Tech News Today 122

Tech News Today Episode 122

Tech News Today 122: The Hat Of Nigeria

The great LimeWire hacker hunt, new plan for cheap Cox, virtual real estate hits big, and more.

Hosts

• Tom Merritt (@acedtect)
  • TomMerritt.com
• Sarah Lane (@sarahlane)
  • sarahlane.com
• Jason Howell
  • JasonHowell.net

Top Stories

• Dell knew about computer failures, hid info from customers

• An Unsealed Lawsuit Indicates Dell Hid Faults of Computers

• Manhunt! LimeWire, RIAA both search for "Pirate Edition" creator

• Apple Developing CDMA-GSM ‘World iPad’?

Other Stories

• Google in talks to buy Groupon
• Nordstrom and Oprah Take Groupon Down
• vs. MobGob: Patent Battles Hit The Daily-Deal Business
• Security researcher: I keep getting detained by feds
• Another Hacker’s Laptop, Cellphones Searched at Border
• Amazon enables Kindle book gifting
• Cox Takes On AT&T as First U.S. Cable Carrier Starts Mobile-Phone Service

News Fuse

• The Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act, also known as the 'government and entertainment industry get the power to censor any website it wants act, looks dead in the water. Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon said late Thursday that he would seek to block the bill. Individual senators can place holds on legislation, and there are only a few working days left in the congressional session this year.

• Google has received one more in a series of slaps on the wrist from various world governments. The UK got Google to sign an agreement to improve its data handling following the Information Commissioner's Office ruling that it committed a "significant breach" of the Data Protection Act (DPA) during the mapping in the past two years. The ICO will also audit Google's compliance with the DPA in August 2011

• Remember the user-programmable embedded SIM rumoured to be under development for Apple's iPhone? An unnamed executive at a European carrier told the Financial Times that Apple could risk a "war" if carriers decided to stop subsidizing the iPhone on contract.That war could widen fast though, as embedded SIMs have received official GSM Association backing and could be commonplace in phones by 2012.

• Some US presentatives want the Internet kill switch moved from the White House to Congress. A new bill unveiled Wednesday would give the Department of Homeland Security the authority to enforce federal cybersecurity standards on private companies. The Homeland Security Cyber and Physical Infrastructure Protection Act of 2010 would cover utilities, communications providers and financial institutions.

• GameStop executives said on a financial conference call that sales of Microsoft's Kinect and Sony's PlayStation Move were beginning to look like the Wii backwhen it was first released. In other words, you eventually won't be able to get either unless you pay extra to buy it used from speculators on Craigslist and eBay. Gamestop's just happy to have new people in their stores.

• Time Warner Cable Inc. unveiled a cheap TV package called “TV Essentials” that excludes major cable networks like ESPN, Comedy Central, TNT, Fox News, MSNBC, and more. The offering begins Monday on a test basis in New York City, where it will cost $39.95 per month, and the Cleveland area, where it will cost $29.95 per month. I get a package with similar features free called 'using an antenna'

• Adobe on Wednesday released Reader X, the secret brother of Speed Reader who only shows up to advise his... oh wait no that's RACER X. READER X is the includes a 'sandbox' designed to protect users from PDF attacks. The sandbox is called Protected Mode. It may not stop every attack but hopefully it will prevent attackers from writing files or installing malware.

• Hey buddy, want a white iPhone? Point your browser towards China! A number of unofficial resellers though out China have managed to get themselves quite a stock pile of the white iPhone 4 and are selling them quite openly on the internet. The box has a label warning it is only meant for internal company use and not for sale! Prices start at 5500 Yuan ($828) and rise to nearly 8000 Yuan ($1204).

Kickers and Weird Science

• Virtual asteroid run as Entropia club sold for profit

Calendar

• AirTran, Delta and Virgin America to offer free Gogo Inflight Wi-Fi on every domestic flight brought to you by Google starting Saturday 11/20, that's tomorrow.
• Happy Birthday Windows. Turns 25 on Saturday November 20.
• Portal 2 news: shortest Valve delay ever! Now coming April 18 2011 (You must read their press release)
• Help pick the best moments of TWiT and TNT

Email

"Tnt crew:

While not really Tech News, the TSA full body feel-up is getting a lot of press among the geek press. Here is a NY Times story with a different basis: politics and economics:

http://fivethirtyeight.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/18/the-hidden-costs-of-extra-airport-security/

For me, this is the money quote:

""More stringent security procedures, in essence, function as a tax upon air travel, and produce a corresponding deadweight loss. Teleconferences are often a poor substitute for person-to-person interaction, and when people are reluctant to travel, some business deals don’t get done that otherwise would have.""

While I understand gotomeeting is a good service, and helps pay the bills, I've not found that teleconferencing can close a deal. For that, you need eyeball to eyeball and a firm handshake. After its closed, go-to-meeting can save a ton of money, time and aggriviation of the TSA tax

Pat"

Sponsors

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Production Information

• Edited by: Jason
• Notes:

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