Google adds suggestion ability to its Web site query line
Google has launched Suggest, a search feature that offers query suggestions as the user types in the search field.
A full year after Yahoo's Search Assist was launched, Google has its own brand for a very similarly behaving predictive text search tool. Granted, the Google Toolbar already had a similar feature, and it has existed in Google Labs for a considerable period of time, but it is now a default feature on Google's main page.
Nokia launches N-series phones for US and Europe
The new N85 and N79 smartphones for European high-speed mobile networks will be followed by a North American edition of the N96. Each will offer a 5 Mp camera with Zeiss optics, integrated turn-by-turn GPS navigation, and N-Gage gaming.
Nokia today rolled out three high-end multimedia and gaming smartphones: the Nokia N85 and N79, slated for release for European 3.5G mobile networks this October; and a new North American edition of the existing N96, retooled to run on 3G networks in the US and Canada starting in the fourth quarter.
Psystar plans to use antitrust defense against Apple
Attorneys for the makers of Mac OS X-compatible computers told reporters Tuesday they plan to argue that Apple's EULA violates provisions of the Sherman and Clayton antitrust laws.
Lead Psystar counsel Colby Springer of Carr & Ferrell said at a press conference this afternoon that his firm plans to raise questions of improperly tying Mac OS X to Apple-labeled hardware under the Sherman Antitrust Act, and claims of attempted monopoly and exclusive dealings under the Clayton Antitrust Act.
Adobe to unleash new Elements products, emphasizes Web
Adobe has launched Photoshop Elements 7 and Premiere Elements 7, the company's hobbyist-level photo and video editing suites which are now more closely tied into the company's growing online toolkit.
The major innovation in these releases in their tie-in with a soon-to-be-revised Photoshop.com, that is expected to divide its service into basic, "plus," and mobile tiers. In fact, the announcements regarding Adobe's online service alone practically outnumber the new features in Elements series 7.
Opentape keeps the Muxtape ethic alive
Not one week after music sharing site Muxtape was pulled down at the request of the RIAA, a clone service called Opentape has arisen in its place, with a single pivotal change: Users must host their own tapes.
Muxtape let its users upload as many as twelve MP3s to a user-assigned Muxtape subdomain ("username.muxtape.com") that was publicly searchable and "tradable." In hosting all the MP3s, Muxtape established itself as the responsible party if artists, labels, or the RIAA had complaints.
Could Obama's VP pick have triggered millions in SMS traffic?
If you do the math, using the best estimates available to you about text messaging (SMS) usage in the US, the results could be staggering: A single news announcement may mean a small windfall for telcos.
If Sprint's early estimates are accurate and if they're reflective of other carriers' traffic on the day Sen. Barack Obama announced his running mate, the resulting flow of text message traffic on the nation's networks could theoretically have generated more than $118 million in extra revenue for the nation's cell phone carriers.
Amazon buys Shelfari, despite astroturfing accusations
Amid charges from LibraryThing of planting blog comments, social networking site Shelfari now belongs 100 percent to Amazon.com. Yet so, too, does AbeBooks, a partial owner of LibraryThing.
Amazon.com today acquired Shelfari, a social networking site for book lovers, less than a month after buying AbeBooks, an online retailer of used and rare books. AbeBooks holds an equity stake in LibraryThing, Shelfari's chief rival.
EA, Take-Two take talks behind closed doors
The two companies have signed a confidentiality agreement which should keep the details of the talks secret.
Take-Two would only discuss its future product plans with EA if it had some type of assurance that such discussions would be held in private. EA agreed, and took its hostile bid for its smaller rival off the table.
ITunes access returns to China following block
After having lost complete access to iTunes for nearly a week, for reasons that may have had to do with the music store featuring an album supporting Tibetan freedom, users in China report they can download music once again.
The first reports of connectivity issues surfaced on Monday, in timing that seemed to coincide with iTunes' release of a pro-Tibet album. While access to that particular album still appears to be restricted, the rest of the store returned this week.
IE8 will feature privacy envelope, Microsoft confirms
The concept of privatizing the browsing experience has been the impetus for an entire segment of the anti-malware industry. Now, Microsoft has confirmed it will be claiming that segment for itself in the next version of Internet Explorer.
In a post to the Internet Explorer development team's blog yesterday afternoon, Microsoft IE8 program manager Andy Ziegler confirmed news that reporters anticipated after last week's discovery of a series of trademark filings: The new browser will contain a prominent feature enabling users to switch off any kind of permanent or long-term storage of their history or activities.
Report: Amazon looks to substitute textbooks with Kindle
Fresh analysis indicates that Amazon's popular Kindle device may eventually serve a second purpose: as a provider of college texts and other materials for students. For that reason, Amazon may be marketing the device towards students.
For many college students, a walk between classes is the equivalent of ROTC basic training. The reason, of course, is textbooks. They're too numerous, they're too heavy, and they're too expensive.
Nokia debuts N79, N85 smart phones
The Finnish phone maker is expected Tuesday to take the lid off the two newest additions to its N-Series line of smart phones.
Nokia appears to be replacing two phones in its lineup, the earlier released N78 and N81. The N78 has been out since the 3GSM conference earlier this year, just recently making its way to the US: the N81 since late summer of last year.
Is Microsoft's Cashback putting pressure on Google Checkout?
Although Google might not have much to fear from Microsoft, on the whole, could a new promotion in Google Checkout represent a response to Microsoft's Live Search Cashback feature?
In a new back-to-school promotion, Google is now offering a $5 to $10 discount on purchases made at partner sites that use its Checkout Service.
Netbook prices approach affordability after Acer cuts
Although netbooks really only hit the market less than a year ago, the pint-sized notebooks seem to be showing signs already of commoditization, though maybe with greater differentiation on the high end.
Acer has just announced price drops of on both the Windows and Linux editions of its Aspire One netbook line. An Aspire One netbook with Windows XP Home, a 120 GB hard disk drive, 1 GB of RAM, and a three-cell battery is now list priced at $349.99.
After a few days, a mixed verdict on Microsoft Photosynth
It's a new tool from Microsoft that enables photographers to upload photos, but then let other users walk through those photos as though they showed 3D scenes. In some ways, it's close to amazing. Close.
At one level, Microsoft Live Labs' public launch of its Photosynth project is an intriguing test of a commercial software producer's ability to perform supercomputer-style computations as a service for the general public. At another level, it's a clever and somewhat effective scheme for getting more users signed onto Microsoft's Windows Live network, as well as using plentiful amounts of its online storage.
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