Archive for April, 2014

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Windows Phone 8.1 Announced

Posted in Commentary with tags on April 2, 2014 by itnerd

The Windows 8.1 update wasn’t the only thing that was announced by Microsoft today. They also announced Windows Phone 8.1 as well. Here’s a list of the improvements:

  • The lock screen is now fully customizable
  • The Start screen allows users to set a background image or texture.
  • Action Center is a new feature accessible from the top of the screen. It allows you to get access to items including WiFi, Bluetooth and Hotspot. Sound familiar? It should as Android and iOS has a similar feature.
  • The Cortana digital assistant which is powered by Bing and similar to Siri makes an appearance. Cortana is named for an AI character in the popular Halo video game series.
  • There’s Enterprise VPN support, S/MIME support along with expanded MDM features for BYOD users.
  • There’s an improved Calendar.
  • There’s Wi-Fi Sense which suggests “higher quality” WiFi networks around you. Plus it will also connect you to free hotspots and accept the terms of use automatically.

Windows Phone 8.1 will be coming to existing devices “in the next few months.”

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What You Need To Know About The Windows 8.1 Update

Posted in Commentary with tags on April 2, 2014 by itnerd

So, the world is going to get an update to the much maligned update to the Windows 8 OS. Windows 8.1 has some major improvements built in and instead of just giving you the Microsoft spin on this, here’s the highlights of what you need to know:

  • The Start menu is coming back to Windows, but not in Windows 8.1 Update. It will show up in a future update.
  • You can boot and resume directly to the Desktop.
  • You can also dock Windows Store apps directly in the Desktop taskbar. Thus you can avoid the Metro interface if you want to.
  • Close and minimize buttons back to apps in Windows 8.1.
  • Power and search buttons have been made stationary on the Start screen.
  • Windows 8.1 Update will be released on April 8th and it is free.

So, if you’re running Windows 8, will you be updating to Windows 8.1?

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Infographic: How Women And Men Use Social Media And Mobile

Posted in Commentary on April 2, 2014 by itnerd

women-social-media-infographic

Provided by Financesonline.com

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Volvo Pilots Using Cloud-Based Communication To Make Driving Safer

Posted in Commentary with tags on April 2, 2014 by itnerd

When I drive, I rely on my radio to let me know about road conditions ahead of me. Sometimes that works, sometimes not so much. Volvo has come up with something ingenious. What if cars themselves could report on the road conditions based on what the car encounters? That would take the guesswork out of warning drivers where they need to take some extra care. 2

In Scandinavia, Volvo has 50 test cars on the road. When any of the Volvo test car detects an icy or slippery road patch, the information is transmitted to Volvo Cars’ database via the mobile phone network. An instant warning is transmitted to other vehicles that are approaching the slippery area, making it possible for the drivers to take immediate action to avoid a critical situation. A slippery road warning on the instrument cluster alerts the driver. The application in the vehicle will be designed to adapt the driver warning to match the severity level based on the vehicle speed and the present road conditions. In short, the vehicles “speak” to each other over a cloud based network, and as a result it allows you to drive safer. But there’s an added benefit. The information about the icy patch is also sent to the road administrator as a complement to existing measurement stations along the road. The data can help the road administrator and their contracted entrepreneurs to better plan and execute winter road maintenance and quickly address changed conditions.

Now this joint pilot test between Volvo, The Swedish Transport Administration, and The Norwegian Public Roads Administration is expected to grow and encompass additional information that can be shared between cars and their drivers. The possibilities are endless and it will result in making everyone who drive on public roads safer.

 

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BlackBerry To T-Mobile USA: You’re Cut Off

Posted in Commentary with tags , on April 2, 2014 by itnerd

T-Mobile a couple months back did something that I will call ill advised. It e-mailed BlackBerry users on their network encouraging them to switch to a competitors device. Specifically the iPhone 5S. That didn’t go over so well. The BlackBerry blog details what happened next. In short, BlackBerry users got upset. Boy did they get upset. So you’d think that this was the end of it. And it was, until last night when this tweet appeared:

Now is this a big deal? On one hand, BlackBerry products were already hard to find in T-Mobile stores as they were not being stocked. But on the other hand, it has to be a huge slap to T-Mobile. It also shows that BlackBerry isn’t going to be pushed around. There’s a press release that was posted as part of that tweet that has this interesting tidbit:

BlackBerry customers on the T-Mobile network should not see any difference in their service or support. BlackBerry will work closely with T-Mobile to provide the best possible customer service to any customer remaining on the T-Mobile U.S. network or to any customer purchasing devices from T-Mobile’s existing inventory.

BlackBerry is also working closely with other carrier partners to provide consumers and business users with alternatives should they decide to transition to another carrier and remain with BlackBerry for their long-term device and service needs. For additional details, offers and assistance, business customers and consumers can go to http://us.blackberry.com/smartphones.html.

Hmm… BlackBerry working with other carriers to provide alternatives to loyal BlackBerry users? I can’t wait to see how T-Mobile spins that.

 

 

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OkCupid Takes Shot At Mozilla CEO By Banning Firefox

Posted in Commentary with tags , on April 2, 2014 by itnerd

The same sex marriage debate is something that is a hot button issue. Companies have often gotten involved in the debate, but I haven’t heard of anything like this. Dating site OkCupid has decided to ban the Firefox browser because the dating site doesn’t like the views of the new CEO of Mozilla. Here’s the details from CNN:

When OkCupid members navigate to the site on a Firefox browser, they are met with a message encouraging them to use an alternative browser to access the site, including Google Chrome, Opera, Safari and the amusingly misspelled Internet Exploder.

“Those who seek to deny love and instead enforce misery, shame and frustration are our enemies, and we wish them nothing but failure,” reads the message.

The page points out that 8% of the matches made on OkCupid are between same-sex couples.

Now what could the CEO of Mozilla have possibly done to earn this sort of treatment. How about this?:

Last week, Mozilla promoted [Brendan] Eich, a longtime employee who was previously the company’s chief technology officer, to the position of CEO. The move prompted renewed outrage by third-party developers and employees. Eich donated $1,000 to support Propostion 8 in 2008. The California ballot initiative sought to ban same-sex marriage in the state. The donation was made public in 2012 but Eich held onto his job.

I can see why that might tick some people off. And Eich tried to put this to rest:

Eich posted a blog on his personal site last week addressing the backlash. He outlined his plan to support LGBT-friendly policies at Mozilla and expressed “sorrow at having caused pain.”

“I am committed to ensuring that Mozilla is, and will remain, a place that includes and supports everyone,” he said.

But it hasn’t put the controversy to rest. Clearly.

So, do you think that companies should do these sorts of things in the interest of being good corporate citizens? Or should they stay out of politics and focus on making a buck? Please share your thoughts and please keep it civil.

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Hey IT Nerd! Any Comment About The GM Recall Nightmare?

Posted in Commentary with tags on April 1, 2014 by itnerd

Late tonight I had a chance to read this message that was in my inbox:

Hello IT Nerd. I’ve read your blog for some time and you’ve been very opinionated about Toyota’s recalls. I am wondering if you have any comments about GM’s recall nightmare and if it’s worse than what Toyota went through? 

Thanks for reading my blog. In short, it sucks to be GM right about now.

Both GM and Toyota seem to have come down similar paths. There were issues, those issues were covered up minimized, and then bad things happened. As in people died. Here’s where they differ. When Toyota went through their recall nightmare, they had the reputation of being a quality carmaker and had some brand equity to play with. Thus they could always recover from their issues. This is evidenced by the fact that in 2013 they were the number one carmaker on planet Earth. GM on the other hand doesn’t have anywhere near that level of brand equity to play with because they didn’t exactly have the best reputation for producing quality products to begin with. This was highlighted in Congressional hearings today where it was pointed out to GM CEO Mary Barra that their issues with ignition switches could have been solved for a mere $0.57. On top of that they’ve gone through bankruptcy recently which does little to attract customers. As a result, Toyota’s experience with a recall nightmare was bad, but GM’s experience has the potential to be far worse. Consider that Toyota recently settled their recall issues with the US Justice Department for just over a billion dollars, admission of responsibility, and being subject to third party oversight. So if that’s what Toyota got for their recall issues, I think it’s a safe bet that GM is going to get a punishment that is far worse than that. I don’t think it will be terminal for GM, but it is really going to hurt them and how they are perceived in the marketplace for a very long time.

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Updated Safari For Mac That Fixes PWN2OWN Exploit Released

Posted in Commentary with tags on April 1, 2014 by itnerd

Apple today updated update Safari for Mavericks to version 7.0.3 and version 6.1.3 for Mountain Lion users. It has improvements to compatibility, stability, and security. But it’s the security one that you’ll be interested in. If you delve into those fixes, you see that several are credited to the Keen Team. That’s the group that “PWNED” Safari at PWN2OWN. Thus you should download this update so that you’re covered for the exploit that they discovered.

And in terms of less critical fixes:

  • A new option for turning off push notification prompts for websites
  • Improves credit card autofill
  • Adds support for webpages with generic top-level domains
  • Fixes an issue that could cause the search and address field to load a webpage or send a search term before the return key is pressed
  • Improves credit card autofill with websites
  • Fixes an issue that could block receipt of push notifications from websites
  • Adds a preference to turn off push notification prompts from websites
  • Adds support for webpages with generic top-level domains

The update is a free download for Mavericks users and is available through the software update tool in the Mac App Store.

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BBM 2.1 Hits The Streets With Support For Stickers

Posted in Commentary with tags on April 1, 2014 by itnerd

I got a note from BlackBerry today announcing that version 2.1 of BBM will be available later today for iOS and Android. The key feature is support for stickers which make the BBM experience more engaging and fun. Stickers let you personalize your chats in a variety of ways and customers will be able to download a variety of sticker packs right inside BBM from the BBM Shop. Each sticker pack contains between 20 and 25 stickers and features content developed by talented artists or relating to a theme.Sticker packs will either be offered for free, or cost US $1.99.

Here’s a look at how stickers work:

In addition to stickers, BBM users can now easily share photos in multi-person chats. Photos will be delivered in the chat as a thumbnail that can be opened to reveal the image in full size. BBM users can also now send higher quality photos, videos and presentations thanks to larger in-chat file transfers. Files up to 16MB can now be shared in a chat, an increase of 10MB.

 

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Telus Drops On Contract Price Of GALAXY S5

Posted in Commentary with tags , on April 1, 2014 by itnerd

Telus just dropped me a note to let me know that the Samsung GALAXY S5, GALAXY Gear 2 and Gear Fit are now available for pre-order. They also let me know that they’ve revised the pricing for the GALAXY S5. Previously they communicated that it would be priced at $249 on a two year term, but the price is being dropped to $229 on a two-year term. The outright purchase price of $730 remains the same.

Also of note, the Samsung GALAXY S5 will be available for sale in-store at Telus on April 11 in charcoal black and shimmery white, and the GALAXY Gear 2 and Gear Fit will be available for purchase the same day at select Telus stores and online.

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