Paper Publications Continue to Disappear

USA Today moves away from print publication

USA Today is moving away from print publication it was announced Thursday. USA Today Publisher Dave Hunke, is quoted by the Associated Press as saying that the company will focus on delivering their content on the internet.

Printed Oxford English Dictionary May Fade Away

It may be the end of the line for the printed Oxford English Dictionary as users find online access more convenient. The online Oxford dictionary gets two million visits a month, while the 1989 print version has sold about 30,000. An analyst said writers have found online dictionaries and word-processing spell checkers more convenient.

Quicken Online closes for good; migration to Mint is less than ideal

Quicken Online has officially made its way into the history books, welcoming Mint to replace it, as of the weekend. But unlike other migrations from one software product to another, many of which do a lot of the heavy lifting for the user, this switch from Quicken Online to Mint is no day at the beach. Because the platforms for the two products are so vastly different.

Bad flash drive caused worst U.S. military breach

A malware-laden flash drive inserted in a laptop at a U.S. military base in the Middle East in 2008 led to the "most significant breach of" the nation's military computers ever, according to a new magazine article by a top defense official.

WiLMa Keeps Your Windows Just the Way You Like Them

Windows Layout Manager (also known as WiLMa) is a free app that allows you to manage the size, shape, and positioning of any and all windows on your screen to a fine degree.

Make Phone Calls from Gmail

Google makes it official: Phone calls now in Gmail

Google launched the ability to make voice calls to any traditional phone number from a Gmail account. It's a blend of Gmail and Google Voice technology that allows users to dial numbers from their computers as well as receive incoming calls through one's Google Voice number.

Fact check: malware did not bring down a passenger jet

I’ve been reading breathless and shocking “reports” for several days now explaining that “malware brought down a Spanish jet.” And once again we have a case study in how the Internet echo chamber works to take a single report and distort it beyond recognition.

Microsoft updates Office Web Apps, Facebook Docs

Although officially only two months old, Microsoft's Office Web Apps is already growing up a bit. To satisfy just some of the many user requests for new features, Microsoft this week updated its online version of Office with enhancements to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Microsoft Russia shows apparent Internet Explorer 9 interface

Though Microsoft has released four previews of Internet Explorer 9 over the past six months, none of them included much of a user interface. The company was keeping that under wraps, with the first public unveiling happening in a few weeks, on September 15. But with an apparent mistake by one of Microsoft's Russian Web properties, it looks like the secret might be out: the site posted a screenshot that apparently shows the new browser UI, as noticed by Mary-Jo Foley at ZDNet.

Zimbra Desktop - Free

Zimbra Desktop is free e-mail and calendar software that runs on any Linux, Mac or Windows computer. The tool offers e-mail, contacts, calendar and document capabilities all in one application, and it lets users read e-mail from any POP or IMAP e-mail account, including Gmail, Hotmail or business e-mail.

New Dual Core Atom Processors Released

Dual-Core Atoms Boost Performance for New Netbooks

New netbooks with more powerful dual-core Atom processors from Intel are shipping from Acer, ASUS, Fujitsu, Lenovo, LG, Samsung and Toshiba. Intel's new dual-core Atom is based on the Pinetrail platform and has two physical cores with two threads per core for a performance boost of up to 20 percent.

Hands on review of the Kindle 3

The first thing you should know about the "Kindle 3" is that it's more evolutionary than revolutionary. Most importantly, Amazon has made its 6-inch e-reader smaller and lighter, and it has improved the screen. The Kindle has also adopted the key Wi-Fi feature from its rival, the Barnes & Noble Nook.

Watch Out for New Bank Fees

Not really a high tech news story, but worth knowing. With new consumer laws now requiring banks to let you opt-in to overdraft protection, new fees will be popping up to fill in the gap. Here's what to expect.

Paul Thurrott's SuperSite for Windows: Master Libraries

Windows 7's new Libraries features is one of the biggest changes to Microsoft's latest client OS, and while their use doesn't require a major rethinking compared to the previous scheme of physical and special shell folders, there are indeed some interesting and unique wrinkles to libraries. This week, I'd like to provide some pointers for getting the most out of libraries.

This To-Do List Manager is Top-Notch and Free

f you're the sort of person who buys self-help books aimed at busy people, you've almost certainly heard of David Allen. He's the inventor of a concept called GTD, or Getting Things Done. It's not so much a way of managing your to-do list, but more a way of life. Wieldy is a free to-do list manager, which its author claims is modeled on the GTD concept. It runs under Windows XP and above, and provides a friendly, intuitive way to manage and prioritize all your tasks and thoughts, and keep track of contacts. It uses a Ribbon-like interface, and I actually think it looks a lot like Microsoft Outlook.

Did Viruses Bring Down an Aircraft?

Trojan-ridden warning system implicated in Spanair crash

The airline's central computer which registered technical problems on planes was infected by Trojans at the time of the fatal crash and this resulted in a failure to raise an alarm over multiple problems with the plane, according to Spanish daily El Pais.

HD Moore: Critical bug in 40 different Windows apps

Metasploit’s HD Moore was in the midst of researching the recently patched LNK (Windows shortcut) vulnerability when he stumbled upon a serious problem that exposes more than 40 different Windows software programs to remote code execution attacks.

Adobe Updates Reader, Acrobat and Flash Player

Adobe Reader and Acrobat have received emergency patches to fix vulnerabilities disclosed at the Black Hat conference. Charlie Miller said at Black Hat that the flaws in Adobe Reader and Acrobat could be exploited with specially crafted PDF files. The Adobe updates also fix six vulnerabilities in Flash Player that could be used to take control of a PC.

Facebook Places: One check-in to rule them all

There was something very much in the vein of Utopian science-fiction fantasies to Facebook's announcement of "Places," its location-based "check-in" product that it launched on Wednesday night. In short, Facebook not only wants to be the digital sovereignty toward which all other geolocation apps direct their figurative roads, it also wants to be the Web's own omniscient historian.

How I’d Hack Your Weak Passwords

This isn't intended as a guide to hacking *other people's* weak passwords. Instead, the aim is to help you better understand the security of your own passwords and how to bolster that security.

Top 100 Web Sites

The Top 100 Web Sites of 2010

Here are the PC Magazine picks for the hottest Web sites and Web trends of the year, plus some old favorites to enjoy.

So Google Thinks It Can Dance With the Devil?

Google and Verizon have proposed a compromise on the issue of Net neutrality -- a system that would ensure unbiased handling of traffic over wired connections but leave the world of wireless open to manipulation by service providers. Google has been a neutrality advocate in the past, but critics say this plan is no solution at all.

SanDisk Reveals The SSD Perfect For Mobile Computing - It's Smaller Than A Postage Stamp

Solid state drives just got a whole lot smaller. Memory maker SanDisk introduced a new super compact memory chip that is smaller than your average postage stamp and lighter than a paperclip.

Windows Live Essentials 2011 Beta Refresh Now Available

Microsoft on Tuesday issued a "beta refresh" of its upcoming Windows Live Essentials 2011 applications suite for Windows Vista and 7. If you use Windows Live Essentials 4 Beta, you should go on line and update your software.

DLS Review: Picasa 3.8 Released, now with Picnik editor

Picasa 3.8 has been unleashed upon the world a couple of days ago. It brings with it several major features, sch as Batch Album upload, something called "Face Movie" which creates an animation out of a series of images of the same person, and last but certainly not least, Picnik photo editing.

Is Disney Spying on You?

Disney sued over allegedly spying with 'flash cookies'

A lawsuit filed in federal court last week alleges that a group of well-known Web sites, including those owned by Disney, Warner Bros. Records, and Demand Media, broke the law by secretly tracking the Web movements of their users, including children. Walt would be turning over in his grave.

Microsoft's new Hotmail: Not a smooth transition for all

Microsoft rolled out to all of its Hotmail users the newest version of its Web-based e-mail program in early August. Since that time, a number of users have been reporting problems accessing and composing their mail when using the latest release.

Gartner: Android has overtaken iPhone worldwide

Android is now larger than the iPhone on the world stage, analysts at Gartner said today. Google's phone platform jumped to 10.6 million phones sold, or enough to overtake the iPhone and take 17.2 percent of the market. The researchers believe Apple sold more iPhones than it shipped, at 8.47 million, but the higher number was still enough to put it at fourth place with 14.2 percent.

Best Free Word Processor

If you don't write novels, reports and documentations all the time, but like to use a Word Processor for letters, memos and how-to's, you will love some of these word processors. They are mostly lightweight, load in a jiffy, and give you many more features than those you find in Wordpad that comes with Windows.

10+ extensions for better back-to-school browsing with Google Chrome

If Google Chrome is your browser of choice, there are loads of useful add-on enhancements in the Extensions Gallery which can turn Chrome into a powerful tool for staying focused and productive while tackling your coursework.

Google & Verizon Team Up to Screw Us All

If Verizon and Google Win, We Lose

If Google and Verizon get their way, no one will be able to stand up for wireless customers. Well-considered regulation is needed to stop outrageous practices. Indeed, what the two companies and their pampered executives really mean is that the FCC and the states shouldn't regulate the wireless industry at all. Consumers be damned.

Stuxnet could hijack power plants, refineries

A worm that targets critical infrastructure companies doesn't just steal data, it leaves a back door that could be used to remotely and secretly control plant operations, a Symantec researcher said on Thursday. The Stuxnet worm infected industrial control system companies around the world, particularly in Iran and India but also companies in the U.S. energy industry.

Preparing Windows XP for the long haul

Microsoft's support for Windows XP may be fading, but a loyal horde of XP users plans to stick with this venerable OS for as long as possible. If that's your long-term goal, there are a number of steps you can take now to ensure a finely tuned XP system for months — possibly years — to come.

High Dynamic Range Tutorial

Learn how to Make HDR photos...written by the master of this photo technique. And see his beautiful HDR photographs. This in-depth tutorial will teach you everything you need to know.

FileNotes Freeware - add personal notes to your files

FileNotes is a simple tool that lets you add a personal note to any file on your computer. To add a note, simply right-click on the file and select the newly added `Notes` menu item, which will open a small notes window that allows you to type your note or review an existing note.

Which is the Best Browser?

Record Patch Tuesday yields critical Windows, IE fixes

Microsoft issued a record number of monthly patches on Tuesday, including fixes for eight critical holes affecting Windows, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Word, and other programs that could be exploited to take control of a computer. MAKE SURE UP CHECK YOUR VERSION OF WINDOWS TO SEE IF IT IS INSTALLED. IF NOT...INSTALL IT NOW!!

The Best Web Browser: Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, or Safari?

Not too long ago the job of a Web browser was simple: Get the text from the Internet and pour it into the window. If a tag like <strong> comes along, change the font. Now the challenges are greater because the browser is becoming the home for almost everything we do. Do you have documents to edit? There's a website for that. Did you miss a television show? There's a website for that. Do you want to announce your engagement? There's a website for that too. The Web browser handles all of that and more.

How long will Microsoft support XP, Vista, and Windows 7?

In an ideal world, old versions of Windows would roll off Microsoft’s list of supported products and be replaced by new ones at regular, predicable intervals. That upgrade cycle has been anything but smooth and predictable in recent years, however. Microsoft’s support policy is still returning to normal after XP was allowed to live well past its normal retirement date and then got multiple extensions to placate customers who just said no to Vista.

Five reasons Windows XP still rules the desktop

Microsoft may tout Windows 7's growth curve, but the truth is that Windows XP rules the desktop, and will do so for many years. The most recent report shows that Windows XP has more than twice the market share of Windows 7 and Windows Vista combined.

Meet Project Vigilant--the Wikileaks leak

Highlighting Project Vigilant's role in outing an alleged Wikileaks source, a Salon.com column warned that the organization's members have "extensive, sophisticated expertise in compiling highly invasive data about individuals' Internet activities." It's been labeled a "shadowy spy group" that's "building dossiers" for the feds.

My First Ever Sex/Tech Story

The Hewlett Packard sex scandal: An instant guide

Mark Hurd, the chief executive of tech giant Hewlett Packard, has resigned over a sex scandal involving a softcore porn actress. What happened?

Google, Verizon unveil proposal - not agreement - to help FCC with Net Neutrality

In a post on Google’s Public Policy blog, the companies revealed their vision of how content providers and broadband providers can work together to maintain an open Internet while also allowing technology to flourish.

Coffeehouses unplugging Internet access to reconnect with customers

Coffee shops were the retail pioneers of Wi-Fi, flipping the switch to lure customers. But now some owners are pulling the plug. They're finding that Wi-Fi freeloaders who camp out all day nursing a single cup of coffee are a drain on the bottom line. Others want to preserve a friendly vibe and keep their establishments from turning into "Matrix"-like zombie shacks where people type and don't talk. 

Find Out What Windows Error Codes Mean

I’m sure you’ve all experienced it at some stage or another. You’re just quietly working away on your PC and all is well, suddenly you get the cringing error sound and then a window pops up with a great big red X. In the window is a whole bunch of numbers and letters, an error code.

Best Free Online Applications and Services

Online applications (also known as web applications or webware) are getting more popular, particularly when broadband Internet access has become more common and readily available to more users. With online applications and services, you do not need to download and install them into your computer for using them—you just need to open up a browser and access them online.

Friday Follies for Nerds

MS Patch Tuesday heads-up: 14 bulletins, 34 vulnerabilitie

Microsoft is planning a very busy Patch Tuesday this month: 14 bulletins with patches for 34 vulnerabilities in Windows, Microsoft Office, Internet Explorer, SQL and Silverlight.

Report: In IE8, Web ads won out over privacy

Efforts to build Microsoft's Internet Explorer 8 with more robust privacy settings were reportedly stifled by the needs of online advertisers to track user activity, according to a story in Monday's Wall Street Journal.

How to Buy a Laptop

Shopping for a laptop, but completely baffled by the myriad options available on the market? We clear through the clutter to guide you to your perfect laptop.

ClickTV - Ditch Cable TV and Watch Shows When you Want

Let's face it, cable TV service is not exactly cheap and if you want to time-shift your TV shows you have to either rent a special box from your cable provider or pay for another service with a box like TIVO. Thankfully, there are other ways to watch TV without having to pay for cable TV. As long as you have an Internet connection you can go to network sites like ABC.com and NBC.com to see some of your favorite shows. And now, we've released a new utility called ClickTV that lets you watch your favorite shows whenever you want.

Free Audio Books Online

This is a listing of 64 sites that legally offer free audio books, either for online listening or for download.

Tips and Tricks for Windows 7 and Google

Windows 7 Overtakes Windows Vista!

Yes, it’s here, the day that Microsoft has longed for ever since the first reviews of Windows Vista came in. Windows 7 has finally managed to overtake Windows Vista in terms of market share, 10 months after its release. While Windows 7 may still have a long way to go before it surpasses Windows XP, it’s definitely heading in the right direction to do so.

50 Ways to Make the Most of Windows 7

Microsoft's latest OS is rich in features and performance, but there's always room for improvement. Try these tips to optimize your system.

Windows 7 Addons: Fill in the Missing Features

Windows doesn't do everything it should or we'd like, but that's OK. This collection of free programs adds the features Microsoft left out.

Gmail Users Can Now Sign In To Multiple Accounts

Google has added a feature that lets Gmail users sign into multiple e-mail accounts from the same browser. Google's new feature also works with Google Calendar, Google Reader, Google Sites and others. The new Gmail feature is turned off by default, but once activated, Gmail users get a drop-down menu.

How to Migrate Your Entire Google Account to a New One

Whether you finally decided to shed sassyhacker957@gmail.com for a more professional handle or you want to swap Google accounts for less embarrassing reasons, Google doesn't have a built-in system for migrating your data to a new account. So we figured it out.

Fix For Windows Shortcut Security Flaw Due Out Today

Microsoft to release fix for Windows Shortcut flaw on Monday

Microsoft has announced plans to release of an out-of-band update today to address the Windows Shortcut flaw revealed less than two weeks ago. The software giant has been keeping a close watch on the use of .LNK files exploiting the vulnerability and has concluded that it needs to act faster than usual. This flaw affects all versions of Windows.

iPhone 4 antenna woes "significantly worse" than competition

A UK consulting firm says its tests show the "death grip" problem is real, and "significantly" worse for the iPhone 4 than other smartphones. A review from Norway is less critical, suggesting the iPhone 4 gets better signal than competing phones and may be victim to AT&T's less "robust" wireless network.

Raising the stakes in social gaming

The companies that make games with names like Sorority Life, FarmVille, and Pet Society have become some of the most sought-after in the digital-media industry, and now huge companies are starting to take sides. We already knew that there was a lot of money being thrown around in social gaming, but now it's evident that there's far more money at stake even than that. Billions of dollars, even.

Five Best Book Recommendation Services

It's disappointing to haul a book home from the library or shell out hard-earned cash at the bookstore only to settle in at home and find you don't enjoy it one bit. Stock your reading list with these five great recommendation services.

Microsoft OneNote - Download the standalone trial version for OneNote 2010

OneNote is my favorite Microsoft program and probably the most used software on all my computers. Basically, it is a place where you can collect all your information in one place. Collect text, images, drawings, ideas Web pages and much more, all in one place. Although it is available on all versions of Office 2010, now you can download a standalone 60 trial version to try out for free. Warning...if you use it, you will want to buy it.