Latest Technology News

Bringing the power of analytics to performance management

Performance meter

Smooth management of IT systems relies on being able to spot issues early and resolve them before they have a major impact on performance.

Infrastructure analytics specialist Virtual Instruments is launching a new version of its VirtualWisdom solution, a vendor-agnostic platform that ensures performance for enterprise applications spanning physical, virtual and cloud computing environments.

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Microsoft Surface 3 and Surface Pro 3 now come with Windows 10 preinstalled

If you’ve been thinking of buying either Surface 3, or Surface Pro 3, but have been waiting for Windows 10 to arrive, now is the time to get your wallet out.

Microsoft has started shipping both of its slates with Windows 10 preinstalled. Surface 3 comes with Windows 10, while Surface Pro 3 has Windows 10 Pro onboard.

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Microsoft selects Interana to improve Bing performance

Bing screengrab

Bing is the second largest search engine in the US and in order to maintain its position the team behind it needs to make constant improvements and for that they need insights into how it gets used.

Microsoft has chosen behavioral analytics solution Interana to analyze the massive volumes of clickstream event data generated daily on Bing.

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Control your PC with a webcam via Camera Mouse 2015

Some Windows applications are keyboard-oriented, others built for touch, but the vast majority are still designed to be controlled by a mouse. And that’s a problem if you don’t have reliable control of a hand.

Camera Mouse is a free tool for Windows XP+ which allows users to control their mouse with head movements, instead. It’s been around for years, but developer Boston College has recently released an update with a couple of new features.

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Web isolation platform adds threat intelligence to improve accuracy

We reported on the Menlo Security Web Isolation Platform, which aims to eliminate threats before they reach the desktop, earlier this year.

Now Menlo Security is beefing up its offering, announcing a partnership with threat intelligence specialist Webroot. The link up will deliver granular threat intelligence for the Web Isolation Platform through integration with Webroot's BrightCloud Web Classification Service.

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Why can't Amazon Echo handle this seemingly basic feature?

Since receiving Amazon Echo, Alexa, the name Amazon gives these devices, and I have grown to know one another. We mostly get along, but occasionally argue. It (she?) has learned my habits, but began playing the news the other night while I was watching TV, rather annoyingly. I'm looking forward to testing its home automation features with Nest thermostat and GE Link bulb in the near future. Hopefully Alexa won't decide I no longer need heat or lights!

But what can't Echo do? That's an open-ended question with many answers, depending on what the user wants. However, I'm only asking for one small thing, at least for now.

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Slack shows off beta Windows Phone app

Slack is tardy to the two-factor authentication party

There is nothing more frustrating about Windows Phone than finding out that one of the services that I have to use on a daily basis does not have an app in Store, nor is there a third-party offering available. The poor developer support is one of the main reasons why I switched to iPhone 6 Plus late last year, after using Windows Phones exclusively for nearly two years straight.

However, in the case of some services, at least there is hope. Slack, the communication tool that we use at BetaNews, does not currently have a Windows Phone client, but the company behind the service is actively working on one, showing off an early build on Twitter.

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Monetizing mobile apps without harming the user experience [Q&A]

Mobile graph

In the past making money from a mobile app has usually involved signing up to an advertisement network and allowing the app to display banner ads.

The problem with this is that it doesn't make for a particularly good user experience and may actually turn people off using the app. For some time now the buzz around the industry has been about 'native' ads within apps. But exactly what is a native ad and what are the benefits? We spoke to Yannis Dosios, VP of Yahoo Publisher Services to find out.

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Enterprises should adapt to Windows 10, not work around it

Microsoft’s move to continuous updates is a fundamental change. Most significantly, those components traditionally shipped as part of a major release will now be available as independent apps.

This means innovations within these apps can be made available when they are ready, not held up for the next big operating systems (OS) update.

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New intelligence tool aims to make enterprises smarter

AI

Businesses are constantly on the look out for information to support their decision making processes. But they need to understand industry and market trends as well as what’s happening internally.

Today enterprise services platform and marketplace provider blur Group is launching an online business intelligence tool that provides a comprehensive industry overview on specific trends in business services -- including insights into geographical focus, technology and more.

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Acer Aspire One Cloudbook is a Windows 10-powered Chromebook killer

When Google's Chromebooks came onto the retail scene, consumers were dubious, and rightfully so. After all, for the most part, the operating system appeared to be nothing more than a web browser. While Chrome OS is actually a full-fledged Linux distribution, the focus is on the web browser, so consumers aren't far off -- perception is everything.

While Chromebooks can be a great option for people with limited computing needs, Windows 10 offers so many more possibilities. Despite limitations, what kept Chromebooks semi-popular, was the low cost. Unfortunately for Google, that benefit is short-lived. Today, Acer announces its Aspire One Cloudbook line. With super-low prices and Windows 10 Home, these are sure to be wildly popular; consumers may forget about Chromebooks altogether.

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Sony unveils Xperia C5 Ultra mid-ranger

Sony has announced a slew of smartphones, with the Xperia C5 Ultra one of the more interesting in the range. The 6-inch phablet comes with a duo of 13MP cameras on the front and back of the smartphone, offering a wide angle selfie camera for all those interested.

On top of the selfie camera, the Xperia C5 Ultra offers a 6-inch 1920 x 1080 display, 1.7GHz octa-core MediaTek CPU, 2GB of RAM and ARM Mali 760 GPU. The smartphone features 16GB of internal storage, with an optional microSD card slot capable of holding up to 200GB of additional storage.

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Macs are vulnerable to Thunderstrike 2 firmware malware that survives formatting

Macs have long been touted as being immune to viruses and malware -- but there have been plenty of vulnerabilities that show this to be a fallacy. Apple's own claims that its hardware was not susceptible to the same firmware security flaws as PCs served only to encourage people to prove the company wrong.

At Black Hat USA on Thursday, researchers will demonstrate that not only can Macs be remotely infected with malware, but that this malware can survive a user formatting the system. In a talk at the InfoSec event in Las Vegas that focuses on all manner of security topics, Trammell Hudson, Xeno Kovah, and Corey Kallenberg will show that Macs are just as vulnerable to remote attacks as PCs using the Thunderstrike 2 backdoor.

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You don't need to use a Microsoft Account to download apps from Window 10's Store

With Windows 10, Microsoft is particularly keen for you to use a Microsoft Account. It's something that was present in Windows 8, and it is still billed as a way to sync settings and apps between computers. While you may be encouraged to use a Microsoft Account, it is not necessary -- you can use a local account, but if you decide to download apps from the Store, you'll be prompted to switch this to a Microsoft Account.

If you're concerned about the privacy implications of using a Microsoft Account, you may want to avoid using it whenever possible. Sign into the Store with a Microsoft ID, however, and you'll find that your local account is converted into a Microsoft account. Here's how to download apps without having to switch.

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The 12 most-destructive viruses [Infographic]

The world of computer viruses has changed drastically over the last 25 or so years. In the early days, internet users were very naïve towards email attachments, contributing to the alarming speed that viruses could spread across the globe.

These days, viruses very rarely land in our inboxes due to preconfigured firewalls and strict measures from the likes of Gmail and Outlook.

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