Celebrating Clean Out Your Computer Day with a BetaNews giveaway [Closed]

clean out your computer day

Most people may be inclined to think that today is just another Monday, but tech enthusiasts all around the globe know better. That's because the second Monday of February is when we celebrate Clean Out Your Computer Day. It's time for our PCs and laptops to get some well-deserved TLC, folks!

Of course, Clean Out Your Computer Day shouldn't be only about plain-old computers. Our mobile devices are just as important, so feel free to include them too! Here are some of the things you can do on Clean Out Your Computer Day.

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Time to switch to Google Hangouts as Gtalk dies in a week

Time to switch to Google Hangouts as Gtalk dies in a week

The writing has been on the wall for quite some time now, but the deadline is finally here. Google's Gtalk service is set to be discontinued as of 16 February, and from this time users will have to use Google Hangouts or seek out an alternative.

This is not the first online service that Google has killed, and it certainly won't be the last. While Hangouts is generally regarded as a superior service, there are still diehards who will hold out until the very last minute to switch -- or they might jump ship completely in favor of something like WhatsApp.

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Technology for business -- get the big picture

looking ahead

Technology is everywhere. Whether you’re ordering lunch at noon, doing some weekend shopping or at work monitoring business performance, everything happens with the help of machines. The cash register at the deli and the complex network that supports a bank must work together seamlessly to deliver the service required for fast orders and accurate payment processing from credit cards or smartphones.

Customers expect more all the time from the companies they do business with. The challenge for any organization is to grow quickly while keeping costs down as demand grows. That's why all businesses have refocused on IT for 2015. It's a priority that drives differentiation. According to Gartner, global IT spending will grow 2.4 percent to $3.8 trillion this year on purchases of devices, data center systems, enterprise software, IT services and telecom services.

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Kickass Torrents is the latest victim of a domain name seizure

Music pirate

2015 is still relatively young, but we've already witnessed plenty of action. Torrent sites like The Pirate Bay and EZTV have been taken down, only to resurface. EZTV made a very quick reappearance, while The Pirate Bay took a bit longer to recover, though its comeback always seemed inevitable. Today we can add another site to this list -- Kickass Torrents has had its domain seized.

Being one of the most popular torrent sites on the web, it was always a major target. It most recently resided in Somalia -- pirate jokes aside, this seemed like a safe haven. Apparently it has become even less safe than it is for the ships that sail by the African nation.

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Windows 10 may offer limited features on existing low-end devices

Windows 10 Phone

There is no doubt in my mind that Microsoft really wants to make Windows 10 available for as many Windows Phone 8.1 devices as possible. The software giant envisions a future when "the idea of asking 'What version are you on?' will cease to make sense" -- that can only be achieved by getting existing users on board through software updates.

However, it would seem that hardware limitations are getting in the way. The vast majority of smartphones running Windows Phone 8.1 are low-spec devices, packing just 512 MB of RAM. Their meager hardware may not be able to handle all of Windows 10's features, according to Microsoft's Joe Belfiore.

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Enterprise collaboration program adds integration with SharePoint

office collaboration

There are lots of solutions to help collaboration and sharing of information within the workplace. However, it isn't always easy to exchange information if it's stored in different apps.

Collaboration platform Incentive is addressing this by adding seamless integration with Microsoft SharePoint, allowing users to search, visualize and collaborate on files natively within Incentive.

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The case against cyber censoring the Islamic State vermin

IS flag

There's a reason we are in a cultural, military, and cyber messaging war with a twisted group called IS -- still widely called ISIS, its old name. It doesn't call itself HISIS; they don't claim to represent Hinduism. Nor BISIS; they aren't Buddhist radicals. CRISIS and JISIS would also be incorrect, since they aren't Christian or Jewish radicals, either.

They may not represent mainstream Islam, but they wholeheartedly believe in their evil calling to establish a global Islamic caliphate based on a radical Sharia ideology -- affectionately and simply called the Islamic State.

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Nectar bolsters security as police investigate eBay points fraud

nectar

A police investigation has been launched after fraudsters targeted members of the UK’s biggest loyalty card scheme, Nectar.

Nectar, used by over 19 million people, has beefed up security after members reported fraudulent transactions on accounts that had been linked to online auction website eBay.

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TaskUnifier Pro now free! But…

TaskUnifier200-175

Benjamin Leclerc has announced that TaskUnifier Pro, his comprehensive task manager for Windows, Mac and Linux, is now available for free.

Unfortunately this isn’t quite as good as it sounds, because the reason is the program will no longer be maintained.

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How secure is Android? And should we be worried? [Q&A]

Android danger sign

In the past malware developers and hackers have tended to concentrate on Windows. But as mobile has taken off and there's been a shift in the type of systems people use they've diversified their efforts into other systems.

In particular Android, as the most popular mobile OS, has become a prime target. We spoke to Huan Ren, chief architect at Android security and performance specialist 360 Security to get his view of the mobile security landscape.

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Anonymous targets ISIS: 'You are a virus -- we are the cure'

anonymous

A month ago hacker collective Anonymous vowed to go after terrorists, and shortly afterwards took down its first target, ansar-alhaqq.net.

That was just the first shot in Anonymous’ war on terror and the hacktivists have been actively targeting Islamic State-related Twitter and Facebook accounts to reduce the terrorist group’s ability to spread its message online.

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Cisco: wearables will lead to a massive increase in mobile traffic by 2019

Sony-SmartWatch-3-stainless-steel-900x506

We’re hearing a lot about how wearables are set to explode before this decade is out -- not literally explode (well hopefully not -- though there’s bound to be some sort of incident like that at some point, if smartphones are anything to go by), but rather to explode in terms of their numbers.

And Cisco has released another report which points to big numbers of wearables before 2020 arrives.

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Google snaps up photo backup app Odysee in latest acquisition

Google snaps up photo backup app Odysee in latest acquisition

The latest service to be gobbled up by Google is Odysee. Available as an app for iOS and Android devices, Odysee enables users to privately backup and share both photos and videos. In some ways the service is similar to the automatic backup feature provided by Google+, so it is perhaps unsurprising that the Odysee team will be joining forces with the Google+ team.

The mobile apps have been pulled from the App Store and Google Play by developer Nimbuzz Inc, but the service remains in operation for the time being. It's likely that the Odysee API is what sparked Google's interest, and it will be interesting to see how things move forward.

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Google Maps finds its way to a 10th birthday celebration

googlemaps-200x175

Google Maps has become the standard for many smartphone users as stand-alone GPS devices get replaced. That doesn't mean it's the best, but it is certainly at or near the top of the list. Apple found out just how difficult this type of program can be to pull off, then invited the search giant back to its mobile platform.

Now the mapping program is celebrating its 10th birthday -- they grow up so fast. "If you hopped in your DeLorean for a trip back to before 2005, you’d remember the days when we were all dependent on paper maps, print-outs, post-its and sometimes even a compass for directions! Getting from point A to B is something we do all day, every day—from finding the fastest way to get to work, to dropping the kids off on a carpool route, to meeting friends for drinks at a new spot—so it should be as easy as possible", the Maps team states.

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How to automatically bypass Windows 10's login screen

How to automatically bypass Windows 10's login screen

Like every version of Windows before it, Windows 10 has its share of standout features, and a few niggles here and there. If you're working with the Technical Preview, you may have seen our earlier guide to removing the desktop watermark. But this is not the only thing that can be irritating, you may be frustrated by the requirement to enter your password to login every time you power up.

As with previous versions of Windows, you can configure Windows 10 so that you are logged into your account automatically. This is great if you are the only person using your computer as it shaves valuable seconds off the startup process. If you're sick of typing your password, here's how to bypass Windows 10's login screen and log into your account automatically.

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