Business

Apple has filed for a patent that would enable it to stop people from illegally recording a live concert or a movie playing in a theater. The patent was filed in late 2009 by Apple inventors Victor Tiscareno, Kevin Johnson and Cindy Lawrence. In the ... document, the three outline plans for an invisible infrared sensor that would be integrated into mobile iOS devices that house a built-in camera (including popular iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch models). The infrared sensor would work in conjunction with the signals emitted from these real-time venues, telling the camera-laden device that it is not O ... (view more)

Android smartphone sales are considerably stronger than those for Windows Phone 7 -- but does it spell disaster for Microsoft? Perhaps not. A new report shows that the skyrocketing Android sales are a blessing in disguise for Microsoft, with ... projected figures indicating that the Redmond-based software giant is actually making more money off Android than they are with Windows Phone 7. Microsoft Gets $5 for Every HTC Android Sold Citi analyst Walter Pritchard revealed that Microsoft gets five times more money from Android than it does from Windows Phone 7 due to an intellectual property (IP) ... (view more)

Alaska Airlines will soon issue its pilots with iPads as a replacement for paper documentation. The main reason for the switch is that the 1.5 pound iPad is lighter. Compared to flight manuals that are roughly 25 pounds, the iPad 2 offers a ... significant savings in weight. Often the paper bundles are so large that it must be carried in a special bag. Among the documents are manuals for specific flights and the systems used on particular aircraft. There are also documents about the procedures that flight crew must follow during a flight. Heft Printing Costs Wiped Out Although buying the iPads ... (view more)

On Thursday, Microsoft gave its first major public demonstration of Windows 8, and showed how it would be used to bridge the gap between PCs and mobile devices. To the surprise of many guests attending the event, Microsoft says that the new ... operating system's hardware requirements will actually be less than the requirements to run Windows 7. Windows 8 Optimized for Varying Screen Sizes and Processors Microsoft recently confirmed that Windows 8 would run on the ARM processor : a low-powered CPU (central processing unit) commonly used on mobile devices such as tablets, and mobile phones. In ... (view more)

Do you consider yourself a big Apple fan? Many people do. Thousands line up for hours whenever the Cupertino-based firm launches a new product. Perhaps it's no surprise, then, that one desperate Chinese teen recently sold one of his kidneys in order ... to buy an iPad 2. $3,000 for a Kidney, and an iPad 2 Shanghai Daily reports that in late April a 17-year-old named Anhui Province Zheng sold his kidney for about 20,000 yuan, or about $3,084. He immediately took that big payout to the nearest electronics outlet, purchasing Apple's popular iPad 2. "I wanted to buy an iPad 2 but could not afford it ... (view more)

David Einhorn's scathing criticism of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer made headlines in recent days when it was suggested that Ballmer was responsible for driving Microsoft stock into the ground. Now, another sign that Microsoft's CEO may be in trouble ... has emerged: it seems his own employees are losing confidence in him. The findings come to us from Glassdoor.com, a business analysis site that tracks vital statistics on big-name U.S. companies, including Intel, IBM and Boeing. In 2008, Glassdoor.com began asking employees from many of these major firms to anonymously rate their CEOs. It seems ... (view more)

A recent poll conducted by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) shows that public satisfaction with Microsoft software continues to rise, large due to the success of the Windows 7 operating system (OS). Microsoft scored a record high 79 ... points in the latest poll figures, marking the culmination of steady increases in each of the last three years. The three-point increase (representing a 7 per cent gain) helped Microsoft attain its highest level since ACSI first began asking Americans for feedback concerning the quality of their computer software nearly five years ago. (Source: idg. ... (view more)

David Einhorn, President of hedge fund Greenlight Capital, has publicly encouraged Microsoft to fire CEO Steve Ballmer, going so far as to criticize the big-name exec for what Einhorn believes has been a "Charlie Brown" management style. The ... comments were made about Microsoft's Steve Ballmer at this month's Ira Sohn Research Conference, held to raise money towards combating childhood diseases. Einhorn has made headlines of late for offering $200 million for a minority stake in baseball's New York Mets. Although the setting wasn't quite where one might expect to hear a tirade about Microsoft ... (view more)

An Italian security researcher has found a new security flaw in Microsoft's Internet Explorer web browser that could allow hackers to steal login information and passwords. The threat comes in the form of a 'cookiejacking' scheme (related to session ... hijacking ), which allows hackers to review website history and then use that to enter protected domains. Rosario Valotta recently demonstrated his cookingjacking findings at security conferences in Switzerland and Amsterdam. He acknowledged that exploiting the flaw isn't particularly easy, requiring a hacker to convince an online user to drag and ... (view more)

Microsoft is working on a covert overhaul of Windows Live SkyDrive, their popular file hosting service that allows users to upload documents and access them from a web browser. The new SkyDrive will be featured as part of the Windows Live Wave 5 set ... of services. Included in the proposed changes is an HTML5 version of its image viewer alongside a refreshed interface to view documents and files uploaded to the free service. (Source: frostapps.com ) HTML5 Ensures Cross-Platform Support The reason that the Windows team is relying a little more on HTML5 is to ensure cross-platform support for ... (view more)