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BetaNews.Com (10 non lus)

Lenovo takes preorders for business Android tablet

Publié: août 23, 2011, 10:06pm CEST par Ed Oswald

Lenovo said Tuesday it would begin accepting preorders for its
business-centric ThinkPad Tablet. The Android-powered portable begins shipping within a week and will start at $499 for the 16GB model.

The Chinese computer maker aims to market the ThinkPad Tablet to the business sector. It had previously announced the IdeaPad K1 -- its tablet for consumers -- and that device has been on sale in China since March.

Like the K1, the ThinkPad Tablet runs Android 3.1 "Honeycomb" and sports a 10.1" screen. The two also share some other features such as Nvidia's Tegra 2 processor, a 2-megapixel front and 5-megapixel back cameras, and mini-HDMI and USB 2.0 ports.

Users will be able to access wireless data through optional 3G, and the ThinkPad Tablet also includes a SD slot for additional storage. Lenovo has added remote wiping software through a partnership with Computrace, as well as layered encryption, McAfee security, and Cisco VPN support.

Two other capacities are also being made available: a 32GB version that retails for $569, and a 64GB model for $669. Those prices would be about $30 cheaper than the iPad.

Specs for the ThinkPad Tablet do compare favorably to the iPad 2 as well: it weighs only slightly more than Apple's device, although it does come in at about twice the thickness. The resolution does beat out the iPad though coming in at 1280x800: the iPad is capable of 1024x768.

For those who prefer stylus input, Lenovo is offering models that include a capacitive stylus for $30. A keyboard accessory would also be made available for $100. The stylus is sensible for sales in Lenovo's home market and other parts of Asia, because of the characters used for the languages.

In related news, Lenovo announced that Seton Hall University in New Jersey would deploy 350 ThinkPads to teachers and students in the school's sciences, honors and the School of Business Leadership Programs.

“This new technology represents the next evolution in Seton Hall University’s Mobile Computing Program to use technology effectively to support teaching, learning and institutional effectiveness while keeping pace with technology that appeals to our students," the university's chief information officer Stephen Landry said in a statement.
New Yorkers saw DC quake tweets before the ground shook

Publié: août 23, 2011, 9:53pm CEST par Ed Oswald

It is said by some that Twitter is the fastest way to get the word out about the news -- and in the case of the 5.8 tremblor that struck central Virginia on Tuesday afternoon, for some that may actually have been the case.

Shock waves from quakes travel at a high rate of speed, however not fast enough that there may be a delay in the ground shaking actually occurring.

According to the USGS, the rate of speed that a seismic wave travels can be anywhere from five to eight kilometers per second. The epicenter of Tuesday's quake was near Mineral, Va. As the crow flies, that would be about 300 miles or 482 kilometers to New York City.

As far as BetaNews can tell, the first tweet on the DC quake using the #earthquake hashtag was from Twitter user @NeimanMarcus757, who tweeted he felt it at 10:52, seconds after the quake. One of his New Yorker followers may have seen that tweet before actually feeling it his or herself.

Another twitter user, JesseCFriedman, claims that was the case: "I saw the tweets from DC about earthquake, then 15 seconds later felt it in NYC. Social media is faster than seismic waves!"

Doing the math, it would be completely plausible for a New York City Twitter user to see tweets on the earthquake before he or she feels it, because the seismic wave would have taken anywhere from 60 to 96 seconds to reach Central Park.

Cartoon Credit: XKCD
Virginia earthquake overloads cell networks from North Carolina to New York, Twitter takes over

Publié: août 23, 2011, 8:29pm CEST par Tim Conneally

Earthquakes on the East Coast of the United States are pretty uncommon, especially ones of significant magnitude, so on Tuesday afternoon when a magnitude 5.8-6.0 quake hit central Virginia, sending shocks from New York to North Carolina to Detroit, cellular networks, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless, were knocked out.

Twitter quickly took over as the primary source of communication, as people shared their surprise at the quake -- the biggest on the East Coast since 1886 -- and assured friends and family they were safe. Facebook news feeds were filled with comments from those feeling the quake and checking on those affected.

SMS text messages appeared to be going through, but many did not make their intended recipient due to the overloaded cell networks.

Sprint used the company's Twitter feed to put out an announcement warning subscribers to send text messages first because of the massive call delays caused by everyone simultaneously checking on everyone else.

Verizon Wireless sent out a similar note on Twitter: "Seeing no reports of damage to our wireless network. There was some network congestion in the East after tremors. Continuing to monitor."

The carrier's Emergency Information Center, which was updated today for the expected arrival of Hurricane Irene in Georgia, has still not been updated for the earthquake.

T-Mobile followed up with a warning similar to Sprint's: "T-Mobile’s network is operational but is experiencing higher call volumes in areas affected by the earthquake. SMS & E-Mail are advised."

Most of the other circuits are down, so we're having a hard time confirming any of this at the moment; but because the range of the quake was so huge, anecdotal reports are still flying in via Facebook and Twitter.
Find Windows' hidden icon troves

Publié: août 23, 2011, 7:50pm CEST par Mike Williams

It’s easy to customize the shortcut icon for a Windows application, at least in theory: just right-click it, select "Change Icon", and choose whatever icon you’d prefer.

Of course you have to find a suitable icon, first, and that’s where life gets a little more difficult. Windows actually provides thousands of icons you could use, but tracking them down isn’t easy, unless you get help from a third-party tool like Icon Explorer.

The program is straightforward to use. It’s portable, so there’s no need to install it: just unzip the download file, launch IconExplorer.exe, and point the program at a folder you’d like to examine. (\Windows\System32, or the equivalent folder on your system, is a good place to start looking if you’re short on ideas.)

As soon as you’ve selected a folder, Icon Explorer will scan its contents, checking each file for icons. And on completion, you’ll see a list of file names and the total number of icons each one contains.

The results can be a real surprise. We already knew that Shell32.dll contained many icons, for instance -- 306 on our test Windows 7 system -- but we hadn’t realized that there were so many others, more than 4,200 in the Windows\System32 folder alone on our trial PC.

Imageres.dll and DDORes.dll are particularly good examples on Windows 7, providing 300 icons between them, each available in a range of resolutions (16×16 up to 256×256). Just click on either file to see thumbnails of everything it contains, and selecting any one of these will display the full-sized icons. (Right-click one to export it as an individual icon or bitmap image.)

And so if you’d to customize a shortcut icon, then right-click it, select Properties > Change Icon, click Browse and choose your preferred icon-packed file; \Windows\System32\Imageres.dll, say. Select whatever icon you’d like to use, click OK, and that’s it, your shortcut should be updated right away.

If you’re searching for hi-res icons elsewhere then Icon Explorer may not be quite so convenient, as it has no way to filter its display by icon size. It’s still a handy tool, though, compact, free and exceptionally portable (the authors say it should run on any version of Windows from 95 upwards), so if you can live with the search limitations then you’ll probably find it very useful.
NY Judge: There's no way to tell if free songs on the Internet are illegal

Publié: août 23, 2011, 7:04pm CEST par Tim Conneally

New York District Court Judge William H. Pauley, III, has determined that MP3tunes falls under the safe harbor provisions in the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA), protecting it from a four-year old copyright infringement lawsuit from record label EMI and its subsidiaries.

After a multimillion dollar lawsuit by record labels more than ten years ago, MP3.com founder Michael Robertson sold off the site and launched MP3tunes.com, which was designed to help indie artists sell their music. In fall 2005, it added a storage service letting users store files in personal online storage lockers, and songs uploaded to these lockers could be played and downloaded through any web-connected device.

The service grew to more than 300,000 users, and launched services LockerSync, which let users auto-upload their local mp3s to the service, and the "Webload" feature which let users transfer music from one web address to their locker. A related service owned by Robertson is sideload.com, basically a free content search engine that ties into mp3tunes lockers.

Record labels EMI, EMGNA, and EEW sent takedown notices to MP3tunes in 2007 for around 350 copyrighted songs that were both featured on Sideload and contained in users' online lockers. All links were removed from sideload, but user content in their lockers were not. That was the basis for this lawsuit.

"EMI would have this Court construe the terms 'free,' 'mp3,' or 'file-sharing' as tantamount to 'red flag' knowledge of infringement. But those terms are ubiquitous among legitimate sites offering legitimate services," Pauley's ruling says. "Moreover, adopting EMI's view would undermine Congress' goal of fostering development and innovation of internet services. Indeed, as part of its innovative marketing, EMI itself regularly distributes works on the Internet for free. Because of these activities, EMI's executives concede that internet users, including MP3tunes' users and executives, have no way of knowing for sure whether free songs on the Internet are unauthorized."

"In sum, there is no genuine dispute that MP3tunes may claim safe harbor protection for EMI works stored on MP3tunes.com, and EMI works linked to Sideload.com. However, MP3tunes does not qualify for safe harbor protection for songs sideloaded from links identified in EMGNA's and EEW's takedown notices which it failed to remove from user lockers."

Pauley concluded that the takedown notices that went unheeded make Mp3tunes' hosting of certain mp3s an act of "contributory copyright infringement," and that songs Robertson had personally sideloaded from unauthorized sites was direct infringement, but all other claims (and users) were protected under DMCA.
Annotate your photos with Skitch for Android, iOS

Publié: août 23, 2011, 5:25pm CEST par Mark Wilson

It has been a busy few days for Evernote recently. Less than a week ago the company acquired the Mac application Skitch, and this was quickly followed by a big update to the Evernote iOS app. Just as the main Evernote notetaking app is available on a range of platforms, so Skitch is available not only for Mac but also for Android, making it possible to add annotations and doodles to the photos you take.

Skitch enables you to use a number of text and drawing tools to add information to photographs you have taken. This could take the form of useful notes about a snap you took on holiday, such as the name of a restaurant or attraction you liked, or it could be notes to help someone else understand what is visible in an image.

Of course, the app can also be used for less serious pursuits and the ability to upload doodles to Facebook and Twitter means that countless images of moustachioed and bespectacled relatives are sure to be found online.

Evernote has also released an update to its iOS software. An app x.1 upgrade is not normally something to get too excited about, but the introduction of Evernote 4.1.0 has quite a lot in store. iPad users in particular get a good deal -- a new three-finger gesture can be used to navigate between notes, and an overhauled interface makes things not only better looking than ever, but also somewhat easier to use.

It is now possible to select multiple notes for deleting or sharing, and both iPhone and iPad versions of the app include the option of searching within notes. Also new is the ability to add rich text lists, links and style to notes and support for shared notebooks means that the iOS version of the app is now far more useful when it comes to collaborative work.

You can find out more about Skitch and download a free copy of the app for your Android by paying a visit to the Skitch review page. If you already have Evernote installed on your iPhone or iPad, check the App Store for updates, or you can find our more or download a copy of the app by paying a visit to the Evernote review page.
Download.com wraps all software in proprietary installer, irks developers and users

Publié: août 23, 2011, 4:20pm CEST par Tim Conneally

We don't use CNET's Download.com (big surprise), so it took an article from ExtremeTech reporter Lee Matthews to alert us that the long-running download site and competitor to Fileforum will now put all files in a proprietary wrapper unless the uploader pays a Premium subscription fee to have his software available unaltered, without third party "bloatware" such as toolbars and default home page and search engine changes.

CNET said the reason for doing this was: "The same reason you have your applications on Download.com – for the users. The CNET Download.com Installer ensures a safe and improved download experience by making it easier for Download.com users to complete downloads and launch the software’s installer."

But security is rarely the reason for such a change, and it is most often done as a way to make additional money. Software makers and users have expressed outrage at the change.

Steven Greenberg, developer of the GSpot Codec Appliance, demanded that his software be removed from the site, saying that it was a violation of terms of service.

"Please be advised that your your 'CNET Download.com installer' is in violation of the terms of my software. Section 4a) permits distribution UNMODIFIED copies only. Additionally, section 4c) does not permit 'bundling' with other software components," Greenberg wrote. "Please remove my software from your site immediately, as the reputation of my application is now at risk."

Developers and Download.com users, will you continue to use CNET's service the same way as before? Please answer in comments.
Ultrabook can't beat MacBook Air pricing

Publié: août 23, 2011, 3:22pm CEST par Joe Wilcox

Intel has a big problem, and senior executives know it. Ultrabooks running its processors and Windows cannot compete with MacBook Air on price. There's a strange offing coming, when Macs, which for so long cost more than Windows PCs, will be the value choice -- that's assuming Apple chooses to pass savings on to customers rather than be extra greedy about margins.

Wintel OEMs can't compete on price because Apple realizes cost advantages inherent to its end-to-end development, manufacturing and distribution model. These smaller powerhouse laptops aren't cheap to produce, but it's two secret ingredients in Apple's recipe that will prove decisive.

Thin is In

Intel unveiled the Ultrabook concept three months ago at Computex. Ultrabooks are meant to be thin and light, measuring less than 20 mm (0.8 inches) thick and selling for less than $1,000. By thickness (16.3mm), the Samsung Series 9 fits the category definition but, at the time, cost considerably more, starting at $1,299.99. Not surprisingly, MacBook Air is similar size -- in fact a tad thinner.

The first ultrabooks are scheduled for the holidays, but there already are signs of trouble at good ship Intel. Ultrabook partners have mutinied -- demanding 50-percent price cuts, which Intel won't give so as to preserve its lucrative margins. According to DigiTimes: "As for Ultrabook CPUs, Intel is only willing to provide marketing subsides and 20 perent discount to the first-tier players, reducing the Core i7-2677 to US$317, Core i7-2637 to US$289 and Core i5-2557 to US$250".

The chips cost too much for many Ultrabook OEMs to meet those lower price goals. Among the current crop of hot, Wintel thin-and-light laptops pricing typically exceeds -- or in a few instances equals -- entry-level MacBook, which sells for $999. That's ahead of the real ultrabooks coming to market. Take the svelte Series 9 laptop, which until recently cost $200 more in the 11.6-inch entry configuration than same screen-size MacBook Air. Actually, Samsung's website still lists the $1,199.99 price for the 64GB model, which is comparably configured to $999 MacBook Air. By my math, since launch, Samsung slashed prices by $300 to achieve parity with MacBook Air, but at what cost to margins?

Where are They?

Intel isn't exactly abandoning OEM customers, but its response to them foreshadows trouble. Earlier this month the chipmaker established the $300 million Intel Capital Ultrabook fund for investing in ultrabook research and development. The funds creation suggests that ultrabook development isn't moving fast enough.

Intel partners are talking about Ultrabook but they're not quickly walking them to market. Acer and Asus are competing to get out ultrabooks fast, but larger OEMs are slower moving. During last week's Lenovo earning's conference, COO Rory Read expressed commitment to ultrabook, but in rather vague terms. He spoke in hints about achieving "mainstream prices", which could mean sub-$1,000, but he didn't exactly say that. Product arrival talk -- "I wouldn't say by the end of the year necessarily" -- hinted at 2012 but amorphously.

Intel and its partners must contend with two related problems competing with Apple, which is able to aggressively price MacBook Air while keeping its overall margins above 35 percent. The first is here and now, the other is expected as soon as the next generation MacBook Air launches. Apple has successfully leveraged its large volume business from iPhone and iPod to gain favorable component pricing compared to many competitors; I've read plenty of commentary about that. But there's something else: Apple doesn't license software.

Unlike Wintel competitors, which license Windows and other software, Apple develops its own. As such, Apple largely absorbs the cost of the software as part of research and development. The company does defer some revenue from its computer sales, because of accounting related to Mac OS X and iLife updates. But that's a deferral not a hefty, separate licensing fee. Customers receive the benefits of core software designed specifically for the hardware, too.

Apple's Advantage

Recently, there have been rumors that Apple might move from Intel processors to its own A chips, like those used in iPad and iPhone. Yesterday in an interview published at CNET, Greg Welch, Intel ultrabook chief, says: "We hear the same rumors and it would be remiss of us to be dismissive. We endeavor to innovate so they'll continue to look to us as a supplier".

The next-gen A6 processor would take away Intel chips as another crucial component cost Apple wouldn't have to pay, which its Wintel competitors have to. Based on various industry estimates, Intel processor, Windows and additional software easily exceeds 40 percent of a computer's total cost -- likely considerably more when looking at ultrabook and that coveted sub-$1,000 sell price. Of course, A6 wouldn't make the processors free but Apple would control costs and, presumably, they would be considerably less than buying them from Intel.

Asus UX21 Ultrabook is expected by the end of September for around $1,000 or a little less. But sub-$1,000 isn't good enough. MacBook Air is there today, and an A6 switch would give Apple plenty of room to cut prices further while preserving margins. My audacious headline is based on several assumptions, any of which could change:

1. That Intel won't dramatically cut CPU prices for Ultrabooks.

2. That Apple will move MacBook Air to A6 processors.

3. That Apple will undercut competitors because it can do so without sacrificing margins.

I think MacBook Air will demonstrate in the coming months, even more than it does now, the cost advantages of Apple's end-to-end product design, development and distribution methods.
Hulu attracting bids of up to $2 billion, say reports

Publié: août 23, 2011, 12:45am CEST par Ed Oswald

It's no secret that Hulu is shopping around for a suitor: new reports indicate that process is well on its way. Bids are due by Wednesday, and it's expected they will range between $500 million and $2 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Several suitors are said to be in the running including Google, Yahoo, Amazon, and DirecTV. There also have been rumors that Apple may be interested too: the WSJ's sources have not confirmed that.

Hulu -- a joint venture of Walt Disney, News Corp, and Comcast-NBC Universal -- would be valuable to whomever buys it. Given it is the primary online distribution point for three of the US' four major broadcast networks, the owner would gain the rights to a wealth of content.

In any case, the agreement would need to be favorable to the networks, as they stand to lose the most control in a sale. Under new management, the broadcasters would have to treat Hulu as it would any other digital distributor of its content.

That important point is why many of the discussed deals have involved a licensing and or exclusivity clause, making a site more valuable to the buyer and ensuring positive terms for the content owners.

Due to these factors as well as what appears to be a disparity between what potential buyers want to pay and what Hulu executives were looking for, chances of a sale have been put at no more than 50 percent.
2017: When PCs go the way of the dinosaur?

Publié: août 23, 2011, 12:16am CEST par Joe Wilcox

Today, In-Stat predicted that the global tablet market will reach 250 million shipments by 2017. It's a seemingly big number, but its real significance is bigger: How much will tablets displace PC sales?

Right now the global install base of PCs is about 1 billion units. Shipments have been above 300 million PCs per year, but they're way down in mature markets, still strong in some emerging markets and losing sales to tablets, according to both Gartner and IDC. Is there market sustainable enough for 300 million PCs and 250 million tablets? I'm the wrong person to answer, having already proclaimed -- to the chagrin of many Betanews commenters -- that the "PC era is over."

The synopsis to In-Stat's report -- "The Reality and Ramifications of Tablets" -- focuses more on how consumer electronics devices are impacted. In-Stat sent me data sheets with no data, but questions and other info that let me see the report doesn't take the PC into the equation.

It is the PC that will matter more to many Betanews readers managing IT departments.
Two months ago, I asked: "Are tablets a fad?". In-Stat's data surely suggests otherwise. Then there are Gartner and IDC, which, respectively, forecast 69.8 million and 53.5 million this year.

Much depends on overlap. How much can tablets replace PCs? Many of our readers don't see that happening. Maybe, but Windows 8 is coming, and I'm expecting a juicy developer beta to drop during next month's BUILD conference. Microsoft is clearly targeting Windows 8 for tablets as well as desktop and portable PCs -- and it's what analyst firms Gartner and IDC consider a "full" OS rather than a mobile.

In context of Microsoft entering the tablet market in a big-OS way and with its core market being businesses, there's good reason to rethink the PC's future -- not just in the hands of Apple or Android tablets but Microsoft leading businesses down a hybrid path. Whatever, tablets are maturing fast and the overlap with PC functionally can only get greater (with Windows 8 part of that equation).

I don't see enough room for both tablets and PCs in 2017. Something has to give. Either tablets must cannibalize PC sales or a hybrid product emerges, something that absolutely could happen in a post-Windows 7 world, with Windows 8 driving new form factors. That 250 million is a mighty big number. But many analysts made big predictions about netbooks, which sales have collapsed before tablets. It may be that Microsoft and its hardware partners can similarly upset the current tablet market with Windows 8. If not, we have a date, or thereabouts, for PC's obsolescence: 2017.

In the here and now, In-Stat sees tablets encroaching on consumer electronics devices. "The tablet market and its associated ecosystem are still evolving. Over the next few generations we will see more differentiation between devices that are targeting different market segments and usage models. In addition, competitive device and service pricing will bring tablets into the mainstream consumer and enterprise markets", Jim McGregor, In-Stat chief technology strategist, says in a statement.

"Tablets are joining an array of smart-connected devices that allow users almost unlimited access to content and communications", he continues. "These new devices mark a significant change in the value change of the electronics industry where the content and applications are now the key differentiators and innovation drivers".

In-Stat sees Android and iOS coming to dominate 90 percent of the tablet market during the forecast period, with Windows pulling up the rear. Tablets 9 inches to 11 inches will make up 56 percent of the total tablet market in 2017.