Opera's desktop browser adds a built-in ad-blocker
A growing number of major players in the tech industry are now in support for blocking ads. Apple offers this kind of feature in Safari on iOS, ASUS bundles AdBlock Plus on its mobile devices, while Three, a major UK carrier, blocks ads at the network level. And, as of today, Opera Software is also a member of this group.
Opera Software just announced that its desktop browser -- which is available on Windows, OS X and Linux -- will come with a built-in ad-blocker, which is a first for a major browser. The feature can be tested now in the Developer channel version of Opera and, once it is deemed ready for prime time, it will make its way to the public version of the browser.
Firefox 45 unveils improved Synced Tab features, but removes Tab Groups
Mozilla has unveiled Firefox 45 FINAL, its desktop browser for Mac, Linux and Windows. The new release focuses its changes on the browser’s use of tabs, and also becomes the base for the new Extended Support Release.
New features include instant tab sharing in Hello and a new Synced Tabs button, but one feature has been removed: Tab Groups.
Malvertising campaigns now use fingerprinting techniques
Cyber-criminals are now using fingerprinting techniques in their malvertising campaigns, researchers from security firms Malwarebytes and GeoEdge have reported.
Fingerprinting is an evasion technique in which crooks, through snippets of code, check if the targeted machine is a honeypot set up by malware researchers or an actual machine belonging to a potential victim.
Most consumers don't like to be tracked, but few are doing something about it
Most users know their online activity is being tracked. They’re not OK with it, yet most of them do nothing about it. Those are the general conclusions of a new quiz entitled Are you cyber savvy?, made by Kaspersky Lab.
The security firm says consumers don’t know how to protect their privacy online.
Baidu's browser leaks sensitive information
The browser provided by Baidu (China's answer to Google), leaks all kinds of personal data. Researchers at Canada’s Citizen Lab tested the browser and concluded it "collects and transmits a lot of personal user data back to Baidu servers that we believe goes far beyond what should be collected, and it does so either without encryption, or with easily decryptable encryption".
The Android version of the browser is even worse: "Data collected and transmitted in the Android version without any encryption includes a user’s GPS coordinates, search terms, and URLs visited. The user’s IMEI and nearby wireless networks are sent with easily decryptable encryption".
Typing with fingers is so passé! Google enhances 'voice typing' in Docs for Chrome
In the classic film, Back to the Future II, some children remark to the main character that his use of hands to play a classic video game is essentially uncool and lame. In the real future, maybe mind-controlled input for games and apps will become a mainstream reality, but in the interim, mice, keyboards and game pads will reign supreme for computing overall.
A less futuristic alternative to using hands is dictation -- computers converting speech to text. Solutions have been offered for quite some time, but only in recent years have they become fairly usable and reliable. Google has been a huge proponent of voice, and today, the company announces it is enhancing 'voice typing' in Docs for Chrome to be much more than just dictation.
Opera Software wants shareholders to accept $1.2bn buyout offer
Opera Software, the company behind the Opera web browser for desktop and mobile devices, has received a $1.2 billion buyout offer from a consortium of Chinese Internet firms.
The company’s board is recommending shareholders to accept the deal, which is higher than Opera Software's valuation at closing time on the Oslo exchange. Rumors of a possible buyout of the company led to its stock being suspended for two days.
Microsoft Edge's InPrivate mode no longer records your browsing history
When you use a browser's incognito mode you expect it to keep that browsing session private. That is its purpose, after all, to let you access websites without saving any data or information that might be used to trace your visits from the browser. Thing is, at least in Microsoft Edge's case, its InPrivate mode has not exactly worked as advertised -- in fact, it did not work at all.
Microsoft Edge's InPrivate mode is a "privacy nightmare", as my colleague Mark Wilson puts it. Instead of completely ignoring your session, Microsoft Edge actually records your browsing history, making it possible for others to find out exactly which websites you have accessed. However, the software giant now claims to have addressed this privacy issue in the form of a new Windows 10 update.
Copyfish extends its free OCR to the desktop
Copyfish is a free Chrome extension which can extract text from just about anything in a browser tab -- images, videos, documents, more -- and optionally translate it, too.
That’s great, but it’s just got even better, with new support for desktop OCR.
Google enables peer-to-peer support in Hangouts to improve call quality
Call quality and speed issues often make it difficult for users to fully embrace video and audio calling over the internet. To help solve this, Google has updated its video and audio communications service Hangouts by allowing peer to peer (P2P) connections for some users.
By incorporating this functionality into the back-end of its service the company expects call quality and the overall experience of its users to improve.
Mozilla moves Firefox to variable release schedule
In mid-July 2011, Mozilla announced that it would speed up the release schedule for Firefox, bringing it down to just six weeks between major versions. Firefox 5 and subsequent releases have been impacted by this decision, bringing new features and changes to users at a faster pace. Fast forward to today, and the organization decides to relax things a bit.
After studying the fixed -- so-called "Train Model" -- release schedule process "carefully" and learning "a lot" from it in the past years, Mozilla has announced that Firefox is now moving to a variable release schedule.
WhatsApp Web now works in Microsoft Edge
WhatsApp introduced a web interface for its messaging service a year ago, initially supporting only a single browser -- Google Chrome -- and a single mobile platform -- Android. Since then, the number of browsers that work with WhatsApp Web has increased, and iPhones were added into the mix.
Depending on which web analytics resource you believe, Google Chrome is either the most-popular desktop browser (according to StatCounter and W3Schools) or the second (per NetMarketShare's numbers), so WhatsApp's decision to support it first is understandable. But the latest browser to work with WhatsApp Web is an unexpected choice.
Extensions are coming to Microsoft Edge via the Windows Store, and Insiders will be able to try them 'soon'
The kindest thing that can be said about Microsoft Edge is Windows 10's new browser has potential. It’s far from awful, it’s just rather unfinished. There’s little there to tempt users of Firefox or Chrome into switching.
Microsoft is working to change that though, and make the browser more appealing. Today it reveals a little more about its future plans, including how it will be handling extensions. It doesn’t announce exactly when the browser will receive this much-requested feature, but it does touch on how add-ons will be made available, and how you’ll be able to try out some early examples for yourself.
Opera 35 improves download manager, adds new customisation section
Opera Software has unveiled Opera 35 FINAL, a major new release of its desktop web browser for Windows, Mac and Linux PCs.
There are four new features of note in this release: first, a button for muting audio on specific tabs, followed by a refreshed downloads interface. There’s also the addition of a Basic section in Opera’s options page for faster access to key customization settings, plus a new advanced setting that allows users to search using a standalone Search bar.
VisionTek unveils Waterproof Bluetooth Mini Keyboard for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS
While many people type with on-screen keyboards every day, let's be honest -- a physical variant can be much better. Typing on a piece of glass fails to give the user true feedback, which can lead to typos. Even worse, auto-correction on those typos can create messages that are not only wrong, but potentially embarrassing. On a smartphone in particular, the smaller screen means a smaller keyboard -- that can be frustrating.
Luckily, Bluetooth keyboards have been a godsend in this regard. While a smartphone or tablet are primarily consumption devices, a good wireless keyboard can make them productivity powerhouses too. Today, VisionTek unveils a new such Bluetooth keyboard. This wireless input device has one really cool feature that sets it apart from many -- it is waterproof.
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