WireframeSketcher: user interface mock-ups made fast and easy
The days of using a drawing board are not quite behind use, and when it comes to sketching out a quick idea for a website, or even a program interface, it is quite common to reach for a pen and paper rather than a computer. But this may change if WireframeSketcher has anything to do with it. This is a design application that makes it easy to create rough mockups for websites and applications.
Whether you are designing for the Internet, Windows, Mac or mobile platforms, WireframeSketcher can be used to quickly knock up an interface. The program can be used on solo projects, but there are also tools for collaborative work. There is an extensive library of page and interface elements that can be dragged and dropped onto your workspace to create an interface design in moments.
Enterprise cloud email and collaboration has reached the 'tipping point', or will in 2012, maybe 2014 -- well, someday
The new math that analysts use to make predictions is sometimes amazing to comprehend. Gartner predicts that so-called cloud email and collaboration services (CECS) have reached a "tipping point" based on projected 10 percent enterprise adoption by 2014. So it's not even 10 percent yet, but, hey, that's okay, enterprises are rushing to the cloud. Or are they?
I'm a big proponent of cloud computing, and have predicted the big push to cloud-connected devices for years. But even I have to gape in wonder at the concept of 10 percent in three years being a "tipping point".
Google+ opens to all
It's two days before Facebook's developer conference and one before Google Chairman Eric Schmidt gives his testimony on Capitol Hill. So it's good timing for a big Google+ announcement before there's competing big news. Yes, there's the new Hangout features that my colleague Tim Conneally wrote about earlier today. But this is better: Now most anyone can join Google+. Well, damn, there goes the neighborhood. :)
Google+ has moved from field trial to public beta, whatever the hell that means. It's a big change for a social network just three months old and already 20-million-plus subscribers strong. The real test of Google's infrastructure comes now -- then there's the question about how the service will demographically change. Looking at my Circles, they're all geek to me. I don't know if there's a normal person on the service. Here they come!
Mac OS X Lion passwords super easy to crack, says researcher
A two-year old security issue in Mac OS X has reared its ugly head once again in Mac OS X 10.7 Lion, allowing users of a computer to easily modify the passwords of other users.
Mac OS X stores encrypted passwords in what are called "shadow files." These files are placed in secure locations on the drive, which are intended to be only alterable by the user himself or the administrator, provided they authenticate themselves.
Kaspersky introduces ONE license for PC, smartphone & tablet security
Security company Kaspersky Lab on Tuesday announced a new program called Kaspersky ONE, where a single license covers the security software across all of a user's devices: desktop, notebook, smartphone, and tablet.
Having security on your PC should be a given. It's just a matter of personal preference which security suite you use. But when you own multiple PCs with vastly different hardware configurations, or multiple PCs and multiple mobile devices, comprehensive security is often not a priority. Kaspersky suggests that this is due to the hassle of multiple licenses for the different platforms we deal with.
Share 1-minute clips with Klip Video
If you have an iOS device, be it an iPhone, iPod or iPad, you are equipped with everything you need to not only watch, but also record video footage. Just like photos, half of the fun of shooting videos is sharing the content with other people and for many people this will mean turning to YouTube. But having test driven Klip Video for iOS, this may soon change.
The app can be used to record with the front or rear camera of your device and the integrated video editor can be used to trim the footage down to a clip that is one minute in length. While there is no limit on the number of files you can upload, the length of one minute cannot be exceeded, and this helps to keep Klip Video fresh and lively.
Video Hangouts in Google+ get massive feature upgrade
One of the most forward-thinking features of Google's three-month old social network Google+ is its ability to set up multi-person live video chatrooms called "hangouts," here, users with webcams can convene over a youtube video, set up impromptu performances or instructional sessions, or just hang out.
Tuesday, Google announced four new feature upgrades to Hangouts in Google Plus.
O&O Defrag 15 boasts 40% performance gains
Hard drive utility specialist O&O Software has released the latest edition of its flagship defrag tool, Defrag 15. And the emphasis this time is on performance, with the company claiming improvements to the program’s algorithms have cut defrag times by anything up to 40 percent.
Exactly what sort of speeds you might see is difficult to say, as every situation is different. We took a lightly fragmented drive, though, typical of how a system might be after a few days of work, and tested how long it took to optimise. The built-in Windows 7 defrag tool needed almost four minutes; Defrag 15′s fastest optimisation method required only 12 seconds.
HTC Rhyme makes a fashion statement
The true measure of any carry-around product category's mass-market success is when manufacturers put form before function -- when it becomes jewelry or other accoutrement. There's little other way to look at the new HTC Rhyme smartphone introduced today and going on sale September 29 from Verizon Wireless here in the United States.
From the Clearwater, Hourglass and Plum colors to the accessories -- my God, there's a light-emitting "Charm" to dangle from handbags -- Rhyme is as much about fashion as function. The fashion phone, with 3.7-inch display, 5-megapixel camera and running Android 2.3.4, will sell for $199. Form clearly exceeds function, as some specs are underwhelming for smartphones in the same price range -- for example, the 1GHz single-core Snapdragon processor, 4GB storage and 768 MB RAM.
Comcast launches $10 Internet access for poor families
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski and District of Columbia Public Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson and Comcast Executive Vice President David L. Cohen this morning announced the official nationwide launch of "Internet Essentials," the program that will provide low-cost Internet services, affordable computers, and digital literacy training to families with children who are eligible for the National School Lunch Program.
"Broadband is our central platform in this 21st century for economic growth, innovation, and information. Broadband can be the great equalizer – giving every American with an Internet connection access to a world of new opportunities that might previously have been beyond their reach," FCC Chairman Genachowski said on Tuesday. "But roughly 100 million Americans are being bypassed by the broadband revolution. That's 68% of Americans who aren't connected at home. Compare that to South Korea and Singapore where adoption rates top 90%. Low-income Americans and minorities disproportionately find themselves on the wrong-side of this digital divide."
Video gamers crack code on AIDS-causing monkey virus
A protein causing AIDS in rhesus monkeys that hadn't been solved for 15 years was resolved by players of an online science puzzle video game called Foldit, which challenges groups of players to "unfold" chains of amino acids.
It took competing teams of gamers just three weeks to generate three-dimensional models of the enzyme, which is called M-PMV (Mason-Pfizer Monkey virus) retroviral protease.
DigiNotar goes bust
Digital certificate authorities everywhere be warned: Hackers can destroy you. Today parent company VASCO Data Security announced that DigiNotar has been declared bankrupt. The action comes after weeks of controversy, following an intrusion that allowed a hacker to distribute more than 500 rogue digital certificates. Browser makers like Google and Microsoft responded by blocking DigiNotar certificates, thus cutting off the company's lifeline. The question now: Who's next?
DigiNotar's problems started in late August, when the first rogue certificates appeared. After Google and Microsoft suspended -- that is "untrusted" -- DigiNotar, the CA suspended issuing certificates. Two weeks ago, a hacker using the handle COMODOHACKER took responsibility for the security breach, claiming to have distributed 531 rogue certificates and to have breached five other certificate authorities. Now that he (or she) has essentially destroyed DigiNotar, will COMODOHACKER move on to the others? Or perhaps other CAs have tightened security since the DigiNotar breach.
Stream or sync music with Mufin Player 2.5
The market for music players is somewhat saturated these days, but Mufin Player manages to stand out thanks to its music collection analysis and online storage options, in addition to its impressive playlist creation tools. The newly updated version 2.5 sees the inclusion of even more online storage space than before, 2GB, that can be used to house your favorite music so it can be accessed from any computer with an Internet connection. There’s also a neatly redesigned interface to look forward to, as much more in the features department.
If you have a large music collection, you probably will find that it makes sense to make use of the program’s search facility rather than browsing through a lengthy list of albums and artists. New in version 2.5 is auto-complete in the search field to save you having to type so much.
Peazip gets small changes in version 4
Italian author Giorgio Tani has updated his popular open-source archiving tool, Peazip, to version 4.0. Peazip 4.0, also available as a dedicated 64-bit build as well as separate 32-bit and 64-bit portable applications, allows users to both open and create archives in a variety of formats, including RAR and 7z, as well as the standard ZIP format.
Version 4.0 proves less radical an update than some of the most recent 3.x revisions, adding thumbnail support when browsing image files and tweaking the program’s PeaLauncher component.
Metro-style app sales will be Windows 8 Store only
Apple sets the standard and Microsoft follows; has this ever happened before? The new example is that Metro-style apps will be sold only through the Windows 8 Store with the now standard 30 percent cut going to the house. Enterprises and developers will have ways to install their own apps, but you can't just sell to others without going through Microsoft. The result will be a much more secure 'ecosystem'.
It's all explained in a Primer for current Windows developers about Metro-style apps and the Windows Store:
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