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2011-12-19T08:03:00.003-08:00

Google+ unwrapping new features
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New Google+ features: Customize your streams, and more

2011-12-19T08:03:00.001-08:00

Touted in Google's official blog today, the enhancements are part of an ongoing effort to make Google+ more effective and more user friendly.

One of the tweaks will let you customize your Google+ stream. The more people you follow, the more cluttered your stream can become, increasing the odds of missing important posts. To help unclutter your stream, a slider at the top of a particular circle will let you control how posts from that circle should mesh into the overall stream.

The red notifications button at the top of your Google+ page tells you how many notifications are in the queue. But sometimes you need to click on a specific notification to get the full scoop on it. To reduce the time you spend clicking around, Google is adding "sneak previews" that quickly clue you in on what's new among your notifications.

Next on Santa's list for Google+ members are a range of changes to Google+ Pages. Since launching the business-oriented feature in early November, Google has been striving to improve it amidst some users complaints.

Tapping into one of the improvements to Pages, you'll be able to delegate up to 50 different managers to act as administrators for a certain page. A new "notification flow" will alert the managers to all activity on the page, ensuring that they stay abreast of the latest updates. And Google will show you a combined count of all the users who follow your page or +1 it, so that you can get a better sense of everyone who's connecting with it.

Finally, Google is tweaking its Google+ Photos feature. Clicking on a photo will display it in the Lightbox viewer, but now with better navigation and usability. A new photo tagging feature will let you more quickly tag individual people.

Google says that the new tweaks to Google+ will roll out over the next couple of days, just in time for the holidays. And the company is promising more in store for Google+ members with some resolutions for 2012.

2011-12-13T10:59:00.001-08:00

How to set up an HDTV
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How to set up an HDTV

2011-12-13T10:58:00.001-08:00

cnet.com - 12/12/2011
Geoffrey Morrison

You found your perfect TV. You've driven/carried/dragged it home. You have this big cardboard box sitting in your living room. Now what?

Well, after you follow the instructions for getting the TV on its stand (if it isn't already), the real setup begins. There are countless settings, options, and potential issues between box and beautiful picture. This how-to guide should help you navigate the waters of TV technology.

Cables

If this is your first HDTV, you'll find that the cables have changed a lot since the last time you hooked up a TV (it also might be worth checking out our HDTV 101 Guide). Even if you're replacing an older HDTV, it's important to understand the HDTV cable of choice: HDMI.

HDMI cables carry high-resolution images and sound over one small cable. If you bought your HDTV at a store, you were likely pushed into buying expensive HDMI cables to go with your TV.

Expensive HDMI cables offer no benefit to the average consumer. If you paid more than $10 for your HDMI cables, you should consider returning them. Check out my article on why all HDMI cables are the same for more information. Then there's the follow-up Why all HDMI cables are the same, part 2.

HDMI cables are, however, vital to the overall performance of your television. There are only two ways to get an HD signal from your cable or satellite box to your TV: HDMI and component. Component cables are three attached cables identified with the colors red, green, and blue. Most are also labeled Y, Pb, and Pr. These only carry video. You'll need to add more cables for audio, most commonly a matched pair of analog audio cables.

The single yellow cable with white and red audio cables that comes with most products is not HD. Only VHS and the Wii can be hooked up with a yellow "composite" cable. DVD, Blu-ray, or cable or satellite boxes hooked up with a yellow cable will be significantly hampered in their performance.

If you haven't upgraded your other gear along with your new TV, component video is very common. If you've bought a new Blu-ray player or have a new cable/ or satellite box, HDMI may be all you can find.

Which brings us to...

Sources

If you haven't upgraded your other gear, make sure your DVD player is ready for your new TV. Go into its setup menus and make sure it's set to output a 16x9-pixel image. If it's an older player, it could be set to 4x3 pixels (like old TVs). Matching this aspect ratio to your new TV will greatly improve its performance.

The same is true for your cable or satellite box. Make sure you switch this to 16x9. If it's capable of HD, take this moment to set it to output 1080i.

Just because the cable box is capable of HD doesn't mean youre getting HD. You need to pay your provider for HD channels (unless they're included in your current package) and you need to tune to the specific HD channels. For example, with my provider, channel 2 is SD, whereas channel 1002 is HD.

As I discuss in my article on whether to upgrade your home theater gear, if you have a new HDTV, you owe it to yourself to get a Blu-ray player. Nothing offers the picture quality of Blu-ray. Even if you have an older HDTV, you won't believe how good it can look when you watch Blu-ray.

Settings

Once you have everything plugged in (see the slideshow above for images of typical inputs and outputs), take a moment to check your TV's settings. Most modern TVs will ask you upon initial start-up if the TV is being used in a home or a store. Pick the one most appropriate to your environment (hopefully "home"; I'm not sure why you'd be living in Best Buy).

I go into more detail in my article on HDTV settings, but here's the CliffsNotes version. The TV will be its most accurate (in other words, most realistic) in its Movie or Cinema picture mode. It will appear brighter in its Sports or Vivid mode. The Contrast control adjusts how bright the bright parts of the image are, and Brightness controls how dark the dark parts of the image are. Also check out CNET's HDTV setup tips and Five tips for a better HDTV picture.

The initial settings for modern TVs are largely quite good, but none is perfect. Some fine tweaking, either by eye or using one of the great setup Blu-ray discs, will be worth the time spent.

If you want to get every possible amount of performance out of your TV, consider having it calibrated.

Flat panel TVs are also more susceptible to reflections than CRTs.

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2011-12-12T14:05:00.001-08:00

Amazon responds to critics with Kindle Fire update
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2011-12-09T21:25:00.001-08:00

Windows 8 Store: 8 Ways It Beats Apple
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Windows 8 Store: 8 Ways It Beats Apple

2011-12-09T21:23:00.001-08:00

informationweek.com - 12/8/2011
Thomas Claburn

Microsoft on Tuesday said a public beta of Windows 8 will be released in February 2012 and provided details about its forthcoming Windows 8 Store, the mechanism within Windows 8 by which the company will sell and distribute Windows 8 Metro apps.

Windows 8 is the next version of Microsoft's operating system for personal computers, laptops, and tablets. It brings with it major changes, such as an integrated software store--similar in concept to Apple's Mac App Store--and support for ARM chips. Metro is the name of the new touch-centric user interface in Windows 8.

In Windows 8, Microsoft is following the trail blazed by Apple, a path that leads away from freedom and toward convenience and ostensible security. "We have seen the future of the PC and it looks a lot like a smartphone," said IDC program director of applications development software Al Hilwa in an e-mail.
Hilwa gives Microsoft credit for learning from the competition, notably in its revenue-sharing model and its consideration for enterprise features such as app sideloading and support for management tools. But he is less enthusiastic about the restrictions.

"I lament that the world of the touch PC is a much more controlled walled garden, but the smartphone world has prepared us for it and there are certainly advantages in app discovery and deployment for consumers with an app store model," he said. "Whether the new model leads to more-secure or higher- quality apps is hard to call because we have seen poorly regulated app stores like Android's that have had some of the same quality and security issues of the existing PC model."

At the same time, he sees Microsoft having a lighter touch than Apple with regard to accepting apps in its store.
"In the app approval process, Microsoft is walking the fine line to provide more openness, speed, and predictability than Apple and more control and supervision than Google," he said. "It will remain to be seen if the execution lives up to this balanced promise, but the formula sounds right."

Indeed, Microsoft has made its forthcoming platform more appealing than the competition in several ways, at least on paper.

1. Royalties. Microsoft's revenue share percentage is 30%, as it is in the iTunes App Store, the Mac App Store, Amazon's App Store, and Google's Android Market. But once an app reaches $25,000 in revenue, Microsoft drops its revenue share to 20% for all subsequent proceeds.

This revenue scheme will help only the most successful Windows 8 app developers. However, the percentage of Windows 8 developers generating more than $25,000 from their apps--thanks to business customers willing to pay more for apps--presumably will be higher than it is for iOS developers. About 75% of iOS developers have earned less than $25,000 in lifetime revenue, according to one survey of game developers.

The best deal around for revenue sharing, however, remains the Chrome Web Store. Google charges developers only 5% for selling Web apps through its online store.

2. Fees. For those wishing to submit Metro apps, Microsoft is charging individuals $49 a year and companies $99 a year. This is better than the annual $99 Apple charges individuals or companies for membership in its iOS Developer Program and for membership in its Mac Developer program. For companies wishing to create proprietary, in-house iOS apps, Apple charges $299 a year.

Amazon's App Store developer fee also is $99 a year, same as Apple. Google's Android Market is the most affordable: It charges developers a one-time $25 fee. It should be noted, however, that Google doesn't provide much in the way of app screening.

3. Reach. Microsoft's reach advantage is theoretical at the moment. The company claims to have 1.25 billion Windows users globally, some portion of whom can be expected to upgrade to Windows 8, eventually.

If Windows has 92% of the desktop PC operating system market, then Apple, with about 6% global market share via Mac OS, has an installed base of 80 million Macs. As of the end of the third quarter, Google said that total Android activations had surpassed 190 million. The iOS installed base is estimated to be about 250 million by the end of 2011.

Certainly today, the iOS market is more attractive to a developer than the nonexistent Windows 8 app market. But it's worth thinking about tomorrow, particularly if the Windows 8 users turn out to be more inclined to pay for apps than, say, Android users.

4. Freedom. Apple, according to the Software Freedom Law Center, uses its control of iOS and Mac OS "to exclude competition, squelch criticism, and censor content." Microsoft might have done as much in the past, but its trailing position in both the tablet and smartphone markets has translated into an evident effort to have more permissive platform rules. Apple tells iOS developers explicitly, "If you want to criticize a religion, write a book," and that only "professional satirists and humorists" are exempt from its ban on apps that are "defamatory, offensive, mean-spirited, or likely to place the targeted individual or group in harms way."

Microsoft has a similar prohibition, against apps that are "defamatory, libelous or slanderous, or threatening," but the wording of what's disallowed suggests more tolerance for apps that push the content envelope. A mean-spirited app that's not defamatory would be allowed by Microsoft but not Apple, or so the written rules suggest.

But really, there's no way to tell: Microsoft could turn out to be just as cautious and restrictive as Apple. The wording of rules also isn't nearly as important as how each company implements its rules. We will have to wait for an app that Apple rejects and Microsoft accepts to really weigh the restrictiveness of the rules imposed on developers by the two companies.

If freedom really matters, Android is even less burdened by rules. Defame away.

5. Transactions. If Microsoft's content rules look only slightly more flexible than Apple's, the company's position on payment systems is significantly better. Apple requires iOS and Mac OS X apps that sell content within the app to use its In App Purchase API, for which Apple collects 30% of in-app revenue.

Microsoft will provide Windows 8 developers with an in-app purchase system, but will also allow them to use their own in-app payment system. "We don't mandate a specific transaction engine and developers can use their own," explained Ted Dworkin, Microsoft partner program manager for the Windows 8 Store, in a blog post.

Android's terms suggest developers can use any authorized payment processor. But Google doesn't provide a list of authorized payment processors and there's a reason why: "Currently, Google Wallet is the only authorized payment option for Android," a Google spokesperson said in an email.

Nevertheless, there are Android apps that use PayPal for in-app purchasing. Developers that do this are asking for trouble, but asking Google anything can take a while owing to the company's limited support options.

6. Trials. Apple doesn't presently support free app trials, a feature that's particularly useful for apps that cost more than a dollar or two. Microsoft will support free app trials, though developers will have to use its transaction system to implement in-app upgrades.

7. Enterprise. Faced with the explosive popularity of the iPhone and iPad, Apple only recently has decided to cater to enterprise customers. The slack, to date, has been taken up by companies such as Aperian, Good Technology, and MobileIron.

For Microsoft, the enterprise market is more familiar. The company's Metro app store should be business friendly out of the gate. Microsoft plans to offer companies three ways to manage Metro style line-of-business apps: Group Policy, App Locker, and sideloading. These three technologies will help IT departments deploy and manage Metro apps in ways that are similar to how Windows 7 applications are managed.

8. Marketing. Microsoft has reduced the friction of Metro app installation, making it as easy as installing a Web app from the Chrome Web Store. Through Internet Explorer 10, Windows 8 users will be able to view Windows 8 Store pages on the Web and install those apps with a single click. Apple customers don't quite have it as easy. iPad apps found on the Web using a Mac require the user to launch iTunes, due to the separation between Mac OS X and iOS.

It's too early to tell whether Microsoft's concessions to the developer community will make Windows more relevant in the tablet market. But Microsoft's opening gambit--more comfortable handcuffs--looks like a good move.

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2011-12-08T07:22:00.001-08:00

Changing Outlook's Navigation Pane
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Changing Outlook's Navigation Pane

2011-12-08T07:21:00.001-08:00

Changing Outlook's Navigation Pane

nytimes.com - 12/6/2011
J.D. BIERSDORFER

That column full of buttons (officially known as the Navigation Pane) on the left side of the Microsoft Outlook 2007 and 2010 window makes it easy to jump around among Mail, Contacts, Calendar and the other parts of the program. You are not stuck with the default version of the Navigation Pane, though, and if you like to put the buttons in your own preferred order, you can customize it.

To change the order, go to the bottom of the Navigation Pane, click the small black triangle and choose Navigation Pane Options from the menu. In the list for "Display buttons in this order," click the button you want to move, and click Move Up or Move Down to reposition it accordingly. You can tweak things further, by adding or removing buttons, changing the Navigation Paneâ€™s font, or resizing the pane itself. Microsoft has full instructions on their website.

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2011-12-07T21:54:00.001-08:00

aming with young kids? Here's where to start
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Gaming with young kids? Here's where to start

2011-12-07T21:53:00.001-08:00

msnbc.com - 12/4/2011
Winda Benedetti

According to a recent study from the NPD Group market research company, 91 percent of kids in the U.S. between the ages of two and 17 are now gamers. But here is the surprising bit: The fastest growing group of young video game players is the toddler set -- between two and five years old.

While some parents worry about whether playing video games is good for young children, I've found that gaming -- when properly supervised and balanced with other activities -- can be a great pastime not only for kids but for parents' relationship with their kids. Playing video games with your child is an absolute blast! It's a fun way to bond with your kid, plus it's a superb way to teach children some teamwork and puzzle-solving skills without ever letting on that you're actually, you know, teaching.

It just so happens that I have my own young gamer -- my almost-five-year-old son Oz. He's been helping me test out some of the latest video games in an effort to find titles that are enjoyable and appropriate for kids four to 10. What you'll find below is a look at the pros and cons of seven games that are not only easy for young players to jump into, but are great for parents and kids to play together.

Kirby's Return to Dreamland â€“ Wii - $50

Pros: Learning how to use video game controllers can be difficult for the youngest players, but this laid-back title -- starring Nintendo's famous pink protagonist -- is a fun, easy way to teach young hands to work buttons and a directional pad. The game is also downright adorable and relatively non-threatening for little players just trying to get the swing of things.

"Return to Dreamland" can be played by up to four people at a time which makes it a fantastic all-family game night option. Playing as Kirby and his pals, you and your children will need to use teamwork and cooperation as you to explore bright, colorful worlds and try to find the pieces of a lost spaceship that crash-landed on Kirby's planet, while fending off a host of relatively non-threatening foes in the process.

For this game, your child will turn Nintendo's Wii Remote controller on its side and use it as a traditional controller. And since this is a two-dimensional side-scrolling game, figuring out how to run, jump and fly the characters around the screen is fairly easy for kids to do. Meanwhile, the difficulty level ramps up veeery slowly, which means your child (and therefore you) won't get frustrated.

My son loves watching Kirby suck up his enemies to absorb their powers and is wowed by Kirby's new eye-popping, screen-filling Super Abilities. And when the going does get a bit tough, he can have his character jump onto my character's back for a piggy-back ride past the rough patches.

(It's worth noting that another excellent Kirby game to consider playing with young kids is last year's superb Wii game "Kirby's Epic Yarn")

Cons: There really isn't much of a downside to this game other than the fact that seasoned, grown-up gamers familiar with Kirby's history may find this particular installment a bit too easy. But then again, this isn't about us is it?

Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster - Xbox 360 (Kinect required) - $50

Pros: "Once Upon A Monster" offers everything a conscientious parents wants from a video game -- non-violent gameplay that both activates the body and the mind. It also offers that delightful Sesame Street sensibility and, well, Elmo ... lots and lots of Elmo along with his adorable monster pals.

With the Kinect motion controller reading your child's body movements, this game acts as a kind of interactive story book throughout which your child meets various colorful characters and tries to help them solve the problems they're facing.

To cheer up an unhappy monster, your child will make music by flapping their hands to bang on virtual drums. To help clean up a flower creature's garden, they'll hurl balls of virtual garbage into virtual garbage cans (as if tossing basketballs). And since the game features easy drop-in/drop-out cooperative play, mom and dad can jump into the action at any time.

Cons: The Kinect controller is often pitched as the perfect device for allowing young children to interact with games and virtual environments. After all, there's no controller to hold in tiny hands and no buttons or sticks to struggle with. And yet, my son ran into more controller-related frustrations with this game than any other on this list.

The thing is, little kids have a hard time standing in one place. They jump and flail their arms when they're relaxing. "Once Upon a Monster" asks kids to perform some pretty specific movements but frequently seemed to have a hard time reading my son when he performed them.

Be sure to take the time to make sure the Kinect is perfectly calibrated to your child's size (the game will walk you through the process). Meanwhile, urge your wiggle-worm to hold still a bit and try to focus on the specific gestures they need to execute to interact with the game. It may take some practice and some patience but the little whippersnappers learn very quickly.

Kinect Disneyland Adventures - Xbox 360 (Kinect required) - $50

Pros: Imagine going to Disneyland -- but a Disneyland without all the crowds and lines and cost ... not to mention the parental misery created by all three.

Welcome to a little game called "Kinect Disneyland Adventures." Sure, the Disneyland you'll find here is merely a digital recreation. But it is a pretty impressive digital recreation and one that you and your child can jump into and explore at your own pace.

Almost all of the Disneyland grounds have been recreated within this game and are ready to explore. With the Kinect camera reading your child's body motions, your kid makes an avatar to look like him or herself and then steers that avatar around the Disneyland grounds by pointing where she would like to go. She can run up to Mickey and give him a high five or give Snow White a hug. And these characters will send your child on various quests that will have them exploring the famed park.

Meanwhile, the rides are where the gaming action comes in. Head over to Peter Pan's Flight, where you and your child can fly through the air collecting coins or sword fight with Captain Hook. Step into the Matterhorn where you'll race bobsleds or ski down snowy hills.

The $50 lifetime ticket for you and your family to enter this virtual park will seem downright cheap compared to the hundreds of dollars a trip to the real Happiest Place on Earth will run you.

Cons: If you're not a fan of the Disney marketing machine, then this game is not for you.

Rayman: Origins - PlayStation 3; Xbox 360; Wii - $50 to $60

Pros: One of the great joys of parenting is hearing your children laugh. And if you want to enjoy the sounds of your young gamer guffawing uproariously, then grab "Rayman: Origins."

Zany, crazy and hilarious not to mention utterly creative, "Rayman: Origins" is not only a delightful platforming game for up to four players, it is a gorgeous work of animated art.

My husband, son and I have been having an absolute blast playing this game together. Here Rayman and his friends have awoken a cranky granny and her minions with their snoring. And now you must run, jump, swing and fly through one surreal level after another, each filled with a colorful host of outlandish baddies to beat. My son unleashed the most splendid, unstoppable peals of laughter when we encountered the chicken-headed boss pictured above.

Kids will love this game because it is silly in all the best ways. Adults will love this game because each level is a cleverly constructed work of gaming art.

Cons: This game will grow more demanding for the very youngest players far more quickly than something like "Kirby's Return to Dreamland" and will have them facing down more intense challenges than some young kids may be ready for. But it's worth noting that, if a child fails to get past a particularly difficult part in the game while playing with a parent or older sibling, he or she will find his character popped into a bubble that floats safely along until another player pops him out to rejoin the action at a more manageable point.

Medieval Moves: Deadmund's Quest - PlayStation 3 (Move controls required) - $40

Pros: My son loves both skeletons and swashbuckling tales of sword fighting, so perhaps it's no wonder he's a huge fan of "Medieval Moves." This game puts young players in the role of the boy Prince Edmund who finds himself transformed into a skeleton and thrust into a battle against a nefarious sorcerer and his army of undead.

Skeletons? Army of undead? Well, yes. "Deadmund's Quest" may sound scary but it is cartoony as can be. The story of Prince Edmund-turned-Prince Deadmund is presented in comic-book-style cut scenes and the bad guys are more goofy than they are blood-curdling. Meanwhile, this is an "on rails" game, which means your child doesn't have to worry about maneuvering Deadmund around this world. Instead, the hero is whisked through the medieval-themed environments almost as if on a roller-coaster ride. All your young player has to do is focus on knocking out the bad guys.

Since this game uses the PlayStation 3's Move motion controllers, kids get to do battle with a host of skeletons by swinging the orb-topped wand controller like a sword, or drawing it out like they would a bow and arrow. And the Move controls here work superbly. They are highly responsive and my son found the gestures and button presses easy to get the hang of.

The Move controls really pull young players right into what is nothing short of a thrilling adventure. And the multiplayer modes mean that we parents can jump in and try our own sword-swinging, arrow-shooting skills alongside our young companions.

Cons: Each youngster is different and you should consider whether doing battle with skeletons -- no matter how bloodless and cartoony those battles are -- is something that will thrill your child ... or scare 'em. This game may be most appropriate for slightly older kids (think seven to 10).

Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure - Xbox 360; PlayStation 3; Wii; Nintendo 3DS - $70

Pros: This title blends two things that kids love into one bright, enjoyable package. That is, it combines real-world toys with video gaming.

The starter pack comes with the game disc, three Skylander figurines -- Spyro, Trigger Happy and Gill Grunt -- and a plastic Portal of Power peripheral that you plug into the game console. Fire up the game disc and then pop an action figure onto the Portal of Power and suddenly an animated version of that action figure appears inside the game.

You and your child will take these characters on a colorful, humor-filled quest to save the Skylander world from the evil powers of Kaos. Each of the different action figures has unique powers and abilities and your child will need to think about how to best use these unique strengths to conquer the challenges and puzzles they face.

It really is pretty neat to swap these toys on and off the portal and see them pop into and out of the video game on the fly. Meanwhile, the more your child plays the game with a certain character, the more that character is upgraded with additional powers and abilities. And here's another cool bit: All those upgrades are uploaded to an RF chip in the matching action figure. What that means is, your kid can take their own action figures over to a friend's house and, even if that friend has the game on a different kind of game console, your child can pop their figurines onto their friend's Portal of Power and play the game with all their own characters' unique upgrades and customizations intact.

Cons: The $70 price tag for the starter kit is steep to begin with, but you may end up spending even more money than that. While the "Skylanders" game can be won with just the three initial characters, there are actually 32 Skylander figurines in all to collect (i.e. buy for around $8 a piece) and these additional characters unlock additional challenges and additional areas within the game.

My son was perfectly happy with the initial three action figures, but that doesn't mean every kid will feel the same. The more your child delves into this "Skylanders" adventure, the more you may hear them beg "I want more."

Fruit Ninja Kinect - Xbox 360 (Kinect required) - $10 download via Xbox Live

Pros: I cannot tell you the joy that "Fruit Ninja Kinect" has brought to our household ... and to our son's bedtime routine. Simply put: There is no better way to wear out your kid to the point that he or she has no strength left to fight sleep.

"Fruit Ninja Kinect" takes the gameplay found in the hit smartphone/tablet game and puts it up on your TV via Xbox Live and Kinect. Rather than swiping your finger across a touchscreen to slash fruit that's tossed up into the air, the Kinect camera keeps track of your body movements as you swing your arms and legs to cut down pineapple, kiwi, bananas and other nefarious foods.

This game was not made specifically for children, but it certainly brings out the child in everyone who plays it. More importantly: It's easy for children to jump into and I can promise you, their enthusiasm for the fruit-slashing ninja arts is a joy to behold.

The multiplayer mode is especially enjoyable to play with young kids. Sure, you can play it competitively, but there's also a cooperative mode that allows you to work together as you slash your way to a joint high score. And there's nothing like conquering evil fruit to bring you closer to your adorable rugrat.

Cons: The menu screens are very sensitive to motion and can be difficult for wiggly children to navigate, so you might need to help them get things started. Meanwhile, the difference in an adult's height and a small child's height can make it so the Kinect camera has a difficult time fully reading both players' movements. I suggest you have Kinect calibrate to your child (giving them the best game experience) and then play on your knees beside them.

Also be absolutely sure you give each other enough room when you play together -- otherwise, with all those flailing arms, someone is liable to get a karate chop to the nose.

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2011-12-06T00:00:00.001-08:00

Amazon Kindle Fire owners reporting Wi-Fi bug
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Amazon Kindle Fire owners reporting Wi-Fi bug

2011-12-05T23:59:00.001-08:00

cnet.com - 12/5/2011
Lance Whitney

Just three weeks after the debut of the Kindle Fire, some users are complaining of problems accessing Wi-Fi networks and the Internet.

Noted by tech enthusiast site Electronista, some Firetablet owners are saying they can't connect to their Wi-Fi networks, while others say they can connect to their routers but can't access the Internet.

Among the 175 posts about the subject in Amazon's ownkindle forum several frustrated users described the problem.

One posted that "my Kindle Fire is not connecting to my network either. It recognizes my router but once I enter the security key it attempts to connect and fails. Another said: "Have just opened Kindle Fire. Can connect to wifi but no internet. All other wireless devices in home are working fine connecting to internet."

One person said that he spoke with Amazon's customer support, who told him it was a "known issue" and one that would be resolved in a few hours. The support rep reportedly promised to e-mail or call back but failed to follow up. And a few hours later, Internet connectivity was still down.

On a positive note, many forum posters were apparently able to fix the glitch by installing the latest software update for the Fire. Initially version 6.1 and now 6.2, the update makes no specific reference to Wi-Fi bug fixes. But several users who installed the 6.1 update via a USB port and rebooted their routers were then able to get online. However, others who installed 6.1 said their Wi-Fi or Internet access was still down.

Kindle Fire users who continue to have trouble connecting after installing version 6.1 may want to try the new 6.2 update since Amazon does describe this latest software upgrade as providing "improvements to the operation of your Kindle Fire."

Electronista reported that "Amazon has yet to publicly acknowledge problems with Wi-Fi connectivity." Amazon did not immediately return CNET's request for comment.

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2011-12-02T13:54:00.001-08:00

Apple iOS is safer than Android, McAfee says
http://bit.ly/tEXxXK
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Apple iOS is safer than Android, McAfee says

2011-12-02T13:51:00.001-08:00

cnet.com - 12/2/2011
Lance Whitney

In the fight against malware, Apple's iOS outshines Android as a safer environment, but no mobile device is free from risk, says a new report from McAfee

Apple has so far done a good job of securing its devices, according to the report, noting that there have been no known cases of malware affecting iPhones, at least those that haven't been jailbroken. One reason iOS is more secure is because Apple restricts the way users can download apps.

iOS device owners can only download apps through Apple's App Store or through Mobile Device Management, which gives IT departments control over the Apple devices in their organizations. But even the Mobile Device Management requires approval from Apple.

Apple's single App Store is also tightly controlled, leading to a safer and more secure environment.

In contrast, Google's method of distributing software is more open, but with that openness comes risks. Though Google controls its own Android Market, users can download Android apps from third-party sites just as easily, which may not have the necessary security in place.

And even Android Market has proven vulnerable to threats. As just one example, Google had to get rid of a number of malicious apps in March after they were infected by a nasty bit of malware dubbed DroidDream In total, the company removed 58 malicious apps both from the market and from mobile devices where users had downloaded them.

Further, because Android is a more fragmented operating system, many handset makers tweak Google's open-source code and often modify certain security-related features, says McAfee. That approach also increases the time it takes for OS updates to reach Android users because some of those updates have to be customized for different devices.

And since almost all mobile malware infections come from app stores, Android has become the riskier environment. Though Nokia's Symbian is historically still the most popular mobile platform for malware writers, Android took on that dubious role in the second quarter of the year, attracting 63 percent of all malware infections at that time.

Finally, McAfee sees a different approach between Apple and Google in combatting malware.

"Apple's approach is proactive and focused on prevention," the report noted. "Google's plan is apparently to encourage the creation of apps and deal with the problems as they occur, in a reactive fashion. Google's may be a sensible move to generate a large volume and wide variety of apps, but from the security perspective it creates exactly the kind of environment in which malware gangs feel comfortable."

Both iOS and Android are based on Unix/Linux, according to McAfee, making them somewhat inherently secure. Instead, the vulnerabilities arise from manufacturers and developers who fail to make security a priority and sometimes rush to the market with new drivers and apps that aren't fully tested. Updates to the operating system and firmware may also be flawed, undermining the the strength of the core OS.

Virtually all smartphones and mobile devices face security risks now and increasingly so down the road, says McAfee. Most of the malware that threatens PCs is also possible on mobile devices. Plus, the security vendor believes that new kinds of threats not yet seen on PCs may hit smartphones.

Even if the overall number of threats were to decline, mobile devices are more vulnerable simply because they're always on, usually connected, and often hold some type of personal data.

Citing one example, McAfee pointed to a device's GPS capability, which can reveal the user's location. One piece of malware called GPS Spy, or TapSnake, has been found to use a device's GPS to send a person's location to a third party.

As another example, malware writers can exploit weaknesses in a mobile OS to control a device's camera or microphone, letting them spy on the users. McAfee said it has already detected Trojans that were able to record phone conversations and send the recordings to a third party.

On a positive note, McAfee noted that security for mobile operating systems is progressing, making certain types of malware impossible. But the company still expects mobile malware to increase as a result of the difficulties in filtering it. Ultimately, protecting users will require the industry to better secure its mobile platforms along with its mobile devices.

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2011-12-01T07:02:00.001-08:00

Tens Of Millions Of Smartphones Come With Spyware Preinstalled
http://bit.ly/urdz3Y
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Tens of Millions of Smartphones Come With Spyware Preinstalled, Security Analyst Says

2011-12-01T07:01:00.001-08:00

Over 100 million smartphones are tracking their owners' every step, Android developer Trevor Eckhart claimed, thanks to software that comes preinstalled on phones from most major carriers.

During a security demonstration revealed on Monday, Eckhart showed how software developed by CarrierIQ tracks virtually everything a user does -- going as far as logging individual keystrokes and button presses. The company claims it helps its customers improve quality and performance "by counting and measuring operational information in mobile devices." Security experts call it spyware.

"I assume that when I SMS my wife on the phone, no one is intercepting that message," Chet Wisniewski of security firm Sophos told FoxNews.com. He called the whole ordeal is a "serious invasion of privacy."

"Why do they need to know when I'm logging into Bank of America, when I'm accessing my password? It's a different level of snooping," he said.

Developed as a mobile analytics platform, Carrier IQ's software can be found on most Android, BlackBerry and Nokia phones -- over 140 million phones in total, the company's website boasts. Some reports suggest Apple iPhones may carry the software as well.

The company has flat out denied that its software records keystrokes, a claim Eckhart's latest video seems to refute.

"Every button you press in the dialer before you call," Eckhart says in his latest video, "it already gets sent off to the IQ application."

Eckhart did not return FoxNews.com phone calls, and Carrier IQ declined to comment on his claims. A statement on the company's website reiterates the company's claims that its software does not track customers or record keystrokes.

"This information is used by our customers as a mission critical tool to improve the quality of the network, understand device uses and ultimately improve the user experience," the company said. By evaluating these metrics, Carrier IQ aims to help with issues such as "dropped calls and battery drain."

In videos showing Carrier IQ at work, Eckhart showed it going beyond such utilitarian monitoring. He showed Carrier IQ's software monitoring entire text messages, a Google search, and his location, even during sessions protected by HTTPS, a security protocol that encrypts communications for sensitive transactions nline banking.

Sprint has acknowledged using Carrier IQ's software, but denies having access to personal data.

"Carrier IQ provides information that allows Sprint, and other carriers that use it, to analyze our network performance and identify where we should be improving service," Sprint told CNET earlier this month. "We collect enough information to understand the customerexperience with devices on our network and how to address any connection problems, but we do not and cannot look at the contents of messages, photos, videos, etc., using this tool," Sprint continued.

While Wisniewski understands the needs for data and metrics, he believes carriers must be more forthcoming about how they are monitoring their users, what data they are collecting, and how they are protect that data.

"If you're going to collect that kind of information from people, you have to meet a different standard," Wisniewski told FoxNews.com.

But for now, most users are stuck, unable to even turn off or uninstall the program.

"The Carrier IQ application is embedded so deeply in the device that it can't be fully removed without rebuilding the phone from source code," Eckhart wroteon his website.

"Even where a device is out of contract, there is no off switch to stop the application from gathering data."

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2011-11-30T16:34:00.001-08:00

Easiest way to watch for Amazon price drops
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Easiest way to watch for Amazon price drops

2011-11-30T16:33:00.001-08:00

msnbc.com - 11/29/2011
Rosa Golijan

If you're prone to using Amazon for your holiday shopping needs, you're probably aware that the online retailer frequently -- and often quietly -- drops prices on its products. That's great, but how do you keep an eye on the items you intend on buying as soon as they're just a little bit cheaper -- without putting in too much effort?

If you use Google's Chrome browser, then you can let a free extension called That Is Worth do the hard work.

All you have to do is download the extension through the Chrome Web Store, install it, and forget about it -- until you want to start tracking a product on Amazon (or another supported online retailer such as Direct2Drive or Steam).

In order to tag an item for tracking, visit a product page on a supported retailer, then click on the That Is Worth icon which will appear by your URL bar. It will prompt you to enter a target price -- what you want to pay.

You can peek at your tracked products page at any given moment by clicking the button, to see how close to the target pricing your items are getting. Once the product's price drops to (or below) the target, you'll receive a little alert in the corner of your screen.

That's it! Minimal effort, few thrills, and plenty of convenience. What more could you want?

If you're prone to using Amazon for your holiday shopping needs, you're probably aware that the online retailer frequently -- and often quietly -- drops prices on its products. That's great, but how do you keep an eye on the items you intend on buying as soon as they're just a little bit cheaper -- without putting in too much effort?

If you use Google's Chrome browser, then you can let a free extension called That Is Worth do the hard work.

All you have to do is download the extension through the Chrome Web Store, install it, and forget about it -- until you want to start tracking a product on Amazon (or another supported online retailer such as Direct2Drive or Steam).

In order to tag an item for tracking, visit a product page on a supported retailer, then click on the That Is Worth icon which will appear by your URL bar. It will prompt you to enter a target price -- what you want to pay.

You can peek at your tracked products page at any given moment by clicking the button, to see how close to the target pricing your items are getting. Once the product's price drops to (or below) the target, you'll receive a little alert in the corner of your screen.

That's it! Minimal effort, few thrills, and plenty of convenience. What more could you want?

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2011-11-23T12:42:00.001-08:00

The best tech deals this Black Friday
http://bit.ly/sIza4y
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The best tech deals this Black Friday

2011-11-23T12:40:00.001-08:00

msnbc.com - 11/22/2011
msnbc

Whether you're already in line for a Black Friday sale or still figuring out what you'll do with Thursday's leftover turkey, now's a good time to review the best offers of this shopping season. We're here to help with handpicked tech deals.

A few things to note:
•These deals are Black Friday offers -- promised for Friday, Nov. 25 -- so don't panic if you don't see them in stores or on retailer's websites with the prices listed below right this minute.
•The deals in this list were selected by considering a combination of factors such as value, savings, product quality, features and brand reputation.
•Most offers are limited in quantity, so be quick if you've got your eye on something specific.
•The cellphone offers listed below typically require you to sign a two-year service agreement.
•You should read the detailed descriptions of each offer carefully before buying -- msnbc.com is not responsible for the duration or integrity of individual deals, though we do our best to check the all.
•If you're looking for a gigantic list of Black Friday deals instead of some handpicked deals, take a peek at the Black Friday Cheat Sheet compiled by our friends at Gizmodo. If you prefer an alternative pile of hand-selected offers, then check out what the folks at Lifehacker picked out.

Got all that? Great! Here are some of our favorite deals for Black Friday 2011.

We will be updating this list in the days and hours before Black Friday, so feel free to check back often.

Televisions:
I aimed to pick a variety of size options here and definitely kept value in mind. Samsung came out as one of the best bets for this shopping season -- as far as TVs go, at least.
•22-in. Samsung LED HDTV (1080p) for $198 (Normally $250) -- at Best Buy
•32-in. Emerson LCD TV for $188 (Normally $300) -- at Walmart
•40-in. Samsung LED HDTV (1080p) for $497 (Normally $700) -- at Best Buy
•40-in. Samsung LED Smart HDTV (1080p) for $728 (Normally $1,100) -- at Best Buy
•47-in. LG LED (1080p) for $700 (Normally $1,000) -- at Best Buy
•60-in. Samsung LED Smart HDTV (1080p) for $1398 (Normally $2,800) -- at Best Buy
•60-in. Samsung 3D LED HDTV (1080p) for $3300 (Normally $4,200) -- at Best Buy

Gaming:
If you're looking for a gaming console, you should probably make Walmart one of your stops on Black Friday. It's got some of the better overall deals.
•Xbox 360 4G console (with Kinect and "Kinect Adventures") for $200 (Normally $300) -- at Walmart
•Xbox Kinect (with "Kinect Adventures") for $100 (Normally $175 -- at Walmart
•PlayStation 3 160GB console (with "Little Big Planet 2" and "Rachet and Clank 4") for $200 (Normally $250) -- at Walmart
•Nintendo Wii console (Limited Edition Blue) for $100 (Normally $150) -- at Walmart
•Nintendo 3DS console with "Super Mario 3D Land" for $180 (normally $209) -- at Target
•Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure Mega Pack for $80 (Normally $110) -- Best Buy
•Xbox Live Gold (3-month membership) for $13 (Normally $24) -- at GameStop
•Gears of War 3 (Xbox 360) for $40 (Normally $59) -- at GameStop
•FIFA Soccer 12 (Xbox 360/PS3) for $40 (Normally $59) -- at GameStop
•Maden NFL 12 (Xbox 360/PS3) for $40 (Normally $59) -- at GameStop

Monitors:
After carefully interrogating friends and colleagues about their monitor choices, I've realized that Acer's the crowd favorite due to its reputation and value. And there are definitely a handful of those monitors to be found on sale come Friday.
•20-in. Acer LED widescreen monitor for $90 (Normally $130) -- at Best Buy
•20-in. LG LED widescreen monitor for $110 (Normally $160) -- at Best Buy
•23-in. Acer LED widescreen monitor for $160 (Normally $200) -- at Best Buy

Desktops:
It's rough to make recommendations when it comes to desktops simply because individual priorities differ a great deal when it comes to these particular gadgets, so I went with a handful of decent deals for the average shopper.
•18.5-in. HP AMD dual-core 3GB DDR3 500GB HD desktop for $298 (Normally $429) -- at Walmart
•20-in. HP 320-1034 AMD dual-core 4GB DDR3 1TB HDD all-in-one desktop for $400 (Normally $700) -- at Best Buy
•24-in. Dell XPS 8300 Core i7 16GB RAM 1.5TB HDD desktop for $1000 (Normally $1500) -- at Costco
•24-in. Sony Intel Core i3 4GB RAM 1TB HDD touch-screen desktop for $900 (Normally $1079) -- Staples

Laptops:
Like desktops, laptops are a finicky topic when it comes to Black Friday shoppers. I decided to select a product I'd recommend personally -- the MacBook Air -- and two low cost solutions.
•10.1-in. Gateway LT2811U netbook (1.66MHz/1GB RAM/250GB HDD) for $149 (Normally $450) -- at Best Buy
•13.3-in. MacBook Air (1.7GHz/4GB RAM/128 SSD) for $1099 (Normally $1299) -- at Best Buy
•15.6-in. HP 2000-329WM laptop (1.60GHz/3GB RAM/320 GB HDD) for $248 (Normally $400) -- at Walmart

Cameras:
A DSLR and a low-cost point-and-shoot. What more could you ever want to pick up in the camera department on Black Friday?
•Nikon Coolpix S3100 camera (14MP/720p video) for $99 (Normally $139) -- at Best Buy
•Canon Rebel T3 DSLR for $480 (Normally $550) -- at Target

Tablets:
There's no getting around it -- the tablet category was a popularity contest.
•Apple iPad 2 (16GB with Wi-Fi) for $455 (Normally $500) -- at Best Buy
•Amazon Kindle Keyboard 3G with "Special Offers" for $85 (Normally $99) -- at Target
•Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch for $79 (Normally $99) -- at Barnes & Noble

Cellphones:
While some other options are listed, your best bet when it comes to cellphones on Black Friday is Amazon. Nearly every phone you can think of is available for just a penny -- assuming you sign a two-year service agreement -- and you get a bonus $100 gift card.
•AT&T Samsung Infuse for $0 (Normally $100) -- at Best Buy
•AT&T LG Thrill for $0 (Normally $100) -- at Best Buy
•Verizon Droid Incredible 2 for $0 (Normally $200) -- at Best Buy
•Verizon HTC Thunderbolt for $0 (Normally $150) -- at Best Buy
•Almost any phone you can think of (plus a $100 Amazon gift card) for $.01 (Normal prices vary) -- at Amazon.com

GPS devices:
A solid GPS device, a lifetime of maps, and a decent price? No brainer.
•4.3-in. Magellan GPS device with lifetime maps and traffic updates for $99 (Normally $149) -- at Best Buy

Software
OfficeMax is one of the spots with the best software deals on Friday, so head there if you're looking to feed your computer some new apps.
•Adobe Photoshop Elements 10 for $55 (Normally $100) -- at OfficeMax
•Dragon Naturally Speaking (Home Edition) for $45 (Normally $90) -- at OfficeMax
•Microsoft Office Home for Mac for $80 (Normally $120) -- at OfficeMax

Miscellaneous odds and ends:
Dyson products. On sale. This doesn't happen often, folks. Take advantage of it.
•Dyson DC 28 full-size bagless upright vaccuum for $479 (Normally $649) -- on Dyson.com
•Dyson Hot fan/heater for $299 (Normally $399) -- on Dyson.com
•Dyson Air Multiplier AM 03 fan for $349 (Normally $449) -- on Dyson.com
•iCade iPad arcade cabinet for $60 (Normally $100) -- on ThinkGeek.com
•HP C410a Color Inkjet Photosmart Premium wireless all-in-Oone printer/fax for $100 (Normally $300) -- at OfficeMax
•Most items on Panasonic's website for whatever discounted price Panasonic employees would pay (Normal prices vary) -- on Panasonic.com

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2011-11-22T09:27:00.001-08:00

Home for the Holiday Tech Support
http://bit.ly/sXNAeP
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Home for the Holiday Tech Support

2011-11-22T09:26:00.001-08:00

themorningnews.org - 11/22/2011
Nozlee Samadzadeh

When the annual trip home becomes a customer-service visit to "fix the internet," sometimes even bourbon can't save the day. We gathered a half-dozen of our favorite tech writers and editors to help anticipate the headaches of 2011.

This week and through December, anyone who is computer-savvy will appreciate the following scenario: Your family gathers for a holiday meal. Your older sibling, the one with twins, has a slideshow of baby pictures that everyone wants to see, but he can't remember which online photo-sharing service he used to upload them. Also, mom's wifi network is down. And she forgot the password. And dad says the computer is dead anyway, in no part due to the nine antivirus packages that he half-installed. Now can you sort all of that out by dessert, please?
To share in the miseries and pleasures of holiday tech-support, we gathered six of our favorite technology writers and editors to share their war stories, anticipate this year's unique miseries (Kindle Fire flambe, anyone?), and single out the products and services that can help bring harmony to dinner tables nationwide.

Paul Ford is a writer who programs computers. He lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Brian Lam runs The Wirecutter.

Peter Rojas is the co-founder of gdgt, Engedget, and Gizmodo.

Jason Snell is the vice president and editorial director at Macworld.

Gina Trapani is a Project Director at Expert Labs, where she builds software that confuses her relatives.

Christina Warren is the entertainment editor at Mashable.

What new product or service is going to require the most tech support this holiday season?

Gina Trapani: Oh God, phones. I anticipate an array of new Android handsets flashing with preinstalled NASCAR apps. My brother will ask me what rooting actually does and my cousins will demand to know why they can't get Facebook on their phones.

Brian Lam: It's always computers. They're a nightmare for parents.

Jason Snell: Kindle Fire. Its low price and Amazon's brand name mean that Amazon will sell a whole bunch of them. But the Kindle Fire is a little complicated. The touchscreen interface is a bit hard to navigate. It's not an iPad or an Android tablet, not really, nor is it like any of the other Kindle hardware devices Amazon has made. In the end I think Amazon will have success with the Fire or its successors, but I suspect that this first device is going to cause a lot of headaches.

Christina Warren: I usually say anything wireless, but looking at the direction that gadgets are going I'd say connected TVs and set-top boxes. DLNA is cool stuff, but getting it all to play nice together rarely works (a high profile gadget maker failed repeatedly at showing off tablet and TV integration at their flagship store in New York City--it was an embarrassing demo for them and I had to stifle a laugh).

It's amazing how stuff gets more complex over time. My parents still have trouble turning on the surround sound and their cable box. I'm not sure I could ever explain how to get video from a Mac or PC to the TV or Blu-ray player.

Paul Ford: It's not the actual products but the remote support questions for computers hundreds of miles away. "When I click the mouse it turns blue? And then the whole thing shakes? What is that? Pass the stuffing." Or: "What software do I need?" ("For what?" "For my computer.")
Peter Rojas: I want to say "everything," but you probably don't want me to hear that, so I'll settle on smartphones. Even iPhones, which have a reputation for being easy for anyone to use, can be surprisingly complicated for non-technical types. My mom didn't realize for an entire year that her iPhone had wifi until I suggested that her Skype calls might be clearer if she switched from 3G to wireless.

Tell us the story of the most frustrating--or heartwarming--tech support experience you provided for a loved one.

BL: I don't really do tech support for loved ones without a fair amount of annoyance. I'm like the accountant who has unbalanced checkbooks or the chef who eats hot dogs at home.

JS: Nothing is more frustrating than hearing "it doesn't work" on the other end of a phone line. It's so hard to troubleshoot something when you can't see it, and that's magnified when the problem is being described by someone who doesn't understand what they're seeing or doesn't have the terminology to explain it to you. These days, fortunately, there's a lot less of that--"screen sharing" services and software exist so that you can actually take control of someone else's computer and show them what's wrong, or fix it for them. I use iChat to fix things on my parents' and in-laws' computers, for example, and it has helped a lot. Spending half an hour trying to fix something that's actually not broken, all because of a misunderstanding of terminology, is about as frustrating as it gets.

PF: A few years ago I sat down with an older person who hadn't touched a typewriter in 30 years (he dictated into a tape recorder) to teach him how to use a computer. After about a half-hour of talking about word-processing and how to drag-and-drop icons onto applications in order to open them, he looked at me and said: "Where is the dragon?"

That said, my dad just called and said he wants to root the tablet he bought at Walgreens. So there's a spectrum.

CW: Two years ago, my uncle bought an expensive Windows laptop and proceeded to force me to spend Thanksgiving helping him install a non-trial version of Office, manage the multiple antivirus packages he installed (which I subsequently had to uninstall), and find a way to access all the photos in his Yahoo! email account.
Needless to say, I needed bourbon by the end and vowed to never do Windows tech support for extended family again.

PR: We don't watch that much TV anymore, so I canceled our cable TV service earlier this year and felt very satisfied to be saving $100 a month. A couple of months later I was flying to California for a trip and was logged into the in-flight wifi when I got an IM from my wife. She wanted to watch The Tudors on Netflix. We use the Netflix app on the Xbox 360, which she had never actually used herself, so to watch something meant I needed to explain:
1.How to get the receiver and TV set to the right inputs.
2.How to turn on the Xbox 360.
3.How to use the Xbox 360 controller to navigate and find the Netflix app.

After much back-and-forth--and remember, I'm on an airplane--I managed to successfully walk her through the first two of these steps, but somehow I could not explain over IM how to get through the Xbox 360's menus to get to the Netflix app. After twenty minutes we finally gave up.

GT: My 92-year-old Grandpa-in-law had a serious email overload problem. His friends constantly forwarded to his inbox everything from proof President Obama wasn't born in the U.S. to kitten photos. He'd get tired of going through it all himself, so every Sunday he'd invite us over to watch 60 Minutes and have what he liked to call "a delete party." Sitting at the computer together, dialed into his Juno account, I'd read subject lines and the first few sentences of each message to him. More often than not he'd call out "Delete!" and I'd trash the message. Once in awhile he'd say "Keep" and I'd move onto the next one.

One fine Sunday during our delete party, I opened an email with an interesting photo attachment: a topless woman with the most enormous breasts I've seen in my life. Eyebrows raised, I glanced over at Grandpa beside me. He leaned in for a closer look, grinned, and said "Keep."

We're in the nth year of a recession and iPhones aren't getting cheaper. Do you see more friends and family choosing new products for their price instead of their quality?

JS: Actually, iPhones are getting cheaper. You can get an iPhone 3G for free now, with a two-year contract. (The iPhone originally cost $499.) And cellphone carriers know that to sell smartphones to a broader audience, they've got to do something about their rate plans. That's why you're seeing companies such as AT&T and T-Mobile offer cheaper 250MB data plans targeted at value-conscious people who just don't want to pay for gigabytes of data if they can try to use wifi a lot and save $20/month on their phone bills.

I think many people are conscious of the tradeoff between price and quality. You can argue that in a tough economy people want to save money, but you could also argue that in a touch economy people want to find value and longevity. Some people are always going to pay as little as possible for a product that disappoints them, but the more savvy people become about technology, the more they see through the low prices and start looking for higher-priced items that provide a whole lot more value.

CW: I think that price definitely plays a bigger role in purchasing decisions than it did even a year or two ago. The Kindle Fire--a device I quite like--is inferior to the iPad 2 in every way but one: price. Yet that price difference is what will likely drive sales.

That said, I think that as tech in general gets cheaper--for example, the Samsung Focus Flash is a fantastic Windows Phone and is just $50--the trade-off between price and quality is less important. An iPhone 4 is $99. A 3GS is free. The economy might mean spending less but that doesn't always mean getting inferior goods.

GT: Amazon had the right idea. For my friends and family, this holiday season is about the cheaper Kindles, not the iPad.
PF: I'm amazed that everyone has awesome phones. Even cheap phones do everything. It bothers me that people are anxious; they've been told that they need Apple products in order to be fully engaged with society. I asked Siri about this and she agrees.

PR: Always seems like it's been a mix of both. People are always value-conscious, but I feel like a lot of gadgets are moving from the luxury category to the necessity category, and so it seems easier to spend a bit more money on them.

BL: It's always been like this for the majority of the country. Tech writers aren't price-sensitive enough because they live in this bubble of free test units. Except me.

Pretend I'm your grandmother. You love me, but you hate updating the security software on my 2004 Dell Dimension desktop. Give me a reason to upgrade. Be sweet, dearie.

PR: Hackers.

CW: Upgrading to a newer, faster machine will not make the pains of updating software less frustrating--it will give you a more stable and enjoyable system. A lot of people forget what a fast, stable system is suppose to feel like. Rather than struggling to load email or photos, upgrade to something newer. You can spend very little and get a big upgrade over your current computer--often with a better monitor to boot.

BL: Trick question--doesn't matter if grandma's computer has viruses because she never does anything but play solitaire on her computer, so no big deal if it gets hacked. Once it does, buy a her MacBook Air.

JS: Grandma, you know what? You don't need a computer. All you do is read email and the web, and you keep complaining about how hard it is to find a large-print edition of that latest book from the nice fellow you watch every weekday on Fox News. So I'll tell you what: It's time to get an iPad. It doesn't need any security software or anything like that. You can use it anywhere in your house, not just at that desk. You don't even need a computer to set it up or back it up--it will do all that over your wireless connection. You'll be able to check e-mail and without worrying about the roller in that old mouse getting stuck. You can buy books from iBooks or Amazon and crank up the font size, so any book can be a large-print book! And there's a camera on front so that we can do video calls so that you can see (and talk to) your great-grandchildren.

GT: I don't give Grandma a reason to upgrade her computer. I just arrive at her house with a better model, plug it in, and lie about it. "Guess what, Grammy? Work just bought me a new computer so that means I don't need this one anymore. Let's donate your old one to the local school. It's a tax write-off!"

PF: We stopped upgrading Grammy a few years ago, after she hit EOL.

What single product or service would help the most to establish harmony in your holiday season?

PR: I suspect everyone would be happier if I looked at my phone a lot less. Is there an app that would temporarily lock me out of my phone?

JS: For harmony's sake, let's give everybody some device--any device--that uses wifi and gets them on the internet. Then they can stop asking me to Google stuff on my iPhone.

CW: I'd say an iPad. I got my mom an iPad for her birthday in 2010 and she loves it. She's not afraid of it, which is huge. She can get online, watch me appear on TV (or on a podcast), send emails, read my Mashable articles, and even print from it. The best part of the iPad is that it has made my mom less afraid of technology and more open to exploring new things.
GT: A speedy, reliable internet connection. That way any one of us can retreat to a safe virtual space when Uncle Harry's eggnog-fueled political tirades get out of hand.

What single product or service should be banned to make you and your loved ones' holiday season more harmonious?

JS: Let's ban that feature that takes a standard-definition TV picture and stretches it out across a widescreen TV. I go to the houses of relatives and suddenly everyone on TV is 30 pounds fatter and pixelated. Let's get rid of standard-def in general, but more specifically, if you're watching a standard-def picture on a widescreen TV, just embrace the black or gray bars on the sides. It does not make the football game better if those 300-pound linemen look like they weigh 700 pounds and are playing on one of the moons of Jupiter.

GT: If I can get through the holiday season without troubleshooting a family member's problem with their printer or wireless router, it will be a Christmas miracle.

CW: Windows. In a former life, I was a PC Tech. I've diagnosed and repaired hundreds of Windows machines, including my parents' various computers. No more. I made my mom get a Mac last year and refuse to service my dad after he voluntarily installed fake antivirus programs.

The amount of hair-pulling required to get Windows to reliably work with multiple wireless printers was enough that I insist my mother get a Mac. She's happier and I don't have to do tech support calls from New York City.

BL: Not sure. Everything, when used properly, is pretty helpful. I appreciate a lot of technology these days.

PF: I think sometimes technology is the symptom, not the root cause.

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2011-11-21T11:21:00.001-08:00

Scam alert: Bogus flight confirmations from 'Delta'
http://bit.ly/seJuBF
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Scam alert: Bogus flight confirmations from 'Delta'

2011-11-21T11:20:00.001-08:00

msnbc.com - 11/15/2011
Harriet Baskas

If you received an email today from Delta Air Lines confirming your round-trip flight from New York's JFK International Airport to San Francisco for the week of Nov. 26, don't drop everything to start packing your bags.

In fact, do not click on any part of that message.

The email is bogus and has apparently been sent to many Delta customers.

"We have received reports from customers of fraudulent emails claiming to be from Delta," said Delta Air Lines spokesman Paul Skrbec via email. "We have updated delta.com with an advisory and continue to work with our customers regarding these claims."

Skrbec would not say how many customers may have received the bogus email, only that "we continue to investigate these reports from customers."

Delta's website alert warned that the fake emails were "phishing," a scam by which someone tries to get financial or other confidential information, typically by sending an e-mail that appears legitimate.

Delta said on its website: "These emails claim that you have purchased a Delta ticket, a credit card has been charged and/or an invoice or receipt is attached to the email. If you receive one of these emails, do not open the attachment as it may contain potentially dangerous viruses or harm your computer."

The company says that customers' credit cards have not been charged as a result of the emails. "These emails did not originate from Delta, nor do we believe that any personal information that you provided us was used to generate these emails," Delta says. "We will continue to post updates on this page as additional information becomes available."

In the meantime, though, the airline recommends that anyone receiving the phishing email message change their SkyMiles account PIN immediately and monitor their account for any misuse.

Earlier this month, Delta also posted an advisory about fraudulent postcard offers for two tickets anywhere on Delta's system and/or 3 days/2 nights hotel and vacation packages. The airline notes that similar postcards are also circulating using Northwest Airlines trademarks, and is telling customers that "Delta does not market in this manner, has no affiliation with these promotions, and is working to identify and stop the parties responsible."

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2011-11-17T09:16:00.001-08:00

Top-10 must-have gadgets - CNET Reviews http://bit.ly/vpLzLg
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Top-10 must-have gadgets

2011-11-17T09:14:00.001-08:00

cnet.com - 8/20/2011
cnet

CNET has top products lists for each of the categories we cover--they're listed on the left--but this list brings the cream of the crop together in one place. For November, new additions include the iPhone 4S, the Droid Razr, and the Roku 2 XS streaming video box. Rather than trying to compare gadgets across multiple categories, we present them in alphabetical order, because when you get right down to it, we think they're all must-haves.

Apple iPad 2 (16GB, Wi-Fi)

The iPad 2 refines an already excellent product. Its easy-to-use interface, vast app catalog, and marathon battery life bolster Apple's claim to being the king of tablets.â€¨

Apple iPhone 4S

The iPhone 4S isn't the king of cell phones, but it's part of the royal family nonetheless. Even without 4G and a giant screen, this phone's smart(ass) voice assistant, Siri, the benefits of iOS 5, and its spectacular camera make it a top choice for anyone ready to upgrade.

Apple MacBook Air (11-inch, Summer 2011)

This year's 11-inch MacBook Air improves on last year's model in several significant ways and is by far the fastest ultraportable you're likely to find, though some users will consider the limited flash storage space to be a hindrance.

Barnes & Noble Nook Simple Touch Reader (Wi-Fi)

The new touch-screen Nook is a major advancement over its predecessor and offers some real advantages over the 2010 Kindle.

HTC Sensation 4G (T-Mobile)

Its excellent design and user experience, coupled with its solid performance, make the HTC Sensation 4G one of the best Android phones yet and a top pick for T-Mobile customers.

Kodak Playsport

The Kodak Playsport is an excellent minicamcorder that can take some rough treatment and capture solid HD video.

Logitech Harmony 650

The Logitech Harmony 650 is one of the best universal remotes you can buy for less than $100.

Motorola Droid Razr (Verizon Wirless)

With its razor-thin design, jam-packed features, and blazing speed, the Motorola Droid Razr is easily one of the year's top Android smartphones.

Roku 2 XS

Thanks to a varied range of content offerings--including Netflix, Amazon, Hulu Plus, Crackle, and Pandora--that beats the Apple TV, the Roku 2 XS is the best all-around streaming-media box you can get for less than $100.

Sonos Play:3 (black)

While it doesn't sound quite as good as the larger Play:5, the Sonos Play:3 delivers a superior streaming-audio experience that you can control from any iOS device or Android smartphone.

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2011-11-17T08:54:00.001-08:00

Mobile app helps clean up your Facebook image -
http://bit.ly/vlrGwk
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Mobile app helps clean up your Facebook image

2011-11-17T08:51:00.001-08:00

cnet.com - 11/11/2011
Elinor Mills

Programmer Michael Devine was looking for a job earlier this year and realized that not all potential employers would appreciate his Facebook posts as much as his friends do. So he wrote a mobile app that allowed him to clean up his potentially off-color and political posts and comments.

"I'm an impulsive guy," Devine said in a recent phone interview with CNET. "I like making people laugh and I also have strong political views. Given that, you can imagine the kinds of things I post on Facebook. So I wanted to clean up my own profile and thought others might want this as well."

Devine's Android app, called Exfoliate, allows you to delete batches of posts based on how long they've been up. For instance, you can have it remove posts that are older than three months and various time periods up to three years. You can clean just your Wall, or also remove posts from friends' Walls. And the kind of content you can select for removal includes your posts, comments and likes.

Facebook wants us to keep all of our content up on the site and is even planning to launch a Timeline feature that will serve as a digital version of "This is Your Life." But Devine says many people don't necessarily want an archive of their spontaneous day-to-day musings, which can ultimately come back to haunt them.

"When you really think about it, it becomes clear that there's actually no reason to leave anything (on Facebook) after a certain point in time because no one sees it or they rarely see it," he said. "It just sits there waiting for someone to see it out of context and then it can cause you trouble."

Devine said more advanced filtering is coming, so people can be more selective about what they choose to remove or keep. For instance, soon you will be able to select specific friends' profiles to include or exclude from a purge.

"So you could run Exfoliate from a friend's page to remove your comments on their Wall right before de-friending them," he said with a fiendish giggle. "It's the ultimate break-up tool!"

But what about removing items based on subject, like "Tea Party" or "drugs"?

"Handling keywords is a tough problem because if I put a comment in the middle of a thread, computationally it would overburden a mobile device to do an analysis of all the content in that thread," Devine said.

Exfoliate users will eventually be able to keep their friends from leaking their comments to the outside world. Devine said he is adding the ability to delete items based on how visible it is. "If you post on a friend's Wall you are at the mercy of their Wall (privacy) settings," he said. "So, if they make comments on their posts visible to the world your comment becomes public."

An iPhone version is expected in a few weeks, according to Devine. The app costs $2.99.

There are a couple of things to remember about Exfoliate. It's a bandwidth hog, so you would want to let it run for a few hours when it is plugged in at home on your Wi-Fi network.

And the actions are permanent. There's no changing your mind and restoring the data. So, think before you purge.

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2011-11-15T08:28:00.001-08:00

Pogoplug Cloud adds 5GB of free online storage
http://bit.ly/vM4OIH
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Pogoplug Cloud adds 5GB of free online storage

2011-11-15T08:27:00.001-08:00

msnbc.com - 11/14/2011
Rosa Golijan

Pogoplug, the company behind popular data storage solutions, has added a new product to its lineup: Pogoplug Cloud. As the name suggests, it's a way of getting your data into a magical server cluster in the sky so that you can access it from any device.

Yes, it's yet another cloud-based storage solution to add to a growing pile which includes services from Apple, Amazon, Google, Dropbox, and so on. But it's decent, comes from a company with a good reputation, and can be set up completely on the go -- right from your mobile device.

In order to use Pogoplug Cloud, you'll have to sign up for a free account from your phone or tablet. Head to the Pogoiplug site, enter a few details, and then download Pogoplug Mobile, the corresponding app. (You can get the Pogoplug Mobile app through the Apple App Store or the Android Market.)

Once you've taken care of those details, you'll be able to freely enjoy 5GB of free cloud storage. (If you need more space than that, you can purchase 50GB or 100GB for $10/month or $20/month, respectively.)

Pogoplug Mobile can automatically upload photos and videos from your device, sync miscellaneous files, and keep things easily accessible. It can also be used to stream videos or music to your mobile device and to quickly share files through email or a variety of social media services.

The app doesn't feel quite as polished as some similar solutions that also offer online storage -- such as Dropbox or Apple's iCloud -- but it's perfectly usable. And who am I to complain about an extra 5GB of cloud storage for on-the-fly data backups?

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2011-11-09T15:53:00.001-08:00

Firefox 8 cracks down on add-ons
http://bit.ly/tiBoZD
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Firefox 8 cracks down on add-ons

2011-11-09T15:50:00.001-08:00

cnet.com - 11/8/2011
Stephen Shankland

Mozilla released Firefox 8 today, a version that weeds out some add-ons and that will shoulder more responsibility for the organization's new fast-development process.
Giving the user control over the Web experience has been a longstanding Mozilla priority, and Firefox 8 takes a new step here. With earlier versions, third-party software could extend Firefox with new features--Skype's tool for highlighting phone numbers for easy online calling, for example. With Firefox 8, though, third-party add-ons will be disabled by default.

"These add-ons installed by third parties present a number of problems: they can slow down Firefox start-up and page loading time, they clutter the interface with toolbars that often go unused, they lag behind on compatibility and security updates, and most importantly, they take the user out of control of their add-ons," said Mozilla programmer Justin "Fligtar" Scott in a blog post about the feature.

Mozilla also is working to make sure that people really want the add-ons that already are installed. A dialog box will appear once after the new browser is installed that lets people select which add-ons to enable or disable. Those the user installed will be enabled by default, but those installed by third parties will be disabled by default.

Add-ons have long been a competitive asset for Firefox, but Safari, Chrome, and Opera now have their own versions of the technology. And add-ons can be a disadvantage, too, if they aren't updated at the same pace as Mozilla now updates Firefox or that aren't covered by Mozilla's automatic compatibility testing system.

The rapid-release process, pioneered by Google's Chrome and in use with Firefox since earlier this year, yields a new browser every six weeks. Among the implications: Differences from one version to the next are smaller, new features can be brought to users without waiting a year or more; delaying a feature carries a lower penalty and doesn't hold up other features; and slow-moving business customers and add-on programmers have had a harder time keeping up.

The rapid-release transition caused a lot of indigestion, but Mozilla is committed to it. A major course correction, though, appears likely with the proposal of the Extended Support Release version that's updated every 30 weeks.

Updating Firefox rapidly is a priority in part because new Web features developing rapidly and the browser market is arguably more competitive than ever. Firefox's previously steady growth in usage has plateaued with the arrival of Chrome, and Mozilla is at a grave disadvantage in the mobile browser market, where Firefox isn't installed anywhere by default.

A lot of Firefox users remain on version 3.6, which predated the rapid-release era. That's likely to change, though: On November 17, Mozilla plans to flip the switch for recommending Firefox 3.6 users update. Since many people typically follow the upgrade recommendation, that'll mean Firefox 8 will be the introduction many Firefox users will have to the rapid-release philosophy.

Mozilla isn't ceasing support of Firefox 3.6 yet, though. Today, it also plans to release the latest maintenance version 3.6.24
What else will they see when they arrive? A number of new features are coming in Firefox 8, according to release notes and other sources:

â€¢ Twitter is now an option for firefox's search bar, letting people more easily find Twitter hashtags (keywords beginning with the "#" character, such as fail) and Twitter usernames. Initially, the new feature is availalble only with English, Portuguese, Slovenian, and Japanese versions, though.

â€¢ Firefox now supports a new HTML feature that lets Web developers easily add context menus to their Web sites and Web apps--the options that appear when a person right-clicks with a mouse, for example. It's a technology that helps Web apps more easily match what native desktop apps can do today.

â€¢ Tabs get a tune-up, too. The animations should look better when people reorder tabs, and Firefox gets a new option to load tabs on restart only when a person makes those tabs active. Today, when people restart Firefox, the browser often becomes sluggish as it tries to reconstitute all the tabs it must reopen. The new option loads only the selected tab, leaving the others blank until a person selects that tab. It can be useful to get your main tab working fast, but it could be improved if it just deferred tab reloads until the computer had some attention to spare so the other tabs would still arrive automatically at some point.

â€¢ The Android version of Firefox 8 has a feature called master password to protect saved usernames and passwords. "This will help your private info stay private if you ever share or lose your Android device," Mozilla said. Grander changes are in the wings, though: a version of Firefox that uses Android's native interface for faster loading and better performance.

â€¢ The 3D graphics technology called WebGL has a new feature called cross-domain textures developed to work around a security problem. In a related move, ANGLE--a translation technology developed initially by Google to wire up OpenGL commands to DirectX equivalents for computers that don't have OpenGL support--is now available for Firefox on 64-bit Windows.

â€¢ And as usual, the Firefox 8 gets a lot of bug fixes, including several with the important new Web Socket interface for high-speed communications between browsers and servers.

Through the cascading development process, Firefox 9 is entering beta testing now, Firefox 10 is arriving as the rougher Aurora version of Firefox, and the developer-only Nightly build becomes Firefox 11. Firefox 9 is due December 20.

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2011-11-08T10:44:00.001-08:00

8 Things You Need To Know About The New Gmail http://bit.ly/tDACnY
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8 Things You Need to Know About the New Gmail

2011-11-08T10:43:00.001-08:00

foxnews.com - 11/2/2011
Leslie Meredith

Gmail announced Nov. 1 it is rolling out a redesigned interface that users may preview as soon as they see the "Switch to the new look" on their Gmail homepage. Gmail designers have opted for Google's trademark stripped-down interface along with new ways to customize the layout based on how an individual uses the free email service. The redesign is just that: you'll have a new layout to learn, but no new features.

Ready to switch? Here are eight key changes that users will experience in the new Gmail. Familiarize yourself now, so that the switch won't come as a shock.

1. Gmail automatically resizes itself to fit into any sized window. That means that when you adjust the size of a viewing window or use Gmail on different devices with different screen sizes, Gmail will adjust itself for a seamless experience from one display to another.

2. You can adjust display density settings. Choices range from "comfortable," to show the minimum number of lines, to "cozy" and "compact." This could be helpful when you change devices, such as reading email on a big-screen laptop, then switching to s maller-screen tablet. The density control is found in the Settings menu located under the gear icon.

3. Adjust the size of the label and chat panes to suit your use. For instance, if you're an organizer who uses labels for mail folders in addition to the standard Inbox, Starred and Sent, you can make that pane larger and hide Chat altogether. Alternately, chatterers can expand the size of their Chat list to show more contacts and fewer labels.

4. The labels themselves have more prominence in the new layout. They're placed in the front of the subject line to make follow-up more efficient. Labels go beyond Google's star system and can be created to group emails by topic or to indicate an action such as "To Do."

5. Gmail has added new themes that include high-resolution imagery supplied by iStockphoto for HD displays. If you've been using a theme background, your old theme will be imported when your account is moved to the new design. Themes can be viewed under the Settings menu.

6. Conversation threads have been reorganized for improved readability. Instead of stacking emails in a thread making identification impossible until the user opens the stack, Gmail has redesigned conversations in a visible, horizontal format, which could be the most useful redesign element in the new Gmail.

7. Each email in a thread also displays the sender's profile photo whenever available. This feature makes it quicker to identify different participants in a thread.

8. Gmail now boasts an all-in-one advanced search box. The box contains the same features as the old Gmail advanced serach, but laid out in a vertical format that fits with the new design. Users can also create a mail filter within the advanced search box, eliminating the need to open an additional window.

Bottom line: Change always takes some getting used to. The redesign should be available to Gmailers over the next several days. How long that window of choice will remain is unknown, but at some point Google will flip the switch for stragglers. Better to turn on the new format sooner than later-- you'll have more time to adjust.

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2011-11-04T05:43:00.001-07:00

Amazon creates Kindle double standard
http://bit.ly/tuCxwx
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Amazon creates Kindle double standard

2011-11-04T05:42:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 11/2/2011
Wilson Rothman

Today, Amazon announced that Kindle owners with Prime membership would be able to borrow books at no extra cost, every month, with no due dates. It's awesome news, but it suggests a new double-standard, one that will no doubt grow. Simply put, people who own Amazon hardware will get more stuff.

Until now, Amazon has been kind enough to treat e-book customers equally, whether they own a Kindle device, use the free app available on most smartphone and tablet platforms -- or both. That's what's awesome about Kindle books, and what makes them so competitive. Despite being locked down with digital rights management, you could "buy them once, and read them anywhere," to borrow Amazon's own phrasing.

When it comes to media, Amazon has been a little more strict. Though it has long allowed people to stream video over a computer or online device, it doesn't have an app for iPhone and iPad. Its streaming music service is Android friendly, though even that app couldn't be described as "lovely."

We knew the Kindle Fire would further concentrate Amazon's video and music offerings -- it only makes sense that you'd be able to stream content to that device, and there's no precedent for accessing that content via other mobile devices. But keeping the new lending program from iPhone, iPad and Android users, many of whom happily pay $80 per year for Prime service, is a change in course for Amazon's e-book strategy. Even the public library service launched earlier this year is available to users of the free app.

I've asked Amazon if there was an explanation for the new program's owner limitation, and will let you know if I hear back. It certainly doesn't seem like a technical limitation, as any generation of Kindle is eligible for the program.

In the meantime, I read this as Amazon's way of consolidating its audience, pulling an Apple, and tying hardware, software and services together in an increasingly lucrative fashion, and let's face it, one that won't be too bad for customers either. (The strategy sure as heck didn't hurt Apple.) I just wanted to point it out, alerting people to look for more closure of this nature, and let the people who really oppose closed systems to sound off.

Update: Amazon confirmed to me that this was a move to build Kindle ownership: "We built this service to make owning a Kindle device even more attractive," said a representative.

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2011-11-03T13:43:00.001-07:00

Norton now on tablets--and in your wallet -
http://bit.ly/tU2jD0
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Norton now on tablets--and in your wallet

2011-11-03T13:41:00.001-07:00

cnet.com - 11/2/2011
Seth Rosenblatt

While some app makers are taking a unified approach to Android, Norton has decided to split its security apps into a phone version and a tablet version.
Norton Tablet Security debuted today as Symantec also released a minor update to Norton Mobile Security, its smartphone version.

Norton Tablet Security is an updated version of Symantec's Android app, Norton Mobile Security. The Tablet Security version comes with an interface optimized for Android tablets. This means that instead of presenting its features in a narrow column, its interface is in a widescreen format.

Like its smartphone counterpart, Tablet Security offers anti-malware for scanning apps; Web protection, which uses Norton's Safe Web technology for protecting against malicious and fraudulent sites loaded in the default Android browser; and Web-based anti-theft measures, which allows users to protect their device after it's been lost.

The anti-theft options involve logging into a Web site, from which you can then lock the device, add a custom "device lost" message to the lockscreen, and track the device on a map. A clever "sneak peek" feature lets you take a photo using the device's front-facing camera, which then uploads it to an anti-theft site that stores and displays the picture.
The updated Norton Mobile Security app for phones now comes with a "scream" option, which forces the phone to emit a high-decibel siren. Good for irritating thieves, it's also not a bad way to find your phone when it's slipped under the couch cushions.

A one-year license to Norton Tablet Security comes at the steep price of $39.99 for one year, while a one-year Norton Mobile Security license costs $29.99, much closer to what other publishers with Android security apps charge. Symantec stressed that the pricing falls in with their product line, which continues at $39.99 for Norton Anti-Virus, $59.99 for Norton Internet Security, and $79.99 for Norton 360.

Still, $40 a year a tablet security app strikes me as more than most people will be willing to spend to protect a tablet when competitors rarely break the $30 per year mark.

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2011-11-02T20:25:00.001-07:00

Kids still lie to get on Facebook, parents still OK with that http://bit.ly/rvlWI6
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2011-11-01T19:49:00.001-07:00

Native Gmail app coming to iPhone soon?
http://bit.ly/rBv9Uu
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Native Gmail app coming to iPhone soon?

2011-11-01T19:43:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 11/1/2011
Rosa Golijan

The Gmail service is great. The iPhone is great. But the two products don't work together as well as they could right now. Where are push notifications? Where's one-click starring? What about that great priority inbox? Don't worry. Google may have a solution in the works.

Tech columnist MG Siegler reports that Google is "on the verge of" launTech columnist MG Siegler reports that Google is "on the verge of" launching its own native iPhone app. Based on information he has gathered from multiple sources, Siegler infers that the app may even be going through the Apple App Store approval process right now.

A native iPhone app would offer features not available through Gmail's mobile Web interface, like those I mentioned up top. But it's difficult to imagine that Apple might allow another mail app onto its mobile devices -- there was talk that it would never do such a thing in the past -- and the company's relationship with Google has been strained over the years.

Still Siegler has a solid track record when it comes to uncovering apps that are in the pipeline -- such as the Facebook as the Facebook iPad app which was finally released in the beginning of October -- and several other unlikely Google apps (including Google Voice) have gotten the thumbs up from Apple already.

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2011-10-27T18:33:00.001-07:00

How and why to dispose of your old TV properly
http://bit.ly/uJWRmN
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How -- and why -- to dispose of your old TV properly

2011-10-27T18:32:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 10/27/2011
Gary Merson

So you just bought a new flat panel to replace your old television. Before you throw that old TV into the local dump, you should be aware of how many toxic materials are in it, especially old-style cathode ray tube (CRT) sets.

Picture tubes contain pounds of toxic lead, and heavy metals such as cadmium. The cabinets and circuit boards contain brominated flame-retardants. Want more? HD Guru recently discovered a number of front projectors, including business models sold today, that contain lamps with Krypton 85, a radioactive isotope!

Fortunately, the radiation level is low and safe according to the European Lamp Companies Federation and based on IAEC standards.

How bad are these other toxins we listed? Mercury poisoning can cause tremors, emotional changes, insomnia, neuromuscular changes, headaches, disturbances in sensations and cognitive function performance deficits. At higher exposures, there may be kidney effects, respiratory failure and even death, according to the EPA.

The lower and long-term exposure to cadmium through air or diet can cause kidney damage, the EPA says.

High levels of brominated flame-retardants can alter pregnant women's thyroid hormones, which are critical to a baby's growth and brain development, according to a University of California study.

HD Guru spoke with David Thompson, director of the Corporate Environment Department at Panasonic. He also is president of the Electronic Manufacturers Recycling Management Co. (MRM) a nationwide e-waste recycling program.

Thompson explained that new plasmas and LCDs have eliminated many of the toxins in TVs. Panasonic stopped using lead in solder in 2006 plasmas and greatly reduced the amount of fire retardant. Plasmas and LED LCDs are mercury free, but not "regular" LCDs, which all contain the toxin in their cold-cathode florescent lamps (CCFL) behind the screen.

How to properly dispose of TVs
There are several recycling choices available to consumers. Best Buy allows the drop-off any CRT TVs with screens up to 32 inches, or any flat panels with screens up to 60 inches. However, our local store manager claimed they do not accept any screens above 32 inches, and the only way Best Buy would accept the TV was to pay for a $100 home pickup!

After a long conversation between national customer service and the local store's operations manager, the manager relented and now will allow consumers to drop off a 42-inch flat panel in compliance with Best Buy's corporate recycling policy as stated on its website. We worry the rules may change again when a customer arrives at the store.

MRM Recycling provides a list of drop-off recycling sites based on ZIP code. What the location accepts, according to the website, is limited to the brands noted after inputting your ZIP code. Again, we ran into a problem. After contacting a local drop-off site, the listing turned out to be incorrect and the location did not accept e-waste.

We checked out our local town sanitation department. While the town allows drop-off at our local dump or at designated locations on specific days, they continue to permit curbside pickup of TVs. However, the TVs end up in the local landfill and not recycled!

We recommend readers check the MRM website, your sanitation departments, or confirm your local Best Buy's drop-off policy before hauling a TV there and finding the store doesn't comply with its own policies.

TVs should never be tossed in the garbage, letting their toxic materials seep into the environment.

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2011-10-26T19:43:00.001-07:00

How to Email Like a Pro
http://bit.ly/uwlrWW
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How to Email Like a Pro

2011-10-26T19:39:00.001-07:00

pcworld.com - 10/26/201
Rick Broida

Email often straddles a fine line between help and hindrance. It's an invaluable tool, no doubt about it, but sometimes it can be a stubborn, unwieldy, and intrusive monster--maybe even a security threat.

So who's in charge around here--you or your inbox? With the right tools, services, and knowledge you can tame the unruly email beast. It's time to evolve from email user to email power user, and we've got just the six tips you need.

Start by learning how to add a snooze button to your inbox, then wrangle Gmail to make it smarter and more cooperative. Keep your inbox free of spam with disposable email addresses, then check to make sure your primary addresses haven't been compromised by hackers. Finally, become a master of email signatures, and learn how to send giant files that would normally choke a mail server.

Set Your Email to 'Snooze' So It Comes Back Later

Here's how to make messages bubble back to the top of your inbox--on your schedule.

A crowded inbox can be a productivity killer, if for no other reason than that important messages can get pushed out of sight by newer ones. What you need is a kind of "remind me later" button for email, a way to defer selected messages to a later date or time before they drop "below the fold."

Outlook and Gmail users should check out Baydin's Boomerang, which lets you reschedule email with just a few clicks. Or, if you're not a fan of plug-ins, services like Followup.cc and NudgeMail work with any email system: You just forward a message to a specialized address (tomorrow@nudgemail.com, for example, or nov30@followup.cc), and you're done. The email will reappear in your inbox at the designated time and date. And if you're still not ready to act on the message, just click one of the embedded "snooze" options and go back to sleep--er, work.

Both Followup.cc and NudgeMail are free. Boomerang for Outlook costs $30, though you can try it free for 30 days. Boomerang for Gmail offers its Basic plan (ten messages per month) free of charge; you can upgrade to a Personal plan (unlimited messages) for $5 monthly.

Tame Gmail With Priority Inbox and Dethreaded Conversations

Priority Inbox is Gmail's answer to email overload. By evaluating your reading and replying habits, it predicts which messages are most important and "floats" them to the top of your inbox, corraling the less-important stuff for later viewing. (You can tweak the prediction accuracy by clicking a "plus" or "minus" button for any given email.) It's kind of like having a personal assistant who separates the email wheat from the email chaff.

To enable Priority Inbox, head to your Gmail settings, click the Inbox tab, and then choose Priority Inbox from the "Inbox type" drop-down menu. Then click Save Changes and return to your inbox.

Alternatively, while you're in the settings area, consider turning off one of Gmail's most controversial features: Conversation View, which groups together messages with the same subject line. The longer a message thread gets, and the more people who participate in it, the harder it becomes to find the newest addition--or to review earlier replies. In other words, these "conversations" can quickly turned into muddled, incomprehensible, frustrating messes.

To turn off Conversation View--which will make messages appear one after another (as in most traditional email systems)--click over to the General tab, then set Conversation View to off. Click Save Changes when you're done.

Protect Your Privacy With Disposable Email Addresses

You know the routine: There's some new service, promotion, or online freebie that requires your email address--but you don't want the inevitable deluge of ads, updates, and other inbox spam. How can you sign up without actually sharing your email address?

What you need is a disposable address, one that won't negatively impact your inbox. Suppose you're staring at a registration form and don't want to use your regular email account. Just make up an address (like "ihatespam") and tack on @mailinator.com. Then head to the free Mailinator service and sign in using the address you just created; you'll find a Web-accessible inbox you can use to retrieve your promotional code, download link, or whatever. All Mailinator mail gets deleted within a day.
Mailinator isn't the only disposable-email game in town. Services like 10 Minute Mail, Humaility, and YopMail offer similarly convenient registration-free addresses. And if you're a Firefox user, Less Spam, Please integrates with these services, generating a disposable, reusable email address when you right-click in an email field and choose Insert a temporary mail address. Doesn't get much easier than that.

Instantly Paste Your Choice of Email Signatures

An email signature is a great way to share snippets of contact information: your phone number, Facebook/Twitter addresses, website, and so on. But with most email systems and programs, it's an all-or-nothing affair: signatures are either "on" or "off," and you're limited to just one appended block of text. What if you want to add your signature to some emails but not others? And what if you want to share different contact blurbs with business associates than you do with friends and family?

The solution: an "autotext" or macro program that quickly and automatically turns abbreviated text into expanded blocks of text.

For example, you could create a custom signature that you'll use only with clients and customers, and designate it "bizsig." Then, when you're done composing an email, you just type bizsig at the end. Presto: The autotext program instantly inserts your full business signature.

You could take the same approach for a more generalized signature, designating it "sig1" or the like, then just paste it in as needed. And that's the beauty of this approach: You apply a signature when you want one and skip it when you don't.

A number of programs afford this kind of macro-powered convenience; two of the most popular are AutoHotKey and PhraseExpress. Both are free, but the latter is definitely the more user-friendly of the two. (AutoHotKey requires a bit of scripting.)

Find Out If Your Email Account Has Been Hacked

It seems that every day we hear about another email database being compromised by hackers. The "good" news is that these petty thieves often post the stolen databases online. The bad news is, there's no way to know for sure if your email address has been compromised.

There is now: HackNotifier checks your email address against the growing number of publicly available "hacked" email databases. Just type in your address and click Have I been hacked? If the results are negative, you can rest easy--though you should continue to be diligent about using strong passwords and varying them from site to site.

If the news is not good, HackNotifier will tell you which accounts were compromised and provide more information about the leaks. The service also offers 24/7 account monitoring for $5 per year ($7 if you want instant notification via text message). What it doesn't do is offer any instructions on how to safeguard your email security if an account has been hacked.

Send Super-Huge File Attachments

As a general rule, mail servers don't like large file attachments. While some can accommodate files as large as 25MB, others balk if they exceed just 5MB. In these days of mammoth videos, photo libraries, PDFs, and the like, that doesn't always cut it.

What you need is a file-sharing service that bypasses your mail server. Countless options are available, including such cloud-storage stalwarts as Dropbox and SugarSync (which give you 2GB and 5GB of free space, respectively). You simply upload your file(s) to a public folder, copy the "share" link, and paste that link into an email. The recipients will be able to download the file(s) via the link, effectively taking mail servers out of the equation.

If you'd rather not sign up for yet another service, or you just want a more straightforward way to share your big files, try Ge.tt. In about the time it takes to read this sentence, you can upload a file and get a link to hand out--no registration, software, or plug-ins required. Files remain available for 30 days, or 90 if you elect to sign up for an account (which is free). That account also gives you real-time sharing statistics, something you definitely can't get from email.
On the other hand, if you prefer the traditional (some would say easier) email-attachment method, file-sharing service YouSendIt offers a free Microsoft Outlook plug-in that does an end run around your mail server, while still making big-file sharing as simple as creating an attachment. Note, however, that the maximum file size is 50MB unless you sign up for a Pro account ($10 monthly or $50 per year), which raises the maximum to 2GB.

With these tools in your arsenal, it won't be long before you're sending and sorting email like a pro.

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2011-10-25T18:27:00.003-07:00

5 Ways to Fix a Slow PC
http://bit.ly/uqbBzO
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5 Ways to Fix a Slow PC

2011-10-25T18:27:00.001-07:00

nytimes.com - 10/21/2011
PAUL BOUTIN

It seems to happen to most Windows users: You buy a new desktop or laptop PC. It runs fast. But a few months later, you're sure it's slower than it used to be. Ask for help on the Internet or in real life, and you usually get one of two answers: you must have downloaded a virus, or you need to defragment your hard drive. Bad advice. You probably don't have a virus, and Windows doesn't need you to run the defragmenting tool yourself these days. Your problems lie elsewhere.

After suffering with a slower-than-it-used-to-be PC myself, I appealed to Microsoft for help on how to solve the problem. The company came back with five suggestions for getting a Windows machine back to speed.

Check for viruses -- This usually isn't the problem, despite what your MacBook-toting friends tell you, but it's worth a look. If you haven't got antivirus software running already, download the free Microsoft Security Essentials software. If you get the impression that I find this answer annoying, there's a reason: antivirus software itself is almost guaranteed to slow down your computer even more.

Run Windows Update -- If you haven't updated your Windows operating system in a while, there may be speed fixes that Microsoft has published since you bought it. Of course, that doesn't explain why your PC would have actually become slower, but it might improve the problem. Microsoft recommends that you turn on automatic updating, but plenty of readers hate the automatic updates -- they always seem to insist on installing themselves in the middle of a deadline or an important chat session. I prefer to make Windows wait until I tell it to update.

Reduce your Web page history -- This one works for sure. Internet Explorer stores a historical archive of Web sites you have visited. If it gets too big, managing it slows the browser. Microsoft recommends keeping no more than a week's worth of Web history. The company has instructions for how to reduce the size of your history.

Disable add-ons -- Browser add-ons can slow browsing, especially if you install several of them. To disable add-ons, go to the Internet Explorer option Tools -> Manage Add-ons. Other browsers have similar configuration controls.

Free some disk space -- A disk that's running out of space can slow Windows a lot, as it juggles data that it would normally just spit out to the disk. To reclaim space, run the Disk Cleanup tool (Bring up the Start menu and type "disk cleanup tool" into the search box) to remove Internet cache files, clear the Recycling Bin and delete installed programs that you never use.

Still slow? Here's a fast and easy way to get help from the people who make Windows: Log in to Twitter and post a tweet with @MicrosoftHelps in it to get attention from the Microsoft customer support team weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Pacific time. Microsoft has plenty of online documentation, but having a human being help you navigate it is much quicker--especially if you're already crawling.

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2011-10-24T08:13:00.003-07:00

Fridge magnet poses security threat to iPad 2
http://bit.ly/n3orwF
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Fridge magnet poses security threat to iPad 2

2011-10-24T08:13:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 10/21/2011
Rosa Golijan

You're security conscious and always make sure that your iPad 2 is locked when you leave it alone for a moment -- but what if that weren't enough to keep an evildoer from accessing your data or apps? What if someone could unlock your iPad 2 by using a simple refrigerator magnet?

Don't laugh -- because they can.

As the folks at 9to5 Mac and the German Apple forum Apfeltalk discovered, it turns out that anyone with an Apple Smart Cover or other magnetic accessory -- including something like a simple fridge magnet -- can gain partial access to a passcode-protected iPad 2.

All this sneaky individual has to do is press down the device's power button (that's the one on the top edge) until "slide to power off" appears on the screen. After that he or she simply slides a magnet along the right edge of the device's screen until it dims briefly and then taps the on-screen "cancel" button.

Ta da!

The perp now has access to whichever app was open when your iPad 2 was locked. If that app was Mail, then he or she can browse through all your messages, and even send some on your behalf. If the open app was Photos, then he or she can now see all your silly snapshots. If the app was Contacts ... well, you get the idea. The magnet trick provides full access to whichever app was open.

If no app was open when the iPad 2 was locked, then the evildoer is able to shuffle around your app icon arrangement ... and search your entire device by swiping over to the Spotlight feature. As you can see in the image below, this means that he or she can see previews of messages or emails simply by guessing at a few random search queries. (This is of course assuming that you haven't changed Spotlight's default settings and forbidden it from searching through certain things.)

Now before you panic too much, it's worth noting that the magnet trick doesn't allow someone complete access to your iPad 2. Attempts to open up any app other than the one which was running when the iPad was locked -- or to open any app while on the home screen -- will fail.

The flaw was discovered after the iOS 5 roll-out, but it's possible that it's been around as long as the iPad 2 has. The first-generation iPad is not affected, as it doesn't have a magnetic sensor for shutting off the screen.

Thankfully, until there's an official fix from Apple, you can protect yourself, though the measure comes with a minor inconvenience. All you have to do is toggle off the "iPad Cover Lock/Unlock" feature. (You can do this under the "General" tab in the "Settings" app.) You'll have to turn off your screen manually when you close the cover, but at least you'll be safe from snooping.

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2011-10-24T06:00:00.001-07:00

Siri lets strangers control some iPhone functions without a password
http://bit.ly/o59xDm
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Siri lets strangers control some iPhone functions without a password

2011-10-24T05:59:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 10/19/2011
Bob Sullivan

Apple's new Siri iPhone 4S personal assistant may be a lot of fun, but she's far too willing to talk with strangers, says U.K.-based security research firm Sophos Ltd.

There's been plenty of talk about Siri's funny personality quirks, and how she will respond with sharp wit -- even when owners swear at her or talk dirty to her.

The problem is this same sense of wit wasn't applied to Siri's security settings, according to Sophos.

By default, Siri will take commands from anyone, even if the phone itself is in lock-down mode, researcher Graham Cluleysaid in a blog post. That means a stranger could pick up a locked iPhone 4S and send an e-mail, send a text message or many other things the rightful owner of the gadget can do -- without needing to enter a four-digit passcode.

As software developers are fond of saying, this isn't a bug, it's a feature.

Users who delve into their iPhone security settings will find an option, turned on by default, that says "allow access to Siri when locked with a passcode."

That's a poor security design choice, Cluley said.

"What's disappointing to me though is that Apple had a clear choice here," he said. "They could have chosen to implement Siri securely, but instead they decided to default to a mode which is more about impressing your buddies than securing your calendar and e-mail system," he wrote.

Apple didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

Tests at msnbc.com show Siri's friendliness doesn't extend to all iPhone features. She wouldn't read out existing e-mails without prompting users for a passcode.

But msnbc.com's Rosa Golijan found a long list of iPhone features she could perform, even while the phone was locked. She was able to: look up contacts and retrieve full contact information, including nicknames; learn who sent text messages to the owner; make phone calls, including international calls; and turn alarms on and off.

Curiously, Siri refused to do other things: she wouldn't reveal recent call history, for example, or spit out directions. And most critically, when asked to unlock the phone, Siri said, "I'm sorry, I can't do that."

The selective behavior means Apple considered security when creating Siri's locked-phone permissions.

"But there's plenty you can do with the phone locked, and there's a lot of damage you can cause," Golijan said.

Users concerned about Siri being overly friendly can turn off the Siri security bypass in the Settings/General/Passcode Lock menu on their iPhones.

"Those of us who work in the security arena have often banged on about the importance of securing your smartphone with a password or passcode to prevent unauthorized access," Cluley said. "Most mobile phone manufacturers have recognized that as so many people use their smartphones to manage their diaries, their private communications and their social lives, it's good to have some form of security."

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2011-10-20T12:20:00.001-07:00

Google offers encrypted Web search by default
http://bit.ly/roKQOm
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Google offers encrypted Web search by default

2011-10-20T12:19:00.001-07:00

cnet.com - 10/18/2011
Elinor Mills

Google announced today that it will encrypt by default Web searches and results for users who are signed in.
People who don't have a Google account or are signed out can go directly to https://www.google.com, the company said in a blog post.

Encrypting the communications between an end user and the Google search engine servers will protect against snooping by anyone who might be sniffing on an unsecured Wi-Fi network, for instance. Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) is available now for Web search, image search and all the search modes except for Maps, Google said in this seperate post.

For example, when you search over SSL for "dogs," Google encrypts the search and results that are returned, but clicking on a result ends the encrypted connection unless the destination is on "https://."

"Although SSL offers clear privacy and security benefits, it does not protect against all attacks. The benefits of SSL depend on your browser's list of trusted root certificates, the security of the organizations that issue those certificates, and the way in which you and your browser handle certificate warnings," Google says. "In addition, while the connection between your computer and Google will be encrypted, if your computer is infected with malware or a keylogger, a third party might also be able to see the queries that you typed directly."

Google began SSL default in Gmail in January 2010 and began offering an encrypted search option four months later.

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Drop test: iPhone 4S vs. Galaxy S II

2011-10-18T20:32:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 10/17/2011
Wilson Rothman

In case you were wondering whether an iPhone 4S or a Galaxy S II would fare better when dropped onto concrete, I'll give you a little hint: plastic tends to survive where glass does not.

We're not saying there's a lot of scientific method here, but it's amusing, and the folks who make these hot-gadget smasheroo videos, warranty provider SquareTrade, keep their sales spiel to a minimum.

They provide a nice service, but if you're really worried about gear breakage, it's probably better to invest your cash in a good protective case. And as SquareTrade is quick to point out, "We don't cover intentional damage like you see in the video."

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2011-10-17T18:39:00.001-07:00

Scan for possible spammers on your Twitter
http://bit.ly/qiOVyX
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Scan for possible spammers on your Twitter account

2011-10-17T18:37:00.001-07:00

cnet.com - 10/13/2011
Nicole Cozma

With so many risks to your accounts and computer on the Web, wouldn't it be nice to know that none of the people you follow on Twitter are adding to those risks? Safego, a Bitdefender product, offers a free service that will scan your Twitter account for suspicious users, links, and messages. It won't take any action without your consent, but it can be set to alert you when a new issue arises. Here's how to get started:

Step 1: Head over to http://ping.fm/2gTAF

Step 2: Log in with your Twitter account. This means the Web site will not need you to sign up for a new account (hooray!).

Step 3: Authorize Safego when prompted by Twitter.

Step 4: Wait as Safego redirects you back to its site and starts scanning your Twitter friends for any suspicious behavior. The more people you follow; the longer this process will take.

Step 5: Once scanning is complete, check out the Friends link on the top banner (next to the Scan Now button). This will change to reflect how many, if any, of your friends are showing suspicious activity.

Step 6: Click on this Friends link to get a list of flagged friends.

Step 7: From the list that appears, you can choose to "unfollow" or clear your flagged friends.

In the notifications area (link at top, or right-hand side on dashboard) you'll see the alerts that are currently disabled. If you'd like to enable any of these to help protect your Twitter account, click on Settings at the top and choose the alerts that work best for you. Additionally, you can use Safego to scan a Twitter user for suspicious activities before you follow them from the Home dashboard.

Don’t put yourself at risk- visit GeeksOnCall.com to ensure your data is safe!

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2011-10-14T11:36:00.001-07:00

Phony Netflix Android app steals account data
http://bit.ly/rt0dOC
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Phony Netflix Android app steals account data

2011-10-14T11:27:00.001-07:00

cnet.com - 10/12/2011
Elinor Mills

It looks like a legitimate Netflix app, but it's not. There's an Android app circulating that looks very much like the real Netflix mobile app, but it's actually a Trojan that steals account information.

The fake app, which was found on an online user forum, sends the user's log-in information to a remote server and displays a message saying there is an incompatibility issue with the hardware and then attempts to uninstall itself, according to a Symantec blog posty.

The server that was receiving the stolen log-in data appeared to be offline today, Symantec said.

With the pilfered log-in information, the app creators could hijack accounts and they might have access to some information. However, they won't be able to easily get to the credit card data because the site only displays the last four digits of the card number. So it's unclear how they planned to make money off the scam. It might be a test run for a phony mobile banking app, which could yield access to much more sensitive information.

Typically, malicious apps are versions of legitimate apps that have been modified to include malware and then repackaged and distributed. But in this case, the app is a completely different program.

Confusion over the release of the real Netflix app created an opportunity for the app creators and increased the chances that people would get duped into downloading the malicious app, Symantec said in the post. Netflix offered an Android app in limited release to only certain devices earlier this year, but recently published its app on the Android Market with support for multiple devices.

"A gap in availability, combined with the large interest of users attempting to get the popular service running on their Android device, created the perfect cover for Androidi.Fakenific to exploit," Symantec said.

People should be careful where they get their apps and download them from trusted sources only.

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2011-10-13T18:44:00.001-07:00

Spam messages are down - stay vigilant http://bit.ly/pZkllg
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Spam messages are down, but stay vigilant

2011-10-13T18:42:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 10/13/2011
Athima Chansanchai

In a bi-annual security analysis, spam messages are down, but no one should start breathing any easier.

The Microsoft Security Intelligence Report focused on the first half of 2011 to bring to the surface the dangers often lurking right in front of you as you're going about your daily business on your computers.

(Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

The 168-page tome is bursting with more insights than we could fit in a blog post, but Ars Technica's take-away intrigued us, too:

In July 2010, 89.2 billion spam messages were blocked by Microsoft's Forefront Online Protection for Exchange service, which is used by thousands of enterprise customers. By June 2011, that monthly total was down to 25 billion.

The report attributes the dramatic downshift to "takedowns of two major botnets: Cutwail, which was shut down in August 2010 , and Rustock, which was shut down in March 2011 following a period of dormancy that began in January. The magnitude of this decrease suggests that coordinated takedown efforts such as the ones directed at Cutwail and Rustock can have a positive effect on improving the health of the email ecosystem."

While overall it seems like measures like these are working, this is no time to yield vigilance. Taking the pre-emptive step of regularly installing security updates "is one of the most fundamental steps that IT departments and individual users can take to reduce their risk from malicious software."

The report found that phishers, which traditionally have targeted financial sites, have now turned their sights on social networks, where they "can effectively target many more people per site. Still, the potential for direct illicitaccess to victims' bank accounts means that financial institutions remain perennially popular phishing targets, and they continue to receive the largest or second-largest number of impressions each month."

Nearly 30 percent are run of the mill advertisements for everyday household and medicine cabinet supplies -- the complete opposite of bringing sexy back. In fact, sexually explicit email only makes up just about five percent of potentially damaging spam messages that were blocked by filters.

Consistent with previous reports, "nonsexual pharmaceutical products" and "nonpharmaceutical product advertisements" together account for the majority of spam messages (28 percent and 17.2, respectively). The third biggest category was the "419" advance-fee loan scams (13.2 percent). These emails were blocked using Microsoft's Forefront Online Protection for Exchange (FOPE), which "scans billions of email messages every year to identify and block spam and malware."

If you want to see what else wants to infiltrate your email, see the pie chart above, which breaks down the kinds of messages that want to grab your attention -- as well as your money and your identity.
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2011-10-12T10:53:00.001-07:00

BlackBerry Issues Spread To US
http://bit.ly/mYcnXV
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BlackBerry Issues Spread to U.S. as Millions Are Cut Off Worldwide

2011-10-12T10:51:00.001-07:00

foxnews.com - 10/12/2011
newswires

BlackBerry service outages spread into the U.S. on Wednesday, following days of disruptions across Europe and Asia that left millions without text communication services and Research in Motion struggling to fix what it called "a switching failure" in its private network.

RIM's official Twitter feed was last updated Tuesday night, saying problems were being resolved and it was sorry for the inconvenience.

Reuters reported that the company was advising large clients of the outage in the Americas as users in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and India suffered patchy email service and no access to browsing and messaging -- ratcheting up negative sentiments towards a company already losing market share to Apple and Samsung.

RIM, which had said on Tuesday that services had returned to normal, said later the problems had actually spread beyond EMEA and India to Argentina, Brazil and Chile.

"The messaging and browsing delays ... were caused by a core switch failure within RIM's infrastructure," it said. "As a result, a large backlog of data was generated and we are now working to clear that backlog and restore normal service."

The service disruptions are the worst since an outage swept north America two years ago, and come as Apple prepares to put on sale its already sol-out iPhone 4S on Friday.

"It's a blow upon a bruise. It comes at a bad time," said Richard Windsor, global technology specialist at Nomura.

"One possibility could be that it encourages client companies to look more at other options such as allowing users to connect their own devices to the corporate server and save themselves the cost of buying everyone a BlackBerry."

Many companies, no longer seeing the need to pay to be locked into RIM's secure proprietary email service, have already begun allowing employees to use alternative smartphones, particularly Apple's iPhone, for corporate mail.

RIM has made inroads into the youth market attracted by its free BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) service, partially compensating for its losses in the corporate market. But new products like its PlayBook tablet computer have been poorly received.

Following a dismal set of quarterly results and a plunge in its share price, some investors are now calling for a break-up, sale or change of management at the company.

Increasingly frustrated users tweeted their frustration on Wednesday. Veteran British entrepreneur Alan Sugar, who founded electronics company Amstrad in 1968, tweeted: "In all my years in IT biz, I have never seen such an outage as experienced by Blackberry. I can't understand why it's taking so long to fix."

Some customers used humor to deal with the situation. One joke making the rounds on Twitter said: "What did the one BBM user say to the other? Nothing."

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2011-10-11T10:28:00.001-07:00

Facebook Launches IPad App
http://bit.ly/nkxlLn
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Facebook Launches iPad App, Mobile Platform

2011-10-11T10:26:00.001-07:00

foxnews.com - 10/11/2011
AllThingsD

After months of anticipation and leaks, Facebook on Monday launched a mobile app platform and an iPad app.

Facebook users previously had to use their computers for most of their Facebook gaming and app needs, but now they should be able to play and participate from almost any device with a web browser -- and they may get a better experience if it happens to be an Apple iOS device.

Though this launch had been described as an affront to Apple, the new Facebook mobile versions will defer to Apple's native platform and even its payments system whenever possible.

A big reason why Facebook apps, especially games, did not work on phones was because iOS devices do not support Flash. Facebook has helped a select set of developers -- Audiovroom, Branchout, Flixster, Gilt Groupe, Huffington Post, EA, Moblyng, Storm8, Wooga and Zynga -- create HTML5 versions of a selection of their apps and game titles that will work in mobile web browsers.

But HTML5 still does not offer the performance that many complex apps require, so if the developers have created native versions of their apps, they can also connect Facebook users directly to that native app.

Now, when a friend sends you an invitation to play Words With Friends, and you view it on the Facebook app on your iPhone, you can click to play and be taken to the Words With Friends app. If you do not have the app, you will be directed to Apple's App Store.

If you are using an Android phone, you will be taken to an HTML5 version in your mobile web browser. Facebook CTO Bret Taylor told AllThingsD Monday that Facebook is also working on an update to its native Android application.

While many people will appreciate having a more consistent Facebook app experience, this launch also should make it much easier for users to find new mobile apps through their friends. Mobile app discovery has been a huge challenge for developers, and social could help unlock that problem by showing people what apps their friends are using.

"We really hope that we can fill a gap in app discovery here," Taylor said.

On the downside, there is one place Facebook was not able to negotiate a consistent experience for users: payments, which was a major sticking point in ongoing discussions with Apple.

Facebook Credits cannot be used to pay for virtual goods in native iOS apps or mobile web apps running within a Facebook app on iOS. Instead, users will have to buy separate in-app currency through Apple's own in-app payment system. The move comes after Facebook just required all of its game developers to switch to exclusive use of Credits earlier this year.

"We realize there's some inconsistency," Taylor admitted. He would not say if Facebook gets a share of revenue for in-app purchases it refers to Apple.

As for the Facebook iPad app, it has been close to being released for over a year, according to people who have seen it and worked on it -- though the app has changed in scope throughout.

Along with the ability to use Facebook platform apps, the iPad version will feature "an immersive and full-screen photos experience," plus new and speedy chat and messages interfaces, Taylor said.

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2011-10-10T06:20:00.001-07:00

5 Reasons The Amazon Kindle Beats The IPad http://bit.ly/qSaJka
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5 Reasons the Amazon Kindle Beats the iPad

2011-10-10T06:18:00.001-07:00

foxnews.com - 10/9/2011
Blake Snow

The Kindle Fire is burning up the charts.

Purported pre-sales of the newly announced Kindle Fire by Amazon suggest the tablet is on track to outsell the iPad in first-month sales. If accurate, that's big -- really big. So far, competing brands have done nothing to rival Apple's splash nor dominance of the growing tablet market. The Fire is the first real competitor.

Apple iPad sales are as brisk as ever, of course, but there's plenty of reason for the excitement surrounding the all-new, color screen, touch-enabled Kindle Fire. To borrow an Apple word, it's different. But it's also similar enough to the iPad that a lot of consumers might view it as a worthy alternative -- indeed, something better.

1. Eye-popping affordability. At $199, the Kindle Fire sells for less than half the price of the iPad, which starts at $500. So for every entry-level iPad bought and sold, you could buy two and a half Fires. That alone is turning heads, especially since the previously released and uninspired iPad clones have tried to charge as much as Apple for a much less desired product.

2. A lot more content. Content is king. And iPad may be king of the apps, but Kindle Fire bests it considerably by volume of content. The Fire will have immediate access to the 18 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, and books already available on Amazon's easy-to-browse virtual shelves.

Apple doesn't cite how many TV shows or songs are available, but the number appears to be far less in annecdotal searches.

Want to rent instead of buy? There's an app ... er, a solution for that, too: 10,000 movies and TV shows can be streamed instantly. Those numbers are huge, and growing everyday.

3. Free storage. If you want to take all your content with you, the entry-level iPad and its puny 16 gig storage drive leaves a lot to be desired. You can buy more, but it'll cost you. Which is why the Fire's sales pitch -- free cloud storage for all your Amazon content -- is so enticing, especially since Amazon is already the no. 1 digital bookstore, the no. 2 mp3 store (behind Apple), and high on the list in other categories.

For content you don't buy from Amazon, there are about 6 gigs of free space on the Fire to do with as you please.

4. Democratized apps. One of the biggest knocks on the Apple AppStore is that it's a closed system--if Apple doesn't like your stuff, no app for you. One of the biggest knocks on the Google Android software powering nearly every other tablet out there is that it's too open--you're required to sift through a lot of junk to get to the goods.

The Kindle Fire hopes to bridge that gap with the Amazon Appstore, which remains open like Android, but only makes available the very best and most popular apps from the open market. The result: More free apps without the hassle, the best of both worlds approach.

5. Easier to hold. The 10-inch iPad is a lot of fun, but hard to handle with one hand due to its weight and size. The 6-inch Kindle reader, on the other hand, is a lot easier to hold. With only one hand, you can hold it for several hours without fatigue. The new 7-inch Kindle Fire promises the same: capable of being held with one hand, lighter than the iPad, and a lot more portable.

All of those pros don't come without sacrifices, however. The Fire's screen is 3" smaller than the iPad, which might not make it as ideal a device for watching movies or playing HD games (that's to be seen, though). Furthermore, the Fire lacks a lens and microphone, so it won't be able to snap photos, shoot video, or accept video calls.

But for $300 less, those are things I bet a lot of people can live without.

The Kindle Fire goes on sale Nov. 15 for $199

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2011-10-07T16:19:00.001-07:00

Does it Make Sense to Buy an 8GB iPhone?
http://bit.ly/odeYY7
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Does it Make Sense to Buy an 8GB iPhone?

2011-10-07T16:18:00.001-07:00

btimes.com - 10/7/2011
Clint Demeritt

The early-adopter crowd was disappointed with the announcement of the iPhone 4S instead of the iPhone 5 during Tuesday's Apple press conference. However, the frugal tech-savvy buyer had plenty to celebrate with the announcement of some cheaper iPhones.

Apple unveiled an 8GB iPhone 4 priced at $99 during the press showing, as well as a free 8GB iPhone 3GS. Both require a two-year contract to receive the special prices however. In comparison, the new iPhone 4S comes in 16GB, 32GB and a 64GB models costing $199, $299 and $399, respectively, with the two-year contract.

So are these cheaper iPhones too much of a bargain, or do they have some real value? It's best to start with what you're paying extra for in the 4S and work backward.

The iPhone 4S has some significant upgrades over the iPhone 4. The 4S received a camera upgrade with a 8-megapixel camera and 1080p video recording capability. The iPhone 4 has a 5-megapixel camera with 720p video recording. The 4S also gets Apple's dual-core A5 processor, making it twice as powerful as the 4 with seven-times-faster graphics.

The iPhone 3GS has only a 3-megapixel camera, and its video camera doesn't record in HD. The 3GS lacks the 3-axis gyroscope of the iPhone4 and 4S, but has an accelerometer. A gyroscope can sense how a device is being rotated around many axes, where an accelerometer has a fixed axis and can only measure speed of rotation.

The biggest concession the 3GS makes is it doesn't have HSUPA (High-Speed Uplink Packet Access). HSUPA is just an improvement on High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) technology. Simply put, the 3GS wireless data speeds are just not as fast as the iPhone4 and 4Ss. Phone calls should be fine, the 3GS just won't download and upload data like pictures and e-mails as fast and it will cost a little more to send that data.

Though the iPhone 4 and 3GS aren't as powerful as the 4S, they still share in one of the best upgrades announced during Apple's "Let's Talk iPhone" press conference: the new mobile operation system, iOS 5. The biggest thing to come out of the iOS 5 is the new iCloud service, which gives users free 5GB of online media storage. The iOS 5 also comes with a new, less intrusive notification center, a new messenger app and a better camera interface.

But the iPhone 4 and 3GS won't get one of the 4S' coolest new iOS5 features, Siri. Siri is a voice assistant app that accepts more conversational commands and can perform a wide range of tasks on the iPhone. You can ask it to set your alarm clock or find a particular restaurant in the neighborhood. You can use Voice Control on the other two, you will just have to speak more like a robot, and it doesn't have as much functionality. The iPhone 4S' A5 chip is what gives it the power to run Siri.

So the final verdict is the iPhone 4 and 3GS are pretty capable devices, but if you just want the "wow" factor of the iPhone and want it just to make phone calls and play a few games, the 3GS is a great free option. However, users won't be able to take full advantage of the iCloud service, since the data exchange will be slower and more costly.

If you think you'll be doing a little more media downloading and want a few more bells and whistles, go with the iPhone 4. But if you want the best toy in town, get yourself a shiny new iPhone 4S, which comes out Oct. 14.

Also if you want an iPhone, but don't want it on Sprint, Verizon or AT&T, you can unlock the iPhone 3GS, which means you pay the unreduced price of $375. An unlocked phone will work on any GSM network as long as it has a SIM card. It just might not transmit data as fast as on the official three wireless networks.

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2011-10-06T15:43:00.001-07:00

HTC cooking up fix for security flaw http://bit.ly/p8w2Kq
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HTC cooking up fix for security flaw

2011-10-06T15:41:00.001-07:00

cnet.com - 10/4/2011
Lance Whitney

HTC is promising to plug a security hole in its Android phones that gives certain mobile apps access to a user's personal information.

Recently discovered by a trio of researches, the vulnerability can expose e-mail addresses, network and GPS locations, phone numbers, SMS data, and system logs to apps that connect to the Internet. The flaw exists among HTC's portfolio of Android phones, including the Evo 3D, the Evo 4G, and the Thunderbolt, and has been traced to a logging tool that HTC recently installed during a software update.

In a statement released today, HTC acknowledged the security hole in its software but tried to assuage its users about the impact.

"HTC takes claims related to the security of our products very seriously. In our ongoing investigation into this recent claim, we have concluded that while this HTC software itself does no harm to customers' data, there is a vulnerability that could potentially be exploited by a malicious third-party application," the company said in its statement. "A third party malware app exploiting this or any other vulnerability would potentially be acting in violation of civil and criminal laws. So far, we have not learned of any customers being affected in this way and would like to prevent it by making sure all customers are aware of this potential vulnerability."

The company also tried to assure its users that it's hard at work developing a fix for the flaw.

"HTC is working very diligently to quickly release a security update that will resolve the issue on affected devices," the company added. "Following a short testing period by our carrier partners, the patch will be sent over-the-air to customers, who will be notified to download and install it. We urge all users to install the update promptly. During this time, as always, we strongly urge customers to use caution when downloading, using, installing and updating applications from untrusted sources."

But one of the researchers who uncovered the flaw and shared his initial findings on AndroidPolice seemed dubious about HTC's response.

In another posting at AndroidPolice, researcher Artem Russakovskii said that he "applauds" HTC's attempt to remedy the problem, but he questions whether the patch would just set up some type of "authentication scheme" that would continue to allow personal information to be sent back to HTC or mobile carriers.

"Furthermore, I'd like a clarification on what the Android VNC server, which allows remote access, is doing on affected devices," added Russakovskii. And he cited a number of other services found on HTC devices that he believes could be also be lacking in security.

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2011-10-05T07:47:00.001-07:00

Apple's iOS 5 available in Oct., brings 200 new features http://bit.ly/qe8Iyk
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Apple's iOS 5 available on Oct. 12, brings 200 new features

2011-10-05T07:45:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 10/4/2011
Rosa Golijan

The next major release of Apple's mobile operating system, iOS 5, will be available on October 12. It brings over 200 new features to iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch devices. Here's a review of some of the highlights.

Notifications: Apple listened to users' pleas for a better iOS notification system and created something called the Notifications Center. It's a central spot for all your notifications -- including those from apps -- and it can be accessed by swiping your finger down from the top of your iPhone. (This might sound rather familiar to Android users ...)

iMessage: Apple has created a new messaging service that'll work between iOS users. You'll be able to send texts, photos, videos, contacts, and group messages between the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. The feature basically sounds a lot like BlackBerry Messenger and will show delivery receipts, read receipts, and typing indicators. Messages will be pushed to all your devices -- and encrypted. Of course the whole thing works over either Wi-Fi or 3G.

Reminders: This little feature is basically a central to-do list which will keep you organized. As it's location aware, it can even remind you of events based on where you are.

Twitter integration: Due to the incredible popularity of Twitter, Apple has chosen to fully integrate it into iOS. This means that you'll be able to tweet directly from the Camera, Photo, YouTube, Maps, and Contacts apps. You can even use Twitter to automatically update the photos in your contact list.

Newsstand: Apple has created something called Newsstand. It's supposed to act as a direct line to magazines, newspapers, and other media. It allows for background downloads of media and places it into something that resembles the iBooks app.

Camera: The Camera app has finally received a lock screen short cut so that you can start snapping photos even faster -- without even having to enter a passcode. As a bonus, you can now use the volume up button to take a picture. Oh, and you can pinch-to-zoom right in the Camera app.

Photo editing: You can now do basic photo editing -- such as cropping, red eye reduction, enhancements, and such -- directly on your iPhone and right out of the box.

Game Center: The iOS Game Center now has photos, the ability to compare rank and scores against your friends, a way to see friends of friends, recommended friends, and game recommendations. There will now also be turn-based games in iOS, playable on multiple devices.

Safari: Apple's giving its mobile browser some improvements such as Reader, a little feature which will kick in when you're reading a story on a website. It will basically provide you with an option to make the content easier on the eyes and provide you with a link to email the story.

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2011-10-04T13:11:00.001-07:00

iPhone 5 emails infecting Windows PCs
http://bit.ly/nVQXNQ
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Beware: iPhone 5 emails infecting Windows PCs

2011-10-04T13:09:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 10/3/2011
Athima Chansanchai

Taking advantage of the white-hot anticipation of Apple's big iPhone 5 reveal Tuessday, malware in the form of a preview email seems to be targeting Windows users.

Sophos' Graham Cluley posted about the lurking danger, using the Dutch-based Personal Computer Magazine's Abram Wagenaar as an example of a journalist who has been sent an email purporting to be from the official Apple camp.

While the idea of a see-through iPhone is the stuff of sci-fi dreams, nothing we've seen in the legit rumor mill even comes close to such an astounding revelation. And 5GS? That's almost more absurd. But nevertheless, we can understand how the temptation to click on the crazy can be a compulsion, especially when the buzz is so big. The target audience is there: It's predicted that 41 percent of mobile phone users are going to buy an iPhone 5.

Cluley says that for those who can't resist clicking, it "takes you to some Windows malware (lucky Mac fans are being ignored by the hackers on this occasion) which Sophos detects as Mal/Zapchas-A."

At least it sounds curable with standard anti-virus software. Sopho says that protection has been available for this variety of bug since July 2008.

Windows users have already come under attack this year with fake iPhone 5 email right around WWDC time. But that email was even more implausible, showing a built-in slide keyboard. Please, people! Think before you click.

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2011-10-03T08:05:00.001-07:00

Kindle vs Nook vs iPad
http://bit.ly/pFGKI6
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Kindle vs. Nook vs. iPad: Which e-book reader should you buy?

2011-10-03T08:03:00.001-07:00

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cnet.com - 10/2/2011
John Falcone

Editors' note: This story was updated October 2, 2011 to reflect the latest product announcements and to address upcoming rumored products.

Amazon pretty much invented the mainstream e-book market, so it's no surprise that the company's recently announced fall product line-up has turned the market--and this buying guide--on its head. Meanwhile, imminent new products from Sony, a big new iPad software update, and rumored products from Barnes & Noble are altering the consumer e-book reader market as well.

We're in the process of updating this story from top to bottom. In the meantime, however, here's a quick cheat sheet on what you need to know about upcoming products:

New Amazon Kindles: Amazon announced three new e-ink Kindle models for fall 2011, including new touch-screen models. All are affordably priced from $79 to $189. The company has also generated huge buzz with the debut of its new color 7-inch tablet, the $199 Kindle Fire. However, most of these new products won't be out until mid- to late November. (In the meantime, the 2010 Kindle has been renamed the Kindle Keyboard, and is selling at a discount while supplies last.) Verdict: Worth waiting for. There's a lot to like about the new $79 Kindle, so we'd hold off on any buying decisions for a few weeks until we can review the step-up models--including the Kindle Fire.

New Sony Reader: Sony, a pioneer in the e-reader space, is releasing its 2011 Sony Reader Wi-Fi PRS-T1 in October for $149. Verdict: Needs a price cut. We know this model offers a touch-compatible e-ink screen, Wi-Fi, audio playback capability, and support for reading library books--but the forthcoming Kindle Touch matches all of those features for $50 less.

Rumored new Barnes & Noble Nook Color: The original Nook Color was launched in October 2010, so it wouldn't be at all surprising to see a new model hit now (about a year later). There are rumors--completely unconfirmed, we must point out--that we'll see a refreshed 7-inch Nook Color, and/or a larger Nook Color for $349. Verdict: B&N needs to go big or go home. Barnes & Noble's Nook Color and $139 Nook Touch were the best readers in their respective price classes for months--with an emphasis on the "were." Amazon's aggressive new pricing means that B&N needs to announce and release any updated products ASAP, and do so at lower prices than Amazon, regardless of how it hurts profits.

Apple iPad gets iOS 5: At $499, the iPad is two to six times more expensive than the e-reader products listed above--but as a full-fledged multimedia tablet that competes with some laptops, it's really a different class of product. Nevertheless, an upcoming software update (to iOS 5) will bring even more reading options, most notable of which is the new Newsstand app--basically an app store for magazines and newspapers. Verdict: An excellent tablet is only getting better, but the iPad's comparatively large price--and size--will give bargain hunters pause as cheaper competition looms.

CNET's current recommendation: Wait The next six to eight weeks--from early October to mid-November--will completely overturn the e-book and tablet product categories. The new and updated products listed above offer the potential for more choices and better values than we've ever seen. We strongly recommend that you hold off on any buying decisions until we've gotten a chance to fully review all of these new products, and update our recommendations accordingly.

Shopping for an e-book reader? The good news is that you have more choices--at better prices--than ever before. The bad news? There are more choices than ever before. In the realm of dedicated e-book readers, the market has consolidated around a handful of major players: mainly Amazon and Barnes & Noble, with Kobo and Sony bringing up the rear. But every major tablet--including the Apple iPad 2 and nearly every Android tablet--also doubles as a reader.

So, should you get an inexpensive e-ink reader or go for a more versatile color tablet? Should you wait for rumored new versions of the Kindle or the Nook Color? Those are the dilemmas facing any shopper today. But don't worry; CNET's here to help. If you're an experienced shopper, you can jump straight to our current recommendations-or check our lists of top e-book readers and top tablets. If you're looking for a more in-depth discussion, read on to consult this quick guide, which boils the purchase decision down to seven questions:

1. Reader vs. tablet: Do you want more than just reading?

Start by asking yourself what you're really looking for. Do you just want to read books? How about magazines and newspapers? What about browsing the Web? Want to add multimedia to the mix--music, audiobooks, or video? Do you need Flash support? E-mail and messaging? Gaming?

If you want to stick with "just reading"--books, and maybe some newspapers and magazines--an e-book reader ($114 to $189) is probably your best bet. Every additional feature you add will put you on the road to a more full-featured tablet (an iPad or one of the growing number of Android tablets). A tablet is much more versatile and can replace a laptop for many tasks--but it will cost you upward of $300 to start.

Splitting the difference is the Nook Color. It's primarily a Barnes & Noble reader, but it's got a color touch screen and such tablet-esque features as e-mail, calendar, to-do lists, Web browsing, and even Flash video. The curated app store has dozens of apps--not the tens of thousands you'll find on iPad and true Android tablets--but it includes such keystone programs as Pandora, Angry Birds, and the like. In short, it will be "good enough" for many users, and its $249 price tag is half that of entry-level iPad models and most Android tablets.

Best basic e-book reader: Barnes & Noble Nook (with touch screen), Amazon Kindle (cheaper, no touch screen)

Best reading tablet for less than $250: Barnes & Noble Nook Color

Best all-around full-featured reading tablets: Apple iPad 2, Sony Tablet S, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

2. How large of a screen (and weight) do you want?

Even if you plan to never leave home with your e-book reader, you should consider its size before buying one. Since you hold the device in front of you whenever you want to read, the weight and size can be an issue.

The smallest and lightest dedicated e-book reader we've seen to date is the Sony Reader Pocket Edition PRS-350, which has a 5-inch touch screen and weighs just 5.5 ounces (without a case). Unfortunately, this otherwise excellent touch-screen reader lacks Wi-Fi, which makes it tough to recommend. (It's also about to be replaced by Sony's 2011 Readers.)

In the 6-inch-screen class, the 2011 Kobo weighs a bit less than 7.1 ounces (without case). The latest e-ink Nook, meanwhile, tips the scales at a very portable 7.5 ounces--more than a third lighter than the original. And the Amazon Kindle is a svelte 8.7 ounces (without case). Even with cases, all three models are light enough to hold for extended reading sessions without tiring.

The Nook Color boasts a larger 7-inch screen, but it weighs almost a full pound (15.8 ounces). There are also a smattering of 7-innch Android tablets available.

If you want a truly large screen (around 10 inches), you'll want to buy the Kindle DX, Apple iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, Sony Tablet S, or similar Android models. However, those big beautiful screens come at a price: they're comparatively heavy.

Don't get us wrong, all of these big-screen readers and tablets are far lighter than a laptop; the Kindle DX, iPad 2, Sony Tablet S, and Galaxy Tab 10.1 all weigh between 1.2 and 1.4 pounds. But unlike a laptop--which sits on a table or in your lap while in use--you'll be actively holding these readers or tablets aloft. For long reading sessions--say, more than 45 minutes or so--many users will find their fingers and arms becoming strained.

Remember, all e-book readers let you adjust the font size of the content you're reading, so even a small screen can display much larger type than you're used to seeing in a book, magazine, or newspaper. In other words, a smaller screen does not mean you need to sacrifice readability.

Lightest e-book readers: Kobo eReader Touch Edition, Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook

Midsize readers/tablets: Nook Color, Samsung Galaxy Tab (7-inch), HTC Flyer

Large-screen readers/tablets: Amazon Kindle DX. Apple iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1,Sony Tablet S

3. What are your screen preferences: E-ink or color LCD?

E-ink: As close as you'll get to a printed page
Dedicated e-book readers, such as the Nook, Kindle, Kobo, and Sony Reader, use an e-ink screen. However, e-ink screens have some drawbacks: they're black and white, and the pages don't refresh as quickly as those on an LCD do. However, they do an excellent job of reproducing the look of printed paper. They're not backlit--so you can't read in the dark--but you can read them in direct sunlight, which is something you can't do on an LCD screen (a fact Amazon is keen to point out in its advertising).

If you prefer to read at night with e-ink, however, all is not lost; cases with built-in lights (such as this Kindle model) are available.

The "Pearl" screen by E Ink is now standard on all major e-ink readers. So, whether you're getting the 2011 Nook or Kobo or the 2010 Sony Reader or Kindle, you're basically getting the same exact screen. Furthermore, E Ink has confirmed that it wont't be releasing a Pearl successor before the end of 2011.

LCD: Bright, backlit--and potentially tiring
By contrast, the LCD screens found on all tablets (and the Nook Color) are bright, colorful, beautiful displays. But those advantages have trade-offs. The reflective screens on LCD tablets make it hard to read in bright light, and many people find that the backlight tires their eyes over long reading sessions.

Touch screen: All but Kindle
All tablets (iPad, Android, etc.) have touch screens, as do all current models of major brand e-ink readers--except the Kindle. That will undoubtedly change when a newer Kindle is eventually (presumably) released. But for now, if you buy the Kindle, you'll have to forgo touch-screen control.

How to choose
So, which screen is better for reading: e-ink or LCD? We can't answer that question for you. (See "LCD vs. e-ink: The eyestrain debate".) If you don't have a problem staring at your laptop or LCD monitor screen for hours on end--or if you enjoy reading in low light without an external light source--you'll probably like an LCD screen. Likewise, if you enjoy reading Web sites, magazines, and newspapers, and if you want support for interactive children's books, you'll want to go with color. However, if you prefer the look of newsprint or if you enjoy reading outside, an e-ink display is your friend.

Whether you're checking your preference for e-ink versus LCD or touch screen versus keyboard controls, we'd strongly recommend that you try a few devices before you buy one. You'll find most major e-book readers (Kindles, Nooks, Sony Readers, Apple iPads, Android tablets) under one roof at your local Best Buy.

Best e-ink readers: Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Kobo eReader Touch Edition

Best LCD readers/tablets: Barnes & Noble Nook Color, Apple iPad 2, or any good tablet

4. Do you need always-on wireless data?

When buying many tablets and some e-book readers, you'll need to make a choice between two versions: the Wi-Fi model or the 3G version. In other words: do you want the more affordable Wi-Fi model (which requires you to be near a Wi-Fi hot spot to download books or access the Internet), or do you prefer to pay a premium--via a higher up-front price and/or a monthly bill--to add 3G access on a cellular wireless network?

If you're primarily interested in reading books, you're probably going to be fine opting for Wi-Fi-only models. You only need Wi-Fi access when you're buying new books. (E-book files are stored on the device--once downloaded, Internet access isn't necessary.) So, if you're a voracious reader, you can (for instance) buy a bunch of books, toggle off your Wi-Fi, and work your way through them at your leisure. In fact, many users keep the wireless on their readers switched off most of the time since it significantly boosts battery life.

If you're using your hardware to access anything besides e-books--magazine or newspaper subscriptions, e-mail, the Web, apps, and so forth--ubiquitous wireless access becomes more important. Still, if you're using the reader/tablet primarily at home, Wi-Fi will probably remain sufficient.

If you're a power user or frequent traveler, opting for a 3G product is worth considering.

The current Nook, Nook Color, and Kobo models are only available in Wi-Fi versions. Amazon and Sony offer more expensive step-up Kindle and Sony Reader models that offer 3G wireless. Notably, those manufacturers don't charge any extra monthly fees for the 3G data services, but it's really only useful for shopping for new books and downloading new issues of magazines and newspapers--don't expect to be surfing the Web and watching video on those e-ink screens.

Tablets, of course, offer a much wider array of media options--and, as a result, 3G (or 4G) data access is much more tempting. Many Android tablets, such as the Motorola Xoom and Samsung Galaxy Tab, are available in carrier-specific versions with terms similar to that of smartphones: you get a discount on the hardware, but you'll need to sign up for a two-year contract with beefy monthly bills. (Most Android tablets now also offer contract-free Wi-Fi-only versions.)

On the 3G versions of the iPad, you'll pay a monthly fee to the cellular company (AT&T or Verizon), but it's a prepaid monthly service, not a long-term contract; in other words, you can cancel or restart any time, without paying an expensive early-termination fee. But for the privilege of 3G connectivity, the iPad costs $130 more than its respective Wi-Fi-only equivalent model.

Is 3G wireless a must-have? That's a question you'll need to answer. Just remember that--with more phones offering Wi-Fi hot-spot functionality and establishments such as Starbucks offering free Wi-Fi--there are plenty of ways to get seamless online coverage with your reading device without it having 3G network support built-in.

Best Wi-Fi e-ink readers: Amazon Kindle (Wi-Fi), Barnes & Noble Nook, Kobo eReader Touch edition

Best Wi-Fi tablets: Barnes & Noble Nook Color, Apple iPad 2 (Wi-Fi), Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1

Best 3G e-ink readers: Amazon Kindle with SpecialOffers (3G/Wi-Fi), Amazon Kindle (3G/Wi-Fi)

Best 3G tablet: Apple iPad 2 (3G/Wi-Fi): Verizon or AT&T

5. Apps vs. hardware: Which reading platform offers the most flexibility?

One of the advantages of having your reading collection "in the cloud" is that you can access your books on multiple devices, though some e-book vendors offer better cross-platform support than others do.

This is where terminology can get a bit confusing: the e-book stores can be available on different devices, including (in the case of Apple) those of rival e-book publishers--the e-book equivalent of buying a can of Pepsi from a Coke vending machine.

This multidevice support is accomplished through apps. On tablets (iPad, Android, and more), smartphones (iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, and others), and PCs (Mac and Windows), users can download free apps that let them read e-books from a variety of vendors. So, you can read a Kindle book on your iPad, a Nook book on your Android phone, or a Kobo book on your BlackBerry--and that's just for starters.

As of September 2011, here's how app support breaks down for each major e-book platform:

Kindle: Besides Kindle hardware readers, Kindle books can be accessed on iPads, iPhones, iPod Touch handhelds, Android phones (version 2.1 and later), Android tablets, many BlackBerry phones, Windows PCs, Macs, Windows Phone 7 phones, and via HTML 5-compatible browsers (the Kindle Cloud Reader).

Nook: Besides Nook hardware readers, Nook books can be accessed on iPads, iPhones, iPod Touch handhelds, Android phones (version 2.1 and later), Android tablets, many BlackBerry phones, Windows PCs, and Macs.

Kobo: Besides Kobo hardware readers, Kobo books can be accessed on iPads, iPhones, iPod Touch handhelds, Android phones (version 2.1 and later), Android tablets, many BlackBerry phones, the Palm Pre (WebOS), the BlackBerry PlayBook, Windows PCs, and Macs. Full details: smartphones, tablets, PCs/Macs.

iBooks: Apple's e-book store is currently only available on Apple iOS devices--iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch.

Sony Reader: Besides Sony Reader hardware, Sony books can be accessed on Android phones, Windows PCs, and Macs. (Now that Apple has modified the terms of the App Store, we expect that the Sony Reader iOS app--originally rejected by Apple--will be modified and resubmitted.) Full details: Android phones, PCs/Macs

Nearly all of these apps allow you to sync your position in a book across devices, so if you read up to, say, Page 229 on your phone, you can pick up on that same page on your tablet or reader, and vice versa.

All of the apps are free, and--since each bookstore offers a wide selection of free books--you can freely experiment with any and all of the apps that work with your respective hardware.

Best cross-platform providers: Kindle, Nook, Kobo

Most versatile hardware readers: Apple iPad 2, Apple iPhone, Apple iPod Touch, Android phones with full Android Market support, Android tablets with full Android Market support

6. Can I check out e-books from my local library?

Many local libraries offer the ability to check out an e-book on loan--just as you can do with a regular book. Previously, support for this varied across e-readers and tablets. However, now it's basically universal. The Kindle was the last major holdout, but as of September 21, Amazon's e-reader can be used to read free library loaners as well.

Library support is generally accomplished in one of three ways (all of which, of course, require you to have an account with your local library):

For dedicated e-readers--download and sync: Users of the Nook, Kobo, and Sony Readers can download e-book files from their local library's Web site and transfer them to the readers via a USB cable. You'll need free software such as Adobe Digital Editions to complete the process. The video below details the process on the Nook, but the process is similar on Kobo, Sony, and other EPUB-compatible readers. (You can also do a version of USB sync for the Kindle--see below.)

Get free library books on your Nook

For tablets, smartphones, and computers--OverDrive Media Console: If you're reading on a tablet (iPad or Android), a smartphone (iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Phone 7), or a computer (Windows or Mac), reading e-books from the library is far simpler. Just install the free OverDrive Media Console app. OverDrive will allow you to download and read library e-books--and MP3 audiobooks--within the app itself, without the need to sync up with a computer. (See the video below for more information.)

Get free e-books from the library

For Amazon Kindle (hardware or app): Amazon partnered with OverDrive to enable library lending, and the result is pretty seamless. Choose the e-book from the Web site of your local library, add the Kindle version to the cart, and check out. You'll be redirected to the book's corresponding Amazon page, where you can automatically send it to your Kindle reader or app (next time you sync via Wi-Fi), or you can download the file and sync via USB.

Current recommendations

Our current buying recommendations are listed below. However, anyone in the market for a new e-book reader or tablet should note these major (rumored) product updates:

New Kindles? The 2010 Amazon Kindle is now more than a year old (it debuted in late July 2010), and is ripe to be replaced at any time. In fact, Amazon has scheduled a press event on September 28, at which we expect the company to announce a new tablet or e-ink reader (which follows a series of credible rumors).

New Nook Color? The original Nook Color hit stores in November 2010. We were expecting a replacement soon, and there are rumors one or two new Nook Colors could hit very soon.

New Sony Readers: This one's not a rumor. Sony has confirmed that it will be releasing new 2011 Readers in October.

Given the likelihood of one or more disruptive new products hitting the market, CNET strongly recommends that you delay purchasing an e-book reader or reading tablet until later in the autumn. At the very least, wait to see what Amazon will be revealing on September 28.

With that above caveat in mind: As of September 2011, CNET recommends two e-ink e-book readers, one 7-inch LCD reading tablet, and one full-size LCD tablet.

Best overall e-ink reader: Barnes & Noble Nook. The 2011 Nook delivers the best touch-screen e-ink reading experience you can get at the current time, and it sells for an affordable $139.

Best bargain e-ink reader: Amazon Kindle with Special Offers. Unlike the Nook, the Kindle supports audio (Audible audiobooks, MP3 playback, and text-to-voice autonarration). And, as of September 21, 2011, the Kindle can now access free loaner books from thousands of local libraries (as the Nook does). However, the Kindle is now the only major reader that does not offer a touch screen. As mentioned above, we expect a touch-screen Kindle to be released before the end of 2011. In the meantime, though, the entry-level Wi-Fi Kindle can be had for just $114.

Best sub-$250 color e-reader: Barnes & Noble Nook Color. Though it's not as versatile as the iPad or most Android tablets, its latest software update adds a bevy of great apps (including e-mail and Flash video), and the price is literally half that of those more expensive tablets.

Best full-featured reading tablet: Apple iPad 2. If you want a more full-featured tablet that can double as an e-book reader, the Apple iPad 2 is currently the best choice. It offers free Kindle, Nook, and Kobo reading apps, with full access to the content in those e-book stores. (Additionally, the iPad offers Apple's own iBooks application, though those e-books can't be accessed on any non-iOS device.) Android tablets also double as good e-book readers, with those same three major e-book apps available. The Sony Tablet S and the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 are currently our top-rated Android tablets.

Depending on what features are important to you--color versus black-and-white screen, backlight versus readability in the sun, touch screen versus not, cheap versus expensive, 3G versus Wi-Fi, lightweight versus heavy, reading-only versus full-featured--the device you prefer may be different from ours. However, there's no arguing that the range of choices for e-book readers is better and more affordable now than it ever has been.

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2011-09-30T12:40:00.001-07:00

What to Do if You've Been Hacked http://bit.ly/qpM3F8
Get help to prevent hacking and help recovering from being hacked- see geeksoncall.com

Blog title...

2011-09-30T12:38:00.001-07:00

What to Do if You've Been Hacked

wsj.com - 9/26/2011
BEN WORTHEN

It's a nightmare scenario every business fears.
Your tech department has spotted suspicious activity on the company network. Your customers and employees are getting hit with credit-card fraud and identity theft. MasterCard Inc. is on line one.

The panic sets in: Your company has been hacked!

So, what do you do?

First, take a breath and remember that you're not alone. Last year, 662 organizations publicly disclosed data breaches, according to the nonprofit Identity Theft Resource Center, a figure that includes real-world theft and accidents as well as cyberintrusions. And the actual number is likely much higher than that, since not all hacking incidents get disclosed.

Next, remember that getting hacked doesn't have to be a business-crippling experience. While it will likely set a company back financially, if handled properly it won't have a long-lasting impact.

"The public is forgiving when it's apparent that the company is doing the right thing," says Lori Nugent, a lawyer at Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP who specializes in breach cases. In fact, if a company is on top of the technological problems and communicates well, it can build loyalty among its customers, she says.

There are a number of small but critical steps businesses need to take when they find out they've been breached. Here's a look at what to do when it happens to you.

Don't unplug. The natural instinct when an employee discovers he or she has been hacked is to power off the machine (and maybe throw it against the wall in frustration).

But it's the wrong move.

True, turning off the Internet connection and detaching the computer from the corporate network can help prevent the infection from spreading. But shutting the machine down can also erase valuable evidence that will help investigators determine what's been stolen and where it's been sent. A lot of malware--a catchall term for programs like viruses written and installed by hackers--resides in a computer's memory and not on the hard drive. Turning off a computer erases the memory, and with it many traces of the hack, security experts say.

Call in the pros. By now, you've probably realized you're in over your head. There are many companies that specialize in post-breach forensic investigation; it's a good idea to get in touch with one of them now. In fact, you should have one on speed dial for emergencies.

Also, now is the time to tell the police. (This is a separate step from disclosing the breach publicly, so you can wait to make that decision.) Local law-enforcement groups typically don't have the resources to investigate a breach, but filing a police report is often necessary to collect insurance. If you decide you do need official help, the Secret Service is the federal entity charged with investigating hacking intrusions. The Federal Bureau of Investigation also has a cyber division.

Keep a chain of custody. From here on out, you aren't just trying to stop the breach; you're also planning for the inevitable legal fallout. Maybe you won't get sued, but if you do, you'll need to be able to demonstrate that you responded to the breach in an appropriate manner. Record every time someone touches a compromised computer or server and everything that's done to it.

Find out if the breach is still open. Don't assume that because one infected computer has been cleaned up or removed the attack is over. The hacker could have taken control of multiple machines. At this stage, your job is mostly to sit back and let the pros do a thorough search of your systems. Be patient: Learning the full scope of a breach can be a time-consuming process, so don't worry if this takes a few days or longer.

Among the things the experts will need to do is find the malware that the hacker used and determine what kind of information it's programmed to find and where it sends it. Likewise, they'll check the logs of all the outbound communications for any suspicious activity. Patrik Runald, a researcher with security company Websence Inc., says that hackers often send data to so-called dynamic hosts that constantly change their Internet addresses. Most legitimate websites don't use this kind of addressing. If data are still being sent to these types of addresses, it's a possible sign that a breach is still happening.

Stop the bleeding. Now that the pros have assessed the scope of the problem, take the infected computers offline. Investigators will take a digital snapshot of the information on them, leaving you free to erase their contents. Also, block all access to and from any of the Internet addresses associated with the malware.

It's also important to figure out how the hacker broke in, and to fix that hole. Again, experts can look through log files and trace the hacker's movements to, say, find the email with the fake spreadsheet that an unsuspecting employee opened.

Find out what they stole. This will be slow and frustrating, but it's important to get right--so don't take shortcuts, and resist the temptation to call off the hunt too early.

If companies aren't thorough in their analysis, they'll have to disclose that a breach was bigger than they originally said. This can hurt a company that's trying to rebuild trust with a customer base, as was the case with TJX Companies Inc., which eventually said it lost more than double the number of records it initially announced in the breach it disclosed in January 2007. (A TJX spokeswoman declined to comment.)

"I always say correctly is better than quickly," says Brian Lapidus, the chief operating officer of Kroll Inc.'s fraud-solutions division.

Figure out whom to tell. This is when you bring in the lawyers.

Forty-six states have laws that specify when a company has to inform people whose records have been exposed in a data breach. And they're all different. Other entities, such as the federal Department of Health and Human Services, have separate reporting requirements for organizations they oversee.

Usually, if the data stolen include a name and something like a credit-card or Social Security number, then notification laws are triggered. But sometimes if the data are encrypted or there's a strong reason to believe that the information won't be misused, there's no need to tell anyone. In other cases, credit-card data could be so old that all the cards would have expired.

"Sometimes it's pretty clear that the data is not likely to be misused or the data doesn't meet the notification requirements," says Ms. Nugent, the breach lawyer.

Deciding whether to disclose a breach isn't just a matter of law. Sometimes companies do it because they're afraid it will get out or just because they think it's the right thing to do.

Email marketing firm Epsilon Data Management LLC, a division of Alliance Data systems Corp., earlier this year said that email addresses it manages for companies like Target Corp. were stolen by a hacker. The company wasn't legally obligated to disclose the breach because email addresses aren't considered personal information. But Epsilon CEO Bryan Kennedy concluded that the news would get out anyway and that coming clean was in the best interest of Epsilon's customers.

Be Apologetic. You probably feel like a victim, but remember, so do the people whose information was stolen. And in their minds, it's your fault.

Remember also that your customers will probably expect the worst when they get the news about the breach. "Consumers tend to jump immediately from a data breach to identity theft," says Matthew Mors, a vice president at Mix Public Relations who has helped craft the response to many breaches.

So, while your lawyer will probably tell you not to apologize, striking a conciliatory tone is important. A good breach-notification letter will make it clear that you are taking the issue seriously and that you've gotten to the bottom of it. Also, be sure to stress that you have taken steps to make sure that something like this doesn't happen again.

Some people will still be concerned, so set up a website with more information and give them a phone number they can call. In some cases, businesses offer customers a year of free credit monitoring after a breach. An increasingly common freebie is credit-restoration services for anyone who runs into problems as the result of a breach.

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2011-09-28T16:42:00.001-07:00

New security software covers PCs to phones http://bit.ly/pUn5GB
Ensure your safety w/ this software & the help of our techs- geeksoncall.com

New all-in-one security software covers PCs to phones

2011-09-28T16:37:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 9/27/2011
Suzanne Choney

Looks like the time has come: We all own so many dang digital devices that trying to protect them in various ways with various software has grown into a ginormous hassle. Now, McAfee Security is out with an all-in-one product that provides protection to PCs, Macs, tablets and smartphones.

McAfee may be the first major security player at bat on this unified security front, but others are coming for consumers. Kaspersky will have a similar product available next month, and Symantec in 2012, according to reports, says IT Pro.

McAfee's All Access is described by the company as the "first cross-device security solution that protects multiple Internet-enabled devices (PCs, Macs, smartphones, netbooks and tablets) under one annual plan." It costs $99.99 for individuals, and $149.99 for the household version.

Not that we need stats to back up the fact we all own a growing number of digital devices. We know it by the number of cords jammed in the corners of rooms around the house. But, McAfee compiled some stats for us, anyway:
•25 percent of "consumer Internet users now own at least five devices per household, with 60 percent owning at least three."
•41 percent spend "more than 20 hours per week using a digital device for personal use."
•Consumers "place an average value of $37,438 on the 'digital assets' they own across multiple digital devices, yet more than a third lack protection across all of those devices. In the U.S., people valued their assets at a higher figure than anywhere else, at nearly $55,000."
•"As a global average, respondents had 2,777 digital files stored on at least one digital device," with those files including music, photos, personal communications, personal records, resumes, portfolios, cover letters and email contacts.

The figures come from research firm MSI International, which surveyed more than 3,000 consumers in 10 countries.

"Despite the high value of their digital assets, people still arenâ€™t securing every device they own," McAfee said. The survey found that more than 36 percent "donâ€™t have security protection on all of their devices and 7 percent have no protection at all â€” leaving potentially thousands of dollars worth of digital assets at risk, if stored on an unprotected device."

How well an all-in-one security approach works remains to be seen. But with more of us stashing our digital files in various places, like phones and tablets, and not just computers, one-stop security shopping could be a plus.

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2011-09-27T19:53:00.001-07:00

Another OS X Trojan imitates Adobe Flash installer http://bit.ly/rtl8IU
Have your technology scanned & secured by our techs- geeksoncall.com

Another OS X Trojan imitates Adobe Flash installer

2011-09-27T19:50:00.001-07:00

cnet.com - 9/26/2011
Topher Kessler

A few months ago security company F-Secure uncovered a Mac Trojan horse that posed as an installer application for Adobe Flash, taking advantage of the popularity of the plug-in to trick users into installing it. After installation, the Trojan would alter the system's hosts file to redirect Google sites to fraudulent servers. Now Intego has discovered a new Trojan for OS X that does pretty much the same thing: masquerades as a Flash Player installer to trick people into installing the program.

Unlike the previous Flash Trojan (called Bash/QHost.WB), which changed one file on the system, this new Trojan is a bit more complex and first deactivates network security features, then installs a dyld library that will run and inject code into applications that the user is running. The Trojan will also try to send personal information and machine-specific information to remote servers.

Intego calls the Trojan OSX/flashback.A, and is not too specific about how this Trojan runs, but it will undoubtedly compromise your system if you run it. The Trojan appears to use Apple's basic installer package system and includes Flash player logos so it looks like a legitimate software package.

While people may be concerned about this Trojan and other recent Mac malware, the risk of being infected is exceptionally low. If you need Adobe Flash on your system, just go to Adobe's Web site and get it or go to a trusted source like CNET's Download.com. Doing this will ensure that you get the file directly as the developer intended, as opposed to using either an outdated version, a modified version, or a rogue application disguised as a Flash installer.

In addition to being easy to avoid, the Flashback Trojan does not self-replicate so it will not affect other systems. In essence, as with all Trojan attacks this is an attempt to disguise malicious software in hopes of stealing information from unsuspecting people.

Intego claims its VirusBarrier X6 anti-malware utility can detect and remove this latest Trojan if it is installed, but other scanners should soon also be updated to detect this threat. While there is no information on how to manually remove Flashback, Intego says the program installs its malicious dynamic library in the /username/Library/Preferences/ folder as the file "Preferences.dyld," so you can go to that location and remove that file to dispose of the code.

Besides getting your download updates and installers from trusted sources, you can do some additional things to protect your system from these and other threats:

1. Turn off Safari's auto-open command
In Safari, go to the General section of the preferences and uncheck the option to "Open safe files after downloading." While this will not open applications, if checked it will open documents and media that may contain executable code, and turning it off is recommended.

2. Install a malware scanner
Install a scanner like Sophos, VirusBarrier, ClamXav, Kaspersky, or iAntiVirus, and set it up to scan your e-mail and your download folders. While doing this will help ensure your downloads are safe, the rarity of malware threats on OS X makes it optional. Nevertheless, this has steadily become more of a recommendation of mine.

3. Never trust a program
If something asks you to install an item on your system, shut it down and confirm the source of the item. Only install programs on your system if you know exactly where they came from.

Have your technology scanned and secured by our techs- geeksoncall.com

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2011-09-26T10:42:00.001-07:00

FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITIES - Virginia Beach-based Geeks On Call gets upgrade http://ping.fm/Bdn61

Virginia Beach-based Geeks On Call gets upgrade

2011-09-26T10:40:00.001-07:00

Gone is the guy wearing a baseball cap, a polo shirt and eyeglasses with broken frames. Someone wearing a crisp white shirt and a tie has taken his place.

The change in Geeks On Call's signature Geek reflects the computer-repair company's heightened emphasis on selling services, including voice-and-data services, to businesses.

"Before, our franchise owners were technicians who knew how to fix computers," said Glenn Davis, CEO of Geeks' parent company, On Call Holdings International. Today, he said, Virginia Beach-based Geeks is seeking franchisees with entrepreneurial drive and an ability to sell.

Davis and business partner John Finguerra spent almost two years revamping the company's strategy after buying the assets of Geeks On Call America in late 2009. With several changes in place, they began offering Geeks franchises this month.

Davis and Finguerra already had built a telecommunications services company by the time they acquired what remained of the former Geeks On Call. Despite the departures of key managers and several franchisees, Davis and Finguerra figured Geeks' franchise structure could become a vehicle for selling telecom services to businesses throughout the country.

Organized in 1999, the previous Geeks began selling franchises in 2001 and expanded rapidly. At its peak, it had franchisees in more than two dozen metro areas, including Boston, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles. Service personnel drew attention to the company by driving Chrysler PT Cruisers bearing Geeks' toll-free phone number.

However, a split within the management prompted some officers to leave in 2006. More left in 2009. Franchise owners, too, bailed out.

By early last year, the number of franchisees had dwindled to 54. Today it stands at 44. One reason for the falloff was the difficulty some franchisees had adjusting to the weak economy, especially if they relied on residential computer-users, said Richard Artese, president of Geeks On Call International and an officer in the earlier company.

When Davis and Finguerra bought Geeks, "we walked into a very lean shop," Davis said.

Still, the new company was able to handle customers' inquiries and deliver services to franchisees without disruption, he said.

The new Geeks has 30 employees, with slightly more than half working in the Virginia Beach call center. Ten employees in the parent company, On Call Holdings, provide accounting, advertising and marketing services for Geeks and its franchisees.

Coming up with a different model for selling Geeks' franchises took longer than the partners expected. One reason was their determination to realign the costs for franchisees and eliminate a heavy royalty that Geeks was charging, said Davis, who serves on the Virginia Beach City Council.

"Some franchise owners worked 60 to 70 hours a week, and some worked 40 hours," he said. "We figured, 'Let's not penalize the owners who put in extra effort'" by imposing the royalty on their revenue.

The new model also had to include a way for franchisees to sell voice-and-data telecom services to businesses. That's important because sales of these services can generate a steady stream of income for franchisees, Davis said.

Because Geeks had become a new company, its owners had to compile a new franchise disclosure document for the Federal Trade Commission and get approval from states that require franchise offers to be registered. Several states, including Virginia, require franchisors to provide detailed information about their background, financial condition, complaints involving franchisees and the cost of buying and operating a franchise.

Geeks is selling franchises in 36 states and registering to sell in the remaining 14, Davis said. The company also plans to offer franchises in Canada, he said.

A faltering national economy has complicated the sales of some franchises, especially those that require significant financing. Today, companies selling franchises want prospective buyers to have greater resources, including more working capital, because of the economic uncertainties, said John Pearce II, a professor of management and operations at Villanova University's School of Business, near Philadelphia.

"The franchisor makes money from the success of the franchisee" and is looking for greater assurance that their investment will generate a return, he said.

However, Geeks On Call has scaled back the fees that a franchise-buyer once had to pay. The cost of a Geeks territory includes an initial $20,000 franchise fee and a monthly membership fee of $500.

That compares with a franchise fee of $25,000 for a single territory, an 11 percent royalty on the franchisee's gross revenue and a weekly advertising payment of $275 for each territory under the predecessor Geeks.

The company has received inquiries from prospective buyers, but has not sold any franchises, Davis said.

As part of their restructuring, he and others at the company sought to address several issues that upset franchisees in the past, including the fees, lapses in customer support and advertising costs.

"There's no question that things are better under the new ownership," said Shep Bostin, who owns nine territories in Maryland suburbs of Washington. "These guys have the ability to run a business and give us the support we need."

Geeks' new owners still have work to do, said Bostin, a Gaithersburg, Md., resident, but the complaints among franchisees are now, "When is the new stuff coming in?" rather than "How am I going to keep the doors open?"

Meanwhile, Geeks' emphasis on selling services to businesses "is more consistent with where the real money is," he said.

Liz Lasicki, who owns franchise territories in the Charleston, S.C., region with her husband, lauded the company's communications with franchisees and the expansion into telecom services.

"It helps us get our foot in the door with businesses that don't need computer services" but may want to reduce the cost of their voice-and-data services, she said.

Call today for more info, 1-800-905-GEEK (4335) or visit us online http://ping.fm/gL63M

2011-09-26T07:43:00.001-07:00

Amazon's tablet serious challenge to Apple's iPad http://bit.ly/qGZynK
Need help deciding which tablet fits you best? call 1-800-905-4335

Amazon's tablet serious challenge to Apple's iPad: analysts

2011-09-26T07:41:00.001-07:00

huffpost.com - 9/26/2011
Dhanya Skariachan

Amazon.com Inc, which revolutionized reading with its Kindle e-reader, is expected to unveil a tablet computer this week that analysts say will seriously challenge Apple's market dominating iPad.
Amazon on Friday invited media to a press conference to be held in New York on Wednesday, declining to provide further details.

But analysts were confident that the world's largest Internet retailer will introduce its long-awaited tablet computer this year to expand in mobile commerce and sell more digital goods and services.

"Wednesday is tablet day," BGC partners analyst Colin Gillis told Reuters.

The tablet has been awaited as a strong competitor to Apple Inc's iPad. Apple has sold about 29 million of the devices since its launch in April 2010.

"The real issue here is that, you know, it is likely going to be good for consumers; is this going to be good for shareholders?," Gillis said. He wondered whether Amazon would price the tablet below those of rivals -- and thereby do little to boost margins.

"Knowing Amazon, it is likely to be a very aggressive price," Gillis said.

In much the same way Amazon's Kindle e-reader was priced low to quickly get traction among readers the company is likely to keep the price of its tablet low to attract users and sell other content and services, one analyst said.

"It's a marketing tool to build a relationship with customers and sell them cloud (computing) services," said James McQuivey, an analyst with Forrester Research.

While Amazon has remained tight lipped even about the device's existence, the TechCrunch blog earlier this month said the Amazon tablet also will be called Kindle.

It will be a 7 inch device with a full color, touch screen, run on Google's Android software and cost $250, the blog said, well below the price of the least expensive iPad.

Robert Baird & Co analyst Colin Sebastian said in a note last month than an Amazon tablet would be a "game-changer." Sebastian forecast the device could sell 3 million units in its first year.

The tablet could pose a major threat to Apple because of the Kindle's popularity and the movie and music services Amazon sells.

Forrester's McQuivey said the device also takes aim at Barnes & Noble Inc's NookColor device, which hit the market last year and features tablet functionalities.

Several technology companies like Research In Motion and Samsung have introduced tablets that sold poorly. Hewlett Packard Co announced recently it would abandon its tablet.

Amazon shares finished the day up 0.2 percent at $223.61 on Friday on Nasdaq. The stock had traded as low as $219.06, but rallied as invitations to the media event began arriving.

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2011-09-23T07:30:00.001-07:00

Technolog - Use Skype on the iPhone? Your info could be stolen http://bit.ly/qxVNm1
Stay safe- even on the go! visit geeksoncall.com

Blog title...Use Skype on the iPhone? Your info could be stolen

2011-09-23T07:28:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 9/20/2011
Rosa Golijan

Are you using the Skype for iOS app on your iPhone or iPod Touch? Then you need to be aware of how easily your information -- particularly your entire address book -- could be stolen without your knowledge. All it takes is a single chat message.

According to TechCrunch, the issue was first discovered by AppSec Consulting security researcher Phil Purviance -- who claims that he pointed out the vulnerability to Skype about a month ago. You can see a rather technical demonstration of how information is stolen in the video below, but here's the simplified version:

*An evildoer places malicious code into the "Full Name" field in his or her Skype profile

*That individual sends a chat message to his or her victim -- someone who is using Skype on his or her iPhone or iPod Touch

*As soon as the victim views the message, the malicious code begins to run on his or her mobile device

*Information -- such as the victim's address book -- is uploaded to the evildoer's computer

*The evildoer is able to sift through the stolen information at his or her leisure

The reason this series of events can occur is because the "Full Name" field isn't checked for malicious code.

Scary, right? But there are a few things you should know before you panic.

For starters, thanks to the way Apple has designed iOS -- its mobile operating system -- only certain files, including your address book, are vulnerable.

But most importantly, you should know that Skype is working on a fix for the security issue:

We are working hard to fix this reported issue in our next planned release which we hope to roll out imminently. In the meantime we always recommend people exercise caution in only accepting friend requests from people they know and practice common sense internet security as always.

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2011-09-21T18:40:00.001-07:00

Apple No1 for 8 years! http://bit.ly/o1UBUP
For help with your technology needs and equally impressive customer service call 18009054335

Apple No. 1 in customer satisfaction for 8th year

2011-09-21T18:37:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 9/21/2011
Suzanne Choney

Apple continues to retain the No. 1 spot when it comes to happy customers, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index in its annual survey about personal computers. It's the 8th year in a row the Cupertino company has held the title.

"Among Windows-based PC makers, there is very little change from a year ago," noted the ACSI. With 100 as the top score, Apple scored highest at 87, up 1 percent from last year and placing the company "among the top 5 companies measured in all of ACSI."

PC maker HP -- which has said it is getting out of the consumer PC business -- was up 1 percent to 78, "best among the Windows-based PCs," ACSI said, while HP-owned Compaq was at 75, "last among all brands."

In-between the two HP brands are Dell, Acer, "and the aggregate of all other brands (such as Toshiba, Lenovo, and Sony)," unchanged from last year with scores of 77.

And while Apple may be atop the heap, "despite weakening (computer) demand, satisfaction with (all) personal computers remains at an all-time high score of 78 on the ACSI's 100-point scale," ACSI said.

"Apple's winning combination of innovation and product diversification -- including spinning off technologies into entirely new directions -- has kept the company consistently at the leading edge," said Claes Fornell, founder of the ACSI, which includes the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business as a founding partner.

"Even as Apple parlays its newer iPad products into dominance of the tablet computer market, its traditional PC business continues to thrive," ACSI said in its report. "In the second quarter of 2011, sales of Apple desktops and laptops grew 16 percent year-on-year, compared with only 1 percent growth for Dell's consumer products."

The report is based on approximately 3,000 customer surveys.

The last time a brand other than Apple got the highest rating was in the 2003 ACIS survey; at that time, Dell was ranked first with a score of 78, Apple was second with 77 and HP was third with 70. Compaq ranked the lowest that year, with 68.

ACSI's survey also measured customer satisfaction with televisions, Blu-ray disc and DVD players. At a score of 85, those products received the "highest score among 47 industries covered by the ACSI."

"Customers are upgrading to TVs that provide better picture quality, more features, and save space, while the (Blu-ray disc) format is becoming more widely available and affordable," said Fornell. "Clearly, customers are pleased with what this industry has to offer them."

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2011-09-20T07:19:00.001-07:00

A Tablet Kids Can Grow Into http://bit.ly/rptJvp
Our techs can show you the benefits technology can give your child- visit geeksoncall.com

A Tablet Children Can Grow Into

2011-09-20T07:18:00.001-07:00

wsj.com - 9/14/2011
KATHERINE BOEHRET

The crowded tablet market now offers a number of devices in various weights, screen sizes and operating systems. But are there any tablets built to withstand tough treatment from kids?

This week, I tested a tablet aimed at ages 4 through 9: the $100 LeapPad Explorer from LeapFrog Enterprises Inc., a company known for its educational children's toys. This tablet, which is available in green or pink, has a built-in microphone, camera, video recorder and kid-size stylus for writing and drawing on its five-inch touch screen (a finger also works).

It was designed with tough plastics, a sheet of Mylar over its glass screen and an extra metal frame around the screen to withstand physical abuse. This tablet can be used for reading e-books, playing games and running through digital flashcards.

The LeapPad Explorer is the latest in LeapFrog's gadget lineup, which started with the original LeapPad educational toy in the late 1990s and more recently continued with the Leapster Explorer hand-held game in July 2010.

The Explorer tablet for kids works with over 40 downloadable apps and has a topside slot for running older game cartridges. A spokeswoman said the company expects to offer more than 70 apps by the end of this year, and has no plans to stop selling cartridges. Cartridges cost $25 each and downloadable activities--including games, apps, flash cards, videos and eBooks--range from $5 to $20 each.

While using the LeapPad Explorer, I discovered plenty of features that would appeal to young kids like fun sounds, on-screen graphics and a sense of accomplishment while progressing through books, games and activities.

The main appeal of the LeapFrog products is the company's focus on personalized education. When children set up the Explorer, they enter their grades, ranging from prekindergarten to sixth grade. The device's activities then automatically tune to a child's capabilities. This means that if a third-grader is performing at a higher level than is expected for that age, the Explorer adjusts to a slightly higher level, and the child is notified and congratulated. However, if a child is progressing at a lower level, the system adjusts to a slightly lower level without notifying the child.

A feature called the LeapFrog Learning Path lets parents digitally track their child's progress. Whenever the Explorer is plugged into a computer, details about the child's time on the device are transferred to the PC so a parent knows how the child is performing and can get tips on how to help the child improve.

The activities address spelling, phonics, math, creativity, science, music and geography. And because of LeapFrog's partnership with Disney-Pixar, kids will likely recognize characters from movies in the Explorer's games and books.

My favorite app was the Ultra eBook, "Cars 2: Project Undercover." LeapFrog's ultra eBooks are like eBooks on steroids. They let kids record themselves reading an entire book and play it back. They're animated and have six built-in comprehension activities and three games. They offer stories written at three text levels and they use a visual dictionary for vocabulary development. "Cars 2: Project Undercover" is the only Ultra eBook currently available, but LeapFrog plans to add six more to its app store before the end of the year.

LeapFrog designed the Explorer tablet with certain features that keep its cost down, and some also solve child-safety concerns. For instance, the Explorer lacks a wireless connection, so kids can't get online without plugging the tablet into a Windows PC or Mac. Downloading apps also requires a parent's password.

Another example is that the LeapPad Explorer runs on four AA batteries rather than the rechargeable lithium ion batteries found in most regular tablets.

LeapFrog's spokeswoman said this keeps the cost low and noted that Li-Ion batteries can leak, making them unsafe for kids' toys. Kids can plug the Explorer into the wall with a $10 AC adapter.

The Explorer is a far cry from popular tablets. The device's one-inch thickness makes it chunkier than most grown-up tablets and its screen is of a lower quality than that of iPads and Android tablets. Its built-in camera has resolution of less than one megapixel. I found the tablet's response time to be a bit sluggish, but doubt most kids under 9 would.

Each Explorer tablet comes loaded with three apps and a free app of choice (eBook, game or video) from the LeapFrog Connect app store, accessible via computer once the tablet is plugged in via USB cord. Preloaded apps include a pet game, which gives kids a pet to care for, Story Studio for creating stories with photos, voice-overs and art, and Art Studio for drawing and painting with various colors and stamped images.

Though the LeapPad Explorer looks a bit chubby compared with regular tablets, its features will be adequate for kids. Its ability to grow over time with more downloaded apps makes it a smart investment for parents.

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2011-09-19T06:39:00.001-07:00

Can you use technology without risking your privacy? http://bit.ly/pkv5q8
Give us a call and we'll make sure you're safe! 1-800-905-4335

Can you use technology without risking your privacy?

2011-09-19T06:37:00.001-07:00

If youre unsure give us a call and we'll make sure you're safe! 1-800-905-4335 or visit geeksoncall.com

today.com - 9/19/2011
Christina DesMarais

Location Tracking
"I think perhaps the hottest issue right now is location. Location, location, location," says Kevin Bankston, senior staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation in San Francisco.

Indeed, both Microsoft and Google were recently under fire for collecting the locations of millions of laptops, cellphones and other Wi-Fi-enabled devices around the world. (Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBCUniversal.)

The unique identifiers for those devices were then made public, meaning that if a person knew someone's Media Access Control (MAC) address, he could infer where that person spent time with her phone in tow.

A MAC address is a device's unique hardware number or physical address, and it allows a cellular carrier to find a phone and link it to its network.

While both Microsoft and Google have since made changes to their databases to assuage privacy concerns, the fact remains that our mobile phones can double as tracking devices.

"[Mobile phones] can reveal information about your location not only to your cellphone carrier but also to the cellphone manufacturer, the developer of the operating system of your phone or location-based service applications on your phone," Bankston says. He adds that some apps have no use for your location, but simply want access to it for marketing purposes.

To keep those apps from tracking you, often it's just a matter of making a few adjustments to your phone settings. On the iPhone, for example, you can turn off location features by going to Settings, General, Location Services. There you can enable or disable location functions for each app on your phone. Android handsets have a similar option in Settings, Location and Security.

But aside from shutting off your phone entirely, your cellphone carrier will always be able to triangulate tower signals to determine your location if law enforcement or some other entity should ask for it.

Geotags in photos
"Anytime you use an electronic device, depending on what the device is, you're leaving a data trail, whether it's GPS meta data in a photograph you take or [the] cookies you pick up when you're online," says Rainey Reitman, activism director with the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

She's right. As we have pointed out, every time you take a photo with your cellphone, there's a good chance your location is being stored along with the photo. Cellphones with GPS often default to storing this information when GPS is turned on. And some point-and-shoot and dSLR cameras also have GPS built into them.

There are a couple of ways to remove the location information from your photos, which is also called Exchangeable Image File Format (EXIF) data. First, you can download a simple program that strips out the EXIF data. For Windows PCs, try Easy Exif Delete (free on cnet.com) or iPhoto Exif Cleaner for Mac (free on cnet.com) for Macs. These programs will indiscriminately remove all of the EXIF data.

Cookies that can't be deleted
And the cookies Reitman mentioned are the reason the ads you see online seem to know that you're old enough to possibly want to buy wrinkle cream, or that you're in the market for a new car.

In studying the companies and technology behind this targeted advertising, The Wall Street Journal found that the nation's 50 top websites on average installed 64 pieces of tracking technology onto the computers of visitors.

"There are third-party tracking cookies on almost every popular commercial site so they're virtually impossible to avoid," says Paul Stephens, director of policy and advocacy for the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse in San Diego, Calif.

While tech-savvy Web surfers used to simply delete these tracking cookies from their machines, the Wall Street Journal found that "...new tools...scan in real time what people are doing on a Web page, then instantly assess location, income, shopping interests and even medical conditions. Some tools surreptitiously re-spawn themselves even after users try to delete them."

Understandably, some people think this kind of activity is wrong. Wired recently reported that website analytics firm KISSmetrics and more than 20 of its customers, including Spotify, AOL's About.me, Etsy, Spokeo and the news site Gigaom.com were recently sued on the grounds that KISSmetrics' tracking technology violated federal and state privacy laws.

All Web browsers provide ways to delete cookies from your computer. The website ghacks.net gives a good tutorial on doing it in each major browser. You can also visit the Network Advertising Initiative to opt out of the behavioral advertising conducted by its member companies.

Data mining
It might distress you to know how many websites display things like your address, phone number and other personal information.

"The problem is...if a consumer has a severe need to have privacy--if they're a public defender or a law enforcement officer or the victim of stalking -- it is practically impossible to truly keep your privacy online, especially your home address and such, because these information broker websites don't have to remove your information," says Reitman, who adds that some sites such as Spokeo, which at one time posted maps that pointed to people's houses, now offer an opt-out option.

What makes facial recognition disturbing is how it could be used in the future as technology progresses. Already in Japan there are billboards that can recognize your gender, approximate age and ethnicity so as to better target ads toward you. And you may have heard that after the recent riots in London, police were using facial recognition to identify looters.

While identifying looters sounds like a good idea, think about what it would be like if everywhere you went cameras could determine who you were. Personally, I find the idea appalling. Remember the movie "Minority Report"?

And you might have reason to worry about those seemingly harmless Facebook photos that you're tagged in.

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University have found that it's possible to use facial recognition technology to match the photos and real names from publicly available profiles (such as on Facebook) to profiles where the user used a pseudonym and wouldn't want his real name used, such as Match.com.

In a published report the authors wrote, "Hence, face recognition creates the potential for your face in the street (or online) to be linked to your online identity(ies), as well as to the sensitive inferences that can be made about you after blending together offline and online data."

The Los Angeles Times recently posted a guide for disabling Facebook's facial recognition.

Devices with memory
If you've ever used a digital copy machine there's a good chance the data you scanned is still saved to the copier's memory. In fact, this poses such a privacy concern that several states are working on passing laws to require businesses to erase or encrypt stored data from digital copiers before recycling or disposing of them.

Any device with memory, including your PC or phone, should be cleared out before you part with it.

While some people think that deleting files and folders is sufficient before selling or disposing of a computer, they're wrong. Deleted files can be undeleted. Even reformatting your hard drive can be undone. The most secure way to remove data from your computer is to use one of the wiping or erasing utilities we recommend when prepping your computer for disposal.

It's also important to erase data from your phone before getting rid of it. With Apple's iOS, it's a just a matter of hitting Settings, General, Reset, Erase All Content and Settings. For Android, you'll want to format your microSD card, which you can do through SD Card and Phone Storage, under Settings. Then do a Factory Data Rest, under the Privacy menu in Settings.

The bottom line
There's no doubt that as technology evolves privacy concerns grow. As a final example, let me share another tidbit. The Air Force is working on tiny spying aircraft that might be as small as a dragonfly. While they're not sure how the little bugs might be used, the point is that technology is capable of finding more information about people than ever before thought possible.

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2011-09-16T06:07:00.001-07:00

You can now edit videos on YouTube http://bit.ly/qIkuzc
Test it out and send us videos about the service we've provided you- geeksoncall.com

You can now edit videos directly on YouTube

2011-09-16T05:49:00.001-07:00

msnbc.com - 9/15/2011
Rosa Golijan

The folks at YouTube want to help you make your videos look a bit better. How? By letting you use a number of tools to stabilize, rotate, and spice up your clips directly on the site -- without needing to re-upload footage.

According to the official YoutTube blog, the new tools can be used on newly uploaded as well as older videos (as long as they do not have over 1,000 views or any third-party content). The videos' URLs and ID numbers will remain the same unless you choose to save the edited footage in brand new clips.

You can see a little preview of just what you'll be able to do with all the editing tools in the clip below. I recommend taking a peek just for the sake of seeing how the Instagram-style filter effects work -- because let's face it: We're bound to start seeing those a lot more frequently.

Note that the editing features are being rolled out gradually. So don't worry if you're not seeing the magical "Edit Video" button just yet -- just give it a bit of time.

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2011-09-15T09:59:00.001-07:00

Check out this new service and what our techs can do for you! http://bit.ly/qR8Nf7
Visit us at GeeksOnCall.com

Online Shopping on the Side

2011-09-15T09:58:00.001-07:00

wsj.com - 9/8/2011
WALTER S. MOSSBERG

Online shopping is quick and easy if you know what you're looking for, or only have to decide between a couple of products. But it can get tedious and time-consuming if you're making a purchase that requires lots of comparisons over multiple sites.

So, I've been testing Digital Folio, a new, free software product to be announced next week. It's a browser add-on that lets you save and view potential product choices in a single place, and quickly see how their prices compare among some major online retailers.

You just drag links to products that interest you into a sidebar right alongside your Web browser. This module stays with you regardless of what website you're viewing, and its contents can be shared with friends.

Best of all, for certain kinds of products from certain merchants, the sidebar will almost instantly show price comparisons for the same item from other online stores--even if you aren't viewing the other stores' websites. If you decide to buy an item, you just click on its link in the sidebar, and you'll be taken to the retailer's site, where you can place your order as you normally would.

Digital Folio is labeled as a beta, or test, version. But, in my tests, I found that, despite some limitations and rough edges, it's a powerful piece of software that I believe could save shoppers both time and money.

Its maker, a small startup from Denver of the same name, has been showing and testing Digital Folio for awhile, but finally feels it's ready for wide use. You can try it now at digitalfolio.com. The company makes money by getting a small cut of purchases made by Digital Folio users at partner online merchants.

Before getting into the details, it's important to lay out three key limitations of Digital Folio today. First, while it can save potential choices for any kind of product from any site, Digital Folio only generates automatic price comparisons when you save product listings from its five online retail partners, which it calls "Smart Retailers." These are Amazon, Best Buy, Target, Wal-Mart and Sears.

Second, even at the partner retail sites, Digital Folio's price comparison feature works for only 13 categories of items, all of them electronic products or appliances. These include cameras, computers, TVs, printers, refrigerators, dishwashers and microwaves. Oddly, two of the hottest such product categories--smartphones and tabletsâ€”aren't included now in the price-comparison feature, but the company is planning to add more products.

Third, it only works with the two most popular Web browsers: Internet Explorer on Windows and Firefox on either Windows or Macintosh. And you'll need relatively recent versions of the browsers and the computers' operating systems. I tested it using the latest versions of the two browsers on the latest versions of Windows and the Mac OS.

Mobile versions are planned in the coming months for Windows Phones and Apple mobile devices, with an Android version coming later.

There are other comparison-shopping products, but none that work like this.

Digital Folio's sidebar has two main sections, marked by tabs at the top. One called My Folios stores your lists of possible purchases. These can be divided into sections, or folios, for different products. For instance, in my tests, I set up folios for cameras, laptops and TVs. Each folio can also have sections, like laptops with screens in a certain size range.

The second tab is called Compare, and it provides the varying prices at the five partner merchants, though these prices don't yet include shipping and handling costs.

Here's an example of how it worked for me in my tests. While shopping for a pocket-size digital camera, I noticed on Amazon a certain Canon Powershot model. So I dragged its link into the Digital Folio sidebar. It was $129 on Amazon, but Digital Folio immediately advised me that Sears had it for about $113, and Wal-Mart for $119. It also listed higher prices at other of its partner merchants.

An even more interesting thing happens when you go to a retailers' page that lists many items in a category, say a page at Amazon that lists TVs. The Compare tab starts pulsating and, in seconds, it generates a list of all the items on the page, along with prices at the other partner merchants.

In my tests, this allowed me to see that a certain Samsung model was cheapest at Amazon, but a Vizio model that also caught my eye was a lot less at Wal-Mart.

Unlike items you've deliberately dragged into Digital Folio, these instant comparisons at list pages don't stay in the sidebar. They disappear when you navigate away from the page. But they're amazingly dynamic. For instance, if you narrow down the selection on the list page by, say, brand, size or price, the Digital Folio list with price comparison changes along with it.

So what are those rough edges I was talking about? Well, I found setup to be clumsy on Internet Explorer, requiring multiple steps. I also much preferred using the product on Firefox, because, when you click on an item in the sidebar to revisit its original page, that page opens in a tab. By contrast, in Internet Explorer, it opens a new window and has to slowly reload the Digital Folio sidebar.

Also, you can't drag an item directly into a folio in the sidebar. Instead, you have to wade through a dialog box to choose the folio where it should reside. And you can't automatically, or rapidly, set up a new folio for a new category of item you find on a site; you have to first manually establish a new folio.

The product also doesn't automatically refresh itself on one computer, if you've made changes to your folios on another. And it crashed Firefox repeatedly on one of my test Macs, though not on another.

Still, despite its early limits and design drawbacks, I believe Digital Folio is a good start toward making complicated online buying decisions simpler.

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2011-09-14T19:11:00.001-07:00

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