World's first hack-free software 'developed'

Scientists have developed what they claim is the world's first hack-free software which can protect systems from failure or malicious attacks. The 'seL4' microkernel has been developed by a team led by Australia's ICT Research Centre of Excellence's spinout company -- Open Kernel Labs (OK Labs). It is a small operating system kernel which regulates access to a computer's hardware.

Its unique feature is that it has been mathematically proven to operate correctly, enabling it to separate trusted from untrusted software, protecting critical services from a failure or a malicious attack, say the scientists.

In future applications, seL4 could ensure that trusted financial transaction software from secure sources like banks or stock exchanges can operate securely on a customer's mobile phone alongside "untrusted" software, such as games downloaded from the Internet, according to its developers.

It could also provide a secure and reliable environment for mission-critical defence data, operating on the same platform as everyday applications like email. Or, it could protect the life-supporting functions of an implanted medical device, such as a pacemaker, from hacking, they say.

"Our seL4 microkernel is the only operating system kernel in existence whose source code has been mathematically proven to implement its specification correctly. Under the assumptions of the proof, the seL4 kernel for ARM11 will always do precisely what its specification says it will do," lead scientist Gerwin Klein said.

Added another scientist Gernot Heiser: "Verification of operating-system kernels has been attempted since the 1970s -- we pulled it off!"

via hindustantimes

Android Honeycomb: 10 things you need to know

Google unveiled its tablet-specific Android 3.0 OS at CES to a flurry of excitement thanks to some pretty exciting new tablet-focused additions to the already impressive OS.

But, with a preview of the SDK only just released to developers, we won't be seeing Honeycomb on our Android tablets for a little while; in the meantime, whet your appetite with our round-up of the key new features.

There'll be 3D-effect graphics

You can't swing a cat without hitting something 3D (literally) in the tech world these days, and Google knows it. Honeycomb offers developers the opportunity to use high-performance 3D graphics which should offer no noticeable lag, even with the extra rendering required.

This means we'll see 3D creeping into our apps, wallpapers and carousels as the developers get to grips with the extra dimension.

The Android UI has been redesigned especially for tablets

The Android user interface had always been intended for smartphones with screens no bigger than around 4-inches – with the advent of tablet devices, displays have shot up in the size stakes. Lucky for us, they're not short of a brain cell or two over at Google and have re-designed the Android UI taking the larger screen into account.


Recent apps will make multi-tasking a breeze

Multi-tasking is where we expect the dual-core Android tablets to shine, and Honeycomb gives it the tools to do so.

The 'recent apps' launcher lays out the last apps you used and the state you left them in, so you can quickly nip from one to another and straight into work. The tool lives in the system bar which is always onscreen, so there'll be no tedious navigation through menus.


The keyboard will be tablet-friendly


Of course you could buy an external keyboard for your tablet but lugging a million accessories around defeats the object of having a sleek and handy tablet.

To save you the hassle, Google has put a bit of thought into the onscreen keyboard; the keys have been reshaped and repositioned to make typing more comfortable and the targeting more natural for the larger screen, instead of simply scaling up the keyboard.

We love the inclusion of a tab key, which makes the typing experience more akin to that of a desktop or notebook than that of a phone.


Better copy and paste than ever before


Ah, copy and paste. Such a small function and yet so universally adored. While regular Android does allow text selection, copying and pasting, the Honeycomb system has had a few tweaks.


Connectivity upgrades include improved Wi-Fi and Bluetooth tethering

Google has improved Android's Wi-Fi connectivity with a new scanning system; it reduces scanning time across bands and filters, so you should be up, running and connected in shorter times.

Bluetooth connectivity has been updated too; more devices can now tether to the tablet and share its connectivity, while simple devices with no user interface (think sensors and the like) are also supported.
There'll be anonymous tabbed web browsing

If you fancy a spot of private web browsing on your Android tablet, then you're in luck; the new "incognito" mode lends an air of Poirot-era respectability to your secretive searching.

Google has also done away with the multiple-window browser, instead going for a tabbed browser system with your open web pages displayed in the action bar at the top of the screen.


Google Chrome users can easily sync their bookmarks to the tablet browser too, thanks to Honeycomb's option to automatically sign in to all Google sites with one supplied account.

Legacy apps will work seamlessly

Worried that you won't be able to make use of the thousands of Android apps already in the marketplace? Never fear, even though they were designed for a much smaller-screened device, Honeycomb is still compatible with apps developed for earlier Android iterations as long as devs add in a simple spot of code.

The menu key functions from Android phones are migrated to the Action Bar menu in Honeycomb, and there's the option for developers to create dedicated layouts for larger screens and add them to existing apps.

Two-pane email should mean easy inbox oraganisation

Two-paned email sounds a little familiar – oh yes, that's right. We've seen it before on the iPad where it works brilliantly. If it ain't broke, and all that.

The ability to select multiple messages in the inbox and move or delete them mean there's no excuse for a messy, disorganised inbox, while attachments can be synced to the tablet for you to view later.

Widgets are going to get interactive

Widgets saved to the home screen on Honeycomb tablets are going to have a whole new level of functionality available. Rather than passively relaying information to the user, they'll be interactive.

via techradar

Facebook founder Zuckerberg's fan page hacked

SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook on Wednesday said a software "bug" let a hacker impersonate the social network's founder Mark Zuckerberg in a comment posted to his public fan page at the website.

The bogus update posted late on Monday suggested that Facebook turn to its users instead of banks for money and got "liked" by more than 1,800 members of the social network before it was erased.

"A bug enabled status postings by unauthorized people on a handful of public pages," a Facebook spokesperson said in an email reply to an AFP inquiry. "The bug has been fixed."

Pictures of the hacked page could be found at technology news blog TechCrunch and other online venues. The message, complete with typos, left on the page read:

"Let the hacking begin: If facebook needs money, instead of going to the banks, why doesn't Facebook let its users invest in Facebook in a social way? Why not transform Facebook into a 'social business' the way Nobel Price winner Muhammad Yunus described it? http://bit.ly/fs6rT3 What do you think?"

It was signed "#hackercup2011," an apparent reference to an international computer programming competition being held by Facebook. The link directed users to a Wikipedia page about social business.

Yunus was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for helping people break out of poverty with the help of micro-loans.

via indiatimes

In China, a new software helps battle corruption

Nanjing Urban Planning Bureau, corruption in official ranks, Chinese provincial government, software to continuously monitor the work of officials

With corruption among official ranks emerging as a major menace, a Chinese provincial government has introduced a computer software which continuously monitor the work of officials.

In the Nanjing Urban Planning Bureau of Jiangsu Province, a yellow light will flicker in the office computer system of the department, a warning signal, if an official does not finish a case within 20 days.

“If an official violates the protocol when dealing with a case, a red light will flicker,” Ding Haiyang, head of the discipline department of the bureau told official Xinhua newsagency.

The system enables public to follow their case, know the result of the official’s work on a website and make complaints online, Ding said. “Since the system was installed, every official has tried his best to finish his part of his work in time and hand it to colleagues in the next step.

“No one wants to be the one who delays the case and causes the yellow light to flicker,” Ding said, adding that the discipline department will monitor the work of all officials through the system.

The new system is proving effective as 52 departments of the provincial government, 13 city governments and 106 county departments in Jiangsu are linked by the new monitoring system.

According to the provincial discipline agency, the system has sent about 3,200 yellow-light warnings and 22,400 red-light warnings throughout the province since it started operation in January last year.

“Transparency of government work and effective supervision are the best way to prevent corruption. The new system helps us supervise the administrative power and stem graft at its source,” Xie Chang, deputy secretary of provincial commission for discipline inspection said.

The new system is one of many measures the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CPC) is publicising as a part of its efforts to show that fighting corruption is its major priority as it continued unabated despite cases where some high profile officials have been given death sentences.

According to new figures, recent commercial bribes alone amounted to a whopping 16.59 billion Yuan (USD 2.65 billion) during the past five years. Prosecutors at all levels investigated more than 240,000 cases of embezzlement, bribery, dereliction of duty, and rights infringement.

via indianexpress

Google "not happy" with slow Android application sales

Despite brisk hardware sales to consumers and large numbers of apps sitting in in marketplace, Google's Android platform isn't resulting in health app sales, a problem the company is trying to solve.

Speaking to "anxious app developers" at the Inside Social Apps conference in San Francisco on Tuesday, Android platform manager Eric Chu said Google is actually "not happy" about the limited number of apps actually being purchased, according to a report by Forbes blogger Oliver Chiang.

The Plan to fix Android app sales

Chiang said Chu outlined a roadmap for Android in 2011 that the company hopes will help it drive new app sales more comparable to the outstanding results of Apple's blockbuster iOS App Store, but noted the plan is short on specifics.

"Chu used the phrase 'stay tuned' enough to make a drinking game out of it," Chiang wrote.

The overall plan includes creating an in-app payments system like the one Apple created last year as part of iOS 4, enabling developers to sell episodic content or related virtual goods.

Google also hopes to negotiate carrier billing agreements with scores of regional mobile providers, allowing users to buy apps and bill them to their mobile account. Apple doesn't need to do this because the iOS App Store in iTunes can bill users directly in most countries, far more than Google's Android Marketplace.

Wanted: app curator

Chu also wants to clean up Android Market, saying there is a team tasked with "weeding out apps that violate Android Market’s terms of service," an indication that Google's free-for-all market design is recognized to have serious drawbacks.

Many of the tens of thousands of apps in Android Market are just ringtones, wallpapers or simplistic "apps" designed just to fill space, a situation that drowns out legitimate developer's work under tons of copyright infringing junkware.

Android Market has also distributed distractive malware, a problem Google can't catch in advance because it isn't curating its catalog, and instead waiting for fires to erupt so it can put them out.

Migration toward HTML apps

The company also hopes to create algorithms to help promote the best apps, making it easier for users to discover worthwhile programs. Chu also indicated that Google planned to turn users' Address Books into a "social graph" that third party apps could tap into.

Without elaborating, Chu also commented that Google was "betting on" HTML5 as a way to create apps. Google employees have previously made it clear that the company sees the Java-like core VM of Android as a stepping stone to a future where apps are created in HTML, as soon as web tools can support sophisticated apps.

That's something that undermines rather than builds confidence in Google's commitment to Android in general. Why should Google bother to create an app store if its future is aimed at web pages? In Google's case, either can be monetized with ads, so there's no reason to build the current Android platform to be anything more than a temporary placeholder.

Chu's comments came just days after Apple celebrated its 10 billionth iOS app download and is promoting an iPad-optimized library of over 60,000 apps.

via appleinsider

'Facebook, Twitter making us less human'

LONDON: A leading academic in the US has claimed that social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook are threatening to dominate our lives, making us more isolated and 'less human'.

Professor Sherry Turkle, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has even branded the use of the technology a form of 'modern madness', reports the Daily Mail.

She argues that, under the illusion of allowing us to communicate better, technology is isolating us from real human interactions in a cyber-reality that is a poor imitation of the real world.

Turkle, who is leading an attack on the information age with her book Alone Together, even suggests social networking can make us mad, citing 'pathological behaviour' she has witnessed, such as mourners at funerals checking their iPhones.

Her book is part of an intellectual backlash in America calling for the people to devote less time to sites such as Twitter.

Other American academics have also criticised the growing trend of internet activity. One, Professor William Kist, of Kent State University in Ohio, has cited the death in Brighton of Simone Back who posted her suicide note on Facebook at Christmas.

None of the 42-year-old Back's 1,058 'friends' on the site called for help. Instead they traded insults on her page.

But defenders of Twitter and Facebook claim social media has many benefits and has, for example, led to more communication for people who are separated by long distances.

via timesofindia

56 Indian-Americans semi-finalists in Intel competition

HOUSTON: Fifty six high school students of Indian-American community were named amongst the 300 semi-finalists in the Intel Science Talent Search which is considered as America's most prestigious pre-college science competition.

California has the highest number of the semi finalists, 41 out of which seven are Indian Americans, followed by New York 11, Maryland seven, Texas six and the rest of the Indian-Americans are from various other states.

This year's semi-finalists were selected from 1,744 applicants representing 172 schools and are competing for USD 1.25 million in awards.

Each of them receive a USD 1,000 grant. The schools also get USD 1,000 for each semi-finalist named.

Colleges and universities regard the Intel STS Semi-finalist award to be evidence of exceptional academic promise. Each semi-finalist is provided with a certificate of accomplishment, which may be sent with their applications for college admission and scholarships.

From amongst the 300 semi-finalists, 40 finalists will be announced on January 26.

The finalists will attend the Intel Science Talent Institute in Washington DC in March and participate in a final judging process to share USD 630,000 in awards.

STS Alumni have made extraordinary contributions in the field of science and hold more than 100 of the world's most coveted science and maths honours, including seven Nobel prizes and four National Medals of Science.

via The Times of India

Facebook backs down over contact info controversy

Facebook has backtracked over a new feature that would have shared users' addresses and mobile phone numbers with developers of applications on the popular social networking site.

Facebook announced the change late Monday night just three days after the introduction of the new feature was met with howls of protest from privacy advocates.

The new feature appeared whenever users installed a new application.

In the past, such actions prompted a menu in which users were asked whether they wished to share personal details such as their name, picture, friends lists and other general information with the application provider.

Privacy advocates immediately blasted this omission, and to Facebook's credit, the company acted quickly to close the security loophole by disabling the new feature. "Over the weekend, we got some useful feedback that we could make people more clearly aware of when they are granting access to this data," Facebook wrote on its developer blog.

"We agree, and we are making changes to help ensure you only share this information when you intend to do so. We'll be working to launch these updates as soon as possible, and will be temporarily disabling this feature until those changes are ready. We look forward to re-enabling this improved feature in the next few weeks."

via ciol

OS : Only 0.4 Percent of Android Users Have Gingerbread

According to the Google-run Android Developer's blog, only 0.4 percent of all Android users run the newest version of Android, Gingerbread, or Android 2.3.
Another 51.8 percent of Android users run Froyo, Android 2.2, while 35.2 percent run Éclair, Android 2.1. Altogether 87.4 percent of all Android phones run some form of Android 2.X.

Compare that to 89.7 percent of all iOS users running some form of iOS 4, as TechCrunch picked up from Bump CEO David Lieb's response in Quora. Broken down, Lieb said 52.89 percent of all iOS users upgraded to the latest minor version iOS 4.2.1.

The stark discrepency between the adoption rates of the latest Android and iOS versions points to the way mobile software is distributed. Unlike iOS users, Android handset owners receive over-the-air software updates from their carriers. This has led to carrier-manufacturer finger-pointing over the long delays between available software updates.

Most recently, someone claiming to be a T-Mobile source accused Samsung of conspiring to delay updated Froyo releases in order to sell more handsets. The latest news, reported today, is that Samsung may be releasing a Galaxy S Froyo update in March. GigaOm points out that the T-Mobile myTouch 3G only recently received Froyo—14 months after the device hit the market.

The distribution model is different for Gingerbread, however. For now it is only available on Google's Nexus S smartphone. Google launched its second smartphone directly to consumers, via Best Buy, on December 6, 2010. This is Google's second attempt to take back control of its own mobile software updates. A year ago Google launched Android exclusively on its Nexus One smartphone, carried by T-Mobile, but it didn't sell well. Eventually, Google had to give up some control over of Android to encourage mass adoption of the mobile OS.

via pcmag

Androids Top 10 Newest Released Applications

Android Applications : If you have just grabbed a new Android handset, and is looking for some cool and new applications to download, here is a list of top 10 newest, releases.

1. Rope Cut: Tops our charts for being the best game of this week. A mix of strategy and timing, this game’s objective is to feed your creature by dropping him treats, though each level brings a new challenge in doing so.

2. Galcon: A multiplayer strategy game set in space at $2.99. Send in your battle ships to defeat enemy planets, with the ultimate goal of taking over the entire universe.

3. Gangstar: Miami: At $5, it is an intense adventure to check out, with car chases, drug busts and fist fights that get up close and personal.

Android Games : http://www.gameloft.com/android-games/top/

4. Meteor Breakout: At $3, its an updated version of the told-school brick breaker games. Set in space, Meteor Breakout comes with new power boosts, level challenges and “bosses” to beat.

5. Straw Hat Samurai: is worth a try. Escape or kill oncoming enemies with your samurai sword. This is a beta version, but has gained decent traction with its early release.

6. BitLetters Free: Just like Scrabble, create as many impressive words as you can with the letters you’re given. Board placement is everything, presenting opportunities for bonuses and defensive strategies against opponents.

7. Tap Crazy: Pop the balls by tapping them before they get to the top of the screen, while keeping other balls safe at the bottom of the screen.

8. Mini Squadron Special Edition: There’s a sequel to the MiniSquadron lineup, with eight new levels, tricks and weapons to check out only at 99 cents.

9. Super Connect 4: It brings good graphics, two-player game play and an easy interface to the Android Market. Take turns passing the phone to your opponent, and see how well you fare on the expert levels.

10. Spectral Souls: At $14, great graphics and an involved storyline, with dozens of characters to customize and take through this long and ambitious journey.

via areacellphone

Google unveils instant translation application on mobiles

Google Translate can use devices running its Android operating system to allow translation of English to Spanish and vice versa

Google has unveiled a mobile phone application that allows users to translate chats instantaneously.

Google Translate can use devices running its Android operating system to allow translation of English to Spanish and vice versa.

Users will have to punch a key to activate the translation between sentences, but Google expects the service to operate in real-time within 18 months.

Read Also | Android's Rumoured Music Store a Picture Closer to Being Reality

It uses technology similar to the updated Googles application, which uses a phone's camera to snap images of sudoku puzzles and, via internet, whiz back the solution in seconds, the Daily Mail reports.

Google Translate works by recording the user's speech, sending the recorded words to the company's vast servers, which then send back an audio translation.

The 'Alpha' trial version works only in Spanish and English but Google expects to add new languages soon.

In December, an iPhone application called WordLens became an internet sensation after a video demonstrated how it uses the iPhone's inbuilt camera to recognise text that is viewed through the lens. It too only worked with Spanish and English.

Read Also | 10 apps to boost your finances using Google's Android OS

Google already has an online text translator and while early versions of it sometimes produced little more than gobbledegook, it's ever-growing database of words has now enabled it to achieve far greater accuracy.

It now covers more than 52 of the world's estimated 6,000 languages.

As with automatic text translation, Google hopes the technique will become more sophisticated with the help of millions of users around the world.

via ciol

BlackBerry Dakota Image, Details Leaked

Sports 2.8-inch touchscreen, Mobile Hotspot and 5MP camera with HD recording

Mobile World Congress 2011 is exactly a month away and we anticipate several new smartphones to be unveiled. Before that, we'll certainly have a few weeks full of leaks, grainy photos and speculations. Jonathan Geller, blogger at BoyGeniusReport, has got an interesting piece of information about an upcoming BlackBerry handset codenamed BlackBerry Dakota.

BlackBerry Dakota bears a close resemblance to the BlackBerry Bold handset. This feature-rich handset also seems to be the thinnest BlackBerry handset with a 10.5 mm thin profile. Dakota has a 2.8-inch VGA capacitive screen to let you touch and interact with the BlackBerry OS. Apart from that this smartphone sports a Near-Field Communication chip, like the one found in the recently released Nexus S device, which could be used for various location based e-commerce services.

The Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and Tri-band UMTS supporting Dakota will let you turn it into a 3G Mobile Hotspot. So RIM indeed is following in the footsteps of Android and Apple (with iOS 4.3 update). Dakota will come pre-loaded with BlackBerry OS 6.1 that would bring its own sweet set of features. Mobile Hotspot feature for BlackBerry devices would come with BlackBerry OS 6.1 update.

BlackBerry Dakota would be yet another device to get a 5 megapixel camera with HD video recording after the BlackBerry 9780. The full specifications are listed below:

- Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE
- Tri-band UMTS
- 5 megapixel camera with HD video recording, flash, and image stabilization
- 4GB of built in storage, 768MB of RAM
- 2.8-inch VGA 640 x 480 capacitive screen
- BlackBerry OS 6.1
- WiFi 802.11b/g/n on 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies
- 3G mobile hotspot
- MicroUSB port
- Bluetooth
- Near Field Communication
- Magnetometer
- Accelerometer
- Proximity sensor
- 10.5mm thin

via techtree

Windows Phone 7 custom ROM released for HTC HD 2

In the October of 2009, HTC unraveled its HD 2 that integrated the company’s very own Sense user interface. The device was initially shipped with the Windows Phone 6.5 platform. HTC HD 2 owners, who’ve long wanted to upgrade themselves and try out the all-new WP7, have dulcet news in store for them.

PocketNow reveals that the Windows Phone 7 port for the HTC HD2 is now available. Developed by the Dark Forces Team, the work on the custom ROM is said to be complete and ready for release. With this, users might be able to taste the goodness of the latest Microsoft operating system.

A crack restoring the above inabilities has been posted on the xda developers forum. A video is also uploaded in order to help handset owners download the crack and make full use of WP7.

via mobiletor

RIM taps Web technology to drive mobile developments

BALI--Research In Motion (RIM) is looking to harness the best of today's Web technologies including HTML5 and JavaScript, to bridge the gap between development efforts for its BlackBerry smartphones and the soon-to-be-released PlayBook tablet.

Tyler Lessard, vice president of global alliances and developer relations at RIM, said the Canadian smartphone manufacturer is intent on bringing the "Web to mobile" by incorporating existing Web technologies into its WebWorks software development kit (SDK).

Released Thursday, the early access version of the SDK will give Web and mobile developers skilled in HTML5, JavaScript and CSS, the tools to create apps for RIM's upcoming PlayBook tablet device, said Lessard, during his keynote presentation here at RIM's first Asia-based developer conference.

Bridging the platforms
According to Lessard, WebWorks allows existing BlackBerry OS developers to port their apps over to the BlackBerry Tablet OS once the device hits the North American market in the first quarter of 2011.

HTML5, specifically its WebKit technology, bridges both the BlackBerry and BlackBerry Tablet platforms, he added.

RIM also released WebWorks as an open source technology so that the wider developer community can add functionalities that are currently missing in the toolkit, he said.

Asked if its PlayBook device is generating developer buzz, Greg Wade, RIM's Southeast Asia managing director , pointed to the extension of an ongoing tablet development program as proof of the increasing interest in the platform.

RIM introduced the Playbook tablet on Sep. 28 last year, pitching it as a product built for the enterprise user base. In fact, RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridis described it as an "amplified view of what's already on [customers'] BlackBerrys".

The 7-inch, dual-core tablet is touted to offer "full multitasking" and hardware-accelerated apps that tap its fast computing capabilities, said Lessard during his keynote.

Carrier billing impetus
Besides creating a viable development roadmap for app developers, RIM is also intent on building out its carrier billing capability, Lessard revealed. Since the launch of its BlackBerry OS 5 in 2009, the company has been partnering U.S. telco, AT&T, to provide carrier billing for subscribers that download its apps, he said, noting that this option is in addition to PayPal and credit card payment methods.

He stressed that carrier billing is a "hugely important, even critical" area for RIM to roll out. Pointing to emerging markets in Southeast Asia and other regions, where credit card payment"doesn't make sense", he noted that these are areas that carrier billing takes on added importance.

via zdnetasia

Technology : Android more at risk than iOS, says Trend Micro

When it comes to mobile security, Apple's iOS platform might get the nod over Android, according to security software maker Trend Micro.
Speaking to Bloomberg yesterday, Trend Micro Chairman Steve Chang said that "Android is open-source, which means the hacker can also understand the underlying architecture and source code." Apple, he said in the interview, has been "very careful about it. It's impossible for certain types of viruses" to run on the company's iPhone.
Chang specifically pointed to Apple's "sandbox concept that isolates the platform, which prevents certain viruses that want to replicate themselves or decompose and recompose to avoid virus scanners."
For its part, Google told Bloomberg that its platform has safeguards in place that "limit the amount of trust a user must grant to any given application developer."
Debates are ongoing with respect to the security of Android and iOS. In July, security experts revealed that both iOS and Android have "comparable" security, but they achieve it in different ways. Moreover, an expert told CNET at the time that the threats each mobile operating system poses aren't affecting users all that much.
"Security concerns are mostly theoretical, at this point," Independent Security Evaluators principal analyst Charlie Miller said in an interview with CNET. "You are more likely to lose the phone."

via cnet

Technology : Facebook's new profile, there's no turning back

The new Facebook profile introduced last month wasn't just an opt-in feature, it turns out, as the social networking giant is going to switch all user profies to the new theme starting today.

Facebook rolled out the improved, redesigned profile theme to users last month, which boasted improved looks. The new profile page removes the tabs that used to be at the top of your page, and moves them to navigation links on the left side of the page. There's also a strip of your latest photos in the new Facebook profile, and overall it tries to make your profile page more presentable to visitors -- it also quickly lets you establish common interests with friends at a glance.

Facebook said in a statement that millions of users had made the shift to the new profile, and the newer profiles will now be pushed to every user -- regardless of whether they like it or not.

via pcworld

The rise of the Android

Worldwide growth of 886 percent over last year, says Canalys. Android phone sales at 27 percent share, overtaking Apple iPhone's 23 percent in the US, says Nielsen. Android to match Symbian's 30 percent share in 2014, says Gartner.

In sheer impact, Google's young smartphone OS was the top technology of 2010.

So should we in India be really excited, with smartphones at under five percent of the mobile installed base? Well, yes, for by sales value per month, smartphones in India are already be at 20 percent share, and rising.

In Asia (and the world) every fifth handset sold is a smartphone. And being way more expensive, in terms of sales value smartphones now account for nearly 50 percent of the Asia market.

So wherefore, the rise of Android?

It ain't just Google. Windows Mobile is backed by Microsoft, and is almost irrelevant at 5 percent share and dropping. It's not just the open source: Linux itself didn't make it as a successful phone OS, though Android draws from the Linux kernel. read more at ciol

Windows deal 'milestone' for Arm

Windows running on chips designed by UK firm Arm marks a "milestone" for the firm says its boss.

Microsoft demonstrated a full version of Windows running on Arm chips at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Arm boss Warren East said the demonstration grew out of a long-standing relationship between the two firms.

He said it was part of a broader strategy to grow the number of places in which Arm-derived chips are used.    read more at bbc