Yahoo! Is Testing Out New Logo Ideas, Still Isn’t Dropping The !

Yahoo is looking to make a clean break with some aspects of its past with Marissa Mayer now at the helm — and one of those, it seems, could be its logo.

A TC reader says that he was asked to take an online survey, “and it turned out to be all about asking me to compare Yahoo’s current logo to a potential new logo,” he tells us. Here is a screenshot from that survey:

Asked about this and whether it was a Yahoo-generated survey, a spokesperson tells us this:

“Yahoo! is continually developing and testing new concepts in an effort to offer the most delightful experiences for users and advertisers, but we don’t have anything new to announce at this time.”

Note the drop of the serif, note that it’s not purple, and note there is still a ! – although there may be other options where Yahoo drops it. Last week Business Insider ran what it says is a leaked copy of the new Yahoo homepage, where the purple also appears to have faded somewhat. The blue in these logos looks a lot closer to the blue in that design, too.

Whether or not a logo can make a big difference to Yahoo’s fortunes is one for debating.

To put it in context, the company earlier this week reported solid, if not stellar, earnings for Q3, beating analyst expectations on revenues of $1.2 billion. Today it announced its first acquisition under their new CEO, the mobile app for recommendations Stamped, and there could be more. There have also been a boatload of new executive hires, from the COO down.

FWIW, our tipster notes that he likes the current logo better.

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Google unveils '+1' button to rival Facebook 'Like'

Google has unveiled its latest social networking feature, the "+1" button, which provides users a way to recommend search results to friends, but an industry watcher says the "copycat" feature is not likely to see success.

Users will need to have a public Google profile and log in to select the "+1" option, which appears next to search results such as Web sites or ads, and share "useful" and "relevant" recommendations and information with their Google contacts, product manager Rob Spiro said in a blog post.

To be launched first on Google's home page, the "+1" button--which is the digital shorthand for "this is pretty cool"--will eventually be available as a plugin so the function can be integrated into other sites.

However, Adam Bunn, director of search engine optimization (SEO) at search marketing agency Greenlight, noted that the new tool is unlikely to see significant adoption.

In a research note Friday, Bunn said: "There are immediate shortcomings if Google is hoping to conquer the social sphere in a bid to further bolster its dominance in the search space."

He noted the similarities between the "+1" and Facebook's "Like" buttons, the latter of which currently holds the lion's share in the social sphere of online interactions.

"[Google] creating its own copycat is unlikely to succeed," he said.

He pointed out that the search giant will only be able to pull off entering the social networking space if it can import data from social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, into users' Google profiles, and become the "gatekeeper of social interactions" or the first to market.

But there are hurdles should it decide to do so, Bunn said, noting that there are already "too many points of interaction" today including Twitter, Facebook, instant messaging and e-mail. In addition, social networking behemoth Facebook has also made clear it is unlikely to allow Google access to the data it holds, he said.

Bunn also highlighted that the Google brand is widely perceived as "functional rather than recreational", and unless it can create paradigm shift in online social interactions, there is "little option other than to buy Twitter" or form a major partnership akin to the Bing-Facebook alliance.

Google's "+1" effort marks the company's latest attempt at penetrating the social networking realm. Since 2009, the company has rolled out online real-time collaboration platform Wave and social networking platform Buzz to much hype but little success.

The latter, in particular, generated intense privacy backlash when it was found that Buzz--which works with Gmail's Web interface--exposed e-mail contacts that users did not want to make public.

Wave was eventually killed off last August--though some features resurfaced in Google Docs--while Buzz continues to be embroiled in lawsuits and privacy audits.

Logitech to Stream Video to IPads, IPhones

In a move that underscores the importance of both mobile devices and video in staying connected within enterprises, Logitech is extending its LifeSize video streaming system to iPads, iPhones and iPods.

Video is coming into more enterprises as a communication tool even while more employees are relying on mobile devices. Cisco, Polycom and other vendors have committed themselves to reaching those mobile users with video, a task that requires the content to be adapted to different screen sizes and processing capabilities.

Logitech is starting to tackle this problem with the latest version of software for its LifeSize Video Center appliance, a platform for distributing live and recorded streams such as training sessions, executive messages and company meetings. Logitech began with Apple iOS because of the large installed base of such devices, but the company is looking at future offerings for Android, BlackBerry and other platforms, said Mary Miller, director of product marketing.

Video Center is designed strictly for one-way, one-to-many distribution of video. Logitech is not extending its two-way videoconferencing system to mobile devices yet, though it continues to look at the need for that capability. LifeSize users on the road have to use laptops for videoconferencing.

Logitech is bringing video streaming to iOS devices through the Web browser rather than an application. Logitech has verified the software with native iOS browsers, said Travis McCollum, a Logitech product manager.

Companies can record videos or initiate live streams on LifeSize endpoints such as the LifeSize 220 Series at their facilities, with resolutions up to 720p. The content is transcoded within the endpoint for different devices on which it may be viewed, including laptops, desktops, large displays and iOS devices.

The LifeSize Video Center Version 1.2 software includes a mechanism for automatically changing the bit rate of a stream for certain types of clients when they are detected on the network. Using the right bit rate for the network and device can eliminate the need for buffering, Miller said. Administrators can set up as many as four different bit rates and assign those to particular types of devices based on policies.

This "automatic adaptive streaming," as well as being able to stream to iOS devices, sets LifeSize Video Center apart from other systems in its class, including ones from Polycom and Cisco, Miller said.

Polycom said its Polycom Video Media Center supports multiple video formats, including for mobile devices, for on-demand streaming. The company plans to offer adaptive bit rates for live streaming later this year. Cisco offers automatic transcoding and optimization of streams for a wide range of mobile devices, including the Apple iOS lines, on its higher-end Media Experience Engine appliance.

PayPal Mobile app leak

App of the online payment service PayPal has a big hole on both the iPhone and Android phones. It is not the only betalingsapp with a leak.

PayPal has already made an update to his app, and submitted to the respective app stores. Users who have new, safe version can download, sign up to the Wall Street Journal. To the extent that PayPal knows, the hole is not abused. It promises 100 percent reimbursement fraud.

Phishing
The leak is a basic error: the betalingsapp not verify the certificate from the PayPal server is valid. This enables users to be redirected to a spoof, to secure their login information for PayPal booty. "This is really a huge mistake by PayPal," said lead researcher Andrew High of viaForensics, the company that this leak has discovered.

The Wall Street Journal reports that it is possible for payments to listen and thus to intercept user names and passwords. According to PayPal can only under rare circumstances, through an unsecured WiFi network where an attacker, therefore it just must be connected. The possibility of phishing spoof sites through communication, however, undermines this lulling.

Password
Furthermore, abuse of this vulnerability, possible on the iPhone. Android Smartphones are not vulnerable. Yet PayPal has its app for mobile operating system that is also updated. It is unknown what the status of the PayPal app for Blackberry.

On the website is to find no mention of the new version and the need for updating. PayPal is praised as the security of its mobile apps with the message that "any payment is confirmed by a password.

The iPhone app PayPal according to the company about 4 million times since that app was released in April this year. The updated version (3.0.1) is already available in the iTunes App Store. The online payment service expects mobile payments this year totaling some 700 million U.S. dollars amounts.

More Apps leak
Meanwhile prove more apps for mobile payment to contain leaks. viaForensics has several apps reviewed and gaps in discovery. These mobile payment applications of the large U.S. banks: Bank of America, USAA, Chase, Wells Fargo, TD Ameritrade and Vanguard. Several of these institutes have been update for their apps.

viaForensics has informed the banks before it went public with his discoveries. "Since Monday (November 1, 2010), we communicate and work together with financial institutions to eliminate these errors," the company said in a blog post yesterday. "The discoveries that we have published, the impact of testing we on November 3 or so. " The company, the new versions of the apps are also screening.

iPhone table with 58 inch screen

The iPhone is using a cable connected to the Connect Table. In addition, the unit currently gejailbreaked to a specific app to run. In the movie shows the Table Connect team, however, hinted that in future no longer necessary. How the system will work in the future is unclear. The table has multi-touch features, so you can do whatever you normally do well on the iPhone. Think swipe, but also to zoom in and out through your fingers together or apart to move.

Connect the Table is unfortunately only for iPhone 3G and 4. This is according to the team with the processor of the original iPhone and iPhone 3G. This is simply too slow to well with the Table Connect to cooperate.

Cheer also not too early. It is possible that the Connect Table was a hoax. It fell Macworld reader Davasc that on the iPhone on the movie with the little finger when you turn off iPhone app is started. In addition, the website of Connect Table is very little information and is hosted by Blogger.


The demonstration of the prototype of the Connect Table

Android Market Crosses 1 Lakh Applications

Almost two years since Android Market went live, Google's proprietary mobile OS has achieved a significant feat. More than 1 lakh applications are now available in the Android Market. Google announced this through the Android Developer Twitter account. This feat notwithstanding, Google is still behind rival Apple, which has almost thrice as many iOS applications available in its application store. The Android milestone is nonetheless significant, because it's the only viable competitor to those seeking a more open source alternative to Apple's offerings.

With increasing number of devices, ranging from smartphones to tablets, flooding the market, the future looks bright for Android. The extent of this success still hinges on Google's ability to maintain a synergy between the large array of devices sharing the Android platform, and the effectiveness of the upcoming 7-inch tablets.