IT-Code-News: IT News HeadLines (ComputerWorld) 01/04/2009

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

IT News HeadLines (ComputerWorld) 01/04/2009

BlackBerry App World Open for Business
The long-awaited BlackBerry App World opened its doors Wednesday, kicking off CTIA 2009 in Las Vegas. BlackBerry App World is Research in Motion's (RIM) effort to keep BlackBerry a worthy contender in the battle for the top smartphone.

TimeBridge
Sending a meeting request to multiple parties is often a shot in the dark. You might schedule a meeting with a PC user running Microsoft Outlook or, if you use Apple's iCal ( Macworld rated 4.5 out of 5 mice ), you might try to set up a meeting with someone who uses a Web-based scheduler, such as Google Calendar ( Macworld rated 4 out of 5 mice ). TimeBridge, which bills itself as a "personal scheduling assistant," makes it easy to schedule meetings, regardless of which scheduling tool people are using. Ingenious and well designed, TimeBridge has the potential to be a smart and useful product, but it lacks a few important features. I also uncovered several bugs during my test period, some of which were successfully resolved.

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The Slumdog Effect and India's IT Services Industry
Now that the Academy Awards have been handed out and Slumdog Millionaire has walked away with eight Oscars, 2009 has been dubbed by some as "the year of India." But how does that height of popularity translate outside of Hollywood? Will it trickle down to IT outsourcing services?

RIM opens online application store for BlackBerry users
Research in Motion today is set to formally launch its online App World store that will compete with Apple's AppStore and Microsoft's upcoming Windows Mobile Marketplace.

Diary of a Data Breach Investigation
Monday
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Conficker Worm Is Much Ado About Nothing
The Conficker Worm is like the Paris Hilton of computer security: Famous solely for being famous. Neither has actually ever done anything of note. But, at least Paris has a sense of humor about her celebrity. Conficker just wastes people's time.

Mac vs. Windows: What Does $1K Get You?
Apple's been criticized a lot lately for charging premium computer prices during a recession. In its defense, though, I hasten to add that Apple generally delivers value with its computers. In my experience, with a few nits aside, Mac laptops are imaginatively designed, well built, and a pleasure to use. Macs aren't subjected to all the viruses and malware aimed at Windows computers. You can run Windows on a Mac. And though Apple laptops slipped a bit in PC World's most recent reliability and service survey, they still get high marks in those areas.

EBay's crucial app dev project moves forward
EBay is moving ahead with a project to let third-party developers build applications on top of Selling Manager, eBay's tools used by thousands of merchants to manage their businesses on its Web site.
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Wi-Fi popular now in smartphones, set to boom
Wi-Fi, already heavily used in mobile devices such as the iPhone according to new research, is coming to a smartphone or cell phone near you.

OS/2 leads readers' favorite OSs of yesteryear
We asked our readers to name their favorite old operating systems. While OS/2 was the clear winner, everything from VAX/VMS to DR-DOS to Atari TOS got a respectful nod. Oh, the memories!

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More News...
View more news and analysis from Computerworld.com
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Auto-enabling Safari's Private Browsing

Regrettably Safari's Private Browsing feature isn't one you can leave on. When you quit Safari and launch it again, you'll find that Private Browsing is turned off. And no, editing the com.apple.safari.plist file does you no good either. You can, however, automate the process of enabling the Private Browsing option with AppleScript. Like so.

Gorge your e-reader on free books!

Whether you read ebooks on a Kindle, Sony Reader, iPhone or notebook, there is a plethora of free content just waiting for you to come and download it. Bonus topic: free audio books!

Finding process IDs with fuser

The fuser command comes in handy for a lot more tasks than figuring out why a file system can't be unmounted. Let's take a look at how much work it can save you for more routine tasks.

How to raise your business profile online

Social networking isn't without its pitfalls. If you're not sure of someone's motives - or that they are who they say they are, or know who they say they do - ignore them. But if you can make web-based networking work for you, you stand to gain on several levels. Here, we'll show you how.

How to make music online

The concept of long-distance collaboration has come on in leaps and bounds since the days of George Michael and Aretha Franklin performing a duet in 1986. These days, anyone with a solid web connection and the necessary musical inclination can make a holy racket online.

How to clean up your PC

Now that the dark days of winter are over, there's nothing better than a good spring clean to blow all the cobwebs away. This doesn't just apply to houses - your computer can also benefit from an overhaul. After all, a tidy PC is an efficient PC.

How to optimize IT for greater business value

Technology providers used to measure their success only in terms of the classic adage, "on time, within budget, and according to clients' expectations." However, because of the need to be profitable and manage steep competition from both within and outside the enterprise, it is nearly impossible to stay afloat by delivering the bare necessities; barely functional does not cut it anymore.

Convert YouTube Videos to MP3s

Recently, Brit-pop superstar Lily Allen performed a nifty acoustic cover of Britney Spears' Womanizer . Alas, it's not available any online stores I'm aware of. The only place to hear the track is YouTube. That doesn't suit my mobile, iPhone-driven lifestyle. So until Lily's people deem fit to let me buy the track, I'm "borrowing" it from YouTube. The site that makes this possible? Video 2 MP3, which converts any video into an MP3.

Reduce Digital Noise in Your Photos

This week, let's explore what noise is all about and how to minimize it in your photos.

How To Choose an Online Backup Provider

Online backup makes a lot of sense: It gives you off-site peace of mind and the security that comes from knowing that someone else is keeping your data safe and sound. The trouble is that, while there are dozens of individual service providers, there are just a few designed for enterprises and small businesses.

Microsoft Rules Netbooks Now, But ARM/Linux Threat Grows

Microsoft today sits comfortably atop the growing netbook market with Windows garnering 90 percent of netbook sales in November, December and January. But Linux netbooks may encroach on Microsoft's success in the near future.

Windows Geeks Warm to Macs

At Simply RFiD, a half-dozen software developers yearned for Macs at work. They liked the power and reliability of the Apple machines. Oddly, Simply RFiD made the switch to Mac Pros for its developers to write code for Windows computers.

Analysts: Google Android Not a Netbook Threat to Windows 7

Google's Linux-based Android operating system was designed for cellphones, but excitement is building about the prospect of Google running Android on low-power netbooks.

Ubuntu 9.04 Beta: Quick Look

So far there have been six alpha releases of the forthcoming Ubuntu 9.04, due for final release next month, and late yesterday the one and only beta release was made available for download. From this point forward there's a release candidate in mid-April, before the final release is made on the 23rd.

Ubuntu Jaunty Jackalope beta released

The Jaunty Jackalope edition of Ubuntu has been released to beta for both the server and desktop editions. Also known as Ubuntu 9.04, this release brings a number of interesting improvements.

SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11: A true Windows replacement

There are lots of Linux distros being touted as great desktop operating systems for PCs. However, there's only one that I can wholeheartedly recommend to business owners as a Windows replacement: Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop 11 (SLED).

Timeline: 40 years of OS milestones

Happy birthday, 40th birthday Unix -- you're looking great for your age. With your birth as our starting point, then, let's look at the biggest desktop OS milestones of the past 40 years.

Giving Linux That 'XP' Factor

I don't even think of Ubuntu as a version of Linux. I put it in a category of its own, and I'm not alone -- there's an increasingly common consensus amongst the Internet digerati is that there are four operating system choices: Windows, Mac OS X, Ubuntu, and 'other Linux'.

UltraDNS service knocked offline by attack

NeuStar confirmed that its UltraDNS managed DNS service was knocked offline for several hours Tuesday morning by a distributed denial of service attack.

Conficker Predictions - Doomsday Scenarios for April 1

No one knows exactly what Conficker will bring, but plenty of theories are floating around. Some take on apocalyptic tones, while others seem more like nonchalant groans. Before you unplug your computer and brace yourself in the fetal position, though, consider some of the possibilities and how likely they appear to be.

Group takes Conficker fight to a new level

With a new and trickier Conficker variant to deal with, a group of volunteers vows to go forward and fight the worm.

Conficker.c infects small number of U.S. PCs, IBM says

Conficker.c may be in headlines around the world, but most of the infected PCs are in Asia and Europe, with fewer than 6% of the total found in North America.

Spam recovers from a knockout blow

Google says that spam levels have returned to the levels they were at before the McColo takedown.

Conficker's patch gambit exposed by researchers

One technique used by the Conficker worm is to patch vulnerable Microsoft-based computers it has invaded in order to hide and prevent other malware from invading. One vendor, Qualys, says it upgraded its scanner Tuesday to be able to tell real Microsoft patches from stealthy Conficker patches.

FAQ: Conficker clock ticks toward April 1 deadline

Answers to some of the pressing questions about Conficker and its looming deadline.

Conficker Set to Strike: Protect Yourself with These Tips

Security watchdogs warn that millions could be affected by the Conficker worm tomorrow - unfortunately this is not in an April Fool's Day joke.

Windows 7 leaks to Web third time this month

Yet another Windows 7 build has leaked to the Web, turning recent appearances of pirated copies into a weekly event on file-sharing sites.

The 10 Worst Microsoft Product Names of All Time

Some Microsoft names sound clunky; some are confusing; some are undignified or overambitious. More than any other company in technology, the Redmond powerhouse loves to change product names--often replacing one lackluster label with an equally uninspired one. Microsoft has also been known to mess up some names that are actually perfectly good, such as Windows and Word, by needlessly tampering with them. Herewith, in chronological order, are ten Microsoft names that could have been a lot better.

Couple sues Acer over sluggish Vista performance

An Ohio couple has sued Acer America Corp., accusing the computer maker of deceiving customers by claiming that laptops with just 1GB of memory can run Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Vista, according to court documents.

Windows 7 haste means mistakes

Microsoft is pulling out all the stops to get Windows 7 in people's hands as quickly as possible, after the disappointing response to the release of Windows Vista more than two years ago. Unfortunately for Microsoft, speed sometimes leads to errors.

Cloud Computing on Linux Has Microsoft Blogging

The Cloud Manifesto, a collaborative document prepared jointly by Amazon, Google, IBM and others has apparently upset Microsoft.

Judge could cripple Vista Capable lawsuit next week

U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman may issue a critical ruling in the two-year Vista Capable lawsuit as early as next week.

Microsoft slates May date for Windows 7 RC download

Microsoft will issue a public release candidate of Windows 7 in May, according to the company's Web site.

SaaS booms in UK and France, but Germany lags

British and French companies have a significant lead over their German counterparts, in terms of adopting software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications.

Shazam launches BlackBerry music recognition app

Music recognition service Shazam has launched an app for BlackBerry handsets that allows users to quickly identify music tracks and even send the title and artist info to their friends with the touch of a button.

Gates gives $33 million for TB in China

Bill Gates announced a $33 million grant from his charity foundation to help fight TB in China.

Facebook CFO to leave the company

Facebook said it wants its next CFO to have public company experience.

YouTube will host short videos from Disney, ABC and ESPN

YouTube will soon show short videos from Disney, ABC and ESPN while testing new advertising arrangements in hopes of generating revenue online.

Seagate discovers hard drives and ice don't mix

After 100 days buried in an ice rink the company's YouTube experiment comes to an end.

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