Also Reports of Google's Chinese Search Engine Being Intermittently Blocked as Censorship Row Continues
Yahoo e-mail accounts belonging to foreign journalists appeared to have been hacked and Google's Chinese Search Engine was intermittently blocked Tuesday, the latest troubles in China's heavily censored Internet market.
The Yahoo Inc. accounts of at least three journalists and an analyst became inaccessible over the last few weeks. They were greeted with messages saying, "We've detected an issue with your account'' and were told to contact Yahoo, they said Tuesday. Yahoo techs told one of the four that his account had been hacked and restored his access, but it was not clear if the other instances were related.
Sensitivity about Internet security has run high since Google Inc. announced in January it might leave China after a series of cyber attacks and complaints about censorship. Last week, Google made a partial retreat, shutting down its mainland-based search engine and redirecting those queries offshore, to the freer Chinese territory of Hong Kong.
Analysts have been watching closely to see if China retaliates for Google's high-profile departure from the mainland search engine market.
Many redirected queries appeared blocked Tuesday on the Hong Kong-based search engine. Searches for benign terms were met with results on Chinese competitors such as Baidu.com and Soso.com, however, an error page would pop up when typed into Google.com.hk.
Dozens of China-based Twitter users posted updates saying they were having the same problem. But it wasn't immediately clear what was causing the glitch.
Zhou Shuguang, a Beijing-based writer who blogs under the name "Zuola,'' said he tried to search the word "pest'' using several search engines. Only Google.com.hk returned an error message.
"The connection was reset,' it says. It's the same for all the terms I put in,'' said Zhou. He thought it might be a technical problem but if it isn't fixed in a day or so, "then maybe it means China has blocked it.''
Beijing-based Google spokeswoman Marsha Wang said she would look into the reports but didn't immediately respond.
It was not clear where problems with the Yahoo e-mail accounts originated from. All four people affected are professionally focused on China and related issues. They said they had heard of other colleagues having similar problems, including one journalist who lost his Yahoo account entirely in January.
Clifford Coonan, China correspondent for The Independent and the Irish Times newspapers, said he received the "issue with your account'' notice when he logged in Tuesday. Another reporter said she received repeated error messages from Yahoo last month.
The Western analyst said he was locked out of his account for four or five days, until he spoke with a Yahoo representative Monday who went through the security questions and restarted it.
"He said somebody had hacked into my registration details,'' said the analyst, who would not give his name citing the sensitivity of the issue. The analyst said he was concerned hackers may have also accessed his inbox.
Yahoo officials in Asia and London declined to comment, referring queries to headquarters in Sunnyvale, California.
"I'd just be interested to see if anyone in the business community or outside of journalism and academia has had the same problem, then it might be less sinister,'' Coonan said. "It's obviously annoying but if it's just journalists and academics, that's scary.''
Source:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/03/30/tech/main6347092.shtml
Professional Web Design Chicago
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Monday, March 29, 2010
Twitterers Go Offline for Charity
Thousands of Twitterers worldwide put their fingers to rest and gathered offline on Thursday in the name of charity.
People in over 200 cities worldwide participated in the second annual "Twestival" which this year aims to raise funds for education.
"It's a pretty viral phenomenon that happened," said Sarah Prevette, lead organiser for Twestival Toronto.
The event is organised by thousands of volunteers globally, and local businesses fund the parties, where social media enthusiasts dance, mingle and network.
Funds raised for Twestival, via corporate sponsorship, ticket sales or celebrity eBay auctions, will benefit Concern Worldwide, which offers basic education programmes in impoverished nations.
"Education is that one tool that we can give someone, and knowledge really does empower and that was something that really struck a chord with volunteers globally," said Prevette. "It only costs $74 to send a primary school child to school for a year in these nations."
The first Twestival event raised over $250 000 for clean water projects in Uganda, Ethiopia and India.
According to Twestival's Web site, over 4 000 people purchased tickets to Thursday's events.
Source:
http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=31625:twitterers-go-offline-for-charity&catid=147:internet&Itemid=68
Chicago Website Design
People in over 200 cities worldwide participated in the second annual "Twestival" which this year aims to raise funds for education.
"It's a pretty viral phenomenon that happened," said Sarah Prevette, lead organiser for Twestival Toronto.
The event is organised by thousands of volunteers globally, and local businesses fund the parties, where social media enthusiasts dance, mingle and network.
Funds raised for Twestival, via corporate sponsorship, ticket sales or celebrity eBay auctions, will benefit Concern Worldwide, which offers basic education programmes in impoverished nations.
"Education is that one tool that we can give someone, and knowledge really does empower and that was something that really struck a chord with volunteers globally," said Prevette. "It only costs $74 to send a primary school child to school for a year in these nations."
The first Twestival event raised over $250 000 for clean water projects in Uganda, Ethiopia and India.
According to Twestival's Web site, over 4 000 people purchased tickets to Thursday's events.
Source:
http://www.itweb.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=31625:twitterers-go-offline-for-charity&catid=147:internet&Itemid=68
Chicago Website Design
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Google Sheds New Light on Broadband Plans
Company moves forwards with Fibre Network.
Google has posted an update for its planned high speed Fibre Broadband Network in the United States.
The company said that it would be announcing the targeted market for the first tests of the network by the end of the year. The initial test will cover a total group ranging from 50,000 to 500,000 people.
The project was first announced by Google in February. The company is planning to issue the 1Gbit/s fibre networks in target markets as a way of testing out open broadband networks. In addition to the experimental service, the company is also going to make its broadband cables open to other service providers.
Since the announcement, interest in the project has been high. Google said that some 600 community groups had expressed interest in participating in the project, while more than 190,000 individuals have looked into participating.
Some cities, such as Topeka, Kansas and Rancho Cucamonga, California have jokingly pledged to change their names to "Google, Kansas" and "Rancho Googlemonga" should the company choose their cities for the project.
Going forward, the company said that it will begin visiting perspective sites and speaking with local leaders and community groups before making its final decision later this year.
"This enthusiasm is much bigger than Google and our experimental network," wrote Google product manager James Kelly in a blog posting.
"If one message has come through loud and clear, it's this: people across the country are hungry for better and faster internet access."
Share:
http://www.itnews.com.au/News/170709,google-sheds-new-light-on-broadband-plans.aspx
Chicago Web Design
Google has posted an update for its planned high speed Fibre Broadband Network in the United States.
The company said that it would be announcing the targeted market for the first tests of the network by the end of the year. The initial test will cover a total group ranging from 50,000 to 500,000 people.
The project was first announced by Google in February. The company is planning to issue the 1Gbit/s fibre networks in target markets as a way of testing out open broadband networks. In addition to the experimental service, the company is also going to make its broadband cables open to other service providers.
Since the announcement, interest in the project has been high. Google said that some 600 community groups had expressed interest in participating in the project, while more than 190,000 individuals have looked into participating.
Some cities, such as Topeka, Kansas and Rancho Cucamonga, California have jokingly pledged to change their names to "Google, Kansas" and "Rancho Googlemonga" should the company choose their cities for the project.
Going forward, the company said that it will begin visiting perspective sites and speaking with local leaders and community groups before making its final decision later this year.
"This enthusiasm is much bigger than Google and our experimental network," wrote Google product manager James Kelly in a blog posting.
"If one message has come through loud and clear, it's this: people across the country are hungry for better and faster internet access."
Share:
http://www.itnews.com.au/News/170709,google-sheds-new-light-on-broadband-plans.aspx
Chicago Web Design
Friday, March 26, 2010
Web Design Firms' Role in Designing
Have you ever thought about the pace at which the modern day web world has evolved and has attained its present status? If yes, it's good for you to be a part of the current trend, and if not, it's beneficial for you to have some detailed ideas about the entire online processes.
Whether it's for professional or personal requirements, it's essential now to have one's own site. It's through the medium of a website, now businesses are done at speed of mind across the globe. The advantage of web business making can't just be limited to this only. It's beyond our imagination to be more precise.
Websites help in ecommerce services eating, making use of customer redressal cells, make payments for their purchased stuffs and what not! If you are also planning to jump into the thriving world of online business, then it's wise on your part to have a complete study about your business strength and capabilities before making any commitment. As the competition in the field is very high and there are no limits of competitors, you should be able to target the right customers with the right inventory of products or services. Here, the assistance of a Web Design Firms needs special mention for sure.
A Professional Web Design is a place where you can have a one-stop-solution for all your web based requirements. Right from the conceiving of a website to its design and development, from web page integration to SEO Services offerings, in every segment value deals can be availed from such a company.
As more and more people are now heading for web based businesses, the role and responsibilities of a web design studio or firm have also been perceived in a more value-based manner. In order to satisfy every client in an individualistic manner, such a firm now used the most trusted web design software programs and tools, no matter for what you opt for their services.
Ready made design packages are also available these days. They come comparatively cheaper than the customized or bespoke design packages. It all depends on you and your business what you will seek as per your budget and requirements.
Whether it's for professional or personal requirements, it's essential now to have one's own site. It's through the medium of a website, now businesses are done at speed of mind across the globe. The advantage of web business making can't just be limited to this only. It's beyond our imagination to be more precise.
Websites help in ecommerce services eating, making use of customer redressal cells, make payments for their purchased stuffs and what not! If you are also planning to jump into the thriving world of online business, then it's wise on your part to have a complete study about your business strength and capabilities before making any commitment. As the competition in the field is very high and there are no limits of competitors, you should be able to target the right customers with the right inventory of products or services. Here, the assistance of a Web Design Firms needs special mention for sure.
A Professional Web Design is a place where you can have a one-stop-solution for all your web based requirements. Right from the conceiving of a website to its design and development, from web page integration to SEO Services offerings, in every segment value deals can be availed from such a company.
As more and more people are now heading for web based businesses, the role and responsibilities of a web design studio or firm have also been perceived in a more value-based manner. In order to satisfy every client in an individualistic manner, such a firm now used the most trusted web design software programs and tools, no matter for what you opt for their services.
Ready made design packages are also available these days. They come comparatively cheaper than the customized or bespoke design packages. It all depends on you and your business what you will seek as per your budget and requirements.
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Google Alerts Users of Suspicious Gmail Log-In Activity
Google Introduced a New Security Feature for Gmail today. It notifies the user when a suspicious log-in activity is detected on their account. This notification will come in the form of a message saying ""Warning: We believe your account was last accessed from…" along with the geographic region that Google can best associate with the access. Engineering Director Pavni Diwanji explains on the Gmail Blog:
To determine when to display this message, our automated system matches the relevant IP address, logged per the Gmail privacy policy, to a broad geographical location. While we don't have the capability to determine the specific location from which an account is accessed, a login appearing to come from one country and occurring a few hours after a login from another country may trigger an alert.
By clicking on the "Details" link next to the message, you'll see the last account activity window that you're used to, along with the most recent access points.
Gmail will allow users to change their passwords from the same window if they choose, or they can click "dismiss" if they are sure the log-in activity was legitimate.
Google intends to extend the feature into Google Apps after enough feedback is gathered.
Source:
http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2010/03/24/google-alerts-users-of-suspicious-gmail-log-in-activity
Web Design Firms
To determine when to display this message, our automated system matches the relevant IP address, logged per the Gmail privacy policy, to a broad geographical location. While we don't have the capability to determine the specific location from which an account is accessed, a login appearing to come from one country and occurring a few hours after a login from another country may trigger an alert.
By clicking on the "Details" link next to the message, you'll see the last account activity window that you're used to, along with the most recent access points.
Gmail will allow users to change their passwords from the same window if they choose, or they can click "dismiss" if they are sure the log-in activity was legitimate.
Google intends to extend the feature into Google Apps after enough feedback is gathered.
Source:
http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2010/03/24/google-alerts-users-of-suspicious-gmail-log-in-activity
Web Design Firms
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Amazon Takes on Apple, Barnes & Noble with Kindle App for iPad
Amazon announces that more than 450,000 Kindle books will be available for the iPad when Apple's tablet arrives on April 3
Amazon.com introduced its e-book shop and reader app for the iPad Monday, entering the battle for e-books dominance against Apple's own iBooks store and Barnes & Noble's e-reader iPad app.
Amazon.com announced that more than 450,000 Kindle books would be available through its Kindle app for the iPad, when Apple's tablet arrives on April 3. The app will use Amazon's Whispersync technology to automatically synchronize the last page you read on other compatible devices, such as iPhones or Kindle e-readers.
The Kindle app for the iPad has been tailored to the size, look, and feel of the tablet, according to Amazon.com, and it lets you customize the background color and font size for the book's text. You can also adjust screen brightness from within the app.
Like the PC and Mac counterparts, the Kindle app for iPad will remember the last page you read and sync it with Amazon.com's servers, so if you continue reading on an iPhone, BlackBerry, or Kindle e-reader, you can pick up where you left off. Bookmarks, notes, highlights and annotations are also synced.
Amazon.com has also integrated the Kindle bookstore into the iPad app, which includes most of the New York Times bestsellers, alongside Amazon.com's own book collection of nearly a half million titles. Amazon.com says availability for some of these titles might vary for non-U.S. customers.
Similarly to Apple's own iBook store and app for the iPad, the Amazon.com Kindle app also uses page turn animations to replicate the look of turning a page in a book, and offers free book samples (the first chapter) before you decide to buy. If you purchase a book from the Kindle iPad app, you will be able to read it also on Kindle-compatible devices.
Alongside stiff competition from Apple's own iBooks store and software on its own tablet, the Kindle app will also have to battle Barnes & Noble's eReader app for the iPad, also expected to be available around April 3.
Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble have their own hardware e-book readers as well, the Kindle and the Nook, on which they sell e-books. Also, both have iPhone apps for reading books purchased from their respective stores.
An interesting tidbit from Amazon.com's announcement of its iPad app is that the company said that the app would be available "for tablet computers, including the iPad."
It's unclear which other tablets will get dedicated Kindle apps, considering the upcoming Hewlett-Packard slate was showed running the Kindle PC app. A possibility would be Dell's Streak tablet, running on Google Android, which is expected to incorporate many of Amazon.com's services.
Source:
http://www.infoworld.com/d/mobilize/amazon-takes-apple-barnes-noble-kindle-app-ipad-395
Professional Web Design Chicago
Amazon.com introduced its e-book shop and reader app for the iPad Monday, entering the battle for e-books dominance against Apple's own iBooks store and Barnes & Noble's e-reader iPad app.
Amazon.com announced that more than 450,000 Kindle books would be available through its Kindle app for the iPad, when Apple's tablet arrives on April 3. The app will use Amazon's Whispersync technology to automatically synchronize the last page you read on other compatible devices, such as iPhones or Kindle e-readers.
The Kindle app for the iPad has been tailored to the size, look, and feel of the tablet, according to Amazon.com, and it lets you customize the background color and font size for the book's text. You can also adjust screen brightness from within the app.
Like the PC and Mac counterparts, the Kindle app for iPad will remember the last page you read and sync it with Amazon.com's servers, so if you continue reading on an iPhone, BlackBerry, or Kindle e-reader, you can pick up where you left off. Bookmarks, notes, highlights and annotations are also synced.
Amazon.com has also integrated the Kindle bookstore into the iPad app, which includes most of the New York Times bestsellers, alongside Amazon.com's own book collection of nearly a half million titles. Amazon.com says availability for some of these titles might vary for non-U.S. customers.
Similarly to Apple's own iBook store and app for the iPad, the Amazon.com Kindle app also uses page turn animations to replicate the look of turning a page in a book, and offers free book samples (the first chapter) before you decide to buy. If you purchase a book from the Kindle iPad app, you will be able to read it also on Kindle-compatible devices.
Alongside stiff competition from Apple's own iBooks store and software on its own tablet, the Kindle app will also have to battle Barnes & Noble's eReader app for the iPad, also expected to be available around April 3.
Amazon.com and Barnes & Noble have their own hardware e-book readers as well, the Kindle and the Nook, on which they sell e-books. Also, both have iPhone apps for reading books purchased from their respective stores.
An interesting tidbit from Amazon.com's announcement of its iPad app is that the company said that the app would be available "for tablet computers, including the iPad."
It's unclear which other tablets will get dedicated Kindle apps, considering the upcoming Hewlett-Packard slate was showed running the Kindle PC app. A possibility would be Dell's Streak tablet, running on Google Android, which is expected to incorporate many of Amazon.com's services.
Source:
http://www.infoworld.com/d/mobilize/amazon-takes-apple-barnes-noble-kindle-app-ipad-395
Professional Web Design Chicago
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Unity Pacific Ocean Cable Close to Completion
Connect Google's Japanese and US data Centers.
Google is reported to be almost ready to start using a new high-speed internet cable under the Pacific Ocean to increase lit cable capacity by around 20 percent.
The new cable, dubbed Unity, will give Google a direct connection to the Asian market from the US to potentially handle 7.68 Terabits/s and offer Asian internet users faster browsing speeds.
The project was funded to the tune of US$300m ($327m) by Google and a consortium of six Asian telecommunication firms known as The Unity Consortium.
The six firms are Singapore Telecommunications, Bharti Airtel, Global Transit, Google, KDDI Corporation and Pacnet.
Google said in a statement today that the growing demand for access to information had made investment in the new pipeline a necessity.
"As the economies of Asian countries continue to grow, data traffic and the use of the internet expands. Google is a global company and is committed to providing the best quality of user experience, regardless of geography," it said.
The new underwater cable will offer connections between Google's Japanese and US data centres, enabling it to offer improved services to Asian customers and guarantee it access to a large amount of new bandwidth to help it meet growing user demands.
The pipe's completion comes at a time when Google looks set to pull out of Asia's biggest market, China, something it probably didn't envisage doing when it first announced the Unity project two years ago.
Source:
http://www.itnews.com.au/News/170060,unity-pacific-ocean-cable-close-to-completion.aspx
Chicago Website Design
Google is reported to be almost ready to start using a new high-speed internet cable under the Pacific Ocean to increase lit cable capacity by around 20 percent.
The new cable, dubbed Unity, will give Google a direct connection to the Asian market from the US to potentially handle 7.68 Terabits/s and offer Asian internet users faster browsing speeds.
The project was funded to the tune of US$300m ($327m) by Google and a consortium of six Asian telecommunication firms known as The Unity Consortium.
The six firms are Singapore Telecommunications, Bharti Airtel, Global Transit, Google, KDDI Corporation and Pacnet.
Google said in a statement today that the growing demand for access to information had made investment in the new pipeline a necessity.
"As the economies of Asian countries continue to grow, data traffic and the use of the internet expands. Google is a global company and is committed to providing the best quality of user experience, regardless of geography," it said.
The new underwater cable will offer connections between Google's Japanese and US data centres, enabling it to offer improved services to Asian customers and guarantee it access to a large amount of new bandwidth to help it meet growing user demands.
The pipe's completion comes at a time when Google looks set to pull out of Asia's biggest market, China, something it probably didn't envisage doing when it first announced the Unity project two years ago.
Source:
http://www.itnews.com.au/News/170060,unity-pacific-ocean-cable-close-to-completion.aspx
Chicago Website Design
Friday, March 19, 2010
Judge Approves Facebook's Settlement Offer in Beacon Case
Facebook will spend $9.5M to set up privacy foundation under the deal
A federal judge has approved a proposed settlement by Facebook in a class-action lawsuit involving its now defunct Beacon behavioral tracking service.
Under the settlement, Facebook will pay $9.5 million to set up a privacy foundation to fund projects promoting the cause of online privacy in return for the lawsuit against it to be dropped.
In approving the settlement, Judge Richard Seeborg of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California overturned several objections that had been raised by some members of the class-action in response to the Facebook offer.
In a 12-page ruling, Seeborg called Facebook's proposed settlement "fair, reasonable, adequate and proper and in the best interests of the Settlement Class."
The dispute stems from a lawsuit filed in August 2008 against Facebook by several users of the social networking site. The suit alleged that Facebook and Beacon affiliates such as Blockbuster and Overstock.com had violated several federal privacy laws, including the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and the Video Privacy Protection Act, when they shared data about Facebook users with each other.
In response, Facebook last September extended a settlement offer under which it said it would spend $9.5 million to set up a privacy foundation focused on online privacy issues. As part of its settlement offer, Facebook said it would shut down the Beacon service entirely.
Privacy advocates welcomed the company's decision to shutter Beacon. But earlier this year, consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, of Washington D.C, and some Facebook users asked the court to reject the offer.
In their complaint, the groups said that the proposed settlement did nothing to compensate victims whose privacy may have been compromised by Beacon. Other than formally disbanding a program that Facebook had voluntarily already discontinued, the settlement offered little else the groups complained.
They also argued that the settlement would give Facebook a direct role in drafting the mission and bylaws of the proposed foundation and in appointing board members. The complaint noted that one of the three initial directors of the foundation would in fact be a Facebook employee and chief lobbyist.
Facebook, meanwhile, claimed that the opposition to its settlement offer stemmed from a complete lack of understanding of the proposal . The company insisted that the proposed privacy foundation would be an independent entity run by three well known and respected privacy advocates.
In his ruling, Judge Seeborg expressed similar sentiments. Those objecting to the proposed settlement had not shown "any substantial reason to doubt the independence of two of the three directors," he wrote. It is reasonable to expect that the Facebook director would be opposed to any actions taken by the privacy foundation that would directly harm Facebook, the judge said.
However, that does not mean that the foundation will end up being a "mere publicity tool for Facebook," or be under its direct control, he said. He also rejected the objection that class members were due any monetary compensation. The chances of class members receiving any compensation if the case was to go to court are "speculative at best" given the circumstances of the case, he wrote.
A Facebook spokesman expressed satisfaction over the ruling. "We're pleased that Judge Seeborg has approved the settlement after carefully considering all opinions," he said in a statement. It added that Facebook will be releasing additional details on the foundation over the next several months.
Jaikumar Vijayan covers data security and privacy issues, financial services security and e-voting for Computerworld .
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/internet-based-applications-and-services/15658/judge-approves-facebooks-settlement-offer-beacon-case?page=0,0
Professional Web Design Chicago
A federal judge has approved a proposed settlement by Facebook in a class-action lawsuit involving its now defunct Beacon behavioral tracking service.
Under the settlement, Facebook will pay $9.5 million to set up a privacy foundation to fund projects promoting the cause of online privacy in return for the lawsuit against it to be dropped.
In approving the settlement, Judge Richard Seeborg of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California overturned several objections that had been raised by some members of the class-action in response to the Facebook offer.
In a 12-page ruling, Seeborg called Facebook's proposed settlement "fair, reasonable, adequate and proper and in the best interests of the Settlement Class."
The dispute stems from a lawsuit filed in August 2008 against Facebook by several users of the social networking site. The suit alleged that Facebook and Beacon affiliates such as Blockbuster and Overstock.com had violated several federal privacy laws, including the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and the Video Privacy Protection Act, when they shared data about Facebook users with each other.
In response, Facebook last September extended a settlement offer under which it said it would spend $9.5 million to set up a privacy foundation focused on online privacy issues. As part of its settlement offer, Facebook said it would shut down the Beacon service entirely.
Privacy advocates welcomed the company's decision to shutter Beacon. But earlier this year, consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, of Washington D.C, and some Facebook users asked the court to reject the offer.
In their complaint, the groups said that the proposed settlement did nothing to compensate victims whose privacy may have been compromised by Beacon. Other than formally disbanding a program that Facebook had voluntarily already discontinued, the settlement offered little else the groups complained.
They also argued that the settlement would give Facebook a direct role in drafting the mission and bylaws of the proposed foundation and in appointing board members. The complaint noted that one of the three initial directors of the foundation would in fact be a Facebook employee and chief lobbyist.
Facebook, meanwhile, claimed that the opposition to its settlement offer stemmed from a complete lack of understanding of the proposal . The company insisted that the proposed privacy foundation would be an independent entity run by three well known and respected privacy advocates.
In his ruling, Judge Seeborg expressed similar sentiments. Those objecting to the proposed settlement had not shown "any substantial reason to doubt the independence of two of the three directors," he wrote. It is reasonable to expect that the Facebook director would be opposed to any actions taken by the privacy foundation that would directly harm Facebook, the judge said.
However, that does not mean that the foundation will end up being a "mere publicity tool for Facebook," or be under its direct control, he said. He also rejected the objection that class members were due any monetary compensation. The chances of class members receiving any compensation if the case was to go to court are "speculative at best" given the circumstances of the case, he wrote.
A Facebook spokesman expressed satisfaction over the ruling. "We're pleased that Judge Seeborg has approved the settlement after carefully considering all opinions," he said in a statement. It added that Facebook will be releasing additional details on the foundation over the next several months.
Jaikumar Vijayan covers data security and privacy issues, financial services security and e-voting for Computerworld .
Source:
http://www.itnews.com/internet-based-applications-and-services/15658/judge-approves-facebooks-settlement-offer-beacon-case?page=0,0
Professional Web Design Chicago
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Viacom-YouTube Secrets To Be Exposed in Lawsuit
A legal tussle pitting media conglomerate Viacom Inc. against online video leader YouTube is about to get dirtier as a federal judge prepares to release documents that will expose their secrets and other confidential information.
The information expected to be unsealed Thursday will include some of the evidence that Viacom and Google-owned YouTube have collected to prove their respective points, but have kept under wraps so far during their 3-year-old dispute over copyright law.
The sensitive material is emerging now because Viacom and YouTube are citing some of the documents as they try to persuade U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton in New York to decide the case without a trial. Stanton isn't likely to decide on a so-called summary judgment for several more months.
Each side will likely be pointing to things that the other might find embarrassing.
The evidence is expected to provide insights into the early strategies of YouTube co-founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen and how they responded to copyright complaints that quickly accumulated a few months after the Web site's 2005 debut. The documents also could reveal whether other media suitors tried to buy YouTube before Google acquired the site for $1.76 billion in 2006.
Viacom, the owner of Paramount Pictures and cable TV channels that include Comedy Central, sued YouTube in 2007 seeking more than $1 billion in damages.
Viacom alleges that YouTube built its early success by rampantly infringing on copyrights. YouTube maintains it follows the copyright laws governing the Internet.
Viacom seems particularly interested in sharing some of the documents that it gathered from YouTube and Google. The company, based in New York, argued for a quick release of the records shortly after it and YouTube filed their motions for summary judgments.
YouTube's lawyers unsuccessfully tried to persuade Stanton to keep the documents under seal until this summer.
One of the biggest disputes in the case is how YouTube monitored its site for copyright violations before Google bought it.
Viacom contends YouTube's employees realized copyright-protected video was being illegally posted on the Web site, but routinely looked the other way because they knew the professionally produced material would help attract a bigger audience and encourage return visits.
YouTube lawyers have contended there was no way to know whether copyright-protected video was coming from pirates or from movie and TV studios looking to use the Web site as a promotional tool. If a studio issued a notice of a copyright violation, YouTube says it promptly removed the specified clip as required under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
The 1998 federal law generally protects service providers such as YouTube from copyright claims as long as they promptly remove infringing material when notified about a violation. The outcome could hinge on whether Viacom can prove YouTube knew about the copyright abuses without formal notice from Viacom.
Although other content producers also initially complained about copyright abuse at YouTube, many media companies have since struck revenue-sharing deals with the Web site.
YouTube won over much of the professional media by developing technology that automatically detects video and audio claimed by its copyright owners.
Source:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100318/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_viacom_youtube;_ylt=AgOPiIY4__hzc83BxBstPiwjtBAF;_ylu=X3oDMTJtcjdob3BpBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwMzE4L3VzX3RlY192aWFjb21feW91dHViZQRjcG9zAzEEcG9zAzIEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDdmlhY29tLXlvdXR1
Chicago Website Design
The information expected to be unsealed Thursday will include some of the evidence that Viacom and Google-owned YouTube have collected to prove their respective points, but have kept under wraps so far during their 3-year-old dispute over copyright law.
The sensitive material is emerging now because Viacom and YouTube are citing some of the documents as they try to persuade U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton in New York to decide the case without a trial. Stanton isn't likely to decide on a so-called summary judgment for several more months.
Each side will likely be pointing to things that the other might find embarrassing.
The evidence is expected to provide insights into the early strategies of YouTube co-founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen and how they responded to copyright complaints that quickly accumulated a few months after the Web site's 2005 debut. The documents also could reveal whether other media suitors tried to buy YouTube before Google acquired the site for $1.76 billion in 2006.
Viacom, the owner of Paramount Pictures and cable TV channels that include Comedy Central, sued YouTube in 2007 seeking more than $1 billion in damages.
Viacom alleges that YouTube built its early success by rampantly infringing on copyrights. YouTube maintains it follows the copyright laws governing the Internet.
Viacom seems particularly interested in sharing some of the documents that it gathered from YouTube and Google. The company, based in New York, argued for a quick release of the records shortly after it and YouTube filed their motions for summary judgments.
YouTube's lawyers unsuccessfully tried to persuade Stanton to keep the documents under seal until this summer.
One of the biggest disputes in the case is how YouTube monitored its site for copyright violations before Google bought it.
Viacom contends YouTube's employees realized copyright-protected video was being illegally posted on the Web site, but routinely looked the other way because they knew the professionally produced material would help attract a bigger audience and encourage return visits.
YouTube lawyers have contended there was no way to know whether copyright-protected video was coming from pirates or from movie and TV studios looking to use the Web site as a promotional tool. If a studio issued a notice of a copyright violation, YouTube says it promptly removed the specified clip as required under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
The 1998 federal law generally protects service providers such as YouTube from copyright claims as long as they promptly remove infringing material when notified about a violation. The outcome could hinge on whether Viacom can prove YouTube knew about the copyright abuses without formal notice from Viacom.
Although other content producers also initially complained about copyright abuse at YouTube, many media companies have since struck revenue-sharing deals with the Web site.
YouTube won over much of the professional media by developing technology that automatically detects video and audio claimed by its copyright owners.
Source:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100318/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_viacom_youtube;_ylt=AgOPiIY4__hzc83BxBstPiwjtBAF;_ylu=X3oDMTJtcjdob3BpBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwMzE4L3VzX3RlY192aWFjb21feW91dHViZQRjcG9zAzEEcG9zAzIEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDdmlhY29tLXlvdXR1
Chicago Website Design
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Microsoft Loses $106 Million Patent Verdict to VirnetX
A jury in Texas said the patent infringement was willful.
A court in Texas has ordered Microsoft to pay communications software maker VirnetX US$105.75 million after a jury found it guilty of willful infringement of two patents belonging to the company.
In a case that began over two years ago, VirnetX accused Microsoft of infringing the two patents, which are related to communications security, at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.
The willful nature of the infringement means Microsoft faced treble damages in the lawsuit, according to court documents. The original complaint was filed by VirnetX on Feb 15, 2007.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to questions about the case.
VirnetX built its patent portfolio from a U.S. Central Intelligence Agency security project, according to the company. It expects Microsoft to appeal the decision.
Source: http://www.itworld.com/legal/101164/microsoft-loses-106-million-patent-verdict-virnetx
Chicago Web Site Design Company
A court in Texas has ordered Microsoft to pay communications software maker VirnetX US$105.75 million after a jury found it guilty of willful infringement of two patents belonging to the company.
In a case that began over two years ago, VirnetX accused Microsoft of infringing the two patents, which are related to communications security, at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.
The willful nature of the infringement means Microsoft faced treble damages in the lawsuit, according to court documents. The original complaint was filed by VirnetX on Feb 15, 2007.
Microsoft did not immediately respond to questions about the case.
VirnetX built its patent portfolio from a U.S. Central Intelligence Agency security project, according to the company. It expects Microsoft to appeal the decision.
Source: http://www.itworld.com/legal/101164/microsoft-loses-106-million-patent-verdict-virnetx
Chicago Web Site Design Company
Good Website Design Supports Search Engine Marketing
Your Search Engine Marketing efforts are geared toward bringing more visitors to your website. Once there, it is the job of your website to convert such visits into sales. How can your website do this if it does not have an optimized Professional Web Design? By optimized, we mean a design that is user-friendly and leads the user to purchase your products or services.
A website offers information to the visitor using a combination of graphics, text and, in some cases, video and audio. It can be a one-page website or a collection of web pages linked to each other to form a whole.
Like all other projects, web design needs careful planning for its design layout and contents. This will also be the basis for easier website expansion later.
It is very important that the main objective of the website be identified clearly in the planning stage. Who is the target audience of the website and what action do you want that audience to do? Only when these are clearly defined will you be able to plan the design of the website effectively.
Of course, anyone from around the world can view your website. You also have to make sure, therefore, that your website appeals to a wide audience even while it is especially targeted to your preferred primary audience.
Your business website's look should reflect the image you want to project for your company. It should contain the company's profile and products and services. Upon arriving at your website, your visitors should immediately see what you can do for them and why you are their best choice over your competitors. Your website should have rich content, an attractive visual design and an intuitive interface. Your content should be original and informative to your visitors. It is important that this content is written with search engine optimization in mind, with all the appropriate keywords and key phrases in place.
Most websites are made up of several web pages. Each web page should have its own objectives. The web pages should be titled based on your keywords and key phrases.
From the home page and all other pages of the website, the visitor must be able to see what other pages are available and what links to click to get there. Graphic icons can be used with text to aid navigation and interaction. Make sure, though, that the graphics do not take too long to load. Stick with small file sizes. Do not make your visitor rely on the "back" and "forward" buttons of the web browser. Your own menu should be on every web page, with links to all other web pages. These links should change to a distinctly different color once a link has been visited so that the visitor knows where he has already been and where he has not yet visited.
A very useful tool in planning the website is the storyboard. The storyboard is the counterpart of an outline for the website. It contains the general objective of the website and its primary target audience. It also includes all the individual web pages and their respective objectives. All the minor objectives should be working in support of the general objective of the entire website. With the storyboard, everything is placed in their proper places. You avoid having a confusing website. You also avoid duplicate content as well as missing out on some important details. At a glance, you immediately see what you have or do not have. This can also make your site mapping much easier. It saves you much time and effort.
With proper planning and preparation, you are on your way to the best Professional Web Design Chicago to support your Search Engine Marketing Campaign.
A website offers information to the visitor using a combination of graphics, text and, in some cases, video and audio. It can be a one-page website or a collection of web pages linked to each other to form a whole.
Like all other projects, web design needs careful planning for its design layout and contents. This will also be the basis for easier website expansion later.
It is very important that the main objective of the website be identified clearly in the planning stage. Who is the target audience of the website and what action do you want that audience to do? Only when these are clearly defined will you be able to plan the design of the website effectively.
Of course, anyone from around the world can view your website. You also have to make sure, therefore, that your website appeals to a wide audience even while it is especially targeted to your preferred primary audience.
Your business website's look should reflect the image you want to project for your company. It should contain the company's profile and products and services. Upon arriving at your website, your visitors should immediately see what you can do for them and why you are their best choice over your competitors. Your website should have rich content, an attractive visual design and an intuitive interface. Your content should be original and informative to your visitors. It is important that this content is written with search engine optimization in mind, with all the appropriate keywords and key phrases in place.
Most websites are made up of several web pages. Each web page should have its own objectives. The web pages should be titled based on your keywords and key phrases.
From the home page and all other pages of the website, the visitor must be able to see what other pages are available and what links to click to get there. Graphic icons can be used with text to aid navigation and interaction. Make sure, though, that the graphics do not take too long to load. Stick with small file sizes. Do not make your visitor rely on the "back" and "forward" buttons of the web browser. Your own menu should be on every web page, with links to all other web pages. These links should change to a distinctly different color once a link has been visited so that the visitor knows where he has already been and where he has not yet visited.
A very useful tool in planning the website is the storyboard. The storyboard is the counterpart of an outline for the website. It contains the general objective of the website and its primary target audience. It also includes all the individual web pages and their respective objectives. All the minor objectives should be working in support of the general objective of the entire website. With the storyboard, everything is placed in their proper places. You avoid having a confusing website. You also avoid duplicate content as well as missing out on some important details. At a glance, you immediately see what you have or do not have. This can also make your site mapping much easier. It saves you much time and effort.
With proper planning and preparation, you are on your way to the best Professional Web Design Chicago to support your Search Engine Marketing Campaign.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Facebook, Twitter most used Social Media Sites in E-Commerce
Ecommerce sites tend to use Facebook and Twitter above other Social Media Sites in their Digital Marketing Campaigns.
This is according to a new survey by Practical eCommerce, which shows that 78 per cent of the US online retailers it polled use Facebook, while 75.6 per cent utilise Twitter for social media marketing purposes.
Almost three in ten retailers cited other social networking sites, including LinkedIn, YouTube, MySpace and Google Buzz.
About 11 per cent of respondents revealed that they do not make use of any social media sites at all.
Nearly seven in ten retailers said they intend to up their social media online marketing activity in the future, with 26.8 per cent to keep their campaigns the same.
When asked how social media had helped their businesses, over half said it had had a beneficial effect.
A recent study by the Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth found that Fortune 500 companies are increasingly utilising social media marketing.
The number of firms found to be using blogs and social networking websites like Twitter increased significantly between 2008 and 2009, according to the research.
Source:
http://www.bluhalo.com/news/view/7769/facebook-twitter-most-used-social-media-sites-in-ecommerce
Professional Web Design Chicago
This is according to a new survey by Practical eCommerce, which shows that 78 per cent of the US online retailers it polled use Facebook, while 75.6 per cent utilise Twitter for social media marketing purposes.
Almost three in ten retailers cited other social networking sites, including LinkedIn, YouTube, MySpace and Google Buzz.
About 11 per cent of respondents revealed that they do not make use of any social media sites at all.
Nearly seven in ten retailers said they intend to up their social media online marketing activity in the future, with 26.8 per cent to keep their campaigns the same.
When asked how social media had helped their businesses, over half said it had had a beneficial effect.
A recent study by the Center for Marketing Research at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth found that Fortune 500 companies are increasingly utilising social media marketing.
The number of firms found to be using blogs and social networking websites like Twitter increased significantly between 2008 and 2009, according to the research.
Source:
http://www.bluhalo.com/news/view/7769/facebook-twitter-most-used-social-media-sites-in-ecommerce
Professional Web Design Chicago
Thursday, March 11, 2010
HP Aims for 'amazing' with AD Campaign
Printers aren't exactly synonymous with pizazz, and that can be a drag for a tech company that wants to be known as more than just a printer maker. Which brings us to Hewlett-Packard's new marketing campaign.
The company, which also happens to be the PC market leader, is embarking on a new effort designed to juice up its image among people who may see it only as a traditional printer manufacturer.
Developed by the ad agency 72andSunny, HP's new tagline "Let's Do Amazing" will drive a new series of TV spots and digital media ads set to debut March 13. The ads are being geared not just toward consumers and businesses but also to HP's employees, many of whom are new to the company.
The promotion will feature stories from businesses such as UPS and the Venetian Hotel and celebrities such as rapper Dr. Dre and photographer Annie Leibovitz, all talking about the things they do with HP products and services.
"HP has expanded significantly over the past five years to become the largest technology company in the world and yet most customers do not see the breadth and depth of what we do," said Glenna Patton, vice president of Brand Strategy and Experience Design for HP, in a statement. "'Let's Do Amazing' celebrates HP's roll-up-your-sleeves culture of do-ers who don't just talk and don't just think--and will stop at nothing short of amazing to innovate and deliver for customers."
More than 20 of HP's usual ad agencies fought to grab the business for this promotion before the company finally chose 72andSunny. The eight-week campaign is likely costing HP around $40 million, according to The Wall Street Journal, (subscripion required) citing a person familiar with the matter.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1001_3-10467642-92.html
Professional Web Design Chicago
The company, which also happens to be the PC market leader, is embarking on a new effort designed to juice up its image among people who may see it only as a traditional printer manufacturer.
Developed by the ad agency 72andSunny, HP's new tagline "Let's Do Amazing" will drive a new series of TV spots and digital media ads set to debut March 13. The ads are being geared not just toward consumers and businesses but also to HP's employees, many of whom are new to the company.
The promotion will feature stories from businesses such as UPS and the Venetian Hotel and celebrities such as rapper Dr. Dre and photographer Annie Leibovitz, all talking about the things they do with HP products and services.
"HP has expanded significantly over the past five years to become the largest technology company in the world and yet most customers do not see the breadth and depth of what we do," said Glenna Patton, vice president of Brand Strategy and Experience Design for HP, in a statement. "'Let's Do Amazing' celebrates HP's roll-up-your-sleeves culture of do-ers who don't just talk and don't just think--and will stop at nothing short of amazing to innovate and deliver for customers."
More than 20 of HP's usual ad agencies fought to grab the business for this promotion before the company finally chose 72andSunny. The eight-week campaign is likely costing HP around $40 million, according to The Wall Street Journal, (subscripion required) citing a person familiar with the matter.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1001_3-10467642-92.html
Professional Web Design Chicago
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
WhitePages.com Halts AD Networks Over Malware
WhitePages.com has stopped ad networks from delivering ads to its site after they were found to contain fake Antivirus Malware.
"On Monday morning WhitePages received reports from users [about] malware in the form of a fake antivirus upsell program that we believe originated (against our terms) from a third-party advertising network serving ads on our website, in addition to other websites," a WhitePages spokeswoman said in an e-mail late Tuesday.
"We immediately suspended the networks in question at which time the reports from users subsided," she wrote. "We are working diligently to prevent this from happening in the future."
A representative for the Senate's Committee on Environment and Public Works said on Tuesday that officials were looking at WhitePages.com and Drudge Report as possible sources of malware that had affected Senate computers the day before.
Matt Drudge denied the accusation on his site and accused the committee of politicking. But several CNET readers reported that they too had been hit with the malware when they visited the Drudge Report Web site, a conservative news aggregator that sometimes authors stories too.
Web sites that have ad networks serve their ads are susceptible to malware being distributed on their sites without their knowledge or involvement. Visitors to the Drudge Report, The New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, and other Web sites were found to be delivering ads containing malware last year.
The Drudge Report did not return an e-mail seeking comment Wednesday.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-10466753-245.html
Chicago Web Design Firms
"On Monday morning WhitePages received reports from users [about] malware in the form of a fake antivirus upsell program that we believe originated (against our terms) from a third-party advertising network serving ads on our website, in addition to other websites," a WhitePages spokeswoman said in an e-mail late Tuesday.
"We immediately suspended the networks in question at which time the reports from users subsided," she wrote. "We are working diligently to prevent this from happening in the future."
A representative for the Senate's Committee on Environment and Public Works said on Tuesday that officials were looking at WhitePages.com and Drudge Report as possible sources of malware that had affected Senate computers the day before.
Matt Drudge denied the accusation on his site and accused the committee of politicking. But several CNET readers reported that they too had been hit with the malware when they visited the Drudge Report Web site, a conservative news aggregator that sometimes authors stories too.
Web sites that have ad networks serve their ads are susceptible to malware being distributed on their sites without their knowledge or involvement. Visitors to the Drudge Report, The New York Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, and other Web sites were found to be delivering ads containing malware last year.
The Drudge Report did not return an e-mail seeking comment Wednesday.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-10466753-245.html
Chicago Web Design Firms
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Affordable Web Design for Greater Business Impact
Website design needs to be done under professional assistance as it's one of the crucial factors that can assist you have your solid web presence in the most noticeable manner ever possible. At a time when the entire world is in the hunt for a complete web based offer environment, it's become the order of the day to coin the most rewarding business interfaces, and in this regard nothing can be as rewarding as a user-friendly website.
Professional Web Design has been such a breather for everyone who has an eye for jumping into the thriving e-business. Gone are the days when businesses were done manually. You need to run to a shop or outlet physically, browse through the product ranges carefully, and then have these purchased in cash.
But the scene is entirely different today. You have plastic cards with valuable information embossed on them and by putting those information using the web over a secured server, you can get your product delivered to you right at your doorstep without any hassles. What have made the entire process so easy and exciting for you? The city based Chicago Web Site Design Company need to be given full credit for that.
These companies offer very cost effective web design and development packages at zero headache. If you are confident of what you want to do, and you have that 'will', then you are sure to rise! Rest will be taken care of by your promoter or web service provider.
A Professional website Design Firm offers 360 degree web solutions for all types and sizes of clients. It doesn't matter whether you are into financial services or travel business, your web requirements will be easily fulfilled by such a firm at very reasonable cost. So, why wait further at a time when low cost website design is available to you.
It just a matter of sound knowledge input and business acumen. Rest is all profitable, profitable in a sense that leads you towards better market strength and impressive customer acquisition and retention. So, by now what do you think about the current web developmental pace? Isn't it too amazing?
Professional Web Design has been such a breather for everyone who has an eye for jumping into the thriving e-business. Gone are the days when businesses were done manually. You need to run to a shop or outlet physically, browse through the product ranges carefully, and then have these purchased in cash.
But the scene is entirely different today. You have plastic cards with valuable information embossed on them and by putting those information using the web over a secured server, you can get your product delivered to you right at your doorstep without any hassles. What have made the entire process so easy and exciting for you? The city based Chicago Web Site Design Company need to be given full credit for that.
These companies offer very cost effective web design and development packages at zero headache. If you are confident of what you want to do, and you have that 'will', then you are sure to rise! Rest will be taken care of by your promoter or web service provider.
A Professional website Design Firm offers 360 degree web solutions for all types and sizes of clients. It doesn't matter whether you are into financial services or travel business, your web requirements will be easily fulfilled by such a firm at very reasonable cost. So, why wait further at a time when low cost website design is available to you.
It just a matter of sound knowledge input and business acumen. Rest is all profitable, profitable in a sense that leads you towards better market strength and impressive customer acquisition and retention. So, by now what do you think about the current web developmental pace? Isn't it too amazing?
Monday, March 8, 2010
Google Admits its SEO Could use a Little Work
Google has published a detailed, 49-page report that rates the search engine optimization (SEO) on its various properties including the Google Search home page. The result? It's failing in a number of categories.
On the bright side, the company says it plans to use this information to better its own SEO, and that to help others, the company has shared some of the metrics it's used.
The report covers 100 of Google's products. The company is also planning a follow-up that will cover international localizations.
Among the items under scrutiny, one of the biggest areas of failure for the company is in "search result presentation," where the company scored a 33/100 or lower in three different categories, the lowest being "title tag format and length." This is how much information appears in the large, blue search result links as well as the text descriptions that appear below them. The report points at several ways to fix this, including the use of "descriptive words and phrases in your page's title tag."
Another low point of the report is the company's score on the destination sites where images of logos led. These are the Google product logos that tend to reside in the upper left hand corner of the screen. The report found that well over half of these simply linked somewhere they were not supposed to, including 404 pages. Google's solution, which is SEO friendly, is to use 301 redirects across the board; that way all the links go to the same place, and the Search Engine can re-index the page in the proper location.
Not all the report was bad though. Google scored well in offering a clear main page result (or only having one or two links that lead to the main product page), as well as having proper use of headline tags and internal anchor text.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-20000121-248.html
Professional Web Design Chicago
On the bright side, the company says it plans to use this information to better its own SEO, and that to help others, the company has shared some of the metrics it's used.
The report covers 100 of Google's products. The company is also planning a follow-up that will cover international localizations.
Among the items under scrutiny, one of the biggest areas of failure for the company is in "search result presentation," where the company scored a 33/100 or lower in three different categories, the lowest being "title tag format and length." This is how much information appears in the large, blue search result links as well as the text descriptions that appear below them. The report points at several ways to fix this, including the use of "descriptive words and phrases in your page's title tag."
Another low point of the report is the company's score on the destination sites where images of logos led. These are the Google product logos that tend to reside in the upper left hand corner of the screen. The report found that well over half of these simply linked somewhere they were not supposed to, including 404 pages. Google's solution, which is SEO friendly, is to use 301 redirects across the board; that way all the links go to the same place, and the Search Engine can re-index the page in the proper location.
Not all the report was bad though. Google scored well in offering a clear main page result (or only having one or two links that lead to the main product page), as well as having proper use of headline tags and internal anchor text.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-20000121-248.html
Professional Web Design Chicago
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Google Buys DocVerse
The acquisition means Google and Microsoft will both be offering online components for Microsoft Office
With its acquisition of DocVerse, announced Friday, Google is offering an online component to Microsoft Word before Microsoft does so itself.
DocVerse, a company founded by two former Microsoft employees, lets Microsoft Office users share and edit their documents online. The software is an Office plug-in that tracks and synchs changes that people make to a document so that multiple people can work on a file without having to send the file back and forth and try to keep track of changes.
The functionality sounds similar to that which will be included in Office 2010, the newest version of the software expected to become widely available on May 12. Office 2010 will let users store, edit and share documents online.
In a blog post, Google said it still believes that the Web is the best place to create and share information, via its Google Docs offering. "But we recognize that many people are still accustomed to desktop software. So ... we're also making it easier for people to transition to the cloud, and interoperate with desktop applications like Microsoft Office," Jonathan Rochelle, group product manager at Google, wrote in the blog post. "With DocVerse, people can begin to experience some of the benefits of Web-based collaboration using the traditional Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint desktop applications."
Google plans to link Google Docs with the DocVerse offering, according to DocVerse's founders. "Our first step will be to combine DocVerse with Google Apps to create a bridge between Microsoft Office and Google Apps," wrote DocVerse's Shan Sinha, founder and CEO, and Alex DeNeui, founder and CTO, in a blog post.
The move could step up the competition between Google and Microsoft for users. People who have existing versions of Office could decide to use DocVerse rather than upgrade to Office 2010 in order to get the online sharing capabilities.
It is not clear when a new product from DocVerse that integrates Google Apps will become available.
Source:
http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/google-buys-docverse-860
Chicago Web Designing Firms
With its acquisition of DocVerse, announced Friday, Google is offering an online component to Microsoft Word before Microsoft does so itself.
DocVerse, a company founded by two former Microsoft employees, lets Microsoft Office users share and edit their documents online. The software is an Office plug-in that tracks and synchs changes that people make to a document so that multiple people can work on a file without having to send the file back and forth and try to keep track of changes.
The functionality sounds similar to that which will be included in Office 2010, the newest version of the software expected to become widely available on May 12. Office 2010 will let users store, edit and share documents online.
In a blog post, Google said it still believes that the Web is the best place to create and share information, via its Google Docs offering. "But we recognize that many people are still accustomed to desktop software. So ... we're also making it easier for people to transition to the cloud, and interoperate with desktop applications like Microsoft Office," Jonathan Rochelle, group product manager at Google, wrote in the blog post. "With DocVerse, people can begin to experience some of the benefits of Web-based collaboration using the traditional Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint desktop applications."
Google plans to link Google Docs with the DocVerse offering, according to DocVerse's founders. "Our first step will be to combine DocVerse with Google Apps to create a bridge between Microsoft Office and Google Apps," wrote DocVerse's Shan Sinha, founder and CEO, and Alex DeNeui, founder and CTO, in a blog post.
The move could step up the competition between Google and Microsoft for users. People who have existing versions of Office could decide to use DocVerse rather than upgrade to Office 2010 in order to get the online sharing capabilities.
It is not clear when a new product from DocVerse that integrates Google Apps will become available.
Source:
http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/google-buys-docverse-860
Chicago Web Designing Firms
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Mail.ru Removed Yandex Search but Google Is Not Getting the Market Share Anyway
Some of you may remember that late last year the blogosphere was engaged in an animated discussion over decision of Mail.ru, one of the leading online portals in Russia, to replace search technology by local Yandex with that of Google.
Yandex (which is the leading search engine in Russia with a market share much higher than that of Google) has been the search technology of choice for Mail.ru for the previous 3 years but expiration of the contract provoked new negotiations with potential search partners. Rumors are that eventually Google search technology was selected because Google chose to provide unbranded search results - something Yandex was not willing to offer insisting on an attribution.
In addition to use of Google’s search engine itself, Mail.ru also opened its pages to Google AdSense,- hence becoming one of the major publishers for the advertising network in Russia. This extra income was probably the reason for Google to be willing to provide unbranded search technology where Yandex did not want to.
Another appealing factor that probably influenced the decision for Google was the market share in web search held by Mail.ru: its 10% previously served by Yandex were expected to be going directly to Google now - thus increasing the international search giant market share in Russia from its previous 23 per cent to 33 per cent which is much better comparable to 59 per cent that Yandex is supposed to have once Mail.ru switches the search providers.
The Google-powered search (without attribution but still) was supposed to appear on Mail.ru in January 2010 as officially declared in a press release issued by Mail.ru and Google in December. But now that we are half into January already, many of us here in Russia (me included) have been checking Mail.ru search once and again to see the results coming from Google instead of Yandex - and never getting what we expected and thinking that the delay was due to the lengthy holiday vacations.
But now it looks like the only thing that Google has acquired via this much-discussed deal is an increase in revenue due to a huge extra number of AdSense impressions - but the market share will probably remain the same for Google. The thing is that Mail.ru is obviously using another search provider, its own development named gogo.ru - and no Google is to be seen other than in ads.
The conditions of the deal had it that Mail.ru will be able to combine Google search with its own gogo in order for the company to continue developing its own technology. And now Mail.ru is happily using gogo - testing it under heavy loads as Mail.ru representatives claim - monetizing the search pages with AdSense and keeping Google as a backup in case gogo is unable to withstand the heavy load.
The worst part (for Google, I mean) is that Mail.ru representatives now claim that the currently used gogo (absolutely in compliance with the agreement between Mail.ru and Google), actually demonstrates impressive results - much better than expected - so they will probably keep Google as a backup engine and the international giant will not see any increase in its market share due to this deal at all - even if they initially hoped to.
Of course there are people here who already think that Russian authorities may be involved in the entire situation - and insisted on use of a local search engine instead of allowing the international company to grow its market share substantially here. But to me this seems to be unlikely and what it really looks like is Mail.ru funding development of its own search technologies using Google money - and not even violating any terms of the agreement with Google.
Source:
http://profy.com/2010/01/13/mailru-removed-yandex-search-but-no-market-share-for-google/
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Hedge fund offers $1.8 billion for Novell
Elliott Associates has offered to acquire software maker Novell.
The acquisition offer, delivered in a letter to Novell's board of directors, is valued at $1.8 billion, or $5.75 per share. Elliott Associates already owns 8.5 percent of Novell's shares, which it began buying up in January.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Elliott Associates told Novell's board that the stock has "meaningfully underperformed" and called recent acquisitions and changes in strategies "unsuccessful." The hedge fund says its experience in restructuring and acquisitions will "deliver maximum value to shareholders."
Novell confirmed that its board had received the letter and "anticipates that its Board of Directors will review Elliott's proposal in consultation with its financial and legal advisors," the company said in a statement issued Tuesday evening.
Shares of its stock jumped 26 percent, to $6, in after-hours trading on the news.
Novell is certainly a long way from its heyday. At one time, its Netware operating system was widely used on corporate servers. It also had ambitions to rival Microsoft, acquiring the WordPerfect suite of desktop applications, a tough competitor to Microsoft's Office suite. But Novell, perhaps as much as any company, learned what it's like to compete with Microsoft and lose. When Windows NT hit the market in the 1990s, Novell began a slow decline. Several CEOs came and went, including Google CEO Eric Schmidt.
In fact, Schmidt saw early success at Novell's helm, even briefly moving the company's executive offices from Utah to San Jose, Calif. Schmidt pushed the company to release Netware 5.0 well ahead of Microsoft's Windows 2000. But once Windows 2000 debuted, Schmidt and the rest of Novell didn't have a good response, and the company's decline continued.
After Schmidt left, the company returned to its Utah roots and enthusiastically embraced open-source software. Again, it was outmaneuvered by other software companies, most notably Linux distributor Red Hat.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-31021_3-10462638-260.html
Professional Web Design Chicago
The acquisition offer, delivered in a letter to Novell's board of directors, is valued at $1.8 billion, or $5.75 per share. Elliott Associates already owns 8.5 percent of Novell's shares, which it began buying up in January.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Elliott Associates told Novell's board that the stock has "meaningfully underperformed" and called recent acquisitions and changes in strategies "unsuccessful." The hedge fund says its experience in restructuring and acquisitions will "deliver maximum value to shareholders."
Novell confirmed that its board had received the letter and "anticipates that its Board of Directors will review Elliott's proposal in consultation with its financial and legal advisors," the company said in a statement issued Tuesday evening.
Shares of its stock jumped 26 percent, to $6, in after-hours trading on the news.
Novell is certainly a long way from its heyday. At one time, its Netware operating system was widely used on corporate servers. It also had ambitions to rival Microsoft, acquiring the WordPerfect suite of desktop applications, a tough competitor to Microsoft's Office suite. But Novell, perhaps as much as any company, learned what it's like to compete with Microsoft and lose. When Windows NT hit the market in the 1990s, Novell began a slow decline. Several CEOs came and went, including Google CEO Eric Schmidt.
In fact, Schmidt saw early success at Novell's helm, even briefly moving the company's executive offices from Utah to San Jose, Calif. Schmidt pushed the company to release Netware 5.0 well ahead of Microsoft's Windows 2000. But once Windows 2000 debuted, Schmidt and the rest of Novell didn't have a good response, and the company's decline continued.
After Schmidt left, the company returned to its Utah roots and enthusiastically embraced open-source software. Again, it was outmaneuvered by other software companies, most notably Linux distributor Red Hat.
Source:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-31021_3-10462638-260.html
Professional Web Design Chicago
Monday, March 1, 2010
Firefox Loses Browser Share Third Month Running
Meanwhile, Google's Chrome continued its climb for the 16th straight month and Microsoft's IE hit yet another record low in browser share
Mozilla's Firefox lost share in February, the third consecutive month that the browser has slipped, according to metrics data published today.
Google's Chrome, meanwhile, continued its climb for the 16th straight month.
Firefox lost about 0.2 of a percentage point last month to end with a usage share of 24.2 percent. It was the third month in a row that Mozilla's browser fell in the rankings posted by Web measurement vendor NetApplications.com. Previous dips in Mozilla's share were one-month blips; this is the browser's first sustained decline in NetApplications' numbers.
Since the end of November 2009, Firefox has dropped nearly half a point, representing a fall of 2 percent of its total share.
NetApplications is not the only metrics company to note Firefox's slump. The most recent data from Irish vendor StatCounter, for example, shows an even larger drop of 1.2 points -- or 3.6 percent of its total share -- since November.
The slide came even as Mozilla converted a sizable chunk of its Firefox 3.5 user base to the newer Firefox 3.6, the upgrade that shipped in late January . Last month, Firefox 3.6's share surged by nearly 4 percentage points to 5.1 percent. Meanwhile, Firefox 3.5's share fell 2.5 points to 14.6 percent, and the even older Firefox 3.0 dipped by 1.6 points to 3.6 percent, its lowest share since the month it was released in 2008.
As Firefox slid, Google's Chrome again boosted its share, although the increase was smaller than in the two months before. Chrome ended February with a 5.6 percent share, up 0.4 of a percentage point. Chrome has doubled its share in the last six months.
Internet Explorer (IE) lost a half percentage point last month to finish with a share of 61.2 percent, yet another record low for Microsoft 's browser. The upside is that IE's decline in February was under its 12-month average drop of 0.6 of a percentage point, and the smallest in a year. Microsoft may, in fact, find some comfort in NetApplications' numbers: IE's slide may be slowing. In the last three months, IE lost 2 percentage points, while during the three-month period immediately before that the browser slipped by 3.4 points.
Apple 's Safari posted a slight decline to 4.4 percent for February, while Opera Software's desktop browser essentially remained flat at 2.4 percent.
Not surprisingly, Microsoft's nearly-nine-year-old IE6 again fell in NetApplications' usage measurements, ending last month at 19.8 percent, down 0.2 of a percentage point. The newer IE7 lost more than four times more share, falling 0.9 of a point to 13.6 percent. IE6's decline was well under its torrid pace of the previous four months, when it lost more than a point per month.
But IE6 continues to get the hook from notable Web sites. Last week, YouTube announced it would stop supporting the aged browser starting March 13; as of that date, the popular video site won't guarantee that new features will work in the browser.
On Thursday, a Denver Web design firm will hold a funeral for IE6 . Aten Design Group was forced to change the location of the mock event after it received more RSVPs than its small office could accommodate. "Even more people want to see IE6's cold, dead body than we imagined," the company said on the ie6funeral.com site it set up.
IE8 captured only a sliver of its siblings' losses: IE8 ended February with a share of 22.5 percent, up just 0.1 of a point, the smallest increase since January 2009, two months before the browser's official release, and at a point when only a release candidate was available to the public.
When NetApplications accounted for IE8's "compatibility view" -- a feature that lets users display sites as rendered by the older, and often Web standard-incompatible IE6 and IE7 -- Microsoft's newest browser owned a 25.8 percent share, making it the most popular single edition of any browser by a six-point margin.
IE's losses could pick up this month with the broad introduction of a browser ballot in the European Union beginning this week. The ballot was mandated by an agreement Microsoft reached last year with EU antitrust regulators nearly two years after Norwegian browser maker Opera filed a formal complaint. The ballot appears on Windows PCs where IE is set as the default browser, and lets users download and install rivals, including Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari and others.
Although Firefox has traditionally been the browser to reap the most reward from IE's persistent decline, Chrome now occupies that place. Over the last 12 months, Chrome has outgained Firefox by more than 2:1, posting an increase of 4.1 points to Firefox's 1.7 points. If Chrome keeps up the pace of the last three months, it will break the 10 percent mark in October, 11 months ahead of a goal it set last year.
NetApplications.com measures browser usage share by collecting systems data from the computers that visit the 40,000 sites it monitors for clients.
Source:
http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/firefox-loses-browser-share-third-month-running-205?page=0,0
Chicago Web Design Firms
Mozilla's Firefox lost share in February, the third consecutive month that the browser has slipped, according to metrics data published today.
Google's Chrome, meanwhile, continued its climb for the 16th straight month.
Firefox lost about 0.2 of a percentage point last month to end with a usage share of 24.2 percent. It was the third month in a row that Mozilla's browser fell in the rankings posted by Web measurement vendor NetApplications.com. Previous dips in Mozilla's share were one-month blips; this is the browser's first sustained decline in NetApplications' numbers.
Since the end of November 2009, Firefox has dropped nearly half a point, representing a fall of 2 percent of its total share.
NetApplications is not the only metrics company to note Firefox's slump. The most recent data from Irish vendor StatCounter, for example, shows an even larger drop of 1.2 points -- or 3.6 percent of its total share -- since November.
The slide came even as Mozilla converted a sizable chunk of its Firefox 3.5 user base to the newer Firefox 3.6, the upgrade that shipped in late January . Last month, Firefox 3.6's share surged by nearly 4 percentage points to 5.1 percent. Meanwhile, Firefox 3.5's share fell 2.5 points to 14.6 percent, and the even older Firefox 3.0 dipped by 1.6 points to 3.6 percent, its lowest share since the month it was released in 2008.
As Firefox slid, Google's Chrome again boosted its share, although the increase was smaller than in the two months before. Chrome ended February with a 5.6 percent share, up 0.4 of a percentage point. Chrome has doubled its share in the last six months.
Internet Explorer (IE) lost a half percentage point last month to finish with a share of 61.2 percent, yet another record low for Microsoft 's browser. The upside is that IE's decline in February was under its 12-month average drop of 0.6 of a percentage point, and the smallest in a year. Microsoft may, in fact, find some comfort in NetApplications' numbers: IE's slide may be slowing. In the last three months, IE lost 2 percentage points, while during the three-month period immediately before that the browser slipped by 3.4 points.
Apple 's Safari posted a slight decline to 4.4 percent for February, while Opera Software's desktop browser essentially remained flat at 2.4 percent.
Not surprisingly, Microsoft's nearly-nine-year-old IE6 again fell in NetApplications' usage measurements, ending last month at 19.8 percent, down 0.2 of a percentage point. The newer IE7 lost more than four times more share, falling 0.9 of a point to 13.6 percent. IE6's decline was well under its torrid pace of the previous four months, when it lost more than a point per month.
But IE6 continues to get the hook from notable Web sites. Last week, YouTube announced it would stop supporting the aged browser starting March 13; as of that date, the popular video site won't guarantee that new features will work in the browser.
On Thursday, a Denver Web design firm will hold a funeral for IE6 . Aten Design Group was forced to change the location of the mock event after it received more RSVPs than its small office could accommodate. "Even more people want to see IE6's cold, dead body than we imagined," the company said on the ie6funeral.com site it set up.
IE8 captured only a sliver of its siblings' losses: IE8 ended February with a share of 22.5 percent, up just 0.1 of a point, the smallest increase since January 2009, two months before the browser's official release, and at a point when only a release candidate was available to the public.
When NetApplications accounted for IE8's "compatibility view" -- a feature that lets users display sites as rendered by the older, and often Web standard-incompatible IE6 and IE7 -- Microsoft's newest browser owned a 25.8 percent share, making it the most popular single edition of any browser by a six-point margin.
IE's losses could pick up this month with the broad introduction of a browser ballot in the European Union beginning this week. The ballot was mandated by an agreement Microsoft reached last year with EU antitrust regulators nearly two years after Norwegian browser maker Opera filed a formal complaint. The ballot appears on Windows PCs where IE is set as the default browser, and lets users download and install rivals, including Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari and others.
Although Firefox has traditionally been the browser to reap the most reward from IE's persistent decline, Chrome now occupies that place. Over the last 12 months, Chrome has outgained Firefox by more than 2:1, posting an increase of 4.1 points to Firefox's 1.7 points. If Chrome keeps up the pace of the last three months, it will break the 10 percent mark in October, 11 months ahead of a goal it set last year.
NetApplications.com measures browser usage share by collecting systems data from the computers that visit the 40,000 sites it monitors for clients.
Source:
http://www.infoworld.com/d/applications/firefox-loses-browser-share-third-month-running-205?page=0,0
Chicago Web Design Firms
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