Tech news

"Everybody's using technologies like artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, marketing automation tools, search engine marketing and lead analytics tools," said Michelle Cirocco, head of global marketing for Televerde. "We're using all these tools and technologies to identify who we should communicate with, and we use them to set the stage for our marketing and demand-generation efforts, and to get our names or clients' names in front of their prospects. Ultimately, though, our real goal is to build relationships." from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2vnZcLf

I just finished The Fourth Age: Smart Robots, Conscious Computers, and the Future of Humanity , and it was one hell of a read. A lot of us are concerned about the coming of robots that arguably will be more capable than we are. This book likely will make some feel a tad more comfortable about the future, because it points out in some detail that a lot of the blue-collar jobs that supposedly would be going to these metallic false humans won't be. On the other hand, a lot of white color jobs probably won't be around for long. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2NVJRZL

The autonomous car has thrown the automotive industry -- an industry that is notoriously slow to change -- into the forefront of technology. The autonomous car has become a technology catalyst because it requires innovation in many areas, ranging from processor and sensor technology to AI. As with all new technologies, the industry rushes to focus on consumers because they represent the billion-dollar pot of gold, but as with many other new technologies, it is the industrial applications that are likely to take hold first. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2v8Hqv2

Lenovo's Smart Display with Google Assistant has hit the market. There are two versions of the device, one with an 8-inch full HD screen and the other with a 10-inch full HD screen, priced at $200 and $250 respectively. "The cost is significantly below an iPad mini and it offers far more functionality than just a digital picture frame or a Bluetooth speaker," said Alan Lepofsky, principal analyst at Constellation Research. Buyers will get three months' free access to YouTube Premium. The Lenovo Smart Display runs on Google's Android Things OS. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2LsHC3q

Swings Bluetooth Earrings with built-in earphones showcase a practical, clever idea for people with pierced ears. Swings certainly could fix the problem of losing Apple's expensive AirPods to the ether or having to root around in one's pockets or purse to find one's tangled-up headset. The earphones are in the lower part of what look like beaded earrings, and the motion accelerators determine when you have swiveled them to nestle inside your auricle. You can expect five hours of listening time out of the Swings on a single charge. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2NKGO6E

SoftMaker's FreeOffice 2018 Linux office suite is a high-end product that provides performance and compatibility with Microsoft Office and other office suites. FreeOffice 2018 is a free version that is nearly identical to the features and user interface of Softmaker's commercial flagship office suite, SoftMaker Office 2018. The FreeOffice 2018 suite is a capable alternative to its commercial upgrade. It poses little trouble reading and writing to other document formats and provides very accurate page rendering when importing/exporting. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2A858NP

Hundreds of U.S. utilities were penetrated by Russian hackers who could have disrupted the nation's power grid. The attacks were launched last year by threat actors belonging to a group known as "Dragonfly" or "Energetic Bear," which is sponsored by the Russian government, according to a report. The hackers used Black Hat tools such as phishing and waterhole traps to obtain credentials from legitimate users and leverage them to gain access to the utilities. It's unusual for the DHS to call out a nation-state attacker by name. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2mIMnHc

Mobile phone cameras are about to get a significant performance boost. Sony on Monday introduced a 48-megapixel sensor for cellphone cameras that measures less than one-third of an inch diagonally. The sensor is slated for release in September. To pack that many pixels into such tight quarters, Sony had to shrink their size to 8 microns. Shrinking pixel sizes usually results in performance degradation, not improvement. It usually results in poor light collection and a drop in saturation sensitivity and volume. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2OfskwS

For pretty much my entire career, CEOs have been almost invulnerable. Even when Steve Jobs, Apple's founder and lead spokesperson, tried to get then-CEO John Scully fired from Apple, he lost and got fired himself. I've watched CEOs at companies with zero-tolerance employee dating policies have affairs with subordinates and get a pass. Even though Jobs went behind his board's back to issue himself stock options, he survived that during his term as CEO. Things have changed. Almost every week, another CEO bites the dust for misbehavior. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2mBZAla

Photo-hosting service Photobucket in May quietly restored third-party hosting of photos, reversing its unpopular year-old policy that required users to pay nearly $400 in subscription fees for hosting privileges. Many irate users claimed their photos were "taken hostage." Hosted photos on blogs, forums and other sites were replaced by an image of a dial indicating the hosted data quota had been surpassed. Users were not given advance notice. Instead the company sent out emails with the message, "Some features on your account will be disabled." from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2uCku8d

Google has announced the rebranding and expansion of its Cloud Launcher platform. Going forward, it will be known as the "Google Cloud Platform Marketplace," or "GCP Marketplace." It will offer production-ready commercial Kubernetes apps, promising simplified deployment, billing and third-party licensing. Google's goal is to make containers accessible to everyone, especially the enterprise, said Anil Dhawan, product manager for the Google Cloud Platform. Google's hosted Kubernetes Engine takes care of cluster orchestration and management. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2NvzknQ

Samsung plans to launch a foldable-screen smartphone early next year, according to reports, possibly priced around $1,500. Samsung's foldable phone will resemble a book, with the main display inside the covers, said Ken Hyers, director of the emerging device strategies service at Strategy Analytics. The exterior will have a smaller notification display on the front, and a camera, or cameras, on the back. The main display will have a 7.3-inch screen. The foldable smartphone may have a 3,000 mAh battery or larger. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2JzpsHj

Microsoft has announced a new version of its Skype messaging app, along with a warning that previous versions of the software will be disabled after Sept. 1. "As we roll out improvements, there comes a time when we must shut down older services and application versions," wrote the Skype Team in an online post. "This is done to ensure that all customers have the best possible Skype experience, and that there are no quality or reliability issues resulting from old technology and new technology interoperating." from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2mnmxZc

Pinguy OS 18.04 is an Ubuntu-based distribution that offers a non-standard GNOME desktop environment intended to be friendlier for new Linux users. This distro is a solid Linux OS with a focus on simple and straightforward usability for the non-geek desktop user. If you do not like tinkering with settings or having numerous power-grabbing fancy screen animations, Pinguy OS could be a good choice. The GNOME desktop is the only user interface, but the developer included some software options not usually packaged with GNOME. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2uHNF95

Roku has earned a reputation for making streaming TV products that are easy to set up and use, and that deliver above-average quality at affordable prices -- and that's the approach it has taken with its new Roku TV Wireless Speakers. The company unveiled the speakers on Monday, although it doesn't expect to start shipping them until October, when they will sell for $199.99. Eager consumers can preorder to take advantage of early bird offers. The speakers are designed exclusively for smart TVs that run Roku software. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2LfTzZo

Microsoft Inspire is taking place this week in Las Vegas, and a huge number of my personal friends and I were prebriefed on what the big announcements would be. Strangely, the embargo on the news lifted last week, so I'm not going to get in trouble for sharing some of the revelations. There are a number of interesting elements, including Microsoft's suddenly aggressive move to use Azure as an Internet of Things host, which suggests that in the future, many of our homes and businesses will be managed remotely in the Microsoft Cloud. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2mo3tKs

Apple has announced updated MacBook Pro 13- and 15-inch notebooks with a Touch Bar, 8th-generation Intel Core processors, support for up to 32 GB of DDR memory in the larger notebook, a True Tone display, and an improved third-generation keyboard for quiet typing. The 15-inch model comes with 6-core Intel Core i7 and i9 processors rated at up to 2.9 GHz -- with Turbo Boost, up to 4.8 GHz. It offers up to 4 TB of SSD storage. The 13-inch model has quad-core Intel Core i5 and i7 processors rated at up to 2.7GHz -- with Turbo Boost up to 4.5 GHz. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2NPl7U2

One of the loudest buzzes in the Internet of Things is around smart homes. Vendors have rushed to connect everything imaginable within a house, including lights, appliances, entertainment systems, windows, shades, door locks, ceiling fans, faucets, smoke detectors, security systems, furniture -- basically anything with a battery or power cord now can be connected, and if it doesn't have a power solution, one is in the works. With a swipe of your finger on your tablet or smartphone, you can control anything around you. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2ma00ii

A new feature in iOS 11.4.1, which Apple released earlier this week, is designed to protect against unwanted intrusions through the iPhone's Lightning Port. However, the protection may be weak at best. The feature, called "USB Restricted Mode," disables data transfer through the Lightning Port after an hour of inactivity. A password-protected iOS device that has not been unlocked and connected to a USB accessory within the past hour will not communicate with an accessory or computer, and in some cases might not charge, according to Apple. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2ztnbh4

Ascensio System SIA recently released its free office suite upgrade -- OnlyOffice Desktop Editors -- with a ribbon and tab interface plus numerous updated features. The refresh makes version 5.1 a potential alternative to Web versions of the Microsoft Office suite and Google Docs for Linux users. The three-module set of OnlyOffice Desktop Editors has an impressive collection of tools geared toward individual consumers and small offices. It provides many of the conveniences available when using MS Word or Google G-Suite apps. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2m8UDA9

A popular fitness app provided a convenient map for anyone interested in shadowing government personnel who exercised in secret locations, including intelligence agencies, military bases and airfields, nuclear weapons storage sites, and embassies around the world. The fitness app, Polar Flow, publicized more data about its users in a more accessible way than comparable apps "with potentially disastrous results," found investigators. Polar Flow provided functionality that combined all of a person's exercise sessions on a single map. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2m41sD4

It's interesting to compare Google and Amazon -- two of the most incredibly powerful companies in the world. Amazon brings out product after product, with more successes than failures. Google largely buys companies and then loses interest in what they do. Amazon is a retailer, and profit is built into its efforts, while Google largely lives off selling users' information and providing access to content that doesn't belong to it -- kind of like living off an allowance from parents who don't really want to give it but don't see an alternative. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2ukBNtk

Tech companies have been going through a lot of CEOs of late. Prior to its split, HP had a revolving door for CEOs with mistake after mistake. Yahoo's board kept making choices that made things worse, Uber's CEO almost took the company under, and CEOs fired for ethical lapses jumped a whopping 36 percent. When an employee misbehaves and has to be fired, it generally is at least partially the fault of management, either for not doing a respectable job of selection or for not doing a good job of oversight, or both. from TechNewsWorld https://ift.tt/2MHiylc