I understand that it's the dog days of summer, when news is light, readers vacation, and writers struggle to produce current content. So I'll forgive colleague Mihaita Bamburic, for his misguided attack against Surface Pro 3. He asserts that Microsoft markets the computer to the "wrong crowd". If that would be tech writers, he gets a nod. Otherwise, I shake my head and point a finger.

I've read this misguided diatribe before, from tech reviewers switching to the Microsoft PC from an Apple, but never expected it from him. As someone who has bought and paid for MacBook Air and Surface Pro 3, I say that Microsoft's marketing is spot on target. The problem isn't the potential consumer buyer but geek writers, particularly those already using Macs.

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Last year Amazon debuted a number of pilots, though only two survived the final cut -- both Alpha House and Betas had first season runs. Of those, only the former will survive to season two. However, the company continues pushing its own original content, and is now set to debut a new run of pilots for viewers to decide upon.

On August 28th the retail giant will kick off several new shows, all available to any customer who has a Prime subscription. The episodes cover the gamut of content, so pick and choose as you wish.

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While my colleague Mark Wilson endures glacially slow internet, I’m lucky enough to be on a super-fast 100Mbps connection (but even that’s a bit slow for me -- I’ll be upgrading to 152 Mbps early next year).

The average connection speeds for most internet users is a lot slower, but getting better. Broadview Networks took a look at the average internet speeds in America, and listed the results by state, showing average speed in Q1, and comparing the results quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year.

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Companies operating in industries like healthcare, financial services and retail inevitably come in for a hard time if they don’t take good care of their data.

Yet a new survey by Dimensional Research for Dell Software shows the rather startling result that almost all of the IT professionals surveys in these industries lack confidence in their organizations' ability to manage governance, risk and compliance.

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Microsoft will have a hard time convincing consumers who wish to buy Apple's MacBook Air to get Surface Pro 3 instead. That is not because the former is the better purchase, but because these devices aim to please two different crowds. You're either a Mac or a PC, as the old Apple commercials would say today.

I believe that Microsoft does not realize that it is pitching Surface Pro 3 to the wrong crowd. Swaying would-be MacBook Air owners in the hybrid's direction is not a simple matter of touting feature benefits, as in Surface Pro 3 can be more and do more than MacBook Air. People have to be convinced that those features are things they want; just because they are offered does not automatically mean that they will immediately gravitate towards the device that has them. Yes, some do not want more just because they can get more. And, would-be MacBook Air users do not want more. It's more likely that would-be Surface Pro 3 users do.

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The concept of a Chromebook is awesome. All of your files are stored in the cloud -- family photos, office documents and videos to name a few. This opens up an entire new way of thinking, where nothing seems impossible. Hell, even most of the apps are web-based and that is enough to blow someone's mind. Since local apps cannot be installed, this makes Chrome OS extremely secure and an ideal platform for accessing sensitive information.

Unfortunately, as great as the operating system is, the hardware has been lacking. Most models require the user to make a compromise for the sake of cost. Poor quality screens, not enough RAM and questionable build quality are the issues that are most apparent. For some reason, manufacturers equate Chromebooks with "cheap" and this is not the case. People really do want a midrange Chromebook and not just throwaway, disposable tech. Today, Acer announces a Chromebook that may be the one we have been wishing for (fingers crossed); the unimaginatively named Chromebook 13. It is the first-ever Chrome OS laptop to have the Nvidia Tegra K1 ARM processor.

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Microsoft is right to ditch Nokia brands that may interfere with its Windows Phone plans. X devices of questionable value and out of fashion Asha feature phones do not represent the future. But, the company's homebrew smartphone platform might, and it needs all the attention it can get to become an immediate rival to Android and iOS. Right now, consumers are not seeing Windows Phone as a top pick, so changing this perception should be the one and only task Microsoft should undertake as far as phone-making is concerned.

Yet, today, Microsoft announces a new dumb phone, known as Nokia 130, which it calls "the most affordable mobile phone with video and music player". It costs €19, which is much, much less than what a prospective buyer can expect to shell out for an entry-level Nokia Lumia Windows Phone, like, for instance, Lumia 520. So why is Nokia 130 here?

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When Google bought Nest Labs for $3.2 billion seven months ago, I described the move as the start of a home invasion. Google already knows a lot about you, including where you live, what your interests are, where you go on the Internet and in the real world (via Android), and its acquisition of Nest, which makes smart thermostats and (not so smart) smoke detectors, meant it would potentially also know what you get up to in your own home.

As it turns out, Google using Nest products to find out what customers are doing is just one worry. A team of researchers has discovered an easy hack that allows anyone to gain control of Nest’s smart thermostat and turn it into a spying device which can reveal when you’re at home or away, and even divulge your Wi-Fi credentials.

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With Gartner predicting that half of all enterprises will have hybrid cloud deployments by 2017, it's obvious that cloud technology is permeating all levels of organizations. What this also means is that nothing is black and white with cloud computing. Enterprises are deploying different forms of cloud solutions in ways that best support their business needs and organizational infrastructure.

There is no silver bullet that will give companies the best possible outcomes with cloud computing – each organization needs to determine what data and departments will best benefit from cloud solutions, and positively impact the bottom line. The trend I see growing the fastest in the cloud computing space is that of customization, as enterprises build out cloud infrastructures and solutions that work best for them.

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Microsoft and gadget repair website iFixit have announced the launch of Pro Tech Network, a service designed to teach more people how to fix gadgets.

The partnership should help give people the skills they need to fix devices, set up businesses and recycle the valuable materials within electronic products.

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Window Sysinternals has announced a brand new tool, Sysmon, a Windows service and driver which logs process creations, network connections, and changes to a file’s creation time.

The service is designed to help users identify malware, but can also be helpful when troubleshooting, or whenever you need to know more about what’s happening on a PC.

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Password-manager specialist LastPass has released LastPass 3.1.50, a major new version of its cross-platform tool for securely storing online passwords in the cloud.

Version 3.1.50 comes with one new feature, which sees the tool now capable of automatically suggesting a folder name for putting newly saved popular sites into folders for better organisation. It also comes with various improvements and tighter security.

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Google seems to be on a bit of a space travel kick lately. The search-giant recently launched Google Maps for Mars and the Moon. At first, that seemed a bit odd; I mean, other than some NASA nerds, who really cares to view those terrains? Before you raise your hand and say you do, please know I did it extensively as a test, and saw nothing but rocks and craters. Quite frankly, I would sooner explore Dollywood; at least there is something to see.

Sure enough though, Google seems committed to space, as today, the company announces that users of Google Chrome can get involved with ISEE-3. Don't know what that is? I didn't either. Google explains it by saying, "originally launched in 1978 to study the Sun, it was the first spacecraft in the world to fly by a comet and has been orbiting the sun for billions of miles since 1986". Damn, it's been travelling since the last time the Mets won the World Series!

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Can spending too much time reading and writing in 140 characters or less really send you crazy?

A quick glance at news headlines today would have been enough to send every Twitter user into hiding -- "Woman Hospitalised with Twitter Psychosis" and "Twitter can trigger psychosis in users" -- common headers.

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In a country where state-owned enterprises are increasingly rejecting foreign technology that pose "security risks," IBM has revealed it will be helping bolster the security of a Chinese financial data firm using cloud-based risk analysis.

It's a significant move that executives are hailing as a model for future business in China, encouraging the country to embrace foreign technologies rather than shunning them.

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