Showing newest 25 of 33 posts from 04.2009. Show older posts
Showing newest 25 of 33 posts from 04.2009. Show older posts
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Software Developer Sues Google Over Android Brand Name
Erich Specht, who runs a small, Palatine, Ill.-based firm called Android Data Corp., is seeking an injunction on Android-branded products and up to $94 million in damages for infringing his trademark. "Basically, it's a stolen name," says Specht's attorney, Martin Murphy. "It's our trademark, and Google is using it as if it's theirs." The software developer is seeking close to $100 million in damages from Google and 46 other technology companies over the term "Android."
Google spokesman Andrew Pederson says the company believes the claims are without merit and "will defend vigorously against them."
In addition to Google, the suit filed Tuesday with the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, names every company in the "Open Handset Alliance," Google's Android-centric consortium, as defendants. The list includes major U.S. firms like Motorola, Qualcomm, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile and Texas Instruments, and foreign companies such as China Mobile, Samsung, Telefonica, Toshiba and Vodafone.
Specht's complaint hinges on filings with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) that go back nearly a decade. The developer first incorporated his firm in 1998, specializing in software that would help Web sites transfer data securely and efficiently. Enamored by the word Android and its geeky connotations, he tried to trademark "Android Data," related to computer e-commerce software, in 2000. The PTO granted his request in 2002.
Google applied for its Android trademark in October 2007, just days before it publicly unveiled its Android plans. The PTO rejected the application in February 2008, citing similarity to Specht's mark. Google quickly appealed the decision, arguing that Specht's firm had lost its claim due to inactivity. In a document, the company's legal team pointed out that someone had voluntarily dissolved Android Data Corp. in May 2004 (though later reactivated it) and failed to re-register the firm's Web site URL at one point. The PTO rejected Google's appeal, along with subsequent attempts, and suspended Google's trademark application last November.
Murphy portrays Specht as the David to Google's Goliath. "[Specht] put a lot of thought into that name, Android," says Murphy. "He felt, 'Google is taking this away from me.' " Specht didn't take action until this month because, Murphy alleges, he only recently realized the search giant was infringing on his trademark. "He had heard about the Android phone, but thought, 'That's a mobile device,' " says Murphy. "As soon as he learned it was software, he stepped up, and we filed as fast as we could."Google
Website : www.google.com
Location : Mountain View, California, United States
Founded : January 1, 1998
Google primarily provides search and advertising services, which together aim to organize and monetize the world’s information. In addition to its dominant search engine, it offers a plethora of tools and platforms including its more popular products: Gmail, Maps and YouTube. Most of its Web-based products are free because Google makes its money from highly integrated online advertising through its AdWords and AdSense platforms. Google promotes the idea that advertising should be highly targeted and relevant to users thus providing them with a rich source of information.
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Yahoo Buzz's New Marvellous Design
Even though Yahoo was going through a lot of problems internally, the technicians or developers at Yahoo is trying their best to keep Yahoo at the top of everything. They are trying so hard that they donned this new layout for Yahoo Buzz Activity page, which is astonishing.
The new design shows the user all the error trace at the top of the page so that the user or surfer can go ahead and troubleshoot the issue. Is this a new cost cutting measure from Yahoo? They can reduce the money paid to testers as the testing is done in production release.
What the heck are these guys doing developing these kind of stuff in an organisation which is already neck deep in problems.
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Yes! We Were Hacked | Twitter CEO
For the second time this year, a hacker has gained administrative access to a Twitter employee's account.
On Wednesday, an anonymous hacker going by the name of Hacker Croll posted 13 screenshots to a French online discussion forum, apparently captured while logged into the Twitter account of Jason Goldman, a director of product management with Twitter.
Twitter CEO Biz Stone confirmed the breach in a blog post Thursday afternoon."This week, unauthorized access to Twitter was gained by an outside party.Our initial security reviews and investigations indicate that no account information was altered or removed in any way. However, we discovered that 10 individual accounts were viewed during this unauthorized access."
he wrote.
According to the screenshots, Hacker Croll was able to access account information belonging to high-profile Twitter users such as Britney Spears and Ashton Kutcher. He could also do things such as add or remove featured users, who are suggested to new Twitter members when they sign up.
The hacker may have been able to access information such as e-mail addresses, mobile-phone numbers and a list of the accounts blocked by these users, Stone wrote. "We have personally contacted Twitter users whose accounts were compromised via this unauthorized access," he said.
Hacker Croll claimed to have accessed Goldman's Twitter password by first gaining access to his Yahoo account. "One of the admins has a yahoo account, i've reset the password by answering to the secret question. Then, in the mailbox, i have found her [sic] twitter password," Hacker Croll said Wednesday in a posting to an online discussion forum. "I've used social engineering only, no exploit, no xss vulnerability, no backdoor, np sql injection."
On Monday, Goldman sent a Twitter message saying that his Yahoo mail account had been hacked.
Twitter has had a rash of security problems this year.
In January, another hacker going by the name of GMZ said he was able to gain access to an administrative account by guessing the password of a Twitter support staffer, according to a Wired report. The password was reportedly an easy-to-guess word: happiness.
GMZ then used that access to take control of 33 high-profile accounts, including those for Spears, President Barack Obama and Fox News.
Twitter has also been hit with several fast-spreading worm attacks this year that preyed on Web programming flaws on the site.
Although Stone promised a "full security review of all access points to Twitter" after the January incident, the site's security is "very weak," according to Manuel Dorne, the French blogger and IT project manager who first published news of the most recent Twitter hack.
Stone made a similar promise this time around too. "Twitter takes security very seriously so we will be conducting a thorough, independent security audit of all internal systems and implementing additional anti-intrusion measures to further safeguard user data," he wrote.
Anyone who tries to log into admin.twitter.com is given a login prompt, and since Twitter user names are already public, attackers have only to guess the password. That could have been what happened with Goldman's account, Dorne said. "Maybe the password was the name of his child or of his wife and the hacker knew it."Twitter
Website : www.twitter.com
Service : Micro-Blogging
Available Language(s) : English, Japanese
Location : South Park, San Francisco, California
Founded : March 2006
Twitter is social networking and micro-blogging site that allows users to post their latest updates. An update is limited by 140 characters and can be posted through three methods: web form, text message, or instant message.The service was started by Obvious Corp, and had launched the Japanese version in April 2008.
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Disney Joins Hulu | Takes Ownership Stakes
Walt Disney Co has reached a deal to become a partner in the popular video website Hulu founded by NBC Universal and News Corp.
Disney's much-anticipated entrance, after a long period of talks between the companies, will add full-length episodes of TV shows from its ABC broadcast network like "Lost," "Grey's Anatomy" and "Desperate Housewives" to the site.
In addition to providing content, Disney will also make a financial investment in the site, although Hulu officials declined to provide details on the deal on Thursday.
Hulu has emerged as one of the most popular online video destinations since its launch in 2007. Last month, some 380 million videos were viewed on Hulu, up 14.3 percent from February, according to market research firm comScore. It is now among the top three online video sites in the United States.
The addition of Disney means that the owners of three of the four major broadcast networks -- ABC, NBC and Fox -- have partnership stakes in Hulu. Only CBS Corp's CBS is absent from the arrangement.
Hulu Chief Executive Jason Kilar said conversations with CBS are continuing. "We'd love to have them be a part of Hulu ... ultimately it's their decision," he told Reuters in an interview.
In a statement, CBS said it believes in "controlling our own rights" for content across media.
"CBS has long employed open, non-exclusive content partnerships that allow fans across the Internet to engage with our programing in such a way that we control our distribution, sales and profit," it said.
OWNERSHIP STAKES : Other media companies -- including Viacom Inc -- provide movies or TV shows to the website, but do so in deals that involve only advertising revenue sharing and not ownership stakes.
The only other ownership stakes are held by Providence Equity Partners and employees of Hulu.
Disney, which will gain three seats on the Hulu board, has previously sought to expand viewership of ad-supported ABC shows offered on ABC.com and websites of its local TV affiliates, on AOL.com, and on Comcast Corp's Fancast site.
To grow further, Hulu is studying adding music videos, sports and news, while it is also looking at expanding the service outside the United States.
"We would like to continue to have as much premium content to possible," said NBC Universal Chief Executive Jeff Zucker in an interview.
"Then expand Hulu internationally -- that should be the goal for 2010," Zucker added, declining to say what markets the partnership is considering.Disney
Website : www.disney.go.com
Location :500 S. Buena Vista St., Burbank, CA, 91521 - USA
Founded : 1920's
For more than eight decades, the name Walt Disney has been preeminent in the field of family entertainment. From humble beginnings as a cartoon studio in the 1920s to today's global corporation, The Walt Disney Company continues to proudly provide quality entertainment for every member of the family, across America and around the world. The Walt Disney Company is a media and entertainment corporation. The corporation is broken up into 4 parts - Studio Entertainment, Parks and Resorts, Consumer Products, and Media Networks.Hulu
Website : www.hulu.com
Category : Games, Video and Entertainment
Location : 12312 W. Olympic Blvd.,Los Angeles, CA, 90064 - USA
Founded : March 2007
Hulu is an online video provider held by NBC Universal, News Corporation, and, as of April 2009, Disney. The site focuses exclusively on professional content and does not take on YouTube directly as a viral video destination. The site raised $100 million in financing from Providence Equity Partners. Hulu is currently the third largest video provider on the web.
Hulu videos are played in their own embeddable branded player. Content from at least a dozen TV networks and two major film studios is promised. Initial distribution partners include AOL, Comcast, MSN, MySpace and Yahoo.
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Flu Tracker From Google Tracks Swine Flu
Using a new flu tracking tool, search engine giant Google said on Wednesday it saw a spike in searches for information about flu among people in Mexico last week even before news of the outbreak became widely known.
Google said it has put together a flu trends tracking system for Mexico based on the U.S. Google Flu tool launched last fall that is used by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to figure out where influenza is heating up.
It is based on Google's observation that people who are sick with flu tend to search for the same types of information on the Internet, and these searches can be used to predict where an outbreak may be occurring.
"We have seen evidence in Mexico that Google users also search flu-related topics when they are experiencing flu-related symptoms," Jeremy Ginsberg, lead engineer for Flu Trends at Google, said in a telephone briefing.
Studies show that between 35 and 40 percent of all visits to the Internet are started by people looking for health information.
Ginsberg said the Mexican data have not been cross-checked with years of data on actual flu cases in Mexico like the U.S. flu tracker has, so the data may not be reliable.
But he said the company is optimistic that the system, which generates maps based on peaks in flu-related searches, "may reflect actual flu activity."
"We did see a small increase in many parts of Mexico before major news coverage began last week," he said.
Ginsberg said people search for different things when they are sick -- like the word thermometer -- than they do when they are looking for news about flu outbreaks.
Ginsberg said the group has also seen a spike in U.S.-related flu searches that correspond with increases in U.S. cases being reported.
He said the hope is that the tool might offer one more way to predict hot spots in an outbreak as they happen.
"If it spreads quickly, it may give public health officials the chance to respond quickly," he said.GoogleWebsite : www.google.com
Location : Mountain View, California, United States
Founded : January 1, 1998
Google primarily provides search and advertising services, which together aim to organize and monetize the world’s information. In addition to its dominant search engine, it offers a plethora of tools and platforms including its more popular products: Gmail, Maps and YouTube. Most of its Web-based products are free because Google makes its money from highly integrated online advertising through its AdWords and AdSense platforms. Google promotes the idea that advertising should be highly targeted and relevant to users thus providing them with a rich source of information.
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Facebook Needs More Money?
Social-networking website Facebook has held meetings with private equity firms to explore raising another round of funding, the New York Post reported on Thursday, citing sources.
Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook
Facebook could not be immediately reached for comment.
Facebook held "valuation discussions" with Providence Equity Partners, General Atlantic, Bain Capital, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, among others, the paper said, citing multiple sources close to or involved in the situation.
The process has been informal and no term sheets have been drawn up, the sources told the paper.
The private-equity firms value the website in the $2 billion to $3 billion range, lower than Facebook's estimate of $5 billion to $6 billion, the sources told the paper.
The talks have created friction with Facebook's existing investors, who have poured in $400 million into the website and would like a return on their investment before seeing their stakes diluted through a new round of funding, the paper said.
Facebook's existing investors include Greylock Partners, Meritech Capital Partners and Microsoft Corp. - ReutersFacebook
Website : www.facebook.com
Location : Palo Alto, California, United States
Founded : February 1, 2004 | Cambridge, Massachusetts
Employees : 500 (March 2008)*
Annual Revenue : US$150 million (est.)*
*As per Wikipedia
Facebook is a social networking website launched on February 4, 2004, founded by Mark Zuckerberg, when he was a student at Harvard University.The free-access website is privately owned and operated by Facebook, Inc. Users can join networks organized by city, workplace, school, and region to connect and interact with other people. People can also add friends and send them messages, and update their personal profile to notify friends about themselves.
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Thursday, April 30, 2009
Windows 7 Free For 13 Months
Microsoft Corp. will let users run Windows 7 Release Candidate (RC) for more than a year, giving them free use of the new operating system for a significantly longer time than it did Vista's previews. - ComputerWorld
Windows 7 RC, slated for download by MSDN and TechNet subscribers today and by the general public on May 5, doesn't expire until June 1, 2010, 13 months from tomorrow, Microsoft confirmed today.
When asked why the company is giving users such a long free pass for the software, a spokeswoman declined to comment.
The date had been leaked more than a month ago, when a Microsoft site temporarily posted a page that revealed other details of the upcoming RC, including a May delivery and no limit on the number of downloads.
"You don't need to rush to get Windows 7 RC," the leaked page read in late March. "The RC release will be available at least through June 2009, and we're not limiting the number of product keys, so you have plenty of time."
The 13-month life span of Windows 7 RC is substantially longer than the time limit Microsoft put on Vista's release candidates. In September and October 2006, Microsoft issued Vista RC1 and Vista RC2, respectively; both expired June 1, 2007. Users of Vista RC2 then were able to run the operating system free of charge for nearly eight months.
Starting June 1, 2007, PCs powered by Vista previews, including the two release candidates, began rebooting every two hours, part of Microsoft's preplanned scheme to remind users to move to a paying copy.
Although Microsoft continues to be coy about a final release date for Windows 7 -- according to calculations by Todd Bishop, who writes the TechFlash blog, the company is behind schedule for such an announcement -- it has said that today's RC will be the only release candidate for the operating system.
The next milestone will be what Microsoft calls "release to manufacturing," or RTM, a stage that means developers have signed off on the code and the company has moved the product into duplication and begun handing it to its hardware partners for installation on new PCs.
Microsoft was having trouble serving up Windows 7 RC to MSDN and TechNet subscribers today, as the download sites for both services were overloaded early Thursday. As of 1 p.m. Eastern time, the MSDN and TechNet download pages for Windows 7 RC remained offline.MicrosoftWebsite : www.microsoft.com
Location : Redmond, Washington, United States
Founded : April 4, 1974
Microsoft is a multinational computer technology corporation. They are a veteran software company, best known for their Microsoft Windows operating system and the Microsoft Office suite of productivity software, but they have also ventured into hardware with consumer products such as the Zune and Xbox. They have made a presence on the Web with the MSN internet portal and Microsoft Live search, but have been widely criticized for their failure to penetrate this market.
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Wednesday, April 29, 2009
How To Add Twit This Button To Your Blog
TwitThis is an easy way for people to send Twitter messages about your blog post or website. When visitors to your website click on the TwitThis button or link, it takes the URL of the webpage and creates a shorter URL using our own URL shortener! Then visitors can send this shortened URL and a description of the web page to all of their friends on Twitter.
Add it to your site : Use the code below to add either a “TwitThis” button or text link to your website. It is as simple as adding this code where ever you would like a “TwitThis” button or link.
1.Twith This with Image
<!-- Begin TwitThis (http://twitthis.com/) -->
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://s3.chuug.com/chuug.twitthis.scripts/twitthis.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<a href="javascript:;" onclick="TwitThis.pop();"><img src="http://s3.chuug.com/chuug.twitthis.resources/twitthis_grey_72x22.gif" alt="TwitThis" style="border:none;" /></a>');
//-->
</script>
<!-- /End -->
2. Twith This Without Image
<!-- Begin TwitThis (http://twitthis.com/) -->
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://s3.chuug.com/chuug.twitthis.scripts/twitthis.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
document.write('<a href="javascript:;" onclick="TwitThis.pop();">>TwitThis</a>');
//-->
</script>
<!-- /End -->
If you want use a simpler way to add it use this alternative. Sign-in in your Blogger dashboard and click on Layout Tab > Modify HTML. Select expand widgets option and copy the following code where you want in the posts section (for example below the post title).- Go to Blogger Home
- Select the Blog
- Go to Layout >> Edit HTML [When you click on Layout, by default Blogger will take you to the Page Elements ]
- Make sure that you download the current template and copy it in your local system. You will be able to revert back to the original template if something wierd happens.
- Make sure that you have selected the Expand Widget Templates check box.
<a expr:href='"http://twitthis.com/twit?url=" + data:post.url + "&title=" + data:post.title'>Twit This!</a>
Copy and paste the code, without changing anything, not even spaces. If you want a picture before the "Twit This" text, add the following code inside the CSS section of your blog..twit-this{
background:url(http://tinyurl.com/c4x7ks) 10px top no-repeat;
padding-left:42px;
font-size:11px;
line-height:18px;
}
Then replace the code for "Twit This" like as given below.<a class='twit-this' expr:href='"http://twitthis.com/twit?url=" + data:post.url + "&title=" + data:post.title'>Twit This!</a>
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Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Steps To Make Your Blog Load Faster
The speed at which your blog loads is critical to attracting more readers to your blog. If your blog takes a long time to load, many readers may leave your blog before they have the chance to read it. No reader have the time to wait for a blog that takes more than 30 seconds to load. They will sure skip the blog and will go to other alternatives. So if you want to make your blog faster and more efficient, here are a few tips and tricks that will help your blog load faster and attract more users.
Set Number of Posts in Your Home Page : Your blog's load time can be affected by the number of posts you display on your main page. You can easily edit the number of posts displayed of the main page from the Settings Formatting tab. You can then select the number of posts you want to display on the main page. The recommended no of blogs to be displayed on your blog homepage is 10 or fewer.
Third Party JavaScript and Links : For optimal blog load speed, we recommend using Google/Blogger widgets, JavaScript and links. However, if you need to use third party JavaScript and links, your blog will load much faster if you put all JavaScript at the bottom of your blog. If you have third party JavaScript and links in your sidebar, put them in at the bottom of the sidebar.
Images and Media : The more images, videos and other multi-media you have on your blog the longer it will take to load. However, images and other multimedia are important to attracting users to your blog, so it is important to optimize the load speed of your images and media. Here are a few tips to increase the load speed of your media:- Decrease the size of your images or use thumbnails that link to the full-size image.
- If you use third party images, consider uploading them to Picasa Web Albums via the Blogger post editor.
- If you have a large number of images to display, you can upload all your images (from a vacation or event) to a Picasa Web Album and link to the album in your post or sidebar.
Other suggestions- If you've added any custom CSS to your blog, make sure you put it at the top of the page.
- The most important content of your blog that catches readers attention should load the quickest. To help you identify which items are taking the longest to load you can use Stopwatch.
- To use Stopwatch, enter your blog's URL into the text box and click "Start StopWatch". Stopwatch will then open your blog in a frame and will record the time it takes for everything on your blog to load, including images, videos, widgets, etc. Take note of the items that take the longest to load and modify them appropriately using these suggestions.
Apparently, all the steps suggested above are tried successfully in my blog and I have witnessed a significant change in the loading time for my blog. What it used to take 20-30 seconds to load the homepage is now taking an average of 12 seconds to load the whole page.
- Decrease the size of your images or use thumbnails that link to the full-size image.
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Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Verizon Ditched Apple, Now in Talks With Microsoft?
Verizon Wireless, it now seems, is in talks with Microsoft to rollout a touch-screen multimedia phone in early 2010, the Wall Street Journal reported April 28. The project, code-named “Pink,” is said to be an effort to challenge the Apple iPhone.
Rumors of an iPhone on the Verizon Wireless network have been stirred before, and last week received a fresh turn. The Wall Street Journal, interviewing Verizon’s chief executive Ivan Seidenberg, said Verizon was likely to get access to the iPhone in the coming years, as it converts its 3G network over to 4G, or LTE.
“Expect Mr. Seidenberg to come to Cupertino, checkbook in hand, to see what sort of deal he can make,” wrote the New York Times, in regard to the Journal interview.
Days later, USA Today reported that “people familiar with the situation” said Verizon Wireless was in negotiations to bring an iPhone to its network by next year.
Then, on April 28, Business Week reported that Apple and Verizon Wireless were in talks over the possibility of distributing two new Apple devices as early as this summer — a pared-down version of the iPhone, and an Amazon Kindle–like “media pad” for watching videos, listening to music and making calls over Wi-Fi.
Now, “according to reports,” the Journal wrote April 28, the Pink project will aim to extend Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system, adding new software capabilities, and provide Verizon with a new way of competing with AT&T, the Apple iPhone’s exclusive carrier.
According to the Journal’s account, the Microsoft-Verizon relationship evolved from a “search-and-advertising partnership” between the two, and that while Pink has been in the works for several months, it’s yet to be decided how the device will be branded. Microsoft is designing hardware and software, but a third party is expected to build the device.
A sore point in negotiations between Apple and Verizon was expected to be the issue of applications. Verizon sells applications, but Apple is has been firm about being the sole provider of mobile apps to the iPhone. To this point, the Journal's April 28 article states that Verizon may “add a twist” and begin selling applications for the enterprise.
Where a Microsoft-Verizon Pink project leaves Apple is unclear. Though as an analyst with Technology Business Research told eWEEK, echoing the Times interview with Seidenberg, a Verizon-Apple partnership may be likely, but likely not until the carrier implements 4G.MicrosoftWebsite : www.microsoft.com
Location : Redmond, Washington, United States
Founded : April 4, 1974
Microsoft is a multinational computer technology corporation. They are a veteran software company, best known for their Microsoft Windows operating system and the Microsoft Office suite of productivity software, but they have also ventured into hardware with consumer products such as the Zune and Xbox. They have made a presence on the Web with the MSN internet portal and Microsoft Live search, but have been widely criticized for their failure to penetrate this market.Apple
Website : www.apple.com
Location : Cupertino, CA, 95014 - USA
Founded : April 1976
Founder : Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne
Started by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne, Apple has expanded from computer maker to include consumer electronics over the last 30 years, officially changing their name from Apple Computer, Inc. to Apple, Inc. in January 2007..
Among the key offerings from Apple’s product line are: Pro line laptops (MacBook Pro) and desktops (Mac Pro), consumer line laptops (MacBook) and desktops (iMac), servers (Xserve), software, Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server operating systems, iPod (offered with up to 120 GB of storage with the iPod classic or with web browsing and touch screen controls with the iPod touch), and the iPhone (now available for sale in over 80 countries).Verizon
Website : www.verizon.com
Location : Basking Ridge, New Jersey, United States
Founded : January 1, 1998
Customers : 68.7 Million*
Employees : 70,000*
Annual Revenue : $43.9 Billion*
*As per the company website
A Dow 30 company, Verizon is one of the world's leading providers of communications services - deploying fiber optics, broadband, wireless, directory and data services. Verizon is one of the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States and internationally, primarily in the Americas and Europe.
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Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Twitters are Quitters | Losing the Momentum?
Despite the recent explosion in popularity backed by praises and tweets from celebrity users such as Ashton Kutcher and Oprah Winfrey, new study reveals that Twitter is failing to keep hold of its users. According to data from Nielsen Online, which measures Internet traffic, found that more than 60 percent of Twitter users stopped using the free social networking site a month after joining.
Most of the new Twitters are often leaving Twitter after one month, according to data that questions the long-term success of the latest social networking sensation used by celebrities from Oprah Winfrey to Britney Spears."Twitter's audience retention rate, or the percentage of a given month's users who come back the following month, is currently about 40 percent.For most of the past 12 months, pre-Oprah, Twitter has languished below 30 percent retention."
David Martin, Nielsen Online's vice president of primary research, said in a statement.
Twitter, based in San Francisco, was created three years ago as an Internet-based service that could allow people to follow the 140-character messages or "tweets" of friends and celebrities which could be sent to computer screens or mobile devices.
During last year's campaign, President Barack Obama used Twitter, and other prominent celebrities on Twitter include basketballer Shaquille O'Neal and singers Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus.
Twitter, as a private company, does not disclose the number of its users but according to Nielsen Online, Twitter's website had more than 7 million unique visitors in February this year compared to 475,000 in February a year ago.
But Martin said a retention rate of 40 percent will limit a site's growth to a 10 percent reach figure over the longer term.
"There simply aren't enough new users to make up for defecting ones after a certain point," he said in a statement.
Martin said Facebook and MySpace, the more established social network sites, enjoyed retention rates that were twice as high and those rates only rose when they went through their explosive growth phases.
Both currently have retention rates of about 70 percent with Facebook having about 200 million users.
"Twitter has enjoyed a nice ride over the last few months, but it will not be able to sustain its meteoric rise without establishing a higher level of user loyalty," said Martin.TwitterWebsite : www.twitter.com
Service : Micro-Blogging
Available Language(s) : English, Japanese
Location : South Park, San Francisco, California
Founded : March 2006
Twitter is social networking and micro-blogging site that allows users to post their latest updates. An update is limited by 140 characters and can be posted through three methods: web form, text message, or instant message.The service was started by Obvious Corp, and had launched the Japanese version in April 2008.
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Tuesday, April 28, 2009
New US Army Recruits | Facebook & Twitter
Seeking to reach out to the younger audience, the US Army has launched a page on the world's largest social online network Facebook and Twitter, a free social messaging utility that has become an internet sensation.
Army spokeswoman Lindy Kyzer told Agence France Presse (AFP) on Tuesday, April 28."Young people today don't watch the evening news. They're friends [who] are sharing information through Twitter, or Facebook. If we have no presence on those spaces, then we're not telling the army's story."
Kyzer said the Army's Online Social Media Division was created in March and its official Facebook page was launched last week.
She noted that the Facebook page, which now has more than 8,000 fans, has entries from wives of soldiers seeking advice from other military families, youth getting ready to enlist and veterans sending prayers to troops.
Founded in 2004, Facebook's membership was initially restricted to students of the Harvard University.It was later expanded to other universities in the US and later to any student with a university email address from all over the world.
Facebook has grown to more than 70 million users worldwide to be the second social networking website after MySpace.The US Navy's Pacific Command has its own Facebook page with plenty of photos.General Ray Odierno, who commands US forces in Iraq, has a Facebook page with more than 5,000 friends.
Twitter is a free social messaging utility for staying connected in real-time that has grown in popularity in recent months.The Air Force has also launched its Twitter service.
Kyzer believes that once the army re-taps into Twitter service it would attract more fans than Hollywood star Ashton Kutcher who has one million audience on the San Francisco micro-blogging service."If he has a million followers, why can't we? We're the US Army."
The Army's Twitter effort has gotten off to a slow start with about 5,000 followers since its launch last year.
Many blame that on Pentagon computer security restrictions, set out in 2007, which limit soldiers' access to networking sites.
The rules bar soldiers in war zones, including Iraq or Afghanistan, from accessing Facebook or Twitter on computer networks at military bases.
They are also blamed for stifling blogging by soldiers from the battlefront, even as some senior commanders write blogs or maintain a Facebook page."It's unfortunate and makes things more difficult in the deployed environment, but we have great programs set up so that you have Internet cafes in deployed situations and things like that,"
Kyzer said.FacebookWebsite : www.facebook.com
Location : Palo Alto, California, United States
Founded : February 1, 2004 | Cambridge, Massachusetts
Employees : 500 (March 2008)*
Annual Revenue : US$150 million (est.)*
*As per Wikipedia
Facebook is a social networking website launched on February 4, 2004, founded by Mark Zuckerberg, when he was a student at Harvard University.The free-access website is privately owned and operated by Facebook, Inc. Users can join networks organized by city, workplace, school, and region to connect and interact with other people. People can also add friends and send them messages, and update their personal profile to notify friends about themselves.TwitterWebsite : www.twitter.com
Service : Micro-Blogging
Available Language(s) : English, Japanese
Location : South Park, San Francisco, California
Founded : March 2006
Twitter is social networking and micro-blogging site that allows users to post their latest updates. An update is limited by 140 characters and can be posted through three methods: web form, text message, or instant message.The service was started by Obvious Corp, and had launched the Japanese version in April 2008.
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Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Google Released Search & Compare for Public Data
Google just launched a new search feature that makes it easy to find and compare public data. Consider the following scenario.
The data they're including in this first launch represents just a small fraction of all the interesting public data available on the web. There are statistics for prices of cookies, CO2 emissions, asthma frequency, high school graduation rates, bakers' salaries, number of wildfires, and the list goes on. Reliable information about these kinds of things exists thanks to the hard work of data collectors gathering countless survey forms, and of careful statisticians estimating meaningful indicators that make hidden patterns of the world visible to the eye.
All the data Google have used in this first launch are produced and published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Census Bureau's Population Division and the search have just made the data a bit easier to find and use.
Earthquakes are not the only thing that can shake Silicon Valley. After the dot-com bubble burst back in 2000 the unemployment rate of Santa Clara county went up to 9.1%. During the last couple of months, it has gone up again: So, when comparing Santa Clara county data to the national unemployment rate, it becomes clear not only that Santa Clara's peak during 2002-2003 was really dramatic, but also that the recent increase is a bit more drastic than the national rate:
If you go to Google.com and type in [unemployment rate] or [population] followed by a U.S. state or county, you will see the most recent estimates:
Once you click the link, you'll go to an interactive chart that lets you add and remove data for different geographical areas.
Since Google's acquisition of Trendalyzer two years ago, they have been working on creating a new service that make lots of data instantly available for intuitive, visual exploration. Today's launch is a first step in that direction. Google's hope is that people will find this search feature helpful, whether it's used in the classroom, the boardroom or around the kitchen table and also that this will pave the way for public data to take a more central role in informed public conversations.GoogleWebsite : www.google.com
Location : Mountain View, California, United States
Founded : January 1, 1998
Google primarily provides search and advertising services, which together aim to organize and monetize the world’s information. In addition to its dominant search engine, it offers a plethora of tools and platforms including its more popular products: Gmail, Maps and YouTube. Most of its Web-based products are free because Google makes its money from highly integrated online advertising through its AdWords and AdSense platforms. Google promotes the idea that advertising should be highly targeted and relevant to users thus providing them with a rich source of information.
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Tuesday, April 28, 2009
How to Add 'retweet' Button To Your Blogger Blog
The Retweet button is for website and blog publishers that want to encourage their audience to retweet their content on twitter.
A Retweet is a type of message posted (or tweeted) on micro blogging sevice, Twitter, that repeats some information previously tweeted by another user. The person making the Retweet is a Retweeter or a Retweetist.
The Retweet has become a common way to spread information across overlapping social groups online. The principle is simple, my circle of contacts will often vary from your circle of contacts enough that the act of Retweeting what you say has extended value to a greater group of people. It also has the effect of highlighting an interesting piece of information when a third person is a contact of both the original tweeter and the retweetist. Repetition hammers home the point.
Twitter is being used by many bloggers to promote their blogs. This donesn't takes much of your time in contrast reaches all the tweeters who are following you and countless twitter users. This, for sure brings in more traffic to your blog.
Tweetmeme have made their button really smart, with one simple piece of JavaScript, which gives you up to date tweet counts and shorten your title and link for the retweets. Best of all it will work on any web page, anywhere!
Eventhough retweeting the blog post means the credit as the original tweeter goes to tweetmeme, this sure gets more visitors to your blog.
Tweetmeme gives you two types of buttons,- A button, which looks somewhat alike the Digg button
- A Compact version which fits in less space
Digg Like Bigger Button : Copy and paste the following code where you want the widget to be displayed.<script type="text/javascript" src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js"></script>
The button is really smart and will automatically grab the URL of the page it is placed on. However if you want to place the button on more than one page or would like it in your feed, you will need to override the URL.
To use the retweet button in your blogger blog copy and paste the following code where you want the widget to be displayed.<script type="text/javascript">
tweetmeme_url = '<data:post.url/>';
</script>
<script src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>
Compact Button : This is compact version of the tweetmeme button, with the same options as the larger button. Copy and paste the code given below, where you want the retweet button to appear.
<script type="text/javascript">
tweetmeme_style = "compact";
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://tweetmeme.com/i/scripts/button.js"></script>
When broadcasting this message, you should give credit to the original poster. While retweeting sounds great for the original tweeter (since there is usually a link involved), retweeting can actually benefit you just as much if not more.
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Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Vine | Microsoft's New Social Networking Application
The Microsoft Vine Beta connects you to the people and places you care about most, when it matters. Stay in touch with family and friends, be informed when someone needs help. Get involved to create great communities. Use alerts, reports and your personal dashboard to stay in touch, informed and involved. Vine is a location-aware social networking application focused on being a robust means of local communication that’ll work even in times of emergency.
Microsoft Vine is currently a beta service, which means Microsoft needs your feedback and ideas to make it great. Watch the videos to learn more, then, provide your e-mail address to request an invitation.
From the Vine dashboard you can know what’s happening. Information associated with the places you have chosen will appear on your map, including articles from 20,000 news and public safety sources. Information from people you care about, such as alerts and reports, will appear on the dashboard too.
Send and Receive Alerts : Organize people into groups - the sports team you coach, people who live nearby, family far away, special friends, and emergency contacts. Each person defines how they want to receive alerts – through e-mail, a text message, or on their computer. Reach them quickly using alerts.
Post Reports : You decide what you want to share with whom, and then the information is sent directly to their personal dashboard. Check in safe and well to let your family know you are okay, let trusted neighbors know you’re headed out of town, keep people informed of situations that matter, or share general information like the team practice schedule for the week.
Microsoft Vine is appropriate for any small group of people who want to stay in touch, informed and involved — families, neighbors, sports teams, school committees, volunteer groups or faith-based groups.
Want to Participate? : Microsoft Vine aims to create an inclusive network so that ultimately anyone can participate, through a social networking application such as Twitter or Facebook or using e-mail, any computer connected to the Internet, or a mobile phone, kitchen phone or a special needs device. Microsoft want people to participate in the way that feels most natural to them and will extend the tools that exist today.MicrosoftWebsite : www.microsoft.com
Location : Redmond, Washington, United States
Founded : April 4, 1974
Microsoft is a multinational computer technology corporation. They are a veteran software company, best known for their Microsoft Windows operating system and the Microsoft Office suite of productivity software, but they have also ventured into hardware with consumer products such as the Zune and Xbox. They have made a presence on the Web with the MSN internet portal and Microsoft Live search, but have been widely criticized for their failure to penetrate this market.
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Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Firefox 3.5 Beta 4 now available for download
Firefox 3.5 (formerly known as Firefox 3.1) Beta 4 is now available for download. This milestone is focused on testing the core functionality provided by many new features and changes to the platform scheduled for Firefox 3.5. Ongoing planning for Firefox 3.5 can be followed at the Firefox 3.5 Planning Center, as well as in mozilla.dev.planning and on irc.mozilla.org in #shiretoko.
The latest beta version of Firefox is now available as a preview release. Take it for a test drive and let us know what you think! New features and changes in this milestone that require feedback include:- This beta is now available in 70 languages - get your local version.
- Improved tools for controlling your private data, including a Private Browsing Mode.
- Better performance and stability with the new TraceMonkey JavaScript engine.
- The ability to provide Location Aware Browsing using web standards for geolocation.
- Support for native JSON, and web worker threads.
- Improvements to the Gecko layout engine, including speculative parsing for faster content rendering.
- Support for new web technologies such as: HTML5 <video> and <audio> elements, downloadable fonts and other new CSS properties, JavaScript query selectors, HTML5 offline data storage for applications, and SVG transforms.
Support for new web technologies such as: HTML5
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Tuesday, April 28, 2009
New Wireless Devices from Apple | Through Verizon
As per Businessweek reports, Apple (AAPL) and Verizon (VZ) are in talks about selling two new wireless devices. This is in contradict to an earlier report from USA Today that Verizon was planning to offer Apple's iPhone as early as next year.
The devices are a less-expensive "iPhone lite" and a bigger "media pad" that "would let users listen to music, view photos, and watch high-definition videos" as well as offering wi-fi calling, according to BusinessWeek.
This sounds a lot like the tablet that Apple is supposedly developing, which is commonly been called the "iPod touch HD."
If Apple wants to get a chunk out of the mobile phone industry, they'll have to eventually offer something cheaper than $199. BusinessWeek describes the "iPhone Lite" as "slightly thinner and smaller than the existing iPhone," usimg more a cost-efficient chip.
That sounds good, assuming it can keep most (if not all) of the iPhone's features. For instance, the phone would probably have to work with the iPhone App Store and include location features. As Apple has repeatedly said it has no interest in selling crappy "voice" phones, it wouldn't be too "dumb" to be worthy of the iPhone name.
Meanwhile, the "media pad" device is a smart one -- especially if it could also support Verizon's 3G network for data service. While PC makers have tapped the fast-growing market of "netbook" mini laptops, Apple has repeatedly slammed them for being crappy, cramped devices that consumers ultimately won't be happy with.
That's where Apple could bring its hardware expertise, multi-touch user interface, and powerful OS X software to make a great device. BusinessWeek describes it as "smaller than an Amazon Kindle electronic reader, but its touchscreen is bigger than the Kindle's," citing someone who's seen it. And if Verizon is willing to subsidize it -- with a 2-year contract, of course -- then it's a win-win situation.AppleWebsite : www.apple.com
Location : Cupertino, CA, 95014 - USA
Founded : April 1976
Founder : Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne
Started by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne, Apple has expanded from computer maker to include consumer electronics over the last 30 years, officially changing their name from Apple Computer, Inc. to Apple, Inc. in January 2007..
Among the key offerings from Apple’s product line are: Pro line laptops (MacBook Pro) and desktops (Mac Pro), consumer line laptops (MacBook) and desktops (iMac), servers (Xserve), software, Mac OS X and Mac OS X Server operating systems, iPod (offered with up to 120 GB of storage with the iPod classic or with web browsing and touch screen controls with the iPod touch), and the iPhone (now available for sale in over 80 countries).VerizonWebsite : www.verizon.com
Location : Basking Ridge, New Jersey, United States
Founded : January 1, 1998
Customers : 68.7 Million*
Employees : 70,000*
Annual Revenue : $43.9 Billion*
*As per the company website
A Dow 30 company, Verizon is one of the world's leading providers of communications services - deploying fiber optics, broadband, wireless, directory and data services. Verizon is one of the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States and internationally, primarily in the Americas and Europe.
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Monday, April 27, 2009
Facebook Allows Developers to Interact With Your Streams
When you want to stay updated with your friends and other connections on Facebook, you can log into your home page to see a running timeline, or stream, of the information they're sharing. The more they share, the more you see in the stream and the more you learn about your connections. Starting today, you have the option to access that same stream outside of Facebook.com.
Now, you'll be able to view your stream and publish information into it from places you never could before — like your desktop computer or your mobile phone. Your stream will appear just as it does on Facebook.com and maintain the same privacy settings. They believe that the ability to see more and more of what is happening around you will lead to greater openness and transparency.
To make this work, they released new technology for developers so they can offer this option to you on other websites and applications. They work closely with third-party developers to enable intriguing and meaningful experiences both on and off Facebook.com. Since they launched Facebook Platform in 2007, developers have created 10s of thousands of applications to help you connect and share with your friends in interesting ways — whether by playing a social game, discovering new books or creating group greeting cards.
Last year, they announced Facebook Connect to make it easy for you to take your online identity with you across the Web and share what you do online with your friends back on Facebook by publishing your actions to the stream. Today's announcement is an extension of that by making it easy for you to interact with your stream from anywhere.
They've already worked with a few developers to build some of these new experiences for you to try out, and they've created one ourselves, as well. Beginning later today, you'll be able to find these and future applications in the Facebook Application Directory under "For Your Desktop."FacebookWebsite : www.facebook.com
Location : Palo Alto, California, United States
Founded : February 1, 2004 | Cambridge, Massachusetts
Employees : 500 (March 2008)*
Annual Revenue : US$150 million (est.)*
*As per Wikipedia
Facebook is a social networking website launched on February 4, 2004, founded by Mark Zuckerberg, when he was a student at Harvard University.The free-access website is privately owned and operated by Facebook, Inc. Users can join networks organized by city, workplace, school, and region to connect and interact with other people. People can also add friends and send them messages, and update their personal profile to notify friends about themselves.
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Monday, April 27, 2009
Google releases programing tools for Android 1.5
Meeting its own deadline, Google on Monday released the final version of software to create programs for a forthcoming update to the company's Android mobile phone operating system.
Xavier Ducrohet announced the Android 1.5 software development kit (SDK) on the Android developer blog.
The Android 1.5 SDK release notes include details programmers might be interested in, such as improvements in emulating multiple Android devices and gauging performance issues.
T-Mobile Offers HTC phone with Google's Android Software
And for comic relief, Google added, "We regret to inform developers that Android 1.5 will not include support for the Zilog Z80 processor architecture," an 8-bit chip that dates back to the 1970s.
Ordinary folks, though, will be more interested in the list of new features with Android 1.5, code-named Cupcake. Among those are video support, faster GPS, stereo Bluetooth, a faster Web browser, a software-based screen keyboard, and user interface changes.
Android 1.5 is due in coming months. In Germany, T-Mobile plans a May release for Android 1.5 to users of the first Android phone, the G1 built by HTC.
Google led the creation of a consortium called the Open Handset Alliance to develop Android in an attempt to jump-start development of higher-end smartphones with sophisticated Web browsers and other software. Google believes mobile computing will drive significant growth in its Internet services.
T-Mobile has sold 1 million G1 phones in the United States so far.GoogleWebsite : www.google.com
Location : Mountain View, California, United States
Founded : January 1, 1998
Google primarily provides search and advertising services, which together aim to organize and monetize the world’s information. In addition to its dominant search engine, it offers a plethora of tools and platforms including its more popular products: Gmail, Maps and YouTube. Most of its Web-based products are free because Google makes its money from highly integrated online advertising through its AdWords and AdSense platforms. Google promotes the idea that advertising should be highly targeted and relevant to users thus providing them with a rich source of information.
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Monday, April 27, 2009
Twitter | The Hot Target
Throughout April, worms have ripped through the "microblogging" platform, infecting user accounts with malicious code that spread from profile to profile as Twitterers visited one another's compromised pages. Every time Twitter's administrators declared that they had cleaned up the infection, a new strain of malicious code would begin propagating through thousands of accounts, week after week.
So far, that string of 140-character epidemics has seemed to be nothing more than an experiment in hacking Twitter, designed by a 17-year-old Brooklynite named Mikey Mooney. But the warnings for the microblogging platform and its explosively growing user base are clear enough: Next time, the same sort of worm could be designed to steal users' passwords or hijack their PCs with malicious software.
Cybersecurity researchers may not be surprised that novel attacks follow every new digital medium that becomes popular. But for everyone else, the recognition that cybercriminal exploits are changing almost as rapidly as Twitter's real-time updates presents a daunting problem: How do we practice safe online behavior when the Web's safety code is constantly in flux?
"The rules are always changing as the threat landscape changes," says Jeremiah Grossman, a Web security researcher with White Hat Security. "It's like you're told not to shake hands with the guy who's coughing and whose nose is running. But then it turns out that someone who looks healthy can infect you just as easily."
One of those new rules, Grossman says, is that generic messages from "friends" on social sites like Twitter and Facebook can no longer be completely trusted, given that both sites have been repeatedly hijacked by hackers.
But the erosion of trust online goes further: Simply visiting a site that's been infected with malicious software can download password-stealing software to a user's PC, a technique known as a "drive-by download." An evolving breed of attack known as DNS (Domain Name System) redirection can send users to invisible look-a-like sites when they type an address directly into a browser (see "For a Poisoned Internet, No Quick Fix"). And hacker tricks like Cross-Site Scripting and Cross-Site Request Forgery allow some sites to steal the "cookie" files downloaded to your browser, giving hackers access to any past site you've visited .TwitterWebsite : www.twitter.com
Service : Micro-Blogging
Available Language(s) : English, Japanese
Location : South Park, San Francisco, California
Founded : March 2006
Twitter is social networking and micro-blogging site that allows users to post their latest updates. An update is limited by 140 characters and can be posted through three methods: web form, text message, or instant message.The service was started by Obvious Corp, and had launched the Japanese version in April 2008.
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Saturday, April 25, 2009
Windows 7 | With an XP Mode
Microsoft is trying to make it easier to sway users of Windows XP onto the latest version of its operating system.
For some time now, the company has been quietly building a "Windows XP mode" that uses virtualization to allow Windows 7 to easily run applications designed for Windows XP. According to sources familiar with the product, the application compatibility mode is built on the Virtual PC technology that Microsoft acquired in 2003, when it scooped up the assets of Connectix.
By adding the compatibility mode, Microsoft is aiming to address one of the key shortcomings of Windows Vista: its compatibility issues with software designed for Windows XP and earlier versions of the operating system.
Details of the Windows XP mode, previously known as Virtual Windows XP, were first published earlier Friday by the Windows SuperSite blog.
The technology has not been part of the beta version of Windows 7 or previously disclosed by Microsoft, but is expected to be released alongside the upcoming release candidate version. Microsoft said on Friday that it will release it to developers next week and publicly starting May 5.
According to the SuperSite report, written by bloggers Paul Thurrott and Rafael Rivera, the XP mode won't come in the box with Windows 7, but will be made available as a free download for those who buy the professional, enterprise, or "ultimate" versions of Windows 7. The site also has some screenshots of the mode in action.
There had been rumors of a secret user interface, but until Friday, no mention of the XP mode.MicrosoftWebsite : www.microsoft.com
Location : Redmond, Washington, United States
Founded : April 4, 1974
Microsoft is a multinational computer technology corporation. They are a veteran software company, best known for their Microsoft Windows operating system and the Microsoft Office suite of productivity software, but they have also ventured into hardware with consumer products such as the Zune and Xbox. They have made a presence on the Web with the MSN internet portal and Microsoft Live search, but have been widely criticized for their failure to penetrate this market.
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Saturday, April 25, 2009
ALERT!!!! Conficker virus begins to attack PCs
A malicious software program known as Conficker that many feared would wreak havoc on April 1 is slowly being activated, weeks after being dismissed as a false alarm, security experts said.
Conficker virus begins to attack PCs
Conficker, also known as Downadup or Kido, is quietly turning thousands of personal computers into servers of e-mail spam and installing spyware, they said.
The worm started spreading late last year, infecting millions of computers and turning them into "slaves" that respond to commands sent from a remote server that effectively controls an army of computers known as a botnet.
Its unidentified creators started using those machines for criminal purposes in recent weeks by loading more malicious software onto a small percentage of computers under their control, said Vincent Weafer, a vice president with Symantec Security Response, the research arm of the world's largest security software maker, Symantec Corp.
"Expect this to be long-term, slowly changing," he said of the worm. "It's not going to be fast, aggressive."
Conficker installs a second virus, known as Waledac, that sends out e-mail spam without knowledge of the PC's owner, along with a fake anti-spyware program, Weafer said.
The Waledac virus recruits the PCs into a second botnet that has existed for several years and specializes in distributing e-mail spam.
"This is probably one of the most sophisticated botnets on the planet. The guys behind this are very professional. They absolutely know what they are doing," said Paul Ferguson, a senior researcher with Trend Micro Inc, the world's third-largest security software maker.
He said Conficker's authors likely installed a spam engine and another malicious software program on tens of thousands of computers since April 7.
He said the worm will stop distributing the software on infected PCs on May 3 but more attacks will likely follow.
"We expect to see a different component or a whole new twist to the way this botnet does business," said Ferguson, a member of The Conficker Working Group, an international alliance of companies fighting the worm.
Researchers had feared the network controlled by the Conficker worm might be deployed on April 1 since the worm surfaced last year because it was programed to increase communication attempts from that date.
The security industry formed the task force to fight the worm, bringing widespread attention that experts said probably scared off the criminals who command the slave computers.
The task force initially thwarted the worm using the Internet's traffic control system to block access to servers that control the slave computers.
Viruses that turn PCs into slaves exploit weaknesses in Microsoft's Windows operating system. The Conficker worm is especially tricky because it can evade corporate firewalls by passing from an infected machine onto a USB memory stick, then onto another PC.
The Conficker botnet is one of many such networks controlled by syndicates that authorities believe are based in eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, China and Latin America.
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Friday, April 24, 2009
Microsoft Windows 7 | Release Next Week
Microsoft Corp said on Friday a version of its long awaited Windows 7 operating system will be made available from next week.
The version, known as a 'release candidate', or RC, essentially means the world's largest software company is in the final stages of completing the operating system, the successor to the unpopular Windows Vista.
Microsoft said the RC will be available for download by program developers and IT professionals subscribing to the MSDN and TechNet networks on April 30 and available more broadly on May 5.
The company has still not said when the finished version would begin to be installed on PCs or available to buy in shops, but the company's chief financial officer said on Thursday it could be as early as July.
That would allow Microsoft to capitalize on back-to-school sales and set it up for a strong holiday shopping season.
Microsoft's operating systems, installed on the vast majority of the world's PCs, are still the backbone of the company, providing more than half of its $4.4 billion profit last quarter.
Vista, launched to the public in 2007, was incompatible with some low-power machines and perceived by many to be too complicated. Rival Apple Inc ridiculed Microsoft's problems with the system in a series of popular TV ads.
Windows 7, which has been getting good reviews in limited public tests over the last few months, is much cleaner looking and features an array of new touch-screen functions. Microsoft says it will also interact better with digital cameras and music players.MicrosoftWebsite : www.microsoft.com
Location : Redmond, Washington, United States
Founded : April 4, 1974
Microsoft is a multinational computer technology corporation. They are a veteran software company, best known for their Microsoft Windows operating system and the Microsoft Office suite of productivity software, but they have also ventured into hardware with consumer products such as the Zune and Xbox. They have made a presence on the Web with the MSN internet portal and Microsoft Live search, but have been widely criticized for their failure to penetrate this market.
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Friday, April 24, 2009
Google + Twitter | Does this Deal Works Out?
Reports (rumors) are that Google may acquire Twitter. The news comes from two separate and unnamed sources that claim talks between Google and Twitter are in the late stages, according to TechCrunch's Michael Arrington. However, Arrington says he has spoken to a third source that says talks are just in the early stages. Arrington says his third source claims the talks may only result in the two companies collaborating on a real-time search engine for Google. There's no word on how much a Google-Twitter deal could be worth, but most estimates put it in the $1 billion range with Google paying a mix of cash and stock.
This latest rumor comes only a few weeks after Google CEO Erich Schmidt called Twitter a "poor man's e-mail system" at the Morgan Stanley Technology Conference in San Francisco. During the conference, Schmidt said Google would wait for "prices to get better" before attempting any acquisitions. However, it was clear from his talk that Schmidt and Google had been putting a lot of thought into Twitter's future. Schmidt's Twitter musings included incorporating the service into traditional e-mail and for Twitter to evolve beyond what Schmidt called a "note phenomenon."
Twitter turned down an offer to be bought by Facebook just a few months ago for half a billion dollars, although that was based partially on overvalued Facebook stock. Google would be paying in cash and/or publicly valued stock, which is equivalent to cash. So whatever the final acquisition value might be, it can’t be compared apples-to-apples with the Facebook deal.
If this is accurate, it’s a brilliant deal for Google - the value of Twitter is only going to go up over time. And it will be Twitter founders Evan Williams and Biz Stone’s second sale to Google - they sold Blogger to them just five years ago. But there’s one big question - where’s Microsoft in all this? Letting Twitter go to Google only hurts them, badly, in the long term search game. This is an asset they need to be competing for aggressively.TwitterWebsite : www.twitter.com
Service : Micro-Blogging
Available Language(s) : English, Japanese
Location : South Park, San Francisco, California
Founded : March 2006
Twitter is social networking and micro-blogging site that allows users to post their latest updates. An update is limited by 140 characters and can be posted through three methods: web form, text message, or instant message.The service was started by Obvious Corp, and had launched the Japanese version in April 2008.GoogleWebsite : www.google.com
Location : Mountain View, California, United States
Founded : January 1, 1998
Google primarily provides search and advertising services, which together aim to organize and monetize the world’s information. In addition to its dominant search engine, it offers a plethora of tools and platforms including its more popular products: Gmail, Maps and YouTube. Most of its Web-based products are free because Google makes its money from highly integrated online advertising through its AdWords and AdSense platforms. Google promotes the idea that advertising should be highly targeted and relevant to users thus providing them with a rich source of information.
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Friday, April 24, 2009
Twitter | A Global Sensation
According to Hitwise, with celebrities such as Ashton Kutcher and Oprah Winfrey helping fuel Twitter mania, the micro-blogging website is soaring to stardom around the world.
Twitter's growth in Australia "has been nothing short of phenomenal," rocketing 1,067 percent since the start of this year, reported Alan Long, research director at the Internet intelligence gathering firm.
The number of visitors to Twitter has more than tripled in New Zealand since the beginning of the year, and the website shot up 239 ranks in Singapore to score a place among the 50 most popular online destinations in the country.
"In other markets, Twitter has a growth pattern similar to the US and UK, highlighting that Twitter is a truly global phenomenon," Long said in Hitwise findings released Friday.
As of early this week, Twitter's share of online visits in the United States and Britain had increased by 570 percent and 621 percent respectively since the start of the year.
"It is interesting to note that large jumps in share of visits have been sparked by a variety of events and news items at different times over the past three months," Long wrote.
"But, Ashton Kutcher and Oprah seem to have had an impact in all countries in mid-April."
US talk show megastar Winfrey made her debut on the micro-blogging service a week ago and attracted more than 125,000 followers in just 24 hours. She now has more than 560,000 followers.
Kutcher, star of the television series "That '70s Show" and husband of actress Demi Moore, beat television news network CNN on April 17 in a race to see who could become the first Twitter user to attract one million followers.
Oprah is the latest celebrity to begin using Twitter, which allows users to pepper their followers with messages of a maximum 140 characters.
Other well-known users include British actor and playwright Stephen Fry, NBA star Shaquille O'Neal, Australian actor Hugh Jackman, and seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong. - AFPTwitterWebsite : www.twitter.com
Service : Micro-Blogging
Available Language(s) : English, Japanese
Location : South Park, San Francisco, California
Founded : March 2006
Twitter is social networking and micro-blogging site that allows users to post their latest updates. An update is limited by 140 characters and can be posted through three methods: web form, text message, or instant message.The service was started by Obvious Corp, and had launched the Japanese version in April 2008.
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