Only tabloid for Times

The Times, which is Great Britain's most influential daily newspaper has surprised everybody by deciding to go only in tabloid format from monday for all editions. According to the Times editor Robert Thomson, "The launch of the compact has transformed the fortunes of the newspaper". Times has introduced tabloid version in parts. They decided to go for only tabloid version after the successful run. According to BBC, sales of the paper have gone up by 4.5% since publishing a broadsheet and tabloid version. I really want to see a tabloid edition here in US. I know not many people are for paper news any longer whey we are getting all the latest news on internet as it happens. I only use newspapers for garage sales.

Google fixes the hole in GMail too fast

Google plugs hole exposing Gmail mail-boxes (InfoWorld)

According to Nathan Tyler, Google spokesman, "Google was recently alerted to a potential security vulnerability affecting the Gmail service. We have since fixed this vulnerability, and all current and future Gmail users are protected,". The problem was that an attacker could take the cookie file that was created when the victim logs into GMail account and use that cookie file to log onto victim's account from any computer bypassing the password. This means that the attacker can use the victim's account even the password is changed.
But, the good news is that Google has fixed the security flaw. Google was pretty fast in fixing the flaw.

Source: theofficeweblog

Google takes first step towards Mac

Google Plans Desktop Search Tool for Apple PCs (Y! News)

Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said Google wants to release it's latest offering Google Desktop Search for Apple Computers too. He didn't set any date for this though. But, I think if Google really does that, it would be their first tool that could be used on a Mac.

iPod for Halloween

Source: Gizmodo

iPod Photo carries the audio defect from regular 4G iPods

iPod Photo manifests audio defect (iPodlounge)

Seems like this audio problem is present in all the 4G iPods - regular, Photo and may be U2 (this is not confirmed yet). Though iPodlounge people reported this to Apple and submitted the defective units, why Apple hasn't confirmed this yet and didn't fix it is anybody's guess. Rio was quick to respond to Carbon's audio defect. Apple should seriously fix this issue since iPod has become the biggest revenue source for them and they can't afford to loose this ground.

San Francisco joins other major cities for Wi-Fi Program

San Francisco to Expand Wi-Fi Program (Y! News)

Lots of city governmnets are launching ambitious Wi-Fi projects in the recent times. Philadelphia was one of them that made headlines some time back. Now, SF City Mayor wants every San Franciscan to have access to free wireless Internet service. The city already has a public Wi-Fi center in the major shopping area Union Square.

Excellent Review of Tungsten T5 at BargainPDA

PalmOne Tungsten T5 Review (BargainPDA)

BargainPDA has posted a comprehensive review of PlamOne's new Tungsten T5 Review. I'm pretty pleased by the reviewer and his observations. Personally I feel that the biggest drawback in this model is Wi-Fi. PalmOne should have integrated Wi-Fi with Tungsten. As AdamaDBrown mentioned, "All PocketPCs at the T5's price, and in fact many below it, feature WiFi wireless networking, as well as other desirable features like removable batteries". The only positive thing I see in T5 is it's memory. The user accessible memory is whopping 255 MB. And damn! it's too expensive for what it offers. Dell's Axim is definitely a good deal. For the same price, you get integrated Wi-Fi and dual memory slot. I definitely agree with AdamaDBrown in his conclusion, "they are competing with HP and Dell. Or, perhaps more accurately, HP and Dell are competing with each other, and PalmOne is taking the crossfire. At this rate, PalmOne is either going to be forced out of the high-end market altogether and end up making Zires and cell phones, or they have to fire back with something big. And I don't think the T5 is it".

Think small with Think Outside's Bluetooth Mouse

Think Outside has introduced Stowaway Travel Mouse which is bluetooth enabled. This can be used with any computer enabled with bluetooth and also any PDA and smartphone with bluetooth capability. Though it may seem little bit odd to use a mouse for PDAs, I think it's quite convenient. Instead of trying to use a touchpad or arrow keys, you can now use a mouse for PDA too. The cost is little bit on high end - $80. It is scheduled to ship sometime this fall. Think Outside is offering free shipping if pre-ordered by October 31st.

Source: Gizmodo

Technology Review congratulates Apple users for getting virus

Hackers Target Apple? Congratulations! (Technology Review)

Eric Hellweg at Technology Review has an interesting article explaining why Apple users should rejoice for getting virus to their computers. Some Apple users discovered a virus program called "Opener" last week. It was actually fixed by Sophos, an anti-virus company, three days later. But, here is an interesting comment from him, "this program is a milestone in computing history because the Apple community is finally large enough that it has drawn the attention of the hackers".

Gateway wants to compete with iPod Photos

Gateway to tap out photo, MP3 player beat (CNET)

Within two days Apple announced iPod photo, Gateway announced their own version dubbed as Gateway MP3 Photo Jukebox.The capacity and price is same as iPod Mini (4 GB and $249). The screen resolution is 128 X 128. Obviously it supports only Windows PC. The size is little bigger than iPod Mini but with little less weight. Gateway is taking preorders now and shipping from November 15.

Yahoo! takes on Google in mobile search

Yahoo Search, Now on Your Cell Phone (Yahoo! Search blog)

Not too long ago Google announced Google search via SMS. Now, Yahoo! also went mobile, but via WAP. So, if you don't have WAP service, you are out of luck. Not that I'm a Google fan, but, search via SMS is smarter compared to search via WAP. But, there is cost involved with SMS because each text message would cost, both incoming and outgoing. Whereas, WAP is unlimited for most plans. Either way, it's good to know that search is coming out of computers and going mobile.

Now, Cheat Sheet for Googling

Google Help : Cheat Sheet

I think there are few things that I didn't know before I saw the Cheat Sheet. They are actually quite useful. You definitely want to check those out.

Colored Socks for iPods

Seems like Apple is coming up with some funky stuff for iPods. They released a set of colored socks for iPod. They will be in combination of six different colors priced at $29.

Source: MacMinute

iTunes Music Store in Canada in November

Apple Launches EU iTunes Music Store

As noted earlier today, Apple launched European Union version of iTunes Music Store with each song costing €0.99. Also, I think the Canadian iTunes fans are finally getting what they have been waiting for. iTMS Canada is coming in November.

The wait is over - iPod Photo is finally here

Apple has released iPod photo in two storage capacities - 40 GB and 60 GB. They cost $499 and $599 respectively. The display offers 220x176-pixel resolution. It can display 25 full-color thumbnails at a time. The syncing is done using iTunes itself. The new version 4.7 is ready for this purpose. It works for both Mac and PC. Apart from the photo version, the best next thing is the battery life. The photo iPod can run up to 15 hours where as the regular iPod has battery life of 12 hours.

Apple releases U2 iPod Special Edition

Apple today released U2 iPod Special Edition available for $349. They released It functions no different from regular iPods except that the looks are different. The U2 iPod is black which will definitely stand out among other iPod users. Also, it comes with an exclusive U2 poster. But, the headphones are still white though I would prefer a black one to match the iPod color. As an extra special treat, it includes an iTunes Music Store coupon you can use to get $50 off your purchase of “The Complete U2.” As unique as the iPod itself, this digital boxed set brings together an amazing 400 U2 tracks.

Canada still missing from iTunes Music Store

Nine new iTunes Music Store countries revealed (MacMinute)

Apple is adding nine new iTunes Music Stores - Austria, Belgium, Finland, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. Noticeably, Canada is still missing from the list. I wonder why the country so close to US is being neglected. I'm sure the should be some business problem for Steve Jobs to launch one for Canada, but he should atleast come out and explain why is it so. There are so many iTunes fans in Canada eagerly waiting for iTunes store.

Will Treo 650 replace Treo 600?

Does the palmOne Treo 650 Replace Treo 600? Not Exactly (BargainPDA)


abaxter has a nice article at BargainPDA about Treo 650 on why it is just not a replacement for Treo 600. I'll have to agree with PalmOne guys in that they addressed lots of issues that their users have. Treo 600 was becoming inferior to other handhelds from Blackberry, Sonyericsson P910 and to some extent T-Mobile's Sidekick. Even Windows mobiles have become big competition to Treos. They were having lots and lots of features compared to Treo 600. Now, Treo 650 is a good answer from PalmOne guys. The only thing it doesn't have is Wi-fi. I don't think that is a big business problem, though I personally feel they should have released both Wi-Fi and non-Wi-Fi versions to cover more users. Bluetooth was the biggest lacking feature in Treo 600. And there were some rumors that Sprint will remove this feature in Treo 650. But, that's not the case. Even better, Sprint is the first carrier to release Treo 650. Well, I don't like Sprint, so I don't care. Actually, I'm not going to buy Treo 650. But, I have some soft corner for Palm OS, mainly because I have Windows.

Third birthday for iPod

Happy 3rd Birthday iPod (iPodlounge)

Yesterday was third anniversary for the world's greatest jukebox - iPod. How soon it became an icon for digital music and how so many companies are really thinking about this business is anybody's guess. I think there was only one other company that changed the way people get entertainment and that was Sony with it's walkman. Now, walkman has become a passe and may be iPod will become one too, but nobody can neglect the way Apple is relishing iPod's success in full breath. Let me extend my wishes to Dennis Lloyd for his success on one-stop iPod source website iPodlounge.com. He will be enjoying third anniversary for his website in two weeks.