IT Executive news

• 7 must-have wireless charging gadgets

  16-11-2015 22:43
  
  The world of wireless charging is about to get a lot more … electric.Wireless power support is baked into many of today's most popular devices, including Samsung's Galaxy S6 and Note5 phones, as well the new Motorola DROIDs — even the Apple Watch. Huge restaurant chains and cafes, such as McDonald's and Starbucks, as well as hospitality companies, including Marriott, are building wireless power "spots" right into their various public-facing establishments and facilities. To rea
  
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• Chipmaker’s first CIO resets 'clock speed of IT' with analytics, IT reorg

  16-11-2015 22:13
  
  To keep pace with the growing demand for chips that support big data, Internet of Things and other applications that require information access in real-time, Micron Technology is reshuffling its IT department and beefing up its analytics capabilities. Moving IT closer to the business and scrutinizing the data sensors wring from manufacturing floors is crucial for a chipmaker facing strong headwinds."The changing business environment has driven the need for IT to participate more deeply in the bu
  
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• Don't fall for drone registration scams, warns FAA

  16-11-2015 22:11
  
  The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration hasn't revealed its plans for drone registration yet, but that hasn't stopped at least one company from trying to make a buck from confusion about the rules.In early November, the FAA and Department of Transportation said they intend to set up a registry that will likely cover many small consumer drones, but it's yet to happen. A task force established to propose registration rules is due to deliver its findings on Friday, but even then the FAA will have
  
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• Alternative processors tapped to fulfill supercomputing's need for speed

  16-11-2015 21:47
  As world powers compete to build the fastest supercomputers, more attention is being paid to alternative processing technologies as a way to add more horsepower to such systems.
  One thing is clear: It is becoming prohibitive to build blazing CPU-only supercomputers, due to power and space constraints. That's where powerful coprocessors step in -- the processors work in conjuction with CPUs to conduct complex calculations in a power-efficient manner. 
  Coprocessors are an important topic at
  
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• Social media lights up in grief and rage over Paris attacks

  16-11-2015 21:06
  
  In times of grief and fear, people from around the world turned to social networks to search for loved ones and to share feelings of support, anger and sadness.
  Within hours of the news on Friday that Paris had been hit with multiple terrorist attacks that killed at least 129 people and injured more than 350, Facebook News Feeds turned into a sea of the colors of the French flag and images of the Eiffel Tower.
  Tweets on the social network Twitter were quickly filled with the hashtags #Paris and
  
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• Pressure increases on banks to adopt chip-and-PIN

  16-11-2015 20:54
  
  The biggest financial institutions in the U.S. are under renewed pressure to mandate the use of PINs with new chip-based payment cards.On Monday, the attorneys generals of nine U.S. states sent a joint letter to the companies, urging them to adopt the technology as a way to reduce the effectiveness of data breaches and card fraud.Banks have issued millions of chip-based cards this year, bringing the U.S. belatedly in line with most of the rest of world, but while other countries switched to
  
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• PHP 7.0 delayed, but release candidate available

  16-11-2015 20:48
  
  PHP 7.0.0, a high-performance upgrade to the popular server-side scripting language for Web development, was due for a general release late last week. Instead, builders of the language released a seventh RC (release candidate).
  Release candidates are generally considered the final precursor to a general release; the first release candidate for PHP 7.0.0 became available in August. But this seventh release candidate is supposed to, finally, lead to that general release, according to the PHP deve
  
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• Google offers up to 1TB of free storage for 'Local Guides' posts

  16-11-2015 20:30
  
  Google today announced it will offer various rewards to users who post reviews, upload photos or simply fix outdated information on its Local Guides feature on Google Maps. GoogleA Local Guides user page.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: iPad Pro: 16 games with spectacular sound

  16-11-2015 20:22
  
  Apple has finally released the iPad Pro, and one of the best things about it is that it has four speakers. The speakers have been machined directly into the iPad Pro's unibody enclosure, and this gives the speakers up to 61 percent more volume. This can result in a wider frequency range and up to 3 times more output than older iPads.
  [ Also see: iPad Pro: 16 gorgeous games ]
  The iPad Pro's speakers are also intelligent. They know when you have your iPad Pro in landscape or portrait view, and wi
  
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• Containers get a fresh business boost from Hewlett Packard Enterprise

  16-11-2015 20:06
  
  It would be difficult to overstate the impact container technology is having on the software-development world, so it's no wonder vendors large and small are jumping on board with tailored offerings. The latest example: Hewlett Packard Enterprise, which just rolled out an entire portfolio of Docker-focused products.Making containers enterprise-ready will be a key focus over the next two years, according to Dave Bartoletti, a principal analyst with Forrester."Large users will need the same degree
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: Keeping out bad actors: Why healthcare CIOs need to be more concerned about securing customer data

  16-11-2015 20:05
  
  Most consumers have either been directly or indirectly impacted by credit card or personal financial information thefts by hackers.  These consumers are clearly more careful about how and where they shop as well as having new credit cards issued or having their credit monitored.  However, there is a set of data almost all people maintain and is 10 times more valuable to hackers on the Dark Web than credit card numbers: Your healthcare record.Healthcare information holds a wealth of inf
  
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• Anonymous just might make all the difference in attacking ISIS

  16-11-2015 20:02
  
  In the wake of the horrific attacks in Paris, military operations against ISIS terrorist strongholds have increased. When someone hits you, it’s natural to hit back. But can you win by killing an enemy that seeks death — and when those who are killed inspire desperate others to replace them?
  Along with the news that the French had launched air strikes against ISIS positions came the word that the cyber-revenge group calling itself Anonymous has declared war on ISIS. I never thought
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How women in tech can lead in an era of smart machines

  16-11-2015 19:53
  
  As lean in leaders and social-savvy consumers, women are set to disrupt the industry along with the rise of smart machines. At last month’s Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, Gartner Fellow Darryl Plummer discussed Gartner’s top predictions for the tech industry: smart machines will be generating more of the content we read, managing our work, and performing economic transactions. It’s time to re-think expertise in terms of our vision as tech executives when our industry is undergoing se
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How AI will take over health IT

  16-11-2015 19:34
  
  When it comes to deciding whether to pepper spray a crowd, drone operators, tucked away in a safe location, can make calmer decisions than police on the ground. This is one reason some governments are buying weaponized drones for crowd control.Using this logic, it is easy to argue that dispassionate algorithms are even better suited than human drone operators. So, as the worst-case scenario goes, humans will integrate AI into drone-based weapons; eventually cede complete control; leading AI to b
  
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• Apple CEO rejects notion of iOS-powered laptops

  16-11-2015 19:25
  
  Apple CEO Tim Cook has again rejected the idea of following in the footsteps of rival Microsoft to build a notebook that runs his company's mobile operating system, iOS.
  "We feel strongly that customers are not really looking for a converged Mac and iPad," Cook told The Irish Independent, Ireland's largest daily newspaper, in an interview published Sunday. "Putting those two together would not achieve either. You'd begin to compromise in different ways."
  But take Cook's comments with a grain --
  
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• Millions of sensitive records exposed by mobile apps leaking back-end credentials

  16-11-2015 19:23
  
  Thousands of mobile applications, including popular ones, implement cloud-based, back-end services in a way that lets anyone access millions of sensitive records created by users, according to a recent study.The analysis was performed by researchers from the Technical University and the Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology in Darmstadt, Germany, and the results were presented Friday at the Black Hat Europe security conference in Amsterdam. It targeted applications that use Back
  
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• BrandPost: Fine-tuning Security Metrics to Drive Action

  16-11-2015 18:00
  
  Having security metrics in place is an instrumental step towards building a solid foundation for sustainable success. However, organizations need to continually focus on building upon the foundation, which often requires fine-tuning the approach to ensure ongoing compliance. This is especially true when dealing with multiple business units. 
  Trying to keep everyone on the same page can be a constant struggle, regardless of whether you operate as one organization with various departments, o
  
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• No, Apple won't make an iPad-Mac hybrid, Tim Cook says

  16-11-2015 17:44
  Apple CEO Tim Cook caused a minor kerfuffle last week while promoting the iPad Pro in an interview with a British newspaper when he asked, “Why would you buy a PC anymore? No really, why would you buy one?”
  The question baffled Mac users, and seemed to suggest that Apple might one day phase out the Mac—or combine it with the iPad to make a hybrid device similar to Microsoft’s new Surface Book. Cook clarified the meaning behind his question in a new interview with the Iri
  
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• Microsoft's Lumia 950 Windows 10 phone gets a Nov. 20 release date on AT&T

  16-11-2015 17:42
  Windows phone fans with AT&T service have just a few more days to wait for the Lumia 950.
  AT&T says it will launch the phone on November 20, with a total off-contract price of $600. Subscribers can divvy that up into 30 monthly payments of $19.97 (with an upgrade option at two years), 24 monthly payments of $24.96 (with upgrade at 18 months), or 12 payments of $29.95 (upgrade-eligible at one year). The price with a two-year contract is $150, though this raises the cost of serv
  
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• Supercharging your router with third-party Wi-Fi firmware is just fine, says FCC

  16-11-2015 16:42
  The Federal Communications Commission says it doesn’t want to stop you from installing third-party firmware such as DD-WRT and OpenWRT on your Wi-Fi router. It just wants to stop unofficial software from changing the radio frequency parameters and potentially cause harmful interference.
  Concerns about the FCC’s intentions for routers came out in October during the commission’s overhaul of its rules for evaluating and approving radio frequency devices. One document that came to
  
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• Ted Koppel: Apocalypse likely

  16-11-2015 16:40
  
  Ted Koppel, the legendary anchor of ABC TV’s “Nightline” from 1980-2005, doesn’t want to be accused of stoking national panic through a cyber doomsday scenario.
  “I didn’t traffic in hysteria then, and I’m not starting now,” he says in a promotional video for his new book, “Lights Out.”
  “But the Internet can be used as a weapon of mass destruction, and our electric power grids are a target – that’s a fact,”
  
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• Ted Koppel discusses the inevitable cyberattack on U.S. infrastructure

  16-11-2015 16:38
  
  Ted Koppel, anchor of ABC TV’s “Nightline” for 25 years, from 1980-2005, is the author of “Lights Out,” which argues that not only is the nation’s critical infrastructure at grave risk of a catastrophic cyber attack that could leave as much as a third of the nation without electricity for months or even a year, but that there is no government plan to respond to such an attack.
  [ ALSO ON CSO: Read our review of the book and if the industry agrees with Koppel ]
  
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• Trying to stay ahead of the bad guys

  16-11-2015 16:31
  
  The end of Daylight Saving Time in the Northern Hemisphere signals the lateness of another year, and that means it’s budget time again at my company. I’m looking to fund some new ideas about how to keep us safe in an increasingly dangerous online world.
  Now that I’ve been at my current job for a few years, I’ve had the opportunity to build a solid security infrastructure on my company’s network. My security information and event management (SIEM) system is running
  
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• Microsoft turns off the lights on Zune services

  16-11-2015 16:13
  As of today, Microsoft never has to mention Zune again. 
  On November 15, the company shut down all Zune-related services. That includes the Zune Music Pass subscription program, and the Zune marketplace for buying MP3s. Microsoft announced the termination date a couple months ago. 
  Anyone still subscribing to Zune Music Pass should be automatically switched to Microsoft’s new Groove Music service by now. Annual and three-month subscribers also had the option to cancel the servic
  
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• Intel's fastest chip ever will appear in supercomputers next year

  16-11-2015 16:00
  
  There's been a slight delay, but the latest version of Intel's fastest processor ever will finally reach supercomputers early next year.The Xeon Phi chip, code-named Knights Landing, offers an array of new technologies that collectively deliver performance breakthroughs. The chip is also a springboard for new memory, I/O and storage technologies destined to reach desktops and laptops in the coming years.Intel didn't provide details on the first supercomputers with Knights Landing. The U.S. Depar
  
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• Intel plugs 72-core supercomputing chip into workstation

  16-11-2015 16:00
  
  Intel wants to change the game in desktop computing with a workstation that packs its upcoming, 72-core supercomputing chip.
  Intel's workstation will be based on an upcoming Xeon Phi chip code-named Knights Landing, which is being touted as the company's most powerful chip to date.
  A limited number of workstations will ship in the first half of next year from Intel, which will also control initial distribution. As usage expands, hopefully PC makers and other partners will sign on to sell X
  
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• How to manage a multi-vendor cloud environment

  16-11-2015 15:44
  
  As companies become increasingly comfortable adopting cloud-based options, multi-vendor cloud environments could become the norm in many enterprises. In fact, 2016 may be the year of the blended cloud environment, according to Lynn LeBlanc, CEO and founder of HotLink. The blended environment—which could include both cloud and on-premises technology—presents challenges for those organizations who take the traditional siloed approach to IT service management, however.We talked to LeBla
  
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• Microsoft's Windows 10 phones won't get Android app ports anytime soon

  16-11-2015 15:42
  
  Microsoft’s audacious plan to bring apps from competing platforms to Windows 10 Mobile has hit a snag—at least for Android conversions. Microsoft's tool to port Android apps to Windows 10 Mobile, dubbed Project Astoria, is delayed. Some reports say the tool may be canceled altogether.
  “We’re committed to offering developers many options to bring their apps to the Windows Platform...The Astoria bridge is not ready yet,” Microsoft said in a statement to several news
  
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• The 10 mightiest supercomputers in the world

  16-11-2015 15:24
  
  Biggest, fastest, occupying the most racksImage by ThinkstockThe latest Top500 supercomputer rankings are out today, to coincide with the annual SC15 conference, which is being held this year in Austin, Texas. While there are plenty of names familiar to Top500 watchers in the new top 10, there are also some new faces. Or, there would be if supercomputers had faces. Have a look.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• Newer supercomputers favor energy efficiency over raw speed, Top500 rankings suggest

  16-11-2015 15:01
  
  Supercomputer spending is increasingly focusing on energy efficiency rather than raw performance, the latest edition of the Top500 list of the world's most powerful computers suggests.
  There's no change at the top, with China's 33.86 petaflop/s Tianhe-2 in the lead for the sixth consecutive time.
  In fact, there are only two changes to the top 10. Trinity, built by Cray for the U.S. Department of Energy's Los Alamos and Sandia national laboratories, jumped straight in at sixth place, while anoth
  
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• Cisco CEO not big on spin-ins

  16-11-2015 14:52
  
  Cisco’s emphasizing the establishment of small internal “startups” for innovation rather than forming, funding and acquiring spin-in companies to develop new products for key markets.
  CEO Chuck Robbins says Cisco is setting up small teams internally to “give them big hairy problems to solve” in areas the company prioritizes for product development and revenue growth. Such areas include data center, security, service provider routing, software programmability &ndash
  
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• Why event sponsorships give tech giants bang for their bucks

  16-11-2015 14:29
  
  Event sponsorships – especially events that aren’t tech-oriented – are one way a technology company can attract publicity, credibility, goodwill, media exposure, and, in the long run, increase profits. They can also attract new business partnerships, as well as potential development and, in some cases, long-range recruitment opportunities.That’s why Intel's recent decision to end its sponsorship of the Science Talent Search came as a surprise. Since 1998, the company has
  
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• Best VPN routers for small business

  16-11-2015 14:09
  
  Head-to-headWe looked at six VPN routers designed for small businesses, ranging from the popular Cisco brand to lesser-known names like DrayTek and UTT Technologies. We setup and evaluated each to determine how they compare in regards to price, features, and user-friendliness. If you’re look for an IPSec VPN, consider those that provide a way to simplify configuration, such as the Cisco, Linksys or Netgear units. If you’re looking for a wide variety of VPN options, consider D-Link. I
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: The 60 minute project manager

  16-11-2015 13:50
  
  What can I do in 60 minutes each day? Well, you can watch your favorite one hour crime drama – either CSI Cyber or Criminal Minds – and still have 18 minutes left over if you record it and skip through the commercials. You can order a pizza and pick it up or have it delivered. You can watch one quarter of a Kevin Costner epic flop movie like “The Postman.” Or, you can manage a project. Yes, I said manage a project.I'm not one for multitasking. I don't think men are really
  
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• IT certifications that paid off the most in 2015

  16-11-2015 13:34
  
  Certifications paying the most in 2015Image by ThinkstockThe pace of technology is ever-increasing. With security issues, cloud adoption, legacy tech, big data and more, disruption abounds. So it's no wonder when it comes to skills and certifications there is so much volatility, making it difficult for employers and employees alike to know what skills are most valuable. "If you look at volatility [in pay premiums], right now it's about 19 percent. In fact, it's averaging about 17 percent over th
  
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• Windows Update for Business lets IT admins defer damaging patches

  16-11-2015 13:24
  
  Microsoft last week gave businesses a way to delay potentially disruptive or even damaging Windows 10 security patches and bug fixes for up to four weeks.
  New options for controlling the timing of Windows 10 upgrades and updates arrived as part of Windows 10 version 1511, the upgrade that began rolling out Thursday.
  The settings are available to businesses and organizations running Windows 10 Pro, Windows 10 Enterprise and Windows 10 Education, and managing those PCs with the Windows Update for
  
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• For retailers, confusion reigns after EMV rollout

  16-11-2015 13:12
  
  Confused. That’s the best word to describe retailers more than a month after the October 1 deadline passed for businesses to become EMV-compliant – by installing new EMV-capable credit card readers and acquiring certifications from various payment networks, among other requirements. The resulting liability shift means business owners are now on the hook for any fraud problems that arise from credit card transactions in their stores if they don’t migrate to the technology. 
  
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• State-sponsored cyberspies inject victim profiling and tracking scripts in strategic websites

  16-11-2015 13:05
  Web analytics and tracking cookies play a vital role in online advertising, but they can also help attackers discover potential targets and their weaknesses, a new report shows.Security researchers from FireEye have discovered an attack campaign that has injected computer profiling and tracking scripts into over 100 websites visited by business executives, diplomats, government officials and academic researchers.The researchers believe the compromised websites attract visitors involved in intern
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How the Bass-O-Matic explains predictive analytics

  16-11-2015 12:34
  
  Perhaps the most natural way to explain predictive analytics is through the prism of Dan Aykroyd’s 1976 SNL skit about the Bass-O-Matic.Now, before my well-intentioned friends in the legal community rush to accuse me of an abject, almost senseless bout of plagiarism, allow me to say: perhaps others have observed these connections as well. It certainly wouldn’t surprise me.My point is simply: of late, these formative truths seem to have fallen by the wayside in the national conversati
  
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• Facebook turned your lock screen into the new Twitter

  16-11-2015 12:15
  
  Facebook last week launched a news app called Notify. I know. Boring, right? Another news app. But there is a reason behind Facebook’s seemingly innocuous decision.
  At first glance, Notify is pretty standard. Notify launched with 70 publisher partners covering a wide variety of interests, and you can choose which publications to get notifications for.
  What's different about Notify is that its medium is the iOS lock screen. (The app is for U.S. iOS users only for now.) When you tap on the
  
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• As IT job market heats up, tech stress levels drop

  16-11-2015 12:03
  
  The shortage of skilled IT workers may be troublesome to hiring managers, but according to a study by TEKsystems, it has resulted in at least one positive side effect for the current IT workforce: lower stress.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here(Insider Story)
  
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• The top 3D printers according to Make magazine

  16-11-2015 12:00
  
  Make magazine has released its 2015 3D buyer's guide ranking of 18 3D printers, and for the first time CNC milling machines.
  The third annual guide called out top-performing 3D printers, including LulzBot's Taz 5, SeeMeCNC's Rostock Max, PrintrBot Play, Ultimaker 2 Extended, as well as CNC (Computer Numerical Control) mills such as the ShopBot Desktop and the CrawlBot.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• Happy birthday USB: The standard turns 20, and proud inventor Ajay Bhatt tells all

  16-11-2015 12:00
  
  Intel’s calling November 15, 1995, the 20th birthday of USB. But it’s not enough to have a birthday anymore; you need an origin story, too. And for USB, one of most popular technology standards of the PC era, that story is a humble one: printer problems at home. That’s what drove Intel Fellow Ajay Bhatt’s multi-year obsession to make the Universal Serial Bus a reality.  Intel USB was born when Intel’s Ajay Bhatt had printer problems.To read this article in full
  
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• Cool Yule Tools for work

  16-11-2015 12:00
  
  Editor's Note: For the past 16 years, Network World has presented our picks of the geekiest, techiest or just plain coolest gadgets for holiday gift giving purposes. We’ve witnessed the birth of the smartphone, the dominance of the tablet and the shrinking size of the television (at least the depth, the width and height keep getting better). We’ve seen robots, big and small, and every conceivable charger, phone case, travel widget, computer, printer and USB doohickey imaginable.
  So
  
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• 9 research projects that could transform the enterprise

  16-11-2015 12:00
  
  If you take a look at the list of trending repositories on GitHub, you’ll see amazing code from programmers who live around the world and efforts for firms big and small. But one thing you don’t often see is work that comes from the university labs. It’s rare for the next big thing to escape from an academic computer science department and capture the attention of the world.That’s not a knock on university research. But competing with open source projects that enjoy broad
  
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• IBM teams with Xilinx to take on Intel with Power chips

  16-11-2015 07:05
  
  IBM has partnered with chip maker Xilinx to expand the use of IBM Power processors in servers, taking on Intel for a bigger slice of the data center market.It's one of several announcements IBM is making Monday around its Open Power effort, which it launched last year to breath new life into Power by licensing the design for use by other companies.Penguin Computing and Italy's E4 Computer Engineering are each building high-performance computers based on Power chips. And IBM said it worked with N
  
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• Facebook to widen use of Safety Check tool beyond Paris attacks

  16-11-2015 06:10
  Facebook's Safety Check tool to help users alert friends about their safety was activated for the first time after a terror attack in Paris on Friday, with a large number of users reporting they had benefited from it.But that move drew widespread criticism online that the company had been partial, as it had not activated the feature in other locations recently hit in terror attacks, notably the twin attacks in Beirut on Thursday.The social networking company was also criticized for releasing a p
  
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