Too Cute!

© Mark Mason

Mark took this photo at the Albany Rifle and Pistol Club Machine Gun Shoot last month.

Sony Pictures breach affects 37,500 users, far less than Lulz Security claimed

LulzSec

Well, Lulz Sec may have overstated its level of success by declaring it had stolen 1,000,000 passwords from Sony Pictures — turns out the number is closer to 37,500. Now granted, any breach of user data is unacceptable, but when a hacker collective’s haul is less than four percent of what it claimed, everyone can breathe a little easier. The troublemakers may have made off with email addresses, phone numbers, and passwords, but Sony says no credit card or social security numbers were compromised. The company issued a statement, which you’ll find after the break, and is working with the FBI to track down those responsible. Hopefully this finally closes the door on Sony’s security woes, and we can go back to bringing you stories about Angry Birds ports and Kinect hacks.

Continue reading Sony Pictures breach affects 37,500 users, far less than Lulz Security claimed

Sony Pictures breach affects 37,500 users, far less than Lulz Security claimed originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Jun 2011 02:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Live transit updates in Google Maps help you plan your romantic bus-catching sprint

Brooklynites on their way to the latest Reggie Watts show have long had real-time bus-tracking information, but public-transit aficionados in six other cities now have one less reason for BK envy. With the latest version of Google Maps, even the least cool citizens of Boston, Portland, Ore., San Diego, San Francisco, Madrid and Turin can see not just when their bus or train is scheduled to arrive, but when it actually will. Selecting a stop on the map displays “live departure times” and service alerts, thanks to Google’s data-sharing partnerships with city transit operators. That won’t always guarantee fewer delays or less waiting, but will help riders budget their time, and maybe find those precious seconds necessary to post more Tumblr pictures of “ironic” Hitler-kittens.

Live transit updates in Google Maps help you plan your romantic bus-catching sprint originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Jun 2011 01:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Netflix.com’s new look is focused on streaming, cribs UI elements from connected TV apps

Do not be alarmed, your Netflix.com experience has been updated today “with a new look and feel to make it easier for you to find something to watch instantly.” While the header introduced late last year remains and sticks on screen as you scroll vertically, box art of queued movies fills the screen horizontally. The redesign takes significant cues from the HTML5 UIs recently rolled out to most streaming devices, but it’s not clear if this related to some of the queue shuffling we’ve been seeing recently. Responses on the Netflix blog have been mostly negative, although just like Facebook and Twitter revamps some complaints about any change are normal.

That said, we’re not fans either because it still requires an additional click to find out if a movie is in HD or has subtitles, a misdirected click starts playing the wrong movie too easily and selecting “your queue” still takes us to our discs first instead of Watch Instantly. If the new front page isn’t working there’s always alternatives in Netflix queue managers like InstantWatcher.com and FeedFliks, or any number of mobile apps. Let us know if you’ll be riding with the redesign or hitting the back button in the comments here.

Netflix.com’s new look is focused on streaming, cribs UI elements from connected TV apps originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Jun 2011 23:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dell’s prototype 7-inch tablet touts slide-out split QWERTY keyboard (update: just a concept)

Whoa. Every so often, a giant in Round Rock pokes it head up above water long enough to put forth a truly mesmerizing design, and while it’s no Adamo, this is most definitely the freshest take we’ve seen on tablets in a very, very long time. The gallery below showcases a prototype that’s lounging around within Dell’s top secret labs, a 7-inch slate that’s adorned with a slide-out keyboard. Said keyboard, however, is hardly typical — it’s rocking a split-key design that’s not at all dissimilar to the virtual layouts recently showcased within iOS 5 and Windows 8. So far as we can tell, the entire alphabet’s present and accounted for, and there’s a rear camera that’ll be more than happy to make your child’s next birthday party a bit more awkward. Outside of that, we’ve no other details to pore over, but it’s safe to say that we’ll be doing our darnedest to change that. Oh, and if you’re doubting that this thing has a future as a real-deal product, there’s a shot just south of these very words showcasing what looks to be a commercial / press render. Delicious.

Update: So it turns out that these photos were actually taken by Tweakers, who met up with the crew from Dell’s Austin Design Center to gaze upon this prototype tablet earlier this week. Tweakers says that the concept is about three to four years old, and it eventually led to the development of the eccentric Inspiron Duo. Unsurprisingly, Dell also confirmed to us that this device will never make it to the market; but of course, there’s still the Streak 10 Pro Android tablet to look forward to.

Dell’s prototype 7-inch tablet touts slide-out split QWERTY keyboard (update: just a concept) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Jun 2011 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung Canada officially says the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is “coming soon”


We had a sneak peak earlier today but Samsung Canada has officially put “coming soon” on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 (16GB version). They note the addition of Touchwiz along with Social, Music and Reader Hubs and its blazing speed 1Ghz Dual-Core processor. The Wi-Fi version is scheduled to arrive sometime in July, while Rogers, Bell and TELUS have this on deck for an August release.

“It’s time to Tab”.
More here at Samsung

Related posts:

  1. Wi-Fi only Samsung Galaxy Tab coming to Canada “late Q1 early Q2″
  2. Samsung Galaxy S II coming to Canada by early Q3
  3. Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 officially announced

HP TouchPad to be available June 22nd, starting at $500 for 16GB?

We’ve learned to take possible TouchPad release dates with a grain of salt at this point, but enterprise vendor Synnex has now provided yet another possible one, as well some additional confirmation of earlier leaks. According to a pair of listings on its website, the HP TouchPad (curiously also sporting the Pavilion moniker here) is estimated to be available on June 22nd in both 16GB and 32GB capacities for $499.99 and $599.99, respectively (the latter of which matches the price already spotted at Walmart). For those looking to accessorize, an HP-branded TouchPad case is also listed. Of course, an ETA doesn’t necessarily indicate an actual release date, but this particular one is at least closer to the last official word out of HP than recent rumors have suggested. Head on past the break for a shot of the listing for the 32GB model.

Continue reading HP TouchPad to be available June 22nd, starting at $500 for 16GB?

HP TouchPad to be available June 22nd, starting at $500 for 16GB? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Jun 2011 17:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Canadian Federal Court of Appeal rules in favour of Globalive: WIND can officially stay in business


Even before WIND Mobile launched their wireless service other competing carriers had concerns about the amount of foreign ownership they have. Globalive, WIND’s parent company, is heavily backed by Egyptian-based Orascom and was given the green light in December 2009 to operate. They first launched in Toronto, but quickly expanded to Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and Ottawa and now have a subscriber base of 300,000.

In February, Public Mobile and TELUS asked the Federal Court to look deeper into their structure, which once again questioned WIND’s future. WIND appealed the decision and good news has come today as the Federal Court of Appeal ruled in their favour and can stay in business for good.

I’m just reading over the court documents here’s the official wording:

Conclusion
[59] The appeals will therefore be allowed, and the Order in Council will be restored. Globalive and the Attorney General are entitled to their costs throughout. No costs will be assessed for or against the interveners.

In addition, a press release just went out from WIND that states that “the Canadian Federal Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the Government of Canada and Globalive by allowing their appeals and restoring the Order in Council that permitted Globalive to launch in December 2009. In overturning the decision, the Federal Court of Appeal recognized that Cabinet acted properly both in varying an earlier CRTC decision and in finding that Globalive meets the Canadian ownership and control test in the Telecommunications Act. The decision was unanimous.”

Anthony Lacavera, Chairman of Globalive said “We and our 300,000 customers are thrilled with this decision. Now we can continue delivering value and choice to Canadian consumers without the distraction and expense of challenges by our competitors to our right to operate. We have always maintained our compliance and with the restoration of this Order-in-Council we look forward to getting back to competition in the marketplace- where it belongs”.

Related posts:

  1. Clement to appeal Federal Court Ruling on Globalive “we will vigorously defend it”
  2. Globalive appeals Federal Court ruling: “We disagree with several aspects”
  3. Globalive stay of judgment extended, court date now set for May 18th

Google Maps Navigation to get offline mode? Garmin and TomTom on notice

Google Maps

Dutch tech site All About Phones claims that Google Maps Navigation will get a true offline mode later this summer. In December the Android app received an update that cached routes and the surrounding areas, but without a data connection you still couldn’t enter a new destination. A source inside the Dutch telco industry said that Goog would removing the requirement for coverage — an obvious next step for the nav tool, especially with Ovi Maps bringing its turn-by-turn prowess to WP7. The move is also bound to be another thorn in the side of standalone GPS makers like Garmin and TomTom. After all, it’s tough to compete with free.

Google Maps Navigation to get offline mode? Garmin and TomTom on notice originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 08 Jun 2011 13:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Computer Hard Drive Teardown [Video]

Curious how your hard drive actually works? Check out this teardown video by Engineer Guy, Bill Hammack.

In the above video Bill Hammack, the guy behind the Engineer Guy videos, tears down a hard drive. Not only do you get to see what’s going on inside the hard drive but the accompanying graphics and narration give a great introduction to the concept of magnetic hard drives.

Computer Hard Drive Teardown [Engineer Guy via Make]

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