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<title>Haaze.com / Sana01 / Voted News</title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com</link>
<description>Test Web 2.0 Content Management System</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 Apr 2011 07:10:29 +0000</pubDate>
<language>en</language>
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<title><![CDATA[Google sued over Android data location collection]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-sued-over-android-data-location-collection</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-sued-over-android-data-location-collection</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 28 Apr 2011 07:10:29 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>svetalabr</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-sued-over-android-data-location-collection</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Two Michigan women are suing Google over location data collected by Android devices, a week after Apple was named in a lawsuit citing privacy violations with theiPhone logging similar data.  The $50 million lawsuit against Google seeks to stop Google from selling phones with software that can track a user's location, the Detroit News reported today.  The lawsuit was filed yesterday in U.S. District Court in Detroit on behalf of plaintiffs Julie Brown and Kayla Molaski, who are seeking class action status for the suit. Their lawyer, Steven Budaj, argues in the complaint that the tracking of Android owners' location &quot;puts users at serious risk of privacy invasions, including stalking.&quot;Google acknowledged last week that it collects location information--including GPS current location, timestamps, nearby Wi-Fi network addresses, and device IDs--from Android devices but said it was not traceable to a specific individual. Users can disable the GPS feature, but then they won't get as much function out of maps and other location-based services.  Google representatives declined to comment on the lawsuit. The lawsuit against Apple filed in Florida last week also seeks class action status and accuses Apple of violating privacy laws, as well as the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act by keeping a log of user locations without offering users a way to disable that. The matter first came to light last week when two researchers said they had discovered that the iPhone collects and logs current and historical location information without user permission or warning, and stores it unencrypted on the device. In addition to the lawsuits, the controversy has prompted lawmakers to seek an FTC probe of the issue and questions from attorneys general in Connecticut and Illinois.  After a week of silence, Apple finally spoke up about the matter, explaining in an FAQ that it was collecting the data to get more accurate location data for eventual use in a traffic database and blamed a software bug for storing an excess amount of it on the devices. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[This week in Crave: The globe-trotting edition]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=this-week-in-crave-the-globe-trotting-edition</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=this-week-in-crave-the-globe-trotting-edition</comments>
<pubDate>Sat, 16 Apr 2011 07:10:16 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>drpepper782</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=this-week-in-crave-the-globe-trotting-edition</guid>
<description><![CDATA[We had a whale of a good time in Oklahoma this week.(Credit:Amanda Kooser/CNET)This week, our international Crave team visited an open-source festival in Buenos Aires, walked the darkened streets of Tokyo, and made friends with a Blue Whale in Oklahoma. A bit closer to home: &amp;149' Donald played with RIM's BlackBerry Playbook.  &amp;149' Tablet speed smackdown:iPad 2 vs. PlayBook vs. Xoom. &amp;149' Speaking of smackdowns... &amp;149' How special is the Amazon Kindle with Special Offers  &amp;149' Even zebras are getting bar codes these days.  &amp;149' Boxing duel: You against the Punching Pro robot.  &amp;149' Sometimes, &quot;extra features&quot; become &quot;too many features.&quot; &amp;149' No myth: Mythbuster is helping to develop vehicle armor.  &amp;149' Just $12,500 for an Android app Such a deal! &amp;149' Is that a drum kit in your pants or are you just happy to be reading Crave Of course, you're happy to be reading Crave! Got a story tip or comment Want to take us for a spin in your life-size AT-AT Write to us at crave at cnet dot com. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Microsoft reportedly at odds over retail store push]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-reportedly-at-odds-over-retail-store-push</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-reportedly-at-odds-over-retail-store-push</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 08 Apr 2011 07:10:21 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>wilmaniarn</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-reportedly-at-odds-over-retail-store-push</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:Microsoft)Microsoft has reportedly been at odds internally over how aggressively it should expand its retail stores.Citing sources close to the company, Business Insider reported this week that CEO Steve Ballmer and Chief Operating Officer Kevin Turner have both been pushing for more Microsoft retail stores in a drive to match or even exceed the 300 Apple stores doing business around the world.But others in the company have apparently been crunching the numbers to argue against such a rapid expansion. To match the appeal of the Apple stores, Microsoft's stores have proven expensive to build. Plus, most of the stores have so far failed to turn a profit, according to Business Insider. One reason is that many of the products they sell are available at a variety of other retail chains.So far, Ballmer seems to have been persuaded to hold off on trying to catch up with Apple on the sheer number of stores. But that strategy isn't written in stone, according to Business Insider, as the retail push could ramp up if the stores start to earn their keep or if Microsoft wants retail space to sell a specific product.Responding to a question about the retail store strategy, a Microsoft spokesperson told CNET that the company is unable to share any specific information but said that &quot;since 2009, we have opened eight stores and seen over 3.4 million customers and are thrilled with what we're hearing from them thus far.&quot;Since launching its first Microsoft store in 2009, the company has been expanding its retail presence slowly with its eight current stores across the U.S., with a ninth slated to open in Atlanta this spring. The stores sell PCs and software as well as specific Microsoft gear such as theXbox 360 console. The PCs themselves are customized and optimized to remove any crapware installed by the vendors. The stores also offer an Answer Desk, similar to Apple's Genius Bar, along with training classes and other in-store services.Updated at 10:15 AM PT with statement from Microsoft.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Obama's got an iPad, and he tethers too]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=obamas-got-an-ipad-and-he-tethers-too</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=obamas-got-an-ipad-and-he-tethers-too</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 28 Mar 2011 07:10:07 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>watchzangare</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=obamas-got-an-ipad-and-he-tethers-too</guid>
<description><![CDATA[President Obama on a computer in Northern Michigan University last month.(Credit:Pete Souza/The White House)Despite callingApple's iPad, among other modern-day entertainment gadgets, a conduit for distraction less than a year ago, U.S. President Barack Obama has been outed as an iPad owner himself. As The Wall Street Journal reports, Obama detailed that fact during a town hall meeting with Spanish-language network Univision, which took place earlier today. During an interview with Univision anchor Jorge Ramos, Obama said he does in fact have an iPad, and even tethers it to his high-security BlackBerry cell phone. Obama also noted that he owns his own computer, joking to Ramos and the audience about the idea of him having to borrow one from someone else:Ramos: Not long ago I was having a conversation with my son. He's only 12 years old, and he couldn't believe that I grew up in a world where there were no cell phones, no Internet, no computers. (Laughter.) So do you have your BlackBerry with you, or do you have aniPhone What do you haveObama: You know, I took my BlackBerry off for this show, because I didn't want it going off, and that would be really embarrassing. But usually I carry a BlackBerry around.Ramos: Do you have an iPadObama: I do have an iPad. Ramos: Your own [a] computerObama: I've got my own computer.Ramos: Very well. (Laughter.)Obama: I mean, Jorge, I'm the President of the United States. You think I've got a -- (laughter and applause) -- you think I've got to go borrow somebody's computer (Laughter.) Hey, man, can I borrow your computer (Laughter.) How about you You've got oneIn a commencement speech to students of Hampton University last May, Obama admitted to not knowing how to workApple's iPod or iPad, or Microsoft's Xbox and Sony's PlayStation game consoles. Obama had also referred to the devices as turning information into a &quot;distraction, a diversion,&quot; and &quot;a form of entertainment&quot; that kept people from empowering themselves. The flip-flop on that particular topic is certainly a testament to the iPad being more than an entertainment device, even if that's what Obama is using his for. Perhaps we'll soon have a list of Obama's favorite apps if he's as happy to share them as he was with his NCAA basketball tournament picks. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Japan quake death toll expected to top 10,000]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=japan-quake-death-toll-expected-to-top-10000</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=japan-quake-death-toll-expected-to-top-10000</comments>
<pubDate>Sun, 13 Mar 2011 08:10:19 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>jolalaaoaa</dc:creator>
<category>Business &amp; Finance</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=japan-quake-death-toll-expected-to-top-10000</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Smoke rises from a stricken reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station in Japan.(Credit:Associated Press video, screenshot by Edward Moyer/CNET)The estimated death toll from Japan's crippling earthquake and tsunami was revised to more than 10,000 today as officials worked to prevent a nuclear disaster.&quot;The earthquake, tsunami and the nuclear incident have been the biggest crisis Japan has encountered in the 65 years since the end of World War II,&quot; Prime Minister Naoto Kan told a news conference today. &quot;We're under scrutiny on whether we, the Japanese people, can overcome this crisis.&quot;Some 200 bodies were recovered today, and the official death toll from the earthquake and subsequent tsunami stood at 1,217 as of Sunday evening, Japanese police told The Chosunilbo, but that number is expected to climb to between 20,000 and 30,000. In one town alone, only 15,000 out of 75,000 were able to evacuate' the rest remain missing.Hoping to prevent a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, officials began venting the containment of reactor unit 3 through a controlled release of vapor intended to lower pressure inside the reactor structure, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported. Residents near the plant some 170 miles northeast of Tokyo evacuated the area after a quake-triggered power outage left a cooling system unable to supply water to cool the reactor. The original 2-mile evacuation radius has expanded to 12.5 miles and involves some 210,000 residents.The earthquake, which today was upgraded to a 9.0 magnitude from 8.9, left almost 2 million households without power in the freezing north and about 1.4 million without running water, the government said. Meanwhile, the benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average dropped 494 points, or 4.8 percent, to 9,760.45 as the market opened Monday--the first business day after the twin disasters. The Bank of Japan said Monday it would inject 7 trillion yen ($86 billion) into the financial system to help stabilize the market.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Apple releases Mac OS X Lion developer preview]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-releases-mac-os-x-lion-developer-preview</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-releases-mac-os-x-lion-developer-preview</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 24 Feb 2011 08:10:36 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>garnersteen12</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=apple-releases-mac-os-x-lion-developer-preview</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:Josh Lowensohn/CNET)Amid the flurry of news surrounding Apple's updated line of MacBook Pros, the company also announced today that it's one step closer to launchingMac OS X Lion.Starting today, software developers will be able to get their hands on Mac OS X Lion. The developer preview is available to members of Apple's Mac Developer Program, and will give folks time to create programs that take advantage of Mac OS X Lion's new features before it hits store shelves.Apple first announced Mac OS X Lion last year. The next version of Apple's operating system will deliver several new features, including Mission Control, which shows what's running on a given Mac, and Launchpad, which displays the user's many apps to help them find what they want to boot up. Apple says that Mac OS X Lion &quot;takes some of the best ideas fromiPad and brings them back to the Mac.&quot;Mac OS X Lion will also come with support for Apple's Mac App Store. That marketplace launched last month to Mac OS X Snow Leopard users. Those running previous versions of Apple's operating system aren't able to access the App Store.Mac OS X Lion is expected to launch this summer.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Join us Thursday for Intel's 'Light Peak' event]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=join-us-thursday-for-intels-light-peak-event</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=join-us-thursday-for-intels-light-peak-event</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 23 Feb 2011 08:11:18 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>mandymuluu</dc:creator>
<category>Social</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=join-us-thursday-for-intels-light-peak-event</guid>
<description><![CDATA[A photo of Intel&amp;39's Light Peak technology(Credit:Intel)Intel tomorrow is said to be revealing some of the final details of its Light Peak technology as it makes its way into the first wave of consumer and business gadgetry. Join us at 10 a.m. PT tomorrow for live coverage. I'll be on the scene with CNET senior associate technology editor Dong Ngo to bring you the news as it happens with text and photos. You can keep up with both by coming back to this page then and following along in the Cover it Live module at the bottom of the post. According to a CNET source, Intel will be unveiling some of the final details of Light Peak, a transmission technology designed by Intel that promises to bring 10-gigabit-per-second speeds for data transfers to and from external devices, besting recently introduced solutions like USB 3.0. Intel's broader vision is to have it replace the myriad specialty ports on laptops and desktop machines with one that can do just about everything, while scaling its bandwidth potential to support future computing needs.The technology is expected to make an appearance in a refresh to Apple's MacBook range, which CNET has been told could come shortly after Intel's announcement.Besides the morning event, Intel will also be offering demonstrations of what's being announced at its campus in Santa Clara, Calif. CNET will also be on the scene for that, with follow-up coverage later in the day. In the meantime, if you want a reminder, use the module below to get a notification by e-mail. We've also provided a way for you to add it to your Google calendar by clicking on the icon below:Intel's Light Peak event<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Symbian is here to stay, says Nokia]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=symbian-is-here-to-stay-says-nokia</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=symbian-is-here-to-stay-says-nokia</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 23 Feb 2011 08:10:54 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Asasssian1982</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=symbian-is-here-to-stay-says-nokia</guid>
<description><![CDATA[ Nokia stalwart Symbian isn't quite making its exit yet even though the world's largest phone maker is switching to Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 as its primary smartphone platform. The Nokia E7 smartphone(Credit:Nokia) &quot;Just because we're changing our direction in terms of smartphone platform, it doesn't mean that the existing platform is completely broken,&quot; said Vlasta Berka, general manager for Nokia Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei, at the launch of the E7 smartphone in Singapore today. &quot;We still have obligations to our users, developers, business partners, and customers.&quot;  According to Nokia, there are currently 200 million Symbian users around the world. The Finnish outfit said it expects to sell about 150 million Symbian devices going forward.  &quot;Symbian is here to stay. Symbian will still be around, but it's just going to go somewhere around the corner,&quot; Berka added.  The latest E7 smartphone features a 4-inch AMOLED display, physical QWERTY keyboard, 8-megapixel camera with dual-LED flash, 16GB of onboard memory and a suite of enterprise solutions. It retails at S$989 ($774) in Singapore.  Berka also tried to allay fears that Nokia will cease support for the Symbian platform. He said over 50 improvements, from visual to performance enhancements, will be rolled out for the rest of this year.  Last week, Nokia's Chief Executive Stephen Elop noted that the Qt development environment that is used for Symbian devices would not be usable onWindows Phone 7 applications. He said this was to ensure that differing platforms don't confuse developers or consumers.  According to Gartner, Symbian's market share dropped from 46.9 percent in 2009 to 37.6 percent in 2010.  (Source: Crave Asia)<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[U.S. delves into broadband access with new map]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=u-s--delves-into-broadband-access-with-new-map</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=u-s--delves-into-broadband-access-with-new-map</comments>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Feb 2011 08:10:27 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>everaaa</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=u-s--delves-into-broadband-access-with-new-map</guid>
<description><![CDATA[If you ever wanted to dig into data about broadband availability around the U.S., now's your chance.The Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has launched the National Broadband Map in time for today's deadline set by Congress. According to the NTIA, the broadband map is designed to be a public tool offering data that could eventually be used to help expand broadband access in areas around the country that need it most.A map of the state of U.S. broadband access has been a long time coming. Back in 2008, the plan was brought to the table in the Broadband Data Improvement Act, but the program wasn't able to get funding. After President Obama signed the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act in 2009, stimulus funds were secured to finally deliver the map.The broadband map didn't come cheap. The NTIA initially budgeted $350 million to get the program up and running, prompting some who criticized the stimulus package to ask if it was money well spent. However, the program ended up coming in well under budget. The map's actual cost is $200 million over five years, including development, grants doled out to compile broadband data, and maintenance, an NTIA spokeswoman told CNET today in a phone conversation.The National Broadband Map allows users to search for more than 25 million records that deliver information on where broadband is available, what kind of technologies are being used, and the top advertised speeds in a given area. The map also lets users see which providers are offering service in certain locations. The tool itself displays information on an integrated map that can be manipulated to compare different locations and drill down into specific towns to see how they compare to other municipalities around the country.A view of broadband access in the contiguous 48 states, according to the National Broadband Map.(Credit:Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)The National Broadband Map &quot;will provide consumers, companies, and policymakers with a wealth of information about broadband availability, speeds, competition, and technology, and help Americans make better informed choices about their broadband services,&quot; FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said in a statement.But the broadband map also delivers some sobering facts. As NTIA Administrator Lawrence E. Strickling pointed out in a statement today, the map &quot;shows there are still too many people and community institutions lacking the level of broadband service needed to fully participate in the Internet economy.&quot;More specifically, the map shows that 5 percent to 10 percent of Americans lack adequate access to broadband speeds of 4Mbps downstream and 1Mbps upstream. The FCC believes those speeds are the minimum requirement needed to effectively browse the Web and download photos and video.Moreover, the map shows that &quot;anchor institutions,&quot; such as schools, lack adequate bandwidth. The NTIA said schools should have 50Mbps to 100Mbps connections available to every 1,000 students at an institution. Today, approximately 66 percent of schools have less than 25Mbps connections. Just 4 percent of libraries have speeds over 25Mbps.The National Broadband Map will be updated every six months with new data. Users can also examine the map and provide feedback to data points that might be incorrect.In addition to its map launch, the NTIA also shared results from a survey of Internet usage in 54,000 households across the U.S.The organization found that just 68 percent of American households have broadband access. However, that figure is up from 63.5 percent over the prior year. In addition, &quot;people with low incomes, disabilities, seniors, minorities, the less-educated, non-family households, and the non-employed tend to lag behind other groups in home broadband use,&quot; the NTIA reported.The organization said 46 percent of respondents who don't have Internet access in the home say it's unnecessary, while 25 percent say it's &quot;too expensive.&quot; Approximately 28 percent of Americans choose to not access the Internet in any location--at home or otherwise.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[MPAA sues Hotfile, battle for cloud begins]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=mpaa-sues-hotfile-battle-for-cloud-begins</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=mpaa-sues-hotfile-battle-for-cloud-begins</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 08 Feb 2011 08:10:57 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>humidist</dc:creator>
<category>Marketing and advertising</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=mpaa-sues-hotfile-battle-for-cloud-begins</guid>
<description><![CDATA[For the first time, a group of Hollywood film studios has filed a copyright lawsuit against a cyberlocker.File-hosting service Hotfile has made a business out of offering a stash box for people to store their pirated movies, the Motion Picture Association of America claims in its suit against Hotfile. &quot;In less than two years, Hotfile has become one of the 100 most trafficked sites in the world,&quot; the MPAA said in a press release issued today. &quot;That is a direct result of the massive digital theft that Hotfile promotes.&quot;According to the MPAA, Hotfile is operated by Florida resident Anton Titov, who was not immediately available for comment. A growing number of digital-locker services have come under fire lately by copyright owners. Liberty Media Holdings, an adult-film studio, last month also filed a copyright suit against Hotfile. On the music side, EMI, the smallest of the four record labels, is suing MP3tunes.com, a digital locker specializing in the storage of songs. The cyberlockers are an alternative to BitTorrent file-sharing services and are growing in popularity. With these services, there's no need to download any software. A user logs on to a locker service and watches whatever films or TV shows are stored there. The MPAA was careful to make the distinction that not all cyberlockers are unlawful. That's important because the Digital Millennium Copyright Act's safe harbor protects Internet service providers as long as they obey some rules. The trade group for the top film studios said Hotfile doesn't come close to qualifying for safe harbor protection. The service &quot;openly discourages use of its system for personal storage,&quot; the MPAA wrote. &quot;Hotfile's business model encourages...users to upload files containing illegal copies of motion pictures and TV shows to its servers and to third-party sites.&quot;According to the MPAA's suit, Hotfile is no free-information advocate. This is straight-up piracy for profit, the trade group said. Hotfile collects revenues by charging a monthly fee. Correction 2:17 p.m. PT: This story incorrectly identified the company that filed a copyright complaint against Hotfile last month. Liberty Media Holdings is the correct name. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[eBay snags Bing's development manager, Facebook scientist]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ebay-snags-bings-development-manager-facebook-scientist</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ebay-snags-bings-development-manager-facebook-scientist</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 31 Jan 2011 08:10:32 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Sonia01</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ebay-snags-bings-development-manager-facebook-scientist</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Prevost weighing in as a panelist during 2009&amp;39's Semantic Technology Conference.(Credit:Tom Krazit/CNET)Adding to the list of recent departures, Microsoft has lost the principal development manager of its Bing search engine to commerce giant eBay. According to All Things Digital, Scott Prevost who joined Microsoft as part of the Powerset acquisition in 2008, has left to become the VP of product management for eBay's search tool. He's joined by now former Facebook research scientist Dennis DeCoste, who will be eBay's director of research. Together, the pair are said to be working on improving the relevancy of eBay's built-in search tool. A Microsoft representative confirmed Prevost's departure and said &quot;we wish him well in his future endeavor.&quot;Prior to his two-year stint as the GM and director of product for Powerset, Prevost had been the CEO and CTO at the Animated Speech Corporation, which merged with educational software and research company TeachTown in 2006. As for DeCoste, he too had been a Microsoft employee, though he had worked as a principal scientist for the company following his stint as the director of research for Yahoo's Research group.Prevost joins a handful of recent departures from Microsoft's management and engineering ranks. Earlier this month, Microsoft announced that server and tools boss Bob Muglia would be leaving the company later this year. More recently, Brad Brooks, who served as corporate vice president in Microsoft's Windows Group, left the company to join Juniper Networks. Meanwhile, Matt Miszewski--the former general manager of Microsoft's government business--left Microsoft for Salesforce.com in late December, though he was temporarily blocked from taking his post as a VP due to Microsoft winning a restraining order based on non-compete and confidentiality agreements Miszewski had signed. There's also Johnny Chung Lee, theWii hacker Microsoft hired to work in its Applied Sciences group to develop Kinect algorithms, who jumped ship for Google earlier this month.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[New leadership shakes up Valley (week in review)]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-leadership-shakes-up-valley-week-in-review</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-leadership-shakes-up-valley-week-in-review</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 21 Jan 2011 08:10:44 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>sirnures25r</dc:creator>
<category>Business &amp; Finance</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=new-leadership-shakes-up-valley-week-in-review</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Three tech icons announced this week major leadership changes that took Silicon Valley by surprise.Apple CEO Steve Jobs got the ball rolling by announcing he is taking another medical leave from the company he co-founded more than 30 years ago, leaving many to wonder who might be in line to be his successor.Apple COO Tim Cook(Credit:Sarah Tew/CNET)Jobs, a pancreatic cancer survivor, announced in an e-mail to employees that he would be stepping away indefinitely from his day-to-day duties at Apple but would retain the title of chief executive. Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook will assume responsibility for the company's day-to-day operations, as he did during Jobs' previous leave of absence for medical treatment.&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Apple shares slip on word of Jobs' leave&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Apple posts record revenue, earnings for Q1 2011But the next obvious question then becomes, is Cook the person who could, if called upon, take over entirely for Jobs someday While Cook has the full confidence of his boss and has demonstrated an ability to execute on Jobs' big-picture plans already in place, it's the long-term prognosis for the eventual reality of an Apple without Jobs that makes investors nervous.&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Apple COO: We're 'very confident' in Apple's future&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Woz wishes Jobs well during leaveOver at Google, its ruling triumvirate was shaken up by the announcement that CEO Eric Schmidt will be taking the role of executive chairman, while co-founder Larry Page will become CEO. Sergey Brin, who has also shared power with the two others, will work on &quot;strategic projects,&quot; Google said. Schmidt, who was hired by the co-founders in 2011 to become Google's CEO, will focus on external partnerships and business deals starting on April 4, when Page will take over the day-to-day management role. Schmidt said in a blog post that Page, &quot;in my clear opinion, is ready to lead.&quot;&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Schmidt: 'Adult supervision' at Google no longer neededMeanwhile, just a few months removed from the Mark Hurd scandal, Hewlett-Packard's board of directors is getting a makeover with the replacement of four board members and the addition of a new seat. The timing of the replacement seems tied to an investigation HP is ready to start into the circumstances surrounding former CEO Hurd's resignation from the company. HP wants this investigation to be &quot;independent&quot; and led by a committee of outside attorneys and of board members who joined the Silicon Valley giant after Hurd's departure.&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Tricky transitions in tech leadershipMore headlinesGoogle readies Groupon competitorAfter being rebuffed in a buyout offer for social-buying market leader Groupon, the Internet giant is working on a daily-deals competitor called Google Offers.Regulators approve Comcast-NBC Universal dealThe FCC and Justice Department give the OK to the new joint venture between Comcast and NBC Universal but put several conditions on the deal.Facebook backtracks on apps grabbing address, cell numberIn a quick about-face, the social network is temporarily disabling a new tweak that gave third-party apps the ability to record someone's address and cell number.&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Facebook tweak reveals addresses, phone numbers&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' How to delete address, cell number from Facebook&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Facebook launches new low-tech mobile site Nokia ditches plans for X7 smartphone on AT&amp;TPhone maker cancels the launch of a smartphone slated to be exclusive to AT&amp;T's network in the U.S.&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' CDMA iPhone shipments could top 12 million in '11Netflix nixes DVD choice from streaming gear, vexes usersThe company's decision to remove the option to add titles to the DVD queue from streaming devices sets off criticism from Netflix customers.&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' HBO: Netflix must charge more to use our contentHTML editor dumps 'HTML5' even as W3C touts itConcluding HTML version numbers are a relic of a bygone age, Ian Hickson adopts a &quot;living document&quot; approach. Not so the W3C standards group.Apple iPad secures 87 percent market shareTablets continue to be top products for consumers worldwide, according to a new study from IDC. They're led byApple's iPad, which has nearly 90 percent market share, the company revealed. &amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Two charged in AT&amp;T-iPad data breachBoeing resets Dreamliner delivery to third quarterNew date for the 787 Dreamliner factors in the time Boeing needs to produce, install, and test updated software and new electrical power distribution panels following an onboard fire.&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Boeing's 787 Dreamliner: A legacy of delaysAlso of note&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Survey: iPhone owners most loyal to their brand&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' Playboy to offer Web subscription service&amp;149'&amp;nbsp' What happens when the CD factory closes.postBody h3, .postBody h4{font-size: 1.2em'margin: 10px 0 0 0 'padding: 0px'font-weight: bold'border-bottom: none'}<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[CES: Sonomax Eers offers instant custom-molded earphones]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-sonomax-eers-offers-instant-custom-molded-earphones</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-sonomax-eers-offers-instant-custom-molded-earphones</comments>
<pubDate>Sat, 08 Jan 2011 08:10:12 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Geumdius</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-sonomax-eers-offers-instant-custom-molded-earphones</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Sonomax&amp;39's Eers kit comes with a silicone-injection system that produces custom-molded earphones in minutes. (Credit:Tim Hornyak )LAS VEGAS--Hate it when you're jogging and your earphones drop out Sonomax's Eers custom-molded earphones fit perfectly into your ears so music is isolated from ambient noise. That means you can enjoy tunes at lower volumes and reduce the risk of hearing loss, according to Montreal-based Sonomax. The unique feature of its Eers series (initially dubbed &quot;Soundcage&quot;) is that the headphones come in a kit with a silicone injection system that does the job in only four minutes. The headphones are initially attached to a recyclable headband that's preloaded with medical-grade silicone. You fit it on your head with the buds in your ear canals, push two buttons and wait four minutes. The buds fill with silicone (which doesn't touch your ears) and mold to the shape of your ear. Injecting the buds while they're inside your canals may sound a little scary, but the process is safe, clean, and quick. After getting a pair fitted to my ears, I found the sound quality surprisingly good--far better than my uncomfortable one-shape-fits-all earphones. A finalist in the Last Gadget Standing competition, Eers is priced at $199.99 for single-driver earphones and $299.99 for dual-driver premium earphones. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[CES: Motorola event CES 2011 (live blog)]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-motorola-event-ces-2011-live-blog</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-motorola-event-ces-2011-live-blog</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 04 Jan 2011 08:10:31 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>jermaimmmi</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ces-motorola-event-ces-2011-live-blog</guid>
<description><![CDATA[LAS VEGAS--Motorola is expected to finally take the wraps off the long-awaitedGoogle Android tablet at the Consumer Electronics Show here Wednesday. The device uses Google's Android operating system. Motorola showed off the new tablet in early December at a press conference. The Motorola tablet will be one of many new Android-based PCtablets coming to market in the next several months. Other cell phone makers are also taking the plunge into the market. Last year, Samsung introduced the first Google Android tablet, called the Galaxy Tab. And it's expected to have a follow on product.This press conference also marks the very first one that Motorola will hold after the company split into two entities. Earlier this week, Motorola officially split into two separate companies: Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions. CNET will be live-blogging the news from the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas where Motorola will hold its press conference starting at 4 p.m. PT. Sign up for an e-mail reminder and tune in using the link below for all the latest details during the live blog.Motorola CES 2011 press conference<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Sudan under anti-war satellite surveillance]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sudan-under-anti-war-satellite-surveillance</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sudan-under-anti-war-satellite-surveillance</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 29 Dec 2010 08:10:22 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Rixbralia</dc:creator>
<category>Politics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sudan-under-anti-war-satellite-surveillance</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Actor George Clooney, who is a spokesman for the Satellite Sentinel Project, on a recent trip to the volatile southern region of Sudan.(Credit:Tim Freccia/Enough Project)The Satellite Sentinel Project, launched today, will be monitoring Sudan from above and sharing information with the world in near real-time in an effort to deter violence.The oil-rich southern region of Sudan is poised to hold a referendum on January 9 that could decide whether Sudan remains one country, or becomes politically divided into north and south entities. Many expect that there will be violence leading up to the vote, as well as after it, and that the Sudan could once again descend into chaos as it did during its 20-year war in which an estimated 2 million people were killed as of 2005.The Satellite Sentinel Project aims to deter that violence--or at the very least act as a recorder of war crimes should they occur--by pointing cameras aboard commercial satellites at the region starting today. Through satellite imagery analysis and crowd-sourced mapping, which can be viewed via programs using Google Maps and Google Earth, the eyes of anyone with an Internet connection will be able to watch what is happening in the border region of northern and southern Sudan in the coming weeks.The project is being conducted through a partnership with the Operational Satellite Applications Program (Unosat) from the the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (Unitar), Harvard University's Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, Google, Internet software company Trellon, and the Enough Project anti-genocide organization.It's being funded by the aptly named Not On Our Watch, a humanitarian advocacy organization whose founding members include actors George Clooney, Don Cheadle, Matt Damon, and Brad Pitt' film producer Jerry Weintraub' and human rights lawyer and former State Department aide David Pressman.Clooney and John Prendergast, a journalist, human rights activist and Enough Project co-founder, have been acting as spokesmen for the Satellite Sentinel Project. Through interviews with national publications, opens letters to newspapers, and press statements, the two launched a media campaign today to draw attention to the satellite mission.&quot;Previously, when mass atrocities occurred in Darfur, the Government of Sudan denied its involvement. Since photographers could not get access, it took years to amass evidence of genocide. But now we can witness in near real-time and put all parties on notice that if they commit war crimes, we will all be watching, and pressuring policymakers to take action,&quot; Clooney and Prendergast said in a joint statement today.&quot;We want to cast a spotlight - literally - on the hot spots along the border to record any actions that might escalate the chances of conflict. We hope that if many eyes are on the potential spoilers, we can all help detect, deter and interdict actions that could lead to a return to deadly violence. At the very least, if war crimes do occur, we'll have plenty of evidence of the actions of the perpetrators to share with the International Criminal Court and the UN Security Council,&quot; Clooney and Prendergast said in their statement.Commercial satellites have been tapped to collect visual data of the region and have the ability to capture incidents like village burnings or razings, large movements of people, and bombings. Each organization involved has a specific role in how that data is used in the coming months, according to the Satellite Sentinel Project.A team of Unosat employees expert in satellite analysis will examine the images from offices in Geneva, Switzerland, in conjunction with Google and Trellon employees, according to Unitar.&quot;This unique monitoring and alert system is based on commercial and publicly available satellite imagery and has the potential to contribute to the prevention of a possible war in Sudan. In case conflict ignites, the humanitarian consequences can be monitored from space, a service that Unosat has been providing to the international community since 2003,&quot; Unitar said in a statement.Google and Trellon have collaborated on analysis and Internet tools to make the collected satellite information also available to the public. Meanwhile, workers from the Enough Project and the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative will contribute field reports from the ground in the Sudan.&quot;Google technology is increasingly being used by individuals and organizations to support disaster response and humanitarian causes. The Satellite Sentinel Project is an important undertaking and we're proud that Google Map Maker, a tool that enables users to contribute and edit map data for over 190 countries and regions around the world, is being used as its mapping platform,&quot; a Google representative said today in an e-mail to CNET.Not On Our Watch, for its part, has provided enough funding to run the program for at least six months and is acting as a media conduit to shed light on the issue and encourage political action to deter the violence.In addition to the images and mapping, the Satellite Sentinel also has a blog about the situation in the Sudan and is posting the field reports from workers in organizations like the Enough Project.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Crave giveaway: Intel 80GB solid-state drive]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=crave-giveaway-intel-80gb-solid-state-drive</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=crave-giveaway-intel-80gb-solid-state-drive</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 24 Dec 2010 08:10:11 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>conde</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=crave-giveaway-intel-80gb-solid-state-drive</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Post of comment (and only one comment) for a chance to win this 80GB Intel solid-state drive for notebook and desktop computers.(Credit:Intel)You know you've always wanted to stick a solid-state drive in your computer but just weren't willing to shell out the cash. Well, for this week's giveaway, we've got high-performance 80GB solid-state drive from Intel that works in notebook or desktop computers (anywhere a 2.5-inch hard drive does). It's official name is the Intel 80GB X25M Mainstream SATA II MLC Solid State Drive and it's pretty sweet.Instead of using spinning platters like traditional hard drives, the X25-M uses flash memory for storage, which Intel says gives you &quot;dramatically faster&quot; data access. If you need more disk space, the X25-M also comes in a 160GB version, but sorry, we're not giving one of those away. Intel only gave us the 80GB version. Normally, this drive would cost you $180, but we're giving one away gratis. So, how do you try to win it Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully' there will be a test.Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the &quot;Join CNET&quot; link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, there's no need to register again.Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful, it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Intel 80GB X25M Mainstream SATA II MLC Solid State Drive with a retail value of $180.If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winner must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.Entries can be submitted until Monday, December 27 at noon EST. And here's the disclaimer that our legal department said we had to include (sorry for the caps, but rules are rules):NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 12 PM EST on December 27, 2010. See official rules for details.Good luck.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Microsoft releases free Security Essentials 2.0]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-releases-free-security-essentials-2-0</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-releases-free-security-essentials-2-0</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 17 Dec 2010 08:10:45 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>grydladziepo</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=microsoft-releases-free-security-essentials-2-0</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Microsoft has launched the latest version of its free Security Essentials.(Credit:Microsoft)Microsoft yesterday quietly released the latest version of its Security Essentials anti-malware software.Security Essentials 2.0 is available as a free download with several changes over its predecessor. A Microsoft representative today confirmed the release.Microsoft said the updated anti-malware engine makes the software faster and smarter at detecting security hazards. The software also now ties in with Windows Firewall, giving you the option of turning the firewall on or off. When I installed the 2.0 edition, it detected that Windows Firewall was not running and asked if I wanted to enable it.The new version integrates with Internet Explorer to detect Web-based threats and can watch out for malware coming in through a network, though only for those running Windows Vista orWindows 7.The successor to Live OneCare, Security Essentials 1.0 debuted in September 2009 and garnered positive reviews and user feedback. Microsoft released a beta edition of the 2.0 upgrade in July.Initially, Security Essentials was legally available only for individual home users, but in October Microsoft relaxed the rules so that businesses with up to 10 users can install the product as well.Updated at 8:30 a.m. PTwith confirmation of the release yesterday.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[The 404 727: Where we're breaking snowballs (podcast)]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-404-727-where-were-breaking-snowballs-podcast</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-404-727-where-were-breaking-snowballs-podcast</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 13 Dec 2010 08:10:31 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Imminkamumb</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=the-404-727-where-were-breaking-snowballs-podcast</guid>
<description><![CDATA[<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[What it takes to judge Web culture's best (Q&A)]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=what-it-takes-to-judge-web-cultures-best-qa</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=what-it-takes-to-judge-web-cultures-best-qa</comments>
<pubDate>Fri, 10 Dec 2010 08:18:23 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Doreen93</dc:creator>
<category>Gaming</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=what-it-takes-to-judge-web-cultures-best-qa</guid>
<description><![CDATA[If it's the end of the year, that must mean it's awards season. And in the world of Web culture, there's one site that hopes to have the final word on the best of the year's offerings.(Credit:Courtesy of Kelly Reeves)That would be Urlesque, an AOL site that is becoming a must-visit for those interested in the latest and greatest Internet memes. In 2008, the site launched the Urlies, its first Web culture awards, and now, it is in the middle of collecting readers' votes for the best of 2010. As you might expect, there are plenty of cat videos to peruse, and anyone who loves--or hates--Justin Bieber can look to an entire category dedicated to memes related to the Twitter trending topics stalwart. The other categories include best overall meme, best video, Facebook trend of the year, best celebrity Photoshop meme, and several others. Yes, the double-rainbow video is well represented.Since Urlesque is currently in the middle of Urlies voting, it seemed like a good time to talk to Editor in Chief Kelly Reeves about the awards, and about Web culture in general. Yesterday, Reeves sat down for a 45 Minutes on IM interview to discuss just that. Q: Thank you very much for doing this, I appreciate it. I want to start by being honest with you--an entire Justin Bieber category. That makes me laugh, and cry. Why do thatKelly Reeves: Ha ha ha. I have a lot to say about Justin Bieber. I want to hear it! Reeves: Justin Bieber and all the fandom (and anti-fandom) surrounding him on the Web was so huge this year that it was impossible for us to ignore him. As the team was planning the categories and nominees we found ourselves including Bieber-related items in several categories. (I'm probably to blame because I'm a total fan.) Since he's so polarizing and we didn't want to Bieb-ify the entire Urlies, we decided it was better (and possibly more funny) to stick it all into one category. But it's kind of interesting because the majority of the nominees are actually kind of negative or making fun of him. And also a whole category is nice Bieber fan bait. (Credit:Urlesque)Well, another category I wished you'd broken out, but didn't, was cat memes, which got lumped in with &quot;animals.&quot; Don't cats deserve the same respect as Justin Bieber Reeves: Oh man, cats get their fair share of coverage on Urlesque. In fact, we honored Cats with a Lifetime Achievement award in our first Urlies in 2008. And, earlier this year we had &quot;Catfight&quot;--a seeded, tournament-style competition to see who is the strongest Internet cat. But yeah, to be honest, there weren't a lot of strong individual cat competitors this year.Well, let's step back a little. Explain the Urlies for those who aren't familiar with them, or might confuse them with other Web awards.Reeves: Much like other categories have their awards ceremonies to recap the best of their world for a year, the Urlies are the reflection of the best in Web culture for the year. For now, every category and nominee are hand-picked by our trusty Urlbot editors to ensure that we highlight the biggest and best stuff from the year. First, we allow Internet fans to pick their favorites and after voting ends we will announce our picks as well. We mostly focus on the fun things we couldn't get enough of throughout the year.Also, it's surprising how quickly internet time moves. Something that blew up early in the year can seem like years ago, so it's fun to recap these things for our readers and bring them back into the spotlight.Back to this year's honorees, I have to admit that I'm amazed that in current voting, Double Rainbow is only in fourth place for best video. What does that say to youReeves: I'm surprised that one is so far behind, It was hilarious! It's possible that the current leader, Antoine Dodson, had so much more exposure that by awareness alone he's getting the votes, despite the hilarity of quality of the video for itself. This year was a particularly interesting year for choosing meme of the year nominees vs. video of the year nominees as the Gregory Brothers and the popularity of their resulting remixes have really made an impact on viral videos. The editors had to stop and think, is it the original video that should be nominated or the resulting remix. I imagine that a lot of voters are thinking of the Gregory Bros.' &quot;Bed Intruder&quot; remix when they're voting for the original clip. Though I could be wrong.This is the third year you're doing this. What have you learned from the previous two UrliesReeves: The major thing we've learned is not to assume the readers will agree with who the editors think should win. The first year, we solely had editors' picks, and boy, did we get a lot of feedback saying that we picked the wrong winners. After that, we opened up the people's choice vote so readers could have their say. It's great because oftentimes the winners that we choose are different from the winners that the readers pick. What's your personal favorite categoryReeves: This year, I love the celebrity Photoshop meme category. We change up the categories each year because the Web is always evolving. It was great to see the prevalence of really funny Photoshop memes involving celebrities this year since it has such a mainstream appeal. And all the nominees are just so funny. I'm so happy that Sad Keanu stuck around for so long this year. He was like the gift that kept on giving.This category is great because it's easy for anyone to understand, you can enjoy this meme with your mom even though she may not know what a meme is, and everyone can have a good laugh because it's a celebrity you recognize in a funny situation.Tell me this: What do you think of the current state of Internet memes Getting better Same old, same old RegressingReeves: I hesitate to say this, but I feel like it's becoming mainstream. The timeline of when a meme starts to bubble online and when it's covered by different facets of media is getting shorter and shorter by the day. And of course I include Urlesque in that bucket, too. When the site started in 2008, we would be reporting on trends and videos that would never see the light of any other medium, but now we (and all Web sites, really) are competing with traditional, huge, media outlets to be the first to cover and uncover the people behind these viral videos and memes that start spreading online. If a video starts to blow up, you can guarantee that &quot;Today Show&quot; staffers are trying to find the source for the next day's show. Or Rick Astley (CNET: Yes, you're being Rickrolled) pops up in the Thanksgiving day parade. It's bizarre.But the great thing about the Web is that memes will always be good and will continue to be reinvented because the Web and technology is always changing.What's your favorite Internet meme of all timeReeves: I think I have to say Lolcats because I am a cat lady.That's the right answer. Reeves: And also because it helps to explain and illustrate what on earth I do all day at work. And they never get old. Ever.Well, that makes me ask, How do you explain what you do for work to your parentsReeves: It's funny. My mom has become so Internet-savvy since I started working on Urlesque, though that was probably more of Facebook's doing. Believe me, it's become easier over the past few years. At first I would try to explain that I take the funny videos that they receive in their e-mail inboxes and put them on a Web site for all to enjoy. Things like Lolcats or Fail videos definitely make it easier to explain. But now that they &quot;get it&quot; and they're seeing viral video stars cross into their morning TV shows and news, they become fans of the site. They may not understand every post (and who can, really) but as Web culture becomes even more ingrained in pop culture or in real life culture, it'll just be culture. Though I imagine there will always be the subcultures.Your job sounds like a lot of fun. What advice would you give to someone who is interested in making a living writing about Web cultureReeves: It is! I'm so lucky. Honestly, the best advice would be to write about Web culture. Start a blog (they're free!) and do it. My favorite part about Urlesque and our bloggers is that no one is &quot;more qualified&quot; than anyone else. We're all just Web addicts that surf around all day to find weird and funny stuff. Pretty much all of our bloggers have been plucked out of the Internet because of work they were doing on their personal blogs. We wanted their particular sense of humor, their keen analysis, and their following or their ability to find things. Everyone has the ability to find the next big thing. We're all on a level playing field.But the thing I'd stress is to do something different--don't just post a funny video and call it a day. Anyone can do that. Do something to make your take unique, like tying it together as part of a larger trend, re-enacting it, or getting a baby or cat involved (guaranteed Internet gold). That's what will get you noticed.Well, we're out of time, so here's my standard last question: I love doing these IM interviews because IM lets my interviewees be more thoughtful and articulate than they might be face-to-face or over the phone, and because I get a perfect transcript. But also it's because IM makes it easy to multitask. So, tell me: What else were you doing while we were doing this interviewReeves: Hahaha. I checked my e-mail only once. I must've been typing slow. But I was also consulting the Urlies pages.Fair enough. Well, thank you so much for doing this. I appreciate it.Reeves: This was fun, thank you.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Rumor: Blizzard leak reveals 5-year product plan]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rumor-blizzard-leak-reveals-5-year-product-plan</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rumor-blizzard-leak-reveals-5-year-product-plan</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 07 Dec 2010 08:10:35 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>bxikamilia</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rumor-blizzard-leak-reveals-5-year-product-plan</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Video game giant Blizzard could be releasing Diablo 3 and a version of Starcraft 2 called &quot;Phoenix&quot; next year, if rumors about leaks of the company's five-year product road map are true.First reported last week by MMOGameSite.com, the word seems to be that the leak, if it happened, could be tied to the recent and abrupt resignation of Blizzard China's general manager. Blizzard told CNET that it would not comment on the rumors and that it is focused on the release today of the latest version, known as Cataclysm, of its megahit World of Warcraft.Although no one has gotten a confirmation about the leak, there seems to be widespread agreement that the purported Blizzard product road map is realistic. Of course, even if it is real, any number of normal business circumstances could derail it during the five-year period.Either way, the purported road map indicates that Blizzard plans on releasing Diablo 3 and Starcraft 2 Phoenix, as well as a separate Starcraft 2 expansion in 2011' a major World of Warcraft expansion--and a World of Warcraft movie--in 2012' and in 2013, a second Starcraft 2 expansion, a Diablo 3 expansion, the fifth major WoW expansion, and an entirely new project, known as &quot;Titan.&quot; Finally, the road map predicts a second Diablo 3 expansion for 2014.According to MMOGameSite.com, the leak took place on November 29, and shortly thereafter, Blizzard China's general manager, Ye Weilun, was said to have been fired, or at least to have resigned. However, the Marbridge Daily reported that some Blizzard sources have suggested that Weilun's departure was long in the works and was unrelated to any data leak.At the same time, MMOGameSite.com also reported that &quot;leaked internal confidential documents...contain details of Blizzard Games' subscribers, revenue, advertising budgets, and media plans.&quot;In situations like this, of course, it's always difficult to know how much stock to put in rumors. But there seems to be fairly widespread agreement that the information seems plausible, given the level of detail about the various products and the time frames for each potential release, and given the recent staffing changes at Blizzard China. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[25 best iPad games]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=25-best-ipad-games</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=25-best-ipad-games</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 30 Nov 2010 08:10:28 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>paulsmith385</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=25-best-ipad-games</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Madden makes its way to the iPad.(Credit:Screenshot by Scott Stein/CNET)Updated on November 30, 2010Wondering what games to buy for your newiPad Well, this early in the product's life, it's actually pretty hard to sort the really good stuff from the just decent stuff, particularly with the prices for many games being so much higher than theiriPhone counterparts. But we took a shot at putting together a list of top titles that we feel meet the criteria for a good iPad game.Just what does make a good iPad game We debated it for a while and narrowed it down to these five factors:It's gotta be fun (obviously).Ergonomics (are gameplay and control scheme well-suited to the iPad).Uniqueness (though many iPad games play well as upconverted, higher-resolution versions of their iPhone predecessors, we respect new iPad-exclusive games).Value (some of the best iPad games currently carry high price tags, but we also tried to include titles we thought were simply a good value).Show-off quotient (extra points if the game flat-out looks good). With that in mind, here are our current favorites, displayed in alphabetical order. Feel free to sound off with your own picks (or criticize our choices). With new games coming out almost daily, we will be updating this list frequently and taking your suggestions to heart. As more games are released, we may also expand the list to include more titles and, hopefully, surface some hidden gems.Click on any image to start the slideshow.25 best iPad games (screenshots) <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Newegg touts 27-inch monitors for Cyber Monday]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=newegg-touts-27-inch-monitors-for-cyber-monday</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=newegg-touts-27-inch-monitors-for-cyber-monday</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 29 Nov 2010 08:10:35 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>jupnoteroh2534</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=newegg-touts-27-inch-monitors-for-cyber-monday</guid>
<description><![CDATA[LG&amp;39's e2350V is worth even more than Newegg&amp;39's heavily discounted price.(Credit:Josh P. Miller/CNET)Last week, I posted news on Newegg's Black Friday monitor specials. Today, the online vendor coughed up a couple of impressive new monitor deals.As of this posting, only two are available at heavily discounted prices:MonitorWasIsHanns-G HZ281HPB 27.5-inch$270$180LG E2350V-SN 23-inch$270$180Get on it fast, however, if you want to take advantage. Of the two, I can personally vouch for the quality of the LG Flatron e2350V, which features LED backlighting. I've never seen the Hanns-G model personally, but, like with its Black Friday Hanns-G, Newegg is offering a very large monitor (27-inch) for less than $200. For some, this accounts for a lot, beyond even quality. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[My own private memory hole]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=my-own-private-memory-hole</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=my-own-private-memory-hole</comments>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Nov 2010 08:10:22 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>howtomakeawebsite</dc:creator>
<category>Politics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=my-own-private-memory-hole</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Editors' note: This is a guest column. See Larry Downes' bio below.In &quot;1984,&quot; George Orwell's classic dystopian novel, protagonist Winston Smith is a low-level bureaucrat in the Ministry of Truth. His job: to &quot;rectify&quot; old newspaper articles in which Big Brother's predictions or promises turned out to be false. Once the articles are rewritten, the original text--and the truth they represent--is dropped down a pneumatic tube known as a memory hole, &quot;to be devoured by the flames.&quot;The European Commission has recently proposed a real-life version of this fictional device, though this time with a twist. Twenty-five years after the events in Orwell's allegory took place, the Commission has announced plans to regulate what it calls an individual's &quot;right to be forgotten.&quot; The new memory hole would be under the control not of Big Brother but of individuals--of all the Winston Smiths of the world.But the citizens of Oceania--excuse me, the European Union--should be just as wary of this new approach to rewriting history. Erasing the truth is as dangerous as it is futile. And wrapping the effort in the flag of personal privacy only makes the effort appear naive or cynical. Or both.The right to be forgotten Under the new &quot;Comprehensive Approach on Personal Data Protection in the European Union&quot; (PDF), the Commission will undertake an extensive review of gaps in existing EU privacy law, proposing new legislation next year aimed at shoring up consumer rights and reducing conflicts in the privacy laws of EU member states.The report surprised many with plans for new laws aimed at &quot;clarifying the so-called 'right to be forgotten,'&quot; which the Commission awkwardly defines as &quot;the right of individuals to have their data no longer processed, and deleted when [the data] are no longer needed for legitimate purposes.&quot;There are, of course, legitimate privacy concerns associated with new technologies. But existing laws ensuring customer control over user-supplied data such as digital photos, tweets, or tax preparation files stored with an online service are very different than a right to be &quot;forgotten.&quot; For one thing, under the EU's landmark 1995 privacy directive, any information that refers to or identifies an individual is considered &quot;private&quot; data. So a right to be forgotten may give individuals the right to demand, as the Commission puts it, &quot;access, rectification, and deletion&quot; of any or all information that identifies the individual, regardless of how or by whom it was collected.The right to be forgotten may empower EU citizens to demand the suppression of any information that refers to them, including public records, newspaper reports, personal recollections, and other &quot;private&quot; information that wasn't supplied by the user in the first place. All of that information, under EU law, is &quot;their&quot; data.Information--private or otherwise--is not property Such a sweeping right could extend well beyond computer data. &quot;Clarifying&quot; the right to be forgotten could include the right to demand the destruction of paper records as well--even copies in the possession of other individuals.Taken to its logical extreme, a true right to be forgotten would prohibit me from repeating, even in conversation, any personal facts about you I happen to know. It might even require me to purge my mind of anything about you I remember--literally to forget you. Medical science doesn't currently support such a remedy, but that limitation hints at the bigger problem with empowering individuals to erase personal facts that have already entered the collective conscience of others. A right to be forgotten begins by assuming that privacy is a kind of hidden possession of the individual, one that the &quot;original&quot; owner can later reclaim, even if it's been lost, sold, traded, or stolen--indeed, even if the individual never had it in the first place.That's a fatal assumption. Information, personal or otherwise, is not property, at least not in the same way that a house, a barrel of oil, or a cup of coffee are property. It's not physical, something only one person at a time possesses, or which gets used up or worn out over time. Information is instead a virtual good, which can exist simultaneously in the minds of everyone. Laws can and do provide limited control over information use (fraud) or its translation into physical copies (copyright). But there's no practical way to enforce a ban on its existence. All the tapes and disks can be erased, the books burned, and the archives destroyed. But the information will still exist, at least for anyone who happens to remember ever knowing it. The costs and benefits of information exchange Even limiting a legal &quot;right to be forgotten&quot; to information supplied directly by the user could have a disastrous effect on digital life. That's because the Internet economy uses information, including personal information, as its main source of fuel. So when a user enters identifying information into an online ordering service, or uses a social network to exchange and store messages, photos, and videos, an economic exchange takes place, trading value for value. Amazon.com is cheaper than a physical retailer, in part because customers do their own data entry. Google, Facebook, and Twitter are all free because we let the companies' computers scan our interactions with others to offer personalized advertising. Other providers may use the information I enter to build databases of aggregated user behaviors, leading to better, more useful future products and services. Sometimes the individual is compensated, sometimes not. But once the omelet is made, the eggs can't be unscrambled. Releasing personal information into the world, in other words, may impose a cost on the individual, but the benefit to everyone else outweighs it. The sum is very often greater than the parts. If users have the right to be forgotten, what happens to service agreements and informal arrangements that trade information for value Does a user attempting to erase facts have to pay back the value they received If not, imagine what becomes of services that are subsidized, in whole or in part, on personal information. What value is there to facts that can be &quot;rectified&quot; at the whim of the individual Like it or not (realistically both), we are leading an increasingly visible existence. Our always-limited ability to compartmentalize our lives is fading. But the benefits of more easily and safely interacting with others that comes from that transparency more than compensates. That, in any case, is the delicate balance that a right to be forgotten challenges.Of course, the rising anxiety over privacy is understandable. Technology is rapidly changing the nature of human relationships, blurring the private-public line faster than many of us are comfortable with. Anxiety, predictably, leads to calls for legislative solutions. But here, as with so many disruptive technological advancements, the unintended consequences of regulating too soon could be fatal.This is not to say there is no room for improvement or no role for government. We can certainly do a better job of making clear the economics of information exchanges with our public, private, and individual interactions. Governments can provide mechanisms for enforcing agreements that limit the use or publication of that information for different purposes. But we can't turn back the clock. And we certainly can't rewrite history.This doesn't mean that the EU isn't going to try. But if the Commission really wants to protect its citizens from information tyranny, let's hope that it doesn't try. A memory hole is a bad idea, no matter who is using it.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Privacy concerns dog location-based services]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=privacy-concerns-dog-location-based-services</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=privacy-concerns-dog-location-based-services</comments>
<pubDate>Sat, 13 Nov 2010 08:10:05 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>paultupppu</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=privacy-concerns-dog-location-based-services</guid>
<description><![CDATA[It sounds like a sweet deal: report your location to a social network and get a coupon for discounts and prizes. The price The possibility that advertisers and other third parties will know where you are and where you've been. A recent survey by the Pew Center's Internet &amp; American Life Project found that only 4 percent of Internet users have adopted location-based services, as Cecilia Kang reports on The Washington Post's Post Tech blog. That survey was conducted in August and September, before Facebook and Yelp joined Foursquare and Gowalla in offering coupons to users who check in when they visit participating establishments, which may include Starbucks, McDonald's, and other popular chains. (Lisa Barone describes the companies' plans on the Small Business Trends blog.) The crux of the matter for privacy advocates is that when people check in to businesses participating in social networks' coupon programs, they're trading a little of their privacy for the chance to save money. As the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) reports, third parties may have access to users' location history without the users' explicit consent. For example, Facebook application developers are able to store their own check-in data in the Facebook Places database and retrieve information from the database. But Facebook is far from the only source of &quot;leakage&quot; for this location data. EPIC cites an AT&amp;T research paper (PDF) that found some kind of private data leaked to third parties in all 20 of the mobile online social networks studied. The services examined include Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Flickr, Foursquare, Yelp, and Loopt. While these services may have robust privacy policies, the advertisers and developers they deal with may be less secure. As Frederic Lardinois reported last February on the ReadWriteWeb, a site named PleaseRobMe aggregated information from several location-based services to indicate houses whose residents were away, making them easy pickings for thieves.Keep the mobile-device trackers at bay Services such as Foursquare, Gowalla, and Facebook Places depend on location information volunteered by their users. But the trails left by mobile phones and other location-reporting devices can also be tracked by third parties without users' consent or knowledge. A white paper released by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) in August 2009 listed transit swipe-cards, electronic tolling devices such as FastTrak and EZPass, free wireless access points, and even smart parking meters as potential tracking systems. The EFF points out that location-based services can be deployed anonymously, although doing so would make the services more expensive to develop and deploy. But the researchers point out that anonymizing technologies wouldn't entirely prevent leakage of identifiable location information. For example, it's relatively easy to deduce the identity of users in areas with low population densities from little more than their GPS coordinates and a time of day.Prevent Facebook friends from checking you in Opting out of Facebook Places requires changes to several of the service's default settings. Click Account &gt; Privacy Settings &gt; Customize settings. Next, choose Custom in the drop-down menu next to &quot;Places I check in to&quot; and select your preferred setting in the &quot;Make this visible to&quot; drop-down menu. Disable &quot;Include me in 'People Here Now' after I check in.&quot; In the &quot;Things I share&quot; section, click Edit Settings next to &quot;People can check me in to Places&quot; and choose Disable from the drop-down menu in the top-right corner.Disable the Facebook Places option that lets others check you in to locations, to prevent unknown third parties from tracking your whereabouts.(Credit:Screenshot by Dennis O&amp;39'Reilly/CNET) Location-based services promise to make it easier to connect with family, friends, and associates and to be rewarded for being a loyal customer. But in their current form, the services make it too easy for people and organizations to access your private information without your explicit consent. While many--perhaps most--of these third parties won't misuse this information, others won't be so trustworthy. The reality of today's Web is that the personal information we volunteer to online services will be shared for profit with unknown third parties, and the services' promises of anonymity simply cannot be guaranteed. Beware what you share!<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Logitech keyboard goes solar]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=logitech-keyboard-goes-solar</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=logitech-keyboard-goes-solar</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 01 Nov 2010 07:10:21 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>TheBestHawaiiSite</dc:creator>
<category>Eco</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=logitech-keyboard-goes-solar</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Just when you thought solar was headed everywhere--rooftops, utility poles, and deserts, to name a few places--it's coming to your keyboard too.Logitech&amp;39's solar-powered K750 keyboard(Credit:Logitech)Logitech today launched a wireless solar keyboard, its first. The K750 powers itself via integrated solar panels. Without light, the $79 keyboard can operate for three months.The keyboard's tech sounds very familiar to what you can find in a watch. Logitech's solar keyboard is powered by integrated solar panels across the top and comes with an app that will be available November 15. The app tracks battery levels and has a meter to alert you when power is low.Read more of &quot;Logitech launches solar-powered keyboard&quot; at ZDNet's Between the Lines.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Cutting out carriers is tough, even for Apple]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=cutting-out-carriers-is-tough-even-for-apple</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=cutting-out-carriers-is-tough-even-for-apple</comments>
<pubDate>Wed, 27 Oct 2010 07:10:06 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Simi</dc:creator>
<category>Mobile &amp; Electronics</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=cutting-out-carriers-is-tough-even-for-apple</guid>
<description><![CDATA[(Credit:CBS Interactive)Apple has made it plenty clear it would like to control everything about your experience using theiPhone.But does that include somehow excluding the carrier from the process GigaOm reported today Apple has been working with Gemalto to create a special SIM card that would allow iPhone buyers in Europe to get their phone from an Apple Store or online and then activate them via the App Store. The report says that this is Apple's attempt at &quot;cutting out the carriers.&quot;  The SIM card, of course, is a central part of any GSM phone. It holds not only your phone number but also your identity as a subscriber. When you make a call, your SIM card identifies you as a subscriber to the carrier. Even if GigaOm's sources are right--and we haven't confirmed that--it would be impossible for Apple to completely cut wireless carriers out of the equation of using a cell phone short of Steve Jobs opting to build out its own wireless network. And that's highly unlikely.  The big question here is whether the carriers would get on board with Gemalto's concept. To activate a phone, Gemalto would need to remotely access the carrier's network and activation software. Currently carriers have such relationships with third-party retailers like Radio Shack, so the concept isn't improbable. On the other hand, if the carriers don't go along with it and Gemalto is somehow able to do it anyway, then that would be a big deal. Also, if Gemalto could make a single SIM transferable between carriers, we'd also be impressed. Currently, if you switch an unlocked phone from T-Mobile to AT&amp;T, AT&amp;T can't take your T-Mobile SIM and just overwrite it with new information. So, yes, the prospect of a Gemalto-made SIM card certainly is interesting, but we don't see it as doing &quot;an end-run&quot; around the carriers. And we don't agree in the least with the notion that such a move would be &quot;carrier-crippling.&quot; Here's why: GigaOm makes the case that the new SIM would enable Apple to sell the iPhone without carrier involvement. We'll concede that, but it's not a new concept. Currently, you can buy and activate an iPhone in the Apple store without ever setting foot in an AT&amp;T location. Google tried this same tack, admittedly unsuccessfully, with theNexus One. Sure, the Gemalto SIM would separate the carrier from the activation process even further, but you're still doing business with the carrier at the end of the day. You're still paying a carrier for the wireless service, you're still depending on the carrier to get service, and, for most people we guess, you're still signing a contract. In other words, you're not cutting out the carrier at all. Carrier choice would be a nice thing, particularly in this AT&amp;T-dominated market, but that wouldn't come as the result of a new kind of SIM card either. In many other countries, multiple carriers offer the iPhone in the same markets. And when consumers visit an Apple store on those places, they can activate the phone as they wish. So no, we don't see why that's significant either. So how about the unlocked iPhone angle Again, that would be interesting but not game changing. Though we don't have such freedom in the United States, unlocked iPhones are quite common abroad. Our friends in Canada, for example, have enjoyed them since last summer, and U.K. customers can buy them as well. Yes, they can pick carriers at will, but even unlocked iPhone users have to sign on with a carrier if they want to make a call.  And on the service side, though the new SIM would regulate the carrier to the role of a &quot;dumb pipe,&quot; that's not a novel concept either. Remember that AT&amp;T already plays that role for Apple in the United States. Its only role is to provide you with a network. What's more, AT&amp;T doesn't cram the iPhone with AT&amp;T-branded applications as it does on other handsets. Apple was given free rein with the iPhone from the start. So we don't see how the Gemalto SIM would really make the iPhone purchasing process that different. If customers were able to activate their handsets through a downloaded iTunes app--as the GigaOm report predicts--that would be pretty convenient, but the carrier still will have its hands in your pocket. <br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[TechCrunchTV After Dark: So Kincaid, Lacy and Dennis Crowley Walk into a&nbsp'Bar&8230'(TCTV)]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=techcrunchtv-after-dark-so-kincaid-lacy-and-dennis-crowley-walk-into-anbspbar8230tctv</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=techcrunchtv-after-dark-so-kincaid-lacy-and-dennis-crowley-walk-into-anbspbar8230tctv</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>angelikafrazer</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=techcrunchtv-after-dark-so-kincaid-lacy-and-dennis-crowley-walk-into-anbspbar8230tctv</guid>
<description><![CDATA[There is no reason in the world I should have been invited to a dinner with Foursquare founder and CEO Dennis Crowley. It&amp;'s already one of the most written about companies on TechCrunch, and I am the only TechCrunch reporter who has never written a post on them.That&amp;'s in part because I am one of the only TechCrunch reporters who has just never been a big Foursquare fan. I get it, but a mayor badge isn&amp;'t enough to make me want to give up my whereabouts. For the record, Crowley sort of agreed with me and said that&amp;'s going to change in the video below.Logic aside, I was invited to said dinner along with Jason Kincaid and a handful of other reporters, and we captured the beauty of the moment on camera, just before Crowley hopped over to Le Web with seemingly the rest of the TechCrunch staff. We bring you the first (and possibly last) installment of a4sTechCrunchTV After Dark.A few disclaimers: None of us were actually drinking. Jason is swirling grape juice in a wine glass, I just sound tired, and Crowley just likes to steal cameras from reporters and then pretend he&amp;'s a morning shock-jock then force them to eat persimmons. Enjoy.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Ex-Skyper shakes up currency exchange]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ex-skyper-shakes-up-currency-exchange</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ex-skyper-shakes-up-currency-exchange</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>clarencemc</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=ex-skyper-shakes-up-currency-exchange</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Taavet Hinrikus, one of Skype&amp;'s first employees, recently launched a new company called Transferwise, which enables cheap peer to peer currency exchange.Banks charge 3-6 percent more than the mid-market rates for currency exchange. Mid-market rates are halfway between the &amp;''buy&amp;'' and &amp;''sell&amp;'' rates from global currency markets. Transferwise cuts out the banks by matching your exchange with someoneelse&amp;'s.Hinrikus is Estonian but lives in London. He says he often needed to transfer money home and was charged for currency exchange (GBP to EUR) as well as for the transfer itself. An informal market emerged where Estonians would exchange currencies between each other, and now Transferwise automates this process.As a user, you transfer the money you want to exchange to Transferwise&amp;'s UK or Irish account. Your cash is matched with one or many other parties at the mid-market rate currently available on the currency markets. The cash is converted, for example, from British pounds to euros and transferred to the designated recipient. Transferwise charges 1 GBP for each transfer. No banks or brokers get acommissionon the exchange process. For example, if I wanted to send 1000 EUR from Amsterdam to the UK, Transferwise would save me around 40 EUR at the current exchange rates.Hinrikus calls Transferwise the &amp;''Easyjet of currency transfer&amp;'' (EasyJet is one of the biggest low-cost airlines in Europe).Currently, you can only exchange British pounds to euros, and vice versa, but Hinrikus told me that additional currencies will be added soon. The American dollar is one of the most requested currencies.Transferwise is based in London, has 5 employees and was founded in 2010. It is privately funded.Next Story: Pocketgear relaunches as Appia, becomes a mobile app store platform Previous Story: Rdio raises $17.5M to boost music-streaming servicePrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: currency transferCompanies: Skype, transferwise          Tags: currency transferCompanies: Skype, transferwiseCiara Byrne is a full time techie and part-time writer. She has worked as a software developer, team lead, engineering manager and mobile standards expert. Ciara is based in Amsterdam and her interests include creative companies, useful technology, torture by piano and cycling in high heels. Follow her on Twitter at @deciara.  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[Google Ventures Invest In HomeAway At $1.4 Billion&nbsp'Valuation]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-ventures-invest-in-homeaway-at-1-4-billionnbspvaluation</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-ventures-invest-in-homeaway-at-1-4-billionnbspvaluation</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>restaurantlancpa</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-ventures-invest-in-homeaway-at-1-4-billionnbspvaluation</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Google Ventures has invested in Austin, Texas based HomeAway, a vacation home rental service, at a $1.4 billion valuation, we&amp;'ve heard from a source. The New York Times first broke the story, but doesn&amp;'t have details on valuation or amount invested. Our source says Google Ventures invested somewhere around $25 million in the company.Google Ventures bought stock directly from existing shareholders and the money isn&amp;'t being injected into HomeAway. The valuation was set in the last round of financing, a massive $250 million raise in 2008.The company has been growing rapidly since launching in 2005, partly through acquisitions. We&amp;'ve estimated revenue to be in the $200 million range, with $70 million or so in profit.Around half a billion dollars has been invested in HomeAway to date.CrunchBase InformationHomeAwayGoogle VenturesInformation provided by CrunchBase<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Nvidia CEO: Oh, the places those magical Android tablets will go]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=nvidia-ceo-oh-the-places-those-magical-android-tablets-will-go</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=nvidia-ceo-oh-the-places-those-magical-android-tablets-will-go</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Mary-Cherry8</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=nvidia-ceo-oh-the-places-those-magical-android-tablets-will-go</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Graphics chip maker Nvidia&amp;'s CEO Jen-Hsun Huang thinks Google&amp;'s Android team is pretty much the best thing since sliced bread.Huang praised Google for its work on the Android mobile operating system on Nvidia&amp;'s earnings conference call yesterday and said Nvidia has very high expectations for the next generation of Android tablets.Nvidia, which traditionally caters to gamers and designers with its beefy video cards, said stated in its quarterly earnings report yesterday that it plans tojam its Tegra graphics processing unit (GPU) into as many mobile devices as possible, specifically smartphones and other mobile devices running Android.&amp;''Although theya4a4re a little bit behind, the work that Google and Andy Rubina4a4s team is doing at Google is just really amazing,&amp;'' Huang said on Nvidia&amp;'s earnings conference call. &amp;''I think (the next generation of Android tablets is) going to really, really surprise people and delight consumers everywhere.&amp;''Apple has taken over the tablet personal computer market with its 9.7-inch tablet computer, the iPad. The iPhone and iPad manufacturer currently has a 95 percent market share stranglehold on the tablet space. Meanwhile, Google&amp;'s Android operating system only accounts for about 2 percent of all tablets sold.Pretty much everyone else is now working on a tablet. Research in Motion is making a 7-inchtablet powered by the BlackBerry 6 operating system a4&quot; and it&amp;'s undercutting the iPad with pricing below $500. Samsung&amp;'s 7-inch Galaxy Tab tablet, which runs on Android, is priced at an unfortunate $600 a4&quot; $30 more than Apple&amp;'s cheapest 3G-enabled iPad. Hewlett-Packard is also working on an 8.9-inch tablet packing Windows 7.It wasn&amp;'t all smiles and compliments from Huang. He said Google and tablet manufacturers weren&amp;'t picking up their game to compete with the iPad. He said that the current generation of tablets was well behind the iPad and that competitors had been slow to realize the potential of tablet computers in the face of the iPad&amp;'s success. &amp;''You cana4a4t just put an operating system on a tablet and hope that . . . youa4a4re going to compete against the iPad,&amp;'' he said.But the wait would be well worth it, he said.&amp;''I think that the extra time that was necessary to build these devices, and build the operating system and all the applications and the system software necessary to do it a4&quot; and obviously, wea4a4re not going to talk about what they are right now, but theya4a4re going to be absolutely magical,&amp;'' Huang said.Next Story: Gmail creator Paul Buchheit leaves Facebook for Y Combinator Previous Story: On the GreenBeat: GE to buy 25,000 electric cars, Ascent Solar raises $20M in public offeringPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: Android, Apple iPad, Galaxy Tab, Google Android, iPad, PlayBook, Samsung Galaxy Tab, tabletsCompanies: Apple, Google, Hewlett Packard, Nvidia, Research In Motion, SamsungPeople: Jen Hsun Huang          Tags: Android, Apple iPad, Galaxy Tab, Google Android, iPad, PlayBook, Samsung Galaxy Tab, tabletsCompanies: Apple, Google, Hewlett Packard, Nvidia, Research In Motion, SamsungPeople: Jen Hsun HuangVentureBeat 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[Why is Visa interested in mobile payment company Square]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=why-is-visa-interested-in-mobile-payment-company-square</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=why-is-visa-interested-in-mobile-payment-company-square</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>csandaussu</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=why-is-visa-interested-in-mobile-payment-company-square</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Mega credit card company Visa appears to be incredibly impressed with mobile electronic payment startup Square, according to a company blog post.The post titled &amp;''Emerging Payment Types = New Opportunities&amp;'' starts by spotlighting a recent interview by All Things Digital with Square founder Jack Dorsey and continues by graciously praising the company&amp;'s vision as a &amp;''big deal.&amp;''Square, founded in 2009, has created a small device which attaches to a mobile device to allow the user to accept credit card payments. Currently, the device can be plugged into a smartphone that uses Apple iOS and Google Android, including the iPad. Getting started seems pretty easy as users are instructed to download the Square app, plug-in the special credit card device to the headphone jack, input the purchase amount, the consumer signs with their finger and that&amp;'s it.So why is Visa stroking the startup&amp;'s ego There could be a couple of reasons. First, Visa may be starting to understand that businesses are continuing to tailor to the mobile consumer. If you want to sell to the mobile consumer, you may have to be mobile. Second, the blog was written by Visa Corporate Relations and might be looking to strike a partnership. Though interestingly, Square is using a Visa card in its demo image (see image above). Enabling purchases to be versatile and available anywhere could greatly increase Visa&amp;'s attractiveness to both businesses and consumers.Lastly, perhaps Visa is looking to get on Square&amp;'s radar for an acquisition. A piece of technology like Square&amp;'s, along with its millions of dollars in transactions every week as well as signing up 30,000 to 50,000 new merchants a month, could put Visa ahead of the competition. However, competition for these devices is thick, including an iPhone system from well-known payment company VeriPhone, as well as potential patent issues, which Square faced even before it officially launched.Regardless of the reasons for the post, it&amp;'s a good sign that Square is making headway with entrenched financial institutions, which is going to be one of the keys to truly mass adoption. With offices in both San Francisco and New York City, the company most recently secured $27.5 million in funding led by Sequoia Capital.Previous Story: Steve Jobsa4a4 cancer clinic sighting sparks new Apple worriesPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: corporate relations, credit card, merchants, mobile payments, VisaCompanies: Square, VisaPeople: Jack Dorsey          Tags: corporate relations, credit card, merchants, mobile payments, VisaCompanies: Square, VisaPeople: Jack DorseyCody Barbierri is a social and digital media consultant. He works for Piehead and blogs about social media at Social Tab. (None of his posts are about clients or their competitors.) Reach him at Cody@venturebeat.com. You can also follow Cody on Twitter. 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[Sony launches first free-to-play online game on PlayStation Network]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-launches-first-free-to-play-online-game-on-playstation-network</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-launches-first-free-to-play-online-game-on-playstation-network</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>svetalard</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=sony-launches-first-free-to-play-online-game-on-playstation-network</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Free-to-play online gaming is coming to the PlayStation 3. Free Realms, a massively multiplayer virtual world game that launched on the PC two years ago, is making its debut on Sony&amp;'s PlayStation Network on March 29.The launch shows that the free-to-play business model &amp;8212' where users play a game for free and pay real money for virtual goods &amp;8212' is catching on with in the console world.Sony Online Entertainment, the division of Sony that makes MMOs, previously published DC Universe Online on the PlayStation Network. But Free Realms, which has 17 million registered players on the PC and Mac, is the first free-to-play MMO to be slated for the PS 3&amp;'s online network. With two major MMOs coming to the PS 3, Sony is trying to differentiate its platform from Microsoft&amp;'s Xbox 360, which has no such MMOs on tap.John Smedley, president of Sony Online Entertainment, said that Free Realms continues to break new ground in the game industry. Sony is pushing retail sales of DC Universe Online at the same time it is embracing the free-to-play business model with Free Realms. Free Realms is a fantasy-role-playing world that competes with the likes of World of Warcraft or Lord of the Rings Online, but its content is lighter and it is geared toward a younger audience.The world is pretty diverse. You can train as a ninja, play soccer, battle pirate ships, cook a meal, enter a demolition derby, mine for gold, pursue a quest, and train exotic pets. You can socialize with friends, play mini-games, go on adventures and share your achievements.Sony promises you can get into Free Realms quickly and easily from the PlayStation Store. You can create a character and jump into the world within minutes. There are 15 types of careers to choose and more than 30,000 combinations of clothing. The free-to-play business model got another boost with game maker Gazillion announcing today it would shift to that model.Sony also has the Sodium free-to-play game in its Home virtual world on the PlayStation Network, but Sodium isn&amp;'t an MMO and is more like an arcade game.Next Story: Flash 10.2 heads to Motorola Xoom, other Android devices March 18 Previous Story: Socialize: Monetizing social media this month in NYC (VentureBeat Discount)PrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: Free Realms, free-to-playCompanies: Sony, Sony Online EntetainmentPeople: John Smedley          Tags: Free Realms, free-to-playCompanies: Sony, Sony Online EntetainmentPeople: John SmedleyDean 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[Gevo slashes biofuels IPO goal to $100 million, potential boost from Total, United Airlines]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gevo-slashes-biofuels-ipo-goal-to-100-million-potential-boost-from-total-united-airlines</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gevo-slashes-biofuels-ipo-goal-to-100-million-potential-boost-from-total-united-airlines</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>fanclubmib</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=gevo-slashes-biofuels-ipo-goal-to-100-million-potential-boost-from-total-united-airlines</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Biofuels company Gevo is seeking a roughly $100 million IPO by selling over seven million shares priced between $13 and $15 each, a pared-down goal from its $150 million public offering hopes announced last August.At $13 to $15 a share, Gevo could raise $93 million to $107 million, but the total may actually come out to $89 million after fees, according to VentureWire/Earth2Tech.Looks like Gevo&amp;'s prospectus to potential investors doesn&amp;'t quite market it as a 100 percent biofuels company though, instead joining the trend we&amp;'ve seen recently of biofuels companies backing away from the costly and difficult process of scaling up biofuel plants, instead using their technology to make chemicals or food additives.In Gevo&amp;'s case, the company is planning to move forward by first commercializing its isobutanol, a versatile alcohol compound that can be used as an ethanol substitute' Gevo in fact wants to retrofit ethanol facilities to produce isobutanol, with commercial production starting in 2012. Its SEC filing placed heavy emphasis on isobutanol&amp;'s potential as a building block in raw materials, pointing to opportunities in rubber, lubricants and polyester. Isobutanol can be used as a fuel in existing gas tanks, as a fuel blend with gasoline like ethanol, or as a component in plastics and other polymers.Still, it&amp;'s a hefty ambition on Gevo&amp;'s part. Its better-known biofuels rivals, Codexis and Amyris, IPO&amp;'d last year for smaller amounts' Codexis for $78 million and Amyris for $85 million. Amyris, like Gevo, was backed by Vinod Khosla&amp;'s cleantech fund. Gevo also drew investment from Richard Branson&amp;'s Virgin Fuels fund.In its SEC filing, Gevo also discloses it has received letters of intent with future customers for its chemicals and fuels. The list included chemicals company Lanxess, the U.S. arm of oil and gas giant Total and United Airlines.Both Codexis and Amyris were boosted in part by their deals with companies like Shell and Total &amp;8212' but Gevo doesn&amp;'t appear to have inked contracts yet with any of the above, although its website lists agriculture and food companies Cargill and ICM as partners. Still, the letters of intent should give some boost to Gevo, which clearly needs to raise cash and has never been profitable, a fact it acknowledged in its S-1:&amp;''While we are a development stage company that has generated minimal revenue and has experienced net losses since inception, we believe that our cost-efficient production route will enable rapid deployment of our technology platform and allow our isobutanol and the products produced from it to be economically competitive with many of the petroleum-derived products used in the chemicals and fuels markets today.&amp;''The IPO&amp;'s underwriters will be UBS, Citi and Piper Jaffray.[Image via Flickr/chicagokoz]Next Story: Facebooka4a4s mobile dominance grows with new feature phone app Previous Story: PayPal keeps on rolling as eBay posts solid fourth quarterPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: biofuelsCompanies: Citi, Gevo, Khosla Ventures, Piper Jaffray, UBS, Virgin FuelsPeople: Richard Branson, Vinod Khosla          Tags: biofuelsCompanies: Citi, Gevo, Khosla Ventures, Piper Jaffray, UBS, Virgin FuelsPeople: Richard Branson, Vinod KhoslaIris Kuo is the VentureBeat's lead GreenBeat writer. She has reported for The Wall Street Journal in Hong Kong, Houston Chronicle, the McClatchy Washington Bureau and Dallas public radio. Iris attended the University of Texas at Dallas and lives in Houston. Follow Iris on Twitter @thestatuskuo (and yes, that's how you  pronounce her last name).VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Elon Musk&'s swing for the skies, SpaceX, scores $50 million]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=elon-muskrsquos-swing-for-the-skies-spacex-scores-50-million</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=elon-muskrsquos-swing-for-the-skies-spacex-scores-50-million</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>orenavava</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=elon-muskrsquos-swing-for-the-skies-spacex-scores-50-million</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Sweet-talking South African entrepreneur Elon Musk has done it again, raising more than $50 million for his space-transportation company SpaceX, according to an SEC filing dated Oct. 28.Silicon Alley Insider first reported the funding.SpaceX is currently developing a squadron of launch vehicles, which it says will ultimately reduce the cost and increase the reliability of space access significantly.Musk has long said that the combination of a newly emerging market for private space travel with commercial space transport is inevitablea4&quot;and that SpaceX aims to be at the front of any a4Are-ignitiona4 of efforts to explore and develop space.As such, the Hawthorne, Calif.-based company has created two launch vehicles so far, the Falcon 1 and the Falcon 9, and patented its own rocket engines, the Kestrel, Merlin and Draco.Founded in 2002, the company now tests its products from a launching site in the Marshall Islands and has collaborated with NASA on several occasions, including scoring $1.6 billion to resupply the International Space Station once the Space Shuttle is retired in 2011, and $500 million to launch iridium satellites via its Falcon 9.The founder of PayPal and CEO of electric car maker Teslaa4&quot;which lost around $35 million dollars in the third quarter, a seven-fold increase from the same period last yeara4&quot;apparently has found more interest from investors looking to get a slice of that public and private interest in space exploration.&amp;''Existing investors expressed an interest in making an incremental investment and we accommodated their request,&amp;'' a company spokesperson told SAI.The SEC filing named existing investors Musk, the Founders Fund and Draper Fisher Jurvetson as the largest investors in the company to date. Thus far, SpaceX has raised about $200 million.Previous Story: LeisureLink raises $9M to do for hotels what Captain Kirk did for flightsPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: space tourism, space transportationCompanies: Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Founders Fund, SpacexPeople: Elon Musk          Tags: space tourism, space transportationCompanies: Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Founders Fund, SpacexPeople: Elon MuskRiley McDermid is a contributing reporter to VentureBeat. She was previously the online editor at institutional investing and trading forum Markets Media, which she joined in 2008 from Dow Jones/MarketWatch in New York. Her work has appeared in the The New York Times, the Associated Press, Portfolio Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, and Barrona4a4s. She has won awards from the American Society of Business Publishers and Editors, the Magazine Association of the Southeast, the Mississippi Press Association and the Atlanta Press Club, and was a finalist for the Pacemaker Prize for excellence in news reporting.VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[RIM CEO Jim Balsillie To Steve Jobs: &'' You Dona4a4t Need An App For The&nbsp'Web&'']]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rim-ceo-jim-balsillie-to-steve-jobs-8221-you-donrsquot-need-an-app-for-thenbspweb8221</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rim-ceo-jim-balsillie-to-steve-jobs-8221-you-donrsquot-need-an-app-for-thenbspweb8221</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Abiabeo</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=rim-ceo-jim-balsillie-to-steve-jobs-8221-you-donrsquot-need-an-app-for-thenbspweb8221</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Research in Motion CEO Jim Balsillie may still be smarting from the fact that Apple passed it in smartphone market share last quarter.  Steve Jobs made a point to rub it in during Apple&amp;'s most recent earnings conference call: &amp;''a4AWea4a4ve now past RIM, and I dona4a4t see them catching up to us in the near future.a4Asked what he would say to Jobs if he were present today at the Web 2.0 Summit, Balsillie shot back: &amp;''You finally showed up.&amp;''  The implication being that RIM practically invented the smartphone category and is not going anywhere.  Balsillie went on to contrast the Blackberry approach to Apple&amp;'s when it comes to web apps.  There may be 300,000 apps for the iPhone and iPad, but the only app you really need is the browser.  &amp;''You dona4a4t need an app for the Web,&amp;'' he says, and that is equally true for the mobile Web.  The debate over mobile apps versus the mobile Web.  Blackberry is betting on the Web, much like Google.And to usher in the era of a fully browsable mobile Web, RIM is positioning its upcoming PlayBook Blackberry Tablet as super Web-capable.  &amp;''It will be 3 to 4 times faster than the iPad,&amp;'' boasts Balsillie.  RIM even put out out this teaser video showing how much faster the PlayBook is at several browsing tasks than the iPad, including its support for Flash.  (This is not exactly an independent, unbiased test, but it should be easy enough to replicate once the PlayBook is available in the first quarter of 2011.    But even if it is faster, that still might not be enough to make the PlayBook a success. CrunchBase InformationResearch In MotionInformation provided by CrunchBase<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[StumbleUpon brings its discovery tools to Android apps]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=stumbleupon-brings-its-discovery-tools-to-android-apps</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=stumbleupon-brings-its-discovery-tools-to-android-apps</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>jemarinaji</dc:creator>
<category>Technology</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=stumbleupon-brings-its-discovery-tools-to-android-apps</guid>
<description><![CDATA[StumbleUpon, traditionally a tool for website discovery, is taking a crack at application discovery on the Android Marketplace with the launch of its App Discovery feature on its Android app today.The mobile app, which already helps users discover new websites, will recommend Android applications based on what web sites the user says they&amp;'ve &amp;''liked&amp;'' via StumbleUpon&amp;'s interface. The new app recommendations will be based on a user&amp;'s own app preferences, as well as his or her friends&amp;' app usage. If the user finds an app they like, they can click through to the Android Marketplace and download it.Discovery is the biggest, and also one of the newest, challenges that startups face today. There are alreadymore than 300,000 apps on the iPhone App Store, and more than 1,000 more are added to that store daily. There are also about 115,000 apps on the Android Marketplace, according to AndroLib.com. So there&amp;'s a lot of noise, and it can be discouraging for mobile app developers to launch an application only to make a few dollars in sales a month.StumbleUpon isn&amp;'t the first new tool for application discovery on the Android Marketplace a4&quot; or any marketplace for that matter. AppStoreHQ, which launched at DiscoveryBeat 2010 a few weeks ago, helps users discover new Android applications in a similar way: It looks at a user&amp;'s own installed applications and his or her friends&amp;' installed applications.StumbleUpon was launched out of Canada in 2002 and didna4a4t move to the San Francisco Bay Area until 2006. It was acquired by eBay a year later for $75 million. The San Francisco, Calif.-based company raised $1.5 million from Googlea4a4s founding investor, Ram Shriram, Lotus founder Mitch Kapor, Topic founder Ariel Poler, and angel investor Ron Conway.Android users can download the StumbleUpon application today.[Photo: magerleagues]Next Story: Microsoft marks launch of Kinect motion-control system with dance party in Times Square Previous Story: Zynga to launch its first Android social gamePrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: app discovery, Discovery, website discoveryCompanies: Stumbleupon          Tags: app discovery, Discovery, website discoveryCompanies: StumbleuponVentureBeat 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[Is &''Google Me&'' Codenamed &''Emerald City&'' And Why Is Google Baraza Copying&nbsp'Quora]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=is-8220google-me8221-codenamed-8220emerald-city8221-and-why-is-google-baraza-copyingnbspquora</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=is-8220google-me8221-codenamed-8220emerald-city8221-and-why-is-google-baraza-copyingnbspquora</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>sufwanminnice</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=is-8220google-me8221-codenamed-8220emerald-city8221-and-why-is-google-baraza-copyingnbspquora</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Follow the yellow brick road&amp;8230'It&amp;'s no secret that Google is working on a new social project that is thought to be a layer which will be spread over many of their properties. Actually, it is supposed to be a secret. But everyone knows about it. At first, it was known as &amp;''Google Me&amp;'', but that&amp;'s probably not what it&amp;'s going to end up being called when it rolls out at some point next year. And if you believe an anonymous answer on Quora, that&amp;'s not what Google is internally calling it. And based on what we&amp;'ve heard, they may just be right.According to this post from November 4, Google is in the process of internally testing the product they&amp;'re calling &amp;''Emerald City&amp;''. The fact that the anonymous user says it&amp;'s being dogfood tested shouldn&amp;'t be a surprise to anyone a4&quot; Google tends to do this with most of their big products before launch. What&amp;'s interesting is the detail the user goes into:Emerald City has been integrated into numerous products and is being actively used internally.Emerald City is the project name for what people outside of Google refer to as &amp;''Google Me&amp;''. Lots of existing projects like youtube, google docs, search, calendar, groups, picassa, etc have had significant social integrations added to them. This is an ongoing project that will launch as a major initiative across multiple services at once and many of the hooks endusers will see are currently being tested internally. It is by no means done and is extremely ambitious in nature.Here&amp;'s the thing, we had actually heard that nickname before as well. Well, actually we heard &amp;''Emerald Sea&amp;'', but this makes more sense (update: see below, nope, it&amp;'s &amp;''Emerald Sea&amp;'' after all). Further,a4sthe other details are inline with what we&amp;'ve been hearing about the project. Of course, the fact that it&amp;'s thought to work with YouTube, Google Docs, Search, etc, would be an easy and obvious guess to make.Still, unless we have the same source, the anonymous Quora user may be on to something.But perhaps even more interesting may be the fact that the exact same answer was posted almost two weeks later to Google Baraza. Wait. What the hell is Google BarazaIt turns out, Baraza is a service that Google very quietly launched in late October. In fact, the blogs that closely watch Google didn&amp;'t pick it up until a couple weeks ago a4&quot; see here and here. Google states that Baraza is a service meant intended to be used in Africa to bring more locallya4srelevanta4sinformation online.So why is there a question and an answer about Google&amp;'s new social product on Baraza Because some people are using it like Quora.a4sProbably becausea4sit is a lot like Quora a4&quot; you even search and ask a question in the same box. While Google talks about Africa, anyone in the world (who speaks English or French) can use it. I just set up an account simply by asking a question. And even the idea behind it sounds like Quora a4&quot; to get things out of people&amp;'s heads and onto the web.Anyway, back to the matter at hand. Someone has posted the exact same answer about Google&amp;'s social product to both services. Could it be a Google employee Certainly that would explain how they knew what Baraza was in the first place. But why would a Google employee go out of their way to answer the question and out a secret project on not just Quora, but also on another Google-run projectMaybe it&amp;'s more likely that someone simply copy &amp;amp' pasted the answer from Quora. It is interesting just how much action there is around the question though.So, we now have two new pieces of Google intrigue. First, Google may be internally testing their social product which they&amp;'re calling &amp;''Emerald City&amp;''. Second, Google is definitely testing a Quora competitor. And while it may have meant the test for Africa, clearly others are using it as a universal Google Q&amp;amp'A service.Google just better hope that Emerald City doesn&amp;'t end up like Google Answers.Update: Actually, we were right,a4sGooglea4a4s Social Product Is Definitely Codenamed a4AEmeralda4sSeaa4CrunchBase InformationGoogleQuoraInformation provided by CrunchBase<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Google to lure enterprise users by copying Microsoft Exchange data to the cloud]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-to-lure-enterprise-users-by-copying-microsoft-exchange-data-to-the-cloud</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-to-lure-enterprise-users-by-copying-microsoft-exchange-data-to-the-cloud</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>nubereswoof</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=google-to-lure-enterprise-users-by-copying-microsoft-exchange-data-to-the-cloud</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Google announced today that it is launching a service called Google Message Community that will serve as disaster insurance for Microsoft Exchange users, backing up their email and contact data into Google applications.The search giant isn&amp;'t one to shy away from pulling business from Microsoft and its Exchange products. In fact, it even offers a service to directly transition from Exchange over to Google&amp;'s enterprise applications.So why is Google warming up to Microsoft now Well, this could be another chance for Google to get its enterprise products in the hands of potential customers. If a Microsoft Exchange server goes down, Google Message Community users can log into Gmail and Google Calendar and move on with their lives. The hope is probably that users will see Gmail as a little more reliable than Microsoft Exchange, and make the switch.And that reliability can be critical for larger businesses that rely on Microsoft Exchange servers and a consistent email service. Email outages can cost larger businesses upwards of $90,000 every year, according to Osterman Research. For smaller companies using Microsoft Exchange, an email outage can mean losing the company&amp;'s (possibly) only communication tool.The service will cost $25 per user per year, or $13 per user per year for current Postini users. The backup service stems from Google&amp;'s acquisition of Postini, a provider of security for email in a cloud environment, back in 2007. Google paid $625 million for the company when it didn&amp;'t have a very robust suite of enterprise applications.Next Story: Chinese startups profit big from US IPOs Previous Story: With Angry Birds at the top, Apple releases its top iTunes content of 2010PrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: disaster, disaster insurance, email, Microsoft ExchangeCompanies: Google, Microsoft          Tags: disaster, disaster insurance, email, Microsoft ExchangeCompanies: Google, MicrosoftMatthew Lynley is VentureBeat's enterprise writer. He graduated from University of North Carolina, where he studied math and physics, in May 2010. He has reported for Reuters. He currently lives in San Francsico, Calif. You can reach him at mattl@venturebeat.com (all story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com), and on Twitter at @logicalmoron.VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters.  Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[THIS JUST IN! Britain Delivers Killer Blow to Terrorists, Office Supply&nbsp'Salesmen]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=this-just-in-britain-delivers-killer-blow-to-terrorists-office-supplynbspsalesmen</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=this-just-in-britain-delivers-killer-blow-to-terrorists-office-supplynbspsalesmen</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>Pooja01</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=this-just-in-britain-delivers-killer-blow-to-terrorists-office-supplynbspsalesmen</guid>
<description><![CDATA[a4AIs this CNN or the Oniona4 The question has become something of a cliche over the past nine years or so. Every time a terrorist invents a new way to try to bring down a plane, you can guarantee that either the American or British government will enact a piece of bizarre knee jerk legislation to firmly lock the stable door after the terror-horse has bolted.Box cutter hijackers No airside butter knives!Shoe bomber Passengers must remove shoes before boarding!Underwear bomber Genital scanning for all!And so when I heard that a Somali al-Qaedan had planted a cellphone bomb inside a printer cartridge on a cargo plane, I knew it was only a matter of time until&amp;8230'.&amp;8230'3&amp;8230'.&amp;8230'2&amp;8230'&amp;8230'1&amp;8230'a4ABritain is cracking down on security in the wake of the cargo plane terror plot by banning printer cartridges in hand luggagea4Are you freaking kidding me Printer cartridgesI feel like Tom Lehrer after Kissinger won the Nobel peace prize. I literally dona4a4t know how to parody this' it simply defies comical exaggeration. Here, for the benefit of travelers, is a full list of things which are now banned on transatlantic flights&amp;8230' Printer cartridges Liquids Zippo lighters Raindrops on roses Whiskers on kittens Bright copper kettles Warm woolen mittens* Brown paper packages tied up with string Cream colored ponies and crisp apple streudels Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes Silver white winters that melt into springs Butter knivesFinally I feel safe.* may be carried in checked baggage.<br/><br/>0 Vote(s) ]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Have the location-based patent wars begun]]></title>
<link>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=have-the-location-based-patent-wars-begun</link>
<comments>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=have-the-location-based-patent-wars-begun</comments>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov -001 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator>nuingrebossmancur</dc:creator>
<category>Latest News</category>
<guid>http://www.haaze.com/story.php?title=have-the-location-based-patent-wars-begun</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Popular location-based check-in application Foursqaure was slapped with a lawsuit today for supposedly infringing on a patent from little known company Mobile Commerce Framework, as first reported by TechCrunch.The lawsuit was filed yesterday by Mobile Commerce Framework&amp;'s legal representation Jonathan Hangartner in the Southern District of California and is claiming financial damages as well as the withdrawal of all products by Foursquare to be impounded or destroyed.The claim is that Foursquare&amp;'s application infringes the patent by allowing users to search and find information on merchants by location or merchant type. A very broad statement, which most patents tend to follow and could be applied to many of the applications available today.Don&amp;'t think that Foursquare is going to be shutting down anytime soon, the company itself may own its own patents that could be used in defense. Like the one cofounder Dennis Crowley used to own from his days at Dodgeball titled a4ALocation-based social software for mobile devices.a4Other services dealing in location-based services also have unique patents, including Facebook Places, which could be used in defense called a4ASystems and methods for automatically locating Web-based social network members&amp;'' filed in 2007.The lawsuit may be the first of many to come to Foursquare by a variety of companies.  Unfortunately, it appears that Mobile Commerce Framework isn&amp;'t an active  participant in the location-based services space defending one of their  products, but rather just looking for a quick buck from a company that  appears to be doing the best in the space. Why do we think this Well,  the company doesn&amp;'t even have a website or any other real information  available.Hopefully, the location-based patent wars haven&amp;'t begun and the space can continue to grow. We&amp;'ve emailed Foursquare CEO Dennis Crowley for comment, and will update when we hear back.Next Story: Disqus CEO not worried about Facebook comment threat Previous Story: Japan&amp;'s 8.9 quake puts cloud data at risk, stresses mobile servicesPrintEmailTwitterFacebookGoogle BuzzLinkedIn      DiggStumbleUponRedditDeliciousGoogleMore&amp;8230'          Tags: check-in, Facebook Places, lawsuit, location, location based services, location-based, patent, patent infringementCompanies: Facebook, Foursquare, Mobile Commerce FrameworkPeople: Dennis Crowley          Tags: check-in, Facebook Places, lawsuit, location, location based services, location-based, patent, patent infringementCompanies: Facebook, Foursquare, Mobile Commerce FrameworkPeople: Dennis CrowleyCody Barbierri is a social and digital media consultant. He works for Piehead and blogs about social media at Social Tab. (None of his posts are about clients or their competitors.) Reach him at Cody@venturebeat.com. You can also follow Cody on Twitter. 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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