Google hit with sexual harassment complaint from ex-employee
A former Google engineer revealed on Twitter this weekend that she suffered sexual harassment whilst working at the company. In a series of tweets, Kelly Ellis said that not only had she been sexually harassed by a male colleague, but that her promotion through the company had been effectively curtailed because she would have been in a position that meant reporting to her harasser.
There is more than a hint of irony at the timing of the revelation. Google would much prefer to be seen encouraging women into technology but Ellis -- who worked on the Google+ team -- dismisses this as nothing more than "PR bullshit". She also says that she was let down by co-workers who failed to back her up.
Google celebrates women in tech for International Women’s Day
Today is International Women’s Day and in recognition of this Google is celebrating the role women have played, and continue to play, in the world of tech. It's a well-known fact that many technology companies are dominated by men -- as is the case in many industries -- but Google is keen to highlight its own Women Techmakers program.
Set up last year, the program is designed to not only encourage women to enter the male dominated technology sector, but also to promote the visibility of those who are already in place. This month saw the (very quiet) launch of the second Women Techmakers Global Event Series, but today Google wants to speak to the female technology workers of the future.
Amazon releases new games at PAX East conference
Gaming has become a major function of today's mobile devices, allowing for hours of wasted productivity time. In fact, it's so popular that today's set-top box makers are building the feature right into their hardware, Amazon going as far as offering an Xbox One-like controller for customers to purchase separately.
Now the retail giant is in attendance at PAX East, a gaming conference being held in Boston. The show kicked off March 6th and runs through the 8th. Amazon is there to show off several new titles it has. These are more than just for Fire devices, as the company is making them available for iPhone and iPad as well.
Turn videos into self-playing EXEs with Audio/Video to EXE
When creating media files to share with others, it's normally best to save them in a standard format, maybe MP3 or MP4, something you know just about everything in the world can play.
Audio/Video to EXE is a free tool which does something a little different, converting almost any audio or video format into a stand-alone executable. Launch the file and it just plays your media, no other player or codecs required.
Sony will only update Xperia Z series Android phones to Lollipop
There is one complaint that is constantly levelled at the Android ecosystem, and that’s the notion that it's a platform that has become very fragmented. For all of Google's bluster about Lollipop, only a tiny proportion of handsets are actually running the latest version of the operating system. This is something that doesn't show signs of changing soon.
Sony has revealed news that will undoubtedly upset many smartphone owners -- only the Xperia Z series is in line for an Android 5.0 upgrade. No Lollipop for the Xperia T2 Ultra, the Xperia M2 Aqua or anything from the E series. A perfect demonstration of why fragmentation is so prevalent. Anyone with a non-Z series Xperia is stuck with KitKat, Jelly Bean or whatever version of Android they may have.
Did you miss MWC? Microsoft has a highlight reel to catch you up
Mobile World Congress has wrapped up in Barcelona, Spain and now we're left to sort through the torrent of information that came out of the event. There were countless announcements made for all manner of mobile news, with new phones taking center stage in the midst of the chaos. Microsoft was prominent at the event, with several things to reveal.
There was the unveiling of the Lumia 640XL, a mid-range device that qualifies as a "phablet" with its 5.7 inch screen. It even comes with a 13 MP rear camera, a feature that the Lumia line is famous for. It's a step up from the Lumia 640, which is a scaled down version. The screen is still large at 5 inches, while the rear camera is a solid 8MP. Both phones are expected to be available soon via AT&T.
Down but not out, VBA malware makes a comeback in Microsoft Office
While malware for Microsoft's Office platform has been around just about as long as the suite, we've heard less about it in recent times. That is changing though as new threats surface, altering the landscape a bit. The latest problems are really just a new iteration of the older ones, utilizing a tried and true attack vector.
That line of attack comes from the code itself, using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA). Security firm Sophos is reporting a rise in incidents of this across various parts of the suite. The code is unfortunately open to these flaws.
Have we seen the rise and fall of the cable and satellite industry?
There's a fair chance that most every house built 30 years ago had cable installed in it. Not long afterwards satellite began to take off, and continued to eat into the market of companies like Comcast, CableVision and others. That's a logical progression, as new options give people better choices and channel numbers increased, along with premium options.
But that trend is now on the downside. According to a 2014 report in USA Today cord-cutters (those with neither cable nor satellite) rose from 4.5 percent in 2010 to 6.5 percent as of that time. Meanwhile, the same month saw a study from Leichtman Research Group reveal that the top nine cable companies lost a total of 510,000 subscribers in the second quarter of 2014. Satellite fared little better, shedding 78,000 customers.
WhatsApp Call feature releases to more users -- here's how you can get it
WhatsApp, the popular instant messaging client, is working on a voice-calling feature which it plans to release to the public soon. WhatsApp has been rolling out the functionality to select users as part of a beta test program, something the company had confirmed last month. BetaNews is now able to report and confirm that WhatsApp is once again rolling out the voice calling feature to many users, and the invite can be disseminated if a user with the feature working on their Android device makes a phone call from within the app to other Android users. We tried to make it work on an iPhone, but couldn't; and we're yet to try it on a Windows Phone handset.
Last year, WhatsApp announced that it was working on a voice-calling feature and would release it to users by the second half of 2014. While that obviously never happened, the company last month began to flip the switches for many users as part of a beta testing program. Last month, it had confirmed that it was beta testing the feature and would release to all as soon as it is satisfied with the initial results.
Of course, Chromebooks matter
Yesterday, commentary "Do Chromebooks matter anymore?" popped up in my social network feeds. Preston Gralla rightly wonders, when looking at how the laptops have fallen off Amazon's top-seller lists, IDC shipment forecasts, and what happened with netbooks. While being a Chromebook fan, I must admit to similar misgivings.
So today, I emailed Stephen Baker, NPD's vice president of industry analysis: "Are Chromebooks just the next netbook wave? Low-cost, lean configurations, and education adoption all look similar to me. Do you see any parallels to suggest Chromebook is little more than the next netbook and it's headed for the same destination: Short-term appeal that vanishes? Or is there longevity here, based on sales numbers?" His answer is reason for this post.
Silicon Power Armor A65M is a waterproof and military-grade USB 3.0 hard drive for Mac
Using cloud-based storage is extremely convenient, and arguably safer than traditional hard drive storage. Why? If, God forbid, there is a fire or other disaster in your home or office, your files are safe and secure offsite.
With that said, there are some deficiencies with the cloud, such as a need for an internet connection, and the potential lack of control of your own files. Yes, internet is seemingly ubiquitous nowadays, but do you feel uncomfortable not having access during an outage? If so, a USB solution coupled with offsite storage for redundancy is a smart choice. Today, Silicon power announces the ultra-rugged Armor A65M. Designed for Mac, it should work with Linux and Windows too.
Reports that uTorrent silently installs Bitcoin crapware are... crap
Sometimes it's easy to be swayed by what's being written online. At the moment there are lots of stories creeping out about the iPad Pro and Apple Watch, none of which are founded in any fact whatsoever. Still, making stuff up, popping it in quotes and attributing it to an anonymous source is great fun, right?
It may be fun, but it's not really fair on the reader. Another story which popped up on my radar today was about uTorrent -- the popular BitTorrent client that's loved and hated in equal measure. Stories on Trusted Reviews, Engadget and the Verge suggest a Bitcoin mining tool called Epic Scale is installed without permission, and is a tricky blighter to remove. There's an easy way to find out; let's just install it.
Hands on with Microsoft Office for Mac 2016 Preview
After a five-year gap, Microsoft has unveiled the first public beta of its forthcoming Office 2016 for Mac with the release of Microsoft Office for Mac 2016 Preview. The new release is free for all Yosemite users during the remainder of the product’s pre-release phase, with the final version slated for release later this year.
Office for Mac 2016 Preview ships with five components: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote. It boasts a refreshed and optimized codebase, Retina-friendly visuals and support for full-screen mode.
Wiper Messenger now lets you send Bitcoin to your friends
Wiper is a messaging service which offers an interesting privacy and security-centric option. It lets users delete their conversations, on-demand, from the other users' smartphones as well as Wiper's servers. I took a look at what it can do in a previous article, which you can check out here.
In the meantime, Wiper has received a couple of major updates which improve the user experience and add new features to the mix. Among the highlights is the ability to send and receive Bitcoins straight from the app.
WeatherMate now portable, supports 100+ US weather maps
Its last big release was back in 2007, but Windows weather monitor WeatherMate has jumped back to life with the release of version 4.0, and a host of major improvements.
The program can now display a vast number of detailed US radar and weather maps, organized into categories like "Current Conditions", "Forecasts", "Severe Weather", "Travel", "Health", "Aviation", "Marine", "Golf" and "Farming".
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