Mixed messages from the personal and entry level storage market

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In the first quarter of 2014 the worldwide market for personal and entry-level storage declined by 6.9 percent, according to IDC's storage tracker.

It's not all bad news though, the entry-level segment which targets mainly home office and small business users experienced 14 percent growth compared to the same quarter last year.

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Google already receiving 'right to be forgotten' link removal requests

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A ruling by the EU Court of Justice earlier this week has caused considerable controversy, and that's likely to be fueled by the news of the people who have tried to jump on the "right to be forgotten" bandwagon following the judgment.

This whole affair began when a Spanish man noticed that Google search results of his name brought up newspaper articles about the repossession of his house due to debts back in the nineties. He argued that this was old news now, and "irrelevant", and that Google should remove those links from being publicly viewable in its results because they were effectively an infringement of his privacy rights. The EU court agreed.

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How to list the contents of a folder in Windows

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If you’re troubleshooting a PC problem, maybe trying to help someone else, then it can sometimes be useful to list the files in a folder. Explorer still can’t do this. But, no problem -- you’ve plenty of other options.

File Lister is perhaps as basic a solution as you’ll see. Specify a folder, check "Preserve file structure", click "List Files", and the program displays your folders and files in an indented list.

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Did the NSA help kill UWB?

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Revisionist history is looking back at past events in light of more recent information. What really happened? And no recent source of information has been more important when it comes to revising the history of digital communications than former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden. Today I’m really curious about the impact of the NSA on the troubled history of Ultra Wide Band (UWB) communication.

I stumbled on this topic with the help of a reader who pointed me at a story and then a paper about advances in secure communication. Scientists at the University of Massachusetts came up with a method of optical communication that they could mathematically prove to be immune to snooping or even detection up to a certain bit rate. To an eavesdropper who didn’t know what to listen for or when to listen for it the communication just looks like noise.

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Microsoft creates cross-platform app that runs on Windows and Firefox OS

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Cross-platform apps are wonderful. Having the ability to create an app and have it run on multiple operating systems is ideal for developers. After all, it increases the audience for their work. Ultimately, for a paid app, this equates to more money. More money is good, right? Right.

However, it is not typical for the owner of the operating system to help developers move apps to other platforms. Exclusivity of an app can drive sales of the platform. In other words, if all apps ran on all platforms, the platform really would not matter to consumers. With that said, Microsoft does something shocking, as it shows off how easy it is to create one app using WinJS that runs on Windows 8.1, Windows Phone 8.1 and FireFox OS. Are pigs flying?

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Epson announces support for Android KitKat native printing

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Many people think that printers are a dying technology. Well, to a certain degree those people are slightly right, but mostly wrong. As time marches on and smartphones become more ubiquitous, a need to print lessens. For instance, people are displaying airline boarding passes on their smartphones rather than print it. Me? I still print. For something like a boarding pass, I have too much anxiety that a glitch or dead battery would impede my travels. Just yesterday, I bought concert tickets and printed them -- the venue requires it.

So, as much as people want to declare the printer dead, they are wrong. We still do not have paperless offices in the enterprise, and that was expected a decade ago. It's not happening anytime soon. With that said, Android now offers native printing in KitKat and Epson is pledging its support, with over 60 compatible devices.

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Apple releases OS X Mavericks 10.9.3 and iTunes 11.2

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There is no shortage of quality operating systems out there. Between Ubuntu 14.04, Chrome OS, Windows 8.1 Update and OS X, you can't make a bad choice. Most modern operating systems are pretty great. Personally, I utilize all of the previously mentioned OSes on a regular basis. However, I have been spending most of my time between Windows and OS X.

No, I don't own a Mac, but I did build a Hackintosh. This is just a normal PC that runs Apple's OS. This allows me to get great performance and customize my machine, while still enjoying the benefits of OS X. Today, after a period of open beta-testing, the final version of Mavericks 10.9.3 is gifted to existing Mavericks users. Is it worth the upgrade?

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Yahoo debuts Movies, a digital magazine for cinema enthusiasts

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Regardless if you are interested in the latest Marvel superhero movie, the scary new horror flick or an indie film that was raved about at Sundance, you'll want current news on the films. Now Yahoo, which has been in overhaul mode of late, is stepping up to try and provide that information to the cinema crowd.

Today the search company unveils its Yahoo Movies. Unlike the Netflix competitor that name may imply, this is a digital magazine aimed at bringing news to the enthusiasts. "Whether you’re heading out to the theater or looking for something to stream at home, our writers will guide you to the must-see films, both new releases and lost classics", says Yahoo's Josh Wolk.

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 Education -- an Android-powered tablet aimed at learning

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The market is flooded with tablets of various sizes and shapes. It is easy to lose track of them all. Samsung is one of the biggest offenders. The manufacturer makes so many tablets, that it is hard to distinguish all the features from within its offerings alone.

Today, Samsung is delivering yet another tablet, but this time it has a very focused market -- K-12 education. Yes, Samsung announces the Galaxy Tab 4 Education and your kids may be using this for learning very soon.

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Facebook for iOS supports drafting posts offline, preview before sending

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Facebook has unveiled a landmark release of its iPad and iPhone app with the release of Facebook for iOS 10.0. Despite the major version number change, however, new features are thin on the ground.

There are basically two major changes to speak off: support for drafting posts while offline, and the ability to now review posts before they’re sent. The update arrives as Facebook starts testing a new card-based feature similar to Google Now.

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Re-engineering crowdsourcing for video production

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Video is quickly becoming a must-have marketing tool for businesses on the web. As individuals view more and more video content on their PC, tablet, smartphone and even their TV, businesses are scrambling to keep up. The Aberdeen Group reported earlier this year that 92 percent of larger US companies are including video in their content marketing efforts. While a recent survey of video production professionals at mostly smaller companies, by the Web Video Marketing Council, reported 85 percent of respondents expected the volume of video production to increase this year with 37 percent seeing it at least doubling.

Sourcing reliable video production that meets business quality standards has quickly become a significant and expensive issue that companies large and small are being forced to deal with.

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Google Apps Message Encryption keeps enterprise communication secure

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Just yesterday we were looking at how there has been an increase in the level of encrypted traffic online, and today Google announces the launch of Google Apps Message Encryption (GAME). Google is partnering with Zix Corporation to bring fully encrypted communication to enterprise customers even when emailing contacts outside of Google's infrastructure. Emails sent to Google servers have been encrypted by default for a little while now, but the new launch means that emails sent to the likes of Yahoo and Outlook.com will also be encrypted.

As this is a third-party solution provided by Zix Corporation, Google is not offering full customer support for it, but a quick start guide has been published. Available for $35 per user, GAME enables Google Apps customers to not only ensure that the emails they send are encrypted, but also gives the option of setting up custom bounce messages for emails that are sent to unauthorized users who attempt to send encrypted emails.

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Cloudmark DesktopOne is an accurate, free and reliable spam filter

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Spam rates may be high, at around 70 percent of all email traffic, but protecting yourself is easy -- at least, in theory. Just install an internet security suite and you’ll probably get a spam filter along with everything else.

The problem? While this sounds convenient, bundled antispam engines aren’t generally very accurate. If you really want your inbox to stay junk-free, then you should try a specialist filter like Cloudmark DesktopOne.

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UK government gives the nod to secure Samsung KNOX devices

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Public sector workers in the UK will soon be able to use Samsung handsets after the UK government gave the greenlight to devices running Samsung KNOX. The Communications and Electronics Security Group (CESG) tested the KNOX platform and the government has now published End User Devices (EUD) Security Guidance for Samsung KNOX on certain handsets and tablets. It's not clear whether this paves the way for a new wave of BYOD for government workers, but it is certainly a possibility.

Samsung is pleased with the announcement, and Injong Rhee, Senior Vice President of KNOX Business, IT and Mobile Communications Division, says "Samsung devices with KNOX are already extensively deployed globally across the private sector but now with this significant recognition, government agencies across the UK will be able to adopt Samsung KNOX enabled Galaxy smartphones and tablets setting the scene for other governments to follow".

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First Windows Phone 8.1 smartphone goes on sale

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Microsoft may have announced Windows Phone 8.1 early last month, but the first smartphone running the latest tiled operating system only just went on sale. The entry-level Nokia Lumia 630 is now available in Asian markets, with Europe to follow next week.

The first Windows Phone 8.1 device to hit store shelves costs around €119 before any taxes and mobile operator subsidies are applied. Expect to shell out €10 more (€129) for the dual-SIM version. For the money you get a decently-specified smartphone, with a 4.5-inch display.

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