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<title>Haaze.com / Riya01 / Voted News</title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com</link>
<description>Test Web 2.0 Content Management System</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 Apr 2011 07:10:10 +0000</pubDate>
<language>en</language>
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<title><![CDATA[Microsoft reveals more on plight of Netbook sales]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-reveals-more-on-plight-of-netbook-sales</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-reveals-more-on-plight-of-netbook-sales</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 Apr 2011 07:10:10 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>andplot56</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-reveals-more-on-plight-of-netbook-sales</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft revealed more about the plight of Netbook sales in the age of theiPad during the company's third-quarter earnings conference call today. This follows statements by Intel's chief financial officer earlier in the month. A Toshiba Netbook.(Credit:Toshiba)The Redmond, Wash., software giant said today that the consumer PC market declined 8 percent in the most recent quarter and part of that was &quot;a 40 percent decline in Netbooks,&quot; according to a statement by Bill Koefoed, general manager of investor relations, during the earnings conference call.  &quot;In total, we estimate the PC market declined 1 percent to 3 percent in the third quarter,&quot; he said.At Intel, the story--or at least the emphasis--was different, with the chipmaker reporting strong PC client growth of 17 percent on April 19. In a CNET interview on April 19, Stacy Smith, Intel's chief financial officer, said this about Netbook sales: &quot;The Atom [processor] volume going into Netbooks is pretty flat quarter on quarter. Pretty flat year on year. If there's an impact withtablet cannibalization, it certainly is happening there. But even there it's still a $400 million business for us.&quot; Today, Microsoft provided more clarity. Responding to a question from an analyst, Chief Financial Officer Peter Klein explained some of the reasons for the discrepancy between Intel's relatively neutral and/or upbeat statements and Microsoft's more sober interpretation. &quot;There are some unique things going on with Intel's results...There's a few other things in terms of an extra week in the quarter,&quot; he said. &quot;They've also excluded netbooks from the PC MPU (microprocessor unit) numbers. And I think there was some appropriate inventory buildup so if you look at our numbers, it ties pretty closely from a unit perspective to what they're seeing. And obviously, we're in line with the big third party analysts as well.&quot; The last statement from Microsoft is important. Intel was questioned during its earnings conference call about why it had such robust earnings despite less upbeat analyst numbers. Whatever the case, Apple's iPad is undoubtedly having an effect on Netbook sales, as numerous reports have shown. And Intel may ultimately abet this trend as it points its Atom processor increasingly in the direction of tablets. Via Business Insider. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[RockMelt makes an iPhone grab]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rockmelt-makes-an-iphone-grab</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rockmelt-makes-an-iphone-grab</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 19 Apr 2011 07:10:01 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>tqubaki</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rockmelt-makes-an-iphone-grab</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Social networking Web browser RockMelt expanded its reach to theiPhone today, debuting a browser that synchronizes the desktop versions' features to your iPhone. These include the new Read Later option for saving URLs to be read in the future, as well as RockMelt's full Twitter and Facebook management tools.RockMelt for the iPhone opens shared links on the fly.(Credit:RockMelt)This means that in addition to Twitter and Facebook basics, such as retweeting and wall posting, you can add photos, geotag, and open links on the fly. This last feature is unique to RockMelt for iPhone. When you tap an update from a friend on either service that contains a link, the text of the update will appear at the top of the iPhone and the URL will render below it.Some features that are in the desktop version have not been ported to the iPhone one. There's no tabbed browsing, nor is there a private browsing option.When demonstrated last week at CNET's San Francisco offices by RockMelt CEO Eric Vishria, the feature appeared smooth and was striking for cutting out the extra step of having to tap the URL to see it. However, the process also potentially opens up security risks with shortened URLs that haven't been verified. Vishria said that there will be a feature in the first update to the iPhone app that will allow users to expand URLs on the fly. The update is expected about a week after the app's initial release, which is itself expected within a few days. Visria cautioned that he had yet to receive a specific date and time for the launch from Apple.Vishria added that RockMelt is seeing interesting behavior among its users, which he counted in the hundreds of thousands. He noted that 65 percent of RockMelt users check two or more RSS feeds, and that 41 percent of its users are high school and college students around the world. That means that a majority of RockMelt users are invested in a technology that, Vishria said, many average browser users would be hard-pressed to define. &quot;The feedback is clear that many do not know what RSS is, just what it does.&quot;RockMelt expects to release a version soon that's optimized for theiPad, and is currently &quot;looking at&quot; an Android version.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[FCC to vote on mandatory wireless-data roaming]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=fcc-to-vote-on-mandatory-wireless-data-roaming</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=fcc-to-vote-on-mandatory-wireless-data-roaming</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 06 Apr 2011 07:10:37 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>mariedelexz</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=fcc-to-vote-on-mandatory-wireless-data-roaming</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The Federal Communications Commission may soon set new rules that could help ensure that your smartphone is able to access the Internet anywhere in the U.S. that wireless service is offered, even if your provider doesn't offer network coverage.On Thursday the FCC will vote on new rules that would force wireless phone companies, such as AT&amp;T and Verizon Wireless, which have the largest nationwide coverage, to offer roaming rates to competitors at &quot;fair and reasonable rates.&quot; The measure, which has the backing of FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, is expected to be passed by the FCC at its monthly public meeting.Smaller wireless carriers, such as Sprint Nextel, Leap Wireless, and MetroPCS, have filed petitions with the FCC claiming these new rules are necessary to ensure that AT&amp;T and Verizon Wireless, the nation's largest wireless operators, offer fair roaming terms to them. The hope is that these rules will prevent the two dominant carriers in the market from shutting out smaller players from roaming agreements, and essentially preventing them from competing. Smaller operators argue that the need for these rules is even more important since AT&amp;T announced the $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile. If that merger is approved, AT&amp;T and Verizon will control more than 80 percent of the wireless market in the U.S.&quot;This is the only way we can ensure that the bigger carriers at least come to the table when it comes to negotiating roaming deals,&quot; said Crystal Davis, a spokeswoman for Sprint. &quot;With the possible AT&amp;T and T-Mobile merger there could be only three major carriers in the market. And more competitors could be gobbled up one by one. If that happens, we won't have the opportunity to build out our networks. And then what chance do they have of competing&quot;Roaming, roaming, roaming Wireless operators with larger footprints have always negotiated roaming agreements with smaller carriers who either don't have the spectrum or the capacity to cover certain regions. In the early days of wireless service, consumers paid the cost of this roaming. Today, roaming is typically bundled into the cost of a cell phone plan. But carriers still charge each other for roaming.As the industry gets more consolidated, smaller carriers and industry watchdogs are afraid that AT&amp;T and Verizon Wireless will exert their market power to make roaming deals too expensive for smaller carriers to compete.The FCC already adopted mandated roaming rules for voice traffic in 2007. In theory this means that wireless subscribers should be able to make phone calls just about anywhere there is a cell phone signal even if their wireless provider doesn't provide coverage.But just because the FCC mandates that companies must negotiate with their competitors, it doesn't mean that a deal is always struck. And it doesn't mean that the near ubiquitous coverage for either voice or data service will really ever be met, even if the FCC passes the data roaming rules. For example, in the small town of Lewes, Del., the only two wireless operators that offer reliable service for either voice or data are AT&amp;T and Verizon Wireless. Though Sprint says it offers service in this area, the service isn't available in most locations. But because of the voice roaming mandate, one would assume that a Sprint customer should still be able to make phone calls in Lewes where Verizon's network is strong, because in theory Sprint customers should be roaming on Verizon's network. (Sprint and Verizon use the same CDMA-based cellular technology.) But in reality this doesn't happen.It is difficult to say in this specific case what is going on, since neither Verizon nor Sprint is required to make public who its roaming partners are or what the conditions of those roaming agreements are. At the end of the day, the FCC requires only that companies sit down to negotiate under fair terms.&quot;The mandatory order is supposed to give other carriers the option for getting fair and reasonable rates,&quot; said Sprint's Davis. &quot;But it doesn't mean that agreements are always reached.&quot;Indeed, Sprint may not agree to the &quot;fair and reasonable&quot; rate that Verizon offers. If Sprint feels the terms are unfair, the FCC rules allow the company to file a complaint. So far no complaints have been filed accusing AT&amp;T or Verizon Wireless of charging unfair or unreasonable voice roaming rates.AT&amp;T and Verizon: More regulation is unnecessary AT&amp;T and Verizon Wireless argue that rules forcing them to negotiate are unnecessary, since they already have deals with many of their competitors. AT&amp;T said in a letter to the FCC last month that it has already negotiated &quot;scores of data roaming agreements, with more currently under negotiation.&quot; Verizon said it already has data roaming agreements with 40 wireless providers, including nationwide agreements for both large and small carriers.Verizon also argues that the FCC does not have the legal authority to impose such rules on data services, since wireless broadband services are regulated differently from wireless voice services.Verizon believes that the FCC is once again overstepping its authority. Earlier this year, the company challenged the FCC's authority for adopting new Net neutrality rules. (A lawsuit the company filed in federal court to challenge those rules was thrown out earlier this week because the judges said it was filed too early. But Verizon plans to refile the suit once the new Net neutrality regulations are posted in the Federal Register later this year.)But if the new rules are passed by the FCC, Verizon could have an even stronger case in challenging the FCC than it does with Net neutrality. The reasoning is a bit wonky, but Verizon argues that these new rules will impose &quot;common carrier&quot; regulation on a service that is not bound by &quot;common carrier&quot; rules. The FCC has long classified voice services and all traffic that touches the old telephone network as a &quot;telecommunications service.&quot; These services are subject to &quot;common carrier&quot; rules that allow the government to set rates and mandate that providers share their networks. But wireless data services, just like wireless broadband services, are considered &quot;information&quot; services. And these services are not bound by common carrier regulation. Verizon argues that this means that the government cannot mandate that the company share its network nor can it have a say in what rates the carrier charges other wireless operators for using its network. The FCC says that it isn't trying to set rates. It simply wants to ensure that smaller operators are given the opportunity to negotiate their own agreements with larger carriers at fair rates. The agency maintains its goal is to fulfill the promise of the National Broadband Plan to get wireless broadband services to as many people as possible. Verizon representatives say there are plenty of incentives for them to offer fair roaming terms. And as the company builds its 4G LTE network, it believes it will have enough capacity and coverage to offer even more roaming deals.&quot;Verizon is not anti-roaming,&quot; said Tamara Priess, vice president of federal regulatory affairs for Verizon. &quot;We're anti-regulated roaming. Our customers often benefit from those agreements, too.&quot;<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Report: Amazon exploring mobile payments via NFC]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-amazon-exploring-mobile-payments-via-nfc</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-amazon-exploring-mobile-payments-via-nfc</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 31 Mar 2011 07:10:26 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>frank10sm</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-amazon-exploring-mobile-payments-via-nfc</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Yet another company looks to be testing the waters of near-field communication for mobile payments. This time it's Amazon.com, who in a report by Bloomberg today, is said to be exploring the possibility of enabling such a service for smartphones. The report cites sources who asked not to be named. The report goes on to say that Amazon will decide whether or not to pursue the project in the next three to five months.Amazon already has a business division that enables mobile payments. But incorporating near-field communications, or NFC, chips would allow users to wave their phone over a terminal or price tag to either pay for an item or find a different size or color of the item on Amazon's own store.If the online retailer does opt to go that route, they'll likely be joining some of the biggest names in tech. Google has already been selling a phone, the Nexus S, with NFC chips installed, and is reportedly testing a service in New York and San Francisco. Microsoft is also said to be planning to include NFC technology in a future phone withWindows Phone 7, and Apple has been rumored for almost a year to have something similar in the works.Samsung and Visa have also said they'll be facilitating mobile payments via NFC on smartphones during the summer Olympics in London next year.Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Untethered jailbreak for iPhone, iPad running iOS 4.3 in beta]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=untethered-jailbreak-for-iphone-ipad-running-ios-4-3-in-beta</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=untethered-jailbreak-for-iphone-ipad-running-ios-4-3-in-beta</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 30 Mar 2011 07:10:34 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Putz-seotons</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=untethered-jailbreak-for-iphone-ipad-running-ios-4-3-in-beta</guid>
<description><![CDATA[An untethered jailbreak for iOS 4.3.1 is just around the corner.(Credit:MuscleNerd)If you are a jailbreak fan, there's finally some good news coming from the untethered jailbreak camp, led by the hackers at the Dev Team--an untethered jailbreak is running iOS 4.3 in beta.According to iPhone Download Blog, hacker Stefan Esser (@iOn1c) has come up with a solution, posting a tweet saying: &quot;Theiphone-dev-team is already beta-testing the untether. So it is up to them to give you your tool of choice.&quot;Certainly if the Dev Team is running an untethered jailbreak solution for iOS 4.3, we can expect something soon. In the three weeks since the iOS 4.3 (andiPad 2) release, there hasn't been much exciting news coming from the jailbreak community. Until now, that is. To back it up, renowned hacker MuscleNerd tweeted: &quot;well @iOn1c's untether is solid! Just working out overall 4.3.x JB issues and Cydia :)&quot;There's still no official word on when the untethered jailbreak might be available, but signs are pointing to soon.Will you jailbreak your iPhone, iPad, oriPod Touch Let me know in the comments!  <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[More than 8 million iPads sold so far this year]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=more-than-8-million-ipads-sold-so-far-this-year</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=more-than-8-million-ipads-sold-so-far-this-year</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 29 Mar 2011 07:10:23 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>kazeesion</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=more-than-8-million-ipads-sold-so-far-this-year</guid>
<description><![CDATA[With the first quarter about to end, analysts are tossing around possible sales figures forApple's iPad.Apple's tablet(Credit:Apple)A group of analysts questioned by Fortune are estimating unit sales anywhere from 5 million to 8.8 million.Their estimates cover the period from January 1 through last Saturday and include sales of both the iPad and iPad 2. On average, the 31 estimates point to unit sales of more than 6 million iPads in just under three months. The estimates were also gathered at various times, with most of them coming out this month but a few being offered in January before the iPad 2 hit the market.The analysts didn't specifiy how their estimates were divided between the original iPad and the iPad 2. But the time period covered by the new iPad 2 includes just two weeks' worth of sales in the U.S. and about two days' worth across much of the rest of the world. The sales estimates also should be seen in light of the iPad2's inventory challenges in which many consumers trying to get the newtablet in the stores have left empty handed and those ordering online face a wait time of three to four weeks at this point.The huge recent demand for the iPad 2 also means that some of the estimates may end up being on the low side. J.P. Morgan analyst Mark Moskowitz told CNET News that the 6 million in unit sales his firm forecast for the first quarter is a bit &quot;stale&quot; with the release of the new tablet.&quot;Having seen the device and seen the great traction out of the gate here, I think one has to assume that there's probably some upside potential to that number,&quot; Moskowitz said. &quot;It's just amazing that these guys come out with their new product, and they have lines that wrap around the block.&quot;The analyst also offered his thoughts on why demand for iPad 2 has so dramatically outstripped supply. Though part of it is probably calculated on the part of Apple, according to Moskowitz, overall demand has just been much better than anticipated. Also, Apple has run into difficulty in the past keeping up with demand for such items as theiPhone. And ramping up enough inventory is especially hard with a new product like the iPad 2. Looking at some of the upgrades in the iPad 2, Moskowitz pointed to challenges on the supply chain side getting the components out the door fast enough. &quot;These are new features based on components that are not really mature in terms of the supply chain,&quot; Moskowitz said. &quot;This is all new type of technology, and the supply chain is not really mature in terms of the economies of scale.&quot; In a March 22 research report, Moskowitz estimated that Apple would ship 29.2 million units. Though he's sticking with that figure for now, he said there is probably some upside to that number, especially if the strong demand for the iPad 2 continues into April and the next quarter. Looking at the iPad 2 alone, Apple may have sold anywhere from 400,000 to 500,000 units during the tablet's first weekend of sales more than two weeks ago in the U.S., according to Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster. But given that most stores had sold out by that Saturday, those numbers could be seen as a one-day total--or even less than a day since the tablet didn't go on sale until that Friday afternoon. In an informal survey of iPad 2 buyers waiting online, Munster's research team also found that around 70 percent of them were brand new to the tablet, with only 30 percent upgrading from the original iPad. Updated at 9 a.m. PT with Mark Moskowitz's comments. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Target picks Microsoft's virtualization software]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=target-picks-microsofts-virtualization-software</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=target-picks-microsofts-virtualization-software</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 21 Mar 2011 07:10:40 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Crissy6d6</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=target-picks-microsofts-virtualization-software</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Retail giant Target plans to roll out Microsoft's virtualization technology to its 1,700 stores, giving the software giant's enterprise cloud computing efforts a new boost. Microsoft announced a new deal in which Target will manage such operations as inventory, point-of-sale, and supply-chain management remotely with Microsoft's Hyper-v software. In addition, Target will roll out 15,000 virtual machines using the technology across the country.VMware, run by former Microsoft senior executive Paul Maritz, dominates the software virtualization business. But Microsoft has been working to cut into that lead with acquisitions and new software. The market offers one of the best opportunities for growth in enterprise computing as companies push to reduce costs by shedding hardware and running systems over Internet infrastructure.TargetThat's why Target is deploying the new Microsoft technology. It's being used to run cash registers and the computers used to guide restocking inventory. The retailer, which manages all of its store technology remotely, says it will reduce the number of servers in its stores from seven to two, eliminating 8,000 servers in the process. That cuts not only the cost of replacing the hardware, but also the expense of maintaining it and even the price of the electricity used to power it. Microsoft doesn't believe it will reduce its server software revenue. &quot;Virtualization can lead to consolidation of hardware resources, but shouldn't negatively impact software licensing,&quot; says David Greschler, Microsoft's director of virtualization and cloud strategy for its server and tools business.The Target deal is a feather for virtualization efforts at Microsoft, which wants to prove its software can handle large, mission-critical applications. &quot;Particularly as organizations are contemplating cloud computing, they find comfort in knowing the Microsoft platform can virtualize and manage all kinds of applications--Microsoft's, a third party's or homegrown--on a massive scale,&quot; Brad Anderson, corporate vice president of the company's management and security division, said in a press release.Hoping to grow its virtualization business, Microsoft has built tools into its Windows Server software to make it easier to run its Hyper-v technology. And while it still trails VMware, it's picked up customers in recent years including Del Monte Foods and Costco Wholesale. That said, Target has been a longtime customer of Microsoft's Virtual Server software, so upgrading to Hyper-v was the logical move, says Brett Waldman, senior research analyst at IDC. &quot;Landing a large, named client like Target is always a big deal, but it does not seem like VMware was ever seriously considered in this case study,&quot; Waldman says. What's more, Hyper-v is included in the license for Windows Server 2008 R2, which Target is using, making moving to VMware even more of an expense.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Google digitizing lists of Japan shelter dwellers]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-digitizing-lists-of-japan-shelter-dwellers</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-digitizing-lists-of-japan-shelter-dwellers</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Mar 2011 07:10:12 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>riauckter3d22</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-digitizing-lists-of-japan-shelter-dwellers</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Google Maps is showing rolling-blackout information for Japan after the devastating magnitude 9.0 earthquake and resulting tsunamis. This view shows the area around Tokyo.(Credit:screenshot by Stephen Shankland/CNET)Expanding its efforts to help restore contact among people separated by the Japanese disasters, Google said today it's creating computerized versions of lists of people at emergency shelters.&quot;To help the many people in shelters get word of their whereabouts to loved ones, we're...asking people in shelters to take photos of the handwritten lists of names of current residents and e-mail them to us,&quot; Google said in a blog post. Google scans the data to add to its Japan person-finder site, &quot;but it's a big job that can't be done automatically by computers alone, so we welcome volunteers with Japanese language skills who want to help out.The images of shelter lists are posted to a Picasa album. Those with images can e-mail them to tohoku.anpi.google@picasaweb.com.The country is grappling with death and housing dislocation on a massive scale. Japanese state broadcaster National police said 5,693 have been confirmed dead, and 9,506 people remain unaccounted for, NHK reported Thursday.In another change, Google's crisis response page for the Japanese earthquake and tsunaminow works better when used with mobile phones, in particular lower-end phones that are very common. Google also has made it possible to search by telephone number at its person-finder site.It's provided Google Maps showing rolling blackout locations. And it's continuing to publish updated satellite photos of Japan on Google Maps.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[New power line could cool Japanese reactors]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-power-line-could-cool-japanese-reactors</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-power-line-could-cool-japanese-reactors</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Mar 2011 07:12:12 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Bonessemn</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-power-line-could-cool-japanese-reactors</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Japanese authorities tried pouring water on overheated reactors from a helicopter but abandoned the effort because of radiation risks.(Credit:NHK/screenshot by Stephen Shankland)Tokyo Electric Power Co., operator of the collection of nuclear reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant suffering major problems after an earthquake and tsunami, hopes a new power line will alleviate cooling difficulties.The plant has been without power since Friday's magnitude 9.0 earthquake, and backup generators to keep the nuclear fuel from overheating failed after the tsunamis. But the power company is working to connect new power lines, according to media reports, a move that could restore cooling systems.The power line is almost complete, Canada's Globe and Mail quoted Tokyo Electric Power Co. spokesman Naoki Tsunoda as saying. He didn't predict when it would be finished, though.This illustration, based on a GeoEye satellite photo viewed through Google Earth, shows the locations of the six Fukushima Daiichi nuclear reactors.(Credit:Photo from Google and GeoEye' graphic by Stephen Shankland/CNET)High radiation levels prevented workers from connecting the lines to the power plant facilities using a &quot;makeshift switchboard,&quot; NHK, Japan's state broadcaster, said Thursday. (NHK broadcasts over Ustream for those who want live updates from Japan.)Wednesday's efforts at cooling reactor buildings included an aborted attempt to drop water from a helicopter. Another plan involves spraying water from a water cannon.Fukushima Daiichi has six reactors. Numbers 1, 2, and 3 were operating when the earthquake struck, while numbers 4, 5, and 6 had been shut down for an inspection. All have cooling requirements, since even when not operating nuclear fuel can be extremely hot. Excess heat, if not removed with circulating water, can cause fuel rods to melt, leading to much greater risks of contamination.Friday's magnitude 9.0 earthquake and its resulting tsunamis have killed thousands, with thousands more missing.Steam rising from a nuclear reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi plant.(Credit:NHK/screenshot by Stephen Shankland)<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[Politico sues Facebook because he lost election]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=politico-sues-facebook-because-he-lost-election</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=politico-sues-facebook-because-he-lost-election</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 03 Mar 2011 08:11:13 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>pnojubimJohn1</dc:creator>
<category>Marketing and advertising</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=politico-sues-facebook-because-he-lost-election</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Nothing is ever truly serious unless a politician says it or does it.So there can be no question that Facebook has been been rocked to its sneakers by a lawsuit served upon it from on high by a would-be Michigan congressman.Majed Moughni was a Republican candidate for Congress last year. He failed in this quest, coming fourth in the Republican primary in Michigan's 15th district. However, according to The Detroit News, Moughni seems to believe that the reason he lost was Facebook.Moughni, you see, had a cunning plan to defeat U.S. Rep. John Dingell. As his lawsuit puts it: &quot;In an attempt to overthrow the Dingell Dynasty, (I) devised a plan to use Facebook to accumulate thousands of friends, who in turn would spread the message and overseat the longest-serving member of Congress.&quot;I once sat on a plane that was overseated, but I didn't know one could actually do that to a member of Congress. Still, Moughni seems adamant that his overseating plan was scuppered when Facebook sank his page on the site. Moughni has a new and very active Facebook page. But the takedown happened last June.On Monday, Moughni posted to his current Facebook page: &quot;This lawsuit was filed to address the lack of due process at Facebook. Imagine for a minute if your Facebook page was deactivated. What took you years to accumulate is forever erased. Your posts, photos, and memories are gone forever. As we...speak, Facebook has no due process, no appeal, and no live person to communicate with.&quot;The Dearborn Press and Guide reported that Moughni had about 1,600 friends when Facebook took action. He reportedly believes Facebook shut him down because he had criticized his opponent's need to introduce a resolution in solidarity with Detroit Tigers pitcher Andres Galarraga, who was denied a perfect game by a myopically blown umpire's call.I am serious. These are politicians, rememberFacebook, for its part, believes it has a perfectly reasonable explanation. Spokesman Andrew Noyes told the Detroit News that the account had been flagged for &quot;suspicious or anomalous behavior.&quot; Well, of course the behavior was suspicious and anomalous: 1,600 people were showing interest in a local politician.Noyes reportedly insisted that before a shutdown, the system always sends a pop-up warning that cautions a user not to, for example, send multiple messages to people who are not friends.Moughni does seem rather emotional about the whole thing. He told the Detroit News: &quot;They disorganized us in the middle of our campaign and we lost. Facebook took us off the market. They took us off the face of the earth.&quot;But, having returned to the face of the earth, he reportedly doesn't want money. He wants an injunction that tells Facebook it cannot close an account without a right of appeal.I am sure there are many who will have some sympathy with Moughni's pain. Facebook can appear so heavy-handedly draconian sometimes, such as when it once censored a doll's nipples.And Moughni is a lawyer, so he presumably knows how to put Facebook's back up against the wall, legally.Surely this is the perfect scenario for &quot;The Social Network 2.&quot; The small town Michigan politician drags Jesse Eisenberg into court, cross-examines him to tears, wins his case, then wins an election, and, um, becomes the next president of the United States.You'd go to see that, wouldn't you <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Translation, mobile simplicity coming to Twitter]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=translation-mobile-simplicity-coming-to-twitter</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=translation-mobile-simplicity-coming-to-twitter</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Feb 2011 08:10:46 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>newyorkdd</dc:creator>
<category>Marketing and advertising</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=translation-mobile-simplicity-coming-to-twitter</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Twitter Chief Executive Dick Costolo (Credit:Stephen Shankland/CNET)BARCELONA -- To make Twitter easier to use for everyone and similar across platforms the company is aiming for tighter integration with phone services and launching translation tools, Chief Executive Dick Costolo said during his keynote at the Mobile World Congress 2011 here. The company is launching a &quot;crowd sourced&quot; translation center for Russian, Indonesian and Turkish and later this year will be offering its own Portuguese translations, he said.  The service is already popular among many mobile users, providing first photos for news events like the US Airways jet crash landing in the Hudson River two years ago, and unique perspectives like Spanish soccer star Carles Puyol sending a photo via TwitPic while participating in the national parade.  Showing Puyol's photo on the screen&quot; behind him, Costolo said &quot;This tweet to me is a metaphor for what all of us in this room are trying to do&quot; - - enable users to create experiences for each other instead of companies creating the experiences for the users. At the mobile event, in particular, Twitter is focusing on making using the service similar on different platforms.  &quot;Twitter already works on almost everything you're going to hear about this week. From the highest bandwidth, high-touch most elegant interface to the most inexpensive cell phone carrying only SMS,&quot; he said. &quot;I shouldn't have to think about how I use Twitter&quot; when switching devices. Another goal for the company is to make the service simpler to use than it is now, regardless of the platform. For instance, when a photo is taken on a mobile device a user shouldn't have to open a separate platform to post it to, Costolo said. The company also wants to be instantly usable for everyone and retain users even if they don't follow a lot of people, he added. Asked to elaborate during a question-and-answer session, Costolo said that the Android integration allows a user to tweet a photo. But &quot;what I would like are more single sign-on experiences, the ability to tweet from the browser,&quot; he said. &quot;Those kinds of integrations that remove&quot; complexity. Twitter is not merely a microblogging site, but a place where people connect with each other in profound ways that are distinctly social and on a large scale, such as 6,000 tweets sent per second right after midnight on New Year's Eve in Tokyo. The company's mission is to connect people everywhere to what is most meaningful to them, he said.  Ninety-nine percent of tweets in the system have some social context, while 40 percent are made from mobile devices, and 50 percent of the users are active on more than one platform, according to Costolo. During the question-and-answer session, Costolo was asked what the company's biggest fear is and what its biggest mistake has been. The biggest fear is lack of execution, he said. The service is handling more than 130 million tweets per day, &quot;so growth is not an issue' we just need to execute.&quot; As for the biggest mistake, the founders would all agree that would be not initially hiring employees fast enough or scaling quickly enough, he said. A 350-person company doesn't have the resources of a larger company, he said.  Asked to comment on rumors that Google would consider buying the company for $10 billion, Costolo said &quot;people write that stuff down all the time,&quot; but it is &quot;just rumor.&quot;  Meanwhile, the company will have news later this year about enabling more geographic specificity in its Trends product, he said.  Asked what the company can do to help people using Arabic and other languages in areas where there has been recent unrest like Tunisia and Egypt, Costolo said: &quot;We don't support right-to-left languages yet and we need to do that... (We're) trying to get short codes up and running for Twitter via SMS&quot; for countries in the Middle East and North Africa. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Report: Next iPhone to feature larger screen]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-next-iphone-to-feature-larger-screen</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-next-iphone-to-feature-larger-screen</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 14 Feb 2011 08:10:23 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Musarousbuh</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-next-iphone-to-feature-larger-screen</guid>
<description><![CDATA[On the heels of word that a smaller version of theiPhone is in the works, another report has emerged that has the fifth-generation smartphone will actually feature an expanded screen to take on Android devices' larger screens. The new iPhone, which is expected to be released this summer, will feature a 4-inch screen and is already in testing, according to a Digitimes report that cited unnamed component suppliers.The report of a larger screen is just one among many regarding the next iPhone that have materialized in the past couple of days.Bloomberg reported Friday that Apple was working on a new line of iPhones, one of which would be &quot;cheaper and smaller than the most recent iPhone.&quot; That report, which cited a source who had seen a prototype, also pegged Google's mobile operating system as the intended target for the new device.The Wall Street Journal published a similar report Sunday, adding that Apple was considering using its MobileMe as a digital locker where iTunes users can store electronic books, songs, and movies. If, as rumored, Apple were to cut the iPhone's memory to reduce its size, it stands to reason the company would augment that lost storage with online locker where users could keep media, calendars, address books, and e-mail on Apple's servers.Meanwhile, a Taiwanese blog, Apple.pro, says it has its hands on information pointing to three different models being considered for final production as the iPhone 5. One has a physical keyboard that slides out, and another is said to be like an iPhone 4 in styling but with a longer-lasting battery and a better camera. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Some eHarmony user information stolen]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=some-eharmony-user-information-stolen</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=some-eharmony-user-information-stolen</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 10 Feb 2011 08:10:48 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>xxyg12as</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=some-eharmony-user-information-stolen</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Online dating site eHarmony is advising some of its customers to change their passwords after being informed of a security breach.A hacker employed an SQL injection vulnerability in an ancillary site eHarmony operates for content management to obtain a file that included user names, e-mail addresses, and hashed passwords, eHarmony said. The breach--first reported today on the Krebs on Security blog--affected an informational site called eHarmony Advice, which includes message boards that require eHarmony user names and passwords to access. The dating service's main site uses separate databases and Web servers, and &quot;at no point during this attack did the hacker successfully get inside our eHarmony network,&quot; the company said in a blog post. eHarmony said it had repaired the vulnerability and was notifying customers who may have been affected. Although the site did not reveal how many customers were affected, it did say it was less than 0.05 percent of its user base. eHarmony says it has had 33 million users since its inception.Krebs said an Argentinian hacker told him late last year that he'd discovered a vulnerability in the online dating site that allowed him to view customer passwords. Krebs said that a week later, he discovered a listing for eHarmony user names and passwords on Carder.biz, an online marketplace for hacked data and accounts, botnet hosting, and stolen credit card and consumer data. The eHarmony data was being offered for sale by a user identified as &quot;Provider&quot; at prices ranging from $3,000 to $5,000, Krebs said.The hacker also reportedly approached eHarmony with an offer to sell his security services to the site to fix the flaw--an offer the dating site said it declined. SQL injection attacks occur when a small, malicious script is inserted into a database that feeds information to the Web site.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Hummer owner claims $7,500 EV tax credit]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=hummer-owner-claims-7500-ev-tax-credit</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=hummer-owner-claims-7500-ev-tax-credit</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 04 Feb 2011 08:10:37 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>ramirolesi</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=hummer-owner-claims-7500-ev-tax-credit</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The Chevy Volt qualifies for a tax credit due to its electric drivetrain and battery capacity.(Credit:GM)Tax cheats found lucrative ground last year with the $7,500 federal tax credit for electric vehicles. The IRS says that of the approximately 65,000 people that claimed the credit, 20 percent were in error. The EV tax credit was claimed for such vehicles as the Hummer H3, Dodge Durango, and Cadillac Escalade. According to the IRS, the credit only applies to vehicles primarily powered by an electric motor, and that can be plugged in to recharge the batteries. Further, the batteries must have a capacity of at least 5 kilowatt-hours. A vehicle that meets this minimum requirement would render a $2,500 credit. For every kilowatt-hour of capacity over 5, an additional $417 credit is earned, up to a maximum of $7,500.Amongst the erroneous filers, the IRS pointed out that 29 were actually in prison for the entire year. Even some IRS employees who did not have electriccars claimed the credit.Cars currently on sale that would qualify for the credit are the Tesla Roadster, the Nissan Leaf, and the Chevy Volt.(Source: Associated Press)<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Conn., Google reach agreement over Wi-Fi data]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=conn--google-reach-agreement-over-wi-fi-data</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=conn--google-reach-agreement-over-wi-fi-data</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 28 Jan 2011 08:10:39 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>hilfemedizin</dc:creator>
<category>Politics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=conn--google-reach-agreement-over-wi-fi-data</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Google and the state of Connecticut have reached an agreement that won't force a courtroom showdown over Google's Wi-Fi spying scandal.Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen(Credit:State of Connecticut,Office of the Attorney General) Last year former Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal (now representing the state in the U.S. Senate) started an investigation of Google over its admission that its Street View cars had collected so-called &quot;payload data,&quot; including e-mails and passwords, during the years it mapped the country's streets. In December Blumenthal issued a civil investigative demand that would have compelled Google to turn that data over to Connecticut, but Google protested the order and the two parties reached a settlement over that dispute, the attorney general's office announced today. &quot;The stipulation will allow Google and the state of Connecticut, and the 40-state coalition it is leading, to begin negotiations to resolve the data collection issue without going to court to enforce the Civil Investigative Demand, equivalent to a subpoena, issued in December on behalf of the state,&quot; current Attorney General George Jepsen said in a statement (PDF) released by his office. As part of the settlement, Google confirmed that it had collected private information during its Street View project, although that's something it admitted long ago. The settlement means that Google and the attorneys general led by Connecticut will likely hammer out another agreement regarding the data, which Google has resisted turning over to government authorities in the U.S. The company has repeatedly apologized for the Street View program but that hasn't deterred countries around the world from attempting to punish Google as well as a class-action lawsuit pending in California.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Remote-controlled capsule examines stomach]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=remote-controlled-capsule-examines-stomach</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=remote-controlled-capsule-examines-stomach</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 18 Jan 2011 08:10:54 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Fevaacelliole</dc:creator>
<category>Social</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=remote-controlled-capsule-examines-stomach</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Researchers in Germany are reporting two thumbs up for their first clinical trial testing a remote-controlled capsule endoscope in the stomachs of healthy volunteers.To screen for gastric cancer, physicians often use conventional endoscopy (replete with tubing) to analyze changes in the lining of stomachs, but the uncomfortable procedure, which carries the risk of punctured organs and infection, can result in some patients opting not to have the exam done.The ingestible capsule is 11x31 mm.(Credit:GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy)Ingestible capsule endoscopies, with pill-sized video capsules, can record and transmit images in real time without a single incision point. The main issue is that the capsule isn't always pointed in the best direction for imaging, so the new work out of Germany uses magnetic maneuvering as a means of controlling the capsule and improving image results.&quot;An external handheld magnet was developed, allowing targeted investigation of all regions of the stomach,&quot; says lead author Jutta Keller of the University of Hamburg. &quot;We found that the magnetic maneuvering of the capsule was safe and very well-tolerated, with excellent responsiveness of the capsule to movements of the outer magnet so that detailed visualization of the gastric mucosa could be achieved.&quot;The magnetic maneuverable capsule includes magnetic disks inserted inside one of the capsule's domes and a single camera that operates at four frames per second. (An external magnet &quot;paddle&quot; includes one strong magnet.) The camera is activated by a radiofrequency switch and transmits images via sensors on the patient's skin to a data recorder with a real-time viewer. Images are then compiled into video after the examination.Wireless, ingestible capsules are poised to revolutionize endoscopy. A wireless colon capsule has also been developed for screening purposes, although it has yet to gain FDA approval. And while the German clinical trial is small, the remote-controlled capsule looks promising, with 9 of the 10 healthy participants reporting no complaints and one only mild pressure.The study appears in the January issue of GIE: Gastrointestinal Endoscopy.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Android outshines Apple iOS on mobile ad network]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=android-outshines-apple-ios-on-mobile-ad-network</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=android-outshines-apple-ios-on-mobile-ad-network</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 13 Jan 2011 08:10:41 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Puja</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=android-outshines-apple-ios-on-mobile-ad-network</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Android has surged ahead of Apple for the first time as the most popular smartphone OS, according to Millennial Media's mobile ad network.In Millennial Media's December report, Google's mobile operating system won 46 percent of all ad impressions (the number of times an ad is displayed), compared with 32 percent for Apple's iOS. In November, the two operating systems were neck and neck at 38 percent each.Rounding up the rest of the competition, Research In Motion's BlackBerry OS grabbed 16 percent of ad impressions in December, Nokia's Symbian nabbed 2 percent, and Microsoft's Windows Mobile snagged 1 percent.(Credit:Millennial Media)Looking separately at mobile device makers, Apple accounted for 3 of the top 30 devices, with itsiPhone,iPod Touch, andiPad. The iPhone, not surprisingly, ranked No. 1 among the 30 devices. Collectively, Apple's three devices accounted for 21 percent of all ad impressions on mobile devices on the network.  Samsung as a whole ranked in second place behind Apple for the largest number of ad impressions thanks to its solid lineup of Android phones. And the company's Window-based Samsung Code managed to squeeze in enough ad impressions to make it the only Windows Mobile device to make it into Millennial Media's top 30. Overall, Samsung was credited with 17 percent of all ad impressions and 7 of the top 30 devices.  In third place was HTC with 15 percent share of all ad impressions and 9 devices--the highest number of any manufacturer. RIM took fourth place with 12 percent and 5 devices. Of note, RIM's BlackBerry Curve was No. 2--behind the iPhone. Overall, smartphones continued to rise in popularity compared with feature phones, accounting for 23 of the top 30 devices last month and winning a combined 48 percent share of all ad impressions.  Looking ahead, Millennial Media's sees not only Android but also RIM and Windows Phone 7 applying pressure on Apple's iOS this year. But one question the blog doesn't address is how the upcoming Verizon iPhone might upset the mobile apple cart and impact the fight between Android and Apple for ad impressions and market share. According to Millennial Media, its ad network reaches 85 percent of U.S. mobile Web users. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Get a grip: Robotic hand inspired by cockroach legs]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=get-a-grip-robotic-hand-inspired-by-cockroach-legs</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=get-a-grip-robotic-hand-inspired-by-cockroach-legs</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 10 Jan 2011 08:10:35 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>nycity2010</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=get-a-grip-robotic-hand-inspired-by-cockroach-legs</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The latest version of Dollar's robotic hand has four fingers and an opposable thumb.(Credit:William Sacco/Yale University)The robotic hand is getting a makeover, and it is inspired not by computing power but rather by the flexible and springy legs of tiny-brained cockroaches.It turns out that robotic hands, which can inform the development of prosthetic ones, are rarely able to perform simple tasks that require dexterity, such as picking up a delicate object without first knocking it over.Key to being able to grasp an object is the ability to quickly assess the relationship between that which is doing the grasping (i.e. a hand) and that which is being grasped (i.e. the Motorola Xoom).Many mammals, humans among them, compensate for any errors in navigating this relationship by softening their fingers to make the grasp more flexible. Many artificial hands have been designed with this flexibility in mind, but the computing power required to control all the sensors and motors was so high that the hands were, by extension, quite slow.&quot;We took the opposite approach and tried to understand the fundamental mechanics using good mechanical design practices,&quot; says Aaron Dollar, an assistant professor of engineering at Yale, in an Inside Science News Service report. The goal was simply to engineer a hand that was able to adapt quickly to grasp a variety of shapes.Dollar and colleague Robert D. Howe, who heads Harvard's BioRobotics Laboratory, point to research done at the University of California at Berkeley, dating back to the '80s, on how cockroaches navigate uneven surfaces. Their tiny brains made high-level computing unlikely, and researcher Robert Full discovered that the mechanics of the legs themselves, being flexible and springy, enabled fast adjustment to uneven surfaces automatically.Over time, Full built an eight-legged robot that, for the first time, could run over uneven surfaces quickly. (See his TED talk on the process here.) This prompted Howe and Dollar to consider the applications for grasping, not just running, because both require object-to-object navigation.The result: a four-fingered hand (think of a cross between humans and Bart Simpson) with sensors whose joints are more flexible at the base than at the fingers. The simple hand, made using polymer-based Shape Deposition Manufacturing, has been proven to grasp a wide range of objects. (Results were published in December 2010 in the International Journal of Robotics Research.) At less than 1.5 ounces per finger, the design has inspired Dollar to use this approach in prosthetic hands, which are often heavy.At this point, the hand cannot grasp objects as small as, say, cutlery or keys. To do so would involve more motors and weight. In the meantime, Dollar is already working on a version that includes an opposable thumb.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[CES: Panasonic's 3D Blu-ray line gets 2D-to-3D conversion, Skype]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-panasonics-3d-blu-ray-line-gets-2d-to-3d-conversion-skype</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-panasonics-3d-blu-ray-line-gets-2d-to-3d-conversion-skype</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 06 Jan 2011 08:10:18 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Riya01</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-panasonics-3d-blu-ray-line-gets-2d-to-3d-conversion-skype</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Panasonic DMP-BDT210(Credit:Panasonic)LAS VEGAS--Panasonic is refreshing its line of 3D Blu-ray players in 2011, offering updates such 2D-to-3D conversion and more streaming services to its VieraCast online content portal. Details were scarce on all the new models, but here's the preliminary breakdown:Key features of the Panasonic DMP-BDT110:Wi-Fi-ready (requires USB wireless LAN adapter sold separately)2D-to-3D conversion video processingSkype compatible (requires purchase of additional camera)DLNA compatibleVieraCast suite of streaming media services (Netflix, Amazon VOD, YouTube, Pandora, Twitter, Napster, CinemaNow)Can be controlled byiPhone appAvailable Spring 2011Key step-up features of the Panasonic DMP-BDT210:Built-in Wi-FiTouch-free sensor to open and close the disc trayKey step-up features of the Panasonic DMP-BDT310:Dual HDMI outputsUnfortunately a lot of the specifics are still unknown. As of now, it's unclear whether Panasonic's Blu-ray players will get access to the new Viera Connect app store announced its the company's press conference. The press release also mentions that the players will have &quot;and access to popular sports sites NHL, NBA, MLB and MLS2&quot;, but doesn't specifically say if they'll feature those leagues streaming video services.Similarly, although the touch-free sensor looked slick during Panasonic's press conference, there weren't any working demos on the show floor to try out the feature. We'll be looking for more information on these players as spring approach so we have a better idea of what Panasonic's line is offering.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[CES: Sony's Blu-ray HTIBs get as cheap as $400]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-sonys-blu-ray-htibs-get-as-cheap-as-400</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-sonys-blu-ray-htibs-get-as-cheap-as-400</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 05 Jan 2011 08:10:11 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>limpnoli5</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-sonys-blu-ray-htibs-get-as-cheap-as-400</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Sony BDV-E280(Credit:Sony)LAS VEGAS--Along with its flagship BDV-E780W, Sony also announced two additional Blu-ray home-theater-in-a-box (HTIB) systems. Here's a quick rundown of the key features of the two systems.Key features of the Sony BDV-E280:5.1 home theater system1,000 total watts3D Blu-ray compatibleTwo HDMI inputsBravia Internet Video streaming media suite (Netflix, Amazon VOD, Hulu Plus, Pandora, YouTube, Slacker, Qriosity)SACD playbackWi-Fi ready (requires USB adapter, sold separately)iPhone/iPod dock includedQuick start mode$400 list price' available in AprilKey step-up features of the Sony BDV-E580:Built-in Wi-FiTwo HDMI inputsDLNA compliantUSB port for media playbackControllable viaiPhone/Android app$500 list price' available in MarchOther manufacturers haven't offered pricing yet, so it's hard to compare. Although the BDV-E280 appears to be relatively inexpensive at first glance, it's worth pointing out that last year's LG LHB535 offered built-in Wi-Fi and two HDMI inputs for under $400.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Microsoft warns of Windows flaw affecting image rendering]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-warns-of-windows-flaw-affecting-image-rendering</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-warns-of-windows-flaw-affecting-image-rendering</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Jan 2011 08:10:33 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Suzana</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-warns-of-windows-flaw-affecting-image-rendering</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:Microsoft)Microsoft warned today of a Windows vulnerability that could allow an attacker to take control of a computer if the user is logged on with administrative rights. To be successful, an attacker would have to send an e-mail with an attached Microsoft Word or PowerPoint file containing a specially crafted thumbnail image and convince the recipient to open it, Microsoft said in its advisory, which also contains information on workarounds.  An attacker also could place the malicious image file on a network share and potential victims would have to browse to the location in Windows Explorer.  The flaw, which is in the Windows Graphics Rendering Engine, could allow an attacker to run arbitrary code in the security context of the logged-on user, meaning that accounts that are configured to have fewer user rights would be affected less. The vulnerability affects Windows XP Service Pack 3, XP Professional x64 Edition Service Pack 2, Server 2003 Service Pack 2, Server 2003 x64 Edition Service Pack 2, Server 2003 with SP2 for Itanium-based systems, Vista Service Pack 1 and Service Pack 2, Vista x64 Edition Service Pack 1 and Service Pack 2, Server 2008 for 32-bit, 64-bit, and Itanium-based systems and Service Pack 2 for each.  Microsoft said it is not aware of attacks exploiting the vulnerability or of any impact on customers at this time. The company is working on a fix but did not indicate when it would be available. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[CES: Envy 17 from HP adds new cooling controls, updated Intel CPUs]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-envy-17-from-hp-adds-new-cooling-controls-updated-intel-cpus</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-envy-17-from-hp-adds-new-cooling-controls-updated-intel-cpus</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 03 Jan 2011 08:10:30 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>acaiberriesfx</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-envy-17-from-hp-adds-new-cooling-controls-updated-intel-cpus</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:HP)HP's CoolSense technology is quickly becoming standard across HP's laptop lines, and today it gets added to the massive 17-inchHP Envy 17 (and it also turns up in the new 11-inch Pavilion dm1). CoolSense is a control panel for setting fan performance, from maximum cooling to quietest operation. HP says its inclusion in the Envy 17 makes it &quot;the first high-performance HP PC with advanced cooling technology.&quot;The Envy 17 is also moving to Intel's second generation on Core i-series processors, but continuing to couple them with AMD graphics, namely the AMD Mobility Radeon HD 6850M. There's a certain level of automatic graphics switching built into the Envy 17, but it's not as transparent and adaptable as Nvidia's Optimus system (nor, according to our sources, is it likely to be anytime soon). That said, a 17-inch laptop is likely to spend most of its time plugged in, so turning the GPU off and on automatically to save battery life isn't a top priority. HP Envy 17 (photos) We like the current version of the Envy 17 a lot, especially as it's reasonably priced for an upscale desktop replacement, and includes Beats Audio technology. Current versions are already available with active shutter 3D capabilities, and HP says, &quot;Future models of the HP Envy 17 3D are expected to include DDD's TriDef 3D Experience Ignition Game Player, allowing users to experience immersive 3D stereoscopic gaming at no additional cost.&quot; We've used TriDef 3D software in other 3D laptops with polarized screens and glasses' to be charitable, it's not a very satisfying experience. The current 3D version of the Envy 17 works just fine, even though it doesn't use the industry standard Nvidia 3D Vision platform. It's worth noting that HP also positions the 3D Envy 17 as a system for 3D movie viewing, not gaming. The updated HP Envy 17 doesn't have a street date or price yet, but the previous model started at $1,599. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Financial Times taps Jobs as Person of the Year]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=financial-times-taps-jobs-as-person-of-the-year</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=financial-times-taps-jobs-as-person-of-the-year</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Dec 2010 08:10:02 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Geumdius</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=financial-times-taps-jobs-as-person-of-the-year</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Nevermind Mark What's-His-Name, The Financial Times, Britain's equivalent of The Wall Street Journal, has handed its Person of the Year crown to Steve Jobs, the Apple CEO and onetime tech wunderkind turned comeback player of the quarter century.(Credit:Asa Mathat | All Things Digital)Saying this year's unveiling of theiPad &quot;capped the most remarkable comeback in modern business history,&quot; the FT noted Apple's Jobs-led bounce-back from its near demise in the '90s, as well as the visionary leader's perseverance through his recent struggles with cancer. In terms of Silicon Valley lore, the publication said, Jobs now shares the stage with no one.&quot;Long-time nemesis Bill Gates may be richer and, at his peak, arguably exerted greater sway, thanks to his monopoly over the world's PC software,&quot; the FT said in a profile of Jobs earlier this week. &quot;But the Microsoft co-founder has left the stage to devote his life and fortune to good works. It is Mr. Jobs who now holds the spotlight.&quot;Despite a slip or two, Jobs has, indeed, enjoyed a fine year. Upon its release, the iPad leaped into consumers' hands--and the culture's consciousness--smashing, by some accounts, all previous records of consumer-electronics adoption and threatening to make the PC a thing of the past.And speaking of Mr. Gates, Apple passed Microsoft in overall market capitalization this summer, no doubt a sweet feeling, considering the Redmond giant's perceived rip-off, lo all those years ago, of theMac OS in its Windows operating system (remember those bumper stickers that read &quot;Windows '95 = Mac '84&quot;).The icing on the iCake for 2010 was the realization of a personal dream for Jobs, the featuring of The Beatles on iTunes. True, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg nabbed the Person of the Year nod from Time, but that magazine is old news for Jobs, who has graced its cover no less than seven times.Still, the year was not without its sore spots, the most remarkable being the bizarre loss of an iPhone prototype and its subsequent appearance on a gadget blog, and Jobs and Company's uncharacteristically ham-fisted handling of public relations during theiPhone 4 antenna-gate kerfuffle. Jobs' eventual public handling of the iPhone prototype mess was much more like him: Officially introducing the by-then anything-but-secret device later in the year, he cracked up the audience by quipping, &quot;Stop me if you've already seen this,&quot; a classic example of the charisma that's helped make Jobs a legend. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[SUNY to get Microsoft's Live@edu program]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=suny-to-get-microsofts-liveedu-program</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=suny-to-get-microsofts-liveedu-program</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 21 Dec 2010 08:10:11 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>healthcentral</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=suny-to-get-microsofts-liveedu-program</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft is now providing e-mail, calendaring, and instant-messaging programs for students of the State University of New York.SUNY's 64 campuses are part of a university-wide Live@edu agreement that covers more than 465,000 students with Microsoft's online productivity suite. Besides the aforementioned tools, this includes things like online storage, video conferencing, and access to Microsoft's Office Web Apps--all of which are offered up free of charge.In a post yesterday announcing the rollout, Microsoft U.S. Education CTO Cameron Evans said that the deal is saving Monroe Community College--one of the SUNY schools involved with the program--$600,000 over five-years. That money, Evans said, would be spent on making the campus &quot;greener.&quot; SUNY's implementation of Live@edu is one of the largest yet, though overshadowed by the London Grid for Learning's deployment in 2009, which offered the free suite of online tools to more than 1 million students. A close second is the Kentucky Department of Education, which earlier this year moved 700,000 users to Live@edu. Interestingly enough, that move took Kentucky off the on-premises Microsoft Exchange Servers and into Microsoft's cloud instead.Prior to the agreement, Microsoft says some 70,000 SUNY students were using Live@edu. The other 395,000 or so will presumably be moved over in the first few months of 2011. Update at 4:45 p.m. PDT: A SUNY student has e-mailed CNET and pointed out that some campuses made the switch to Google's Apps for education platform as recently as last year. According to Microsoft's response (below), it may stay that way for some:&quot;The agreement announced today makes Live@edu available as an option for all of SUNY's 64 campuses, effective immediately. Some campuses are already using Live@edu today, and for those who are using other offerings and choose to switch, it's up to the campus on how/when they want to roll out Live@edu to their students and faculty.&quot;A Google representative confirmed that indeed 13 SUNY schools currently run Google Apps for education, with a total of 23 schools on or considering using Google's apps platform, though would not say whether those schools plan to drop the program in favor of Microsoft's system. What was said to be a more common occurrence was that schools offered up multiple platforms, letting students choose which one they wanted.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Awareness app: Upgrade your mental software]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=awareness-app-upgrade-your-mental-software</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=awareness-app-upgrade-your-mental-software</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Dec 2010 08:10:21 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>lilangelab</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=awareness-app-upgrade-your-mental-software</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Not to be confused with the Awareness! app (note exclamation point) that filters outside noises into your headphones, the new Awareness app (note lack of exclamation point) asks a simple question--What are you feeling right now--at random intervals.The prompt is made via a &quot;gentle reminder sound&quot; that will &quot;intercept&quot; (as opposed to &quot;interrupt&quot;) the user's routine, unless of course there is a scheduled iCal meeting (perhaps they should consider enabling users to block out times for such activities as sleep and sex, but for now the simplest workaround is to simply schedule said activities on iCal, or maybe even turn one's phone off).Users can choose from 115 possible answers that are grouped into eight mood categories and one sensation category (&quot;body feelings,&quot; such as tired, sore, etc.). Once the user answers the feeling question, &quot;brief video clips guide you back to the present moment,&quot; and &quot;400 inspirational quotes tied to what you are feeling&quot; are displayed, presumably not all at once.Daily, weekly, monthly, and annual reports help assess which activities lead to which feelings, arming the user with the data necessary to &quot;distract yourself from unpleasant feelings.&quot;Best of all, there are no ads, and the app works regardless of network connection. So yes, even when you are out at the cabin trying to get away from it all, you can still be, well, intercepted.It's easy to poke a little fun at the app and its corresponding Web site, which arrive on the app scene on the heels of similar happiness apps and was developed by Ronit Herzfield, a psychotherapist in New York who calls herself &quot;ambassador of the heart.&quot;Ronit Herzfield(Credit:ronitherzfeld.com)But it's getting rave reviews. Among them, Arianna Huffington says: &quot;This is wonderful...I have been asking people to begin thinking about how to use technology in order to help us to disconnect from technology and connect with ourselves.&quot;Presumably she sees the irony. But while initial reports on one's actual moods might be as alarming as initial reports when one first starts tracking one's budget, Awareness has great potential to bring attention to how people handle various situations.The app is compatible with theiPhone,iPod Touch, andiPad, and requires iOS 4.1 or later. It's available via iTunes for $3.99, and is rated 12+ for &quot;Infrequent/Mild Alcohol, Tobacco, or Drug Use or References.&quot; <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Apple to tap Intel's graphics for future MacBooks]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-to-tap-intels-graphics-for-future-macbooks</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-to-tap-intels-graphics-for-future-macbooks</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Dec 2010 08:10:56 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>MagavebyseasK</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-to-tap-intels-graphics-for-future-macbooks</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Apple has decided to use Intel's upcoming Sandy Bridge processors in its MacBook line, a transition that will occur in 2011, squeezing out Nvidia's graphics processors in at least some models of the popular laptops, sources have told CNET.Future lower-end MacBooks are expected to use Intel&amp;39's graphics chip tech.(Credit:Apple)Intel's newest processor, to be formally announced January 5 at the Consumer Electronics Show, will find its way into new MacBooks that will supersede current models, according to industry sources familiar with Apple's plans. Current MacBooks use Nvidia graphics chips along with Intel Core i series and Core 2 Duo processors. But due to the enhanced graphics capabilities of Sandy Bridge, Apple--at least for now--has determined that it will not continue using Nvidia's graphics processing units (GPUs) in some models. MacBook models with screen sizes of 13 inches and below are expected to switch to Sandy Bridge-only graphics, while higher-end MacBook Pros are expected to use graphics from Advanced Micro Devices, according to sources. Whether Nvidia will still be present in higher-end models is unclear. Sandy Bridge is a watershed processor for Intel because, for the first time in a mainstream product, the graphics chip is grafted directly onto the main processor, boosting performance, while essentially providing the graphics function for free. And the step up in performance may be enough for Apple to rely on Intel's graphics in some lower-end MacBooks. &quot;Historically, if you look at those low-end devices, the 13-inch class products, there's not a lot of room for a discrete GPU. So, going forward, if [Apple was] going to use Sandy Bridge in a low-end product, I think they would have to rely exclusively on the Sandy Bridge integrated graphics,&quot; according to Nathan Brookwood, the principal analyst at Insight64. &quot;I'd say...we can expect (about) 2x the performance of [that latest] graphics,&quot; said Anand Shimpi, CEO of tech Web site Anandtech, which has done a preview of Sandy Bridge's graphics performance. &quot;At that level of performance, I don't see a need for discrete [standalone Nvidia or Advanced Micro Devices] graphics at the very low end,&quot; he said. Apple already uses Intel graphics to some degree in MacBooks, which can switch between the Nvidia processor and more power-efficient integrated Intel graphics silicon. And the original MacBook Air used Intel graphics exclusively. But generally Apple has eschewed Intel's graphics technology in the past due to its inferior performance vis-a-vis Nvidia and AMD. Adoption of Sandy Bridge in popular small MacBook designs would constitute one of the strongest endorsements of Intel technology since Apple made the seminal transition from IBM-Motorola PowerPC chips to Intel back in 2005. And a recognition that Intel's graphics technology, while maybe not the best, now offers the best price-performance for lower-end MacBooks. Other considerations for AppleOne of the key underlying questions revolves around OpenCL, a software framework that can exploit a GPU's inherent ability to run certain applications much faster than a standard central processing unit, or CPU. OpenCL has been touted as enabling &quot;developers to tap the vast gigaflops of computing power&quot; in graphics processors, according to Apple's Web page highlighting features of the OS X &quot;SnowLeopard&quot; operating system. OpenCL, for example, can be used in Apple' iLife titles, such as iPhoto for scene parsing and face recognition. And OpenCL has been somewhat of a trump card for graphics chip supplier Nvidia, which already has support for the technology in its chips. Though Intel plans to support Open CL natively in its processors and has released Alpha drivers and a software development kit for Open CL, that support, as stated publicly, is CPU-centric and still at a nascent stage of development. However, Intel is also working on OpenCL for the graphics part of Sandy Bridge, according to sources. Intel declined to comment directly on Apple's plans, but regarding OpenCL it would only tell CNET: &quot;In terms of full product support, we continue to evaluate when and where OpenCL will intercept our various products.&quot; Another factor impacting future processor decisions by Apple is the legal wrangling between Intel and Nvidia. In February 2009, Intel filed suit against Nvidia in an attempt to enjoin Nvidia from stating it has license rights to future Intel data bus (data channel) technology. If Intel prevails, Nvidia would be unable to sell its chipsets for use with Intel processors beyond the Core 2 Duo generation of technology. In effect, precluding Nvidia from making chipsets for current Core i series processors and upcoming Sandy Bridge chips. This, in fact, is one of the reasons that Apple is using old Core 2 Duo Intel processors in its new MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pros. Nvidia's rights to the Core 2 Duo bus allows Apple to use high-performance Nvidia graphics chipsets in thin MacBook designs. Apple could sidestep these legal minefields--and the expected complaints from some consumers about the use of old chip technology--in the future by using Sandy Bridge graphics in 13-inch and smaller MacBooks, while continuing with its strategy of using discrete GPUs from Nvidia or AMD in the higher-end MacBook Pros.Maybe just as importantly, Apple's intentions and needs can change quickly. With Apple ranked as the No. 3 maker of personal computers in the U.S--and growing--this could simply be hinting at intense negotiations. As of now, Nvidia appears to have the most to lose and Intel the most to gain. Though Nvidia doesn't provide a breakdown of the percentage of business it does with Apple, it states in its Form 10-K that its &quot;GPU business is focused on Microsoft Windows and Apple PC platforms.&quot; AMD is still a wild card on the CPU side, though its graphics processors are offered on Mac Pros. But Brookwood believes low-end MacBooks are also future candidates--possibly further down the road--for AMD's &quot;Fusion&quot; technology, which combines AMD's Intel-compatible processors with its high-performance ATI graphics chips. &quot;Those lower-end MacBooks are sitting ducks for AMD Fusion processors,&quot; he said. Both Apple and Nvidia declined to comment for this story. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Salesforce-Oracle rivalry heats up with Database.com]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=salesforce-oracle-rivalry-heats-up-with-database-com</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=salesforce-oracle-rivalry-heats-up-with-database-com</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Dec 2010 08:10:41 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>agriceememsah</dc:creator>
<category>Business &amp; Finance</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=salesforce-oracle-rivalry-heats-up-with-database-com</guid>
<description><![CDATA[At the Oracle OpenWorld conference back in September, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison and Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff exchanged on-stage jabs as Ellison played up his company's push into Salesforce's territory: the cloud. Later today, as Benioff takes the stage to kick off his company's Dreamforce conference in San Francisco, he'll announce his company's push into Oracle's territory: databases. Today, Salesforce is launching Database.com, pitching it as &quot;the world's first enterprise database built for the cloud.&quot; In a statement, Benioff said: We see cloud databases as a massive market opportunity that will power the shift to real-time enterprise applications that are natively cloud, mobile and social. For the first time, we are making Database.com, the database that is proven and trusted by our 87,000 customers, available as an open, stand-alone service to accelerate the creation of these new apps.Read more of &quot;Dreamforce: Salesforce-Oracle rivalry heats up with launch of Database.com&quot; at ZDNet's Between the Lines. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Internet Explorer 9 to get tracking protection]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=internet-explorer-9-to-get-tracking-protection</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=internet-explorer-9-to-get-tracking-protection</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Dec 2010 08:10:19 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>gaylordsty</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=internet-explorer-9-to-get-tracking-protection</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft this morning detailed changes to Internet Explorer 9's security features that will better enable users to keep sites from tracking their activity across browsing sessions. The feature, which is set to arrive in the first release candidate of IE9 early next year, uses a list to tell the browser which third-party page elements sites can and cannot be blocked from tracking. This includes elements ranging from advertisements to more mundane things like embedded widgets from particular providers.On Microsoft's IE blog, Dean Hachamovitch, head of Internet Explorer development, explained how it works:A Tracking Protection List (TPL) contains Web addresses (like msdn.com) that the browser will visit (or &quot;call&quot;) only if the consumer visits them directly by clicking on a link or typing their address. By limiting the calls to these Web sites and resources from other Web pages, the TPL limits the information these other sites can collect.You can look at this as a translation of the &quot;Do Not Call&quot; list from the telephone to the browser and web. It complements many of the other approaches being discussed for browser controls of Do Not Track.In a Webcast announcing the feature, Hachamovitch said most users have &quot;little awareness of who can track their activity,&quot; and that the feature stemmed from that. Hachamovitch also attributed the creation of the feature to the company's more open approach to developing features for IE9. Microsoft&amp;39's tracking protection tool gives users control over which site elements can track your activity during a browsing session. Green ones in this shot can, while the red cannot.(Credit:Screenshot by Josh Lowensohn/CNET)Microsoft is letting users and third-parties alike author protection lists and host them on their sites. Users can then download them to their browser. Microsoft has also created lists to resemble what Hachamovitch likened to an RSS feed, so that if additional sites are added or removed, it can be updated without the user having to seek out, or manually update. Hachamovitch said tracking protection will not replace InPrivate filtering, a feature Microsoft added to IE in version 8. Instead, Hachamovitch referred to it as complementary, given that InPrivate filtering uses algorithms to control tracking, along with not persisting from session to session. Tracking protection, on the other hand, will remain on once a user turns it on.Microsoft says tracking protection will not be on by default when it arrives next year. Users will need to opt-in to enable it, as well as seek out lists of sites, which will not ship with the browser once it's released.So far, Microsoft's IE9 beta has been downloaded in excess of 15 million times since its release back in September. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Report: Groupon rejects Google's offers]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-groupon-rejects-googles-offers</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-groupon-rejects-googles-offers</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 03 Dec 2010 08:10:02 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>analryexpandy</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=report-groupon-rejects-googles-offers</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Google's pursuit of red-hot social buying start-up Groupon may have come to an end. Citing two sources familiar with the talks, the Chicago Tribune is reporting that Groupon, a fellow resident of Chicago, has decided to go it alone, passing up an offer to be acquired by Google for between $5 billion and $6 billion. The report suggested Groupon hasn't made a final decision about whether it wants to pursue an initial public offering but might go down that road next year. Talks had been reportedly hot and heavy between Groupon and Google, always looking to boost its presence in local advertising markets and acquire sources of data about consumer buying intent. Groupon offers a &quot;deal of the day&quot; to users, usually a significant discount on a sought-after product or service in their city or town. Google would love to add that kind of service geared around specifically targeted local markets, which is seen as a big source of future Internet advertising growth. It's not clear if Google was unwilling to go high enough for Groupon's tastes (although $6 billion would have been Google's largest purchase by a significant margin) or if Groupon simply believed it could chart its own path, following start-ups such as Twitter that have drawn Google's interest but generated momentum on their own: All Things D reported earlier on Friday that Groupon was doing as much as $2 billion a year in revenue. A Google representative declined to comment on what the company termed &quot;rumor and speculation,&quot; while representatives Groupon did not immediately respond to a request seeking comment.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Billboard tracks artists' social-media popularity]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=billboard-tracks-artists-social-media-popularity</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=billboard-tracks-artists-social-media-popularity</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 Dec 2010 08:10:04 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>ufowebblog</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=billboard-tracks-artists-social-media-popularity</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The first Social 50 music chart from Billboard(Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)Billboard has unveiled a new chart, the Social 50, that ranks artist popularity on social media. To calculate the 50 most popular artists each week, Billboard uses the number of weekly additions or subtractions in followers, as well as page views and song plays on artist pages on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, iLike, and YouTube. Billboard Chart director Silvio Pietroluongo said in a statement today that the goal of the Social 50 is to provide users with information about &quot;the artists that music fans engage with the most in the social arena, which in today's world is a significant validation of their investment in an act.&quot; Rihanna tops the inaugural Social 50 chart, with Justin Bieber, Eminem, Lady Gaga, and Nicki Minaj rounding out the top five.Billboard has been in operation for 116 years. And over much of that span, the company has been the go-to place for determining the top songs, artists, and acts in the country. But in recent years its influence has arguably waned, as Apple's iTunes store has become the top place in the U.S. to buy music. Users shopping on iTunes can simply look at the store's best-selling titles to see what's hot at any given time.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Visa, Mastercard fail Web shoppers again]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=visa-mastercard-fail-web-shoppers-again</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=visa-mastercard-fail-web-shoppers-again</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Nov 2010 08:10:38 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>mariacosmm</dc:creator>
<category>Business &amp; Finance</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=visa-mastercard-fail-web-shoppers-again</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Beware: The New York Times reported that the man who operates DecorMyEyes.com racked up scores of complaints but that Visa and Mastercard did little to stop him.(Credit:Screen shot by Greg Sandoval/CNET)commentary Internet shoppers once again have reason to question whether Visa and Mastercard are the best means for buying online. People have taken to Twitter and online forums to express shock about a compelling expose published in The New York Times on Friday. The story focused on an online retailer with a dubious history of customer service that included responding to complaints from unhappy patrons by allegedly threatening their lives. The newspaper reported that Vitaly Borker, a resident of New York, had generated so many complaints from selling eyewear on his site, DecorMyEyes.com, that all the negative comments had served to raise his site higher in Google's search results. Besides finding potential problems with Google's search algorithms, David Segal, the story's author, unearthed all kinds of e-commerce collateral damage. Among the companies that should be embarrassed by the report for either failing to protect customers or an inability to track down rogue retailers were eBay, Citibank, and the Internet Crime Complaint Center. The reputations to suffer most were those of Visa and Mastercard, two of the nation's largest transaction companies. Among the many complaints about Borker was that he refused to issue refunds and one of the ways he got away with it was due to an apparent flaw in Visa's and Mastercard's security systems. Red flags go up at Visa and Mastercard if a merchant generates too many &quot;charge-backs,&quot; the term used to describe when a customer successfully disputes a transaction and obtains a refund. This is what the Times wrote: &quot;Precisely how many of these charge-backs is too many is one of the few business subjects that Mr. Borker deems off the record, but suffice it to say he tracks that figure carefully and dials down the animus if he's nearing his limit.&quot;Deja vu. A year ago, I heard about how some merchants with ill intent game Visa and Mastercard's systems. I was speaking to a source who once worked at some of the so-called post-transaction marketing companies that were investigated by the U.S. Senate last year as part of one of the worst online retail scandals in history. Shame shame: Decade's 10 biggest tech scandals (images) Companies such as Vertrue, Webloyalty, and Affinion paid a large number of top e-tailers, including Orbitz, Buy.com, and Priceline to allow them to charge the credit cards of their customers even though the customers never supplied the card number. A shopper would be nearly done completing a transaction and would be presented with an ad that typically offered some free service. Often the ad appeared to be coming from the merchant. Plenty of people didn't see the tricky small print buried in the mass of ad copy. A Senate subcommittee found that maybe as many as a million people were duped by this &quot;scam&quot; and were unknowingly paid these companies every month. The retailers and marketers walked away with hundreds of millions of dollars. The source, who continues to be employed in online marketing, said that one of the reasons managers at Webloyalty and competitors were able to operate under the noses of Visa and Mastercard was that it was so easy to game the system. They knew exactly the number of charge-backs they could acquire before having to scale back operations, the source said. To be fair to the credit card companies, this isn't an easy problem to solve, as people like Borker are well aware. The Internet offers a perfect way for unsavory characters to mask their identity. Borker told the Times: &quot;If Visa and MasterCard ever shut me down, I'd use the name of a friend of mine. Give him 1 percent.&quot;To Mastercard's credit, the company did shut down Borker, at least for a little while. Noah Hanft, a Mastercard lawyer told the Times that it booted Borker for going over his charge-back number. Nonetheless, the company has no idea how Borker was allowed to continue accepting Mastercard transactions. &quot;No system is perfect...keep in mind, millions of transactions are conducted on our system every day, with 30 million merchants,&quot; Hanft told the Times. That is almost exactly what Visa and Mastercard representatives told me during the post-transaction marketing scandal. In the wake of the Senate investigation into that mess, Visa and Mastercard promised to do more to protect shoppers. It doesn't appear they've done enough. For now, all consumers can do to protect themselves is look for safer ways to buy online. Earlier today, Peter Pham, a venture capitalist and former Photobucket exec, posted a note to Twitter that included a link to the Times story. Pham wrote: &quot;Why I only use Amex.&quot; <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Ask Maggie: Holiday smartphone deals and iPad-iMac choices]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ask-maggie-holiday-smartphone-deals-and-ipad-imac-choices</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ask-maggie-holiday-smartphone-deals-and-ipad-imac-choices</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 26 Nov 2010 08:10:05 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>juwanparmic</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ask-maggie-holiday-smartphone-deals-and-ipad-imac-choices</guid>
<description><![CDATA[It's that time of year again when consumers dream of dancing sugar plums and gadgets.From TVs to smartphones to laptops, device makers, retailers, and service providers are all pushing the hottest gear at low prices. There's no question the holiday shopping season has turned into a bargain hunter's dream when it comes to smartphones.In this week's Ask Maggie column a reader asks if he should take advantage of these deals or wait until the new year to buy his first smartphone. With AT&amp;amp'T and Verizon Wireless offering some high-end smartphones for a penny or less, it's hard to argue that he should wait to see what new devices come out in 2011.And with the help of my fellow CNET reporters and editors, I help another reader decide between purchasing aniPad or an iMac. Finally, another reader writes to Ask Maggie about a problem he's had with AT&amp;amp'T's usage-based billing.Ask Maggie is a weekly advice column that answers readers' wireless and broadband questions. If you've got a question, please send an e-mail to maggie dot reardon at cbs dot com. And please put &quot;Ask Maggie&quot; in the subject header.Smartphone bargains galoreDear Maggie,I'm a Verizon Wireless customer, and I'm finally ready to move forward into the smartphone world. This is all very new to me. I was all set to purchase a Droid Incredible, but I have read horrible things about battery life. I've also looked at the Motorola Droid X, which seems pretty good. Anyway, do you think it's a good idea to purchase a phone right now or wait to see what new and improved phones might be arriving in early 2011Help me decide, please!Thanks,Dan Dear Dan,Honestly, I think the Motorola Droid X and HTC Droid Incredible are both great devices. I haven't heard many complaints about the Droid Incredible. But if you've read negative user reviews, you should take them into consideration. Droid Incredible (Credit:Sarah Tew/CNET) One thing to keep in mind regarding battery life is that if you are upgrading from a traditional feature phone to any smartphone, you are going to notice a major difference in battery life regardless of the smartphone you are using. While your older feature phone might have been able to go days between charges, most smartphones need to be charged at least once day.Now, for your second question: Should you get a smartphone now or in the new year It depends whether you're looking for a great deal or you need the absolute latest and greatest technology. New phones will come out early next year, but it's hard to say how much better they'll be than the existing generation. If I were in the market for a new smartphone, I'd buy now, because the deals are just too good to pass up. For example, Verizon Wireless is offering a terrific promotion via Amazon that runs until Monday. For just a penny you can get one of four different Android smartphones: the Motorola Droid X, HTC Droid Incredible, Motorola Droid 2, or Motorola Droid. Unfortunately, you have to be a new Verizon subscriber to qualify for this deal. But don't fret' Dell Mobility is also offering great deals on Android phones. Of course, the best deals are for customers switching to Verizon Wireless. But even current customers can get a reduced price. Until Monday, you can get the Droid X for $9.99 if you are a new customer and for $49.99 if you are renewing your current Verizon contract. Plus, the activation fee is waived and you get a $25 Dell gift card.If you do decide to go with the HTC Incredible, you can get the phone free from Dell Mobility regardless of whether you're a new customer. You also get the activation fee waived and a $25 gift card from Dell.These deals are only good while supplies last. But if they run out, check out your local Verizon store. Verizon is also running some of its own promotions. For example, if you know someone else who wants an Android smartphone from Verizon, you could take advantage of the buy-one-get-one-free promotion that Verizon is running through the holiday season. You can get a Motorola Droid X for $199.99 or theMotorola Droid 2 for $149.99 and get another free. This would allow you to get the Droid X for $99 instead of $199. The Droid Incredible is also being offered for $149.99.LG Quantum(Credit:Bonnie Cha/CNET)All these deals, including the Amazon and Dell promotions, require a two-year contract along with a smartphone data plan and voice service.If you're willing to switch carriers, there are other deals to be had. AT&amp;amp'T is offering a Black Friday and Cyber Monday deal for its Windows 7 phones. This is another two-for-one offer. And you can get anyWindows Phone 7 for $199. The Windows 7 phones that AT&amp;amp'T currently offers are the HTC Surround, Samsung Focus, and LG Quantum.AT&amp;amp'T and Microsoft are also sweetening the deal with a free Windows Phone 7 entertainment pack with free music via Zune and free games via Xbox Live with each Windows Phone 7.AT&amp;amp'T is also scheduled to offer several new smartphones for one penny on Cyber Monday, November 29.. Starting at 6 a.m. PT, the company will rotate devices every three hours in the promotion. The phones that will be offered include the Android HTC Aria, BlackBerry Curve 3G, Motorola Flipout, Sony Ericsson Xperia X10, and Motorola Bravo. Amazon is offering the one-cent deal for other carriers including AT&amp;amp'T's Samsung Captivate, HTC Aria, Motorola Backflip, or Motorola Flipout. Sprint customers also can get in on the deal with the HTC Hero, Samsung Intercept, and Samsung Moment. At this point, however, CNET Reviews Editor Kent German doesn't recommend the Moment--it's a year old, for starters--even at that price. Sprint Nextel is also offering a discount on the Android-based HTC Evo 4G for $99.99 with a new account at Dell Mobility. And the Samsung Epic 4G smartphone on Sprint's network is available on Amazon for $99.99 through the weekend. If you're considering T-Mobile USA, Amazon is offering new T-Mobile subscribers the Android G2 for $49.99. For a more complete list of Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals on smartphones check out CNET Reviews editor Bonnie Cha's story from earlier this week. So in short, now is the best time to get a deal on a new smartphone. If you wait until next year, wireless operators will have new updated devices, but they will be much more expensive. Verizon in particular is expected to announce new smartphones for its 4G LTE network, which it is launching next month. The new phones for that network are expected to be unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in early January and on store shelves by the end of March. Pricing has not yet been discussed. iPad or iMac Dear Maggie, I'm trying to decide between buying an iPad or an iMac for myself as an early Christmas present. I can only splurge on one, so which one should I get I am a sports reporter for a local newspaper, and I already have a laptop.  Thanks,Fredman  Dear Fredman, These are both very cool products. And I can certainly understand why you'd be lusting for either one of them. So I understand why it's a difficult decision.As I'm sure you are aware, the iPad and the iMac are two distinctly different products. And they really serve different purposes. The iPad is small and portable. It's really meant for doing things on the go. The touch screen makes this an ideal product for watching video, viewing pictures, surfing some Web sites, playing games, accessing specialized applications, and reading books, magazines and newspapers. (Credit:James Martin/CNET) By contrast, the iMac is an all-in-one desktop computer with a beautiful LED backlit screen. It comes in 27-inch and-21.5 inch sizes. It's big and immobile, so it's something that will become a fixture in your home and not something you'd travel with or even take from room to room. That said, the sleek design of the product and the beautiful glass screen is really nice enough to have it displayed anywhere in your home, including a living room or family room. The first thing you need to ask yourself is what you want to do with your new Apple product. Second, you have to figure out how much you are willing to spend. You can get an iPad for as little as $499 with 16GB of storage. This is a Wi-Fi-only device, and getting one that also has 3G wireless connectivity via AT&amp;amp'T will cost you $629, plus data fees. Meanwhile, getting the iMac is a much greater investment. The cheapest one is $1,199 for the smallest screen with the slower processor. The high-end iMac goes for $1,999. You said you already have a laptop. So you may not necessarily need the iMac. Although I am not going to lie to you, I really want one, too.  My sister has one, and she uses it as the &quot;family&quot; computer. She has four kids who range in age from 2 years old to 11 years old. The older kids use the movie and photo-editing software that comes on the iMac to make movies and picture montages set to music. I babysat them for a weekend recently, and it provided hours of entertainment for all of us. The iPad is equally cool, but in a much different way. It's much more of a toy. But it's not great for getting any work done or editing movies and pictures. Since this is really a tough decision, I asked my CNET colleagues what they thought. Here is what some of them had to say: Rafe Needleman, editor at large: If he already has a good laptop or computer, get the iPad. It adds a new way of consuming media to your life and it's a ton of fun. And you can take it everywhere in and out of the house, so the potential to use/enjoy it more is higher. If he doesn't, get the iMac first. You can actually do real work on it and the big screen makes it great for movies. But I think the iPad will make him happier. It's more gifty, more like a toy. Erica Ogg, chief correspondent for Crave: An iMac is a total desktop replacement type computer. The only thing about an iMac that's better than say a MacBook is a bit more storage. But then you can't take it anywhere! If he wants something different and new, go with the iPad.  Eric Franklin, senior associate technology editor: iPad. It's different enough, with enough unique apps and ways to use it, to make it a worthwhile investment if he already owns a MacBook or laptop. Declan McCullagh, chief political correspondent and senior writer: When my wife and I took the kid to visit relatives in Europe a few months ago, as a space-saving experiment I brought an iPad and the Apple Bluetooth keyboard instead of a MacBook Pro. The iPad was wonderful for watching movies, decent for Web browsing, and acceptable for e-mail. If you're writing a self-contained e-mail message, there's not that much of a difference, especially since the iPad supports most of the basic Emacs key bindings, but switching windows or copying and pasting from other e-mail messages or Web pages is a pain. I'm suggesting that my mother, who is finally comfortable with her iPhone, get an iPad instead of a second Mac laptop. Stephen Shankland, senior writer: If he has a modern MacBook, go for the iPad because it's new, different, and fun. The only real difference an iMac will provide for him is better performance, a larger screen, and non-portability, whereas the iPad will let him be magical. But if he's in need of better performance for photo editing, the iMac might be a better way to go. John Falcone, senior editor, home theater: I agree with most of Declan's points. iPad is a good travel companion and good for media consumption/games, but I think it's hard/impossible for working, especially when that involves a lot of typing, cutting/pasting, and toggling between open windows. (Dan) Ackerman and (Scott) Stein, (who review laptops,) disagree' they say they've found it to be a good laptop replacement. Personally, I think the new 11-inch ($999-$1,199) MacBook Air might be a better alternative, even if you already had a full-size MacBook: very light, great battery life, but still a &quot;real computer.&quot; So there you have it. It looks like most CNET editors and writers recommend the iPad. Good luck with your decision!  Watch your AT&amp;T data chargesDear Maggie, I thought you might be interested in alerting your readers to check their AT&amp;amp'T data usage because AT&amp;amp'T made a &quot;mistake&quot; (insert heavy sarcasm here) when calculating my usage and I wonder if other people might have experienced the same. Basically, my billing cycle goes from the 18th-17th. I'm on the 200MB data plan. I happened to check my usage on the 18th and noticed that instead of having 200MB free, I only had 195MB, which I thought was odd since I'd just woken up. I then noticed that AT&amp;amp'T had taken 5MB of usage from the prior day and tacked it on to this month's usage. I called AT&amp;amp'T about it and the customer representative agreed that there was something wrong, that the usage should have zeroed on the 18th and it didn't. She said she'd have the techs look into it. I wonder how many people got overage charges because of this &quot;glitch&quot; where AT&amp;amp'T mysteriously added the last day of the prior billing cycle's usage to the current month's usage Or how many people used less data than they were entitled to because they checked their usage and saw they might go over because of this misreporting I've notified the FCC, but wanted to let you know as well, so other people could check their bills. Frankly, if I hadn't checked on the 18th, I would never have noticed, since I just spot-check my cumulative usage throughout the month and generally don't look at usage on a day-to-day basis. Perhaps this was an honest mistake and maybe it has only happened to me. But just in case not, I wanted to let you know. Thanks, Matt  Dear Matt,Thanks for writing and for sharing your story. Just to refresh other readers' memories, AT&amp;amp'T eliminated its unlimited data plan in June  and replaced it with a plan that charges $15 a month for 200MB of data per month and a $25 for 2GB of data per month. If subscribers who are signed up to the new data plans exceed their usage caps, they are charged additional fees. For example, someone on a 200MB plan would be charged an additional $15 for another 200MB of data that month. All data allowances, including overages, must be used in the billing period in which the allowance is provided.  I reached out to AT&amp;amp'T's press representative Mark Siegel regarding your situation. I asked him if he has heard of other AT&amp;amp'T customers having similar problems. He said he couldn't comment on the specifics of your case. He would need your full name and cell phone number to access your account. But he said: &quot;If you are asking do we bill our customers accurately, the answer is yes, we do. AT&amp;amp'T strives to bill its customers in an accurate and timely fashion. If they have a question about their bill, they can contact us and we will be pleased to look into the situation.&quot; It's difficult to say whether this is an extensive problem for AT&amp;amp'T. According to Siegel it is not. But as you point out in your e-mail, it is very difficult for consumers to know whether AT&amp;amp'T sets the usage back to zero every month at the start of the new billing cycle. And unlike itemized cell phone calling records, it's difficult to determine from the bill and your own memory when you were accessing certain amounts of data. That said, this billing issue should not be too difficult for wireless operators to get right. After all, they've been billing customers for monthly buckets of voice minutes for years.  If any other readers have experienced a similar problem with AT&amp;amp'T's new data plan, please send me an e-mail. If this looks like a big issue, I'll press AT&amp;amp'T for more answers. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[ITC to probe Apple patent claims against Motorola]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=itc-to-probe-apple-patent-claims-against-motorola</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=itc-to-probe-apple-patent-claims-against-motorola</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 24 Nov 2010 08:10:04 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>erythitle</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=itc-to-probe-apple-patent-claims-against-motorola</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The U.S. International Trade Commission is officially stepping in to investigate Apple's claim of patent infringement against Motorola.The ITC announced yesterday that its probe will examine a complaint that Apple filed with it on October 29 against Motorola. The charges are detailed in two lawsuits by Apple against Motorola in which Apple alleges that the sale of Motorola's Droid,Droid 2, Droid X, and other smartphones and related software violate several Apple patents.In one of the suits against Motorola, Apple cites patent No. 7,479,949, which covers methods by which touch screens detect contact with fingers. The two other patents included in this suit are Nos. 6,493,002 and 5,838,315, both of which refer to elements of the graphical user interface. The other suit refers to patent Nos. 7,812,828, 7,663,607, and 5,379,430, which also focus on technologies for the touch screen and GUI.In its complaint with the ITC, Apple is specifically charging that Motorola has violated Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which covers patent violations of products imported into the U.S. Apple is asking the ITC to issue an exclusion order and a cease and desist order, which would stop the import of the devices in question.Motorola initially sued Apple in early October, claiming infringement over 18 different patents related to wireless communications.The patent courts have been busy this year with a slew of lawsuits flying back and forth between some of the major tech players. Earlier this year, HTC and Apple launched patent suits against each other. In September, Apple filed a suit against Nokia in the U.K. after Nokia launched its own suit against Apple in 2009. And Microsoft recently filed two patent-related suits against Motorola, while Motorola just opened its own complaint with the ITC against Microsoft.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Guy creates bot to auto-buy cheap gifts online]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=guy-creates-bot-to-auto-buy-cheap-gifts-online</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=guy-creates-bot-to-auto-buy-cheap-gifts-online</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 08 Nov 2010 08:10:55 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Lynda</dc:creator>
<category>Marketing and advertising</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=guy-creates-bot-to-auto-buy-cheap-gifts-online</guid>
<description><![CDATA[The secret sauce that gave Hunkin his idea.(Credit:Randall Munroe)Being that I'm a famous geek-culture Internet celebrity, people send me gifts all the time. Why, just today I walked out of my apartment to find an eye patch, chopsticks, a John Elway coffee mug, and a power supply for a PowerBook 1400cs. Thank you, readers, for your kind gifts!But not everyone can be a well-known blogger. Take, for example, Paul Hunkin, a Ph.D. student in New Zealand. He set up an Internet bot to randomly buy low-priced stuff, with free shipping, from an online auction site. Paul, you see, likes to get packages. This way, he gets one, on average, every three days. The bot even tweets what it bought (these watch batteries, for example,) so Paul, and anyone else, can keep track.The thing was inspired by this wonderful old strip at XKCD, a nerd Web comic that you should be reading if you aren't. A quote from Paul's Web site:Google didn't reveal anyone doing this already, and after asking a few people, the general opinion was that doing this was a terrible idea that would inevitably end badly. So obviously I had to do it.Poor life choices are, in my opinion, a mark of disturbed genius. Hunkin's script uses Python, and it gains a dollar a day and runs every evening at 8 p.m. Each time it runs it has a one-in-three chance of purchasing something' that way if it doesn't find anything it likes, it can save up for slightly more pricey items.Paul includes more tidbits on his Web site, like an overview of the algorithm the bot uses to pick what to buy, but sadly no downloadable source code.Paul, if you're reading this, please make it available. More people, including Yours Truly, want to get random packages. And really, this could help out the global economy, don't you think&amp;quot'Look what my bot got me today!&amp;quot'(Credit:http://twitter.com/trademe_xkcd576)<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Live blog Wednesday: Facebook mobile event]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=live-blog-wednesday-facebook-mobile-event</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=live-blog-wednesday-facebook-mobile-event</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 02 Nov 2010 07:10:04 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>bepnozi254</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=live-blog-wednesday-facebook-mobile-event</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:Facebook)Join us tomorrow morning for live coverage of Facebook's mobile event, taking place at the company's headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., at 10:30 a.m. PT. I'll be there, along with CNET's mobile phone and software expert Jessica Dolcourt to bring you news updates and photos, as well as a hands-on if possible of whatever might be announced. As usual, we'll be using Cover It Live to deliver the story as it unfolds. That means you can just bookmark this page and come back to it tomorrow, or plug your e-mail address into the form below, and get a reminder when it's about to start. As for what to expect in the way of news, it could be anything from an updated version of the company's mobile application, all the way to the rumored (and denied) branded smartphone.Related: Why a Facebook Phone may not be nutsFacebook special mobile event<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Pay dirt: Why rare earth metals matter to tech (FAQ)]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=pay-dirt-why-rare-earth-metals-matter-to-tech-faq</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=pay-dirt-why-rare-earth-metals-matter-to-tech-faq</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Nov 2010 07:10:22 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>James01</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=pay-dirt-why-rare-earth-metals-matter-to-tech-faq</guid>
<description><![CDATA[A topic most people once considered as boring as dirt--rare earth minerals--has fast become a matter of international significance with a direct impact on green technologies and consumer electronics. Rare earth metals are a group of elements that are used in a wide range of products we use every day, including hard drives and hybridcars. Their properties, notably as light-weight magnets, make them key to the ongoing miniaturization of electronics and the growth of green technologies.Rare earth minerals have become a hot-topic issue for industrialists and politicians for one simple reason: supply.(Credit:U.N. Environment Program)China recognized the importance of these elements decades ago and now supplies almost all the rare earth materials in the world. Companies and countries outside of China are becoming increasingly concerned that this lock on supply could handicap burgeoning green industries, such as wind power and electric vehicles. In recent weeks, China unofficially created an embargo on the export of rare earth metals, which was lifted last week, perhaps because of international pressure, according to reports in The New York Times. A diplomatic dispute between Japan and China over territory led China in September to temporarily suspend shipments of rare earth elements to Japan, a move that caught the world's attention.To explain the role of rare earth elements in tech andgreen tech--and the importance of minerals, in general--we offer this FAQ. What are these elements and what are they used forRare earth minerals are a group of 17 elements with properties that make them attractive for certain uses in everything from iPhones to military aircraft. When combined with other common metals, they bring very valuable qualities, such as amplifying light in fiber optic cables or bringing color to TV screens. The most common use for them is permanent magnets. Certain metals, notably neodymium, have strong magnetic fields, which make them a vital component in electric motors in vehicles. A hybrid car can have about five pounds of rare earth metals in its magnets and battery electrodes. Another use is phosphors, made from yttrium and other metals, which create a pleasing color light in compact fluorescent and LED lamps. These minerals do the same work of magnets and phosphors in the digital gadgets we use every day, including computer disk drives, smartphones, and flat-screen TVs. Powerful neodymium-based magnets are used in earbud speakers and microphones in small gadgets, while others are used in batteries in cell phones and laptop displays, according to U.S.-based Molycorp Minerals.Other metals could be used for magnets, for example, but can't match the power per ounce that rare earth permanent magnets offer, particularly in spots where size and weight matters, like cars, consumer electronics, and weapons systems.Technically, this group of elements is not really rare, although they were thought to be when they were discovered in the late 18th century. However, it is hard to find them in concentrations that are economically viable to exploit. So why the sudden interest in these metalsThe interest is not so sudden for many people but these metals have entered onto the geopolitical stage at the highest levels recently, the same way that other vital natural resources have.Currently, China dominates the rare earth mining industry in terms of production and expertise. It's estimated that China mines about 95 percent of the rare earth metals used in the world today. In the face of price competition from China, mining in other countries, including the U.S., which has significant reserves, has all but shut down in recent years. But now, supply has become a problem. China sharply reduced its export quotas last year and this year in order to conserve its own resources, according to statements from the Chinese government. That move and the embargoes, have caused a spike in prices and angst around the world. As the Japanese incident demonstrates, it appears that China is also tightening supply for political reasons, although Chinese officials deny this is the case. Still, China has been transparent about its interest in rare earth elements for a long time, according to Keith Delaney, the executive director of the Rare Earth Industry and Technology Association based in Colorado. China wants to dominate the production of wind turbines, batteries, and other energy technologies and needs to secure its own sources. &quot;They are going to manage their reserves by taking care of their own requirements,&quot; he said.What's being done about alternative supplies Should we be worriedThere are two rare earth mines outside China--one in the U.S. and one in Australia--that plan to go online in 2012, with others in the pipeline. Molycorp Minerals, which went public earlier this year, plans to reopen the Mountain Pass mine in the Mojave Desert of Southern California, which closed in 2002, and Lynas plans to develop at Mount Weld in Australia. Starting new mining operations is fraught with a number of technical and financial risks and takes between 5 and 10 years to develop, according to experts. Another notable problem for non-Chinese operations is the lack of expertise and an undeveloped supply chain for mineral refinement and production of end-use products, such as magnets.Rare earth metals are particularly challenging to extract because they are often found together and it requires a lot of chemistry and metallurgy to separate them from each other and purify them. These mines also typically contain radioactive thorium, which has to be handled separately. Molycorp claims that its current water-based process for mining and extraction will be far cleaner than previous operations at Mountain Pass. But even if these operations come online flawlessly, it's unlikely that the supply will be able to meet the demand in the very near future, said Delaney. The best the world can hope for is a smooth transition when new mines open in 2012, he said.For electronics, it's not a very acute situation because computers and phones use just a few grams of the material per unit. But it's a totally different story for vehicles, where the scale is kilograms, and wind turbines, where it's hundreds of kilos.The most promising technology in wind power to come along in recent years is direct drive turbines, which use permanent magnets to improve the reliability and cost of generating electricity. Every megawatt of wind power requires about half a ton of permanent magnets, said Delaney. To meet the projected future demand for wind--where 10,000 megawatts of capacity were installed in the U.S. last year--there just isn't the supply, he said.What about recycling At this point, recycling of rare earth metals is not done in a significant way, according to a United Nations report from earlier this year. But there are signs that this is starting to change, notably in Japan, which needs to import rare earth metals. A Japanese town has started an &quot;urban mining&quot; project to extract valuable metals, including gold and rare earth magnets, according to a report in The New York Times. A neodymium-iron-boron (Nd2Fe14B) permanent magnet.(Credit:Ames Laboratory)Many people believe that recycling rates should be increased on all manner of valuable metals, given the constraints on supply for rare earth elements and many other raw materials, such as the indium used in solar cells, semiconductors, and LED lights. Toyota last week launched a nickel recycling operation where used nickel-metal hydride hybrid batteries will be repurposed. Recycling is also far less polluting than extracting raw materials.&quot;Recycling is definitely going to be a big part of the solution to this problem,&quot; Alex King, director of the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory in Iowa, told Scientific American. The lab is seeking to develop alternative processes to prepare neodymium-iron-boron magnets, which can be sourced in the U.S.What's nextOn the political stage, it's safe to say that control over rare earth metals will remain in the news in the years ahead. The challenge isn't only the concentrated supply of the raw materials in China, but the location of the entire supply chain that goes with it. &quot;China is the center of the world rare earth industry, in all of its aspects,&quot; said rare earth metal expert Jack Lifton during a trip to China earlier this year.Other countries are clearly waking up to this issue. Last week in Washington there was a conference held specifically on this topic and there have been a number of Congressional hearings, particularly about how rare earths relate to green technologies and the military, which relies on them in many applications. As an indicator of corporate interest in rare earth metals, both General Electric and General Motors are members of the Rare Earth Industry and Technology Association. The general public, obviously, is less engaged on this issue, but media coverage of rare earths is growing. In general, as people look for alternatives to fossil fuels with green technologies, the issue of raw materials is becoming more prominent. Although it's not part of the rare earth metals group, the source and supply of lithium for batteries, for example, has come under sharper focus. At last week's conference, political officials from the U.S. and Germany voiced alarm over China's control over supply. German officials have appealed to the European Commission and the World Trade Organization to intervene on China's moves to restrict supply. In the meantime, new mines can't come online fast enough. &quot;The mood at (last week's) conference was that this is a solvable problem,&quot; said Delaney. &quot;Whether we have time to solve it is the issue.&quot;<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Emulator runs DOS, Windows on an iPad]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=emulator-runs-dos-windows-on-an-ipad</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=emulator-runs-dos-windows-on-an-ipad</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 26 Oct 2010 07:10:10 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Anna01</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=emulator-runs-dos-windows-on-an-ipad</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Interested in using your iPad to emulate a 20-year-old computer No problem, if you get iDOS, a 99-cent DOS emulator currently on sale at the App Store.(Credit:CNET)So this was cool enough that I had to drop what I was doing (cleaning out my desk) to write it up.Somehow, Apple has approved a DOS emulator for theiPhone andiPad and it's on the App Store for 99 cents. Better yet, someone managed to load Windows 3.0 on the thing.The app, iDOS, is universal, working well on iPads and iPhones alike. It features such niceties as a retro grimy keyboard, floppy drive, and attached sticky notes, along with a coffee-stained notepad.But if you want it, you probably better buy it quick. I suspect it's going to be a race between Apple's store monitoring team and Microsoft's lawyers over who can cry foul first.In the meantime, here's a screenshot of it running on an iPad as well as a link to Touch Arcade, which has pictures of the thing running Windows 3.0.If you get anything interesting running, please drop me a note and some pictures and I'll update this post.Update at 2:45 p.m. PDT: As we expected would quickly be the case, iDOS is no longer available via the App store. Hope you got it while you had the chance.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Apple unveils the iPad 2 today &8212' but will it answer our 7 questions]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-unveils-the-ipad-2-today-8212-but-will-it-answer-our-7-questions</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-unveils-the-ipad-2-today-8212-but-will-it-answer-our-7-questions</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>jimmynmjnn</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-unveils-the-ipad-2-today-8212-but-will-it-answer-our-7-questions</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Everybody knows that Apple is launching the iPad 2 today. But nobody really knows what it is. We&amp;'ll be at the live event writing about the announcement as it comes down at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (pictured yesterday) in San Francisco.The announcement takes place at 10 am and happens just a half hour before Nintendo chief executive Satoru Iwata takes the stage next door at the Game Developers Conference in the Moscone Center. The fact that Apple chose to unveil the iPad 2 right on top of the Nintendo announcement tells you a lot about who the competition is. The iPad 2 is sure to be a cool gaming device, competing head to head with Nintendo&amp;'s market-leading game device. Nintendo will launch its new 3DS handheld &amp;8212' which can display glasses-free stereoscopic 3D &amp;8212' on March 27.The original iPad blew the tablet market wide open last year, selling nearly 15 million units in 2010 after debuting in April. But the iPad 2 will launch into a much different environment, with lots of competition from the Motorola Xoom and other Android 3.0 tablet computers. More rivals are coming every day, from RIM&amp;'s BlackBerry PlayBook to Hewlett-Packard with its upcoming WebOS Touchpad tablet.The seven key questions we&amp;'re waiting to have answered are:We hope we&amp;'ll get the answers today.Next Story: Deals &amp;038' More: Napster founder grabs $250K more for Supyo Previous Story: Dozens of Android apps pulled from market due to malware infectionsPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: iPad 2Companies: ApplePeople: Steve Jobs          Tags: iPad 2Companies: ApplePeople: Steve JobsDean 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[As Buzz Sounds More Like Crickets, Does Google Need To Be More&nbsp'Patient]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=as-buzz-sounds-more-like-crickets-does-google-need-to-be-morenbsppatient</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=as-buzz-sounds-more-like-crickets-does-google-need-to-be-morenbsppatient</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>marterjueye</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=as-buzz-sounds-more-like-crickets-does-google-need-to-be-morenbsppatient</guid>
<description><![CDATA[As we first reported late last week, Lars Rasmussen, the father of both Google Maps and Google Wave, has left Google is heading to Facebook. As we suspected, part of the reason is that Google pulled the plug on Wave barely a year into its existence. &amp;''It takes a while for something new and different to find its footing and I think Google was just not patient,&amp;'' he told The Sydney Morning Herald over the weekend. And that brings up another question. Google&amp;'s other big social&amp;nbsp'experiment&amp;nbsp'this past year, Buzz, also hasn&amp;'t taken off yet. What happens nextLike Wave, Buzz&amp;nbsp'launched with much fanfare in February of this year. But unlike Wave, Buzz was available to many users right of the box, and instead it was security issues and misunderstandings that led to its initial stumbles. The Buzz team worked quickly to smooth those out, but now the service has a much more serious issue: indifference.Despite being shoved in everyone&amp;'s face by way of its somewhat unnatural home in Gmail, Buzz has not caught on for social sharing in the same way that rivals Facebook and Twitter have. Yes, some stats point to it trending upwards, but it still doesn&amp;'t pass the senses test. That is, you never hear about it anymore, you see fewer and fewer references to it around the web, and most importantly, few seem to touch it.We&amp;'ve been debating for a couple of weeks now whether or not to remove the Buzz button from each story on our site. It seems to be little more than clutter at this point. A few stories do get a good number of buzzes, but as far as we can tell, the traffic coming back to us from Buzz is very, very minimal. Yes, we&amp;'re well aware that because of Gmail&amp;'s encryption layer, referrer information is being scrubbed, but we&amp;'re still on the look out for inferred traffic, and we&amp;'re not seeing much.I&amp;'ve long since hidden my Buzz link in the &amp;''More&amp;'' area of Gmail because the perpetual unread count was driving me insane. But I click on it at least once a day. And what do I see when I do Not much. I follow just about 100 people. As far as I can tell, 90+ percent of all the content being put into my Buzz stream are Tweets that are being automatically pushed from Twitter. It really is FriendFeed all over again! Except minus all of the good conversation that would happen there.Of the 25 most recent Buzz posts I see in my stream right now, exactly 3 have comments under them. Of those, one has 8 comments, one has 2, and one has just one. It&amp;'s a bit sad.Okay, maybe I&amp;'m not following the right people. But talking to others who use the service more than I do and follow more people, the song is largely the same. Further, while I may only follow 100 people (which still seems like a lot), I am followed by over 2,000. And I manually share every single story I publish to Buzz (something most don&amp;'t do). The result A few comments here and there, some of which I respond to. But again, mostly crickets.We all know that Google is working on their next big idea in the social space. Buzz may or may not be a part of this supposed new &amp;''layer&amp;''. If it&amp;'s not, does Google pull the plug just about a year into it like they did with Wave Back in August, Google CEO Eric Schmidt had&amp;nbsp'some positive things to say about Buzz, but if you listen carefully, he seems to mainly credit the Gmail integration with any success it has had in gaining users. Based on this and other things I&amp;'ve heard, it doesn&amp;'t seem to me that Google is thrilled with Buzz. They&amp;'re just letting it play out for now. Sort of like Wave.Quora has some nice conversations happening around the &amp;''Why did Buzz fail&amp;'' topic as well. While a few conclude that it&amp;'s still too early to call Buzz a failure, many of those answers are from April or May of last year. Six months later, it seems like even fewer people are talking about Buzz. And that includes developers a4&quot; something which is not a good sign.Former PayPal executive and Yammer founder David Sacks has the highest rated comment on the Quora thread. In his opinion, Buzz has failed for three main reasons:You can&amp;'t algorithmically create the social graph from an address book.You can&amp;'t wedge everything that a social network is into a tab in email.It came along too late.All three make sense, and he gives more in depth reasons for each. But I&amp;'d also add a much more obvious reason: as a sharing tool, Buzz is rather hideous.Thanks to where it&amp;'s housed, Buzz looks like Gmail. Gmail, which probably my most used and favorite overall web app, is far from pretty. It looks utilitarian. It looks like the opposite of a place that I would want to share pictures, for example. Both Twitter and Facebook look beautiful next to it.Look at the latest social sharing app that&amp;'s seeing some early success, Instagram. They started with a social graph of zero, but they nailed the sharing dynamic, including the appropriate look and feel for a social app. And surprise, people are using it. Can you imagine if that were built-in to Gmail to start There would be millions of happy users right now.Of course Instagram has another key element: mobile. I&amp;'ve argued before that Google should have started Buzz as a mobile sharing application with location as a key element. And while their HTML5 app is pretty nice, it should have been a native app to start on all the big platforms. Can you imagine if Google had done that If they launched Buzz as a social sharing native app extension for Gmail, I think we&amp;'d be talking about the service very differently today.Obviously, that would have been much more tricky to pull off than I&amp;'m suggesting. But still, at least that would have been more interesting. It wouldn&amp;'t have been just an uglier FriendFeed that&amp;'s more difficult to use than Twitter or Facebook.Can Buzz do what Wave couldn&amp;'t: survive And burned by the Rasmussen departure, will Google give it more time than they normally would, or should[photo: flickr/williamcho]CrunchBase InformationGoogle BuzzInformation provided by CrunchBase<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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