Is anyone really using Windows 8′s preview?
Although millions have downloaded Microsoft's Windows 8 developer preview, relatively few are actually using it, Web measurements show.
During November, Windows 8 powered 0.03% of the computers -- or three out of every 10,000 -- that connected to the Internet, according to data from California-based Net Applications.
That's a small increase from the 0.02% Windows 8 garnered in October, the first full month after Microsoft released a developer preview of the still-under-construction OS to the public.
But Windows 8's current numbers pale in comparison to Windows 7's very early returns three years ago. Read more...
One year in federal prison for X-Men Origins pirate
Unfortunately it’s the norm today that most movies will be uploaded to file sharing networks either before or shortly after their official release. For some reason the movie industry has readily targeted downloaders rather than trying to weed out who stole the movie in the first place. But for once, the right person looks to have been prosecuted–at least for the digital piracy.
In 2009, a copy of X-Men Origins: Wolverine found its way on to Megaupload a month before it was due to appear in movie theaters. The so-called “workprint” copy was unfinished, so unfinished in fact, anyone viewing this copy saw green screens and wires attached to actors used to help with the more acrobatic movements during action scenes.
Hugh Jackman even commented on the leak, describing it as like getting a “Ferrari without a paint job.” Read more...
Oracle gooses Studio compilers for Solaris, Linux
Having cranking Solaris Unix up to 11, software giant Oracle has now revved up a new companion set of compilers that work with the new operating system as well as the current Oracle Linux clone of Red Hat's Enterprise Linux.
The Solaris Studio 12.3 C, C++, and Fortran compilers might bear the Solaris brand and they may have their heritage on the many different platforms that Forte Software originally supported – a company that Sun Microsystems acquired for $540m back in August 1999 – but the Solaris Studio set spans Sparc T and M series processors as well as earlier Sparc iron running Solaris 10 or 11, and various x86 platforms running Solaris 10 or 11, Oracle Enterprise Linux 5 and 6, and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 and 6.
The Studio integrated development environment has two pieces: a code compiler suite and a code analysis suite. Read more...
Panasonic, Sony, Samsung, others launch HD content security initiative
Panasonic, Sony, Toshiba, Samsung, and SanDisk Monday announced plans to jointly develop better security for memory cards, embedded memory and other flash storage devices.
The joint effort aims to create ways to protect high-definition content that runs across multiple platforms, including smartphones, tablets and Blu-ray players.
The companies said the so-called "Next Generation Secure Memory Initiative" will include the development of a unique ID technology for flash memory and copy protection based on public key infrastructure.
The companies expect to begin licensing and promoting "high-definition-capable security" for SD Cards and embedded memory for use in advanced consumer applications such as tablets and smartphones by early next year. Read more...
Google planning its own Nexus tablet
You didn't really think Google was going to let Amazon hog all the Android tablet glory, did you? In an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sea today, Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt said that the company planned to sell a tablet "in the next six months" that would be "of the highest quality." Schmidt did not provide any further details of what would set the tablet apart from other Android tablets such as the Motorola Xoom and the Samsung Galaxy Tab.
Google has experience releasing its own devices through its Nexus-branded series of smartphones. The latest such smartphone, Samsung's Galaxy Nexus, was the first to feature the Android 4.0 operating system, nicknamed "Ice Cream Sandwich." The Galaxy Nexus also features a 4.65-inch HD display screen with 720p resolution, a 5MP camera that can shoot video at 1080p, a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, and 1GB of RAM. Read more...
IBM predicts 5 tech changes in 5 years
Every year, IBM picks five technologies that it predicts are going to change our lives in the next five years. This year's crop of life changers includes efficient capture of renewable energy, proliferation of biometric identification to authenticate your identity, control of machines with your mind, elimination of the digital divide, and the end of spam.
Energy is everywhere --w here we walk, where our computers produce heat, where water travels through the pipes in our homes -- and in the next five years, we'll be more efficient at capturing that energy for personal use, IBM explained. "Advances in renewable energy technology will allow individuals to collect this kinetic energy, which now goes to waste, and use it to help power our homes, workplaces and cities," it predicted. Read more...
House readies green card bill for tech
There is a big push to get Congress to allow advanced degree graduates in science, technology, engineering and math to automatically get green cards.
The clearest evidence is from U.S. Rep. Tim Griffin, (R-Ark.), who says he is working on his own green card bill with the help of Rep. Lamar Smith, who heads the House Judiciary Committee. Smith is the gatekeeper of immigration issuesin the House.
Smith is sending out immigration reform bills piecemeal. He previously worked with Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) to get legislation approved that would eliminate the per-country caps on the green card.
The Chaffetz bill, once it cleared the Judiciary Committee, won overwhelming House approval, but stalled in the Senate when U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley put a hold on it. Read more...
FAQ: Microsoft’s new IE auto-upgrade scheme explained
Last week Microsoft announced it is changing how Internet Explorer upgrades on Windows users' PCs in 2012. Taking users out of the equation, Microsoft said, will make the Web, and them, safer.
The move is a major departure from past practice, which required users to explicitly approve IE upgrades.
While experts have applauded the change, users aren't so sure: Most of the comments appended to Computerworld's story of last week were negative. Maybe they're not sure if it affects them, or when it will reach their PCs.
Or they just don't like Microsoft monkeying with their machines.
We've assembled some of the most pressing questions -- and answers, naturally -- about IE's auto-upgrade to help readers sort it out for themselves. Read more...
Senators urge FTC to investigate Google
Two U.S. senators on Monday urged the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to investigate Google for possible antitrust violations.
In June, Google acknowledged that the FTC had launched a review of its business, but the FTC has not offered specifics about what aspects of Google's business it is examining.
Senator Herb Kohl, a Wisconsin Democrat, and Senator Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, have asked the FTC to look at the alleged practice at Google of listing its own websites and products first in Web searches. "While we take no position on the ultimate legality of Google's practices under the antitrust laws and the FTC Act, we believe these concerns warrant a thorough investigation by the FTC," they wrote in a letter to the agency. Read more...
IT workers’ top 4 dream employers
Companies often talk about their "dream" IT job candidate -- the type of worker they'd most like to have on their staffs. But what about the IT workers themselves -- what type of company are they most interested in?
Computerworld asked 431 IT workers where they dream of working someday. Here are the four companies that came out on top, along with snapshots of what type of environment IT workers will find themselves in if one of their wishes does come true and they do end up working at one of these "dream" employers:
1. Google
Don't let the lava lamps, free gourmet lunches, massage chairs and foosball tables fool you -- the fast-paced, unstructured work environment at Google is anything but casual. Google expects you to come to work with energy, passion, creativity and the willingness to put ideas into practice at what it calls "dizzying speed."
"Googlers" need to enjoy stretching themselves beyond their comfort zones -- not even "great" is good enough, according to the company. No wonder software engineers are offered "20% time" within their regular work schedules to explore their passions. Employees work on small, focused teams, with a diversity of cube mates, including former neurosurgeons, alligator wrestlers and Marines. Read more...