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<title>Haaze.com / Ramesh01 / Voted News</title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com</link>
<description>Test Web 2.0 Content Management System</description>
<pubDate>Sun, 24 Apr 2011 07:10:07 +0000</pubDate>
<language>en</language>
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<title><![CDATA[Russian police free kidnapped Kaspersky son]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=russian-police-free-kidnapped-kaspersky-son</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=russian-police-free-kidnapped-kaspersky-son</comments>
<pubDate>Sun, 24 Apr 2011 07:10:07 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>yenavsepop</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=russian-police-free-kidnapped-kaspersky-son</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The kidnapped son of Kaspersky Lab's founder has been freed and five suspects are in custody in connection with the abduction, according to a Russian media report today.Russian law enforcement officials freed Ivan Kaspersky, the 20-year-old son of Chief Executive Eugene Kaspersky, through a special operation with company security forces, according to the Interfax news agency. &quot;He has been freed without ransom,&quot; a spokeswoman for the Moscow-based antivirus company told the news agency. The younger Kaspersky, a fourth-year student of mathematics and cybernetics at Moscow State University, was kidnapped Tuesday morning on his way to work at InfoWatch, a company owned by his mother, Natalya Kaspersky, according to the English version of Pravda.ru. Someone claiming to be his abductor later reportedly phoned the father and demanded $4.3 million. No further information about the suspects was available, and Kaspersky representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Google Toolbar for IE goes Instant]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-toolbar-for-ie-goes-instant</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-toolbar-for-ie-goes-instant</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 22 Apr 2011 07:10:02 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>dwienulkirul</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-toolbar-for-ie-goes-instant</guid>
<description><![CDATA[While Google Toolbar 7 for Firefox launched several months ago, the Internet Explorer version (download) went live just this week. It brings Google Instant to the popular toolbar, along with more robust privacy options and a cleaner interface.Google Toolbar 7 for Internet Explorer (pictures) Although the support for Google Instant search is the most notable feature improvement in version 7, what appears most interesting is the way that the toolbar lets you know that features like Instant that require tracking to work actually do track you. While this might not be news to some, it's a strong reminder that many of the data-rich features that people love do come at a cost to personal privacy.Enabling the features is easy. After installation, which unfortunately requires a reboot of all your open browsers, the toolbar walks you through activating Instant and opens a tab with Google's toolbar tutorial video. If you choose to install without activating Instant, you can do it later by going to the Options menu. The Option menu is now accessible from the Wrench icon, just as it is in Chrome. The Options menu is also where you can toggle privacy features after installing, under the Privacy tab. A new hot key combo, Alt+G, will jump you directly into the toolbar's search box.For people who want to have a different default search engine in Internet Explorer, this can be a clever way to have two search engines accessible directly from the keyboard.Along with the Wrench icon, much of the toolbar's look has been tweaked to make it look more like Chrome. App icons are identical to those used for Chrome extensions, and the vertical tab choices in the Options menu also resemble the current Chrome menu.One excellent feature in Internet Explorer 9 is that it tells you what kind of performance impact your add-ons have on the browser. My installation of Google Toolbar 7 impacted browser start time by zero seconds, according to IE's add-on management window. That is a massive improvement for a toolbar's reputation, when most are notorious for slowing down the browser launch.It's important to note that the Internet Explorer Google Toolbar installer will also install the Google Toolbar forFirefox. You must later go into Firefox and disable it, if you only want it in one browser.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Sony Ericsson announces W8 Walkman phone]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-ericsson-announces-w8-walkman-phone</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-ericsson-announces-w8-walkman-phone</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 21 Apr 2011 07:10:31 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>latia507</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-ericsson-announces-w8-walkman-phone</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Sony&amp;39's W8 Walkman phone brings Android to iconic Walkman line.(Credit:Sony Ericsson)Using just a post on its Web site, Sony Ericsson unceremoniously unveiled its next Android-powered phone today, the W8 Walkman. Looking nearly identical to last summer's Xperia X8, the smartphone features a 3-inch touch screen, a 3.2-megapixel camera, and a 600MHz processor. The W8 Walkman runs Android 2.1 with Sony Ericsson's custom Timescape UI so it should be able to run most games and applications. Virtually indistinguishable from the Xperia X8, both offer Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth support as well. I might expect apps centered around music and media playback, but the Sony Ericsson blog mentions new or exciting.Initially, the W8 Walkman phone will be offered in Asia-Pacific markets in three color options: Azure Blue, Metallic Red, and Iconic Orange. As of this time there are no indications that we'll see this phone at a U.S. carrier.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[IT pros would take salary cut to telecommute]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=it-pros-would-take-salary-cut-to-telecommute</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=it-pros-would-take-salary-cut-to-telecommute</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 20 Apr 2011 07:10:37 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>foreigo</dc:creator>
<category>Business &amp; Finance</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=it-pros-would-take-salary-cut-to-telecommute</guid>
<description><![CDATA[A significant number of IT professionals say they'd take a salary cut for the chance to work from home full time, according to a survey from techie job site Dice.Thirty-five percent of 937 IT pros surveyed in mid-March said they would accept up to a 10 percent pay cut to telecommute in light of soaring gas prices, A 10 percent slice in the average technology professional's salary would translate into $7,800 less earned per year, according to Dice.Thirty-six percent responded no, insisting on the same pay for the same work. Another 9 percent said they already telecommute, while 20 percent said they'd take any job since they're currently out of work.Despite throwing in the part about rising gas prices, the same question posed by Dice three years ago got almost the same results, Dice.com managing director Alice Hill said in a brief report on the survey.The strong desire by technology pros to work from home stands in stark contrast to the small number of jobs posted on Dice that mention telecommuting. Less than 1 percent, or only 500, of the approximately 160,000 jobs on Dice this month tout the option to telecommute.Though more employers have embraced telecommuting in recent years, indications point to many technology leaders as feeling reluctant to support it. Hill believes many IT managers are reluctant to allow their staffers to work from home.Pointing to an unemployment rate of only 4 percent among IT professionals and shortages in certain fields, Hill asserts that telecommuting would let managers draw from a larger pool of talent in which the skillset, rather than the location, is ideal. Advising companies to leave &quot;inflexible work arrangements&quot; behind, Hill suggests that &quot;maybe if we called it cloud commuting, CIOs would buy in.&quot;<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Best Buy: Delays on DVD rentals boost sales]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=best-buy-delays-on-dvd-rentals-boost-sales</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=best-buy-delays-on-dvd-rentals-boost-sales</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 Apr 2011 07:11:09 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>almollaHink</dc:creator>
<category>Marketing and advertising</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=best-buy-delays-on-dvd-rentals-boost-sales</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The agreement by Netflix and other top video-rental services to wait 28 days before renting newly released DVDs appears to be boosting disc sales--as much as 30 percent in some cases, say two national retailers. A Best Buy ad shows how the company is trying to play up its access to new releases ahead of Netflix and Redbox. (Credit:Best Buy)Representatives from retail chains Best Buy and Hastings Entertainment told CNET during the past week that disc sales and even rentals are up for movies that aren't available at Netflix or Redbox during what has come to be known as the &quot;sales-only window.&quot; &quot;On sales of specific titles, we've seen our market share go up over time and degradation of sales has slowed [as a result of the 28-day window],&quot; said Allen Hughes, merchant director for Best Buy, the man who handles disc sales for the chain of consumer-electronics stores. Last August, Jeff Bewkes, CEO of Time Warner, parent company of Warner Bros. Pictures, credited the sales-only window with lifting DVD and Blu-ray sales at Warner Bros. Pictures, especially for the first four weeks after a title has gone on sale. The sales-only window got its start in January 2010, when Netflix and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment announced an unprecedented deal. Netflix would delay renting the studio's newly released movies and then would use the money saved from purchasing new releases to acquire more content for its streaming-video service. Redbox soon agreed to honor a sales-only window and two other Hollywood film studios, NBC Universal and 20th Century Fox, also adopted similar windows. The windows were designed to help protect sales of DVDs as well as Blu-ray discs, a physical format that is still growing. Overall disc sales for the entire industry, however, have declined for several years. Much of the problem can be traced to consumer tastes, which are shifting toward rental rather than ownership. A year after the Netflix-Warner deal was struck, some retailers say they're encouraged by the results. If the trend continues, Netflix might be able to use the sales-only window to pen similar agreements with other TV and film companies and that could help the company acquire more streaming content. In many tech circles, the thinking is that the Web will become a dominate means for film distribution. Related links&amp;149' Netflix, Warner Bros. rejigger movie renting&amp;149' Redbox, like Netflix, agrees to sales-only windowThe transition from physical discs to the Internet, however, will not occur over night, according to John Marmaduke, CEO of Hastings Entertainment, a retail chain that sells books, DVDs, and CDs out of 146 stores in 21 states. He said there's still big demand for physical media, he said.To learn how the sales-only window has impacted business, Hastings' managers analyzed 24 titles with similar box office receipts--half with the 28-day window and half without--to try and make an apples-to-apples comparison, according to Victor Fuentes, vice president of merchandising. The company tracked sales performance after four weeks and then again after eight weeks. Rentals were tracked at six weeks. &quot;DVDs are still a $12 or $14 billion business. What people from the tech world often do is confuse themselves with the entire marketplace.&quot;--John Marmaduke, Hastings CEOSales for films that were protected by a sales-only window were 32 percent higher for the first four weeks than the group of films that were without a window, Marmaduke said. At the eight-week mark, the numbers were similar. The sales-only category was 29 percent higher for that period. For rentals, discs with the window fared better by 28 percent. Pricing and advertising strategies were the same for both categories, Fuentes said.  &quot;We weren't surprised to see this kind of performance,&quot; Marmaduke said, adding that the way to fix DVD sales isn't a mystery. He said allowing Redbox to sell new releases for 99 cents would naturally make it harder for others to sell and rent movies at higher prices. Techies aren't' whole marketplace &quot;This isn't brain surgery,&quot; Marmaduke said. &quot;We saw the impacts that 99-cent rentals had on sell through. It doesn't take a great leap to figure out how that affects business.&quot; Marmaduke noted that the sales-only window was much criticized by tech pundits and that there's been a lot written by the death of the DVD. &quot;DVDs are still a $12 or $14 billion business,&quot; he said. &quot;What people from the tech world often do is confuse themselves with the entire marketplace.&quot; Critics of the sales-only window predicted that Netflix would alienate a large number of subscribers and in the end the scheme would fail to raise disc sales. They argued that consumers no longer want to collect movies and are unwilling to pay traditional prices to buy or rent. Techies also maintain the Internet has become the main entertainment hub in a growing number of households and that's where they will look to obtain movies as well. It's still early yet in the development of Web TV but all those doomsday predictions haven't become realities. Netflix's decision to adopt a moratorium on rentals of new releases doesn't seem to have slowed the company's growth whatsoever. Last year, Netflix increased the number of subscribers by more than 60 percent from 2009, thanks mostly to the popularity of its streaming service. At the same time, most TV and film viewing still occurs via traditional outlets like DVDs, cable, and broadcast stations. At Best Buy, managers believe Internet distribution will be big but still see a viable market for sales and rentals of discs, according to Hughes. He declined to share the same kind of data that Hastings offered but did provide an example of how the sales-only window was helping his company. He said that if, say, a million discs were sold in the United States for a newly released title and Best Buy stores were responsible for 15 percent of those total sales, then typically for films with a sales-only window, the company might see 20 percent market share later on (note: the figures used by Hughes were just to illustrate his example). (Credit:Greg Sandoval/CNET)No doubt, helping to drive some of the increases is that Best Buy is doing its best to play up its access to new releases. Not only has the company &quot;aggressively priced&quot; new releases, marking them down 10 to 15 percent in some cases, but in the company's online and offline ads for newly released titles it prominently notes that customers won't be able to acquire the videos from Netflix or Redbox until 28 days later. Netflix spokesman Steve Swasey said only a relatively small percentage of subscribers seek new releases. He remarked that the sales-only window provides the company with extra resources to acquire streaming content while also benefiting its suppliers, the major film studios. But when you talk about the future of physical media, it's hard to imagine a comeback--at least to the lofty revenue numbers it once generated. For years, home video sales outpaced box office. At the same time, all the major players are staking out turn in Internet distribution.Netflix is doubling down on Web streaming. Time Warner and Comcast are pushing TV Everywhere, a service that enables subscribers to view cable content over the Web. Google, Wal-Mart, Apple, and Amazon also compete in Web video. Marmaduke says studios shouldn't let themselves be won over by all this technology, and should remember what's missing from all the Web-video talk is profits. &quot;The most important reason not to give up on the DVD is that the studios have to make money,&quot; Marmaduke said. &quot;Digital hasn't done it for them. When media goes digital it's a race to the bottom. The studios shouldn't make the same mistakes the music industry made. They should be more concerned about their profit model and less concerned about how they look in the [news] media.&quot; <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Sprint's Common Cents plan to become Virgin Mobile PayLo]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sprints-common-cents-plan-to-become-virgin-mobile-paylo</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sprints-common-cents-plan-to-become-virgin-mobile-paylo</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 Apr 2011 07:10:28 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>gsambermgm</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sprints-common-cents-plan-to-become-virgin-mobile-paylo</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:Sprint)Sprint will discontinue its Common Cents prepaid plan, CNET learned today, and will instead transition existing customers into the PayLo plan run by Virgin Mobile, a different Sprint prepaid brand. Related links Sprint and Wal-Mart offer cheap prepaid plan Sprint expands Common Cents serviceSprint and Wal-Mart launched Common Cents as an in-store brand last May to compete against retail handsets like TracFone's StraightTalk brand, but the program wasn't rolled out nationally. Existing Common Cents customers will join Virgin Mobile this May, cutting off the plan's lifespan at one year.&quot;Current Common Cents customers need not make any change, but will now have access to more options for plans and handsets under payLo as well, a Sprint spokeswoman told CNET in an e-mail. &quot;Common Cents is due to move out of Wal-Mart in mid May' those pegs will be taken over by Virgin Mobile's Beyond Talk plans, which have already seen solid success in Wal-Mart.&quot;Sprint is promising an automatic shift for current customers, and will continue offering 7-cent-per-minute calls, plus access to Virgin Mobile top-up cards to refresh minutes. There is some information of the Common Cents Web site, and Sprint has promised more details in the coming weeks.In addition to Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile and Assurance Wireless are also Sprint prepaid brands.[Via Fierce Wireless]Article updated at 1:11pm PT: With a quote from Sprint.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Gartner: Android market share to near 50 percent]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gartner-android-market-share-to-near-50-percent</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gartner-android-market-share-to-near-50-percent</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 07 Apr 2011 07:10:47 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Shantay9vl</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gartner-android-market-share-to-near-50-percent</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The Android operating system may soon own nearly 50 percent of the smartphone market, Gartner said today.According to the market researcher, more than 296 million smartphones shipped last year. Out of that, Symbian secured 37.6 percent market share, followed by Android's 22.7 percent share, and BlackBerry OS with 16 percent of the market. In 2011, the number of smartphone shipments around the world will explode to nearly 468 million units. That growth will help Android snag 38.5 percent market share by the end of the year, followed by Apple's iOS at 19.4 percent, and Symbian at 19.2 percent, Gartner said.But it's next year that might just be the most eye-opening find in Gartner's analysis. According to the company, more than 630 million smartphones will ship worldwide in 2012, and Android will own 49.2 percent of the market, easily dominating its second-place competitor, iOS, with 18.9 percent share. Research In Motion's BlackBerry operating system will nab the third spot with 12.6 percent share of the smartphone space.Gartner offered up another surprise in its forecasts: in 2015, Microsoft's Windows Phone platform will secure the second spot in the smartphone space with 19.5 percent market share. It will follow Android's 48.8 percent market ownership.Gartner said it pushed Windows Phone sales up &quot;solely by virtue of Microsoft's alliance with Nokia,&quot; which the companies entered into earlier this year. Likely starting next year, Nokia will useWindows Phone 7 as the &quot;principal&quot; operating system on its smartphones.Debate rages over Windows Phone's future market share.Last week, IDC released its own forecasts for the 2015 smartphone market and reported that Android would secure 45.4 percent of the space. It believes Windows Phone will follow with 20.9 percent market share. Like Gartner, IDC said the deal between Microsoft and Nokia will be enough to push Windows Phone to greater heights.&quot;Up until the launch of Windows Phone 7 last year, Microsoft has steadily lost market share while other operating systems have brought forth new and appealing experiences,&quot; Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst on IDC's Mobile Devices Technology and Trends team, said in a statement at the time. &quot;The new alliance brings together Nokia's hardware capabilities and Windows Phone's differentiated platform...By 2015, IDC expects Windows Phone to be the No. 2 operating system worldwide behind Android.&quot;However, ABI Research wasn't so quick to agree. That research firm said last week it expects Android to grab 45 percent of the smartphone market by 2016 and be followed by Apple's 19 percent market share. It pegged Windows Phone's share at 7 percent.Speaking to CNET last week, ABI Research senior analyst Michael Morgan said that customers around the world are moving away from Nokia devices and they won't even consider going back. That belief, he says, makes the difference between his estimates and those of the other research firms.&quot;In 2011, Symbian is going to start to deflate rapidly,&quot; Morgan said. &quot;I believe that a lot of Nokia users will convert to a new OS platform and stay there--they won't go back.&quot;Either way, 2015 is shaping up to be a big year for every major smartphone maker, regardless of market share. According to Gartner, a whopping 1.1 billion smartphones will ship in 2015 alone.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Skype in the Classroom graduates from beta]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=skype-in-the-classroom-graduates-from-beta</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=skype-in-the-classroom-graduates-from-beta</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Mar 2011 07:10:04 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>gbeauchamp</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=skype-in-the-classroom-graduates-from-beta</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Skype in the Classroom, a video networking service for educators worldwide, is officially out of beta, the company said today.The service, which has been in beta since December, allows educators to collaborate with others around the world over video. The VoIP provider said it developed the service &quot;in response to, and in consultation with, the growing number of teachers using Skype to help their students learn.&quot;Skype's service can help educators find one another by location, among other criteria.(Credit:Screenshot by CNET)To set Skype In the Classroom apart from the company's basic service, teachers can use the tool to find fellow educators who may be teaching on the same topic. It can also be used to expose kids to guest speakers or collaborate on projects with other classes. Teachers can search through the service using age groups, location, and subjects of interest, Skype said.In some ways, Skype is trying to be the next generation's &quot;pen pal&quot; service. For decades now, students have had pen pals around the world with whom they would communicate during a school year. It was effective at helping them learn more about the world, but it was rather impersonal. Skype, it seems, wants to change that.The company cited one project under way between two classrooms--one in France and the other in Canada--that used Skype to enhance the pen pal relationship students previously had.&quot;Before arranging the first video call, our students exchanged letters and e-mails but we decided to bring the two classes together face-to-face over Skype video to enrich their relationship,&quot; Christophe Fetat, one of the teachers involved in the project, said in a statement. &quot;The result was amazing. Students were really engaged to discuss different topics.&quot;That project is one of more than 40 started via the service. More than 4,700 teachers are already checking it out. The figures were growing by the minute today.Skype isn't alone in trying help teachers enrich their classrooms through technology. The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, for example, launched a social network for educators last year. The program, called EDge, helps teachers collaborate on best practices, create lesson plans, and upload multimedia content for others to use in their classrooms. It's free to join.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Microsoft wants to start a bromance]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-wants-to-start-a-bromance</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-wants-to-start-a-bromance</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Mar 2011 07:10:41 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>edtech</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-wants-to-start-a-bromance</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Geeks, pay attention here. Those of you who feel like your dudeliness, your man-mojo, your virility isn't up to snuff, Microsoft wants to help. The software giant launched a new app for itsWindows Phone 7 called Onit, described as a &quot;guy's guide to girls,cars, gadgets, fitness, and life advice--plus a touch of humor.&quot; Because, after all, who better to turn to for advice for help with &quot;the ladies&quot; than Microsoft.MSN Onit screenshot(Credit:Microsoft)The free app promises to curate men's lifestyle content from magazines and Web sites. Onit, as in &quot;Bro, we are so on it,&quot; plans to offer auto reviews, workout tips, sports highlights, and fashion advice. The folks at the Windows Phone 7 app-watching site marketplacebrowser.com, using what appears to be Microsoft-written marketing copy, gush that &quot;MSN Onit brings you a weekly dose of beautiful women, financial tips, the gadgets you need, the technology you lust after, and local news.&quot;Clearly, Microsoft wants to tap the 18-34-year-old male demographic, a lucrative market if ever there was one for mobile advertising. That's why, in addition to all the Maxim-like offerings, the app will also promote local activities for guys to hit, presumably as they trawl for action. And Onit will also offer tips for picking beers. (Who knew that was a such a challenge) Those suggestions could lure restaurant advertisers.Just as Microsoft is playing catch-up with theiPhone with its Windows Phone 7, so too is it coming from behind with men's lifestyle apps. The iTunes store already offers apps such as iGentleman, a self-proclaimed men's style guide, and The Men's Book, which describes itself as &quot;the ultimate resource for the stylish, affluent man.&quot;Whether or not men will turn to Microsoft to sort out their dude-needs remains to be seen. Then again, if you're even thinking about downloading the app, chances are, it couldn't hurt. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Google to crack down further on ads for fake goods]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-to-crack-down-further-on-ads-for-fake-goods</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-to-crack-down-further-on-ads-for-fake-goods</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Mar 2011 07:11:09 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>SlamForBamzz</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-to-crack-down-further-on-ads-for-fake-goods</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Google is promising a few improvements to its online ad system to help stop the spate of advertisers hawking counterfeit items.In a blog posted yesterday, the search giant tallied the number of advertisers using AdWords at more than 1 million spread across at least 190 different countries. As a result, finding specific accounts that advertise phony products can be a challenge. Google was able to shut down around 50,000 such accounts just in the second half of 2010, but the company admits that more needs to be done.To help stop the proliferation of fake items sold through AdWords, Google is promising three new improvements to its online ad system.Offering an online form in which brand owners can file complaints over counterfeit goods, Google now says it will respond to such complaints within 24 hours.The company is also pledging to do a better job of catching AdSense ads that link to phony items. AdSense allows other companies to earn revenue by placing Google ads on their own Web sites. Specifically, Google says it will work more closely with brand owners to catch advertisers who don't play by the rules and will kick them off the AdSense program. Finally, Google has set up a new help page for people to read the policies against counterfeit goods and report complaints over different types of abuse.Over the years, Google has been the target of lawsuits by brand owners upset about the use of certain keywords in AdWords, in part arguing that such a policy allows non-brand owners to more easily advertise counterfeit products. Google has always maintained that it works with brand owners and is quick to clamp down on any misuse of its ad system.Following a series of lawsuits, Google was cleared last year in a suit filed by luxury goods maker Louis Vuitton and other companies. The European Court of Justice found that Google was not liable for violating the trademarks of advertisers by offering keywords identical to those trademarks. But the court did find that Google is obligated to remove such ads if the brand owners complain that their rights have been violated.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Gartner prophesies Apple's Post-PC era]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gartner-prophesies-apples-post-pc-era</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gartner-prophesies-apples-post-pc-era</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Mar 2011 08:10:23 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>libeju8</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gartner-prophesies-apples-post-pc-era</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Steve Jobs would have you believe that the post-PC era is here. Market researcher Gartner seems to agree. Apple iPad 2(Credit:Apple)At the rollout of the iPad 2 yesterday, the Apple CEO's carefully calculated musings about the post-PC world were meant to sow just enough doubt in consumers' minds that they think twice when buying that second PC. (And he was also careful to couch this as the post-PC era, not the post-Mac era. You can have your cake and eat it too if your Apple apparently.) Maybe Gartner sees this as a self-fulfilling prophesy. Whatever the case, the market research firm made some dark prognostications today about the future of PCs. It seems thattablets will not be &quot;additive&quot;--a word that Intel likes to use--but subtractive. In short, instead of opting for that second PC and then maybe a tablet on top of that, consumers will opt for just the tablet. &quot;We expect growing consumer enthusiasm for mobile PC alternatives, such as theiPad and other media tablets, to dramatically slow home mobile PC sales, especially in mature markets,&quot; George Shiffler, research director at Gartner, said in a research note today. &quot;We once thought that mobile PC growth would continue to be sustained by consumers buying second and third mobile PCs as personal devices. However, we now believe that consumers are not only likely to forgo additional mobile PC buys but are also likely to extend the lifetimes of the mobile PCs they retain as they adopt media tablets and other mobile PC alternatives as their primary mobile device.&quot; That last sentence is powerful. A consumer will hold off on buying a new PC and allocate that money instead to a tablet or other mobile device--like a high-end smartphone. And the verdict &quot;Overall, we now expect home mobile PCs to average less than 10 percent annual growth in mature markets from 2011 through 2015.&quot; Overall, Gartner is lowering its PC unit forecast for 2011 and 2012. Worldwide PC shipments are forecast to reach 387.8 million units in 2011, a 10.5 percent increase from 2010, according to Gartner's preliminary forecast. But this is down from Gartner's previous projection of 15.9 percent growth this year. And Gartner expects worldwide PC shipments to total 440.6 million units in 2012, a 13.6 percent increase from 2011. This is also down from Gartner's previous outlook of 14.8 percent growth for 2012. There were other factors too, like China. &quot;These results reflect marked reductions in expected near-term unit growth based on expectations of weaker consumer mobile PC demand, in no small part because of the near-term weakness expected in China's mobile PC market, but also because of a general loss in consumer enthusiasm for mobile PCs,&quot; said Ranjit Atwal, another Gartner analyst. But Gartner devoted most of the note to tablets. In a section titled &quot;PCs' Limitations Are Exposed,&quot; Gartner said that &quot;not too long ago, PCs were a 'fashion accessory' in mature markets with vendors linking themselves to fashion designers and even creating PCs specifically for women. The current 'cool' device is the smartphone, and now PCs will soon have to do battle with media tablets when they are launched in large numbers in the second quarter of 2011.&quot; Mobile PCs are not keeping up with the times, according to Gartner. &quot;Mainstream mobile PCs have not shed sufficient weight, and do not offer the all-day battery life, to substantiate their promise of real mobility. These limitations have become all the more apparent with the rapid spread of social networking, which thrives on constant and immediate connections. In short, all-day untethered computing has yet to materialize, and that has exposed the 'mobile' PC as merely a transportable PC at best,&quot; according to the note. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Green rating agencies fall short, report says]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=green-rating-agencies-fall-short-report-says</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=green-rating-agencies-fall-short-report-says</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 08:11:09 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Uncexicle</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=green-rating-agencies-fall-short-report-says</guid>
<description><![CDATA[When it comes to grading companies on their sustainability, some leading organizations fall short as far as transparency and methodology. That's according to a white paper released this week by SustainAbility.com, an organization that is both a think tank and a consulting firm for corporations looking to improve green standings and sustainability practices. (Credit:SustainAbility.com)SustainAbility.com issued a video Tuesday along with its report discussing how 21 of the leading eco-ratings organizations it investigated based on 13 criteria (see chart) appeared to be insufficiently evaluating the companies they target. Its partners include the United Nations Environment Programme and the Global Reporting Initiative , while its clients include Starbucks, Coca-Cola, and Shell.This latest paper was phase three of its &quot;Rate the Raters&quot; series, an investigation into corporate sustainability ratings geared at developing best practices. The series was sponsored in part by Ford Motor, Sara Lee, Autodesk, and ExxonMobil, among others.The Access to Medicine Index, CDP, Climate Counts, and FTSE4Good received kudos from the organization for their &quot;strong public disclosure.&quot; But Sustainability said in its report that many of the ratings organizations investigated don't make their evaluation process for companies transparent, and because of this the public is less likely to trust their opinion. But it also made clear that one of the reasons why these ratings agencies fail to be transparent may be their own lack of confidence in what it says are often complicated points systems with a lack of sufficient quality control.(Credit:SustainAbility.com)The organization also advised that ratings evaluation focus less on a company's past history, and more on evaluating its current stance as a company. It also advocated company outreach in which ratings organizations give companies with poor ratings specific targeted goals on how they can improve the way their company operates.Keep in mind that the companies evaluated in phase three willingly participated in Sustainability.com's questionnaire and investigation of their ratings system. The organizations that agreed to the phase three scrutiny include:Access to Medicine Index ASSET4 (Thomson Reuters) Bloomberg ESG Disclosure Scores Carbon Disclosure Project Murky Waters: Corporate Reporting on Water Risk (Ceres) Climate Counts CR Magazine 100 Best Corporate Citizens CSRHub Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes EIRIS Ethisphere's World's Most Ethical Companies FTSE4Good Index Series The Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World (Global 100) GoodGuide GS SUSTAIN Maplecroft Climate Innovation Indexes (CIIs) Newsweek Green Rankings Oekom Corporate Ratings Sustainalytics Trucost Environmental Impact Assessment Vigeo<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Windows Phone 7's first update bricking some phones]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=windows-phone-7s-first-update-bricking-some-phones</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=windows-phone-7s-first-update-bricking-some-phones</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 08:10:29 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>kristlelev</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=windows-phone-7s-first-update-bricking-some-phones</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Oops.(Credit:Matt Hickey, Bonnie Cha/CNET)Users ofWindows Phone 7 handsets must have had high hopes when Microsoft released a patch yesterday that updated the operating system to improve the process of installing a forthcoming OS update. But some users, notably those with Samsung's Omnia 7, are reporting that the patch is bricking their phones, making them useless.It's not all Omnias, and we can't confirm if its happening on other Windows Phones, but there are reports on Web sites like WinRumors and Twitter that some users say the update is making their phones unusable. In response, Microsoft, via the Windows Phone support Twitter feed, recommends that affected users return to the store where they purchased them and exchange it for a new handset.When contacted today by CNET, Microsoft said it's reviewing the reports of bricking.&quot;We are investigating reports related to the Windows Phone update process and will provide additional information and guidance as it becomes available,&quot; a Microsoft spokesperson told CNET.The first major update for Windows Phone 7 is expected in the coming months, though Microsoft hasn't given a concrete date yet.Omnia users, have you had any luck, good or bad, with this new patch Let us know in the comments.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[New 'watch' measures central aortic systolic pressure]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-watch-measures-central-aortic-systolic-pressure</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-watch-measures-central-aortic-systolic-pressure</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Feb 2011 08:10:16 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>reterwans25</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-watch-measures-central-aortic-systolic-pressure</guid>
<description><![CDATA[In what is being hailed by experts as a &quot;scientific breakthrough&quot; that could &quot;revolutionize&quot; the way blood pressure is measured, researchers in Singapore and the UK report in the current issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology on a novel device that can measure blood pressure near the heart.The CASPro records the central aortic systolic pressure close to the heart.(Credit:University of Leicester)The CASPro blood pressure monitor is named after central aortic systolic pressure (CASP), which is the pressure exerted by the aorta--the body's largest artery--that extends out from the heart. CASP is a key indicator of stroke and heart disease risk, and its measurements appear to be more prognostic than the brachial blood pressure often measured in the arm.Physicians typically measure CASP by inserting a catheter up a patient's femoral artery (in the leg) to the aorta. The new approach is not only noninvasive, but it's also mobile.Researchers at the University of Leicester and the Singapore-based medical device company HealthSTATS International inserted a sensor into a wrist strap designed to be worn like a watch. Computerized mathematical modeling interprets pulse waves recorded by that sensor, with the possibility of continuous real-time monitoring.It remains unclear whether a CASP monitoring watch will be useful for the general population, but the researchers are at least excited about its application for patients with high risk of stroke and heart disease.The device, says HealthSTATS CEO and Chairman Dr. Choon Meng Ting in a news release, &quot;will empower doctors and their patients to monitor their central aortic systolic pressure easily, even in their homes, and modify the course of treatment for BP-related ailments. Pharmaceutical companies can also use CASP devices for clinical trials and drug therapy. All these will ultimately bring about more cost savings for patients, reduce the incidences of stroke and heart attacks, and save more lives.&quot;The device's creators hope their CASPro monitor will be the norm in doctors' offices within a few years, according to a report by the BBC.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[SolarCity taps GroSolar to bring solar leasing east]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=solarcity-taps-grosolar-to-bring-solar-leasing-east</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=solarcity-taps-grosolar-to-bring-solar-leasing-east</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Feb 2011 08:10:58 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>arisggal</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=solarcity-taps-grosolar-to-bring-solar-leasing-east</guid>
<description><![CDATA[SolarCity said today that it has acquired the residential solar business from GroSolar, giving it presence in four states in the eastern U.S.Through the move, SolarCity will offer its solar panel leasing program to homeowners in New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania starting March 1, said SolarCity CEO Lyndon Rive. Financial terms for the cash deal were not disclosed. GroSolar will continue to operate its distribution business and installation for commercial customers.The deal adds about 55 people to SolarCity, giving it about 1,100 employees. It now works in 10 states, including California, Arizona, Colorado, and Texas, giving it the largest footprint in its line of business, according to the company.SolarCity is a pioneer in solar financing, through which consumers avoid the upfront cost of buying solar photovoltaic panels. The model initially took hold in California and is spreading to other states, particularly in places with high electricity prices or policies to encourage solar power.With a solar lease, consumers have solar electric panels installed and pay a monthly fee. Between reduced electricity consumption from the grid and the leasing fee, the net result is about a 10 percent reduction in electricity bills, Rive said. SolarCity also bought an energy efficiency company and intends to offer residential efficiency services in the new states later this year.Although not a giant acquisition, it does point to a trend of consolidation among solar installers. Whereas many residential installers have historically been small operations, Rive expects that larger companies will be able to operate with lower costs and expand further.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Report: Next iPhone might be cheaper, but not smaller]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-next-iphone-might-be-cheaper-but-not-smaller</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-next-iphone-might-be-cheaper-but-not-smaller</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Feb 2011 08:10:12 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>sufwanpno2wq</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-next-iphone-might-be-cheaper-but-not-smaller</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Apple is reportedly looking at ways to make the iPhone cheaper than the current $199 subsidized starting price.(Credit:CBS Interactive)Is the nextiPhone going to be smaller Bigger Or maybe cheaper&quot;Cheaper&quot; is the latest in a series of confusing and seemingly contradictory rumors about the nature of the next iPhone Apple has in store. Today the New York Times chimed in to say that contrary to a previous report in The Wall Street Journal, the next iPhone is not going to be smaller, but Apple is working on ways to make it cheaper and more accessible for buyers.Apple is focused on making the iPhone attractive to a larger audience, according to the report. That includes offering a phone more easily controlled by voice commands for those who have no interest in or can't use a virtual keyboard.As for how the company is considering bringing down the cost of the phone, it wouldn't be by downsizing the screen. Rather, using cheaper internal components, less memory, or a lower-quality camera are options Apple is considering, according to the Times source who has apparently worked on several iPhone prototypes.Another source says it wouldn't make sense to make a smaller iPhone (we agree) because of how it would affect developers who make their apps formatted to a particular screen size. A &quot;senior Apple executive&quot; also tells the Times that Apple isn't interested in having a lineup of multiple models of iPhones.It doesn't sound like a cheaper iPhone is a sure thing yet, just something Apple is thinking about. One thing's for sure: the next iPhone isn't expected until this summer. So anticipate many more months of rumors to come.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Amazon: Kindle books outselling paperbacks]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=amazon-kindle-books-outselling-paperbacks</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=amazon-kindle-books-outselling-paperbacks</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 08:10:39 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>postapartment</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=amazon-kindle-books-outselling-paperbacks</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Yes, it's finally happened. The digital book has overtaken the paper book on Amazon.com. And this time that isn't only true about hardcover books. Now we're talking paperbacks.In reporting its latest earnings, Amazon said that it was selling more Kindle books than paperback books, though the score is still close. Since January 1, for every 100 paperback books Amazon sold, 115 Kindle books were sold. To top it off, the company says that since the beginning of the year it's sold three times as many Kindle books as hardcover books. Amazon noted that this data was from &quot;across Amazon.com's entire U.S. book business and includes sales of books where there is no Kindle edition.&quot; It added that free Kindle books were excluded from the tally.Yes, indeed, the sands are shifting.(Credit:Amazon)While Amazon has said previously that Kindle e-book sales were outpacing hardcover sales, this is the first time it's said that Kindle books were outselling paperbacks, which typically cost significantly less than hardcovers. As usual, Amazon didn't report exact sales and would only say that it had sold &quot;millions of third-generation Kindle devices.&quot;Some reports suggest Amazon sold more than 8 million Kindles in 2010. Combine that with all the people buying theiPad,iPhone, andiPod Touch, as well as millions of Android-powered devices, and you can see how Amazon's digital book sales got a huge boost. (Amazon, like Barnes &amp; Noble, offers its e-reading Kindle app across multiple platforms).   As for total numbers, all Amazon would say was that it currently has 810,000 books in the Kindle Store and that doesn't include the millions of free, out-of-copyright, pre-1923 books that are also available as e-books.What's this mean Well, it's not good news for brick-and-mortar bookstores. At the recently held Digital Book World conference, James McQuivey of Forrester Research presented some research findings before a CEO panel on Tuesday. He included the estimate that consumers spent about $1 billion on e-books in 2010 and that sales should reach at least $1.3 billion in 2011. McQuivey said that the consensus among those surveyed was that e-books would constitute half of all trade book units by 2014, and 53 percent said they expected print sales to decrease this year.At least one guy, Mike Shatzkin, a conference organizer and head of the Idea Logical Company, said that within 10 to 12 years brick-and-mortar bookstores would &quot;more or less disappear.&quot; However, some believe that the &quot;downsizing&quot; of brick-and-mortar superstores might actually bode well for independent bookstores, which in some ways are better equipped to tackle what may indeed become more of a niche business in the years to come. Comments  <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Is Apple preparing to release new MacBook Pros]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=is-apple-preparing-to-release-new-macbook-pros</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=is-apple-preparing-to-release-new-macbook-pros</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jan 2011 08:10:10 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>screamcam</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=is-apple-preparing-to-release-new-macbook-pros</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Apple may be preparing to update its high-end line of laptop computers as supplies of its MacBook Pros continue to tighten at retail locations.Citing unnamed sources, MacRumors on Wednesday said retailers are running low on stock of Apple's MacBook Pro computers. The report specifically notes shortages in the 15-inch and 17-inch models.&quot;At least one major retail chain has reportedly notified its branches that it has been unable to fulfill replenishment orders,&quot; writes Eric Slivka for MacRumors.While a shortage in supply in itself isn't necessarily an indication of new products, Apple history shows when supplies become constrained, the company is preparing for new products. Apple has become masterful in its management of the supply chain, so retailers not being able to get more product raises flags.Currently Apple's online store shows all of its MacBook Pro laptops will ship within 24 hours, which means the company does have stock for itself.Apple's new MacBook Pro line is expected to use Intel's Sandy Bridge processor. Intel claims that with this new generation of CPUs, content creation is up to 42 percent faster and gaming up to 50 percent faster than with previous generations.The CNET Labs team did some benchmarking of the new chips earlier this month.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA['Compostmodern' fertilizes the creative mind]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=compostmodern-fertilizes-the-creative-mind</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=compostmodern-fertilizes-the-creative-mind</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 24 Jan 2011 08:11:06 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>feofanovv</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=compostmodern-fertilizes-the-creative-mind</guid>
<description><![CDATA[editor's notebook SAN FRANCISCO--I had the great good fortune this past weekend of attending Compostmodern, a two-day conference here devoted to exploring different ways in which designers can help create a sustainable future. And I'd like to mention a few of the tech- and Internet-related highlights--some of which are new, some of which you, like me, may have missed the first time around. There's a variety of supercool stuff here, so read on.Organized by the San Francisco chapter of AIGA (one of the country's premier professional groups for designers)--and sponsored by Adobe and other companies, the conference attracted designers and design thinkers of every stripe. Web designers, industrial designers, branding and communications specialists, architects, builders, educators--you name it--all were on hand to absorb and contribute.The first day was devoted to a series of brief presentations by the likes of Scott Thomas, the guy who oversaw design for the Obama campaign' Julie Cordua, who helped Motorola launch the Razr phone and went on to work with the &quot;(RED)&quot; campaign, which piggybacks on global superbrands like Nike and The Gap to raise money for AIDS relief in Africa' and Yves Behar, designer of the One Laptop Per Child campaign's $100 laptop. The second day was billed as an UnConference, where presenters and attendees broke into groups and engaged in several rounds of brainstorming, on topics generated by the attendees themselves.Samuel Cabot Cochran and Teresita Brigitte Cochran&amp;39's &amp;34'solar ivy,&amp;34' a project from the Pratt Design Incubator. (Credit:Samuel Cabot Cochran and Teresita Brigitte Cochran / Pratt Design Incubator)Following are some of the highlights from day one, along with links that allow for further exploration.Onetablet per childBehar kicked off his talk by adapting something he'd heard bad-boy filmmaker John Waters say: the job of the young is to annoy the old. Behar's twist The job of a designer is to annoy the rigid. The Switzerland-born, S.F.-based industrial designer then gave an overview of his work to date and talked about the importance of making sustainable design sexy and fun for mainstream consumers--and of creating innovative products that allow people to indulge their current lifestyle in sustainable ways. As an example, he offered up the all-electric Mission One motorcycle his Fuseproject firm designed. Unveiled in 2009, it sacrifices nothing in the way of sex appeal or performance--it can reach speeds of 150 mph. Behar also talked about the One Laptop Per Child campaign's effort to develop--surprise!--a tablet computer.GoodGuide on iPhone.&quot;GoodGuide&quot; goes AndroidGoodGuide founder Dara O'Rourke talked about how he came up with the idea for his Web site, which lets consumers search on products they buy to see how healthy, safe, and environmentally friendly those products are (or aren't). He was putting sunscreen on his toddler's face, he said, when he thought to investigate its ingredients. After far too difficult a search, he discovered that the product contained a carcinogen that was activated by, of all things, light. After working through his anger, he made it his mission to make such information easily available to consumers. The GoodGuide is already available as an iPhone app, which lets shoppers hold their phones up to barcodes for instant info (how completely awesome is that). O'Rourke said an Android version is due in about a month. (And for those without a smartphone, there's a version that operates via text messages.)Crowdsourcing the creative brainNathan Waterhouse of renowned design firm IDEO discussed OpenIDEO, a Web site that taps the crowdsourcing model to create a global brainstorming tool for designers eager to tackle issues of sustainability. Here's a sample &quot;challenge&quot; posted on the site: &quot;How might we increase the availability of affordable learning tools &amp; services for students in the developing world&quot; Winning concepts run the gamut, from the high-tech (a repurposed mobile phone loaded with a free educational software bundle) to the decidedly low-tech (a mobile puppet theater that teaches crafts and storytelling while highlighting social issues). Anyone interested in how technology might be used to fight global problems--and anyone who's simply interested in great, inspiring ideas--should take a peek at OpenIDEO.Here's a video that gives an overview of how the site works:Introduction to OpenIDEO / OpenIDEO.com from IDEO on Vimeo.Sharing the sustainable loveLisa Gansky, who founded Flickr competitor Ofoto and later sold it to Kodak, talked about her recently released book &quot;The Mesh: Why the Future of Business is Sharing&quot; and gave a glimpse of the online Mesh Directory. The directory is a guide to companies and organizations that &quot;create, share, and use social media, wireless networks, and data crunched from every available source to provide people with goods and services at the exact moment they need them, without the burden and expense of owning them outright.&quot; The idea is to help people buy less and use more. Companies/organizations included in the directory range from tool-lending libraries to car and bike sharing setups to home-swapping groups to online bartering services. There's also a section full of organizations devoted to developing socially conscious software applications. Does the site help promote Gansky's book Sure. But, hey, it also points you toward online book swaps.From homework to world-changing productDebera Johnson, founder of the Design Incubator at Pratt Institute in New York--one of the country's top art and design schools--talked about the Incubator's genesis. Johnson got tired of seeing impressive student projects end up in the student's senior portfolio and then just simply disappear. The Incubator's mission is to help bring the best of those efforts into production in the real world. Johnson showed off some stunners, including Samuel Cabot Cochran and Teresita Brigitte Cochran's &quot;solar ivy,&quot; small solar panels designed to be mounted vertically and that can, among other things, be shaped into letterforms to create lighted signage that generates enough electricity during the day to power itself at night.Those are only a few of the presenters. You can check out info (and links) on the others here.The biggest round of applause went up for Dan Phillips and his Phoenix Commotion project, which provides housing for low-income families, using recycled materials as well as materials salvaged from the construction industry. Phillips truly enchanted the crowd with his down-home charisma and fascinating images. You can check out a TedTalk with him here, in which he reveals how to make architectural details out of chicken eggs and Bondo. Go, Dan!If its goal was to inspire, Compostmodern did the job. I can't wait to see what sorts of sustainable gizmos and solutions all those pumped-up designer attendees produce in the coming years.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[PS3, iPhone hacker sets sights on Windows phones]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ps3-iphone-hacker-sets-sights-on-windows-phones</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ps3-iphone-hacker-sets-sights-on-windows-phones</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Jan 2011 08:10:31 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Kethy</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ps3-iphone-hacker-sets-sights-on-windows-phones</guid>
<description><![CDATA[LG&amp;39's Quantum, one of the first Windows Phone 7 devices.(Credit:Sarah Tew/CNET)Although Microsoft gave the team that created theWindows Phone 7 home brew unlocker ChevronWP7 a very friendly &quot;please stop doing this&quot; several months ago, it's gone in a slightly different direction with the infamous hacker who cracked both Sony'sPlayStation 3 and Apple'siPhone wide open. Earlier this week, hacker George Hotz, who is better known as &quot;GeoHot,&quot; announced that he was beginning work on a jailbreak for Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 platform. Shortly thereafter, Brandon Watson--who runs developer platform product management for Microsoft, offered Hotz a Windows Phone over Twitter, saying &quot;geohot if you want to build cool stuff on wp7, send me e-mail and the team will give you a phone--let dev creativity flourish wp7dev.&quot;Microsoft now says the two exchanged a few notes following the tweets.The move marks yet another occasion where Microsoft has publicly--instead of legally--dealt with people who've sought to go around boundaries the company has set up to protect its products. As with the previously mentioned ChevronWP7 tool, which was designed to let users install home brew software on Windows Phones, Microsoft's Watson got in touch with the creators to get them to come to company's Redmond, Wash., headquarters to talk about bringing such functionality to the platform. In return, the ChevronWP7 team agreed to take their tool down. There's also Kinect, Microsoft's hot-selling accessory for the Xbox 360, which tinkerers cracked open a few days after its release. In that case, Microsoft originally threatened the strong arm of the law, before relenting and admitting during a radio interview that, on an hourly basis, the team was receiving videos of &quot;cool, neat, creative experiences&quot; people had tinkered together. Besides the PS3, Hotz is famous for developing a number of jailbreaks for Apple's iOS devices, as well as a tool that would let iPhone users unlock the device for use on multiple phone carriers. Though last July, Hotz said he would be &quot;retiring&quot; from further iOS hackery, citing that people were taking his work too seriously and that it had just been a hobby' even so, Hotz continued to put out beta releases of his &quot;limera1n&quot; iOS jailbreaking tool. More recently, Hotz's involvements have centered around Sony's PS3. Hotz created a software tool that would let users re-enable the &quot;other OS&quot; option, which Sony had removed as part of a system firmware update. Sony, in turn, took legal action against Hotz, claiming that Hotz's jailbreak violates both the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the Computer Fraud Abuse Act. Last week Hotz appeared on G4TV's Attack of the Show to discuss Sony's restraining order against him, which was filed earlier this month. Hotz argued that while Sony was going after him because the company viewed his tool as an exploit that would allow game piracy, his tool had been designed only for home brew applications. Assuming those are Hotz's intentions with Windows Phone 7 platform, we could see an alternative to Microsoft's Marketplace application akin to what ChevronWP7 first promised. The real question is whether Hotz will follow Microsoft's lead and play nice, or if he'll try to crack the company's newest smartphone platform wide open.  Update at 12:10 p.m. PT: A Microsoft spokesperson further elaborated on the company's exchange with Hotz, saying: &quot;Brandon Watson and GeoHot exchanged a few notes following Brandon's Twitter posting yesterday. They discussed providing GeoHot with a device. Microsoft in deeply invested in sustaining strong relationships with a wide range of developers and enthusiasts and are always interested in what we can learn from those communities.&quot; <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Software groups urge probe of Novell patent sale]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=software-groups-urge-probe-of-novell-patent-sale</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=software-groups-urge-probe-of-novell-patent-sale</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 20 Jan 2011 08:10:29 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Julie01</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=software-groups-urge-probe-of-novell-patent-sale</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The Open Software Initiative and the Free Software Foundation yesterday released a joint statement, urging the U.S. Department of Justice, as well as the German Federal Cartel Office, to investigate the sale of Novell's more than 800 patents as part of its multibillion dollar sale to Attachmate in November. In December, the OSI sent a position paper to the German Federal Cartel Office. That paper has been updated to name both software groups as the concerned parties and filed with the U.S. Department of Justice. &quot;Since making that filing, we have been joined by the Free Software Foundation and have updated that statement to represent that both our communities--the open source community and the free software community--are concerned that CPTN represents a potential broadside not against any particular product in the market today, but against one of the only viable sources of competition for these companies in software today: the free, libre, and open source software (FLOSS) communities.&quot; The OSI now says the Antitrust Division of the Justice Department has acknowledged receiving the groups' contention.At the heart of OSI and FSF's complaint are the patents that will be handed over to CPTN Holdings, which made up of Microsoft, Apple, Oracle, and EMC. The two software groups point to Microsoft and Oracle in particular being major competitors to the FLOSS movement, as each company cited it as a &quot;competitive threat&quot; in their 10-K SEC filings. Furthermore, the group goes on to say that there is an inherent danger in having all those companies under the guise of a consortium. &quot;That is, they have no incentive to support FLOSS as a competitive alternative to proprietary software,&quot; the letter said. &quot;CPTN creates a cover to launch patent attacks against companies delivering solutions based on FLOSS while creating for each principal a measure of plausible deniability that the patent attack was not their idea.&quot;Earlier this week the sale of the patents to CPTN Holdings got the go-ahead from the European Commission vice president and competition commissioner, Joaquin Almunia. Almunia said that it would be &quot;unlikely&quot; for the transaction to raise any eyebrows from the EU's merger regulation commission, or be infringing of the EU's competition rules.(via PC World)<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[What's your zodiac sign You sure about that]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=whats-your-zodiac-sign-you-sure-about-that</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=whats-your-zodiac-sign-you-sure-about-that</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 13 Jan 2011 08:10:30 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>ikollmeyer</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=whats-your-zodiac-sign-you-sure-about-that</guid>
<description><![CDATA[I hope you're sitting down, because I have some information that might be earth-shattering for some of you. Others will give a collective &quot;meh,&quot; and nobody would really blame you. But here it is: due to one scientist's offhanded comments, the Internet says you might no longer be the astrological sign you always thought you were.You see, the ancient Babylonians made up the first zodiac systems thousands of years ago, and astrologically minded people have been using the same systems, more or less unchanged, since then. The problem, though, is that the Earth's tilt on its axis has shifted significantly since then. If you remap the zodiac using Earth's current position, you get a different telling of who's an Aries, Leo, and so on--including a newish sign called Ophiuchus.Imagine it like this: If you spin something, the direction of the axis tends to wobble. The Earth's axis in its orbit does the same thing because of a phenomenon called precession, and is now facing a different star than it did 5,000 years ago. That means that the constellations that made up the Babylonian zodiac are not the constellations the sun currently passes through. So, according to many stories online today, a new zodiac could be devised. And that has believers in a frenzy.The sign of Ophiuchus, the new 13th zodiac. Sounds lucky, no(Credit:Wikipedia)The thing is, there is no actual new zodiac. The re-imagining of the tables with newer data is all academic, and today's hype on blogs and Twitter comes from an article published Sunday in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. In it, an astronomer with the cool name of Parke Kunkle said that due to the Earth axis' wobble, when the sun &quot;...is in Pisces, it's really not in Pisces.&quot;Of course, the Internet went predictably bonkers at the news, inflating what Kunkle said (and meant) into something he didn't (and didn't): that there's a new zodiac.Popular astrologer Susan Miller called the news &quot;ridiculous.&quot; &quot;We've known about this for ages,&quot; she told ABC News. &quot;The constellations don't suggest what's coming up, it's the planets. The constellations are a measuring device.&quot;  So don't worry, fellow Pisces, we're still Pisces. And the rest of you are the same, too.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[CityVille chalks up 100 million active users]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=cityville-chalks-up-100-million-active-users</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=cityville-chalks-up-100-million-active-users</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 13 Jan 2011 08:10:01 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>yuminaee</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=cityville-chalks-up-100-million-active-users</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)The farm just isn't exciting as the city.CityVille, the hit social game from Zynga that allows users to build a city from the ground up, now has over 100 million monthly active users on Facebook. That user base is all the more impressive when one considers that the game hit that mark a little over one month since its release.CityVille's meteoric rise has made FarmVille, another wildly popular title on Facebook, look, well, desolate. That game has over 57 million active users, according to its Facebook page.Zynga's CityVille success has helped the company maintain its leadership position in social gaming. According to its Web site, it has over 215 million monthly active users and more than 50 million daily active users.In other social-gaming news, RockYou announced that it has acquired developer Playdemic. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but RockYou said the developer, which is best known for its Facebook game, Gourmet Ranch, will operate independently.Although Gourmet Ranch has just half a million monthly active users, RockYou has garnered major followings for its games. The company has over 200 million monthly unique visitors and over 15 billion &quot;monthly global impressions,&quot; it said. Its most notable game is Zoo World, which according to its Facebook page, has nearly 9 million monthly unique users.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Alt media player VLC cut from Apple App Store]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=alt-media-player-vlc-cut-from-apple-app-store</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=alt-media-player-vlc-cut-from-apple-app-store</comments>
<pubDate>Sat, 08 Jan 2011 08:10:16 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>tduncannac</dc:creator>
<category>Business &amp; Finance</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=alt-media-player-vlc-cut-from-apple-app-store</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Popular media player VLC has been pulled from Apple's App Store at the request of one of the program's original developers--in a move that's caused some hard feelings in the world of open-source software.The situation involves a conflict between the General Public License, which governs VLC and many other open-source programs, and App Store policies.&quot;On January 7th, Apple removed VLC media player from its application store for iDevices,&quot; Remi Denis-Courmont, one of the developers of the desktop version of VLC, wrote in a blog post picked up by the Web site of the nonprofit group behind the original software. &quot;Thus the incompatibility between the GNU General Public License and the App Store terms of use is resolved--the hard way. This end should not have come as a surprise to anyone, given the precedents.&quot;Denis-Courmont himself was the one who sent Apple a notification of copyright infringement involving distribution of VLC for Apple's iOS operating system, i.e., for theiPhone,iPad, andiPod Touch. The GPL lets people freely copy, distribute, and modify GPL programs provided the resulting programs are also covered by the GPL and this same provision. But digital rights management applied to programs in the App Store prevents sharing.Denis-Courmont and others see that clash as a threat to the heart of the GPL, but Romain Goyet, co-founder of the company that created the iOS version of VLC, disagrees.&quot;The way I see it, we're not violating anyone's freedom,&quot; Romain Goyet told Ars Technica. &quot;We worked for free, opened all our source code, and the app is available for free for anyone to download. People are enjoying a nice free and open-source video player on the App Store, and some people are trying to ruin it in the name of 'freedom.'&quot;VLC for the Mac, which, unlike Apple's QuickTime, plays almost all common media files, was the second most popular Mac-software download during 2010 on CNET's Download.com. And VLC for the iPad and for the iPhone captured the notice of CNET's Rick Broida because they let users play virtually all video formats, with no conversion required, leading Broida to label VLC a &quot;must-have&quot; app.For more on the VLC app getting yanked, check out &quot;No GPL Apps for Apple's App Store&quot; at CNET sister site ZDNet. And if you happen to be a developer of App Store apps, you might want to take a look at ZDNet's &quot;How to avoid modern day public GPL floggings, part deux.&quot; <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[CES: Amimon demos WHDI connectivity's full potential]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-amimon-demos-whdi-connectivitys-full-potential</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-amimon-demos-whdi-connectivitys-full-potential</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 Jan 2011 08:10:17 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>nowmaal</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-amimon-demos-whdi-connectivitys-full-potential</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Playing an iPad game on the big screen TV using WHDI wireless display solution.(Credit:Dong Ngo/CNET)LAS VEGAS--Amimon, which is the strongest supporter of the Wireless Home Digital Interface display standard and announced the Asus WAVI earlier this week, demoed atCES 2011 a variety of solutions through which WHDI-enabled devices could potentially change the way we interact with in-door entertainment.Similar to Intel's WiDi and SiBEAM's WirelessHD, WHDI is a technology that allows devices to connect to a HDMI TV wirelessly and transmit audio and video at full HD quality (1080p). The strength of WHDI is the fact that it has almost no latency and, therefore, other than hi-def movies, enables interactive applications, such as a game playing, from your laptop on a big screen TV. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[CES: Lenovo IdeaPad updates across the board]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-lenovo-ideapad-updates-across-the-board</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-lenovo-ideapad-updates-across-the-board</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 03 Jan 2011 08:10:27 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>michael7806</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-lenovo-ideapad-updates-across-the-board</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The Lenovo IdeaPad Y570 rounds out the top of the pack.(Credit:Lenovo)For larger laptops, CES 2011 seems to be more about gradual improvements than whole-scale innovation. Lenovo's newly-announced IdeaPad lineup updates seem to confirm this theory quite well: better processors, improved graphics, and Lenovo Enhanced Experience 2.0, an engineering tweak that Lenovo promises will offer extremely fast boot times. Though it can be pretty difficult to suss the differences out among the various lines of IdeaPads, we'll give you a rundown. The IdeaPad Y570 and Y470 lead the pack, with second-generation Intel Core processors, and GPU options including Nvidia's new GeForce GT555 switchable graphics. These laptops have 15.6- and 14-inch screens, up to 8GB DDR3 RAM, hard drives up to 1TB, and up to 64GB of SSD storage assisting the rapid-booting process. Multimedia features include Blu-ray drives and JBL speakers. The new Y series laptops also have a metallic finish and improved keyboards. The Y570d has Nvidia 3D Vision, and is an update to the Y560 we reviewed last fall, but it still uses polarized glasses instead of active-shutter glasses. CPU options range from a second-generation Intel Core i3-2310M up to a second-generation Intel Core i7-2620M. The Y series starts at $899, and will be available in May.The affordable G series has expanded to 14-, 15-, and 17-inch models. The IdeaPad G770, G570, G470, G575, and G475 use AMD graphics, topping off at the AMD Radeon 6370M (6650M on the 17-inch G770), and comes in AMD and Intel flavors: up to a Core i7 or an AMD Fusion Brazos processor. Hard drives cap at 750GB, and DDR3 RAM at 8GB.The IdeaPad Z570, Z470, and Z370 laptops &quot;are designed for consumers who desire a PC with features that can keep up with their exciting lifestyle,&quot; and come in fuschia, sky blue, and dark brown colors. Launched last summer, they slot between the G and Y series as midrange laptops. Optional Blu-ray drives and Dolby advanced audio lend the machine some entertainment-friendly appeal. 1,366x768 resolution displays, Nvidia GeForce graphics up to 2GB 525M, a maximum 8GB of DDR3 RAM, and up to 1TB 7,200rpm hard drives round out the package. Processor options range from a 2nd Generation Intel Core i3-2310M to a Core i5-2520M.The IdeaPad V series is a small business-oriented laptop line with sharp edges and aluminum touches. The V570, V470, and V370 are 13.3-inch to 15.6-inch laptops with 1,366x768-pixel displays, second-generation Intel Core processors up to Core i7, up to 8GB of DDR3 RAM, and up to 1TB hard drives. The Z series updates start at $599 and will be available in April.Finally, the IdeaPad B570 and B470 are a new line, targeted for &quot;use at the office or while relaxing at home.&quot; To that end, they're a bit of a hybrid design between small business and consumer, with most of the same specs (second generation Intel Core processors, Lenovo Enhanced Experience) as the other laptops. The B series starts at $499 and will be available in April as well.Editors' take: Expect a ton of Sandy Bridge Intel Core i-series laptop updates all over CES' this is Lenovo's batch of updates, and the lines all seem too similar to one another to really discern differences. Too many letter lines, too much confusion: for 2012, our IdeaPad wish is for line simplification.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[FTC approves Intel acquisition of McAfee]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ftc-approves-intel-acquisition-of-mcafee</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ftc-approves-intel-acquisition-of-mcafee</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 22 Dec 2010 08:10:24 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>acaiberriesfx</dc:creator>
<category>Politics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ftc-approves-intel-acquisition-of-mcafee</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Intel has received a thumb's up from the Federal Trade Commission for its proposed purchase of McAfee.The chipmaker confirmed the news yesterday in a note on its Investor Relations site, announcing that the Federal Trade Commission has finished its review of the deal and has cleared it.In August, Intel broke the news of its decision to buy the security vendor for $7.68 billion--the biggest acquisition in its 42-year history. Intel sees McAfee as a way to gain a greater foothold into a growing market of security-conscious businesses and consumers.The FTC's approval of the deal isn't the only hurdle that Intel faces. Still pending is a review by the European Commission.Regulators from the EC have reportedly expressed initial concerns over the antitrust implications of an Intel-owned McAfee. A recent Wall Street Journal story cited unnamed sources who said that regulators have questioned other security software vendors over the issue of Intel providing McAfee's products with special access to certain chip features, thus giving them a leg up over competitors.However, an analyst from JMP Securities quoted by Reuters doesn't see much trouble ahead in getting EC clearance on the deal.&quot;My supposition here is that it is simply taking a bit more time overseas than here, and obviously Intel has had its recent wrangling with the European Union, which may be throwing just another dimension of complexity into the process,&quot; JMP analyst Alex Gauna told Reuters.Intel has tangled with Europe before. Last year, the company was fined $1.45 billion by the European Union after it found Intel guilty of engaging in illegal antitrust actions designed to hamper rival chipmakers.On its end, Intel said simply that it continues to work with the EC on the review.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Amazon enhances Kindle for the Web]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=amazon-enhances-kindle-for-the-web</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=amazon-enhances-kindle-for-the-web</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 08 Dec 2010 08:10:09 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>eladlickululk</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=amazon-enhances-kindle-for-the-web</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:Amazon)Amazon is looking to attract more readers and sellers of e-books with its improved Kindle for the Web.Demonstrated yesterday at Google's Chrome event, Amazon's Kindle for the Web will let users buy and read full Kindle e-books directly from their browsers with no special download or installation required. The new version of the application will be available early next year. Users will also have a lot of choice over where they can buy their Kindle books. Online retailers, publishers, authors, and bloggers will be able to offer Kindle books through their own sites, according to Amazon. Web and blog sites can embed a Kindle for the Web widget to allow them to preview and sell Kindle books directly and earn referral fees on any sales, courtesy of Amazon's Associates Program.&quot;Kindle for the Web makes it possible for bookstores, authors, retailers, bloggers or other website owners to offer Kindle books on their websites and earn affiliate fees for doing so,&quot; Russ Grandinetti, vice president of Kindle Content, said in a statement. &quot;Anyone with access to a web browser can discover the seamless and consistent experience that comes with Kindle books.&quot;Kindle for the Web isn't new. It initially launched in late September, but it's currently limited to displaying only the first chapter of an e-book within the browser. The new and improved features promise to put Amazon on par with Google's new eBookstore, which opened for business on Monday. Both companies are touting the similar features of their respective e-book apps, such as the ability to read entire books within the browser and sync content from one reading device to another.Though it may be competing with Google in the e-book marketplace, Amazon is working with the search giant to make Kindle for the Web Chrome-friendly. The updated Kindle for the Web will support forthcoming Chrome OS devices.The new Chrome Web Store is also playing host to Amazon's Windowshop. Similar to Amazon's Windowshop for the iPad, the Chrome version offers a user-friendly display where consumers can visually browse and buy Amazon products.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Google elevates PDF reading in Chrome 8]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-elevates-pdf-reading-in-chrome-8</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-elevates-pdf-reading-in-chrome-8</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Dec 2010 08:10:11 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>jeandanis123</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-elevates-pdf-reading-in-chrome-8</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Google helped make Adobe Systems' PDF files a first-class citizen on the Web years ago by indexing their content with its search engine. Now it's gone another step by building the ability to read them into its latest browser, Chrome 8, released yesterday for Windows, Mac, and Linux.That means when people click a PDF link, the document will open directly in the browser. Chrome's built-in PDF reader is also walled up within a sandbox, lowering the risk that security issues will escape a confined region of memory to facilitate a broader attack on a computer.The PDF reader is among 800 improvements in Chrome 8, including 12 security fixes, according to a blog post yesterday by Chrome team member Jason Kersey. Google paid out $1,000 to each of three discoverers of high-risk vulnerabilities and $500 to two discovers of medium-risk vulnerabilities.Chrome 8 also is the first version to support the Chrome Web Store, Google has said. However, there aren't any direct signs yet that it's tapping into the upcoming Google service for finding and selling Web applications, Chrome extensions, and Chrome themes.Adobe is working to improve PDF without Chrome, too. Its latest Reader 9 and Acrobat X software has a browser plug-in that hides the application frame that previously surrounded PDF documents viewed in a browser.The new Chrome 8.0.552.215 replaces both the earlier beta and stable versions. It arrives just about six weeks afterGoogle released Chrome 7' the faster release pace this year means new Chrome versions aren't necessarily as big of a departure from their predecessors. For those with a taste for cutting-edge features but less stability, there's the Chrome Dev channel, which is on the 9.x release version.New for Windows users of Chrome Dev is a sandboxed version of Adobe's Flash Player, an oft-cited culprit in browser crashes and security vulnerabilities. Building Flash and PDF readers into Chrome means, among other things, that they will be upgraded rapidly and typically invisibly whenever Google wants to distribute a new version for performance, features, or security reasons.Chrome's PDF reader appears to use the Foxit PDF SDK software, but the built-in Flash Player is from Adobe.&quot;For initial testing, the sandboxing code currently supports Windows XP, Windows Vista, andWindows 7. There are plans to make this available for all OS platforms once we are further along in testing and development,&quot; Adobe Flash team member Peleus Uhley said in a blog post this week. &quot;We hope that we can use this experience as a platform for discussing sandbox approaches with the other browser vendors.&quot;Also on tap for Chrome 9 is a lot of hardware acceleration work, including accelerated 3D graphics with the WebGL interface.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Nokia: Symbian beats Meego for enterprise]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=nokia-symbian-beats-meego-for-enterprise</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=nokia-symbian-beats-meego-for-enterprise</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 Dec 2010 08:10:33 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>garnersteen12</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=nokia-symbian-beats-meego-for-enterprise</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Nokia plans to stick with Symbian as its main business phone platform even when MeeGo, its new top-end operating system, is released.On Tuesday, Nokia business smartphones chief Ilari Nurmi told ZDNet UK that Nokia had &quot;great converged device plans based on the MeeGo platform&quot; and that there were &quot;different types of needs and wants in the enterprise market,&quot; but the new OS would not be pitched at the enterprise as a replacement for the aging Symbian.&quot;It's very important to note that Symbian is the primary platform today and will also be the primary platform in the future,&quot; Nurmi said.MeeGo is intended to span devices ranging from smartphones to notebook computers. It is already available as a Netbook OS but is yet to appear on a handset. The first MeeGo phone is due in 2011.Read more of &quot; Nokia: MeeGo will not displace Symbian as enterprise OS&quot; at ZDNet UK.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Verizon reignites ad wars with 4G claims]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=verizon-reignites-ad-wars-with-4g-claims</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=verizon-reignites-ad-wars-with-4g-claims</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Nov 2010 08:10:24 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Aragon</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=verizon-reignites-ad-wars-with-4g-claims</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The wireless marketing wars rage on as Verizon Wireless claims the &quot;most advanced 4G&quot; wireless network in the world and takes more potshots at rival AT&amp;T.It's not easy to be a consumer these days with wireless operators all claiming to have the fastest and most robust network in the U.S. Verizon Wireless is the latest operator to launch a new advertising campaign that promotes its soon-to-be-launched 4G LTE wireless broadband network. The commercial (embedded below), which features a young man using Verizon's 4G wireless network to throw a lightning bolt into the sky like a javelin, claims that Verizon has the most &quot;advanced 4G&quot; wireless network.Last week, Engadget got its hands on Verizon's print advertising campaign, which once again targets rival AT&amp;T's 3G coverage. In this ad, Verizon shows a map of its 3G/4G network coverage, and then shows a map with AT&amp;T's network coverage next to it. Under the maps, the ad points out that Verizon has 4G coverage and AT&amp;T doesn't.The advertisements are just the latest in a long line of attacks among wireless companies as they vie for customers in an increasing saturated mobile market. More than 90 percent of people in the U.S. already subscribe to a cell phone service. With virtually no new customers to win over, wireless operators are battling each other for existing customers.For consumers, the marketing wars can be very confusing as they try to decipher whose claims are accurate. So-called 4G Verizon Wireless, which is using a technology called LTE' T-Mobile USA, which is using a version of its current 3G technology called HSPA+' and Sprint Nextel, which uses WiMax, all claim to have 4G wireless networks. But the truth is that neither Verizon nor T-Mobile nor Sprint actually offers a true 4G wireless service. While current versions of WiMax and LTE are typically referred to in the industry as &quot;4G,&quot; they do not actually meet the International Telecommunication Union's strict definition. To be legitimately considered a 4G technology by the ITU, the network technology is required by the agency to be IP-based and use orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM). The other main requirement is that the technology needs to support peak download speeds of 100Mbps. The current flavors of LTE and WiMax are not that fast. And neither is the technology T-Mobile is using, which is called HSPA+.That said, these upgraded networks are faster than the current generation of 3G wireless services. Average 3G services offer between 700Kbps and 1.5Mbps. Sprint's WiMax service, built by Clearwire, offers average download speeds of around 6Mbps, Sprint has said. And Verizon claims that tests indicate it is getting download speeds of between 6Mbps and 12Mbps on its precommercial LTE network. T-Mobile's HSPA+ network also gives a significant boost, with speeds between 3Mbps and 7Mbps.It should be noted that AT&amp;T, which plans to test LTE next year, has also upgraded its network to HSPA+. AT&amp;T is not claiming that its upgrade is 4G. But the technology it has used to upgrade its network is the same type of 3G technology that T-Mobile is using.So when it comes to speed, there shouldn't be too much difference among any of the so-called 4G networks. And in AT&amp;T's defense, the company's upgrade to HSPA+ puts it on par with its rivals in terms of theoretical wireless speeds.So what about Verizon's claims of better 4G coverage Again, this claim should be taken with a grain of salt. Not only will the initial launch of the service be limited compared to its 3G wireless network, it also won't immediately have handsets available that can use the network. Verizon plans to be in 38 markets with its 4G service and offer service to 110 million potential customers by the end of 2010. The company will likely launch the service next week. But it won't offer 4G service everywhere it currently offers 3G service for at least three years, at which point it will offer faster speed service to 285 million potential customers.What's more, Verizon won't initially offer 4G mobile handsets. Through the end of this year, it's expected to be only offering wireless data cards for laptops. At the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show, the company is expected to launch handsets with general availability in the first quarter of 2011. Meanwhile, AT&amp;T's HSPA+ network will reach 250 million customers by the end of this year and it will be available everywhere its current 3G service is available. So in terms of coverage, AT&amp;T will have the largest, fastest wireless network in the U.S. this year, regardless of whether you call it 4G or 3G. AT&amp;T also doesn't have handsets that can take advantage of the faster HSPA+ yet. The company has introduced a wireless laptop card but hasn't indicated when its HSPA+ handsets will hit store shelves.How do the other two major wireless operators stack up T-Mobile USA, which has also been making some bold 4G claims, will be in 100 markets by the end of 2010, the company has said. And it will be available to more than 200 million potential customers. Sprint Nextel (via Clearwire) is in more than 55 markets today and is adding more each week. Its goal is to reach 120 million potential customers by the end of 2010. Longtime ad foes Verizon and AT&amp;T have a history of dueling advertising campaigns. A year ago, Verizon attacked AT&amp;T with an advertising campaign that compared the two carriers' 3G network coverage. Verizon's tag line was &quot;There's a map for that.&quot; AT&amp;T sued Verizon over its claims of a superior network, but eventually gave up the battle.AT&amp;T also fought back with its own ad campaign enlisting actor Luke Wilson to tout AT&amp;T's faster 3G network.While AT&amp;T hasn't called out the legal cavalry yet, nor has it hired an actor to take up its cause, in this latest round of advertising wars the company did issue a press release Monday stating i has increased spending on its network 55 percent compared to a year ago, investing nearly $6 billion in the first nine months of the year.The company also claims that speed tests indicate its network is 20 percent faster than its &quot;nearest competitor.&quot; And it also claims it completes 98.59 percent of voice calls connected over its network without interruption. &quot;We're very pleased with the nationwide results of the Global Wireless Solutions testing, which demonstrate that we're delivering a superior mobile broadband experience on a nationwide basis,&quot; John Donovan, AT&amp;T's chief technology officer said in a statement. &quot;Our top priority for the weeks and months to come is to continue our focus on network enhancements and improvements to ensure continued access to fast mobile broadband speeds and reliable voice service.&quot;<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[The 411: Windows Phone 7 or Android]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-411-windows-phone-7-or-android</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-411-windows-phone-7-or-android</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 22 Nov 2010 08:10:19 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>odobbyLoyat</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-411-windows-phone-7-or-android</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Welcome to The 411, my column answering all your questions about cell phones and cell phone accessories. I receive plenty of questions about these subjects via e-mail, so I figured many of you might have similar queries, too. At times, I might solicit answers from readers if I'm stumped. Send your questions and comments to me at nicole.lee@cnet.com. If you prefer to remain anonymous, let me know in the e-mail.I am looking to purchase a new smart phone. I have been looking at the Verizon Droid X. I have been told that Android 3 should be coming out before end of year , doubling [the] speed. (1) Is there an ETA for the Android 3 release (2) what will be the Droid X equal [by then]...or should I just bite the bullet and buy the Droid X I have a BB Storm that is driving me batty. Is the wait worth the added aggravation -- d, via emailIf you're referencing Gingerbread, I believe that's actually Android 2.3 and not 3.0 like previously rumored. We don't really know the exact date that Gingerbread will be released, but yes, we have heard it will be before the end of the year, so we think it'll be around December 2010. As for whether the Droid X will get the update, we think there's a strong possibility it might, but we expect you'll have to wait for quite awhile before Motorola gets around to releasing a version of the update that's compatible with its own software. I don't think there'll be a hardware update to the Droid X before the end of the year. If you're ready to drop your Storm however, I don't think there's a problem with getting the Droid X now, especially as prices are starting to drop due to holiday sales.I'm spending hours on the internet looking for reviews on particular AT&amp;T cell phones, and I just want to get the most for my money. I've probably narrowed it down to the Sony Xperia 10 or the Motorola Bravo if I go &quot;android&quot; but then I saw the newwindows 7 phones. If I sign a contract and am stuck with a phone for 2 years, I want to make a good decision but am not very techie. I am sticking with ATT because I am buying my son theiphone for Christmas (even though I know Verizon may have it by then too.) Am I better off with Android or Windows 7 if I'm keepin the phone for 2 years, and do you have a suggestion for which phone -- Sandi, via emailWould a Windows Phone 7 handset be more user-friendly than Android(Credit:Josh Miller/CNET)This might be a controversial answer seeing asWindows Phone 7 is such a new platform, but I think you might be better off with a Windows Phone 7 handset compared to your other two choices. The Motorola Bravo is a pretty entry-level handset with Android 2.1, and the Sony Xperia X10 has an overly-complicated UI that would take longer to upgrade in the long run. Also, Windows Phone 7 devices like the Samsung Focus are pretty polished for a first-generation product -- you get a Super AMOLED screen, a 5-megapixel camera, and a user interface that's pretty easy to get around.  Bear in mind that the Windows Phone 7 platform is fairly new, so the online community support won't be as robust as Android. But Microsoft aims to be much more timely in their software updates, and for a non-techie like yourself, I think you might experience fewer headaches over time. Definitely go in a store and play around with a few of the choices before making a final decision, but I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with Windows Phone 7. Do you have any idea if versace will come out with a cell phone if yes, do you know when and what might be the price Will versace be with a company such as sprint, t-mobile, etc. I went to versace.com and they have a page displaying a versace cell phone. -- Raul, via email. Versace is coming out with a new Versace touch-screen phone called the Versace Unique. It was created by Modelabs, and it's definitely a luxury handset with an 18 karat gold finish and a back cover made out of hand-crafted leather. We have no idea what operating system it'll have, but something tells me it won't be a smartphone -- previous luxury handsets have typically gone the proprietary route. We definitely don't expect this to be subsidized by a carrier, so expect to shell out the big bucks if you have to have it. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Analyst: Intel to impact 'non-Apple' tablets]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=analyst-intel-to-impact-non-apple-tablets</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=analyst-intel-to-impact-non-apple-tablets</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 08 Nov 2010 08:10:36 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Lamecheag</dc:creator>
<category>Business &amp; Finance</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=analyst-intel-to-impact-non-apple-tablets</guid>
<description><![CDATA[An upcoming Intel Atom chip may blunt the growth of tablets based on the widely used ARM processor--with the possible exception of Apple, according to an analyst at UBS Investment Research. Uche Orji of UBS made the comments today in a research note upgrading Intel's stock to a &quot;buy.&quot; Windows tablets based on Intel's &quot;Oak Trail&quot; Atom chips could have a larger market impact than expected, Orji wrote. &quot;While tablet forecasts for 2011 in excess of 50m (50 million) are not unreasonable (our Atmel touch controller forecasts infers a tablet market size of 56m), none of these forecasts are likely to fully incorporate the scenario of a significant counter-attack from a new generation of notebooks and x86-based tablets that could ultimately limit the growth of ARM-based tablets (at least those that are non-Apple),&quot; Orji wrote. Apple's A4 processor, used in theiPad, is based on an ARM design. Orji is referring to future ARM-based tablets that use, for example, Qualcomm's dual-core Snapdragon chip and Nvidia's dual-core Tegra processor. Dell&amp;39's Inspiron Duo tablet-Netbook hybrid uses a dual-core Atom processor.(Credit:James Martin)Ashok Kumar, managing director and analyst at Rodman &amp; Renshaw, took a different tack  in a research note last week, saying that Qualcomm has &quot;secured major tablet wins with its third generation dual-core Snapdragon, MSM 8660.&quot; (See video of Qualcomm executive talking about the 8660.)Orji also had good things to say about Intel's upcoming Sandy Bridge chip technology, due to appear in PCs by early next year. &quot;As Intel drives ultra-low voltage versions of Sandy Bridge into ultrathin notebooks and its Oak Trail platform (we expect mainly) intoWindows 7 and MeeGo tablets as well as ultrathin netbooks, we believe there could be enough excitement around x86 processors in new form factors that help to mitigate the tablet threat,&quot; he wrote. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[BMW sends plug-in Vision EfficientDynamics to production]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=bmw-sends-plug-in-vision-efficientdynamics-to-production</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=bmw-sends-plug-in-vision-efficientdynamics-to-production</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Nov 2010 07:11:19 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Lynda</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=bmw-sends-plug-in-vision-efficientdynamics-to-production</guid>
<description><![CDATA[BMW announced today that it's sending the Vision EfficientDynamics plug-in sportscar to production.The plug-in diesel concept coupe was revealed at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show and won the manufacturer several awards for its innovative design and clean technology. The Vision EfficientDynamics uses three power plants to propel the winged 2+2: a three-cylinder turbo diesel engine along with electric motors at each axle. The exotic can operate using its electric motors, diesel engine, or a combination of the two. Full throttle, the trio produces a total of of 328 horsepower and has a 0-60 mph time of 4.8 seconds. BMW Vision EfficientDynamics Concept revealed (photos) Despite its impressive stats, the BMW has better fuel economy than a Prius, achieving 75.1 mpg. Using only its lithium polymer battery, the Vision EfficientDynamics has an electric range of 31 miles before its diesel engine kicks in, which extends the coupe's range to 435 miles. Even more impressive: the four-seater's battery can be fully recharged in only 2.5 hours using a conventional power socket.This drivetrain sounds futuristic, but this technology was already in production or near production at the 2009 auto show, and can be found in the BMW ActiveHybrid 7 and upcoming EVs, such as the MINI E and BMW MegaCity Vehicle in 2013. The Vision EfficientDynamics will receive a few structural changes (bye bye glass doors) and will be constructed entirely of carbon fiber, according to BMW Blog. Now all it needs is a real name.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Dell replacing employee BlackBerrys with its own phone]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dell-replacing-employee-blackberrys-with-its-own-phone</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dell-replacing-employee-blackberrys-with-its-own-phone</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 05 Nov 2010 07:11:03 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>BeekQueeste</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=dell-replacing-employee-blackberrys-with-its-own-phone</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Dell will hand out its Venue Pro to its employees who currently carry BlackBerrys.(Credit:Bonnie Cha/CNET)Dell is looking to market its own smartphone as an alternative to the BlackBerry and is starting the push with its own employees.The PC maker will give its BlackBerry-carrying employees new Venue Pro smartphones in return for their existing phones. The transition is expected to save the company around 25 percent in mobile communications costs, mostly by getting rid of its BlackBerry servers, Dell's chief financial officer Brian Gladden told The Wall Street Journal.The 25,000 employees who currently have BlackBerrys will receive Venue Pro phones with both voice and data plans' remaining employees (about 71,000) will also get Dell phones but only with voice plans.Dell spokesman David Frink confirmed to CNET that this program will start shortly and take several months to complete.RunningWindows Phone 7, the Venue Pro will be the first phone provided internally, but Dell will eventually offer its employees Android phones as well, according to Gladden. Dell just hit the U.S. market with the launch of its first smartphone, the Android-based Aero.&quot;Clearly in this decision we are competing with RIM, because we're kicking them out,&quot; Gladden told the Journal.The internal move also opens the door for a new service that will try to convince other businesses to switch off their current smartphones in favor of a Dell device. According to the Journal, the company will start marketing this service to business customers within the next couple of weeks. Dell couldn't provide CNET with any details on this new service, but a company spokeswoman said that &quot;obviously we believe over time we can demonstrate the value and benefits of Dell smartphones to our commercial customers.&quot; The move is part of Dell's overall strategy to carve off a bigger slice of the business smartphone market, particularly against Research In Motion. Dell is also eyeing the new service as a entry point to sell its customers more than just low-margin phones. The company is aiming to set up networks and manage assets as part of an overall wireless package, Gladden told the Journal.&quot;I'm not sure I care as much about the devices as the services,&quot; Gladden said in his Journal interview. &quot;There's a services opportunity that we think is even bigger.&quot;<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Twitter joins Facebook, Google with D.C. hire]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=twitter-joins-facebook-google-with-d-c--hire</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=twitter-joins-facebook-google-with-d-c--hire</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 04 Nov 2010 07:10:15 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>pnojubimJohn1</dc:creator>
<category>Politics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=twitter-joins-facebook-google-with-d-c--hire</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Twitter has just hired its first employee in Washington, D.C.The microblogging site confirmed today that Adam Sharp, currently an executive producer for digital services at C-SPAN and former Democratic Senate staffer to Mary Landrieu, will be the company's manager of government and political partnerships.Sharp said--through Twitter, of course --that he'll start on November 29. He posted: &quot;Look fwd to working w/learning from gov20 community &amp; others committed to enhancing civic debate by bringing govt, people closer together.&quot;That job description is less traditional lobbyist and more governmental liaison, working with federal agencies and politicians to embrace Twitter as an evangelist, rather than pressing for legislation to be enacted or blocked.Unlike Google, Facebook, MySpace, and other Web companies, Twitter has not been targeted by the privacy, copyright, or other online eruptions that roil Capitol Hill with surprising frequency. (Though Twitter has joined a pro-Net neutrality coalition.)Because Twitter doesn't host photos or videos, it hasn't had to face the same copyright concerns that have bedeviled YouTube. And because its default setting for posts is public, the San Francisco-based company hasn't had to fend off the same level of official scrutiny as Facebook and MySpace have.Last year, Facebook hired former journalist Andrew Noyes as a Washington-based spokesman, and Google has operated a combination policy and sales office in the District of Columbia for a few years.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Infor names Charles Phillips CEO]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=infor-names-charles-phillips-ceo</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=infor-names-charles-phillips-ceo</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 25 Oct 2010 18:24:14 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Khushi</dc:creator>
<category>Business &amp; Finance</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=infor-names-charles-phillips-ceo</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Charles Phillips(Credit:ZDNet)Charles Phillips, who recently left Oracle as co-president to make way for Mark Hurd, will become chief executive of Infor, which makes enterprise planning software for mid-sized companies. In a statement, Infor said Phillips will be CEO and a member of the board. Current CEO Jim Schaper will remain chairman. At Oracle, Phillips was on board as the company acquired a bevy of companies ranging from BEA Systems to Siebel Systems.Read more of &quot;Infor names Charles Phillips CEO&quot; at ZDNet's Between the Lines.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Intel chips headed to 35 tablets and &8216'premier&' smartphones in 2011]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=intel-chips-headed-to-35-tablets-and-8216premierrsquo-smartphones-in-2011</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=intel-chips-headed-to-35-tablets-and-8216premierrsquo-smartphones-in-2011</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>wanreswin3</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=intel-chips-headed-to-35-tablets-and-8216premierrsquo-smartphones-in-2011</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Intel is not to be counted out of the smartphone battle yet, as its chips are headed to 35 tablets (including some already available) and &amp;''premier&amp;'' smartphone vendors in 2011, Reuters reports based on comments from the company&amp;'s CEO Paul Otelinni.The news follows on the heels of our report yesterday regarding Intel&amp;'s new tablet and netbook unit &amp;8212' the creation of which we found suspiciously quiet. Otellini says the tablets, including those from Dell, Asus, Lenovo and Toshiba, will roll out of the first half of 2011. Smartphones running Intel&amp;'s Medfield chip will land in the second half of next year.Intel&amp;'s pursuit of smartphones is &amp;''a marathon, not a sprint&amp;'', Otelinni said. The company isn&amp;'t slowing down after the release of the first Medfield chip. Otellini added that Intel&amp;'s second-generation Medfield chip for smartphones is already being tested by customers and is expected to ship towards the end of 2011 and early 2012.I suppose a marathon is a good analogy for Intel&amp;'s strategy &amp;8212' except Intel&amp;'s competitors already have several years ahead of the company in this particular race. What good is positioning its strategy as a marathon, when it&amp;'s clear the company was just running in place as its competitors passed it byNext Story: Best Buy offering free iPhone 3GS with contract today Previous Story: Xing snaps up event startup AmiandoPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: Atom, chips, CPUs, Medfield, smartphones, tabletsCompanies: IntelPeople: Paul Otellini          Tags: Atom, chips, CPUs, Medfield, smartphones, tabletsCompanies: IntelPeople: Paul OtelliniDevindra Hardawar is VentureBeat's lead mobile writer and East Coast correspondent. He studied philosophy at Amherst College, worked in IT support for several years, and has been writing about technology since 2004. He now lives in Brooklyn, New York. You can reach him at devindra@venturebeat.com (all story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com), and on Twitter at @Devindra.VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[China&'s Tencent acquires majority stake in online game firm Riot Games for nearly $400M]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=chinarsquos-tencent-acquires-majority-stake-in-online-game-firm-riot-games-for-nearly-400m</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=chinarsquos-tencent-acquires-majority-stake-in-online-game-firm-riot-games-for-nearly-400m</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>rezinu-PKv2011</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=chinarsquos-tencent-acquires-majority-stake-in-online-game-firm-riot-games-for-nearly-400m</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Tencent, Chinaa4a4s most valuable internet company, has acquired a majority stake in U.S. online games firm Riot Games for nearly $400 million.The deal is another validation of the social game business, which is one of the hottest sectors for user growth and acquisitions. And it shows that big international players such as the Chinese internet giant are moving in on the fast-growing market for social games in the U.S.Los Angeles-based Riot Games is one of the industry&amp;'s venture-backed success stories. The company unveiled its hit game, League of Legends, in October 2008. The online game combined quick-hit fighting sessions in a fantasy action setting. It was like the video game equivalent of a pick-up basketball game. The game was inspired by the free &amp;''mod,&amp;'' or user-generated modification, Defense of the Ancients, a popular version of WarCraft III. Riot Games said the company has more than 1 million active players. They log in more than 500 million minutes each month.&amp;''We shared a philosophy and built a mutual respect with Tencent,&amp;'' said Brandon Beck, CEO of Riot Games, in an interview. &amp;''It is an interesting time for games. Social and mobile games are very interesting, but it&amp;'s not our focus. We are very focused on core game experiences, which are also evolving from a packaged good to an online service.&amp;''Beck said the company would tap Tencent&amp;'s resources for a worldwide expansion. Bloomberg reported the rumored deal first, and we&amp;'ve confirmed it in an interview. The companies did not confirm the purchase price, but Bloomberg reported the deal was valued at $350 million, based on a knowledgeable source. We hear it&amp;'s closer to $400 million and that there isn&amp;'t a huge earn-out in the number. (An earn-out is an extra payment if the acquired company meets performance targets in the future).Shenzhen-based Tencent, which has more than 600 million users for its QQ messaging service in China, is already a part owner of Riot Games. Other Riot Games investors include Benchmark Capital and FirstMark Capital. Tencent also owns 10 percent of Russian investment firm DST, which owns stakes in Facebook and Zynga.The deal by Tencent is the biggest cross-border incursion made by a Chinese company in the games business. Early last year, China&amp;'s Shanda Games bought Mochi Media, a Flash game platform company in San Francisco, for $80 million. Other big deals in social and mobile games include Disney&amp;'s purchase of Playdom for up to $763 million and DeNA&amp;'s purchase of Ngmoco for $403 million.Riot Games was founded five years ago by Beck and Marc Merrill, who saw potential in an idea dubbed &amp;''session-based&amp;'' gaming, or short games you could play during a lunch break. Their game is a downloadable title that is free-to-play, where users pay real money for virtual goods such as character strengtheners. The deal is expected to close within 30 days. During its history, Riot Games raised $18 million in two venture rounds and one angel round. It has more than 150 employees and has 100 open jobs now. Not bad for a company that has only one published game.Mitch Lasky, a partner at Benchmark and a member of Riot&amp;'s board, said that Riot Games built a &amp;''disruptive&amp;'' position in the game market. Beck said the deal was structured in a way that will allow Riot Games to operate independently, and David Wallerstein, senior executive vice president at Tencent, said that Riot will have support and autonomy. Lasky said the combination of the loyal fan base and great monetization through virtual goods made Riot Games so valuable, although he declined to say what the actual value was.League of Legends is available in Europe and the U.S., but it will expand to other regions this year. Tencent is publishing the game in China. Beck said the game has a passionate fan base that plays for an enormous amount of time. The company updates the game at least once every two weeks with new content, bug fixes, and changes to suit gamers. As for the future, Beck said, &amp;''We really feel like we&amp;'re just getting started.&amp;''Next Story: Is the Answers.com sale in trouble Previous Story: Facebook (basically) confirms its move to Menlo ParkPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: Defense of the Ancients, League of LegendsCompanies: Benchmark Capital, Firstmark Capital, Riot Games, TencentPeople: Brandon Beck, Marc Merrill          Tags: Defense of the Ancients, League of LegendsCompanies: Benchmark Capital, Firstmark Capital, Riot Games, TencentPeople: Brandon Beck, Marc MerrillDean is lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat. He covers video games, security, chips and a variety of other subjects. Dean previously worked at the San Jose Mercury News, the Wall Street Journal, the Red Herring, the Los Angeles Times, the Orange County Register and the Dallas Times Herald. He is the author of two books, Opening the Xbox and the Xbox 360 Uncloaked. Follow him on Twitter at @deantak, and follow VentureBeat on Twitter at @venturebeat. Have news to share Launching a startup Email: tips@venturebeat.comVentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Austin companies, join us Nov. 19 for feedback and drinks at Austin Ventures]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=austin-companies-join-us-nov--19-for-feedback-and-drinks-at-austin-ventures</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=austin-companies-join-us-nov--19-for-feedback-and-drinks-at-austin-ventures</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>ziminsircom</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=austin-companies-join-us-nov--19-for-feedback-and-drinks-at-austin-ventures</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Got an awesome tech productWell, if you&amp;'re based in the Austin, Texas region, join VentureBeat and DEMO for a meetup at one of Austina4a4s most respected venture capital firms, Austin Ventures.On Nov. 19., wea4a4ll be inviting up to 10 companies that are contemplating launching products at DEMO (either at the upcoming Spring event in February in Palm Desert, or at DEMO Fall 2011 back in Silicon Valley) to present their ideas and get feedback on their products.Location isAustin Venturesa4a4 offices at 300 West 6th Street.Youa4a4ll have the  opportunity to meet with senior partners at Austin Ventures and also to meet me and other members of the DEMO team. Each  presentation will get at least 20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes of  feedback.Wea4a4ve had similar events around the country, partnering with what we think are the best firms in each location. They include theFoundry Group, Benchmark,Kleiner Perkins, Madrona and others.If youa4a4re a company interested in coming,please fill out this form.  If youa4a4re selected as one of the 10, wea4a4ll follow up immediately with  more information about the presentation and who will be there, etc.The night before, wea4a4ll all head out for cocktails  at Six Lounge, which will be open to the entire Austin tech scene, from  6:30 to 9 p.m. Spread the word &amp;8212' leta4a4s bring the house down! Wea4a4ll be  buying drinks there for the first 50 people who show up. Please register here for that.Look forward to seeing you in Austin!Next Story: Amazon.com&amp;'s secret retail empire Previous Story: Three tactics to speed company growthPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: DEMOCompanies: Austin Ventures          Tags: DEMOCompanies: Austin VenturesMatt Marshall is editor and CEO of VentureBeat. Follow him on Twitter at @mmarshall, and follow VentureBeat on Twitter at @venturebeat.VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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