Would you still purchase the Galaxy S III for Verizon if it loses the quad-core processor? Well, you might start thinking about it now if the handset featured in a benchmark turns out to be Big Red’s version of the Samsung Galaxy S III.

An intriguing Verizon-bound handset recently surfaced in a Nenmark benchmark. The smartphone features the model number SCH-I535, which previous rumors have claimed to be a variant of Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S III for Verizon Wireless. Ho

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Thanks to ongoing advances in multi-seat Linux development, manufacturer Plugable was able to base its machines on Fedora, rather than proprietary software, though it also works with Windows Multipoint Server. By doing away with licensing costs, Plugable founder Bernie Thompson says the company can ensure an attractive price. The Kickstarter effort is in place to help the company realize “economies of scale” necessary to [...]]]> A recently launched Kickstarter-funded project aims to bring $50 thin clients to schools and small businesses, allowing them to turn almost any computer into a multi-user hub.

Thanks to ongoing advances in multi-seat Linux development, manufacturer Plugable was able to base its machines on Fedora, rather than proprietary software, though it also works with Windows Multipoint Server. By doing away with licensing costs, Plugable founder Bernie Thompson says the company can ensure an attractive price. The Kickstarter effort is in place to help the company realize “economies of scale” necessary to drive the cost down.

“Every other solution out there has a software license cost per seat.

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Nothing seems to be going right for Research In Motion at the moment. This week they got the tech world talking when they declared they would be focusing on business phones rather than trying to take on Apple at their own game. But as soon as the tech world had begun to digest this apparent change in direction RIM CEO did a bit of a u-turn and declared his comments were taken out of context.

RIM MD Patrick Spence set the record straight: “Whilst we announced plans to re-focus our efforts [...]]]>

Nothing seems to be going right for Research In Motion at the moment. This week they got the tech world talking when they declared they would be focusing on business phones rather than trying to take on Apple at their own game. But as soon as the tech world had begun to digest this apparent change in direction RIM CEO did a bit of a u-turn and declared his comments were taken out of context.

RIM MD Patrick Spence set the record straight: “Whilst we announced plans to re-focus our efforts on our core strengths, and on our enterprise customer base, we were very explicit that we will continue to build on our strengths to go after targeted consumer segments.”

With the launch of their new BB10 operating system soon, RIM is hoping to reignite some of that magic that saw them scale the world of mobile phones and become the number 1 handset maker. Fro

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In addition to playing through a country’s top [...]]]> What a great little idea, even if the actual sources are somewhat disguised – TopMusicPro spins you around the world, through 24 different countries, looking at the current top 40 in the music charts. Tapping on any song plays a 30 second sample, presumably sourced from one of the various commercial music stores, and the samples play one after the other, playlist style. So for the internationally obsessed music fans among you, you really can take a whistlestop tour of world musical fashion.

In addition to playing through a country’s top 40, 30 seconds at a time, tapping a song also brings up its artwork in larger form (not shown below), plus you can tap through to a video search for that track, with matches shown from various online video sources.

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PHP is a scripting language (it used to stand for Personal Home Page but now means PHP: Hypertext Processor) used by servers to provide web services and can be embedded into HTML documents rather than forcing programmers to call external routines. Doing so makes creating and maintaining pages much simpler, though as this latest vulnerability shows, it can also be less secure.

In this case, the problem is not so much that a vulnerability was found, but that it was accidently made public by some unknown person at Eindbazen [...]]]>

PHP is a scripting language (it used to stand for Personal Home Page but now means PHP: Hypertext Processor) used by servers to provide web services and can be embedded into HTML documents rather than forcing programmers to call external routines. Doing so makes creating and maintaining pages much simpler, though as this latest vulnerability shows, it can also be less secure.

In this case, the problem is not so much that a vulnerability was found, but that it was accidently made public by some unknown person at Eindbazen (the group that found the vulnerability) publishing it to Reddit (a social news website).

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In the 2011 Bertelsmann annual report released this week, Random House said it has nearly 40,000 titles available as e-books worldwide, and while revenues were down for the year, “operating EBIT was higher year on year, especially in the United States. This rise was helped by continued cost-cutting measures and lower return rates in North America and the United Kingdom due to increased e-book sales.”

Similarly, Pearson’s [...]]]> Large book publishers’ most recent earnings reports reflect a new normal: Revenues are roughly flat, but profits are up—in large part due to e-books.

In the 2011 Bertelsmann annual report released this week, Random House said it has nearly 40,000 titles available as e-books worldwide, and while revenues were down for the year, “operating EBIT was higher year on year, especially in the United States. This rise was helped by continued cost-cutting measures and lower return rates in North America and the United Kingdom due to increased e-book sales.”

Similarly, Pearson’s 2011 annual report shows that Penguin’s sales are roughly flat, while adjusted operating profit rose by 5 percent, again due in part to e-book sales. “Penguin sa

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Melissinos, who is former chief evangelist and chief gaming officer for Sun and founder of PastPixels, talked with Network World associate news editor Ann Bednarz about why the art of video games is different from other artistic media, the “separation anxiety” he’s feeling after loaning many of his vintage gaming systems [...]]]> A longtime game designer and collector of gaming systems, Chris Melissinos is the guest curator of the “The Art of Video Games” exhibition, which opens at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. on March 16.

Melissinos, who is former chief evangelist and chief gaming officer for Sun and founder of PastPixels, talked with Network World associate news editor Ann Bednarz about why the art of video games is different from other artistic media, the “separation anxiety” he’s feeling after loaning many of his vintage gaming systems to the travelling exhibition, and why now is the opportune time for an exhibition like this.

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Windows 8 screenshot

Pressured by that trend, Microsoft is updating Windows to make PCs work more like smartphones and to bring Windows to a whole new class of devices: iPad-like touch-screen tablets. Last month, the company launched what it calls a “consumer preview” of Windows 8, the next version of its flagship operating system. The preview is not a final version – that isn’t expected until at least this fall – but it’s close.

I’ve been playing around with the Windows 8 preview for several weeks.

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The brand name of an upcoming Android smartphone for Verizon has surfaced via a leaked internal screen. This phone first surfaced as the HTC Fireball and some images of the device also surfaced.

The new leak published by the folks at AndroidCentral, indicates that Verizon Wireless intends to launch the smartphone as the HTC Droid Incredible 4G. The leak includes the handset’s model number, ADR6410 and the MAP (minimum advertised price) policy that will be assigned to the device.

The HTC Droid Incredible 4G is rumored to offer an AMOLED-based display, a [...]]]>

The brand name of an upcoming Android smartphone for Verizon has surfaced via a leaked internal screen. This phone first surfaced as the HTC Fireball and some images of the device also surfaced.

The new leak published by the folks at AndroidCentral, indicates that Verizon Wireless intends to launch the smartphone as the HTC Droid Incredible 4G. The leak includes the handset’s model number, ADR6410 and the MAP (minimum advertised price) policy that will be assigned to the device.

The HTC Droid Incredible 4G is rumored to offer an AMOLED-based display, a 1.2GHz dual-core CPU, 1GB of RAM, 4G LTE, and an 8MP camera.

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Effectively the E7 form factor but with a base that’s 4mm thicker (full dimensions are 124 x 62 x 17mm;  weight is 191g), the same 4 inch, ‘Clear Black Display’ Polarized AMOLED display [...]]]> A Sunday, and April 1st at that, is an unusual day to launch a flagship product, but Nokia has done this with the new E710 Communicator. Seemingly incorporating some of the best bits of both the N8 and E7, we have, at last, a smartphone that we’ll leave no Symbian fan dissatisfied. Press photos and specifications are all shown below.

Effectively the E7 form factor but with a base that’s 4mm thicker (full dimensions are 124 x 62 x 17mm;  weight is 191g), the same 4 inch, ‘Clear Black Display’ Polarized AMOLED display is used at the usual nHD resolution. Ho

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Whether it’s a weak signal and slow loading, or no signal and no access at all, Wifi problems always seem to occur at the most inopportune times. The goo Wifi networks have become common in the home residence. Sure – it’s a subtle luxury, but the convenience of being able to supply internet access to every computer in the house without the hassle of cords can’t be undervalued. Keep in mind, however, that it’s not all fun and games because wireless connections are infamous for causing a headache or two.

Whether it’s a weak signal and slow loading, or no signal and no access at all, Wifi problems always seem to occur at the most inopportune times. The goo Find more…

Flaws in browser plug-ins remain one of the most popular vectors for drive-by attacks on the web. Thats got everything to do with the fact that a lot of people simply dont pay enough attention to update notifications. Flash Player, Java, and Adobe Reader might be good about telling you theres an update available, but they make it far too easy for users to simply click off the alert and go about their business.

Adobe has finally seen the light, at least when it comes to Flash. Version 11.2.202.228, of the [...]]]>

Flaws in browser plug-ins remain one of the most popular vectors for drive-by attacks on the web. Thats got everything to do with the fact that a lot of people simply dont pay enough attention to update notifications. Flash Player, Java, and Adobe Reader might be good about telling you theres an update available, but they make it far too easy for users to simply click off the alert and go about their business.

Adobe has finally seen the light, at least when it comes to Flash. Version 11.2.202.228, of the ubiquitous plug-in finally introduces an automatic update option at least if youre using a Windows computer.

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