Apple iPad: Is it for you?

Apple iPad

Police survey provides glimpse of Net-surveillance figures | Politics and Law - CNET News

A forthcoming survey of computer crime investigators suggests that electronic surveillance is a bit more commonplace than most people might expect.Even a relatively small group of 100 police working on online investigations reports submitting as many as 22,800 legal requests for information a year to Internet and e-mail providers, a category that includes both subpoenas and search warrants.CNET has reviewed a presentation scheduled to be given at a federal task force meeting on Thursday, which says that the survey respondents said they submitted a total of anywhere from 2,868 to 22,800 requests for information a year. (See one excerpt and another.)"Most Internet users do not realize how often the government is demanding personal information from companies, often without judicial oversight, and how often companies turn it over," says Nicole Ozer, technology director for the ACLU of Northern California. "Companies are refusing to disclose to the public how many demands they get. It appears that the government is demanding that Internet companies turn over so much personal information about users, so often, that companies can't keep up."No law requires that the number of subpoenas and search warrants sent to Internet and e-mail providers be made public. Federal law does require the disclosure of certain types of wiretaps--in 2004, for instance, there were 1,442 nonterrorism-related wiretaps, and only 4 percent targeted computers and electronic devices.Sixty-one of survey respondents reported that their investigations were "detrimentally" affected because data were not retained long enough, and 47 percent said they had to end an investigation because data were not retained. The survey was conducted in late October 2009. (In general, subscriber information such as billing addresses can be obtained with a subpoena, and content information such as the contents of an e-mail message can be obtained with a search warrant.)The survey, according to two people with knowledge of the situation, is part of a broader push from law enforcement agencies to alter the ground rules of online investigations. Other components include renewed calls for laws requiring Internet companies to store data about their users for up to five years, and a push for a national Web interface linking police computers with those of Internet and e-mail providers so requests can be sent and received electronically instead of via fax.The survey's author is Frank Kardasz, who is scheduled to present it at a meeting of the Online Safety and Technology Working Group, organized by the U.S. Department of Commerce. Kardasz, a sergeant in the Phoenix police department and a project director of Arizona's Internet Crimes Against Children task force, said in an e-mail exchange on Tuesday that he is still revising the document and was unable to discuss it.

Police survey provides glimpse of Net-surveillance figures | Politics and Law - CNET News

Apple seeks e-book pricing plan for tablet

Apple is in secret last-minute negotiations with book publishers over a new e-books pricing scheme for its highly anticipated tablet computer, putting it in direct competition with Amazon, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

Apple wants publishers to create two new price points for e-books of best-sellers: $12.99 and $14.99, with some titles offered at $9.99, according to the report. As it does with iPhone apps, Apple is negotiating for a 30 percent take on the sales price, with publishers getting the other 70 percent, the Journal reported.
The move would put Apple in an open battle for the e-book sales crown with Amazon, which has slashed the prices of titles for its Kindle e-book reader, offering some best-sellers for free. Amazon has also announced the release of a software development kit for the Kindle, which will allow developers to build and eventually sell their own applications for the device, apparently opening a new front with Apple and its iPhone.
Apple and Amazon representatives did not immediately respond to request for comment.
When Apple allowed Amazon to develop a way for iPhone users to get access to Amazon's library of e-books, it appeared the company was ceding the mobile computing e-book market to Amazon. Apple CEO Steve Jobs has dismissed the e-book reader and market in general, declaring in 2008 that "people don't read anymore." However, Jobs is notorious for dismissing a new product or concept right up until the day Apple ships a similar product.
Apple has also been rumored to be jockeying to get a variety of media on the device, including TV content magazines, newspapers, music, games, and video. Publishers such as the New York Times Co., Conde Nast Publications, and HarperCollins Publishers have reportedly been approached over content deals, as well as TV networks such as CBS and Walt Disney over monthly subscription deals for the device, which is expected to be unveiled at an event Wednesday in San Francisco.
However, at least one books publisher isn't likely to be very welcome at the event. Terry McGraw, the chairman and CEO of McGraw-Hill apparently jumped the gun a bit during a CNBC interview, confirming that a device would be revealed Wednesday and that college textbooks would make an appearance on it. He also revealed that the device would be based on the iPhone operating system--the first named source offering actual confirmation of the operating system and specific content for the device.

news.cnet.com

Toyota halts sales of eight models

After issuing 6.5 million vehicle recalls over the past few months, Toyota on Tuesday took the further and dramatic step of halting sales of eight models until it gets a handle on whether they are exhibiting uncontrolled acceleration and, if so, why.
Production is being halted on the 2009-'10 RAV4, Corolla, and Matrix; 2005-'10 Avalon; 2007-'10 Camry; 2010 Highlander, 2007-'10 Tundra, and 2008-'10 Sequoia. Five plants in Indiana, Texas, Kentucky, and California will be affected.
Toyota has been racing for months to get in front of whatever engineering issue may exist and the public-relations nightmare it is creating.
Dealers began fitting revised accelerator pedals on 3.8 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles after a September recall that was the largest in company history. Earlier this month Toyota also began retrofitting a throttle interrupt mechanism on many Camry, Avalon, and Lexus models, a mechanism that would be phased into all Toyota corporation vehicles by the end of 2010. And a few days ago the company issued a new recall on 2.3 million cars to correct a part in the throttle linkage that may wear prematurely and prevent the throttle from returning to idle.
When reports of uncontrolled acceleration began surfacing last fall, the company advised owners of many models to remove floor mats as a temporary solution until dealers could fit a revised accelerator pedal that supposedly would not catch on the flooring. But ABC News has recently surfaced a number of reports of uncontrolled acceleration in Toyota cars whose floor mats had been removed.

Days before iTablet-palooza, the rumor hits keep comin

Gizmodo

With just days to go before Apple is likely to unveil a long-expected tablet device, rumors continue to circulate over its details. As the buzz continues, we wanted to wrap up what we have heard recently.
You want 3G with that? Sources inside both AT&T and Verizon once again say that an Apple tablet will be compatible with not just one or the other, but both networks. The source from Verizon claims that it will work automatically with Verizon's WiFi hotspots and switch seamlessly to EVDO when out of range. Whether such a service would work the same on AT&T isn't known, but that company did boast to Fox that it has "the largest network of Wi-Fi hotspots in the country."
Further rumors peg Qualcomm as the supplier of the 3G chip for the tablet. Apple may build separate versions, one with HSPA+ chips for AT&T and most other carriers, and another with EVDO chips for Verizon and other carriers using the CDMA standard. Alternately, Apple may even include a chip recently designed by Qualcomm that's capable of connecting to either network.
Buy one dock connector, get one free. Sources for iLounge say that the tablet will have not one, but two dock connectors—one on the horizontal bottom, and one on a vertical "bottom." This would allow the device to be docked in either landscape or portrait orientation while charging. This way, the tablet could perform different functions—playing video or reading books, for example—while set in a single charging station.
The tablet will also have generously sized antennas, if the "long rear stripe" of plastic along the back—which breaks up the device's metal casing—is any indicator. That should offer better reception that the small antennas on the iPhone, and may enable 802.11n compatibility.
Mom? Am I coming in clear? This rumor isn't necessarily new, but MacRumors seems certain that the tablet will have a front-facing camera. A recent Wall Street Journal report suggested it may be used for facial recognition, a sort of biometric auto-login, but it could easily be used for iChat videoconferencing or posting gratuitous self-portraits on Facebook.
What's in a name? "iSlate," "iTablet," "iPad." Al these are possible names, and would be in line with Apple's now 12-year-old habit of adding an "i" in front of the name of its products. Macworld UK rehashes trademark office filings suggesting that Apple is trying to separate "iPad" from Fujistu, which used to make a portable POS device for retail stores. However, analysis of the filings reveal that Apple's objection is because the name is so close to "iPod."
What if Apple drops the "i" altogether, and goes with something like "Canvas?" Anything's possible.
A book is like a garden carried in the pocket... or perhaps on a tablet. It appears HarperCollins isn't the only publishing company being associated with Apple's upcoming tablet. A BusinessWeek report says that McGraw-Hill and Hachette Book Group are in talks with Apple to bring an assortment of textbooks and trade publications to the tablet in digital format. The availability of educational material could make the tablet a shoe-in for the education market.
John Wiley & Sons titles may also make an appearance as well. "We have had ongoing conversations with Apple about their interest in including educational content," Peter Balis, director of digital content at Wiley, told BusinessWeek. "We will continue to support their efforts in whatever iteration it takes next week."
At what cost, iTablet? A recent ChangeWave survey suggests that, sight unseen, 18 percent of survey respondents are likely to buy one if Apple announces one in the coming days. However, consumers would have the strongest demand for an Apple tablet at a price between $500 and $700.
RBC analyst Mike Abramsky agrees that Apple would have a hit on its hands if it can introduce the tablet at $600. His model predicts Apple would sell 5 million tablets in 2010 at that price, but sales would drop to just 1 million if the price were $800. Going off the deep-end, Abramsky imagines that if Apple sells the tablet for $500, they could move as many as 10 million units in its first year.
Let's be realistic, though. The iPhone costs $600 at full retail. It seems unlikely that Apple would sell a much larger tablet at the same price. It will probably cost less than a MacBook, but chances are good that it will cost more than an iPhone. Even a top-end iPod touch costs $400, and that's without cellular radios, GPS, camera, compass, and other hardware. Apple might not include all that hardware, but a $700 or $800 price seems more likely.
: http://arstechnica.com

Week in tech: Chrome OS, HTML5, China, Ubuntu 10.04a, and Firefox 3.6

It was a busy week as controversy continued to rage over the Google-China dust-up and Mozilla released a solid new version of Firefox. But first, Google.
Ars sat down with the engineering director of Google's Chrome OS project to talk about the past, present, and future of the project. There's a lot of good detail about the relationship between Chrome and Android, the genesis of Chrome OS, and much more.
The Google/China story has enough legs to qualify as a "centipede" at this point. After saying that it would no longer censor Chinese search results and that it was ready to pull out of China, Google also admitted to being the victim of a sophisticated cyberattack that went after more than 30 companies. The Chinese government responded harshly.
The Ubuntu development community pushed out the second alpha version of Ubuntu 10.04. It offers a few new apps and drops HAL in favor of DeviceKit. Check out our hands-on for the scoop on 10.04.
Firefox 3.6 was released this past week. We tested it extensively and found that its incremental improvements combined with a lot of developer-friendly features to make for an extremely solid release.
Ever wanted to know more about quantum computing but were afraid to ask? Check out our definitive guide to quantum computing. It covers the basics of qubits, two-qubit systems, and a primer on quantum physics 101 so you can wrap your brain around the topic.
As the e-book reader wars heat up and we await the unveiling of the Apple tablet, Amazon tried grabbing a bit of the spotlight by announcing a new royalty program for the Kindle. Authors can now earn up to 70 percent from each e-book sold, with a couple of catches.
Looking to make a love connection online? Data from popular dating site OKCupid reveals what kind of photos draw the most attention, and the results may surprise you.
The FTC recently filed a complaint against Intel over its business practices in the CPU market. Intel finally got around to posting its response this past week, and it's a doozy. Highlights include some damning comments from AMD execs made during the middle of the past decade.
Carbon sequestration has been touted as a way to deal with the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Researchers have developed a copper complex that is capable of reacting with carbon dioxide at a slightly elevated electric potential. The process turns the carbon dioxide into a usable byproduct which can be recycled and reused for this purpose multiple times.
Akamai's State of the Internet report reinforces the United States' reputation as a broadband sluggard. The average broadband speed in the US is 3.9Mbps, placing the country in 18th place. Topping the list? South Korea, with an average speed of 14.6Mbps.

:arstechnica.com

Motorola Backflip

On Wednesday, Motorola introduced its latest Google Android smartphone to the world, the Motorola Backflip. Scheduled for a global release at the beginning of Q1 2010, Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha said the device would be available in Europe, Asia, Latin America, and North America but would not disclose any carriers. Oh gee, it couldn't possibly be AT&T, which announced five upcoming Android smartphones, including one from Motorola, could it?


The Motorola Backflip is a quad-band GSM phone with support for the 850/1900/2100MHz 3G bands (coincidentally, AT&T's 3G bands), Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS. The smartphone's design is really what sets it apart, however. At first glance, the Backflip looks like a sleeker, smaller version of the Motorola Cliq, but instead of a slider design, the phone opens up like a book. In addition, in its closed state, the full QWERTY keyboard is located on the back. For those concerned about durability, Motorola said the keyboard is strong enough to take a beating and keep on clicking, but of course, that remains to be seen.

Another unique feature of the Backflip is the trackpad, which Moto calls Backtrack, located on the back of the display (when the phone is open). It works just like a traditional trackpad, allowing you to navigate through menus, flip through photos, scroll through the home screen panes, and more. It's certainly an interesting twist, but we're not completely sold on it. You can also interact with the smartphone through the 3.1-inch HVGA touch screen.

: cnet.com