 09
The Barbarians at iPhone's Gate
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68963.html
Apple's iPhone may be one of the most popular devices ever to hit the consumer market, but whether it can sustain that success is another question. A recent report from ComScore suggests it may be losing ground to Google's Android platform, even as upcoming mobile browser innovations call into question the future of app stores like the one for the iPhone. Consumer awareness of Google's Android is growing rapidly, ComScore found, due in large part to Verizon's Droid campaign.

Wed, 23 Dec 09
Moto XT701 - aka 'Sholes' - Surfaces in China
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68959.html
Motorola appears to be gearing up to release its Android-powered Sholes handset in China, kicking into high gear the many rumors that have been circulating in the U.S. about the device. Dubbed the "Moto XT701," Sholes appeared alongside the previously announced Motorola MT710 on the company's Chinese Web site late last week. The site was later unavailable, but a cached page displaying the unit and full specs was accessible via Google.

Mon, 21 Dec 09
New Energy-Saving Strategies for a New Year
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68952.html
These New Year's resolutions won't make you look fabulous in time for swimsuit season or add 10 years to your life. Instead, your reward will be a fatter wallet and maybe a cleaner conscience, because this is about saving energy. You can pay for the bubbly next year with all the money you save. The average household uses about 20 percent more electricity than it did 20 years ago. Flat-screen televisions, cellphones, video games and iPods can really add up, not to mention much bigger houses. Here's how to can tame the energy beast in your home.

Sun, 20 Dec 09
How to Get a Little Privacy on Facebook
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68937.html
Over the past week, has been nudging its users -- first gently, then firmly -- to review and update their privacy settings. You may have procrastinated by hitting "skip for now," but Facebook eventually took away that button and forced you to update your settings before continuing to use the site. After finally accepting Facebook's recommendations or tweaking the privacy settings yourself, though, you might have made more information about you public than what you had intended.

Sat, 19 Dec 09
'Avatar': The Best 3-D Movie Ever - Technically
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68947.html
"Avatar" could indeed light the way to fresh, uncharted territory for filmmaking and entertainment thanks to its groundbreaking special effects and 3-D technologies -- but that's not necessarily a good thing. The best way to explain that is to go see writer-director James Cameron's new blockbuster in a 3-D IMAX theater. As you settle down with your popcorn and drink to watch this 160-minute adventure, pay close attention to the 3-D previews of other movies vying for your leisure-time dollars next year.

Sat, 19 Dec 09
'Cyber Army' Attacks Twitter, Iran Green Movement Site
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68938.html
Twitter had a service outage Friday morning because its DNS servers were compromised. It was done by a hacker or group of hackers self-identified as the "Iranian Cyber Army." The group also took over the Iranian opposition Web site mowjcamp.org. Twitter is investigating the issue, said company cofounder Biz Stone. At press time, Twitter was back up and running, but the mowjcamp.org site was not. Twitter's records were compromised last night, but they had been fixed by the time Stone posted comments at 11:43 p.m. Pacific time on his blog.

Sat, 19 Dec 09
Glasses On, Wallets Out: 3-D's Coming to Blu-ray
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68940.html
3-D is definitely not just for cheesy drive-in movies anymore. It's done great box office with animated films, and that big 3-D sci-fi action movie "Avatar" coming out this weekend has won over a lot of early reviewers, at least on a technical level. But one of these days you won't have to go out to a theater to see 3-D movies -- you'll just have to shell out thousands of dollars for a state-of-the-art home system. The Blu-ray Disc Association has finalized specs for 3-D Blu-ray, and this year's Consumer Electronics Show is expected to be an all-out orgy of 3-D technologies.

Sat, 19 Dec 09
Operation Chokehold - AT&T's New-Media Noose
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68928.html
Does it really matter whether Operation Chokehold shuts down AT&T's network today? Even if every iPhone user in the country dials up video highlights of "Pirates of Silicon Valley" exactly at noon Pacific time -- and somehow the bits keep flowing and the phones keep ringing -- it'll be too late: Operation Chokehold has already put the squeeze on the U.S.'s second-largest wireless carrier. Our story so far: Newsweek tech columnist Dan Lyons, a.k.a. Fake Steve Jobs - he of the satirical, notorious "Secret Diary of Steve Jobs" blog -- issued a digital fatwa.

Sat, 19 Dec 09
Net's Top Two Powerhouse Players Talk Policy
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68935.html
At the third annual U.S.-China Internet Industry Forum last week, top government and technology leaders gathered to discuss business and policy topics of mutual interest, such as online child protection and intellectual property issues. The conversation has broad implications for the Net as a whole. Microsoft's Chief Research and Strategy Officer Craig Mundie kicked off the conference by explaining that "there is a fair amount of misunderstanding and polarizing rhetoric about the U.S. and China and the Internet."

Sat, 19 Dec 09
Could an 'iPad' Make E-Readers Irrelevant?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68932.html
Martha Stewart did a somewhat curious thing last week: She talked tablets with her followers on Twitter. No, not pills, or some arcane French revival furniture piece. Tablets, as in computers. "Serious question," the crafty decorating and cooking maven asked readers on Dec. 12: "How many of you will read magazines on an electronic tablet (interactive-full color) within two years? three years?" This is notable, because when Martha Stewart talks publishing, people listen.

Sat, 19 Dec 09
Samsung's New Android: It's Fun to Live in the Moment
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68924.html
One of the problems with smartphones up to now is that they behaved more like a computer than a cellphone. That's not the case with the Moment, Samsung's new smartphone based on Google's Android operating system. Android's use of a touchscreen for navigation and easy-to-use applications -- a la the iPhone -- brings to the Moment what's missing from many smartphones: intuitiveness. Learning the ropes on the mobile is as easy as learning a Web application, which shouldn't surprise since Google has plenty of experience in that department.

Fri, 18 Dec 09
Blu-ray 3-D Coming Soon to a Tricked-Out Home Theater Near You
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68929.html
The Blu-ray Disc Association released the specifications for 3-D Blu-ray on Thursday, just over a year after Panasonic first publicly demonstrated its application of 3-D Blu-ray technology. The specifications are backward-compatible with standard 2-D Blu-ray players, and disks and will run on Sony PlayStation 3 consoles. Several vendors, including Nvidia, promptly announced products that support the technology. A slew of 3-D Blu-ray products is expected to hit the stage at the Consumer Electronics Show, to be held January in Las Vegas.

Fri, 18 Dec 09
Nanosensors Bring Big Guns to Cancer-Detection Battle
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68910.html
The fight against cancer is often lost before it is even waged. Too many patients get the news too late. However, the battle may soon take a turn, as advances on the nano frontier bring more sophisticated firepower to the front lines. Latest developments include nanosensors that can detect minute amounts of cancer biomarkers in human blood. Forewarned is forearmed, and such early warnings allows doctors to use their entire medical armament, buying precious time to save a human life.

Fri, 18 Dec 09
AT&T May Offer Acrobatic Android
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68926.html
Motorola is rumored to be bringing another Android phone to market -- one that's named either "Backflip" or "Enzo," according to information and photos leaked by an anonymous source. The device supposedly will run on the AT&T Wireless network. The most striking thing about it, based on the photos, is the placement of the QWERTY keyboard: When it's closed, the screen is on one side, and the keyboard is on the other. When it's open, the keyboard is positioned beneath the screen.

Fri, 18 Dec 09
Web Site Performance: When Seconds Count
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68918.html
It is time to talk about the changing role of Web sites in business. They are no longer simply online calling cards and repositories of marketing collateral. They've become the heartbeat of the organization, the public face, the online portal for employee and partner access. They're evolving to multi-function application hubs, interactive global mash-ups combining internal and external data and content, melded into a unified user experience. From a Web perspective, once considered a secondary medium to print and other media, they're now business-critical infrastructure.

Fri, 18 Dec 09
Linux and the Mysterious Netbook-to-Desktop Gap
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68922.html
'Tis the season to be jolly, and recent statistics make that especially true for Linux users. Exhibit A: Linux netbooks now account for almost a third of the 35 million or so netbooks to ship globally this year, according to Jeff Orr, an analyst at ABI Research. Specifically, the exact breakdown is 32 percent Linux versus 68 percent Windows machines, Orr said -- a far cry from the measly figures paraded around by Redmond earlier this year!

Fri, 18 Dec 09
Bing Spreads Wings in Apple's App Store
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68921.html
Microsoft released an app for its Bing search engine in the iTunes App Store on Tuesday. This free app works on the iPhone and iPod touch. Its features include voice search, geolocation and mapping. The Bing app for the iPhone and iPod touch has been launched less than a month after Microsoft released a BlackBerry version of the app. Bing apps are also available on Windows Mobile, BREW, and the Danger operating system, which runs on SideKick devices from T-Mobile. It's sound marketing strategy for Redmond to get onto as many mobile operating systems as possible.

Thu, 17 Dec 09
Google May Give Quantum Computing a Job in Search
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68911.html
Google is looking at quantum computing to help it sort through the millions of searches it conducts daily, and it's working with processors from Canadian company D-Wave. Quantum computing will help Google with the sophisticated artificial intelligence technologies such as machine learning and pattern recognition that its services are based on. Solving the more difficult problems inherent in machine learning and pattern recognition using more conventional methods would require server farms so large that they could never realistically be built.

Thu, 17 Dec 09
Enter the Netbook Slayer
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68901.html
If you want to know why the netbook is headed to the endangered species list, take a look at Gateway's new ultraportable. The handsome offering with the bland designation "EC 1437u" has power, performance and a small footprint, all for a very reasonable price of $549.99. When the notebook is pulled out in a crowd, its glossy, cherry-red shell is sure to evoke envious questions about its origins. Although larger than most netbooks, the Gateway model is still smaller than a clipboard, albeit thicker and heavier.

Thu, 17 Dec 09
Chrome for Linux: Good Browsers Come to Those Who Wait
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68908.html
Google finally released a beta version of its Chrome Web browser for Linux on Dec. 8, slightly more than one year after releasing its Chrome browser for Microsoft Windows. The wait was worth it, especially given the more than 300 extensions already available to customize the new browser. Because Linux distributions are numerous, Google ported the Chrome code to a select handful of the most popular distros. Chrome for Linux is so far only available for the Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora and OpenSuse distros.

Thu, 17 Dec 09
Third-Party Mobile Browsers to the Rescue
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68912.html
Mobile browsers have come a long way in a relatively short time. In a way, webOS, iPhone OS and Android users have been kind of spoiled by the fast and easy-to-use browsers installed on their devices by default. For these sorts of users, it's easy to forget that much of the mobile world would rather avoid opening its default mobile browser at all. Opera may be the most prominent third-party solution to poor mobile browsing experience, but free browsers such as Bolt and Skyfire are quickly making a name as well.

Wed, 16 Dec 09
Google Gives URLs Shave and a Haircut
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68904.html
URL shortening -- a niche service that exploded into the mainstream along with Twitter -- has suddenly become a hotly competitive market, with a handful of new offerings. Market leader Bit.ly, as well as TinyURL and scores of other smaller players, now have to contend with Google and Facebook. The Google URL Shortener is currently available only in updated version of the Google Toolbar and FeedBurner. Facebook reportedly is readying its own service for launch.

Wed, 16 Dec 09
Save Yourself a Boatload of Hassle: Document
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68860.html
Remember the "Scantron" sheets that you had to fill out in school for taking standardized tests -- you know, the ones where you had to fill in the circle with a No. 2 pencil to mark your answer? Now imagine you're watching someone take a standardized math test -- you watch as they spend 15 minutes calculating the answer to a complicated problem. Then, after doing all that, they move on to the next problem without filling out the little circle on the answer sheet. Can you imagine someone doing that on purpose?

Wed, 16 Dec 09
Obama Techs Find Missing Pieces of Bush-Era Email Puzzle
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68897.html
Computer technicians have found 22 million missing White House emails from the administration of President George W. Bush, and the Obama administration is searching for dozens more days' worth of potentially lost email from the Bush years, according to two groups that filed suit over the failure by the Bush White House to install an electronic record-keeping system. The two private groups said Monday they were settling the lawsuits they filed against the Executive Office of the President in 2007.

Wed, 16 Dec 09
Australia Aims to Wall Off Unwanted Web Content
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68898.html
Australia plans to introduce an Internet filtering system to block obscene and crime-linked Web sites despite concerns it will curtail freedoms and won't completely work. Adopting a mandatory screening system would make Australia one of the strictest Internet regulators among the world's democracies. Authoritarian regimes commonly impose controls. China drew international criticism earlier this year with plans to install filtering software on all PCs sold in the country.

Tue, 15 Dec 09
NASA's WISE Surveyor Sets Out to Illuminate Secrets of the Sky
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68888.html
Early Monday morning, NASA launched a spacecraft that will map the entire sky in infrared light with more sensitivity and resolution than has ever been possible before. A Delta II rocket carrying NASA's new Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California at 6:09 a.m. PST Monday and deposited the instrument into a polar orbit 326 miles above Earth. The space telescope is on a nine-month mission to record the infrared colors of the whole sky in greater detail than the previous infrared sky survey, conducted 26 years ago.

Tue, 15 Dec 09
Does 'X' Mark the Spot for Google's Nexus One?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68887.html
They are early Christmas presents from Google to technology reporters and bloggers eager to swallow up any news regarding the tech giant: tweeted weekend photos of Mountain View, Calif., employees testing an experimental Android phone of Google's own design. The photos, together with a Google blog post confirming that select employees around the world were putting a "mobile lab" through its paces, set off a round of speculation that the phone may be coming in early 2010, and that it might be an unlocked offering sold directly to consumers.

Tue, 15 Dec 09
A Lost Weekend With Windows 7
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68886.html
This is a story without a happy ending. For months I, like many others, had been bombarded with fawning reports about the latest edition of Microsoft's operating system, Windows 7. Admittedly, I was skeptical. Then I tried out a new laptop running the OS, and I was sold. I took to the software's new features like a vampire to blood. Viewing thumbnails of open documents from the task bar was great. Pinning items to it for swift access was terrific, too. This is so good, I thought, I should install it on my own desktop.

Tue, 15 Dec 09
Angry Users Rail About 27-Inch iMac Problems
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68890.html
Upwards of hundreds of users have posted negative comments about their brand-new iMac computers on the Web. The majority appear to reference problems with the displays, while a sizeable minority point to problems with the processor; some are complaints about cracked screens. Most of the reports were about problems with 27-inch iMacs. Apple Web sites show there's now a two-week delivery lead time for these PCs. This is apparently so Apple can replace the graphics card.

Tue, 15 Dec 09
Imagining an IBM, Apple Merger: iApple?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68852.html
I've often wondered what you would get if you combined Apple and IBM. The two companies have little overlap today in either customers or products, and both have what the other lacks to grow their respective markets significantly. While the cultural issues would likely make such a merger not only inadvisable but impossible to actually do, both firms could learn a lot from the other. So, I'm not suggesting the two companies will merge, though stranger things could happen, but I thought it would be fun to showcase how each could benefit from the other.

Tue, 15 Dec 09
Geek Holiday Guide: Gifts, Stress-Busters and a Fast Track to Jan. 4
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68885.html
Now that the holiday season has descended upon us once again -- or, come crashing down on us, depending on your perspective -- it seems safe to say that not everyone is filled with glee at the prospect of the countless determinedly cheerful festivities and gift-giving occasions looming on the horizon. No, shocking though it may be for the chatty extroverts and perky party planners of the world, the fact remains that for some of us, the holiday season is primarily a time to be endured, with only occasional bits of peace and quiet to get us through.

Tue, 15 Dec 09
Dexim Dock Links iPod, iPhone to Home Entertainment Center
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68864.html
Just in time for the holidays, accessory maker Dexim has beefed up its product lineup with a new entertainment dock and a compact battery extender for the iPod and iPhone. The entertainment dock adds more muscle to a product released by the company earlier this year. It allows audio and video to be played or streamed from an iPhone or iPod to a home entertainment system. Using the WiFi capabilities of the iPhone or iPod touch, an operator can surf the Net, showcase photos, display video on an HDTV, and listen to music on a home stereo system.

Mon, 14 Dec 09
Robots in the Home? Be Afraid
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68835.html
Eric Horvitz illustrates the potential dilemmas of living with robots by telling the story of how he once got stuck in an elevator at Stanford Hospital with a droid the size of a washing machine. "I remembered thinking, 'Whoa, this is scary,' as it whirled around, almost knocking me down," the Microsoft researcher recalled. "Then, I thought, 'What if I were a patient?' There could be big issues here." We're still far from the sci-fi dream of having robots whirring about and catering to our every need.

Sun, 13 Dec 09
Nook E-Reader: Two Screens Are Not Better Than One
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68862.html
The e-book reading device is the gadget gift of the season. Both Sony and Barnes & Noble have sold out of their new models, and new buyers will have to wait until January for delivery. So why are e-book readers still such clumsy, annoying devices? I've been trying Barnes & Noble $259 Nook for a few days, and I'm not eager to prolong the acquaintance. Some of its problems are specific to the Nook, but most of them have to do with the screen technology the industry has settled on.

Sat, 12 Dec 09
Search Giants Rev Up Innovation Engines
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68881.html
The war in the search engine market has evolved from a contest of speed and scale to one of innovation. Google, Microsoft and Yahoo have all tied in with Twitter for real-time search. Google and Bing are also focusing on visual search, although the two define that term differently. In addition, Bing has teamed up with Wolfram Alpha in the math and health areas. Google fired the latest shot in the innovation wars with its announcement Thursday that users of the Google Search Appliance can now call up tweets next to their internal search results.

Sat, 12 Dec 09
Lunascape 6 Orion: A Browser That's Worth the Switch
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68878.html
Lunascape, a newcomer to the growing field of Web browsers, released its official/stable version of Lunascape 6 Orion on Friday, a little more than one month after introducing the Alpha version. Orion is an innovative browser that could easily win over users from popular browsers Firefox and Opera. Orion's features can change the competing browser landscape. It lets users configure their Web browsing settings to duplicate their favorite features in other browsers.

Sat, 12 Dec 09
Facebook's Bossy, Cagey Privacy Maneuvers
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68874.html
In making a move meant to enhance user privacy, Facebook went about things in a kind of intrusive way this week. As you know, the site started out as a college-kids-only social network, and the content you'd find on Facebook at that time reflected the demographic in all its boozy glory. But now Facebook's for everyone, and it's a serious enterprise, so the company felt compelled to give a stern lecture to all of its members, regardless of age, reminding them to grow up and review their privacy settings, lest the photos of their silly antics with a bottle of Captain Morgan be exposed to the world at large.

Sat, 12 Dec 09
The Android Market: Where's the Ad for That?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68875.html
The iPhone was calling me. It was daring me to run free down the aisles of the Apple App Store in much the same way my 3-year-old son does in our neighborhood Toys 'R' Us. But my cellphone is my business phone, and I wasn't about to walk AT&T's network tightrope. I'd been a Verizon customer for nearly 10 years and was happy with the service, despite having to settle for a fair-to-middling handset lineup. Yet new Android touchscreen smartphones beckoned, so when my flip phone developed a bad case of swine flu, I chose an Eris. Like Indy, I chose wisely.

Sat, 12 Dec 09
The New FOSS Frontier: The Database Market
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68871.html
Linux and open source middleware JBoss has made its mark in the enterprise, and it is just a matter of time before open source becomes mainstream in other functional parts of the IT infrastructure as well. Where exactly that will happen, however, is the interesting question. With most companies spending 10 to 20 percent of their revenue on enterprise software, many IT managers would love to see more enterprise-class open source options. However, IT architects and project managers of IT tend to be cautious.

Fri, 11 Dec 09
Facebook App Devs Can See Your Private Parts
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68869.html
You may have taken time out from playing "Mafia Wars," "FarmVille" or answering that "Which Muppet Are You?" quiz to update your privacy settings on Facebook this week. However, when you were clicking on your choices for who could see your updates and personal data, did you happen to notice any mention of those third-party applications involving games, quizzes and other outside software linking up to the world's largest social media network? How much access to your personal info do the developers of these apps have?

Fri, 11 Dec 09
WiGig Alliance Cranks Out Speedy New Data Standard
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68868.html
Home entertainment systems could soon see much higher wireless transmission speeds -- possibly of up to 7 gigabits per second -- if the plans of the Wireless Gigabit Alliance continue on course. The Alliance, members of which include companies in the chip, mobile phone and telecommunications industries, announced the completion of its unified wireless specification on Wednesday. The spec uses the 60 GHz spectrum and will enable data transfer at rates more than 10 times faster than today's wireless LANs. It will be offered for implementation in the first quarter of 2010.

Fri, 11 Dec 09
Human Capacity for Information Is Massive but Finite
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68865.html
The amount of information consumed by Americans in 2008 totaled 3.6 zettabytes and 10,845 trillion words, according to a report released Dec. 9 by researchers at the University of California at San Diego. For an average person on an ordinary day, this represents 34 gigabytes and 100,500 words. "I think the primary finding of this report tells us humans have a finite capacity to receive and process information," said lead researcher Roger Bohn, a professor of management and director of the Global Information Industry Center at UCSD.

Fri, 11 Dec 09
Winning the Botnet Wars
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68863.html
Botnets embody the ultimate blended threat. Botnet code carries almost every conceivable form of malware -- from spyware to downloaders, rootkits, spam engines and more. To answer like with like, defenders must employ multiple layers of security. The good news is that time-honored techniques are still surprisingly effective against botnets. Taking the following countermeasures can greatly mitigate the likelihood of a bot infection operating from your network.

Fri, 11 Dec 09
Could Linux Use Some Bells and Whistles?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68861.html
With the Season of Giving hard upon us once again, it's a safe bet that many of us are thinking about glitter. Not just glitter, but glitz, sparkle and shine, jingle, bells and whistles. Such, after all, are the qualities gifts -- and the holidays in general -- are often expected to have, and manufacturers of everything from ornaments to iPods do their best to make it happen. What, one might ask, about operating systems? Should they, too, have shiny, splashy, gotta-have features to make them sparkle in users' eyes?

Fri, 11 Dec 09
Chrome for Mac Needs a Bit More Shine
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68857.html
There's nothing really wrong with Google's new beta of its Chrome browser for Mac. There are a couple of interesting features, but there's just nothing really fantastic about it either. Google's a big company with plenty of money, and they play with big-boy toys, so they can take the honest truth: Seriously, I was expecting more. Chrome for Windows has been available for more than a year, and the beta for Mac users isn't close to parity with Windows yet. Chrome for Mac does, however, show promise in a few areas, so I'll banish the negativity and focus on the the good.

Thu, 10 Dec 09
Facebook Forces Users to Get With Its Privacy Program
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68854.html
Facebook users are now being required to review and update their privacy settings in light of changes the company has made to its privacy controls. The latest round of changes include the elimination of Facebook's regional networks, the implementation of granular settings for individual pieces of content, and a simplified privacy settings page. Those changes were officially launched on Wednesday, and now Facebook says it is the first major Internet service to require that its 350 million users review and update their privacy settings as a result.

Thu, 10 Dec 09
Twitter, MySpace to Shower Devs With Data
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68853.html
Wednesday announcements from Twitter and MySpace further indicated that social networking is now part of mainstream computing. At LeWeb, the European Internet event held in Paris, Twitter announced that it is opening up its data stream to all developers. Meanwhile, MySpace, which lags behind Facebook in the social networking scene, has released free application programming interfaces and launched an application developer contest. Twitter will make what it called its "fire hose" of data available to all developers in 2010.

Thu, 10 Dec 09
Securing Web Apps: Build Then Patch or Rebuild From Scratch?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68848.html
In the early days of business computing, data was shipped from corporate locations to a central server. To spare enterprises the hands-on control of the process, third-party service providers handled the freight. Today, that same business model for massive off-site data storage and application delivery has a more nebulous name: cloud computing. A new name, larger server farms, often unknown locations of the so-called clouds -- the process is almost like online banking, where you never actually visit a physical location to check on your deposits and make hands-on cash withdrawals.

Thu, 10 Dec 09
Boxee Swings for Spot in Set-Top Box Ring
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68836.html
The Boxee video-on-demand software maker aims to change the way consumers get free movie and TV entertainment from the Internet with its first hardware venture, called "Boxee Box." The open source software company debuted its new hardware device at the Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Monday. The new device, essentially a TV set-top box, will augment the current beta software that's available so far only to invited testers. Boxee officials expect to have the first consumer TV boxes on sale for around US$200 during the second quarter of 2010.

Thu, 10 Dec 09
'Zelda: Spirit Tracks' - Thorny Challenges Make Up for Cuteness
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68851.html
It's easy to take a series like "The Legend of Zelda" for granted. With more than a dozen releases over 23 years, even the most dedicated "Zelda" fan can be forgiven for having skipped a game or two. Some of those games -- the original and 1998's "Ocarina of Time" -- are justly regarded as landmarks. Some admirers prefer darker-tinged entries like 2000's "Majora's Mask" and 2006's "Twilight Princess." The one title that divided "Zelda" loyalists most was 2003's "The Wind Waker," which gave protagonist Link a younger, more cartoony appearance.

Wed, 9 Dec 09
JooJoo Rises From CrunchPad's Ashes
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68838.html
Fusion Garage plans to pursue product development of the controversial Web PC formerly known as the "CrunchPad," CEO Chandra Rathakrishnan announced via video conference on Monday. The purpose of the conference was to address a controversy over product rights, as well as highlight features of the product's design, Rathakrishnan said. Aside from sporting a new name -- "JooJoo," a play on "juju," an African term for "magic" -- the PC doesn't appear to differ much from the original CrunchPad design concept.

Wed, 9 Dec 09
VSS Enterprise to Take Adventurous and Affluent on Space Jaunts
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68837.html
You couldn't find a more appropriate name for the world's first commercial spaceship, which Virgin Galactic officially unveiled to the world and the media Monday night at California's Mojave Air and Space Port. The SpaceShipTwo reusable suborbital plane is now the Virgin Space Ship Enterprise, and it represents a business undertaking worthy of a James T. Kirk-led mission: private spaceflight. "I think they were on track using that name," Spaceflight Now reporter and former CNN contributor David Waters told TechNewsWorld.

Wed, 9 Dec 09
Google Sharpens Search With Real-Time Results, Android Photo Finder
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68840.html
Google on Monday announced expansions to its search service that will provide real-time content to update search results. Google also demonstrated Google Goggles, a visual search application that calls up information from Google's databases when people take a photo of objects with their Android phones. In addition, the Internet search giant announced partnerships with several prominent social networking sites. The new real-time search capabilities provide the latest information to Google searchers.

Wed, 9 Dec 09
Apple Goes Medieval on App Store Developer for Faking Reviews
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68844.html
Apple has taken the extreme step of yanking all 1,000 apps produced by Molinker after it learned that the Chinese developer had faked glowing reviews of its apps to drive up ratings and increase its downloads. The fraud was first reported by the iPhoneography blog late last month. It was brought to iPhoneography's attention by a reader, Patrick Timney, who spotted similarities in reviews -- many of which were apparently very poorly written -- all praising apps developed by Molinker.

Wed, 9 Dec 09
Sustainability Software, Part 2: Cutting the Paper Chase
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68834.html
Paper and packaging, those essential components of modern life, have a massive impact on the environment and so constitute a prime target for sustainable development and practices and the software that makes it all possible. Paper manufacturing is the third largest user of fossil fuels worldwide, according to the American Forest and Paper Association. The U.S. Toxic Release Inventory report published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency states that pulp and paper mills are among the worst polluters to air, water and land of any industry in the country.

Wed, 9 Dec 09
The iPhone as Teacher's Pet
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68833.html
Ariana Leonard's high school students shuffled in their seats, eagerly awaiting a cue from their Spanish teacher that the assignment would begin. "Take out your cellphones," she said in Spanish. The teens pulled out an array of colorful flip phones, iPhones and SideKicks. They divided into groups and Leonard began sending them text messages in Spanish: Find something green. Go to the cafeteria. Take a picture with the school secretary. Leonard's class is one of a growing number that are incorporating cellphones into classroom lessons.

Wed, 9 Dec 09
Google Pledges to Open AppJet EtherPads After User Outcry
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68832.html
Everyone makes mistakes now and then; the hard part is admitting it. Yet that seems to be just what Google did on Saturday following its acquisition of AppJet, maker of the EtherPad collaborative word processor. The news first broke last Friday, when it was announced on the EtherPad blog that Google had acquired San Francisco-based AppJet. AppJet's EtherPad is sometimes likened to Google Docs, but with the addition of real-time collaborative capabilities.

Tue, 8 Dec 09
Intel Puts Larrabee Chip on Ice
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68830.html
Just one month after setting a new processing speed record with its Larrabee project, Intel has shelved plans to put out a new graphics chip based on that technology. Instead, it will use the technology as a software development platform for internal and external use in high-performance computing. However, Intel has not killed plans for Larrabee-based graphics chips entirely. "Additional plans for discrete graphics products will be discussed sometime in 2010," Intel spokesperson Nick Knupffer told TechNewsWorld.

Tue, 8 Dec 09
New Facebook Advisory Board Targets Online Dangers
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68829.html
Just days after news that it had helped identify and disable the accounts of more than 2,700 registered New York sex offenders, Facebook on Sunday announced that it has created an external advisory board on the topic of online safety. The Facebook Safety Advisory Board comprises five leading Internet safety organizations from North America and Europe and will serve in a consultative capacity to the company on issues related to online safety. In a related move, Facebook last week also overhauled its privacy controls to help protect users better.

Tue, 8 Dec 09
Droid: Easy, Breezy, Friendly, but a Little Fat
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68821.html
Up to now, if you wanted a smartphone with power and without complexity, the only orchard you could go to was Apple's. With the arrival of the Motorola Droid, though, that's changed. The Droid uses Google's Android operating system. It's not as slick as the OS in Apple's iPhone, but it's still a breeze to use, and it has some tricks of its own, like voice search. Yes, you can talk to this phone, and it will fill in your search terms. It's accurate, too. As a goof, I asked it to find "chronosynclastic infundibulum," and performed the search without a sneeze.

Tue, 8 Dec 09
How Google Could Kill Microsoft (and Maybe Apple) and Vice Versa
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68811.html
I've been spending a lot of time thinking about the battle between Google and Microsoft and how it is largely counterproductive for both companies. Since I spent a lot of my life in competitive analysis, I thought it might be fun to set out a strategy of how Google could take out Microsoft (which it is partially executing) and how Microsoft could take out Google (which it also is partially executing) and consider whether either one of these firms has any hope of being successful. So that's my focus for this week.

Tue, 8 Dec 09
Is 'Ethical Malware' an Oxymoron or a Best Practice?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68824.html
Every community has its heroes, and here in the world of Linux there's no doubt that Linus Torvalds is one of them. Linus featured more prominently than usual in the Linux blogosphere over the past week, in fact, and not just because he released version 2.6.32 of the Linux kernel. Exciting though a new release may be, an even bigger discussion on the Linux blogs last week was of a very different nature. An Obama-ish nature, you might say, or an Al Gore-ish one. Yes, there was serious discussion of the possibility of a Nobel Peace Prize for our favorite Finn!

Tue, 8 Dec 09
BassJump Takes the Low Road to Better MacBook Sound
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68815.html
For their size, the speakers in Apple's MacBooks deliver very good sound, but they are rather weak in the bass department. That needn't be so, though, with the addition of a new product from Twelve South called "BassJump." BassJump is a portable subwoofer for MacBooks. A subwoofer enhances mid and low frequency output from speakers and gives them a richer sound. The unit connects to a MacBook through a USB port and draws its power from that port, too.

Mon, 7 Dec 09
New 3-D Laptops: Not Much to See Here
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68803.html
In its search for another technology to excite us, the consumer electronics industry is reaching deep -- into the third dimension. The big push for 3-D TV won't happen until next year, but already we can get a taste of 3-D in the home -- on laptops. AsusTek and Acer both have new models with screens that can show both games and movies in true 3-D, if you're willing to wear glasses. Testing these has been fun. Many games work with 3-D screens.

Sun, 6 Dec 09
Social Networking and the Celebrity Foot-in-Mouth Syndrome
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68774.html
So, you fail to take a deep breath and to count to 10 -- and you post something you probably shouldn't on Twitter or Facebook, or somewhere else online. Hopefully it blows over without doing too much damage, but what if you're famous and have thousands, if not millions of virtual followers? NFL star Larry Johnson was released by the Kansas City Chiefs after questioning his coach and posting gay slurs for all the world to see. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was criticized for a video that was posted as a "thank you" to constituents for suggesting budget cuts.

Sat, 5 Dec 09
New Study Calms Cellphone Cancer Fears - for Now
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68818.html
Could heavy cellphone users be more likely to suffer brain cancer? Scientists and researchers aren't sure, but they're locked in debate. Results of a study published by Scandinavian researchers in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute on Thursday indicated there doesn't seem to be any such link between cellphones and the incidence of brain tumors. However, the World Health Organization insists there may in fact be such a link. The Scandinavian study looked at the incidence of glioma and meningioma.

Sat, 5 Dec 09
The UN, Climategate and the Viral Web's Hot Air
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68817.html
The United Nations has jumped into the controversy involving leaked emails on climate change data from the University of East Anglia, with a senior UN official saying Friday that his agency would investigate the matter. The news may prompt a new series of blog posts, tweets and emails from climate change skeptics, who have used the scandal -- and the Web -- in recent days to advance claims of a conspiracy against their views among the media and scientific community. Scientists, in turn, may have to take some supplemental courses in communications in an Internet-centric world.

Sat, 5 Dec 09
A Painful Social Media Foray for Seattle Journalists
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68805.html
It is one of the saddest, most shocking stories for a journalist to cover: the murder of a law enforcement official. Four Lakewood, Wash., police officers were shot to death at a Tacoma-area coffee shop Sunday morning -- apparently targeted just because they were cops -- and a dangerous, armed suspect was sought in the Puget Sound region for nearly 48 hours. As in any large metropolitan area, Seattle's media organizations ramped up their coverage, sent reporters everywhere, marshaled all their resources to tell this story in an accurate, timely fashion.

Sat, 5 Dec 09
Google Expands Its Empire With Public DNS Service
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68812.html
It already handles your Gmail and eventually wants to have you surf its Wave. It hopes you'll take a shine to Chrome. It assigns you a phone number so you can have a Voice. You use its applications to compose professional, smart-looking Docs when you're not being a messy, profane Blogger. It has desires for the world's Books. Then there's that whole web Search thing. In addition to every other aspect of your technology-centric life where Google has planted its flag, the company on Thursday announced that it was launching Public DNS, its own domain name service.

Sat, 5 Dec 09
Hawk's 'Ride' - Everything Except the Fresh Air
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68814.html
"Tony Hawk: Ride" is a groundbreaking video game that fits right in with the namesake skating legend's no-rough-edges appeal. It's a silky smooth experience with an inventive wireless skate deck controller and a friendly learning curve -- but watch out. You can fall here too. More on that later. After connecting and calibrating the board in the Xbox 360 version of the game, I selected a character with skin, hair and clothes to suit my taste. The moment of truth came when I stepped on the controller board.

Fri, 4 Dec 09
Bing Maps Beta Opens New Avenues of Exploration
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68801.html
Taking on one of Google's most popular Web applications, Microsoft introduced a beta for Bing Maps that incorporates improved imagery, 3-D photographs and street views using tools made possible by its Silverlight technology. The Streetside feature puts users on street level, letting them walk around to find "that good parking lot," for example, "or figure out exactly where the door to the club is located," according to a blog post by Satya Nadella, Microsoft's senior VP for online services.

Fri, 4 Dec 09
Can Nanotech Cure Breast Cancer?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68790.html
Winning the fight against cancer may end up being more of a nano-war than a surgical strike. A team led by the National Institute of Standards and Technology has just successfully combined an antibody with single-walled nanotubes to create a precision search-and-destroy weapon that targets aggressive forms of breast cancer. These tiny dual-mode weapons strike at the molecular level, delivering the kill in two ways: The antibody attacks the HER2 protein; and the nanotubes detect and blow up invading tumor cells.

Fri, 4 Dec 09
Home Sweet Networked Home, Part 2
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68800.html
So far, most home networking deployments are one-off or are limited to a certain function, such as entertainment. Home networking becomes truly interesting when it is applied to all of a house's systems and its energy supply, said Raoul Wijgergangs, chairman of the Z-Wave Alliance. "There are solutions out there that when you leave your house, you [indicate] that to your cellphone," he said, "and the Z-Wave certified system switches off all the lights, reduces the temperature since you'll be gone, locks the doors, and programs the alarm."

Fri, 4 Dec 09
United We Stand: The Power of Aggregated Broadband
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68771.html
Bandwidth aggregation products, such as WAN link controllers, enable a business to purchase multiple low-cost network connections and combine them to give it the total bandwidth required. The customer can then easily and flexibly add bandwidth as the organization's Internet usage increases. As an organization grows, so does the number of employees, partners and customers that use its network. A company may find itself needing more bandwidth to connect its organization to the Internet, or new leased line connections for its remote offices.

Fri, 4 Dec 09
Is Bad Documentation Derailing Linux?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68798.html
There's nothing like weeks of ongoing conversation on the Linux blogs to suggest a topic has struck a chord. Sure enough, that's exactly what's been going on since the middle of last month. The topic? Documentation. Not good documentation, mind you -- the bad kind. The kind Linux Today's Carla Schroder calls "Linux Bug #1." "The Internet and Google enable laziness in FOSS development because they make it too easy to abdicate the job of proper documentation to 'The community,'" Schroder began in a blog post a few weeks ago.

Fri, 4 Dec 09
'Edgy's' Cube Craziness Returns - Hopefully for Good
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68781.html
The story of "Edgy" sounds like an iPhone developer's worst nightmare. You create a game that includes a lot of intricate puzzles and levels. Lots of time goes into it, so you think it's appropriate to charge a moderate amount, as iPhone games go. There seems to be no reason for the App Store to reject it -- no shaken babies, no naked ladies, no Internet tethering, just clean old puzzle-solving fun. Approval is granted, public reaction is generally positive, and it seems you've caught your little piece of the iPhone dream.

Fri, 4 Dec 09
Republicans Bash White House Scientists in Climate Email Hearing
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68802.html
House Republicans pointed to controversial emails leaked from climate scientists and said it was evidence of corruption. Top administration scientists looking at the same thing found no such sign, saying it doesn't change the fact that the world is warming. The emails from a British university's climate center were obtained by computer hackers and posted online about two weeks ago. Climate change skeptics contend the messages reveal that researchers manipulated and suppressed data and stifled dissent, and conservative bloggers are dubbing it "Climategate."

Thu, 3 Dec 09
Civilization's High Stakes Cyber-Struggle: Q&A With Gen. Wesley Clark (ret.)
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68787.html
In wanting to give peace a chance, the Dalai Lama and John Lennon don't have much company; fighting and causing trouble seem to be the preference of most of the world. The conflicts in the Middle East and Afghanistan, to name the most prominent, are taking their toll on human life and limb. However, the escalating cyberconflict among nations is far more dangerous, argues retired general Wesley Clark, who spoke with TechNewsWorld in an exclusive interview.

Thu, 3 Dec 09
Facebook Hones Privacy Settings, Scraps Regional Networks
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68795.html
Some five months after Facebook began testing a series of changes to its privacy controls, CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday announced that the popular social network has now decided to make them official for its 350 million users worldwide. The company will soon eliminate regional networks as a way of connecting users, and it will also add settings that allow users to control who sees each individual piece of content they create or upload.

Thu, 3 Dec 09
Social Networkers to Chase Red Balloons for $40K Prize
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68788.html
In the 1956 Oscar-winning short film "The Red Balloon," it was the balloon that did all the chasing of a little French boy. This weekend, you can turn the tables on the helium-filled children's playthings as part of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and its Network Challenge -- a race to be the first to find the locations of 10 red balloons somewhere in the continental U.S. However, unlike the cable-friendly antics of a certain notorious Colorado family, this balloon chase is on the up-and-up.

Thu, 3 Dec 09
Robotic Hand 'Felt Almost the Same' as Real Thing
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68789.html
A group of European scientists said Wednesday they have successfully connected a robotic hand to an amputee, allowing him to feel sensations in the artificial limb and control it with his thoughts. The experiment lasted a month, and scientists say it was the first time a patient has been able to make complex movements using his mind to control a biomechanical hand connected to his nervous system. The Italian-led team said at a news conference Wednesday in Rome that last year it implanted electrodes into the arm of the patient who had lost his left hand and forearm in a car accident.

Thu, 3 Dec 09
VirtualBox 3.1 Aims to Bag Enterprise Market
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68777.html
Sun Microsystems this week released VirtualBox 3.1, including several key enterprise features aimed at maintaining minimal downtime on virtual servers. VirtualBox 3.1 has the ability to "teleport" virtual servers -- move running virtual machines uninterrupted between disparate hosts on different operating systems and computer classes. It also includes a full suite of enterprise hypervisor features. In addition, VirtualBox 3.1 offers more powerful snapshotting features that help administrators move a virtual machine backward or forward in time to any arbitrary snapshot state.

Thu, 3 Dec 09
Internet Needs Structural Revamping to Keep Growing
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68791.html
Internet traffic has continued to explode even during the global economic recession, but computing experts said it won't be able to keep growing indefinitely unless online service providers widely adopt an upgrade in the Net's fundamental structure. Computer network authorities spoke on Tuesday about the pressing need to expand the number of Internet addresses at the annual convention of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers in Honolulu.

Wed, 2 Dec 09
2009 Web Searches Driven by a King's Death, Vampire Love
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68783.html
What do Michael Jackson, Twitter and Swine Flu have in common? Answer: They were all among the most common search terms this year, according to reports released by the big search engines. Google, for example, published its year-end Zeitgeist report on Tuesday, including a list of the fastest-rising Google searches, or those that reflected the greatest surge in interest in the past year. Notable presences included not just Michael Jackson -- who led the fastest-rising list globally -- but also pop singer Lady Gaga, who weighed in at No. 7.

Wed, 2 Dec 09
Sustainability Software, Part 1: It's Easy Being Green
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68770.html
As the decades-old "sustainability" movement goes mainstream, many businesses are looking to software to make the eco-cause concept functional -- and profitable -- for them. Companies are facing accountability and responsibility demands regarding their roles in rescuing humanity and saving planet Earth from global warming, climate change, environmental degradation and the exhaustion of basic resources like fossil fuels. The pressure is coming from all sides.

Wed, 2 Dec 09
Fix May Revive PCs Plagued by Mysterious Black Screen of Death
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68779.html
Millions of Windows users could potentially be affected by a computer glitch that results in a "black screen of death" after a security update is made, UK security firm Prevx reported in a blog post. Users that are affected log on to find there is no desktop, task bar, system tray or side bar. "Instead you are left with a totally black screen and a single My Computer Explorer window," reads the post. "Even this window might be minimized making it hard to see."

Wed, 2 Dec 09
Need an App? Ask Your Creative Technologist
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68776.html
Digital advertising is evolving beyond the desktop computer, leaving companies relying solely on Web sites and display advertising woefully behind the eight ball. More and more, brands are relying on software development to create engaging consumer experiences that span multiple open platforms. Branded mobile applications are fast becoming an important element of this new digital ecosystem as evidenced by Apple's announcement that its App Store had surpassed 100,000 apps in early November.

Wed, 2 Dec 09
Dell Offers Unpolished Chrome OS for Mini Netbooks
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68775.html
Less than a week after Google released the code for its Chrome OS, Dell announced that it has succeeded in getting the operating system up and running on its Mini 10v netbook. "Without a network connection, ChromiumOS is not very interesting," company blogger and technology strategist Doug Anson wrote on the Direct2Dell blog last week. "With a network connection, ChromiumOS shines. The Chromium browser is extremely fast and makes for a great web-centric browsing experience."

Wed, 2 Dec 09
A Guide for the HD Auteur on Your List
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68780.html
It's easier than ever to shoot high-definition video. You can do it with traditional-style camcorders, of course, but also with cameras that also are designed to take still photos -- from high-end digital SLRs to cameras that slip into your shirt pocket. I've got recommendations in all three categories -- listed here from least to most expensive. All of these record HD video and have HDMI output connections that let you view your masterpieces on an HD display.

Tue, 1 Dec 09
Large Hadron Collider Shatters Energy Record
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68767.html
The Large Hadron Collider created by CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, officially became the world's highest-energy particle accelerator on Monday. The enormous facility has sent two beams of protons shooting through its ring at 1.18 teraelectronvolts. It happened 10 days after scientists started up the collider again following a one-year hiatus due to technical problems. The previous record of 0.98 TeV was set by the U.S. Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory's Tevatron collider in 2001.

Tue, 1 Dec 09
5 Highly Avoidable Network Management Bungles
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68749.html
Ask any IT organization to identify the No. 1 cause of network performance problems, and they'll probably point to high-profile events: denial-of-service attacks, computer viruses, fiber cuts, power outages or hardware failures. However, studies show that more than two-thirds of network issues are actually tied to a simple everyday activity: The ungoverned process of IT staff making network configuration changes. Change is an opportunity for mistake. Internal errors -- often inadvertent -- can take a heavy toll on overall network performance.

Tue, 1 Dec 09
Who Wins, Who Loses if Google's Chrome OS Takes Off?
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68737.html
Google's Chrome OS is really a copy of several products already on the market and an interesting recreation of the thin client concept that Sun and Oracle came up with over a decade ago. You could argue, however, that most successful products, like the iPod and iPhone, are simply better copies of what came before. Really, nobody cares that much -- consumers only care about whether a new offering will make their lives better. The Google Chrome OS goes directly to a primary need that mainstream PC users have had unmet since the beginning: an appliance experience.

Tue, 1 Dec 09
Mac Mini Gets Down to Business
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68761.html
Cyberpunk author William Gibson once wrote, "The street finds its own use for things." That's been the case for the Mac mini since its introduction in 2005. Originally marketed as a personal computer, it quickly gained street cred as a media server for the blossoming digital living room. Now Apple has given its mighty mite a proper server configuration in the hopes of moving the white box from the home to the office. The Mac mini with Snow Leopard Server was introduced last month. Save for the absence of a SuperDrive slot, the unit looks much the same as any other mini.

Tue, 1 Dec 09
One More Turkey? 'Fired for Using Linux'
http://www.technewsworld.com/rsstory/68754.html
The Linux Blog Safari "Tech Turkeys" column may have come and gone, but there's one more story to share that could almost have been included. What else can you call it, after all, when a Linux professional is apparently fired for using Linux? Sound too strange to be true? Better read on. The story involves an American principal, an Indian contracting company, a "large computer/server company with three letters in their name" and a "large credit card company with four letters in their name," as HeliOS's Ken Starks discreetly put it.