Sophos Virus Removal Tool is slow, but free
Sophos has released a free on-demand Virus Removal Tool. The program previously was available to the company’s larger customers to help them clean up infected PCs, but now to anyone to download.
The Virus Removal Tool is extremely easy to use, with no settings to configure, no scan modes to figure out: it’s purely about on-demand full system scans. But this simplicity does mean you should be able to install the program and run it alongside just about any other security suite, as there’s no real-time access component to cause conflicts.
Boeing phone to take flight with Android later this year
A company more known for its work in the aerospace industry is now Android's newest partner. Boeing this week announced plans to release a smartphone aimed at those requiring super-secure communications, yet the convenience of a widely used mobile operating system. Calling it the "Boeing phone", the device is slated to launch by the end of the year.
What business a company like Boeing has in hawking smartphones is unclear, but it has the market. Most of Boeing's current clients are in sectors where confidentiality and security is at a premium. Similar devices cost $15,000 to $20,000, but the Chicago based company plans to come in at a price point below that. Not something you or I could afford, mind you, but definitely more reasonable.
Is it worth having the Start Menu alongside the Windows 8 Start Screen? [video]
The simple answer here is yes.
There has been much debate about the merits of the traditional Start Menu versus Metro's Start Screen since Windows 8 Developer Preview released last year. Microsoft did away with the Start Button in Windows 8, replacing it and the supporting menu with the Start Screen, which is primed for touch. Supporters, and that includes Microsoft, say it's better. But the argument that the "Start Screen can do everything the Start Menu can is the biggest BS to date.
$7 million worth of phones will be lost today [infographic]
Not a day passes by without a couple infographics dropped in my inbox and somehow I just don't get around to posting them. My bad, since they can be fun and informative. Granted the producers hope for a little promotion along the way, but hey.
This one comes from BackgroundCheck.org, which blogs stuff like "8 Crazy Nannies Who Should’ve Been Background Checked" and "7 Things You Should Know Before Choosing a Babysitter" (Hey, whatever happened to 10 things?).
Intel's Studybook can be a success
Intel is putting more effort into their Atom CPU series, especially for the next generation of tablet computers. Along those lines, yesterday's Intel Studybook tablet is exciting. I really like the idea of this tablet. As the name implies, Studybook is a 7-inch tablet running Windows 7 or Android 3.x designed for students.
There is one challenge, though, and that is the Atom CPU, especially if such tablets use Windows instead of another operating system. So, is the Atom microprocessor up to the task?
Move over, Visio, because Dia delights
Diagram creation software can be on the expensive side, just take a look at Visio, for instance, but if that’s a problem for you then there are some great free tools around. And Dia is one of the best.
The program may open with a standard list of flowcharting shapes, for instance, but it also provides plenty of other symbol libraries. Just choose the one you need and you’ll be able to draw logic diagrams, electrical circuits, networks, databases, simple maps and much more.
Amazon out-searches Google
Amazon set its sights on Google Thursday by introducing CloudSearch, a feature that allows customers of its Amazon Web Services offering to implement search capabilities to their websites. The technology behind CloudSearch is the same that Amazon uses on its retail site.
Access is billed based on the number of running search instances, anywhere from 12 cents to 98 cents per hour, with a 98 cent per gigabyte charge for the storage of search data. Running continuously, the search functionality could cost as little as $90 per month, and in some cases a cheaper alternative to Google's Site Search offering.
Do I really need anti-malware?
In the realm of security, there are a number of discussions that never seem to be completely resolved and crop up again from time to time. One of these is the age old question: “Is antivirus really necessary”?
To the average PC user, the idea that antivirus (or more accurately, anti-malware) isn’t necessary may seem as crazy and dangerous as suggesting we get rid of seatbelts in cars (let alone keep airbags, antilock brakes and other safety features). For years, PC users have been told to “protect your PC” by running antivirus and keeping it and the system constantly up-to-date. Microsoft made these steps the foundation for its guidance to customers in the wake of the Slammer and Blaster worms in 2003 and that advice took root, helping to better protect PC users since then.
Nokia could teach Apple a thing or two about customer service
It’s the biggest product launch of the year so far for Windows Phone and Nokia. The Lumia 900 went on sale April 8th and early reports suggest that sales are better than expected. They're nothing stellar but nevertheless some good news for a platform struggling to gain market share.
Earlier this week, I convinced my mother to purchase her first Windows Phone, the Cyan Lumia 900. Later that afternoon, I learned of a serious software bug causing devices to literally lose their data connections --an essential feature for any smartphone. So admittedly, I was pretty concerned. It turns out, I didn’t need to be.
Keep out prying eyes with Wise Folder Hider
You don’t need something to hide to have something to hide. Whether you share your computer with others, or your machine is situated somewhere that other people may be able to access it, there’s a high chance that it has files stored on it that you would like to keep private. Documents relating to personal and financial issues are the sorts of files that should be kept away from unauthorized eyes, and Wise Folder Hider Beta is a free tool that makes it easy to do just that.
There are various ways in which you can make sensitive files more difficult to access, but this handy security tool helps to make things as simple as possible. Protecting the files you would rather other people were not able to see take little more than signing into the program account you have created and then dragging and dropping the relevant files and folders onto the program interface -- this can be done on an individual basis, or you can choose to hide a whole bunch in one go.
Try this Task Manager alternative in a spreadsheet
If you believe your PC has been infected by malware then you’ll probably try to launch Task Manager in an effort to find out more. But of course malware authors are well aware of this, and in some cases they’ll try to protect themselves by disabling Task Manager and similar tools.
As long as you can launch Excel 2010, though, you do have another option in Didier Steven’s TaskManager.xls. It’s a basic Task Manager alternative in a spreadsheet, which not only lists the processes running on your PC, but also enables you to close or suspend any that you don’t need.
PC shipments rally for big (cough, cough) 2% growth
Well, if fourth quarter PC shipments were bad (and they were), Q1 was not so bad, according to preliminary data Gartner and IDC released today. Woohoo, break out the sparklers, IDC put year-over-year growth at 2.3 percent, but only 1.9 percent by Gartner's estimates. Somebody cue up "Nearer My God To Thee", because the Titanic tragedy's centennial anniversary feels timely. Is the PC market suddenly sinking?
IDC already called 2011 the worst year for PCs since 2001, when recession robbed manufacturers and retailers of Christmas and set off a chain of profit warnings, including Apple and Microsoft. There are no profit warnings this time around, just plenty of misery. Well, unless your business is selling so-called Post-PC devices, like smartphones and tablets.
With the states suing over ebook price fixing, Apple needs to surrender
Attorneys General in 16 states filed suit against Apple and three publishing companies Wednesday, following a similar suit filed this morning by the US Justice Department. Unlike the federal suit, the states action also looks for monetary compensation in addition to the end of the collusive agreements between Apple and the publishers.
Connecticut and Texas lead the action, and are joined by Attorneys General in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont and West Virginia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Google+ redesign generates wicked #whitespace meme [slideshow]
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People have too much time to waste, and I'm not one of them. But occasionally I have fun and write about others goofing off. Waste away, baby, because today's Google+ redesign has generated strange reaction to a sudden amount of white space to the right of the friend feed. People are posting with hashtag #whitespace.
InstaHam app for smartphones, an idea worth $1 billion [video]
Some really strange stuff (I want to use the other "s" word, but content filters) comes into the BetaNews Tips box. I'm paying more attention to what's in it this week, given my 7-day Google Reader fast. Weirdness knows no bounds, nor my perplexity to embrace and share it. I swear to debating for 10 minutes about sharing this video. It's strange. Topical. From a vlogger with 26,664 subscribers (now I'm one of them). And, sheepishly confess, made me laugh.
Hell, I even liked the text of the email before the video link and made it the headline. If Instagram is worth one billion bucks... You got me Khyan Mansley. Commenters don't be cruel.
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