John Lister

Windows 8 is said to include a new 'app store', where users can browse and install software for their PCs and mobile devices through Microsoft. The news is welcomed by many, as the apps will be under strict regulations. Microsoft, however, will ... retain the ability to delete or remove software programs ("apps") that it deems necessary. The ability to remotely delete software on whim, critics say, gives too much power to Microsoft. Microsoft Offers "Try Before You Buy" Software developers using Microsoft's new app store will be able to offer trial copies of their software ... (view more)

A leading tech analyst firm has predicted Windows 8 will fail to make a splash among ordinary consumers. The reasoning is that the most prominent new feature in Windows 8 is unlikely to be interesting enough to entice users to upgrade. The ... unflattering prediction comes from IDC, which has published a list of 10 predictions for 2012. The comments are only a matter of opinion and are thus largely speculative, however, they carry considerable weight with financial investors. Metro Interface Not Attractive To Most Users Writing about the new edition of Microsoft's operating system, IDC didn't say ... (view more)

A US Senator is demanding answers from a company accused of producing smartphone spyware . The firm, Carrier IQ, denies the accusation, and claims its software is designed solely for tracking service faults on the portable phones. The software ... appears to be installed without consumer knowledge or permission on millions of the handsets. It's usually installed in rootkit form , before the customer takes possession, and is difficult for ordinary users to discover or delete. Officially, the software is intended to track activity on the phone and report back to cellular networks. When faults are ... (view more)

Mozilla's Firefox is in the news this week and not for any positive reasons. The web browser slipped to third in the market behind Google's Chrome, and there's speculation a major financial backer of the browser may pull out. If so, that could be ... the end of the popular web browser. News on market share comes from Statcounter, which tracks visitors to about three million websites and collates this data to provide credible estimates of online usage. Google Chrome Usage Up 550% in 2 Years The company's figures for November show that Google's Chrome is used by 25.69 per cent of people worldwide ( ... (view more)

The controversial Wikileaks site has published documents that appear to show national governments using malicious software to carry out surveillance. The documents flesh out claims by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that private companies are ... profiting by selling the software to governments. Wikileaks has published a total of 287 files used by 160 commercial firms. It says this is only part of a larger collection that will be published, going forward. The most worrying aspect of the products detailed is that they are intentionally designed to bypass the type of security software available to ... (view more)

More than a thousand usernames and passwords from the United Nations (UN) have been published online by hackers. However, initial indications are the attack may not have uncovered anything particularly important. The information was published on ... Pastebin, a website commonly used by hackers releasing details, but who don't want their own sites to be swamped by high traffic. It was published in the name of 'Team Poison', arguably one of the two biggest hacking groups, alongside the better-known Anonymous. The two groups are believed to have recently formed an alliance to target financial ... (view more)

Windows 8 will apparently be much simpler to install and does not require faster hardware specifications than Windows 7, allowing some XP machines to run the new operating system (OS). The changes center around allowing most people to simply ... download Windows 8, unlike previous upgrades that involved great complexity. For example, a user might have to download and run an Upgrade Advisor tool; save files and settings; run the set-up and installation; and finally reinstall all applications and settings. A process like this might involve 60 or so separate screens, many of them repetitive. Windows ... (view more)

A flight attendant on an Australian commercial airplane saved the day after a passenger's iPhone spontaneously burst into flame. No one was harmed. As dramatic as some accounts try to portray it, the event may have been a relatively tame one. ... Reports: iPhone Exploded in Mid-Flight Several major news outlets claimed that the phone exploded, and that it did so in mid-flight. The fact is that the airline's official statement says the incident took place after the flight had landed. It also did not mention an explosion. Rather, the airline says the phone "started emitting a significant amount of ... (view more)

Web users have been warned to watch out for a bogus email claiming to offer vouchers for iTunes as a Black Friday bonus. It's actually malicious software that has been responsible for as much as 60 per cent of current online infections. The emails ... are reportedly coming from the address official@itunes.apple.com , though this is address is fake and may change. Emails have the headline "iTunes Gift Certificate" and contains a text only message claiming that users can get $50 if they use an attached code when making an iTunes purchase. Bogus File Attachment Virus-Laden Unlike many email scams, ... (view more)