Top Tech Story of the Day
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Co-Founder of Facebook to
Leave Firm |
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 Dustin
Moskovitz, co-founder of social-networking start-up Facebook Inc., said he would
leave the company in about a month.
Mr. Moskovitz founded the social-networking Web site with Mark
Zuckerberg, who is now Facebook's chief executive, while they were both students
at Harvard University several years ago.
Justin Rosenstein, a Facebook engineering manager, will also leave
the company to join Mr. Moskovitz in starting a new software business. In a
message left on Mr. Moskovitz's Facebook page, the two said they have been
working on software for business users and wanted to incorporate the software
into Facebook.
"But at some point it became clear that doing so wouldn't be good
for Facebook or for us," he wrote. Mr. Moskovitz wrote that he sees the new
venture as complementary to Facebook.
Read more... |
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Latest Tech News Headlines
 Google and Yahoo Ad
Deal Delayed |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
Google and Yahoo will delay implementation of their joint
advertising deal to give antitrust lawyers at the Justice Department more time
to review the agreement, the companies said yesterday.
The additional delay will be less than a month, said a source
close to negotiations who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on the
condition of anonymity.
The announcement is another sign that the Justice Department has
developed significant concerns about the agreement, which would join two of the
most dominant companies on the Web. The deal calls for Google to provide ads to
run alongside some queries conducted on Yahoo's search engine.
"The companies have agreed to a brief delay in implementing this
agreement to continue our ongoing discussions with the Department of Justice,"
Google said in a statement.
Read more... |
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Copyright
board leaves rates unchanged, iTunes lives for another day |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
The recording industry's efforts to compensate for lagging CD
sales by promoting hikes in royalties rates, suffered another serious setback
yesterday in the US as a panel of judges ruled mechanical royalties rates should
stay put.
Apple's threat earlier this week to shut down its iTunes service
cast a brighter spotlight on the Copyright Review Board's royalties review
process than at any time since 1909. As of this morning, the CRB hasn't actually
publicly announced its decision yesterday, although the Associated Press learned
from sources who participated in the meetings with the three-judge panel that it
decided not to raise the rates for mechanical reproduction royalties above the
current base rate established in January 2006.
That rate now remains set at 9.1 cents per song, or 1.75 per
minute for any song lasting longer than 5:12, whichever is higher.
The anticipation -- at least among the CE clique -- resembled the
mood of investors awaiting rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. The resolution
means that services that sell songs for download will not have to pay any more
to music copyright holders than they currently do.
Read more... |
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Yahoo Stock Hits
5-Year Low |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
Internet giant hit by failures, poor economy, falls to lowest
trading value since .com bust.
Once offered $32/ a share to merge with Microsoft, Jerry Yang's
Yahoo Inc. is in financial trouble. The giant's stock closed Thursday at
$15.58/share -- a five year low. Not since its meteoric rise and fall with the
dot com boom and bust between 1999 to 2001 had its stock traded at such low
levels.
While today shares have risen slightly to just over $16/share,
they still remain at lows not seen in at least 5 years, leaving Yahoo with very
tough questions. The latest fall is just an episode in a steady decline that has
been taking place over the last several months.
Yahoo is betting big that its advertising deal with Google will go
through, but there's much uncertainty there. The Department of Justice is under
pressure to oversee the deal and may nix it, if it feels Google is gaining too
much advertising control from it. Further, the deal may fare even worse
internationally in places such as the EU, which have stricter antitrust laws.
Read more... |
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Amazon's Kindle 2
leaked |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
After rumors surfaced on the Web a few months back that a new
Kindle might be on the way, Amazon.com did its best to shoot them down, saying a
new Kindle was not coming this year. Well, Boy Genius Report has gotten ahold of
some photos that appear to be the Kindle 2, so we're curious what Amazon has to
say now.
From the looks of the new device, Amazon has tried to address some
of the criticisms of the Kindle, most of which revolve around its somewhat
homely design and a few poorly placed buttons. The shape has been modified to
make the new Kindle more attractive, but it appears Amazon is sticking with the
same off-white color scheme--for better or worse.
The Boy Genius Report's mole or "ninja," has some comments about
the new Kindle. First, ninja says the device is basically the same size as the
older model, but is thinner and has "a slightly heavier feel, and it feels much
sturdier." The source indicates the new model uses the same cellular EV-DO
network for downloads (it's Sprint's network in the current model) and a metal
back is visible in some of the pictures. I particularly appreciated the look of
the new leather carrying pouch for the device since I don't like the existing
Kindle's protective case.
Read more... |
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Sony announces pricey
e-book reader |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
There has been lots of activity in the ebook reader segment
lately. Following Amazon’s Kindle, we recently saw the Plastic Logic’s stunning
device and it appears that Sony will also try to take another shot at this
market. The company will soon be selling an updated version of its Reader
Digital Book, which now includes a touchscreen.
The new Reader Digital Book has a slightly smaller footprint than
its predecessor, as Sony was able to eliminate physical control keys, but is
slightly heavier due to (10 oz vs. 9 oz). The big change in the new PRS-700 is
the addition of touchscreen capability to the display, which continues to use
E-Ink technology, offers the same resolution as the preceding model (170 ppi)
and the same battery time (enough to view and turn 7500 pages).
The second new feature is the addition of a built-in LED reading
light.
The changes don’t come cheap as Sony charges $399 for the
PRS-700BC, which is a $100 over the regular PRS-505. Sony is taking preorders
now and expects to ship pre-order units on or before November 14.
Read more... |
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Windows XP gets
another lifeline |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
Bowing to continued demand, Microsoft has again extended the life
of Windows XP.
Although the largest PC makers can't sell XP anymore (except for
ultra-low-cost machines), they can sell Vista Ultimate and Vista Business
machines with XP discs in the box, or even Vista machines that are "factory
downgraded" to Windows XP.
That option was supposed to go away early next year, as Microsoft
was going to stop supplying Windows XP media after January 31. However, the
company now says it will offer the discs through July 31, giving the option a
six-month extension. (Update: PC makers will also be able to sell the factory
downgraded machines online as well.)
In a statement provided to CNET News, Microsoft tried to put the
best face on the move.
"As more customers make the move to Windows Vista, we want to make
sure that they are making that transition with confidence and that it is as
smooth as possible," Microsoft said. "Providing downgrade media for a few more
months is part of that commitment, as is the Windows Vista Small Business
Assurance program, which provides one-on-one, customized support for our
small-business customers."
Read more... |
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Ballmer: Microsoft
will soon release 'Windows Cloud' OS |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer revealed a few details on Wednesday of
a forthcoming operating system that will help developers write Internet-based
applications.
Within a month, Microsoft will unveil what Ballmer called "Windows
Cloud." The OS, which will likely have a different name, is intended for
developers writing cloud-computing applications, said Ballmer, speaking in
London to an auditorium of IT managers at a Microsoft-sponsored conference.
Cloud computing is a term often applied to programs that are
presented in a Web browser, but the actual computing is performed at a distant
datacenter.
Ballmer was short on details, saying more information would spoil
the announcement. Windows Cloud is a separate project from Windows 7, the OS
Microsoft is developing to succeed Windows Vista.
Companies such as Google and Salesforce.com have embraced the
concept of delivering software over the Internet, as it can mean lower costs and
less maintenance for those who use the applications.
Read more... |
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Skype admits security
breach in China |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
Skype's Josh Silverman admitted yesterday that a security breach
enabled Chinese Skype users' instant message conversations to be recorded and
made accessible on public Web servers.
"It is common knowledge that censorship does exist in China and
that the Chinese government has been monitoring communications in and out of the
country for many years," said Silverman. He went on to cite Skype's public
disclosure in 2006 of putting text filters in place to block certain words the
Chinese authorities found "offensive."
However, what came as a shock to Silverman, and the rest of the
Skype-using community, was that Chinese mobile Internet company TOM Online had
been uploading and storing chats containing questionable keywords. Furthermore,
a security breach allowed outside users to access and read the intercepted
communications.
Silverman's announcement follows the release of a document from
University of Toronto Citizen Lab researcher Nart Villeneuve, who discovered
that TOM-Skype was not only filtering out swear words and seditious phrases, but
also intercepting and saving them on eight servers in China.
Read more... |
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Nokia 5800
XpressMusic: Beating Apple at its own game |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
It took Nokia some time to come up with an adequate answer to
Apple’s iPhone: The 5800 XpressMusic touchscreen phone could be considered the
first serious rival for the iPhone and it seems that Nokia may be trying to beat
Apple at its own game: Take the fest features of your competitor, fix the most
obvious mistakes and wrap the whole product in a stylish package. Is Apple
falling behind?
The world’s largest cellphone maker today released its first-ever
touchscreen phone called 5800 XpressMusic. It beats the iPhone in key hardware
features such as screen resolution, camera and battery life. Despite being
powered by Symbian Series 60, however, it lacks certain software features,
attractive applications, multi-touch, and the easy-to-use interface that made
the iPhone famous. What truly sets the phone apart from Apple is unlimited
over-the-air access to the entire music catalog on the Nokia Music Store service
valid for one year.
Read more... |
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Microsoft Offers
Rewards For Using Live Search |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
The 1st of October marked the day when Microsoft launched Search
Perks, a promotion which awards points to regular users of Live Search. Users
will be given points for every search made, with 25 daily searches to be
rewarded. The points can be then exchanged for books, music downloads and other
prizes. This campaign is aggressively promoting Microsoft’s search engine,
taking advantage of the current economic situation in the U.S tempting people to
use their product in exchange for different prizes.
The campaign is currently only available in the U.S and users’
searches will be monitored by a program downloadable in the form of a toolbar
for Internet Explorer. The program supports any version of IE higher than 6. The
campaign ends in April next year and those who register before the end of
December this year will receive a bonus of 500 extra points. The points
accumulated during the promotion can only be exchanged for prizes in April, at
the end of the promotion.
Apparently, Microsoft’s plan of attracting more visitors on their
search engine is working as their traffic is steadily rising. Eleven weeks ago,
Cashback, a program that gives people discounts for products found through Live
Search, represented only approximately 3% of the searches on Live, while
recently it grew to almost double, 6.29%.
Microsoft said that tests showed that people were three times more
likely to use Live Search when they were offered redeemable points than when
they weren't.
Read more... |
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Google Exec Shines
Light On Android Market |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
With the announcement of the G1 by Google, HTC, and T-Mobile, it's
only a matter of weeks before the Android platform is unleashed.
The open source mobile OS is drawing interest from consumers, and
mobile applications in the Android Market are expected to be a major driver of
adoption. Andy Rubin, Google's director of mobile platforms, recently spoke
about his vision for the Android Market.
"We want the next killer application to be written for cell
phones, not the Internet," Rubin told BusinessWeek.
Google may be facing a battle for developer mindshare, as Apple's
App Store has proven to be highly lucrative for some content creators. To combat
this, Rubin said the Android Market will offer the ability to offer free trials
of apps before customers have to buy them. Apple doesn't officially allow this,
but many developers get around this by offering "Lite" or stripped-down versions
of the apps.
Additionally, developers may be drawn to the open nature of the
Android Market, which will not be as restrictive as Apple's offerings. Apple has
recently made moves to ease growing frustration with developers.
Read more... |
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HD Through VUDU: HDX |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
The fact that video streaming and movies bought over the Internet
is becoming bigger and bigger business by the day is no secret. Neither is that
quality wise, movies bought or viewed over the Internet are way inferior to the
HD or DVD quality movies you get by buying in a store.
However, that is about to change as a new video format, called the
HDX, launched by VUDU, is creating a real hype among those used to buy their
movies online. HDX is a high-def format, which is able to deliver movies in HD
over the internet and through video streaming services.
VUDU says that their new format will be better than other HD
Internet formats, both visually and audio, working at 24fps and with a 40%
higher bit-rate sound encodings. The new format will be available through
TruFilm software, developed by VUDU.
VUDU’s movie box works by connecting to the Internet, downloading
the first 30 seconds of the desired movie and playing it while downloading the
rest. This is a very convenient solution for those who buy their movies online
and think that it lasts forever before the movie can be watched.
Read more... |
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Brit, German
indicted for stateside satellite TV attacks |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
A British man and a German man have been indicted by a US federal
grand jury for launching a campaign of denial of service attacks against two
US-based home satellite television vendors on behalf of a rival company.
Lee Grahm Walker of Bleys Bolton and Axel Gembe of Germany were
named by a California district court yesterday on charges of conspiracy and
intentionally damaging a protected computer system.
Gembe is believed to be the programmer behind the infamous Agobot
worm, a version of which allegedly used to conduct the attacks.
Prosecutors claim Gembe and Walker were operating under a contract
from Jay Echouafni, the former CEO of Massachusetts-based Orbit Communications,
to disable the websites of competing businesses, Rapid Satellite of Miami and
Weaknees of Los Angeles.
Read more... |
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Google Launches Its
Own Memetracker |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
Google has just launched a new homepage for its blog search that
bears a strong resemblance to Techmeme, Memeorandum and their "memetracker"
counterparts. The site displays a listing of the top stories from across a
variety of topics including business, politics, technology, and entertainment.
Memetrackers identify emerging trends on the web, especially
across blogs. They are often the best way to learn about breaking news stories,
as they can automatically monitor hundreds (or more) news sources at once. Major
news outlets and user-submitted content sites like Digg often trail memetrackers
by days.
Google may well be able to leverage some of the technology it has
developed for Google News, which identifies emerging news stories across
thousands of sites run by newspapers, television stations, and other media
sites. But at this point it's too early to tell if Google Blogsearch will be
more useful than any of the other memetrackers (or if its even in the same
league). Much of its utility will lie in how often the listings are updated, how
many sources it pays attention to, and how it assesses a blog's credibility - a
memetracker is only as good as the stories it presents.
Read more... |
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Microsoft Partners
With Portugal On Affordable Computing |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
Microsoft said Friday that it has reached an agreement with the
government of Portugal to develop affordable computing packages for the
country's schoolchildren.
Under the pact, Microsoft will introduce a suite of educational
desktop software that can run on the Magellan PC -- a low-cost laptop built in
Portugal for primary and junior high students. The suite will include the
Windows XP operating system, Office 2007, and educational applications --
including Microsoft Student Learning Essentials, Microsoft Maths, and Microsoft
Encarta Online.
The plan is part of the Portuguese government's e-Escolinhas
technology-in-education initiative. "With the Magellan computer and the massive
introduction of ICTs [information and communications technology] in the
Portuguese education system, for the first time a whole generation will grow up
to have strong English and ICT skills," said Portuguese prime minister Jose
Socrates, in a statement.
The deal was announced at an event in Porto Salvo, Portugal that
was attended by Socrates and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. "Providing students
with access to technology and educational opportunities that will enable them to
thrive in the knowledge economy is critical to the future success of every
community," said Ballmer.
Read more... |
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Obama Campaign
Launches Mobile App |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
The Barack Obama presidential campaign has staked out turf on
Apple's iPhone App Store. The Obama '08 application delivers campaign news,
opens a window to financial donations and encourages users to call friends in
key battleground states and push for their votes. In the future, voters should
expect to see political campaigns move aggressively into mobile technology,
regardless of the party being represented.
The Barack Obama presidential campaign has tapped Apple's iPhone
to help deliver news and information about the candidate. It's also giving
Obama's supporters a new way to help swing the campaign to Obama's favor: a Call
Friends feature organizes and prioritizes contacts by key battleground states,
making it easier to place grassroots political calls.
"Not everyone can take time out of their busy schedule to go down
to their local campaign office to do four hours of campaign phone duty," Raven
Zachary, an independent iPhone advisor and project director of the Obama '08
application, told MacNewsWorld.
Read more... |
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Dell Offers PC
Pre-Loaded With Movies |
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Tech Junkeez Latest Tech News
In its latest effort at PC personalization, Dell is offering this
year's movie blockbuster Iron Man as an option on select desktops and laptops.
For an additional $20, movie fans can get a copy of Iron Man,
along with bonus features, pre-loaded on select Inspiron, Dell Studio, and XPS
laptops and desktops. The movie, which is likely to come with
copyright-protection technology to prevent illegal copying, is owned by
Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment.
While savvy PC buyers are more likely to weigh processor speed,
memory, and graphics power in their buying decisions, Dell believes offering
such accessories as movies is another way for people to personalize their
systems.
"Dell continues to create ways to express an individual's personal
style through the devices they choose," Tim Bucher, Dell's VP of consumer
content and services, said in a statement.
Dell said it plans to offer other movies with PCs in the future.
Read more... |
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