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If you're a Google Chrome user, you'll be delighted to know that Chrome 18 is now available. The release focuses mostly on bringing a bunch of graphical enhancements to the browser, including GPU acceleration, which your CPU processor will likely thank you for by way of faster performance. You can grab the new release now.
Read More 
| Chromium
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Harry Potter ebooks now available for download
Posted by Andrey Malskiy Categories: Internet, Misc. Tech,
For all the Harry Potter fans out there, your days of lugging books around has ended. The Harry Potter series is now available for download from Pottermore, alongside Google Play, Amazon, Sony Reader, and B&N Nook. The eBooks are compatible with all major ereaders and can be downloaded in bundle packs from the site. The titles start at $7.99 and go up from there. You have the option of buying the whole bundle for $57.54, but of course, you can also purchase them individually. The books are offered English (US & GB), with Spanish, Dutch, Italian, and French coming soon.
Read More | Pottermore
Hands-on with New Rdio redesign: More social, much faster
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, Internet, Music, Product Reviews, Software,
Last week at a press event in Austin at SXSW, Rdio gave us a look at its brand new, completely overhauled music experience. We got a look at the new Rdio, and we walked away impressed by the beauty of what the streaming music company is attempting to pull off. There are a lot of changes, and we think that most people will think they're all good.
New Rdio isn't just a visual makeover though. Wilson Miner, head of design for Rdio said, "We want back to ground zero and rethought the whole user experience from the groud up to put the focus 100% on music and people." That people part is a big deal, because social integration is a big part of the new Rdio. When you log in, you've got a constant bar on the right-hand side that shows your online contacts and what they're listening to. There's also another tab that gives recommendations of who to follow (oh, and you should definitely follow the Gear Live Rdio profile!) Wanna share a track or album with a contact? The old way still works, but now you can just drag and drop content onto contacts as well. Very fluid.
Click to continue reading Hands-on with New Rdio redesign: More social, much faster
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Google pays Russian hacker $60k for bypassing Chrome’s sandbox
Posted by Andrey Malskiy Categories: Google, Internet, Mods / Hacks,
It wasn’t too long ago I was in the Eastern Block of Europe. As you would expect, I had my run in with hackers, excessive vodka drinking, and the mob. But nothing quite says "Russia," like hackers. You want free software? They got it. So it comes to us to no surprise that a Russian university student hacked Google Chrome with bypassing the sandbox.
Now before you get alarmed and up your antivirus and firewalls, Google okayed this hack; more so, it was a competition put on by Google. The hack was the handy work of Sergey Glazunov, who is a regular contributor to Google’s security research department. Glazunov scored a payoff of $60,000 in Google’s new Pwnium hacker contest which began to run this year as an alternative to Pwn2Own.
According to Justin Schuh, a member of the Chrome security team, Glazunov’s by-pass was Chrome specific, which allowed him to bypass the sandbox entirely. Furthermore he added that Glazunov’s work was “very impressive” and would allow the hacker to do anything on the machine. However, bypassing the sandbox is not a trivial matter; that is why Google paid out $60,000 for the hack. A fix has already been released.
Read More | ZDNet
Why Turntable.fm matters, and how it enhances music discovery
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Editorial, Features, Internet, Music,
Right now I'm at SXSW, sitting in on the Turntable.fm DJ Battle that's taking place over the next two hours. There are a few DJs on stage playing their best tracks in an attempt to rock the crowd, and as things are unfolding, I can see some real potential for Turntable.fm to bring something to the table that the Spotifys, Rdios, and Rhapsodys of the world just aren't able to deliver at the moment, especially now that Turntable has secured licensing rights from all four of the major record labels here in the U.S.
Click to continue reading Why Turntable.fm matters, and how it enhances music discovery
Apple closing iWork.com beta on July 31, points users to iCloud
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Internet, Storage,
Apple has just announced that it's closing down the iWork.com beta in light of the fact that iCloud has become the company's de facto standard for cloud storage and sharing. It's certainly interesting, since iCloud doesn't yet have all the features that iWork.com has, namely talking about document storage and sharing, as well as the ability to download the stored document in a variety of formats on the fly. Maybe that'll be changing soon? iWork.com users have until July 31, 2012 before the service is shuttered. Full text of the email that Apple sent to iWork.com users after the break.
Click to continue reading Apple closing iWork.com beta on July 31, points users to iCloud
Verizon HomeFusion set to bring 4G LTE broadband service to a home near you
Posted by Andrey Malskiy Categories: Broadband, Corporate News, Internet,
Verizon is planning on launching a broadband service as an alternative for those that cannot attain cable or DSL. Verizon claims that it’s HomeFusion service is quicker than DSL, despite the fact that it is running on its 4G LTE network.
For a customer to get up and running they'll need to pay a $200 installation fee, which gets them an antenna placed outside of the home. The monthly fee of $60 gets you 10 GB. Customers do have the option of adding 10 or 20 more gigs to their plans for about 30 or 60 bucks more, respectively.
HomeFusion is set to launch in Dallas, Nashville, and Birmingham first and is expected to reach the rest of Verizon’s network footprint by the end of the year.
Read More | Washington Post
Apple Store goes down ahead of iPad HD and Apple TV launch
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Handhelds, Home Entertainment, Internet,
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In just about an hour, Apple will be announcing its newest tablet, the iPad HD. The company will likely also launch an updated Apple TV set-top box that's capable of 1080p output. As is typical before these events, the Apple Store Online is down. We'll have coverage of the event as it happens.
How to delete your Google Web History before tomorrow’s privacy policy change
Posted by Andrey Malskiy Categories: Features, Google, Internet,
On March 1st (that's tomorrow!), Google will be changing its privacy settings. The changes will unify all Google services under one umbrella, as far as privacy is concerned. In other words, what you search for on YouTube will be accessible by Google Search, and all other Google services. As of today, all your site and search history stayed sandboxed within the specific services that you used. Tomorrow, that'll be a different story.
Your search and activity history can obviously reveal a lot of personal data that you may not want Google to know. Things like medical conditions, location, personal habits, and more. That said, there are a few easy steps you can take to keep your search history private and outta Google’s reach. Taking these steps does not prevent Google from gathering and storing this information internally, and doesn't change the fact that this information can be requested and possibly turned over to law enforcement for legal matters. However, what it does do is make it so that Google anonymizes the information after 18 months, and that Google doesn't use your web history to offer you customized search results. With Web History enabled, Google will keep your records indefinitely. Keep on reading for a walkthrough!
Google Fiber applies for permission to provide television packages
Posted by John Ball Categories: Broadband, Google, Home Entertainment, Internet, Rumors,
Some might remember the announcement from Google a while back that they were hooking up the good citizens of Kansas City Missouri with a fiber optic gigabit network. Google has since named its fiber optic network “Google Fiber” and has continued building out the network and is making further plans for the service. From the looks of things, Google is looking into providing more than just super-fast Internet speeds. According to The Wall Street Journal, the search giant has entered an application to the Missouri Public Service to gain permission to offer television service later this year, and its expected that Google would make a similar request in Kansas. According to sources the ability to watch TV through Google Fiber will not be free, but no official price point (or announcement, for that matter) has been set as of yet.
Read More | WSJ
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