Technology

Yahoo! News: Technology News
Hackers intercept FBI, Scotland Yard call (AP)

A general view of New Scotland Yard, the headquarters of the London Metropolitan Police Britain's for-most and largest police serviceFriday, Feb., 3, 2012. Hackers have intercepted a conference call between the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Scotland Yard it has emerged . At the heart of the conference call between the FBI and Scotland Yard was a strategy aimed at bringing down the hacking collective known as Anonymous, which has launched a series of embarrassing attacks across the Internet.(AP Photo/Alastair Grant)AP - Trading jokes and swapping leads, investigators from the FBI and Scotland Yard spent the conference call strategizing about how to bring down the hacking collective known as Anonymous, responsible for a string of embarrassing attacks across the Internet.


EU probes new Google privacy policy (AP)
AP - The European Union's data protection authorities have asked Google to delay the rollout of its new privacy policy until they have verified that it doesn't break the bloc's data protection laws.
HP awards new CEO Whitman with $16.5M pay package (AP)
AP - Hewlett-Packard Co. ushered in Meg Whitman as its CEO with a $16.5 million compensation package that hinges on the one-time politician's ability to lift the stumbling technology company's stock price during the next two years.
Facebook Timeline feature unpopular, especially among Baby Boomers (Yahoo! News)
Yahoo! News - The new mandatory Facebook Timeline is a surprisingly controversial feature. You either love it, or you hate it. And according to a new poll, it appears that almost all of you hate it. Overall, only 20% of those surveyed said they liked …
Super Bowl bust: U.S. government seizes 307 domains for violating NFL copyrights (Yahoo! News)
Yahoo! News - While many sports fans are preparing for Sunday's Super Bowl by organizing parties and shopping for TVs, the U.S. government is preparing in a different way. Just yesterday, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency seized 307 different domains suspected of violating NFL copyrights. …
NASA Launches Facebook Game to Test Space Program Knowledge (Mashable)
Mashable - How much do you know about the NASA space program, Earthling?
Apple, Motorola in patent struggle in Germany (AP)
AP - Apple Inc. has temporarily blocked Motorola Mobility's attempt to have it withdraw several iPhone and iPad models from its Internet store in Germany, the latest twist in an extended legal duel over patents between the companies.
Star Wars, Ferris Bueller drive Super Bowl ad buzz (Reuters)
Reuters - The Super Bowl is still two days away but some advertisers already are looking like winners as their yet-to-be-aired commercials score millions of hits online and rack up pre-game buzz.
Android Games from Capcom and Square-Enix on Their Way ... In Japan (ContributorNetwork)
ContributorNetwork - States-side fans of video game consoles, from the first Nintendo Entertainment System to its modern successor the Wii, know what it's like for a game that looks awesome to only come out in Japan.
Android lead smartphone platform in 2011, will be used by government (Appolicious)
Appolicious - Android got some good news this week. Firstly, numbers released by comScore suggest the platform grew in the fourth quarter of 2011 in the U.S. Secondly, the U.S. government has decided to use Android devices as secure phones.
Are Apple, Google and Facebook Natural Monopolies? (ContributorNetwork)
ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | They may not be the power company, but you won't find too many threats to their dominance. All three are not only at the top of their game, they have few, if any, competitors. And the law helps keep newbies out of the market.
The Super Bowl: The most DVR’d, and DVR-proof, broadcast on TV (The Cutline)
The Cutline - More than 111 million people are expected to watch the Super Bowl between the New York Giants and New England Patriots on Sunday—roughly a third of the U.S. population and the largest television audience in television history. And virtually all of those viewers will be watching it live. "Live sports is the most DVR-proof programming [...]
How to keep Angry Birds downloads flowing? Add KISS (Appolicious)
Appolicious - Rovio Mobile has done a pretty impressive job of leveraging the runaway success of the game Angry Birds into a huge multimedia brand. But like Beanie Babies, Furbies and Tamagatchis before it, one figures that eventually, Angry Birds will lose steam and disappear into the annals of toy history.
Going mobile: Travel's eventual high-tech future (Reuters)
Reuters - Welcome to the airport terminal of the future.
New version of Showyou is a Flipboard for video (Appolicious)
Appolicious - While there is no shortage of video to consume online and via mobile devices - 60 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute! - finding clips and programs most relevant to you is challenging.
Micron CEO dies in plane crash, industry stunned (Reuters)

The wreckage of the small plane flown by Micron Technology Inc Chief Executive and Chairman Steve Appleton is seen after crashing at Boise airport, February 3, 2012. The 51-year old Appleton, a three-decade industry veteran who performed stunts at airshows, died after the small plane he was piloting crashed in Boise, Idaho, where the chipmaker is headquartered. REUTERS/Brian Losness (UNITED STATES - Tags: TRANSPORT BUSINESS DISASTER SOCIETY)Reuters - Micron Technology Inc Chief Executive and Chairman Steve Appleton died in a small plane crash on Friday, a major loss for a U.S. memory chipmaker already struggling with sluggish computer sales and declining prices.


TouchPal Keyboard Tablet tops Android Apps of the Week (Appolicious)
Appolicious - The touchscreen keyboard gets an upgrade with TouchPal’s Keyboard for Android tablets. It lets you easily switch between swiping and tapping, as well as gestures to get the most out of your finger follies. This week also brought some big name updates to the Android Market, including special upgrades from McAfee Security and Mint’s personal finance app. Salesforce debuted its Rypple app this week, as did Eventbrite for managing events on-the-go.
Group seeks to save data on Megaupload servers (Reuters)
Reuters - The Electronic Frontier Foundation on Thursday asked federal prosecutors and lawyers for the Megaupload.com file-sharing service to allow users who uploaded material to retrieve it as long as it was not copyrighted material.

Yahoo! News: Gadgets & Personal Technology
Android Games from Capcom and Square-Enix on Their Way ... In Japan (ContributorNetwork)
ContributorNetwork - States-side fans of video game consoles, from the first Nintendo Entertainment System to its modern successor the Wii, know what it's like for a game that looks awesome to only come out in Japan.
The Super Bowl: The most DVR’d, and DVR-proof, broadcast on TV (The Cutline)
The Cutline - More than 111 million people are expected to watch the Super Bowl between the New York Giants and New England Patriots on Sunday—roughly a third of the U.S. population and the largest television audience in television history. And virtually all of those viewers will be watching it live. "Live sports is the most DVR-proof programming [...]
Sprint investors in purgatory until 2013 (Reuters)
Reuters - Sprint Nextel , like its bigger rivals, is expected to report a steep decline in fourth-quarter profit margins due to its launch of the costly Apple Inc iPhone.
Just Show Me: How to see recently used apps in Android 4.0 (Yahoo! News)
Yahoo! News - Welcome to Just Show Me on Tecca TV, where we show you tips and tricks for getting the most out of the gadgets in your life. In today's episode we'll show you how to find out what apps are running on your Android 4.0 …
Google tightens security in Android app store (Reuters)
Reuters - Google Inc has been quietly policing its online store for months now in an acknowledgement of malware's growing threat to its increasingly popular Android mobile software.
How Wireless Carriers and Manufacturers Screw Up Android (ContributorNetwork)
ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | Google recently unveiled its new Android design guidelines, which are meant to help people develop apps for its open-source smartphone and tablet operating system. The guidelines work in tandem with Android Ice Cream Sandwich's visual overhaul, which was designed to "enchant" smartphone and tablet users in a way that Android's previous, bare-bones iterations, did not.
Steve Jobs brought back to life as an Android fan in Taiwanese ad (Yahoo! News)
Yahoo! News - In the months following long-time Apple CEO Steve Jobs's untimely death, we've seen him resurrected in many forms. He's already been brought back in plastic and bronze, but we never thought we'd see him reborn as an Android supporter. Leave it to a Taiwanese tablet …
The $23 Android Tablet You Can Buy in India (ContributorNetwork)
ContributorNetwork - You can buy it in India if you're a student, that is. According to Jamie Yap of ZDNet Asia, the Aakash tablet is priced at 2,200 rupees, or 45 U.S. dollars, while students pay a special subsidized price thanks to a government contract. 25,000 students have already requested one from the University of Mumbai, and more than 1.4 million people have ordered the tablet so far, with three new factories being set up to meet the demand.
Angelic "Steve Jobs" loves Android in Taiwan TV ad (Reuters)
Reuters - He may have derided Android devices in real life but in the afterlife Apple Inc founder Steve Jobs is glad he can use one -- or at least that's the story a Jobs look-alike tells in a recent TV commercial for a Taiwanese electronics company's new product.
Sony cuts annual digital camera, PS3 hardware forecasts (Reuters)
Reuters - Sony Corp on Thursday kept its annual LCD TV sales forecast unchanged but cut its forecasts for digital camera and PlayStation 3 hardware sales.
Just Show Me: How to use the notification system in Android 4.0 (Yahoo! News)
Yahoo! News - Welcome to Just Show Me on Tecca TV, where we show you tips and tricks for getting the most out of the gadgets in your life. In today's episode we'll show you how to use the new notification features of your Android 4.0 phone. …
Mexico watchdog: no official word on Televisa deal (Reuters)
Reuters - Mexico's competition watchdog said on Wednesday it was still in the process of notifying the companies of its decision on broadcaster Televisa's proposed purchase of half of cell phone company Iusacell.
Sony names Hirai to replace Stringer as CEO (Reuters)

Kazuo Hirai, President and Group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment, presents the new Sony S tablet (R) and the P tablet during a news conference at the IFA consumer electronics fair in Berlin August 31, 2011. REUTERS/Tobias SchwarzReuters - Sony Corp named Kazuo Hirai as chief executive, succeeding Howard Stringer at the helm of the iconic gadget maker as it struggles with persistent losses and stalled efforts to re-energize its once-dominant brand.


The Kindle and Nook -- Good for More Than Just E-Books (ContributorNetwork)
ContributorNetwork - They've got the brand names of popular black and white e-readers. But the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet are, as the latter's name implies, basically miniature tablets like the iPad. (The Nook Color is also; it's a cheaper version of the Nook Tablet.)
Android Apps Coming to BlackBerry App World in February (ContributorNetwork)
ContributorNetwork - RIM has been promising Android apps for its BlackBerry PlayBook tablet since before it was even released. But now, almost a year since its April debut, the pieces finally seem to be falling into place.
Why Are Digital Cameras Disappearing? (ContributorNetwork)
ContributorNetwork - COMMENTARY | According to Mike Tomkins of Imaging Resource, digital camera maker Canon is in a bit of a bind. Its high-end Single Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras are growing in popularity, but compact cameras -- the basic point-and-shoot variety -- are starting to tank except in "emerging markets." Which is code for third-world countries, where most people can't afford SLRs anyway.
'Smart Clothing' Could Become New Wearable Gadgets (LiveScience.com)
LiveScience.com - Today's ordinary clothing has the untapped power to become tomorrow's wearable electronics. A Canadian lab has tested special fibers that can help make soft, flexible touch screens and batteries woven directly into the fabrics of modern life.
100-year-old grandmother plays Nintendo DS games to keep her mind active (Yahoo! News)
Yahoo! News - Close your eyes, and try to imagine yourself beyond your 80th birthday. Do you still see yourself spending a couple of hours each day gaming? That's what 100-year-old Kathleen Connell does, and she says it's the reason why she doesn't "feel …
100-year-old Nintendo DS addict attributes sharp mind to gaming device (Digital Trends)
Digital Trends - A report last week suggested that to ward off brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s, constant cerebral stimulation through activities like games and reading could be the key. And one woman, 100-year-old Kathleen Connell, would certainly appear to back up such findings, with the centenarian putting her longevity and sharp mind almost entirely down to her Nintendo DS gaming device.
Will mobile campaign donations be a game-changer for politicians? (Digital Trends)
Digital Trends - Detailed by reports from both the campaigns of President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney, Square’s mobile payments hardware is being rolled out to collect campaign donations. Fundraisers are being outfitted with the small, plastic credit card reader which can be used with the iPhone, 3G iPad or Android smartphone to collect money while campaigning within neighborhoods or other commercial locations. Assuming that this program is successful when collecting money for presidential candidates, more politicians in lower levels of office could also adopt the strategy of collecting thousands of micro-payments with mobile smartphones or tablets. During the 2010 campaign season, the Square application was used by New York politician Reshma Saujani as well as Silicon Valley’s Josh Becker for political campaigns.