Technology Ruling the world!!!

Apple releases OS X Leopard 10.5.4 update

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:26:00 +0000

According to Apple, the software "includes general operating system improvements that enhance the stability, compatibility, and security of your Mac." The download is available through OS X's Software Update mechanism or as a free download from Apple's web site, weighing 88 MB for users who already run their Mac on the 10.5.3 update.

Besides 10.5.4 Leopard update, Apple has also released the Security Update 2008-004 for Mac OS X Tiger and Tiger Server (both Intel or PowerPC). These updates replicate the security fixes featured in 10.5.4 Leopard updates so that both systems are one level in terms of security. The patch includes protection against vulnerabilities in major system components, such as CoreTypes, Dock, SMB File Server, Ruby on Rails interpreter and Webkit.

Additionally, the company has updated Safari on Tiger to version 3.1.2, fixing a serious issue in the open-source WebKit browser engine that powers Safari. The problem could allow malicious JavaScript programs to allow running potentially dangerous code through the browser or crash the browser. The Leopard 10.5.4 update also addresses the same WebKit issue under Leopard. Windows XP and Vista users already have access to Safari 3.1.2 for Windows since June 19.

Plugging Leopard security holes

Leopard 10.5.4 update includes all recent security updates released between Mac OS X 10.5.3 and the new update. The 10.5.4. update resolves issues with several system and third-party applications, such as saving and re-opening Adobe Creative Suite 3 ﬁles on a remote server. It adds additional RAW image support for several digital camera models, improves L2TP VPN client reliability, solves AirPort reliability issues when on 5 GHz 802.11a and 802.11n networks and Logic Studio or MainStage problems with AirPort. The update also delivers many fixes to the system’s iCal calendaring application that is now more reliable, with several new options and user interface improvements available.

Changes to the Safari web browser address a potential performance issue when loading secure web pages or issues that may arise if a user accesses web pages with client certificates that reside on a smart card. Spaces and Exposé features that handle virtual desktops and windows management also received minor tweaks. Switching from a space with a Finder window now keeps the Finder as the active application instead of the application residing in the destination space. Also, dragging an application from the list of application assignments in the Spaces System Preferences does not assign the application to the desired space. A problem with Exposé that may result in only a subset of windows being shown is resolved as well, Apple said.

Important pre-requisite for MobileMe

Besides the regular slew of security, reliability and performance improvements, this update is widely believed to contain the code necessary to support Apple's new MobilMe suite of online services for Mac, PC and iPhone users that will replace the aging .Mac service. Dubbed "Exchange for the rest of us", MobileMe is a $99 a year service that comes with 20 GB of storage space shared between all services, including push email, contacts, calendar and photos, web galleries and online file sharing. These services can be accessed through a Web 2.0 web interface that looks and feels like a desktop application.

MobileMe seamlessly synchronizes personal information (contacts, calendars and email from Outlook on a PC or Mail/iCal/Address Book on a Mac) between any number of PCs, Macs and iPhones so that everything is up to date, all the time. MobileMe is set to debut on July 11, the same day as iPhone 3G. Apple is already transitioning some user .Mac user accounts from its @mac.com name space to the new MobileMe @me.com name space.

Flash Search being Enabled by Google, Yahoo; Images/Video Still Not Searchable

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:26:00 +0000

In a major step forward in search technology, Adobe ( NSDQ: ADBE) is working with Google ( NSDQ: GOOG) and Yahoo ( NSDQ: YHOO) to make Flash files searchable in online search. The project will enable searches on Flash content to return text and links, which can then be indexed, and hence available in search results for the users. Content from a Flash application or even a game or advertisement will be available to search engines, reports InfoWorld. Pages containing a Flash .SWF file will be returned in a search. Google has already implemented this, while Yahoo, ever the laggard, will enable Flash search in a future version, whenever that comes out.

As for images and video, no luck yet. From Google's own description: "If your Flash files only include images, we will not recognize or index any text that may appear in those images. Similarly, we do not generate any anchor text for Flash buttons which target some URL, but which have no associated text. Also note that we do not index FLV files, such as the videos that play on YouTube, because these files contain no text elements."
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No plans were disclosed for other search engines like MSFT's Live.com or Ask.com, but expect them to be enabled at a later date...MSFT might take a while, though, since it has its own Flash competitor Silverlight, and has its own motives on not surfacing Flash fils in results.

Among the beneficiaries will be the fancy e-commerce/transactional info sites who use Flash to develop their shopping site and product pages, whose results will now crop up in the search results...and this may even lead to some new SEO tricks, who knows?

Verizon's New DRM-Free Initiative Puts Apple On The Run

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:22:00 +0000

Verizon Wireless may not challenge Apple's dominance of digital music any time soon, but its new DRM-free music initiative could help boost its mobile data business and broaden the market beyond iTunes.

Powered by RealNetworks' Rhapsody service, Verizon's upgraded V Cast Music store offers unprotected MP3 tracks via a $15 monthly subscription, as well as individual downloads to mobile devices or PC.

The subscription buys unlimited access to 5 million songs from all four of the major labels--Sony BMG, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and The EMI Group.

Anyone, including non-Verizon subscribers, can use the service to download DRM-free tracks to a PC for 99 cents each. Subscribers can also buy songs directly through their mobile phones for $1.99 apiece, with an extra copy downloaded to a customer's PC.

Rhapsody subscribers can also sync their phones to the new V Cast service.

With the move, Verizon and Rhapsody join others in distributing digital music free of encryption software, including wireless rival AT&T (with Napster), Amazon and Wal-Mart. But so far, none have managed to put a dent in the 80% market share Apple commands through its iTunes store.

Consumers to date have shown a decided preference for 99 cent downloads via iTunes and the iPod to music subscriptions from services such as Rhapsody and Napster.

Wireless and Internet analysts do not necessarily expect the new Verizon service to spark a dramatic shift. But the carrier is poised to become a bigger player in digital music and improve its mobile media revenues through V Cast.

"This is where the subscription model can perhaps finally find a mainstream audience," wrote Michael Gartenberg, a vice president and research director at JupiterResearch, in a post on the firm's analyst blog Monday. "More importantly, it's a differentiated offering that can potentially have some appeal."

Overall, Jupiter projects that digital music sales, including subscription services and downloads, will triple to $3.4 billion in 2012 from $1.04 billion in 2006.

By pairing with Rhapsody, Verizon is more than doubling its music catalog on V Cast and offering a competitive subscription price at $15 a month, according to William Ho, a senior wireless services analyst at technology research firm Current Analysis. Verizon also hinted during a conference call Monday that over-the-air downloads would be added to subscriptions at some point.

"This is all about adding stickiness and increasing ARPU (average revenue per user)," Ho said.

While Verizon declined to disclose how many subscribers the existing V Cast music service has, a company spokesman said millions of customers use it each month.

Verizon has the biggest share of the mobile audio market among the five largest carriers--at 38%, according to Nielsen Mobile. That includes realtones, ringbacks, ringtones and full-track downloads. But songs made up only 16% of Verizon's audio sales.

Nielsen estimated the wireless audio market in the first quarter at $268 million.

Analysts emphasized that a strong promotional push from Verizon and Rhapsody would be required for the new music initiative to be successful. "Let's see just how aggressively Verizon markets both Rhapsody and paid downloads, and whether they can make cell phones as cool as iPods," wrote David Card, a vice president and senior analyst at Jupiter, on the firm's blog.

A Verizon spokesman said the carrier planned to promote the music service in print, broadcast "and a full range of advertising elements to come," though providing few details.

During the conference call, RealNetworks founder and CEO Rob Glaser also said the new V Cast service would be a key part of marketing efforts tied to its related "Music Without Limits" initiative announced Monday to sell MP3 downloads directly via Rhapsody.

That service, which allows users to listen to up to 25 tracks per month before buying songs, will be syndicated across MTV.com, CMT.com, VH1.com and Yahoo.

MTV Networks, which owns 51% of Rhapsody America, has agreed to provide $200 million in TV marketing related to the Rhapsody service over the next five years, Glaser said.

To help counter the iPod, Verizon also plans to introduce a new handset--the LG Chocolate 3--next month as its first device designed specifically with the new music service in mind by streamlining the process of downloading and transferring music from PC to phone.

In the meantime, several other existing Verizon handsets have been "retrofitted" to handle the service, including the Decoy and Dare from LG and the Samsung Glyde.

Safety tips for travelers' protections

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Fri, 30 May 2008 18:45:00 +0000

BOSTON - If you're traveling overseas, try to leave your computer at home. If you must have it, put only a few files on it and leave as many as possible behind. Encrypt the files you do bring.

These are some of the steps that computer security analysts advise for international travelers anxious to avoid being the victim of data espionage. The AP reported Thursday that U.S. authorities are investigating whether Chinese officials secretly copied the contents of a government laptop computer during a visit to China by Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez.

Such incidents illustrate the care that business executives or government officials should take when they travel to places where rivals might try to filch vital trade secrets or sensitive information. Dangers exist even if travelers keep their laptops closely held the whole time but connect to Internet networks abroad.

"Unlike several years ago, people are traveling with the entire contents of their office in their briefcase and plugging into what we might call a promiscuous port, not knowing who they're talking to or who runs the Internet security provider they're connecting to," said Mark Rasch, a former federal computer crime investigator now with FTI Consulting Inc.

Experts suggest people reconsider bringing a computer when they travel to locales of uncertain trustworthiness.

If leaving the laptop home is impractical, the best bet is to deploy whole-disk encryption. That cloaks every file on a computer and grants access only to the user who enters the proper password. Some whole-disk encryption products are even free; Windows Vista comes with one, called BitLocker.

This will protect a computer that gets lost or stolen while it's turned off. But whole-disk encryption is far less secure if the user selects an easy-to-guess password. And it's all but pointless if the user logs in with the correct password and then leaves the machine unattended and unencrypted.

To address the latter issue, security analyst Bruce Schneier, chief technologist for BT Counterpane, uses whole-disk encryption on his laptop and then a second layer: He encrypts individual files on the machine separately, with a different password.

Travelers connecting to the Internet also should access business files only with methods that encrypt data streams against snoops. Such methods include VPNs (virtual private networks) for network traffic and SSL (secure sockets layer) for e-mail.

It's also key to deal with data on mobile devices. It's conceivable that a foreign government would try to install a tap on a prominent traveler's cell phone.

Getting physical access to the device is not required. Joel Brenner, the National Counterintelligence Executive, told a conference in December that business executives have picked up tracking bugs and other security vulnerabilities on their mobile devices during international business trips. Brenner advised leaving such devices home and using a temporary, disposable one while overseas.

Schneier points out that even cautious travelers could find their data copied at any international border crossing, if guards ask a traveler to enter decryption passwords so a computer can be inspected. (U.S. courts have yet to clarify whether you can say no to that question upon entry to this country.)

Schneier said several companies now deal with this issue by giving their employees a laptop whose hard drive has been wiped clean. While on their trips, the employees have things they need e-mailed to them. Then they wipe it clean again before they cross another border.

The approach has a downside for many business travelers, Rasch said: "You can't do a lot of work on the plane."

Mozilla Aims For Firefox 3.0 Download Record

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Fri, 30 May 2008 18:43:00 +0000

For the upcoming release of Firefox 3, Mozilla aims to set a new world record for the largest number of software downloads in 24 hours.

The company has put out a call to its global community of users to pledge to download the new 3.0 version of Firefox on the day the browser is made available to the public.

Given that there's no established Guinness World Record for software downloads, Mozilla is destined for the record book no matter what happens. A Mozilla spokesperson said the company is working with the Guinness Book Of World Records to verify the record attempt and will be furnishing 10% of the company's download logs for an extrapolated final download count.

Justin Fitzhugh, director of IT for Mozilla, is confident that Mozilla will be able to handle the bandwidth surge, which he said is likely to be a fraction of the load Mozilla bears when it releases automated browser updates to its installed base of users. "We've scaled for this already," he said, noting that in addition to the servers in its own data center, Mozilla relies on donated server capacity around the world.

Mozilla claims that it has 175 million users in more than 230 countries. The United Nations recognizes 192 member states. Presumably, Mozilla is counting perhaps a dozen countries with limited or substantial international recognition (Taiwan), several would-be countries not recognized by other nations (Abkhazia), and a variety of territories (Norfolk Island).

Over at SpreadFirefox.com, there's an interactive map that lists by country those who have pledged to download Firefox 3.0 on the designated day. At the time this article was filed, the United States had the lead, with almost 38,000 promising to participate in the download event. In Turkmenistan, only six people have committed. Enthusiasm for the download record attempt is clearly higher in neighboring Uzbekistan, where 50 people have pledged to participate.

About two weeks ago, Mozilla released Firefox 3.0 RC1, a version of the new browser deemed stable enough for public testing. Mozilla says the official 3.0 release will occur in June.

Firefox 3.0 RC1 is noticeably faster than version 2.0. It also handles memory better.

As of May 29, Firefox has 17.76% of the global browser market share, according to Net Applications. Microsoft Internet Explorer accounts for 74.83%, and Apple's Safari accounts for 5.81%.

India, Brazil next to take issue with Open XML

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Fri, 30 May 2008 18:41:00 +0000

After South Africa voiced its objections to how the Open XML standards ratification proceedings were conducted, the standards bodies of both India and Brazil are registering similar complaints.

The IEC has confirmed that it received two additional appeals from India and Brazil before the deadline. A fourth country is said to have considered filing an appeal, but the standards body has not confirmed this, and declined to say how many appeals it had received.

It should be noted that the deadline was actually last night, and not Saturday as originally reported by BetaNews: there was some confusion both among the standardization bodies and in the media over when the appeals needed to be received. Thus, some say additional appeals could arrive late: it is not clear whether or not they will be accepted, however.

"At the [ballot resolution meeting], the Brazilian delegation was not allowed to present an important proposal regarding the legacy binary mapping," reads an important paragraph from the Brazilian letter of objection, published yesterday by ConsortiumInfo.org. "This proposal was a complementary part of USA delegation proposal regarding the new organization of the ISO/IEC DIS 29500. It also shall complement the scope change proposal approved at the BRM."

Brazil's appeal was improperly addressed, as a single appeals letter was sent to both CEOs of the IEC and ISO -- copies are to be sent to each CEO -- but the groups said they would waive the requirement.

Like the South African dispute, India and Brazil are also challenging the validity of the "fast track " process. Again, officials are pointing out that there was just too much information to look over in too little time.

Google clicks up 20 per cent – and another lawsuit looms

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Fri, 30 May 2008 18:39:00 +0000

Google's paid clicks are up 20 per cent on last year, according to comScore, the international web data company.

But the search engine is being sued for €49m (£38m) in past damages by Copiepresse, a company made up of several Belgian newspaper publishers, for the way it publishes aggregated news.

The problem is not Google as a search engine, but the way the news content is stored and published.

"The newspaper publishers, members of Copiepresse, give free access to their internet sites for normal use. They never had any problem with the search engines as such," said Margaret Boribon, secretary general of Copiepresse.

Google is also facing a $1bn (£500m) lawsuit from US media conglomerate Viacom over copyright infringement through YouTube.

Microsoft’s Zune Gets The Boot From GameStop

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Sat, 24 May 2008 14:50:00 +0000

GameStop has decided to stop selling the Microsoft’s iPod killer, Zune, due to its poor performance in terms of sales.

Last year Microsoft has announced that its Zune has sold one million in just six months after the launch, but since then it seems like the sales have slowed down considerably. It took almost a year for Zune to reach its second million of units sold.

Late last year, Microsoft has revamped its Zune lineup by introducing new models and a brief period it seemed like the company had found its way to success.

In November 2007 the 80 GB version of Zune media player ranked as the No. 1 bestseller in Amazon’s list of top-selling MP3 players and it was a sold-out at various retailers in the US such as Best Buy or Circuit City.

However, Zune failed to be a match the iPod sales. According to the latest financial results announced by Apple in the second quarter of 2008 the company sold 10,644,000 iPods.

Despite GameStop’s decision, Microsoft seems to be determined to stand by its Zune. Adam Sohn, Microsoft's Zune marketing manager, noted that Zune sales "have seen good momentum" during the last few months.

Also, at the beginning of this month Microsoft has expanded the content available on Zune online store, by signing a new distribution deal with NBC.

Video titles from COMEDY CENTRAL, FUNimation Entertainment, MTV, NBC Universal, Nickelodeon, Starz Media, Turner Broadcasting, UFC, VH1 and others are now available on Zune store. Until this deal, only music videos were available on Zune Marketplace.

Last year, speaking about Zune, Microsoft's Entertainment & Devices Division President Robbie Bach said that Microsoft aims to release a new Zune every year.

AT&T shows thinking on new iPhone subsidy

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Sat, 24 May 2008 14:50:00 +0000

AT&T (T) laid out the case for a subsidy that would lower the price for consumers to buy the next iteration of Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone.

Speaking to Reuters at a tech conference in New York Thursday, AT&T CFO Rick Lindner acknowledged that the phone has not yet been unveiled and neither has the pricing. But speaking more generally, Lindner said subsidies or promotional discounts on phone prices are a common element even in smartphone sales like Research in Motion’s (RIMM) BlackBerry phones.

The buzz is growing ahead of Apple’s debut of the sleeker 3G iPhone, expected during the company’s worldwide developers conference starting June 9. The iPhone is expected to go on sale on the anniversary of the original iPhone introduction on the last weekend of June. As Fortune first reported, AT&T - the exclusive U.S. iPhone carrier - has plans to sell the new iPhone for about $200 by subsidizing about $200 of the customers’ cost of the phone.

AT&T came a step closer to confirming the move as Lindner discussed the thinking that goes into subsidizing phone purchases to stimulate sales. He cited as an example the BlackBerry Curve that AT&T sells for the “promotional rate of $99,” according to Reuters.

“It comes down to economics, how many units you think you can sell at different price points,” Lindner told Reuters. “That’s how pricing is determined on just about any device.”

As analysts have pointed out, iPhone users tend to spend more than $90 a month on data and voice plans, meaning AT&T can recoup a $200 subsidy in a matter of months. And $200 phones are seen as within reach of a much wider consumer market than the normal $400 price of the original iPhone.

In other words, AT&T’s subsidy could be the juice to make the iPhone a blockbuster seller this year.

Adobe Unveils Flash Player 10, 3-D Features

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Sun, 18 May 2008 18:23:00 +0000

Adobe unveiled the latest version of its Flash Player browser plug-in Thursday, pushing a series of new graphical features such as 3-D animated effects with a beta version of Flash Player 10 in an effort to stay ahead of increasing competition.

The new Flash Player, which has no set final release date, has several new features Adobe hopes will help maintain the plug-in's dominance -- its penetration is more than 98% -- among an ever-expanding group of competitive rich Internet application platforms and development methodologies, including Microsoft Silverlight, Ajax, and Sun's forthcoming JavaFX.

"Adobe has a long track record of creating technologies that influence market direction, and we believe this beta release of Adobe Flash Player 10 raises the bar once again," David Wadhwani, general manager and VP of the Platform Business Unit at Adobe, said in a statement.

Significantly, Adobe added support for three-dimensional animated effects. Graphical objects can be rotated or manipulated so that, for example, a developer can create a digital, three-dimensional array of two-dimensional cell phone images that appears to revolve around a central axis to help consumers decide what cell phone to buy from an online store.

Another new feature of Flash Player 10 is an expanded group of filter effects that use Adobe's free Pixel Bender Toolkit, which is also currently in testing, to easily create filters that can embed effects such as a twirled view of Flash media -- video, text, or graphics -- into any Flash application. An improved filter feature was one of the top requests for Flash Player 10, which was code-named Astro.

Adobe has enhanced performance by enlisting the user's graphics card to render Flash graphics as well as by employing dynamic streaming, which means that video quality changes automatically with network performance.

In Flash Player 10, Adobe also completely rewrote the text engine to add new layout support and font manipulation capability. It added a better interface for Flash Player's Drawing API -- no longer will hand coding be needed for complex shapes -- and more low-level access to rendering features to encourage third-party rendering software development for Flash.

The beta version of Flash Player 10 will run on several versions of Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.

According to Adobe, all of the features in Flash Player 10 will also be available in a future version of the company's AIR platform for rich Internet applications that run outside of a Web browser. It's unclear when that will be available.

Google Maps Could Cross EU Privacy Laws

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Sun, 18 May 2008 18:21:00 +0000

Global search engine colossus Google has been warned by the EU data protection chief that the "Street View" feature on its Google Maps service could run up against European privacy laws if it launches in EU countries.

Street View allows users of Google's online map service to have a full-colour, 360-degree look around city streets. Users can digitally walk up and down the virtual street, which is built from composites of photographs taken by roaming Google cars with roof-mounted cameras.

Peter Hustinx, the EU data protection supervisor, told reporters while presenting his annual data protection report on Thursday (15 May) that if Google launched such a feature in Europe, the company would first have to comply with European privacy legislation, which in many member states is stricter than in the United States.

"I would encourage Google to think about how to do this," Mr Hustinx said, AP reports. "Making pictures on the street is in many cases not a problem, but making pictures everywhere is certainly going to create some problems. I'm quite sure they are aware of this."

The service, already launched for many US and Canadian cities, has wowed users, who report that Street View allows them to digitally make a trip to cities they have always wanted to visit.

At the same time, privacy concerns have arisen, as people walking down a street are also captured by the photographs. They are not so worried about being photographed visiting the Empire State Building, but rather when photographed entering an X-rated cinema or urinating in public.

"Complying with European data protection law is going to be part of their business success or failure," Mr Hustinx added. "If they would ignore it, it is likely to lead to [court] cases, and I think they would be hit hard."

The company has not launched the service in Europe yet, although it has announced plans to do so next year, and Google cars snapping away photos of the vias and rues of Rome and Paris have already been spotted.

The company responded to the EU official's concerns by saying it is perfecting face-blurring technology.

"We're taking this opportunity to test our new face-blurring technology on the busy streets of Manhattan," the company said in blog posting.

"This effort has been a year in the making—working at Street View-scale is a tough challenge that required us to advance state-of-the-art automatic face detection, and we continue working hard to improve it as we roll it out for our existing and future imagery."

DNA databases lack safeguards

Separately, the data protection official warned in his report that EU rules agreed by ministers last June which allow police to check DNA databases across all member states lack the appropriate privacy safeguards.

"In some cases it will be a nightmare not only for citizens but also law enforcement authorities... What might have been done responsibly has not been done well," said Mr Hustinx, according to Irish state broadcaster RTE.

"Tourists could find themselves suspects in a cross-border criminal investigation merely for having had a drink at a motorway service station."

Last year, EU member states agreed to allow their DNA databases to be shared across the union within three years.

However, the safeguards also agreed at the time do not take into account variations in national legislation, and are too complex to operate effectively, said Mr Hustinx.

Xbox 360 Outsells Original Xbox

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Sun, 18 May 2008 18:21:00 +0000

According to official NPD data, which tracks North American console sales, the Xbox 360 took 30 months to reach the 10 million units sold milestone, 20 percent faster than the original Xbox, which didn't achieve the same mark until month 36.

While an improvement, the mild increase casts doubt on Microsoft's assertion last week in which Xbox vice president Don Mattrick said: "History has shown us that the first company to reach 10 million in console sales wins the generation battle."

Assuming the Xbox 360 maintains its 20% sales margin over its predecessor, taking into consideration steady global sales, the 360 will go on to sell 28.8 million worldwide units over a four-and-a-half-year life span.

If current sales velocity and history are to be believed, the projected life-to-date sales of Xbox 360 would be a far cry from the 125 million-selling PlayStation 2, which "won" the last generation battle, and the Nintendo Wii, which has sold 24 million units worldwide in only 18 months, this after launching a full year later than Xbox 360.

Nintendo is expected to surpass both native Xbox 360 sales and the 10 million U.S. milestone within the next two months, given that the console sells approximately 500,000 units per month in the States alone.

Free Conference Call

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Sun, 18 May 2008 18:15:00 +0000

Foonz a group calling service once reputed for providing free international calls unveiled a cheap “conference call like” service using VoIP

Cheap Auto Insurance

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Sun, 18 May 2008 18:14:00 +0000

Getting an automobile insurance quote used to be a lot more complicated than it is today. At one time, you either had to visit several company offices to speak with insurance agents, or spend the day on the telephone calling around to various insurance companies inquiring about quotes.

Nowadays, we are fortunate enough to have the Internet, and we can go on the web and visit the insurance companies in order to get an online quote easily and quickly. That gives us two choices for obtaining an auto insurance policy. We can deal with either a human agent or a computerized one to get our quote. Sometimes though, the quote we receive is a little more than we had planned or expected to spend. Most people are looking for a cheap auto insurance quote – the cheaper the better, in fact. How can you manage to get the cheapest auto insurance possible that will still protect your vehicle and you from financial loss?

One piece of advice that could help to make your insurance rate as low as possible is for you to make sure that you tell the agent that you will be working with as much information as you can about you, your vehicle, and your driving habits. Make sure you mention how many miles you drive each year, whether the vehicle will be used for driving to work or school, and any safety features that it may have. An anti-theft device can lower the rate as it minimizes the chance that your vehicle will be stolen. If you neglect to provide the agent with these details, the insurance company will automatically ‘fill in the blanks’ on your form, and this generic information could very well cause you to be offered a higher quote.

You should also get an insurance quote from more than one company in order to compare the prices on the policies offered. Be aware that some companies charge more than others for basically the same insurance policy. Insurance insiders know that quotes can differ by as much as 200 to 300 percent between different companies. If you currently have an auto insurance policy and you find the same offering is cheaper from another company, do not hesitate to mention this to the company who issued your policy. Often, they will offer you a rate to match the competition, as they would rather not lose you as a customer.

Anytime you raise the deductible on your insurance, it can cause you to save money on the total yearly price of your policy. However, if you have raised your deductible from say $250 to $500, it will cost you more when and if you have an accident.

Getting cheap auto insurance can be very easy if you know a few simple tips!

MS pulls plugs on XP SP3 mass launch

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:02:00 +0000

Microsoft has pulled the general release of Windows XP service pack three (SP3) at the eleventh hour, blaming a “compatibility issue” for the cock-up.

The software giant said late yesterday it was suspending mass download of the long-awaited service pack while it investigates the problem between its point-of-sale app – Dynamics Retail Management System (RMS) – and both XP SP3 and Vista SP1.

It said in an email that the update, which was released to manufacturing and volume licensing customers a week ago and was supposed to be generally available from yesterday, will not be pumped out to the masses via its Windows Update (WU) website as planned until the company fixes the bug.

However, the firm hasn’t pinpointed when XP SP3 will be available, much to the chagrin of Vista-shy customers who have been patiently waiting for the update to land.

“In the last few days, we have uncovered a compatibility issue between Microsoft Dynamics Retail Management System (RMS) and both Windows XP SP3 and Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1)," said the firm.

"In order to make sure customers have the best possible experience, we have decided to delay releasing Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) to the web.”

It also said that filtering would be put in place “shortly” to prevent WU spitting out both service packs to systems running Dynamics RMS. Once that tweak has been made, XP SP3 will be made available online.

Microsoft added that customers running its point-of-sale app, which is used mainly by small to medium-sized retailers, should swerve installing the service packs on either OS until a fix has been provided.

Redmond pushed back the release date of XP’s final service pack several times, and was supposed to be withdrawing sales of the operating system from the market at the end of June.

But earlier this month Microsoft, in a somewhat embarrassing U-turn that suggested the firm was pricking up its ears and listening to unfavourable customer feedback about Vista, said it would continue to sell Windows XP Home for bargain basement PCs beyond its scheduled 30 June kill-date .

Just last week Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer hinted that XP could be reprieved from end-of-life if enough customers demand it.

The $199 iPhone: Cool! Possibly Imaginary!

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:01:00 +0000

As nifty as the current iPhone is, there are muliple reasons not to buy it: It's got a slow data connection, it doesn't yet run third-party applications...and at $399 with no subsidy from AT&T, it's kinda pricey. We know that a 3G iPhone is on its way, and that Apple's upcoming iPhone SDK will make the phone into a first-rate platform for apps of all kinds. And now it looks like that 3G iPhone might be downright affordable.

In theory, at least. A Fortune blog is reporting that a source has told it that AT&T will offer a $200 subsidy for iPhone buyers who sign up for a two-year contact, bringing the price of the hip handset down to $199. That would also address one of the most irritating things about the first-generation iPhone: The fact that AT&T currently makes you sign up for a two-year contract and doesn't offer any sort of price break in recognition of that commitment.

(I hate phone contracts myself, so I'm assuming and hoping that you'll also be able to pay the full-freight $399 for the iPhone without a contract.)

I don't have any reason to think that Fortune's report is false, but it always pays to be extremely cautious about accepting any fact about an upcoming Apple product as gospel until Steve Jobs himself declares it to be so. And the New York Times' Saul Hansell points out that it seems implausible that an iPhone sold at an AT&T store could be had for $200 less than one sold at an Apple Store, especially since Apple-Store iPhones must be activated on AT&T's network anyhow. The bottom line is that I wouldn't be the least bit amazed if the $199 iPhone turns out to be fantasy.

And speaking of being suspicious of Apple rumors, the Fortune story says that the 3G iPhone will be 2.5mm thinner than the current model. Just a few days ago, Engadget was reporting that the new phone would be a tad thicker than its predecessor. Somebody's got it wrong. (My money's on Fortune being right; it's hard to imagine Steve Jobs ever releasing a next-generation product that's even a nanometer thicker than the one it replaces.)

As I've mentioned before, I passed on the first-gen iPhone, for all the reasons I outlined at the top of this post. But if I can snag the 3G model for $399 with no contract, I'll be tempted.

Blu-ray player sales down despite end of format war

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 18:56:00 +0000

Looks like it wasn't the HD DVD/Blu-ray battle that was keeping potential customers away from high-definition video players after all.

The NPD Group released some of its retail sales tracking data Wednesday that showed sales of Blu-ray standalone players (not a PlayStation 3, combo player, or PC with Blu-ray drive) had mostly decreased since the beginning of the year.

Standalone Blu-ray player unit sales in the U.S. decreased 40 percent from January to February and saw a very slight increase (2 percent) between February and March, according to NPD.

HD DVD players fared even worse--player unit sales dropped 13 percent from January to February, and 65 percent from February to March--which was expected. Toshiba stopped production of HD DVD units in February, and the format's promotional group disbanded in March.

So what does this mean for Blu-ray player vendors? Why haven't sales experienced any sort of substantial uptick without a competitor? Prices offer one clue. Blu-ray player prices were at their peak for the year in mid-March, around $400. During the holiday shopping season the average price had been closer to $300.

But more likely is what NPD's high-def video analysts have been harping on for a while: that DVD is "good enough" for most consumers. And that the picture offered by a Blu-ray Disc and accompanying player doesn't appear so overwhelmingly better than a standard DVD and an upconverting player that many consumers can't justify the dramatically increased cost.

To that point, sales of significantly less expensive upconverting DVD players have actually increased 5 percent over the first quarter of 2008, compared with the same quarter a year ago. Standard DVD player sales dropped 39 percent over the same period.

Blu-ray player prices are going to have to drop dramatically, to around $200 probably, to make themselves more attractive to consumers outside of the early adopter/home theater enthusiast crowd. Sony, one of the largest producers of Blu-ray players, says $200 players aren't likely until next year at the earliest.

Virtual World Gets Another Life

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 05:50:00 +0000

Call it virtual business 2.0.

Not long ago, companies were racing to set up storefronts and showrooms in computer-generated environments such as Second Life. Few found big profits.

But commercial interest in such simulations seems to be morphing, not diminishing. Rather than selling goods and services to users -- who typically take on animated shapes known as avatars -- companies are turning to virtual offices and landscapes as tools for employees and business partners to collaborate and learn.
[Photo]
Qwaq's technology helps employees collaborate in virtual meeting rooms.

The shift, in some cases, requires big changes in the way computer simulations are designed and used. Where companies may be happy to hold the equivalent of parties or trade shows in public virtual spaces, for example, conducting confidential business over a network of servers that another company controls can be worrisome.

"I can think of a few reasons to not use public infrastructure with no guarantee of security," says Christian Renaud, Cisco Systems Inc.'s chief architect for networked virtual environments.

Such issues are expected to be a major focus at the Virtual Worlds 2008 conference opening Thursday in New York. For example, International Business Machines Corp. and Linden Lab, the San Francisco-based operator of Second Life, plan to announce a relationship under which IBM will run Linden software on its own servers so the computer maker can set up private Second Life environments.

Meanwhile, start-ups such as Qwaq Inc., Multiverse Network Inc. and Rivers Run Red are showing off technology that offers companies the equivalent of a private "workspace" -- simulated three-dimensional rooms that allow employees to meet as avatars, view presentations and conduct other business.

"It gives companies a walled garden to experiment in," says Justin Bovington, chief executive of Rivers Run Red, a London-based company that does consulting work for companies using virtual environments.

Some of these ideas are not new. Alan Kay, a computer researcher known for groundbreaking inventions at Xerox Corp. and other companies, notes that prototypes of computer-generated workspaces were part of a famous demonstration in 1968 by Silicon Valley pioneer Doug Engelbart.

But perfecting such concepts has taken years, and major advances in computing power, software and networking speeds. To render scenes that look realistic, for example, personal computers typically need sophisticated graphics chips.

Linden Lab, founded in 1999, developed a kind of browser program that renders images and allows users to move through a simulated environments. It assigns pieces of territory to individual servers, allowing Second Life to expand geographically by adding more machines.

Individuals, companies and educational institutions design the equivalent of homes, offices and play spaces, often "buying" the equivalent of private islands. Users take assumed names and can alter their clothing and appearance, and buy virtual goods and services using a currency that is convertible into dollars.

Second Life has plenty of competition, including free-form sites such as Makena Technologies Inc.'s There and MindArk PE's Entropia Universe, and services for specific audiences -- such as the kids-oriented Club Penguin site that Walt Disney Co. purchased last year for $700 million. Such public environments can create opportunities for branding and marketing.

But there are downsides for businesses. Because avatars often carry pseudonyms, for example, customers or co-workers may not be immediately recognizable. Some pranksters have exploited anonymity to disrupt gatherings.

So companies have been developing in-house virtual worlds, aided by software from vendors such as Activeworlds Inc. and Forterra Systems Inc. Sun Microsystems Inc., meanwhile, has developed its own software, called Project Wonderland, and a simulated building called MPK20 that employees of the computer maker can use to collaborate.

Sun teams from around the world attend simulated meetings, at which their avatars may view presentations and videos and hold discussions. The biggest value of MPK20 is stimulating the kind of collaboration that comes from chance encounters, like those employees might have in a real hallway, says Nicole Yankelovich, who manages Sun's collaborative environment team.

Start-ups pursuing similar goals include Qwaq, a company in Palo Alto, Calif., that inherited work once conducted by a Hewlett-Packard Co. team under Mr. Kay. Qwaq co-founder David Smith, a pioneer in interactive gaming, helped develop software called OpenCroquet to let PCs render virtual worlds. That software, which is available to other programmers on an open-source basis, helps companies set up simulated spaces for animated meetings and to manage projects, says Greg Nuyens, Qwaq's chief executive.

Costs for corporate virtual environments can vary widely, especially if much custom programming is involved. Quaq charges $60 a month per user for small groups; equipping a 10-person unit would cost $7,200 a year, Mr. Nuyens says.

Multiverse, founded by former employees of Web browser maker Netscape Communications Corp., plans to manage a network of virtual games and business environments accessible by a common three-dimensional browser. Eventually most Web sites may become three-dimensional. "You will be able to go to any site and there will be a 3D interactive option," predicts Erica Driver, an analyst at Forrester Researcher.

But there are many steps between here and there. Linden, whose founder, Philip Rosedale, recently announced plans to relinquish the job of chief executive, has been offering companies more control over their spaces in a program it calls Second Life Grid.

The IBM deal is the first time Linden has allowed another company to run its software. Colin Parris, IBM's vice president for digital convergence, says the arrangement enables the controlled movement of employee avatars and objects they create to pass among public parts of Second Life and private zones managed on IBM servers.

"There has been so much hype and puffery around virtual worlds," says Ginsu Yoon, Linden's vice president of business affairs. "It's really important to Linden Lab to be able to demonstrate that it is able and willing to meet the requirements of companies like IBM."

A Phone With TV, Radio, Music, G.P.S. and Camcorder

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 05:49:00 +0000

The Apple iPhone may have raised the ante for smartphone design last year, but the competition is not just sitting around. Although it has a similar slablike form and touch screen function, the new Samsung Instinct has a few special features of its own, as well as a monogamous marriage with Sprint as its wireless carrier.
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If you don’t actually have any calls to make, the phone offers plenty of multimedia options to pass the time, like e-mail, Sprint TV for live and on-demand video, the Sprint Music Store for wireless song downloads and Sprint Radio with 150 streaming channels. The Instinct has a G.P.S. function that gives you directions on screen or by voice, as well as a built-in camcorder and 2-megapixel camera with a 2x zoom.

Pricing is not yet final, but the phone will be available in June; details are available at www.nowisgood.com.

As for high-speed surfing, the Instinct can use Sprint’s EV-DO mobile broadband network for zippier download speeds than the iPhone can muster on AT&T’s Edge network.

Yahoo's Mobile Search, Take Two

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 05:47:00 +0000

Yahoo is living up to claims it's going about business as usual, despite the uncertainty of Microsoft's controversial buyout offer. At this week's big CTIA Wireless show, Yahoo announced version 2.0 of its oneSearch mobile search service and enhancements designed to improve search on mobile devices.

The stakes in the burgeoning mobile market are huge. For example, mobile advertising revenue was $347 million in the U.S. in 2007, according to IDC estimates. But the research firm forecast that total could grow to $4 billion by 2011 and there is not yet a dominant player as Yahoo rival Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) is in desktop search.

The iPhone changed a lot of people's view of mobile devices once they saw you can truly access the Internet on your phone," Joy Ghaneker, product manager for Yahoo oneSearch, told InternetNews.com. "Now we want to be a catalyst to enable hundreds of millions of users to see what can be done on a mobile device."

Yahoo (NASDAQ:YHOO) launched oneSearch last year as a tailored search service for the screen and user interface limitations of mobile devices. In the year since its launch, Yahoo has signed 29 partnerships with carriers across the globe, covering more than 600 million consumers under contract, according to Marco Boerries, executive vice president of Connected Life at Yahoo, in an address at CTIA. "With Yahoo oneSearch 2.0, we are fundamentally changing the way consumers use the Internet on their mobile phones," he said.
The oneSearch technology is designed for a range of mobile devices including the iPhone. The oneSearch Search Assist feature is in fact, only currently available for the iPhone, with support for other devices to come in the next few months.

Search Assist provides real time help with queries offering suggested words and phrases as you begin to type to save time. Yahoo gives the example of typing in the letters H I L and Search Assistant will automatically suggest such completions as Hillary Clinton, Perez Hilton, Hilary Duff, etc., which can be selected to complete the search query.

But Yahoo is also moving to make mobile search easier than typing anything at all via speech recognition technology from a partnership with a company called vlingo. One example: get the latest college tournament basketball results with the simple voice query, "N-C-Double-A."

Ghaneker said the voice-enabled features are available now for certain BlackBerry models with support for other devices coming soon. "Text input is painful and cumbersome," said Ghaneker. He noted that voice recognition has been around for a long time and "always seems one year away from being mainstream." But vlingo's approach is fundamentally different because it gets smarter the more you use it and it's not bounded by specific grammar rules.

Later this spring, Yahoo also plans to deliver an "idle screen search" feature for mobile phones. With idle screen search, the search box is available with one click so users can enter a search query using either text or speech input without first launching a browser.

Ghaneker said Yahoo thinks the idle search feature will prove useful on a lot of phones where it's difficult to first load a browser and find the search entry box. "Now search is positioned front and center," he said.

Earlier this year, Yahoo released Go 3.0, the latest version of its mobile portal. The Go portal is at the heart of Yahoo's vision for becoming the centerpiece of what it calls the "mobile ecosystem." The graphically rich design features a carousel at the bottom, where users can easily flip through many of the same applications that are found on Yahoo's Web site: mail, weather, news, Flickr and others.

AT&T Conference Call

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 05:41:00 +0000

Working in a foreign country during the holiday season can be very lonely and stressful. While your family and friends maybe having such a grand time at home, you can find yourself feeling really homesick and alone in a foreign country. Although you may have made some new friends at work, nothing could really replace the presence of family members during the holiday season.

To help you cope with loneliness and homesickness this holiday season, ask your family and friends all over the globe for an AT&T conference call. The good thing about the AT&T conference call is that you get to talk to money people at the same time. Even if you your friends and family members are scattered all over the globe, you can converge together using the AT&T conference call services.

How To Set Up An AT&T Conference Call

Setting up an AT&T conference call is very easy. All you need to do is register either online or through the toll free number o the company. . The good thing about the AT&T conference call service is that you do not need to make prior reservations with the company before you can make the call. As long as you are sure that the people whom you would like to talk to are available at a certain time of the day, you can just simply call the AT&T operator and request for a teleconference. Give to the operator the numbers of the people whom you would like to include in the AT&T conference call. Set the time and date for the call so that everyone could be present when you do make the call.

You can provide your friends and relatives with password, which they can give to the operator when they answer the phone. The good thing about providing your family members and friends with a password to join the AT&T conference call is that you can ensure that no outsiders will be able to join and listen to your conversation.

Once you already contacted the AT&T operator to place your AT&T conference call to your friends and family members all over the world, all you need to do now is to wait for a few minutes for your family and friends to answer your call. The operator will announce the name of each person who will join the AT&T conference call so that you will all know who just came in even before they say hello.

Northern Rock nationalisation

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 05:40:00 +0000

Contrary to what the Tories may say, this is not a return to the past or a sudden thrust of socialism from the Government; it is in fact reflecting the reality of the situation faced by the government in making a decision that was necessary. Despite valiant efforts by the Government to find a buyer, nationalisation is like to best protect taxpayers' money. What happened in the case of Northern Rock was mismanagement by the company on a grand scale coupled with the financial crisis that had engulfed the US mortgage market.

This should hopefully be a temporary solution and provide the necessary stability for the Northern Rock to be a viable bank again. Yes, shareholders' will have lost out in terms of the share value but the alternatives could have been far worse and if the bank had collapsed it would've had widespread ramifications for the whole financial market and the UK banking sector. This option was effectively the only one that was viable.

In terms of Gideon Osborne and David Cameron, the option of administration would have been a disastrous option with little chance of recouping any of the taxpayers' money. They also seem to have developed very few alternatives in dealing with the Northern Rock, with the policy like their general economic policy changing on a daily basis. If the Government had gone down the like they were advocating, instability would have been the likely outcome along with thousands of job losses with widespread economic repercussions.

Windows Mobile 6.1 Phones

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 05:35:00 +0000

Microsoft released Windows Mobile 6.1 this week, improving the operating system's stability and adding various features to make the Windows smartphone experience more enjoyable. While there aren't a ton of huge visible changes with this iteration of the OS, Windows Mobile handheld users, especially those with non-touch screen devices, will want to upgrade. The increased stability, threaded text messaging, and copy-and-paste functions alone make it worthwhile. For the low-down on all the new features, read our full review. (Microsoft and service providers have said that free upgrades will follow for most Windows Mobile 6 devices. Keep an eye on your carrier's support Web site for details.)

If you're entering the smartphone market or looking to change platforms, Windows Mobile has some cool attributes to consider. Thanks to its huge developer community, WM is your best bet if you want to add third-party software to your device. It's also the only operating system available on all the major service providers and in a wide range of device types.

AT&T's Tilt and the Samsung Blackjack II are the first handhelds available with Windows Mobile 6.1. The Samsung Blackjack II is a capable all-around messaging phone that's become more attractive with the addition of threaded text messaging and easier e-mail setup through Windows Mobile 6.1. The Tilt is our top choice for a general mobile office powerhouse.

Sprint has committed to updating four of its devices: the Motorola Q9c, the HTC Touch, the HTC Mogul and the Samsung Ace. Of these models, we think the HTC Mogul and Motorola Q9c will get the biggest boost from the upgrade. The Mogul is much like the Tilt, a general office powerhouse. The Motorola Q9c is a great-sounding phone that also excels at messaging with its great keyboard.

Check out the additional Windows Mobile coverage on our partner site SmartDeviceCentral (www.smartdevicecentral.com). You'll find lots of great tips for making the most of your Windows Mobile device.

Maruti Suzuki unveils Swift sedan 'Swift DZiRE'

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 09:13:00 +0000

Pictures of Swift Sedan DZiRE
Maruti Suzuki today unveiled a new sedan, Swift DZiRE, which is expected to be launched on March 29 priced between the company's existing cars Swift and SX4.

"The image of a hatchback and styling of Swift is carried forward to the Sedan. The new car will be available in both petrol and diesel variants,"

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd Executive Officer (Marketing and Sales) Mayank Pareek told reporters here.

According to the company sources, the petrol variant is expected to be priced between Rs 4.75 to Rs 5 lakh, while the diesel variant would be available for above Rs 5.5 lakh.

The company is also expanding the capacity of its plant in Manesar to three lakh units per annum by 2010, up from the existing about 1.4 lakh units in an year.

Official website:- http://www.marutidzire.com/

Where you can also register for an exclusive preview of the car. (reminds me of Fabia)

Could Google Buy Yahoo's Stake in Alibaba?

noreply@blogger.com (Technology rules!!!) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 09:12:00 +0000

Google hasn't been shy about its ambitions in China: It desperately wants to own the market. In fact, just this week Eric Schmidt was in Beijing, trying to drum up interest in a redesign of the local Chinese web property.

Meanwhile, Google has made little progress. It's been creamed by Baidu (in terms of traffic), and the company is scrambling to catch up. But if Alibaba.com is really looking to buy the stake currently owned by Yahoo (as reported by Reuters), Google would likely be the perfect fit.

"The Chinese market is strategically important for Google, and Alibaba would be a valuable partner. Google also has plenty of cash and could write a check for it," says Laura Martin, an analyst with Soleil-Media Metrics.

Some background: Yahoo agreed to buy a 40 percent stake of Chinese web company Alibaba.com for $1 billion in August 2005. Alibaba.com CEO Jack Ma (above), had previously vowed to squash Yahoo and Google "for fun."