25583212
submission
whisper_jeff writes:
Adobe has briefed its employees on the company's plans to abandon development of Flash player for mobile browsers. "Our future work with Flash on mobile devices will be focused on enabling Flash developers to package native apps with Adobe AIR for all the major app stores. We will no longer adapt Flash Player for mobile devices to new browser, OS version or device configurations. Some of our source code licensees may opt to continue working on and releasing their own implementations. We will continue to support the current Android and PlayBook configurations with critical bug fixes and security updates."
23121642
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whisper_jeff writes:
Offered without commentary (though I'm sure this news will generate lots of comments...), Google has announced it is acquiring Motorola Mobile.
22898604
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whisper_jeff writes:
Endgadget has a story about how Google's Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, David Drummond, made bold complaints about what he calls a "hostile, organized campaign against Android by Microsoft, Oracle, Apple and other companies, waged through bogus patents." He further claims those efforts amount to a "tax" that makes Android devices more expensive for consumers and manufacturers alike, and that "instead of competing by building new features or devices, they are fighting through litigation." Brad Smith, Microsoft's General Counsel, however has responded, tweeting "Google says we bought Novell patents to keep them from Google. Really? We asked them to bid jointly with us. They said no."Relatedly, as blogger John Gruber notes, if Google wanted to use the patents defensively, as they claim, what exactly does Google need to defend against, if not actual patents Android actually violates?
14621610
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whisper_jeff writes:
"The U.S. government on Monday announced new rules make it officially legal for iPhone owners to "jailbreak" their device and run unauthorized third-party applications, as well as the ability to unlock any cell phone for use on multiple carriers."
I would imagine this news will hasten the (official) arrival of the iPhone on rival networks in the US.
13418090
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whisper_jeff writes:
Michael Geist has an article bringing to light an astroturfing campaign by Canada's copyright lobby groups. "The copyright lobby, almost certainly led by the Canadian Recording Industry Association, has launched a major astroturf campaign in which it hopes to enlist company employees to register their support for Bill C-32 and to criticize articles or comments that take issue with elements of the proposed legislation." Needless to say, I think this encourages a letter to one's MP to make them aware of the astroturfing (and what it means) so that politicians won't be fooled by the fake groundswell of support for Bill C-32.
12675978
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whisper_jeff writes:
Engadget has an interesting article up discussing whether or not Android is fragmenting. While the article discusses the concept that it may be more about handsets becoming obsolete at a dramatic pace rather than the OS fragmenting, it also begins by noting that there are currently five different versions of Android on the market, which implies there is a notable degree of fragmentation. Regardless of it being fragmentation or handsets becoming obsolete to new feature sets in a terribly short period of time, I believe this development cycle could turn casual consumers away and hurt Android's chances at long term mainstream success.
12118078
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whisper_jeff writes:
News has come out that Prime Minister Stephen Harper is planning on bringing the DMCA to Canada. As a Canadian, this disgusts me. Watching Harper sell out Canadians in favour of US lobby groups is an affront. I am hopeful that enough Canadians write to Harper and their MPs to voice their disapproval of this effort.
11898430
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whisper_jeff writes:
Palm has found a saviour. Now, the question that remains to be answered is whether or not HP will get value for it's investment...
11370528
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whisper_jeff writes:
In a move that is sure to confound iPhone/Apple-haters everywhere, Apple has approved the Opera Mini browser for the iPhone.
10590592
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whisper_jeff writes:
The BBC is reporting that "a musician was questioned by rail staff for "suspicious behaviour" after writing a set list which included the band name The Killers." While I think the musician (Tom Shaw) was very kind and understanding, given the circumstances, this is yet another example of things being taken to laughable levels. Is there a point when those in power realize that they're going too far? One can only hope...
10146088
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whisper_jeff writes:
I work in a design studio where the production director is also the owner's son (translation = he can do no wrong). He is fond of accessing a designer's computer via filesharing and working directly on files off of the designer's computers rather than transferring the files to his computer to work on them there. In so doing, he causes the designer's computer to grind to a near-halt as the harddrive is now tasked with his open/save requests along with whatever the designer is doing. Given that there is no way he's going to change his ways (since he doesn't see anything wrong with it...), I was wondering if there was a way to throttle a user's shared access to a computer (Mac OSX 10.5.8) so that his remote working would have minimal impact on our work. Google searches have revealed nothing helpful (maybe I should Bing it... :) so I was hoping someone with more technical expertise on Slashdot could offer a suggestion.
6279749
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whisper_jeff writes:
"Bell Canada and Telus Corp. announced Tuesday both carriers will begin selling the iPhone next month ending the de facto stranglehold Rogers Communications Inc. has held on the device since it launched last year." I would make some comment about this possibly reducing the price of plans since there's now competition for the device but I'm not so foolish to think the carriers actually compete...
5734565
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whisper_jeff writes:
Disney has announced they will be purchasing Marvel.
"Building on its strategy of delivering quality branded content to people around the world, The Walt Disney Company /quotes/comstock/13*!dis/quotes/nls/dis (DIS 26.52, -0.32, -1.19%) has agreed to acquire Marvel Entertainment, Inc. in a stock and cash transaction, the companies announced today."
4806825
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whisper_jeff writes:
Ars has an excellent write up outlining how Kiwi Camara (Jammie Thomas(-Rasset)'s new lawyer) is taking a page from the "The Best Defense is a Good Offense" book and going on the attack against the RIAA. Not content to just defend his client, he is laying siege against the RIAA's entire campaign and beginning the work of dismantling it from the bottom up, starting with questioning whether they actually do own the copyrights that were allegedly infringed. And, if you're thinking this is good for everyone who's been harrassed by the RIAA, you'd be right — Camara, along with Harvard Law professor, Charles Nesson, plan to file a class action suit seeking to force the RIAA to return all the (ill-gotten) money they've earned from their litigation campaign. To paraphrase NewYorkCountyLawyer, could this be a sign of the end?
