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18 Jan 2011 22:53

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Tech: Article about “Goatse Security” doesn’t use phrase “Goatse Security”

  • where can we drop this for max lols
  • Reported AT&T iPad data hacker (and member of “Goatse Security”) Daniel Spitler • Reportedly discussing, in unsealed chat logs, their plans to release information on iPad 3G users, which AT&T had made available one-at-a-time on a public Web site, but they gathered en masse using a brute-force attack. A secret source reportedly turned in the chat logs focused on Spitler and his partner, Andrew Auernheimer, who were charged with fraud and conspiracy to access a computer without authorization. The details of the case were released today. We’re just upset that this Computerworld story doesn’t once use the phrase “Goatse Security.”  source

18 Jan 2011 22:09

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Biz, Tech: Steve Jobs may be sick, but Apple’s still killin’ profit expectations

  • Want to know the best way to get investors off your back about your iconic CEO’s illness? Post numbers that make everyone criticizing you look like chumps. That’s what Apple did today. And even though Steve is still sick (and hopefully he’s able to deal with that without a problem), the numbers suggest that Apple does so much right that it’ll be hard for them to screw up the next couple of quarters. Just to give you kids an idea:
  • $22 billion in revenues in the first quarter for Apple (very good)
  • 2% the increase in Apple’s stock after Apple’s numbers were released, nearly erasing earlier Jobs-illness-related losses
  • 4:5 the number of Fortune 500 companies currently field testing the increasingly-popular iPad – suggesting further success
  • 16.2M the number of iPhones Apple sold, which is way up from a year ago
  • 7.33M the number of iPads they sold – an extremely robust number
  • 4.1M the number of Macs they sold – also way up from a year ago source

18 Jan 2011 11:01

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Biz, Tech: Apple’s stock not reacting well to Steve Jobs’ medical leave

  • 5.2% decline the drop in Apple’s stock in the wake of yesterday’s announcement that Steve Jobs took medical leave
  • $19
    billion
    the amount of market value that was erased in the wake of Jobs’ temporary departure source
  • » Not enough to kill their swagga: Apple shares are still up 66 percent over the last twelve months, and have a higher market capitalization than any other technology stock. So, even without Jobs, they’re still in a good financial position.

18 Jan 2011 10:26

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Tech: App Store: 14-year-old’s “Bubble Ball” game topples “Angry Birds”

  • See this game right here? It’s more popular than “Angry Birds” right now. And it was built by a 14-year-old Utah kid. “I was pretty astonished,” said Robert Nay, an eighth-grader, about having the most-popular program in the App Store. “When I released it, I didn’t think it would do so well.” Instead, the physics-oriented “Bubble Ball” has done gangbusters. Nay made the game on the suggestion of friends, using Ansca Mobile’s Corona SDK to simplify the task. Nay still had to write 4,000 lines of code, and it appears it was totally worth it for Nay, who managed to impress the heck out of the Corona SDK developers.  source

17 Jan 2011 10:58

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Biz, Tech: Stock futures market not liking Steve Jobs being sick again

  • Stock markets don’t have hearts. They’re giant money machines that react to news in callous, cold ways that don’t appreciate the nuances of a person’s achievements. Which is why, when someone like Steve Jobs takes a medical leave of absence – which isn’t the big Apple announcement everyone had been expecting (wait a second, this isn’t shaped like an iPad 2!) – stocks go haywire. Fortunately, they timed the news on MLK day, so the New York stock market gets a bit of a breather. But other markets are still open today, and the futures market isn’t liking the news either. Some quick numbers for you kids:
  • 7.5% Apple’s stock dip on the German stock market today after Jobs’ announcement
  • 0.9%stock futures dip on the NASDAQ – THE ENTIRE THING – this morning after the announcement
  • 0.3% stock futures dip on the S&P 500 – ALSO THE ENTIRE THING – after he dropped the bomb source

13 Jan 2011 10:15

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Tech: Here’s a round-up of the latest Apple iOS 4.3-related rumors

  • goodApple plans to allow iPad users to decide how they use the toggle on the side. In iOS 4.2, they changed its functionality, annoying lots of people.
  • betterThe new device will allow for more multi-touch hand gestures, and should allow users to turn their device into a personal hotspot.
  • weirdThe strangest rumor? Apple may ditch the home button and replace it with multi-touch gestures. Steve Jobs hates buttons! source

12 Jan 2011 10:35

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Tech: Microsoft suddenly complains about Apple “App Store” trademark

  • then Back in 2008, Apple trademarked the words “App Store” to advertise its silo of third-party programmed application goodness. The U.S. Patent Office opened up the name for opposition in 2009, and Apple later used it for it Mac App Store.
  • now Microsoft, trying to gain a foothold with Windows Phone 7, decided to protest use of the name, saying that it was too generic. Note that the U.S. Patent Office has allowed others to protest this trademark for more than a year. source
 

07 Jan 2011 21:08

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Tech: Smart: Apple washing its hands of Verizon iPhone announcement

  • This is the sort of thing where Apple needs to play it cool, and act like this is just another carrier. Good news, but not big news. The bottom line from Apple is going to be something like, ‘We’re delighted to add Verizon as an iPhone carrier’. That’s it.
  • Daring Fireball’s John Gruber • Offering some perspective on Verizon’s forthcoming announcement, likely about the iPhone coming to the wireless provider (freaking finally). Truth is, this is a smart move. Back in 2006, Apple had a special event for stuff unworthy of a special event (remember the overpriced iPod Hi-Fi?) and they drew a ton of criticism, creating one of their biggest stumbles in recent memory. By having an Apple special event for the Verizon iPhone, they’d run the same risk. So, handing it over to Verizon gets around the problem entirely. Plus, now Verizon can fight with AT&T without Apple getting its hands dirty. Smart. source

06 Jan 2011 11:14

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Tech: Apple’s Mac App Store: A cool concept, with caveats

  • So, look, the idea sounds cool. And we admit to be looking forward to checking it out. But at the same time, we totally understand why some developers might be freaking out. If the app store is successful at changing the behavior of Apple’s biggest die-hards, it could turn consumers used to spending $20-30 on a program into people who routinely complain that an app costs more than $2. But if this thing is a hit, just think of the scale it could have! So, as you browse through the 1,000+ apps on the store today, keep that in mind before you go too crazy. source

06 Jan 2011 10:59

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Tech: Sign of nervousness: AT&T cuts iPhone 3GS price by half

  • $49 somebody must be losing iPhone exclusivity soon source