We tend to think that everybody’s online these days. In fact, only one-third of the world’s population has access to the Internet. The other two-thirds are simply beyond reach. Google and Facebook are hatching schemes (that some people call crazy) to bring to the majority of people what we in …
The hack against Sony Pictures appeared to enter new territory on Friday when employees reportedly received messages threatening them and their families. The message, reported by Variety, warned that “not only you but your family will be in danger.” Sony’s computer system was attacked in late November and gigabytes of …
The hack against Sony Pictures appeared to enter new territory on Friday when employees reportedly received messages threatening them and their families. The message, reported by Variety, warned that “not only you but your family will be in danger.” Sony’s computer system was attacked in late November and gigabytes of …
If 2014 was the year that Apache Hadoop sparked the big data revolution, 2015 may be the year that Apache Spark supplants Hadoop with its superior capabilities for richer and more timely analysis. “There is a strong industry consensus that Spark is the way to go,” said Curt Monash, head …
Google will soon begin to contact customers who made in-app purchases on Android devices about potential refunds under a settlement of an unfair billing complaint by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The FTC said Friday that it has given final approval to a settlement of at least US$19 million proposed …
I’m afraid that I’ve been ready to shrug and pronounce e-ink pretty well yesterday’s news. While e-ink readers are still very much in evidence — a half-hour’s ride on the NYC subway will tell you that; there are usually at least a few people per car reading from one — …
Apple is asking a California U.S. District Court to dismiss the class-action case accusing the company of violating antitrust laws. Apple’s attorneys argue that the two plaintiffs in the case over iTunes DRM, who represent about 8 million iPod owners, don’t have standing to sue Apple because they didn’t even …
Microsoft released Skype 7 for Windows on Friday, complete with a more touch-friendly interface, and a new compact mode to help cut down on the screen space the app consumes. The new preview version of Skype 7 for Windows debuted in October, alongside a new version for the Mac. In that …
Workers believe that smartphones, tablets, laptops and other computing devices have made them more productive, but they have a nagging worry about the increasing role of technology in their lives. When asked in a recent survey of 4,764 workers in 12 countries, including the U.S., to predict whether technology will …
The Samsung Galaxy S6’s specs Samsung hasn’t had much luck with the last two versions of its Galaxy phone. The company has lost market share to various competitors including Apple and Xiaomi. Now it looks like Samsung is trying to reboot its Galaxy phone franchise. Chris Smith at BGR reports …
After orbiting the Earth twice and climbing 15 times higher than the orbit of the International Space Station, NASA’s new spacecraft, Orion, today completed its maiden voyage and returned safely to Earth. After lifting off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 7:05 a.m. ET, the uncrewed Orion splashed down …
Blowing up entrenched business models and picking up the profits that spill onto the floor is a time-honored tradition in tech, these days known by the cliche of the moment, “disruption.” This year everyone was trying to push back against those upstarts, whether by buying them like Facebook did, reorganizing …
Women’s clothing retailer Bebe Stores has become the latest national retailer to be hit by an attack on its credit card payment system. The company said Friday that the cardholder name, account number, expiration date, and verification code could have been stolen by hackers who apparently had access to the …
Intel has bought its way into the tablet market, but success seems years away in smartphones, despite billions of dollars spent. The allure of mobile devices has led Intel to take some uncharacteristic moves that defy the company’s proud tradition of designing and manufacturing chips in-house. Intel has partnered with …
Appy holidays! This week’s roundup includes apps to help your organize your life, buy cool stuff, read good books, and go see the latest movies. Canopy This free iPhone app is kind of like Pinterest, but for Amazon. You can shop by categories and brands, and build a “collection” of …
Microsoft won’t talk about what Windows 10 will cost until next year. But it’s looking unlikely that it will be completely free, either for users or for PC makers building larger devices, after Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner said that Windows 10 won’t be a priced to keep users in …
Software developers increasingly use specialized Agile tools, such as Rally and Atlassian JIRA for individual tasks, but with many teams working simultaneously on products at every stage in the definition and development lifecycle, it’s easy for information to get lost and for teams to lose sight of the bigger picture: …
Internet mass surveillance programs are lawful and do not violate human rights, a U.K. tribunal has ruled. The U.K.’s Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) made the ruling in a case that rights groups brought against the U.K. government over alleged mass surveillance on U.K. citizens via programs run by the British …
Last December customers were peppering wireless LAN vendors with questions about whether to upgrade to the pre-standard-but-certified 802.11ac products flooding the market or hold off until 2015, when more powerful “Wave 2” Gigabit Wifi gear was expected to become prevalent. A year later, even though Wave 2 products have begun …
If you plan to buy a cheap smartphone next year expect to get LTE, an HD screen and a good-looking device, as competing manufacturers and chip vendors lower prices. Smartphone manufacturers have always put effort into the development of entry-level smartphones. But growing competition will result in some real improvements …
Cisco today filed two lawsuits against data center switch competitor Arista Networks for allegedly violating its intellectual property. One suit is for patent infringement, which charges Arista with violating 14 Cisco patents for 12 features in the Arista EOS operating system. The second suit is for extensive copying of Cisco’s …
An oft-discussed drawback to solid state drives was that they were ultimately unreliable. Despite the performance gains for your PC, it was only a matter of time before “poof!” your SSD would just up and die with almost no warning. But an ongoing project from Tech Report demonstrates what the …
If you plan to buy a cheap smartphone next year expect to get LTE, an HD screen and a good-looking device, as competing manufacturers and chip vendors lower prices. Smartphone manufacturers have always put effort into the development of entry-level smartphones. But growing competition will result in some real improvements …
European Union countries members are backpedaling on a plan that would give U.S. tech firms a one-stop shop to deal with data protection issues in the EU. Justice ministers had discussed a plan to let tech firms like Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Apple deal with only one data protection authority …
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a Virginia Beach-based bank holding company and its former chief financial officer with violating the federal securities laws by improperly accounting for a deferred tax asset (DTA) that was not fully realizable due to the company’s deteriorating loan portfolio and financial condition. Hampton …
Legacy systems have a checkered rep, and for very good reasons. In some cases, they remain vital to a business – supporting key data and critical processes, and are subject to regular updates and improvements by innovative vendors. But other legacy systems would make terrific boat anchors if they didn’t …