I'm anti-censorship! I won't try to silence those who criticize me
A week ago I wrote about my feelings of ennui towards the iPhone 6, asserting that there was just nothing to get excited about. Some people agreed, but many didn't -- it was to be expected really. What was particularly interesting was not just the discussion that started here in the comments on BetaNews but also that the article spread further afield. It was picked up by Macworld whose resident columnist The Macalope, er, disagreed with what I had to say. You'll notice that I've provided a link to the Macworld article which, despite quoting 46 percent of my post, The Macalope failed to do initially.
If you take the time to read the Macworld article you'd be forgiven for thinking that I was hurt at having my work pulled apart. Not a bit of it. No, I'm not concerned about being criticized. I've been writing for approaching 15 years now, and I know I'm going to piss people off from time to time. That's not to say that this is necessarily my intention -- in addition to news, I like to share my opinion and there will, of course, be some collateral damage that follows. Despite The Macalope's suggestions to the contrary, this was not designed to be a "link-baity" piece. Like Joe Wilcox, I've written about the importance of writing for the reader rather than writing for Google, and this is an ideology I firmly subscribe to.
Zetta.net integrates cloud backup with ConnectWise to help MSPs add value
The ConnectWise system management platform is popular with managed services providers, with more than half of MSPs worldwide using it to enhance efficiency and control for their clients.
Now cloud backup company Zetta.net has announced that it's integrated its enterprise-grade cloud backup and disaster recovery platform with ConnectWise to allow MSPs to offer an extra layer of service.
Find out more about your favorite artists with Song Buddy
Some music players are smart. Not only will they play your tracks, but they'll try to tell you more about them, perhaps downloading and displaying the lyrics.
Windows Media Player and iTunes aren't quite so clever, but that's where Song Buddy comes in. This free app for Windows, iPhone, iPad and Mac detects the "now playing" artist and displays other releases, concerts, images, a biography, links and more.
New Nanoleaf LED bulb dims without a dimmer switch
In a strange twist, lightbulbs have become a part of today's technology world. It's all part of the Internet of Things -- home devices that aren't computers, but still utilize the home network for control. We've seen this being a bad thing, but mostly it seems to be good. After all who doesn't want to turn on the lights when getting close to home.
The latest is a Kickstarter project, the Nanoleaf Bloom, which is now ten days away from closing. The goal has been reached, but there is still time for buyers to secure one of the early models.
What to expect from Samsung Galaxy Note 4
Samsung will announce the successor of the popular Galaxy Note 3 tomorrow, at a press event dubbed Unpacked 2014 Episode 2. This is the second most important unveiling of the year for the South Korean maker, after Galaxy S5. Naturally, that means that our expectations are high for what will arguably be the Android phablet to beat in the second part of 2014, if the success of its predecessors is of any indication.
So far, Samsung has officially disclosed little about Galaxy Note 4, only revealing the silhouette of the new phablet, in one of its most recent teaser videos, and not much else. That is far from a complete picture, so here is what else you can expect from Galaxy Note 4.
Tired of privacy breaches? How to remove yourself from social networks
The leaking of celebrity photos which may have come from iCloud is just the latest in a series of high profile security and privacy breaches that are leading many people to question how safe their data is online.
For those who have decided enough is enough, secure transaction specialist Imprima has produced an infographic guide to "unfriending the internet" which covers how to take your personal profiles off the main social networking sites.
Opera 24 FINAL adds new tab preview, offers Hi-DPI support in Windows
Opera has released Opera 24 FINAL, a major new release of its web browser for Windows and Mac. It comes with three changes of note, two of which are restricted to Windows users only.
The headline new feature, which covers all platforms, sees Opera gain tab preview. By rolling the mouse over any non-active tab, users will -- after a short pause -- see a pop-up thumbnail of that tab's current contents.
Windows Installer celebrates its 15th birthday
With many businesses still focused on the "end of XP", an important milestone in the story of software integration will slip by largely unnoticed this year, but it should be celebrated by anyone involved in end user computing.
2014 is the time to appreciate that Windows Installer (MSI) technology is 15 years old and still going strong. That is a very long time for a technology to be as relevant and as useful in today's enterprise environments as it was when it was first released in 1999. Originally developed to facilitate the installation of Microsoft Office 2000, there remains a surprising multitude of reasons it's stuck around for so long.
China gives Microsoft 20 days to play ball in antitrust probe
China is turning up the heat in its antitrust probe into Microsoft, with the authorities laying down a deadline for Redmond to respond regarding allegations of the software giant unfairly leveraging its products.
The State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) has laid down a time limit of 20 days for Microsoft to provide a satisfactory response to the antitrust probe which is focusing on Windows and Office (Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player have also been previously picked out as bones of contention, as well).
Yo, about that security! We're good, right?
In case you haven't heard of Yo, it's the latest breakout mobile app to go viral. Despite its single-feature capability, or perhaps because of it, the app struck a chord and rocketed to the top of Apple's App Store. Even Yo's own developers describe the app as "a fine line between stupid and genius".
While Yo was basking in the unexpected spotlight at the top of the apps chart, the next thing that happened was also unexpected. Yo got hacked. Three college students exploited a way into the app, snagged 300,000 Yo users and engaged in message spoofing. Yet Yo is hardly the first app, nor will it be the last, to get hacked.
Firefox 32 FINAL released for desktop, shows off HTTP caching improvements and other minor tweaks
Mozilla has released Firefox 32.0 FINAL for desktop, with Firefox for Android 32.0 due to follow.
While there are a lot of changes to both desktop and mobile builds, Firefox 32 doesn’t throw up any standout new features, instead concentrating on tweaks and minor improvements.
Fear: The biggest barrier to change for IT
A new piece of research has found that while IT budgets may have grown over the last year, companies are still holding back from making changes in IT policy due to a lack of resources, and a fear of possible downtime.
Software testing and quality experts SQS conducted said research at the World Congress for Software Quality last month, and found that fear was the biggest barrier to change for IT departments.
Apple finally opens up about why it rejects certain apps
It may have been something of an unknown quantity for years now. Just why was a particular app denied entry to the App Store? Now Apple -- the company so famed for its secrecy -- has finally laid its cards on the table and revealed the most common reasons apps are rejected. Taking a snapshot from the last week of August, the new Common App Rejections page on Apple's Developer site details the top ten problems that prevent apps from making their way to the App Store. Accounting for more than a quarter of rejections (14 and 8 percent respectively) are apps that do not have enough information and those that exhibit bugs.
Six percent of rejected apps fell foul of terms in the Developer Program License Agreement -- although no further breakdown is given -- and the same percentage of titles were given the thumbs down for not meeting Apple's exacting standards. "Apple and our customers place a high value on simple, refined, creative, well thought through interfaces. They take more work but are worth it. Apple sets a high bar. If your user interface is complex or less than very good, it may be rejected". Apps that are either misleading or similar to other apps, and those with inappropriate names and artwork were also stopped in their tracks, each accounting for 5 percent of vetoed apps.
Microsoft raises Azure availability, lowers prices
Microsoft has announced service enhancements and a reduced price scheme for its Azure SQL database, as a result of customer feedback.
Microsoft has now promised to deliver a service-level agreement (SLA) of 99.99 percent availability, equivalent to a downtime of just 53 minutes per year.
Goodbye Windows, I'm sticking with Chrome OS
Earlier this summer I wrote about moving to a Chromebook -- I'm working from my porch and I want something easily portable. I stated at the time that I was not sure where things would lead when the weather took a turn for the cooler. In previous years I've used a Windows 8.x (or 7) computer, as my office contains two desktops and a laptop running the Microsoft operating system as well.
Don't get me wrong -- I still see a need for the platform, but I simply don't see it for myself. I write in Word, which has a Chrome app. I edit images, which Pixlr handles quite well. Beyond that, I do little else outside of checking email and scouring the web for news.
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