Microsoft loosens up, enables Windows Phone 7 apps to run beneath screen lock

We felt that Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 was a product that would be perpetually evaluated, tweaked and overhauled as time went on, and sure enough, we're already seeing those winds of change blow yonder. Reportedly, Microsoft has now removed the restriction that prevented developers from writing applications that would continue to operate behind a locked screen (without a user's explicit permission, anyway), enabling a whole host of apps to breathe in a manner in which they simply should. Audio apps, for example, will now be able to run in the background without yet another layer of pointless Vista-esque permissions, and Microsoft's Charlie Kindel said in an interview at its Professional Developer Conference that this move "is an example of us continuing to listen to customers." Frankly, it's just more fair -- Microsoft's own ingrained applications could already do this sans user permission (email, Zune playback, downloads, etc.), so it makes sense to give loyal developers that same opportunity. Of course, devs will have to prove that background apps won't burn up an absurd amount of battery life, but that's definitely not an unexpected qualification.

Microsoft loosens up, enables Windows Phone 7 apps to run beneath screen lock originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 22:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Inhabitat's Week in Green: reach for the stars, safer kids and sexier cars

Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green.

This week Inhabitat saw several incredible feats of green architecture reach for the stars as Richard Branson unveiled the world's first commercial spaceport and a lunar solar power tower won the Moon Capital International Design Challenge. We were also impressed by Snøhetta's design for a massive möbius strip-shaped particle accelerator and we caught the groundbreaking of what will be one of the world's most efficient solar skyscrapers in Korea.

Ultra-efficient autos blazed a trail this week as an electric audi shattered a world EV distance record by traveling 372 miles on a single charge. We also caught a glimpse of the future of green transportation as major auto manufacturers unveiled a set of incredible eco concept cars, and we caught wind of a plan to bring these insane traffic-straddling buses to the United States.

In other news, we learned that iPhones and other communication devices may have potentially deadly side effects for kids, and we showcased several innovative designs for safer cycling - an inflatable airbag collar that automatically pops up to prevent injuries and a crash helmet that makes a stink when it cracks.

Finally, to celebrate Halloween we rounded up a ghastly array of ghoulish green designs - from a skeletal x-ray lamp to a skin-crawling camera made from a human skull to a company that will press your mortal remains into a vinyl record. Happy Halloween!

Inhabitat's Week in Green: reach for the stars, safer kids and sexier cars originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 31 Oct 2010 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dutch police manipulate botnet to warn infected users

Filed under: Security

The battle against malware sure has changed over the past couple of years. It's no longer you and I in our chairs at home armed only with knowledge and an antivirus app. No, today's fight against trojans, botnets, and other software evil-doers involves everyone from lawyers to the police.

In the case of the recent Bredolab botnet, it was the Dutch police who stepped up. Following a concerted effort involving members of several security firms and the Dutch National Crime Squad, more than 140 Bredolab servers were seized. Here's where this story really gets good.

After they successfully gained control of the servers, the Dutch Police put the botnet to creative use -- pushing notifications to infected users and providing links to a removal tool. Sophos Labs' Graham Cluely mentions that as many as 30 million PCs may have been infected by Bredo, so what better way to notify users than via the botnet's own plumbing?

Dutch police manipulate botnet to warn infected users originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 26 Oct 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sports Camera Mount for Extreme Cylindrical Action

Have you ever needed to attach “your digital camera to cylindrical objects in extreme conditions”? Perhaps you find yourself cold and shivering in a torrential downpour, Thermos in one hand and umbrella in the other, yet desperate to snap a picture whilst you sip your hot beverage?
With the Flymount, you can do it all, and [...]

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iPhone locked for early 2011 on Verizon, says Fortune

Though Verizon famously turned down the original iPhone before Apple ultimately signed a deal with AT&T, the company's outspoken CEO -- Ivan Seidenberg -- has been very careful over the past couple years to note that he'd love to eventually have an iPhone in his lineup. With Verizon Wireless boss Lowell McAdam tapped to take over the top job next year, what'd be a better swan song for Seidenberg than to finally pull it off? Fortune's new profile of the longstanding chief exec and elder statesman is reporting in very matter-of-fact terms that a CDMA version of the iPhone 4 will be a reality on Verizon in "early 2011," lining up with most of the rumors the interwebs has been generating over the past few months.

The piece details the phone as the culmination of literally years of careful discussions between Seidenberg, McAdams, and Steve Jobs; Verizon's guys claim that Jobs acknowledged in late 2007 that the two companies had "missed something" by failing to partner up. The first visible fruit of those talks is the MiFi-bundled iPad that just launched, but that's clearly a minor stepping stone on the way to an actual handset. Fortune reports that Jobs has voiced his concerns over CDMA in the past and the fact that it doesn't work in nearly as many countries as GSM does, but the story goes on to say that the first model on Verizon's shelves "probably" won't be dual-mode and presumably won't have compatibility with the company's shiny new LTE network, either. If true, that'll make for an interesting battle for the spotlight in the first few months of 2011 as an EV-DO iPhone wages war with a number of LTE phones -- some of which look downright gorgeous -- and might put Verizon in the awkward position of having to heavily push two almost diametrically opposed handset and platform initiatives. Furthermore, it's hard to deny that a Verizon iPhone would stress the carrier's network in ways it's never been stressed before; they may be prepared for it, but there's no way of knowing until it all goes down and they get a sense for uptake and conquests from AT&T. Translation: McAdam looks to have a busy 2011 ahead of him as he transitions into the new office.

iPhone locked for early 2011 on Verizon, says Fortune originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 16:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fortune: Verizon iPhone Debuts Early 2011

The elusive Verizon iPhone is going to become a reality early next year, according to a chorus of mainstream publications.
Following The Wall Street Journal, New York Times and Bloomberg, now Fortune claims that a Verizon iPhone is “fait accompli” (i.e., a done deal).
Repeating past rumors, Fortune says the new iPhone will be compatible with Verizon’s [...]

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The Apple Store is down, nobody here but us chickens

Could it be a Verizon iPhone? The white iPhone 4? Perhaps a surprise Core i3 ULV in the 13-inch MacBook Pro? We can't tell for sure, but our money's on none of the above, folks. We'll be sure to dig through for changes as soon as the house that Jobs built is up and running once more.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

The Apple Store is down, nobody here but us chickens originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 31 Oct 2010 01:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Halloween App Store sale!

Folks, we’ve been flooded with Halloween App Store sales announcements. So many, there’s not even any way to fit them all into a blog post. We’re talking big name, well loved iPhone and iPad apps and games from many of your favorite publishers. Suffice it to say, if there’s a popular app you’ve been waiting [...]

Halloween App Store sale! is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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Get Ready to Kiss IPv4 Goodbye: Q&A With ICSA Labs' Guy Snyder, Part 2

The drive to IPv6, the newer Internet communications protocol, appears to be driven by major networking vendors. Their contention is that we're running out of IPv4 network addresses. They've got the Obama administration behind them, and the White House is pushing to have all federal departments and agencies enable the use of native IPv6 by the end of 2012.

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White iPhone 4 humor ? Saturday fun video

John from the Los Angeles-based sketch group that created this white iPhone 4 response video sent it in, hoping the humor would help ease the sting of non-release. Let us know if laughter really is the best medicine, after the break! White iPhone 4 humor – Saturday fun video is a story by TiPb. This [...]

White iPhone 4 humor – Saturday fun video is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store.

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Get Ready to Kiss IPv4 Goodbye: Q&A With ICSA Labs' Guy Snyder, Part 1

The Obama administration has recently turned up the heat on moving to IPv6, the next version of the Internet protocol after the one currently in use, IPv4. Federal CIO Vivek Kundra issued a memo Sept. 28 instructing CIOs of executive departments and agencies in the federal government to take several actions, including enabling the use of native IPv6, by the end of 2012.

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Sony posts $852m profit: PS3, PC sales up

Sony got itself back in black with a $293m profit last quarter courtesy of improved PS3 and Bravia sales, and the good times continue: the company just posted a second-quarter profit of ¥68.7b ($852m). The Networked Products and Services division that encompasses PlayStation and VAIO was Sony's strongest performer, with revenue going up five percent to ¥369b ($4.6b) on top of 3.5m PS3 sales (a slight increase), a 40 percent increase in PS3 software sales to 35m units, and "significant hardware cost reductions." PC sales were up to 2.3m units from 1.4m units last year, and Bravia and digital camera sales also increased, to 4.9m and 6.2m units, respectively. Now for the bad news: PSP sales continued their precipitous decline, down 50 percent to 1.5m from 3.0m last year. By way of comparison, that's the same number of PS2s Sony shipped this past quarter -- maybe it's time to break out a totally new PlayStation Phone, eh, Sony?

Sony posts $852m profit: PS3, PC sales up originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 10:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sports Camera Mount for Extreme Cylindrical Action

Have you ever needed to attach “your digital camera to cylindrical objects in extreme conditions”? Perhaps you find yourself cold and shivering in a torrential downpour, Thermos in one hand and umbrella in the other, yet desperate to snap a picture whilst you sip your hot beverage?
With the Flymount, you can do it all, and [...]

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Daily Crunch: Caught Edition

Rumor: Barnes & Noble To Show Color Nook Next Week Review: Fantasma Web Runner Remote Control Spider Video: Super-Cute Dancing Hello Kitty Speaker Hands-On With The HP Slate 500, A Windows 7 Business Tablet Ask CG: Do You Need A Computer To Use An E-Reader?

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Choosing Between a laptop and an iPad: A guide

One of the big questions many consumers are faced with today is whether to purchase a laptop or an iPad. We hope to take some of the pressure off and help make that decision easier for you in this guide. Since many of you are already more than well aware of what laptops can be [...]

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Bored? In The Mood To Help Make The World A Better Place? Head To #Whitenoise! [Community]

It's Friday night and you're bored? Head over to #whitenoise and enjoy a few laughs with the folks there. They'll even show you how to make the world a better place using Folding@home. (To learn more about that, head to this commenter-maintained Google Doc.) More »

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Google's Schmidt says Street View-phobes "can just move"

Filed under: Google

Don't like the thought of having Google's Street View cars photographing your home or business? You're not alone, apparently, what with at least 240,000 Germans recently voicing their desire to remain un-pictured.

Good news, everyone! Google CEO Eric Schmidt has a solution for you: just move. Yes, it's the brilliant solution he offered months back when responding to the "what if I don't want Google tracking me?" question. The Onion, of course, had a field day with that one.

What should we expect from the man who told us the only people with online privacy concerns were naughty boys and girls who were doing things they shouldn't?

... We should probably expect more mind-numbing quotes like this one from The Atlantic: "Google policy is to get right up to the creepy line and not cross it." Right... Because standing on the precipice of creepy couldn't possibly make you appear creepy to all of us, right, Eric?

Google's Schmidt says Street View-phobes "can just move" originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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9 Futuristic Monorails... From the Past [Vintage]

Monorails used to be the vision of futuristic travel. Now, that mode of transit has been mostly reduced to inter-terminal airport travel and family theme parks. Take a step back in time and gander at these bullet-shaped babies in action. More »

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Pasteboard is a free and simple clipboard management tool

Filed under: Text, Windows, Freeware

There's no dearth of clipboard management applications. These are usually tools that let you copy and paste multiple snippets of text, append text to your clipboard, or manage images and other rich content in all sorts of clever ways.

Pasteboard doesn't even try to compete with that sort of functionality. It's a single-file application (if you don't count the readme and the PDF manual) that is free, portable, and -- at just 964KB of RAM on my system -- very lightweight.

All it does is give you 10 text fields that you can copy and paste text into. When you close the application, the content of each field is automatically saved, and will show up the next time you run Pasteboard. It's stored as plain text, too -- so if you need to strip links or formatting off of text that you copied from a website, you can just paste it into Pasteboard.

This is nothing you couldn't do with Stickies or with a ton of other applications, but Pasteboard is simple, lightweight, and it does what it says on the tin.

Pasteboard is a free and simple clipboard management tool originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This Bird's Nest for Humans Sure Looks Comfier Than My Office Chair [Furniture]

Come Sunday, I'll probably want to trade my right arm for one of these Nestrests (and a tree to swing from, obviously), such is the pain I'm expecting my post-Halloween hangover to bring me. [Contemporan via Notcot] More »

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