IT News HeadLines (HardOCP) 17/09/2010

MySpace's Last Stand: Project Futura Coming October 15
Who? You remember MySpace don't you? They were the ones that had 125 million visitors (give or take) before being upstage by Facebook. In an effort to regain its former position in the social networking ranks, they are joining the growing number of companies doing major makeovers to improve their internet presence. The redesign is meant to be a dramatic restart to get users excited about MySpace again. Futura, which is the internal name for the project, is set to launch for some users on October 15 Comments
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Future Technology in the NFL
The National Football League is a progressive sport franchise embracing changes that improve the fan's perspective, on the field and on the wide screen. In the near future, the NFL will be adapting new technology to make the game even more enjoyable without ruining the original feel of the game. Although the NFL has not made any official statements on when this tech will kickoff, Ray Anderson, NFL executive vice president of operations, told TechNewsDaily: "It's going to happen. It's in the works." Comments
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The Credit Card with a Computer Inside
A new dimension to credit cards was unveiled this week by Dynamics. The MultiAccount card can hold data from several different credit or debit cards simultaneously and can be switched back and forth as needed. The new cards are no bigger than the one in your wallet, and is actually slightly more flexible. It can display information at the press of a button, and can become several different cards by rewriting its own magnetic strip. Comments
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iPad Cannibalizes Laptop Sales by 50%
Laptop sales have dropped off 50% and TV sales have slowed considerably, all due to handheld devices such as the iPad and Kindle. According to Best Buy Chief Executive Brian Dunn, sales of larger electronics has flattened out. But the biggest surprise is that 50% figure. It's an internal, Best Buy estimate, but proves what we at Gadget Lab thought all along: that Mom and Pop would switch from cheap, unreliable and hard-to-use laptops and buy the iPad instead, an intuitive device which covers 90% of their computing needs. When the iPad gets a FaceTime camera (and hopefully a video-capable version of Skype) then the only people buying laptops will be those who need the horsepower for work. Comments
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PlayStation Move Looks to Get Gamers Off Couch
Move, much like its name indicates, will get you off the couch and animate you. If you are a hard core couch potato gamer, roll over and go back to sleep, this rollout may not for you. Move is officially available on Sunday. Richard Marks, manager of special projects in Sony's research and development unit, said the Move controller "is a great input device for 3D." It's so precise, he said, "it's like a really good mouse." "You'll be able to truly reach into a virtual world and interact in 3D with what is there, in so many different ways," he added. You could "pick up a rock and hurl it at the legs of a charging monster, or cast a fireball into a crowd, or build a barricade to take cover behind." Comments
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HDCP Master Key Confirmed; Blu-Ray Has Been Cracked
In an article posted here earlier this week, it was reported the HDCP code had possibly been cracked. Today Intel spokesman Tom Waldrop has confirmed the claim to be legitimate. Good news for pirates, bad news for the movie industry. As a practical matter, the most likely scenario for a hacker would be to create a computer chip with the master key embedded it, that could be used to decode Blu-ray discs. A software decoder is unlikely, "but I'd never say never," Waldrop said. "It's really hard to predict 100 percent, but that seems to be the prime scenario," Waldrop said of the possibility that a chip might be created. Comments
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Facebook Foe Diaspora Releases Source Code
Can open source Diaspora become a viable alternative for Facebook, or will it become a geeky, boring, niche network populated by computer nerds. That will be determined by open source code developers. The Alpha is due out in October. "Open source should be an advantage, but it hasn't worked that way in user-facing products largely because the technical folks end up doing all the messaging and bore potential users half to death," Enderle opined. "Given that programmers by nature aren't really that social, the audience may be relatively small," he added. Comments
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Mobile Advertiser Sued Over Sneaky HTML5 Pseudo-Cookies
Ringleader Digital, a New York based advertising company is the target of a class action suit over its use of an HTML5 Pseudo-Cookie. The basis of the lawsuit stems from the cookie's staying power, even after they have been cleared, allowing continuous tracking. Ringleader Digital, uses HTML5's client-side database-storage capability as a substitute for the traditional cookie tracking employed by all major online ad companies. Mobile Safari users visiting sites with Ringleader ads are assigned a unique ID number which is stored by the browser, and recalled by Ringleader whenever they revisit. Comments
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China Gets the iPad
In a fashionably late arrival to the Chinese market, the iPad made its official debut today. Long lines and even longer waits in Beijing and Shanghai heralded in the official sales of the long awaited iPad launch. Analysts predicted strong demand for the iPad despite a paucity of Chinese content and the country's huge unofficial market for Apple products, which are slipped in from Hong Kong, Singapore and the United States and resold. Comments
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Adobe Warns Acrobat Users: Don't Install Third-Party Security Patch
Adobe is warning its users to avoid installing a third party patch developed by RamzAfzar to correct the security flaw in their Acrobat software. If you're using Adobe Reader, there's not much you can do to avoid the bug until Adobe releases its update. You can, however, install an alternate PDF reader, such as Foxit Reader for Windows, which will help you avoid attacks on Adobe Reader. Mac users can use Preview, the image viewer bundled with Mac OS X. And we'll let you know about the official Adobe update as soon as it's released. Comments
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1 Million Web Sites Serving Up Malware
It's a scary internet out there, it really is. Dasient, an anti-malware firm claims that more that 1 million websites were classified as malicious in Q2 2010, a sharp increase from previous years. Web based attacks have been one of the fastest growing areas of malicious activity in recent years, as more applications migrate to the Web and as users engage deeply with social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Comments
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The Ultimate Star Trek Gift
This may be the last gift for a Trekkie or maybe not. You might even want to get one yourself to enjoy while you still can. Since following Gene Roddenberry or Scotty into the final frontier probably isn't an option for most, you can still go out in Star Trek style. "Star Trek" fans worldwide -- and there are millions of passionate "trekkers" out there -- now have a chance to boldly go into the afterlife by purchasing a new line of "Star Trek" cremation urns for themselves or their loved ones. Comments
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Yahoo Is Getting a Facelift
Improvements are coming soon to Yahoo in hopes of luring back lost surfers from sites like Facebook and Google. Yahoo suffered a drop in email traffic and in their total overall base in 2010. Faster email and search services are scheduled for later on this fall to help stop the losses. As part of a project code-named "Minty," Yahoo plans to juice up the performance of its Web-based e-mail service and bring its look in line with simpler iPad and Android versions of the Mail product, The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday. Comments
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Boeing Taking Reservations for Space Travel
Have you done it all and looking for a new adventure? Make your reservations with Space Adventures, the new partner of Boeing and pack your bags for outer space. The CST-100 spacecraft is expected to blast off in 2015. Details will be released as development progresses along with the astronomical price tag. "With our customer experience and Boeing's heritage in human spaceflight, our goal is not only to benefit the individuals who fly to space, but also to help make the resources of space available to the commercial sector by bringing the value from space back to Earth," said Eric Anderson, co-founder and chairman of Space Adventures. Comments
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T-Mobile to Implement a Twitter Tax on Texts?
Business customers on T-Mobile USA could start incurring a surcharge per each SMS delivered beginning October 1st. A charge of ¼ cent per SMS will be charged to the company sending the text according to reports. The move mirrors a similar, but much more costly, effort from Verizon Wireless two years ago. In 2008, Verizon told its business partners it would begin charging three cents per text alert, but abandoned the plan after tremendous backlash from text companies that resulted in coverage in mainstream media outlets such as the New York Times. Comments
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