Technology

Instagram Video Could Be Facebook's Mobile Ace in the Hole
June 18, 2013

Buzz is building over Facebook's rumored plan to launch a mobile video app for Instagram at an event on Thursday. Video functionality in Instagram, the company Facebook purchased for $1 billion in April of last year, would be a direct challenge to Twitter's Vine app. Vine lets users take 6-second videos on iOS or Android devices and share them on Vine's own network, Twitter or Facebook.

Google Settlement Paves the Way for Stock Split
June 18, 2013

Google has settled the class-action shareholder lawsuit that had been blocking a stock split it originally announced last year, the company said Monday, paving the way for it to move forward with the split as planned. The suit's settlement was an eleventh-hour development in this 14-month storyline, which included the imminent prospect of a trial in Delaware chancery court over the issue.

Netflix, DreamWorks Team in Huge Original Content Deal
June 17, 2013

Video streaming service Netflix on Monday announced a new, multiyear partnership with DreamWorks Animation whereby it will bring many of the studio's beloved characters to the TV market via a branded collection of shows. Marking the largest deal for original first-run content in Netflix's history, the partnership will include more than 300 hours of new programming.

The Ghost of SCO Dogs IBM Again
June 17, 2013

Like Carrie, whose hand emerged from the grave to grab Sue by the ankle in Sue's nightmare, SCO has reemerged from its grave to revive its lawsuit against IBM, 10 years after the case was first filed. A court has granted SCO's motion for reconsideration and reopening the case. SCO originally had sought $1 billion in damages from IBM, but it was soundly defeated in court.

Tech Giants Dump Data in Trust-Rebuilding Bid
June 17, 2013

In the wake of recent revelations that the government has been tapping their networks to monitor users, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft in recent days have all published more information about those monitoring requests. Facebook, for example, reported that for the six months ending December 31, 2012, the number of user-data requests it received from U.S. government entities was between 9,000 and 10,000.

Tech-Hungry 'Crazy Ants'? Not So Fast
June 17, 2013

To read some reports in the tech press lately, one might think there's an electronics-hungry menace from South America on a march of conquest through the Southeastern United States and Texas, leaving a trail of destroyed smartphones and other precious devices in its wake. It's known as the "crazy ant," and recent reports of its arrival derive from an article published in April.

Google to Pit Technology Against Child Pornographers
June 17, 2013

Google is spearheading an initiative to build a picture-sharing database aimed at ridding the Web of child pornography. The company's new database will rely on "hashing" technology; once an image has been flagged as offensive, it uses an algorithm to identify that photo elsewhere on the Web. Despite widespread efforts to combat it, child pornography online is only growing.

Hackers Find WordPress Easy Pickings
June 17, 2013

Adobe Reader and Oracle Java aren't alone in having a bull's eye painted on their code. WordPress also is becoming a popular target for Internet outlaws. It's quite a large target, too. About 18 percent of the sites on the Web -- about 60 million of them -- use WordPress. One reason WordPress is attracting hacker attention is that it's so easy to write plug-ins for it.

Up, Up and Away: Google Balloons to Beam Internet Access
June 17, 2013

Regardless of how this turns out, at least they nailed the name. Google is launching about 30 superpressure balloons that will beam Internet access back to the ground. With equal parts brevity and self-deprecation, the effort has been dubbed "Project Loon." Taking flight from New Zealand, the balloons will sail around the world on a controlled path.

Ending the US' Cyberwar Against Its Citizens
June 17, 2013

I'm into fixing problems -- in fact, for much of my life I've been employed as someone who is brought in to fix a difficult problem. I don't see much point in just complaining -- either try to fix it, ignore it, or move someplace where it doesn't affect you. The current problem is that the U.S. appears to be conducting a cyberwar against its citizens.

Froguts Illuminates More Than a Frog's Insides
June 17, 2013

Dissecting frogs in high school biology classes used to be a rite of passage. It was a physical, visceral method for teaching kids that living organisms have common pieces and parts: organs, muscle, nerves and connective tissue. Kids learned that even frogs have hearts, lungs and brains. With a real dead frog, though, the lesson seems to be larger than just the anatomy.

It Was a Mad, Mad Gaming World at This Year's E3
June 15, 2013

Another Electronic Entertainment Expo video game show has come to a close, and more than ever, the battle lines were drawn as Microsoft and Sony both unveiled new systems. Sony may have gotten the upper hand by announcing that its PlayStation 4 will be $100 cheaper than the Xbox One and free of restrictions on the buying and selling of used games, but a lot can happen in the next few months.

Apple Exec Points Finger at Publishers in E-Book Trial
June 15, 2013

Apple SVP Eddy Cue gave testimony Thursday in the e-book price-fixing trial under way in the New York U.S. District Court. Cue, who was Apple's primary negotiator with most of the publishers during the run-up to the launch of iBookstore in 2010, told the court that it was not surprising that publishers began increasing pricing for e-books after Apple entered the market.

Ouya, ESA Scrap Leaves Both Bruised
June 14, 2013

Indie startup Ouya had a showdown with ESA at E3 this week, momentarily overshadowing the rivalry between Microsoft and Sony. The brouhaha actually involved real police and took place on the streets of Los Angeles. It seems Ouya opted to introduce its open source gaming console not on the floor of the trade show, but in a parking lot across the street.

From the Inevitable Files: Lawmakers Scrutinize Snowden-China Connections
June 14, 2013

Well, this was bound to happen. U.S. lawmakers said Thursday that the House Intelligence Committee -- the same House Intelligence Committee that trashed Chinese telecommunications companies last year -- will conduct a "thorough scrub" of connections between China and Eric Snowden. Snowden -- a "traitor," according to Committee chairman Mike Rogers, R.-Mich. -- is now believed to be in Hong Kong.

Patenting Future Cures - or Not
June 14, 2013

The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously decided that some of Myriad Genetics' patent claims were invalid for claiming products of nature. However, the Court also held that other Myriad patent claims were perfectly valid. In short, Myriad discovered the location and DNA sequence listing for two human genes that pertain to breast and ovarian cancer.

Nuclear Power, Part 2: Nukenomics
June 14, 2013

There's no denying that safety and effectiveness are both critical concerns when it comes to nuclear power, and that's just as true for investors in the technology as it is for those who rely on the energy it generates. Still to be determined is whether small modular reactor designs are feasible as a free-market business proposition without current levels of government-backed investment.

No Patents on Human Genes, Supreme Court Rules
June 13, 2013

In a decision that could make it more affordable for women to be screened for breast cancer, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Thursday that human genes cannot be patented. The court's rationale is that human genes occur in nature, making them unpatentable. Complementary DNA, on the other hand -- a synthetic DNA that's also used in genetic testing -- can be patented, the court ruled.

Time Warner May Erect a Walled Content Garden
June 13, 2013

Time Warner Cable appears to have come up with a strategy to help stem the flow of cord-cutters: offering incentives to content providers to withhold certain properties from online entertainment platforms. Limited distribution is clearly an entrenched practice in the entertainment industry, but it seems TWC is trying to keep some content off the Internet permanently.

New Drive Aims to Stamp Out Smartphone Crime
June 13, 2013

A coalition of United States officials, institutional investors and consumer advocates on Thursday launched the Save Our Smartphones Initiative nationwide. With smartphone-related crimes, some of which are shockingly brutal, on the rise in the U.S., law enforcement officials have cranked up the pressure on the cellphone industry to come up with technologies to deter theft.