Modern Media Mom » crime

Headlines for May 7th, 2010 through May 10th, 2010

[modern media mom] — Mon, 10 May 2010 18:00:54 +0000

Accountant used Twitter to threaten to blow up airport – Telegraph – "A trainee accountant who posted a message on Twitter threatening to blow an airport ''sky high'' has been found guilty of sending a menacing electronic communication."
Facebook’s Challenge: Clean up Image – PCWorld – "Between site glitches and user gripes, data leaks and privacy complaints, Facebook needs to get its act together."
Does Facebook-McDonalds Deal Signal Competition For Foursquare? – IT Channel News by CRN – "A reported deal with fast-food giant McDonald’s could mean that Facebook is setting itself up to compete with Foursquare and other location-based social networking Web sites."
Microsoft Office 2010 Adds Features For Browsers, Smartphones — Microsoft Office 2010 – "The latest version promises different features based on how people use it on the PC, in a browser, and on a smartphone."
New Intel chips coming to make laptops run faster, longer | Crave – CNET – "Sharp-eyed readers and bloggers have noted several leaks and online references to new Intel CPUs, adding to the current Core i3, i5, and i7 lineups. These include new ultralow-voltage (or ULV) chips with the "Core i" name, as well as new versions of the Core i5 and Core i7 CPUs found in mainstream and desktop replacement laptops."
Apple has a secret flash replacement plan – The Inquirer – "Apple's attack on Adobe Flash might not have been a defence of open standards or a shift to HTML5 but because it is planning to release some closed technology of its own to replace Flash. Apple is apparently developing a software technology called Gianduia that it introduced last summer at its World of Webobjects Developer Conference."
Scribd Ditches Flash in Favor of HTML5 – PCWorld – Site that lets anyone upload almost any document and publish it to the Web announces it is converting the millions of documents it hosts to HTML5.

Headlines for May 5th, 2010

[modern media mom] — Thu, 06 May 2010 03:02:16 +0000

Is there really a cyberwar? Term might be misused – Is there really a “cyberwar” going on? Some officials and computer security companies say yes, arguing that armies of hackers are stealing online secrets and using the Internet to attack infrastructure such as power grids. However, some security analysts said at a conference this week that “cyberwarfare” is such a broadly used term that it might be hurting efforts by countries to agree how to cooperate on Internet security.
Apple’s Behavior a Throwback to 1984, Adobe CTO Says – PCWorld Business Center – Apple's refusal to allow Flash on the iPhone hurts innovation and is "like 1984 in a lot of ways," Adobe Systems' CTO said on Wednesday, implying that Apple has become the "Big Brother" it rebelled against in its iconic TV ad from that year.
iPhone Search Documents Should Be Public, Judge Told – BusinessWeek – Secret documents justifying a search warrant in an investigation of an Apple Inc. prototype iPhone, which prosecutors say was reported stolen, should be made public, media organizations said in a court filing.
Glitch Brings New Worries About Facebook’s Privacy – NYTimes.com – On Wednesday, users discovered a glitch that gave them access to supposedly private information in the accounts of their Facebook friends, like chat conversations.
Updated Google search page features brighter logo, icons – Updated Google search page features brighter logo, icons

Headlines for April 29th, 2010

[modern media mom] — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 15:00:22 +0000

Jon Stewart to Steve Jobs: ‘Chill, baby’ – Apple 2.0 - – The Daily Show host blasts Apple for Big Brother tactics in the lost iPhone case
Oregon K-12 Schools All in for Google Apps Education Edition – Oregon became the first state in the nation to sign up for Google Apps for Education, which is free, in kindergarten though 12th grade classrooms across its 197 school districts.

The Oregon Department of Education said April 28 it will provide all teachers, staff and students with Gmail for e-mail, Google Docs for word processing and presentations, Google Calendar, Google Sites for Website publishing, Google Talk for video conferencing and other apps.
Polaroid Lives! New Camera Uses Real Instant Film – Wired.com – Like a phoenix rising from the flames and gently fading back into view as you pointlessly flap it in the air, Polaroid has returned. And this time, with real instant film, not that awful camera/printer – the Pogo – we saw last year.
20 app showdown: iPhone vs. iPad – CNET News – "A few weeks back we put together some screenshots of games on the iPhone versus their iPad iterations. It was a resounding hit with the exception of our execution, which was to shoehorn the lovely, full-size comparisons into a little under 600-pixel-width screens. To make amends for this, we're giving it another go. But this time we're taking a look at some popular non-game applications, as well as bringing it to you in pixel-for-pixel goodness. You'll find that not all of the apps on this list are necessarily better than their pocket counterparts. In fact, in a few cases they look or function a little worse. There are, however, quite a few that offer a dramatically different experience than what's available for smaller screens. Read on to see what we dug up."
Gizmodo’s iPhone Saga: Fact vs. Speculation – PCWorld – There's no shortage of speculation on what will happen to Gizmodo and the person who handed over the prototype iPhone for $5,000, but there have also been a few new details reported since the police raid, some rumored and some on the record as fact. Let's separate fact from speculation:

Headlines for April 28th, 2010

[modern media mom] — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 00:01:13 +0000

HP To Buy Palm For $1.2 Billion — InformationWeek – Throwing a lifeline to beleaguered smartphone maker Palm, HP on Wednesday said that it has signed an agreement to acquire the company for $1.2 billion in cash.
iPad Users Beware of emails Offering iTunes Update – Considering the blazing popularity of Apple iPad tablet, nefarious hackers now target the early iPad adopters with spam emails that lure to update latest iTunes. Security solutions provider BitDefender, has asked users to avoid any email invitation which asks users to download an iTunes update "for best performance, newer features and security". However, this attack is mostly targeted to Windows PC users and Mac owners need not worry about it.
Police Know Who Found the Prototype iPhone | PCMag.com – Police have identified the individual who obtained the prototype iPhone, according to reports. But that may or may not be the person who sold it to the Gizmodo gadget blog.

The San Jose Business Journal reported Tuesday that the investigators "identified and interviewed the person who took the phone from the Gourmet Haus Staudt on March 18."
5 Ways Facebook Should Improve User Privacy – PCWorld – Whenever Facebook introduces new services, especially those that expand into other parts of the Web, it doesn't take long before privacy advocates and users start complaining about the changes. This time, however, Senators Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Mark Begich (D-Alaska), Al Franken (D-Minn.), and Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) have joined the fray.
Apple Announces Dates for WWDC 2010 – PCWorld Business Center – Start your credit cards, ladies and gentlemen. On Wednesday, Apple announced dates for its 2010 Worldwide Developers Conference.

Headlines for April 20th, 2010

[modern media mom] — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 18:00:39 +0000

Study: Teens prefer texting to talking | Digital Media – CNET News – One third of teens in the U.S. text more than 100 times a day, according to a study released Tuesday by Pew Internet and American Life Project.
Based on a survey and focus groups conducted with teenagers between 12 and 17, Pew found that text messaging is by far the most common way that kids communicate with each other, more than chatting on the phone, e-mailing, using social-networking sites, or talking face to face.
Ford first to seamlessly integrate Pandora into a car stereo – Pandora Internet radio has just about taken over our musical lives, and now Ford has figured out the best way yet to integrate it into a car. Starting with the 2011 Ford Fiesta, if you have an Android or BlackBerry smartphone, you can tightly integrate the beloved Internet music service into your car’s stereo system.
Google Gaia Hack Shows Cloud Isn’t Safe After All – Google’s single sign-on system, formerly called Gaia, was the access point for the Chinese cyber attack that exposed the Gmail accounts of human rights activists.
This password system controls access to Google Apps for millions of users. A user clicked on a link sent to his instant messaging client and was connected to a “poisoned” Web site, permitting intruders to gain access to his (or her) personal computer and then to the computers Google programmers.
Thieves Take Man’s Finger With His IPad – Police were searching for two robbers who nabbed a man’s brand new iPad and part of his pinky finger along with it, KMGH-TV in Denver reported.
The theft occurred last Thursday, just outside the Apple store at the Cherry Creek Mall.
Bill Jordan, 59, was walking out of the store with his new purchase when two men jumped out from behind him and grabbed the bag with the iPad, police spokesman Sonny Jackson said.
The men struggled, tugging the Apple bag back and forth, when Jordan’s left pinky finger became entangled inside the drawstring of the bag.
One thief yanked the bag one last time and also pulled the flesh off the bone on the man’s pinky finger, Jackson said.
Google Scolded By Privacy Officials — InformationWeek – Data protection officials from ten countries on Tuesday chastised Google CEO Eric Schmidt in an open letter for his company’s handling of the launch of Google Buzz and asked the company to commit to building greater privacy protections into its future services.
Apple gets iPhone back, and yes, it’s real – Wireless- msnbc.com – The editor of gadgets Web site Gizmodo said that the site paid $5,000 for the iPhone believed to be the new device Apple will release in a few months, and that Apple Monday asked for the phone back and received it.

Headlines for December 28th, 2009

[modern media mom] — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 17:31:53 +0000

2009 in review: The year in home entertainment – "2009 was a busy year for the iPod, iTunes, and Apple TV. Here’s a quick wrap-up of some of the big events of the past 12 months in the world of home entertainment."
Amazon: Kindle Is Most Gifted Item Ever – "Amazon's Kindle e-book reader hit a watershed moment on Christmas Day, when, for the first time ever, customers purchased more Kindle books than physical books. The company also claims the Kindle is the most gifted item in Amazon's history. These two facts were part of the online retailer's recently announced holiday sales activity."
Xbox Thief Nabbed By Playing Online – "A man in the Bronx played a stolen Xbox 360 over Xbox Live and the cops traced the IP address back to his grandmother's house."
Mozilla pushes back Firefox 3.6, 4.0 deadlines – "Mozilla won't make a 2009 deadline for releasing Firefox 3.6 and is giving itself more time to complete a major update, version 4.0.
The organization behind the open-source Web browser had predicted a final release of Firefox 3.6 in December 2009, but the Mozilla Web site now includes "ship Firefox 3.6" as a goal for the first quarter of 2010.

In addition, Firefox 4.0, which had been due in 2010, now is "aimed at late 2010 or early 2011," with a beta due in the summer of 2010, according to Mozilla."
Google Netbook Specs Reportedly ‘Leaked’ – "The rumored Google Netbook, which Google has not confirmed it is working on, will reportedly feature Google’s Chrome OS, a 10.1-inch multi-touch display, a beefy ARM processor and 2GB of RAM, according to the U.K.’s IBTimes, which says it has received specs for the netbook."
AT&T halts sales of iPhone in New York City – "AT&T has stopped Web-based sales of the iPhone in the New York City area, although the company is saying little about the reasons behind it.
"We periodically modify our promotions and distribution channels," said Mark Siegel, executive director of media relations for AT&T Mobility on Monday. He declined to elaborate on why and which areas specifically the company's online iPhone sales are being halted."

Headlines for November 12th, 2009

[modern media mom] — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:00:46 +0000

Full Streams Ahead: Clicker’s TV Search Engine Is Now Open To The Public – "Clicker, the startup that looks to be a comprehensive video search engine for television content on the web, has launched to the public. The site made its public debut at TechCrunch50, where it generated quite a bit of positive buzz, and has gradually ramped up its private beta over the last couple months."
Facebook message frees NYC robbery suspect – "A 19-year-old New York City man arrested on robbery charges has been exonerated thanks to his Facebook page.
Rodney Bradford was held for 12 days on suspicion of robbing two people on Oct. 17 in the Brooklyn public housing complex where he lives."
Mozilla hits FF button with second Firefox 3.6 beta – "Mozilla has hastily released a second beta of Firefox 3.6 just over a week after pushing out the first test preview of its popular browser.
The update contains over 190 bug fixes, many of which the open source outfit said would improve the browser for web developers, add-on coders and users.

Of course the decision to bombard testers with a second beta so soon was probably also made following reports from users experiencing sporadic crashes with the first beta."
Thanks Google, But Airport Wi-Fi Should Always Be Free – "Google's getting more than the usual amount of attention this week for sponsoring free airport Wi-Fi during the holiday season. And rightfully so: During a long layover, no one wants to fire up their laptop and Web browser only to see a Web page demanding money for Internet access."
MS exec gets shot down after ‘inaccurate’ Windows 7 spiel – “Unfortunately this came from a Microsoft employee who was not involved in any aspect of designing Windows 7. I hate to say this about one of our own, but his comments were inaccurate and uninformed,” he said.

Headlines for October 30th, 2009

[modern media mom] — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:00:42 +0000

Google puts songs a click away in search – "A new music feature rolled out by Google Inc. Wednesday will bring its U.S. searchers one click away from listening to a full-length song."
The Twittering Masses Get Lists – "After a two-week test launch, Twitter Lists have been fully rolled out. The new feature allows Twitter users to organize the people they follow and streamline their feeds."
International Domains Get ICANN Thumbs Up – "Starting in mid-November, countries and territories will be able to apply to show domain names in their native language, a major technical tweak to the Internet designed to increase language accessibility."
Palm Lost the iTunes Sync Battle (Again) – "The release of the iTunes 9.0.2 update on Thursday yet again disables Palm's workaround to sync with Apple's popular jukebox software. Perhaps it's high time Palm moved on and created its own software."
Spammer Ordered to Pay Facebook $711 Million – "Facebook was awarded US$711 million in damages from a convicted spammer on Thursday, but the social networking site is hoping a separate criminal action will eventually send him to jail."

Headlines for October 20th, 2009

[modern media mom] — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 16:01:29 +0000

So, how does Windows 7 perform? – “Compared to Vista, new OS shows only a marginal improvement overall”
High-speed chase ends when OnStar halts stolen SUV – Service used for first time since OnStar began offering it with 2009 models
Verizon Tips Oct. 30 for ‘Droid’ Phone – “A new promotional Web site from Verizon Wireless appears to mention an October 30 date for their new Android 2.0-powered “Droid” phone. It’s still unclear whether that’s an announcement or sale date.”
Barnes & Noble’s Kindle Killing, Dual Screen ‘Nook’ E-Reader Leaked – “If you just ordered a Kindle, stop reading now or you’re in for a giant dose of buyer’s remorse. Pictures and details of Barnes and Noble’s forthcoming e-book reader have leaked, and it is hot, both inside and out. It will be on sale next Tuesday.”
Apple Store Down; New Gear on the Way? – “Apple has taken the Apple Store down for maintenance, usually a good sign that new Apple hardware is on the way.”

Headlines for October 5th, 2009

[modern media mom] — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:01:46 +0000

Nobody move or the iPhone gets it – “Proof, were it needed, that some people really shouldn’t be allowed out on their own, reaches us from Cincinnati, where a whackjob threatened to pop a cap in his recalcitrant iPhone’s sorry ass in front of horrified Apple staff.”
Be careful when using Internet, government warns – “When swine flu broke out, the government revved up a massive information campaign centered on three words: Wash your hands.The Obama administration now wants to convey similarly clear and concise guidance about one of the biggest national security threats in your home and office — the computer. Think before you click. Know who’s on the other side of that instant message. What you say or do in cyberspace stays in cyberspace — for many to see, steal and use against you or your government.”
Google Pulls Pirate Bay From Search Results – “The homepage of Pirate Bay disappeared from Google’s search results Friday, after Google allegedly received a DMCA takedown notice targeting the site.The move is unexpected because, while the Pirate Bay is rife with pirated material, the site’s spare landing page contains no content to speak of — just links, a logo and a search box. By law, DMCA notices are targeted to specific infringing content.”
Apple threatens Woolworths over new logo – “Woolworths, the largest supermarket chain in Australia, adopted a new logo in 2008 and on-the-ball Apple lawyers have just noticed it looks a bit like the Cupertino gadget maker’s.”
Vonage iPhone App, A Milestone, Works Well – “The new Vonage Mobile application for the iPhone, available Monday, could change the business world’s approach to Apple’s mobile platform as it opens the door to new functionality and softens the sting of criticism that Apple has shown too much favoritism to AT&T.”