Latest Technology News

iolo has released System Checkup 3.0, a tool for scanning and resolving various problems and issues with your PC. It's aimed at users who don't like the idea of using an always-on tool like iolo's own System Mechanic to maintain and tweak their computer.

System Checkup utilizes similar technology to System Mechanic, but doesn't sit in the background tuning the computer constantly; instead it's designed to be run occasionally, every month or so, to perform a quick scan, repair and tuneup of your PC.

Microsoft joins Amazon and other online services providers who have suffered cloud outages. I'm surprised. Sincerely.

I figured if any company could do the cloud right, it would be Microsoft -- right as in 365 days up time. Damn, if this was a leap year, that could be an excuse. :)

Hackers have again disclosed the personal details of police officers, this time in response to BART's decision to cut off cell phone and Wi-Fi service in its metro stations and tunnels to quell a planned anti-police protest. The decision by hacktivist group Anonymous calls its motives again into question, and could put these police officers at risk.

Data disclosed includes names, home addresses, email addresses and passwords to the site of the BART police union; 102 officers in total had their information disclosed, and the hack has taken the organization's website offline.

"We will be looking with interest as further details of the proposed transaction become clear. But, at first glance, to the extent that this deal might bring some stability to the ongoing smartphone patent disputes, that would be a welcome development" -- John Thorne, Verizon deputy general counsel, speaking about Google's $12.5 billion Motorola Mobility acquisition.

The statement, as reported today by the Wall Street Journal, is refreshing for perspective -- that sanity might return after an increasing number of mobile patent lawsuits, among which Apple is point of axis (mostly as protagonist, but also defendant). Armed with a large stash of newly acquired Moto Mobility patents -- more than 24,000, and, of course, not all about mobile devices -- Google's position to defend Android licensees is stronger. Hell, Motorola invented the cell phone. Surely there is something Google can use as a club to beat back Apple lawyers.

Tuesday evening, Taiwanese smartphone maker and long-time Android supporter HTC announced it filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Apple in the U.S. District Court of Delaware and also a complaint with the United States International Trade Commission (ITC).

HTC alleges infringement of three patents by Apple's Mac, iPhone, iPad, and iPod product lines in the areas of Wi-Fi profiling, and PDA/Cellular functionality in a handheld device.

Browser-based computing and webtops are certainly getting a major boost by the widespread adoption in HTML5 from the likes of Microsoft, Apple, and Google. But alternatives to HTML5, Javascript, and CSS3 are still being explored, and a webtop called SilveOS gives a strong look at Microsoft's Silverlight as an alternative.

Launched in Beta back in May, SilveOS is still a bit rough around the edges, but is an interesting project to check out if you're following the growth and adoption of Web-based computers in both the consumer and enterprise spaces.

I would have picked eBay. But according to ComScore, Amazon is leader, with 20.4 percent global Internet population reach in June -- 16.2 percent for eBay. The analyst group lumps together auctions and retail, so looked at that way it's not surprising. What perhaps is unexpected -- Apple ranks fourth -- 9.7 percent share, with 135 million unique visitors.

Auction sites had 1.39 billion unique visitors, 282 million of them to Amazon and 223.5 million from eBay.

After AT&T unveiled its first HSPA+/LTE modems on Tuesday, Verizon Wireless, who began rolling out its LTE service in late 2010, announced it will have another major LTE rollout tomorrow. The wireless operator will turn on its 4G LTE networks in 11 states tomorrow, August 18.

Verizon Wireless has laid out a handful of smaller metropolitan areas and their outlying suburbs to begin LTE service this time around.

It's a sad fact of life than not all video formats are created equal. You can't even be sure a video will play on your computer or portable device by checking its file type, because video files consist of two parts: container (which determines the file type) and codec. Both need to be supported by your media player in order for the video to play.

How can you fix problems with video so it will play on a specific device? The answer lies with Avidemux. It's a simple, yet very powerful, video processing program that you can use to fix problems with movies that need to be resized, re-encoded or have sound-related issues.

You waited a year for it. Now you can play. Microsoft has finally revealed the first full version of its Age of Empires Online game. And if you're a fan of empire-building Civilization-type games, or real-time strategy in general, then there's good news: Age of Empires Online will be free to play indefinitely, with no subscription fees to worry about.

The core plot is a familiar one. The game launches with your small village (Greek or Egyptian, your choice) all alone in a huge online world. But by collecting resources, managing buildings and units, and improving your technology you'll soon be able to expand, and so begin the process of transforming your civilization into a powerful empire.

Today, Samsung Electronics unveiled its next-generation solid-state drives, the 830 series, which goes on sale in October. Pricing isn't immediately available.

The new SSDs incorporate Serial ATA Revision 3.0, which Samsung claims doubles the bandwidth of the 470 series. SSDs use flash memory and aren't susceptible to the same kind of failures as magnetic drives.

For some time, LinkedIn has been the social network that everyone loves to hate, but it still has a huge number of users. Like other social networks, there has long been an iOS app available that provides access to the service -- this in itself is nothing spectacular, but what was notable about the LinkedIn app was just how unimpressive it was. The release of LinkedIn 4.0 for iOS looks set to change the app's reputation, though.

The most noticeable aspect of the updated app is that the interface has undergone a complete overhaul. Gone are the stark, bland, dated looking icons, replaced with a UI that has a distinct, well, Mac feel to it. The previously cluttered opening screen has been redesigned so that it now comprises a mere four icons, which provide access to your update stream, your profile, your inbox and groups you may be a member of.

It's Tuesday in mid August. You're not really working are you?  So how about another juicy Hunch infographic comparing Android and iOS users. Let's be honest -- Hunch's findings, culled from more than 15,000 people -- are about one thing: class warfare. The wealthy use iPhones, and the rest of us Androids.

I love Hunch, but don't go there enough because the social rating service is such a time suck. Hell, it has been so long, I forgot -- and so had to reset -- my password today. Hunch cranks out these infographics every so often that I just can't resist.

Sony Computer Entertainment lowered the worldwide price of its PlayStation 3 by another $50 on Tuesday, knocking its 160GB model to $249, and its 320GB model to $299.

The five-year old video game console has already gone through a handful of iterations and price reductions, as well as one major structural redesign. The first PS3 price reduction took place in July 2007 and knocked the 60GB model from $599 to $499. Subsequent models introduced higher storage limits and lower prices.

Along with Firefox 6 for PCs, today, Mozilla also released the mobile version, which I must say looks damn good. But it feels even better. There's a solidness about the browser that makes it ready, finally, for prime time. Firefox fans, this is the one you've been waiting for.

I tested Firefox 6 for Android, quite unexpectedly, on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1. I had planned to use the Nexus S but let the battery run down. Good thing, too, because I might have waited days to try the tablet experience -- and, whoa, is it good. So let me preface that the screenshots here are stock ones from the Android Market and they show the browser on a smartphone. The browser looks much better on the Tab. That's right, Mozilla optimized this release for tablets.