Android 7.0 Nougat tells iPhone switchers how to migrate their data
Switching from an iPhone to an Android smartphone can be quite daunting, which is why two years ago Google created an online guide to help users migrate important data, like contacts, photos, and music. And it has left it at that, leaving it to iPhone switchers to find it on their own.
But, as you may know, newer versions of Android have made it easier for users to move their data from another Android device and now, with the introduction of Nougat, those wanting to migrate content from an iPhone or iPad are getting a dedicated import option too, while setting up their new device.
New platform seeks to automate risk management
Identifying and prioritizing cyber threats is a problem for large organizations and it's easy to become overwhelmed with information. This is why, increasingly, they're turning to solutions to automate the process.
Risk analysis specialist Bay Dynamics is launching a new version of its analytics platform, Risk Fabric, that helps companies measure, communicate and reduce cyber risk. It automatically delivers prioritized threat and vulnerability information, based on the value of assets at risk, to the business leaders who are responsible for those assets.
Omega2 is a $5 Raspberry Pi rival, with built-in Wi-Fi and storage
The Raspberry Pi is a fantastic low-cost computer, available in a choice of versions. The Raspberry Pi Zero is the cheapest of the bunch, priced at just $5, plus all the extra bits and pieces you need to get it up and running.
Omega2 is an identically priced Linux computer designed for building connected hardware applications, but unlike the Zero it has integrated Wi-Fi (802.11 b/g/n) and on-board flash storage. No need to add a Wi-Fi dongle or SD card.
Google slows down Fiber deployment, may switch to wireless
Google is scaling back a project because it's too expensive for the company. No, really, something is too expensive for Google. The project in question is Google Fiber, the fiber-to-the-premises service currently being developed and deployed in the US.
According to a report by The Information, Google has basically failed -- it only has 200,000 subscribers at the time, and knowing that it set a goal of five million by the end of 2015, it's obviously not enough. Instead of fiber, the company will shift its focus towards wireless technology, as it's much cheaper. It was also said that the unit, previously called Google Fiber, and now called Access, will have to cut its staff in half, from 1,000 down to 500.
Scan your PC for alternate data streams with StreamArmor
If you’re manually checking a PC for malware then you could browse a folder in Explorer, look at file names, sizes, maybe open anything suspect to see what it contains. But you might be missing something…
Drives formatted using NTFS store file information in attributes. The contents of a file are stored in the $DATA attribute, and that’s what you’ll see in Explorer, and view when you open the file in an application.
Windows 10 has over 50 percent market share, according to Microsoft -- wait, what?
NetMarketShare’s desktop operating system usage figures are due out in a couple of days, and what happens in terms of Windows 10 growth will be interesting as it will be the first time the new OS isn’t available for free.
Before those figures arrive however, Microsoft has released some of its own, and according to the software giant Windows 10 now has 50 percent of the market in the US, and 51 percent in the UK. And, as if that wasn’t surprising enough, those numbers are from June, so the current percentage will likely be much, much higher.
Mozilla wants EU copyright law reform
Mozilla has called out the European Union, asking it to reform its copyright laws. The current one, according to the organization, is holding innovation and economic development down. Writing a blog post on the topic, Mozilla CIO Katharina Borchert says EU’s copyright laws are stopping great ideas in their tracks.
"The internet brings new ideas to life every day, and helps make existing ideas better. As a result, we need laws that protect and enshrine the internet as an open and collaborative platform", Borchert says.
Avoid adware with Unchecky
Unchecky is a free tool which monitors installations and automatically unchecks unrelated "offers", helping ensure you only install the software you expect.
We've written about the program before, but a recent update has seen it leave beta and add support for a host of new installers and applications.
'Subway Reads' gives NYC straphangers free e-book shorts and excerpts
Have you ever been on an NYC subway? If not, let me tell you -- it is often horrible. Air conditioning can be broken, leading to high temperatures. Even worse, some people bring their food below ground, resulting in a stinky train car -- yuck! Don't even get me started on the performers -- people will sing or do acrobatics and then demand money. Heck, just last week a woman released live crickets on the subway!
Luckily, the NYC subway experience is getting better thanks to one thing -- Wi-Fi. Today, Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of New York announces a new promotion, called "Subway Reads", which leverages that connectivity. This initiative will help straphangers get some relief from the other nonsense by enabling them to bury themselves in a free Penguin Random House e-book short or excerpt.
Now you can tell Alexa to find your phone
Lost your phone? We probably all have at one time or another and it borders between annoying and scary depending where you've been. If you didn't leave home then it's there somewhere. If you did then it can be a full panic.
Now Amazon would like help via its Echo device. You're likely familiar with that by now, thanks to a TV ad campaign a while back, but it continues to do different things thanks to constant updates.
Restrict and limit Windows user accounts with FrontFace Lockdown Tool
If you're setting up a PC for others to use then you’ll often want to limit their actions, prevent them running other applications or tweaking system settings.
Windows has many security and user settings that can help, but they're scattered across many applets and may be hard to find.
John Ellenby dies at 75
I wouldn’t normally be writing a column early on a Saturday but I just read that John Ellenby died and I think that’s really worth mentioning because Ellenby changed all our lives and especially mine.
If you don’t recognize his name, John Ellenby was a British computer engineer who came to Xerox PARC in the 1970s to manufacture the Xerox Alto, the first graphical workstation. He left Xerox in the late 1980s to found Grid Systems, makers of the Compass -- the first full-service laptop computer. In the 1990s he founded Agilis, which made arguably the first handheld mobile phone that wasn’t the size of a brick. Finally he set up a company in both New Zealand and San Francisco to do geographical mapping data before most of us even knew we needed it. The man pioneered four technology industry segments, putting him on the same level as Steve Jobs.
Facebook embraces algorithms and eschews human headlines in trending topics
Facebook's Trending Topics feature has faced a good deal of criticism in recent months, including claims that it showed a liberal bias. A little while back the company announced that it was to change how the feature works, and now there is a further change which sees human headline writers being defenestrated, and algorithms ushered in the front door.
What this means is that the Trending Topics list will no longer feature an explanation or description next to it, only the topic heading or hashtag will be displayed. Facebook will no doubt hope that this will help to eliminate future complaints of human intervention into the topics that are pushed on the social network.
Opera sync servers hacked, usernames and passwords at risk
Opera Software is advising all users of the sync feature of its Opera browser to change their passwords following a security breach. Details are a little scant at the moment, but the company says that servers were breached earlier in the week and user data may have been compromised.
Opera Sync is used to synchronize user data between different computers but it is apparently used by under "0.5% of the total Opera user base". However, with a user base of 350 million this means that upwards of 1.7 million people could be affected.
Microsoft combats hate speech based on gender, disability, religion, age, and more
The internet and web together are two of mankind's greatest inventions. Not only do they put an infinite amount of information at people's fingertips, but they connect the globe too. We may take it for granted, but being able to video chat with someone on the other side of the planet, for example, is downright amazing.
While the internet has the ability to bring out the best in humanity, it also shines a light on some of its worst, sadly. In other words, there is a lot of hate on the web, and it can be downright ugly -- just look at YouTube comments! Heck, some presidential campaigns are even based on hate, but I digress. Today, Microsoft announces that it is increasing its efforts to combat hate speech that is hosted on its own services.
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