A psychologist at Grant MacEwan University in Canada sees video games as "practice" for controlling your dreams. Jayne Gackenbach presented her work for discussion at the Sixth Annual Games for Health Conference in Boston this week.
Sunday, May 30, 2010
The Sims 3: World Adventures
What more could EA possibly do with a Sims 3 expansion that hasn't already been done in the numerous Sims 1 and 2 packs? Apparently, quite a bit.
In The Sims 3: World Adventures, your Sim is given the exclusive ability to travel to real-world locales such as China, Egypt and France. This is no ordinary "vacation" pack, however; in past expansions, Sims would visit areas that were little more than freshly re-skinned stages with hardly anything new to do from a gameplay perspective. Here, players will actually investigate underground tombs, solve puzzles, and find hidden treasures, all the while exploring a variety of beautiful backdrops. Of course, this is still The Sims we're talking about, so you'll still be able to stock up on new decor, furniture, clothing, and themes -- all with an international flair.
Server found with 44 million stolen online game accounts
Leading antivirus product manufacturer Symantec recently came across a submitted database with an astounding amount of stolen gaming accounts. If each account came from a different person, the amount of affected players would be larger than the population of Argentina.
The database was populated by accounts from Chinese online gamers who had their information stolen by a password checker. The 44 million stolen accounts take up roughly 17GB of space and include passwords for at least 18 online gaming websites.'iPhone Killer' is Finally Here
Ronen Kadushin: Open design and the iphone killer from robertanderson on Vimeo.
A new open-source device that will kill any past, current, or even future iPhones may soon make its way to the market. It is also compatible with all iPads...and any Apple product for that matter. Ronen Kadushin presents to you, the iPhonekiller!
3G Roaming Ripoffs Follow Apple iPad on its World Tour
Today, the iPad frenzy begins in the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Australia, and Japan, as the hit slate goes on sale there today. In July, it will become available in Mexico, Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, and Hong Kong. This means that you can take your iPad to any of these countries and connect.
Carriers typically offer roaming for the iPad 3G, as they do for other mobile data devices. But they're exorbitant: AT&T, for example, charges $25 per month for a mere 20MB of data and $200 per month for 200MB for international roaming (even in Canada). And if you don't use that data allotment within 30 days, you lose the remaining data. By contrast, AT&T charges $15 for 250MB in the United States for a pay-as-you-go plan that expires at the end of the month you buy it.
Carriers typically offer roaming for the iPad 3G, as they do for other mobile data devices. But they're exorbitant: AT&T, for example, charges $25 per month for a mere 20MB of data and $200 per month for 200MB for international roaming (even in Canada). And if you don't use that data allotment within 30 days, you lose the remaining data. By contrast, AT&T charges $15 for 250MB in the United States for a pay-as-you-go plan that expires at the end of the month you buy it.
Microsoft Admits Windows Phone 7 Slide Was Wrong
During a presentation at the ReMix conference in Paris this week, Microsoft showed a slide that said IDC had forecast 30 million Windows Phone 7 devices would be sold by the end of 2011. The MobileTechWorld blog posted a photo of the French-language slide.
As it turns out, IDC had said no such thing about the future operating system, on which many observers believe Microsoft's mobile-phone future depends.
Instead, the research company forecast 2011 sales of 32 million devices running all Windows mobile operating systems. This includes expected sales of devices with Windows Mobile 6.5, which is already on the market. IDC has not given any sales estimate for Windows Phone 7, which Microsoft has said will be available in the fourth quarter.
As it turns out, IDC had said no such thing about the future operating system, on which many observers believe Microsoft's mobile-phone future depends.
Instead, the research company forecast 2011 sales of 32 million devices running all Windows mobile operating systems. This includes expected sales of devices with Windows Mobile 6.5, which is already on the market. IDC has not given any sales estimate for Windows Phone 7, which Microsoft has said will be available in the fourth quarter.
Hoverboard Project Takes Flight--and Actually Hovers
Sony Shows Rollable OLED Display (Video)
Sony has developed a flexible color display that's sturdy enough to be wrapped around a pencil while still showing video images. 
The screen will be detailed on Thursday at the Society for Information Display conference in Seattle and ahead of that Sony released a video of it in operation.
Jailbreaking the iPad
The iPad has recently been jailbroken. Even if you've held off jailbreaking your other iPhone OS devices, the iPad's substantially faster hardware and difficult-to-define "3rd device" role make the best case yet for jailbreaking. A user- and developer-updated compatibility list will help you see what's safe to install on your iPad, and I'll list my favorite apps and extensions for your freshly jailbroken device.
Apple's App Store has become notorious for its restrictive and often arbitrary decisions about what does and doesn't make it into the store. We've seen many pieces of quality software get denied or kicked out of the App Store, sometimes for unclear or unknown reasons.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
The lessons of Apple turning Microsoft into IBM
That’s the lesson of Apple’s overtaking Microsoft in market cap. It’s a lesson Microsoft first proved when it put IBM into its rear-view mirror many years ago.
(To the right, a five-year chart comparing Apple’s stock price with that of Microsoft, from Google Finance. Microsoft’s value is the flat line.)
The class market — complex computer systems used by enterprises — is not only less sexy than the mass market, but less profitable as well. Sales and profits don’t scale they way they do when you can just serve millions-and-millions of copies of something.
Is Apple vulnerable to ridicule?
At Google I/O 2010, something unprecedented happened - The search giant took Apple head on, and rather than whine about the competition, openly and pointedly ridiculed the company and its flagship iPhone product.
Is Apple vulnerable to ridicule?
Apple’s discontinued “I’m a Mac, and I’m a PC” ads mercilessly mocked and ridiculed Microsoft, and were highly effective in, if nothing else, drawing attention to the underdog Mac OS X platform. The ads highlighted weaknesses in the Windows Vista platform (both perceived and real) and magnified them, while at the same time poking fun at the OS and Microsoft, labeling the company as old, stuffy and corporate.
But times are a-changing. While Apple’s halo could outshine that of Microsoft, up against another hip, trendy company such as Google, Apple itself looks old, stuffy, set-in-its-ways. In fact, the Cupertino giant, a company that has built its reputation on being different and encouraging others to think different, looks an awful lot like a cultish, control-freak version of Microsoft from the 1990s.
Is Apple vulnerable to ridicule?Apple’s discontinued “I’m a Mac, and I’m a PC” ads mercilessly mocked and ridiculed Microsoft, and were highly effective in, if nothing else, drawing attention to the underdog Mac OS X platform. The ads highlighted weaknesses in the Windows Vista platform (both perceived and real) and magnified them, while at the same time poking fun at the OS and Microsoft, labeling the company as old, stuffy and corporate.
But times are a-changing. While Apple’s halo could outshine that of Microsoft, up against another hip, trendy company such as Google, Apple itself looks old, stuffy, set-in-its-ways. In fact, the Cupertino giant, a company that has built its reputation on being different and encouraging others to think different, looks an awful lot like a cultish, control-freak version of Microsoft from the 1990s.
Ubuntu Lucid Lynx 10.04 can read your iPhone's secrets
Do you have a PIN code on your iPhone? Well, while that might protect you from someone making a call or fiddling with your apps, it doesn’t prevent access to your data … as long as the person doing the snooping around is using Ubuntu “Lucid Lynx” 10.04.
Security experts Bernd Marienfeldt and Jim Herbeck discovered something really interesting when they hooked up a non-jailbroken, fully up-to-date iPhone 3GS to a PC running Lucid Lynx …
What’s more worrying is that Marienfeldt and Herbeck think that write access to the iPhone is only a buffer overflow away, which means serious access.
Security experts Bernd Marienfeldt and Jim Herbeck discovered something really interesting when they hooked up a non-jailbroken, fully up-to-date iPhone 3GS to a PC running Lucid Lynx …
I uncovered a data protection vulnerability [9], which I could reproduce on 3 other non jail broken 3GS iPhones (MC 131B, MC132B) with different iPhone OS versions installed (3.1.3-7E18 modem firmware 05.12.01 and version 3.1.2 -7D11, modem 05.11.07) , all PIN code protected which means the vulnerability bypasses authentication for various data where people most likely rely on data protection through encryption and do not expect that authentication is not in place.
This is what you get via an auto mount without any PIN request:
This data protection flaw exposes music, photos, videos, podcasts, voice recordings, Google safe browsing database, game contents… by in my opinion the quickest compromising read/write access discovered so far, without leaving any track record by the attacker. It’s about to imagine how many enterprises (e.g. Fortune 100) actually do rely on the expectation that their iPhone 3GS’s whole content is protected by encryption with an PIN code based authentication in place to unlock it.This, quite honestly, is a staggering flaw. It basically allows anyone capable of driving a Linux PC to copy data off of an iPhone without the owner of the phone having any idea whatsoever that this has happened.
What’s more worrying is that Marienfeldt and Herbeck think that write access to the iPhone is only a buffer overflow away, which means serious access.
Microsoft's social-networking lab launches new Twitter viewing tool
Microsoft’s Future Social Experiences Labs (FUSE) has launched another new project, codenamed “Project Emporia,” that is aimed at social-networking newbies to help them simplify their Twitter browsing/viewing experience.
The project, announced on May 27 at the Thinking Digital Conference in Gateshead, UK, is in alpha at this point. But it is open to anyone interested in trying it. Initially, only FUSE employees are able to access the like/dislike feature of the service, but that number will grow over time, according to the Softies.
The project, announced on May 27 at the Thinking Digital Conference in Gateshead, UK, is in alpha at this point. But it is open to anyone interested in trying it. Initially, only FUSE employees are able to access the like/dislike feature of the service, but that number will grow over time, according to the Softies.
Is Silverlight for iPhone finally on its way?
Developers are abuzz over a Wall Street analyst’s claim that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer may make an appearance at the upcoming Apple World Wide Developers Conference in early June. The speculation centers around talk that Ballmer himself may introduce some kind of add-on for Visual Studio 2010 to support development of iPhone apps using Microsoft’s tool suite.
While that’s possible — after all, there’s an add-on for Visual Studio 2010 that supports Windows Phone 7 development – I’m thinking something else may be afoot. If Ballmer is going to make a cameo appearance at WWDC, I’m thinking if such an announcement happens, it’ll be Silverlight for the iPhone.
Update: Microsoft (via Twitter) is denying Ballmer will be there, but maybe someone else from Microsoft will? No word on that….
Back to Silverlight and the iPhone…
While that’s possible — after all, there’s an add-on for Visual Studio 2010 that supports Windows Phone 7 development – I’m thinking something else may be afoot. If Ballmer is going to make a cameo appearance at WWDC, I’m thinking if such an announcement happens, it’ll be Silverlight for the iPhone.
Update: Microsoft (via Twitter) is denying Ballmer will be there, but maybe someone else from Microsoft will? No word on that….
Back to Silverlight and the iPhone…
kill IE6 campaign
Google expanded its anti-Internet Explorer 6 campaign Thursday by announcing that it will phase out support for the nine-year-old browser for its Google Reader service June 1.
Google Reader is an RSS (Really Simple Syndication) service that posts page updates, or "feeds," via the RSS or Atom standards.
Beginning June 1, Google Reader users running a slew of older browser -- including IE6; Firefox 1 and 2; Safari 2 and 3; and Chrome 1, 2. and 3 -- will see notifications urging them to upgrade to a newer edition.
"Reader is a cutting edge Web application, and this will allow us to spend our time improving Reader instead of fixing issues with antiquated browsers," said Mihai Parparita, an engineer with the Reader team, in a post to group's blog last Monday.
Elsewhere on Google's site, the search giant spelled out what the move meant to users still running IE6 and other outdated browsers.
Google Reader is an RSS (Really Simple Syndication) service that posts page updates, or "feeds," via the RSS or Atom standards.
Beginning June 1, Google Reader users running a slew of older browser -- including IE6; Firefox 1 and 2; Safari 2 and 3; and Chrome 1, 2. and 3 -- will see notifications urging them to upgrade to a newer edition.
"Reader is a cutting edge Web application, and this will allow us to spend our time improving Reader instead of fixing issues with antiquated browsers," said Mihai Parparita, an engineer with the Reader team, in a post to group's blog last Monday.
Elsewhere on Google's site, the search giant spelled out what the move meant to users still running IE6 and other outdated browsers.
Why Microsoft Should Never Make a Windows 7 Tablet
Microsoft had planned to enter the tablet market, but recently pulled the plug on its Courier prototype. Now, critics are claiming that Microsoft must develop something to challenge the Apple iPad and stake a claim in the tablet arena, or else. On the contrary, Microsoft should avoid the tablet frenzy and focus on its core strengths.
According to a blog post by Forrester analyst Sarah Rotman Epps, "Forrester estimates that tablets will outsell netbooks in the US starting in 2013, and tablets will constitute 20 percent of all PC sales in the US in 2015. Microsoft needs its operating system on those tablets." Epps focuses on arguments for why Microsoft needs to develop a Windows 7 tablet to capitalize both on the current tablet hype, as well as on its dominant position as the de facto operating system for 90 plus percent of the population. The arguments make sense on some levels, but miss the critical distinction that a tablet is different than a computer.
Google Wi-Fi Snooping
The continuing saga of Google's wireless snooping and the maelstrom it's generated won't end anytime soon. Peeved government officials in both Europe and the U.S. are pressing Google for more details on how the search company's Street View cars managed to cull personal data from Wi-Fi networks that weren't password-protected.
Google, in a May 17 blog post, owned up to the gaffe, which it called an accident. Despite the firm's mea culpa, a US District Court in Portland, Oregon on Monday ordered Google to turn over two copies of the data it collected from open Wi-Fi networks in the United States. And at least four lawsuits in California, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Washington D.C. have been filed by people accusing Google of violating their privacy, Reuters reports.
Google, in a May 17 blog post, owned up to the gaffe, which it called an accident. Despite the firm's mea culpa, a US District Court in Portland, Oregon on Monday ordered Google to turn over two copies of the data it collected from open Wi-Fi networks in the United States. And at least four lawsuits in California, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Washington D.C. have been filed by people accusing Google of violating their privacy, Reuters reports.
Europe's First Petaflop Computer
French server and services company Bull has just turned on a new supercomputer for the French Atomic Energy Authority (CEA) that it hopes will reach a peak performance of 1.25 petaflops later this year.
The machine will be used to simulate nuclear weapons, allowing the French armed forces to ensure the reliability of their nuclear deterrent without conducting live tests, the CEA said.
The Tera 100 contains 140,000 Intel Xeon 7500 processor cores and 300TB of memory, while the file system will have a throughput of 500GB/s and total storage of 20PB, Bull said.
If Bull attains its performance target, it will likely make Tera 100, as the computer is known, the most powerful in Europe, ahead of an IBM computer called Jugene at the Jülich research center in Germany
The machine will be used to simulate nuclear weapons, allowing the French armed forces to ensure the reliability of their nuclear deterrent without conducting live tests, the CEA said.
The Tera 100 contains 140,000 Intel Xeon 7500 processor cores and 300TB of memory, while the file system will have a throughput of 500GB/s and total storage of 20PB, Bull said.
If Bull attains its performance target, it will likely make Tera 100, as the computer is known, the most powerful in Europe, ahead of an IBM computer called Jugene at the Jülich research center in Germany
Paranoid's guide to using Google
Google is nearly everyone's best friend. But have you ever stopped to think about just how much Google knows about you?
Unless you sat out the last decade offline, you've likely been building a pretty thorough profile of yourself on Google Inc.'s servers. Depending on which of the dozens of Google services you use, data about your habits, interests, activities, schedule, professional pursuits, stock portfolio and medical history could be sitting somewhere on Google's servers -- along with records of the trip routes you've mapped, the Web sites you've visited and much more.
The good news is that Google anonymizes its server logs by removing the last three digits from the IP addresses associated with searches after nine months and by deleting the associated cookies after 18 months, which makes it very difficult to link you to searches that are more than 18 months old.
Facebook alternatives
Facebook claims to have more than 400 million active users. In fact, according to Web analytics firm Alexa, only Google is a more popular site. So, with all that going for it, why are so many users unhappy, with one poll showing that more than half of Facebook users are thinking about leaving?
The one-word answer: privacy. By default, Facebook has made almost everything on your account open to the world. You can lock down your Facebook account, but it's a tedious process.
New tools unveiled this week are designed to make this easier, but the next time Facebook changes its policies and system, you may need to do it all over again. There are also external tools that can check out just how secure your account is, but again, when Facebook changes its software, they may not work.
Last Monday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg finally admitted that Facebook has made some mistakes. Some users are staying put despite their distrust of the company. But others think it's too little too late and are talking loudly about leaving. There's even a group that has announced that May 31 is Quit Facebook Day.
Will a significant percentage of Facebook users actually leave? No matter its faults, Facebook has a huge user base, and those users, in turn, have all their friends on the service, all their photos and, yes, even all their Farmville farms. Will that many people really want to abandon Facebook and start all over with a new platform?
The one-word answer: privacy. By default, Facebook has made almost everything on your account open to the world. You can lock down your Facebook account, but it's a tedious process.
New tools unveiled this week are designed to make this easier, but the next time Facebook changes its policies and system, you may need to do it all over again. There are also external tools that can check out just how secure your account is, but again, when Facebook changes its software, they may not work.
Last Monday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg finally admitted that Facebook has made some mistakes. Some users are staying put despite their distrust of the company. But others think it's too little too late and are talking loudly about leaving. There's even a group that has announced that May 31 is Quit Facebook Day.
Will a significant percentage of Facebook users actually leave? No matter its faults, Facebook has a huge user base, and those users, in turn, have all their friends on the service, all their photos and, yes, even all their Farmville farms. Will that many people really want to abandon Facebook and start all over with a new platform?
Facebook Hacking
Attacks targeting Facebook users will continue, and they could easily become even more dangerous, a security researcher said today.
Over the last two weekends, cyber criminals have launched large-scale attacks using rogue Facebook applications that infect users of the popular social networking site with adware that puts pop-ups on their screens.
"There are limitations to what Facebook can do to stop this," said Patrik Runald, a U.K.-based researcher for Websense Security Labs. "I wouldn't be surprised to see another attack this weekend. Clearly, they work."
According to Roger Thompson, the chief technology officer at antivirus vendor AVG Technologies, last weekend's attack was about half the size of the one the weekend before. Both featured messages that used sex-oriented videos as bait to convince users to install a Facebook application and then download a purported update to a free video player program. The download was actually adware.
Over the last two weekends, cyber criminals have launched large-scale attacks using rogue Facebook applications that infect users of the popular social networking site with adware that puts pop-ups on their screens.
"There are limitations to what Facebook can do to stop this," said Patrik Runald, a U.K.-based researcher for Websense Security Labs. "I wouldn't be surprised to see another attack this weekend. Clearly, they work."
According to Roger Thompson, the chief technology officer at antivirus vendor AVG Technologies, last weekend's attack was about half the size of the one the weekend before. Both featured messages that used sex-oriented videos as bait to convince users to install a Facebook application and then download a purported update to a free video player program. The download was actually adware.
Hot Rumor: New Apple TV will run iPhone OS 4, use cloud storage, cost just $99
Engadget just published a hot tip that will make the living room war with Google TV a lot more interesting. According to the tipster, Apple TV will be back with a vengeance, with a new model running the iPhone OS, supporting 1080p video, and costing just $99.
While it would include 16GB of flash storage, the new version apparently will use cloud-based storage for most viewers’ needs. (Sooner or later, Apple’s purchase of Lala will need to pay off.) As a result, the unit will be a lot smaller, though buyers could still use Apple Time Capsules for external storage. Engadget speculates that since it will run the iPhone OS, apps from the smartphone could also run on your HDTV, which would extend the iPhone-Android war onto a different type of screen.
If true, is this a game changer in the battle for living room supremacy? Let us know your thoughts in the Comments section.
While it would include 16GB of flash storage, the new version apparently will use cloud-based storage for most viewers’ needs. (Sooner or later, Apple’s purchase of Lala will need to pay off.) As a result, the unit will be a lot smaller, though buyers could still use Apple Time Capsules for external storage. Engadget speculates that since it will run the iPhone OS, apps from the smartphone could also run on your HDTV, which would extend the iPhone-Android war onto a different type of screen.
If true, is this a game changer in the battle for living room supremacy? Let us know your thoughts in the Comments section.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Why Do We Trust Google More Than Facebook?
This morning Matt Asay found a thought-provoking new blog from someone with the alias Newclosed, who's inaugural post raises interesting questions about the role of Google in the IT community.
Things get going right away in the posting, which states in the lede: "I say Google is the new Microsoft and in many cases they are even worse."
Hoo boy.
You might think this is a going to be another screed that tries to fillet Google and ends up sounding like a lunatic's diatribe... but in actuality, it's a well-thought essay that lays out a compelling case.
The crux of the argument behind this statement is this: Microsoft is criticized for wanting to own too much of the PC platform. Google will wants the same... only it wants to "own" the Web platform, which is predicted to be the next big thing. Every product Google releases is designed to get users to the cloud.
But what really bakes Newclosed's noodle is this:
"Now I also said Google is more dangerous to the end users than Microsoft could be. Microsoft never owned user’s data. The only attempt at storing user's data backfired big time for Microsoft. Remember passport and the outrage after the announcement? Users give Google all their data and all the services built on top of Google's API will give it more data. Google is dangerous because there is no outrage."
Things get going right away in the posting, which states in the lede: "I say Google is the new Microsoft and in many cases they are even worse."
Hoo boy.
You might think this is a going to be another screed that tries to fillet Google and ends up sounding like a lunatic's diatribe... but in actuality, it's a well-thought essay that lays out a compelling case.
The crux of the argument behind this statement is this: Microsoft is criticized for wanting to own too much of the PC platform. Google will wants the same... only it wants to "own" the Web platform, which is predicted to be the next big thing. Every product Google releases is designed to get users to the cloud.
But what really bakes Newclosed's noodle is this:
"Now I also said Google is more dangerous to the end users than Microsoft could be. Microsoft never owned user’s data. The only attempt at storing user's data backfired big time for Microsoft. Remember passport and the outrage after the announcement? Users give Google all their data and all the services built on top of Google's API will give it more data. Google is dangerous because there is no outrage."
Move Over, Microsoft: Apple is Now Tech's Bad Boy
"Remember the days when Microsoft was seen as the alpha predator of the tech world? Now, it seems, Apple has taken over."
There was a time when Microsoft was seen as the alpha predator of the tech world, destroying anything in its path by any means necessary, and Apple was a counter-cultural icon, succeeding through sweetness and light. That's no longer the case. Today there's a gentler, kindlier Microsoft, and Apple is being investigated for anti-trust violations and possibly illegal business practices.Here's just the latest piece of evidence about Apple's potentially predatory business practices: The New York Times reports that the U.S. Justice Department is investigating Apple for anti-trust violations related to its strongarm tactics in digital music.
The newspaper says that during the course of the inquiry so far: "investigators had asked in particular about recent allegations that Apple used its dominant market position to persuade music labels to refuse to give the online retailer Amazon.com exclusive access to music about to be released."
The investigation comes after a report in Billboard magazine that Apple had used its digital music market clout to force music labels to stop participating in an Amazon Daily Deal promotion. In that promotion Amazon receives a one-day exclusive on a new digital music track, in exchange for heavily promoting it.
Billboard reported that Apple told music labels not to participate in the promotion, and that if they did participate, Apple would punish the labels by refusing to give their songs marketing support on iTunes.
That's not exactly what I'd call sweetness and light. It's more like Microsoft in the bad old days.
This comes not long after Apple is facing another anti-trust investigation, over banning non-Apple tools from being used to develop for the iPhone.
Pakistan May Relax Bans on YouTube, Facebook
The Pakistan government is considering removing a ban on YouTube and Facebook, a senior minister said on Wednesday.
In a post on his recently opened Twitter account, Rehman Malik, the country's interior minister, said that the Pakistan cabinet, which met on Wednesday, had accepted his proposal to block only the objectionable sections of the two Web sites.
Media reports from Pakistan on Wednesday quoted Pakistani officials, including Malik, as saying that the ban would be lifted in the next few days, after blocking the offensive content.
Facebook was blocked in Pakistan on Wednesday last week by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), after instructions from the High Court in Lahore and the Pakistan government.
Pakistanis took to the streets in protest against a page on Facebook, called "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" which invited users to draw cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. Some Islamic traditions prohibit depictions of Mohammed.
On Thursday, PTA also ordered YouTube to be blocked for displaying "sacrilegious" content. It said it had also blocked more than 450 links on the Internet that contained derogatory material.
The controversial Facebook page also ran into protests from Muslims in India. A Facebook spokeswoman said on Sunday in an e-mail that it had decided to restrict access to the page from India out of respect for local regulations, standards and customs, after it was contacted by authorities in India.
Facebook may consider IP blocking in Pakistan upon further review of local regulations, standards and customs, she added.
In a post on his recently opened Twitter account, Rehman Malik, the country's interior minister, said that the Pakistan cabinet, which met on Wednesday, had accepted his proposal to block only the objectionable sections of the two Web sites.
Media reports from Pakistan on Wednesday quoted Pakistani officials, including Malik, as saying that the ban would be lifted in the next few days, after blocking the offensive content.
Facebook was blocked in Pakistan on Wednesday last week by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), after instructions from the High Court in Lahore and the Pakistan government.
Pakistanis took to the streets in protest against a page on Facebook, called "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" which invited users to draw cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. Some Islamic traditions prohibit depictions of Mohammed.
On Thursday, PTA also ordered YouTube to be blocked for displaying "sacrilegious" content. It said it had also blocked more than 450 links on the Internet that contained derogatory material.
The controversial Facebook page also ran into protests from Muslims in India. A Facebook spokeswoman said on Sunday in an e-mail that it had decided to restrict access to the page from India out of respect for local regulations, standards and customs, after it was contacted by authorities in India.
Facebook may consider IP blocking in Pakistan upon further review of local regulations, standards and customs, she added.
Sony to Bolster PSPgo Sales with Free Games
In a ploy to woo handheld gamers vexed with Sony for the PSPgo's sticker shock, the company's apparently planning to offer 10 free full game downloads to anyone registering their handheld after April 1, 2010.
MCV says games in the deal include 2010 FIFA World Cup, Gran Turismo, Grand Theft Auto, and LittleBigPlanet. The news follows Sony's announcement of 'PSP Essentials' earlier this month, a budget lineup of back catalogue games including titles like Daxter, Patapon 2, LocoRoco, and Ratcher & Clank: Size Matters.
"On PSPgo we've decided to innovate with that particular business model," Sony Computer Entertainment UK sales director Mark Howsen told MCV. "Next month we're launching a free ten game offer. And this isn't just older titles--we've worked with third parties and there's some really good core products."
"We're using it as a method to drive the hardware as well by making the whole proposition much more appealing."
Pakistan Partially Unblocks Access to YouTube
Pakistan relaxed its block on YouTube on Wednesday evening, but a similar ban on Facebook remains in place.
The country's telecommunications regulator, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), last week ordered operators to block YouTube, citing sacrilegious content on it.
While the authority is removing its blanket ban on YouTube, objectionable links on the site will remain blocked, PTA spokesman Khurram A. Mehran said in an email on Thursday.
On May 19, the Lahore High Court ordered the PTA to block Facebook until May 31. It was ruling on a petition by a lawyers' organization in Pakistan which objected to a page on the web site called "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" that invited users to draw cartoons of the prophet Mohammed.
The country's telecommunications regulator, Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), last week ordered operators to block YouTube, citing sacrilegious content on it.
While the authority is removing its blanket ban on YouTube, objectionable links on the site will remain blocked, PTA spokesman Khurram A. Mehran said in an email on Thursday.
On May 19, the Lahore High Court ordered the PTA to block Facebook until May 31. It was ruling on a petition by a lawyers' organization in Pakistan which objected to a page on the web site called "Everybody Draw Mohammed Day!" that invited users to draw cartoons of the prophet Mohammed.
Microsoft rolls out Beta 1 of next-gen systems-management product
Microsoft is rolling out to interested testers this week Beta 1 of a Configuration Manager v.Next, a new systems-management product in the company’s System Center family.
I’m not a fan of the ‘v.Next’ codename convention that some teams at Microsoft have been adopting. But that’s how the Softies are referring to the next release of Microsoft’s System Center Configuration Manager client-management product.
System Center Configuration Manager is the successor to what (long ago and far away) used to be called Systems Management Server (SMS). It is a server-based product that provides patch management, software distribution, operating system deployment, inventory services and other capabilities to large groups of Windows-based clients.
I’m not a fan of the ‘v.Next’ codename convention that some teams at Microsoft have been adopting. But that’s how the Softies are referring to the next release of Microsoft’s System Center Configuration Manager client-management product.
System Center Configuration Manager is the successor to what (long ago and far away) used to be called Systems Management Server (SMS). It is a server-based product that provides patch management, software distribution, operating system deployment, inventory services and other capabilities to large groups of Windows-based clients.
ServiceOS: Microsoft's morphing browser-operating system project
Last we heard, Microsoft researchers were working on building a new kind of Web browser that would be more secure by isolating the browser from the operating system. I’d say the project is the closest thing Microsoft has to a direct competitor with Google’s Chrome OS — except for the fact that Microsoft isn’t trying to pretend that some kind of operating-system-like layer is no longer needed by PCs and devices in a Web-app-centric world.
It’s been a while since Microsoft shared publicly anything new about its “Gazelle” browser research project.
In checking up on Gazelle, I discovered a few interesting new tidbits. For one, Gazelle (formerly known as MashupOS) has morphed again and is now part of a research project known as ServiceOS. The focus of Gazelle was on security/protection; ServiceOS fleshout out the vision for what resource access and management would like like for Web applications.
Two of the Microsoft researchers behind the project — Helen Wang and Alex Moschuk –published late last year a white paper explaining the evolution of their new ServiceOS vision.
In checking up on Gazelle, I discovered a few interesting new tidbits. For one, Gazelle (formerly known as MashupOS) has morphed again and is now part of a research project known as ServiceOS. The focus of Gazelle was on security/protection; ServiceOS fleshout out the vision for what resource access and management would like like for Web applications.
Two of the Microsoft researchers behind the project — Helen Wang and Alex Moschuk –published late last year a white paper explaining the evolution of their new ServiceOS vision.
What Android can learn from the iPhone OS
1. App Store/total number of apps. Selection is important and the App Store simply has about 4x more apps (200k vs. 50k). No one loves Apple’s opaque and arbitrary approval process, but at the end of the day 80% of consumers care about selection.
Google rips off the analytics band-aid
Today Google made two separate announcements that are somewhat related — both basically made Google Analytics less accurate for webmasters who use the tool to keep tabs on their traffic. I’m wondering if the two announcements were coincidences, or if Google decided to group them together to avoid as much pain as possible.
The first announcement was that they released a tool which lets users be completely invisible to Google Analytics — traffic from these users will not count toward the website statistics. Great for users, kinda crappy for website owners.
The first announcement was that they released a tool which lets users be completely invisible to Google Analytics — traffic from these users will not count toward the website statistics. Great for users, kinda crappy for website owners.
AdMob: iPhone OS devices lead Android OS products in US with ratio of 2 to 1
AdMob recently took on the task of examining the growth and highest concentrations of devices based on the iPhone OS versus that of Android-based gadgets. While Android OS devices have some high concentration levels across three continents, the iPhone has it beat with a larger distribution worldwide.
According to the findings in AdMob’s April 2010 Mobile Metrics Report, there were 8.7 million Android OS devices and 18.3 million iPhone OS devices (iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch) in the US last month. The April release of the iPad in the US surely gave Apple a boost there, and that factors down to a 2 to 1 ratio of iPhone OS to Android devices.
Worldwide, AdMob found that there were 11.6 million Android OS devices versus 40.8 million iPhone OS devices, producing a 3.5 to 1 ratio.
Apple relaunches free iPod Touch with Mac purchase campaign
Every year, Apple launches a promotion in which customers who pick up a new Mac get a free iPod with their purchase, and now that time is here again. Of course, there are always a few catches.
The deal is that if you purchase a new computer between now and September 7, you’ll be eligible to get a free iPod Touch (8GB version only). The catch is two-fold. First, you have to actually buy the iPod Touch when purchasing the computer (meaning they have to show up together on the receipt), and then submit the receipt within 90 days of purchase for an online refund. The second catch is you have to be eligible for the educational discount to take part in any of this. (Sorry if I crushed your dreams.)
Rumor: Microsoft's Project Natal will retail for $149
Rumors about Microsoft’s Project Natal continue to swirl as no one can seem to wait until the big, circus-like event at E3 in a few weeks. Now it looks like that old rumor about a $50 price tag on this gaming system was too good to be true.
Since its introduction at E3 last June, Microsoft hasn’t provided many details - or at least not as much as we all may want. Although Steve Ballmer does seem to be getting more serious about the impending release, which will probably evolve into a media blitz whenever that happens.
Thursday, May 27, 2010
3D PCs coming soon then a boom, says report
First, there were 3DTVs. Next up: 3D PCs trickle out in 2010 and then ramp in 2011 and 2012, according to Jon Peddie Research.
In a report on the Stereo 3D PC market, Jon Peddie research argues that 1 million 3D PCs will ship in 2010 and surge to 75 million units by 2014. Simply put, 3D will become a standard feature in your PC in four years.
Here’s the breakdown of projections:
And here’s the hedge from Jon Peddie Research:
The challenge today is that there isn’t much use for 3D on a PC due to a lack of content and the fact you’ll need to wear glasses (and get a new monitor). Jon Peddie Research argues that the content will come. Revenue related to 3D PC hardware and content will be a $34 billion market in 2014, according to the research firm.
Here’s the money chart:
To get to those sums, Jon Peddie Research said its assumptions are based on “the expectation that good quality content will be produced.” Meanwhile, hardware costs will fall as consumers see what 3D PCs can do. Be sure to check in 2014 to see how all of this turns out.
Source: Jon Peddie statement
In a report on the Stereo 3D PC market, Jon Peddie research argues that 1 million 3D PCs will ship in 2010 and surge to 75 million units by 2014. Simply put, 3D will become a standard feature in your PC in four years.
Here’s the breakdown of projections:
And here’s the hedge from Jon Peddie Research:
Although most PCs will be S3D capable due to the GPUs that are in them, not all PCs will be S3D PCs because they need a special monitor, glasses, and appropriate content.PC makers will push 3D PCs because they will carry higher price points. According to Jon Peddie Research, PC gaming will drive demand. After gaming, Blu-ray movies, streaming TV, photo editing, home video, streaming video and professional graphics will drive 3D PC usage.
The challenge today is that there isn’t much use for 3D on a PC due to a lack of content and the fact you’ll need to wear glasses (and get a new monitor). Jon Peddie Research argues that the content will come. Revenue related to 3D PC hardware and content will be a $34 billion market in 2014, according to the research firm.
Here’s the money chart:
To get to those sums, Jon Peddie Research said its assumptions are based on “the expectation that good quality content will be produced.” Meanwhile, hardware costs will fall as consumers see what 3D PCs can do. Be sure to check in 2014 to see how all of this turns out.
Source: Jon Peddie statement
Android Music Store to Take on Apple iTunes
Zynga Plus Yahoo Equals Life After Facebook
Talk about sweet deals, the move would put Zynga's games in front of Yahoo's entire 600 million user base.
TechCrunch broke the story but says details are sparse, that the games won't be available for several months, and that no one knows which games we're talking about yet. That said, look for Farmville (unless there's an exclusivity deal with Facebook, which I'm betting there isn't) and other popular titles like Mafia Wars.
US Needs Plan for Online Terrorism Recruiting, Expert Says
The U.S. government lacks a plan to counter terrorist recruiting efforts online, even though such efforts by jihad groups are growing, one terrorism expert told U.S. lawmakers.
The U.S. government doesn't make an effort to engage with people who may be open to terrorist recruiting efforts and dissuade them from joining, Bruce Hoffman, a professor in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, told lawmakers Wednesday. The U.K. government has a program that works with local communities to identify possible targets for terrorism recruiting, said Hoffman, a former scholar in residence at the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.
"Very clearly, our adversaries have a communications strategy," Hoffman told a subcommittee of the House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee. "Lamentably, we don't."
Instead of on-the-ground programs working with potential targets of terrorism recruiting, U.S. agencies have, in some cases, tried to control terrorism communications on the Internet, Hoffman said. "We shouldn't be censoring the Internet," he said. "I think the problem is we default toward these very intrusive approaches."
While most witnesses at the hearing agreed that the U.S. government shouldn't be censoring Web sites linked to terrorism, John Philip Mudd , a senior research fellow at the Counterterrorism Strategy Initiative at the New America Foundation, suggested that taking down terrorism recruiting Web sites may be helpful.
The U.S. government doesn't make an effort to engage with people who may be open to terrorist recruiting efforts and dissuade them from joining, Bruce Hoffman, a professor in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, told lawmakers Wednesday. The U.K. government has a program that works with local communities to identify possible targets for terrorism recruiting, said Hoffman, a former scholar in residence at the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.
"Very clearly, our adversaries have a communications strategy," Hoffman told a subcommittee of the House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee. "Lamentably, we don't."
Instead of on-the-ground programs working with potential targets of terrorism recruiting, U.S. agencies have, in some cases, tried to control terrorism communications on the Internet, Hoffman said. "We shouldn't be censoring the Internet," he said. "I think the problem is we default toward these very intrusive approaches."
While most witnesses at the hearing agreed that the U.S. government shouldn't be censoring Web sites linked to terrorism, John Philip Mudd , a senior research fellow at the Counterterrorism Strategy Initiative at the New America Foundation, suggested that taking down terrorism recruiting Web sites may be helpful.
Mozilla Preps Firefox Home App for the IPhone
Mozilla is working on an iPhone application called Home that will let users access their desktop Firefox browsing history, bookmarks and the tabs from their most recent browser session, the company said in a blog post on Wednesday
Firefox Home relies on Mozilla Sync, a service that synchronizes personal information such as bookmarks and browsing history between two desktop browsers equipped with the Sync add-on. By installing Firefox Home on their iPhone, Sync users can also access their browser data when away from their desktop, according to Mozilla.
The Home application also includes Mozilla's so-called Awesome Bar, which lets users start typing any term and then uses an autocomplete function to find possible matching sites from the browsing history.
Firefox Home will also work on the iPad as is, but it is not optimized for the tablet, Mozilla said.
Firefox Home relies on Mozilla Sync, a service that synchronizes personal information such as bookmarks and browsing history between two desktop browsers equipped with the Sync add-on. By installing Firefox Home on their iPhone, Sync users can also access their browser data when away from their desktop, according to Mozilla.
The Home application also includes Mozilla's so-called Awesome Bar, which lets users start typing any term and then uses an autocomplete function to find possible matching sites from the browsing history.
Firefox Home will also work on the iPad as is, but it is not optimized for the tablet, Mozilla said.
Bartz:Yahoo Working to Boost Flagging User Engagement
Yahoo is working on many fronts to pump up users' engagement with its Web sites and communication services, including significant improvements to Yahoo Mail, CEO Carol Bartz said Wednesday.
"What's happening with engagement? Does it matter that engagement is falling? What are we doing about it? Do we take issue with it? Are we concerned and should you be concerned?" Bartz said during the company's second investor day meeting in seven months.
When measured in terms of average minutes per visitor, Yahoo's user engagement has dropped significantly in the past 16 months, according to comScore. In January 2009, users spent an average of 336.4 minutes on Yahoo properties, but that number had dropped to 247.9 minutes by April of this year, according to comScore.
A Yahoo spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to a request for more details about how Yahoo measures its overall user engagement.
Bartz said that Yahoo's media Web sites are holding their own in terms of user engagement, but Yahoo Mail has been "a bit flat," driving down the overall engagement picture because it is such a major source of usage for the company, she said.
"The big dog of engagement is mail," Bartz said.
Thus, Yahoo is hard at work on enhancements to its e-mail service, which it's confident will drive up its usage. "The functionality you'll see from us is exciting new interfaces, it's social inside the context of a mail session, it's photos, it's videos, it's smart inboxes," she said. "You'll see some exciting things happening with our mail products and that's important for engagement, very important."
Yahoo faces strong competition from Google and, more recently, from Facebook, whose user base has been growing by leaps and bounds in the past two years, but Bartz said that the three rivals offer different things to users. "There's a place for all of us on the Web," she said.
In addition to revamping Yahoo Mail, Yahoo has a strategy of "intense personalization" to increase user engagement, offering people "the Web of one" so their experience on Yahoo properties is as relevant to them as possible.
"If we have 600 million users around the world, why shouldn't we have 600 million unique pages for you, so unique you all get different content, you all get different ads, and by the way, different layouts," she said.
A big boost to this strategy will come from Yahoo's acquisition of Associated Content, which publishes articles, photos and other content from its network of 380,000 freelance contributors. That acquisition is expected to close in this year's third quarter.
Key elements Yahoo emphasizes to boost user engagement are local news and information, social capabilities, mobile access and video content, she said.
Yahoo also expects to see engagement improvements as its search partnership with Microsoft takes shape and progresses, now that the integration is under way with an eye to finishing it globally by mid-2012.
An ongoing modernization of its technology platform will also let Yahoo innovate more and faster because it will reduce the complexity involved in making timely changes to its Web sites and services, she said.
"What's happening with engagement? Does it matter that engagement is falling? What are we doing about it? Do we take issue with it? Are we concerned and should you be concerned?" Bartz said during the company's second investor day meeting in seven months.
When measured in terms of average minutes per visitor, Yahoo's user engagement has dropped significantly in the past 16 months, according to comScore. In January 2009, users spent an average of 336.4 minutes on Yahoo properties, but that number had dropped to 247.9 minutes by April of this year, according to comScore.
A Yahoo spokeswoman didn't immediately respond to a request for more details about how Yahoo measures its overall user engagement.
Bartz said that Yahoo's media Web sites are holding their own in terms of user engagement, but Yahoo Mail has been "a bit flat," driving down the overall engagement picture because it is such a major source of usage for the company, she said.
"The big dog of engagement is mail," Bartz said.
Thus, Yahoo is hard at work on enhancements to its e-mail service, which it's confident will drive up its usage. "The functionality you'll see from us is exciting new interfaces, it's social inside the context of a mail session, it's photos, it's videos, it's smart inboxes," she said. "You'll see some exciting things happening with our mail products and that's important for engagement, very important."
Yahoo faces strong competition from Google and, more recently, from Facebook, whose user base has been growing by leaps and bounds in the past two years, but Bartz said that the three rivals offer different things to users. "There's a place for all of us on the Web," she said.
In addition to revamping Yahoo Mail, Yahoo has a strategy of "intense personalization" to increase user engagement, offering people "the Web of one" so their experience on Yahoo properties is as relevant to them as possible.
"If we have 600 million users around the world, why shouldn't we have 600 million unique pages for you, so unique you all get different content, you all get different ads, and by the way, different layouts," she said.
A big boost to this strategy will come from Yahoo's acquisition of Associated Content, which publishes articles, photos and other content from its network of 380,000 freelance contributors. That acquisition is expected to close in this year's third quarter.
Key elements Yahoo emphasizes to boost user engagement are local news and information, social capabilities, mobile access and video content, she said.
Yahoo also expects to see engagement improvements as its search partnership with Microsoft takes shape and progresses, now that the integration is under way with an eye to finishing it globally by mid-2012.
An ongoing modernization of its technology platform will also let Yahoo innovate more and faster because it will reduce the complexity involved in making timely changes to its Web sites and services, she said.
Apple overtakes Microsoft as biggest tech company
Apple's shares rose as much 2.8 percent on Nasdaq on Wednesday, as Microsoft shares floundered, briefly pushing its market value above $229 billion, ahead of its longtime rival.
Both stocks ended down after a late-day sell-off, but Apple emerged ahead with a market value of about $222 billion, compared with Microsoft's $219 billion, according to Reuters data.
Apple shares closed down 0.4 percent at $244.11 on Nasdaq, while Microsoft fell 4 percent to a seven-month low of $25.01.
Shares of Apple are worth more than 10 times what they were 10 years ago, as it has profited from revolutionizing consumer electronics with its stylish, easy to use products such as the iPod, iPhone and MacBook laptops.
Both stocks ended down after a late-day sell-off, but Apple emerged ahead with a market value of about $222 billion, compared with Microsoft's $219 billion, according to Reuters data.
Apple shares closed down 0.4 percent at $244.11 on Nasdaq, while Microsoft fell 4 percent to a seven-month low of $25.01.
Shares of Apple are worth more than 10 times what they were 10 years ago, as it has profited from revolutionizing consumer electronics with its stylish, easy to use products such as the iPod, iPhone and MacBook laptops.
Who will be Microsoft's next 'boy genius'?
Looks like the rumors I heard last week are true: Chief Experience Officer J Allard seems to have left the building (at least according to those infamous “people familiar with the matter” who will whisper to big media with the promise of anonymity).
Those same whisperers are telling the Wall Street Journal that Microsoft is going to shake up the Entertainment and Devices (E&D) division via some kind of reorg, as well. It’s unclear if this reorg means brand-new management gets brought in or the deck chairs get rearranged.
Update: Both Allard and E&D President Robbie Bach are out. Wow. And Bach is not being replaced. More to come on that….
E&D is responsible for Windows Phone operating systems, the newly launched Kin phones, games, Xbox, Zune and Mediaroom IPTV. Robbie Bach is currently the President of the E&D unit. E&D has been losing money, for the most part, in spite of strong sales of the Xbox Live gaming service. The unit is pinning its hopes for 2010 on Project Natal, the new gaming control technology that Microsoft is expected to highlight at next week’s E3 conference.
Allard, who was awarded the Chief Experience Officer title back in 2008, was most recently overseeing Microsoft’s recently canceled Courier tablet project.
Microsoft has been tweaking E&D since the start of the year. In January, Microsoft reorg’d the TV, Video and Media (TVM) group, which was headed by Corporate Vice President Enrique Rodriguez. Rodriguez’s core teams — Zune software/services, Mediaroom IPTV, Media Center — were moved to Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business (IEB), which is also part of Entertainment and Devices. IEB is the unit in charge of Xbox, Games for Windows and Microsoft Game Studios.
(I heard Rodriguez left the company as part of the shake-up. Microsoft never changed his bio on its corporate Web site.)
Those same whisperers are telling the Wall Street Journal that Microsoft is going to shake up the Entertainment and Devices (E&D) division via some kind of reorg, as well. It’s unclear if this reorg means brand-new management gets brought in or the deck chairs get rearranged.
Update: Both Allard and E&D President Robbie Bach are out. Wow. And Bach is not being replaced. More to come on that….
E&D is responsible for Windows Phone operating systems, the newly launched Kin phones, games, Xbox, Zune and Mediaroom IPTV. Robbie Bach is currently the President of the E&D unit. E&D has been losing money, for the most part, in spite of strong sales of the Xbox Live gaming service. The unit is pinning its hopes for 2010 on Project Natal, the new gaming control technology that Microsoft is expected to highlight at next week’s E3 conference.
Allard, who was awarded the Chief Experience Officer title back in 2008, was most recently overseeing Microsoft’s recently canceled Courier tablet project.
Microsoft has been tweaking E&D since the start of the year. In January, Microsoft reorg’d the TV, Video and Media (TVM) group, which was headed by Corporate Vice President Enrique Rodriguez. Rodriguez’s core teams — Zune software/services, Mediaroom IPTV, Media Center — were moved to Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business (IEB), which is also part of Entertainment and Devices. IEB is the unit in charge of Xbox, Games for Windows and Microsoft Game Studios.
(I heard Rodriguez left the company as part of the shake-up. Microsoft never changed his bio on its corporate Web site.)
Apple: this time it's political
We just can’t seem to stop writing about Apple. Separate completely from Cupertino’s unique product offerings, there’s always an ongoing stream of bizarre stories. It’s like Apple is the tech industry’s own Lindsay Lohan — attractive on the surface, but deep down, you have to wonder, simply, WTF?
Today’s WTF is a guy by the name of Ari David. This dude’s claim to fame is he wants to be the Congress critter from California’s 30th District. His primary qualification is he’s a 39 year old stand-up comic who has (and I quote) “never been interested in being a leader, until now”.
Unfortunately, Mr. David is running against Henry Waxman, an incumbent Democrat who’s been in Congress since the first time bell bottoms were mistakenly considered “cool”.
I first encountered Waxman back in the days when I was investigating White House email. He and I disagreed on a number of things — I advised that his House Oversight Committee inquiry was going for glory and sound bytes, and missing the real meat of the problem — millions of email messages that went around the White House systems.
But, anyway, Waxman is a very experienced competitor and Mr. David is “an entertainer”. Now, to be fair, we’ve had a few entertainers do quite well in Washington. Ronald Reagan was one of our most effective leaders, whether or not you agree with all his policies.
But Ari David is no Ronald Reagan. Ari came to our attention this week because he has an iPhone app, and — surprise — it’s been denied publication by Apple. Like the rest of us, he’s upset because of the capriciousness of Apple’s approval policy and claims Apple is impinging on his free speech rights.
Today’s WTF is a guy by the name of Ari David. This dude’s claim to fame is he wants to be the Congress critter from California’s 30th District. His primary qualification is he’s a 39 year old stand-up comic who has (and I quote) “never been interested in being a leader, until now”.
Unfortunately, Mr. David is running against Henry Waxman, an incumbent Democrat who’s been in Congress since the first time bell bottoms were mistakenly considered “cool”.
I first encountered Waxman back in the days when I was investigating White House email. He and I disagreed on a number of things — I advised that his House Oversight Committee inquiry was going for glory and sound bytes, and missing the real meat of the problem — millions of email messages that went around the White House systems.
But, anyway, Waxman is a very experienced competitor and Mr. David is “an entertainer”. Now, to be fair, we’ve had a few entertainers do quite well in Washington. Ronald Reagan was one of our most effective leaders, whether or not you agree with all his policies.
But Ari David is no Ronald Reagan. Ari came to our attention this week because he has an iPhone app, and — surprise — it’s been denied publication by Apple. Like the rest of us, he’s upset because of the capriciousness of Apple’s approval policy and claims Apple is impinging on his free speech rights.
Facebook Beefs Up Privacy With Three Big Changes
Facing a fierce public backlash over privacy issues, Facebook worked to reverse its tarnished image Wednesday, offering three big changes to how users can manage their privacy. At a press event, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that his company would "simplify" privacy controls starting with a redesigned privacy settings page."We've focused on three things: a single control for your content, more powerful controls for your basic information and an easy control to turn off all applications," he wrote on the official Facebook blog.
These new controls, outlined below, will be rolled out to users starting today, but will take possibly weeks for all users to see them, according to Zuckerberg. The image below is Facebook's revamped privacy settings page that the company says will help people take control over how they share their personal information.
Science (plus anti-porn) bill gets majority vote, but is defeated anyway
Politics is very weird and parliamentary procedure is enough to make you crazy.
This week, we’ve been following the strange, winding path of H.R. 5116, which became H.R. 5325 when Republicans added an anti-porn rider to what was essentially a science and education bill.
The final vote on the revised America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 was 261-148, but since it didn’t get the two-thirds majority required by for bills considered as “a suspension,” the bill didn’t pass.
Yep, it won a majority of 113 votes, but died anyway. Sigh.
There’s a human story here, beyond just the politics. There were more than 48 separate hearings involved, along with multiple drafts of a bill presented before the House. That’s a tremendous amount of human hours by elected representatives, their staffs, the teams trying to get the bill passed, the teams trying to prevent the bill from passing, the back-room deals, the back-room schemes, the time spent poring over legalities, and the debate.
And yet, it was all for naught.
No progress was made and science funding, well, do we really need science when we have Real Housewives of New Jersey on TV?
This week, we’ve been following the strange, winding path of H.R. 5116, which became H.R. 5325 when Republicans added an anti-porn rider to what was essentially a science and education bill.
The final vote on the revised America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 was 261-148, but since it didn’t get the two-thirds majority required by for bills considered as “a suspension,” the bill didn’t pass.
Yep, it won a majority of 113 votes, but died anyway. Sigh.
There’s a human story here, beyond just the politics. There were more than 48 separate hearings involved, along with multiple drafts of a bill presented before the House. That’s a tremendous amount of human hours by elected representatives, their staffs, the teams trying to get the bill passed, the teams trying to prevent the bill from passing, the back-room deals, the back-room schemes, the time spent poring over legalities, and the debate.
And yet, it was all for naught.
No progress was made and science funding, well, do we really need science when we have Real Housewives of New Jersey on TV?
Open source vs. Facebook: it's payback time, baby!
One of the coolest things about blogs is that posts don’t all have to be long dissertations. Sometimes, they can just be fun.
One of my favorite sites is XKCD, which features brilliant tech-related comics drawn by Randall Munroe.
With all the Facebook privacy brouhaha going on, this piece, called “Infrastructure,” is priceless:
By the way, if you haven’t visited XKCD before. You should. It’s good eaten’ for your mind.
One of my favorite sites is XKCD, which features brilliant tech-related comics drawn by Randall Munroe.
With all the Facebook privacy brouhaha going on, this piece, called “Infrastructure,” is priceless:
By the way, if you haven’t visited XKCD before. You should. It’s good eaten’ for your mind.
Microsoft launches open source Outlook tool, SDK projects
Microsoft appears to be serious about making Outlook more accessible to open source developers.
On May 24, the Redmond, Wash software giant announced two new open source projects designed to complement its recently released technical documentation for Microsoft Outlook Personal Folders (.pst).
The two open source projects — dubbed .pst Data Structure View Tool and .pst File Format Software Development Kit — will make it easier for developers to access data stored in digital formats created by Microsoft Outlook and use that data in cross platform solutions.
Here’s how Microsoft described the benefit of the tool and SDK, which will simplify extracting the .pst data:
Developers can use these resources to more easily build solutions, including competitive products, that run on top of the .pst file format, unlocking data stored in .pst files in simple scenarios, such as extracting photos stored in .pst files to create an album, as well as more complex scenarios, including archive search, e-discovery and corporate compliance, and uploading data to the cloud.
In the spring, Microsoft released technical documentation for Office Outlook that makes it easier for developers to read and write data out of .pst files on any platform — whether or not Microsoft Outlook is installed on the desktop.
Previously, developers could use the Messaging API (MAPI) or Outlook Object Model to retrieve and use the e-mail, calendar and attachment data but it required Outlook to be on the desktop.
On May 24, the Redmond, Wash software giant announced two new open source projects designed to complement its recently released technical documentation for Microsoft Outlook Personal Folders (.pst).
The two open source projects — dubbed .pst Data Structure View Tool and .pst File Format Software Development Kit — will make it easier for developers to access data stored in digital formats created by Microsoft Outlook and use that data in cross platform solutions.
Here’s how Microsoft described the benefit of the tool and SDK, which will simplify extracting the .pst data:
Developers can use these resources to more easily build solutions, including competitive products, that run on top of the .pst file format, unlocking data stored in .pst files in simple scenarios, such as extracting photos stored in .pst files to create an album, as well as more complex scenarios, including archive search, e-discovery and corporate compliance, and uploading data to the cloud.
In the spring, Microsoft released technical documentation for Office Outlook that makes it easier for developers to read and write data out of .pst files on any platform — whether or not Microsoft Outlook is installed on the desktop.
Previously, developers could use the Messaging API (MAPI) or Outlook Object Model to retrieve and use the e-mail, calendar and attachment data but it required Outlook to be on the desktop.
FUD pushing back hard against Google WebM
Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt have had a field day on Google’s WebM codec over the weekend. It may have had a worse debut than Rand Paul.
(As with the word Spam, the acronym FUD also appears on quality meat products. It’s a Spanish acronym meaning refined, unique and delicious.Expect kids to be carrying FUD snack packs to Silicon Valley schools this fall.)
The most important attack may be a fisking of Google’s claims by Jason Garrett-Glaser, the primary x264 developer. His summary is that WebM (formerly called VP8) isn’t that good a codec, but here’s the nut graph:
(As with the word Spam, the acronym FUD also appears on quality meat products. It’s a Spanish acronym meaning refined, unique and delicious.Expect kids to be carrying FUD snack packs to Silicon Valley schools this fall.)
The most important attack may be a fisking of Google’s claims by Jason Garrett-Glaser, the primary x264 developer. His summary is that WebM (formerly called VP8) isn’t that good a codec, but here’s the nut graph:
VP8 copies way too much from H.264 for anyone sane to be comfortable with it, no matter whose word is behind the claim of being patent-free. This doesn’t mean that it’s sure to be covered by patents, but until Google can give us evidence as to why it isn’t, I would be cautious.
Google's achilles heel is service delivered by people
Google does indeed have an achilles heel, a potentially fatal flaw.
They don’t scale people. (Statue of Achilles dying from Wikipedia. The original is at the Achillieon near Corfu.)
In some ways this makes perfect sense, because people don’t scale well. There is only so much technology you can place in front of an “operator standing by.” Once her calls are queued and she’s in front of a terminal you’re at the mercy of the callers.
They don’t scale people. (Statue of Achilles dying from Wikipedia. The original is at the Achillieon near Corfu.)
In some ways this makes perfect sense, because people don’t scale well. There is only so much technology you can place in front of an “operator standing by.” Once her calls are queued and she’s in front of a terminal you’re at the mercy of the callers.
Microsoft offers developers new Outlook tools under Apache open-source license
Last October, in the name of interoperability, Microsoft announced plans to make the Outlook Personal Folders .PST file format freely and safely licensable.
On May 24, Microsoft took a step along that path by making available for download two .PST interoperability tools. The pair — a .PST Data Structure View Tool and a .PST File Format Software Development Kit (along with the related technical documentation) –are available under the Apache open-source license.
Here’s Microsoft’s description of the new tools:
On May 24, Microsoft took a step along that path by making available for download two .PST interoperability tools. The pair — a .PST Data Structure View Tool and a .PST File Format Software Development Kit (along with the related technical documentation) –are available under the Apache open-source license.
Here’s Microsoft’s description of the new tools:
“The .pst Data Structure View Tool is a graphical browser of internal data structures for .pst files that enables a developer to better understand .pst file content. The .pst File Format SDK is a cross-platform library that allows developers to read data stored in .pst files and develop applications accessing the data. In the near future, the capability to write data to .pst files will be added to the SDK.”Microsoft officials denied last year that they were opening up the .PST format due to any influence from or pressure by European antitrust authorities.
Will Microsoft's new Windows VDA license put a drag on virtualization deployments?
In March, Microsoft made a slew of virtualization announcements. Many of us company watchers focused primarily on a much-needed change Microsoft made to its XP Mode technology, removing the chip-level virtualization requirement.
Another of those mid-March virtualization announcements is about to get a lot more scrutiny, however. As of July 1, Microsoft is adding a new license to its line-up known as Windows Virtual Desktop Access (VDA). Windows VDA is for devices/machines where users want to access a virtual copy of Windows, but which don’t qualify for coverage under the Windows Client Software Assurance agreement. That includes things like thin clients, third-party contractor PCs, non-Windows-based PCs and smartphones, among other platforms.
More particulars are available on Microsoft’s Web site. Among them are the cost of the new license:
Another of those mid-March virtualization announcements is about to get a lot more scrutiny, however. As of July 1, Microsoft is adding a new license to its line-up known as Windows Virtual Desktop Access (VDA). Windows VDA is for devices/machines where users want to access a virtual copy of Windows, but which don’t qualify for coverage under the Windows Client Software Assurance agreement. That includes things like thin clients, third-party contractor PCs, non-Windows-based PCs and smartphones, among other platforms.
More particulars are available on Microsoft’s Web site. Among them are the cost of the new license:
“Microsoft designed Windows VDA to enable organizations to license virtual copies of Windows client operating systems in virtual environments. Windows VDA is a device-based subscription license and will be available at $100/device/year. It will allow organizations to create multiple desktops dynamically, enable user access to multiple virtual machines (VMs) simultaneously, and move desktop VMs across multiple platforms, especially in load-balancing and disaster recovery situations.”
Top 5 iPhone FAILS
Overall, I’m pretty impressed with the iPhone but I’m no fanboy, and I’m more than willing to accept that the iPhone, as a work tool, has some serious failings. Let’s take a look at some of the iPhone’s more serious FAILS:
Battery life
The iPhone’s battery life is, in a word, awful. I can start the day with the battery at 100% and by early afternoon it will be around 30%. Compare this to my E71 can easily last several days on a single charge. Now, it’s fair to say that I use my iPhone a lot more than I use my E71 because it offers me more features, but since it was designed to do more, I’d also expect the battery to be able to do more too.
I’m willing to accept that at least part of the battery problem is an illusion since you can have the option to display the battery life as a percentage rather than the five or six “bullets” on a typical handset. But even with that taken into consideration, the iPhone runs out of ammo incredibly quickly.
This is a serious weakness that exists at the core of the iPhone platform.
Battery life
The iPhone’s battery life is, in a word, awful. I can start the day with the battery at 100% and by early afternoon it will be around 30%. Compare this to my E71 can easily last several days on a single charge. Now, it’s fair to say that I use my iPhone a lot more than I use my E71 because it offers me more features, but since it was designed to do more, I’d also expect the battery to be able to do more too.
I’m willing to accept that at least part of the battery problem is an illusion since you can have the option to display the battery life as a percentage rather than the five or six “bullets” on a typical handset. But even with that taken into consideration, the iPhone runs out of ammo incredibly quickly.
This is a serious weakness that exists at the core of the iPhone platform.
Google: $54 Billion Impact of Search and Search Ads in US
Google's search service and search advertising products generated an estimated US$54 billion for U.S. businesses, Web site publishers and nonprofit groups in 2009, according to a study the company has released.
The Internet giant on Tuesday released its first state-by-state breakdown of the economic activity it enables through search and search advertising, ranging from a $14.1 billion impact on California's economy in 2009 to $15.9 million in Alaska. Six states -- California, New York, Florida, Illinois, Texas and Washington -- accounted for $32.8 billion of the $54 billion of economic activity Google identified in the study.
The Internet and Google advertising "level the playing field" for U.S. small businesses wanting to compete with larger rivals, said Claire Hughes Johnson, vice president of global online sales at Google.
The Internet giant on Tuesday released its first state-by-state breakdown of the economic activity it enables through search and search advertising, ranging from a $14.1 billion impact on California's economy in 2009 to $15.9 million in Alaska. Six states -- California, New York, Florida, Illinois, Texas and Washington -- accounted for $32.8 billion of the $54 billion of economic activity Google identified in the study.
The Internet and Google advertising "level the playing field" for U.S. small businesses wanting to compete with larger rivals, said Claire Hughes Johnson, vice president of global online sales at Google.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Advantages of Google Encrypted Search
Google launched a new beta service this week--encrypted search using SSL (secure sockets layer) to protect searches from being snooped or intercepted while traversing the Internet. Encrypted Google search is still not entirely private, but it has benefits for individuals and businesses to ensure sensitive information is not exposed to prying eyes.
The new encrypted Google search is easy enough to use. Simply type "https" at the beginning of the URL rather than "http". Doing so sets up an encrypted pipe between your Web browser and Google so that any search traffic is kept private between you and Google.
It is not completely private because obviously Google still has a record of what you searched for. Google has established its reputation based on the "Do No Evil" mantra, and most businesses and users implicitly trust that Google won't do anything insidious with its omniscient cataloging of every bit and byte that crosses the Web. But, Google has faced privacy challenges again and again, including the recent revelation that it has "accidentally" captured and archived intercepted wireless data with its Google Street View cars for years.
It is not completely private because obviously Google still has a record of what you searched for. Google has established its reputation based on the "Do No Evil" mantra, and most businesses and users implicitly trust that Google won't do anything insidious with its omniscient cataloging of every bit and byte that crosses the Web. But, Google has faced privacy challenges again and again, including the recent revelation that it has "accidentally" captured and archived intercepted wireless data with its Google Street View cars for years.
Encrypted Search Comes to Google
"We think users will appreciate this new option for searching," Software Engineer Evan Roseman said. "It's a helpful addition to users' online privacy and security, and we'll continue to add encryption support for more search offerings."
5 Things Apple Could Do to iPad For More Revenue
With an application library cruising at a comfortable sales altitude of well over six figures, it's getting harder to write the platform off as an iPod XL. I want to give EA's swipe-interface side-scroller Mirror's Edge a try, rekindle my Scrabble fetish with two-player tabletop (nothing to pull out or put away!), and clinch kickflips, ollies, and shuvits on a pair of nimble finger-legs with Touch Grind HD.
And now I'm reading the iPad's outselling the Mac nearly 2-to-1 and nipping at the iPhone's heels. Nothing like a bandwagon to jump on, right?
Open-Source Gaming Console is Just About Ready to Play
The OpenPandora device has the traditional D-Pad for navigation, as well as a touchscreen, two analog thumb-sticks, and a "QWERTY" keyboard, making it ideal for developing a wide variety of mobile games.
The release of the OpenPandora device has been delayed several times since OpenPandora began taking orders in 2008, but recently parts have begun arriving for assembly in the United States, and the first orders should be shipped shortly.
Microsoft Edging Google out of iPad-like Devices
Taiwanese laptop-maker Micro-Star International (MSI) plans to launch a Windows 7 tablet PC next week at the Computex Taipei electronics show, after showing off a prototype tablet running Google's Android mobile software early this year.
MSI is now the second major Taiwanese vendor to dump an anticipated Google-based tablet launch at Computex in favor of one with Microsoft Windows 7. Last month, Asustek's CEO said the company's first tablet PC, the Eee Pad, will run on Microsoft software instead of a Google OS.
MSI and Asustek both showed off tablets with Android software at the International Consumer Electronics show in January.
MSI is now the second major Taiwanese vendor to dump an anticipated Google-based tablet launch at Computex in favor of one with Microsoft Windows 7. Last month, Asustek's CEO said the company's first tablet PC, the Eee Pad, will run on Microsoft software instead of a Google OS.
MSI and Asustek both showed off tablets with Android software at the International Consumer Electronics show in January.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Windows 7 'compatibility Checker' Is a Trojan
Scammers are infecting computers with a Trojan horse program disguised as software that determines whether PCs are compatible with Windows 7.
The attack was first spotted by BitDefender on Sunday and is not yet widespread; the antivirus vendor is receiving reports of about three installs per hour from its users in the U.S. But because the scam is novel, it could end up infecting a lot of people, according to Catalin Cosoi, the head of BitDefender's Online Threats Lab. "This actually works because of the interest in Windows 7," he said.
The scammers steal their marketing text directly from Microsoft, which offers a legitimate Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor in its Web site.
The attack was first spotted by BitDefender on Sunday and is not yet widespread; the antivirus vendor is receiving reports of about three installs per hour from its users in the U.S. But because the scam is novel, it could end up infecting a lot of people, according to Catalin Cosoi, the head of BitDefender's Online Threats Lab. "This actually works because of the interest in Windows 7," he said.
The scammers steal their marketing text directly from Microsoft, which offers a legitimate Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor in its Web site.
Rumor: Sony PSP2 is 'Very Powerful'
According to VG247, Sony's powerhouse portable sequel won't be revealed at E3 next month, but it is in the wild, and the NDAs as flying fast and furious.
Did I say 'nondisclosure agreement'? Nonsense, say all the "sources" leaking like paper grease bags. Will the PSP2 have cameras? Yes, they say. Two. One in front, one in back. Just like the DSi, in other words.
Also like Nintendo's DS, expect a touchscreen--presumably one, not two, but a place to poke the thing with your finger at last.
Lenovo Introduces Media-Savvy IdeaPad Y560
When you mention Lenovo, you usually call to mind business-oriented laptops. The ThinkPad and IdeaPad lines have been staples of the business traveler - simple, black, and sort of boring, but priced right and very easy to work on. We haven't met a Lenovo keyboard or touchpad we didn't like. But a Lenovo laptop for media-minded consumers? Even for gamers? Surely that's heresy, right? Today, Lenovo has made available the IdeaPad Y560, a product that might just get general consumers, and even gamers, to reconsider the brand. It has a slicker industrial design, with red accents and a textured lid, but it's what's inside that really has me intrigued.
Why Your Business Should Not Abandon Facebook
Google has taken some of the privacy heat off of Facebook with the discovery that it has "accidentally" been intercepting and archiving wireless network communications around the world with its Google Street View cars, but Facebook isn't off the hook. In fact, new revelations about how Facebook and other social networking sites share information with advertisers enflame the situation further, and the privacy backlash against Facebook could have consequences for your business.
Does your business have a Facebook presence? SoftView has a Facebook presence, as do I. McDonald's Microsoft, Taco Bell, Adobe, Apple and thousands of other companies have a Facebook presence. Some organizations, like Microsoft, have multiple Facebook profiles broken down by product groups or individual applications like Microsoft Office.
Many companies have online support forums, FAQs and other resources available, but Facebook provides an opportunity to engage customers where they are rather than expecting them to seek out your company. Establishing and maintaining a Facebook presence--or a Twitter account for that matter--allow the company to interact with customers on a more personal level and foster a sense of community and loyalty.
Of course, if there is a huge privacy backlash and systematic boycott of Facebook, it would reduce the value of Facebook as a marketing or customer relations platform. According to a survey from Sophos, a security software and services vendor, as much as two-thirds of Facebook users are considering deactivating or deleting their Facebook account as a result of privacy concerns.
Does your business have a Facebook presence? SoftView has a Facebook presence, as do I. McDonald's Microsoft, Taco Bell, Adobe, Apple and thousands of other companies have a Facebook presence. Some organizations, like Microsoft, have multiple Facebook profiles broken down by product groups or individual applications like Microsoft Office.Many companies have online support forums, FAQs and other resources available, but Facebook provides an opportunity to engage customers where they are rather than expecting them to seek out your company. Establishing and maintaining a Facebook presence--or a Twitter account for that matter--allow the company to interact with customers on a more personal level and foster a sense of community and loyalty.
Of course, if there is a huge privacy backlash and systematic boycott of Facebook, it would reduce the value of Facebook as a marketing or customer relations platform. According to a survey from Sophos, a security software and services vendor, as much as two-thirds of Facebook users are considering deactivating or deleting their Facebook account as a result of privacy concerns.
Windows 7 Boosts Microsoft’s Rep
Microsoft Warns of Bug in 64-bit Windows 7
The bug is in Windows' Canonical Display Driver, which blends the operating system's primary graphics interface, dubbed Graphics Device Interface (GDI), and DirectX to compose the desktop.
According to Jerry Bryant, a group manager with the Microsoft Security Response Center (MSRC), the vulnerability affects any machine with the flashy "Aero" interface, which is the default on all but the least-expensive editions of Windows 7. Aero is an optional install on Windows Server 2008 R2.
"If exploited, it would likely cause the affected system to stop responding and restart," said Bryant in an entry on the MSRC blog . "Code execution, while possible in theory, would be very difficult due to memory randomization both in kernel memory and via Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR)."
However, ASLR, one of the bulwarks of Windows 7's and Vista's security defenses, has been repeatedly bypassed by researchers , including two who won $10,000 cash prizes at the noted Pwn2Own hacking contest in March.
How Google Helps Hackers (Accidentally)
Because of Google's large market share in the Internet search engine business, hackers developed a vested interest in ensuring that their attacks are effective in poisoning Google results, according to software company Symantec.
"Google's breadth and speed of indexing also play a role," added Symantec, a company involved in providing security, storage and systems management solutions.
Symantec reported that search engine results poisoned with links to fake antivirus software have been a constant problem for Internet users. However, it is an effective way for cyber attackers to infect users' machines.
Based on Symantec's report on "Rogue Security Software" -- the culprits of these "toxic" search results are typically scam perpetrators who use a range of black hat search engine optimization (SEO) techniques to poison search engine results and increase the ranking of their scam websites on search engine indexes. A rogue security software program is a misleading application that pretends to be legitimate security software, but provides the user with little or no protection. In some cases, it actually facilitates the installation of malicious code that it claims to protect against.
Symantec reported that search engine results poisoned with links to fake antivirus software have been a constant problem for Internet users. However, it is an effective way for cyber attackers to infect users' machines.
Based on Symantec's report on "Rogue Security Software" -- the culprits of these "toxic" search results are typically scam perpetrators who use a range of black hat search engine optimization (SEO) techniques to poison search engine results and increase the ranking of their scam websites on search engine indexes. A rogue security software program is a misleading application that pretends to be legitimate security software, but provides the user with little or no protection. In some cases, it actually facilitates the installation of malicious code that it claims to protect against.
Prince of Persia 2010 (PC)
Prince of Persia PC Game 2010: The Forgotten Sands
After being divided into two critics and the public, the Prince of Persia is finally ready to recur to the masses with a title back to the origins of the Sands of Time trilogy, leaving the setting and the gameplay of the last iteration. Exploiting the inevitable appeal of the film in theaters these days, Ubisoft offers a game that is not really a tie-in, as it related to the film by a license, but not a real new chapter in the saga, but rather, a Title fruit of work to meet the demands of enthusiasts.
After being divided into two critics and the public, the Prince of Persia is finally ready to recur to the masses with a title back to the origins of the Sands of Time trilogy, leaving the setting and the gameplay of the last iteration. Exploiting the inevitable appeal of the film in theaters these days, Ubisoft offers a game that is not really a tie-in, as it related to the film by a license, but not a real new chapter in the saga, but rather, a Title fruit of work to meet the demands of enthusiasts.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
WOW Accounts
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Sunday, May 16, 2010
The Microsoft Discount
Microsoft has really been pushing its "Apple Tax" marketing message. First we had the latest round of "I'm a PC" ads. Then we had Steve Ballmer claiming that, in the current economic climate, it makes no sense to pay a premium for an Apple logo. And now we've got a marketing brief disguised as a whitepaper from analyst Roger Kay, entitled "What Price Cool?" (which you can read in PDF form).The gist of this marketing push: "Apple computers are more expensive than Windows machines because, well, hey, wait a minute--why should you pay more for a Mac?"
The numbers game
Kay provides several tables in which he compares laptops and desktops feature by feature--processor, amount of RAM, hard drive capacity, graphics chips, etc. Looking at those tables, the conclusion seems inescapable: Macs cost more.Kay isn't alone in that assessment. There have been plenty of Macs-to- Windows-PCs comparisons lately. Typical of the genre: The recent story on our sister site, PCWorld.com, comparing $1,000 laptops. Writer James Martin's "goal was to see what you'd get, in terms of features and specs, if you spent $1,000 on a MacBook versus the same amount spent on a Windows machine." (He did the same for the $2,000 price-point.)
James is a pro, and his story is well-documented and thorough. His conclusion: "If you've got $1,000 to spend, there's no question: Your dollar will go farther, in terms of specs and features, with the Dell or HP notebooks." Most other reports, like Kay's, come to the same conclusion.
Macworld's Dan Frakes and Dan Moren have already posted their well- considered responses to the Mac-Windows comparisons and to Kay's report, respectively. (Yes, we have a cabal of Dans here.) My reaction is somewhat less refined: Whenever I read about the supposed advantages of Windows PCs over Macs, I find myself muttering: "Yeah, but then you've got to use Windows."
Gizmodo-iPhone Saga: Court Docs Reveal Fascinating Details
If you've been following the strange tale of how tech blog Gizmodo came upon an unreleased iPhone prototype, wrote about it, and raised the ire of Apple and law enforcement officials, you probably know the basics by now.
In short, Apple engineer Robert "Gray" Powell accidentally left his fourth-generation iPhone in a Redwood City, California restaurant. One Brian Hogan gained possession of the phone and began shopping it around to several tech publishers, supposedly including PCWorld (although a hasty newsroom poll revealed no e-mail or other contact from Hogan). Gizmodo bit, paying the 21-year-old Hogan $5000 (and perhaps more) for the phone. It then published a detailed preview of the device, garnering millions of page views in the process.
Then all hell broke loose.
In short, Apple engineer Robert "Gray" Powell accidentally left his fourth-generation iPhone in a Redwood City, California restaurant. One Brian Hogan gained possession of the phone and began shopping it around to several tech publishers, supposedly including PCWorld (although a hasty newsroom poll revealed no e-mail or other contact from Hogan). Gizmodo bit, paying the 21-year-old Hogan $5000 (and perhaps more) for the phone. It then published a detailed preview of the device, garnering millions of page views in the process.
Then all hell broke loose.
Microsoft's Docs for Facebook: A Hands-On Tour
Docs.com, also known as Docs for Facebook, officially launched at Facebook's F8 conference on Wednesday. Created by Microsoft's FUSE Labs, the online app allows you to create, edit, and share Microsoft Office documents with your Facebook friends.
As of now, the service is still in beta; anyone can view documents, but in order to edit or create new ones, you'll have to join a wait list. I was able to take an early peek at the full functionality, though. Here's a look at what I found.
Docs for Facebook: Getting Started
At a glance, Docs for Facebook seems awfully similar to Microsoft's recently announced Office 2010 Web edition. And it is: The service is actually powered by Office 2010. The main difference, really, is the existence of the Facebook connection and the added sharing opportunities it presents.
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Microsoft To Upgrade Office Live Workspace Accounts To SkyDrive
Microsoft didn’t provide a solid timestamp for when the automatic upgrade will occur, only saying that it will come in the ‘coming months’, and that it will be opt-in. Users needn’t do a thing, Sam Sengupta, Principal Group Manager, Office Live Workspace adds, as all workspaces, documents, and related sharing permissions will be available directly within SkyDrive.
The New Browser Wars: Will Ubuntu drop Firefox for Google Chrome?
What’s going on is that Ubergizmo, a fine site, hears that Canonical (the company behind Ubuntu) is considering adding Chrome (or Chromium—more on that in a second) to Ubuntu Linux Netbook Remix, the next big release of which is due this autumn. What a terribly constructed sentence. Exactly why they’d replace Firefox with Chrome or Chromium isn’t known, but presumably they feel that the new browser on the block performs better on the average netbook than Firefox. No one would be inaccurate in calling Firefox a bit of a memory hog at times. I wouldn’t touch a netbook with a 10-foot pole—netbooks may also be dying, so this may all be moot sooner rather than later—so I have no idea if that’s true or not, that Chrome or Chromium out-performs Firefox on netbooks. I have no horse in that race, as it were.
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