22 June 2013

Why Microsoft Changed Course on the Xbox One

Microsoft already has a disaster with Windows 8 as a PC OS, as well as disappointing tablet and smartphone sales, and did not want the same thing to happen to its gaming franchise--

Why Microsoft Changed Course on Digital Rights and the Xbox One
Wall Street Journal (blog)
Microsoft abruptly shifted this week on its previously rigid stance toward digital rights features in the Xbox One system. The technology company, which makes the market-leading Xbox 360 console, wrote in a statement it would make changes to ensure ...


Street View: Google given 35 days to delete wi-fi data
BBC News
Its investigation into Google reopened last year after further revelations about the data taken from wi-fi networks. During that inquiry, additional discs containing private data were found. Google had previously pledged to destroy all data it had ...

Google facing privacy probe from Spanish data watchdogs
ZDNet
Spanish authorities have launched legal action against Google over its data privacy practices following a European-wide review into the search giant's new policy on how it handles user data, which combined more than 60 different policies into a single one.


HTC Cut Executive Compensation 51% in 2012
Wall Street Journal
TAIPEI--HTC Corp. (2498.TW) executives had their total compensation cut by more than half in 2012, amid poor earnings performance and declining market share, the company said in its annual report released Friday. The embattled Taiwanese smartphone ...

UK regulator gives Google 35 days to scrap its remaining Street View data
PCWorld
A U.K. regulatory group is giving Google 35 days to delete what remains of the data collected by its Street View cars in the U.K., and is using the threat of legal action to compel the company to comply. The request, which was served to Google in the form of an ...

New, rare antelope born at Brookfield Zoo
Chicago Daily Herald
Brookfield Zoo has added one new antelope to its animal population and expects to have more over the next few weeks. The zoo said Thursday that the new addax antelope was born June 7. Three more addax females at the zoo are pregnant. Advertisement.

Apple Posts iOS 'Fragmentation' Chart
PC Magazine
During his opening keynote at this year's Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC), Apple CEO Tim Cook was quick to point out that Android fragmentation was alive and well, whereas more than 90 percent of iOS users were using the most recent version ...

Instagram users upload 5M videos in first 24 hours
CNET
Just a day after release, video sharing is already proving so popular an activity on the app that it would take you years to watch all the clips uploaded to the service. Jennifer Van Grove. by Jennifer Van Grove. June 21, 2013 11:15 AM PDT Follow @jbruin.

Space telescope Kickstarter campaign raises more than $1m
The Guardian
US technology company Planetary Resources has raised more than $1m on the crowdfunding site Kickstarter to build ARKYD, which it describes as "the first publicly accessible space telescope". The telescope is part of the company's wider ambition to ...

Report: iTunes owns 74 percent of the digital music market
ZDNet
Summary: New data shows that Apple's iTunes has quintupled in seven years and dominates the $9 billion a year digital music market....

Microsoft baits trap with $100K in hunt for new exploit techniques
Computerworld
Computerworld - Microsoft took a two-year-old contest and turned it on its head to come up with a new reward program that will pay security researchers up to $100,000 for demonstrating novel attack tactics against Windows 8.1. In a broad announcement ...

Best Buy Offers Free iPhone 5
ABC News
If you own an iPhone 4 or iPhone 4S, a free iPhone 5 is just a car ride away for the next week. On June 1, Best Buy offered a one-day deal: bring in your old iPhone 4 or 4s and trade it for a brand new iPhone 5. The offer was so successful, that the retailer has ...

Archaeologists discover lost Maya city in Mexican jungle
San Jose Mercury News
MEXICO CITY — Archaeologists have found an ancient Maya city that remained hidden for centuries in the rain forests of eastern Mexico, a discovery in a remote nature reserve they hope will yield clues about how the civilization collapsed around 1,000 years ...

Summer solstice 2013: Marking longest day at eeriest ancient sites
Los Angeles Times
The summer solstice has arrived, and Google has marked the occasion with an animated doodle of ocean swimmers leisurely lifted by waves. Meanwhile, scientific types will pause to appreciate the phenomenon of the longest day of the year in the Northern ...

John McAfee's tips for un-installing McAfee software
The Guardian
The Sheen-esque exploits of tech entrepreneur John McAfee have a sordid new chapter with the release of a video in which he riffs on how bad McAfee anti-virus software is. The video employs canned jokes about hookers, guns and bath salts to put down ...

BlackBerry Faithful Seen Stemming Sales Slide: Corporate
Businessweek
BlackBerry is poised to snap a five-quarter streak of declining smartphone shipments, a sign its recovery is gaining traction. BlackBerry probably delivered 7.7 million smartphones to customers in the three months ended in May, a Bloomberg survey of analysts ...

Longest serving congressman wowed by Google Glass
USA TODAY
Rep. John Dingell of Michigan tried out Google's newest gadget. He called Google Glass 'quite a machine.' Dingell was recently honored as the longest serving member of the U.S. Congress. Post to Facebook. Longest serving congressman wowed by ...

Woz: I feel 'a little guilty' about NSA surveillance
CNET
Appearing on CNN, Apple's co-founder says he admires Edward Snowden. He also worries that his own creations and those of fellow technologists have been used, as it were, against the people. Chris Matyszczyk. by Chris Matyszczyk. June 21, 2013 9:21 ...

What Does Human Brain Mapping Actually Tell Us?
Forbes
Google “brain” right now and you'll find a mountain of news stories on a development known as the BigBrain project, which just came out just yesterday: Researchers in Europe and Canada have just mapped the human brain with a precision that's so ...

Smog envelopes Singapore
Washington Post
Singapore urged people to remain indoors because of record air pollution as a smoky haze wrought by forest fires in neighboring Indonesia worsened dramatically. A man rides a motorcycle with his kids amid haze in Dumai, in Indonesia's Riau. 1 / 24.

Supermoon This Sunday: Look Out the Window to See Brightened Sky
ABC News
Full moons come and go each month, but supermoons come only once a year. And this Sunday is the supermoon's time to shine. At 7 a.m. ET, the moon will not only be bright and full, but it will also be at its closest distance to Earth. If it's a clear night (or day), ...

Virgin Mobile US Climbs on the iPhone 5 Train
The Mac Observer
Virgin Mobile is joining the iPhone 5 family in the United States. The carrier will begin offering the current iPhone model to its customers starting June 28. Like other phones the carrier offers, the iPhone 5 will be offered with pre-paid plans starting at US$35 a ...

'Google Mine' heads to Google+, Android?
CNET
A new service has reportedly been discovered that allows users to keep track of "belongings" and then share those with friends in different circles. Don Reisinger. by Don Reisinger. June 21, 2013 9:21 AM PDT. (Credit: Google). Google is preparing to launch ...

Battle of the ultra-high-res laptops: Samsung Ativ Book 9 specs vs. the world
PCWorld
As consumers look to cheap tablets for their basic computing needs, PC makers are putting more effort into creating luxury machines to compete with Apple's MacBooks. The idea is that if you're only going to buy one PC for serious productivity, it might as well ...

In Ireland, Slimy Snails Tell An 8000-Year-Old Story Of Human Migration From ...
International Business Times
Scientists at the University of Nottingham, UK, have found genetic similarities between snails in Ireland and the Pyrenean region of southern France, leading them to conclude that the sluggish creatures could be part of an ancient human migration to Ireland ...

Cheetah-Cub Is A Cat-Like Quadruped That's The Fastest Bot Of Its Size
TechCrunch
We're still a ways away from electric sheep roaming the fields pretending to bleat but robotics researchers continue to look to nature for four-legged inspiration. Meet Cheetah-Cub, a European Commission-funded research project, out of Swiss University the ...

Solar Eruption Provides New Clues To Young Star Growth [PHOTO]
International Business Times
Astronomers were able to photograph a solar eruption June 7 which could lead to a better understanding of how young stars grow. The solar eruption led to tons of plasma being hurled into space. The solar eruption was captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics ...

Penguin-shaped galaxy poses with galaxy that looks like an egg
Los Angeles Times
In case you need a reminder that the universe is a weird and amazing place, check out this photo of a galaxy shaped like a penguin interacting with a galaxy that looks like an egg. The image, created using data collected by the Hubble Space Telescope, ...

Injustice: Gods Among Us Unveils General Zod Trailer, Man of Steel Skin
The Escapist
Injustice: Gods Among Us will be adding General Zod and a Man of Steel skin for Superman in July. Injustice: Gods Among Us looks to be getting a bit more super in the near future. Superman, that is (nyuck nyuck). NetherRealm Studio's DC-centric fighting ...

Lenovo unveils convertible Windows 8 tablet, IdeaPad Touch devices
CNET
The Lenovo Miix is a multimode 10.1-inch tablet that can be converted into a laptop by using an additional "quick-flip" detachable folio case that includes an integrated AccuType keyboard. Charlie Osborne. by Charlie Osborne. June 21, 2013 6:57 AM PDT.

Mozilla Eyes Block List for Firefox Cookie Management
PC Magazine
Mozilla this week provided more details on how it will handle tracking cookies in upcoming versions of Firefox, announcing a partnership with the Center for Internet and Society (CIS) at Stanford to create a "block" and "allow" list of websites. Cookie-blocking ...

Tokyo court says Samsung infringed Apple 'bounce-back' patent
Reuters
By Nobuhiro Kubo. TOKYO | Fri Jun 21, 2013 1:44pm EDT. TOKYO (Reuters) - A Tokyo court ruledon Friday that Samsung Electronics Co Ltd had infringed rival Apple Inc's patent for a so-called bounce-back feature on earlier models of its popular ...

At least 25000 bumble bees found dead in Oregon parking lot
Fox News
WILSONVILLE, Ore. – Workers on Friday plan to wrap bee-proof netting around blooming trees in the parking lot of an Oregon shopping center in an attempt to prevent the deaths of more bees. Portland-area bee experts with the Xerces Society for ...

Google Skips 'Waste of Time' Brainteaser Interview Questions
ABC News
Job interviews at Google, frequently named one of the best places to work by Forbes, may be getting a bit softer now that the search engine giant has “shifted away” from difficult “brainteaser” questions. This week, Laszlo Bock, senior vice president of people ...

Long trip? Tesla Motors will swap your Model S battery while you wait
Ars Technica
Electric car maker can slap in new battery in less time than it takes to get gas. by Lee Hutchinson - Jun 21, 2013 3:28 pm UTC. Energy · 6. Weirdly profitable electric car manufacturer Tesla Motors last night showed off a new piece of its plan to make electric ...

Pirate Bay Co-Founder Sentenced To Two Years In Prison; Sweden Finds ...
International Business Times
Gottfrid Svartholm, a co-founder of the The Pirate Bay torrent site, was sentenced to two years in prison on Thursday. A Swedish court found Svartholm guilty of fraud for hacking mainframes to make illegal money transfers. Svartholm has three weeks to appeal ...

Microsoft Offers Release Dates For Free Games With Gold Titles
The Escapist
We now know exactly when to expect the free games Microsoft has earmarked for Xbox Live Gold subscribers. First announced at E3, Microsoft's "Games With Gold" promotion offers periodic free game downloads to anyone with a valid Xbox Live Gold ...

Gov't delays requiring rearview cameras in cars
Fox News
The Obama administration is again delaying regulations on whether new cars and trucks must come equipped with rearview cameras to protect against drivers backing over people in blind spots behind their vehicles, a victory for automakers who say ...

The first ten Android apps a professional should download
ZDNet
Summary: Business professionals are warming up to Android. For those picking up their first Android device, here are 10 highly useful apps to get you started. . . .

Cities are a new kind of complex system: Part social reactor, part network
Eureka! Science News
Cities have long been likened to organisms, ant colonies, and river networks. But these and other analogies fail to capture the essence of how cities really function. New research by Santa Fe Institute Professor Luis Bettencourt suggests a city is something ...

First Apple computer could fetch $500000 or more
Bismarck Tribune
This undated photo provided by Christie's Auction House shows an “Apple 1” prototype computer, built in 1976, accompanied by an operation manual and schematic as well as a photo of its inventors, Steve Wozniak, left, and Steve Jobs. One of the very first ...

NASA Signs onto Europe's Mercury Mission
Nature World News
An artist's rendering of the BepiColombo mission, consisting of two spacecraft orbiting Mercury. (Photo : European Space Agency). Whether it's new evidence of ancient water sources or a much thicker atmosphere way back when, the Red Planet seems to be ...

Graphene - based system could lead to improved information processing
Eureka! Science News
Researchers at MIT have proposed a new system that combines ferroelectric materials -- the kind often used for data storage -- with graphene, a two-dimensional form of carbon known for its exceptional electronic and mechanical properties. The resulting ...

AT&T's No-Contract Aio Wireless Adds 4G LTE
PC Magazine
Customers should be on the lookout for an over-the-air software update that automatically upgrades the SIM card to allow LTE speeds. Aio launched in early May, offering no-contract talk, text, and data plans to customers Houston, Orlando, and Tampa.

CORRECTED-UPDATE 3-France, Spain take action against Google on privacy
Reuters
Thu Jun 20, 2013 2:36pm EDT. (Clarifies Spanish fines in fourth paragraph As being for each of five violations). * Watchdog says Google broke French law, must change policy. * Google has three months to comply or face fines in France. * Spain fines Google ...

PlayStation 3 firmware update coming June 27th, promises to fix bricked systems
Engadget
Are you one of the "small number" of folks with a PlayStation 3 that was bricked in this week's 4.45 firmware update? Though Sony's been aware of the issue since the update launched, apparently a fix isn't coming until June 27th -- that's nine days after 4.45 ...

The best slides from the closing arguments in the Apple ebooks case
paidContent.org
Here are the funniest and/or most important slides from Apple and the federal government's closing arguments in the ebook pricing case. apple summation 1. Apple and the Justice Department made closing arguments in the ebook pricing case Thursday.

Sony hints at smartwatch
Know Your Mobile
Sony may be making another bid for the smartwatch space, following reports that rivals such as Apple, Samsung and Microsoft may all have their own projects underway. iWatch & Galaxy Watch: Are smartwatches the future? Apple iWatch prototype in testing ...

Now, super-powerful tabletop particle accelerator
Hindu Business Line
Physicists have built a super-powerful tabletop particle accelerator that can generate energies and speeds previously reached only by major facilities, shrinking the size from the length of two football fields to just one inch. “We have accelerated about half a ...


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