Gregarius &#187; BetaNews.Com &#187; mars 2011

DiskRecovery 7 may be expensive for the average home user, but for the ability to recover your lost files, it really delivers.

Tip: Alter your voice on Skype calls

Publié: mars 31, 2011, 8:13pm CEST

Skype Voice Changer is a free add-on that enables you to do exactly what you might assume from the name.

Make Windows Sysinternals work better for you

Publié: mars 31, 2011, 8:02pm CEST

Windows Sysinternals is a good utility, but in some ways too much of a good thing. Sysinternals Updater provides a very simple way to equip your system with the full range of Sysinternals utilities suitable to your needs and updated automatically.

Windows Phone 7 draws 1,200 new developers per week, 11.5k apps per year

Publié: mars 31, 2011, 5:57pm CEST par Tim Conneally

To celebrate the first full year of Windows Phone development, Microsoft's Brandon Watson has revealed a list of statistics that loosely approximate the size and scope of the platform's third-party developer community.

Windows Phone 7 draws 1,200 new developers per week, 11.5k apps per quarter

Publié: mars 31, 2011, 5:57pm CEST par Tim Conneally

IPv4 address traders delay the Internet's collapse

Publié: mars 31, 2011, 3:50pm CEST

The IPocalypse shall be averted for a bit longer due to new procedures that allow address block owners to transfer addresses to others after a private agreement.

Craig Mundie questions whether tablets have a future -- does he or Microsoft without them?

Publié: mars 31, 2011, 3:02am CEST par Joe Wilcox

The man who predicted that the PC's successor would be a "room" wonders if tablets are just a fad. Is he nuts or prescient?

iPad generated nearly 100% of media tablet revenues in 2010

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 11:14pm CEST par Joe Wilcox

Well, competitors did collectively make $34 million, based on new data from Gartner compared to Apple financial statements.

Google launches '+1,' search result upvoting

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 9:17pm CEST par Tim Conneally

Google on Wednesday announced it will be testing "+1", a button akin to Facebook's "Like" that lets users show their approval for search result relevance.

Enterprises will increase spending on media tablets in 2011, and that's really good for iPad

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 7:03pm CEST par Joe Wilcox

Hells, bells, iPad might be Apple's backdoor to the enterprise, after all -- and, whoa, that can't be good for Windows PCs. Enterprise spending on media tablets will boost hardware purchases this year.

Paul Allen's tell-all memoir: Microsoft cofounders clashed over style, money

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 5:30pm CEST

Having Bill Gates as a business partner must be really aggravating. We should all be so unlucky.

Google gets 20 years of FTC audits in Google Buzz privacy blunder

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 5:02pm CEST par Tim Conneally

Google has agreed to settle with the Federal Trade Commission over allegations that Google Buzz, the social network launched in 2010, violated the FTC Act.

MAGIX MP3 deluxe 17: Better than a boombox

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 4:30pm CEST

This burgeoning suite of tools has almost every MP3 related base covered -- everything from importing music from CDs and adjusting tags and album art to creating playlists and recording online radio stations.

Xara Web Designer 7: Rolex features on a Timex budget

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 3:47pm CEST

Creating a modern, professional website can be a complex business, requiring a host of skills: design, HTML, scripting, Flash, graphics optimisation -- the list goes on. Which, if you've yet to master any of these, may seem just a little intimidating. Fortunately Xara Web Designer 7 offers a much simpler alternative.

3 years and 1 million boxes later, Roku players finally come to nationwide retail

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 2:30pm CEST par Tim Conneally

Roku announced on Wednesday that the Roku XD streaming player will finally be available in retail nationwide through a partnership with Best Buy.

Android Market finally gets in-app billing

Publié: mars 30, 2011, 4:00am CEST par Joe Wilcox

Less than a week after opening the service to developer testing, Google turned on an important catch-up feature with Apple's App Store -- in-app billing.

Some things that Firefox 4 can do that Android's stock browser can't

Publié: mars 29, 2011, 9:41pm CEST par Tim Conneally

Since Mozilla is trying to pull users away from Google's built-in browser loaded on all Android devices, we're presenting a list of features that Firefox 4 offers that cannot be found on the stock Android browser.

If Windows Phone is No. 2 by 2015, I'll kiss Steve Ballmer's feet

Publié: mars 29, 2011, 9:02pm CEST par Joe Wilcox

Today, IDC predicted Microsoft's mobile OS will trump BlackBerry and iOS in four years. There is no way that the analyst firm, which can't even get numbers right for three months, can accurately make such a bold prediction.

Closing the digital divide: 10Gbps fiber network begins in DC's poorest ward

Publié: mars 29, 2011, 7:04pm CEST par Tim Conneally

Tuesday morning, Washington DC Mayor Vincent Gray broke ground for the DC Community Access Network (DC-CAN), a fiber optic network geared toward bringing high speed broadband to underserved areas of the nation's capitol.

Hands On with Amazon Cloud Player

Publié: mars 29, 2011, 6:11pm CEST par Joe Wilcox

Today, Amazon started offering your music from the cloud -- in a web browser or through an Android app. Joe Wilcox reviews the new music streaming service, which gets high marks for ease of setup and low ones for uploading music.

Nokia sues Apple again, claiming patent infringement

Publié: mars 29, 2011, 5:29pm CEST par Ed Oswald

Nokia has filed new patent infringement clams with the US International Trade Commission against Apple, the company disclosed on Tuesday.

Intel refreshes consumer line of SSDs, drops price

Publié: mars 29, 2011, 2:28am CEST par Ed Oswald

Intel has refreshed its line of consumer solid state drives, increasing capacities while at the same time lowering prices.

Apple shouldn't rush iPhone 5, and neither should you

Publié: mars 29, 2011, 1:47am CEST par Joe Wilcox

Today's rumors Apple won't debut iPhone 5 in June as many people expect should surprise no one. Apple can't meet iPhone 4 demand. The goose is laying golden eggs -- don't disturb it. Let people buy the current model much longer.

Microsoft launches public preview of Windows Thin PC

Publié: mars 29, 2011, 1:30am CEST par Tim Conneally

Microsoft on Monday launchted the public community technology preview (CTP) of Windows Thin PC (WinTPC), the locked down version of WIndows 7 designed to turn legacy PCs into thin clients that can run Windows 7 applications.

Did you miss CTIA Wireless 2011? We've got you covered

Publié: mars 25, 2011, 11:01pm CET par Joe Wilcox

The second really big wireless tradeshow of the year concluded yesterday. But the gadget news lives on, recapped and linked for those sorry sods who missed it.

Verizon slashes price of original iPad to $299

Publié: mars 25, 2011, 8:35pm CET par Ed Oswald

Verizon is now selling the original iPad 16GB at a price of $299 through its retail locations, reports indicate.

AT&T deal to acquire T-Mobile may find FCC approval difficult

Publié: mars 25, 2011, 7:55pm CET par Ed Oswald

An FCC official has told the Wall Street Journal that AT&T's effort to acquire T-Mobile may face steep resistance to gain approval from the regulatory body.

Android in-app billing coming next week

Publié: mars 25, 2011, 7:04pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Let the preparations begin. Developers can test in-app billing ahead of the feature's availability. But hurry.

Honeycomb tests Google's 'Open Principles'

Publié: mars 25, 2011, 3:32pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Google's decision to withhold releasing Android 3.0 as open source seemingly defies the company's longstanding position on open systems and information. Is Google doing evil to make money?

Hands on with the Pre-Honeycomb Acer Iconia A501 Android tablet

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 7:42pm CET par Tim Conneally

AT&T this week announced it will sell the 4G Acer Iconia Tab A501 in Q2, we take a look at the graphical power of Tegra 2 inside it.

VLC Media Player gets a facelift for Mac OS X

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 7:41pm CET

This release is notable largely for the fact the Mac OS X version sports a subtly redesigned interface, but also includes various codec, demuxer and language updates, some new encoder packages and various fixes that apply to all platforms.

Use CyberGhost to browse the Internet anonymously

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 7:41pm CET

Do want to browse the Web anonymously or watch videos from another region? CyberGhost will make you invisible.

Happy Birthday, Mac OS X!

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 7:18pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Ten years ago today, Apple gave birth to new operating system Mac OS X 10.0. But it spent six months in an incubator, having been born prematurely -- missing features and short of applications. Still, some children are born for greatness.

Color aims to change the idea of the social network

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 6:03pm CET par Ed Oswald

Startup mobile application developer Color Labs launched a new social networking app on Wednesday night, while simultaneously announcing that it had secured a staggering $41 million in funding for its project.

Microsoft announces Windows Embedded Device Manager 2011

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 5:58pm CET par Tim Conneally

Microsoft today announced the release of Windows Embedded Device Manager 2011, an extension for System Center Configuration Manager 2007 that allows IT to manage Windows Embedded Standard and POSReady devices.

3 things missing from CTIA Wireless 2011

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 4:24pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Today, one of the largest wireless tradeshows anywhere comes to a close. But CTIA Wireless doesn't feel as exciting as it should during a year when smartphones and tablets are such hot commodities.

Steve Jobs says 'No Interest' in iPhone 4 radiation app, devs release it anyway

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 2:17am CET par Tim Conneally

Tawkon, makers of a mobile application that measures cellular radiation, have been blocked from releasing their app for iPhone. In response, the company on Wednesday is releasing it for the Cydia iPhone jailbreak.

Hands on with HTC HD7S: aka the Windows Phone that used to be T-Mobile's

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 2:04am CET par Tim Conneally

HTC and Microsoft are in their third year of creating smartphones in the "HD" product line, and the two companies look to have finally hit their stride with the new HD7S, which is a revamped version of the four month old HD7 completely ready for a world where T-Mobile USA no longer exists.

Six must-see Sony Ericsson Xperia Play videos

Publié: mars 24, 2011, 1:28am CET par Joe Wilcox

These marketing videos are among the best seen in a long time. They're sassy and fun. If they can't help sell Xperia Play, Sony Ericsson should pack it up and go away.

Make your to-do lists fly from Springpad

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 10:35pm CET

Springpad is a comprehensive data management tool that can be used on iOS and Android devices, as well as on desktop computers -- thanks to a browser extension. Best of all, it is completely free of charge.

Diskeeper 2011: Reduces fragmentation by up to 85%

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 10:16pm CET

Two new features are standount: IntelliWrite fragmentation-prevention technology and InstantDefrag, which anticipates which files are about to be accessed and defrags them if necessary.

Paragon's Partition Manager 10 for Virtual Machines is a wonder, and it's free

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 10:06pm CET

Partition Manager 10 for Virtual Machines is a powerful free package, full of essential features, and we think it's a must-have for anyone who regularly uses virtual machines.

PDF Download converts web pages to Portable Document Format

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 9:56pm CET

PDF Download is a quick and convenient tool for accessing, sharing and printing PDF files or converting them to HTML.

A look at the difference between T-Mobile's 3G and 'new' 4G speeds

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 9:04pm CET par Tim Conneally

On the CTIA show floor today, we've pitted T-Mobile's 3G and 4G networks against one another on two devices which are nearly identical in design: the Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant and the Samsung Galaxy S 4G.

Oracle drops support for Intel's much-maligned Itanium chip

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 7:39pm CET par Ed Oswald

Oracle further muddied the future of Intel's Itanium platform, saying late Tuesday that it had decided to discontinue all development for the server chip.

Apple Mac OS X chief Bertrand Serlet leaves company

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 6:39pm CET par Ed Oswald

The "father" of Mac OS X is leaving Apple, the company announced Wednesday.

Microsoft pushes Windows Intune RTM; BitLocker Administration and Monitoring beta

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 6:35pm CET par Tim Conneally

At the Microsoft Management Summit on Wednesday, Microsoft rolled out the final version of Windows Intune and provided information on the betas of a handful of its management solutions.

Firefox 4 takes back the web from IE9 -- 6 million downloads in first 24 hours

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 3:36pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Suddenly, IE9's 2.35 million downloads in 24 hours doesn't look so impressive. It's not as many as Firefox 3's debut, but still damn good. Number of downloads exceeded 7.1 million when this story posted.

Hands On with T-Mobile's G2x: a potential big win for LG

Publié: mars 23, 2011, 1:13pm CET par Tim Conneally

We got to take a look at some of the features of the LG G2x, T-Mobile's first dual-core smartphone, and its fourteenth HSPA+ ("4G") device.

Judge rejects Google's book deal with publishers

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 11:49pm CET par Ed Oswald

A federal judge has rejected a proposed $125 million class-action settlement between Google and book publishers, saying it is "not fair, adequate and reasonable."

Will HTC EVO 3D and EVO View 4G be worth the wait?

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 9:50pm CET par Joe Wilcox

HTC and Sprint debuted two of the coolest connected devices at CTIA Wireless on March 22nd. But they're not shipping until summer, and the competitive landscape could dramatically change sooner.

Sprint announces HTC EVO 3D and View 4G tablet

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 9:19pm CET par Tim Conneally

At CTIA Wireless in Orlando today, Sprint announced two more 4G devices: The HTC EVO 3D, and the HTC View 4G Tablet which bring the carrier's WiMax-capable canon to a total of 22.

Adobe patches critical zero-day Flash flaw

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 9:18pm CET par Ed Oswald

A security flaw in how embedded Flash is handled within PDF files has caused Adobe to release an "out-of-cycle" patch.

T-Mobile to increase 4G speeds in two dozen markets by midyear

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 6:18pm CET par Ed Oswald

T-Mobile this week said it was set to double the speeds of its HSPA+ network to 42Mbps in three cities this spring, with service initially being available in New York City, Orlando, and Las Vegas.

XnConvert: Image batch editing done quick and easy

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 6:05pm CET

With support for over 400 image formats, XnConvert will handle almost any file you can think of, and while the program can be used on single images, the real benefits come from importing entire folders of image files and processing them all simultaneously.

Samsung announces new Galaxy Tab 8.9, 10.1 coming this summer

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 5:59pm CET par Tim Conneally

Samsung was arguably the first company to deliver a compelling Android-based tablet with its 7" Galaxy Tab, which debuted in late 2010. The company is continuing its momentum by releasing two other Android tablets in 10.1" and 8.9" profiles.

Adobe deflates system overhead from AIR 2.6

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 5:50pm CET

The new SquirrelFish Extreme JavaScript engine should run code 50-percent faster than before, for instance. Adobe claims that a smaller and more efficient runtime will cut CPU usage by up to 30 percent, and reduce memory consumption immediately, no application recompilation required.

Use SuperPreview to make your site compatible with major web browsers

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 5:39pm CET

SuperView is a Microsoft Expression Web component that lets developers/designers see how their sites render in different browsers.

LogMeIn 2 lets you log into iOS devices and transfer files

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 5:39pm CET

The app has always made it possible to view remote files on iOS devices, but this latest version allows remote files to be moved or copied to an iPhone or iPad. This helps to avoid the need for work-around solutions such as sending files as email attachments, and the ability to create folders locally means that it is easy to keep files neatly organized.

WOT security browser plug-in now supports Facebook, Twitter links

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 5:29pm CET

The latest release provides ratings for links displayed in Facebook and Twitter, as well as links that have been shortened using services such as bit.ly or t.co.

You can stop waiting for BlackBerry PlayBook, finally

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 4:58pm CET par Joe Wilcox

The oft-promised BlackBerry PlayBook is finally coming, April 19. You can believe Research Motion this time, because retailers like Best Buy are taking preorders.

Amazon's Android App Store begins rolling out to U.S. customers

Publié: mars 22, 2011, 2:12pm CET par Tim Conneally

Leading Web retailer Amazon today launched its official app store for Android mobile devices.

AT&T adds big screened 3D-ready LG Thrill, HTC HD7S to lineup

Publié: mars 21, 2011, 11:27pm CET par Ed Oswald

The nation's largest GSM carrier on Monday announced two new smartphones aimed at the higher end as it aims to differentiate itself amid increasing competition,

Do you like Google's new Chrome logo?

Publié: mars 21, 2011, 10:14pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Many an online social mob has forced vendors to give up a new logo or other branding change. Remember last year's online revolt against the new Gap logo? Chrome has a new logo. Do you want Google to keep it, go back to the old one or to start over?

Get Firefox 4 final a day ahead of its official release

Publié: mars 21, 2011, 8:57pm CET par Ed Oswald

Betanews' sister site FileForum has obtained the official releases from Mozilla's FTP servers a day early.

Stop malware at the TrafficLight

Publié: mars 21, 2011, 7:56pm CET

Why bother with anti-malware browser plug-ins? TrafficLight adds a service to your PC that filters web traffic at the protocol level, so it doesn't show up as an add-on in Internet Explorer or Firefox, or add an extra toolbar to your browser.

CalendarBar: Easy access to iCal and Google Calendar

Publié: mars 21, 2011, 7:46pm CET

This is a good looking little app that could be a great productivity enhancer.

Got video format troubles? Try Media Converter

Publié: mars 21, 2011, 7:36pm CET

Ordinarily, converting videos between formats can be something of an arduous process, but the free Mac app Media Converter aims to keep things as simple and speedy as possible.

Google Voice and Nexus S Sprint

Publié: mars 21, 2011, 6:27pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Today, Google and Sprint made two significant announcements ahead of tomorrow's official opening of the CTIA Wireless trade show: Nexus S 4G and Google Voice integration are coming to Sprint.

AT&T slashes 64GB 1st-gen iPad 3G price by $300

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 9:14pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Holy wholesale pricing, Batman. AT&T is having a fire sale on first-generation iPads. The formerly $829 high-end model could be yours for just $529.

iSuppli: iPad 2 shortages may become worse due to Japan quake

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 9:06pm CET par Ed Oswald

With supplies of the iPad 2 already tight, the ongoing disaster in Japan could make things even worse according to a prominent research firm

Who will pay $600 for XOOM with WiFi?

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 8:34pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Motorola's hot, Android 3.0 "Honeycomb" tablet goes on sales next week -- heck, some retailers are already taking preorders. Amazon has it for $599, Costco $589.99 and Staples $599.98. Betanews readers say whether or not they'll pay.

LTE at one year: 19 networks, 6 smartphones, 7 tablets

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 8:31pm CET par Tim Conneally

Before next week's CTIA Wireless convention, the GSA and 4G Americas give us a look at LTE's progress

Unauthorized tetherers on AT&T being told to pay up

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 8:11pm CET par Ed Oswald

AT&T has begun cracking down on those subscribers who are tethering their laptops or other Wi-Fi enabled devices to their smart phones for Internet access.

In light of new data caps, Netgear acquires AT&T's DSL equipment provider

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 5:40pm CET par Tim Conneally

Network hardware manufacturer Netgear on Friday announced it will be acquiring all the assets of Westell Technologies' customer broadband networking equipment division for $33.5 million in cash.

IObit Smart Defrag 2.0 promises faster performance

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 5:39pm CET

The new Boot Time defrag option basically allows Smart Defrag to defragment the drive at boot time, enabling it to defrag major system files that are usually locked when Windows is running, helping to improve performance further.

Tip: Use CD or USB stick to clean up malware-infected PCs

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 5:38pm CET

SUPERAntiSpyware provides backup protection alongside your existing anti-malware software and means for recovering infected PC from CD or USB stick.

Apple must stop iPad 2 scalpers NOW

Publié: mars 18, 2011, 4:55pm CET par Joe Wilcox

It's time Apple put people who want to buy and use iPad 2 ahead of those who want to profit from shortages they help create. It's really simple: Put customers before profits. We offer five suggestions how.

Apple, supporters claim iPhone browser test flawed

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 11:23pm CET par Ed Oswald

Is the study on the web page loading times of the iPhone flawed, or are Apple supporters not looking at the whole picture?

Microsoft small business server software now widely available

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 9:58pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard Edition is now available through all Microsoft channels, including OEMs and volume licensing. The company announced all-channel availability earlier today.

New York Times digital subscriptions & the impossible fight against free content

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 8:35pm CET par Tim Conneally

On March 28, the New York Times will put a new "freemium" subscription model in place for users accessing news on NYTimes.com.

Is Microsoft more ethical than Apple or Google?

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 7:17pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Microsoft joins Ethisphere's list of "Most Ethical Companies," while Google falls off and Apple is consistent no-show. Is Microsoft ethical? You tell us.

Microsoft cleans up in both U.S. search and video traffic

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 5:56pm CET par Tim Conneally

comScore, Compete, and Nielsen have released their tallies for February Web traffic in the U.S., and Microsoft made some big gains.

Study says Android surfs the web faster than the iPhone

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 5:29pm CET par Ed Oswald

A new study released Thursday claims that Android loads webpages on average 52 percent faster than the iPhone.

Opera 11.10 beta available, Opera Mini 6 preview coming to CTIA

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 5:07pm CET

Codename "Barracuda," Opera 11.10 beta sports many informations, easy plug-in installation and improved support for web standards.

Sprint outlines new features of CDMA Push-to-Talk service

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 4:32pm CET par Tim Conneally

Sprint has announced it will launch CDMA-based Push-to-Talk technology called Sprint Direct Connect in the fourth quarter of this year.

Which is faster -- Copy Handler or FastCopy?

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 4:27pm CET

It's a test of wisdom versus youth. In one corner is nine-year veteran Copy Handler. In the other is upstart FastCopy. And the winner?

Sky News releases app for iPad -- free now but not for long

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 4:14pm CET

The new app, which current isn't available from the U.S. iTunes store, provides access to the 24 hour news station and a range of other content.

Google iOS app gets new name, more search focus

Publié: mars 17, 2011, 3:58pm CET

The newly renamed Google Search app still provides easy access to all of information giant's online tools, such as Docs and Gmail, but the search interface has been redesigned and gesture support has been added.

Profiteers feed off iPad 2 shortages

Publié: mars 14, 2011, 9:00pm CET par Joe Wilcox

The iPad 2 aftermarket is already in motion, as resale parasites -- looking to profit from shortages -- sell iPad 2s they snatched up before genuine buyers could get them from Apple stores. There's hot trade on eBay today, with the 32GB WiFi white iPad 2 selling in the mid $700s.

Japan disaster damage: Toshiba, Fujitsu, Casio, Panasonic, more report

Publié: mars 14, 2011, 8:52pm CET par Tim Conneally

Dozens of electronics and technology companies with headquarters and facilities in Japan have issued initial damage reports in the wake of Friday's catastrophic earthquake.

After just one weekend, iPad 2 is already jailbroken

Publié: mars 14, 2011, 8:05pm CET par Ed Oswald

Hackers have already managed to break open Apple's latest iPad, with developer and hacker Comex saying he had managed to do so remotely over the weekend.

Defraggler update supports Windows 7 SP1

Publié: mars 14, 2011, 6:56pm CET

Defraggler 2.03 is now fully compatible with Windows 7 Service Pack 1, and it includes a number of interesting new features and fixes.

Keep your fingers in control with Trackpad Blocker

Publié: mars 14, 2011, 6:47pm CET

You're working away on your laptop, engrossed in your work and typing at speed. And all is well, until you accidentally touch a trackpad mouse button, the cursor jumps somewhere else entirely, and you have to pause to try and undo the damage. Frustrated? Trackpad Blocker can help.

Intel makes another big mobile acquisition: Egypt's SySDSoft

Publié: mars 14, 2011, 4:31pm CET par Tim Conneally

Monday, chipmaker Intel Corp. announced that its recently formed Intel Mobile Communications group has acquired "most of the assets" of privately held Egyptian communications company SySDSoft.

Wannabe a novelst? Try yWriter

Publié: mars 14, 2011, 2:23pm CET

Everyone thinks they have a great novel inside them, but taking it from the deep recesses of your brain to a final, published state is a difficult journey. What you need is a dedicated tool that doesn't just give you the tools to write your story, but provides you with the tools you need to organize them.

Google's Android kill switch is a GOOD thing

Publié: mars 14, 2011, 11:00am CET

Earlier this month, Google reached down into Android handsets to remove malicious applications and to repair the damage they caused. This kill switch is freaking out some users. If this is Google doing evil, it's a necessary evil.

Who bought iPad 2?

Publié: mars 13, 2011, 7:24pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Not as many people as wanted to. Apple's second-generation is largely sold out. Many Betanews readers would purchase the tablet if they could get it, while others would kiss the devil before buying iPad 2.

Did you buy iPad 2?

Publié: mars 12, 2011, 8:27pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Late yesterday, Apple and AT&T retail stores started selling iPad 2. Joe Wilcox shares his story waiting to buy the Apple tablet. We'd like to hear your story and answer to question "did you buy?"

How to use the Web to help Japan quake victims, track damage from afar

Publié: mars 12, 2011, 6:25am CET par Tim Conneally

Friday at about 2:45pm local time (12:45am EST) Japan experienced a devastating earthquake, here's how to follow along, participate, and help out.

Twitter aims to reclaim the experience, tightens rules for third-party apps

Publié: mars 12, 2011, 2:48am CET par Tim Conneally

Popular microblogging service Twitter is clamping down on all the third-party client applications that duplicate the service's official apps, a statement from company developers said Friday.

5 ways to protect your Android phone from malware

Publié: mars 11, 2011, 7:32pm CET

By Tony Anscombe

AVG's Tony Anscombe offers security pointers for Android users, but we expect many Betanews readers will disregard advice about not rooting their phones.

Tip: Mac users, never miss another bill payment

Publié: mars 11, 2011, 6:40pm CET

For 21 bucks -- 14, if you're stingy -- Chronicle can make sure you always pay the bills on time.

Rockmelt beta is available to all

Publié: mars 11, 2011, 6:30pm CET

The somewhat controversial social media-oriented, Chromium-based browser has exited private beta.

Will ARM or x86 win the mobile processor wars?

Publié: mars 11, 2011, 6:14pm CET

By Mike Feibus

If you answered ARM, you'd be wrong. You'd also be wrong if you said x86.

My shocking visit to the Apple Genius Bar

Publié: mars 11, 2011, 5:43pm CET par Joe Wilcox

For the second time in nearly three years, Apple Store gave me a new computer to replace one recently purchased but malfunctioning -- each a MacBook Air. Is it good customer service or faulty products?

Google lets you 'block all' search results from specific sites

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 10:17pm CET par Tim Conneally

Top search engine Google on Thursday introduced the ability to block all results from a particular URL.

Google pwns: Chrome goes untouched at hacking confab

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 9:50pm CET par Ed Oswald

For a third straight year, Google's Chrome browser has gone unhacked at a yearly event aimed at exposing the security flaws of today's modern browsers

iPad market share plunged 20 percent in Q4 2010

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 8:46pm CET par Joe Wilcox

IDC released tablet shipment data a day before iPad 2 goes on sale. But something doesn't add up -- iPad's market share as previously stated for Q3 compared to newer data, raising doubts about share declines.

Microsoft rolls out new virtualization tools for Desktop Optimization Pack

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 7:32pm CET par Tim Conneally

Thursday, Microsoft announced the general availability of App-V 4.6 SP1 and MED-V 2.0.

IObit Unlocker cracks open locked files

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 6:33pm CET

The program is best used for resolving simple issues, for example, when the user has several files open in a program and wishes to delete or move one without having to shut down the entire application first in order to unlock the file in question.

ESET SysInspector sniffs out malware but can't kill it

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 6:24pm CET

SysInspector is only about detection, and can't remove any threats it finds. But, heck, it found a keylogger on our test system in seconds. It deserves a place in every PC owner's security toolbox.

Firefox 4 nearly ready, but IE9 may be faster

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 6:10pm CET

Firefox 4 Release Candidate 1 is finally out, after long delays, allowing Microsoft to ship Internet Explorer 9 first.

Which is the more popular web browser?

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 5:23pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Yesterday, Joe Wilcox asked "Which web browser do you use?" So many readers responded, we just had to present some of their responses. But the answer to which is "more popular" will surprise some people.

Which web browser do you use?

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 12:11am CET par Joe Wilcox

So far in March, there has been major news about 6 different browsers. It's a browser war, and you're the battlefield. We'd like know if you use Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, Safari or something else.

Printopia for Mac 1.0.4: Printing from iOS devices made easy

Publié: mars 10, 2011, 12:10am CET

If Apple's AirPrint is giving you trouble, Printopia is an easy-to-use alternative that works with most any USB-connected printer.

How could Steve Ballmer screw up Microsoft's HP partnership?

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 10:24pm CET par Joe Wilcox

HP's plans to ship WebOS alongside Windows turns a strategic partner into a competitor. It's an unthinkable circumstance that Microsoft could have prevented.

Ubuntu shedding dated 'desktop' and 'netbook' edition names

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 10:06pm CET par Tim Conneally

Canonical Inc. on Wednesday announced that there is really no longer a need to have a separate edition of Ubuntu specifically for netbooks and for desktops.

Microsoft's Xbox Kinect sells 10 million, breaks record

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 9:13pm CET par Ed Oswald

Move over iPad and iPhone -- the fastest selling consumer electronics device ever was not made by Apple.

Share images online with Hyperdesktop

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 9:05pm CET

The software easily shares screen grabs or photos via the Imgur photo service.

Apple rolls out iOS 4.3 for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, updates Apple TV

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 8:15pm CET par Tim Conneally

As expected, Apple's mobile operating system received an update on Wednesday, bringing new features to iPhone, iPad and iPod alike.

Government program puts tablets, netbooks in hands of 35,000 kids

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 7:29pm CET par Tim Conneally

Wednesday, the FCC announced the 20 E-rate schools that will be included in the next round of "Learning on the Go" pilot programs, where public schools test how mobile wireless devices such as tablets and notebooks with mobile broadband can be employed inside and outside the classroom.

Chrome 10 seeds Google's Cloud OS ambitions

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 7:07pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Chrome 10 is by far Google's most cloud-services ready version of the browser. The search and information giant is preparing businesses, consumers and developers for its next big cloud push and Chrome OS' release.

HP will put WebOS on every computer it sells by 2012

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 7:05pm CET par Ed Oswald

HP CEO Leo Apotheker revealed in an interview with BusinessWeek published Wednesday that its WebOS operating system will make it on to every HP PC by 2012.

Microsoft hints at Internet Explorer 10 previews for MIX11 in April

Publié: mars 9, 2011, 5:51pm CET par Tim Conneally

Microsoft on Wednesday confirmed that it will be releasing the complete build of Internet Explorer 9 on Monday, March 14 at 9pm Pacific (Midnight EST), using the South by Southwest Festival as a platform for the browser's worldwide introduction.

Google releases stable build of Chrome 10 browser

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 11:39pm CET par Tim Conneally

Less than one month after launching the public beta of Chrome 10, Google has rolled out the first stable build.

Are mobile developers violating open-source licenses?

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 10:48pm CET par Joe Wilcox

Seventy-one percent of Android and iOS apps failed to meet open-source license requirements, by varying degrees, according to OpenLogic. The most egregious violators placed copyrights where they shouldn't be. Android GPL/LGPL license compliance was 0 percent.

Opera's device-agnostic app store could have widest reach of all

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 10:43pm CET par Tim Conneally

Opera Software on Tuesday launched its browser-based app store which carries applications for all of the mobile platforms that Opera Mobile and Mini support, with the exception of Apple's iOS.

Adobe releases Flash-to-HTML5 conversion tool to developers

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 9:03pm CET par Ed Oswald

Adobe's "Wallaby" aims for devices -- like the iPhone and iPad -- that do not support Flash.

Google Instant Preview comes to Android 2.2 and iOS 4+

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 7:58pm CET par Tim Conneally

ast year, Google unveiled a feature which lets users view a full-page preview of search results without actually navigating away from Google's results page. Today, Google has made this available on mobile devices.

Facebook moves into movie rentals with Warner Bros. deal

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 7:26pm CET par Ed Oswald

The social networking site announced with Warner Bros. that it would begin offering streaming movie rentals

Signatures by finger on touchscreen: still not carved in stone

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 7:25pm CET par Tim Conneally

Users of touchscreen smartphones are potentially carrying around a legally binding signature tablet in their pocket.

WinRAR 4.0 improves decompression performance by 30%

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 5:31pm CET

There is one piece of bad news: WinRAR has finally dropped support for Windows 98, Me and NT, so if you're running an ancient PC then you'll have to make do with an earlier version of the program or upgrade to an OS Microsoft released in this century.

CyberDuck quacks its way from Macintosh to Windows

Publié: mars 8, 2011, 5:23pm CET

CyberDuck is a FTP client that is also capable of providing access to various cloud-based storage providers, including Google Docs, Amazon S3, WebDAV and Windows Azure (but not Windows Live SkyDrive) through a desktop application.

Google removes Android malware so you don't have to

Publié: mars 7, 2011, 4:51am CET par Joe Wilcox

Android handsets infected with malware are getting a cleaning job from Google. On March 2nd, Google removed 21 apps from the Android Marketplace that contained malicious code. Now Google is "remotely removing the malicious applications from affected devices" and "pushing an Android Market security update to all affected devices that undoes the exploits to prevent the attacker(s) from accessing any more information from affected devices," according to a blog post by Rich Cannings, Android security lead.

Whoa. That's scary reassuring: Knowing Google can reach down to Android handsets to swat malicious code and undo its impact and simply that Google can reach down into devices at all. I mean whoa. "This remote application removal feature is one of many security controls the Android team," Cannings writes. Last year he defended the remote removal feature after Google nixed some applications. "This remote removal functionality -- along with Android's unique Application Sandbox and Permissions model, over-the-air update system, centralized Market, developer registrations, user-submitted ratings, and application flagging --provides a powerful security advantage to help protect Android users in our open environment."

I've got mixed feelings about the remote removal capabilities, which gives me mixed feelings of security and sense of Big Brother watching. So I ask: What's your feeling about Google's remote zap feature? Please answer in comments, or email joewilcox at gmail dot com.

On the evening of March 1st, Google became aware of the malicious apps, which were removed from the Android Marketplace "within minutes," Cannings writes. The 21 malicious applications exploited known Android vulnerabilities in some, but not all versions of the mobile operating system. Devices running Android 2.2.2 or higher aren't affected. Google believes that the malware only harvested IMEI/IMSI codes.

"If your device has been affected, you will receive an email from android-market-support@google.com over the next 72 hours," Cannings writes (he posted today at about 1 a.m. ET). "You will also receive a notification on your device that 'Android Market Security Tool March 2011' has been installed. You may also receive notification(s) on your device that an application has been removed. You are not required to take any action from there; the update will automatically undo the exploit. Within 24 hours of the exploit being undone, you will receive a second email."

Cannings didn't reveal the number of infected handsets and made nondescript promises about preventing something similar from happening again. "We are adding a number of measures to help prevent additional malicious applications using similar exploits from being distributed through Android Market and are working with our partners to provide the fix for the underlying security issues." Which means what?

Did you download an app from the Android Marketplace that affected your computer? Unsure whether your phone is infected? "A user can determine if their device has been affected by visiting Settings > Applications > Running services and look for 'DownloadManageService' in the list of running services," according to a Google security notice. If you were infected, please share your story in comments, or email joewilcox at gmail dot com.

5 lessons tablet competitors should learn from iPad 2

Publié: mars 6, 2011, 9:03pm CET par Joe Wilcox

iPad 2

Last week's iPad 2 debut offered few surprises, other than Apple's new tablet not living up to out-of-control rumors -- and still there is endless cacophony on the InterWebs. By measure of noise, there is seemingly no other tablet worth purchasing. But, of course, that's not the case. Perception isn't always reality. But from iPad 2 hype and perceptions, there are five lessons competitors can learn.

I present them in no particular order of importance with recommendations competitors should consider adopting.

1. iPad 2 hype is out of control. Make no mistake about it. Look at the ridiculous number of rumor blog posts or stories ahead of the launch, and the even larger number from March 2nd onwards. That's worth tens of millions of dollars in free marketing to Apple. Betanews posted just five iPad 2 stories from launch day (six, counting impact on Samsung), and traffic was lower than usual for nearly all other posts expect those about Apple's tablet. Earlier this afternoon, three of the top-five anchor stories at Google News Sci/Tech were about iPad 2.

Apple feeds the hype machine by announcing a product one week but waiting until another to begin sales. CEO Steve Jobs announced iPad 2 on March 2nd, but the tablet doesn't go on sale until March 11th. It's a tried-and-true Apple tactic for feeding pageview-hungry blogs and news sites. The Apple fan club of bloggers and journalists eat the hype dripping right from Apple's hand.

To combat the hype, tablet competitors need to seriously invest in all-media-outlets advertising. Verizon's Droid campaign -- $100 million of it -- is the model. If you look at Android smartphone shipment growth, a large spike started in fourth quarter 2009, when Verizon launched Droid, backed it by huge ad spending and offered limited-time two-for-one offers. Verizon already is fairly aggressively marketing the Motorola XOOM tablet -- I see TV commercials in prime time most every evening. Verizon advertising clearly targets male gamers, which is a risky approach (see #4).

Tablet competitors should get their products to key influencers for extended loans. Start with influential bloggers and developers in the Android community and then gadget geek writers or vloggers who pine for the newest thing or who write neutrally about tech. Forget Apple fan club bloggers like TechCrunch's MG Siegler. They're lost causes that will nitpick your product's every perceived shortcoming against iPad 2.

2. Perception is everything. Many prominent bloggers are writing like Apple has already won the tablet wars, when they're really just starting a new round. Yes, Apple sold nearly 15 million iPads during its first 9 months on the market, but early lead is no certainty of anything. The tech industry is a graveyard of early innovators crushed by imitators -- Betamax, HD-DVD, Lotus 123, Netscape, Tablet PC and WordPerfect, among many others. Funny, the voices crying certainty also proclaimed the coming of the Jesus phone, but Apple's handset market share retreats before the great Android god. But iPad doesn't have to be a winner to be a winner, it just needs to be perceived so. In business and branding, perception is everything.

The perception isn't just about the device but iOS as a platform. If iOS is perceived to be the winner, device buyers, OEM manufacturers, peripheral providers and software and services developers will self-fulfill that perception. For Android, Google needs to deal with the perception problem. Android 3.0 -- Honeycomb -- is a good start, but it's not nearly enough. Google mobile operating system fragmentation is now worse, with forked Android development -- 2.x for phones and 3.x for tablets -- and the forthcoming Chrome OS. Fragmentation will feed negative perceptions about Android.

Unifying Google operating systems is just a start. In January I asserted: "The most important tablet is missing from CES, and it's not iPad 2." Google should do for Android tablets what it did with smartphones: Release a branded device (or even two -- in different sizes) that is reference design for manufacturers and always has the lastest Android software for developers. Otherwise, Android tablets have little to no chance competing with iPad. The market of Android competitors is simply too fragmented.

In #1, I asserted that Verizon Droid advertising greatly benefited sales for all devices -- that is for the United States. Google's release of the Nexus One in January 2010 was as significant and likely greater inflection point. That smartphone, as OEM reference design and developer standard, was the equivalent of falling stones setting off an avalanche of Android phone releases and enormous market share gains throughout 2010. No one should underestimate the power of Google's brand on a tablet, or the positive perception created by Google taking more ownership over Android platform development.

3. Distribution is everything else. Apple didn't bring iPad to market in a vacuum. As I explained in January, iPad benefited from manufacturing and retail logistics put in place for iPod and applications platform distribution created for iPhone. I already explained the importance of distribution in separate January and February posts (please read them). This distribution advantage is often overlooked in analyses of iPad's success. The tablet was available in 46 countries during calendar fourth quarter, when Apple shipped 7.33 million units.

Manufacturers that can't get shelf space where consumers shop the most will be crushed by iPad 2 competition, directly from the device or other tablets. Of course, with shelf space there should be lots of advertising (see #1).

4. Apple presents a compelling digital lifestyle. It's broad, too. Rather than target male, gadget geeks, Apple is going after everyone. From iPad 2's design, to the promoted apps to the colorful smart covers, Apple marketing targets women and teens as much as it does men. Additionally, the company smartly shows the benefits of using iPad with its own services, such as iTunes, or others, like Netflix. Something else: Apple's digital lifestyle marketing is as much about technology fashion as it is mobile computing.

Verizon's XOOM marketing is too male-oriented. It's a long-term losing campaign. Motorola's XOOM marketing is much better: "Tablet Evolution" or "Empower the People" videos are more aspirational and appeal to a broader audience. They tell stories, too. By comparison, Samsung is doing some really smart, aspirational marketing around Galaxy Tab and also its Galaxy S II smartphone. Some examples, from Samsung Mobile's You Tube channel: "Galaxy Tab Stories: Jesse Kamm" or official US commercial. The "Letters from the World" marketing video for Galaxy S II is exceptional, aspirational marketing and approach I strongly encourage Samsung to apply similar marketing approach to Galaxy Tab. Tagline: "Don't contain yourself. Who knows how far one can really go."

Marketers should take cues from film directors like James Cameron, whose stories appeal to men and women. Marketing tech products should be no different.

5. For now, competition is about winning second place. I'm not convinced iPad can win the tablet wars. Perception isn't reality. But given the hype, the positive perceptions, the power and lower component pricing of Apple's manufacturing and distribution channels, the effectiveness of the company's digital lifestyle marketing and crowded field of tablet competitors, the initial shakeout will be among the contenders. They'll be fighting one another for second place.

However, the ultimate and more important winner won't be the device but tablet platform. Android can easily erode iOS' early lead if, say, tablets running Honeycomb could capture the next 5 or 6 places behind Apple in market share. As Android demonstrated on smartphones, there's strength in aggregation. Google can help by better resolving fragmentation problems and taking the aforementioned ownership over tablet development by releasing a reference design.

12 reasons why developers should favor Android tablets over iPad

Publié: mars 5, 2011, 11:25pm CET

By Robert Scoble

OK, maybe Steve Jobs' reality distortion field is wearing off a bit, and I might feel differently in a week when I get my iPad 2, but after playing with my Motorola XOOM a lot more tonight and seeing just what "no apps" looks like, I got something to say to developers:

You should build for Android. Before you build for iPad. Here's why.

1. The bar on Android for getting noticed is very very very low! I mean it's so low that I feel that I could write an app and get noticed tonight. Even a crappy app. Even one that does nothing but make fart noises. While on iPad you better have an Angry Birds or Foursquare or Instagram killer just to have a prayer of getting TechCrunch to pay attention to you. Hint: your app isn't yet as good as Angry Birds, Foursquare, or Instagram, so stay away from Apple.

2. Yobongo is learning tonight the hard way that crowds = death if you aren't ready. Yobongo released yesterday on iPhones to a decent helping of hype. Yet the reactions I've seen from people on Twitter aren't very happy. Why not? Because it wasn't perfect. It only released in three cities and the community hasn't had a chance yet to figure it out. If it were released on Android first, there are far fewer users, but they could have slowly onboarded people (most of whom would be tech industry insiders, since that's pretty much the only people who have Android tablets so far) and they could have worked out the kinks, then released a few months later on iOS.

3. It's tougher to monetize on Android, which forces a scrappier corporate culture. There aren't 200 million credit card accounts sitting there, so you gotta be smarter, scrapier, and more inventive to get revenues in. This helps you build a better company. Plus, when you really need to show revenues, like right before you raise your series B, you turn on the iPad apps then. Investors are happy. You're happy. You gassed up at the right time!

4. You can build stuff that you can't on Apple. Like Fossil, who will ship new "connected watches" -- they work with Android phones -- this year. Those aren't possible on Apple's system.

5. Android's OS is tougher to build on. In my experience it's buggier than iOS. Apps crash more, and have features that don't work. Again, the bar is very low on Android. On iOS the bar is much higher. Plus, if the Android tablet world follows the phone one, there will be more fragmentation, so you've got to build testing and distribution systems that are gonna be more prepared for weird stuff than if you build for Apple. That'll make you more agile eventually and you gotta bet that Apple will eventually be forced to change its app infrastructure quite a bit in the future to respond to competitive pressures.

6. You can help define Google's marketing and maybe even win a spot on the Google jet. Google hasn't yet figured out how it will sell its tablet OS. Apple has. So, if you create a killer app on Android, you'll probably get invited in to work with the Google teams on future OS's and you'll probably get invited to demo on stage at Google I/O. The chances of you creating the next Flipboard on iOS? Give me a break.

7. You have access to APIs and features Apple lacks, which will help you make an industry-defining app. Let's say you want to compete with Flipboard or AngryBirds or one of those hot iPad apps? How would you do it? Well, PC World has a list of some of the things, like notifications and widgets, that Android has but iOS doesn't. Use those and if you get on Oprah your app will look more finished than your Apple-only competition.

8. Building a "smooth" app on Android is harder. When I played with the iPad 2 yesterday I noticed something. Dragging and dropping felt smoother on the iPad than on my Motorola XOOM. That shouldn't be if you just looked at the specs, like Gizmodo did. More on that next weekend when I get my iPad 2 and am able to really compare it to my XOOM. But, there's something here. If it's harder to build a "smooth" app on the Android, that means you've gotta find some coding tricks that might help you make a freaking awesome iPad app later. After all, remember all those great Russian coders who came here after learning to code on crappier machines than existed in the West? Yeah, I do.

9. When you demo your app people will ask how you got an iPad 3. I've been showing around the XOOM and people notice it's not an iPad, and are intrigued with it. That's 70 percent of your marketing challenge right there -- getting them to pay attention to you so you can tell your story. Imagine you show up at SXSW in a week with an iPad. No one will pay attention. Show up with a XOOM and your app on it? Everyone will. Why? They want to believe that Scoble's wrong and that there's actually apps on that thing! ;-)

10. There's a ready group of fandroids, as I learned [day before] yesterday. These people believe in the OS, Google and the future of Android and will push you to every influencer or journalist out there. Yeah, with iOS you'll get on Oprah if you build the next Flipboard, but, again, do you really have a shot at doing that? With 65,000 apps to compete with? No, not really. But you do have a real shot of getting every fandroid to wear your Tshirt and leave comments in every Techcrunch post or Scoble blog about tablets until they review you.

11. Fred Wilson and Fortune will think you are a genius!

12. You can iterate faster on Android. On iPad you need to wait four to ??? days for Apple to approve your app. On Android your apps get added to the marketplace much faster, usually in hours.

Since I'm gonna be an unabashed Apple fan for the forseeable future, I want Apple to have some real competition so that they feel like they will lose their empire at any moment. It's good for Apple fans to help ensure real competition exists. Otherwise we'll never see any real advancements from Apple and we'll never have any future choices about hardware or OS's to try.

So, world's developers, I'm calling on you to develop killer apps for Android and ignore all the idiots like me who are pointing out that there won't be any users this year for your apps. That really won't matter. Anyway, I expect Google has a strategy for getting apps and we'll hear more about that soon.

So, smartass Scoble, why not build for Windows tablets? Or HP's TouchPad? Or RIM's Playbook?

After talking to a bunch of developers and others the past few days, including some Sand Hill Road VCs, it's clear that Android is going to take the #2 spot pretty firmly. Why? Because Android phones already have plenty of apps, and that will position Android tablets in most peoples' minds as the best alternative to the iPad. HP has distribution, yes, thanks to its position as #1 computer maker, so it'll take #3 slot. I just don't think it's the strongest app platform to compete with iPad. RIM seems like it's really struggling to figure out how to take the #4 slot and, anyway, it seems like it's going with some sort of Android app compatibility strategy anyway.

So, since I want Apple to have strong competition, I'll urge you to build Android apps.

Editors Note: We can't tell if he is being sarcastic, or what. Can you?

Reprinted with permission.

Robert Scoble is a long-time tech and video blogger who works for Rackspace, where he is part of the building 43 project. He started blogging in 2000 at scobelizer.com; from 2003-2006 he was a high-profile Microsoft evangelist blogger, and he helped start Channel 9. Scoble grew up in Silicon Valley. He is @scobleizer on Twitter.

How much will one count of 'conspiracy to commit software piracy' cost you?

Publié: mars 5, 2011, 5:17am CET par Tim Conneally

Two thousand dollars ($2,000) and two years of probation…after five years of investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) division and three years of litigation in the Connecticut District Court.

That was the sentence for Michael Uszakow, 46, of Houston Texas, in the U.S. District Court of Connecticut this week. His "Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Copyright Infringement" took place when he participated in the cracking/warez scene.

Uszakow was indicted for accessing warez FTP sites called "Nite Ranger Hideout" and "The Ether Net (TEN)" between 2002 and 2003, and uploading about 3,195 copyrighted files, and downloading 7,296 copyrighted files. Among the files in Uszakow's transaction, he was charged with trading cracked versions of MasterCam 9.1, AutoCad 2004, and BEA WebLogic Server 8.1.

According to the 2008 indictment, "all defendants herein, and others known and unknown, knowingly did conspire, combine, confederate, and agree to commit offenses against the United States…[and] willfully to infringe the copyright of a copyrighted work for purposes of commercial advantage and private financial gain, willfully to infringe the copyright of a copyrighted work by the reproduction and distribution, including by electronic means, during a 180-day period, of one or more copies of one or more copyrighted works, which have a total retail value of more than $1,000."

Uszakow pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy in August, which carried a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine or alternatively, twice the gross gain to the defendant or loss to the U.S. resulting from the offense. In February, his counsel filed a motion requesting a "non guideline sentence," based on U.S. v. Crosby which brought Uszakow the mandatory minimum sentence instead.

As one of our readers asked: Why were these "pirates" being pursued by the U.S. Government and not the individual companies whose software was being traded?

The crackdown can be summarized by the "Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act" (PRO-IP Act) of 2008 (H.R. 4279), which directs the Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator (IPEC) to "coordinate the development of a Joint Strategic Plan against counterfeiting and infringement."

A summary of the 2010 Joint Strategic Plan on Intellectual Property Enforcement (.pdf here) said , "We heard from a broad array of Americans and received more than 1,600 public comments with specific and creative suggestions Federal agencies, including the U S Departments of Agriculture (USDA), Commerce (DOC), Health and Human Services (HHS), Homeland Security (DHS), Justice (DOJ), and State (DOS), the Office of the U S Trade Representative (USTR) and the U S Copyright Office participated in the development of this Joint Strategic Plan."

Through this process, we identified a number of actions the Federal government will take to enhance the protection of American intellectual property rights:
1. We will lead by example and will work to ensure that the Federal government does not purchase or use infringing products
2. We will support transparency in the development of enforcement policy, information sharing and reporting of law enforcement activities at home and abroad
3. We will improve coordination and thereby increase the efficiency and effectiveness of law enforcement efforts at the Federal, state and local level, of personnel stationed overseas and of the U S Government's international training efforts
4. We will work with our trading partners and with international organizations to better enforce American intellectual property rights in the global economy
5. We will secure supply chains to stem the flow of infringing products at our borders and through enhanced cooperation with the private sector
6. We will improve data and information collection from intellectual property-related activity and continuously assess domestic and foreign laws and enforcement activities to maintain an open, fair and balanced environment for American intellectual property rightholders.

The Department of Justice officially created its Intellectual Property Task Force in 2004 after six months of investigations, and this case was first filed in the District Court of Connecticut in 2008.

Chrome OS update makes Google Cr-48 worthy cloud PC alternative

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 10:03pm CET par Joe Wilcox

1. "A week with Google's Chrome OS laptop, Day 1: Getting acquainted"

Cr-48

This week, I unexpectedly started using Google's Cr-48 notebook running Chrome OS as my production system. On Monday, my 11.6-inch MacBook Air fatally crashed, leaving no real alternative since a friend has my Windows laptop. So I fired up the Cr-48, which I reviewed in December in seven parts. It has been a great week that got better after installing yesterday's Chrome OS update -- "0.10.156.46 (Official Build caa798a8)."

I started using the Cr-48 full time a second time with sense of urgency. I couldn't fall back to MacBook Air. It was sink or swim. Treading water wouldn't be good enough. Swim I did: As a work replacement PC, the Cr-48 has proved its worthiness, with Chrome OS obviously being major reason; Google synchronization is another. This second week's use also has me reconsidering the merits of the browser as a user-interface motif.

Some quick background: In early December, Google launched a pilot program distributing 60,000 Cr-48 laptops, with 12.1-inch screen, 1.66GHz Intel Atom processor, 2GB RAM, 16GB SATA SSD, WiFi and Verizon 3G. Chrome browser is the user interface, and the computer requires a persistent Internet connection. My biggest usability gripe was the trackpad, which proved to be unresponsive and prone to clicking on the wrong place. There were other quirks, such as slow-connecting WiFi, which just didn't seem right for a PC requiring constant IP connection. Audio fidelity also was subpar, although I didn't understand how much until applying the newest update.

Sizing up Chrome OS Experiences

Chrome OS proved capable for my work needs this second week using Cr-48 full time. But Google's cloud most certainly isn't for everyone. My work doesn't require using Microsoft Office documents or specialized local applications. I've been doing all my writing in a browser for years. Also, I have a fast Internet connection. No connection would grind most work to a halt, if using the Cr-48. That said, how often does the corporate network or Internet connection go down (and for long periods)? Please feel free to answer about your company in comments.

However, personal productivity would be more challenging, as much now as three months ago. For example, I shoot photos in my digicam's RAW format. I have yet to find a reliable browser-based photo-editing service that would meet my RAW editing needs; there are plenty of online JPEG-editing options, however. Also, I would find audio or video editing difficult, whether for personal or professional purposes.

Using Cr-48 has not converted me to Google Docs, which I don't really need more than Microsoft Office (which I also don't need). But other Chrome OS pilot testers have different experience. A Betanews reader who goes by the handle bbq (would you people please use real names) writes in comments: "I'm on week 12 with the Cr-48, and I've grown my use of Google Docs exponentially. In any given week now I use it to collaborate with work colleagues on documentation, prepare lectures for a one-night-a-week class that I'm teaching, maintain student grades and most spreadsheets all on Google Docs. I've given several public presentations using the VGA output from the Cr-48, and it is all in the cloud."

I've been pondering switching completely over to the Cr-48 and selling the MacBook Air. Last night I delivered my MBA for repair. The Apple Genius who first inspected the laptop concluded that the flash memory had failed. That was something I would never have expected from sold-state storage. But, hey, motherboards fail and they've got no moving parts. My local Apple Store received the 128GB flash drive yesterday, and now sometime in the next few days some Genius will replace the defective part. This is the third Air I owned where the drive failed, which is one reason I'm thinking about selling. The satisfying week using the Cr-48 is another reason.

But as aforementioned, the cloud isn't good enough, yet, at least on Chrome OS. I would occasionally need to borrow my wife's MacBook Pro, a strategy that works for Betanews reader bbq: "What's really been a wake-up call for me is how effortlessly that choice lets me use the best machine for the purpose: if I need some fancy graphic from a massive Windows workstation app, I generate it there and add it to my document from that machine. If I'm out and about I use the Cr-48, and if I'm at home I'm starting to use it more too just because it's quieter than my overclocked Ubuntu box."

This week, one of Betanews' oldest registered users, who goes by handle Digital Sin, comments about using iPad and Cr-48:

It just so happens that I received the Google Cr-48 laptop around the same time as my iPad, so it's interesting to see how they kind of compete with one another. The Cr-48 is so light and good on batteries that it just floats around the house from room to room depending on who had it last and what they needed it for. But so does iPad, though the Cr-48 feels a little less fragile since I didn't have to pay for it, so I'm a little more discerning about where iPad ends up, Usually when it's all said and done, the iPad is what gets used more since it has a little better design and is just friendlier and a bit more inviting (I don't hold that against the Cr-48 since it's just for testing).

The Browser is My Bond

I really enjoyed working in Chrome this week, much more so than during the seven days in December. Before yesterday's Chrome OS update, the Cr-48's trackpad performed horribly. I hadn't understood how badly the trackpad impaired my user experience until coming back and using a mouse. With a functional cursor, I truly experienced the browser UI and appreciated its benefits more fully. Now, post-update, with the trackpad working like it should, I don't really need the mouse anymore.

The browser motif helped me to see how exhausting is the more traditional desktop user interface, including elements Mac OS X's Dock or Windows' taskbar. Whether desktop, Dock or taskbar, the user moves the cursor across vast areas of screen, even when using keyboard shortcuts. These movements create distraction I now recognize disrupts concentration and workflow. I couldn't appreciate this before because of the Cr-48's irregular trackpad movements.

In Chrome OS, the browser fills the screen; there is no desktop. Most of the movement takes place across the top of screen, moving from browser tab to tab. Some readers will surely observe that the Windows taskbar can be placed along the top of the screen, as could be a browser toolbar. These actually add distraction. They're not as tidy or contained as the tabs. Anyone could mimic such behavior by running the Chrome browser full screen on a PC and using only cloud services and Web apps. Try for a week and see if you find it a less-distracting, less-time wasting way of working.

Working on MacBook Air, I would listen to music in iTunes, reduced to the mini player and floating above other applications. While writing this post, I used the MOG Web app open in a tab streaming music -- Brand New, Broken Bells and The Arcade Fire. I can still look up to the tab to see what's playing, without any distractions from the desktop.

Additionally, I found the browser UI to be responsive, and the fonts render beautifully. Video streaming still drops too many frames, but that's presumably an issue with Adobe Flash, as YouTube HTML5 streams are delicious by comparison.

Good is Now Lots Better

Yesterday's Chrome OS update offered up some mighty big fixes. According to Google's Chrome Releases blog:

3G modem activation fixes

3G connection to the carrier fixes

Wi-Fi connectivity/Out of the Box fixes

New trackpad and sensitivity setting adjusted

Auto update engine and debugging improvements

Power optimizations

GTalk video/chat optimizations

Audio CPU utilization improvements

Improved on screen indicators: brightness, network status, update

I've already attested to the enormous difference in using the trackpad. Google should never have shipped Chrome OS on Cr-48 without adequately functioning trackpad. As I reported above, I have a much better reaction to the browser motif with functional cursor than I did in December. The audio improvement simply stunned. Audio is louder and there is noticeably better fidelity listening to streamed music as before -- as good as locally played tracks to my audiophile ears. WiFi now connects instantly when I lift the lid and near instantly when disabled and reenabled. The update is a helluva way to end another full week using Chrome OS and Cr-48 notebook.

I was feeling pretty good about the cloud PC earlier in the week, but even better now. For context, here's what I wrote in December:

2. "A week with Google's Chrome OS laptop, Day 2: Becoming a cloud citizen"

3. "A week with Google's Chrome OS laptop, Day 3: Living with Flash"

4. "A week with Google's Chrome OS laptop, Day 4: Who is the cloud for?"

5. "A week with Google's Chrome OS laptop, Day 5: My life in the cloud"

6. "A week with Google's Chrome OS laptop, Day 6: Adopting a new lifestyle"

7. "A week with Google's Chrome OS laptop, Day 7: Settling in for the long haul"

If you've got the Cr-48, please share your user experience in comments. Better: email joewilcox at gmail dot com. Even better: email to discuss writing a review. Betanews loves reader submissions for their authenticity and closeness to the entire audience.

Blindsided by iPad 2, Samsung reconsiders Galaxy Tab strategy

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 10:00pm CET par Ed Oswald

Samsung Galaxy Tab on Sprint

Wednesday's announcement of the iPad 2 has seemingly caught Apple's biggest competitor off guard, and Samsung is apparently reevaluating its next moves. In comments to Korea-based Yonhap News Agency, Samsung's mobile head Lee Don-joo said that the next iPad's sleek new design and competitive price are challenges.

The Korean electronics manufacturer's Galaxy Tab tablet is widely considered the biggest threat to the iPad's dominance in the sector. About two million have sold since its debut last September, making it the best selling tablet next to the iPad.

However like most tablets, it still has not been able to compete very well with Apple in terms of price.

Unsubsidized the Galaxy Tab can cost as much as $750, although subsidies have brought down the price to $300 with a two-year contract with a wireless carrier. Regardless, this requires users commit to a data plan for a set period of time, which also adds to the overall cost of ownership.

The Tab comes with a seven inch screen versus the larger 10.1-inch screen of the iPad. Samsung recently debuted a 10.1-inch model to compete with Apple on this front, but has not announced pricing as of yet. Lee said that the larger screened device was to be more expensive than its smaller cousin.

"We will have to think that over," he said.

Lee also says Apple's ability to produce a new model with advanced functionality at the same price as before has produced a challenge for Samsung. "We will have to improve the parts that are inadequate," he mused.

Report: Apple negotiating for unlimited music downloads

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 7:58pm CET par Ed Oswald

MobileMe's expected refresh was notably absent from Apple's event Wednesday announcing the debut of the iPad 2, however Cupertino may be working behind the scenes to make a revamp of the cloud service part of a larger push towards streaming content.

Sources have told Bloomberg that Apple is currently in negotiations with several record labels including Universal, Sony, Warner, and EMI with hopes that an agreement could be reached by midyear. Apple wants the labels to allow unlimited access to their content across multiple devices.

It's not exactly clear what Apple may be angling for: on one hand, unlimited access could portend the creation of the long-rumored subscription service. Yet on the other hand, Apple may simply be looking for the right to allow streaming of already purchased music to other devices.

Bloomberg says its sources believe Apple is looking for something much simpler: anytime access to purchased music if a track is lost or damaged. In the same token, the deal would also allow for downloads to multiple devices. This may not be entirely accurate, however: users are already permitted to sync tracks with up to five devices through iTunes already.

The company could also be looking at making whatever offering it plans with unlimited access to iTunes content as part of its MobileMe refresh. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Apple was looking into making the cloud service free, and turn it into a locker for digital content accessible from a range of devices.

After a decade, It's time to say goodbye to Internet Explorer 6 (again)

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 6:39pm CET par Tim Conneally

Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 icon

Internet Explorer 6 was released a decade ago, and as of February 2011, 12% of the world accessing the Web still used it. On Friday, Microsoft officially stated that it wants that fragment of the population to just let it go already.

It did this by launching an official "death clock" for IE6 at ie6countdown.com. The website is dedicated to watching IE6 usage drop down to less than 1% worldwide. Microsoft is not kidding around this time, saying it wants website developers to stop supporting Internet Explorer 6. The company is giving site developers the option to embed a banner in their site that lets users know they're using a browser that lacks support for modern web standards.

This movement is hopefully the last push Microsoft is going to have to make. Back in 2009, a similar attempt was made with IE6 No More campaign to get developers to abandon the elderly browser. At the time, Microsoft and NetApplications estimated that the total population still using IE6 was around 27%.

So it's taken two years to reduce that number by more than half.

According to Microsoft and NetApplications' latest tallies, the countries with the largest percentage of IE6 users are China (34%), South Korea (24.8%), India (12.3%), Taiwan (10.7%), Saudi Arabia (10.7%), and Vietnam (10%). The only countries with less than one percent usage --a "passing grade"-- are Finland and Norway.

What was so great about IE6 anyway? Well, just about a decade ago, we wrote the following about Microsoft's browser update:

"IE6 will feature few drastic changes over its predecessor, most notably adding integrated media playback, automatic picture resizing and increased privacy with the adoption of P3P. The software giant has extended the browser's standards support, touting additional DOM and CSS functionality. IE6 will also support new specifications such as SMIL 2.0, used in interactive media presentations."

In reality, though, it just became so deeply entrenched in the enterprise sector, that companies were (and still are) hanging onto it to simply maintain the status quo of compatibility. If you see a banner contained within this article, you're one of the users Microsoft is targeting.

The chances are good that you won't be seeing it. According to our traffic analytics for Betanews.com, 5.6% of users browsing our site with Internet Explorer are doing so with v6. The total browser share for all versions of Internet Explorer is 26.4%, so that means only 1.475% of all of Betanews' traffic comes from IE6, while slightly more (2.8%) goes to FileForum.

I don't see the value in cybersecurity treaties

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 5:24pm CET

Bruce Schneier and other very respectable experts think we should be talking treaties with China and others about cyberattacks, even if the treaties are unenforceable. But they're not just unenforceable, they're unverifiable.

Go watch the excellent interview on searchsecurity.com with Bruce Schneier. It's less than 7 minutes. Schneier is a top guy in cryptography and has broader interests and expertise. In his blog he often takes on the real world security measures we all deal with, like surveillance cameras and ID card standards.

Most of the interview has to do with "cybersecurity" -- a term I despise but that we're stuck with -- which has come to mean national computer infrastructure security. It can refer to the security of the major networks (Verizon, AT&T, etc.), the security of military and other government networks, the security of the electrical grid or even the security of banks.

I'm not sure there's public proof out there of it, but it's reasonable to assume that the Chinese government is involved in attacks and planning for attacks on US infrastructure (In early 2010, Google documented cyberespionage attacks against Gmail originating from China). Perhaps most of it so far has been reconnaissance and experimentation. It gets no press at all here, but I'm sure, or at least I hope, that we're doing the same thing to them. Schneier makes the same assumption.

Schneier is concerned about a cyberweapons arms race. Analogizing the situation to the cold war, he then goes on to suggest that the real problem was one of information: even when we had a hotline, we didn't know everything the Russians were doing so we assumed the worst, and vice-versa.

Treaties controlling the deployment and use of such weapons could be helpful in keeping the problem under control, he suggests, and notes that former US counter-terrorism official Richard Clarke has made the same suggestion. Schneier accepts that such treaties might not be enforceable, but says they can still be worthwhile.

I don't buy it. The big problem with these weapons, as I see it, is not that we're not communicating with our adversaries. It's that nothing about their use is verifiable. If an attack on a US installation is traced to some consumer or university computers in China or Taiwan or wherever, was it the Chinese or some non-state actor? We don't know and, absent forensic examinations we won't likely be able to perform, can't know.

What's the point of an agreement that neither side can verify? Let's do a little war-gaming: You're the United States and I'm China. How do I know that you haven't placed untraceable logic bombs in my systems or ready-to-launch attacks against me in outside botnets? I can't, so I have to protect myself by having them too.

It doesn't matter if we agreed not to do such things because any such agreement would be based entirely on trust, not verification. Getting back to cold war analogies, I'm one who believes that arms treaties didn't accomplish much worth accomplishing until Reagan's START treaties agreed to actually reduce the numbers of weapons with verification procedures included. ICBMs are pretty easy to count. Logic bombs in complex software systems aren't.

Don't look to me for a better idea; I don't have one. On the other hand, I don't worry so much about these attacks because the short list of actors who might be able to pull them off don't have an interest in doing so; quite the contrary. Schneier is right again when he says the real fear is of accidental use.

In this regard, he may have a reasonable point about the chain of command and use of such weapons. He wants them used only with authorization by the President or someone very close to him. Maybe this is worth discussing in some agreement, but it too is unverifiable.

My advice: Dig a logic bomb shelter for you and your family. Stock it with provisions like lots of memory and extra CPU cores. Make sure to use strong encryption to keep your neighbors out when the Chinese drop the big one.

[Editor also recommends other recent stories by Larry Seltzer: "I'll believe Mac malware is a problem when I see it"; "Why Microsoft has to open Windows Update to third-party developers"; "Can IE9 stop Microsoft's steady browser decline?"]

This commentary was first posted on March 4, 2011 at 11:24 a.m. ET.

Larry Seltzer is a freelance writer and consultant, dealing mostly with security matters. He has written recently for Infoworld, eWEEK, Dr. Dobb's Journal, and is a Contibuting Editor at PC Magazine and author of their Security Watch blog. He has also written for Symantec Authentication (formerly VeriSign) and Lumension's Intelligent Whitelisting site.

Review: Avast! Free Antivirus 6.0 delivers robust protection

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 4:53pm CET

Updates to stand-alone antivirus tools generally aren't anything to get excited about. The interface might have changed color, or maybe relocated a few buttons, and of course you'll get the standard promises about improved accuracy, or better performance, but otherwise it's often business as usual.

Avast! Free Antivirus 6.0 is an exception, though, thanks to a host of interesting and highly visible new features: automatic sandboxing, website reputation reporting, improved real-time protection, and many more. And so the end result is a package that looks rather more like a security suite than a simple antivirus engine. But is the new functionality really as effective as it looks? We put the program through some real-life tests in an effort to find out.

First impressions

Installation was reasonably straightforward, with no complex options to worry about. All the new features mean there's a greater than usual chance that Avast will conflict with some other tool you've installed, of course. But if, say, you already have the Web of Trust add-on installed, and don't want Avast's similar offering, then a click on the Custom Install option will allow you to disable it, and any other features you may not require.

Avast doesn't force you to reboot after the installation, and instead launches a "Quick Scan" to hunt for malware. It wasn't actually that quick on our test PC, though, taking some 25 minutes to complete. And for some reason our system remained largely unresponsive for all of that time, so for instance we would try to launch a program and it wouldn't appear for some 90 seconds: very odd.

Fortunately this was only a temporary issue, and once we left the scan to run to completion, and rebooted, the problem went away entirely. Future scans required little in the way of system resources -- maybe 5-percent CPU utilization or less, around 28MB RAM (private working set) -- and we were able to freely use other programs as the scans were running, without seeing any performance degradation.

New features

One of the headline new features in Avast 6 is the AutoSandbox, which automatically runs anything Avast finds suspicious inside a virtual environment. Any changes the program might then make will apply only to the sandbox, not your PC, so keeping you safe from many malware types.

Does it work? Sandboxing is a complex technology, and it takes a great deal of work to figure out how thorough a particular implementation might be, but our first impressions are positive. Avast didn't sandbox any of our regular, trusted programs, but when we tried a couple of malware samples it jumped in to protect us from both: a very good start. (Although it's a pity that you can't decide to launch a program in the sandbox yourself -- only Avast gets to make that decision.)

Another new addition is WebRep, a browser plug-in that displays reputation ratings for the site you're currently viewing, and your web search results. This is based in part on voting by other Avast users, which, as the feature is very new, probably explains why it's not too informative so far (we found most sites got "good" scores or no ratings at all).

Avast is a popular package with more than 120 million active users, though, so if only some of them decide to get involved then WebRep could quickly become a more useful feature. To Internet Explorer and Firefox users, anyway: there's no support for other browsers yet, although apparently a Chrome extension is coming soon.

Elsewhere, Avast provides real-time protection through eight shields. These check the files you access; your incoming and outgoing emails; your web browsing (http), P2P and instant messaging traffic, and network activity. The Behavior Shield alerts you to programs engaged in malware-like activities, while the Script Shield (previously only available in the paid version) checks the scripts you execute for signs of infection. Taken together these provide good all-round protection out of the box, but most shields also have many tweaks and configuration options available to customize them further, if that's necessary for your system.

And the package is completed with a host of smaller but still worthwhile improvements everywhere you look, from a new desktop gadget that displays your security status, to better control over boot-time scans, and a "restore factory defaults" option that assists troubleshooting by restoring your initial settings.

Verdict: We're not sure how valuable WebRep will be, but otherwise Avast! Free Antivirus 6.0 is a positive step forward, adding plenty of useful features yet still consuming very few system resources. If you're currently in the market for a stand-alone antivirus tool then Avast remains one of the best and most versatile options around.

We Like: Clean interface, effective sandbox, lightweight, lots of real-time protection features, very configurable.

We Don't Like: Scanning speeds a little below average, WebRep currently not too useful and only works with IE/ Firefox.

Manufacturer: AVAST Software
MSRP: Free
Platforms: Windows XP SP2/ Windows Vista (32/ 64-bit)/ Windows 7 (32/ 64-bit)
Requirements: 300MB free hard drive space

MAGIX releases free Photo Designer 7 and Photo Manager 10

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 3:46pm CET

German multimedia specialist MAGIX has released two free photo management and editing packages, each designed to help you get more from your digital images.

MAGIX Photo Manager 10 lets you navigate your photo collection with its thumbnail browser. Automated tools allow you to quickly organise your images into categories, while a "find similar photos" option can search your entire hard drive to locate shots from the same photo session.

The program also supports face tagging; it's not the most accurate we've seen, but if you have a huge collection of photos then it's probably good enough to save you plenty of time. You can also manually organize your photos into albums, and there are options to share them online, or to create video-based slideshows of your favorite shots. (The latter requires you to download another component, but it's easy to do, and also free.)

MAGIX Photo Designer 7 is on hand to take care of your editing needs, and at first glance this looks like a host of other image editors. There are simple photo manipulation tools (flip, rotate), a few basic fixes (optimize color, remove red-eye), the standard list of effects, and that's about it.

Take the time to explore further, though, and Photo Designer quickly reveals some real depth. If you apply the "Painting" filter to an image, say, you don't have to live with the author's pre-programmed settings. If the results aren't to your tastes then you can choose a different brush (there are 29 in total), then tweak its density, relief, placement, size, direction and color, as well as paper and transparency settings, amongst many others.

Other effects on offer here are almost as configurable. And Photo Designer includes several other interesting bonus features, including the ability to automatically create panorama shots from multiple images, and a powerful batch processing tool which allows you to automatically resize, rotate, convert format, and apply just about any Photo Designer effect to a folder full of images in one operation.

Photo Manager and Photo Designer have their problems, then, but they also include many useful features, any one of which might justify their place on your PC. Both programs are entirely free, and they're available for download now.

Freemake Video Downloader 2.1 released

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 3:43pm CET

Freemake has released version 2.1 of its freeware video downloading tool. Freemake Video Downloader 2.1 contains a number of major new features, including a brand new one-click download mode, simplified link processing and an option to block downloading from adult sites by implementing a parental control password.

Version 2.1 also introduces the option for pausing and resuming downloads, plus boasts various interface improvements, including better responsiveness. It also includes a selection of bug fixes.

The major standout feature in version 2.1 is the new one-click download option. When switched on from the program's main user interface, Freemake Video Downloader will automatically download the selected video using user-defined settings for input video quality, output format and destination folder. The new parental controls can be found on the Options button.

The program comes with built-in plug-ins for Firefox and Chrome users that allows them to extract video from the currently selected page with a single click in the browser toolbar; other browser users must copy and paste the website link into Freemake Video Converter.

Freemake Video Converter 2.1 is freeware, and runs on Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7. It works with over 40 video-hosting sites, including YouTube and Facebook. By logging in to either with your user account you can also download privately hosted video too. Other supported sites include Vevo, MTV, Dailymotion, Megavideo, Vimeo, and Photobucket.

Yawn, Android beats iPhone and BlackBerry again

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 5:11am CET par Joe Wilcox

ComScore Smartphones 1-11

I know that yesterday Apple CEO Steve Jobs proudly proclaimed 100 million iPhone shipments, which is a darn big number. But iPhone isn't winning the smartphone wars, a story that's getting tired to write (Apple could still win the mobile platform wars). Today, ComScore and Nielsen separately released new US smartphone data that puts Android ahead of Research in Motion's BlackBerry and Apple's iPhone. It's quickly becoming an old story.

In January, Android handsets accounted for 31.2 percent of the US smartphone market, up from 7.1 percent a year earlier, according to ComScore. BlackBerry held the second position, after a devastating, steady decline -- 30.4 percent down from about 44 percent in January 2010. Meanwhile iPhone share remained flat, in the 25 percent range, for all of last year. US market share was 24.7 percent in January 2011.

Nielsen measured smartphone operating system market share from November 2010 to January 2011 -- Android 29 percent and BlackBerry and iOS tied at 27 percent. Thirty-two days ago, Nielsen called a three-way tie -- iOS 28 percent and Android and BlackBerry 27 percent each. When the data is cut by device and operating system that 27 percent tie puts Apple and RIM way ahead of competitors (HTC follows with 12 percent share).

Nielsen Smartphones 1-11

The Apple fan club of bloggers and journalists keep writing like the smartphone war is over and iPhone won. Here's some sobering perspective, which someone will refute as meaningless in comments: Apple took 3.9 years to ship 100 million smartphones. According to Gartner, Nokia sold more smartphones (100.3 million) just in 2010. Since January 3, I've written this Android shipments are soaring story 10 times:

1. "Stunning Android growth visualized in new video"; February 24

2. "Gartner: Android smartphone sales surged 888.8% in 2010"; February 9

3. "[This is getting boring -- iPhone US smartphone share remains flat while Android soars]"; February 7

4. "It's a photo finish: Android, BlackBerry and iOS are tied in US smartphone share"; February 1

5. "Canalys: Android tops Symbian in smartphone shipments -- twice as many units as iPhone"; January 31

6. "IDC: Developer interest in Android nearly equals iOS"; January 25

7. "ComScore: Verizon iPhone is likely bad for AT&T, probably not for Android"; January 14

8. "Canalys: Verizon iPhone won't slow Android growth even the slightest"; January 14

9. "[Can you feel the noose, Apple? Android gains against flat US iPhone market share]"; January 7

10. "[41% of new smartphone buyers choose Android]"; January 3

There are two others worth calling out, in context of Jobs' 100-million boasting: "Verizon's iPhone 4 public relations damage control says it all" and "Say, whatever happened to that 1 million Verizon iPhones sold announcement?" Apple and Verizon have yet to announce iPhone 4 sales, since last month's launch. If they were good, surely Apple would boast; like Jobs did about the 100 million number, which is a nice distraction -- using cumulative data as opposed to sales that are more immediate and people have asked about. Last week, Apple 2.0 blogger Philip Elmer-DeWitt quoted Jobs, from 2009 sniping about Amazon not releasing Kindle sales: "Usually, if they sell a lot of something, you want to tell everybody." That's right. If Verizon had sold a lot of iPhones -- at least a million -- "you want to tell everybody."

SuperSync merges, shares multiple iTunes libraries

Publié: mars 4, 2011, 12:00am CET

Owning an iOS device is meant to make it easy to access the music you have stored on your computer -- plug in and synchronize the latest tracks ready for listening to on the move. However, in practice, many of us regularly work with more than one computer, be it an office and home computer, or a laptop and desktop machine. Each of these computers may have a different selection of music on the hard drive. There is a simpler way. SuperSync can be used to centralize your collection and ensure that everything you want is available by providing you with a single, constantly updated music library.

Using the app you can easily compare two iTunes libraries and decide which tracks need to be copied between them -- synchronization is a breeze and beats having to manually transfer tracks individually. This in itself is a useful feature, but SuperSync also provides an all-important backup option.

Your iTunes library is likely to be one of the largest collections of files on your computer, and also one of the most important, and the application provides you with a quick and easy way to create a duplicate copy to safeguard your valuable music.

The software also makes it possible to access your entire music collection over the internet, so you can access your favorite tracks online when you are on holiday or visiting a friend. As well as making it much easier to work with music libraries stored on multiple computers, SuperSync will also come in very useful when you decide to buy a new computer. Whether you are upgrading an aging machine, or making the switch from Windows to Mac, the app can be used to quickly and easily backup and transfer your music collection so nothing is lost.

You will need to purchase a license for each computer you intend to install SuperSync on. Prices start as $25 for two licenses, but if you intend to work with more computers, five and 10 licenses are available for $30 and $39 respectively. Find out more by visiting the SuperSync review page.

BackupGoo: Affordable safety net protects your Gmail data

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 11:55pm CET

Few people give a second thought to files and data stored in the cloud, but just like local data, it is important to backup online information. The recent problems suffered by Google Gmail highlights the importance of ensuring that your online data is safeguarded, and BackupGoo provides a quick and easy way to back up your Google account in its entirety.

After providing your Google username and password, the application is able to access your account and can then be used to download your emails, documents, calendars, contacts and more. If you do not use all of Google's services -- not everyone has a need for Google Docs, for instance -- you can select precisely what you would like to backup and where the files should be stored on your hard drive.

Any documents stored in Google Docs are downloaded in their native format, while Google Calendars are downloaded in the widely supported iCal format. Contacts are saved as vcards and emails are saved as individual messages. Backing up in this way means that the information you have downloaded can be easily imported into another application.

BackupGoo can be configured to run on a schedule so your backup will be automatically updated every few hours. Weighing in at just $12, this is one of the most impressive Google backup tools we've seen - well worth checking out. Find out more and download a copy of the application by paying a visit to the BackupGoo review page.

FCC suggests subsidized broadband for poor, instead of telephones

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 10:39pm CET par Tim Conneally

At Thursday's open meeting of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), a set of reforms to the Lifeline/Link-Up program was proposed, aiming at "modernizing and driving tougher accountability" for the program that provides discounts for telecommunications service and installation for lower-income consumers.

The existing program is part of the Universal Services Fund (USF), which is paid into by the major telecommunications companies and their subscribers. It offers discounts of up to $10 per customer for monthly bills and one half (up to $30) of installation fees for basic services. To be eligible for the program, consumers must be at, or less than 135% of, the federal poverty line (which has been set at $10,890/year per individual for 2011.)

Given the decreasing importance of wireline telephone services, the FCC is attempting to re-tool the USF so it may cater more to the "broadband gap."

"The Universal Service Fund has provided low-income households with discounts on monthly phone bills and initial installation charges since 1985. But program rules and administration have not kept pace with significant changes in technology, markets, and regulations, which have put increasing pressure on the program," a statement from the Commission said Thursday.

National Broadband Map 2

As we can now all see on the National Broadband Map from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), between 5-10% of Americans lack access to broadband services adequate to "fully participate in the Internet economy," as it was described by Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information and NTIA Administrator Lawrence E. Strickling.

The proposed changes include the creation of a "National Accountability Database" against which consumer eligibility can be verified (more information is pending about what this could actually become), expanding the discounts to include bundled Digital Voice/Broadband service plans, evaluating a cap on the program, starting pilot programs for USF-supported broadband connections, and general steps toward ensuring that the "Lifeline" plan supports the services that consumers actually use.

New G Data plug-in offers free protection against malicious websites

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 10:30pm CET

German security vendor G Data has released G Data CloudSecurity 1.0, a free browser plug-in for Internet Explorer and Firefox users that adds an extra layer of protection to Windows PCs. It works by blocking access to known phishing and malware-infested websites, throwing up a highly visible prompt warning the user that the site they're about to visit is considered to be dangerous.

G Data CloudSecurity won't rely on regular updates to provide protection against known websites, but utilize data from other users of its security software in the cloud to monitor behavior and spot malicious and fake websites, deploying protection to all of its users.

G Data CloudSecurity currently only works with Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers. Once installed, it'll appear in the browser toolbar, but can otherwise be ignored. When the user attempts to access a dangerous website, a highly visible alert is displayed in the site's place, although the user does have the option of ignoring this warning and visiting the website. No specific information is provided about the site being blocked other than a generic "This website is either infected or a phishing site" message.

The program is compatible with all other security software, including G Data's own paid-for security products, which are advertised through the plug-in via a green button that appears on the blocking page. CloudSecurity is already provided as part of these suites, so no additional installation is required for existing G Data customers.

G Data CloudSecurity 1.0 is available now, and requires a PC running either Internet Explorer or Firefox.

'Spam king' released from prison, disavows his former ways

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 10:20pm CET par Ed Oswald

After more than four years in prison, Robert Soloway is now a free man. Dubbed the 'Spam King' for his role as the head of a spam ring that sent an estimated 10 trillion junk e-mails between 2003 and 2007, Soloway is now busy reintegrating himself into everyday life, according to Wired.

He was first arrested in May 2007 and charged with 35 counts including fraud, identity theft, and money laundering, and sentenced in July 2008. Soloway was widely considered one of the top ten spammers in the world, and had also lost multimillion dollar suits to Microsoft and an Oklahoma ISP as a result of his actions.

It is estimated that the spam ring he created earned him some $20,000 every day, according to reports. These days he claims he only has a "couple hundred" in his bank account, and works in a Seattle print shop making $10 an hour.

Freedom will be kind of a mirage for several years: as part of his plea deal, Soloway has agreed to monitoring of his online activities for a period of three years following his release. Don't expect him to return to his spamming ways, either.

"If I send out spam e-mails, that's a violation of my probation. End of story," he told Wired's Jim Popkin. "I'm being very careful. If I send out an e-mail, I'm not even going probably to CC it. I'll send a unique e-mail to each person."

Soloway also freely admits that he was "out of control" and "self-centered," and broke the law with what he did. This is certainly a far cry from the freewheeling twentysomething of years past who often seemed to try to goad authorities into catching him, which they eventually did.

Getting back online may be Soloway's biggest challenge, however. When he was locked up, MySpace was king, and Twitter didn't even exist. "I've never logged onto Facebook before but I hear it's nice. In terms of e-mail, Facebook has it built in," he quipped.

Quick Bar makes trending topics easier on Twitter for iPhone

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 10:05pm CET

The official Twitter app for iOS has been updated with a new Quick Bar that provides easy access to trending topics from the comfort of your timeline. The new feature is exclusive to the iPhone version of the app, but iPad users can also benefit from features and tweaks added to both versions of the app.

The bar appears at the top of the screen, and you can scroll through trending topics by simply swiping left or right. The trending topics feature has also been updated so that trends are displayed based on your current location.

When it comes to mentioning other Twitter users, a new autocomplete option makes it easier to enter usernames, while the DM (direct message) view has also been enhanced so that it now closely mimics iOS's chat view. The inclusion of lengthy URLs has also been fine-tuned. Any URL that is pasted into a tweet will be automatically shortened and therefore only occupy 20 characters of your permitted 140.

But it doesn't end there. Although this is only a seemingly minor update, the tweet composition screen has also been updated. The screen used to create a text is now cleaner and more streamlined than in the past, and when it comes to adding usernames and hashtags to your tweets, autocomplete springs into action.

In addition to all of this, it is now also easier to upload images, and you can scan your contacts to see if any of your friends are using Twitter unbeknownst to you. To find out more about this update and to download a copy of the app, pay a visit to the Twitter review page.

You can blame Apple and China for slowing PC shipments

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 9:11pm CET par Joe Wilcox

iPad 2 facetime

A year ago, PC shipments were on the rebound. The recovery is over for consumers, according to Gartner, which today lowered its global PC forecast for this year and next. PC shipments aren't going to be bad, just not as good. You can blame Apple and China.

Gartner lowered 2011 PC shipment growth by about a third -- 10.5 percent down from 15.9 percent. The analyst firm now predicts 387.8 million PCs shipped globally this year. Gartner expects 440.6 million PC shipments in 2012, with growth lowered much less -- 15.9 percent to 14.8 percent.

Fourth-quarter 2010 PC shipments foreshadowed today's forecast change; global PC shipments fell below Gartner and IDC expectations. Both analyst firms identified tablets, which really meant iPad, as a contributing factor during Q4. Gartner reiterated demand for non-PC devices as a factor negatively affecting 2011 shipments. Slower sales in China is another.

"These results reflect marked reductions in expected near-term unit growth based on expectations of weaker consumer mobile PC demand, in no small part because of the near-term weakness expected in China's mobile PC market, but also because of a general loss in consumer enthusiasm for mobile PCs," Ranjit Atwal, Gartner research director, said in a statement.

Portable PCs, netbooks as well as notebooks, have driven PC shipment growth for about half a decade. Now suddenly, other mobile products are competing with portable PCs. For example, smartphone shipments exceeded PCs in fourth quarter -- 100.9 million to 92.1 million, respectively, according to IDC.

"We expect growing consumer enthusiasm for mobile PC alternatives, such as the iPad and other media tablets, to dramatically slow home mobile PC sales, especially in mature markets," George Shiffler, Gartner research director, said in a statement. "We once thought that mobile PC growth would continue to be sustained by consumers buying second and third mobile PCs as personal devices. However, we now believe that consumers are not only likely to forgo additional mobile PC buys but are also likely to extend the lifetimes of the mobile PCs they retain as they adopt media tablets and other mobile PC alternatives as their primary mobile device. Overall, we now expect home mobile PCs to average less than 10 percent annual growth in mature markets from 2011 through 2015."

Like I asserted last month: "The PC era is over." It's not like the PC goes away, just that its computing and informational relevance diminishes before cloud-connected mobile devices. The process starts with people buying a smartphone or tablet to augment an existing PC rather than to replace it.

What does all this mean for Microsoft, which fortunes are steadfastly tied to personal computers? Enterprises are still replacing older PCs running XP with Windows 7. That's the good news. The bad: "However, even in the professional market, media tablets are being considered as PC substitutes, likely at least delaying some PC replacements," Raphael Vasquez, Gartner senior research analyst, said in a statement.

Gartner raises a question without answering it. The analyst firm revised its PC forecast in part because of the influence of tablets -- consumers buying them or "taking a wait-and-see attitude" before choosing new portable PC or tablet. So if media tablets are suddenly so important to consumers, what does that mean for another Gartner forecast? Last month, its analysts said that in 2011 consumers are more likely to buy a smartphone than any other device. Tablets ranked sixth, behind ebook readers, in Gartner's study of Americans' buying intentions. Portable PCs were second. The point: As the transition between the PC and cloud-connected device eras proceeds, forecasting shipments will be increasingly harder. My rule of thumb: Assume PCs shipments will be forecast too high and smartphones and tablet forecasts will be too low.

I first asked the PC cannibalization question in April 2010. There's little doubt now that iPad has cannibalized PC sales or at least delayed consumer (and even some business) purchases. Remember, cannibalization doesn't necessarily mean replacing an older PC but replacing a newer PC purchase with cloud-connected device.

So I have to ask Betanews readers: Will your next computing purchase be PC, smartphone or tablet? Please answer in comments.

Microsoft to bring daily deals to Bing users

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 8:41pm CET par Ed Oswald

Aiming to harness some of the buzz surrounding deal of the day websites as of late, Microsoft said Thursday it had partnered with The Dealmap. The San Francisco-based aggregator site takes content from about 200 sites like Groupon and LivingSocial, and lists them on a single page organized by city.

Instead of attempting to create its own program, or look to acquire an existing service like Google's failed buyout of Groupon last year, Microsoft believed it easiest to partner with an aggregator like The Dealmap to bring a deals offering to Bing users.

Google is apparently pursuing a different strategy. Reports surfaced in January the company was talking with businesses about participating in a test of a Groupon-like program. The Mountain View, Calif. search giant has neither confirmed nor denied the rumors.

"The Dealmap is a leading source for people to find and share the best local deals, so naturally it made sense for us to team up with them to bring you the best experience," product management director Andy Chu said in a blog post announcing the deal.

Through the mobile site and app, a new menu option "Deals" has appeared. Getting to these deals through the desktop site is a little different, however: users will need to click through local results to see them, the company says.

Microsoft is using Dealmap's DealExchange API to offer the listings to its users. The deal site launched the platform in December, and so far about 280 developers have incorporated Dealmap's functionality into their applications.

Adobe launches ColdFusion Builder 2 public beta

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 7:32pm CET par Tim Conneally

Download ColdFusion Builder 2 Beta

Adobe ColdFusion 2 Beta

Thursday, Adobe announced the public availability of ColdFusion Builder 2 beta, the company's Eclipse-based Integrated Development Environment (IDE) for its ColdFusion development platform.

ColdFusion Builder first became available nearly two years ago when Adobe integrated Flash Builder 4 and AIR into ColdFusion 9. This version, codenamed "Storm" adds a host of enhancements to some of Builder's most useful features: syntax highlighting, Syntax Checking, Code Assist, code outline, code folding, project management, RDS and FTP support, debugger, server manager, and extensions.

This includes a lot of tools to help accelerate development; such as new keyboard shortcuts and intelligent code assist. ColdFusion Builder 2 can complete tags and automatically insert required tag attributes while you're writing code with Code Assist. This was present before, but it's been improved this time around.

Task Management has also been integrated into the development environment, letting users set "to do" and "fix me" notifications within the code so developers can jump directly to areas that need work.

Extensions have also seen a big improvement and now get more data from ColdFusion Builder 2, which Adobe consultant Raymond Camden shows off in a couple of demonstrations in Adobe's Developer Connection.

"The expanded capabilities of extensions in Adobe ColdFusion Builder 2 allow us to easily create custom extensions to the ColdFusion Builder workspace. The ability to create a new view in Eclipse with a single line of code in a ColdFusion Builder extension is a stroke of genius and opens up all sorts of possibilities for our development work," Brian Klaas, Senior Web Systems Developer, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health said today.

iPad 2 wasn't Apple's big March 2nd announcement

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 7:29pm CET par Joe Wilcox

iPad 2

It was the software -- FaceTime, Garage Band, iMovie and Photo Booth -- and the colorful Smart Covers. I kid you not. There are good reasons why so much of yesterday's launch event focused on software -- hell, Apple even made a video about the new covers; now what does that you tell you?

Apple CEO Steve Jobs officiated yesterday's launch event, which spent surprisingly little time on iPad 2 -- and that may have confounded some people, given the huge amount of hype about the tablet. But as I explained yesterday, Apple typically iterates rather than innovates hardware on a new category's successor product. I have laid out five reasons why the other stuff -- new software features and applications and even the colorful cases -- are more important.

1. The platform is a continuum. There has been much debate about whether or not iPad is a PC. On February 21st, I took the position that iPad is not a PC. From Apple's perspective, iPad's classification -- PC or tablet -- is irrelevant. During yesterday's launch event, Jobs repeatedly positioned iPad 2 as a post-PC era device. The emphasis reminded of Jobs calling Macintosh a "digital hub," starting at the turn of the century. There are similarities in the messaging content and style.

From an operating system perspective, iOS derives from Mac OS X, which with next-release 10.7 (aka Lion) will inherit some iOS-like features. The platform is a continuum from the cheapest iPhone to the most expensive Mac. Yesterday's software announcements further close what Apple software applications/features users get on iOS devices versus Macs. Similarly, price is also a continuum from the $49 iPhone 3G to the $2,499 17-inch MacBook Pro, as I first explained 13 months ago; iPad fills the gap from $499 to $829, bracketed by $399 iPod touch and $999 MacBook or MacBook Air.

There are increasingly fewer differences in uses among Apple hardware products along the spectrum. The iOS and Mac OS products have wireless capabilities, surf the Web, run applications (including traditional productivity suite apps) and consume or produce digital content. The range of hardware capabilities is limited by size, processing speed, storage capacity, etc., but not really software as Apple offers more of the same applications or features across the entire continuum. Apple is seeking to offer single-user experience across all its devices, regardless of hardware features. It's sensible, and there is precedent. Apple offers the same software for all its Macs, but there is a range of capabilities based on processing speed, graphics capabilities and other hardware attributes.

2. Single-user experience generates more product sales. As a marketer, Apple long ago perfected the art of the upsell, largely through effective pricing. The 8GB iPod nano costs $149, or you could get double the memory for just $30 more. Or wait, for another 50 bucks you could get a music player that runs iPhone applications -- the 8GB iPod touch. Each step up in price offers a little something more and a little less something else. The iPod nano price jump gives the buyer 16GB of storage, while the move to iPod touch means less storage but larger touchscreen user interface.

What Apple really wants is to extend the continuum to additional product purchases, something that is easier if basic features and Apple software are available across the entire line. The Mac owner using Garage Band or iMovie might be more likely to buy iPad, or the iPad owner to purchase a Mac for even more capabilities with both software applications. Then there is the communications aspect, where FaceTime is now available across the continuum -- iPod touch, iPhone, iPad and Macintosh.

Apple's App Stores are part of that continuum across devices.

3. Color is a differentiator. I want to briefly digress from software and explain why Apple's iPad 2 cases are so important, even as some geek snobs snub them. The cases add dramatic color -- and personality -- to iPad 2, broadening its appeal, particularly to younger buyers (see #4). Apple has first-to-market advantage over third-party case makers, and stamps its trademark color approach on iPad 2. Apple design chief Jony Ive has long used color as a differentiating feature, going back to the translucent iMac line of the later 1990s.

Color has a long design tradition. For example, in 1927, Kodak commissioned Walter Dorwin Teague to design a new line of cameras. Kodak wanted to increase its cameras' appeal to women. Teague presented the diminutive Vest Pocket line in five distinct colors. Nearly 80 years later, Ive applied the same five-color concept to iPod Mini. Similarly, like Teague presented a smaller camera, Ive designed a smaller music player. Apple has since kept the colors coming, and they're important for broadening product appeal beyond stereotypical male gadget geeks to women and to younger buyers, especially teens.

Apple's approach to color also recognizes the importance of technology fashion. In a blog post today, Gartner analyst Mark McDonald writes: "As technology becomes consumer technology it also becomes fashion. The technology you own is now part of your persona rather than the toolset you use to be productive. Just look at the plethora of iPad accessories, covers, etc."

4. Tomorrow's market is today. Last week, Stephen Baker, NPD's vice president of industry analysis, told me that "about 50 percent more 18-34 year olds own a tablet than over 55 year olds -- despite the high price that normally scares away the younger consumer." That's a key market segment. The younger age that people buy into a brand or platform, the more likely they are to stay with it. A whole generation of consumers who bought DOS/Windows PCs and applications in their youth continued doing so as adults, feeding Microsoft's ecosystem with sales; consumers are also business decision makers, choosing what software or IT systems to buy.

The tail end of the Millennials generation bought iPods, later Macs and now iPads. By extending the user experience across the continuum of its products, Apple is more likely to capture a generation of users, particularly with creative and fun applications like FaceTime, Garage Band, iMovie and Photo Booth. Fun is the ingredient often missing from enterprise developers' approach to business software (yes, companies like Microsoft and Oracle). People crave joy and happiness, something kids and teens seem to understand much better than many adults. The teens and young adults Apple locks in today are the business decision-makers of tomorrow.

Something else, more subtle: Younger people are growing accustomed to Apple's user interface approach, which, again, increasingly spans the continuum of products. Perhaps mom owns an iPad or iPhone and buys games for her child to play. From a young age that child is exposed to an Apple experience -- and Apple user interface -- to which he or she grows accustomed. It's like an earlier generation that grew up with monitor, keyboard and mouse. Apple's UI approach increasingly is about touch -- direct manipulation with fingers and hands.

Apple isn't alone understanding the importance of younger buyers or offering products that cater to their needs. Last week, I attended a Sony Electronics event, where president Phil Molyneix said: "We're really focused on the youth market and the opportunity that presents to us in the future." He used as example Sony's PIIQ line of headphones. "The youth today will become the mainstream market of the future." He's right about that.

5. Creativity knows no bounds. Apple products have long been about creativity. During the late 1980s, the Macintosh set off a revolution in desktop publishing. Since resuming CEO responsibilities in 1997 (interim, at first), Jobs has made creativity a priority, something first emphasized in 2000 with Macintosh "digital hub" marketing and two years later bolstered by the iLife suite. The digital suite, which includes Garage Band and iMovie, has been one major reason people buys Macs.

One measure of the suite's success is journalism school. Many J schools now recommend, or even require, students to use Macs because of iLife. For example, the Missouri School of Journalism:

The faculty has designated Apple Computer as its preferred provider for two primary reasons: (1) Apple's OS X operating system is based on Unix, which makes these computers far less susceptible to viruses than other computers. Viruses are a serious problem on university campuses. (2) Apple MacBook and MacBook Pro computers come bundled with iLife, a suite of applications ideal for learning the basics of photo editing, and audio and video editing. We'll use those programs in several classes. Incoming students will receive information on recommended models and pricing in February of each year.

In 2009, the J school required that all incoming freshmen have a "Web-enabled audio-video player. This requirement is best met by purchasing the Apple iPod Touch." The iPad and iPhone also meet the requirement.

When journalism schools push Macs, in large part because of creative software, they facilitate a generation's adopting Apple products over others. Now Apple is extending its creative software reach across the continuum -- for example, iMovie available for iPod touch, iPhone, iPad and Macintosh. If you give people the tools to express their creativity, some of them will use them -- younger users being most likely.

In conclusion, yesterday's big announcement was less about iPad 2 and more what people can do with it or why they might buy it.

The Tech Convention Survival Kit

Publié: mars 3, 2011, 5:06pm CET par Tim Conneally

This time of year is packed with tech industry trade shows. DEMO, GDC, CeBIT, PAX East, SXSWi, and CTIA all butt up against one another and stimulate activity and interest across many different tech sectors. These events may not exactly be the lifeblood of our high-tech economy, but they're serious business and they generate...well, serious business.

Developers, company representatives, and PR executives show up in force to promote their products and services, while buyers, analysts, speakers, and general businesspeople show up to stay closer in touch with their industry.

For the last couple of years, AOL tech blog Engadget has done rundowns of the tools they bring along to CES; which invariably consists of dozens of Mac notebooks and an array of Nikon D-80s.

While it's interesting to see what they use to get their content up so quickly, that's just a media toolkit, and it doesn't do much for the thousands of people who go to tech trade shows to conduct business.

There are much more general needs to be addressed for this broad spectrum of tech conventiongoers.

Since a lot of our readers are traveling back and forth between these industry get-togethers, I've put together a survival kit that has gotten me through my first six years of conventioneering without fail.

So when you're packing this week for your next convention trip, here are some essential elements to consider:

SILENCE

Conventioneer's necessity: Silence

Good trade shows are noisy and hectic, it means there's excitement and activity going on. But this means there is often no place where you can retreat to read and respond to emails, or to simply relax for a second. Earplugs have come in handy so many times for me when I needed to write an article hunkered down in the corner of a convention hall. They come in additionally handy for flights to and from the show, or with the snoring co-worker you have to share a hotel room with.

GOOD BREATH

Tech conventioneer's necessity: Good Breath

Trade shows, above all else, are about meeting people. You've got to woo new contacts, customers, and investors. Since eye contact is absolutely mandatory, good breath is too. When you spend the previous night drinking and the whole morning downing coffee and talking your face off, your breath tends to get pretty foul. If you want to leave a good impression on the people you meet, it's best to not have your words smell like a garbage disposal.

CLEAR HEAD AND STOMACH

Tech conventioneer's necessity: Clear Head/Stomach

Bad food, high stress, high noise, low rest, and probably heavy drinking will all add up to headaches and intestinal trauma. Every single trade show I've gone to, I have ended up needing these for myself or someone I know. That's the business.

CLEAN HANDS AND SURFACES

Tech conventioneer's necessity: Clean hands and surfaces

For the media, we take a lot of pictures, and for consumer tech media, this means a lot of taking pictures of screens. Screen cleaners are super important for media, but for other conventioneers, you've got monitors, phones, and other products that need to be shiny and appealing; and failing that, your glasses can look nice and shiny. Also, after shaking hands, patting backs, trading business cards and touching sketchy bathroom door handles, your hands should be kept clean.

BOOSTERS

Tech conventioneer's necessity: Caffeine booster

Caffeine is mandatory. You will have early morning strategy meetings and action plan setups, as well as long hours between periods of rest. Factor in jet lag for international shows, and standard cups of coffee won't cut it. The items pictured above are caffeine supplements in time-release pill form (left) and instant jolt liquid form (right). Only the one on the right actually tastes like coffee.

EXTRA MEMORY

Conventioneer's necessity: Extra Ears

Though it always helps to bring extra memory cards, that's not what I'm talking about. There will be something important going on that you won't immediately recognize as being important, and you will regret missing it. So take notes. It could be a simple notepad, but I personally use an IR recorder because it also helps to record presentations and interviews for transcription. Observe your competition. Observe potential trends and prospective clients. Record it. Write it down.

THROWAWAY JUICE

Tech conventioneer's necessity: AA, AAA and 9v

Even though most high-end electronic devices use rechargable batteries, the one device you carry that takes disposable batteries will always run out when you need it the most. Carrying around a single 9-volt, two AA's, and two AAA's takes up very little space and could prove to be someone's last minute savior. Even if you don't exactly need them, it's a good Karma booster to have on hand.

RELIABLE POWER SOURCE

Tech conventioneer's necessity: Reliable power source

Scheduling foul-ups and commitments to long days mess with your dining schedule. To make matters worse, convention centers and hotels always have hugely long lines for food, and their prices are disproportionately high. You should have food on your person at all times at a convention to keep you from wasting time when you could be making connections.

OFF DUTY GEAR

Tech conventioneer's necessity: Heffner-like hotel attire

When you get out of your work gear, you need some crucial decompression time. Unfortunately, hotels aren't your house, and if you have to leave your room to get something or meet someone, walking barefooted is a terrible idea. In fact, walking ANYWHERE in a hotel with no shoes is a bad idea. I wear heinously ugly but incredibly comfortable leather soft-sole moccasins. They're casual, but more shoe-like than slippers. When paired with a hotel robe and pipe, you can also pretend to be Hugh Hefner.

All of this stuff (with the exception of the shoes) can be tucked into the various pockets of your computer bag and forgotten about. Now go do business.

New features in iOS 4.3 that the iPhone 3G will never have

Publié: mars 2, 2011, 11:28pm CET par Tim Conneally

Along with the iPad 2 on Wednesday, Apple unveiled the next version of its mobile operating system, iOS 4.3. Though these features were revealed back in a beta version in January following the launch of the CDMA iPhone 4, this is the first time Apple officially presented the new features.

According to Apple, iOS 4.3 will be available to iPad, iPad 2, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 (GSM model), and third- and fourth- generation iPod Touch devices as a free software update on Friday, March 11.

This means the iPhone 3G and the second generation iPod Touch are now effectively retired. In honor of that fact, here are some features that iOS 4.3 provides that those devices will never get...

iTunes Home Sharing

Home Sharing is an iTunes-based music, movie, and TV content sharing system for local networks that lets users share their iTunes media library with any other iOS device on the same Wi-Fi network.

iOS home sharing

AirPlay update

AirPlay, the feature that lets iOS users wirelessly share content with their Apple TV, has been expanded in iOS 4.3 to include H.264/AAC video from third-party apps and websites, as well as videos from the Photos app and previews from the iTunes app. To prevent trouble with content owners, AirPlay looks for an authorization tag whenever it streams a file from third-party sites, meaning by virtue of adding a single tag, this feature can be blocked.

New Browser

The Nitro Javascript engine behind Safari's Webkit browser has been updated, promising a faster browsing experience.

Personal 3G Hotspot

This was one of the features that was revealed with Verizon's iPhone; it lets up to five devices tether to an iPhone 4's data connection. Unfortunately, five devices cannot all connect the same way, and any more than three connected devices must use a combination of Wi-Fi, USB, or Bluetooth.

Four/Five-finger gestures

In the beta of iOS 4.3, new multi-finger gestures were uncovered, one of which, the multi-pinch for closing an app and returning to the home screen, has caused some to speculate that future iOS devices would eliminate the iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch's only button. Other gestures, such as the multi-finger upward swipe, and the multi-finger left or right swipes, are dedicated to cycling through running applications or viewing the multitasking bar.

Why is iPad 2 so much like last year's model?

Publié: mars 2, 2011, 9:17pm CET par Joe Wilcox

iPad 2

Today's iPad 2 launch came with a couple surprises: Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who is on medical leave, officiated the media event. It's a smart way of quelling rumors about his health, without ever having to disclose any real information. The other surprise: The new iPad isn't remarkably different from the 1st generation model. Like many other second generation Apple products, the iPad 2 is evolution not revolution, a pattern of product development Jobs instituted long ago.

Apple typically develops its products incrementally, starting with a showstopper that Jobs often calls "one more thing." There is a consistent pattern: "One more thing" debuts with modest hardware features but something else nevertheless killer -- something people want, or think they do. During the launch event, Jobs performs his marketing magic, demonstrating how this "one more thing" will make peoples' lives better. Often the product lacks something compared to competing wares but offers something more elsewhere.

People pay more to be Cool

Once Apple releases that "one more thing," the company then iterates -- incrementally improves -- the product over time. The process is essential to Apple maximizing margins. "One more thing" products typically have initial higher selling prices or same as the replaced product(s). They're cool. People are willing to pay more, and Apple certainly doesn't discourage them from doing so.

"One more thing" is very much about selling the coolest thing. Plenty of buyers demand the newest, coolest product, and they're willing to pay a premium price to get it. To many of these buyers, the tech gadget is as much an accessory -- statement of their coolness, superiority -- as useful product. Apple engages in a tried-and-true retail practice. It's good business. Clothing stores take a similar approach. There are teens who must have the newest wears from Aeropostale, American Eagle, Gap or Hollister at full price; they can't wait for sales. They want to be cool. Apple sometimes charges more for fashion, just like clothiers. Remember the black MacBook, which cost $150 more than the white model, simply for the color?

However, as a product's lifecycle progresses and Apple maximizes margins at the front end, incremental improvements begin. The company typically starts by offering better hardware for the same price. Later, Apple adds substantially better hardware or features and cuts the price. Eventually, Apple retires the product and introduces another "one more thing."

The iPhone is a good example of this process. The iPhone 4's design somewhat differs from the "one more thing" model that went on sale in June 2007, but the user interface, basic features and most functions have only incrementally changed since. The original iPhone lacked 3G, video and MMS, but offered slicker user interface, a capacitive touchscreen, more enjoyable media playback and better calling features than comparable handsets. The iPhone was less and more comparatively, then. But buyers paid. Apple and AT&T sold the 1st generation iPhone for $499 or $599 at launch; Apple lowered the price to $399 a few months later. New models brought lower prices -- $199 and $299. The older 3GS is still available, now for 50 bucks. Apple has already maximized margins on the 3GS, which now exists to capture buyers unwilling or unable to pay more.

When Change isn't Enough to "Wow"

The iPad 2 clearly follows the approach of incremental development, by offering small improvements with substantial benefits, without dramatically changing basic form and function. The new model is 33-percent thinner than its predecessor but basically same height and width, but lighter (1.3 pounds). However, battery life is comparable, Jobs claims. LED screen size and resolution are unchanged from the original model. Apple's newest tablet packs a dual-core processor, which matches the trend among Android 3.0 "Honeycomb" tablets. There is now a gyroscope, two cameras and extra-cost accessory for connecting to HDMI cables. Apple also made many software tweaks, such as offering FaceTime video streaming and Mac OS X's Photo Booth feature, both supporting the addition of cameras. Apple also introduced some new apps, most notably Garage Band.

There are plenty of incremental tweaks, which as a whole should improve the overall user experience but not dramatically change it. If I were in the market for an iPad, I would take the original model at $299 (16GB WiFi) or $399 (32GB WiFi), if Apple were to offer such prices. Update: After I posted, Apple started offering 1st gen models for $399 and $499, respectively (they're not cheap enough). Hey, this incremental approach is why Apple can still successfully sell the iPhone 3G, even though it lacks hardware features found on iPhone 4.

Keeping with this incremental approach and maximizing margins upfront in the product development and distribution cycle, Apple kept the price for iPad 2 models the same as the originals -- from $499 to $829. I would expect any price cuts to come with the next product release, which likely will more dramatically improve features and functionality -- keeping with Apple's incremental design approach.

Measuring iPad 2's Incremental Improvements

How does the new iPad, which goes on sale March 11, compare to some other tablets?

iPad: 1GHz A4 processor (single core); 9.7-inch LED display with 1024 by 768 resolution; 16GB, 32GB or 64GB internal memory; accelerometer; ambient light sensor; compass; WiFi; 3G (on some models); iOS 4.2.

iPad 2: 1GHz A5 dual-core processor; 9.7-inch LED display with 1024 by 768 resolution; front-and-rear facing cameras; 16GB, 32GB or 64GB internal memory; 720p video recording; accelerometer; ambient light sensor; compass; gyroscope; WiFi; 3G (on some models); iOS 4.3.

Galaxy Tab 10.1: 1GHz dual-core processor; 10.1-inch TFT display with 1280 by 800 resolution; two cameras -- rear-facing 8-megapixels with LED flash; front-facing 2MP; 16GB or 32GB internal memory; Flash 10.1; 1080p video recording; WiFi; 3G, with support for HSPA+ 21Mbps networks; GPS; Android 3.0.

HTC Flyer: 1.5GHz processor; 7-inch display 1GB of RAM; 32 GB of internal storage, expandable with microSD to 64 GB; a 5-megapixel back-facing and 1.3-megapixel front-facing cameras; light sensor; velocity sensor; digital compass; Bluetooth 3.0; GPS; Android 2.4.

Motorola XOOM: 1GHz dual-core nVidia Tegra 2 processor; 10.1-inch display with 1280 x 800 resolution; 1GB of RAM; 32GB internal storage, expandable with MicroSD card; 5-megapixel back-facing and 2-megapixel front-facing cameras; 720p video recording; 1080p video playback; HDMI and USB 2.0 ports; accelerometer; barometer; gyroscope; Android 3.0.

Which would you buy, if any of them?

Apple unveils slim new iPad 2: release date March 11

Publié: mars 2, 2011, 8:29pm CET par Tim Conneally

At an event in San Francisco on Wednesday, Apple unveiled the second generation iPad, which Apple is simply calling iPad 2.

Typically, Apple's second generation product revisions don't deviate much from the groundbreaking debut product, and serve as an incremental update, increasing the feature set and putting a finer polish on its design. Apple again proved this to be true with today's unveiling of the new iPad.

First and Second Generation iPod Design 2001/2002

The first and second generation iPods, for example, both used the same body design and screen size, but the second generation doubled the storage capacity, replaced the mechanical clickwheel with a touch-sensitive one, and added other minor design changes, like changing the beveled edges into rounded corners.

First and Second Generation iPhones

The same can be said for the first generation iPhone and the 3G model that followed it. Both models had the same screen size and resolution, the same 8GB and 16GB storage configurations, and the same 2 Megapixel camera, but the 3G version was slightly bigger all around with a slightly lighter-weight build, and as the name would suggest, added 3G wireless connectivity.

With over 15 million iPads sold in its first 9 months of availability, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said 2010 was "The Year of the iPad." This success means huge deviations from the proven iPad formula would be even less likely. So, with today's iPad refresh, Apple has kept the same shape and price of the iPad, but decreased its thickness and weight, improved the processor speed, and added some new bells and whistles.

iPad and iPad 2 side by side

iPads
iPad 2 facetime

Size

iPad:
Height: 9.56 inches (242.8 mm)
Width: 7.47 inches (189.7 mm)
Thickness: 0.5 inch (13.4 mm)
Weight: 1.5 pounds (wi-fi); 1.6 pounds (3G)
iPad 2:
Height: 9.5 inches (241.2mm)
Width: 7.31 inches (185.7mm)
Thickness: 0.34 inch (8.8mm)
Weight: 1.3 pounds (wi-fi), 1.35 pounds (AT&T), 1.34 pounds (VZW)

iPad 2 back

Screen
iPad: 9.7" (1024 x 768) multitouch backlit LED
iPad 2: 9.7" (1024 x 768) multitouch backlit LED

Storage
iPad: 16GB, 32GB, 64GB
iPad 2: 16GB, 32GB, 64GB

Processor
iPad: 1 GHz Apple A4
iPad 2:: 1GHz Dual-core Apple A5

iPad 2

New Features iOS 4.3, Dual video cameras (720p 30fps back/VGA 30fps front,) Support for both GSM/CDMA 3G wireless, gyroscope, new magnetic screen covers "smart covers", HDMI video out with external cable that supports video mirroring "for all apps."

Apple will begin accepting orders for the iPad 2 on March 11, and shipping will begin shortly thereafter. Prices for the new iPad are the same as the first generation, starting at $499 for the Wi-FI only model with the least storage, all the way up to the $829 3G-equipped model with the most storage.

Google removes 21 apps from Android Market over malware

Publié: mars 2, 2011, 5:17pm CET par Ed Oswald

Some Android users are finding out the hard way the perils of an open platform, as Google was forced to take down 21 apps in the Android Market after it was found they contained malware. According to Android Police, which first broke the story on Tuesday, these apps may have been downloaded a combined 200,000 times.

The apps performed a variety of malicious activities, including root exploits, the stealing of phone data, and even acting as a Trojan horse to open the door for the device to download more malicious code. Google quickly pulled the apps from the store after being informed of the issue, and remotely wiped the apps from user devices.

Android Police said even though the offending developer and its apps were now gone, any extra code downloaded to the device after the fact would still remain. This would require a completely separate fix which would need to be downloaded to patch any created holes, which was said to be in the works.

Although a full list of apps has not been provided, the developer went by the name 'myournet.' The infected apps included 'Falling Down,' 'Super Guitar Solo,' 'Super History Eraser,' 'Photo Editor,' and 'Super Ringtone Maker.'

Instead of creating completely new apps, the developer copied popular ones and injected the malware code and republished on the Android Market. Unsuspecting downloaders may have mistaken these copies as the real thing. According to press reports, the malware-ridden apps were up for a period of four days.

This incident highlights the pitfalls of Google's open strategy. Whereas Apple individually inspects every app that is submitted for inclusion in the App Store, Google allows for a developer to publish apps freely to the Android Market once they have been registered.

Google does from time to time comb through apps to ensure they meet guidelines, but this is done after it has already been live within the Android Market.

Who loves or loathes iPad?

Publié: mars 2, 2011, 3:58pm CET par Joe Wilcox

While geekdom holds its collective breadth waiting for Apple's 1 p.m. ET "special event," presumably the iPad 2 launch, I thought it would be interesting to see how people use the original model. Yesterday I asked "Do you still own iPad?" because I keep meeting people who sold or passed along to family their Apple tablets. Betanews readers certainly had answers. Either you love or loathe iPad; there is little response between the extremes.

"Nope, gave it away after a couple of months," Anthony Scott answered in comments. "The size was nice, but the performance was poke out my eyes slow. Grabbing an old netbook, that has about the same weight/size and battery life and running Excel at 100x the performance of the iPad Spreadsheet, is sad how underpowered Apple made the iPad."

This is sweet (and I'm not being sarcastic): "I bought one for my mother and she uses it constantly," FalKirk writes in comment. "When the new one comes out, I'm almost sure to buy one for the kids. More important than the unreliable anecdotal evidence that you're soliciting is the polling data which shows that 95% of owners are satisfied with their iPads (72 percent very satisfied, 23 percent somewhat satisfied). The iPad is not going away, Joe, no matter how fervently you and some of your readership wish that it would."

Oh? Who said anything about iPad going away? The ridiculous number of iPad 2 rumors coming into today's Apple event shows there is huge interest in Apple's tablet(s). I asked sincere questions to iPad owners. What should go away: Overly zealous Mac defenders who assume anyone who doesn't agree with their point of view is anti-Apple.

"I still have mine and will be getting the iPad 2 when it comes out," writes Jack Brown in comments.

"I own it, but rarely use," Frank Wick writes in comments. "I played Angry Birds this morning at Starbucks so I guess I still use it sometimes. The iPad has become a babysitting device at my house. I NEVER NEVER NEVER do work on it. The mail client is a pain. Safari is a horrible browser. blah blah blah. I have buyer's remorse and I expensed the thing!"

Rick Favaloro writes via email: "What I love my iPad for: plopped on my sofa reading books, writing books (you'd see incoherent blathers, I see exactitude-challenged Pulitzers in progress), watching video, making video animations, playing games, viewing paintings, drawing my own big weird zoomable things and everything else."

Commenter littlecay called the original iPad "an expensive paperweight -- no USB connectivity, no SD slot, no undo, terrible cut/copy/paste interface, no video out. I thought it was weird when I learned that I could add a lot of missing functionality by jailbreaking it. What?"

Commenter Digital Sin writes:

I've had mine for a couple of months now. Interestingly, I use it for mostly different reasons than I thought I would when I bought it. I expected I'd watch movies on it and listen to music, but I do neither of those. I also thought I'd bring it to work, maybe to take out during a meeting to take notes. I don't do that either. I thought I'd use it to read during my 4 hours of commuting each day, but I don't...
So does it lie around collecting dust? No way. I love this thing. I share it with my wife, and though it was a hard sell to get her to be on board with me plunking down the dough for it, she loves it. She uses it while in the kitchen for recipes and watching cooking videos while she's cooking. We both play games on it, and we both really enjoy reading on it. Also, we're both taking classes and use it quite a bit for studying. My son loves the interactive books on it and I love that he's not on my computer anymore. I feel like it's a lot safer (for both him and my computer) for him to use iPad for browsing and playing games on.

Mark Finch mainly uses his tablet for reading: "So my iPad sits next to my favorite chair at home, and I use it to read in the morning while having coffee and in the evening while having wine. In between times (and depending on what I want to accomplish) I use either a desktop Mac, a MacBook, an Ubuntu-powered Dell netbook or my Motorola Droid. My music lives on a desktop computer and also on an iPod; my photos are on a desktop computer and on a MacBook. For what I do with it, my iPad is perfect. It's just another appliance that makes certain things more convenient. Similarly, I don't really need a toaster or a gas grill -- I could make toast and cheeseburgers in my oven if I wanted to -- but I sure am glad I have them, and use them frequently."

Commenter mpuvvula: "I bought an iPad and returned it in 2 weeks (before the re-stocking fees applied). Its simply a brick! It didn't print, it was awkward to handle and it had no compatibility with MS Office (to do any real work). I couldn't play any media other than iTunes (VLC & Flash were removed). It was as bad as the iPhone. I figured its for people who love Apple, BMWs & Jaguars! I ended up with Inspiron DUO, WIN 7, 2 GB! Its not as snazzy as iPad, but it plays any video you throw at it on a flash drive (Divix, MPEG4, Netflix etc)."

"I got an iPad for XMas and use it a lot," commenter smist08 writes. "Best device for flying can do all the things you mention and is the right size for easy viewing and fitting in the space you have in economy class. Also ideal for meetings, don't have to lug my laptop anymore for reference and notes. I also like having it handy when watching TV for looking things up and social networking."

Commenter rhonin "bought an iPad via a special promotion for a cheap price (about 50 percent off retail). Not returnable. I have tried to make it more than an occasional media consumptive device. Sigh................ After a few months it has become the quintessential dust gathering paperweight I occasionally charge and use. To many of the posters here, I wanted a more PC-centric device."

The most unexpected response comes from Diane Carpenter: "[I] encourage anyone abandoning their iPads to donate them to a child or adult with autism. I wrote the attached story about buying my severely autistic adult daughter an iPad."

Google's Chrome OS laptop saved my butt

Publié: mars 2, 2011, 4:11am CET par Joe Wilcox

Google Cr-48 laptop

My March started off badly today.

When I was a school kid in Maine, teachers said that if March roared in like a lion, meaning snowy stormy, it would go out like a lamb -- and vice versa. I got the storm in a faulty Snow Leopard rather than the Lion. This morning my 11.6-inch MacBook Air crashed and wouldn't reboot. If not for moving my computing life to the cloud, I would have lost an important day of productivity and lots of valuable data.

My problems started five days ago. Before driving up to the North County area of San Diego for a Sony event, I did something rare: Turn off my computer rather than put it to sleep. When I later hit the power button, I observed something not seen since the hard drive failed in a first generation MacBook Air -- June 2008: A grey screen with Apple logo and progress bar indicating a file system/disk check/repair. The Mac took about five minutes to boot up, because of the check, rather than the more typical 13 seconds.

Of Air and Clouds

Real trouble started a day later and escalated, through several stages of disturbing quirky behavior. Twice during the weekend, the computer shut down without warning; there was no Kernel panic. My main application, Chrome 10 beta, began behaving badly. Early on, tabs would crash, then the problem spread to the whole browser, which by Monday crashed quite frequently. Yesterday I tweeted: "I've never had a beta browser crash as often as Chrome 10. Anyone else? It's horrible on a Mac." But Chrome wasn't the problem.

By yesterday afternoon, other programs crashed, over and over. Everything about the problems felt like a drive failure. But how could that be? The Air has flash memory; there are no moving parts. This morning, I awoke the Air, quickly edited an informative Larry Seltzer story about QuickBooks and prepped it for posting. When I clicked the media pop-up window to add a photo, the computer locked up, except for the mouse/trackpad cursor. It was a frightening déjà vu experience. Before the 1st gen MacBook Air drive failed nearly three years ago, the computer exhibited similar quirky behavior, program crashes and fatal crash with the cursor remaining the lone function. Once again, just like the 1st gen Air, the 11.6-inch model booted to that grey screen and progress bar that failed to finish. It was 6:25 a.m. PT (-8 GMT).

In December 2010, I tested Google's unbranded Cr-48 laptop running Chrome OS. I used it for seven days, and wrote about the experience in seven parts. Since then, I only had used the laptop occasionally. This morning, the beta product saved my butt. When testing the laptop nearly three months ago, I moved most of my data either to an external drive or to the cloud. All my email is stored on servers, so I lost nothing there. More importantly, because of Chrome's data sync feature, I could work on the Cr-48 largely like I would the Air. All my bookmarks appeared where I needed them, for example. Despite the setback, which required putting Larry Seltzer's story back in the publishing system, I posted his story about 30 minutes after the Air fatally crashed. Before the morning was over, I had edited and posted another Seltzer missive and a great read by developer and Betanews reader Robert Johnson: "10 things I would like Steve Ballmer to do in 2011." I managed to post something myself -- "Do you still own iPad?"

Maybe it's time to update my original seven days stories with something new. Coming back to the Cr-48 is suddenly much better than using it the first go-round. I guess crisis will do that. It helps that I had bought, but not unboxed until today, a Logitech mouse. The Cr-48's trackpad is simply horrendous.

Air Asphyxiation

By comparison, the 11.6-inch MacBook Air is a brick. Despite being convinced by all the marketing and other hype about flash memory never failing (Hey, Titanic was unsinkable, too), I deferred to logic and experience. Everything about the crash felt like a drive failure. So I hauled the Air brick over to the local Apple Store for servicing. The Genius ran a check-disk utility that failed. He also booted up from an external drive so that I could recover any data from the ailing Air; I brought a 16GB thumb drive. But the Air was slow, copying sluggish and copying of any folder failing about halfway through.

Something else: The recovery utility delivered a cryptic -- at least to the Genius and his buddies -- error message: "AppleMCP89TMS:PowerGatingDown." He Googled the error, which brought back results for sites in Japanese and Norwegian. I later used Google Translate to wriggle English out of the Norwegian site. Apple replaced the motherboard on one computer giving this error. Another poster indicated drive problems. The Genius decided that the flash drive had in fact failed. The store didn't have one in stock (128GB), so it must be ordered before there can be in-warranty repair.

I chose the MacBook Air for two major benefits: portability and reliability -- particularly storage. With no moving parts, I expected the drive would last for years, worry-free. I now will likely sell my Air. The drive failed in my 1st gen Air after two months use. Apple Store replaced the whole computer. The hard drive failed in that MBA in September 2010; I replaced the drive with a 64GB SSD. So here I am on my third MacBook Air drive failure, which is about two too many.

Meanwhile, I'll be using Google's Chrome OS laptop as my production machine. I happen to be between Windows laptops right now. My regular Windows 7 machine is out on loan (some friends need a little experiential prodding to get off Windows XP). So it's the Cr-48 or swiping my wife's laptop. I best let hers be. :)

Google's cloud and Chrome OS saved my butt today. Where do you keep your data?

Software and content in the Arab world: Moving beyond infancy

Publié: mars 2, 2011, 3:41am CET par Tim Conneally

In the late 90's, India, Israel, and Ireland (often called the "three i's") grew from having unremarkable software industries into major software exporting nations. According to the Taxonomy of New Software exporting Nations by Erran Carmel in 2003, they went from "infant" software exporting nations to almost top-tier major exporters in a relatively short time, a rare occurence indeed.

According to Carmel's thesis:

"Tier 4 nations are Infant Stage Software Exporting Nations. These nations have little impact on the global market in software. While there is some foreign investment in a number of these nations' firms, it is rare. Much of the software industry in these nations is still a cottage industry: firms are small, managerial processes are informal, and marketing is immature. Most Tier 4 nations are unlikely to move to Tier 3 because of their small size (which restricts their ability to grow large industries) and other unfavorable conditions (political instability, stage of economic development, etc.). However, many Tier 4 national industries have benefited from some recent governmental attention focused, specifically, on the software exporting sector."

Carmel listed: Cuba, El Salvador, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Indonesia, Iran, Egypt, and Jordan as these "infant" nations with conditions mostly unfavorable for a nascent software industry.

Quirkat CEO and former CIO of Jordan, Mahmoud Khasawneh

At the Game Developers Confrence this week, Mahmoud Khasawneh, former Chief Information Officer for the Jordanian government, and current founder and CEO of startup game company Quirkat spoke about software localization and the effect these perceived "unfavorable conditions" have had on a developing software industry.

According to Khasawneh, Jordan's software industry, especially the video game end, is actually at a point where it will soon snowball in growth.

"When you work in the Middle East, if you've succeeded at something, you suddenly get a lot of people trying to do the same thing," Khasawneh told us. "So five and a half years ago, we went into an area where not a lot of people had gone. Going into gaming in the Arab world was extremely challenging, it hadn't really been done before."

What were they doing that hadn't been done before? According to Khasawneh, it was designing and making games relevant to the Arab world that also had worldwide appeal. The company managed to do it in 2008 with the title Arabian Lords, a PC strategy game co-developed with Maryland-based company Breakaway Games. The title cost approximately $8 million to bring to fruition, making it an extremely ambitious project for a company that hadn't yet even secured its first round of funding.

Arabian Lords, PC Game by Quirkat and Breakaway

So to say it was "extremely challenging" for Khasawneh and Quirkat even seems like a bit of an understatement. I asked him today if, for example, it was difficult to get investors interested in his company.

"I can't even answer that!" he laughed. "I have to express it with big hand gestures and everything... Yes. Very, very, very, difficult. We're in our sixth year and we've only just secured our first round of funding. We were among the first to do it, so it took investors a lot of time to meet us here."

Quirkat's prinicpal investor is Accelerator Technology Holdings, which concentrates on the Middle Eastern and North African Tech/Media/Telecoms space, and funds other Jordanian companies Gate2Play (a payment system for games,) and Wizards Productions (another company focusing on Arabic games.)

"As with everything else in the Middle East, suddenly there are a LOT of investors looking at game companies. They've suddenly woken up to the potential of the area," Khasawneh said. "It took us five and a half years to get funding, and it'll take the next startup three to six months...and they will probably get more than we got!"

Khasawneh isn't just optimistic because his company has finally won the first battle in obtaining funds, but because when he was CIO for Jordan, he got to see what assets the country had to offer.

"It was part of my job as Chief Information Officer to understand if we could, how we could, why we could or why we couldn't [become a strong software economy.] Our 22 universities churn out thousands of software developers every year, we're one of the countries that has local Microsoft, Google, Cisco, and Oracle offices. We are a center of interest for big players, and this is generating a whole new generation of programmers," Khasawneh said. "I don't have official statistics in front of me, but you see a lot of companies in every country in the Middle East, and the key players are Jordanian. This is especially true in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. We export human resources, that's all we really have."

Fast Copy 2 speeds Windows file copying

Publié: mars 1, 2011, 10:35pm CET