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INTEREST: Mozilla pulls the plug on 'Metro' mode Firefox browser for Windows 8
by Wayne Billing 16 Mar '14

16 Mar '14

...from: http://www.theverge.com/2014/3/15/5512324/mozilla-cancels-metro-mode-firefo… Mozilla pulls the plug on 'Metro' mode Firefox browser for Windows 8 By Dante D'Orazio<http://www.theverge.com/users/dantedorazio> on March 15, 2014 04:12 pm Email<mailto:dante@theverge.com> @dantedorazio<https://twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=dantedorazio> 63<http://www.theverge.com/2014/3/15/5512324/mozilla-cancels-metro-mode-firefo…>Comments <https://plus.google.com/+TheVerge/posts> [cid:520E62DF-15B6-4E61-87A3-184929F7C922] Mozilla is abandoning its plans to release a touch-friendly version of its Firefox web browser<http://www.theverge.com/2013/2/14/3988116/mozilla-firefox-windows-8-browser…> for Windows 8 users. The company first revealed experimental support for Firefox in "Metro" mode back in October of 2012<http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/4/3456412/mozilla-firefox-metro-windows-8-e…>, and development has continued since then — though a stable version has never shipped. Firefox Vice President Johnathan Nightingale says in a blog post<https://blog.mozilla.org/futurereleases/2014/03/14/metro/> that "we have to pick our battles," and a lack of demand for "Metro" mode support led to the decision. "On any given day we have, for instance, millions of people testing pre-release versions of Firefox desktop, but we’ve never seen more than 1,000 active daily users in the Metro environment," Nightingale reveals. With so few users testing the app, any release would be riddled with bugs and require lots of follow-up work to keep the product up to standards. "When I talk about the need to pick our battles, this feels like a bad one to pick: significant investment and low impact." "We have to pick our battles." The decision speaks to Microsoft's difficulties in turning its so-called Windows 8 Modern UI experience into a vibrant ecosystem. Developer support has been fairly disappointing, and users aren't moving to the touch-friendly interface in droves. User interface changes since the launch of Windows 8 have also downplayed the significance of "Metro" mode — the latest version will automatically boot many users directly to the desktop<http://www.theverge.com/2014/3/4/5468968/windows-8-1-update-1-rtm-release-d…>, bypassing the modern interface completely. With Mozilla's move to leave "Metro" behind, it seems that Windows 8 tablet users and others who take advantage of the touch-friendly interface will have few options other than Internet Explorer, though Google recently began to offer an intriguing option with its latest "Metro" mode for Chrome<http://www.theverge.com/2014/1/14/5309326/google-chrome-windows-update-chro…>.

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INTEREST: Getty Images makes 35 million images free (only a couple of conditions)
by Wayne Billing 07 Mar '14

07 Mar '14

[Needless to say, their sight seems a bit busy today.....] ....from: http://bit.ly/NZFBcn<http://bit.ly/NZFBcn> or http://www.bjp-online.com/2014/03/getty-images-makes-35-million-images-free… http://www.gettyimages.ca/Creative/Frontdoor/embed Getty's Learn more about licensing<http://www.gettyimages.ca/HelpCenter#faq17> http://www.gettyimages.ca/HelpCenter#faq17 Is there a fee for embedding a Getty Images photo on a website, social media site or blog? No. You can embed a Getty Images photo on a website, social media site or blog for free and without having to buy a license, as long as the photo is not used for commercial purposes (meaning in an advertisement or in any way intended to sell a product, raise money, or promote or endorse something). No fee? Really? Apparently so for some non-commercial uses of embeded photos as of Wednesday, March 6th, 2014: [cid:538E1FE0-3FA5-4137-A707-268D5AB9B63F] Getty Images makes 35 million images free in fight against copyright infringement Getty Images has single-handedly redefined the entire photography market with the launch of a new embedding feature that will make more than 35 million images freely available to anyone for non-commercial usage. BJP's Olivier Laurent finds out more Olivier Laurent — 5 March 2014 [cid:3DB497BD-BB9E-4973-BA5D-51655552175F] Using a new embed tool, bloggers will be able to use Getty's images at no cost. © Getty Images. The controversial move is set to draw professional photographers’ ire at a time when the stock photography market is marred by low prices and under attack from new mobile photography players. Yet, Getty Images defends the move, arguing that it’s not strong enough to control how the Internet has developed and, with it, users’ online behaviours. “We’re really starting to see the extent of online infringement,” says Craig Peters, senior vice president of business development, content and marketing at Getty Images. “In essence, everybody today is a publisher thanks to social media and self-publishing platforms. And it’s incredibly easy to find content online and simply right-click to utilise it.” In the past few years, Getty Images found that its content was “incredibly used” in this manner online, says Peters. “And it’s not used with a watermark; instead it’s typically found on one of our valid licensing customers’ websites or through an image search. What we’re finding is that the vast majority of infringement in this space happen with self publishers who typically don’t know anything about copyright and licensing, and who simply don’t have any budget to support their content needs.” To solve this problem, Getty Images has chosen an unconventional strategy. “We’re launching the ability to embed our images freely for non-commercial use online,” Peters explains. In essence, anyone will be able to visit Getty Images’ library of content, select an image and copy an embed HTML code to use that image on their own websites. Getty Images will serve the image in a embedded player – very much like YouTube currently does with its videos – which will include the full copyright information and a link back to the image’s dedicated licensing page on the Getty Images website. More than 35 million images from Getty Images’ news, sports, entertainment and stock collections, as well as its archives, will be available for embedding from 06 March. “Images are the communication medium of today and imagery has become the world’s most spoken language. Whether via a blog, website or social media, everyone is a publisher and increasingly visually literate,” says Jonathan Klein, co-founder and CEO of Getty Images, in a prepared statement. “Innovation and disruption are the foundation of Getty Images, and we are excited to open up our vast and growing image collection for easy, legal sharing in a new way that benefits our content contributors and partners, and advances our core mission to enable a more visually-rich world.” Online power “What we’ve decided to do is to provide through the embed player the capability to use this imagery, but there’s a value for Getty Images and the content owners,” says Peters. “And that value is in three parts. First, there will be attribution around that image, and since we’re serving the image, we’re actually going to make sure there’s proper attribution. Second, all of the images will link back to our site and directly to the image’s details page. So anybody that has a valid commercial need for that image will be able to license that imagery from our website. Third, since all the images are served by Getty Images, we’ll have access to the information on who and how that image is being used and viewed, and we’ll reserve the right to utilise that data to the benefit of our business.” While more than 35 millions images will be available from today, Getty Images tells BJP that the Reportage and Contour collections will not be included. News images sourced from Agence France-Presse and distributed by Getty Images, however, will be available to all for non-commercial use in the next few weeks. Blogs that draw revenues from Google Ads will still be able to use the Getty Images embed player at no cost. “We would not consider this commercial use,” says Peters. “The fact today that a website is generating revenue would not limit the use of the embed. What would limit that use is if they used our imagery to promote a service, a product or their business. They would need to get a license.” A spokeswoman for Getty Images confirms to BJP that editorial websites, from The New York Times to Buzzfeed, will also be able to use the embed feature as long as images are used in an editorial context. Peters, aware of the controversial nature of this decision, claims that Getty Images had no choice but to open up its collections of images. “What we’ve seen is a significant amount of infringement online in an area, unfortunately, that we can’t control because this is how the Internet has developed,” he tells BJP. “What we’re trying to do here is to put a legal method in place for that to happen and that actually benefits our content owners.” Advertising avenue He adds that Getty Images’ existing licensing business will not be affected and that the stock library will continue to “pursue online infringing use as we’ve done traditionally.” Getty Images will also look to draw additional revenues from its player through advertising. “We reserve the right to monetise that footprint,” Peters explains. “YouTube implemented a very similar capability, which allows people to embed videos on a website, with the company generating revenue by serving advertising on that video.” And while Getty Images has yet to determine how these ads will appear, Peters is confident that this capability will be introduced in the near future. The stock agency will also use the data it will draw from the player to perfect its collections. “We’ll be working with the creative and editorial teams at Getty Images to better understand how our imagery is being used and how they can better create imagery. Getty Images’ move is expected to have drastic repercussions across the entire stock photography market, which has been forced, in recent years, to compete against the number one stock library by slashing its prices. Peters believes some agencies might want to follow Getty Images’ example – Magnum Photos, in recent months, for example, toyed with the idea of allowing non-commercial use of its collections of images, as reported by BJP – and he says Getty Images is open to conversations to share its player with others. “We think this is a bigger decision and a bigger issue than Getty Images. We’ve always been opened to using our platform to benefit other content creators.” As for Getty Images’ own photographers, the new embed program won’t have an opt-out clause. “If you’re a Getty Images contributor, you’ll be participating in this.” BJP will analyse the full impact of today’s news in a series of articles to be published later today and this week. Stay tuned

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FYI: 10.6? May be time to upgrade.
by Wayne Billing 03 Mar '14

03 Mar '14

[NOTE: you can find the serial number of your OS X machine by selecting: [cid:2DA9A622-680F-4E28-98E3-3D460EBEE36C] ...and clicking the "More Info..." button. ......from: http://arstechnica.com/apple/2014/03/snow-leopard-updates-are-probably-done… Snow Leopard updates are probably done—here are your OS X upgrade options As OS X 10.6 fades, you'll need to start considering alternatives. by Andrew Cunningham<http://arstechnica.com/author/andrew_cunningham/> - Mar 2 2014, 4:00pm CST [cid:FF9C84A8-F5C1-47E4-8A8F-BDA8D8C95FE7] End of the line, Snowy. Apple Apple offers no end-of-life roadmaps for its operating systems, and it doesn't officially comment on whether support has dried up for this or that version of OS X. The best you can do is look at historical data. Since switching to a yearly release cadence with Lion back in 2011, Apple seems to be willing to support whatever the latest version is plus the two preceding versions. When OS X 10.9.2 was released<http://arstechnica.com/apple/2014/02/apple-releases-os-x-10-9-2-patches-ssl…> earlier this week, it was accompanied by security updates for OS X 10.8 and 10.7 but not for 2009's OS X 10.6. It's the first major security update that Snow Leopard has missed—the OS is still getting iTunes updates, but its last major security patch happened back in September. This has prompted a flurry<http://money.cnn.com/2014/02/27/technology/security/snow-leopard/> ofposts<http://readwrite.com/2014/02/27/apple-snow-leopard-support-osx-mac#awesm=~o…> from various<http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-apple-snow-leopard-supp…> outlets. All point out the same Net Applications data<http://www.netmarketshare.com/operating-system-market-share.aspx?qprid=10&q…> that says 10.6 still powers around 19 percent of Macs. Most compare the OS X support cycle to the much-longer Windows cycle. Some make a bigger deal about it<http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/02/27/fanbois_face_xp_moment_as_snow_leop…> than others. None really tell anyone in that 19 percent what to do next. You'll need to know the exact kind of Mac you're using before proceeding—typing your serial number into this Service and Support page<https://selfsolve.apple.com/> should give you the information you need if you're not sure. Launching the System Profiler application from the Utilities folder will show you your serial number and your Mac's specific model identifier (something like MacBook4,1 or iMac11,2), the latter of which can be used with this EveryMac lookup page<http://everymac.com/ultimate-mac-lookup/> to find what you're looking for. Newer Macs: Upgrade to Mavericks (or at least Mountain Lion) [cid:2C0056D4-D2E9-4B3A-99D4-31DB39F7D44B]<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/10.9.jpg> Enlarge<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/10.9.jpg> / It's time. Let the Mavericks wave crash over you. Resisting only makes it more difficult. Apple Macs this applies to: Anything that can run Mavericks. See this post<http://arstechnica.com/apple/2013/06/psa-os-x-10-9-appears-to-run-on-any-ma…> for more details. If you're still running Snow Leopard because it came with your Mac and you just never got around to upgrading, the good news is that basically any Mac that came with Snow Leopard can update to the latest version at absolutely no cost<http://arstechnica.com/apple/2013/10/os-x-mavericks-comes-out-today-and-its…>. Just grab it from the Mac App Store<https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/os-x-mavericks/id675248567?mt=12> and do an in-place upgrade—you shouldn't run into problems, though it is probably a good idea to run a Time Machine backup (or something similar) before doing it. New OS X versions usually have teething issues when they first come out, but the 10.9.2 update is a big one that fixes much more than the "goto fail" SSL bug. If you were holding out because you didn't want to deal with those early-upgrader blues, most of 10.9's largest bugs should be squashed at this point. Supposing your hardware can handle the upgrade but you don't care to move to Mavericks, you canstill purchase copies of Mountain Lion for $20<http://store.apple.com/us/product/D6377Z/A/os-x-mountain-lion> through Apple's online store. The company will send you a code that you can redeem in the Mac App Store, and you can use that version of the software until you're comfortable moving to Mavericks or until software support for OS X 10.8 dries up. Older Macs: What about Lion? [cid:DBAF4808-2381-4D26-B255-95E499F63B76]<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/lion.jpeg> Enlarge<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/lion.jpeg> / Lion: King of the jungle and last refuge for a whole bunch of Core 2 Duo Macs. Apple Macs this applies to: Late 2006 iMacs; Mid-2007 Mac Minis; Mid-2006 Mac Pros; Early 2008 MacBook Airs; Macbooks from the late 2006 model to the late 2008 white model; Late 2006 MacBook Pros. OS X has required a 64-bit CPU since Lion came out in 2011, but a 64-bit CPU by itself isn't enough to run Mountain Lion or Mavericks. Those newer operating systems need 64-bit EFI firmware and graphics drivers too, and a small but still significant run of Macs fell short of these requirements. If you're got one of the Macs listed above, your hardware won't run Apple's latest-and-greatest, but they can run version 10.7, and Apple should support that OS until the next version of OS X comes out later this year (assuming Apple sticks to its yearly release schedule). Copies of Lion can bepurchased for $20<http://store.apple.com/us/product/D6106Z/A/os-x-lion> from Apple's online store. You'll get a code you can redeem in the Mac App Store, allowing you to buy your old Mac another year-or-so of breathing room. Intel Macs running OS X older than 10.6: There's still hope [cid:599203BF-6596-46E4-8536-456F2D4272E6]<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/black_macbook.jpg> Enlarge<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/black_macbook.jpg> / Quite a few MacBooks can run a newer version of OS X and aren't. Apple Macs this (possibly) applies to: iMacs from early 2006 to early 2009; Mac Minis from early 2006 to early 2009; Mac Pros from mid-2006 to early 2009; MacBook Airs from early 2008 to mid 2009; MacBooks from early 2006 to mid 2009; MacBook Pros from early 2006 to mid 2009. These Intel Macs all originally shipped running either OS X 10.4 or 10.5. Don't laugh! There are plenty of people out there who bought Intel Macs with OS X 10.4 or 10.5 installed and never felt the need to upgrade. Leopard in particular still runs on about 3.8 percent of active Macs, and statistically some of those are going to be Intel Macs eligible for an upgrade. 2007 iMacs shipped right at the end of Tiger's run and can be updated all the way up to Mavericks. Whatever you've got, these Macs are all capable of running at least Snow Leopard—and usually something newer. If you can upgrade, you're in luck—Apple still sells the OS X 10.6 DVD<http://store.apple.com/us/product/MC573Z/A/mac-os-x-106-snow-leopard> in its store for $20. Even if your Mac can run Lion or Mavericks, you'll need to upgrade to Snow Leopard first as an intermediary step, since Tiger and Leopard can't access the Mac App Store and can't perform in-place upgrades of OS X 10.7, 10.8, or 10.9. Once you've installed your "new" operating system, revisit the sections above to see about moving to an even newer version that's still being actively supported. If you've got a Mac of this vintage that you'd like to keep using, you might consider doing some hardware maintenance to keep it running well. Walking you through upgrading an old Mac's hardware is outside the scope of this article, but iFixit<http://www.ifixit.com/Device/Mac> has plenty of excellent repair-and-upgrade guides and toolkits and Newegg<http://www.newegg.com/> can help you find reasonably priced components. I can't upgrade. What should I do? Maybe you've got some mission-critical PowerPC app, and you need to keep 10.6 around because it's the last version that includes the Rosetta compatibility layer. Maybe you've got one of those first 32-bit Intel Macs, and upgrading just isn't an option. Maybe you can upgrade and you just don't wantto (though that's probably less justifiable than either of the first two reasons). You're not totally without options here. First, consider a new Mac. This is pretty expensive option, but it's the most effective. Even the cheapest entry-level Macs will deliver hugely boosted CPU and graphics performance, and many will replace your weary old hard drive with a zippy new SSD. If you've got a MacBook or MacBook Pro, a new Mac will be much lighter and give you much better battery life. Keep an eye on Apple's refurbished site<http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/mac>, which will give you hefty discounts on the hardware especially if you're fine with settling for previous-generation Macs (they'll still have many years of software support ahead of them, and you get the same warranty options as you'll get for a "new" one). Students, staff, and teachers at virtually any educational institution can also get new hardware from Apple at a discount, and that educational discount applies to AppleCare warranty extensions and component upgrades too. If the place where you work buys a lot of hardware from Apple, you may be able to get a discount on a personal Mac through your employer. Assuming that buying a new computer isn't an option, there are still things you can do to protect yourself. First, stop using Apple's built-in apps where possible, especially the ones that have a connection to the Internet. Replacing Safari is particularly crucial—your browser is going to be the most vulnerable part of any Internet-connected computer, and running an outdated one that isn't being patched is the worst thing you can do. Both Firefox and Chrome still support OS X 10.6 as of this writing, and even once Mozilla and Google stop providing updates there's a good chance you'll be able to get help from the open source community. Look at TenFourFox<http://www.floodgap.com/software/tenfourfox/> as a case in point—it's a port of Firefox compiled for PowerPC processors going all the way back to the G3, which is more than 16 years old. Other apps are also easy to replace, since 10.6 still enjoys relatively robust software support from third parties. Replace iChat with Adium<https://adium.im/>, Preview with Adobe Reader<http://get.adobe.com/reader/>, and QuickTime with VLC<http://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.html>. These are all capable, actively maintained applications that should shield you from vulnerabilities. That said, OS X ain't Windows. Just as Apple replaces its software more frequently and drops support for older hardware more rapidly, Apple's developers are generally quicker to stop supporting legacy OS versions once Apple itself moves on. It's already happening in some cases—some programs require a 64-bit CPU because so many Intel Macs are 64-bit, and others have simply dropped support for 10.6 whether you've got a 64-bit CPU or not. Snow Leopard has had a good run, but as time wears on you'll either have to bite the bullet and buy new hardware or be faced with an increasingly less capable, more vulnerable machine.

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INTEREST: Apple to change chat support policy
by Wayne Billing 02 Mar '14

02 Mar '14

...from: http://9to5mac.com/2014/02/28/apple-will-soon-charge-for-out-of-warranty-on… Apple will soon charge for out-of-warranty chat support, schedule repairs via new web payment system<http://9to5mac.com/2014/02/28/apple-will-soon-charge-for-out-of-warranty-on…> [Online-Paid-Chat-support] Apple is about to begin charging users outside of their warranty for online chat support using a new web payment system it recently developed. Sources familiar with the project say Apple is currently expecting to launch the new paid chat support, which will also let customers schedule repairs and replacements online, as early as next week. Here’s how it works: Much like Apple handles support calls over the phone<http://www.apple.com/support/products/pay-per-incident.html>, soon only customers within their warranty period will be able to access online chat support throughgetsupport.apple.com<http://getsupport.apple.com/> for free. For others, Apple will charge what it refers to as a “pay per incident” fee or require the purchase of an extended warranty through AppleCare. Previously all online support chat features were available for free to users worldwide. Some users might have noticed back in August<http://9to5mac.com/2013/08/26/apple-launches-more-intuitive-applecare-suppo…> when Apple revamped its support sites that it started listing a $19.99 per incident fee for chat support. However, up until now AppleCare hasn’t actually been charging users to access the feature. Not only will this make online chat support an official support channel for Apple, it will also close up a loophole that allowed users to get free technical or diagnostic support and avoid paying for over the phone services or AppleCare. Before rolling out the paid chat support, Apple had to develop a new web payment system that would allow it to accept payments through chat and keep user info secure when transferred between support agents, according to our sources. Using the new web payment system, we’re told Apple plans to offer the ability to set up hardware repairs and replacements that require a hold on a credit card or pay per incident fee via chat support. Rather than having to call in, users will be sent a link that’s live for 24 hours in order to complete the payment. As for pricing, Apple will charge a fee of $19 for a single incident of basic tech support and troubleshooting. There will, however, be an option for users to request an exception on the fee. Up until the official launch of the paid online chat, AppleCare employees have been instructed to grant exceptions on all cases. We’re told Apple will continue to waive the fee for iCloud issues as well as accidental damage cases where users just want to setup a repair or replacement via chat. Apple representatives are expected to begin charging the $19 per incident fee for online chat support worldwide starting next week.

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INTEREST: NCPPR to Apple: Forget environment; Tim Cook: No.
by Wayne Billing 02 Mar '14

02 Mar '14

"Tim Cook rejects NCPPR proposal to end environmental programs for increased profit, suggests group sell stock" The National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR) is, well, let them describe themselves: About Us The National Center for Public Policy Research is a communications and research foundation supportive of a strong national defense and dedicated to providing free market solutions to today's public policy problems. We believe that the principles of a free market, individual liberty and personal responsibility provide the greatest hope for meeting the challenges facing America in the 21st century. http://www.nationalcenter.org/NCPPRHist.html "If Apple wants to follow Al Gore and his chimera of climate change, it does so at its own peril," said Justin Danhof, Esq., director of the NCPPR's Free Enterprise Project. ....from: http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/tim-cook-soundly-rejects-politics-of… http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/right-wing-think-tank-wants-apple-to… http://www.nationalcenter.org/PR-Walgreens_010814.html http://www.nationalcenter.org/PR-GE_Climate_Change_022114.html Tim Cook rejects NCPPR proposal to end environmental programs for increased profit, suggests group sell stock<http://9to5mac.com/2014/02/28/tim-cook-rejects-ncppr-proposal-to-end-eviron…> Apple CEO Tim Cook rejected an propsal<http://www.macobserver.com/tmo/article/tim-cook-soundly-rejects-politics-of…> from a representative of the National Center for Public Policy Research during today’s shareholder meeting. The proposal would have required the tech company to disclose the cost of any environmental initiatives it engaged in and end those that could take away from the company’s bottom line. Cook reportedly became angry at the question, telling the representative that financial gain was not the purpose of ensuring environmental responsibility, saying, ”If you want me to do things only for ROI reasons, you should get out of this stock.” Cook also pointed out that making devices accessible for disabled users does not necessarily lead to increased revenue, but that doesn’t stop the company from searching for new ways to do so. The measure was voted down by shareholders by a margin of just over 97 percent. Whether the think-tank will take Cook’s advice is yet to be seen, but it’s clear Cook does not intend to take theirs.

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INTEREST: BLACK phone: how private? how secure?
by Wayne Billing 28 Feb '14

28 Feb '14

...from: http://www.itproportal.com/2014/02/25/a-closer-look-at-the-blackphone-and-w… ...or: http://bit.ly/N9FcnH A closer look at the Blackphone and why it's more anti-Google than anti-government MWC 2014<http://www.itproportal.com/mwc-2014/> 25 Feb 2014 by Ryan Whitwam [A closer look at the Blackphone and why it's more anti-Google than anti-government] Tweet<http://twitter.com/share> Silent Circle and Geeksphone announced the Blackphone earlier this year<http://www.itproportal.com/2014/01/16/blackphone-creates-nsa-proof-smartpho…> as everyone was still wringing their hands over NSA spying. The stated goal was to make communications private, just like they ought to be. Of course, that was conflated with an NSA-proof phone, which it’s not. Now, after having been officially unveiled at MWC<http://www.itproportal.com/2014/02/25/mwc-2014-meet-blackphone-the-official…>, the Blackphone is up for pre-order and Silent Circle has explained more about how the handset will work. Spoiler: It’s not doing anything new, but it does come with a full suite of privacy-minded apps and services. With the Blackphone, what it lacks may be just as important as what it includes. The Blackphone clocks in at $629 (£375) over in the US, which is right up there with the unlocked cost of most flagship smartphones. The device will run on a 2GHz (or higher) quad-core ARM chip, with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. Wondering about a microSD card for more storage? What, and let someone walk away with your data? Surely you jest. Buyers will also be treated to a 4.7in 720p LCD and 802.11n Wi-Fi. Despite the privacy focus, the Blackphone does still have the usual HSPA+, LTE, and GPS. The hardware is fine, though likely generic. The real selling point of the Blackphone is the software it runs. The company calls it PrivatOS, and it’s based on the open source version of Android. Most other Android devices you buy have Google’s services woven into the foundation of the OS, but not Blackphone. This device comes bundled with only Silent Circle apps and a few select third-party services for secure file sharing and VPNs. That means you don’t have access to Google’s app ecosystem, cloud platform, or location services. Although, that’s kind of why you’d buy the Blackphone. The Blackphone includes a two-year subscription to the Silent Circle application suite, which is what actually makes your communication secure. There’s no magic way to make regular cellular calls completely untraceable – the Blackphone is using the same network infrastructure and baseband as every other Android device on the market. Blackphone’s page uses a lot of inflammatory language to describe how Google’s services work, making it seem like this is more an anti-Google than anti-government surveillance phone. [cid:CB9C188F-5C84-42E5-A3F6-7C3BCECE72C1]<http://cdn.itproportal.com/photos/blackphone-features-chart_original.png> Access to Silent Phone, Text, and Contacts costs $10 (£6) per month after the included subscription, but you can only communicate with other people who also use the company’s VoIP service, which can be installed on any Android phone<https://play.google.com/store/apps/developer?id=Silent+Circle>. To make things a bit easier, the Blackphone includes three one-year “friends and family” Silent Circle passes. Adding up all the Silent Circle, encrypted file sharing, and VPN subscriptions leaves you with a value of about $1500 (£900). That assumes you use all these services to their fullest, of course. Silent Circle has also built out an enhanced version of Android’s app permission system in PrivatOS, like the now-defunct App Ops or CyanogenMod’s permission manager. It’s not unheard of functionality, but the more advanced permission management will allow users to revoke permissions from apps individually. For example, location or contact access can be blocked for some or all apps. The apps themselves will probably be side-load only, seeing as there’s no app store. Remote device management and security updates have also been modified by Silent Circle. Now that Silent Circle’s plans are laid out for us<https://www.blackphone.ch/phone/#privatosvsandroid>, the project seems less fanciful, but also less revolutionary. This is basically a moderately powerful smartphone running a privacy-focused custom ROM and some extra privacy tools that you can install on any phone. In fact, most of what the Blackphone does can be replicated with a much cheaper Nexus 5<http://www.itproportal.com/reviews/mobile-phones/google-nexus-5-review/> – install CyanogenMod, don’t flash the Google apps package, relock the bootloader, and install the Silent Circle suite. Silent Circle has been careful not to claim that this phone will thwart the NSA, but some people will still expect that. This device really just takes the guesswork out of making a mobile device somewhat more secure. Is that worth $629 (£375)? Silent Circle sure hopes so. The Blackphone is expected to ship in June. For all the latest news, photos and analysis from MWC 2014, check out our live coverage of the event<http://www.itproportal.com/2014/02/22/mwc-2014-live-updates-news-and-analys…>.

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INTEREST: Apple wins ‘best mobile tablet’ award at MWC
by Wayne Billing 27 Feb '14

27 Feb '14

[The GSMA Mobile World Congress (MWC - http://www.mobileworldcongress.com) is held each February in the Mobile World Capital of Barcelona, Spain. It includes a world-class conference, an exhibition with more than 1,500 companies, App Planet, mPowered Brands, and the Global Mobile Awards, which recognise the most innovative solutions and initiatives from around the world. In 2012, Mobile World Congress hosted more than 67,000 mobile professionals from 205 countries. Of these, more than 56% of these were C-Level executives, and 10,000 were mobile developers as part of App Planet.] ....from: http://9to5mac.com/2014/02/25/apple-wins-best-mobile-tablet-award-at-mobile… Apple wins ‘best mobile tablet’ award at Mobile World Congress in absentia<http://9to5mac.com/2014/02/25/apple-wins-best-mobile-tablet-award-at-mobile…> [ipad-air-best-buy-deal]<http://9to5mac.files.wordpress.com/2014/01/ipad-air-best-buy-deal.jpeg> The Global Mobile Awards today revealed their verdicts on their annual mobile device awards. As usual, like all industry conferences, Apple did not attend MWC. Regardless, in their absence, they were still given the ‘Best Mobile Tablet’ award<http://www.globalmobileawards.com/winners-2014/#cat_id25> for the iPad Air. The judge said: The iPad Air packs class-leading performance in an attractive and svelte frame, while its ecosystem has an undisputed advantage in the number of format-optimized apps Although Apple won the award for best tablet, the award for the best phone was given to the HTC One. Meanwhile, LG won the prize for ‘most innovative device manufacturer of the year’. Best Mobile Tablet Apple iPad Air Precision-engineered to weigh just one pound, iPad Air is 20 percent thinner and 28 percent lighter than the fourth generation iPad, and with a 43 percent narrower bezel the borders of iPad Air are dramatically thinner. iPad Air’s Retina display makes web pages, text, images and video look incredibly sharp and realistic, and the new power-efficient A7 chip allows the battery to be even smaller, helping reduce the overall volume by 24 percent from the previous generation while doubling its performance and maintaining its up to 10-hour battery life.

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INTEREST: Microsoft bought NOKIA to release an Android cellphone
by Wayne Billing 24 Feb '14

24 Feb '14

In September, 2013, to much fanfare* Microsoft and NOKIA announced that Microsoft Corporation and Nokia Corporation Boards of Directors for both companies have decided to enter into a transaction whereby Microsoft will purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, license Nokia’s patents, and license and use Nokia’s mapping services. Nobody (outside of Microsoft and NOKIA, presumably) thought this meant that Microsoft would start selling ANDROID cellphones to capture Windows phone customers....... ...from: http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/24/nokia-x-elop/ Elop: Nokia X will bring more consumers to Windows Phone<http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/24/nokia-x-elop/> BY BRAD MOLEN<http://www.engadget.com/about/editors/brad-molen> @PHONEWISDOM<http://twitter.com/phonewisdom> 5 HOURS AGO [cid:9D17B5FE-DAA0-434B-BF83-F11AB5F43E5A]<http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/24/nokia-x-elop/> After Nokia's big announcement of the brand-new X series<http://www.engadget.com/2014/02/24/nokia-announces-the-x-its-first-android-…> [of Android cellphones], we had a chance to sit down with Stephen Elop, the executive VP of Devices for the company. Naturally, the company's decision to crank out an Android device was a matter of great curiosity for us. Most importantly: Did Microsoft agree to this from the beginning, or did Nokia's acquirer go into this idea begrudgingly? According to Elop, it's the former. "Microsoft bought the Mobile Devices division," Elop told us, "so they knew what they were doing." Given the company's focus on a tile-based experience and its emphasis on the Microsoft Cloud, it's beginning to make a lot of sense. Elop went on to state that the X is primarily a stepping stone (a "gateway phone," if you will) for a largely untouched market segment -- emerging markets and developing countries -- to get acclimatized to Microsoft's suite of services and familiar Live Tiles interface. It's an interesting strategy, no doubt, and we're excited to see if it pays off in the long run -- people won't be rushing to a Windows Phone weeks after buying an XL, but it sounds like the idea is to plant a seed within consumers, as well as a reliance on services like Skype, Outlook and OneDrive. * - http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-02-16/news/47359495_1_sat… Does the Nokia deal still make sense for Microsoft? New York Times Feb 16, 2014, 02.55AM IST By James B Stewart When Microsoft announced in September that it was buying Nokia's struggling handset business and would meld its Windows operating system with the devices, it offered two major reasons for the $7.2 billion deal: - Apple and Google were combining their software and hardware. - The deal would ensure the survival of Microsoft's Windows operating system in a mobile universe.

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FYI: iOS, AppleTV update
by Wayne Billing 23 Feb '14

23 Feb '14

...from: http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1222 Apple TV 6.0.2<http://support.apple.com/kb/HT6148> Apple TV 2nd generation and later 21 Feb 2014 iOS 7.0.6<http://support.apple.com/kb/HT6147> iPhone 4 and later, iPod touch (5th generation), iPad 2 and later 21 Feb 2014 iOS 6.1.6<http://support.apple.com/kb/HT6146> iPhone 3GS, iPod touch (4th generation) 21 Feb 2014 Impact: An attacker with a privileged network position may capture or modify data in sessions protected by SSL/TLS Description: Secure Transport failed to validate the authenticity of the connection. This issue was addressed by restoring missing validation steps.

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INTEREST: Arizona, Apple, and Sapphire® manufacturing
by Wayne Billing 11 Feb '14

11 Feb '14

....from: http://www.macrumors.com/2014/02/10/arizona-apple-sapphire-tax-breaks/ Arizona Won Apple's Sapphire Plant with Tax Breaks, Energy Infrastructure, and Responsiveness Monday February 10, 2014 8:05 am PST by Eric Slivka A new report from Bloomberg<http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-02-10/apple-wooed-by-arizona-as-obama-se…> takes a look at how Mesa, Arizona was able to secure its deal with Apple to bring the company's new sapphire manufacturing plant<http://www.macrumors.com/2013/11/04/apple-to-build-new-700-employee-sapphir…> to the city. That facility is set to begin operation<http://www.macrumors.com/2014/01/30/arizona-plant-february-critical-compone…> this month with production at a scale massive enough<http://www.macrumors.com/2014/02/06/sapphire-production-future-iphones/> to support a shift to sapphire display covers for the next-generation iPhone. [cid:6CDC0EBD-BAA7-4E00-9607-736C2F628A0B] Former First Solar manufacturing facility purchased by Apple for new sapphire plant (Source: Business Wire<http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20121204005534/en/Blue-Oak-Energy-Com…>) The report notes that Mesa and the State of Arizona moved aggressively to reach a deal with Apple and its partner, GT Advanced Technologies, learning from previous negotiations that saw Arizona lose out<http://www.macrumors.com/2012/04/27/apple-expressing-frustration-as-tax-inc…> to Austin, Texas for an expansion of Apple's operations facilities. As a result, Mesa and Arizona officials made every effort to offer specific incentives, expedite permitting approvals, and even build out power infrastructure to meet Apple's demands. Time was of the essence since Arizona had lost out on the previous Apple facility to Texas less than two years earlier and was nervous others might trump its bid. Officials typically had just a few days to respond to Apple’s questions, [Mesa mayor Scott] Smith said. One sticking point: power. Apple wanted the facility to use 100 percent renewable energy and negotiated with the state and local power company, Salt River Project, about how to make that happen. New solar and geothermal projects are being built because of the project. Apple also got officials to agree to construct a new power substation for the plant. Other benefits for Apple include a $10 million grant from the state to support building improvements and hiring efforts, as well as a special designation for the property that will cut Apple's property taxes by over 70 percent. Mesa and Arizona are already seeking to leverage Apple's arrival to create a new technology corridor in the area where Apple's facility is located, with a number of companies having already contacted officials to express interest in locating near Apple

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INTEREST: Apple acknowledges AirPlay Mirroring issue with new Mac Pros & MacBook Pros
by Wayne Billing 06 Feb '14

06 Feb '14

...from: http://9to5mac.com/2014/02/05/apple-acknowledges-airplay-mirroring-issue-wi… http://support.apple.com/kb/TS5316?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US Apple acknowledges AirPlay Mirroring issue with new Mac Pros & MacBook Pros<http://9to5mac.com/2014/02/05/apple-acknowledges-airplay-mirroring-issue-wi…> In a support document<http://support.apple.com/kb/TS5316?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter> issued today, Apple addressed a known issue with AirPlay Mirroring performance freezing or dropping out. MacBook Pro and Mac Pro users with last year’s models may see the issue when using an 802.11 b/g network… Apple’s solution? Disable Bluetooth. For Mac Pro users, that means breaking out the wired mouse and keyboard as it has no integrated input and turning off Bluetooth means disconnecting the signal from a Magic Mouse and Apple Wireless Keyboard. Since the issue seems to be constrained to 802.11 b/g networks, upgrading your network base station<http://www.amazon.com/Apple-AirPort-Extreme-Station-ME918LL/dp/B00DB9WCR6/r…> might be a better solution. Wayne Billing Classroom Technology Support Audio Visual and Classroom Technology Support Computer & Network Services 130 Machray Hall Building 204-474-6649 204-807-3153 (cell) 204-474-7625 (fax) Wayne.Billing(a)umanitoba.ca<mailto:Wayne.Billing@umanitoba.ca>

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INTEREST: Foxconn employees charged allegedly accepting kickbacks
by Wayne Billing 26 Jan '14

26 Jan '14

[Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., trading as Foxconn Technology Group, is a Taiwanese multinational electronics contract manufacturing company headquartered in Tucheng, New Taipei,Taiwan. It is the world's largest electronics contract manufacturer, and the fourth-largest information technology company by revenue. Foxconn is primarily an original design manufacturer and its clients include major American, European, and Japanese electronics and information technology companies. Notable products that the company manufactures include the BlackBerry, iPad, iPhone, iPod, Kindle, Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Playstation 4, Wii, and Wii U. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foxconn] ...from: http://www.macrumors.com/2014/01/23/foxconn-employees-bribes/ Former Foxconn Employees Charged with Accepting Bribes from Supply Chain Partners Thursday January 23, 2014 6:42 am PST by Kelly Hodgkins Several former Foxconn employees have been charged in Taiwan for allegedly accepting kickbacks from partner companies in Foxconn's supply chain, reports The Wall Street Journal<http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB1000142405270230485650457933754237101…>. According to the report, a former general manager is being held on bribery charges and three former employees are released on bail. However, Apple and other Foxconn clients are not being investigated as authorities do not believe those companies were involved in the kickback scheme. [foxconn-iphone_production] The bribery allegations were made public last year when an internal Foxconn audit revealed several employees were accepting kickbacks from supply chain companies. Foxconn then acknowledged the criminal activity and turned the employee(s) over to the Chinese police for investigation. "We can also confirm that our internal investigation found these violations to be limited to the procurement of consumables and accessory equipment related to a small part of our business," Foxconn said in a statement. "The employees in question are no longer with our company." The charges come as Foxconn has been under fire multiple times in recent years for labor violations. The company has also been working with Apple to improve conditions for employees in its city-like factories, but it has been a slow process. After agreeing in 2012 to examine worker pay and limit working hours, a recent Fair Labor Association report<http://www.macrumors.com/2013/12/12/foxconn-and-apple-make-strides-towards-…>shows the company now is meeting the FLA's 60-hour work week, but still exceeds China's legal limit for weekly working hours and overtime.

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INTEREST: Cisco 2014 Annual Security Report: recent attack methods
by Wayne Billing 26 Jan '14

26 Jan '14

While most of the "Cisco 2014 Annual Security Report" is behind a userID and password, they have put the following information on the download page: ...from: http://www.cisco.com/web/offers/lp/2014-annual-security-report/index.html [cid:4A58B22B-7A84-4453-AF88-11438CA0C491]

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INTEREST: LA Board of Education to bring iPads to 40 campuses
by Wayne Billing 15 Jan '14

15 Jan '14

...from: http://9to5mac.com/2014/01/15/la-board-of-education-approves-115-million-de… LA Board of Education approves $115-million deal to bring iPads to classrooms<http://9to5mac.com/2014/01/15/la-board-of-education-approves-115-million-de…> [cid:56665592-656E-4236-8833-26A9BC78AA8D] In an ongoing effort to equip more classrooms with tablets and computers, the Los Angeles Board of Education has green lighted a plan to distribute and integrate iPads in nearly 40 campuses throughout the school district, the Los Angeles Times<http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-lausd-20140115,0,5059681.story#axzz2qUB0…> reports. The deal which was approved allots $115 million for deploying between 40,000 and 70,000 tablets to classrooms for use by students and teachers used especially for spring-scheduled standardized testing. While the final count has yet to be determined, the agreement approved by the education board omits a specific limit on number of iPads deployed. The board and district superintendent have both expressed plans to expedite the deployment, though that effort has not been without critics looking to spend more time on the plan specifics. Board member Monica Garcia said moving quickly was an educational imperative. “The whole point of this program is to revolutionize instruction,” Garcia said. Low-income students don’t get access “to what is a part of all our worlds today…. I don’t understand how cutting back what’s good is good for kids.” LA Times also reports the district will pay $768 per device which is relatively higher than what other districts spend, but includes network upgrades to the schools as well as iPad-specific curriculum for the classrooms. Officials representing the school district appear to be in talks with Apple on discounted tablet pricing for devices used solely for student testing where a curriculum may not be necessary.

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FUN: iPad Air: A week with the iPad Air in three words….
by Wayne Billing 09 Nov '13

09 Nov '13

I read the article below and have experienced pretty much everything he has to say about the iPad Air. If you've been using an iPad, the iPad Air seems to be some sort of illusion. It's not an illusion, though. It is light. It is thin. It is the same size...... display area. Here's a photo comparison between the original iPad and the iPad Air: [cid:10667BA6-6D94-408F-A30F-4D9D8D8C183E] I somehow jostled the table in taking this picture and misaligned the bottom right corners.... but, really, the bottom left corners are aligned and the iPad is that much wider than the iPad Air. [cid:C91BD8C1-74E3-4D14-B117-190CDCFCE49F] - here the bottom red line is where the bottoms of the iPads are. The Air (~470 grams) is about 1/2 the thickness of the original iPad (~700 grams) - not half the volume but, still, you could stack two iPad Airs for every original iPad: [cid:D95376F9-1BC6-4E1F-9980-C6F034B0D766] ...from: http://9to5mac.com/2013/11/08/a-week-with-the-ipad-air-in-three-words-belie… A week with the iPad Air in three words: Believe. The. Hype.<http://9to5mac.com/2013/11/08/a-week-with-the-ipad-air-in-three-words-belie…> [air-1]<http://9to5mac.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/air-1.jpg> All tech companies love to hype their shiny new gadgets. Nothing is ever a slightly better version of the last model, everything is a ‘breakthrough’, changes are always ‘dramatic’, performance is always ‘ground-breaking’. Apple is of course the acknowledged master of the marketing arts, so if I’m honest I [must admit I] mentally toned-down all the claims in the keynote about it being “dramatically thinner and lighter,” and I responded to Phil Schiller’s claim that “once you hold one in your hand you will understand what a tremendous advancement this is” with a wry smile. But having owned and used one extensively for a week now, I actually think Apple’s hype didn’t go far enough. This is not just a bit thinner and lighter, it’s virtually a third category of iPad … Ever since I bought the original iPad, it’s been my go-to mobile device. My iPhone gets used mostly as a phone (how unusual is that?), and my MacBooks – even my lovely MBA 11 – only get carried when I know I’m going to need them. The portability, instant on/off, decent screen-size and phenomenal battery-life made the iPad my constant mobile companion. I was never interested in the iPad Mini: the screen size was just too much of a compromise for me. I upgraded to the iPad 2, but with 4G just a twinkle in the eye of UK carriers at the time, the third and fourth generation models didn’t offer enough differentiation to tempt me. Indeed, my real motivation for buying the iPad Air was 4G finally taking off in the UK. [air-3]<http://9to5mac.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/air-3.jpg> My first surprise on seeing the iPad Air in the flesh was that it looked so much smaller than the dimensions and photos had suggested. That reduction in bezel size may have seemed modest on paper, but it really made an incredible difference to the perceived size. This thing looked like a cross between a full-size iPad and a Mini. [air-2]<http://9to5mac.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/air-2.jpg> That thinness too. I’d never thought of any of the earlier iPads as thick, but viewed against this, they suddenly looked like a previous generation of technology. But it was picking it up that made me go ‘wow.’ Phil Schiller was right. If anything, he didn’t go far enough. This isn’t just a smaller, lighter iPad, it’s an iPad with the screen-size of the original and the portability of the Mini. [air-4]<http://9to5mac.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/air-4.jpg> A week in, that difference is all too apparent in the way I use the iPad. Previous iPads had always been two-handed devices; the combination of slimness and weight means the Air feels perfectly comfortable held in one hand. [air-6]<http://9to5mac.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/air-6.jpg> Performance has also proved impressive. All of the iOS 7 animations are silky-smooth, and thevideo comparison<http://9to5mac.com/2013/11/01/want-to-see-how-the-ipad-air-benchmarks-trans…> of webpage rendering speeds has indeed been experienced in day-to-day use.Twice<http://9to5mac.com/2013/10/30/ipad-benchmarks-confirm-apple-claims-intel-jo…> as fast? I can’t say that shows up in my usage, but then I’m not a gamer: X-Plane is my only real iPad gaming weakness. [air-5]<http://9to5mac.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/air-5.jpg> But battery-life? That has shown up for sure. Apple is still only saying ten hours – the more efficient power usage of the A7<http://9to5mac.com/tag/a7/> and M7<http://9to5mac.com/tag/m7/> chips making up for the smaller battery<http://9to5mac.com/2013/11/01/ipad-air-teardown-never-mind-the-repairabilit…> - but the company is wrong: it delivers significantly more than this. I’d always liked the 10-hour battery-life, not just because it can get me through pretty much any day out-and-about, but also because it makes the math simple: one hour for every 10 percent battery-life showing. But what I started noticing with the Air is that I could use it for two hours and still have 85 percent or more showing. Eventually, I had to test it by running it flat. I have a home office, so picking a day when I wasn’t out in the evening meant I could just leave it on all day. Granted it wasn’t doing anything active for most of the daytime (I just refreshed a webpage every now and then), but I had everything on – wifi, Bluetooth and GPS – and the screen was on at a comfortable reading level all day. In the evening, I used it as my sofa browsing device. I didn’t notice when it finally switched off, but the last time I’d made a note, it was at 12 hours 7 minutes and still showing 6 percent remaining. So long as you’re able to charge it overnight, for all practical purposes the iPad Air has infinite battery-life. Conclusions? If you can afford one, buy one. If you can’t afford one, don’t try one: you’ll end up in debt. Wayne Billing Classroom Technology Support Audio Visual and Classroom Technology Support Computer & Network Services 130 Machray Hall Building 204-474-6649 204-807-3153 (cell) 204-474-7625 (fax) Wayne.Billing(a)umanitoba.ca<mailto:Wayne.Billing@umanitoba.ca>

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INTEREST: Apple building Arizona manufacturing plant
by Wayne Billing 05 Nov '13

05 Nov '13

...from: http://azgovernor.gov/dms/upload/PR_110413_Apple.pdf http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/11/05/uk-apple-manufacturing-idUKBRE9A40… http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/124873-apple-confirms-next-us-factory-set-f… Apple confirms next US factory, set for Arizona to create 2000+ jobs * By Jake Smith <http://www.pocket-lint.com/author/jake-smith> Follow on Twitter<https://twitter.com/intent/user?screen_name=jakeosmith> * 7 hours ago Apple and the state of Arizona have announced a second Apple factory in the US - specifically in Mesa, Arizona - as Apple works to bring some manufacturing back to its home country. The factory will be in partnership with GT Advanced, a company that will "own and operate furnaces and related equipment" at the Apple facility. "We are proud to expand our domestic manufacturing initiative with a new facility in Arizona, creating more than 2,000 jobs in engineering, manufacturing and construction," Apple told Pocket-lint in a statement. "This new plant will make components for Apple products and it will run on 100% renewable energy from day one, as a result of the work we are doing with SRP to create green energy sources to power the facility." The purpose of the factory hasn't been named specifically by Apple, though GT Advanced says it has entered "into a multi-year supply agreement with Apple Inc. to provide sapphire material." Sapphire is used abundantly in Apple products, including the Touch ID fingerprint sensor and camera lens in the iPhone 5S. This gels nicely with the word about "components" Apple gave us. Talking business, "Apple will provide GT with a prepayment of approximately $578 million. GT will reimburse Apple for the prepayment over five years, starting in 2015," GT said in a press release. The Arizona factory follows an Apple-backed factory from Flextronics in Fort Worth, Texas that will be the hub of most of the Mac Pro's manufacturing. Apple has touted the "made in the USA" fact heavily in several marketing campaigns. On the east coast of the US, Apple has also opened an AppleCare center in Pennsylvania to speed up some repairs. "Apple is indisputably one of the world’s most innovative companies and I’m thrilled to welcome them to Arizona," Arizona governor Janice K. Brewer said in a statement. "Apple will have an incredibly positive economic impact for Arizona and its decision to locate here speaks volumes about the friendly, pro-business climate we have been creating these past four years." >From an environmental standpoint, Apple is said to advanced green energy in Arizona. Apple's "investment in renewable energy will also be greening our power grid, and creating significant new solar and geothermal power sources for the state," Brewer said. Wayne Billing Classroom Technology Support Audio Visual and Classroom Technology Support Computer & Network Services 130 Machray Hall Building 204-474-6649 204-807-3153 (cell) 204-474-7625 (fax) Wayne.Billing(a)umanitoba.ca<mailto:Wayne.Billing@umanitoba.ca>

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INTEREST: Apple leads 2013 U.S. Wireless Smartphone Satisfaction Study
by Wayne Billing 20 Oct '13

20 Oct '13

…from: http://www.jdpower.com/content/press-release/RDbY51O/2013-u-s-wireless-smar… 2013 U.S. Wireless Smartphone Satisfaction Study--Volume 2 10/17/2013 J.D. Power Reports: Both Apple and Samsung Lead in Overall Satisfaction Performance among the U.S. Wireless Tier 1 Carriers, Excelling in All Smartphone Experience Factors Apple Smartphone Devices Rank Highest among Customers of AT&T and Verizon Wireless Carriers; Samsung Ranks Highest among Sprint and T-Mobile Customers WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.: 17 October 2013 -- Apple and Samsung are the only smartphone brands to achieve overall satisfaction scores that are at or above the study average in all four performance factors, according to the J.D. Power 2013 U.S. Wireless Smartphone Satisfaction StudySM--Volume 2 released today. [cid:7EB70C3F-5718-43B2-A90E-F31724319992@cc.umanitoba.ca]

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FYI: MacBook Air Flash Storage Firmware Update 1.1
by Wayne Billing 19 Oct '13

19 Oct '13

…from: http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1690?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US [Download icon] MacBook Air Flash Storage Firmware Update 1.1 Download<http://support.apple.com/downloads/DL1690/en_US/MacBookAirFlashStoreFWUpd1.…> This firmware update is recommended for MacBook Air (mid 2012) models. Apple has discovered that a small percentage of flash storage drives in these MacBook Air models have an issue that may result in data loss. This update tests your drive and, in the majority of cases, installs new firmware to resolve the issue. If your drive cannot be updated, Apple will replace it, free of charge Post Date: Oct 17, 2013 File Size: 2.21 MB If you do happen to see the "drive cannot be updated" message, check the replacement procedure at: http://www.apple.com/support/macbookair-flashdrive/ MacBook Air Flash Storage Drive Replacement Program [cid:AE53E50D-A93C-46B7-A277-6B51C96EA0A0@cc.umanitoba.ca] Please select a Country Asia Australia België Belgique Brasil България Canada (English) Canada (Français) 中国 Česká republika Danmark Deutschland España Eesti Ελλάδα France Hong Kong (English) 香港 India Ireland Italia 日本 대한민국 Κύπρος Latin America América Latina Latvija Lietuva Luxembourg (English) Luxembourg (Français) Luxemburg (Deutsch) Malaysia Magyarország Malta México Nederland New Zealand Norge Österreich Polska Portugal Россия România Singapore Slovensko Slovenija Schweiz Suisse Suomi Sverige 台灣 ไทย United Kingdom United States Apple has determined that certain 64GB and 128GB flash storage drives used in the previous generation of MacBook Air systems may fail. These systems were sold between June 2012 through June 2013. Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider (AASP) will replace affected flash storage drives, free of charge. If you ran a firmware update and were directed to this web page, skip to Replacement Process section for next steps. To see if your drive may be affected, go to the Mac App Store<http://itunes.apple.com/store?mt=12>, click on Updates and choose the MacBook Air Flash Storage Firmware Update 1.1. The firmware update will test your drive to see if it is affected. You will be directed back to this page for next steps if needed. IMPORTANT: If your drive is affected, we strongly recommend that you do not install any operating system updates or new applications. We also recommend backing up your data on a regular basis until you receive a replacement drive.Learn more about backup options<http://www.apple.com/support/backup/> Replacement Process If your MacBook Air has an affected flash drive, please contact one of the Apple service providers below to schedule an appointment to get your drive replaced: * Apple Retail Store - Set up an appointment with a Genius<http://www.apple.com/retail/storelist/>. * Apple Authorized Service Provider - Find one here<https://locate.apple.com/>. * Apple Technical Support - Contact us<http://www.apple.com/support/macbookair-flashdrive/> for local service options. Before you bring your MacBook Air in for service, please back up your data. Learn more about backup options<http://www.apple.com/support/backup/>. Additional Information You will be able to reinstall the operating system version that shipped with your product by going to the Mac App Store. Any other applications or other data should be restored from the back up that you made before the replacement. If you believe you have paid for a repair or replacement due to this issue, contact Apple<http://www.apple.com/support/macbookair-flashdrive/> regarding a refund. This worldwide Apple program does not extend the standard warranty coverage of the MacBook Air. The program covers affected MacBook Air for three years after the first retail sale of the unit. Apple will continue to evaluate service data and will provide further updates to this program as needed.

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INTEREST: Ransomware comes of computer age
by Wayne Billing 18 Oct '13

18 Oct '13

…from: http://arstechnica.com/security/2013/10/youre-infected-if-you-want-to-see-y… Ransomware comes of age with unbreakable crypto, anonymous payments. by Dan Goodin<http://arstechnica.com/author/dan-goodin/> - Oct 17 2013, 12:06pm CDT [cid:92703777-A750-40B0-A160-CA42788A79E1@cc.umanitoba.ca] Malware that takes computers hostage until users pay a ransom is getting meaner, and thanks to the growing prevalence of Bitcoin and other digital payment systems, it's easier than ever for online crooks to capitalize on these "ransomware" schemes. If this wasn't already abundantly clear, consider the experience of Nic, an Ars reader who fixes PCs for a living and recently helped a client repair the damage inflicted by a particularly nasty title known as CryptoLocker. It started when an end user in the client's accounting department received an e-mail purporting to come from Intuit. Yes, the attached archived zip file with an executable inside should have been a dead giveaway that this message was malicious and was in no way affiliated with Intuit. But accounting employees are used to receiving e-mails from financial companies. When the receiver clicked on it, he saw a white box flash briefly on his screen but didn't notice anything else out of the ordinary. He then locked his computer and attended several meetings. Within a few hours, the company's IT department received word of a corrupt file stored on a network drive that was available to multiple employees, including the one who received the malicious e-mail. A quick investigation soon uncovered other corrupted files, most or all of which had been accessed by the accounting employee. By the time CryptoLocker had run its course, hundreds of gigabytes worth of company data was no longer available. "After reading about the ransomware on reddit earlier this week<http://www.reddit.com/r/sysadmin/comments/1mizfx/proper_care_feeding_of_you…>, we guessed [that it was] what we were dealing with, as all the symptoms seemed to be popping up," Nic, who asked that his last name not be published, wrote in an e-mail to Ars. "We went ahead and killed the local network connection on the machine in question and we were immediately presented with a screenshot letting us know exactly what we were dealing with." According to multiple participants in the month-long discussion, CryptoLocker is true to its name. It uses strong cryptography to lock all files that a user has permission to modify, including those on secondary hard drives and network storage systems. Until recently, few antivirus products detected the ransomware until it was too late. By then, victims were presented with a screen like the one displayed on the computer of the accounting employee, which is pictured above. It warns that the files are locked using a 2048-bit version of the RSA cryptographic algorithm<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RSA_(algorithm)> and that the data will be forever lost unless the private key is obtained from the malware operators within three days of the infection. “Nobody and never will be able to restore files” "The server will destroy the key after a time specified in this window," the screen warns, displaying a clock that starts with 72:00:00 and counts down with each passing second. "After that, nobody and never will be able to restore files. To obtain the private key for this computer, which will automatically decrypt files, you need to pay 300 USD / 300 EUR / similar amount in another currency." None of the reddit posters reported any success in breaking the encryption. Several also said they had paid the ransom and received a key that worked as promised. Full backup files belonging to Nic's clients were about a week old at the time that CryptoLocker first took hold of the network. Nic advised them to comply with the demand. The ransomware operators delivered a key, and about 24 hours later, some 400 gigabytes of data was restored. CryptoLocker accepts payment in Bitcoins or through the MoneyPak payment cards, as the following two screenshots illustrate. [cid:48881253-8F25-4753-90C7-D155D1D8BDDE@cc.umanitoba.ca]<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/BitCoin.jpg> Enlarge<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/BitCoin.jpg> [cid:38D78380-3DF8-4986-8D67-F5BED90658FF@cc.umanitoba.ca]<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/MoneyBank.jpg> Enlarge<http://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/MoneyBank.jpg> The outcome hasn't been as happy for other CryptoLocker victims. Whitehats who tracked the ransomware eventually took down some of the command and control servers that the operators relied on. As a result, people on reddit reported, some victims who paid the ransom were unable to receive the unique key needed to unlock files on their computer. The inability to undo the damage hit some victims particularly hard. Because CryptoLocker encrypted all files that an infected computer had access to, the ransomware in many cases locked the contents of backup disks that were expected to be relied upon in the event that the main disks failed. (The threat is a graphic example of the importance of "cold," or offline backup, a backup arrangement that prevents data from being inadvertently overwritten.) Several people have reported that the 72-hour deadline is real and that the only way it can be extended is by setting a computer's BIOS clock back in time. Once the clock runs out, the malware uninstalls itself. Reinfecting a machine does nothing to bring back the timer or restore the old encrypted session. Earlier this year, researchers from Symantec who infiltrated the servers of one ransomware syndicate conservatively estimated that its operators were easily able to clear $5 million per year<http://arstechnica.com/security/2012/11/mushrooming-growth-of-ransomware-ex…>. No wonder CryptoLocker has had such a long run. As of last week, more than three weeks after it was first published, the reddit thread was still generating five to 10 new posts per day. Also a testament to the prevalence and staying power of CryptoLocker, researchers from security firms TrendMicro and Emsisoft provided technical analyses here<http://blog.trendmicro.com/trendlabs-security-intelligence/threat-refinemen…> and here<http://www.kernelmode.info/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=2945>. "This bug is super scary and could really wipe the floor with lots of small businesses that don't have the best backup practices," Nic observed. "Given the easy money available to scam operators, it's not hard to see why."

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INTEREST: Foxconn admits to pushing interns into overtime to build PS4 parts
by Wayne Billing 17 Oct '13

17 Oct '13

…from: http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/10/foxconn-admits-to-pushing-interns-int… Foxconn admits to pushing interns into overtime to build PS4 parts Chinese manufacturer says factory is now in "full compliance" with regulations. by Kyle Orland<http://arstechnica.com/author/kyle-orland/> - Oct 10 2013, 9:21am CDT Controversial Chinese component maker Foxconn has admitted that student interns were assigned to work overtime in order to make parts for Sony's PlayStation 4, in violation of the company's policies. Reports emerged yesterday from Chinese site Tencent Games<http://games.qq.com/a/20131009/015913.htm> (translated by Games in Asia<http://www.gamesinasia.com/report-foxconn-using-forced-student-labor-to-bui…>) that thousands of students from the Xi’an Institute of Technology were forced to work at the Foxconn plant in order to receive six course credits necessary for them to graduate. Once at the plant, the students were reportedly put into menial assembly line jobs rather than anything related to their fields of study. According to the reports, they were forced to work long hours, including night shifts and overtime. In a statement obtained by news site Quartz<http://qz.com/133950/your-playstation-4-may-be-built-by-chinese-students-in…>, Foxconn said that “immediate actions have been taken to bring that campus into full compliance with our code and policies" and that the company is "reinforcing the policies of no overtime and no night shifts for student interns." Foxconn stressed, however, that the interns' work was voluntary and that they could "terminate their participation in the program at any time." The course credit requirement appears to belie that claim, however. Sony, for its part, told gaming industry news site MCV<http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/forced-student-labour-used-to-build-ps4s-at-…> that it had found Foxconn to be in full compliance with the Sony Supplier Code of Conduct<http://www.sony.net/SonyInfo/csr_report/sourcing/supplychain/supplier.pdf>, meaning it was “complying with all applicable laws, work ethics, labor conditions, and respect for human rights, environmental conservation, and health and safety." Foxconn has long<http://arstechnica.com/apple/2006/06/4461/> faced<http://arstechnica.com/apple/2006/06/4395/> accusations of substandard labor practices<http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2012/10/internal-investigation-underage-work…> and worker abuse<http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2010/10/leaked-foxconn-report-details-suppos…> and has been the scene of worker riots<http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/09/foxconn-worker-riot-closes-factory/>. Last May, Apple reportedly joined with Foxconn<http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/05/foxconn-and-apple-to-split-costs-to-im…> in paying the costs needed to improve conditions at the factory.

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INTEREST: Guilford County Schools [ASUS] tablet program on hold pending Gorilla Glass
by Wayne Billing 16 Oct '13

16 Oct '13

….from: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/10/13/4385582/guilford-county-schools… Guilford County Schools tablet program on hold The Associated Press Posted: Sunday, Oct. 13, 2013 GREENSBORO, N.C. Guilford County Schools' goal to get tablet computers to every one of its 15,000 students is on hold after students reported melted chargers and a 10 percent rate of broken screens. The system decided earlier this month to shelve the tablets and delay the $3.2 million program until officials can work out the problem with Amplify, a New York-based education technology company that provides the tablets. The students had the tablets for about six weeks. "It may take a while for us to get tablets back, which is of course disappointing. But when we do this again, we want to make sure we do it right," Guilford County Board of Education Chairman Alan Duncan told the News & Record of Greensboro (http://bit.ly/168OPGc). One immediate problem that must be fixed is the failure to put more durable glass in the tables. The school district paid extra for a kind of glass called Gorilla Glass, but the tablets were given regular glass, Amplify spokesman Justin Hamilton said. Amplify buys the tablets from Taiwan-based Asus and is trying to determine why its instructions were not followed, Hamilton said. Guilford County Schools have reported about 10 percent of the tablets had broken glass, compared to about 2 percent in other districts Amplify has worked with before, Hamilton said. The school board is reviewing its decision to buy the tablets from Amplify. The company had the lowest bid of $199 a tablet, which included a built-in platform teachers can use for lessons and to get students involved with each other. The Amplify bid was picked over other offers from companies like Apple, Lenovo, Dell, HP and Samsung. Board member Darlene Garrett, who cast the lone no vote against the Amplify deal, said less than two weeks after the vote the board should have had more information. "We should have asked for it," she said. "But I think we were in a rush to approve it." Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/10/13/4385582/guilford-county-schools… Wayne Billing Classroom Technology Support Audio Visual and Classroom Technology Support 130 Machray Hall Building 204-474-6649 204-807-3153 (cell) 204-474-7625 (fax) Wayne_Billing(a)umanitoba.ca<mailto:Wayne_Billing@umanitoba.ca>

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FYI: Google sets plan to sell users’ endorsements
by Wayne Billing 13 Oct '13

13 Oct '13

….from: http://thechronicleherald.ca/world/1160337-google-sets-plan-to-sell-users-e… Google sets plan to sell users’ endorsements October 12, 2013 - 10:04am Share on facebook<http://thechronicleherald.ca/world/1160337-google-sets-plan-to-sell-users-e…>Share on twitter<http://thechronicleherald.ca/world/1160337-google-sets-plan-to-sell-users-e…>Share on linkedin<http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=300&winname=addthis&pub=chjhurst&sour…>More Sharing Services<http://thechronicleherald.ca/world/1160337-google-sets-plan-to-sell-users-e…> Share on email<http://thechronicleherald.ca/world/1160337-google-sets-plan-to-sell-users-e…> Share on prin<http://thechronicleherald.ca/world/1160337-google-sets-plan-to-sell-users-e…> SAN FRANCISCO — Google, following in Facebook’s footsteps, wants to sell users’ endorsements to marketers to help them hawk their wares. On Friday, Google announced an update to its terms of service that allows the company to include adult users’ names, photos and comments in ads shown across the web, based on ratings, reviews and posts they have made on Google Plus and other Google services like YouTube. When the new ad policy goes live Nov. 11, Google will be able to show what the company calls shared endorsements on Google sites and across the web, on the more than 2 million sites in Google’s display advertising network, which are viewed by an estimated 1 billion people. If a user follows a bakery on Google Plus or gives an album four stars on the Google Play music service, for instance, that person’s name, photo and endorsement could show up in ads for that bakery or album. Google said it would give users the chance to opt out of being included in the new endorsements, and people younger than 18 will automatically be excluded. Such product endorsements, especially coming from friends and acquaintances, are a powerful lure to brands, replicating word-of-mouth marketing on a broad scale. But as Facebook has learned, many users have strong and skeptical feelings about their endorsements being used in ads without their explicit permission. “The trick to any advertising like this is to avoid coming across as creepy to your user base and have them say, 'I didn’t want anyone else to know that,'?” said Zachary Reiss-Davis, a Forrester analyst, speaking generally about social ads. In a notice to users posted on its site Friday, Google said, “Feedback from people you know can save you time and improve results for you and your friends across all Google services.” Facebook, the world’s largest social network with 1.2 billion users worldwide, has been aggressively marketing such social endorsements. For example, if you post that you love McDonald’s new Mighty Wings on the chain’s Facebook page, McDonald’s could pay Facebook to broadcast your kind words to all your friends, effectively using you as a product endorser. The company declined to specify exactly how it planned to use endorsements in advertising, what the ads would look like or how brands choose whether to include shared endorsements. Facebook does not allow its users to opt out of such ads, which it calls sponsored stories, although users can limit how their actions on the social network are used in some other types of advertising. Google Plus users, on the other hand, will be able to opt out of inclusion in ads on the social network’s settings page. If a Google Plus user has shared comments with a limited set of people, only people in that circle will see the personalized ads. Ratings and reviews on services like Google Plus Local are automatically public and can be used in ads, unless a user opts out of shared endorsements. Google had previously shown Plus 1s, votes of approval similar to Facebook likes, in ads across Google sites and its ad network. Google plans to expand that to include “follows,” comments, ratings, reviews and other interactions. Those who have already elected to opt out of using Plus 1s in ads will automatically be opted out of the expansion. Though 190 million users post on Google Plus and 390 million use the social network indirectly by sharing on other Google sites like YouTube, Google’s variety of services gives it a potentially wider reach. A user’s Google searches or Gmail correspondence, because they are not considered social interactions, would not be used to generate endorsement ads, although the company uses search history and the content of email to display other ads to users. Currently, Google does not have an ad option incorporating more social data that is ready to be used by advertisers, the company said. Instead, the company wants the ability to offer such ads in the future and is notifying users in advance. Although advertising irks some users — even while it helps support free services — social ads have proved particularly contentious. Facebook recently settled a class-action lawsuit that claimed it had not adequately notified users about how it was using endorsements. In late August, it tried to impose a new privacy policy that would have given the company clearer rights to run social ads without a user’s explicit permission. After privacy groups complained, the Federal Trade Commission began an inquiry into the changes, prompting Facebook to suspend the process. Google, which is under the supervision of the FTC for a previous privacy violation and has agreed to privacy audits and fines for privacy misrepresentations, is taking pains to show that it has considered the privacy implications of the new ads. It will notify users of the change with banners on Google’s home page, in search results, in Google Plus notifications and elsewhere. And posts by users who have registered as being younger than 18 will not appear in ads, though their posts can still appear in search results or other places that are not commercial in nature. Shared endorsements are the latest example of the continual push by Google and other web companies to collate in one place the reams of personal information people share online and use it to personalize people’s online experiences. Privacy advocates say companies do not generally get meaningful consent from their users before using such information. “Users reasonably expect that their comments should be used as they intended,” said Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, which has tangled with numerous Internet companies, most recently Facebook, over the use of personal information in ads. “People don’t typically race around handing their friends leaflets and advertisements.” In Europe, where privacy is considered a personal right, early reaction was skeptical. “What Google intends to do is get everyone involved in their advertising model without necessarily involving citizens in a decision about whether to participate in that model,” Jan Philipp Albrecht, a German member of the European Parliament who is the main sponsor of legislation overhauling and updating the bloc’s privacy standards, said in a telephone interview Friday. Google’s plan for social advertising is “something we will have to react to in our legislation,” said Albrecht, who said he would like EU governments and legislators to reach a final agreement on the complex law by April.

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INTEREST: Paying tax: Apple Good; Google, Facebook not so much
by Wayne Billing 13 Oct '13

13 Oct '13

….from: http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2013/10/10/sec-clears-apple-taxes-se… http://arstechnica.com/business/2013/10/to-reduce-its-tax-burden-google-exp… http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-… AXES<http://www.forbes.com/taxes> | 10/10/2013 @ 1:15AM |1,822 views SEC Clears Apple Taxes---SEC Thinks Different Too [Image representing Apple as depicted in CrunchBase]<http://www.crunchbase.com/company/apple> Image via CrunchBase What does it mean that Apple has been cleared? In the SEC’s eyes, Apple accounts for taxes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. The vaunted Securities and Exchange Commission has been stirring the pot of Apple’s complex finances for months now. And as TaxProf Paul Caron notes, the SEC approves Apple’s overseas tax strategies<https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved…>. The SEC review<http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/320193/000000000013032308/filename1.…> was a worry on one level, especially after Senator Carl Levin (D-Mich.) lambasted the tech giant as “the Holy Grail of tax avoidance.” For a company and CEO as cool as Apple and Tim Cook, respectively, this was presumably not a huge worry. The SEC, after all, as not Senator Levin on a tax witch hunt. Now the SEC has closed the book<http://allthingsd.com/20131007/sec-clears-apples-tax-strategy/>, finding that all is well. The SEC even went so far as to write this letter<http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/320193/000000000013048900/filename1.…> that it would take no action. Whatever you think of the U.S. tax system and the lengths to which companies go to pay less, the SEC’s action—or lack thereof—clearly makes sense. Sure, the Senate Permanent Investigations Subcommittee’s report on Apple painted a grim picture. But Apple is less aggressive than many others. In his Senate testimony, CEO Tim Cook distanced Apple from tax gimmicks like IP offshoring. . . . To reduce its tax burden, Google expands use of the “Double Irish” New report: Google moved almost $12B through Bermuda shell company. by Cyrus Farivar<http://arstechnica.com/author/cyrus-farivar/> - Oct 11 2013, 1:55pm CDT . . . Facebook Mirrors Google's Offshore Tax Scheme [cid:552C8D2A-6870-45B1-A325-C624B1B041C7@cc.umanitoba.ca]<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…>[cid:4F64A233-8B8B-4C4C-AF68-2C68B5DDC7EF@cc.umanitoba.ca]<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…>[cid:4045C400-394F-4BA2-85BE-1D2C79B9AB18@cc.umanitoba.ca]<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…>[cid:4F64A233-8B8B-4C4C-AF68-2C68B5DDC7EF@cc.umanitoba.ca]<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…>[cid:618D8EDA-0D36-4ECA-8F96-3F6021CD69E8@cc.umanitoba.ca]<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…>[cid:4F64A233-8B8B-4C4C-AF68-2C68B5DDC7EF@cc.umanitoba.ca]<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…> 6 comments, 6 called-out<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…> Comment Now<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…> Follow Comments<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/12/27/facebook-mirrors-googles-…> [google+ facebook]<http://www.flickr.com/photos/18090920@N07/6160054455> google+ facebook (Photo credit: Sean MacEntee) What is a tax scheme and what’s legitimate tax planning? It may be a question of opinion. Besides, a “scheme” has different connotations in the U.S. and U.K. But however you slice it, Google and Facebook have something in common. Both companies have used a kind of sandwich not for sustenance but for tax minimization. Recent reports state that Facebook flipped more than $700 million to the Cayman Islands last year as part of a “Double Irish” tax reduction strategy. See Facebook Defends its ‘Double Irish’ Tax Reduction Deal<http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/business-news/facebook-defends-i…>. Recall that former Zuckerberg pal and co-founder Eduardo Saverin took considerable heat when he exited the U.S. for Singapore. See Expats Face Steep Exit Tax Courtesy Of Facebook<http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2012/05/18/expats-face-steep-exit-ta…>. Yet Facebook is recently under more fire than Mr. Saverin. See Facebook Paid £2.9m Tax on £840m Profits Made Outside US<http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/dec/23/facebook-tax-profits-outsi…>. From an outsider’s perspective, it looks like Facebook Funneled Nearly Half a Billion Pounds Into the Cayman Islands Last Year<http://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-funneled-nearly-half-a-billion-poun…>. Yet Facebook’s technique may not be overly aggressive. Big multinational companies can hire tax lawyers to come up with ways to reduce the company’s effective tax rate from 35% to much less. Google reportedly used the Double Irish and the Dutch Sandwich<http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-21/google-2-4-rate-shows-how-60-billi…>, saving the company billions<http://www.slate.com/id/2291269/> in U.S. taxes. The Double Irish involves forming a pair of Irish companies to turn payments on intellectual property into tax-deductible royalty payments. The U.S. parent company forms a subsidiary in Ireland. The parent signs a contract giving European rights to its intangible property to the new company. In return, the new subsidiary agrees to help market or promote those products in Europe. Thus, all the European income–that previously would have been taxed in the U.S.—is taxed in Ireland instead. Then the Irish company changes its headquarters to Bermuda–a true tax haven. So far, there has been no Irish tax, no Bermuda tax, and no U.S. tax. Finally, the parent forms a second Irish subsidiary that elects to be treated as disregarded under U.S. tax law–by filing a one-page form. The first Irish company (now in Bermuda) can now license company products to the second Irish company for royalties. The net result is one low 12.5% Irish tax compared to 35% in the U.S. Even this tax can be reduced, since the royalties going to the Bermuda company are deductible. Some of these steps may seem circuitous (they are). Tax treaties permit this, yet a deal done directly with Bermuda (and without all the layers) would incur a tax.

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INTEREST: Cloudy with a chance of security breaches at Adobe
by Wayne Billing 04 Oct '13

04 Oct '13

….from: http://9to5mac.com/2013/10/03/adobe-says-data-for-almost-3m-customers-compr… Adobe says almost 3M customers’ information compromised in sophisticated attack<http://9to5mac.com/2013/10/03/adobe-says-data-for-almost-3m-customers-compr…> [adobe-creative-cloud] Adobe’s Chief Security Officer Brad Arkin announced today<http://blogs.adobe.com/conversations/2013/10/important-customer-security-an…> on the company’s blog that “sophisticated attacks” on its network have been discovered and that some customer information was compromised in the process: Cyber attacks are one of the unfortunate realities of doing business today. Given the profile and widespread use of many of our products, Adobe has attracted increasing attention from cyber attackers. Very recently, Adobe’s security team discovered sophisticated attacks on our network, involving the illegal access of customer information as well as source code for numerous Adobe products. We believe these attacks may be related. Arkin says Adobe’s ongoing investigation has found that the attackers have accessed Adobe IDs and encrypted passwords for approximately 2.9 million customers, but that it does “not believe the attackers removed decrypted credit or debit card numbers.” They were, however, able to get their hands on names, encrypted credit or debit card numbers, expiration dates, and customer order information. The company is also investigating an attack that accessed source code for several Adobe products illegally. Adobe is of course working with law enforcement and continuing its investigation, but in the meantime it announced it will be contacting customers, banks, law enforcement, and automatically reseting customer passwords: * As a precaution, we are resetting relevant customer passwords to help prevent unauthorized access to Adobe ID accounts. If your user ID and password were involved, you will receive an email notification from us with information on how to change your password. We also recommend that you change your passwords on any website where you may have used the same user ID and password. * We are in the process of notifying customers whose credit or debit card information we believe to be involved in the incident. If your information was involved, you will receive a notification letter from us with additional information on steps you can take to help protect yourself against potential misuse of personal information about you. Adobe is also offering customers, whose credit or debit card information was involved, the option of enrolling in a one-year complimentary credit monitoring membership where available. * We have notified the banks processing customer payments for Adobe, so that they can work with the payment card companies and card-issuing banks to help protect customers’ accounts. * We have contacted federal law enforcement and are assisting in their investigation.

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INTEREST: Report finds almost all Android OEMs cheat on benchmarks
by Wayne Billing 03 Oct '13

03 Oct '13

….from: Report finds almost all Android OEMs, not just Samsung, cheat on benchmarks<http://9to5mac.com/2013/10/02/report-finds-almost-all-android-oems-not-just…> When Apple SVP Phil Schiller pointed us to a story earlier this week that Samsung was artificially inflating<http://9to5mac.com/2013/10/01/phil-schiller-calls-out-samsungs-note-3-bench…> benchmark scores for its new Galaxy Note 3, many were quick to point out it wasn’t the first time Samsung had been caught engaged in such a practice. The same issue was discovered by AnandTech for the Galaxy S4 back in July, and today the site has an extensive report showing<http://www.anandtech.com/show/7384/state-of-cheating-in-android-benchmarks> that almost every Android smartphone manufacturer is shipping devices that do the same. As pictured in the chart above, that includes the HTC One, HTC One mini, LG G2, Galaxy Tab 10.1, and many others. In fact, the only companies that appear to not be using the method is Apple and Motorola, as well as Google with its Nexus 4 and Nexus 7 devices: We started piecing this data together back in July, and even had conversations with both silicon vendors and OEMs about getting it to stop. With the exception of Apple and Motorola, literally every single OEM we’ve worked with ships (or has shipped) at least one device that runs this silly CPU optimization. It’s possible that older Motorola devices might’ve done the same thing, but none of the newer devices we have on hand exhibited the behavior. It’s a systemic problem that seems to have surfaced over the last two years, and one that extends far beyond Samsung… None of the Nexus do, which is understandable since the optimization isn’t a part of AOSP. This also helps explain why the Nexus 4 performed so slowly when we reviewed it – this mess was going on back then and Google didn’t partake. As noted in the report, the gains that OEMs are experiencing from the inflated scores are probably not worth the press they’ve been receiving. AnandTech points out that most of the inflated scores provide under a 10% increase in GPU and CPU performance benchmarks: The hilarious part of all of this is we’re still talking about small gains in performance. The impact on our CPU tests is 0 – 5%, and somewhere south of 10% on our GPU benchmarks as far as we can tell. I can’t stress enough that it would be far less painful for the OEMs to just stop this nonsense and instead demand better performance/power efficiency from their silicon vendors. You can check out the full report here<http://www.anandtech.com/show/7384/state-of-cheating-in-android-benchmarks>, which offers in-depth analysis on the optimizations it found for several devices across various benchmark tests. [android-benchmarks-cheaters.png]

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