NewsFactor Network

Free Anti-Tracking Tool Meets Growing Demand for Private Browsing

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:28:40 -0500

With concern about tracking and malware on the rise, a Boston-based company that creates privacy tools is offering a free program it says will keep your browsing out of the public domain.

The company, Abine, says its Do Not Track Plus browser tool will not only fend off advertisers who want to monitor your shopping habits and show you which companies and technologies are spying on you on the various sites you visit, but also quadruple your browser speed.

"Online tracking is a very real thing, even though you can't see it," said Abine in a company blog post announcing the tool Thursday.

What's the Catch?

Abine is upfront about its intentions in offering the product free.

"We have a 'freemium' model, meaning that we offer a free base service (DNT+) and separate paid upgrades, such as our DeleteMe service that removes our customers' personal information from public Web sites," the company writes. "We are also working on another software offering called PrivacySuite that's currently in beta, but it will have premium upgradeable features like forwarded e-mails and phone numbers."

Once they have built up a base of free users, Abine hopes that at least 1 percent to 2 percent will upgrade to premium services down the road, making the undertaking worthwhile. The basic model of Do Not Track Plus, however, will always remain free, Abine promises.

For $99 a year, the DeleteMe service regularly checks people-search databases to remove customers' names, sending regular reports. Abine also has apps coming soon that allow a single log-in to sites with one click and to protect e-mail and phone numbers by "automatically generating unique forwarding contact info for each site."

Abine is not alone in offering free privacy tools. Yahoo! offers Anti-Spy, a spyware and malware removal program by Computer Associates, as part of its browser toolbar. Microsoft's...

German Court Rules Samsung's Tablet Can Be Sold

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:08:43 -0500

Samsung's Galaxy Tab tablet, in its 10.1N version, still can be sold in Germany. That's the ruling on Thursday from a court in that country, the latest result in the epic Apple-Samsung legal battle that is raging across Europe and the world.

Samsung had released the 10.1N model, a slightly revised 10.1, specifically to avoid infringing on Apple's patent rights. The Regional Court in Dusseldorf decided that its modification was sufficient to allow it to continue on sale. In a statement, the court said "Apple's iPad computers and Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1N are rival products of equal value," adding that the 10.1N does not violate Apple's design patent or the country's laws against unfair competition.

Third Recent Loss

The same court had imposed a preliminary injunction last fall against the earlier 10.1 model because of infringement issues. This is the third recent legal loss Apple has suffered in Germany. Courts in Munich and Mannheim have also refused Apple's request to ban the 10.1N, as well as Samsung's Nexus smartphone.

In addition, in December a U.S. court in California denied Apple's motion for a temporary ban on the Tab and several Galaxy smartphones. In Australia, the High Court ruled late last year that the 10.1 tablet could be sold in time for the holiday season, denying Apple's request to continue a temporary ban. A trial is scheduled in that country for March.

Last month, an appeals court in The Netherlands denied Apple's request to ban sales in Europe of the Tab 10.1 tablet. The decision upheld a lower court ruling in August, in which Apple had contended that Samsung illegally copied the iPad's design. Apple had previously won a Europe-wide preliminary injunction in The Netherlands against Samsung's Galaxy S, Galaxy S II, and Ace smartphones.

Apple has also sued Motorola in Germany over its Xoom...

Google Reported Getting Ready To Launch Cloud Storage

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:16:24 -0500

Why should Dropbox and SugarSync have all the cloud storage fun? That's what Google seems to want to know.

Google is getting ready to launch a cloud storage service that would go toe-to-toe with Dropbox, a free service that lets you bring your photos, docs and videos anywhere and share them. Essentially, Dropbox eliminates the need to e-mail yourself a file.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Google's Dropbox-like service is called Drive. The Journal cited "people familiar with the matter" saying the reported Google move is a response to the growth of Internet-connected mobile devices like smartphones and tablets, as well as the rise of cloud computing.

Free or Paid Cloud Storage?

Neither Google nor Dropbox could be reached for comment, but Greg Sterling, principal analyst at Sterling Market Intelligence, said the long-rumored "GDrive" would match Microsoft's SkyDrive. Windows Live SkyDrive offers a free, password-protected hard drive in the cloud.

"This rumor makes sense in the context of Google's online apps and docs and cloud storage strategy," said Sterling. Google has a cadre of cloud services in its cache, from Gmail to Google Docs to Google Apps and beyond.

The Journal reported Drive would come online in the next weeks or months and charge a fee to people who want to store large volumes of files. Last October, Dropbox, which has more than 45 million users, introduced a paid service called Dropbox for Teams. The service lets companies with a distributed workforce, small business with virtual teams, or entrepreneurs serving multiple clients tap into administrative controls, centralized billing, phone support and plenty of storage space for $795 a year for five users.

Targeting Apple?

It's not clear how much Google would charge or what the parameters of its service are. Google would also be competing with Apple's iCloud. Apple launched iCloud, a set of free cloud...

Cisco Focus on Networks Pays Off in Q2 Earnings

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:20:15 -0500

Cisco beat the street with its second-quarter earnings. The company's net income rose 44 percent in the quarter ended Jan. 28 as Cisco CEO John Chambers continued leading the company out of its 2011 funk.

After a round of layoffs and a renewed focus on its core business, Cisco tallied $2.2 billion in net income during the quarter. That compares with $1.5 billion in the year-ago period. At the end of the quarter, Cisco posted 47 cents per share earnings. Analysts predicted 43 cents per share.

"We are executing well on our three-year plan to drive earnings faster than revenue. Our operational focus continues to yield positive results -- we hit our billion dollar expense reduction a quarter early -- and our ongoing innovation enables our customers to solve their critical business needs," Chambers said. "You will continue to see a focused and aggressive Cisco that is helping our customers use intelligent networks to transform their businesses."

Cisco's Switch Business

Zeus Kerravala, principal analyst at ZK Research, pointed out investor concern for Cisco's switching business in past quarters. It's a valid concern, considering switches are the largest part of Cisco's revenue.

"Much of the industry has been calling for a decline in margins. For a while the margins did decline. Part of that was due to the competitive landscape and some of the products from low-cost providers. I think Cisco was caught off-guard by that because of their lack of focus on networking," Kerravala said.

"Cisco was focused on flip cameras and consumer devices. Chambers made the promise that networking was going to be a focus for them last year and it has been. Now margins for switches are returning to what they were three years ago. For investors, that's a great sign."

Kerravala noted rumblings in the blogosphere about quality. As he sees it, there's...

Google Rolls Out Chrome 17 Browser with 'Pre-Rendered' Pages

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:16:10 -0500

Google rolled out a stable release of Chrome 17 to browser users around the world Wednesday. Among other things, the upgrade begins to pre-render Web site pages based on what the user is typing in the browser's address bar, which Google has renamed the "omnibox."

"When you start typing in the omnibox and the URL auto-completes to a site you're very likely to visit, Chrome will pre-render the page, so it will appear faster -- sometimes, even instantly -- as soon as you hit Enter," wrote Chrome Software Engineer Noé Lutz in a company blog Wednesday.

Chrome 17 also features a number of security enhancements, including greater protection from malicious downloads, some of which even masquerade as free anti-virus products.

Google hopes the speed and security improvements to Chrome 17 -- together with this week's launch of Chrome as a browser for mobile devices running Android 4 -- will help the browser resume its former growth trajectory in the global browser market.

According to Net Applications, Google's browser market growth stalled in January when Chrome lost 0.17 percent share on the desktop -- even as Microsoft's Internet Explorer gained 1.1 percent and Mozilla's Firefox dropped 1 percent.

Security Enhancements

Chrome 17 analyzes the properties of each Web site that users visit to determine the likelihood of it containing phishing pages. Moreover, this analysis is conducted in the background on the user's own PC and without any information about the Web sites that users visit being shared with Google.

"Only if the page looks sufficiently suspicious will Chrome send the URL of that page back to Google for further analysis, and show a warning as appropriate," noted Chrome software engineer Niels Provos and product manager Ian Fette.

The safe browsing functionality built into Chrome 17 downloads a continuously-updated list of known phishing and malware...

iPad 3 Debut Reportedly Scheduled for Early March

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:37:48 -0500

Apple will reportedly hold a media event in early March to announce the iPad 3. As usually happens before a major announcement from Apple, rumors about the debut date and features of the new product version are flying around the Web.

The iPad 2 was first shown in March of last year, so the reported date for the event would be at an appropriate time. The event is expected to be held in San Francisco, although the company has not yet confirmed the reports.

Retina Display

A photo is circulating on the Web that purports to be a leaked image of the iPad 3, and it is driving some of the speculation.

Most reports suggest that version 3 of the popular tablet will have a very high-resolution Retina Display 9.7-inch screen, with resolution on the order of 2048x1536 pixels. Currently, the iPad 2 has a 1024x768 display, and, if the Retina Display does make its tablet appearance, Apple may choose to call the new model the iPad HD.

There's also expectation of a faster processor, although what kind is a subject of much dispute. Some contend that Apple could include a quad-core processor, but that appears to be a minority view. Most expect a faster A6 to replace the current A5, but a quad-core may be a bridge too far. The most frequently voiced expectation is that there will be faster graphics processing, and perhaps a dual-core central processor.

As is often the case with a next generation mobile device, a longer-lasting and perhaps larger battery is expected, as well as a better-quality camera, and thinner dimension.

Ross Rubin, executive director for connected intelligence at the NPD Group, said some competing tablets have emerged that are thinner than the category-dominating iPad, which "suggests that Apple will make theirs thinner" to catch up.

AirDrop, Wi-Fi Direct, Thunderbolt

While...

Ford's Touch Software To Be Upgraded

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:39:01 -0500

Ford will give new software to about 250,000 owners of vehicles with the often-maligned "MyFord Touch" dashboard technology in about two months to make the system easier -- and less distracting -- to use.

The company's new 2013 models will come with upgraded MyFord Touch, which replaces most knobs and buttons for climate, navigation and entertainment with a touch-screen. The system has both attracted buyers to Ford's brand and hurt it in some owners' eyes, says the independent market research firm J.D. Power and Associates.

Ford held customer clinics, and employees have been testing the upgraded system so it's a "high-quality experience," Ford spokesman Alan Hall says.

MyFord Touch is now available on 20% of Ford models, including the Explorer and Focus, and will be on 70% of new models by the end of this year.

Ford dropped from fifth to 23rd in J.D. Power's quality survey last summer, in large part because of this technology. The study looks at problems owners report in the first 90 days of ownership.

MyFord Touch "was a significant issue. Most of their declines from the previous year could be attributed to it," says David Sargent, J.D. Power's global vehicle research vice president. "Other than that, their quality was going fairly well."

Many complaints to J.D. Power centered on the system's tendency to freeze, which the company called "a hard defect," and its slowness.

Complicated controls could also be distracting for those "operating the system when trying to drive a vehicle," Sargent says.

The upcoming fix won't come in time to boost Ford's quality rankings in the June Power initial quality report, which only covers vehicles sold through this month. While Ford has made running improvements to the systems, Sargent says those could be offset by the increased number of models sold with MyFord Touch.

It can take up to 45 minutes to...

More States Seek To Collect Online Sales Tax

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:40:15 -0500

Attention, online shoppers. The days of tax-free online shopping may be coming to an end. More than a dozen states have enacted legislation or rules to force online retailers to collect sales taxes on purchases, according to tax publisher CCH. Similar legislation is pending in 10 states.

Reasons for the spread of online sales tax laws:

Budget shortfalls. The National Conference of State Legislatures estimates that uncollected state sales taxes will cost states $23 billion this year. Residents of sales-tax states are supposed to pay taxes on online purchases, but because retailers don't collect them, they rarely do.

Heavy lobbying from retailers. Retailers have long argued that exempting online purchases from sales taxes gives online retailers an unfair advantage over brick-and-mortar stores. The pressure escalated in December after online giant Amazon offered customers a one-day 5% discount if they used its Price Check app to make a purchase while in a physical store, says Jason Brewer of the Retail Industry Leaders Association, which supports taxing online purchases.

"A store manager has the power to say, 'I'll match that price,' but they don't have the power to say, 'I won't charge you a sales tax,'" he says. "They go to jail if they do that."

Gridlock. Legislation has been introduced in the House and Senate that would give states broad authority to require online retailers to collect state sales taxes, as long as they streamline the collection process.

Amazon supports the legislation, says spokesman Ty Rogers. Federal legislation to permit interstate collection of sales tax "is the only way to level the playing field for all sellers and provide states the right to obtain more than a fraction of the revenue already owed," he says.

Despite bipartisan support, though, the bill has languished in Congress. "Many of the states have gotten somewhat frustrated waiting for Congress to act,"...

Kodak To Stop Making Cameras, Digital Frames

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:41:33 -0500

Eastman Kodak Co. said Thursday that it will stop making digital cameras, pocket video cameras and digital picture frames, marking the end of an era for the company that brought photography to the masses more than a century ago.

Founded by George Eastman in 1880, Kodak was known all over the world for its Brownie and Instamatic cameras and its yellow-and-red film boxes. But the company was battered by Japanese competition in the 1980s, and was then unable to keep pace with the shift from film to digital technology.

The Rochester, New York-based company, which filed for bankruptcy protection last month, said it will phase out the product lines in the first half of this year and instead look for other companies to license its brand for those products.

It's an especially poignant moment for Kodak. In 1975, using a new type of electronic sensor invented six years earlier at Bell Labs, a Kodak engineer named Steven Sasson created the first digital camera. It was a toaster-size prototype capturing black-and-white images at a resolution of 0.1 megapixels.

Through the 1990s, Kodak spent some $4 billion developing the photo technology inside most of today's cellphones and digital devices. But a reluctance to ease its heavy financial reliance on film allowed rivals like Canon Inc. and Sony Corp. to rush into the fast-emerging digital arena. The immensely lucrative analog business Kodak worried about undermining was virtually erased in a decade by the filmless photography it invented.

Today, the standalone digital camera faces stiff competition, as smartphone cameras gain broader use. Kodak owns patents that cover a number of basic functions in many smartphone cameras. The company picked up $27 million in patent-licensing fees in the first half of 2011. It made about $1.9 billion from those fees in the previous three years...

Review: Soulo Converts iPad into Karaoke Machine

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:38:19 -0500

Karaoke lovers typically fall into two categories: Those who enjoy it, and those whose arms have to be twisted to get up and sing in public.

Enter Soulo, a software and microphone kit that can turn an iPad or other Apple device into a karaoke machine. It gives you instant karaoke in the privacy of your own home, or wherever you carry your Apple gadgets.

That's the idea, anyway.

In practical terms, the quality of the karaoke experience depends largely on the kind of sound system you pipe Soulo through.

The software app does a great job of emulating the sing-along video animation typically found in a commercial karaoke machine. It also offers a good selection of songs.

But I wasn't thrilled by the sound quality I got from the Soulo microphone. That dampened an otherwise entertaining way to use an iPad.

In particular, I like how the Soulo-iPad combo makes it a snap to record audio and video of a performance and then post clips -- not full songs -- on YouTube, Facebook and elsewhere.

Soulo is available with a digital wireless microphone, which retails for $99, or with a wired microphone, which sells for $69. Songs cost extra after the first handful. I tested the wireless version, which comes with a receiver that plugs into the iPad dock and syncs with the microphone.

The karaoke app and microphones are compatible with iPads, iPhones and the iPod Touch. Audio output options include listening through headphones or other speaker systems via the devices' stereo jack. The wireless receiver also can connect to a TV.

Transforming the iPad into a karaoke machine is easy. You download the free Soulo app from the Apple Store and register the software.

Soulo comes with a few songs and a code to download 10 karaoke tracks for free. You can purchase and download more songs...

Lenovo Warns About Global Hard Drive Shortage

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:48:01 -0500

Lenovo Group Ltd., the world's second-biggest personal computer maker, said Thursday that quarterly profit grew by more than half but warned hard-drive costs would remain high amid a global shortage.

The company said it's confident of closing in on the top spot in PC sales as it reported strong sales growth across all major markets even as it focuses more attention on the burgeoning smartphone and mobile Internet market.

Net income rose to $153 million, or 1.46 cents per share, in the October-December period, which is the company's third fiscal quarter. That's up 54 percent from the same period the year before.

Sales jumped 44 percent to a record $8.4 billion as its share of the global personal computer market hit a high of 14 percent.

Lenovo posted 30 percent sales growth in China, which accounts for about two-fifths of total sales. Sales in Africa, Latin America and other emerging markets rose 13 percent.

Strongest growth came in developed markets including Western Europe and North America, where sales zoomed up 81 percent. They were helped partly by new a joint venture with NEC Corp. in Japan and the purchase of Germany's Medion AG, a maker of multimedia products and consumer electronics. Both deals were completed in July.

The company, which is based in Beijing and has U.S. headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina, said market share in China, the world's biggest PC market, hit a high of 35.3 percent.

Lenovo, which acquired IBM Corp.'s PC unit in 2005, overtook Dell Inc. in the third quarter of 2011 to become the second-largest PC vendor by shipments worldwide, according to both International Data Corp. and Gartner.

"We are closing the gap with No. 1," held by rival Hewlett-Packard Co., said Chairman Yang Yuanqing.

Gross profit margins dipped in the quarter because of higher prices for hard disk drives. Flooding in Thailand last...

Oracle To Pay $1.9B for Taleo, Extends SAP Rivalry

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 09:44:02 -0500

Oracle Corp. is escalating its rivalry with German business-software maker SAP AG and plans to pay $1.9 billion for Taleo Corp., a company that helps businesses hire and manage their employees.

The planned purchase extends Oracle's offerings in the growing arena of cloud-based computing. With such an approach, businesses don't run software and services in-house, but rather send those tasks over the Internet to remote locations operated by companies such as Oracle, SAP and IBM Corp.

Taleo makes human-resources software that runs on the cloud. Taleo, which has about 1,400 employees, said it has more than 5,000 customers, including nearly half of the Fortune 100. Through its software, people can apply for jobs and companies can manage the careers of their hires.

Oracle is paying $46 a share for Taleo stock, 18 percent above Wednesday's closing price of $38.94. Taleo's stock rose $6.65, or 17.1 percent, to $45.51 in morning trading Thursday after the announcement came out. Oracle's gained 4 cents to $28.77.

The board of Taleo, which is based in Dublin, California, has approved the deal. It is expected to close in mid-2012 subject to Taleo shareholder and regulatory approvals.

In December, SAP announced plans to buy another human-resources software company, SuccessFactors, for $3.4 billion. The rivalry between SAP and Oracle has been escalating, and the latest deal underscores the growing importance technology companies see in delivering software over the Internet.

SAP's specialty is business applications, such as those used for payroll and managing relationships with customers and suppliers. In recent years, Oracle has spent billions of dollars pushing into that field, though it remains behind SAP.

Oracle said Taleo's portfolio of products would complement Oracle's existing offerings.

"Human capital management has become a strategic initiative for organizations," said Thomas Kurian, an executive vice president at Oracle.

Taleo CEO Michael Gregoire said the company's products give customers "the...

Yahoo Ramps Up Executive Makeover

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 09:34:44 -0500

A month after naming a new CEO, Yahoo shook up its board Tuesday in a move to reinvigorate its business and possibly accelerate attempts to find a buyer.

The Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company said longtime Chairman Roy Bostock and three other board members -- Vyomesh Joshi, Gary Wilson and Arthur Kern -- will step aside after the company's shareholder meeting.

Replacing them on the board: Alfred Amoroso, former CEO of Rovi, a digital entertainment company; and Maynard Webb, chairman (and former CEO) of LiveOps, a customer call center company that uses cloud computing. Webb also worked previously as eBay's COO.

The shake-up is part of Yahoo's ongoing housecleaning of its management. Analysts had expected Bostock's departure since co-founder Jerry Yang exited in mid-January. Scott Thompson, who ran eBay's PayPal business, was tapped as Yahoo CEO in early January, replacing Carol Bartz, who was booted last September.

Yang, Bostock and other departing board members angered major shareholders in 2008 when they turned down an unsolicited $45 billion offer from Microsoft shortly before the economic downturn, a decision which was widely criticized. Yahoo's current market value is about $19.6 billion.

Yahoo's outgoing management has also been blamed for its sluggish response to competitive threats from Google and Facebook in more- promising business categories, such as social network display ads.

"These guys had overstayed their welcome," says Jonathan Yarmis, an independent analyst.

Some analysts saw the latest board shuffle as a pre-emptive move to avoid a proxy fight from other still-angry shareholders. But Yarmis says the move, while it may placate some shareholders, stems more likely from Thompson wanting new board members.

Meanwhile, Yahoo says it continues to look for an equity buyer, and the revamped management team could give that effort new life, says Karsten Weide, an analyst at IDC. "The old board was just in place for too long and...