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NEWS ABOUT: software

Insurer Sees Games as Boost for Old Brains

'Mental fitness' software improves reaction time, peripheral vision

(Newser) - An experiment by Allstate Insurance and a San Francisco software startup that aims to use computer games to improve the mental health of all ages is getting good reviews, the Chronicle reports, including from one local who says improved reaction time and peripheral vision saved him from an accident. “... More »

'Hardware Hackers' Get Handy

Programmers leave screens for soldering irons

(Newser) - Seeking an escape from the confined world of their computer screens, programmers are applying their technological know-how to the physical world, building and tweaking an array of devices with their hands, the Boston Globe reports. “My normal job is way up in the clouds,” said a programmer at... More »

If You Can't Control Your Emotions, Your Computer Will

Software can analyze the feelings in words

(Newser) - All you naughty Newser commenters, take note: Software developers are readying an algorithm to glean the human emotions in text and possibly censor inappropriate online discussions, New Scientist reports. So far, the biggest users of such pricey “sentiment analysis” tools are companies looking to gauge consumer reaction to brand-name... More »

Al-Qaeda Used Hotmail, Simple Codes to Plan 9/11

(AP) - In the days following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, alleged al-Qaeda operations mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed intended to use his free Hotmail account to direct a US-based operative to carry out an attack, according to a guilty plea agreement filed by Al Saleh Kahlah al-Marri in federal court. The document... More »

Microsoft's Revenue Drops for First Time

(AP) - Microsoft Corp. said today its quarterly revenue fell from the previous year for the first time in its 23-year history as a public company, while its profit dived 32 percent. The shortfall illustrated the toll the recession has taken on the world's largest software maker, even though it remains one... More »

Prez's Pimped-Out BlackBerry Nearly Ready

The NSA begins final tests on encryption software this month

(Newser) - President Obama’s super-secure, high-powered new BlackBerry could soon get the thumbs-up from the National Security Agency, which is about to begin final tests on its encryption software. The president could be texting, emailing, calling and Facebooking other high-security personnel—like Michelle O.—within months, the Washington Times reports,... More »

Oracle Buys Sun Microsystems

(Newser) - Oracle Corp. has agreed to buy Sun Microsystems, swooping in after Sun’s talks with IBM fell apart. Oracle will pay $7.4 billion, or $9.50 a share for Sun, the Wall Street Journal reports, a 42% premium on Friday’s close. Though Sun has been losing money, Oracle... More »

Going Public in Bear Market Is Risky Bet for Rosetta Stone

Firm could make less money due to bear market

(Newser) - Rosetta Stone, the popular language-learning software maker, holds its initial public stock offering today—a risky move in a bear market, Jennifer Collins reports for Marketplace. Rosetta Stone’s profit has quadrupled since 2007, but it could make twice as much by waiting. It’s possible Rosetta needs cash now,... More »

IBM to Nab Rival Sun for $7B

Deal would let IBM rule Unix server market

(Newser) - IBM looks set to buy rival Sun Microsystems in a $7 billion deal that would make IBM king of the lucrative Unix server market, the New York Times reports. The $9.50-per-share agreement, already approved by IBM’s board, insiders say, could be announced today—though next week is more... More »

Skype Could Hit iPhone as Soon as Next Week

Voice-over-IP firm may announce its client at CTIA Wireless

(Newser) - Skype is putting the finishing touches on a version of its VoIP client for the iPhone, and may debut it as soon as an industry conference next week, GigaOm reports. Skype is looking to the mobile market to keep growing as its PC usage starts to plateau. Skype already offers... More »

Docs Foresee Trouble With Digitizing Records

For electronic records, money is there but technology isn't

(Newser) - The administration's push to digitize health records is raising red flags with an important constituency: doctors. "We have a long way to go," said the lead author of a report out today that shows only 9% of hospitals have computerized records. His article is part of a... More »

Worm Set to Unleash Massive April Fool's Prank

Malware experts race against time to limit the program's damage

(Newser) - Malware experts are racing to find the authors of the Conficker C worm and limit the damage it seems poised to do beginning April Fool’s Day, CNN reports. Conficker C, the bug’s third iteration since late 2008, has infected between 5 and 10 million computers but so far... More »

Microsoft Muscles Into Cell Market With New OS

Firm will offer Windows Mobile on 50 smartphones

(Newser) - Microsoft is pushing deeper into the cellphone market with a deal to put a new operating system on 50 LG smartphones, the New York Times reports. The company unveiled a more user-friendly OS—"We were dinged for not having a friendly consumer interface," an exec says—and... More »

Google Earth Adds 'Depth,' Tackling World's Oceans

Underwater volcanoes, shipwrecks now available to program's users

(Newser) - Google has added a new feature to its Google Earth software, which now enables users to explore the world’s oceans and access information from scientists and explorers, AFP reports. “Google Earth is equipping itself with a new dimension: depth,” an engineer said. Surfers can “dive beneath... More »

Virtual Desktops Brings Work Close to Home

Citrix, Intel system may make it easier to leave office behind

(Newser) - The line between work and home keeps getting blurrier. Citrix and Intel are teaming to create a system that will make it easier for people to access work files from their personal laptops or home computers, the Miami Herald reports. The files wouldn't be on the personal computer's hard drive,... More »

Chinese Court Sentences Microsoft Pirates

11 jailed for counterfeit software ring with 'unprecedented' scope

(Newser) - A Chinese court has convicted 11 people of violating copyright laws and sentenced them to as much as 6 1/2  years of prison for working with a counterfeiting ring that sold fake Microsoft products around the world. Microsoft hailed the crackdown on the pirates, whose organization may have made $2... More »

Spellchecker Gaffes Add Sparkle to Serious Stories

(Newser) - The so-called Cupertino effect has been creeping into major US newspapers and government reports, at times adding unintended humor to serious stories, BoingBoing reports. The effect—named after Microsoft Word 97's habit of replacing "co-operation" with "Cupertino" in its spellchecker—has slipped spell-checker-related gaffes into Reuters... More »

Big Dreams for Android Aren't Just Google's

Operating system looks to potential well beyond phones: Malik

(Newser) - Google’s release of the code for its Android operating system today—a day before the G1 phone hits stores—paves the path for transformation of the cell-phone industry and beyond, Om Malik writes on GigaOm. As coders enhance Android and develop add-ons, either for existing devices or new ones,... More »

Patch for Major Security Flaw Is Ineffective

Widely distributed fix for Internet failing only slows the damage

(Newser) - A fatal flaw in Internet security has a patch, but it’s a leaky one, the New York Times reports. Yesterday, a Russian scientist demonstrated an attack that secretly redirected web traffic. It took him just hours using standard equipment; before the patch, it would have taken seconds. Thieves could... More »

Computer Hard of Hearing? Try This Software

NaturallySpeaking takes a great leap forward in voice control

(Newser) - The latest incarnation of Dragon NaturallySpeaking “takes voice control unmistakably closer to that holy grail of computing,” David Pogue writes in the New York Times—being able to talk directly to your computer. Version 10 is better than 99% effective at transcribing speech, and upgrades make correcting, italicizing,... More »

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