Tech Technology News

Yahoo Plans to Open Source Code for Non-core Technologies

2011-03-28T05:36:00.000-07:00

Yahoo plans to release some technologies, including storage technologies, to the open source community, a senior executive of the company said.

These are systems that Yahoo built to help it handle large numbers of users on its websites, but that don't necessarily give it a competitive advantage, said David Chaiken, chief architect at Yahoo, in an interview in Bangalore on Friday.

In 2009, Yahoo donated its Traffic Server scalable caching proxy to the Apache Software Foundation.

A working group on open source at Yahoo is currently evaluating technologies that could qualify to be released to open source.

The company has to first make sure that each of the technologies will really be useful and provide significant value outside Yahoo, before releasing it to open source, Chaiken said. It takes time and effort to go through the open source process, and to build a community around open source, so the company has to first make sure there will be interest from developers, he added.

Releasing technology to the open source community helps Yahoo build recognition and a technical brand in the technical community, and also develop relationships with universities and companies, Chaiken said. There could also be some financial benefits in getting community developers to work on a project, he added.

A large part of Yahoo's IT infrastructure is built around open source software, including the Hadoop scalable distributed computing platform which helps Yahoo execute at a very large scale, Chaiken said.

Yahoo said earlier this year that it is discontinuing its distribution of Hadoop, and will instead focus on Apache Hadoop, a project of the Apache Software Foundation

Hadoop is likely to be critical as Yahoo attempts to reduce diversity and unify its IT infrastructure. The company is for example standardizing its asynchronous or batch computation and storage using Hadoop, Chaiken said.

As a result of acquisitions, and in-house projects that were rushing to bring new products and technologies to market, Yahoo over the years ended up with a lot of different systems that in some cases are fulfilling the same purpose, Chaiken said.

Each of the different science groups that were writing algorithms for extracting signal from the company's data were essentially operating on their own dedicated analytics infrastructure and storage, each building different models in a slightly different way, and each operating on different data sets, Chaiken said.

In the last four years, Yahoo has integrated the infrastructure for the science groups across the world, and removed the data and algorithm silos, he added.

Yahoo is also working on unifying its content and communications systems, on top of a "content agility platform" that depends to a large extent on Hadoop, Chaiken said. The company is in the process of unifying its media and communications properties.

Disco Messenger: Google's 'Secret' Group Texting App for iPhone

2011-03-27T13:45:00.000-07:00

Google joins an growing number of companies offering group chat capabilities via text messaging on smartphones with the release of Disco Messenger. The Disco app -- only available on the iPhone -- was created by Slide, a company Google purchased last August.

Disco is a group texting service that's also available on the Web (Google bought that too). Sign up and you're assigned a new phone number, then invited to go on a SMS rampage, texting bunches of people -- anybody at all -- whether they're on the Disco service or not. Viral marketing! Let's hope Apple fixes its notification system sooner rather than later; otherwise, this kind of awkward intrusion could get real annoying, real quick.

Remember, Disco uses your iPhone's text message plan, so if you intend to Disco 'til you drop, be sure you have a supportive carrier plan. For $20 a month you can get unlimited texts with AT&T or 5000 texts with Verizon.

Joining the ranks of GroupMe, Beluga, Fast Society, Kik, and (too) many more, Disco is a simple service that puts Google in the hottest

new trend for app developers. It's beyond likely that Disco will make it to Android and even integrate with Google Voice. But is Disco too simple to compete with the advanced features other group messaging companies are implementing? Also keep in mind thatFacebook just acquired Beluga, which is (guess what?) a group messaging company, so expect to see Facebook chats netting a wider chunk of the chatty ocean.

Identity Theft Prompts Prison Time

2011-03-26T13:57:00.000-07:00

An identity thief who used a people search website to confirm stolen Social Security numbers has been sentenced to 16 years and seven months in prison, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.

Artwork: Diego AguirreTodd Yurgin, 41, of Newark, Delaware, was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware for his role in a "massive" ID theft scheme, the DOJ said in a news release. The scheme resulted in a loss of nearly US$1 million to credit card-issuing financial institutions, the DOJ said.

Yurgin's sentence is the longest in Delaware history for fraud and ID theft, the DOJ said. Yurgin's partner in the scheme, Joseph Aughenbaugh, was sentenced to 12 years and one month in prison in November. (See also "Protect Your Privacy: Avoid Identity Theft.")

Yurgin pleaded guilty to six charges, including mail fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering, in August. He later tried to withdraw the plea, but Judge Gregory Sleet denied the request.

Yurgin and Aughenbaugh stole the mail of victims, then confirmed Social Security numbers through background search site USinfosearch.com and possibly other people search sites, said Robert Kravetz, assistant U.S. attorney in the office of Charles Oberly III, U.S. attorney for the District of Delaware.

Site Denies Breach

USinfosearch.com said it maintains "strict security measures."

"Our online tools are clearly designed to prevent fraud and reduce risk," said Marc Martin, a spokesman for the company, via e-mail. "Moreover, we do not provide information on juveniles and have no clients by the names listed."

Yurgin and Aughenbaugh stole the identities of 93 people, at least 44 of them children, the DOJ said. After confirming the victims' Social Security numbers, the two men applied for credit cards using the valid Social Security numbers and fictitious names, the agency said.

The two men targeted Social Security numbers issued to children because the victims "weren't likely to check their credit," Kravetz said.

Multiple Offenses

Yurgin used the identity information to open at least 343 credit cards and 54 bank accounts from more than 40 financial institutions, and he formed two shell companies operating out of his residence to make fraudulent purchases for services. The two men did not pay the credit card companies for the fraudulent transactions, causing several financial institutions to incur significant losses, the DOJ said.

Yurgin's Delaware conviction was his third federal fraud conviction. During sentencing, Sleet called Yurgin a "professional con artist and criminal." The full extent of the scheme may never be uncovered, Sleet said.

Grant Gross covers technology and telecom policy in the U.S. government for The IDG News Service. Follow Grant on Twitter at GrantGross. Grant's e-mail address is grant_gross@idg.com.

3DS Breakdown: Pricier than DSi

2011-03-26T13:55:00.000-07:00

Grabbing a 3DS on the U.S. launch day will put around $150 directly back in Nintendo's pockets, according to one analyst.

3DS components. Photo: ifixitDavid Carey, vice president of technical intelligence for UBM TechInsights, gave Eurogamer a preliminary estimate saying the system's components cost about $101 per unit. Put in perspective, Eurogamer says that is about $15 more than the DSi.

Tom's Guide asked Nintendo to comment on the figure, but got a less than satisfying answer: "Total rumor and speculation. No comment."

Forking over two and a half Benjamins for a portable console is a tough pill to swallow, but not unheard of.

The PSP cost $249 when it launched in the U.S. in 2005, although the bundle included a memory stick, headphones, a case, and a UMD version of the Spider-Man 2 movie.

By comparison, the original DS launched in 2004 priced at $149.99, and the DS lite graced U.S. shores in 2006 and cost around $130.

Nintendo traditionally goes for a more wallet-friendly price point that probably reflects its traditional primary audience: children.

Perhaps with the breakout success of the Wii with adults and senior citizens has forced the company to reevaluate its target audience. That demographic change potentially applies with the 3DS too -- the device'swarning label says anyone under 6 shouldn't use the 3D functionality at all.

Perhaps Nintendo is hoping to target a more mature crowd with the 3DS. You know, the one that doesn't rely on allowance money or birthdays for its major purchases.

To be fair, the $250 retail price doesn't include costs for research and development, packaging, advertising, and shipping. Besides that, Nintendo unlike other hardware manufacturers (here's looking at you, Sony and Microsoft) doesn't like to sell its hardware at a loss.

If you're into numbers, Joystiq compiled a list of launch prices for portable prices and adjusted it for inflation.

OMG! LOL: Internet Slang Added to Oxford English Dictionary

2011-03-26T13:44:00.000-07:00

Time-saving online abbreviations like LOL, OMG, and IMHO are now part of the official English language. The Oxford English Dictionary (OED)announced the addition of several acronyms to its dictionary, adding some interesting trivia behind the origins of these Internet-associated expressions.

OED explained that although "initialisms" like OMG (Oh My God), LOL (Laughing Out Loud) and IMHO (In My Humble/Honest Opinion) are strongly associated with the language of electronic communications, their origins are surprisingly predating the Internet era.

For example, OED found a quotation for OMG in a personal letter from 1917, and FYI (For Your Information) originated in the language of memoranda in 1941. Also, apparently the LOL expression had a previous life, starting in 1960, denoting an elderly woman (Little Old Lady).

OED notes that some expressions like OMG and LOL are used outside electronic communication contexts as well, including print and spoken use, in the form of more than a simple abbreviation:

"The intention is usually to signal an informal, gossipy mode of expression, and perhaps parody the level of unreflective enthusiasm or overstatement that can sometimes appear in online discourse, while at the same time marking oneself as an ‘insider' au fait with the forms of expression associated with the latest technology."

If you're not familiar with the online slang, you can always check out this Internet slang dictionary and translator. Just enter the text slang you want to translate and you're done. TTYL

Kodak Wins Important $1 Billion Victory Against Apple, RIM

2011-03-26T13:42:00.000-07:00

A picture may be worth a 1000 words, but for Eastman Kodak the preview of a picture might be worth $1 billion in a patent battle against Apple and Research in Motion. The U.S. International Trade Commission on Friday agreed to review a claim that Apple and RIM devices infringe on a Kodak patent for image previewing.

In January an ITC judge sided with Apple and RIM, but Kodak is hoping the ITC will reconsider the individual judge's decision and potentially put royalty negotiations worth $1 billion back on the table.

The patent involves previewing a low-resolution version of an image while recording a high resolution version to save processing power. According to Bloomberg, Kodak generated $838 million from patents last year and claims patent is used in "every digital camera and phone with a camera."

Although the ITC cannot force organizations to pay damages, it can order companies to stop importing products that use the relevant patents.

If the ITC sides against Apple and RIM, it would most likely mean that the two companies would settle with Kodak rather than dropping camera feature from upcoming phones or staying out of the U.S. market. In that case, the outcome would be virtually unnoticed by consumers.

It wouldn't be the first time things swayed in favor of Kodak's favor. In 2009 the ITC ruled that Samsung and LG phones infringed on the same patent and resulted in $964 million in settlements.

Almost Here: The Nintendo 3DS Arrives Sunday March 27

2011-03-26T13:38:00.000-07:00

The Nintendo 3DS is nearly here, a two-screen flip-top handheld that lets you play games in true 3D without bulky glasses or other odd-fitting headgear. Nintendo's handheld already went on sale February 26 in Japan, then on Friday March 25 in Europe, and it finally celebrates its U.S. launch this Sunday, March 27.

[ Our Nintendo 3DS Review ]

The midnight launch parties at stores nationwide should start rocking tonight at 12:00am Eastern time, followed by stores swinging their doors wide tomorrow during customary hours. Nintendo has a thing for Sunday launches, and while that's always felt a little anticlimactic to me (the day before most of us return to the grind) anyone who manages to snag a 3DS in the wee hours Sunday morning would probably attest to the upsides of having the Sunday sleep-in cushion.

If you're looking for help coming up with the $250 Nintendo's asking for the system alone, stores are offering various trade-in deals, though they vary wildly.

Walmart says it'll knock $100 off a new 3DS if you bring in an older DS unit with AC adapter. If for some reason you have two, say a DSi and DS Lite, Walmart will let you trade them both for a max total of $200 back. Check your state, though. For some reason Walmart's only offering the deal in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, Mississippi, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and South Carolina. The deal's good from March 27 through April 30.

Target's also offering a trade-in deal, though it's considerably less attractive. Partnering with online pawnshop NextWorth, Target says it'll offer $20 for a DS, $30 for a DS Lite, $45 for a DSi, and $60 for a DSXL. The deal's good at some 900 Target stores nationwide (just bring your systems in and they'll swap you for store credit on the spot),with plans to expand that to 1,450 stores by June.

GameStop's offering its usual trade-in incentives, though again, they're not quite as sweet as Walmart's. If you have a DSi XL, you can score $100 in store credit toward a 3DS, $75 for a DSi, and $50 for a DS Lite. They'll of course take any games you care to trade, too.

Amazon's deals are about the same as GameStop's: A DSi XL gets you a $100 gift card, a DSi $75, or a DS Lite $50. Simply buying a 3DS through Amazon gets you $25 toward several handheld's launch games. You'll also receive a promotional credit for an accessory.

Kmart's deals are back to "ho-hum"--a trifling $25 off a 3DS game when you buy a 3DS system.

Toys R Us will give you up to $75 credit for a Nintendo DS, the key phrase being "up to." How much you'll actually get is left to the discretion of the store--the $75 is probably for systems in tip-top shape.

Should you buy one at launch? The answer's really another question: Do you care if most of the launch games aren't worth the $40 a pop Nintendo's asking?

If you buy a 3DS this weekend, you're buying a promise to do better. Most of the launch games feel underdeveloped and oversimplified. The system has serious battery troubles (3 to 5 hours maximum per charge), grainy 0.3-megapixel cameras, and a fairly unforgiving 3D-mode (move your head more than 10 degrees in any direction and the effect gets garbled).

But it's hard to fault the hardware as the weak launch link. It's not as clean-lined as the DSi, but it is notably lighter. The new user interface seems better thought out, and preinstalled apps like the Activity Log, Friend List, and Mii Plaza dovetail with features like StreetPass (wirelessly exchange data with other nearby 3DS users) and SpotPass (hop onto wireless hotspots to download software and videos). And when the 3D effect works, it makes the 3DS's tiny 3.53-inch top screen feel wider and deeper--games look less ragged, and objects have cleaner lines.

Enough to tease $250 out of your purse or wallet? Maybe, maybe not, but we'll definitely remember the 3DS's launch for all it shares with most system rollouts: Lots of potential, little of it (yet) realized.

AT&T's T-Mobile Buyout: Customers Speak

2011-03-26T13:36:00.000-07:00

AT&T may be excited about its pending acquisition of T-Mobile USA, but T-Mobile users are wary of losing their beloved carrier and their cheaply priced plans. Some are threatening to run away from AT&T once their contract is up, while others are wondering if they can cancel their service without getting slapped with an early termination fee (ETF). Others are just sad to see T-Mobile go the way of the dodo.

It's still too early to know for sure if AT&T will get to buy T-Mobile since the deal still has to get regulatory approval from the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission. This process is expected to take at least 12 months. But the long goodbye hasn't stopped T-Mobile's dedicated users from fearing the worst and bidding farewell to the smallest national carrier in the U.S.

Oh, No, Not Again!

"I hate this. Every time I run away from AT&T they buy up who I ran to," says T-Mobile forum user Molotov. "I went from Verizon to AT&T; went to Cingular... then to T-Mobile; and back to AT&T. I guess there's no escaping my destiny. Here AT&T. Here's my Bank Pin Number. Let's get this over with."

Chalk up one easy assimilation for AT&T; welcome to the hive Molotov.

Can I Cancel My Contract?

Another prevailing theme among T-Mobile users is the question of whether they can cancel their contract if AT&T takes over.

It's doubtful that AT&T will just let customers walk away free and clear from their contracts, so don't count on that. The most common way to get out of a mobile contract early is if your carrier hikes up the cost of your service before your contract expires. Should that happen, then you may have an argument. But considering that AT&T is obligated to honor all T-Mobile contracts until they expire, don't count on being able to break your contract early because of price hikes.

What About My Plan?

Others are also concerned about losing their unlimited and cheap phone plans.

"Am I going to loose my unlimited data plan after this acquisition completes," asked T-Mobile userawsule. As with the previous concerns, AT&T would be required to honor your current T-Mobile contract, but it's unclear what would happen after your contract expires.

Don't Do It Or I'll Jump

"I have absolutely no use for AT&T If your merger gets approved then I will cancel service," says userseanmachado in one thread on T-Mobile's forums. Those sentiments appeared to be a predominant theme on the forums.

"I have 5 lines through Tmo, and I will certainly take them elsewhere if this deal goes through," saysjcindy81.

"I've only been with tmo for 4 yrs, and my contract is up in sept. I will not re-up simply because this dealmight go through. If the FCC and the DOJ do the smart thing and shoot down this merger, I'll come back," says T-Mobile user nine.

The iPhone Did It?

You might want to put on your tin foil hats for this one folks, because the source of all suffering has been tracked back to the iPhone.

"The number one reason why T-Mobile is going under is Apple," says the oddly-named user attmobile. "When you have a product like the iPhone with the potential to revolutionize the smart phone industry, you simply cannot sell it exclusively to one carrier. Spread it out so that carriers can still compete on price and also network usage is evenly distributed."

Goodbye, Old Friend

Another group of users appears resigned to their fate and are taking this moment to thank T-Mobile for its service.

"I would simply like to say "thank you" to the T-Mobile employees and leadership which have made my experience so great over the last decade," says one T-Mobile forum user. "Here's hoping that enough of that spirit lasts with the AT&T transition that I won't want to throw my new phone away right away."

"It was the hard-working dedicated T-mobile staff from the store to customer care you guys are amazing and have made what T-mobile is today," says josemedina1983 in the same thread.

"I too have found T-mo customer service OUTSTANDING. Not a time would go by that I wouldn't hang up the phone after contacting them that I wouldn't wish OTHER companies I dealt with could take lessons from them," says another user. Many people voiced similar compliments for T-Mobile's service.

They Will Be Assimilated? Excellent.

AT&T customers are also weighing in on the T-Mobile acquisition. Over on Technologizer, Harry McCracken asked his Twitter followers what they thought of the merger and several AT&T users say they can't t wait to point their antennas at T-Mobile towers.

"I am already an AT&T customer so if it improves signal coverage and speed without increasing cost I'm all for it," Michael Halbe says.

Twitter user Caleb Davis tells McCracken, "I frequently travel to places [without] ATT coverage and everyone there uses unlocked iPhones on T-mobile. I can't wait."

One insightful user on Facebook identifies what may be the most important issue. "My main concern is how this will affect T-Mobile's marketing campaign," says Wes Platt. "And whether it means we'll get a commercial in which the T-Mobile girl loses HER shirt because she's now partnered with AT&T."

T-Mobile: Don't Lose Your Shirt

Toshiba Portege R830: An Affordable Alternative to MacBook Air

2011-03-25T16:30:00.000-07:00

Toshiba's lightest ultraportable laptop, the Portege R830, is now available for pre-order from Toshiba with prices starting at a reasonable $890. The much anticipated Portege R830 offers a more affordable alternative to the ultra-thin MacBook Air and Samsung Series 9 laptops.

The Portege R830 has a similar form factor as the MacBook Air and Samsung Series 9, with a 13.3" display and a weight of a little over 3 pounds. While it lacks the head-turning design styling of those two ultraportables, the Portege R830 costs about $700 less.

Click to zoom: *Model: R835-P56XTrue, the lower price ($929.99 for the Intel Core i5 version and $899 for the i3) means a couple of trade-offs compared to the competition, including:

* Thickness: 1.05 inches versus the Series 9's 0.64 inches and the MacBook Air's 0.68 inches

* Weight: 3.2lbs. versus the Samsung 9's 2.89 lbs. and the MacBook Air's 2.9 lbs.

* Hard drive type: regular 5400rpm SATA HDD versus Samsung's SSD and the MacBook Air's flash storage

* Display resolution: 1366x768, like the Series 9, versus the MacBook Air's 1440x900 native resolution

* Case design: while the Portege R830's magnesium casing is durable, it's not the unibody aluminum construction of the MacBook Air or the aircraft-grade Duralumin material of the Series

Besides lower pricing, the Portege R830 does have some advantages or features not found in the other two ultraportable laptops, such as a built-in DVD drive and a longer battery life rating (up to 9 hours versus the Series 9's 6.5 hours and the MacBook Air's 7 hours).

An update to the popular and highly rated Portege R700 series of thin-and-light laptops, the Portege R830 also features Intel's second-gen processors, runs Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit), and comes with 4GB DDR3 memory (expandable to 8GB) and 640GB hard drive space.

Portege R830 models are available now on Toshiba's Website, and there's a Best Buy exclusive model as well.

Firefox 4 Review Round-Up: The Critics Weigh In

2011-03-25T16:28:00.000-07:00

Firefox 4 is finally here, and its reviews are rolling in. Mozilla's new browser is its slickest yet, and adds new features like Tab Groups and Do Not Track. But with the recent launches of Internet Explorer 9 and Chrome 10, do critics think the latest version of Firefox can handle the competition? Let's check out highlights of the reviews.

Tabs

Firefox 4 is loaded with features to help you manage tabs, the most impressive of which, according to Ars Technica's Ryan Paul, is "Tab Groups." This feature lets you group frequently used pages together by category, and then call them up at will. While most critics praised the feature, Paul found it impractical for everyday use. He writes:

"Although tab groups radically simplify tab management and significantly increase the scalability of tab interaction, the feature still has some fundamental failings that sabotage its usefulness. The single biggest weakness of tab groups is that you can't move them between windows ... The real deal-breaker for me, however, is the difficulty of finding misbehaving tabs ... In Chrome, I could have trivially solved the problem by cracking open the browser's built-in process manager and sorting by CPU usage."

Another new tab management feature is "Switch to Tab." When typing in a URL, this feature lets you jump to the website you're trying to reach if it's already open in another tab. Critics liked the idea but said it needs improvement. "Any search results that match open tabs get mixed in with your history list, previous searches and so on," Preston Gralla writes for Computerworld. "So it's difficult to see at a glance if your matches are in open tabs."

Add-Ons

Firefox 4 moves the add-on manager from a pop-up window to a browser tab. "This is much more easy on the eyes and makes finding and installing or removing add-ons and browser themes more fluid,"Christina Warren writes for Mashable.

Warren says add-ons have been a blessing and a curse for Firefox, because while they've been largely responsible for the browser's popularity, they can also hurt performance and ding Firefox's reputation. Mozilla's trying to fix this by letting add-ons use lighter, more stable technologies like HTML, CSS and JavaScript. "Still, at this stage, most major Firefox add-ons still use the traditional add-on API and require a browser restart when updated, installed or uninstalled," Warren writes.

Performance

Benchmarks, in my opinion, do a lousy job of conveying real-world experience, but a test on memory use from PC Pro seems worth repeating:

"Firefox is still disappointingly inefficient at handing back memory. With five tabs open the browser chomped through 104MB of RAM in our tests - significantly less than either IE9 or Chrome - yet yielded only about 35MB of that when we closed all but the Google homepage. Both Chrome and IE9 are much more effective at releasing RAM when tabs are closed, so if you use a lot of tabs you'll still find the need to close Firefox down every so often to start from scratch."

Still, most critics didn't have any glaring complaints with Firefox 4's performance, and said the browser easily beat its predecessor. "In hands-on experiences, one of the best performance differences between Firefox 3.6 and the current version is that Firefox 4 crashes far, far less," CNet's Seth Rosenblatt wrote.

Security

As Rosenblatt notes for CNet, Firefox 4 adds HTTP Strict Transport Security, which tells the browser to automatically create a secure connection when logging into a website. The new Content Security Policy is designed to block cross-site scripting attacks.

But the most publicized security feature is Do Not Track, which attempts to tell websites not to follow you around the Internet, thus preventing them from sharing your browsing habits with advertisers. "The problem is that websites don't have to honor this request, thus rendering the tracking protection feature useless," Nick Mediati writes for PCWorld. "Mozilla is working to make this feature an industry standard, so hopefully things will improve in time."

Verdict

The browser you choose is, of course, a matter of personal preference, but here's what the critics have concluded about Firefox 4:

"The new versions are done and dusted, and the bad news for Microsoft is that you still have to look beyond Internet Explorer if you want the best browsing experience. That leaves you with an enviable choice: Google Chrome if outright speed and performance are a priority, or Firefox 4 if a more fully featured browser is what's called for." - Barry Collins, PC Pro

"For those who frequently keep many tabs open and want a way to tame them, it's clearly the best browser out there. But even aside from Panorama's capabilities, Firefox users and those who may have stayed away because of Firefox's cluttered interface will want to give it a try, because of its increased speed and clean interface -- and because Firefox still has the largest collection of add-ons of any browser." - Preston Gralla, Computerworld

"Some people have probably abandoned the browser for the significant speed differences between version 3.6 and Google Chrome. However, the competition has forced Mozilla and others to put out better browsers in order to thrive. Firefox 4 is arguably the best browser on the market today." - Seth Rosenblatt, CNet

"So is Firefox 4 good enough to lure back old users and to keep existing users satisfied? For me, the answer is yes. While I don't anticipate using Firefox as my primary browser (I tend to use Safari), keeping Firefox running on my computer is no longer something I fear." - Christina Warren, Mashable.

Follow Jared on Facebook and Twitter for even more tech news and commentary.

Tech-Savvy Student Tracks Down MacBook Air Thief

2011-03-25T16:24:00.000-07:00

What would you do if you were a college freshman and your MacBook Airwas stolen? Aside from calling your parents and crying, of course.

Eighteen-year-old "technology entrepreneur" and Bentley College student Mark Bao had his MacBook Air stolen in February. Unlike other bright-eyed college freshmen, Bao didn't write his laptop off as gone forever (ok, maybe he did--he went out and purchased another laptop the very same night it was stolen), he set out to find the thief.

Using online backup software BackBlaze that he'd installed on his laptop, Bao was able to see the machine's browser history and track any hard
drive updates.

"Woah. Thanks to @Backblaze, I think I might be able to figure out who stole my MacBook Air at college. Creeping through the Safari history!" Bao Tweeted on March 19.

Apparently the first thing the thief did was take a photo of himself using the laptop's Photo Booth program. Bao discovered this little gem and took to Twitter: "Wow. The first thing that MacBook thieves do REALLY IS take pictures on Photo Booth. I didn't think they were that dumb!" Bao wrote in a Tweet.

After discovering the photo, Bao discovered a video the thief had taken of himself dancing to Tyga's "Make it Rain." Bao uploaded the video to Vimeo, managed to hunt down the guy's Facebook page using the aforementioned Safari history, and then turned everything over to the police.

Needless to say, the gig was up for our dancing thief, who returned the laptop to the police and sent Bao an apology note on Facebook (the two attended the same school and had mutual friends). Bao told the Daily Mail that he holds no grudges against the thief, because "I don't have time nor patience to. There are more important things in life."

Mark no longer has any use for his old laptop, so he's selling it and donating the proceeds to the Red Cross Japan fund

Google Seals Honeycomb from Developers: A Good Call

2011-03-25T16:20:00.000-07:00

Though Google has several good reasons to play keep-away with Android 3.0, the move to restrict developers from Honeycomb's source code is seen by some as a contradiction of its open source philosophy.

Usually Google develops a new version of Android in-house, with no access for outside developers. Then, after its announcement, it becomes available as a software update, until finally developers get access to the product's source code.

That doesn't mean major manufacturers like HTC, Samsung, and Motorola haven't already had access to Honeycomb. What it does mean is that smaller developers will have to wait for an indefinite span of time to tinker with it.

This is good and bad, considering Google's rationale. The company states that Honeycomb is tailored specifically for the larger screens found on tablet computers and not for smartphones. Earlier versions of Android were explicitly crafted for smartphones but were rushed onto tablets all the same, producingembarrassingly subpar products. And which company's brand was splashed all over them? That's right: Google's.

Andy Rubin, vice president for engineering at Google and head of its Android group, toldBusinessWeek that the company "made some design tradeoffs" to ship tablets quickly. "We didn't want to think about what it would take for the same software to run on phones... So we took a shortcut."

The problem with Google's little shortcut is . . . well, you know. The iPad. The longer Google holds Honeycomb back, the more fragmented the Android platform becomes. Meanwhile, Apple's iOS will continue to thrive and improve, building a unified army of iAddicts.

Still, in terms of product quality and an awesome user experience, it's best that Honeycomb's sockets are sealed with wax. That way when the latest Android tablets do come out -- and Honeycomb eventually arrives on smartphones -- it'll be a sophisticated experience rivaling Apple's, and not some buggy hack-job assembled in some dude's garage.

Nook Color to Get Apps, Flash Support

2011-03-25T16:18:00.000-07:00

Barnes & Noble's Nook Color e-reader will receive a software update in April, transforming it into a cheap Android tablet. The Home Shopping Network (HSN) spilled the beans on the Nook software update via a product listing on its site.

The Wi-Fi Nook Color cost $249 from Barnes & Noble, has a 7-inch color touchscreen and runs on Google's Android mobile operating system. But the device is far from being a full-fledged Android tablets due to the lack of e-mail access, apps, a Web browser, and other standard tablet features (unless you hack the Nook Color).

According to HSN's listing, the software update for the Nook Color will bring the e-reader closer to a full-featured Android tablet thanks to a software update. The patch is set to bring a Web browser (with Adobe Flash support) and an e-mail client. The Nook Color already features a music player and can play videos in MP4 format.

Similarly to Amazon's move into the app store market (for smartphones, so far), Barnes & Noble is also expected to introduce its own store for the Nook Color via this software update. Around eight apps will be available at launch "and more will become available after the April update."

HSN's listing claims that customers who bought a Nook Color from them will be the first to receive the software update enabling the extra features, saying the new updates will be sent out automatically if the device in connected to Wi-Fi.

If you're on the market for a cheap Android tablet and don't need a lot of processing power attached, a Nook Color might be just what you were looking for. At $249, the Nook is half the price of an iPad 2, and significantly cheaper than a Motorola Xoom. Now we just have to wait for Barnes & Noble to confirm this software update.

Facebook Questions: Hands On

2011-03-25T16:14:00.000-07:00

Facebook recently launched a new question-and-answer feature that helps supply answers to important questions such as "Where's the best burger in New York City?" or "Which smartphone do you use?" The new feature lets you ask questions of your friends, set up a poll with a limited number of responses, and follow interesting questions asked by others. Questions is now rolling out to all users, but if you want to get started right away you can activate Facebook Questions here. Facebook's new question service has been in limited beta testing since July.

Facebook Question (click to enlarge)Once it's activated, the new tool shows up at the top of your News Feed as a share option along with status updates, links, photos, and video. There is also an option in the left navigation column so you can see your friends' activity along with results from questions you have asked and answered.

Straight Question or Poll?

If you want to ask a question, just click on "Question" at the top of your News Feed and ask away.

Facebook Poll (click to enlarge)Let's say you wanted to ask your friends "Which sandwich chain do you prefer?" Just type in the question and then you have the option to set specific answers such as Jimmy John's, Subway, Pita Pit, and so on. You can also decide whether you want to let people add more possible answers or restrict them to a specific set of responses.

When you set your poll responses, Facebook searches for fan pages related to the answers you are supplying. Typing in Subway, for example, connects that answer to Subway's fan page. It's not clear if fan pages will have access to the data generated from answers supplied by Facebook users. Once you're satisfied with your question, just hit the "Ask Question" button and your query will show up in your friends' News Feeds.

Any time someone responds to your questions, you will get a Facebook notification letting you know.

Not Private

The first time you ask a question using Facebook's new feature, a warning shows up letting you know that Facebook Questions are not private. Questions are visible to your friends, who can also share them with their friends, and so on. In other words, anyone on Facebook could potentially see and respond to questions asked by you. In my tests, my questions did not appear on my publicly available Facebook profile; however, your experience may differ depending on your privacy settings.

Facebook Privacy (click to enlarge)To see how much of your profile is visible to people who are not your friends, Click on "Account" in the upper right corner and select "Privacy Settings." On the next page, click on "View Settings" underneath the heading "Connecting on Facebook." At the top of the next page, you should see a button that says "Preview My Profile." This will let you see how your profile looks to people on Facebook who aren't your friends.

Just keep in mind that even though Questions may not show up on your publicly available profile, the feature is never private.

Answering Questions

When you see a question in your News Feed that you want to answer, clicking on the question will cause a window to pop up. You can then choose to select a specific answer or simply write a response as if you were responding to a status update.

Answers (click to enlarge)By default, the response window will also show you how your friends answered the question. But you can also see how everyone else on Facebook answered the question by clicking on the "Others" link at the bottom of the window. To see responses to poll questions, click on the small window with three dots next to each answer. This will show you the answers of people who aren't your Facebook friends.

Again, Facebook Questions is not a private feature, so all actions you take using this service can be seen by others. Do not use Facebook Questions if don't want the world to see your responses.

Follow a Question, Ask Your Friends

If you want to follow a particularly interesting question you can click on the "Follow" link underneath the question. Whenever someone else answers the question you will be alerted.

Questions (click to enlarge)You do not have to answer a question to follow it. You can also ask specific friends a question created by you or by others by clicking on the "Ask Friends" link underneath each question.

Be Specific

My question (click to enlarge)To get the most out of Facebook Questions, it's best to be specific in your questions and not ask something generic such as "Am I A Jerk?" As you can see in the included image, generic questions can get passed around very quickly among people who don't even know you. Then again, asking random things of the whole world could end up being half the fun of Facebook Questions.

If you can't get enough of asking and answering questions you should also check out a popular service among early adopters called Quora.

RIM's Android Play: 5 Questions

2011-03-25T16:12:00.000-07:00

It's the day after the big news that Research in Motion will, albeit indirectly,support Android 2.3 apps on its BlackBerry PlayBook -- and questions swirl over what this means for users, for RIM, for developers, and for the BlackBerry PlayBook itself.

Here's our take on what it all means, and how this news may impact the tablet landscape.

1. Will all Android apps work on BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet OS?

Not at this time. For starters, RIM has specified that only Android 2.3 apps will be supported. That notation explicitly rules out Android 3.0 Honeycomb apps -- which is where all the interesting Android app development is under way for tablets. It also implicitly includes apps for earlier Android versions; after all, we hardly have any devices, let alone apps, in the wild expressly are designed for Android 2.3 Gingerbread.

The other caveat to this deal is that it will require developers to manually port their apps to BlackBerry App World; it's not as if a user will be able to hop over to the Android Market (or, for that matter, third-party markets like GetJar) and directly download whatever Android app they wish.

2. Will Android apps work across all BlackBerry phones?

Nope. This announcement solely refers to Android apps on the QNX-based BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet OS. That means BlackBerry handsets are locked into the same state of affairs. Currently, 25,000 apps are in the BlackBerry App World; not all apps work with all phones, though.

That said, in an earnings call with investors on Thursday =- the same call in which RIM dropped the news about porting Android apps to PlayBook -- the company's co-CEO Jim Balsillie confirmed that QNX-based BlackBerry "superphones" are expected in 2012. Interestingly, the company also noted that the U.S. smartphone market is very competitive, an observation that feels obvious, and makes it curious that we will have to wait until sometime next year to get a QNX-based OS on a BlackBerry handset.

Even if QNX becomes established on BlackBerry phones, we still don't know whether Android apps will be able to be run in the same controlled (or, "sandboxed" as RIM has put it) manner on phone handsets. One of the wild cards is scaling apps to match the BlackBerry screen sizes -- a hurdle that may be too great to cross. Or it may prove to be no hurdle at all, since one could presume that a so-called "superphone" -- a term used during the earnings call but not defined -- will have a large screen that would match the screens found on most Android devices.

3. Is this good for developers?

Yes, absolutely. One of the big questions about a fragmented and competitive mobile operating system universe is that developers must choose where to put their resources. By having an easy (according to RIM, at least) way for developers to move their content to BlackBerry PlayBook Tablet OS, the door opens wide for Android developers to migrate their content to a new audience and new revenue stream. Developers must wrap the app in a BlackBerry container, and add some identifying code; then, they can upload the app to BlackBerry App World at no charge.

Of course, one of the wild cards here is that these apps will run in a sandboxed, virtual machine environment on the PlayBook. This means we don't know yet how, exactly, the app will behave on the PlayBook when it comes to such mainstay features as multitasking, location-based services, and notifications.

4. Is this a good move for RIM?

Another resounding yes here. It's a very shrewd and calculated move, one that adds instant credibility to the PlayBook tablet just weeks ahead of its launch. RIM has, for the past few months, done a good job talking up how PlayBook supports HTML5, Adobe AIR, and Adobe Flash programming environments, but the company hasn't done as good a job showing exactly how those programming formats translate into a competitive and compelling user experience vis a vis what consumers can get today from Google's Android and Apple's iOS. It's not that I doubt those environments' capabilities; but the dearth of actual programs written in them today leaves the question on the table.

By supporting Android apps, even in this circuitous way, RIM's Basillie noted how this move will let the PlayBook Tablet compete in the marketplace for those looking at the sheer numbers of apps alone. During the earnings call, Basillie was quick to emphasize that performance is going to be a big differentiator, too -- and that isn't an experience you get through a virtual machine interface within which you can run other apps. But with the addition of Android to PlayBook's arsenal, he noted, "There's no compromise here." Well, I wouldn't say "no" compromise, but it sure does broaden a consumer's options.

5. What does this mean for the prospects of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet?

In the tablet game, credibility is everything, and the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet's stock just soared with this chess move. But a ceiling remains.

The PlayBook launches on April 19 with starting prices of $499 for a 16GB Wi-Fi model. But until now, a big question remained about what, exactly, would be the app availability for the PlayBook at launch. It's a valid question, especially in light of how slow the BlackBerry Tablet OS native software developer's kit (called the NDK by RIM) has been in getting out of alpha and, at the least, into beta. That switch is imminent, according to RIM, and once available, it will enable C/C++ application development and support for game programming engines.

The announcement means that RIM will be able to claim more app support than it already has. But one has to wonder how quickly RIM will get Android developers on board to port and upload their apps. Realistically, all of this so-called Android app support remains theoretical -- unless the developers jump on board and upload their apps to BlackBerry App World.

Don't expect all 170,000-plus apps in the Google Android Market to rush over to BlackBerry's App World anytime soon, let alone in time for the April 19 launch. It will be interesting to see exactly how many apps the BlackBerry App World swells to when the PlayBook launches in April.

RIM PlayBook tablet coming April 19 for $499

2011-03-25T16:06:00.000-07:00

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Research in Motion's PlayBook tablet will go on sale on April 19, starting at $499 -- the same price as its main rival, the Apple iPad.

RIM announced early Tuesday that the Blackberry PlayBook will be sold through several retailers, including AT&T, Sprint and Verizon. Best Buy said separately that it will start accepting pre-orders Tuesday.

The 16 gigabyte PlayBook will cost $499, a 32GB version is $599 and a 64GB is $699.

The PlayBook is smaller than the iPad, with a 7-inch screen. It's built around a new platform from QNX Software Systems, and it features Flash-capable video plus a front and rear high-definition camera. The PlayBook runs on a 1 GHz dual-core processor and includes 1 GB of RAM.

Each of the PlayBook models is Wi-Fi enabled, though they cannot connect to 3G without tethering to a BlackBerry. The tablet will be available in more than 20,000 retail outlets in the U.S. and Canada.

RIM is gunning for Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500), which sold 14.8 million iPads in 2010. But other competitors, like the Motorola Xoom, have popped up in 2011 -- a recent study says a whopping 102 tablets are slated for release this year.

One analyst predicts that the saturated market will be too much for RIM, which reports quarterly earnings Thursday.

"It's nice to see the PlayBook come out, but it would almost be better if RIM didn't have it," said Edward Snyder, managing director at Charter Equity Research.

"You want to think you'll be the winner, but everyone is under pressure to get into the market, so it's not an attractive business to grab share," Snyder added.

Snyder said "the chatter is positive" around the PlayBook, but he expects RIM will sell less than 500,000 tablets by mid-year. He thinks customers will turn instead to Android-based tablets like the Motorola Xoom, which take advantage of Google's updates to its operating system.

If RIM doesn't sell 1 million PlayBooks by the end of 2011, Snyder expects "investors will be soured on the whole tablet thing" and the stock could sell off moderately.

That said, Snyder expects RIM investors to continue focusing on the company's core smartphone business. RIM (RIMM) shares closed the trading session up 24 cents, or 0.39%.

Matthew Hoffman, analyst at Cowen & Co., said in a research note Tuesday that he was maintaining an "underperform" rating on RIM stock. Still, he called the PlayBook RIM's "most important new product in years."

Video game makers win sales battle

2011-03-25T16:03:00.000-07:00

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The video game industry came out swinging ... and won.

Video game publishers have been highly critical about how their sales are being tracked, saying it's unfair to discount digital sales -- an area that's been growing by leaps and bounds.

But late last week, retail sales tracker NPD Group said it would soon start monitoring monthly sales of video games sold through digital-only outlets.

The change of heart came after software giant Electronic Arts (ERTS,Fortune 500), told CNNMoney that NPD's monthly retail sales figures were a "misrepresentation of the entire industry."

"We're glad they are taking action to fill the gaps related digital revenue," said EA corporate communications executive Tiffany Steckler.

NPD collects sales information for multiple industries and the firms's monthly video game sales figures are closely watched by industry officials, investors and the media.

Like several consumer-sensitive industries, video game publishing took a hit during the recession, as consumers cut back on discretionary purchases. Earlier this month, NPD said video game sales in February dropped 8% year over year.

Video game makers slam sales data

But EA said those figures are misleading because they didn't account for digital revenue.

"We hope that media and analysts understand that any report on industry performance which doesn't include digital sales is incomplete," said Stickler.

Last quarter, EA reported a 39% jump in digital revenue, and the company expects digital-only sales to climb to $750 million for its year ending March 31.

Nearly half of Activision-Blizzard (ATVI)'s revenue comes from monthly subscriptions to games, such as "World of Warcraft and "Call of Duty." The company was unavailable for immediate comment on NPD's plans.

Officials at NPD said they realize the industry is slowly transitioning away from boxed software sales. In October, the firm began tracking digital sales on a quarterly basis.

NPD has its work cut out. There's currently very little transparency when it comes to digital sales.

Each of the console makers -- Nintendo, Sony (SNE), Microsoft (MSFT,Fortune 500) -- has its own proprietary online platform to sell software, but none of them disclose monthly sales figures.

On top of that, the industry is vague about what constitutes retail versus digital. For example, consumers most often buy the hard copy game at a retail store and then go online for digital add-ons

The upstart company that made the AT&T-mobile merger possible

2011-03-25T16:00:00.000-07:00

The AT&T/T-Mobile mega-merger was supposed to be too big for regulators to ever accept. Then came the wild success of industry upstart MetroPCS.

Among the many people who mistakenly dismissed the idea of AT&T (T) buying out T-Mobile as a never-gonna-happen, count T-Mobile's very own top executives. How else to explain their snarky ad campaign that razzed AT&T for running an old, slow and unreliable network?

How so many well-informed people got blindsided might best be summarized in a single name: MetroPCS (PCS). The upstart cellular company, which is now poised to take over T-Mobile's spot as America's fourth largest carrier, has fundamentally changed the antitrust dynamic in the wireless industry.

MetroPCS founder and CEO Roger Linquist has long pursued a strategy of targeting markets with dense populations that are cheap to serve—namely big cities. MetroPCS will make a roaming agreement to use a competitor's networks in a mid-tier city, but it doesn't open stores to offer local residents service, nor does it build its own towers there. That lets MetroPCS keep the large majority of its traffic on its own dirt-cheap urban network while Linquist lets others serve expensive suburban and rural communities.

Net result: MetroPCS has rock-bottom costs and impressive profit margins. Last year it cost the company just $18.49 a month to provide wireless service to an average customer. (AT&T, Verizon (VZ) and Sprint don't release comparable figures, perhaps because they would be much higher.) MetroPCS's low costs lets the company have healthy margins even as it underprices the rest of the market for service. MetroPCS's basic package of unlimited talk, text and Web runs $40 per month, and that's including taxes.

AT&T cites MetroPCS and its smaller peer, Leap Wireless (LEAP) as key examples of robust competition. "In 18 of the top 20 U.S. local markets, there are five or more providers," AT&T pointed out in its announcement of the deal.

Knowing the MetroPCS "big city" business model, that isn't as compelling a statistic as it first appears. The rest of non-urban America is much more expensive to serve, and thus much less competitive.

Many commentators have argued that if the deal goes through, the U.S. will drop from four nationwide carriers to three. AT&T argues that conclusion ignores the growth of newcomer cell carriers, led by MetroPCS. The company served 8.1 million subscribers as of the beginning of the year, up 35% in two years. (T-Mobile actually lost customers over the same period.) MetroPCS now boasts a network that covers 90% of the U.S. population.

Actually, make that "sort of covers." While a MetroPCS phone can get a signal in roughly 90% of American homes, it's only connecting to MetroPCS's own network in roughly half those spots, according to the company's regulatory filings. The rest of the time, the call is on that leased capacity, from big carriers like Sprint (S), that MetroPCS is so good at buying.

There's a major difference between competition between separately-owned networks (known in the trade as "facilities-based competition") and competition between companies who must all lease access from a smaller number of networks. The former tends to work much better than the latter.

In its most recent annual filing with the SEC MetroPCS acknowledges the danger that the networks it now leases could decide to jack up prices. "In some instances, large national wireless broadband mobile services carriers have been reluctant to enter into roaming agreements at attractive rates with smaller and mid-tier national carriers like us, which limits our ability to serve certain market segments, and recent FCC actions to promote automatic roaming do not resolve these difficulties," the company noted.

Such concerns aside, if T-Mobile, along with some of its budget-priced plans, disappears into AT&T, many of its customers are likely to end up at MetroPCS. No wonder AT&T's shareholders bid up Ma Bell's stock a mere 1% on the merger news, while MetroPCS shares jumped nearly 5%

Where is Amazon's "Appstore"? - updated

2011-03-25T15:55:00.000-07:00

It opened Tuesday, despite the trademark infringement suit Apple filed on Friday

[UPDATE: Sometime after 7:00 a.m. EST, the Amazon Appstore went live. Looks like Apple will have to go back to court and start specifying those unspecified damages it was seeking.]

Okay. It's Tuesday morning, and according to the New York Times, Amazon is supposed to enter the mobile app business today with a splash -- giving away a free copy of Angry Birds Rio for Google (GOOG) Android phones.

But as of 6:00 a.m. EST, the link the Times provided (amazon.com/appstore) wasn't working, and it may never work if Apple (AAPL) has anything to say about it.

[UPDATE: It's working now.]

Last week, Apple sued Amazon in a California federal court, asking a judge to block Amazon from using the term "Appstore." Three years ago, Apple applied for a trademark on its own "App Store," an online software emporium that now offers more than 350,000 applications for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch and has delivered more than 10 billion downloads.

"Consumers of mobile software downloads are likely to be confused as to whether Amazon's mobile software download service is sponsored or approved by Apple," Apple said in its complaint.

In January, Microsoft (MSFT) challenged Apple's App Store trademark, arguing that the term "app store" is generic. Apple countered in court that "App Store" is no more generic than "Windows," a trademark Microsoft has fought vigorously to defend -- as, by law, any trademark holder must.

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