Students worldwide: check your eligibility for free Microsoft Office
Microsoft has been a tireless proponent of education -- the company has many schools on its operating system and Office suite, sometimes at very big discounts. But the best discount of all is always "free", which is exactly what some students will pay for Office. The software giant has even instituted a way for students to check their eligibility.
This comes on the heels of New York City announcing that its students and teachers will be running Microsoft's Office programs. The city isn't alone either, as many other educational bastions move to the platform.
More affordable Windows Phone 8.1 devices are coming from Kazam, TrekStor and Xolo
The vast majority of consumers who embrace Windows Phone buy low-end smartphones, so it should not come as a surprise to see manufacturers launching even more inexpensive devices running the tiled operating system. After all, as I said a few months back, Windows Phone is synonymous with the low-end.
The latest such offerings come from Kazam, TrekStor and Xolo, vendors which may not have established brands across the globe, but which are better known in their home markets, UK, Germany and India respectively, for their affordable solutions.
Machine learning speeds up web application load times
The increase in web application use means that we're loading more code than ever into our browsers. According to httparchive, the amount of JavaScript used by the top 100 websites has almost tripled in the last three years whilst HTML has almost doubled. This has performance implications because larger page-sizes mean end users have to wait significantly longer for web pages to load.
California-based cloud delivery service Instart Logic is hoping to improve things with the launch of SmartSequence, a new technology that employs machine learning to optimize how HTML and JavaScript code is loaded in browsers.
Android One handsets start receiving Lollipop update in India
Google has finally begun to seed out Android Lollipop, the latest update to its mobile operating system, to Android One handsets in India. In a post on Google+, the Android maker notes that all of the three Android One handsets in the country -- Karbonn Sparkle V, Micromax Canvas A1, and Spice Dream UNO -- should be able to snag the update any time now. The update is rolling out in a gradual way so it may take a while before it hits your handset, the company notes.
Announced at the Google I/O event last year, Android One is an initiative by the Mountain View-based company wherein it makes cheap-Android smartphones with reasonably decent hardware specification for consumers living in emerging markets, starting with India. Priced at $100, the handset doesn’t require carrier’s approval and push to receive the new software release, as it directly gleans it from Google.
View, back up and restore PC drivers with DriverBackup!
The average PC user doesn’t need to pay much attention to device drivers, these days, and that’s probably a good thing. Windows supports most devices natively, locates plenty of drivers on its own, and a driver disc (or a download) should add support for everything else.
If you’re managing a lot of systems, though -- or maybe you’d like to skip the usual driver installers and their unwanted extras -- then you might want to simplify the process with the open-source DriverBackup!.
UK businesses don't all have their heads in the cloud
Although as we reported last week more businesses are turning to the cloud it seems that some UK companies are lagging behind the trend.
According to a new Service Provider and Performance Satisfaction survey by audit and accounting specialist KPMG 71 percent of UK organizations are spending 10 percent, or less, of their IT budget on cloud services.
No sex on Blogger please, we're Google
Blogger users risk having their blogs removed from public listings if they feature graphic nudity or explicit content. Starting on March 23, any Blogger blog found to contain offending pictures or videos will be converted into a private blog that can only be seen by the owner and those, erm, explicitly invited to see it.
Google emphasizes that no content will be deleted from blogs created before March 23, 2015, but is encouraging blog owners to take action. It's a different story for any blog set up after this date.
Securing enterprise mobile systems [Q&A]
The use of mobile devices for business presents a new set of challenges both for IT departments and the broader enterprise. This is leading many companies to turn to enterprise mobility management (EMM) solutions to secure their data and devices.
But how effective are enterprises at looking after mobile data and how will they need to adapt to the needs of new legislation? We spoke to Ryan Spence, Director of Enterprise Mobility Management for managed service company MOBI to find out.
A third of Brits embarrassed by wearables
Over a third of the people in the UK would feel embarrassed or self-conscious if they wore wearable tech as it currently appears, new research has found. As a result, businesses and app developers are being urged to do more if they want to improve uptake
The study was conducted by the UK mobile app developer Apadmi to form part of its new report looking into the public’s view of wearable technology, such as smart glasses, watches and fitness trackers.
Google Wallet declares war on Apple Pay -- AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile join fight
Google Wallet far predates Apple Pay, but even with the head start, the Android-owner has failed to impact the mobile-payment market. Meanwhile, the fruit-logo company has made a serious dent, gaining the support of many partners. Even in popular culture, Apple Pay is featured in many TV commercials, while the average consumer probably has no idea what Google Wallet even is.
Today this changes, as Google announces a strategic agreement with AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile to pre-load Wallet on all Android handsets. Clearly, this is a declaration of war against Apple Pay, but can Google realistically win?
Twitter lends its support to Net Neutrality campaign
Many prominent groups and figures have given their backing to the fight for net neutrality. Today Twitter reveals why it supports the proposals put forward by the FCC chairman Tom Wheeler, just a few days ahead of a vote that will decide whether they will be adopted by the FCC. The aim is to "protect the open Internet as a place for innovation and free expression".
Twitter's public policy manager, Will Carty, says that protecting the open architecture of the internet is essential for the US to remain competitive and to allow freedom of speech. He says that providing a voice to those who would not otherwise have a platform is at the heart of Twitter, and this is just one of the reasons for supporting the net neutrality proposals.
Internet of Things can change our daily lives -- but without identity it's just noise
As the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) wrapped up in Las Vegas last month, one thing became abundantly clear: 2015 is going to be a big year for connected devices. From toothbrushes that can schedule check-ups with dentists to yoga mats that can analyze poses in real-time, 3,000+ companies launched more than 20,000 new products at CES this year.
Collectively referred to as the "Internet of Things" (IoT), this concept of connected devices is obviously nothing new. In fact, Gartner predicts that the number of Internet-connected devices will inflate to more than 25 billion by the year 2020.
Microsoft Translator now supports Yucatec Maya and Querétaro Otomi languages
As an American, I am really only exposed to two languages -- English and Spanish. While I speak the former fluently (it is my native language), my comprehension of the latter is extremely limited. For the most part, I am satisfied in my English-only world, but I do regret not learning other languages as a child.
While I am now too old and set in my ways to learn a new language, technology makes the need to do so less important nowadays. Translation software helps communication barriers melt away. Now, Microsoft Translator is expanding beyond common languages, to the more rare. The company announces that Yucatec Maya and Querétaro Otomi are supported.
Facebook's privacy policy breaks the law in Europe
There are many things that Facebook finds itself accused of on a regular basis. Unfairness to different groups, censorship of content, insensitivity, and endless problems surrounding its attitude to privacy and handling of user data. It seems that concerns about privacy were well-founded as a new report finds that the social network violated European law. Analysis carried out by the Belgian Privacy Commission and ICRI/CIR says that Facebook breaks the law in Europe in a number of ways. As well as placing too many expectations on users to be able to change settings for themselves.
Facebook is also accused of failing to give people the ability opt out of certain privacy-invading features. Back in January, Facebook made some changes to its privacy policies and also introduced simplified documentation. The report found that rather than cleaning up its act, Facebook merely highlighted some of its old, existing practices. The social network is criticized for its "complex web of settings", for failing to explain what is meant when users are told that their data will be used "for advertising purposes", and for not allowing people to opt out of Sponsored Stories and location sharing.
Want the Windows 10 icons in Windows 7/8.x? Here's how
Windows 10 isn't here yet, though in a way it sort of is -- in other words, it's a Preview version meant to test the waters. Microsoft has high hopes of putting version 8.x behind it, even skipping a number to distance itself. But not everyone wants to run a possibly unstable version of an operating system, especially on a production machine. However, you can still get the new icon set without installing the OS.
Packs of the icons have been collected and made available for customers of both Windows 7 and Windows 8x. Getting them on your desktop is just a click or two away. The icons are spread out, encompassing desktop, system tray and Explorer.
© 1998-2026 BetaNews, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Cookie Policy.