Yesterday was the big Google event and we got to see new Nexus devices and an updated Chromecast. It was enough to satisfy the geek in most of us, but we always want more, so what's next? Well, an improved Chromecast needs better functionality, right?

Sling TV thinks so and it's bringing its service to the tiny Google HDMI dongle. The service claims that Chromecast support is its most requested feature.

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Heavy web traffic can dramatically impact performance and lead to a major source of frustration for users of any cloud-based service.

To combat this, enterprise collaboration specialist Huddle is announcing the addition of Dynamic Web Acceleration to speed up its cloud platform. This allows it to increase transfer rates by an average of 80 percent without compromising security, by using dedicated infrastructure in over 99 cities around the world in order to bypass internet bottlenecks.

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Now that Google has shown its forthcoming Pixel C tablet, the question on the minds of many IT decision makers is: Can Android really become a viable competitor to Microsoft Windows on the desktop?

There’s no disputing Google’s success in the mobile space. The billions and billions of Android handset users attest to its dominance. But the desktop is an entirely different animal, a fact the company itself seemed to recognize when it debuted Chrome OS a few years back. That platform gained substantial traction in the education and low priced consumer spaces but received a much cooler reception in the enterprise, ostensibly because of its web-only focus and limited offline capabilities.

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Security-minded computer users frequently turn to encryption to protect sensitive files. For those looking to go a step further, TrueCrypt offered full-disk encryption... at least it did until it was abandoned by its developers.

Since the software was dropped, researchers have discovered that it contains numerous security vulnerabilities, and two new flaws have been found that allow an attacker to gain elevated privileges. As part of Google's Project Zero, security researchers have been probing the encryption software -- which is still widely used -- for additional problems. The severity of the newly-discovered problems has led to renewed calls for remaining TrueCrypt users to seek an alternative.

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Apple Music comes with a free three-month trial. If you signed up to the streaming service as soon as it became available this trial period is about to end. If you wish to continue to use it after today you will have to pay for the pleasure.

Decided to use a different service instead (maybe Amazon Prime Music now that it has the Universal Music Group onboard)? Don't think you can simply let your free trial expire and that will be end of the matter, because it won't. Apple automatically signs you up for an auto-renewal payment option. So when the trial comes to an end, you’ll start paying for the service, regardless of whether you're still using it or not.

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Buying a Bluetooth speaker generally presents you with a choice between style and sound quality. The latest MarsBox from Inateck immediately scores on the style front. The red and black design certainly looks different -- though it might not be to all tastes -- and the speaker has a smooth matt finish which is pleasant to touch.

There are four main controls on the top, a multi-function button to make calls or switch on the tuner, a play/pause button and +/- controls, these are easy to use though there's a hint of the playroom in the bold rubbery buttons. On the back are a power button, a USB charging port and an aux-in socket. When it's powered on there's a blue status LED behind the front grille though this is difficult to see unless you're looking at it head on.

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It seems as voice-based user authentication is not as secure as we thought, as researchers managed to trick the machine keeping our data safe.

University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers have discovered that both computers and humans are vulnerable to voice impersonation attacks. Using an off-the-shelf voice-morphing tool, the researchers developed a voice impersonation attack to attempt to penetrate automated and human verification systems.

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Install the latest freeware and there’s a good chance you’ll find some bundled adware, too, but most people know how to avoid it. Chose the "Advanced Installation" option, click "Decline", clear a few checkboxes and you’ll probably be safe.

Unfortunately some of the adware companies are realizing that the old techniques just don’t cut it any more, and they’re now using even more tricks to try and force that payload onto your PC. Just take a look at what happened when we tried to install a single freeware package on our test PC.

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Google packed today's big annual autumn product launch with loads of news: Nexus 5X and 6P (available for preorder now); Chromecast 2 and Chromecast Audio (for sale today); Google Photo enhancements (rolling out soon); Android 6 "Marshmallow" (arriving on existing Nexus devices next week); and Pixel C tablet (coming sometime before the holidays). Jamming in so much, some things might get overlooked. One seeming tidbit rapped my attention.

Soon after discussing how Marshmallow uses a new permissions scheme for apps, Google veep Dave Burke said: "With the new Nexus devices, we've reduced the number of preloaded apps on the phone, to make the out-of-box experience cleaner and simpler. We've also developed a new system that moves over a quarter of our apps to a post-setup installation phase, which means they can be uninstalled just like any other apps". The implications are interesting.

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Business users and home users can have very different, yet sometimes similar, needs. A family computer likely doesn't need the latest and greatest features or specs for its basic use. While the same can be said for some business workstations, new technology can often mean true benefits, such as enhanced security and improved battery life. While home users can use that too, it is arguably more important for business users that are traveling and dealing with sensitive information.

Today, AMD announces its newest line of PRO APUs -- both mobile and desktop -- to meet the needs of businesses. These commercial-grade A-Series APUs offer improved laptop battery life and performance, but also cool things such as HSA 1.0 spec compatibility and ARM TrustZone for security. In other words, these chips should be big winners in the enterprise.

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While the world was oohing and ahhing (or yawning) at the latest Google Nexus devices, an arguably far more important announcement hit the Internet. The long-awaited, and much-anticipated, OS X 10.11 El Capitan got an official release date. Guess what? You do not have to wait long, as that date is tomorrow. Woo-hoo!

How much do you expect to pay for this upgrade? Well, if you said anything larger than zero, you would be very wrong. While Microsoft recently gave Windows 10 as a free upgrade to some users, Apple has been doing this for years. In other words if you own a compatible Mac (all since 2009 and some from 2007 and 2008), you can be enjoying the latest and greatest operating system tomorrow at no charge.

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Former NSA contractor cum whistle-blower Edward Snowden is now officially on Twitter. Since blowing the lid on the surveillance activities of the NSA and sparking on-going global debate about privacy, Snowden has been a vocal campaigner for freedom of speech, privacy, and surveillance awareness.

Within hours of joining, Snowden -- who managed to bag the @snowden handle -- had amassed over half a million followers, and the flow shows no signs of abating. After a few hours, Snowden has posted just 7 tweets; but more interestingly he is only following one account.

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While much of the attention was focused on the Nexus 5X and Nexus 6P at Google's event today, these were far from being the only announcements. Last year, the original Chromecast took the world of media streaming by storm, introducing a low-cost entry point into streaming, and now Google has two new Chromecast devices to show off.

The new-look Chromecast has something of a different appearance to the first generation. This time around, the device is circular and features a short, flexible HDMI cable rather than the rigid design from last year -- this should make the dongle easier to plug into TVs with restricted space. There's also a new product in the form of Chromecast Audio which can be used to stream music to just about any set of speakers.

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At a media event in San Francisco, Google launches the new Nexus smartphones. Called the Nexus 6P and the Nexus 5X, both handsets come with high-end specifications and several enticing features. While the handsets aren't going to be available in India until later this year, we now know how much money you need if you want to purchase either of the devices.

Google India has -- interestingly -- published the price information of the Huawei-made Nexus 6P, as well as the LG-made Nexus 5X. This is interesting because Google doesn't usually offer this kind of information until it is ready to launch the handset in the country -- at least that was the case with previous Nexus smartphones in India.

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Building an open-source community takes dedication, hard work and no small number of late nights. As a community gets started there is generally a sense of momentum, ownership and deep commitment. But what happens once your community becomes established and successful? Inevitably volunteers are going to cycle in and out. As a community leader, you need to consider methods to bring in new members, spread the workload and communicate where and when the project could use help. How can you maximize growth and maintain your momentum?

At the Mozilla Developer Network we've kept our community engaged and involved for 10 years.  Here are some tips on how we managed it.

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