IT Executive news

• Department of Labor sues Google over wage data

  04-01-2017 23:25
  The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a lawsuit against Google, with the company's ability to win government contracts at risk.The agency is seeking what it calls "routine" information about wages and the company's equal opportunity program. The agency filed a lawsuit with its Office of Administrative Law Judges to gain access to the information, it announced Wednesday.Google, as a federal contractor, is required to provide the data as part of a compliance check by the agency's Office of F
  
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• 33% off Powerbeats3 Wireless In-Ear Headphones - Deal Alert

  04-01-2017 23:05
  
  Powerbeats3 packs up to 12 hours of battery life in a single charge. And with Fast Fuel technology, a 5-minute charge gives you 1 hour of playback. Sweat and water resistance provides trusted durability, and dual-driver acoustics deliver dynamic sound to power your workout. These highly rated wireless earphones typically list for $199.99, but with this deal you save $50. The discount will be magically applied when you add it to your cart. Get them for $149.99 on Amazon.To read this article
  
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• BMW, Intel and Mobleye to unleash 40 self-driving cars on U.S. roads

  04-01-2017 22:57
  
  BMW Group, Intel and computer vision maker Mobileye today announced they will collaborate to create a fleet of about 40 autonomous BMW vehicles that will hit U.S. and European roads by the second half of 2017.
  The pilot project is aimed at demonstrating advances the three companies have made in technology that enables fully self-driving vehicles.
  The BMW 7 Series will be used as the initial platform for Intel processor and Mobileye computer vision technology during the global trials.
  Mobileye,
  
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• Asus's super-thin ZenBook 3 Deluxe packs in Kaby Lake, Thunderbolt 3

  04-01-2017 22:47
  
  Asus' Zenbook 3 Deluxe won't get as much love as the company's Zenfone AR smartphone with Google Tango, but it's a stunningly thin laptop with some great features.The 14-inch laptop, introduced at CES, fits into a 13.3-inch frame thanks to a smaller bezel surrounding the screen. Cutting the borders around the screen is a growing trend in laptops.The Zenbook 3 Deluxe is priced at US $1,699 and will ship in May. It is not to be confused with Zenfone 3 Deluxe, an Asus smartphone.The laptop is just
  
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• Casio's new outdoor smartwatch is built for Android Wear 2.0

  04-01-2017 22:25
  
  It won’t be here for a few months, but we finally know what the first smartwatch announced as shipping with Android Wear 2.0 will look like. While Google is still tweaking the software for a presumed spring release, Casio has taken the wraps off its WSD-F10 successor, the aptly named WSD-F20, which will ship with the new OS.
  With a similar rugged aesthetic to its predecessor, Casio’s new wearable builds on the smart outdoor concept it introduced with the WSD-F10, with a similar meta
  
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• AT&T's next 5G trial will shoot DirecTV Now to users' homes

  04-01-2017 22:23
  
  5G conjures up visions of super-fast smartphone service, but it could give consumers and enterprises a lot more. In the next few months, some residents of Austin, Texas, will get to watch DirecTV Now at home using a form of the still-emerging wireless technology.AT&T plans to start a trial of that service in the first half of this year. Instead of the cutting-edge mobile networks that are expected to beam multi-gigabit service to moving phones, it will use a fixed wireless network built
  
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• BrandPost: Every Company Must Behave Like a Software Company — Including Yours

  04-01-2017 21:59
  
  Originally posted on the Puppet blog, and republished here with Puppet's permission.In technology, we get used to the idea that change is coming at us all the time, faster and faster. Or at least, we should get used to that idea, and even more important, we should prepare ourselves, our teams and our entire organizations for that rapid pace of change.
  That's why we created The CIO's Guide to DevOps: to help executives responsible for IT navigate the recent wave of change, dubbed digital transfor
  
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• DDoS-for-hire services thrive despite closure of major marketplace

  04-01-2017 21:58
  The closure of a major online marketplace for paid distributed denial-of-service attacks appears to have done little to slow down the illegal activity.In late October, HackForums.net shut down its "Server Stress Testing" section, amid concerns that hackers were peddling DDoS-for-hire services through the site for as little as US$10 a month.According to security experts, the section was the largest open marketplace for paid DDoS attacks -- a notorious hacking technique that can disrupt
  
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• Man vs. A.I. machine in Texas Hold'em matchup

  04-01-2017 21:54
  
  Four of the world's best professional poker players are about to take on an artificial intelligence system in what A.I. developers are calling an "epic rematch" to find out if machines can outplay humans.
  "Since the earliest days of A.I. research, beating top human players has been a powerful measure of progress in the field," said Tuomas Sandholm, professor of computer science at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) in Pittsburgh. "That was achieved with chess in 1997, with Jeopardy! in 2009 and w
  
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• Windows 10 growth ebbs as 2016 ends

  04-01-2017 21:42
  
  Windows 10's global growth slowed in December, but the operating system ended 2016 on more than a quarter of the world's Windows personal computers.
  But in the U.S. Windows 10 continued to gain ground at a consistent clip. By year's end, it powered more than a third of all Windows PCs there.
  According to analytics vendor Net Applications, Windows 10 gained six-tenths of a percentage point of user share last month, ending on 24.4% of all personal computers. However, Windows 10 ran 26.6% of all W
  
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• Enterprises divided on IoT skills shortage, says 451 Research report

  04-01-2017 21:35
  
  A boom in data retention as a result of enterprises embracing the Internet of Things (IoT) has led to enterprises picking public cloud providers to deal with the surge in storage demands. But at the same time, the relatively new demands of the technology have created a skills gap, according to a report from 451 Research.
  451 Research surveyed almost 1,000 enterprise buyers globally and found that the vast majority -- at 71 percent -- are gathering data from IoT platforms. Most businesses expect
  
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• BrandPost: Your New IT Hard Target: Printer Security

  04-01-2017 21:23
  
  Printers being hacked is nothing new. It’s even hit the headlines a few times with one being used to store pirated files, then another being programmed to display a paperclip on every page it printed. It seemed harmless at first. But then Columbia University discovered you could actually cause a printer’s fuser to continually heat up, potentially burning up more than your maintenance budget.The real page turner happened when it was revealed that someone outside your organization coul
  
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• Toshiba expands recall of laptop battery packs by 83,000 due to burn/fire risk

  04-01-2017 21:18
  
  The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued an alert that Toshiba on Wednesday has greatly expanded its recall of laptop computer battery packs due to burn and fire hazards.
  More specifically, these are Panasonic lithium-ion battery packs that have been found susceptible to overheating in 41 models of the Toshiba Satellite laptop, which runs Windows. The firm has received five reports of the battery pack overheating and melting, including one additional report since the first re
  
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• BrandPost: The World's Most Secure Printers

  04-01-2017 21:14
  
  If you’re keeping up with IT, you may have heard that HP claims they offer the most secure printers in the world. Sounds great, right? The world’s most secure printer would be a huge asset, especially as devices like printers are increasingly targeted by cybercriminals. But what are they offering to back up this claim?For one, HP has integrated their self-healing BIOS system into their lineup of print devices with HP SureStart technology. At every boot cycle, HP SureStart checks the
  
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• OWC’s DEC expansion module makes the MacBook Pro thicker but a lot more useful

  04-01-2017 21:01
  
  Apple loves to make its laptops as thin as humanly possible, but would you carry a thicker MacBook Pro if it meant freeing yourself from dongles? At CES, OWC unveiled a prototype of the OWC DEC, an expansion module for the new MacBook Pro that provides extra connectivity without relying on an assortment of adapters.
  The OWC DEC takes a unique approach to provide its functionality by using a module that sits flush with the bottom of the laptop, making the new MacBook Pro thicker, about as thick
  
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• BrandPost: Adobe Is Changing the Software Licensing Game

  04-01-2017 20:49
  
  In June 2013, Adobe reinvented itself by creating a new licensing model, the Value Incentive Program (VIP), which is a brand new way for Adobe to update its industry-leading lineup of software. This change has come as something of a system shock, as it has completely done away with the old model of upgrading software. But as I’ll show you, there are three big advantages to the new VIP model.Obtain crucial updates to your most important programs—Even with major software updates r
  
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• 56% off 299-Piece All-Purpose First Aid Kit - Deal Alert

  04-01-2017 20:25
  
  This full-fledged, easy-to-tote first aid softpack is designed to save time and frustration in the midst of an emergency. It's compact and portable, but contains 299 physician-recommended supplies.  Among the items neatly organized inside the zippered kit is a first aid guide, vinyl gloves, bandages, cold compress, gauze pads, trauma pad, cotton-tipped applicators, first aid tape roll, antiseptics and all three common OTC pain medications. The kit is currently a #1 best seller on Amazo
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: Top 5 privacy initiatives for your team in 2017

  04-01-2017 20:15
  
  A privacy office always seems to be one of those departments that has a full, if not overflowing, plate. Whether staffed by one person or 30, there is always something else that needs to be done. With continuous changes to external requirements, be they from regulators or lawmakers or public opinion, and evolving business projects, privacy teams must anticipate and prepare for the future.2016 was a year of realignment for privacy. To name just a few of the events, data breaches continued (both l
  
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• We're Hiring a Director of Global MSP Operations

  04-01-2017 20:08
  
  Looking for a change in the New Year? Join a company on the move! Linium is offering an exciting opportunity within our Managed Service Provider (MSP) division. We're looking for the right individual to serve as our Director of Global MSP Operations.
  
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• PC shipments predicted to return to growth in 2018 after six-year skid

  04-01-2017 19:50
  
  Apple CEO Tim Cook declared the PC dead in a famous 2015 interview. Apparently, he's wrong, and the PC market will live another day.Gartner is projecting annual PC shipments to return to growth in 2018, ending a historic skid that started in 2012, the year Microsoft released Windows 8.The growth in 2018 will be minor. Gartner is projecting shipments of laptops, hybrids, and desktops to be around 272 million in 2018, growing from 266 million in 2017. PC shipments in 2016 were 268 million, accordi
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How design thinking can enhance IT productivity

  04-01-2017 19:34
  
  I had the pleasure of speaking with Deb Biggar, the founder and managing director of Boston Human Factors Inc. We discussed how “design thinking” can be used to enhance IT productivity. As background, design thinking is a widely used technique/concept to enhance existing processes, define or enhance new products, drive innovation of all types and more.From an IT perspective, Biggar, an expert in user experience design, said that “design thinking opens people’s minds
  
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• LG unveils smart home robots, Wi-Fi appliances, and ultra-thin TV

  04-01-2017 19:31
  
  LG kicked off the second press day of the Consumer Electronics Show on Wednesday with a 45-minute keynote featuring robots, consumer appliances, and more products. Here are the biggest announcements that the company made:AI Comes to the home
  One of the first announcements LG made Wednesday was that all of its appliances going forward will be Wi-Fi enabled. The aim is to connect them to the company’s DeepThinq artificial intelligence features.The connection means that the appliances will be
  
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• LG's Hub Robot is like a mobile Amazon Echo

  04-01-2017 19:20
  
  LG’s vision of the future is filled with intelligent robots that help you manage your life more efficiently. Hate mowing the lawn? Get a robot. Need a personal assistant? Get a robot. This vision sounds expensive, but LG’s new lineup of robots, unveiled on Wednesday, is the stuff we come to CES to see.
  First there’s the Hub Robot, which also comes in mini models that you can deploy throughout your house. The main bot is supposed to be stationed somewhere your family regularly
  
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• AWS touts new enterprise workload magnet

  04-01-2017 18:16
  
  Amazon Web Services recently announced a new Managed Services product for its public cloud that aims to ease migration of legacy enterprise applications to that cloud.
  AWS Managed Services is a series of infrastructure operations management tools meant to provide ongoing management, support, monitoring and security of an AWS cloud environment. It’s delivered jointly by AWS employees and certified AWS partners and is meant to serve AWS’s largest clients who are planning to migrate wo
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: iBooks: Are the enhanced Game of Thrones books worth buying?

  04-01-2017 18:06
  
  Game of Thrones has proven to be one of the most popular book series ever written. It has also become a huge ratings draw on TV via the HBO series. Millions of people love venturing into the dangerous world of Westeros to encounter dragons, vicious battles for power, and many unexpected twists and turns.Apple recently welcomed enhanced versions of the Game of Thrones books into the iBooks store. These books differ from previous releases by including interactive maps, author notes, illustrations,
  
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• HTTPS scanning in Kaspersky antivirus exposed users to MITM attacks

  04-01-2017 18:01
  
  Security vendor Kaspersky Lab has updated its antivirus products to fix an issue that exposed users to traffic interception attacks.The problem was found by Google vulnerability researcher Tavis Ormandy in the SSL/TLS traffic inspection feature that Kaspersky Anti-Virus uses to detect potential threats hidden inside encrypted connections.Like other endpoint security products, Kaspersky Anti-Virus installs a self-signed root CA certificate on computers and uses it to issue "leaf," or interception
  
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• TCL targets Apple, Samsung with new BlackBerry handset

  04-01-2017 17:15
  
  TCL Communication has big plans for BlackBerry, even though it's a brand that's been written off by many.The China-based electronics company recently acquired rights to design, manufacture and sell smartphones under the BlackBerry name with BlackBerry's security and service software installed. The deal puts TCL in the driver's seat on hardware and the first phone under the new deal was previewed on Wednesday.While still in the final stages of development, the new handset sports the physical
  
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• Intel's Go supercomputer for cars points to a PC-like horsepower race

  04-01-2017 15:45
  
  There's a race to put more computing power in self-driving cars, and it's shaping up to be eerily similar to an earlier battle between Intel and AMD to crank up PC horsepower.Intel at CES announced the powerful Go computer with up to 28 Xeon chips so self-driving cars can cruise the streets safely. Beyond Xeon, Go will also be available with either next-generation Atom chips or 5G connectivity.The first 40 self-driving BMW cars based on the Go will hit the streets in tests this year.Autonomous c
  
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• Intel puts mobile chip failures in its past with first speedy 5G modem

  04-01-2017 15:45
  
  Intel has a disastrous history with smartphones. It fumbled a chance to be in Apple's first iPhone, and then quit making its Atom smartphone chip to focus on modems.
  But the company is now set to ship a groundbreaking modem that will deliver data transfer rates many times faster than most wired internet connections.
  The chipmaker will start shipping its first 5G modem for testing in the second half this year. Beyond mobile devices, the modem could also be used in autonomous cars, servers, base
  
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• Should Apple hobble FaceTime to battle distracted driving?

  04-01-2017 15:38
  
  Does Apple bear a measure of responsibility for the death of five-year-old Moriah Modisette? Her family think so.
  Moriah was riding in the family car near Dallas, Texas, when it was allegedly rear-ended by a man who admitted that he was distracted by using the iPhone's FaceTime video-calling app. The child was airlifted to a hospital but died that night — Christmas Eve of 2014.
  In a lawsuit filed in Santa Clara Superior Court late last month, the family charged that Apple knew FaceTi
  
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• 6 things retail CIOs need to keep in mind in 2017

  04-01-2017 15:27
  
  According to Forrester, U.S. online holiday sales will total more than $100 billion in 2016, a growth of 13 percent since last year. This will result in a major milestone: Shoppers will spend an equal amount online vs. in stores, predicts the 2016 Deloitte holiday shopping survey. As retailers seek to compete in this fast-moving, ever-evolving digital space, as well as use technology to take brick-and-mortar to the next level on the shelves, throughout the supply chain and at the point of sale,
  
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• Hottest products from CES 2017

  04-01-2017 15:00
  
  Get your Gadget On!Image by IDG / Network WorldIt's time once again for the International CES, the world's largest consumer electronics trade show. Thousands of people will flock to Las Vegas to see the latest gizmos, gadgets, TVs, computers, smartphones, robots and other devices meant to make our lives easier. Here's a sneak peek at some of the products on display at the show.To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How small data became bigger than big data

  04-01-2017 14:21
  
  Anyone in the tech world knows that there’s currently a lot of fuss surrounding big data, I hate this word. Not only because I have written about it so much but because it isn’t the right terminology. “Big” Nah, more like “infinite” or “raw.”Despite the fact that it should be called something else, the importance of collecting it, analyzing it, and the application of your newly acquired big data knowledge is all conceived as tools. We do this to ma
  
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• What marketing pros need to know about live video in 2017

  04-01-2017 14:00
  
  Fake news on Facebook. Trump's Twitter tantrums. Snapchat Spectacles. Social media delivered plenty of surprises in 2016. For digital advertisers and marketers who've been paying attention, however, the biggest social media trend expected in 2017 shouldn't be surprising at all: live video.Livestreamed video took off on social in 2016, and many believe 2017 will be the year it explodes. Prerecorded video will still have its place, of course, but brands will increasingly use real-time video to eng
  
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• Seagate works with DJI to create new type of storage for drones

  04-01-2017 14:00
  
  Drones can generate a lot of data when in flight and, especially when collecting video, need a lot of on-board storage.
  Seagate estimates a 25-minute flight could generate 120GB of data, and they company wants to create new type storage for drones to capture and protect the data.
  The company is working with DJI Robotics on the new storage, and the partners hope to release the first joint product later this year.
  Seagate declined to comment on what type of storage would be used in dron
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: How to choose a marketable (and searchable) domain name

  04-01-2017 14:00
  
  Choosing a domain name for your company, a marketing campaign or a specific product isn’t always an easy process. There’s a lot to consider and you have to make sure you’re taking every important aspect into account. Ultimately, you want to end up with a domain name that’s marketable and SEO-friendly.Why do domain names matter?Does a domain name really matter? This is a question that gets thrown around a lot. Despite all the tiptoeing around the subject, the answer is ac
  
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• Will the cloud be a safe haven for data in 2017?

  04-01-2017 12:43
  
  It used to be that security concerns were the biggest impediments to public cloud adoption. But, in 2017, that will no longer be the case.
  Tim Prendergast, CEO at Evident.io, believes it is widely accepted that security in public cloud is strong, shifting the top concern to compliance. Organizations moving to the cloud need to be able to demonstrate that they are doing things in a secure and compliant manner.
  “So, whether it is PCI, HIPAA, NIST-800 53 or internal compliance standards
  
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• IDG Contributor Network: 5 ways to look younger on your resume -- without hiding your age!

  04-01-2017 12:30
  
  I turned 65 this year. Sounds like a milestone, right?Actually I was feeling about the same as I did at age 25 — OK, maybe a little slower and weaker — until, out of nowhere, the government sent me a Medicare card. The sight of that card shocked me into "old age" for a couple of hours. Many job seekers — long before they reach Medicare age — feel a similar electric shock when they update their résumés. Often they obsess about potential age bias or
  
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• D-Link shows off three new home security cameras in its Connected Home series

  04-01-2017 12:15
  
  In addition to its new Wi-Fi router and range extenders, D-Link is showing off a trio of new wireless home security cameras at CES this year: two indoor models and an outdoor camera that was previously unveiled at the IFA tradeshow in Berlin last September.
  We’ve seen a barrage of super-inexpensive security cameras offered by lesser-known Chinese manufacturers such as Reolink and Ezviz, and it looks like D-Link intends to go head-to-head with those products with its DCS-8000LH. This 720p
  
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• FTC sets $25,000 prize for automatic IoT patching

  04-01-2017 12:00
  
  The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is scheduled to announce Wednesday a "prize competition" for a tool that can be used against security vulnerabilities in internet of things systems.
  The prize pot is up to $25,000, with $3,000 available for each honorable mention. The winners will be announced in July. The announcement is scheduled to be published Wednesday in the Federal Register.
  The tool, at a minimum, will "help protect consumers from security vulnerabilities caused by out-of-date software,
  
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• Developers pick up new Git code-hosting option

  04-01-2017 12:00
  
  Developers are gaining another option for Git code-hosting with Gitea, a lightweight, self-hosted platform.
  Offered as open source under an MIT license, Gitea aims to be the easiest, fastest, and most painless way of setting up a self-hosted Git service, the project's GitHub repo states. A community-managed fork of Gogs, for hosting a Git service, Gitea was written in Go and can be compiled for Windows, Linux, and MacOS. It will run on Intel, AMD, PowerPC, and ARM processors.To read this articl
  
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• All about PowerShell providers and modules

  04-01-2017 12:00
  
  I think it's time to talk in depth about some of the most important features of PowerShell: Providers and modules. (Snap-ins have also been important, but they are being gradually phased out.) These are really the core of the universe when it comes to all of the commands available for use within PowerShell, so I want to teach you what they are, how they work and how to use them in your daily activities. Let's dive in!Introducing modules and snap-insTo read this article in full or to leave a com
  
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• 3 tips for tracking employee productivity

  04-01-2017 10:22
  
  Productivity trackers in the workplace are another result of big data. Employers can gain insights into how employees are using their time and offer ways to objectively evaluate performance. However, productivity tracking brings up questions of employee privacy, what metrics to track and how much employers should monitor.
  Alice Chin, founder and CEO of Your Other Half, a human resources and operations outsourcing firm that helps businesses fine tune productivity, says there are certainly benefit
  
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• Logitech's new G533 headset packs performance into a more office-friendly design

  04-01-2017 09:01
  
  The newly announced G533 might be Logitech’s most attractive headset yet. And yes, I mean that both in terms of aesthetics and performance. Not only is this thing packed with must-have features, but it’s damned nice to look at.
  If you were a fan of previous designs, don’t worry. Everyone will still know this one’s made by Logitech when they glance at it. The coffin-shaped earcups give it away. But while the G633 and G933 resembled a crazy cyberpunk scorpion (or something
  
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• Car makers team on platform for smartphone-vehicle interaction

  04-01-2017 08:43
  
  Car makers Ford and Toyota have announced the SmartDeviceLink Consortium, a nonprofit to manage open source software for the interface of Android and iOS smartphone apps with their vehicle infotainment systems.Mazda Motor, PSA Group, Fuji Heavy Industries and Suzuki Motor are the first automaker members of the consortium.Elektrobit, Luxoft, and Xevo have joined as the first supplier members, while Harman, Panasonic, Pioneer and QNX have signed letters of intent to join, according to an announcem
  
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• Uncertainty clouds debate on Russia's suspected role in election hacks

  04-01-2017 05:07
  
  How do you prove Russia meddled with the presidential election?That's a question the U.S. government is facing, but may never fully answer, at least not publicly. Last week, the U.S. punished Russia, claiming the country's cyberspies hacked Democratic groups and figures during the election season.However, missing from last week’s announcement was any new evidence -- or a smoking gun -- proving the Kremlin’s involvement. This isn’t sitting well with everyone in the security
  
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• Chrysler unveils a high-tech car for millennials

  04-01-2017 04:16
  
  Chrysler is betting millennials will want to be as connected in their cars as they are at home with a new concept car that mixes high-tech gadgetry with a head-turning design.
  The Portal concept was unveiled on Tuesday at CES in Las Vegas as Chrysler's proposal to the millennial generation and is designed to be a comfortable "third space" for a generation that is just as much at home in a coffee shop as they are at home or work. Chrysler, of course, believes the car should play a similar r
  
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• 5 things you need to know about the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835

  04-01-2017 02:03
  
  After an accidental leak earlier in the day, Qualcomm just announced the details of its next high-end System-on-Chip (SoC), the Snapdragon 835. It’s a big deal: Most of the hottest phones that make headlines run on Qualcomm’s chips, and this is the one that we’re likely to see in the U.S. variant of the Galaxy S8 as well as the 2017 flagships from LG, HTC, Moto, and maybe even the next Pixel phone.
  The list of features is mind-numbingly long, but you don’t need to know a
  
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• ZigBee's Dotdot language is the latest bid for IoT harmony

  04-01-2017 01:24
  
  As consumers watch another wave of home IoT devices emerge from CES this week, they’ll still be waiting for one technology that can make all those products work together.
  The ZigBee Alliance, a group of more than 400 companies that make things with the ZigBee wireless protocol, made a bid to provide that unifying technology right before the annual consumer electronics gathering kicks off.
  On Tuesday, ZigBee announced Dotdot, which it calls a universal language for IoT. Even though ZigBee
  
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