Remove one of the worst scareware menaces in one click
Microsoft's latest Security Intelligence Report highlights rogue security software as "one of the most common methods that attackers use to swindle money from victims," and it's hard to disagree. We're forever coming across sites that display fake antivirus messages, system "scans" and more, all claiming our PC is "infected" in an attempt to make us download their scareware.
If you're familiar with these cons then there's no real problem: you just close that browser window and carry on as before. But if you follow the links on these warnings, download and run the executable they'll offer, then you're in trouble: the fake antivirus will mess up your system, causing all kinds of odd problems, and demand your credit card details to put everything right. (Although, of course, parting with those will only cause you more problems.)
Chrome OS: The ghost of Netscape rises to haunt Microsoft
Google's Chromebook announcement couldn't have been more timely, for its irony. Yesterday, during Google I/O, the company gave Chrome OS its big official debut and set June 15 as launch date for the first Chromebooks -- from Acer and Samsung. Today, Microsoft antitrust oversight ends -- a decade after an appeals court upheld most of the claims against the company while throwing out a remedy threatening breakup into two entities. Chrome OS and Microsoft's U.S. antitrust problems are strangely linked, as the ghost of Netscape rises from the grave to haunt the company cofounded by Bill Gates. Google couldn't have successfully developed Chrome OS, if not for government oversight.
History of an Antitrust Case
AT&T, T-Mobile heads defend merger plans in DC
The proposed $39 billion merger between T-Mobile and AT&T was the focus of a Senate antitrust committee Thursday, with its chair warning of the "profound implications" of such a deal. While the two companies have repeatedly said the deal would take a year to close, in recent weeks regulators have appeared ready to slow down the process.
Combining the second and fourth largest wireless providers in the US would create a wireless behemoth that would likely far eclipse market-leading Verizon Wireless, and leave current third place Sprint in a precarious and unfavorable position facing two much larger competitors. Such a merger could prove difficult to approve.
Facebook caught attempting to smear Google
Facebook found itself doing damage control Thursday after it was revealed the company had attempted to create negative press for Google. Two employees of the public relations firm Burson-Marsteller had endeavored to pitch stories over the search giant's privacy issues.
News of the botched effort was broken by The Daily Beast's Dan Lyons on Wednesday night. Without specifying how, Lyons said evidence pointed to the social networking site as being the mysterious client of Burson-Marsteller's, and the company admitted to doing so.
YouTube 100: Chart with professional musicians
Move over Billboard. "The times they are a-changin'." Today Google launched a music chart for videos -- the YouTube 100 -- that empowers Jack and Jane Wannabe to stand tall with the likes of Lady Gaga or, gasp, Justin Bieber. The chart tracks "song popularity in user-generated and professional music videos," Chris LaRosa, Google Music product manager, explains in a blog post.
YouTube is still mostly about user-generated content, and opening information -- and possibilities -- is fundamentally in keeping with Google corporate philosophy. So it's very appropriate that Google's music chart should include user-generated videos alongside those from popular, commercial musicians.
Symantec patches Norton Internet Security Suite 2011, adds features
Symantec has announced a major update -- 18.6.0.29 -- to its 2011 security products, including Norton Internet Security 2011 and Norton AntiVirus 2011. This update includes a few new features, such as support for the Firefox 4 browser, plus performance enhancements, improved compatibility with third-party programs and a number of bug fixes.
Version 18.6.0.29 also corrects an issue whereby upgrading from a previous version of Norton resulted in a loss of subscription days being reported. Other enhancements include an "improved" activation process, plus better performance from Internet Explorer 9 plug-ins as well as all previous changes introduced by the previous update (18.5).
MacPaw claws away Windows clutter with CleanMyPC
Kiev-based developer MacPaw, best known for its CleanMyMac tool for Macintosh computers, has ventured onto the Windows platform for the first time with an equivalent cleaning application for the PC, the appropriately titled CleanMyPC.
As the name implies, CleanMyPC includes a suite of cleaning tools for Windows computers. The main cleaning component promises to remove gigabytes of files from your PC, and is backed up by five further maintenance tools: Secure Erase, Complete Uninstall, Registry Maintenance, Autorun and Gadgets & Extensions Manager.
NetworkMiner sniffs out troublesome traffic
When you need to understand what's happening on your Windows network, then logging its traffic with a packet sniffing tool can help. And there are few easier ways to get the job done than with a copy of the free NetworkMiner.
The program is portable, for instance, so there are no installation hassles. It'll automatically detect and work with standard packet capture libraries like WinPcap, or grab raw sockets with its own capture tool. And so all you have to do is point NetworkMiner at your chosen network adapter, click "Start," then watch as it organizes your traffic into twelve different views.
10 years after they broke up Microsoft
Editors Note: 'What if' hypothetical history follows. The events described in this article didn't actually happen. But they might have...
It was all over when the U.S. Supreme Court refused to reconsider the judgement of the Court of Appeals upholding Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson's antitrust breakup of Microsoft. A shotgun divorce is an ugly thing in business.
The great Microsoft antitrust oversight farce ends
It's a little over 10 years since Microsoft largely won/lost the appeal of the U.S. government's landmark antitrust case. Today, Thursday, May 12, 2011, the oversight regime created by the judgement against Microsoft ends. Can anyone reasonably say that this case made any meaningful difference to the
technology business?
I've always been hardcore, maybe even an extremist, about the antitrust case against Microsoft. I never thought of it as a dangerous monopoly.
Hands on with the first Chromebook, Samsung Series 5
Just a few hours after Google announced the first "Chromebooks" (and the fact that all Google I/O attendees will be receiving one within a few weeks,) we got to go hands on with Samsung's Chromebook Series 5.
With a 12.1" screen size and a weight of 3.3 pounds, there's no debating that Google is going for the notebook form factor with its Chromebook design. Even though they intend to be connected to the net at all times, these are by no means netbooks.
Microsoft could lose billions in sales to Google's Chromebook
Google's Chromebook subscription program could seriously pinch Microsoft enterprise licensing revenue. The $28 per month per user fee is bargain-basement pricing compared to what businesses now pay Microsoft for software and OEMs for supporting hardware. Google could easily take $1 billion a year in software revenue from Microsoft, says one licensing expert, with the number substantially growing over several years.
Earlier today, Google announced June 15 as launch date for Chromebook, which will initially be available from Acer and Samsung with 11.6-inch or 12.1-inch displays, respectively. Prices start at $349, for notebooks with Intel Atom dual-core processors and limited local storage, running Chrome OS. But there is another acquisition option -- a monthly subscription for business and education markets. School price is $20/month per student and for businesses the aforementioned $28/month per user. The subscription price requires businesses to make a 3-year commitment. Microsoft volume-licensing customers typically also license software for three years, although a 2-year option is available.
Comcast-NBC merger-favoring FCC commish now a lobbyist
The merger of NBC and Comcast had its opponents when it was first announced in December 2009, however the FCC later found it to be acceptable and approved the merger the following year. Now one of those FCC commissioners behind the approval is the combined company's newest hire.
Republican Commissioner Meredith Atwell Baker was one of the most vocal critics of placing any conditions on the deal, and said it could "bring exciting benefits to consumers that outweigh potential harms." Four months later, Comcast/NBCUniversal's Washington office has a new senior vice president of government affairs.
Facebook may have leaked personal info on millions
For years, an accidental security flaw in the way Facebook handled embedded frames allowed applications developers to access information on a user's profile that installed that application. It is estimated that nearly 100,000 applications may have enabled this flaw, potentially affecting millions.
Symantec, the company that discovered the vulnerability, reported it to Facebook. The flaw has been fixed, but it is unknown if any of the data had been used maliciously.
Google says Chrome Web apps more engaging, profitable, launches Web Store to all
In the Wednesday keynote at Google I/O in San Francisco, Google disclosed some information about the Chrome Web Store that should be of key importance to web application developers and those measuring the profitability of development in that area.
The total audience of Chrome users is more than 160 million, and in the first three months of the Chrome Web store's existence, 17 million applications were installed. This may not seem like much at first, but the store was only available in the United States, and only to users of the most up-to-date version of Chrome.
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