Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Tech Review: Wednesday, December 21, 2011

2012: 5 reasons it's not the end of the world (and 5 reasons to worry)

  • Analytics 
    • Watson
  • the reasons to hope and worry were the same

NASA aims to let UAVs fly in civil airspace

  • non-payload communications (CPNC) 
  • Rockwell Collins
  • communication data link
  • five focus areas
    • Separation assurance
    • Communications
    • Human System Integration
    • Certification
    • Integrated test and evaluation


Nabi Kids Tablet with Android $150

Nabi Kids Tablet with Android -  Nabi - Toys"R"Us

App Internet and Mobile Devices to Drive Massive Technology Demands in 2012


  • Android and other apps are suppose to be one of the main forces pushing the Tech demands in 2012
  • I think something is missing here.
    • perhaps it would be more important to look at what the apps are doing






Friday, December 16, 2011

Tech Review: pre-Friday, December 16, 2011

Open-source webOS is dead on arrival




  • Not open source plan or support from HP will probably kill webOS

FBI goes international to fight cyber criminals on their home turf

  • basically much of the theft of data and money is overseas
  • sometime the FBI know the company has been breached before the company
  • companies should report the breaches quickly

A battery that lasts 10 times longer, charges 10 times faster?



  • Northwestern University
  • anode
    • negative elctrode
  • Lithium-ion batteries
  • carbon-based material
    • atom thick sheets of grahene
  • no time frame given
  • older article form November, but still found it very interesting

IBM's 'racetrack' could change the world of computer memory


  • nanowires of nickel-iron alloy
    • 20 nanometers thick
  • electronic "stripes" represent the data
  • spin on way for + the other for -

Site for Cheap Android that Run Skype and Market

China Electronics Wholesale - Consumer Electronics Gadgets Dropship From China
  • They currently have 4 version that work
    • 7 inch (KU:ATP1038)
    • 7 inch (KU:ATP1048) sold out
    • 8inch (SKU:ATP1040) 
    • 10 inch (SKU:ATP1037).








Thursday, December 08, 2011

Tech Review: Thursday, December 8, 2011

Setting up Subversion on Windows


Download SVN:


Turn on or off change tracking in Windows Word 2010


  • done from the review tab
  • change to final set the edits off
  • I don't know how to get rid of them perminantly
    • Copy to an entirely new document?


  • The article is old but the principles are the same
  • In Word 2010
    • File tab
      • Info option
        • Permissions
  • However I see nothing here that would help make a 'clean' document

Finding Files Faster with Windows 7 Search

  • I was hoping to find a way of searching for only file names
    • this confirmed to me that the Win7 search doesn't support the simple clean options that where once available in XP

TouchFire keyboard for Apple iPad improves touch typing experience




 

Huawei-vodafone E220 Unlocked 3G HSDPA USB Modem for Android Tablet


  • what is this?

Bodhi Linux On a Touchscreen Device




  • I want to get one of these and install Ubuntu on it for my non-windows development machine.

Smartphone shake-out looms as hardware herd may thin


  • Claims that company that depend totally on there hardware for profits are going to start hurting 
  • HTC sales fell by 20%

Six Android issues that Google doesn't want to address

  1. out of date Android devices 7/18
  2. hardware failure
    1. 14%
    2. $2 Bill per year
  3. Security?
  4. no flash for Ice Cream Sandwich
  5. patent problems
  6. bloatware
    1. CarrierIQ

AMD, Nvidia introduce "new" mobile graphics card lineups, but Radeon 7000M, GeForce 600M are just rebadges


  • Only clock speed improvement
    • Radeon 7400M => 6470
    • Radeon 7500M => 6630
    • Radeon 7600M => 6750
  • GeForce 6xx same as 5xx with faster clock speed

Adobe gets creative: Touch Apps and the Creative Cloud

  • nice apps designed for touch
    • Photoshop Touch
    • Adobe Debut
    • Proto
    • Collage
    • Ideas
    • Kuler










Thursday, August 11, 2011

Tech Review: Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Maylong M-250 7" $100
Maylong M-250 Tablet PC

http://www.maylonggroup.com/M-250_MID.htm

  • 7 "
  • Resistive
  • Stylus
  • Android 2.2

Android Tablets . Net
Android Tablet Forum

Nice site on Android Tablets









Friday, August 05, 2011

Tech Review: Friday, August 5, 2011

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/store_access.do?template_type=storefronts&landing=rts_tablet&category=rts_tablet&jumpid=em_r329_hhos_5944&aoid=105495&email=null

HP Touch Pad with Web OS $450
WOOT has it for $380

HP TouchPad Wi-Fi 16GB



HP Mini 110 $280 (Upgrade $320)

Product image


  • Intel Atom N455 (upgrade to dual core ATOM N570)
  • Graphic Media Accelerator 3150
  • 1 GB Mem (upgrade to 2 GB)
  • 10.1 "
  • 250 GB drive
  • 2.52 lbs
  • Ethernet
  • Webcam
  • Integrated Wireless
  • Bluetooth optional
  • Win7 Starter 32-bit
  • 1024x600


PH Pavilion dv6t Series $600 ($1,528)

Product image


  • (Win 7 Pro-64 bit)
  • (Recovery DVD)
  • (Dual Core Intel i5-2410M (2.3 Gz)
  • (2GB Radeon 6770M GDDR5)
  • (16GB Memory)

Flaw in advanced threats points to Chinese networks

  • IP address of command and control servers in China
  • Believed used in breach of RSA Security in March
  • Advance Persistent Threats (APTs)
    • Quietly infect systems
    • remain undetected
    • high-profile breaches

Android app test demonstrates dangers for mobile devices


  • 10,000 apps evaluated
  • not necessarily malicious (?)
  • leaky and noisy (?)
  • 30% access unique equipment or subscriber identity number
  • Report to server something in clear (can be read by anyone)
  • definitely a privacy and security problems - Neil Daswani
  • tries to get root access on device
  • Short Message Service activity
    • limited to a single message sent to the number of the phone installed on

3 of 10 Android users now face malware attach


  • trojan steal account passwords and SSN by recording phone coversations
  • doubling the risk of 6 months ago - (Lookout)
  • 80 to 400 number of apps in 6 months - (Lookout)
  • 0.5 to 1 million user affected
  • 48% malware
    • repackaging
      • malicious code added to legitimate app
    • upgrade attach
      • pub clean app, wait offer infected update
  • 52% sypware
  • Users transmitting sensitive data without proper encryption

Window kernel a fertile field for vulnerabilities



  • Win32K.sys from 1997 remains a fundamental component of Win architecture
  • no proper authentication for changes in memory after for user-mode call backs
  • 40 patches
  • count much higher
  • Tarjei Mandt - Norman ASA
  • fundamental problem buried in an old element of he Win kernal


Skype now does video

Skype


  • 3.6 stars
  • Skype is not known for good software
  • who else has similar apps?
    • Google?


Life On Mars

newtonflow02.jpg



Stuxnet-style could attack prisons



  • prisons use PLC
    • doors
    • gates
    • video
    • alarms
    • intercoms








Thursday, August 04, 2011

Tech Review: Thursday, August 4, 2011

Web Operating System (WOS)




Web Operating System (WOS)

A term for describing internet scale distributed computing.


Liz Cornwell

The above artical is from 2009, but it is better than a poke in the eye.

Top 5 WOSs.

  1. icloud
  2. Glide OS 3.0
  3. G.HO.ST
  4. Jolicloud
  5. EYEOS

How The New 'Protecting Children' Bill Puts You At Risk







  • nothing to do with pornography
  • opposed by over 30 civil liberties and consumer advocacy organizations
  • forces ISPs to retain 
    • customer names, 
    • address, 
    • phone numbers, 
    • credit card numbers, 
    • bank account numbers and 
    • dynamic IP address for
  • 1.5 years
  • ISP snooping bill
  • fails to note that this would be an effective tool against child porno, which is a favorite habit of most pedophiles.


  • Android Trojan
  • records conversations

  • Where was the application?  
    • In the Android Market? 
    • In the wild? 
  • Why on earth would someone want to record a bunch of conversations?  
    • Doesn't make sense. 
      • Is this something malicious, 
      • a developer mistake, or 
      • marketing gone awry?
  • Author says "Best defense ... is to pay attention to the permissions..."   

Forrester: U.S. debt ceiling showdown will affect IT spending


  • 2011 IT forecast growth drops from 7.4 to 5.5
  • 2012 IT forecast growth drops from 10.4 to ?

CNET 100 Android apps: Winners, in pictures


  1. Google Maps
  2. Dolphin Browser HD
  3. Lookout Mobile Security
  4. SoundHound
  5. Read It Later
  6. Google Voice
  7. Google
How do I see the 100?

How Digital Detectives Deciphered Stuxnet, the Most Menacing Malware in History




  • Iran
  • 800 to ?
    • 1000 and 2000 in a few months
  • most complex malware ever written
  • first real cyberweapon
  • zero-day exploit
  • looks like US/Israel

Ematic 2GB MP3 Video Player with 1.5" Screen



  • $25
  • 2 GB
  • FM tuner/recorder
  • 1.5 " display
  • voice recorder
  • Plays
    • MP4
    • AVI
    • MP3
    • JPEG
  • E-book