Google is testing a version for Android smartphones and tablets of a console that will help its customers monitor services in the cloud while on the move.Following the beta launch of the Cloud Console for Android, Google said a version for Apple’s iOS operating system is expected to launch later this year.Using the app, users can set up alerts, manage Google cloud platform resources and access health graphs to gain insights into the performance and availability of their cloud-powered applications on Google’s Cloud Monitoring feature, wrote Michael Thomsen, a product manager at Google, in a blog post Monday.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
In a testament to Tim Cook's character, the Apple CEO recently penned an op-ed piece in the Washington Post regarding the recently passed legislation in Indiana which allows business to discriminate against individuals on account of their sexual orientation, all in the name of religious freedom.With the Apple Watch set to launch in under a month, April is arguably the most important month Apple has seen in quite some time. And still, Cook has no qualms about throwing his hat into the ring and getting involved in a debate that might alienate some more closed-minded customers. All of this reflects highly on Tim Cook insofar as he's not afraid to speak out on important issues even in anticipation of one of the company's most important product launches ever.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
In a testament to Tim Cook's character, the Apple CEO recently penned an op-ed piece in the Washington Post regarding the recently passed legislation in Indiana which allows business to discriminate against individuals on account of their sexual orientation, all in the name of religious freedom.With the Apple Watch set to launch in under a month, April is arguably the most important month Apple has seen in quite some time. And still, Cook has no qualms about throwing his hat into the ring and getting involved in a debate that might alienate some more closed-minded customers. All of this reflects highly on Tim Cook insofar as he's not afraid to speak out on important issues even in anticipation of one of the company's most important product launches ever.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Tidal, the Jay Z-owned streaming service built around high quality tracks, is relaunching in a move that could give consumers a new option when weighing competitors like Spotify or Pandora.The revamped Tidal will go live on Monday at 5 p.m. U.S. Eastern time, as indicated by a large countdown timer that dominates its homepage. A company spokesman confirmed the relaunch plan but declined to comment further on how Tidal’s service might change. It’s reasonable to speculate that the new Tidal may feature lower pricing, new app functions, or an expansion of its existing database of 25 million “lossless” CD quality songs.Tidal’s ad-free flagship service currently costs $19.99 per month, and can be accessed on the desktop, iOS, Android and home audio players like Sonos. A version offering standard sound quality costs $9.99 per month. Ad-supported services from competitors like Spotify, Pandora, Rdio and Deezer are free, although premium versions without ads cost around $9.99 per month or less.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Microsoft today announced the general availability of mobile device management (MDM) capabilities for Office 365, which is designed to give administrators the built-in capability to manage access to data in the cloud-based productivity suite across iOS, Android and Windows Phone devices. The MDM features are available at no additional cost in all Office 365 commercial plans, according to Microsoft.
"With today's GA, the first app every organization will look to secure and protect now comes with MDM capabilities natively built into it," Brad Anderson, corporate vice president, Enterprise Client & Mobility at Microsoft, wrote in a blog post. "This means IT admins can set up security policies on devices to ensure that O365 corporate email and data can be accessed only on phones and tablets that are managed and compliant."To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Looking for an Internet of Things (IoT) project to play around with? Chicago-originating Konekt's Dash is a mobile network development kit for building IoT devices for cellular networks, rather than what is says is restrictive Wi-Fi.The company is looking for funding right now at Kickstarter.The platformA global SIM card with a data plan plus a hardware kit is included in the package. The PCB-mounted hardware consists of a micro-controller, cellular modem, and battery management tools. It functions somewhat like an Arduino.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
At SaskPower, an electric utility serving the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, the IT philosophy is leverage, buy or build -- in that order. So when SaskPower wanted to make its SAP applications available on mobile platforms, officials first looked inward to see if those systems could be extended out.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)
There is no shortage of interest in mobile health applications, which span everything from pedometers to Wi-Fi-enabled pacemakers, but what happens with all that data?The New American Foundation, a Washington think tank, waded into that debate with a pair of recent panel discussions where experts acknowledged that the security risks around health IT systems are high, and the medical profession, as a whole, has a ways to go to get its cyber house in order.[ Related: Will Healthcare Ever Take IT Security Seriously? ]To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission will vote April 17 on a spectrum-sharing plan for a band that could serve the military, mobile service providers and individuals.The CBRS (Citizens Broadband Radio Service) would open up frequencies from 3550-3700MHz to three classes of users, including owners of new mobile devices who could use the service like they do Wi-Fi. The FCC vote comes after several rounds of study and public comment on the proposal for more than two years.In that time, growing demand for wireless spectrum has boosted pressure on the government to share or auction off some of the many frequencies it exclusively controls. Bandwidth-hungry services like streaming video and audio, plus wireless links for a growing array of connected devices, are expected to eventually place strains on the spectrum currently allocated to wireless data.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Facebook annoyed and puzzled many people last year when it forced them to download its Messenger app for chats. Its reasons for doing so are now clearer: Messenger is becoming a beast of an app, with its own links to outside businesses and software apart from Facebook’s main site.At the company’s F8 developer conference this week in San Francisco, executives pulled back the curtain on the new Messenger. It’s now a storefront and a platform for other mobile apps, which can be downloaded from within Messenger and integrated into people’s Messenger chats. There are more than 40 outside app partners already aiming to spice up users’ conversations with things like personalized GIFs, tools to turn your texts into songs, and even sports animations from ESPN. The apps can be accessed by hitting the “...” button on the Messenger compose screen.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
On the path to becoming a billionaire, like many prominent tech CEOs before him, Apple's Tim Cook isn't the type of guy prone to blowing large sums of cash on lavish expenditures like yachts, mansions, and fast cars.On the contrary, Cook revealed in a recent in-depth interview with Fortune that he plans to quietly give away all of his money to charity, save of course some money set aside for his nephew's college education.
He plans to give away all his wealth, after providing for the college education of his 10-year-old nephew. There should be plenty left over to fund philanthropic projects. Cook’s net worth, based on his holdings of Apple stock, is currently about $120 million. He also holds restricted stock worth $665 million if it were to be fully vested. Cook says that he has already begun donating money quietly, but that he plans to take time to develop a systematic approach to philanthropy rather than simply writing checks.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
News watchers might have noticed a bunch of hot air and chest pounding emanating from media nuts a few days ago.The reason: the end of civilization was nigh for traditionalists, because Facebook and the New York Times had made a deal for Times content to be wrapped into Facebook pages, rather than simply linked to.Big deal, you might say. Makes sense. Add venerable 1851-launched newspaper content to a 1.3 billion-user social network, and stir thoroughly.Well, it does make sense. However, intriguingly, there's more to it than a simple you-scratch-my-back media deal. What's most interesting about this move is the technical reason prompting it.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
BlackBerry surprised Wall Street by getting its bottom line back into the black in the fourth quarter, but sales shrunk significantly again, putting in question CEO John Chen’s assertion that the company’s turnaround is on track.BlackBerry is trying to become less dependent on hardware, counting instead on software such as the BES12 enterprise mobile management platform, which can be used to manage not only the company’s devices but also iOS, Android and Windows Phone smartphones.During the quarter, which ended Feb. 28, software revenue grew 24 percent on a sequential basis and 20 percent year-on-year to US$67 million, the company said Friday morning before the U.S. financial markets opened.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Twitter answers Meerkat with its own video streaming appTwo weeks after confirming it had acquired Periscope, Twitter has launched the live video streaming app to compete with buzzed-about Meerkat. Both apps post live-streamed video to your Twitter feed, but Twitter has now blocked the competitor from accessing follower/followed lists.UN to appoint privacy watchdogThe United Nations’ Human Rights Council has voted to appoint a watchdog—“special rapporteur” in UN-speak—to monitor privacy in the digital world. The post comes with mostly advisory powers, but the move, backed by Germany and Brazil, is seen as important amid concerns about surveillance by the U.S. and other countries.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
In 10 years, there may be no need to check Facebook’s site to see what that friend overseas is up to. You might just pick up a pair of goggles, reach out and hold her hand at her birthday party.You won’t have to actually be there. The experience could be made possible through virtual reality.Facebook sees it as a radical and important technology that in the not-too-distant future could provide new ways to help people connect and transport them to places that are out of reach or don’t even exist. Providing those experiences is among Facebook’s ambitious long-term goals, along with providing Internet access through aerial drones and deepening its artificial intelligence technology to better understand what people want.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
A federal court has dismissed a lawsuit against Apple over the amount of storage available in mobile devices that come with iOS 8.The district court in San Jose, California, threw out the proposed class-action suit on Wednesday after Apple filed a motion saying the plaintiffs failed to back up their arguments. The case was dismissed with prejudice, meaning the plaintiffs can’t sue Apple again for the same thing.In the suit, filed last December, Paul Orshan and Christopher Endara charged that Apple misled consumers about how much of the storage on iPhones and iPads was taken up by the OS. For example, they said a 16GB iPhone 6 really had just 13GB of capacity available.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Apple has asked a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit accusing it of misleading customers about the amount of storage available in mobile devices that come with iOS 8.Apple filed a motion for dismissal Wednesday at the district court in San Jose, California, saying the plaintiffs failed to back up their arguments. It wants the case dismissed with prejudice, which would prevent the plaintiffs from suing Apple again for the same thing. Judge Edward Davila will now have to rule on the motion.In the suit, filed last December, Paul Orshan and Christopher Endara charged that Apple misled consumers about how much of the storage on iPhones and iPads was taken up by the OS. For example, they said a 16GB iPhone 6 really had just 13GB of capacity available.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Corporate travelers should be warned that a Wi-Fi router commonly used in hotels is easily compromised, putting guests passwords at risk and opening up their computers to malware infections and direct attacks.The good news is that there is a patch for the flaw, but there is no guarantee affected hotels will install it right away.+ More on Network World: 10 young security companies to watch in 2015 +Cylance, a security vendor whose research team found the problem, says 277 InnGate routers in 29 countries are affected. The routers are made by ANTLabs.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
Consumers seem to be coming out on top as a growing number of European telecom and cable operators offer discounted mobile subscriptions as a bonus for choosing other services.Bundles with broadband, telephony and TV across fixed and mobile networks are becoming increasingly important for operators across the continent. The latest example is British operator BT, which on Wednesday announced its return to the consumer mobile market.The expressed goal is to offer the best-value, 4G SIM-only mobile deals as a reward for its broadband customers. The cheapest plan costs £5 (US$7.40) per month and includes 500MB of data, unlimited texts and 200 voice minutes. BT’s broadband subscribers can also choose a plan with 2GB of data, unlimited texts and 500 voice minutes for £12 per month, the operator said.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
AT&T Velocity
I’m using the ZTE-built AT&T Velocity WiFi hotspot as I write up my quickie review of the device here, and sure enough it’s providing me with ample speed as I fact check on the web during this process.
The basic purpose for the device is to provide you with 2.4- or 5-GHz WiFi Internet access – via an AT&T 4G LTE connection -- when you can’t find free or safe WiFi in the wild. You just need to make sure you’re not somewhere that blocks usage of such devices – a practice frowned upon by the FCC.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here