Alan Buckingham

The Google Reader shutdown looms large on our horizon, and it seems no last minute reprieve from the governor will be coming before that switch is thrown. Many choose to stick with the service until the bitter end -- and it will be bitter at that point, trust me. So, where to go? That is the question.

The most likely landing spot seems to be Feedly. Do not do it. I went there -- I feel as if I should say that I took a bullet for all of you! It was not horrible at first. Not perfect, but the Readly user script made it more palatable. There are also themes that present an effort at making it look better -- if you consider changing colors an improvement. Personally, I prefer functional changes an improvement. But hey, that is just me.

Continue reading →

PC viruses and attacks may run rampant, but mobile threats tend to be rarer. We do hear of them though, and F-Secure reports an interesting new discovery.

The company confirms findings from one of its researchers that an existing server in the wild is designed to ignore computers, and go directly after your smartphone or tablet. The company claims, "we've discovered a server that only attacks and/or spams smartphones and tablets -- and not PCs".

Continue reading →

In the continuing race to the bottom between Oracle Java and Adobe Flash, the Java maker moves ahead...or is it behind? Today the company rolls out a series of patches for 40 different flaws. A pre-release announcement tells of the fix, but does not provide much in the way of information about the content of its patch updates before the fixes are posted.

"This Critical Patch Update is a collection of patches for multiple security vulnerabilities in Oracle Java SE", according to Oracle. "This Critical Patch Update contains 40 new security vulnerability fixes. Due to the threat posed by a successful attack, Oracle strongly recommends that customers apply Critical Patch Update fixes as soon as possible".

Continue reading →

With the looming death of Google Reader, services are tripping over one another to fill the rather large shoes that the search giant has elected to leave behind. Today Digg announces its latest move towards the RSS future with an update, and included information regarding what the company's progress has wrought.

Digg lets us know that "for our first public release, in time to (just) beat the shutdown of Google Reader, our aim has been to nail the basics: a web and mobile reading experience that is clean, simple, functional, and fast. We’re also introducing a tool that allows users to elevate the most important stories to the top".

Continue reading →

Adobe caused a fair amount of controversy over forcing users into subscription services, while Microsoft Office continues to provide an option to its customers. Now Adobe rolls out its latest Creative Cloud model, in the form of Windows 8 apps -- yes, you still need to pay a subscription fee.

The new rollout comes with several options, including the flagship Premiere Pro CC, which packs in new features for video editors, such as enhanced GPU support, redesigned timeline with new shortcuts and new selective paste attributes, new closed captioning capabilities and additional codec options.

Continue reading →

A big reason that video phones never took off was that many people didn't want the person calling to see them. It's understandable really -- no one wants to take a call from their boss while wearing nothing but their underwear.

Skype somewhat solves this problem with the ability to schedule a call for when you are looking your best, and now the Microsoft-owned communications app allows users to send video messages for those times when it isn't convenient to chat face to face.

Continue reading →

What is your favorite flavor? Pandora? Spotify? iTunes? Perhaps Google Music All Access? Rdio is also a competitor in this ongoing battle and does not want to be outdone. With that in mind, the music service is expanding its horizons -- quite literally -- by pushing out into new markets around the world.

Most of the popular music apps serve slightly different purposes, though the new Google Music All Access seeks to bring an end to that particular dilemma. Rdio, which is in direct competition with Spotify, today announces a move into new worldwide markets.

Continue reading →

The much talked about iOS version of Microsoft Office finally arrives in the App Store today. While that sounds like great news for anyone hoping to at last be able to (officially) use Word, Excel or PowerPoint on the iPad, you may wish to curb your enthusiasm, as there are some serious limitations with this release.

It's only available in the US for starters (coming to other territories "soon"), and you need to be an Office 365 subscriber to use it. Also it's only optimized for the small screen.

Continue reading →

Microsoft continues its battle for your retail dollars. Not only has the company set up  store fronts in malls around the country, as well as pop-up locations during this past holiday season, but now seeks other outlets. The software giant is invading your local big box store, announcing custom stores within Best Buy.

The company's Brandon LeBlanc lets us know, "today, we announce a strategic partnership to create the Windows Store only at Best Buy, a comprehensive store-within-a-store in 500 Best Buy locations across the United States and more than 100 Best Buy and Future Shop locations in Canada".

Continue reading →

Today Microsoft announces the general availability of Windows Embedded Compact 2013, a version that is optimized for building small-footprint industry devices. Windows Embedded Compact 2013 includes new tools and capabilities -- including support for Visual Studio 2012 that is designed to further enhance Windows.

According to Microsoft, "the release is the latest generation of one of the smallest and most flexible products in the Windows Embedded portfolio, designed to power devices that need real-time performance and silicon flexibility, with support for x86 and ARM architectures".

Continue reading →

PlayOn, one of my favorite media apps for my Google TV, today unveils major new updates to its offering. The service is a life-saver for cord-cutters and has somehow managed to avoid lawsuits during its existence, even going so far as to partner with set-top box maker Roku, selling a box with PlayOn pre-installed.

The company first introduces a new service it calls PlayMark. This means, when you are browsing the web on your PC and you come across a cool video that you want to show to your family or friends later on TV, then you can click the PlayMark icon in your browser menu to mark the video. Then continue browsing the web and, later that evening, when you are in front of the TV looking for something to watch and remember that you wanted to show something to your family, you can bring up PlayOn, find the PlayMark folder, click on it and, in a few seconds, you will be watching that same web video you PlayMarked earlier.

Continue reading →

The National Security Administration may prefer to blend into the shadows, but that is a position no longer available to it thanks to the recent PRISM story. Yesterday Mozilla made headlines by launching a campaign against what has been termed a threat to citizens' privacy and security. Google also responded, assuring customers it had nothing to hide and asking for permission to publish information requests it receives.

Now the American Civil Liberties Union has taken the next step, filing against both the NSA and Verizon, the wireless carrier at the center of the scandal. The organization announces that it has filed a constitutional challenge to a surveillance program under which the National Security Agency grabs information about every phone call placed within, from, or to the United States.

Continue reading →

Telerik, a company that specializes in development tools and solutions for building cross-platform and mobile applications, today announces the latest evolution of Telerik DevCraft, delivering what it claims is better and faster development of .NET apps for modern devices.

Citing recent research by analyst firm Canalys, Telerik says Microsoft's market share for mobile adoption is forecast to grow from 2.4 percent in 2012 to 12.7 percent in 2017, and its new toolset has been prepared to take advantage of that market growth. The toolset is for both XAML and HTML and is built to provide .NET and HTML5 developers with an array of tools to deliver modern, clean mobile applications, including Calendar, Image and Tile controls.

Continue reading →

Though personal data has been a big news item recently, mapping is still a business and getting a satellite view of locations is, after all, rather a cool thing. With that in mind, Bing continues to go head-to-head against Google in this market, and today announces a new round of updates.

"We are excited to announce a number of updates to Bing Maps, including the largest shipment of Bird’s Eye imagery yet, nearly 270 terabytes of data or the equivalent of 100,000 DVD’s, along with expanded venue maps and our new 'Report a problem' feature", Bing announces.

Continue reading →

The repercussions of last week's PRISM story continue to ricochet around the web. The latest domino to fall is that belonging to Mozilla, maker of the popular Firefox browser and Thunderbird email client. The organization announces sweeping actions against this news with a campaign designed to raise awareness on perceived privacy intrusions.

Mozilla's Alex Fowler, leader of privacy and public policy, announces "last week, media reports emerged that the US government is requiring vast amounts of data from Internet and phone companies via top secret surveillance programs. The revelations, which confirm many of our worst fears, raise serious questions about individual privacy protections, checks on government power and court orders impacting some of the most popular Web services".

Continue reading →