Microsoft breaks into contactless mobile payments with Wallet for Windows 10 Mobile Insiders
Apple has done it; Google has done it. Microsoft may be a little late to the party, but it's getting involved in the mobile payment game. Today the company releases Microsoft Wallet to Windows Insiders using Windows 10 Mobile build 14360 or higher.
Microsoft has teamed with MasterCard and Visa to provide a contactless payment solution that is -- for now -- available to Lumia 950, 950 XL and 650 users in the US. As well as making contactless payments, the app can also be used to store reward cards to reduce the amount of plastic you have to cart around with you.
DoD's Hack the Pentagon will include more systems and networks
In an effort to find more security flaws in its defense systems, the US Department of Defense (DoD) has decided to expand its Hack the Pentagon program to include more of its systems and networks.
The program pays hackers to find and report the vulnerabilities in exchange for payment from the US government. So far the program has proven to be quite effective with the the first bug in the DoD’s systems and networks being discovered a mere 13 minutes after its launch.
MFT-based UltraSearch 2.10 adds file content searching
Super-fast MFT-based search tool UltraSearch has hit version 2.10 with some major improvements. The program can now search for file content, as well as file and folder names.
A File Type list enables searching for particular groups of files: audio, video, text, database, mail files and more. You can edit these groups or add new ones as required. Searches may be run on specific folders, drives, or whatever combination you need.
ADATA announces Premier SP550 M.2 2280 SATA SSD
While 2.5 inch SSDs were once viewed as cutting edge technology, they are now seen as being old and bulky. Instead, M.2 variants are all the rage. The slim design makes them ideal for Ultrabooks, as it can contribute to an overall lighter and thinner machine. Heck, M.2 is great on desktops too, as more and more motherboards come with the needed slot.
Not all M.2 drives are created equally, however. You see, there are models that use SATA and others that use PCIe NVMe. While the latter is faster, it is also more expensive. Not to mention, not every machine has NVMe compatibility. Today, ADATA announces an SATA M.2 SSD, called the Premier SP550 2280.
Most UK workers don't want company-issued wearables
Despite the fact that three million Britons bought wearables during 2015, the majority of UK office workers are unwilling to wear them at work. After conducting a survey of 2,000 workers across the UK, PwC found that only 46 percent of respondents would accept a free wearable device from their company if their employer had access to the data it recorded.
In the past few years, wearables from companies like Fitbit and Jawbone have taken the consumer market by storm as a means of tracking one’s health and fitness. PwC’s survey found that two-thirds of those surveyed want their employer to take a more active role in their health and well being, and a company-issued wearable would be a good first step at doing just that.
Ultimate Ears adds Siri and Google Now support to UE BOOM 2 and UE MEGABOOM
It is officially summertime, meaning fun in the sun. I have been enjoying lazy days on my deck, listening to my favorite tunes. While I could use my iPhone's integrated speaker, it is too weak for optimal outdoor enjoyment. Instead, I utilize a Bluetooth speaker for improved volume and clarity.
Ultimate Ears makes damn good speakers, and today, the company is transforming both its UE BOOM 2 and UE MEGABOOM with an intriguing new feature. Android and iOS users can now leverage the power of Siri or Google Now from these two speakers directly by simply pressing the Bluetooth button once. It is sort of like the Amazon Tap, but with Apple or Google's assistant rather than Alexa.
Google vs Apple: Contrasting approaches to app store evolution
This year, Google I/O and WWDC seemed to lack the excitement seen in years past with most announcements being fairly mundane -- a combination of maintenance/incremental updates and "me-too" products -- inevitable at this point in the maturity cycle. The most interesting part of these developer events was really the contrasting approaches Google and Apple have taken to evolve the app ecosystem. Unsurprisingly, both approaches are diametrically opposed to each other and favor each company's business model.
However, the "winning standard" will necessarily be one that better serves the needs of both consumers and developers.
Fedora 24 is here with GNOME 3.20 -- download the open source Linux distro now
Many people consider Fedora to be an operating system for advanced Linux users, and yeah, I suppose there is some to truth to that. Distros such as Ubuntu and Mint can be easier for beginners, but Fedora is not necessarily a bad choice for these newbies. As more folks live in the browser and enjoy their media there, there can be less of a need for non-free packages. If someone is new to Linux and just needs a web browser and LibreOffice, for instance, why not the rock-solid Fedora?
Today, Fedora finally achieves version 24. True, the team is a bit "late" with the release, but that is fairly commonplace with Fedora, actually. With that said, shipping when ready is better than being beholden to a date, right?
Lookout uses network layer security to expand mobile protection
The shift towards a mobile and cloud focused workplace has brought a great deal of flexibility but it's also added new risks. How do you protect data when employees can access it at any time and from any device?
Lookout, a specialist in securing mobility, has expanded expanded Mobile Threat Protection with the introduction of Network Protection, an automatic on-device analysis of network connections to defend against man-in-the-middle attacks and ensure information is being securely transmitted.
CCleaner tweaks browser and Windows 10 MRU cleaning routines
Piriform Software has released CCleaner 5.19 and CCleaner 5.19 Portable for Windows PCs. Once again, it’s a minor release, focusing on improvements, optimizations and some small bug fixes.
The new release has no new features or supported applications, instead focusing on tweaking existing cleaning routines and improving the System Monitoring tool on the Professional edition.
SMBs lack the resources to combat ransomware
Owners of small and medium businesses in the US recognize the potential of ransoware to disrupt their operations, but 84 percent say they wouldn't pay cyber criminals in the event of an attack.
Yet the survey by data security company IDT911 also shows that company assets and business operations are left highly vulnerable as nearly 75 percent don't have cyber insurance, or are unsure if their policy includes cyber protection.
Google prompt makes two factor authentication less of a hassle
Two factor authentication is one of the most convenient options for securing a user account, which is why you will find this feature available in many of the top cloud services. It can be argued though that it can be made even easier to deal with, specifically in cases when users frequently need to access their accounts from new devices.
The problem there is that, the way that it is typically implemented, users usually have to get a verification code via SMS or retrieve it from a dedicated app to finish the authentication process, which is something that many folks may find very annoying over time. So, to make the whole process easy for its users, Google is now rolling out a new option for two-factor authentication, known as Google prompt.
Fix Windows 10 Start menu problems with Microsoft's new troubleshooter tool
Windows 10 is a good operating system, but it can be a little buggy at times. Hopefully the forthcoming Anniversary Update will fix a lot of these issues, although it’s equally possible it may introduce more bugs along with the raft of new features.
If you’ve been having problems with the Start menu in Windows 10 the good news is Microsoft has released a new troubleshooting tool which can identify and fix many issues automatically.
Professional services companies lose thousands to poor document management
You might think that a small amount of time spent looking for documents each day is insignificant. But according to a new survey of accounting, advisory and consultancy firms it could be costing US firms almost $4,000 per employee each month.
The study from enterprise collaboration specialist Huddle finds that US respondents work on an average of 26 documents per day spending an average of 89 seconds looking for each one. With an average hourly billing rate of $265, that comes to $3,747 per employee each month.
Create gorgeous word cloud art with Wordaizer
Wordaizer is an intriguing tool for creating Wordle-like word clouds, gorgeous works of art where text is organized and arranged to fill a shape.
We have some simple examples below, but the idea gets more interesting when you add some personal meaning, for example celebrating someone’s 100th birthday by filling a tree shape with the names of all their family.
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