[wifi] Forum Topics

It's that time of year when the Mobile World Congress hits Barcelona, and McAfee has taken advantage of the fact to announce findings from new research that shows mobile device manufacturers are now spending more time and money than ever on recovering from security incidents as well as experiencing more …

Sometimes you kind of know a gadget is going to fail, simply because it launches at the wrong time. A great example would be the [URL="http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry2373.html"]Microsoft SPOT watch[/URL] which was essentially an expensive and ungainly data-casting wristwatch that could show very small amounts of news and weather data while you …

Beacon Research is out with its monthly, and highly useful take on technology stocks, focusing on Google and Yahoo, among others. In its “Traders Alert” report, Beacon says that a new alliance between Google and IBM make the latter a good buy. "Google Inc. (GOOG) shares slipped .38% to $341.70 …

A government is rolling out a wireless network, starting with 18 cities, using WiMAX technology that supports mobile networking, for $30 a month. The real news is where it is: Libya. WiMAX, based on similar technology to cell phone networks, offers wider coverage than is possible using wifi. Like wifi, …

When Google launched Gmail's IMAP capabilities last year, it thrust the ubiquitous Web-based mail service into the limelight as a true contender for enterprise use. Even though it's tightly integrated with [URL="http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/business/index.html"]Google Apps[/URL], a powerful suite of business tools, many people still shunned Gmail citing about a lack of offline …

It’s Tuesday and all eyes on Wall Street are on Yahoo, where new CEO Carol Bartz is expected to lower expectations for Yahoo going forward as the tech behemoth issues its Q4 earnings results. We’re in the midst of the tech earnings season right now and there have been surprises …

There’s a lot of news coming out of the technology sector today. Let’s start with Apple and the growing chorus among shareholders for an SEC review. Bloomberg has the story this morning, and it has to be at least slightly troublesome for the Apple brain trust. Says Bloomberg; "U.S. regulators …

In the run-up to Inauguration Day, just about has been everyone speculating on what changes our newly-elected president will bring to the table. Naturally, we talk a lot around DaniWeb about how Obama's plans will affect the tech sector. As long as everyone else is making predictions and suggestions, I …

With Inauguration Day finally upon us, mobile phone operators across the US are preparing for what could be a bigger test of capacity than the traditional biggest strain on the mobile network, New Year's Eve. Hopefully the months of hard work, involving adding capacity and prepping networks to cope with …

If your company CEO is walking around with bags under eyes, clutching a balance sheet in one hand and a bottle of Chivas in the other, it could be because she can’t get financing to keep the company going. Business Week has a great article on this topic, pointing out …

Asus might have [URL="http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry3637.html"]lost the netbook war[/URL] to Acer, but it is fighting back as far as the keyboard PC wars are concerned. With the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) still a day away in Vegas, the geeky and gadgetry announcements are coming thick and fast. We've already got a taster …

CNN’s Rick Sanchez is the latest victim of the “Twitter” curse. Sanchez, a CNN on-air anchor, reportedly fell victim to a phishing scam that could undermine the investment rationale for Twitter by big investors, one of the most popular social networking sites on the internet. In a “tweet” on Monday, …

Everyone wants to know what's going to happen in the new year as if anyone can accurately predict these things. However, one can deduce, with reasonable accuracy, that there will be innovations that are designed to get our attention. This is my list of Linux-oriented predictions for 2009. [B]The keyword …

This is the time of year for wish lists, so why not make a list of products I would like to see Apple make in 2009. I'm not under any illusions that Apple will actually listen to me, but this is a fun exercise and some of these would be …

Yesterday I highlighted a few gadgets I thought it was worth getting people for Christmas. Today I thought I'd do the opposite - do not, repeat not, buy any of the following. Digital photo frame is a definite no-no. I've bought one for my in-laws last year and they said …

So Dani (of Daniweb fame) was asking me to go through a few gadgets for the Christmas season. So of course I've left it until the last minute - with prices going the way they are at the moment (we're into closing-down sales and stuff over this side of the …

If you haven't bought that special geek in your life something electronic yet for Christmas, here are 10 ideas for you. They're all Linux-based and are sure to bring a smile to any geek's face. They are in no particular order. [B]1. [URL="http://www.asus.com"]Asus[/URL] Eee PC[/B] - The new Eee PC …

I've been a nag about how many media outlets have been wrong about the reasons for the current economic breakdown we're experiencing. So many pundits who don't understand Wall Street want to make it political, and subsequently blame President Bush for "deregulating" Wall Street (not the reason, and besides, President …

Investors were banking on a lousy jobs number, and the last two days of trading have reflected that point That’s what I’m hearing from the traders I know – shrewd peope I shared trading pits with back in the day – almost to a man (and woman) saying that next …

I've had my iPhone for about a month now and for the most part I'm very pleased with it, but if I could have a meeting with Apple engineers, there are a few things I would tell them to change: [B]1 Protect the Glass Out of the Box[/B] Perhaps my …

It has been something of an up and down ride to get here, but AT&T seems to have at last succeeded in rolling out free WiFi access for iPhone users in the US. This after popping up back in May only to vanish without trace very quickly for reasons unconfirmed. …

Stocks are mixed today, which isn't really bad news considering the overseas selloff we saw on Sunday night and early Monday morning. Helping U.S. markets was decent news from the housing sector, where home sales were up 2.7% for September, with some of the country's hardest-hit regions like the southwest, …

The actual Patent title reads "Personal area network systems and devices and methods for use thereof" but PANTS is much snappier don't you think? That's Personal Area Network Technology Systems in full. Apple is looking to patent always-on from anywhere access to the Internet. I thought that was already tied …

Anxiety over corporate earnings is driving the stock market down this week, with stocks dropping 232 points on Tuesday and the futures market dipping downward in early Wednesday trading. While many companies (like Apple, covered below) are hitting their Q3 numbers, most are forecasting a gloomy revenue picture going forward …

In recent weeks, both [URL="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/08/technology/internet/08air.html?_r=1&ref=business&oref=slogin"]American Airlines[/URL] and Delta Airlines have announced that their in-flight wireless Internet services will include a filtering service to keep passengers from viewing porn on their laptops. I admit it, I'm torn. Porn proponents such as Violet Blue, in the [URL="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/10/16/violetblue.DTL""]San Francisco Chronicle[/URL], make all the …

According to Russian forensic security experts and 'password recovery' specialists ElcomSoft, the days of protecting documents and files with 40-bit encryption are now officially over. It has now released a product which uses Thunder Tables technology to unlock password-protected documents that have been created using Microsoft Word. In fact, it …

Effective Wednesday, October 1, each business in Nevada must encrypt customers’ personal information when it is transmitted outside the business’ secure network, such as when it's transmitted over wifi. Initially passed in October 2007, it was said to have been the [URL="http://www.privsecblog.com/archives/state-legislation-some-state-data-encryption-requirements-more-effective-than-others.html"]first law[/URL] of this type. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts …

Howdy and welcome to Crystal Ball Sunday #12: Built-In Home Entertainment and Automation . Linux is the perfect medium for set top boxes (aka Set Top Units or Personal Video Recorders (PVR)) because of its customizability, optimization features, and no cost status. Whether you know them as Set Top Boxes, …

They've been available on the black market almost since the beginning. They'll be selling in Russia next week. And now you can get them at the Apple Store. What are they? They're unlocked iPhone 3Gs, usable on the carrier of choice, not just AT&T. Simply insert your existing SIM card …

A company called [url=http://www.moderro.com/]Moderro Technologies[/url] this week unveiled the [url=http://www.moderro.com/Product/index.html]Xpack Web 2.0 Cloud Computer[/url], a palm-sized appliance dedicated to cloud computing. The US$395 computer was being demonstrated at the 2008 Web 2.0 Expo in New York City this week, and is set to begin shipping in late October. Although the …

The New Dell Inspirion Mini 9 may well become my best friend. I noticed today that [URL="http://www.dell.com"]Dell[/URL] is previewing their new line of Mini Notebook computers and they are impressive. The Dell Inspirion Mini 9 is Dell's entry into the mini notebook market at a very low price point: $349. …

The vibrating rabbit is back, and this time it means business. The [URL="http://www.shinyshiny.tv/2008/09/nabaztag_the_ra.html"]buzz[/URL] is that the plain vanilla rabbit is being given a makeover, with the help of some 60 different fashion designers, artists and style gurus. Personally, I have never seen the appeal of [URL="http://www.nabaztag.com/en/index.html"]Nabaztag[/URL] the vibrating WiFi rabbit …

If you were one of the just seven people in the first half of the year who went to the Washington State Department of Transportation web page using free wifi from the rest areas along its highways, you're out of luck -- the state dropped the little-used service as of …

Here's an interesting question: just how much data do you think your iPhone consumes in an average month? I mean, it's the kind of thing you should know the answer to, given how obsessed everyone seems to be with iPhone service plan data caps and costs. Rather surprisingly, the carrier …

On a Friday afternoon before a holiday weekend, Comcast released its latest volley against its customer base, announcing a 250 GB monthly download limit. According to reports, after the first violation, you will get a message from your friends at Comcast warning you about your dastardly behavior (aka using the …

File under: what was the point of that? Apple iPhone 3G users have been blighted with poor 3G reception since day one. So bad is the problem that it prompted Apple to release an iPhone software update which has had mixed results. Apple says iPhone OS 2.0.2 improved 3G communications, …

Intel Thursday unveiled something [URL=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla]Nikola Tesla[/URL] could only dream of. The company this week was demonstrating the ability to transmit 60 watts of electrical power across three feet of thin air with 75 percent efficiency. I had a toothbrush once that recharged without wires. Every time the handheld part was …

Device maker Palm this week placed its bet on a pair of pros. First is the [URL=http://www.palm.com/us/products/smartphones/treopro/index.html?creativeID=SP_BB_treopro]Palm Treo Pro[/URL], its next-generation smartphone to rival Apple’s iPhone and RIM’s Blackberry. The other is Jon Rubinstein, the company’s executive chair hired earlier this year and now charged with the company's salvation. Rubinstein …

That's the question I had not thought of asking, nor really given much thought to at all, until now. What prompted the question was the appearance of the [URL="http://blogs.msdn.com/e7/archive/2008/08/18/windows_5F00_7_5F00_team.aspx"]Official Engineering Windows 7 blog[/URL]. The third posting proved to be a fascinating read, providing the kind of insight into the development …

Get ready to rewrite your USB drivers. Again. Intel this morning released portions of an updated draft of the [URL=http://www.intel.com/technology/usb/spec.htm]Extended Host Controller Interface 3[/URL], the latest version (0.9) of the part of the USB specification that handles register-level communications between the operating system and the USB host controller. The new …

Major players in the laptop computer market go virtual with Linux. [URL="http://www.hp.com"]HP[/URL], [URL="http://www.lenovo.com"]Lenovo[/URL], and now [URL="http://www.dell.com"]Dell[/URL] offer laptops that have a Linux Mode. Linux Mode in the Dell Latitude line offers the user a minimal environment where one can surf the web, check email, and perform a few other tasks. …

Markets are down about 50 points in mid-afternoon trading on Tuesday, mostly due to investor worries about continued woes in the financial services sector. In short, nobody is buying the notion put forward by Wall Street optimists that the credit crunch – now one-year-old – is coming to an end. …

[URL="http://www.gipscorp.com"]Global IP Solutions[/URL] has one big claim to fame in that it invented the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) iLBC codec standard. OK, you might not have heard of this if you are not a card carrying geek, but you have probably benefited from the iLBC codec. This narrowband speech …

This week doesn’t bode well for the overall stock market, even though the Dow Jones was up 300 points on Friday, and even though tech stocks have held up well over the past few weeks in a volatile traading environment. My chief concern is the Russia military action in Georgia. …

A good friend of mine thinks that data technology access kingpin Qualcomm can be to the wireless market in the 2010’s what Microsoft was to software in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Granted, Qualcomm is smack in the sweet spot – the premier provider of high-speed data access products and services …

Software as a Service (SaaS) is one of the new corporate catch-phrases that many claim reduces a businesses operating costs while increasing its efficiency. The jury is still out on just how effective it is, but you know you a business concept has arrived when it gets its own conference. …

Three questions for the week, plus a new opportunity for profit growth in the technology market . . . 1. What Will the Fed Do? - The Federal Reserve is in a fragile position, as is the economy. With the Fed scheduled to announce its next move on interest rates …

Apple has grabbed lots of headlines this week, some for things it has done, others for things done to it. Of all the major Apple products, only the iPod has escaped mention. With perhaps the potential to affect the most people is the deal announced this week with AT&T to …

I was going to write that the Q2 quarterly numbers (not just in the tech sector but across the board) were better than most experts predicted. For the most part, that’s true. U.S. companies have performed fairly well for the past quarter, thanks especially to increased sales overseas and a …

When I first saw animated photos on newspapers in the Harry Potter movies, I thought it looked interesting, but never imagined it could be made cost-effective. It looks like time has once again proven me wrong. (When the 386SX processor came out, I wondered why anyone would ever need a …