A Sharper Scaling resizes images with less blurring

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A Sharper Scaling is an open-source tool which aims to upscale images to deliver crisper, cleaner results than current techniques, including "Preserve Details".

Does it work? The developer’s website has a lot of examples to show that it does (beware, this may not be visible at the default display size -- follow the instructions and zoom in to get the real high-resolution view).

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Samsung cuts Q3 profit estimate by $2.3 billion due to Galaxy Note7 recall

Samsung Galaxy Note7

After the continued difficulties and now recall of its Galaxy Note7 smartphone, Samsung has cut its third quarter profits forecast by $2.3 billion after issuing much higher figures only last week.

The company made the announcement that it would be cutting its profits forecast during a surprise regulatory filing after South Korea's financial markets had closed for the day. This week has been particularly bad for Samsung after it was forced to completely scrap the Galaxy Note7 as the replacement batteries it shipped to consumers were also prone to overheating and exploding.

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Rumors of the OnePlus 3's death have been greatly exaggerated

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That the Samsung Galaxy Note7 was killed off hardly came as a surprise, but rumors also started to circulate this week that the OnePlus 3 was to be discontinued. While OnePlus has not suffered from any problems, delays in getting orders out to customers led to speculation that there was a new phone in the pipeline and that production on the OnePlus 3 had come to an end.

Nonsense! Says OnePlus. The company reassures us that it is "still producing and selling the OnePlus 3". There is, however, a slight problem with the supply chain.

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Google's latest transparency report reveals the futility of transparency reports -- and increased data requests

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As has become the norm for big tech companies these days, Google has just published its latest transparency report. The report reveals -- in very, very broad strokes -- the number of requests for user data the company has received from the US government.

In a groundbreaking revelation (and -- please -- note the sarcasm) the lifting of a gag restriction by the FBI means Google is now able to report about the number of National Security Letters it received in Q2 2015. Sort of. "We have updated the range of NSLs received in that period [...] from 0-499 to 1-499." Or, to paraphrase: "there definitely weren't none".

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Cloud apps give businesses a 'huge' competitive advantage

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Businesses in Europe that have sent at least one of their core business areas to the cloud now have a "huge" competitive advantage over their peers, according to a new report by Frost & Sullivan. The company says businesses that have adopted a cloud-based approach for either accounting, customer relationship management (CRM) or enterprise resource planning (ERP) are reaping the benefits of their (r)evolutionary approach. The report is based on a poll of 600 senior IT decision makers from a cross section of industries throughout Europe.

"For businesses in Europe, cost savings are not the main driver for moving to cloud business applications. Our research shows that they increasingly see cloud as a solution to the challenges of industry transformation, competition and as a means to facilitate global expansion", says Alexander Michael, director of Consulting at Frost & Sullivan.

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Few businesses are prepared for GDPR

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The GDPR is drawing ever closer, but organizations which will be directly affected by it still don't know how to approach the new regulation, a new study by Dell shows. Ever since it was unveiled that the General Data Protection Regulation will come into effect in May 2018, surveys have been done to see if companies are preparing themselves for it, and if they will be ready to comply with it in time.

Never have these reports shown positive or encouraging results, and the new one by Dell is no different. Still, organizations aren't even close to being prepared. More than 80 percent say they know close to nothing about GDPR. Less than a third are ready for GDPR today. Almost 70 percent of IT and business professionals say they are not, and that they don't know if their companies are ready.

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PC shipments decline -- some consumers may never upgrade again

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The PC market can't catch a break, as shipments continue to drop. If you ask Gartner, we are looking at a 5.7 percent decline year-over-year for Q3 2016. IDC, meanwhile, says that the decrease is of just 3.9 percent. But no matter which figure is closer to the truth, it is clear that it will be extremely hard -- if not impossible -- for PC vendors to turn things around.

Gartner says that Q3 2016 is the eighth consecutive quarter when PC shipments decline, calling this "the longest duration of decline in the history of the PC industry". And it is easy to understand why: buying a new PC is not a priority for most consumers in mature markets, while for many folks in emerging markets the PC is not even on their radar.

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Huawei partners with UC Berkeley to develop AI

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Huawei had decided to enter into a partnership with the University of California, Berkeley, in order to develop and apply artificial intelligence (AI) to our daily lives.

Noah's Ark Laboratory, the company's research unit that specializes in the development of machine learning, AI and data mining, is responsible for setting up the partnership between it and the university.

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Most businesses haven't inspected cloud services for malware

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Echoing the findings we reported earlier that companies leave cloud protection to third-parties, a new study from cloud security company Netskope reveals most companies don't scan their cloud services for malware either.

The study conducted with the Ponemon Institute shows 48 percent of companies surveyed don't inspect the cloud for malware and 12 percent are unsure if they do or not. Of those that do inspect 57 percent of respondents say they found malware.

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Snowden-endorsed Signal gains Facebook-style disappearing messages

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Facebook's recently rolled-out Secret Conversations heralded the arrival of not only end-to-end encryption for users, but also disappearing messages. Not to be outdone, Edward Snowden's favorite messaging service, Signal, has followed suit.

The company behind the app, Open Whisper Systems, points out that the feature is not really designed to further improve security and privacy; rather it is a way "to keep your message history tidy".

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New camera technology makes video conferencing a snap

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With increasingly distributed workforces, video conferencing is more than ever an essential business tool. But in conference rooms the size and shape of the space can make it difficult for conventional cameras to include everyone.

Video conferencing technology company Lifesize is launching a new camera with a smart-framing sensor that intelligently adjusts its wide-angle lens to automatically capture and include everyone in the meeting.

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HP announces refreshed line of Windows PCs for the holidays

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It seems like it was just yesterday we were putting up the decorations, and we've only just put away the bathing suits. Now it's time to think about going through the whole cycle again. We know some of the new tech that will be hitting the store shelves this forthcoming holiday season because some was announced way back in January at the Consumer Electronics Show.

On the other hand, some is only just being unveiled, hoping to capture the news cycle and be fresh in consumer minds as the wish lists begin to get written. One of those companies announcing new devices is HP, which is refreshing its lineup of Windows computers.

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Enterprises leave protection of cloud data to third-party providers

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Businesses are increasingly moving their systems to the cloud, but 62 percent rely on the cloud provider to back up applications running on their platform.

New research from secure cloud services company CTERA Networks reveals that 67 percent of organizations deploy more than 25 percent of their applications in the cloud, and 37 percent plan to grow their cloud use by at least 25 percent, if not more. In addition, 54 percent of organizations are embracing a hybrid cloud strategy that uses both on-premises and cloud services.

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[Giveaway] 10 Casetify iPhone 7 cases up for grabs, with multiple chances to win

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The iPhone 7 is Apple’s most attractive iPhone to date, and it comes in a choice of five colors: Silver, Gold, Rose Gold, Black and Jet Black (RIP Space Gray).

The Jet Black is our personal favorite, although there have been reports of its glossy finish showing up scratches. If you want to protect your iPhone, then a case is a must, but you don’t want just any old cover. This is where Casetify’s cases differ from the competition. With over a million unique designs to choose from, you’re bound to find one that suits your style.

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Can Process Explorer stop malware infections -- not just detect them?

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Sysinternals’ Process Explorer has always been used to detect malware infections, but that’s just the start of its advantages. Just running the program in the background might stop some threats installing in the first place.

This works because some malware tries to detect when it’s being watched. If it spots common monitoring tools running in the background it won’t drop the payload, making you think there’s nothing to worry about, and keeping the main package hidden just a little longer.

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